Hank Steinbrenner

The Yankees could hire a new manager by the end of this week. "It's possible," Hank Steinbrenner said yesterday, adding that the process could extend longer. "We want to get it done as soon as possible. " Hank, son of owner George Steinbrenner , spoke on his way into Legends Field in Tampa before first base coach Tony Pena became the third candidate to interview for the job that opened when Joe Torre quit last week. Yankees broadcaster Joe Girardi interviewed Monday and bench coach Don Mattingly Tuesday.

Hank Steinbrenner looks to Andy Pettitte when evaluating the risk of offering a seven-year contract to Cliff Lee . The Yankees and Rangers are waiting for a decision from the 2008 AL Cy Young Award winner, who is evaluating offers from both teams before making a decision on where to sign. “For somebody of that stature, it would certainly behoove him to be a Yankee, which would probably be for the rest of his career,’’ Steinbrenner, the Yankees’ co-chairman, said yesterday.

NEW YORK - Major League Baseball had this message for Alex Rodriguez and agent Scott Boras: Shame on you. Boras announced during Game 4 of the World Series Sunday night that Rodriguez was opting out of the final three seasons of his contract with the Yankees. The timing left baseball officials livid, and Boras apologized yesterday evening, just after Rodriguez filed with the Players Association and became a free agent for the first time since 2000. "We were very disappointed that Scott Boras would try to upstage our premier baseball event of the season with his announcement," Bob DuPuy,...

Manny Ramírez in pinstripes? Hank Steinbrenner said the Yankees will explore all options during the offseason, including the possibility of making an offer to the free agent slugger. "There's nothing we are not looking at," Steinbrenner said yesterday at the Yankees' spring training complex in Tampa. "And personally, I like Manny. He's one of the greatest hitters in the history of the game. He's a free spirit for sure, but he knows how to win. We like some of the other guys, too. We just don't know yet. " Ramírez was traded from the Red Sox to the Dodgers July 31, and Los Angeles...

Two thoughts crossed Todd Helton's mind when he awoke to a snowstorm yesterday. "Good hunting weather," the Colorado Rockies first baseman said. "We don't have to go out on the field and practice today. That was my only other thought. It will be a short day for us, a good day. A good day to sit on the couch, I know that. " The snowstorm forced the Rockies indoors for their next-to-last workout before flying off to Boston, where they'll take on the Red Sox when the World Series starts Wednesday night at Fenway Park.

Manny Ramírez in pinstripes? Hank Steinbrenner said the Yankees will explore all options during the offseason, including the possibility of making an offer to the free agent slugger. "There's nothing we are not looking at," Steinbrenner said yesterday at the Yankees' spring training complex in Tampa. "And personally, I like Manny. He's one of the greatest hitters in the history of the game. He's a free spirit for sure, but he knows how to win. We like some of the other guys, too. We just don't know yet. " Ramírez was traded from the Red Sox to the Dodgers July 31,...

Mariano Rivera was offered a $45 million, three-year contract to stay with the Yankees, and now the team is waiting to hear back from its star closer. "He'd be by $4 million a year the highest-paid relief pitcher," Yankees senior vice president Hank Steinbrenner said. "To say that's a strong offer would be an understatement. " On Monday, the Yankees retained catcher Jorge Posada when they increased their offer to $52.4 million for four years. Posada is due to take a physical today, another step toward finalizing that agreement.

TAMPA -- Yankees owner George Steinbrenner met with his top advisers for five hours yesterday, examining ways to improve the struggling team. The session came one day after Steinbrenner issued a statement saying his "patience is a little short" and "the players have to want to win as much as I do. " New York general manager Brian Cashman said the meeting focused on "ways to be better. " "That's the bottom line . . . as simple as that," Cashman said. "Obviously, we've under performed at this stage.

NEW YORK - Alex Rodriguez and the New York Yankees have agreed to the outline of a record $275 million, 10-year contract, a deal that potentially would allow him to earn millions more if he sets the career home run record. The amount of the guaranteed money was revealed by a person familiar with the negotiations who spoke yesterday on condition of anonymity because the deal hasn't been finalized. A-Rod and his wife, Cynthia, met Wednesday in Tampa with brothers Hal and Hank Steinbrenner, but the parameters of the agreement were set in place last weekend.

Hank Steinbrenner looks to Andy Pettitte when evaluating the risk of offering a seven-year contract to Cliff Lee . The Yankees and Rangers are waiting for a decision from the 2008 AL Cy Young Award winner, who is evaluating offers from both teams before making a decision on where to sign. “For somebody of that stature, it would certainly behoove him to be a Yankee, which would probably be for the rest of his career,’’ Steinbrenner, the Yankees’ co-chairman, said yesterday.

