Yanks/Twins Again

I am just going to update this post throughout the game. Here is an update already via Peter Abraham. Jorge Posada has been scratched with shoulder discomfort. I don't want to read too much into this yet, as it isn't pain or anything like that. Hopefully it was just him playing a couple of days in a row and also sitting through a long bus ride there and back yesterday. I am sure they will be asking Girardi about this after the game and lets see if he has really changed by how he answers the questions. The game is about to start be back soon with updates. UPDATE: Here we go again with the Joba debate, Michael Kay had to bring it up in the beginning of the telecast. Derek Jeter is being featured and he is talking about the upcoming season. He said other then the 2001 season this was the first time when he knew when the last day of the season would be and he didn't like it. He is happy with the aquisitions they made and he talked about the importance of supporting Arod. He said there is a lot of excitement about the new stadium and they can't wait to get up there and see it and get going. He is feeling melancholy about the old stadium and talked about his speech on the last day. He is confident in the team this year. He said the goal continues to be a world championship and hopefully they stay healthy and they will have a great shot at accomplishing their goal. UPDATE: Peter Abraham of the Journal news spoke to Girardi and posada. They are calling this the first setback, Posada felt something the other day but still played yesterday. He has no pain when he throws or hits. He said he wanted to play today but they wont let him do anything until Tuesday. He isn't too concerned just said its sore. Hopefully he will feel better in a couple of days. You can listen to the audio at http://yankees.lhblogs.com/ Joba got a groundout and then a single by Nick Punto and rbi double by Delmon Young. Jason Kubel then had a rbi double. Everything Joba is throwing is up and they are just killing it. He got out of further trouble with 2 groundouts. UPDATE: Jeter singled, Tex doubled and Arod just missed one but got a sac fly. Swisher just grounded one to third and he reached on an error for another run. Cano walked but Molina grounded out. UPDATE: Dan Giese pitched the second inning and gave up a solo homerun to Carlos Gomez. Duncan singled,Melky had a bunt hit and then Damon a sac bunt. Jeter had a sac fly. Top of the third now: Dan Giese is getting hit around, a single,wild pitch, walk and 2 run double off the wall. 5-3 Twins now, rbi single to make it 6-3 Twins. Not that Dan Giese had much of a chance anyway but he is definitely not helping his case today. He finally got out of the inning with a strike em out throw em out double play. I probably won't do as many updates now, but I will check back in a couple of innings. I think Kei Igawa is coming in to pitch, time to turn off the TV. UPDATE: Jose Veras had an impressive inning with 2ks and a popup. Shelly had another hit in the 4th trying to get back on the 40 man roster. Melky didn't help his cause with a K. Mike Dunn gave up a couple of hits but no runs in the fifth for the Yankees. Kei Igawa had 2 shutout innings schocking i know. Kanakoa Texiera had a 1,2,3 8th The Yankees meanwhile on offense have done nothing since the 2nd inning

Johan Santana sidelined

The word out of Mets camp doesn't sound too good. Ace pitcher Johan Santana who Hank Steinbrenner coveted is out indefinitely. It appears he may have tendinitis in his elbow, when I get more information I will post it. He hasn't gone for an MRI as of yet but it wouldn't be shocking if the Mets got him out of there secretly to do that, they are still downplaying this but if your a Mets fan, you have to be worried, if he is gone for a length of time during the season the Mets are in big trouble. The Mets take on the Tigers today at 1:05. I was going to post the Mets lineup for today but I can't seem to find it, oh well be back later with updates.

