2007 Baseball Season is about to start--talk about anything you want

[faldor]

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/print?id=2890628&type=story

BOSTON -- Even Joe Torre says Alex Rodriguez was out of line.
The New York Yankees manager concluded A-Rod shouldn't have distracted a Toronto fielder this week during a popup, joining a chorus of baseball people who said the two-time AL MVP broke the sport's unwritten code.
"He may have been excited about the fact that we were leading the ballgame," Torre said before his team's series opener at Boston. "It was probably inappropriate to do it at the time he did it, but you can't change it, unfortunately."
The play occurred in the ninth inning of New York's 10-5 win at Toronto on Wednesday night.
With the Yankees leading 7-5, Rodriguez was on first base and ran hard when Jorge Posada popped up. As he ran near third baseman Howie Clark, Rodriguez said something -- 'Hah!' according to Rodriguez, 'Mine,' according to Clark. The ball dropped for a run-scoring single.
He may have been excited about the fact that we were leading the ballgame. It was probably inappropriate to do it at the time he did it, but you can't change it, unfortunately.?
Yankees manager Joe Torre
When the game ended, many Toronto players stayed on the bench, staring at Rodriguez and New York players.
"They were angry," Torre said. "Oh, there's no question. I can't say I blame them, but what are you going to do about it? What's happened has happened."
Torre said he spoke with Rodriguez after the game.
"It's probably something he shouldn't have done," Torre said. "I don't sense he's going to do it again."

Odd that you'd actually pick this article....because before the game on Saturday Joe held a PC JUST to let everyone know that the "headlines" got it wrong.? He wasn't taking him to task, he wasn't bagging on what A-rod did, and he wasn't telling him to "shut up".? He was simply offering HIS opinion.? One I, and a whole host of others (witness the commentary from the national media during the Fox and ESPN broadcasts) disagree with.

And while Joe said exactly what I'd expect a dimplomatic manager who has to face a team quite a few more times this season would say, others disagree.

And how anyone can take A-rod to task over yelling "HEY", while giving Lowell a pass on his "tackle" of Cano, is beyond me (and I'm not specifically talking about those here......though I'd like to hear comments on THAT play).? It made A-rod's elbow to Pedrio look like a love tap...and was just as "out of the play".

I agree that play by Lowell may have been a little unnecessary. ?The only defense I can give is he was hit by a pitch the night before, 5 batters total were hit, emotions maybe could've still been running high. ?Well, 2 out of 3 again nonetheless. ?While the Sox still hold a more than comfortable lead it's not a good sign losing two straight series to the Yanks. ?Especially last night with their shitty bullpen outperforming ours. ?Not good. ?We'll see if the Yanks can keep it up.

[sandman]

i couldn't disagree more about the lowell play. in fact, i would criticize a player who did NOT do that. he was trying to make a play for his team. it was legal, and it was taught to him by the yankees coaching staff!

i think only gaining a game is a little disappointing for the yanks, especially considering how saturday's game went down. i hope they get back in it by july - would make for a more exciting summer.

i got a few e-mails from my NY friends with the heading "ABREU SUCKS". last night was a funny reminder of his antics in the outfield that i had to suffer through.

it was also fitting that his replacement, shane victorino, hit a walkoff HR yesterday....on shane victorino day at the stadium - they gave out Victorino Hula Figurines and had hula dancers all over the stadium.

[pilferk]

i couldn't disagree more about the lowell play. in fact, i would criticize a player who did NOT do that. he was trying to make a play for his team. it was legal, and it was taught to him by the yankees coaching staff!

It was no more in the play than A-rods elbow play was.  I don't disagree that it was exactly the play Lowell should have made....it was (excessive or not).  My point is this: Lowell gets a pass, it gets called making a "tough play", he gets kudos for playing hard....yet Arod gets lambasted for the same sort of thing.  It's the double standard I find most intriuging. 

i think only gaining a game is a little disappointing for the yanks, especially considering how saturday's game went down. i hope they get back in it by july - would make for a more exciting summer.

I can't see it being disappointing, at least not from the perspective going into the series.  Yes, the sweep would have been nice, in hindsight of Saturday's game.  But winning 2 of 3 in Boston can't be disappointing, overall.  You can't make it up all overnight.  You know the Sox have now lost...what...4 series TOTAL this year...2 of them to the Yanks?  I'm not sure they can catch the sox.....that's a tall order....but their first step needs to be to get into the wild card hunt.  They're only 6 back in the loss column...THEN worry about the AL east.

[pilferk]

abreu screwed up saturday night as well. luckily for him, his teammates bailed him out last night. i know philly fans are tough on players, but at some point the yankee faithful will lose patience with his lack of effort on the defensive side.

as for the lowell hit on cano....fair/hard-nosed/clean baseball. it happened DURING a play - he was trying to make a play for his team.

even torre said it was clean.

It happened "during a play" as much as Arods elbow did.......

