Baseball season is finally here and spring training is over. It has been a very successful preseason from many different perspectives, particularly from the aspect of rookie potential and successful leadership provided by the veterans of most of the contending ball-clubs.The Bronx Bombers are no exception to this exciting transition into the regular

season competition. The New York Yankees organization is riding high with

expectations for the upcoming regular season. A ball club steeped in so much

tradition of winning should have high expectations. This year they have a lot of

young players to help the team get back to the playoffs and advance much

further then another early stinging elimination in the divisional series.

Players like Robinson Cano and Chien-Ming Wang have a lot of potential to

try and get this team back to the World Series. Robinson Cano is entrenched

at second base because of his range and athleticism; he continues to astound

everyone that witnesses his rock solid defense. Based on spring training he

should have a breakout season this year and all years beyond. Hitting and

fielding has always been one of his strengths along with his knowledge for the

game. Cano is still young and has a long career ahead of him. Chien- Ming

Wang is a young pitcher the Yankees picked up in 2004 from Taiwan. He

helped the Chinese-Taipei team advance far in the Olympic tournament in

2004. He pitched with the Yankees triple A team for five starts and then was

called up to the big leagues in 2004. This pitcher has great potential to rack up

a lot of wins. Barring serious injury he should be a mainstay in the Yankees

rotation for years to come.

The Yankees have a surplus of talent in the minor leagues, names like Kevin

Reese, Melky Cabrera and Eric Duncan. Reese has been with the Yankees

organization since 2002. He started out with the Yankees AA team and is now

at the AAA level. He has had brief stints with the Yankees at the Major League

Level. He¡¯s a very patient hitter and does not strikeout a lot. He makes very

good contact with the baseball and has average speed but doesn¡¯t steal very

many bases. Reese¡¯s batting average ranges between .290 and .300.

Melky Cabrera grew up in the Dominican Republic. He has been in the

Yankees organization since 2003, started out at Single A ball and now has

moved up to the Yankees AAA team. He has had brief stints with the Yankees

at the major league level in 2005. Coming out of spring training he had a shot

to make the Yankees major league roster but was optioned down to the AAA

team due to the veterans on the team that have more experience at his

outfield position. Cabrera¡¯s batting average is .285 to .290; he steals bases

from time to time but not often. He does make good contact and can lay down

a bunt with the best of them.

There are other good, solid prospects on the horizon as well; Eric Duncan is a

3rd baseman in the Yankees organization. Currently he is playing at the AAA

level where he continues to amaze everyone with his glove work and his on

base percentage. He has incredible range and is an exceptional athlete. He is

one of the top prospects in all of baseball. Unfortunately, Alex Rodriguez is the

starting 3rd baseman for the New York Yankees. A change in position or a

move to another ball-club might benefit Duncan¡¯s chances of making it on a

major league roster to play every day. Of course, all these young up and

comers are going to need great leadership.

There is no better way to exhibit great leadership than by winning. Everybody

knows that good pitching wins games in major league baseball. The Yankees

have one of the best starting rotations in the American League. Randy

Johnson seems right at home in New York, even though he¡¯s only been there

for one season, he practically owns the town. It must have caught the eye of

the Yankees when "The Big Unit" came into the game in relief for one inning in

the 2001 World Series and slammed the door in the face of the Yankees¡¯

hopes of winning it all. It was the first time Johnson had come in for relief since

1996 when he was with the Seattle Mariners. It wasn¡¯t exactly a surprise move,

as Johnson was the best they had sitting in the bullpen, but it sure got the

fans¡¯ attention. Surely Diamondback fans miss his blazing fastball. Although

Johnson is 42 years old he can still bring it to the mound every night and be

dominating. Although he struggled a bit with the Yankees last year, there are a

lot of expectations for his return to his glory status.

After all is said and done in spring training, the Yankees are high on their

prospective outlook for a successful season. The conditioning of their players

has reached peak levels, the line-ups are set, and the boys of summer are

inspired. The New York - Boston rivalry is going to be as strong as ever. Both

of these organizations are going to look to their veteran leadership to provide

guidance by example to a fresh batch of rookie talent, as well as the seasoned

minor-leaguers brought up into the majors through excellent showings in

spring training 2006.