Randy Johnson needs 5 more wins for 300 in his career. And, he needs 211 more strikeouts for 5,000 lifetime K’s.

This may be sour grapes, but, as a Yankees fan, I hope that he doesn’t reach either mark. Part of it is being a sore loser over what Johnson did to the Yankees in the post-seasons of 1995 and 2001. And, part of it is still being ticked over the way Johnson came to New York in 2005, making a money grab, and then pitching poorly in 2006, and then running back “home” in 2007.

Am I the only Yankees fan out there who feels this way about the Big Unit and his milestone chase? How do you feel about it?

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I noticed that Joe Girardi hopes for Jorge Posada to catch 100-110 games this season. (Hat tip to YanksBlog.)

So, that means Jose Molina should see about 200 Plate Appearances this year. Or, another way of saying that is that the Yankees, by playing Molina that much, will be giving their opposition about 160 “free” outs this year when Jose comes to bat.

One hundred and sixty outs equates to about 6 games. Hence, the half-dozen contests that New York will be spotting the league by playing Molina as much as it appears he will now…

Yeah, I’m kidding with this…but, only sorta/kinda.

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Via Mark Feinsand -

As for Pettitte himself, he acknowledged that his left shoulder was “in bad shape” down the stretch last season, requiring him to take cortisone injections just to get through some starts. He worked hard this offseason – something he was unable to do last year following the Mitchell Report fallout – and is ready to get his spring started.

“It was definitely a lot less stressful offseason, for sure,” he said. “I was hurting at the end of the season last year, but I addressed that in the offseason and worked extremely hard on my shoulder. I feel great right now.”

Mark my words: Andy Pettitte will win at least 16 games this season for New York. The Yankees are lucky to have him.

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Via John Harper -

In fact, while Joe Torre’s book, “The Yankee Years,” made headlines mostly for its criticism of Alex Rodriguez, perhaps the central theme is how those pitching decisions by Cashman were the most important reason the Yankees stopped going to the World Series after 2003.

Noting that Andy Pettitte, Roger Clemens and David Wells left after that season, the book sums up Yankee pitching acquisitions this way:

“Kevin Brown, Randy Johnson, Jaret Wright, Jeff Weaver, Steve Karsay, Esteban Loaiza, Kyle Farnsworth, Jose Contreras, Javier Vazquez, Kei Igawa, Carl Pavano, Roger Clemens (the 44-year-old version) … none of those 12 pitchers, all brought in from outside the organization, pitched three consecutive seasons with the Yankees. None. It was a losing pattern that defied enormous odds.”

The book then broke down those 12 pitching investments. Record: 125-105 (including 3-7 in the postseason). Cost (not including prospects surrendered in trades): $255 million. Cost per win: $2.04 million.

Such failure was in part an indictment of a farm system that failed to produce homegrown pitching. But when Cashman finally became determined to go with young pitching last season, Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy flopped, and Joba Chamberlain missed time with an arm injury.

So now here come Sabathia and Burnett, a 1-2 punch that could combine with Chien-Ming Wang, Pettitte and Chamberlain to fix all the mistakes and give the Yankees the best starting rotation in the majors.

The only issue here is the one that I pointed out two weeks ago: When you look at some “major” off-season starting pitcher acquisitions made by the Yankees since Brian Cashman became their G.M. (where the pitcher acquired was coming to play home games in New York for the first time) and see how these pitchers with major league experience did did during their first season in New York, you’ll note that Clemens, Mussina, Brown, Vazquez, Pavano and Johnson all pitched like an “ace” in their season prior coming to New York. Yet, only Mussina was able to duplicate that during his first year with the Yankees.

Bottom line, even if you’re great and/or have a ton of talent, that first season of being “the man” on the hill for the Yankees is often no cakewalk.

So, when Harper writes that CC and A.J. “could combine with Chien-Ming Wang, Pettitte and Chamberlain to fix all the mistakes and give the Yankees the best starting rotation in the majors” you really have to accentuate the word “could.” That’s a biggie…at least for 2009.

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SI.com is running an excerpt of Matt McCarthy’s “Odd Man Out.”

I started reading this book just before Torre’s book came out. (I got an advance copy.) Once done with Joe’s work, I’m going right back to “Odd Man Out.” It’s very good – from what I’ve read so far.

Click here to read the excerpt at SI.com. Good stuff.

