On the Yankees beat

We have had a pretty "spirited" discussion concerning Bernie. My main concern is with the backup catcher spot. With Posada's age, I think this position will be one of great importance this season. We can't just put some mediocre "stop gap" in that spot. Cashman is going to have to get an experienced player either through trade or the waiver wire as teams break camp come April 1.

I too have been concerned about the backup C spot due to the fact that Posada is getting older. If he is going to hold up, he is going to need some regularly scheduled time off. And throwing just an anybody out there isn't going to cut it. This "hole" will be much more critical to the team's season than having four 1B.

And Roy, I think Jim explained it best about Bernie. I AM more upset because of the way you are running him down. He never has had an arm and his baserunning has been average his entire career. (By the way, does Damon have a great arm?)

That leaves his bat, and like I said, his numbers last year were still productive for a MLB 4th OF. He played a HUGE role in saving our season last year. This great Yankee certainly doesn't deserve to be ran into the ground, especially by a fan with your knowledge and integrity.

Its not about running anybody into the ground but rather about doing what is best for the team. In that department Bernie doesn't cut it. We have many young outfielders that we should try out or we'd never know what we have. I see it this way. If Bernie is a B- at best and we have a C+ outfielder in the minors who may blossom into a B+ player then in terms of overall Yankee growth it is in our best interests to give the youngster a shot. But yeah the backup C position is an issue. Nothing we can do about it right now. Cashman will prob wait to see who gets cut from other teams during spring training before making a move.

My intention is not to "run Bernie down", but to appraise his present ability and possible contribution to the "07" Yankees. If Bernie "never had an arm", and "his baserunning has been average his entire career", what are both currently after shoulder and knee surgeries? There are very few "gifted" athletes that retire before embarassing themselves. Paul O'Neill was one of the few. I hope Bernie follows Pauly's lead. I agree that Damon doesn't have a great arm, nor did Mickey Rivers. But both players are\were speedy enough to cover the alleys, and go straight back quickly. Bernie can no longer do this and is therefore a liability defensively, and as a base runner. Again, I'm not slandering a "legend", just hopeing that the Yankees field the best team possible in "07", and that Bernie retires while his game is at a respectable level.

I agree with Roy. I think Bernie should hang up the jersey and focus on off-field work,maybe we can give him a spot somewhere in the organization. I would be against seeing the Yanks create room for him by trading away a youngster with promise to statisfy his 1 year of duty. Sure his numbers were good but his role will be even more limited with the return of Matsui and the play of Melky even if we found room for Bernie you would question how much time he would actually see. As for Jim's question....there isn't much that scares me about them. I think it is safe to say every major league team has pitching question marks. But we have an advantage over most teams manily because of our lineup. We have a deep enough lineup to give our pitchers run support that should help.I would not be so quick to say Cashman needs to make a move for a backup catcher. I would try out Raul Chavez and see what he has to offer.If not we can look to Scranton and see what the farms have to offer. The last year and a half we have brought up some pretty solid players...Cano,Wang,Melky,Karstens,Thompson etc. Let's just wait that one out. Other than that which I consider to be minor problems I see us set. I keep saying it this offseason the Yanks became 2 steps closer to becoming a team. You might actually see players this year talking to each other and cheering for one another unlike our dear friends Sheffield and Johnson. The major problem is Carl Pavano is still on this team. He needs to retire,get injured or just quit baseball because I am at the point I don't really care to see him pitch. Maybe we can push him to Baltimore for some crab cakes since they took Jared Wright from us it seems they would take anything with a pulse. Or maybe Atlanta for an autographed Deion "Prime Time" Sanders jersey.

Beautiful pictures of Ireland, Jim. Thanks for sharing them!.
Some of my friends have made the trip to Eire and shared their photos. One of the pictures my friend shared showed her lying upside down from a considerable height so she could kiss the Blarney Stone. Was THAT the reason that you passed??
I would, too!

We shouldn't be that concerned about a backup catcher for 2007, although NY needs to acquire a promising prospect to succeed Jorge soon. Posada keeps himself in great shape and will give the Yanks at least 135 games, so we're looking at 27 games from a backup. The Yanks had the same "problem" last year and still won the East by a comfortable margin.

That's exactly the reason I passed, LathamJoe! You have to lie backwards and the only thing keeping you from a fall of hundreds of feet are two bars. I took one look and knew it wasn't for me. I could barely bring myself to reach over the side to take a photo of my wife kissing the stone!

