Yankees 2010 Offseason Plans

The Yankees are the World Series champions for the 27th time in their storied history and there’s no better time to take a look at the upcoming offseason than the day after the season ended. As the team vies for title number 28, all signs point toward Joe Girardi changing his uniform number from 27 to 28 (Yankees don’t want to stay at #27 for long) for 2010 as that’s the next goal of this franchise.

The last time the Yankees came off a World Series championship they made minor adjustments. The biggest move they made between 2000 and 2001 was the free agent signing of Mike Mussina. The Yankees won’t make a big splash in this year’s free agency because there are no major superstars in this year’s free agent class (led by Matt Holliday) and there’s not many placed the Yankees can upgrade (they are the champs for a reason).

The Yankees will start in-house with three guys that could hit the free agent market. They need to make a decision on what to do with 2009 World Series MVP Hideki Matsui, catalyst Johnny Damon, and gritty veteran pitcher Andy Pettitte. It doesn’t seem likely the Yankees will bring back both Damon and Matsui. Damon can still run and play the field but Matsui is a pure hitter and will always hit no matter how bad his knees are. Both players have said they would like to return to the Yankees. If they aren’t retained, retirement is not on the minds of Damon or Matsui. The fact that the Yankees have some aging stars under contract would lead you to believe the Yankees are less inclined to retain Matsui as their DH. As for Pettitte, it would make sense for the Yankees to bring him back in 2010 after the season he had in 2009. The question is whether Pettitte wants to come back. He could ride off into retirement as a winner with five rings if he decides his career is over.

Th next order of business, which we may already know the answer to, is what to do with Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes. It is almost certain they will both start the season as starters but if the Yankees land a veteran starting pitcher, one of them, more likely Hughes, could land back in the bullpen. This is an unlikely circumstance and expect to see both players preparing to be starters in 2010.

The Yankees went hard after free agents CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett and Mark Teixeira last offseason because they knew this year’s free agent class didn’t have many marquee, superstar names. The Bombers can never be counted out during free agency but they won’t be signing three top tier free agents like last year. A middle ground starting pitcher could be somewhere to look at, as well as a corner outfielder.

The 2010 Yankees team will look similar to the 2009 World Series champion team.

Yankees Free Agent Acquisitions Payoff in 2009

Three free agents cost the Yankees over $440 million this offseason. Money well spent if you ask me. Unlike free agent singings in years past, the signings of CC Sabatha, AJ Burnett and Mark Teixeira proved worthwhile. The three first year Yankees each contributed in their own way throughout the season and postseason, and helped the franchise win its 27th World Series.

Since 2001, the Yankees have spent lavishly on free agents but never reached their ultimate goal. Names like Giambi, Mussina, Contreras, Brown, Pavano, among plenty of others, dawned pinstripes with bulky salaries but didn’t help the Yankees clasp the Wold Series championship they coveted.

The Yankees and their fans owe it all to the boss. George Steinbrenner has never been afraid to open his wallet if it means success since he took over the Yankees organization in 1973. He’s looking to put the best product out on the field every year and to extend the Yankee brand.

After the 2007 season the Yankees could have traded away their young players for Johan Santana or other stars. Instead, the Yankees went into 2008 with a young team, were left on the outside of the playoffs for the first time since 1993 (1994 was a strike-shortened year), and spent money on the top three free agents in the 2008 class. If the Yankees had known that missing the playoffs in 2008 would mean a title their first season at their new stadium in 2009, they would have happily taken that tradeoff. This team has such a great mix of players that it’s not out of the question to think they could win again in the next couple of seasons. With the Steinbrenner family in charge, the window for a championship always remains open for the New York Yankees.

Phillies Win Game Five, Send Series Back to the Bronx

Cliff Lee and Chase Utley combined to beat the Yankees in game one of the World Series. They were back at it again in game five. Utley hit his fourth and fifth home runs of the series, tying him with Reggie Jackson for most all-time in a World Series. Lee had another impressive performance against the Yankees although they got to him in the 8th inning. Lee’s line doesn’t exactly show how well he pitched. He gave up five runs on seven hits.

Yankees’ starter AJ Burnett pitched two plus innings and was blasted. He gave up six runs and four walks. The 6-1 Phillies lead after three innings was too much for the Yankees to overcome and the bullpen couldn’t hold the Phillies down either.

