Winter storm watch
Who knows what Boss will do after loss
After a disappointing loss in the division series to the Angels, the Yankees face - as usual - turbulence in the offseason. This time, though, it starts at the top. The man who would guide the team through winter transactions, GM Brian Cashman, will be a free agent himself after Oct. 31, so he may or may not be around to deal with filling the center field hole, re-signing Hideki Matsui and patching up the bullpen. Could there be another, more high-profile winter task, too? It all depends on the mood of George Steinbrenner and his minions, but the Yanks' playoff failure could put Joe Torre's job in jeopardy, especially if this is Steinbrenner's only opportunity to get Lou Piniella back in the fold.
Torre still has $13.1 million left over the final two years of his contract, but it's unclear if The Boss would dole out the ultimate penalty to the manager who didn't get a $200 million team further into October, regardless of Torre getting the Yanks to the playoffs after a trying season.Cashman, or whoever replaces him, will have to deal with other issues, as well. Will Bernie Williams be back in a lesser and less-expensive capacity? There were fans at Game 4 at the Stadium with signs such as "Bernie 2006" who clearly wanted him to return. If Mel Stottlemyre retires, which seems like a given, who will be the pitching coach? If Joe Girardi is hired to manage another team, who replaces him as bench coach? Will The Boss require a sacrificial lamb from the coaching staff if Torre is retained? Who are the attractive free agents from other teams?
One thing seems certain, according to several team executives, anyway - the payroll won't be as bloated. "There is no way it goes up," one said. "We'll go down." Williams, who made $12 million this season, will be off the books, as will Kevin Brown, who made $15 million. Other rich contracts, such as Steve Karsay ($5 million) will have lapsed, too. Of course, the Yankees must pay Matsui and he likely will command more than $10 million per year. It seems like a lock they'll re-sign him. They'll also need a center fielder, and if they sign Boston free agent Johnny Damon, they'll have to pay around the same, which will cut into their payroll savings. Damon is 31 years old and could want a five-year contract.
They might fill center field by trading for Mike Cameron, if the Mets are willing. They might compete with the Red Sox there. Or they could explore whether free agent Brian Giles would fit. "There aren't a lot of center fielders out there," a Yankee bigwig said. Other than center, the Yankees are mostly locked into their position players. They are lucky that Robinson Cano bloomed this year, because they finally will have a cheap regular. They will look to trade Tony Womack because there seems to be no place for him.
Tom Gordon is a free agent in the bullpen and the Yankees may try to re-sign him. Another plan would be to find a younger free agent to set up for Mariano Rivera and potentially become the closer when Rivera is done. Baltimore's B.J. Ryan is a possibility there. For other openings, they hope Aaron Small can maintain what he did this year and Scott Proctor finally can break out. It's unclear what the rotation will look like beyond Randy Johnson and Mike Mussina, partly because Carl Pavano must prove that he is healthy after an injury-plagued 2005. Jaret Wright was hurt for long stretches and at the end of the season was a magnet for flying objects before being left off the division series roster.
Chien-Ming Wang's development may distract the Yankees from pursuing more high-priced starters in what most feel is a weak free agent market. One scout who saw Wang pitch regularly predicted he would be "an 18-20-game winner someday. Everything he throws moves or sinks. Unless he gets hurt, he's going to be a good one, getting all those ground balls." But the Yankees have been romanced in the past by pitchers with a thrilling arsenal. Remember Javier Vazquez, Jeff Weaver and Jose Contreras? Florida's A.J. Burnett might be the most attractive starter and some observers believe he has the best stuff in baseball. But Burnett ripped the Marlins in the last week of the season and the team told him to go home. Plus, the Yankees got little return this season from a $40 million investment from an ex-Marlin – Pavano.
There might be one free agent pitcher who could get the Yankees to open the vault again - Roger Clemens. The ageless Clemens is once again a free agent, though his son now plays in the Astros' system, which might put any Rocket redux stories to rest. The Yankees have 11 free agents of their own – Brown, Matsui, Gordon, Alan Embree, John Flaherty, Matt Lawton, Al Leiter, Ramiro Mendoza, Felix Rodriguez, Rey Sanchez and Ruben Sierra. They hold contract options on Tino Martinez (either a $3 million option or a $275,000 buyout) and Tanyon Sturtze ($1.5 million option or $150,000 buyout).
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Originally Posted by ARod2212
