Results are In!

Hello again readers, and thank you for voting in this week's poll! I asked everyone to vote on who they thought the Yankees will have to watch out for the most in 2008. The results of this poll did not surprise me in the least bit, but I was hoping for more of a mix. The Red Sox finished first in the poll, being one of two teams that received any votes. The other team the readers voted for was the Detroit Tigers, who finished in a close second.

I expected the Red Sox and the Tigers to get the most votes in this poll, but I was slightly surprised to see that the Indians (the team who ended the Yankees' season last year) did not get one single vote. The Indians are a very young team with quite a bit of talent as they proved in '07. A year ago they were right on the cusp of being in the World Series, and I predict they will be just a big factor in the A.L. again this season.

I also thought maybe I would get one of you crazy readers out there to vote for Seattle. The Mariners are back, featuring some good young ball players coupled with two very solid young arms. If everyone stays healthy, and the young guys don't make too many stupid mistakes, the Mariners could make a serious run in the American League.

I put the Angels on this poll before Kelvim Escobar's injury... with him on the shelf, I don't see them being much of a contender.

Overall, I really believe that the Yankees could have to end up worrying about all of these teams, minus the Angels of Anaheim. Everyone else has the talent or experience, or both to give the Yankees a serious run for their money.

Opening Day - Red Sox vs. A's in Japan (Despite Boston's Threat)

Despite the threat of the Boston Red Sox last week, Major League Baseball's opening day went off without a hitch at 6:00 am this morning. I obviously did not enjoy the outcome of today's game (Boston 6 - Oakland 5 F/10), but it was an exciting game. A's closer Huston Street took a blown save and a loss, while hometown hero, Hideki Okajima got the win for Boston. Although Boston walked away with a win, I was still very happy to see Daisuke Matsuzaka struggle... I can only hope its the shape of things to come.

With all that being said about the game, I would like to revisit what went on leading up to this trip. I was not only shocked, but appalled by the threat issued by the Red Sox last week. Let me start by describing the situation that triggered this threat. In the last two seasons, MLB's opening series has been Japan, with the all players as well as all the coaches and trainers each receiving a special bonus for the trip. This year's agreement between the Player's Association and MLB did include a special bonus for the trainers and coaches of each team (Red Sox/A's). Now, the Red Sox organization did not realize or did not pay attention to the change in this year's contract, and assumed that all of their trainers and coaches would be receiving the bonus. The day the Red Sox were supposed to be boarding a plane for the trip, they were made aware of this change, causing the players to threaten to not get on the plane for Japan. The Red Sox not only said they would not be boarding the plane for Japan, but they would not even take the field for their Spring Training game against the Dodgers unless their demands were met, and the trainers and coaches received the same bonus the players were getting. Eventually, the league agreed to pay half of each $40,000 bonus for the trainers and coaches, and the Red Sox organization picked up the other half.

If you are wondering why I mentioned earlier that I was shocked and appalled, its quite simple. It now appears as though ransoms can be held by baseball teams over the league. Or at least the Red Sox can hold up the league for a ransom. This move by the players was ridiculously glorified by ESPN, reporting on this as though the Red Sox stood up to the stingy, penny-pinching bully known as Major League Baseball. As usual, ESPN shined the most positive light possible on actions taken by the Red Sox. In this instance, they marveled at the players who were bold enough to make MLB pay up. Keep in mind, that this was all a misunderstanding, and I am being generous when I say that. Boston simply didn't take enough time to understand the contract that the Player's Association signed off on. They assumed that bonuses were included for their trainers/coaches, and then uninformed Red Sox players (Mike Lowell), claimed that MLB pulled back the bonuses in the 11th hour. This couldn't be further from the truth, the fact is, they were never included in this year's bonus package.

