The LoHud Yankees Blog

Two weeks into the Yankees offseason, most of the team’s activity has occurred behind closed doors. Brian Cashman and Billy Eppler met with the team’s pro scouting department this week to discuss the state of the organization and the outside targets that might make this team better.

In so many ways, the Yankees pro scouting meetings mark the first step toward next season. As Cashman said last week, these discussions set the team’s course for the next three-plus months.

For these past two weeks, though, things have been fairly quiet.

• Cashman is still waiting for a new contract, but no one seems concerned. It’s seemed inevitable that a new deal will be worked out by the end of the month. Cashman said last week that he might not even travel down to Tampa to negotiate.

• Joba Chamberlain’s recovery from Tommy John surgery is still progressing, including throws from 60 feet last week. He’s hoping to be on a mound before spring training.

• An easy call for the Yankees: They declined their 2012 option for Damaso Marte. Aside from the 2009 playoffs — when he was a significant piece of a championship — Marte’s time with the Yankees was a bust.

• We learned that Jesus Montero will not be playing winter ball this year, but Hector Noesi will be working as a winter starter and could compete for a rotation spot next season.

• Still nothing new to report on CC Sabathia, and Cashman indicated that he would not be in contact with the team’s pending free agents — Eric Chavez, Freddy Garcia, etc. — until after those pro scouting meetings, so things could begin to take shape in the coming week.

Associated Press photo

With the World Series even at a game apiece, the Rangers take the home field advantage tonight in Arlington. The Rangers are starting their second of three left-handed starters — believed to be an advantage for Texas this series — while the Cardinals are going with veteran Kyle Lohse, who’s never won a postseason game and has never pitched in the World Series.

• Amazing story out of St. Louis: The Cardinals postseason run generated enough revenue that the city of St. Louis cancelled plans to force city employees to take an unpaid furlough this year.

• Thursday’s Game 2 drew 5 percent more television viewers than last year’s Game 2. It was the first time in four years that Game 2 rated higher than Game 1.

• Game 2 was also the 12th one-run game of this postseason, tying the record set in 1995 and matched in 1997 and 2003.

• Country music singer Ronnie Dunn — the the Dunn part of Brooks and Dunn — will sing the National Anthem before the game.

CARDINALS
Rafael Furcal SS
Allen Craig RF
Albert Pujols 1B
Matt Holliday LF
Lance Berkman DH
David Freese 3B
Yadier Molina C
Jon Jay C
Ryan Theriot 2B

Kyle Lohse RHP

RANGERS
Ian Kinsler 2B
Elvis Andrus SS
Josh Hamilton CF
Michael Young DH
Adrian Beltre 3B
Nelson Cruz RF
Mike Napoli 1B
David Murphy LF
Yorvit Torrealba C

Matt Harrison LHP

Associated Press photo

Deep in a lengthy series of notes from Jon Heyman is this little nugget about Freddy Garcia.

Garcia enjoyed his time with the Yankees and would like to come back. A cut finger and six-man rotation cost him about five starts, so he finished with 25 starts and missed out on $1.75 million in bonuses ($750,000 for 28 starts, $1 million for 30).He did a nice job, and Yankees people liked him.

Garcia’s an easy guy to like. Of course his stuff has diminished with age, but he showed last year that he can be effective — and occasionally outstanding — without the big fastball he had when he was in his 20s. Garcia was a great find for Brian Cashman, and I can’t imagine the Yankees would have been upset to give the man an extra $1.75 million.

Whether to bring him back next year probably depends on the contract (for the Yankees) and the opportunity (for Garcia).

Given all of the young pitching talent, a one-year deal with a guy like Garcia could make a lot of sense for the Yankees. They don’t necessarily want to commit long-term to a back-of-the-rotation starter, but someone like Garcia would provide short-term insurance without disrupting long-term plans.

That said, it would be hard to blame Garcia for wanting to be more than a fifth-starter insurance policy. With CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, Phil Hughes and Ivan Nova, the Yankees already have four-fifths of their rotation — probably — accounted for. Obviously that could change because of trade or performance or injury, but for now those are in place, and the Yankees could add another starter from the free agent or trade market. Did Garcia do enough this year that he could find a better opportunity and a bigger payday elsewhere?

Associated Press photo

Curtis Granderson might be both the Player of the Year and the Outstanding Player of the Year. Apparently there’s a difference.

Granderson and Bartolo Colon were both nominated for Players Choice Awards. Winners will be announced on MLB Network on November 3.

Granderson is a finalist for both Player of the Year (an award or both leagues) and the American League Outstanding Player of the Year (an award for position players). All three Player of the Year finalists come from the American League — Justin Verlander and Adrian Gonzalez are the others — and one could argue that none of the three is the best candidate from his own roster.

For American League Outstanding Player, it’s Granderson, Gonzalez and Jose Bautista.

Colon is up for American League Comeback Player of the Year. Jacoby Ellsbury and Casey Kotchman are the other finalists.

