And just wait till the playoffs when he is impotent again!

Really, its like seeing a car wreck ahead by 10 miles...and you can not halt in time...

Gloom and doom, Ronnie?

More like cyclical history.

I hope for the best, but this just seems so similar to 2004.

Then again, history bites you in the ass when it bucks against expectations. Maybe A-Rod gets cheers, maybe he becomes a potent hitting stud in the playoffs, maybe he stays. I really don't know.

Yanks 2-0 over the Twins in the 2nd. Can Andy get his shit together tonight?

Another homerun from A-Rod...#6.

Bitchin.

2 wins in a row? Is it possible??

Sweet, another Yankee win and another A-Rod homer! Pettitte puts up some impressive number: 6 innings, 4 hits, 0 runs, 1 BB, 3 SO with a 1.64 ERA

Perhaps good news for the Yankees?

Here Today ...
... but gone after '08? It's starting to look that way for Johan Santana, who has broken off contract talks with the Twins

The Twins may be fighting a losing battle in their efforts to extend Johan Santana's four-year, $40 million contract, which expires at the end of next season. A league source told SI that Minnesota recently offered to add two years to the deal, at around $18 million per season, plus a club option for 2011. That offer, however, falls well short of the seven-year, $126 million figure that Barry Zito received from the Giants this winter and virtually assures that Santana, the Koufax of his generation, will be the hottest free agent in the class of '08. Having set this past Opening Day as his deadline for securing a new deal, Santana has told the Twins that he won't negotiate again until he hits the open market -- when, it should be added, he will only be 29.

The more immediate concern to the Twins, though, is the rest of their starting five, which features one promising youngster (Boof Bonser) and three veteran journeymen (Carlos Silva, Ramon Ortiz and Sidney Ponson). "Every year you have question marks," says G.M. Terry Ryan. "Last year it was the position players, especially on the left side of the infield. This year it's the rotation."

As he did last season, when he patched holes in the lineup with such retreads as Tony Batista and Rondell White, Ryan has invited scrutiny by choosing veteran mediocrity over a promising cast of youngsters that includes hard-throwing righty Matt Garza. But there are reasons to give Ryan, who has a well-earned reputation as a player-development mastermind, the benefit of the doubt.

1) For a budget-conscious franchise like the Twins, service time is a vital consideration. Identifying when a prospect is ready to make a valuable contribution in the majors can mean another productive season before the player hits free agency. The extra seasoning for Garza and others could prove beneficial for everyone.

2) A $71 million payroll, not high for a franchise with a largely taxpayer-funded new stadium opening in 2010, limits Ryan's choices. It's not as if Ryan wasn't interested in higher-caliber starters during the off-season. The front office eyed, among others, Gil Meche but backed off when the market got out of hand. "I think it's important to know who you are," says Ryan, who's never complained about his budgets. "You know what the resources are. You know what the revenues are."

3) It's a very small sample, but the Twins got impressive outings last week from Ortiz and Bonser (the underrated third piece of the Heist of the Decade that also brought Joe Nathan and Francisco Liriano from San Francisco for A.J. Pierzynski). Both pitched wonderfully in wins over the Orioles, and Silva pitched solidly in a loss to the White Sox. With the game's deepest bullpen (a 2.91 ERA in '06, best in baseball), the starters usually only need to get into the sixth to have a chance.

4) The Twins still have Santana, who pitched seven innings of one-hit ball against the White Sox on Sunday. If he goes 18--6 (his average record the past three seasons), he'll have a four-year mark of 73-25, very close to Pedro Martinez's 77-25 from 1997 through 2000. Despite the recent setback in negotiations, the Twins aren't abandoning hope that they can get a deal done with their ace.

And why not? Surprising results are their trademark.

Source: Sports Illustrated

Santana will be a free agent, unless they can convince him that they'll have all the right tools in Minnesota to make a meaningful push for the World Series right now. They have some of the pieces - Torii Hunter, Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau...if they could get Francisco Liriano back, it may mean something. But their division is extremely competitive, and I don't know if the whiff of competitiveness will be enough to get him to stay.

