Opening Day issues for Yankees
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Mar 14, 2008 
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The suspensions can be appealed. But with 17 days remaining before Opening Day, they can probably get that process done by then. Players have only so many days to file an appeal, not weeks.
The Yankees will start likely the season with a 23-man roster for at least two games, probably three. That means Damon in center, Matsui in left, Giambi at first and TBA as the designated hitter. Their spring training plans will have to change to get those players ready. Matsui has played just one game in left so far this spring.
Youth and energy are great. But whether Girardi can control players like Duncan will be an ongoing story this season. Duncan started to develop a reputation last season with his aggressive slides and this latest incident will only serve to enhance that.
As was reported in other papers, veteran players have been taking Duncan aside to tell him that he needs to watch how he conducts himself. It appears Girardi did the same the other day. The question now is whether Duncan listens.
Why wouldn’t they wait till the day before opening day to appeal?
Send Shelly to AAA to start the season, keep Ensberg. When Melky’s suspension is up, recall Shelley if you want and he’ll serve his suspension then.
Jeter doubles, Matsui walks, ARod homers. I can see a lot of those types of innings in our future . . .
They could always start Duncan in the minors for the first 3 games while Melky serves his suspension. Then Bring him up at that point. Problem is there is no other outfielder on the 40 Man roster. Not sure they would want to add some one for that purpose.
it’s ludacris that Gomes only gets 2 games, he did the 60 yard dash,a blind tackle actually incited the whole thing yet Melk and Shelley get the worse BullS*****
“Youth and energy are great. But whether Girardi can control players like Duncan will be an ongoing story this season. ”
That’s probably overstating it, and I certainly think Girardi is better equipped to handle someone like Duncan than Torre was.
Pete, what do you mean by “Duncan started to develop a reputation last season?” Duncan was a hothead or Duncan was hard for the Yankees’ coaches to control?
Are they really paying the price Pete?
I’m looking forward to a decent record against TB this season.
I think the value they have gained in intensity will far outweigh the loss of playing time from the suspensions.
whether he can control his players? do we know Girardi wasnt behind these shennanigans?
i dont think is really any worry from my perspective on whether or not Girardi can control these “wilding youths” as you like to call them, Pete.
They have options for the roster, and arent likely to use a deep bench for the first 2 or 3 games of the season, anyway.
I agree. Send Shelley to Scranton, but instead of Ensberg they keep Gardner on the big league roster for the first week. That leaves Matsui to the DH role. Once Melky is back they can send Gardner down and recall Shelley.
I don’t see why they both have to serve their suspensions at the same time – seems there’s plenty of ways around that.
He is not going to have a problem controlling Duncan.
Stuff happens during the course of a season. Nobody ever questioned whether or not Joe Torre could control Darryl Strawberry or Graham Lloyd when they went postal against the Orioles.
Did anybody question whether or not Torre could control Scott Proctor or Joba Chamberlain when they got suspended last year? No.
“Controlling Duncan” is not going to be a problem. He’s not an everyday player. He’s the kind of player you hate until he is on your team.
Its a good thing the Yankees have somebody like that on their team now.
Its a couple of games and that will go by quickly.
I also think, if appealed, Cabrera’s suspension will be cut by a game.
The Rays have their big “victory” over the Yankees. Now, its time to play baseball.
The Yankees will survive these suspensions without missing a beat. Let’s not make more out of them than what they are.
I guess the only reason Gomes gets 2 is because of his failed attempt on his tackle to bring justice back to major leagues…P.S. what the hell ? Duncan isn’t a hothead he’s not that Pete.
Girardi does not have a problem having to show if he can control Duncan that is a far reach.
Again as far as this Yankee fan is concerned…Duncan did the right thing…Johnson went out of his way to plow Cervelli so Duncan got some payback…Gomes charged Duncan and some Yankee people defended him.
We will handle the unfair suspension of Melky.