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Brandon Tierney and Scott Ferrall, yesterday on SNY’s WheelHouse, discuss the question. Here’s the video:

Me? There’s no way that MLB can do anything here. And, if they’re smart, they won’t even try – because the MLBPA, and maybe even the ACLU, would be on them like flies to a road apple. Congress? Well, they’ve said that they won’t ask Alex to appear…but, I suppose that’s always subject to change, right?

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Via Bryan Hoch:

The Yankees agreed to a Minor League contract with Brett Tomko on Friday and invited the veteran right-hander to Spring Training.
Tomko, who turns 36 on April 7, split last season between the Kansas City Royals and San Diego Padres.

He was 2-7 with a 6.30 ERA in 22 combined games (10 starts). Tomko began the campaign with Kansas City before being released on June 20. Tomko signed with San Diego a week later but was released again on Sept. 1.

In his 12 Major League seasons, Tomko has compiled a record of 95-99 and a 4.68 ERA in 368 games (260 starts) with the Cincinnati Reds, Seattle Mariners, Padres, St. Louis Cardinals, San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers and Royals.

Via the Complete Baseball Encyclopedia, worst RSAA marks in baseball, 2002 through 2008, all pitchers with at least 500 IP:

Pitcher	 	RSAA	   IP
Casey Fossum	-85	737.2
Josh Fogg      	-84	1100.0
Adam Eaton	-82	878.0
Brett Tomko	-76	1105.1
Mike Maroth	-73	918.0
Shawn Estes	-70	688.1
Jeff Weaver	-69	1121.2
Scott Elarton	-68	559.0
M. Hendrickson	-65	977.2
Eric Milton	-63	759.1

And, hey, Tomko is also thirty-seven years old!

Yeah, I know, he’s a NRI…but…still…

Seems like a total waste of time to me.

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Tick, tick, tick…

Via the AP -

An unauthorized and highly anticipated book about Alex Rodriguez is coming out a month sooner than planned.

Publication of Selena Roberts’ ” A-Rod: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez” has been moved up from May 19 to April 14 as scrutiny builds on the New York Yankees slugger after he acknowledged using banned substances from 2001-2003 while playing for the Texas Rangers.

“A-Rod,” which reportedly includes salacious details about Rodriquez’s private life, was originally titled “Hit and Run: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez.” Publisher HarperCollins, which this week listed the new release date on its Web site, has announced a first printing of 150,000 copies

.

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Here’s today’s wild thought…on how timing in everything.

What would have happened if Alex Rodriguez’ opt-out year had been 2008 and not 2007? Given the state of the economy over the past year, do you think that the Yankees would have still given A-Rod a 10-year, $275 million, contract? From what free agents have been seeing this off-season, I doubt it.

Now, let’s take this a step further. Take a look at what’s happening with current free agent Manny Ramirez. He’s still holding out for a big payday – while tomorrow is the day that pitchers and catchers report.

What if, since we’re playing this what if game, last season had been Alex’s opt-out year (and not 2007) and he now found himself in a Manny-like situation – meaning waiting until the last minute to sign rather accept less than what he thought he deserved – and, then, the Selena Roberts story broke informing the world that Rodriguez had failed a PED test back in 2003.

Do you think that news would have further driven down the demand for A-Rod? I think that’s very possible.

So, if you find yourself feeling sorry for Alex lately, think about how lucky he is to have structured his last contract to have an opt-out clause in 2007 and not last year. He probably got about $185 million, or thereabouts, more than he would have gotten had his timing been off by a year.

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Feel free to use this post as a place for you to comment on anything Yankees-related (or within reach of tagging the bag of being Yankees-related on a decent slide) today. It could be a casual conversation offering, or, something you saw in the news, or something very detailed that you want to share that’s within the territory of Yankeeland.

Or, comment on something that someone else has posted here in the comments…

Have fun. Play nice. And, remember, keep it Yankees-focused.

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The gang at SNY.tv were nominated for five New York Emmy Awards earlier today. (Hat tip to Pete Abe.) That’s the second highest total number of nominated entries in the New York Emmy Awards’ Advanced Media category. Here’s what was nominated:

ADVANCED MEDIA: Sports

Matt & Ted Go to Philly. April 23, 2008. Fred Harner, General Manager.
New York Baseball Today. August 20, 2008. Fred Harner, General Manager.
Nissan Post Game Extra. April 9, 2008. Fred Harner, General Manager.

