Yankees notes: Rivera is still the best
by Ed Valentine on Oct 15, 2009 9:32 AM EDT
in News
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Here are a few stories to help you pass the time as you wait our New York Yankees to open the ALCS Friday night against the Anaheim Angels.
- We all know how special Mariano Rivera is. Steve Politi looks at the meltdowns of big-name closers in the first round of the playoffs and reminds us that Rivera is still the closer you want on the mound to polish off a playoff game.
"He’s been so good for so long, and when he gets here he gets a little better, which is kind of scary, but it’s true," said Joba Chamberlain, his newest setup man. "It’s amazing to watch." - Whaa, whaa, whaa! I get so tired of the kind of whining about the Yankees exhibited in this column by Scott Ostler of the San Francisco Chronicle.
If your team has a pretty face, be it Kate Hudson or Mark Teixeira or CC Sabathia or Jason Giambi or Reggie Jackson, you know that face eventually will leave you for the Yankees.
Yankees fans would have you believe the team's magnetic attraction for great players is due to the organization's charisma, charm and superior intelligence. And Hugh Hefner is popular because chicks dig the meerschaum.
The Yankees aren't a ball team - they are an ATM.
The Yankees have more money than Donald Duck's Uncle Scrooge and they spend it faster than Popeye on shore leave.
Love the Yankees if you must, but spare us the argument that the Yankees win season after season because Brian Cashman is a genius and the Steinbrenners have a pure burning passion to win.
George S. is out of the picture now, but for decades he was the face of Yankee imperiousness. If the team performed well, it was because Steinbrenner was George Patton, slapping courage into the cheeks of his trembling troops. If they lost, it was because the players lacked the owner's guts and grit.
What hogwash. The Yankees win because they collect the best players.
Yankees supporters point out that many Yankees stars (Jeter, Posada, etc.) are home-grown, discovered and nurtured by the great Yankees system.
What the supporters fail to note is that other teams also find and develop great players, but can't afford to hang on to them when the Yankees knock on the door with a bouquet of flowers and a box of candy.
When did Red Sox owner John Henry start subsidizing the Chronicle's payroll?
- Brian Cashman deserves a ton of credit for putting this Yankee team together. The GM's track record with pitching decisions, though, is unquestionably spotty. That makes this note from Buster Olney very intriguing.
Yankees general manager Brian Cashman has long been friends with Kevin Towers, who was recently released from his duties as GM of the Padres, and given that relationship, there would appear to be excellent odds that Towers will land with the Yankees as a special assistant sometime in the months ahead. Towers could serve as an evaluator for Cashman, taking on responsibilities like looking for pitching -- which is considered to be Towers' specialty -- or scouting minor leaguers, or helping to prepare the Yankees as they consider options before the trade deadline.
Personally, I hope that comes to pass. I have thought for a long time that Cashman needed someone he trusted to advise him on pitching moves. - Forget the Red Sox. When it comes to the Yankees and the playoffs, somehow it always seems to be about the Angels.
Truth is, for as much as the Yankees and Red Sox may be the biggest rivalry in sports, it is the Angels - and that Rally Monkey - that have been the Yankees' toughest opponent in recent years. The Angels were the only team to have a winning record against the Yankees during the Joe Torre
era, and they knocked the Yankees out of the playoffs in the division series in 2002 and 2005. After the Angels won seven of 10 games between the teams a year ago, the Yankees managed a split of the 10 this season. Now, as they get set for the ALCS that begins Friday in the Bronx, the questions about whether the Angels have some kind of hex over the Yankees are running rampant. Even Mark Teixeira, who played the final two months of last season with the Angels, admitted that there is an incredible confidence in the Angels' clubhouse when it comes to the Yankees.
"I think maybe they just thought they had the Yankees' number," Teixeira said Wednesday.
You can understand why. While some of the names have changed on the Angels over the years - no more Francisco Rodriguez or Garret Anderson - the philosophy of manager Mike Scioscia's teams has stayed constant ... and constantly effective against the Yankees.
Let's just hope this Yankee team has the anecdote.
