Today in The Journal News
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- September
- 23
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Mariano Rivera felt a range of emotions on Sunday night, Kevin Devaney Jr. has the story.
Rivera revealed that he had the ball from the final out and gave it to a team employee. But Mo wants it to go to George Steinbrenner.
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Greetings from Gate C3 at LaGuardia. Headed to Toronto on the final road trip of the season. The story tonight is Moose trying for No. 19 and whether the Yankees can stay alive another day.
It’ll be interesting to see how Joe Girardi handles the lineup over the final six games. It would be helpful from an evaluation standpoint to see guys like Gardner, Cervelli and Sanchez a few more times.
Check back later for the lineups.
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on Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008 at 8:31 am by Peter Abraham.
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Chad Jennings
Sam Borden
Josh Thomson
Nice story, but I think the writer needs to understand that among the teary-eyed, loyal Yankee contingent, there are mothers and daughters, too.
I agree with bodhisattva ^^^^^^^.
Back to something that was mentioned in previous entries. I think as far as Clemens goes if the Yankees mentioned him and fans booed members of the media would be yelling how can you mention him you know what he has been involved with. That they had to have known he’d be booed. And becuase he wasn’t mentioned becuase of the fear of booing the media took the opposite stance, How could you not mention him.
As far as the starting lineups go, Joe has to give Mike his A+ lineup. While the team might not be playing for anything Mussina is. He is trying to win 20 for the first time.
jennifer -
At game time tonight, the Yankees are still in it!
So, there’s Mussina’s 19th AND there’s the glimmer of hope to avoid elimination.
About the Clemens thing and so many other “nitpicks” – you can’t please everyone and no matter how the Yankees did it, they were going to get critiqued. What matters is that it left most everyone with a good feeling overall.
As we look ahead to Burnett and Halladay, don’t sleep on Jesse Litsch. 4-1 with a 1.91 ERA over his 7 starts since being called back up in August. Moose won’t have it easy tonite. He gets this one though, I’d guess he’s facing the Boston’s JV on Sunday and will be in great position for 20.
I liked the ceremony, but I also agree with Joel Sherman, more creative things could have been done.
In 2003 I was at the last Padre game played at Qualcomm. At the end of the game, they dug up home plate, put it in a helicopter, and brought it over to the new stadium.
Jennifer:
My thoughts on Clemens are that if you can applaud Knoblauch, Pettitte and Giambi, you can, and should applaud Clemens. I didn’t see the need for him to be there and honestly, I’d doubt he’d want to be, but exclusion from the video montage was pretty bogus.
As for the possibility of him being booed, I really think the mood of evening would have precluded that from happening. Too much in the way of good feelings and nostalgia in the air. In the end, he did a lot more good than bad for the organization.
I don’t think Clemens would have been booed— much, anyway. He pitched well for the Yankees during his first stay and Yankee fans are appreciative of that. I think there would be a media frenzy around him, and eventually someone would slip the wrong word or two in the process. The Yankees wanted the 100% focus to be on the Stadium, so I understand the thought process there. I don’t really have a problem with it. Let’s not make the proverbial mountain out of a molehill.
Home plate in a helicopter, eh? Nice.
Maybe we could have tied it to that bald eagle’s legs and let him loose.
Agreed Steve. In the end, it’s realtively small change. It was a good presentation overall.
3 days of nail-biting, on the edge of your seat YANKEE WINS AND watching the Indians push the BoSux to a weekend series that will complete a BIGGER COLLAPSE than they enjoyed over us in the playoffs. Think of it….They are up by 6.5 games with 7 games left for them and 6 games left for us…and we WIN ALL OF OURS and they LOSE ALL OF THEIRS and we kick their butts in a 1-Game playoff for the Wild Card….Don’t count us out until we are out…because amazingly enough, after all we have been through…it is headed into game 156 and IT AIN’T QUITE OVER YET, ALL !
realtively = relatively
As much as I would like to see it happen, but there is no chance of the Sox losing that many games in a row at home.
Sox will lose tonight and tomorrow, but win on Thursday
We are still in it, and Carmona is appealing his suspension, so he will pitch against Boston.
In related developments, Sheffield has sworn revenge on Victor Martinez for some phantom transgression. No official word on what form his revenge will take, but insiders speculate that he will attempt the same head butt to the knuckles approach that was so successful against Carmona.
Wouldn’t be shocked if Boston lost tonite, but tomorrow would probably be the end. Fausto Carmona is not the same guy who stifled the Yankees in Game 2 last ALDS. Fausto ‘09 has an ERA of 5.2. He’s walked 69 batters while striking out only 57. In 4 September starts, he’s allowed 21 earned runs in 23 2/3 innings (7.98 ERA).
Carmona isn’t the same guy, but he is better than the alternative. We can’t be choosy now.
I don’t need to see any rookies for evaluation. We can do that in March. Let’s win as many games as possible this year.
“Carmona isn’t the same guy, but he is better than the alternative. We can’t be choosy now.”
Maybe it is. I was hoping young Scott Lewis might be the potential fill in, but he pitched on Sunday. Guess Fausto is it.
The Chargers just scored another touchdown.
Hal says in Newsday that he wants Cashman back. He shot down the idea of a “advisory committee” if/when Cashman is back.
Re: The Hal story in Newsday –
I’ve wondered for a while if Hank was really in the loop. This is more evidence that, despite his shooting his mouth off, he doesn’t call all the shots.
It’s always the quiet ones….
So the writer failed to ask Rivera why he wanted Steinbrenner to have the ball, past the “he deserves it explanation.” This is troubling to me bc I don’t think the Boss deserves the ball. He’s the one responsible for the end of Yankee Stadium. That, to me, is not honorable.
If all that happened, then I would really beleive in divine intervention. As for Hal, it is now clear that he is the one running the team, not his blowhard brother, which is good news. Hal is much more level headed and doesn’t talk to the media much. Maybe this is all a brilliant plan. Hank is used a media smokescreen, while Hal and Cash and Stick make different decisions behind the scenes.
I heard that Mariano gave the ball to Doug Mientkiewicz.
Cliff Lee goes for win #23 vs. Wakefield…
Would be nice for the Sox to at least feel the Yanks breathing down their necks again. let’s squash those bloated albino new england toads!
Got some Lego pieces laying around? You can build your own Yankee Stadium tribute…
http://gothamist.com/2008/09/2.....nkee_s.php
Steinbrenner may be responsible for the end of Yankee Stadium, but he is also largely the reason it has stood this long. Don’t you think that if they were owned by, say, CBS, that they long ago would have torn it down, and possibly moved the team out of the Bronx altogether?
I really like our chances to stay alive tonight…with Cliff Lee going for the Indians and the Moose still in the hunt for 20 wins…. Gotta love it !
If Stick was the difference maker, we would have Santana like we should have.
Make no mistake, Hal will go over Cashman if the situation calls for it like he did by giving A-Rod and Posada those mega deals, much to the ire of Cashman.
The Yankees so far have 8 wins from 3/5ths of their opening day rotation.
2 allstars-Posada and Matsui missed big chunks of time and a third-Robbie Cano stunk.
Their bullpen was forced to rely on kids such as veras and Edwar because their 3 opening day set-up guys–Joba, Farnsworth, and Hawkins (for a multiple reasons) where hurt, moved to the roation, and traded.
Melky was awful.
Damon and AROD were on the dl.
Jeter played hurt, which affected his season.
And still this team still could win 90 games.
This has to be the most frustrating Yankee season ever.
If one or two of these things didn’t happen the yankees would be in the playoffs.
Weatherman,
Are you saying that passing on Santana was not a unilateral decision by Cashman? If you are, then I agree with you.
If they REALLY wanted Santana, they could’ve gotten him. They (Hal or Hank or whomever makes the decisions) would’ve ignored Cashman’s recommendation. He was (and continues to be) a lame duck GM. Why would they care about what Brian thought, if they really wanted Santana? Or maybe it was a well discussed, thoughtful process.
Santana would be a berrry unhappy pitcher with our run production, but he would be berrry happy with our bullpen. Shouldn’t have agreed to the trade & extension, Johan. Reap what you sow.
It is rumored that Hank and Stick wanted Santana, Cashman and Hal didn’t.
pat,
Kind of an unfair fight, huh? Lucky think it’s held in the boardroom, not behind the gym!
Just reading the mlb.com recap of the Newsday article. Hal says that he understands there are family considerations. In one sentence they mention relocating the family and in another part Hal mentions that family’s a big part of the decision.
