Brian Cashman Lets Paul Byrd Pass to Red Sox

Say what you will about the speculative firing of Mets General Manager Omar Minaya, the next baseball executive to walk the plank in New York may be Brian Cashman of the Mets crosstown rivals.


That gleam reflecting off the forward deck of that sinking Yankee clipper ship on the East River Waterfront is coming from the hardened steel sabre of Yankees Co-Chairman Hank Steinbrenner, who watched as Cashman failed to claim Indians hurler Paul Byrd off the waiver wire, thus allowing Byrd to fall to Boston.


How convenient for the Red Sox, whose precarious five-game wild-card lead over the Yankees had just been been seriously jeopardized by the loss of starter Tim Wakefield to his all-too-familiar shoulder problems.


What can Cashman be thinking?


All the Red Sox had to pay was a bag of balls, six cans of chowder and a David Clyde rookie card for Byrd, a playoff experienced, veteran starter with a 1.46 ERA and 4-0 record since the All-Star break. Though 37, Byrd already all season had been a perfectly serviceable option, but suddenly is even more valuable since discovering he can stop surrendering homers by not tipping his pitches.

This is Cashman's second dubious decision, since he, Gene Michael and Stump Merrill were believed to have ganged up on Steinbrenner to talk him out of signing free agent home run king Barry Bonds.

Cashman opted instead to trade for Xavier Nady of the Pirates. There's nothing particularly , wrong with Nady -- and Bonds comes with his share of baggage -- but Cashman had to give up prospect Jeff Karstens to acquire Nady, and all Karstens has done since leaving the Yankees is pitch 15 scoreless innings, including a two-hit complete game.


Bonds would have cost Cashman nothing more than a major league, season pro-rated minimum of $150,000, yet would have been an unmistakable force in the middle of the lineup, providing a desperately needed spark in the Yankees flat, demoralized lineup.

Hopefully Cashman has an explanation that will become evident in the next few days. It had better be good.

It's Over for Barry Bonds, Yankees, Yogi Berra Says

"It ain't over until it's over," Yankees immortal Yogi Berra has often been quoted as saying, and for unemployed home run king Barry Bonds, it's over.

Berra -- special advisor adviser to the Yankees front office -- said Monday in comments to MLBnewsonline that any chance of Bonds signing with the team is dead.

"They're not going to do anything with it," the former Yankees catcher, coach and manager said flatly at the conclusion of National Hall of Fame induction ceremonies at Cooperstown, N.Y. The returning 1972 Hall of Fame inductee dismissed any speculation to the contrary as "a lot of paper talk."

A confidential clubhouse source at the same said that the speculative signing of Bonds had been a subject under consideration at the urging of team Co-Chairman Hank Steinbrenner, but that it had been rejected largely after the team had weighed the terms of the deal.

Though the source last week said a proposed contract had been drafted, it could not be learned whether it had been tendered to Bonds or his agent Jeff Borris. General Manager Brian Cashman had earlier been reported in The New York Times as virtually confirming Borris had been contacted, saying without elaborating: "I would not say that I have not."

Borris had claimed Bonds was working out and would be ready to face major league pitching in 10 days.

Bonds has maintained his innocence as he he faces trial next March on federal charges of justice obstruction and lying to a grand jury about his alleged abuse of performance enhancing substances.

Bonds had been the subject of vague speculation that he was under consideration to be signed by the Red Sox and Diamondbacks, but had been directly confirmed as being up for discussion last week as Steinbrenner and the Yankees brain trust met in Tampa. But the idea was undermined shortly thereafter when the team traded prospects to acquire Pirates outfielder Xavier Nady.

A key impetus to sign Bonds in the first place had been that no prospects would be be given up to acquire him, as Bonds contract was not renewed last year by the Giants and he was unattached to any team.

Yankees Discussing Barry Bonds, AP Reports

Yankees co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner -- in a statement possibly underscoring an exclusive report last week by MLBnewsonline -- has acknowledged that free agent home run king Barry Bonds will be among the subjects undertaken during a meeting of the team hierarchy in Tampa over the next few days.

