Via MLBTR, the Yankees have acquired outfielder Freddy Guzman from the Orioles. The Yankees will send a PTBNL for the OF. Guzman is having a rough season. He’s hit .219/.261/.289 in AAA with Boston, Baltimore, and Seattle. He has a lot of speed though. Through 95 games in AAA, he has stolen 38 bases. Can you say pinch runner?

Hey all,

I just wanted to let you all know that 6pound8ouncebabyjoba has joined up with “Blogging Yankees Universe“. It’s a blog that collects posts from a bunch of different Yankee blogs out there and publishes them on the site. It’s pretty cool, because you can read a bunch of different blogs while still getting awesome information. All of the content, when we post, will be pulled directly from stuff we have written here, so 6P8OBJ won’t be affected at all. It’s worth it to check it out though…

Okay, so I know we’re only 6 games up, and we should be focusing on the pennant race, and all the games and whatnot, but I have to take a moment to think about this upcoming off-season.

There are 7 Yankees eligible for free agency after this season: , Johnny Damon (Type A), Hideki Matsui(Type B), Andy Pettitte (Type B), Jerry Hairston Jr (Type B), Xavier Nady(Type B), Jose Molina, and Eric Hinske.

If all of them walk, and the Yanks make no acquistions, the 2010 lineup and rotation would be as follows:

SS Jeter

DH Swisher

1B Teixeira

3B Rodriguez

C Posada

2B Cano

LF Gardner

CF Austin Jackson

RF Melky Cabrera

CC Sabathia

AJ Burnett

Joba Chamberlain

Phil Hughes

Chien-Ming Wang

As you can see, the lineup has a rather inexperienced and light hitting outfield while the rotation has major question marks with Hughes and Wang. So…Here’s my strategy

Offer Arbitration to Pettitte and Hairston. If they accept, Pettitte can be an option in the rotation, and Hairston can continue his superutility role. If they decline, the Yanks get a compensation round pick for both Pettitte and Hairston. If Hairston declines, the Yanks should still try to sign him, he’s a great asset for the team. Matsui and Nady would both likely accept arbitration, and the Yanks can’t afford to have two DH-type players on the roster, not with Jeter, A-Rod, and Posada all getting older. I would not offer arbitration to Damon because he would likely accept. In arb. he could probably get his salary boosted from $13mm to $14 or 15mm. If the Yanks wait to sign him as a free agent, he might settle for $7 or $8mm.

Call up Francisco Cervelli. Cervelli will take on Molina’s role as the backup catcher. The pitching staff loved him in his stint in the majors this year, much like they love pitching to Molina. Cervelli is a nice, cheap option to back up Jorge, and he hit as well as you could have expected him to in his time in the majors. He is only a backup, so he doesn’t have to be Josh Gibson or anything.

Call up Shelley Duncan. Hinske was great on the bench this year, but Duncan can be just as effective. .271/.370/.534 in triple A with 27 homers. Those numbers are worthy of an MLB roster spot.

Call up Austin Jackson. The center fielder of the future needs to make it to the Bronx this year. He might not be “ready” by April, but I’d be shocked if he isn’t manning center field by May 31st.

Decline Sergio Mitre’s 2010 Option: Okay, he had a good start yesterday. Doesn’t mean I want him on the team next year.

Offer Chien Ming Wang for Seth Smith: Look, the Rockies have Brad Hawpe, Carlos Gonzalez, Dexter Fowler, Ryan Spilborghs, and Smith in the outfield. They can get rid of one of them, right? Hawpe, Fowler, and Gonzalez will likely make up their starting outfield,  and Spilly can be a fine number 4. The Rox will have a rotation of Aaron Cook, Ubaldo Jimenez, Jason Hammel, Jorge de la Rosa, and Jeff Francis. Francis is coming back from shoulder surgery and Cook has had problems with his shoulder as well. So their rotation needs some insurance. Okay, I know what you;re thinking, Wang’s had shoulder surgery too, but the Rox could still use him. Think about it, it’s more likely that 2 of 3 players recover from surgery than 2 of 2. Right? Add in that Wang is a groundball pitcher (exactly what is needed at Coors Field) and you have a good fit. A switch to the NL might be a nice change for the Wanger. He’ll get out of the eye of the NY press, he’ll be facing teams that are easier to beat, and Bob Apodaca has a habit of reviving the careers of aging veterans. Meanwhile, Smith gives the Yanks a big bat in left. And he’s a lefty. A lefty slugger in the New Yankee Stadium? Sounds good to me.

