The Yanks are hoping that Drew will rebound from a disappointing 2014 to help fill in for next season.

So did you enjoy the results of the Hall of Fame election? Did you enjoy not thinking about the 2015 Yankees for a little while? Well the Yankees' front office did not take the afternoon off. Just a little before 10:00 Eastern Time, Jon Heyman, who always seems to get these sudden Yankees scoops, revealed that the Yankees came to terms with Stephen Drew to bring him back on a one-year contract:

yankees will have deal with stephen drew. deal expected to come in at about $5M plus incentives to bring it to $6-7M.

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) January 7, 2015

Idea is Drew will play 2B against at least RHs, serve as insurance at SS if Gregorius can’t handle being Jeter’s replacement

— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) January 7, 2015

Well, it will certainly be fun to see the response from Yankees fans to this move. The Yanks of course traded for Drew at the Trade Deadline in 2014, and unlike the moves to acquire Brandon McCarthy, Chase Headley, and Martin Prado, this one blew up in their face. All Drew had to do was out-play the meager performance of Brian Roberts, struggling in what would be his final career season. After sitting out spring training and the first two months of the season, Drew was poor with the Red Sox, batting only .176/.255/.328 in 39 games. Somehow, he was even worse than both Roberts and first-half Drew, as over the season's final two months, he hit a dismal .150/.219/.271 while spending time at second base and shortstop. Overall, his 2014 season produced a 51 OPS+. Sterling.

Nonetheless, we will get the Stephen Drew Experience again in 2015. The Yankees likely feel cautious about turning second base over to rookies Robert Refsnyder or Jose Pirela without any competition, and I'd always felt that they would bring a veteran in to compete with them for the job. I just didn't expect them to bring Drew back after his poor season. Oh well.

I suppose it's always possible that should Drew struggle and Refsnyder excel, they hearken back to 2005 and cut him or heavily reduce his time like they did with Tony Womack when Robinson Cano was tearing up Triple-A. Who even knows at this point. (It would seem that Brendan Ryan has no spot on the team now, but I guess we'll see.) I generally don't oppose one-year contracts, so in the end, I'm not going to get too riled up about this, but given how poor Drew looked last year (no spring training aside), I don't have much confidence he'll resdiscover his 2013 form. Here's hoping he proves me wrong.

“The sky was just beginning to light up a little, the quiet time when all the air is clean and you can hear birds, even in the middle of New York City, the time of day you never see except by accident, and you always tell yourself, "I must get up and appreciate this time of day once in awhile," and then you never do. Don't ask me why.”

Bang the Drum Slowly, by Mark Harris is a type of sequel to The Southpaw, following the lives of fictional baseball player Henry Wiggen and his friend and teammate, Bruce Pearson. More than a novel about baseball, Bang the Drum Slowly follows the team, the New York Mammoths, as the group slowly learns one of their teammates is dying of cancer. While the baseball team is good, it is obvious that it lacks team unity. With the knowledge of a teammate's illness, they band together in an attempt to win the World Series. According to Charles Poore of The New York Times, 1956, " In its elementals, Bang the Drum Slowly has two familiar themes. One is the story of the way a doomed man may spend his last best year on earth. The other is the story of how a quarrelsome group of raucous individualists is welded into an effective combat outfit."

I am excited about this book for several reasons:

1. It is fictional, which allows for more literary freedom and a type of romanticism that non-fiction usually cannot allow due to being a servant to history
2. It is highly acclaimed, being called at the time "the finest baseball novel that has appeared since we all began to compare baseball novels with the works of Ring Lardner, Douglass Wallop and Heywood Broun," (Poore, 2) (Wallup, you might remember, penned The Year the Yankees Lost the Pennant)
3. It was made into a movie starring Robert De Niro and Michael Moriarty in 1973 that was given four stars and called "the ultimate baseball movie" by Roger Ebert (Ebert, 1)

Don't have the book yet? Here are some reviews and excerpts to get you started!

Reviews:

The New York Times: Bang the Drum Slowly (Charles Poore)
The Henry Wiggen Blog: Book Review: Bang the Drum Slowly
Roger Ebert: Bang the Drum Slowly (Film)

Excerpts:

Google Books

Previous Viva el Libros Books:

i. The Summer of Beer and Whiskey, Edward Achorn: Intro; Recap

This signing will not hurt the team.

I understand the anger, Yankees fans. After witnessing Stephen Drew hit .162/.237/.299 (44 wRC+) and put up an absolutely dreadful -1.1 fWAR in 300 PA in 2014, I can absolutely understand why you'd be miserable to see Drew suit up in pinstripes again.

I'm not going to try to convince you that Drew is some heavily undervalued player. What I will tell you, which should make you feel better, is that this is perfectly adequate in length and size. Steamer projects Drew to hit .219/.295/.353 (82 wRC+) with 0.7 fWAR in 105 games. That's pretty blah. It's actually eerily similar to Brian Roberts in terms of projection, but I'll get to why that doesn't matter as much in a bit.

An important point to note, though, is that the projection may not be wholly accurate. His 300 PA with both the Yankees and Red Sox were pretty darn bad, but not only does 300 PA not a player make, but keep in mind his irregular spring training schedule. I'm not well versed in how one's timing can be affected by not seeing professional pitching for a stretch, but it's safe to say that taking batting practice for nearly seven months doesn't bode well for the following season. I would guess that the first 100-150 PA were spring training quality, and then he just hit a heck of a slump. I'm not going to go as far to say that he is as good as he was in 2013, but I doubt he is as bad as 2014, too.

As many on social media have already pointed out, this signing wouldn't bother most if the Yankees didn't have a habit of sticking with veterans over anyone else. That's certainly a valid complaint. The team once stuck with Tony Womack at second base until bringing up Robinson Cano back in the day, and they have done it again with Chris Stewart and Brian Roberts over the past couple years. So yes, I can see why fans would be wary to hand Drew the job because the team may leave him there no matter what.

Thankfully, the Yankees are lucky enough to have backup options. It's clear that the front office has little confidence in Rob Refsnyder's defense yet, and they clearly (rightfully so) don't think that Jose Pirela is an adequate second base beyond his role as utility man. Frankly, I don't blame them there. Sure, Refsnyder has torn the cover off the ball in the minors, but I still trust their internal analytics and scouting reports in regards to current talent, and especially defensive ability. If Refsnyder is truly the better player, then he will get a chance to play. He is also not so terrible that if Drew imploded, the team wouldn't be wholly uncomfortable giving him a shot. It's not like in the past where they would have to hand the job over to some unknown organizational depth piece; they have at least some options to fall back on.

There is a good chance that Drew will be pretty mediocre, but there's also a good chance that the internal options would be poor as well. And what would the team do if the internal options implode? They'd be stuck. At least now they have an actual major league baseball player who could hold down a job, hopefully. If he is terrible, then he will get his ~200 PA like Alfonso Soriano, and then pack his bags. If he is adequate then he makes his salary worthwhile, and they give themselves more time to develop Refsnyder's defense.

