TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -The New York Yankees are still discussing whether to pursue a trade for Minnesota Twins ace Johan Santana, and senior vice president Hank Steinbrenner would like to make a deal.
“Nothing is really decided at this point,” Steinbrenner said Friday night outside Legends Field at the team’s spring training complex. “I’m still leaning towards doing it. There’s others leaning not to do it. There are some others that are leaning to do it also. Disagreements within the organization. Nothing major, but just different opinions. I’ve changed my opinion a couple times.”
Right-hander Phil Hughes and center fielder Melky Cabrera would likely be part of a three-player package needed to obtain Santana, a two-time Cy Young Award winner who can become a free agent after this season.
The Yankees made an offer to Minnesota for Santana earlier this offseason, then said they had pulled out of trade talks.
Steinbrenner said ultimately the final decision will made by ownership, but the opinion of general manager Brian Cashman is important.
“I always told him, `I’m going to make the final decisions because when you’re the owner you should,”’ Steinbrenner said. “He is the general manager, and he has the right to talk me out of it and he has talked me out of some things.”
Steinbrenner said he has no problem going into the 2008 season with a rotation that doesn’t include Santana, but features promising youngsters Hughes and Joba Chamberlain.
“I’m very happy with our young pitchers,” he said.
Steinbrenner reiterated that he has no plans to bring back Roger Clemens in 2008. Steinbrenner does intend to watch Clemens’ interview on CBS’s “60 Minutes” on Sunday night.
“I guess everybody is going to find out a lot,” Steinbrenner said.
Clemens said former trainer Brian McNamee injected him with the painkiller lidocaine and the vitamin B-12, according to the first excerpts released from the pitcher’s interview with the TV program.
McNamee said in the Mitchell Report on doping in baseball that he injected Clemens with steroids in 1998 while with the Toronto Blue Jays, and with steroids and human growth hormone in 2000 and 2001 while with the Yankees.
Notes: Steinbrenner said former Yankees 1B Tino Martinez will be a guest instructor at spring training this year. Martinez is a volunteer coach at South Florida. … Luis Sojo is expected to return for his third season as manager of the Class-A Tampa Yankees.
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