WHY JEREMY AFFELDT WOULD BE SOLID IN THE BRONX

Ken Rosenthal brings up a guy that many have us have not mentioned since the season ended. The Yankees need a guy like Jeremy Affledt. He's a 32 year old solid lefty reliever that is seasoned and would be a perfect addition to the pen. Having him there as an extra lefty with Boone Logan and the gang could help be a lethal combination. Read Rosenthal HERE.

Affeldt has been with the Giants for a few years now and had his $5 million option excecised by the San Francisco Giants back in October. He’d be a perfect trade option for the Yankees and plenty of other teams, including the Red Sox and the Blue Jays, both division rivals.

Here is Affedlt’s line in 2011: 2-3 2.63 ERA / 61.2 IP / 3 SVs / 54 K / 5 HR

To me, this is a no brainer, Affledt is solid and at this point in his career, he knows his role. I really think Affeldt should be considered. Do you?

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WHICH TRADE WILL MAKE THE YANKEES BETTER?

This post is about trades. A few weeks ago, we put together some polling of what free agent you would most want on the Yankees, we did one poll on hitters and one poll on pitchers. The voting was overwhelming and concluded that Prince Fielder and Mark Buehrle were your choices. I’d love them both, but only one I believe is truly realistic and that’s Mark Buehrle.
Prince Fielder is looking for a gigantic pay day and the timing between he and the New York Yankees is just off. So, most likely we move on, unless of course the Yanks put him under the Christmas tree and it comes to everyone’s surprise. Honestly though, it ain’t happening. We have Mark Teixeira and there is no place for the Prince unless the 27 year old is going to ride the bench and be our Designated hitter. Forget it.

With all the talk of Free Agents and top pitchers that are being wined and dined by teams like the Miami Marlins, you tend to forget that trades can happen too. So we will be conducting 2 polls asking the simple question, Which hitter would you trade for and Which pitcher would you trade for?

To be honest, it’s not a fair question and I know that up front. For 1, I don’t ask who you’d want to give up and this is done for simplicity purposes. We are asking the question to gauge what Yankee fans are feeling and who they want to see on the Yankees. Once the polls are concluded, I will write a piece explaining the results of the polling as well as who I believe the Yankees could give up for the top player or pitcher picked. Deal? OK.

So take a moment, look over 2 polls and vote. You can find the polls on the right and left side of the top post on Bleeding Yankee Blue. Have fun with it but in all seriousness, pick the guy you would like to see most. Thanks.

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WOULD YOU TRADE FOR ALFONSO SORIANO?

So it turns out that the Chicago Cubs are willing to trade Alfonso Soriano and not only that, they’d even pay for a chunk of his contract. Read about it HERE. Alfonso Soriano has a contract that goes until 2014 with the Cubs. He’s a former second basemen turned outfielder and is currently a left fielder with the Cubs. He is owed $54 million. So the question is, if the Cubs are willing to unload Soriano and pay for most of his salary, and you were the Yankees GM, would it be tempted to bring Alfonso Soriano back to the Bronx? There are definitely Pros and Cons to Soriano.

The Pros: He can be a home run hitter, he’s a decent fielder and bringing the guy back to the Yankees would be like old times, except George Steinbrenner isn’t around this time to try and trade him away if he were to blow it in the big game, or a playoff.

The Cons: Soriano strikes out a lot. In 13 seasons, he's struck out over 11o times 10 seasons. Secondly, I'm not so sure he'd want to play second fiddle to an already excellent outfield made up of Brett Gardner, Curtis Granderson and Nick Swisher.GGS has had an excellent season and an excellent chemistry together and there’s no reason to break up the band for Soriano, but, again, if you were the GM, what would you do? Would you try and trade away Nick Swisher? Would you try and move Gardner? Would you sign Soriano and have him ride the bench as our Designated Hitter and part time outfielder? Soriano is also 35 years old, older than our other outfielders. Finally, just so you can put it in perspective, last season, Soriano batted .244 with 26 home runs. Gardner batted .259 and 7 home runs, Granderson had 41 home runs and batted .262 and Swish had 23 home runs and batted .260.