There are very few one-year deals, especially at this low a cost, that are bad deals. It certainly makes the Brendan Ryan signing a real head-scratcher, but this deal on its own makes enough sense. There is an obvious concern that second base could be a black hole, and this deal at least decreases the probability that it will become one. For just $5 million, I'll take my chances and see what Drew can do. If he is terrible and the team doesn't replace him, then the larger concern is that both Refsnyder and Pirela are not competent enough to handle the position because Drew will not "block the kids." My fingers are crossed that either Drew is adequate or Refsnyder wins the job on his own merits, but I'm not going to hold my breath. Take this deal for what it is, Yankees fans: depth. It won't hurt as much as you think.

Ready or not, Stephen Drew is returning to the Yankees. How did the media react to the somewhat-controversial re-signing?

Much to the chagrin of some fans, the Yankeesreportedly brought infielder Stephen Drew back on a one-year, $5 million contract. I'll admit that even though I don't hate the move to add depth up the middle, I'm not very optimistic on how much Drew will produce in 2015, even with a full spring training this time. Fortunately, the Twittersphere was not as bearish on the signing. Like with the deal that sent Manny Banuelos out of town, it's at least a little encouraging when more neutral sides weigh in and give their support to a move that generated mixed reactions (to be generous).

Digging the #Yankees' deal with Stephen Drew, makes enough sense for a team with money to spend & few tomorrows with this crew.

— Christina Kahrl (@ChristinaKahrl) January 7, 2015

As one of the featured writers on ESPN's SweetSpot blog and a co-founder at Baseball Prospectus, Kahrl's thoughts should not be easily dismissed. From years editing the BP Annual, she certainly has experience evaluating players based on their previous performances. On a short-term deal, Drew's contract carries minimal risk.

Drew is a good signing. Last year was a wash because he missed half the year, including spring training. He'll be better, and can play 2B.

— David Waldstein (@DavidWaldstein) January 7, 2015

Positive review from a beat reporter. Drew at least has a positive defensive reputation, and it would hard to hit much worse than he did last year.

Oh, ZiPS for Drew in NY is 211/285/360, 77 OPS+, +2 D at 2B in 376 projected PA.

— Dan Szymborski (@DSzymborski) January 7, 2015

My rule of thumb is not to put too much stock into projections, but this isn't pretty. Neither is the FanGraphs Steamer projection of .219/.295/.353 with an 82 wRC+. But hey, it's still better than what he did last year, and given the struggles of rookies coming up from Triple-A around the majors recently, it's far from a lock that Robert Refsnyder or Jose Pirela could produce that anyway.

Gut tells me #Yankees want Refsnyder (still new to 2b) to get more AAA time and Pirela will be RH complement to Drew

— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) January 7, 2015

If Sherman's instinct is accurate, I would support this plan. It can't hurt Ref to further improve his defense in Triple-A, and Pirela platooning with Drew when a lefty takes the mound isn't a bad idea at all. (Is Brendan Ryan off this team yet? I hope he hasn't purchased any real estate.)

I think Stephen Drew is a good signing #tepidstove

— Chris Cwik (@Chris_Cwik) January 7, 2015

Scorching take from CBS Sports/FanGraphs writer Chris Cwik! (But seriously, this was a positive gut reaction to the signing immediately after the news hit Twitter.)

Bottom line is Ref is not ready. Pirela is still a gamble. Drew is cheap and gives stability. Getting spring training helps Drew.

— Jed Weisberger (@jedleyq) January 7, 2015

Having never seen Refsnyder's defense live, I'll defer to Jed's judgment on his second base ability. I know the scouting reports aren't exactly glowing either, so in the long run, is it really the worst thing for Refsnyder to have a little bit more time to develop his glove?

Don't know which will be funnier: Yankee fans fuming over signing Drew or Met fans fuming over not signing Drew

— Mike Gianella (@MikeGianella) January 7, 2015

Heh. Always intriguing to see the difference in the opinion between Yankees and Mets fans.

Stephen Drew had an awful year at the plate, but some in the game see him to bouncing back in '15. Nice move by #Yankees.

— Ben Nicholson-Smith (@bnicholsonsmith) January 7, 2015

A return to Drew's 2013 form would be ideal. Even a significant fraction of that could help.

Could #Yankees risk Drew/Ryan def-heavy SS platoon to free Didi up to be part of package for SP?

— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) January 7, 2015

Man, I hope not. That is an ugly-looking shortstop platoon; I'd rather just bank on Didi Gregorius and his potential.

If Drew rebounds, #Yankees get a steal. But I'm not so sure he rebounds.

— Dan Pfeiffer (@danpfeiffer74) January 7, 2015

This is the essence of the deal. It's certainly encouraging to see a handful of nice words about the deal, but it's up to Drew to prove his doubters wrong. At 31 years old, he's far from a geezer. Let's see him rebound.

Will the Yankees replace Ryan with Drew, or will Drew take the 2B job from the prospects?

The Yankees decided to bring Stephen Drew back on a one-year contract last night which is a move that felt bound to happen prior to the trade for Didi Gregorius. After that, though, it seemed like the Yankees were set at shortstop. Especially with Brendan Ryan already signed as the backup through 2015. Signing Drew feels redundant at this point, unless it indicates that the Yankees are going to get rid of Ryan.

First of all, Ryan is basically useless with a baseball bat. He hit .167/.211/.202 last year in the 49 games that he made it into. Gregorius should be the starting shortstop, but Ryan is only useful in a backup, defensive role at shortstop. He has a tiny bit of experience at second and third base if they really needed him there, too. With that being said, the Stephen Drew that we saw last year is barely an upgrade over Brendan Ryan. While it's true that he wasn't signed until after the season already started and missed spring training, he still had a miserable year, batting .162/.237/.299 with 44 wRC+ through 85 games.

Drew also only has experience at shortstop, in addition to the 274 innings at second base that the Yankees forced him to play last season. Does this mean that they're going to give Drew a chance to win the shortstop job during spring training? Maybe they're going to try to package Gregorius in a trade, since this offseason has been all about the trades. Drew wasn't particularly great defensively during his time at second base last season, but maybe the Yankees are thinking that he could also back up second base. In other words, Drew could replace Ryan's role on the team. The scary thing is that they were content to have Drew play second last year, even in September, despite Jose Pirela and Rob Refsnyder both being available then and despite Drew batting horrendously. Given their affinity for veterans, I wouldn't be terribly surprised to see them wedge Drew in at second, even though Brian Cashman has said that Pirela and Refsnyder would compete for the spot during spring training.

It feels like they're counting on Drew having a bounce-back year and being able to return to his 2013 numbers, which is fine, but not necessarily practical. If he doesn't, then the team would find itself with two similar players in Ryan and Drew. On the plus side, neither of them is earning very much money; Ryan will make $2 million in 2015, and Drew's contract is for $5 million, so they could always cut one or both of them if they are performing poorly.

What do you think the Yankees plan to do with Ryan now that they have Drew? Do you think they'll keep both and give Drew the second base job? Will you be upset if Refsnyder or Pirela don't get a shot at 2B?

The 30-year-old LOOGY could be a potent weapon for Fredi Gonzalez.

