2025 Major League Baseball Thread

[Jellybeans]

Sammy Sosa Pictures: Bleached Skin From Steroid Use, or Rejuvenation Process?

Source :http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/20...m-steroid-use/

[toef]

Originally Posted by Jellybeans

DAMON, MATSUI AMONG 31 PLAYERS FILING FOR FREE AGENCY

Well there's a shocker. What were they supposed to do, retire?

[Jellybeans]

Originally Posted by toefer

Well there's a shocker. What were they supposed to do, retire?

I don't know!

[sfmarine]

Originally Posted by Jellybeans

I don't know!

It's going to be interesting. I really like Damon...after seeing what Matsui did in game 6..they have to pick up up for at least 2 more years. However, I really feel that one of them won't be in pinstripes this spring.

[sfmarine]

Looks like Damon will be the first to go...oh well. I liked him too.
http://www.nypost.com/p/blogs/hardba...CKVyBpsxytc9GK

[toef]

Originally Posted by sfmarine

Looks like Damon will be the first to go...oh well. I liked him too.
http://www.nypost.com/p/blogs/hardba...CKVyBpsxytc9GK

That's why I hate agents. Boras created a disaster between A-rod and the Yankees a couple years ago, because he throws out unrealistic numbers.

Granted, maybe Damon really does want a 3-4 year deal, but I'd be surprised if he'd take a 4 year deal with some random team, instead of a 1 year deal with the Yankees.

And the comparisons Boras is making to Jeter are ridiculous. Sure the numbers might be roughly the same, but Jeter is part of that "core four" (I hate that term) and essentially the face of the team, so a big part of how the Yankees handle him is related to that.

As much as I like Damon, he's a liability in the outfield. There were several times during the playoffs that teams took advantage of his weak arm (tagging up on a shallow fly, or scoring from second on a hard-hit ground ball to LF).

Look what happened to Abreu when he left the Yankees... he got a $5m 1-year deal with the Angels. Which makes me wonder if Damon really thinks he can expect a lot, or if this really is just Boras talking.

Anyway, he'll still be one of my favorite players wherever he goes. I've liked him since he was on the Royals, and got lucky that he eventually found his way to NY.

[sfmarine]

I couldn't agree more. Boras is a mutt.

[fatediesel]

Originally Posted by toefer

That's why I hate agents. Boras created a disaster between A-rod and the Yankees a couple years ago, because he throws out unrealistic numbers.

Granted, maybe Damon really does want a 3-4 year deal, but I'd be surprised if he'd take a 4 year deal with some random team, instead of a 1 year deal with the Yankees.

I agree with your hatred of agents, and especially Boras. I was hoping the Yankees would let A Rod go when he opted out just because he wouldn't have been able to get anywhere near what the Yankees gave him from another team. In the end A Rod got the contract the Yankees would have given him anyway, but cost the Yankees a lot of money because they lost the money the Rangers were paying as part of the trade.

I think Damon would take a 3-4 year deal with a contending teams over a 1 year deal from the Yankees. He proved he doesn't have any loyalty when he went to the Yankees from the Red Sox, and if a team is willing to offer 4 years and $20-$30 million he's going to take that over a 1 year/$6 million offer from the Yankees. I don't think he'd go to a crappy team though. He'd want to stay with a contender.

[sfmarine]

Boras brings up good points that Pos Pos and Jeter being around his age and all were signed. The Posada 4 year deal was surprising but that was after he had that great season on '07. But they're Yankees for life...Jeter and Posada aren't going anywhere. Damon is still a great player but he'll most be remembered for his stint with the 'Sox. Damon should take anything the Yankees offer him. I think it would be fair to offer him a 2 year deal but I'm pretty sure they'll go with a 1.

I wouldn't mind seeing Damon as an announcer or commentator on the Yes network in a few years...he's a really stand-up guy. Paul O'Neill and Cone love it up there!

[toef]

Originally Posted by fatediesel

I agree with your hatred of agents, and especially Boras. I was hoping the Yankees would let A Rod go when he opted out just because he wouldn't have been able to get anywhere near what the Yankees gave him from another team. In the end A Rod got the contract the Yankees would have given him anyway, but cost the Yankees a lot of money because they lost the money the Rangers were paying as part of the trade.

I think Damon would take a 3-4 year deal with a contending teams over a 1 year deal from the Yankees. He proved he doesn't have any loyalty when he went to the Yankees from the Red Sox, and if a team is willing to offer 4 years and $20-$30 million he's going to take that over a 1 year/$6 million offer from the Yankees. I don't think he'd go to a crappy team though. He'd want to stay with a contender.

