Francisco Cervelli, Joe Girardi and Francisco Rodriguez

Heavy on the Franciscos today. And we haven't even mentioned the San Francisco Giants, who are playing as I type.

--So Joe Girardi decided to start Francisco Cervelli at catcher over Jorge Posada. "Those two have been together," Girardi said of Cervelli and A.J. Burnett, "and it was not a difficult process."

No objections here. It's no secret that pitchers generally prefer to work with Cervelli over Posada; it's just that the other guys are more adaptable than Burnett. No, Cervelli isn't better than Posada when it comes to throwing out runners, but he is a better receiver. The last thing the Yankees need, especially with the volatile Burnett on the mound, is a wave of wild pitches and/or passed balls.

The Yankees' offense can't handle Posada's absence? Gosh, it really should be able to do so.

--Girardi, not surprisingly, didn't discuss the Cubs' hiring of Mike Quade at length. In his session with the Yankees' beat writers, one of the reporters asked him whether this hurt Girardi's leverage with the Yankees.

“I don’t worry about that," Girardi said. "I’ve been extremely blessed in that area as well.”

That's true. Three years ago, he was blessed when the Dodgers and Yankees bid for his services; the Dodgers wound up settling for Joe Torre. Of course, I've never heard speak of being "blessed" by leverage...

...I'm just being silly. Erik Boland, our Yankees beat writer, said Girardi was speaking more of being blessed in that he has made a good living for his family.

--Girardi said of tonight's game, given the stakes, "You have to manage it to win, and you have to manage it hard, I think."

--The Mets and Francisco Rodriguez announced their settlement. As expected, K-Rod gave up the $3.1 million that he was scheduled to earn from the point of his Citi Field incident through the end of the season. In addition, he admitted publicly that he injured his right thumb in the fight with his children's grandfather.

Now what? Well, first, Rodriguez has to work his way through criminal court. But assuming he cuts a deal to plead no-contest and get probation, community service or what have you, the Mets should try to start moving forward. Sure, they can listen to offers on him this winter, but it's hard to envision any team looking at K-Rod and thinking, "Hey, we gotta get that guy!"

No, there are other players whose departure from the Mets takes a higher priority. Players like Luis Castillo and Oliver Perez, for instance.

For all of the talk about K-Rod's $17.5 million vesting option for 2012, I wouldn't sweat it too much if I were with the Mets. They can afford stupid overpays for players with value. They can't afford flushing money down the toilet. Castillo and Perez fall into the latter category, K-Rod the former. 

--Have a great night.