On the Yankees beat

Yankees 8, Boston 3.

Boston has the same plate approach that the Yanks do: get the pitch counts up. For Rocket to be successful, he needs to get ahead in the count and make Boston expand the strike zone.

Beckett is having a fantastic season has his record shows. The Yanks have to be aggressive at the plate, but smart meaning that they can't chase pitches out of the strike zone. (see Cano swinging at an eye level pitch last night). The Yanks can hit Beckett and have done so already this season.

Just don't let it get to Okijima and Papelbon.

Sox win this one.....

I hate to say it, but I suspect the Sox will win this one. Clemens gets too excited early in games that mean something, either the playoffs or any games against the Red Sox it seems and when he gets juiced up, he leaves the ball up above the belt and becomes very hittable. Torre knows this and that is why the AL tore Clemens up in the All-Star game a couple years ago. He told the guys that Clemens would try to throw the ball 120 MPH and it would be up in the zone and the AL feasted on him, embarrassed him in his home ballpark.
I think the Yanks can hit Beckett, but I think the Sox can beat up Clemens pretty bad. I don't have a great feeling about this one.

Clemens has alternated between being great and being hittable. On Friday he was hittable, but the long delay had something to do with that.

Tonight I feel that he'll be great provided that he's pitching ahead in the count.
Boston could be a little thin in the lineup if Manny doesn't play.

The Yankee lineup "can" hit any pitcher...but they also "can" be shut down. I like Beckett tonight vs Clemens for the same reasons Jim stated.

What's your take on tomorrows game Jim?.....to me Schilling vs Wang is a toss up.

John I'm with you, I'm holding my prediction until I find out if Manny is in the lineup or not.

If he's not, Mike Lowell and JD Drew will have to beat the Yankees because there is no way David Ortiz gets a pitch to hit in a big spot.

Something for you all to consider......Manny's numbers this year are at his lowest ever in a Sox uni....average, homeruns, obp, slugging..etc., and yet the Sox have the best record in MLB.

I'm not sluffing off Manny....he is the best RH hitter of his generation, or at least one of the top 3....but the Sox are where they are because they have not had to rely on Manny and Ortiz as they have in the past.

The R\Sox are minus Manny, the Yanks are minus Chamberlain. The Yankee disadvantage is greater, as they have nobody in the "pen" that can do what Chamberlain does both on the field, and in the area of "team\fan energy". His "entrance" into a game is beginning to resemble what Gagne had going when he "entered" a game in his prime. In an extra inning game, the Boston advantage grows. The Yanks must break "The Joba Rules". Boston wins this game by default.

Cas,

I agree with you - and Lowell has been a monster for you this season - but I think a lot of the reason guys like Lowell (and earlier in the season Youk) were beating teams were because of the looming presences of Ortiz and Manny - take Manny out of the lineup and Ortiz loses some of his effectiveness (as evidenced last season). Make Ortiz less of a threat and you make Lowell, 'Tek, Drew, etc., less of a threat as well - not saying they aren't capable of winning without Manny - just saying that given my choices I like them better when Manny is out of the lineup.

the joba debate

a quick question to yankee fans: who was your MVP of the championship years 96-00?

i'd bet most of you would say mo. no a SP, not a position player, but a closer.

i solid closer is a ridicolous luxury. we can get top quaulity starters (i'd go for dan haren eventually, we all know the a's can't keep him), but a closer is precious.

joba is our papelbon. yeah he can start, but where does he present the biggest added value?

oh for sure chip.....

Roy,

Joba is only an issue if the Yankees can get a lead to the 7th/8th inning - if they can - I'm sure Vizciano and Co. will be fine.

Personally I think the loss of a guy who bats .500 against the Yankees and seems to hit a HR every time he sees Yankee pitching and plays the entire game is MUCH greater than a reliever who may throw 1 inning.

Casual,
I'm with you on tomorrow's game, it could be any type of game. Wang and Schilling could duel for 8 innings of shutout ball or they could both be gone by the 5th inning of a slug fest.
I'm just going on memory here, but I believe the Sox hit Wang pretty good so if I had to pick one, I'd pick the Sox, even though I hate to give Schilling any credit, he's still got a lot left in his tank.
I just hope Wang has fixed his problems and can keep the ball down tomorrow, that will minimize the chances and keep the Yanks in the game.

