Today in The Journal News
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Feb 13, 2009 
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Joe Girardi and Brian Cashman know they have a crisis to manage in the wake of the A-Rod scandal. For Girardi, it could be crucial to his job security.
Jorge Posada will be brought along slowly in spring training. This notebook also has info on the center field battle, right field, the arrival of one star pitcher and a dismissed lawsuit for Roger Clemens.
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Being on a beat can be like trying to solve a mystery. You look for clues, file them away and at the end hope it all adds up.
What happens on Feb. 12 doesn’t mean a whole lot. It’ll be five or six months before we know what sort of team the Yankees have.
But yesterday was a good day to mine a few clues about the manager.
Joe Girardi spent roughly 40 minutes talking to print reporters. As I mentioned before, most of the time was spent dissecting the ongoing A-Rod soap opera (which is already tedious). But along the way, Girardi dropped a few hints that those “adjustments” he talked about during the winter may have taken hold.
Girardi was candid about A-Rod, saying he was disappointed in the actions of his star player. He was optimistic everything would work out — as always — but that was tempered with a realistic view of the mess that the Yankees have to deal with.
He also admitted that he drove the players too hard in spring training last season and would back off a little bit. He talked about knowing the American League better and how that would allow him to spend more time with his players and getting a sense of the clubhouse.
Girardi prides himself on preparation. He wants to know exactly what pitch Brian Roberts will chase on a 2-2 count against a right-hander. There is tremendous value in that, but not if it comes at the expense of knowing what makes one of your players tick. Sometimes you need to let the pitching coach do his job.
That’s just an example, of course. But when you talk to people around the team, there’s a sense that Girardi knows he has to build more bridges. Spring training is a good time for that. But the real test won’t come for a long time. We’ll see what happens then.
As for today, pitchers and catchers report for physicals. The clubhouse will be open to the media from 9-12 and I’ll file some reports via the iPhone. No workout today, that comes tomorrow.
KEN ROSENTHAL,thinks this *AROD* scandal is far from over.For some reason he thinks AROD,WILL BE *CALLED BEFORE* *CONGRESS,to name names.I hope he has to testify*
*It may bee the only real,interview he has to be real.*
Yeah, Aroid will cause the team much antagonism.He’s always needs attention,*this year* will be brutal.A productive season will be met with suspicion,he’s in a no win situation.JETER has his hands full!!!
Judging by the audio you posted yesterday Pete, Girardi seems to have loosened up a bit. He certainly seemed more candid to my ears.
He’s a smart guy, and determined, so I did expect him to learn and grow.
But it’s early yet…
If, by later in the season, CC is allowed candy, Mariano doesn’t have to queue with fans to get ice cream, and Joe talks free-ishly about injuries, he may well manage the team all the way to glory.
Ken Rosenthal also blamed Alex for putting the other 103 players in a bad position…I just don’t care what he has to say.
On to baseball:
It sounds like Joe is off to a good start this year. He’s a good man and I hope that comes through. He’s also a very smart man – the fact that he recognizes his mistakes is encouraging. He SHOULD spend time with his players – they aren’t just figurines you can move around on a chessboard. They are real people with real feelings. I would imagine one of the best parts of being on a team is being part of a team. Many retired players say that it’s not playing that they miss the most, it’s the camraderie. The manager is the glue that holds a club together. It’s important that he somone that the players can trust and rely on; everything else flows from that.
Today should be a good day, with pitchers and catchers reporting. AJ hardly got any attention yesterday, which I find rather sad. It may be fine for him that he’s flying under the radar, but for fans who want to hear about their new players and get to know them, it stinks. I just doubt that there will be any traditional coverage this spring and that does put a damper on things. I want to learn about CC, AJ and Tex. I want news of the workouts, even if all the players are doing is jogging……After several months of no baseball, I just want to lap everything up. At least I know that this blog can provide what I need, lol. I disagree with you on several things, Pete, but you do an outstanding job in this regard – thanks!
Joe might be more candid now but lets see how he does after a 3 game losing streak or an injury to a starting pitcher.
If A-Rod played in a low profile baseball city like Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Oakland, or Kansas City, this steroid story would have all but vanished 2 days ago.
I feel bad for Joe G. I think I would have snapped answering 29 boring questions about Alex. How thick is Alex’s skin. He should have said come here and bring me a knife. Let me cut your finger off and measure how thick skin is. I’d say Alex’s skin is as thick as yours.
At some point the pointless stupid questions have to stop. The pr person or someone will have to step in and cut them off and get to real baseball questions like how will your rotation set up. WHo will start the first game of the season, or the first game at YS. That is what fans want to hear. Not how thick is ALex’s skin!
Gary- So true. I’ve never seen a city of reporters want to tear a guy down! They seriously want him to retire of baseball and go away.
What about the clubhouse candy ban?
On the surface, a ban on Pepsi, candy, and chips is just a little thing. But I gotta think that if the players view this type of micro-managing as an affront to their dignity and self-respect as adult males, it’s the kind of thing that can snowball out of control.
Manage the team, Joe. React to poor decision making. Treat the players and the press like adults. Don’t micro-manage inconsequential things.
Pitchers and Catchers Report in one hour! I don’t give a crap about anything else.
LET’S GO YANKEES!
“At some point the pointless stupid questions have to stop. The pr person or someone will have to step in and cut them off”
Kind of doubt we’ll see the day where the press has the questions they ask dictated to them. It’s going to be THE issue at least thru next Thursday or whatever day Arod has his sit down with them. I think it’ll die down a little bit after that, thru the WBC and stuff.
Major Deegan
February 13th, 2009 at 8:59 am
Pitchers and Catchers Report in one hour! I don’t give a crap about anything else.
LET’S GO YANKEES!
Amen. Peace be with you:)
Good info in Girardi. I guess Molina is going to get a lot of work in April? Who’s the third catcher?
Steve- I hope so. I started to listen to the audio of the 29 minutes of Arod questions,and stopped listening after 5 minutes, I was bored to tears.
The real harbinger of a new, improved Giradi will be if he allows ice cream in the club house.
I posted in the previous thread, how weird it is going to be seeing Jeter face the Yankees!
5 teams picked somebody other then Jeter in the 1992 draft.
“I would like to thank the good lord” for making those other teams stupid enough to pick somebody else.
Clubhouse is open now
baseball is officially here.
btw- take a look at the picture on the front page of the bergen record sports page. Look at the horde of media around him. INSANE!
“Good info in Girardi. I guess Molina is going to get a lot of work in April? Who’s the third catcher?”
The immortal Kevin Cash?
Kevin Cash or Francisco Cervelli would battle it out for 3rd catcher, although I don’t know that they will take 3 catchers north with them in April. It probably depends on how healthy Posada’s shoulder is during the spring.
Let’s get real about Alex Rodriquz. He’s a valuable piece of the team but he is still 1/25th of the roster. It takes 25 players to have a successful season. Alex Rodriquez is NOT [thee] Yankees.
new post
Who is Alex Rodriquez? Did we make a trade?
Girardi needs to handle this well. I think he will, because he is a tough guy.