Lets do a what if scenario. What if Posada were to have some type of long term injury occur in April or May? A similar situation to Matsui or Sheffield. What do we do then?

The positives about the team are many. The starting lineup is solid as is. There canbe no improvements except the trade for Texiera. I know this is a very slim possibility with the signing of a solid 1st Baseman in DM for this year. Starting pitching should be very consistent with CMW, AP and MM.The next two spots are up for grabs amongst a host of mediocre talent but should provide enough to win their share of games from the back end rotation with excellent support from the offense. Releif pitching should be a plus this year with returning players and the adding of Brittton. Farnsworth could be shopped for our needs in other areas if the talent in the relief corps proves equal to the task.

I hope the Yanks error on the youth side. We need to forster this move. It helps with chemistry and the learning of the Yankee way. I'm not in favor of signing RC. As I said before would prefer youth in spots remaining.

Bernie has one physical assest remaining. Its his bat but will not receive enough playing time to keep it in the groove. He should retire gracfully as a Yankee. He should be financialy set. His retirement should lead into his other love of music. The Yanks need another lefty pitcher depending on the Igawa's assignment. BC must become proactive with a backup catcher for Jorge. Jorge should top out at 125-130 games max hopefully not counting playoff run. The backup catcher should be talented to be 2008's starter or split the games with Jorge.

All it all we should have a very good balanced team as is. The next couple of moves could mean the 27th ring.

Hey Jim, it looked pretty temperate over there right now. I would expect Ireland to be pretty cold this time of year, but it's not with the Gulf Streams? How was it overall?

Anyway, I wouldn't count out Pavano yet. Cashman is playing it right, it's stupid to have to pay his salary for him to contribute somewhere else and get nothing in return. He's capable of pitching above-average when healthy, and hell, he's due to be healthy one of these seasons. Remember how down on Giambi everyone was 2 years ago? I'll take him in the 5 hole.

The main thing I like about the current Yankee team, is not the 25 man roster, but what we now have in the minors. With the young pitching Cashman acquired in the off-season, we now have a "safety net" should any of our starters or relievers become injured or ineffective during the season. These "newbees" aren't a "sure thing", but they do give us hope, which we haven't had in previous years. They also can be used come the July 31 trade deadline to fortify the team for a "stretch run". Cashman has done an excellent job of both "planning for the future", and "saving for a rainy day".

Well the minors do not impress me at one point it did. it is great to have chips etc. M y main concern is a few things , the rotation, ANDY p is a good sign but is he really any more productive? RF, how will Bobby pan out in a whole season ? will al pitching stop him ?

midway through the year i guarantee that melky will be batting .220, and cashman will be in the market for a veteran bat off the bench - too bad we didnt just sign bernie at the beginning of the year

I'm concerned with the rotation and maybe getting a decent LH for the bullpen. It's always about the pitching and I'm not convinced our rotation is all that solid. Yes, they're as a whole, better than last year, but our rivals have bettered themselves both in the rotation and in their bullpens. I fear that our rotation may be injury prone and our bullpen hasn't improved much over last year.
The backup catcher situation doesn't bother me so much because a catcher can be acquired if the need arises. I'm sure we'll pick up someone spring training.

On Bernie (again): Just because he is not a fit with the Yanks right now, and I agree he isn't, doesn't mean he should automatically retire. If you were 38 and in good shape physically would you retire because the team you've always played for didn't need you? Hell no, you'd want to play as long as you could so Bernie might just do that. He is far from "embarrassing himself" as Roy put it. The guy had a very solid year last season and may provide some team with the veteran leadership and calming influence they need to get to the postseason. Ali embarrassed himself when he was old, out of shape and way too slow to keep up with the young guns. Bernie is not there yet folks, the guy can still contribute.
I wouldn't trade Melky just to make room for him but if he were our 4th OF for some reason, I'd be comfortable with it.

Jim A

Dittos to everything you just said on the pitching and especially Bernie! I do believe we need to acquire a good promising heir apparent for Posada now though. Kinda like when we had Girardi starting and Jorge was the C in training.