The Atlanta Braves have added another option to their bullpen, signing left-hander Josh Outman to a one-year contract, the club announced. Per MLB Daily Dish's Chris Cotillo, the 30-year-old's deal is worth a guaranteed $925,000, with an extra $475,000 available via incentives, giving it a maximum value of $1.4 million.

Outman, who was released by the Yankees in late-September, posted a very strong 2.86 ERA in 28.1 innings over 40 appearances in 2014, but his walk rate (5.1) was abnormally high compared to the career 3.6 BB/9 he held entering the season. His FIP (4.83) and xFIP (4.18) also seem to point towards a lesser performance last year.

For his career, Outman owns a 4.43 ERA (97 ERA+), 4.07 FIP, and 3.1 WAR in 274.1 innings of work. He has pitched for the Athletics, Rockies, Indians, and Yankees in parts of six seasons.

Outman will join Jim Johnson, Arodys Vizcaino, and Jason Grilli as new additions to a Braves bullpen that ranked fourth in the majors in FIP last season, though they are now without the recently traded Jordan Walden and David Carpenter. Outman is likely slated to join James Russell and Luis Avilan as the Braves' third southpaw bullpen option out of the gate. He is likely to serve in a strict LOOGY role, as left-handers have hit just .186/.254/.283 off him during his career, while right-handers have slugged a significantly better .303/.378/.473.

Atlanta also announced thesignings of Grilli and catcher A.J. Pierzynski on Wednesday. To clear roster space, the Braves will designate infielder Tyler Pastornicky for assignment, according to MLB.com's Jason Beck. The 25-year-old Pastornicky played in just 28 games for the Braves in 2014, notching a 59 OPS+ and -0.5 WAR in 47 plate appearances. For his career, he is a .243/.295/.314 hitter in 268 major league plate appearances and .280/.343/.376 hitter in the minors.

The Yankees' current 25-man roster has changed once again with the signing of Stephen Drew on Tuesday night. Drew's addition likely puts an end to the hopes for Rob Refsnyder or Jose Pirela making the roster unless one of them is brought on to serve in a backup utility role. Here's how the roster currently stands with a little over a month left before spring training.

The greatest uncertainty to this point is definitely with how the bullpen will ultimately shake out. Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller will undoubtedly be working in tandem to close out the later innings, but there are a variety of rookie relievers that could force their way onto the team with a good spring training. Brian Cashman could certainly still find a low-cost veteran to fill out the bullpen, keeping the likes of Nick Rumbelow and Tyler Webb in Triple-A to start the year. Hopefully the team lets the kids give it a shot, though, since there are so many who seem ready to make the jump to the big leagues already in-house. Rumbelow and company don't have the benefit of being on the 40-man roster, which could ultimately be the reason they are kept in the minors for now. Danny Burawa and Branden Pinder already having spots on the 40 makes them slightly more likely to really compete for a spot.

Room for infielders trying to make the Opening Day roster got a bit tighter after the signing of Drew this week. Barring a trade that includes Didi Gregorius, Drew would presumably start the season as the team's second baseman. Brendan Ryan could be DFA'd to make room for Drew on the roster, but he will have the inside track to the backup role if he hangs around. That leaves potentially one extra spot open that would likely go to Jose Pirela over Rob Refsnyder for the sake of versatility. There is a chance that Austin Romine could end up as the backup catcher over John Ryan Murphy, but the latter certainly seems to be more in favor with the team. Romine is out of options, however, and the Yankees don't like losing people if they can help it. That's something to keep in mind going forward. The smart money is on Murphy, though.

All of the outfield spots seem pretty well set with the Yankees rolling the dice on Carlos Beltran being able to man right field. Who knows how long he'll actually hold up out there, which could be good news for the likes of Tyler Austin or Ramon Flores. Neither prospect is likely to force their way onto the big league team in spring training with Chris Young already fairly cemented as the fifth outfielder. An injury to Beltran or his inability to stick in the outfield for the duration of the season could mean they get the call. Refsnyder also has some experience in the outfield that could prove interesting in an emergency situation.

Garrett Jones and Alex Rodriguez are expected to share designated hitter duties, although no one really knows in what capacity at this point. If Joe Girardi decides to operate purely on splits, Jones seems likely to get the bulk of the time at DH against right-handers. He also provides a very important insurance policy for Mark Teixeira in the event that Tex's surgically repaired wrist or other ailment du jour keeps the first baseman out of the lineup. It's difficult to imagine a world in which Beltran doesn't end up eating into DH time for either player before the season is out.

Adding one maybe reliever to the left side of the chart would put the bullpen at seven and bring the total roster to 25. That means that the team could theoretically keep everyone, even Ryan and his redundancy, that is currently on the active roster while giving someone on the right side a chance as a reliever. That is all at least until Ivan Nova is ready to return, ideally somewhere around the middle of the season.

Which potential reliever do you think is most likely to land a spot in the bullpen? Do you think the team as currently constructed is the one the Yankees will go to spring training with, or do you feel like there are more moves ahead?

Will the ~$20 million saved from trading away all-stars and dropping veterans end up in the pockets of owners Lew Wolff and John Fisher?

In 2013 there was one team that made a paltry amount of revenue by MLB standards, yet yielded a higher profit than the Giants, Yankees, Cubs and Red Sox. No, I'm not talking about the A's. I'm talking about the Houston Astros, a team that finished with 100 losses to notch their fifth straight losing season that year, was 27th in the league in attendance and has a TV contract with a network that is just climbing out of bankruptcy.

How did that club turn a $56 million profit? In 2013 the Astros had an opening day payroll that was 30th out of 30 teams, at a paltry $22 million for their 25 man roster. With national TV revenue, the local TV revenue they had coming in (until their network went belly up), ticket sales, a subsidized stadium and of course, not spending any revenues on the players, a team can turn a handsome profit.

The A's of course are not in as dramatic of a cost-cutting mode, but currently their payroll sits at around $70-75 million, about $15-20 million less than 2014. If we take Lew Wolff at his word that MLB payroll is capped at 50% of revenues, we can say that revenues in 2014 were at minimum $180 million. That number may have been higher considering that the A's increased ticket prices and eclipsed 2,000,000 in attendance for the first time in years. That money could be spent on improving the 2015-17 squad and keeping the A's in the AL West hunt.

The problem is, to spend money on good players, you have to do it over multiple years. The A's are generally afraid of doing that. Maybe they are "once bitten, twice shy" with the Eric Chavez contract, or maybe it's the simple fact that having a payroll capped at $90-95 million makes the A's worried about roster flexibility in the future. To be fair, at times they have tried to ink long term deals and players did not take their money (e.g. Rafael Furcal, Adrian Beltre, Chase Headley, etc.).

So maybe that money can be spent in 2015 on short term basis and then available next year. However, is there a sane way to spend a single year payroll excess? Is taking $10 million flyers on the Jim Johnsons of the world worth it? Trading for Chris Youngs? Payroll flexibility is nice if you can add talent, however the "talent" available on short term rentals is typically overpaid underachievers, unless you are willing to pay a handsome price for premium talent (e.g. the Samardzija trade). If the money is not going into long term deals, then spending it on Brandon Moss might have been the best use of funds. High risk, but high reward, and if he is not good you can nontender him at the end of the season. If he is good, you have the money to keep him around (side note: The A's must really, really love Joe Wendle).