Honestly, are we supposed to believe Girardi can’t control Duncan? Don’t you think Girardi knew s*** like this was going to go down today? Don’t you think he could have stopped it if he wanted to? He obviously didn’t. And I know he would never say so publicly, but you have to assume Girardi was in control of this whole thing, unless there is some bizarre reason to believe Girardi has no control over his own players.
maybe Jason Lane gets a shot.
Well said SJ44. you said it better than I.
SJ – my thoughts exactly. Way, way overblown to say he can’t control Duncan. I would assume he implicitly sanctioned some kind of retaliation, at least in the absence of a prohibition. i.e. Girardi probably never said “Don’t retaliate”, which would suggest an implicit OK to retaliation, when the presumption was that they would.
Noodle Arm at CF, great!
To those who have been screaming for Giambi’s retirement or to trade Matsui, this is another example that our lineup is not as deep as you’d think.
I don’t agree the story here is that Girardi will need to “control” Duncan. I think the story is that NYY is a marquee team, it draws attention, sells papers/ratings/tickets, and people will always over-react to whatever we’re doing, good or bad.
Please, its 3 games. Let’s not make it sound like its the season.
There’s been enough overstatement on this entire incident. Let’s not add to it.
The lineup is fine. Guys will be back in a couple of days and life will go on.
You know what, Duncan was in control during the slide. He pulled his leg back and made minimal contact. It was the threat that he would do something that got the Rays upset. It is quite similar to Joba going over Yuk’s head, he had no intention of hitting him, just scaring him a bit. Same with Duncan.
In the meantime, Eliot Johnson knocked our prospect out for 10 weeks. Is it me or does the punishment always seem worse for Yankees then the other team?
Yeah, Girardi will have no problem. He’ll do much better than Torre at it. Its called sending a message. Something Torre wouldnt do. They were basically a punching bag for the whole league under his reign.
Don’t forget – this is Tampa Rays’ version of the World Series, the most exciting thing that will happen to them all year.
Pity them.
SJ, I know it’s only 3 games, but my point is if someone gets injured (which undoubtedly will happen through out the season) instead of a suspension and has to miss more games, all of a sudden the lineup is not as full as it seems. I was merely responding to the people have been calling for Giambi and Matsui to go based on the assumption that we’ll always have the full roster. The reality is, as you know, not everyone will be ready to play everyday for the entire season.
Pete is right.
Girardi has lost control. The season is over.
Saying Girardi can’t control players?
Man, is Pete really Mad Doggin’ it lately.
How much depth do other teams have in their lineups?
They are replacing Melky Cabrera for 3 days with Johnny Damon. Not exactly chopped liver.
This the best Yankees bench in years. If they have a lot of injuries, no team survives a lot of injuries.
However, for the days here and there they need guys, they are more than covered for that situation.
For those suggesting Duncan be sent out until Cabrera’s suspension is up, that won’t work. If Duncan is shipped out he has to stay there for 10 days or until his minor league team has played it’s 10th game(I forget which it is).
Put Gardner in the outfield and DH Matsui. We need every defense we can get against the Blue Jays.
Pete, censoring entries for saying you’re taking a sanctimonious, self-serving approach? Wow. Consider yourself to have lost another reader.
SJ, I agree we are fine now. But imagine if we don’t have Giambi and Matsui for opening day?. Like I said, I was responding to those who were calling for them to retire/be traded.
Pete, we get it, you don’t like Shelly Duncan, but please stop talking about him like he’s a liability rather than a good player. In case you forgot (which you apparently have), Duncan almost single handedly lifted the Yankees up last year when their playoff hopes were looking pretty grim.
He’s a great power hitter who brings a ton of energy. I mean he’s good for a ton of homeruns this year… Who on the Yankees is going to hit for a lot of power? The serious homerun hitter I can think of is A-Rod… Maybe Cano? But who else? The Yankees need Duncan’s homeruns and energy. I doubt these “veteran” players were getting down on Duncan when he was helping to lift them to the playoffs.
