The bible of baseball prospecting, Baseball America, released it's top 10 prospect list for the Yankees.

1. Jesus Montero, c
2. Austin Romine, c
3. Arodys Vizcaino, rhp
4. Slade Heathcott, of
5. Zach McAllister, rhp
6. Manny Banuelos, lhp
7. Gary Sanchez, c
8. J.R. Murphy, c
9. Jeremy Bleich, lhp
10. Andrew Brackman, rhp

My first impressions are that Romine, Sanchez and Bleich are surprisingly high. Romine projects to be a good, all-around catcher, but hasn't played above A-ball; several other prospects have produced more at similar ages with higher ceilings. Sanchez has yet to play a single pro game, and Bleich had an awful half-season at Double-A.

(FYI, Sanchez was the top IFA catcher this year. His bat doesn't project as much as Montero's, but he's supposed to be better behind the plate.)

Montero is called the best hitter for average and power, an impressive combo. Newly-acquired Jamie Hoffmann is the 'best defensive outfielder.' Frankie Cervelli is the 'best defensive catcher' while Ramiro Pena is the 'best defensive infielder.'

With four catchers in the top 10, the Yankees are clearly pursuing a defined strategy. The brain trust (Damon Oppenheimer (head of scouting), Mark Newman (head of 'baseball operations') and Brian Cashman) seem to think catching prospects are more valuable than any other prospects (outside of perhaps pitchers). And they would be right. Back when Texas had three good catching prospects (Teagarden, Ramirez and Saltalamacchia), other teams seemed willing to trade almost anybody to get one of the trio. Good catchers are hard to find, and by stock-piling them, the Yankees are ensuring they have the necessary 'chips' to land a big-name veteran when needed. The best will rise to the top while the remaining can be traded off.

We at Pinstripe Alley put together our own combined prospect list:

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With all the recent events between the Yankees and their division rivals, this had to be delayed.

The Triple-A Yankees finished first in the International League's Northern Division with an 81-60 record. They were swept, however, in the IL finals by the Durham Bulls, three games to none.

The offensive star was once again Shelley Duncan, who won the MVP after hitting .277/.370/.546 and leading the league in homers and RBI. He'll be 30 next year and declined to return to the Scranton Yankees, making himself a free agent. It's too bad that he happened to be in the organization of a team with such talent at the big league level. I believe he could've been (and still might be) a productive ML hitter.

Cuban defector Juan Miranda was the left-handed MVP, batting .290/.369/.498. He's been called the current DH for the big league Yankees, but we all should remember Brian Cashman's statement that Bubba Crosby was the starting centerfielder right before they signed Johnny Damon. However, having Miranda as the platoon DH/1B wouldn't be so bad. He murders right-handed pitchers (.893 OPS vs. RHP, .712 vs. LHP). But having a DH that only plays two-thirds of the games makes for problems by itself. He's a solid insurance policy in case (Mo forbid) Teixeira goes down.

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With some of the comments I've read tonight, you'd think the Red Sox had just won the World Series while the Yankees were swept out of the LDS.

Don't panic! The Red Sox basically exchanged Jason Bay for Mike Cameron. Is Cameron, a 37-year-old former steroid user, really an upgrade?

Adding John Lackey makes them a better team, no question, but did y'all expect them to do nothing this off-season? What it probably means is that they're going to let Josh Beckett walk after 2010. They also lost Billy Wagner. Say what you will about him, but he's dominant when healthy (one season with an ERA over 3.00, 12 K/9 ip).

The Yankees are the defending champs. The Red Sox are the chasers, the Yankees are the chasees.

I would've been a lot more concerned if Boston acquired Roy Halladay.

You never know what will happen. The Yanks didn't have Mark Teixeira until late December of last year. Johnny Damon, Matt Holliday, Jason Bay and Vlad Guerrero are still out there. So are Ben Sheets, Justin Duchscherer and Erik Bedard. If those guys are healthy, they'll be as good as Lackey at a fraction of the price.

Chien Ming-Wang was non-tendered, but the Yanks would like to bring him back:

"There's no doubt that we had to make a tough decision," general manager Brian Cashman said. "We are still hopeful that our relationship can continue, but those decisions are yet to be made."

• Contracts were tendered to Melky Cabrera, Chad Gaudin and Sergio Mitre.
• The Yanks and Johnny Damon are negotiating, but Cashman wants an answer within two weeks. Hideki Matsui would reportedly accept a one-year deal.
• Curtis Granderson is a leader on and off the field. He traveled to China and South Africa to teach baseball clinics, and started a charity while still in the minors.
• The Yankees are currently the third favorite team to land Roy Halladay. The Angels and Phillies are first and second.
• Fox Sports says the Yankees were the top 'winner' at the winter meetings. 
• Aroldis Chapman will throw a side session in Houston on Tuesday. The Yanks, Red Sox and Angels will be among the teams watching the Cuban defector.