Make room for Zito  —  Yanks may eye lefty to replace Big Unit  —  While the Yankees continued engaging multiple teams in trade talks about Randy Johnson yesterday, they also came up with a possible option to replace him in their starting rotation: Barry Zito.

Yankee ingenuity  —  Bombers poised to make customary offseason splash  —  The New York Yankees are a team that will switch plans at a moment's notice, a team that will appear to be lost or losing badly and then will suddenly steal the show.  That may be exactly what's happening this offseason.

SEPARATE WAYS  —  POTENTIAL UNIT DEAL HAS SPECIFIC GOAL: GET YOUNGER, CHEAPER, DEEPER  —  This is not about Barry Zito.  This is not about Roger Clemens.  —  The Yankees are robustly pursuing trade possibilities for Randy Johnson to continue heeding GM Brian Cashman's mission statement …

Trading Unit a big, bad idea  —  We compare Randy Johnson's Yankees pitching numbers to those of his prime, and we compare his likability to that of the average mammal, and in both cases, the Big Unit falls well short.  —  Now, it seems as though an avenue has been discovered for New York …

D-Backs wary of Johnson's back  —  At his first news conference as a new member of the New York Yankees, Randy Johnson was asked what he thought he had to prove in spring training.  —  "That I don't need a walker," Johnson replied.  —  He was joking about his age.  Mind you, that was two years ago.

Pitch for Johnson better from Padres  —  NEW YORK — The San Diego Padres have made a more attractive offer for Randy Johnson than the Arizona Diamondbacks, but the Yankees will trade Johnson only if they consider it a good baseball move.  —  "Unless it's a deal (the Yankees) really want …

Yankees should jump on chance to trade Unit  —  If the rumors are any guide, then the New York Yankees are thinking of trading Randy Johnson and, in order to replace him, making a run at Barry Zito, the last notable free agent left standing.  —  If the Yankees were able to pull off this tandem of moves …

Bronx Bombers could have enough to land Zito if they deal Big Unit  —  The Yankees went into this offseason saying they wanted a leaner payroll and younger lineup in 2007.  Word out of the team's front office also was that Brian Cashman, the general manager who looks like Jeff Van Gundy …

The Memory Remains  —  We often hear about pitchers setting up batters, changing eye level, throwing pitches out of the zone, pitching backwards, etc.  Instinct and reaction are of utmost importance in catching, throwing, and hitting, but pitching is deliberate.  First pitch strike?  Inside or outside?