New York hitters didn’t put on their best display against Lee until the 8th inning when A-Rod knocked him out with a two-run double off the glove of a diving Raul Ibanez. The Yankees weren’t able to put their best offensive team out there with the pitcher batting and Jose Molina catching for Burnett. The Yankees lineup will be at full strength, minus the injured Melky Carbera, in game six at home but they’ll most likely rely on Andy Pettitte to pitch on three days rest.

The Yankees tried to put together a comeback in the 9th but the Phillies weren’t having it. With runners on the corners and no outs, Jeter grounded into a double play that killed the rally. Damon singled with two outs, giving Teixeira a shot to tie it or at least get A-Rod to the plate but he struck out to end the game.

We go back to the Bronx for game six with the Yankees leading 3-2 in the series.

Burnett To Pitch on Three Days Rest, Ready to Duel Lee

With a similar outing tonight as in his game two start, AJ Burnett could be the Yankees World Series MVP. Burnett gave up one run in seven innings and struck out nine batters to earn his first career World Series victory in game two that tied the series up 1-1. If he can pitch the same and notch another win in game five tonight, he’ll be hoisting the World Series MVP trophy. Burnett has started four games on three days rest in his career and has a 4-0 record in those games with a 2.33 ERA.

“I’d lie if I said I wasn’t going to go home and think about it all night,” Burnett said. “This is what you talk about growing up. I’m going to do my best to take full advantage of that. I’m not going to take it as just one ordinary game or another start. It’s the World Series, Game 5, and I’m the starter. That’s what it’s all about.”

Burnett goes up against Cliff Lee who will try his hardest to reenact his previous start against the Yankees which came in game one. Lee pitched the complete game and didn’t give up any earned runs. He struck out 10 Yankees and gave up six hits in the Phillies 6-1 win. The Yankees have won three straight since Lee’s masterpiece.

Burnett Dazzles Phillies To Even World Series

After two games of the World Series, this has the feeling it could go to the very last out of game seven. The starting pitchers have done an incredible job in the first two games. AJ Burnett turned in what may be the best pitching performance of his Yankee career or maybe even his entire career, given the circumstances.

“It was the biggest game I’ve ever thrown in for this team,” Burnett said. “You can’t let that affect you, and I tried not to let it affect me. I knew I had a big task ahead of me with Pedro on the mound, and I wanted to go out and pitch the best I could.”

Let’s understand something. Pedro pitched a great game. His counterpart, Burnett, pitched better. The back pages of the newspapers wouldn’t read “Who’s Your Daddy” if Burnett and the Yankees staff gave up four runs and lost 4-3. It’s similar to how Sabathia pitched a great game and his counterpart, Cliff Lee, pitched better.

Burnett’s curveball was remarkable and he threw a lot of first pitch strikes. The hardest ball the Phillies hit was Stairs’ RBI single in the 2nd inning. Referring to is curveball, Burnett said, “It was on”.

The Yankees and Phillies are tied at one heading to Philly.

Media Will Soften Up on Yankees After Game Two

A lot of people were worried after the Yankees dropped game one and were baffled by Cliff Lee. The media and sports writers were hard on the Yankees after the game one loss. They wrote articles with headlines like “Yankees get sucker-punched into a crisis” (By Yahoo’s Tim Brown). A lot of people looked at game one and thought the Yankees were in big trouble. The truth is that Cliff Lee was brilliant and deserves credit for the way he pitched. Lucky for the Yankees, Lee can’t start every game of the series. The Yankees offense is too good to be held down.

The media isn’t going to write pessimistically about the Yankees after game two. AJ Burnett made sure of that with a sensational outing.. In his first career World Series start, Burnett gave up one run in seven innings and struck out nine batters to get the win. It was the first win for Burnett in this postseason.

If the Yankees had lost game two and headed to Philly in an 0-2 hole then panic would be worthy. You can’t panic after one game. Especially with the kind of offense the Yankees have. Again, Cliff Lee deserves a ton of credit and AJ Burnett deserves a ton of credit for the way he pitched in game two. We have seen outstanding starting pitching by all four starters so far in the first two games of this series.