So, tell me… would you leave it alone and go after starting pitching... something the Yankees desperately need? Let me know what you think, comment.

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SOLUTION TO YANKEE BATS PUZZLE? REST & MECHANICS

Pete Caldera of the Bergen Record had a piece 6 days back about ARod and the rest of the crew titled Hitting coach sees A-Rod turnaround. In it, he talks about the Zen Master, Kevin Long and Long’s argument to why ARod "sucking it" down the stretch was simple. He says Alex was getting healthy but just ran out of time:

“He just ran out of time to get healthy and get him where he needed to be.” He goes on to say that the injury to Alex's thumb and the knee surgery set him back and he never recovered. OK, we all knew this was true without Long saying it. The reality is, he’s really not giving us much here, but it’s almost nice to have it confirmed if you will.

He also spoke about the lousy hitting from guys like Mark Teixeira down the stretch. No where did it mention Nick Swisher and that I found to be weird, but that’s another post for another day. Long spoke of Teixeira... and that Mark quote “figured out some things at the end of the year…I’d say the last month to three weeks, we started to feel pretty good about what we worked on and where we needed to go.”

Long also told Caldera that he probably won’t travel much this winter and speak to players on texts and by phone to check in on their hitting and workouts. Rest and mechanics tweaking will surely help these guys and I hope everything works out.

I like Kevin Long. He’s truly a great hitting coach and Curtis Granderson is the biggest success story since he was turned around in the fall of 2010. Part of the reason is because of Granderson’s moving parts in the batter’s box. By cutting all that crap out, there is more time and that transformed him into a guy who once couldn’t hit lefties into a guy that can and can very well I might add... Amazing.

(In Photo: Kevin Maas)
I was thinking about Long and his expertise and then for some odd reason I thought about Kevin Maas and how he came on strong as a young hitter, cranking out home runs and then one day, Kevin Maas couldn’t hit anymore. It turns out he just wasn’t able to hit anything but a fastball and pitchers figured that out fast. Then I thought about Kevin Long and I wondered if Long was in the Yankees system back then, could he have helped Kevin Maas? Would Maas's career have been different? Who the hell knows...I know, I’m demented, by mind wonders when I think about baseball, what can I say.

But getting back on track, let’s be honest, Long does a great job and he’s right about ARod. Alex did need more time to get into a rhythm and to get healthy. Hopefully he's right and we really have nothing to worry about. Look, ARod is still a great hitter and he had a bad season of bad luck and injury... you really can’t fault him for that. He’ll be back and he’ll be fine.

And by the way, to all of you that want to trade ARod…forget it, it ain’t happening. The Yankees signed ARod for 1 reason and 1 reason only, they want the Home Run record back home in the Bronx. Babe Ruth once had it once and then the great Hank Aaron finally broke it with 755. Once Barry Bonds tarnished it and became the new Home Run champ, it was clear that at the time, Alex Rodriguez was the only big time hitter in Major League baseball who could break that record, even Barry Bonds said it. So, Alex and his long contract have a shot. Alex can and should break the home run record as a New York Yankee if he stays healthy. Ladies and Gentlemen, instead of slamming Alex, you should all be rooting for him. It is actually a truly brilliant plan by Yankee brass and while it’s costing millions to do it, no one likes Yankee history better than me, especially on a big stage with a huge milestone like that. It's literally one for the record books and I love it.

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BREAKING: RED SOX WILL HIRE BOBBY VALENTINE

Gordon Edes has the Tweet HERE. Bobby V. will become the Red Sox new manager. Now I have to dislike him, it's as simple as that. The full story is from Michael Silverman at the Boston Herald HERE.

Good for Bobby. Plus, the evil Red Sox have a good manager. Now the Yankees NEED to get good pitching to beat the snot out of them. By the way, read WHY BOBBY V. IS RESPECTED, NOT FEARED.

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HAPPY 42ND TO #42

A very special Bleeding Yankee Blue Birthday shout out to the greatest closer and possibly greatest pitcher of all time...Mariano Rivera was born Nov. 29, 1969, in Panama City, Panama.

