Guess What? Hank is Talking Again

And it's more about Santana...From Newsday:

"There's definitely still a possibility," Yankees senior vice president Hank Steinbrenner said by phone Tuesday afternoon.

But, Steinbrenner cautioned, there is "nothing new" with regards to Santana.

It is believed that general partner Hal Steinbrenner (Hank's younger brother) and general manager Brian Cashman have reservations.

"The bottom line is, it's my decision," Hank Steinbrenner said, "but there's disagreement within the organization. I've got to keep everybody happy in the organization, including Brian ... That includes my partner, which is my brother."

"The payroll would just be out of this world this year," Steinbrenner said of potentially adding Santana, "but only for this year. When you've got to trade top young talent and pay a lot of money, it gets very risky."

If the Yankees do complete a trade for Santana, Steinbrenner said they would not go beyond a five-year contract extension (one that expires after the 2013 season).

"I wouldn't do it if it were a six- or seven-year contract," Steinbrenner said. "I wouldn't go past five, on an extension."

Notes & quotes: Steinbrenner said the Yankees remain committed to having Joba Chamberlain in the starting rotation, and are not looking at him as a possible eighth-inning answer.

At this point, the Hank Steinbrenner daily sound bites are becoming comical. So are the whole Santana trade talks for that matter.

If there is that much conflict within the organization over this trade, Hank should do something his father rarely did, and listen to his baseball people. Like his father, he is probably too stubborn and arrogant to do so.

Regarding the contract extension I do agree with Hank, giving a seven-year contract to a 29 year old pitcher that for some reason stopped throwing his slider this year, and logged a ton of innings on his arm over the last several seasons, is crazy. Five years is the most I would even consider giving him. But Hank hasn't stood by a single thing he's told the media so far(A-Rod contract, Santana "deadline", etc.), so there is no reason to believe he will this time.

Hank has said several times already that they have no intention of using Joba out of the pen, but watch how quickly that changes if the Yankee bullpen can't hold a lead. The fact that they have to limit his innings tells me that no matter what people within the organization are saying, Joba will be in the pen at some point in 2008.

Until he proves that we can believe anything he says, it would be better off if he would just stop talking to the media all together.