The LoHud Yankees Blog

One of the biggest bats on the market came off the board today.

Adam Dunn signed a four-year deal with the White Sox. The deal is worth $56 million, and the team is said to still be interested in Paul Konerko.

I’ve always liked Dunn. He’s an impressive combination of power and patience, but the Yankees clearly don’t have a spot for him. They could use a DH and a big bat, but they have much more important pieces to spend their money on, and they can’t really add a guy who’s best position is designated hitter.

A few other notes and links from the day:

• The Red Sox are bringing back Jason Varitek. In theory, he and Jarrod Saltalamacchia form a solid offensive platoon behind the plate. In theory.

• Short-term Yankees corner utility man Eric Hinske has re-signed with the Braves. In theory, the Yankees might be developing their own Hinske-type, power-hitting corner utility man in Brandon Laird.

• Erik Bedard is going back to Seattle. Don’t forget, the Mariners gave up Adam Jones to get him.

• Buster Olney gives a pretty cool prediction of how the dominoes will fall this offseason.

• Former Yankees reliever Jose Veras was among the players non-tendered today.

• Speaking of non-tenders… I realize the moves makes sense, but it always catches my eye when I see former legit prospects like Travis Buck and Edwin Encarnacion among the player let go. Nothing is a sure thing in this game.

So much for that theory.

Not only did the Yankees non-tender Dustin Moseley, they also non-tendered Alfredo Aceves. Obviously no reasons were given, in fact, here’s the entire announcement from the Yankees:

Today the Yankees signed RHP Sergio Mitre to a one-year contract for 2011. Additionally, the Yankees did not tender contracts to RHPs Alfredo Aceves and Dustin Moseley.

Given all of last week’s public bickering, this week has been a surprising move forward for the Yankees and Derek Jeter.

It started with a face-to-face meeting that seemed to clear the air, and today both sides seemed willing to give a little. The Yankees are willing to offer a little more. Jeter is willing to ask for a little less.

It’s a negotiation between two sides that like one another and need one another. Expectation was that the conversations would eventually reach this point, but it didn’t seem likely to come any time soon.

Then the two sides got the same room, the market value for a shortstop was reestablished, and suddenly progress was being made. There’s no indication that Jeter and the Yankees are on the verge of an agreement, but the gap seems to be closing. That’s as much as either side could have hoped for this week.

Associated Press photo

Jayson Stark is reporting that the Yankees are raising their offer to Derek Jeter. According to Startk’s sources, the Yankees contacted Casey Close today to let him know the offer would be improving. It’s unclear whether the new offer has actually been put on the table.

This is more or less as expected after Tuesday’s meeting between the two sides.

In other minor Yankees news: The Yankees have signed reliever Buddy Carlyle to a minor league deal. Carlyle was in the big leagues with the Braves for a while and spent last year pitching in Japan.

UPDATE, 4:37 p.m.: The Associated Press echoes the Stark report…

NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Yankees have increased their contract offer to Derek Jeter.

The team informed Jeter’s side of the new offer during a telephone conversation early Thursday, a person familiar with the negotiations said. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because no announcement was made.

New York opened with a $45 million, three-year offer last month, then awaited a formal proposal from its captain. It was not known whether the new offer improved the value, contract length or both.

The Yankees have announced half of the matchup for this month’s inaugural New Era Pinstripe Bowl. Syracuse will represent the Big East and be beaten by a Big 12 team to be determined. I kid, I kid. Old Missouri loyalties showing through just a bit. Here’s the announcement from the Yankees.

The Syracuse Orange today accepted an invitation to play in the inaugural New Era Pinstripe Bowl, scheduled for December 30, 2010, at Yankee Stadium. Syracuse Director of Athletics Dr. Daryl Gross accepted the invitation this morning.

“We are thrilled to have the Syracuse Orange representing the Big East Conference in the inaugural New Era Pinstripe Bowl,” said New York Yankees Managing General Partner Hal Steinbrenner. “It is exciting for us to feature such a respected academic institution from the great state of New York in the first year of the New Era Pinstripe Bowl. We expect the historic backdrop of Yankee Stadium and the many attractions of New York City to create a one-of-a-kind bowl event for the athletes participating and the legions of Syracuse fans that will have the opportunity to watch their team play in person.”

The contest will mark the first NCAA football bowl game in the Bronx since the Gotham Bowl on December 15, 1962, when Nebraska edged Miami (Fla.), 36-34, at the original Yankee Stadium.

At 7-5, the Orange finished the season bowl eligible for the first time since 2004. They will face a representative from the Big 12.