As we all know Mo is one of our "Core Four" and has played with the New York Yankees his entire career starting in 1995, a total of 17 seasons and counting.  This past season he reached the peak of the mountain with his 602nd career save.

So Happy Birthday Mo!  We love you and can't wait to see you close games in 2012!

--Mikey Blue, BYB Senior Writer
Email: DonnieBaseball2323@gmail.com
Twitter: @MikeyBlu23

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YANKEE RUMORS & BYB: PART 17

Mark Buehrle: I think we need to write an open letter to the Yankee brass to express what all of us have been feeling; Yankee fans want Mark Buehrle in the Bronx. You guys spoke out in our BYB poll and I wrote WHY YANKEE FANS PICK MARK BUEHRLE based on it. Conveniently, YESNetwork.com did their own Buehrle poll and it's clear, there is just no new news coming out of Yankeeland if they're doing it too. Anyway. The latest out of Miami is the Marlins are looking to make a huge splash this winter, no pun intended, and get every top free agent out there. They have reportedly made offers to Jose Reyes, Albert Pujols, Mark Buehrle and the biggest one being reported is CJ Wilson. The Palm Beach Post reports Bob Garber said of the meeting: "They rolled out the red carpet. They seem to have a plan and made it very clear they'd like CJ to be a part of it." Read it HERE. To me, that is a message to the Yankees, the Marlins are fixated on Wilson and should put that offer to Buehrle in now. The Yankees are quiet right now and that's a Cashman tactic, meaning, either he's about to pounce, or he's going to let Buehrle walk. I'd pounce...word on the street is the Detroit Tigers are looking at Buehrle now too (Read HERE)... come on Cash, give Yankeeland what we want!David Ortiz: The Boston Herald's Michael Silverman says Ortiz is looking for a 3 year deal. Read HERE. I crapped myself when I read that. Who the hell is going to do that? According to Silverman, Ortiz has offers but he is waiting to see if the Red Sox match it. There's a non-Red Sox team that's interested apparently... Who could it be? I bet it's the Marlins. Look, Ortiz is exciting to watch and I'd love to see him crank a few out of Yankee Stadium as a Yankee, but there is no way in hell David Ortiz is coming to New York for 3 years, I would never allow it. I'd be curious to see if the Red Sox bring him back or if he goes somewhere else. Stay tuned on this one.
Russell Martin: We tend to forget but Russell Martin needs to get taken care of still. The "Munson-like" catcher has an opportunity be offered arbitration by the Yankees and the deadline is December 12th. Read Andrew Marchand HERE. The goal is to then talk about a multi-year deal. I wrote WHY A MULTI-YEAR DEAL FOR RUSSELL MARTIN IS SMART back on November 4th because I am a firm believer the Martin helped propel the Yankees rotation to another level, with, of course the help of Larry Rothschild... Yoda is the man as well, you can't leave him out. But the reality is, Russell Martin provided guts and brains behind the plate and to have him work with this Yankee rotation for 3 or 4 years can really help.
Matt Garza: The Cubs are willing to part with Matt Garza and Theo Epstein and Brian Cashman look to be good friends now that they don't have to deal with the Yankees and Red Sox B.S., so, would a deal to bring Garza to the Bronx be possible? (Read HERE.) Is it worth it? I like Matt Garza, but after all the pitchers that the Yankees have been connected to over the past month or so, Matt Garza doesn't stand out as a guy we NEED. Garza will help the Yankee rotation but if your going to deal for someone, is he the guy? Here's my brilliant tactic... I say sign Mark Buehrle and then deal for Matt Garza, that makes the Garza deal look better.

Can you tell that I'm obsessed with Mark Buehrle yet? If there is news on the Yankee front, we will bring it to you, no doubt.

