Misery loves company
I find it fascinating that the comments section on this blog is very quiet on nights when the Yankees win. When they lose, the site is busy as ever, with fans complaining and moaning about one thing or another. But Tuesday, with the Yankees jumping out to a 7-1 lead and holding on for a 7-5 win, there weren’t even 10 posts.
What does that mean?
I think it means that you folks out there like it better when things are going badly and you can get all over the players. You love when A-Rod fails in a big spot, so you can jump on him and call him a choker. You love when Jaret Wright gives up seven runs so you can speculate about Dontrelle Willis and Roger Clemens. You love when Randy Johnson gets lit up so you can complain that the Yankees should have gotten Josh Beckett instead.
I don’t really get it.
This team has showed a lot over the past few weeks, hanging around the top of the AL East despite the injuries and inconsistency. Johnson has been bad, A-Rod has been up and down, Giambi has had a terrible May, yet there they are, just a game and a half out of first place.
You A-Rod haters out there were probably saying, "Sure, he homers when it’s 4-1 and makes it 7-1 … how come he can’t do that when the Yanks are down 4-1 instead?"
I know how you work. But even Alex’s harshest critics have to give him some credit for that homer tonight. For those of you counting at home, the Yankees are now 2-4 against the Red Sox this season, and A-Rod has had the game-winning home run in both wins.
A-Rod put it best when asked about the constant criticism after the game:
"I could care less. In my career, I’ve been hearing it for a long time. It will never stop until you win five or six World Series in a row and hit a Joe Carter home run. I’ve done a lot of special things in this game, and for none of that to be considered clutch, it’s an injustice."
He’s right.
I wish fans out there would just try to enjoy the season. This is a 162-game marathon, so to overreact to each loss or each bad at-bat doesn’t make any sense. It’s not like the NFL, where a two-game losing streak feels like the end of the world. How many times in the past couple of years have the experts written the Yankees off, only to watch them make the playoffs over and over?
On another note, getting Sheffield back was big for the Yanks, even though he went hitless. If you watched that ninth-inning at-bat against Papelbon, it’s clear that Sheff’s wrist feels just fine. Man, he swings hard.
Wednesday will be yet another turn for the Big Unit to try to right himself. Stay tuned.
Mark it Down 
I agree with you Mark. I entered a discussion with someone today who pointed out that last year 19 of David Ortiz’s home runs tied the game or gave the Red Sox the lead. That was pretty impressive, so I looked up A-Rod. Guess how many he had? That’s right, 19 of them.
Alex Rodriguez is probably the second best player in baseball right now (behind only Pujols), an excellent defender and legendary slugger who was worth over ten wins to this team last season (using WARP – wins above replacement player). If he strikes out a bit, well, that’s the way he hits (and I don’t remember anyone giving Reggie Jackson trouble for it).
The Yankees are playing very well. We’re near the top of the AL-East despite injuries, and we’re six games up, easily on play-off pace. Even if we lost tommorow, with three games coming up at home against the Royals, we’d be in good shape. Let’s all calm down, and enjoy the remaining 3/4 of the season – we’re playing as well as we could like.
Mark, I don’t always agree with what you have to say but I respect your opinions and knowledge about baseball and especially the Yankees. And I totally agree with what you are saying here about the fans who “like to” jump all over A-rod, Wright, Unit, Giambi, etc. You’re right that it isn’t fair, especially when you consider that in this game of baseball, as a hitter, you are considered among the top of the heap if you play a whole season and hit safely only 30% of the time. Over a career, those numbers along with a couple rings will get you into the Hall of Fame more often than not. But perhaps an explanation as to why we fans get so frustrated with the “failures” of our beloved Yankees is the fact that we are constantly defending our team to the hordes of jealous fans who are Yankee-haters.
The Yankees are the most successful and probably most popular of all sports franchises in any sport the world over. And the only group that outnumbers Yankees fans are Yankees haters. We are almost all rabid Yankees fans and anyone who knows us personally will be able to tell you that so when the Yanks lose, people love to give it to us. After a loss last month to the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre, I almost got in a fight with FOUR GUYS on the subway ride home letting me have it because I had a Jeter jersey on. If you’ve never been to Toronto, let me tell you that it is usually a very friendly town. I have never been so scared for my safety in this town in all my life as I was that night. So maybe having to constantly defend our team to everyone is partly to blame for the critisicism.
Something about the Yankees brings out the worst in people and I just don’t get it. I have never in my life felt ill will against someone who cheers for the Montreal Canadiens just because they happen to be the winningest franchise in NHL history, even when they beat my team, which was until this past season the Boston Bruins. That is a rivalry worth comparing to the Yankees-Red Sox, by the way, with the all time wins-losses remarkably close. The only reasons I can come up with for so many Yankee haters are jealousy and frustration that their own teams are not willing to commit to be competetive year in and year out as the Yankees are.
By the way, Mark, have you heard about ProTrade? I just learned about it tonight and although it sounds interesting, I’m a little shocked that they declared Jeter the most over-rated player in the entire league. And apparently, Jeter also received the same distinction form MLB players. While the ProTrade analysis is somewhat understandable as it seems to be unfairly biased toward power hitters and defensive players who don’t have as many chances as shortstops and against players with big contracts, I am completely flabergasted that MLB players would vote Jeter most over-rated. Do these guys even watch baseball? Or do they even look at stats which consistently show Jeter at or near the top in the categories of batting average, runs scored, walks and on base percentage. Just this year, because everyone seems to only want to talk about “what have you done for ne lately”, Jeter is in the entire league 2nd in batting average, 3rd in hits, 7th in on base percentage, 37th in doubles, 14th in runs scored, 22nd in RBI ( not bad for a non-power hitter, and pretty clutch I must say), 19th in walks, 26th in total bases, 11th in stolen base percentage and 21st in actual stolen bases. These numbers are among the entire league, the league which apparently voted him most over-rated. So just how over-rated does this make the rest of them? Everybody is just jealous.