Great pics, Jim B. Ireland's a beautiful place, almost as beautiful as Yankee Stadium :)

My favorite place in Europe is Vienna, Austria, full of culture, history and of course, great food.

http://espn-i.starwave.com/media/apphoto/UTDB11101220448.jpg

[QUOTE]Major League Baseball pitcher Roger Clemens shows off his World Series ring with the New York Yankees as he arrives at the myspace party during the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, Saturday, Jan. 20, 2007[/QUOTE]

http://espn-i.starwave.com/media/apphoto/UTDB11001220447.jpg

Roger Clemens arrives at the myspace party during the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, Saturday, Jan. 20, 2007.

why didnt the yanks go after toby hall and give him a one year contact? he was the perfect answer for one year only.i also think not trading for gonzo from pittsburgh is gonna hurt us.

My concern about the Yankees is their back-up catcher, first base and lefty reliever situation. I still can't see the Yankees going with the platoon of Mientkiewicz and Phillip or Phelps. First base is a power/production position and those guys are weak hitters. Mike Myers is usually a one batter reliever, so the Yankees desperately need another lefty in the bullpen. Right now, Will Nieves who has very little major league experience, seems to be the leader for back-up catcher. Those should be very huge concerns for the Yankees. They should've traded for Gonzalez to fill the lefty bullpen situation and should've gone all out to try to trade for Sexon or Conor Jackson. The Yankees have so many pitching starters in the minors that I can't see why they would want to keep all of them. They are not going to be able to use them all, so they should trade some of them ( Sanchez, Olhendorf, Clippard, Rasner, Karsten, etc. ) to fill the voids at first base, catching and lefty reliever.

The Yankees' First Basemen will hit in the 9 spot of the order, so I don't think power production is going to be a big concern. More important is that the players there be responsible and reliable with the glove.

From the back-up catcher spot, would I like to see someone with a better pedigree than Wil Nieves or Raul Chavez? A younger option than Todd Pratt? Of course. But the last time the position of back up catcher mattered for the Yankees was when Posada and Girardi were splitting time. As with the first base situation, so long as whomever wins that spot is a reliable glove behind the plate and responsible enough to keep himself ready to play that's fine with me.

As far as the rotation goes, I'm comfortable with it to a point. I'm fine with not spending a ton of money on middle of the road pitchers, and the Pettitte and Mussina signings were smart and financially responsible. That said, both those pitchers are getting up in age and have had injury issues. Could we look at a stretch of the season where the rotation is Wang, Igawa, Pavano, Rasner, Karstens...sure, it's possible, but the thing is that with all the trades the Yankees made they now have depth to throw lots of potential solutions at the rotation.

Bottom line about the Yankees for me is this:

I don't believe Boston is as improved as they are being made out to be. I like the deals the team made to get younger and more flexible both financially and with their roster spots. I am sorry to see Bernie go but he just doesn't have a role on the team. So lets get the season going already.

Another note...if you check the Yankee roster you'll notice that Robbie Cano is listed as number 24, he was asked and agreed to give up 22 in preparation for a possible Clemens return to the Bronx.

I like this roster and the job Cashman has done to acquire young pitching talent. However, I don't think he is done yet. I feel he may swing a trade in spring training if he does not like what he sees before they come north. I don't like the back up catcher situation, but 1 of those guys may hit better than their predecessors.

here's my speculation regarding bernie.

knowing cashman's past behavior, it is obvious he treats the veterans, and the game itself, with a lot of respect. i find it hard to believe tht he us dangling bernie.
the only possibiity i can think about is this: i believe the yanks are looking for pitching upgrade that may become available and melky is the prime chip.
i know it's been debated here whether it's worth trading a young OF, but many believe that his value is at its highest.
my guess is that cashman has been as honest as he can be with bernie, making it clear that if the right deal came through melky is on the block.
however, it seems that at least until spring training the yanks go with what they have, which means no bernie...

Gil L

I agree pretty much with what you just said. I think BC is still waiting to see if another trade can be made, but it probably won't happen until ST is under way. And, Melky would be the #1 chip which would then open up a spot for Bernie. But, unless that trade materializes, then Bernie is gone.

I also still believe that Pavano will be gone during ST. And, I would like to see Farnsworthless gone as well. I also can't believe that BC is comfortable with the back end of the rotation and the backup C spots. So, even though things appear calm now, I still see the potential for a flurry of activity in Yankeeland.

Well, I guess this answers my question (remember I brought this "what if" up?):

CANO'S NO. 22 TO ROG - IF ...

By MICHAEL MORRISSEY

January 23, 2007 -- The Yankees are preparing for Roger Clemens - at least, numerically speaking.