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WHY REUNITING WITH AUSTIN JACKSON MAKES SENSE

Yes, it's true, I'm coming out of right field here, literally, but hear me out. So, all we've been hearing is that the Yankees are probably going to make this a quiet winter. Read HERE. That coming from Andrew Marchand. To that I say, respect the man (Marchand), but "poo poo" the report. The Yankees will make a move, maybe not a blockbuster move, but a move here and a move there just to get by. Why? Who knows at this point... maybe they're counting their money for Yu Darvish or for when Felix Hernandez becomes a free agent. When does that happen again? 2014? I'll mark my calender.So, say the Yankees decide they aren't going to do much, even with Cuban outfielders with ridiculous performance videos out there on You tube.



That's right, say the Yanks even dismiss the idea of spending big money on a guy like Yoennis Cespedes...an outfielder Well, hear me out. With the Tigers having serious interest in Cespedes, and that making it a competition for he and Austin Jackson (Read the Detroit Free Press HERE) Why not reach out to the Tigers and see about a trade to bring Austin Jackson back?It makes sense, as depressing as it sounds. I know... it sounds like we're giving up, like we're a shell of ourselves, not trying for the big guy, but instead the next, smaller guy, but that's not why I say that. This is all based on if Andrew Marchand is right...this is not what I want to happen.

So again, if Marchand has it right and the Yankees aren't spending this winter, here's my logic, Nick Swisher is back and we already love Brett Gardner and Curtis Granderson. Signing someone like Yoennis Cespedes to big money would only mean rushing him into the lineup and the outfield. But we already have 3 solid guys. Having Austin Jackson there as the 4th guy not only brings speed and talent to the outfield, it fixes the problem and it's a trade so we're still holding onto our money for someone else down the road. Jackson can give the outfielders a day off, he'll still get at bats and not only that, he's a lead-off guy.

I know, I know, clearly this quiet off season has made me insane. Clearly I am going mad. Why would I give up on a potential superstar outfielder for a lesser one? Why? Because if you go by Marchand's report, it actually makes sense and doesn't eliminate the Yankees losing out on a free agent pitcher if we still want to go that rout. We know what Austin Jackson is like, we raised him. Now, after having a few years of major league play under his belt, wouldn't it make sense to bring the lad back to contribute to the Yankees, especially if the Yankees DO decide to try and get a guy like Mark Buehrle or Gio Gonzalez to pitch for us?
(In Photo: Ken Phelps)
Look... Stranger and worse things have happened in Yankeeland Ladies and Gentlemen... Former softball player Ken Phelps was traded from Seattle to the Yankees for a youngster named Jay Buhner and that was a proven disaster. I'm not saying I love this idea...I'm just saying it's smart and easy, especially if the Yankees really aren't going after a big fish. What do you think? Comment.

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WHY IT'S THE QUIET BEFORE THE YANKEES STORM...MAYBE

Andrew Marchand's piece today asks Is this all there is?hinting that the Yankees have signed Freddy Garcia and that looks to be all the Yankees are willing to do this off season. I don't believe it, but sure, it's possible.

For me, I see the Yankees getting 1 pitcher, it's like a must. Why in the world would Hal and Cashman hint toward that as soon as the post season was over in the Bronx this year? Read HERE.

Marchand, whom I have tremendous respect for writes this about the pitching market:

"On the pitching side, the Yankees don't really like the prices vs. talent of any of the starters. Could they make a huge splash with Yu Darvish? That seems possible, even with their Kei Igawa experience. There is almost no way they are signing CJ Wilson. Mark Buehrle may be better suited for the National League, in their opinion. Edwin Jackson is no better than what they have. Roy Oswalt has a back issue that concerns them. Hiroki Kuroda likes life in Los Angeles or Japan."

But where's the trade talk part of Marchand's piece? There is no mention of all the others guys that are on the Yankees radar... Gio Gonzalez for 1. John Danks for another. How come he failed to mention that? Maybe he's under the impression that the Yankees really won't part with the likes of Austin Romine and Dellin Betances, that's fine, but he's the baseball insider, shouldn't he offer more than just a piece asking a simple question without breaking it down of who's out there?

