Blog poll: How will A-Rod do?
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Alex Rodriguez returns to the Yankees later today. How do you think he will perform?
Since we last saw Rodriguez in pinstripes, he has been outed as a steroids user and then had surgery on his right hip. He is 33 and will turn 34 in July. After an MVP 2007, he had a bit of a down season (by his lofty standards) in 2008. Although his “down” season would be a career year for many players.
Do you think he will be better then ever? About the same, a lesser player or a shell of what he used to be?
Vote in the poll over to the right.
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on Friday, May 8th, 2009 at 1:35 am by Peter Abraham.
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Chad Jennings
Sam Borden
Josh Thomson
MVP season coming up, he will single handedly carry this team to the postseason once again
Never a good idea to bet on a 34 yr old former steroid user coming off surgery.
I’ll say
.281/18 HRs/76 RBIs
I think it’s going to depend on how far you and your “journalist” buddies are up his behind this season.
rofl OP23. excellent insight
Those games that we’re losing by one or two runs will more likely turn to victories. But I think he’ll regress a little bit. I don’t think he wants to get Manny Ramirezed.
Ultimately I think he’ll play to his usual level. Might take a bit though…I don’t think the book stuff will get to him but I’m sure he’ll come up pressing and might need some time before he really takes off.
It’s unfortunate that pressue just kills the Yanks in a way it doesn’t impact other teams. Combination payroll/large media market/Yankees history tend to elevate expectations too high for even the best of the best players.
Maybe 18 HRs in meaningless situations alone… He’ll end up with 30+ as long as he doesn’t get suspended.
I think he’ll have a normal year. Maybe a little better since its an odd year
Anyways, before anyone thinks “Oh, just because ARod is coming back, doesnt mean our problems are solved.” Dont forget who literally carried the Yankees to the playoffs in 2007
I wonder if Girardi knew that Mo wasn’t 100% when for some odd reason he asked him to get 4 outs at Fenway last week?! I am assuming he did, that is why it makes it even more weird.
Slow start but he’ll put up good numbers. At the very least, it should take some pressure off Texeira. Going on the road may help them. Even better would be to face a team with poor pitching.
I think that he’ll get off to a slow start. He’s been going 1-6, 1-6, 2-8 and things like that in the minors, which leads me to believe that while his hip might be feeling fine, his swing might not be 100%.
Look for Tex to start feasting though as April is over, and he has the big bat in the lineup behind him. Those 3-1 and 3-2 pitches will start getting a little closer to the middle of the plate for him to whack at, rather than take his walks.
A-Rod is going to be rusty. There’s no question about it.
But his presence alone is going to help the team and Teixeira in front of him loosen up a bit.
It may take a week or two for A-Rod to get going – but he’ll get there.
I’ll say this much – I think getting away from NY and going on the road for awhile is going to be a good thing for this team.
I couldn’t vote. I think he’ll be somewhere between “regresses a little” and “play to his norm”.
I think that his mind will be freed a bit, but he’ll start playing his age.
Mind over matter. Yikes, this is Alex Rodriguez we’re talking about.
Agreed with pat m in ct. He’ll start off slow as he starts spring training all over (hitting bp & simulated games & extended st doesn’t count).
Good or bad, it seemed he was all or nothing. All hits were homeruns with the exception of a couple. So in this sense, he’s right on track.
With the team in disarray, Alex will be a sight for sore eyes tomorrow. Let’s hope his presence alone will have positive trickle down effects for the rest of the lineup.
He had a down year in 2008? Not sure how you figure that. He missed 24 games and his numbers would have been right on target with his career averages. If that’s a down year, what was Jeter’s? And 80% of the rest of the hitters?
have we all forgotten how a-rod quit (opt-ed out) on this team? maybe we’ve forgotten how he emasculated our owner (“If Alex opts out, we will not negotiate with him.”- Hank). yet we all can’t wait for him to make his triumphant return to save the ‘09 yanks. do people really think he’s gonna show up with a new catcher, a new bullpen, high-priced free agents that aren’t a bust, a pink slip for girardi, and a magic tonic that makes everyone 10 years younger?
my guess is he’ll show up with bleached tips and weakly ground back to the pitcher when it matters, like he always does.
dennis-costanza
May 8th, 2009 at 1:26 am
Pat-
I think Pete Rose may have been the last player manager in MLB however I will defer to GB7 who has forgotten more about Abner Doubleday’s creation than I know.
GB7- Please advise.
-dennis
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Well, yeah, officially, Rose was the last player-manager. However, for about 10 years of the Torre regime, the Yankees had a player-manager once a year.
pat
May 8th, 2009 at 1:29 am
GB
Or Pete saying none of his teammates had heard from him in absentia.
I’m not disappointed but kind of surprised the pitchfork wielding media hasn’t demanded to hear from Manny. Alex got to be like the first child for Boras so you learn what not to do with the next one.
——————————————————————————————
I really hope that Rodriguez tells the media that the first time one of them asks about his private life or mentions steroids, he’ll stop the interview and freeze that writer out. It’s strictly baseball and nothing else.
Love how they have all of the inside info and it’s never right.
Not sure if you read the remark from Pa that he never stated that he never said that the Yanks were better off without Rodriguez. It was back in ST when Ransom and Pena were hitting and NYY was winning.
***PA that he stated that he never said***
Pete,
His “down” year is more due to him missing time than his performance. Before last season, he averaged 590ABs in his first four seasons here.
You project those 510ABs to an average season of ABs of 590 and you get:
120R 38 Doubles 40HRs 119RBIs 21SBs .302AVG .392OBP .965OPS
Sure you can say he’s a steroid user and that he’s turning 34 but he by no means showed any signs of slowing down last season.
“Well, yeah, officially, Rose was the last player-manager. However, for about 10 years of the Torre regime, the Yankees had a player-manager once a year.”
