Yankee fallout time!

So, now that the postseason for the Yankees is at an end. Let's evaluate everything we've been presented. The ESPN talking heads show, folks.

Boss discussed pulling the trigger on firing Torre.

Pinella discussed for the job, instead opts for Washington...

That's page 1. I think the guys on page 2 tell the truth a lot better.

Fuck Jeter, trade him. Not A-Rod

Gallo's humorous take on why A-Rod wasn't at fault, really.

And even Gene weighs in on something I've told Ron.

Blame "Yosemite Sam" Steinbrenner.

You think I'm taking the high road? Aww, hell no. Here's what I think should happen in the Bronx.

1. Get rid of Jeter: Team Captain, my ass. Jeter's leadership is about as useful as tits on a tree. When you think about it, A-Rod is the better shortstop, hands down. He sucks at third, but then so do other people shifted to third. The only person who made a successful transition to third in the modern era, "Iron Man" Cal Ripken, Jr. Trade Jeter for the one thing you do need. Pitching!

2. Clear out the bullpen: Johnson is done. Rivera is done. Wright needs backup. The pitching is mediocre. The relief blows. And Mario can't save you all anymore. Pick up some good to decent pitching.

3. Get rid of Sheffield: I know he's got a ring on him from that Florida team that whooped your NYC ass, but that's not a reason to keep him. He's banged up, he has no respect for any of you, and he's in it for the money. That's all he wants. If he's going to be on a sinking ship, he'll bleed you as much as he can. Get rid of this leech and keep Torre.

4. Leave Torre alone: He needs a team, Boss. Not a group of pansy-assed individuals that can't and won't do the job. Trust me, that's what you had with the last trophy. A team of near nobodies.

5. Move A-Rod to Short, dammit: A-Rod is the better shortstop. (Yes, Jade, he is.) A-Rod's numbers are a lot better lifetime than Jeter's. NYC is going to hate this, but Jeter is the cancer, not the cure. Jeter might have a good run, but he's going to break down sooner than later. If the fans get off of A-Rod's back and shut up when he's at short, they'll see something. Remember fans, it's not what you want. It's what George wants. Shut the fuck up and let George run the team. He's an evil prick, but he knows talent. You kept Jeter in at short when George wanted A-Rod at short. It's his turn to run the team.

6. Giambi becomes the Team Captain: I hate Jason Giambi. I hate his guts and wished he shut up. However, him as team captain is what's needed. Giambi isn't afraid to go up to the Boss himself and tell him how bad the team sucks. He was the guy that told A-Rod to snap out of it. He's the guy the younger players listen to. He's been there and done that. Ironically, he's not a Boomer Wells head-case. Give him the C, Torre. He'll do wonders.

7. Keep your same defense the whole year: Abreu works at Right. Damon sucks at center, DH his ass. Move Melky to Center. Leave Matsui at Left. That's the outfield. Giambi at first. Fuck Sheffield, he should be gone by now. Cano at second. A-Rod at Short. I'm thinking...put Cairo at third. Why? Cairo is a position player. Also, the second baseman spot he plays at is at the left side of the bag. Different position on the field, but same placement. Try it, Joe. It'll work.

8. Finally, Boss, you need your balls back: Follow those steps and you might get past that pesky ALCS or ALDS. You need a team dynamic, not stars. Trade the dead weight of Jeter, Sheffield, and Johnson for the pitching staff you need now.

If you've got better, be civil. That's all I've got.

Posted 10/10/06 by Rich | Filed under: MLB

Trackback

There are currently no trackbacks for this item.

Use this TrackBack url to ping this item (right-click, copy link target). If your blog does not support Trackbacks you can manually add your trackback by using this form.

Comments

My favorite quote from that article by Wojo:

"But unlike poor, frozen Frankie, Torre will have a $7 million severance check to help keep him warm. That, his annual stay in Kapalua, Hawaii, and the soothing knowledge of never having to work for Steinbrenner again should get Torre through the winter. Lucky him."

Posted by Ron at 10/10/06 09:13:18

Rich, don't make me take the barbed-wire baseball bat to you, dammit.

