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Post by jumbo on May 8, 2007 14:25:15 GMT -5
How Clemens' signing helps A-Rod Posted: Tuesday May 08, 2007 06:09AM ET The big winner when Roger Clemens signed with the Yankees was not Clemens or the Yankees. It was Alex Rodriguez. Rodriguez and, just as vitally, his agent, Scott Boras, now know how the Yanks will react when they are desperate. They will throw away their value system and throw oodles of money to make the desperation stop.--New York Post
Pavano doesn't want third opinion Posted: Tuesday May 08, 2007 06:17AM ET Carl Pavano isn't a happy flyer today. According to the oft-injured pitcher, the Yankees are sending him to see Dr. Frank Jobe in California after two other surgeons informed him his right elbow requires surgery. Asked if it was up to Pavano to choose surgery, GM Brian Cashman said, "No." If Pavano requires Tommy John surgery he will be out for 12 to 18 months which would basically end his Yankees career.--New York Post
When will Rocket launch? Posted: Tuesday May 08, 2007 05:52AM ET Roger Clemens will not be a full-fledged Yankee again until Memorial Day weekend or later. He will work out at University of Kentucky facilities in Lexington, Ky., for about 10 days, to be near his son Koby, a third baseman for the Astros' Class A affiliate there. He will make several minor league starts, but General Manager Brian Cashman said that they had yet to be scheduled. --New York Times
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Post by jumbo on May 9, 2007 13:39:15 GMT -5
Snag in Clemens' training Posted: Wednesday May 09, 2007 06:34AM ET Roger Clemens told reporters yesterday he would like to work out with the club next week in Chicago because his son's minor-league team will be out of Lexington, Ky., but there seems to be a question if Clemens can work out with the Yankees because he is signed to a minor-league contract and is not a member of the 40-man roster.--New York Post
Will Giambi play tonight? Posted: Wednesday May 09, 2007 06:30AM ET Joe Torre wasn't sure if Jason Giambi would start tonight, although the Yankee DH hopes to wait and see when he arrives at the park today. An X-ray yesterday confirmed the bone spur.--New York Post
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Post by jumbo on May 11, 2007 10:04:25 GMT -5
Clemens throws support behind Torre Posted: Friday May 11, 2007 06:04AM ET Joe Torre made his successful pitch for Roger Clemens, and now The Rocket makes his pitch - one of those high, hard ones - for Torre. Clemens yesterday told The Post that Torre has "earned the right" to walk away from the Yankees managerial job on his own terms.--New York Post
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Post by jumbo on May 17, 2007 11:36:29 GMT -5
Which job does Girardi desire? Posted: Thursday May 17, 2007 08:32AM ET Joe Torre is rumored to be on his way out, that announcer and former right-hand man Joe Girardi may be in. He obviously would not turn down the Yankees job, despite the tumult that goes with it. But the Cubs job remains the one he really desires. --Chicago Tribune
Yankees inquire about Angels catcher Posted: Thursday May 17, 2007 08:12AM ET The Yankees, looking to upgrade at backup catcher, have reportedly inquired about Angels reserve Jose Molina, but it's doubtful the Yankees would offer the Angels a valuable enough piece for them to part with one of the league's top defensive catchers.--Los Angeles Times
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Post by jumbo on May 18, 2007 11:20:12 GMT -5
Yankee ticked off at Rocket's deal Posted: Friday May 18, 2007 06:14AM ET Kyle Farnsworth didn't back down yesterday from his opinion that Roger Clemens coming and going when he pleases isn't the ideal situation for the Yankees. Farnsworth was the first Yankee to express that opinion, saying on Chicago radio station THE SCORE that Clemens' family plan could cause friction in the Yankees clubhouse.--New York Post
Giambi: MLB owes steroids apology Posted: Friday May 18, 2007 07:33AM ET Jason Giambi, saying he's likely tested for illegal performance-enhancing drugs more often than anyone else, believes Major League Baseball should have apologized years ago for its widespread drug problem. "I was wrong for doing that stuff," Giambi said.--USA Today
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Post by shockman on May 18, 2007 13:37:31 GMT -5
Yankee ticked off at Rocket's deal Posted: Friday May 18, 2007 06:14AM ET Kyle Farnsworth didn't back down yesterday from his opinion that Roger Clemens coming and going when he pleases isn't the ideal situation for the Yankees. Farnsworth was the first Yankee to express that opinion, saying on Chicago radio station THE SCORE that Clemens' family plan could cause friction in the Yankees clubhouse.--New York Post Giambi: MLB owes steroids apology Posted: Friday May 18, 2007 07:33AM ET Jason Giambi, saying he's likely tested for illegal performance-enhancing drugs more often than anyone else, believes Major League Baseball should have apologized years ago for its widespread drug problem. "I was wrong for doing that stuff," Giambi said.--USA Today the players should try keeping their mouthes shut and try to put together a winning streak. This lack of focus is killing me.
