Around the Empire: New York Yankee News: 1/3/14

Joe Posnanski | JoeBlogs: JoePoz takes a look at the likely bottom of the Hall of Fame ballot. Some of the greatest hitters in MLB history are likely to fall off the ballot because the Selig Era was so overwhelming offensively.

Kevin Kernan | New York Post: Kernan gets several good quotes and draws a number of connections that make the Manny Banuelos for David Carpenter and Chasen Shreve trade make more sense.

Bryan Grosnick | Beyond the Box Score: Not only is Alex Rodriguez the longest tenured Yankee, he's the second longest tenured player in the American League. Grosnick's insights on each AL team paint an interesting picture of the current state of player value and contracts.

Drew Fairservice | Fangraphs: The Yankees have done a lot this offseason, but it's been an odd one for what we've come to expect from them.