WHY THE YANKEES NEED THE HUNGER AGAIN

It’s the off-season early for the New York Yankees and all of us Yankee fans are walking around aimlessly with nothing to do. Yes, we could watch the postseason without the Yankees, and yes, I’ve told you numerous times that if baseball is on, I watch, no matter who’s playing.

But let’s face it, this is October and the Yankees aren’t playing, and I don't want to watch. I want to scream like Mark Wahlberg in the Other Guys, I cannot take it. Sometimes I feel like the more we try to do things right, the more we screw them up. The Yankees need that hunger back and the fans are craving it.

The Yankees looked like scrubs out there as I reflect on the ALDS, with the exception of Jorge Posada and Brett Gardner and even Derek Jeter to some extent. Where was the hunger? Where were the bats? I firmly believe that hot teams move forward and it all has to do with momentum. I don't necessarily believe great teams win it all. I think great teams need to be hot to win it all. The Yankees were great with 97 wins going into the ALDS, but they weren't great and hot, plain and simple. Now all we’re doing is sitting in front of our computers, looking at Twitter and bitching at each other.

I long for the days when Steinbrenner would put out a press release, thanking the Yankee fans for their support and apologizing for failing to win it all. Then, weeks later, we’d go out and find the top free agent out there and all would be well in Yankeeland again, we would forget, just for the moment, that we blew it.

Time is running out for some of our icons. Yes, Jorge Posada was close to possibly getting a 5^th ring, but we fell short. Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera are close to retirement; wouldn’t it be nice to get one for championship before they sail into the sunset? It would, for all of us.The pitching rotation will be a priority again this year, just like it is every year and while Cashman preached patience and picked up Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia and had lightening in a bottle, that charade won’t work this winter; fans get impatient, Yankee Brass gets impatient and I expect a big splash. Yes, Cashman needs to agree to a deal, but once that is done, CC Sabathia is next and then after what, who? I'm a fan of Mark Buehrle and I would love to get him, but who else? CJ Wilson? Matt Cain? Yu Darvish? Felix Hernandez?

Look, Felix is my top name after CC Sabathia. I’m not too big on “Pretty Boy” Wilson because I hate his pompous attitude. I’m also not sold on him. Matt Cain, yeah, he good, but we need him to be great. Yu Darvish…we’ve been through that Japanese pitching thing before. Felix Hernandez is the guy and if that means waiting until he’s a free agent, so be it; If it means being creative with you we unload for him, so be it. I have no desire to trade off someone like Jesus Montero for the King. After seeing him hit, it reminded me a hell of a lot like Miguel Cabrera. I can’t part with the guy.

Something needs to be done about Nick Swisher, Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira. Look, no doubt they are pissed that they didn’t deliver and they looked foolish in the ALDS, but let’s face it, they always do. 2009 is long gone, these guys get paid a fortune to perform, bottom line and October is the biggest show on earth, and they need to show up. They didn’t and it’s pathetic. If I’m the Yankees, I pick up Swisher’s option and I’m bringing in a bright young outfielder this spring and have him compete for Swisher’s job. Light a fire under Nick’s ass and let him know, no job is safe.

Alex is Alex and he’s owed a ton of money. You can’t eat his contract and you can’t trade him and the Yankees won’t, they want him to hit 700 and they want him the break the home run record in pinstripes... he’s not going anywhere. I also believe ARod wasn’t healthy and while nerves were a factor in the ALDS, he’s not better yet because of injury. Hopefully a long winter’s nap will heal this guy and in Spring 2012, he’ll be back.

Mark Teixeira seems to shrivel up at the wrong time...October. Not sure what happened to this guy. He’s a great hitter…when he hits, and I would never suggest we cut Tex lose for someone better, because; let’s face it, who’s better? Tex is one of the best defensive first basemen we’ve ever had; he just needs to get his swing tweaked by the King of Swing…Kevin Long. Maybe the pressure gets to Tex, who knows, but something‘s got to happen.