I also think we'll see "The Joba Rules" broken in this series, just a feeling I have.

Joba may be the Yanks Papelbon....that guy is impressive. First time I've seen him pitch last night...he made the Sox look silly.

Jim,

Evidently, you have more faith in Schilling than I do....he reminds me of Frank Tannana at the end of his career....trying to fool hitters instead of over-powering them....it remains to be seen how effective he will be.

Wang has always had a bit of "good luck" on his side...in terms of his stats vs his wins...I think he is a good pitcher, but not a great one...if his sinker is working, he does well...if it aint...he is very hittable.

Gil

If Rivera were walking away at the end of the season I would tend to agree with you, but he isn't. It's true, Rivera was the Yankees' MVP from 96-00 but he was just as dominant from 01-06 and how many championships did the Yankees win? And why didn't they win them? The answer is starting pitching. Detroit made the World Series with Todd Jones closing, because they had a rotation of Verlander, Rogers, Robertson, and Bonderman. The Marlins won the World Series with Looper closing because they had Beckett, Burnett, Brad Penny, Dontrell and a good Pavano in the rotation.

The counter argument is St. Louis who won the series last year despite not having a good rotation OR closer.

CHIP-
Your overlooking both the Yanks\and R\Sox knowing he isn't available. His "presence" and in this case "lack thereof", is felt by both teams beginning inning 1. It also enters into the mgrs. moves, and non-moves. There is more here than "meets the eye".

LMAO...the NY media is getting ALOT of attention in the Boston media today....think these two teams aint obsessed with each other?

Gil,

Just to add to my last post - in 2004 the Yankees, up 3-0, should have won the ALCS - instead they had to go into a Game 7 situation with Kevin Brown starting. A relief pitcher can only help if you have starters who can get the ball to him.

The difference between Joba and Papelbon is that the Red Sox already have a bunch of very good young starters (Beckett, Dice, Bucholtz, Lester) and can afford to keep Jonathan in the pen - the Yankees have a surplus of top reliever candidates but lack young, front of the rotation starters - Joba, Wang, Hughes, and maybe Al Horne, Ian Kennedy and Chris Garcia are it. An Ohlendorf or Steve Jackson, Humberto Sanchez, Bentaces, should be able to craft a fine corps of late inning relievers.

Let me ask this another way - if the Yankees use Joba as a starter next year and he is everything people say he is - dominant in a Justin Verlander way - will anyone be complaining (other than Roy)

Buster Olney- Yankees' plan for future currently on display

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/columns/story?columnist=olney_buster&id=2994858

Great Article Buster on Joba and Yankees Farm

[quote]
Editor's Note: This story appears in the Sept. 10 edition of ESPN The Magazine.

The savior is summoned from the bullpen. As he begins his journey across the outfield grass, the crowd in Yankee Stadium rises to its feet. It's a murky August day, but with the Yankees trying to haul themselves into contention, it feels like October. The full house is in full throat, and when public address announcer Bob Sheppard introduces the pitcher, the roar gets even louder.

Four infielders and catcher Jorge Posada wait on the mound with Joe Torre, all of them watching the pitcher, because his entrance is always a can't-miss event. He reaches the apron of the mound, and Alex Rodriguez nods at him. Torre gives him the ball. There are more eyes on the pitcher than on Tiger at the 18th hole of the Masters, and even greater expectations.

Joba Chamberlain

Joba Chamberlain has 17 strikeouts and has allowed just four hits in 10 innings pitched thus far for the Yankees.
Mariano Rivera watches from the bullpen as the savior, Joba Chamberlain, warms up for his seventh inning in the big leagues. On this day, he has been asked to shut down the middle of the Detroit lineup. With the Yankees up 4-3 in the seventh, Chamberlain pumps fastballs at Gary Sheffield, who cannot catch up to a chest-high, 98 mph bullet and pops out. Magglio Ordonez, the Tigers' MVP candidate, flails at the vapor trails of three fastballs and whiffs. Two outs. Carlos Guillen gets Chamberlain's slider, which seems to be a hybrid of Ron Guidry's Louisiana lightning and Rivera's cutter, and because he is wary of the fastball, he cannot check his swing. Nine pitches, three outs, two punch-outs, one more inning of total domination. The fans are on their feet again as Chamberlain walks off, his teammates tapping him with their gloves as they pass.

