10 Days until Opening Day!

The 2011 MLB season officially gets underway exactly 10 days from now.  With the season approaching so quickly, I thought this would be the perfect time to give a preview of the projected Yankees roster as well as discuss the remaining question marks for the team that is once again expected to contend once again for the world series. 




Projected Roster:
Infield:
C: Russel Martin - For the first time in about a decade Martin will be the first starting catcher not named Jorge Posada.  It will be interesting to see if Martin regained his offensive swing from three years ago when he was an all star for the Dodgers.
1b: Mark Teixeira - Teixeria will look to get off to a quick offensive start after a horrible start last season.  Teixeira is hoping to remain injury free after having several nagging injuries throughout last season.
2b: Robinson Cano - Cano will look to carry over his 2010 season to this season.  If he does, he should contend for the MVP.  Hitting coach Kevin Long believes Cano has the ability to hit 40 home runs. 
3b: Alex Rodriguez- This spring, Rodriguez has returned to the form he had prior to his hip surgery in 2009.  Rodriguez is leading the team in home runs this spring and hopes to continue that this fall.
SS: Derek Jeter - To put it plain and simple, Jeter is looking to avoid his disastrous 2010 season.  After resigning with the only team he's ever played for, Jeter revamped with his swing with Long and is now hitting a solid .330 this spring.  Hopefully, these results will carry over to the season.
DH: Jorge Posada - Posada will have to adjust to his first season as the team's full time DH.  A break from catching everyday should benefit Posada's aging body, who like many Yankees is also seeking a bounce back season offensively.
Outfield:

RF: Brett Gardner - Gardner too, revamped his swing with Long this spring.  He's trying to become a better bunter after raising his average significantly last season.  Gardner may bat lead off this fall which could be beneficial to Jeter.
CF: Curtis Granderson -After reviving his swing last summer, Granderson looked like an entirely different player offensively.  In his second year in New York, Granderson is just trying to stay consistent offensively while remaining a solid force in the field.
LF: Nick Swisher- Over the last two years, Swisher has been very solid during the regular season but his bat has gone stone cold in the postseason.  Swisher hopes to get off to a hot start and keep it going throughout the season.  Last season, he hit a career high in home runs. 
Starting Pitchers:

SP: CC Sabathia -Sabathia will look to repeat the two seasons he's already had in New York.  This season in particular could be especially important for Sabathia as he has stated he might opt out of his contract following the 2011 campaign.
SP: AJ Burnett - How do I say this bluntly? I can't. Burnett was TERRIBLE last year.  But, with the help of new pitching coach Larry Rothschild Burnett has made his delivery more simple and has looked tremendous this season.  He's improved so much, he earned the second spot in the rotation ahead of Phil Hughes.
SP: Phil Hughes - Hughes is looking to improve his 2010 all star campaign, except he wants to be better.  Hughes hit a wall after the all star break but still managed to finish the season with 18 wins.  His goal though is to lower his ERA which was 4.19
SP: Ivan Nova - Nova was a dark horse candidate to even make the pitching staff.  But, this spring he has already gone 1-0 with a 1.29 ERA in four games this spring.  Nova forced his way into the rotation and it will be interesting to see if his success will continue once the regular season begins.
SP: Freddy Garcia or Bartolo Colon - Both Garcia and Colon are veteran starters who once had great success.  Unfortunately, due to injuries to both, their careers are now in jeopardy of being over.  Both signed minor league contracts in the off-season with a chance to make the team.  Garcia already stated he will not go to Triple A if he doesn't make the major league team.  As of right now, I have to believe that Colon has the upper hand over Garcia.
Bullpen:

