Yankees complete sweep of Phillies in game 1

In the game that they were supposed to lose, the Yankees gave Roy Halladay a good rogering Tuesday night. The man who has been borderline untouchable in the NL Least was welcomed back to the AL by three home runs wth Curtis Granderson, Nick Swisher, and Mark Teixeira* taking him over the wall.The Phillies may as well forfeit the next two games, because Halladay was the only shot that they had, let's be honest.

*That was not a typo - Mark Teixeira hit a home run off of a quality pitcher.

Merry Texmas

It was a year ago today that the Yankees stunned the baseball world by signing Mark Teixeira to an eight year deal worth approximately double the GDP of Chile. I just wanted to take this opportunity to thank Mark and his wife, Leigh, for choosing New York and stepping on John Henry's penny-pinching dick.

Let your love grow

The Balls' love affair with Mark Teixeira was brought to new heights last night in the 12-3 ass-whipping that the Yankees laid on the Texas Rangers.

After being plunked by Vincente Padilla for the second time in the game, Teixeira was not happy. The Rangers learned a valuable lesson last night, one they shall carry with them forever: do not make Tex angry. On the ensuing ground ball Teixeira executed a hard-nosed slide into second base, breaking up a would-be double play, and prolonging the inning. It was at that point that Hideki Matsui blasted a three run shot, putting the game out of reach.

After years of watching the Yankees prance around like a bunch of school girls, it was great to see a player show some well placed aggression. The fact is I could piss in Derek Jeter's Cheerios while he was eating them and he would talk about how it is all "part of the game" and how he needs to take it "one day at a time". The message is now clear to the rest of the league. Nobody fucks with Mark Teixeira without consequences.

What a difference a gay makes

Though he has hit some dramatic homeruns since his return from the DL, The Alex Rodriguez Show has yet to hit stride with the bat. His real impact thus far has happened while standing in the on deck circle.

Mark Teixeira has been the player that the Yankees paid in the 10 games since Alex's return:

Before:

25 G, .198 AVG, 5 HR, 15RBI

After:

10 G, .342 AVG, 5 HR, 13 RBI

(stats courtest of the MLB Network, a.k.a. the greatest thing to happen to me since my second nut dropped)

Once Rodruguez returns to form, this offense will be downright scary.

This being Holy Week, let us thank the Lord for Brian Cashman

According to Kat O'Brien of Newsday, it was Brian Cashman that pushed hard for the Yankees to sign Mark Teixeira, my future best friend. Cashman spoke out about negotiations in an interview with Newsday:

"Teixeira never was really an option," Cashman said. "It was something I kept
pushing, but it was not really being accepted by above me . . . I guess
persistence paid off. I knocked on that door, I guess, just enough that someone
finally answered. Hal really gave me the OK to pursue it over a few-day period."

So, let me get this straight - an owner with the surname Steinbrenner actually let his baseball people make the baseball decisions? This must be a mistake.

Within the article, Cashman admits that the Yankees only met with Teixeira initially to create leverage in their negotiations with CC Sabathia. He also does some XXX knob slobbing of our new favorite player:

"I remember telling ownership this is a guy that is the all-around,
All-American- type boy that he is talented but he will never make a mistake with
the media with a soundbite. He'll always represent himself and the organization
in the right way. If you could take them all like that, that's the way you would
want them."

So, after banging his head against a wall for weeks with upper management, Cashman finally resorted to pitching Teixeira as the anti-Alex Rodriguez. I told you he was smarter than you. (hat tip to MLB Trade Rumors)

Congratulations!

Last night, in the ninth inning, newly annointed TFB man-crush Mark Teixeira recorded his first hit as a Yankee when he drove an RBI double into the gap in right-center field. It will now become my life's work to crack his inner-circle of friends. We are the same age, and he is obviously going to be looking to make new friends in the area. The First Lady and I are the perfect couple to go to dinner with Mark and Leigh. I even have a funny anecdote to start the conversation considering he hit a 400 foot home run off of me when we were 16 in a wooden bat tournament in Maryland. We will be living in his pool house in no time, but I digress. Congratulations, Mark. Call me. Soon.

Calm. Down.