The response to Chamberlain reflects his talents. "He's got physical tools that come along once in a lifetime," says bullpen coach Joe Kerrigan, who worked with a young Randy Johnson in Montreal. But Yankee fans also love Chamberlain because of what he represents. The 21-year-old right-hander is the most gifted product of GM Brian Cashman's 24-month organizational reconstruction, the crown jewel of the club's attempt to turn back the clock to the days when the farm system teemed with prospects suited to the inherent pressure of being Yankees. Where once there was Bernie and Jeter and Rivera and Posada and Pettitte, there is now Phil Hughes, another 21-year-old righty whose laid-back demeanor belies his electric stuff; Melky Cabrera, the underrated, understated 23-year-old center fielder who keeps up a steady stream of sandlot chatter during games; and Joba (pronounced JOB-ba), whose shoulders are as square as the southwestern notch of his home state, Nebraska.

A river of youth flows through the Bronx.

TWO YEARS AGO, exhausted from fighting the internal wars that come with the territory, Cashman decided to walk away. "There were a lot of cooks in the kitchen," he says now. Even as he prepared for his departure, he told George Steinbrenner that the organization needed a major makeover. Rather than having various departments -- scouting, player development, the big league club -- report separately to Steinbrenner, Cashman argued, the team needed a linear chain of command, led by a single executive who answered only to The Boss. "You shouldn't have to look for someone to blame," Cashman told Steinbrenner. "One person should be responsible."

After spending his entire working life with the Yankees, Cashman had reluctantly concluded that he wasn't going to be that person. He was convinced that Steinbrenner would never restructure the way he suggested, and in the last days before his contract was set to expire, on Oct. 31, 2005, he informed general partner Steve Swindal and team president Randy Levine that he was going. Cashman's phone rang almost immediately. On the other end was a familiar voice. "Why don't you do what you're recommending?" The Boss asked.

Cashman quickly rededicated the scouting and player development departments to doing what they'd done so well in the early '90s: finding and fostering high-ceiling talent, particularly pitchers. Cashman wanted the team to stop making safe draft picks; he wanted it to take chances. After all, the Yankees had the money to cover their mistakes.

Chamberlain, for one, wasn't always a high-ceiling talent. Three years ago, he was just a heavy kid who'd been a manager of his high school basketball team. But after a year at D2 Nebraska-Kearney, he transferred to Nebraska and learned how to throw a slider. By the winter of 2005-06, he was regarded as a rock-solid first-rounder, but in the weeks leading up to the draft his stock slipped, fueled by rumors that his diminished velocity was the result of hidden arm trouble, not fatigue. Yankees scouting director Damon Oppenheimer wasn't one of the doubters. Then again, the team's first pick was 41st overall.

On draft day, the conference call began, and in the war room, Yankees officials started to pull the placards of their highest-rated players off the board as they were picked by other teams. Deep into the first round, Chamberlain's placard was still hanging, all by itself. "There's no way he'll get to us," Oppenheimer said aloud. But as the draft moved into the "sandwich picks," between the first and second rounds, Chamberlain still hadn't been taken. "You don't think this could happen, do you?" Oppenheimer asked another executive. And then it did. At No. 41, an ecstatic Oppenheimer submitted the name of Joba Chamberlain.

Of course, before Chamberlain made it to the big leagues this summer, things had to go very badly for the Yankees, and for Brian Cashman.

STEINBRENNER'S ARRIVAL at Yankee Stadium once prompted organization-wide 911 calls, with everybody from receptionists to custodians to players to executives tracking his movements as if he were a swirling mass on Doppler radar. But Steinbrenner turned 77 in July, and these days he's rarely in New York, instead addressing most of his reduced workload with phone calls from Tampa. (Despite reports that his employer is failing mentally and physically, Cashman says they still talk strategy three or four times a day, every day.) In bad times, the reduced contact between Steinbrenner and his employees can generate waves of uncertainty.

