Dude, "Goose Loves Dick", that's rough. Hope Goose has his bags packed & a hotel reserved in upstate, he best be traveling Cooperstown's way this year.

'Evolving' (read: diminishing) role of Cashman scares me.

From today's Post, courtesy of Mike from Hoboken:

January 7, 2008 -- BOW, NH - Some Rudy Giuliani volunteers bused here from New York City struck out as they went door to door in advance of Tuesday's Granite State primary while wearing caps or jackets of the hated New York Yankees.

"Some people really don't think," said a person with knowledge of the situation.

"You're in the middle of Red Sox Nation wearing stuff from their enemy. It's absolutely ridiculous.

"Can you image if people were running around The Bronx in Red Sox hats?" he added.

Giuliani reps didn't immediately return calls for comment.

Giuliani, a longtime Yankee fan, raised eyebrows in his home state this fall, after the Bronx Bombers were eliminated from the playoffs, when he said he would root for the hated Red Sox to win the World Series because they are an American League team.

Alex, one of the things that strikes me about Dick Allen is that his contemporaries, almost without fail, talk about what a great baserunner he was. Though not a basestealer, he ran well, ran aggressively, and had a reputation for taking out the middle infielder on the double play. Baserunning can be difficult to quantify statistically, but it appears to be another point in Allen's favor when discussing his HOF worthiness.

1 Yes, but since the Yanks haven't won a World Series since 2000, and have been eliminated in the first round 3 years in a row, I cannot say that I am surprised.

I don't think it's right, but I'm used to the way things operate in the Bx.

I didn't watch him enough but I heard that Larry Walker was a great base runner too.

alex, in light of last night news magazine fare, it is fitting that your article you linked to this morning is titled, "The importance of appearing earnest".

a nice piece, too. thanks.

Wow... Allen's numbers blow Rice away.. without even accounting for his better defense and baserunning. I believe Allen also played before the mound was lowered?

Rice broke a .900 OPS four times, while Allen did it eight times, 3 of those times posting over a 1.000 OPS. I don't know how they adjust Rice's numbers, but his OPS at Fenway was .131 pts higher and his HRs 20% great then on the road.

A .911 career OPS (Rice at .854) during the '60s and '70s is quite studly.

If Rice gets into the HOF, Fenway Park should get in too.

Don't give Peter Gammons any ideas.

Dick Allen was a monster hitter. I think he is one of the most deserving hitters not enshrined, as well as the perfect example of a high peak player. Unless you had a long career, I think you'd have to pass the Allen test before getting in on your peak. As mentioned, Jim Rice woefully fails that test.

2 So if GWB campaigned in 2004 wearing a Varitek jersey, that would make it perfectly acceptable to vote for him?

When you're letting your baseball rooting interest affect your political decisions, I can say without hesitation that you truly are a moron.

2 10 well... speaking of baseball mingling with politics and the GOP in NH, schilling shilling in NH for mccain can't help rudy much either.

2 I'm not taking my hat off because I'm in New England. If these people are going to vote for the President of the United States based on baseball preferences, there was little hope for them to begin with.

11 Schilling's monster post on his blog a couple of weeks ago convinced me of one thing: he's even more of a sanctimonious ass than I thought, and he really needs to STFU.

10 I wouldn't vote for the George Washington Bridge even if they draped Mo's jersey on it (though I'm sure it would solve some middle-late inning relief issues).

Brooklyn, on the other hand...

Had the privilege to see him play many, many times during my years at Penn, 1965-1969. Carried his card in my wallet until it melted. He wore a hard cap. Hit some homers that are still in orbit. Fielded effortlessly. Don't remember seeing a fielding error. Didn't always plant before he threw. Could run the bases, too. Didn't run out all of his outs. No Manny's in my memory. Used to swat the players with his glove when he couldn' find the base with his foot. Drew words in the diirt using big letters. Some thought they were the names of horses he bet on or substances he took. He talked to the fans, sometimes when he was on the field waiting for the pitcher to throw. Like the other big ones, The Mick, Reggie, A-Rod, Papi, when he came up, you stopped drinking and talking and just watched. The best. Soft swing, as opposed to Sheff. And the ball just whizzed. Just the best. Love the guy. Wish the game had treated him betta. Should be in the hall. Probably won't on the character issue. He was a character, wasn't he?

15 that inspired me to look for a bit of video.

i didn't have to look too hard. here's an 8.5 minute clip:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=PoP0OZ8mZX4

wow.

14 It's no surprise that you wouldn't vote for the George Washington Bridge. Everyone knows that you are a big Tappan Zee supporter. Rumor is that you have even made a few contributions to the structure's campaign for office... curiously in $4 installments.

