Quiet start to spring training
Posted by: Chad Jennings - Posted in Misc on Feb 24, 2010 
Print This Post
| 
Email This Post
For the past few days, Joe Girardi has talked about a loud clubhouse. He’s talked about the position players arriving in camp, settling into their lockers and bringing some noise to George M. Steinbrenner Field. There was only one problem with that plan.
“Swish, I think, forgot a cord, so he wasn’t able to plug his iPod in,” Girardi said. “He assured me that he would go get the cord today, and that we’d be OK tomorrow.”
Truth is, everything went smoothly today. Derek Jeter’s press conference was predictably calm, the first team batting practice went off without a hitch and a few pitchers got some work done in the bullpen. It was a perfectly productive, quiet day.
“A lot of times when things go wrong, you sit and talk about all the things that went wrong,” Girardi said. “Too many times, when you do a lot of right things, you don’t sit around and evaluate what we did right. So we talked about a lot of the things that we did right (last year). , It’s important that there are new faces here, there are new challenges in front of us, because every season is different whether you have the same faces or not.”
Chad, any news on Chris Garcia and his sore elbow?
Jose,
Glad you’re here. I wanted to tell you that you made a really offensive sexist remark yesterday.
—–
I did? I don’t remember this?
Everybody point at Alex
http://www.daylife.com/photo/0.....?q=Yankees
lets go yankees
February 24th, 2010 at 2:21 pm
Jose
February 24th, 2010 at 1:53 pm
Look at it this way. Who would you rather have come to the plate with the game on the line…Jeter or ARod?
Most people would pick Jeter in this debate. Why? Because he has a better track record of getting important hits. Since ARod is obviously a more talented hitter, wouldn’t your decision to pick Jeter be based on “clutchness?”
——————————–
I think most “fans” would pick Jeter. But that does not mean it would be the right choice, because it depends on the situation.
-Down by 1 run and 2 outs in the 9th, I want Alex because he has much more power (cough cough Joe Nathan).
-2nd and 3rd down by one run, I want Jeter because he is a higher average hitter.
-bases loaded, I want Alex because he has the higher career OBP.
etc.
CC Sabathia is going to be on the Mkay show sooon
M,
Sorry if I offended you. I was just trying to make a funny comparison. Didn’t think a normal, human interaction between two people would be “gross.”
CC is on now!
Jose -
You were remarking about the relative lack of updates this spring versus prior springs on this blog.
Aside from the fact that I don’t agree with you – I think things are going well – full audio is provided, the ‘gang’ provides the more pixelicious photos, and Chad and Sam update where necessary, I think there could be a real reason it seems quieter.
The biggest reason, this is the first spring since the blog’s inception that the Yankees are coming off a World Series victory. So there is a lot less to discuss of that nature.
It is the first spring where there hasn’t been some kind of controversy being addressed every minute of every day. From Joe Torre’s non-acceptance of his contract, to ARod’s opt-out and subsequent re-signing, to Selina Roberts and Joe Torre’s books, to ARods PED interview and PC, and then the hip issue. No WBC, no guys coming off major surgery. In short, no big stories.
A kinder, gentler spring training!
Which is why the saber debates are taking this much of a hold.
Chad,
That’s cord. Totally changes the context. I thought Swisher was playing guitar!
Bronx Jeers, I lived on the Island, in Merrick, in the late 70′s/early 80′s as a young boy and besides the NYY, the Isles were my team with Smith, Bossy, Potvin etc…those guys were out of this world!!
Erin,
So far, that is my favorite picture of the spring!!!
thanks to everyone who posted pix
Jose,
I have no problem with you gettin’ some. But nobody wants to hear it!
Are you American? Sorry to ask, it’s just that Americans are uptight about that kind of thing.
“i have been saying all along that “old school” is not equivalent to being dumb or having a low IQ. last night i was lumped in with “yahoos” sitting at a sports bar. that’s the perception that many sabermetric people have of us.”
No, it’s the impression I have of YOU. Because of specific things you SAY.
Like when you day sabremetrics cannot affect how the game is played on the field (which is easily disproven).
