Masahiro Tanaka signs with the New York Yankees
I don’t know about you but I really am not surprised at all. I expected the New York Yankees to sign him all along because of their great interest in him and great need for him. I normally wouldn’t have been so confident with the Los Angeles Dodgers showing interest. They really didn’t have a great need for him though; they already have the highest payroll by a lot. They also just signed Clayton Kershaw to a huge extension and are working on one for Hanley Ramirez. There were sources saying it came down to the Yankees and Cubs. Is that really a choice, the Cubs??
The Yankees missed the postseason for just the second time in the last 18 years. They responded last time with a splurge on CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Mark Teixiera. They ended up winning the World Series the very next season. The Yankees had been talking about a 189 million cap. Hal Steinbrenner though in the last year has been adamant in saying it is a goal and not a mandate. I don’t think many people believed him especially the Yankee fans. They kept dreaming of the days of the father George running the team. They kept saying how the sons would never be like the father and nothing is the same. I don’t hear much of that going on now. I think the combination of missing the postseason and the Red Sox winning the World Series pushed the Yankees. They chose the importance of winning over saving some money on the luxury tax. They understand that you have to spend money to make money. The Yankees have always been great at that and with the big market and the Yankees name that philosophy really can’t change. The owners did want to try and reduce payroll but when the farm system just wasn’t producing then last year is what happened. The Yankees couldn’t stand for missing the postseason and having their attendance and television ratings go down.
Tanaka signed for seven years and 155 million, which is a huge amount of money. He is also costing g175 million total due to the 20 million-release fee the Yankees have to pay Rakuten his old team. He has never thrown a pitch in the United States. There are a couple of things to consider though. There were at least four other teams seriously involved. Those teams all bid at least 20 million a year for him, the market dictated that he was worth that much. The Yankees also had scouted him extensively since 2007 and were at every single home game of this past season. They also watched him closely during the 2009 World Baseball Classic. They sent a contingent of nine people to visit with him when he was in California last week. This is a player they feel very strongly about and he is also just 25 years old. He has pitched a lot of innings in Japan but I would argue they are getting his prime years 25-28. He can opt out after year four and try to seek a new contract.
The Yankees really had to take this risk for a couple of reasons. They need the pitching and they also need to show the rest of the baseball world that they are back to being the big bad Yankees. I think this is good for the team, ratings, and sponsorships. Tanaka also has Hiroki Kuroda and Ichiro Suzuki as teammates he can hang around with and learn from. He can also lean on Hideki Matsui if need be. Matsui was the star of stars in Japan and then with the Yankees.
The Yankees will pay him 22 million a year for the first six years and then 23 million for the final year of his contract. He is a guy that will be the number three of four starter to start out but eventually the Yankees feel will be their ace. He seems to have the stuff and the makeup to handle that. It will be interesting to see him in action come spring training and especially the regular season. The Yankees are banking on this being a worthy investment and I believe it will be. If it doesn’t work out exactly as they had hoped I still won’t blame the Yankees for making this move. I really think it is worth the risk for them and expect it to pay off big time.
Friday, January 24, 2014
Sunday, January 19, 2014
Some New York Yankees news and notes
Some New York Yankees news and notes
Spring training is quickly approaching in less then a month now. February 14th is the official report date for pitchers and catcher with all position players reporting about a week later. The early work and reporting is boring but at least we will be talking about real baseball action.
The Yankees came to terms with all five of their arbitration eligible players. Brett Gardner, Shawn Kelley, Ivan Nova, Francisco Cervelli and David Robertson. They now can add those guys to the payroll status and see where they are in regards to 189 million. If you trust the NY Post who has had a running total they are at about 169 so there is still some room to go. They of course could sign Tanaka, which is what they want.
There are reports coming out of Japan on Saturday that the Yankees along with the Dodgers, Cubs, White Sox and Diamondbacks all made formal offers for Tanaka on Thursday. Mlbtraderumors.com has some of the report on their site. They state that the Diamondbacks made an offer to be around six years and 120 million. The Yankees and Dodgers are said to be around that same amount and it isn’t known what the two Chicago teams bid. This whole process has been a big mystery even before he got posted. You can take just about any of this with a grain of salt but one way or another we will know by Friday which is the deadline. He has to be signed by then so I expect to hear something pretty substantial on Thursday.
Derek Jeter had a pretty lengthy sit down interview with Harold Reynolds of MLB network the other day. Here are some highlights of what he had to say.
