Today in The Journal News
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Feb 24, 2009 
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The Yankees skipped practice and shot some stick yesterday. For Joe Girardi, it was a Tom Coughlin moment.
The Journal News’ Behind The Scene series focuses today on the pro scouting department of the Yankees.
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The Yankees have their final workout today before the games start tomorrow. The final WBC rosters will be announced today as well.
It appears the Yankees will lose Derek Jeter, Robinson Cano, Damaso Marte and Alex Rodriguez to the tournament. They will report to their respective camps on Saturday or Sunday.
so if we nationalize citibank, are mets games free?
Great article re: scouting department-great information.
Pete -
Liked your report on the scouting department. Glad to read how much attention it’s been given in recent years.
Good stuff Pete…. Follow up on the email about the I Phone I sent.. MLB At Bat App will feature live radio feeds this year
Great article on the pro scouting department. hard to imagine a team like the Yankees didnt even have this department a few years ago.
Question for those in the know. Is this department different than those that scout team to see thier tendancies ie what the Phillies have with Chuck Lamar? Or is it the same. Based on the article it seemd that these people are scouting players to see more about trades and other things not necessarily scouting for when we play them.
Great move by Giradi yesterday. Is it a coincidence that this was done a few days after the comments by Jason Jones about being in camp with the Yankees?
“That’s how I would describe it — you just don’t feel like a part of the team. There are the veterans — the superstars — and then the rest of the guys,” said Jones, who was drafted by New York in the fourth round in 2004. “Here, there are superstars too, but it feels a lot more like we’re a team. It’s a lot better chemistry.”
I don’t think that Jones said anything out of line, and he most likely had no influence on Girardi’s decision to do this, but a manager has to think about how his players interact. This kind of thing has to help.
so what’s up for today, a trip to the aquarium?
Good article Pete, interesting stuff. I wonder who put their name of Kei Igawa’s scouting report? Hopefully they are not on the staff anymore…
jpsice01
February 24th, 2009 at 8:28 am
Good article Pete, interesting stuff. I wonder who put their name of Kei Igawa’s scouting report? Hopefully they are not on the staff anymore…
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The same scouts that followed and recommended Wang.
Since Shea is gone and the Stadium is now the next to fall to the wrecking ball, I thought some here might enjoy re reading Requiem for a cathedral:
Cathedral Requiem
The Ghosts of Ruth and Gehrig sat
Up in Tier 35
And wiped tears from translucent cheeks
As the final anthem died.
DiMaggio brought the popcorn
The Mick supplied the beer
He bought it up in heaven
Cause it’s cheaper there than here.
“An epic game”, the Babe enthused
“The best I ever saw”
he chowed down on some hot dogs
And looked around for more.
Gehrig glanced out at his bat
Atop the center pole
And wished to get it in his hands
And feel its weight once more.
“I had a streak in 41’ the longest in the game”
Then DiMaggio fell silent and turned to watch the game
“I did my best in 56’”Mantle then exclaimed
“I wonder what I could have been if both my legs were game”
Mystique and Aura, Saucy things
Each dancing at a pole
As Derek with his broken hand
drove a single through the hole.
Pettite our left handed ace
Dealt his greatest game
Glaring out beneath his cap-
His hate for batters plain.
The autumn sky had turned to black
When Mo entered the game
The Sandman tune was soon drowned out
By the faithful who remain.
Robert Merrill sang, and then Kate Smith sang
Then Sinatra one last time
Singers for the requiem
Living need not apply!
The Ghosts of Ruth and Gehrig sat
Up in Tier 35
And wiped tears from translucent cheeks
As the music died
“I wonder if we’ll feel the pain
When they wield the wrecking ball
I wonder if our hearts will break
When they breech the wall.”
“Fear not, dear friend, the Stadium’s end
For if steel and concrete fall
The Stadium lives in our hearts
Whenever we recall.”
The fans left standing in the street
On River Avenue
These corporate types in Luxury suites
Have little thought for you
Our paradise is lost tonight
Our little patch of green
But what a life we lived in there
The greatness we have seen.
Hobbie
I despise this tournament and most especially the timing. I’m supposed to trust some unknown staff with Damaso Marte? How do we know that they won’t push him beyond where he should be just to win a game? This is treading on very dangerous ground. I don’t think Cano should be there, either; I would much prefer that he remain in camp and continue to work with Long.
Jeter is already iffy with a hamstring – think the USA team is going to make a particular effort to be careful with him? I don’t think so – knowing Jeter, he will go out there when he’s not 100% and he’ll do more damage. The risk of injury to any player in these meaningless games, when the MLB season is right around the corner, is so not worth it……even if the rest of the world loves it.