The A's actually now have a very young and relatively cheap roster for the next few years. There really aren't any major salary commitments beyond 2015, and arbitration raises will be modest at best (some are nontender candidates as well). Expensive relievers will be traded or cut as usual, and the A's will be able to manage their budget. If there was a time to sign a good player to a longer term deal, this is the time. Ideas have been posted on this site to trade for Jay Bruce, Mark Trumbo, Troy Tulowitzki and others. The wisdom of these moves aside, the A's can afford to take on a good player and still maintain roster flexibility.

As many have written, the A's seem to have a decently competitive roster on paper. In 2016-18 there are some heavyweight prospects that probably will start to make an impact at the major league level (or will get traded for players who will make an impact). Do the A's want to waste 2015 waiting for 2016? Wouldn't it be better to add a player that helps the team now and in the future?

The side effect of this is that there basically are some convenient excuses built in to the model. "We need flexibility" => "We can't spend money on long term deals" => "There aren't good uses of the money" ends up with the lower payroll fattening the bottom line and not going into the product on the field.

There is still plenty of time to assemble the roster. Spending money just to spend it may not make sense, but good players remain available via trade, free agency and the international market. They just might cost some money over the next few years. Will the money be spent, or tossed on top of Uncle Lew's stash? An exciting time to be an A's fan, as always.

If you live in the NYC area, you might notice that it's really cold out. One of the best things about baseball coming back is that the weather gets warmer. Think warm thoughts. Pitchers and catchers report in Mariano Rivera days.

Oh the weather outside is frightful. The fire would be so delightful. So would baseball. I personally love the cold weather, but the only downside is that baseball is not meant to be played in the blustery, frigid cold. Hopefully you're all keeping warm out there.

Comments of the Day

Recently acquired Stephen Drew was still the primary topic of debate yesterday. Here are some responses that state the potential risk in signing him.

Matt Freedom hits the nail on the head right here.

You know, I'd probably consider getting fired by George Steinbrenner to be an honor.

Bgardnerfanclub could be onto something here. PSA lawyers will be checking the legitimacy of BGFC's claim, as soon as they finish looking up that whole two-hole clause thing.

Positive thinking. H-Huzzah!!

GIF of the Day

Honorable Mod Mention

No one Mod stood out among the crowd yesterday. No HMM award for anyone.

• If you could sit down and have dinner with any current member of the Yankees, who would you choose and what do you think they would order?
• Your ideal/preferred garb for when it's below 0F outside?

Who would the Scatman be on the Yankees? Yes, we're bringing the deep philosophical thoughts out today. As always, please link us your Song of the Day.

Classic Cheesy Techno Week is almost over with. Can you guess the remaining two songs to be chosen?

I'm A Scatman!

This is as close to a nightmare situation as you can get. It appears that Yankees prospect Ty Hensley has been hospitalized following a vicious attack over the holidays. His agent, Rob Martin of ICON Sports issued a statement on the family's behalf:

On behalf of Ty Hensley and his family, we are able to confirm that Ty was hospitalized after being brutally attacked and assaulted over the holidays in Oklahoma City.

Ty was treated and released from the hospital and is presently recovering at home from the injuries he sustained after being knocked unconscious in this vicious attack. Ty and his family are grateful for all of the support, thoughts, and prayers he's received from friends, fans, and well-wishers. We respectfully request privacy during this difficult time.

For those of us that know Ty best, this attack was shocking and disturbing both in it's severity as well as the fact that it could not have happened to a nicer, more good-natured young man. While Ty always handles adversity remarkably well, he's taken it to a new level in meeting this challenge head on. His pain tolerance, attitude, and determination to get back on the mound as soon as possible are literally off-the-charts. This is a young man with rare character and unbelievable toughness. Please direct all media inquiries to his attorneys Rob Martin (ICON Sports) & Jacob Diesselhorst (Maples, Nix & Diesselhorst). Thank you.

Mike Axisa over at RAB spoke to Diesselhorst, who provided some more details about the attack:

Hensley was jumped from behind and attacked while at a home in The Village, a suburb of Oklahoma City. Hensley was knocked unconscious and then beaten while unconscious. He suffered "pretty significant facial injuries," including multiple fractures to his jaw.

Hensley will press charges against the attacker(s) on what has been recommended as aggravated assault and battery charges. There's no telling how serious his injuries are at the moment, but he seems to be in pretty bad shape. Not many details are known at the moment, such as the reason for the attack, but we'll keep you posted when information becomes available.

Hopefully this doesn't keep the 21-year-old out of baseball for very long because it seemed like he was ready to return in full force after making a comeback in 2014 following double hip surgery the year before. This year he pitched to a 2.93 ERA with a 3.2 BB/9 and 11.7 K/9 in 30.2 innings between rookie ball and short season Single-A Staten Island.

Update

The attack on #Yankees prospect Ty Hensley happened Dec. 28, his lawyer says, at a private home

— Brendan Kuty (@BrendanKutyNJ) January 8, 2015

NYY prospect Ty Hensley sustained facial fractures and other severe injuries in recent attack, according to agent. Recovering at home.

— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) January 8, 2015

Criminal charges are pending; more details to be released then. Hensley is said to be "very optimistic" about getting back on the mound.

— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) January 8, 2015

Maybe Hensley will be alright. After all, we've seen many players return to baseball after breaking their jaws and suffering extensive head trauma. Hopefully he's just as lucky.

Update 2

The attack on #Yankees prospect Ty Hensley happened Dec. 28, his lawyer says, at a private home

— Brendan Kuty (@BrendanKutyNJ) January 8, 2015

It sounds like it must have happened at a party and, even if the attacker isn't in custody, they know who it was.

Update 3

Josh Norris of Baseball America has some more definitive details about the incident:

Hensley and his attacker were together at the home of a mutual friend when the attacker found Hensley alone and struck him in back of the head, rendering him unconscious. The attacker continued beating Hensley until he was interrupted by a third person, at which point the attacker fled.

Update 4

Here is a local newspaper's report on the incident where they identified the attacker:

Hensley's attorney Jacob Diesselhorst said the right-handed pitcher was knocked unconscious and beaten early Dec. 28 by Anthony Morales, a former linebacker and running back for the Bulldogs who starred at Weber State and was briefly on the Carolina Panthers' roster in this season's training camp.

Update 5

Apparently the argument escalated from Hensley's grand crime of... not revealing what he got from the Yankees for his 2012 signing bonus. Really. This Morales guy sounds like a real piece of work.

So... the former Panthers player socked Hensley because he wouldn't reveal his signing bonus w/the Yankees. Psycho. pic.twitter.com/HzxeAxELXk

— Pinstripe Alley (@pinstripealley) January 8, 2015

Are the Yankees set or will they make more moves during the offseason?

Now that the Yankees have brought back Stephen Drew, it begs the question of whether they are done making moves for the offseason. ESPN's Andrew Marchand has since said that that it looks like the Yankees are "pretty much set," and while they have made quite a bit of moves, there are still some things they could do between now and spring training. After being traded to San Diego, Shawn Kelleystated that Yankees' GM Brian Cashman had been "working on some things" and that the trade was part of a "new plan." Then the Yankees turned around and traded prospect Manny Banuelos for relievers David Carpenter and Chasen Shreve. If that plan was just to shed a tiny bit of salary and replace Kelley with a similar right-handed pitcher, then mission accomplished. It could be that the Yankees are still waiting for some larger plan to unfold though.