Through email and in the comments, I keep getting questions about Yu Darvish. And I get it. He’s still in his mid-20s, he’s pitched well in Japan, and it’s always fun to speculate about young talent. He’s an elite prospect, and all it takes to have him is a check with a bunch of zeros. The Yankees probably have one of those folded up in a drawer somewhere.

Thing is, I don’t have strong opinions about Darvish. To me he’s another guy with a load of potential and obvious concerns about cost, experience and turning potential into big-league production. Darvish is a risk, and whether that risk is worth taking is a question for people who have seen him pitch a lot more than I have. How badly the Yankees want him is a question that can only be answered by people who have plenty of incentive to either downplay or overstate in the name of driving up or driving down the price.

Here are a few weekend thoughts on Darvish.

• Whether you mention his name or read his name, the general idea is the same: The Yankees have seen Darvish, and they like Darvish — everyone in baseball has seen Darvish and likes Darvish — the question is whether any of the Yankees decisions makers are ready to guarantee he’ll have success in the states. If he’s posted, he’s going to be expensive, and that means risk. As with every risk, no one can say for certain that it’s worth the cost.

• Kei Igawa’s name is not insignificant here. Even if the Yankees try to look past Igawa and decide the Darvish is a different sort of pitcher, a flop from Darvish would look worse because of the previous misstep with Igawa. And it’s not like Daisuke Matsuzaka emerged as an ace in Boston. There are plenty of cautionary tales here.

• Someone emailed me about the cost of signing Darvish vs. the cost of a developing organizational pitcher. With the posting fee and the guaranteed contract, Darvish is going to be considerably more expensive than an organizational arm. The Yankees have plenty of pitching talent, but if Darvish is an ace, he’s still worth those extra dollars. Again, it’s all risk/reward here.

• Expectation is that Darvish is ready to play in the States, but Darvish himself claims the one-foot-out-the-door stories are exaggerated. Darvish wrote on his personal blog that he has yet to decide whether he wants to play in America next year.

• Unless CC Sabathia reaches the open market, the top free agent starter seems to be C.J. Wilson, and he’s only been a starter for two years. He’s about to turn 31 years old, and he’s certainly not considered a can’t-miss ace, or even a can’t-miss No. 2. Does the lack of a true No. 1 on the market affect Darvish’s value? Of course it does. It does not, however, take away the risk of signing him. John Lackey looked like the best starting pitcher on the market two years ago. How’s that deal working out for the Red Sox? Just because a player is the best available doesn’t mean he’s worth a massive contract.

• Fair point by the guys over at River Ave. Blues: The Yankees have money, and that’s all it costs to get Darvish. If money is the Yankees best offseason advantage, then they should leverage that advantage in a situation like this. If any team can afford such a risk, it’s probably the Yankees.

• No matter what, Darvish can’t be seen as a replacement for Sabathia. No pitcher is a sure thing, but Sabathia has a big league track record, and it’s that track record that makes him so valuable. Even if the Yankees go after Darvish and break the bank to get him, he certainly wouldn’t provide the same level of top-of-the-rotation comfort that comes from Sabathia. Darvish might have ace-like stuff, but he has to be thought of as a secondary piece right now.

Associated Press photo

Good way to kick off the weekend, with Yankees ace CC Sabathia surprising a young baseball player on Anderson Cooper’s talk show. Dugan Smith is a 13-year-old who fought cancer through a rare surgery, and he wanted the surgery specifically to keep playing baseball.

I can’t quite figure out how to make the video appear here on the blog — seriously, most of the Internet confuses me — but you can check out some of the interview right here, and you can see Sabathia’s surprise appearance right here.

Dugan said he’s an Indians fan, and when he plays video games, he makes a trade so that Sabathia is back playing for Cleveland. Sabathia, though, showed up in his usual Yankees jersey.

Good work by the big man. He really is just as friendly as he seems, and he’s incredibly good in situations like this. Good stuff from CC.

Photo from the PitCCh In Foundation website

Brian Cashman’s expiring contract isn’t the only general manager situation that matters to the Yankees this season.

The heads of the Yankees scouting departments, Damon Oppenheimer and Billy Eppler, are known to be candidates for the Angels general manager opening, but the Angels are said to be leaning toward another name from the American League East.

Ken Rosenthal has reported that Rays vice president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman is the Angels top choice, but there are those who doubt whether Friedman would actually leave the Rays in favor of the Angels. Bob Nightengale from USA Today also reports that a pair of executives with White Sox connections — Dan Evans and Rick Hahn — have emerged as strong candidates for the Angels.

The Angels have reportedly already met with Oppenheimer. I have to assume their Eppler meeting is on hold until after this week’s Yankees pro scouting meetings in New York.

Meanwhile, down in Baltimore, the Orioles have reportedly set their focus on Diamondbacks vice president of scouting and player development Jerry Dipoto to fill their GM opening. If not him, perhaps Texas assistant general manager Thad Levine. Oppenheimers name had been loosely connected to that opening, though he was never mentioned as a verified candidate.

“I wish them good luck,” Cashman said last week. “I think the Angels are smart to interview them.”

With reports suggesting Major League Baseball and the players association are moving quickly toward a new collective bargaining agreement, MLB Network is set to air a half-hour interview with commissioner Bud Selig tonight at 8 ET.