I know Marchand is right about this off season being quiet, but I am telling you, the Yankees will need to pick up a pitcher, 1 pitcher to help out the rotation this season, if not Yankeeland will erupt! I'm a believer that the Yankees need pitching to win, they need support for CC no doubt...read WHY THERE NEEDS TO BE SUPPORT FOR CC MONSTER.I understand the expense of a CJ Wilson (Wilson's meeting with the Marlins as we speak) or a Yu Darvish or perhaps outfielder Yoennis Cespedes (Detroit Free Press says he's working out for the Tigers) but what the hell have we become, the Pirates?

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WHY JOBA WILL BE A FORCE TO RECKON WITH

Everyone wondering when Joba will be back? Don't... Larry Brooks of the New York Post knows because he saw him and asked him about it. Here's his tweet HERE.

Joba Chamberlain said he's on schedule and after Tommy John Surgery, that's a relief. It is believed that he will be back by mid-June in 2012... that would be exactly 1 year since he had the surgery. I know that over the years, the rehab schedule seems to be quicker with TJS and let's face it, when it happened to Joba, it came as a big surprise and we all immediately went into shock mode because we were freaking out about what our pen would look like without Joba. Needless the say, the pen held it together quite wonderfully and we ended up not needing Chamberlain. Thank God.So what do I expect from Joba in 2012? A whole lotta good. Joba is a good pitcher and I am a firm believer that if you keep Chamberlain in the bullpen, he will provide stability and quality outings in that bridge to Mo. For a while there, I believed that he would be the next Yankees closer, then, when he went away with injury and David Robertson stepped up, that changed for me.Right now we have guys like Rafael Soriano, David Robertson, Cory Wade, Boone Logan, and eventually, a healthy Joba Chamberlain. Once Mariano decides that it's time to retire, the Yanks could clearly move David Robertson into that closing role and move Soriano or Chamberlain to the 8th slot. True, when Rafael Soriano signed, it was assumed he'd take over that closing role. Well, let me be clear, DRob earned it and Soriano didn't. Things could change, but it's just my opinion right now.

A lot of bloggers want Joba to return to the starting rotation. I don't see it. I believe that ship has sailed and I don't think there is any benefit to it. Working with Joba to stretch him out will take a while, we don't need starters in a while, we need them now and over time, we can get what we want on the open market or through trade. Joba will be a success story in the bullpen, I believe that and I know Joba believes that. He just wants to pitch and wants to be certain what role he's in. We need to stop jerking him around.
I believe that once Joba returns, he will be lights out. Remember in Rocky III when they asked Clubber Lang what he predicted for the fight? He looks into the camera and says "Pain."



That's how I see Joba, a guy that goes out there and just chucks it in, mowing people down, strikeout after strikeout and just comfortable in his role as a dominant and important bullpen guy. I believe moving him from rotation guy to bullpen pitcher to rotation guy really messed with his confidence and if he goes out and just knows his role, he will not disappoint... a pounding of the catchers mitt with beautiful strikes is what we need...Joba will provide it.

Joba, I can't wait for you to start rolling again... can't you tell?

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WHY NOT GO AFTER A TOP FREE AGENT IF WE'RE THE YANKEES?

Several days ago, Mark Feinsand (HERE) had a piece that highlights the Yankees meeting with Joel Pineiro’s agent and the whole time I’m reading it thinking about last winter when the Yanks thought it was 1995 and Bartolo Colon was available. Except, it was 2011 instead. Yes, we dodged an absolute collapse and Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia did pretty good for us, but I don’t want to do that again.

We are the mighty Yankees and we should be looking at quality pitchers and any time the Yankees are lumped into talks with the Mets for 1 pitcher, like Joel Pineiro, you know we don’t belong there. The Mets are broke. The Mets need pitchers that can get through some starts but at the same time, don’t cost a ton of dough. The Yankees don’t usually do this. This is a new world for me and many of you and I just don’t want to be caught up in a scotch-taped rotation again in 2012.

(In Photo: Tim Redding)

I don't need Brian Gordon joining us to get us through a start in the middle of the summer, or better yet, Tim Redding...remember him?

If we were to sign someone like Joel Pinerio and he shits the bed, it's the same thing as Colon breaking down in September for us, we just don't need it. The Colon-Garcia Saga happened once, and it was brilliant, but that was last year, it can't be this year.