Hank, the afterthought:
“Hal and I and Hank, we’ll sit down and have some quick conversations and then obviously ‘09 will start shortly thereafter,” Cashman told Newsday. “I know one thing, we need to hit the ground running for ‘09. It’s just what direction we’re running remains to be seen. My situation should not be the focus.”
He still talking first person. I think that’s the best clue that he’s coming back.
Hank has been universally recognized by the press as a blow hard. His words have little say in the grand scheme of things. Its Hal who is the behind the scenes decision maker while its Hank who gets the headlines for being loud.
mel – I agree about the first person, “we” part. I had the same thought while I read the story over breakfast this morning.
If Cash leaves, it won’t be the end of the world, depending on who his replacement is. Some sort of sharing of the job by Stick and Showalter would be an improvement. It would be, I think a continuation of the process of building the team correctly, but with a different perspective. As long as Buck wouldn’t try to manage again. Just throwing it out there, I don’t know if Buck wants to come back, or that the Yanks would even want him.
The worst would be that Hank and Hal turn into Dan Snyder north, or George II, and make the decisions, take credit for the good ones, blame the GM for the bad ones, and ruin the team. We also don’t need an Omar Minaya type to be dazzled by the payroll, and spend money on everybody who comes across his radar screen.
The way things have gone this year, even if we did get Johann he would have ended up getting hurt.
Honestly
I’m okay with not having gotten Santana. None of them could have known that Hughes and Kennedy would combine for 0 wins.
As it is right now, we really just needed three more wins to still have our own destiny in our hands.
Without the Yankees on last night I watch the Muts and of course the Best team in the NL the Cubs. I`m rooting for Lou but if the Mets can`t get past that team they are in trouble. Looking at some of the players the Cubs have on their roster its very similar to many of the NL rosters where some of these players even on the playoff bound NL teams have guys that could never start or play regularly on an good AL team.
Reed Johnson, Damian Easley, Tatis in that game, Milwaukee who might grab the wildcard has Gagne, Kendall, and Mcclung, I cannot understand how Philly wins with Burrell and Werth. I think the Mets are built more closer offensively than any of the other NL teams, so I`m surprised they are struggling locking it up
I am from the guys who still believe we are making the playoffs. Boston only has to lose the next 3 games and we win the next 3 then we control our own destiny!
Call me crazy but imagine IF IT HAPPENS!
Tom,
It was a little amusing to hear Pete talk about Hank in the video chat. I was rather shocked that a member of the media would say such a thing!
I do feel a *teeny-tiny* bit sorry for Hank. The other day he said something to the effect of, “I’ve been around baseball all my life. I didn’t just come off the farm like everyone says I do.”
I’d like to know 3 things:
*Where is Hank all the time and what’s he doing?
*Does Jennifer have baseball acumen?
*What did Hal say when he addressed the press on the family’s behalf on Saturday?
Whenever the Mets look like they are about to fall off the deep end, Santana steps in there and gives them a huge start. He hasn’t lost a start in almost 3 months.
And unlike Sabathia who seemingly has no interest in coming here, NY was Santana’s first choice according to Torii Hunter.
Water under the bridge now so there is no point in discussing it, but it is depressing.
al: If we had three more wins, then we could get swept by Toronto and still have a chance in Boston. Not that I would have recommended such a thing.
But the luxury would have been nice.
mel
I notice the “we” as well.
Cashman’s kids are still young enough that they are easily movable. In a few years it might be harder so the family considerations are how far down the road he anticipates staying in the Metro NY area. It is also rumored by NY sportstalk that his wife has a twin that she is very close with that lives in this area so while she says she is open to relocation, she might be a reluctant mover.
An unhappy wife could be worse than having to deal with Hank.
mel -
I have heard and read that it is Jennifer who has the real passion and head for the business. But in the same pieces I’ve read that George wouldn’t consider her because she’s a woman.
Tom:
Yankees had there share of issues, but so has everyone else.
Boston had a lot of the same problems. They didn’t lose their ace for 20 starts like the Yankees did, but Matsuzaka missed a month, Beckett was DL’d, Buchholtz went pretty much the way of Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy. Injuries all over the field. Today, Boston has only 3 players with enough plate appearances to qualify for a batting title (the Yankees have 6)and had to deal with the Ramirez follies.
Tampa had it bad as well. Crawford, Longoria, and Upton all missed significant time. So did their SS Bartlett. Their closer was DL’d twice. Kazmir missed a month as well, though they have since been quite fortunate with their starting pitching.
Injuries are a fact of life and experienced by everyone.
pat: Indeed.
Mel,
Maybe Hank should spend less time on the farm, and more time at the Stadium if he doesn’t want people to look at him that way.:)
Rebecca,
I think (hope) the team learns that you can’t always rely on a good Aug/Sept coupled with a bad Aug/Sept by Boston. EVEN IF that happens, the Rays are a force now.
So, it’s not pitching or offensive woes, it’s the fact that the Rays came on strong and did NOT fade as everyone wrongfully assumed they would.
The good news is we played Tampa tough and I expect better sustained efforts over the full season. I think a few young, hungry players on the team can drive the team.
Rebecca–Optimist Prime
if you are in veges now how much would you be willing to bet that we make the playoffs?
O/T – I won the LoHud Blog Fantasy Baseball League (Group 2)
championship. Really had fun and hope that we can do it again next season.
Fredo: But Boston and Tampa had better options off the bench and in the field. they had the teams to recover from the injuries, and the Yankees didn’t.
Was there one point in the season where Youkilis AND Ortiz AND Beckett AND Lester were are down at the same time?
It’s not the individual injuries that hurt the Yankees, but that for a large portion of the season Wang AND Joba AND Matsui AND Posada were down and their replacements were Ponson, Rasner, Betemit and Molina.
Even if I love Molina, his bat is no replacement for Jorge.
pat -
My brother is still in the soup after relocating his family first to the upper northwest and then, just when they were getting comfortable, to Ohio.
We sometimes forget that these decisions are not made in a vacuum and that there are personal considerations. (Same with CC, despite what people say about it coming down to the money.)
It’s a good sign that Hal Steinbrenner has kind of quashed what his brother said about an advisory committee. I’m sure that’s put Cashman’s mind at least a bit at ease. I would like Cashman to come back to see his plan to fruition, but if he doesn’t, well, life and baseball will go on.
al: I don’t wager. I have a tendency to lose unless I’m betting with Nick in SF on Cal/Maryland games!
You have to wonder though, is Hank really as irrelevant as people make it out to be?
I mean for years this guy was on the horse farm and wanted nothing to do with inheriting the Yankees when George offered it to him. He was not associated with the organization in any way for all these years. Now suddenly, he was given the title of owner of the Yankees?
1. Why would George give one of his sons power who didn’t want anything to do with the franchise?
2. Why would Hank come off the comforts of his horse farm and get involved in the baseball operations if he has no power at all? You have to believe he has more pull than people think. How can he be given title of owner or co-owner if he is just a “mouth piece”?
pat,
I’ve heard Cashman likes living where he does(CT?).
I think we know who wears the pants, huh?
I want to hear more Teddy stories. He sounds like a sweety.
“Well, I couldn’t take the call from Ben’s agent. Teddy & I were building a snowman.” (collective “whew”)
happy birthday “JOBAâ€
happy birthday “JOBAâ€
Ohh that’s right, it’s Joba’s birthday today!
Rebecca -
I know the Yankees had a deluge of big injuries which all overlapped and that they didn’t have a strong bench. And Jeter played hurt for a good portion of the season, so his bat wasn’t a factor until this month.
BUT, when Ortiz went down, JD Drew really came on strong. Giambi had a hot stretch, but ARod never did, really. Though his numbers were consistent for most of the season, I wouldn’t say ARod ever went on a tear for any extended period of time – no “player of the month” numbers, so to speak. Same with Abreu, who’s been consistently good, but never HOT, HOT, HOT. And let’s not even talk about Cano – except to say, the one week he WAS hot, they put together an 8-game winning streak.
So, for whatever reason, this season saw no one taking matters into his own hands and carrying the team for a while.
Devil,
Of course, Hank’s an important part of the Yankees.
But it may be the same family dynamic we’ve seen for centuries.
The sons don’t take over for one or more of many reasons:
1. no interest in baseball
2. don’t get along with the dad
3. incompetency
4. other interests
We’ve already read that George didn’t want to give his daughter a large role in the Yankees. Very common, too.
Dad gets old, dad gets sick. Things change. Sounds like Hal, and of course Hank, takes baseball very seriously. Not just figurehead ownership. The next 5 years should be very interesting.
O/T, but Mo made it very clear he wanted the last ball to go to George.