LaDainian Tomlinson

ESPN the Magazine

Click here to subscribe to the magazine.
The rotation was a mess in April, and the offense shriveled in May, and as the Red Sox moved 14½ games ahead, others in the organization believed there was a real chance Cashman would be stripped of his power. "He's on a big hook," Steinbrenner said of Cashman in a rare interview with the Associated Press, speaking words he'd said repeatedly to his GM's face. "He wanted sole authority. He got it. Now he's got to deliver."

As the Yankees continued to regress, Cashman was befuddled and discouraged.

"I can't believe we're this bad," he told an executive of another club.

Still, he was resolute in his belief that the organization was on the right course, and he wasn't about to look for any quick fixes. Cashman had long been peppered with inquiries from other teams about Hughes. "We're not going to move him," Cashman replied. "He's part of the group that will either succeed or fail with us."

Some rivals wondered if the GM was too protective of his young players.

"It's one thing to like your own prospects," says a veteran talent evaluator. "But when you start saying no to everything, you're in jeopardy of overvaluing your own guys. In some cases, I think that's what Brian is doing."

But now the Yankees are entering the stretch riding a 2914 second-half surge to within striking distance of the wild card, and it looks as if Cashman's youngsters might have saved the season. Cabrera, whose range and arm complement a .293 batting average, has supplanted Johnny Damon in center. Emerging from a hellish slump, 24-year-old second baseman Robinson Cano has hit .366 since the break. Shelley Duncan, a 27-year-old rookie first baseman, was promoted on July 20 and slammed four homers in his first 21 at-bats. Hughes, recovered from a strained hamstring, has lent stability to the rotation. And Chamberlain, called up amid much fanfare in early August, struck out 14 of the 28 batters he faced in his first 15 days in the majors.

But their biggest contribution might be the energy they bring to the clubhouse. Cano and Cabrera often begin their workdays with power lunches and afternoon workouts alongside A-Rod and end them with victorious chest-bumps. Duncan, the son of Cardinals pitching coach Dave Duncan, is gregarious and outgoing -- the team mascot, Torre jokingly calls him -- and he seems to share a running gag with everybody. Each day, for example, players fill out a ticket-request sign-up sheet, listing guests and the number of tickets they need; everyone leaves the comment line empty. That's a vacuum Duncan has to fill, inventing new responses daily. Good friend. Went to high school together, he might write, or Met them at the museum.

Chamberlain, meanwhile, is usually stone-faced in the bullpen. But early in one August game, TV cameras caught him trying to flip his cap onto his head and jiggling around until it settled in place. "It's totally different than it was here five years ago, with these guys," says one Yankee vet. "It's fun."

Chamberlain and Hughes and Cabrera each make less in a year than Roger Clemens earns in four days, but that sets them up better for the Bronx pressure cooker. "When young players come in," Cashman says, "the fans and the media are aware of them, but they don't expect them to go 3-for-4 every game. Then the reaction can be, 'Hey, this guy is pretty good.' "

The game is filled with pressure. Some of the best players fail 65 percent of the time. So there's no sense in worrying.

-- Joba Chamberlain

CHAMBERLAIN'S FATHER, Harlan, had polio as a boy, which forced him into a wheelchair. His resilience shapes his son, who has impressed older Yankees with his presence and work habits. Some believe Chamberlain is influencing Hughes, too, by arriving early, preparing diligently and presuming nothing.

He often can be seen chatting with, and listening to, Clemens (they share the same agent), and in his first hours in the bigs, Joba talked strategy with Rivera in the bullpen in Toronto. "This game can be taken away from you in a heartbeat," he says. "It would be a sin to be around guys like that and not ask questions."

Chamberlain would seem to have the perfect makeup and stuff to replace Rivera, if not for the fact that he's always been a starter and the Yankees plan to put him in the rotation next year. The Red Sox, of course, once had a similar plan for Jonathan Papelbon.

