Yankee Plans Begin To Take Shape

The Yankees’ plan for the 2010 offseason has taken some shape over the last 24 hours, with the ball beginning to roll on three of the most important issues facing the club:

1) Brian Cashman told Jorge Posada that he will be competing with Jesus Montero for the starting catcher job:

“Cashman told Posada that he should come in preparing to catch, but they are going to give Montero a real shot,” the person said. “And Cashman said that Posada should prepare to D.H. a lot.”

Posada started just 78 games at catcher this past season, missing time with several injuries, including a fractured knee and a mild concussion.

“Posada said great and he was willing to do it,” said the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he did not want to jeopardize his access to sensitive information. “He was happy to know what the situation is.”

Posada has a reputation for being somewhat selfish, but I have always believed that he acts with the best interests of the club at heart. When he shows displeasure about Jose Molina starting a playoff game, it is because he knows that the team would be better if he was starting instead. At this point, I think he is aware that his age makes catching every day an impossibility, and that Montero winning the job would probably be what is best for the team. I am sure he will not concede the position easily, but he is unlikely to be a problem should Montero seize the opportunity.

2) According to MLBTR, Brian Cashman is flying to Arkansas for a meet-and-greet with Cliff Lee and his agent. The Yankees were similarly aggressive with CC Sabathia, and it is pretty clear that Lee is the Yankees top free agent priority. The process is likely to take a while and it may be a few days before the bidding even begins, but it is good to see that the Yankees are being proactive. As Joe Pawlikowski notes, while it is almost always about the money, players want to be shown the love.

3) Jon Heyman is reporting that Derek Jeter and his agent met recently with Brian Cashman, Hal Steinbrenner, and Randy Levine. Everything we have heard suggests that while it may take some time, a deal will get done. Stop fretting, Yankees fans, Jeter will finish his career as a Yankee.

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