Wang is back tonight for the Bombers. Don't know how he'll do, but yo, the boys are going to slap Hendrickson about the neck and face. I wanna see a blowout, dog.
Hey Yanks fans!
My friend just told me about this great contest called "Voice of the Yankees" that I'm pumped about, so I'm spreading the news! The always-heard but never seen Bob Sheppard is judging a contest to find the New York area's best amateur announcer. Five fans will get to compete in front of the man himself and will have the chance to win a pretty ridiculous prize! The Web site (http://www.bankofamerica.com/startinglineup) has all of the details. I don't know about you- but I'm definitely entering!
Alex, is that a Jerky Boys reference I spy? I'm glad to see I'm not the only one around here with some culture. ;-) I want to see the D-Rays massacred and Johnny Gomes pull a Schilling (i.e., weep in the dugout).
You still have 15 minutes to get Wang back on your reserve list. He is pitching tonight, not because he is ready to pitch at the major league level, but because he is playing for a desperate team. In his last appearance, he allowed 11 hits in 5 innings at AAA.
I also understand that they've suspended the regular rules tonight. Rather than play the usual 9 innings, the first team to 15 runs wins. I believe you must win by two and, of course, if TB gets there first, the Yanks, as home team, gets last licks.
debris,
11 hits in AAA might not be a good indicator of how tonights game will go, since Wang pitches to contact (ground balls, we hope), and the inferior AAA defense surely allows for a higher batting average on balls put into play. Knowwhatimsayin?
Oh please, Ynkees have this in the bag, and for that matter will have it on the scoreboard. Wang should straighten out after between inning adjustment. Now why the hell are the Yankees making this guy throw no pitches?
6 pitches, with a man on base included. Talk about changing an approach. C'mon guys, we want to save a litte emotion for the weekend, I'll be a corpse for the next 20 games if they keep playing like this.
My theory is that other teams tend to raise their games when they play the Yankees. And if a pitcher is having a bad night, his manager has the hook ready. While it's hard for the Yanks to do the same, at least every damn night.
I guess they have an early party tonight and need to leave in a hurry, not to mention they are probably saving their energy for drinking, after all its a Thursday night in NYC...
rilkefan, its not the pitch count that worries me its the awful approach at the plate by them. I don't know if you are watching the game but these guys seem to be lost, swinging at really bad pitches. And its Hendrickson, not Wells or Lieber on the mound who only throw strikes, this guy is fooling them with horseshit pitches.
no2ss, good question on that record. Trying a quick search, nothing yet but found this: previous times Yanks went down on three pitches in one inning:
09/21/2003 Travis Harper, Tampa Bay (AL) vs. New York in the 7th (single, double play 4-6-3, ground-out 6-3) [Enrique Wilson, Karim Garcia, Alfonso Soriano]
09/27/2003 John Parrish, Baltimore (AL) at New York in the 6th (ground-out3, single, double play 6-4-3) [Nick Johnson, Derek Jeter, Ruben Sierra]
Wang pitched as well as could be expected. The offense continues to piss me off. When was the last time A-Rod launched one? (Not that he needs too, I'll take clutch singles, but still, we NEED an outburst.)
For a kid coming off an injury, probably rushed back to the majors, 3 er in what will likely be 5+ IP vs a team that's given us trouble...should be enough.
i'm convinced that Lou Pinella and the Red Sox are reading the same book on this Yankees lineup. They take a lot of pitches, so throw them first pitch strikes. Whatever you do don't get behind them consistently.
That's what the Sox did last year in the ALCS and that what the Rays have done all year.
Rich I know and I don't think there's anything wrong with taking pitches, I just don't get the sense that the Yankees have scouted the Red Sox as well as they've been scouted by the Red Sox. And I think Lou's been paying attention to that.
6-0, if I'm at Yankee Stadium I'm booing my head off. This is just a horrible game by them, no effort, big mistakes, foolish at-bats. Sorry, and probably I'm just bitter but I do not credit the D-Rays with anything, its just incredible poor performance by these guys. I can't believe they get so spooked with the DRays.
Really, what's the point of making the playoffs. They'll just get swept. I can't believe Torre went to a couple AAA pitchers in a pennant race during a tight game. Tonight's managing is a fireable offense, maybe not tonight but at the end of the year for sure.
