It has been a while since I have had a chance to sit down and post. I'm sure the 1.5 people who actually view this site on a semi-regular basis has been lost without regular updates. Well, June was dedicated to work, work, and more work (and in today's day and age, I aint complainin) but now July seems to have settled down a bit, hopefully meaning more regular contributions.
But enought about that................there is a LOT to talk about in Yankee land and around the world of sports, and in honor of America's 233rd birthday, we'll start with what I believe the Yankees, their coaching staff, and their players, should declare.
Joe Girardi should declare not to bat Robinson Cano fifth, continue to hang Chien Mien Wang out to dry, and continuously make stupid comments that are then not backed up:
I am not a big, big, big fan of Girardi. In fact, I'm not a fan at all. As a person, he seems top quality. As a manager, he seems overmatched in New York. Let's not forget that Joe Girardi came to the Yankees after only ONE year of managerial experience with the Florida Marlins. Assuming Girardi could manage in New York because he did it in Florida is sort of like assuming that I could lead a battalion of men into battle because I'm the captain of my church softball team. They are two different animals.
Of late, the above "issues" have really been bugging me when it comes to GI Joe. First, continuing to bat Cano in the five hole. I get that Cano is a terrific hitter, but being a terrific hitter with no one on base, and being a terrific hitter when you're expected to produce runs are two different things (go look at A-Rod's numbers in close and late situations over his career with the Yanks). Cano's numbers with runners in scoring position are putrid. They are actually embarrassing. He is batting over .300, and batting barely .200 with men on base. He goes up hacking at anything like he has tickets to Cirque Du Solei, essentially looking to hit anything that even remotely approaches the plate, meaning that in the tenses portion of the game for the pitcher, Cano does not demand that they make quality pitches to get him out. How many rallies has he killed? How many moments to break a game open have been wasted? Just look at yesterday: bases loaded, one out, Cano up, chance to completely blow the game open, and Cano grounds to second with the infield in, resulting in an out at the plate, no run scored, second out recorded, and new life provided to pitcher. Just horrid.
Now, the Yankees don't have a great option in the five hole if not Cano. Nick Swisher? Hideki Matsui? Neither one of them is a true candidate. But Posada is a much better option in that spot when he's in the game, and the fact that Girardi refuses to recognize Cano's run-producing problems speaks to his lack of feel for the game.
The Wang thing is even more puzzling to me. The Wanger is a two-time 19 game winner, was on pace for the same record last year before being injured, and yet he continues to get less than a slap on the back from his manager now that he is seemingly healthy and ready to pitch. Why? What are the better options? Who has the resume to demand such respect other than Wanger?
Phil Hughes has established himself as a terrific member of the Yankee bullpen and looks like a different pitcher. Girardi himself has all but annointed Hughes as a major, late-inning component to the team. What is the plan if he wants to take Wang out of the rotation? Move Wang and his sinkerball into the pen? Move Hughes back into the rotation where, by all intents and purposes, he wasn't much better than the current version of Wang and has never proven he can be a big-time winner in this league? And, with trade rumors circulating out there that the Yankees might even be interested in moving Wang, how does insinuating that he might not make his next start, or hasn't earned the right to keep his place in the rotation, increase his possible value? Doesn't that only diminish his value?
This team is considerably better with Wang out there, pitching well, and his resume has at least earned him the right to retain his spot in the rotation at this point and the fact that Girardi continue to treat him differently than any other starter makes no sense. If Joba Chamberlain is going to get a permanent spot in this rotation, so should Chien Mien Wang, and Girardi should be able to offer him that type of assurance.
Then, you have the Girardi double-talk problem. One day, Girardi has no roles in the pen other than Mariano Rivera. Then, he annoints Brian Bruney as the "eighth inning guy" and pulls Phil Hughes out of a game after Hughes had pitched lights out the inning before - a move that almost cost the team the game.
After the game, Girardi angrily insisted that Bruney would be his "eighth inning guy," and yet, only a day later, in a tight game in the eighth inning, it was Phil Hughes and Phil Coke out there trying to nail it down.
That is just one example of the man's constant ping-pong match with honesty and consistency. A-Rod is going to get a few days off a week, Girardi stated, before the man came off the disabled list. Then, when A-Rod did come back, he played in 45 straight games and had to enlist the help of his general manager to ensure a day off. Since those two days off? No rest for the weary.
Brett Gardner, earlier in the year, was the Yankee center fielder and Girardi told the world that wasn't going to change, even if he went into a slump. So, Gardner slumped early in the year and, guess what, Melky Cabrera was suddenly the every-day center fielder.
If you don't plan in sticking to your guns, don't say anything, Joe. It just makes it that much more unbearable to listen to you speak as you try and explain why you weren't flip-flopping on an issue. And, with that type of back and forth, how could any player truly believe what the manager has to say? I wouldn't.
Joba Chamberlain should declare to finally begin to pitch more aggressively to retain his position in the rotation.
Trust me, Pete Abraham, I am not jumping off the "Joba in the rotation" bandwagon in any way, but there is no denying that watching Joba pitch a ballgame has literally become excruciating. Runners are all over the place, he walks the ballpark, he never attacks with the type of stuff we saw previously, every count is 3-2, and by the 5th inning, Joba has 100 pitches. No, he never gets lit up, which speaks to his stuff, but I have always believed that Joba should be in the rotation because he can be special in that role, not competent. Joba, right now, looks like, at best, a third or fourth starter in the league. If that's the case, then moving him back to the pen, where he can be an A++ closer (potentially) makes a lot more sense. If he can find himself in the rotation and move towards being at least an AJ Burnett-esque type of pitcher, than his place in the rotation should be cemented.