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The Chronicle
They’re just upset their most recognizable players in the past decade have either been Federally indicted or look like 13 yr. old girls.
by Sgurd0187 on Oct 15, 2009 9:49 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Not to take anything away from Lincecum
But T(K)im Lincecum is gonna blow his back out with those mechanics, a la (gasp!) Kevin Brown. Very similar deliveries. I’d be lying if I said I wouldn’t want him on my staff, but already he’s had injury problems. He’d better find a way to get the same drive on the ball without all the back-twisting or else he’s gonna be a constant fixture on the DL as he ages.
by Sgurd0187 on Oct 15, 2009 10:04 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
funny thing is
As crazy and violent as his mechanics looks, most scouts and analysts says his mechanics are damn near excellent. Nothing he does signals any potential arm injury or such. It’s weird how incredibly awkward his movements are ppl say he’s unlikely to suffer long term injuries http://www.drivelinemechanics.com/2008/06/12/pitcher-analysis-tim-lincecum/
by lololol on Oct 15, 2009 10:37 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Time Killer
This thing could occupy 15 minutes of your time til the game starts. Name all Yankees opening day line ups since 1990.
http://www.sporcle.com/games/smyth/yankees_lineups_19902009
I got 165/200
by Captain Marvelous on Oct 15, 2009 10:18 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I Love Sporcle
I got 180/200, cant believe the guys I missed. I wont say them so I wont spoil anything.
by YankeesJets on Oct 15, 2009 12:20 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Only 167/200
It was fun. The few that I did miss, I could only remember their faces but not their names.
by Scooby Snacks on Oct 15, 2009 1:44 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
wow that had to be one of the worst
Anti-yankee articles ive ever read…. most of them at least offer some praise to SOME aspect of the yankees… This guy even dissed Jeter and Mo saying they were sick of having playoffs handed to them….
His wife must have left him for someone in NY
by GriffMan on Oct 15, 2009 10:23 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Wait until they win the whole thing
The ant-Yankee backlash will be smothering.
Mariano Rivera= “The best there is, the best there was, and the best there ever will be”——-sounding like Brett “The Hitman” Hart.
LOL @ Scott Ostler from The Chronicle…just LOL thats it.
Kevin Towers sounds like a good move.
------It's October,winning is what the Yankees do........let's just do it already
by ReggieARodJeter on Oct 15, 2009 10:49 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Ostler
That guy definitely came off as a whiner.
by Ed Valentine on Oct 15, 2009 11:13 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
And amazingly bitter
He brought up Reggie Jackson!!!!!? Wasn’t that what 1977? There is a laundry list of players who didn’t work as well. Why does no one bring that up?
------It's October,winning is what the Yankees do........let's just do it already
by ReggieARodJeter on Oct 15, 2009 11:20 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
lose-lose situation
like i’ve said before, if the Yankees win, critics say “it’s easy to win with a $200M+ payroll”. if the Yankees lose, critics say “hahaha, how can anyone lose with a $200M+ payroll?”
oh well, thems the rules and the Yanks are playing by them.
by SBakerTheTouchdownMaker on Oct 15, 2009 11:32 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Mo
Mariano Rivera is more than just the best closing pitcher of all time, he is one of the greatest Yankess of all times. He has pitched in some of the most important games of our teams games in the last 15 years, and rarely faltering. On the field is just a small part of who he is. He is the back bone of a team that without the names of Rivera and Jeter might be like other teams and be lost in their identity. We only deserve to wear the pinstripes of the past because of Mo and Jeter. Top of the class in pitching and as a man.
by shawn p on Oct 15, 2009 11:52 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs
The Truth Of The Matter Is..
Whether You Hate The Yankees, Or Whether You Love Them, If They Are Bad, It Is Bad For Baseball. These morons that write these stories fail to realize this. If the Yankees put out a bad product and are a last place team, they wont draw as many fans on the road, they wont pop a big rating, and wont sell as much merchandise. In turn this will hurt other teams revenues. This is just like when people cry for a salary cap, which the Yankees have never opposed. If the Yankees didnt have to share their revenue, half of the teams wouldn’t be competing for championships, they would be going out of business. Keep hating, keep biting the hand that feeds you.
by YankeesJets on Oct 15, 2009 12:30 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Breaking News ...