P: Mariano Rivera - After an interesting off-season, one in which Rivera admitted to entertaining offers from the hated Red Sox, he finally resigned.  I expect nothing but the usual greatness from Rivera, although it will be interesting to see if he continues to age gracefully.
P: Joba Chamberlain- Oh Joba... what can I say about you? Chamerlain showed up much heavier then he was over the past two seasons.  Chamberlain was also injured last week, with an oblique strain.  Ironically, maybe it has something to do with his weight? Chamberlain will probably share the 7th inning duties with David Robertson.
P: Boone Logan - Logan came over to the Yankees in the trade that brought Javy Vazquez to the team for a second time.  Fortunately for Logan, he turned to be the most important part of the trade and was one of the most important parts of the bullpen.  He'll probably serve as the lefty specialist again.
P: David Robertson- Robertson proved his value to the Yankees last season as he was one of the team's most consistent relievers.  Joe Girardi trusted Robertson so much last season that he became the 8th inning guy over Joba Chamberlain.  This season however, he'll probably serve as the primary 7th inning guy as the team signed Rafeal Soriano.
P: Rafeal Soriano- Soriano had a career season last year with the Rays when he served as the team's closer.  This season he will serve as the 8th inning man as he is a crucial part of the bridge to Rivera.  If all goes well, when Soriano's contract is up and Rivera is retired, he may be the Yankees new closer.
P: TBD (most likely Pedro Felicano)
Bench:
C: Francicso Cervelli (will start season on DL due to broken bone in foot) - Cervelli's spring training's have been plagued with bad luck for him.  This season, was no different.  Cervelli broke a bone in his foot and is in a walking boot.  Because he is a catcher he can't do anything.  Cervelli will begin the season on the DL with either Austin Romine or Jesus Montero.
INF: Ramiro Pena or Jorge Vazquez, Eric Chavez - Pena and Vazquez who are good friends, are competing against each other for a spot on the Yankees bench.  While Vazquez has out hit Pena this season, he is not guaranteed a spot.  Pena proved his value defensively last season so it will be interesting to see what the team decides to go with.  Chavez is looking to regain his all-star form from when he was with the Athletics.  Chavez has looked great this spring and if he remains injury free, it will be hard for Girardi to keep  him on the bench. 
OF: Andruw Jones, Colin Curtis or Greg Golson - Jones has played sparingly in the past two seasons with the Texas Rangers and Chicago White Sox.  Jones will most likely start at DH against left handed batters.  He's become a defensive reliability, which is sad considering he was a 10 time gold glove winner with the Atlanta Braves.  As of right now, Golson has the job over Curtis.  Curtis, dislocated his shoulder earlier in Spring Training so Golson will most likely start the season with the Yankees.  

Now, it's time to address what questions will follow the team around throughout the season. 

1. Which AJ Burnett will show up?

• The Burnett who was the leader of the Marlins staff in 2008?  The mediocre but effective Burnett in 2009 or the horrific Burnett of 2010?  Hopefully it will be somewhere between 2008 and 2009. 

2. Will the Yankees be able to get by with Nova and Colon/Garcia as their fourth and fifth starter or will GM Brian Cashman make a trade?

• Again, it's just something that's going to have to play out

3. Will Derek Jeter bounce back?

• All signs are indicating Jeter is now comfortable with his new swing but we will not know until he sees consistently decent pitching throughout the season.

4. Will CC Sabathia opt out of his contract at the end of the season?

• Hopefully not, but he might because of the money that Cliff Lee got this past offseason. 

5. Do the Yankees have enough talent to make the playoffs?

• Offensively, Yes I believe they do.  Pitching wise?  Check back with me in a month.

That's all for now.  I'll be updating again soon!

Yankees sweep O's for second time this season

Opponent: Baltimore Orioles
Location: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY.
Yankees Overall Record: 34-20
Series MVP: The Yankee offense who made the Baltimore pitching staff pay for their mistakes
Quotes of the series: comes from Nick Swisher on Robinson Cano's inability to make an out.

“I think we’re all just trying to keep pace with him,” Swisher said. “It’s been special to watch. Guys are looking at each other in the dugout saying, ‘Let’s see how hard he hits this one.’”

The Yankees continued their dominance against the lowly Baltimore Orioles with their second consecutive sweep of the O's this season.

Tuesday night's game allowed Javier Vazquez to earn his second win in his last three starts.  Vazquez took advantage of the dismal Orioles offense.  He allowed just one run in seven innings, earning his fourth victory of the year.  The offense was led by Robinson Cano, Derek Jeter and Curtis Granderson.  Cano and Jeter each had two hits a piece and Granderson hit his second home run since returning from the disabled list.  The final score of the game was 3-1. The only down side to the game was an injury to Mark Teixeira, who had to leave the game after fouling a ball off of his foot.  Although it was not serious because he was in the lineup for Wednesday's game.

