Pettitte Could Make A Positive Difference After All

I didn't like the fact that Yankees and Andy Pettitte agreed on a deal for the 2009 season. I was convinced that he was finished and that his advanced age and elbow would be a liability to the rotation.

Pettitte came into Spring Training last month and quietly put up decent numbers: a 2-0 record and 0.79 ERA in 3 games with 1 walk and 10 strikeouts. Yes it's a small sample size and it's only Spring Training and no, I have not been completely won over. But what he accomplished this Spring gives me reason to hope that he does still have the potential to make a positive difference in the rotation.

His new teammates, CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett are referring to Pettitte as a mentor. I'd much rather see Pettitte contribute wins, but if his advice to CC and AJ help increase their win totals, I'm all for it.

Bernadette

Gardner Wins, Melky Hangs Around

Now that Brett Gardner has won the Yankee centerfield job we will get an answer to the following question: Can he hit Major League pitching?

Everyone agrees that he plays a good centerfield, is speedy and can steal a ton a bases. What about his offense? He showed improvement with the bat at the end of last season and had a tremendous offensive Spring Training. Will he be able to sustain that as pitchers come into their own? That remains to be seen.

Melky Cabrera is out of options. The Yankees appear reluctant to put him on waivers, for fear that he'll be claimed by another team. Even if he were not out of options, I doubt they would trade him without waiting to see if Gardner can sustain what he accomplished this Spring. Joe Girardi said it best:

"Melky is going to have a lot of important things for us. There's a lot of things Melky can do. He's a switch-hitter, we can put him anywhere in the outfield and he can run. What happens April 6 doesn't necessarily mean that's what's going to happen June 1st."

Bernadette

What Will Jeter Batting Leadoff Lead To?

Derek Jeter's bruised pinkie isn't keeping him out of the lineup for today's Spring Training game. He's in that game and will be in a lot more before all is said and done in his career. Whether he'll be batting leadoff in all of those games will remain to be seen.

Jeter's lifetime OBP is .387, whereas Johnny Damon's is .354. Not much of a difference there if you ask me, but Jeter's approach at the plate lends itself to getting on base more than Damon's cut-and-slash-break-your-bat style. Also, I've been reading and hearing that Jeter batting leadoff would create a better potential for scoring runs if Brett Gardner is inserted into the ninth spot.

So, his offensive future might be in the leadoff spot. What does the future hold for Jeter defensively? Bill Madden's been singing the praises of Ramiro Pena lately. Pena, who's always been a good shortstop, has come on strong with the bat this Spring. Jeter's range may continue to decrease and next year will be the last year of his current contract. If Pena can maintain his offensive progress, the Yankees will be forced to seriously consider moving Derek Jeter out of the infield.

Bernadette

Austin Jackson: A Glimpse Of The Future?

While the centerfield competition between the Yankees' Melky Cabrera and Brett Gardner continued last night, another centerfielder reminded Yankees Universe that this competition might be for a job that will last only for a season. Austin Jackson's grand slam in the 8th inning was like a wake-up call to everyone involved with the team, from fans to personnel. It was as if he were saying to Cabrera and Gardner: "Hold my spot, boys. I'm comin'."

Austin, whose nickname is A-Jax, is the Yankees' top prospect and, as such, it appears that the Yankees are handling him with kid gloves. Unlike Melky Cabrera, who was rushed through the system, Austin is being moved along slowly and carefully. He played at AA Trenton last year and will likely play at AAA Scranton this year. While there, he needs to work on being a more consistent hitter and cut down on his strikeouts. As for the other parts of his game, he has good speed, he's a good defender, has above-average range and he has a good arm. If he improves with the bat, look for him to be among the September call-ups this year.

Good luck, A-Jax.

Bernadette

Good Thing It's Only Spring Training

Unfortunately, I still am not able to write any real posts. To be perfectly honest, posting has been the furthest thing from my mind lately. Good thing it still is only Spring Training because I'd really be doing readers a disservice if the regular season were underway.

Hopefully I will see a light at the end of the tunnel soon. In the meantime, to get an idea of what's been happening with me, read my personal blog.

Bernadette

Sorry For The Continuing Delay

I am still working through some important issues right now which make it difficult to write any serious baseball posts. Hopefully I'll be able to resume regular posting next week.

In the meantime, I invite you to read my personal blog, This Fan's Life.

Thanks for your patience.

Bernadette

More Posts Coming

Please bear with me as I sort out some important issues. I hope to be posting again by this weekend.

Bernadette

Do You Know Your Baseball Terms?

Do you know what "soft toss" is? It's not necessarily what you might think it is. Here's the definition:

Soft toss: This is what hitters do. They will stand in the cage with a bat and swing at balls tossed in front of them by a coach. An injured hitter will “take some soft toss” before he takes full BP. [LoHud Yankees Blog ]

Gee, I thought it was something pitchers do.

Think you know your baseball terms? Click here to find out!

Bernadette

Mild-Mannered Yankees On The Hot Seat

Two mild-mannered men with ties to the Yankees are being singled out today as being anything but mild-mannered:

A woman in Puerto Rico is claiming that Bernie Williams hit her when she tried to take his picture in a nightclub at 2:30 this morning.

Brian Cashman is denying (angrily, I might add) that he yelled the following at a TV in the Yankee Clubhouse: “'Jason, whatever you were taking in Oakland,' get back on it. " The author of a new book about Roger Clemens claims that this actually happened, citing a Yankee player in whom he has 100 percent confidence.