I’m watching Girardi’s news conference, and he just said that Hinske is off the roster for the ALCS, and Guzman is in. Which I can only assume means that Marte is still on the roster. So now we have two pinch runners, no power off the bench (unless Posada sits), and a left-hander pitcher that gave up three hits to two lefties in the ALDS.
Fire Girardi.
by long time listener on Oct 15, 2009 12:43 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
I guarentee you that decision came from above him.
Me and Nick? Were tight.
by jramey on Oct 15, 2009 2:27 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
it means...
that Gardner is starting in CF.
by Wraithpk on Oct 15, 2009 2:51 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
What's worse?
A team that nickels and dimes its fans every year or a team that invests in winning?
I’m sorry but if you look at the teams with the worst attendance, it’s usually the teams that spend the least on their club – Royals, Rays, As, etc. There’s a strong correlation between spending on a team and fan attendance. Shocking! Who wants to pay for a crap product? Better than buying season tickets and seeing your GM send one of the better young pitchers to the Angels where he’s now pitching in the ALCS.
And I don’t want to hear some lame excuse about markets. The A’s are right outside SF in one of the most heavily populated states. And the poor excuse about markets has not impacted the Cardinals from putting out a quality team every year. St. Louis ranks 52nd among US cities, just ahead of, you guessed it, Tampa Bay (Hear that Chalk?).
Also, check the Yankee’s roster. Most of the players came up through the farm system or were traded for – Arod, Jeter, Mo, Posada, Swisher, etc.
Sorry for the rant, but I’m sick of this tired argument by so-called writers that have nothing intelligent to say.
by coops2001 on Oct 15, 2009 1:18 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
What's sad
is teams like the Marlins who’s owners pocket the revenue sharing and spend the minimum amount on the team payroll. Reminds me of the movie Major League, except instead of trying to make the team so bad they lose, Loria keeps the team just respectable enough but not so much that he has to spend any revenue sharing money.
It was, in my opinion, pure luck that the Marlins had 2 teams capable of getting to and winning the WS since their creation.
by phonty on Oct 15, 2009 11:38 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
and it helps
that they play in a division with one of the worst teams in baseball: the Nationals.
by phonty on Oct 15, 2009 11:39 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
ESPN's "Baseball Today" has been having a "Team of the Decade" discussion...
and I’m happy to say that my impassioned e-mail defense of the Yankees (against, surprise, Red Sox, and the Phillies) made it on the show.
by PortlandYankee on Oct 15, 2009 2:08 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Congrats
"Have faith in the Yankees, my son. Think of the great DiMaggio."
by jscape2000 on Oct 15, 2009 2:59 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Thanks...
My first read e-mail in any venue. And knowing what was in there, it was interesting to see what got misrepresented (it was a long e-mail, but not “1000 words”; at no point did I bring up 96-99 to justify this decade).
by PortlandYankee on Oct 15, 2009 9:26 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Here are the numbers
In the past few years, the Yankees have bought: Alex Rodriguez, Mark Texiera<, Johnny Damon, CC Sabathia, AJ Burnett, and Nick Swisher. The Yankees starting lineup consists of homegrown palyers: Derek Jeter,Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera, Andy Pettite, Brett Gardner, Melky Cabrera, Robinson Cano, Phil Hughes, Joba Chamberlain, Phil Coke, David Robertson, Alfredo Aceves, Ramiro Pena, Fransisco Cervelli. All of which are on the 25 man roster. The losing team’s media will not shut up unless the Yankees entire starting line-up is from the farm system. But, other teams offer the arods and texieras as much money but they want to be Yankees. End of story. You hear me Yankee critics? Silence
Me and Nick? Were tight.
by jramey on Oct 15, 2009 2:26 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Antidote
not anecdote.
