Some Shameless Self-Promotion

Our friend at Simon on Sports has been conducting a feature called "Blogging the Offseason" in which he asks a blogger from each team ten or so questions about the issues facing their respective organizations this winter.

Today, he's covering the World Series participants and talked to Meech from The Fightins and Mike from River Ave. Blues. Last and probably least, he asked some know-nothing from another Yankees blog to chip in with his two cents.

In other news, the folks over at the always funny It Is High, It Is Far, It is... Caught are conducting a poll to determine the Yankee Blog of the Decade. For one reason or another, despite only existing for about a year, we are actually in third place. If you are so inclined, head over to the left hand margin of their site and show your support. Since you can select multiple blogs, be sure to kick some votes towards RAB and IIATMS as well since they are severely underrepresented as of right now. By the time you're done, the weekend will almost be here.

Non-Tender Deadline Preview

Good morning Fackers. Well, the whirlwind week of Winter Meetings is essentially behind us. My head is still spinning from all the updates, blog postings, tweets, and rumors floating about. But things are starting to take shape. I think the Yankees are far from being done maneuvering however.

The last event for this week is tomorrow's non-tender deadline for arbitration eligible players. Arbitration eligible players not tendered a contract by their club prior to the deadline become free agents. The Yankees have four arbitration eligible players:

• Chien-Ming Wang: Wang is universally regarded as a goner. The Yankees do not want to offer him arbitration and play him more than the $5M he made in 2009 after he's missed nearly the entirety of the past two seasons. Wang started a throwing program last week, and his agent claims he won't be far behind other pitchers in spring training, stating he'll be ready to pitch by May 1st. Still, the Yankees don't figure it wise to commit the money to Wang given his injury history - including three shoulder injuries now - his poor performance last year and the uncertainty that surrounds him moving forward. I'll be sad to see him go. He was a very good pitcher for the Yankees for three plus years before that freak injury in Houston nearly two years ago. The Yankees likely botched his rehab and then didn't really put him in a position to succeed or improve upon his return.There's a chance Wang re-signs with the Yankees for less money, but I just don't see it happening. He'll likely receive a better offer from someone else; Joe Torre and the Dodgers have expressed interest.
  


• Chad Gaudin: Surprisingly, Gaudin has been mentioned as a potential non-tender candidate, as he stands to make about $3M through arbitration. I can't see the Yanks non-tendering him however. If the priority is pitching, pitching, pitching, then left-field, the Yankees cannot afford to keep jettisoning pitchers. Say what you will about Brian Bruney, Phil Coke, and Ian Kennedy, but trading them subtracts from depth. I doubt the Yankees will let a capable, versatile pitcher like Gaudin go over a few hundred thousand dollars. His ability to be serviceable as a starter or a reliever would be of benefit to the 2010 Yankees.


• Sergio Mitre: There's no indication Mitre will be non-tendered. Earlier in the off-season the Yankees declined their $1.25M option on Mitre, but that doesn't mean they don't want him around next year. He wasn't outrighted or designated for assignment, so it appears the Yankees are willing to go to arbitration with him, where they figure to get him for less than the value of his option. I wasn't impressed with Mitre at all last year, but again, pitching depth is the name of the game right now. At this point, Mitre doesn't figure to be a member of the starting rotation, so perhaps the sinkerballer can be of double play inducing value out of the bullpen and serve as the designated longman.


• Melky Cabrera: There's no chance Melky will be non-tendered. After regressing for two straight seasons after an impressive rookie year, Melky was one of several Yankees to enjoy a bounceback season in 2009. His role for 2010 remains uncertain with the acquisition of Curtis Granderson and the word that the Yankees are trying to re-sign Johnny Damon. Cabrera could be in the mix for LF job, he could be the 4th outfielder, or he could be trade bait given the apparent glut of 4th outfielder / back-up center fielder types on the Yankee roster at present. But one way or the other, the Yankees will want to secure their rights to him for 2010, so he will be tendered a contract. After making $1.4M last year, some estimate Melky may earn as much as $3M in 2010.

Once the news breaks, we'll take a look at some of the players non-tendered by other clubs.

Yankees Take Hoffmann In Rule V Draft, Lose Two Pitchers

As Joel Sherman indicated shortly before the draft began, the Yankees (by way of the Nationals) have selected OF Jamie Hoffmann with the first pick of the Rule V Draft from the Dodgers.

