Posts Tagged ‘Johnny Damon’

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.

There’s no better words to the ears of Met fans than “it’s the offseason” after a horrific 2009 season that ended with a World Series matchup between the two teams they hate the most. The Mets figure to be in the market for a marquee left fielder and the free agent class has some good ones to offer starting at the top. Matt Holliday, who may be the biggest name on the market, leads the left field class along with Jason Bay.

Left fielders the Mets should concern themselves with:
Johnny Damon – Signing Damon would allow Reyes to bat third and gives the Mets a pesky leadoff hitter. It deepens the Mets lineup, allowing Wright to bat fourth and Beltran to bat fifth.
Marcus Thames – Thames has some pop in his bat and could provide power batting sixth in the Mets lineup.
Marlon Byrd – Byrd had his best year in 2009 hitting 20 home runs and driving in 89. He’s on the second tier and would be a cost effective option at left field.

Left fielders the Mets should make a run for:
Matt Holliday - Holliday is the the premiere name in the 2010 free agent class and is expecting Mark Teixeira-like figures. Pairing him with Wright would make a fearsome middle of the order. Holliday may be better suited in the National League but he’ll get offers from teams all around the league.
Jason Bay – Bay had a big year in Boston and would do wonders in the Mets lineup and locker room. He would be a terror in the middle of the Mets lineup. Bay is going to want a big contract after the season he had in 2009. He had 36 home runs and drove in 119. Boston will be players in the chase for Holliday and Bay and will most likely sign one of them.
Carl Crawford - The Rays have an option on Crawford in 2010 but if they don’t pick it up the Mets should make a play for him. He’ll get less attention than Holliday and Bay and would team with Reyes to make the Mets an all out basestealing team. Reyes and Crawford batting would make the Mets’ three, four and five hitters better.

Dark Horse candidates:
Rick Ankiel – Ankiel had a down year in 2009 compared to ’08 but could make a resurgence with a new team. I won’t call him a center fielder by trade because he was once a pitcher. Defensively, the switch from center to left wouldn’t be an issue. 
Hideki Matsui – The World Series MVP may not be headed back to the Bronx although he would like to. The team in Queens will take a look to see if his knees can handle the everyday grind in the outfield.
Xavier Nady – Nady was with the Mets in 2006 but was playing right field. He’s a veteran and a career .280 hitter. He’d be a nice option behind the upper echelon of left fielders.

The Mets left fielder in 2010 will be:
Marlon Byrd – Holliday and Bay will sign for megabucks elsewhere and the Rays will pick up Crawford’s option. Byrd has put together decent numbers the last three seasons and could break out in 2010 with the Mets.

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.

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.

Johnny Damon’s two-out single in the 9th inning off of Brad Lidge was just the first big play in the inning by Damon. His next big play was stealing two bases on one pitch. With the Phillies’ defense shifted toward right field for Teixeira, Damon stole second, which was being covered by third basemen Pedro Feliz. Feliz caught the ball to the first base side of second base and Damon hopped up from his slide and dashed toward the uncovered third base bag. The Phillies and Lidge were shocked. Lidge especially. Lidge didn’t retire another Yankee out by himself. The third out of the inning was made throwing Posada out at second base trying to turn a two-run single into a double. Lidge recorded the first two outs of the inning with ease.

“It all happened so fast,” Lidge said.

Damon’s heads up baserunning will be a talked about for a while if the Yankees go on to win the World Series. So will A-Rod’s double that drove in Damon to give the Yankees the 9th inning lead. After the game Damon praised A-Rod and A-Rod returned praise for Damon for their contributions during the 9th inning.

“He’s the reason why we’re sitting here right now in Philadelphia. He’s been driving in the big runs,” Damon said referring to A-Rod.

A-Rod referred to Damon’s 9th inning at-bat as “an unbelievable, tenacious at-bat by Johnny Damon.”

Damon and Lidge battled hard in that 9th inning at-bat and Damon came out on top. With guys like Teixiera and A-Rod hitting behind Damon, all Damon needed to do was get on base to give them a chance to bat.

Lidge said, “The whole thing came down to a really good at-bat by Damon. He fouled off some real good sliders. We kind of kept going back and forth. And finally, he got a fastball away and did a really good job of serving it out to left field.”

Lidge could have never expected Damon would be standing on third base one pitch later with Teixeira not even having to take the bat off his shoulder.

“I’m just glad that when I started running, I still had some of my young legs behind me,” Damon said.

Yankees manager Joe Girardi said, “That’s instinct. You’ve got to be sure, when you’ve got Teixeira and A-Rod coming up behind him, but that was a great instinctual play by Johnny.”

Than Yankees now lead the World Series 3-1.

