WHY WE SHOULD ALL MISS SOLARTE

It's been a couple of days since the Yankees trade Yangervis Solarte away and I've been thinking about it a lot. Now usually when the Yankees trade away a young kid usually you find me on here ranting. I admit, it is what I do. This time I am ranting....but maybe not for the reason you may think. This time, I just want people to see there were some "high" moments during his short time with us. The season is long, and it is easy to fit. So I guess this is me being a cheerleader.

Usually I am the staff writer standing on my soap box and ranting about how Brian Cashman is damaging the farm by trading away young kids for expensive veterans. I'm not going to do that this time. Instead, I just want people to reflect back to the first two months of the season. Sure, it was a very short time span but he was a huge asset to this team, he wasn't a waste. Do we want to imagine where we would've been without him? I don't. No offense but that would've meant more Kelly Johnson and I couldn't be more opposed to that idea.

The Yankees took a lot of chances this year, and they had to. With Alex Rodriguez out the left side of the infield was a scary thought. When you have a contract hog like ARod on the team, the life of a minor leaguer is bleak. You know you aren't going to get the playing time and stockpiling backup isn't going to happen because as a player you don't want to go play for a team where a superstar is blocking your path. Nobody wants to be a career minor leaguer. I really think that is why draft picks haven't wanted to sign here for so many years, hopefully that changes soon.

As the days have gone by that is how people refer to Solarte, as a career minor leaguer. In all fairness, I can understand that to a point. Solarte was with the Minnesota Twins for 7 years and never got an opportunity there. That says a lot. But life is all about seizing opportunities and it is about the journey we take. The Yankees had a lot of opportunities this year....and Solarte was lucky enough to seize one of them.

How else do you explain Solarte and Dean Anna beating out Eduardo Nunez for a spot on the team? The Yankees saw something in him. They saw his drive, his will to succeed and his passion. How can you not like that? The Yankees could have easily stuck with what was safe and familiar in Nunez, but they didn't and if they hadn't given Solarte the opportunity then we would've missed some great moments.

April and May had some amazing moments for Solarte, and he carried the team for awhile. I remember the game on April 8th Solarte hit two doubles, and became the first player since 1900 to hit 6 doubles in 7 games. That's a huge victory right there! Think about all of the amazing hitters in this game....and a career minor leaguer accomplished that and not a seasoned veteran?

What about Solarte's game winning homerun against a very tough Milwaukee Brewers team? He drove in three runs that ended up being the deciding factor to the game. That's called being clutch. He was making things happen at the plate when no one else was. And what about his homerun during the Subway Series at Citi Field? Anytime you can do damage against the Mets means it is a good day. It's a moment he is never going to forget and neither will I.




I have to admit though my favorite moments were playing against the Rays at Tropicana field. How many times as a fan do you get to watch a 5-4-3 Triple Play against your rival? He started that play! As if that wasn't enough in the same game he comes back and hits his first big league homerun against Grant Balfour. If that isn't a storybook ending I don't know what is!

Solarte was the April and May superstar for not only this team....but in the American League. In May he had the highest batting average in the league and was also amongst the leaders for best on-base percentage. He was playing great baseball. If he didn't have that run there is no telling where the Yankees would be right now because he was feasting while others were struggling. It's how the game works. Was it fair to expect him to keep this up all season? No, especially not when seasoned veterans weren't doing it. He slumped at a bad time and we needed production at third base.

I understand why the Yankees went out and got Chase Headley. I can't say I won't miss having Solarte on the team. I loved the passion he played with. He is more than "a career minor leaguer." He is a kid looking for a chance. We are all looking for that shot in life. If the Yankees weren't going to give him another shot then I am glad he may have that opportunity in San Diego.

We all dream big, and it's his time to shine and I believe he is going to when a team gives him a shot. So thank you, Solarte. You helped carry the Yankees for awhile and we haven't forgotten that. I wish you luck, because I believe you have a bright future and I only hope I don't  see you years from now having success against the Yankees because then I really will have to rant about it.




 --Jeana Bellezza, BYB Senior Writer and Editor
Twitter: @NyPrincessJ


 
 
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THE TANAKA SIGNING GETS THE LINE MOVING

Don't forget that there was a huge log jam with pitching in Major League baseball while everyone was waiting for Masahiro Tanaka to choose the team he wanted to be with.  Once he signed with the Yankees... the line started moving and pitchers are now being snatched up quickly.

