Kuzul

As the new year comes to a close with the Red Sox being a very early favorite for the American League, let’s take a look back at one of the “greatest” trades that never happened.

The Yankees and the Red Sox rivalry is easily the biggest, and most heated in all of sports.

In the 1950s, Ted Williams, the greatest hitter of all time, was the “face” of the Boston Red Sox.

Joe DiMaggio, the Yankee Clipper, was the face of New York and the most popular athlete at that time, as well.

Can you imagine if either of these legends were swapped to each others opposing teams?

Well, it almost happened. Rumor has it that in 1947, Tom Yawkey, Red Sox owner, and Lee MacPhail, the Yankee GM, had agreed to trade Williams to New York in exchange for DiMaggio.

Had this trade been agreed upon, Yankee-Redsox history, no, baseball history would be extremely altered as we know it.

So, what was the reason this trade never went through? Well, for one thing, Tom Yawkey and Lee MacPhail were both known to be drunk at the time the trade was proposed. More importantly, Yawkey wanted more for Williams.

A young left-field prospect by the name of Yogi Berra to be exact.

Lets take a look how the Red Sox lineup would look in 1948 with Joe DiMaggio and Yogi Berra (Defensively, based off of 1948 Red Sox Lineup)

C Birdie Tebbetts (later would be Yogi Berra)

1B Billy Goodman

2B Bobby Doerr

SS Vern Stephens

3B Johnny Pesky

OF Joe DiMaggio

OF Dom DiMaggio

OF  Yogi Berra (for now)

Seems like a very good lineup, doesn’t it?

Now here’s the predicted Yankees lineup with Ted “Splendid Splinter” Williams:

C Gus Niarhos

1B George McQuinn

2B Snuffy Stirnweiss

SS Phil Rizzuto

3B Billy Johnson

OF Ted Williams

OF Johnny Lindell

OF Tommy Henrich

Now, how many players can you recognize off the bat? Most likely two or three.

Could these have been rough times without the playing time of Berra AND DiMaggio? One would imagine. The Yankees still had younger players like Hank Bauer, who would later go on to start in the 50s.

Although it would have been fun to see how many home runs Williams could have hit in New York, the bats of DiMaggio and Berra would have been greatly missed.

The “Curse of the Bambino” quite possibly could have been broken by a previous Yankees legend as a well as a soon to be legend. Kind of ironic, isn’t it?

Who knows how many more championships the Red Sox could have won, and how many the Yankees could have won?

Yankees fan are very happy this trade did not go down. It may have seemed smart at the time, but in the long run, I think New York would have been the loser.

Joe DiMaggio and Yogi Berra for Ted Williams

Who is the winner?

You decide.

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As all baseball fans know, Cliff Lee is currently the best pitcher on the free-agent market for the 2011 season. These previous days, the baseball community has been made aware of the offers for Lee.

The Yankees and the Rangers both have made strong bids. Although the exact offer has not been released, recent reports from ESPN have shown both six and seven year deals from both the Rangers and the Yankees. Heck, even the Angels have an excellent shot of getting Lee!

The 31-year-old left-hander is projected to sign within a few days, according to Buster Olney. We’ll only know for sure when the time comes.

As of now, it looks that the Yankees have no backup plans. Yes, I know they are focused on the Lee wars, but is it really going to be worth the money to pay a man until he is 38. He may be terrible! But, that’s the risk of signing free-agent pitchers.

Here are some suggestions that the Yankees should at least consider if Lee fails to sign in the Bronx (which wouldn’t be surprising to me).

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As the baseball world enters into free agency, I begin to wonder about the status of the Yankees if they had traded Robinson Cano.

As you may or may not know, Alex Rodriguez was traded from the Texas Rangers to the New York Yankees in exchange for Alfonso Soriano and a player to be named later. Now the Rangers had around five choices, but mainly had their eyes on two, Joaquin Arias and Robinson Cano.

Joaquin Arias, plagued with injuries and poor hitting,  proved to be a huge bust for Texas.

So, why did the Rangers choose Arias over Cano?

No one truly knows. Most say it was due to age (Arias is two years younger than Cano) and “better” defense. 

Arias was traded to the New York Mets in exchange for Jeff Francoeur this past August. Even with the struggling Mets, Arias proved to be of no service.

Most recently, Arias was claimed by the Kansas City Royals and will possibly begin the season with them. So much for a coveted prospect.

And then there’s Robinson Cano.

Arguably the best second baseman in baseball, Robinson Cano has proved himself to be the better prospect. From his rookie season all the way up to this past ALCS only furthers this point, as Cano has gotten MVP consideration in 2006 and 2010 respectively.

Can you imagine what the Texas Rangers lineup would look like with Cano? Two words: absolutely deadly. I think if the Rangers had chosen Cano over Arias he’d fit beautifully as the number three hitter. 