Chosen by the Carolina Hurricanes in the 8th round of the 2003 NHL Draft (which Matt appreciates), Hoffmann is an athletic 6'3", 235 lbs. He has spent the bulk of his minor league career playing the corners of the outfield but started 32 games in CF at AAA in 2009. Baseball America considered him the best defensive outfielder in the Dodger's system coming to this year, so he should be able to make a positive contribution where ever he's positioned.

He's a right handed batter whose career minor league line is .283/.355/.401, but was better last year, hitting .291/.360/.466 between AA and AAA. The Dodgers called him up for a short stint in May and June of last year where he went 4-22 with two doubles and a home run.

Greg Fertel at Pending Pinstripes takes a closer look at Hoffmann and notes that he had a good year against lefties in'09, although in only 120 ABs.

Here is a FanGraphs piece on him as well, written back in May.

Our buddy Craig sums up some of the lukewarm buzz at the meetings about him.

Cliff fron Bonx Banter doesn't like the move one bit.

The Yankees lost both Zack Kroenke and Kanekoa Texeira (who was part of the Nick Swisher deal) to Arizona and Seattle respectively. Matt took a closer look at both of them earlier this morning and reminded us that the Yankees eventually had all 4 players they lost last year returned to them. Kroenke could have been a useful bullpen piece for the Yanks this year and had they known they were going to lose Phil Coke, they probably would have protected him. But those are the breaks.

Rule 5 Draft: Who Could Be Going?

While the Yankees are sitting in the driver's seat with the top pick in today's Rule 5 Draft, they also have several unprotected players who are good bets to be drafted by other teams. In theory, the Rule 5 is designed to target talent rich organizations like the Yankees, or more specifically, it's designed to protect their minor league prospects from getting buried.

With the Yankees having rebuilt their system over the past few years and not having the luxury of breaking in more than a few young players at a time, the Yankees are ripe to lose guys through the Rule 5. Last year they had four players taken: Reegie Corona (second overall), Zach Kroenke (12), Jason Jones (14), and Ivan Nova (20). All four were returned, but the Yankees then promptly traded Jones, who had some unflattering comments about the Yankees' organization, back to Minnesota.

The point is even if the Yankees lose some players today, they may well be back. Twenty one players were selected in last year's Rule5 Draft. Fifteen were returned to their clubs before the start of the season. Of the six to see Major League service time, only three lasted the season with their new club.

Corona and Nova are protected this year, Kroenke is available again, but as we explored earlier, there's a chance the Yankees use their pick on him. If they don't, he's almost assured to be selected by another club. We touched on Colin Curtis earlier as well, who may make a good reserve OFer on a lower tier team. Here are some other Yankees ripe for the taking today:

• Grant Duff RHP: Probably a goner. He saw a major jump in velocity this year and did well in the Arizona Fall League. Like most potential Rule 5 guys he has warts. His K rate doesn't measure up to his velocity and his control is spotty.


• George Kontos RHP: Was having a great season last year until an elbow injury derailed his season and required Tommy John Surgery. Someone could take a flier on him and stash him on the DL, but I believe they'd still have to fill the Rule 5 roster requirement the next year, and no one can afford to have a guy work his way back from TJS like that. Very, very longshot to be selected.


• Josh Schmidt RHP: Had a great year out of the Trenton bullpen and made five starts as well. He's currently doing well in Winter Ball, predominantly as a starter. This increases his versatility and as a 27 year old who hasn't been above AA, this may be Schmidt's best, and only, shot at reaching the Bigs.


• Kanekoa Texeira RHP: A throw in from the White Sox in last year's Nick Swisher deal, he too had a great year in AA, making 35 relief appearance and 6 emergency starts. He put up just over a hundred innings at a 2.84 ERA, had decent control, and gave up just 0.6 HR/9.


• Kevin Whelan RHP: Part of the haul for Gary Sheffield after the 2006 season, Whelan is ripe for the picking. He'll be 26 next year, and unlike the pitchers above (save for the injured Kontos) Whelan has pitched at AAA. He's not just a good bet to get picked, he's a good bet to stick wherever he goes. If he doesn't, his lack of control (career 5.4 BB/9) will be his undoing. In his defense though, he K's a ton of batters (11.4 per 9) and gives up very few home runs (0.3 per 9).


• Alan Horne RHP: The 2007 Eastern League Pitcher of the Year, injuries have limited him to just 100.2 IP over the last two seasons combined, and they haven't been pretty. I can't imagine anyone taking a flyer on him.


• J.B. Cox, RHP: Similar to Horne, Cox looked ticketed for the Bronx three years ago. Injuries have derailed his career since, and while he hasn't officially retired, he went home mid-season last year to ponder his future. Another guy who isn't going anywhere - and likely isn't coming back for that matter.

