Would the Dodgers want Donnie?
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Apr 19, 2009 
Print This Post
| 
Email This Post
There’s an interesting piece in the LA Times about Joe Torre. Interesting because it discusses Don Mattingly’s future.
It says …
Torre and the Dodgers have a mutual interest in grooming hitting coach Don Mattingly as his successor. Mattingly coached for Torre in New York, then followed him to L.A.
“When it’s time for Joe not to manage the club, we would like his replacement to be on our staff,” General Manager Ned Colletti said.
If the Yankees do not return to the playoffs — after spending $423 million on Mark Teixeira, CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett — we cannot imagine Manager Joe Girardi will be invited back. The Yankees selected Girardi over Mattingly as the replacement for Torre, and perhaps they’ll ask their beloved first baseman for a do-over.
Mattingly, who has no managerial experience, said Torre has promised him nothing.
“I feel like he’s helping me prepare,” Mattingly said, “but I don’t know if that’s necessarily for here. I liked it in New York. I like it here. I like the game.”
I like girardi…but if he is ever fired or let go…mattingly would be my choice..or pena
I think Donnie would be happy managing on either coast.
But I would suspect that his heart is in the Bronx.
Given that he ended up needing some time early last season to attend to some personal stuff I doubt he holds a grudge over being “passed over” by the Yanks. He may even view it as a blessing in disguise.
Fire Joe G
http://firejoegirardi.com/
People who even suggest Joe Girardi should be fired for what has transpired this season really shouldn’t be taken seriously.
Girardi may do things that I disagree with at times but deserves to be fired?
That’s moronic.
This team didn’t win squat when George changed managers during the 80s as often as he changed his underwear.
Firing the manager isn’t going to help Wang get straightened out since he is solely responsible for three of their six losses.
David, I think I’d fire you from my analysis department. You’re drawing a conclusion on Brett Gardner after ten games? Really? Do the words “small sample size” mean anything to you?
David just checked out your site, wow one smart post after the other. NOT!!
I would much rather have Mattingly personally. But Girardi in no way deserves to be fired unless we dont make the playoffs. To think he should be fired at all during the season is ignorant
Let Girardi finish up his contract first. Give him a chance to grow into the job.
Also, you guys do realize it’s entirely realistic that this team could be the third-best in baseball and still miss the playoffs, right? The team that doesn’t make it likely won’t make it because of bad luck or injuries, not managerial incompetence. Will it be Girardi’s fault if AJ only goes 15 games and Hughes can’t pick up the slack? Or if A-Rod has setbacks and isn’t the same? It really won’t take much to miss.
How the F is it Girardi’s fault that we have 6 losses, with 3 of them being BLOW outs by wang?
If he wins 3 of those games we are 9-3 and this idiotic board would be shutting up.
Say what you want, but ive seen every game, everything inning and every PITCH of this season and guess what…they dont look half bad.
So everyone on this board should shut up. Reading your posts during the game is just embarassing
“People who even suggest Joe Girardi should be fired for what has transpired this season really shouldn’t be taken seriously.”
Ok, What about including last season up until now?
Girardi makes alot of head scratching moves.. this latest one concerning Wang is another example.. What exactly does skipping a start accomplish if he’s not hurt? If it’s mental, he has to pitch his way out of it. All that he’ll be doing up here is thinking about his last start.. The side stuff and the bullpen sessions haven’t worked the past few weeks. It’s just stuff like this where you think the solution is a given but he comes out and does something else.
And cmon now.. this team is a little better than those 80s teams. We need someone who knows what they’re doing out there and not still learning on the job.
I’m actually not sure what egregious errors Girardi’s made. His bullpen management was certainly better than his predecessor’s. The team’s SB% mark was right at the break-even point, in terms of helping/hurting run expectancy, so he wasn’t all Ozzie Guillen over-aggressive. Really, how much other stuff is there for the manager to do, in game?
How about we start looking for a seasoned manager and stop with the newcomers. You are asking to put in people with little to no managerial experience.
But what does the manager really have to do with it anyway. It’s what we put out on the field that matters. Torre did well as he had players to put out there. His managing didn’t win us games. The players did cause they were good.
This hackneye motley crew of has beens and could have beens out there now just aren’t going to get us anywhere. This season is just more of the same. Cashman doesn’t understand how to balance a team. He keep loading up on one aspect. We had power hitters one year and that got us zip. He loaded us up with starters now and that is getting us nothing but running in place with a bullpen that is laughable as it is now.
