Rangers Finally Win

Nash and Dom Moore scored in the first to make it 2-0 and look like the Rangers were on the way to a laugher.  But either Cam Ward was much better or the Rangers are really bad at finishing and the Canes brought it to within one by period's end as the D was discombobulated.   Scary moment when Hank got hit under the mask and went down, but after several minutes, he stayed in the game.  Kreider add the all important third goal, and Boyle scored the 4th to make it a 4-1 final.  But it still wasn't a good 60 minute effort.  Gotta build from here.

This Week on the Blog

This has got to be a more exciting week on the blog than last week was.  Last week was brutal.  Now let's take a look.

Yanks: seems like Moncada will be available soon.  They must pounce.  I'm a little concerned with their interest in Olivera, though, as he is a plus 2B/3B, and would presumably (and especially if they also land Moncada) lead to a prospect trade, headed by Refsnyder for another starting pitcher.  So, get Moncada and sit tight, Yanks.  We don't need more 30 year olds.

Giants:  Giants have to keep getting ready for the draft and FA.  Extending Eli should be the priority and the key to their UFA plans.  They should also consider extending Prince Amukamara as well as seeing if they can find something workable with JPP.

Rangers:  The Rangers need to start playing better.  And someone has to cuff AV about the head over Glass.  He's demonstrably awful.  Let JT Miller play!   Also, there are 15 days till the trade deadline - to the worse they play now the more prospects will be traded.

Knicks:  The Knicks have to keep losing.  They were getting scary for a bit.  I'd assume we'll see some more Knick trades before their deadline, too.

So, though there are no important games -- other than the Rangers -- all of the teams should be involved in acquisitions or exensions.   Have a great week, readers!

Moncada Cleared!

OFAC has released Moncada to sign.  Okay, Yanks, show us that you are still "Big Game Hunters" and not just "Big (old) Name Hunters."   This guy is a must get.   So get him Yankees.   Some faith needs restoring around here, and that can only be accomplished by winning and being smart.   Let's go, Yanks!

Apparently, and though MLB has already declared Moncada a free agent, they have another step in the process that they'll have to apply to clear him.   Seriously, what a load of crap, and indeed, restraint of trade is this by MLB?

Knicks Are Signing Lance Thomas, too

The Knicks, who really need to start losing consistently again, have decided to sign Lance Thomas till the end of the season.  It will be interesting to see if he gets a deal for next year, too.  Like Galloway he could be cheap but quality depth for a team that runs a system, like the Knicks do.  He's supposed to be a great locker room guy and he has a roll with the Knicks until they can upgrade it.  But really, the key thing it to keep losing so we are in no danger of Lance having to start next year.

Yanks Moncada Stuff

So it's come out today that MLB and not the US Government has been keeping Yoan Moncada and Hector Oliva as well as others off the market.   This will probably change soon, under the new Commissioner.  But he's only been on the job for 2 days, so, though it will probably be in plenty of time for the Yanks to get Moncada, it may not be this week.   The Yanks were heavily in favor of installing the guy, and I'm pretty sure that was with the faith that he wouldn't aim at them as often as Comrade Selig did.

Rangers Tonight

After his multi-point outburst (and everyone else's) in the NHL All-Star Game, he's in the Island tonight with the rest of the Rangers, to hopefully continue their pre-break hot streak.   They've looked pretty awful against the Islanders this year, so let's hope they can set things right.  Hunwick is in for JMoore, but everything else is the same, ie JT is playing.  Let's go, Rangers!

Knicks Extend Galloway

The Knicks have locked up Langston Galloway for the rest of this season and next.  Apparently the negotiations took longer than expected.   It's a fine move, btw, cheap depth will be valuable going forward.  Maybe now the Knicks will move Prigs and Calderon, who aren't part of the future.

Yankee Stuff

Over at Fangraphs, Kiley McDaniel has posted a nice review of the Yanks systmen and prospects, check it out.  I don't think I need to link it.

In other news, the Yanks are trying to take the mileston bonuses out of ARod's contract.  I can't believe they haven't done that already.   We'll see what happens there.  I'm still not 100% sure he ever plays for the Yankees again.

