A few New York baseball thoughts while cursing the mythical "sick passenger" on the F train…
It was great of Billy Wagner to let us know (via an article by ESPN.com writer Jason Stark) what the root of the New York Mets' problems were earlier this season:
"I don't want to bash Willie, because I liked him, Billy Wagner said. "But before, it was more of The Yankee Way. It wasn't The Mets Way. There was no facial hair. You could never have music in the clubhouse. You couldn't have kids around. Believe it or not, some of us in here actually like kids."
So it was the lack of facial hair and children in the clubhouse. Of course!! And I thought the problem was lack of production from the middle of the line-up. Silly me.
Speaking of Wagner, I still don't trust him late in the game against good teams.
Call him a baby, say he pouts, doesn't foucs, whatever…At the break, Jose Reyes is second in the National League in hits, fourth in runs scored and eighth in total bases. Throw in 32 steals and 42 RBI and Mets fans should really stop complaining about the guy. At this pace, he could make 30 errors this season and it wouldn't bother me.
Ramon Castro should be catching 65-70% of the games for the Mets. Offensively he is light years ahead of Brian Schneider. I still don't see all the fuss about Schneider's defense.
Give me Howie Rose on WFAN over Gary, Keith and Ron on SNY any day of the week.
Radical idea that's not that radical: While Johnny Damon is injured; Joe Girardi should consider moving Bobby Abreu into the lead off spot. Abreu's lifetime OBP of .405 makes him much more of a table setter than the inexperienced Brett Gardner or the light-hitting Melky Cabera. Plus, while Abreu physically has the look of a middle-of- the-order masher, he has hit over 20 homeruns only once in the past 4 seasons. Not exactly Reggie Jackson numbers, especially for a lefty in Yankee Stadium. When Damon is back, Girardi could also consider Abreu in the #2 hole and drop Derek Jeter down to 3rd in the order. Idealy you want more power in the from your number 3 hitter, but with Damon and Abreu on base, Jeter could drive in 100 runs without using the long ball, the same way Tommy Herr did in 1985.
In the first half of the season, Mike Mussina and Andy Pettitte have shown why 9 times out of 10, it's better togo with veteran starting pitchers than inexperienced throwers. Count me as one of the many who thought both of these guys were done. However they've kept the Yankees in contention, keeping the team in ball games almost every time they take the mound. If the Bombers can get anything out of back of the rotation, whether through a trade or from players already on the roster, they should be in the hunt for the Wildcard.
Bashing Alex Rodriguez for not participating in the Home Run Derby is absurd. For guys who aren't hackers like Ryan Howard, the Derby affects a hitter's swing. Just ask David Wright.
Has Major League Baseball checked Jason Giambi's mustache yet for HGH yet? How about his thong? How else can you explain his comeback?
I've always thought Robinson Cano was a tad overrated, but he's a better hitter than he's shown so far. He should give the Yanks a boost in the second half of the season.
Evaluating him like a normal second year player and not Superman, Joba Chamberlain has pitched pretty well. While long term he has more value as a starter than a reliever/closer, for this season, I still think the Yankees will get burned in the 7th and 8th inning.
R.I.P. Bobby Murcer.
It was great of Billy Wagner to let us know (via an article by ESPN.com writer Jason Stark) what the root of the New York Mets' problems were earlier this season:
"I don't want to bash Willie, because I liked him, Billy Wagner said. "But before, it was more of The Yankee Way. It wasn't The Mets Way. There was no facial hair. You could never have music in the clubhouse. You couldn't have kids around. Believe it or not, some of us in here actually like kids."
So it was the lack of facial hair and children in the clubhouse. Of course!! And I thought the problem was lack of production from the middle of the line-up. Silly me.
Speaking of Wagner, I still don't trust him late in the game against good teams.
Call him a baby, say he pouts, doesn't foucs, whatever…At the break, Jose Reyes is second in the National League in hits, fourth in runs scored and eighth in total bases. Throw in 32 steals and 42 RBI and Mets fans should really stop complaining about the guy. At this pace, he could make 30 errors this season and it wouldn't bother me.
Ramon Castro should be catching 65-70% of the games for the Mets. Offensively he is light years ahead of Brian Schneider. I still don't see all the fuss about Schneider's defense.
Give me Howie Rose on WFAN over Gary, Keith and Ron on SNY any day of the week.
Radical idea that's not that radical: While Johnny Damon is injured; Joe Girardi should consider moving Bobby Abreu into the lead off spot. Abreu's lifetime OBP of .405 makes him much more of a table setter than the inexperienced Brett Gardner or the light-hitting Melky Cabera. Plus, while Abreu physically has the look of a middle-of- the-order masher, he has hit over 20 homeruns only once in the past 4 seasons. Not exactly Reggie Jackson numbers, especially for a lefty in Yankee Stadium. When Damon is back, Girardi could also consider Abreu in the #2 hole and drop Derek Jeter down to 3rd in the order. Idealy you want more power in the from your number 3 hitter, but with Damon and Abreu on base, Jeter could drive in 100 runs without using the long ball, the same way Tommy Herr did in 1985.
In the first half of the season, Mike Mussina and Andy Pettitte have shown why 9 times out of 10, it's better togo with veteran starting pitchers than inexperienced throwers. Count me as one of the many who thought both of these guys were done. However they've kept the Yankees in contention, keeping the team in ball games almost every time they take the mound. If the Bombers can get anything out of back of the rotation, whether through a trade or from players already on the roster, they should be in the hunt for the Wildcard.
Bashing Alex Rodriguez for not participating in the Home Run Derby is absurd. For guys who aren't hackers like Ryan Howard, the Derby affects a hitter's swing. Just ask David Wright.
Has Major League Baseball checked Jason Giambi's mustache yet for HGH yet? How about his thong? How else can you explain his comeback?
I've always thought Robinson Cano was a tad overrated, but he's a better hitter than he's shown so far. He should give the Yanks a boost in the second half of the season.
Evaluating him like a normal second year player and not Superman, Joba Chamberlain has pitched pretty well. While long term he has more value as a starter than a reliever/closer, for this season, I still think the Yankees will get burned in the 7th and 8th inning.
R.I.P. Bobby Murcer.
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