Pete, thanks for the recap on the pool hall outing – I still get a huge kick out of that!
the only thing about the wbc that bothers me is that it makes ST longer. ST is too long already. i think guys playing an exhibition tournament once every 4 yrs is a great way to break up the monotony of ST.
i think its probably a good thing that arod is leaving for the wbc. it should be a more serene camp for the next couple of weeks.
Girardi considered a bowling tournament but didn’t want to take any unnecessary chances.
“We’ve got too many arms in camp,” he said. “Pool is safe.”
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Good choice Joe. Could you imagine what would have happened had someone got hurt bowling. Joe would have lost his job quicker than you can say you’re fired.
c’mon, some trainer from team usa is going to cause jeter to get hurt? how many ST’s has jeter gone through? you think he needs a trainer to tell him what he can and can’t do? do u think he’s gonna forget that his focus is on winning a WS championship?
Does anyone recall if the spring training games begun so quickly after the players reported to ST?
Nice work on the pro scouting department, Peter.
And Gayle, advance scouts who study our opponents for tendancies are different from the pro scouts.
@GreenBeret7,
CMW was signed in 2000, Kei was 6 years later. So I’m guessing they were different scouts, especially since Cash didn’t form this new Scouting dept. until 2005-2006.
I doubt it was the same scout. I just think that whoever was out in Japan and passed on Dice-K and thought Kei was a better pitcher should be stoned…
jennifer
February 24th, 2009 at 8:45 am
Does anyone recall if the spring training games begun so quickly after the players reported to ST?
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Usually, the games start on the 1st or 2nd of March. Not sure when they started the last time the WBC was held. I wasn’t in country, then.
Nobody “passed on Matsuzaka”. The Yanks made a bid of just over 30 mil when nobody thought it would be above 25 mil.
pro scouts tell you who’s worth getting, advance scouts tell when the jays are coming to town that vernon wells is rolling over on everything inside the past week.
They didn’t pass on Dice-K — they were outbid. And the bid amount was nowhere near what anyone was anticipating. The Red Sox shocked everyone with their bid.
And I’m getting tired of hearing about the colossal mistake that was Kei Igawa. It stinks, but mistakes happen. He wasn’t a scrub in Japan. He is just one of those guys that couldn’t make the transition. Sometimes you just have to chalk something up to a “learning experience” and move on. And, not for nothing, but the Mets bid almost as much for Igawa as did the Yankees.
GreenBeret7
Well than the question is are they in physical shape to play games? I know they work out etc, but it is different playing games. Games are starting a week earlier.
2 at bats and off to the golf course, i wouldnt worry too much about thier game shape.
And I would suggest also that Dice-K hasn’t been “as advertised.” He has not been a #1 pitcher for the Sox, but a #3. Not a bust, certainly, but not the shut-down pitcher that a $50 million or so bid would suggest.
Great article Pete, Thanks. The WBC is a great thing for the world of baseball but not so great for the Major League Baseball season in the USA. It might help some guys (especially Cano) to go out and play with all their heart for their country, playing in games that really matter so early in the year. For others (Jeter?) the WBC might have the opposite effect. Here’s to hoping that none of the Yankees players gets hurt and that the experience only helps. Have a great day. (added by Mobile using Mippin)
Doreen-
I still can’t figure out how he could walk the bases loaded and get out of it without giving up a run. His Houdini act won’t last forever though (at least I keep telling myself that).
as a viewer i can tell you exactly how dice k does it. after watching him go full on every damn batter, im sawing logs like a lumberjack.
the batters fall asleep.
FYI – The Daily News has photos of the guys that were taken the other day. They are better than the ones we’ve seen on Yahoo.
http://www.nydailynews.com/spo......html#ph15
jennifer –
Same here!
Chien-Ming Vase -
Yeah, now that there are no more greenies to keep ‘em awake, Dice-K has the advantage!
Pete
Good read on the scouting. Thank you.
Jimmy Rollins is the other Team USA SS. No one will be pushing Jeter to play if he’s gimpy.
“And I’m getting tired of hearing about the colossal mistake that was Kei Igawa. It stinks, but mistakes happen. He wasn’t a scrub in Japan. He is just one of those guys that couldn’t make the transition”
Doreen:
no matter which way it is spun, the signing of Igawa is a result of poor scouting. Unlike the ameteur ranks stablished/professional players in Japan, do not have projection. They are what they are.
jennifer
February 24th, 2009 at 8:59 am
GreenBeret7
Well than the question is are they in physical shape to play games? I know they work out etc, but it is different playing games. Games are starting a week earlier.
