Hal: $189 Million is the Target

From Wallace Matthews:

Hal Steinbrenner got accosted on his way to the elevator by the Yankees' beat crew, and confirmed what GM Brian Cashman has been saying all winter:

The Yankees are in the process of "streamlining'' the payroll, and the magic number is $189 million, which will be the new luxury-tax threshold for the 2014 season as established by the recently ratified CBA.

"I'm looking at is as a goal," Steinbrenner said, "and my goals are normally considered a requirement.''

The only good that can come out of this, besides the Steinbrenner family saving some extra dough, is that fans around the country might slow down a bit with the whole "the Yankees buy their championships" thing. That said, I never cared about those fans or their opinions in the first place.

Welcome to the NL, AJ

From the AP:

Pirates pitcher A.J. Burnett will undergo surgery on Friday to repair a fractured right orbital bone.

The right-hander injured himself Wednesday at the team's spring training facilities in Bradenton, Fla., after a bunt attempt caromed off his face. He flew to Pittsburgh late Wednesday to be further evaluated.

There is no immediate timetable for Burnett's return.

To make matters worse, one of the reasons he wanted to go back to the NL was so that he could hit again. Like they say, be careful what you wish for.

Thanks to Robot Devil for pointing out that there was video of the incident:

An Urban Cottage – The RDH March Blog of the Month

Today I am happy to introduce you to An Urban Cottage – the March Red Door Home Blog of the month.

via An Urban Cottage

via An Urban Cottage

An Urban Cottage is a new to me blog that has quickly become a favorite.  You know I love a good house renovation story and this one is superb!  An Urban Cottage chronicles Steve’s journey of restoring his 1842 Greek Revival cottage in Boston, MA.  Along the way he also shares tidbits about flowers, decorating, favorite finds, and more.

Below is how Steve’s house looked when it was purchased.

via An Urban Cottage

Here is what it looks like today.

via An Urban Cottage

Quite a beautiful transformation, wouldn’t you say?  (For all the details click HERE.)  Along with restoring the outside of his house, Steve has also been hard at work renovating the interior. Take a look at the inspiring pictures below to see the beautiful transformation which has taken place.

Kitchen before

via An Urban Cottage

Kitchen after

via An Urban Cottage

Steve has done such amazing work on his house that not too long ago it was photographed for and will be featured in the new Better Homes and Gardens New Cottage Style book.

The book is not available yet but is scheduled for release in June of this year.  You can visit HERE to preorder your copy.

Steve’s current project involves an update of the bedroom shown below.

via An Urban Cottage

He is stripping wallpaper and plans to remove the turquoise paint from the floor as well as change the vintage Cape Cod cottage look into something more in keeping with the rest of the house.  I can’t wait to see the results!

Thank you Steve for allowing me to feature your incredible blog!  To see more Urban Cottage happenings please stop by Steve’s blog.  I know you will be thrilled you did!