The Yankees hunger is gone while the hunger by the fans grows. We need something drastic, a shakeup… so we can stand up and say, “The Yankees put the best on the field and we will return to win it all.” Because, let’s face it, 1 championship in 11 years is not a dynasty, it’s average.

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WHY THE YANKEES DE-THRONED KING FELIX

The Yankees needed this win, no doubt. They lost 2 of 3 in Anaheim to the Angels and they wanted to get off on the right foot against the Mariners in Seattle. But going into the game it looked like a tough task. King Felix Hernandez was going for the Mariners against Phil Hughes. So it was their ace against our number five guy. But, as John Sterling says; "You just can't predict baseball". He's right, as the Yankees were able to knock Felix around for the tune of six runs in six innings during the win.The Yankees were able to use a little small ball in the third inning to get their first run off Hernandez. A couple of singles by Brett Gardner and Chris Dickerson put runners at the corners and the Captain, Derek Jeter, drove in Gardner on a grounder after Dickerson stole second. The offense then exploded in the 5th as Mark Teixeira hit a solo shot--his 37th of the season--Chris Dickerson hit a mammoth two run homer, while Eric Chavez and Brett Gardner each had RBI hits. Also, catcher Austin Romine went 1 for 4 and picked up his first career big league hit. Good job Austin, hopefully that's just the first of many.
Phil Hughes was pretty good in this one. He went six innings, allowed one run on five hits and three walks while striking out three. It's now back to back good starts following his two sub-par outings against Oakland and Boston. Scott Proctor and Luis Ayala pitched the final three frames when the game was 9-1. Too bad they didn't have Andrew Brackman or Dellin Betances pitch in this one.

Final Score: Yankees 9 - Mariners 3

It's always good to win the first game of a three game series. The Yankees now have their biggest lead in the AL East this season, and it's at four games ahead of the free falling Boston Red Sox. The Yanks send out A.J Burnett (9-11, 5.27 ERA) to square off against Charlie Furbush (3-8, 4.84 ERA) tomorrow evening.




--Jesse Schindler, BYB Staff Writer




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WHY DELLIN BETANCES IS A YANKEE BRIGHT SPOT

Everyone loves a homegrown player. There's something about the Jeters and Marianos of the world that just endear themselves to their adoring fans. Well for Yankees fans, at least part of it is the feeling of being able to watch them come through in the clutch, say "SEE! SEE! We don't pay for all our good players!" and smile smugly in the face of your Mets fan friend (Who is most likely imaginary, I mean, a Mets fan? Come on.) More generally, it's knowing that the young man has never known another team and that he journeyed all the way from the Rk leagues to make the big leagues.



There's no denying it, homegrown players are the closest to the fans' hearts. But how often do you get a chance to look at a player and say that he's literally playing right at home?Dellin Betances took one huge step towards becoming that guy, the hometown hero, last Thursday when he made his AAA debut. It was no easy task facing the IL 1st place Durham Bulls, and early on it looked like Betances would fold under the pressure. However, he settled down to put together a phenomenal start. As is usual with young pitchers, the numbers don't tell the whole story. Nevertheless, here they are: 6.0 IP, 3 ER, 7 H, 8 K, 0 BB



Two numbers immediately jump out from that line. The 8 strikeouts and 0 walks. Dellin has had command issues all year long. For a while I suspected he needed to pitch to contact a bit more, but apparently I know nothing. In Dellin's last 3 starts, he's struck out a whopping 20 while walking only 2. Obviously a K/BB ratio of 10 isn't something you'd expect to last, not even with Mariano Rivera, but such a marked improvement over the rest of his season is a huge accomplishment, regardless of longevity. I always say his potential is somewhere between AJ Burnett and Felix Hernandez, but he's making a case for me to move that floor up a good bit.