As I posted on the previous thread, I'm too young to remember the Yankees ever being bad, and since I don't live in New York, everyone's always accused me of being a bandwagon fan (I promise I'm not). To prove them wrong, I'm wearing my Jeter jersey tomorrow, right after a humiliating series loss that probably ended the season.
But then again, they did come back from down 6-0 in the '96 series...
Unless Hendrickson pulls a muscle, this is going to be the first CG by the D-rays, how appropriate if it is a shoutout and against the Yankees who have been their bitch this season.
OTOH how is this Torre's fault, F-Rod is just as bad as Proctor.
In fairness to Proctor, he hadn't pitched in a major league game since Aug. 24th. Torre never seems to consider that relievers who aren't "his guys" need regular work to stay sharp too.
JeremyM — I'd hate to think you're right about just getting swept in the PS, but the way we're playing right now it does remind me of hoping, say, the 6-9 football Giants win their final game and land a wild card berth through NFL elimination gymnastics — but knowing there's no way in hell they advance.
I think Torre is between a rock and a hard place with the battered pitching staff he has now. FRod, Leiter, Embree, Proctor, pick your poison.
With that said, even though I've disagreed with Torre critics in the past, I can't say that Torre's insertion of Franklin and Mendoza into 3 run games (that were promptly put out of reach by those stiffs) represent his best moments.
He's done more to keep the ship afloat than his critics give him credit for, but he's also contributing to the collapse, no question about it.
The poison is that Torre has repeatedly used Sturtze and Gordon with 5+ run leads. Those are the times you let F-Rod and Proctor pitch. He did the same thing last year and killed Quantrill.
Consequently, Torre has created the rock and the hard place.
Remember, most winning managers don't have the luxury of even this much talent.
IMO...if there's a difference, it's on defense. He seems a bit more tentative this year.
Lawton...well, I can't really say he's a disappointment, because his performance isn't exactly unexpected. The Yankees were fooling themselves if they thought he'd be a good outfielder.
JeremyM, I'd suspect it has something to do with his great postseason averages and his record for most postseason hits. Plus, he has a way of being in the right place at the right time.
Schteeve, I'll never forget it- it's the background of my laptop.
This is the part of the game where Tim McCarver would be telling us that we actually don't want A-Rod to hit a home run, because then there wouldn't be anyone on base for the next guy.
Matsui's hitting, Giambi's hitting, by the rules of this season, does that mean that A-Rod cant get another hit this year? It seems that we cant get the big four (those three plus Sheffield) going at the same time.
I guess my issue isn't so much with Jeter as it with the whole concept of clutchness, but that's neither here nor there. I don't think anyone wants to win as badly as he does, and even he can't turn it on at will and get a hit when we need one.
Have we gotten to Baez at all this year? I hope this is the time.
Hey I just came in, this is bad. What was with that sticker on A-Rod's helmet last inning? Has he had that all night? Hell of a throw just now. Was Hendrickson lights out somehow?
i mean with the money the Yankees spend, to have no depth, and one of the lamest bullpens, and Rube Sierra starting regularly...I mean, there's something wrong with that. Really Really wrong. I blame Kevin Brown.
Humiliating. what worries me is facing them 3 more times this year. Their ride home tonight is going to be a serious PARTY. The ultimate David v. Goliath story for them.
The upcoming offseason should shed a lot of light on which direction the Yankees are going in over the next few years. They will be freeing up a ton of payroll, but there aren't many (any?) attractive FAs. They desperately need a CFer. I hope they don't burn top prospects on Juan Piere and his .315 OBP, or overpay Damon for what he has accomplished in the past.
There are teams in baseball that I just don't like. The Braves - they always seem so smug.
Then there are the three teams that make (or have made) my blood boil.
The Angels - I really don't like them.
The Idiot Sox - they annoy me more than anything else.
I don't hate either of 'em. But I'll tell you who I do hate:
The Tampa Bay #%)&in Rays.
The #%)&#@! Devil Rays.
I don't just hate them, I HATE them. Words alone can't express my feelings towards them.
I don't think I can read any of the comments tonight, I'm not in the mood to see how we were held to 1 hit and 2 walks IN SIX INNINGS while the Red Sox were losing and Cleveland was winning. Maybe if I go to sleep, I'll wake up and find out this was a dream.
