Johnny Damon CF
Derek Jeter SS
Bobby Abreu RF
Alex Rodriguez 3B
Jason Giambi DH
Gary Sheffield 1B
Hideki Matsui LF
Jorge Posada C
Robinson Cano 2B
^ Possibly our line-up for the playoffs... an All-Star in every position...
People may state that there is too much offense in this line-up... what I mean is: Sheffield is a liability at 1B (though apparently, not as big of one as Giambi) and Melky is better defensively than Matsui...
However, I can see only one point being made here: If the Yankees fail to win the World Series with this line-up, it would truly be a team failure on all accounts. No excuses, putting it all on A-Rod (though Sheffield and Matsui didn't come through more often than not during last year's ALDS)... if we lose, it's a team effort, for a team with 9 All-Stars should not be able to make excuses...
Now, off to the game!
Happy reading!
B(rent)
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Saturday, September 23, 2006
Why am I a fan?
Before I start... anyone remember the "How You Doin'" song series that played on Z100 and around the Stadium between 1999 and 2003?
I just found their CD, though I'm not desperate enough to get it.... if you hear the tracks on the CD, you can tell that the songs started to sound played out by 2003...
However, I just wanna hear from Joey Baseballs and Carmanooch one last time, maybe making a version of "How You Doin'" for a possible Subway Series, perhaps? Or even just for the playoffs? It'll be the best thing to hear on Z100 since Justin brought sexy back a few months ago...
But anyway, let's bring it back to the original questions Prez put out there in a forum topic...
1. "So why are you a fan? What made you a fan?"
B(rent)
I just found their CD, though I'm not desperate enough to get it.... if you hear the tracks on the CD, you can tell that the songs started to sound played out by 2003...
However, I just wanna hear from Joey Baseballs and Carmanooch one last time, maybe making a version of "How You Doin'" for a possible Subway Series, perhaps? Or even just for the playoffs? It'll be the best thing to hear on Z100 since Justin brought sexy back a few months ago...
But anyway, let's bring it back to the original questions Prez put out there in a forum topic...
1. "So why are you a fan? What made you a fan?"
When I was growing up, home videos proved that I was groomed to be a Mets fan. I had the Mets jacket, the Mets cap, and I even had the cocky Mets demeanor. I was this way all the way up to 1995. I started to watch TV, especially sports, more heavily than before. In that year, my allegiance within baseball and basketball were made. I became a Yankee fan and a Knicks fan that year. Though I am a disgrunted Knicks fan (screw you, Dolan!), I still love the team, especially doing the Patrick Ewing era. As for the Yankees, if this blog isn't a testament for my love of them, nothing can.2. "What games in you life stand out and you will always remember good and bad?"
What mades me a fan though? Maybe it's how closely I follow the team. Maybe it's the reason why I read the Times, Post and Daily News. Maybe it's the reverence I show for my Mariano Rivera jersey. Maybe it's the fact that I have a "game cap" and my "going out" Yankee caps. Maybe it's that I have so much Yankee stuff on my walls at home and at school that the walls are ready to fall with all the Yankee awesomeness.
But maybe... maybe, it's because the Yankees are a part of my identity as a person. Maybe it's because it brought me so many friends that I never thought I would have. Maybe it's because the Yankees are becoming more of my life every day I write in this blog, see a game, chat at the Yankees Empire, wear my "going out" cap, and go to the Stadium.
What makes me a fan? My love, appreciation, admiration, and dedication to my Yankees, period.
