Proctor on the road to recovery

Tyler Kepner wrote a great piece on Scott Proctor in today’s New York Times.  In it, Proctor reveals he is a recovering alcoholic.

Proctor visited Dr. James Andrews, who described to him the state of his elbow ligament in one word: mush. Just before reconstructive surgery May 12, Proctor said, he made a bigger life decision. He quit drinking.

“I was miserable for so long, because I was living two different lifestyles,” Proctor said Saturday. “I just got to the point where enough was enough.”

Proctor said he could not recall a specific game or moment that he ruined because of alcohol. But too many late nights and too many beers caught up with him, he said, and by the time of his trade, it was obvious he had lost his chance to stay.

“When your body’s that dry from all the booze, it’s got to have an effect,” Proctor said. “You can’t be consistent when you’re doing that kind of stuff.”

It is good to hear that he is getting his life together.

At the end of the piece, Proctor says he would love to play for the Yankees again, as his contract expires at the end of this season.  He was hoping to speak with Brian Cashman, but he didn’t make the trip down to Florida.

”I pretty much have a new arm,” he said.

Update – 11:48 a.m.: Mark Feinsand also wrote about Proctor in today’s Daily News.

Posada to be activated tomorrow; Melky update

Brian Cashman (via Peter Abraham) said Jorge Posada will be activated tomorrow.  Posada was placed on the disabled list on May 5 with a right hamstring strain.  He was hitting .312 with five home runs and 20 RBI in 77 at-bats.

Melky Cabrera will not be placed on the disabled list, but he won’t play in the Cleveland series either.  This means that the Yankees will only have three outfielders on the roster.

Also included in Abraham’s update was that Xavier Nady went 2-for-5 with a home run against Blue Jays’ prospects.  It will be nice to get him back.

Swisher is making me look bad, really bad

Was this a knee-jerk reaction or what?  After six at-bats back in April, I started my “Draft Nick Swisher for starting RF” campaign.

Yes, Swisher had a great April, belting seven home runs and hitting to a tune of a 1.144 OPS.  As great as his April was, his May has been impossibly awful.

He’s batting .119/.291/.224 in May compared to his April numbers of .312/.430/.714.  Yes, his slugging percentage is down .490 points!  What??

To say he’s been exposed would be a severe understatement.  It’s unfortunate because for a long while it looked like the Yankees stole him away from the Chicago White Sox for just the incompetent Wilson Betemit.

As quick as I was to anoint Swisher as the savior, I won’t be as quick to bury him.  There is talent there.  He has just proven he’s not an everyday player.  Xavier Nady needs to come back soon, and Brian Cashman looks pretty good right now in deciding not to trade either of them last offseason.

Cashman talks Wang, Bruney

Chien-Ming Wang and Brian Bruney both pitched in Scranton today, as discussed below.  Brian Cashman was on hand and spoke to Chad Jennings after.

First, on Wang:

“Performance-wise he was terrific," Cashman said. "This was a much better hitting club. Columbus is a much better offensive club than the team he was facing last time, but his stuff was better last time, to be honest, although he performed great in both outings. He didn’t have the slider that he had last time. His changeup was better today than last time. His fastball velocity was a little bit lower this time than it was last time.

At the same time, he handled the lineup and got a lot of groundballs. Facing guys like Hafner kind of tells you a little something you want to know. I think he had some groundouts and that broken-bat single to center. I know Hafner is on a rehab assignment and he’s a guy who can really do some damage if you’re making mistakes, not making some pitches, and (Wang) made his pitches. That tells you a lot.”

And Bruney:

“He looked healthy, which is the biggest thing for him,” Cashman said. “Unlike Wang, he’s coming off of an elbow injury, so you want to see health. And I saw health.”

Wang likely to pitch once more in AAA; Jeter update

Chien-Ming Wang will likely pitch one more start for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, according to Brian Cashman via Chad Jennings.

“I think everybody should assume that we’ll keep going down here unless we decide otherwise," Cashman said. "So if you want to look for an assumption, that’s the way to go.”

Meanwhile, Derek Jeter hopes to play tonight after missing last night’s game with an oblique injury that first occurred during the previous homestand.