One area that could use work is the rotation. If the Yankees still want to bring in another player, then it should probably be a starting pitcher. The rotation currently consists of CC Sabathia, Masahiro Tanaka, Michael Pineda, Chris Capuano and Nathan Eovaldi. With Ivan Nova expected to return mid-season, and question marks surrounding the health of 3/5 of the rotation, it wouldn't hurt to have some more starting pitchers. The Yankees have gotten rid of some dead weight on the 40-man roster over the offseason, so they should easily be able to find the room for another starter. They were carrying five catchers, and that dropped down to four with the Francisco Cervelli trade. They were also able to get Slade Heathcott off of the roster, while signing him to a new minor league deal. Of course, after all the trades, the roster is full again, but there are a handful of players who could be considered expendable such as one of the new relief pitchers, or one of the surplus outfielders.

With the addition of Drew, the infield and outfield do appear to be set in terms of backup players. There's certainly more depth there than there was last season, when the Yankees decided they didn't need anyone besides Mark Teixeira who could play first base, and Kelly Johnson was relegated to backing up the entire infield. Now they have Garrett Jones who can play first and outfield and Chase Headley who can probably play first in a jam. Brendan Ryan can backup second and third in addition to shortstop. Alex Rodriguez could play third (and possibly first if worst came to worst), and Chris Young can also play outfield. Then either Jose Pirela or Rob Refsnyder wins the 2B job and Drew plays backup, or he takes it and one of them plays backup. If the Yankees make no other moves during the offseason, at least we can rest assured that we're not one DL trip away from A-Rod being the everyday third baseman.

Do you think the Yankees are done for the offseason, or are you expecting them to sign or trade for a starting pitcher?

"When you wake up Joe Girardi, every time I snap my fingers, you will stop considering calling for the intentional walk."

I think everyone wants the Yankees to do things, even if just a little differently. (Some people want them to do a lot differently, but that's not what this post is about.) The odds of anyone reading this going on to be a part of the Yankees' organization is rare. But what if you could secretly make things different?

Q: This past Sunday (January 4th) was World Hypnotism Day. If you could hypnotize any Yankee player and/or front office person, who would you hypnotize and what would you have them do?

John

A-Rod. Retire.

Figuring that's already taken, my second choice would be to hypnotize Brian Cashman and make him hire me to crunch numbers for trade evaluations. I think it would be unspeakably cool to be on the inside: to know what stats and metrics the Yankees have that aren't publicly available; to be up to the minute on all the latest trade gossip and know which deals were being considered, how they evolved, and whether they were accepted or rejected; to get the Yankees scouting reports on their own players and on their rivals.

Andrew

I would hypnotize A-Rod and convince him his true calling is to move to Seychelles and start a new life there. There's a good chance he'd instantly be the most popular Seychelles baseball hero, though it'd be funny if it turned out Jeter bought the country.

Michael

I would hypnotize Hal Steinbrenner into selling me his stake in the team. Not saying I wouldn't run the team into the ground, but boy would it be fun.

Chris

I would hypnotize Didi Gregorius and have him improve his plate discipline. For whatever reason, it really fell off of a cliff last year, and played a role in his poor offensive performance.

Arun

I'd hypnotise Hal into becoming a huge free-spender. Or, you know, naming me majority owner for a nominal sum (free).

Assuming I couldn't reach Hal in time because of difficulty tracking down his yacht, I'd hypnotize A-Rod. I wouldn't even make him retire or anything like that, I'd just ask a group of grown-ups (probably best if it isn't me) to make all his decisions going forward. It'll be better for everyone that way, especially A-Rod. I may first commandeer some of the $350 million he has already made from his baseball career, but only some. And none of his off-field commercial income. I'm not a monster.

Jim

Stephen Drew. Every time he sees his name in the lineup he's magically taken back to 2010 but in a Yankee uniform this time.

Greg

I think I'd go with Rob Thomson. Since they seem intent on keeping him, perhaps hypnotize him into using logic and reasoning instead of his usual drunk-flailing.

Harlan

I guess the obvious answer would be hypnotize A-Rod to retire. Or hypnotize Randy Levine to invest in a nice hat. But in light of recent events I'll go with hypnotizing Joe Girardi to realize that just because Stephen Drew is on the roster does not mean he needs to play 140 games. Or any games.

Matt F.

As already mentioned, getting Alex Rodriguez to retire would probably be the most optimal use of hypnotism. And there's other player personnel-type things you could do that would be helpful, but if I could hypnotize people, I would probably just use it for mischief. For one, I would do the old magic show hypnotism trick of making Mark Teixeira think he was a chicken.

As for another one, there's a once funny, now horrifying story from Scottish soccer where a player suffered a concussion. The trainers reported back to the manager saying that the player didn't know who he was. The manager responded "Tell him he's Pele and get him back on." I would hypnotize Stephen Drew into thinking he was Babe Ruth. Not because it would make him any better, because it would be funny to see him walking around actually thinking he was the living, human embodiment of Babe Ruth.

Now that you've seen our answers, it's your turn. Would you use hypnotism for good and try and help the Yankees? Or would you just make Mark Teixeira act like a chicken?

What will be the Yankees batting order on Opening Day?

There's been a lot of research done to show that lineups don't really matter except in extreme cases, or to win a few extra runs over the course of a season, or that the true optimization is so far from what's being done that it's screaming into the void to try to change it.

But I know position in the lineup is important to the players, important to a large segment of fans, and important to the managers. Look at the reactions in the clubhouse when a manager drops a struggling star to a lower spot in the order, as Joe Torre did to Alex Rodriguez in the 2006 ALDS. Look at all the attention Jacoby Ellsbury received in 2014 when he became the Yankees #3 of necessity as injuries and ineffectiveness took down Mark Teixeira, Brian McCann and Carlos Beltran.

So what makes a good lineup? For me, I want to stack OBP at the top of the lineup. I want to break up the righties and lefties, especially if the other team has a shutdown reliever in the pen, so that a late inning matchup can't wipe out an inning. I don't care about whether the speed is clumped together or spread out; the odds of a speedy guy being on first with a slow guy on second are pretty minimal, and at that point, I'm hoping for a big inning anyway. Ideally though, the guys behind the speedy guy will have at least enough foot speed to execute the backend of a double steal.

The other thing I really like a lineup to be is consistent. Not the Joe Torre/Pop Fisher consistent where Miguel Cairo bats second because he's subbing in for Derek Jeter that day. But ideally the team has a righties lineup and a lefties lineup, and then subs go towards the bottom and most everyone shifts up one. Knowing that ball players are creatures of habit, I think a manager's #1 responsibility is to get out of the way of the talent.

