Yankees, Pettitte Sign One-Year Deal

The Yankees and Andy Pettitte have come to an agreement on a one-year deal worth $11.75 million. The 2010 season will most likely be Pettitte’s last.

Pettitte was the Yankees number three starter last season behind CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett. He will most likely anchor the same spot in the rotation barring a major pitching acquisition by the team.

Pettitte went 14-8 with a 4.16 ERA during the 2009 regular season. He went 4-0 with a 3.52 ERA in the postseason.

Yankees, Mets Hot Stove December 7

Monday, December 7 Hot Stove Reports

Yankees – Andy Pettitte has decided he will pitch in 2010. The Yankees and Pettitte look to come to terms on a one-year deal.

Mets – Rumors today have Pat Burrell being traded to the Mets in a three-way trade from the Ray that includes the Cubs. Several sources say this is inaccurate. David Lennon of Newsday disputes the report. He tweeted, “Oh, and forget Burrell to Mets - period. Source just said team not interested in him. Not in 3-way, not in any way.”

Yankees – Joel Sherman of the New York Post has tweeted, “Yankees trade Bruney to Nationals”. Yankees get a player to be named later in the deal.

Mets – Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported the Mets have interest in Royals pitcher Gil Meche.

Yankees – Marc Carig of the Star Ledger tweeted the Yankees have had “initial talks” with Mark Derosa.

Mets – The Mets have denied reports of acquiring pitcher Edwin Jackson from the Tigers. 

Yankees – The Yankees have been linked to discussions for Tigers center fielder Curtis Granderson, but the asking price is supposedly Phil Hughes and Austin Jackson. Way too high of an asking price for the Yankees. They could add another player or two and acquire Roy Halladay if they wanted to trade those chips.

The Mets were linked to an incredible amount of players today but nothing came of it. Rumors are rumors and in this age of technology rumors can spread quickly by anyone. Trusted sources aren’t always easy to come by.

Pettitte Back to Yankees in 2010

The Yankees have said their first priority this offseason would be dealing with their own free agents. Put a check mark next to Pettitte’s name. Pettitte says he will pitch in 2010 according to several sources. After 2009, the lefty was debating retirement or coming back for one more year. 

2010 will most likely be Pettitte’s last season. Now that he has made the decision to play, the Yankees and Pettitte have to come to terms on a one-year deal. 

Pettitte was the starting pitcher in each postseason series clinching game.

2010 MLB Free Agent Predictions

Major League Baseball free agency kicks off when the clock hits midnight on November 20, 2009 and here are Empire Sports Now’s free agent predictions as it pertains to the Yankees and Mets and also the top free agents so it should make things very interesting for online betting.

Matt Holliday LF – Cardinals. Holliday will be the first left fielder to sign and will stay in St. Louis. Dark Horse – Mets

Jason Bay LF – Red Sox. Bay already rejected Boston’s four-year, $60 million deal but they’ll get something done, especially once Holliday signs. The Red Sox don’t want to be left without Holliday or Bay. Dark Horse – Yankees

Johnny Damon LF – Athletics. Former Athletic Jason Giambi signed with Oakland after the Yankees, Damon will do the same. If not Oakland, he’ll be back with the Yankees.

Hideki Matsui LF/DH – Yankees. The Yankees and Matsui will come to an agreement on a one-year deal.

Andy Pettitte SP – Yankees. It’s either retirement of the Bronx for Pettitte and it looks like he wants to pitch one more year.

John Lackey SP – Mets. The Mets won’t get Holliday, Bay or Figgins so they’ll spend on Lackey to pitch behind Santana. Dark Horse – Yankees

Marlon Byrd LF – Mets. He’s the next best option at left field for the Mets behind Holliday and Bay. He’ll also be a lot cheaper.

Other notable predictions:
Carlos Delgado – Marlins
Jason Marquis – Mets
Chone Figgins – Angels

Agree or disagree? Let us know.

Yankees Trade and Free Agent Rumors

Here are some rumors going around about the Yankees as of November 12, 2009.

The New York Post reports Scott Boras, agent of Johnny Damon, is making a case that his client deserves a contract similar to Jeter. Boras is looking to get Damon a deal for three or four years while the Yankees would like to bring him back for one or two years tops. Read the article

If Boras sticks to his guns then Damon’s days in pinstripes are over. Cashman isn’t going to dish out big bucks to Damon until he’s 40 years old. The Yankees have prospect Austin Jackson waiting in the wings and he should better ready in the next year or two. The Yankees can find a cheaper, younger alternative for left field.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post has also reported that the Tigers will be taking offers for Curtis Granderson and believes the Yankees will be interested. Read the article

I’m probably in the minority but I’m not so sure I like this. Granderson started hitting for power in ‘09 and his average plummeted. In ‘09 he hit 30 home runs and batted .249 with a .327 OBP. His OBP was over .360 in ‘07 and ‘08 and he hit 23 and 22 home runs those seasons. He hit .302 in ‘07 and .280 in ‘08. If he stole more bases I think it would be a no-brainer (20 SB in ‘09, 12 SB in ‘08, 25 SB in ‘07).

