The LoHud Yankees Blog

When the Yankees added seven players to the 40-man roster last week, they left one spot open. That means they can make a selection in the Rule 5 draft — teams have to have an open 40-man spot to do so — but it also means they’ll have to make additional moves before adding more than one free agent.

“There’s always a calculated gamble when you do that kind of stuff,” general manager Brian Cashman said. “Last year, I can’t remember when the Nick Swisher trade came down, but that was a three-for-one. I don’t have a trade sitting in my back pocket, but you hate to be in a position where two weeks from now or three weeks from now you do a deal and you move a few pieces off your 40, and maybe get one of those pieces back or none of those pieces back, and now you have excess. We’ll have to wait and see how the winter plays out, but there is built in flexibility. We’ll have to see how that plays out. I know where my soft spots are on my 40 and I know that a week from now or a month from now some trade opportunity might present itself that creates flexibility also.”

This is the second time I’ve personally heard Cashman talk about the idea of making a two-for-one or three-for-one trade to open a spot on the 40-man roster. It certainly seems to be a strong possibility. If no such trade happens, it’s interesting that Cashman has acknowledged “soft spots” on the roster. Catcher and outfield are obviously not soft spots. Jorge Posada and Francisco Cervelli aren’t going anywhere, and the Yankees barely have enough outfielders as it is. There will be no DFA or non-tender from those groups.

The two soft spots, as I see it, are the infield and the long-reliever/fifth-starter group.

Infield: Hard to imagine the Yankees designating one of the infielders they just added to the roster, but it’s hard to deny that four extra middle infielders is a lot for a team that has Derek Jeter and Robinson Cano playing almost every day. If the Yankees absolutely must open a 40-man spot, they could make a move in the infield and still have solid depth. By the way, Cashman said he hasn’t ruled out adding a proven utility infielder.

Long reliever/fifth starter: I’m not talking about Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes, but the Yankees 40-man does have Alfredo Aceves, Chad Gaudin, Ian Kennedy, Sergio Mitre, Hector Noesi, Ivan Nova and Romulo Sanchez. That’s not to mention a slew of minor league starters not on the 40-man. Some of these are stronger non-tender candidates than others, but it’s certainly an area from which the Yankees could lose a player or two and still be OK.

Injury concerns: Two more spots could open this way. You know all about Chien-Ming Wang. Last year’s injuries and struggles could be enough to lead the Yankees to non-tender him, even with his past success. But the Yankees also have Chris Garcia taking a spot on the roster. No one doubts Garcia’s talent, but he made just five starts last year and 13 the year before. Injuries have been a significant problem for the right-hander, and it’s hard not to wonder if the Yankees might have run out of patience and decided to run the risk of passing him through waivers.

Before getting into winter ball, you can check Baseball America for some velocity numbers of all the pitchers in the Arizona Fall League. Here are the Yankees:

Mike Dunn — 96.6 max, 93.85 ave.
Grant Duff — 96.3 max, 93.39 ave.
Ian Kennedy – 93.4 max, 90.66 ave.
Zach Kroenke — 93.1 max, 90.62 ave.

As for some of the Yankees in winter ball…

• Juan Miranda has played only eight games in the Dominican Winter League, but he’s hitting .536 with two home runs, four doubles and 10 RBI. He’s faced a left-handed pitcher only eight times, but has four hits against lefties, continuing the improvements he showed during the regular season.

• Ivan Nova has made five appearances in the Dominican League and has a league-best 1.05 ERA with 17 strikeouts and four walks. There’s a very good reason the Yankees added him to the 40-man last week.

• Romulo Sanchez, another of the guys just added to the 40-man, seems to be having a few good outings and then a bad one in Venezuela. He has 23 strikeouts in 17.2 innings, but he’s also walked 10 and has a 5.60 ERA.

• Reegie Corona, one of the new 40-man infielders, has a .353 average with a home run, seven doubles and a .459 on-base percentage in Venezuela. All of his time in the field has come at second base.

• Francisco Cervelli has also started playing in Venezuela. He’s hitting just .214 but has a .389 on-base percentage through six games.

