Kuzul

After 17 seasons, Jim Edmonds decided to call it a career. Edmonds, 40, agreed to a Minor League contract with the St. Louis Cardinals, but his Achilles tendon injury wouldn’t allow him to go any further with his career.

“Although I feel that I can still play and contribute, the risk of permanent injury is too much for me to chance,” said Edmonds. “As much as I regret this announcement, I feel that it is for the best.”

Edmonds played for six ball clubs that included the Angles, Cardinals, Padres, Cubs, Brewers, and Reds. He didn’t just have a regular career but a good career. Throughout his career, the four time All-Star won eight Gold Gloves and a World Series. He was most known for his skills with the glove in the outfield with his amazing catches, like the diving Willie Mays type catch in centerfield just to name one example.

I’m sure many of you have seen most of his catches live at the game, on TV, or on the internet. One thing is for sure, Edmonds was a fun guy to watch in the field. He’s never won an MVP, but to a lot of us, we’ll agree that he was one of the most exciting outfielders in the game to watch.

Not only was he a terrific fielder, but he was a great hitter as well. He retires after 2,011 games with a .284 batting average, 1,199 RBIs, 1,251 runs scored, only seven home runs shy of 300, and 51 hits shy of 2,000. They aren’t exactly Stan Musial numbers, but fans are just as thankful for what “Jimmy Ballgame” has done for their respected  organizations. Edmonds may not make the Hall Of Fame, but he still had a great career. As one can say, he can ride out in the sunset a champion.

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As Spring Training approaches, talk about Albert Pujols leaving St. Louis and testing free agency after the 2011 season has arisen.

Where should Albert go? How much will he be worth? Well, all that can be answered is he will be worth a lot. As to where he will go, that remains a mystery—that is, if he goes anywhere at all.

Would it be strange if he stays in St. Louis? Maybe. Stranger things have happened—like Cliff Lee signing for less money to go to Philly, for example.

One thing’s for certain: NL players, especially pitchers, are hoping he chooses to go either to the AL or to their team.

This talk about Pujols’ departure has come about because he is in the last year of his contract with the Cardinals and an extension agreement could not be made by Pujols’ deadline on Wednesday.

This leaves those “will he stay or will he go” questions up in the air and leaves players and fans wondering what the future holds for the 31-year-old first baseman.

So back to the questions. Where will Pujols end up with if he leaves the Cardinals?

Well, there are a number of teams who are in need of a first baseman, and there are probably 30 teams who just want this hard-hitting, three-time MVP first baseman.

You have to be crazy not to want, arguably, the best player of the era. This brings us to the big-market teams like the Yankees and Red Sox, who are for sure going to be willing to pay top dollar for Pujols.

Because the Red Sox will most likely go all in for the first baseman, it is important for the Yankees to try to steal him off the market. I say this because the Red Sox will be a bit more desperate for Pujols.

They could move Kevin Youkilis to third with the departure of Adrian Beltre this offseason and have first open for Pujols—and of course, have David Ortiz DH like he normally does. No change there. It’s that simple.

It’s a little bit harder for the Yankees to fit Pujols in the mix. You have two great players at the corners already. They will always keep Alex Rodriguez, and you surely don’t want to get rid of a glove in Mark Teixeira, do you?

Tex has become one of the best, if not THE best defensive first baseman in the league. His bat isn’t quiet either.

So where would they fit Pujols? Would a position change for Pujols be out of the question? I don’t think so. Albert has played 309 games in the outfield in his career with 269 of them in left.

Basically, the biggest reason the Yankees should get him is so the Red Sox don’t get him—plain and simple. You may think that’s a little childish, but this kind of stuff has been going on for years. Both ways too.

The Yankees picked up A-Rod so the Red Sox couldn’t get him. If you remember clearly, A-Rod was a shortstop when the Yankees picked him up, and obviously the Yankees have a shortstop in Derek Jeter, so they converted A-Rod into a third baseman—and a damn good one at that.

The Red Sox picked up Japanese pitching phenom Daisuke Matsuzaka so the Yankees wouldn’t. If I can remember correctly, they spent $50 million just to go to Japan and talk to him. But in their defense, you can never have too much pitching.

Basically, a lot of these players are being picked up not only because they’re needed but for defensive purposes in the roster also. GMs can play defense too.

I think the Yankees and Yankee fans alike would be happy to see Pujols go to anyone but the Red Sox, and the other way around.

One thing is for certain: Whoever gets him is going to have a great player in their lineup.

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On the mound:

The Yankees will be fine without Cliff Lee. The Yankees don’t NEED Cliff Lee. Would they have liked to have signed him? Of course. Who wouldn’t have? Having C.C. Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, a young 19-game winner in Phil Hughes and possibly Andy Pettitte should be enough for the Yanks. They have a young pitcher in Ivan Nova who, if he fixes his sixth inning troubles, should be a solid pitcher.

And if Pettitte doesn’t come back, which seems to be the case, there are a few options for filling his spot in the rotation. According to Bryan Hoch of MLB.com, “If spring arrived today, New York would head into camp with a group of largely unpredictable candidates to round out the rotation, headlined by Ivan Nova and Sergio Mitre and followed by less likely choices among Andrew Brackman, Dellin Betances, Adam Warren, Hector Noesi and Manny Banuelos.”

Basically, the Yankees will go on with their plans without Pettitte. With the acquisition of Luis Vizciano looking to be a mistake in the making, fans need to remember that he only signed a minor league deal. No big deal. Speaking of minor league deals, the signing of former Cubs ace Mark Prior seemed to be a shock to a lot of Yankee fans. The signing of Pedro Feliciano looks like a good move, seeing as the Yankees were a bit desperate for a southpaw in the ‘pen. As a Mets reliever in 2010, Feliciano posted a 3.30 ERA and 1.53 WHIP in 62.2 innings.

Off the mound:

The acquisition of catcher Russell Martin could be considered a good signing. Martin is a good defensive catcher, which the Yankees are desperate for with the lack of defense and power in Francisco Cervelli and with Jorge Posada moving to the full-time DH position. Martin had a 39 percent caught stealing percentage, as opposed to Cervelli’s 14 percent.

Martin’s defense behind the plate is a positive. But another thing the Yankees can look forward to is the two catching prospects in Austin Romine and Jesus Montero. Two guys that Yankee fans have been waiting, some say too long, to see. GM Brian Cashman is pretty much certain he will not give up Montero for anything.

Austin Romine’s 2010 numbers in Trenton: .268 BA, .726 OPS, 122 H, 31 2B in 115 games. Montero’s 2010 numbers in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre: .289 AVG, .870 OPS, 131 H, 34 2B (third in the IL), 21 HR (fourth in IL) in 123 games.

The Yankees missing out on Carl Crawford isn’t a terrible loss, either. Brett Gardner has the talent. They both had 47 SB in 2010. Gardner matches Crawford’s speed. No doubt. But Crawford’s bat is a little better. Gardner is better at working the count and taking pitches than Crawford. Gardner had 79 walks to Crawford’s 46.

Just because the Yankees didn’t make big deals like they did in 2009 doesn’t mean it’s going to be an unsuccessful season. There is no need to panic, Yankee fans. They have the talent. You can’t get a Mark Teixeira, C.C. Sabathia and A.J. Burnett trio every offseason. The Yankees need to get another “core.” Say Cano, Gardner, Nova, Russo, Montero, Golson, Banuelos, Cervelli, Nunez, etc…? Take your pick. Unfortunately, the only “mistake” they seemed to have made this offseason was to put all their eggs in the Lee basket. But don’t count them out of next season. The Yankees will be fine. They are the Yankees after all.

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