Just a thought. I think Torre brought in Franky and Proc because he wanted to evaluate them for the post-season and is in denial about the "playoffs being right now."
Heck of a time not to rely on his world famous "veterans" he covets so.
It's untimely hitting and a 6-9 that makes Detroit's look good, simple as that.
I will never give up, but we cant seriously think we are going to make the playoffs playing like this.
He absolutely was. He's done it every other year at this time after the 40 become available. Why else no Lieter, not that he would be better, but he is a "veteran," he did have Embree warming remember. I think he is lost inside, is unsure how to grab the bottles before thay fall on the floor, and is dropping them all instaed of salvaging a few.
In his defense, remember out 6-9 hitters back in the day? At least they played smart and did the little things, and got some big hits. We had production from the DH spot, some balance in production.
Our lineup has had some bad timely hitting, but it drops off mount everest after number five. It's time we start blaming them as well, not just Joe. However I just think that Joe is at a loss and is spinning in circles, not that he should have ever been put in this position.
There was a big positive tonight. Wang was OK if not great in his first start so we have a clear 5 man rotation to the end sespite losing Moose etc. Randy, Wright, Wong, Chacon and Small. that's not bad considering. not too long age all we clearly had was Randy Chacon and Small. I don't feel great about the idea of Small and Chacon against the Sox but who knows?
And it might be time to Jump off that bench and throw a tantrum. He's certainly not the boy who cried wolf, not freaking Mclendon doing it every day, maybe it would scare them straight. I for one would like to see it handed to them publicly, doing it in private sure hasn't worked.
Poetically put, Stormer, but...as Rich put it earlier, Torre erected both the rock and the hard place himself by not even following his own oft-repeated wit and wisdom about those "162 games" and "the marathon rather than sprint." Why burn out his bullpen by continuing to pitch Sturtze, Gordon, and even Mo in 4+ run leads AND deficits? That's why he's reduced to pitching his 13th, what 14th ranked pitcher? in the most important games of the season. Even earthworms learn to shrink away from the electrodes after a few shocks. But not Clueless, I guess.
I love your optimism Marc, I do. However you sound just like Joe.
We lost but . . .
The positive was . . .
We saw some good signs in . . .
That works when we're at least playing hard. They're not three year olds.
There were no positives tonight, he threw 80 pitches in 5, had runners on every inning, his one game era about 7.00. Again, I apppreciate yout optimism, but we lost, lost to the Rays with 3 against Boston on deck while the Tribe plays Minn. There was no silver lining. Time to hold them accountable, no more watered down news conferences, it's time.
Stormer, the players, even the guys who hit 6-9 as you point out, don't bring in Wayne Franklin to pitch in a must-win game, especially with only a 3 run deficit in the sixth inning. If Torre could jump off the bench and SCARE HIMSELF STRAIGHT, we might have something. But, sadly, that ain't gonna happen. Earlier in the year, he told his team to "play smarter." He should have told himself to manage smarter. As Rich said, most managers don't even have half the talent at his disposal, whatever you think of them. Piniella said this week: give me $20 million more in payroll and I'll show you how good this team can be. Well, Torre has almost $180 million more.
Johnny C. Thanks. However, I thought maybe Lieter, then you go to the Junk, or at least start with Proctor, his era is like 1.5 when STARTING off the inning.
At least Lieter has had a few gooud outings, has Franklin had more than one.
You could not be more right about the "marathon."
He dumps Stanton like trash.
Sends Groom packing, when he actually had some pretty good outings.
Knee jerk, Knee jerk, Knee jerk, Knee jerk, over and over.
I think he's changed the lineup 4 times already this week, and that was before Sheff went down.
He never let them get in a groove. This has always been my thinking: never let a player go unless a) they just want too much money or, b) you have someone better coming in, or c) you have a prospect you believe in enough to stick with him.
We did not do that this year. We hemmed and hawwed and sold and bought and sold and bought. Do we not have Embree and Bellhorn. Do either one of those guys satisfy my three part test?
He says "marathon" then treats it like a one game playoff.
He can see the light at the end of the tunnell but keeps grabbing his sunglasses to shield the brightness.
It's off topic, but I have preached for years that Piniella is not only the best, but the smartest, and most baseball knowledgeabe manager in baseball and would love to see him with the Yankees. I'm sure he wouldn't like wearing a uniform and shaving, and a host of other things so it won't happen, but he's the best. Give him, I'd say 60 mil., he's spank us all if he got to build the team from the ground up.