• Josh Schmidt went seven scoreless innings to get a win in Venezuela on Tuesday. It was his first win since his first appearance on October 12. He had some rough outings, but his ERA is back down to 3.57.

According to Baseball America, the Yankees signed Dominican prospect Eladio Moronta. The center fielder, who recently had a MLB suspension for misrepresenting his age lifted, is said to have excellent speed and a strong arm.

On a side note: Suspended for misrepresenting his age? Really? Somewhere, El Duque is shaking his head and laughing out loud.

Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols has become the sixth player to win the National League MVP by a unanimous vote. The others are Orlando Cepeda (1967), Mike Schmidt (1980), Jeff Bagwell (1994), Ken Caminiti (1996) and Barry Bonds (2002).

UPDATE, 2:18 p.m.: The top 10 vote-getters (a first-place vote gets 14 points, nine for second, eight for third on down to one for 10th). The full ballot is right here.

1. Albert Pujols – 448 points
2. Hanley Ramirez – 233 points
3. Ryan Howard – 217 points
4. Prince Fielder – 203 points
5. Troy Tulowitzki – 172 points
6. Andre Ethier – 113 points
7. Pablo Sandoval – 89 points
8. Chase Utley – 84 points
9. Derrek Lee – 66 points
10. Matt Kemp — 49 points

Well done by Sam for nailing the MVP winner and the top candidates in a league he doesn’t cover. The guy was 7-for-8 picking these awards.

UPDATE, 2:26 p.m.: What a great bounce-back year for Tulowitzki. The guy’s career was basically left for dead last year when his home run total dropped from 24 to 8, but he came back this year with 32 bombs, 92 RBI and 20 stolen bases. And those Dodgers outfielders are awfully good, aren’t they? That’s a nice combination out in Los Angeles.

A little Yankees tidbit while we’re waiting for the Albert Pujols NL MVP announcement. Here’s the press release from the Yankees:

The New York Yankees were recognized as 2009 honorees at the 11th Annual National Sportsmanship Awards on Saturday, November 21 in St. Louis, for their work with Camp Sundown during the organization’s inaugural HOPE Week.

Right-handed pitcher A.J. Burnett and Jason Zillo, Yankees Media Relations and Publicity Director, were on hand to accept the Yankees’ award, given by the Citizenship Through Sports Alliance and the St. Louis Sports Commission. The National Sportsmanship Awards is the signature event of the Sports Commission’s Sportsmanship Initiative and aims to recognize athletes and personalities from across the nation for their integrity, class, selflessness, perseverance, kindness, community service and overall commitment to sportsmanship.

Founded by Caren and Dan Mahar, Camp Sundown is a safe haven in upstate New York for children with Xeroderma Pigmentosum, a rare (approximately 300 in U.S. and 1,000 worldwide) genetic disorder that prevents those who have it from going outdoors in daylight. Any UV light, including florescent lighting, causes severe burns and eventually skin and eye cancer. Most patients do not live past the age of 20. On Thursday, July 23, 2009, the Yankees invited campers from Camp Sundown and their families to Yankee Stadium. Following the Yankees’ win against Oakland, the Stadium’s field was transformed into a massive open-air carnival, with music, food and children’s entertainers. Campers and their families spent the night playing on the field until approximately 4:00 a.m., when they had to re-board their bus in order to make it back to camp before daybreak.

The award presentation will premiere on the CBS College Sports Network on Wednesday, December 16 at 8:00 p.m., and re-air throughout the month.

The official announcement of today’s winner will be at 2 p.m. Until then, here are my thoughts and predictions. Feel free to chime in with your own.

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National League MVP

The favorite: Albert Pujols, Cardinals

The contenders: Prince Fielder, Brewers; Hanley Ramirez, Marlins

The dark horses: Derrek Lee, Cubs; Andre Etheir, Dodgers

The (former) Yankee with a chance: Um … Nick Johnson had a .831 OPS. That’s pretty good, right?

Morning analysis: Unless the guy from yesterday is voting again, this one ought to be unanimous for Pujols. He had a MLB-best 1.101 OPS, MLB-best 47 home runs and – just for fun – even stole 16 bases. If he doesn’t win, it’s CSI-style robbery.