Offer contracts to Andy Pettitte, Ben Sheets, Erik Bedard (Type B), and Justin Duchscherer (Type B). The Yanks’ rotation after declining Mitre’s option and trading Wang leaves just CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, and Joba Chamberlain returning. That is, if Andy Pettitte doesn’t accept arbitration. If he does, then he’d be in there as well. The Yanks will try to move Phil Hughes back to the rotation as well. Don’t forget that Ian Kennedy will be back from his aneurysm trouble and George Kontos is another in-house option. That’s a lot of young arms to depend on though. Pettitte has easily earned himself a contract for next year. Bedard and Duchscherer are interesting options because although both are injury prone, they have both seen substantial success in the bigs. Sheets is my personal favorite. He missed this year due to injury as well, but God he can throw a baseball. Sheets, Bedard, and Duchscherer are all risky pick-ups, but I don’t see any of them making more than $10mm next year, and none of them are likely to sign for more than 2 years, and even that might be a stretch. The Yanks can flex a little financial muscle to take on a risky pitcher like that, because if they stay healthy the Yanks could end up with the best rotation in baseball. Imagine, if all are healthy, trotting out Sabathia, Burnett, Sheets, Joba, and Hughes.

Some might be outraged that I don’t have an Aroldis Chapman signing, or a Matt Holliday or Jason Bay signing. And I understand that. I’d obviously love to have Holliday or Chapman in pinstripes (not a big Bay fan, sorry), but I see my plan  as a simpler way of getting another World Series caliber team out on the field next year. That team would, ideally, look like this….

Lineup

SS Derek Jeter

DH Nick Swisher

1B Mark Teixeira

3B Alex Rodriguez

LF Seth Smith

C  Jorge Posada

2B Robinson Cano

RF Brett Gardner

CF Austin Jackson

Bench

OF Melky Cabrera

1B/OF Shelley Duncan

C Francisco Cervelli

UTIL Jerry Hairston Jr.

Rotation

LHP CC Sabathia

RHP AJ Burnett

RHP Ben Sheets

RHP Joba Chamberlain

RHP Phil Hughes

Bullpen

Mariano Rivera (CL)

Alf Aceves

David Robertson

Brian Bruney

Phil Coke (Lefty)

Damaso Marte (Lefty)

Mark Melancon

Also Available:

RHP Chad Gaudin

RHP Jon Albaladejo

RHP Anthony Claggett

RHP Ian Kennedy

RHP Edwar Ramirez

RHP George Kontos

LHP Zach Kroenke

LHP Michael Dunn

1B Juan Miranda

3B Yurendell de Caster

IF Ramiro Pena

That’s what my plan would be if I were Brian Cashman. Thoughts? Agree? Disagree? Let’s hear it in the comments.

I haven’t been a fan of Sergio Mitre since his first start. He had been pretty bad in his first couple starts, but his last two have been pretty superb, especially for a fifth starter. On August 15, Sergio went 5.1 innings and only gave up 1 run. He did give up 7 hits and 2 walks, but only giving up 1 run is everything you could ask for from him. Today, Sergio was truly stellar. He went 6.1 innings while giving up 0 runs, 1 hit, and 1 walk. It was a very very good outing for Sergio. Anyway, for now, I wanted to offer my apologies to good ol’ Sergio. I was very adamant about him being removed from the starting rotation, but he has proved that he deserves the 5th starter role. Let’s see if it can last, but he has pitched very very well recently.

Yankees asquire Jerry Hairston Jr. That was the biggest piece of trade deadline news for the Yanks this year. Some were mad that we hadn’t gotten Roy Halladay. Others wanted Cliff Lee. I wanted Jarrod Washburn. Still, rather than trade for a starter Brian Cashman decided to bring in a utilityman. The Yanks had been using some combination  of Cody Ransom, Angel Berroa, and Ramiro Pena up until they acquired Hairston. Ransom and Berroa both had negative WAR (wins above replacements). Pena was okay, with a 0.4 WAR, but the young infielder needed to be playing everyday, which he is doing now at triple A. Hairston’s 0.5 WAR isn’t much greater than Pena’s, but bringing him in allowed Pena to go play everyday at triple A. Since joining the Yanks, Jerry’s got a .314/.415/.543 line in 35 AB’s. Jerry’s got decent speed, and an above average glove, but the greatest thing about Hairston? He plays everywhere and anywhere. In his career, Jerry has manned every position except for catcher and pitcher (He’s only played 1 game at first though). Jerry allows Girardi to give Cano, Jeter, A-Rod, Damon, Melky, and Swisher a day off without turning their spot in the lineup into a black hole (a la Berroa). Sure, the Cardinals got Matt Holliday, the Phillies got Cliff Lee, the Red Sox got Victor Martinez, and the Twins got Orlando Cabrera, but the Yanks didn’t NEED to make a big move. The Yanks didn’t have any huge flaws. The lineup was fine, the ‘pen was good, and the rotation has done well. Cash went out and got Jerry, and Hinske earlier on, to give the Yanks a useful bench, and boy has it paid off. Here’s to Cashman making a smart business decision, rather than trying to make a big splash that wasn’t needed. Let’s hope Jerry can keeping playing with super human ability as the Yanks aim for Title 27.

