@Ken_Rosenthal: Sources: #Yankees in serious discussions with Ibanez. He is willing to take less to play for them than he could get elsewhere.

What surprises me the most about this tweet is how Raul is willing to take less money to play for the Bombers. I guess he knows if he’s not in Philadelphia the team that gives him the best chance to win in 2012 is the Yankees. Especially when you consider he’s a perfect fit in that stadium with the short porch.

Only thing else I have to say is Brian Cashman – Git RRRRRR Done!

@JimBowdenESPNxm: There are four teams that are still playing on Johnny Damon to different degree’s: Baltimore, Seattle, Oakland & NYY…surprisingly not TB

I’m a little surprised with Seattle and Oakland showing interest. I don’t see how he would fit in with them especially with the size of their ballparks. He’s no longer the true speed guy he once was. A short porch like Yankees Stadium or a hitter’s park like Camden Yards would suit him best.

I don’t think he’ll sign anytime soon. All of those teams have interest but I doubt any of them are ready to sign they all probably consider him as a backup option. Time to start dropping that asking price Johnny boy.

“I think it will be helpful; I do,” Girardi said at Modell’s Sporting Goods in Times Square. “I think we’ve had a good offseason; I think Brian has done a really good job this offseason in what he’s done. But I think it’s important to our club that you add that other bat. The American League is going to be tough.” (MLB.com)

The three main names that have been thrown out so far are Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui and Raul Ibanez. With the first two holding a place in many fans hearts you’d have to wonder how Ibanez has any chance. All along I’ve said the Yankees shouldn’t live in the past and if there’s a better option then they should exercise it. Thankfully it looks like that one of them won’t be handed a roster spot.

“When you think about Raul Ibanez, he has had success wherever he has [gone],” Girardi said. “There could be other things that could happen; I can’t tell you it is going to be one of those three guys, or anyone. But obviously, we know they know how to play here.”

…

“Obviously, we know what Johnny and Matty have meant to this organization over the years, and how they’ve been successful in New York,” Girardi said. “I’m curious to see how it is all going to shake out.” (MLB.com)

In my opinion the best option would be Raul Ibanez. He struggled in 2011 but still hit 20 homers with the Philadelphia Phillies. I have no doubts in my mind that he can reach that number in Yankees Stadium, remember Citizens Bank Park is just as much a hitters park as the Stadium.

He’d also form a nice platoon at the DH position with Andruw Jones on days that Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixiera and Derek Jeter aren’t getting breathers. See Ibanez can’t hit lefties anymore while Jones still mashes them, sounds like a good match to me.

Like Joe said it will be interesting to see how this plays out. All three can provide a spark to the lineup but we know Cashman’s preference is to trade for a hitter not sign one.

@CAA_Baseball: #Yankees arbitration-eligible RHP Phil Hughes (@PhilHughes65) agrees to 1-year contract for $3.2M + PBs. #MLB

In 2011, Hughes made $2.7 million so with a $3.2 million contract I’d say the team and Hughes found the middle ground. For Phil it was probably in his best interest to accept the deal. With a 5.79 ERA and a 1.49 WHIP over 14 starts he probably would have lost if his salary went before an arbitrator.

I’m very interested in seeing what dollar figures both sides were going to submit if it went that far.

@Buster_ESPN: Oakland Athletics are in negotiations with Bartolo Colon.

@jaysonst: The #Diamondbacks, who still have an opening for a 5th starter, are showing interest in Bartolo Colon.

Both of those teams wouldn’t be bad options for the veteran, especially the A’s. Oakland has an opening at the tail end of their rotation and Colon could fit nicely.

Bartolo struggled mightily down the stretch but is that a surprise it was his first full season since 2005. Most of his struggles though actually came at home at Yankees Stadium. Playing in a park like the Oakland Coliseum could be very beneficial to him. Remember that was the place he had his best start of 2011, pitching a complete game shutout.

If he doesn’t sign with anyone anytime soon though it might be hard for him to get a guaranteed major league deal.

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@JonHeymanCBS: with nakajima and Yankees apart, deal unlikely. hes said to seek a couple mil a yr on multiyear. on deck: eric chavez

The Yankees don’t view Nakajima as much more then a utility player so it’s always been hard to see them offering more then one year. Now for Hiroyuki I don’t blame him one bit for not accepting that and just staying put in a league where he starts and has had success.

Veteran free-agent righthander Roy Oswalt would be an excellent veteran presence in Boston’s starting rotation, and even though the Red Sox are aware that Oswalt would be open to a one-year deal, he still appears to be out of Boston’s price range.

The Sox may have competition from the Yankees on Oswalt, who is also being eyes by the St. Louis Cardinals, where Oswalt would love to pitch. (Nick Cafardo – Boston Globe)

I’m not surprised that Oswalt would “love” to pitch for the defending Major League champions. He had the taste of pitching in a superstar rotation last year and pitched quite well in the fourth spot with no pressure. In St. Louis he’d most likely enjoy the same luxury thanks to Cris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright and Jaime Garcia.

The only question in my mind would be will the Cardinals match the dollar figure he’s looking for. If they are I’d expect him in St. Louis and staying put in the National League.

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“When you think of a player that can either score runs or keep the other team from scoring runs, both of them are very important,” Granderson said. “Those are some of the highest-paid guys, so they’re definitely very important. There’s a reason why they get paid as much as they do and a reason why there’s so much focus on the No. 1 starter on every team. Teams don’t want to face those guys.” (Blogging the Bombers – NY Daily News)

“It’s great,” he said. “You look at a lot of different reasons why the person should be voted in that, and Verlander did anything and everything to help his team win as many ballgames as possible. Being a former teammate of his, a friend of his, I just have to give congratulations to him – not only for that, but for the Cy Young Award. It couldn’t have gone to a better guy.” (Bombers Beat)

I’m glad that one of the players to speak up on the issue was Granderson and it’s not because he’s a Yankee. It’s because he was one of the guys that Verlander beat out.

While some fans think pitchers shouldn’t win this award it shows that the players, well at least some, think otherwise. They don’t take pitchers for granted and Curtis at least knows how important that elite starting pitcher is to a team.