Still waiting on Moncada.

Giants Draft Pt.2: Trading Down

Getting ready for this year's draft, it's pretty clear that this will be a draft of almost entirely - and right now I think entirely - red chip prospects.  In othere words, there are no apparently transcendant talents with the possible exception of USC's DT/DE Leonard Williams, and even he has tweener questions - though his value might be elevated by the things JJ Watt has been doing at two or more positions.

That's said, the the talent is really solid, but pretty flat.  In other words, you can get the same quality of player at 9 as you can get at 41 and maybe deeper.   So, all that being the apparent case, a trade down for more picks would make a lot of sense for the Giants, who are sitting at #9 but missing a player that's clearly worth the #9 pick.

So, I'd like to see the Giants trade down a bit, while picking up an extra 2nd or more.   In this particular draft, I'm interested in fixing the OL, adding speed at WR and RB,  helping the run d and pass rush, and finding a safety.

This Week on the Blog

With the baseball hot stove on low,  the Giants other that OBJ on the sidelines, and the NHL All Star break on, the Knicks are our only regularly scheduled team.  Let that sink in.  Still there could be some interesting news from all 4 teams.

Knicks:  The Knicks have to stop winning. It's that simple.  Fortunately, Calderon's x-rays proved negative last night, so the can still trade him.   Same with Prigs.  And I think they should entertain offers for Hardaway. I don't think he'll ever be the impact 2 his genes and AA indicated he could be.  Anyway, more trades are on the way.  The question is when?

Yankees:  The Yanks are still in the Moncada holding pattern.  I think he will be a Yankee shortly after OFAC releases him.  Meanwhile, more and more Cubans have defected, and the Yanks should also be scouting them.  And perhaps this is the week the re-organization of the minors becomes clear.

Giants:  The Giants are at the Senior Bowl this week and have been seen talking to OL's, LB's and Safeties.  Hmm or not so hmm.  They seem to have picked more guys they've been seen talking to at the Senior Bowl lately.   So we'll see.   Btw, seems like they are sticking with the rest of their coaches.  Now it's all about talent acquisition.

Rangers:  Rangers return Tuesday.  They need to stay hot and make their trades very carefully in the second half.

All in all and less predictable week than usual, but I hope it's a great one for all of you.

The Knicks and Tobias Harris

Disturbingly, the Knicks now seem to be rolling.  Let's hope they don't roll right out of the top 4 in the draft, bucause it's looking like a 4 player draft.  Maybe a bit deeper but the Knicks shouldn't tempt fate.

Anyway, much was made today about Tobias Harris's eagerness to join the Knicks and win a title.  Delusional as that sounds, and as bad as TH played tonight in only his second game off the DL, it's probably a good way to go.   The Knicks are either going to get a C or a PG if they stay in the top 4 of the draft.   But what they will also need to go along with that kid, will be another young scorer, whether it's a 2 or a 3/4 like Tobias Harris.

Harris is only 22 and was really developing until he hurt his ankle and missed a bunch of games.  Presuming that will stabilize and he'll continue to grow, Harris would be a nice target for the Knicks.   He's an RFA and that might be the market the Knicks should be playing with this year's group of UFA's being older and looking for max deals - and if they're any good the teams that have them can offer a bigger max, so...  RFA's could be appetizing.

The Knicks essentially only have 1 starter now, and that's Melo.   So between the pick and the cap room they really need to try to get 4 more, with at least three of them being long term fixes.   Harris could be part of that group.

Rangers: JT Miller

Today, Larry Brooks is pimping the idea that the Rangers need to make a decision about JT Miller by the trade deadline next month.   That's ridiculous.  Miller is one of their few current players who isn't under a big contract or scheduled to get one any time soon.   Thus Miller is incredibly valuable to a cap-strapped team like the Rangers.

What concerns me most in hearing JT's name in trade talks is that I don't think they would trade him for a third line C like Vermitte.  I think they'd only trade him for another big piece.   And first, I don't think they need another big piece, and second I don't know how they would afford one under the cap.

As it is, the Rangers are headed for very tough decisions over MZA and Hags, and even MSL.  They need players like JT and Fast to hold the fort and grow as they wait for Duke and Buch, and the others.  