Don't get me wrong, I'm with you on voting for Tappan Zee. I always vote for the Cantilever Party candidate. You have to watch out for those Suspension Party candidates, they can be such flip-floppers. Remember Galloping Gertie:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0Fi1VcbpAI

;-)

(boy, I hope Randym reads this post so at least someone will get my feeble attempt at bridge humor)

17 The Tappan Zee is I think the longest bridge in NY but it is a Moses bridge. There seems to be an undemocratic quality to it's magnificent span. I don't know if I could vote for that bridge. Give me a bridge from good solid immigrant stock like the Brooklyn Bridge and you'll get my vote. If nominated do you think it will run? If elected do you think it will serve? We should consider a draft petition for the BB.

Chyll and I are well acquainted with the old Tappan Zee. The house I grew up in has a fabulous view of it.

There are serious questions about how it's managed to function so well for so long. It doesn't have as sturdy a frame as many of the others, but it still manages to carry a heavy workload year after year. It has remained remarkably durable despite all expectations.

There have been rumors that Zee has been given megadoses of solder and other substances to improve its performance, but those remain just rumors.

I vote for the Willis Avenue and 3rd Avenue Bridges...anything that helps you avoid the Major Degan gets my vote.

17 You don't give yourself enough credit, my friend >;) The problem with suspension bridges is that you never really know what they're up to. Cantilevers on the other hand are very stoic and family-oriented; there's a lot of give-and-take, which the Tappan Zee definitely has. Brooklyn may have the name-recognition, but it can also be bought pretty easily...

20 I don't know if you can truss them. They do have "short attention" spans...

17 I'm sorry... but you can't trust a bridge that runs on a platform of stability, and then acts like that.

I have that URL bookmarked as it's one of the great examples of how bizarre natural law can be.

17 et al...

where are all the Verrazano Voters???

;-P

24 They've all been suspended... in fact, they're serving the longest suspension in US history...

Hmm, I'm not sure I like all this City centric bridge support. Given all the time I spent upstate, I'm throwing my support to the Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge:
http://www.nycroads.com/crossings/kingston-rhinecliff/

Besides, how can you not support a bridge named after the godfather of funk, George Clinton?

26 Good thinking... that bridge is always pretty high...

18 Good call on the Brooklyn Bridge, although as Chyll points out in 21 the lobbyists would have a field day...

19 Performance enhancers for ol' Tappan Zee... there goes that Bridge HOF induction.

25 & 27 Nice.

26 The upstate underdog bridge would have to be the Green Island bridge:

http://tinyurl.com/2u2q43

Its a drawbridge, which has retro appeal, but man is that thing ugly.

26 As a side note, my favorite memory concerning bridge crossings was crossing that bridge the first time... my family was on another excursion when we happened upon the bridge the for the first time. My sister Terry, who was afraid of heights, started screaming and hollering, which set off Mom on a hilarious fit of shadenfraude; I was kinda queasy myself when I observed that not only was the bridge very high (you couldn't see the other side considering the high arch), but it has absolutely no sides whatsoever... (well, low guardrails, which don't count)... the return trip in total darkness was fairly interesting as well, and didn't curb the screaming either >;)

What about Todd Bridges? Or Tito Puente?

31 Too street for main stream...

32 What you talkin about chyll Willis.

Actually, I think I'll vote for this bridge:
http://i13.tinypic.com/86e2szt.jpg

Not only does it give fans safe access to Spring Training Yankee games, it was fabricated here in Alabama and I had a little something to do with it. So, even though I'm biased, I am throwing my support behind this bridge (notice I said behind and not under... we stand behind our bridges, just not under them ;-)

32 ...http://tinyurl.com/2f5szv

29 You ain't kiddin'. That's one ugly bridge.

33 LOL. Good one.

33 ugh... I walked into that one (scraping shoe on edge of curb, located conveniently on 35 ) >;)

29 Wowzers... seems like Wiki got that wrong, it's probably maintained by the Department of Corrections (my eyes!!!)

OK .... I think we've taken a bridge conversation too far ...

The defamation lawsuit actually adds some credibility for me. If he loses this suit, he's sunk, so he must think he's going to win.

39 Nonsense! Here's a vote for a foreigner, the good old Golden Gate.

I'd love to see the reaction to a vote for the Triborough.

Man, I had some idea, but I really had no idea...
https://antipolygraph.org/

Clemens news conderence on NOW LIVE. ESPN website

Allen's omission from the HOF is one of the most egregious examples of what is wrong with the voting. No: 15 was and is one of the best players of his generation. Everyone made way too much out of his attitude. He was graceful in the field and running the bases and he hit the ball a ton.

