Who would you like to see become a Yankee next year?

Penny- NOOOOOOOOO
Lackey- ONLY if Andy retires.
Holliday/Bay- No. I’m tired of big free agent power hitters, and free agents in general. I think they should be reluctant about signing ANOTHER long term contract. The league would hate them even more, and their payroll, which Cashman has said he wants to lower, would go up instead. I’d rather give AJAX a shot than bring in one of those guys.
Wang- Yes. He’ll be cheap, and the Yanks will get a cheap ace midseason if he returns to form.
Damon- Yes. He can still play, and he’s earned another year or two.
Matsui- If he accepts a lesser deal, with less playing time, then yes. But if he wants to play every day as the DH, then I don’t think the Yankees can afford it. They have too many older players and they need the DH spot to be open sometimes.
Pettitte- Yes, unless he retires
Nady- Only as a last resort. Probably not.
Mitre/Gaudin- I really hope not, but the Yankees always seem to need one of these “fill in” starters for one reason or another.
Molina- No. His time in pinstripes is up. He can get his ring, and then go back up one of his brothers. Learn to pitch to Jorge A.J.

Team should look pretty much the same. Maybe a few tweaks here and there, but it will be very similar. If AJAX is ready, then this is what I’d like.

Jeter
Damon
Tex
A-Rod
Posada
Cano
Swisher
Melky
Jackson

CC
A.J.
Andy
Hughes
Wang

Robertson
Aceves
Bruney
Marte
Coke
Joba
Mo

Should they go after a big starter like John Lackey or Brad Penny?
No, I’d rather they build from within, maybe see if Ian Kennedy can give them some quality starts and when Wang returns, use him and Hughes for relief while Joba will be a permanent starter with a higher inning count.

Maybe add a new outfielder like Matt Holliday?
Preferably not. I too am wary of big free agent contracts to power hitters. I say keep Nady or bring up one of our top minor leaguers to fill the spot. Look at Melky, he worked out quite well for us. I don’t even have a problem with Nady if he’s healthy and doesn’t cost too much.

Also who to resign? Wang? Pettite? Damon? Matsui?
Wang, yes, definitely. Even if only to see if he returns to Ace form and can be a big contributor in the 2nd half.
Pettite, definitely, if he wants to play. The man is the best post-season pitcher in the history of MLB and is very consistent. He probably only wants one year anyway.
Damon/Matsui, maybe. Depends on what kind of deal they want. I would hate to see either of them go, but I understand it’s business for them and business for the Yankees.

The only differences with nyyrocks29’s lineup for me would be having Cervelli on the roster and Posada DHing more (especially if we don’t have Matsui and/or Damon). Posada needs to learn to catch or learn to ride the pine more as a DH. [sidenote: none of the AJ/Molina action was spurred by AJ, it was all Girardi who looked at the numbers and made the decision, so leave AJ alone about it] Also, I think he has Joba and Hughes mixed up because Joba will be starting and Hughes will be starting, and Hughes is more likely to go to the bullpen to keep his inning limit down after Wang returns.

Also, in the bullpen, look for a new face, not sure who, but they’ll need someone else to set-up Mo before the ASB. Could be Marte becomes the set-up guy and Robertson is the 7th inning guy. Robertson and Marte both were nigh unhittable in the post-season and Robertson definitely auditioned well in September.
 
I’ll have to read up on our minor league outfielders but I can sense that Austin Jackson could be our solution to the outfield problem. I suspect that Brian Cashman will make another unusual or unexpected deal for someone.

Lastly, the only guy I would maybe like to see on the Yankees next year, if at all possible without giving up too much, is Roy Halladay. Just because he owns everyone in the AL East and has no problem with big lineups (look what he did to us this year). All other big free agent pitchers are too costly and probably too old to offer long-term contracts.

LACKEY?!?!?! aggghhh … too much money … too much headache … also he looks like an ass and sounds like a worse one … AND A MOUTH BREATHER!!! agh … guy just urks me …

id still like to see matsui with a smaller incentive deal … his bat CANNOT be replaced right away … and with the depth we have for out field ,swisher … nady? duncan? ajax?, or even just melky / gardner/ swish … that doesnt seem as scary as losing godzilla’s bat….

Something like 2 years, 7-8 mil. Of course I’d also like to see Damon, Matsui and Pettitte all return. Also, if the Cardinals don’t offer him arbitration, Mark DeRosa would be a perfect fit to replace Hairston as a utility man