The Season: 2007

[DoubleX]

Well we're just about there, so it seems like a good time to start our annual thread tracking the season.

For those new to BBF this offseason, the purpose of this thread is to consolidate all discussions about the team as the season goes on so we don't have tons of threads springing up during and after games. So basically, this is where we come to discuss the games as they're played and what's happened as a result of a game. That's not to say this thread precludes other threads, as there were certainly be many, many issues during the season that will merit their own threads (any bets on how many A-Rod threads we get this year?).

[DoubleX]

The roster will likely go through a lot of changes between now and September (and hopefully October). So I figured I'd post what looks to be the opening day roster so we can look back later in the year and see how it's changed:

Likely Regular Starting Lineup (by position)
C: Jorge Posada
1B: Doug Mientkiewicz
2B: Robinson Cano
SS: Derek Jeter
3B: Alex Rodriguez
LF: Hideki Matsui
CF: Johnny Damon
RF: Bobby Abreu
DH: Jason Giambi

Bench
C: Wil Nieves
1B: Josh Phelps
IF: Miguel Cairo
OF: Melky Cabrera

Rotation (not in actual order of starting)
SP1: Andy Pettitte
SP2: Mike Mussina
SP3: Carl Pavano
SP4: Kei Igawa
SP5: Darrell Rasner

Bullpen
Loogy: Mike Myers
MR: Sean Henn
MR: Brian Bruney
MR: Luis Vizcaino
SU: Scott Proctor
SU: Kyle Farnsworth
CL: Mariano Rivera

Disabled List
SP: Chien-Ming Wang
SP: Jeff Karstens
SP/RP: Humberto Sanchez
RP: Jose Veras (Would have likely started at AAA)
RP: J.B. Cox (Would have likely started at AA or AAA)

Notable Players Sent to the Minors
IF: Andy Phillips (He apparently cleared waivers, tough break, I would have liked to see him get a chance with someone else)
IF: Chris Basak
IF: Alberto Gonzalez
IF: Andy Cannizaro
IF: Marcos Vechionacci
1B: Juan Miranda
1B: Eric Duncan
OF: Kevin Thompson
OF: Kevin Reese
OF: Bronson Sardinha
OF: Jose Tabata
OF: Brett Gardner
C: Raul Chavez
C: Ben Davis
C: Omir Santos

SP: Philip Hughes
SP: Tyler Clippard
SP: Ross Ohlendorf
SP: Steven Jackson
SP: Jeff Kennard
SP: Chase Wright
SP: Steven White
SP: Matt DeSalvo
SP: Ben Kozlowski

RP: Ron Villone (Not clear yet if he'll report)
RP: Chris Britton
RP: Colter Bean
RP: T.J. Beam
RP: Kevin Whelan

Feel free to add to this minor league list, these were just players I could think of who will likely be at AAA or AA this year and might get called up at some point.

[mikeymussina35]

All I can say is YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.
This is my first start of an actual Season Baseball fever!!!!!!!!!!!!!1!!!

[DoubleX]

Just for comparison, here's what the last three Yankees' Opending Day Rosters looked like:

2006

Projected Regular Starting Lineup
C: Jorge Posada
1B: Jason Giambi
2B: Robinson Cano
SS: Derek Jeter
3B: Alex Rodriguez
LF: Hideki Matsui
CF: Johnny Damon
RF: Gary Sheffield
DH: Bernie Williams

Bench
C: Kelly Stinnett
C: Wil Nieves (Yeah, he made the team last year as well, but was placed on waivers just a few days later, which he obviously cleared)
IF: Andy Phillips
IF: Miguel Cairo
OF: Bubba Crosby

Rotation
SP1: Randy Johnson
SP2: Mike Mussina
SP3: Chien-Ming Wang
SP4: Shawn Chacon
SP5: Jaret Wright

Bullpen
Loogy: Mike Myers
MR: Ron Villone
MR: Scott Proctor
SU: Tanyon Sturtze (Uggh...still)
SU: Kyle Farnsworth
CL: Mariano Rivera

Disabled List
SP: Carl Pavano
SP/RP: Aaron Small
RP: Octavio Dotel


2005

Projected Regular Lineup
C: Jorge Posada
1B: Tino Martinez
2B: Tony Womack (Super ugh...)
SS: Derek Jeter
3B: Alex Rodriguez
LF: Hideki Matsui
CF: Bernie Williams
RF: Gary Sheffield
DH: Jason Giambi

