Apr
19
Open Thread: Goin’ goin’, back back, to Cali Cali
By
Gaudin's got a 1.43 xFIP and a 16.88 K/9 in 2010. (Photo Credit: Jeff Chiu, AP)
I’m pretty sure I’ve used that post title before, but so be it.
The Yankees are probably already in the Bay Area in advance of their series against old buddy Chad Gaudin and the A’s, otherwise they’re probably en route. I wonder if they’ll present Gaudin with this World Series ring there, or if he’ll have to wait for the Fed-Ex guy. I’d like to see Joe Girardi & Co. hand it off, would be a nice thing to do.
Anyway, here’s the open thread for the night. There’s NBA and NHL playoff action, and the Cubs are visiting Ike Davis and the Mets. Talk about whatever you want, but enjoy.
279 Comments»
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- Robinson Cano surprises a young fan at the MLB Fan Cave
- New York Mets sign RHP David Aardsma to a Minor League deal
- Texas Rangers designate RHP Derek Lowe for assignment
- Mark Teixeira makes first appearance in Extended Spring Training game
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More trivia:
It’s early, but the Yanks are on pace to win 122 games.
CC Sabathia has a WHIP of 0.737 (even Mo isn’t that good), and neither CC, AJ nor Andy has an ERA over 3.00 (in fact, Andy doesn’t even have an ERA over 2.00).
And Jesus Montero homered today.
It’s good to be a Yankee fan.
2008 Mo was that good. 0.665 WHIP.
Yes. But not ’10 Mo.
Yet.
Holy shit. I knew he had a really good year but DAMN…
Right now, Andy leads the team in VORP with a 9.0. Happy dance. Posada’s the #7 hitter in the AL right now at 8.5 and Jeter’s #9 with 8.2 (but teh groundouts to short!).
Guess who leads MLB hitters in VORP?
Yup, Vernon Wells with 11.4.
Followed immediately by SCOTT PODSEDNIK (!!?!) with 11.0.
What the hell.
Key difference is CC is in his peak; Mo hasn’t hit his yet
so… what’s with this PED suspension by someone on some team somewhere?
Ike Davis’ nose puts Pettitte’s to shame. Wow.
Que?
http://twitter.com/injuryexpert/status/12478504057
He’s said he doesn’t know the name, team, league, division, etc. I don’t know how reliable he is.
Shit. I hope it’s not a Yank.
ditto, obviously
Hope it isn’t a Yank, too. I am going to guess it is Gagne and hence, the retirement (in addition to sucking, of course).
It makes sense since the Dodgers released him a month ago, which is about when the positive result would have been found. He did say that he doesn’t believe its a repeat offender which would eliminate Gagne.
I am kinda nervous.
Yeah, I see that now, not a repeat offender and not amphetamines, so probably isn’t Gagne. However, IIRC Gagne was never punished (just published in the Mitchell Report), so he may not be considered an offender, but it still probably isn’t him.
OMG rumors that its tex!
Please no!
Here is the Teixeira exchange (doesn’t sound credible, but still scary):
JSoccoa: somone is telling me its tex
Carrol: ?
JSoccoa: well a not so credible was telling me it could be a yank, but not so sure i know your working on it. wondering y no story yet? less than 5 seconds ago
it’s scary but of course the names of the big guys are going to get thrown out there at first.
Well if it’s Tex, this should put an end to the whole “taking steroids makes you hit homeruns!” nonsense, because he’s been dreadful.
Also “JSoccoa” looks like a 10 year old.
Axsia, that’s kind of ridiculous. Tex is a GREAT HR hitter. You can hit slumps on steroids, no? They just help your bat speed and help you hit the ball farther.
It was sarcasm.
He’s clearly joking. I doubt it was Tex after that kid admitted it was a non-credible source. The Yankees joking with Tex, changing the date on the scorecard to 5/1/10, makes me believe he’s innocent. They wouldn’t joke with him about the slump if he’s got steroids on his mind.
My badski.
/DFA’s self
Maybe Ortiz finally found the real killer?
BTW, you act like there’s no debate about the power of steroids to affect hitters’ performances-there actually, as obvious as this issue may sound, a debate. Read Steve Goldman, he is totally convinced that steroids don’t affect hitters’ performances.
@Ansky
I could totally see that but its supposed to be a non-repeat offender. I don’t know if he qualifies after last year. It would explain his frustration with the media though.
http://twitter.com/incarcerate.....2488671046
oh poop not again
these guys look reaaaaal reliable
also that “incarceratedbob” is clearly stealing off Carroll without giving him any credit and is only saying he heard it was Teixeira because Carroll retweeted that one guy’s message
I really hope so. He is a radio caller personality on WFAN so he’s a bit more reliable than that 10 year old.
He is a radio caller personality on WFAN so he’s a bit more reliable than that 10 year old.
Yeah I don’t actually know if there are differences between regular callers on WFAN and 10-year-olds
I’m with Bexy. Being a regular caller on WFAN proves shit.