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Post by jumbo on May 20, 2007 11:15:29 GMT -5
The Boss isn't ready to get rid of Torre ... yet Sunday, May 20, 2007 BY DAN GRAZIANO Star-Ledger Staff
NEW YORK -- Two straight losses to the Mets. An AL East deficit of 10 1/2 games. A high-priced lineup that hadn't, until yesterday's eighth inning, been hitting a lick.
These are the kind of alarm-bell issues that can only mean the Joe Torre watch is back on.
As of this morning, the Yankees' manager appears safe. A person who speaks to George Steinbrenner on a regular basis said the Yankees' owner doesn't yet believe his team is out of the race, doesn't fault Torre for the team's brutal run of bad injury luck and, as of last night, wasn't considering firing the only manager he's had since 1996.
But over the next week, that could all change.
The Yankees' next seven games are against the Mets, Red Sox and Angels -- all first-place teams with good starting pitching. If the Yankees keep losing, they could find themselves 15 or 16 games out of first place by the time Tony Soprano is making his way through the Lincoln Tunnel next Sunday night.
And if that happens, Torre could be gone. Whether that's fair or not.
"I can't worry about the standings," Torre said. "What we have to worry about now is winning games. Until we straighten out what we need to straighten out, the standings aren't going to matter."
Maybe not to him, but they matter to the old man in Tampa.
The person, who requested anonymity because only publicist Howard Rubenstein is authorized to speak on Steinbrenner's behalf, said the only way Steinbrenner would fire Torre this season is if he were convinced the Yankees were out of the race. And as of now, he's not. Steinbrenner has been citing the example of 1978, when the Yankees were 14 games out of first place in July but came back to overtake the Red Sox on Bucky Dent's famed home run. Those circumstances were more dire than the ones the Yankees face right now, and yet that year proved retrievable.
So far, then, to Steinbrenner, this year seems retrievable. Which means that, so far, Torre's safe.
But ...
"That's not to say, if we lose again (tonight), he doesn't go nuts and change his mind," the Steinbrenner associate said.
Yes, attempts to ascribe rational logic to the workings of Steinbrenner's mind are ill-conceived. He's mellowed with age, but he still gets angry. And with only three-quarters of a season left on Torre's contract, it wouldn't cost Steinbrenner as much to fire him now as it would have last October, or the October before that.
Still, the key indicator here is whether the owner believes the team is out of the race. Until he does, Torre appears safe. But if, a week from now, Steinbrenner looks at the standings and decides it's all over, Torre could be replaced by bench coach Don Mattingly, broadcaster Joe Girardi or an interim caretaker to be named later.
"I don't think it's right for people to say he should go," said third-base coach Larry Bowa, who could be such a caretaker but says he has no interest. "He's the best guy to turn this around. He's been through it before, so when he tells you it's going to be all right, you know he's not (joking). Guys can't sit there and say, 'How does Joe know?' Joe knows. You put some shmoe in there who hasn't done what he's done, you can't be sure they're going to listen to him."
So far, that logic has ruled the day. Steinbrenner doesn't have an obvious replacement for Torre. And given Torre's track record, he has reason to believe he's the best candidate to get the Yankees out of their hole and back to the playoffs for the 13th year in a row.
But the next week could change all of that. The upcoming schedule is a monster, and the Yankees look ill-prepared to face the pitching that's coming to town from Boston and Anaheim. Unless the hitters wake up very soon, and start sustaining something good, they could find themselves playing for a new manager by the end of the month.
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Post by jumbo on May 20, 2007 11:36:44 GMT -5
Desperate hours in NY Yankees could be in a non-save situation By Nick Cafardo | May 20, 2007
It is early in the season, but it is getting late for the Yankees.
You could see the urgency in Roger Clemens's actions Friday night in Tampa. This was an obvious acceleration of his throwing program, to the point where he threw almost 140 pitches total -- before, during, and after the game against Fort Myers. There's a real possibility that he'll make only two minor league starts (the second against the Portland Sea Dogs in Trenton Wednesday) as opposed to three.
While he talks about being "smart" in making his decisions, the urgency is based on one thing: If he doesn't hurry, he may come back to a team that's too far gone to come back.
You could see the uneasiness in George Steinbrenner, who watched Clemens pitch in the Single A game Friday. The once-fiery soul -- who in the old days would have fired or traded everyone in New York and replaced them with a whole new crew -- didn't say much about Clemens's outing except, "Good job. Just like we expected."
In those days, Steinbrenner wouldn't have been in Tampa; he'd have been in New York, dressed in his blue blazer and white turtleneck, fuming about the loss to the Mets in the interleague opener at Shea Stadium Friday night.
If he had heard Kyle Farnsworth question the provisions in the Clemens deal, he would have berated the pitcher in public. He would have told Jason Giambi to shut his yap about steroids at a time when the team was going south so fast.
All of which points to another void in the organization: leadership. They lack a president and CEO who can unite the team in tough times.
This is as bad as it's been in the Joe Torre era in New York. There has been a series of missteps by management and a lot of misfortune through injuries early in the season.
