Mood Music - Freewill by Rush
Something you may not know: Nick Swisher leads the league in fun (and Chris Berman is trailing only Joe Morgan and Tim McCarver in being annoying). After his walk off home run at the end of the O's series, here was an interesting take on Swish, with a title worth repeating: New York Yankees Catch Swishalicious Fever Before Heading On Tough Road Trip. A snippet!
Swisher’s teammates and fans alike were ecstatic for the most fun-loving player in pinstripes.
It is impossible not to love Swisher, as his vivacious attitude is infectious.
Swisher was a well-needed breath of fresh air in 2009; his personality soothed a traditionally overly-anal Yankees locker room.
I will fully agree that it is impossible for any Yankee fan not to love Swish. He really is great and is fast becoming (probably already is) one of the biggest fan favorites, but I'm not sure that I agree with the overall contention that the Yankees are a better team because of his personality. It seems a little too fluffy for me to put a lot of stock in. I know guys perform better when they are comfortable, and Nick Swisher certainly contributes to that, but I think he contributes a lot more with his 26 home runs and .886 OPS. Thoughts?
After the jump, there will be words, links, and a rested Centaur.
An additional take on Phil Hughes being skipped in the rotation. Interesting to note: Phil claims to not know for certain what his innings limit is and claims that fatigue has nothing to do with his recent struggles. I'm inclined to not buy what he's saying on either count.
Joe Girardi has been continuing to rest Alex Rodriguez. A-Rod didn't have any rehab starts, and it's good to see that Girardi is going to continue to use the Centaur with caution. After last years debacle where A-Rod had to practically beg for time off and then Brian Cashman had to mandate weekly off days, I have to wonder how against Girardi's nature it is to somewhat "baby" A-Rod, but it's the right move. A-Rod has swung a hot bat since coming off the DL, but a nagging injury could be a real problem come October.
And now, an article about Derek Jeter: You may have heard (once or twice) that his contract is up at the end of the year and that 2010 hasn't been overly proctive for him. What you may NOT have heard is that you can be the next to own Derek's penthouse if you've got some spare change lying around. And by spare change lying around, I mean 20 million dollars. Good to know DJ is still hangin' in there. Minka too.