There are so many I can think of, but I'll go with three.3. "Who are some of your favorite players that we let go? Who are some of your favorite flops?"
a) May 10, 2006: I talked about it here, but the reasons why I'll always remember the game: it was my first Yankees/Red Sox game, Schilling got bombed, A-Rod was "clutch" and hit a HR to put us in the lead, and the rush I got from repping my Yankees in the midst of an absurd amount of Red Sox fans in the Stadium.
b) November 4, 2001: Mariano gives up the blooper and Arizona wins the World Series. I remember that I was completely stunned of the moment, but I don't remember being upset really. As cliche as this sounds, we all needed that World Series for obvious reasons. It had absolutely "perfect" games, as perfect as you can get in baseball. You have Game 4 with Jeter's walk-off, you have Game 5 with one of the most clutch performers in Yankee history tying the game with a HR (Brosius), you have the Yankees sending O'Neill with amazing cheering in Game 5, and you have the improbable happen in Game 7. By far, it was the best World Series I have ever seen.
c) October 16-17, 2003: I have been practicing this call almost every day, and I do it for the people on the subway going to Yankee games. Let's see how good I am with this...
"His first at-bat of the game... there's a fly-ball, deep into left, it's on its way, there it goes, and the Yankees are going to the World Series! Aaron Boone has hit a home run! The Yankees go to the World Series for the 39th time in their remarkable history. Aaron Boone, down the left field line. They are waiting for him at home plate, and now, he dives into the scrum! The Yankees win it 6 to 5!
Ball game over! American League Championship Series Over! Yankees win, the Yankees win!"
I just finished my homework when Boone hit his HR. I ran out in my underwear and I celebrated with my mom and grandmother downstairs in the kitchen for 5 minutes. I even ran outside in the house to celebrate... yes, only in my underwear.
It was amazing, to say the least, and a moment I will never forget.
Though I still like A-Rod over Soriano, Soriano is up there. Jon Lieber is up there as well. Andy Pettitte is also up there.4. "Who are the top Yankee players in your lifetime?"
Flops: Brien Taylor. Period.
To state them all is rather silly, so I'll just say Jeter and etc. and just move on.5. "Can you spot a bandwagon fan from a mile away? If so, what do you tell him/her? Are you a classy Yankee fan? Or, do you fit into the "typical Yankee" fan stereotype?"
Whenever I hear the voice of a girl screaming "Jeter! Jeter!" who won't listen to reason or debate, that's my sign to know that the person's a bandwagon fan. I don't say anything to them because it would be useless. I am a classy Yankee fan who gives respect where respect is due. However, I can be a jerk, which can be fun at times. Seriously.6. "How do you feel about our future? Are we building another dynasty? Damon, Jeter, Bobby, Alex, Jason, Matsui, Sheff, Cano, Jorge?"
As EJ from the Fire Joe Torre blog states, we have incredible pitching depth in the minors. Melky, Cano, and Wang shows what our farm system can reap and sow. Unlike the Red Sox (Cla Meredith, Anibal Sanchez, Hanley Ramirez), we didn't deal our cream-of-the-crops within our farm system. As more teams are paying and buying players as well as increasing payroll (the Mets and Blue Jays, among others), the Yankees did their best to reduce their payroll by 10 million dollars by Opening Day this year.Happy reading!
We're going on the right track. As my high school principal used to say about us at Paramus Catholic, "there's no better time to be a Yankee fan."
B(rent)
If I had to make up the postseason roster for the Yankees...
It would be a little different than what Torre probably has planned out...
Let's start simple and put in the ones that just have to be on the roster:
Jeter, A-Rod, Cano, Posada, Matsui, Abreu, Damon, and Melky... that's a simple 8 right there...
Wang, Mussina and Johnson makes it 11... Rivera, Farnsworth, Proctor, and Myers makes it 15...
That gives some questions to be answered:
1. Sheffield will be on the roster, which will make it 16, but in what condition? It all depends on how Giambi responds from his time off this weekend... a torn ligament in your wrist is not exactly the easiest injury to rebound from, and, at this point, I sincerely just want to use Giambi as the DH and DH only, putting Sheffield at 1st...
That makes the roster 17...