The Yankees have now finished 0.006% of their season, and already we are seeing "Money For Nothing" headlines? Sure, CC Sabathia's 400 pound ass threw an embarassing 5 innings yesterday. It happens. Mark Teixeira went o for 5. Nobody's perfect. Now, let's all take a deep breath and take our heads out of each other's asses. We can't all be hacks like those over at the Daily News, can we?

Opening Day does not a season make. We can all agree that with CC and Tex making their big debut and all, it would have been nice to win the first one. But they didn't. And to me, that's not a story.

The Metropolatinos, on the other hand, Showed that the bullpen that cost them a playoff spot last year is not the same as it was a year ago. Sean Green, J.J. Putz, and K-Rod combined for 3 1/3 scoreless innings to preserve a 2-1 Mets victory. There's your back cover, Daily News. K-Rod doing his ridiculous pointing-to-the-sky-and-showing-up-hitters pose. Now stop trying to create a mutiny with the fans of the Varsity team.

*This post can also be seen at Bronx Baseball Daily. Check out the site for constant Yankees updates by Jimmy Dugan and others.

I'm in love, I'm in love and I don't care who knows it!

As anyone who reads the blog knows (that's right, both of you), the recent fall of Alex Rodriguez has left Jimmy Dugan as heartbroken as a schoolgirl. After much deliberation, a suitable replacement has been found, and we at The Fowl Balls are ready to introduce our new man crush.

...and the player you will hear so much about this season that you will be sick by the All-Star break is...

**drumroll**

Mark Teixeira

We have always had an affinity for Teixeira's play, and who wouldn't. A well-rounded, slugging first baseman that plays gold-glove quality defense. Sound familiar? It should.

Now that he is a Yankee, Tex will be subjected to the ridiculous media scrutiny that all star players are afforded once in New York. Thanks to this, we will be able to learn more about Mark Teixeira the person, not just Mark Teixeira the player. The article that cemented my undying love (read: until he tests positive) was in the New York Times this weekend. Just like the rest of us, Mark Teixeira worshipped Don Mattingly as a child. That's right, even though he was a die-hard Orioles fan growing up in Maryland, Tex had a poster of Donnie Baseball on his wall. He's one of us.

Again, Teixeira's numbers are admirable enough on their own. He gets on base, hits for power, and will do a great job protecting you-know-who batting in front of him all year. But in the end, the idiot fanboy in me eats this other sh*t up. Now that I have officially received my Mark Texeira jersey in the mail, it's on like Donkey Kong. Teixeira updates all day long.

Tex and the City

Less Than 6 Weeks Until the Most Anticipated Spring Training of All Time.

(Hat tip to Peter Abraham and the LoHud Yankees Blog for the pic)

And This is Why We Hate You All

Boston fans, your team failed you. The money making maching that is the Boston Red Sox lost out on a premium free agend by roughly $120 million dollars, so you would figure that their fans would be LIVID at management right? Wrong. Their so-called sportswriters and cry-baby blogs would rather blame the Yankees for their problems once again. First, Tony Masseroti writes an article demonizing the Yankees and even further demonizing Teixeira himself. At the end of the day, Mark Teixeira is a Scott Boras client. This had to do with little other money. The Yankees signed Sabathia and Burnett. Great. $12 million would have made Mark Teixeira sing the praises of the Red Sox in the streets.
Source: http://www.boston.com/sports/columnists/massarotti/2009/01/curious_case_of_teixeira_far_f.html

This brings us to our favorite sour grapes display, provided to you courtesy of Boston Dirt Dogs. These drunken Irish frat boys actually liken the Yankees signing of a 29 year old, durable, stud first baseman to the signing of Carl Pavano. CARL PAVANO. It must be hard to avoid typos while you are dropping tears and snot all over your keyboard.
Source: http://bostondirtdogs.boston.com/2009/01/welcome_to_yankee_stadium.html

With the Patriots missing the playoffs, and now this, I was not sure that I could be happier. The topper will be when their championship caliber Celtics sign proverbial cancer Stephon Marbury to blow up their team. F*ck you all.

Mark Teixeira Press Conference

Follow Peter Abraham blogging live over at yankees.lhblogs.com. I will post a wood-inducing picture of Teixeira in his pinstripes as soon as one comes available.

Yankees send a message to Red Sox

"You'll have nothing and like it"

We reiterate

3 years of Manny > 8 years of Teixeira.
The Fowl Balls has spoken.

