This Week in Yankees History (1/22-1/28)

This Week in Yankees History 

January 22nd - January 28th

January 22nd

1881 - Former Yankees C/1B Ira Thomas (1906-1907) was born (1881-1958).On August 20, 1905; Ira Thomas was purchased by the New York Highlanders from Providence (Eastern League). Thomas appeared in 124 games with Yankees, hitting just .195. On December 12,1907, he was purchased by the Detroit Tigers from the New York Highlanders. Later he would have with the Philadelphia A’s.


1913 - The New York Giants give the New York Yankees permission to use the Polo Grounds for the 1913 American League season only, as their lease on the Hilltop Park has expired. The Yankees will remain as tenants at the Polo Grounds through 1922 American League season, then moving to the new Yankee Stadium in the Bronx in April of 1923.


1918 - The New York Yankees traded C Les Nunamaker, 3B Fritz Maisel, INF Joe Gedeon, Pitchers Nick Cullop and Urban Shocker to the St. Louis Browns in exchange for P Eddie Plank and 2B Del Pratt. Eddie Plank, a 300-game winner, retires from MLB, but Dell Pratt gives the Yankees three good years of services at second base. Urban Shocker is the gem, posting four straight seasons of 20 or more wins with the Browns. Fritz Maisel, who the Yankees refused to trade in early 1916 for either Red Sox OF Tris Speaker (and cash) or White Sox OF Shoeless Joe Jackson, will hit just .232 in 90 games and be released by the team.


1927 - The New York Yankees released veteran reserve C Hank Severeid. He had retired from MLB. Hank hit .268 in 41 games for the 1927 Yankees, after being obtained from the Washington Senators.


1929 - The New York Yankees announced that they would be putting numbers on the backs of their team uniforms, becoming the 1st baseball team to start continuous use of the numbers. The first numbers are based on positions in the batting order; thus, Babe Ruth will wear number 3 and Lou Gehrig number 4. In a few weeks, the Cleveland Indians announce that they, too, will put numbers on their player uniforms. By 1931, all American League teams will use them. It will be 1933 before all National League players are numbered.

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Martin Avoids Arbitration

From David Waldstein:

Just hours after Jorge Posada, their catcher of the past, announced his retirement, the Yankees said Tuesday that they had agreed on a contract with Russell Martin, their catcher of the present.

The deal, worth $7.5 million deal for one year, lets the sides avoid an arbitration hearing. Martin can also earn another $100,000 in performance bonuses.

Prince Fielder Signs 9-Year Deal With Detroit

There's no doubt that Fielder is going to be a huge addition to their lineup, but it'll be interesting to see what kind of shape Fielder is in towards the end of the contract. For now, however, with the combination of Miguel Cabrera and now Prince Fielder the Tigers are looking pretty damn dangerous.

Jorge Says Goodbye

Here's some videos of today's tearful press conference:


Jorge officially announces his retirement


Jorge answers questions from the media


The fans thank Jorge

More videos can be found here.

We have all been privileged to watch you play and fight for this team for the last 17 years. You did it the right way and most importantly, you were a winner. Thanks you, Jorge!

Posada to Officially Retire Tomorrow

From Wallace Matthews:

The YES Network will televise Jorge Posada's retirement press conference live from Yankee Stadium beginning at 11 a.m.

Should be a pretty sad day in Yankeeland, though it would have been sadder to see him in a Rays uniform.

The New York Giants Are Headed to the Super Bowl!

Pineda Talks About Joining Yanks

From Christian Red:

For Pineda, who is an imposing 6-7 and who can fire mid-90s heat, the change of address came as a shock (the deal will be officially finalized when the players pass their physicals and when visa paperwork is completed). But once the news sank in, Pineda started to envision the galaxy of stars that will play behind him.

“It’s a tremendous team, with good pitching. It’s very exciting for me — for the first time in my life, I’ll have the pleasure of playing with Alex Rodriguez, a huge star, and Derek Jeter, one of the most well-known players ever. And Mariano Rivera, (Robinson) Cano, (Mark) Teixeira, Rafael Soriano,” Pineda says in Spanish, his voice trailing off as he sifts through the Yankees’ roster. “I never thought in my life that I would be in this situation.”

Pineda’s father, however, is keenly aware of the bigger draw for a player who slips on the pinstripes.

“The Yankees, they are known for making the playoffs almost every year,” the elder Pineda says. “I guess, maybe, they were looking for some more pitching. But hopefully (Michael) can help win some more rings.”

...“I’m not scared. I’m always focused, working very hard every day,” says Pineda, whose gold earring spelling his name sparkles in the late-evening sunlight. “I don’t think about anything else on game days. I’ve never pitched in New York or at Yankee Stadium, but I’m dying to. We’ll see what happens. I’m going to work very hard to do my job.”

...He’ll also be tested by the change in ballparks: He’s leaving spacious Safeco Field — a pitcher’s park — for the smaller Yankee Stadium dimensions, including the short right-field porch that lefty hitters such as Boston’s David Ortiz find so inviting.

