I can guarantee that as soon as you read the name Mark Wohlers in the title of this post, you thought back to one thing: Jim Leyritz and Game Four of the 1996 World Series. The Yankees were down 6-3 in the game and 2-1 in the series when Leyritz’s three-run blast tied things up in the top of the eighth, and they eventually won the game in extra innings when Wade Boggs drove in the winning run with a bases loaded walk. The rest, as they say, is history.

That homer by Leyritz is hands down one of the biggest and best baseball memories I have. You can make a pretty strong argument that the homer changed the course of the franchise, because if they lose that game they probably would’ve lost the Series, and who knows what happens after that. Perhaps George Steinbrenner orders his front office to acquire the long coveted Randy Johnson at any cost, or maybe he steps in and swings the deal himself. That young singles-hitting shortstop and skinny setup man for the Big Unit? Yeah that works, take them. We could play this game all day, but if Leyritz doesn’t go deep in that spot, there’s a pretty good chance we’d be looking back at the late-90′s Yankees in very different way.

Today is Wohlers’ 42nd birthday, and it’s easy to forget that he actually ended up wearing pinstripes for a while long after Leyritz did his thing. The Yankees traded for the hard-throwing right-hander in July of 2001, but he allowed eleven runs in his first 6.1 IP with the team and Joe Torre buried him in mop-up duty. He did pitch to a 2.45 ERA in his final 29.1 IP of the season, and his only postseason appearance came in garbage time of the hideous 14-3 loss to the Mariners in Game Three of the ALCS. Wohlers was ridiculously good in 1996 — 100 strikeouts and 18 unintentional walks in 77.1 IP during the regular season — but when you look at his career from that World Series on, he was never really the same.

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Here’s your open thread for the night. The Islanders and Nets are the only local teams in action, which kinda sucks. Talk about those games and more here, it’s all fair game.

Hooray for charity baseball in Panama City. (AP Photo/Arnulfo Franco)

Ready for some foobaw? I’m posting this a few hours earlier than usual because of the NFL playoffs, which start with the Ravens and Patriots at 3pm ET (on CBS). The Giants and 49ers follow at 6:30pm ET (on FOX). The two winners meet in the Super Bowl two weeks from today. The Nets are also playing a little later. Talk about whatever you like here, go nuts.

(click to embiggen)

A couple inches of snow isn’t bad, and in fact I actually heard the plow drive by a few times today. That’s a rarity here. The snow is a big slap in the face though, reminding us baseball fans that we’re still weeks away from anything remotely resembling meaningful baseball. On the other hand, it sure is bright and sunny down in Tampa. Pitchers and catchers are 29 days away…

(Photo via @Julie_Stone)

I know these “Shit [insert demographic here] Says” videos are played out, but this one actually made me laugh. I guess it’s because I can actually relate to this one. Anyway, there’s your Friday night comic relief, and here’s your open thread. The Knicks are the only local team in action, but it’s Friday. Go hang out and do something you’ll regret in the morning.

Marineros? (Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)

He hasn’t even thrown a pitch for the Yankees yet … hell, he’s not even officially a Yankee yet because the trade hasn’t been announced, but we’re already giving Michael Pineda his own open thread because today is his birthday. He’s turning the ripe old age of 23. That’s two years younger than Ivan Nova, a year and a half younger than Adam Warren, one year younger than Dellin Betances, and six months younger than Stephen Strasburg. Pineda is younger than all but 18 of the pitchers who appeared in the big leagues last year, and only three of those 18 threw more than 70 innings (Madison Bumgarner, Jordan Lyles, and Tyler Chatwood). Yeah, he’s quite young.

Once you’re done (electronically) wishing the soon-to-be newest Yankee a happy birthday, use this as your open thread for the night. Both the Knicks and Nets are playing, which sounds just awful. Talk about whatever you like here, anything goes.

Update: Please sign this petition to help fight SOPA, otherwise sites like this one won’t exist.

(Photo via USA Today)

If you’re my age, then you don’t remember Don Zimmer as anything more than the Yankees bench coach during the early-Joe Torre years and a current special advisor in the Rays front office. That’s just the tip of the iceberg though, the man has lived a baseball lifetime.

Zim started his playing career with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1954, but only after a pitch to the temple nearly killed him in the minors. He spent what amounts to 13 days in a coma in 1953 before recovering to earn a cup of coffee the next year. He spent six years with the Dodgers (four in Brooklyn, two in Los Angeles), two years with the Cubs, half a season with the Mets, half a season with a Reds, another half a season with the Dodgers, two and a half years with the Washington Senators, and one year in Japan. A .235/.290/.372 career hitter, Zimmer played in the 1961 All-Star Game and was primarily a utility player before retiring after the 1966 season. He won a World Series with the Dodgers in 1955 and was part of the 120-loss Mets in 1962.

Once his playing days were over, Zim joining the coaching ranks. He did his time in the minors, then joined the Expos as their third base coach in 1971. He served the same role with the Padres and Red Sox before become the manager in Boston in 1976. The Sox went 411-304 during Zim’s 4+ years at the helm, which included their infamous 1978 collapse. He managed the Rangers in 1981 and 1982, did some coaching for the Yankees and Giants from 1983-1987, then managed the Cubs from 1988-1991. Zimmer coached with the expansion Rockies in the early-90′s before joining Torre’s staff in 1996. That is a lot of baseball.

