Spring Has Sprung....Almost

Since late January, baseball fans around the country have been eagerly anticipating the two sweetest words to fill the doldrums of winter……”pitchers and catchers”.  With the Superbowl already a distant memory (despite the big win by the local favorite Giants), and the NBA and NHL lacking in relevancy until the playoffs are within reach, MLB’s spring training looms on the horizon like a beckoning port in a storm-swept sea.  All teams are full of promise and potential….until their first few games expose the glaring holes in their roster.  As usual, the squads with local fanbases have high hopes thrust upon them yet again.  But can they live up to the expectations, and more importantly, will they?  Here are the current state of affairs for the big three, as I see them:

Yankees:  Cutting payroll?  Budget constraints?  This franchise is STILL run by the Steinbrenner family, right?  Well luckily for the Bronx Bombers, General Manager Brian Cashman is still calling the shots, albeit with a new set of budgetary guidelines.  With the new luxury tax rules arriving in 2014, and the Yanks making moves now to get under the $189 million threshold by then, Cashman has had to get creative.  First, he addressed the uncertainty of the starting rotation all in one day, trading young slugger and perennial prospect Jesus Montero to Seattle for ace-in-training Michael Pineda.  This was followed up immediately with the free agent acquisition of 37-year-old Hiroki Kuroda, the former Dodger.  I have no problem with trading a young bat for a young arm, because pitching is more valuable than hitting.  Kuroda, too, will serve his purpose to stabilize the back end of the rotation.  Trading the oft-vilified, and rarely appreciated AJ Burnett in a pure salary-dump allowed Cashman to address another uncertainty…the bench.  Veteran Raul Ibanez was signed to be a lefty bat off the bench, and infielder Eric Chavez (and his lengthy history of injuries, second only to Nick Johnson) was re-signed to man third base on the days manager Joe Girardi wants to DH Alex Rodriguez.  The payroll is still right about where it was last year, but with a few one-year deals and expiring contracts, their goal to get under the cap in two years is a possibility.  Of course, with the prices of tickets and concessions at the new Stadium, the last thing this team should be is stingy.  Oh, and this offseason the Yankee family said goodbye to Jorge Posada, the All-Star catcher who was truly one of the game’s best.  The clock is ticking on when he’ll have a plaque in Monument Park (but I believe Bernie Williams should be first…..)

Red Sox:  After an historic September collapse, and failing to make the postseason for the second year in a row, the Sox underwent a huge facelift.  First, amidst a cloud of scandal involving clubhouse beer and fried chicken, manager Terry Francona was shown the door.  Then, the man who showed him the door, GM Theo Epstein, showed HIMSELF the door and walked all the way to Wrigley Field, where he attempts to reverse the curse of yet another snake-bitten baseball franchise.  A lot of uncertainty surrounded Boston, but they made a smart move in promoting Epstein’s assistant Ben Cherrington to his boss’s role.   They let home-grown closer Jonathan Papelbon walk away in free agency, as he agreed to a contract (and a rather hefty one) with the Phillies.  JD Drew, Tim Wakefield, and Jason Varitek all retired.  Red Sox management went to arbitration with slugger David Ortiz, after Papi realized his value on the free agent market wasn’t worth nearly as much as he is to Boston.  They traded starting shortstop Marco Scutaro in a straight salary dump, with no clear successor to that position.  Everything seemed to be in turmoil, and to top it off……they hire the “anti-Francona” to manage the club, Bobby Valentine.  No stranger to the limelight, the media or a big market (having done great things with the last team he managed in this country, the Mets), Valentine could not have asked for a better situation in which to make his triumphant return in his homeland.  He’s now right in the middle of baseball’s most storied rivalry…..and he hasn’t stopped stirring the pot since.  Bobby V is down in Florida right now, proclaiming to anyone that’ll listen that “The Flip” by Derek Jeter was an accident.  But amidst all of this, several shrewd moves have also re-positioned the Sox towards competing with the AL East heavyweights, specifically the Yankees and Rays.  They acquired former New York farmhand Mark Melancon and Oakland closer Andrew Bailey to revamp their bullpen.  They moved talented fireballer Daniel Bard from the set-up role to the starting rotation, hoping to ease the losses of John Lackey and Daisuke Matsuzaka to injury.  The Red Sox go into spring training with uncertainty, but also the confidence that goes along with winning two World Series Titles in 8 years.  They play in the toughest division in baseball, but will be contenders until further notice.

Mets:  What can be said about the Mets……they let the former face of their franchise, Jose Reyes, walk away and go to divisional foe Miami.  They then secretly shop the NEW face of their franchise, third baseman David Wright, around to anybody that’ll listen.  Oh, and then of course there’s the little matter of the Madoff Ponzi scheme casualties, the Wilpons, and the wonderful ongoing soap opera of “Who’s Ready to Buy This Team???”  As the Dodgers will tell you, a very public ownership battle is the last thing management needs when trying to field a winner.  But that’s just it…..it’s almost like they’re not trying at all.  Slashing payroll is one thing, and is actually wise when you’re trying to attract bidders, but you still have to be competitive.  This team actually seems worse than last year, when the Metropolitans finished 77-85, and avoided the NL East cellar thanks to an even worse Marlins team.  Coming into the 2012 season, the Marlins are MUCH better thanks to some shrewd free agent pickups, as are the normally-hapless Washington Nationals.  Of course, the Braves and Phillies are always right there so that leaves very little room for error for the Mets.  On the bright side, they upgraded the bullpen by inking both Frank Francisco and Jon Rauch in December.  They are also looking forward to the returns of slugging first baseman Ike Davis and ace Johan Santana (or at least, that’s the rumor).  I’m sure Mets fans were expecting more, like at least being in on the courtship of Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder.  But until the mess with the ownership situation is straightened out, I would temper my expectations.

So that’s how the local favorites are looking, heading into the glorious beginning of the baseball season otherwise known as Spring Training.  As players are cut, reassigned and moved around, we should have a much clearer picture of what to expect.  But just the fact that I get to talk about baseball again, makes me a happy sports fan.