Yankees and Red Sox In Bid War for Russell Martin

According to this tweet by Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports, the Yankees are apparently going head-to-head with Boston to acquire LA Dodgers catcher Russell Martin. The Yankees are probably looking to shore up a back up in case they fear Jesus Montero may turn out to be another Ian Kennedy.

Montero is an excellent hitter, but his defense has been described as questionable. Yankees might want him to tighten it up a bit. Getting Martin would give Montero more time and cool any reservations the Yankees may have.

Martin has been with the Dodgers since 2006. He is a 2-time All-Star (2007-08) and has both a Gold Glove (2007) and Silver Slugger Award (2007). He hit .248 with 5 homers and 26 RBIs in just 97 games in 2010. His season ended in August due to a torn labrum in his right hip. The Dodgers did not offer him arbitration for 2011 and so he became a free-agent.

This will go down to the wire. While the Yankees have a need for Martin, Boston's is even greater. They no longer have Victor Martinez to catch and although they exercised their option for Jason Varitek, his decline will limit his time behind the plate. They have Jarrod Saltalamacchia slated to start, but he saw very little action in 2010. Stands to reason that they'd prefer and need a more seasoned presence behind the plate to complement Varitek, and they'll have that in Martin. 

Follow Rasheeda Cooper on twitter: @ra_cooper

Red Sox Get Carl Crawford

The Red Sox have come to an agreement with Tampa Bay Rays left-fielder Carl Crawford on a 7-year deal worth a snazzy $142 million.  This according to a report by MLB Rumors of this tweet via Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe. Looks like Red Sox Nation was hell bent on outdoing the Yankees at these Winter Meetings by attemting to make the biggest splash this offseason. I say attempting because no deal made this free agency will trump that of whoever wins the Cliff Lee sweepstakes, and bets are that it will be the Yankees.

It's been said throughout the blogosphere and sports pages recently that Crawford was to be the Yankees plan B if the Cliff Lee deal fell through. During the Winter Meetings, many sportswriters said the expectation was that Crawford would wait until a Lee deal was done because that would put the Yankees in the mix to bid for him and we all know that the Yankees would have won that bid war. Crawford would be the only free-agent left that would make a significant impact on the Yankees status in the AL East. But, perhaps Crawford was ready to get a deal done; he was probably willing to go to either team as the Red Sox and Yankees are always expected to top the AL east and make a run for the World Series Championship. The deal makes Crawford the highest paid outfielder in history.

Should Bomber fanatics be at all shaken by this news? I don't think so. Sure Crawford is a superstar and a sure bet as he has no problems physically and has yet to show any signs that his speed is causing wear and tear. But the Red Sox are working with a lot of maybes right now. Maybe Jacoby Ellsbury will be back to his true form and stay injury-free in 2011; maybe Adrian Gonzalez will rehab well from shoulder surgery and be ready for Spring Training;  maybe Big Papi will have another season worthy of his player option being picked up for next year; maybe Jonathan Papelbon will decrease the number of blown saves next year and get back to an ERA of below 2. Maybe, maybe, maybe. There's no real assurance that Crawford's signing means Red Sox domination in 2011. And if the Bombers sign Cliff Lee, we'll have the two top lefties in the AL to neutralize those pesky lefties in Boston's lineup.

Follow Rasheeda Cooper on twitter: @ra_cooper

Yanks Make First Offer to Lee

This according to a tweet by Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated, the Yankees have finally made an offer to Lee for 6 years in the range of $140-$150 million. this comes in the wake of rumors that there are now two teams that are willing to offer Lee a deal for 7 years.

The Bombers seem unwilling at this point to go to a 7th year for Lee and that's reasonable. A 6-year deal is more than admirable for a 32 year-old pitcher, and it matches what Lee has been asking for all along. We fanatics know that beside a 6-year offering, the Yankees have history as a back-up to lure Lee in if a 7th year begins to attract his attention. I also believe that if they absolutely have to, they may go to a 7th year. With the Red Sox signing a power-lefty to their lineup in Adrian Gonzalez, the Yankees will certainly do what they have to to sign the best lefty on the market to their rotation.

Follow Rasheeda Cooper on twitter: @ra_cooper

Adrian Gonzalez To Red Sox

In a back-and-forth melodrama that almost fell through, the Red Sox acquired San Diego Padres 3-time All-Star and 2-time Gold Glover Adrian Gonzalez, in a trade for four prospects out of their farm system yesterday. The trade was made after the 2pm deadline to reach a contract agreement came and went, which is why it was originally reported by many "in-the-know" that the trade appeared to be off.

It's been a rough 24 hours for the Bombers' Beantown rivals; in the midst of the Gonzalez saga, word came yesterday evening--to everyone's surprise--that Phillies right-fielder Jayson Werth, signed a whopping 7-year, $126 million deal to play for the Washington Nationals. Word is that the Red Sox were in serious pursuit of Werth, who is considered one of the most promising, five-tool right-fielders in the NL. 

The trade for Adrian Gonzalez likely signals an end to third baseman Adrian Beltre's time in Beantown as first baseman Kevin Youkilis will be moved to third. Beltre declined arbitration last week, a move seen by many as unsurprising as his stellar play in 2010 makes his case for a lucrative contract on the free market.

Follow Rasheeda Cooper on twitter: @ra_cooper