man! i was really going to try and stay quiet for a couple of days, because bickering on a baseball blog, especially when it’s about a team we all (presumably) root for, just seems asinine. but then you had to call your own readers out. so, here i am. (one quick question, though, mark. how did you manage to get your soap box all the way up there on top of your high horse? that can’t be comfortable. i kid. i kid.)
of course arguments and negative comments garner more posts. the higher post count comes from the back-and-forth of a discussion/argument/whatever, so, naturally, there are more when somebody says something negative about the ballclub and somebody else jumps to the yanks’ defense. what’s everybody going to say after this game? “good win.” “sure was.” that’s how it works. you know that by now, mark, especially considering the field you work in.
to presume that people enjoy watching their favorite team lose just so they can ***** and moan about it is a pretty condescending statement to make, and it’s one i disagree with. there are several different ways to be a fan of and appreciate a team or sport, and not all of them have to involve being a happy-go-lucky, hopeful cheerleader. if that works for some people, great. if they’re enjoying themselves, more power to them. but it doesn’t make me, or other critical fans, any less appreciative of the game or the team. that’s insulting and, again, condescending. i would love for the yankees to go out and win every big game, and win the AL east from now until i’m no longer able to follow the team, but it’s not going to happen. because i’m realistic about that, and because i’m pessimistic with regards to the team this year absolutely does not mean i’m less a yankees fan than anyone else here, nor does it mean i enjoy watching them lose ballgames, just so i can gripe about it.
and, you know what, that was a big home run for alex tonight, in a big spot. nobody’s going to deny that, and anyone who does has it out for the guy. does it make his home run last night suddenly more meaningful? no. does it change his .125 batting average in his last nine playoff games? nope. five championships and a joe carter home run? come on. how about just showing up for the divisional series this year and we’ll see how that goes. not every home run he’s hit has been meaningless. not every RBI has come when the yanks have been staked to a big lead or in a big hole. but he has choked in the clutch numerous times. if he hadn’t, it wouldn’t be such a divisive issue. so if you want to ignore that, then i don’t see what separates you from those who ignore the times when a-rod has come through.
as for johnson, he’s been terrible. period. age, injury, whatever. he’s been putrid. do you think yankee fans enjoy wondering if their “ace” is going to give up seven runs every time he trots out there? do you think they enjoy the absolute laughingstock that carl pavano has become? that’s a pretty insulting sentiment, mr. feinsand, and it’s one i resent.
just because i’m critical of the team, doesn’t mean i’m not enjoying the season. people are different. people enjoy things in different ways.
alright. i’ll check back in with y’all after the boston series. i don’t want to start any arguments with this post, so i’ll just try and resume hanging back for a bit. enjoy the rubber match. i don’t think randy gets it back tomorrow. i think he will, eventually. maybe not be dominant, but he’ll be effective again. but not tomorrow. we’ll see though.
Some opinions from the other side of the rivalry here.
A lot of fans are satisfied (i.e. don’t really sound off) when things do go their way. However, they scream blah blah blah stinks when the players don’t perform. Not much praises for them and lots of criticism. (Like Monday’s game, Boston fan, on Ian’s blog, sounded off on Foulke)
You get that a lot in both Boston and New York. There isn’t that much you can do about it.
I heard over MLB radio that Sheff swung and missed a few pitches from Papelbon. Do you think he’s still adjusting, or is Papelbon just overpowering him, at least for that AB?
Well said Mark and I totally agree with you. We have some fans on this blog that act identical to Sox fans…they only speak their mind when the team is doing bad. I know that boseef checks the blog throughout every game and since they were winning I find it comical that we didn’t get one post from him.
If everyone goes back to the last blog and checks my comment, they will see that I predicted that Arod would have a good game last night. I called it and I was very happy for him to come up big.
Now let’s see if we can take 2/3…I say Randy comes up big for us tonight…GO YANKS!
ARod’s numbers can not lie and when all is said and done, he will be at the top of ALL of the power hitting categories. Being number two behind Pujols is in no way bad company, but ARod will never get the credit he deserves unless he does it in the playoffs and that translates in the World Series Rings (plural). He will always be on the second pedisitle on his own team because of Jeter, but that does not diminish his talents in anyway. ARod will get his ring. ARod will be remembered as one of the all-time greats. He already is and he doesn’t need a ring to prove that. Heck, where’s Pujol’s ring??? Tell me Pujols is clutch when his team got bounced out of the 2005 WS faster one of those 500 foot blasts. Greatness does not always get it done, but if you stretch it out over the long haul- the big picture, there is a reason these players are considered great. Hats off to ARod.
I’m getting pretty tired of everybody constantly trashing A-Rod. Is he overpayed? Of course, but don’t tell me for one minute that if you were offered $25.2 million a year you would say “No, thank you”. This guy is a great player but we all know that. People need to just ease up on this guy a bit. Everyone talks about how he flopped against the Angels in the ALDS but the Yankees wouldn’t have had a snowball’s chance in **** to compete for the division without Alex’s season last year. I know many people are frustrated with him but we just need to cheer the guy on and forget about the expectations.
Say what you will about A-Rod hitting when were up, but that Home Run was HUGE with or without the 4 additional runs later scored off our tired and overworked bullpen. The game is never over against these guys and and a 3-Run shot that puts us up 10 in that spot would be huge. As much as we all get on him and his contract when he does nothing, and as much as the 1-4 doesn’t help his average to much, Hats off to A-rod for last nights great spot.
Can anyone stop this Papelbon kid? Next Mo Rivera? Do you have to givce him a shot in the rotation next season or next injured starter?
I think sheffy will be fine. It has been half a month since he has seen anything close to a pap fast ball, and starting off with the floating knuckler certainly did not prepare him, nor did the joke of a pitcher he saw in double A. He looked comfortable behind the plate and looked to be taking full swings, I look for him to start getting on track in another game or two. I might even DH him for a game or two to let him concentrate on purley hitting until he hits his stride.
Amen!!!!!
