California days
Posted by: Sam Borden - Posted in Misc on Oct 21, 2009 
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That noise you hear in the big OC is everyone jumping off the Angels’ bandwagon.
Yesterday it was “Yankees suck.” Today its “can’t wait to see Kobe, Ron-Ron and company” when the NBA regular season begins.
Amazing.
Hater alert
The Yankees do suck!!!!
Doesnt it scare anyone that Jeter, damon, arod, matsui, cano, and swisher are a combined 27-177 for a BA of .150 against kazmir??????????????????
————
Not one bit. .150 will only be good for less than 5 innings. Then the flood gates will open. I predict 5 walks and Kazmir lasting 4 1/3 tonight. This offense is due and tonights the perfect night for a blow out.
===========================
Not to toot my own horn, but damn i nailed it!!
I was telling my son that its been a long time since we’ve been to the W.S.. I then sat back and thought about it, its only been 6 years but it feels like forever. Am i the only spoiled Yankee fan out there that thinks that way?
The buying championships arguement is really getting old, especially when we have the most home grown players in the AL.
Must be a pirates fan.
I wish I had a grounds crew for my lawn…
remember everyone, certain people are better off being ignored.
UUMMM, 210 Million payroll is not an aberation.Oh I guess it is just the Yankee average over the last few years.
Please don’t feed the trolls.
3,
You must’ve been on hiatus when that thing came around and got banned.
She’s a sox fan. And a stripper, I think?
I hate that stupid A with the halo that they draw on the back of the mound in Anaheim. Seems like a silly ploy to make sure the Angels logo is onscreen during TV telecasts, at all times, when the games are in SoCal. Maybe the “fans” would think they were watching Dodgers games otherwise.
Was this blog post put up under a bridge?
mel,
Sox fan and a stripper? Hmmm that explains all the frustration.
I wanted to get your take on your hometown Havayiii. Im going to finally take a vacation with the family. My wife and I went to honalulu for our honeymoon and want to go back with the kids. Not sure if we should go back there or to Maui/another island. Thoughts for a fun family atmosphere?
did anyone hear Skip Bayless on ESPN First Take???
he didnt want to give CC any credit saying “let’s see him do it in the World Series against Cliff Lee”
he basically insinuated the Yankees are so lucky that the Angels are handing them the series with their mistakes. He kept harping on Howie Kendrick’s throw home when Alex slid in safely, saying it was a horrible throw (it was a very difficult play and the throw was on the money but high. A player might make a perfect throw in that situation 5-10% of the time, IMO).
He also said he believes A-Fraud will reappear in the World Series.
How can this guy be taken seriously anymore? He has zero integrity.
The only thing sadder than the Yankee’s having a high payroll is stupid people complaining about it.
Revenue to payroll percentages, moron err Bunnny, look it up some day and then learn to hate your own owners.
I liked the old thread better.. ugh
I hate how no one ever gives the Yankees any credit for just being a good team
30 hours and 9 minutes until Game 5!!!!!!!!!!!
Boston Dave,
Sounds like a cheap attempt at getting attention, kinda like Peter’s shot at Girardi on his blog during the Phillies game the other night.
I love it when I hear people claiming the Yankees buy their championships. They only say such things when the Yankees are on top. Those words have become music to my ears in the same way it’s probably become music to a Sox fan’s ears when a Yankee fans tells them to come talk to them when they get to 25 championships. It’s been a while since I’ve had to use that line, which is also nice.
mel surely knows better but i LOVED Maui.
Erica,
They get plenty of credit for being a good team. Anyone who disputes their being a good team either hates the Yankees or knows nothing about baseball.
It’d be like me saying the Angels are a bad team when I believe they are a top notch team with great management.
Erica, greatest infield ever assembled. Ever.
Tough for people to cope with that.
Boston Dave,
It should be the other way around. Lets see Cliff Lee do that against the Yanks. Their pitching doesnt scare me one bit. Bullpen is a joke as well. Now i will give them credit for their potent lineup. Thats a pretty deep one, but nothing our pitchers cant over come.
YANKEES #27 Coming soon to a screen near you.
3,
I’ve never been to Maui. But there’s all the normal stuff golf, tennis, beach, windsurfing. The Big Island is huge, you’d need more than a few days there. Oahu is more touristy, but there’s always the North Shore to see some big surf. Haven’t been to Kauai in a long time, but it’s nice there. Everywhere is family friendly, it’s not a disneyland type of atmosphere.
ANYONE FEEL LIKE HUNTING RABBIT!!!!
“Boston Dave,
Sounds like a cheap attempt at getting attention, kinda like Peter’s shot at Girardi on his blog during the Phillies game the other night.”
————-
when is there going to be real competition with ESPN?
they have exposed themselves and are ripe for the picking.
