I agree. Another reason why I'd keep him around is because he's clutch! [/b][/quote]Whoa...

I can't believe you just said that.

You've been riding A-Rod since he came to New York for not being "clutch," and then you say that JORGE is clutch?

Yup yup yup

Time to tip our caps to the Yankees

They've been credited with ruining baseball, but have no direct affiliation with Bud Selig, Scott Boras, Victor Conte or Chris Berman.

They're the alleged architects of a lopsided playing field, but have failed to win the World Series since Al Gore finally realized he no longer had a shot at the White House.
Their players are believed to be self-absorbed, but have been the focus of fewer egomaniacal publishing efforts than fans of the Boston Red Sox.

So, back in the crosshairs by popular demand, we now tip our caps to the New York Yankees.

Yeah, even though we can't seem to live with 'em or get away with settin' 'em on fire, the Yankees remain crucial to the success of Major League Baseball.

Sure, you may have had it up to your eyeballs with the Yankees, but MLB would be in lousy shape if Selig — finally sick of a little prosperity — decided to contract George Steinbrenner's team.

Let's begin this celebration of the Yankees' existence by thanking them for goosing an otherwise lackluster trading-deadline countdown. In case you were busy paying attention to the Washington National's clumsy auction of Alfonso Soriano, the Yankees were able to pry Bobby Abreu — and his mighty contract — from the Philadelphia Phillies.

Yankees GM Brian Cashman surrendered an allegedly-pedestrian prospect list (that failed to include hotshot pitcher Phillip Hughes) in exchange for Abreu and pitcher Cory Lidle.

According to critics who expect a lot from a multi-millionaire, Abreu quite possibly is even more overrated than Paris Hilton. When the trade was made, "Sock it to 'Em" Bobby wasn't exactly providing much sock, ranking 107th among National League hitters in slugging percentage.

But the pro-Bobby crowd reminds us that Abreu leads the league in pitches seen per plate appearance, and has an on-base percentage even greater than that of Gomer Pyle.

So, while we'll have to wait and see how much Abreu adds to the Yankee offense, Yankee-haters will crow about how baseball is ruined when Steinbrenner adds to his payroll.

Instead of whining about the Yankees, I prefer giving them credit for becoming a landfill where teams can dump salary. This means that while George pays even more for less than a California homeowner, other teams can use their savings to purchase productive players or build the farm system.

For the record, Steinbrenner began this season with a payroll of $208 million and change, which is almost more scoots than the payrolls of the other four AL East teams — including the pricey Red Sox — combined.

This less-than-thrifty approach enables other MLB teams to receive a financial windfall from the Yankees in the form of luxury-tax loot. Several third-world AL teams can use this money to pay for players or pocket it and pretend it doesn't exist.

Yankees fans should be saluted for adding much-needed controversy to the lull that generally trots right behind the All-Star Game. Instead of wringing our hands over the New York Mets losing home-field advantage for the World Series, Yanks backers created E-Ticket intrigue surrounding defending AL Most Valuable Player Alex Rodriguez.

When A-Rod's arm suddenly became as inaccurate and controversial as that of ex-New Yorker Kerry Collins, Yankees pulled out a brilliant approach to assist their third baseman: boo the heck out of him.

Please note that — considering his level of productivity and good-guy image — booing Rodriguez seems as intellectually bankrupt as heckling the Publishers Clearinghouse Sweepstakes guy because your jackpot has been immediately downsized by taxes.

The booing — which included razzing in Canada (Eh-Rod?) by traveling Yankees fans — reportedly led to a Rodriguez intervention. This intervention produced a celebrity list that included diet and brain guru Dr. Phil, Yankees teammate Derek Jeter, ESPN smoke alarm Steven A. Smith and Fox Network philosopher Homer Simpson. It went something like this:

A-Rod: I apologize for you guys having to come here and intervention me.


Dr. Phil: Get real! We're being paid to be here.


Homer: Less talking, more little hot dogs in barbecue sauce.


Smith: You're getting' paid? That's terrible. I'm in the wind. You with me, Derek?


Jeter: I have nothing to say.


Homer: OK, let's bottom-line this thing. Alex, if you don't expect anything, you won't be disappointed.