I post a comment in the last ny-bos series similar to what you are saying.
fishfilm is right too, every time the yanks lose everybody at work mocks me.(just pure jealousy)
Interesting comments by both Mark and Boseef about fandom, this subject could be (and has been) discussed ad nauseam, but I’m not going to throw my 2-cents in right now.
The problem with A-Rod is almost certainly one of perception. There is no way to massage the numbers to be able to conclude that he’s anything but a huge asset to the club. Anyone who thinks he’s never clutch either has a horrible memory or they don’t understand how hard this game is to play.
The problem with A-Rod is almost certainly one of perception. It doesn’t look like he’s trying. Ever. He’s just too smooth. Every time you’ve seen him hit a 450ft blast you’ve thought the same thing I have: “It doesn’t seem like he hit it that hard”. Every time he makes a diving stab on a ball hit hard down the line, scrambles to his feet, and fires an absolute bullet to Giambi, your brain processes it as “he kind of fell to his right, eventually made it to his feet and lazily tossed it over to first; that runner must be pretty slow.” And you’d be right to think it because that’s what it looks like.
It’s the same issue with Mo. People who watch baseball casually know he’s the best closer in the game, but when you watch them watch Mo, you can tell they’re thinking “his stuff doesn’t look that good.” And it’s true, it doesn’t look that good because it looks so smooth. When he’s dominant it fills Yankees fans with glee because the seeming ease with which he dispatches hitters. When he gives up a run, people start scouring the land for his replacement, because it a) doesn’t look like he’s putting much effort into it, b) he’s getting hit so therefore, c) he must be past his prime.
Lay off Alex and appreciate the beauty of his game, you’re not likely to see anything like it again soon. Alex isn’t lazy, he isn’t disinterested and there is nothing wrong with his psyche, he’s just smooth.
Here’s some food for thought: in May A-Rod is hitting .284 with 6HR and 19RBI, in the same span Giambi, from the three-spot, is hitting .164 with 3HR and 8RBI. I watch every Yankees game and I haven’t heard Jason booed once. Not once.
p.s. I love Jason’s game, he shouldn’t be booed either. Oh, and don’t bring up on base percentage; A-Rod’s is six points higher in May.
Boseef, two points in response to your post:
1) By no means do I think that you want your team to lose. But I think that unless they’re up by 10 games, fans of this team are never happy.
After the run from 1996-2000, Yankees fans all of a sudden felt as though it was their birthright to be in the World Series, and it’s not. A regular season in which they run away with it early and coast through the summer and into the fall is fairly boring. Last season, when they had to dig out of an 11-19 hole and the season went down to the last weekend, that was the most exciting season I’ve seen with this team in years. People should appreciate that this sport has highs and lows, and that’s what makes this long season fun.
2) A-Rod. You wrote, “how about just showing up for the divisional series this year and we’ll see how that goes”
Rodriguez pretty much single-handedly carried the Yanks through the Minnesota ALDS in 2004, but no one game a rat’s patoot. But when he goes 2-for-15 against the Angels in that very same round, he’s villified. It’s a double standard.
Also, no one remembers that he scorched the ball in the first three games of the ALCS that year, all they remember is the 2-for-17 that followed.
What I am about to say should in no way be taken as a slap to Jeter, who I think is one of the best players I have ever seen. But he hit .200 in the Boston series, .233 in the 2003 Boston series, .148 in the 2001 World Series and .118 in the 2001 ALCS. Nobody ever would dare call him out, because of what he accomplished before that, but in terms of those series, he got a free pass.
A-Rod hit .258 in that 2004 ALCS with two homers and five RBIs. It’s not like he hit .100 for the whole series. Sheffield and Matsui also crushed the Sox in the first three games, then went a combined 6-for-36 in the final four. But A-Rod gets the brunt of the anger.
So I can’t blame him when he says what he says.
As for Randy, I don’t see him getting back to his 24-4 days, but I think he’ll figure it out well enough to win 18-20 games for the Yanks this year.
And for the record, Boseef, I never mentioned Pavano. I’m not that dumb 🙂
I have become a faithful follower of this blog during the day, eagerly awaiting the next post by our eminent beat writer and blogger, Mark. I was quite shocked and appalled to read what you had to write. I try to only post positive comments here, usually in defense of what is written by some other fans. I don’t log on during the games, but still enjoy catching up with the rest of you in the morning. I am sure there are many other fans out there that have similiar habits and its awful to clump us all together. I can’t help but laugh at what some folks argue about on here, it is after all, May (still early) – an injury plagued team (for now) – and baseball (not life or death). I fully plan to enjoy the rest of the season from my season ticket box seats, ride this rollercoaster that we all love called 162-games and buckle in for the big finish that is October in New York!
kzimoulis, sorry if you were shocked and appalled. That clearly wasn’t the intention of my post.
I just found it amazing that after this solid win against Boston, there was one post from someone about the game. Generally, there are a lot more than that when ARod strikes out or Randy gets hit hard, and I was pretty surprised that there was no chatter during a game like this.
I’m certainly appreciative of the people that log on and read my blog, so insulting you is clearly not my intention. I just write what comes to mind, and last night, that’s what it was.
Thanks for that post, Mark. Frankly, I’m surprised nobody was there to nitpick about the Yanks’ bullpen woes after last night. I guess people were just generally happy about last night’s win, eh?
Now Mark, I think I’m not the only one who thinks that Torre might be overworking Scott Proctor. I’m not excusing his performance last night, but his fastball has lost speed over his last few appearances. Why doesn’t Torre turn to Villone more often? I feel like the only relievers he trusts with the lead are Mo, Farnsworth, Proctor, and Myers. They’ve proven themselves thus far, but don’t they deserve a break, especially with a 6-run lead?
Mark, while I don’t say you are wrong I believe your constant use of the words “hate” or “haters” when referring to some upset Yankee fans is really uncalled for. All of those that write you expressing their opinions are still Yankee fans.
To me they are merely critics, complainers and aggitated fans seeing a bull pen give up 5 walks in two innings and leaving bases full with one or no outs.