I believe Bernie Williams was the last
m
May 8th, 2009 at 2:01 am
I couldn’t vote. I think he’ll be somewhere between “regresses a little” and “play to his norm”.
I think that his mind will be freed a bit, but he’ll start playing his age.
Mind over matter. Yikes, this is Alex Rodriguez we’re talking about.
Agreed with pat m in ct. He’ll start off slow as he starts spring training all over (hitting bp & simulated games & extended st doesn’t count).
Good or bad, it seemed he was all or nothing. All hits were homeruns with the exception of a couple. So in this sense, he’s right on track.
With the team in disarray, Alex will be a sight for sore eyes tomorrow. Let’s hope his presence alone will have positive trickle down effects for the rest of the lineup
————————————————————
I think that he’ll do ok this weekend in Batimore, where he always hits, but, that will probably be on an adrenaline rush, like the first few games when he came back from the quad injury last year. Then, he’ll settle down and cool off until he gets his swing back.
Is it even possible for arod to be better than ever. The sentence implies that he would be better than he has ever been before and in 2007, he has one of the best seasons in the history of baseball. How can you do better than that?? Its not only unreasonable, its impossible. But if better than ever means better than last year to some people (which doesnt make much sense but whatever), yea, I would agree with that.
GB7-
Well Played.
This blog needs a good start by CC tommorow. I think it is a good thing BTW that arod comes back on the road IMO.
-dennis
ArodIsGod was not a poll option?
Booooooo.
A-Rod will play at the usual level. However we need bullpen arms more than we need a cleanup hitter.
dennis-costanza
May 8th, 2009 at 2:17 am
GB7-
Well Played.
This blog needs a good start by CC tommorow. I think it is a good thing BTW that arod comes back on the road IMO.
-dennis
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Morning, Dennis. Hope all is well with you and Annie. I assume that you are back home in New England. Yeah, NYY needs a well pitched game on Friday, and badly, rather than a badly pitched game. With Teixeira, batting against Guthrie, it’s going to be rough again, with a steady diet of breaking pitches. I don’t think that even Rodriguez will stop those unless Guthrie’s wild and has to come in with fastballs.
GB7-
Amy and I leave Saturday AM and should be on the 530 ferry Sunday eve to the island. We look forward to getting there.
The weekend matchups look favorable to the NNY compared to the Sox. TB’s top 3 own the Sox lineup.
Sad day for baseball re:Manny. I took noy joy in Arod or anyone else on anything banned by MLB.
Hope you are feeling good. Really good post re: Remy yesterday. I am sure you can empathize with the battle.
-dennis
dennis-costanza
May 8th, 2009 at 2:40 am
GB7-
Amy and I leave Saturday AM and should be on the 530 ferry Sunday eve to the island. We look forward to getting there.
The weekend matchups look favorable to the NNY compared to the Sox. TB’s top 3 own the Sox lineup.
Sad day for baseball re:Manny. I took noy joy in Arod or anyone else on anything banned by MLB.
Hope you are feeling good. Really good post re: Remy yesterday. I am sure you can empathize with the battle.
-dennis
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You guys just have a safe and fun trip home. Hopefully, we can get together when you guys come back in the fall. I’m getting ready to move out of savannah, soon. Got a good deal on a small house in Midway. Rent is getting too expensive here, but, I’m going to miss it.
Sad day for baseball fans, just like with the others. I get no joy in seeing Ramirez fall. How anybody can say they do and be a baseball fan, is beyond me.
I was really sorry to hear about Remy. Like I said, I didn’t care for his announcing style, but, nobody deserves to go through that. This new setback is never good. I’m just hoping he bounces back. Your you guys in NE, it’s like Yankee fans suffering with Bobby Murcer or Mickey Mantle. It hurts the great memories of childhood. Makes things seem less like innocence and too much like real life. Not what baseball is supposed to be.
***For*** you guys in NE, it’s like Yankee fans
GB7.
Great post.
I grew up wanting to be Yaz and was crushed when I saw him chain smoking in the dugout.
Man, A lot has changed since then given the events in MLB the last decade.
We come back just after Thanksgiving. It would be fun to get together for a Sox/Yanks game downtown.
I agree on Remy. He is tough to listen to as he takes the game over. Orsillo is much better IMO.
-dennis
I really don’t know but it has to be better than what we have now right? Unfortunately he can’t pitch but maybe he can help us win a few of those shootouts or help us tack on a few runs make a lead bullpen proof. He does lengthen this lineup and I think it will help Tex. We will see.
Yeah no question A-Rod will be rusty… lol or no question he will hit a million homers when he comes back… the truth is nobody knows how he will do until he starts getting ABs… he could be a choke artist or superman… i would hope he will just stay consistent and off the DL the rest of the season… I mean truly how could you know how he will do… We have proven players like Teixeira who has failed miserably countless times already and CC who has been extremely mediocre so far… Yet Melky is doing great and Swisher is having a tremendous year, two people we didn’t think we could count on at all… Unfortunately, no matter what A-Rod won’t directly improve our bullpen so that’s disappointing. I mean who cares how many game tying hits A-Rod could potentially get, if our bullpen just coughs up the lead THE NEXT HALF INNING. I MEAN ITS LIKE CLOCKWORK
I wish Remy well. I enjoy the Remy/Orsillo dynamic, particulary when they both find something very amusing and can’t keep it together.
I was checking in on some Sox game last season (or the one before) and the camera panned over to a couple who was on a date for that Sox Appeal show. The guy seemed to be doing all the talking and the woman did not crack a smile. Remy and Orsillo totally lost it.
I’d prefer it if they had a little less to be chipper about on the field, but I do hope Remy makes it back healthy. He’s much better than Eck the Dreck.
dennis-costanza
May 8th, 2009 at 3:02 am
GB7.
