new-york-yankees
High and Tight posted this cartoon from the New York Post that mocks Corey Lidle’s lack of flying skills. It’s in completely poor taste but they seem to think that the Post had sunk to a new level of low or something?
We have stayed away from the Corey Lidle tragedy — mainly cause we don’t handle tragedy well — we prefer arrests and trashy chicks but it’s worth noting that the NY Post is a piece of trash that you should only read if you want to laugh at the New York Knicks.
Yankees fans rejoice (well, not really as you got knocked out of the first round of the playoffs), King George has decided that Joe Torre isn’t the problem behind his $200M choke. The New York Post is reporting that Steinbrenner felt Lou Pinella was close to a deal with the Nationals and also didn’t want to pay Torre $7M to lounge around in the sun so after a couple of days of deliberation, he has decided to keep Joe Torre.
We secretly were hoping that Steinbrenner would fire Torre so that the Yankees would implode next year. Hell, imagine if the Yankees missed out on Lou Pinella and had someone like Dusty Baker coaching them. That’d be high comedy. A $200M payroll with 20 wins. But alas, it seems the Yanks will retool their lineup and come out firing in 2007. Check out the links below for reaction from around the blogosphere.
Links:
[NY Post]: HE’S JOE-ING NOWHERE
[Hundredth Monkey Phenomenon]: A. Rod, Tigers, and Torre
[Dan Shanoff]: Can We Stop the Torre Talk, Now?
[Into the Woods]: Where do we go from here?
[Baseballistic]: Yankees Problems Aren’t Torre-Ential — They Start Upstairs
[Working Life]: Wait ‘Til Next Year–With Torre
As soon as Robinson Cano grounded out to end the game and the series, you knew it’d be about 5 seconds before a NY sportswriter put the finishing touches on his “George Steinbrenner thinking about firing Torre” article. (By the way, do you think A-Rod was secretly praying that Cano would not get on base so he wouldn’t make the last out?) Indeed, a report came out just hours later in the NY Daily News that Torre would be fired and be replaced by Lou Pinella.
As of Monday, no news has been announced about the fate of Torre but Steinbrenner issued a statement saying that the season was a “sad failure” and sources have told the NY Post that George is leaning towards firing Torre. If Torre does get fired, we’ll have to agree with the guy from Freakonomics blog and Salon’s King Kaufman about how silly it would be.
In other news…
[ESPN]: Culpepper, Saban had heated argument Friday
[Soccernista]: Team’s fans beat the crap out of them at the airport (video)
[Mike Tyson’s World Tour]: Tyson explains his World Freakshow Tour
[Wizard of Odds]: Spurrier Throws Assistant Under the Bus
[Hockey Rants]: Michal Handzus Needs Your Help
[USA Today]: Steffi Graf pays $360,000 for Agassi’s rackets
The Sports Illustrated cover story about A-Rod and his struggles as a Yankee is out today and it doesn’t paint A-Rod or his teammates’ lack of support (despite what they say) in a very flattering way.
The short version goes like this:
It’s going to be a rough October and offseason for A-Rod unless he delivers in the clutch and the Yankees win the World Series.
On Sunday, Big Papi decided to talk a little trash and say that Derek Jeter’s MVP candidacy was illegitimate because of the Yankees murderer’s row of hitters.
Don’t get me wrong, he’s a great player but he’s got a lot of guys in that lineup. Top to bottom, you’ve got a guy who can hurt you. Come hit in this lineup, see how good you can be.
Jeter responded by pointing to the division standings.
I’m not thinking about the MVP right now. We’re thinking about winning a division. We’ve still got something to play for.
In other news…
[All Headline News]: New GM Garth Snow and crazy Isles owner Charles Wang gives DiPietro 15 year $67.5M contract
[MSNBC]: Coach K decries ‘cloud’ of rape case. Basketball coach says it’s unfair that all of Duke athletics were tainted
[Footyblog]: Top Wives and Girlfriends in English soccer
[WHDH Boston]: Red Sox fan cursed at Red Sox players, shook his seat loose from bolting and throws seat in the face of a Maine woman nearby
[Superflav]: Off Topic but very cool: best rock video choreography you’ll ever see live
The folks over at Bad Idea Blue Jeans have dug up a Yankees questionnaire response from Mickey Mantle that, if authentic, would be the most hilarious response to a company survey ever. It sounds like it should have been a Seinfeld episode with George trying to cover up the response.