My prediction: Duff, Schmidt, Texeira, and Whelan all get selected; Duff and Texeira get returned at some point. If the Yankees don't use their pick on either Curtis or Kroenke they're both gone too, but I don't think Curtis will stick.

Rule 5 Draft: Who Could Be Coming?

Good morning Fackers. Today is the final day of the Winter Meetings, culminating with the Rule 5 Draft. As we know by now, the Yankees have wrangled the top overall pick from the Nationals as their return from Monday's Brian Bruney trade.

As we mentioned earlier this week, this is unique territory for the Yankees. They've made just two Rule 5 picks since 1995. Their roster isn't usually constructed in a manner where they can afford to fulfill the Rule 5 requirement and carry a fringe player on their Major League roster all year. For that reason, I'm inclined to think there's some validity to the rumors that the Yankees may in turn flip whoever they have the Nationals choose for them today.

That said, it's not inconceivable that the Yankees could find a usable part for themselves. While it's nice to dream about finding the next Johan Santana, Joakim Soria, Dan Uggla, or Shane Victorino - all former Rule 5 picks - the reality is that finding such diamonds in the rough are few and far between. A Rule 5 pick is generally left unprotected for a reason, and the best a club can realistically hope for is a nice complimentary piece.

To that end, several folks have parsed the hundreds of available players and put together short lists of potential Yankee picks: Mike Axisa at River Ave. Blues, Greg Fertel at Pending Pinstripes, Steven Schwartz at Bronx Baseball Daily, and Chad Jennings at the LoHud Yankees Blog. I won't pretend to know much about fringe minor leaguers from other organizations, but I will share a few thoughts on the possibilities.

First, I think it would be a major, major mistake to use the pick on Arquimedes Caminero unless the Yankees are going to flip him. Fanhouse's Frankie Piliere, a former scout, is big on Caminero, and I respect his opinion. Caminero's career K/9 of 10.4 is enticing, but his career BB/9 of 5.1 is very off putting. For my liking, that's far too similar to the guy the Yankees traded just to get this Rule 5 pick. The fact of the matter is Caminero will be 23 next year, has thrown just 138 innings in four professional seasons and has topped out with just 2.1 IP in A+ ball. To think he can make what amounts to a four level jump, overcome his obvious control problems, and last a full season in the Major Leagues - let alone in the AL East - is a monumental leap of faith.

There are a few OF/1B types who can also catch in Chad Tracy, Matt McBride, and Brian Jeroloman. I'm not necessarily advocating that any of them be the pick, but I am intrigued by the prospect of adding another player to the roster who can catch. I have the utmost confidence that Francisco Cervelli will be a capable back-up, but if Jorge Posada is going to see semi-regular time at DH, or if Posada or Cervelli gets dinged up, it would be very valuable, if not necessary, to have another catching option at hand. And as we saw with the Kevin Cash debacle last year, it will likely be difficult for the Yankees to convince a capable veteran to take a AAA deal - especially with Jesus Montero and Austin Romine charging up the ladder. The Buck Showalter era Yankees had success with a catching triumvirate of Mike Stanley, Matt Nokes, and Jim Leyritz, aided by the fact that all three were capable of DHing or subbing elsewhere in the field.

There are several rumors that the Yankees may use the pick on one of their own eligible players. This would virtually ensure they keep the player, because if he doesn't stick on the Major League roster the Yankees would be returning the player to themselves. Both Zach Kroenke and Colin Curtis have been mentioned. I like Kroenke and given my doubts about Mike Dunn, I'd like to keep Kroenke all the more with Phil Coke gone. Curtis is virtually a non-prospect, but he had a strong showing in the Arizona Fall League and would provide AAA OF depth, something the Yankees are virtually devoid of with Austin Jackson now gone.

Despite all that, I find it very unlikely that the Yankees swung such a deal just to take one of their own players, who they chose not to protect just two weeks ago - unless that was part of the plan. That is, knowing they were going to have to include Coke as they negotiated the Granderson trade, they made the Bruney trade as a way to retain Zach Kroenke, who is far less expendable with fellow lefty Coke now gone.

That's what the Yankees stand to gain. We'll be back shortly with a look at who the Yankees stand to lose today.

Welcome Back, Andy

It's like he never left.

Andy Pettitte is coming back to the Bronx on a one year contract worth $11.75M with no incentives. This comes as no surprise both in terms of the dollar value and the fact that the deal got done. It was only a matter of time but it's nice to have it finalized.