Bench
C: John Flaherty
IF: Rey Sanchez
IF: Andy Phillips (I don't think he stayed up for long)
OF: Ruben Sierra
OF: Bubba Crosby

Rotation
SP1: Randy Johnson
SP2: Mike Mussina
SP3: Carl Pavano
SP4: Jaret Wright
- The team did not open 2005 with 5 starters

Bullpen
MR: Steve Karsay
MR: Felix Rodriguez
MR: Mike Stanton
MR: Paul Quantrill
SU: Tanyon Sturtze (Still ugh...)
SU: Tom Gordon
CL: Mariano Rivera

Disabled List
Kevin Brown


2004

Projected Regular Lineup
C: Jorge Posada
1B: Jason Giambi (this is the year that the bulk of his "problems" occurred)
2B: Miguel Cairo
SS: Derek Jeter
3B: Alex Rodriguez
LF: Hideki Matsu
CF: Bernie Williams
RF: Gary Sheffield
DH: Ruben Sierra

Bench
C: John Flaherty
1B: Tony Clark
IF: Enrique Wilson
OF: Kenny Lofton
OF: Bubba Crosby

Rotation
SP1: Mike Mussina
SP2: Javier Vazquez
SP3: Kevin Brown
SP4: Jose Contreras
SP5: Jorge DePaula (I think he made one start then had Tommy John surgery

LR: Donovan Osborne (Ugh...)
MR: Gabe White
MR: Felix Heredia
MR: Paul Quantrill
SU: Tom Gordon
CL: Mariano Rivera

Disabled List
1B: Travis Lee
IF: Andy Phillips
SP: Orlando Hernandez
SP: Jon Lieber
RP: Steve Karsay

[Mariano_Rivera]

The roster will likely go through a lot of changes between now and September (and hopefully October). So I figured I'd post what looks to be the opening day roster so we can look back later in the year and see how it's changed:

Likely Regular Starting Lineup (by position)
C: Jorge Posada
1B: Doug Mientkiewicz
2B: Robinson Cano
SS: Derek Jeter
3B: Alex Rodriguez
LF: Hideki Matsui
CF: Johnny Damon
RF: Bobby Abreu
DH: Jason Giambi

Bench
C: Wil Nieves
1B: Josh Phelps
IF: Miguel Cairo
OF: Melky Cabrera

Rotation (not in actual order of starting)
SP1: Andy Pettitte
SP2: Mike Mussina
SP3: Carl Pavano
SP4: Kei Igawa
SP5: Darrell Rasner

Bullpen
Loogy: Mike Myers
MR: Sean Henn
MR: Brian Bruney
MR: Luis Vizcaino
SU: Scott Proctor
SU: Kyle Farnsworth
CL: Mariano Rivera

Disabled List
SP: Chien-Ming Wang
SP: Jeff Karstens
SP/RP: Humberto Sanchez
RP: Jose Veras (Would have likely started at AAA)
RP: J.B. Cox (Would have likely started at AA or AAA)

Notable Players Sent to the Minors
IF: Andy Phillips (He apparently cleared waivers, tough break, I would have liked to see him get a chance with someone else)
IF: Chris Basak
IF: Alberto Gonzalez
IF: Andy Cannizaro
IF: Marcos Vechionacci
1B: Juan Miranda
1B: Eric Duncan
OF: Kevin Thompson
OF: Kevin Reese
OF: Bronson Sardinha
OF: Jose Tabata
OF: Brett Gardner
C: Raul Chavez
C: Ben Davis
C: Omir Santos

SP: Philip Hughes
SP: Tyler Clippard
SP: Ross Ohlendorf
SP: Steven Jackson
SP: Jeff Kennard
SP: Chase Wright
SP: Steven White
SP: Matt DeSalvo
SP: Ben Kozlowski

RP: Ron Villone (Not clear yet if he'll report)
RP: Chris Britton
RP: Colter Bean
RP: T.J. Beam
RP: Kevin Whelan

Feel free to add to this minor league list, these were just players I could think of who will likely be at AAA or AA this year and might get called up at some point.

I don't like Cairo being on the team. I`d much rather have Phillips who cleared waivers as the utility man. I also think Mientkiewicz has to big of a role.

[mikesty]

I'd've much rather had Basak on the team than Cairo or Phillips.