And Matsui was VERY saddened that George missed the whole thing. He was clearly affected by this. Very understandable as Japan is a very patriarchal society and Japanese people are sticklers for tradition.
Doreen: exactly.
Man that one week Cano was unstoppable was amazing. And then Ponson lost the one game an Moose had to pitch to the birds–his kryptonite.
It kills me to think that once we get Cano to playing up to his level of talent, how good this line up will become.
“Fredo: But Boston and Tampa had better options off the bench and in the field. they had the teams to recover from the injuries, and the Yankees didn’t.”
Agree 100% Rebecca. But whose fault is that??? Depth, as we know from the salad says of the mid-late 90’s – early 2000’s, is pretty damn important. It’s even moreso when you head into a season counting on largely untested rookie pitching, fringe players at key positions (read: centerfield), and an everyday lineup loaded with mid 30-somethings. Some of the injuries, Wang’s in particular were freakish, but was really a shock when all three rookies didn’t come up big, Melky fell on the wrong side of fringe player status, and some of the older guys got injured?
If you are Cashman, you can’t be too greedy either. It’s not like he has all these teams falling over themselves to get him as their GM. When Torre was gone, he could name his next job. He had a marquee team like the Dodgers fire their own manager to get him. The Cardinals held off on bringing back La Russa because they wanted to explore Torre. And if he had stayed out a little longer, he would have been the next Mets manager as well.
Cashman’s suitors are the hapless Mariners and Nationals. Two teams 30 games under .500 and play in divisions in which they have no chance of competing in the immediate future. Two teams with apathetic fanbases and ownerships with no farm system or cornerstone players. No good free agents are going to play in those cities and he will have a tight budget. No more over-slot deals or 7 figure signing bonuses to the likes of Brackman, Betances, Montero, Angelini, Melancon etc. The Nats didn’t even sign their first round pick this year due to money, FYI.
Fran congrats your team deserved it somehow i missed the playoffs probably after about the 5th tiebraker as I had the same record as someone else lol.
It was fun and I do hope we do it next year I really like the format we chose better than the way that Yahoo does it.
Fredo, you’re right. The Rays and the Redsox have had their fair share of adversity to overcome this year as well. I guess the difference between the Yankees and the Sox/Rays situation is that they had adapted to
salad says = salad days
*was IT really a shock
Rebecca -
I am so afraid to count my chickens for next season, because I feel like anything can happen this off-season. But if Cano stays, and if this little “fix” by Long really helps him in the long term, then, yes, Cano is going to be a strong force in that lineup.
I kind of want the season to be over, including the playoffs and the WS so we can get on to the more important business of setting up for 2009.
Rebecca,
To me it’s important to see the “kids” respond to coaching and teaching. That’s very encouraging.
The fact that things need to be fixed is not ideal, but the fact that they can be tweaked is very encouraging, indeed.
To see Cano make strides at the plate by a tiny adjustment means that he can get better. It’s good to have talent, but nothing beats consistent talent. I hope that Cano and Gardner continue to work with K-Long. Practice doesn’t make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect.
Happy Birthday Joba!
Let’s keep on winning games.
Can the Yankee stadium ghosts go on road trips?
Fredo: I’m not saying it’s not our fault.
It’s weird, however, isn’t it–last year we were all talking about how deep our team was. If you told anyone in april that Carl Pavano would be making five + starts for the team…
…goes to show you how fragile it can all be.
Tom:
All about having a little depth and flexibility. When Longoria wasn’t around, Aybar did a decent job. When Crawford/Upton were stuggling, having Hinske and Gross around made it easier. Similarly, Boston had Crisp as a 4th OF and Casey as a nice off the bench option. So when Lowell wnet down, they could use Casey at 1st and Youklis at 3rd (flexability). When Ortiz went down, they could use Crisp in the outfield and hide Ramirez. Yankees could have had Casey or Hinske if they saw the need. Unfortunately, all they thought they knew about guys like Betimit and Duncan was wrong. I do think they will learn from this.
The difference between our injuries & their injuries, is they had guys step up. Even the scrubs they sent up stepped up.
Still, we lost Wang, Matsui, & Posada. Those were significant.
What happened when the Sox lost Varitek in ‘06? That whole team shut down, led by Manny.
What happened when the Yankees lost Posada in ‘08? They had their fits and starts, but I don’t think they ever completely shut it down.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/09.....130357.htm
About Clemens – it didn’t bother me that he wasn’t mentioned. I don’t really know how I would have felt if he were. I actually didn’t think about it. But the difference with Clemens as opposed to Knobs, Andy and Giambi (for the person who mentioned that those players were part of the tribute) is the obvious. They all owned up to their abuses.
I do believe that we have a forgiving population in baseball, and all of the players who have acknowledged the use of PEDs seem to have been given a bye. It’s when you get the Barry Bondses and Roger Clemens’ of the world, where the evidence is there and overwhelming and they still refuse to come clean, that people get their backs up. Because then it is rubbed in your face that they took unfair advantage and hurt other players and teams in the process and shouldn’t be afforded hero status.
There has been far too much negative publicity swirling around Clemens. If the “slight” was intentional, I don’t see it as a bad thing. There are far too many people who have soured on Clemens, and having resounding booing would have hurt the event. Right choice made. Why show the entire world that was watching that you celebrate someone who gained phenomenal hero statuswith the help of illegal substances and who also helped the Yankees to defeat other teams in the postseason, when their players may have been going strictly by the book?
Fredo -
I wouldn’t say it was shocking, but I would say that for in almost every instance the worst-case scenario came to pass is an extreme situation. Even if ONLY one of Hughes or Kennedy turned out okay, things would be different. If Cano hits, does it matter as much that Molina doesn’t, or that Melky takes a down-turn?
So, I think, you sit down at the beginning of the season and figure out what if this and what if that and what if the other. And you work out contingencies for 2 of the 3 of those, and you figure you’ll be okay, plus you’ll catch a break or two along the way. But all 3 what-ifs materialize and you not only catch 0 breaks, but a few non-foreseen things (Wang’s foot injury, Bruney’s foot injury, Posada’s shoulder injury) totally derail the master plan. And then everyone finds themselves scrambling and trying to catch up, and it was just too much.
And I know there were some people who were happy with the Yankees bench at the beginning of the season, but I wasn’t. I just hoped they wouldn’t need to call on the bench players to take on a regular role. So, yes, the bench was a flaw from the start. Built to withstand only minor bumps in the road.
If Cashman walks, it isn’t going to be because of big bad Hank. It will be because he feels that this is mess is too big to clean up and he wants to get out while he can and not assume the responsibility of turning this team around. He would be admitting a mistake with the non-Santana trade and doesn’t know where to turn to fix the team.
Cashman might think his rebuilding plan needs more time but he understands that we have to win next year in the new year of the stadium. I don’t think Cashman in his heart wants to touch CC or Texieria with a 10 foot pole, but he has no choice. He also knows if we don’t get CC, we are screwed because then we would be forced to sign an inferior FA (Burnett/Sheets) or shop prized prospects like Hughes/Cano for pitching.
I really don’t envy him at all… I think he is weighing whether or not he is up to the task of fixing this team.
mel: the 06 Sox finished in third, and that was with the Rays being the Rays and Toronto being mediocre.
The 08 Yankees have to contend with playoff caliber Rays and Red Sox.
If only we were in the NL west!
i would sign giambi for the bench next year
finally get a big bat off the bench. no more betemit, duncan, etc.
LLIME,
I don’t know. The hard work’s been put in already. They’ve turned around the farm system (despite Buster’s opinion) and rode out the bad contracts. He’s not going to walk away when things are about to bear fruit. Look at the bullpen, next season a lot of the young guys are going to have a major impact. You MIGHT see Hughes, Aceves, or Coke in the rotation. You’ll definitely see Joba in the rotation.
I just can’t see it. Good or bad, these guys are like kids to Cashman.
I don’t think the Yankees are in a mess they can’t get out of.
They will miss the playoffs by at most six games. It might seem like a lot, but over the course of 162 games it really isn’t.
Six games you make up with a healthy pitching staff. Six games you easily make up with one of Sabathia/Burnett and a healthy Wang.
The Yankees were overdue for a bad year, but all things considered, to be the last team eliminated from playoff contention speaks loads more about the team IMO than does currently being in third place.
The biggest problem of all this year was the Rays being legit. If they were the doormats they have been every year since their inception, this team is either in the playoffs or is in a dogfight this final week. As it stands right now, we are only 2 games in the loss behind the Chi Sox.
Even with all the injuries and underperformance of the players, we are going to win 88-89 games. The emergence of the Rays put a wrench in our postseason hopes otherwise we would be in fine position.
mark, I don’t think Giambi would sign on for a bench role. He wants to play every day.
