Jorge Posada to retire Tuesday at 11 a.m.

In a little less than 24 hours from now, Jorge Posada will retire from baseball, the Yankees said today.

We knew this day would come. Seeing Posada in a Florida uniform would have been too awkward.  He spent 17 seasons in pinstripes, and that's how his career will end. It is awkward, however, to use the past tense for the first time when describing Posada's baseball career.

Poll results: Posada more valuable than Pettitte

Last week I asked fans which of the Core Four was more valuable: Jorge Posada or Andy Pettitte. The fans have spoken, with most saying that Posada was more valuable. A good portion of voters thought the two were equally valuable to the Yankees.

It's easy to give the nod to Posada just because he's an everyday player. He was also a very productive catcher, making him stand out from the crowd. But I'm sure those who voted that the two were equal remembered that Posada wasn't the best defensive catcher.

A.J. Burnett should fire his agent, or get lost

Either he should fire his agent or he should find another team that will take his attitude.

I just caught wind of what Darek Braunecker, A.J. Burnett's agent, told the Daily News (h/t BBD) and felt obligated to share it with you.

“I haven’t spoken to A.J. since (Friday) night, but it’s safe to say everyone assumed the Yankees would make moves to improve their rotation,” Braunecker told the Daily News. “How and if it affects A.J. is yet to be seen. I know he has worked as hard this offseason as any, even more so, to make sure he’s healthy and capable to pitch as well as he can.

“He fully expects to be in the rotation.”

That first part is fine, but those last eight words may not have been the wisest way for Burnett's camp to respond to the Yankees' two big pitching acquisitions yesterday.

Yankees sign Hiroki Kuroda for a year at $10 million

It seemed that the Yankees were going to go quietly this offseason despite NOT winning the World Series in 2011. What were we thinking?

Minutes after reports surfaced of the Yankees trading Jesus Montero for right-hander Michael Pineda, Jack Curry reported the Yankees have signed Hiroki Kuroda for a one-year deal worth $10-11 million. Buster Olney confirmed it will be $10 million.

Kuroda had a strong season with the Dodgers last year, posting a 3.07 ERA in 202 innings pitched, striking out 161 with a 1.21 WHIP. At first glance, Kuroda likely becomes the No. 3 starter between Pineda and Ivan Nova.

BREAKING: Yankees trade Jesus Montero for Michael Pineda

The Yankees traded their most beloved and touted prospect in recent memory, for an unproven 22-year-old starter (he turns 23 in five days.

That's right. Jesus Montero, who is also 22 and made an impact on the Yankees last September and earned a spot on the playoff roster, was traded to the Mariners for Michael Pineda, according to Jon Heyman. Heyman adds that more players are involved and the Yankees initially inquired about Felix Hernandez but were denied.

UPDATE: The Yankees also gave up Hector Noeisi and the Mariners gave up Jose Campos.

Gammons: Yankees might try to sign Edwin Jackson

If Yankees ownership isn't satisfied with the team's starting pitching, they might seek free-agent starter Edwin Jackson, according to Peter Gammons.

Jackson played with the White Sox and Cardinals last season, finishing with a 3.79 ERA and 148 strikeouts in 199.2 innings pitched. Jackson would provide some stability to the Yankees' rotation, as he's pitched at least 183 innings each season since 2008.

As a reminder, right now they have (via official depth chart):

1. CC Sabathia

2. Ivan Nova

3. Phil Hughes

4. A.J. Burnett

5. Freddy Garcia

6. Hector Noeisi

Jackson threw a no-hitter once but has proven to be inconsistent throughout his nine-year career.

Bernie Williams should join Kirby Puckett in the Hall of Fame?

If two players are similar enough, they should be honored similarly, too.

We've had five years to contemplate Bernie Williams' similarities to Kirby Puckett, who was elected to the Hall of Fame with 82.1 percent of the vote on his first ballot in 2001.

Williams received 9.6 percent of the vote, as announced in Monday's Hall of Fame balloting results, and frankly that appalls me. Puckett and Williams are very comparable players, but 72.5 percent of the members of the Baseball Writers Association of America disagree. How can this be?

YES Network's Steven Goldman made insightful comparisons of the two center fielders in this post, and I wish every voter would give it a read for the sake of the Hall of Fame. Not including Williams in Cooperstown would be a shame.

Stat: Brett Gardner and Albert Pujols had equal value in 2011

I'm not sure if Brett Gardner and Albert Pujols have ever been mentioned in the same breath by anyone until now. And I've determined that they still shouldn't unless one hits the ball to the other (very possible in 2012).

According to WAR (wins above replacement), the leading advanced metric to determine a player's value, Gardner and Pujols were worth the same last season.

Long pause

You heard me (to all the non-believers, click here). The 5-foot-10, 185-pound nine-hitter and the man known as The Machine both had a 5.1 WAR last season. So, how on earth is this possible?  

Poll results: Yankees fans split on team's offseason grade

Some fans say the Yankees needed to do more this offseason. Others said they will be just fine. The results were split.

It's pretty clear to us at this point that Brian Cashman didn't like what was available this offseason and is waiting for next year's stacked free agent class, including Giants ace Matt Cain. It's either that or he has a lot of trust in his farm system and top four prospects Jesus Montero, Manny Banuelos, Dellin Betances and Gary Sanchez.

On this day, this blog turns 3

Phew, I almost missed my own party. Three years ago to the day, I created this blog.

Thank you all so much for reading. 

As always, it's time to start counting the days until the day pitchers and catchers report: 41 days. It may not be the same without another member of the Core Four absent, but it of course will still be exciting.

New poll: Should the Yankees have done more?

I'd say it's about time for a new poll.

Should the Yankees have done more this offseason?

Even though I wasn't blogging for most of it, I didn't miss any big moves by Brian Cashman – because there haven't been any.

The Yankees re-signed Freddy Garcia, and more recently they brought back Andruw Jones. Those are Cashman's two biggest moves this offseason, making it pretty evident that Cashman either was not very fond of this year's free agent market, or that he is confident in his current team.

Start 2012 off right with an old Yogi commercial

This might just be my favorite commercial of all-time. Yogi Berra + Aflac duck + barber shop = classic. Enjoy, especially if you haven't seen it before.

(Let's not forget this is also in honor of Yogi being named "Wisest Fool of the Past 50 Years" by The Economist magazine in January 2005.)