ADVANCED MEDIA: Host/Anchor/Reporter
Brittany Umar. August 26, 2008.

ADVANCED MEDIA: Writer/Producer
Jeff Goldman. August 12, 2008.

Congats to the gang at SNY.tv! Well done and deserved.

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Via Neil Best -

Brian Cashman still hasn’t read Joe Torre’s book, “The Yankee Years,” in which he is prominently featured, but he hinted yesterday at significant frustration with what he has read and heard is in it.

“I can tell you the Yankee years that I lived are different than maybe what’s been depicted in that book. Let’s just leave it at that,” he said on WFAN. But Cashman did not leave it at that.

When Mike Francesa asked Cashman about his relationship with Torre, he spoke in the past tense about what was “as good a relationship as any manager and general manager have had, probably in the history of the game. That’s the Yankee years I lived.”

Cashman said the two have not spoken since Torre called him from Hawaii the day tidbits from the book first were leaked.

Told that one theme is the lack of support Torre perceived from Cashman toward the end, Cashman said, “I supported Joe Torre every step of the way while he was here. I probably would say I would be in the Hall of Fame of support of a manager from a general manager’s standpoint.

“So I can sleep well at night knowing that I had his back every step of the way.”

As for Torre’s perception that Cashman became a Moneyball-style slave to statistics, he said, “I would use every tool in the toolbox, and I have always used every tool in the toolbox, so I would disagree with that as well.

“I’m definitely not a number-cruncher. I use numbers. I use feel. I use gut. I use all aspects of it.”

Cashman initially did not answer when asked if he was “hurt” by the book, but he eventually said this:

“The one thing it sounds like I’m disappointed in from that book side of it is the fact the Yankee years I lived, we are so transparent that everybody knows what my failures were, but I also had a lot of successes here, too, and it doesn’t sound like any of that stuff shows up in any books.”

…we are so transparent that everybody knows what my failures were, but I also had a lot of successes here, too, and it doesn’t sound like any of that stuff shows up in any books…

“..doesn’t sound like any of that stuff shows up in any books”?

Any? Really? Maybe G.M. Thin Skin should write his own book?

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SNY.tv checks in with Tim Dierkes of MLB TradeRumors.com. The video is below:

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Melanie Greenberg’s Stuck Out Looking is the newest member of the SNY.tv Blog Network. Melanie is a Yankees fan – but will be writing about Mets, Yanks and many other topics. Check it out.

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Since 2000, A-Rod has never posted an On-base Average below .375 or a Slugging Percentage below .512. And, since 2000, his overall OPS is .992 (in 6,233 PA). Expect another season from Rodriguez with an OPS somewhere in the 900’s. There may be debate over the game conditions under which they are derived, but, the numbers are always there for Alex.

The only thing that can stop him this season would be injury and/or a mental breakdown…or a positive PED test.

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The video via SNY.tv:

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Great view, huh?

Ross at New Stadium Insider has the scoop.

Man, that’s just not right.

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Today’s wild thought may only interest those who are fans of the show “Bones” …

…here it is: If they (whoever “they” are) were to ever do a movie version of “The Paul O’Neill Story,” do you think David Boreanaz should get cast in the lead role?

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This from John Koblin in the New York Observer eariler this week:

“I am going to continue to work on this [Alex Rodriguez] book,” said Ms. [Selena] Roberts when asked if she’s got more news coming. “And that’s where I’m going to leave it.”

“The book is still a work in progress,” said her book editor, Mr. Hirshey. “I assure you she has more drug revelations as well as other news. Not everything that Selena has on A-Rod’s steroid participation has come out yet.”

Could just be a book tease. But, maybe not?

[Hat tip to my buddy Larry for his e-mail - giving me a heads-up on this one.]

[Hat tip update: I just noticed that BaseballThinkFactory.org has a link to this one as well. And, knowing Larry, I bet that's where he got it from...so, a Hat Tip to BBTF too!]

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Feel free to use this post as a place for you to comment on anything Yankees-related (or within reach of tagging the bag of being Yankees-related on a decent slide) today. It could be a casual conversation offering, or, something you saw in the news, or something very detailed that you want to share that’s within the territory of Yankeeland.

