Does Damon Want Out?

I can relate with this guy because when the Sox signed JD Drew, I put on a full Red Sox uniform, taped a newspaper article to my wall, didn't shave and the had a friend take a picture of me pointing at it. Maybe Yankees and Red Sox fans aren't so different afterall.
Newsday is reporting that Johnny Damon isn't exactly psyched about the Kevin Mass-esque emergence of Shelley Duncan and how his role is becoming more limited as a result. Apparently, after learning that he wasn't in the lineup last night (he wasn't told he would be sitting and had to learn of his demotion by viewing the lineup card. Classy.), Damon said:

"As a player, you always want to know what your role is and what's happening..."

"If I'm still out there on the margin, especially with Jason coming back . . . Anything's possible. I know a lot of teams are interested. With Jason coming back and a number of outfielders going down, the Yankees could probably get a better player now than what they probably got offered July 31."

Yikes. I can understand that Damon was angry and was probably just blowing off steam and therefore wasn't all that rational, but who are these teams that are interested in him? He makes $13 million a year and is on the downside of his career. He couldn't stay healthy if his occupation involved him wearing a spacesuit in a rubber room (I have no idea why that seems like the epitome of "safe" to me but it just does). It's always this time of year that someone on the Yanks makes some comment about not being used the right way, but it's weird that this is coming out of Damon. He's been a guy who while brutally honest and a quote a minute type of guy is never one to make a stink about anything. He usually takes the fall for guys rather than take jabs at them. I'm sure this will blow over (he's in the lineup today) and I'm also sure that Damon will be floated on the waiver wire. Will anyone be willing to grab him or make a waiver deal for him? I seriously doubt it. And even if they did, the Yanks would get pennies on the dollar for him. Damon may wish he'd taken the hometown discount with the Sox (and they may wish they kept him and moved Coco to right), but he may as well get comfortable in pinstripes. He's not going anywhere.