After those two numbers, you probably noticed that he just managed to put together a quality start. However, as I said, the numbers don't tell the story at all, so here's a quick recap of his outing:



Betances immediately went on cruise control, retiring the side 1-2-3 in his first ever work in AAA. I think he got a bit too comfortable up there because come the 2nd inning he couldn't miss a bat. Dellin allowed 3 hits, scoring 2 runs for the Bulls before escaping further danger. The 3rd inning didn't start off much better, as a he yielded his 3rd run of the game on a Tim Beckham lead off home run. After getting the 1st out of the inning, he gave up a 1 out double to put himself in danger again. I'll be perfectly honest, I started making excuses like "Well, his stuff looks good, it's his first AAA start, Durham's a great team..." Dellin would have none of my BS.Betances quickly struck out 2010 IL MVP Dan Johnson and Russ Canzler to strand Stephen Vogt in scoring position. He would not allow another hit until a 2 out Canzler single in the 6th inning. At one point he retired 7 straight, a streak which would've been extended to 10 if not for Luis Nuñez's fielding error in the 4th.



Dellin got into a mini jam in the 6th, allowing back to back 2 out singles, one of which nailed him in the leg, but he got Daniel Mayora to strike out swinging to end his impressive AAA debut.



What I saw from the 3rd inning on was honestly one of the most impressive performances I've ever seen from a minor league pitcher. Nobody could touch him. His 95-96 fastball was popping Montero's glove, his biting curve ball was making hitters look foolish, and he even appeared to flash the occasional change-up. It was hard to get a detailed view of his pitches because of the absolutely awful lone camera angle displayed throughout the entire broadcast, but it didn't take much to see that after he gave up that early 3rd run, he was in control.



If Dellin can repeat Thursday's performance every 5 days for the rest of the season, I see no reason he won't be a front runner to land a spot in the rotation for 2012. Some scouting reports say he's still a bit of a thrower rather than a pitcher, similar to what Joba Chamberlain was initially like. However his declining walk totals and increasingly economic pitching tell me that he's really starting to harness his potential. With such rapid improvement, we may be getting our very own hometown hero soon. And unlike David Cone, he can't ditch his hometown team and go to the Yankees, he's already here!



On an interesting side note, Andrew Brackman relieved Betances in the 7th inning. Much to my surprise, he looked very, very good. His outing was spoiled by a 2 run homer in the 8th inning, but for the most part he looked completely in control. His season numbers still sit at an unspectacular, to say the least, 6.83, 2-6.

(In Photo: Andrew Brackman)

However, since being moved from long relief to short relief, Brackman's found much more success. In his last 10 games he has not had a decision, but has maintained a 4.13 ERA and perhaps most importantly held batters to a measly .152 average. Those numbers are even better excluding some long relief appearances, such as when he walked 9 batters in 3.1 innings on July 29th. Since the beginning of August, his ERA is 2.89. Look for a more in depth analysis in a retrospective Killer Bs update article coming later this week.







--Grant Cederquist, BYB Staff Writer

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WHY CASHMAN BELIEVES IN HIS YANKEES

Yes, so the Yankees may not have made any huge moves this Trade Deadline, but I will tell you one important thing and you need to respect it... Brian Cashman believes in his New York Yankees and because of that, I believe too.

Look, there were guys out there to be traded for, but what was REALLY out there that was better than what we had? Nothing in my opinion. Erik Bedard? Good luck with that. Ubaldo Jimenez? Let's see how he adapts to the American League with his new team, the Indians. All I'm saying is, if we took a chance and it blew up in our faces, you'd be crucifying Cashman. It's a tough game, but Cash believes in the Yankees and he's not going to just go grab guys because it "might" work, he just wants to be sure.
Now, King Felix factor still fascinates me. The Yankees love this kid, I love him, but the Mariners and the Yankees just don't get along since Cliff Lee and it's clear to me, unless the Yankees offered the farm to get Felix, he was staying put. So, what will they do? I say they save their dough and wait. They will wait it out until either the Mariners change their minds, or until King Felix becomes a free agent and then they do everything in their power to get Felix to the Bronx.
Heath Bell was out there and he's a top closer for the Padres, but was he REALLY available? We saw that Mike Adams was untouchable, according the Padres, yet, he was traded to the Rangers at the deadline. Remember when I told you no player is untouchable? I'm right. The Padres saw something they liked better than Adams and suddenly Adams is on a plane to Arlington. It's that simple.