Great post.
I grew up wanting to be Yaz and was crushed when I saw him chain smoking in the dugout.
Man, A lot has changed since then given the events in MLB the last decade.
We come back just after Thanksgiving. It would be fun to get together for a Sox/Yanks game downtown.
I agree on Remy. He is tough to listen to as he takes the game over. Orsillo is much better IMO.
-dennis
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I think what annoyed me most about Remy was that green toy shtick he had (Wally). There really aren’t a lot of the great old announcers anymore like Allen, Barber, Ernie Harwell. Really loved Dizzy Dean and PeeWee Reese.
I didn’t mind Rizzuto, but, I really liked Bill white. The best crew I’d heard in the last 20 years was probably Murcer, Kaat and whover they stuck in there. Herb Score and Joe Nuxall were good, too. Loved the old players that became announcers for the stories they’d tell. It helped when, once in a while they’d give the score, too.
I grew up wanting to be Mantle, but, then, I found out that he hung around Billy Martin, and I wanted to live longer.
Nick SF.
The Eck is tough to listen to. He is like watching/listening to Matt Dillon in the movie “Beautiful Girls”.
BTW, watching MLB network NNY/LAA. Everyone looks so small. Huh??
-dennis
GB7.
My favorite announcer of all time is Vin Scully. Only because his voice meant the post season. That was rare for a Sox fan!
-dennis
Ha, I just flipped over to check it out. So far they all look like Brett Gardners. Brian Doyle? Don’t remember him at all, but nice hit.
NickSF.
LOL. This game is going to make swear off carbs…
-dennis
“me” swear off carbs
Denny Doyle. Boston’s answer to Nucky F. Dent at 2nd base. Solid little player.
But, did two players ever make a career out of one post season run like Bucky F. Dent and Brian Doyle in 1978? Never did anything before or after. Bucky became a movie star and a centerfold and they both opened baseball schools. Had to be a tough job being the the TV movie “Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders” and having to kiss and hold Jane Seymour.
Denny Doyle. Boston’s answer to ***Bucky*** F. Dent at 2nd base.
I’m starting my typing lessons tomorrow.
For the record, I thought I’d post what Pete said on March 25th regarding one Alex Rodriguez:
http://yankees.lhblogs.com/200.....ent-704410
In the post of the year, Giuseppe Franco says that the Yankees cannot win the World Series without Alex Rodriguez.
The Yankees have won 26 World Series without him. Somehow.
Alex has never never played in one World Series game.
I would suggest that if the Yankees did not have Alex, they would be far more likely to win. His 24 + 1 mentality is not conducive to championship play. I realize it’s spring training, but the Yankees have looked terrific.
They’re a much better team when they aren’t sitting around waiting for him to hit a home run.
Pete’s above rant came from this comment by me:
http://yankees.lhblogs.com/200.....ent-704387
Giuseppe Franco March 25th, 2009 at 8:12 pm
A-Rod is abnormal and a clown, and it should be pointed out. By his actions, he wants people to know it. His own PR reps sent Pete the pictures of him kissing a mirror (so that Pete could post it here and show the world. What, did they think Pete wanted to post them on his wall?)
——————————
Perhaps you’ve noticed that, for better or worse, A-Rod is going to be a Yankee for the next nine years.
The Yanks cannot win a World Series without him. Doesn’t really seem all that productive to try and destroy the guy.
lol kind of sad. It’s one thing to not like the guy. To deny his talents is stupid. We can’t win without him. We are a sub .500 team without him.
Folks (Peter) can talk about all the homers in the new park all they want, but other than Matsui’s HR last night, all the rest would have been out of any park in MLB. So, I really don’t think the size of the new park is an issue.
What we are seeing is the end of the Mariano era and the future of our team until we come up with a great closer like Pappy for the sawx. Get used to it. The business model is broken and the Rays and Sawx own us.
….And all of those that believe Arod is 33/34, please raise your hand. He is not the age he says he his, wouldn’t this be the next show to drop?
the mets were laughed at before their 4 or 5 game winning streak & now everyone is talking about how the mets did everything right & the yankees did everything wrong.
the yankees have to come out of this tailspin or girardi will get booted.
something,anything needs to be done…for 23 million a year will it kill sabathia to go out & pitch a complete game shutout like he did a few times with other teams when he made much less?
we simply can’t fall back too far.this team is not bad.the problem now is what do we do about a catcher???
this team should of traded for a few young pitchers like greinke when we could of.
a catcher,bullpen help also.
how do the red sox go out & keep winning with no ss,youk out???
what can we do???
do we need to fire the hitting & pitching coach???
bru: will it kill any of these pitchers to go more than 5 2/3 innings? it’s not just CC.
you’re right. the team is not bad. the team should be winning more games, even with the guys on the DL. they’re not, people are talking about “arm strength,” etc. I think the biggest change has to be a managerial and coaching one, but I understand why many will disagree with me.
baseballfan: Alex is as old as he is. I grew up in Miami and followed his entire high school career. That’s just ridiculous and a tad racist.
I’ve got my catcher’s gear, just in case. Where have you gone, Chad Moeller?
bru: yes…..I think Girardi, Long, Eiland, and Harkey should be spellchecking their resumes.
the yankees sign arod for 10 yrs.huge mistake,
6 or 7 maybe but 10 is insane.
this team is pressing big time & the stress of ny is killing them.
this will turn around.there is no way that most teams are better than us & one oither thing.do not count mo out.
can romine catch now??? i know montero is not ready.
hank & hal need to say something.
are they still alive.
have a team meeting & tell these guys to go out & just have fun.
just try to hit the ball hard.
these coaches might have to go for the sake of doing something.
Puhlease. In the launching pad that is Yankee Stadium.