Or, comment on something that someone else has posted here in the comments…

Have fun. Play nice. And, remember, keep it Yankees-focused.

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The news (below) came to me today via a MLB Press Release. Nice to see Bobby’s hard work and spirit live on through this award.

Baseball Assistance Team (B.A.T.) announced today the creation of The Bobby Murcer Award, which will be presented to the team in both the American League and National League whose players contribute the most amount of money to B.A.T. through the Major League Baseball (MLB) Payroll Deduction Program. The award will be presented during the 2010 Annual B.A.T. Dinner.

“Bobby was very proud of the work he accomplished for B.A.T.,” said Kay Murcer, widow of Bobby Murcer. “Our family is deeply grateful that his legacy will continue in such a tremendous way through the B.A.T. organization.”

“We are honored to establish this award in memory of Bobby Murcer’s giving and inspirational spirit,” said B.A.T. Executive Director and COO Jim Martin. “Although Bobby passed on at the young age of 62, his efforts and commitment to the B.A.T. organization will live on through those he left
behind and serve as a perfect example of how things should be done. He is greatly missed, but never forgotten.”

Through the Payroll Deduction Program, Major League and Minor League players and coaches can donate a portion of their salary to the B.A.T. organization. In 2001, as a member of the B.A.T. Board,Murcer led the charge and began the yearly practice of visiting MLB clubs during Spring Training to update the current-day players regarding the goals and objectives of B.A.T. These meetings laid the groundwork for annual Spring Training visits to ask for financial support from the players, and have generated $5.5 million in revenue for B.A.T since 2003.

The 2009 tour will begin in Arizona on February 18th and conclude in Florida in late March with B.A.T. representatives visiting the 30 clubhouses asking players and coaches for their financial support and help in identifying members of the baseball family in need.

B.A.T. was founded in 1986 to assist former major league players but has expanded its assistance over the years. In addition to assisting ex-Major League players, B.A.T. also offers support to former Major League managers, coaches, scouts, umpires, front office personnel, Minor League players, Negro League players, their widows and children and players from the Women’s Professional Baseball League.

All aid provided by B.A.T. is strictly confidential, allowing those in the need to receive help discreetly.

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Just saw this via Dan Roche last week –

It looks like former Red Sox and Oriole first baseman Kevin Millar will become a Toronto Blue Jay.

The deal is expected to be finalized Friday and announced later on this afternoon. It’s expected to be a minor league deal.

Millar chose between offers from the Yankees and Blue Jays. Playing time was probably the biggest factor. In New York, he would have been brought in as a good clubhouse influence.

What did the Yankees want with Kevin Millar? Ewwww…

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Has it really been six weeks since I last left off with the 2009 Forecast Series? Yikes. Well, there’s just a few player left…so, let’s pick it up again and finish this off…and who better to start again with than Jeter?

Over his first 38 games in 2008, Derek Jeter’s OPS was .778. In his 39th game last season, Derek was hit on the hand by a pitch from Daniel Cabrera. Over his next 21 games, Jeter’s OPS was .563 (in 96 PA). From that point on, over his last 90 games, Jeter had an OPS of .815 (in 403 PA). Something tells me that Jeter will be Jeter in 2009 – and he should post better numbers this year, barring injury, than he did in 2008.

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There’s been a lot of talk out there lately, since Alex Rodriguez’ failed 2003 PED test has come to light, about whether or not “Performance Enhancing Drugs” are what they claim to be, etc.

Well, have you ever heard about Stuart Stevens’ experiment five years ago?

Greg Bishop wrote about it three years ago. Here’s a snip from that:

An avid skier and cyclist, [Stuart] Stevens watched cross-country skier Johann Muehlegg keep two of three gold medals from the 2002 Olympics when he tested positive after his third race. Intrigue grew into an idea. Stevens found plenty of positive and negative literature on the subject, but nothing that explained the actual effects.

So Stevens hooked up with an anti-aging doctor near his home in Southern California. They worked out a plan that introduced one drug to his body at a time.

They started with HGH, injecting it in Stevens’ stomach, at the cost of about $850 a month. Sun blotches that used to dot Stevens’ arm faded away. The scar on his forehead disappeared. His reading glasses suddenly never left their case.

