ARod to Opt Out

Q. What do you call 25 guys sitting around watching the world series?

A. the Yankees



Also, go to ebay and type in this search:

50 Years of Yankee Pinstripe Loyalty
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Good stuff on ebay!

Of course ARod was going to opt. I don't blame him a bit. I'm guessing Red Sox or Cubs.
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Boog! That was too funny!
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The Yankees are coming upon tougher times. For the first time in 11 years they did not win their division, but finished 2nd. Then they hastily exited the playoffs in the first round for the third year in a row. The Yanks haven't won a Series in seven years. The Boss is growing old and more infirm. Brian Cashman has already admitted that he will have a serious rebuilding job on his hands for next year. Joe Torre walked out on the Yanks after 12 years, throwing some barbs at the front office over his shoulder. Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada are free agents who will be ages 36 and 38 next opening day but who will cost plenty to re-sign. Roger Clemens is 45. And now their best player, and the best player in baseball, has chosen to walk rather than endure the remaining three years on his contract, and so will make his new home somewhere other than the Bronx.

The New York Yankees are no longer the glamor team of major league baseball.
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I am hopeful in the next 10 days Andy Pettitte declines his player option and files for free agency, citing the need to play his remaining seasons with a team that has a chance at the World Series.
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joepepsi wrote:

I am hopeful in the next 10 days Andy Pettitte declines his player option and files for free agency, citing the need to play his remaining seasons with a team that has a chance at the World Series.

Girardi was Pettitte's personal catcher, so I think he'll hang around to play for Girardi, if he's physically able.
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Decent season for Pettite for a guy that said it hurt too much to pitch his last two seasons in New York. Great recovery and strong healing powers in New York I guess.
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If Torre signs up with the Dodgers Pettitte's best move is to follow him. Would give the Dodgers a very good rotation.
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Boog wrote:

The Yankees are coming upon tougher times. For the first time in 11 years they did not win their division, but finished 2nd. Then they hastily exited the playoffs in the first round for the third year in a row. The Yanks haven't won a Series in seven years. The Boss is growing old and more infirm. Brian Cashman has already admitted that he will have a serious rebuilding job on his hands for next year. Joe Torre walked out on the Yanks after 12 years, throwing some barbs at the front office over his shoulder. Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada are free agents who will be ages 36 and 38 next opening day but who will cost plenty to re-sign. Roger Clemens is 45. And now their best player, and the best player in baseball, has chosen to walk rather than endure the remaining three years on his contract, and so will make his new home somewhere other than the Bronx. The New York Yankees are no longer the glamor team of major league baseball.

Hmmm...coincidentally (or not), this from the MLB website:



Not evil, but becoming an empire

Red Sox now baseball's gold standard

DENVER -- The Boston Red Sox stand atop the baseball world now. In fact, they are perilously close to towering over the rest of the baseball world.

For the citizens of Red Sox Nation who made "long-suffering" a way of life, this is going to require some serious adjustment. You are now what the Yankees always thought that they should be, all arrogance aside.

The Boston Red Sox are the first team to win two World Series in the new millennium. They have won two World Series in the last four Octobers. And they currently possess an eight-game World Series winning streak. For baseball in the era of increased parity, this is about as close as the law allows one franchise to come to dominance.

True, the Yankees once had a 14-game World Series winning streak. But that was long ago, in a baseball galaxy far, far away. Or at least the streak ended in the year 2000 in Queens...


rest of story here:

http://www.mlb.mlb.com/news/article_perspectives.jsp?ymd=20071028&content_id=2286008&vkey=perspectives&fext=.jsp (www.mlb.mlb.com/news/article_perspectives.jsp?ymd=20071028&content...=228600)


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While I think the Red Sox are clearly the team to beat heading into 2008, they are not indestructible.

Cleveland finished with the same w/l playing in a division that is just as tough. They almost took Boston in the playoffs before running out of gas the last 3 games. They have some holes to patch--a little better production from the outfield, another quality veteran in rotation. But a lot of that can come from young players within.