Mantle was asked to reminisce about his playing career for the 50th anniversary of Yankees stadium in 1973. Under “I consider this my outstanding experience at Yankee Stadium”, Mantle wrote:
I got a blow-job under the right field bleachers by the Yankee bull pen.It was about the third or fourth inning. I had a pulled groin and couldn’t fuck at the time. She was a very nice girl and asked me what to do with the cum after I came in her mouth. I said don’t ask me, I’m no cock-sucker.
Mickey Mantle is the best Yankee player ever.
If you compare the signature on the questionaire and an actual Mickey Mantle signature (or here), it looks like it could be the real deal. Although it sounds more like something Charles Bukowski would write.
In 1942: While it is known that Babe Ruth hit his final three home runs in Pittsburgh’s Forbes Field, it wasn’t the last time he thrilled fans with a few long balls. Batting against fellow Hall of Famer and legendary pitcher Walter Johnson, Ruth hit two into the stands to thrill the Yankee Stadium crowd one more time. The at-bats were part of pre-game festivities for charity; and Ruth, Johnson and 69,000 fans helped contribute $80,000 for Army-Navy relief during the war. The Yankees and Senators then split a doubleheader.
In 2005 (on August 20): San Francisco 49er’s offensive lineman Thomas Herrion collapsed and died in the locker room following a preseason game in Denver against the Broncos. The 330-pound rookie from Utah was on the field for the 49ers final drive of the game (14 plays), and was administered oxygen immediately afterward. During a team prayer in the locker room, Herrion slumped over and was immediately given first-aid. He was pronounced dead three hours later. An autopsy later determined that the cause of death was heart disease. He was 23.
You’d think Johnny Damon would have more things to worry about than a woman selling “Damon Sucks” bibs on ebay. (Like what the hell is going on inside A-Rod’s head.) But recently his agency, Scott Boras Corp, (currently neck and neck with Drew Rosenhaus for biggest asshole agent) decided to file a complaint against a woman selling Damon Sucks bibs on ebay.
The woman selling the bibs, Ann Sylvia, fought back with the argument that he couldn’t prove that she didn’t mean other players like Damon Hollins. Boras Corp attorney Lubner made a compromise — she couldn’t use “Johnny”, “Boston”, Red Sox”, “New York” or “Yankees” in the listing.
So the long and short of it is that Damon’s agents are a bunch of jackasses and this woman now gets a lot of free publicity for her ebay items. Good work, Lubner. Your christmas bonus this year will be a bib.
Links:
[Fox Sports]: Internet baby gear hits nerve with Damon
Can we start a fund for Randy Johnson’s love child? Maybe then she can afford to finally meet her father who won’t even return her phone calls. An Arizona couple won a charity auction to have dinner with Randy Johnson, his wife Lisa, and 20 of their friends. Ironically, the auction was to benefit the notMYkid organization. (You couldn’t make this stuff up.)
It’s too bad we didn’t know about this sooner. I’m sure all the sports bloggers could’ve raised more than $7,000, won the auction, and then invite Randy’s love child to dinner. That, friends, would be high comedy. (via The Hater Nation / Photo from Boston Dirt Dogs)
In other news…
[Yahoo]: Shocking! Sean Taylor gets special treatment and cops a plea
[ESPN]: Avery Johnson’s wife could be charged with assault for mixing it up with Suns fans
[Fire Dusty Baker]: Bad groundskeeping reason for Cubs losing
[Mr. Mack]: The All-Rotten Hall of Fame
[Off Wing Opinion]: Goalie scores all the way across the pitch
We’re as sick of the media East Coast bias and the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry as anyone but you gotta admit that it’s pretty funny when two teams start arguing about hitters staring at home run balls too long. After Manny Ramirez admired his homer off Scott Proctor (he did show him up by the way), A-Rod has been accused of doing the same thing to Tim Wakefield.
A-Rod denies that he would ever do something like that.
First of all, I’d never want to embarrass myself, so I wouldn’t pretend to embarrass myself by saying I didn’t see it if I had. Especially with someone like (Tim) Wakefield on the mound, who I respect as much as any pitcher in the game.I’ve hit a lot of homers and I’ve never pimped one or tried to embarrass myself, my team or a guy like Wakefield or the Red Sox, who I respect so much. I don’t celebrate homers, it’s not my thing. All you have to do is look at my track record.
Meanwhile, Joe Torre said, “There’s a lot of things that go on today that the old-time pitchers wouldn’t put up with. The game has changed a lot. It’s not only Manny Ramirez.” Sounds like Torre wants a beanball at the head of Manny to clear a few things up. We’ll root for anything that results in a bench clearing brawl. And, if somehow, AJ Pierzynski could get socked in the jaw in the deal, that’d be even better.
Links:
[NY Daily News]: A-Rod sez charge an injustice
