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New York Daily News | Peter Botte: I can’t stress enough how much I want Yu Darvish just for the headlines alone. The Yankees probably want him for other reasons. Like pitching. On Thursday, Michael Kay of the Michael Kay Show mentioned that the Yankees had offered Yu Darvish a seven-year contract. That rumor was disproven by none other than Yu Darvish himself. He was unaware of any contract offer. Yu Darvish then reported that the Yankees actually did offer him a contract, but that Kay’s numbers were off. What an offseason. In any case, the Yankees are indeed interested in Yu. To get Yu, they would probably have to shed some payroll to stay under the luxury-tax threshold. Or, you know, they could just go over and call it a day.
MLB.com | Bryan Hoch: Speaking of staying under the luxury-tax threshold, we just got a much clearer picture of how that could play out. The Yankees avoided arbitration hearings with all eight of their arbitration-eligible players. Dellin Betances, Sonny Gray, Sir Didi Gregorius, Aaron Hicks, Tommy Kahnle, Austin Romine, Adam Warren, and Chasen Shreve are the eight players in question. After all is said and done, the Yankees project to be around the $177 million mark, which gives them about $20 million to spend on whatever they want. I’m hoping they’re feeling thrifty.
New York Post | Dan Martin: “They’re gonna learn to fear the Yankees” as the song says. The Yankees offense is looking to be a powerhouse. Terry Francona, who was a victim of the non-Giancarlo’d Yankees in the 2017 ALDS, warns that they’re going to have games where they “bludgeon people” this year. Hehehe, yeah they will.
MiLB.com | Benjamin Hill: The outpouring of love to the Trenton Thunder over the loss of Derby has been heartwarming. Derby was a beloved fixture of the Thunder organization and he will be missed. Rookie will carry on his father and grandfather’s legacy in Trenton. They are not the only batdogs around the minors though. Click this to see the other good dogs doing good dog things.
Cut4 | MEARNS!!!: Finally, we leave you with Gary, the catcher who is currently known as Gary. Gary Sanchez was a big part of the bludgeoning offense of 2017. He’ll probably be a huge part of the 2018 offense as well. Here is Gary practicing his glorious swing and, as Mearns points out, it looks like he’s in midseason form. The Kraken is also working on his defense as well. I am excited. Furthermore, MEARNS!!!