Gayle – I really thought that you would be in the playoffs too, but you gave me a good fight all the way through. And thanks for posting the pictures from the weekend. They were really good.
If Cashman indeed wants to rebuild or feels he needs more years of rebuilding then it will be done. No one is putting pressure on him to win next year, at least no one that is more important then Hank and Hal. Unlike in years pass where George would demand the team to win a WS every year.
So if Cashman wants to rebuild I don’t see why it’s such a big problem.
I think he does want Sabathia. After all he did attempt to get Santana. But this would be just money involved to land Sabathia.
If you’re in a rebuilding mold you can still add pieces via FA. Not everything has to be from the farm system.
I think Cash is just frustrated with the season as gone and the way the young players have regressed. Those comments about Hughes’ performance and AAA not being what it was, was pure frustration. He hated seeing the kids he touted do so poorly and didn’t even want to be teased with minor league numbers. He also has publicly discussed how disappointed he is with the offense. He has been much more open this summer than he ever has been. Normally he is one of he most boring interviews you can find, but this year he has been honest and open.
Remember, his career is tied into what these kids do. He put a lot of faith in them and they have failed him. I believe Cash will no longer let minor league numbers or SSS fool him and he will be much more proactive this off-season in trying to fix this team. I think once the dust settles and the frustration of this season subsides, Cash will come back. Seattle or Wash is career suicide and Cash knows this.
Walk totals in the NL are overrated.
Remember, you have to intentionally walk the .228 hitting #8 hitter to get to the .162 hitting pitcher everytime. You must also walk the .228 #8 hitter when the .180 backup catcher is pinch hitting.
That’ll Do Pig won the LoHud Yankee Blog Championship by a score of 341.8333 to 257.1667 over Buddy Biancalana. Scott Lewis led the team in scoring in the championship round and Ryan Howard led the team in scoring for the season. Congrats once again to That’ll Do Pig on a terrific Fantasy baseball Season. Hope to see you all next year!
Can’t recall who that was, not sure if they post here anymore. I didn’t win
Looking from the outside in I also don’t think the Yankees are in terrible shape.
Mussina has shown he can still pitch and I would bet he gets resigned at least for one more year. I’m not so sure about Pettitte.
I think it would be a big mistake not to bring back Cashman. Yes, he has made some moves that didn’t work out but name me a general manager who hasn’t made some questionable moves. Cashman knows the players and if you bring someone else in you are looking at another year of transition.
Up in Boston Epstein has had some success, but some failures too. Bringing in Eric Gagne last year, I don’t need to say any more about that. Lugo has been a bust, and JD Drew has had some excellent moments but he seems to have come down with that dreaded “pavano disease” and is on the DL more often than not.
I really think CC Sabathia will end up with the Yankees, Wang will be back next year, Hughes will be better, Joba will be Joba, and there will be Moose.
With the money freed up by Giambi’s contract it will be an interesting off season. Do you resign Abreu, or go young? Who plays center? All interesting questions.
Mariano is the perfect example of what a class big league baseball player is all about. His kind are seldom seen.
http://www.mosnewyorkgrill.com/
“It’ll be interesting to see how Joe Girardi handles the lineup…”
He ain’t changing a thing until the Yankees are eliminated. I don’t understand why everyone is so anxious to write this team off. All they have to do is win the next three and have Boston get swept by the Indians. Then they go into Boston and humiliate the Sox and win a playoff game on Monday…WHICH MIGHT BE IN THE BRONX! Seems very do-able to me.
Jennifer – His winning score was higher than mine in Group 2. I won the Pete Abe Blog 2 Championship by a score of 312.6667 to 270.3333 over Hughes Your Daddy.
Guys only owned up to PED use AFTER they got subpeonnaed. They didn’t own up to it on their own.
They should have had Clemens on the video montage. He spent 6 years in NY, won 2 rings, a Cy Young, and had the second greatest post-season pitching perfomance (next to Don Larsen’s perfect game) with his 1 hit complete game in Seattle.
I understand the Yankees side of the issue (they didn’t want him to get booed) but, he should have been included in the montage, IMO.
The season went south for a number of reasons, injuries being the least of them. Everybody had injuries this year.
The Yankees problem was, they didn’t hit until they were out of the race. When the game mattered, they didn’t hit.
They also had little help from their bench this year which made the injuries tougher to overcome.
They also went 6 games under .500 against the likes of Cincinnati, Detroit, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Kansas City. Couple that with a series loss in Seattle on that fateful 3-7 August road trip, and that did them in.
In many ways, the entire organization took a step backward this year.
The young players (Cano, Melky, Hughes and Kennedy) were awful. Many of their better minor league pitching prospects got hurt. Their AAA and AA teams won titles but they are filled with non-prospects. Austin Jackson is the only real position player prospect above A Ball. They didn’t sign their first and third round picks in this years draft. They messed up with Michael Inoa.
All in all, a forgetful year from top to bottom in the organization.
Does that mean they are “cooked” for years? No. However, it means they have to do a helluva lot better, starting with this off-season, in putting together this team.
Whomever is in charge has a big job ahead of them.
Hopefully, they are up to the task.
Its only very doable in fairytale land.
The Yankees have had their hands full with Burnett and Halliday all year. How many times this year have the Red Sox lost 3 straight home games? Not many.
Its far from very doable. Its just about impossible.
did ya hear 18 people were arested on sunday for stealing things at yankee stadium
“If Cash leaves, it won’t be the end of the world,”
now that’s an understatement.
put showalter in there as gm with some hotshot young gun assistant gms and a couple of old gms as special assistants for technical help, throw some money around like the cubs did and the yankees would be back as fast as the cubs were recreated.
cashman’s plan is right up there with a depodesta plan.
cashman will have one gm job after leaving the yankees. that’s where he’ll be exposed for what he is, an adequate assistant gm.
SJ
Stop being such a kill-joy. Let people enjoy their fantasies while they still can.
I only have two things to say about Cashman coming back next year.
The first is Seattle, do not under estimate the lengths they will go to get him boith in terms of money and control
The second is dont underestimate the issues that exist with the NEW Tampa faction those being Hank and Lopez. If Cash has to answer to the “committee” he will be gone if he gets what he wants complete control of baseball operations without the committee then I think he will stay. He will want dollars and control the issue will be will the Yankees give it to him.
randy – i agree 100%
as another poster said, there is a reason why only 2 terrible franchises like seattle and washington will be interested in him. he is a mediocre GM.
time for a change and to bring in some fresh blood. i have no problem with cashman saying as long as he is surrounded with a plethora of new baseball guys. however, if cashman refuses to add to his own advisory board, ten he can take a hike.
the miscalculations have occurred due to lack of supporting cast for cashman. this needs to be addressed first and foremost. no reason why a team like cleveland or arizona should have more quality baseball men than we have.
if cashman leaves, we will survive. plenty of quality baseball men to choose from. buck would be a great start and he could help scout young execs to groom.
gayle,
Too bad Torre’s not a coffee guy. He & Cash would make a great tag team in Seattle.
Seattle’s about as far away from the East Coast as you can get.
There’s too many pros. I think a lot of the “stuff” you saw floating out there is just smoke.
Speaking of, randy l, Cashman is quite the illusionist. You’re the only person that he hasn’t managed to fool.
SJ44,
I am interested in whether you think it would be good for the Yankees to bring back Cashman.
Girardi i don’t think is a quitter. if Gardner’s in the lineup tonight, it’s because Girardi thinks he gives them the best chance to win.
if the Yanks are in it after tonight, Boston has to start feeling some pressure as of tomorrow.
Seattle may be far from the East but it is a GREAT place to raise a family if you are so inclined to go out there. The issue will be will he be as inclined to stay here without the control he feels he needs to make things happen.
“Hal is much more level headed and doesn’t talk to the media much. Maybe this is all a brilliant plan. Hank is used a media smokescreen, while Hal and Cash and Stick make different decisions behind the scenes.”
I’ve actually believed this to be the case all along. Hank is just a harmless blowhard who likes to hear himself talk & thinks Yankee fans & the media miss the old bluster of his father. I think his bark is much worse than his bite & that Hal is the man behind the curtain pulling all the strings & making all the important decisions (and thank god for that).
Pete, what do you think about Torre being “snubbed”….the media is making a big deal about it today. Is it valid?
He can have all the control he wants in Seattle, he will never win there. The Angels are printing money and have a booming farm system, they are not going anywhere soon. No good free agent will ever go to Seattle, they can’t outbid the baseball powerhouses for good players. They also have a weak farm system. Who on their roster is any good outside of King Felix?