A-Rod may have gotten the biggest hit of his life tonight. With a tie game in the top of the 9th, A-Rod drove a double to left that put the Yankees up 5-4. With Mariano Rivera hovering in the bullpen, one run probably would have been enough. Another two runs would be more than enough. Posada added to the Yankees lead with a two-run single in the next at bat. The Yankees didn’t get down after Joba Chamberlain blew the Yankees 4-3 lead in the bottom of the 8th. They reached deep and answered with three runs in the 9th off of Phillies closer Brad Lidge.

It’s fitting that the Yankees won this game the way they did. This is how they have played all season long. They have so many weapons and so many smart baseball players. Credit Damon for heads up baserunning in the 9th inning. Also credit Damon for putting together a great at bat with two outs in the 9th, ending with a single that allowed him to record that two stolen base play. Johnny Damon went 3-5 in the game with two runs and an RBI.

CC Sabathia pitched on three days rest and gave the Yankees a great effort. He left after 6.2 innings and the lead. Damaso Marte got the final out of the 7th inning and Joba Chamberlain pitched the 8th but made one mistake, which left the ball park and tied the game. Pedro Feliz bombed one off of Joba with two outs in the inning to tie the game.

Mariano Rivera made easy work of the Phillies in the 9th inning, throwing just eight pitches. Expect Rivera to be ready to pitch in game five.

Another dramatic finish to a Yankees game and the Philadelphia crowd, loud all game and series, go home stunned.

A-Rod may have been hit by more pitches (3) than he has hits (2) in the World Series but his two hits were huge.

Tied at 4-4 in the top of the 9th, Johnny Damon singled with two outs. Damon grinded out the at bat and ended up with a hit into left-center field. With Teixeira up next, the Phillies had a defensive shift on and the Phillies third basemen was just to the left of shortstop. Damon stole second and bolted for third knowing nobody was covering the bag. Damon was credited with two steals on the play. Teixiera was hit by a pitch, giving A-Rod the opportunity to bat. A-Rod took full advantage. He ripped a double down the left field line to drive in Damon and out the Yankees head 5-4. Posada drove in Tex and A-Rod with a hit to left-center in his at bat that gave the Yankees some more insurance. Mariano Rivera didn’t need the insurance runs as he set the Phillies down in order in the 9th.

This Yankees team fights until the final out. The Yankees have terrorized yet another closer this postseason. They now are up three games to one over the Phillies. AJ Burnett goes for the Yankees in game five against Cliff Lee, who stifled the Yankees in game one. Both pitchers were dominant in their first starts this series. The Yankees are in the drivers seat and need one more win in three chances to be crowned champions.

The momentum has shifted in the Yankees favor during the last two games after Cliff Lee dazzled the Yanks in game one. After the Yankees tied the series with a huge outing by AJ Burnett, the Yankees won game three in Philadelphia by a score of 8-5 behind some big home runs and a gutsy pitching performance by Andy Pettitte.

Yankee bats awoke from their slumps as A-Rod, Damon and Swisher all came up with big hits. Even Andy Pettitte helped his own cause with an RBI single. A-Rod hit a two-run homer to get the Yankees on the board after they were down 0-3. The original call on A-Rod’s home run was a double but replay clearly showed the ball hitting a camera that was over the fence. The umpires reviewed the play and made the right call. Pettitte’s single tied the game and Damon had a two-run double that put the Yankees up 5-3. Swisher, who went 2-4 in the game, hit a solo home run that gave the Yanks a 6-3 lead. Posada had an RBI single in the 7th and Hideki Matsui, coming off the bench as a pinch hitter, hit a solo home run in the 8th in his only at-bat. The Phillies added to their three runs with two solo home runs in the late innings.

The Yankees are feeling good heading into game four. They have their ace on the mound and a 2-1 game advantage in the series. It was only a matter of time before their bats woke up. They still have some guys struggling like Cano and Melky. This series isn’t over by any means but the Yankees have things set up and the advantage going into game four.

By now you can recite the statistics. A-Rod is 0-8 with six strikeouts in the first two games of the World Series. A-Rod may be the person that everyone focuses on but other players need to start hitting too. Teixeira is 1-7 with a solo home run and three strikeouts. Johnny Damon is 1-8 and Robinson Cano is 1-7. What the Yankees really need to do are string together some hits. They haven’t been able to do that so far in the World Series.

The Yankees’ 2-3-4 hitters have combined for two hits in the first two games. With A-Rod’s supporting cast not hitting, it allows the Phillies to not give him anything good to hit. A-Rod is swinging at a lot of bad pitches. Someone hitting behind A-Rod needs to start hitting and intimidate the Phillies. This way they won’t be so inclined to throwing A-Rod garbage. It falls on A-Rod too because he needs to lay off the bad pitches and work the count into his favor an draw walks.

The Yankees as a team need to walk more. They walked only twice so far in the series and were struck out 22 times. That’s an incredible statistic for a team that lead the Majors in walks during the regular season and also had the 4th fewest strikeouts of any team in baseball.