As for Abreu's lack of defensive effort.....last season he was lights out, pretty much (at least from an errors standpoint).  This year....we'll see.  He had a couple of bad plays, but he's certainly not playing like "Manny being Manny" out there (Manny only seeming to show up when he's in NYC or NYC is in Boston...)  Abreu's defense seems keyed to how tuned in he is on offense (maybe it's a focus thing).  He's just starting to not look "lost" at the plate....it seems a lot like the malaise ARod faced last year:  He couldn't hit or field cleanly until his head got screwed on straight.  Bobby looks the same way this season....last nght's walk actually made me think that maybe he was on the road back to normalcy...until that play in the outfield.

[pilferk]

I agree that play by Lowell may have been a little unnecessary.  The only defense I can give is he was hit by a pitch the night before, 5 batters total were hit, emotions maybe could've still been running high.  Well, 2 out of 3 again nonetheless.  While the Sox still hold a more than comfortable lead it's not a good sign losing two straight series to the Yanks.  Especially last night with their shitty bullpen outperforming ours.  Not good.  We'll see if the Yanks can keep it up.

I wouldn't say the Yanks bullpen is "shitty"....their middle, especially (Bruni and the guys) have actually been BETTER than the Sox's middle, even with the team losing games (largely on the starters and/or late relief's backs).  The thing is....you guys haven't had much call to use yours, since your starters have been iron men.


Our setup needs help and stabilization (Procter and Farsworth aren't nearly as effective as they were last year).  Rivera, however, has looked like the Rivera of old for the past couple of weeks......

That being said....last night we beat up on your best...sort of like you guys did early this season to us.  The only thing I'm "sad" about is that Beckett didn't take the loss.

[sandman]

abreu screwed up saturday night as well. luckily for him, his teammates bailed him out last night. i know philly fans are tough on players, but at some point the yankee faithful will lose patience with his lack of effort on the defensive side.

as for the lowell hit on cano....fair/hard-nosed/clean baseball. it happened DURING a play - he was trying to make a play for his team.

even torre said it was clean.

It happened "during a play" as much as Arods elbow did.......

As for Abreu's lack of defensive effort.....last season he was lights out, pretty much (at least from an errors standpoint).? This year....we'll see.? He had a couple of bad plays, but he's certainly not playing like "Manny being Manny" out there (Manny only seeming to show up when he's in NYC or NYC is in Boston...)? Abreu's defense seems keyed to how tuned in he is on offense (maybe it's a focus thing).? He's just starting to not look "lost" at the plate....it seems a lot like the malaise ARod faced last year:? He couldn't hit or field cleanly until his head got screwed on straight.? Bobby looks the same way this season....last nght's walk actually made me think that maybe he was on the road back to normalcy...until that play in the outfield.

usually, abreu's mistakes in the OF do not register as errors. he won a gold glove in philly which is a joke. he was always a defensive liability. stats don't tell the whole story.

so basically this weekend was the "normal" abreu. he is what he is. good offensive production, works the count well, scared near the wall, misjudges fly balls, and doesn't hustle.

[sandman]

"A petite stripper at the Hustler Club said A-Rod 'likes the she-male, muscular type.'"  

from the NY Daily News.

that will never get old.

i love NY!

[tim_m]

"A petite stripper at the Hustler Club said A-Rod 'likes the she-male, muscular type.'"  

from the NY Daily News.

that will never get old.

i love NY!

Wow the daily news really is scraping the bottom of the barrel for news these days aren't they.

[pilferk]

Wow the daily news really is scraping the bottom of the barrel for news these days aren't they.

That's pretty much par for the course for the Daily News and the Post.

[pilferk]

Last night you saw a prime example of just why the Yanks paid Clemens 28 million pro rated dollars to plug their 4 hole.

[tim_m]

Last night you saw a prime example of just why the Yanks paid Clemens 28 million pro rated dollars to plug their 4 hole.

Yeah DeSalvo just isn't ready.

[sandman]

I went to the phils game last night at shea. Great game. Two old-timers going at it ? moyer and glavine. Both pitched well ? it was 2-2 for most of the game and then the Phils won it in the 11th on a HR by Utley.

It was great to beat the mets, but at this point it?s just important for the phils to get some wins against anybody ? they?re not catching the mets, and it looks like it?s not gonna be as easy to win the NL wildcard as it was in past years.

Shea is a pit. Reminds me of the old Vet in philly, but worse. And a few mets fans tried to start fights with me and other philly fans ? even had some food thrown at me ? but nothing major happened. 

[pilferk]

I went to the phils game last night at shea. Great game. Two old-timers going at it ? moyer and glavine. Both pitched well ? it was 2-2 for most of the game and then the Phils won it in the 11th on a HR by Utley.

It was great to beat the mets, but at this point it?s just important for the phils to get some wins against anybody ? they?re not catching the mets, and it looks like it?s not gonna be as easy to win the NL wildcard as it was in past years.

Shea is a pit. Reminds me of the old Vet in philly, but worse. And a few mets fans tried to start fights with me and other philly fans ? even had some food thrown at me ? but nothing major happened. 

