Seattle is ready to deal Lee to the AL East leading New York Yankees for a Catching prospect Jesus Montero and second base prospect David Adams will head to the Mariners, possibly with another prospect, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, who broke the story. The Yankees are a team that is all about winning and of course not allowing any team in contention to sign Lee. The Tampa Bay Rays are 2 games behind the Yankees and were in the mix for Lee’s service.

The Yankees’ trade package, which Sherman tweeted the Mariners liked (ooh, la la!), would include 20-year-old catcher Jesus Montero, who shot up the Baseball America prospect rankings after he turned in a .951 OPS between the Class A Florida State League and the Class AA Eastern League in 2009.

The Yanks rotation of Sabathia, Hughes, Pettitte and Vazquez are considered one of the best rotations in baseball. The Yankees are ranked 7th in ERA 3.86) and 3^rd in batting average against with .241.

1:27pm: The Yankees have offered Montero, Adams and a third prospect, according to Jon Heyman of SI.com (Twitter link). It’s now up to the Mariners to accept or decline the offer.

Cliff Lee will soon wake up in a city, that doesn’t sleep. And find he is king of the hill and top of the heap.

Tampa Bay Rays (Grade A): The Rays are flying high and playing very good baseball. They have the best record in baseball and a 1 game lead over the New York Yankees. The Rays are (18-7) and one of the reasons for their early success is their team ERA of 3.01. The hitting has been timely, but pitching has been the key.

Team Leaders
Hitting Evan Longoria
Pitching Matt Garza

New York Yankees (Grade A-): The Yankees have the 2^nd best record (17-8) in the AL and are playing very well. The Yankees have one every series except one against the Angels. The Yankees will only get better once Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodríguez start hitting. Curtis Granderson is on the DL and will likely return in a couple of weeks.

Team Leaders
Hitting Robinson Cano
Pitching CC Sabathia

Minnesota Twins (Grade B+): The Twins look like a force in the Central and are (17-9).  Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer continue to prove why they are one of the best one-two punches in baseball. Francisco Liriano has been the ace and leads the team in wins, era and strike outs.

Team Leaders
Hitting Joe Mauer
Pitching Francisco Liriano

Detroit Tigers (Grade B): The Tigers are hanging in there (16-11) and will probably be knocking on the door and challenging the Twins all year. Austin Jackson acquired from the Yankees is having an impressive start, leading the team in hitting. Ex-Yankee Phil Coke leads the team with 3 wins.

Team Leaders
Hitting Austin Jackson
Pitching Phil Coke

Texas Rangers (Grade C): The Rangers are in the weakest division in the AL. They are currently (14-12) and are on top of the AL West. Vladimir Guerrero has found his stroke and I am sure many owners wish they had signed him when no one else did.

Team Leaders
Hitting Vladimir Guerrero
Pitching Frank Francisco

Here are the rest of the American League Grades;

Toronto Blue Jays (Grade C-): The Blue Jays are in the toughest division in baseball and are playing .500 plus ball at (14-13).

Oakland Athletics (Grade D+): I am a bit surprised that the A’s aren’t playing well in such a weak division. Their record is just below .500 at (13-14).

Boston Red Sox (Grade D): This is the biggest surprise considering their payroll and the expectation from fans and the GM. David Ortiz is off to another bad start batting .159 with 3 home runs and only 6 RBI. The Red Sox will need a much improved May in order to stay close to the Rays and Yankees.

Los Angeles Angels (Grade D-): No surprise (12-15) after losing some key players during the winter. The Angles will need a little luck to even come close to making the playoffs. It will be a long summer!

Seattle Mariners (Grade D-): I am very surprised with the Mariners (11-14) as I still feel they will win their division. They have the best one-two punch in their rotation with Felix Hernández and Cliff Lee. Let’s not forget that Cliff Lee missed most of April with an injury. Brandon League leads the team with 3 wins and could be a major part of this already strong rotation.

Chicago White Sox (Grade D-): Lots of issues and poor leadership will keep these Sox stinking up 2010. Record so far (11-15).

Cleveland Indians (Grade F): (10-15) it’s like watching the movie Major League. They still stink!

Kansas City Royals (Grade F): (10-16) not a bad for a low market team who has one of the best pitchers Zack Greinke. They will need a lot more than Zack.

Baltimore Orioles (Grade F): At (7-19) you can put a fork in them. The Orioles ownership really could care less as each year it is the same losing team sitting in the cellar of the AL East. What a shame!

The New York Yankees turned their first triple play in 42 years, but were defeated 4-2 by the Oakland Athletics, ending a six-game American League winning streak. Alex Rodriguez started the triple play when Oakland’s Kurt Suzuki hit a sharp grounder to A-Rod, who stepped on third base and threw to Robinson Cano at second. Cano’s relay to first baseman Nick Johnson just barely beat Suzuki.

The Yankees had gone 6,632 consecutive regular-season games without a triple play, dating to 1968 when Mickey Mantle caught the final out.

The Yankees are playing well with the exception of Mark Teixeira who is still in his normal April slump batting .125 with two home runs and seven RBI on the season. Yankee fans need not to worry, Mark will come around soon.

The Yankee head to Los Angeles to take on the Angels. New York (11-4) took two of three against Los Angeles (8-9) from April 13-15 in the Bronx. The Yankees, who received their World Series rings in the opener of that series, won the pennant by beating the Angels in six games.

The Red Sox are having a tough April and are (6-10) and 5 1/2 games back of the Yankees.