Yanks/Twins Again

The New York Yankees take on the Minnesota Twins again today this time from George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa. Joba Chamberlain gets the start followed by Kei Igawa,Dunn,Veras,Giese and others. The lineup for this game is: Damon Jeter Tex Arod Posada Cano Swisher Molina Cabrera Melky better get something going because Gardner is looking real strong and has passed him by in the CF battle so far. Posada is still the DH and won't catch until March 15. Today and tomorrow the big guys will play and then Cano,Jeter,Arod will leave for the WBC. The game is on YES today at 1 so I will have posts as I am watching the game. Arod also will meet with MLB investigators tomorrow about the steroids issue. The WBC will start up next week and be shown live on the MLB Network. Get used to seeing a lot of Berroa,Leone,Ransom etc for the next couple of weeks at least while the regulars are gone. Next week Team USA plays the Yankees and that will be interesting, the game will be on YES as Derek Jeter takes on the Yankees. Enjoy the game everyone and check back for updates during the game.

My Interview With Chad Jennings

Here is my interview that I did with the Scranton Yankees beat writer. He does a great job in AAA, you got to check out his blog at http://community.thetimes-tribune.com/blogs/yankees/ He did a great job with this interview and I hope you guys really enjoy it. Thanks to Chad again for doing this. Guys please support him and his blog, im sure you will enjoy seeing what he has to write. First I would like to ask you for a little bio of yourself? I grew up on a farm in Southeast Missouri and started driving a tractor when I was roughly 12 years old. Out of high school, I majored in journalism at the University of Missouri -- I also minored in political science and economics, though it's not entirely clear why -- and moved to Scranton in January 2003. I shared the baseball beat for a couple of years and have been doing it full time for the past four seasons. I know Scranton only became a Yankees farm team a couple of years ago, but how long have you covered the Scranton franchise for??Just the two years they've been here. Do you ever dream of doing the same job for a major league team?? Sure, I'd like the challenge of a big league beat, but I do enjoy covering minor league ball. Did you always want to be doing what you are doing now? If not what did you want to do when you were younger?? When I was young I wanted to be a farmer like my dad, but when I was about 15 I realized I really enjoyed writing and I've wanted to do this ever since. Early on, I wanted to cover basketball, but I've found that I really like the grind of a baseball season. Is the traveling tough? Does your employer cover meals, lodging etc? Most everything is covered by the newspaper. The travel is tough at times -- I don't enjoy leaving Buffalo at 11 p.m. to drive four and a half hours and cover a game in Scranton the next day -- but I'm not married and I don't have kids, so being on the road is not as hard on me as it is some other baseball writers. What is the most fun time of the year for you, spring training? The Regular Season? The offseason?? My time in spring training is probably when I'm most busy, but I like the work. My most fun time of the year is probably the middle of the regular season when I'm in the routine and feel like I'm on top of things. I'm much less busy in the offseason, but I don't enjoy it nearly as much as when I'm working my way through the season. Have you ever got to cover a major league team?? What was that experience like if you did so? I've never covering a big league team as a full time beat, but I've covered plenty of major league games in St. Louis, Philadelphia and New York. My first experience in New York was a lot more comfortable than I expected. I'd never been to the stadium, but I knew so many guys in the clubhouse that I felt at ease. What player that you have covered has been your favorite to cover and why?? I covered Dan Giese for a long time, so it was fun to watch him make that run to the big leagues last season. Several years ago, I enjoyed covering A.J. Hinch because he was very willing to share his experience and knowledge. On the field, I've always enjoyed watching the speed guys. Shane Victorino. Brett Gardner. Justin Christian. Pablo Ozuna was a lot of fun to watch too. I also saw Ryan Howard hit some absolute bombs and watched Chase Utley play as well as anyone I've