True. Damon was as loved in Boston as he was in NY, and that obviously didn't stop him from ditching the team. But considering a couple seasons ago he was ready to quit, I thought maybe he as at a point where he just wanted to stay in one place for a few more years, then call it a career.

If he gets what he wants, then it's a win-win for both sides. Last I checked the Yankees still have Austin Jackson waiting in the wings, so I can see why they're intersted in a short 1-2 year bridge, rather than a 3-4 year deal with the older players (Damon and Matsui).

Originally Posted by sfmarine

Boras brings up good points that Pos Pos and Jeter being around his age and all were signed. The Posada 4 year deal was surprising but that was after he had that great season on '07. But they're Yankees for life...Jeter and Posada aren't going anywhere. Damon is still a great player but he'll most be remembered for his stint with the 'Sox. Damon should take anything the Yankees offer him. I think it would be fair to offer him a 2 year deal but I'm pretty sure they'll go with a 1.

I wouldn't mind seeing Damon as an announcer or commentator on the Yes network in a few years...he's a really stand-up guy. Paul O'Neill and Cone love it up there!

Yeah, not to knock on Flaherty, but I feel like they could do better than him. It's not like he was a career Yankee, and his time with the Yankees was just as a backup catcher. He seems like a nice guy, so I'd feel bad seeing him get the boot, but they could certainly make room for someone else, like Damon (though Johnny's speech impediment might be a factor).

The Posada deal was surprising, but I think he forced their hand with the rumors that he'd be going to the Mets. If the Yankees allowed that to happen, I think it would've made them look bad.

[sfmarine]

Originally Posted by toefer

Yeah, not to knock on Flaherty, but I feel like they could do better than him. It's not like he was a career Yankee, and his time with the Yankees was just as a backup catcher. He seems like a nice guy, so I'd feel bad seeing him get the boot, but they could certainly make room for someone else, like Damon (though Johnny's speech impediment might be a factor).

The Posada deal was surprising, but I think he forced their hand with the rumors that he'd be going to the Mets. If the Yankees allowed that to happen, I think it would've made them look bad.

Ya..I remember the rumors of Posada heading to the Mets...it would have been crazy. I completely agree with Flaherty..he was with the team for a short time and then ended up getting that position. It should be a spot for a more renowned Yankee but it is what it is.

Saw this on yesnetwork.com this morning.

Yanks won’t rework Girardi’s deal this off-season
http://riveraveblues.com/2009/11/yan...-season-19881/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As the Yankees moved through the playoffs, many of us wondered whether a World Series win would mean a contract extension for Joe Girardi. They got the win, but it appears the team is content to let Girardi manage 2010 as a lame duck. Joel Sherman has the details, which are few. Instead of rewarding Girardi for a job well done, the Yanks will take their normal tack of letting a contract expire before negotiating a new one. It seems like a reasonable enough stance.

Brian Cashman has made it clear that this is how the Yankees will operate. Before the 2007 season he had a chance to rework deals for Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada, but declined to do so until after the season. While that decision might have cost the team several million dollars — both Posada and Rivera played hardball after having great seasons — it appears they’ll continue to apply the policy across the board.

While football teams prefer to avoid having a lame duck coach, baseball teams don’t seem to averse to it. Joe Torre signed four contracts after his first one with the Yankees, and two of them came after the old deal expired. In other words, the Yankees had two lame duck seasons under Torre, 1999 and 2001. His teams did just fine those seasons. He signed extensions for the 1997 and 2004 seasons, a year before his contract was to expire, and the teams did just fine then, too (though both seasons ended on sour notes).

After winning the World Series in his second season at the helm, it seems that missing the playoffs in 2010 is the only result that could lead to a new manager in 2011. Even then, with the World Series championship under his belt, perhaps the Yankees will be a bit more forgiving with Girardi if his team fails to make the playoffs next year. In any case, they’re leaving that option open, no matter what the team does. Even so, save for some unforeseen event unrelated to the team’s play (e.g., Girardi insulting the owner, as he did in Florida), I don’t see anyone else managing the Yankees for the next few years.

