Dear Jim,

I'm sorry it's been so long since my last letter. Things have been pretty busy at work, although with the upcoming draft, I'm sure you've got a full plate. (I read that you're not sleeping much lately; you better take care of yourself before you get sick). I hope the wife -- did you get married yet? -- and kids are doing well.

The reason I'm writing is that I wanted to see if you saw the news about Jason Giambi, the Yankees DH. He's suffering from a tear to his plantar fascia, which is ironic because that's the injury that essentially derailed his compadre Mark McGwire's career. They're saying that he'll be out at least three weeks, but you and I both know that that's an injury that's slow to heal, and likely to come back. (Perhaps you can ask Bob Carpenter about McGwire's experiences with the injury in St. Louis -- Bob's quite a resource on all things STL, in case you weren't aware.)

Now is the time for action, Jim! With Dmitri Young's 4-4 performance last night, he's up to a sizzling .309/ .392/ .470 line that's sure to interest the Yankees, especially with Young's paltry salary. They can use him as DH now, and maybe play him at first if Giambi comes back. Certainly he's a better alternative than Doug Mientkiewicz or Josh Phelps.

Now we both know that the Yankees are trying to hold on to their prospects, and that they're unlikely, given the state of their rotation, -- can you believe that ours is actually turning out better than theirs? -- to ship along pitching prospects. But there's no reason we can't get a position player or two, B-ish prospects for Young. But we need to do it before his girth brings back his leg injuries, and we need to do it before he cools down.

I've taken the liberty of attaching the Yankees organizational depth chart. They've got some interesting guys in the low minors. Why don't you see what your highly paid scouts suggest?

Just a thought!

Your friend,

Chris

P.S. How did the court case turn out? I haven't heard anything about it recently.