Today is Zimmer’s 81st birthday, and 2012 will be his 64th year in baseball. He’s written two books and is the last former Brooklyn Dodger still working in baseball in some capacity. I’ll remember him for the helmet you see above (after Chuck Knoblauch hit him with a foul ball) and for the Red Sox brawl during the 2003 ALCS, when Pedro Martinez threw him to the ground. That’s just me though, there is no shortage of reasons to remember the guy.

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Here’s your open thread for this evening. All three hockey locals are in action tonight, but I sure hope you weren’t planning on watching any of the games if you’re a Time Warner customer (Update: The Rangers are on NBC Sports, formerly Versus. Hooray for that.). Still no MSG. Anyway, you folks know what to do, so have at it.

(Getty Images Photo / Ezra Shaw)

Remember how many bad backup catchers the Yankees went through during the Jorge Posada era? There was Chris Widger, Kelly Stinnett, Wil Nieves, Chris Turner, Todd Greene … I feel like I’ve only scratched the surface. Posada’s primary backup from 2003-2005 was current YES analyst John Flaherty, who signed with the team on this date nine years ago.

Like most backup backstops, Flaherty was terrible, hitting just .226/.261/.387 with a dozen homers in 389 plate appearances in pinstripes. He’ll always have that big hit though, the walk-off double single to left in the 13th inning against the Red Sox on July 1st, 2004. That’s the game when Derek Jeter flipped into the stands and the Yankees scored two runs in the bottom of the 13th thanks to a rally fueled by Tony Clark, Ruben Sierra, Miguel Cairo, and Flaherty. That hit was easily his most memorable with the team, and also the most memorable by a non-Posada catcher in the last 15 years or so. It was pretty sweet.

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Here is your open thread for the night. The Knicks and Nets already played, so it’s just the Islanders that are in action tonight. Us Time Warner folk still don’t have MSG though. Talk about whatever you like here, anything goes.

Prospects are like being in love in high school. Our commitment level is through the roof and we’re convinced that no matter what everyone else says, it’s for real. No one understands, we’re in love. Ultimately we’re left heartbroken in the end, then we get over it and move on to the next.

I’m fairly certain that no Yankees prospect has captured more hearts than Jesus Montero, who is just a physical exam away from being a Seattle Mariner. We caught a glimpse of his hell raisin’ capabilities in September, but not nearly enough. His long-awaited big league debut did not disappoint, giving our years of rosterbation and minor league box score checking validation. Montero was going to be the next great Yankee, launching opposite field bombs over the short porch for the next 20 years. It was going to be glorious.

A year and a half ago we almost broke up because of a silly fling with a floosy named Cliff*. We weren’t thinking clearly back then and got caught up in the moment. This breakup is for real though, and it hurts. We’ll spend the next five weekends eating ice cream out of the container and watching bad movies on Netflix, wondering where it all went wrong. Then we’ll get over it. The green grass of Spring Training will draw us out of our misery and the pop of the glove catching that 97 mph fastball will make us feel alive again. None of us will ever forget Montero, but sometimes you can’t control things and you have to move on. He may very well be the one that got away, but chances are we’ll find someone else and fall in love all over again.

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Here’s your open thread for the day. Like yesterday, I’m posting this early because of the NFL playoffs. The Texans and Ravens play at 1pm ET (on CBS), then the Packers and Giants give it a go at 4:30pm ET (on FOX). The Rangers are also playing later tonight, and that game will be on the NBC Sports Network, formerly Versus. So all you Time Warner customers actually get to see the team with the league’s best record tonight. Talk about whatever you like, anything goes.

* Yes, I know how wrong that sounds.

It’s been a pretty hectic 24 hours in Yankeeland, but I think we’re finally starting to get over the initial shock of last night’s moves. It’s important to note that the Jesus Montero/Hector Noesi-for-Michael Pineda/Jose Campos trade is not yet official, as Buster Olney notes that all four players must still take physicals. Given the drama of the failed Cliff Lee trade, we shouldn’t consider the physicals slam dunks. Assuming all goes well, the trade figures to be announced sometime next week.

In the meantime, I recommend reading this Red Sox Beacon post for a Red Sox perspective on last night’s moves. You should also check out this Beyond The Box Score post, which briefly touches on why Pineda should continue to be successful despite leaving the friendly confines of Safeco Field, and this PitchFX look at his repertoire via FanGraphs. The Hiroki Kuroda signing is pretty straight forward, but it’ll take a while to digest the trade. The implications are far-reaching, and we’ll break them all down here over the next few days and weeks.

For now, use this as your open thread after taking part in the poll below. I’m posting this a little earlier than usual because of the NFL playoffs, with the Saints and 49ers kicking off at 4:30pm ET (on FOX). The Broncos and Patriots follow at 8pm ET (on CBS). All five hockey and basketball locals are in action as well, assuming you still get MSG and can actually watch. You folks know what to do, enjoy the rest of the day.