1. Jeter is not and never will be a "boss the team around" of captain. He is the "lead by example and only say something if necessary and in PRIVATE" kind of captain, which is exactly what the Yankees need. Do you have any idea what kind of havoc there would be in the New York media if Jeter was always opening his mouth to his teammates and to the Yankees organization?! As is, they're a bunch of rumor-whores, as the past couple days should have made clear. Jeter knows that the best way to be a leader in a high-pressure organization such as the Yankees is to keep his mouth shut and do his job. I'm sure he does say something when need be, but when he does, you can be damn sure it's done in private. Giambi may have taken the role of the public voice of the clubhouse, but he will never be the captain.

2. Fuck no, you don't put A-Rod in as short. Jeter earned his place there; you just don't toss the captain of the team aside, I don't give a flying fuck how talented A-Rod is as short. They brought him in for his BAT, not his glove. Also, if A-Rod was hot to stay a shortstop, he'd have never agreed to come to the Yankees in the first place. A-Rod wants a ring and he doesn't care what he has to do to get it. If that means playing third base, so be it. Besides, he hasn't been all that hideous at third (this year excepted). He may never be a Gold Glove 3rd baseman, but as long as he gets the job done, that's all that's needed.

3. Yes, Torre has to shoulder some of the blame for the postseason debacle. He played jigsaw puzzle with the lineup earlier in the season and it didn't work. All it did was demoralize the team and cause the losses to pile up. He should have known better than to do the same during the postseason, especially when he already had a lineup in place that was working. Also, he should have known better than to put Sheffield in a position he'd never played before at a time when winning is everything. While I'm fine with him coming back for another year (better him than Redass Lou), I really hope he'll learn from this and keep the "musical ballplayers" game to a minimum.

All that said, I do agree with you as to Sheffield and the pitching. I'm assuming Sheff's option will not be picked up for next year, and if it is, his role will be extremely limited. Abreu's done too damn good a job to move out of RF. Then again, they did start the Sheffield Experiment, so it's possible they'll continue with it in spring training and see how things go. I hope not; I'd rather see Andy Phillips alternate with Giambi; he did well enough during the season when he got regular playing time.

As to the bullpen, Moose may go before Randy Johnson. Moose has a $20M option on the line; I don't see the Yankees shelling out that kind of money for the performance he's given so far. Most likely, they'll offer him a year at a reduced price, then it'll be up to him to say yes or no. Johnson's status will hinge upon the condition of his back. Jaret Wright and Cory Lidle were a waste of pitching effort. A good AAA pitcher could do a better job than either of them. Rasner showed some promise; hopefully he'll prove to be a good #5 starter.
The Yankees' middle relief was completely useless; get rid of Villone, Myers, Proctor, and Farnsworth to start with. Bruney showed some potential, so he's worth keeping another year. Dotel is a big question mark--yes, he sucked when he did pitch, but he's recovering from Tommy John surgery; sometimes a guy needs another year before he's back to normal. Time will tell.
As for Mo, he's not what he used to be, but assuming he's healthy next year, I'd still rather have him than anyone else. He's also been a mentor to some of the younger players such as Cano and Melky, and that kind of clubhouse influence is always a good thing to have around.

Finally, stop listening to the morons who populate ESPN.com. Unless their names are Peter Gammons or Tim Kurkjian, they know jackshit about baseball and even less about the Yankees. Like the New York papers, they'll jump on any little tidbit passing itself off as fact and run with it until someone swats them upside the head with the truth.

Posted by Jade at 10/11/06 01:46:50

If Jeter keeps the C, maybe Giambi deserves an A? Like they do in hockey.

If they're trading someone, I think the only person they could reasonably get rid of out of Jeets and A-Rod is Jeets, because A-Rod is expensive damaged goods. I'd like to see Philips and Giambi share time at first, myself, unless Giambi would rather just DH.

I think with Rasner and Wang you've got yourself at least two of your five rotation spots sewn down. Johnson would probably make a servicable 3 or 4 if his back holds up, but the team is sorely lacking in middle relief and an ace.

Somewhere I read that Torre leans too much on relievers he trusts, which is why he wears the same few guys out. Considering how he rode Tom Gordon into the ground last year, I can see their point.