Testosterone came next, rubbed like cream onto Stevens’ stomach. Then he started injecting himself with EPO, which gave him migraine headaches and cost $3,000 for 20 weeks. Stevens says he wouldn’t take EPO again if somebody paid him to, but he would continue HGH if it wasn’t prohibitively expensive.

Lastly, Stevens added an anabolic steroid. He took deca-durabolin, and despite being ridiculed as soft on steroid message boards, watched a year-old cycling injury to his left knee heal within two weeks.

He gained 15 pounds, from 195 to 210, without lifting weights. It brought on an “Incredible Hulk” feeling and gave Stevens a “werewolf effect.”

“Most of the stuff wasn’t really frightening,” Stevens says. “This stuff is fairly transparent in the sense that you don’t feel different. You can just do more. But with steroids, there’s an immediacy to it. I felt like I swallowed a freight train.”

And, to read the full Stuart Stevens’ story, click here. It’s an incredible report on how PEDs work.

More muscle, increased strength, improved eye-sight, miracle recovery from injury…yeah, those things could never help a baseball player, right?

Hat tip to X-M Radio’s Baseball This Morning show today for alerting me to this story.

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Jon Heyman is reporting that Bobby Abreu and the Angels have an agreement on a one-year deal worth a little more than $5 million – which also includes incentives.

Related, previously, I got on the Yankees and Brian Cashman for not offering salary arbitration to Abreu.

Seeing what Abreu had to settle for with the Angels, it’s clear my opinion back then was wrong. In the end, this was an excellent call by Brian Cashman. And, he deserves to get credit for making the smart move here with Bobby Abreu and the lack of a salary arbitration offer.

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“Becoming Manny: Inside the Life of Baseball’s Most Enigmatic Slugger” is coming out this March. And, “Hit and Run: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez” is coming out in May. Any thoughts on which one will be the bigger seller?

My money is on the A-Rod book…unless the folks in Boston haven’t had enough of Manny yet.

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Alex Rodriguez claims that he didn’t know that he had failed a PED test back in 2003 until recently when Selena Roberts told him about it.

However, in April 2004, when the feds seized records of the 2003 PED tests, MLB and the MLBPA came to an agreement to postpone 2004 testing of those who failed the test in 2003 until the MLBPA was able to notify the players that they had tested positive.

Reportedly, between August and September 2004, MLB pressed the MLBPA to notify the players so that they could be tested (in 2004, as required by the policy) before the year was out. And, again, reportedly, by September 2004, all players had been informed that they had failed in 2003.

So, A-Rod knew back in late 2004 that he failed a PED test in 2003 – and his claim of not knowing this until recently is bull-dung. Where am I going with this? Stay with me…

As far as who leaked the info on A-Rod to Selena Roberts, it could only come from those who knew about it. That pool is not very deep. It’s MLB, the MLBPA, the feds (and maybe Barry Bonds’ defense team – but that’s doubtful) and A-Rod himself. No one else should have known about the 2003 test results – unless someone among the feds, MLB, the MLBPA, etc., told a friend and that friend then leaked it.

Now, to that latter point, would Roberts have been O.K. with reporting this story with the source being a person once-removed, etc.? I doubt that. And, I doubt that it was MLB or the MLBPA who leaked the story on Alex. Further, why would the feds do it? There’s too much at risk, for the feds, to do it.

But, there’s another angle here. If Alex knew in 2004 that he failed in 2003, then you can bet credits to navy beans that Cynthia Rodriguez, his wife at the time, knew about it as well. Could you imagine a husband not sharing news like that with his wife?

And, this leads to today’s wild thought: Could it be possible that A-Rod’s ex-wife, Cynthia Rodriguez, was the one who leaked this story to Selena Roberts? Well, she had the ammo and the motive, no? I know recent reports suggest that Alex and Cynthia have been playing nice lately, but, that’s now…and who knows how ticked she was back then?

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Is it just me, or, is this one priceless?

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Feel free to use this post as a place for you to comment on anything Yankees-related (or within reach of tagging the bag of being Yankees-related on a decent slide) today. It could be a casual conversation offering, or, something you saw in the news, or something very detailed that you want to share that’s within the territory of Yankeeland.

Or, comment on something that someone else has posted here in the comments…

Have fun. Play nice. And, remember, keep it Yankees-focused.

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Sounds like a FOX TV show…but, interesting stuff nonetheless…

(more…)

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