Bullpen be damned.

On the same day the Yankees saw perhaps the top bullpen arm on the market, Matt Capps, get traded from Washington to Minnesota, they opted to restock their bench/clog up the rotating DH.

First, the official deal is Austin Kearns coming from Cleveland for a player to be named later. Kearns is only 30, yet playing in his ninth season as a pro, splitting his with Cincinnati, Washington and Cleveland. He’s a lifetime .257 hitter with some decent pop. He’s mostly played in right field, although I’m guessing he can play some left as well.

His career average is a bit better against lefties, although in about 1,500 less plate appearances against them.  So chances are he’ll be a pinch hitter and the Yankees’ fourth outfielder. That means that for now, we’re nearing the end of the Colin Curtis era, or we’re ending the Marcus Thames 2.0 experiment. Curtis is younger and less experienced, but Thames is also a right-handed batter who is better against lefties. With Thames, though, you’re not really getting someone who you’d want to play out in the field. So we’ll see who stays.

But now, onto Lance Berkman. The most important thing to know about Berkman is that he has two nicknames, and both are great. First up, we have Big Puma, which would be a solid nickname if he other wasn’t Fat Elvis. But it is,so nevermind Big Puma. Fat Elvis. If Brian Cashman came out and said the Yankees traded for Berkman solely because his nickname is Fat Elvis, I don’t think you could fault him. I might be even more excited about the move.

Seriously, though, John Sterling is going to have fun with those, isn’t he? And really, if John Sterling is happy, I’m happy. How soon until we get a “Fat Elvis has left the building” call on a Berkman homerun? Or maybe a “Fat Elvis tells the pitcher ‘Thank you, thank you very much’ for that juicy peanut butter and banana sandwich down the middle!” That ones a bit long. I also wouldn’t put it past Sterling to go with something Big Puma related. I don’t know what, though. I’m really hoping he goes with Fat Elvis. If we get to hear John Sterling do an Elvis impression, this goes down as one of Cashman’s top 10 moves ever. Regardless of how he plays.

The deal, according to Joel Sherman of the NY Post, is for two prospects.Earlier today, he Tweeted

Heard #Yankees are sending T-A reliever Mark Melancon and Low-A infielder Jimmy Paredes to #Astros for Berkman

Well, so much for Melancon being our next great reliever. Anyway, how does Berkman fit in?

Read the rest of this entry »

It doesn’t seem like the Yankees will go quietly through the trade deadline. Here are some trade rumors swirling around:

Jim Bowden (@JimBowdenXMFOX) of Fox Sports Radio tweeted, “Yankees making hard run at Ted Lilly of the Cubs and Scott Downs of the Blue Jays…and have had conversation with HOU on Berkman.”

Richard Justice (@richardjustice) of the Houston Chronicle tweeted, “Seems to be decent chance Lance Berkman gets traded this afternoon. Yanks seem be leader, but Rays, others interested.”

Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) of the NY Post goes further and tweets, “Yankees are definitely in for Lance Berkman, considering him seriously.”

Numerous media outlets suggest the Yankees are out of the running for Adam Dunn.

If I had to guess, I’d say the Yankees will be making a move before Saturday’s trade deadline.

Rex Ryan led the New York Jets to the AFC Championship during his first season as a head coach. The organization is thanking Ryan by giving him a contract extension.

According to Jay Glazer (@Jay_Glazer) of Fox Sports, the Jets have given Rex Ryan a two-year extension. Ryan’s contract now runs through 2014.

Ryan is the Jets’ guy and his passion and schematics should lead to success on the field as long as he is coaching there.

Now if the front office could take care of Darrelle Revis and/or Nick Mangold, the Jets will have all of the pieces happily together to make a run at a title.

The following is a screenshot of ESPN.com’s front page. Take a look at the bottom right.

Here is a closer look:

Notice anything odd? According to ESPN.com’s front page, we’re all waiting for A-Rod to hit home run number 567. Weird mistake to make and it’s been up for quite a while. So while ESPN awaits A-Rod’s 567th home run, the rest of us await A-Rod’s 600th home run, which is a much bigger, more even plateau.

