Lupica Doesn't Understand Reality

Remember about a week ago when Mike Lupica bashed Cashman and the Yankees for not overpaying for Damon and then mocked their budget? The same budget he spent the last 10 years blasting them for not having?

Well, yesterday he wrote another "gem", this time titled "New York Yankees and free agent Johnny Damon still have time to make a deal."

There is still time for the Yankees to make a deal with Johnny Damon and for Damon to make a deal with them, just because there is no ticking clock here the way there is no real "budget" for the Yankees.

If you're thinking "oh no not this crap again", you're not alone, so was I.

Damon? He should make a deal for the best possible reason, because this is the best possible place for him to continue playing baseball. The Yankees make the deal for the only reason that is supposed to matter:

They are a better team with him than they are without him and they don't have to lay off members of the grounds crew to get him.

Amazingly, I actually agree with that. The Yankees are clearly the best place for Damon, but it probably would have been in his best interest if he had realized that a month or two ago.

You know how long this would take to work out? One day this week. That's if the Yankees really ever wanted him back in the first place. The idea that this somehow breaks Hal Steinbrenner's piggy bank is sillier than late-night talk shows.

Once again, three offers, all rejected, by Damon.

It is good business for both sides to give a little here. But it is better business for the Yankees, because they really can make their team better and their fans happy (does anybody NOT want Damon back?) at the same time.

You know Yankee fans know the market, they know about all those Carl Crawfords out there next winter. But they are infinitely more interested in the season their team is about to play, and winning two in a row, and having their team resume its play as the baddest on the planet.

If I had a choice of Johnny Damon this year or Carl Crawford from 2011 to let's say 2015 I'd take Crawford in a heartbeat. What about you? Also, there aren't many intelligent Yankees fans who are ready to throw 2010 away because they don't have Damon. The fact that we know the market only allows us to understand how wrong Johnny Damon and Scott Boras have been throughout this whole winter. Why Lupica can't see this is beyond what my brain can comprehend.

They're not being asked to break the bank here. It's not like the gap between the two sides is as wide as CC Sabathia. But are we really supposed to believe that Hal Steinbrenner found $180 million under the bed for Mark Teixeira last winter and now can't find whatever it will take to bring back a popular, winning ballplayer and stick him back in the No. 2 slot behind Jeter?

...

Come on. You know how many home runs Nick Johnson, Randy Winn and Brett Gardner hit among them last season? Thirteen.

First of all, 2009 is not 2010. This team is obviously changing their approach a tad as they head into a new season. In 2008 they had just missed the playoffs for the first time since 1994 and had to do what was necessary to put themselves back on top. Now, with those players still locked they're in a great spot to continue winning, with or without Damon.

And about the homers, there is more to baseball than just home runs. Sometimes when I read the ideas that come out of this dude's head I feel like I'm listening to a 7-year-old who just started watching the game. And by the way, if you're going to compare the home run numbers of players brought in compared to Damon, you might want to include the 30 that Curtis Granderson hit last year while playing half of his games in Comerica Park.

If the Yankees want to have a budget, tell them to tee it up with the same payroll the Mets have, the Red Sox, the Phillies, the next biggest spenders. Tell them to get themselves under the threshold for the luxury tax in baseball, because they're the only ones over it.

Or tell us that they still can't make money on their baseball operation even winning the World Series. Then everybody in town can get their minds around letting Damon walk away.

If you need to read that again to see how little sense it make, go ahead. Let me get this straight, it's bad for them to try to lower their payroll, unless they lower it significantly? Does Lupica understand that for the Yankees to lower their payroll to level of the Sox and Mets that it's going to have to take time and happen in stages? And what's with his fetish for the idea that the Yanks aren't making money?

Oh, by the way, the only person I know of right now that can't get this Damon situation out of their head is Lupica himself. I'm not bothered by it at all, most other Yankees fans I speak to completely understand the situation and only blame Boras and Damon.

The Yankees found $300 million when they wanted Alex Rodriguez back. They found the money for Teixeira. They can still find the money for Johnny Damon. Can they win without him? Of course they can.

Damon has nowhere near the value of Alex Rodriguez or Mark Teixeira. Compared the signings of these three players is utterly ridiculous. Just to put some numbers behind that, Fangraphs has a value stat where they put a dollar value on each player. Last year Mark Teixeira was worth $23.2MM, A-Rod, who missed the first month and was barely healthy for the second, was worth $20MM, Damon was worth $13.6, around $2MM less than Nick Swisher according to Fangraphs.

He goes on to conclude that the Yankees are better with Damon than without him so they should sign him. Thanks genius, but what I'd like to know is how he expects this to get done. The Yankees last offered him a one-year deal worth $6MM -- a very fair deal based on the market and lack of landing spots for Damon -- which he rejected. That was after rejected two other better offers, both two-year deals, both worth more money than he's likely to get from anyone else. So instead of wasting three pages whining about the Yankees suddenly having a budget (again) how about a reasonable suggestion as to how this could actually work? Or would that take too much effort?

Damon Wants To Be A Tiger? Yanks Didn't Want Damon?

OK, so maybe I lied a little when I said I wouldn't post anymore Johnny Damon stuff. Sorry. This, however, was kind of interesting and I felt like I had to pass it along. It was reported yesterday that Johnny thinks he would be a good fit for Detroit.

"Johnny believes the addition of him to Detroit's lineup would make the Tigers a winner," Scott Boras said during a Monday phone conversation with The Detroit News.

And there may be interest from the other side as well:

The report says, "The Tigers are looking for top-of-the-order punch after the departures of Curtis Granderson and Placido Polanco. They are particularly needy on the left side of the plate, and Damon ... is a left-handed hitter."

Do you think Damon can make the Tigers a winner? I don't.

Andrew Marchand has another quote from Boras, this time he's trying to blame to make it seem that the Yanks wanted nothing to do with Damon.

