Magnificent Bastard

Here we go again.



Joe Torre might not be the smartest manager alive when it comes to Xs and Os. He might not be able to win any beauty contests. He might like to ruin the arms of certain relievers. However, you have to give the man credit. He knows how to pick a team.

He took over the Yankees when they were on the precipice of a dynasty and promptly won a World Series in his first year managing the Yankees after only posting a winning record in five of his previous fourteen years as a manager with no playoff appearances. A long time later, he is heralded as one of the greatest human beings ever to live on this planet and rumor has it that he shits gold nuggets.

Now, he takes over the reigns of a team that arguably is positioned for the best five to ten year run out of any team in the big leagues. No only do they have purchasing power, but they have insane prospects all over. Outfield, infield, the rotation, and the bullpen. If the Dodgers play their cards right, they could have a little mini-dynasty themselves over the next few years and guess who will only be adding to their legacy?

Yes, Joe Torre. After only notching a .500 or better record in five of fourteen years previous to becoming the Yankees skipper, he notched twelve straight winning seasons with a trip to the playoffs in every season. Now, he stands to build up his resume and continue piling up wins and playoff appearances while sitting in sunny LA. Make no mistake, he will miss the electricity of being around New York fans, but I do not think he will be complaining all that much.

* * *

Easley is back and he should be welcomed back by all. I thought he was great for the team and a valuable piece.

Here is a thought....if the Mets truly want to pursue A-Rod, tell him he can play first base for the New York Mets. If it comes down to money and the Mets are the most generous, then great. Let him choose to play for the Mets or third base for someone else. I think the Mets should be done asking their more than capable future MVPs to move anywhere.

Moises is back in what was no brainer move #1 for the Mets.

Four or five years for a 37-year old catcher coming off of a career year? No thanks. I know he could slide down to first at any time after this year, but he does not nearly put up the offense for first and people should not get blinded by his 2007 season, which is far out of line with his previous years. He batted over .280 exactly twice and never above .290. He also only slugged over .500 once prior to last season. Did he just become a vastly better hitter in '07? Doubtful. These things happen and I am not sure Posada would be worth what it would take to get him here. The Mets might be paying Delgado money to him to put up Delgado's '07 numbers at first for a while. Jorge loses all his value when he is not catching and history does not bod well for 37+ year old catchers.

Curt Schilling is eying the Mets.

Here is the deal. If the Mets shift The Duque to the pen and were looking to bring Glavine back, get Schilling. No need to go down the Glavine road again as it is time they break ties with him and Schilling has the ability to be worlds more effective at this point in his career.

Nate Silver hits the nail on the head.

What They Should Do: Weak Buy. Repeat after me: There is no need to panic. The Mets absolutely have to find themselves a catcher, since Paul Lo Duca and Ramon Castro are free agents. They were wise to re-sign Moises Alou in left field, but should not do the same with Shawn Green in right, instead leaving the job to Lastings Milledge. And they may need to sign or re-sign a second baseman, as Ruben Gotay might or might not be a capable regular. But none of those swaps should require a substantial increase in payroll, and the starting pitching isn't the disaster that it seems, since even assuming that Tom Glavine departs, Pedro Martinez has been resuscitated to take his place. Sure, it wouldn't hurt if the Mets increased their spending a little, giving the 3.8 million fans who turned out to Shea Stadium last year something to chew on. But with CitiField set to open in 2009, it's more the talk radio jocks than the fans that need to be placated.

What They Will Do: Strong Buy. It's not like Omar Minaya needs many excuses to be aggressive, and he'll have several after the Mets' flop in September. Mets fans will have to hope that youngsters such as Milledge and Fernando Martinez aren't collateral damage.

Righteous.

Quick aside...I sometimes enter words in google to check their spelling. Apparently, my first spelling of it was wrong and this is what came up:

1. richeous

A misspelling of the word righteous. Dumbass.

You spelled righteous richeous, you are a a dumbass.

Random Tidbits 10-30-07

The Yankees are again dominating the news with the never ending drama that is the Yankees. A-Rod is out, Torre is out, Mattingly will be out, and Girardi is in.

Some think that A-Rod is the answer for the Mets, but that has to be one of the more preposterous things that I have read. Him on the team does not guarantee anything and could end up being a hindrance when they really need to open their pockets for something that they actually need, which is not a third baseman. We are not talking about a small amount of money or years. Quite the opposite actually.

On the field, A-Rod would give the Mets a third baseman who can hit 50 home runs a year and actually throw the ball to first base. His presence would allow Carlos Beltran to blend into the scenery - which is how he would like it. It would allow Wright - who would move to first - and Reyes to flourish, while not having the pressure to win solely on them.

I am guessing he is alluding to David Wright not being able to throw to first or something. It is not like I have huge problem with Wright moving to first since he would probably be very good there, but the Mets would be better advised to save all of their bullets for pitching. No matter what you think, the Mets do not have unlimited resources and spending that much on one player is just not a smart move. Is he tempting? Of course. The Mets would have a chance to twist the Yankees proverbial nipples, but it would not be the right thing to do.

