AL East

It was the summer of 2008. The first time I saw Daniel Bard pitch, he was holding down the back end of the Portland Sea Dogs (Double-A) bullpen.

He was summoned in the eighth inning of a close contest between the Sea Dogs and the NH Fisher Cats (TOR) with runners in scoring position.

From my perch in the third base dugout at MerchantsAuto.com Stadium in Manchester, NH, I took a couple photos as Bard warmed up and then snapped one more picture as he threw his first pitch.

The Tampa Bay Rays organization has established itself as one of the best-run systems in major league baseball.

The scouting and player development have been especially top-notch over the past five years, which has allowed the Rays to put together a very talented young ball club despite limited resources.

Even with the plethora of young talent that has been brought up in recent years and the failure to sign their top two picks in last year’s draft, the Rays farm system is still loaded with talent.

Newsday ran down a list of Nick Johnson ’s injuries that he’s incurred over his career. I’m not going to copy that list word for word exactly, but they should get all the credit for this post.

According to Joel Sherman of the NY Post, in an effort to salvage even a little bit of the $46 million they invested in him, the Yankees will use Kei Igawa strictly as a left-handed reliever in spring training and could even use him in that spot once the season starts, even if he’s in the minor leagues.

With Spring Training starting, the Blue Jays are more than unlikely to make another significant move, having already made a few under-the-radar moves and traded the face of the franchise. I will analyze all the players that have left the team and all the significant players that have arrived to play for Canada's largest city.

Coming To Toronto

Alex Gonzalez, signed one year, $2.75 million deal
This deal was to replace Marco Scutaro, who was destined to leave as a Free Agent, as after his breakout season would demand more money.

Did the New York Yankees' reluctance to give Johnny Damon two years deal reflect something about their love for free agent to be Carl Crawford? According to Jon Heyman, the answer is yes.

This is a great video that really shows off the Old Yankee Stadium in a dramatic way. It’s really moving and it makes you realize what’s at stake—the Old Stadium is coming down and they’re not planning on saving any of it.

I hate to go all cause-head on you, but you should watch this video and give a moment of your time to the Save the Yankee Gate 2 cause. It’s a group trying to preserve a small part of the stadium that still exists from when they first built it in 1922.

Here at Bronx Baseball Daily we cover the Yankees all day and everyday, but we don’t always spend a lot of time on the other teams in the league. So lately we’ve been reaching out to some other blogs to get a better look at the Yankees' opponents.

So says owner Stuart Sternberg: The team will do everything they can to keep free-agents-to-be Carl Crawford and also Carlos Pena for as long as they can. On Crawford specifically he said: "He's been a face of this organization, he's been a great Ray, he was a great Devil Ray, he's an extraordinary player and teammate, for the community and a face of this team. We're going to do everything we can to make sure he stays here longer.''

July 18, 1999 was Yogi Berra Day at Yankee Stadium.

When my son Scott had told me in June that we were going to the game, there was the slightest hint that something special might happen.

An Inexplicable Feeling

It was a hot, humid day, with the temperature reaching 98 degrees. As soon as we entered the Stadium, Scott and I had an inexplicable feeling about the game that intensified when Don Larsen threw the ceremonial pitch to Yogi Berra.

We looked at each other but didn't speak a word.