Steve Phillips, Skip Bayliss, etc…
they have pretty much officially made the full 180 from sports “news” to sports “entertainment”
In the entertainment world, they cater to the popular opinion at the expense of fair, unbiased reporting (and despite being the most popular team, there are still more Yankee haters than fans).
Amazing how even with a 200mm payroll,Yankees still have to play each game,the same amount of games,and win as any team in baseball!!
So do we care how much an employer,pays his employee,it’s called Nunya,SHORT FOR NONE OF UR BIZNESS!!
Skip Bayless is an idiot and he proves it frequently. He went to the Francesca school of sports “coverage” where the best way to act is which ever well we get the biggest reaction whether it be positive or negative. Honestly the guy lives off of saying things crazy because it gets everyone’s attention. People like that bother me to no end, which is why I ignore them, and much like blog trolls it’s the only way to make them go away.
When the RS were winning the money subject didn’t come up from their fans.
Now they can see the Yankees rising back to the top so they are reverting back.
They need to look at their ownership and realize they tried to do it on the cheap this year.
It was awfully kind of the Angels to move the fences in for the Yankees…ya know, being that they can only hit homeruns at Yankee Stadium. Love that Orange County hospitality (oh wait, I meant Los Angeles, oh wait I meant Anaheim, actually I meant Disney World).
he basically insinuated the Yankees are so lucky that the Angels are handing them the series with their mistakes. He kept harping on Howie Kendrick’s throw home when Alex slid in safely, saying it was a horrible throw (it was a very difficult play and the throw was on the money but high. A player might make a perfect throw in that situation 5-10% of the time, IMO).
——-
What he doesn’t understand is that those mistakes have a direct correlation to Sabathia’s dominant pitching. If the Angels were hitting well against CC then Kendrick almost certainly goes to first on that play, but since they are not they feel like a 1-0 lead is unsurmountable. These mistakes are happening because the Yankees starting pitching has been superb and their bullpen dominant.
I wonder how well Lackey will pitch tomorrow night.
My thinking is that if we are patient against him and drive up his pitch count, we can provide AJ with enough offense to overcome his inevitable wild pitch(es) with a runner on 3rd.
So when did the other teams go to players who played for free? I don’t understand, I thought every major league player got paid to play the game.
So the Yankees are the only team that pays their players? No wonder they get some very good ones.
I stopped listening to Skipp Bayless when he said Vince Young was going to win multiple MVP’s and Super Bowls…..
Erica – always OPPC
October 21st, 2009 at 1:51 pm
I hate how no one ever gives the Yankees any credit for just being a good team
—————————————————-
The Yankees are a good team.
3/SOS,
Exactly.
Madson is a fantastic reliever and I do respect Cliff Lee but I’ll be shocked if Pedro and Joe Blanton could match up with AJ and Andy.
The Dodgers have been letting the Phillies starters go deep into games (even Pedro could have gone 8-9) and not exposing that weak bullpen.
The Yanks would likely get to the pen for at least 3 innings in most or all of the games.
If the Yankees pitching stays even close to this pace, it’s no contest.
“Buying a championship” is such a fallacy. The key portion of the team, even during their heyday period under the Torre, era were farmhands.
So do we care how much an employer,pays his employee,it’s called Nunya,SHORT FOR NONE OF UR BIZNESS!!
=========
You mean it doesnt come out of the haters pockets? Go figure. Maybe they should be whining about their teams getting new stadiums and not giving them nothing worth watching. Ala here in San Diego with those AAA Padres.
3/Boston Dave,
First of all, yes, ESPN’s baseball coverage (among other sports) has really taken a nose dive over the past 5 years or so. Thing is, I think most people realize this, yet they don’t make any efforts to change personnel or offer fresh perspectives and analysis…kind of bogged down.
3, I’d strongly advise you not to disrespect Philly’s starting pitching. Lee has been pretty darned consistent over the past two seasons and has been lights out in the playoffs. He’ll be the best pitcher we’ve faced in the playoffs if and when we get to the World Series. You never know what Cole Hamels is going to show up, but if it is the better of the two, we’ll have our hands full there too. Their bullpen, as you pointed out, is definitely inferior and that will probably be the x factor.
excellent point Ghost
Jeter has a cold and not the flu, correct?
Manny being Manny strikes again…Last game Dodgers played.Up 1 run in the ninth,Manny pulled for a younger defense player,Closer Broxton comes in,Manny goes to the shower,didn’t even know his team lost…Priceless.
Headline at Yahoo sports,”MANNY TURNS BACK ON TEAM.”
ESPN just said Melky has been cold this postseason? He is hitting over 350. o_0!?