.300/40 HR/100 RBI
lol A-Rod is gonna be back in Texas
Alex will be rusty as should be expected…….and when he comes home, he will be booed – I don’t have any doubt about it. He can’t be a savior for this team. He gets at best 4 at bats a game. As to his presence improving things, while I buy that a bit Tex isn’t all of a sudden going to swing better, Cano isn’t going to come out of his slump (well he will eventually, but not because of Alex’s presence), the bottom half of the lineup is not going to magically become decent hitters…..
Thanks for posting that, GF. I remembered Pete saying that as well, although at the time I believed he was kidding – he had to be, right?
Time to tune out sports radio today. “Joba to the pen” will be replaced by “Is Mo through?” talk. Mo clearly needs to work more to build arm strength, but we still can’t push him because of this surgery. I don’t know how the Yankees fix this quickly enough if they can’t pitch him more than one inning at a time……Very difficult situation.
Welcome back Alex
pat May 8th, 2009 at 12:44 am
From AP
“Teixeira said he’s been text messaging Rodriguez every few days during his rehab, and could stand to benefit the most from his return.”
Tex volunteered to have his parents pick Alex up at the airport in Baltimore.
——————————-
Was this true? Tex said he’s parents would pick up Alex.
Hopefully having someone else to take the heat tonight in Baltimore will help Tex. He won’t be the only one wildly jeered. Maybe the fans will lose their voices from all the booing.
GreenBeret7
May 8th, 2009 at 3:51 am
Denny Doyle. Boston’s answer to Bucky F. Dent at 2nd base.
*I’m starting my typing lessons tomorrow.*
GB – Good for you. Think of all the money you’ll save on wite-out and erasers.
I would suggest that if the Yankees did not have Alex, they would be far more likely to win. His 24 + 1 mentality is not conducive to championship play. I realize it’s spring training, but the Yankees have looked terrific.
They’re a much better team when they aren’t sitting around waiting for him to hit a home run.
=============================================
So how have we doing in the winning games without Alex around department?
Thanks for posting this Giuseppe Franco
Not expecting Alex to be some magic cure to our problems, but boy have we missed him.
I think A-Rod is going to come back and take over the game, the league and the city of New York as he did in the 2007 season.
All you A-Rod haters, you make me laugh. This man is a tremendous talent. We are lucky to have him. Without him coming back, this team would have virtually NO shot.
The Yankees have Posada, Wang, Bruney, Nady, Molina out, Damon and Matsui playing hurt, Cervelli catching, (CERVELLI!!), and now it looks as though there may be a problem with MO!?!?
Our team is in Shambles, folks. Complete and utter shambles. I am forced to look at A-R0d as a beacon of hope now. And if that is the one thing that can keep me believing in this team, then so f’n be it.
GreenBeret7
I agree. When they speak to him today, he should open with a statement that he is only answering baseball related questions. Any questions regarding steroids, Manny, Selena Roberts will NOT be answered. If you continue to ask I will promptly end the interview. Something along those lines.
And regarding how Alex will play. I agree he will be rusty, but a rusty Arod is better than anyone else at this point. He presence in the lineup will help tremendously.
Well, his bat has got to help, even if he has a down year. But I can’t see him being a panacea, unless he has a monster season ala 2007. He would have to hit a ton to overcome the poor pitching issues.
Betsy- Alex will NOT be booed at home. He will receive a standing O.
Good morning all…..keep the faith
I think he finishes the season with career-like numbers…the real question is, will the fans give him more than 2 plate appearances before they start booing him for poor production?
just throwing this out there, but remember that he’s been out the whole season to this point and while he’s been getting AB’s in extended ST games, Gardner looked like a .400 hitter in ST so ARod will need some time to get back to hitting major league pitching. That said, I wouldn’t be suprised if he has a huge series against Baltimore and then “falls back to earth” a little bit after that. of course as Peter mentioned, a “down year” for him would be readily accepted by many players in the bigs
With the way this season has been going so far, I can’t say that I have any confidence that anything will go right.
CC, AJ, Wang, Posada, Molina, Nady, the new Stadium issues, Bruney, Teixeira, Mo and ARod with all his issues so far.
That isn’t exactly something hopeful to point to that we see one coming back with so much baggage to deal with. It almost seems like the Yankee ghosts are putting the whammy on the team.
anyways, whatever his performance level is, it will undoubtedly be better than what we’ve gotten from 3rd base at this point.
Jennifer, when Alex K’s for the first time with men on base, he will be booed. Book it.
The thing that makes this season even harder to take is that I can’t fault this team’s effort. I can fault their execution, but not their effort. Every time the pen gives runs away, after the team has scored to take the lead or pull close, the players must feel like they’ve had their guts ripped out. I think they’ve shown a lot of character in continuing to come back………even though it all amounts to nothing because of the pitching.
CC has to step up tonight and be the ace that we are paying him to be.
We need a pitcher to shut down an offense like we’ve been shut down. Hopefully we can get CC a lead before he even pitches.
Lets see — without steroids — he’ll probably hit some homeruns in meaningless games, bat around .280, and “get nervous” with (i.e., pop up or K) with RISP.
What is wrong with this team that they are having so many injuries?
Is it age?
Is it preparation before the game?
a combination?
or something else.
Name me another team that has been as decimated with injuries as we have.
Arod’s return will be a boon of sorts but I don’t think it will lift the team back to first place. The team as a whole has a unbelieveable amount of health issues:
Posada – Hamstring
Molina – Quad
Marte – sore shoulder
Rivera – tired arm
Tex – wrist (but still playing)
Bruney – shoulder
Wang – hip
Arod – hip
Nady – elbow
and to replace them we have AAA callups/holdovers from 08
Ramiro Pena
Angel Berrora
Brett Gardner
Cervelli
Phil Hughes
Dave Robertson
Mark Melancon
Phil Coke
and probably a couple others I can’t think of at 8 am.
