Flying the Coop?

Bronx, NY (YB) - Bernie Williams has filed for free agency starting the drama on whether he will return or end up Ruben Sierra-ing it somewhere else until he hangs up his cleats. Williams is the sixth Yankees player to file for free agency this week, joining Tanyon Sturtze, Craig Wilson, Octavio Dotel, Miguel Cairo and Ron Villone. The only one the Yanks would benefit from bringing back would probably be Villone, as he's the one from the free agent bunch who actually got regular onfield airtime.

Yes, Barry Zito has also filed, and would be a great addition to the bomber staff. Don't call Cashman yet, but Jeff Weaver has also filed, and no, it's not worth bringing him back for a second ride on the merry-go-round.

Yes Sheffield is grumbling again, but it's only when his job security has come into question. The past 3 seasons he was uncharacteristically well behaved and no one jumped all over him during his choirboy period. But he erupts once and the monotonous media types are all over his temperment again. Ahh Sheff, we barely knew ya. You know what the perfect place for Sheffield to land would be? Philadelphia. He's perfect for that city which misses T.O. so much. Each Philly team needs a disgruntled star player. It's like cheesesteaks and cream cheese. Cashman has an active history of swindling the Phils in recent years, so keep the ball rolling. Sign and trade, ask questions later.

Mussina is also on the bubble as he's about to get bought out and re-signed at a lower tag. If it weren't for the scarcity of quality pitching in MLB these days, the Yankees could probaly deal with letting go of the one man complaint department that is the Moose.

Off field stuff: Derek Jeter had a mansion built in Remsen, NJ and then sold it just before before the current real estate lull. Smart man, that Jeet, a market analyst in his spare time.

Stay tuned next week for more hot stove action, and keep the faith, pitchers and catchers report in Umpteen weeks!

World Baseball Classic

Phoenix (YB) - So the WBC is all set to get underway and Yankee fans everywhere are holding their collective breath hoping that Jeter, Rodriguez, and Damon return to Tampa in one piece. Because anything Non-Yankee that throws a wrench into anything Yankee (read World Series title) is just unacceptable to Yankee fans. Yankee management probably feels the same way but unfortunately are not allowed to voice their opinions due to the human muzzle known as Bud Selig.

Farnsy First Big Addition

In what may be the biggest move the Yanks make this offseason Kyle Farnsworth is in the fold as setup man for Mariano. I think this is a good addition because he's a hard thrower and has had success in Chicago and Atlanta previously. He doesn't have the injury question mark a la Jared Wright and from what I remember from his days as a Cub he seems to bring that fiery mentality which should help in the late innings of games.

BTW, I'm comfortable with Bubba Crosby in center. And also, what is the status of Kevin Brown? I know nobody cares but it would be nice to have closure on his debacle.

Mats is Back

Glad to have Hideki Matsui back in the fold. His consistency is vital to the team and it would have been a shame to lose him and for him to bring that quality to another team. Plus, as Cashman adeptly pointed out at the press conference, Matsui brings high interest and sponsorship dollars to the Yankees.

NOTES: I'm not sure how much a coaching staff effects your overall outcome but now the Yanks have a former manager at every coaching position except pitching for which which accomplished ex-Yankee player Ron Guidry has the credentials to handle just fine.

Glad to be of Service

So Joe Torre completed his goodwill trip to Tampa and came back satisfied enough to continue his services as Yankee manager. And of course we're glad to have him back as he is about the only thing in that organization that represents stability. Cashman is still recovering from the season and can't think straight yet. Leo Mazzone, like everyone else in the late stages of their MLB career, is looking for a final payday filled with riches sponsored by the Yankees and the Bombers never met a big name they didn't like. Maybe he can turn Jared Wright in to a major league pitcher again.

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Sad to See Ya Go, Mel.

I suppose it was inevitable but Mel Stottlemyre will not be returning as the Yankees pitching coach. And though his association with the Bronx Bombers has spanned 5 decades, it seems this is the last we'll see of Mel around here. This is of course thanks to the Tampa half of the dysfunctional family which King George seems to rely heavily on. Mel deserves credit for the job he did this year in making 3 no-name pitchers into consistent major league starters seemingly out of the blue in Wang, Chacon, and Small. He delivered his parting shots at the Boss by saying he was unfairly criticized and could no longer deal with the verbal jabs Big Stein issues through his PR machine. He's been a pillar of consistensy and credibility during the Joe Torre era and now the focus is squarely on the team's manager and GM Cashman, who looks more sure every day to be leaving.

So that leaves Torre, who is masterfully leaving the media to write anti-George headlines for a few days before he gives his end of the season address. Keep it real, Joe.

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Winter Begins Early......Again

Alas another Yankee season has come to a bitter and disappointing end. This has been the case since 2000 so fans should be getting used to it right? Wrong. The free world knows what fans and Steinbrenner expect every year and without which the season is an outright failure. Pay Rod went to sleep after the Boston series and Gourmet Sheff was a mere shadow of his former self. When you score 3 runs 2 games in a row, you can't expect to win both games, let alone one. It's a shame how the Yanks bumbled away Game 2 and, with all due respect to the relentless Angel approach to playing baseball, then went out of their way to beat themselves during the rest of the series.

From the nuts and bolts department here are some observations from an innocuous fan. Don't swing at the first pitch every at bat! And could you please not wait until Game 5 to actually try to steal bases? The home run ball was non-existent for New York the whole series. It seemed like they all of a sudden had a different approach at the plate. You should have done what got you here, which in a batting sense was all of the above including home runs. It seemed like the Yankee hitters were tight and trying to hit that perfect single every time. And could someone please teach Giambino how to hit to the left side? That's what he should be doing all winter. Another winter must is to have Robinson Cano field a minimum 500 ground balls and 500 pop flies daily in addition to reviewing every bit of Willie Mays footage available to perfect the over the top basket catch.

So now we come to the most flammable and dangerous entity in Yankeeland. King George. Whose head will he call for? Will he make Torre a scapegoat? There is no reason to fire Torre by the way, he's not the one who couldn't hit and he guided them to the playoffs following an abysmal start, which I suppose he could be blamed for.

An interesting little tidbit came out of Pay Rod's post game comments. He observed that the Angels play a similar agressive style to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. After having his quotes to listen to for the past 2 years I know that every word he says is rehearsed and measured. Hmm. A-Rod mentions Tampa Bay, the Yankees did not play aggressively enough, Sweet Lou, A-Rod's former manager, just LEFT Tampa Bay, Hmm....makes you wonder what Big Stein may end up doing. It's not out of the realm of possibility that players know what's happening in the front office. Speaking of which, Cashman should be kept. But the dice will roll in Tampa soon enough at the Yankee meetings where the Boss gathers his deputies and issues his orders. Stay tuned for yet another entertaining off-season.