OUR FAR FLUNG CORRESPONDENT
View From Yankee Land

Let me get this out of the way: I am picking the Yankees to go all the way this year. And my son, Jack, who is just as objective as me, agrees. So it's unanimous.

But, before I get into it, let me congratulate the Giants for winning the World Series for the first time since their jerseys said "New York" and our esteemed publisher was a mere adolescent — which wasn't exactly yesterday.

While I'm at it, congratulations also to the second-place A's for playing in the worst division in baseball, and for amazing consistency, winning exactly as many games as they lost. Not surprisingly, fans stayed away in droves, as the A's ranked next to last in the majors in attendance, which was actually an improvement over the previous year. When will resident genius Billy Beane realize you have to spend money to make money?

The Yanks had another successful year in 2010, posting the second-best record in the AL and third-best in the majors, and leading the majors in both home and road attendance. This year should be no different.

The offense should be even better than last year, when the Bombers led the majors in runs scored, as several regulars, including Derek Jeter (.270 BA, .340 OBP), A-Rod (.270, 30 HR, 125 RBIs) and Mark Teixiera (.256, 33, 108) bounce back from subpar years (for them). Robby Cano emerged last year as a superstar, hitting up a storm (.329, 29, 109) and winning a Gold Glove (as did DJ and Tex), and is off to a great start. A's reject Nick Swisher had a fine year (.288, 29, 89) in 2010, and Curtis Granderson hit much better after taking a couple of games off in August to work with hitting guru Kevin Long, with 14 homers in his last 46 games and 25 RBIs in September. Bret Gardner has amazing speed and is leading off against righties, as his OBP was over .400 against them last year. Although starting slowly, Jorge Posada should thrive as a full-time DH in what will probably be his last year. Former Dodgers All-Star Russell Martin has been a revelation offensively and defensively in his first 22 games in pinstripes, although he was signed as a stopgap at catcher while the Yanks wait for top prospects Jesus Montero, Austin Romine and Gary Sanchez to develop; if Martin keeps it up, look for one or more of them to be included in a package for a starting pitcher. Even the bench will be stronger, with newly added Andruw Jones and Eric Chavez, whom the A's coldly dumped and who quickly endeared himself to fans with doubles in his first two at-bats as a Yankee, against the Red Sox.

The bullpen should be another strength for the Yanks, who added Rafael Soriano, last year's AL saves leader for the Rays, to an already strong unit that includes hard-throwing Joba Chamberlain, David Robertson and the best closer of all time, Mariano Rivera. Admittedly, starting pitching is a concern after Cliff Lee signed with Philly. Andy Pettitte became the first of the Core Four to retire, and Phil Hughes was placed on the DL. Still, CC Sabathia (21-7, 3.18 ERA) is a svelte 290 after losing 25 pounds, and is a true ace. A.J. Burnett should be great this year after a dreadful 2010, since the one consistent thing about him is his inconsistency. Ivan Nova is big and strong and throws hard, and Freddy Garcia should be a decent No. 5 starter. So far, the big surprise is Bartolo Colon, who has been throwing in the mid-90s and looks great, despite making Jeremy Giambi look malnourished. Still, if need be, you know the Yanks will not sit tight when the trade deadline rolls around. Is it too soon for the A's to start "rebuilding" and unload a good starter or two?

Another obstacle is the quality of the competition in the AL East, by far the best division in baseball. Four of the five teams finished over .500 last year, and even the last-place Orioles were 34-23 after Buck Showalter took over in August. The Bosox look especially tough, after trading for first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and signing Carl Crawford and Chicago closer Bobby Jenks.

All in all, we're looking forward to another great year in the Bronx. BTW, Jack and I are picking the Yanks to win in 2012, also.

Jesse Siegel is a criminal defense attorney in New York (What's it to ya?). He also plays lead guitar in The Jambaritos. E-mail: jessemsiegel@aol.com.