Starters are great. They can get us the lead by keeping the other team from hitting. But you need to protect your lead and that’s where the bullpen comes in and are as important as the starters. Joba in the bullpen would be just as important as he is as a starter. He has actually had more success as a reliever than he has a starter. Imagine all the close games that Joba can come into and keep us ahead. Or we can keep him pitching every 5 to 6 days as the bullpen implodes and we walk away with losses. Keeping a lead is as important as getting the lead. You all need to understand that. We have tons of starters. We don’t have squat for relievers and Joba is far more valuable right now as a reliever as he is a rare commodity in the Yankees system. Starters we have plenty of that can do what Joba does. Put that in your twinkie!!
Check out Brian Bruney’s line this year. Then go back to your first grade math teacher, and ask her which is greater, 70 or 200.
regain the heart! fire girardi/ bring in donnie!
Girardi isn’t up to this job. He is systematically pissing off everyone with influence in the clubhouse, and seems to have gotten “high on his own supply” with the refusals to carry a long man, recognize that Wang might not be ready to jump from 9 months of inactivity to regular starter, let relief pitchers complete their innings, or have someone credible at 3B. Why are we preserving two utility infielders on the 40-man? If Pena isn’t here for anything beyond ARod’s absence, he shouldn’t be on the roster. If Ransom is going to get DFA’d in two weeks, we should have a Berroa or Tomko up here.
I loved Ron Guidry as a pitcher, but he stunk as a pitching coach. What makes anyone think Mattingly would be any different as a manager? He has zero track record in that position. Give Girardi a chance. I would take him over Torre any day.
If there is need for a future Yankee Manager…Donnie Baseball or Willie Randolph ?!?
http://firejoegirardi.com/
I’ve more support why Melky simply MUST play over Brett Gardner.
Furthermore, you all assume that more innings equals better use. Well, how many of the total innings that Joba pitches will be 3 up and 3 down? Not all of his total innings will be strong innings as the 1st inning at times a pitcher needs to settle in. As we get into later innings they start to get weak and tired.
Joba can go long innings and something we don’t have is a long man. We have so many starters there isn’t enough room for them in the minors right now. A few that should be in AAA aren’t as there just isn’t a place for them there yet.
What Joba has shown us as a starter is that he is more effective as a reliever. We have 3 starters in AAA that are as good as Joba is that can come up so we can put Joba in the pen.
Let’s not forget that Mariano started out as a starter. Is he not worth anything cause he is a closer? Maybe we should move him to a starter going along with the flawed logic of the morons who visit the bloated king and think more innings means something better and are under the delusion that every inning Joba pitches will be lights out. He is better as a reliever and stop being so narrow minded.
Dude, your analysis is hackneyed and irrelevant. Assists are actually a pretty terrible indication of a player’s arm strength (seriously, Manny Ramirez has won assist titles), and for a center fielder, range >>>>> arm. Melky is pretty bad defensively, while Gardner has been above average, with the caveat being that defensive metrics tend to need a 1000-inning sample before they’re representative of ability. Melky Cabrera has tangibly demonstrated that he is nothing more than a fourth outfielder. Gardner is better defensively, and while he likely will never be a good hitter, as his wiffle-ball power likely prevents him from getting any respect in the strike zone, is probably still incrementally better than the putrid Cabrera. As you said in your first post, both are holding the fort down for A-Jax. Given that the lineup is improving anyway with the return of A-Rod in a couple weeks, stick with the defense in center.
4.2 IP, 10 K, 0 H, 0 BB Brian Bruney so far.
10.2 IP 9k, 10H, 8ER, 2HR, 5.06 ERA Joba so far.
Do with that what you will.
Mariano sucked as a starter. Joba last year had less than a .5 difference in ERA between roles. The difference in his K/BB was less than .2. You really should consider clicking over to baseball-reference.com and checking out the facts before making yourself look like a fool.
“4.2 IP, 10 K, 0 H, 0 BB Brian Bruney so far.
10.2 IP 9k, 10H, 8ER, 2HR, 5.06 ERA Joba so far.
Do with that what you will.”
I will ignore it, as A) Bruney’s line is inaccurate (he has 6 IP and 12 K), and B) Joba’s track record as a starter means a hell of a lot more than one bad start possibly can.
Gardner won the CF job in Spring Training when it was made clear to everyone that Florida was the battleground and open competition for the CF job.
Gardner clearly won. Melky lost. It wasn’t really that close, either.
If Melky was the clear choice to be the CF this season, he would have taken a stranglehold of that job and run with it.
He didn’t. He sucked for two years and it’s time to give someone else a chance for awhile.
We know what Melky has to offer – which is why he was the fifth outfielder until Nady got hurt.
We have 3 starters in AAA that are as good as Joba is that can come up so we can put Joba in the pen.
————
Clearly you have no idea what you’re talking about.
Joba has made 12 starts in the bigs and has thrown a quality start in 9 of them.
For the record, the definition of a “quality start” is 6.0 IP+ with 3 ER or less.
Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy have COMBINED to throw 36 starts in the bigs and have thrown just 10 quality starts. Those are both their combined numbers from 2007 and 2008.
There is no comparison talent wise between Joba and Hughes and Kennedy. There just isn’t.
If you think they can do what Joba has done so far, you obviously haven’t been paying attention to their struggles the last year.
Hey LoHudders. Good reading tonight.
Totally agree that Johnny Damon needs to shut his trap. He’s a good guy in his heart, but he talks way too much. I agree with the person (no. 27?) who said that he has earned the benefit of the doubt and that the team needs to support Wang during this tough stretch. Instead of running your mouth to someone who will print your words, why don’t you go to Girardi and express your concerns in private?
Next time Johnny goes through a tough stretch or personal problems, I wonder who’s going to throw Johnny under the bus? How about nobody. Because that’s not the Yankee way. He really irritates me at times.
Why everybody wants Girardi fired? Wang would be doing the same for Donnie.
And Pena gets the call before Donnie. Donnie’s too soft.
Hey everyone.. we have other pitchers in the minors other than Hughes and Kennedy. If you want to be a Yankees fan, please learn about your team and not just what you are told to say.
Did you hear about Joba before he came up? What about some of the other starters who came up and were great. Did you really hear about them? Did anyone at all every hear anything about Wang before he was called up? What about Cano? Simple minded lemmings!!
I was at the game yesterday. Sat on field level, left field right over the state farm sign. Game was atrocious, as you all know. But the Stadium is gorgeous, and it was nice to be there.
Also, the guy that threw that foul ball back at the players was wearing a red sox manny ramirez jersey. I watched it happen.
It seems like Cashman does things to try and prove the media wrong and its driving me crazy….yesterday was an embarrassment and I am glad I didn’t pay $$$ to see it….Tomko should be up here based on the way he pitched in the spring, we need a long man…the whole Roberton/Miranda/Claggett fiasco, what was that Cashman…how do we have a rookie make his first appearance in a situation like yesterday, that was a joke to put Girardi in that situation…why Tomko wasn’t available is beyond me…sorry but whatever you have to do for the 40 man roster do it to bring him up, get rid of Ramirez and Veras and bring back Robertson after the 10 days and bring up Berroa who is hitting .381 and let him play instead of Ransom and send down Pena…speaking of a Pena….I kept wondering why Carlos Pena wasn’t brought up in 2006 when he was hitting great in the minors for us and now he is great with Tampa…I mention this b/c it seems Cashman and whoever is advising him is clueless at times when it comes evaluating talent in triple AAA and bringing it up to help the big club…just saying….
Little League stadium. I think, without any factual support, that they designed it so A-Rod could hit homers to the alley when he aged.
Swisher should have caught the liner. Gardner had the ball in his glove. Weng let the ball go between his legs.
For a fund raiser, Posada, Molina, Swisher, and Matsui should have a race. The team lack of speed will amount to a weak defense.
I will not go to the Stadium. Actually, I couldn’t afford it if I lived close enough. Retired people on fixed incomes will find it out of their price class. I can eat and drink at home for less. And who wants to be cold or see a blow-out?
I always thought one day Donnie would be the manager of the Yankees. Oh well, I just wish him the best and maybe one day down the road he will be back in the Bronx. But right now, Girardi is our guy.
So I am just gonna pretend that yesterday never happened. I pray we destroy Pavano today.
“A site purchased because we couldn’t believe the domain name was available. The good folks at FireJoeGirardi are willing to give Joe G the benefit of the doubt…for now.”
Isn’t blogger free? So let’s see, whoever made up this site wants to fire girardi(I’m assuming from the name) yet, at the same time, gives him the benefit of the doubt? Um..okay.
Seriously, people need to chill on the “Fire Girardi” cries.
Great to see everyone maintaining some perspective after just a dozen games.
Yankee2709
i agree with everything except giradi was at fault with wang and letting the game get out of hand yet again.Giradi was also at fault for leavikng anthony claggett in to be destroyed in his mlb debut.
Randy I,
I have been following in previous threads, and I know you alluded to it ,I think yesterday. Do you think Nardi Conteras has the ability to help Wang?You seem to have a feel for this
I observed a very lengthy conversation between Stick Michael and Buck Showalter on Opening Day IN the stadium. (Note that I said OBSERVED and not LISTENED). It occurred during the game and it appeared to be very intense. They both departed together after the Indians blew the game wide open. Could there something going on?? I can only guess possibly.
Don Mattingly is my favorite Yankee ever. It would be awesome to see the captain back in pinstripes managing the Yankees.
Mike
i only wish.he’s my first choice to manage with what is available.it’s 2 early but he’ll be a possibility in june if we have a 500 record
If Bob Geren of the A’s becomes available I believe he would be a great fit in NY.
