AL East

Yahoo Sports and ESPN are reporting that there are six teams that are taking looks at Japanese star Yu Darvish. It is not a 100% decision by Darvish to make the move to the United States, but the teams are already lining up.

The system used to sign him would be very much like the Daisuke Matsuzaka system where there is a bidding war.  It takes up quite a bit of money as learned by the Red Sox, but it could all payoff. 

There has never been a more successful quartet of players than Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, Andy Pettitte, and Jorge Posada who have won a combined 19 World Series together.

Any discerning Red Sox fan checking in with Gordon Edes' work on ESPNBoston.com was probably surprised to read that the "club is prepared to pick up" their $12.5 million option on David Ortiz.

I guess none of us should be surprised that the Boston Red Sox hype machine/cheerleading squad out of Bristol has published yet another piece claiming that Derek Jeter is about as useful as a screen door on a submarine.

That group of tools lost any sense of objectivity on the matter many, many years ago.

Mmm, I don't like it.

Next!

Here's the basis; Tom Verducci at SI.com writes an article suggesting a way to improve Major League Baseball's playoff format and add some revenue. He has an excellent point that recent "win or go home" games have drawn outstanding viewership and the lack of these nail biters have hurt baseball.

Alex Rodriguez locked in on a Brian Matusz offering Monday and unleashed the instantly-recognizable swing that has always seemed too easy and too effortless, to do any real damage.

But we know better by now. Rodriguez cocked his head to follow the flight of the ball then flashed his trademark "Trust me, I'm awesome" glance into his own dugout: always his sign that he knows he got all of it.

Via Craig Calcaterra of Hardball Talk:

Via the NY Post:

Maybe it is not a mirror image, but Buck Showalter admits becoming manager of the Orioles feels a bit like when he once became manager of the Yankees.

The Yankees finally go back to playing night games as they try to end their two-game losing streak tonight against the Orioles with CC Sabathia on the mound. Sabathia is going for his 20th win of the season.

Here are some notes:

I had a chance to talk to a Toronto Star journalist (he's an acquaintance of mine) two weeks ago about the Toronto Blue Jays, and everything he said is consistent with what I've been hearing about the fans in that city.

Or more specifically, what other Torontonians are feeling about the Blue Jays, based on what I've been hearing on the Fan 590.