On the Yankees beat

Well that sounds like good news. I would love to see him have a break out year. He really looks like he has so much energy and loves just being part of the team. He has to be a huge plus in the clubhouse. Im hoping he is one of those guys that just needs a real chance and gets to play almost everyday.

Good to hear Shelley's doing well Kat...thanks for the update!

I would love to see Shelly get a shot at 1B on a regular basis. The guy has some serious power and brings a lot of energy to these old vets.

Who do you guys prefer at 1B

Giambi
Shelly
Wilson

shelly ,the others is suspect material

As do I. Wilson intrigues me a little since he's younger, a switch hitter and a better infielder. I never want to see Giambi with a glove on again!!!!

Speaking of Juicin Giambi, what do you guys think about him bouncing back in his contract year?

No doubt,Shelly. Whats up with Doug M.? Late inning D. And Giambi could be DH or occas. 1B

Jon Heyman on M&MD....

Talking about Matsui to SF for a young pitcher (perhaps someone to include in a trade for what's his name).

Talking about Noah Lowery and a reliever named Sanchez, who's supposed to be good for Matsui.

I like Godzilla, but I'd do it.

Im putting the fan on now...what did I miss?

Dam it Heyman, says Santana will be traded to someone.

Come on Dodgers! Go after Johan!!!!

I think Giambi will have a bounce back season and will probaby play at 1st in a semi-platoon with Duncan, and DH once in a while. I think he could get comeback player of the year if he stays healthy. Betemit will be backing up all infield positions - 3rd, SS, 2nd and 1st. Shelly will also back up in RF. This should assure all these guys get at-bats and also, in Giambi's case, rest. Betemit will probably come in for defense at 1st late in games since my boy, Phillips, has been designated. Still think we should have kept him and included Betemit in the trade for Santana - but can't cry over our youth movement (or spilled milk).
Lets Go Yankees!!!

This is crazy, but would you folks do this, and would you do it if you were Minnesota:

Let's say the Yanks trade Godzilla for Lowery and Sanchez. Would you call the Twins and offer the following for Santana:

Lowery, Kennedy, Melky, and one or two lower level minor leaguers.

This way, the NYY rotation looks like this:

Santana
Pettitte
Joba
Wang
Hughes

wow...I'm dreaming big today!

Damn...dueling radios right now. Heyman on WFAN and Cashman on XM.

Doug M. was the only player who wasn't painful to watch at 1B last year.

As I said a couple of days ago, I read that Tino is being hired as an instructor and maybe there is some thought that he could tutor Shelley into being a passable 1B. I continue to think that the fiery, competitive Martinez might be a good personality match to work with Duncan.

I really do not want to see the ball booted around the bag out there again this coming season -- neither the double plays missed nor the unnecessary increase in infield errors that comes with guys having to throw to a questionable player or even an unfamiliar or unpredictable one.

We could give it a chance and see if Tino can turn the guy around. Otherwise Shelley is just one more DH, and we seem to be pretty well supplied with those both for the present and for the future.

It seems like a long time ago that Mattingly and then Martinez made that corner a pleasure to watch.

I don't think the defense at 1B hurt the Yanks all that much last year. I frankly think Giambi has better hands than he is given credit for. Sure, he has no range and Doug M. is fantastic but good pitching won't let every little error kill the team.

1B is not a priority if you ask me.

Jim A - At face value I would do that trade, but you forgot one thing. Who plays OF? We would have an OF of Damon, Abreu and Shelly? my god, we better have good SP with those slugs in the OF.

Diane - Here's to hoping that the bamtino can get his glove up to speed. Dam I miss those two, we were spoiled.

one problem Jim ... no Godzilla ... no Melk Man ... who the heck is playing OF??? Abreu - Damon -Duncan? Not good.

Drew,
I didn't forget the OF, but there will probably be more options available than even Rowand who could move to left when Jackson comes up. I'd have no problem with Rowand for 4 years.

