Yankees News and Notes: Keeping Up with Mr. Jones

The Yankees bolstered their bench by resigning outfielder Andruw Jones to a one-year deal worth $2 million with an additional $1.4 million in incentives. Last season, the right handed Jones posted an OPS of. 923 in almost 150 plate appearances against left handed pitchers.

Matt Garza could be at the center of an A.L. East battle royal as the Yankees, Red Sox and Blue Jays are all rumored to be interested in the Cubs' right hander. The Chicago Tribune's David Kaplan reported that trade talks involving Garza are heating up, but because the Cubs' demands remain high, a deal may not be imminent. Fox Sports also reported increased interest in Garza and threw the Tigers into the mix.

There has been a lot of hand wringing about the experimental therapy Alex Rodriguez recently had done on his knee, but one person with no such conflict is the man who recommended it to him. According to Kobe Bryant, the Orthokine procedure has restored his knee to almost perfect health, and as a Yankees fan, the NBA superstar is glad Arod decided to take his advice.

Yankees managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner has made an enemy even more powerful than the Evil Empire. The Internal Revenue Services has filed a lawsuit against Steinbrenner seeking to recover over $670,000 stemming from a tax refund it claims was erroneously paid to the Yankees' owner. Maybe that's why the team seems to be operating on a budget all of a sudden?

Rutgers triumphed over Iowa State in the second New Era Pinstripe Bowl, which was held on Friday night at Yankee Stadium. Almost 40,000 fans were in attendance for the game, which was the fourth NCAA football contest played in the Bronx since the new Stadium opened.

Former Rangers' reliever Rosman Garcia was killed in a car crash in his native Venezuela. Garcia was originally signed by the Yankees as an amateur free agent in 1996 and spent five seasons in the team's minor league system.