The Hot Stove

Well, a ton has happened since I last posted. I have been extremely busy finishing up the first semester of my junior year at school. Here are some major moves that have occurred.

Yankees - The Yankees acquired Curtis Granderson. Granderson is a wonderful fielder, he is very fast and a good guy, but doesn't have the best batting average (249. last year). To get Curtis, the Yankees dished out top prospect Austin Jackson, reliever Phil Coke, and prospect pitcher Ian Kennedy. Many think the Yankees gave up a lot, but this was a good move for them. Kennedy is prone to injury and has shown nothing in the majors. Coke did contribute to the Yankees this past season as a lefty in the pen, but struggled a lot. As far as Jackson goes, some prospects pan out and some don't. Chances are that he will not end up being better than Granderson. Curtis is welcomed by me to be our starting center fielder for a bunch of years.

As far as Yankee free agents go, they were able to resign Andy Pettitte to a one year deal. Hideki Matsui signed a one year deal with the Angels. Johnny Damon is yet to sign, but has said he is going to start to look around at teams since he hasn't heard much from the Yankees yet.

New York needs help with their starting pitching, so it wouldn't surprise anyone if they went after some back of the rotation guys like Ben Sheets or Jason Marquis.

Are they going to sign Matt Holliday or Jason Bay? I don't think anything the Yankees pull off would surprise anyone, but it appears as though they are not talking to these players currently which would lead us to believe they would try to resign Johnny Damon.

Major Moves:

• Roy Halladay to the Phillies
  
• Cliff Lee and Chone Figgins to the Mariners
• John Lackey to the Red Sox

Taking a Look at the Winter...

The Yankees made huge off-season moves after the 2008 season, and it helped lead them to a World Series title in 2009. This off-season proves to be another where the Yankees have many decisions to make.

Three notable Yankees are free agents: Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, and Andy Pettitte. These three individuals played a major role in the Yankees championship run.

Damon:

Everyone knows that Johnny is an exceptional player. He hits home runs, hits for average, and still has speed. The one main fault in Johnny's game is his play in the outfield. He has no arm, and not much range in left field. A major question for the Yankees is: Do they want Damon to be their left fielder next season? I see them re-signing him as a DH, if they do not sign Matsui.

Matsui:

Not enough can be said about Matsui. He hit over 600. in the World Series, and had 6 RBIs in the clinching game. He had an excellent season as well. The problem with Matsui, is that he does not have the legs to play left field anymore. He is strictly a DH, and nothing else. Matsui has had a great career with the Yankees, but if I had to guess, his tenure in New York is over.

Pettitte:

Andy Pettitte thought about retiring before this season, ended up coming back, only to win the clinching game of every playoff series. What a year for Pettitte. He definitely still has gas in the tank, and hopefully comes back to pitch in New York on a one year contract. If not, the Yankees must take a look at John Lackey.

World Series Champs! #27

The Yankees have done it again. After winning in 96', 98', 99' and 2000, the Yankees went through a nine year drought. During that nine year period, the Yankees reached the World Series twice, yet hadn't made it past the first round since 2004.

This championship marks the 27th title in Yankee history. That by far, is more than any other franchise. Behind this championship comes many different story lines.

The first that sticks out is Alex Rodriguez breaking out of his playoff slumping history with a bang. A-Rod was huge for the Yankees this postseason and Joe Girardi said "We wouldn't have done this without Alex." Not only did A-Rod get many hits and home runs in the playoffs, many of them were clutch, game tying or game leading. Rodriguez had done everything in his career besides get a ring. This means so much to him, and it's nice to see a guy who had such a tough off season (steroid admission, rough divorce, hip surgery), succeed and get a ring.

Another story is the big free agent signings that Brian Cashman was able to get done in the off-season. He brought in C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Mark Teixeira and Nick Swisher. Every single one of these players played huge for the Yankees this year.

C.C was the clear ace of this team, and continued to fill that role in the playoffs.

Burnett was the #2 starter, and although he had some shaky starts, for the most part Burnett had an excellent season, and really fit in well with this team.