Boston Dave,
Cant wait to see Brad Lidge do his impersonation of that closer the D-backs had in the 01 World Series. We are handling easily one of the deepest pitching staffs and one of the best offenses. To not give the team credit for how they have handled the angels is flat out being blind and bias.
““Buying a championship” is such a fallacy. ”
————-
yes, the Yankees do have quite a few homegrown players on the roster.
And perhaps more importantly, the Yankees are reinvesting in their teams while many owners are pocketing their profits.
Are we supposed to feel bad for the Red Sox who barely spent a dime in the offseason despite raking in huge profits?
Are we supposed to feel bad for the small market teams that also had record profits over the past several years but their owners decided to pad their bank accounts instead of investing in their teams?
There are definitely big advantages to being the Yanks and disadvantages to being a true small market team.
However, it is so blown out of proportion and not given the proper context when baseball revenues are considered, that most people who use that argument are just grasping for whatever they can to make themselves feel better that…
the Yankees learned from their mistakes and are building a team the right way – a pretty good recipe for Yankee dominance!
I wonder if the Yanks are going to go with the Dom Perignon for the ALCS celebration, and save the Cristal for the World Series.
“Boston Dave,
Cant wait to see Brad Lidge do his impersonation of that closer the D-backs had in the 01 World Series.”
———-
ugh, the 2001 WS. If the Yanks had won that one it prob would have been one of the greatest all time for the Yanks. They had such remarkable comebacks and Soriano’s HR off Schilling almost capped another late inning dramatic victory…
Alas, the Phillies are a great team and probably still present the Yankees with the toughest matchup (assuming good Cole Hamels shows up).
However, the Yankees are the better team and if they play their game, it’s #27 and lots of bubbly.
-MainYankee
You hit the ball out the park. All this Yankee bashing,IS because the baseball world know the Yankees are a force to contend with now,and in the future.
BUT…they don’t want another 4-5 years of Yankees WS wins again.
ANAHEIM — You probably know that the New York Yankees hit their best in the late innings. Here’s a little chart that shows the numbers of the Yankees offense this season:
• Innings 1-3: .279 average, .346 on-base, .452 slugging.
• Innings 4-6: .279 average, .361 on-base, .474 slugging.
• Innings 7-9: .295 average, .379 on-base, .511 slugging.
It played out this way again on Tuesday in Anaheim. The Yankees plodded around the first three innings and didn’t score a run. They scored five in the middle innings — Alex Rodriguez hit another homer — to put the Angels in a deep hole. And in the last three innings they went berserk, scored five more runs they didn’t even need, gave themselves an easy 10-1 victory and a 3 games to 1 stranglehold on this American League Championship Series. The Yankees are relentless in those later innings.
Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.c.....z0UaxlhaIT
Get a free NFL Team Jacket and Tee with SI Subscription
Even if you don’t follow baseball, you can always tell when yanks are winning by the increasing number of whiny babies that are crying ‘PAYROLL’. LOL!!!!!!!
3 certainies in life
1. Death
2. Taxes
3. Non Yankee fans whining about the Yankee payroll when they’re winning.
The Yankees have 13 players on their post season roster that came through their minor league system while the Angels have 15 on theirs. Thats not a big difference!!!!
Anyone lucky enough to get a ticket to the WS?
What Ghost said.
When the haters bring out the “buying championships” line, you know they are hatin’ real good and they are scared to death of the Yankees.
I spent this past weekend in Boston working. As I usually do, I wear my Yankee stuff around town during the day.
I can’t tell you the number of asinine comments and dirty looks I received the entire weekend.
Made me feel great!
When that kind of hate is in full bloom, its because the Yankees are winning.
That’s music to my ears.
God Bless my Yankees ,the greatest Sports Franchise on the face of the Earth. We spend to win, and I can’t wait to dump a load of cash on Yankees World Series merchandise to support my team. New York, New York ,it’s a hell of a town the Bronx is up, and the Battery’s down! Whether you like it, or don’t like it ,learn to love it because it’s the best thing going today, WHOOOOOO!!!!!!!
JOHN C
I like the 3 examples.
Very true!!!
“Even if you don’t follow baseball, you can always tell when yanks are winning by the increasing number of whiny babies that are crying ‘PAYROLL’. LOL!!!!!!!”
————–
In May, I can’t tell you how many Red Sox fans were saying…
“$500M in the offseason and they still can’t beat the Sox. 8-0 – Yankees STILL Suck!”
I still laugh when I realize the Yanks came back in the season series despite starting out 0-8. Technically, it’s twice the choke the 2004 ALCS was (of course not as meaningful or painful).
When a rival respected manager like Gardenhire gives props to the Yankees, saying that they are “true ballplayers” (paraphrasing from memory)I don’t really care what fans of other ball clubs think. Would it be better for the Steinbrenners to pocket their $$ instead of reinvesting in their team?