Today we learn that Matt Garza had signed a 4 year deal with the Milwaukee Brewers.  It's worth $52 million.  According to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports:

Source: Garza in agreement with #Brewers, four years, $52M, pending physical.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) January 23, 2014

But that's not all. Grant Balfour was also snatched up.  The Tampa Bay Rays signed him.

Ken Rosenthal again ladies and gentlemen... with a funny nugget attached to it:

Sources: #Mets made offer to Balfour that exceeded #Rays’ two-year, $12M bid. Balfour preferred to be closer to his home in Clearwater, Fl.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) January 23, 2014

The poor Mets can get anyone, except for Curtis Granderson of course... and that's a good get.

Then... after the whole Orioles / Balfour spat about Grant's health... Aaron Laffey signed with them! That comes from Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish:

Confirmed: Aaron Laffey has minor league deal with #Orioles.
— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) January 23, 2014

Alot happening now and look for guys like Bronson Arroyo and Ervin Santana to go within the next several days. 

Now that Tanaka is finally settled and coming to the Bronx, there will be teams moving to finalize their rotations.  Truth be told, I'm shocked by the contract Garza got.  Look, I like the guy, he's a good pitcher, but I would have never offered him 4 years. 2 maybe...

If there's more movement, of course we'll bring it to you right here on Bleeding Yankee Blue.

 Thank you to all the Bleeding Yankee Blue readers for continued success.  You've made BYB the fasted growing Yankees fan site in the history of Yankees fandom.  Thanks for reading, sharing and enjoying. Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.

EXPLAINING IT ALL IN NUMBERS...

With Masahiro Tanaka now signed, the Yankees are over the cap for sure.  The way the cap works is teams over the cap (this year it is $189 million) pay a tax based on the amount that they are over.  The Yankees are at the highest tax level and pay 50% of the amount that they are over.  So right now, the Yankees are about $20 million over the cap, so they would pay a tax of $10 million.  With that, there are degrees of overage and it certainly matters.  

If the Yankees go on now and sign someone like Ervin Santana for $12 million per year and Grant Balfour for $8 million, they will be $40 million over the cap and owe a tax of $20 million.

The issue with the Yankees getting under the cap was that if they are under for 1 year, their tax rate immediately would reduce from 50% to 17.5% (tax rate increases each consecutive year you are over the cap, but resets to 17.5% in any year following a year when you are under the cap).  So if they would have stayed under the cap in 2014, then went over the cap in 2015 by $40 million, they would only pay a $7 million tax (17.5% of $40 million) rather than a $20 million tax in 2015 (a savings of $13 million).  

Hey Frank... that was for you.

 

--Douglas Solomon, BYB Guest Writer

Thank you to all the Bleeding Yankee Blue readers for continued success.  You've made BYB the fastest growing Yankees fan site in the history of Yankees fandom.  Thanks for reading, sharing and enjoying. Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.

THE YANKEES AREN'T LOOKING TO SIGN A BIG CLOSER

It appears that all that stuff about the Yankees looking at Grant Balfour to be the closer for the New York Yankees is pure speculation. Hey, maybe it isn’t, but according to Mark Feinsand, they aren’t looking to sign a big gun outside the organization to close.  Feinsand of the New York Daily News says, “According to a source, the Yankees aren’t looking to sign a big-money closer, preferring instead to bring in a set-up type reliever to compete with Dave Robertson for the closer’s job.”

DRob has said he’s ready to be the closer, OR set-up guy.  In a nutshell, he’s hinted that he’ll do absolutely anything to help his club win.  That’s a team player. I love that.

I have often wondered if David Robertson could hack being the closer.  I mean, he believes he can, so if I’m running the organization, I hand him the ball. I love when guys believe in themselves.  It makes me all fuzzy inside.  I reminds me of Little League this past spring when a kid that wasn’t the star pitcher on the team kept asking me to pitch because he “could do it.”  I handed him the ball in the second round of the playoffs.  You know what? He did do it.  We lost that game, but he shut them down for a bit and I was damn proud.  Enter DRob, who wants it if they call on him.  I tip my cap.