Mark Teixeira is an MVP candidate. His play at 1st base makes the entire infield better, and he finished tied for the lead for home runs in the American league.

Swisher came to this team not knowing what his role was going to be. Boy did he step up. After starting right fielder Xavier Nady went down with a shoulder injury, Swish filled the role. Not only did he put up nice numbers, he became the biggest and friendliest personality on this team. Swisher was not only a huge producer, but a huge clubhouse guy.

Not enough can be said about this year's Yankee team. They got their championship, and it was well deserved. They were the best team in the regular season, and the best team in the playoffs.

Celebrate we will, but for Brian Cashman, it's decision time. Hideki Matsui, Johnny Damon, and Andy Pettitte are free agents. He must also figure out what to do with Chien-Ming Wang.

It will be a long off-season, but it's great to know that the Yankees are back where they belong, as champions.

We're Bacccck

The New York Yankees defeated the Angels 5-2 last night, to win the American League Championship Series, and move on to their 40th world series. The Yankees have won the World Series 26 of the 39 previous times they have been in it.

I haven't posted about this series yet due to a massive amount of schoolwork, but what a series this was.

The Yankees ace, C.C. Sabathia was the MVP of the series. I thought that he and Alex Rodriguez should have been C0 MVP's. What an unbelievable series for the two of them.

C.C. went eight innings in game one and game four on just three days rest. He gave up one run in each of those starts.

A-Rod has been batting 400. plus throughout the postseason, hitting big home run after big home run. In game six last night, he got on base all five times he was up, getting two hits and being walked twice. A-Rod has also played well defensively in the playoffs.

What can be said about Andy Pettitte. He has always been a big game pitcher for the Yankees, and he proved that again last night. Pettitte went six plus innings giving up one run.

Mariano Rivera came in during the eighth inning for the six out save, and he did the norm. He succeeded.

As the Yankees head back to the world series, the city of New York awaits Wednesday night, where Jay Z is scheduled to perform "Empire State of Mind" before first pitch.

I'll tell you one thing, the Bronx will be rocking.

Recap of Game Three/ALDS

The Yankees entered game three of the ALDS in a wonderful position. They lead 2-0 going into the clinching game with season veteran Andy Pettitte on the hill. Not only was that the case, they were facing former Yankee Carl Pavano, a pitcher who made 39.4 million dollars with the Yankees over the course of four seasons and made just 26 starts.

The Yanks came in ready to hit Pavano hard and win the series. This wasn't the case. Pavano looked like Greg Maddux in the 96' World Series just sitting Yankees down left and right.

Pettitte matched him pitch for pitch as neither team was getting swings through the first six innings. The Twins finally broke through for a run in the bottom of the sixth inning. Trailing 1-0 in the top of the seventh, with dominant Pavano still on the mound, Alex Rodriguez stepped up to the plate.

A-Rod took a 3-2 pitch the opposite way and out of the park. He did it again. More game tying heroics for Alex, highlighting the unbelievable series he had. He finished the series 5-11 with six RBI's and two home runs. Later that inning, Jorge Posada hit an opposite field home run to give the Yankees the lead. They never looked back. After adding insurance runs in the eighth, the Yankees finished with a 4-1 win.

Some may say the Twins are not a great team, and the Yankee's sweep was expected, but you cannot look at it this way. They hadn't gotten past the ALDS since 2004. A-Rod hadn't had post season success since before he was a Yankee. The Yankee bullpen is looking like it was in the late 90's, and their three man rotation looks like they can take the Yankees all the way. Impressive ALDS all around, can't wait for the Angels on Friday. What a match up it will be.

Magic in the Bronx

Game two of the ALDS was one of the most storied games I have ever seen. The Yankees willed their way over the Twins 4-3 in the bottom of the 11th inning walking off for the 16th time this season.

A.J. Burnett stepped up and gave the Yankees a solid six innings, despite getting trouble a few times, he only gave up one run.

Mark Teixeira got the game winning hit but the heroes of this game were Alex Rodriguez and Dave Robertson.