ever seen day in and day out. Those guys were fun to cover. What player has been the most challenging to cover and why?? He wasn't a bad guy, but Cole Hamels was tough only because he was such a big name prospect that I had to be careful not to over do it. It would have bothered a lot of the guys in the clubhouse if I fallen all over myself trying to write too much about Hamels. To some extent, it's that way with Phil Hughes and some of the other starting pitching prospects in the Yankees system. I have to find the right balance between reporting on the individual big names and reporting on the team as a whole. It's important to do both. What player are you most looking forward to seeing this year in Scranton?? Obviously it will be interesting to watch Austin Jackson try to take that last step to the big leagues. I'm also curious to see whether Kevin Russo can put himself on the big league map. But I'm most interested in seeing how Hughes, Kennedy and every other young starting pitcher responds to New York filling it's rotation through free agency this winter. Do you think it is neat to cover these guys and then some of them become stars or good players in the majors?? Do you ever keep in touch with any former scranton guys that have made it big?? Sometimes it's neat. Sometimes it's inevitable. I enjoy watching Giese and Chris Coste as much as I enjoy watching Utley and Howard. As far as keeping in touch, those relationships are different from any other. I might send a text message or something to check in or ask a question, but for the most part staying in touch is limited to talking the clubhouse or on the field during the season. It is, however, always a lot of fun to see those guys after they've moved on. Victorino positively attacked me the last time I saw him. Is there another job that you would ever want to do?? I'm pretty happy doing this, but most any form of writing would be a lot of fun. You think Aaron Sorkin needs an intern? If you weren't covering baseball, what other sport would you like to cover? I covered men's college basketball for a year and enjoyed it. That was a good University of Missouri team and I covered them through the Elite Eight. Lack of access in college sports, though, is annoying. I've often wondering what it would be like to cover tennis or golf. The travel would probably be insane, but it might be a lot of fun. Is it easier to write up a story for the newspaper or to work on the blog you have?? They're completely different. Day to day, I'm not sure one's easier or harder, but there is certainly less pressure with the blog. I pretty much get to do whatever I want on there, and the only deadlines are the ones I put on myself. What gave you the inspiration to start your blog?? My boss told me to start it. Does that count as inspiration? What are your favorite sports teams?? University of Missouri. Of course. Do you reside somewhere near the stadium during the year?? I live about six miles from the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre stadium. I used to live about 20 miles from the stadium. It's a lot better this way. How do you think the New York Yankees will do this year?? Hard to pick against them, isn't it? It's the depth that makes me think they'll do well. The one place they don't have much depth is the infield, and most of those guys have little or no history of being injured. You know a pitcher or two is going to break down for a little while during the season, but the Yankees have plenty of depth in the rotation and the bullpen. That's why I think they're the team to beat in the East. What player on the Yankees would you like to interview if given a chance?? I'm trying to learn Spanish and would love to get to the point that I could interview Robinson Cano or Melky Cabrera in Spanish. A one-on-one with Alex Rodriguez would obviously be nice because he doesn't seem to give those very often. There's no one in that clubhouse who I would want to interview simply because he's a "star." Outside of the Yankees, I think the best stories in baseball might be Josh Hamilton and Rick Ankiel. I'd love to be in a position to write those stories. Especially Ankiel because his comeback seems to have been overlooked a little bit. If it's not going to be me, somebody get Gary Smith on that one! .AOLWebSuite .AOLPicturesFullSizeLink { height: 1px; width: 1px; overflow: hidden; } .AOLWebSuite a {color:blue; text-decoration: underline; cursor: pointer} .AOLWebSuite a.hsSig {cursor: default}