“It’s just sore but it hasn’t gotten any better,” Jeter said. “I’ve pulled that muscle before and been on the disabled list two or three weeks. I’m trying to avoid that.”

Adding injury to insult

As Peter Abraham succinctly put it:

Wang to DL, Robertson coming.

Ransom on DL (quad). No word on who is coming.

Bruney has an injured elbow. Tests tomorrow.

That answers the question as to where Bruney was.  Ransom was injured stealing second base.  I would guess they’re disabling Wang with a “tired arm” or something.  More speculation: I’d say Robertson will remain up with the team until Tuesday, when Phil Hughes gets the call to start against Detroit.

Update – 12:30 a.m.: Abraham has more.  Apparently Bruney’s elbow was bothering him on Wednesday, which is why he didn’t pitch in the 14-inning game.  He gave up one run on two hits Tuesday night.

Ransom has some sort of a tear in his quad.  The Yankees will need to make a 40-man roster move when calling up an infielder tomorrow.

Regarding Wang, the Yankees said Wang’s issues are hip-related, stemming from his foot injury last year.  According to Brian Cashman, Wang will need two weeks of physical therapy.

Welcome back, jerk

   

Mike Mussina to Brian Cashman:

“Brian, you're not paying me less than you're paying Carl Pavano,” Mussina said.  “Don't insult me.”

Yankees make six roster moves

Bryan Hoch is reporting the Yankees have made six cuts before this afternoon's game in Tampa.

Phil Hughes, Steven Jackson and Anthony Claggett have been optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Humberto Sanchez was sent to Double-A Trenton.

Also, Jason Johnson and Sergio Mitre were sent to the minor-league camp across the street from Steinbrenner Field.

General Manager Brian Cashman said there aren't enough innings to go around this late in camp.
-----

I've thought all along that Hughes would begin the season in Scranton, so I'm not shocked by this. If he pitches as well as he has this spring (12.1 IP, 3 ER, 8 K), he'll be back up sooner rather than later. His seven walks are a bit of a concern, but he'll be able to hone his craft.

Cashman denies telling Giambi to use steroids

SI's Jeff Pearlman is releasing a book titled "The Rocket that Fell to Earth," obviously about Roger Clemens. However, there is an anecdote about Brian Cashman and Jason Giambi that has angered the Yankees' GM. Take a look:

The book said that when Giambi went through a slump in the 2002 season, his first with the Yankees, Cashman was heard yelling at a television in the Yankees’ clubhouse during a game. Citing “one New York player,” the book said that Cashman screamed, “Jason, whatever you were taking in Oakland,” get back on it.

The book said that Cashman then added, “Please!”

In a telephone interview Thursday night, Cashman said that the anecdote described in the book never happened.

“That is completely false,” Cashman said.

He added, in reference to the author: “This guy never even called me and asked me if it was true. You think he would have done some fact-checking.”
...

“The source was a Yankee player who was an eyewitness and in whom I have 100 percent confidence,” Pearlman said.

But he acknowledged that he should have called Cashman for his reaction. “He’s totally right,” Pearlman said. “I didn’t call him for comment and I should have.

“But that doesn’t mean the story isn’t correct.”

As an (aspiring) journalist, I hope that Pearlman did his homework here. I wouldn't be surprised if this story turned out to be true, but there's really no way to prove anything here. It's still an interesting revelation.

Borderline criminal: Yankees knew about hip injury last year

Tyler Kepner stuns us by reporting that the Yankees, specially Brian Cashman, knew about Alex Rodriguez's hip injury LAST YEAR.

Cashman said the Yankees discovered an irregularity in Rodriguez’s hip last May when he underwent a magnetic resonance imaging exam for a right quadriceps injury. By June or July, the hitting coach Kevin Long said he could notice subtle changes in Rodriguez’s hitting, notably in his right foot — the back one in his stance.

The foot was not pivoting fully, Long said, and as a result, Rodriguez could not completely turn his waist and clear his hips. This caused his bat to drag and prevented him from driving through the ball and generating maximum power.

“Speed-wise, to catch up to 95-, 96-mile-an-hour pitches, you’ve basically got to get your hips through,” Long said. “It affects bat speed, power, balance. From a technical standpoint, it affects quite a few things. But he’s so gifted and so talented that he made do with what he had.”
...