We all know what A-Rod was in the playoffs before this season. We all have heard it a million times. A-Rod cannot hit in the clutch. It has been documented ever since he has been a Yankee.

Everything this season with A-Rod has just been different. Ever since his steroid admission and hip surgery he has seemed like a different person. This isn't the first regular season where A-Rod has gotten clutch hits, but it is the first time he has done it staying out of the spotlight. He kept to himself and did what he had to do.

Alex's first two playoff games: 4-8 with five RBI'S and one HR. His home run tied the game in the ninth inning last night, his RBI single tied the game in the sixth inning last night, and his two RBI's in game one gave some much needed security to the Yankees lead.

We'll see how he does throughout the rest of the postseason, but so far he has been simply dominant in the 2009 playoffs.

Who knows if Alex would have had the opportunity to tie the game last night if it wasn't for Dave Robertson. He came in the top of the 11th inning with two on, nobody out, and after giving up a hit the bases were loaded with no one out. He then recorded three straight outs to keep the Yankees in the game. What a job by him.

Once the game reached the bottom of the 11th and the heart of the Yankee order was due up, it was only a matter of time before a slice of Burnett Pie would be served. Mark Teixeira lined a bullet off the top of the left field wall, and that was that.

Yankees win again, and can clinch Sunday night against Carl Pavano.

Breaking Down Game One

The Yankees defeated the Twins 7-2 last night, overcoming a 2-0 deficit in the 3rd inning. C.C. Sabathia went six and two-third innings to get the win.

There were a few story lines in the defeat. Derek Jeter proved once again to be Mr. Clutch drilling a two run homer into the left field seats in the third inning to tie the score. Nick Swisher hit an RBI double down the right field line to put the Yankees ahead in the fifth. Alex Rodriguez had two RBI hits breaking out of his major slump batting with runners in scoring position in the playoffs.

This was good for Alex to get some weight off his back. Even if his playoff numbers were not running through his mind, he still will not have to listen to the questions about his playoff struggles at least for now.

Hideki Matsui hit a 2 run blast to center field last night. All Matsui has done this year is prove his case for the Yankees to keep him next year, but who knows what will happen with that.

C.C. Sabathia broke out of his playoff struggles as well putting in a great performance, especially if you take away Posada's two past balls. He really has proved himself to be the ace of this pitching staff all season, and he continued that into last night's huge game.

With a 1-0 lead in the series, the Yanks take the field again Friday night with A.J. Burnett on the mound. Hopefully A.J. brings his lights out stuff to the mound. He has the ability to throw a perfect game on any night with his dirty breaking ball. We'll see which A.J. shows up as the Bombers look to go up 2-0 heading into the Metrodome.

HotBox Sports

Just a heads up. Beginning in about two weeks, I will be writing for an NBA Fantasy website called HotBox Sports. The link to this website is www.hotboxsports.com.

I will be discussing individual player matchups twice a week for the Indiana Pacers. I am excited for this role as the Pacers are a young exciting team, with some new and upcoming talent. They are lead by superstar Danny Granger, and are looking to have themselves a better year than last year.

Looking Ahead to the MLB Playoffs

First of all, I would like to congratulate the Boston Red Sox for backing into the playoffs after being swept by the Yankees and losing the first three games to Toronto.

The fact that C.C. Sabathia is pitching in game one of the playoffs next Wednesday is a lock. With the way things are shaping up, it looks like C.C. will be opposed by Justin Verlander of the Tigers (if the Tigers can hold off the surging twins). I attended a Tigers Yankees game at the stadium this summer. What was the pitching matchup? C.C. vs. Justin. Let me tell you, forgetting about the numbers and all, Justin Verlander has unbelievable stuff. He made the Yankee lineup look like a bunch of little leaguers hitting for the first time after graduating tee ball. Regardless, the Yankees found a way to win the game on an Alex Rodriguez home run that just got over the right field wall.

C.C's struggles in the playoffs in the past have to be forgotten about. Both seasons in which he has struggled, his arm has been shot. He pitched on three days rest consistently last year to will the Brewers into the playoffs. The previous year with Cleveland, he had pitched a ton of innings before postseason. I am confident in C.C as he has been a workhorse all year for us, but hasn't been overworked.