Interview with AAA Scranton Yankees Beat Writer

Keep your eye out for my interview with AAA Scranton Wilkes Barre Yankees beat writer Chad Jennings. He does a great job with his blog at http://community.thetimes-tribune.com/blogs/yankees/. I should be posting it later tonight and if not for some reason it will be up tomorrow.

Mets/Cardinals

The New York Mets lost their first game of the spring to the Cardinals 9-8 today. Luis Castillo had his first 0-fer of the spring. Livan Hernandez got the start and pitched 2 perfect innings with 1 K. Freddy Garcia followed him and didn't fare so well giving up 2 hits and 4 runs with 3 walks in 2/3 of an inning. David Wright and Jose Reyes didn't have any hits either today. Ryan Church had a double and Bobby Kielty had a HR. The Mets will play at Lakeland against the Detroit Tigers tomorrow.

Yanks/Twins Recap

The New York Yankees lost their first game of the spring 5-4 to the Minnesota Twins. Ian Kennedy started and gave up 1 hit, 1 walk and had 3ks in 2 innings with 0 runs allowed. Jorge Posada continued his hot start with 2 more hits, Brett Gardner also looks to be out in front for the CF job as he had 2 more hits, a walk and stolen base. In the last 3 innings the Yankees pitching gave up 4 runs. The pitchers were Brackman,Kontos,De La Rosa and Jackson. Anthony Claggett who the Yanks got in the Sheffield trade pitched 2 innings giving up 1 hit with 1 strikeout. Austin Jackson had 1 hit in 2abs. Nick Swisher went 2 for 3, he has looked good so far in 2 games. Melky Cabrera was 0-3 and looks to be losing ground quick, he better start hitting soon or he will be a bench player. The Yankees will be back in home against the Twins tomorrow, Cano,Arod Jeter will all be back in the lineup, Joba Chamberlain gets the start. Francisco Liriano gets the start for the Twins.

Baseball News

Manny Ramirez rejected the Dodgers latest offer yesterday which was for 2 yrs 45 million and a player option in the second year. Today Scott Boras is saying he will accept that offer but only if it is a real offer, it is thought that the Dodgers are trying to get sneaky and not really pay him that but spread it out over a few years. It will be interesting to see what happens here but they need him and he apparently needs them as he has had no other offers. The Mets got a bit of a scare yesterday when their Ace Johan Santana was scratched from a start with elbow stiffness, he will take the weekend off and try again on Tuesday. Hopefully it is nothing serious but you always worry when a pitcher has an elbow or shoulder issue. The WBC starts next week and players will start leaving their teams this weekend.

Yanks VS Twins

The New York Yankees travel to Fort Myers today to face the Minnesota Twins. The starting lineup will be: Gardner(CF),Ranson(2B),Swisher(1B),Posada(DH),Nady(RF),Cabrera(LF),Berroa(SS),Leone(3B),Cervelli(C). The big guys did not make the trip, they will be playing the Twins tomorrow at home before leaving for the WBC on Sunday. The big guys are Cano,Arod,Jeter if you didn't know. The Pitching is Ian Kennedy followed by Eric Hacker,Andrew Brackman,Wilkin De La Rosa,Anthony Claggett and Michael Dunn. It will be interesting to see how Ian Kennedy responds this year after a terrible yr last year and then being vilified after some postgame comments he made. Eric Hacker is a guy Posada said to keep your eye on, of course Brackman is a guy everyone is watching. Wilkin De La Rosa is a interesting pitcher, he switched from OF to pitcher and may move up the ladder quickly, he is a lefty. Michael Dunn is also a converted lefty pitcher. It will be good to see how Posada bounces back the day after a strong game and also a long bus ride. Enjoy the game, it isn't being covered. The lineup information is courtesy of Peter Abraham and his blog http://yankees.lhblogs.com

More on Yanks Game Today

I did watch the entire replay of todays game on YES tonight. I have some thoughts, im going to start by saying Robinson Cano looked great in the field while he was in there, making 2 outstanding plays, showing some range and hustle. I also noticed that Shelly Duncan still has some serious power and emotion. The pitchers, i am very high on Mark Melancon and liked what I saw out of him in his one inning of work, I think he may make the team out of spring training but if not you will see him up at some point this year. Brian Bruney looks just awesome, he has the potential to be lights out in the 8th and then people will forget about Joba if he is doing well as a starter. Jon Albaladejo also lost some weight and looks good himself, but I think its a numbers game and he wont make it. JB Cox gave up the only run and got hit around a little, boy has his stock dropped, he was a well thought of prospect and isn't thought of much anymore. Damaso Marte and Phil Coke looked good as well, I really think they will carry 2 lefties in the pen. I like the versatility Coke offers being able to start, short relief, long relief. What really stood out to me as I said before was that Phil Hughes fastball was popping and showing up at 90-92 on the YES gun which is pretty good for this time of spring, if he is healthy I expect him to be back up to 94-95 and with that he can be very effective. Ian Kennedy goes tomorrow in Fort Myers against the Twins, I don't think many regulars are going to be down there. Tex may go and maybe Posada but I don't think Arod, Jeter, Cano will play as they made the first trip. When I get the lineups and pitchers after IPK I will post it tomorrow morning.