I was looking at the Angels board on mlb.com last night (don’t ask me why, I really don’t know) and of course, some sore whiner mentions the payroll and goes off about Teixeira taking the bigger contract w/ the Yanks as opposed to the ‘fair deal’ with the Angels, especially in today’s economic climate.
It was such a ridiculous post that it just made my head spin, but its not the first time that SOME Angels fans have lamented the fact that Tex took the better contract with the Yanks. As though they wouldn’t do the same thing in his shoes. It’s the ridiculousness of that ‘argument’ because we all would do the same thing. Both teams are good, both are playoff contenders. So why NOT take the better deal?
It’s amazing to me what the whiners and criers will latch on to… Bringing up the economy? Really??
DEREK
I got two through the presale last week. No luck today though.
“3 certainies in life
1. Death
2. Taxes
3. Non Yankee fans whining about the Yankee payroll when they’re winning.”
——————
4. Black Eyed Peas DirecTV commercial during every break on Fox
-Boston Dave
All of New York was shaken,by 9-11-01 Yankees had enormous pressure that Series.New York state was on edge remember?
The Mad Prince,
Im not disrespecting Lee. I know he’s a good pitcher. But keep in mind he is doing this against impatient ball clubs and none have the fire power the Yankees have. He will need to pitch lights out, which will probably end somewhere in the sixth inning(with the yanks offense getting his pitch count up)and hope his bullpen follows suit. Good luck with that. Also, I dont think he has had to matchup against anyone who can throw zeros with him in the playoffs. Which in turn, keeps the pressure on him for every pitch. Hamels is not the Hamels of old. Im not worried about him. And whos your daddy will, well be calling us his daddy once again. With all do respect.
The Other Phil,
do they know how much $$$ their owner is worth?
do these Angels fans know how much $$ the Angels make every year?
Artie Moreno is a multi- BILLIONAIRE.
so they can cry a river all they want. It’s just sour grapes.
MR. OCTOBER,
Nice. I somehow got 2 standing room in section 234 for Game 2. I’m so pumped.
What exactly did Angels fans think he owed them? He was with them for 3 months. Why would he want to play in a place that needs thunder sticks to make noise?
Losing that 2001 WS hurt more than the 2004 collapse, just because of what winning that series would have meant for New York after the tragedy of 9/11. Also would have made big mouth Schilling the goat after serving up the homer to Soriano that looked like the series winner.
SJ44
Living amongst RS fans you can tell the level of concern they have about the difference between the two teams by how strong the contempt is.
They are starting to return to haters again from being overly confident.
Can i add
#5. Peter Gammons yet again telling us how this no name pitcher will be the best closer of all time.
Good Afternoon All…
I did not have the opportunity to post during the game last night. But it goes without saying…What an amazing game and great job by CC and the boys. It is too bad that McLellan and company made some bad calls but at least the Angels and haters don’t have anything to base the runs that we scored on.
I hope the hump day goes quickly today because I can’t wait for tomorrow night’s game. Go Yankee’s!
Like some of the other bloggers I too tried to purchase a ticket to the WS with no success today!
I have not taken a vacation in 2 years and that would be my “vacation” going to a WS game but then again the funds can only be stretched so much.
4. Black Eyed Peas DirecTV commercial during every break on Fox
=========
The only thing that gets me past those commercials is how hot Fergie looks.
Dave: I know. That’s the other ridiculous point. Cry about the salaries in baseball in general. That’s fine. But to say that Tex is a bad guy for taking the better offer is so stupid. It’s just the whiny babies that can’t admit that their team is being outplayed.
So spending $5m for a 1 year rental is okay ‘in this economy’ but Tex’s contract isn’t… It’s so dumb, it has to make you laugh!
And with the off day, it gives the criers extra time to stew. But that’s okay, after Thursday, they’ll have the whole offseason to stew!
As for ESPN, I can’t stand to watch them anymore, outside of NFL Live. That’s the only show that I think gives pretty good, objective analysis. Basebal Tonight would be better if they didn’t have Gammons and Kruk. Gammons is senile and Kruk can’t talk. It’s just bad television. The other junk is just yelling and screaming for the sake of yelling and screaming. I’d rather watch ESPNNews for highlights and MLB Net for actual breakdowns and analysis. They may not have the ‘names’ that ESPN does, but they do a better job of breaking down pitches and plays.
Was the stadium open yesterday?
the other phil— agreed, why bring up the economy?
and lets ask that guy who was complaining… if your employer offered you $x amount salary and another company offered you $2x, would you not take the more money!? of course he would! anyone would, its a market economy!
The media was really feeding the payroll monster after the Yankees signed the 3 FA.