Montero got his first homer? Awesome. He’s starting to heat up.
Behold, the power of Jesus
I will be interested to see how many homers Montero can launch in a full season of AAA, 25 is not out of the question. Also it would be nice to see his OPS around .850 to .900 and continued work on his defensive skills.
That would be fantastic especially considering he’s the youngest player in AAA by a good amount IIRC.
You think hes going to have a full season in AAA? Shame on you.
How bout those sox?
Best team in baseball anchored by the greatest fielding and pitching core of this generation.
Like I think I said, there’s no way they stay this bad all season but oh boy will I enjoy it while they do.
I’m kinda excited to see Ike Davis tonight, though it’s unfortunate how a lot of people are placing many high expectations on him.
Imagine when Jesus comes up
I guess it depends on the situation in which he is called up. Davis is being called up for desperation. Hopefully, Jesus’s promotion is not in the same situation.
Aren’t people overstating it a bit? I know he has a limited number of ABs in the upper levels of their system, but it’s not like he came out of high school 3 months ago. He’s 23, spent 3 years in college, mashed in MLB ST, etc.
I love to bash the Mets, but I want to be fair about it (occasionally)
Oh no doubt. He’s good but not that good. Mets fans and the media are making him out to be a savior.
Btw, I’m not trying to bash the Mets, just feeling a bit sorry for Davis.
ASU ! ASU ! ASU ! ASU !
You forgot to mention a new episode of 24 on FOX today, Mike.
http://www.nydailynews.com/spo.....z0kAukvuFA
At this point I wouldn’t be surprised if we traded Jesus. We’ll keep him so Baseball America can say good stuff about his bat so we can get someone else instead. I hope it won’t happen because I will be deeply saddened.
Jesus and A-Jax are a different class of prospect. Jesus is closer on the lines of Joba or Hughes.
So he’ll catch a couple games with a couple pass balls with a few runners stealing from him and he’ll be DH’ed forever after one week of games?
I kid, I kid.
Not that this is unusual, but did Bill Madden have a point there?
By hyping him up some more? I have no clue.
For the most part, every team overhypes it’s prospects. The key to smart baseball is to be able to not overvalue them.
see YankeesJunkie
Too bad Ajax is leading off. I also must have missed the press releases Cashman issued “hyping” Austin Jackson. I don’t know how an organization can be accused of hyping their own prospects. IMO most “hype” comes from scouts, internet folk and talking heads.
I hope they trade Montero and Joba for Lincecum.
Poor Ike Davis. He’s going to get killed if he doesn’t produce immediately. Or even worse, if he comes out of the gate hot, then tapers off as pitchers make adjustments.
I don’t know–it’s not like anyone is reasonably expecting the Mets to compete this year
Oh I think Omar in his own little world thinks they are competing.
Fair enough. In any event, calling up Davis won’t be nearly as damaging as what they are doing to Mejia
I dont think he will. Met fans will kill Omar because Davis isnt going to be able to save the season.
Xavier Nady is batting… cleanup…….???
Yea, that’s a headscratcher. Then again, the Mets had Catalanotto there last night
The Cubs must be trying to show how pathetic of an offense they have if they have Nady batting cleanup. Nady has never been a regular player and was not one for the Yankees last year when he was healthy.
Congrats Mike on the Rotographs position. I also heard you on a Fangraphs podcast.
Thanks, though writing about fantasy baseball is kinda boring.
So is Live Tracker on Yahoo fantasy baseball free this year? I don’t remember it being this long with it.
Yes, it is pretty nice, but even if you don’t have the live tracker the other one updates right away when you refresh it.
The Cubbies have some of the worst contracts in baseball.
http://spreadsheets.google.com.....utput=html
They have done a pretty inept job at signing FA talent that does not degrade into mediocrity or worse.
That Soriano contract is just brutal.
so supposedly the rangers signed MZA. Me likey. Hopefully hopefully we now have a ranger that can put up points not named Gaborik
http://www.blueseatblogs.com/2.....llo-aasen/
He’s really small though, I hope he can take getting smacked around for 82 games.
I know it was weird reading that I weighed more than a future NHL player. Patty Kane’s pretty petite. Idk its something. I’ll take any glimmer of hope
NO GAME TONIGHT?
*RIPS OUT ALL MY HAIRS*
At least the next two out three series are against teams that are not real playoff contenders. The main thing I am looking forward to see is can Vazquez bounce back after two poor starts and have two good ones versus the A’s and Angels.
Talkin bout MAriano in the 9thh
Javy gettiin winss
Granderson hittin leftiess
and above all Nick Johnson gettin hitss
I shall write a song:)
I can’t watch the Mets, but from listening to the Fan, how did he not get to third on that?
Soriano did not hustle at all after the ball was hit, he thought he had hit a homer. He should have easily been at third since it took forever for that ball to come down right in front of the 415 sign.
Did a home run hop, watched it for a few jog-steps. He basically Sorianoed down the line.