Manny Threat Level = ORANGE

According to Mark Feinsand of the NY Daily News, the Yankees are "going hard" after Manny Ramirez (that's what she said". This is sure to send beat-writers, bloggers, and fans into an uproar. We at The Fowl Balls, however, recognize that Manny is the only viable candidate to protect the increasingly fragile Alex Rodriguez in the lineup that is not named Mark Teixeira. So, everyone who is against the signing of Manny is dumb and we are smart. We take Manny for two years, $50 million over Tex at eight years, $160 million every day of the week, and twice on Sunday. I don't even know what that means.
Source: http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/2008/12/16/2008-12-16_source_sees_yankees_pursuit_of_manny_ram-1.html

Winter Meetings: Day 4

Mike Cameron - This trade was off, then on, then off, and is now on again. With Cameron and Melky being the center of the deal, the teams are now haggling over money and possibly another pitching prospect from the Yankees. Brewers GM Doug Melvin said to Brewers beat reporter Tim Hardicourt that there is a "strong possibility" that the trade goes down, which is GM speak for I have no fucking clue what is going on.
Source: http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/sports/35999269.html

AJ Burnett - The Yankees are by all accounts the front runners, putting up 5 years and $80-85 million. The Braves are still involved, meaning there is still a chance that this albatross-in-the-making has a chance to fall through (our fingers are crossed).
Source: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081211&content_id=3714587&vkey=news_nyy&fext=.jsp&c_id=nyy&partnerId=rss_nyy

Derek Lowe - ESPN's Jayson Stark reports that the Yankees would not rule out signing Lowe if they agreed to terms with Burnett.
Source: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/print?id=3762149&type=blogEntry

Manny Ramirez - There has been limited talk linking Ramirez to the Yankees yet. However, we think that if Manny is still ahnging around in January, the Yankees could and (should) throw a big one or two year offer at him.
Source: None, because I made it up.


Mark Teixeira - Apparently, the Yankees have thrown their hat back in the ring on Big Tex, according to John Heyman at SI. We can't see this as anything but an attempt to drive up the price on the Red Sox, but it is fun to dream.
Source: http://www.fannation.com/si_blogs/hot_stove/posts/31261-yankees-back-in-teixeira-sweepstakes

Can CC Play Centerfield on Off Days?

Now that theYankees have acquired (arguably) the best pitcher in baseball and appear to be on the verge of signing up to three more pitchers, it's time to turn our attention to what they will do about the offense. It is clear that a Melky/Gardner centerfield is not what championships are built on, so what is the plan? The Fowl Balls wants to hear from you. Who completes the offense? Dunn? Cameron? Teixeira (HA!)? Manny?

Use the comments section to make your suggestions, seeing as though we have already established that the Yankees are reading...

Winter Meetings: Day 2

CC Sabathia - This is the biggest news in all the league today. As reported here earlier, Joel Sherman broke the story at abuot 4:30am - CC has accepted the offer. This comes after Newsday reported that Cashman blew off his media time to fly to San Fran and meet with Sabathia and his family. This is a big day for the Yankees, as they have gotten their man. In listening to fan feedback, many felt that the Yankees have been made to look bad during the process, but honestly, who cares? This is exactly what they needed; an ace in his prime. This is the first time that the team can say that since Ron Guidry in the late 70's, so get over it.
Source - http://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/yankees/ny-spwebyanks1210,0,3840560.story

AJ Burnett - John Heyman over at SI reports that the Yankees have topped the offer set forth by the Braves. God help us all
Source - http://www.fannation.com/si_blogs/hot_stove/posts/30781-yankees-may-consider-fifth-year-for-burnett

Derek Lowe - In that same article, Heyman suggests that the Yankees are working on a four year deal for low worth over $65million. This sits a lot better with me than the $80 million+ that they are throwing at Pavano v2.0

Ben Sheets - It seems as though the team has offered Sheets a two year deal worth around $26million, according to Mark Feinsand of the NY Daily News
Source - http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/2008/12/08/2008-12-08_yankees_brewin_up_multiyear_offer_for_fr-2.html

Mark Teixeira - No source here, but in my own estimation the Yankees are out on Teixeira after offering approximately $300 million to three pitchers. Although I have heard ignorant Yankee fans suggesting otherwise.