Yanks Add Reggie Willits as OF Coordinator

The Yanks have continued the rejiggering of their minor league system by adding former Angel OF Reggie Willits as their OF coordinator.   That means he'll cruise around the minors helping both OF prospects to field better, all prospects to run the bases better, and INF prospects to become OF prospects.  Could Moncada be one of the latter?

Giants Draft Pt.1: Overview

Okay, so this is Giants Draft Pt.1, which is not to be confused with the Giants Offseason posts which are now up to 11.    These parts will focus entirely on the Giant draft, while Offseason will focus on current team issues, hirings and future signings.  Got it?  Good.

I never try to organize the draft by need, because that creates reaches, and sacrifices both draft value and future value.   Drafting for need is just plain dumb.    I like to draft by WANT.   Meaning, I like to look at the Giants and see what can give them the biggest improvements then use the Draft as a shopping tool.

For example, I want better OL's.   They only have two I like at all and 1 can tolerate.  So I want them to hit the OL in FA and the draft.   Now, here comes the first part of the distinction between drafting for need and drafting for want: everyone knows and even says that OL is a big need for the Giants.

And that's true.  But I don't want to go reaching for them.  I've only seen 2 kind of OL's ever succeed for the Giants, and I'm really not interested in experimenting with that formula.  So, I want to find some OL's with good feet, strong hands and consistency.  Arm length is not as big a deal as I used to think it was.   Seubert, Snee, Pugh and the Cowboys Zach Martin, are the proof.   But I want rough, tough guys like that, or big, naturally powerful, suprisingly athletic guys like Shawn Andrews.

So unless they fit those parameters, I am not taking them just to take them.

Similarly, though the Giants have big presumtive needs at LB and S, I'm not going to go reaching around for them.  We need football players, not athletes, at both positions. So I won't buy the combine helium from any of them unless there is game tape to back it up.

I do want the Giants to add another running back and and another WR, though these are not their on the list of their top needs.   With a fixed OL, the  chance for making big plays goes up.  So, we need to replace David Wilson at RB, and we need to add another big play receiver, to take some heat off of OBJ and Cruz, create more chaos for secondaries, and in case Cruz isn't Cruz anymore.  

And I always like to take a CB.   So, we'll see what happens.

I do want the Giants to hit their immediate needs, like a run stopping DT and a good LG in FA.  By doing this they can really hit their wants and become that much more dominant.

Rangers Win in OT!

What a game!  The Rangers just beat the Sens to head into the allstar break on a 16 for 19 streak.   Wow.  And it really was some game, given that the Sens have had insane luck at the Garden for the past several years.  In fact, Anderson had never lost there till tonight.  

The first period was scoreless and back and forth.  In the second, Hayes put the Rangers up 1-0 off a rebound.   Just a few minutes later the Sens scored back to back goals to make it 2-1 goint into the third.

In the third, Kreider scored, and he was a beast all night.  He now has 9 or ten points in his last 10, and we're starting to really see, consistently what a dangerous man he is.

In the OT, the great Derek Stepan made a spinning pass to Hags, who was able to tip it in for the win. The pass was just insane.  

Huge win and the Rangers are heading into the allstar break en fuego.

Yanks Dealt Gonzalez Germen for Cash

Yanks got cash, for Germen Gonzelez, whom they DFA'd last week.  Beats nothing.  Now throw it on top of the Moncada kitty.

Moncada Worked Out for the Yanks

According to Ben Badler of Baseball America, Yoan Moncada has already worked out for the Yankees, who, according to Badler are one of the favorites to sign him.   This is good news, and let's hope that OFAC clears him soon, so it doesn't get anywhere near the June 15 deadline for the Yanks.

It's important to get amateur signings in the system as soon as possible, and they will absolutely want him at Spring Training.  

Get it done, Yanks!

Rangers: Save the Farm

The Rangers seem to be going for it this year.   That's fine an good, and they clearly need help on face-offs and in their defensive depth.  Those will probably be addressed, but in so doing the Rangers have to protect the jewels of the farm, which include Duclair, Buchnevich, Skjei, Miller and probably the goalies.