Hah, Soriano pulled a hypothetical Cano. He went lazily into 2nd after thinking he hit a HR. (Cano got accused of being lazy even though he really wasn’t)
Damn, joke fail. Forgot to add the /Salty’d
Can anyone tell me why the Mets and Cubs are wearing the #42 jerseys?
It’s Mo Vaughn Night.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rlhANI4aU8A (SFW)
My favorite memory of Mo Vaughn is how he kept a runner on. He would stand in front of the runner, blocking the runner’s line of sight to the pitcher, so the runner couldn’t see if the pitcher was throwing over.
They said because the Mets were on the road for JR Day.
Is that the Wilpons’ Dodger Complex or did MLB ask them to do this?
I was thinking that but it didn’t bother to ask to verify, thanks.
For Marianno, duuhhh
http://baseball.dailyskew.com/.....763075.jpg (SFW)
I wonder what the twist in this week’s 24 will be.
Ike Davis will help the Mets but they need Bay to heat up, and at least 3 starters to start to pitch well, or they will be battling the Nats come September for last place.
Heh, Ike Davis hit a little bloop over Jeff Baker’s head.
Poor Ike Davis. He has a good chance to be an above-average first baseman, but he has nowhere near the talent level to be the next Reyes or Wright, which I think some Mets fans are expecting him to be.
But good for him and the Mets on his first major league hit.
A single in his 1st AB. Weak.
/Kidding
Barajas makes Jorge look like Gardner!
Even if the Mets were on the road for Jackie Robinson day, didn’t they still get to wear #42 jerseys, because every player on every team did on that day? Is it really just that they wanted to do it with their home jerseys? And how did they also get the Cubs to go along with it and also wear all #42s? Seems strange to me.
so today, I had someone trying to convince me that Jonathan Niese is far better than AJ Burnett and that The Mets actually have a rotation that is comparable even superior to that of the Yankees. FACEPALM!
That’s not even a facepalm. That’s a serious condition that should be treated by a psychological professional.
he argued that while Burnett throws harder, he throws too many clunkers, led the league in walks adn wild pitches and is really inconsistent.
He then said Niese is far more consistent to which I replied yes, consistently bad.
oh wow. What were his full comments? I’m so excited to hear this.
that was the jist of it along with him calling me stupid. He said Burnett was no better than a #3 and later admitted that Niese was the #4 on the Mets team which led him to conclude that the Mets rotation is better than the Yanks. He then said wait till Maine heats up cause he is just a tick below CC and that Vazquez sucks cause he can’t win in NY, Pettitte is old, Hughes is unproven, yadda yadda at which point I dropped the argument with the hope professionals can take on the case.
Phil Hughes has nearly four times the Major League innings that Niese has
that’s … special
WOW about Maine. Heh.
*Brings out the pitch forks and the popcorn*
oh and he added how overpaid Burnett was which ehh, I think if Burnett can remain relatively injury free, he is worth teh contract.
Also, I was saying how the Mets wasted money on Bay and needed more help than that to which he replied, there was no one on the FA market worth the money to which I obviously said Bay wasn’t worth the money. He said Minaya is just saving money but I said he is trying to save his own ass. The kid said that Minaya is an above average GM.
This is junior in high school so he shouldn’t be so stupid.
Why even take part in that dicussion? Discussion can be meaningful when it’s actually based on logic. If someone is just an idiot dont even waste your time.
its tough when ur at tennis practice and the kid is on the court next to you. I could hear everything he says so it is hard to restrain myself. BTW, he sucks at tennis but we only have so many people who play tennis.
I’ll be at the Hughes – Sheets matchup on Wednesday night. Seats first row behind the Yankees dugout. $175 a pop. How much would that run me at YSIII? I’ll be sporting my vintage Columbus Clippers hat. Anyone need anything while I’m there??
The only benefit of being a Yanks fan living in the Bay Area! I’m probably sitting behind the plate on Tuesday. Hopefully the rain isn’t too bad, since I can’t make any other night.
$1360
Anyone know how long it takes for a player to be added to fantasy like Davis?
I would assume he is already there. I saw Montero in a fantasy draft, so he must be too.
no, i have tried plenty of times searching, nadda.
lolololol @ that called strike 3 on Lee I can’t stop laughing
Apparently Jesus had his 2nd error (catcher’s interference) and 2nd passed ball of the season in today’s game…I’m guessing scouts would pick this game as proof of the accuracy of their reports: 2-4, HR, 1B, 1 RBI, 1 error, 1 PB
screw it, I’m an optimist — he’s still learning how to catch but that kid can hit, period
If VMart can be considered a ML catcher, anyone can (defensively of course).
Recently read the post on the upcoming MLB draft. I’m hoping we go after a pitcher or a shortstop. Preferably pitcher.
Does anyone know at what time does the game start Sunday, Jun 20, 2010 because i just got order sum tickets but it says tba.
Yeah, I just checked yankees.com and it say’s TBD, too. However, I’d be willing to bet that it’ll be an 8:00 ESPN game. Subway Series, Sunday, mid-June, at the Stadium sounds like exactly the kind of game ESPN would want to broadcast as its “Game of the Week.”
