What better way to start off a new week than with a brand spanking new edition of my world famous This and That column.  In this edition we will talk about the Yankees and Bruins and so much more.  So, without further Ado or gilding the lily, let’s jump right in.  

Welcome Home (Sanitarium)—In yet another Fait Accompli, The New England Patriots have hired Ex-Patriot linebacker Mike Vrabel to be their next head coach.  I think Vrabel was the right move.  Usually, I am against hiring defensive guys as head coaches but in this case the Pats can’t risk hiring someone who is not made out to be a head coach.  They need someone established who can take over control of the team on and off the field and Vrabel is a guy who can do that.  The big question is who will be his offensive coordinator.  Whoever it is, if the Pats are smart then will set up some sort of line of succession with a portage who can step in and keep the same offense going if said OC does a really good job and gets a head coaching job with another team.  With all that said, I still believe that an even bigger problem than the coaching for the Patriots has been their personnel department.  It has been reported that Vrabel’s guy Ryan Cowden is coming over from the Giants.  That’s a good step in the right direction but reports are that Eliot Wolf is staying on in his current position.  If I was a Patriots fan, I would really hope Wolf is just a figure head and Cowden and Vrabel will be the ones making the decisions. 

Time is on (Their) Side—I have no problem with the Yankees taking their time on finding a 4^th infielder for this season.  They have a few guys they can try out in Spring Training and give a chance to in the early season.  If none of the options work out, they can always make a mid-season trade.  Thus, they are in no rush to sign or trade for a second baseman or a third baseman.  They can wait to see if any prices come down on guys they like.  The other issue talked about with the Yankees line up right now is that they do not have a prototypical leadoff hitter.  While acquiring a second baseman that can be that leadoff hitter, I do not think it is a big deal if they do not.  One easy way they can make up for not having a big on base guy at the top of their lineup is simply to keep Aaron Judge in the 3 hole and bat two guys ahead of him.  Give them twice the chance to get at least one guy on base before the MVP steps to the dish.  It would also allow them to bat a guy who can steal bases, such a Volpe or Dominguez, leadoff without them having to worry about running into outs with Judge at the plate.  It would also take some of the pressure off a young guy at the top of the line up knowing they are not the only hope of allowing Judge to bat in an RBI opportunity. 

Should I Stay or Should I Go—This weekend marked the start of the offseason for the WNBA.  Somehow their roster rules are vastly more confusing than the NBA’s.  Right now is the time for teams to tag players and offer qualifying offers.  Teams are not allowed to negotiate with players until the 21st and players can’t sign until February 1st.  This is looking like it could be a very interesting offseason for the W as some big-name players could be on the move and some teams may be blowing things up.  As for the Mercury, right now they only have 4 players under contract.  Given it’s 4 of their top 5 players and the 5th, Brittney Griner isn’t going anywhere.  Then there is Diana Taurasi.  She still has not stated if she is going to retire or come back for at least one more season.  Obviously, I don’t know how her body feels but she played well enough to come back for another run.  Hopefully she makes a decision soon (of she hasn’t already told the team her plans) so that the Mercury front office can head into the offseason knowing exactly where their roster stands.  Dee coming back would still only leave the team with 6 players.  They do have a good amount of cap space before Griner and DT sign and they have the 12th pick in the draft.  They have their work cut out for them but hopefully they will be able to put together a team to make another run at Banner 4 (that just doesn’t have the same ring as “Banner 19”).     

Time Stands Still—The Bruins may look like they are still in the play-offs but if you look at the games in hand the teams chasing them have, they are going to need there to be a lot of losing in the Eastern Conference for them to keep their wild card spot.  They only play one game this week so at least some of the teams should catch up in games played so we shall see where they are when they take the ice Saturday afternoon against the Ottawa Senators.  To me, the worst part of this season for the Bruins is that they are not building towards anything.  This is their team.  There are no young guys we are waiting on to develop.  There are no high draft picks. And they utterly refuse to call up any of the kids in Providence (if you are not going to call them up after a 6-game losing streak, when are you going to?).  I don’t think they should try to trade their top guys and start over but at least if they did that, they would be building towards something.  It would be fun to watch the kids develop or to follow draft prospects.  As the team stands now, there is nothing to look forward to.  I find myself hoping for losses hoping that if they lose enough, at some point there will be some sort of change.  Call ups or a trade.  Something.  I wrote about the guys I would be targeting if I were them.  There has been a rumor going around that they are trying to make a trade with Vancouver for one of their young centers.  Look, Vancouver had a good regular season last year but were eliminated in the 2^nd round.  We already acquired 2 guys from that team.  Why are they trying to acquire a 3^rd?  The good thing might be that the Canucks are not in a rebuild so maybe they will take a veteran like Coyle or Hampus Lindholm back in the deal.