Walk off wins are the best. And they Yanks have made them into an almost common occurrence this year. Last night was yet another thrilling victory from the first pitch to the whipped cream pie. The Big Jolly CC Sabathia started off strong, striking out 2 in a 1-2-3 first. He started the top of the second by allowing a double by Paul Konerko, but rebounded quick with three swinging strikeouts. He had a quick 4 batter 3rd, allowing only a weak single by Jayson Nix, and racking up another K on Ramon Castro. Then a 1-2-3 4th, with yet another K, this time against Jim Thome. So through 4, CC had only faced 14 batters, and struck out 7. The 5th was more of the same, another 4 batter inning, with only Alexei Ramirez getting on with a single. He struck out Alex Rios, for his 8th K of the game. Then CC dominated the 6th with single-strike out- strike out-ground out. 10 K’s through 6 shutout innings. The 7th though, was a little shakier than the rest of his start. CC allowed a Jermaine Dye double to lead it off, followed by his only walk of the night (to Carlos Quentin). Then Alex Rios hit a rather weak ribbie double down the right field line, scoring Dye and moving Quentin to third. Alexei Ramirez lined out to Robby Cano for the first out. Then Ramon Castro hits a grounder to third, and the ever alert New York hero Alex Rodriguez fields it cleanly and gets a quick toss off to Jose Molina. He makes the tag, and Quentin is OUT! Love that New York defense. Now, Castro’s at first, Rios is at second, with two outs. CC lets up a hit to Jayson Nix, and the bases are loaded for Gordon Beckham. The rookie makes the most of it, smacking a single to right that scores Rios. But, Ramon Castro tries to get to the plate too. Our boy SuperSwish nailed him though, to keep the score tied at 2.  The bullpen was lights out, as Phil Hughes struck out the side in the 8th, Mariano had a 10 pitch 1-2-3 9th, and Brian Bruney also had a nice 1-2-3 tenth.

On the offensive side of the ball, the Yanks’ bats weren’t exactly lively, but they weren’t too quiet either. The Captain led the game off with a homer to left center. That Jeter, so hot right now (Zoolander Reference). The Yanks managed two other hits, both singles, by Damon and Matsui, but couldn’t bring in another run. The second only saw a Melky Cabrera single. He never got past first. The third started off with a bang with a JOHNNY ROCKET to right, for Damon’s 23 blast of the year. Machine-Xeira doubled to right and A-Rod drew a walk, but the bats of Matsui, Swisher, and Cano were quiet and Tex and A-Rod were stranded. Another Melky Cabrera single started off the 4th, but a Jose Molina GIDP and a Jeter ground out made it a 1-2-3 inning. The 5th saw the bases loaded for Robby Cano with two outs, but a weak dribbler to Mark Buehrle ended the inning. Lots of missed opportunities for this team. Buehrle took them out 1-2-3 in the 6th, and Matt Thornton did the same in the 7th and the 8th. Scott Linebrink breezed through the 8th, only allowing a Jose Molina single. The 10th though. That was Robby Cano’s time to shine.

When Mark Teixeira struck out to lead the inning off, I was a little worried. Then A-Rod flew out to center. 2 outs already. But, then everyone’s favorite Japanese Icon, Hideki Matsui, drew a walk on 4 straight pitches. Jerry Hairston Jr. (The greatest utilityman in baseball) trotted out to run for Matsui. Then, Nick Swisher drew another walk on 4 straight pitches. Hairston at 2nd, Swish at 1st, Cano at the plate. NO! Not Robby with a runner in scoring position! Hairston needs to sit down, don’t let Cano know that you’re at second, he can’t possibly get you in. Oh, but he CAN. Cano doesn’t swing at the first three pitches, all sliders. 2-1 count. Then he fouled off a 4 seamer, 2-2. Randy Williams sends another slider, and Cano hammers it to right center. ROBBY CANO, DONTCHA KNOW! A three-run walk off home run. THAAAAAAAAAA YANKEES WIN! That shot made the Yanks the first team to 80 wins this year (80-48), maintaining a 6 game lead over Boston in the division. Great pitching and a little bit of dramatics makes for a great game. The Yanks and ChiSox have already started today’s game (scoreless through one and a half). Sergio Diablo Mitre takes on former Yank Jose Contereras.