Arod’s return won’t fix the black hole that will be the bottom half of the lineup or the tatters that is our bullpen right now. I’m just hoping he can just help the team hold water right now until half/most of those injured return.
No Retreat,baby, No Surrender!- Words to live by.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4J54_MvGL0
“Given what has happened to Roger Clemens, A-Rod and now Ramirez, it’s a pretty clear signal to major leaguers that drug use is not worth the consequences. Three mortal lock Hall of Famers now may need a ticket if they want to get into Cooperstown. It’s another bad day for baseball.”
———————————————————-
PETE: The consequence is a $200 million dollar salary. Do you think these guys give a damn about the HOF. Thirty years ago old timers needed the HOF to help their auto signing shows to pay the bills in their retirement. These guys will walk away with enough cash to support the next 5 generations of family even if they never work again. The reward outweighs the risk 10 fold.
It’s baseball, some days you are the dog, some days the fire hydrant…
Arod’s return will be a boon of sorts but I don’t think it will lift the team back to first place. The team as a whole has a unbelieveable amount of health issues:
Posada – Hamstring
Molina – Quad
Marte – sore shoulder
Rivera – tired arm
Tex – wrist (but still playing)
Bruney – shoulder
Wang – hip
Arod – hip
Nady – elbow
and to replace them we have AAA callups/holdovers from 08
Ramiro Pena
Angel Berrora
Brett Gardner
Cervelli
Phil Hughes
Dave Robertson
Mark Melancon
Phil Coke
and probably a couple others I can’t think of at 8 am.
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ANd this is why Joe will not be fired. Look at who he has lost this year.
“jennifer
May 8th, 2009 at 8:43 am
Arod’s return will be a boon of sorts but I don’t think it will lift the team back to first place. The team as a whole has a unbelieveable amount of health issues:
—————————————————————
ANd this is why Joe will not be fired. Look at who he has lost this year.”
***********
Too bad there isn’t another Director of Performance Enhancement we can fire. Maybe Manny has some free time…?
Can A-rod catch?
A-Rod will probably be better than that outed HGH user, Andy Pettitte. Funny how only Alex gets tagged with the “cheater” label.
.305/38/110
“Tantron Willoughby prays for Randy ”
i was in my local hardware store yesterday and thought of you. i was looking for the right wing nut .
Don’t stop believing!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ip1zsUIosoA
Some Karate Kid to get us pumped up:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWbFWHrJ0CU
There is no doubt Arod will get booed at some point when he comes back. Mariano got booed last night.
But, that’s not the baseline to measure anything these days in sports.
For the most part, most fans are pretty solid. However, there are a vocal minority that are just morons. Plain, run of the mill morons.
Need proof? How in the world does ANYBODY who calls themselves a Yankee fan boo Mariano Rivera? And don’t give me this crap, “Its my right”.
This isn’t a constituional law issue. Its a, “How do I not show the world “I am a Moronic Yankee Fan” issue.
Make no mistake, he got booed last night.
Need more proof? Read the game thread comments on this, or any Yankee blog, after losses. Its almost a race between morons to see who can post the most moronic comments in the evening. Some nights that competition is more entertaining (in a sick way) than the game itself.
If you work under the premise that a vocal minority of Yankee fans, and sports fans in general (the premise I operate from daily) are morons, its pretty clear Arod will get booed at some point this year by Yankee “fans”.
Bottom line is, it means nothing.
The only way this team digs itself out of this rut is with pitching. They aren’t going to hit their way out of it. Its not a good enough offensive team to dominate opponents with their bats.
They have to pitch their way out of it. The starters AND bullpen have to raise their collective games BIGTIME if this team is going to weather this injury blitz.
Hopefully, that starts tonight.
Tonight is the night the Yankees need to see a vintage CC Sabathia performance.
If that happens, they can begin to take steps forward and try to get out of this rut.
Had the came on PIP say I couldn’t hear it. Can’t believe those dolts booed Mo. It just worse and worse. Why would players want to come here and be treated like this if MO is getting booed.
Yes has been a very frustrating 5 days, but does anyone think they aren’t trying? Yeah Andy wants to go out there and give up 4 runs. And Mark wants to hit a 30 foot dribbler.
It makes me sick that they call themselves Yankee fans.
He was booed, and it was very disheartening to be lumped in with Yankee “fans” when that happens, sad really.
Dom DiMaggio dies at 92
RIP.
http://www.boston.com/news/loc.....sox_1.html
I guess when things go bad, you really get to see which fans are the ones that give us a +bad+ name
so what is the chance that cashman will trade for a catcher now?
roger- I think it depends on how serious his injury is. You can’t seem too desperate they’ll ask for a kings ransom.
sometimes the best thing that can happen is to have so many things go wrong at once that an organization rethinks what it’s doing.
the yankees had on paper have the players to make the playoffs. what’s the problem then?
that’s the question they need to be asking. i think one problem that they have is limiting themselves to about 210 million in salaries for this year.
it’s an arbitrary limit they’ve created. while they transition to developing their farm system, the reality is takes more than 210 million for them to get all the players they need. that’s obvious because that’s what they’re spending and they still aren’t good.
injuries are the obvious problem, but if they take players who other teams would like to get rid of because of high salaries off the table because of not wanting to add salary, what are they left with but trading a slew of young pitchers for replacement players.
for a few years, the yankees really need to stop thinking about a 210,000 payroll limit if they want to be a dominant team. why spend 1.5 billion on a stadium and not spend 10 million to pick up another catcher or another 5 million to get an 8th inning guy.
this new 1.5 billion dollar stadium can’t be empty in october because the yankees refuse to spend 10-20 million to replace injured players.
that would be just a dumb business decision.
jennifer
but what if molina is out for 2-3 weeks?