The pick: It’s Pujols (duh).

The record: 6-for-7 (hit on Coghlan, Greinke, Scioscia, Tracy, Lincecum and Mauer; missed on Bailey)

Before I go to bed, a few images and random tidbits from Monday’s DVD premier at the Ziegfeld Theatre in Manhattan.

The centerpiece of the red carpet was the World Series trophy, which came with a guy who stood right next to it at all times (unless someone was having a picture taken next to it, in which case he moved a few feet away). Notice the white gloves. Baseball doesn’t mess around with this thing.

That was the first stop for Brian Cashman and Joe Girardi who had a hundred pictures taken next to the trophy. It was like you see on TV and in the movies with photographers shouting, “This way Joe!” “One more over here Mr. Cashman.” Lots of popping and clicking sounds and flashes going off all around.

“Someone asked me what I was wearing and I had no idea what it meant,” Girardi said.

Reminded that the question is “who” are you wearing, not “what” are you wearing, Girardi lit up.

“Oh yeah, that’s what it was,” he said. “See, I don’t even know the question.”

To explain how uncomfortable he is in those situations, Cashman told this story.

“In the parade, I used to ride on that float when I was an assistant maybe, or even a little lower, maybe it was 96,” he said. “I was part of that, ‘Who are you?’ chant.”

From “Who are you?” to “Over here Mr. Cashman.” Such is the life of the Yankees GM.

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Here’s Timothy Busfield. He was in The West Wing and Field of Dreams. Two lines into the resume I’m sold on him as an acting Hall of Famer. My friend Chris told me I should have choked on a hotdog to see if he could have gotten Moonlight Graham to come to life and save me.  

I’m including one more picture only because it lets me tell this story.

The International Daytime Emmys were taking place directly across the street — seriously — and their red carpet was much cooler than ours. When I got to the theatre, the Emmy red carpet was setup and the Yankees’ was not. Assuming there was only one red carpet scheduled for this particular block on this particular night, I went to the only red carpet I saw and explained that I needed to pickup my credential. People in perfectly tailored suits and long, flowing dresses pointed me to a table outside of a ballroom on the third floor of an adjoining hotel. It was somewhere along the way that I realized I was in absolutely the wrong place. But at least I got on the right subway this time.

Just got home from the World Series DVD premier where Brian Cashman and Joe Girardi were asked one or two questions about being on the red carpet but were ultimately peppered with hot stove questions. Girardi said he’s talked to both Johnny Damon and Andy Pettitte, but he hasn’t talked to either about coming back next year. Those have been friendly, cordial conversations. Not let’s-get-down-to-business conversations.

Even if Girardi wanted to make a business phone call, the Yankees aren’t ready for those just yet.

“I’ve had my pro scouting meetings, now I’m talking to ownership about budgets,” Cashman said. “Obviously we’re working through every level on that. We haven’t game planned yet. We’re obviously going through everything that transpired from the meetings, but at the same time, now we’re meeting with ownership. Once I get confirmed numbers, then we can start putting together some ideas. I have not reached out to any agents really yet. I’ll talk to our guys first, and after I have conversations with our guys, I’ll be full blown into the market place.”

By “our guys” Cashman meant the Yankees’ free agents. Even if the team is looking to go in a different direction, Cashman will let his guys know what the Yankees are thinking before making any moves.

“I’ve had a number of agents call me,” Cashman said. “I don’t want to make the mistake of having a conversation with somebody else’s agent and then it plays out as if I’m pursuing that guy and someone misinterprets that and thinks we’re not pursuing our guys. We’re not even at that stage right. I’m going to try to be very careful and respectful to our players first, make sure they’re aware of where they are in the process.”

Once again, Cashman reiterated that last year’s free agent signings will make this winter much easier. The big pieces are in place. Girardi said the first thing the Yankees need to address is the rotation, and while Cashman didn’t assign a top priority, he did say that the bullpen ranks behind the rotation, left field and designated hitter.