I hear the 59th St. Bridge is feeling groovy.

Dick (then still Richie) Allen had a big year in his only season in L.A., but there was disappointment that he really couldn't play 3B any more (career fielding % .927 indicates plenty of errors there, plus the 1967 serious wrist injury - the infamous headlight incident) and he was flipped for the pre-surgical Tommy John. In his 1964-1974 peak years he put up big numbers, in both pitchers years like 1968 and hitters' years like 1970.

Allen did come out early in 23 games in 1972. Just judging by final scores, maybe six are highly likely to have been for defensive purposes.

Did anyone see that press conference?
Man... but this is getting INTENSE!
Roger is fighting balls-to-the-wall.
He sounds like a man falsely accused.
It's hard to believe he would go to this extent if he were guilty.

IF...if... and I certainly can't say...
but IF he is guilty, he will be FRIED like no other figure in the history of sports.

I hope he is innocent because this is getting ugly way beyond the initial reactions to the Mitchell report.

30 Yeah, my mom hated that bridge. I went to Bard, so she had to cross it a few times a year. I do get uneasy if I haven't crossed it in a few years, but constant crossing is fine.

46 As one who has thought Clemens deserved the benefit of the doubt based on the evidence at hand, I think the press conference was a very positive step for his case. The public got to see a defiant Clemens, learned that he was willing to testify before Congress; heard from a lawyer who says he is convinced of Clemens innocence and heard a tape that at the very least make McNamee out to be a less than credible witness.

Unfortunately for Clemens, the press conference is only a small step toward clearing his name, but I think more people either will believe him or shift to undecided as a result.

Wasn't "Goose Loves Dick" the marketing slogan for Top Gun?

50 Not to infringe on this Bridge game, but am I only only one that thinks this affair may grow into the biggest scandal in MLB history, one that will make the Black Sox and Pete Rose look like bit players?

If Roger is indeed innocent, and continues in this pursuit, this will bring down the Mitchell Report, possibly Bud 'He Who Should Be Blamed' Selig, and give a number of members in the press a black eye, if not a banishment from a number of club houses.

This is big new gentlemen.
Don't we Banterers have an obligation to conclude how this will all turn out?

P.S. That IS one ugly bridge.

50 Bud 'He Who Should Be Blamed' Selig... nice!

Well, you're right to a certain extent. In today's culture of ADD, this will linger like old doo-doo; it will stink for a while, then dry up, only to re-manifest if stepped in again. But no one will want to pick up the mess and it will just sit there while people will pretend it's not there or step around it.

And, like the fertilizer this all implies, that's One To Grow On >;)

53 Cyll Whill - If this unfolds and the Mitchell report goes down, this will be serious stuff. More congressional involvement, player denials, Selig on the hot seat... lots of stuff. The story goes from steroids to corruption. It has some real nasty implications.

53 The nature of this type of corruption would take down more than just baseball, but seriously injure the reputation of sports journalism (and maybe a few investigators and representatives) as well. I think more than a few people have a lot at stake here, which leads me to believe that they would do anything to redirect people's attention from the obvious, if it gets that far.

I don't think much of the general sports public in that it would have to take someone killing themselves or being killed as a result of all the coverage and investigating in order to sustain the public's interest for a long time. A spectacle of bloody and superstar proportions, higher than Anna Nicole Smith overdosing. Not that I'm endorsing that of course, but I'm skeptical that anything honest will come of this in the long run, unless Congress does revoke their antitrust exemption...

Comments anyone?
http://emedia.thetimes-tribune.com/Blogs/SWBYankees/tabid/552/Default.aspx
(Note: NOT Clemens related.)

50 I don't think so. Whether Clemens is able to more convincingly porve his innonence or not, I doubt it will send showwaves through anything or anyone. After all, look at the LA Times retraction. That was a serious allegation that turned out to be flat out wrong. There were no repurcussions.

The media today is hardly a bastion of integrity, so this will simply go down as par for the course in an era of shameful journalism.

21 Chyll I would like to point out that countless thousands have attempted to "buy" the Brooklyn Bridge but not a one has been successful. No my friend, the integrity of that magnificent edifice is unassailable. Those mighty caissons stand for the right things; honor is not on sale today. It has my vote.

And right on cue (speaking of bridges) ....

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/08/nyregion/08bridge.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

57 Fair enough. Your superior reasoning has bested us again... you have my vote if you decide to run >;)

58 Good thing they don't know about 30 >;)

And right on cue (again) ... even more talk of bridges ...

http://tinyurl.com/2e5von