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They’ll be alright. I doubt that they’ll play more than 4-5 innings a game to start with and pitchers will go 2, maybe 3 innings at a time. They have nearly 60 players in camp, and even with the 10-12 leaving for the WBC, there’s enough.
vinny-b -
I’ll concede that they missed something – an important something – in scouting Igawa.
I also think had they not signed him at the same time the Red Sox were signing Matsuzaka, the impact would have been different because no one would be comparing him with Dice-K. Also, the bid amount would have been less, I believe. The Yankees never said Igawa was a front-line starter – just a #5 lefty who could strike out guys that they decided to take a flyer on. At the time, I was hoping they were gonna sign Ted Lilly or Gil Meche. They didn’t. Igawa had exactly one good performance. And he’s really good in AAA! (That’s the silver lining to the cloud –
)
But, I guess all I mean is, I wish we could just move on from it.
o, come on, no more pavano to kick around and now you want us to take it easy on igawa?
maybe we can pick up odalis perez.
“Jimmy Rollins is the other Team USA SS. No one will be pushing Jeter to play if he’s gimpy”
you have that right.
rollins rocks. he is the engine of the champs.
Chien-Ming Vase -
Well, when you put it that way….
(I guess one always needs something to kick around!)
I love the pool hall trip! So nice to see our guys having fun and bonding. But does anyone else think it’s a little weird that the pictures of the trip were released by the Yankees’ PR department? Kind of makes the field trip seem a little stilted to me. I’m sure it had the desired effect, but I think it would have been much more fitting if pics were taken on some starstruck fan’s cell phone and mailed to the press.
I’m very excited to hear that mlb at bat will have radio feeds on the iphone! now i can finally cancel my otherwise-useless xm subscription.
“I’m very excited to hear that mlb at bat will have radio feeds on the iphone”
complete game audio feeds? Technology is crazy.
vin, that’s what someone posted above. i hope it’s true!
here, look at this:
http://applemachq.com/2009/02/.....o-in-2009/
I definitely like the sound of and the reorganized operation of our scouting department. Cash and co. realize how important this area is, and they are definitely doing something about it. A well organized scouting staff (yes, you need people here) is a big key to a successful team operation. Great article and good news here.
Pictures of the Yankees playing pool were almost certainly released by the Yankee PR department because there was demand of them from the media and fans.
I really wouldn’t look into it anymore than that.
“of” should be “for”.
It’s early.
John in Ohio,
Yes, it’s a coincidence. The Jones story has nothing to do with the Yankees playing pool.
Jones was a middling prospect who barely sniffed AAA and had no shot of making the team (which is why the Yankees left him unprotected in the Rule 5 Draft).
The younger players who went to the pool hall yesterday had ML experience and were all contenders to make the team out of ST, at the very least.
The Yankees probably do not care about what Jones said in the slightest.
Nice work , Pete.
Good to see Kevin Reese got a chance to stick around the Yankees.
Same article I saw RB, picking up my I phone in the next two weeks…. awesome app
John:
agreed. And personally, didn’t have any issue with what Jones said. It probably was, exactly the way he described. I would have preferred to see Jones given a chance by NYY over the past 2 years. However with 40-man roster limitations, the above may be easier said then done.
hopefully, he will do well with Minn. Except when facing NYY.
The Yankees were not the only team to do “artistic” pics. Here’s a picture of Nick Johnson. He seems to be either at church or some sort of jail.
http://tinyurl.com/bv4gl9
jpsice01
February 24th, 2009 at 8:50 am
@GreenBeret7,
CMW was signed in 2000, Kei was 6 years later. So I’m guessing they were different scouts, especially since Cash didn’t form this new Scouting dept. until 2005-2006.
I doubt it was the same scout. I just think that whoever was out in Japan and passed on Dice-K and thought Kei was a better pitcher should be stoned…
————————————————————
John Cox was head of the Yankees Pacific Rim scouting department that brought in Wang, Matsui and Igawa. He’s now gone, but, I’d say that two out of three isn’t a bad deal.
this from (oddly) the hot stone mariner’s blog:
“Guess who is in Rays’ camp? The eternal Don Zimmer, the REAL face of baseball. Zimmer, now 78, suffered a small stroke in December that affected his speech and mobility, but he’s doing much better and has been in uniform for the Rays’ workouts. In a nice touch, the Rays change his uniform number each season to reflect the number of years Zimmer has been in professional baseball. This year, he upgraded from 60 to 61. Here’s hoping he stays healthy enough to reach 70 — which happens to be the number of Rays’ manager Joe Maddon. I’m sure Joe would be happy to give it up for Zim.”
glad to hear zim made it to camp.
