Where did that come from? I live in Dubai, so baseb... all news gets to me a little late, but this caught me by surprise. I had no idea the Yankees were even interested in Chan Ho Park. Apparently Chan Ho made the announcement from South Korea that he chose the Yankees over the Cubs. *He's even farther away than I am!*

Anyway, it seems like a good deal to me: 1 year, $1.2million with another $300,000 in incentives for a decent middle-reliever. 

What does this mean for our 2010 bullpen? It means that the other righties fighting for a spot in our bullpen will be watching the start of the season from AAA. 

The Great Mariano, Joba or Hughes, Robertson, Marte, Aceves and Logan are surely in the bullpen to start off the season. *Other than Boone Logan, who's our realistic option for a second lefty? Kei Igawa? Oy vey.* This leaves one spot open for a reliever. Before today, it looked like that last spot would be  fought over by Mitre, Gaudin, Edwar and Albaladejo. *Try saying Albaladejo after a few shots of tequila - not pretty.* 

Now, with the signing of Chan Ho Park, those guys can kiss the Yankees bullpen goodbye, at least for the start of the season.

In my opinion, Edwar Ramirez and Jonathan Albaladejo were long shots to start off the season anyway. Sergio Mitre and Chad Gaudin, on the other hand, were not. It seemed as though one of them was bound to make the roster, which worried me. I'm not exactly a fan of either. 

So, at the end of the day, $1.5million (at most) got us a decent reliever, and gave us the luxury of not depending on Mitre/Gaudin. I'm happy.

Chan Ho Park had a rough time in New York a few years ago when he was with the Mets, pitching just 4 innings (as a starter) before being sent down to the minors. He didn't pitch in relief, so the transition into the bullpen was bound to get a little messy. He was given the opportunity to work that out in AAA. In 2008 and 2009, however, he became a reliever and returned to good form. 

With our other options in the bullpen, Chan Ho Park is a good fit. He sure as Hell came at a good price. He turned down offers worth more than double what we're paying for him. This shows that he is an intelligent man, and wants to play for a team that actually has a shot at winning the World Series. *cough* Unlike Damon *cough*

Welcome back to New York, Chan Ho. This time you're in the right part of town.

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