Yanks get Mark Teixeira

[HoustonGM]

Well, if they don't then they're f'ed.

Not at all.

[defense]

What an amazing offseason so far for the Yankees. We upgraded our rotation, and added another power hitter(something we only had one of last year--Giambi isn't really a true power hitter anymore). Not to mention we added a good "Chone Figgins" type guy in Nick Swisher.

Best part of it is that our offseason isn't even over yet. Let's add a good bench bat

[200tang]

Well, if they don't then they're f'ed.

anything can happen in a season.

[koolzach1]

Oh well? I'd rather trade unproven talent that may never fulfill itself for a hitter like Prince who has proven himself.

Yeah, but it'd be kinda ironic. The Yanks trade for Nady and Marte by giving up prospects and people (especially Sox fans) say, "same old Yanks, trading prospects/trying to buy a championship."

Also, I am not sure how well Prince will hold up... I mean, the guy is freaking huge and historically big/fat position players don't hold up as well. Prince's father, McGuire, Big Papi, (even Howard has shown signs of regression). Still, I would be willing to bet that Prince is still a stud by in early 30's.

[koolzach1]

Not at all.

Well... I mean Big Papi looks done (may not be, but he is a huge question mark), Lowell is a major question mark, Bay is good, but we'll see how well he does next year, Drew is a question mark (inconsistent), and Youk just came off of a career year, but will he repeat that?... I mean, what else power they got?

[OregonDuck1989]

anything can happen in a season.

Exactly. Let's play the games first before we hand someone a trophy and call the Yankees supreme beings of baseball.

[YEAH DAAAAWG]

Well, if they don't then they're f'ed.

Again, lol. This fascination that the Yankees are suddenly the best team around is hilarious to me. The Yankees are no better than either the Red Sox or the Rays, but they're probably equal with the both of them. All the team's have killer pitching and hitting on paper. The one thing the other two have that the Yankees really don't is fielding, which Teixiera helps substantially, but it still isn't on par with the Red Sox and Rays.

If anything, the Rays have the potential to blow the rest of the division out of the water. I think a lot of this season's divisional race in the east hinges on how B.J. Upton and Evan Longoria mature and improve. If they take big steps towards their full potential, then it'll be a race for second place between the Red Sox and Yankees.

This is all very subjective at this point anyways. Anything could happen between now and April, and what we're talking about is all on paper, and it's never that simple when it comes to playing baseball in New York.

I'm honestly intrigued to see what, if anything, the Red Sox will do to try and counter some of these moves by the Yankees. I have a hard time believing that the Red Sox will just stand idly by while the Yankees add Teixeira, Sabathia and Burnett. The Red Sox also seem to be the type of team that "thinks" in a way that if they didn't win the World Series that they have to do something to get better. It's not there M.O. to overpay greatly for anyone, so I don't think they'll do that, but I think they'll definitely be on the prowl for a slugger, and I think Fielder makes the most sense.

[HoustonGM]

Well... I mean Big Papi looks done (may not be, but he is a huge question mark), Lowell is a major question mark, Bay is good, but we'll see how well he does next year, Drew is a question mark (inconsistent), and Youk just came off of a career year, but will he repeat that?... I mean, what else power they got?

They scored the 3rd most runs in the majors this year despite being in the middle of the pack (12th) in home runs (mostly because they were 3rd in slugging, lots of double hitters).

I don't expect Ortiz to return to his peak level, but I think he'll do better next year than this past year. Maybe a 135 OPS+. I'm not counting on too much from Lowell, but I think he'll have an average year. Drew is actually very consistent, OPS+'s since 2003:

132
157
145
126
105
137

There's one outlier there - his first year in Boston in which I remember hearing about him having some personal life issues that may have affected him. One down year doesn't make him inconsistent. His only issue is staying on the field. When he's on the field, he's an excellent bat. In his last 5 years, he's played 140+ games 3 times. The 2 times he didn't were last year, and 2005 where he missed the rest of the season due to a freak injury (hit by pitch if I recall correctly).

Youk did have the best year of his career, but it's not out of the question that he just simply improved, and it's not just a "career year." I don't think he'll repeat it, but I easily see him putting up a 130 OPS+.

Jason Bay will easily repeat his 2008. Again, his 2007 is coloring people's views. Since his rookie year in 2004, his OPS+'s have been:

132
150
138
93
134

That 93 was 2007, in which he battled knee injuries all year long if I recall correctly. He's good for a roughly 130 OPS+.

Add in Pedroia who has a good chance of improving, a full season of Jed Lowrie instead of the black hole of suck that is Julio Lugo, improvement from Ellsbury...This team is every bit as excellent as it was last year.

[Arctic Blast]

Congrats to the Yanks. I gotta be honest, though, every time I see yet another player sign with the same massive spending teams, it's one more nail in the coffin for the cause of me giving a crap about baseball. It's just boring. Sure, you can have the smaller markets compete...for awhile anyway. Then their talent inevitably comes up for free agency and gets bought up by the teams with all the resources. Sorry, but it's a joke.