I know, the market is light this year, but if you’re going to go that route, signing Garcia was fine for a back end rotation guy, now we need a top pitcher to sandwich in between CC Monster and AJ Burnett. Joel Pineiro is not that pitcher. You know what I mean?

Now, people are going to read this and say “Casey, don’t panic. You don’t know what your talking about, the Yankees are merely looking at Pineiro, no offer has been made.” I’m here to tell you I know that, but I also want to bring it to you straight, that's why you read us. Do I see Cashman signing Joel Pineiro now? No, but if things start moving, there is no doubt, he could...I just don't want to fall into that web again...I like certainty.

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WHY BUEHRLE IS IN DEMAND

Mark Buehrle is the perfect free agent candidate to land this off season. It's not about money as much as it is quality and durability. Buehrle isn't looking for 6 years/$120 million...no, Buehrle just wants to pitch and where is key because what Buehrle doesn't want to do, in my opinion, is go to a team that needs to rebuild or needs to try and Win a championship in the year 2015. No, Buehrle needs to go to a team that is already established, that already has an ace and already can win a championship...oh and having Buehrle to contribute, well, that's icing on the cake. What would it take? Well, less than 6 years... 2, maybe 3 years at between $10-13 million a year.

Mark Buehrle is a veteran free agent and for him this time around it's about getting to a ball club and winning. Yes, it's true, the Nationals visited Mark Buehrle at his home (read HERE), but you and I both know that Mark Buehrle is not going to the Nationals...at least that's what I think.Let's be honest, Jayson Werth only went to the Nationals for the money, and the hope and dream that he could lead his team as the face of the franchise to a Championship in 2016. There is no way in hell Jayson Werth saw the Nationals as a sure thing, he saw dollar signs. That's fine, I'm not blasting his decision, I'm giving you the reality. There is no way Buehrle does that. I don't see Buehrle wanting to rebuild, I see Buehrle wanting to be in the thick of it, with guys like CC Monster and Mark Teixeira and Derek Jeter.... hell, who wouldn't want to play with Jeter in their career. The point is, I see Buehrle as a New York Yankee, not a National and not a White Sock, no more.

Right now it is being reported that 13 teams like Mark Buehrle and the White Sox clearly didn't think that was coming. Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times has a piece basically outlining how the Sox never expected this much buzz about Buehrle. So, what did they do? They offered Buehrle arbitration so they would at least get compensated if he leaves Chicago. I just had to laugh when I read about Chicago not thinking so many teams would be so interested in Buehrle. How could they not? He's a good pitcher with good talent and he's a veteran who hasn't really broken down. My opinion is Mark Buehrle, while Chicago is his home, would welcome a change of scenery... it may do the body good.You come to BYB for my opinion as well as our analysis. Well, my opinion is simple, Cashman needs to make an offer. True, he needs to see what the market is for a Mark Buehrle so he doesn't over play his hand, but let's face facts, Bleeding Yankee Blue readers know their baseball and if you guys pick Mark Buehrle, like you did Freddy Garcia last winter, I know Mark Buehrle is the smartest market choice. Not only is he cheaper than a CJ Wilson, he's durable, also a lefty and had been a starter for a decade. I'm not saying that's better, I'm just saying it may be the smarter choice, that's all.

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WHY THERE NEEDS TO BE SUPPORT FOR CC MONSTER

(Courtesy: @NataliaYank25)
CC Sabathia is thankfully coming back to the New York Yankees. Nothing, and I mean nothing makes me happier. The Monster is the centerpiece to the Yankee rotation and without supporting players, I don't care how good you are, you can't win it all alone. CC could come close, because he's that good, but even he will tell you that a solid rotation behind him will make life so much easier when we clinch our 28th championship.

CC is called CC Monster because Sesame Street is a staple in my house. Somehow between watching Cookie Monster and baseball games, CC Sabathia became CC Monster and well, now we apparently have a print made (above) with many thanks to a BYB fan...thank you very much!

