Are the New York Yankees For Sale?

The news appears to be all over baseball. I found it here.

Are the Steinbrenners really considering relinquishing their dynasty in terms of Yankee ownership? Are the Steinbrenners really thinking about selling the New York Yankees?

The Los Angeles Dodgers sold for $2.175b this spring, sold to the 'Magic Johnson Group'. Experts compare the potential sale of the Bronx Bombers to the April sale, only to state the Yankees would likely be worth a whopping $3b.

Those same experts state it might be bad business to not sell the Yankees. The family purchased the team back in 1973 for a $8.8m. Is ignoring profit of potentially over $2.9 billion bad business? Or should the dynasty stay?

The legends of the Yankees are in decline. With Mariano Rivera's freak knee injury and Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter in the twilight of their careers, the Yankees are old. The age of the team might not be as critical if other teams in the AL East weren't getting younger... but they are. The Rays and the Orioles are giving the East a run this year, despite the division being dominated by the Yankees for years.

The Steinbrenners have denied any potential transaction.

Just Something To Point Out...

If you know me at all or read my blog at all, you'll know why I find this picture of a gunman with a Yankee friend is interesting. Marinate on it.

Picture on cnn.com

Week One Notes

One week into the season. After one game has been rained out, our record is 2-4. We played at Toronto and New York. Thankfully we have gotten those out of the way now. Those are not two easy places to play, in fact they have been the hardest for the Twins to play at in recent memory. We will now play against Oakland, Kansas City, Tampa Bay, and Baltimore in consecutive series. These are more managable, as I don't think these teams have the firepower that Toronto and New York have. Denard Span has gotten off to a solid start in the leadoff spot and Joe Nathan has converted both of his save opportunities, really glad to see that.

Tsuyoshi Nishioka Breaks His Leg

Tsuyoshi Nishioka broke his leg yesterday while playing against the New York Yankees. As if we didn't already have a curse against them and bad luck, our second basemen now has a broken leg. There is no time table yet, but one can think it will be at least 6 weeks, maybe longer. His leg broke on a play that Nick Swisher was attempting to disrupt a double play. It really wasn't anything dirty, just a play that clipped Nishi's leg and landed on it awkwardly. Here's to hoping for a fast recovery. In the meantime, welcome Luke Hughes.

World Series Notes

The Minnesota Twins are not in the World Series. However, I've still paid attention to playoff baseball as the Texas Rangers dismantled the New York Yankees and the San Francisco Giants took down the Philadelphia Phillies. The World Series features two teams that have NEVER won a World Series (by that, I mean the San Fransisco Giants have never won a World Series since they moved there in 1957). So, one team will win it's first World Championship. The Texas Rangers hadn't even won a playoff series before this postseason and have now won 2 in a row. I like both teams and just hope to see a fun series.

That's a Wrap: Twins Swept Out of ALDS

It's hard to even write this, as I'm a lifelong Twins fan. The season is officially over and ended abruptly. Twelve postseason losses in a row is hard to fathom right now. Being the first team in and now the first team out is hard to stomach. I'll have more analysis during the week, but for now I'll just leave it at this. It was a good ride winning the AL Central and 94 games, but it feels like a lot was left to be desired.

The Sting Continues: Yankees Up 2 Games to None

It hurts. The New York Yankees have defeated the Minnesota Twins 6-4 and 5-2 in the first 2 games of the ALDS playoffs. Both games were at Target Field, which mean the Minnesota Twins are traveling once again to New York. Down 2-0 in a best of 5 game series makes it a really tall order. CC Sabathia and Andy Pettite have shut down the Twins offense essentially in both games. New York simply has had our number. We need to take game 3 or the series is over. It may seem like an insurmountable deficit but hey, that's why they play the game.

I leave this picture because of the overwhelming Twins fans that may be down and out. The chances may be stacked against us but let's not quit. Why can't it be us that takes down the New York Yankees?