Cashman said Rodriguez had always had stiff hips, and there was no need to examine him after the season. The condition was so minor, Cashman said, that Rodriguez did not seek treatment from team trainers last season.

“That’s why I termed it as an incidental finding,” Cashman said. “If you took an M.R.I. right now of everybody in our clubhouse, you are going to find in many of them — 20 percent, 30 percent, 40 percent — the same finding. Just because they have it doesn’t mean it’s a problem. Just because you have it doesn’t mean you need surgery.

“So that’s why you put it in the file,” he said. “You treat the patient, not the symptom. You don’t treat the M.R.I. You treat the patient.”

That's some way to treat your $275 million investment, huh? I'm absolutely shocked and appalled by this news.

And now the team still wants him to play, even with the torn labrum in his hip. Every time he dives to his right at third, we'll cringe. Every time he slides into second, we'll cringe. Every time he tries to beat out an infield hit, we'll cringe. He needs surgery. Give it to him while he can rejoin the team in the middle of the season. If they keep waiting, he'll just injure it worse in June or July and he'll be gone until next February.

A-Rod to try rest and rehab

Update - 4:15 p.m.: More from Peter Abraham:

UPDATE, 3:51 p.m.: Surgery, if needed, would knock him out four months.

The cyst was large and the hope was having it drained will lessen the stiffness Rodriguez felt.

They’re going to cut down on his time in spring training in the hopes he can get through the season.

This is a similar injury to what Mike Lowell had. Cashman refused to say what degree the tear was.

UPDATE, 4:07 p.m.: Cashman just said A-Rod will need the surgery at some point. The tear won’t just heal.

They’re hoping he can get through the season then have it. So this could be an issue all year.

Just have the surgery now. Don't be ridiculous.


Original post:

Brian Cashman just addressed the media regarding Alex Rodriguez.

This from Peter Abraham:

Yankees GM Brian Cashman just said Alex Rodriguez has a torn hip labrum and cyst.

They’re trying rest and rehab. The cyst was drained. The hope is he’ll keep playing.

Didn't they try this with Jorge Posada? I understand it's not a shoulder, but there's no sense in risking further injury, right?

ESPNEWS: A-Rod has torn labrum

I found this report while searching on Twitter.

As posted on KFFL:

ESPNews reports New York Yankees 3B Alex Rodriguez (hip) has a torn labrum in his hip, according to his agent, Scott Boras.

And here's a read-up of the acetabular labrum from Wikipedia:

The acetabular labrum (glenoidal labrum of the hip joint or cotyloid ligament in older texts) is a ring of cartilage that surrounds the acetabulum (the socket of the hip joint).

Its function is to deepen the acetabulum, making it more difficult for the head of the femur to slip out of place (sublux).

Brian Cashman will address the media soon, so I will post any updates if necessary.

Torre rips Yankees in new book

Joe Torre is releasing a tell-all book on Feb. 3 called "The Yankee Years." In it, he apparently pulls no punches, ripping the organization and some players.

From Bill Madden:

According to a new book by Sports Illustrated baseball writer Tom Verducci, Torre was a bitter man by the time he left the Yankees in October of 2007, and he takes a few rips at the team that he led for 12 seasons.

In "The Yankee Years," due to be released on Feb. 3, Torre describes general manager Brian Cashman as a less than supportive ally who betrayed him on several fronts, and says that his star player, Alex Rodriguez, was often referred to by his teammates as "A-Fraud" and was obsessed with his perceived rival, shortstop Derek Jeter.
...

According to a source familiar with the book, Torre does not step out of character. He simply recites the facts as he saw them and does not unfairly disparage the Yankees. As has been reported, he reiterates the claim that Cashman did not stand up for him at the crucial meeting with the Steinbrenners in Tampa as the 2007 season wound down and the Yankee brass discussed whether to bring him back or not, even though publicly Cashman had let it be known that he wanted Torre back as manager.

According to the source familiar with the book, Torre confronted Cashman about his role in the meeting and the Yankee GM confirmed to him that he had offered no opinions to the Steinbrenners on whether they should upgrade their offer from the one-year deal to the two-year deal Torre wanted.

