The Yankees opened up Grapefruit League action in 2009 with an impressive 6-1 victory over the Blue Jays in Dunedin. Although all players will insist that it does not matter what happens in spring training, it is good to kick things off on a winning note.

With superstition being such a major part of the game, it is always good to win that first game, get a hit in that first at bat, throw a strike on the first pitch, etc. Speaking of having good starts, Brett Gardner led the game off with a jack on the second pitch down the right field line. He is in a battle with Melky Cabrera for the center field spot and could not have had a better start. I really like Gardner and am pulling for him this spring, as I think he would provide a different dynamic to the Yankee lineup.

Here is the list of pitchers scheduled to throw on Thursday vs. Tampa Bay:

Phil Hughes, Phil Coke, Brian Bruney, Damaso Marte, Jon Albaladejo and Mark Melancon

This game will be televised on YES.

The Sunday edition of the New York Times had an interesting article on Xavier Nady and Johnny Damon. It turns out that they had exposure to the Stanford Financial Group and their main bank accounts have been frozen by the federal government. This just goes to show that even professional athletes are not insulated from some of the recent financial chicanery.

Because of the World Baseball Classic, spring training games begin early this year. The Yankees open up the Grapefruit League on Wednesday against Toronto. Here is the rotation:

Wednesday at Toronto: Brett Tomko

Thursday vs. Tampa: Phil Hughes

Friday at Minnesota: Ian Kennedy

Saturday vs. Minnesota: Joba Chamberlain

The games on February 26th and 28th will be broadcast by the YES network. The February 28th game will also be broadcast by WCBS 880 AM 

After watching Alex Rodriguez’s press conference today, I was disappointed that he read a prepared statement during the first half. This event was an attempt to get his side of the story out while also trying to convince the court of public opinion that he is sorry for using poor judgment. While the first half did not come across as sincere -especially the long pause when addressing his teammates – the question and answer session was much better. For the first time it appeared as though he opened up and was himself.

One thing is for sure, Alex is sorry. The debate will rage on if this is because Selena Roberts broke the story or because he used poor judgment when deciding to try Primobolan. There is only one person that knows the answer. I hope that his explanation will prove to be enough, that there are no more skeletons in the closet, and the press can go back to reporting on the happenings taking place between the foul lines rather than between players and hypodermic needles.

A-Rod is holding a press conference tomorrow at 1:30 PM. I hope he is honest and answers as many questions as possible regarding his decision to use PED’s. If he is completely open, there may (and I put the emphasis on may) be a chance the NY media will move on and start focusing on the action on the field.

Let’s keep our fingers crossed!

First full squad workout is Wednesday.

Spring is in the air! Tomorrow morning pitchers and catchers report to Tampa. Positions players are expected next Tuesday, with the first full squad workout taking place on February 18th. With all the performance enhancing drug talk during the hot stove, it is great to finally get the players back on the field and hear the crack of the bat and pop of the glove.

Here is the 40-man roster:

Pitchers: Alfredo Aceves, Jonathan Albaladejo,
Andrew Brackman, Brian Bruney, A.J. Burnett, Joba Chamberlain, Anthony
Claggett, Phil Coke, Wilkin De La Rosa, Michael Dunn, Christian Garcia,
Dan Giese, Eric Hacker, Phil Hughes, Steven Jackson, Ian Kennedy,
Damaso Marte, Andy Pettitte, Edwar Ramirez, Mariano Rivera, David
Robertson, CC Sabathia, Humberto Sanchez, Jose Veras, Chien-Ming Wang.

Catchers: Francisco Cervelli, Jose Molina, Jorge Posada.

Infielders: Robinson Cano, Derek Jeter, Juan Miranda, Cody Ransom, Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira.

Outfielders: Melky Cabrera, Johnny Damon, Brett Gardner, Xavier Nady, Nick Swisher, Hideki Matsui.