If he wants to go to Seattle, let him. He is never winning anything there. Not like they have any building blocks like the Rays did, they are going to be bad for sometime.
SJ44 -
Most of us “know” what’s going to happen, and have known it for some time. You know that.
We’re not deluding ourselves or anything else. It’s simply hanging on to the last thread of hope for whatever reason. For me, it’s to be able to have the outside people (non-Yankees fans) not be able to revel in the ankees’ “demise,” I guess.
Someone’s already said that Hal has shot down the committee idea (maybe he likes a committee of 1, himself?).
Cashman can’t go to Seattle. He needs sun.
Despite what many people think, Cashman has not done an egregious job. You can nitpick and what not, but overall he’s gotten the job done. In fact you can even argue that he overchieved. Not bad for a glorified intern, huh?
Cashman will be back, one more contract, 3 years. Once the Stein Bros. get more comfortable in operating as owners, they will let him go if he has not won. So he will have 2 years to produce, maybe one if next years team does not make the playoffs.
Torre leaves and he gets to go to the marquee Dodgers.
Cashman leaves and he goes to hapless Seattle.
One goes to paradise, the other fades into the oblivion.
Felix Lopez is a Cashman guy BTW. Girardi said he speaks to him regularly and he the one in the meetings with Cash and Hal.
Ken Rosenthal said they didn’t invite Torre because they were embarrassed he was going to the playoffs.
Hello? The lead’s down to 2 games.
The Mets? The lead’s down to 1 in the WC.
Roger* & Torre were glaring ommissions. But be happy Bernie and Willie came home and move on.
*In case anyone hasn’t noticed Roger’s life is a mess right now. He’s embroiled in legal troubles, lawsuits, and perjury charges. Leyritz just killed a poor woman. Right or wrong, the Yankees made the decision. And when people get their own teams they can invite whomever they want. This is worst than a wedding.
I think the one thing the Yankees need to do next year is they have to go in the season with a better back up plan in case plan A fails, and then they have to plan for plan B to backfire.
This year they didn’t have a good back up plan for Hughes and Kennedy failing, and we know what happened.
Eventually it got to a point where we signed Sidney Ponson.
The Yanks need a better plan next year, so it doesn’t get to that point.
Don’t know if thi shas been mentioned, but did anyone else find it fitting that the last team to play against the Yankees at the Stadium was the Baltimore Orioles? Of course, the team, founded in 1901, moved to NYC in 1903 and became the Highlanders, and then the Yankees.
I thought it was smart and meaningful sceduling on the part of MLB.
you can’t blame the injuries. The Sox had just as many and still prevailed. Sure, just having Wang or Joba for the whole season would have definitely made up the 5 game deficit, but if you are going to give back those two then you’ll have to give back Schilling, Ortiz etc. I think if just one Yankee other than Moose had a career year that would have been enough to put them over the top.
Rebecca,
Didn’t Aceves just join the Yankees this year? And if hadn’t had the hammy thing, he probably would’ve been up sooner to replace Rasner.
Sad truth Cairo loss and acquisition of Betemit did nothing and actually cost the team. Miggy did a lot of things and did them nicely. Betemit does?
mel: Yeah, but I don’t think anyone expected Aceves to be good. I think that was more of a lucking out thing.
Rover: breaks up no hitters
Glaring omissions on Sunday night:
Felix Heredia
Paul Wilson
Allen Watson
Mike Aldrete
Ricky Bones
Pat Listach
Matt Nokes
Ron Hassey
Felix Jose
Charlie Hudson
Melido Perez
Scott Sanderson
Dion James
Mark Hutton
Domingo Jean
Jeff Johnson
I never believed for a second that Boston would come back on us in 2004. It was impossible. They did it.
I’m not saying it’s going to happen, but I still believe there’s a chance.
I read the quotes from the Cleveland players and they have made this series in Boston their playoffs. They want to go out and sweep the Red Sox at home as revenge for last year’s ALCS.
Will they sweep the next 3? Probably not. But we don’t know. They are certainly playing like their hair is on fire though.
As for the Yanks and Toronto, if I were a Steinbrenner I’d whisper in AJ’s ear that if he pitches a stinker, we’ll add 5 million above his best offer, lol.
Seriously, it’s still impossible, but for some unknown reason I still believe it can happen that we walk into Boston and play games that matter this weekend.
All we can do is hope our guys show up tonight and Cliff Lee puts the exclamation point on his Cy Young season.
If that happens, the pressure will be building heavy in Boston, although it also will be on us and we haven’t seen any sign that our guys are handling any sort of pressure well this season.
We’re somehow still alive though.
Considerting the number of people at the stadium 18 isn’t a large about.
Thrillington,
That’s an interesting connection, but you won’t find one person who thought that the end of the schedule was well thought out. It’s been panned by fans and the talking heads. The season should’ve ended in YS vs. Boston.
And Bud’s catching big doo-doo now for the Astros vs. Cubs in Milwaukee fiasco. As Jason Stark said, Bud made a baseball decision when he should’ve made a human decision.
Aceves should pitch for Pavano. He’s gives the Yankees the best chance to win and actually has a chance to be on the team next year. Why give Pavano another start so he can get another team to sign him?
Rebecca,
That’s exactly the point. You can make all the plans in the world. Even contingency plans, but crazy things happen. Like breaking your foot rounding third base. :head in hands:
mel,
Oj, I don’t know. I think the Baltimore-NY connection is pretty compelling, given that Ruth also grew up there. The Boston-NY connection is of course first and foremost, but the rivalry gets plenty of play in other contexts. I like this connection from a subtler angle that deals with lineage more than rivalry.
To be honest, I would rather see the D’backs overtake the Dodgers and make the playoffs, rather than seeing the Mets miss the playoffs.
G. Love: Coming from you tht’s ridiculously optimistic, but somehow I agree.
Every part of me is saying, dude, it’s impossible–even my subconscious as I dreamed it THREE separate times last night (ouch!)…
…but then I think, if the Yankees can somehow gget to Boston and have those games mean something?
Whole nother story.
First, I think Cashman will be back.
Second, it’s pretty ignorant to write that Chashman could never succeed in Seattle because of the Angels’ money the same week the Yanks are about to be eliminated and the Rays are packing for the post-season. Seattle has been a playoff team before and they will be again. They have enough money to have a payroll over $ 100 M the last two years. Do some homework, will ya?
None of us knows what’s going to happen. Sorry to disagree. That’s why the games are playec.
“Guys only owned up to PED use AFTER they got subpeonnaed. They didn’t own up to it on their own.”
The punchline here in case you hadn’t figured it out is that they owned up to it and didn’t turn it into the lie of the century in front of Congress, nor did they ruthlessly try to destroy another man’s life the way Clemens has done to McNamee.
newsflash for anyone who hasn’t already heard this – that would be only nonYankee fans I would suppose.
The Yankees have already said they want Cashman back. It is now Cashman’s decision.
I say Cashman will be back. No question in my mind about that.
I don’t see why people think Seattle is such a horrendous franchise.
They were perennial contenders in the 90’s and early 2000’s. The ownership is also not afraid to give out large contracts, make trades, and dabble in the international free agent market.
A GM could do alot worse than going to Seattle.
* played
Thrillington,
Very good point, but if they really thought about it, the O’s should’ve played us in the last regular season game on 9/28. Not 9/21.
I’d welcomw Bucky Showalter back at some capacity in the FO….He’d be the perfect Consultant the Organization desprately needs….In fact he can replace Cashman right now if that’s what is required to get him in the fold….
Seattle should have challenged for the AL West.
And then they went out and got Bedard.
Something I didnt realize until I just read it the last Yankee to bat at The Stadium was Derek Jeter.How appropriate and the baseball Gods were looking down.
Thrillington
September 23rd, 2008 at 12:57 pm
Don’t know if thi shas been mentioned, but did anyone else find it fitting that the last team to play against the Yankees at the Stadium was the Baltimore Orioles? Of course, the team, founded in 1901, moved to NYC in 1903 and became the Highlanders, and then the Yankees.
***
I mentioned the same thing to my Mom on Sunday. I don’t know that the MLB schedulers really had that in mind when they set the 2008 schedule, but I thought it was neat just the same.
It still hasn’t really hit me yet, maybe when next season starts and they are playing in a nice new shiny stadium
I will blame the injuries. You can’t even compare what the Yanks went through with what the Sox went through. Ortiz was out but he hasn’t really been that big lately. Schilling is the only big hit they had.
