Tagged: Randy Johnson
Yankees 2009: A Remarkably Soap-Opera Free Season
With the off-day and no Yankees baseball to watch, I had more time to read the stories about the supposed incompatibility between A.J. and Posada. When I was finished, I had the following thought: If this is the biggest Yankees controversy, it’s been an awfully quiet summer at the Bronx Zoo.
Seriously. This is the season that began with A-Rod’s “affair of the heart” with Madonna…
…his acrimonious split with C-Rod…
…his admission of steroids use…
…and his unexpected trip to the Steadman-Hawkins Clinic in Colorado for hip surgery.
Oh, and there was Joba’s DUI and his mother’s arrest on drug possession.
I expected tabloid headlines to dog the team for months. Instead, A-Rod is focusing on baseball (albeit with another celebrity girlfriend), Joba has come to terms with the Joba Rules and the players are behaving like model citizens, supporting HOPE week and other charitable activities, hanging out together at sporting events and concerts, even appearing on “Letterman.” (I’m looking forward to seeing Mark Teixeira with Dave tonight. Good luck, Tex! Break a leg! No, don’t!)
There haven’t been any dugout brawls or players whining to the media about not being in the lineup or rotation (not counting Brett Bombko) or threats from Hal or Hank about firing Girardi. Speaking of whom…
…at least some of the tranquility this season has to be credited to him. Yes, there’s a good mix of guys who genuinely seem to like each other. And winning helps promote unity in the clubhouse. But he’s the one who got the best out of Melky and Gardner when they were competing for the CF job, believed in Swisher when I certainly didn’t, switched Hughes over to the bull pen, and came up with the idea to bat Jeter in the #1 spot and move Damon to #2. That’s worked out pretty well for both guys, hasn’t it?
Not that everything is perfect, by any means. I’m always second-guessing Girardi’s pitching decisions, just like I used to question Torre’s, and I’m not wild about the way player injuries are handled. (Remember Wang, anyone?) But this team is in first place, and everybody’s having fun. No more pitchers who can’t control their temper (Kevin Brown)…
…or can’t deal with the media (Randy Johnson)…
…or don’t want to pitch in New York (Carl Pavano).
Way to be, 2009 Yankees. Way to be.
Yankees Win Causes Wave Of Nostalgia
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The Yankees’ 3-1 victory over the Indians tonight, coupled with the Red Sox’s loss to Toronto, put the Bombers in sole possession of first place for the first time since 2006, according to Brian Hoch’s report on MLB.com. No, a half-game isn’t exactly a runaway lead, but I decided to take a ride in the way-back machine and see what was going on with the Yanks in ’06.
Torre was still the manager and Bernie was still on the roster, and A-Rod was still married to C-Rod as opposed to dating Kate Hudson.
Jeter, Mo and other current Yankees were around, of course. But how about all the bit players, who eventually shuffled off into baseball oblivion? Like…
Bubba Crosby
Sal Fasano
Kevin Thompson
Craig Wilson
And a couple of pitchers who left their mark in very different ways…
Aaron Small
Tanyon Sturtze
Good, good times. But what’s heartening is that the 2009 Yankees are a better team than the 2006 model that won the division, and tonight’s victory over the Indians showed why.
Pettitte may be 37 with an apparently stiff back, and he put runners on base in every inning. But he held the Tribe scoreless for five-plus. Not bad for an end-of-the-rotation guy.
Alfredo Aceves may not be the second coming of Ramiro Mendoza, but he’s been doing a decent imitation. So what if his idol is Dennis Rodman, the mascara-wearing cross-dresser? As long as he leaves the eye makeup at home and gets people out, he’s OK by me.
Jeter has excelled in the leadoff spot, and credit goes to Girardi for flipping him with Damon in the lineup.
Posada came off the DL tonight and promptly went 2-for-3. And Mo? He notched his 58th save for Pettitte, surpassing the duo of Welch and Eckersley. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: he’s a god among men.
Sure, there are big problems with our bullpen and the issue of RISP must be addressed. Still, the 2006 team was stuck with Giambi at first instead of Tex, Wil Nieves as a backup catcher instead of Cervelli/Molina/Cash, and Randy Johnson and Jaret Wright on the mound instead of CC and AJ. This year’s herd is looking better and better.
One final note: the bugs. They were back in Cleveland. No, not in plague-and-pestilence-size quantities; just in little clusters here and there. But what’s up with them? For all I know, they’ll spend the rest of tonight mating, and by tomorrow night Progressive Field will look like this. Please, no.
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Confessions of a She-Fan 