Jade just needs to post her anti-Rich Yankees rants on the front page. The world needs to see this. :)

Posted by Ron at 10/11/06 11:57:45

I actually like Jade's anti-me rants. She should be the voice of Yankee fans. Considering most get neanderthal when you mention it, she's a voice of reason, really.

Posted by Rich at 10/11/06 14:13:56

Well, SOMEONE'S got to represent the Yankees fans who aren't absolute morons.:P

Jeter will never be traded--whether you guys like it or not, he is the ultimate Yankee. A-Rod has an iron-clad no-trade clause, so he's not going anywhere, either. Besides, what good would it do him to go somewhere else? He'd still get shit on. He might as well stay with the Yankees--he's a universally hated player, they're a universally hated team. It's a match made in heaven (or some other place, depending on how you look at it. ;) )

Posted by Jade at 10/11/06 17:26:51

Good job, Jade. You were so harsh on Corey Lidle that he killed himself!

I like Jeter as a Yankee, and I hope he retires with the Yankees, I'm just saying that nobody'd take A-Rod off George's hands. It's a rare thing to retire a guy from your team and send him straight to the Hall of Fame, and that'd be your boy Jeets someday.

I'm not one of those that buys into the A-Rod sucks thing, personally.

Posted by Ron at 10/11/06 17:32:07

*swats Ron for the Cory Lidle comment*

bad Ron--I wasn't nearly as harsh on Lidle as the New York press was going to be. Of course, now that he's gone, they'll elevate him to sainthood.

Posted by Jade at 10/12/06 00:34:05

Despite the difficulties, Perry has retained [url=http://www.uggatcanada.com/]Ugg Boots[/url] an upbeat demeanor on the campaign trail, and has been at ease meeting voters one-on-one.It's an asset his campaign hopes to feature during the 14-day Iowa bus tour he begins in northwest Iowa on Wednesday, ahead [url=http://www.uggscheaponline....]Ugg Boots Cheap[/url] of Thursday's debate in Sioux City, the final debate before the caucuses. It's a chance for him to feature his courtly charm, as he did promoting the daily blend for sale at Café Diem in Ames. "It's a light little coffee," he said with a grin. In a [url=http://www.uggsme.net/]Cheap Ugg Boots[/url] barbershop in Beaufort, S.C., last week, Perry was asked how he was coping with campaigning after undergoing back surgery last summer. "I've gotten my second wind," Perry replied, rocking in his black orthopedic shoes.Whether [url=http://www.manoloblahniksho...]Manolo Blahnik Shoes[/url] Perry can claw his way back into contention is unclear.Last week, he opened a new line of attack against Romney and Gingrich, pointing out their past support [url=http://www.designershoe4uk....]Prada Shoes UK[/url] for requiring people to acquire health insurance, a mandate very unpopular with conservatives.

Posted by at 12/13/11 04:40:52

The http://www.christianloubout...">christian shoes is an insanely popular brand. It is why many online retailers the famous http://www.winterboot-sales...">genuine ugg boots and selling them at incredibly low prices. It has become a problem for http://www.winterboot-sales...">Winter boots. These cheap http://www.christianloubout...">Christian lacroix are made with synthetic materials. I recommend carries http://www.christianloubout...">christian shoe in all sizes, they offer free shipping. http://www.winterboot-sales...">womens edmonton ugg requires. Ugg boots do cost more, but they are of much higher quality. http://www.winterboot-sales...">ugg boots still turn heads. If you are wearing Authentic http://www.christianloubout...">Christian louboutin online

Posted by at 12/16/11 21:59:12

Barbour is a old brand come from UK. In European http://www.barbourjk.com/">Barbour Jacket just as you have an admission tickets to enter high society. And the http://www.barbourjk.com/">Barbour coat still won Queens Award for their excellent quality. Welcome to barbour store online http://www.barbourjk.com/. Now barbour store will show you many http://www.barbourjk.com/">barbour wax jackets style which you can use in any situation. Give one http://www.barbourjk.com/">barbour quilted jacket and it will bring you convenient life and outstanding feeling. There are variety of http://www.barbourjk.com/">mens jacket, http://www.barbourjk.com/">barbour ladies jacket and Kids jackets here. The high quality http://www.barbourjk.com/">barbour international jacket you can’t miss.

Posted by at 02/23/12 03:04:14