General manager Brian Cashman is smack in the middle of the firestorm. His philosophy was well-intended. He wanted to get younger -- a noble endeavor in any organization -- and he thought he could do it by trading veterans like Randy Johnson and Gary Sheffield. What he didn't anticipate was Johnny Damon being injured, Bobby Abreu's game declining, and the rash of injuries to his pitching staff.
It was Cashman's decision to sign Japanese import Kei Igawa, who also was down in Tampa, trying to straighten himself out with pitching guru Billy Connors. Cashman changed the strength and conditioning regimen of his players by hiring a strength person who never had worked with a baseball team. The results were disastrous. Hamstring injuries became the norm -- from Chien Ming Wang to Mike Mussina to Hideki Matsui -- and Cashman had to fire the coach.
Damon should have been placed on the disabled list in late March or early April just to get his body right. He's tried to muddle through calf and back injuries, but Melky Cabrera easily could have filled in for two weeks.
There's also a general lack of life on the team, whether it's the result of veterans being set in their ways or becoming stagnant or Torre simply not lighting the fire. When the lineup is clicking, it's mostly due to Torre. So when it's going bad, is that also due to Torre?
Whatever happens against the Mets and then the Red Sox this week at Yankee Stadium, don't expect Torre to lose his job. Clemens, who is expected to make an appearance at the Stadium for at least one game of the Sox series, took this assignment for three reasons: 1. the money; 2. Andy Pettitte; and 3. Torre.
It would be strange to pull the rug out from underneath Torre before Clemens has a chance to provide a spark. If indeed Don Mattingly is Torre's heir apparent, having him take over a sinking ship probably isn't the best way to break in a guy who never has managed.
It's also been a little startling how the discipline has suffered.
There's no way Farnsworth should have uttered disparaging words against Clemens when the team's leaders OK'd the plan. Nor should Giambi have brought so much attention to himself -- not now, anyway -- with the interview in USA Today in which he said, "I was wrong to use that stuff." The interview prompted an investigation by Major League Baseball into his steroid use, which could lead to the voiding of his contract if he used them while with the Yankees.
We certainly want players to fess up about steroids. If Giambi comes clean, maybe others will. But it is a sensitive subject that has to be done through attorneys. It doesn't appear Giambi got counsel on his statement, and now he and his teammates may pay for his honesty.
Yes, it is late in the Yankees season, and the Red Sox have a chance to keep kicking them while they're down.
--Boston Globe
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Post by philinla on May 20, 2007 17:08:19 GMT -5
More wishful thinking from a Sox scribe.
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Post by jumbo on May 21, 2007 7:53:28 GMT -5
Rocket's custom ride to reentry Posted: Monday May 21, 2007 05:21AM ET Roger Clemens, who will pitch at Double-A Trenton on Wednesday, has secured an unusual way of traveling from Manhattan to New Jersey's capital: He and organizational pitching guru Billy Connors will board John Madden's customized bus. The outing for Trenton will be Clemens' second and final one if he comes through it healthy. If that's the case, he will start for the Yankees on Monday night in Toronto. --New York Post
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Post by philinla on May 21, 2007 10:23:20 GMT -5
hilarious.
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Post by jumbo on May 24, 2007 9:51:07 GMT -5
Sources: Yankees scouting Helton Posted: Thursday May 24, 2007 08:05AM ET Yankees general manager Brian Cashman told reporters this week that although trades are always possible, nothing is warm right now. Still, multiple scouts said Wednesday the Yankees are interested in Rockies first baseman Todd Helton and closer Brian Fuentes, though nothing is brewing.--Denver Post
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Post by jumbo on May 25, 2007 12:47:30 GMT -5
Big Papi would play for Yankees Posted: Friday May 25, 2007 09:26AM ET Unlike Johnny Damon, who once vowed he never would play for the Yankees, David Ortiz said he would not rule out playing for the Red Sox' rivals in the future. In an interview in the current issue of Time, Ortiz responded to a reader's question about playing for the Yankees by saying: "I would never say no because you never know what can happen with your career. You can never fall in love with a team."--Boston Herald
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Post by jumbo on May 26, 2007 12:24:50 GMT -5
Rivera or Rodriguez best closer? Posted: Saturday May 26, 2007 08:05AM ET You could argue the greatest closer in baseball history and the greatest current closer shared the field Friday at Yankee Stadium. Mariano Rivera is 37, and the Yankees reportedly have considered Francisco Rodriguez as a potential replacement. Rodriguez, not Rivera, led the American League in saves in the 2005 and 2006 seasons. And Rodriguez has the lower career earned-run average, 2.27 to 2.36.--Los Angeles Times
Steinbrenner puts GM 'on a big hook' Posted: Saturday May 26, 2007 06:34AM ET George Steinbrenner created anxiety around his underperforming team yesterday with comments that put pressure on General Manager Brian Cashman and bluntly criticized the slugger Jason Giambi. "He's on a big hook," Steinbrenner said of Cashman in an interview with The Associated Press. "He wanted sole authority. He got it. Now he's got to deliver."--New York Times