I have a laundry list of problems with this entire situation. This was one of the most outrageous events I've ever heard of in sports. My immediate reaction upon hearing that the Red Sox were not going to go to Japan unless the bonuses were paid was, "Who the hell do they think they are?! They're putting a gun to the head of Major League Baseball, and telling them to empty their pockets!" Not only was I furious over the act undertaken by the Red Sox, but I was further enraged by the way ESPN praised the players for taking this "stand". This wasn't a noble action... noble action would've been a few of the millionaires on the Red Sox, or in the Red Sox front office telling their trainers and coaches, "Don't worry about it, we'll take care of you." These bonuses were chump change for most of the organization's members. If they were so concerned with the money going to their trainers/coaches, why didn't they cough some of it up themselves? After all, trainers and coaches take care of the players as their job, why couldn't the players return the favor?

This was the most obvious example of ESPN's favoritism involving the Boston Red Sox. Do any of you readers believe that the Yankees would have been so heavily praised if they had put a ransom out for those bonuses? I feel like if the Yankees did this, they would've have been buried by the ESPN reporters, claiming that the "Evil Empire" was just looking for more money even though they have so much. It was almost surreal to me watching ESPN's coverage of this ultimatum. I couldn't believe what I was seeing... it was as if everyone had gone crazy but me.

For those of you who are still under the impression that the Red Sox did something noble, please tell me where you can draw the line on what is acceptable in future matters like this. From now on, is it ok for teams to just not take the field if there is some sort of monetary dispute? Say a team wants to move cities at the end of a season, but the league won't approve it, can that team just not play games until the league agrees? What happens if the $40,000 isn't a good enough bonus for next year's teams competing in the opening series? You can see where I'm going with this... where does baseball go from here? What will setting this precedent lead to? All I know is that this ransom should not have happened nor should it have been celebrated by ESPN. Plain and simple... this was a black eye for baseball.

Results Are In!

Hello readers, and thank you to all of you that participated in my most recent poll. This poll was a simple question; "Who should start opening day?". The five choices were Wang, Pettitte, Hughes, Kennedy, and Mussina. The results were in line with my feelings at the top. I am a firm believer that Wang deserves the opening day start. After all, he is the ace of this staff. I've been a big fan of Chien-ming ever since his debut... it's pretty hard to find a 95 MPH sinker ball. Hopefully Wang can turn in another season worthy of Cy Young consideration in 2008.

Since making this poll, things for the Yankee pitching staff have been looking up. Pettitte, Kennedy, and even Mussina have pitched well. Mussina has been particularly good, which probably surprised many of you... I know it surprised me. If you were around me last season, you probably would've heard me call for Mike Mussina's head. I was so down on him after his whining about Japan, and I feel like he never recovered from the trip. He is still a baby in my book, but this year he doesn't have to travel to Asia. Let's keep in mind that he might look like the Mussina of old in '08, which is a scary thought if I'm in the A.L.

Thanks again to everyone who voted in the poll... keep checking out BronxBomers08. The new poll is on it's way.

Hank Speaks!

Recently I received a request to react to the comments Hank Steinbrenner made regarding Red Sox Nation and ESPN. Thank you for your request, John E. I appreciate your interest, and I will gladly speak on this topic. I would also like to thank you because you gave me the idea for "Hank Speaks!" - which will be the title of newest segment of the blog. If there is a debate on something I blog under the title of "Let's Settle It", and if a poll closes I blog about the results under the "Results Are In!" title. Now, whenever Hank has something to say, I will react to his words under my "Hank Speaks!" title.

For those of you who didn't read or hear what Hank had to say about Red Sox Nation, allow me re-introduce a point I made a long time ago. When the "Nation" was created overnight after Boston's '04 WS victory, I was outraged. ESPN had finally shown its true colors. I was always under the impression that the Bristol, CT based company had some sort of bias for the Red Sox. Almost everything the Sox did was viewed in a positive light; they were praised from every angle, win or lose. In 2003, Aaron Boone hit perhaps the most heroic home run of all-time, and all I heard the next day on ESPN was how such a great franchise in baseball was still cursed. It seems to me that the attention should have been on the A.L. pennant winners, the New York Yankees. Instead, I got to see Dan Shaughnessy cry, as well as listen to Peter Gammons talk about how bright the future was for Boston. Despite all that, it was only in '04 that ESPN stopped trying to hide whose side they're on.