Damon has a couple of options, but not in the area of $13 million per year. He could crawl back to the Yankees with his tail between his legs and take an offer far less than his mega agent is looking to get. His second option, retire, but that would be nonsense for a player with his above average offensive contribution.

Damon turns 36 next season but is coming off his best .OPS in years, not to mention he hit .364 with six runs scored and three stolen bases (two at one time!) in the World Series against the Phillies. What will Johnny Damon do? If I am a betting man, and I am, I would think Johnny Damon will tell Boras to take a walk and resign with the Yankees for $5 to $6 million for one year.

The Yankees have said they only have $2 million to spend, but you know the Yankees will find a way to sign Damon. If the Yankees offer Damon $6 million for one year which is still a great bargain, Damon will sign.

What do you think Johnny Damon will do?

Don Mattingly

Don Mattingly was drafted in the 19th round (490th Overall Pick) of the Free Agent Draft by the New York Yankees on June 5, 1979 and signed by Yankees’ scouts Jax Robertson and Gus Poulos on June 26.

He was the first left-hander to hit above .340 since Lou Gehrig in 1937 and the first New York Yankee to win the batting title since Mickey Mantle in 1956. That’s some pretty good company to have your name next to.

In 1985 Donnie Baseball was awarded the American League’s Most Valuable Player Award. He led the Major Leagues with 145 RBI, 48 doubles, and 15 sacrifice flies. He led the American League with 370 total bases. He had 21 Game Winning RBIs and 86 extra-base hits. He also hit .324 to go along with his 35 home runs! He was the first New York Yankee to lead the American League in RBIs since Roger Maris in 1961!

Career Statistics
1785 Games
7003 At Bats
.307 Batting Average
1007 Runs
2153 Hits
442 Doubles
20 Triples
222 Home Runs
1099 RBI
.471 Slugging %

Playoffs – 5 games, 24 at bats, 3 runs, 10 hits (.417 average), 4 doubles, 1 HR, 6 RBI.

The Awards
1985 MVP
1985 Major League Player of the Year
1993 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award
6 All-Star Games
9 Gold Gloves
3 Silver Sluggers
MVP votes in 7 seasons

Ranking in Yankee History

Don ranks second in New York Yankees’ history in doubles (442), fifth in hits (2,153) and at-bats (7,003). Seventh in games (1,785), batting average (.307), home runs (222). And eighth in RBI (1,099) and runs scored (1,007).

If Don Mattingly played one more year, he would have been a part of that 1996 World Series Champion team and would have improved his chances of being a Hall of Famer.

Induct Donnie – http://inductdonnie.com/

Do you think Don Mattingly belongs in the Hall of Fame?

I am sure many baseball fans are excited and are looking forward to the new season. It should be an outstanding season with the New York Yankees defending their title.

Here are my predictions by division for the American League.

American League

East

New York Yankees (104-58) – Will win the division with an improved team both offensively and defensively over the 2009 team. The Yankees have Gardner penciled in at Left and they may sign a veteran soon, but who?

Boston Red Sox (94-68) – They have added John Lackey, but still have offensive worries now that Bay is gone and Mike Lowell’s health issues. David Ortiz is a year older and is looking to rebound off an awful start in 2009. Wild Card team, but watch out for the Mariners or Angels.

Tampa Bay Rays (82-80) – Nothing different than last year after an incredible 2008 campaign, but that is long removed and 2010 will not be any better than last season.

Toronto Blue Jays (72-90) – The neighbors north may just embrace hockey this season knowing their Blue Jays will be among the walking wounded. They made little or no progress during the winter meetings.

Baltimore Orioles (64-98) – Same old crap, same old cellar dwellers.

Central

Minnesota Twins (90-72) – With Mauer and a Morneau healthy, the Twinkies should win the division. They also have other offensive powers in Michael Cuddyer (32 HRs) and Jason Kubel (103 RBI).

Detroit Tigers (81-81) – They lost Curtis Granderson and 30 home runs and only have 3 strong offensive players in Miguel Cabrera, Brandon Inge and Magglio Ordonez. They do have Justin Verlander and Rick Porcello, but that won’t be enough to contend for a division title.

Chicago White Sox (80-82) – The song remains the same for Ozzie’s gang. They have Paul Konerko their offensive leader and Mark Buehrl, but the South Siders will need a lot more to stay competitive in the Central.

Kansas City Royals (64-98) – At least they didn’t finish last in 2009, but they’re still not going any where fast, unless Zack Greinke can start 80 games this year which would be 1900′s baseball.

Cleveland Indians (62-100) – What a mess this Indians team will be in 2010. It will be like watching the movie Major League before they found a way to win. The new addition of Carl Pavano may give them a few more wins over last year, but not enough to be competitive.

West

Los Angeles Angels (97-65) – They added Hideki Matsui for some needed offense after losing Chone Figgins. They lost their big arm in John Lackey to the Red Sox and this could make a difference on whether they win the division or not.

Seattle Mariners (94-68) – They have the best one-two punch in newly signed Cliff Lee and their big man King Felix Hernandez. They also signed Chone Figgins for some needed offense. This team has made some nice moves this winter and should be much improved and possible make a run for the division or worst case a Wild Card bid.

Texas Rangers (82-80) – Andruw Jones will barely make a difference this year for the Rangers. They didn’t have one player with 100 RBIs in 2009. They will be a little worse than their 2009 record.

Oakland Athletics (79-83) – It’s not going to be a fun 2010 campaign for the Athletics. They added Justin Duchscherer who could have a decent season if he stays healthy physically and mentally.

National League Predictions coming soon.

What are your American League Predictions?