“This is truly exciting for our football program, the athletics department and the University. We are proud to be part of the Pinstripe Bowl in its inaugural year,” Dr. Gross said. “The Yankees are a class organization with tremendous history and we are excited about participating with them at Yankee Stadium. This is a fabulous opportunity for our institution as many alums live in the area and our fans can descend upon New York City for the holidays. We continue to want to represent as New York’s college team as we are the only BCS school in the state of New York and plan to paint the city Orange.”

Syracuse is led by Head Coach Doug Marrone, a graduate of Herbert H. Lehman High School in the Bronx, who also served as New York Jets offensive line coach from 2002-05. His maternal grandfather, Robert Thompson, worked as an usher at the original Yankee Stadium for nearly 20 years.

“When the announcement was made that a bowl game was going to be played in Yankee Stadium for the first time, my thought was that if we were not going to play in a BCS game, then how great would it be to play in the first college bowl game in Yankee Stadium in my first head coaching job,” Marrone said. “The opportunity to play in the Pinstripe Bowl in my hometown is part of the whole dream. New York State is our foundation. This is another step in our return to prominence.”

The New Era Pinstripe Bowl will mark the seventh time the Orange will play a college football game at the home of the Yankees. The Orange were participants in the first-ever college football game at the original Yankee Stadium, defeating Pittsburgh, 3-0, on October 20, 1923.

The Yankees might be moving toward a resolution with Derek Jeter, but there’s no deal in place just yet. And because this is Jeter we’re talking about, curiosity is off the charts.

It’s unlikely at best, but what would Jeter look like in a Pirates jersey or an Athletics jersey?

The Beckett Blog has the answers.

The blog’s all about baseball cards, and in a post called Totally Fake Baseball Cards, the blog takes a look at what 2011 Jeter cards might look like if he were to sign with any and every team in baseball.

Of course, when the Associated Press grabbed a screenshot of the blog and published it as a photo, the picture they chose was of Jeter in a Red Sox uniform.

Associated Press photo

The Yankees have until midnight to decide whether to tender contracts to players under team control for 2011.
With Sergio Mitre re-signed, Dustin Moseley is the most obvious non-tender candidate remaining.

My guess is he’ll be back.

As a general rule, non-tender decisions come down to money and roster space.

Last year, the Yankees non-tendered Chien-Ming Wang. That was clearly a money decision. Wang was heading for arbitration, with no guarantee that he was going to pitch, much less pitch effectively. The Yankees didn’t want to commit to the money, so they couldn’t commit to the player.

In 2008, the Yankees non-tendered Chris Britton and Justin Christian. Both were in line to make the minimum, and Christian definitely had options remaining. Maybe Britton, too. The Yankees 40-man, though, was packed and the team needed to open some space.

There is no roster crunch this year. Even after Rule 5 protection, there are seven open roster spots. That’s enough for Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Andy Pettitte, Cliff Lee, a left-handed reliever and a couple of role players. If the Yankees decided they need another spot, they could easily take a chance on slipping Reegie Corona through waivers.

The only issue is money, and Moseley is in his first year of arbitration eligibility, so he shouldn’t cost much. Given the health problems of Alfredo Aceves, it makes sense to keep Moseley as a low-cost option in spring training. I’d argue that Moseley is just as likely to make next year’s bullpen as Mitre. Clearly the Yankees liked Moseley last winter, and he’s only improved his stock since then.

The Yankees other arbitration-eligible players are Phil Hughes, Joba Chamberlain and Boone Logan. All three are likely to cost significant money, but they’re also expected to play significant roles next season. Hard to imagine any of them being non-tendered.

Associated Press photo

Roughly 24 hours before the non-tender deadline, the Yankees have re-signed Sergio Mitre to a $900,000 deal according to Jerry Crasnick. He can earn another $200,000 in incentives.

That’s a modest raise over the $850,000 Mitre earned in 2010. There’s no word in Crasnick’s tweet, but my guess is it’s a non-guaranteed deal, kind of like Chad Gaudin’s last winter.

Bringing back Mitre leaves Dustin Moseley as the last non-tender candidate among the Yankees arbitration-eligible players. The Yankees have plenty of space on their roster, and Moseley pitched well enough last season that I expect the Yankees to bring him back. This is Moseley’s first year of arbitration eligibility, so he shouldn’t cost a ton of money, and he would give the Yankees options in spring training.

