How about those Yankees? They look like a herd of turtles stampeding through peanut butter during their first thirty-seven games. They can’t hit, especially with runners in scoring position. And their defense was never their strong point.
The Yankee pitching, with the exception of Chien-Ming Wang and Mariano Rivera is totally unreliable at best. Whenever one of the relief core steps up his game the disabled list is just around the corner.
The wheels are spinning but the hamster seems to be dead.
Although their future is bright the strongest things that the Yankees have going for them today, are their yesterdays.
Now the Yankee pitching staff has to endure the horrors of Kei Igawa. This guy has as much control as two rabbits on their first date. On the mound his appearance seems to project the luminance of a black light.
It is quite obvious New York or the major leagues are out of Igawa’s league of mental endurance. During the game, when the pressure is on, Igawa appears to be as smart as a box of hair. Sort of like our great president George W. who on occasions (like everyday) is a few clowns short of a circus under pressure. “Hey Ya’ll, the government is open seven days a week and weekends too.” “It`s tough to make predictions, especially about the future...”
Sorry for the side bar it’s that dementia thing creeping in and politics are on my mind. “ Where’s my watch?”
The Yankees invested forty-six million dollars on Igawa, this body by Nissan brains by Mattel toy. The Yankee scouting team was a few peas short of a casserole when assessing Igawa’s talent. Revoke their passports please.
Packaging Igawa in a deal to acquire a player with a pulse has certainly had to cross management’s minds. I’m sure Cashman and Hankenstien are afraid that Igawa will suddenly find his niche the minute he is dealt to another team. But even in Japan his pitch location was up in the zone. He will do no good here.
Management’s assessment of its young pitching staff was a bit premature. Patience has never been a virtue with this organization no matter what they preach. The rest of this year should be interesting if things continue to deteriorate. If the Yankees are still close to their division leaders by the end of June look for a packaged deal for pitching.
Getting A-Rod and Posada back will at least help this anemic offense. But the offense has not helped them in the playoffs. That is IF they make the playoffs. It’s all about pitching.
With a new stadium in the mix and the economy in the state of flush attendance next year could be an issue. Although corporate America seems to buy it’s share of seating in the Bronx, so maybe not.
The Yankees need some front line pitching and this off-season should produce some major changes. There is a lot of money coming off the books so look for a major free agent or two to be signed.
To me, this makes the most sense for the Red Sox. I stated this before and will stand by my original statements. The Red Sox will not be blown out of too many games, not with their lineup. If they are close in the seventh, eighth and ninth innings having that automatic closer in the bullpen is a psychological advantage.
As has been mentioned in the article, Papelbons's college career was all about relief pitching. Relief pitching did get him to the All star game. His mental approach to closing is a perfect match. This is what he is most comfortable with. This is where the Red Sox are the weakest. Also mentioned was his loss in velocity after a few innings, making him more effective in the eighty or so innings he would pitch as a closer during the season.
The Red Sox starting pitching is still a question mark and I am not about to anoint Matsuzaka the next Pedro. Schilling is a year older and injury susceptible. Beckett is only twenty six but after a poor showing last year the book is still out on him. Jon Lester, although young and talented, is a season removed from dealing with a serious illness. That leaves Matt Clement, Tim Wakefield and a list not worth mentioning thereafter. Lots of question marks. Also lots of potential. Having a secure closer of Papelbon's caliber will help set up and take pressure off the middle relief staff.
Their pen has some veterans who are capable of holding the offense down for an inning or three. This also makes the Roger Clemens lottery more enticing, especially if the Red Sox are showing signs of dominance. Unlikely, but a more than average possibility. Clemens could put them right over the top and into the World Series. A Clemens, Schilling and Matsuzaka starting three in the playoffs is more than formidable.
This is not a make or break move for the Red Sox but a smart one. I hate the Red Sox but like the move from a team point of view.
For a lot of us baseball fanatics this is our Punxsutawney Phil, “Ground Hogs Day,” week. I know, a day isn’t a week and all of that stuff but, give me some writers suspended reality leeway here, Okay? I just crawled out from under my four-month pile of meaning less, paperless essays and there are bound to be cobwebs.
After crawling out I managed to see my shadow. This means two things. There will be six more weeks of speculation baseball and I need to loose ten pounds. Fortunately, for baseball, the six weeks will pass. Unfortunately, for me, the ten pounds probably won’t.
So far, this off-season, the Yankees addressed their needs like an annual physical exam.
They required a colonoscopy where they found and removed a couple of polyps, of the Gary Sheffield and Randy Johnson variety. A third polyp of the Carl Pavano type was left in tact. They elected to treat the polyp with diet and exercise. The feeling here was removing it now could cause more internal bleeding and require a longer healing process. A re-evaluation of the polyp will be addressed in the next month or so.
The cardio exam revealed the same ongoing issues the Yankees have been experiencing the past few years, a weak heart. There is a lot of plaque built up in those arteries and another new diet is recommended. The Joe Torre Diet has run its course and has been deemed ineffective for the most part. The “Indiana Mattingly Diet” or the “South Beach Girardi Diet” has been suggested. Both are new and trendy. With a little exception of the South Beach Girardi Diet they are basically untested.
In the meantime, they performed another angioplasty and inserted an Andy Pettitte stent with the possibility of a Roger Clemens one to follow in a few months. These should service well for the next year or so but either a triple bypass or a transplant will eventually be needed. I hear the new Philip Huges replacement heart is new and strong but needs a little more development. There have also been discussions on whether to use the new pacemakers on the market. There are several models to choose from: Alberto Gonzalez,Ross Ohlendorf, Humberto Sanchez and the Kevin Whelan. Time will tell and I am still a skeptic regarding these models. A new Japanese model called the Kei Igawa has worked well in Japan but has not been tested in the states.
Endurance has not been a problem for twelve years for the Yankees and the stress test revealed no change.
Strength, which has been questioned in recent years regarding non-prescription additives, will always be an issue, until the medical board sets some guidelines. This is not likely to happen in the near future. Bureaucracy and revenue always cause confusion and delay.
The daily vitamin requirement has been revamped and it will include the Doug Mientkiewicz hand and eye co-ordination supplement. The Juan Miranda Josh Phelps Alberto Gonzalez Wil Nieves and Bronson Sardinha supplements have also been added as a precautionary measure. These supplements are always rearranged and substituted as the season wears on.
The orthopedic evaluation suggested that the bones and joints were all healed. Other than a slight case of arthritis in the first, center and buttocks locations of the anatomy, all is well.
As with every patient willing to go through analysis, there are always issues. The Yankees have their share, with #### envy and non-acceptance paranoia heading the list. A slight case of immaturity and adolescence behavior sprinkled in with some dementia. The latter has been associated with and proven to be a side effect of the Joe Torre Diet.
The Yankees have an excellent health plan carrier in the George M. Steinbrenner group. Given a five star rating by whoever the hell rates these things. They are in good hands, as the saying goes.
So the evaluation seems healthy enough to expect the same results for the coming year. That, my friend, is good enough for me…. for now. Come October I might sing a different tune.
So medication prescribed for these symptoms? Six more weeks of speculation baseball.