"We didn't we hear from [Cashman] for five weeks," Boras said. "Finally I called and I found out they made an offer to another player [Nick Johnson.]"

What a load of B.S.

The first time Boras spoke with the Yanks they were willing to offer Damon a two-year deal worth around $19-$20 million. But according to Buster Olney, "Damon wanted no talks if he was to be offered less money than what he made in 2009."

Then, after they signed Johnson, the Yankees discussed a two-year, $14 million deal, "which was immediately rejected" according to Olney.

Move ahead to about a week ago when the Yanks once again had an offer for Damon, a one-year, $6 million offer that was once again rejected. Is it just me or does it seem like Damon was the one holding things up?

Is it Brian Cashman's fault that Boras and Damon can't see the writing on the wall? No team is going to pay Damon what he wanted coming into this offseason. The best he will most likely get was that original two-year offer the Yanks were willing to make, now he's going to have to settle for much less on a lesser team. That's not the Yankees fault, it's Boras' and Damon's.

2/1 Demolition Update

(Updated 4:43 p.m.) Here are some more pictures from Gary Dunaier. These were taken yesterday and show more of the same from street level.

These pictures show the staircase in left field coming down. The first picture comes from Baseball Fever, and the four overhead shots come from WCBS880's Tom Kamanski. For more from Kamanski click here.

(click to enlarge)

Images used with permission from WCBS880.com.

For the main demolition page click here.

Cash: Matsui Signing Was One Of My Best

From Reuters:

“I’ve had some successful signings in Japan, I’ve had some unsuccessful signings in Japan. Hideki Matsui will be one of the best deals I ever made.”

Cashman added, “We will have future players from Japan on our roster. They will do everything in their power to try to help us win, but I doubt we’ll find another Hideki Matsui.”

...

"We did not sign Hideki Matsui because he was Japanese, we signed him because he was a true champion and one of the world's more gifted baseball players," he said.

Team president Randy Levine also praised Matsui, adding he hoped the Yankees did not lose Japanese fans with his departure.

"We know the great allegiance to Hideki Matsui -- he deserves it. He was a great Yankee," said Levine.

That he was. Matsui was everything the Yankees could have hoped for when they signed him prior to the '03 season. How would you rate Matsui as far as Cashman's signings go?

More Crazy Ideas On How To Stop The Big Bad Yanks

With all the new concerns with the fairness of baseball -- You know, the Yanks wn a ring and everyone loses their mind --- ESPN.com's David Schoenfield has a radical realignment plan.

In this article, I explained why baseball's competitive balance is better than you realize, actually on par with the NFL's.

This does not mean baseball is "fair" and it certainly seems most fans desire the sport to be more fair. And what makes baseball unfair, mostly, is the New York Yankees. As you probably know, the Yankees spend a lot of money and win a lot of games. They don't win it all every season, but they won it all last season, so now everybody is again hyper-concerned about fairness in baseball.

...

If you created a salary cap of $88 million -- the average MLB team payroll in 2009 -- several franchises would likely go bankrupt or possibly relocate. You could force the "rich" teams to provide even more revenue sharing, but good luck with that. You could institute a rule like the NFL will have this offseason (when it will likely play under an uncapped system): the final eight playoff teams are not allowed to add any new players through free agency except to replace those they lose.

Now, I'm not exactly sure how that will work, but a similar system in baseball wouldn't have prevented the Yankees from signing Mark Teixeira, CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett -- remember, the Yankees had missed the playoffs in 2008. Plus, do you penalize teams like the Rays or Cardinals, who may make the playoffs even though they aren't "big-market" teams?

So, yes, it's a complicated situation without an easy (or realistic) solution. That's why I'm here. I have one.

Change the divisions. Each season.

Yes, he actually suggests changing the division every year.

Why does baseball have to keep the same division format every year? Why should Tampa Bay and Baltimore always have to beat out the Yankees and Red Sox while the AL Central teams duel each other to 87 wins? Why should the Angels only have to beat out three teams instead of four in the AL West?

So the plan is to realign the divisions after every season. For the American League, there would be three basic rules:

1. The Yankees and Red Sox always remain in the AL East. It makes sense and it's good for the game.

2. Tampa, Toronto, Baltimore, Detroit and Cleveland can play only in the AL East or AL Central. All five cities are in the Eastern time zone and having them play in the West creates logistical and television issues.

3. The Angels, Seattle and Oakland always remain in the AL West. This makes sense for logistical reasons, as well.

Now, how do we disperse the remaining teams? Simple. MLB holds a big telecast two days after the World Series ends. We put all the team names in a big ball like during the NBA lottery selection show. Teams send their general manager and a star player and Hall of Famers like George Brett and Reggie Jackson draw out the team names. You wouldn't watch this? You wouldn't love to see Dave Dombrowski throw up in his mouth when the Tigers draw the AL East? You wouldn't get excited to see Andrew Friedman high-fiving Evan Longoria when the Rays draw the AL Central? You know you would watch this.

Yes, I'd probably watch that, but it doesn't make it a good idea.

He then goes on to show what each AL division would look like over the next few seasons and it's pretty safe to say it looks a little ridiculous. For example, the 2010 AL East would include the Yanks, Sox, Indians and Tigers, while the 2011 AL East would include the Yanks, Red Sox, Tigers, Royals and White Sox.

I'm not posting this because I think it's a good idea, even Schoenfield admits it's not realistic. I just think it's funny the lengths people would try to go to because the Yankees won their first World Series since 2000. Imagine how nuts people will get if they win another next season? I can't wait for that.

2010 Yankees-Red Sox Comparison: Second Base

Yankees- Robinson Cano- Coming into the 2009 season, there was a lot of doubt over Robinson Cano's future in New York. After being handed a big contract, his performance fell off a cliff in '08. He managed to hit only .271/.305/.410 in the final year at the old ballpark and played some of the worst defense of his career, posting a -8 UZR. In fact, fangraphs.com valued his worth at only 2.2 million dollars after being worth over 20.7 million in 2007. Their was a fairly large and vocal contingency of Yankees fans willing to write him off as being a lazy waste of talent.