Wednesday's game belonged to two Yankees who are having very special seasons; starting pitcher Phil Hughes and second baseman Cano.  Hughes pitched seven very effective innings, allowing only one run while striking out seven.  He lowered his earned run average to 2.54.  With the way Hughes has pitched this season, he is the second best pitcher in the rotation right now, behind only Andy Pettitte.  On the offensive side of the ball, Cano led the way with three hits, one of which a home run, his 12th of the year.  Cano's average sits at an outstanding .372, which believe it or not is second in the league.  Nick Swisher also had three hits while continuing to show he's improved his swing to get on base more.  Last season he hit around .260 and now he's currently hitting .320, which would be a career high for Swisher.  The Yankees won the game with a score of 9-1.

Thursday's game was played in the afternoon, as both teams had to leave town.  CC Sabathia won for the first time in five starts allowing three runs over seven innings.  He would have been able to go another inning if not for the unbearable humid temperatures.  The offense was led by Alex Rodriguez and Brett Gardner who both hit home runs.  Rodriguez, is now the all time active home run leader following the retirement of the Mariner's Ken Griffey Jr on Wednesday.  Joba Chamberlain was able to hold the lead and turned the ball over to Mariano Rivera who earned his 12th save of the season.

Next Up: The Yankees head north to Toronto for a three game series.  This will be the first time the two teams meet this season.

Yankees take series from White Sox 2-1

Opponent: Chicago White Sox

Location: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY
Yankees Record: 16-8
MVP of the series: who else would it be? Robinson Cano
Quote of the series: comes from Nick Swisher on the loss of Curtis Granderson.

“Curtis is a tough dude, man," Swisher said. "He’ll be back as soon as he can, no doubt.”

The Yankees returned home after a week and a half on the road and continued their winning ways.  With the victory over the White Sox, the Yankees have now one 7 of 8 series played this season.

Friday night's game was a battle between each side.  Andy Pettitte struggled the most he has all season but still managed to get a win.  He had help from his buddy Derek Jeter, who hit a home run and a triple, while driving in three runs total.  Friday's victory was a bit old-school with help from the old guard all around, including a save from Mariano Rivera.  Pettitte gave up four runs through eight innings.  The team won the game 6-4.

Saturday's game was a back and forth battle between the two teams.   Javier Vazquez was once again awful and could not get out of the third inning.  The team also lost starting center fielder Curtis Granderson, which I wrote about down below.  Granderson strained his groin and will most likely miss a month.  Brett Gardner will take over in center for Granderson.  The bullpen ended up giving the go ahead run in an overall sloppy game for the pitching staff.  The White Sox were victorious with a score of 7-6.

Phil Hughes continued to pitch like an ace during Sunday's game.  Hughes has been absolutely unbelievable as the team's fifth starter.  Although, given the way Vazquez has pitched, Hughes has jumped into the fourth starter role.  He has been pitching like an ace since the season began and would probably be the ace of the staff on half of the teams in all of Major League Baseball.  Hughes even beat Mark Buehrle, who is normally in the conversation for the AL Cy Young every year.  Hughes was aided by Robinson Cano's amazing start with two home runs, one of which was a three-run home run.  Gardner also hit his first home run of the season, and his first since June of last year.  Gardner is hitting well over .300 and if he can keep his offensive production up, the Yanks will be able to cope with the loss of Granderson.

Next Up: The Bombers continue their home stand and take on the Baltimore Orioles, for the second time in less then a week.

-Courtney

Yanks take two of three from O's

Opponent: Baltimore Orioles
Location: Camden Yards, Baltimore, MD.
Overall Record: 14-7
MVP of the series: Robinson Cano for making plays on both sides of the ball
Quote of the Series: comes from Derek Jeter about how Cano is playing this month.

“He’s in one of those zones right now,” Derek Jeter said. “Every player wants to be in it, but they come few and far between. It seems like everything he’s doing right now is perfect, and he’s playing as well as I’ve ever seen him.”

After a visit with the President, the Yankees got back to do what they have been doing all season. Winning.

The team defeated the Baltimore Orioles two games to three after Thursday's series win.

The series started with the O's earning a victory, just their fourth of the season.  The Yankees were bothered by poor defense, especially late in the game from Jeter and Jorge Posada.  The pair made throwing errors late in the game which allowed the go-ahead runs to score.

Wednesday's game allowed CC Sabathia to get back to the way he was pitching all season.  Sabathia, was lit up by the Angels offense last series.  Luckily, for him, the Orioles are among the leagues worst offensive clubs.  Sabathia pitched into the eighth inning and allowed just two runs.  The team won with a score of 8-3.