Before Chamberlain pitched his first inning, Kerrigan made a point to look into his face, because long ago, Expos manager Felipe Alou told him you could see a lot in a face in a moment like that. "There wasn't any tenseness," Kerrigan recalls. "You're talking about someone 21 years old. That's pretty special."

Chamberlain admits that what Kerrigan sees is what you get. "The game is filled with pressure," he says. "Some of the best players fail 65 percent of the time. So there's no sense in worrying."

For now, when the bullpen phone rings for Chamberlain, he'll stand and get right to work, tossing his fastball and his slider, then mixing in a changeup, another high-caliber pitch he might not have to use in a game until he becomes a starter again. When he's warmed up, he'll step through the bullpen door and walk into a future of promise. And that gives the Yankees the promise of a future.

Buster Olney is a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine. He updates his Insider blog each morning on ESPN.com.[/quote]

I will...at least 19 games each year.

Roy,

I'm not overlooking anything - I'm just disagreeing with you. You think Joba is a bigger loss - ok. I think the Red Sox having to give four at bats to Bobby Kielty or Eric Hinske instead of Manny Ramirez is a bigger loss. I think that the Yankees have a fresh group of relievers who can patch together a 7th and 8th inning if they have a lead to get the ball to Rivera in the 9th, but Boston loses a huge weapon in Manny and because he's not in the lineup Ortiz, their other big weapon, can be pitched around.

CHIP-
I believe it is much easier to get a "decent" 6 inning pitcher, than a dominant 2 inning "bridge"\"closer" in waiting. The Yankee offense, either with or without A-OPT, is capable of winning with only "decent" 6 inning pitchers.

Do we even know whether Manny IS playing or not?....from what I can see, there has been no definitive word

Manny's back may get much better when he realizes Chamberlain is not available tonight.

I have to agree with Roy....look at Papelbon...many of us were drooling at the thought of him in the starting rotation....but he is just too valuable in his closer role.....Joba may be the next Rivera.....

Good article by Buster - though worth pointing out that Chamberlain wasn't the Yankees' first pick last year - Ian Kennedy went 20 picks earlier.

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Cas,

Again, IF Rivera were going anywhere I would be more inclined to agree with you, but even though his contract is up after this year I don't see him leaving the Yankees until after the 2009 season at the earliest - so you're not even talking about making Joba a closer - but instead a set up reliever. That seems a waste considering all we hear is that he could be a dominant starter.

I'm pretty sure that if the choices for Boston were to have Papelbon start or have him fill the Mike Timlin role he would be starting and they would get by with someone else in that 7th/8th inning role.

Correction
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Where did all those quotes come from?

Cas,

True in saying that the Yanks can hit and can be shut down.

I just don't think that Beckett can shut them down.

But I don't think that the Yanks are going to beat Beckett's brains in.

If Clemens brings his "A" game tonight, then 3-4 runs may be enough.

As for the Sox winning without Manny and Ortiz hitting, that was true in April, May and part of June. That's not the case now.
Youkilis is not hitting. Drew hasn't hit since what, May? They had to move Lugo to the 9 hole because he was not doing it. Manny got hot and Ortiz was hitting some HRs lately. Lowell has been great all year, but until recently, the Red Sox weren't playing better than .500 ball.

It's the "attack" of the "Quote Monster," "grrrrr"....

Actually John, the sox have the second best record since the AS break....

Other scores from yesterday:

Rangers beat the White Sox

Royals beat the Tigers

Devil Rays beat Orioles 15-8

Angels beat Mariners -- taking two, Mariners at home

Strange game.

John,

The season is long and most players have ebbs and flows throughout the season. Lugo has become far more productive, Pedroia is likely the ROY and has produced some huge clutch hits/rbi's...Youks did slum, and has not returned to his ball mashing ways of the first two months, but has become a difficult out again and seems to get that double when the team really needs it. Lowell has been probably the most consistent, but guys like Coco, and Tek have contributed too. With Manny and Ortiz starting to show some of their former power numbers it can only bode well for the Sox, imo...of course all of this only matters as long as the Sox continue to lead almost all categories in pitching in the AL, if not MLB.