Whatever. Go Yankees!

[Mariano_Rivera]

I'd've much rather had Basak on the team than Cairo or Phillips.

Whatever. Go Yankees!

Anyone but Cairo

[Waitinfor27]

Just for comparison, here's what the last three Yankees' Opening Day Rosters looked like:


2005

Projected Regular Lineup
C: Jorge Posada
1B: Tino Martinez
2B: Tony Womack (Super ugh...)
SS: Derek Jeter
3B: Alex Rodriguez
LF: Hideki Matsui
CF: Bernie Williams
RF: Gary Sheffield
DH: Jason Giambi

Bench
C: John Flaherty
IF: Rey Sanchez
IF: Andy Phillips (I don't think he stayed up for long)
OF: Ruben Sierra
OF: Bubba Crosby

Rotation
SP1: Randy Johnson
SP2: Mike Mussina
SP3: Carl Pavano
SP4: Jaret Wright
- The team did not open 2005 with 5 starters

Bullpen
MR: Steve Karsay
MR: Felix Rodriguez
MR: Mike Stanton
MR: Paul Quantrill
SU: Tanyon Sturtze (Still ugh...)
SU: Tom Gordon
CL: Mariano Rivera

Disabled List
Kevin Brown

Double X, you said ugh to Sturtze that year and not Kevin Brown? At least Sturtze had an ERA under 6. And when I look at the 2005 stats, we had some UGLY pitching in 05.

Although, this year does look much better than 05. Specifically the potential three-headed monster of Farnsworth, Proctor, and Vizcaino.

[Yankee Legend]

The roster will likely go through a lot of changes between now and September (and hopefully October). So I figured I'd post what looks to be the opening day roster so we can look back later in the year and see how it's changed:

Likely Regular Starting Lineup (by position)
C: Jorge Posada
1B: Doug Mientkiewicz
2B: Robinson Cano
SS: Derek Jeter
3B: Alex Rodriguez
LF: Hideki Matsui
CF: Johnny Damon
RF: Bobby Abreu
DH: Jason Giambi

Bench
C: Wil Nieves
1B: Josh Phelps
IF: Miguel Cairo
OF: Melky Cabrera

Rotation (not in actual order of starting)
SP1: Andy Pettitte
SP2: Mike Mussina
SP3: Carl Pavano
SP4: Kei Igawa
SP5: Darrell Rasner

Bullpen
Loogy: Mike Myers
MR: Sean Henn
MR: Brian Bruney
MR: Luis Vizcaino
SU: Scott Proctor
SU: Kyle Farnsworth
CL: Mariano Rivera

Disabled List
SP: Chien-Ming Wang
SP: Jeff Karstens
SP/RP: Humberto Sanchez
RP: Jose Veras (Would have likely started at AAA)
RP: J.B. Cox (Would have likely started at AA or AAA)

Notable Players Sent to the Minors
IF: Andy Phillips (He apparently cleared waivers, tough break, I would have liked to see him get a chance with someone else)
IF: Chris Basak
IF: Alberto Gonzalez
IF: Andy Cannizaro
IF: Marcos Vechionacci
1B: Juan Miranda
1B: Eric Duncan
OF: Kevin Thompson
OF: Kevin Reese
OF: Bronson Sardinha
OF: Jose Tabata
OF: Brett Gardner
C: Raul Chavez
C: Ben Davis
C: Omir Santos

SP: Philip Hughes
SP: Tyler Clippard
SP: Ross Ohlendorf
SP: Steven Jackson
SP: Jeff Kennard
SP: Chase Wright
SP: Steven White
SP: Matt DeSalvo
SP: Ben Kozlowski

RP: Ron Villone (Not clear yet if he'll report)
RP: Chris Britton
RP: Colter Bean
RP: T.J. Beam
RP: Kevin Whelan

Feel free to add to this minor league list, these were just players I could think of who will likely be at AAA or AA this year and might get called up at some point.

I would make Todd Pratt the backup catcher. Instead of Rasner I would give Hughes a shot. Also, I would put in Villone instead of Sean Henn. Finally, Phelps should be the starter not Mientkewitz.

[monkey333]

I would make Todd Pratt the backup catcher. Instead of Rasner I would give Hughes a shot. Also, I would put in Villone instead of Sean Henn. Finally, Phelps should be the starter not Mientkewitz.