Thus if they are going for help, they'll probably have to trade current roster players.   It will be tough, but the roster players most likely to go for a 3rd C who can win face-offs, would be Hags or even MZA, both of whom are due big raises if retained.  On the defensive side, it would be great if Sather and his advisors could duplicate the Kevin Klein move and trade John Moore for a slightly older more consistent D.  Other parts might be involved, but the future can't be sacrificed like it was during the load up for `94.

Rangers Pummel Pens

Rick Nash scored in the first thirty seconds of this one and it was never particularly close after that, as the Rangers finished it 5-2.    Nash had a second goal, and Stepan also had 2.   Brassard had the other goal.   Stepan and Brassard showed why they MUST shoot more -- they're good at it.   St.Louis and Kreider both had 2 assists.  

Crosby scored for the Pens, because McDonagh somehow left him open at the side of the goal on a PP.  Sidney also treated us to more of his whining and poor sportsmanship as well as his magical hold over NHL referees.  

Nice game for the Rangers as they finish their "most dangerous" 7 games with a 5-2 mark.   Looks like they're heating back up.

Yanks: The Pulaski Staff

Okay, Axisa has cleared up the Tony Franklin confusion  http://riveraveblues.com/2015/01/minor-league-notes-hernandez-coaching-staffs-113186/ .   Tony Franklin will indeed manage Pulaski, but for the early part of the season he will rove.  He's joined on the staff by hitting coach Edwar Gonzalez, Pitching Coach Justin Pope, and defensive coach Hector Rabago.   All three are former Yankee farmhands.

Now we just need to know the GCL staffs (assuming we still have two teams there and that Pulaski isn't replacing one) as well as the DSL staffs.

Giants Offseason Pt.11: The DT Situation

The Giants have spent quite a bit of their airtime this offseason talking about how they need to get back to stopping the run.  Well, if you want to really do that well, it has to start up front with your DT's (and LB's and S's).  

Right now, the Giants have a budding star at DT in Johnathan Hankins, as well as last year's third round pick, Jay Bromley, who flashed a bit as a rookie.   They also have Cullen Jenkins, who frankly looked like he had lost his edge this past season.  Beyond that they control some UDFA's and street FA's.

Back during Spags 1, the Giants had Freddie Robbins and Barry Coefield as their starting DT's.   Hankins actually has a chance to be better than both of them were in the Spags D.   But what else they do in DT will depend a lot on what they think of Jay Bromely's progress and promise, as well as whether they want to keep or cut Cullen Jenkins.

If the Giants decide to dump Jenkins, but think Bromley is a future starter, they may just want to hit the UFA market for a younger run stopping DT to add to their mix.  They might also want to spend a mid-round or even late round pick on the position if they go with a FA.  

If the Giants don't think Bromley is there or getting there, they might want to spend a another 3rd or 2nd rounder on DT.   That's even if they think they can get another year out of Cullen Jenkins.

I don't think they'll want to go too big on a UFA DT, because having lost Coefield and Linval because of the cap they might finally see the efficacy in hanging onto Hankins and making him their most highly compensated DT.

This Week on the Blog

Alright, Giants and Yanks both got some business done this past week, and Rangers, and I guess the Knicks both kept playing.  Let's take a look at this coming week.

Yanks:  The Yanks are now on Moncada watch.  They took care of all their arb eligible as well as a bunch of their organizational coaching assignments this past week, we may find out the rest of them this week.  I'm waiting for a clarification on Pulaski but then we still have both GCL teams and DSL teams.  But the big thing is to keep the powder dry and pounce on Moncada.

Giants:  The Giants are probably now in scouting mode.   Spags is probably doing film review on all of his new players, while TC and the FO are probably looking at UFA's then heading down to Mobile for the Senior Bowl.  Pay attention to who the Giants talk to down there, and to who looks good in the practices and game.  The Giants love the Senior Bowl.   I suppose there could be another tweek or two to the coaching staff, and thos usually happen around now.

Rangers:  The Rangers need to get back to their A game, and start piling up points.  With Staal signed, they seem like they will start loading up for a Cup run over the next several weeks.  It's important that they don't trade Duclair, Buchnevich, or Skjei.  That will be key to anything they do -- holding onto the future.  They punted all their young stars back in the early `90s run up, and that hurt of a long time.