He spoke about Arod and called it sad, he said that he has a long history with him and is saddened. He also called it messy and stated he doesn’t really have any advice because he can’t relate. He did say that he had messaged Arod. He stated that he feels really good and has been working hard since November. He stated that last year he did rush himself but it was his entire fault and that is probably why he got hurt and had such a miserable year. He said he set the goal to be back by opening day and that may have been unrealistic but he set it and there is nothing you can do.
Derek stated that it would probably be strange playing for the first time with not at least one of the other core four members. He stated he would see when that time comes but he has never had to do it before. He had a funny comment about recruiting Tanaka. Jeter said I don’t speak Japanese and the very little that I do know is from Hideki Matsui and it is bad words. He said about Cano taking the 240 million and bolting for Seattle that he wasn’t surprised and he probably would of done the same thing. If you get a chance to see it on mlb.com it is worth it. I thought he was really honest and revealing. He looked to be very relaxed and he isn’t usually like this interviews so it was good to see.
The Yankees and the rest of baseball released their schedules with most of the scheduled times. If you go to Yankees.com it is all there. The Yankees open in Houston with three night games in a row and then their fourth game of the season in Toronto is also at night before having a string of day games. They have the Sat and Sunday game during the day, which is pretty normal, and then their first few home games are mostly day games. The Yankees will close out the season in Boston. They will also play the NL central this season in interleague play. There are games with the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals as well as the four in a row with the NY Mets.
Spring training is quickly approaching in less then a month now. February 14th is the official report date for pitchers and catcher with all position players reporting about a week later. The early work and reporting is boring but at least we will be talking about real baseball action.
The Yankees came to terms with all five of their arbitration eligible players. Brett Gardner, Shawn Kelley, Ivan Nova, Francisco Cervelli and David Robertson. They now can add those guys to the payroll status and see where they are in regards to 189 million. If you trust the NY Post who has had a running total they are at about 169 so there is still some room to go. They of course could sign Tanaka, which is what they want.
There are reports coming out of Japan on Saturday that the Yankees along with the Dodgers, Cubs, White Sox and Diamondbacks all made formal offers for Tanaka on Thursday. Mlbtraderumors.com has some of the report on their site. They state that the Diamondbacks made an offer to be around six years and 120 million. The Yankees and Dodgers are said to be around that same amount and it isn’t known what the two Chicago teams bid. This whole process has been a big mystery even before he got posted. You can take just about any of this with a grain of salt but one way or another we will know by Friday which is the deadline. He has to be signed by then so I expect to hear something pretty substantial on Thursday.
Derek Jeter had a pretty lengthy sit down interview with Harold Reynolds of MLB network the other day. Here are some highlights of what he had to say.
He spoke about Arod and called it sad, he said that he has a long history with him and is saddened. He also called it messy and stated he doesn’t really have any advice because he can’t relate. He did say that he had messaged Arod. He stated that he feels really good and has been working hard since November. He stated that last year he did rush himself but it was his entire fault and that is probably why he got hurt and had such a miserable year. He said he set the goal to be back by opening day and that may have been unrealistic but he set it and there is nothing you can do.
Derek stated that it would probably be strange playing for the first time with not at least one of the other core four members. He stated he would see when that time comes but he has never had to do it before. He had a funny comment about recruiting Tanaka. Jeter said I don’t speak Japanese and the very little that I do know is from Hideki Matsui and it is bad words. He said about Cano taking the 240 million and bolting for Seattle that he wasn’t surprised and he probably would of done the same thing. If you get a chance to see it on mlb.com it is worth it. I thought he was really honest and revealing. He looked to be very relaxed and he isn’t usually like this interviews so it was good to see.
The Yankees and the rest of baseball released their schedules with most of the scheduled times. If you go to Yankees.com it is all there. The Yankees open in Houston with three night games in a row and then their fourth game of the season in Toronto is also at night before having a string of day games. They have the Sat and Sunday game during the day, which is pretty normal, and then their first few home games are mostly day games. The Yankees will close out the season in Boston. They will also play the NL central this season in interleague play. There are games with the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates, St. Louis Cardinals as well as the four in a row with the NY Mets.
Monday, January 13, 2014
Alex Rodriguez out for 162 games and probably his career
Alex Rodriguez out for 162 games probably his career
The ruling came down on Saturday afternoon from arbitrator Frederic Horowicz. Alex Rodriguez initial 211 game ban had been reduced to 162 games including the playoffs if the Yankees do make it in 2014. The Arod camp immediately responded forcefully saying they were very upset with this and would take it to the higher court. It is a hail mary legally for them to actually get this overturned and have an injunction so he can start the season with the New York Yankees. Is there a chance, of course there is but it may be a one or two percent chance.