ESPN, like every other Red Sox fan that was hiding under a rock for 30 years, decided to celebrate the end of the curse in full force. In what seemed like an overnight phenomenon, "Red Sox Nation" was born. Sports Center anchors started referring to the Red Sox as the "Nation", while the term "Empire" was used for the Yankees. This was of course in reference to Larry Lucchino's remarks about the Yankees being an Evil Empire, buying up players and blah blah. I even started to see red wristbands with the words "Red Sox Nation" on them. This nation didn't even exist until the Sox won it all, and the ridiculous part is, it will fade if the Red Sox are ever bad again. This wasn't some secret society waiting to make it's debut... this was people jumping on a bandwagon, nothing more.

Moving on to what Hank actually said, please read the following quote on Red Sox Nation, compliments of Wikipedia. "Red Sox Nation? What a bunch of bullsh*t that is...That was a creation of the Red Sox and ESPN, which is filled with Red Sox fans...Go anywhere in America and you won't see Red Sox hats and jackets, you'll see Yankee hats and jackets. This is a Yankee country. We're going to put the Yankees back on top and restore the universe to order."

These were the words of Hank Steinbrenner earlier this month. For those of you who know me, and even for those of you that don't know me who have been reading this blog, you should have no trouble believing that I whole-heartedly agree with Mr. Steinbrenner. This is a true Yankee country, despite ESPN's attempts to change that. ESPN has made it fashionable to be a Red Sox fan for the time being, while taking nearly every opportunity to throw the Yankees under the bus. If the Yankees do come out on top this year, I assure everyone that order in the universe will indeed be restored.

I look forward to hearing more of what Hank has to say this season. I doubt he'll ever leave me hanging too long without a new set of comments. He's always got something to say, and hopefully the fiery new attitude is just what the Dr. ordered.

Did Joe Girardi Cause Brawl?

If there was one thing I didn't want to see already, it was Joe Girardi mis-handling a situation. Joe Torre seemingly never had a bad read on a situation, so he always knew what to say to the media. I had a feeling Girardi would slip up in his media handling, I just didn't expect it so soon.

Let's go over Girardi's problem with a hard collision at home in spring training. I was pretty surprised to hear those words coming from Joe Girardi. The same Joe Girardi that played a hard-nosed brand of baseball his entire career. I am a big fan of the new Yankees manager, but I really believe that he was wrong for speaking out on this. I understand that a young catcher had his wrist broken, but there is more to consider in this situation. The no-name on the Rays (Elliot Johnson) must play hard in spring training... it's all he has. The spring is the only time he'll get to prove he can cut it in the show. If he didn't go all out on that play, and got thrown out, he probably would've found a red tag in his locker upon returning to the clubhouse. A player like Elliot Johnson must make good on every opportunity to have an impact. It's not like his hit was illegal. It was a good, clean hit, and Girardi of all people should have realized that. I think Joe was just upset because a young kid got injured, leading to an emotional response in the media. When will people learn that emotional reactions and the NY media make for a deadly combination?