Or when you say Sabremetricians want to claim advances in conditioning and strength training as falling under their umbrella (they do not).
Or when you define a term like “clutch” at 11Pm last evening, but claim its undefinable this afternoon.
Or when you ignore requests or questions you can’t well answer. Like can the ability to perform normally in certain situations proven to be an unusual quality?
I have issues with YOU, not the “old school”.
Haha! Can you tell I’m missing my guitar at the moment?
I didn’t realize Americans were uptight about you-know-what unless you were Mormon? Could have fooled me considering how much of it is on movies, tv, etc.
And of course I am American. Would have even asked that question if my name wasn’t “Jose.”
Chad,
lol. It must really be distracting you because you forgot to fix it in the next sentence, too!
Doreen
February 24th, 2010 at 2:28 pm
Erin,
So far, that is my favorite picture of the spring!!!
*********************
Isn’t it great?
My favorite so far is this one:
http://twitpic.com/1548xn
Erin
Did you see this in Twitter?
http://twitpic.com/1548xn
Jose,
You’re right. I wouldn’t have asked if it was John or Stan.
But, no, Americans (at least the ones with good manners) don’t talk about it openly. Especially amongst friends. And we’re all friends here (except when it comes to talking about sabermetrics and clutch).
pat
February 24th, 2010 at 2:37 pm
Erin
Did you see this in Twitter?
http://twitpic.com/1548xn
*********************
I did, but thanks for the link anyway. I could look at that picture all day!
Different Day, same smog…The LoHud is in a slump…..I still think they use the term slump ???
LOL that pic is hilarious; clearly Alex is THE man.
Also, “quiet” is just the way I like ST to be.
But, no, Americans (at least the ones with good manners) don’t talk about it openly. Especially amongst friends. And we’re all friends here
–
Unless all your friends are dudes, or especially cool ladies, in which case getting some or not getting some has dominated my work’s lunch conversation for the past 2 years.
Now China, thats where you’re not supposed to talk about gettin any!
M,
Not to argue, but don’t most people talk about it more when surrounded by their friends. At least my friends and I do. There might be a huge age gap between us two.
It’s still unseemly……I’m glad I missed the original comment.
Wave
I’ve looked at all of those #’s regarding Cano and again it just proves that last year was the anamoly and not the norm with him.
But the perception in the minds of fans is that “Cano can’t hit w/r.i.s.p.” and not more acurately that he sucked real bad last year but overall for his career has been better than a league avg. player in those situations.
Again I, as do most of you, would like to see Robbie take that next step in his evolution as an elite player and his selectivity is all that’s stopping him from annually challenging for and winning batting titles. I believe that we see that from him this season.
Mike_Boston
I once jumped the fence at Hofstra as they were getting ready for one of the parades. I touched the Cup, autographs, handshakes, pics, etc.
No one cared if there was an excited little kid going nuts or not.
But as a goalie myself, I worshiped Billy Smith.
Nowadays they’d probably throw him in jail for the way he played.
And Bossy would probably score 75 goals in todays game.
Pat M
depends on your definition of slump…or can it be defined
it is much nicer here earlier in the AM
Oh, definitely different worlds. I’ll bet good money that you’re not married and that you’re not a mom.
But do you really talk about that kind of stuff in mixed company? In front of young ladies?
“So far, that is my favorite picture of the spring!!!”
It looked like Jorge was blaming Derek and Derek was blaming Alex for something to me.
“one of the reasons i risk annoying people by being involved in this debate is a post like yours.”
Thanks, Randy. I appreciate it.
I think that I come at the game from a different angle from many posters here and frequently my posts don’t get too much of a response. I guess that’s why I tend to be more of a lurker and jump in when I feel strongly about something.
I really enjoy your posts here. I like your take on the game, particularly as a fellow former catcher. My view of baseball is most definitely from behind home plate. I have also recently done some umpiring. There is nothing in the world like the feeling of stepping onto a baseball diamond before a game.
Erin -
How can ya not love that one! Robby’s smile is one of the reasons I like him so much.
Jose what one doesn’t do in polite society is talk about it in public. Among friends who understand the rules anything goes. We’re not that close here on the blog. We’re in public and in the Newspaper.
