WHY DOES GIRARDI GET ALL THIS LOVE?

I constantly hear how smart Joe Girardi is and how well he handles the Yankee bullpen. I guess I'm not a fan of his because the only thing he does that I like is the way he protects his players, In an interview situation, if a reporter asks a pointed question, Girardi will dance around it better than Fred Astaire. And he doesn't even use tap shoes.

I don't think he "handles" his bullpen; I think he overuses it. He can't wait to get Betances and Chapman into the game. He has no faith in his starters. Last night, Boston looked positively helpless against CC Sabathia but Girardi insisted in bringing in a reliever to pitch the 9th, even though CC's pitch count was within reason. Let the man go out and get his complete game shutout. It's 8 - 0, how much trouble could he get into? I understand I'm not in the dugout talking to Sabathia. For all I know, CC could have told Joe, "Sorry, I can't go. I haven't felt my left arm for two innings."  But I don't think so.

I don't think Vod has a lot of love for Joe, either. Read this snippet from his Facebook post about Girardi's lineup change.
"So, is Girardi a genius for finally moving a slow-footed catcher out of the 2 hole or an idiot for taking 2 months and over 40 games to figure out that his explanation for batting Sanchez 2nd was simply head-scratchingly wrong?"
Of course, a lot of Joe's moves have to do with that notebook from hell that he totes around. He can give you numbers to support any move he makes and different numbers when he goes back to the original lineup. He'll ride a hot hitter forever, but he takes way too long to realize that hitter is slumping badly. He has carried Chase Headley for so long that even Chase's mother called and told Joe to sit him. Yes, he has started to hit again, but it was a painful 6 weeks for everybody. 
[By the way, Joe, it looks like the pitchers are catching up to Aaron Judge. You might want to watch his at-bats more carefully]

As long as we're ranting, let's talk about the Yankee broadcast team. Vod has already covered old "Without-a-doubt" David Cone, but his booth-mates aren't much better. My wife likes Michael Kay but I don't. His jokes are lame and he insists on trying to dramatize everything. I've called home runs before Michael even started his "...warning track, wall, see ya'"  performance. Last night, he laughed so much at one of his own jokes, that even Paul O'Neil started to kid him.
Speaking of Paul, I used to think his job in the booth was shilling for the concession stands, but lately, he just picks up on some point that Michael makes and agrees with it.  Why isn't HE making the point. Paul is good for one thing: getting tied up in his own sentences. Remember this little beauty from two nights ago, "Some things continue if they don't change."  What can you say about this except, Yogi Berra lives.

Here's one good thing that came out of the booth a couple of nights ago. Michael Kay asked David Cone what  the Yankees should do about Masahiro Tanaka's struggles. Instead of beating around the bush and coming out with a whole bunch of platitudes, Coney immediately stepped up and said, "Run him out there!"  No hemming and hawing, just "Run him out there." He added that there was too much talent there to give up on him and he'll never find it sitting in the bullpen. Lord, a sportscaster with a definite opinion. David, I can almost forgive you your repetitiveness and total reliance on cybernetics for that one statement.     Almost.

***THEY SAID IT***  
"A new Miss Rodeo Nebraska has been crowned. In this state I'm pretty sure the governor answers to her."  --  Brad Dickson
"After 18 seasons, Bob Stoops said today that he is retiring as Oklahoma’s football coach, and it is not for health reasons. Too soon to start a pool on possible Sooner scandals?"  -- Janice Hough

"United Airlines is about to unveil the world’s longest flight, 8,700 miles from L.A. to Singapore — nearly 18 hours.To help pass all that air time, the in-flight movie will be replays of three Yankees-Red Sox games."  -- Dwight Perry

"Mike Brown is coaching the Warriors in the championship showdown with Cleveland. A  playoff first for LeBron James: facing a coach he fired."  -- RJ Currie
"Belmont Stakes coming up June 10, but, with no Triple Crown in play, not even Belmont cares."  -- Greg Cote

"A drone crash-landed just inches from a fan at a Padres game last month.Baseball stat nerds, not missing a beat, immediately credited it with a launch angle of 29 degrees and an entrance velocity of 62 mph."  -- Dwight Perry  [David Cone, please note - CP]

"The New York Yankees retired Derek Jeter’s  No. 2. In a related story, the Yankees also framed the results of Alex Rodriguez’s second positive steroid test."  -- Alex Kaseberg
" SF Giants and Phillies played a series where both teams look like they richly deserve their 2017 records."  -- Janice Hough
"If the NBA playoffs were any duller, they'd be moved to C-SPAN."  -- Brad Dickson
"The FAA is investigating why a drone appeared in the sky during a San Diego Padres game. Authorities have already ruled out the possibility that someone actually wanted to watch a Padres game."  -- Conan O'brien
"Pittsburgh police arrested a Nashville Predators fan for throwing a catfish onto the ice, then later dropped all charges. Poetic justice — he was caught and released."  -- RJ Currie
"Rihanna has been trash talking court-side during the NBA Finals. The one thing that could save the 2017 NBA playoffs: if a game is decided by a technical on Rihanna."  -- Brad Dickson

CP-