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And I thought the Yanks would sign a good pitcher

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exhawg

exhawg

Mirror Guy
Freaking Jaret Wright? Good Luck

Yankees close in on deal with pitcher Jaret Wright

By MIKE FITZPATRICK, AP Sports Writer
December 8, 2004
NEW YORK (AP) -- Jaret Wright and the Yankees closed in on a three-year contract Tuesday night worth $20 million to $21 million, the first major move by New York to revamp its aging rotation.

The Yankees also reached a preliminary agreement with Tony Womack on a $4 million, two-year contract, giving New York a starting second baseman to replace Miguel Cairo.

While no announcements were made, both deals were confirmed by a baseball official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

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Womack's deal was subject to him passing a physical. After undergoing elbow surgery before last season, the speedy leadoff hitter helped the St. Louis Cardinals reach the World Series, batting .307 with 26 stolen bases and 91 runs.

Wright, who will turn 29 on Dec. 29, went 15-8 with a 3.28 ERA in a big comeback season with the Atlanta Braves this year, but he lost both his starts in the playoffs.

New York offered salary arbitration to Jon Lieber and Orlando Hernandez before Tuesday's midnight deadline, giving the team until Jan. 8 to re-sign two key members of last season's rotation. However, Lieber appeared headed for Cleveland or Philadelphia.

The AL East champions also offered arbitration to switch-hitter Ruben Sierra but turned their attention to Womack instead of trying to bring back Cairo, a pleasant surprise as the starter down the stretch.

``We're going in another direction,'' general manager Brian Cashman said.

The Yankees declined to offer arbitration to six other free agents: first basemen John Olerud, Tony Clark and Travis Lee, right-hander Esteban Loaiza, infielder Enrique Wilson and left-hander C.J. Nitkowski. Olerud's departure might lead to New York signing Tino Martinez.

Players not offered arbitration cannot re-sign with their former teams until May 1, so they'll almost certainly end up elsewhere. Those offered arbitration have until Dec. 19 to accept and may re-sign through Jan. 8.

Lieber and Hernandez were two of New York's most consistent pitchers in the second half of 2004, but the rest of the rotation struggled for much of the season.

The team declined its $8 million option on Lieber last month, and he filed for free agency. New York has said it wants to re-sign the 33-year-old right-hander, probably to a two- or three-year contract.
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NewYorkBuck said:
Dunno - to me seems like a better idea than signing 400 yr old Randy J for 16 trillion.
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I'm just pissed because the Tribe decided not to trade Wright for Pedro back before he went to the Sox. Wright ended up sucking or getting hurt the rest of his time in Cleveland.
 
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Hey fellas, coming from a huge Atlanta fan, this is a good get for the Yankees. It actually makes much more sense than Randy Johnson. Wright lacked confidence until he landed in Atlanta, a team that I consider the re-vamper of many slumping pitching careers. I am curious to see if Wright carries his recent success over to NY, or if he will miss Mazzone.
 
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daddyphatsacs said:
Hey fellas, coming from a huge Atlanta fan, this is a good get for the Yankees. It actually makes much more sense than Randy Johnson. Wright lacked confidence until he landed in Atlanta, a team that I consider the re-vamper of many slumping pitching careers. I am curious to see if Wright carries his recent success over to NY, or if he will miss Mazzone.
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What was his record this year? I understand he had a pretty good year. I was glad to hear he was still in the bigs as I always liked him. If it weren't for that damn Jose Mesa we would have won it all in 97.
 
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BuckinMichigan said:
What was his record this year? I understand he had a pretty good year. I was glad to hear he was still in the bigs as I always liked him. If it weren't for that damn Jose Mesa we would have won it all in 97.
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I hate Mesa most of all. I don't have any hatred for Wright, but he didn't pan out like managment hoped when they signed him rather than trading him for Pedro.
 
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Wright led the team in wins (tie) with 15, in strikeouts with 159, and with a 3.28 ERA. He had a stretch late in the season last year where he was arguably the best pitcher in the NL. I think he went 9-0 during one span. I watch a lot of Atlanta games, and you could see him grow as a pitcher as the season progressed. He sucked in the playoffs, but what is new. They say the main reason for his success was Mazzone's ability to rebuild his confidence, and to make him more of a location type pitcher instead of a power pitcher. If the Yankees were wise they would use this same approach, because I feel that Wright could be exposed to more injuries if he becomes the power pitcher that he was in Cleveland.
 
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If the Yankees were wise they would use this same approach, because I feel that Wright could be exposed to more injuries if he becomes the power pitcher that he was in Cleveland.
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His velocity was about the same both places... His outlook possibly changed.... but he really never had blow away power... he'll be susceptible to injury because he's had them before... but at least now he knows he can get people out without having to challenge them on every pitch.
 
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AKAK: "Tony Fucking Womack and Jaret Wright."

I'll believe in Wright when I see it. However, I'd take Womack for my team any day of the week. He's a perfect, perfect fit for this line-up and he's a gamer. He KILLED the Yanks in the '01 WS.

I'm very high on the Womack signing. He's a guy like Marquis Grissom: not a star, but in a big spot, you can't get a fastball by him or fool him with breaking stuff. Plus, like I said before, the Yanks desperately need a guy that can play small-ball on this team.
 
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Like the Womack pickup......but pretty leary about Wright. I hope not, but unfortunately, I see him imploding under the NY spotlight...

On another note I hear the Yanks are close to signing Eric Milton.... :roll2: Not too sure about that one either.

Hopefully we can sway Pavano to the Bronx!!
 
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Bucktastic: "On another note I hear the Yanks are close to signing Eric Milton...."

I don't want Milton back at all. The Yankees have been fixated with Milton ever since they traded him away. An NL pitcher with a 4+ ERA is going to get bombed in the AL to the tune of a 5 or a 6.

The Yanks need a lefty badly, but just getting a lefthander for the sake of it doesn't make much sense to me. That being said, I'm ecstatic that the Yanks didn't bring another one of their old lefthanded farmhands back in Al Leiter.

I couldn't believe they were even considering that move. Bringing 5 Inning, 130 pitch, full-count Al to the Bronx would've been a horrible fit and a disaster in the making. Haven't they followed the Mets at all the last few years??
 
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Agreed. Thank God Al Leiter never came. Hes washed up. So is Eric Milton....thats a disaster in the making....IMO.

At least Im not the only one that thinks this....

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