Many debate who the number two starter should be in the playoffs for the Yankees. The obvious choices are A.J Burnett and Andy Pettitte. The two are such different pitchers. A.J is an overpowering hurler who has the stuff to no hit any team on any day, yet also has the moments where he simply implodes. Andy meanwhile, is a more consistent pitcher with honest stuff. Personally I would like to see A.J in game two as I truly believe he will step up to the occasion in the playoffs. We'll see who the Yankees choose.

Either way, the ALDS is always a hard series. A best of five is more of a crapshoot then anything. One bad start by a pitcher could turn an entire series around. As the Yankees have seen in recent division series, they are not easy to win.

The New York Football Giants

The New York Giants are 3-0. Some New Yorkers may be overlooking the play of the Giants so far this season for a few reasons. The first is that the Jets are also 3-0. The second is that the Giants have the expectation to do well. They haven't just done well so far this season, they have done great.

Let's be honest, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are not a great football team. They have no offense whatsoever. Their quarterback situation is a complete mess, and they have a quite weak defense. Despite all of those things, the Giants completed an absoluter slaughter of them this past Sunday. The Bucs didn't get a first down until there were four minutes to go in the third quarter. That is unheard of. It was such a dominate Giant performance that the game was almost hard to watch. You knew after the first Giants drive that the game was over.

With a big win over the Cowboys in Dallas in week two, the New York Football Giants are being looked at with high expectations for the 2009-2010 season.

What a Day

What a day for New York Sports. The Giants move to 3-0 with a 24-0 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Jets move to 3-0 with a 24-17 win over the Tennessee Titans, and the Yankees win their 100th game to clinch the Al East title and clinch home field throughout the playoffs.

What a season for the Yankees. They have 100 wins with six games to go. They lost the first eight games against the Red Sox this season, and panic begun. People were saying this team just did not match up well enough against Boston. Since then, the Yanks won 9 of 10 against their arch rival to secure the division title a week before the season is over. To make things even sweeter, they clinched with a win against Boston, to complete a sweep, at home. Another comeback win for the Yankees.

It was great to see the guys celebrating in the locker room after the game. This is a special group of guys who have one common goal: to win the world series. They have now accomplished all of their regular season goals, and I assume will give some guys rest this week while preparing for the starts of the playoffs on Wednesday, October 7th. C.C will start game one, that's as far as we know.

Magic Number is Five

The magic number to clinch the AL East division is now five games for the New York Yankees. A game is gained whether they win or Boston loses. When playing Boston this weekend, they can gain two games on that magic number with each win. If all goes right, the Yankees will clinch this weekend at home against the Sox.

Months ago the Yankees were 0-8 against Boston and trailing the division by about five games. No one thought they would be at the point they are at now during the stretch. It really has been an enjoyable season. Besides a few bumps in the road (the first month without A-Rod, Jobas struggles as a starter, a few very rough starts from AJ Burnett, and some other small bumps), this has been an incredibly successful team. They just took a series from the Angels on the road for the first time since 2004. It was a very big series win as the Angels are a possible playoff opponent and they needed to give themselves confidence that they could beat them in LA.

Although the Yankee attitude is "the World Series must be won for it to be a successful season," either way you look at it, it really has been a great season. A lot of luck is involved in short series in the playoffs. Hopefully this Yankee team can find the will and way to win 11 postseason games. They really deserve it.

State of the Yanks

What a season so far for the New York Yankees. After an average start while playing without Alex Rodriguez for the first month, they have been hot ever since. The Yanks now sit 39 games over 500, with the division basically won.

It will be nice to see recently called up Shelley Duncan get some at bats in the last few weeks of the season. Shelley has always been one of my favorite players.

When will Derek Jeter break Lou Gehrig's Yankee hit record? Four hits to go...we shall see.

Coming Back

Interesting game for the Yanks last night. Joba was once again awful. If they are not going to pitch him on normal rest, there is no point in starting him at all. Clearly it is messing with him as he hasn't succeeded at all when not given five days rest.