Joe Girardi has his good points and his bad, and although many of us were puzzled by some of his moves, I still think he’s a good manager. While we as fans tend to focus on the manager’s tactical moves, a manager is responsible for more than just that. He must hold together a team of 25 personalities over a six-month season and month-long playoff process. From all appearances, Girardi has done that well. As Alex Rodriguez said after the team won the World Series, “You have 25 guys who bought into Joe Girardi’s system.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This is a bit surprising but it's happened time and time again. I love how they talk of the Yankees not making it into the playoffs next year... even though it could happen it would be extremely rare. I'm pretty sure Girardi will get signed for another 2-3 years @ the end of next season.
I wonder if they will even bring back Mattingly to manage...he was ticked when they didn't give him the job. He was next in line being Torre's bench coach...he's a great player and it's a shame..but Yogi was ticked off for years..and eventually came back. I'm sure the enmities will be cleared up and both Torre and Mattingly will be honored sometime in the near future. I am certain there will be a "Joe Torre" day. It was a shame to not see Mattingly @ the old timers day.

On a side note: a nice baseball film to watch in the off season is The Bronx is Burning. It's a great film/mini-series on the Yankees during the 70's.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0790477/
It was done by ESPN.. and I thought John Turturro(nut job from Transformers) played a great Billy Martin.

[toef]

If the Yankees win another World Series next season, then Girardi may drive a hard bargain when working out a new deal.

It almost seems like the Yankees don't plan on winning the WS next year, because if they did, they' know it'd cheaper to extend Girardi's contract now.

But then again, a lot of people said Torre got too much credit for the 90s dynasty (the whole "a monkey could manage that team" thing), and considering the shopping the Yankees did last off-season, the same argument (whether it's right or wrong) will probably be applied to Girardi (that is, if it hasn't been already).

~~~~

I heard the Yankees are interested in Curtis Granderson. Not sure how that would shake up their outfield. Probably push Melky to left-field, and Gardner will be seeing a bunch of bench again.

~~~~

The Bronx is Burning was a good series. I could've sworn I heard they were developing another series, but after a few minutes of Googling, couldn't find anything.

[toef]

Oh, and I also thought the comparisons being made between Tom Coughlin and Joe Girardi are pretty interested.

There are articles dating back to spring training about how Girardi was lightening up as manager, taking a page out of Tom Coughlin's book, based on the success the Giants had after Coughlin changed his coaching demeanor (i.e. they won the Super Bowl that year).

Girardi still looks like a drill sergeant at times, but not as much as he did last year.

[sfmarine]

Well..whatever Coughlin is doing now isn't working lol. Poor Giants. Girardi does look a lot "looser" than he did his first year. I'm guessing he'll keep the same persona during Spring training next year.

I'm all for another mini-series on the Yankees.

Good point on if the Yankees do win again next year, Girardi will demand a heavy increase in salary.

[toef]

Torre said he's considering adding another year to his contract, and the Dodgers were "receptive" to that. But as it stands, he said he'll still have to think about it for a bit, so maybe 2010 is really going to be his final year.

[toef]

Something I never even thought about... but apparently a ton of people gathered outside Yankee Stadium last week, while the game was being played.

Kind of reminds me of the stories about the first game at the original Yankee Stadium, where firefighters had to close down the gates because the stadium was packed, but thousands of people stayed and listened to the game from outside.

It helps that in the new stadium there's that rather large TV in the great hall, which you can see through the open window arches.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_UtqZdN6hs

[sfmarine]

Ya...it's still fun to hang out around the stadium even if you can't get into it lol. The atmosphere outside is almost as good as being inside. Lot of things going on and the bars are always filled. I would have loved to be in NY when the Yankees won. I'm sure people partied all night. Unfortunately, I had class the next morning.

[jsteinhauer]

Baseball and Football are completely different animals are far as the necessity for continuity goes, IMO. In MLB, while it is a team sport, so much rests on individual performances. In the NFL, players and schemes evolve over the course of years, so continuity in coaching plays a much bigger role in success of a team. You know, a second baseman, irrespective of the coach, has to be able to play in, play out, toward left, toward right or hold a runner on the bag. But you've got a football team that has a crushing defense that keys on a middle linebacker, you can't go changing that up and expect success.

[Jellybeans]

Originally Posted by toefer

Something I never even thought about... but apparently a ton of people gathered outside Yankee Stadium last week, while the game was being played.

Kind of reminds me of the stories about the first game at the original Yankee Stadium, where firefighters had to close down the gates because the stadium was packed, but thousands of people stayed and listened to the game from outside.

It helps that in the new stadium there's that rather large TV in the great hall, which you can see through the open window arches.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_UtqZdN6hs

I wish i were there!

[sfmarine]

Jeter plays a Bronx bummer for movie. Ferrell..Markey Mark..I think i saw diane lane as well..this has to be good.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/b...oUGivifiCf7MFN

this is hilarious and totally Jeter!















Also a sad story on John Wetteland ..

http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/yanke...hdcIvT1UDOaQAO