After much speculation on the landing place of Houston Astros ace Roy Oswalt, it has been confirmed by ESPN that Oswalt will be traded to the Philadelphia Phillies. The Astros will acquire J.A. Happ and two prospects in return for their former ace. Oswalt, after requesting a trade, was widely considered to be the prize of the summer trade deadline after Cliff Lee, and it was assumed that whoever got the perennial all-star would become an instant contender. The Mets were even rumored in some of these trade talks as a potential trade suitor for Oswalt, but now fans must watch another high profile player suit up for Philadelphia.

What does this mean for the Mets? Well, it makes their quest for a division title that much more difficult. The Phillies will have a three-headed monster of Roy Halladay, Oswalt and Cole Hamels heading down the stretch, and are now the favorite to catch the Braves atop the divison and head deep into the postseason. The Mets hate to see this happen, but they have to focus on improving their own game – especially on the road, if they want to be in contention this fall.

In an effort to shore up their backcourt, the Knicks are looking to sign shooting guard Shannon Brown.

According to Ken Berger of CBS Sports:

The Knicks have extended an offer to Shannon Brown and are waiting to hear whether the Lakers’ free-agent guard will take it or wait for L.A. to make room to re-sign him by trading Sasha Vujacic…

Shooting guard seems to be a hole in the Knicks starting five right now. Signing Brown would round out a very good starting five for the Knicks. With Raymond Felton at point guard, Brown would give the Knicks a solid backcourt. Danilo Gallinari, Amar’e Stoudemire and either Anthony Randolph or Rodney Turiaf would round out the starting five and the Knicks will find themselves making a push for a pretty good playoff spot in the East. Guys like Toney Douglas, Wilson Chandler, and Bill Walker would come off the bench. I like the team the Knicks have put together and hopefully Brown joins the team.

As I am not a native New Yorker, I don’t get the chance to get to Yankee games as much as I’d like.  So, needless to say, when I set out Saturday morning to make my first trip to the Bronx this season, I was very excited.  But as I got off at exit 6 of the Deegan and made the familiar drive up the road to the garage at 153rd and River Avenue, I was met with an absence I wasn’t quite ready to face.  Gone was Old Yankee Stadium, no longer there to majestically appear around the bend and greet me as she had throughout my childhood.  That visage used to give me chills every time it rose before me.  On this days it’s absence gave me chills of a different kind.

As I gazed into the emptiness, the memories came back so thick, it was as if they happened only yesterday.  My first trip to Old Yankee Stadium was as a twelve year old.  I remember the unbelievable feeling I got when I walked out of the concourse and into the stands.  The history, so rich and alive, enveloped me and took me in.  It was at that moment that I learned what it really meant to be a Yankees fan. Read the rest of this entry »

Joba Chamberlain has become a pretty popular trade chip being asked for by other teams in baseball. Last week, the Diamondbacks requested Chamberlain be part of a package in a deal for Dan Haren. Haren wound up being traded to the Angels.

The Yankees, in need of bullpen help, are looking at Blue Jays’ reliever Scott Downs, but it appears the Jays are asking for Chamberlain in return.

For a guy that has underachieved as a setup man, he seems to still be a wanted guy and the Yankees are showing reluctance in trading him.

Joba’s name is going to keep coming up in trade ideas before the July 31 trade deadline, but I don’t think the Yankees are going to trade him.

One reliever the Yankees are looking to trade is Chan Ho Park. Park hasn’t pitched well at all and also missed some time with an injury. The Yankees will dangle his name out there, but they probably won’t get a bite.

The Jets have Santonio Holmes, Braylon Edwards and Jerricho Cotchery as their three main receivers right now. Holmes, however, is suspended for the first four games of the season and the Jets will be left with Edwards and Cotchery to start the season. Is that why reports are surfacing that the Jets are interested in Terrell Owens?

According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter:

The Jets have contacted Owens’ agent, Drew Rosenhaus, and have debated the idea of bringing the high-profile wide receiver to training camp.

A deal between the Jets and Owens still is considered a long shot; one person estimated the Jets’ chances at signing Owens at “20 percent.”

I don’t foresee the Jets signing Owens. I know, I know, everyone is going to say how he’ll ruin the locker room and mess up chemistry, but this team is already built with many different pieces from all over the place and guys with all sorts of different backgrounds and experience. I wouldn’t mind the Jets signing Owens if he can still contribute, but at this stage of his career, he’ll probably be more of a headache than anything else because he’s not going to put up big numbers which used to makeup for what he said and did.