Cashman is a tough guy and while he's saying he's not about to make a move, I believe he will, but only if it's better than what we got. The deadline may have passed, but moves can still be made and if anyone can make them, it's Cash. You can still make trades if a player is on waivers and believe me, if there is someone that works, they'll be snatched up by Cashman.But I'm getting ahead of myself. After the deadline on July 31st, it was revealed that Jesus Montero and Manny Banuelos will be promoted. So, with no big names coming to the Bronx, Cashman demonstrates his patience and calls up the kids. OK, I like this idea. Read about it HERE and HERE. Manny Banuelos is going to Scranton Wilkes Barre and I guarantee you we will see this kid in the Bronx. Not only will he be the lefty specialist in the pen that I predicted, but if shit hit the fan and we needed him for a spot start, I bet you'd see him too. I believe this kid has the stuff.

Then there's Jesus Montero, who's batting .283. Look, Russell Martin, isn't doing too good these days and it makes sense. Reports are Montero will be up in the major leagues this year, after all the talk that he wouldn't be. That's right, Jesus is coming, the question is, when?

So while these moves are smart, my only concern is this; Will these 2 kids lead the charge to win the Playoffs and World Series for the Yankees? No. But it's exciting and if Cashman sticks to his guns, it's clear that he has a reason, a plan, a method to his madness... Let's hope at least.

Then I got to thinking. If it was Game 1 of the Playoffs right now, this is who I would have pitch:1. CC Sabathia
2. Bartolo Colon
3. AJ Burnett

Now, is it what I thought we would have when I looked at our Yankees rotation in April? No, but believe me, it works. The only real issue is, can guys like Colon and Freddy Garcia stay healthy and not fade. That's the big question. Then you need to go further; Say we make it through both rounds and enter the World Series; This is who I would choose:

1. CC Sabathia
2. Bartolo Colon
3. AJ Burnett
4. Freddy Garcia

Now it's starting to be alittle more concerning, but, the good news is we have guys that we may need as long men or spot starters if things fall apart; Ivan Nova, Phil Hughes, Manny Banuelos. If one of the old timers shits the bed, that's our fall back. Again, is it ideal? No, but it works. Now, look at the Phillies:1. Roy Halladay
2. Cliff Lee
3. Cole Hamels
4. Kyle Kendrick

They have an ace in Halladay, but Lee is beatable and so is Hamels. And look at the Giants:
1. Tim Lincecum
2. Matt Cain
3. Madison Bumgarner or Ryan Vogelsong
4. Barry Zito

Lincecum is the ace for sure, and Cain, when on, has great stuff too. But Bumgarner, Vogelsong and Zito are beatable.

Look, this is the hand we're dealt, and while Cashman has dealt it, Cashman is smart not to be hasty. Plus, we can still get guys off waivers until August 31st if it works. So, understand this; What we have now is very possibly what we'll have come the playoffs. One thing you have to realize is there were and may not be any "key" guys out there that could make a difference or that we can get. Would you really take Erik Bedard over Bartolo Colon right now? No way, not me.

Cashman has a plan, he's sticking to his plan and you need to respect his plan. And guess what, if he's wrong, he'll expect to be crucified by the fans, but one thing is for sure, believing in a team because of their talent means something. Cash isn't filling holes for the sake of filling them, that's smart in my mind, but let's hope it works.

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WHY GEORGE JUST ROLLED OVER IN HIS GRAVE

The Yankees didn't make any moves at this trade deadline, even though they were clearly in need of a top flight pitcher and some relief help; Hell, maybe even another bat. The first thing I thought of was George Steinbrenner rolling over in his grave in disgust.