Winter Meetings: Day 1

Here is the latest news on the Yankees' activity at the Winter Meetings, with links included:

CC Sabathia - There seems to be reason piling up as to why CC does not want to play in New York, with the most recent being that he wants to train in Arizona according to SI's John Heyman. However, the Yankees seem to be confident that the 140,000,000 reasons that they will land Sabathia will be enough. Also, according to Peter Abraham, the Yankees have met with CC twice since the meetings started.
Sources - http://www.fannation.com/si_blogs/hot_stove/posts/30144-brewers-open-to-upping-efforts-to-keep-cc, http://yankees.lhblogs.com/2008/12/08/update-from-the-suite/

Robinson Cano - Somebody is lying here. First there was a report by Fox's Ken Rosenthal that teased our collective penis that the Dodgers had re-opened discussions about Cano and possibly Melky Cabrera for Matt Kemp, and about ten minutes later Dodgers GM Ned Colletti stated that he hadn't spoken with the Yankees since July.
Sources - http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/8912072, http://www.yankees.lhblogs.com/

AJ Burnett - Lots of buzz around the injury-waiting-to-happen today. Heyman reported that the Yankees are aggressive, and about to make an offer. Ken Rosenthal also reported that Burnett reached out to training room buddy Carl Pavano to ask about the Yankees. I wonder how that conversation went...

AJ - Hey Carl, what do you have to say about the Yankees?
Carl - They have a beautiful facility in Tampa.
AJ - What about playing in New York City?
Carl - I heard it is wonderful.
Sources - http://www.fannation.com/si_blogs/hot_stove/posts/30383-yanks-ready-to-top-braves-offer-for-burnett, http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/8912072

Mark Teixeira - Though Cashman flew to DC to meet with Teixeira last week, there was no offer made according to Tyler Kepner of the New York Times.
Source - http://bats.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/12/08/yanks-meet-with-sabathia-again/

Andy Pettitte - Abraham says that the Yankees have no meeting scheduled with Pettitte's agents.
Source - http://yankees.lhblogs.com/

Ben Sheets - In maintaining the "pitchers that are a strain away from a career ending injury" theme, the Yankees met with Sheets, and are about to extend an offer.
Source - http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/2008/12/08/2008-12-08_yankees_brewin_up_multiyear_offer_for_fr.html

Derek Lowe - Not a whole lot on Lowe today, except that his "priority is winning" when searching for a new team according to Ken Gurnick of mlb.com. This may be an advantage for the Yankees, unless they fail to make significant improvements before spring training.
Source - http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20081206&content_id=3704514&vkey=hotstove2008&fext=.jsp&partnerId=rss_mlb

Check back tomorrow for a recap of Day 2, and keep checking http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/ for information. Tim Dierkes is doing one hell of a job compiling information on the Yankees and the rest of the MLB, totaling over 70 posts today.

Looking Toward 2009

On a topic that will be the subject of much debate over the next few months, the Yankees look poised to make some substantial moves in the rapidly approaching offseason. In classic if-I-were-GM fashion, the following is a list of moves that The Fowl Balls feels will benefit the club going forward.

Sign CC Sabathia
Regardless of the push for a low-cost youth movement, the Yankees will forever be a team with a payroll in the stratosphere. Over the course of his career, CC has proved to be a durable, innings-eating pitcher that consistently performs at an elite level. On those merits alone he seems to be a good fit for the team, and when added to the fact that he is left handed this makes him a must-have acquisition. The team has a load of payroll coming off the books (roughly $88 million) and have plenty of room to add a superstar pitcher, even if they will be forced to grossly over pay for him.

Trade Robinson Cano
The more one watches Cano play, the more one becomes frustrated. Mark my words; Robinson Cano will win at least one batting title in his career. Unfortunately, he will also have seasons like this one, where is arguably one of the worst full time players in baseball (thanks to Melky Cabrera FINALLY given the Fredo treatment). On talent alone, it seems that Cano could be moved for a young, talented pitcher that is more proven than the young, talented pitchers that the team already owns. Names like Zach Grienke have been thrown around as potential matches in a Cano trade, and only a fool would turn down such a player at this point. After yesterday's game, Robbie's OBP fell below .300. Alfonso Soriano was run out of town after a much more productive season, and I expect the same for Cano.