---

Pettitte looked fantastic last night, and really rebounded well after his last outing. Let's hope Moose continues the trend.

---

Say it with me: A-Rod!

My question of the night....what will A-Rod do to ensue wrath from the fans again?

Anyway, maybe history doesn't repeat itself this year.

This is enemy territory, but watching the Mariners/Red Sox game. The big deal is Dice-K facing off against old nemesis Ichiro Suzuki, who just happens to be one of the perennual best hitters in the game(nevermind AL MVP). So far Ichiro is rolling snake eyes against him, 0-2.

But what I dont get is, ESPN keeps comparing Dice-K's Fenway premiere in the same likeness of Clemens, SChilling, and Pedro.

Hey, he could maybe end up as great as them but...he hasn't done shit yet. Schilling had won a ring at Arizona. Pedro was a Cy Young winner at Montreal. Clemens was a prodigy(before Boston threw him out....opps).

Great, another one bites the dust

Mussina leaves start in third inning

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Yankees starter Mike Mussina was taken out of Wednesday's game at Minnesota three batters into the third inning.

After allowing consecutive hits to Luis Rodriguez and Alexi Casilla at the start of the inning, Mussina went to a 2-1 count against Luis Castillo, then motioned for someone to come from the dugout. Pitching coach Ron Guidry visited the mound, followed by a trainer and manager Joe Torre, and Mussina walked off after the brief conference.

There was no immediate word on what was wrong with Mussina, who is beginning his 17th major league season. He gave up a walk and a double in the first two innings against the Twins.

Source: Sports Illustrated

Uh oh.

Random Yankee Fan: "Moose is gone! This means we can sign Santana in November!"

Or Clemens in June

Indeed. Indeed....

"George, if you want me in, I want the toupee."

THANK YOU Kyle Farnsworth for coming in and giving up 4 hits and 4 runs. Anyone else STILL missing Tom 'Flash' Gordon right about now?

Well, this day sucked for Yank fans.

What's the story on Mussina?

I think Clemens' price tag just went up.

Klydon, remember that money cheat code on the GTA games, where the money keeps going upwards for many minutes?

Thats Clemens right now.

I think we'll find out tomorrow about the Moose.

I was flicking inbetween ESPN and YES last night...it's pretty clear that the whole baseball tonight crew wants to have Dice-K's love child...

This is the latest poop on Moose, according to Abraham's LoHud Yankee blog:



For those who would like to see a change of scenery for Farnsy - news is that Brad Lidge is available...

I'd still rather have Flash Gordon. I wouldn't mind seeing some kind of trade between the Yankees and Philies involving Gordon AND Lieber. What do you think DJ?

The only good thing about this is that it's April and not August. Hey, I'm just trying to find the silver lining in a VERY big cloud!!!

A-Rod making it look easy

OAKLAND -- Don Mattingly knows a thing or two about being locked in on an offensive tear.

It was 20 years ago that Mattingly's summer home run barrage thrilled Yankees fans, as the first baseman hit round-trippers in eight consecutive July games. The run remains a Major League record.

Now the Yankees bench coach, Mattingly watched this week as Alex Rodriguez went halfway to the big-league record, homering in four straight contests and doing so to all fields. Somewhere within that assault on American League pitching, Mattingly laughed and marveled at just how easy this all seems to come sometimes for A-Rod.

"For him, it takes a lot less than it took for me," Mattingly said. "When you're seeing the ball good, your confidence is just sky-high. You're not worried about getting behind in the count, you're laying off bad pitches, you're not swinging over strikes. When you're in that situation, everything seems like it slows down for you a little bit. Everything's going your way."

Rodriguez seems determined not to discuss his hot start in any terms of length, instead replying to inquiries with quotes that barely illuminate more than your average television highlight. Indeed, as he says, Rodriguez is seeing the ball well and hitting it where it is pitched.

But can it really be that simple?