One thing to note... as a fan though, DRob’s style is quite different than a 1,2,3, 9th inning guy.  I mean, that’s why he’s called Houdini.  He either enters situations and needs to work out of them, or he teases you giving up a single or walk and then strikes out the side.  It’s not automatic. If DRob has the ball, you’re subjected to Houdini Time...  it's the uneasiness of what could come next.  I mean, ultimately, you know the guy will shut them down, but it’s getting there that gives you an ulcer.

It’s unclear if the Yankees will really spend on a guy like Grant Balfour, or if they truly will have a few set-up guys compete for the closer role.  Reading Feinsand’s report, I hand the ball to DRob and we find a set-up guy.  And you know what?

Maybe that set-up guy is Mark Montgomery, and work him toward his ultimate goal of being the closer...babysteps.  Maybe bring him up, teach him the ropes in the Bigs and eventually he or DRob take the closer spot officially.  I can see that happening, I really can.

Thank you to all the Bleeding Yankee Blue readers for continued success.  You've made BYB the fasted growing Yankees fan site in the history of Yankees fandom.  Thanks for reading, sharing and enjoying. Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.

IN THE FREE AGENT WORLD... WHO'S LEFT?

Charlie Wilmoth of MLBTradeRumors.com put together this list of some of the unsigned, relevant players still looking for homes this off season.  I see a few guys on that list, pitchers in particular that I’d love to take a chance on and would probably bolster our rotation in the back end. Check out his list:

“Unsigned:
5. Masahiro Tanaka
6. Ervin Santana
7. Matt Garza
9. AJ Burnett

11. Ubaldo Jimenez

14. Stephen Drew

17. Nelson Cruz

23. Bronson Arroyo

25. Grant Balfour

28. Kendrys Morales

32. Fernando Rodney
36. Suk-Min Yoon
43. Paul Maholm
46. Jesse Crain
48. Jason Hammel"

Hey look, Bronson Arroyo is still available.  Jimenez is too.  Would the Yankees have an AJ Burnett reunion? Probably not, but he’s out there.  And of course, there is Matt Garza.  One name that popped out at me was lefty reliever Paul Maholm. 

Now I have stated many, many times that I love having 2 lefty relievers in the Yankees pen.  It makes Joe Girardi’s job easier and when the Yankees had Boone Logan and Clay Rapada in the pen together, it was much more comforting to me than just having Logan there.  Options… I like options.

But again, the starters that are looking for deals are decent and still available.  Plus, don’t we have like a gazillion dollars after we didn’t re-sign Robinson Cano? Brian Cashman probably has stacks of money in his office.  Let’s spend it! 

Thank you to all the Bleeding Yankee Blue readers for continued success.  You've made BYB the fastest growing Yankees fan site in the history of Yankees fandom.  Thanks for reading, sharing and enjoying. Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.

THE YANKEES ARE NOW PURSUING GRANT BALFOUR

The Grant Balfour rumor has been exactly that... a rumor.  And it's been that way for most of the off-season. But lately, about the past 24 hours lately, it's been consistently building to be something more and it may be have turned into the perfect storm for the New York Yankees the moment the Baltimore Orioles pulled out of their deal with Balfour, claiming he was hurt.

Now, Balfour claims he's not and that's something that will need to be looked at more closely by the Yankees, but the latest information on the Yankees-Balfour connection is from Kevin Kernan of the New York Post. Kevin writes:

"...the Yankees have shown some interest in closer Grant Balfour, whose two-year deal with the Orioles disintegrated. Balfour has converted 62 of 67 save opportunities the last two years...The Yankees want to give David Robertson the shot to earn the closer’s role and Robertson told The Post on Saturday he is fully prepared to follow Mariano Rivera in the role. The Yankees bullpen has lost much, though, since last season and by adding Balfour they would have an experienced closer who lives for competition. Robertson also said if the team wants him to be an eighth-inning pitcher he will do that again."

By the way, let me stress that I love DRob's attitude.  He's willing to do whatever is needed to better the New York Yankees, be it the closer or 8th inning guy.  Hell, he'd catch if the Yankees asked him too.  That's what makes David Robertson so special.  It also helps, especially if the Yankees want to pull the trigger on Balfour.

And, let me also state that the Yankees are not alone in their pursuit of Balfour.  The Rays are very interested as well and I am sure they will pursue him just as hard.

I tweeted this just a short time ago because I wanted to get a reaction from the Yankee fans.