"I'll mention it. We'll cover everything. No stone will be left unturned," Steinbrenner told the Associated Press in a report carried by ESPN.

Steinbrenner's statement could be interpreted as suggesting that this would be the first time the Yankees have considered signing Bonds. However, the aforementioned previous report by an MLBnewsonline contributor writing as " The Bronx Bomber" quoted a confidential clubhouse source saying that Bonds has been under consideration in recent days, and that a proposed contract was already being composed.

Before tendering the contract, the team was only waiting to see whether injured right fielder Hideki Matsui would be out for the season, the source said.

Others participating in the talks are co-chairman Hal Steinbrenner, president Randy Levine, general manager Brian Cashman and special adviser and former general manager Gene Michael, the AP said.

Though majority partner George Steinbrenner resides in Tampa, there was no indication he would participate.

A team spokesman previously would neither confirm nor deny the MLBnewsonline report about Bonds, though it was generally ridiculed in legitimate media and across the blogosphere.

Matsui -- on the disabled list with a knee injury since June 23 -- is still attempting a rehabilitation regimen to see whether he can put off surgery until after the season. The surgery would likely sideline him until next spring or later.

Barry Bonds Deal Hinges on Hideki Matsui

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman is in the process or has completed a proposed contract offer for free agent slugger Barry Bonds, an offer that hinges on the medical condition of left fielder Hideki Matsui, a confidential source within the Yankees organization told MLBnewsonline.com.

Having signed former Seattle first baseman Richie Sexson, the Yankees remain perhaps the most logical destination for Bonds, providing a left-handed bat once it is clear Matsui is out for the season, the source said.

"When you hear that Matsui is out for the season, that's when the contract will be offered to Bonds," the source said.

The Yankees would neither confirm nor deny the report. "We have no comment on any reports," team spokeman Michael Margolis told MLBnewsonline.com.

A number of other media outlets, however, cast considerable skepticism on the original report, including the New York Daily News:

"....There's no truth to a pinstriped pursuit of Bonds, according to a Yankee official, who said, "It's all nonsense."

The rumors even made their way down to Wall Street, the official said. The official had calls from friends who work there.

At the same time, Yahoo Sports quoted Bonds agent Jeff Borris saying, "I'm not in negotiations with the Yankees. I'm not in negotiations with anybody." While possibly true, the Borris comment would not necessarily be at variance with the facts as outlined by the confidential source.

Cashman favors signing Bonds to a 1-year deal with options not only because of his demonstrable skills from the left side of the plate, but because he comes without contractual obligation to another team, the source said.

Moreover, the Yankees would not have to give up prospects as trading chips, as the team would be forced to do to acquire other talent being shopped throughout the major leagues, the source said.

The Yankees were awaiting a decision from doctors as to whether Matsui would require surgery that would sideline him for the remainder of the season. The source said that the team had already braced for the worst, and that Bonds was the key option as a replacement.

Source: Bonds-Yankees Deal Imminent

(See New Update 7/18)

Embattled former Giants slugger Barry Bonds has entered into formal contract negotiations with the Yankees, and a consummation of the deal is anticipated forthwith, a confidential clubhouse source told MLBNewsOnline.com.

The incentive-laden deal, being hammered out between Bonds' agent Jeff Borris and general manager Brian Cashman, will well exceed the major league $200,000 minimum but has a number of protective clauses to isolate the Yankees' exposure to the possibility of Bonds missing time due to legal distractions or recurring injury, the source said. (And until he reports that Barry Bonds is climbing the Empire State Building and the Navy is dispatching biplanes, I'm sticking with my source.)

Cashman was reported to have arrived at the decision to sign Bonds during the All-Star break when he determined that the all-time home run leader would be needed to replace injured left fielder Hideki Matsui, who is out indefinely with a knee injury. Cashman was persuaded largely because the team will not have to sacrifice any coveted prospects who had been targeted by various other potential trading partners.