Teixeira may prefer East Coast team Posted: Saturday May 26, 2007 06:17AM ET Baseball executives are predicting that Texas' switch-hitting first baseman Mark Teixeira could be on the trade market this summer. The Dodgers and Angels are two of the most obvious big-market contenders who have been looking for offense, but several more teams will probably join them. The growing sense that he may want to play on the East Coast could give the Orioles, Red Sox and Yankees extra incentive to try to trade for him this summer.--SI.com
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Post by jumbo on Jun 1, 2007 8:33:41 GMT -5
Angry Jays claim A-Rod interference Posted: Thursday May 31, 2007 05:34AM ET The Blue Jays were incensed after Alex Rodriguez interfered with a play at third base in the ninth inning. Jorge Posada lifted a lazy fly ball to third base with two outs in the top of the ninth inning. Third baseman Howie Clark camped under it, but he backed off just after Rodriguez ran slowly past him. Rodriguez said he shouted "Ha" as he passed Clark, who was fooled into thinking that the shortstop, John McDonald, had called for the ball. When Clark backed away, the ball dropped safely onto the turf for a run-scoring single. The Blue Jays were incensed, with umpires restraining McDonald from charging at Rodriguez. Toronto manager John Gibbons had words with Rodriguez, who smiled as he stood on third base.--New York Times
Yankees won't ask about Teixeira Posted: Friday June 01, 2007 06:26AM ET Before Yankee fans get hot about their team acquiring right-handed hitting first baseman Mark Teixeira from the Rangers, forget it. The Yankees know the Rangers are shopping him due to a rift between Teixeira and first-year manager Ron Washington and don't plan on talking to them. The Rangers are looking for high-end pitching (Phil Hughes?) and outfield help (Melky Cabrera?) for a player who makes $9 million this year and is eligible for arbitration after the 2008 season.--New York Post
Red Sox farmhand signs with Yanks? Posted: Friday June 01, 2007 08:44AM ET A member of Red Sox management said he was unaware of a rumor that Runelvys Hernandez, who opted out of his contract at Pawtucket yesterday, would be signing a minor league deal with the Yankees.--Boston Herald
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Post by jumbo on Jun 2, 2007 12:38:51 GMT -5
Yankees won't ask Bernie for help Posted: Saturday June 02, 2007 09:52AM ET Brian Cashman and Joe Torre shot down any chance of Bernie Williams coming back to replace Jason Giambi.--Newark Star-Ledger
Yankees headed for June firesale? Posted: Saturday June 02, 2007 11:59AM ET If the Yankees are still slogging along in a double-digit deficit by the end of June -- they'll have to at least explore previously unthinkable trade options. The first is Alex Rodriguez (who probably would refuse to be dealt), followed by Johnny Damon and Bobby Abreu.--Bergen Record
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Post by jumbo on Jun 4, 2007 0:52:57 GMT -5
June 4, 2007 With Mientkiewicz Out, Yankees Fill in Missing Pieces By TYLER KEPNER
BOSTON, June 3 — Doug Mientkiewicz was driven home by his wife on Sunday. He was a wounded passenger, having sustained a concussion, a neck sprain and a fractured bone in his right wrist on Saturday in a collision at Fenway Park. From a baseball standpoint, the wrist injury is the most serious, and it will keep him out a minimum of six weeks.
“He’s a grinder, and he’s obviously a major help on the defensive side,” Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman said. “We’ll miss him.”
In Mientkiewicz’s absence, his teammates poked fun at him. One option to see time at first base is Johnny Damon, but Damon said he was not sure how much help Mientkiewicz could give him.
“We’ll have to make sure that his memory is good,” Damon said.
Mientkiewicz’s placement on the disabled list will allow the Yankees to start Matt DeSalvo in place of Roger Clemens on Monday in Chicago, giving Kei Igawa more time in the minors to smooth his mechanics. DeSalvo, who was sent back to Class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Friday, could not have rejoined the team without a spot opening up as the result of an injury.
Igawa pitched seven innings for Scranton in Rochester on Sunday, and while he pitched well, allowing two earned runs with nine strikeouts, he told reporters that he needed another start or two in the minors. Cashman said the Yankees were optimistic that Igawa could help, eventually.
“So far, so good,” Cashman said. “He’s making the progress we’ve hoped for.”
Clemens reported Sunday to the Yankees’ complex in Tampa, Fla., where he was examined by the team doctor Andrew Miller. Clemens will undergo a magnetic resonance imaging exam on Monday to see if his groin is simply fatigued, as he told the team, or more seriously damaged.
For now, the Yankees and Clemens are projecting his first appearance to be Saturday at home against the Pittsburgh Pirates, a team he defeated five times in six decisions over the past three years.
“Everyone is being optimistic and looking toward the obvious date of next Saturday,” Clemens’s agent, Randy Hendricks, said in an e-mail message. “I think the results of the M.R.I., plus how Roger feels this week, will determine whether he starts next Saturday.”
Clemens does not begin collecting his prorated $28 million salary until the Yankees add him to the major league roster. He is currently on a minor league deal.