After players are non-tendered, I'm sure the Yanks could come up w/ someone to play CF for a while until something else comes up. I thought Damon played a fine LF, so I'd leave him there.

I subscribe to the theory that it's a lot easier to find OF's than pitchers.

Jim A.,

Giambi could pick them out of the dirt quite neatly if they were within his range, but his range was small. And he couldn't throw, so the ball stopped with him.

Ground ball pitchers might place a fairly high priority on a decent-fielding 1B.

Drew,

We were very spoiled and I want to be spoiled again! Spoiled is my favorite way to be ;-) !

If our hitting is as good as it was last year, we can spare the extra hits from 1B at least as well as we can spare the decent fielding.

OK, Ill buy that.

God I hate Russo!

I'm new to M&MD, but Russo almost made me jump through the radio when he said earlier today that he hopes Jeter, Pettitte and a bunch of other Yanks are in the Mitchell Report.

I'd wring that little jerk's neck if he was close by!

Jim A.,

I have a hard time listening to M&MD so I often skip it. But now you have aroused by curiosity. Did he give a reason for hoping that Jeter et.al. were in the Mitchell report? He thinks they're dirty? Or...???

No No No, I've been listening to these clowns for years. Russo is just a bitter SF Giants fan. You should have heard him when his love child Baroid was getting slammed by the callers. WHAT ABOUT GIAMBI!! He's bitter and sully. He was in heaven when the yanks lost to the D-backs in the WS. When Mo gave up the game he said "THEY'VE CUT THE HEAD OFF THE DRAGON!!" He's just a little sh!t

LOL

"The Mets remain the little boy with his nose pressed up against the pet store looking at the puppy he’s not going to get."

-Delcos Lohud

Poor Mets...

Diane,
Drew's got it right, he was just trying to needle the Yanks because he hates them.

Oh, if that's all.

Well, that's why I don't listen to them very often.

But imagine being both a Giants fan and a sports broadcasting type in recent years. Martyrdom.

I only listen for Mike, hes a Yankee fan.

I will say this about those guys, they know their sports. As some of you know, I live in Virginia, about 30 miles outside of Washington, DC and our sports radio SUCKS!. We have some of the worst sports talk radio I've ever heard.
Listening to "The John Thompson Show" on the radio makes me want to stab myself in the ears with ice picks.
I like it when the callers are screaming at M&MD and they are hollering right back, it cracks me up. It just makes me miss more about NY then Deli's, Diners, Bakeries and Pizza! (oh and egg creams too!).

Back to defense for a second. Not many people realize that the Yankees finished 3rd in the AL in overall defense last season. This is with Mentky missing a large part of the season.

This team is not a bunch of tin gloves.

Of course they're not a bunch of tin gloves. That's probably what makes it stick out when a tin glove does get on the field in pinstripes.

Jim - the yelling is my favorite part. Im a die hard yankees fan (I know, you guys are shocked!), but I dont hate the Mets. My grandmother was a Mets fan, so I pull for them when they dont face the Yanks. I have to say though, if you want to hear some sports radio comedy. Got to WFAN after a big mets loss, the callers are CLASSIC!!!

I feel the same way about the YES broadcasters. I complain bitterly (about Kay in particular) but then when I have to watch a Yankees game called by Fox or ESPN teams I almost have to turn off the sound. Pukeworthy enough to make me grateful for YES.

Jim A, that post at 16:21 is a brainstorm. You missed your calling. That would take care of all of this, "My package is better than yours" crap. Although, as stated by others, Yanks would lose some of that Japanese revenue and I don't see them making that move. We could only dream.
How bout Giambi, Giant fans?
Speaking of Giant fans, Russo has no credibility at all. Between him spewing nonsense between the spittle coming out of his beak, he has fringe knowledge on all sports and is an annoyance at best. We all know he really is a closet Met fan, who knows Yankees are NY's team and pretends to root for the SF Giants.
A "non-athletic"phony. Take him off the air already.