An obvious reason for celebrating the Yankees' existence is their status as a team that millions of baseball fans love to hate. This hating, as suggested previously, often involves Yankee fans. But most of the bad karma is generated by out-of-town baseball followers who loathe New York's successful history, Steinbrenner's payroll blitzkrieg or the team's connection with the big, bad Apple itself.

This hate, if used in moderation, is fine. According to dozens of armchair psychiatrists, Americans need something to hate; this cultural phenomenon may explain the popularity of Michael Moore, Ann Coulter, Mike Tyson and Taylor Hicks' Ford commercial.

Additional Yankee love should be offered in tribute to their ability to cast a large shadow.

For example, in addition to Steinbrenner's aforementioned financial contributions to baseball, the Yankees are a huge gate attraction on the road. This is explained by both the established hatred and the scores of New Yorkers who fled the city to live in smaller-market cities.

The large Yankee shadow is quite prominent in Boston, where the rivalry has enabled many frosty fans to forget how mediocre the Celtics have become. Boston fans also use this desire to get over on New York as a method of keeping Sox management on its toes.

The Yankee shadow is big enough to — nationally, at least — obscure a relatively terrific season from the New York Mets, and almost obliterate the St. Louis Cardinals' whiff during the 2004 World Series.

Another fine Yankee trait is their ability to invent controversy. The latest example involves the Abreu trade, which could — if injuries heal as expected — create an outfield logjam. Among the potential returnees is right fielder Gary Sheffield, who still has one of baseball's quickest bats and fastest mood swings.

It has been reported that Sheffield — a former shortstop and third baseman who has tested positive for EGO — may be asked to spend a little quality time at first base. At this stage of his career, asking this guy to charge home plate during a sacrifice-bunt situation may require a legal negotiation.

With so many things to be thankful for, it's time to identify the most important Yankee contribution.

I'm partial to their providing evidence that even though George may be able to buy the World Series, his actors will retain the potential to ignore the script.

Source: FoxSports

Okay...

Jorge is a bag of stale donuts.

A-Rod is awesome.

[/end] :p

Plate discipline is secret to October success

At first glance, the Yankees' path to the postseason looks as encouraging as it's been in months: They're two games ahead of the Red Sox, Bobby Abreu is 10-for-25 in pinstripes, and with Robinson Cano due to return to the lineup tonight (and Hideki Matsui only two weeks behind him) the offense is ready to resume its mission to nuke the American League into submission.

Or is it?

To the contrary, the Bombers have been anything but the monster home run hitters they envisioned this spring, and they'll fall well short of the 1,000 runs they were supposed to score (at least in their dreams). In fact, when the Yankees begin a three-game series with the White Sox, they'll be facing an opponent that has scored more runs, blasted more HRs, and hit for a higher average and slugging percentage.

Surprisingly, though, the Yankees have drawn 74 more walks than the defending world champs, and therein lies what Joe Torre calls the secret to October success. In fact, acquiring Abreu from the Phillies wasn't just about replacing Gary Sheffield's run production. It was designed to promote an improvement in the Yankees' on-base percentage, and more specifically, to wear out opposing pitchers by going deeper into counts.

Abreu leads the majors in pitches per plate appearance (4.48) and is second only to Kevin Youkilis in the number of pitches he's seen this season. Abreu left the Phillies as the NL's leader in walks, and has joined forces with another ultra-patient Yankee, Jason Giambi, whose 4.36 PPA ratio ranks him third in the AL and fourth in the majors.

And Torre is pleased to see the Yankees becoming more selective.

"[We] have what it takes to go through a pennant race," he said. "You're going to be facing the best pitching. This type of approach will serve you better than waiting for a mistake to hit. I feel very comfortable with this ballclub."

So far, Abreu's presence has made a difference, albeit in a small sample. The Yankees won 5 of 6 against the Blue Jays and Orioles last week, catching and passing the Red Sox for the first time since June 9. In the five Yankees victories, opposing starters averaged 4.2 innings and 88 pitches before being knocked out.

Abreu has been too modest to take credit for anything other than his own at-bats. But he does admit a fondness for long plate appearances.

"I've always been patient," he said, adding that the more pitches he sees, "the better I can see the rotation of the ball. That helps me make adjustments in that at-bat and other [upcoming at-bats]."