If my memory serves me correctly I belive we have done pretty well against Beckett this year...well at least compared to the rest of the league.

Doug (DC): since so few Yankee fans ever participate in these chats, let me be the first to ask about your thoughts on Ian Kennedy starting this Saturday instead of Mussina. And by "first," I mean, "first Doug (DC)" to ask this. Okay, maybe 12th.

SportsNation Jim Callis: (2:03 PM ET ) I have 112 questions already in the queue--and 20 of them are about Ian Kennedy. Good move for the Yankees, because Mike Mussina sure looks done and Kennedy is a much better option than Kei Igawa and Steven White. I doubt Kennedy will be as spectacular as Joba Chamberlain, because he'll be starting and doesn't have the same stuff. But if Kennedy is just competent, and he should be, that should be enough to win some games with New York's offense backing him.

They're 38-32 since June 1st.
25-18 since the break.

A little better than .500.

I stand corrected on my "Red Sox weren't playing better than .500 ball" comment.

I had to do some "homework" before responding.

Think of how much better that would have been if Manny and Ortiz were hitting much sooner than they currently are.

Beckett has not had stellar numbers against the Yanks this year....

True John...but look at the numbers a little deeper...only one other team has played better in terms of wins and losses in that period of time....perhaps a mid-season slump is to be expected with such a long season, no?

I hate to say this but I think the Sox win tonight, alough I think it will be pretty close. I say 4-3.

Me no rikey roy! Quotes not cool rike me! 100 mirrion for a .500 picha with 4.00 ERA , quote that roy!

I agree Cas. You just can't play lights out baseball all season. it's too long.

I'm not looking at the numbers per se, Cas. I know that the Red Sox are a solid team. They have great pitching and they have professional hitters.

I'm not making a prediction on the game tonight. I only stated that if Clemens is good, real good, then I like that Yanks' chances.

If Beckett is solid tonight, and I'm talking 1-2 runs solid, then I like Boston's chances.

As for tomorrow? Schilling hasn't been good against the Yanks this year and Wang can't seem to pitch well in day games. If Wang can get the sinker over for strikes and the Red Sox hit a lot of ground balls, then Wang will do fine. If Schilling has command of his pitches and can put the Yanks to bed early, Boston will be fine.

Flip a coin.

One more thing.

If it comes down to a battle of the pens, then you guys have the advantage.

Well, it was a great win last night for us! Way to bounce back. Jim A. was right and I was wrong.

Sorry Sully and Nudge!

Can you believe that Toronto just signed Joe Kennedy? He was lights out for the Cokeland Aids all year, then cut, then cut again by Arizona, now he's on Toronto ... what's with this guy? More cuts than a dull Bic disposable razor.

It will be great to see Beckett tonight ... will he be the kid from the 2003 WS in the sixth game?

I am sure he will do well.

OH MY GOD what if Mussina is right, who are we going to replace him with? Whatever will we do ...

NOT!

Most importantly, in the paper this morning the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that someone ... hmmm who wonder who it was ... had three hits in the game last night ...

Why of course it was none other than Rick Ankiel ... playing CF!

What's his average now ... let's see, add the one carry the three ... it is at .306 or something like that ...

Not too bad. After a summer of gang caps, tank tops, business with Beijing, the point shaving ref, steroids, torturing and killing dogs and only God knows what else ...

Well, the Little League World Series, Joba and Ankiel have offered us some light.

On the MSN.com home page there is a story "11 things that are right with Sports." Pretty good.

Go Yankees!

Sorry Cas. I didn't see your other post on Crisp, Lowell, Lugo etc.

They are all playing good baseball. Pedroia is good and I like him in the leadoff spot. Crisp is finally playing like the guy Boston traded for. Youkilis is having great at-bats even if he isn't hitting. he's getting pitch counts up and working walks. Lugo is playing much better as of late.

A tough, tough team to be sure.

Yankees win, hopefully but neither Beckett or Clemens figure in the decision for both are hittable by opposing batters which has been proven before in other games.