“I’ll just keep it low,” says Pineda, switching to English briefly as he stands near the driveway of his home. “Keep it low and everything will be fine.”

Yea, let's hope so or else he'll quickly learn about the old Bronx Cheer.

Yanks Still Trying to Trade AJ

From Jeff Bradley:

Because future moves Cashman may or may not make this off-season hinge on whether the GM can move Burnett. A source with knowledge of the Yankee organization’s plan for the rest of the off-season said, “It’s a waiting game now to see if A.J. can be dealt. If he is, the Yankees will hope to get a bat in return, or save enough money to get a bat.”

It is tricky, of course, because the whole baseball world knows after the Yankees acquired (pending a clean physical) Michael Pineda from the Seattle Mariners and signed free agent Hiroki Kuroda that the next move Cashman would hope to make is to offload Burnett and a sizeable portion of the $33 million he is owed over the next two seasons.

“I think Burnett has some bounce-back potential,” said one rival executive. “And I think teams would be interested in him at the right value per year. Of course, that would mean the Yankees would have to eat far more than half of his remaining contract — closer to two-thirds, I would think. In addition to that, there are still decent free-agent options out there — Roy Oswalt and Edwin Jackson in particular — and a few other trade alternatives, so it’s hard for me to think they’ll be able to move him.”

For now, Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner is telling Cashman he’s out of money, so while the agents for free agents such as Vladimir Guerrero, Raul Ibanez, Hideki Matsui and Johnny Damon have initiated contact with the Yankees, they have all been told not to wait around on an offer from Cashman. Of course, Steinbrenners have been known to change their minds in the past, and some money may magically appear before spring training, but for now, the Yankees mission is to see how much they can save on Burnett.

“Around the game, Burnett has become the symbol for wasted money,” said an AL East scout who also believes the Yankees will have to eat at least $20 million. “When you’ve got a guy who has managed to pitch below .500 (34-35) for a team with the Yankees offense, yeah, it’ll make you apprehensive. This is the question now being asked, even about guys like Oswalt and Jackson. How much do you pay for mediocrity?”

If the Yankees don’t want to eat a lot of Burnett’s salary, the other option is to take a chance on another team’s mistake.

Names that always seem to come to mind when you think of bad contracts include the former Yankee Alfonso Soriano, who is owed $54 million the next three years by the Chicago Cubs; Vernon Wells, due to make $63 million the next three years in Anaheim; and Jason Bay, whom the Mets owe $49 million over the next three years.

At this point I can't see how any other team would take a shot on Burnett, but stranger things have happened. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

The DH....Why Not A-Rod?

I can't believe it, but we are now just one month away from pitchers and catchers reporting, signaling the start of spring training. Here in New York it's still clearly winter, with snow expecting to hit sometime tonight. But for now, here's some food for thought on a possible candidate for the Yankees' DH spot - Alex Rodriguez.

You already know my feelings on A-Rod and his contract, and I feel now is the time to move him to DH. Before the trade last week that sent Jesus Montero to Seattle, it seemed pretty certain A-Rod would still play third base regularly, getting a start or two at DH per week. But now with a vacant DH slot and Eduardo Nunez ready to become an everyday player, it wouldn't be too crazy to think this could happen and greatly benefit the Bombers.

Don't get me wrong, A-Rod is still an above average fielder at third, and actually made some great plays in the postseason, but let's get real. He is 37, and hasn't played 140 games since 2007. Everyone says he's once again "100%" and is ready for a "huge comeback", but we heard the exact same talk before the Yankees opened camp last season. What happened? He played in 99 games and couldn't hit a home run to save his life in the second half.

Making A-Rod the DH would keep him fresh all year long, and wouldn't give him a real risk of getting hurt. A return to hitting 30 home runs would be likely, and that's up and above any production guys like Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, or Vladimir Gurrerro would provide.

Also something that would be hidden in this potential move is making Eduardo Nunez the starting third baseman. He's a terrific hitter and has been working hard to improve his defense. He would be a solid bat in the bottom third of the Yankees lineup, and would finally give the 25-year old the opportunity he definitely deserves. Also, the Yankees statistically were way better with Nunez in the lineup, whether playing for Jeter or A-Rod.

With A-Rod's ugly contract running through the 2017 season, it is inevitable he will soon become the regular DH for the foreseeable future. But for the benefit of the team and his personal production, Alex needs to make this move now. He's always been a self-centered, "I care about stats more than the team" guy anyway.

Yanks Interesting in Cuban Lefty

From Wallace Matthews:

According to Enrique Rojas of ESPNDeportes LA, 18-year-old Cuban lefty Gerardo Concepcion is about to declare free agency and the Yankees -- along with the Texas Rangers, Philadelphia Phillies, and both Chicago teams -- are said to be interested.

Here is a link to the Rojas story.

As for that other Cuban on the market, Yoenis Cespedes, a team source tells Matthews that the Yankees do like Cespedes, "they are not willing to pay the price for a player who does not yet appear to be major-league ready."