Wang, Joba, Posada, Matsui, A-Rod for a while, 3-4 guys in the bullpen… you can’t compare the Sox injuries to the Yanks’.
Hal says in Newsday that he wants Cashman back. He shot down the idea of a “advisory committee†if/when Cashman is back.
Which means Hal runs the show.
is pete really suggesting that joe should play the scrubs when we havent been eliminated yet?
is a 5 game losing streak by the red sox an impossiblility? is a 5 game win streak by the yankees impossible?
i dont expect it to happen, but if joe g. plays anybody except teh 10 guys who give us the best chance to win tonight and keep out playoff hopes alive, i will be PISSED!
you MAKE the red sox beat you out before you start playing the scrubs!
Rebecca,
That’s been a disaster to say the least. Adam Jones is working out pretty well for the O’s. At least he’s playing.
damn, Francessa is irrate about the Mets LOL
not yet over:
The problem isn’t that the Yankees have to win out, it’s that Boston has to lose out.
I have an easier time believing the Yankees will win six straight than I do Boston losing six straight.
Of course, MLB would not want the Last Game to upstage the playoffs, which it may have, had it been the last weekend of the season. At least a little bit.
I, for one, am glad that the last series was not against the sux. This way, it was all about the Yankees, not their opponent.
Unreal, first these idiots tell Cashman they want him back and now there is an article in todays Post where no brains Cashman says he hasnt ruled out bringing Giambi back. If they bring this idiot Cashman back he will ruin this off season and the team will be worse off then it already is. WHAT A JOKE!
I’ve had Mets fans ask me for Mariano.
“I will blame the injuries. You can’t even compare what the Yanks went through with what the Sox went through. Ortiz was out but he hasn’t really been that big lately. Schilling is the only big hit they had.
Wang, Joba, Posada, Matsui, A-Rod for a while, 3-4 guys in the bullpen… you can’t compare the Sox injuries to the Yanks’.”
thanks for typing what i was thinking
had they played the last game of the season at the stadium, then it got rained out, what then? make up the game on the day after the season (and at the same time as a one game playoff perhaps?)
i think they did the right thing.
Francesa is feisty today
I’m really scared of the Sox hitter. Any advice for me tonight?
and they also had time to prepare for the absence of Schilling…
Please help.
As your buddy Paul Bryd what to do.
I will certainly grant you that the Yankee injuries have been more significant than the Sox, but I also think the Sox injuries are being minimized here.
Mike Lowell was out for a month early in the season and is out now for what could be a long time.
Dice-K was out of the rotation for a month.
Wakefield was out of the rotation for about a month.
JD Drew has been out of the lineup more than in because of injuries.
Beckett missed several starts at the beginning of the season and in the middle of the season.
Lugo has been out most of the second half of the season.
Ortiz was out for more than a month.
And they also had JD Drew decide to play.
Would have been nice if, say, Robbie had decided to do the same.
“Unreal, first these idiots tell Cashman they want him back and now there is an article in todays Post where no brains Cashman says he hasnt ruled out bringing Giambi back. If they bring this idiot Cashman back he will ruin this off season and the team will be worse off then it already is. WHAT A JOKE!”
Any GM will always say that he is not ruling out anything. Now, if he actually does begin talks with Giambi to come back next year, that is grounds for immediate dismissal.
Cliff Lee September 23rd, 2008 at 1:21 pm
I’m really scared of the Sox hitter. Any advice for me tonight?
Eat a nice lunch and then relax. If you somehow suck in today’s game, we will hunt you down.
Good luck!
Did a search for rookie hazing and found….Boston…who had there’s on 9/15…Why so early you ask?….Because they get to end their season at home…I know, I know, they went to Japan…But why couldn’t we end at home? That’s like having your birthday party a month before your birthday.
Anyway, they did HS Musical.
ray–agreed with most, but i have to say having Lowrie step in for Lugo might have actually helped the team more than hurt them.
Cliff– Just intentionally walk the 2-6 hitters everytime up and hope the 7-1 hitters GIDP.
Try to get out of it with less than 8 runs.
ray,
Okay, so explain why your team gets to play half its games in a bandbox?
That would be *theirs
The Diet Coke bandit is married to a Mets fan she must have been driving him nuts all week. (Well done Mrs. DCB !)
Lugo has been out most of the second half of the season”
I believe you’re happy on that, Lowrie did a pretty good job filling in, no?
But i still think that the sux had their share of injuries.
There’s a good reason that the bench was bad this year….it’s because there was no bench. It was on the field. Those extra guys sitting in the dugout were minor leaguers.
Brandon,
Rumor has it Starbury will be waived this week…
Rebecca–Optimist Prime
September 23rd, 2008 at 1:25 pm
“ray–agreed with most, but i have to say having Lowrie step in for Lugo might have actually helped the team more than hurt them.”
Rebecca, I certainly agree that Lowrie has been better than Lugo.
I read some place that someone was speculating that Boston and Detroit would trade Lugo and Dontrelle Willis to each other in hopes that a change of venue would help each one of their careers. I would be surprised to see that happen, but an interesting idea.
ray,
I would love to see that happen! Willis walked 6 guys in 2.1 innings in his last game, gave up like 6 ER or something.
Willis has no control to speak of. It’s kind of sad actually, I hope he can find his way back.
I don’t understand what the problem is.
Hank/Hal make final decisions, and Cashman is 2nd in the chain of command, nobody is in-between him and the Steinbrenners.
What does Cashman want? To have just as much control as the owners and have the authority to overrule Hal? NOBODY is going to give him that. As long as there is no middling Tampa fraction to undermine Cashman, there should be no problem at all. He gets his full autonomy, he makes decisions and Hal has to sign off on them.
Of Course, Hal can also overrule Cashman on FA signings as well if money is a concern like it was with Santana or if Hal wants a FA like A-Rod or Posada. But Cash does have as much autonomy as he will get anywhere.
mel
September 23rd, 2008 at 1:27 pm
ray,
“Okay, so explain why your team gets to play half its games in a bandbox?”
Mel…..play nice! lol
Tank,
I think the problem occurred when Hank made a statement that IF they were to bring back Cash, he’d have to agree to a committee. Hank and Hal are apparently not on the same page, though.
D train pitching at the fens, now THAT would be exciting! that 2.46 whip in the worst park for LH pitchers! i’d drive up from philly to watch that!
The D-Train was fun, but now he’s done!
Ray; you really sure you want Willis pitching t Fenway?
Big alarm bells would be going off in my head if my name was epstein.
ray,
I was! I almost called it a litter-box!
Brandon,
Rumor has it Starbury will be waived this week…
I won’t overdue it
Hank with some thoughts -
– On the divisional setup: “… If you want to talk about things that infuriate me about the game today, revenue sharing doesn’t top the list. The biggest problem is the divisional setup in major league baseball. I didn’t like it in the 1970s, and I hate it now. Baseball went to a multidivision setup to create more races, rivalries and excitement. But it isn’t fair. You see it this season, with plenty of people in the media pointing out that Joe Torre and the Dodgers are going to the playoffs while we’re not. This is by no means a knock on Torre — let me make that clear–but look at the division they’re in. If L.A. were in the A.L. East, it wouldn’t be in the playoff discussion. The A.L. East is never weak.”
– On Joe Torre: “I’m happy for Joe, but you have to compare the divisions and the competition. What if the Yankees finish the season with more wins than the Dodgers but the Dodgers make the playoffs? Does that make the Dodgers a better team? No.”
– On revenue sharing: “That’s a system I don’t particularly like. It’s a socialist system, and I don’t agree with it. Does it work? It depends on your point of view. But is it right? Is it even American? I’d argue no on both of those points.”
http://www.nj.com/yankees/inde.....brenn.html
Brandon,
Rumor has it Starbury will be waived this week…
I won’t over do it
my bad
I can see it now! You all want Willis penciled in right now for every series the Yankees have at Fenway next year.
I am eagerly awaiting the start of the Knicks season.
Crawford throwing ally-oops to Eddy Curry, Q-Rich firing 3’s, Randolph beasting down low.
45 wins and the 7th seed.
mel gets to watch kobe bryant, bynum, and gasol
we get to watch eddy curry, randolph, and crawford
Someone should cut Hank’s tongue. That way he can’t talk anymore.
Oh no not Knick talk again. That organization has issues. I read some where Gallinari(sp) back is still not %100. And he might miss the season.
Brandon,
Haha. I think the back flips is overdoing it, just a tad.
LOL@ Hank for saying what we all think.
And why the uneven divisions? Take one of the NL Central teams (Houston makes the most sense geographically) and put in the AL West.