Giants Lock Up Earth

The New York Giants and running back Brandon Jacobs agreed to a 4 yr 25 million dollar deal. If you listen to GM Jerry Reese the Giants are going to bring back Plaxico Burress as long as he is a free man. Also Brandon Jacobs said he is all they need to win another Super Bowl. I think the Giants still should of won without him but they just couldn't adjust to life without him and hopefully they won't have to anymore.

The Mets are 2-0 Also

I forgot to touch on this yesterday but the Mets won their opener yesterday and also came back today and won in their grapefruit league opener. Luis Castillo has been the leadoff hitter and looks very good so far, having 5 rbi yesterday and a single, stolen base and 2 walks today. Jose Reyes batting third had 2 hrs, maybe Manuel is right batting him third. The only thing I would worry about is he trys to hit homeruns, his game is his speed and you don't want to take that away from him. Carlos Beltran also homered today, one thing noticed yesterday is all the hits to the opposite field the Mets had which the coaching staff has been working on with them and Jerry Manuel said its good for that to happen early as the players are likely to say wow I guess the coaching staff does know what it's talking about.

Postgame audio from Joe Girardi

Here is what Joe Girardi had to say after the game. It was mostly baseball talk but of course there was some other stuff about Arod. Postgame audio from Joe Girardi Posted using ShareThis

Yanks Win Again

The Yankees defeated the rays in tampa today 5-1. Phil Hughes pitched 2 scoreless innings, he did hit 2 batters but was just coming inside and hit them, not a big deal. Jorge Posada had a homer and rbi double in his first game, Shelly Duncan smacked a 3 run homer as well. Big Tex had a hit in his debut. I am going to watch the replay and have some more comments later on after I see the pitchers. I did notice that Phil Hughes looked really toned up, he looked good and it looked like his fastball was popping which is a good sign.

Spring Game 2: Rays at Yankees

Here are the lineups and pitchers via Peter Abraham. The lineup the Yankees have very much resembles a lineup you would see in the middle of the summer. Matsui is still not ready to play but will be in a couple of weeks. Yankee fans will get their first look at Big Tex over at first base, Jorge Posada will DH, so we can see how he looks with his shoulder even though he isn't going to catch for a while. The game is on YES, most of us can't watch but can catch the replay later tonight on YES. I am most interested in seeing Mark Melancon pitch, of course it will be good to see Phil Hughes who I think will have a bigger impact on the team then people think this year. Spring Game 2: Rays at Yankees Posted using ShareThis

Spring Training Game 1

Brett Gardners son and wife were in attendance today. He had gone 127 at bats last year in the majors without a homer and today he took the second pitch out. His 3 month old son Hunter won't remember it but when he gets older his dad can tell him about that in his first game. Gardner brought his son into the clubhouse to show him off after the game. There was no audio available after the game. Tomorrow the Yankees have their Home Grapefruit league opener with Phil Hughes starting. Melky will be in CF and Tex will make his Yankees debut at first base. Phil Coke, Mark Melancon,Jon Albaladejo, Damaso Marte and Brian Bruney will all be pitching also. The game is on YES at 1:15pm with a replay at 7:00, it will be great to see the Yanks back on TV. Reggie Jackson had some interesting things to say, how he is dissappointed in Arod and how he was 6th on the all time hr list when he retired and since then 5 guys have passed him by and most of these guys were juicing. He said he is a fan and that is why he takes the steroid issue personally and has even got in trouble for comments he has made but he is a fan and can't help it.