This Yankee team always gives you the feeling that they will come back. Down five runs in the ninth last night, they still almost won the game. I believe that Nick Swisher who has 20 plus home runs should not be bunting in that situation. However, the team will lose games, it is quite impressive how they come back all of the time. Exciting ninth inning until the end.

Let's hope the Yanks take tonight's game and set themselves up to win yet another series.

Big W

Big win last night for the Yankees. It has been rare this year to see the Yankees go on losing streaks. Last night they stopped the possibility of a three game skid with a 7-2 victory over the A's. C.C. Sabathia was great as he pitched eight innings and was able to get his 14th win of the season. With the way he's been pitching lately, there's still an outside chance that he will win 20 games. What a feat that would be in his first season as a Yankee.

The Yanks square off against the A's tonight in the series finale. They then have tomorrow off to travel and go into Boston for another three game series with their arch rival.

The Yankees have an opportunity to basically put the division away if they sweep in Boston. They would have a 10 game lead in the AL East.

7.5

After winning their fifth straight game last night, the Yankees now have secured a 7.5 game lead in the division. About three weeks ago when the Yankees were 0-8 against the Red Sox on the season who would have ever thought they would be where they are right now.

This isn't just a good Yankee team. They are a great Yankee team. They have 74 wins. No one else in baseball has reached 70 wins. Forgetting about the first month of the season when the Yankees were without A-Rod, they have been virtually hot this entire season. They had one awful stretch that lasted for about nine games in June, but other than that, wow.

Joba on the mound today in Seattle as the Yankees look for their second sweep in three series and look to go 32 games over 500.

State of the Yankees

The Yankees are 15-2 at home since the all-star break. They have won eight of nine and are still rolling. They are at their high water mark of the season at 71-43. They hold a 5.5 game lead over Boston in the division.

Another walk off win for the Yanks today as Robbie Cano came through with an RBI single in the 11th. It is nice to see Robbie get a walk off hit.

As the Yankees go out west, they need to continue to play well and win series. While Boston is 5.5 games back, it's easy to creep up.

Some possible injuries today. A-Rod and Jeter were both hit with pitches today. Alex in the elbow and Derek in the foot. Nothing too serious, but I wouldn't be surprised if Alex was given a few days off.

It's Arrived

Well, it's August 6th. The long awaited Yankees-Red Sox series is here. Four games at the stadium in the Bronx. The Yanks, who hold a 2.5 game lead on Boston in the division are 0-8 against the Sox and have basically been dominated by them. Tonight is a MUST WIN for the Yankees. With Jason Bay out, there is no excuse for losing this game.

Joba has been excellent in the second half so far and needs to keep that up. A-Rod is 1-10 this season so far against Boston in three games. A big night/series for him would be another huge boost for the Yankees. When Alex hits, they hit. My Prediction: Yanks take three out of four.

Solid Few Days

Another excellent win for the Yanks tonight. A.J. Burnett was just brilliant tonight. Seven innings and one hit allowed, no runs. He has pitched great both times against the Mets. We've now won four games in a row. Two great pitching performances on Friday and Saturday Night.

A-Rod seems like he's getting back into the swing of things. He's been getting big hits the last few days, and when he's on, this lineup truly is unstoppable.

The Yankees really need a sweep after their struggles the last two weeks. Let's see if Wang can get his first win tomorrow night.

Need To Turn Things Around...

The Yankees are at a crossroads right now. They just lost two out of three to the Marlins. The series before that they lost two out of three to the Nationals. The series before that they should have lost two out of three to the Mets. The series before that they got swept by the Red Sox.

The Yankees, who have had trouble getting the clutch hit in the last 12 games, are lucky they are still seven games over 500. They now sit four games behind the Boston Red Sox for first place in the AL East.

They sit at a point where they really must start playing better baseball. Four is not a huge deficit, but if they continue losing games, trouble is going to begin.

The fact is simple, the Yankees must start winning games, to keep this race interesting.