Did anyone else used to listen to Duke Castiglione and Budd Mishkin on the late-night sports show on NY1?

Truly intelligent and overwhelmingly focused on baseball even though it was supposedly a general late-night sports wrap.

And talk about classic callers. The hollering! The screaming! The bitter wit!

Classic.

I was the one hollering, screaming and bitter when Duke and Budd left and the program was taken over by some dinosaur old-time sports guy. It was over for me.

Jim,

If the Yankees did that trade (essentially a 3 way where Matsui goes to San Fran, Melky to Twins, Santana to NYY) it could work. The Yankees could also bring back Randy Winn (Since the San Fran OF would be Roberts, Matsui and Fred Lewis) and then NY could stick Winn in CF. Or they could just muddle along with Damon in CF and Duncan/Sardhina in LF until Austin Jackson is ready.

My favorite guy on the FAN is Steve Somers. I remember when I was working late nights he was called Captain Midnight. He did the overnight show. Very intelligent and extremely articulate. He’s a Mets fan and hates the Yanks, but I forgive him. Ive called in to the FAN a number of times. If you ever hear “Drew from Jersey”, that’s me. ; )

I agree with Mike from Jersey - Russo has little sports knowledge. Most likely because he's never played a single sport in his life. He's always riding Mike's d!ck.

The difference between Yankee fans and Met fans,

Met fans root against us no matter what and hate the Yankees as much as the Nation does. In fact, I have some friends (and I use the term loosely) that actually root for both the Redsux and Mets.

Yankee fans rarely ever root against the Mutts. And the reason why is - we hope they get to the World Series, so when we play them - WE CAN CRUSH THEM IN FRONT OF THE ENTIRE WORLD!
And that, my fellow Yankee fans, is why we don't root against the Mutts. But they do amuse us every now and then, when they look for attention. Just watch 'em hug during the their 8th inning "Sweet Caroline" song - which is by the way, the same 8th inning song Boston uses at Fenway.
Hmmmm.....Wheres Cotton Man Joe when you need 'em?

Diane - my favorite yankees broadcasters of all time were the Scooter and White. Recently I loved when Jim Kaat did the color. Before the YES network I used to listed to the Yankee games on the radio. When Kay and Sterling were on the same team I would listen to them call the game while I turned down the volume and watched it on TV. Now there is a couple second delay and it doesnt work.

Oh while we're on this topic. I think Susan Waldman is unbearable to listen to. Her voice cuts through me like a Hitori Hanzo sword.

YEAH JOHN, IM WAS TALKING TO JOE TORRE TODAY AND HE THINKS THAT THE YANKS SHOULD….my god, just writing it makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

Diane,
On NY1, I prefer Kevin Garrity. He is calm, and informative. And he is a Yankee fan. Plus, he reads my e-mails. Gave me props early this season for predicting Kennedy taking Moose's spot in the rotation. He is a stand-up guy, no doubt! Check him out on Friday and Saturday. He's good with football and basketball too.
I have seen the dinosaur you are talking about, and he is a BIG Joe Torre fan.

Nothing wrong with Kevin Garrity, Mike from Jersey,
but that old late-night show was great. Perfect end to the day, two smart younger guys who would give short shrift to whatever other sport of the moment then focus on baseball. Then that dinosaur guy came along and wanted us to pay attention to BOXING... HORSERACING... FISHING... I ask you, really...

Whether he loved Joe Torre or not, and even though I loved JT too, come on, baseball fans! I admit I even wrote a tantrumly letter to NY1 at the time -- only time I ever wrote to a TV station.

As for Suzyn Waldman, Drew,
she was a good clubhouse reporter, the players talked to her much more openly than they do to Kim Jones, but she got shifted to radio when she got too old for the TV camera and taken out of what she did well to do something else that just isn't her forte. It's a pity, because we lost all around, except for people who think looking at Kim Jones instead of the equivalent of her mother makes up for the deficit...

