Happy Sunday, kids. Here's what's going on in the world of New York Yankees baseball:
- The Yankees signed lefty reliever Clay Rapada to a minor-league deal. Rapada, a former VT Hokie, is 31 and has played in the league for five years. He had a 6.06 ERA and 4.49 FIP last year with the Orioles, but he did hold lefties to a .104/.170/.167 triple slash last year in 53 plate appearances, so sure, give him a shot!
- Johnny Damon is no longer an option for the lefty-DH spot. The Yankees informed him that he would not be the primary DH, and that was enough for him to move on from considering the team to be a possible landing spot for next year. Frankly, I would tell Johnny best of luck, but if he thinks he could be a legitimate primary DH for a contending team again, he should bark up another tree.
- The Saratogian wrote a nice review of A.J. Burnett's Yankees career and concluded, like many have so far, that the breakup is good for both parties.
- A Chicago Tribune writer (don't ask why it's posted on the Boston Herald's website) detailed the team's front office decision to spend less money over the past couple offseasons and how they've gone about doing so.
- Dante Bichette Jr. told the New York Post about his life growing up around baseball. It's not surprising that his dad taught him perfect his swing, but his mom also taught him yoga. He has some good connections, too- he consider Yankees manager Joe Girardi an "uncle" from Girardi's time as teammates with Pop in Colorado from 1993-95.
- The two exhibition games that the Yankees are playing in Miami to open the new stadium are almost sold out already- the opener on April 1 sold out in four hours, and less than 5,000 are left for the second matchup. Catch the Miami Marlins fever, I guess?
- In non-Yankee news, the Empire State Builiding was lit up with an orange & blue lighting display in memory of the late Mets and Expos Hall of Fame catcher Gary Carter. A nice tribute to a man who certainly made his impact on the city with the team across town in the late '80s.
You'll hear from me later today when I look at the Yankees' backup catcher situation; have a good morning!