Though I wonder what our and their respective records will be by that time…
At any rate, I’d pencil in 8:00 because we’ll be facing the Mets.
Thanks for the info im hoping its an 8:00 game.
Yankees play in Arizona the next night.
To put them on SNB when they’re going west afterwards would be a friggen crime.
Very true. You’re a better schedule analyst than I. Though I wouldn’t put it past MLB and ESPN. Ratings, ratings, ratings!
Lifelong Yankee fan here and general optimist when it comes to the Bombers. My team, good bad or indifferent.
The early talk of this team is a little disconcerting to me. Comparisons to 98 team…on pace to win 120.
By April’s performance last year and 0-8 start against the Sux, we could predict nothing of what was to come.
I LOVE my team winning early and often but when we start off slow we say we play 162 games. I think we need to remember that now as well. Enjoy the wins; agree this is a great team but know the season is long and a lot of times crazy unpredictable.
“I LOVE my team winning early and often but when we start off slow we say we play 162 games. I think we need to remember that now as well.”
While I totally agree with your general sentiment that it’s early and there is a long road ahead for this team, this isn’t really the same situation as telling people not to panic when the team gets off to a slow start. A good team starting slowly is an anomaly, but a good team starting well isn’t.
We still need to keep things in perspective, but there’s nothing wrong with being excited about this start. Getting excited about this start is not equivalent to panicking about a bad start just because both occur early in the season.
Well it’s bound to happen. And the thing is that the power hitters of the team aren’t mashing the ball yet. The Yankees beat the Red Sox, Rays, Angels and Rangers when key players didn’t perform as they normally would. By the time they heat up the team will be unstoppable.
A-Rod is gonna heat up a little. Teix will heat up a lot. Javy will be back to himself sooner or later. Nick Johnson despite his wonderful .400 OBP is hitting .100 and will improve. There is a lot to like about this current team.
120 wins are you crazy!?
159 wins assuming Girardi didn’t play the 3 loses under protest.
I don’t think anyone here is denying the Yankees will run into problems; we’re simply enjoying the start while it lasts.
Is that Shawn Green playing 1B for the Mets?
I think Ike Davis just might make Simmons’ Reggie Cleveland All-Stars.
lol, idk if he’s already on the list but I feel like Lamar Hunt should be a posthumous addition
Ok I am sooooo glad someone made this comment. Until today, I’m embarrassed to say, I thought Ike Davis was a black guy who looked like Derek Lee.
Having still never seen him still, I choose to believe he’s a brother.
Cubs offense looks awful.
Nice little Houdini act by Niese. But the Cubs look terrible.
Morrow tossing a no-no through.. n/m
You jinxed it! Good job!
/Sarcastic Sarcasm
haha. When I was watching the CC no-hit bid, my buddy came up who was semi-aware what was going on. As soon as he came in the room I told him “don’t mention what is happening”. He than replied: “What, do you mean the no hitter?” Shoppach immediately hits single… I hate friend.
Last year, I walked in the room during like 3 no-no having not watched any of the game and they were broken up within the inning. It was Burnett’s vs. Tampa Bay, Wakefield vs. Oakland (perfect game), and I think there was another but I can’t remember (it was only through 5 or 6 though).
So on the radio tonight I heard, in a discussion about the Red Sox offense (from a host) well we have J.D. Drew’s one good month to look forward to, likely June, and mediocrity from him other than that.
J.D. Drew’s career OPS by month
March/April .855
May .869
June .975
July .861
August .840
Sept/Oct .951
Ok, so Drew clearly crushes in June (and September….clutch!!!), but to call the rest of that mediocrity is insane. I’d call that consistently producing, which leads to the underrating Drew, because he just gets the job done all year, instead of being streaky.
I really don’t understand Sox fans’ hatred of Drew at all. Seriously, OPS+es over .850, which he has all but one month (and he’s only .010 away in that month) are damn good.
All while being an above average defensive OF, but then again Sox fans are stupid.
I have a feeling we overrate Sox fans’ hatred of Drew. I bet it’s like the Yankees fans who boo Vazquez or who boo’d Nick Johnson on Sunday – definitely a portion of the fanbase, but, frankly, just the dumb portion of the fanbase. I bet there are plenty of Sox fans who appreciate Drew’s performance. I don’t think it would be much different if he played here.
Noooooo.
Believe me, I have a ton of friends who are Sox fans, and I don’t know one who likes him. I can, at times, convince my dad about what a truly good player he is…..but he still doesn’t like him.
Like Yankees fans with A-Rod?
I get that a lot of Sox fans don’t like Drew, but it’s not a phenomenon as unique to Sox fans as people make it out to be. Drew has been disliked everywhere he’s played, really, Boston’s not the only place. And we’re probably not the best fanbase to fault other fanbases for how they view/treat their players.
PS: Can you imagine how the Yankees fans who worship at the alter of Paul O’Neill would feel about Drew were he to play for the Yankees? It’d be no different than the reaction in Boston.