George's philosophy during his entire life was win or nothing, and sorry to the 2011 Yankees, with whom I love to death, but we don't look like we are 100% positive that we can beat the Red Sox, Phillies, or Giants in a 7 game series at this point, and in George's time he would have made a trade for a huge name to do that. I think that if George were still around he would send everyone except Manny Banuelos to Seattle to acquire King Felix, and convince the Mariners why it's a great deal along the way.(In Photo: Manny Banuelos)
George was a hard nosed business man who had one goal in his business, to win. Hal, although he is a nice guy did not completely receive that trait from George. Dammit do I wish he did. If it were up to me, I would give Hank a bigger say in the day to day operations of the Yankees. Hank has a bad reputation as being alittle wild with the mouth, but he is not afraid to speak his mind, or spend his money. Hank has some of the good George traits.

If it were up to me, I would let Hank and Hal both control the Yankees in different ways. For example, Hank seems better with being vocal, dealing with people, and he has the George win attitude. Hal's positives are his business background (he studied business in college), his professionalism, and he displays the Yankees as a classy franchise, which he also is.
Let Hank make the moves, let Hal deal the cash and if things get alittle too out of control, Hal is there to reign him in, but one things for sure, we missed a good opportunity this trade deadline and if Hank was out of his cage, doing what I'm suggesting, I think there would be a different outcome today, August 2nd, then again, maybe I just miss Good Ol' George, who knows.

But, what do you think about my idea? Hit me on Facebook or add the Blackberry Messenger group, which is on the right side of the BYB page. Let me know what you think.



--Will Cohen, BYB Staff Writer

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WHY IT WAS ONE OF THOSE DAYS IN THE BRONX

Phil Hughes actually looked good today. It made me proud and it made me feel bad that I would even suggest in my post WHY I'D MOVE HUGHES TO THE PEN, that, he should be out of the rotation. Hughes pitched 6 innings, allowed 9 hits but only 2 runs and struck out 3. He pitched against King Felix and it wasn't going to be easy and to tell you the truth, the Yankees did pretty good, until, surprisingly, the bullpen collapsed. Something that we rarely ever hear about. Yes, it's funny, I was listening to Sterling and Waldman and Cory Wade had just come in the game and John was raving about how great the Yankees bullpen was this year. Then of course, Suzyn chimed in reading some stat off of the jumbo tron and suddenly... it all fell apart. The best part for Seattle, was it was their first win in 18 games. The bad news, Hughes didn't want to be the guy to get that loss. Oh well, that's baseball.

The bottom line today was simple, the Yankees could not hit Hernandez and that's a fact. Plus, the defense wasn't too good. Cano with a botched ball, and a ball thrown away. Granderson had a misplay in the 7th and he lost the ball in the sun later on. It was just one of those days.
The Yankees had 6 hits today, the 2 runs consisted of Derek Jeter's sacrifice fly and Robinson Cano grounded out to short but Granderson, who was on base...scored. Other than that, the Mariners finally came to play today and that's the end, Yankees lost.


Final Score: Mariners 9 - Yankees 2. Next game is Friday verses the Orioles. Good luck Gentlemen, go beat Buck.

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WHY CC MONSTER SHINED THROUGH THE RAIN

(Photo: Ron Antonelli/NY Daily News)
Man, CC Sabathia is amazing isn't he? It was just another dominating start where he simply carved up yet another lineup and got a win. This time it was the Seattle Mariners. The Big Fella had a perfect game going through 5.1 until a 30 minute rain delay forced him to wait. Joe Girardi let him comeback though, which was nice to see considering he can be so delicate with his pitchers. CC then allowed a clean single to Brendan Ryan to end the perfect game with one out in the seventh. It was too bad, CC has his A+ stuff tonight and we'll never know if the rain delay affected him after all.