Instead of talking about how much each player made per season they talked about the total sum for the contracts.
By doing that it made it sound worse, which was their goal.
SJ,
Is your nephew going to play winter ball? Hows he adjusting in the minors so far?
cc-lee 1
aj-hamels 2
andy-pedro-3
cc/gaudin-blanton-4
gaudin/cc-lee-5
aj-hamels-6
andy-(cc)-pedro-7
andy-pedro game 7 would be the daddy.
Allie,
an even better point would be “why didn’t the Angels offer more $$? they can afford to.”
the Angels CHOSE not to offer more $ just as the Red Sox did. they are both perfectly able financially to offer huge contracts.
the Angels’ fans are misdirecting their frustration with their teams at the Yankees.
Stop crying about the Yankees and start asking why your owner didn’t go the extra mile to keep an MVP caliber player.
I shut up a person the other day harping on the Yankee payroll,with one sentence.
I’d rather have an owner that puts his would be profits in his team,instead of his pocket.
They shut up,their eyes were shifting from left to right,meaning Frontal lobe was trying to come up with a answer.
Good point Main Yankee. I dont recall them dragging it on when Boston OVER BID on Dice. I guess you have to have thick skin to be a Yankee.
How clever & insightful Bunnny!
Everyone knows that the Yankees have to overpay everyone to come here because it is NY! And the fact that NY has had more WS champions than anyone else and it isn’t close, the talented players of the champions are lured with huge dollars by other teams, requiring the Yankees to pay even more ransom to keep their own players. I must re-iterate that the Yanks do have more home grown players on their 25 man and 40 man roster than any other team. I should also note, that the Yankees paid more for their homegrown players on said roster than any other team.
Now it was alluded to that you might be a Pirate fan, but the Yanks have probably more home grown players on the Pirate roster than the Pirates do, but that is not confirmed.
Lastly, because the Yankees pay their players more than anyone else, they also get to pay some other team’s salaries as well through something called the Historic Luxury Tax. While George S’ desire to win and pay his players like the Champions they are is taxed, while some of the world’s richest people own other teams and churn the Luxury tax into more profits in their pockets and not the team. Some of these owners even exploit the anti-Champions mentality into even more lucrative $$$ when the Yanks come to town to play their team. (Might add this was one of the reasons given for Interleague play.)
Now if the owners truly wanted parity and they don’t, they would ascribe to moving up and not down on the payroll scale and lift up the players and not tear them down at contract time. There is so much money in baseball it isn’t funny, but much like the bankers, the select few want to keep it all. That is why I bank with the Yankees. They are a breed apart of the rest.
I love it when I start hearing the payroll complaints. Means the Yankees are winning and winning big.
I wouldn’t waste my breath on the troll RayVT. He clearly has the IQ of a tomato.
JohnC
“Losing that 2001 WS hurt more than the 2004 collapse, just because of what winning that series would have meant for New York after the tragedy of 9/11. Also would have made big mouth Schilling the goat after serving up the homer to Soriano that looked like the series winner.”
——————————————————–
Wow. I feel the opposite. 2004 still stings. In 2001, we were outplayed in every single game. The miracles of Games 4 & 5 helped me overcome the loss of Game 7. Those games provide enough drama to assuage some anguish of 09/11 alone.
2004 was something completely different – historical rivals, huge lead in the series, etc., etc.
NOTHING compares to the sting of 2004.
No winter ball for the nephew 3. He just finished his turn in the Instructional League and is resting before starting his workouts for next year in December.
He will start the season in high A Ball in 2010.
Not only do they mention the total amount of the contract, they don’t mention all the salary the Yankees shed last year…Moose, Giambi, Abreu…it does get annoying when every time the Yankees are mentioned the payroll is mentioned as well. They don’t do that w/ any other team. The Sox like to be thought of as a gritty home grown team, but all they are is Yankees light.
Hey “other Phil” I’m with you on ESPN and Baseball Tonight. However, I think NFL Live is wayyyy worse! As soon as Ditka, Schlereth or Hodge open their mouths the show becomes unwatchable (which pretty much means I don’t watch anymore). The anti Patriot stance is so obvious that it’s laughable!! All they do is suck up to Favre and Peyton and state the obvious the other 99% of the time.
MLB and NFL TV is really the only way to go these days, ESPN is a total joke.
RayVT,
Excellent post. You have my vote for Post of the Day.
“Now it was alluded to that you might be a Pirate fan, but the Yanks have probably more home grown players on the Pirate roster than the Pirates do, but that is not confirmed.”
————-
the Pirates might have more Yankee homegrown players on their roster than their own homegrown players
p.s. I had a hard time finding a single Pittsburgh Pirate fan when I was in Pittsburgh in June. All they care about is the Steelers and Penguins.