Pettitte finished 2009 strong - as in starting the clinching game of the World Series strong - unlike in 2008 when his shoulder bothered him down the stretch. He actually made one fewer start this year than last, but had a 3.31 ERA in the second half and pitched well into the postseason, overcoming his struggles at the New Yankee Stadium. As such, the Yankees were obliged to guarantee him the money up front instead of load the contract with incentives. Seems fair to me.

With the two moves the Yankees have completed in the past 24 hours, they have made great strides towards solidifying the team for the 2010 season if you assume Joba and Hughes are filling in the 4th and 5th starter roles and Granderson is aimed for LF. While the bullpen seems a little barren and they could certainly use a DH and possibly a platoon partner for Granderson, the holes are closing and the team is starting to take shape. I'm sure Cash & Co. aren't done yet, but they are a lot further along than they were this time yesterday.

The Definitive Collection of Curtis Granderson Links

You probably haven't heard anything about it, but yesterday the Yankees made a minor trade for a player named Cletus Glandorstine Kirk Granderstone Kent Gardenerson Kirby Galdenstein Curtis Granderson. If you would like to learn about him or the trade that put him in Pinstripes, here are some helpful resources:

His Baseball Reference Page (Career Splits) (HR Log)

His FanGraphs page (Defense) (Value)

Yankee Blogs:

Joe from River Ave. Blues over at the YES Network.

Cliff from Bronx Banter's predictably excellent synopsis of the deal.

The Yankee Universe looks at how this affects the outfield and DH situation(s).

The Bronx View

The Yankeeist

It's About The Money, Stupid

It Is High, It Is Far, It Is Caught

Heartland Pinstripes

iYankees

Zell's Pinstripe Blog

LoHud

Pending Pinstripes

264 Comments over at the Replacement Level Yankees Blog

Confessions of a She-Fan

Pinstripe Alley

Was Watching

Two blindingly insightful sentences from the self-proclaimed "Baseball version of the economist", NoMaas.

Other baseball blogs:

Walkoff Walk

Big League Stew

Beyond the Box Score

Futility Infielder

Circling the Bases

The Hardball Times

Jorge Says No!

Baseball Musings

Baseball Daily Digest

FanGraphs

Deadspin

The ESPN Guys:

Keith Law

Buster Onley

Rob Neyer

Jayson Stark

Mark Schlereth

Other team's blogs:

A great breakdown of Granderson's batted ball data over the past three years.

AZ Snake Pit

Bless You Boys

Mack Avenue Tigers

Detroit4Lyfe

And from the MSM:

Joel Sherman explains why the Yankees were scouting Granderson at the end of the '09 season

Brain Hoch at the Yankees' website

The New York Post

The New York Times

Johnny Damon's reaction

The New York Daily News

Wall Street Journal

The Newark Star-Ledger

The Journal News

Detriot Free Press

Detroit News

WXYZ

The Arizona Republic

Arizona Baseball Examiner

East Valley Tribune

Will Leitch at New York Magazine

Frankie Piliere of Fanhouse

Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com

John Paul Morosi at FOX

Ken Rosenthal at FOX

Best Of Luck Peter Gammons

As we mentioned very briefly yesterday, Peter Gammons has announced that after more than twenty years he's leaving ESPN at the conclusion of the Winter Meetings. Shortly after the initial announcement, the predictable news broke that Gammons will be joining both MLBN and NESN.

First off, I have great respect and admiration for Peter Gammons. Many Yankee fans loathe the man for what they perceive to be blatant pro-Red Sox bias. Frankly, I don't see it. I find it akin to the anti-Yankee bias many find with Joe Buck or other on the national stage. Are we that accustomed to John Sterling, Suzyn Waldman, and Michael Kay blowing sunshine up our ass that we can't stomach anything that's not definitively pro-Yankee?

Regardless, this isn't about other baseball journalists. I find Peter Gammons to be exceedingly genuine, and I think he's one of the best, if not the best ambassador the game has. Yes, I do find him to be somewhat Red Sox centric, but I don't consider it a bias, and I don't think it negatively impacts his work. Part of what appeals to me about Peter Gammons as a baseball analyst is that I find him to be genuine. That he's a fan of the game and someone who truly cares about baseball at large is evident in his work. Much of that is because in many ways Peter Gammons is still the kid he was growing up in Massachusetts as a big Red Sox fan. Even as a national baseball journalist, that's still part of who he is. And I wouldn't have it any other way. I'll take Gammons' slight bias as part of his character anyday - far better than the wooden delivery of Ken Rosenthal, the smarmy-ness of Jon Heyman, or even the smooth professionalism of guys like Tom Verducci and Buster Olney, who I actually like. Gammons is a fan who was fortunate enough to become one of the top journalists in the game. Isn't that what so many fans dream of doing?