Agreed. Look, watching Drew play is uninspiring, I get that. He takes off games with hangnails, I get that. I can understand not really loving the guy, but the hate is total BS. The dude just produces.
I hear you. Personally, I get the negative feelings towards him, it’s when those negative feelings blind people to the value of his on-field contributions that I think there’s a problem. But you can appreciate a guy’s contributions and still think he’s a schmuck.
Drew has been disliked everywhere he’s played, really, Boston’s not the only place.
that is true, I read a Braves fan blog that was bitching about him just for his lack of emotion. Still. And he was amazing his one year in Atlanta! I really don’t get it.
though let me add you can personally dislike players and as long as you can objectively analyze their contributions, that’s fine with me. We’re human. We’re going to irrationally like and dislike some people. But don’t say Drew is useless because he’s not very emotional or A-Rod is bad because he’s a jerk.
I do think some of Drew’s hatred is because he didn’t sign with Philly leading to people knowing him and hearing people hated him before he played a game. Also, Drew had immense hype from BA and while being a great player, he only had 2 super seasons (.400+ wOBA 2001, 2004). In fact, because the 2001 season came so early in his career, people expected even more from him, when it was really a career year. Thus, he was seen as a failure and when combined with his lack of emotion, he appears lazy.
He is sort of like a better Pat Burrell, he never quite lived up to the expectations and thus, was failure and a player to hate. In both cases, it is completely unfair.
I’m a little surprised people don’t get it. WARNING: I AM NOT USING THIS AS EVIDENCE OF WHAT I THINK. Here’s the stats a typical Boston fan looks at:
.272 BA
18 HR/yr
65 RBI/yr
Especially when the first year those numbers were .270/11/64, and then the second year he missed 53 games.
In comparison, O’Neill with the Yankees:
.303 BA
21 HR/yr
95 RBI/yr (counting strike shortened seasons)
Me thinks if you took away 30 average points, and 30 RBI a year, the fans wouldn’t have loved Paulie as much as they did.
Good post. I think you may have something there.
Don’t forget that the Braves traded Wainwright for ONE SEASON of Drew
In fairness, Wainwright was dealing with injury after injury back then.
If he threw his bat every once in a while and rubbed some pine tar on his helmet, he’d be a Mo here. There are seriously (a ton) of people that complain that he didn’t celebrate when Ellsbury stole home last year.
Yeah, I’ve also heard that his lack of outward emotion rubs/rubbed (lol..immature) his teams’ fans the wrong way. I definitely like O’Neill more because of how obvious it was that he was putting his blood, sweat, and tears into the game, but I never faulted more stoic players (e.g. Mussina) who still produced.
The thing with the Sox right now is that they are supposed to be built to be as good as the Yankees, and that’s clearly how the fanbase evaluates the team. And while the Yankees have a stable of players clearly recognized as major stars (Arod, Jeter, Tex, Sabathia, Rivera, with Grandy and Cano not far behind) the Sox no longer have the Manny, Ortiz, Pedro, Schilling, Nomar type stars to match. They do have elite, excellent players like Youkilis, Pedroia, and Lester, but these players are not really viewed by Bostonites and the MLB community, IMO, as superstars. And so in their desire for superstar players, the fans lash out at anyone being played decent money if they are not superstar level, even if they are very solid, well above-average contributors like Drew.
Someone had mentioned upthread that AJ Burnett is probably worth his contract. I disagree, although I have no complaints about his performance in pinstripes thus far (226 IP, 109 ERA+, one great Game 2 performance), I wouldn’t pay him that much (5/$82M).
Evidence:
Cot’s Contracts of most lucrative pitchers by year. Burnett is #7 on the list (tied with Lackey), and that’s including 3 contracts signed this past offseason. He’s good, but he’s not among the top 7 pitchers in the league.
Additionally, per Fangraphs, 1 WAR is worth around $4.5 million. (Cite). Burnett is typically <3 WAR, although that depends whether you believe CHONE or Fangraphs. Regardless, he’s around a 3 win pitcher, so I don’t know if I’d go up to $16.5M a year on him, especially for 5 years.
Of course, maybe the Yankees were desperate after missing the playoffs in ’08, and he does have electric stuff, so maybe he harnesses it and puts together a CY-worthy season before he gets too old.
I agree.
If Burnett matches last season, he will be slightly overpaid. You could make a case the value he is paid over his true value, goes to the fact few top pitchers ever hit FA so you have to pay them a little extra. However, even this case, he has only been worth his value through year one of five and I personally think he will be a bad contract by year four and five (though I certainly hope I am wrong).
Burnett is #7 on the list (tied with Lackey), and that’s including 3 contracts signed this past offseason. He’s good, but he’s not among the top 7 pitchers in the league.