Pratt/ Nieves is a wash. Pratt has experience but he's old and his defense strikes me as suspect, whereas Nieves is a notably good defender. Rasner is more ready than Hughes, and King Phil needs the time in the minors for perfecting himself and managing his innings. Villone's tank is empty. Torre killed him and it's evident in his spring and second half last year. I'd rather take the chance with Henn's stuff. Agreed on the final comment.

I'd like applaud Torre for finally not picking a roster based on veteranessness and having a "belly full of guts".

[clipper]

NY Times has Phelps starting 1B. One, he earned it and two, Pravano will need run support. As for Henn, it's his spot to lose. He earned the spot and did good in ST. Let's give him a chance. He was definitely better than Villone and we just picked up another LHP, Burke. Henn will have to holdup in the majors.

Where's Rickey Henderson?

Clipper

[DoubleX]

Double X, you said ugh to Sturtze that year and not Kevin Brown? At least Sturtze had an ERA under 6. And when I look at the 2005 stats, we had some UGLY pitching in 05.

Although, this year does look much better than 05. Specifically the potential three-headed monster of Farnsworth, Proctor, and Vizcaino.

Yeah, Brown should have had an ugh, but Brown was coming off a great year in 2004, so there was some hope for a while with him.

[DoubleX]

I'd like applaud Torre for finally not picking a roster based on veteranessness and having a "belly full of guts".

I was thinking the exact same thing.

[Mariano_Rivera]

NY Times has Phelps starting 1B. One, he earned it and two, Pravano will need run support. As for Henn, it's his spot to lose. He earned the spot and did good in ST. Let's give him a chance. He was definitely better than Villone and we just picked up another LHP, Burke. Henn will have to holdup in the majors.

Where's Rickey Henderson?

Clipper

I changed my username to Wee Willie Keeler

"Wee" Willie Keeler started of with the New York Giants for 2 years. He than moved to Brooklyn for one year. Than he played for the Baltimore Orioles great dynasty of the 1890's for five years but when this franchise folded he moved to the Brooklyn Dodgers again for 4 years. He then played 7 years for the New York Yankees and was at one point considered for manager. He finished his career with his old manager with the Baltimore Orioles (John McGraw) with the New York Giants. He played for every New York team in his career and played for the Yankees more than any other team. I consider him more of a Yankee than Rickey Henderson and therefore I changed my username to Wee Willie Keeler.

[DoubleX]

Here are some general thoughts from reading other posts here:

1) In regards to backup catcher, while I wouldn't really have cared either way (Nieves or Pratt), the things I've been reading are that Nieves is not only very good defensively, but that pitchers love working with him. That's a big plus. However, I would certainly not want to see Posada go down for any length of time and have Nieves playing for more than a couple of games in a row. In this vein, Pratt would have been better as he can provide some offense if pressed into duty for a few days (and in recent years there usually have been a couple of periods where Posada has had to miss a few games in a row).

2) I don't mind Cairo that much, I think he's a useful bench/utility player. He's good enough defensively, he has good speed, and he can execute the little things. But again, he's not a player I'd feel comfortable trotting out there everyday. In this vein, I think Andy Phillips would have been a better choice as he has the potential to provide a lot more offense if having to play regularly. BUT, Cairo is the better and more versatile defender, and Phillips has shown that he can't get his bat going while playing only sporadically, so in this sense, Cairo make sense. However, if one of the infielders were to go on the DL, I'd expect Phillips getting called up.

3) I've been reading that the Yankees have been so impressed by Josh Phelps that Torre is considering using him at 1B more often than not. I'd certainly commend such a move. He's shown already that he has big league power, and according to some people, his approach to baseball has totally changed in the past year or two, in that he's not going up there to look for the homerun and to impress people, but that he's going up there looking to contribute and be a team player and try to use all fields. If so, I think the Yankees may have gotten a real steal here. It wasn't that long ago that Baseball America projected him as one of the top prospects in the game. He was great at AAA last year in what was probably a humbling experience, so he might be finally ready to breakout.

4) I'm wondering what will happen when Wang and Karstens are ready to come off the DL. My guess is that Rasner, Henn, and to a lesser extent, Bruney (whom Torre seems to like) will all be pitching to stay on the team each time out. Room will obviously have to be made for Wang to join the team, but if everyone stays healthy and effective, I imagine that they'll send Karstens to AAA rather than tinker with what's working.