“I want to have a healthy Roger Clemens, when he’s ready to assist the team, because we still have a shot,” Cashman said. “We feel he could have a big impact for us. But were there any guarantees or under-the-table promises made? No.”
The loss of Mientkiewicz is bad news for the pitching staff. Mientkiewicz was batting only .226, but he had played much better defense than Josh Phelps, who, Manager Joe Torre said, will become the regular first baseman.
Damon remains the regular designated hitter with Jason Giambi on the disabled list and Melky Cabrera now playing center, but he is taking grounders at first base and has begun learning the position from the bench coach Don Mattingly.
“There will be a lot of stuff we can do,” Mattingly said. “You can’t build it in a day. He’s not going to eat steak right away; we’re going to give him some baby formula first.”
Damon’s weak arm will not be such a liability at first base, and as a left-hander he will have a natural throw to second base, because he will not have to turn his body. He played first base in Little League and once last season. He said his athleticism would help him.
“I just have to look at it as a positive thing that possibly can help extend my career,” said Damon, who is 33. “As a ballplayer you always want to be well-rounded. This gives me an opportunity, gives me a challenge to try to be a better all-around player. I’m actually pretty excited about it.”
Torre said his first option off the bench to replace Phelps during a game was Miguel Cairo, who has played 34 games there in his career. But Cairo is strictly a bench player, and if Phelps does not start — perhaps during the Yankees’ six remaining games in National League parks, where the D.H. is not used — Damon could start at first.
As for outside options, the Yankees appear to have no interest in the massive contract of Todd Helton of the Colorado Rockies. They are more interested in exploring the idea of a trade for Mark Teixeira of the Texas Rangers, but the Rangers want premium pitching prospects and the asking price would seem likely to drop as the July 31 trading deadline approaches.
The Yankees effectively used that strategy last season to land Bobby Abreu from the Philadelphia Phillies on July 30, without trading a significant prospect.
Copyright 2007 The New York Times Company
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Post by jumbo on Jun 4, 2007 11:18:43 GMT -5
Truth & RumorsClose MLB for Monday, June 04 Print Is a Dye for Abreu deal brewing? Posted: Monday June 04, 2007 06:35AM ET A rumor that surfaced less than two weeks ago, which had the White Sox exploring a deal that would send Jermaine Dye to the Yankees for struggling outfielder Bobby Abreu, has started to take on some life, according to one Sox source close to the situation. Not only because Abreu is a good friend of Ozzie Guillen's but also because the Sox believe Abreu is a slow starter and his best baseball this season is ahead of him.--Chicago Sun Times
Yankees prefer Teixeira over Helton Posted: Monday June 04, 2007 07:36AM ET The Yankees appear to have no interest in the massive contract of Todd Helton of the Rockies. They are more interested in exploring the idea of a trade for Mark Teixeira of the Rangers, but the Rangers want premium pitching prospects and the asking price would seem likely to drop as the July 31 trading deadline approaches.--New York Times
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Post by jumbo on Jun 6, 2007 13:29:45 GMT -5
Rivera won't push extension talks Posted: Wednesday June 06, 2007 07:33AM ET Mariano Rivera said he will not push the topic of an extension. It will have to come from the Yankees' side if it is to happen in midseason. Despite the uncertainty, it would be difficult to imagine him on another team.--New York Newsday
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Post by jumbo on Jun 6, 2007 22:21:45 GMT -5
June 7, 2007 Sports of The Times Where Is the Yankees’ Real First Baseman? By DAVE ANDERSON
While the Yankees hold their breath waiting for Roger Clemens to rescue their rotation, they continue to suffer from the absence of a real Yankee first baseman.
In winning 26 World Series, the Yankees almost always had a feared power hitter at what is considered a power position. Lou Gehrig was the original real Yankee first baseman, the ideal. Wally Pipp, Nick Etten, George McQuinn, Tommy Henrich, Johnny Mize, Joe Collins, Bill Skowron, Chris Chambliss and Tino Martinez were also real Yankee first basemen, power hitters who earned Series rings.
His last two seasons, limping but always a threat, Mickey Mantle was a real Yankee first baseman. Without a Series ring, so were Don Mattingly and Jason Giambi. But this season there is no real Yankee first baseman.
Remember the slogan “Real men don’t eat quiche”? Well, a real Yankee first baseman doesn’t bat eighth or ninth, as Josh Phelps and the injured Doug Mientkiewicz often have; a real Yankee first basemen doesn’t bunt for a base hit, as Miguel Cairo did Tuesday night; a real Yankee first baseman doesn’t usually platoon; and a real Yankee first baseman isn’t learning defensive footwork in midseason, as Johnny Damon is doing with Mattingly as his tutor.
In the Yankees’ 25-31 record before last night’s game against the White Sox, their starting first basemen combined for a decent .273 average, but only 6 homers and only 27 runs batted in. Hardly the numbers of a real Yankee first baseman.
