BREAKING: Sabathia Has Fluid On His Knee, Going For An MRI (UPDATED)

Girardi just said on WFAN that Sabathia woke up today with fluid in knee and prob headed for MRI. Unsure what's next for him. #yankees
— David Lennon (@DPLennon) July 3, 2014

That's the whole story as far as we know right now and it isn't good.  After pitching on short rest and throwing 55 pitches in his second MiL rehab start last night, CC Sabathia woke up this morning with fluid in his surgically-repaired and recently stem cell/cortisone-injected degenerative right knee.  He's going for an MRI to assess the level of damage and severity and as of right now his comeback plans are on hold.

More on this story as it comes out...

** 4:49 PM- Via multiple beat guys and gals, Girardi said there was "swelling" in CC's right knee as well.  This doesn't sound at all like it's going to have a happy ending. **

BREAKING: Teix Leaves Game With Left Foot Injury (UPDATED)

The AB4AR Jinx strikes again.  Mark Teixeira just left today's game in bottom of the 8th after being hit by a pitch on his left foot.  According to Dan Barbarisi, he fell to the ground after taking a slider from T.J. McFarland, tried to get up and walk it off, then stopped, threw his helmet and shin guard off angrily, and immediately left the field.  He was replaced by Brendan Ryan.

It sounds like Teix's reaction indicated that he knew something was wrong.  I have to imagine he's going for X-rays as this post goes up.  Losing Teix for any amount of time beyond a few days would be devastating.  More on this story as it develops.

** UPDATE 4:28 PM- Via Barbarisi again, X-rays on Teix's left foot came back negative.  Joe told reporters after the game that Teix was "OK".  Whew. **

Mark Teixeira Scratched From Today's Lineup (UPDATED)

Mark Teixeira was penciled in as the starting first baseman today when the Yankee lineup was first released.  A few minutes ago, he was scratched and replaced by Kelly Johnson.

Multiple beat reporters had the story, but so far there has been no explanation from the team on why Teix was scratched.  Thinking back to the tired legs he talked about having during and after the Milwaukee series, maybe it has something to do with that.  Better to play it safe with him with how shorthanded the middle of the batting order is right now.  More on this story as it becomes available...

** UPDATE 12:55 PM- Via Mark Feinsand, Teix's right wrist was feeling stiff.  Joe decided to give him a day off today to rest it and said he was "hopeful" he could have Teix back in the lineup tomorrow. **

** UPDATE 12:57 PM- A few more details on the wrist, via Dan Barbarisi and Andrew Marchand.  According to Joe, Teix has been dealing with the stiffness for a few days, but it's not considered a big deal and no tests are scheduled.  That's good news. **

Kelley Suffers Setback With His Back, Return Schedule On Hold

Shawn Kelley started his week-long rehab schedule on Monday by playing the catch.  If everything went according to plan, there was a chance he would be activated on Sunday.  Things did not go according to plan.  Not even close.

Via Dan Barbarisi, Kelley's rehab work has been shut down after he woke up with stiffness in his back yesterday.  Joe confirmed this to the beat guys before the game and said there is no timetable for when Kelley will try to throw again.  All we know right now is that everything is on hold and he's going to stay on the DL.

Yankees Place Carlos Beltran On The 15-Day DL

Yankees make it official: Carlos Beltran to the DL, Chase Whitley added to active roster.
— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) May 15, 2014

Well that sucks.  Despite saying today that he's "getting better", the Yankees have elected to put Carlos Beltran on the 15-day disabled list with a bone spur in his right elbow.  The plan is to use the DL stint to rest his elbow, see how it responds to that and the cortisone shot he received, and then make a decision on whether to proceed with surgery or not.  Expected recovery time from surgery would be 6-8 weeks.

I'm not one for delaying surgery when it seems like the eventual endgame, but I agree with what the Yanks are doing here.  I don't think they would have wasted time with the cortisone shot if the spur was obviously bad enough to need surgery.  If Beltran feels like he can play after a few weeks off and it looks better to the doctors, I guess it's worth a shot.

Chase Whitley takes Beltran's spot on the active roster.  Bruce Billings was DFA'd to clear a 40-man spot.