Whose problem is that? The Yankees?
If they don’t want a team, move it somewhere else.
3 (formerly S.o.S.)
October 21st, 2009 at 2:28 pm
Good point Main Yankee. I dont recall them dragging it on when Boston OVER BID on Dice. I guess you have to have thick skin to be a Yankee.
———————————————-
Thick skin has been developed over many years being a Yankee fan in enemy territory.
From Tom Verducci
‘ It turns out there have been 22 playoff matchups when a West Coast team ventured into East Coast Baseball. The result: the West Coast teams are 10-36 in East Coast Baseball venues, a .217 winning percentage. In other words, get them out of their laid-back, warm environment and into the nasty conditions in the East, and they’re not even the 1962 Mets.
And it is not getting any easier. Since 2003 the West Coast teams are 3-17 in East Coast Baseball playoff environments. That’s the kind of history the Dodgers are up against tonight when they play NLCS Game 5 in Philadelphia. Bundle up, Dodgers.’
Of course the Angels could have offered Tex more money, but they didn’t in part because they so over-paid to get Torii Hunter ($ 18 M/yr) away from a possible Yankees offer.
Say what you will about the Yanks, they aren’t paying $ 10 Million a year (Gary Matthews) to an everyday player who rarely starts and is viewed as their 5th OF.
vb03
I somewhat agree, but I’d rather have a troll here than a passive aggressive troll fan at a stadium. They don’t know the truth, perhaps don’t want to know it, but if they hear it long enough perhaps it will sink inside something. A rash attack of a troll causes them to become more staunch in their erroneous judgement. As a Yankee fan, I am not afraid of the truth on this subject.
“Good point Main Yankee. I dont recall them dragging it on when Boston OVER BID on Dice.”
———–
Boston fans didn’t like it when I burst their bubble that all the Dice-K jersey sales (their justification for paying over $100M) don’t go to the Sox. that revenue is split up for all MLB teams.
the KC Royals make just as much on Dice-K shirts as the Sox do.
no excuses for overpaying for Dice-K… but it sure sounds hypocritical for them to cry about the Yanks payroll.
JohnC
October 21st, 2009 at 2:18 pm
Losing that 2001 WS hurt more than the 2004 collapse, just because of what winning that series would have meant for New York after the tragedy of 9/11. Also would have made big mouth Schilling the goat after serving up the homer to Soriano that looked like the series winner.
——————————————
Living in RS country 04 is the first thing they use whenever they feel threatened. So for me 04 is worse.
SJ,
Is their anyone in the upper levels that look to be blocking him from making a smooth climb within the orginization to the bigs?
I wanted to mention that my boy ended up at middle linebacker again even at the higher competition. Thanks for the feed back on that.
the Angels also “bought” Scott Kazmir from the poor Tampa Rays.
if poor Tampa had “Angels money”, they could have kept him around instead of trading him for pennies on the dollar.
great point Boston Dave! when you think about it the steinbrenners have put so much back into the team for the fans and for the community! we are lucky to have had him as an owner. brilliant business man.
Maine Yankee,
I wholeheartedly agree.
Of course, the recent news of Manny and Ortiz (among others) being juiced the whole time hurts their argument a bit
Good news about your son, 3.
Tony has a clear path to the majors. The Pirates don’t have any catching prospects in AA or AAA.
The goal is for him to get to AA by the second half of next season. That would put him on a solid path to the majors sometime in 2011.
Allie,
it’s so true.
a) every non-Yankee fan hates the Steinbrenners
b) every non-Yankee fan wishes their team’s owner was more like the Steinbrenners
Boston Dave
It’s funny how the RS fans thought that they were going to generate so much revenue in Japan from that signing.
It’s fun bursting their bubble when you tell them it’s shared.
RayVT October 21st, 2009 at 2:38 pm
vb03
I somewhat agree, but I’d rather have a troll here than a passive aggressive troll fan at a stadium. They don’t know the truth, perhaps don’t want to know it, but if they hear it long enough perhaps it will sink inside something. A rash attack of a troll causes them to become more staunch in their erroneous judgement. As a Yankee fan, I am not afraid of the truth on this subject.
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Anyone who bothered to know about the economics of baseball would know about their erroneous judgement. In my mind, trolls are incapable of such intellectual thought processes. So it would be my advice to just not waste your breath. Still, kudos to your post.
The Socks owner turned off Tex,The money wasn’t the problem.
As we all know, money (or more accurately spending more than others) doesn’t buy championships.
So, of course, on the brink of another world series berth by the New York Yankees, the same old tired subject comes up.
Nothing but the best for the world’s greatest franchise. But at least they’re spending their money more wisely now and keeping the blue chip pitching prospects for their own use.