Why Not Us?

TWINS-YANKEES, ROUND 4

It's official: The Minnesota Twins will take on the New York Yankees in the first round of the ALDS playoffs. Every Twins fan would love nothing more than to beat the Bombers this year. Do I even need to mention that this is the 4th time since 2003 that the Minnesota Twins are playing the New York Yankees in the AL playoffs? In 2003, we were defeated 3 games to 1 in the ALDS. In 2004, we were again defeated 3 games to 1 in the ALDS. In 2009, we were swept 3 to 0.

This is the first time we will have homefield advantage. This is the best lineup with our 1-9 hitters we have had since the World Series Teams of 1987 and 1991. The first game is Wednesday at 7:37 followed by Thursday at 5:07, both Central Time at Target Field. More analysis later this week.

Pick Your Poison: New York Yankees or Tampa Bay Rays

The Minnesota Twins will play either the New York Yankees or Tampa Bay Rays (barring a crazy collapse and Boston Red Sox streak) in the first round of the AL playoffs. They will most likely face the Wild Card Winner, or, whoever finishes 2nd in the AL East. So, as a Twins fan, who would you rather face? The Bombers have dominated the Twins in the past (last 2 playoff exits came from them and we are 3-16 in our last 19 against them) and the Rays have a Cy Young candidate and speedy line up. Both teams are talented and experienced. As Twins fans, we just have to see how it plays out since we can't control who will finish where. However, I like our chances just as much as anyone else's, whether we play the Bombers or the Rays. e

Kubel and Blackburn Beat Yanks!!

Put your broom away Yankee fans! The Twins avoided the sweep last night with a huge home runs by Jason Kubel and a great pitching performance by Nick Blackburn. Jason Kubel hit two home runs that drove in 5 runs. Blackburn pitched 7 innings and only gave up 2 runs off of nine hits. Blackburn had a superb month of May in which he went 5-0 with a 2.65 ERA. It's nice to know Blackie is back on track. Most importantly, Blackburn has ended two three game losing streaks this month and is 4-0 following a loss. The Twins need a good Blackburn if they want to have a chance at the World Series!! Go Twinsss

A New First

The Twins experience their first suspended game on Tuesday when the umpires suspended Tuesday's game against the Yankees. The score was 0-0 and they suspended the game heading into the 6th inning. The game will continue today at 4 30 and it will be followed by a game at 6 10 against the Yankees. Fans who had tickets to last nights game will not be admitted to watch the rest of the game today since, according to Major League Baseball rules, it was called an official game. The Twins plan to use Brian Duensing to begin the 6th inning today while the Yankees have not announced their plans.

Hardy Says He's Ready

Hardy took two rounds of batting practice on Sunday and says that he should be ready to go for the beginning of the Twins series against the New York Yankees. Hardy has been on the 15 day Disabled List since May 4h. Hardy got injured when he slid head first while completing a triple on May 4th. Hardy was hoping to be ready for the series against the Brewers but he couldn't even hit off a tee before the weekend. Hardy will wear a protective brace over his wrist for the next couple of weeks.

Twins-Yankees Series Preview

Today, the Minnesota Twins begin their series against the New York Yankees in the Big Apple. The Twins have done terribly against the Yankee's under Ron Gardenhire, especially at Yankee Stadium. Last season, the Twins were 0-10 against the Yankees, including a sweep in the first round of of the playoffs. Under Gardenhire, the Twins are 5-27 at Yankee stadium. This year might be a little different. The Twins have one of the best records in all of baseball. In fact, they have an identical record to the Yankees as they both sit at 22-12. Naturally, the Twins are treating this as just another series, but it will be interesting to see how the Twins fair against a team they could potentially have to play in the playoffs.

Here are the pitching matchups.

Game 1: Liriano vs. Burnett

Game 2: Baker vs. Pettite

Game 3: Blackburn vs. Mitre