JP is right, Pete. It’s your right to put your opinions on the blog whenever you want, but when you put them out for the whole world to see, you also have to accept that people will try to cut you down to size sometimes. It goes with the territory.
“As was reported in other papers, veteran players have been taking Duncan aside to tell him that he needs to watch how he conducts himself. It appears Girardi did the same the other day. The question now is whether Duncan listens.”
This is Pete once again making stuff up to support his fantasy that Duncan is an immature brat and the cool, collected, classy veterans set him aside to chide him about not following the “Yankee way”.
What’s more likely is that they are simply telling Duncan, when you’re going to do something, just do it, don’t talk about it beforehand. That’s how you get suspended. All the talk about ‘Yankee class’ is completely made up.
Then again, you can’t take it for certain. But if Pete actually had quotes and facts to back up his claims, he would post them. He’s conjecturing just like the rest of us, because he has absolutely zero clue of what goes on between players. That’s okay, the media isn’t really supposed to be in on most stuff. The only thing that Pete does wrong is report these things as facts, when in fact they are nothing of the sort. If he simply provided his thoughts, instead of telling all his readers the way things are, like he actually is 100% the expert, the quality of his blog would increase dramatically. Unfortunately, considering the chronic nature of these happenings, it’s a deeper issue within Abe which probably won’t be fixed.
Start the 1st 3 games with Johny in center gardner in LF matsui DH and giambi at 1st
I would rather have my wrist broken for four to six weeks than have a psycho like Duncan (who should have to wear a straight jacket until he gets sent back to the minors in April for the rest of is career)go after my package with metal spikes. He deserves a far greater suspension than Gomes. We’re talking about the family jewels here.
AndrewYF-
Johnny Damon quote in today’s Post:
“A lot of veteran guys have talked to him,” Johnny Damon told The Post yesterday. “We are telling him to keep playing hard, but keep the spikes down and the shoulders in (when sliding). This way people see you are playing hard, but no one can question you.”
This is what Pete was referring to. By the way, he does talk to the players as part of his job. Better chance he has a sense of things than your opinion. But apparently you shoot first, question later.
SJ and or Pete – aren’t multiple suspensions served consecutively rather than concurrently. If so the Yanks will be 1 guy short for 6 games – much more manageable. Could give Gardner a shot to be on the club for a few days – need a backup CF more than a backup at 1B.
Im pretty sure the Rays had another problem the other day with the Red Sox pitcher Traveres… Since when did the rays become the team with a mean streak in the AL East? Is it Maddon’s fault?
Pete has mis-read and mis-reported this situation from the moment it happened.
Don’t buy into this new angle he is putting out there either. There is no “control Duncan” issues.
A guy goes after an innocent Japanese second basemen’s berries because of a clean, albeit unfortunate play days earlier, I’d say he’s got control issues. A guy goes for my cajones with sharp metal, he’s gonna get more than a suspension. Completely uncalled for, animalistic behavior.
I thought that the rap on Girardi was that he’s going to be a drill sergeant and turn off the players.
Now Pete’s worried about him being able to control Shelley Duncan?
Wow. Which is it, Pete?
There goes Pete trying to stir up trouble. He is a reporter after all, its in his blood.
McHenry – if you’re going to troll, you’re going to need better material. Just some friendly advice for you.
Ensberg serves no purpose. He’s only played one game at 1b in his major league career, and won’t see much action at 3B because you-know-who is there. Besides, you have three first basemen with Giambi, Betemit and Shelley Duncan.