Keep banging that same old tired drum, because the Yankees and their fans don’t really care.
But at least one writer got it right today by asking A.J. if this experience is why he chose to come play for the Yankees.
CC, AJ, and Tex all could’ve made big money by going to Anaheim, Atlanta, Boston, or the Nationals. But playing for the world’s greatest franchise is a selling point all on its own. Babe, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Mantle, and the living legend himself Yogi Berra.
Who cares what the haters think anymore.
I think it was Derek Lowe who said if it came down to making money or winning championships, Steinbrenner is the only owner who would opt for the championship.
Keith Law on Austin Romine
“I get a lot of emails asking about whether Austin Romine is the Yankees’ catcher of the future and, based on what I saw in Arizona, the answer is — I don’t know. He has plenty of arm and his receiving was adequate, but I’m not sure about the bat. His swing works fine, but he has a big stride and a pretty healthy leak, getting his weight on his front foot early and closing his stance late, so his balance isn’t great and he doesn’t get as much power into contact as he could. He’s still just 20 years old and was young for his level this year, but he has some work to do as a hitter before we can talk about him as successor to Jorge Posada.”
SJ,
I cant believe im saying this. O.k. here it goes, i guess im going to buy(for the first time ever that its not yankee gear)a Sanchez pirates jersey in ’11. The good news is some of the money will go to the Yankees. Am i right? Good luck on his journey. Hope he stays healthy and out of trouble.
There are billionaire owners of baseball now who won’t spend money on the players. The current commissioner is afraid to add new billionaire owners who will spend money on their teams. (Like Trump or Markan Cuban!) If more of this type owner was endorsed by the league, then the worthless money grabbers who own their teams would be exposed for the frauds they are.
The current system is to lower payrolls, hold cities hostage for a new stadium so teams can get more impact for the fan $$ thru concessions and newness. Also, tax those teams who don’t adbide by this watering down of major league talent. Even though this was implemented to assure profits, the individual team owners still were so greedy they bankrupted their teams.
If they had a real commisioner who answered to the “Best Interests of the Game” then they would make these owners payup or sell! The league has a say into whether a team stays in a town.
Even though I am not a Pirate fan, if they had a team with a chance to win they would have fans supporting the team. But you have to have a product 1st. Or a plan that was real!! Not just some slick sales crap!
“When I read the story about Manny being in the shower when the Phillies walked off in Game 4, the surprising part was not that he wasn’t in the dugout at the end of the game – it was that he showered.”
mel,
What the hell was your answer? Go to disneyland? What place has more things to do with kids? P.S. We dont surf.
Boston: I must be thinking of NFL Matchup then. It’s not the show with Ditka and Schlereth. They are terrible. Hodge is kinda pompous, but I don’t mind him as much. I like the breakdowns that Jaws does, even though I don’t like his voice… And I have TW Cable, so I don’t get NFL Network. No other viable options for NFL coverage…
What we should never forget
The success of Rodriguez and Sabathia illustrates the pitfalls of drawing conclusions from a small sample size. Denigrating a pitcher like Sabathia’s entire body of work based on a handful of postseason starts is not logical, nor is dubbing Rodriguez a choker based on 174 at bats. When the sample is too small, you cannot draw any conclusions from it. Look how quickly Alex was able to pull his postseason numbers up to his career marks, courtesy of Pinstripe Alley:
Arod, regular season career (8304AB): .305/.390/.576
Arod, postseason 2009 (27AB): .407/.469/1.000
Arod postseason career (174AB): .299/.388/.563
Similarly, their performances thus far this postseason do not mean that they are great postseason players. Rather, they illustrate that sometimes, great players will do great things. Mark Teixeira’s struggles reflect the fact that sometimes, great players struggle in big spots. Thankfully, Brian Cashman did not make decisions based on these absurdly small samples, and neither should we.
From Yankee Universe
The head line that bugged me the most was when the Yankees lost game 3.
“Yankees mgr trip to mound,tripped up pitcher, causes a loss for George Steinbrenner’s traveling All Star.”
It was sickening to me!!
Two quick question to all the amateur scouts out there:
1) Compare the defense of Matt Holliday to Jason Bay as left-fielders. Arms? Range?
2) Anyone one have an opinion on whether a) the Japanese will sell Yu Darvish b) whom, among Darvish and Chapman, is the more coveted prize?
Ah, the topics of discussion for off-days…
Back to the pressing topic at hand, I still worry about which AJ will show up tomorrow (and which AJ will show up each inning!) Hopefully he can keep it together long enough for Alex to hit another game-tying/go ahead/game winning bomb!
