The Made in 1903 Yankees Blog

From Jayson Stark:

How could Vlad Guerrero & Johnny Damon not have jobs on Groundhog Day? It’s about $$$. Teams say they’re still looking for deals around $5M

By all accounts, this seems like a steep asking price for the two players and explains why they may stay on the free agent market for perhaps well into February if they do not drop their asking price.  The Yankees have been connected with Damon, but not so much with Guerrero.  If either of them drops their asking price, they may very well be wearing pinstripes.  Either that, or they may go in house for a DH, as indicated in my previous article, “Damon?  Matsui?  Ibanez?  Guerrero?  Not so Fast.”  However if the price range drops to between two and three million dollars, they may make some space.  Or hopefully they can dump a portion of AJ Burnett’s salary to sign one of these options if no budget increase is approved.  A man can dream.

From Bruce Levine of ESPN Chicago:

Former Chicago Cubs general manager Jim Hendry has been hired by the New York Yankees as a special assignment scout under GM Brian Cashman, according to a major league source.

 

According to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports, the Yankees are in serious discussions with Bill Hall.  Although no signing is imminent as of the time of this post, his signing would be a significant upgrade to the Yankees bench.  He would serve as a backup infielder to give days off to Derek Jeter, Robinson Cano, and Alex Rodriguez as he has played SS, 2B, and 3B in the past.   He has also played outfield, primarily CF so he would serve as a super utility man.  In his last full season with Boston in 2010 he played primarily outfield positions while posting a .247/.316/.456 BA/OBP/SLG slash line.  If Hall could post numbers similar to that, he would be a very nice addition to the Yankees bench.

Joel Sherman reports the Yankees have signed Manny Delcarmen to a one year minor league deal.  Delcarmen spent six seasons with the Red Sox and was their second round pick of the 2000 draft.  He posted a 3.97 ERA with 1.377 WHIP and a 7.7 K/9 over those six seasons.  He spent all of last year within the minor league systems of the Rangers and Mariners, respectively.  This is a good signing from Brian Cashman, as it provides veteran depth in the minors in case of any injuries at the major league level.

According to the Associated Press, the Yankees have inked Boone Logan to a one year deal at $1.875 million dollars, with a possible $25,000 dollar bonus if he posts at least 55 appearances, making the deal worth up to $1.9 million dollars.  Logan’s representative asked for $2.1 million in arbitration and the Yankees offered $1.7 million.  Logan earned $1.2 million dollars lasted season while posting a 3.46 ERA and a stellar 9.9 K/9.

From Justin Terranova and Phil Mushnick of the New York Post comes the news you’ve all been waiting for; whether or not Kim Jones will be re-signing with YES.  Sorry folks, no more horseyface.

The Yankees have avoided arbitration by reaching terms with Russell Martin on a one year deal, reports Mike Axisa.  It was reported that the Yankees offered Martin a $7 million dollar contract and his agent Matt Colleran filed for $8.2 million, making it likely the two sides reached an agreement for a one year, $7.6 million dollar contract.  Martin is eligible for free agency after this season.

According to Tim Brown of Yahoo!, Prince Fielder is nearing a nine year deal with the Detroit Tigers.  According to Jon Heyman, the deal is nine years/$214 million dollars.  This news is contrary to statements made from GM Dave Dombrowski only a short time ago, saying that they were not interested in Fielder after the season ending injury to Victor Martinez.

According to Ken Rosenthal from Fox Sports, the Red Sox have signed veteran outfielder Cody Ross to a one year deal worth approximately $3 million dollars.  With a career line of .261/.323/.456 (batting average/on-base percentage/slugging percentage) it’s a pretty shrewd deal for new Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington.  He will make the right handed hitting part of the RH/LH platoon in right field for Boston, along with Ryan Sweeney.

Moving on, in the speculation department I wonder if Roy Oswalt is the next likely pickup for the Red Sox, considering that starting pitching is a big need of theirs.

According to the Associated Press, the Michael Pineda/Jose Campos for Jesus Montero and Hector Noesi swap has been finalized.

Photo by Otto Greule Jr., Getty Images