Good stuff today from a very good writer and reporter. Jack Curry has some of the details of yesterday’s meeting between Derek Jeter and the Yankees brass, writing that the meeting was requested by Jeter, and the tone was “respectful and polite.”

Although Jeter and the Yankees didn’t come close to an agreement on Tuesday, people who have been briefed on the discussion said it was a vital development in the negotiations.

Given the tone of the previous week, simply getting in the same room and saying things that needed to be said feels like a significant step. Maybe not one that moved the two sides any closer, but certainly a step that had to be made before anything could move forward.

A few links and notes from the day…

• If the Yankees increased their offer to Derek Jeter, it likely wasn’t by much. Jon Heyman says close to $50 million over three years.

• The Rangers met again with Cliff Lee, and Ian Kinsler is trying to convince the lefty to stay in Texas.

• Jayson Stark talked to two executives who still expect Lee to sign with the Yankees. He also looks into the pitching market beyond Lee.

• The Athletics are showing significant interest in Lance Berkman. The short-term Yankees DH is also drawing significant interest from the Rockies.

• The Red Sox have met with Carl Crawford and could make a serious push for the left fielder. Stark also mentioned that the Angels are in on Crawford.

• Not sure how I messed up the post this afternoon — tried to post around 2, and the post itself went to 8:44 — but Cashman released a statement about his plan to rappel down a building this weekend:

“I’m a Stamford guy, and it’s an honor to participate in such a special Holiday family event for the community,” Cashman said. “‘Heights and Lights’ is designed to draw the people of Stamford and its surrounding neighborhoods together, drum up interest in its downtown businesses and celebrate the holiday season.

“I’ve been leaving milk and cookies for Santa for some time now, but this year I wanted to take a more active role in assisting him. As an elf, you have to be willing to build toys, wrap presents, prepare reindeer for flight, or rappel off buildings for Santa. I take my role as an elf seriously because there are a lot of children out there counting on him.”

Associated Press photo

If the date doesn’t ring a bell, the game surely will.

It was June 27, and the Yankees were in Los Angeles for the final game of a interleague road trip. Down four runs in the ninth, the Yankees tied it against closer Jonathan Broxton, then won it on Robinson Cano’s home run in the 10th. Chad Huffman was one of the stars of the game with two hits, including a big two-run single in the ninth.

Brett Gardner remembers that game.

Huffman playing only because Gardner had been hit by a pitch in the third inning. Clayton Kershaw hit him in the wrist, and Gardner was never the quite same. On Tuesday, Gardner will have surgery to relieve right wrist tendonitis that has lingered ever since that errant pitch in L.A.

“I’ve never been one to make excuses, but it definitely affected me,” Gardner said in a phone interview. “When something like that’s bothering you, I don’t know how much it affected my swing and my approach in the game, but it kept me from being able to work on things in the cage. I just tried to battle through it at the end of the season.”

Leading into that afternoon game at Dodger Stadium, Gardner was red hot. In his previous 21 games, he’d hit .406 with a .480 on-base percentage. He was rolling, but things changed that day.

Through June 27: .321/.403/.418.
70 G, 76 H, 31 BB, 38 K, 24 SB

After June 27: .232/.363/.340
80 G, 56 H, 48 BB, 64 K, 23 SB

Gardner remained patient at the plate, which kept his on-base percentage high enough to have an impact on the bases, but he wasn’t making the same solid, consistent contact. A cortisone shot in September, Gardner said today, had no measurable impact. He basically stopped all of his cage work with Kevin Long, believing he had to, in his words, “save my bullets for the game.”

The Yankees hoped time off would fix he problem, but a month into the offseason, Gardner’s wrist still hurts.

“It might be a little better than how I was at the end of the season, but it still isn’t close to how it should feel,” he said. “I’ve got to get it fixed, and thankfully there’s nothing too involved with the rehab. Just let it heal up after the surgery.”

I don’t want to paint an inaccurate picture. When I asked Gardner whether the injury affected his numbers at the end of the season, Gardner laughed and didn’t want to answer. I’ve known him for four years, and he’s legitimately one of those guys who doesn’t like to complain or make an excuse. But the numbers are what they are, and they seem to perfectly hinge on that one pitch in L.A. It might not be the only reason his numbers dipped, but the injury seems to account for at least some of the downturn.

Gardner said he’s been told it will be three to five weeks before he’s back to 100 percent. That doesn’t put him too far off schedule in terms of getting back in the cage, but it will affect some of his offseason workouts. Small price to pay, Gardner said.

“That’s not nearly as important as going into spring training and into the season healthy,” he said.

Associated Press photo