Gardner is having a good spring and provides a nice dimension of speed. Take him north as the 25th man, play him in CF to start the year because of Melky being out, keep Damon in LF and DH Matsui. When Melky and Shelley get off the suspensions, the Yanks’ 4 bench guys (assuming Matsui is DH and Giambi is at first) are Betemit (all infield positions), Duncan (1b/lf/dh/rf), Gardner (pinch runner/backup OF) and Molina (c). After the suspensions are over with, then the Yanks should determine whether they want to send Gardner back for more playing time or keep him. If Woodward or Green can start at Scranton, do so. If a change is necessary, then Gardner can be sent down and a another backup infielder (Woodward/Green/Gonzalez) called up.
I’m not trolling. I’m a Yankee fan in the minority who happens to believe the play at the plate was clean, though, admittedly, unfortunate. I also happen to think Shelley Duncan is a effing psycho. Just look at him. If I saw him on the subway, I’d exit and wait for the next train. If he went after my unit with wit those size 15 spikes, I’d be waiting for him in the parking lot with a shiv.
Oh, and, btw, Old Lady, if you’re going to pretend to be well-informed and that you have more of a right to this place than any other, you need to get a clue, a life, and a sense of humor – though not neccessarily in that order.
McHenry is a little sensitive.
There’s that sense of humor, you frisky old silver back!
“Bryan March 14th, 2008 at 1:24 pm Pete, what do you mean by Duncan started to develop a reputation last season?â€
Bryan I think what he’s referring to is some of the (much needed) agressive style Shelley played with last season. I remember a particular play in Toronto where Shelley was an easy force out at 2nd base, but hustled to the bag & he slid in cletes high at knock the ball out of the infielders and half way out to Reed Johnson in LF. The ump let the play stand and called him safe, but the Toronoto was very upset with the whole thing & was quick to gripe about it in the papers the next day. Pete makes it seems like there were other instances, but I distinctly remember that play.
Personally I think way too much is being made of Shelley’s “reputation.” So he slides aggressively, so what?! I certainly don’t see any huge way in which his behavior will hurt the team. Usually I don’t compare one sport to another but in this case it is the perfect analogy – Bruce Bowen is widely believed to be the dirtiest player in the NBA, when has that seriously hurt the Spurs?
Every championship caliber team needs its own Bowen, IMO. Or at least it doesn’t hurt to have one.
moral of the story: strike first, but dont retaliate. Thanks for the life lesson, MLB.
Sorry McHiney but your wrong. It’s not a clean ST play. If it was a Yankee that did it, we’d all be talking about a whole different spin on this situation.
Oh, and I’ll also echo the sentiments of SJ and others that too much is being made of the suspensions as well. With all the send down/call up options we have for those 3 games, it’ll be fine. We start the season against Toronto anyway, not exactly offensive juggernauts so I’m sure we can still match em with the bats. Besides, we were thinner than this on Opening Day last year because of injuries. All is well, everything will be fine, and as someone else somewhere on this blog said, I think the shot in the arm this gives the Yanks makes up for not having Shelley and Melky for 3 days. And again I am proud of Melky for throwing down and defending his mates!
Oh, dude, bro, man, CAS – McHiney!!! Man, I couldn’t have come up with that if you gave me a case of Heiney (oops! there I go!) and the whole weekend alone with my thoughts! Do you write for the New Yorker, or The Atlantic Monthly? I thinks it’s great that someone like you, with your gifts, chooses to spread the wealth of your intellect to us here on them there internets. McHiney!!!! I’m still laughing!! Do you mind if I send that into Letterman?
oh man, Pete, you talk like Duncan is an uncontrollable idiot. Give me a break. He did nothing worse than someone lowering their head and bowling over the catcher. He’ll be fine, he’s not some out of control moron.
Sometimes I just don’t get your tabloid “journalism.”
“The question now is whether Duncan listens.”
Pete, whatever would possess you to write that? Unless you are privy to an incident (or incidents) that you haven’t shared with your readers, I have to agree with some of the comments that this reeks of tabloid journalism. I thought you were above that, but hey, maybe you’re just having a bad day.
So this year Pete’s target for irrational hatred is Shelley Duncan. Have fun with that.