That all said, there has to be some positive parts in the book. The media will only focus on alleged rifts between the organization and manager, but there were also four championships in five years during this time.

But from this report, it appears as if Torre is bitter at the team that essentially resurrected his career.

I don't read many books (Jane's book is in the mail), but I may have to read this one. If anything, Torre and his publisher are doing a great job of promoting it.

Torre will appear on "The Late Show with David Letterman" and sign books at the Yogi Berra Museum on Feb. 3.

More the Swisher/Nady trade front

Tyler Kepner has the latest news regarding a possible Nick Swisher or Xavier Nady trade.

That leaves Swisher and Nady, and Cashman said there was no preference for trading one over the other; it would depend on what a team offers in return. For several reasons, though, it seems more prudent to hold on to Swisher and dangle Nady.

Swisher, a 28-year-old switch-hitter, is two years younger than Nady and is signed for three more seasons at roughly $21 million. Nady, 30, is a right-handed hitter who is eligible for free agency after the season. He is represented by Scott Boras, who rarely agrees to a long-term deal before a player explores the open market.

Nady had a better season than Swisher last year, batting .305 with 25 home runs and 97 runs batted in — all career highs. Swisher had the worst of his five seasons, hitting just .219 with 24 homers and 69 R.B.I. But Swisher’s on-base percentage, .332, was actually better than Nady’s .320 figure over two months with the Yankees.

In that way, Swisher profiles better as the kind of player the Yankees seek for their lineup. He saw an average of 4.53 pitches per plate appearance last season, leading the major leagues in that category. Nady averaged 3.65 pitches per plate appearance. Among Yankees, only Robinson Canó (3.35 pitches) was worse.

I've stated many times that I'd like to keep both, but Kepner makes a compelling argument to trade Nady. Again, it's all contingent on what the Yankees get in return.

Meanwhile, Kepner also has news from Brian Cashman regarding the progress of Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera - both coming off offseason surgeries. Cashman said that fact "concerns me" and that "Posada is just throwing at 90 feet on flat ground and Mo's not even throwing yet."

Posada won't be able to catch the spring training opener on Feb. 25 but remains on track to be ready for the season opener. Rivera, on the other hand, never throws in January, so this is par for the course.

Reviving a dead issue: The Joba Debate

"Reviving the Joba (Chamberlain) Debate," by Justin Sablich (via Greg at Sliding Into Home).

Why? Why bring up this issue again? It's been understood for a while that Chamberlain would go into spring training as a starter. We don't need to discuss this any further.

Let's examine Mr. Sablich's points.

Should Pettitte return, is there any reason to believe (other than injuries) that the Yankees cannot survive with a rotation of C.C. Sabathia, Chien-Ming Wang, A.J. Burnett, Pettitte and Hughes?

Chamberlain in the bullpen would most likely make each starting pitcher better by shortening his starts. Fans concerned about Sabathia burning out in September or Burnett breaking down over the long haul could rest a little easier. A Chamberlain bridge would also make life easier for Rivera, who turned 39 in November and may not be able to crank out a two-inning save with as much ease as in the past.

The Yankees could probably survive with that rotation, but having Andy Pettitte and Chamberlain round out that rotation is better than Pettitte and Hughes alternative. This, of course, is contingent on Pettitte accepting the Yankees' offer.

CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Chamberlain miss bats and are intimidating figures on the mound when they're on their respective games. Why try to break that up?

In addition to keeping others healthy, Chamberlain could be healthier by remaining a reliever. There’s no questioning his effectiveness as a starter. His numbers as a starter last season (2.75 ERA and 10.3 K/9) were almost identical to his stats as a reliever (2.31 ERA and 11.1 K/9). But his shoulder injury came about as a starter, and fewer innings could only help him keep his shoulder strong.

Maybe his shoulder injury came about as a result of his transition from a reliever to a starter?

A popular argument for having Chamberlain start is that you should not waste a player with such ability as a reliever because the more innings he can pitch the better. Wouldn’t you rather have 230 innings of Chamberlain rather than 90?

The problem with that argument is that you can say the same thing about Boston’s Jonathan Papelbon or a number of other great relievers. Are the Red Sox wasting Papelbon’s talent by limiting his innings and not converting him back to a starter?