According to a press release from the Network:

In the midst of the 2011 World Series, MLB Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig joins MLB Network’s Bob Costas for a state of the league conversation tomorrow, Friday, October 21 at 8:00 p.m. ET. The 30-minute interview, taped in St. Louis prior to Game Two of the World Series, covers Selig’s thoughts on the 2012 All-Star Game, expanding the use of instant replay, adding a Postseason Wild Card team in each league, and divisional realignment.

The league seems to want a new collective bargaining agreement in place before the end of the World Series.

Wasn’t last night a perfect example of everything Joe Girardi said about the Yankees after their division series loss? Over and over again, Girardi said that one big hit — or even a couple of sacrifice flies — could have made all the difference. He was right, and last night’s ninth-inning rally proved it.

A couple of singles, some good base-running and a pair of sacrifice flies sent the Rangers back to Texas with the series even. If the Yankees had an inning like that in any of those three close loses, they might have advanced. It really was that close.

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Good point by my friend Sweeny Murti about just how even these playoffs have been. Texas might have set itself apart as the best team in the American League by the end of the ALCS, but it wasn’t by much. Just a couple of days ago we looked at their roster vs. the Yankees roster, and I’m not sure which I’d prefer.

The Phillies were heavy favorites in the National League, but the Cardinals got themselves healthy and made some key additions, and they were able to sneak through the first round. Then, in beating a dangerous Brewers lineup, the Cardinals showed they had a pretty dangerous middle-of-the-order themselves.

Another good point that several people have made, but which I first saw from Sweeny: The team that wanted Cliff Lee is out of the playoffs (the Yankees), the team that got Cliff Lee is out of the playoffs (the Phillies) and the team that lost Cliff Lee is heading home to try to take control of the World Series (the Rangers).

Baseball. You really can’t predict it.

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My friends back in Missouri seem completely unsurprised by the two clutch pinch hits from Allen Craig in this World Series. In played in fewer than half of the Cardinals games this season, but he hit .315/.362/.555. He made his mark in St. Louis before he took his turn on the national stage. What I wonder is, which of the Yankees — if given a spot in this World Series — might have grabbed the opportunity and made the rest of the baseball world take notice?

Brett Gardner – Most of the Yankees everyday players are already well known, but a guy like Gardner could certainly grab people’s attention. Speed is easy to recognize, and it’s fun to watch. With one good running catch in left field and a few stolen bases, Gardner could have momentarily taken a turn in the spotlight.

Dave Robertson – An easy choice, and one who got a sample of the spotlight at the all-star game. Surrounded by that many big names, though, Robertson certainly didn’t steal the headlines. A few of his Houdini acts in the World Series, though, would certainly be noticed.

Jesus Montero — Another obvious choice. The Yankees top young hitter is well known in prospect circles, and the Yankees fan base has known his name for years, but the World Series would have been an opportunity to begin creating a household name. People certainly knew Andruw Jones after the 1996 Series.

But, if I had to pick a relatively unknown Yankee to really make a name for himself this postseason, it would have been…

Ivan Nova – Based on the way he pitched in Game 1 of the division series, Nova wouldn’t have been blinded by the bright lights of the Fall Classic. His second half was good enough that national writers would have easily picked up the story, and a big start in Game 2 — either to give the Yankees a two-game lead or even the series at a game apiece — would have forced people to take notice.

Associated Press photos

Hector Noesi had a short, shaky outing in his first winter ball start earlier this week. Pitching for Licey in the Dominican Winter League, Noesi allowed five hits in an inning and a third. Noesi’s defense didn’t help him much — only one of his four runs was earned — and he’s pitching under limits set in place by the Yankees.

A few other notes from the early winter results…

• Corban Joseph was starting to hit again before another rough game last night. A three-hit game on Tuesday gave him eight hits in his last five games in the Arizona Fall League, but his .233 average is still lower than expected. The utility type will probably be the regular second baseman in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre next year.

• Jorge Vazquez is still hitting home runs. Back in the Mexican Winter League, Vazquez has five homers in seven games, including an eighth-inning game-winner on Wednesday. He’s batting .393, and so far spending all of his time at first base. He strikes out a lot, but after 32 homers in the pitcher-friendly International League this season, there’s little reason to doubt that he has legitimate big league power.

• David Phelps third Arizona Fall League start was a lot like the first two: 3.1 innings, 7 hits, 3 runs, 3 earned, 2 walks and 3 strikeouts. He reached 75 pitches on Wednesday. His first two AFL starts didn’t last more than 60.

• Chase Whitley’s most recent Fall League outing lasted 2.1 scoreless innings, with two hits, no walks and two strikeouts. He’s allowed a run in one of five appearances (and that’s a hitter-friendly league). Still say he’s worth keeping an eye on because the Yankees were so aggressive with him this season, moving him quickly to Double-A.

• Pat Venditte in Mexico: 3.2 innings, 2 hits, 0 runs, 0 earned runs, 0 walks, 6 strikeouts. Lefties are 1-for-8 against him after hitting .213 against him in Double-A this season.