"I think for him, it can be," said Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long. "What he's saying is that there's not a whole lot of thinking going on right now. He's up there seeing and reacting to it. By the pitches he's hitting -- fastball, curveballs, sliders, changeups -- it looks that way."

Rodriguez set a new Yankees record with six home runs in the first seven games of the season. Just one player, Phillies Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt, had hit more, slugging eight to open the 1976 campaign.

"When you're hot, there's really not a lot to think about," manager Joe Torre said. "You just react. A lot of times, when you're in a little bit of a slump, you over-try and start thinking about it. I think where he is now, he doesn't want to think about it, because it's working so well for him."

Rodriguez has credited his batting cage work with Long as a major reason for the historic start. Long said that Rodriguez has maintained much the same workout regimen from the first day of Spring Training, a seven-week period in Tampa, Fla., when those in uniform noted how much more comfortable and confident Rodriguez looked going into the season.

"I've been at peace for a while," Rodriguez said.

Long said that Rodriguez's daily routine has provided structure for Rodriguez, a player who thrives upon his preparation.

"He's diligent with his work," Long said. "He does it every day; it starts off with the tee, just working on staying square and staying short, and staying compact to the ball while using all fields."

Rodriguez's association with Long, the Yankees' first-year hitting coach, actually began during the winter months, when Long paid a visit to Rodriguez's Florida neighborhood. Catching up with the two-time MVP as he conducted some of his workouts at the University of Miami facilities, Long said the encounter was productive for both parties.

"That was a great opportunity for us to get a head start, not only on Spring Training but the season," Long said. "I think we're seeing some of those dividends. I think it's everything I expected. I know sometimes he's fought himself a little bit [in the past], but he hasn't fought himself at all."

Doug Mientkiewicz -- a teammate of Rodriguez's at Westminster Christian High School in Florida -- briefly stopped by the campus to work out with Rodriguez, or at least attempt to. What Mientkiewicz soon learned was that he could no longer keep up with the player who, in his youth, once served as a speedy, get-on-base leadoff man for Mientkiewicz to drive in.

"You can't really describe it," Mientkiewicz said. "The guy lived, ate and drank conditioning himself. He kills himself every winter, but I would say that the attention to detail this winter was insane. If I did that one day with him, I wouldn't have been able to walk for three weeks."

It's not just the frequency of Rodriguez's home runs that impresses observers. Perhaps even more importantly, Rodriguez has already shown the mind-set that he will hit the ball with authority to all fields, having already homered over every wall during his first eight games at Yankee Stadium and Minnesota's Metrodome.

"No question I'm a better hitter when I'm spraying the ball around," Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez's most memorable home run may have been his game-winning grand slam to dead center field in the Bronx on Saturday, bailing out an ineffective Kei Igawa from suffering his first Major League loss, but the Yankees have found reason to celebrate each and every deep drive.

"He's having fun and he's not forcing it," Mattingly said. "You see it all over -- everything about his game. It's just obviously one of those grooves right now."

In a first-inning display on Tuesday, Rodriguez went down and banished a Boof Bonser changeup to more than a dozen rows deep in the Metrodome's left-field seats, a drive that the former Twin Mientkiewicz opined was one of the three hardest-hit balls he'd ever seen in Minnesota.

Of those three, Mientkiewicz said, Rodriguez owned two.

"You can't pitch him one way, because he doesn't hit to one field," Torre said. "I think that's a big advantage. As a former catcher myself, those guys who hit balls all over the place, they really didn't give you any part of the plate to pitch to.

"I'm not saying he's always going to be this way, but when he's hitting right, it's really tough to find a soft spot. He doesn't have to hit the ball on the screws to do damage."

Torre has said that even Rodriguez's outs are loud, prompting Yankees players to wonder if each and every fly ball to the outfield is destined to clear the wall. It doesn't exactly work that way, of course, but even when Rodriguez doesn't homer, he's been productive, driving an extra-base hit in each one of New York's eight games -- and 11 straight dating back to last season.