But someone needs to put some expectations on the young man. Going out there and giving five innings, three runs, four walks, five strikeouts, and 100 pitches or more is just not cutting it. Yes, you can deal with that start as long as you continue to see progress. There hasn't been any progress in a while.
I want Joba to be the Yankee's future Josh Beckett, but I also want someone to express to Joba that, eventually, he has to SHOW that ability on the mound with more consistency. Stop shaking catchers off. Stop nibbling on the edges against 9th place hitters or guys batting .220. Attack. That's what earned Joba a spot on this team in the first place.
Brian Cashman should declare to begin to really stock the Yankee system with position players, not just pitchers.
Okay, I'll admit, the Yankee future in terms of position players seems much brighter now adays. Francisco Cervelli has been so impressive since being called to the majors that many, including myself, believe that he could be a viable, everyday option behind the plate once Posada is forced to take over everyday duties as the DH. Brett Gardner has played well of late and, if he could hit .280 as a regular, would be unbelievably valuable to this team going forward. Cano, despite his RISP numbers, has re-emerged as a TOP young player in this league, Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain have a tremendous amount of talent, and the Yankees two best prospects in the minors (Austin Jackson and Jesus Montero) are tearing up AAA and AA respectively. The Yankees also seem to be the front runners to land the Cuban defector Adiros Chapman, a young lefty who has been clocked at 100 MPH. But if Jackson and/or Montero don't pan out, and Gardner and Cervelli aren't able to hit enough to retain everyday jobs, there isn't much else coming in the pipeline to give the Yankees hope. There is no heir apparent to Derek Jeter at shortstop in the minors and, besides Jackson, no outfield help on the way. And while a stock pile of young pitching may help the Yankees secure trades for future needs, Cashman has seemed reluctant to part with ANY of his prospects even for proven major leaguers (lost in the Johan Santana discussions is the fact that the A's asked for Ian Kennedy in exchange for Dan Haren and were told no - a move that is probably more inexcuseable than not trading for Santana at a high price) and many of the pitching prospects have had serious arm issues that have either stunted or completely derailed their growth (see Andrew Brackman, Kennedy, and Humberto Sanchez).
The Yankees are old at certain positions and need prospects. They have pitchers, now they need some future stars to score those pitchers some runs.
Some other Fourth of July notes:
*I get people are tired of the steroid discussion. I am too. But that doesn't explain the "open arms" treatment Manny Ramirez has received, especially from Dodger fans, upon returning to baseball this weekend. The guy was suspended for 50 games because he cheated, and if he cheated this year why wouldn't he have cheated in previously years - years where he built his Hall of Fame resume?
Maybe we are past demonizing these guys for their actions, but we shouldn't be to the point where we cheer them for having cheated the game.
*Is Jorge Posada a future Hall of Famer? How come we never really ask that question? Name three better catchers than Posada during his career? Mike Piazza was perhaps the best hitter at the position ever, but Posada was, and is, more durable and a better defensive catcher. Ivan Rodriguez is argueably the best, but we also noticed how quickly Pudge went from being a middle-of-the-order force to a skinny, has-been player once more steroid testing was inacted. After that, who would even enter the discussion? I would argue no one. Posada's offensive numbers have been terrific, he has caught game-winners in the World Series, has caught a perfect game, and made big plays in big games. I don't know if he will make it, but Posada's career is often overlooked.
*If you're the Knicks, wouldn't it behoove you to, at some point, try and put together a team that would attract LeBron James rather than simply dump salary in a quest to clear enough cap space to offer the world to King James? I get that money talks and everything else takes a hike, and the Knicks might simply believe that offering a fortune, along with the trappings of New York, will be enough, but the Cavs just brought in Shaq and, I'm sure, have a few other tricks up their sleeve to try and convince James to stay. And, oh, by the way, he's gonna get a lot of money from Cleveland as well.
It just doesn't seem like the Knicks would be all that attractive to LeBron, does it? Heck, I think the Nets might be offering more of a future at this point.
*Staying with the NBA, all of the focus will be on James next year, but if he can stay healthy, someone is gonna land Dwayne Wade and get a SUPERIOR player. I mean, world class player. If the Knicks or Nets lost out on James and brought in Wade, it might end up being a push. He's that good when he's healthy. The problem? Wade has shown a disturbing tendency for getting injured over the last few years, and he plays with such abandon that trend might not change. For his sake, and for the NBA's sake, you hope he figures out how to keep his body healthy.
Finally, I do want to say Happy Fourth Of July to everyone. I love this holiday. Not because of the barbecues or the fireworks, which are nice in and of themselves, but because I love the history and the meaning of this date. The founding of this nation remains a magical period in human history and I believe completely in the ideals represented in the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
If you get a chance to learn more about the men who made this dream of America a reality, I would highly suggest you do so. They were, all of them, complex and filled with contradictions (and extreme character flaws) however, they were also brilliant and spoke of this nation in ways we rarely hear any more. So, watch the fireworks, listen to the music, but also think about the meaning and purpose behind it all. And have a very safe and wonderful holiday.
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