Results tagged ‘ Mike Trout ’
Where’s George Steinbrenner when you need him?…
Missing the point…
Life has been incredibly difficult since the Yankees, expectedly, lost to the Detroit Tigers in the play-offs last October. While the Angels were adding Josh Hamilton to go with Albert Pujols and Mike Trout and the Dodgers were adding Zack Greinke to go with Clayton Kershaw, the Yankees did nothing. Okay, they did fork over the cash to bring back senior citizens Andy Pettitte and Hiroki Kuroda, but there was nothing to excite the fan base.
Excite the fan base…
Why is that so difficult? So, we watch Russell Martin leave for the 2013 version of the 1950’s Kansas City A’s…the Pittsburgh Pirates. No worries, rather than chase a proven catcher like A.J. Pierzynski, the Yankees announced that they’ll go with an in-house candidate. So, that leaves a career back-up, a AAA catcher last year, and a minor leaguer who missed most of last season due to injury. Nick Swisher leaves, but no worry, we have an aging 39-year-old former great player in Ichiro Suzuki who is now sporting more gray hair than Bill Clinton and was clearly a player on decline until a brief renaissance after his trade to the Yankees.
Last year’s closer, Rafael Soriano, departs so what is the response? We have ace set up man David Robertson returning and a rehabilitating former closer in David Aardsma on the roster. If memory serves, Robertson was not effective during his brief stint as closer following Mariano Rivera’s season-ending injury. Plus, Rivera is a not-so-young 43 years old. He is a first ballot Hall of Famer and my favorite Yankee for a number of years, but time is destined to catch up with even the greatest.
The bench strength (Andruw Jones and Eric Chavez) depart, and the Yankees answer by signing former rival Kevin Youkilis and role player Matt Diaz. I sent a picture of a clean shaven Youkilis to a Red Sox friend asking if this was really THE Kevin Youkilis (as he looks so less intimidating than those goatee’d Red Sox years). The response was, “I hear he’s hurt (oblique)…yes, that’s him”. The only thing I know about Diaz is that he pronounces his name DYE-az rather than DEE-az. All I ever saw him as was a part-timer for the Atlanta Braves.
We go to camp and the calendar doesn’t even turn to March before we hear that Curtis Granderson is lost for 10 weeks due to a broken forearm. Immediately, the response from the Yankees is that they’ll cover the loss in-house. Believe me, I get the reasons for why you wouldn’t chase down Alfonso Soriano or Vernon Wells for 10 measly weeks but Granderson represented a major part of the team’s offense. You KNOW that Mark Teixera’s bat won’t show up until at least June. Derek Jeter is another year older and coming off injury. The outfield is full of those Dave Collins type players…speed first, light hitting outfielders. It’s too bad that Billy Martin isn’t around to consult with Joe Girardi on the fine art of small ball.
My trust in the Yankees farm system to produce a quality major league starter is weak at best. We hear how great Manny Banuelos and Dellin Betances are, yet now we sit with Banuelos recovering from Tommy John surgery and Betances proving himself to be Prince Overrated. I look at guys like Al Leiter and Doug Drabek. They struggled when called up to the Yankees but prospered as quality major leaguers elsewhere. It has been awhile since a Jeter or Robinson Cano burst onto the scene. So, my faith in the minor league system producing a surprise that immediately helps the Yankees this year is weak.
Today, the news comes out through GM Brian Cashman that the Yankees did make a significant offer to free agent to be Robinson Cano. Given that the news didn’t say the Yankees actually signed Cano, I see this as a negative move. If there is resistance on the player’s front, this is most likely going to lead to Cano’s free agency in the fall. With Hal Steinbrenner’s “financially responsible” approach, that most likely means that some other team makes an incredibly ridiculous offer to snatch Cano from the Bronx.
As I write this, the Yankes are 1-6 in spring training.
Excite the fan base. Why is that so difficult Mr. Steinbrenner?…
–Scott
Belated Congratulations for the AL East Championship…
All hail the Champions…
A quick post to congratulate the New York Yankees for winning the American League East Division Championship on the last day of the season. Thanks to the Baltimore Orioles’ loss to the Tampa Bay Rays, the division was a foregone conclusion when the Yankees completed their thrashing of the Boston Red Sox. Still, I am glad that the team won on the day they clinched the division. A loss on “clinching day” always seems so cheap.