Mike_Boston, I am from Merrick too – and grew up in that same time frame – I met Brian Trottier at the dog show during their run (remember Strive for Five? I still despise Wayne Gretzky for ruining it all!). I loved the Islanders and still remember their jersey numbers etc. .
I worked at Hunan Gourmet East from 8th grade until I went to College – I bet I know your family as everyone ordered from there!
pat -
Oh, definitely looked like Derek & Jorge were ratting Alex out!
M,
You’re right about the mom part. I am in a serious relationship and in my experiences with friends, my girlfriend’s friends and my co-workers at the office, that “stuff” gets brought up quite often. And we’re talking about a white-collar, professional office setting.
The hate against sabremetrics here is astonishing. Sabremetrics is the study of baseball. Yes it mostly uses stats to study baseball, but so what. Baseball has been all about stats since it was invented. It’s an evaluation tool. Meant to compare players and assign value to their accomplishments. This is a bad thing?!?!?!
Upstate Kate, I’m just catching up, as my wife had a surprise B-Day breakfast party for me at the club where I play golf…..The tension is somewhat deluted during the day because we have more people involved….Last night was brutal, we should get a paycheck for that last night…..The ratings had to be good….m was a star in my mind last night, earlier this am
Pat M.
February 24th, 2010 at 2:42 pm
Different Day, same smog…The LoHud is in a slump…..I still think they use the term slump ???
_____________________________________________
As Yogi once said, (paraphrase) “I ain’t in no slump. I just ain’t hitting!”
Bronx, I was too young to focus on the goalie play, what kind of thins would he do, was he constantly shoving/swiping and hitting guys, more?? I agree with you on Bossy, nobody could skate with him…I still have an autographed glossy picture of him in a box somewhere. I remember in those days the NHL all star game was literally all Isles and Oilers players as your starters.
Of the possible “star” batting praactice hitting groups that I’d pay to see would be Jeter, Teixeira, Rodriguez and Montero. Montero wouldn’t be as likely to embarrass others in his group. Out of curiosity, how many players stopped to watch the show when he hit?
Ed H.
February 24th, 2010 at 2:53 pm
As Yogi once said, (paraphrase) “I ain’t in no slump. I just ain’t hitting!”
**********************
I love that line. That may be my favorite Yogi-ism
Happy Birthday, Pat M!!
Pat M –
Happy birthday!!
GB7 -
That would be some group to watch. I’m anxiously awaiting the time when (hopefully) I get to watch Montero take BP. From accounts like yours it sounds pretty special. How’s everything going with you?
Curtis Granderson is a bundle of energy. Even if it’s a ball hit in batting practice, the ball still goes out of the infield and Granderson cover some serious ground in CF.
Michelle, of course I knew that place well! Did you go to Lafayette grade school (although I don’t think it’s still called that)?
“I have issues with YOU, not the “old school”.”
stuckey-
i’m not an anonymous poster.
click on my username and you can see exactly who i am.
my address is on the gallery blog in my profile.
if you want to get in my grill up close and personal , knock your self out because that’s kind of what would happen.
any reason why you are the anonymous mystery man?
some people are at work and have to be anonymous.
that doesn’t seem to be the case with you.
if it is you must not get much done.
your boss should probably fire you.
how about some web sites, photos, links etc.
maybe you’re funny looking.
i could understand keeping yourself anonymous then.
Personally, I love the quiet confidence the club is sporting right now.
When the lights go on, I expect them to ratchet it up a bit. But I like that the Yankees are in a good spot. It’s so opposite of days past when there were figurative nooses all around.
Happy Birthday Pat M. and many more!
Happy Birthday Pat M!
Randy l (and possibly others) -
You might find this interesting. I am halfway through, and it’s really interesting to me. One paragraph in particular. James was asked how sabermetrics help the Red Sox win in 2004. And his answer were the players won. And he also says in there, “some things can’t be measured.”
http://www.pbs.org/thinktank/transcript1197.html
Pat M, it wouldn’t happen to be your birthday today would it?
Happy Birthday!
” There is nothing in the world like the feeling of stepping onto a baseball diamond before a game.”
pat m-
ed h. kind of nailed it huh?
have a happy healthy injury free year.