Yes, I would rather have 230 innings out of Chamberlain rather than 90, thank you very much. He'll most likely have an innings limit this season, but 230 innings a couple of years down the line sounds very nice. It's always better to have more than less.

If the Yankees used Chamberlain to shorten games to six innings, is that really a waste of talent? It sounds more like an incredible advantage to me.

Piggy-backing off of what Greg said, having a good bullpen is nice, but a rotation of aces is even better.

The "Joba Debate" will always linger for as long as he pitches. If he struggles or gets hurt as a starter, Yankees fans will immediately ask, "Why wasn't he in the bullpen this whole time?" Chamberlain was drafted and groomed to be a starter. Because Brian Cashman has always struggled in building a bullpen, Chamberlain had to put his development on hold to save the Yankees. He is not a reliever, nor should he be in 2009, 2010, or anywhere else in the future.

Cashman denies Manny report

Last night, we heard from some Dominican paper that Manny Ramirez was on the verge of signing a three-year, $75 million deal. It just didn't make sense that he'd sign this early.

Luckily, Bryan Hoch was text messaging Brian Cashman and relayed this report:

Just swapped text messages with Brian Cashman, who wrote two words to splash some cold water on the Impacto Deportivo report of Manny Ramirez receiving a three-year, $75 million offer from the Yankees:

"Not true."

Couldn't have said it any better myself.

Boras called Yankees about Teixeira

We learned yesterday that the Yankees were back to talking Mark Teixeira. However, as Kat O'Brien reported this morning, it was Scott Boras who initiated the talks.

One source said Boras gave Cashman an estimate of what it would cost to land Teixeira, a superb defensive and offensive first baseman. The ballpark figure reportedly was about $22 million to $23 million per year on an eight-year contract, for a total of $180 million to $185 million.

The source said Boras wanted to give the Yankees an opportunity to make an offer. The Yankees currently do not have an offer on the table for Teixeira.
...

Cashman met personally with Teixeira and Boras before the winter meetings but reportedly made no offer. A source said the Yankees have not ruled out making an offer for Teixeira, saying: "We're debating it. Some in the organization want to do it."

"Some in the organization want to do it."

My guess is that should read: "Hank and Hal Steinbrenner want to do it."

O'Brien goes on to suggest the Yankees will remain on the sideline of these talks. She also said Brian Cashman said earlier this week that the Yankees plan to have a lower payroll this year.

So there you have it. The Yankees are debating offering Teixeira a contract.

Cameron trade talks off

Kat O'Brien from Newsday spoke to Brewers GM Doug Melvin about the Mike Cameron trade talks. He didn't seem too optimistic about getting something done.

"Nothing new. At this point, I don't anticipate it's something that we would (do). ... I haven't talked to Brian (Cashman) since last week."

Melvin said they had originally looked at moving Cameron to gain some flexibility on the pitching front but that is no longer such a need.

Said Melvin: "I like Mike Cameron a lot. He means a lot in our clubhouse. He's a very positive presence. He's a good player. He's played on a lot of playoff teams -- maybe more than anybody. He's got a lot of intangibles. (A trade is) not something that we're pushing at this time."

Good think I didn't make a hat for Cameron yet.

The Yankees have devoted much of their time since the Winter Meetings to finalizing the contracts of their pitching acquisitions. They have also been making a push for Manny Ramirez's services. It's not surprising Brian Cashman hasn't talked to Melvin in a week.

'Going hard' at Manny

Mark Feinsand is reporting that the Yankees' interest in Manny Ramirez is growing. He cites a baseball official who says the Yankees are "going hard" after Ramirez, and could be willing to offer him a three-year contract between $22 and $25 million per year.

Feinsand also has reports from another source, saying Brian Cashman is skeptical about signing Ramirez, but the brothers Steinbrenner are on board.

I know some of you don't want Ramirez at all, but for those who do, do you think three years is too many? Personally, I'd only sign him for two. Three years is pushing it in my eyes.

Cashman's breakfast

Brian Cashman was hungry for some cereal earlier this week in Las Vegas. Little did we know that some pieces of Alpha-Bits would cause him to have an epiphany, dramatically altering the Yankees' starting rotation.