Does anybody remember those old commercials for the sports section of the…Daily News, I think. “How many home runs did Mantle hit in 1966 under a full moon in August, etc.” “Give the kid a break!” That’s how I feel about the entire team this season. Give them a break! I think Mark was correct in saying what he did. He didn’t say we LIKED to see the Yankees lose, he said we liked complaining about them too much. I’ve had to defend my Yankee loyalty many times, and it comes down to this. Non-Yankee fans see the money we’re spending and think the only reasonable outcome is World Series Champions. But I don’t think George Steinbrenner sees it that way. We may have to defend ourselves about our over-priced team, but George knows that the more All-Star and highlight-reel caliber players he has, the more money the team makes. And, in the end, it is a business.
On a related note, I did my college senior thesis on the economics of baseball and after all my research and statistical analysis concluded that there was very little correlation between payroll and success over a multi-year period. What I found more interesting is that there was not really any change in parity after the CBA was in place. There are a ton of factors involved, but luxury tax and revenue sharing has done one thing, line the pockets of small-market clubs without improving them. Go figure.
I knew A-Rod would come through sooner or later. He’s too good of a player to hit below .300 for very long. I’m also happy that he made a heads-up play and got to first (and eventually second) base on passed balls. I think this is the beginning of a hot streak. The only thing that would make me happier is to see him mash one off Bonbon. I don’t care if it’s a game-winner or not. I’m just sick of hearing about the BoSox closer and how dominating he is. It’s just a matter of time before he has a meltdown.
Like some other posts here, I also believe Yankee fans sometimes get worked up if the team doesn’t have a perfect record and if every guy isn’t batting .400. Take it easy! It’s only May!
I think I know the problems of Randy Johnson of late. When he is winning and throwing flame-throwing darts across the plate, I noticed that his left knee is bent more and his elbow is higher above his shoulder. He has been dropping his elbow and not getting the pinpoint accuracy that he one had. Look at the tapes from his dominant winning days and the ones from the past few weeks. It’s obvious. Does he have a back problem that no one is talking about? If he lowers that knee and gets more push off the mound, I believe this could be the solution to the problem. These two minor adjustments will increase his productivity and success. fans need to quit complaining and pointing fingers. So many of us are former athletes that dreamed of making it to the “show”. We all just want to win it all again. Be proud of our Bombers and support them, not tear them down.
Mark,
Just for the record, there was more than one positive post after last night’s game. I posted a congrats to adam regarding his A-Rod prediction in the “The Sky Isn’t Falling” thread. I also had good things to say about the Yankees starting pitching and how we are only a game and a half out while we are not at full strength. Then others posted about getting back at Manny for his celebratory antics. Also after the game, in the “Boston Massacre” thread, theyanks33 posted a nice comment about A-Rod and it being an overall nice win. Having said all this, it was very quiet on the blog.
On another note, I don’t buy the argument some have made here about being negative because they have to take heat from Yankee haters. One’s attitude is a choice; it is not a product of one’s environment. I am a die-hard Yankees fan living and working in Philadelphia. My office is filled with Yankees paraphernalia and I take a lot of heat for it. I do not care about the negative comments by my coworkers (I actually expect it) because I love my team and nothing is going to change that.
I come to this blog to hang out with other fans because I have very little support where I live. So when I hear constant criticism and negativity by some people on this blog, it is astonishing. I can get that from my coworkers.
Where’s the love? Let’s show more support. We are blessed beyond measure to be fans of this great team.
By the way, did anyone notice where Mo pitched to Ortiz? You got it, a fastball up and in, and he unceremoniously pops out, much to the dismay of the bat Ortiz was holding.
For the record, Paul O’Neill threw much better tantrums than Ortiz ever will.
Hi Marc. I’m not gonna get involved in this huge argument, but you clearly have more baseball knowledge than most people so I certainly respect what you say. I have a question that doesnt regard the yankees though… Being a yankees fan, I want our power hitters to do well. With A-Rod’s track record, its safe to say that he is one of the best players in baseball. I always like to see hime within the top three slots at the big three: RBIs, HRs, and average. I dont mind if he isnt first as long as he is close and not behind Ortiz. Right now Pujols is tearing it up. He is on track to shatter the single season HR record and have 200+ RBIs. It would certainly be interesting to see, but I would prefer to see A-Rod accomplishing these tasks… So now the question: Do you see Pujols slowing down, or continuing to shatter records? and give lots of detail if possible. Thanks
It may be helpful to note that when you are a Yankee fan, you watch a game expecting a win. Logic dictates taht it will not happen always, but you expect it none-the-less. So, why do people complain more when they lose? Because they are p.o.’d and need to get it out of their system so they can get back to expecting victories.
I, for one however, remember the early 1990’s very vividly (you know when we all hung our hopes on Kevin Maas)so I expect the loss and get pleased with the victory.
As for A-Rod… would you rather have Soriano back whiffing at sliders away?
And as for finding solutions within the system… Kris Wilson looks pretty sharp lately, give him a spot start instead of Small (who clearly was a one hit wonder).
Mark, I am harsh on them when they lose. It is because I have lived my entire life as a Yankee fan, I grew up relatively close to the stadium, and have seen my fair share of games there. In fact, everything about the Yankees fascinates me. The only thing is, basically I have come to expect constant greatness. Forget that, I have come to expect dominance, because that is what the Yankees are all about. That’s my fault for setting the bar ridiculously high. It does make me very happy when they win, but that is what I expect, so I have very little to say. Unfortunately, at least for this team, the way they lose sometimes defies reality. What I guess I am trying to say is I am without a doubt a Yankee fan. I just got spoiled by greatness, but average to me just isn’t good enough. In the future I will try looking at them with a more half-full approach.