BREAKING: Cervelli Leaves Game With Right Hamstring Injury (UPDATED)

It happened as he tried to beat out a double play at first base in the bottom of the 4th and it immediately didn't look good.  Francisco Cervelli grabbed at his right hamstring and collapsed to the ground after crossing the first base bag, and he just limped off the field and straight into the locker room.  At best, he tweaked the hamstring similarly to how Mark Teixeira did last week.  It looked a lot worse than that though, and the Yankees are really, really short on healthy infielders right now.

Kelly Johnson will probably have to move to 1st base for the rest of this game and Joe might have to play Jeter at short.  This situation gets worse and worse.  More on this story as it comes out.

** UPDATE 8:38 PM- Joe confirmed on the ESPN broadcast that it was a right hamstring injury for Cervelli.  Carlos Beltran has come in to play first base for the first time in his career and Ichiro will go to right field.  Check the live blog below for any more updates. **

Report: Ellsbury Scratched From Today's Lineup

Ellsbury was in today's lineup, but he has been removed with tightness in his right calf. Yankees say it's precautionary.
— Jack Curry (@JackCurryYES) March 16, 2014

Well this isn't good news.  There was a report that Jacoby Ellsbury didn't take BP yesterday morning, but that turned out to be nothing because he hit inside instead so I don't think the 2 stories are related.  But being taken out of the lineup for health reasons is never a good thing.  Jack Curry said Ellsbury told Rob Thomson about it this morning and the decision was made.  According to Wally Matthews, Ellsbury is being called day-to-day right now and will not make the trip for the road game tomorrow.

Yankees And Brett Gardner Agree To A 4-Year Extension (UPDATED)

Well here's another deal I didn't see coming.  According to Jack Curry, the Yankees and Brett Gardner are "on the verge" of agreeing to a 4-year/$52 million contract extension.  Curry says the deal includes an option for a 5th year at $12.5 million and a $2 mil buyout.  The extension does not include this season, so it starts in 2015.

** UPDATE 12:53 PM- Multiple beat guys have confirmed Curry's report and Curry says Gardner will speak to reporters in about 10 minutes.  Sounds like this is all but a done deal. **

** UPDATE 1:02 PM- Via Dan Barbarisi, Gardner calls the extension "the biggest decision I had to make in my life."  There you go. **

More after the jump...

Derek Jeter Announces His Plans To Retire After This Season (UPDATED)

We knew this day was coming eventually, but I'd be lying if I said I thought he'd announce it today.  Via a message posted on his Facebook page, Derek Jeter has announced that 2014 will be his final season.  Citing last season's injuries and the strain they've put on his ability to play the way he wants to play, Jeter said, "I know it in my heart.  The 2014 season will be my last year playing professional baseball."

Obviously a lot of different thoughts and emotions come with this announcement, as most people my age can't even remember what Yankee baseball was like without Jeter around.  I'll dive deeper into this when I've had time to process it, but for now I'll just say good for him for coming to the decision and good timing following in Mo's footsteps by making the announcement early and letting this season be the proper goodbye that he deserves.

** UPDATE 1:24 PM- Couple of beat guys have talked to Casey Close and gotten his confirmation that this announcement is legit.  Via David Waldstein, Jeter told Hal this morning to make it official with the team. **

** UPDATE 1:53 PM- Bud Selig has released a statement on Jeter's announcement, calling him "an exemplary face of our sport."  For once, I agree with what Bud's saying. **

BREAKING NEWS: Yanks Sign Masahiro Tanaka To A 7-Year Deal (UPDATED)

(Courtesy of the AP)

Reports were that we'd find out by the end of today who Masahiro Tanaka would choose to sign with, and per Ken Rosenthal that team is the Yankees.

According to Rosenthal, the Yankees and Tanaka have agreed to a 7-year/$155 million contract.  The deal includes an opt-out clause after the 4th year.

This was the big move the Yankees wanted and needed to make to upgrade their starting rotation for this season and the future.  They paid a hefty ransom for Tanaka, including the $20 million posting fee they'll now have to send to the Rakuten Golden Eagles, but that's what it was going to take once the new posting rules were put into effect.  More on this story as it comes out.