The problem with using this as a point of evidence is that there’s lots of pitchers who are better than Burnett who haven’t reached free agency yet. Lincecum, Felix, Lester, Verlander, Greinke, etc.
dustin pedroia after today’s game:
“when you don’t show up, you’re going to get beat. doesn’t matter if it’s the rays or (expletive) brookline high”
he’s wrong. back in the 80′s, i played second base for brookline high (i mean that literally. every game i played, i was high, as were most of my teammates). you could not show up and still beat us senseless
I said that. i am not necessarily saying he is worth his entire contract but IF he remains relatively healthy and gives the Yankees quality innings, I don’t think he was a really bad investment. By no means is he a steal but so far, I would say he is just slightly overpaid but when each win is worth a lot for the Yankees, it is worth it. He wasn’t the greatest FA signing but if he doesn’t spend too much time on the DL, I think the Yankees made a decent investment.
uh oh, Ike Davis made an error. Bust!!!!
No worries, it was charged to Alex Cora! He’s still fine!
This PED mess has me a bit worried. Says it’s not a repeat offender but how many offenders are worth a grain of salt? The only ones I can think of is ManRam and JC Romero.
Tex.
Dear God I hope not.
Tex has never been linked to PED’s in any way, right? I know this was said about a lot of people but he seems so clean-cut. Then again, if Tiger has taught us anything, it’s that appearances can certainly be deceiving.
Nope. He is from the Rangers, though…
People need to not throw names around. Seriously. Apparently some ten-year-old on Twitter was like “omg sum1 told me it was tex!!!” so now people are panicking. The guy who put out the original Tweet had no idea what he was talking about. Someone told me it was Varitek, guys. No need to worry!
(ed. note: No one told me it was Varitek.)
it was probably worse of me to bring the whole thing up though =/ When it might not even be real.
Nope. He is from the Rangers, though…
Is this real?
incredibly poorly stated by me but there were some clubhouses where it’s assumed it was more prevalent. Not trying to cast anything on Tex at all.
Oh, oh, oh, oh. I misread the whole thing anyway–totally didn’t see what you were doing there.
Stupid kid is only saying “I think it’s a yank guyz” because he’s apparently a Rangers fan who just happened to get swept by the Yanks.
Sergio Mitre as well
maybe that’s anyone that’s tested positive for anything. IE no A-Rod, Ortiz, Giambi, Pettitte, Brian Roberts, etc. It might end up being nothing though.
Nah repeat offenders are people that would be up for the 100 game suspension.
Hopefully it’s Dusty or Youk! lol
If it was Youk, I’d be so screwed in RAB fantasy for the 2nd straight year (I had Manny last year).
Mike Cameron and Ryan Franklin were suspended, too. I can think of a few more but they aren’t in the league (Gibbons, Alex Sanchez).
What ever happened to A-Rod meeting with federal agents over his connection to Dr. Galea? I believe I last heard that they were going through his finances, possibly because they couldn’t secure a physical meeting with him. Hope it’s nothing, obviously.
Is there a story/post somewhere? I haven’t head anything.
http://twitter.com/injuryexpert/status/12478504057
He doesn’t know the team, division, or league. He said he doesn’t think it’s a repeat offender. I don’t know how reliable he is.
I’m freaking out
Isn’t Mr. Carroll the gentleman who said 2 “huge” announcements were coming at the ASB last year?
I have no idea. Like I said, I don’t know how reliable he is. And now I feel awful for bringing it up because people are freaking out ;_;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W.....troversies
Maybe not so reliable
lol, a little strong?
http://twitter.com/wviper86/status/12488752152
Elephant in the room time…Pujols? Wouldn’t surprise me much.
Yeah, it’d be shitty, but unsurprising.
I’d be pretty surprised. He’s been so productive for such a long while, I’m sure they’ve tested him before.
That, or just willful ignorance. I’d be pretty upset to find out he was using a PED. I think the only other player that would sadden me more would be Jeter.
Mo AND Jeter would sadden me the most. They’re the only two players in baseball I’d be shocked to learn that they took steroids.
A-Rod was productive for a good long while. He DID test positive, it just took awhile for him to be outed. Could be the same with Pujols, no?
Good call with Mo, that would be quite disheartening. Valid point about A-Rod, I totally agree that both cases are similar. I think that I am merely hoping that it is not Pujols. He is one of the last untainted players in the game to make some historical achievements. It would really hurt the MLB if he were caught juicing.
edit: I would put Griffy on the same level as Prince Albert.
I cringe every time I see someone use that nickname for Pujols.
Do people even know what a “Prince Albert” is?
hahahha probably not
Something unfortunate people willingly inflict upon themselves. Just like the pain Pujols willing inflicts upon baseballs.
/justification of the fly’d
If Jeter used steroids I think Bud Selig would explode.
Oh god. St. Louis would explode.
All of baseball will go utterly insane. That story would be even bigger than A-Rod.
I’m imagining burning buildings and screaming people. The apocalypse…
hahaha I can imagine strolling up to a guy who’s about to set fire to a building, asking him why, and hearing, “Pujols tested positive.”
I’d laugh and then cry.
I might just join him.*
*Am I being serious? You be the judge.