The Angels kind of faded the last half of the season, but it's a versatile lineup with a handful of kids who show real potential. The rotation is as strong as any through the top 3.

Those two look as capable as the Red Sox to me. Detroit has a great offense; the pitching average. Dombrowski isn't one to sit around; expect them to make some smart moves and be better next year.

Despite the dire predictions, it's important to remember the Yankees won 94 games this season. I doubt they'll sleep through the offseason.
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I think the Red Sox have the best pitching. Their pitching coach, John Farrell, did a tremendous job. He's a very astute guy who will probably be in some demand for a managerial job. In addition to what the Red Sox already have, which was the league's best rotation and the league's best bullpen, they next year will have to find a spot for pheeenom Clay Buchholz.

The Angels really could use another big bopper to protect Vlad, and perhaps one more SP, as both Ervin Santana and Bartolo Colon became question marks.

The Indians are a good, solid club. It's hard to predict an improvement over 96 wins, especially in that division, but a couple of their players could actually do better next year...namely, Pronk Hafner and Ryan Garko. (Then again, David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez didn't have what you would call banner years for Boston, either, and they still won 96 games.)

As for the Yankees, to sort of get back to the thread...it's always interesting to follow what steps they take in the offseason, and this year will be even more interesting. They have some big decisions to make. Frankly, I was surprised that Torre really did leave the team. I'm not sure they won't regret that. Lost in the shuffle perhaps is the fact that Torre took with him Don Mattingly, in all fairness a true Yankee, along to LA. (Poor Suzyn Waldman must have shed many tears--her two favorites, Torre and "Dawnnie Baseball," both gone from da Bronx in one fell swoop. She's probably wearing mourning-black these days.) I think the NY front office ultimately wanted a manager with less autonomy than Torre, somebody they could have more influence over. Whether or not that pans out into more victories is questionable, because Cashman & Co. haven't exactly set the world on fire with their decision-making the last couple years.

As we all know, pitching and defense go a long way in winning baseball games, and I'm not convinced that the Yankees have either, nor that their execs really subscribe to that notion, or at least take action to endorse it. Their defense up the middle, with Jeter on SS, Cano on 2B (he is fast outgrowing that position) and Damon in CF, was not particularly good. They finally had to move Damon to left and Hideki Matsui to DH, which meant Giambi had to play more 1B, where he is a complete stiff. Not a good setup at all, and even worse when you consider the salaries.

Pitching-wise...Mussina looked old this year. Clemens was old. Andy Pettitte allowed an awful lot of hits (238) and opponents batted .286 off him. He will be 36 next year. Similarly, Mariano at 37 was more hittable (3.15 ERA, almost a hit per inning) than ever before, and he's a free agent. There are other bullpen issues. Luis Vizcaino, who pitched in a whopping 77 games, is a free agent. They traded away reliable reliever Scott Proctor to get Wilson Betemit. Kyle Farnsworth was inconsistent as heck. And Ron Villone has already filed for FA. Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain are promising, but both are only 21 years old--it's dangerous to hitch your wagon to kid pitchers who can just barely squeak into the hotel bar.

The Yankees, as always, will have a ton of money to throw around, especially if they don't have to pay A-Rod. But IMO it will take some serious work to bring them back to the level they were even a year or two ago. That said, I still expect them to be a force.
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It's always interesting to watch what the Yankees and Red Sox do over the winter. Neither team is ever completely satisfied and is always looking for ways to improve.

Quote:

The Yankees, as always, will have a ton of money to throw around

That's the key. But as you've noted, there's a lot of work to do with that team. Forcing Torre out was a big mistake, imho. Plugging all the holes you mention will be a huge challenge.

I agree about Cleveland too. It's hard to see how they improve on 96 wins. The Twins, Tigers, and White Sox haven't been do nothing teams the last few winters. With the Yankees in flux, any of those teams have a chance at the Wild Card with a a few smart moves.

Should be a fun winter. As long as you're not expecting much from the Orioles, of course.
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