Yankees Win Theeeee Yankees Win

The New York Yankees beat the Toronto Blue Jays 6-1 in their grapefruit league opener today. Dave Robertson loaded the bases in the ninth but escaped. Arod had a 2 run HR and 2 walks. The only pitcher to give up a run was Jose Veras who had a rough day with 2 walks, a hit and giving up a run. Arod said the crowd didn't bother him and that he hopes they bring the same people to fenway. I will be back later with some more notes from the game.

Spring Game 1: Yankees at Blue Jays

Here is todays starting lineup for the first Grapefruit league game of the year. It is great to have baseball back. Arod will get his first taste of what is to come on the road. I would watch Brett Gardner as he battles Melky for the CF job and gets the first shot today. It is nice to see Shelly out there today as he brings lots of energy. Juan Miranda really has no shot with Big Tex coming over now but may be auditioning for other teams. It will be a while before Jorge actually catches in games, so this is a chance to see the other catchers, it will be good to see top prospects Jesus Montero and Austin Romine when they get on the field. You have to love the first 2 pitchers today Brett Tomko and then Kei Igawa. I am intersted to see how Dunn does as he is now being groomed as a reliever, David Robertson is fighting for a spot in the big league bullpen. Christian Garcia is another well thought of prospect but hasn't been able to stay healthy, he is still only 23 years. I thank Peter Abraham for having the information that is in the link below. He is of the Journal News and http://yankees.lhblogs.com. I will be back later with some ideas, it is great that the games are now beginning and we can really talk about baseball. Spring Game 1: Yankees at Blue Jays Posted using ShareThis

Picture From The Last Workout Before the Games Begin

Here are the Pics from Today in Tampa. Yogi and Reggie arrived today. The team was hard at work after playing hooky yesterday.

Jerry Manuel Making Some Noise

The New York Mets manager Jerry Manuel has been making some noise. The latest is yesterday he announced that rookie Daniel Murphy would be his starting leftfielder and that Ryan Church and Fernando Tatis would platoon in RF. He said earlier in spring training that he would use Luis Castillo in the leadoff spot and Jose Reyes in the second or third spot in the order. It will be interesting to see if he is just tring to motivate some of these guys or if he is serious. The Mets have otherwise been quiet. Jonathan Niese who is vying for the fifth spot in the rotation pitched 2 hitless innings in a intrasquad game yesterday. John Maine threw today and said his mechanics are rusty. JJ Putz pitched then jetted off to Arizona to be with his wife who is giving birth, he said he plans on being back on Friday to pitch against team Italy. The Mets will play the Orioles in Ft Lauderdale tomorrow in their grapefruit league opener. The only regulars making the trip are Luis Castillo, Daniel Murphy and Ryan Church. I thank http://metsblog.com for having this information. For the Mets fans check this site out it has great information regarding the Mets.

The Pitching Schedule For First 2 Games

Tomorrow against Toronto: Brett Tomko will start followed by Kei Igawa, Christian Garcia, Mike Dunn, Dave Robertson, Dan Giese and Jose Veras. They will pitch in that order. Thursday against Tampa at home: Phil Hughes will start followed by Phil Coke, Brian Bruney, Damaso Marte, Jon Albaladejo and Mark Melancon. They will pitch in that order. The traveling roster for tomorrow will be this Derek Jeter,Arod, Robinson Cano, Justin Leone, Eduardo Nunez, Ramiro Pena, Cody Ransom and Kevin Russo. Those guys are the infielders. The Pitchers will be the guys you see above along with Steven Jackson and Anthony Claggett. The outfielders making the trip are Shelly Duncan, Colin Curtis, Brett Gardner, Austin Jackson, Todd Linden, John Rodriguez and Nick Swisher. The Catcher are Jesus Montero, Kevin Cash, P.J. Pilittere and Austin Romine. Arod will have his first chance to see the crowd reaction in enemy territory and this is what he said today about that: "I have had a lot of practice the last eight years." " Hopefully just get three good at bats, get some good running in and go home and have a nice dinner." When he was asked about the upcoming meeting with MLB he said he had no idea when it would be that he has heard the same thing the media has, probably they have heard more. He said he is just waiting to hear from somebody, maybe Jean, im not sure. No one knows if he meant Gene Orza the MLBPA official or Jean Afterman the Yankees assistant GM. One last note I forgot before is that relief pitcher Edwar Ramirez has mild bursitis in his shoulder and will be shut down for the next three days.