Recently, the club asked All-Star second baseman Robinson Cano to hand over his No. 22 in the event of another Rocket launch in The Bronx, The Post confirmed yesterday.

Cano will switch to No. 24, and he's as eager as anyone to see the seven-time Cy Young Award winner in pinstripes again.

Cano's number already has been officially adjusted on the team roster, according to a source.

"I was happy to give up the number to a future Hall of Famer if Roger comes aboard," Cano said in a statement. "Hopefully, he will be one of my teammates, I'll have the pleasure of playing with him."

Moreover, indications are the Yankees already have relayed Cano's number switch to Clemens' camp - even if the 44-year-old righty has no imminent plans of making a decision of where to pitch in 2007, or whether to retire.

"No decision will be made until well after spring training, perhaps until after the season starts," agent Randy Hendricks wrote in an e-mail yesterday.

To preemptively ask a budding cornerstone to switch numbers indicates that the club must feel it has a strong likelihood of signing Clemens, a Yankee from 1999-2003. He wore the No. 22 after wearing No. 21 in Boston and Toronto.

In 1999 in The Bronx, Paul O'Neill wore No. 21. There won't be a similar problem when this season begins.

Cano, who had a terrific second half after returning from a hamstring injury, already had revealed himself as a selfless team player. Last winter, before the Yanks signed Johnny Damon, he volunteered to play center field if the club wanted.

*

According to a published report, MLB next week will officially announce the Yankees will host the 2008 All-Star Game. A press conference is expected a week from today. The announcement has been expected for some time.

Additional reporting by George King

Let's get Roger ! He has guts ! And you can never have enough pitching.

Clemens isn't even back with the Yanks and he already is making waves. I don't care if Cano is "happy to give up his number to a future HOFer". Now Cano has Tino's number, and Clemens gets his beloved 22 if he comes back, which is only if Boston doesn't want him.
Roger uses every team he plays for and the relationship usually ends on a sour note so I really don't want him back.

Clemens is a part-time player who doesn't travel with the team on road trips. The Yankees need to show the "young blood" that is going to fuel our next dynasty, that the team is the focus, not the individual.

You know something ... if clemons want to end his legacy on a good note he better come to the yankees or stay in houston. at this point , i say these two teams because there is a valid message. Houston is Home they put up with the mess of Part time player. The yankees is showing MORAL!!!!! and is willing to accept this man open arms ,to have cano do what he did is awesome! clemons legacy would be tarnished in votes if he screws this up

Jim A and Roy

Great points! I agree about Clemens. We don't need this drama queen crap. It is a distraction to the TEAM and the "new" chemistry movement.

I have a great idea...sign Clemens and then turn around and trade him for Lilly!

Bomber- Believe me, Clemens will screw this up. Just look at his departures from teams in the past: He quit on Boston, got fat and completely quit-every player from his team said so.
Toronto: Gets back in shape, wins two Cy-Youngs and decides to pull the old "you told me you'd trade me" when he saw the Yanks were about to go on a WS run that he could probably jump on and get carried to a ring or two.
Yankees: Gets gushed over for a whole season because he is "retiring", even gets an orange Hummer as a parting gift. Of course he signs with Houston and keeps the Hummer, along with the one a Houston radio station gave him.
Houston: "hometown discount" for $5M his first season, comes and goes as he pleases etc. but absolutely SOCKS it to Houston in year 2 by asking for $22M in arbitration, settles for $21M, my how gracious.
Clemens has the mentality of a high school jock who could never let it go. He has to be in the spotlight or he can't take it. I just don't want to see the Yanks fall for this garbage and move on. He might be a fit for them because they may need a RH starter for one year, but I just don't want to see it happen.
You can bet the decision will be made when the standings are clear. He'll go with whoever is winning their division at the time he decides to come back.

If there were bad influences in the clubhouse these past few years, they were: Brown, Sheffield, & Big Unit. Cashman has already said Roger is a great clubhouse guy and I believe he will be welcomed back. He would be a great mentor to any of the young pitchers. The Boss wants to win now, & signing Roger improves our chances of winning a tough battle with Boston and Toronto & going farther in the playoffs.

george

If Clemens wants to be a Yankee, it is a fact that Cashman will hand him a blank check. As far as being a great "clubhouse" guy goes....you can throw that out the window if he gets preferential treatment by being able to come and go as he pleases. That kinda stuff isn't going to fly on a team full of superstars.