Bonds faces a perjury indictment but is not schedule for trial until March and Borris has assured the team that barring other unforeseen entanglements his client is unencumbered and ready to play.

Yankees Reported to be Persuing Richie Sexson

First, be disabused of a certain, unsavory rumor that out-of-work slugger Richie Sexson has moved into a tree house at the top of a Pacific Coast redwood in protest of his being cut by the Mariners. More to the point, Richie Sexson IS a Pacific Coast redwood tree.

The lumbering, 6-foot-8, 245-pound Northwest native -- tallest position player ever to play in the major leagues -- intends to make a comeback with one of several teams reportedly making offers to him, including the Yankees, according to the New York Post.

"I can tell you we are interested," Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman was quoted as saying.

Sexson has struggled all season, hitting .218 with 11 homers and 30 RBI in 74 games, but is crying all the way to the bank considering he will collect from the Mariners $14 million guaranteed in the last year of his contract.

Yankees Interested in Damaso Marte, Xavier Nady

The jury is out as to whether the Yankees will be buyers or sellers as the July 31 trading deadline approaches.

Right!

Is a bear a Catholic? Does the Pope poop in the woods? Of course the Yankees will be buyers. With $250 million on the line, they can't afford to be anything else.

Those who are still skeptical should watch for a deal with the Pirates, says Daily News columnist Joel Sherman. General Manager Brian Cashman has his eye on lefty reliever Damaso Marte, and outfielder Xavier Nady, says Sherman.

Likewise, the Pirates are believed to be interested in several prospects, key among them young righty Ross Ohlendorf.

Yankees Offer Top Prospect Alan Horne in Trade

The Yankees are readying to showcase top prospect Alan Horne -- currently pitching for Triple A Scranton-Wilkes Barre -- in an attempt to acquire starters Eric Bedard of the Mariners or Ben Sheets of the Brewers, a mid-ranking, confidential clubhouse source told www.MLBnewsonline.com.

Barring setbacks in his performance, Horne likely will be promoted to New York before the end of the month, the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Horne, 25, having fully recovered from Tommy John surgery, has been throwing a lively fastball that occasionally tops out at 97-mph, complementing it with a bonafide, major league curveball and a newly improved changeup.

If unsuccessful in a deal for Bedard or Sheets, Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman will fall back on a lateral negotiation to acquire lefty Randy Wolf from the Padres, according to the source. Cashman is trying to accomplish either deal without fanfare, the source said.

In addition to Horne, an unnamed pitcher and middle infielder at Short A Staten Island are also among the components of the transaction, said the source.

The New Yankee Way?

What is going through the minds of Brian Cashman and George's heirs? Have they shunned the traditional Yankee stance? Where are the Roger Clemenses, Randy Johnsons and Orlando Hernandezes who used to represent the very epitome of acquiring successful, veteran Yankees hurlers?

Why didn't Cashman go after Johan Santana as was characteristic of the Yankees' operating philosophy of the recent past (was there an unwritten agreement made with Theo Epstein)?

Yes, the Bronx Bombers still have hopes for graybeards the likes of Mike Mussina and Andy Pettitte. But the Yankees starting pitching staff is now comprised of youngsters such as Ian Kennedy and Phil Hughes; who will probably be joined by Joba Chamberlain by mid-June.

The New York sports media maintain that it is the firm belief of Cashman that the Yankee pitching philosophy needed change. Accordingly, Cashman needed to cultivate and/or acquire younger arms (such as the three prospects previously mentioned). But given the strength of the Red Sox and the improvement of both the Rays and Blue Jays, will 2008 be the year that the Yankees' brass forego a run to the playoffs to concentrate on developing their young, talented stud pitchers for 2009 and beyond? It's almost that time to find out and hopefully, we will soon know.

One thing is certain: The supposed Clemenses and Johnsons of 2005-7 neither lived up to expectations nor brought the Yanks to the summit of the American League championship.