However, more statistically minded baseball fans noted his sudden drop in his BABIP despite a slight spike in LD%. Compared to a career average of .324, it was only .286 in 2008. For a guy who's value is so closely tied to his batting average and aility to put the ball in play, that was catastrophic. In 2009, he proved it wasn't going to become a trend either. He bounced back in the best way possible and had the best year of his young career. Not only did his average jump all the way up to .320, he also seemed to add a little bit of power and plate disciplince to his game. Not that he's suddenly transformed into Adam Dunn, but he did post new highs in HR's, doubles, SLG%, and ISO. All in all, it was good for a line of .320/.352/.520 and a wOBA of .370 which is outstanding for a second baseman.

If I had to pick out negatives with Cano, it'd be that he posted a -5.2 UZR in 2009 and his value is very closely tied to his BABIP. So, another 2008 is not inconceivable if he is hit with some bad luck. One might also wonder how Melky's leaving could affect his play. However, the Yankees have a 28 year old second baseman who posted the third highest wOBA out of all the second baseman in the ML's. He's under their control for the next few years at a relatively cheap price to and theirs plenty of teams that would love to have to deal with the headache of Robinson Cano.

Red Sox- Dustin Pedroia- We may joke about Dustin Pedroia and how the media tends to glorify the "scrappy" second baseman. However, their's no doubting that he's a really really good player who could be a major thorn in the Yankees' side for years to come. Like Cano, he came up through the team's minor league system. Although he had a rough time in his debut way back in 2006. Since then, he's emerged as one of the best young players in the game and its been nothing but good news for Boston's second baseman.

In his first year of full-time duty, he impressed in 2006 and seemed to justify the hype. He hit .317/.380/.442, good for a .365 wOBA, and played some very solid defense at second. If he followed the normal progression of a young player, the Red Sox had a major talent on their hands. Pedroia didn't follow the normal progression though and outperformed everybody's wildest expectations in 2008. He hit .326/.376/.493 which is a good year for anybody but is just ridiculous for a second baseman. Their were probably better candidates for MVP that year but you have to respect that Pedroia had an outstanding year in 2008.

He wasn't quite as good last year, regressing back to 2007's offensive levels. That's definitely good enough though and nobody can complain about a .360 wOBA coming from second base. The other aspect of Pedroia's game that is really impressive is that he plays a great second base. He posted UZR's above 10 in both 2008 and 2009 and their were actually few rumblings about him actually moving to shortstop earlier in the offseason, though those rumors seem to be dead now. Is he overhyped? Yes, but that doesn't mean he isn't still very good at baseball.


Advantage- Red Sox- I went with Boston here but its only by the tiniest of differences. Offensively I'd probably give Cano the edge. I chalk his disastrous 2008 campaign up to bad luck and I doubt it will happen again. Not only that but I think he made some real changes and improvements in 2009 so his wOBA of .370 is probably his true talent level. Pedroia looks like he's really worth the .360 he put up last year as he's put up a mark close to that two of the past three years. Ultimately though, the defensive gap is to much for Cano to make up and you can't toally ignore 2008 either. That year really altered the perceptions of these two players around baseball but they're a lot closer in value than most would have you think.

Keith Law's 2011 Minor League Sleepers

After posting his top 100 prospects for the 2010 season ESPN's Keith Law takes at the top sleepers for the 2011 season (hat-tip to TYU), and picks "one player from each organization who might move up into the top 100 next offseason." He continues, saying "the emphasis is on guys who might jump into the middle or even the top part of the rankings, the way Neftali Feliz and Madison Bumgarner did, as opposed to players who might just slide into the 90s." For the Yankees he picked RHP Jose Ramirez.

Right-hander Jose Ramirez is long and loose with room to fill out, but can already run his fastball up to 95-96, locate it to his glove side and turn over a changeup. His main drawback is the lack of an average breaking ball.

In 11 games (10 starts) for the Gulf Coast League Yankees Ramirez went 6-0, with a 1.48 ERA. In 61 innings he allowed 10 earned runs on 33 hits, walked 16 and struck out 53. Batters hit just .159 against him. He also pitched one game for the Tampa Yankees and allowed just one hit and struck out two in 3 innings of work.

This Week in Yankees History (1/31-2/6)

This Week in Yankees History

January 31st - February 6th


January 31st

1891 - Former Yankees OF Tim Hendryx (1915-17) was born. Tom hit .246 in 153 games before being sent to the Browns.

1893 - Former Yankees reserve 1B George “Tigoa” Burns (1928-1929) was born. He appeared in 13 games going 2 for 13, before being sent to the A’s. He was blocked at 1B by All Star Lou Gehrig.

1900 - Former Yankees reserve C John “Honey” Barnes (1926) was born. John appeared in 1 game with 1 at bat, drawing a walk in 1926.

1929 - Former Yankees P Duke Maas (1958-1961) was born. On June 15, 1958, he was traded by the A’s along with veteran starter Virgil Trucks to the Yankees for P Bob Grim and OF Harry “Suitcase” Simpson. Duke would go 26-12 in 96 games with the Yankees. His best Yankees season was in 1959, posting a 14-8 mark. He appeared in 2 World Series in 1958 and 1960 with the Yankees having no record. The Yankees lost him to the new LA Angels in the 1960 AL Expansion Player Draft in December of 1960. On April 4, 1961, Duke was traded by the Angels back to the Yankees for reserve INF Fritz Brickell. Duke would only pitch in 1-game before arm problems shut him down for the 1961 AL season and eventually cost him his MLB career.

1953 - The Yankees, Indians, and Red Sox retaliate at St. Louis Browns Owner Bill Veeck, forcing the Browns to play afternoon games to avoid sharing TV revenues. Veeck takes his plan to the AL office to make them pay. The AL office rejects his plan. Eventually Bill Veeck will sell the Browns to new owners, who will move the team to Baltimore to become the Orioles in 1954.