Wow, the Yankees - Grant Balfour rumor seems very real suddenly. #BYB
— Bleeding Yankee Blue (@BleednYankeeBlu) December 23, 2013

Many of the Yankee fans have mixed feelings about Balfour.  Some calling him a hot-head, a live-wire and "totally opposite" from Mariano Rivera.  All that is true. But in a post-Mariano world, maybe it's OK to start over with a new type of closer.  It's not a bad thing, after all, the Yankees need that Save consistency going and I can see the Yankee fans excited to see this Balfour guy as their closer.

Truth be told, I have no idea what's going to happen, but I can tell you this;  I would take a chance on Balfour, especially if he's healthy.  Yes, I do want DRob to close for the Yankees, but if he's OK doing either role, that makes my decision easier when pursuing a guy like Balfour.  It means we have another team player in DRob and the combination of DRob and Balfour could prove just as lethal as DRob and Mo.  I believe that.

No, Balfour wouldn't be replacing Mariano Rivera... he'd help to keep the winning consistent in Yankeeland... keeping the saves coming. You can't possibly root against that, can you?

If anything happens with Balfour, we will tell you.  For now... you better be preparing for Christmas ladies and gentlemen... Santa's almost here.

Thank you to all the Bleeding Yankee Blue readers for continued success.  You've made BYB the fasted growing Yankees fan site in the history of Yankees fandom.  Thanks for reading, sharing and enjoying. Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.

THE "BALFOUR ON THE YANKEES" RUMOR IS BACK

Look, the idea of Grant Balfour on the Yankees has mixed reviews.  Many like the guy. Others find him inconsistent and yet others believe that the idea of having a live wire like Balfour as our closer is not only the complete opposite of Mariano Rivera... it's also just not the right fit.

Now we all know what happened with the Orioles and Balfour.  Everything seemed to be going great, there was definitely an idea that Balfour would be an Oriole in no time flat. But then... nothing. In fact, there was concern about Balfour's shoulder, and in the 11th hour, the Orioles pulled out.  That made Balfour mad.

 Balfour and his agent then came out with a statement insisting he was healthy. Check this out:

“Grant is completely healthy and that was told to us today by Dr. Koco Eaton, a well-respected club physician. Dr. Eaton’s opinion is based upon the fact that the MRI which was taken today is the same as the MRI which was taken in 2011 as a condition of the 3-year contract that Grant signed with the A’s. Dr. Tim Kremchek, another well-respected club physician, reviewed the Orioles’ medical report and advised that he is remarkably impressed that there has been little change in Grant’s arm for almost 10 years. Now factor into the equation that Grant was a 2013 All Star, pitched 65 games and another 3 scoreless innings in the post season with a 94-95 mph fastball. The only reasonable conclusion is that Grant is healthy and the Orioles at the last moment changed their minds.

“Grant is an ALL STAR CLOSER who has converted 55 of 58 save opportunities. Talent wins at the end of the day and if a club wants to win then they need Grant coming out of the pen in the 9th inning”

And where are we now? Well, the Orioles have moved on, now aggressively pursuing Fernando Rodney, and the Tampa Bay Rays are looking closely at Grant Balfour.  Which now raises the question, are the Yankees going to go after a closer like Balfour, or are we going to hand David Robertson the keys?

I did some research, and Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle says that Balfour, "... is attracting notice from several deep-pocketed potential contenders, including the Tigers and Yankees, according to a major-league source. Other interested teams include the Rockies, Angels and Balfour's former club, Tampa Bay."

In other words, the idea of the Yankees pursuing Balfour is "back on."

Let me state that I have no idea is Grant Balfour is truly healthy. I mean, the Orioles saw something that suggested Balfour wasn't so, unless the Yanks can get an inside look at those medical records, as well as getting some type of guarantee that he's not hurt, I'm not so sure this is a good idea. But then what? Are the Yankees even looking at a closer? Until Slusser's piece, I didn't see much about the Yankees looking for a stopper.

So, is Balfour a good option? Should the Yankees go for it, or is there another pitcher we should be looking at instead? It's a very good question, I mean, besides 2012, the Yanks haven't been without Mariano Rivera for a long, long time.  It's almost unsettling if you think about it.

Now, it's my guess that the silence the past week means the Yanks were indeed interested in perhaps making David Robertson be the guy. Some think that's great, others don't feel that he's ready.  And Balfour? Well, I would suggest that if he is truly healthy, the teams pursuing him this late in the off-season could have an interesting bidding war... I guess we'll just have to see.  My biggest concern though is who will fill Rivera's shoes?  Without him, it's a tightrope of uncertainty, something we're not used to.