Giambi has a similar obsession with deep counts, although he suffered through a horrendous July, during which he batted just .186. But Giambi's patience could be having a residual effect on Derek Jeter, who two years ago had bottomed out with a 3.54 PPA. This year, as he's competing for the AL batting title, Jeter is up to 3.76 pitches per trip to the plate, proving that perseverance pays off.

Jeter used to be a classic swing-at-the-first-pitch-he-likes hitter, insisting that it had nothing to do with impatience or impulsivity. Instead, he discovered in 2004 that AL pitchers were determined not to walk him and set up big innings for Sheffield and Alex Rodriguez.

"They were going after me right away," Jeter said, "and a lot of times that first pitch was the best one I would see, a get-me-over strike."

But if anyone has a problem with first-pitch swinging, it would've been the "Moneyball" era A's. In 2003, at the height of Billy Beane's fixation with on-base percentage, the A's swung at only 18.5 percent of first-pitch strikes, the lowest in the American League according to STATS, Inc. Although they batted .343 in those situations -- meaning they clearly identified which strikes were most hittable -- Oakland's hitters were otherwise falling into 0-1 counts more often than anyone else.

Even a one-strike disadvantage can be fatal against a top-level pitcher. In his Cy Young season in 2001, Roger Clemens kept AL hitters to a .192 average after they fell behind 0-1. So it's a fine line between being patient and becoming too passive.

Still, the greater goal, for the Yankees and everyone else, is to make an opposing pitcher labor through each at-bat, inning after inning until he's exhausted.

"You're not going to make a living hitting off, say, Clemens for eight innings and then Mariano Rivera for one," Beane said. "Going deep into counts is a way to get the more talented pitchers out of the game sooner. What you prefer is to get deeper into the staff and get some of those at-bats against middle relievers."

That's the philosophy Abreu hopes to impart on the Bombers between now and October. It's not exciting, it hardly makes for "SportsCenter" moments. But so far, the Yankees aren't arguing with the results.

Source: ESPN

Right now it's 5-4, top of the 9th. And Cano just hit a double. Keep your fingers crossed, Yankee Fans!!

What a heartbreaking loss. I don't know why A-Rod "walked" over to that foul ball that Dye hit. Once I saw that he didn't catch it, I knew Dye would get a hit. Tough loss

BTW - big "clutch" at bat for Jorge Posada with the bases loaded, I loved that easy double play. Wasn't that clutch, I12? :p

Had he done something, this blown save would have been a nonissue since we would have been leading by four.

It was their game to lose, and they did so in a spectacular fashion. It was too bad, but let's hope they just come back tonight. The Big Unit is on the mound, so that could go either way.

Glad to see Villone get out of that situation, you could tell Johnson was toast though...great outing for him until that last little bit. I wish Torre would have pulled him out when he started with men on base, you could just tell he had lost his command. Oh well.

Let's go Yanks!

"Ball game over! Yankees win. Theeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Yankees wiiinnn!"

Thank you Mr. Kyle "I almost blew the game" Farnsworth. Glad to see the Yanks held on and boston lost to push them 3 back Great outing through 6 for the Unit

Not surprisingly, the Yanks struggled with the Halos, and Cory Lidle isn't the superstar that everyone seemed to embrace him as after his first game as a Yankee.

The Yanks always seem to have trouble with the Angels...let's hope they can pull out the next two wins and get back in the swing, keep knocking the Red Sox down.

I feel safe in declaring the Yanks as 2006 AL East champions...and as well, an early playoff exit.

Go Tigers!

Poor poor bitter Marlins fans :p

Poor poor bitter Marlins fans :p [/b][/quote]How about a person who doesn't live in a fantasy land of homerism that they're team will take it all.

And who will take it then? Let us not forget that this Yankee team has been without Matsui, Sheffield, Cano and for periods of time Damon and are STILL 2 games ahead of the Red Sox. Damon and Cano are currently playing and if we get Sheffield and Matsui back, why wouldn't you think they'd go all the way? Please enlighten me with who will. Let me take a guess, the "I'm gonna ride the bandwagon that is the Detroit Tigers for this year and this year only?"

Irishman, yes, this piss bitter Marlins fan. is still seeing how the Fish are in the NL Wildcard picture. I doubt that they will take it, but they have a chance. Eat that mother fucker.