1958 - Former Yankees INF Rafael Santana (1988-1989) was born. On December 11, 1987, he was traded by the Mets along with Victor Garcia (minors) to the Yankees for OF Darren Reed, C Phil Lombardi, and P Steve Frey. Rafael hit .240 in 148 games in 1988, before going down with rotor cuff injury in spring of 1989. The Yankees released him in August of 1989.

1963 - Former MLB player and long-time Yankees minor league manager Oscar Vitt passed away (1890-1963). He played in the MLB from 1912 to 1921, with the Tigers and Red Sox. He was mainly a 3B and 2B, but also played some outfield. He was a mediocre hitter, hitting .238 for his MLB career, but he was tough to strike out and did have good speed, as witnessed by high totals of triples - he hit 13 in 1915 and 12 in 1916 - and stolen bases (a career-high of 26 in 1915, and three other seasons with more than 15). However, he only hit 4 home runs for his entire career. He was 3rd in the AL in runs scored in 1915, when he was the Tigers' starting 3B and 2nd-place hitter; he also led the AL with 42 sacrifice hits that year. In the 1930’s he became a successful minor league manager in the PCL with the Hollywood Stars and Oakland Oaks. In 1935, he joined the Yankees organization, managing the Oakland Oaks to a 3rd place finish in the PCL. Next season, he was the manager of the Newark Bears of the International League (AAA) in the 1936-1937, when they were the top farm club of the Yankees. Oscar fielded one of the best minor league teams ever seen in 1937, posting a 109-43 record and League championship. His success with the 1937 Newark Bears lead to a MLB manager’s job with the Indians from 1938-1940. After being let go by the Indians, he return to managed with the Hollywood Stars for the 1941-1942 PCL seasons.

1971 - The Special Veterans Committee selects 7 men for enshrinement in the HOF: former players Jake Beckley, Joe Kelley, Harry Hooper, Rube Marquard, Chick Hafey, and Dave Bancroft, as well as baseball executive George Weiss, who was the Yankees General Manager (1949-1960). Also he ran the Yankees farm system under Yankees GM Ed Barrow in the 1930-1940’s. He was the 1st GM for the Mets.

1977 - Former Indians and Yankees INF Joe Sewell, P Amos Rusie and MLB catcher/Manager Al Lopez are elected to the Hall Of Fame by the Special Veterans Committee. Joe Sewell batted .312 over 14 seasons with the Indians and Yankees. He only struck out 113 times during his MLB career. Amos Rusie won 246 games over 9 seasons from 1889 to 1898. Al Lopez won 4 fielding titles in 19 years as a MLB catcher, but it was his .584 winning percentage in 17 seasons as a MLB manager that got him into Cooperstown. He was the only AL Manager to win AL Flags with the Indians (1954) and White Sox (1959) during Manager Casey Stengel’s Yankees Dynasty run of 1949-1960.

2002 - Former Yankees minor league catcher and MLB player Harry Chiti passed away (1932-2002). On June 29, 1950 Harry Chiti was signed by the Cubs as an MLB amateur free agent and became the youngest player in the NL, when he made it into 3 Cubs games at age 17. After a couple more stays in Chicago, while still a teenager and 2 years in the U.S. Army, he became a semi-regular behind the plate for the Cubs before being traded to the Yankees on December 11 1956 for veteran backup receiver, Charlie Silvera. Harry never made it into Yankees pinstripes; The A’s in the 1957 MLB Rule V Player Draft drafted Harry from the Yankees organization. He played with the Athletics, Tigers, Indians (twice), Orioles and Mets before leaving the MLB.

2006 - The Yankees signed veteran MLB free agent P Ramiro Mendoza. He will spent the 2006 season at Columbus (AAA), trying to comeback from arm problems. He only appeared in 1 game, pitching 1 inning with the Yankees in 2005.

2008 - The Yankees signed MLB free agent OF/DH Morgan Ensberg. Morgan will appear in 28 games for the Yankees, hitting only just .203, before being released by the team on June 7, 2008. He will sign as a free agent with the Indians, playing the rest of 2008 season with their Buffalo (AAA) team.

February 1st

1921 - Former Yankees P (1950) and Scout (1956-58) Dave Madison was born. In 1947, the Yankees signed Dave as an MLB amateur free agent. Dave appeared in only 1 game during the 1950 AL season with the Yankees. He had no record. On April 7, 1952, Dave was purchased by the Browns from the Yankees. After finishing his MLB active career, Dave became a Yankees scout from 1956 to 1958. Also he would be a MLB scout for the Orioles, A’s and Mets.

1924 - Yankees purchased reserve OF Nick Cullop (1926) from Omaha. Nick appeared in 2 games with the Yankees, before being sent to the Senators.

1926 - The Yankees sell 1B Wally Pipp (1915-1925) to the Reds. In 1925, a headache had forced Wally Pipp out of the Yankees starting lineup, resulting in his replacement by future HOF 1B Lou Gehrig. Pipp never started another game for the Yankees at 1B. After being obtained from the Tigers, Wally Pipp had been the Yankees regular 1B from 1915-1925.

1943 - Former Yankees OF Ron Woods (1967-1971) was born. On June 14, 1969, Ron was traded by the Tigers to the Yankees for INF Tom Tresh. He was a weak-hitting outfielder. On June 25, 1971, Ron was traded by the Yankees to the Expos for OF Ron Swoboda.

1944 - Former Yankees reserve OF Paul Blair (1977-1979) was born. On January 20, 1977, Paul was traded by the Orioles to the Yankees for Outfielders Elliott Maddox and Rick Bladt. Paul was a late inning replacement for Reggie Jackson in the OF.