"Have faith in the Yankees, my son. Think of the great DiMaggio."
by jscape2000 on Oct 15, 2009 2:59 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
in was listening to the brian kenny show last night cause i was bored, and he made a great point that the owner of the royals, the glass family, has more money then the stienbrenners, i dont know if it is true but brian kenny wouldnt lie in nthe yankees benefit, no one on espn would. so if that is true then a crappy “small-market” team like the royals with that owner could spend yankee money to get a player. if u can go on espn and try to find the brian kenny show that was on last night, he makes a great point on why the yankees win there championships and dont “buy” them.
Schumer said: "Now the Giants aren’t just New York’s team, they’re America’s team."
"You forget about it whether it was 15-2 or 3-2. It's still a loss. It doesn't matter what the score was if we win tomorrow."... Derek Jeter.
by donnybaseball23 on Oct 15, 2009 3:04 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
very simple
Yankees play in the largest market in the country. Because of their storied history they have a large following around the world. The Yankees generate tons of money because they are the Yankees. Now, with all that money the Yankees could A) Give it all to The Boss so he could wipe is ass with diamond encrusted toilet paper B) reinvest it back into the team. Hmmmm B soulds like a good idea. Lets put the money into what MAKES the Yankees such a profitable franchise. Now you could go the other route and be like the Twins, now while they have a fantastic front office… their owner is one of the wealthiest men in all of sports. But he does NOT spend lots of money on his team, therefore the Twinkies often field quite a good team but they will never put up the kind of team that is a perennial threat to go very deep in the playoffs. Old saying, need to spend money to make money. You want Yankees, Red Sox, Braves, Dodgers kind of revenues… maybe you should put your money back in your team. I mean of course you have to do it wisely otherwise your the Tigers or Mets. But can you imagine what kind of team the Twins would have if they brought their payroll up to 100 million, with how smart their front office is?
by HappyLuckyGoldenDragonNumber1! on Oct 15, 2009 3:45 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
In this case, good baseball is also good business.
I believe George Steinbrenner at face value that he feels passionately about investing in the team in order to do all he can to field a legitimate competitor to the World Series, year in and year out. It’s to his credit, and shame on all the other teams’ owners who have more of a loot-the-pockets mentality. The Steinbrenner family invests in the Yankees and, indirectly, the fans themselves.
It’s also worth noting that a good businessman would invest his money where he felt he had the most chance of growing his investment… and in this case, that investment would be the Yankees. Even if the family didn’t care about the team or the fans, it’s a sound business decision!
This is one of those happy situations where doing the right thing for baseball and the Yankee fan base corresponds perfectly with engaging in good business.
by pinstriper on Oct 16, 2009 5:15 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
The Yankees Take In A Lot Of Money..
so whats wrong with putting it back into the team? In the end it’s still a business, and the Yankees look like they are making plenty of money. The Red Sox make a ton of money too, a lot more than before the current ownership took over, because they invest in the team. If you put a bad product out(Pirates, Royals), people wont buy it, therefore business is bad. Who really cares? We have got the best team in sports with the best ownership.
by YankeesJets on Oct 15, 2009 4:49 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
No doubt the payroll matters
However, for years the payroll was most valuable in its ability to:
1) keep players like Jeter, Mo, Bernie and Jorge, no matter how many rings they accumulated and …
2) absorb potentially disasterous decisions such as Randy Johnson, Kevin Brown, Carl Pavano and Jason Giambi.
Remember, the Yankees didn’t buy their last set of rings. They didn’t have the highest payroll in ‘96, and had that same core in ’98. Clemmens was the big sign the Boss was back in charge, as we needlessly traded one star (Wells) for a hall of famer. That’s when you can see internal development tail off, more and more holes being filled with big bucks and big names rather than smart moves. And our wins declined with our next two championships, and finally the championships stopped coming.
What the Yankees “bought” from 1999-2008 was a ticket to the playoffs, not a championship.
This year, though, most of the fat was trimmed from our payroll. Not a Pavano to be seen. All that money is on the field. The FA players were carefully, and wisely, chosen, and they all proved an assett on and off the field.
This has to terrify the rest of baseball – the Yankees financial freedom coupled with restraint and good judgement.
by misterd on Oct 15, 2009 9:11 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
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