Good Morning, All –
Fascinating reading of all the late night comments on previous post, discussing Wang’s mechanics.
Per maangerial changes – I think that there are a lot of good baseball guys around, who can more than handle the technical aspects of a baseball game. The key is handling the players. Joe Torre excelled with the rosters he had to work with. Joe Girardi excelled his one year in Florida. However, the Yanks 2008 veteran roster was a different deal. Despite that, they won 89 games and came close, despite the starting pitching problems.
As far as this year, no manager looks good when their starting pitcher gets lit up like Wang has, and CC in his first start.
If AJ pitches well today, and the Yanks win, Joe will look like a genius.
If the Yankees don’t make the playoffs, there is zero chance that Girardi is back managing. If that happens, they most certainly will reach out to Donnie Baseball. If he says no, I’d give the job to Pena.
Oh god, here we go again. 3 of our 6 losses are because Wang couldn’t pitch more than 2 innings. What in the world was Joe supposed to do? Really think people!
Just read Johnny Damon’s comments. While I personally would have tried to be more supportive with Wang with my comments, nothing he said was a lie. He’s right. Wang is pitching like crap and because of it, the bullpen is toast. It is what it is.
tt15-
just up and waiting for coffee to brew. i don’t know much about nardi contreras . i think sj44 would know more about him . the only reason i have a feel for wang is that i’m good friends with neil allen who taught wang the sinker in the first place. i sat down with neil in spring training last year and among other things we had a lengthy talk about wang.
neil allen totally knows what makes wang tick. they have kept a close relationship. wang up until that time would call allen often. i’m not sure about now. the rays and the yankees are division rivals so it makes it difficult for a player from one organization to talk with a coach from another.
i believe that any attempts to fix wang should go back to the basics that allen taught wang in the first place. wang’s sinker is a trick pitch more unique than other pitcher’s sinkers. “”He’s a weird pitcher, with an unusual approach,” says Nate Silver of Baseball Prospectus.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.c.....ees/1.html
because of this weirdness or uniqueness , the yankees have to be care what they fool around with. i will say it again . here is what neil allen told me:
#1 he noticed that wang had the perfect arm slot to throw the sinker
#2 he showed him the sinker grip
#3 he shortened his natural long stride
that’s it. wang immediately had the devastating nasty sinker.
when wang would call allen after a bad game, allen would remind him to keep his stride short.
he also told me that he would tell wang to go up and in on hitters who would cheat up on the plate trying to get to the sinker before it sunk. the red sox do this as a team. allen told me that if his catcher wouldn’t give him the location up and in to go up and in on his own.
i caught neil as a bullpen catcher for several years and have worked with him with other pitchers so i understand where neil is coming from in his coaching. he keeps it simple, but the simplicity is based on lot of experience. he was a star pitcher at times himself and played for billy martin and torre among others and has an extensive network of friends who are pitching coaches like dave rhighetti, guidry, and don cooper of the white sox. torre called him about being the dodger pitching coach when torre got the job.
the yankees have the challenge of getting wang back to the basics that created the sinker in the first place. we want a retro wang where he has the devastating sinker. neil allen’s instructions are very simple and very clear.
i don’t see why yankee coaches can’t get wang back to these basics. on the blog late last night came to a near consensus that wang is simply not in shape yet and is still affected by the foot injury and long layoff . the yankees may have simplly miscalculated
that wang was in shape and ready to pitch.
his velocity is not there. he’s about 3-4 mph low and his mechanics are all off. he’s fixable totally fixable , and i’d advise people who are down on him to read the article i provided the link to to remember how good wang was.
wang is way to good to not get him back to where he was. he’s an 80-100 million dollar pitcher when he’s at his best. you don’t give up on that kind of pitcher.
Since we will invariably turn whatever topic we start with into “…but what is wrong with the Yankees is…” let me add my 2 cents…
I think Dave Eiland (Pitching Coach) needs to evaluate why Wang and several relievers are unprepared 50% of the time? Eiland swears that Wang is not hurt and had great stuff in the bullpen, but he “did not bring it into the game”. Well I am sorry, you can label that however you want, but the bottom line is Wang was NOT prepared, and that is Eiland’s responsibility. Neither Wang, Veras, Marte or others should be going out there if they are going to throw up the kind of meatballs we have seen and it is the job of the pitching coach to get these guys ready.
The Yankees problem so far in albeit what is a young season so far is periodic horrible pitching, not injuries. Wang didn’t suddenly forget how to pitch, he has a mechanical problem that he can’t get a handle on. Dave Eiland must be held responsible for the inconsistency.
WANG needs a shrink, He can’t pitch with men on base, He falls apart every time….
I think Plesac is on to something.
http://mlbnetwork.mlb.com/medi.....4184208179