So, against righties:

#7 GGBG L .256/.327/.422 LF

#5 Headley S .257/.343/.412 3B

#8 Ellsbury L .271/.329/.418 CF

#9 Beltran S .260/.324/.438 RF

#1 Jones L .250/.311/.448

#2 McCann L .251/.317/.445 C

#3 Tex S .223/.314/.414 1B

#6 Gregorius L .241/.302/.357

#4 Drew L .221/.297/.364

That's a lot of left-handed bats, and with Jon Lester and David Price out of the division, I feel pretty good about that. In this scenario, I need A-Rod, Chris Young and Refsnyder/Pirela to hit enough to be available off the bench when the lefty reliever comes in to chew threw the bottom of this order (rolling over into the two lefties back at the top).

Against lefties:

#8 Ellsbury L .271/.329/.418 CF

#5 Headley S .257/.343/.412 3B

#3 Tex S .223/.314/.414 1B

#9 Beltran S .260/.324/.438 RF

#1 A-Rod R .235/.317/.382

#2 McCann L .251/.317/.445 C

#6 Gregorius L .241/.302/.357

#4 Jose Pirela R .250/.297/.373

#7 GGBG L .256/.327/.422 LF

Obviously, I'm working with the Steamer projections, which don't offer splits, but we know that most of the team at this point shows some significant platoon splits. Tex, for instance, hits for better power against righties, but at a significant cost to his OBP. So I'm moving him up the order against lefties, where he'll get on base at closer to a .330 clip. Meanwhile Ellsbury looks like a world beater against lefties (a reverse platoon), while Gardner did all of his damage against righties, so in this lineup, I moved GGBG down to the #9 spot (not that he's worse than the others, but I know batting order really only matters the first time through the lineup).

What do you think Joe Girardi will roll out to start the season? Does this lefty heavy lineup make you wish for another right-handed hitter before the season starts?

Trenton coaching staff announced, Yoan Moncada update, A-Rod has to prove he can play, relievers in the Hall, and more!

Chad Jennings | LoHud Yankees Blog: Jennings has a post detailing the Trenton Thunder coaching staff. He also has a tweet from friend of the blog Kiley McDaniel that the Yankees and Red Sox are the favorites for Yoan Moncada.

Cliff Corcoran | Sports Illustrated: Corcoran is impressed with the Yankees' resolve to play tough with Alex Rodriguez by not guaranteeing him at bats just because of his huge salary. I am less impressed by their willingness to give at bats to Stephen Drew.

Rob Neyer | Just a Bit Outside: Neyer is pretty confident that Mariano Rivera will be the next first ballot Hall of Fame pitcher, in 2019. But Neyer also looks at Billy Wagner and Trevor Hoffman to see how they rate out against other Hall of Fame relievers.

Max Weinstein | Hardball Times: Weinstein takes a look at how former Yankee Phil Hughes turned a better approach to his fastball usage into one of the most remarkable seasons in baseball history.

Associated Press | NJ.com: Apparently the fight between Yankee prospect Ty Hensley and former Weber State linebacker Anthony Morales began after too many drinks and then in an argument over signing bonuses. Glad it sounds like the 21-year old didn't suffer any neurological damage.

Will Drew's presence on the roster hurt the possible development of Refsnyder or Pirela?

The Yankees have officially signed Stephen Drew to a one-year contract, and conventional wisdom suggests that he'll probably begin the season as the starting second baseman.  While GM Brian Cashman had already stated that the Yankees would let prospects Jose Pirela and Rob Refsnyder battle it out in spring training, it looks as if Drew will probably take that spot, at least for now.  However, is giving Drew another shot really worth limiting the chance these two prospects with potential have to get some valuable experience in the big leagues?

After what he showed last year, Drew doesn't seem like he'll be a whole lot better than Refsnyder or Pirela.  Drew is projected to hit for an 86 wRC+ in 2015, and Pirela and Refsnyder's Steamer projections are quite close to Drew's projected offensive numbers (although in much fewer games). Last year, Drew's performance left a lot to be desired.  He hit just .162/.237/.299 with a 44 wRC+ in 2014, and while he did miss spring training and a decent portion of the season, it's unlikely he'll replicate his numbers from 2013 (109 wRC+).  Drew, for his career, has hit just .256/.322/.425 with a 93 wRC+.  While he'll probably be better than he was in 2014, Drew will probably not be good enough to justify the Yankees playing him instead of giving either of Pirela and Refsnyder a shot.

Besides, Pirela and Refsnyder might be pretty good major leaguers.  Pirela is still just 25, and he was a Triple-A All-Star last season as he hit .305/.351/.441.  Refsnyder split last year between Double-A and Triple-A, but he obliterated both with the bat, posting a 159 wRC+ in Trenton and a 137 wRC+ in Scranton.  While they might not be as good as Drew offensively or defensively right off the bat, the risk of them underperforming initially should be offset by the possibility they would become good, young infielders - the kind of players the Yankees now seem keen on acquiring and developing.

The idea has been floated of letting Pirela platoon with Drew while Refsnyder improves his defense, and this seems like the ideal plan for these three players.  Still, 2015 is shaping up to be just a perfect season to see what the Yankees have in a lot of their young players.  Let's be frank - unless the Yankees add Max Scherzer, they're probably not making the playoffs next season.  Yes, things could break right, and their rotation could avoid serious injury, and Brian McCann, Mark Teixeira, and Carlos Beltran (among others) could bounce back at the plate.  I of course hope desperately that all of that happens.  But, with the Yankees at least preparing more for the future than they have in recent years and Drew not being the kind of player that will really move the needle, shouldn't they just let one of the youngsters get as much experience as possible?

Overall, playing Drew isn't going to make the Yankees a whole lot better in 2015.  It also, by taking time away from Pirela and Refsnyder, might make them worse down the road.  However, Drew's on team now, and they might as well use him.  The best option, as stated above, is platooning him with Pirela to start the season, and then seeing if Refsnyder might have a major league future once his defense improves.  He should still improve in Triple-A, and Pirela will potentially still find some playing time in the majors, either at second or in right.

Luckily, with all of the moves they've made this offseason (sans this one), it looks like the Yankees are finally willing to give a lot of youngsters a legitimate shot.  If Drew struggles, or if the Yankees are out of the race at the All-Star Break, they should just let their prospects get as much experience as possible in the hopes that they can be major contributors in 2016.

Under the tutelage of former Red Sox utilityman Alex Cora in Puerto Rico, Rusney Castillo not only put up great numbers in Winter Ball, but made adjustments to his swing.

There was a lot to like about Rusney Castillo in his first month in the major leagues. In his short stint with the Red Sox during the month of September, Castillo displayed the tool set that netted him a seven-year, $72.5 million contract despite the fact that he had not seen a pitch, let alone played, in a major or minor league inning. The 27-year-old displayed a whip-quick bat among other tools en route to a .333/.400/.528 line with two home runs and three stolen bases in 40 plate appearances.

Even the best tools could use refinement, though, and Castillo, who had not played a competitive baseball game in two years before coming to Boston, required just a little more time to sharpen up on the baseball field. After a minor thumb injury set Castillo back in the Arizona Fall League, general manager Ben Cherington made the decision to send the outfielder to former Red Sox infielder Alex Cora, who manages and serves as general manager for Criollos de Caguas in El Liga de Beisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente, in the Puerto Rican winter league.