** UPDATE 8:50 AM- Joel Sherman has confirmed Rosenthal's report.  Sounds like this is legit. **

** UPDATE 8:58 AM- Deal has been confirmed by a slew of other Yankee beat guys.  For the sake of conversation, the $155 mil is the 5th highest contract for a pitcher in MLB history in terms of total dollars.  Yanks weren't kidding when they said they were going all in to get him. **

BREAKING: A-Rod Suspended For Entire 2014 Season (UPDATED)

Guess those AP reports were true.  Fredric Horowitz's decision is in and it's the one I expected.  As first reported by Andrew Marchand, Alex Rodriguez had his suspension reduced to 162 games and will be suspended for the entire 2014 season.

The report actually came from A-Rod's spokesman, so it still has not been "officially" announced by the arbitrator or MLB.  Regardless, A-Rod's camp is already issuing their statement on the matter and according to multiple beat writers they still intend to move forward with their plan to fight this decision with a court injunction.

As far as the Yankees are concerned, they will not be on the hook for $25 million of Alex's salary this season and will save $27.5 million for luxury tax purposes.  Now that the suspension length is known, they can move forward with the rest of their offseason schedule, which hopefully still includes an outside upgrade at third base.  More on this story as it comes out.

** UPDATE 11:01 AM- First part of A-Rod's statement on the decision:

"The number of games sadly comes as no surprise, as the deck has been stacked against me from day one. This is one man’s decision, that was not put before a fair and impartial jury, does not involve me having failed a single drug test, is at odds with the facts and is inconsistent with the terms of the Joint Drug Agreement and the Basic Agreement, and relies on testimony and documents that would never have been allowed in any court in the United States because they are false and wholly unreliable."

The whole statement can be found here.  More updates after the jump.

BREAKING: Yanks Sign Lefty Reliever Matt Thornton

(Courtesy of Getty Images)

Well there's some unexpected bullpen help.  As first reported by Jack Curry, the Yankees have agreed to a 2-year/$7 million deal with lefty specialist Matt Thornton.  The deal is pending a physical of course, and should he pass it Thornton will replace Boone Logan as the team's primary LOOGY out of the 'pen in 2014.

Thornton, 37, was one of if not THE premiere lefty specialist in baseball as recently as 2011 with the White Sox.  He struggled for them early last year before being dealt to the Red Sox at the trade deadline and performing much better.  Overall he pitched to a 3.74/4.04/4.13 slash line in 43.1 IP in 2013 with a .280 wOBA against from left-handed hitters.  For his career lefties have hit .229/.296/.350 against him in 249.2 IP.

Thornton comes with a pretty fair amount of risk as an older reliever.  His K rate has decreased every year since 2010, from 33.9% then to just 16.0% this past season.  That's partially due to his increased ineffectiveness against righties, but as a LOOGY he should still be above-average and he comes at a much more team-friendly cost than Logan would have.  At the very least, it's an early-season upgrade over Cesar Cabral if Thornton can maintain his effectiveness against same-side hitters.

P.S.- For shits and giggles, here's my anti-Thornton rant from the 2011 offseason.  At that time it didn't make a lot of sense to trade away prospects for a guy with $12 million still owed to him.  Today, for just $7 mil and no prospects, it's a much better deal.

Cano Agrees To 10-Year Deal With Mariners (UPDATED)

deal for cano and mariners is $240M, 10 years according to @Enrique_Rojas1. can confirm it's agreed to.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) December 6, 2013

Well there you have it.  After the broken down talks made it look like he was going to come crawling back to the Yankees, Robinson Cano has agreed to a 10-year/$240 million deal with the Seattle Mariners.  Jay-Z's negotiating ploy worked and it was the Mariners who came crawling back with a deal closer to what Cano's side was asking for.

A physical is scheduled for this weekend and a press conference Monday, so this things sounds legit.  I'm really surprised.  I thought the extra demand would scare the Mariners away.  The Yankees lose a big piece of their plans for next year and the loss of Cano's production will be almost impossible to replace.  The value of adding McCann and Ellsbury takes a hit, at least for now, and the Yankees will have to move forward with whatever backup plans they had in the works.  We already know Kelly Johnson was a part of it.