Yankees Take Game Two, Even Up Series

AJ Burnett showed up in game two and pitched a masterpiece when everyone said he could be hit or miss in the start. He also did exactly what Girardi and the Yankees wanted; handed the ball straight to Mariano. Mo came in for two innings and held the Phillies down in the Yankees 3-1 win. Pedro Martinez made his return to Yankee stadium and the Yankees made sure he didn’t go home happy.

The turning point in the game was when catcher Jose Molina picked Jason Werth off of first base with a snap throw in the top of the 4th. The Yankees were down a run already and the stadium was quiet. Molina’s pickoff got the crowd going and put some life into the stadium. Mark Teixeira lead off the bottom of the 4th with a solo home run to tie the game at 1-1.

Hideki Matsui gave the Yankees the lead in the 6th with a solo home run that allowed Burnett to have the chance to get the win. Burnett went seven strong, giving up just one run, which came when A-Rod misplayed a ball in the 2nd inning. Burnett also struck out nine batters. The Yankees added some insurance in the 7th when Posada hit a liner up the middle to drive in Brett Gardner.

The World Series is tied at one game a piece as the series heads to Philadelphia for games three, four and five. Lefties Andy Pettitte and Cole Hamels go for their respective teams in game three.

Lee Dominates Yankees in Game One

Cliff Lee mastered the Yankees in game one of the World Series. CC Sabathia got touched up by two Chase Utley solo home runs and the Phillies poured it on against the Yankees’ bullpen for two in the 8th and two in the 9th to win game one 6-1.

Those tack on runs late in the game are costly. It takes away hope. Down by two runs, a bloop and a blast ties the game. Down by six runs, it takes a major rally to come back.

Phil Hughes couldn’t retire a batter in the 8th and left after walking the only two batters he faced. Both of those runners came around to score. If the Yankees have any confidence left in Hughes, it’s miniscule. The Yankees also won’t have much confidence in Brian Bruney after he was charged with two runs in the 9th. After game one, the Yankees may have the most confidence in lefty specialist Damaso Marte, who recorded two big outs in the 8th before being relieved by Dave Robertson. Robertson gave up a hit to the next batter that drove in two runs.

Derek Jeter was the only offensive bright spot for the Yankees with three hits. The rest of the Yankees had a total three hits combined. The Yankees broke the shutout with an unearned run in the bottom of the 9th.

The Yankees face a familiar foe in game two; Pedro Martinez. The Yanks will have a chance to put up some runs and will hope AJ Burnett can shutdown the Phillies offense.

Yankees and Phillies World Series Probable Pitchers

Neither team has confirmed their starters throughout the entire series but here are the probable starters. Game one starters have been confirmed by both teams.

Game 1 Wed, Oct 28. Cliff Lee @ CC Sabathia (Phillies won 6-1)
Game 2 Thurs, Oct 29. Pedro Martinez @ AJ Burnett (Yankees won 3-1)
Game 3 Sat, Oct 31. Andy Pettitte @ Cole Hamels

The Yankees will most like go with just three starting pitchers in the World Series.

The rest of the series could look something like this:

Game 4 Sun, Nov 1. CC Sabathia @ Joe Blanton
Game 5 Mon, Nov 2. AJ Burnett @ Cliff Lee
Game 6 Wed, Nov 4. Pedro Martinez @ Andy Pettitte
Game 7* Thurs, Nov 5. Cole Hamels @ CC Sabathia

* if necessary

Yankees Need To Finish it in Six

The Yankees need to finish off the Angels in game six. There can be no game seven. The job has to get done tonight. There is so much moaning and groaning around New York right now about if the Yankees blow this series then Girardi needs to be fired. Everyone stop. Finish it tonight Yanks. Let the articles in Sunday morning’s papers be about the Yankees and Phillies’ World Series matchup. Not about the all or nothing game seven that would be Sunday night.

I don’t want to hear people calling for Girardi’s head until it’s over. I don’t want to hear about Burnett’s inability to pitch with men on base. I don’t want to hear about Nick Swisher’s dreadful postseason (which the Yankees should put Melky in right, Gardner in center and Swisher on the bench for game six). Not yet. I don’t want to hear about it being a failure if the $200+ billion Yankees don’t win the World Series. I don’t want to hear those things until the Yankees are done and right now, they have a 3-2 ALCS series lead and have two chances to put it away. Do it tonight, Yanks. Quiet the masses. Worry about the Angels now and the Phillies once Mo gets that final out.