1960 - Former Yankees P Cecilio Guante (1987-1988) was born. On November 26, 1986, he was traded by the Pirates along with P Pat Clements and Rick Rhoden to the Yankees for P Doug Drabek, P Brian Fisher, and P Logan Easley. He went 8-8 in 79 games with 12 saves. On August 30, 1988, he was traded by the Yankees to the Rangers for P Dale Mohorcic.

1966 - Former Yankees P Darrin Chapin (1991) was born. The Yankees in the 6th round of the 1986 MLB amateur player draft drafted Darrin. He went 0-1 in 3 games as a Yankee, before being traded on January 8, 1992, to the Phillies for a player to be named later. The Phillies would send INF Charlie Hayes to the Yankees to complete the trade.

1970 - The Veterans Committee selects former MLB Commissioner Ford Frick along with former players OF Earle Combs and P Jesse Haines to the HOF. Jessie Haines won 210 games for the Cardinals and pitched in 4 World Series. Although he played 100 games in a season just 9 times, Yankees CF Earl Combs accumulated 1,866 hits and batted .325. Combs Yankees career was cut short by a serious injury. Ford Frick was MLB commissioner from 1951-1965, but he is best remembered for suggesting that an asterisk be placed next to the name of anyone who broke Babe Ruth's HR record during the 8 additional games on the AL schedule in 1961.

1978 - Former Yankees INF Erick Almonte (2001, 2003) was born. The Yankees signed Erick as an amateur free agent in 1996. During 2003 AL season, Erick filled in for the injured Derek Jeter at shortstop, hitting .260 in 31 games. His final Yankee totals were a .269 BA in 39 games with 1 HR with 11 RBIs. On March 26, 2004, he was released by the Yankees.

1999 - The Yankees trade highly touted 3B prospect Mike Lowell to the Marlins for 3 minor league pitchers: Mark J. Johnson, Ed Yarnall and Todd Noel. Mike Lowell was named minor league player-of-the-year last season, is expendable, after the Yankees 3B Scott Brosius' outstanding 1998 AL season performance.

February 2nd

1894 - Former Yankees OF Charles “Ray” Demmitt (1909) was born. Ray hit .246 in 123 games in 1909, before being traded to the Browns.

1895 - Former Yankees OF George Halas (1919) was born. George Halas, better known as a legendary football coach and NFL team owner, played 1 season in the major leagues. He had been a 3-sport athlete at the University of Illinois, and after playing minor league ball, came to the majors as an outfielder in 1919. It was the year before Babe Ruth came to the Yankees and the outfield consisted of Ping Bodie, Sammy Vick, and Duffy Lewis. In 22 at-bats, Halas' MLB career batting average was .091.

1908 - Former Yankees P Wes Farrell (1938-1939) was born. The veteran pitcher went 3-4 in 8 games for the Yankees during the 1938-1939 AL seasons.

1916 - Former Yankees C Mike Garbark (1944-1945) was born. Mike hit .244 in 149 games with the Yankees.

1930 - The Yankees waived shortstop Leo Durocher, who batted only .246 in 1929. The future HOF manager will eventually sign with the Cincinnati Reds. He was caught by his Yankees roommate Babe Ruth stealing from him.

1933 - Former Yankees reserve OF Jack Reed (1961-1963) was born. The Yankees signed Jack Reed as an MLB amateur free agent in 1953. He was a three-sport star at Old Miss, playing in the 1953 Sugar Bowl. He was signed in 1953, but spent a couple of years in military service in Korea. Jack joined the Yankees in 1961 as a reserve outfielder; often filling in for Mickey Mantle in CF. Jack hit his only MLB HR in 1962 to win a 22-inning game against the Tigers. His best season as a Yankees reserve OF was in 1962, hitting .307 in 43 games. After retiring as an active player, Jack managed in the Yankees minor league system.

1936 - The BWAA announces the results of the 1st Hall Of Fame vote. Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Walter Johnson, Christy Mathewson and Honus Wagner comprise the inaugural class of HOF members at Cooperstown, NY. Several other MLB stars like hurler Cy Young fail to make the grade, but will enter the Hall of Fame in later elections.

1950 - Former Yankees P Dale Murray (1983-1985) was born. On December 9, 1982, Dale was traded by the Blue Jays along with OF Tom Dodd to the Yankees for OF Dave Collins, 1B Fred Mc Griff (minors), P Mike Morgan, and cash. The Yankees had hope that Murray would help out their bullpen, but he wasn’t the answer, going just 2-6 in 62 games with only 1 save.

1958 - Former Yankees minor league INF Pat Tabler was born. Pat Tabler was drafted by the Yankees in the 1st round (16th pick) of the 1976 MLB amateur player draft. With All Star Willie Randolph entrenched at 2B for the Yankees, Pat’s future was blocked in the Yankees infield. Pat never appeared with the Yankees at the MLB level. On August 19, 1981, Pat was traded by the Yankees to the Cubs for 2 players to be named later. The Cubs sent P Bill Caudill on April 1, 1982, later P Jay Howell on August 2, 1982 to the Yankees to complete the trade.

1962 - Former Yankees P Pat Clements (1983-1985) was born. On November 26, 1986, Pat was traded by the Pirates along with P Cecilio Guante and Rick Rhoden to the Yankees for P Doug Drabek, P Brian Fisher, and P Logan Easley. He went 3-3 in 61 games with 7 saves. On October 24, 1988, Pat was traded by the Yankees along with 1B Jack Clark to the Padres for Pitchers Lance McCullers, Jimmy Jones, and OF Stanley Jefferson.

1972 - The Yankees purchased INF Hal Lanier (1972-1973) from the Giants. Hal was a weak hitting, reserve infielder, the son of former MLB Cardinals star pitcher Max Lanier.