I understand the criticism of Joe, I am engaging in it. But we can't have a mean Runs Per Game of about 3.5 and expect to win. Average runs per game means nothing, you need to accout for the 14 run games.
I have a twisted sense of humor, can't help it. It helps me cope. Not to mention it is just silly to take things so seriously, it makes like difficult.
I make Nancy Pieglosi look like a sissy considering how angry and sad I am about what happened.
However, dude, spend one night in Fenway with Yankee gear and you'd feel the same way, and they say Yankee fans are bad at home, pashaw.
I am actually in Chicago working for a few weeks, the folks here have a sense of humor to die for, in your face and I love it.
I mention the money only because Torre defenders use it to alibi his awful managing...oh, George wastes all that money on bad players and guys who keep getting injured, blah, blah, blah. But wasn't Torre the guy who started Enrique Wilson in RF on national TV so that George would be embarrassed into acquiring a "veteran" for him. Unfortunately, the veteran turned out to be Mondesi who showed his gratitude to Torre by openly flouting his authority. He was forthwith banished for his insubordination but, hey, maybe he was onto something. My point is he is a major part of the problem in the team's ridiculous payroll not the solution.
I know I know. Remember screaming your loudest scream, dancing in the bar, hugging your girlfriend, brother, remember every night believeing we would come back, and then we did, remember crying as a grown man when we won in 1996, remember?
Remember how bad we were before, for years?
Remember Boggs on the horse?
Remember Paulie's dad, and him playing that same day?
Remember 200 people dancing in a circle conga line in the bar when we beat the Mets in 2000?
Remember Cone?
Remember Pettitte?
Remember Gooden's No No?
Joe is intrinsicly tied to all of that in my mind.
I just can't throw him out with the trash, not just yet. Criticize yes, but trash him, never.
Don't be St. Louis blaming an Umpire for your two game implosion.
Don't be a fucking moron blaming Buckner for gane six and then your complete give-up in game seven.
Don't be a loser Cubs fan blaming one of your own for your own ineptitude, and them blowing it all the next day.
Most people don't even know the above were game 6 all, why, because they forgive the team and blame the easy, the manager, the fan, the ump, the cast-off player.
I'm old enough to remember some things before 1996. Joe Torre didn't invent winning, friends. He had absolutely nothing to do with developing the talent that won him those 4 rings. Neither he nor his buddy Mel. He was handed a team poised to win. A team that had the best record in the AL in strike-shortened 1994 and should have advanced to the World Series in 1995. A team built by Gene Michael and Buck Showalter. He was assigned a coaching staff to help him run the team...none of whom he'd worked with before or, in the case of Stottlemyre, Randolph, and Zimmer even knew beyond saying hello across a baseball field. It was Arthur Richman's idea to hire Zimmer as his bench coach. We now see how the absence of Zimmer, Randolph, and Maz has left him naked in the dugout.
"Remember, a manager never lost a game." The obverse is also, then, true. A manager never won a game either. So, what are you saying? Is this a religious statement of some sort?
I am not giving Joe the credit. I am not making light of Gene and Arthur, and Willie, and Zim.
I am simply saying we can't blame Joe for this, not completely.
I am not sure how helpful Girardi's input has been. I am sure I can't criticize Donnie.
I am simply saying the team is not performing at the plate, and not to mention money, but these guys shouldn't need motivation to see more than 1 or 2 pitches per at bat.
Maybe you're right, maybe it's over and Joe has to go.
Maybe there is a reson Joe had such a pathetic winning percentage before joining the Yankees.
Dude, when you use obverse in a sports blog, I am speechless, seriously man, I'm a smarty pants, but obverse. Wow, the turn of a coin, the prinipal side and all, wow is all I can say.
Although I must apologize a tad. I really like this forum and baseball toaster.
God, has anyone tried to follow that junk on the yankees.com message board the idea of the more conspicuous of two alternatives might short-circuit the whole deal and black-out every mlb.com website.
Hard loss tonight. However I just saw Jerry Jones's new commercial. Am I crazy or is he the physical Caucasion version of Michael Jakcson. Was one eye always lower than the other? Plastic surgery for one and all, and god bless their bank accounts, every one.