Thursday's game belonged to Robinson Cano.  Cano hit two home runs, and made a spectacular play in the field that prevented a run from scoring.  Cano went deep in the hole between second and shirt and made a strong throw to get a speedy runner.  Starter AJ Burnett on television replays could be seen saying "wow".  Cano got a fist bump from Burnett after the inning ended.

Burnett himself pitched phenomenally.    He pitched eight innings and allowed no runs in the teams 4-0 victory.  Mariano Rivera came in and earned the save.

Next Up: The Yankees return home after a week and a half on the road and take on the Chicago White Sox.  The Yankees will have 23 of their next games played in New York, with one series being played at Citi Field against the Mets, once inter-league play begins

-Courtney

Angels Hand Yanks First Series Loss

Opponent: Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

Location: Angel Stadium, Ahaheim, CA

Overall Record: 12-6

MVP of Series: Andy Pettitte & Robinson Cano

Honorable Mention: Jorge Posada

Quote of the series: comes from Sunday's starting pitcher  Javier Vazqquez following yet another lack-luster performance.

“I’m not doing a good job out there,” Vazquez said. “And it’s kind of embarrassing the way I’m throwing the ball.”

 The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim finally handed the Yankees their first series loss of the 2010 series.  The Yankees were off to their best start since 1926 after winning their first five series of the young season.

Over the years, the Angels have OWNED the Yankees.  In fact, during Joe Torre's tenure, the Angels were the only team the yanks had a losing record against over the years.  Once Torre left, the losing continued against the angels.  I mean I personally thought it was a miracle that the Bombers managed to win the ALCS against Mike Scoiscia's talented club.

The reason why the Yanks lost this series is simple.

Pitching.

The offense showed up just fine but poor starting pitching from Javier Vazquez and the bullpen on Friday and Sunday proved to be the team's Achilles heel.

The lone exception when it came to the pitching staff this past weekend was old reliable, Andy Pettitte.

Pettitte, who will turn 38 years old this year is looking like he did during his glory years, of the late 1990s.

He pitched 8 innings and only gave up one run.  He's now competing with Phil Hughes for the team for the least amount of runs given up per start.

Pettitte may have the advantage, after all should Hughes respect his elder and learn how to pitch like Pettitte?

Robinson Cano and Jorge Posada remained on fire, driving in the majority of the runs scored this weekend.  Cano had yet another four hit game on Saturday.

Next Up: After a stop to the White House this afternoon, the team heads up to Baltimore to play the O's, who only have three wins on the season.

-Courtney

Yanks sweep Rangers

Opponent: Texas Rangers

Location: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York
Overall Record: 9-3
Series MVP: Derek Jeter
Honorable Mention: Robinson Cano, CC Sabathia
Quote of the series: comes from first baseman Mark Teixeira who hit his first home run of the season on Sunday

“My teammates have been picking me up so far,” Teixeira said. “Now it’s time for me to start picking them up.”

The New York Yankees are off to their best start since the days of Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth.  The Bombers have not won their first four series since 1926.  Their fast start is pretty rare considering how slow of a start the team has had over the past decade.

During Satuday's game, second baseman Robinson Cano and shortstop Derek Jeter became the first Yankee teammates to hit safely in all of their first ten games.  It's quite remarkable given the Yankees history that they were able to set that record.

Friday's game was shortened to six innings due to a large thunderstorm that hit the East Coast.  The Red Sox were forced to suspend their game on Saturday in the ninth inning due to the storm.  Anyways, back to the more important team, Sabathia was remarkable against the Rangers, his lone mistake was giving up a home run.  Catcher Francicso Cervelli claimed Sabathia was in better form then in his start against the Rays where he had a no hitter going into the eighth inning.

Saturday's game brought AJ Burnett back to the mound.  Though he was a bit wild he learned to settle down quickly and gave the Yankees control of the game.  Jeter was actually pulled early from the game in the 7th inning due to what Joe Girardi is calling a "head cold".  Jeter did not play in Sunday's series finale for the same reason.  Girardi claimed the WFAN beat writer Sweeney Murti was the cause of the cold.  The Yanks still won regardless, 7-3.

