"I'm going to prepare for (the starting catching job). I love catching, love being behind the plate. I take a lot of pride - that's my position," Posada said at the charity bowling tournament at Chelsea Piers to benefit his foundation. "If (the Yankees) want me to be DH or catch, just be honest and let me know what's up."To me it's pretty obvious that the Yankees don't want Jorge to be an everyday catcher anymore. I think all this recent talk about Montero is a pretty good indication of that.
He also spoke about his good pal Derek Jeter and his future contract negotiations:
"I hope he's treated the way he's treated the Yankees. He's our No. 1 priority - him and Mo. Then get the rest of the team together." Asked if Jeter should finish his career at shortstop if the Yankees reach a new deal, Posada said, "No question.First of all, the idea of having Jeter play shortstop for the life of the next contract (unless that contract in for one year) is completely ridiculous. What scares me about it is that Jorge is supposedly Jeter's best friend so he probably knows that that's what Jeter actually wants.
"I think he's a perfect example of hard work. He's going to prove a lot of people wrong," said Posada, alluding to Jeter's down 2010 season in which he hit . 270, well below his career .314 average. "He's done a lot of things in that position. It would be tough for him to change."
Maybe I'm alone on this but I really don't feel the Yankees owe Jeter anything. I mean, they've treated the guy pretty fairly, wouldn't you say?
| Year | Age | Team | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 22 | New York Yankees | $130,000 |
| 1997 | 23 | New York Yankees | $550,000 |
| 1998 | 24 | New York Yankees | $750,000 |
| 1999 | 25 | New York Yankees | $5,000,000 |
| 2000 | 26 | New York Yankees | $10,000,000 |
| 2001 | 27 | New York Yankees | $12,600,000 |
| 2002 | 28 | New York Yankees | $14,600,000 |
| 2003 | 29 | New York Yankees | $15,600,000 |
| 2004 | 30 | New York Yankees | $18,600,000 |
| 2005 | 31 | New York Yankees | $19,600,000 |
| 2006 | 32 | New York Yankees | $20,600,000 |
| 2007 | 33 | New York Yankees | $21,600,000 |
| 2008 | 34 | New York Yankees | $21,600,000 |
| 2009 | 35 | New York Yankees | $21,600,000 |
| 2010 | 36 | New York Yankees | $22,600,000 |
| 2011 Status | Free Agent, Earliest Free Agent: 2011 | ||
| Career to date (may be incomplete) | $205,430,000 | ||
If Jeter, or any athlete in the situation he's in actually cared about his team, or winning, as much as they say they do then they'd make their decision based on what's good for the team and not just themselves. In this case it would be a one or two-year deal worth about $10-$12 per. Clearly, we're all not fortunate enough to live in that sort of world.