With all of Clemens’s special requests I doubt he'd have any impact on the clubhouse at all cause he won't be there much. How could he be a good clubhouse guy when he'd be the only healthy pitcher not traveling with the team on days he doesn't pitch? The Yankees have said they won't let him do that but they might take it back when it comes down to the wire. I'm not sure that's a good example for our future Yankees.

Roger is a great pitcher and is definitely a gamer and clutch BUT his idea of joining a team mid-way and then telling them if he plans on traveling etc is not team ball and that's what we need to get back to in order to win 27.

I do not favor the RC signing as I stated above for reasons of team chemistry and young player development. If he were signed its from Spring Training to October Classic. No player is above the team. The Team has needs and its all about the team. This way or no way. For my opinion he's presently out of shape and no where ready for ST. Yes, he can still win some games but will be compensated handsomely both in money and opportunity for him to pull the prima dona act. We all eat at the same table mentallity.

clemons will suck in the AL part time schedule and all and then the Boss will say something with out a rep that will scare the crap outta clemons if he signs for alot of money and has a 4.50 era and part time schedule especially if RJ goes to AZ and has a under 3.00 era. george will then rip clemons a new you fill the blank. and the majority would support the boss if he did such if clemons pulled this mess, that is why i feel he is going back to houston because he knows he can pimp them

Cashman should trade A-Rod (with his approval of course) by the trade deadline, or in spring training, to the Cubs or Angels, for 1 or 2 good young prospects. It sounds like A-Rod will opt out of his contract after 07.

I have a new thought on what to do about the Bernie situation. Actually, I think my idea is a best case solution for all parties involved. My plan would work like this:

Yankees sign Bernie for one more year with the understanding/agreement that this WILL be his last before retiring. Bernie then gets his wish to go out a Yankee and will play the role of 4th OF for the year. That leads us to what to do with Melky.

Sitting on the bench getting limited playing time is clearly NOT the place to have a young budding star. A youngster like Melky needs to be playing everyday and should be. So, have Melky PLAY everyday at Scranton with the understanding that if/when an injury occurs in NY, he will be called up to PLAY for the injured OF and Bernie will REMAIN the 4th OF.

I think this is a great solution for all parties involved with this situation...Yankees save embaressment, Bernie gets his wish for ONE more year, and Melky is playing fulltime (either in Scranton or NY). I would appreciate your comments guys.

You trade our best for their best. angels want arod , give me vlad or krod. cubs want arod give me derek lee or Ramirez , I would not trade a solid player for a bunch of ? marks, if the prospect we would get never panned out it would be ruled as the STUPIDEST trade ever

http://talkmlb.proboards51.com/index.cgi?board=talk&action=display&thread=1169620086
1. White Sox; Excellent offense, Great rotation 1-4, Good bullpen
2. Red Sox; Great offense, Nice rotation, Okay bullpen
3. Angels; Station to station offense, Excellent Rotation, excellent bullpen
4. Mets; Great offense, Nice rotation, Excellent bullpen
5. Twins; Okay offense, Okay rotation, Excellent bullpen
6. A’s; Station to Station offense, Nice pitching, Excellent bullpen
7. Cardinals; Nice offense, Okay pitching, Good bullpen
8. Tigers; Okay offense, Good pitching, Good bullpen
9. Padres; No offense, Good pitching, Great bullpen
10. Yankees; Excellent ofense, No pitching, no bullpen

no RANDY JOHNSON. he was your best pitcher. good luck next year you will need it.

yankees should challenge blue jays for 3rd place next year

You do NOT DEMOTE a young budding star , now you can argue that Bernie just as much in production for the yanks as did Melky (in offensive numbers) but melky is the future. Bernie needs to recognize we trying to win , you wanna stay ? sign a minor league deal play the season there and we'll call you up if you doing well

BB

Technically, Melky was a AAA player last season and was ONLY called up to fill in due to 2 injuries. So, in my view, he isn't really being "demoted". Lots of players have been "shuttled" from Columbus to NY and back again over the course of many seasons. Look at Bubba Crosby for an example, as well as, several young pitchers.

However, sending a 16 year veteran down to AAA IS a DEMOTION. Especially, one who will probably have his number retired in Monument Park. Arguing for Melky or against Bernie is one thing, I just don't think the "demotion" thing is an accurate description of my plan. I look at it more like the "shuttle" for one season until Bernie and maybe Abreu are gone, opening a spot.