Knicks:  Seems like the Knicks might cut Bargnani this week, and then perhaps another CBA player.   And they're still trying to make trades.

Should be interesting.    Have a great week everyone.

Rangers Wake Up and Win

Derek Stepan was back and so were the Rangers' winning ways.   They just beat Columbus 2-1 and Stepan had assists on both goals, and he also played a terrific two way game.  Staal and Kreider had the goals.   Glass and Klein both got into fights in the second period.   The only goal Columbus goal was a fluke that bounced off their goalie and started a breakaway as the Rangers were swarming in the offensive zone.  Hank was Hank again.  Now let's kill Pittsburgh, and finish this brutal streak 5-2.

Yanks Avoid Arbitration

The Yanks today avoided arbitration with Pineda, Carpenter and Eovaldi by signing them all to cheap 1 year deals.  They didn't take this opportunity to extend anyone, but health permitting they should get a good look at all three this year.   Still no word on Moncada.

Yanks: Eury We Hardly Knew Ye

The Yanks just DFA'd Eury Perez so they could have room on the 40 for Stephen Drew.  This was one of their "rearranging deck chairs" sort of moves.  When's Moncada getting cleared?  Zzzz.

Rangers Extend Staal

The Rangers are closing in on or have completed a 6 year extension for Marc Staal.  This means their top three of McDonagh, Girardi and Stall are locked up long term, while Kevin Klein has another year or two on his contract.

In the short term, this means they won't be trading Staal for help at the deadline.  It means they'll probably have to trade prospects, and that will be tough.  But, it also won't disrupt the back line as the Rangers go for it this year.

Long term, unless the cap goes way up, it will mean the Rangers probably have too much invested in 3 Dmen.

Frankly, I would rather have extended Stepan.  It will be a shame if we ever have to part with a young player because we have so much tied up in the top three.

Rangers Drop Another

Rangers have now given back 2/3's of their great California tip.  Incredibly, they keep hitting posts and missing point blank shots.  I'm not sure if this means anythng long term, but they have to start winning faceoffs, or it's gonna be a really hard journey.   I know they miss Stepan but they can't keep getting shutout.   C'mon, Rangers, ROLL!

Giants Offseason Pt.10: They're Putting the Band Back Together

The re-hiring of Steve Spagnuolo gives us major clues about the team's defensive intensions for next year.  They're going to be aggressive again.  They're going to dictate again.  They're going to play GIANT DEFENSE again, and stop wandering around or missing assignments left right and center.

For what Tom Coughlin has been asked to do, win or else, this was the best hire he could have made. It's the only guy out there he's won with -- and face it Fewell won with a bunch of Spag's players, like Tuck, Osi and Webster leading the way.   And why would TC even consider hiring an outsider whose scheme could take too big a chunk of the season to adjust to?   He simply couldn't afford to.   So he's going with the last DC who actually put the Giant Brand D back on the field.

So what does that mean for the roster?  It still means they have to make a decision on JPP, which will probably mean a new deal or the Franchise Tag.  They simply cannot give up an elite talent for nothing, and Spags is just the kind of guy who can get the most out of guys like JPP, Moore, Hankins, Kennard and the rest of the front 7.

We're also going to need safeties as we've talked about.  But remember Spags was able to make do with any safeties and CB's, and get both a working zone and guys who would hit.  Still, we really do need to stock up on some safeties between FA and the draft, and will need more linebackers, too, though I bet Spags LOVES Kennard.

This should be run.  Long time readers have often heard me go on about the Giants lack of physicallity.   Well -- it'll be back!

Giants: Spags is Back!

So it's official.   Just as we thought Steve Spagnuolo is back as the DC of the New York Giants.  Regardless of what has gone on since he left of either him or the Giants defense, I think this is going to work.   Last time the Giants D was physical enough to be a Giant D, Spags was in charge,  And in 2008, even with all the injuries, the Giant D beat up on the Steelers and Ravens.  Bring that back, please, Spags.