“Is that an area of obvious need? No,” Cashman said. “I think you have to look more at the rotation. You have to look obviously at left field. Our discussion will have to be whether you retain a Johnny Damon, whether you promote an Austin Jackson or you look elsewhere altogether. The rotation, you never have enough starting pitching. What are you going to do with DH? I think all of those situations are a little bit more of a obvious priority than the bullpen at this point.”

UPDATE, 9:40 p.m.: I’m going back through some notes from tonight.

Cashman on whether the Yankees are going to try to get younger: “You always want to be younger, but being younger only with the idea of getting better.”

Cashman on whether the Yankees are going to try to cut payroll: “I think the big picture is to be real efficient with how we allocate our resources. I think last year is a good example that depending on who it is, we can step up in a big way, but I think we’re going to try to be careful. What careful means, it doesn’t necessarily mean slow, we’re just going to make sure that we try to spend it wisely and make the right commitments for us for the present and the future.”

UPDATE, 9:55 p.m.: Girardi said his conversations with Pettitte have given him no idea whether Pettitte is leaning toward retirement or pitching.

“He’s been busy,” Girardi said. “I know he had a golf tournament and Thanksgiving got here quickly. I’m sure he’ll take his normal amount of time.”

UPDATE, 9:58 p.m.: Girardi’s line about the need to address the rotation.

“I think the first thing you have to address is our rotation,” Girardi said. “Right now if you looked at our starters you’d say that we have two starters for sure and then you have a mix of some other guys, so I think that’s probably the first thing that we have to address. But I think that’s probably first on everyone’s list, pitching.”

Joe Mauer is the 2009 AL MVP after receiving 27 of 28 first-place votes. Mark Teixeira finished second and Derek Jeter was third. Miguel Cabrera finished fourth and received the one non-Mauer first-place vote. Full balloting will be posted in a moment.

UPDATE, 2:07 p.m.: Here’s the top 10 vote-getters. Unlike the other awards, where voters list only their top three, MVP ballots have a top 10 (first place gets 14 points, nine for second, eight for third on down to one for 10th).

1. Joe Mauer – 387 points
2. Mark Teixeira – 225 points
3. Derek Jeter – 193 points
4. Miguel Cabrera – 171 points
5. Kendry Morales – 170 points
6. Kevin Youkilis – 150 points
7. Jason Bay – 78 points
8. Ben Zobrist – 34 points
9. Ichiro Suzuki – 33 points
T10. Alex Rodriguez – 31 points
T10. Chone Figgins – 31 points

Others: Mariano Rivera (17 points); Robinson Cano (12 points); CC Sabathia (four points)

You can see the full ballot here.

UPDATE, 2:12 p.m.: I’m not sure what to say about the other first-place vote going to Miguel Cabrera. Put it this way: I’ll be very curious to hear the rationale. I mean, hey, he did look pretty valuable over that last weekend of the season ….

UPDATE, 2:40 p.m.: According to Newsday’s Ken Davidoff, the writer who voted Cabrera first is Keizo Konishi of Kyodo News, based in Seattle.

A small update while we’re waiting for the MVP results.

Tonight, Brian Cashman and Joe Girardi will attend a red carpet premier screening of the official 2009 World Series film. Michael Kay, John Sterling and Suzyn Waldman will be there as well. The premier takes place at 7:30 at the Ziegfield Theatre on West 54th Street.

There will be a second Ziegfield screening at 9:45, and the theatre just confirmed that there are tickets available for that showing. Check here for more information about additional screenings, or check here for ways to contact the Ziegfield.

Here’s more on the film itself…

The Official “2009 World Series Film” on DVD and Blu-ray features more than 80 minutes of main program presentation and nearly 30 minutes of bonus footage. This collectible DVD and Blu-Ray provides extensive coverage of the 2009 World Series, including unique game action footage, exclusive sound via wireless microphones, and in-depth, one-on-one interviews with Yankees players, coaches and team personnel.

The Official “2009 World Series Film” on DVD will go on sale Tuesday, November 24 at retail outlets nationwide, New York Yankees Clubhouse Shops and through MLB.com, the official website of Major League Baseball. The Official “2009 World Series Film” will also screen at 21 locations within the tri-state area on November 23.