As for bandwagon, yeah I'm the Tigers, Twins, and hell, anybody in the AL West. Fuck the Yankees and Red Sox though. Screw the White Sox as well.

Keep telling yourself that. Looks like you've "got me there"

Well at least we both agree you're a bandwagon fan then :p

Guys, please watch the profanity when addressing another member. Sometimes, even if you think you've posted it in jest, it can be hurtful.

Thank you.

BTW Irish, why hate the Rangers?

I mean, we know of your hatred of the "Red Cocks"(how mature), Marlins fans( because of me and Don Andrew. Oh, and 2003 World Series ). I assume you hate the "Asstros"(how original) because Roger Clemens prefered to play with them instead of the Yankees.

As for being a band wagon fan, yeah I am. I like to support surging ballclubs that never have won the title, or haven't in decades.

Besides, with my Marlins unfortunately a member of the 100-loss club, I can feel for those Tigers fans that had to sit by as their club stunk the league up for years. The fact that they're tops now makes me feel good.

Why do I hate the Rangers? Well, first of all they're a Texas team. Plus, my boss is a big time Ranger fan and I just love to watch them flop every year and see them miss the playoffs. Plus I always hated Pudge when he played for them too

Texas? I don't get it. Is it because of Bushie? The fact that sodomy is frowned upon down there? Maybe perhaps that you can only hate the Red Sox for so much until you get bored with it?

Actually, I can understand the deal with your boss. Until I met this one spoiled mick on the internet, I never hated the Yankees. Really, unlike Red Sox fans and other baseball fans that love to piss and moan about the Yankees "buying" titles(yet, they are silent in the rare years when the Yankees tank hard), I thought it was pointless.

Besides, its like the Lakers or the Cowboys. Decades-long dominance of each league from either schrewed General Management, brilliant coaches, Hall of Fame players, or just kicking ass on both Draft Day and on the Free Agent market. Some franchises are lucky, and some are just the CLIPPERS.

Sure I rooted against the Yanks several times over the seasons in the playoffs, but when its my Florida Marlins(like 2003), or certain clubs that I champion at the time(for example, the Angels in 2002 or the Red Sox in 2004), it just happens by coincidence. Hell, I rooted for the fucking Yanks against the one franchise that I actually fucking depised for YEARS, the Atlanta Braves, in both World Series matchups.

But now, this one guy on the internet, just because of his postings, I hate the Yankees, which is really pointless on my behalf. If anything, I'm hoping they lose so that this one "guy" can get pissed. Really, how pathetic. It's like hating the Marlins because of two fans.

Not that you know who that dude is, since he isn't worth naming.

P.S. - REally, the Yanks are going to win the AL East...AGAIN. The new Braves-like division title streak?

You love me! You really love me! :p

---

Yanks lose another...poor Wang, he desperately needed some run support and didn't get any. Hopefully they'll put out a better performance for RJ, lest the Red Sox get any closer...

Yeah you can throw Bushie in there as well if you want to. But as I said before, there's more than just 1 reason why I hate Texas (and no it's not because I can only hate the Red Sox for so much until I get bored). You can NEVER hate the Red Sox too much.

Very good point here. Why is it when the Yankees win there's a problem, but when they lose they're as quiet as the dead?

Are you trying to tell me something? :p And no, I hate the Marlins more than just because of you and Don Andrew, so don't flatter yourself.

Here's another good question: why when Atlanta was on their division win streak there wasn't a problem with it? In fact, to me it seemed that people embraced it to see "how long they could go." But again, the Yankees are only about half-way to Atlanta's total and people are already b*tching and moaning about it. What hypocrisy!

Yankees win, nice job by all, many thanks to the less-than-stellar Halo defense tonight. Jorge goes 1-26 with a HR, very clutch ( :p ) while A-Rod made a sparkling defensive play early on and drove in what would be the winning run with a sacrifice fly...

A very good outing by the Unit against a great Angel team: 7 innings, 8 hits, 2 runs, 1 BB, 5 SO, 13-9 with a 4.92 ERA. Let us not forget that boston lost tonight too, so we're back up by 2 games

"Yankees Win, A-Rod Drives in Winning Run; Fans still hate Him"

A good come-from-behind win tonight for the Yanks as the bo sox lose, putting them up by 3 games BTW, thanks Johnny Damon for tying the game