You can find many problems with our team this year, starting with a decimated pitching staff, and ending with questionable decisions by Torre.
But there is a bottom line that these posts run around. We faced a pitcher with a 5.93 ERA tonight. What did we do? How many times have we faced the WORST pitchers, and turned into the worst offense?
No matter what happens, this team is build around offense. If RJ was RJ, and Moose was consistant, and Wright and Pavano were healthy and earned 1/2 their salaries, we could/should have well above average pitching.
But never-the-less, we should be scoring runs, and scoring them when they count. We should be able to give up 4 or 5 runs and still will 60%+ of the time. Our offense should be playing like runs scored in the first 6 innings count.
We have a team BA of .274 (3rd), OPS of .800 (3rd) and RS of 743 (3rd) and a team ERA 8th out of 14 (Boston is 11th).
I see the pitching but not the offense. Even with superstars like Cora, Olerud, Mueller, Millar, Graffanino and Kapler seeing regular playing time, the Red Sox manage to win (with lousey pitching) by outscoring their opponents.
We don't work counts, don't slap singles, don't move runners over, don't drop a bunt down 3rd now-and-then, don't use any offensive tools except trying to pull the first pitch we see.
How many times has Posada, Bernie, Sheff or Cano gone the other way? While Jetes is great the other way, why not wait for a pitch to pull every now and then? When we need base runners, who goes up looking for a walk? It's been said before. We play like and all-star team. 9 guys just trying to hit the ball hard.
We are just not a smart team anymore. We are choking, because fear of failure causes us to not be smart. We are the masters of LOB. Of standing leadoff doubles and untold guys at 3rd with less then 2 out. Our PS hopes have been stranded far to often.
Losing is a drag. But playing dumb and well below your ability in inexcusable.
Comment status: comments have been closed. Baseball Toaster is now out of business.
Let's Go Yan-Kees.
My friend just told me about this great contest called "Voice of the Yankees" that I'm pumped about, so I'm spreading the news! The always-heard but never seen Bob Sheppard is judging a contest to find the New York area's best amateur announcer. Five fans will get to compete in front of the man himself and will have the chance to win a pretty ridiculous prize! The Web site (http://www.bankofamerica.com/startinglineup) has all of the details. I don't know about you- but I'm definitely entering!
You still have 15 minutes to get Wang back on your reserve list. He is pitching tonight, not because he is ready to pitch at the major league level, but because he is playing for a desperate team. In his last appearance, he allowed 11 hits in 5 innings at AAA.
I also understand that they've suspended the regular rules tonight. Rather than play the usual 9 innings, the first team to 15 runs wins. I believe you must win by two and, of course, if TB gets there first, the Yanks, as home team, gets last licks.
11 hits in AAA might not be a good indicator of how tonights game will go, since Wang pitches to contact (ground balls, we hope), and the inferior AAA defense surely allows for a higher batting average on balls put into play. Knowwhatimsayin?
Here's Hendrickson. Second pitch ripped.
This game to 15 could be over in 4.
Cleveland has already won.
Here's Hendrickson. Second pitch ripped.
This game to 15 could be over in 4.
Cleveland has already won.
why do the yankees make every bad pitcher look good? the dude has an era over SIX.
Think he can strike out Bellhorn?
At least Wang seems comfortable.
Ok, that's different. But if he's fooling them, he's fooling them. Hopefully they'll start picking up his pitches better soon.
same scenario as last night, Cleveland won and I think the Bosox will sweep, so a win here is really important.
I'm at school right now, so I have no way of watching (not that I could, being in California)
09/21/2003 Travis Harper, Tampa Bay (AL) vs. New York in the 7th (single, double play 4-6-3, ground-out 6-3) [Enrique Wilson, Karim Garcia, Alfonso Soriano]
09/27/2003 John Parrish, Baltimore (AL) at New York in the 6th (ground-out3, single, double play 6-4-3) [Nick Johnson, Derek Jeter, Ruben Sierra]
Hendrickson's ERA is down to 5.89.
That's what the Sox did last year in the ALCS and that what the Rays have done all year.
WAYNE. FRANKLIN.
What is this guy doing on a professional baseball team?