Anyone else getting the annoying “can-am” add in gameday?
Also, a couple Blue Jay related notes.
1) Jose Batista just hit his second homer of the game
2) It would be funny if Alex Gonzalez has a big year and the Red-Sox sign him (even though the Jays hold an option)
3) Fred Lewis was an absolute steal, what were the Giants thinking?
Jeff Samardzija is so bad.
Maybe he should practice with his old Notre Dame buddy Brady Quinn. I’m sure he’d learn, um, nothing.
/cheapshot’d
Prediction: Jack Bauer spends the last 5 episodes of 24 drinking himself into oblivion and winds up dying in a mental hospital.
Is there any new news concerning the PED suspension. I’m curious to see who it is.
if it’s real, as the guy just Tweeted, Bud’s probably not going to have an announcement at 10 PM.
Goddamn this time tomorrow the game will be JUST STARTING.
It’s probably some minor leaguer who took some banned substance while back at home in the DR or Mexico, where it’s legal. Many of these turn out to be unintentional.
Jus’ sayin’… Brett Pedroia’s brother DOES have 5 dingers.
/sarcam’d and/or fingers crossed.
Can we please stop linking Dustin Pedroia to Brett Pedroia? They are brothers, yes, but as far as we know they have nothing to do with each other. I know nothing of Dustin Pedroia’s character and it is unfair to link him to a sex offender just because he’s related. That could mean nothing, and it certainly doesn’t mean that he is a sex offender…and if we agree with that, him being Brett Pedroia’s brother doesn’t mean anything anyway, right?
I think that this is a case of taking the game too seriously. I dislike Dustin Pedroia but shit, it is, in the end, a game. If you want to give him an insulting nickname don’t get that personal. My favorite is the Hobbit.
My bad. I thought the inside joke was just avoiding the mention of Dustin’s name… had no idea about the sex offending.
Ah, okay then…still, now that you know, I think that we agree that we should avoid that particular nickname for Dustin Pedroia?
Agreed. I don’t like attacking a ballplayer past the diamond.
this. It’s not like every Yankee has a squeaky-clean family that’s never done anything wrong, either. I don’t think too many people are calling Dustin a pedophile, though.
No, but they’re linking him with a pedophile as if that somehow makes HIM more shameful. Not a fan of that.
Ah. Agreed, definitely.
+1.
My first point ever in RAB. I’m so proud.
And to think I DFA’d myself earlier…
I don’t have the clout to be awarding points but if I did… Another +1 for the DFA remorse.
All sorts of this. Well said.
Ugh, how is my fantasy team 0/15 tonight…
Ouch. :/
I’m not quite as bad, but the Rays had 12 hits today, and my only Ray is the 0-5 Zobrist.
If Zobrist went 5-5 and the rest of the line-up was an 0-fer, a great pun could have been made. A pun I will say now.
“Talk about a Ray of sunshine in an otherwise dreary line-up”
shutters*
Also, in keeping with the spelling Nazi theme, the word you’re looking for is the verb “shudders” as in, somebody who shudders. Shutters is a noun meaning either those little door things that go over old windows or possibly people who shut things, though that second definition is used quite rarely.
/English Language Geek’d
wooo, 1/19
Completely off-topic. Anybody else thinks Luis Castillo is a better player than given credit for? Yes, he is overpaid and he DID drop the infamous pop-up; however, he has produced at an admirable level the past couple years for the lowly Mets. Furthermore, he had a long and successful career who is entering what is probably his twilight years. I for one think he is slightly underrated.
Barely above league average. His OBP is nice but his slugging brings his offensive production down. He’s alright.
I don’t think he’s great but people act like he sucks when he doesn’t. Though 2008: 0.6 WAR. 2009: 1.6 WAR. He has good on-base skills, but he doesn’t hit for power, and UZR had him as not very good in 2008 and abysmal in 2009 when he was supposed to be a strong defensive player.
A lot of that is the miserable year right after signing a four year contract
Call it Pavano syndrome
Yeah, his defense was pretty suspect. I just feel bad for him because he had a pretty good career, and now he is shit on by everyone, Met’s fans included.
Also, how about those 2003 Marlins… fuck them.
fuck ‘em in the ear
Arguably the worst orpheus to be penetrated… the nostril holds a candle.
Er, do you mean orifice?
/Spelling Nazi’d
The word you’re looking for is “orifice.” “Orpheus” is a bard in Greek mythology (who was such a sweet singer he got his wife back from Hades!), although as a man, he probably didn’t enjoy being penetrated, either.
ALMOST got his wife back from Hades…just another tragic Greek Hero…
Depends if you mean “Hades the deity” or “Hades the place”
/point conceded, but he did convince the King of the Dead to let her leave. He just screwed up.
I’ve heard two versions. One is that he screwed up in an obvious way, as in, he looked just a second too early. The other version, which I rather like, has him leaving the underworld and then looking back, only to realize that he looked too quickly; Eurydice hadn’t left yet. Oops. Should’ve remembered the rules and been a bit more patient. Sorry, Orpheus.
