The 2011 season appeared to have been the last for Yankees catcher Jorge Posada, as Sweeny Murti is reporting that Posada will officially retire within the next few weeks. While acting primarily as a designated hitter and bench player, Posada hit .235 with 14 home runs and 44 RBI in 387 at-bats during the 2011 season.This is certainly not surprising news. Posada has battled injuries for each of the last four seasons, only reaching 120 games played once in that stretch. At this point, his value in the field is nothing ...
Bernie Williams, one of the most loved Yankees by the fans, accomplished some impressive feats during his Yankee tenure. His success in pinstripes almost didn’t transpire earlier in his Yankee years. Williams had become the regular center fielder in 1993. George Steinbrenner considered trading him in 1995, but Buck Showalter, the manager at the time, talked Steinbrenner out of making that giant mistake. Steinbrenner was known as being controlling and difficult to approach. Thankfully, he listened to Showalter’s advice about Williams. Each year, the Baseball Writers Association of America votes ...
It might not be obvious now, but Phil Hughes will be one of the most watched and vital pieces to the New York Yankees' success in 2012. Hughes, in my opinion, will be the third starter barring a surprise (or not so surprising) lapse before the season starts. Success in that slot of the rotation will be important in giving the Bombers stability in their starting five. We basically have a good idea what you're going to get from CC Sabathia and Ivan Nova, but beyond that, there is no certainty. Even Nova, ...
Let's get one thing straight. Joe DiMaggio, Mickey Mantle, Bernie Williams and Earle Combs rank ahead of Curtis Granderson among New York Yankees' center fielders. All but Williams are in the Hall of Fame.It is unlikely that Granderson will ever be voted into the Hall of Fame, but for his era, Granderson is one of the best players in the game.Until 2011, the most home runs that Granderson had hit in a season was 30 with the Detroit Tigers in 2009. Despite the 30 home runs, it wasn't one of ...
While I read through articles and blogs, I come across many, Yankee fans and Yankee haters alike, that are filled with concerns about the 2012 season.Some may be justified, but some are nothing more than unnecessary fears that stem from the 2011 season.Some players dealt with injuries, and others battled through slumps.As a Yankee fan, I have to believe and have faith that the team will bond as one, solidified unit. The 2012 season is sure to be intense, and in no way would I suggest that the Yankees will ...
The old adage says, “All good things must come to an end,” like The Wire, day-night doubleheaders and the innocence of Lebron James. Unfortunately, the same axiom reigns true for the “Core Four” of the New York Yankees. It has to end sometime. With the beginning of the 2012 season looming in the distance, the Yankees plan to man a team that will only have half of the illustrious group. In the midst of Andy Pettite’s exit and presumably Jorge Posada’s as well, the team will suit ...
Next Monday, January 9, a group of accomplished, retired Major League Baseball players—including Jeff Bagwell, Barry Larkin, Tim Raines and Bernie Williams—will find out if they will get the call to the Hall, the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York.Their candidacies will be debated here and elsewhere, but what about those special, active players who seem to already have earned their places in the Hall?In other words, which current superstars—even if they produce nothing of value for the rest of their careers—can count on achieving baseball's highest honor?This ...
The trade market has been a busy one thus far this offseason. With the rather sub-par crop of free agent pitchers this offseason, this doesn't come as much of a surprise. Names already changing uniforms include Derek Lowe, Jonathan Sanchez, Trevor Cahill, Mat Latos, and Gio Gonzalez, but there's at least one more starter out there that most people expect could be on the move.The Tampa Bay Rays need to trade James Shields.They are really in a perfect situation right now to execute what would be a blockbuster swap. The ...
As unlikely as it sounds, the New York Yankees will pretty much stand pat this offseason with the exception of bringing back a few key players from last season and some low-risk players. No big splash, no front page headline. General manager Brian Cashman has made it abundantly clear the Yanks will not make anymore mistakes the likes of A.J. Burnett or any other past figures who have failed their contract in the Bronx. It's certainly a new era in the history of Yankees baseball.Gone are the days when George Steinbrenner, ...
Mark Teixeira epitomizes the approach to the game that is shared by fewer and fewer players today. On June 12, 2009, the New York Mets led the New York Yankees 8-7 going to the bottom of the ninth inning. Frankie Rodriguez, who was coming off an MLB-record 62 saves in 2008, was on the mound in relief of Pedro Feliciano. With Derek Jeter on second and two outs, the Mets' brain trust decided that discretion was the better part of valor. Teixeira was walked intentionally. The move was against the ...