And this from the same interview: “JAMES: The data is a limited way of explaining
life. The essential property of the data is that it’s not
real. It is an image of a reality that is always something
else and in the same way as one can define poverty in
different ways in the statistics, or anything in baseball,
what you have in essence is a picture and you could take a
picture of me from the front and a picture of me from the
left and a picture of me from the back and you’d have very,
very different pictures. The statistics are not – they’re
a real thing; they are just a picture of something else.
There is always a lot that’s left out of the picture and
the biggest mistake that people who try to study baseball
through the stats make is thinking that they – it’s
confusing them with the real event. There’s always a
tremendous amount that’s left out. What a lot of people
don’t understand is that there are also things that you can
see in the statistics that you can’t really see in any
other way. So you have – you just have to balance those.”
Happy Birthday Pat M
rodg12
February 24th, 2010 at 2:58 pm
Pat M –
Happy birthday!!
GB7 -
That would be some group to watch. I’m anxiously awaiting the time when (hopefully) I get to watch Montero take BP. From accounts like yours it sounds pretty special. How’s everything going with you?
————————————————————
Get this youngster to Yankee stadium and see how close he can get to rocking one off of the Jumbotron.
If he makes it to YS, he’s not going to be a run-of-the-mill major leaguer. When you see a 17 year old with that kind of power and that judgement of the strike zone in his first season of A ball, that’s the one that you bet money on. If ever he has a problem, it will be inside pitches, because he’s so big and has long arms. He’ll adjust, though. That bat is a blur through the strike zone. Short and fast.
Pat M -
Have a Wonderful Birthday!!!!!!
Randy I, ( The Original Tin Cup / Sam Malone clone )…It’s time for you to unwind and hit the back nine my man…..There is no middle ground here with certain individuals….One’s credibility is tranished when we move on to unflattering terms of endearment, such as last night…..Seeing value and balance with the new numbers approach to the game is not enough, it’s all or nothing…..I’m over it…..The 11 % of Cano’s swings at pitches out of the zone is not some new device when it comes to hitting…Guys have been charting hitters and pitchers for since the days of FDR….Forget the crowd that gathers on the 1st tee, just let go and drill it !!!!!
“Bronx, I was too young to focus on the goalie play, what kind of thins would he do, was he constantly shoving/swiping and hitting guys, more??”
——————————————————-
Well if you were in front of his net and the ref wasn’t looking he would try to hurt you. Inflict pain either by slashing or spearing. Sometimes both. He used to tape his stick handle in such a way that the “butt” would be down the shaft so he could still have a firm grip on the stick while sticking the end in your ribs.
I believe they created a rule outlawing that just because of him.
But I think the craziest thing he ever did was when he would wildly swing his stick around the goal posts trying to hit any opponent trying to stuff one past him. He did this to Gretzky once in the finals and I believe the stick caught him between the pads and brought Gretzky to tears.
I can still remember the picture on the back of Newsday with Gretzky screaming at him and Smith holding that black Koho of his near Gretzky’s face as if to say “If you don’t want to get hit with my stick then don’t skate near my net!”
rodg, things are going pretty well here. Thanks for asking. I trust all is well on your end, still working…boss hasn’t caught you checking in on more important things than work, I see.
Pictures from Bryan Hoch
http://www.twitpic.com/photos/BryanHoch
Happy Birthday, Pat M.
“I love that line. That may be my favorite Yogi-ism ”
Erin, Yogi’s my main man and favorite philosopher. I’m planning another visit to his museum in Montclair soon.
Pat M-
Best Birthday wishes !
Smith and Tony Esposito played a lot alike. Espo and Smith had no problems whacking a skater in the ankle with his stick for camping out in front of the net.
Randy,
I notice you did not respond to a single point I made. You didn’t correct or refute a single thing I posted.
You want to go the route you’re going, feel free. But as I said in the post you’re so transparently NOT ACTUALLY responding to, I have issues with “you” (a euphemism for how you present yourself HERE) because of the things you POST.
You are likely a sweetheart in person, a good fried and a upstanding person. I have no reason to think otherwise. I suspect you can even chew gum and walk at the same time.