So who will be CC's support? Ivan Nova is coming off a wonderful season where after alittle tweaking in the minors, he came back a new man, and more dominant than anyone could have expected. To me, Ivan Nova could go into the season as our number 2, unless of course the Verducci Effect comes into play like it did for Phil Hughes. If you don't understand what the Verducci effect is, read about it HERE.AJ Burnett is in our rotation Ladies and Gentlemen and unless the Yankees find someone to take a bulk of AJ's salary and him for something decent in return, he's ours. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but something needs to be done with AJ mechanically. Larry Rothschild is a guru, read HERE, but AJ ultimately needs to do this on his own. There is no way to know just how long the New York Yankees will be patient with AJ...I suspect their patience is running thin, despite Cashman's call for patience.

Phil Hughes is on his way back and I suspect, with alittle rest and alittle work, Phil will be the Phil we saw in 2010. I don't expect him to be an 18 game winner, but I do expect him to win and have a good season. This is the guy the Yankees have been holding onto for years, calling him the next Roger Clemens (Read HERE.)Meanwhile, the one we gave away, Ian Kennedy had a terrific season last year for the Diamondbacks. Baseball is a funny game sometimes.Freddy Garcia is back after signing a 1 year contract with the Yanks and I am happy about that. But like I have said so many times, Freddy is our anchor, our 4th ot 5th guy who will do his veteran dance to scratch us a win any way he can. Yes, he still has it and has reinvented himself, but how much longer can it last? I am thankful he is there, but he isn't the answer.

This rotation will not win us a championship Ladies and Gentleman, it just won't. Sure our bats and defense can guide us along but pitching ultimately wins it all. So, what do we do?CJ Wilson appears the be the guy that will go to the Yankees at the end of the day, especially if you read the Internet, but let's face it, there are plenty of teams, including the Rangers who will pounce when the moment is right. You can't put all your eggs in that basket, but clearly Wilson's agent wants to try and get a deal on the table with Cashman.

Mark Buehrle is my choice just because I like his character, his durability and experience... plus, he's also a lefty and we could get him for less years and less money than Wilson.

Edwin Jackson is out there but I don't consider him much better than what we already have in the Yankees rotation. Sure, he's been on some winning teams but the guy moves around quite a bit and that concerns me. Hell, maybe that's a good thing, because he can handle any environment. Who knows, I'm not high on him though.There are trade possibilities like Gio Gonzalez who, it seems, could be leaning the Miami Marlins way. Plus, the Boston Red Sox are hot and heavy for him. It's moments like this, I really want to get inside Cashman's head and figure out what he's thinking. Tim Lincecum is clearly a long shot, but the BYB readers like to read about him. I seriously don't think Tim Lincecum would ever come to the New York Yankees, but I also didn't think the Yankees ever had a shot at Mark Teixeira and Johnny Damon. Anything can happen...anything.

Bottom line, the Yankees need a strong number 2 or number 3 to follow the Monster. If they do, it will prove stability and no doubt a Yankee championship in 2012. I really believe that, what do you think?

Please comment, we have DISQUS, it's easier than ever. Let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.

WHY SWISHER IS TRULY SWISHALICIOUS

How do you NOT like this guy? There are many things in life I love and support; My family, my New York Yankees and of course the United States military and whenever I read stories about celebrities and athletes going over to be with our troops on their turf, there is a flutter that runs through my heart. It truly is what America is about.

Over this Thanksgiving weekend, Nick Swisher and his gorgeous wife Joanna Garcia went to Forward Operating Base Shank in Logar province... and to make this even more beautiful, it wasn't just a trip, it was their honeymoon. They spent their honeymoon with our U.S. Military. It's not only unselfish, it's patriotic! Read about it HERE.
You can read more about the trip and check out the gallery of photos DVIDSHUB.net.

I wanted to share this story because it's an important one and to be honest, there is not alot of press coverage for this and there should be. Our military is kicking ass and spending numerous hours and years fighting our enemies so we here can be free. It's time to give back and people like Nick are doing that. If you want to support a worthy cause, here are 2 I suggest you look at:

Wounded Warrior Project

Fisher House Foundation

Please comment, we have DISQUS, it's easier than ever. Let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.