I feel it’s important to look at the big picture. Try as you might, there will be bad days along with the good. The idea is do more of the good things than the bad – win when you have to win.
mark,
you made a bunch of excellent points. add to your list of jeter’s “chokes” that, for the first three months of last season, he was coming up in big spots, late in games, and choking. so much so that people started asking him about it. the difference is, as you noted, jeter’s got four rings and a reputation for being a clutch player. in the final game of last year’s ALDS, if memory serves, he homered in the 7th to bring get them back in the game, and then singled to lead off the ninth which was followed by a-rod’s double-play ball. that’s a microcosm of what fans choose to see with this team. jeter gets a rally started, a-rod kills. it. is that the reality of the situation? no. but, until a-rod hit’s a game-winner in october, it’s not going to change. and, whether he admits it or not, that’s killing him, and it’s probably a large part of the reason why he seems to come up short in the clutch often enough that it’s become a running joke.
as for yankee fans believing a championship is their right, you’re absolutely correct. as skull mentioned in his post, most do. but, if you’ve been reading my posts, while they’ve been critical of the team, i’ve also been saying things like “it had to happen sometime” or “they can’t win the AL east forever.” a lot of fans will be disappointed if this team doesn’t win the series. not me. i’ll just be disappointed if the reason they don’t is because they can’t move the runner along, burn out the bullpen, and make costly errors. that’s disappointing, frustrating baseball, whether you’re a yankees fan or a royals fan.
Not that I would ever criticize the best manager in baseball, but I kinda agree with swolansky about over-using Scott Proctor. I have seen at least three instances in the past two weeks where Proctor has pitched two innings. With such a young arm don’t you think if this continues he could end up as another Tanyon Sturtze? Sturtze was used like this in 2004, wasn’t the same after, and we all know where he is now. Just thought I would put that out there and maybe Mark has some input on this?
ian browne’s blog says no posada or damon tonight, and espn insider is reporting that sheffield has a broken hamate bone. what?!
Hey Boseef: You’re saying that DJ got 4 rings and A-Rod none. You’re right. But it did not depends only on him. That isn’t a good argument to disqualify a player. If so, Don Mattingly wasn’t a good one also? He didn’t ever win a ring. But he is one of the best 1B we’ve ever had. And A-Rod is the only player who will reach Aaron or Bonds. Not even Pujols. And that will come because of NOT meaningless homers. You can be sure.
Mark, just a question: Can you tell us when will Octavio Dotel will be ready to join us?
i didn’t say a-rod was a bum. i said that people let jeter slide because he has four rings. you should read what i type more carefully.
Better said YOU should read what you type. What’s happening to you Boseef? You’ve always said that A-Rod is far away than a good player. You always critizise him. YOU should read and THINK (if you can) what you type
i have always said rodriguez is talented but comes up short in the clutch. choking and being a bad ballplayer are two completely different things.
go back and read my posts. i’ve never been one calling for a-rod to leave new york, never said the guy stinks. just made critical comments about his inability to come up big when it counts.
I can’t take Randy Johnson anymore. I have no more patience.
Arod has the right to slump, I totally have faith in him. He appears to be coming around.
But RANDY … I wish would … I can’t take it..
Uh and boseef, he comes up big a lot, like last nights homer that he though was a pop-up. If you think your homer is a pop-up you probably have a ton of power!
I still have faith he’ll come around – it is frustrating when we get him runs and he somehow gives them back, but he went through this last year.. and still managed to win 17 games.
Besides, the yankee bats look motivated to keep him in this game and give him enough run support to get through this. Clement is looking nowhere near dominating. Its interesting seeing Melky leadoff – quite an interesting decision by Joe, lets see how it pans out.
Maybe misery does love company, but Randy Johnson is the worst player in baseball. Cut his ***. It’s not even funny anymore. He’s not even a fifth starter in the major leagues. He’s not going to get it together. He’s just bad.
Just to add, I agree with your post, Mark. I read it this morning but was at work and we’re not allowed to post on blogs at work understandably, lol. I checked in a few times last night and it was deadly quiet on here.. if people think you’re being condescending or whatever – well its your blog and you can write what you like or call out whoever you like for whatever reasons you like – I happen to enjoy participating in this blog a great deal – and enjoy reading the contributions of most of the readers. I always try to make my contributions on this blog. positive and reasonable posts.Thats the kind of person I am. I live in the middle of Twins territory so i dont get a lot of opportunity to talk about the yankees without profanity being involved, lol.
Okay, I hate Fenway Park, lol.
Well hopefully someone else will post and agree with you and you’ll get some company – i dont think i’m that person.
How long can they continue to throw Randy Johnson just because of what he’s done in the past?? When Chacon comes back, I say move Randy to the ‘pen. Maybe he can revitalize himself as a set-up guy.
I think you guys are all being way to hard on Randy. I think what they are doing is very smart. They are having him play possum. He is just going to **** all year, and then come playo…….lol, sorry guys, I thought I could get that all out. but I couldn’t even type it without laughing.
Well i for one happen to think he’ll come around, if that makes me an idiot – then so be it,lol. I’m sure someone who is enraged enough with him will tell me so.
What is with yankee fans? I was surfing around a few other websites and the comments are just absolutely insane. I mean sure its frustrating at the moment, but people are talking about wishing RJ dead. I’m sorry, but when you’re posting stuff like that, you need more help than a venting online about a baseball game can provide for you.
That is insane, I sure don’t wish him dead, just for him to get his head out of his butt, and try and be even close to the Randy of old, like the end of that last inning, thats the randy we want to see. I am all for giving people the benefit of the doubt, and can go through slumps, but how many bad games do you have to have before it is not a slump anymore?
I dont get it either. I want ALL of our players to succeed and be playing their best and I feel frustrated FOR them when its obvious they’re not playing as well as they want to be. I want RJ to be pitching so he doesn’t obviously LOOK so baffled as to why he’s not pitching like he’s capable of. You can see it on his face He’s capable of much better than this and he knows it. I mean he’s striking people out.. in between giving up HR’s. Bizarre.
I knew what is problem is.