The Yankees will have 20 non-roster invitees in camp:

NON-ROSTER PLAYERS
Pitchers: Kei Igawa, Jason Johnson, Mark Melancon, Sergio Mitre.

Catchers: Kyle Anson, Kevin Cash, Jesus Montero, P.J. Pilittere, Austin Romine.

Infielders: Doug Bernier, Angel Berroa, Shelley Duncan, Justin Leone, Eduardo Nunez, Ramiro Pen, Kevin Russo.

Outfielders: Colin Curtis, Austin Jackson, Todd Linden, John Rodriguez.

Guest Instructors: Yogi Berra, Billy Connors, Goose Gossage, Ron Guidry, Reggie Jackson, Hector Lopez, Tino Martinez, Stump Merrill, Graig Nettles, Mickey Rivers

Although the 25-man roster is basically set, there are some question marks that need to be answered during the Grapefruit League.

1. Starting rotation: How will Chien-Ming Wang bounce back from the Lisfranc fracture? Will Andy Pettitte have anything left in the tank? How will Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy perform in an environment this year where nothing is guaranteed? Will Mariano Rivera recover from minor shoulder surgery and continue to be an elite closer? Will Jonathan Albaladejo make the team in the bullpen? How will Brian Bruney recover from surgery?

2. Catchers: How will Jorge Posada come back from shoulder surgery? Will he build enough arm-strength to shut down the running game? Will he regain the ability to drive the ball with authority? If not, who will step in to be the starting catcher?

3. Infielders: How will Mark Teixeira adjust to New York? Will Robinson Cano come into camp with a better work-ethic and put last year and all the disappointment behind him? How will A-Rod handle the increased scrutiny associated with his admission of using PED?

4. Outfield: Who is going to play centerfield? Will the answer come from within the organization (Brett Gardner/Melky Cabrera) or will Brian Cashman be forced to make a trade? Who will play in left and right between Nick Swisher, Hideki Matsui, Xavier Nady and Johnny Damon? Will Joe Girardi be able to find enough at bats to keep everyone happy?

5. Manager: How is Joe Girardi going to deal with the media? Will he actually learn from some of the mistakes made last year?

There are a lot of open questions, but we should be able to answer most by the end of spring training.

Let the grind begin!

All the headlines in New York this morning talk about Alex Rodriguez
having tested positive for the steroid Primobolan. One of the main
issues being overlooked is the privacy concern regarding how this
information came to be leaked to Selena Roberts, the SI reporter who
broke the story.

In the collective bargaining agreement between Major League Baseball
and the Major League Baseball Players Association covering 2002-2006,
all players would be subject to anonymous, random drug testing during
the 2003 season. If 5% of players tested positive, there wold be
mandatory
random tests throughout the course of the next two seasons. If 2.5% or
fewer tested
positive in consecutive years, mandatory random testing would end and
be replaced by survey testing. The most important thing to remember is
the the drug testing of 2003 was to be anonymous with no penalties.

As part of the BALCO investigation, the federal government was granted
a subpoena for the drug testing records of 10 players caught up in this
investigation (Alex Rodriguez was not one of them). They raided
Comprehensive Drug Testing, Inc.(Long Beach California), one of two
labs hired by MLB and confiscated all records related to the 2003
testing.

The MLBPA currently is in the middle of a lawsuit with the federal
government regarding the information that was taken. The suit states
that the government should only have access to the results for the 10
players under investigation. With the case still being presented to an
11-judge panel in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in
Pasadena, the courts ruled that the information seized should be kept
under seal until a final decision.

I don’t condone Alex Rodriguez (or any player) for taking performance
enhancing supplements that are banned from MLB, however I do believe
that all citizens of the U.S. have a right to privacy. This information
should not have been leaked to the press while under seal by a court,
plain and simple. That fact that it was worries me a great deal. I
wonder what affect this will have on the current collective bargaining
agreement and any future negotiations.