The story of Alex Rodriguez may be one of the more sad ones there is. He had it all, good looks, amazing skill, lots of money, fame and a bright future as a hall of fame player who may have owned a lot of records. He is now just a disgraced baseball player who is the face of the steroid era and that isn’t a good thing. He will sit out all of 2014 barring a miracle and then still have three years and 61 million left on his Yankees contract, which will run through 2017. He will try to come back in 2015 after virtually missing two years and coming up on 40 years old. The stack is really stacked against him there as he has said. The Yankees of course also may just say that they can take the 61 million dollar hit and just pay him to go away. He has stated that he will come to spring training next month but I can guarantee the Yankees want nothing to do with him and may send him to the minor league side or he may just be posturing. In any case this is far from over even though it really is over for him.
His team will try and take this to court, try to get an injunction but it will all be for nothing as he spends more and more money to just have to take his suspension and move on. The problem for Arod is he probably believes his own lies by now and he does care about playing baseball and now that is being stripped away and he doesn’t know what to do. The saddest part in a way is that he could have probably taken a 100 game ban and been done with it and come back in the second half of this upcoming season. He didn’t do that and now it is costing him even more, his money, fame and his reputation, which is long gone now. It will be interesting to see how the Yankees now react and what they come up with to keep him away now and for good. Stay tuned for the never-ending drama As the Arod turns.
There was a piece on 60 minutes tonight with Anthony Bosch putting some things out there about Arod. My take on the whole thing was that everyone comes out looking dirty. Bosch of course, Arod of course and Bud Selig and Rob Manfred. I think that MLB has railroaded Arod but I am not defending him at all. I do believe he is a liar and a cheat and should of quit while he was ahead. I think MLB paid off Anthony Bosch who of course then told them whatever they wanted to hear since he would no longer be in trouble. I think Arod should have gotten up under oath if he was really innocent and I think commissioner Selig should of shown up in the arbitration hearing and faced Arod also. I don’t think any of this is going away anytime soon and I think it just looks bad for everyone involved.
The ruling came down on Saturday afternoon from arbitrator Frederic Horowicz. Alex Rodriguez initial 211 game ban had been reduced to 162 games including the playoffs if the Yankees do make it in 2014. The Arod camp immediately responded forcefully saying they were very upset with this and would take it to the higher court. It is a hail mary legally for them to actually get this overturned and have an injunction so he can start the season with the New York Yankees. Is there a chance, of course there is but it may be a one or two percent chance.
The story of Alex Rodriguez may be one of the more sad ones there is. He had it all, good looks, amazing skill, lots of money, fame and a bright future as a hall of fame player who may have owned a lot of records. He is now just a disgraced baseball player who is the face of the steroid era and that isn’t a good thing. He will sit out all of 2014 barring a miracle and then still have three years and 61 million left on his Yankees contract, which will run through 2017. He will try to come back in 2015 after virtually missing two years and coming up on 40 years old. The stack is really stacked against him there as he has said. The Yankees of course also may just say that they can take the 61 million dollar hit and just pay him to go away. He has stated that he will come to spring training next month but I can guarantee the Yankees want nothing to do with him and may send him to the minor league side or he may just be posturing. In any case this is far from over even though it really is over for him.
His team will try and take this to court, try to get an injunction but it will all be for nothing as he spends more and more money to just have to take his suspension and move on. The problem for Arod is he probably believes his own lies by now and he does care about playing baseball and now that is being stripped away and he doesn’t know what to do. The saddest part in a way is that he could have probably taken a 100 game ban and been done with it and come back in the second half of this upcoming season. He didn’t do that and now it is costing him even more, his money, fame and his reputation, which is long gone now. It will be interesting to see how the Yankees now react and what they come up with to keep him away now and for good. Stay tuned for the never-ending drama As the Arod turns.
There was a piece on 60 minutes tonight with Anthony Bosch putting some things out there about Arod. My take on the whole thing was that everyone comes out looking dirty. Bosch of course, Arod of course and Bud Selig and Rob Manfred. I think that MLB has railroaded Arod but I am not defending him at all. I do believe he is a liar and a cheat and should of quit while he was ahead. I think MLB paid off Anthony Bosch who of course then told them whatever they wanted to hear since he would no longer be in trouble. I think Arod should have gotten up under oath if he was really innocent and I think commissioner Selig should of shown up in the arbitration hearing and faced Arod also. I don’t think any of this is going away anytime soon and I think it just looks bad for everyone involved.