Melky is showing hustle. I like that. I am tolerate a lot of things like slumps and such, but i wont tolerate a player that doesnt hustle (or showboats, lol)
Well, unfortunately I won’t get to see how it comes out tonight, gotta be up at 3 for work, so need to get to bed. Good night my fellow Yankee fans.
Sometimes Sheff swings so hard that I think he’s going to tear himself in half!
Giambi is absolutely tagging the ball which is a good sign – unfortunately he keeps tagging it AT people.. lol.
Much better inning, RJ.
I’ll just keeping chatting away to myself, lol. Lucky for me, i’m used to that.
At least RJ’s kept us in the game. He could have pulled a Bruce Chen and put us in a 0-8 hole in the first two innings.
Yep.. they’re hitting Clement too – just gotta keep RJ and the bats grinding it out.
Hi nyangel74,
You are not alone, I’m here in Australia watching the gameday online. Apparently ESPN international is stiil in negotiations regarding what games if any they will televise in Australia. But judging by some of the posts regarding the commentators, perhaps I don’t need to wtch the games!!!
They’re gonna bench Clement, I wish they wouldn’t. We’re getting runs!!
Hey! I’m Australian! I just live here in the US now. Nice to have a fellow Aussie here. I used to get them on ESPN occasionally have they stopped doing that? They used to show the playoffs and World Series on Fox Sports. Gameday was my salvation when I lived there.. i *watched* the entire 2001 WS via gameday before i moved here in 2002.
LOL.. i know.. leave him in!
Bizarre, Terrance long just hit the go-ahead RBI.. I bet a lot of people wouldn’t have believe that. Good for him!
At the moment yes, I wrote them and asked what was happening and they said they were in negotiations with MLB!! Occasionally Fox Sports will air a game, but not on a regular basis. Gee it would be nice if they kept Clement in the game, but I reckon he will be lucky is he sticks out the innings????
Did I call that or what??? LOL!!!
I think they’ve taken him out now. I guess they thought he was safe facing Stinnett before they pulled him, lol. I just have to point out that this mini rally was started by a “bloop” single by Arod.
Go A-Rod. I tell you, you either love or hate the guy, there seems to be very little ground with him?? But hey, I’m a Jeter kind a gal. Jeter for MVP!!!!
I used to get whatever game was on ESPN, Monday night, Sunday night and Wednesday night baseball. Sometimes i’d get really lucky and there would be a Yankees game on Sunday night baseball and we’d have a long weekend so i’d get to watch the game. I used to tape a lot of games. Its tough being a yankee fans from afar, especially when you dont get to see them much. I really appreciate being able to watch them now. Probably why I find it hard to get all pissed off and mad at them.
I’m impressed with Melky’s ability to get clutch hits.
I’m gonna have to stop calling Melky Cabrera ‘Milky’. He seems quite happy in the lead off position. It seemed a strange move for Joe to make but it is paying off big time!!!
What part of Australia are you in? Hey can you tell me how the game turns out? LOL seeing as its Thursday there now.
Gutsy move by Joe, for sure. I’m glad Melky is hitting well.. its great to see how he’s put last year behind him and moved on.
Dag!!!LOL. I’m in the Southern Highlands of Nsw about 1 1/2 hours out of Sydney and it is 11:16AM.
Is Randy going to finish the innings??? I say no. Stay tuned for my next prediction!!!
I think Joe wants to give him a shot at the win and at least let him pitch the 5th out… he just visited the mound and left him out there.
Do they still use that word there? lol I’m out of touch.
I know the Southern Highlands, we used to go hiking in Kangaroo Valley sometimes. I’m from Sydney.
Come on RJ, you can get Mike Lowell.
Yes and I thought it might make you homesick. Perhaps I’m jumping on the bandwagon and being a bit harsh with RJ. I will give him the benefit of the doubt and he can have the 6th as well. How’s that???
Well lets see how he goes first, lol. I worry about overusing the bullpen. If we could get just one more inning out of him with nothing drastic happening, i’d be happy. He’s in line for the win now. That may help his confidence.
Well no more hope of “just one more inning” out of him. They’ve gone to the bullpen with Erickson. Lets see how he does.
Well, that’s what I get for being nice. Won’t happen again.lol.
I think this is a good movement from Joe. Remember Randy had thrown 105 pitches in just 5 innings. The good thing is how he improve his performance during the las two innings. Don’t you think so?
I agree with you jtorresmesias. I reckon he had a good game and I hope it will help his confidence.
Yeah, I’d forgotten he’d thrown that many pitches.. i didnt have gameday open. His last couple of innings were much better than his first couple. He’s done enough to keep us in the game, its up to the bats and bullpen now to keep it for him.
*falls off her chair* Terrance Long got ANOTHER hit. Good to see him having a good game.
Okay i’m not one of those females that gets all girly over the players and how all cute they are etc. but Melky has got some nice dimple action going on in his right cheek, lol.
Dammit, stop robbing Melky of hits, lol.
It might have been a struggle, and it might not have been pretty , but RJ deserves a win. He toughed it out and got the outs that he absolutely had to make to keep us in the game and not let it get way out of hand.
Okay this inning is important with Ortiz, Show-pony and Oh Captain, My Captain up.
Gotta agree there as well!!
Hey it looks like Kansas will be coming off a 3 game loss to Detroit!!!
Wow.. Myers struck Shrek out. Very nice.
Absolutely agrre with you Angel. He deserves a win. I’m sure the rest of guys won’t let this game go out of our hands
Ups. He did it again. I mean both Manny and Proctor
Sheesh… i know Proctor has been lights out for us and they trust him.. but i am little worried about his overuse. Thats another HR for My-Little- Show-Pony. Thank goodness Myers did his job and kept Shrek off the bases or that could have hurt more. T
Oh My. Stars.
Awesome catch by Melky.
How does Proctor not throw at Manny there? What happened to the Yankees? Once Clemens left it’s like the Yankees lost all of their testicular fortitude. Grow a pair and back Manny off the plate. It’s mind boggling. It’s absolutely mind boggling. That’s part of the game. I just don’t get it.