Hank really needs to shut the you know what up and go back to the track and all that goes with it.So even though he saus he is not he knocks Torre, The DOdgers, The Cardinals and MLB all in one article.
The Yanks had more injuries than the Sox. But, the Sox were generally able to replace their injured players with productive players from their bench and within their system. The Yanks had no bench to start the season, and no hitters to call up from the minors.
Plus, the Sox were able to go out and get Bey and Byrd, not Nady and Ponson. Big difference.
You have to put the responsibility for that on Yankee management. Add the lack of bench and the lack of farm system to the lack of judgment on Hughes and Kennedy readiness to start, and you can’t blame the whole season just on injuries.
I am eagerly awaiting the start of the Knicks season.
Crawford throwing ally-oops to Eddy Curry, Q-Rich firing 3’s, Randolph beasting down low.
45 wins and the 7th seed.
More like Crawford and his crossover turnovers, Eddy Curry not jumping off the floor, Qrich firing bricks and ZBo chucking 45 foot 3 pointers while not playing D and becoming the blackhole of basketball.
What happened when the sox lost their leader in 2006? Their season went down hill.
What happened when the Yankees lost Jorge Posada? Yes Jose filled in very nicely, but he isn’t Jorge.
Steve,
I’ll be watching them, too. I’ve got a spot in my heart for the Knicks because I used to follow them in the Riley/Ewing days. And I like D’antoni now that he’s out of the WC.
“More like Crawford and his crossover turnovers, Eddy Curry not jumping off the floor, Qrich firing bricks and ZBo chucking 45 foot 3 pointers while not playing D and becoming the blackhole of basketball.”
You forgot 28 wins and in the lottery….again.
Jose didn’t fill in nicely for Posada. He could catch, but he was a disaster offensively. Going from one of the most productive catchers to one of the least is an enormous blow.
Hal obviously has no problem with what Hank says, otherwise he would put a gag order on him.
Hank is harmless, he is a gentle giant. As long as he isin’t undermining his GM, who cares? Let him talk as much as he wants. Leave the baseball decisions to the baseball people and he can be the mouth piece if he so chooses to.
You forgot 28 wins and in the lottery….again.
And they’ll draft another forward.
It’s sad to think about it but The NJ Nets are going to be an exciting team this year. The Knicks will have 3 players worth following Lee, Ewing Jr. and Nate when he’s not a brat on the court.
How about this interesting tid-bit about Damon’s HR the other night from NY POst
Molina hit the final homer at the Stadium and Damon used one of Xavier Nady’s bats to hit his homer. The last time the Hall of Fame got a borrowed bat was 2000 when the Yankees’ Luis Sojo used Clay Bellinger’s bat to deliver the Series-winning hit in Game 5 against the Mets in the Subway Series.
gayle,
So Xavier’s bat’s headed to the Hall? Cool.
Molina hit the final homer at the Stadium
That still doesn’t sound right.
Hank does have the point. Those in the media who are praising Torre and knocking Girardi need to look at the circumstances and the competition. They are being unfair. We will have more wins than LAD but finish in 3rd while they go to the playoffs. Not Torre’s fault, he can only win what he is asked to win, but don’t use that as a knock against Girardi.
Jorge Posada is one of those players that you don’t realize what you have on him till he’s gone.
When the season started I did a post with one of the guys at pinstripe alley on posada and the hall of fame, and this was what we came up with:
http://www.puristbleedspinstri.....catch.html
ray (sox fan)
September 23rd, 2008 at 1:24 pm
Lugo has been out most of the second half of the season.
_______________________________________________________
come on, Ray. Even Boston fans ralize that losing Lugo was the reason the Sox finished ahead of the Yankees.
***realize***
Actually, you could say the season came down to the difference between Pedroia and Cano.
BTW for you people that forgot Andrew Brackman, he threw yesterday 3 innings was touched 96 mph w/ ease, a wicked knuckle curveball who was said to be on par w/ Garcia and Betances watch out for this kid.
GB7
Funny guy!! There actually could be some truth to your statement that losing Lugo was helpful to the Sox.
Brackman threw 96 right after coming off of tommy john?
Color me impressed.
Oh thank goodness. I was gonna consult my Ouija board, but I’m glad I found this article.
We can all sleep peacefully now
So what to make of the Yankees moving across the street next season, leaving their hallowed grounds for new digs? If you believe two local astrologers, there’s no need to worry: the stars are aligned for many more years of success.
“The new stadium can only be good,” says Brooklyn-based astrologer Deb McBride. “The day it opens, April 16, 2009, the moon will be crossing over the Yankees’ Jupiter, which is a kiss of good fortune.”
West Village psychic Karen Thorne concurs, saying that the new Stadium is built to order. “The new stadium is going to be fortunate and a money-maker for the team – even more so than the original stadium was,” she says. “The stadium has Leo rising, which means its structure promotes optimism, joy and enthusiasm – and happy financial speculations.”
If talk of the moon crossing Jupiter or Leo rising makes your head spin, don’t fret. The bottom line is this: The new Yankee Stadium – certainly now that David Ortiz’s jersey is no longer buried in its bowels – will open on a strong note.
But while The House That Jeter Built will flourish, how about the Yankees themselves?
Thorne sees interesting times ahead for individual players. “Derek Jeter will make his team proud (in 2009)…especially from August on,” she says. Still, she predicts a very rocky 2010 for the Yankee captain – likely the worst season of his Hall of Fame career.
Alex Rodriguez and Mariano Rivera, she says, will both overcome slow starts next season to finish at the top of their games, while Robinson Cano, after a poor 2007, “will be full of fiery surprises for the fans.”
Most interesting of all? “I see (Joe Girardi) moved to tears,” she says. “I hope it’s for a good reason.”
http://tinyurl.com/3ppcv9
Well, 99.9 percent chance we don’t make the real playoffs. So we might as well have fun and say tonight’s game is a playoff game — or, actually, two. Yanks-Toronto and Boston-Cleveland. We’re down five games to nothing in a best of eleven series!
Wave has a point. Pedroia’s year was as good as Cano’s was bad.
There are many reasons, but that’s an interesting point.
Matsuzaka had a superior season as well.
But really, the wild card of the season was the Rays.
Lots of mistakes, but lots to be learned from those mistakes as well.
Why should Hank shut up? Everything he said in the above quotes was spot on.
Brackman threw 96 right after coming off of tommy john?
Color me impressed.
He’s supposively a strong kid.
by my amateur calculations, 9 flips of the coin would have to go the yankees way for them to tie the red sox. the red sox would have to lose three. the ynakee would have to win three.
and then win three against the sox.
since each game is basically a coin flip, that means that 2×2x2×2x2×2x2×2x2=512
looks approximately like a one in 512 chance of that happening.
the fun thing is that yanks win, sox lose a game each and it becomes a one in 128 chance.
yanks win and sox lose again, and it’s a 1 in 32 chance.
life is interesting at that point.
do i think the yanks can run the table? not likely, but it’d be fun to watch red sox nation squirm if a few games go the yanks way.
Sigmund: I like that thought process.
ray (sox fan)
September 23rd, 2008 at 2:08 pm
GB7
Funny guy!! There actually could be some truth to your statement that losing Lugo was helpful to the Sox.
___________________________________________________
I hosestly thought that Lugo was going to have a historical (or hysterical) season. He was on pace to be the first to become the first full-time position player with more errors than RBIs.
people still root for the Knicks? what’s wrong with you?
climb aboard folks! there’s plenty of room for you all…
***honestly***
Randy — I like your math, but I’m just hoping the Yanks get to Boston with a chance. After that, the Yanks can control their own destiny. So that’s only six flips to Destiny! One in 64. Let me be bold (or whatever) and say that the Yanks win tonight and Boston loses. That’s reasonable. So then we’re really down to four flips. One in 16, after tonight. Oh, I know — it’s all silly. But I’m sticking with 1 in 16!
I’ve been a Nets fan since my very first professional sporting event in 1997.
What a horrible new owner Hank Steinbrenner is.
He’s nothing like his father was.
All he is, is a quote.
Let’s get the numbers right. There are 512 possible outcomes of the remaining games. There is one combination of the 512 that gives the Yankees a tie with the Red Sawx.
That’s a 99.8 % chance of the Yanks playing beyond Sunday.
As for the season, the loss or Jorge was a monster as was the loss of Wang. Everything else was sorta typical for a long season. But don’t hate on Molina. He’s a career backup who stepped it up and did everything he could to help this team win.
I think we’ve played the blame game to death here, but the bottom line is 1/3 of the starts went to guys who didn’t belong in the Majors and 1/3 of the at bats belong in pretty much the same category.