As I posted on the previous thread, I'm too young to remember the Yankees ever being bad, and since I don't live in New York, everyone's always accused me of being a bandwagon fan (I promise I'm not). To prove them wrong, I'm wearing my Jeter jersey tomorrow, right after a humiliating series loss that probably ended the season.
But then again, they did come back from down 6-0 in the '96 series...
OTOH how is this Torre's fault, F-Rod is just as bad as Proctor.
Speaking of Boston - they're down 3-0.
With that said, even though I've disagreed with Torre critics in the past, I can't say that Torre's insertion of Franklin and Mendoza into 3 run games (that were promptly put out of reach by those stiffs) represent his best moments.
He's done more to keep the ship afloat than his critics give him credit for, but he's also contributing to the collapse, no question about it.
Consequently, Torre has created the rock and the hard place.
Remember, most winning managers don't have the luxury of even this much talent.
Good job, A-rod. No need to try for too much with no outs and Giambi coming up...
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlbhist/players/splits?statsId=5502&type=batting&year=2004
But that jerk SS's throw was awful.
IMO...if there's a difference, it's on defense. He seems a bit more tentative this year.
Lawton...well, I can't really say he's a disappointment, because his performance isn't exactly unexpected. The Yankees were fooling themselves if they thought he'd be a good outfielder.
Sorry, but what a lousy comment.
Schteeve, I'll never forget it- it's the background of my laptop.
Have we gotten to Baez at all this year? I hope this is the time.
.306 .380 .456
My prediction?
Giambi does something good, Jorge finds a way to fuck it all to hell, Ruben gives us a glimmer of hope for pinch hitter Gary Sheffield
I'm in DC.
Let's hope Felix keeps it close...
strike out. looking.
DOES NOTHING SHAME THIS TEAM?
I think he's given up on beating TB.
Bernie Williams: 0 for 4 in 5 pitches.
Joe Torre: His love affair with Wayne Franklin provided Tampa with their winning margin.
'nuff said for tonight. The days are getting shorter. And so are our chances. But never, ever, ever give up!
Way-kup, Yan-kees! Wake up!
Then there are the three teams that make (or have made) my blood boil.
The Angels - I really don't like them.
The Idiot Sox - they annoy me more than anything else.
I don't hate either of 'em. But I'll tell you who I do hate:
The Tampa Bay #%)&in Rays.
The #%)&#@! Devil Rays.
I don't just hate them, I HATE them. Words alone can't express my feelings towards them.
I don't think I can read any of the comments tonight, I'm not in the mood to see how we were held to 1 hit and 2 walks IN SIX INNINGS while the Red Sox were losing and Cleveland was winning. Maybe if I go to sleep, I'll wake up and find out this was a dream.
Heck of a time not to rely on his world famous "veterans" he covets so.
It's untimely hitting and a 6-9 that makes Detroit's look good, simple as that.
I will never give up, but we cant seriously think we are going to make the playoffs playing like this.
Our lineup has had some bad timely hitting, but it drops off mount everest after number five. It's time we start blaming them as well, not just Joe. However I just think that Joe is at a loss and is spinning in circles, not that he should have ever been put in this position.
We lost but . . .
The positive was . . .
We saw some good signs in . . .
That works when we're at least playing hard. They're not three year olds.
There were no positives tonight, he threw 80 pitches in 5, had runners on every inning, his one game era about 7.00. Again, I apppreciate yout optimism, but we lost, lost to the Rays with 3 against Boston on deck while the Tribe plays Minn. There was no silver lining. Time to hold them accountable, no more watered down news conferences, it's time.
At least Lieter has had a few gooud outings, has Franklin had more than one.
You could not be more right about the "marathon."
He dumps Stanton like trash.
Sends Groom packing, when he actually had some pretty good outings.
Knee jerk, Knee jerk, Knee jerk, Knee jerk, over and over.
I think he's changed the lineup 4 times already this week, and that was before Sheff went down.
He never let them get in a groove. This has always been my thinking: never let a player go unless a) they just want too much money or, b) you have someone better coming in, or c) you have a prospect you believe in enough to stick with him.
We did not do that this year. We hemmed and hawwed and sold and bought and sold and bought. Do we not have Embree and Bellhorn. Do either one of those guys satisfy my three part test?
He says "marathon" then treats it like a one game playoff.
He can see the light at the end of the tunnell but keeps grabbing his sunglasses to shield the brightness.