In Sunday's game, Andy Pettitte returned to the mound.  He continued his amazing start to the season allowing only two runs over 8 innings.  Not too bad for a 39 year old lefty is it?  The offense came to life with Brett Gardner having three infield singles and three stolen bases. The final score was 5-2.

Next Up: The Yankees begin their first west coast trip with a series at the Oakland Athletics

- Courtney

Yanks take series from Angels

Opponent: Los Angeles Angels

Location: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, New York

Outcome: Yanks win 2-1
Overall Record: 6-3
Series MVP: Phil Hughes
Honorable Mention: Andy Pettitte, Derek Jeter, Robinson Cano
Quote of the Series: comes from Angels DH Hideki Matsui, who made his return to the Bronx for the first time as an opposing player

"I know they're missing one Japanese player from the team," Matsui said, "but they're still a tough team and tougher than ever."

The Yankees played their first series in the Bronx since defeating the Philadelphia  Phillies in the World Series since November.  Championship rings were handed out to the players and staff.  Longtime Yankee trainer Gene Monohan made his first visit with the team this year to receive his ring.  Monohan has been out all season and spring training while battling throat and neck cancer.  He received a warm reception from both the crowd and the players.  Manager Joe Girardi even fought to hold back tears.  As mentioned in a previous post, Matsui received the loudest cheers out of anyone thanks to his MVP performance in the fall classic.  After the pre-game festivities ended, the Yankees continued their winning ways by defeating the Angels 7-5 in game one.

Game two was a different story for the Bombers, who lost 5-3.  Javier Vazquez made his second start of the spring but first in New York since giving up Johnny Damon's epic grand slam in the 2004 ALCS.  Needless to say, Javy was not greeted all too kindly by the crowd.  Vazquez pitched better then in his season debut but was still suffering from a lack of command.  He gave up 4 earned runs in 5 1/3 innings.  He greatly improved from his disastrous debut when he gave up eight runs to Tampa.  The story was more of the Yankees lack of offense then how Vazquez pitched.  The offense was shut out by Angels starting pitcher Joel Pineiro who held them to two runs.

On Jackie Robinson Day (every player wore number 42 as seen in the picture above) the rubber match of the series was surrounded by one question prior to first pitch.  How was Phil Hughes going to pitch in his debut?  The answer you might ask? OUTSTANDING.  Hughes beat out Joba Chamberlain in the spring for the fifth starter role.  This was the first start that Hughes has made all spring.  A major reason Hughes beat out Chamberlain this spring was due to the fact that he had developed a change-up over the winter.  The ironic thing is Hughes only used that pitch about 5 times during Thursday's game because the Angels hit the change-up so well.  He allowed two earned runs (one of those coming off a Matsui bomb), three hits and had six strikeouts.  Quite an impressive season debut if you ask me. The offense of the night was helped by a Robinson Cano home run and double.  Derek Jeter also had his second home run of the series and season.

Up Next: The Yankees take on the Texas Rangers in the Bronx.

Twins vs. Yankees

After an epic game that lasted 12 innings between the Tigers and Twins, it was determined the Yankees will play the Minnesota Twins tomorrow in the Bronx. Since the Yankees chose playoff scenario A, the teams will have a day off between Games 1 & 2. First pitch is scheduled for 6:07 tomorrow evening, as the Yanks-Twins game is the sandwiched of three games on TBS tomorrow.

The Yankees were 7-0 against the Twins in the regular season. The Yankees will also have the advantage of the Twins arriving in New York late as it's almost 10 pm and the game just completed. Expect the Twins to arrive early tomorrow morning, although the team may have enough adrenaline to make it through the one game. But they do have to face the 6'7 CC Sabathia tomorrow to welcome them to the lovely city of New York. I just hope Carl Pavano can get into the series so his former teammates can "thank" him for all his hard work that he did in New York. Oh wait they might catch Pavano syndrome and have a mysterious injury.

Key Players for the series:

1. Joe Mauer - the leading AL MVP candidate is not only an offensive threat but an outstanding defensive catcher.

2. Alex Rodriguez - Has he proven he's over his October woes or will it continue to haunt him?

3. A.J. Burnett - Will the good or evil A.J. show up?

4. Robinson Cano - Hopefully he remembers how to hit with runners in scoring position.

5. Andy Pettitte- Will his fatigued shoulder be able to hold up for potentially three weeks?

This should be an entertaining series.

Prediction: Yankees in 4