Tom- It looks like he is in confession.
Seriously he is probably in the locker room.
Doreen
February 24th, 2009 at 9:28 am
vinny-b –
I’ll concede that they missed something – an important something – in scouting Igawa.
I also think had they not signed him at the same time the Red Sox were signing Matsuzaka, the impact would have been different because no one would be comparing him with Dice-K. Also, the bid amount would have been less, I believe. The Yankees never said Igawa was a front-line starter – just a #5 lefty who could strike out guys that they decided to take a flyer on. At the time, I was hoping they were gonna sign Ted Lilly or Gil Meche. They didn’t. Igawa had exactly one good performance. And he’s really good in AAA! (That’s the silver lining to the cloud – )
But, I guess all I mean is, I wish we could just move on from it.
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The Dodgers, Padrea and Mariners were among the teams wanting Igawa. There were some pretty good reports on Igawa. He just didn’t work out for what ever reason…whether it’s that he can’t get used to the ball or whatever. I’d think he could be successful in the big NL west parks, though.
Next year-miniature golf
which was a worse signing, igawa or drew henson?
“which was a worse signing, igawa or drew henson?”
Why does something always have to be better or worse? I enjoy the stupidity of both!!
Who cares which was worse? One’s gone and the other will be. It didn’t cost you anything.
gb go to the px and buy a sense of humor
“Next year-miniature golf”
Next year-Sneaking over to Ft. Myers and toilet papering the Red Sox spring training facility.
Carl Pavano.
Sigh, I always wonder “what could have been” every time I read the name Drew Henson.
I’m a diehard Michigan Football fan and Henson was the man in Ann Arbor. He was good enough that he pushed some kid named Tom Brady for playing time.
Henson was that good. It’s a shame he took the money and ran because everyone knew the day he decided to play baseball was the day that Henson would eventually come to regret.
The guy could have been such a great quarterback had he just stuck to football.
“Next year-Sneaking over to Ft. Myers and toilet papering the Red Sox spring training facility”
nice. And this would help foster team chemistry.
“He seems to be either at church or some sort of jail”
jail would be, the Washington Nationals.
Nick really looked like he was set to break out, in Washington’s inagural home game (was it last year?). I wish him well.
this may be interesting:
who will be the better ML pitcher. Rick Porcello or Brackman?
I know Porcello have the jump, at this time. Who knows, tho
Tarheelyank February 24th, 2009 at 10:28 am
“Next year-miniature golf”
Next year-Sneaking over to Ft. Myers and toilet papering the Red Sox spring training facility.
=====================================
LOL. Sounds like a plan.
Tarheelyank
February 24th, 2009 at 10:28 am
“Next year-miniature golf”
Next year-Sneaking over to Ft. Myers and toilet papering the Red Sox spring training facility.
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What a pity to waste a ballpark like City Of Palms on such a ragtag team lik the Sox.
Loved the article on the pro scouting department – hopefully, there will be more articles of this type in the future. I get tired of everyone just spinning the same story – i.e. Arod and PED’s. Real baseball fans appreciate entries about subjects like the pro scouting department.
Igawa falls behind in the count too often, and pitches up in the strike zone….A deadly combo for a guy who doesn’t throw in the mid to high 90′s….
We’ve seen it so many times. A guy has all the mechanical talent in the world but the scouts still have to get into their heads to see what makes them tick. It must be the most difficult part of their jobs.
Marte? Really? Did he not just get injured last week, mild or not? This WBC stuff is BS. Its a good concept and all, but teams should ultimately have veto rights.
Well okay! Interesting to me only I’m sure is that it looks like I will be going to spring training. I think though it would be a good idea for me to look for game tickets.
A smart idea on my part was to decide to hold off until April to go to Atlanta. I don’t think I was going to be able to switch gears from players to pandas and enjoy both fully! Also, I will try to go at a time when the Bravos are at home so I can take in a game at the same time.
Back to the internet to try to get me some tickets.
“Mystique and Aura, Saucy things
Each dancing at a pole”
yesterday, jokes were made about me working at Lace an Stilleto. now this?
hmm good thing these players aren’t important to the team’s success
Hey Pete, I read your blog just because you have the news first. I have never liked your analysis. But seems to me, you really nailed this Tom Coughlin thing. Gotta give it to you.
Alvaro get out of my head dude, I could have easily written exactly what you just did. Nice work and I obviously couldn’t agree more with what you said.