2. Wright over Lidle as the 4th starter, making it 18... Lidle's last start against Tampa Bay settled his fate, though I personally love the guy and his 4th/5th starter stuff... will Lidle stay on the postseason roster? I would say maybe, as an emergency starter... making the roster turn to 19...
But Lidle over Rasner and Karstens? Karstens doesn't have strong stuff, but what he can do is get you strikes and get ahead of hitters, which is always dangerous. However, the Tigers and Twins aren't exactly the most patient of teams when it comes to hitters. Karstens has the stuff that can fool teams that are patient (i.e. the Red Sox), but other teams can jump on.
Rasner's been great, and if Torre takes him over Lidle, I won't be pissed off about it. Rasner has been quite effective, even on 3-day's rest, getting the win on the 18th in place of Lidle, yielding 3 runs. If Lidle is still injured, Rasner > Lidle and Karstens... I want to wait until Lidle comes back to say him definitely, but if Lidle struggles, Rasner should go in... it depends on how things go in the next couple of days...
3. Fasano's getting on the roster, making it 20... you gotta have a good back-up catcher, especially with Posada and the risk of injury... you also need a back-up infielder, so Cairo, come on down, you got 21...
4. Villone and Bruney are almost guaranteed spots due to Villone's great start and lefty arm (you know how Torre likes his lefties), and Bruney's success so far this year... that makes the roster 23...
5. I completely forgot all about Bernie... oh ye Yankee gods, please forgive me!
So let's recap: I have picked 24 players with 11 pitchers... here comes a big question: What else to do?
You have Wilson, Phillips, and Guiel to bring up... and let's not forget Rasner... 4 players, 1 spots... who gets in?
To me, you gotta take a back-up first baseman... however, I also am pulling to bring up a 12th pitcher...
At this point, I will take Wilson over Phillips for Wilson's more "seasoned", has more experience, fields better (.990 to .989, career-wise), and I have more confidence in his bat than Phillips...
I still feel conflicted with one idea: taking Guiel or Rasner... Guiel has played 11 games at 1st base this year and has not committed an error... if there was someway Torre can use Guiel as a defensive sub for these next few games to see how Guiel can really do at 1st, I'll take him...
However, maybe I'm just slap-happy over Guiel's 2-run blast last night, and not seeing who he really is: a very useful utility player who left the Royals for good, and has gotten better while wearing pinstripes... ahhhh! *sighs*
Let's be reasonable here: I'll take Wilson as my 25th... giving you guys your 25-man playoff roster...
If you can envision the starting line-up for game 1 against the Tigers (I hope) or Twins, here is what you have:
Damon CF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
Giambi DH
A-Rod 3B
Matsui LF
Sheffield 1B
Cano 2B
Posada C
Cabrera back-up OF(!)
Williams back-up OF
Wilson back-up 1B
Cairo back-up IF
Fasano back-up C
Wang (starter for game 1)
Mussina (game 2)
Johnson (game 3)
Wright (game 4, if needed)
Lidle or Rasner (emergency starter/long reliever)
Villone (Torre's whipping boy... I mean, Torre's next Paul Quantrill... I mean! Nevermind!)
Proctor (a man who found his groove as the middle reliever, and whose arm hasn't fallen off... yet)
Myers (left-handed specialist who has pitched to quite a number of righties lately... hmm...)
Bruney (everything that Farnsworth is with one added spice: he has balls... and he's younger too)
Farnsworth (a ball-less version of Bruney)
Rivera (Greatest of all time... closers, that is)
Ok, even if my starting line-up doesn't work out, think about this for one second: Cano, the man with the 3rd best batting average in the league (he will be qualified soon) will be batting 8th or even 9th!
Let that soak into your minds and hearts... ok? Ok! Think about this as well: the man who is only 2 points behind Ichiro in OBP... is our back-up outfielder!
This line-up can either be one of the best hitting line-up ever to win the World Series, or the best hitting line-up not to win the World Series, simple as that. Within that line-up, you have 9 former or current All-Stars hitting up and down that line-up... from Damon to Posada, you have all All-Stars! How sick is that?