Whatever your feelings on Gammons, this is a huge gain for MLBN. Let's face it, ESPN is becoming an absolute joke. It's about who's "now" or "next", or having an LA studio so Snoop or the Jonas Brothers can narrate the Top Ten each night. With Gammons gone now, Olney is the only baseball TV personality there I repsect. Most baseball fans have spent the past year raving about how good MLBN is, especially in comparison to ESPN and Baseball Tonight. This only further solidifies that position. ESPN is shifting more and more towards entertainment; MLBN is legitimate baseball analysis.

Yes MLBN has an advantage as a single sport network, and yes MLBN is not without their share of on-air morons, but I'll take MLBN over BBTN any day. In grabbing the likes of Costas, Verducci, even Rosenthal, and now Gammons, MLBN is truly making a mark for themselves.

Best of luck to Peter Gammons in his new endeavors. I certainly look forward to seeing him as part of the MLBN.

All Granderson, All The Time

Good morning Fackers. My gut reaction to the Curtis Granderson trade was indifference. Or confusion maybe. As best as I can describe, I don't think it's a bad trade, I'm just not sure it was a necessary trade. Perhaps this stems from some bias on my part, as from the start, I thought the Granderson-to-the-Yankees rumors were just unfounded rumors.

People far smarter than me (Keith Law, Rob Neyer, Dave Cameron, etc.) have labeled this a steal of a deal for the Yankees. I can understand that point of view and I can't come up with a solid counterargument against it. But my knee jerk reaction is that the Yankees had an average to just-above average centerfield platoon in 2009. Curtis Granderson is without a doubt an improvement upon that platoon, but outside of his outstanding 2007, he's been just very good rather than excellent over the past four years. I suppose that's still worth the price paid since Austin Jackson's ceiling is apparently to become Curtis Granderson, but it stings a bit to lose three guys that we've followed through the system over the past several years. I suppose any good trade has a price to pay, and the fact that I don't want to give up the likes of AJax, IPK, and Coke but that I'm not heartbroken over it means that it was a decent trade.

That said, the more I think about the deal, the more questions I come up with. In no specific order here are some thoughts and questions, some of which probably echo the multitude of thoughts already expressed on this deal:

• Where does Granderson play? At present the Yankees don't have a left fielder, but as above, they have a decent CF platoon. Does Granderson play left? A lot of Granderson's value comes from his ability to produce as he can as a centerfielder.


• Related to that, where does this leave Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui? There's virtually no chance they both return now, if not because of roster spots then certainly because of payroll. Does either return?


• Granderson can't hit lefties. Gardner's a lefty, Melky's a switch hitter who can't really hit lefties either. Granderson likely needs a platoon partner. Does this mean Reed Johnson, as suggested by Keith Law and a host of others? If so, does that not leave room for Melky or Gardner? Or do we ignore Granderson's numbers against lefties and chalk it up to insufficient sample size, or assume that he can turn it around like Paul O'Neill before him?


• Brian Cashman was quoted this week as saying the Yankees priorities are "pitching, pitching, pitching and then leftfield". I assumed that to mean they were going to acquire pitching, or at least firm up pitching. Well, they have a left fielder, potentially, but all they've done so far is subtract pitching. Don't get me wrong, no one is going to cry over Brian Bruney, Ian Kennedy, and Phil Coke. But in them you have three guys who have proven themselves capable of pitching at the Major League level in various capacities. Now all three are gone without another pitcher to show for it. It may not have a major impact on the overall talent level, but does impact the depth.


• So much for keeping payroll down, or even reducing it. Granderson has a manageable deal for the next three to four years, but he's guaranteed $23.75M over the next three years, including $5.5M this year, with a $13M option or $2M buyout for 2013. Again, manageable, but more than what the Yankees would have been playing for the likely CF alternatives during that time.


• The Granderson deal should all but prevent the Yankees from dealing for Roy Halladay. All Halladay rumors started with Joba or Hughes combined with AJax or Montero. While 3 of those 4 guys are still available, making such a trade would leave the Yankees nearly completely devoid of young talent at the Big League level and the top levels of the farm system. Losing AJax and IPK may not be the worse thing in the world, but I think it does make it more important to keep the likes of Hughes, Chamberlain, and Montero.