Also, later this will allow us to get into the D a little more deeply than we were able to while this was up in the air.  

Welcome back, Spags!

Giants: DC Decision Lingers On

Apparently, Pepper Johnson has been told he's no longer in the mix, and thus people are projecting it's down to Spags and Dennis Allen.   I just wonder if the deliberation is a bit of a put-on, or if Allen really did make them think about hiring him.   Seems like they should have been able to decide by now.

Giants Offseason Pt.9: OL Coming Into Focus

Mara, Reese and Coughlin were all on WFAN today, and each one of them discussed their need to fix the OL.  Mara spoke generally, but Reese and Coughlin were more specific, and gave us clues.  Both said they see Weston Richburg as a C, which is a massive relief given the swinging gate JD Walton was this year.  What's more, TC went on to remind us the Justin Pugh can play G if they find a bigger better fit for RT.   Now, when Pugh has been healthy, he's been a very effective RT, and he has all the tools to be a very good guard, and could even play C.

Anyway, the plan seems to be either acquire a bigger RT or draft a T they can play at RT for a year before moving to LT.

So, as of right now, next year's OL probably looks like Beatty, Pugh, Richburg, Schwartz, New Guy.    Depending on the New Guy, that could be a really nice line going forward, especially if they can upgrade Beatty, next year with either Pugh or the New Guy.

Having said that, they will also need better OL depth.   So look for them to hit it twice in FA and twice in the Draft, and that should do the trick.

Yanks Sign Nova to 1yr 3.3M Deal

Yanks and Ivan Nova avoided arbitration by agreeing on a 1 year, non-guaranteed deal, for 3.3M.   Not bad.  This could have gotten contentious if Nova's agent had wanted him to be paid for what he'd done despite the injury.   Solid move.

Mara Sets the Focus on OL

Giants managing partner, John Mara was just on WFAN and said he believed OL was the biggest proiority for the draft and FA.   Thank the lord.   He also mentioned DL, LB's and S.   All areas we've already recognized.    Didn't mention TE, RB or WR, but they need help in thos areas, too.   But, first thing's first!

Giants Hire Tim Walton for CB's

The Giants today hired former Rams DC Tim Walton as their new CB coach.  Walton has worked under Saban at LSU and Schwartz with Detroit, before being one and done as the DC of the Rams because Jeff Fisher saw that his old partner is crime, Gregg Williams was available.  Coached CWebb in college.  Interesting hire.

Yanks: All Four Eligible Pitchers Have Filed for Arb.

Michel Pineda, Nate Eovaldi, Ivan Nova and David Carpenter all filed for arbitration at the deadline today.   Here the Yanks are presented with an opportunity to lock up some young talent, in Pineda and Eovaldi on reasonable deals.  They should do it.  Might think about the same with Carpenter.  Nova needs to prove health and ability, first.  Same could be said for Pineda, but they might as well make a deal if they can.

Yanks: Charleston and SI Name Their Coaches

The Charleston RiverDogs today named their coach.  Along with Greg Colbrunn, who is probably the best hitting coach in the Yankee Organization, Luis Dorante is returning as Manager for the second year in a row.  Tim Norton, the former Yankee Pitching prospect, will join the team as Pitching Coach.  Norton has gotten raves for his work with the pitchers in SI and Instructs.   Travis Chapman is the new defensive coach.   Chapman managed the Yankees GCL1 team last year and is among the new coaches the organization seems excitied about.

Patrick Osborn is the new Manager of SI, and he's replacing Mario Garza, who was given a new job on the International side.   Osborn was the Manager for Yankees GCL2 last year. And he's another member of the young blood, along with Norton and Chapman.  His new PC Butch Henry, has had success coaching for several other teams, including the Red Sox and Astros, and also coached for an Indy League team for a few years.

Ty Hawkins is their all-time hitting coach, and he'll be returning.  Also, new to the farm as a coach, is Eric Duncan!  The one time top prospect will be coaching defense.

Some interesting stuff. Really like the hitting and pitching coaches at Charleston, and will be really interested to see, how the young coaches and new coaches progress.