It's off topic, but I have preached for years that Piniella is not only the best, but the smartest, and most baseball knowledgeabe manager in baseball and would love to see him with the Yankees. I'm sure he wouldn't like wearing a uniform and shaving, and a host of other things so it won't happen, but he's the best. Give him, I'd say 60 mil., he's spank us all if he got to build the team from the ground up.
I understand the criticism of Joe, I am engaging in it. But we can't have a mean Runs Per Game of about 3.5 and expect to win. Average runs per game means nothing, you need to accout for the 14 run games.
I make Nancy Pieglosi look like a sissy considering how angry and sad I am about what happened.
However, dude, spend one night in Fenway with Yankee gear and you'd feel the same way, and they say Yankee fans are bad at home, pashaw.
I am actually in Chicago working for a few weeks, the folks here have a sense of humor to die for, in your face and I love it.
Let's end this here, i hate e-fights.
Deal!
Remember how bad we were before, for years?
Remember Boggs on the horse?
Remember Paulie's dad, and him playing that same day?
Remember 200 people dancing in a circle conga line in the bar when we beat the Mets in 2000?
Remember Cone?
Remember Pettitte?
Remember Gooden's No No?
Joe is intrinsicly tied to all of that in my mind.
I just can't throw him out with the trash, not just yet. Criticize yes, but trash him, never.
Don't be St. Louis blaming an Umpire for your two game implosion.
Don't be a fucking moron blaming Buckner for gane six and then your complete give-up in game seven.
Don't be a loser Cubs fan blaming one of your own for your own ineptitude, and them blowing it all the next day.
Most people don't even know the above were game 6 all, why, because they forgive the team and blame the easy, the manager, the fan, the ump, the cast-off player.
Sadly, I am old enogh to remember the 70's.
I am not giving Joe the credit. I am not making light of Gene and Arthur, and Willie, and Zim.
I am simply saying we can't blame Joe for this, not completely.
I am not sure how helpful Girardi's input has been. I am sure I can't criticize Donnie.
I am simply saying the team is not performing at the plate, and not to mention money, but these guys shouldn't need motivation to see more than 1 or 2 pitches per at bat.
Maybe you're right, maybe it's over and Joe has to go.
Maybe there is a reson Joe had such a pathetic winning percentage before joining the Yankees.
Do I hear Reggie, why the hell not Reggie?
And yes, the Yankees are my religion.
Hey, you made me laugh out loud at least.
God, has anyone tried to follow that junk on the yankees.com message board the idea of the more conspicuous of two alternatives might short-circuit the whole deal and black-out every mlb.com website.
At least I can laugh myself to sleep.
But there is a bottom line that these posts run around. We faced a pitcher with a 5.93 ERA tonight. What did we do? How many times have we faced the WORST pitchers, and turned into the worst offense?
No matter what happens, this team is build around offense. If RJ was RJ, and Moose was consistant, and Wright and Pavano were healthy and earned 1/2 their salaries, we could/should have well above average pitching.
But never-the-less, we should be scoring runs, and scoring them when they count. We should be able to give up 4 or 5 runs and still will 60%+ of the time. Our offense should be playing like runs scored in the first 6 innings count.
We have a team BA of .274 (3rd), OPS of .800 (3rd) and RS of 743 (3rd) and a team ERA 8th out of 14 (Boston is 11th).
I see the pitching but not the offense. Even with superstars like Cora, Olerud, Mueller, Millar, Graffanino and Kapler seeing regular playing time, the Red Sox manage to win (with lousey pitching) by outscoring their opponents.
We don't work counts, don't slap singles, don't move runners over, don't drop a bunt down 3rd now-and-then, don't use any offensive tools except trying to pull the first pitch we see.
How many times has Posada, Bernie, Sheff or Cano gone the other way? While Jetes is great the other way, why not wait for a pitch to pull every now and then? When we need base runners, who goes up looking for a walk? It's been said before. We play like and all-star team. 9 guys just trying to hit the ball hard.
We are just not a smart team anymore. We are choking, because fear of failure causes us to not be smart. We are the masters of LOB. Of standing leadoff doubles and untold guys at 3rd with less then 2 out. Our PS hopes have been stranded far to often.
Losing is a drag. But playing dumb and well below your ability in inexcusable.
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