Cora, who played for Boston from 2005 through 2008, had texted Cherington offering Caguas as a place for Castillo to get more playing time, similar to how Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig played on the island in 2012 in preparation for his first season in the United States.

Castillo, who hit .405 with a home run, two stolen bases, two walks and four strikeouts in 37 at-bats for Caguas, certainly left an impression on Cora.

"He was more polished than what people thought or let me know about him. He's a complete player," Cora said via phone on Thursday. "He's got a pretty good idea about the game. His baseball IQ is solid. He understands it and we were very impressed with the way that he plays the game, he's been taught the game. He thinks the game. He's a good player."

"A lot of people told me, not the organization, but other people told me that his instincts weren't that good. They thought because he hadn't played for a long period of time that he was a little bit off as far as that. For me, it didn't look that way. He paid attention to the game, took advantage of certain situations and, offensively, he has a pretty good idea of what he wants to do."

What impressed Cora the most was how Castillo used the whole field, not during batting practice, but during games.

"In batting practice, he's driving the ball to right center, right center, right center," Cora said. "During games, I really loved the way that he went back to the middle and went the other way. That's what he tried to do the whole time and he was very successful."

Defensively, Castillo caught Cora's eye as well.

"He gets good jumps. Great jumps, actually," Cora said. "In center field, he covers a lot of ground and he gets to the ball very quick without too much effort, which is the sign of a good center fielder. He didn't need to leave his feet to get to any balls. He'll get to the ball under control with crisp routes."

So while Castillo certainly has a lot of things going his way, there are areas that he continues to focus on for improvement. In Puerto Rico, Castillo fixated one area on his batting stance.

The Leg Kick

During the last month of the season Castillo began to develop a leg kick in his batting stance. The difference in his mechanics became more and more noticeable as September came to an end. Check out Castillo's swing in his major league debut on September 17.

And here is Castillo's swing ten days later on September 27.

Castillo's leg kick became significantly more pronounced over the course of the month. It's an adjustment, that Cora says, will be beneficial for Castillo moving forward.

"Now, he stays squared the whole time," Cora said. "He's in a good position to attack any pitch. He was coming up through the strike zone. Now, his bat head stays through it and he can do whatever he wants with any pitch."

Cora said that the adjustment gives Castillo more bat control and allows him to control the strike zone. Before he added the leg kick, Castillo's load, which is where a hitter generates momentum for power in a swing, would solely consist of a shoulder turn. There are issues inherent with such an approach.

"When you turn that left shoulder and he's right-handed, the only way you can get out of that is by pulling off [to the left]," Cora said. "When you pull off, your head pulls off and that pitch outside that he can do damage with, it goes farther away from him and he's going to start to hit things off the end of the bat. Even the pitch inside, he'll be rolling over instead of hitting it by staying square and using his hands to stay inside the ball and he can drive the ball to right center."

A closer look at Castillo's load illustrates the precise problem Cora speaks of. Watch Castillo's shoulder in this at-bat from his major league debut....

... versus his shoulder in his at-bat ten days later against the Yankees.

With the addition of his leg kick, Castillo is able to keep his body more squared towards the pitcher, allowing him to keep his momentum moving forward towards the mound versus towards the Red Sox dugout. This slight adjustment, if Castillo can make it stick, will allow him to benefit in multiple facets of his offensive game. Cora saw this come into play firsthand in Puerto Rico.

"It was very interesting, a lot of guys, sometimes, it looked like [Castillo] was going to get beat, but he's very disciplined at what to swing at on the inside part of the plate," Cora said. "If you couldn't throw strikes in there, a lot of those guys get in trouble because then he just looks at one spot, one spot only and he'll drive the ball to right-center.

"It's just a matter of being disciplined with it. A lot of Cubans [wrap their shoulder in their swing] and they are so violent with their swings, but that's not the case with him. His swing is under control compared to Yasiel Puig and Yoenis Cespedes. His preparation and work ethic are great. He uses the tee to work on his swing and you can tell. You could say that his swing is more "Americanized" compared to the other guys."

The Outlook for 2015

As an older rookie, Castillo finds himself in a unique situation. Cora saw Castillo's willingness to teach and learn the game front and center during the outfielder's stint in Puerto Rico.

"I love the fact that he's a 27-year-old rookie so he's mature," Cora said. "He's a baseball rat. He loves playing baseball. We talk about playing baseball in PlayStation 4 at night. He's a very caring person and he got along with everybody and I think he has a lot of fans from his ex-teammates down here in Caguas. We're cheering for him and hoping for the best because he was great for us."

Personality wise, Cora said Castillo's quiet, but caring temperament stood out to everyone around the team.

"Family oriented. His wife was here the whole time and we had time to spend together and show him the island and hang out with them and they care about people," Cora said. "When you gain his trust, he was great with us. He would text us and see how we're doing and all of that stuff. He's a good guy. He's gonna be in a good situation there with, not only the Latino players, but with the other guys that play there. I know how caring they are about their families and he'll fit right in."

Cora was hesitant to project 2015 numbers for Castillo, but the 39-year-old skipper did not hold back praise for the outfielder's talents.

"He's going to contribute. In the situation that he's in, the spotlight will be on him because he's making a lot of money without throwing a ball in the big leagues, but if they hit him at the top of the lineup or the bottom, he's going to succeed," Cora said. "If he keeps his approach, hitting to right-center, he's going to take advantage of a lot of hanging breaking balls and hit it off that wall. He'll be a good player."

Come chat with us as we expect the Yankees to make their trademark big Friday blockbuster move. Pitchers and catchers report in 41 days.

It's still cold in New York City and there's now a brief dusting of snow on the ground. However, it's Friday which means that the weekend is so very close and that Pinstripe Alley staff are keeping an eye out for potential Yankee moves. They like to do this stuff on Friday.

Comments of the Day

Like LTL said, it is January. It sure feels like January outside.

Seems simple enough.

Not much more to add to this.

Because who better to welcome BGFC to PSA than the gritty, gutty one himself! Wait till BGFC gets to play LTL's GGBG[insert what happened here] game.

Agreed. Let's not.

Get well soon, Ty!

Now that's just silly!

Also a good choice.

I am also fond of this "not playing Drew" solution that will not happen.

GIF of the Day

This GIF is perfect for today, considering that Taken 3 just came out in movie theaters.

Honorable Mod Mention

Matt Freedom EASILY wins the HMM award for this gem.

• Name what you think is each Yankee player's favorite food?
• Name some of your favorite toys growing up.

As always, please link us your Song of the Day.

Only one more song left in Classic Cheesy Techno Week. There will be another themed music week following this. Oh boy!

Imagination, life is your creation.

The Yankees left Brian Roberts out at second base to languish in 2014. They shouldn't make the same mistake in 2015 with Stephen Drew.

It's not the easiest thing in the world to talk yourself into being excited about bring back a player who hit under .162 in 300 plate appearances the year before. Still, the Yankees saw fit to bring Stephen Drew back into the fold for another year and at least a five million dollar payout. I'm not going to try to instill enthusiasm in anyone about the move, but it does at least help set up the Yankees to have a deeper, better infield than the disaster they put out there in 2014. The important thing is the that the Yankees appreciate Drew's limitations and put him in the best position to succeed.