Question: What is the record for walks by a team in one season, and do the Yanks have a realistic shot at it?
Maybe if they sign Bonds circa 2004.
835–1949 Red Sox
For comparison’s sake, the Yankees drew 663 last year.
I call BS. Nobody cared about OBP back then. This is all a new thing, this OBP nonsense. It’s all about RBI.
Sincerely,
Anyone who thinks Rice and Dawson are Hall of Famer’s
I call BS. Nobody cared about OBP back then. This is all a new thing, this OBP nonsense. It’s all about
RBITEH FEAR!!!!.Sincerely,
Anyone who thinks Rice and Dawson are Hall of Famer’s
ftfy
also still laughing that you didn’t recognize that it was me that wrote that Heyman post
I had a good (kinda good) reason though.
Yeah, I saw. Still, did you like… not read the post? =P The caption under the Pettitte picture? (which appears to have disappeared ;_;)
I read it, and it was so level-headed about Andy, I didn’t figure it could have been you
What was the caption? I just updated the pic to show on the main page and (accidentally I swear) deleted the caption.
HEY >:(
it was “other reasons included: 5. hotness; 6. this sweatshirt does not say ‘I love to fart’”
lol.
Ok, it’s back.
Well considering that average WAR for a MLB player is around 2, Castillo’s WAR is pretty below average. He would not cut it on the Yankees.
http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2010/0.....sing-joba/
Nice Hughes/Joba scouting piece by Frank Piliere. I’m still holding out hope that Joba finds his groove again working out of the bullpen sometime this year, and his long lost velocity along with it. But as Cash has alluded to many times, that pitcher may just be gone forever. He always had doubts attached to him about maintaining his stuff for a variety of reasons.
its crazy how things have changed between the two pitchers. I’m also hoping that joba can find his groove and rediscovers who he is as a pitcher. I would rather see him go down to the minors but thats not going to happen
Victor Rojas used to be pretty good on MLB Network but now he’s like a crazy person on the Angels’ broadcast.
also wow, Mathis is playing AGAIN!!! Seriously, Napoli should demand a trade
Baseball Tonight just did a segment on closers in baseball because Gagne retired. They had a couple quotes from hitters about each closer (Hoffman, Broxton, etc etc)
Then the segment ended with everyone saying Mo. Showed how great he is. Then just Rivera saying “That’s it. Game over.”
Love it. ESPN is finally trusting in the might of Mo
No kidding looking at Gagne’s 2003 NL Cy Young Campaign he was impossible to hit, literally impossible to even get contact on.
56% contact, 22.3% SwStr, ridiculous. 4.5 WAR as a reliever!
0.86 FIP
I gotta say, I’m pretty sure everyone loves Mo. That “dassit. Game over.” quote, which I’ve seen a million times, is simply so awesome.
I would love to see this segment though.
Just got The Show and am doing season mode. It is pretty good I picked the Royals and have them as the overall #2 team.
Mike Cameron has another kidney stone? Drink some water, man.
Wow, this Sox losing streak has really brought out the trolls on Abe’s new digs. I’m sure he loves it.
When the Yanks go to Arizona in the summer, there is going to be a shitload of narrative surrounding it. (re: 2001)
I just want to see Justin Upton play, and hopefully watch IPK implode.
I don’t think so–there is no one left from that team, is there?
Mark Grace does commentary for the Diamondbacks
Miguel Batista is allegedly still pitching somewhere
Curt Schilling is likely blogging as we type
Craig Counsell is still inexplicably annoying even without the stupid batting stance
BK Kim might still be crying.
Rod Barajas was actually part of that team as a backup catcher, I believe.
Yep. Hit a HR off Mussina in one of the games at Yankee Stadium.
Matt Williams is the Diamondbacks’ current 1B coach, actually.
Fairly sure that Counsell is on the Brewers… not 100% though
he is. I was making a joke… that wasn’t that funny. Batista’s on the Nationals, I believe. In fact, I’m pretty sure Counsell hit a grand slam off Batista yesterday.
a. ugh, they’re gonna show Gonzo freaking out after hitting that bloop like 37 times and then I’m gonna throw up.
b. They played Arizona in interleague, including in 2002, the year after that World Series. They went to their ballpark in 2004.
But, JGS, the announcers for both teams will likely both be babbling about it for the whole series.
via Ken Tremendous, the Astros’ current team OPS+ is 39. 39!!!!
Heh. For comparison’s sake, Tex is at 41.
JMK/any other fans of The National: not promoting any kind of illegal downloading or anything like that (and I plan on buying the album as soon as it comes out) but I found it online and it is AMAZING. Everyone should do themselves a favor and get ahold of it when it comes out. Completely different feel from the last two albums. Everything on Boxer was so brilliantly understated, but here everything feels a little more free to really get all the way to where it wants to go. Great, great album.
Trade question:
I get Verlander and Dotel for Ellsbury.
Pull the trigger?
Oh god, yes.