[JayC]

Sobriety, rationality, common sense, and logic.

Yep, the Red Sox exhibited all of those characteristics in trying to sign Teixeira to a lowball $170 million deal. Then the Yankees went all irrational and threw common sense and logic out the window in offering him $180 million.

[HoustonGM]

Yep, the Red Sox exhibited all of those characteristics in trying to sign Teixeira to a lowball $170 million deal. Then the Yankees went all irrational and threw common sense and logic out the window in offering him $180 million.

C'mon man. Don't inject common sense and logic into this!

[200tang]

yep, the red sox exhibited all of those characteristics in trying to sign teixeira to a lowball $170 million deal. Then the yankees went all irrational and threw common sense and logic out the window in offering him $180 million.

wrrryyyy!!!!

[Alloutwar]

He could be referring to the fact that the Yankees already had the two highest-paid position players in the market...or that the Yankees just commited a quarter-billion to two free agents...or that the Yankees traded for Nick Swisher to man 1B post-Giambi...

Even the Nats were offering in the $165-180mil range, so I don't think he has an argument that the Yankees agreeing to that number was irrational.

Anyway - in the Christmas spirit, I won't harp on Yankees anymore, I have enough here in the office to beat up during the season. Congrats on winning a great free agent.

[HoustonGM]

He could be referring to the fact that the Yankees already had the two highest-paid position players in the market...or that the Yankees just commited a quarter-billion to two free agents...

The joys of having the biggest revenue stream...

or that the Yankees traded for Nick Swisher to man 1B post-Giambi...

Swisher was acquired more for his versatility (being able to play all 3 outfield spots PLUS first), than to be Giambi's replacement.

[actionjackson]

Our lineup is going to be epic next year

1. Damon-LF
2. Jeter-SS
3. Rodriguez-3B
4. Teixeira-1B
5. Swisher-CF
6. Nady-RF
7. Matsui-DH
8. Posada-C
9. Cano

Sabathia
Burnett
Wang
Chamberlain
Pettitte(?)/Hughes/etc.

Rivera
(rest of bullpen who I don't feel like typing out right now)

The last time I checked the World Series is not handed out to the team that has the best offseason or has the best team on paper (which is still, like it or not very much open to debate). Sabathia and Teixeira are excellent signings, but I wouldn't put Burnett in that category. He's not pitching for a contract this year, and he is an emotional powderkeg to put it mildly, who has now placed himself on baseball's biggest stage where all the players are under huge pressure and every minute detail about them is analyzed to death. He had trouble with the Toronto media; he ain't seen nothing yet.

Posada will be 37 and is definitely heading downhill. He still has a very good bat, but with the general trend towards the stolen base in baseball, his arm is a liability. Matsui, Damon, and Jeter will be 35. Jeter is a very good hitter, defensively not. So. Much. Matsui appears to have a "health rating" Mogully speaking of around 50 after being perfectly healthy his first three years and looks like his best years are behind him. Good bat when healthy. Damon's horrible arm and declining range are not as much of a liability, but you've gotta figure that if they brought back Rico Carty at his current age of 69, he would have the green light to score from second on a single to left. Very good bat though. Congratulations Xavier Nady on playing your first full season as a regular at age 29. Can you be as effective at age 30? Rodriguez - best player in the game today. Teixeira - probably the best at his position today. If you want to go ahead and put Swisher in CF be my guest. He probably played there so much last year due to the presence of Konerko and Dye more than anything else like um defensive proficiency. Cano is still young at 26 and I think he can bounce back with the bat, but having him and Jeter as your keystone combo defensively conjures up those grainy images of the "Keystone Cops".

Awesome, so far durable, LH starting pitcher in Yankee Stadium - what's not to like about Sabathia? Discussed Burnett already, hopefully the new stadium has a state of the art training room for him to spend at least 1/3 of the season in when "the sharks" in his elbow start biting him. Wang is a mystery to me. So many balls are put into play against him (most of them on the ground) and yet he continues to have success despite the sieve up the middle. Could it be that his devastating sinker results in ground balls that are easy enough for even a "weekend warrior"? I'm at a loss to explain it. Chamberlain has filthy stuff and at 23 along with Hughes 23, Kennedy 24, and the young arms in the bullpen represents the remnants of the famous youth movement the Yankees were about to embark upon (Yeah, right). Rivera is now 39 and every year the "experts" say he's done and every year he makes them eat crow, particularly last year.

There's no denying that the 2009 Yankees appear to be better than the 2008 Yankees. The proof will be in the pudding and even a playoff spot is not as much of a slam dunk as justifiably excited and exuberant Yankee fans would have you believe. They're calling the city to make sure the "Canyon of Heroes" parade route is booked for reveling in the ecstasy of the 27th World Series title. Down boys and girls: let the first pitch be thrown in anger in the toughest division in baseball.