I’m going to be out of town for the next 2 days. I will have my computer with me, but I don’t know how much time I will have to write or how much internet I’ll have. I’ll be up in northern VT, so internet may be scarce. I don’t know Kevin’s status either. He has had a TON of work returning to school, but if he can post, I’m sure he will. Anyway, good luck to the Yankees in their next couple games.

As for tonight’s game (9-2 Yankees), the Yankees had a good showing all around. Andy Pettitte continued his stellar pitching, going 7 innings with 5 hits, 2 ER, 3 walks, and 7 Ks. The Yankees needed a good outing from him, considering the staff has not pitched well of late. Bruney and Coke finished off the game for the Yanks. The offense was very good tonight as well. Posada and Hairston both hit HR in the game. Matsui and Cano continued their hot hitting with a 2 for 4 games. Solid performance all around…

AJ Burnett will pitch tomorrow. He will try to bounce back from his horrendous outing against the Red Sox last weekend. I’ll try my best to keep you updated.

Thanks for reading

Well, despite the exciting rally in the 9th, the Yankees fell short by one run. There were two serious serious issues with yesterday’s game.

First, why the heck was Nick Swisher bunting in the ninth? I understand that it could be beneficial to move the runners to second and third, but I don’t think Swisher was the right guy to try it with, for a couple of reasons. First of all, Nick Swisher has only bunted successfully 7 times in his career. Interestingly enough, the most sacrifice bunts he’s ever laid down in one season is 3, which happened this year. But thats besides the point. Swisher gets on base at a .368 clip and has a career OPB of .356. He’s got a lot of pop in his bat, he walks a ton, and he knows how to get on… Why would he be bunting in that situation? Especially with Francisco pitching rather wildly? Not to say that it cost the Yankees the game, but it was definitely a harmful decision by Joe Girardi. Let the guy swing the bat… Please!

The second major issue was Joba Chamberlain. One of our readers asked if he thought the innings limit was throwing Joba off. Let me put it this way, the start skipping, despite the fact that it may be a factor, should not be the reason for Joba’s bad pitching. Unfortunately, Joba is the reason for Joba’s bad pitching. The fact of the matter is that Joba has not pitched well recently, not just in last night’s game. Check out his last 4 starts. August 6- 5 innings, 6 hits, 4 ER, 7 walks. August 11- 6 innings, 5 hits, 4 ER, 2 walks. August 16- 5 innings, 7 hits, 4 ER, 3 walks. August 25- 4 innings, 9 hits, 7 ER, 3 walks.  Is it coincidence that his worst start game after 9 days rest? Maybe not?, but I’m not really sure. It’s simple to point the finger at that simply because it’s an easy excuse thats sitting right in front of you. In my opinion, there is more to it that the strange schedule. I’m a believer in rhythm and what not, and this would certainly throw off whatever rhythm existed, but in all honesty, Joba is just pitching badly. He is continuing to nibble around the strike zone. He said it himself, “I’m not throwing strikes when I need to”. He threw 96 pitches in 4 innings, went to too many 3-2 counts, and gave up a ton of hits. It looks like he’s right. He continued to say, “We don’t need a rally if I do my job”. Right again Mr. Chamberlain. That’s a real issue, and unfortunately it probably isn’t directly related to the schedule.

By the same token though, I still approve of this schedule thing. The Yankees want to give Joba 5 more starts, so they say. If he pitched every 5 days, he would get 7… I think they should just keep running him out there. He can figure out and hopefully solve his issues before the playoffs (given that the Yankees hold on…). If rhythm is that important, he will have the ability to establish a rhythm before the playoffs. The truth is, Joba is a very important asset. When he pitches well, he’s really really good. Remember the first 3 games after the break? He gave up 2 ER, 8 hits, and 8 walks in 23.2 innings. Imagine those kind of games in the playoffs! The Yankees need to do whatever they can to right Chamberlain, and if ditching the schedule is what’s going to do it, then they need to do that now. But in reality, the schedule isn’t important. He just needs to pitch better when he gets the ball. I expect him to do a bunch of work with Eiland. They really need to get him going again.

So, the contest has come to a close! We have two winners of the “Perfect Games and No-Hitters” DVD set. We have…

Frank- Hold ‘em up, hold ‘em up! I’ll show you who’s king of the forest

and

Mike- Sign your ball? You want me to sign your ball? You can sign my ass if your kid pulls my tail again lady!

Congrats to the winners, and thanks to all who participated.

Today will be the last day for the contest. Again, it’s a great disk set! Just write a funny caption for the Joba picture and you will get this awesome set for free. I’ll announce the 2 winners tonight.