In 36 starts before breaking his wrist, Mientkiewicz batted .241 with 4 homers and 16 R.B.I.; in Phelps’s 17 starts, he had a .316 average but only one homer and 9 R.B.I.; in Giambi’s two early-season starts before injuries limited him to being the designated hitter, then put him on the disabled list, he was 2 for 5 with one homer; in Cairo’s one start, he was 2 for 4 with one R.B.I.
If Manager Joe Torre has had to juggle four players there, it means he doesn’t have one he trusts, much less one real Yankee first baseman. It also means the Yankees will probably pursue the Rangers’ Mark Teixeira, who hit 33 homers last year, in a midseason trade or as a free agent.
•
This isn’t meant to defame Mientkiewicz, Phelps, Cairo and certainly not Damon, who are what they are: Mientkiewicz primarily a flashy fielder with an occasional bat, Phelps a decent batter without much power, Cairo a versatile and valuable utility infielder, Damon a sore-legged center fielder who might have filled the Yankees’ crater at first base if he had been transferred there in spring training.
But not one of them is a real Yankee first baseman.
Not that any past or future Yankee first baseman is likely to be compared to the legendary Gehrig, the Iron Horse who played in 2,130 consecutive games from 1925 to 1939 after replacing the injured Pipp at first base. Pipp is remembered jokingly and unfairly for losing his job, but he had been the Yankees’ established first baseman for a decade, leading the American League in 1916 with 12 homers and 93 R.B.I., and driving in 108 and 114 runs the two seasons before Gehrig arrived.
After Gehrig contracted the disease that is named for him and ended his career early in the 1939 season, the Yankees went on to win the Series twice with relatively light-hitting successors at first base: Babe Dahlgren (.235, 15 homers, 89 R.B.I.) in 1939 and Johnny Sturm (.239, 3 homers, 36 R.B.I.) in 1941.
When the Yankees won the 1943 Series during World War II, Etten was at first base after having driving in 107 runs that season. McQuinn, an All-Star with the St. Louis Browns during the war, batted .304 with 13 homers en route to the 1947 Series victory. During the Yankees’ record run of five straight Series from 1949 to 1953, the Old Reliable Henrich was the first baseman the first year, and Mize and Collins the next four.
In Game 7 of the 1956 Series at Ebbets Field, the bases were loaded when, as Skowron recalled, Manager Casey Stengel told him, “Take two shots to right.” Swinging early, Skowron lined Roger Craig’s first pitch into the left-field stands for a grand slam. On his return to the dugout, Stengel told him, “That’s the way to pull the ball, big fella.” Skowron was also the first baseman on the 1958, 1961 and 1962 Series champions.
Chambliss’s pennant-winning home run lifted the Yankees into the 1976 Series; the next two years he helped them win it. When Mattingly, Donnie Baseball himself, retired after the 1995 season, Tino Martinez contributed to four Series rings in five years. Giambi hasn’t played on a Series winner, but he was a real Yankee first baseman with 41 homers twice and later 32 and 37 until sidelined by injuries.
Now there is no real Yankee first baseman. And until one arrives, there probably won’t be any Yankee World Series rings.
Copyright 2007 The New York Times Company
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Post by jumbo on Jun 7, 2007 10:03:14 GMT -5
Selig to Giambi: Talk or else? Posted: Thursday June 07, 2007 05:45AM ET By asking Jason Giambi to cooperate with Senator George Mitchell, Commissioner Bud Selig is apparently trying to appear to be a disciplinarian while also offering Giambi a way to avoid a possible punishment. If Selig announced a stern punishment yesterday, it would have in effect told players that they could be disciplined for being candid. It might have also ruined the slim chance Mitchell has of getting players to speak with him in an investigation that is now 15 months old.--New York Times
Angry A-Rod drop the F-bomb Posted: Thursday June 07, 2007 10:25AM ET Alex Rodriguez took a couple of girls out on the town yesterday - his wife and 2-year-old daughter. The scandal-plagued Yankees slugger was the picture of a family man when he spent the day strolling with his wife, Cynthia, and their daughter, Natasha, through the Windy City's fashionable Gold Coast shopping district. The outing seemed to go smoothly until the end of the three-hour walkabout, when A-Rod got nasty with photographers who had tracked his every move. "You had enough?" Rodriguez snapped outside the team's hotel. "I'm out with my family. Now get the f--- out of my way."--New York Daily News
Giambi's teammates criticize Selig Posted: Thursday June 07, 2007 06:04AM ET The Yankees clubhouse reaction to Bud Selig asking Jason Giambi to cooperate with George Mitchell's investigation into steroid use in baseball was loud. The fear among players is that Giambi's punishment by Selig will be tied to the degree of aid he gives Mitchell, who is working without the power of subpoena.--New York Post
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Post by mpep on Jun 7, 2007 10:11:21 GMT -5
Arod used profanity?! Straight to the stockade and a taste of nettles against his backside!
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Post by philinla on Jun 7, 2007 22:39:10 GMT -5
Go ARod!