February 3rd

1888 - Former Yankees HOF co-owner and General Manager Larry Mac Phail (1945-1947) was born. Larry MacPhail is best remembered for having lights installed at Crosley Field in 1935 for night baseball. The Reds were also the 1st team to fly to games. His son, Lee, was a Hall of Fame baseball executive and AL president. Lee worked for the Yankees and Orioles. They are the only father-son combination in the Hall of Fame. Larry was the President of Columbus in the American Association (1930-1933). Then he was the General Manager for the Cincinnati Reds (1933-1936). He moved to the Brooklyn Dodgers, where he was their General Manager, from 1938 to 1942. With the Yankees, he succeeded the long-time Yankees GM Edward Barrow in 1945. After the 1947 World Series, he sold his ownership shares of the Yankees to co-owners Del Webb and Dan Topping. He was not very popular with the Yankee players.

1896 - Former Yankees OF Nelson “Chicken” Hawks (1921) was born. In 1921, he was briefly an outfielder on the 1921 Yankees, playing with fellow OF Babe Ruth in the season that Ruth hit 59 HRs. Hawks, although he had only 2 HRs, had a .479 slugging percentage, which was one of the highest on the 1921 Yankees team.

1922 - Former Yankees minor league OF Jim Dyck was born. Before 1941 MLB Season, Jim was signed by the Yankees as an MLB amateur free agent. Jim never played for the Yankees at the MLB level. On December 5, 1949, Jim was drafted by the Browns from the Yankees in the 1949 minor league player draft. He played for the Browns, Orioles, and Indians before finishing up with the Reds in 1956.

1925 - Former Yankees P Harry Byrd (1954) was born. On December 16, 1953, Harry was traded by the A’s along with 3B Loren Babe, OF Tom Hamilton, OF Carmen Mauro, and 1B Eddie Robinson to the Yankees for 1B Don Bollweg, P Johnny Gray, C Jim Robertson, 3B Jim Finigan, 1B Vic Power and OF Bill Renna. In 1952, Harry was named AL Rookie of the Year, posting a 15-15 record for the A’s. As a Yankees starter in 1954, Harry went 9-7 with 2.99 ERA before being sent to the Orioles in the big 17-player trade that winter.

1928 - The Yankees released INF Julie Wera (1927, 1929). He appeared in 43 games hitting .278 for the Yankees, playing parts of the 1927 and 1929 AL seasons with the team. On November 25, 1930, he was purchased by the Yankees from the Jersey City (International League). Before the 1931 AL Season, he was sent by the Yankees to the San Francisco Seals (PCL) to complete an earlier deal made on August 23, 1930. The Yankees sent a player to be named later and 3 players to the Seals for INF Frankie Crosetti. The Yankees send INF Julie Wera (1931) to the Seals to complete the trade.

1944 - Former Yankees INF Celerino Sanchez (1972-1973) was born (1944-1992). On December 6, 1971, he was traded by the Mexico City Tigers (Mexican League) to the Yankees for INF/OF Ossie Chavarria. He would hit .242 in 105 games for the Yankees. After suffering a fatal heart attack in 1992, Celerino passed away in his hometown of Mexico City.

1951 - Former Yankees P Mike Wallace (1974-1975) was born. On May 3, 1974, Mike was traded by the Phillies to the Yankees for P Ken Wright. Mike would post a 6-0 record in 26 games, before being sold to the Cardinals in 1975.

1961 - Former Yankees minor league P Fred Toliver was born. Freddie Toliver was drafted by the Yankees in the 3rd round of the 1979 MLB amateur player draft. Fred was traded to the Reds along with P Brian Ryder in the Ken Griffey Sr. trade in 1981. He would return to the Yankees in September of 1989, but he would not make any appearances with the team at MLB level.

1965 - Former Yankees minor league P Rich Scheid was born. Rich Scheid was drafted by the Yankees in the 2nd round of the 1986 MLB amateur player draft. On July 13, 1987, he was traded by the Yankees along with pitchers Bob Tewksbury and Dean Wilkins to the Cubs for starter Steve Trout.

1966 - Former Yankees OF Mike Milosevich (1944-1945) passed away. Mollie hit .241 for the 1944-1945 Yankees.

1977 - Former Yankees minor league P Chi-Chi Olivo passed away. On November 29, 1966, he was traded by the Braves along with rookie OF Bill Robinson to the Yankees for veteran 3B Clete Boyer. He never pitched for the Yankees at the MLB level.

1998 - The New York Yankees replaced recently resigned General Manager Bob Watson with Brian Cashman.

2002 - Yankees AL All Star C Jorge Posada signs a 5-year contract with the club. Terms are not announced, but Posada was asking for $7.75 million in arbitration, which would make the 30-year-old the 2nd best-paid catcher in MLB history.

February 4th

1875 - Former Yankees OF Alfonzo “Lefty” Davis (1903) was born. Before the 1903 MLB Season, Lefty jumped from the NL Pirates to the Highlanders. He appeared in 104 games for the 1903 Yankees, hitting .237.

1878 - Former Yankees OF/Coach Herman “Germany” Schaeffer (1916) was born. Herman appeared in 1 game for the 1916 Yankees with no hits.

1915 - The Yankees purchased Wally Pipp and Hugh High from the Tigers for a reported $5,000 each. Baseball historian Lyle Spatz (Yankees Coming, Yankees Going) writes that this was the 1st of some promised funneling of ball players to the recently sold New York Yankees franchise. Wally Pipp would be the Yankees regular 1B from 1915 until mid season of 1925, being replaced by Lou Gehrig. He would be sold to the Reds following the 1925 AL season.

1916 - The Yankees released veteran OF Birdie Cree (1908-1915). Birdie played for the Yankees for 8 seasons, hitting a career .292 BA in 742 games with 761 hits, 11 HRs and 332 RBI’s. His best Yankees season was in 1911, when he hit .348 in 137 games for the Yankees.

1937 - Former Yankees Manager Harry Wolverton (1912) passed away (1873-1937). In 1912, Harry managed the Yankees to a 50-102 record, a last place finish in the AL. The veteran 3B appeared in several games a pinch-hitter for the Yankees. Former Cubs Manager Frank Chance replaced Harry Wolverton as Yankees manager for the 1913 AL season.

