Swisher branches out for charity
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Aug 24, 2009 
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Nick Swisher has agreed to a design a t-shirt that will be auctioned off to help raise funds for women’s cancer research. It’s part of a project organized by the Entertainment Industry Foundation.
Swish worked with this group before, once growing his hair long then donating to help make wigs for people dealing with hair loss from cancer treatments.
Actress Christina Applegate and country music star Alan Jackson are among those who will be designing t-shirts. We’ll pass on the information on the auction when it becomes available.
i wonder if the shirt will have a mohawk.
They should mass produce them. I’d buy one.
Swish’s defense sure was a lot better compared to the last series at Fenway.
I went to Fenway for the 1st time for the Sat game. Besides the awful game, I had a great time.
It’s a great place to see a game and an interesting building to explore.
Swisher is awesome
Can anyone believe we got Swisher for Wilson Betemit? Amazing
Swisher has grown on me as the season has gone on.
He still does some amazingly boneheaded things on the field and I would like to see him hit better at home.
That said, the guy plays hard, has his heart in the right place, and helps make the offense a circular offense.
Hard to believe Cash got him for Wilson Betemit.
Swish has got to start hitting at YS. Doesn’t he? He’s been a terrific addition to the team and he walks the walk with his charities. I think he’s gonna be big in the post season.
One thing he did on the last road trip I hope he continues with on the homestand. He’s trying to drive everything middle away to LF.
It seems like Kevin Long is really working hard to get him to let the ball travel later and use his hands to hit it where its pitched, instead of trying to jump on everything and pull it.
If he continues to do what he did on the roadtrip, he will hit better at home.
“Swisher has grown on me as the season has gone on.”
I’m sorta warming up to him as well, although if he does another cartwheel in RF, I’m through with him.
Wow, that’s just a wonderful job by Nick….What a group of guys we have.
SJ44, did you notice the Pujols like stance that Alex is using these days? If you are going to copy someone, it might as well be him.
Swisher was ripping the ball all over the diamond last night and yet he did not get rewarded with a hit. It can be a cruel game sometimes. Hopefully his good swings last night and on the road trip translate into the best offensive homestand of his year so far.
The fact that Ozzie Guillen had all kinds of trash to say about Swish when he was traded says alot about the kind of person Ozzie is. But I had already formed my own opinion of Guillen…..trash
haiku-man August 24th, 2009 at 12:17 pm
If you go on any of the RS sites,THEY FEEL KICKED IN THE GUT,especially watching Beckett get smacked hard.
============
Name a few you visit. I just commented on Extra Bases about the Wagner fiasco and, surprise, no post.
It’s amazing the run the Colorado Rockies have been on: since June 3rd, they have gained 12 games on the Dodgers.
On that date, the Rockies were 20-32, and 15 1/2 games behind LA ( http://espn.go.com/mlb/standings/_/date/20090603 ), but since have gone 50-22.
If the Rockies can somehow win the division, it would be the greatest comeback since divisional play began in 1969 (a record currently held by the 1978 yanks, 14 games out on July 19th).
(info from Buster Olney’s blog)
Swish is a terrific guy and a real character, but we heard about this when he was signed; he had a rep as a great clubhouse presence. You take the bad with the good with Swish, just like you do with any player. He’s never going to be a high average hitter – but that’s ok because he does other things. I don’t know where we’d be without him……First, in April, he carried the team. Then, without Nady…….man, I can’t even think where we would be.
As to the pen, I really don’t see Melancon having a role in the post-season. I, for one, am not going to trust him…….no matter what he does in September. The Yankees have two reliable arms in the pen, Mo and Hughes – and that’s something of a concern at this point. Ace really can’t handle the role physically and his performance is in decline, Coke is iffy, Bruney is horrible….I’m not sure what we’re going to do. I still think Phil needs more work – this is getting silly as he’s pitched twice in over a week. Joe has him pigeonholed to one very specific role…..the 8th inning. He was rusty at the beginning in Seattle because he hadn’t pitched much in 6 days and he was rusty somewhat yesterday because he hadn’t pitched since that game in Seattle. If Phil is expected to be effective, he’s got to get work in…….so pitch him in the 7th occasionally. If he hasn’t pitched in awhile, let him go in a losing game. These are the concerns I have about the pen.
DiMaggio had the wide set stance way before Pujols.
Slade Heathcott playing today in the GCL. So in Murphy.
Both made outs in the first inning so clearly this draft is already a bust.
“Swish has got to start hitting at YS. Doesn’t he?”
It would be nice but the way things have gone this year, no one has to do any specific thing because everyone has done something.
Derek doesn’t have to walk, Johnny doesn’t have to lead off, Tex doesn’t have to work the count, Alex doesn’t have to hit HRs……. It’s kind of nice.