Expect a post with questions answered from Prez on the next post...
And now... some music before you guys leave...
Here's some of the NWO Wolfpac Theme, as a tribute to Giambi, his time to heal, and the new song that pumps me up before every Yankee game... :-)
Happy reading!
B(rent)
Let's start simple and put in the ones that just have to be on the roster:
Jeter, A-Rod, Cano, Posada, Matsui, Abreu, Damon, and Melky... that's a simple 8 right there...
Wang, Mussina and Johnson makes it 11... Rivera, Farnsworth, Proctor, and Myers makes it 15...
That gives some questions to be answered:
1. Sheffield will be on the roster, which will make it 16, but in what condition? It all depends on how Giambi responds from his time off this weekend... a torn ligament in your wrist is not exactly the easiest injury to rebound from, and, at this point, I sincerely just want to use Giambi as the DH and DH only, putting Sheffield at 1st...
That makes the roster 17...
2. Wright over Lidle as the 4th starter, making it 18... Lidle's last start against Tampa Bay settled his fate, though I personally love the guy and his 4th/5th starter stuff... will Lidle stay on the postseason roster? I would say maybe, as an emergency starter... making the roster turn to 19...
But Lidle over Rasner and Karstens? Karstens doesn't have strong stuff, but what he can do is get you strikes and get ahead of hitters, which is always dangerous. However, the Tigers and Twins aren't exactly the most patient of teams when it comes to hitters. Karstens has the stuff that can fool teams that are patient (i.e. the Red Sox), but other teams can jump on.
Rasner's been great, and if Torre takes him over Lidle, I won't be pissed off about it. Rasner has been quite effective, even on 3-day's rest, getting the win on the 18th in place of Lidle, yielding 3 runs. If Lidle is still injured, Rasner > Lidle and Karstens... I want to wait until Lidle comes back to say him definitely, but if Lidle struggles, Rasner should go in... it depends on how things go in the next couple of days...
3. Fasano's getting on the roster, making it 20... you gotta have a good back-up catcher, especially with Posada and the risk of injury... you also need a back-up infielder, so Cairo, come on down, you got 21...
4. Villone and Bruney are almost guaranteed spots due to Villone's great start and lefty arm (you know how Torre likes his lefties), and Bruney's success so far this year... that makes the roster 23...
5. I completely forgot all about Bernie... oh ye Yankee gods, please forgive me!
So let's recap: I have picked 24 players with 11 pitchers... here comes a big question: What else to do?
You have Wilson, Phillips, and Guiel to bring up... and let's not forget Rasner... 4 players, 1 spots... who gets in?
To me, you gotta take a back-up first baseman... however, I also am pulling to bring up a 12th pitcher...
At this point, I will take Wilson over Phillips for Wilson's more "seasoned", has more experience, fields better (.990 to .989, career-wise), and I have more confidence in his bat than Phillips...
I still feel conflicted with one idea: taking Guiel or Rasner... Guiel has played 11 games at 1st base this year and has not committed an error... if there was someway Torre can use Guiel as a defensive sub for these next few games to see how Guiel can really do at 1st, I'll take him...
However, maybe I'm just slap-happy over Guiel's 2-run blast last night, and not seeing who he really is: a very useful utility player who left the Royals for good, and has gotten better while wearing pinstripes... ahhhh! *sighs*
Let's be reasonable here: I'll take Wilson as my 25th... giving you guys your 25-man playoff roster...
If you can envision the starting line-up for game 1 against the Tigers (I hope) or Twins, here is what you have:
Damon CF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
Giambi DH
A-Rod 3B
Matsui LF
Sheffield 1B
Cano 2B
Posada C
Cabrera back-up OF(!)