NEW YORK - This isn't even that much fun anymore. Burying the 2008 Yankees has become too darn easy - like practicing layups on an 8-foot rim or beating a 4-year-old at checkers. If you are a Yankee in 2008, the Red Sox are your daddy. The Sox pummeled the once-proud Bombers again last night. This time it was double-pumping Paul Byrd dazzling the billionaires' club with his 87-mile-per-hour heaters and old-timey dropballs in an 11-3 rout. Dustin Pedroia provided the exclamation point with a grand slam in Boston's seven-run eighth.

NEW YORK - Alex Rodriguez and the New York Yankees have agreed to the outline of a record $275 million, 10-year contract, a deal that potentially would allow him to earn millions more if he sets the career home run record. The amount of the guaranteed money was revealed by a person familiar with the negotiations who spoke yesterday on condition of anonymity because the deal hasn't been finalized. A-Rod and his wife, Cynthia, met Wednesday in Tampa with brothers Hal and Hank Steinbrenner, but the parameters of the agreement were set in place last weekend.

Mariano Rivera was offered a $45 million, three-year contract to stay with the Yankees, and now the team is waiting to hear back from its star closer. "He'd be by $4 million a year the highest-paid relief pitcher," Yankees senior vice president Hank Steinbrenner said. "To say that's a strong offer would be an understatement. " On Monday, the Yankees retained catcher Jorge Posada when they increased their offer to $52.4 million for four years. Posada is due to take a physical today, another step toward finalizing that agreement.

NEW YORK - Major League Baseball had this message for Alex Rodriguez and agent Scott Boras: Shame on you. Boras announced during Game 4 of the World Series Sunday night that Rodriguez was opting out of the final three seasons of his contract with the Yankees. The timing left baseball officials livid, and Boras apologized yesterday evening, just after Rodriguez filed with the Players Association and became a free agent for the first time since 2000. "We were very disappointed that Scott Boras would try to upstage our premier baseball event of the season with his announcement,"...

The Yankees could hire a new manager by the end of this week. "It's possible," Hank Steinbrenner said yesterday, adding that the process could extend longer. "We want to get it done as soon as possible. " Hank, son of owner George Steinbrenner , spoke on his way into Legends Field in Tampa before first base coach Tony Pena became the third candidate to interview for the job that opened when Joe Torre quit last week. Yankees broadcaster Joe Girardi interviewed Monday and bench coach Don Mattingly Tuesday.

Two thoughts crossed Todd Helton's mind when he awoke to a snowstorm yesterday. "Good hunting weather," the Colorado Rockies first baseman said. "We don't have to go out on the field and practice today. That was my only other thought. It will be a short day for us, a good day. A good day to sit on the couch, I know that. " The snowstorm forced the Rockies indoors for their next-to-last workout before flying off to Boston, where they'll take on the Red Sox when the World Series starts Wednesday night at Fenway Park.

NEW YORK - This isn't even that much fun anymore. Burying the 2008 Yankees has become too darn easy - like practicing layups on an 8-foot rim or beating a 4-year-old at checkers. If you are a Yankee in 2008, the Red Sox are your daddy. The Sox pummeled the once-proud Bombers again last night. This time it was double-pumping Paul Byrd dazzling the billionaires' club with his 87-mile-per-hour heaters and old-timey dropballs in an 11-3 rout. Dustin Pedroia provided the exclamation point with a grand slam in Boston's seven-run eighth.

NEW YORK - Johnny Damon had a spring in his legs, Mike Mussina showed some zip on his arm, and, when it was over, John McLaren unloaded with plenty of anger. Damon homered and doubled twice to help Mussina win his third straight start in New York's 6-1 victory over the sloppy Seattle Mariners yesterday. One day after co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner said he was "disappointed with the way the season has gone," the Yankees (16-16) rapped out 13 hits and beat Seattle for the second time in a row following a three-game sweep by the Detroit Tigers in New York.

TAMPA -- Yankees owner George Steinbrenner met with his top advisers for five hours yesterday, examining ways to improve the struggling team. The session came one day after Steinbrenner issued a statement saying his "patience is a little short" and "the players have to want to win as much as I do. " New York general manager Brian Cashman said the meeting focused on "ways to be better. " "That's the bottom line . . . as simple as that," Cashman said. "Obviously, we've under performed at this stage.