Baseball

Imagine you're Jim Leyland and you have the task of putting together a batting order for the 2010 Detroit Tigers.  Now I know Spring Training has just started and positional players aren't even in camp yet, but nonetheless it's fun to speculate.  Here's my go at it:

1.  Johnny Damon (DH / LF) / Clete Thomas (OF)

2.  Austin Jackson (CF) / Ryan Raburn (OF)

3.  Magglio Ordonez (RF)

4.  Miguel Cabrera (1B)

Over about the last month or so we here at Bronx Baseball Daily have been looking at the players expected to be on the 2010 Yankees Roster. We’ve been evaluating their 2009 season and trying to lay out what the Yankees should expect out of them this season.

Make sure you check out all of our previews. Expecting big things out of a certain player? Don’t agree with our assessment of some of the players? Check out our player pages and let us hear your opinions.

After a long winter of speculating about where Johnny Damon would play in 2010, it appears that the two-time World Champion has finally made a decision.

The Detroit Tigers have stepped in with an offer that apparently was to Damon's liking. It is reportedly a one-year deal worth about $8 million.

All is pending a physical, which sources say should be taken today or tomorrow.

The deal makes sense for both sides:

The first signs of Spring Training arrived last week when pitchers and catchers took to the fields. It is that time of year when ‘hope springs eternal.’

Play will begin in the Grapefruit and Cactus leagues, and soon enough we will all be outside enjoying peanuts, cracker jacks, and baseball.

Yesterday our very own Brian Burkhart wrote a great article pointing out how Jorge Posada’s catcher’s ERA is misleading and that he wasn’t necessarily a liability behind the plate. Shortly after Brian wrote that, Yankees manager Joe Girardi addressed the media about Posada and said that he will be catching AJ Burnett this year.

During an appearance on the Scott Garceau show on MASN and 105.7 RM, the Fan, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman had some nice words to say for the usually pathetic division rivals the Baltimore Orioles and their GM Andy MacPhail.

“Andy is doing exactly what Andy does best,” Cashman said. “He is as sharp as they come. Patience is the biggest key. He made such an astute trade with Seattle and now he has a collection of talent. Getting Adam Jones to play with Markakis was remarkable. Now he has one of the bright young outfields.

Barry Zito had a revival or sorts last year. After struggling with a combined 21-30 record and 4.83 ERA during his time in San Francisco, he rebounded with a 10-13 record and a 4.03 ERA.

Perhaps even more impressive were the 154 strikeouts, which were the most for Zito since 2005.

With Spring Training starting and the 2010 baseball season only weeks away, it is the time of the year when fans of the Baltimore Orioles can start dreaming that maybe this is the year that our decade long nightmare ends.

The Orioles were not among the most aggressive or highest spending teams in the offseason, but they did make a number of lower-key moves designed to make the team better in 2010.

Considering that they went 64-98 (including a 20-39 record to end the season) in 2009, it shouldn’t take much to illustrate improvement.

Possibly the most uneventful free-agent auction of the offseason is over: Johnny Damon has signed a one year, $8 million deal with the Detroit Tigers, pending a physical scheduled for sometime on Sunday, Feb. 21.

Other clubs that had shown interest in the 36-year old outfielder are the Chicago White Sox, the Tampa Bay Rays, the Atlanta Braves, and early on the Toronto Blue Jays.

How long do we consider Johnny Cueto a sleeper starting pitcher option?  How long do we rave about his ability, only to see him stumble? 

How long do we hold out hope that this season will be the year that he finally puts it all together?

Last season was an improvement to his rookie campaign, yet it still wasn’t much to get excited about:

11 Wins
171.1 Innings
4.41 ERA
1.36 WHIP
132 Strikeouts (6.93 K/9)
61 Walks (3.20 BB/9)
.296 BABIP