You can’t expect cervelli to catch every game..And it’s not the first injury posada has had this year
“so what is the chance that cashman will trade for a catcher now?”
roger from amsterdam-
as i said above, i think they should buy a catcher rather than trade for one. what do they have to trade right now when most of their young pitchers have been exposed and are at low value right now.
HCG was added to baseball’s list of banned substances last year. Famed steroid user Jose Canseco was caught trying to bring the drug across the Mexican border into the United States last November.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/05.....168245.htm
I didn’t know this.
Randy,
What catchers would you like them to run out and buy?
HCG,
I had to laugh last night I was reading What to Expect When you are expecting and what HCG actually does. I didnt know Manny had a Uterus…
I think Cash is pre-occupied with finding another RHP who falls behind every hitter.
There’s no question pitching is the key to getting the Yanks rolling, but since 2004 they score a run a game more when Alex is in the lineup and that’s a big deal, too.
I just hope I live long enough to see some position players on the 40-man roster, a decent catcher and an upgraded bench. But the clock’s tickin’
There aren’t any free agent catchers left. So who could you buy? No team is going to help the Yankees out. You can bet if Cash calls they’ll be asking for a Phil Hughes for some fringe catcher. And no way do you make that move.
sj44-
it is very puzzling why yankee pitchers aren’t pitching like the back of their baseball card.
at what point does eiland come under scrutiny? he had great success in getting mussina to pitch up and in last year and also with the emergence of a no name bullpen, but overall pitching is not performing the way you’d expect.
Every team dropped the ball passing on Brayan Pena. He now plays for Omaha with JR House. House can hit and is a fair catcher. A minor league vet with a good head on his shoulders. He’s stuck behind Pena and the KC catchers. I would look at a guy like that. Thinking more along the lines of the trade for Molina only giving up Jeff Kennard.
Jennifer,
I couldn’t believe it.
You don’t need to know much about baseball to see Mariano isn’t yet 100% off the shoulder surgery. His velocity is up and down and his cutter isn’t darting yet, almost on a batter to batter basis.
If you know a little about pitching, its crystal clear he’s not.
And for the statheads, please don’t quote me walk totals. Mariano Rivera can be 80 years old and he will still not walk people. He’s getting hit more now than he has in years and that’s because velocity and movement aren’t up to snuff yet.
That’s why I got so ticked off at some people in here yesterday for second guessing Girardi and saying he needed to put him out there for a second inning two nights ago.
It really was, “Dumb Baseball IQ 101″ to take that position.
Mariano Rivera is 39 years old and is coming off shoulder surgery.
When somebody says it was “minor” surgery, its only “minor” because they aren’t the one’s getting cut.
Full strength in the shoulder is not there yet. Its a delicate balance between pitching (which, along with exercises, is how it gets stronger) and overuse, which keeps the shoulder weak. That’s why he’s monitored DAILY.
Add to it his age, and its pretty clear that he can’t be used like he used to be used. Meaning, 2 inning appearances are a thing of the past.
Its not rocket science. To some Yankee “fans” though, it seems to be.
The booing?
There is a culture of Yankee “fans” who just come to the ballpark, blogs and talk shows to be miserable.
Its a Pre-2004 Red Sox fan mentality. They seek and find (at least in their own minds) doom and gloom everywhere.
The only thing seperating a number of current Yankee “fans” from Pre-2004 Red Sox fans is, they aren’t wearing a Red Sox jersey when they emote their misery. That’s it.
Aside from that, they are cut from the same cloth.
When somebody writes, “This is the worst Yankee team I have ever seen. I’ve never seen a Yankee team play this bad in my life”.
That’s kind of funny considering they were 21-29 at one point, in 2005, and 11-19 in 2006. Both CONSIDERABLY worse than they are right now and not exactly ocurring in the Stone Age.
I won’t even go back to the 60’s and early 70’s when they were also bad. How about the late 80’s and early 90’s?
These guys are BUSTING THEIR HUMPS every night. If they weren’t, they would just roll over when they fall 4 runs down.
They come back and have a chance to win almost every night. That’s the sign of a team with CONSIDERABLE heart.
Its just not happening for them yet.
What’s their reward from the “fans”? They get booed.
Mariano gets booed. Tex now gets the Arod treatment.
Think about that for a minute. 28 games into the season, Mark Teixeira is booed EVERYTIME he bats. Intro and after the result.
The next time somebody tries to sell you that Yankee fans are the “smartest and best” in the world, remind them of that fact.
They aren’t. In fact, a number of them are Pre-2004 Red Sox fans and nothing more.
Mark Teixeira should not need a -rod behind him to be able to hit. just ridiculous. melky has ramiro pena hitting behind him and he is hitting .325. Lame. allof that being said, but august 1, we will be in first place.
by the way, who is going to catch for us now and who is the back up?
Coach6423
I read somewhere that their is a use for males to stimualte testosterone production. Everyone already knows what he took, so if he took it for a legitimate reason why not appeal and tell the world. Instead he declines appealing and loses 8 million. Sounds like a guilty man to me.
@randy
Who can they buy then??
SJ- Some dolt called up wfan this morning criticized Joe for using Mo last night. Than in the next breath criticized him for not using him for two innings the night before. It makes absolutely no sense.
And you are right about the people saying this is the worst baseball. How soon they forget a few years ago. They all forget all the awful starts even under Joe. Year after year. Chanting fire Joe. For what? he has a garbage pen, than every time he goes to he doesn’t know if he is getting gasoline or water (more often than not gasoline). What is the man supposed to do. that is also why he is pushing his starters past 100 pitches on a nightly basis, he is afraid of what comes through those bullpen doors.