Anyways, CC pitched seven innings, allowing just one hit--the only hit the M's got in this one--a career high 14 strikeouts, three walks, and one run en route to his 15th win of the season. He also lowered his ERA to 2.56 on the season. He's been the best pitcher in baseball really for awhile now. In fact in his last 10 starts he's 9-1 with an ERA around 1.70.(Photo: Getty)
On offense the Yankees didn't need much because of Sabathia's dominance. They scored four runs courtesy of solo homers by Mark Teixeira and Curtis Granderson. Derek Jeter also had an RBI grounder, and Eric Chavez--who came off the DL after being out due to a broken foot on May 2nd--went 1 for 3 with an RBI single. Good to see Chavy back in the lineup.

A quick note on the Mariners and their starter Doug Fister. It was the M's 17th consecutive loss, you gotta feel for them about that. Nothing is going their way. Also, Doug Fister has gone 0-7 in his last 10 starts with a very solid 3.27 ERA. That right there tells you how pathetic the Mariner's offense is.

Final score: Yankees 4- Mariners 1.

Yanks go for the sweep tomorrow. But it'll be a tougher task as Felix Hernandez (8-9, 3.47 ERA) will pitch through the trade winds blustering in the Bronx for the Mariners. (Read Casey's WHY MY GUT SAYS FELIX IS BRONX BOUND) Phil Hughes (1-2, 9.47 ERA) will give it a go for the Yanks on a Wednesday matinee.



--Jesse Schindler, BYB Staff Writer




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BYB YANKEE TRADE RUMORS: PART 1

It’s the big week for trade rumors and all of Yankeeland is wondering who it’s going to be and what we will give up. Cashman plays the best shell game in town and when it comes to the Yankees, he’s pretty damn smart in my estimation. How else do you bring two washed up veterans to the Yankees who turn out to be gems in Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia?

Yesterday, I wrote WHY MY GUT SAYS FELIX IS BRONX BOUND and while it is near impossible that King Felix would ever be delivered to the Bronx because of the odd relationship the Yankees and Mariners now have because of the Cliff Lee debacle last year, no player is untouchable. If the Yankees gave up some top prospects and pay alittle money, Felix Hernandez would be ours; I don’t care what anyone says. In fact, vote in our new Poll on the left side of our home page, who would you give up for King Felix?

In addition to Felix, there are other pitchers out there that are appealing and plenty of guys who seem like smart choices, others however, do not. Let’s take a look. Read our post and comment on our blog. Let us know what you would do.

Edwin Jackson: Yankees scouts were apparently in Cleveland Sunday where Edwin Jackson pitched for the White Sox. They are definitely looking into this guy and with good reason, he can be a solid pitcher although, going by my gut again, I can’t see this guy hacking it in the Bronx, not sure why. Jackson this year is 7-7 with a 3.92 ERA this season. The other good thing about Jackson is he’s only 27 years old. I'd like the guy, but not sure how serious the Yankees are at this point. Read about Edwin HERE.

Gio Gonzalez: This guy keeps coming up because to me, he is the future, not only is Gonzalez a lefty, but he is developing into a really good pitcher. He’s Andy Pettitte light in my eyes. Gio is someone the Athletics probably want to hold onto, but again, for the right price, he could be ours. Adding Gio to the Yankees rotation will definitely give some support. This year, Gio is 9-7 with a 2.67 ERA. Read about Gio HERE.

Jeremy Guthrie: Guthrie has been around for a few years with the Batlimore Orioles and while I find this to be an interesting name for the Yankees, I cannot in any way see the Orioles dealing him to the Yankees, plus, I can’t see why the Yankees would like this guy. He has an ERA over 4 and only has 4 wins. The upside is he can pitch against the Red Sox. He held the Sox to 2 runs over 7 in one recent outing and the time before he shut them out after 6, according to Jon Heyman of SI. That is appealing but it wasn’t too long ago that AJ Burnett was dominant against the Red Sox too…. We saw how that worked out. I don’t make too much of Guthrie at this time.