Last Full Squad Workout Before The Games

Today was the last workout with the Grapefruit league starting play tomorrow. The New York Yankees will be traveling to Dunedin, Florida to face the Blue Jays. Here are some notes from today: Jorge Posada will DH on Thursday. Hideki Matsui still has a little ways to go before he is ready to play. He will start his running program soon. Jorge continues to do well with his rehab, his arm strength appears to be good. The Yankees are very optimistic about his progress. Derek Jeter did all his running today and seems fine, he is ready to go for the WBC. Alfredo Aceves will start on Sunday against Cincinnati. He ran the table off the break during one of the pool tournaments yesterday. Phil Hughes said " a shark". Bernie Williams was back in camp after a 3 day absence and took some BP. Arod, Jeter and Cano who will all be leaving for the WBC will play Thursdays game at home and skip the trip to Fort Myers on Friday.

Rangers Fire Renney

The New York Rangers who got off to a great start this year are in the midst of a freefall being only 2 points clear of 9th place in the conference. They are in danger of not making the playoffs and today they fired their head coach Tom Renney. I thought he was a good coach and I liked the way he handled things, but ultimately they didn't seem to respond well lately too him and also he had nothing to do with the personnel changes but someone has to be blamed and we know the GM Glen Sather is the owners pet and would never take any blame. It is being reported that the New York Rangers new head coach will be fiery John Tororella who led the Tampa Bay Lightning to a stanley cup in 2004. He was a former rangers assistant coach and his style would be a stark contrast to that of Tom Renney who was known as a laid back players coach. I think ultimately this comes down to the players but maybe this will be the spark that they need.

Phil Coke News

I forgot to mention this before but Peter Abraham of the Journal News did ask Joe Girardi in the clubhouse today about Phil Coke. Phil Coke was told to prepare to be a starter but then of course the Yanks went out and signed CC,AJ and resigned Andy Pettitte. Joe Girardi said he is a reliever and that is how the organization now views him. Phil Coke said although he was always a starter he enjoyed being a reliever last year and would like to continue in that role especially if thats how he will make the team. I think there is a good chance he will make it and be a second lefty in the pen which i think is important. I do think Phil Coke can be this teams left handed version of Ramiro Mendoza as he could spot start, long relieve, face one lefty or pitch an inning. A guy like that can be very valuable and I expect Coke will be used in that way. There is no word yet on Edwar Ramirez shoulder, hopefully I will find out tonight and be able to post something about it later on.