Moving on to yesterday's brawl. I think that the tone set fourth by Girardi led to the altercation. Speaking from experience, when the manager of a baseball team makes statements in public, it is usually the tip of the iceberg. Recently, there have been a number of outbursts at podiums and so on, but those are rare cases. Most times, head coaches and managers save up all that yelling and screaming for the clubhouse. It's my belief that Girardi had quite a bit to say about retaliation prior to yesterday's rematch with the Rays. It was clear that there was an edge in the personality of the Yankees in round 2. Shelley Duncan has every right to be upset that his teammate was injured, they're probably even friends from Duncan's minor league days. But Duncan's slide was ludicrous. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw it for the first time... if you haven't seen the slide, let me paint a picture. Shelley is pretty clearly going to be thrown out trying to leg out a double. He approaches the bag, the throw comes in to Akinori Iwamuri (Rays' infielder). Realizing he's dead to rights, Duncan basically jump kicks as he "slides". Fact is his spikes were up to Iwamuri's waist, and he was tossed immediately for it. Standing up for your team is one thing, but Shelley was retaliating for an injury, not a dirty play. I think we should ask the injured catcher if he thinks the hit was dirty. I'll bet as he was awaiting the throw, he wasn't saying to himself; "Don't worry, its spring training. He won't hit me." In fact, I'm certain he expected the hit, as all catchers are trained to do.

It's unfortunate that a clean play led to a brawl, but it takes two to tango. If you know me, you have probably heard me say that I think Johnny Gomes is a steroid user. He came out of nowhere, putting up solid HR totals, and weighing in at 225lbs of muscle. I think he saw Duncan's slide and blew a fuse. Steroids are the only way I can explain the right fielder starting a brawl at second base. It was either 'roid rage, or baseball players really aren't as smart as they used to be.

I will say that I'm happy to see some fire from the Yankees, but I think I would've enjoyed Joe Torre's reaction to the broken wrist on this one. A calm, rational response from an old-time ball player was appropriate here... in my opinion at least. As for the question posed in the title of this post, I do believe that Girardi played a role in instigating this incident.

Results Are In!

Hello everyone, and thank you for participating in my most recent poll! The poll question was something that I thought was an important topic for the Yankees to consider. Who should start at first base in 2008? I offered four choices including Giambi, Duncan, Betemit. The fourth option was a free agent signing, but it appears as if that will have to wait at this point.

The results from the poll were somewhat surprising to me. First of all, the readers of this blog impressed me by giving Jason Giambi 50% of the vote. Finishing in a close second was Shelley, taking home 37% of the vote. I am not all that surprised by your selections at the top, but I expected Betemit to do a little better in this one. Mr. Wilson received zero votes... zero! Not one of you out there thinks he can fill in at first a little better than Shelley? My thoughts here are that Betemit is a decent back-up at 3B and SS, making a move over to the "not so hot corner" fairly easy. Betemit has also been around for a while in the bigs, so with consistent at bats you can expect some decent output at the plate.

Now don't get me wrong, Shelley has a lot of qualities that make him a reasonable choice in this poll. He's a big target over there, and has shown quite a bit of pop with the bat. Shelley will certainly see some time at 1B this season, but I really expected Wilson to be closer in votes.

My thoughts about who should start at 1B seem to be in line with you the voters. It's no secret that I have always believed Giambi was underrated on defense. His throws aren't always pin point, but he can be pretty nifty with the leather. I used to play the 1B position, and when working on defense I always kept in mind that I wanted to be the guy the infielders were happy throwing to. What I mean here is that guys aren't worried about making the perfect throw. I feel like the Yankees infield can be happy to throw to Giambi. He's a big target, but that's not all. He can save a high throw, and he's pretty consistent when it comes to scooping those worm burners. Overall, I believe that Jason Giambi should be the starting first-basemen, but I strongly support giving him a lot of days as the DH. If I were Girardi, I'd work Shelley and/or Betemit in often.

I would like to thank everyone who voted, and I invite you all to vote in this week's poll!

Hey Readers!

For those of you who have been eagerly awaiting posts I would like to apologize. I have been out of the country for a week and did not have internet access. But I'm back and feeling better than ever! More posts and polls are on the way!

Tune in this week as I will be discussing the question mark at first base, and by the request of John E, I'll share my thoughts on Hank. Again, my apologies for this past week... new post tomorrow!