But, what do I know?

In fact, early indicators suggest the Mets are leaning toward a full metal jacket courtship of the slugger, pending David Wright's blessing.

This is no small obstacle, since ownership is wary of offending Flushing's most marketable and loyal star. "We already have a third baseman," is what one high-ranking official said on Monday. That's the party line -- for now.

If I could choose a perfect situation, Randolph leaves with Carter getting the nod as the skipper with Rudy becoming the hitting coach and HoJo moving to the first base coach slot. Of course, that will not happen so not hiring Rudy is the right thing to do.

Castillo will probably be back, Alou will be back, and LoDuca is probably gone.

Torre is probably headed to LA with Mattingly as his bench coach. Mattingly might have been gone either way, but they never should have entertained him being the manager. Girardi was the right choice from get go and they might have had a chance to keep both on board if they had done the right thing out of the gate.

The Braves picked up Jair Jurrjens in what is a solid move for them. If they pick up Glavine, they will have a pretty good rotation and should be able to make some serious noise next season.

The Demise of the Yankees?

Could I still call myself a man if I use peppermint shaving cream? I'm not sure I can, but it smells to good not to try.

Speaking of men being men, Joe Torre showed he was a man by not allowing himself to work for the petty sum of $5 million (which still makes him the highest paid manager incidentally). Of course, there is more at play here. The Yankees gave off signs that they did not want him so why would Torre put himself in a position where he was not wanted? However, anyone saying the Yankees 'lowballed' him is nuts. Yes, it is less than he made in guaranteed money, but what is wrong with pay for performance? Aging players get incentive laden contracts so they have to prove their worth, why not managers as well?

He could certainly still feed his family on that salary and take some nice vacations, but that is not the real point. The real point is the Yankees made an offer that they hoped he would not take and he did not take it thereby making it look like the Yankees made a valiant offer. No counteroffer by the Yankees, just an "oh well, let us start looking for new managers". If the Yankees knew he was not going to take the offer, why be childish about it and just throw that out there? Being manager of a baseball team is not a position for life and it is their right to choose not to have him. It is as simple as that and should have been treated thusly, but we are not talking about normal teams with normal ways of going about things.

'Tis the life of anyone who wants to be involved with the most prestigious and virtuous franchise in organized sports. Also, the coverage on this thing has been ridiculous. It is getting covered like it was the death of JFK Jr. or Lady Diana. Really, everyone is acting like the Yankees made some huge mistake when all they really did is got rid of a marginal to bad in game manager and will replace him with someone with the same skill set or possibly even a better skill set. I am fairly certain that Torre's intangibles should be reasonably replicated as long as a coherent individual is awarded the job.

Next year will not be impacted whatsoever on the loss of the greatest human being alive. The outcome of the Yankees season does not hinge on this and things will chug along merrily. Mo will be back if he gets an offer, which he will. Posada will be back if he gets an offer, which he will. A-Rod will be back if he gets paid, which might not happen. But in the end, nothing is going to change in Yankee-land and things will be back to 'normal' shortly. In closing, who gives a fuck about Joe Torre?

Yes, the easy answer would be me because I'm writing about it, but give me a break. It is a looooong off-season and there has been nary a work from the Mets.

* * *

Bobby V. would be a horrible choice to coach the Yankees given his ability to rub veterans the wrong way. Also, why would he leave there? He has success, is a god, and is probably the tallest guy around. Over there, he is treated extremely well and compensated well and managers here just get shit on and have the shelf life of milk on the front lawn in mid-summer. Sure, he might think he has something to prove and might want to prove something back in the bigs, but there is something to be said for quality of life. Being the manager of the Yankees does not really support that quality of life thing unless you are winning a World Series every year.

Boras making sense?

"Say Alex never would have left Texas and had the year he just had with the Rangers - 54 homers and 156 RBIs and Gold Glove-caliber defense - and then as was his right, opted out. Do you think the Yankees would be interested in signing him as a free agent at whatever cost? And do you think the Yankees would give him a deadline?"

Great point. The Yankees are trying to stand toe to toe with him for no reason at all. They are just penny pinching but when phrased like Boras did above, it makes sense to me. Why should it matter? If the Yankees want him, they will still have a chance like everyone else. Besides, are they truly caught off guard here? Are they really fooling themselves into thinking A-Rod should have some loyalty to them? His first few years as a Yankee were extremely bumpy and now it should be water under the bridge? After getting ridiculed after the monster seasons he put up, they should be lucky he is even considering staying. But in the end, it is Scott Boras. The man loves opting out of contracts and thrives off free agency.

So if you are keeping score....Glavine does not care....Green cares.

Eureka!

The only way Sabean can pry top young hitters loose from other clubs is by dangling one of his top two young pitchers, Cain or Tim Lincecum, but he’s not willing to do that and other teams won’t give up much for Noah Lowry, who’s a No. 3 or 4 starter on a good staff.

The Giants truly have two options here.

1) Suck for a while.
2) Trade from a position of strength to try and bolster your team in weak areas.

Pitching gets back major premiums. Young pitching gets someone's first and second born.