Tyler Clippard: The kid’s made a name for himself as a reliever. I once saw him pitch live when he was with the Yankees and I liked what I saw but he did let up for 4 runs in the game against the Mets. Since he went to the Nationals, he has become lights out and even an All-Star. Good for him. Getting him back could be a treat and could definitely help our bullpen, but again, we need a starter in my opinion. Read about Tyler HERE.

Hiroki Kuroda: He’s with the Dodgers and his record is 6-12 with a 3.19 ERA. The ERA is decent, the record is not and that has to do with the Dodgers just plain sucking it. But let’s face facts, he’s 36 years old and don’t we have enough pitchers in their late 30’s? Is Kuroda really better than Bartolo Colon at this point? I’m not a fan of this but I trust Cashman, so we will see. I can be swayed. Bottom line, there are reports that Kuroda would waive his no-trade clause to go to the Yankees or the Red Sox, stay tuned. Read about it HERE.

Stay tuned for more names and more opinion on the trade rumors on Bleeding Yankee Blue.

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WHY MY GUT SAYS FELIX IS BRONX BOUND

There is a gut feeling telling me that somethings going to happen with the King and the Yankees. I know I know, I've read what you've read, but with the Seattle Mariners falling apart, it would make sense. Now, I can only go by gut and the way things have been written, and by the way, that gives me hope. The headline in the Seattle Times reads "Mariners aren't in any hurry to make trades at the deadline". Well, that isn't exactly a "NO". Now, if you read future it goes on to say that pitchers like Felix Hernandez and Michael Pineda are in the "untouchable" category, I don't believe that. Why? Because a things have developed in what I've been reading and that allows me to think otherwise.

• Jesus Montero: His name is attached to a ton of trade talk and while Brian Cashman insists that Montero is going nowhere, one would tell you that talk is cheap, especially with the Yankees craving a top starter. Every blog and paper is analyzing this and while all of us don't have the inside scoop, all of us know how Brian Cashman works. It would make sense the unload Montero if a top starter, and my gut says it's going to happen. Plus, read the analysis of Montero and how different it was from Spring training when Montero was larger than life and "untouchable":

Sliding Into Home: If the price is right, trade Montero
The Yankees Analysts title: Jesus Montero's declining Stock
Pinstripe Alley: states "Montero is trade bait"
Gack Sports headline: Cash, Jesus has to go

I remember March of this year when Jesus Montero was the young stud everyone wanted to see behind the plate, including me and suddenly, Yankee fans are edgy and antsy for some solid starting pitching behind CC and now, and only now, are we starting to see an outcry.

Personally, I like the idea of trading Montero. Look we have some great catchers with great futures behind him, Austin Romine and Gary Sanchez. Bleeding Yankee Blue even wrote WHY ROMINE MAY BE THE FUTURE, NOT MONTERO. To me, while I love Montero, it is clear that he should be the guy that should be moved, especially if teams that are willing to unload solid starters want him. Now, it won't just be Montero, these teams will be looking at other guys like Dellin Betances, Manny Banuelos and even Andrew Brackman. Clearly Cashman is smart enough to not give up the farm, those 3 guys are our future pitching staff, but if he were to unload 2 guys, say Montero and Betances, and some major league ready guys, like Hector Noesi or a Ivan Nova, I'd say we have something there.

Everyone knows Cashman's a liar, that's what makes him a great GM, he never shows his hand and we wake up the next morning with something bigger and better than what we had the day before. At that point, Yankee fans are sad for what we gave up, but over excited for what we got.Every team has a price and no player is untouchable. Remember that. The Mariners are coming into town and if you think that Cashman is going too just blow off any type of "sit down" with the Mariners for the possibility of a Pineda or King Felix, you're misinformed. I'm not saying this is going to happen by July 31st, but it's going to happen, I feel it in my gut.

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