Johnny Damon a Fan of Yankees Getting John Lackey

Johnny Damon and Andy Pettitte were guests on the "October Nights" XM Radio show of Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson tonight. Besides both being very vague about returning (though Johnny stated his great desire to do so), only one other thing was gleaned from the interview: Johnny Damon, if he's back with the Yankees, singles out John Lackey as a guy he'd go sign.

Host, Reggie Jackson: “Johnny, if you had a wish list, besides coming back and playing for the Yankees again, do you see anything that you would wish for from [general manager] Brian Cashman and the Steinbrenner family to add to the ballclub?”

Johnny Damon: “Hmm. Well, I always feel like you can’t stay stagnant. I always feel like you have to move forward. You can never have enough pitching. I know there’s guys out there like John Lackey. He’s been a workhorse for years. I don’t have that list in front of me [of] who are free agents but there are quality players out there and the Yankees are always trying to get better. I just hope when they try to get better my name is still involved with it and I’m still wearing pinstripes.”

I think Damon's mind thinks like most Yankee fans. They saw how starting pitching won them a championship this season and he's thinking about the future. Lackey would be a nice fit in Pinstripes, though, like Burnett, I worry about his durability with injuries the past couple of years. It'll be interesting to see what the Yankees do, but more and more I see the Yankees bringing back Damon--as long as he's not asking for the three or four more years that he thinks he can still play in the Majors.

And Damon certainly does too judging by the fact he's encouraging them to go sign the top free agent pitcher. The hot stove has just begun to heat up and we'll talk much more about it on the blog, but as tidbits emerge, we'll post them here. Stay tuned...