Although it was disappointing the Yankees let a large lead slip, they definitely went into ‘bend but not break’ mode as they held at least a share of first throughout the O’s challenge in the final month of the season. It was a constant back-and-forth…tied, then Yanks ahead, and then tied again. But in the end, the team persevered.
A funny thing happened on the way to the World Series…
The big surprise to me on the last day of the season was the Texas Rangers’ failure to withstand a large charge by the Oakland A’s. I remember looking at the standings in July and writing it off as a foregone conclusion that the Rangers would be the AL West champions. In my mind, they were still the team to beat in the American League. While I recognized the A’s had the spirited ‘don’t quit’ mentality, I still viewed them as inferior either the Rangers or the Los Angeles Angels. This was a team that was throwing Triple A pitchers into the starting rotation in September. All the way to Game 162, I fully expected the Rangers to take care of business. But they failed, and were forced to play the one game Wild Card game against the Baltimore Orioles, which they subsequently lost. Here was the team that was in my mind, the team most likely to go to the World Series and win it, yet they collapsed in the final two most critical weeks of the season.
The Rangers’ loss opens the door for all of the other AL play-off participants to advance to the World Series. I can’t say there is a clear-cut favorite because even the Yankees, with the best record in the conference, have their share of questions. The ALDS series format is odd given the first two games of the series will be held in the inferior team’s ballpark. The Yankees are tied with the O’s late in Game 1 tonight but that always favors the home team with last at-bat.
It was real, it was fun, but it was not real fun…
I am not a Bobby Valentine fan, but I really do believe that firing Valentine was the best case scenario for the Boston Red Sox organization. As a fan of an opposing team, I’d love for the dysfunction to continue, but the Red Sox fans deserve better. I subscribe to the adage that ‘to be the best, you have to beat the best’ so I really hope the Red Sox can secure a manager who fits the organization and maximizes the potential and ability of its players. I still think that recently named Phillies third base coach Ryne Sandberg would be an excellent fit, but maybe it is John Farrell despite the disappointing year in Toronto or other manager. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Respectful of the man who brought two World Championships to Boston…
Speaking of Boston, it was good to see former Red Sox manager Terry Francona return to the game as manager of the Cleveland Indians. Even when he was the manager of the Red Sox, I had a great deal of respect for Tito. I have long felt he was one of the game’s truly good guys. Yes, that final year in Boston did get away from him, but there were so many factors and personalities at play, I feel it is unfair to pin all the blame on Tito. I am looking forward to seeing what he can do in the Cleveland with his batteries recharged…
A few thoughts on the season…
- Hey Albert, how did that first year in Los Angeles work out for ya? Well, at least you have all those mega millions to enjoy your off-season while the team you bailed on continues the defense of its world championship…
- Miguel Cabrera has overcome those personal demons, I think…
- Bryce Harper got the press, but Mike Trout is the stud…
- A.J. Burnett proved that he is the latest incarnation of Ed Whitson. Wilt under the New York spotlight, but thrive in a smaller market with less glare…
- Melky Cabrera, disappointment is an understatement. I respect the San Francisco Giants for their intention to cut ties with the Melk Man. I really wouldn’t want to be the organization that extends him an olive branch. In other words, I do not want to see Melky back in the Bronx.
- How many more years are left on A-Rod’s contract? Geesh, Jeter continues to pay dividends on his contract at age 38, while A-Rod just keeps making me think of that old Dire Straits’ tune “Money For Nothing”…
- The Atlanta Braves may have made a quiet departure with their Wild Card loss to St. Louis, but there’s no question that the Braves will continue to be a force with those young pitchers…
- Oh, Philadelphia Phillies, where for art thou?…
- The American League Houston Astros? That sounds so wrong! But then again, I have finally accepted the Milwaukee Brewers as a National League team so I guess we’ll have to re-visit this in a few years…
- Trade Ivan Nova and re-sign Hiroki Kuroda…that sounds like a good plan to me!…
I know there’s many more thoughts regarding the 2012 season, but these were a few that immediately came to mind. It was a fun season and continues to be as we move forward in the AL and NL divisional series. The idea of two Wild Card teams per league was a success, and win or lose, it was the right thing to do. There was drama and intrigue up until the last day of the season, and no team “mailed it in”. I still have too many questions about my own team to anoint them as the AL representative for the World Series. As of the present moment, my best guess is a “Sparky Anderson” World Series…The Cincinnati Reds versus the Detroit Tigers. Obviously, I’d prefer to see the Yankees and I hope they prove me wrong about their pitching and clutch hitting…
Ah, October baseball, I love this time of year!
–Scott
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