1957 - Former Yankees and MLB Manager Joe McCarthy and OF Sam Crawford are elected to the Hall Of Fame by the BWAA. Joe “Marsh” McCarthy, the winningest manager in MLB history, won 9 pennants and 4 consecutive World Championships with the Yankees. He was the 1st MLB manager to win league championships in NL (Cubs) and AL (Yankees). Sam Crawford, one of the greatest hitters of the dead-ball era, finished his MLB career with 309 triples, 1st on the all-time MLB list.

1961 - Former Yankee minor league executive and MLB General Manager Parker Carroll passed away. Parker was the General Manager of the Kansas City A’s from 1958 to 1960. During those 2 years, he engineered a few trades that sent key players to the Yankees, such as Bob Cerv, Hector Lopez and Ralph Terry, but his most notable deal came on December 11, 1959, in which Carroll sent OF Roger Maris and 2 other players to the Yankees for Don Larsen, Marv Throneberry, Hank Bauer and Norm Siebern. With the aid of the short right-field porch in Yankee Stadium, Roger Maris set a single-season HR record with 61 HR in 1961, just 2 years after leaving the A's. Only Norm Siebern would pay dividends for the A's however, as he was their regular 1B from 1960-1963. Carroll's dealings with the Yankees were controversial because the A’s, under owner Arnold Johnson, sent many top players to New York in apparent one-sided trades during the mid- to late-1950s. Johnson and the team's director of player personnel, George Selkirk had previously traded quality players such as Bobby Shantz, Clete Boyer and Ryne Duren to the Yankees. Johnson also had business ties with Yankees co-owner Del Webb and owned Yankee Stadium in the Bronx prior to purchasing the A’s. All these factors led to charges from fans, writers and other teams that Johnson and Carroll ran the Athletics as a Yankee farm team at the MLB level. Parker Carroll came to the A’s directly after working in the Yankees organization as business manager for the Bombers' two top AAA farm clubs, the Kansas City Blues of the American Association and the Newark Bears of the International League. A former sportswriter who served as sports editor of the Kansas City Journal Post, Carroll entered baseball when that newspaper ceased publication during World War II. He joined the A's in their 1st season in Kansas City in 1955 as vice president and business manager and was promoted to general manager by Johnson after the end of the 1958 AL season. Johnson previously had not handed the general manager title to a specific executive, preferring to divide the GM responsibilities among himself, Selkirk and Carroll. At the end of the 1960 AL season, new A’s owner Charley O. Finley fired Parker Carroll replacing him with veteran MLB General Manager Frank “Trader” Lane.

1969 - Attorney Bowie Kuhn is named MLB commissioner, succeeding Spike Eckert. Kuhn receives a 1-year contract paying him $100,000. Major league owners turned to Kuhn after failing to agree on either of two other candidates, Michael Burke of the Yankees and Chub Feeney of the Giants.

1984 - The Yankees obtained 3B Toby Harrah and a player to be named later from the Indians in exchange for OF Otis Nixon, P George Frazier and a player to be named later. The Indians will send minor leaguer Rick Browne on February 8, 1984 to the Yankees to complete the trade. The Yankees will send minor league P Guy Elston on February 8, 1984 to the Indians to complete the trade. Toby was a major disappointment with the bat for the Yankees. He only managed to hit .217 in 88 games with 1 HR with 26 RBIs. On February 27, 1985, Toby was traded by the Yankees to the Rangers for a player to be named later and OF Billy Sample. The Rangers will send minor league player Eric Dersin on July 14, 1985 to the Yankees to complete the trade.

2007 - Former Yankees P Steve Barber (1967-1968) passed away. On July 4, 1967, Steve was traded by the Orioles to the Yankees for players to be named later, 1B Ray Barker, and cash. The Yankees sent minor league players INF Chet Trail and OF Joe Brady to the Orioles to complete the trade. Steve went 12-14 in 37 games before being drafted by the Seattle Pilots in the1968 AL expansion draft. He was still recovering from arm problems that he had with the Orioles, never showing the great form that made him a starter for the Birds.

2007 - Former Yankees reserve OF Jim Pisoni (1959-1960) passed away. Jim came to Yankees from the A’s in the Billy Martin trade on June 15, 1957. He hit .144 in 32 games as a reserve Yankees OF. On December 1, 1958 Jim was drafted by the Braves from the Yankees in the 1958 MLB Rule 5 player draft. In May of 1959, the Braves returned Jim to the Yankees. He would spend most his time with the Yankees, playing at Richmond (AAA).

February 5th

1891 - Former Yankees INF (1913-1921) and Manager (1914) Roger Peckinpaugh was born. On May 25, 1913, he was traded by the Indians to the Yankees for infielders Bill Stumpf and Jack Lelivelt. Roger had 8 good seasons with the Yankees as a starting shortstop until 1921, when he was traded to the Red Sox. In 1914, he briefly managed the team for 17 games, posting a 9-8 mark.

1921 - The Yankees purchase 10 acres of land in the Bronx. The Yankees will use the land as the site for their new park, which will be called Yankee Stadium.

1935 - At the age of 39, MLB HR king and AL All Star OF Babe Ruth is released by the New York Yankees. He will finish his long MLB career with the Boston Braves in 1935.

1936 - Former Yankees OF/1B James “Leroy” Thomas (1961) was born. In 1954, the Yankees signed Lee Thomas as an MLB amateur free agent. Lee was unable to break into the Yankees regular outfield. He was traded to the expansion Angeles in the Ryne Duren-Bob Cerv trade in May of 1961. After retiring as a MLB player he went in front office management, later becoming a MLB General Manager, most recently with the Phillies.