IT looks like it's over between Derek Jeter and Jessica Biel. Last weekend, Biel flirted with Justin Timberlake while Jeter was at Atlantis in the Bahamas for the Michael Jordan Golf Tournament, where Biel seemed to be the last thing on his mind.
http://www.nypost.com/seven/01242007/gossip/pagesix/a_new_union__pagesix_.htm

RICK- Right now, Melky is a better all around player than Bernie, and the gap is widening every day. Why would the Yankees put the better player at Scranton? That would only hurt the major league team. My solution would be to make Bernie an outfielders coach at the Major League level, and activate him if needed. He would need to stay in shape, and take BP and fielding drills daily with the "big club". Instead of a "Player\Coach", he would be a "Coach\Player". "Coach" full-time, and "player" if needed. That's the best I can come up with, and still have him active, and in touch with the major league team. No way I would sign Bernie to a minor league deal. That is just plain embarassing, and an insult to a "legend".

ESPN.com dope: The "No pitching" Yankees did ok for themselves last year with a rotation that included an old Unit and Jaret Wright. And Wang was the best Yankee Starting pitcher, not RJ.

Roy

I agree Melky is the better all around player. However, there are several reasons for my plan. I thought I explained them, but here is a recap.

1. Like you just said, they CAN'T send Bernie to AAA, insult doesn't describe it.

2. Melky has OPTIONS left and he NEEDS to play everyday, which he would under my plan, whether in Scranton or NY.

3. The 4th OF in NY isn't really going to get much playing time. That is a perfect spot for Bernie but would be a huge diservice to a 21 year old trying to get established. Melky would be stagnating as a backup.

4. And, lets not forget that Melky still could end up getting traded. Playing everyday at AAA would probably do more for his "value" than sitting on the Yankees bench.

5. It's also a face saving out for the Yankees in dealing with this whole scenario.

Although not perfect, I just think this would be the best way to take care of the whole "mess" surrounding the Bernie situation.

melky and trades

just following the disucssion, i think the yanks have a window of oppotunity to go for a trade, but not for an SP but rahter the for the next closer. i can think of 2 options:
1) go for chad cordero. he's got the stuff and he's young. with a couple of years of grooming, who knows?
2) the braxton kid from LA who's supposed to be the real deal.
in both cases, melky will be used as the centerpiece + farnsworth (esp. if LA is involved, since they're in win now mentality).
i'm sure that there are many more names around the majors, and esp. the minors, that can grow into that all super-important role.
i believe it's worth the price.

RICK- I still come back to the Yankees are a better team with Melky as a 4th outfielder than they are with Bernie in that role. The ultimate goal is to field the best team possible. Having Melky at AAA does not achieve this goal. I wouldn't be surprised to see Matsui trying to master 1st base at some point, with Melky becoming the full-time left fielder. Doug M. would be released, and the Yanks would use the roster spot to carry an extra reliever. As always, Torre is going to "burn out" the bullpen by the All Star break.

Roy

You must admit that there is a "situation" with Bernie though, AND it is no small matter. There needs to be a respectable solution for all involved and BC needs to come up with something.

I agree this is a "situation" and obviously Bernie will not "go gentle into that good night". I still like the Bernie becoming "coach\player" scenario I described previously.

atticas:
The weather was remarkably consistent, between 7.5 and 9 degrees celcius everyday. The locals said they haven't had any snow in years, maybe a decade. I guess that's how everything stays so green.
Also interesting, the sun came up well after 8 every morning and set around 5ish. But in the summertime the sun stays up until well after 10. Now that's nice.

You do not send down the better player to play politics. there is no room for bernie at this point. i would'nt be able to stomach seeing him not get to a ball that could cost us a game or a runner tagging up a run on a fly that a better arm OF would not have been run on. or to see him come up in a pinch and strike out constanstly or have non productive pinch hit at bats when we knew there was a better player that probally could have done the job , from the bunt to catching the deep fly. now i'l l admit bernie was ok last year

Gil L

The dodgers have a ABUNDANCE of melky type OF's already, Young with potential

http://www.waswatching.com
Looks Like It's Coming Down To Igawa Vs. Papelbon

Hi Jim,
I've been a fan of your writing for a while but this is the first time I've written. Hope all is well and you enjoyed your vacation. Looking forward to what you have to say about the Yanks in the pre-season.