Well they got out of that and Proctor did his job except for that little hiccup.
Tomorrow is an off day so he will get rest tomorrow, but it would be excellent if our next few pitching outings we could go a bit deeper into the game so the set up guys can have a bit of a rest.
Hey Angel. I’m really laughing about Ortiz’s nickname “Shrek”. It’s great. Paint him green and that’s all done. By the way, have you hear something about a *** called Boseef? Where is he right now?
Its rarely been part of the yankees game, lately. I dont necessarily disagree with it, but it would have been nice to see someone pitch a little inside to My-Little-Show-Pony for his little thing last night. Ultimately though, the best revenge is winning.
And we will win tonight. I’m sure about that
As I can’t see anything!! How is Sheff looking??
I dont really know where Boseef is. He said he was going to take a few days off.. but im sure he’s around somewhere. He also posts over at Peter Abraham’s blog, I think.
I admire Ortiz’s hitting ability, but that still doesn’t mean i can’t amuse myself by calling him Shrek.. he really does look a bit like him.
Hey folks. Nice to see so much chatter.
Sheff, got a very nice hit off the green “monstah”, but got wiped out with a somewhat unsual DP.
Oh we’re very chatty.. I talked to myself for a bit, then I got some good company, lol. It’s been great.
I’m around, win or lose.
Sometimes, even though I know its a tough job, but I want to slap the umpires.. lol
i was here last night and it was anything but chatty. Anyhow, good game, eh?
haha I love the Shrek comment as well…I live in Sox Nation and I am going to start calling Ortiz “Shrek” in front of all my friends! Thanks nyangel!
Moses, you’re a little edgy tonight, eh?
Your comments on Randy are dumb. Worst player in baseball? Really? I’m thinking you’re overreacting a bit. He’s not going to the pen, and he’s certainly not getting cut. If you think they’d be better off with Scott Erickson or Kris Wilson starting, you’re insane.
As for Proctor, he’s still a young guy trying to establish himself, and putting runners on base in this ballpark is not good. Maybe he’ll do it in the Bronx in two weeks.
Is it true that Papelbon’s nickname is BonBon???
Also love the ‘Shrek’ comment and the company has been great today!!
HUGE SPOT….LET’S GO KYLE!!
Okay settle down Farnsworth, that was very unnecessary on 3-2, lol.
Come on guys, you’ve battled this whole game.. no white flags.
GO KYLE!!
Come on Kyle, you can get Shrek out, he’s just another guy with a bat in his hands at the moment…
Oh oh. Shrek with bases loaded. Let’s go Kyle
Oh oh. Shrek with bases loaded. Let’s go Kyle
I gotta say, for me.. this moment right here is what Red Sox/Yankees baseball is about.. none of that thuggish stuff.. just nailbiting intense baseball.
Alright Kyle!! HUGE out there.
GREAT Kyle!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i totally agree nyyangel.
Oh what a huge strikeout for Scotty!
YES!!! How about Ortiz getting the golden sombrero tonight…hahahha
One thing I would like to point out. If Arod ever struck out four times against the Red Sox and once with the bases loaded in the 8th, almost everyone on this blog would have him out of town by the morning.
Oops, i meant Kyle. Multitasking here and was distracted for a moment.
Well I wouldn’t, lol. I do realize that the way guys like Arod and Shrek swing.. they are bound to have games like that sometimes, when their timing is off and they miss.
I noticed the Boston fans werent booing him.
You’re absolutely right Adam. I can imagine all the things Boseef and others would say if A-Rod were strucked out FOUR times against the Red Sox. But fortunatelly Alex is on our side and Sherk is a Green Sox (I mean Red Sox) player
And as Angel says, no one was booing him at Fenway. So let’s stop that stupid attitude against A-Rod. We have to root him all the way.
Let’s go Mariano. Just finish this game
Oooh…do you think Mo intentionally brushed Manny off the plate?
Well Shrek has come through for them more often than he hasn’t (probably the same with Arod too) but yankee fans seem to have shorter memories, or something. Its nice to see they appreciate what a good hitter they have in him. Maybe it makes it easier on Shrek to get his swing back when he’s slumping, to know that the Red Sox fans are behind him even if he’s not producing like he usually does. I don’t know. I can’t imagine its much fun being booed by your own teams fans.
Not sure, Solan. Doesn’t seem Mo’s style, but who knows – I guess Mo is the only one who really knows for sure.
Yayyy I’m so excited they took TWO OUT OF THREE – despite the naysayers who said they’d be lucky to win one game. RJ gets a win – hopefully those last couple of innings by him are a sign of good things to build on for him.
So after all the talk we won the series and are a half game from 1st place.
Wow jeter, amazing play to end the game. Good to see Farnsworth strike Ortiz out looking with the bases loaded.
Go Yankees!!!
Thanks for the fun morning fellow bloggers. It’s a lovely sunny day in NSW today. Even sunnier now my team has a win!!
Go Yankees!!!
WOW what a play to end the game. Jeter was my childhood idol and still is! lol
Taking this series 2/3 just proves to all of our “nay-sayers” that the Red Sox are “so much better than us.” Give me a break…this team did not get one great pitching performance and we still outplayed them two of three games. With all of our injuries, this series was huge for us. This could bite the Red Sox at the end of the year when we are a better and healthy team. They couldn’t get us when we weren’t at full strength.
I had my doubts about Melky when we first called him up but I have liked what I have seen. Besides the HUGE game tonight, what impressed me the most about this kid was that epic battle against Wagner last Saturday that started the rally to win the game. I like his approach to the plate and he battles off a lot of tough pitches.
Mark,
I hope our ‘chatter’ has helped to restore your faith in Yankee supporters. Win, Lose or Draw we LOVE our team.
Thanks for giving us the opportunity to prove it.
lets read what boseef is going to write about the series. after all he said we weren’t gonna win a game. I predicted 6-4 and we went 5-5 not bad.
(boseef predicted 3-7)
I told you. We were going to win. And we did. A great performance from Mariano. And Randy winning another game. Tonight was a great one. Good night to everybody. And be proud of our team. And of aour players.