Rodriguez did not homer in Wednesday's 5-1 loss, but he drove in the Yankees' lone run with a sacrifice fly and ripped a ground-rule double to left-center off Joe Nathan in the ninth inning.

But as Mientkiewicz said this week, Rodriguez doesn't always need to bash balls up the gaps to be impressive.

Rodriguez's best at-bat during the Minnesota series, Mientkiewicz believes, came in the eighth inning of New York's 10-1 blowout victory on Tuesday. Instead of swinging for the fences and trying to pad his stats, Mientkiewicz said Rodriguez "spit on" some subpar offerings and wound up trotting to first base with a walk.

"To me, that stuck out more in my head than the homers," Mientkiewicz said. "He gets that he's feeling good and he gets that it can change that quick. I talked to him about it: I said that I was more proud he didn't give that at-bat away than the home run you hit."

It isn't as though Rodriguez has never experienced an offensive tear before; no player bearing his career credentials would consider such a hot streak foreign territory.

But it is coming at a time when many are paying attention to Rodriguez, unwrapping the bow on a fresh Major League season and doing so in the spotlight of New York which suddenly has taken to -- once more -- shining favorably upon A-Rod.

As catcher Jorge Posada said earlier in the week, nobody wants to look away when Rodriguez is batting, for fear of missing the next memorable highlight.

"The scary thing is, I don't think he's locked in, full-tilt," Mientkiewicz said. "I guess I have higher expectations of him, but he's getting one hit a night. It happens to be a 700-foot home run, but I've seen him also where he's hitting balls gap-to-gap at will. I just look at it like he's having good at-bats right now."

Source: Yankees

The problem is how you would convince Philadelphia that it would be worth unloading Gordon (who is, unarguably, the better reliever) AND Lieber for what...Farnsworth? No. They'll want prospects. They'd want either Clippard, Whelan, or Sanchez, none of which the Yankees are willing to part with right now.

Our bullpen is still in great shape - Henn is fabulous (though he showed why they converted him to middle relief...he's terrible as a starter/long man), Proctor is decent, Myers is really, really good (even I am shocked), and Vizcaino looks to be the innings-eater as advertised. Bruney is fine as long as he has control.

Farnsworth is just one of the tools that Torre has to use, and it becomes more and more obvious that he can only be used every other game, for some reason. I don't know. I've actually heard rumours on some other boards that he is a drunk, and routinely gets trashed after every game (this comes from fans who frequent NY bars). I can't verify that, so I don't know. But it would explain why he can't pitch the next day - he gets himself loaded after a good outing, and has a wicked hangover the next day. Probably a bit hard to see the plate when you can't even see straight...

Then again, maybe he fatigues a great deal. I can't tell you. What I can tell you is that when he is on, he is really good. I can tell you that Lidge is on the wrong side of 30, and he is rapidly declining in the NL, which is a big steaming pile of red flags for us not to bring him to the AL (plus Houston would want Hughes and a bag of chips).

Gordon (and Lieber) could be an option but I would say not until the summer. If the Phillies are hot and really pushing in their division, no way they give up Flash. However, if they're really struggling, and need some BP help overall, I could see dropping a few guys (Karstens/Rasner/etc.) to get Gordon, but I really don't think it will happen, Irish.

Gordon is too good, and Philly is too good of a team to trade away their closer right now. Plus, Cashman is holding on to his prospects for big offseason deals or, according to the New Yankee Testament, to actually utilize them and make them into Yankees.

Well, considering how the Philly ship is sinking, Yanks could get Gordon in July.

Well, I guess we should root for the Mets then?

Moose and Cashman seem to agree this is a tweak, and that he'll only miss his next start. That's the good news, as Moose pitched really well before he came out.

The bad news?

Darrell Rasner will take his spot in the rotation.

I read that this morning. However, the reporter reminded everyone that that's what they said about Cano's hamstring last year, and he was out for two months!! I hope that it's exactly what they're saying, and that he's back in the rotation ASAP. Btw, I heard that Hughes got his ass handed to him the last time he pitched.

Where did Dr. Cashman get his medical degree?