• The Yankees have lost two relief pitchers over the last two days. Again, no big loss. But, Damaso Marte has been consistently inconsistent in the last two years and may be in the mix to be "The Eighth Inning Guy (TM)". Joe Girardi loves to match up. With Coke gone, I have to figure that barring a trade, Mike Dunn will be in the Yankee pen next year. In fact, given that the Yankees insisted he be pulled from the initially proposed deal, I imagine they have plans for him. Dunn's K rates are very appealing, but his BB rates scare me. A lot. He may be left handed Bruney. in fact he may make Bruney look like Greg Maddux by comparison.


• Granderson appears to be another high character acquisition for the Yankees. Obviously his talent is what precipitated the deal, but given the number of talented "character guys" the Yankees have brought in over the past year following years of malcontents, I can't help but wonder if the organization is targeting players who contribute both on the field and in the clubhouse.

Anyway, those were the first things that came to mind. This one's been dissected a thousand different ways throughout the Yankee blogosphere already. I'm sure we'll have more to say over the next several days.

More Reaction To The Granderson Trade

As the opinions pour in on today's three team trade, the Diamondbacks are getting universally branded as the deal's big loser. Here's another opinion that's much the same.

In case you didn't hear earlier, longtime ESPN baseball analyst Peter Gammons will be leaving the network following the Winter Meetings (more on this later). As such, ESPN is already holding auditions for Gammons' replacement. First up is current ESPN NFL analyst Mark Schlereth. Fack Youk has received an exclusive transcript:

"Look. This is a BAD TRADE for the Arizona Diamondbacks. You DO NOT succeed in MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL without a bona fide left handed reliever in your bullpen. If I'm Josh Byrnes, I have to go out and GET MYSELF another LEFT HANDED relief specialist to replace MY SON Daniel Schlereth and his EIGHTEEN innings of relief work this year.

This kid is a BASEBALL PLAYER. And he throws STRAIGHT GAS. This kid goes out and BLOWS BATTERS AWAY. Look, the Diamondbacks finished LAST in the NATIONAL LEAGUE WEST last year, and they're not going to get any better by going out and trading young FIREBALLING FLAME THROWERS!

Schlereth is a hard hat, lunch pail kind of guy who is gonna go out and PUNCH BATTERS IN THE MOUTH when THE GAME IS ON THE LINE!"

Thanks Mark; we appreciate your insight. Don't quit your day job.

Speaking of day jobs I've been absolutely inundated at the office today. And it's hard to get any work done when Google Reader is handing 15 new "rumors" every five minutes. I'll be back later tonight with more thoughts on the Granderson deal.

(Photo courtesy of The Sports Hernia)

What's Being Said About The Granderson Trade

Since the trade is seemingly official, it's time to round up some reactions for the deal that saw the Yankees give up Austin Jackson, Ian Kennedy and Phil Coke, the Diamondbacks surrender Max Scherzer and Daniel Schlereth and the Tigers deal Edwin Jackson and Curtis Granderson. MLBTR weighs in with the salary implications and when the dust settles, here's where they all end up:

• Yankees get Granderson
• Diamondbacks get Edwin Jackson and Ian Kennedy
• Tigers get Austin Jackson, Max Scherzer, Phil Coke and Daniel Schlereth

It's sad to see Austin Jackson go but I don't think we are going to miss Ian Kennedy or Phil Coke all that much. Kennedy was not likely to start for the Yanks anytime soon and Coke - although he was solid for long stretches - was victimized by his high HR rate.

Granderson is not without his flaws, namely abysmal production against LHP, but he's relatively inexpensive for a player of his caliber. I would personally love to see Granderson play LF in the Bronx. Teams like the Rays and Mariners have stashed players capable of playing CF at corner OF positions (Carl Crawford, Ichiro) and seen good results, but most of the talk has assumed Granderson will be playing CF. For what it's worth, UZR hasn't thought very highly of his defense in CF over the past two years and the Yankees have a serviceable duo in CF already. Should Granderson want to take over that slot, it may require further maneuvering.

Now for some other reactions...

Dave Cameron absolutely loves the deal for the Yankees:

From the Yankees perspective, this deal is almost too good to be true. Heading into his age 29 season, Granderson is a legitimate +4 win center fielder signed to a bargain contract for the next four years. I ranked him as the 22nd most valuable asset in terms of trade value in baseball over the summer, and the Yankees are getting him for a variety pack of role players. He instantly makes their team better, giving them a legitimate all-star center fielder who should thrive in Yankee Stadium. For as much as the Yankees have a payroll advantage, they continue to win because Brian Cashman targets the right players. Granderson is a fantastic acquisition for them.