If the Rockies can somehow win the division, it would be the greatest comeback since divisional play began in 1969 (a record currently held by the 1978 yanks, 14 games out on July 19th).
(info from Buster Olney’s blog)
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i thought Joe Torre can’t do anything wrong !!!
“DiMaggio had the wide set stance way before Pujols.”
Perhaps, but I doubt Long and Alex went back and watched video of him when the Pujols stuff is more recent.
Laura,
I did. I think its smart for a couple of reasons….
1. It takes a lot of pressure off his hip. Alex has always been a, “load on the back foot” kind of hitter.
I’m afraid those days are over because of his hip. Its just too painful to do that over the course of a season with a bad hip.
Because he is so supremely talented, he can spread out, cut down his leg kick, and use his hands to generate power, a la Pujols.
I also think it will help him be less jumpy at the plate and allow him to hit more balls to center/right center.
When Alex is right, that’s where he hits a lot of balls.
In the NYS, he could hit 20 HR’s a year taking the balls middle/in the other way.
Kevin Long really doesn’t get enough credit for the job he does with these guys. You can’t teach one way to hit to every player.
To take all of the diverse personalities, stances and approaches to hitting on this team, and create this kind of lineup, is a testimony to his ability and hard work.
“It would be nice but the way things have gone this year, no one has to do any specific thing because everyone has done something.”
Part of that is because we finally got a bench. Gardner, Swisher and Hinske have made Girardi’s job a lot easier. There’s been a way to respond when guys like Nady and Gardner got hurt and they make the lineup look a lot better when the top guys get a day off.
Coke is more than just “iffy”. He has pitched very well for most of the season.
He’s had a couple of bad outings, which has inflated his ERA.
Overall, he’s done what he is there to do…..get lefties out.
As far as the post-season, if the starters give them length, they have more than enough in the bullpen to win.
The games are much different in the post-season. You have a day off after 2 games. That means, you can use Mo and Hughes back to back 2 days in a row, have a day off, and use them 2 days in a row if you need to.
Its much easier to manage a bullpen in the post-season than it is during the regular season.
There is no reason to use Phil Hughes in games they trail by a lot of runs the rest of the way.
Its all about getting ready for the post-season and not about getting him innings for 2010.
I don’t think the Yankees have only 2 reliable arms in the bullpen. Coke is a good left handed reliever, he can get lefties out. Robertson has done a great job and has progressed as the season has gone on, getting his walks under control and gaining more trust. Aceves has pitched poorly lately, but you have to hope that by having Gaudin and Mitre around they can rest Aceves more and get his body back in good shape, letting him pitch to the level he was performing at earlier. I trust all three of those guys–I prefer Hughes and Rivera in that they are both overpowering and pitching great, but 5 useful arms in the pen is good.
The first half of the year Swisher was extremely streaky. He generated a lot of value when he was going well and then fell off a cliff when he was going poorly.
He was putting up a .300 OBP for relatively long periods of time because even though he was walking he’d hit .150-.200 for when he was cold.
And what was particularly troubling was his in context play and at bats. He just wouldn’t generate enough base hits to knock in runs.
OBP may be the single most important factor in having a strong offensive game but it is far from the only thing. Same thing for hitting for power.
And much of Swisher’s problem with men on base is that he would not change his approach at the plate. He swung extremely hard all of the time – even with two strikes. He was just swinging from his heels and trying to yank the ball on a dead pull.
But since the break his at bats have grown better and better.
The big difference has been what SJ pointed out above. Swisher is now taking the ball through the box and the other way much more frequently.
He started changing his approach during the White Sox series, IIRC. And it was very apparent by that first red sox series. He really kept his at bats simple and was much more willing to hit the ball where it was pitched.
He did that again this past series against the sox. He made quality contact again and again even when he was making outs and that was frequently going the other way.
Let’s hope he continues with this approach because he’s a much better hitter when he’s willing to go the other way compared to what he is when he turns himself into a dead pull hitter.
~Stultus Magnus
Nesn.com,bostonherald.com.boston.com,bostondirtdogs.com,
A GO TO http://www.soxandpinstripes.com on the left hand side mid way down,called, interesting Red Sox sites .It’s too many to list here,but worth your time.
Yankees bullpen BAA is tied for 2nd in all of baseball (best in the A.L.) at .235
After the Yanks finished their BP on Sat I went to do some more exploring as Fenway has a lot of nooks and crannies.
So just following the ground level concourse I come to a dead end but there is a rope restricting access to a couple of doors. So as I get closer to see what exactly is the big deal about these doors, out pops ARod. He goes behind a little fence and starts throwing a basketball against the wall. Not tossing it but with two hands like he was bailing water. I guess it’s for his hip.