1942 - The Braves obtained minor league OF Tommy Holmes from the Yankees for 1B Buddy Hassett and OF Gene Moore in one of the best trades in Braves history. Buddy Hassett will hit .284, then join the Navy and never make it back to the MLB. The much-traveled Gene Moore will never play for the Yankees. Tommy Holmes couldn't break into Yankees All-Star OF, but he will be a .302 MLB career hitter. He will win the NL MVP Award in 1948, after leading the Braves to the NL pennant.

1955 - Former Yankees C Mike Heath (1978) was born. The Yankees in the 2nd round of the 1973 MLB amateur player draft drafted Mike Heath. He appeared in 33 games for the Yankees hitting .238 in 1978. He was being groomed to be Thurman Munson’s replacement until he was traded to the Rangers in the Sparky Lyle-Dave Righetti trade in the fall of 1978. After retiring as an active MLB player, Mike became a MLB coach.

2002 - Luis (Tite) Arroyo is inducted into the Latin American Baseball Hall Of Fame Museum. The Puerto Rican reliever, who made the NL All Star squad as a rookie with the Cardinals in 1955, posted a 40-32 MLB career record with 36 saves and a 3.93 ERA in 8 MLB seasons. Arroyo is best remembered for his 1961 season with the Yankees, when he went 15-5 with 29 saves. He would later become a Latin American scout for the Yankees.

February 6th

1896 - Yankees Hall Of Fame OF/P Babe Ruth is born in Baltimore, Maryland (1896-1948). Babe Ruth will amass 714 HRs with 2,217 RBIs with a lifetime batting average of .342 on his way to Hall of Fame election in 1936. Babe Ruth originally signed with the Red Sox, as a pitcher and then was converted to an outfielder by his Red Sox Manager Edward Barrow. His trade by the Red Sox to the Yankees in January of 1920 will start the rise of the Yankees as one of the most dominant teams in MLB history. He will play for the Yankees from 1920 to 1934. Babe Ruth will be released by the Yankees in 1935, he will finish out his long MLB career with the Boston Braves.

1926 - The Browns acquired veteran C Wally Schang from the Yankees for P George Mogridge and cash. Although Wally Schang is 36 years old, he will hold the job as starting catcher for the Browns for the next 4 seasons.

1926 - Former Yankees 1B Dale Long (1960, 1962-1963) was born (1926-1991). On December 5, 1949, Dale was drafted by the Yankees from the Tigers in the 1949 MLB minor league player draft. Don will not appear with the Yankees at the MLB level. On November 16, 1950, Dale was drafted by the Pirates from the Yankees in the 1950 MLB Rule 5 player draft. In 1956, Don was a NL All Star 1B with the Cubs, during that season Don set a MLB record of hitting 7 HRs in 7 straight games. During the 1958 NL season with the Pirates, he caught 2 games as a left-handed catcher. Don was obtained from the Giants in August of 1960. Don hit .366 in 26 games for the 1960 Yankees. In December of 1960, Don was lost in the 1960 AL Expansion draft to the new Senators. On July 11, 1962, Dale was re-obtained from the Senators by the Yankees for minor league OF Don Lock (Richmond AAA). He hit .298 for the Yankees in 41 games. The Yankees released Dale during the 1963 AL season. He was only hitting .200, while appearing in only 14 games. He appeared in 2 World Series with the Yankees in 1960 and 1962 hitting .250.

1950 - Former long-time Yankees MLB Coach (1929-1945) and NL player Art Fletcher (1902-1922) passed away. Art was an INF for the Giants and Phillies. He finished his MLB career in 1922 with a .277 BA with 32 HRs and 675 RBIs. Art briefly managed the Yankees for 11 games, posting a 6-5 record after Yankees Manager Miller Higgins had died during the 1929 AL season. Yankees MLB pitching coach Bob Shawkey would take over the team from him.

1969 - Former Yankees P Bob Wickman (1992-1996) was born. Bob was obtained from the White Sox in the Steve Sax trade. He went 31-14 in 223 games with 11 saves, for the Yankees. On August 23, 1996, Bob traded by the Yankees along with OF Gerald Williams to the Brewers for a player to be named later, INF Pat Listach, and P Graeme Lloyd. The Brewers would send P Ricky Bones on August 29, 1996 to the Yankees to complete the trade. On October 2, 1996, INF Pat Listach was returned to Brewers because injury issues.

1970 - Former Yankees P Mark Hutton (1993-1994, 1996) was born. In 1988, the Yankees signed Mark Hutton, as an MLB amateur free agent. He went 1-3 in 19 games with the team, before being traded on July 31, 1996, to the Marlins for P Dave Weathers.

1986 - The Yankees signed veteran MLB free agent reliever Al Holland (1986-1987). Al went 1-0 in 28 games with 10 saves before being released by the team.

1996 - Former Yankees P Bob Muncrief (1951) passed away. On November 16, 1950, Bob was drafted by the Yankees from the Cubs organization in the 1950 MLB Rule 5 player draft. He went 0-0 in 2 games in 1951.

1998 - The Yankees acquired All-Star 2B Chuck Knoblauch from the Twins for P Eric Milton, INF Cristian Guzman and minor leaguers OF/1B Brian Buchanan and Danny Mota, plus $3 million in cash. Chuck Knoblauch will bat .265 with 17 HRs in 1998, helping the Yankees win the World Championship.

2007 - Former Yankees P Lew Burdette (1950) passed away (1926-2007). In 1947, the Yankees signed Lew Burdette, as an MLB amateur free agent. During the 1950 AL season, he appeared in 2 games with the Yankees with no record. On August 29, 1951, he was traded by the Yankees along with $50,000 to the Braves for veteran hurler Johnny Sain. Lew would come back to haunt the Yankees in 1957 World Series, winning 3 games for the Braves against his old team. If Lew had stayed with the Yankees, he could have won 300 games. He finished his MLB career in 1967 with a 203-144 mark. He pitched in the MLB for the Yankees, Braves, Cardinals, Cubs, Phillies and Angels.

previous week

(As always I'd like to thank Fw57Clipper51 for his great contribution.)

...Read more