STAT first All-Star starter for the Knicks since Ewing

This past offseason the New York Knicks have made some big moves to improve their team. The last few years has been full of heart break and pain for Knicks fans. It seemed like in every close game, or games they had a lead over 10 points, the Knicks would find a way to lose it in the fourth quarter.

Amare Stoudemire

This season is different though. The Knicks signed power forward Amare Stoudemire this offseason and he has provided an immediate spark that the Knicks needed to start being considered as a legitimate contender for the NBA title. Stoudemire is averaging just over 26 points, 9 rebounds and over 2 blocks per game and was a stand out favorite for the East in the all-star voting this season. Amare has been a stand out performer this entire season by setting the Knicks record for most consecutive 30 point games this season with 8 in a row.

Amare will be the first player for the Knicks to be announced a starter for the East All-Stars since Patrick Ewing did it the early 1990's. Tonight the Knicks will face the Miami Heat which will showcase East teammates Lebron James and Dwayne Wade.

Jeter moving to Outfield?

Yankees Short Stop Derek Jeter, who has spent his entire 15 year career stealing away hits from opposing batters with the Yankees, was a free agent when the 2010 MLB season ended. After a lengthy negotiation process over a new contract, Jeter got what he wanted and signed a $51 million contract to remain the Yankees captain for another three Years with an option of a fourth year.

Jeter has won 5 Gold Glove awards at short, most recently last season when he turned 36 years old. Jeter has showed signs of slowing however the past few seasons and many in the Yankees organization have talked about how they want to bring in a young quick player to put in the infield. Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman recently was quoted as saying that he would be surprised if Jeter stayed at short stop for the duration of his contract.

It is possible that Jeter could follow the same pattern as Hall of Famer Robin Yount. Yount moved from shortstop to center field in the mid-1980s, midway through a 20-year career with the Brewers. He had won an MVP in the infield and then won another one towards the end of his career in the outfield. There have been rumors flying this past season about Jeter moving to the outfield but there is no indication that he is going anywhere this season. The Yankees currently have three young all-star caliber players in the outfield, with Nick Swisher, Curtis Granderson, and Brett Gardner so the Yankees might have an issue in the next few years on what to do with Jeter if management feels like he cant still cut it at short stop.

Gardner, Granderson, Swisher

Anybody have any ideas on what they can do? 

New York Yankees

The New York Yankees have recently made some moves to acquire relief pitcher Rafael Soriano from the free agency market. Soriano led the American League in 2010 with 45 saves and now will join the Yankees as an eighth inning set up man for future hall of famer, Mariano Rivera. With the addition of Soriano, the Yankees bullpen will now have a lot more depth at the reliever position and will hopefully end their struggles during the late innings. Another key acquisition recently has been the signing of outfielder Andruw Jones. Jones, who was an all-star five years ago while playing for the Atlanta Braves will be used as a backup outfielder. Jones' productivity has dropped in recent years but he still has a lot of power hitting off lefty pitching. This will allow the Yankees to give more days off to their outfielders, Curtis Granderson,  Brett Gardner, and Nick Swisher.

New York Jets

For the second time in the last two years, quarterback Mark Sanchez and the Jets have reached the NFL playoffs. The Jets stunned the Payton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts in the Wild Card round then shocked the sports world with a win in Foxborogh against their division rival, the New England Patriots. Jets head coach Rex Ryan predicted a superbowl appearence during training camp and now he is only one game away from that ultimate goal of bringing a championship back to New York. The Jets will assume their role as the underdogs in this weeks AFC Championship game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.