Stay tuned for this one... that's for sure.

Thank you to all the Bleeding Yankee Blue readers for continued success.  You've made BYB the fastest growing Yankees fan site in the history of Yankees fandom.  Thanks for reading, sharing and enjoying. Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.

THE YANKEE PEN: AREN'T WE LOOKING ALITTLE THIN?

The Yankees are definitely looking at a renovation of the active roster, with some big-name signings this winter. With a little less fanfare, the Yankees have also begun to reform their bullpen. The way the Yankees are addressing the bullpen leaves some question marks, and introduces risks that may prove costly during the season. Nothing is more frustrating than losing late in the game, and the bullpen’s ability to shut down games is critical.

The retirement of future Hall of Famer Mariano Rivera forced the issue, as the Yankees are still working out who will be the named closer for the team. With Joe Nathan signed to the Detroit Tigers and although Grant Balfour didn't sign in Baltimore due to a shoulder problem, read HERE, he's going to sign somewhere. There's no doubt, the closer market is drying up. If the Yankees take no action, the de facto closer would be David Robertson.

We love DRob, and he brings excitement to the 8^th inning, where he has found a home for the past few years. The question is, can he handle the 9^th inning. Yes, it is a question. While it is not fair to draw too many conclusions from his brief stint as closer in 2012, when Mariano Rivera was injured, he did not look as strong as we expected. On the upside, he entered the game last year 11 times in the 9^th inning or later and looked impressive. Four of those times he held a tie, he converted all three save opportunities, and zero losses. He has the stuff to do the job, but without the experience of doing it over a long season, he is a little bit of a wildcard.

Middle relief has let two of its regulars go. Joba Chamberlain, who showed tremendous potential in 2007 and 2008, just flat-out tanked. He signed with the Detroit Tigers just over a week ago, and we wish him the best. Boone Logan, who has been the lefty specialist for the Yankees for the last seven years, signed with the Colorado Rockies. He certainly was erratic at times, but only four times out of 61 appearances did he blow a game or take a loss.

Matt Thornton signed a 2-year deal with the Yankees in recent days, which helps replace what Boone Logan brought to the Yankees. A 37-year old career lefty middle reliever, his veteran presence should bring some stability to the bullpen. That veteran presence may come in handy, given how the Yankees relief pitcher strategy is shaping up.

It is obvious that the Yankees want to grow the bullpen from their farm system, DRob and Thornton aside. The list of candidates will likely include Adam Warren, Shawn Kelley, and Preston Claiborne. Other kids coming up can include Dellin Betances and Cesar Cabral, who continue to show promise. All of these guys have potential, and our hope is that all of them mature to be strong reliable pitchers. However, it is impossible to look at a rookie and determine with any kind of certainty whether or not you are looking at the next Mariano Rivera or the next Joba Chamberlain. They all looked great at times. They all made rookie mistakes at other times.

That is where the rub is. I think you are going to find that the bullpen, as it stands now, will generate a lot of excitement. Nevertheless there will be times, especially when the pressure is on in a must-win scenario, where you are going to want that rock-solid veteran to slam the door on an opposing rally. Invariably we will see this kid crew falter from time to time. It is only a matter of how often, whether we can stomach it, and how well positioned we are to go to the market if things start to go down.

 
--Ike Dimitriadis, BYB Writer
Twitter: @KingAgamemnon
My blog is: Shots from Murderer's Row

   

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YANKEES TARGETING JOAQUIN BENOIT

Interesting nugget... I'm not sure what to make of it yet.

According to Bob Nighengale of USA Today, the Yankees have had many "internal discussions" about the possibility of bringing in Joaquin Benoit to the Yanks bullpen.

The #Yankees would love to grab two relievers and have had lots of internal discussions about Joaquin Benoit
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 11, 2013

Now I have had plenty of discussions with BYB freaks about the possibility of David Robertson closing for the Yankees.

I personally think the guy is ready, but I also liked the idea of a guy like Joe Nathan.  He's gone though.  Then, I chatted it up today with people about Grant Balfour as the Yankees' next closer.  Mixed reviews on that one.  Now I wonder if the Yankees have any intention of signing Benoit to close, or if they'll have he and DRob compete for the job.