Matthew Pouliot from Circling the Bases agrees that they made out well.

Granderson's defense has slipped a bit and it looks like he'll always be a liability against lefties, but he still brings quite a bit to the table and he should put up some big numbers in center field for the Yankees. His contract is also manageable, as he's due $5.5 million next year, $8.25 million in 2011, $10 million in 2012 and then $13 million or a $2 million buyout in 2013.

Perhaps the Yankees should have just signed Mike Cameron instead, but the price for Granderson was right. Austin Jackson was the only piece they gave up likely to play a big role going forward.

Joel Sherman analyzes the loss of Austin Jackson:

The tough player for the Yankees to lose in this swap was Austin Jackson. In recent years, the Yankees have protected Jackson when, for example, the Nationals asked for him in July 2006 for Alfonso Soriano and Seattle asked for him last July for Jarrod Washburn.

But the reality is, if Jackson maximizes his talent, he probably would be just a cost-efficient version of Granderson.

Greg Fertel at Pending Pinstripes thinks a rebound is likely for Granderson:

Curtis Granderson had somewhat of a down year in 2009, posting a wOBA of .340 compared to his career mark of .358, but he plays a good center field and should be able to rebound. The short porch in left field should allow him to improve his power numbers and a rebound on batted balls in play should make his overall hitting like look quite a bit better.

In 2009, he hit only .276 on balls in play. Due to his speed, he has been able to maintain an above average mark of .323 for his career. Even though he hit markedly more fly balls in '09, it is unlikely that he posts a BABIP as low as .276 in the upcoming seasons.

More on this later, obviously.

When Twitter Is Too Much: The 2009 Winter Meetings

There are times when Twitter can be a useful tool - an advantageous manifestation of technology that can help people relay information where other forms of media can not keep up or go at all. And then there are situations like Major League Baseball's Winter Meetings where the frequency of communication far exceeds the amount of information and those fishing for the latest tidbits from Indianapolis are coming up with a lot of old boots.

Let's assume that the 2009 Winter Meetings ultimately produce the same amount of trades, signings and other types of announcements that this summit yielded in each of the past couple of years. Maybe slightly more or, if you read the first-person accounts from the first day this year, slightly less - but we'll call it even. Given this assumption, what function does Twitter serve?

It has become the central source for breaking news. Within that though, the sources are fragmented, with Joel Sherman, Ken Rosenthal, Jon Heyman, Tim Brown and Buster Onley leading the way, countless others at a second tier and the untamed masses below that hungry for any dispatch the above can provide. There is an inherent power structure and it gives reporters the ability to post news essentially as soon as they find it out.

Once that news item gets stuffed into 140 characters (and somewhat mangled in the process), it gets passed around infinitely faster. Tweets get re-tweeted and shortened and re-tweeted again, echoed and dissected, posted to blogs and commented on. So in the time that it used to take reports to file a blog post back in the old days - 10 or 15 minutes, say -that tidbit has already traversed Twitter, reaching far more people that it previously would have and is going to be up on MLBTR very shortly.

However, there isn't any more news than there has been in the past, remember? So much of the messages that get tumbled through that cycle above are half-truths, speculation or worst of all, intentional misinformation.

The instantaneous nature of the media also produces the typical results of a game of telephone as shown by our friend Joe at RAB yesterday. The originating source says one thing, and since each person who discusses the rumor feels the need to rephrase it so as to not to simply regurgitate what was already said, and things that were intentionally vague at first become more and more certain without regard to the actual probability of occurrence.

In a way, this is similar to the quest for intelligence in preventing terrorism. We don't know what we're looking for; we just assume that there are bits of information that need to be uncovered which will predict things that are going to happen. Giving every CIA agent the ability to continuously feed information back to headquarters isn't necessarily going to lead to better information, just more of it.

At the Winter Meetings, there isn't just the ability to feed information, there is the pressure to do outdo every other reporter there. So ultimately (at least on the baseball side of this analogy), we spend more time overreacting to things that were never going to happen than analyzing the things hat actually do.

Kevin Kaduk from Big League Stew did a good job of summing it up this morning:

Not to sound too crotchety here, but it used to be that reporters had an entire day before the next edition — or at least a few hours before the next blog post — to sift through all the B.S. and decide which passed muster and which didn't. The result would be a piece that would float a few possiblities that we'd be able to consume and mull over.