Thursday, January 9, 2014
The Hall Of Fame Vote
The Hall Of Fame Vote
I don’t have a Hall Of Fame Vote but if I did I would have taken it very seriously. I think there are some out there who don’t do that. I don’t think it is a majority though and most do take it very seriously. When you have to get 75 percent of anything it is going to draw a lot of debate, not everyone is going to agree and that is just fine. There is nothing wrong with debate over merit or non-merit but it should be kept civil. Everyone has a right to do what they feel is the right thing and they shouldn’t be killed for it.
There does need to be some change though, I think the 10-player limit should be taken away. I think you should be able to vote for whomever you want to vote for with no limit. If you feel someone is worthy you should be able to vote for that person. I think the BBWAA mostly does a good job but it should be opened up to more of the new age media like the bloggers, announcers and others in the baseball community. Why should just the card-carrying members of the BBWAA decide this? There are others out there who care just as much about the game. There are some out there who care more then some who are currently voting.
I don’t think the vote should be made as an example. Deadspin purchased a vote of a writer; I don’t think that is right. What did we learn in all of this today?? We learned that the PED issue is a very big issue and the writers are still struggling with how to handle it. Jeff Bagwell and Mike Piazza would be in the Hall already if it wasn’t for this issue. They both went upward, the only two on the ballot who did so. They clearly are being hurt by the suspicion of PED use even though there was never any evidence that these players have taken steroids. Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens are first ballot Hall Of Famers who can’t even crack 40 percent. The reason why is simple, it is because of the PED use or suspected use. I don’t think they are ever going to get in as they went backwards. Rafael Palmeiro didn’t pick up five percent and is off the ballot for good. Mark McGwire only got 11 percent and Sammy Sosa around seven percent. The point is that these steroid guys or suspected guys aren’t coming even close the Hall Of Fame. I do think that Piazza and probably Bagwell will get in soon but should they be punished on suspicion?? Should clean players from the so-called steroid era be singled out because of when they played?? I don’t think so but this is a very complex issue. It is hard to know who did and didn’t use. There are certain guys of course like Bonds and Clemens where the evidence is too great but really how do we know.
I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a guy already in the Hall who took something and if not I am sure there will be in the near future. The best thing of all of this is that baseball is in the spotlight again. There is no sport that draws so much attention to a hall of fame vote. The passion out there is real and the debate is real, this is a good thing for the sport of baseball. It will be interesting to see if anything changes going forward, in the mean time lets recognize the three very deserving members of the Hall Of Fame Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas. They will be the class of 2014 along with the three managers, Tony LaRussa, Bobby Cox and Joe Torre.
I don’t have a Hall Of Fame Vote but if I did I would have taken it very seriously. I think there are some out there who don’t do that. I don’t think it is a majority though and most do take it very seriously. When you have to get 75 percent of anything it is going to draw a lot of debate, not everyone is going to agree and that is just fine. There is nothing wrong with debate over merit or non-merit but it should be kept civil. Everyone has a right to do what they feel is the right thing and they shouldn’t be killed for it.
There does need to be some change though, I think the 10-player limit should be taken away. I think you should be able to vote for whomever you want to vote for with no limit. If you feel someone is worthy you should be able to vote for that person. I think the BBWAA mostly does a good job but it should be opened up to more of the new age media like the bloggers, announcers and others in the baseball community. Why should just the card-carrying members of the BBWAA decide this? There are others out there who care just as much about the game. There are some out there who care more then some who are currently voting.
I don’t think the vote should be made as an example. Deadspin purchased a vote of a writer; I don’t think that is right. What did we learn in all of this today?? We learned that the PED issue is a very big issue and the writers are still struggling with how to handle it. Jeff Bagwell and Mike Piazza would be in the Hall already if it wasn’t for this issue. They both went upward, the only two on the ballot who did so. They clearly are being hurt by the suspicion of PED use even though there was never any evidence that these players have taken steroids. Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens are first ballot Hall Of Famers who can’t even crack 40 percent. The reason why is simple, it is because of the PED use or suspected use. I don’t think they are ever going to get in as they went backwards. Rafael Palmeiro didn’t pick up five percent and is off the ballot for good. Mark McGwire only got 11 percent and Sammy Sosa around seven percent. The point is that these steroid guys or suspected guys aren’t coming even close the Hall Of Fame. I do think that Piazza and probably Bagwell will get in soon but should they be punished on suspicion?? Should clean players from the so-called steroid era be singled out because of when they played?? I don’t think so but this is a very complex issue. It is hard to know who did and didn’t use. There are certain guys of course like Bonds and Clemens where the evidence is too great but really how do we know.