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Post by jumbo on Jun 8, 2007 9:52:06 GMT -5
Did Boss tell GM to scold Torre? Posted: Friday June 08, 2007 05:53AM ET Joe Torre had no comment about a published report that had George Steinbrenner instructing Brian Cashman to scold Torre about him saying Alex Rodriguez was "inappropriate" when he used his mouth to distract Toronto infielders last week on a popup.--New York Post
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Post by jumbo on Jun 9, 2007 15:55:40 GMT -5
Giambi silent on Selig ultimatum Posted: Saturday June 09, 2007 08:28AM ET Two days after Bud Selig delivered him an ultimatum, Jason Giambi was tight-lipped. said he did not have an answer for Selig, who asked Giambi to speak with George Mitchell or face discipline. Giambi said he has spoken with his agent Arn Tellem, but he would have nothing further to say until they were prepared to make a formal announcement.--New York Post
Sheff says Yankees could use him Posted: Saturday June 09, 2007 07:15AM ET Gary Sheffield praised Bobby Abreu, the man who replaced him in right field for the Yankees, but the Tigers' slugger believes the Bombers certainly could use what Sheffield offers.--New York Post
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Post by jumbo on Jul 1, 2007 12:42:16 GMT -5
Are Yankees losing leverage? Posted: Sunday July 01, 2007 11:30AM ET Nobody wants to talk about the fact that Derek Jeter will be 35 when the Yankees are in the new ballpark in '09 - and the silence has been deafening regarding that opt-out clause in Alex Rodriguez's contract. Whereas a couple of months ago the Yankees could smugly say they would not allow themselves to be held hostage by A-Rod, now it may not even be their choice--New York Daily News
Torre goes nose-to-nose with pitcher Posted: Sunday July 01, 2007 08:19AM ET Kyle Farnsworth, who stormed off the mound after being removed in the eighth inning and then slammed his glove to the dugout floor from the top step Friday, was confronted after the game by the Yankees manager. Witnesses said Joe Torre went nose-to-nose with Farnsworth and told him, "Don't ever do that to me again." When Farnsworth protested he had not shown up Torre in the way he handed over the ball, the manager countered, "Yes you did."--Newark Star-Ledger
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Post by jumbo on Jul 2, 2007 10:47:52 GMT -5
MRS. A-ROD IS A BRONX F-BOMBER
By DAN MANGAN and DAVID K. LI
July 2, 2007 -- Oh, no, she didn't!
Yankee superstar Alex Rodriguez's long-suffering wife, Cynthia, may have finally flipped her pretty lid yesterday when she went to a game in The Bronx wearing a tight-fitting, white tank top bearing a foul message on the back: "F- - - you."
The obscene phrase was plainly visible to thousands of fans - including plenty of kids - as she, her 2-year-old daughter, Natasha, and an older woman took their seats in the players' family section of the House that Ruth Built.
"[One] father, was so embarrassed, he got up and left and took his son," who appeared to be about 10 years old, a fan said.
"I mean this kid was right in back of Cynthia - his nose must have been about 4 inches away from the words 'F- - - you.' "
Cynthia's F-word faux pas also may have violated Yankee Stadium policy.
The team's policy prohibits any banners or signs that are not in "good taste" and also warns that security guards will eject any guests "using foul language" or "making obscene gestures."
Still, when some fans let nearby security know about Cynthia's four-letter garment yesterday, nothing was done.
"It was noted by police and security," one fan said. "They were aware of it. I guess they didn't know what to do. I guess you don't kick A-Rod's wife out of the game."
It's not clear who the target was of Cynthia's F-bomb: Yankee fans, management, the media - or even perhaps her wandering husband.
But if Cynthia, 34, was trying to light a fire under A-Rod's struggling team with her shocking message, it didn't work - the bumbling Bronx Bombers got thumped 11-5 by the Oakland A's.
The loss left them four games under .500 and 11 games behind the arch rival Boston Red Sox, who are solidly in first place in the American League East.
Cynthia's shocking breach of stadium etiquette comes a month after she was publicly humiliated by her straying hubby's catting around the country and Canada with a busty, blond Las Vegas stripper and Playboy wannabe named Joslyn Noel Morse - revealed in a Post exposé.
Despite - or perhaps because of - those randy revelations, Alex Rodriguez, 31, has been on fire when it comes to the baseball diamond, batting a jaw-dropping, Major League-leading .406 over the last month.
Howard Rubenstein, the spokesman for Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, last night said he could not reach The Boss or other Bombers executives for comment on Cynthia's sartorial stunt.
A-Rod's agent, Scott Boras, could not be reached.
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Post by jumbo on Jul 3, 2007 10:13:59 GMT -5
Did Torre lie about Farnsworth? Posted: Tuesday July 03, 2007 07:06AM ET Kyle Farnsworth was unavailable to pitch from the bullpen on Sunday because of a bad back and was questionable for last night, Joe Torre said. But that's not the story the right-handed reliever was telling. "I've been good all year so far," Farnsworth said yesterday when asked about his back.--New York Post
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Post by jumbo on Jul 4, 2007 23:54:59 GMT -5
July 5, 2007 Sports of The Times Only Number That Adds Up for Yankees Is Boss’s Age By DAVE ANDERSON
For more than three decades, July 4 has been a special day for the Yankees — not the holiday itself so much as it is George Steinbrenner’s birthday. At Yankee Stadium before yesterday’s game, Joe Torre, as he has throughout his 12 seasons as the manager, phoned the Boss, alias the principal owner.