I don't know Bernie Williams, but from everything I've heard, hitting a woman is not something he would ever do. As for Brian Cashman, I cannot for a minute imagine him yelling at a TV. One thing should be kept in mind for both of these cases: Memory is selective. People remember what they want to remember, and what they remember isn't necessarily what happened. That is especially true in a nightclub at 2:30 am.

I'm not sure if we will find out what really happened at the nightclub. I'm almost sure that we'll never know what really happened in the Yankee clubhouse that day. I am sure of this, however: The images of Brian Cashman and Bernie Williams have taken hits (however small they may be) that can never be reversed.

Bernadette

Update, 12:23 PM: Bernie's response to the complaint.

Gardner & Chamberlain: Too Early To Decide

Joba Chamberlain's first and second start this Spring caused a lot of worry. His velocity was down and he was hit hard. With the strong outing he had last night, he put a lot of those fears to rest. His pitches topped out at 98 MPH. He threw 29 pitches (20 for strikes), striking out three and walking none. Now everyone is breathing a sigh of relief.

At the same time, fans and media alike continue to sing praises for Brett Gardner and the fabulous Spring he's having. He leads the team in home runs with 3, has a .417 AVG and a .462 OBP. Everyone is ready to crown him the Opening Day Centerfielder.

What will happen in Joba's fourth start? What if it's more like his first two starts rather than his third? Will people go back into doomsday mentality? Yes.

What will happen if Gardner goes into a slump this week? Will people pluck the centerfield crown from his head and hand it to Melky Cabrera? Probably.

Joba Chamberlain still has an entire month to work out any problems and get himself ready for the season. Actually, he probably has more than a month, since he's the fifth starter and the fifth starter is often passed over in the early part of the season. Gardner is hitting pitchers who, like Joba, are trying to get their feet firmly planted on the ground. Once those feet are firmly planted, Gardner may or may not continue his hot hitting. In other words, it's early. Too early to decide.

I know what you're saying: Duh!

Yeah. Right.

Bernadette

For Your Saturday Viewing Pleasure: Bernie Williams Plays Take Me Out to the Ballgame

A-Rod's Torn Labrum: A Sign Of Extreme Stress

Alex Rodriguez began having problems with his hip during last season. According to the New York Post, Brian Cashman was asked why the problems weren't addressed during the off-season. His answer was that Alex was given an MRI last April, which showed "incidental finding of an irregularity in his right hip. It was asymptomatic, no complaints of pain, no complaints of anything. It goes into the file and you keep your eyes and ears open."

Alex has been through a lot in the past 27 days. Most of it is his own fault, of course. He's put a lot of stress on himself. But, stress is stress, whether he puts on himself or someone else puts it on him. I'm not claiming to be a medical expert, but I'm inclined to believe that all that he's gone through in the past month has made that hip problem flare up, become worse, so that now it's as bad as it is.

I was hoping the Yankees would opt for surgery for Alex. But they're going to try to rehab it first. If more controversy is on the way, this will prove to have been a very bad idea.

Bernadette

Top Ten Reasons To Watch The World Baseball Classic

I received this announcement today from Major League Baseball:

"NEW YORK, March 3 – Ten Major League Baseball stars participating in this spring's World Baseball Classic will present the "Top Ten Reasons to Watch the World Baseball Classic" on the LATE SHOW with DAVID LETTERMAN, Thursday, March 5 (11:35 PM-12:37 AM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. The 10 Team USA players taking part in the Top Ten List are: Derek Jeter from the New York Yankees; David Wright from the New York Mets; Chipper Jones from the Atlanta Braves; Ryan Braun from the Milwaukee Brewers; Jimmy Rollins from the Philadelphia Phillies; Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis from the Boston Red Sox; Curtis Granderson from the Detroit Tigers; Roy Oswalt from the Houston Astros; and Adam Dunn from the Washington Nationals. The World Baseball Classic, an international baseball tournament which will be played in stadiums around the globe, begins Thursday..."

I'm hoping I don't fall asleep and miss it.

Bernadette

Posada, Matsui, Rivera, Wang: Rehab Updates

Those Yankee whose 2008 injuries helped to keep the Yankees out of the playoffs seem to be coming along nicely in the early goings of Spring Training:

Jorge Posada-- After being scratched from Saturday's game because of soreness in his surgically-repaired right shoulder, he came back in yesterday's game against the Astros and was 1-3 with an RBI. If the soreness was just a minor setback, he's on his way to having a Major League comeback in 2009.

Hideki Matsui-- He hasn't played in a game yet this Spring but he did a baserunning drill on Saturday and could play later this week. If Posada's progress is hampered, however, we could see a DH-platoon between he and Posada.

Mariano Rivera-- He's been playing catch and could be on a mound for the first time this week. Mo pitched in pain all of last year but you'd have never known it. Common sense tells you that he'll have an even better 2009 pain-free.

Chien-Ming Wang-- He made his Spring 2009 debut yesterday and threw 2 scoreless innings. He was pain-free; his foot felt fine. Good news, indeed. Joe Girardi doesn't want hitters facing hard throwers two days in a row, so he'll be the number 2 starter, between Sabathia and Burnettt. With the rotation as strong as it is now, there'll be less pressure on Wang and he could crack 20 wins for the first time in his career.

Coming up later this week: Another 2009 Yankee preview.

Bernadette