Now we have a conflicting wall of noise that's often hard to translate. Want to write a blog post that takes an analytical look at the pluses and minuses of a proposed deal from your local beat reporter? Want to chew it over with fellow message board posters? Better make it quick, because by the time you even write a title, there'll be 18 additional tweets that will make your item obsolete before you hit publish.

Ironically, I started brainstorming for this post yesterday afternoon, so even writing about Twitter is subject to this reality.

But I agree with 'Duk's larger point in that sometimes the quest for instantaneous information is actually detrimental, particularly when there is little in the way of actual news and an incredible amount of white noise to wade through. In this case, the hunger for information is leading to more of it, while the amount of worthwhile tidbits remains the same.

Obviously, the Twitter train is already roaring full speed ahead and it's going to take a while for this dynamic to change. Our buddy Jason suggested that reporters rate the validity of their rumors on a scale of 1-10, and that might work in a perfect world, but people aren't going to want to attach a number rating to a rumor that might get thrown back in their face eventually. If you read between the lines, they already hedge their bets by using non-definitive wording like "possibly" and saying that teams are "in talks".

My solution to this problem is to follow from a distance and at the risk of not being the first person to discuss possible deals, not waste time fretting over spurious rumors. Your mileage may vary, but I'll trade the continuous ups and downs of reeling in the line - whether it be for boots or lunkers - for the certainty of cutting into the fish once it's on my plate.

News And Notes From Day One

Good morning Fackers. My head is spinning already. If you didn't brave the murky rumor waters flowing from the Winter Meetings in Indianapolis yesterday, we've reduced the day's worth of rumors, lobbytalk, hearsay, near trades and actual transactions into bullet point form:

• Early yesterday afternoon, there was a rumor that the Yankees were close to acquiring both Edwin Jackson and Curtis Granderson from Detroit. Joe at RAB did a nice job of debunking that one based on the dubious source and ambiguous wording, but a similar one popped up late last night. Ken Rosenthal reported that the Yankees, Diamondbacks and Tigers were trying to orchestrate a three way deal that would have sent Granderson to the Yankees along with a couple of prospects from Arizona, Ian Kennedy and Jackson to the D-Backs and Max Scherzer, Phil Coke, Michael Dunn to Detroit. However, Joel Sherman later reported that the talks were all but dead as both the Yanks and Tigers thought their prospect cost was too high. Although apparently, as of this morning, it still might be a possibility.
  
  
• Mark Feinsand of The Daily News tweeted yesterday that the PTBNL in yesterday's Brian Bruney deal will be the Nats' top overall pick in Thursday's Rule 5 Draft. Unlike picks in the Amateur Draft, Rule 5 picks can be traded. That's how the Rangers landed Josh Hamilton two years ago. Still, as Greg Fertel at Pending Pinstripes noted yesterday, this is an uncommon move for the Yankees, as the nature of their roster doesn't easily allow them to carry a Rule 5 player all year. So perhaps they plan on flipping this pick elsewhere as part of another deal, or they may have someone specific in mind. Don't forget, the Yankees wanted to pick Joakim Soria three years ago but the Royals beat them to the punch. They'll have the pick of the litter this year.


• Also from Feinsand, apparently the Yankees did not extend the rumored $10M offer to Andy Pettitte, and "they don't intend to lowball him".
  
  
• The Yankees apparently got in contact with Kelvim Escobar's people who might pitch in Venezuela this Winter to show that he's healthy enough to pitch. Escobar has been very effective when healthy, notching a 3.60 ERA in his time in Anaheim over 658 innings but only threw 5 innings last year and didn't pitch at all in 2008 due to shoulder surgery. File him under the "high risk, high upside" group with Rich Harden, Eric Bedard, Ben Sheets and the like.


• Marc Carig of The Star Ledger tweeted that the Yankees spoke to Mark DeRosa's representatives. As Ben at RAB pointed out last week, DeRosa could be a useful supersub if the Yanks choose to use a DH by committee next year. But Mike at RAB pointed out several potential red flags with DeRosa yesterday.


• Cashman apparently also spoke to Jason Marquis' agents. Circling the Bases explains why this would be a bad idea.


• Jorge Arangure tweets that Aroldis Chapman now may sign for $20M or less. That's a price that I'm more comfortable with than what was initially rumored, but still more than I'd want to see the Yankees commit to him.

Those are some of the loose ends from yesterday. I'm sure today will bring a whole host of new "news".