And Jim Kaat was indeed the best analyst YES ever had. Or probably ever will.

Back to 1B and the Giambino....what do you project for him this year, its a contract year so he has to be motivated.

.260...35HR..110RBI??

Susan has the face for Radio, just not the voice. Kim Jones seems too star struck when she interviews people. Susan was 10x's better at talking with the players after games. That's the only part I like on the Radio show is after when she talks to the players and manager.

I agree Diane, Kitty Ruled! I liked Waldman's post game interviews much more than Kim "The Lisp" Jones interviews. Waldman does know something about baseball and I hope we don't chase her out of town. As for Kay-Mouth.....

Kay-mouth is a JINX!! Ask Pauly O'Neill
(but he is MUCH better than Fox aka Yankee Haters Club)

Drew, I agree.

Giambi should go for .260 - .270, 35 110

Good enough for Comeback Player of the Year.

I thought Cone had an aneurysm?

I loved it when Kay and Sterling were together. Once he split off, and got his own radio show, his head blew up! I can stand him now. I love when Oneil is in the booth, he RIPS Kay.

Mike will say something like "well he's hurt, but dont you think he should play through it"
Oneil will respond with, "mike, what would you know about playing with pain. You probably walk in crutches when you stub your toe"

I love it!

JIm A: Nice dream

The most glaring issue with Duncan, Betemit and Giambi was not the ground balls that were a reasonable play but the 3-6-3 or 1 DP. The throws were horrid and troubling. Andy Phillips played and excellent 1B but his hitting lacked the power. I'd forget Giambi he lacked every facet of the game at first. I would definitely give Betemit and Duncan all the time needed to make the switch. Betemit could be an excellent fine at 1B. His lefty AB 's canbe impressive. Shelley could play some DH and fill in at 1B. The only way Giambi makes a comeback if he drops his predominant pull hitting.

Guys, I hate to ruin your day but Jason in my mind has little or no chance at 30+ home runs. I'd say 20-25 if he plays most of the year at DH.

If Jason gets to 500 AB's, I think he gets his 30. With the logjam in the OF and at 1B, plus jorge getting days off behind the dish, he will see more like 400.

I agree, Giambi is very streaky these days and is fully capable of ripping off 7 in a week, if he stays healthy, which is the biggest hurdle for him, he'll easily hit 30. The man hasn't lost any power, he's just lost the ability to stay on the field.

I still have a soft spot for him and I wish him much success next season.

Announcers: Was it Drew who said he loved Scooter and White? I am right there with you, the best days in the Yankee booth to me were when we had Scooter, White and Frank Messer. Maybe we all think the announcers of our childhood were the best? I know a lot of the older folks will say it was Mel Allen, but I only remember him from This Week in Baseball.

Regarding Waldman, she is AWFUL. I agree she was good in the clubhouse report, but she is just ear piercingly awful in the booth. That New England accent doesn't help matters any either.
Kim Jones is....well, she's just in over her head in her job and frankly, she's not that much to look at either if that's the reason the Yanks put her there. She is obviously being fed questions through her ear piece because she doesn't know enough to ask the right ones.
The Yanks are a world class organization, yet the game commentary they employ is sub par at best.

True, Yes, True, Yes...I agree with everything you said Jim!

I can remember Mel Allen and Red Barber announcing the games. They were the consumate professionals. Man, I'm getting old. I did enjoy the Scooter, Bill and Frank. Scooter was the comedian between White and Messer as Scooter would say.

I swear Mel Allen smacked his lips during the Ballentine commercials because of his abilty or need to get one just prior to the commercial that was one tough beer especially the Ale.

My thoughts on Jason are he can only hit the mistakes ,now. Guys we decent fastballs and breaking pitches can get him out with regularity. This is why I prefer him to go to left field more often and open the inside pitch for himself than pull it into the seats. He lost that ability with Torre.