Looking ahead I think Damon and Nady are the only regulars who wont have better seasons. I’d try to sign CC and Tex, plus a one year deal for Mussina or Pettite and take my chances.
I honestly believe the Yankees will win the next 2 and the Red Sox will lose the next 2. Mussina will beat Litsch and Hughes will come up big against Burnett. Lee has been dominant all year and Carmona will beat Byrd. Thursday night will be interesting. If the Yankees still have a chance at that point, I hope they send Aceves to the mound instead of Pavano. Sowers vs. Lester will be a tough matchup, but hopefully the Red Sox will be feeling the pressure by then. It can happen!
the red sox reversed their course after 2006 and spent heavily on lugo, matsuzaka, and drew. it’s like what the cubs did.
the red sox hit big on one of the three. guess what . that’s was enough to push them over the edge with cashman putting the yankees in default mode with his “PLAN’.
the only way for the yankees to get back fast is to spend in a similar way.
take matsuzaka out of the picture and the red sox have one less world series ring and one less playoff appearance this year.
the problem when you’re thinking of signing three is you don’t know which one is going to make the difference. so sign em all. that’s what the red sox did.
It’s really no fun to get the numbers right!
Off the AL East topic, but wouldn’t it be interesting to see the Twins finish Sunday either a 1/2 game up or 1/2 game back of the White Sox. The White Sox would be compelled to make up a rained out game vs. Detroit, presumedly on Monday. If the reuslt of that game left them tied for first in the AL Central, they’d then have to play the Twins in a one game playoff, presumedly on Tuesday.
If the Sox are losing tonight, do you thing Girardi will manage this thing like it’s really a game 7 — that is, put in possible later-in-the week starters (Pavano? Aceves?) as relievers. Blow it all out, to get a win, and tomorrow be damned? My guess: No.
Okay.
I checked the standings this morning. The LA Dodgers are only 2 up on the D’Backs. Let’s hold off annointing the Dodgers as NL West champs just yet.
I think people in general are just anxious for the playoffs to start, but the NL West race is not done, nor is the AL East or AL Central. The Mets are making things interesting over in the NL East, too. The Brewers are not 100% out of the wildcard. Things are close enough so that there can be some surprises come the last day of the season.
randy, exactly.
the red sox and cubs are prime examples of how spending money has propelled them to the top of the league.
we need to follow the same model. clearly cashman has no idea how to identify young talent or role players (and the one role player in nady he did get, he traded tabata our crown jewel for him).
time to get back to being the yankees— spend money, get the elite talent. boston did it, cubs did it, mets did it.
i don’t think that the yankees should sign sabathia.those signings rarely work and it will take a minimum of 5 yrs/105 million and as much as 7 yrs 140 million.
way to much.
they should try for dempster,perez,sheets and a trade for a few more good young pitchers if possible.
if possible trade cano,kennedy and someone else if needed for billingsley.
the yankees did well in the 90’s with 5 evenly solid 4.00 era pitchers.they always have trouble finding an ace.if they get an ace and have to give big bucks and several years it should be a much younger pitcher than sabathia.
he is being abused by milwaukee.call the dodgers and see what they wan’t for billingsley,no joba.they might take cano,kennedy,betances.then sign a free agent pitcher or two,not sabathia unless the price is reasonable.
now they can maybe package hughes and several prospects for a center fielder and first baseman.
i wouldn’t mind a rotation of wang,billingsley,dempster,perez/sheets/mussina,joba or keep joba in the pen.
Fredo -
I didn’t know the Tigers had a makeup game with Chicago. So many things can happen this week.
“The Mets are making things interesting over in the NL East, too.”
Mets are close to dead in the NL East. The Wild Card may be it for them. Fortunately for them, the Brewers are the midwest version of the Mets.
“I’ve been a Nets fan since my very first professional sporting event in 1997.”
and this, folks, is why Rebecca is going places in life!
the education helps too, though…
I’m rooting so hard for the D’Backs, nothing would be sweeter to see Torre and the Dodgers knocked out after everyone was anointing him.
We’ll see about Hank this winter when the club is getting it’s facelift…..Is he just a blowheart or a baseball guy…..They better be pro-active when the bell rings, and get Bucky Showalter to come aboard….
Nets, I’m not so sure about that.
i am a Jets fan, after all…
Fredo – you’re right about the Mets – they have more of a chance for the wild card, but only because Milwaukee doesn’t seem to want it.
The Mets announcers were really pretty whiny/defensive last night. Each and every one of them saying, “if last year didn’t happen, then this would just be viewed as a really tight pennant race,” or words to that effect. Problem is, last year DID happen.
Blow it up.
Make Buck the GM. He is a much brighter baseball man than Cashman. He is a better talent evaluator and more creative as well.
It doesn’t make sense for Girardi to use Pavano or Aceves as relievers. I’d rather see Joba, Coke, Marte, or Bruney. I would think that Girardi might use Mo for 4 outs if he thought they needed him.
Good God…still talking about Matsuzaka? Everyone baseball man agreed that the going bid on Matsuzaka would only be 22-25 million. 4 teams went above 30 million, one being the Yankees. Certainly you and nobody else expected a team to go to 52 million. If NYY had put in a 55 million dollar bid and Matsuzaka had bombed, you’d be crying about Cashman’s stupidity.
well, if everything goes our way, then moose will go long enough that we can use just joba and mo in the pen.
Anyway by the time we get there we might already know whether or not it matters.
jax gmen-
the red sox also developed young talent at the same time . they just didn’t bet the business on it. the yankees should of course invest heavily in the farm system too. also in minor league coaching because yankee position players come out of the minor league system and can’t play. players like gardner have to learn how to bunt at three in the afternoon in special bunting practice before night games.
that’s so bad it’s beyond belief.
SJ, Just because Austin Jackson is the only real non- pitching prospect above A-Ball does not mean the organization has taken a step back. Everyone knew that that was the case coming into this year. Brian took full charge in 2005 and the kids he drafted are the kids in our lower minors. The lack of major league caliber positional player prospects in the upper levels is result of the mess the Yankees were in before Brian took control and revamped the system. Until the young kids are ready to move up to these upper levels, the Yankees are going to have to deal with that, no question.
Ok, Melky took a huge step back, but seriously….he was never considered that good of player and he was never going to be the CF of the future. Cano had a terrible year, but he’s still a terrific talent. If you dangled him out there right now (but we agree that at this point, the Yankees are going to try and fix him), almost every team in baseball would be eager to grab him. Hughes was very bad in his few starts, but I think we agree he’s going to be very good. I think they rushed him last year, but really – his problems are health and mechanical issues. He’s going to be fine. Kennedy was definitely rushed- he zoomed through the minors so fast that he didn’t really learn about the art of pitching and three starts last September were not enough reason to give him a spot in the rotation (given that he has pretty ordinary stuff). I will grant you that I have no idea how good he is going to because he seems to have completely lost his command and his stuff has declined (or so it appears).
I guess my point is that just because the organization had a bad year, that is no reason to gut the franchise or completely change the way things are done. I definitely agree they have to put together a more well-balanced team (it helps that Giambi is gone and probably Abreu), although it’s going to be hard to truly change the makeup of the team as we still have vets like A-Rod, Jeter, Matsui and Posada. I think Jeter will bounce back and A-Rod will be fine, but Matsui – eh – and I’m worried about Posada. Rome wasn’t built in a day and the Yanks can not reconstruct their entire lineup in one off-season.
Are people actually complaining that Leyritz wasn’t invited/mentioned? GMAB – the man is a murderer.
“Good God…still talking about Matsuzaka?”
it’s a little hard to ignore 18-2 or whatever it is.
the point isn’t that the yanks should have sighed matsuzaka. the point is they they should have been signing someone besides just latroy hawkins last winter. and also the year before.
going in to default mode is what let the rays and red sox take over.
Hughes for Grienke and DeJesus?
Hughes for Grienke and DeJesus?
HELL NO!
Sabathia – 7 years, $175 million
Burnett – 4 years/$60 million
Casey Blake for 1B, role player, good glove, fundamentally sound.
Hughes for Kemp to be our CF. Jackson slides into left when Damon leaves. We have the most explosive young OF in baseball.
Rebuilding is complete.
Hank’s talking again. Ripping MLB.
http://www.nj.com/yankees/inde.....brenn.html
I’ll start paying attention to what Hank Steinbrenner says when and if he ever proves that he has half the common sense that his father had, in running the Yankees or in business.
Casey Blake? Yeah, that’s what this team needs, a 35 year old 1B who has never played 1B more than 31 times in a season, who strikes out more than twice as much as he walks and who has a career ops of .781