Pitching needs to step up. Pitch a shut-out or limit the Orioles to 2 or less runs. They cannot continue to give up 5 runs or more every night.
The most dependable hitters right now are Damon & Melky. Tex is awful, Cano is slumping. Now people expect Alex to be the Savior. Unfortunately, there was only one Savior and he didn’t play ball.
This team is hard to watch right now. I feel bad for Girardi.
How can you boo Mo.? Those booing are not true Yankee fans.
ESPN reported that Manny originally faied a test because he had synthetic testosterone in his system. He appealed the findings. Durring the appeal MLB found papers linking him to HCG and he was suspended for that, not the synthetic testosterone.
He found a DR. to give him HGC to “fix the test”-my oppinion-because HGC can be used for medical reasons. It is also a very common masking agent.
SJ,
My thoughts exactly. Im about to turn 30, so missed the great teams of the late 70’s, and grew up watching Donnie Baseball and those awful teams of the 80’s and early 90’s. Those were bad baseball teams.
I really have to stop coming in and arguing in gameday threads. It’s bad for my health.
Tom in N.J.
SO he failed the test in spring training? And they did an investigation?
This is the best time to be on here (unfortunately I have to work now
All the kids are in school and we can have an intelligent baseball conversation.
First Steroids, lets not be naive and think that only a handful of players use or used performance enhancing drugs.
I would bet its more like 90+%.
texiera is another Giambi, he will never be what the yanks want him to be. The team doesn’t have soul. players like, bernie, brosius,and o’neill.
Once you over pay for players ,they can’t live up to expectations
and Jeter is fast becoming a shell of what he once was, I think even if he was traded he would bring very little in return
Randy,
I do agree with the, “everything has to crash in order to take real stock in your organization” mentality in the sports business. Its the only way real change takes place.
If I read another post from someone on a blog or a columnist, or another talk show host say, “This is the NY Yankees! They spent 210 million on this payroll, this CAN’T happen”, I’m going to lose it.
The Yankees themselves, especially on the business side, are guilty of the same thing. You often hear, “We are the New York Yankees”, as if it gives them some special dispensation from making stupid decisions. It doesn’t.
Look no farther than the ticket pricing policy in the new ballpark as an example of my point.
How much they spend on anything MEANS NOTHING. It just means you can spend money.
SPENDING MONEY INTELLIGENTLY is the key to a successful franchise.
Can anybody say with a straight face this team spends money intelligently? Its penny wise and pound foolish.
They say they want to “build from within” yet, go on the cheap with scouts and instructors and lose the good one’s to other organizations. How is that smart?
The medical staff? Every year half the team is hurt by Early-May. You put this much money in salaries on the shelf it costs you a TON.
They did revamp the medical side of the organization in the off-season. That’s a positive. The training and PT side now need to come under the same scrutiny. Especially the PT side.
When its an every year occurance, at least to me, its no longer “bad luck”. Its happening too much to not see there is a problem somewhere.
Eiland? Honestly Randy, I don’t know. I really don’t.
People I talk to in the game say he is a good pitching coach. He’s not a revolutionary and is more old school than new school.
Nobody I talk to in the game sees him as a weak link. Those same people saw Gator as a weak link. Loved him as a guy and player but, saw he was overmatched as a major league pitching coach.
Not saying he could be the problem. Just saying, the people I talk to in the game think highly of him.
The guy in the organization that everybody outside the organization raves about is Scott Aldred. He’s probably the most highly sought after coach in the Yankee organization. He’s the “rising star”, that’s for sure.
That said, the pitching has to be solved by the players themselves.
Leo Mazzone was a “genius” in Atlanta because he had Smoltz, Glavine and Maddox. How smart was he preaching the same thing for 4 years in Baltimore?
It helps when you have the horses. The Yankees have the horses. They just need to realize the race has started now and its time to race.
One point about Manny blaming his doctor. If you were involved in a sport and had a list of drugs you couldn’t take. Wouldn’t you give it to your doctor before he prescribed something to you? Let him make sure it was okay to take, than ask your union rep to check it?
“What catchers would you like them to run out and buy?”
Coach6423-
there are approximately 60 catchers in major league baseball. surely there are contracts that some teams want to be rid of.
the problem is that the yankees have put a limit on about 210 million salary. i think right at the moment they are HAMSTRUNG by their refusal to spend more.
i’m saying that’s a dumb decision considering how much they are spending everywhere else in their organization with the new stadium etc.
boottom line is that is that i don’t think they’ll spend more to get a catcher. they’re not going to buy a catcher unless they make a dramatic change in spending policy.
So Mo was booed last night? I had already left by that point……wow. I wonder why new guys always think that Yankee fans are good fans when they see this kind of treatment that Mo is getting. It’s embarrassing and disgraceful. Jeter’s been booed in the past as well. I just can’t wrap my brain around the logic.
The Yankees will be better than they have shown thus far. The question is will they be good enough, even with A-Rod. My guess is that they will not. From what I have seen thus far, the bullpen will continue to struggle and with Posada out and Texeira not hitting, this team is in big trouble. I believe Texeira will hit better than he has, but watching him so far, I have some questions about his makeup. He doesn’t seem to have the mental toughness to perform under pressure. And those boo birds will be out again in Baltimore. Remember how he responded last time?
Paul Bako is currently a free agent, and is probably the most serviceable option out there. Perhaps the Cubs would trade Koyie Hill back to the Yankees. Paul Lo Duca also is still an FA and might bring some leadership to this team.
I like watching Cervelli out there, though, he has some panache behind the dish. Too bad he can’t hit.
randy
Could a kennedy trade bring us any decent catchers?miguel olivo maybe..?
Jennifer, that’s why his story is probably a lie. John Flaherty was saying last night that the list of banned drugs is clearly spelled out and if you are not sure you can check with the Players Association.