More on this as it becomes available.

** UPDATE 10:45 AM- Via Joel Sherman, the Yankees let Cano know they would be willing to go 7/175, but that still wasn't anywhere near the total dollars of the Mariners' offer. **

Yanks Agree to 7-Year Deal With Jacoby Ellsbury (UPDATED)

This has all come out in the last 20 minutesor so, but apparently the Yankees and free agent outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury have agreed to a 7-year deal.

Jon Heyman first reported that the 2 sides were close, and it has since been confirmed by Mark Feinsand that it's a done deal pending a physical.  No specifics on the dollar amount but Feinsand says it will be bigger than Carl Crawford's 7/$142 million deal with Boston a few years back.

I honestly don't know what to say here.  I didn't see this coming and I don't think anybody did.  More on the story as it comes out.

** UPDATE 7:44 PM- Multiple Yankee beat guys confirming Heyman's report that the deal is close but still not done.  Feinsand now saying it's 7 years/$153 million.  This is shocking to say the least. **

** UPDATE 7:54 PM- Via Joel Sherman, the Yankees have stated that they have no intention of trading Brett Gardner.  If that's true, they'll have a hell of a defensive outfield. **

** UPDATE 8:04 PM- Via Bryan Hoch, there is an option for an 8th year that could bring the total value of the deal to $169 mil.  I imagine that's for AAV/payroll purposes but I still don't like it. **

** UPDATE 11/4 7:41 AM- Via Heyman, the deal includes a full no-trade clause.  That's 2 of those now for the 2 big signings. **

BREAKING: Yankees Sign Brian McCann (UPDATED)

Well I can't say I this coming so early.  Via Ken Rosenthal, the Yankees and free agent catcher Brian McCann have agreed to a 5-year/$85 million deal.  The deal also has a vesting option that could bring the total to 6 years and $100 million.

The report has been confirmed by Mark Feinsand, so it sounds like this is a done deal pending a physical.  McCann was one of the Yankees' major offseason targets from the beginning and he's an obvious great fit for the stadium, the team, and the pitching staff.  My FA profile on him can be found here.  Cash recently said the team was "absolutely" going to tender a contract offer to Cervelli this year, so now there's an overabundance of catching depth.  Expect Stewart to be non-tendered and maybe one of the Romine/Murphy tandem to be traded.

More details to come on this as they become available.  The first big offseason stone has been cast.  Let's see what chips fall as a result.

** UPDATE 6:34 PM- David Waldstein reporting that the deal is actually worth $82.5 million and still has not been finalized.  Stay tuned... **

** UPDATE 7:28 PM- Via Joel Sherman, the Yankees offered the $82.5 mil figure and McCann's side countered with 85 to make it a deal. **

** UPDATE 9:34 PM- Missed this earlier but via Jon Heyman, the contract comes with a full no-trade clause.  That and the vesting option make the deal a little more of a risk for the Yankees, but it's still a very good one for the best player available at the position. **

BREAKING: A-Rod Walks Out Of Appeal Hearing

This story is still developing and details are coming in at a rapid pace, but all you need to know is that the A-Rod/MLB circus continues to become more comically insane and The Horse himself is at the center of today's controversy.  After arbitrator Fredric Horowitz ruled that MLB commissioner Bud Selig did not have to testify today, A-Rod reportedly slammed his hand down on a table, told Rob Manfred he was "full of shit", and then stormed out of the meeting room.

A-Rod has since issued a statement.  Props to the Daily News I-Team for getting this:

“I am disgusted with this abusive process designed to ensure that the player fails. I have sat through 10 days of testimony by felons and liars, sitting quietly through every minute, trying to respect the league and the process. This morning, after Bud Selig refused to come in and testify about his rationale for the unprecedented and totally baseless punishment he hit me with, the arbitrator selected by MLB and the Players Association refused to order Selig to come in and face me. The absurdity and injustice just became too much. I walked out and will not participate any further in this farce.”

Wow.  Just wow.  Getcha popcorn ready because this is going to get REALLY good now.  Your move, MLB.