29 hours and 2 minutes until Game 5!!!!!!!
erica- i love the countdown! keep it up
the yankees payroll of $200 million+ has nothing to do with “buying” a championship – it mostly has to do with rewarding their star (and somewhat aging) players for the work they have done in the past AS YANKEES….
the only 3 players they “bought” on this team are TEX, CC and AJ ….the rest are players they had on the team that became free agents that the yankees chose to overpay because they realized there was no one better out there to take their places..AROD, Jeter, Rivera, Posada, Cano, Matsui and Pettite (which by the way 6 of the 7 were homegrown) – which represents about 90 – 100 million of the 200 million payroll were players that they could have let go but decided to resign because of what they did and what they mean to the yankees – that does not constitute “buying” that constitutes being loyal to your players..unlike the redsox, angels or even the rays who look at the almighty dollar first before choosing to backstab their veteran or productive players who reach free agent status (see boggs, clemens, damon, fisk & manny for the redsox and frankie rodriguez & teixeira for the angels)
and by the way the redsox “bought” lugo, jd drew, & matzusucka – its not the yankees fault they buy sucky players while the yankees buy the Cy Young and MVP of the 2009 season and the angels let KRod go to get a bargain basement closer in fuentes and decided to give an absurd amount of money to a 5th outfielder in Gary Matthews Jr…
don’t hate on the yankee payroll when about half of it is to reward and to be loyal their own players..
VB03
I understand where you are coming from, but some of these trolls are kids spewing their families hatred of the Yanks. Maybe we can win a few of them over. Now for the flip side, there are Yankee trolls too who enjoy doing the same thing. So I guess I’m saying thanks and I agree with you VB03!! LOL!
Payroll argument = fallback for haters when the Yanks are doing great. Don’t worry too much about it, it’s a good thing.
Alex got real when the surgery was a possible career ender.He dug deep and worked hard to come back.It’s as though every game had a special meaning to him this year.
As the saying goes…..You never miss your water,until your well runs dry!!
A hot Alex in postseason is nothing but great.He has silenced his biggest critics.
Now they have to make up stuff,i.e. Mariano and spitballs (about as clean as you can get.)
You’d have to be pretty thick to suggest the Yanks aren’t an excellent team, just like you’d have to be pretty thick to suggest money hasn’t played a huge role in the Yankees’ success. Money doesn’t buy championships, as the Yanks teams from 2001-today prove (not to mention the ’09 Mets and Cubs). But money does play an enormous role. Miss the playoffs in 2008? Don’t panic, just pick up the top three free agents available in the offseason and head to the Series. As far as the “Homegrown” argument, most teams develop a few stars here and there, but few can afford to retain them all AND add premier free agents every year.
Yanks will be the only team paying luxury tax this year, I believe, and they’ll be over the threshold by quite a sum. Plenty of teams spend big, but none are close to the Yanks. It is what it is. Not cheating, but certainly a major advantage. Might as well revel in it.
2009 MLB payrolls (from mlb.com)
1. Yankees $201,449,289
2. Mets $135,773,988
3. Cubs $135,050,000
4. Red Sox $122,696,000
5. Tigers $115,085,145
6. Angels $113,709,000
7. Phillies $113,004,048
8. Astros $102,996,415
9. Dodgers $100,458,101
10. Mariners $98,904,167
Mike Stanley —
Excellent points on the payroll advantages. The Yanks have the wherewithall to overcome bad decisions and fill major needs that other teams do not have, but that’s due to the incredible support of the fans who buy tickets, pay for parking concessions et al, watch the telecasts listen to the radio (though for the life of me I cannot do that) and support those sponsors. The money doesn’t fall from trees.
MLB teams never complained about the Yankees “advantages” when they wasted them time and time against throughout the 80′s and early nineties. It’s only when the Yanks spend wisely that it offends.
Agreed, 86w183 – While there was always moaning when the Yanks repeatedly picked up the top FA’s each offseason(Giambi, Mussina, Contreras, etc.), the anger seemed to subside when their playoff runs ended. Bottom line is NY is the premier US market and the Yanks have a virtual mint in their network, stadium, merchandising, etc. Resources have caused wars since the beginning of time. The Yanks have vast resources – resources no other team will ever be able to match.
Yeah that haters are out in foll forse, and SJ, you;re right, its because the Yankees are winning.
I sent to Bostondirtdogs.com for a good laugh earlier and their entire website is now dedicated to the Yankees. It’s HILARIOUS and just an indication of how intimidated they are. Can you imagine a website in NY thats always focused on the Red Sox? Today’s post was about the ’04 series…I can’t believe they’re still thinking about that – shouldn’t they be thinking about 2010?
27 – dirtdogs is a parody site – it always is joking and poking fun of the Sox. It’s not meant to be like this site. The Globe’s equivalent of this site stinks – probably why they lured away PA – to try to create an equivalent.