Locked On Yankees - Daily Podcast On The New York Yankees

With this year's Hall of Fame class set, it's time for an early look at next year's ballot, which figures to include several short-term Yankees, but also Mariano Rivera, who darn well better make it on the first ballot, and Andy Pettitte, whose case... figures to be a topic of conversation for several years.

On the other side of the career spectrum, is it time to freak out because Estevan Florial didn't make Keith Law's top 100 prospects list at ESPN? Of course it isn't, though that also doesn't mean Law was wrong in his reasoning, which he explained in between the last episode and this one.

Meanwhile, in the mailbag, there are questions about regression, the leadoff spot in the Yankees' order, and the infield situation. Oh, that infield situation. We're gonna talk about that a lot between now and April, aren't we?

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The Yankees' farm system is well represented on prospect lists released by Baseball America and ESPN this week, hence the title of this episode referencing Gleyber Torres.

Two guests on this episode, though, so get excited! Larry Fleisher is here to talk about the Yankees' remaining offseason to-do list, while Jason Lukehart takes up the case of a former Yankee who won't make the Hall of Fame this year (we know that from publicly released ballots), but should get a closer look in the future.

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Yu Darvish is tweeting again, and that's... well, it's fun, if nothing else. We still have no idea how interested the Yankees are in signing him, or what his emoji usage means, but at least there's something to talk about that's hot stove related.

Then, Ben Badler from Baseball America joins the show to talk about the Yankees' pursuit of pending free agent Cuban outfield prospect Julio Pablo Martinez.

Finally, a look at Mike Axisa's piece at CBS Sports detailing some ideas for the MLBPA going forward, and how some of those ideas may be beneficial to the Yankees, even though some may not seem to be on their face.

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As the slow pace of the offseason continues, the big topic of discussion is not just that nothing is happening, but why nothing is happening, and you might as well read the piece by Jeff Passan at Yahoo Sports because the first half of this episode jumps off from there into exactly what it all means for the Yankees and what they're doing.

The second half of this episode is Mailbag Friday, which focuses on the rivalry with the Red Sox and the Yankees' infield situation.

Follow @LockedOnYankees on Twitter. Email: [email protected]

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Gerrit Cole is an Astro, Andrew McCutchen is a Giant, and both of those things are negative for the Yankees for different reasons. The Yankees, though, should be on the phone to Pittsburgh to see if the Pirates still are in a dealing mood, and if so, what it would take to get Josh Harrison to New York.

Meanwhile, the Yu Darvish derby continues, and the Yankees have the room under the luxury tax threshold to make it happen, maybe, although they still ideally would find a way to dump a contract somewhere else... again, Jacoby Ellsbury is the top candidate for that, but again, good luck finding a taker. How many more weeks of this wait-and-see game?

Apparently lots, because as we look around the rest of the AL East, the biggest thing happening is that Curtis Granderson will play his age-37 season with Toronto. Also, my knee really does hurt, and it's been almost a month since I first banged it on the ground. Should I see a doctor?

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Gerrit Cole, still not a Yankee. Yu Darvish, maybe a Yankee? Brian Cashman was on the radio talking about the top pitcher on this winter's free agent market (sorry, Jake Arrieta, but it's true), and now it's dare-to-dream time in Bomberland. Or is it? Cashman is under no obligation to play it totally straight with his public comments -- and really, he shouldn't, because everyone else in baseball can listen to the radio, too. Still, it's fun to think about the possibility of Darvish in pinstripes... if the Yankees can clear the space under the luxury tax threshold to make it work. Can they trade Jacoby Ellsbury? Somebody else? Do they even necessarily have to get under that $197 million figure?

There are a lot of questions there, and then there are even more questions in the latter part of this episode because it's Mailbag Friday... which features more talk about Darvish, Ellsbury, the luxury tax... and pro wrestling.

Subscribe to Locked On Yankees on iTunes, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts, and feel free to tweet to @LockedOnYankees, or email [email protected], if you're not finding the show where you want to find it.

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Fansided baseball contributor and "Baseball By The Book" podcast host Justin McGuire, formerly the baseball editor at Sporting News, is the guest at The Yankee Haters' Ball, a recurring segment in which we hear from, well, Yankee haters.

A lifelong Orioles fan, McGuire discusses putting allegiances aside for professional reasons, as well as the possibility of Manny Machado following in Mike Mussina's footsteps as a homegrown Orioles star to bolt for The Bronx in free agency. Then, after discussion of most hated and favorite Yankees, it's a rehash of Derek Jeter's (in)famous home run in Game 1 of the 1996 American League Championship Series.

Good news! Locked On Yankees is now available on iTunes. The show also can be found on Stitcher, via RSS, and hopefully by however you subscribe to podcasts. Please do subscribe, rate, and review the show, and feel free to reach out at [email protected], or on Twitter at @LockedOnYankees.

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A lot of the offseason is spent trying to figure out what to expect from a team, but thanks to Dan Szymborski and his ZiPS projections, we don't have to do it all by guessing.

This episode is just one big interview, featuring a top-to-bottom breakdown of the Yankees' 2018 ZiPS projections, how the model came up with them, and what they mean. Also, there are multiple tangents, but somehow not into Mr. Szymborski's well known online habits of creating WWE matches with baseball players, or Hearthstone cards, or blowing a gasket over the Hall of Fame.

We'll just have to have him back on the show!

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It's Mailbag Friday, absolutely nothing of importance has happened with the Yankees all week, and Thursday felt like it didn't even exist in the regular universe because of the snowstorm, so... Mailbag Friday takes over the whole dang show.

It's a fun one, though, because the questions are good. In fact, the questions lead to such a good time, there isn't even enough time to get to every question in the mailbag, which means that the next time we open the mailbag, we'll get to talk about the Yankees and pro wrestling... which also may come up in the next episode, when Dan Szymborski stops by to talk about the ZiPS projections for the 2018 Yankees.

And, who knows, maybe by next time there will be more in the way of news to talk about? Probably, since there's already a guest booked, and that's the way the universe works.

In the meantime, go ahead and follow @LockedOnYankees on Twitter... and stay warm this weekend!

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Nothing has happened with the Yankees, or with pretty much anyone else in baseball, over the holidays, but while there is not a lot of new ground to cover, there is the delight of welcoming Steven Goldman to not just a segment, but a full episode of Locked On Yankees.

The host of The Infinite Inning podcast, formerly of The Pinstriped Bible and Baseball Prospectus, Goldman shares some thoughts about the Yankees' third base situation, weighing the possibilities of Miguel Andujar, Mike Moustakas, and other options for New York at the hot corner. Then, a topic that Yankees fans surely don't want to think about, but should: what if Aaron Judge regresses after his Rookie of the Year campaign?

Finally, but not for the last time, it's time to talk about Mike Mussina's case for the Hall of Fame. Does Jack Morris' upcoming induction change anything? Is it fair to hold intangibles against a pitcher whose numbers point rather strongly toward Cooperstown? Is it hypocritical to argue against Mussina based on subjective criteria, but not be swayed by similar arguments in favor of a candidate like Omar Vizquel?

It's a longer than usual episode, but well worth the price of admission. Follow Steven Goldman on Twitter at @gostevengoldman, and follow this show at @LockedOnYankees. 

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