Anyway while all these fans are getting their ice cream and popcorn, little do they realize that the strange bouncing sound is actually Arod and his basketball 5 yards away.
Good job by Swishy
Speaking of the Dodgers.Did you notice once Manny returned how much ground they’ve lost in their divisional lead?
They were maintaining a 7-9 game lead,before he came back.
“Speaking of the Dodgers.Did you notice once Manny returned how much ground they’ve lost in their divisional lead?
They were maintaining a 7-9 game lead,before he came back.”
He’s also contributing very little to the team. It might be one of those deals where they got into a certain rhythm while he was gone and once he returned, it got messed up.
“I’m afraid those days are over because of his hip. Its just too painful to do that over the course of a season with a bad hip.”
But shouldn’t his hip problem be fixed with the off season surgery he’s planning to have? I thought that it was going to return him to his old self.
Fraternizing with the enemy.
“Red Sox sluggers David Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia dining with Yankees Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter and A-Rod’s sweetie, actress Kate Hudson, at Big Papi’s Grille in Framingham . .
at The Estate Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester was making peace over a few drinks with rival New York Yankees Phil Hughes and Robinson Cano at the hot spot”
http://www.bostonherald.com/tr.....position=3
Laura
They said 50/50 on whether he gets additional surgery this year.
Yeah… Hughes should have pitched in a 20-11 game or a 14-1 game we were trailing. And if he happened to throw 30 pitches or so, we could have used Bruney yesterday to hold the lead!!
pat
August 24th, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Fraternizing with the enemy.
“Red Sox sluggers David Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia dining with Yankees Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter and A-Rod’s sweetie, actress Kate Hudson, at Big Papi’s Grille in Framingham . .
at The Estate Red Sox pitcher Jon Lester was making peace over a few drinks with rival New York Yankees Phil Hughes and Robinson Cano at the hot spot”
http://www.bostonherald.com/tr…..position=3
———————————————————–
whats next joba & youk playing guitar hero @ jobas crib ??
Laura,
I look at Mike Lowell, who has the full surgery, and he can’t run at all. Perhaps, as rumored, his injury was more serious than Arod.
Chase Utley also had the same surgery and he looks like his old self. He did however, adjust his stance a bit and is less of a back leg hitter.
Hard to say how its going to end up for Arod.
I think making this drastic of a change with his stance this late in the season is telling. It probably means this will be permanent stance, with minor tweaks along the way, for awhile.
Wait Alex and Jeter went to dinner together? I thought they hated each other!!
Laura or it could be Manny being Manny,and the team sitting back letting him do it all.He’s such an ego you know.
jen, it definitely makes the Yankees the bigger people since I remember Fat Crappy telling the press he deserved the MVP over Jeter last season and little elf boy sucking up to Jeter during this year’s WBC and then mouthing off to the Boston press that he and Puke don’t get the recognition they should even though they are as good as Jeter and Arod and it’s because they don’t play for the Yankees. Something like that. Nice. Right after he was at the WBC pretending to fawn all over Jeter.
I laud Swisher’s good intentions and big heart.
I am always, however, apprehensive, when I hear about monies being raised for “cancer research.”
Money put into the pockets of greedy, sub-human pharmaceutical companies which come up with new designer drugs and create false hope, are the devil himself.
Big hospitals continue to administer drugs, which actually KILL the people they purport to “cure, and completely remove the person from the healing process, or worse, they tell you you have no chance of healing.
But that’s the Big Lie.
If they really cared about you and me, they would learn about why illness occurs and how to take control of your illness and your life – not make you dependent on doctors and pharmacists who split the drug money and give you your sentence.
Hey – how about qi gong? It has cured many people, has helped them become pain free, and NO ONE profits financially from it.
Sux rejects Wagner’s conditions http://www.boston.com
Paps IS HAPPY (i’M SURE.)
On a less somber note:
Heads up: Heathcott finally playing in GCL, playing CF, and has gone 1 for 2 in his debut.
That outfield:
Sosa LF, Heathcott CF, De Leon RF.
That’s a world of high-end talent for us to look forward to in a couple-few years.
The Mutts ran into a game ending unassisted triple play yesterday,wow.
To top it off, the loss was against Pedro who they let go and Phillies picked up.
Love Swishy. He seems to be genuine, and to have fit in very well with the team. And because we have such strong hitters, his slumps are not as harmful to the overall team offense as they would be on a weaker-hitting team. His defense is getting better, and he no longer takes as many bone-headed chances on the basepaths. Swish-man may be a clown in right field sometimes, but he is OUR clown. I hope he is here for a long time.
Good for Swish, good for Kelly Bundy. Watching her grow up was and still is a joy.
Good people do good things.