A few knuckleheads booed Mo. but it wasn’t raining boos.
Coach,
I don’t do the game threads anymore once the game starts. Its just too loony for me.
I get frustrated like everybody else when they get beat.
I get MORE frustrated when I don’t see effort. This team tries. IMO, they try too hard, which leads to some of the problems but, the effort is there.
In 2005, the effort wasn’t there. That’s why Torre went so postal in that epic meeting in St. Louis.
These guys are trying but, the results aren’t there yet.
That’s why Girardi going postal, or the fans booing these guys at every turn, isn’t the answer.
Betsy,
I had a discussion with folks in the Game Thread about booing. They told me it was there right as fans too boo players when they are bad, and cheer when they are playing good. I said its my right then to call you an idiot, and all hell broke loose.
SJ,
Know completely what you are talking about. I coach High School Athletics, and am an Athletic Director at a small High School in Michigan. I will never ever, go into a tirade when my kids are giving an effort or trying their best. I will get into them when the effort is lacking, but when people are pressing and trying to hard, how can you possibly lay into them, all that is going to do is cause more problems.
SJ, I almost want to cry when I hear about Mo being booed – it’s heartbreaking. At times, I’ve been incredibly frustrated by Tex – like last night- and maybe even in a rare moment, would wonder if it is ok to boo him. However, as upsetting as it is to watch him flounder, think how he feels. As I type this, I’m upset for him because he’s trying so hard…I would guess this is the biggest slump he’s had in his career and is not sure how to deal with it. I did’t see him slam his helmet the other night, but for a guy with as equitable a temperment as Tex – that tells you something.
They may not execute all the time or even most of it – and it’s sometimes unbearable to watch – but I really don’t want to hear that this team doesn’t try or has no backbone. They’ve come back more times (even if they can’t finish the job) than I can count this year even after their pitching has given it up.
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/.....id=4150444
No, it was more than a few knuckleheads.
The YES Network field mikes are farther off the field than they were in the old place. For those mikes to pick up the booing, it was more than a few knuckleheads who booed him.
Frankly, I don’t care if it was one guy. What moron boos Mariano Rivera?
“Could a kennedy trade bring us any decent catchers?miguel olivo maybe..?”
roger-
kennedy would probably help get someone, but why sell him when his value is low. he needs to get back and put up some numbers at the mlb level first.
he’ll probably be a decent starter as a he matures. maybe only a number 4-5, but that’s still valuable.
randy
but with cc,wang,joba,burnett,pettite,hughes and maybe aceves i just don’t see kennedy getting called up…
Kennedy is hurt and isn’t pitching right now.
It’s amazing how every game is basically a microcosm of the last 4 seasons…up hill battle.
We give up 1-3 runs by the 4th, make a late 6-8 inning run, and com up short in the end.
SJ44,
what is word on Kennedy’s injury never heard after blisters?
“Eiland? Honestly Randy, I don’t know. I really don’t.
People I talk to in the game say he is a good pitching coach. He’s not a revolutionary and is more old school than new school.”
sj44-
i don’t know either. he’s hard to get a read on because he tends to keep things close to the vest.
every organization can get better. one way to get everyone better is to make some changes that kick everyone in gear. sometimes this may not be fair , but it’s an effective way to get everyone to kick it up a notch.
i think it would be a shame to do it with girardi because it’s too soon. but who then ? if no jobs are at risk then what motivates people to dig deeper?
i don’t have an answer to that, but somehow a shock wave must go through the organization to get everyone at every level to step it up.
I’m not going there with a prediction. I do know that he needs to come in like a savior and solidify the lineup and I’ll leave it at that. I’ll leave the predictions to the people who know better. :\
This team sucks, so there’s pressure. He’ll be terrible, which means he’ll perform about the same.
“but with cc,wang,joba,burnett,pettite,hughes and maybe aceves i just don’t see kennedy getting called up…”
roger-
pitching depth evaporates when pitchers sneeze sometimes. the yankee starting depth isn’t a lock. kennedy may be needed.
my biggest point against trading him is he’s at low ebb on value. if there was the right match where someone liked him for his potential and they had a decent catcher than i could see it. but right now i think most teams probably don’t rate him as high as his potential is.
Kennedy has a numbness in his finger that is being treated with meds. Not sure how how much longer he will be out. Steve Jackson started yesterday and will make at least one more start for SWB.
Jackson is pretty versatile along with Aceves.
Has Joe Girardo lost this team ? Has the vast majority tuned him out ?
It’s getting a little pollyanish about fans who have the audacity to boo Mariano Rivera. He’s the greatest closer of All-Time and one of the greatest Yankees, but he’s a professional athlete being paid $ 15 million to perform THIS year. He’s not performing well and if fans want to boo him I have no problem with that at all. I wouldn’t do it, but I won’t demonize those who do.
Everyone gets booed when they don’t perform. Mickey Mantle got booed, Don Matitngly got Booed. What’s the big deal?
Booing is the only way fans can express their frustration and/or disappointment. I’m sure everyone who booed Mo would rather have sat down with him and said, “Mariano we are really counting on you. You are better than this and you have to pitch better than this. I love you, and I support you completely, but this isn’t good enough.”
Fans don’t get to do that, so they boo. If you polled the fans that boo I bet more than half would say they are booing the RESULT more than the PERSON. It’s just hard to differentiate.
A-Rod: .309/32/114
I really do believe that for the first month you are going to see Spring Training type results from A-Rod … but maybe worse because in Spring Training you get to see a few AAA pitchers … A-Rod is going to be going up against MLB pitchers who already are rolling along into the season.
People who are expecting A-Rod to be the savior of the Yankees’ season are setting this guy up to fail … and are setting themselves up for a big disappointment.