Williams back-up OF
Wilson back-up 1B
Cairo back-up IF
Fasano back-up C
Wang (starter for game 1)
Mussina (game 2)
Johnson (game 3)
Wright (game 4, if needed)
Lidle or Rasner (emergency starter/long reliever)
Villone (Torre's whipping boy... I mean, Torre's next Paul Quantrill... I mean! Nevermind!)
Proctor (a man who found his groove as the middle reliever, and whose arm hasn't fallen off... yet)
Myers (left-handed specialist who has pitched to quite a number of righties lately... hmm...)
Bruney (everything that Farnsworth is with one added spice: he has balls... and he's younger too)
Farnsworth (a ball-less version of Bruney)
Rivera (Greatest of all time... closers, that is)
Ok, even if my starting line-up doesn't work out, think about this for one second: Cano, the man with the 3rd best batting average in the league (he will be qualified soon) will be batting 8th or even 9th!
Let that soak into your minds and hearts... ok? Ok! Think about this as well: the man who is only 2 points behind Ichiro in OBP... is our back-up outfielder!
This line-up can either be one of the best hitting line-up ever to win the World Series, or the best hitting line-up not to win the World Series, simple as that. Within that line-up, you have 9 former or current All-Stars hitting up and down that line-up... from Damon to Posada, you have all All-Stars! How sick is that?
Expect a post with questions answered from Prez on the next post...
And now... some music before you guys leave...
Here's some of the NWO Wolfpac Theme, as a tribute to Giambi, his time to heal, and the new song that pumps me up before every Yankee game... :-)
Happy reading!
B(rent)
Friday, September 22, 2006
A little "Did you know?" coming your way...
Do you know that the teams with the 2nd, 3rd and 4th highest payrolls in the MLB will most likely not make the playoffs this year?
Those teams are the Red Sox, Angels, and White Sox, respectfully...
The team with the 5th highest payroll is the Mets, and the Yankees obviously have the 1st...
What does this mean?
Though the Red Sox have Ortiz and Manny, and have Schilling and Beckett, and all that, the Red Sox have absolutely no depth... the Yankees went down with a rash of injuries and still held their ground, while the Red Sox flopped through their injuries...
I'll leave you tonight with that thought... :-)
Happy reading!
B(rent)
Those teams are the Red Sox, Angels, and White Sox, respectfully...
The team with the 5th highest payroll is the Mets, and the Yankees obviously have the 1st...
What does this mean?
Though the Red Sox have Ortiz and Manny, and have Schilling and Beckett, and all that, the Red Sox have absolutely no depth... the Yankees went down with a rash of injuries and still held their ground, while the Red Sox flopped through their injuries...
I'll leave you tonight with that thought... :-)
Happy reading!
B(rent)
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
My second hiatus has ended and now, I begin again...
These hiatuses will probably only happen during the weekends and maybe, through midterms/final exams/big days with HW... but that's understandable, right?
Hmm, to go a bit off-topic, I sent my blog and my notice to the Sports editor for my school's local newspaper, and I still haven't gotten a reply back... now, I have no desire to bitch and complain about wanting to get on the newspaper, but the newspaper's known for not being responsive...
Clearly, I find it irresponsible not to get a reply back... but meh, if I don't get anything, it's, more or less, their loss and I move on...
Expect a Yankees Empire post from Thursday's game today along with my thoughts on the Boston series, and tonight's game, with the magic number being...
1!
Happy reading!
B(rent)
Hmm, to go a bit off-topic, I sent my blog and my notice to the Sports editor for my school's local newspaper, and I still haven't gotten a reply back... now, I have no desire to bitch and complain about wanting to get on the newspaper, but the newspaper's known for not being responsive...
Clearly, I find it irresponsible not to get a reply back... but meh, if I don't get anything, it's, more or less, their loss and I move on...
Expect a Yankees Empire post from Thursday's game today along with my thoughts on the Boston series, and tonight's game, with the magic number being...
1!
Happy reading!
B(rent)
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