“I just wished him ‘Happy Birthday,’ ” Torre said after the 6-2 loss to the Twins. “He appreciated it. He wanted us to win the game, but we couldn’t deliver it for him.”
On his 77th birthday, the Yankees’ real Yankee Doodle Dandy wasn’t feeling dandy, but this season he should be accustomed to that feeling. With the Yankees still struggling halfway through their season, with a 39-42 record, no matter how much better they play in the second half, even the wild card appears out of reach.
Do the math.
With the Indians likely to approach 100 victories and the Tigers possibly winning 95 games in the American League Central, consider that the Yankees would need a fabulous 55-26 finish for a 94-68 record. Also consider that in finishing first in the A.L. East in their best seasons under Torre, the most games the Yankees ever won in the second half was 53 — in 2005, 2002 and 1998.
When those three Yankee teams each won 53 games, they had consistent pitching and consistent hitting. To think that this inconsistent Yankee team, with its shoddy bullpen and spotty hitting, can suddenly do better than any of those three teams is simply unrealistic.
In the 11 previous seasons of the Torre era, the Yankees’ worst halfway record was 42-39 in 2005 before a 53-28 rally won the division on a tie breaker with the Red Sox.
Of those 11 teams, 8 were in first place at the halfway mark, 2 were in or tied for second place (last year and 1997), and one was in third place (2005). All were above .500, not three games under .500 on a tedious treadmill going into today’s finale with the Twins followed by the arrival of the Angels, who may be the A.L.’s best team.
Looking to the second half, Torre said simply but somewhat unconvincingly, “We need to pitch, we need to continue to swing the bats.” That’s hardly a battle cry, but he knows better than to issue a battle cry for a team that doesn’t appear capable of responding to a battle cry.
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As presently constituted, the Yankees simply are what they are — a 39-42 team with starting pitchers that can’t be trusted past six innings, a bullpen that blows too many late-inning leads, and several hitters that aren’t producing statistics anywhere near their career numbers.
Against the left-hander Johan Santana, the Twins’ ace and perhaps baseball’s best pitcher, the Yankees’ batting order included four backups: third baseman Miguel Cairo, first baseman Andy Phillips, right fielder Kevin Thompson and catcher Wil Nieves, who was in the lineup because he is Mike Mussina’s favorite receiver. Not exactly Murderers’ Row.
And until further notice, Alex Rodriguez, the best hitter in baseball this season, will be the designated hitter to protect his strained left hamstring from the contortions sometimes necessary at third base. To protect it further, Rodriguez, who is 0 for his last 19, may decide not to play in the All-Star Game on Tuesday.
Maybe the left-handed batters Johnny Damon and Bobby Abreu would not have done much better against Santana than the four backups who went 1 for 10 (Phillips’s infield single being the only hit). But without them, Santana had an easier time than Mussina did in holding the Twins to two runs over six innings, before Torii Hunter’s double and Jason Kubel’s home run knocked Mussina out in the seventh.
Mussina, with a perplexing 4-6 record and a 4.62 earned run average, did what Torre always wants his starter to do. “Give us a chance to win,” Torre likes to say. If the Yankees could play six-inning games, they wouldn’t be 39-42, but, as Mussina said, “the game’s nine innings, not six.”
Even if the Yankees win today and tomorrow, their record will be no better than 41-42 before Old-Timers’ Day on Saturday — an embarrassment not only to these Yankees, but to all those old-timers, especially those 1977 World Series champions who will be honored.
If only these Yankees could slip onto their roster some of those famous old-timers who will be on display, notably three Hall of Famers — catcher Yogi Berra, the left-hander Whitey Ford and the slugger Reggie Jackson. If only Don Mattingly, now the Yankees’ bench coach, could play first base. If only Paul O’Neill, who will be making his first appearance as an old-timer, could play right field.
And if only this Yankee team was good enough to rally for a 55-26 finish that may or may not salvage the wild card. But it’s nowhere near that good. Do the math.
Copyright 2007 The New York Times Company
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Post by jumbo on Jul 5, 2007 21:30:00 GMT -5
Tiger, Indians lining up for reliever Posted: Thursday July 05, 2007 07:20AM ET The Tigers and Indians are battling for first place in the AL Central and for right-handed reliever Eric Gagne, who would be a welcome addition to the Yankees' bullpen if they were willing to sacrifice the young pitching the Rangers want. Because GM Brian Cashman has been reluctant to talk about including minor-league pitchers Ian Kennedy and Joba Chamberlain in a trade - Phil Hughes is untouchable at all costs - the Yankees likely don't have what it will take to get Gagne, in whom the Tigers are very interested.--New York Post
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