Report: Yanks Re-Sign Brendan Ryan (Updated)

Via Jon Heyman, the Yankees and Brendan Ryan have agreed to a new contract,  There are no details yet, but after reports came out last week that a new deal was close and the teams were just waiting on the results of a standard physical it appears as though the Yanks have their first (and maybe only) piece of Jeter insurance in place.

Ryan hit .220/.258/.302 for the Yankees in just 17 games late this past season.  He was worth 0.1 fWAR, mainly on the strength of his defense, and assuming the Yanks don't sign a bigger name to also share the time at short he will most likely be handling the duties on days where Derek Jeter is the DH.  The new deal hasn't been confirmed by any of the Yankee beat guys yet, but I'll update the post as more information comes in.

** UPDATE 3:00 PM- Via Buster Olney, the value of the new deal is expected to be in the $2 million range.  Can't imagine there will be too many bonuses in there to drive that value up significantly. **

BREAKING: Yanks Re-Sign Jeter To A New Contract (Wait, What?) (UPDATED)

Yankees today announce that they have re-signed Derek Jeter to a one-year, $12 million contract for the 2014 season.
— Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) November 1, 2013

Well I guess that answers that question about whether Jeter was going to exercise his player option or not.  Turns out he didn't have to because the team just announced that they've re-signed him to that new 1-year deal referenced above.

I don't really know what to say about this.  On the surface it doesn't make sense to add money to next year's payroll when the team didn't have to.  Jeter's 2014 option was for $9.5 mil and I was under the impression that as an option year that value would stand alone in terms of AAV.  I'm sure the Yankees know what they're doing and an explanation will come out, but for now this comes as a surprise.

** UPDATE 12:28 PM- Via Mark Feinsand, this new deal actually saves the Yankees a few bucks in terms of AAV.  Triggering the option year would have made his AAV $14 mil for next year based on the whole contract.  By wiping that out and going with the new 1-year, $12 mil deal, the Yankees save $2 million towards the luxury tax.  Pretty shrewd move on their part. **

** UPDATE 1:02 PM- Via Andrew Marchand, this new deal came as a result of Jeter and Hal having direct conversations.  Once again, Cash left out of the decision-making mix. **

Yankees Re-Sign Joe Girardi To A 4-Year Deal (Updated)

Guess he wasn't as "torn" between New York and Chicago as it seemed.

As formally announced by the team just minutes ago, the Yankees and manager Joe Girardi have agreed to a new 4-year contract that will keep him at the helm through 2017.  No specifics of the deal or money has been announced, but there is a conference call scheduled for 4 PM and I expect those details will come out then.

Smart move by the Yankees.  Joe was and is the best man for the job.  More on this story as it becomes available.

** UPDATE 2:17 PM- Jon Heyman reporting that the deal is worth $16 million plus bonuses.  Pretty fair raise from Joe's last deal and not as steep as I expected. **

** UPDATE 3:33 PM- Via the conference call, Joe said he initiated the discussion about a 4th year, saying he liked the stability it brought. **

BREAKING NEWS: A-Rod Sues MLB (Updated)

Well this is quite the unexpected turn of events.  According to a story published this morning by the New York Times, Alex Rodriguez and his legal team sued Major League Baseball last night, claiming they are leading a "witch hunt" to force him out of the game that MLB engaged in "tortious interference" as part of their attempt to build their suspension case against A-Rod.

The biggest accusation is one involving an MLB investigator paying $150,000 to Anthony Bosch for records on A-Rod that his legal team claims were stolen.  The specifics of the money exchange read like something out of "Ocean's Eleven" and if this turns out to be true that would be a huge blow to MLB.  I can't imagine that 211-game suspension would be upheld by the arbitrator if it turns out they were using tactics this shady to gather intel.

A-Rod said a few months back that he was going to be in a fight for his life with this appeals case and he's certainly handling it that way.  Love him or hate him, you have to give his legal team credit for doing everything they can to discredit MLB and paint A-Rod in a more sympathetic light.  The appeals hearing won't wrap up today, and there's no scheduled time table for when it will pick up again, but with this latest twist it should only get more interesting from here.

** UPDATE 10:00 AM- Here's the PDF of the full lawsuit.  Definitely take a minute to read that introduction. **