It IS a pit...heck, it was a pit back in the late 80's...it certainly hasn't gotten better with time.  I had thought they had a deal in place (partly municipal) for a new stadium, but not sure where that's gone.

The mets are very good this year....and with Pedro throwing off a mound, if he comes back even CLOSE to as good as he has been in years past, they become scary good.

However, if you think Mets fans can be brutal (and they can be, for sure)...try rooting for (or wearing anything pertaing to) the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium.  I've actually seen beatings occur before, after, and during games (in the bleachers, especially).  Even with the increased security around during those games, I'd be afraid to be an "out of the closet" Sox fan.  Yikes!

[GeorgeSteele]

It IS a pit...heck, it was a pit back in the late 80's...it certainly hasn't gotten better with time.? I had thought they had a deal in place (partly municipal) for a new stadium, but not sure where that's gone.

I know, the glo-players on the sides of the stadium are just embarassing.

New stadium is on it's way up, I drive by it every day.  Here's the update...

http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/nym/ballpark/citifield_overview.jsp

[pilferk]

It IS a pit...heck, it was a pit back in the late 80's...it certainly hasn't gotten better with time.  I had thought they had a deal in place (partly municipal) for a new stadium, but not sure where that's gone.

I know, the glo-players on the sides of the stadium are just embarassing.

New stadium is on it's way up, I drive by it every day.  Here's the update...

http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/nym/ballpark/citifield_overview.jsp

And the "homerun" apple pop up is so 60's kitschy it's not even funny.

Sweet on the new stadium!  New Yankee Stadium and new Mets Stadium (I wish they had kept the name, though....Citifield? Yuck).  I might have to head down to check a game out sometime....maybe when there's a subway series going on.

[GeorgeSteele]

It IS a pit...heck, it was a pit back in the late 80's...it certainly hasn't gotten better with time.? I had thought they had a deal in place (partly municipal) for a new stadium, but not sure where that's gone.

I know, the glo-players on the sides of the stadium are just embarassing.

New stadium is on it's way up, I drive by it every day.? Here's the update...

http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/nym/ballpark/citifield_overview.jsp

And the "homerun" apple pop up is so 60's kitschy it's not even funny.

Sweet on the new stadium!? New Yankee Stadium and new Mets Stadium (I wish they had kept the name, though....Citifield? Yuck).? I might have to head down to check a game out sometime....maybe when there's a subway series going on.

Yeah, Citifield sucks, but I'm not shedding any tears over the Shea name.  Metropolitan Stadium would have been perfect.  I guess CitiGroup is calling the shots.

[sandman]

I went to the phils game last night at shea. Great game. Two old-timers going at it ? moyer and glavine. Both pitched well ? it was 2-2 for most of the game and then the Phils won it in the 11th on a HR by Utley.

It was great to beat the mets, but at this point it?s just important for the phils to get some wins against anybody ? they?re not catching the mets, and it looks like it?s not gonna be as easy to win the NL wildcard as it was in past years.

Shea is a pit. Reminds me of the old Vet in philly, but worse. And a few mets fans tried to start fights with me and other philly fans ? even had some food thrown at me ? but nothing major happened.?

It IS a pit...heck, it was a pit back in the late 80's...it certainly hasn't gotten better with time.? I had thought they had a deal in place (partly municipal) for a new stadium, but not sure where that's gone.

The mets are very good this year....and with Pedro throwing off a mound, if he comes back even CLOSE to as good as he has been in years past, they become scary good.

However, if you think Mets fans can be brutal (and they can be, for sure)...try rooting for (or wearing anything pertaing to) the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium.? I've actually seen beatings occur before, after, and during games (in the bleachers, especially).? Even with the increased security around during those games, I'd be afraid to be an "out of the closet" Sox fan.? Yikes!

a woman i work with is a sox fan, her husband is a yanks fan, and they go to most games. she's literally 4'9 and one of the nicest ladies you'd ever meet. she's faced some nasty heckling at yankee stadium.

i've seen things get out of contrl at eagles games. they're a recipe for disaster....young crowd filled with meat-heads tailgating for 5-10 hours or more. it can get really ugly down there. 

mets have alot of injuries right now, and delgado is struggling again. phils are catching them at a good time. hopefully they can win 1 of the next 2. you could argue they've been the best team in baseball so far. this could be their year. 

[sandman]

phils take two in row from the mets! mets fans were ANGRY that it was rollins that did them in.

awesome pitching matchup tonight. hamels vs. maine.

[sandman]

SWEEP!

huge sweep of the mets. wagner had converted 31 consecutive save opportunities until burrell took him deep in the 9th last night.

i'm just glad the phils are back in the thick of things - 5 games out of first and 4.5 out of the wildcard.

not bad considering we started the season 3-10.

[pilferk]

It was an interesting weekend.

The Mets lost their series to Detroit and the Sox lost theirs to Arizona....

And it looks like the Sox have at least cracked the door open for the Yanks (who, for now, have sole possession of 2nd).  It'll be interesting to see if it opens wider or the Sox manage to slam it back shut.