Brian Cashman on Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes: “I look at them as starters that can relieve.” Read the article

This could change if the Yankees add a starting pitcher or two.

SI reports that Andy Pettitte is leaning on coming back to the Yankees for one more year.

Pettitte has supposedly told some Yankees he wants to play one more year.

The Yankees, looking for another starting pitcher, have been linked to having interest in free agent John Lackey, the Blue Jays’ Roy Halladay and SI thinks Derek Lowe of the Braves.

Some teams are concerned with Lackey’s durability. If the Blue Jays put Halladay out there, expect the Yankees to be bidders along with the Red Sox, Mets, and some other teams. I’d rather see the Yankees go with a young pitcher, like Hughes, Kennedy or maybe Brackman, rather than trade for Derek Lowe.

Yankees Jeter, Pettitte and Posada on Letterman

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 Win 27th World Series

The Yankees 2009 season started with a trip to the pool hall on an afternoon during spring training. It ended with a World Series championship. The new Yankee Stadium’s inaugural season started with a Boston fan named Gino Castignoli burying a Red Sox jersey under the structure. It ended with champagne and the Commissoner’s Trophy. The 2009 season started with an A-Rod press conference and ended with A-Rod coming up clutch in big postseason at-bats. February was a long, long time ago.

The Yankees needed everyone to win the championship. Not everyone had Hideki Matsui numbers in the World Series but it took a complete team effort to get to October and get through the ALDS and ALCS. Phil Hughes had a tough postseason but was a big reason why the Yankees had such a strong regular season. Robinson Cano didn’t have many hits in the postseason but batted .320 in the regular season.Then there’s Damaso Marte who had an injury plagued regular season and became Girardi’s go-to-guy with outstanding pitching in the postseason.

There’s also the guys that are consistent; The “Core Four”. Jeter, Rivera, Posada, Pettitte were good all season and their postseason experience shined in 2009. Rivera was the only closer in the postseason not to blow a save. Pettitte was the starter in each of the Yankees three series clinching games. Posada came back from an injury riddled 2008 season and led the pitching staff and clubhouse. Jeter was Jeter. What else can be said about the Yankees captain.

On to the newcomers. Sabathia, Burnett, Teixeira, Swisher. The Yankees don’t make it to the World Series without acquiring these guys. Sabathia was incredible in the postseason. He went 3-1 in five starts with a 1.98 ERA in the postseason. Teixeira led the AL in home runs during the regular season with 39. He also had two big postseason home runs. Remember back to the first month of the season and Nick Swisher kept the Yankees going when A-Rod was out with injury and the bats were as cold as the April and May weather.

Finally, A-Rod. He was clutch. Nobody can say he chokes in October anymore. He put his critics to rest. He batted over .360 in the postseason with six home runs and 18 RBI. A-Rod was a big reason why the Yankees won number 27.

The Yankees broke in the original Yankee Stadium with a World Series championship in 1923. In 2009, the Yankees broke in the new Yankee Stadium with a World Series championship.

Yankees Home for Game Six of World Series

The Yankees have two chances to win the World Series in the Bronx starting with game six Wednesday night. Andy Pettitte takes the mound for the Yankees on three days rest against long-time Bronx nemesis Pedro Martinez. The Yankees have played seven home games this postseason and have lost only once. That was game one of the World Series. In game two of the World Series, facing Pedro, the Yankees got an outstanding pitching performance by AJ Burnett and beat the Phillies 3-1. In game three, Pettitte gave up four runs on five hits in six innings but gave up two solo home runs to Jason Werth.

Where does the momentum lay heading into game six? Do the Phillies have it after holding off a Yankees late inning rally and hitting the ball hard in game five? Do the Yankees have it now that they’ll be playing in front of their home crowd and have the postseason’s all-time winningest pitcher on the mound for game six followed by CC Sabathia in game seven if necessary?

The advantage has to be for the Yankees. Obviously the Yankees need just one more win and the Phillies need to win both games at Yankees Stadium. The starting pitchers in games six and seven favor the Yankees. So does the fact that they’re playing at home. Pedro pitching on four days rest compares to Pettitte pitching on three days rest because Pedro has been pitching over long layovers. Sabathia has to be heavily favored over anybody the Phillies put out there in game seven. The Yankees lineup goes back to full strength having a DH at home Posada behind the plate.

The nerves of Yankees fans have never been the same after 2004. They’ll never take any series lead for granted. Fans can’t help but be a little nervous about Pettitte pitching on short rest after he told some players he didn’t have much left in the tank game three. The Pettitte-Pedro matchup should be a good one but not a pitchers duel.

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.