I hope the squirrel comes back and sits on top of the foul pole down the RF line. He brought the Yanks good luck.

The Post, Star Magazine and the Enquirer will be dedicating a 20-page spread to Rick Ankiel, the greatest baseball playa ever.

This off season the Yankees need to make some moves with the bullpen to bulk it up.

Joba then comes into spring training and the season as a starter.

IF the Yanks have enough starting pitching and the bullpen is failing...then you move him back.

Joba has 4 good pitches and needs to be utilized as a starter at first. You can always move him to the bullpen but you can not go from the bullpen to being a starter.

According to ESPN, Manny almost certainly will sit tonight. Francona is thinking about the playoffs and not the Yankees.

That's bull. Francona is always thinking about the Yankees.

I can see Manny sitting tonight. Why risk further injury when the playoffs are around the corner.

I'd alternate giving Manny and Papi time off if I were Francona. Papi's been coming off steroids ahem.. I mean battling a sore knee, so it would be wise to rest him.

Manny is sitting tonight.
Hinske's playing LF.

Manny is indeed sitting tonight.

His .180 career average against Clemens makes the decision to sit him a lot easier.

Lowell is batting cleanup tonight.

Giambi is playing 1st tonight.

Damon is in left and Matsui is the DH.

Bottom 2 coming up:

Angels 2 Seattle 0

The top stories this week ...

Hitler is a fry cook in New Orleans

Bigfoot's attempt to stop the Iranian Republican Guard from making IED and specially shaped (charged) projectiles against our guys in Iraq.

Rick Ankiel in CF

Check your supermarket stand.

I think "Not" must have been the greatest baseball player like, totally, ever!

Oh-My-God!

John G.,

How are things in Arizona. I graduated from Arizona State (almost embarassing) but it was never as hot as St. Louis!

I was at the Giants game today

Saw a guy wearing a Giants jersey with a number 13 on the back with the name Rodriguez

Pretty funny

Lousy game
Good garlic fries

Sully (not Nudge, Casual nor Anonymous)

'08 Yankees Rotation:
Starters:
Wang
Pettite
Hughes
Chamberlain
Kennedy

Set-up:
Vizcaino
Closer: Mo'

Retired:Clemens,Mussina

I see Manny has taken himself out of another September NY series. Seems like he does this every year. Remember when he was sooo sick a couple of years ago and then was seen out partying with one of the Yankee players (Lofton or another one of his ex-teammates)? I'm not complaining mind you, just making an observation about the guy. Maybe he just doesn't want to play today because Rocket is pitching and he knows what's coming after last night's AR drilling????

Seattle is losing. If the Yanks can get a win, they will be tied for the WC!

Looks like the Mariners are gonna get swept. They're down 6-2 in the bottom of the 8th. Jered Weaver is cruising. 90 pitches through 8.

I'm doing okay Ant. It's 111 here so staying in my office is fine with me.

AT&T is a beautiful park. I was just there a few weeks ago.

I kept away from the garlic fries though.

Rick... it was Enrique Wilson

Quirks, warts and all... I love Manny.

I know he does questionable stuff, but I think he's hilarious

Sully

Thanks for the correction. I knew it was one of his ex-Tribe mates.

Not, bite your tongue. I have 2 degrees from ASU. Respect your alma mater

Sully=Another Manny Apologist

Questionable stuff that Sully finds HILARIOUS:
1-Doesn't hustle
2-Doesn't play hard
3-Quits on team
4-Takes himself out of line up
5-Fakes injuries
Yea,Sully this stumblebum is a riot.The kind of guy whose fumblings and bumblings can energize a team...A real gamer.
Hard to understand why the Sox found no takers when they tried to trade him.
He's the anti DAMON.

Anon, you have a strange obsession about me.

I think you have a thing for me

Your right Slugly.My thing is to expose you and the BS you post.
Classic example is your twisted logic on Manny.My take on Manny is a lot more accurate.

Hey, Slugly your the guy who was exhausting himself with self-congratulations about how fair and honest you were just a few days ago. The Manny blog provides further evidence of the anal retentive hypocrite you really are.