MO is the Man

Mariano Rivera is not only the greatest closer of all time but a billiards champ as well. He won both tournaments today one with Phil Coke and the other with Andy Pettitte. What is there that Mo can't do well, it doesn't look like anything. The guys all seemed to have a great time today and I think this will go a long way in helping the players be a closer knit group, great job by Joe Girardi taking a cue from New York Giants Head Coach Tom Coughlin who went through a similar experience in 2007 and lets hope this leads to the same results a title at the end of the season. I am going to post some quotes from the guys below. Joe Girardi said this " I have never been on a team that has done this before, but I often wondered why." " There's a lot of other sports that do these type of things. We can get away from the park and enjoy each other off the field and get to know each other." Jorge Posada said this: " It's all about really getting together." " If I was a young man coming on this trip, it's something that you don't see often. You can hang out with the veterans and be away from the field." " Hopefully we start some relationships here and get going. We have a lot of young guys and we need to be on the same page. I think this is going to help us." Johnny Damon said: " Today is one of those days as a ballplayer you will never forget." I don't think any team has ever really done this. It says a lot about Joe. He knows we have been working hard and he rewarded us." Big Tex said " It makes you relax and realize we can have fun off the field. Once we get on the field its all business, but we can build some relationships as well." He also said it was the most fun day of spring training in his career. " I really think this was a great idea by Joe Girardi and shows he knows he had trouble last year with relationships and is going to improve on that, he is a good manager but needs to improve in that way and with the media and so far has done a good job. I think this is going to go a long way with his team.

Yankees Play Pool

The Yankees found out around 9:30 this morning that thye wouldn't be practicing but instead manager Joe Girardi who apparently is a changed man decided to take the team to a local pool hall where they would participate in a 2 on 2 8 ball tournament. Here are the pics courtesy of the New York Yankees.

CC and Wang Today With Dave Eiland

Both looked good today with Wang getting Arod on two sliders and CC well he is just crazy good. This information came from Peter Abraham of the Journal News

Jorge Posada Doing Well

I am sorry that the last post was so long but there was a lot of things to get to today and notice nothing about steroids which is great. I wanted to write this about Jorge Posada seperate because I think this is so important. It was a good sign today that Posada ended up throwing from 220 feet. " I threw a lot today," he said. " It feels a little better everyday. Tony Pena who is the catching coach as well as bench coach loves it and it feels good coming out of my hand. There's no pain and I feel stronger." Posada estimates he is at 85 percent. He wouldn't even be close to 100 percent at this point if he didn't have surgery so this is a great sign. Jorge is the fiery leader and you just don't find too many catchers that can hit like him so yes he is a huge deal. I am feeling more and more confident he will be fine but lets see how he is when he starts catching in games.

Catching Up With Yankees News

The Pitchers for today were as follows: Melancon,Tomko,Hacker,Brackman,De La Rosa,Claggett,Jackson. The other group was: Hughes,Wang,Sabathia,Marte,Aceves,Ramirez CC was talking to some of the beat writers today and informed them that he is a Oakland Raiders fan. He played tight end in high school and was recruited by UCLA and Cal but was going to go to Hawaii because they were willing to let him play both baseball and football. "Then I got picked in the first round," he said. Mark Melancon was very impressive today according to Peter Abraham of the Journal News and http://yankees.lhblogs.com. He watched him pitch today to Derek Jeter,Robbie Cano, Austin Jackson and Austine Romine. He said his fastball was as advertised, he also threw five curveballs with 4 of them being strikes, its a big curve. He threw 30 pitches in all. The Yankees were very careful with him last year coming off of Tommy John surgery but he is now ready to be unleashed. I really think he has a good chance of making it out of spring training and if not he will be up by the end of the year, this kid has the tools and the makeup and may be the closer post MO.v Edwar Ramirez cut short his bullpen today due to a sore right shoulder. If this is seious at all which is too early to say then guys like Melancon and Robertson are going to have a really good chance at making it. The Grapefruit league begins on Wednesday for the Yankees and the pitchers for the first four games are set up as follows: Wednesday-Brett Tomko, Thursday-Phil Hughes,Friday-Ian Kennedy,Saturday-Joba Chamberlain. The main pitchers will be held back until late next week. Jorge Posada really liked what he saw from Melancon. He said his fastball had a late cut and that was what was leading to the swing and misses today. Posada also liked his curveball. He also said that Eric Hacker is a guy to keep an eye on, he throws 95 and its easy, very impressive. Derek Jeter has some hamstring soreness, it doesn't appear to be a big deal. I wouldn't worry about anything like this at this point, it really is no big deal, a lot of these muscles are being used now like they haven't been in a while.