It's hopefully going to get interesting at the Winter Meetings now for the Yanks.  Just so you know, here's alittle background: In 2013 for the Tigers,  Benoit had a 2.01 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 73 Ks in 67 innings.

Keep checking back to us here at BYB and we'll tell you what happens next.

Thank you to all the Bleeding Yankee Blue readers for continued success.  You've made BYB the fasted growing Yankees fan site in the history of Yankees fandom.  Thanks for reading, sharing and enjoying. Follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue (Official) on Facebook, just type it in.

THE YANKEES ARE "LOOKING" AT GRANT BALFOUR

There is no question the Yankees could use a pitcher like Grant Balfour.  Right now, according to Susan Slusser at the San Francisco Chronicle, Balfour "...is attracting notice from several deep-pocketed potential contenders, including the Tigers and Yankees, according to a major-league source. Other interested teams include the Rockies, Angels and Balfour's former club, Tampa Bay."

It would make sense that the Yankees make a push to sign Balfour. We need a closer... rememeber? We actually wrote about Balfour the last time he was drawing attention from the Yankees.   It was a piece from back in June 2011 titled, SIX NAMES YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT. Read it... it's funny how things come full circle. 

This season Balfour had 38 saves with a 2.59 ERA in 65 games.

Balfour is back in the " Yankee rumor" mix again... stay tuned.

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SANTANA & BALFOUR ARE GOOD PREDICTIONS

So, you need to appreciate all that MLBTradeRumors.com does, I mean everyone goes there for information. They do a wonderful job.  I read this morning some 2014 Free Agent predictions and I wanted to share them.

Tim Dierkes put together a list of 50 players.  No easy task, but he makes it look easy.  He mentioned 2 pitchers that every once in a while, the Yankees are connected to right around the trade deadline.  Ervin Santana and Grant Balfour.  Here's what he said about each:

"Ervin Santana - Yankees.  Santana is competing with Tanaka and Garza for the title of best available starting pitcher, after posting 211 innings of 3.24 ball for the Royals this year.  Santana throws relatively hard, avoids walks, and doesn't turn 31 until December.  He has been homer-prone at times, and some teams may balk at losing a draft pick and giving Santana our projected five-year, $75MM deal.  Nonetheless, the list of suitors should be long if the Royals aren't able to retain Santana, potentially including the Yankees, Twins, Blue Jays, Nationals, Mariners, Rockies, Phillies, Dodgers, Astros, and more."

I like this idea.  I don't love it, but I like it and I get it.  Clearly I am more excited about Masahiro Tanaka than Santana, but he could be valuable in our starting 5.  Good idea.

"Grant Balfour - Yankees.  After saving 62 games over the 2012-13 seasons, Balfour will likely be seeking a closer gig in free agency.  The Aussie, 36 in December, could get something like $18MM over two years. As with Joe Nathan, the Yankees, Angels, and Tigers make sense, but with more than a half-dozen closer types on the market, a few of them will need to settle for set-up jobs."

Tim makes alot of sense, in fact, I was just speaking to someone on Twitter about Grant Balfour and they suggested to me that they would rather have Balfour than say Joe Nathan, a guy I noticed was a free agent just the other day, read JOE NATHAN'S AVAILABLE & WE NEED TO GET HIM.

Anyway, I thought this was interesting and wanted to bring it to you this morning.  Good work as always Tim.

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FLAT IN OAKLAND

"I just felt like everything was flat; no real life on the fastball... It's up to me to go out there and battle, try to keep us in the game. I couldn't do that today." 

-- CC Sabathia

CC Sabathia didn't do his job last night, he admits it. In turn, when it came to the Yankees bats, they just couldn't keep up with Oakland and in the end, we were 2 runs short.  CC went 6 innings, allowed 8 hits and 6 runs as opposed to Bartolo Colon who went 6, 3 and 0. The A's looked good at home. What can I say,  it's not exactly what you want your ace to do, but CC did it last night and now more and more people will wonder if we can truly call Sabathia an ace as we are already into June.

The Yankees didn't start scoring until the 8th inning.  By then the Yanks were down 6. Mark Teixeira singled and knocked in Brett Gardner. Then Vernon Wells knocked in Robinson Cano. In the top of the 9th, Tex knocked in 2 more, but too little, too late. Grant Balfour got the save for the A's, his 16th.

Final: Athletics 6 - Yankees 4.

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