Tuesday, September 21, 2010

PARTY IN THE BRONX

***CELEBRATING A MAN & A WIN***
Steinbrenner got his plaque & Girardi got his win. His was a beautiful ceremony and an emotional rendition of "God Bless America" by GS granddaughter, Haley Swindal. It seemed "interesting" to me that Joe Torre was paraded around after sniping at the Yankees in his book. Well, I guess it was a class move, but I'm not sure I would have done it.
An exciting game, to say the least. Granderson blasted two homers, one high off the foul pole. I didn't think he had that kind of power. Michael Kay mentioned how helpful it is to bat ahead of Teixeira, A-Rod & Cano. "You'll get a lot of good pitches to hit that way," he said. That's good, because those guys didn't. 0-13, with a walk and a sac fly. Not the kind of numbers you want from your 3-4-5 hitters. Chad Gaudin got one out in the sixth to pick up the win. He also reminded us of why he's the 'Mop-Up' guy by walking in the tieing run, first.

***THE INEVITABLE FINALLY HAPPENED***
A bat shattered and a player was struck. Luckily, it wasn't life-threatening, but it was still scary. These maple bats are very dangerous, but MLB doesn't seem to want to do anything about it. Rob Neyer, ESPN columnist, blames the players, of all people. "Why hasn't it happened? Because the players, collectively, care more about their freedom to use any bat they like than about some potentially catastrophic injury." I wonder how Tyler Colvin, the player who was injured, feels about that.

***HEADLINES I DON'T UNDERSTAND***
"DO THE METS PROBLEMS START AT THE TOP?"
Well, it's certainly not Mike Nickeas, the 3rd-string catcher's, fault. The Mets will probably have a new manager next year, but question is, who will take the job? The word is that the owner, Jeff Wilbon, is decidedly tough to work for. The New York papers describe him as a 'George Steinbrenner type, without the smarts. Read what Joel Sherman of the NY Post writes:
"The pithy summary: Wilpon is a "short-tempered, tone deaf credit seeker," he's an "accountability deflector," a "micro-manager" and a "second-guesser." Oh, and he's a bull-headed idiot too, if the phrases Joel Sherman uses -- he's a "less-than-deep thinker," and is "bad at self-awareness" -- can be reasonably parsed. "
Quit beating around the bush, Joel, tell us how you really feel.

***YOU'RE GOING TO NEED A SCORECARD***
On top of all the managerial changes we've seen so far this year, the word is that as many as 16 teams may have new managers when the season opens next year. In fact, if the Yanks don't win the World Series, or at least get in, I think the Yanks will look to replace Girardi. He can be forgiven for some of the mistakes he made last year, since he was really a rookie, but this year? He still pulls some strange moves, especially pinch-hitting for players in the middle of an at bat. Unlike Joe Torre, who used to ride a hot reliever until it took two guys to carry his arm in from the bullpen, Girardi uses everybody, it seems like every game. This "mix-and-match" philosophy appears to be more PYA (Protect Your A**) than playing to match-ups. Hughes better go 8 innings tonight, or we may see Swisher going for a save.
The Marlins, Cubs, Brewers, White Sox, Cardinals, Mets, Mariners, Diamondbacks, Royals and Reds are all rumored to have new managers next year, along with half a dozen others. If the usual pattern occurs, and I think it will, we'll just see all the usual faces being recycled around the league, Bud Selig notwithstanding.
Speaking of Selig, I saw him on TV at the ceremony for George last night. Who dresses him, anyway? He looked like he slept in that suit on the plane from Milwaukee.

CP-

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