If you have a problem with something I post – about clutch, Phil Hughes, sabermetrics, about old schoolers or what have you, let’s talk, or debate, or fight … whatever.
Otherwise you’re on your own. I’ll be glad to concede to the “calling out” you just gave me.
That’s not Alex’s hitchhiker pose, that’s Alex telling the guy in the cage to get the heck out of there, it’s his turn.
Pat M,
I would be remiss if I didn’t wish you, “Happy Birthday!”
New post with a Chris Garcia update.
some of my favorite Yogi-isms:
“it gets late early out there”
“its deja vu all over again”
“baseball is 90% mental, the other half is physical”
I also have a book of Phil Rizzuto “poems”
Good to hear GB7. Things are going well here. I’ve been able to check in on the more important things here without any problems so far.
Getting dang sick of all the snow we have here (I live in IA). Had 5+ inches on the ground here for something like 80 days. Plus, I’m always antsy this time of year since this is close to when I’d head south for a week in college to play ball. Seeing all the Yankees news out of spring training helps though. Reminds me that the nice weather and green grass isn’t too far off…
“Forget the crowd that gathers on the 1st tee, just let go and drill it !!!!!”
pat m-
you think if i write “stuckey” on my ball i’ll get a little extra distance
Tin Cup, You’ll slice it !!!!!! Things are getting absurdly out of control…..Pens are going to be emptying soon….I’m hanging out with the guy with the gear on !!!!
rodg12
February 24th, 2010 at 3:22 pm
Good to hear GB7. Things are going well here. I’ve been able to check in on the more important things here without any problems so far. Getting dang sick of all the snow we have here (I live in IA). Had 5+ inches on the ground here for something like 80 days. Plus, I’m always antsy this time of year since this is close to when I’d head south for a week in college to play ball. Seeing all the Yankees news out of spring training helps though. Reminds me that the nice weather and green grass isn’t too far off…
————————————————————
Iowa in the winter with the winds blowing in from the northern plains and the fringes of lake effects snow is fun for the kids and their sleds but it sucks shoveling out a path to the car. That, I don’t miss at all. I grew up in SW Michigan, about 10 miles from Notre Dame and South Bend, IN. That had to be the wettest, heaviest snow anywhere. If the boss complains about your important times on here, just get a note from Chad or Sam, explaining the necessity of you being here.
stuckey-
there’s a new post up.
most of the blog has moved on.
so let’s clear up a few things
we really don’t like each other.
i don’t put up with this kind of BS in real life and i’m not going to on the blog.
you’re crossing a line that’s getting personal.
my advice is to back off and stay on topic and we’ll have less problems.
i’ll do the same.
“Tin Cup, You’ll slice it !!!!!!”
pat m-
no way, the first thing i do when i’m mad is get that cool anger thing going.
sam snead used to talk about that .
relax, breath, and let it rip.
( i could duck hook though)
Mike_Boston, I went to Birch Elementary School and then Merrick Ave. JHS and then on to Kennedy. What about you?
As for hockey, I fell out of love with the Islanders after a while – but during the 70s and 80s, Wayne Merrick was my favorite (for obvious reasons) and Mike Bossy was a G=D to me. I still remember watching the Miracle on Ice and am back watching hockey with the olympics and the advent of a good Blackhawks team! It keeps me busy until baseball season starts!
I live in Chicago now so I only get Yankee games when they are on ESPN or playing the Sox. ..if you are in Boston, I bet you feel the same way – it sucks! But I live 3 blocks from Wrigley so I get to hear the fans screaming and the radio blasting after each win (some seasons few and far betwee) . . I live 3 houses away from Ted Lilly and Ryan Dempster lives around the block. . .all in all, its not bad.
“we really don’t like each other.”
We really don’t know each other.
“you’re crossing a line that’s getting personal.”
I restrict my comments to things you argue on the blog. Nothing personal about it.
“my advice is to back off and stay on topic and we’ll have less problems.
i’ll do the same.”
I’ve been doing the same all along.
Comprehensive NY SPorts info:
http://newyorkstateofsports.spruz.com