I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a guy already in the Hall who took something and if not I am sure there will be in the near future. The best thing of all of this is that baseball is in the spotlight again. There is no sport that draws so much attention to a hall of fame vote. The passion out there is real and the debate is real, this is a good thing for the sport of baseball. It will be interesting to see if anything changes going forward, in the mean time lets recognize the three very deserving members of the Hall Of Fame Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine and Frank Thomas. They will be the class of 2014 along with the three managers, Tony LaRussa, Bobby Cox and Joe Torre.
Sunday, January 5, 2014
The New York Giants 2013 season
The New York Giants 2013 Season
The New York Giants had an awful 2013 season. They completed it last Sunday with a win at home against the Washington Redskins. They won their last two games and seven of their last ten games. That wasn’t a bad way to finish but after being 0-6 it was too little too late.
The Giants had many problems this season; most of it was on offense though. Eli Manning didn’t have a good year at all. He set the franchise record for interceptions in a single season with 27 but it wasn’t his entire fault. He had around half of them on tipped balls. The offensive line was in shambles, it wasn’t good at all and he was running for his life most of the season. There was virtually no running game, which is basically a product of the offensive line. Manning with these things to deal with also didn’t have receivers that were on the same page with him. It is hard for anyone to overcome all of this and still somehow they won seven of their last ten games.
The defense after the first few weeks was very good. Jon Beason came to the team later in the season and is a guy they have to resign. He became a leader on the defense and really turned it around for them. Antrelle Rolle is another leader and a guy who played really well this season. Justin Tuck started off slow but had a really good year. He is a free agent and it will be interesting to see what they do with him. Osi Uminyora was a guy who they really missed having. JPP was a guy who just wasn’t himself and was injured.
The Giants finished the season 7-9, which after their awful start is pretty amazing, but for the Giants it was a terrible year. It was their first losing season since Eli first year, which was ten years ago. Kevin Gilbride retired already and Perry Fewell is getting an interview with the Washington Redskins. I would expect major changes on offense. Hakeem Nicks is another player with all the talent but he just was terrible this year and I can see him not on the team next year. The Giants also desperately need a tight end. It will be an off-season of change for them and will be interesting to see exactly what they will do to address the offense. Stay tuned Giants fans but I expect better days ahead for the team.
The New York Giants had an awful 2013 season. They completed it last Sunday with a win at home against the Washington Redskins. They won their last two games and seven of their last ten games. That wasn’t a bad way to finish but after being 0-6 it was too little too late.
The Giants had many problems this season; most of it was on offense though. Eli Manning didn’t have a good year at all. He set the franchise record for interceptions in a single season with 27 but it wasn’t his entire fault. He had around half of them on tipped balls. The offensive line was in shambles, it wasn’t good at all and he was running for his life most of the season. There was virtually no running game, which is basically a product of the offensive line. Manning with these things to deal with also didn’t have receivers that were on the same page with him. It is hard for anyone to overcome all of this and still somehow they won seven of their last ten games.
The defense after the first few weeks was very good. Jon Beason came to the team later in the season and is a guy they have to resign. He became a leader on the defense and really turned it around for them. Antrelle Rolle is another leader and a guy who played really well this season. Justin Tuck started off slow but had a really good year. He is a free agent and it will be interesting to see what they do with him. Osi Uminyora was a guy who they really missed having. JPP was a guy who just wasn’t himself and was injured.
The Giants finished the season 7-9, which after their awful start is pretty amazing, but for the Giants it was a terrible year. It was their first losing season since Eli first year, which was ten years ago. Kevin Gilbride retired already and Perry Fewell is getting an interview with the Washington Redskins. I would expect major changes on offense. Hakeem Nicks is another player with all the talent but he just was terrible this year and I can see him not on the team next year. The Giants also desperately need a tight end. It will be an off-season of change for them and will be interesting to see exactly what they will do to address the offense. Stay tuned Giants fans but I expect better days ahead for the team.
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