Drew's career average of 93 wRC+ would have placed him 13th among the 25 second basemen with 400 plate appearances in 2014. So that would be squarely middle of the pack, which combined with what has been perceived to be above average defensive capabilities could make him an adequate starter at second. But he's projected to hit worse than that, and those projections might even be a little bullish considering just how awful Drew was last year. While the lack of a spring training could explain a slow start, Drew actually declined as the season went on. So a precipitous decline in ability could be a possible reason for factors like his laughably low .194 BABIP rather than just a string of unfortunate luck.

When you have a veteran on a short-term deal who you're hoping for a bounceback season from, you could either just throw him out there and hope for the best (Roberts, Kevin Youkilis) or you could put him in a more scaled back role. The obvious situation for Drew would be a platoon with the right-handed Jose Pirela since Drew has a definitive split (70 wRC+ vs. LHP, 101 vs. RHP) over his career. Sticking a cheap veteran in a platoon role to maximize his usefulness is something more forward-thinking teams like the Rays, Red Sox and A's have done with frequency and success over the past few years, so it might behoove the Yankees to do the same with Drew. And if he falters, at least Pirela will have gotten some at-bats to have been evaluated in his own right. It's not a dynamic solution to the Yankees' lineup woes, but it could very well prove effective.

There still might be some temptation for Joe Girardi to give Drew the everyday job at second base. He has the appearance of a known commodity: many years of experience under his belt, past success and is only entering his age 32 season. But after such an amazingly awful season, Drew should be fighting for his baseball career and his role on the Yankees in 2015 should reflect that. The margin of error should be very slim, particularly if Rob Refsnyder continues his ascent. At least it's only a one year deal this time around for a veteran with question marks.

It was not unusual for Pedro to dominate the Yankees in his prime, but one unlikely role player defied the odds to dominate him.

Few opposing pitchers have ever been more associated with the Yankees than Pedro Martinez, who earlier this week was quite deservedly voted into the Hall of Fame. The Dominican righty was an absolutely dominant force in the '90s and 2000s, and he has a legitimate case as at least one of the 20 greatest pitchers of all-time. In his 1999-2003 peak with the Red Sox, he was almost unhittable, striking out batters left and right while recording ERAs below 2.30 at a time when pitchers would have been lucky to be around 4.00. His absurdity was beautifully detailed by Jeff Sullivan at FanGraphs the other day. He was ludicrous.

Although the Yankees were one of the few teams capable of beating Pedro, that doesn't mean they had his number or anything like that ("Who's your daddy" quotes aside). He could steamroll over them just like they were the Devil Rays' Double-A affiliate, even when they were in heat of their dynasty years. In perhaps his greatest game, he struck out 17 Yankees and only allowed a hit once, when DH Chili Davis just guessed correctly. Just look at this silliness:

However, in the middle of the 2001 season, the Yankees unwittingly acquired their so-called "little secret weapon" against Pedro. He wasn't an accomplished hitter or any means. By some measures, he was even the worst position player in franchise history. Despite these odds, this was the man destined to become Pedro's nemesis:

The oddly-shaped man with the strange batting stance and a similarly poor -5.2 career WAR is Enrique Wilson, an infielder on the Yankees for about three and a half years. Like Pedro, Wilson hailed from the Dominican Republic, though he did not come to majors with nearly the promise of Pedro. He was merely a role player who, up until the 2003 season, was known only for two things. One was nearly faceplanting around the bases for the Indians while scoring the go-ahead run in Game 2 of the 1998 ALCS, when the Yankees' Chuck Knoblauch infamously argued a call rather than continuing the play. The other was embarrassingly misplaying a ball while starting out of position in right field during a game in 2002, en error that enraged owner George Steinbrenner and led to him trading for the unpopular Raul Mondesi. Super.

With a loaded infield that featured established players like Derek Jeter, Alfonso Soriano, Robin Ventura, and later Aaron Boone, Wilson was inevitably going to struggle for playing time. He got his shot though in a July 7th matchup against Pedro and the Red Sox. Yankees fans who followed the intense rivalry in 2003 probably recall this game as the one where Pedro went up and in on both Soriano and Jeter at the very start of the game. Soriano subsequently was forced from the game, and Wilson entered for him. Against prime Pedro, he improbably smacked a pair of doubles in the eventual 2-1 victory, earning himself another start when the Yankees faced Pedro later that month, when he continued his hot streak. It's almost unfathomable to consider what Wilson did in the regular season against Pedro that year:

Amazing. For his career, Wilson hit .364/.382/.485 against Pedro in 35 plate appearances, and in 2003, he was 7-for-8. It was absolutely an example of the magic of small sample size, but it was still fun to watch this shoddy hitter owning one of the best pitchers in baseball. Wilson just as amused by his success as we were:

Now everybody is talking about it, and there are some people ticked off in the Dominican because I always hit Pedro. They love Pedro over there, in the Dominican. I don't think there's anyone who wants me to get a hit. Some of them hate me... You got to say, "I'm going to be aggressive and make contact. He's going to try and intimidate you and come in on you. You've got to be ready..." Nobody has ever given me that kind of respect. No pitcher. To see the best pitcher in the game do that to me is very special.

Some explanations were suggested for why Wilson played so well against Pedro. Chief among them was the idea that Wilson did not feel as intimidated by the threat of getting beaned as others when facing Pedro because he was his countryman and a friend of Red Sox slugger Manny Ramirez. Of course there were several other players who fit that bill in the past who didn't have Wilson's success. It was almost certainly a mere fluke. As entertaining as it was, the success unsurprisingly didn't continue when Joe Torre gambled and started him in the playoffs and again in 2004 against Pedro. At the time though, it seemed just crazy enough to work considering how difficult it was for the Yankees to hit with Pedro on the mound anyway.

So here's to you, Enrique Wilson, wherever you are. Whenever I see Pedro, I'll always think of Wilson's weirdo batting stance and unlikely dominance.

If you don't want to see the face of someone who was hospitalized after an attack, you probably shouldn't go any further.

A day after news broke that Yankees prospect Ty Hensley was involved in a "brutal attack" over the holidays that left him hospitalized with multiple facial fractures, his attorney, Jacob Diesselhorst of Maples, Nix and Diesselhorst, PLLC, has released photos of Hensley after the incident as well as a statement. WARNING: Graphic photos below.

Attached are 4 photographs taken of Ty Hensley shortly after the attack on December 28, 2014.

These photographs were taken while Ty was still in the hospital being treated for his injuries and, one, a short time after he was released from the hospital.As is clear from these photos, Ty’s injuries were clearly not the result of "self-defense" on the part of Mr. Morales.  As is reflected in the felony charges filed against Mr. Morales, Ty was attacked, unprovoked, and was then savagely beaten after he had been knocked unconscious and was defenseless.

There is only one victim here and it is Ty Hensley.

We will continue to fully cooperate with authorities, something Mr. Morales declined to do from the outset of this investigation.

Please continue to direct all media inquiries on behalf of Ty Hensley and his family through my office.  Thank you.