Possible Lineup (Without Ian Kinsler)

Elvis Andrus, SS

Michael Young, 3B

Robinson Cano, 2B

Josh Hamilton, CF

Vladimir Guerrero, DH

Nelson Cruz, RF

Mitch Moreland, 1B

Jeff Francoeur, LF

Bengie Molina, C 

(I’m not sure where Ian Kinsler fits in here, as he is also one of the best second baseman in baseball. Position switch? DH?)

The Yankees would have a gigantic gap in their lineup without Robinson Cano, easily the Yankees’ MVP of 2010.

Tony Womack? Free Agents? At this point in time, no one can replace Robinson Cano on the New York Yankees. Expect him to thrive in New York for the rest of his career, as he is the next face of the franchise.

Did I mention Cano was almost traded to the Twins, too?

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The members of the “Core Four” have been the faces of the New York Yankees for many years. As the 2010 season comes to a close, one must realize that the Core Four cannot go on forever.

Andy Pettitte turns 39.

Derek Jeter turns 37.

Jorge Posada turns 40.

The Great Mariano Rivera turns 41 this November.

The great question is: How many more years will the Core Four continue to play?

Here is my observation of the Core Four, future Yankee legends.

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So many marvelous players have been on the Yankees.

This season is different.

Yes, New York has the lovable Core Four. However, there have been some absolute monstrosities this season, and I am convinced that these following five players will not return.

Keep in mind this is not a bashing of the Yankees. I am one of the biggest Yankee fans ever. Yet, there are some players who have been robbing the team, and they have to be clarified.

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With less than 20 games left in the season, the NL MVP talks always begin to heat up. This season is one of the most difficult choices in many years. 

Will Albert Pujols sit atop the throne once again and win his third straight MVP award? Will his fellow all-star players knock him off the top?

Here is my list of MVP’s in each division.

Sorry for the long wait! Thanks for reading and enjoy!

NOTE: All statistics as of September 20, 2010. Since the NL was a lot more difficult to choose rather than the AL, there is more than one honorable mention in all divisions.

Previous article regarding AL MVP’s:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/449271-2010-mvps-al-edition-ranking-the-most-valuable-player-in-each-division

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As the playoffs slowly approach, baseball fans continue to wonder who the AL MVP will be. Will it be a member of a first place, playoff team? Will it be a member of a lower-placed team?

I’ve decided to make an MVP of each AL division just to breakdown the many candidates for the cherished award.

Please enjoy the article and thank you for reading.

NOTE: All statistics are as of September 1, 2010.

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As August comes to an abrupt close with prized rookie pitcher Stephen Strasburg requiring Tommy John surgery, I begin to predict what the New York Yankees are thinking with their own cherished talent.

I have devised a list of who I think have the best chances of being called up come September first.

Please enjoy and thank you for reading.

Note: All Statistics are through August 27th.

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As the baseball world slowly starts to enter September, one must think of the 2011 free agency.

Huge names enter this year’s offseason including Cliff Lee, Adam Dunn, Paul Konerko, Derek Jeter (we all know where’s he’s going), and All-Star Outfielder, Carl Crawford.

Carl Crawford can make any team better, literally. He has so much talent that he currently is the best “five-tool” player in baseball.

We all know the Yankees will sign one big name superstar. But I hope it’s NOT Carl Crawford.

What?! As an avid Yankee fan, I’l explain why he’s a bad fit for the Bronx Bombers.

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Rumors of new baseball managers for the 2011 season have been flying about in the baseball world.

Many names have surfaced, including Don Mattingly, Willie Randolph, Joe Torre, Bobby Valentine, and current bench coach of the New York Yankees, Tony Pena. 

Tony Pena has been part of the Yankee coaching staff for five consecutive seasons, serving as the first base coach, catching instructor, and currently the bench coach.

His value has been tremendous over the years. Tony Pena has improved the performance of catchers during his tenure as the catching instructor with the Yankees. As a result of this, catchers threw out runners more than 25 percent of the time.

Why would Tony Pena leave baseball’s most successful franchise?

Personally, I have no idea.

Money? Who has more money than the Yankees? Nobody. His salary can’t be less than $500,000 can it?

The Players? Possibly, but judging from his dugout visages, Pena looks satisfied. Basing an argument on just that, however, is very weak.

Maybe Tony wants a new change of scenery? This is the deciding factor. Tony Pena either loves the Yankees or is sick of them. If he is sick of them, he would have left sooner, right?

My heart, as well as many other Yankee fans’, will break if Tony Pena does decide to leave New York.

If Pena does decide to leave, these are his most likely choices (in no particular order): New York Mets, Florida Marlins, Atlanta Braves, Oakland Athletics, or even his former team, the Pittsburgh Pirates. 

Tony Pena has the intelligence and skill to manage any ball club. His feisty yet determined attitude makes him a great fit for any team. 

He was a top candidate for the job after Torre’s departure. He even was Manager of the Year with the underachieving Royals! 

No matter what uniform Tony Pena wears next season, I hope that he is successful in all his endeavors.

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