Giants Will Interview Spags Tomorrow

Alright, we're probably in endgame here.   Steve Spagnuolo will interview with the Giants tomorrow to see if there's mutual interest in his returning to his old job.  I'm guessing there is and I'll be pretty surprise if he does not become the new DC in the next few days.  BTW,  that would be fine with me.

Odell Beckham Jr. Honored Some More

OBJ, was named Rookie of the Year as Well as Offensive Rookie of the Year by the PFWA. And the awards keep piling up for the young Giant.

In other Giant news, they signed former BC OT Emmett Cleary to a futures contract.  He's still young, but the Giants are one of a relatively small number of teams that haven't cut him yet.

Yanks Acquire Chris Martin for Cash Considerations

When in doubt, acquire another reliever.   Now this is just ridiculous.  They have a bunch of relievers ready for the farm, but they keep signing, trading for and now buying more relievers.   Btw, this is another notably tall guy for our pitching staff.   I wonder if Lindgren or Rumbelow will even get a shot now.

Giants Looking at Dennis Allen for DC?

Ralph Vacchiano is reporting that the Giants will be talking to deposed Raider HC Dennis Allen about their vacant DC post.  And the net just keeps getting wider.  He spent 1 year as a DC with the Broncos before the Raiders hired him.  Before that he was a position coach.  We'll see.   Possible they could hire Spags, and see if Allen wants to be CB's coach for awhile.

UPDATE:  This is going on NOW.

Yanks Pass on Another Cuban

So, Yoan Lopez didn't end up signing with the Yanks or the Sox.  Instead, he went to the Diamondbacks for 8.25M.   Sort of amazing that the Yanks can find 5M for Capuano or Drew, but can't go higher for a high upside pitching prospect.  Right now, the Yanks have about 2 starting pitchers at High A or higher to get excited about, Severino and Clarkin.  Lopez would have given them a third. Now they'll have to wait 2 years to look for commensurate pitching in IFA.   Of course, if they're as bad as they could be this year, they might be able to find an equivalent arm at the top of the draft, next year. Truly ponderous.

Tampa Yanks Name Their Staff

Okay, even more coaching changes.  As you remember from last week, most of this past year's Tampa staff was promoted to Trenton.   The new manager is Dave Bialas, who's new to the operation.  He spent most of his minor league coaching career managing with the Cards and Braves.

Tommy Phelps is the new Tampa PC.  He'd actually been getting good reviews in Trenton, after having been a pitcher in the Yankee system back in the day.

Tommy Slater is the hitting coach.  He'd been one of the roving hitting coaches, but had also been a manager in rookie ball for the Yanks a few years ago.

And JD Closser will return as infield coach.

So the model was 1 new guy, 1 demoted guy, 1 organizational reassignment and 1 holdover.    Those concerned with whether or not the Yanks share their development concerns are getting more and more evidence.

Another Yankee Coaching Tid-bit

So, along with hiring three new coaches, the Yanks have now made Tony Pena 1B Coach and Rob Thomson bench coach.  Which probably means Espada is the new 3B coach, a position he held with the Marlins.   But, the FO was clearly tired of seeing Thomson send everyone.

Giants This Week

Right now, Pepper Johnson is interviewing for the Giants' vacant Defensive Coordinator position, and probably starting off the week where the Giants name one.  There've been a lot of rumors about various name, like Schwartz, Spags and Lebeau, but Morris and Pepper got the first two interviews, and the report that the Giants reached out to the Ravens about Spags has not been confirmed.

While I hope they are casting a big net, I also hope they are able to make a quick decision.   Assistants are going to get snapped up fast and we don't want the Giants getting a second or third choice or worse.  That's essentially what happened when Coughlin came aboard.  Ernie held up his hiring of assistants so he could interview Nick Saban, and TC ended up losing his first and in some cases second choices of asssistants.  So the Giants must move with deliberate haste.

Once they've hired a guy, they also have to go back into review mode as the new DC talks about what he'll need assistant-wise and roster-wise to execute his defense.   And he'll also have to chime in on the decisions that must be made about all of the defenive side FA's, most notably JPP.  

So, it would be a good thing to kick this process into high gear, and find the right guy.

