Posts Tagged ‘Yankees’
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When Bad Things Happen To Good PeopleJuly 31st, 2008
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Pudge in pinstripes? That doesn’t just look wrong. That looks “Ramon Vazquez moustache” wrong. That looks “Solid Gold Brett Favre Commemorative Retirement Coin” wrong. That looks “Rosanne-Barr-in-a-thong” wrong.
Like Julio Franco, Pudge is one of our guys, even if the Hall of Fame plaque has a Tigers or a Marlins cap on the man. He grew up here, he was our hero, and he was a main cog on the best teams the Rangers ever trotted out there. For a little while, we were all sure that he was going to stay with Texas, finding a way to finish his career here, ending up with what the purists call a “clean” baseball card, only one team listed on the back.
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Wild Card FeverJuly 27th, 2008
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American League - Wild Card Standings
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Team |
W |
L |
PCT |
GB |
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59 |
42 |
.584 |
- |
|
|
60 |
43 |
.583 |
- |
|
|
56 |
45 |
.554 |
3.0 |
|
|
55 |
46 |
.545 |
4.0 |
|
|
52 |
49 |
.515 |
7.0 |
|
|
52 |
49 |
.515 |
7.0 |
|
|
52 |
50 |
.510 |
7.5 |
|
|
51 |
51 |
.500 |
8.5 |
|
|
48 |
53 |
.475 |
11.0 |
|
|
46 |
57 |
.447 |
14.0 |
|
|
44 |
56 |
.440 |
14.5 |
|
|
38 |
63 |
.376 |
21.0
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That’s right. Read it and weep. If you are watching the scoreboard, you already see the future. Here come the Rangers, out of the gate after the All-Star break like a “Ron Paul for President ‘08″ campaign wagon. After crushing the Twins and the WSox, taking one out of three in each series, Texas is sitting right where they want to sit, on the fringes of the Wild Card race, lulling the 8 teams in front of them into a false sense of security and waiting to pounce. Read more
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(The Sound of Fingers Drumming on a Table)May 30th, 2008
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I’m bored. I hate off days. And if you add an off day to an afternoon game the day before, that means two nights without a game to watch. Sure, there are other teams on the television, but it’s not the same. It’s not our team.
For six months, baseball on the radio or on TV provides the steady background noise of our lives. The announcers are our friends, or at very worst, our annoying won’t-shut-up relatives (Big “hi” to Josh Lewin!) who finally kind of grow on us. You reflexively reach for the radio, trying to remember what time the game starts, or bounce back and forth trying to find which channel is televising the game before you remember: Off day.
The players need a break. We understand that. No one would ask them to play 162 games in a row without a day off. Heck, Seattle could use a couple of weeks off, sleep in late, try and find somewhere to get a nice cup of coffee and put their season back together. The Padres deserve some comp time for all of the 18- and 22-inning games they’ve been playing lately. And to be honest, the “Lost” finale was going to eat up two hours tonight anyway. But come Monday, June 9th, I’m going to miss the Rangers, even if they deserve the day off….
A Few Other Notes: Read more
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Does playing for the A’s lead to the Hall of Fame?May 27th, 2008
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What is it about the Athletics franchise and the Hall of Fame? I was thinking about this the other day when Mike Piazza announced his retirement. What I wanted to know was how many players in baseball history played for the A’s franchise and were also enshrined in baseball’s Hall of Fame. What I came across was outstanding.
In the A’s 41 year history in Oakland, 11 players, coaches, or managers have passed through the green and gold before going on to the Hall of Fame. In addition to them, at least five (Mark McGwire, Tony La Russa, Rickey Henderson, Frank Thomas, and Piazza) more have made stops that are not eligible yet or are on the ballot but have yet to be selected.
Some of those players spent long portions of their career in Oakland (Reggie Jackson, Dennis Eckersley, Rollie Fingers, Catfish Hunter and Dick Willliams) while others were here for anywhere from a season to few months to a couple of games (Joe Morgan, Willie McCovey, Orlando Cepeda, Don Sutton, Goose Gossage and even Joe Dimaggio). These players are not all there is though. This is just the Oakland side of it. DiMaggio was a coach with the A’s after he retired and Williams was a manager for the A’s.
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California Doesn’t Exist to the MediaMay 15th, 2008
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*soapbox speech begins*
California used to be an important place: home to Hollywood, the place to see all the major stars, the place of movie productions, the place of television stations and filming, the place of music industry and radio… but not only media. It’s also the place of constant summer, the pacific ocean, Disneyland, and skiing only another hour drive away. Not to mention, the third-largest commercial economy in the world.
It used to be that everyone was in love with California, especially the “OC” (though I, being myself from LA, don’t really much understand the hype). But lately, us Angels fans should be feeling a bit dejected.
I often look to sports news and television to keep up with the rest of baseball which regional television prevents me from seeing on a daily basis. However, the more and more I read, the more media bias I see, and the more sickened I become. I understand that everything has an inherent bias. We all have our opinion of things, and we’re all entitled so. But the purpose of media is to present facts and information to all audiences. And without reliability, honesty, and timeliness, news loses credibility. As of late, the media has really been losing it, at least for me.
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My PredictionsApril 3rd, 2008
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Here’s a rundown of the AL teams and how I think they will fare this year: (NL will come tomorrow)
Baltimore Orioles: Last year, they lost 93 games, but I see improvement this year. I think they reach at least 100. The pitching will help them immensely in this category, as Cabrera, Trachsel, and Burres are good for at least 40 losses combined. And, once they pawn off Roberts for 30 cents on the dollar, it’s “2010 here we come!” Outlook: last place.
Boston Red Sox: In what might be a classic let down year for the Red Sox, well, it might actually happen. Beckett could be hurt, Dice-K could be average, and Ortiz, Ramirez, Lowell, and Drew are another year older. Then again, they have an influx of stud youngsters in Ellsbury, Pedroia, Buchholz and Lester, and I don’t see the Yankees dominating this year. Besides, if Beckett gets hurt, the Red Sox have Bartolo Colon waiting for the wing-eating contest in the wings, so that’s gotta count for something, right? They’ll win the division.
Chicago White Sox: The White Sox are filled with aging veterans who “know how to play the game.” Unfortunately, with age comes forgetfulness, and most of them forgot how to play last year en route to a 72-90 record. This year, they’ll prove the theory, “you-can’t-remind-an-old-dog-how-to-do-tricks-he-once-knew-but-has-since-forgotten,” and finish fourth in the Central. They’ll be lucky to win 75 games.
Cleveland Indians: I love this team. The depth is outstanding. In the rotation, Sowers, Laffey, and Adam Miller could fill in for an injury (or an HGH suspension). Ben Francisco, Shin-Soo Choo and Josh Barfield are all major league ready minor leaguers right now, not to mention Kelly Shoppach is a pretty good backup catcher. The bullpen is outstanding, save for Borowski, who does just that. The Indians could win 100 games this year, and are my pick for the Central title, the Pennant, and the World Series. Then again, I am a bit of a homer…