Offer Bobby Abreu Salary Arbitration
Personally, I hope he declines and the Yankees are awarded compensation as he will be a Type A free agent. However, there are worse things that could happen than Abreu accepting and playing right field for another season.

Sign Orlando Hudson
Obviously, this is contingent on trading Cano, but I can hope. The Yankees would do well to add Hudson, a Gold Glover, to the mix on a defensively inferior club. He is also a speedy, switch-hitting, contact hitter that can handle the bat that the lineup could benefit from.

Don't Sign Mark Teixeira
Great fielder, good hitter, and I am sure he is a hell of a nice guy, but whoever gives him the 8-10 year contract will be pulling their hair out by year 5.

Move Damon or Matsui to First Base, attempt to Trade the Other
I know, I know. I am sure that I will get flack for this based on the infamous Gary Sheffield Experiment from a few years ago, but hear me out. Both players, especially Damon, are superior athletes to Sheffield at the time the Yankees attempted to move him to first. Given an entire offseason and Spring Training to prepare, I feel that either of these players could provide serviceable defense at a higher level than Jason Giambi has provided this season. Also, these players both have some type of value on the trade market; Matsui as a DH, and Damon as an everyday player.

Move Derek Jeter to Left Field
What blasphemy is this you ask? Derek Jeter, though marginally improved this season, is a terrible fielder. If Abreu declines arbitration, which we hope he does, Xavier Nady would then become the everyday right fielder, leaving a void in left when Damon or Matsui is moved to first base. The time has come to think of the team, and not just Jeter's legacy. I found it tough to swallow when the team acquired the best shortstop in baseball history, coming off of his second gold glove, and moved him to third base. Even though Alex Rodriguez would no longer be able to play the shortstop position, there are better options on the free agent market including, but not limited to, Rafael Furcal, and our personal preference, Orlando Cabrera.

Trade for Gerald Laird
Acquiring a younger option at the catcher position can only help. This season proved the perceived risk of signing Jorge Posada to a long term deal was a very real concern. The Yankees could deal from a position of strength by using their glut of young pitching to make this deal (PLEASE take Ian Kennedy!).

Re-sign Mike Mussina, Send Andy Pettitte to Pasture
While Moose has learned to pitch with the garbage that he has left, Andy has looked terrible this year no matter what the Yankees Propaganda Machine feeds us about him being a big game pitcher. Using Mussina as a #4 starter is a solid option on any contending squad.

Stick With Phil Hughes
Hughes is NOT Ian Kennedy, and will, at some point, be a very good Major League pitcher. Hughes was dominant the other night in the AAA playoff, going 8 shutout innings on only 94 pitches. It took Cliff Lee a trip to the minors to figure it out too.

Promote Mark Melancon and Austin Jackson From Day 1
The answer that the Yankees were looking for in their bullpen was right under their nose all season, but they were afraid to rush Melancon after TJ surgery. A career closer in college, Melancon can handle the high leverage innings that the Yankees will need him to. As for Jackson, he is still raw, but could provide a serviceable first season a la Adam Jones in Baltimore. The rest of this lineup should be able to cover for a player like Jackson who, even now, is a much better option than both Brett Gardner and Melky Cabrera.

Don't Sign AJ Burnett
He is a guy with phenomenal stuff that cannot stay healthy. We don't need an older version of Joba, thank you very much. Plus he has been bitten by the curse of Alyssa Milano.

Sign Manny Ramirez
In what would have to be the shove-it-up-your-ass move of the century, the Yankees would have to make this move to protect ARod in the lineup. Though he may seem like a pricey option at approx. $15-17 million, the guys flat out produces when happy. Case in point: he is batting .407 since his move to the west coast. With Manny in the DH slot batting third, this lineup once again becomes formidable with the uncertainty surrounding Jorge Posada. Paired with an improved pitching staff, this team could be deadly.

So, without further ado, your 2009 Yankees Opening Day Lineup after the perfect offseason:
P - CC Sabathia
C - Gerald Laird/Jorge Posada
1B - Johnny Damon
2B - Orlando Hudson
3B - Alex Rodriguez
SS - Orlando Cabrera
LF - Derek Jeter
CF - Austin Jackson
RF - Xavier Nady
DH - Manny Ramirez