Yanks Hire Three New Coaches

So the Yanks have added Jeff Pentland as their hitting coach, Alan Cockrell as their asst. hitting coach, and Joe Espada will move from being a MLB Scout for the Yanks to being the infield coach and presumably the new 1B coach.   The best hitting coaches in system still appear to be the in minors. We'll see if Espada can get Refs and Pirela up to speed.

Rangers Catch Sharks Making it 13/14

The Rangers who might have finally been hit by jet lag, still managed to handle the Sharks tonight 3-1.   They got off to a nice start in the first with goals from St.Louis and Kreider.  Kreider also assisted on Marty's goal, and may be catching fire.   Stepan assisted on both goals, ending his pointless streak at 3 games.   Nash scored the 3rd goal in the third, after the Sharks had made it 2-1 on a PPG.  Great trip, but they have 4 more tough games coming right up, so rest on the plane, boys!

Giants: Spags is Now Available

Ravens just lost.  Thus, if Steve Spagnuolo is the Giants real target, we should know soon, and he could be hired this week.  Spags either will be rehired, or he is the Sully of this year's speculation.  You all remeber that last year everyone thought Mike Sullivan would be the new OC, and then saw how that worked out...

UPDATE: Al Holcomb is now available, too.  And he'd be a very interesting candidate.

Giants Offseason Pt. 8: The Wide Receiver Issue

Most would believe having Odell Beckham Jr! would prevent the Giants from really having any WR issues for the next several years because everyone else they put out there would be open.  While that is sorta true, I very much prefer to build overwhelming units.  Remember Strahan, Osi, Tuck, Kiwi, etc?  That sort of thing.  Or, even our old OL, where one of them could get hurt and a Reugamer or Shawn Andrews (who was great) could pitch in and help us run it down the other team's throat.

So, could the Giants be overwhelming with OBJ!, a healthy CRUZ, and a slow developing Randle?  Sure they could, but there are two big problems.  First, CRUZ is coming off a pretty serious injury and may not be fully recovered and back his old pro-bowl self by the start of the season if ever.   Second, Randle has been a very frustrating guy.  Sure he seemed to turn it around at the end of all three of his seasons, but that's always been in meaningless games.   Now it's possible that he blossoms for a full season at age 25, like Amani Toomer did, but I think that still would make him a UFA at season's end under the new CBA.

So, as crazy as it might sound to some, WR could be perceived as a need by the Giants, and I wouldn't be surprised if they took another one in the first three rounds.

Btw, you'd assume they'd want a bigger WR than OBJ! and CRUZ, but route running and body control seem to be trumping size dominance in the WR's they go for these days.  So look for guys with route running, body control and big production when trying to figure out what the Giants might do.

This Week on the Blog

Things are getting interesting with all four of our teams.   Finally.  And it's week for all four, and thus probably a big week around here.   Let's take a look.

Yankees: I don't know about the rest of you, but I've really been interested in the reorganiation of their basball operations.   We saw the announcements of the AAA and AA coaching staffs this week, with several changes.  So more announcements are probably on the way.   Also, and more importantly, the Pitching Yoan has been cleared by the Foreign Assett Control people and the Yanks or any other team can sign him now.  But it should be the Yanks.   He's 21 and thus falls under the IFA rules, and the Yanks won't be able to splurge on another young IFA pitcher till `17.  Get er done!
Also, they shouldn't trade the new pieces they've acquired for Cole Hamels.

Rangers: The Rangers have to keep rolling.  They need to bring what they've been bringing against the Sharks tonight, because things won't get much easier hereafter.   Trade season isn't in full bore, yet in the NHL, and I doubt the Rangers will get it started while they're rolling as they are.  Need to get Stepan on the scoresheet again.

Giants: Huge week for the Giants, and they will continue candidates for their vacant Defensive Coordinator post.  Also, there could be more changes, as the reviews had not been completed when they let Fewell and Giunta go the other day.  We'll see how it shakes out.

Knicks: Hey, the Knicks made a trade.  Time to make some more.   Also, looks like they might put two of the scrubs they cut after the trade on the 10 day contract plan.

So, the Rangers are playing well, and the other teams are trying to solve their problems.  Should be a great week, and I hope it is for each of you.