Yes Eduardo. Boseef predicted 3-7. Poor guy. And he also predicted the Sox would sweep us. Poor guy.
have a good day rwinslow. 🙂
Hmm this is interesting watching Harold and whathisname analyzing what they think is wrong with Randy.
Boseef has not write a line since 7:32 PM. Can you imagine how many lines he would have written if we’ve loss this game? Poor guy.
Props for Melky.. and i’m singling him out just because he was thrown into leading off and had a great game there tonight, plus made a nice catch. Nice to see.
Very good concluding thoughts everyone. This was a very satisfying win. I love that we took the series – it ended a tough 10-game stretch on a positive note. We saw a lot of good things from our team over this stretch; a lot of positives to build on. Good night.
Ann in Philly
Good night Angel. And thanks for showing all Yankee fans how we should support our team
Another good notice: Tampa won over Toronto, so we are 1 1/2 games over Blue Jays
Goodnight everyone.. hopefully a days off rest will be just the thing for them (and Mark!).
Woo-hoo, Two out of three! I just had to say that again. I’m really happy. Doesn’t take much to make me happy, I guess.
-i love mariano brushing back ramirez…he has the control where he wouldnt accidentally do that. Great statement.
– i love the “Jeterian” throw to end them game
all in all, this was a huge series for the yanks, especially with them being so depleted across the board.
i think most of us will sleep better tonight thanks to the W.
Ok. Mark. That’s it. Go rest with your family. You deserve it. And we’re talking again next Friday. Let’s see another great outing from Moose
You guys better be careful with what you say about Boseef…he gets really offended when you call him out. He’s more like a politician, he says vague but negative things, then denies he ever said them because of semantics. I bet tomorrow there’s a post with him saying he never “wanted” the Yankees to go 3-7, so just leave me alone type thing. Anyway, I’m sad I missed this game. I had to keep up with the score on the scoreboard at the Nationals/Astros game. The Nats scored a bunch off of Lidge in the 8th. I bet in Houston there’s more “Lidge is done” chatter than all the “replacement for Mo” chatter here.
Good things from the game
*RJ had a bad few innings, but toughed it out and struck out a season high 8. It wasn’t pretty, but he got the win, and his last few innings were encouraging.
* Sheff got a hit, and was swinging the bat well.
* Giambi got some hits – and tagged the ball when he didnt get hits – hopefully he is getting out of his funk.
Everyone contributed with hits.. Bernie had a great night with the bat. Terrance Long went 2-4 with go-ahead RBI.
*Melky was thrown into lead-off and had a great night.
*Damon got a night off to rest his foot.
*The bullpen despite a few hiccups got the job done. A day off tomorrow for them.
* We took two out of three despite not having a stellar pitching performance and with a few people still out injured.
Goodnight! Yay Yankees.
LOL emcohen.. i needed that laugh. Thanks! Have a good night.
I don’t know. Being a yanks fan for life, living in Devil Ray’s town but RJ’s problems could all be temperature related. Does anyone know what the temps at game times have been during his starts? I know for me, under seventy degrees, makes things much more difficult. Just a thought! Maybe he should pull a Clemens and wait till late May, early June.
yankees**** Go sox
26 baby!!!
I love any yankee fan out there but anyone who is negative? (boseef) just shutup. if you can’t support the team in bad times… walk away. and “ellencullum”???***** YOU! i’ve seen you in the red sox blog so why are you here? no one wants to hear from you so shut the **** up. go back to the “nation” and get excited about a second place AL east finish (becuse that’s your destiny so accept it).
i believe in this team, like i always have. and i am sick and tired of all the negative ********. you know what? if the yanks dont make the playoffs its gonna be tough, BUT, either way let’s support the team!****** the red sox, they win the series what? every 86 years? trust me they are no threat. no matter what they do they’re not gonna catch up to us so **** them.
let’s worry about this year, let’s worry about now. i believe that this team is the best in the AL east. and we WILL make the playoffs… just shutup and trust me on that. so everyone shutup and wait until october because you have nothing to worry about… especially from the “lowly” redsox, WHAT?!?!? you got something to day ellencullum? SHUT THE **** UP.
OK. everyone… shut the **** up. I love any yankee fan out there but anyone who is negative? (boseef) just shutup. if you can’t support the team in bad times… walk away. and “ellencullum”???***** YOU!! i’ve seen you in the red sox blog so why are you here??? no one wants to hear from you so shut the **** up! go back to the “nation” and get excited about a second place AL east finish (becuse that’s your destiny so accept it).
i believe in this team, like i always have. and i am sick and tired of all the negative ********. you know what? if the yanks dont make the playoffs its gonna be tough, BUT, either way let’s support the team!!!****** the red sox, tey win the series what? every 86 years? trust me they are no threat. no matter ehat they do they’re not gonna catch up to us so **** them!!
let’s worry about this year, let’s worry about now. i believe that this team is the best in the AL east. and we WILL make the playoffs…******** trust me on that. so everyone shutup and wait until october because you have nothing to worry about… especially from the “lowly” redsox, WHAT?!?!? you got something to day ellencullum? SHUT THE **** UP.
Gee johnmfer: What’s wrong?? I’m saying the same thing you are. I guess you come over to the Ian Browne blog so you can finally find some intellectual, thoughtul and “baseball interesting” virtual conversation. I haven’t said anything out of the way here or ANYTHING THAT IS UNTRUE.. must be that guilty conscience of yours. hey, we lost tonight but, it’s still early and we still don’t bash or bloggers or much more importantly, OUR GUYS….. WE STILL OVE OUR SOX!!! hope you have a good night. I love the Red Sox but can truly admire a TRUE Yankee ( or Tiger or Royal, or Dodger fan) after all aren’t these blogs about TRUE fans and TRUE fans opinions??? Thanks for yours (whether a true fan or not)Wasn’t there a famous quote that said “CAN’T WE ALL JUST GET LONG???