Yankees

Did the Yankees give away the farm? So far, it looks that way with Austin Jackson having a great start for the Detroit Tigers. Ajax is batting .356 with 1 Homerun, 7 RBI, 21 Runs and 5 Stolen Bases.

Austin Jackson went 5 for 5 as the Tigers beat the Los Angeles Angels 10-6 on Friday. Jackson became the first Tigers rookie with five hits in a game since the player he replaced, Curtis Granderson, did it on Sept. 18, 2005. He is hitting .364 and leads the AL in hits.

I wasn’t pleased with the Yankees letting their top prospect go and getting Granderson which will cost the Yankees $25.75MM guaranteed over the next three years.

Curtis is one of the best guys in baseball hands down, but he has been in serious decline since 2007. You can look up his stats. Outside of the spike in HR last year, he has done nothing to suggest that he’s going to be worth the money the Yankees paid.

Let’s hope Granderson comes back with vengeance and can start hitting lefty pitching better.

When I look at what the Mets did this off-season, I see names like you would see in the movie “Major League”. The only bright spot was the signing of Jason Bay who didn’t even want to play for the Mets until money was the lure.

Jason Bay, is at best, a mediocre in the field and has some knee problems which could be an issue this year. He will no longer have luxury that came with the green monster where singles become doubles. He will have a lot more real estate to keep his home run totals on par from 2009.

The Mets were troubled by the injury bug last year and that was the main reason they ended the season a miserable 70-92 and 23 games behind the Phillies. They were 28-44 against teams in their division.

The Mets still have their ace Johan Santana, but it will not be enough to compete, sorry Met fans.

Met fans could put most of the blame on Mets general manager Omar Minaya. He has made many bad moves that seem like half baked decisions that have proven the same.

Carlos Beltran who missed half the season last year, also had knee surgery this year without the Mets knowing. Beltran will not be ready to return until May.

It will be a long season for Met fans and it might be the last for Omar Minaya, let’s hope!

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The Mariners have acquired some needed reinforcement in 2009 with the acquisitions of;

Cliff Lee (SP), Felix Hernandez (SP) – Resigned for 5 years, Chone Figgins (3B), Casey Kotchman (1B), and Franklin Gutierre (OF)

Other additions include; Erik Bedard, Ryan Garko, Eric Byrnes, and Brandon League. The Mariners are hoping to get production from these players.

The Mariners were also successful in dumping their overpaid pitcher, Carlos Silva.

Steve Henson writes – “The Mariners were outscored 692-640 last season, meaning their finish eight games above .500 was partially the product of good fortune. No one in their lineup is projected to hit 30 home runs. Second baseman and cleanup hitter Jose Lopez belted 25 last year and is due for a regression. Ichiro Suzuki and Figgins might become the best top-of-the-order duo in baseball, but they might be stranded quite often.”

The Mariners will be competitive as they have the best one-two punch in baseball with Felix Hernandez and Cliff Lee, but after that, it’s all downhill.

Jack Zduriencik was busy in 2009 and made some great moves, but not as good as the moves Brian Cashman made in 2008.

Seattle Mariners Transactions – http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/teams/sea/transactions

Felix Hernandez is a much better pitcher than Verlander and he is three years younger. Felix won 19 games and posted an incredible 2.49 ERA last season. He also pitched for 238 innings, two less innings than Verlander, but close enough.

Verlander won a career-high 19 games with a career-best 3.45 ERA last season. A far cry from Felix Hernandez ERA he posted last year.

I am not sure what the Detroit Tigers were thinking or were they at all. Justin Verlander is a work horse who pitched 240 innings last year. I just have a problem with Verlander getting more money than Felix Hernandez. Let’s be honest, who would you rather have?

Detroit fans let me here what you have to say. I am sure you will debate with me, but the numbers tell the true story. I am confident that Felix will outperform Justin in 2010. Are there any betters out there?

Saunders is a bargain if you look at his numbers over the last two years. Joe Saunders was 16-7 with a 4.60 ERA last year and has a 33-14 record in the last two seasons. This is a great bargain at $3.7 million for a young 28 year old with good numbers and on a good team.

In addition to his base salary, he can earn $50,000 in performance bonuses – $25,000 each for 180 and 200 innings—and award bonuses.

The Anaheim Angels made the right move in resigning Saunders in 2010. This resigning will make them a better team and one that will compete with the Mariners.

Johnny Damon is still looking for a job, but has his price gone down?

McGwire is bad for the game period! He hasn’t been honest with himself, Congress or his fans. McGwire has been unwilling to answer allegations about performance-enhancing drugs. Big Mac may have to answer questions now that he is back in the spotlight.

I am not a fan of any player that cheated during the steroid era. It is a shame that Mark McGwire was part of this era as he and Sammy Sosa in a way, saved baseball during the Home Run Derby of sorts.

La Russa must be dreaming or did he pass out in his car again? Stop hitting up happy hour Tony! Do you really want that kind of media attention considering that you have only named him and not introduced him publicly as your hitting coach?

Here’s what other writers had to say courtesy of Yahoo’s blog by David Brown.

• If McGwire did play, it would stop the clock on his Hall of Fame eligibility. N.Y. Daily News
• And, as Matthew Leach notes, McGwire’s support ain’t so good right now. MLB.com
• Jonah Keri is all for McGwire batting again, and not simply for the novelty. Such a move might circumvent BBWAA members who abuse their voting privileges. JonahKeri.com
• Ah, c’mon, McGwire’s not coming back, Tommy Craggs writes. La Russa’s just messing with reporters he considers anti-Big Mac. Deadspin
• You just never know with La Russa, though. Fans in St. Louis seem to be having a mixed reaction at this possibility. Cardinal Beat at StlToday.com
• While pondering McGwire’s comeback, check out the Cardinals roster broken down into awesome pie graph form. Mmm, pie graph. St. Louis Post-Dispatch
• Gwen Knapp wonders: If McGwire gets forgiven, what about Barry Bonds(notes)? S.F. Chronicle

Big Mac just needs to stay at home and hope he will be forgiven and maybe have a chance to be voted into the Hall of Fame.

Baseball season is just around the corner when pitchers and catchers report to spring training February 18th. The MLB Tribune will bring excitement to all die hard baseball fans. We are looking for baseball writers to share information with other baseball fans here at the MLBTribune.com. If you would like to be a writer here, please send an email to boscony@yahoo.com. Please provide any experience or blogs you’ve recently published or contributed to other blogs.

Lets get ready for a fun 2010 baseball season!

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