Read between the lines. The Joba Rules don't obviate him being trade bait. Why not get something good for the guy, rather than have him prove a bust in his first full season.
Reporedly, the Twins want nothing less than Joba (along with Melky and maybe some other prospects) for trading away Santana.
JOBA NOT A LOCK TO START NEXT SEASON
By George King, NY Post
November 21, 2007 -- Those who have seen him start strongly believe Joba Chamberlain can evolve into Josh Beckett and insist his greatest value to the Yankees is working every fifth day as a No. 1 stud. Others, who only witnessed Chamberlain bounce out of the bullpen and finally build a sturdy bridge to Mariano Rivera last season, believe the Yankees are nuts to delete Chamberlain from the bullpen.
And the Yankees? A month ago, before Joe Girardi replaced Joe Torre and Dave Eiland took over for Ron Guidry, Hank Steinbrenner said Chamberlain would be in the rotation and that's the way the organization is tilting, but . . .
“It's not 100 percent but I think we are leaning that way,'' Eiland said yesterday about using Chamberlain as a starter. “We haven't had long discussions on that part of it yet. I am sure we will in the near future. We are leaning that way and that's where we would like to see him.''
With a little under three months until pitchers and catchers report to Tampa, the Yankees have time to alter a staff that needs a bona fide No. 1 starter. If Andy Pettitte comes back or Johan Santana or Erik Bedard is acquired, somebody from the group of Chien-Ming Wang, Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, Mike Mussina and Chamberlain is going to get bumped. Kennedy, with three major league starts, could be sent to the minors, but what would be so terrible about using Chamberlain to set up Rivera? After going 2-0 with a 0.38 ERA in 19 big league relief appearances in which he fanned 34 and gave up 12 hits in 24 innings, the Yankees know his high-octane fastball and filthy slider can handle the late-inning role.
But if he is Beckett? That means he is a starter. According to agent Randy Hendricks, Pettitte isn't going to decide if he wants to retire or pitch for the Yankees until next month. The price for Santana, if the Twins decide to move him, will be rich. From the Yankees they will likely want Hughes and Kennedy in addition to Melky Cabrera or Robinson Cano. If the Orioles move Bedard, it's not likely they will trade him within the AL East.
As for the bullpen, Kyle “The Mop'' Farnsworth is the only experienced late-inning reliever and he has failed in two years. The Yankees had an interest in free agent Francisco Cordero to set up Rivera, but he wants to close. They are interested in lefty free agents Jeremy Affeldt and Trever Miller. Luis Vizcaino remains an option to return but he is also a free agent.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Sunday, November 25, 2007
The Steinbrothers: Tweedledumb & Tweedledumber
It took all of about a fortnight for Hank & Hal Steinbrenner, Tweedledumb & Tweedledumber, to jettison their plans to rebuild the new "New York Hankees" around their young arms. They are now commited to paying the luxury tax for another 10 years, as well as fielding a team of ancients that may be sporting AARP jerseys before the All-Star break!
A-Rod Great Player, but Bad Investment
By RICHARD JUSTICE,
AOL
Posted: 2007-11-08 00:54:06
Filed Under: MLB
Sports CommentaryAlex Rodriguez is seeking a contract worth at least $30 million per season. If it's for, say, 10 years, that's a $300 million commitment.
How in the world will agent Scott Boras be able to convince a team owner that A-Rod is worth that kind of dough? Only the large-market teams -- Dodgers, Mets, Angels, Cubs, etc. -- will even consider that kind of contract.
Since those teams are already among the MLB leaders in attendance and since they're all raking in big dollars with their local broadcasting contracts, it's almost impossible to see what other card he can play.He'll talk up sponsorships, corporate partnerships, franchise value, etc. He'll tell teams that A-Rod will be the perfect partner.
But how can A-Rod be worth $300 million? Seven big-league teams are worth less than that, according to Forbes. There's nothing to believe A-Rod will deliver a championship, either.When the Astros won the National League pennant in 2005, they were the first team in history to make the World Series with one player (Roger Clemens) making more than 20 percent of the club's total payroll.That same year, the Chicago White Sox won the World Series despite not having a single player making $10 million. This year, the White Sox had six players making that much and finished 24 games out of first.The Boston Red Sox didn't have a single player taking up more than 12 percent of their $143 million payroll this season.
OK, numbers can be twisted to make whatever argument you'd like to make. A-Rod's other numbers can't.In four years with the Yankees, his postseason batting average was .245. That's 61 points below his career average.To put it another way, when the games count the most, Alex Rodriguez delivers the least. In seven trips to the postseason with the Mariners and Yankees, his teams failed to get out of the first round four times and never got to the World Series.
Is it fair to put the failures of an entire franchise on the shoulders of a single player? Of course not. But when a player demands extraordinary compensation, isn't it fair to demand extraordinary production?Plenty of great players have been great postseason performers. Jack Morris and Kirk Gibson. Reggie Jackson and Bob Gibson.When the Kansas City Royals won the World Series in 1985, it seemed George Brett was going to do whatever needed to be done. Inside the clubhouse, there was a feeling that Brett simply wouldn't let the Royals lose.
Alex Rodriguez is about two-thirds through a marvelous career. He has 518 career home runs and a .306 career batting average. He seems on track to become the game's all-time home run king and is a slam-dunk first-ballot Hall of Famer even if he never plays another game.But I keep wondering if he has regrets about the way he'll be remembered. He has been all about the money.
No one should ever fault A-Rod or Boras for taking full advantage of baseball's economic system. But Rodriguez has allowed himself to be defined more by the money than by his production.When he signed that $252 million contract with the Texas Rangers, that number had significance. It was exactly twice what the Minnesota Timberwolves were paying Kevin Garnett, who was then the highest-paid professional athlete in a team sport.Now with $92 million left on the table and the Yankees offering an extension that would have raised the value of his deal to more than $200 million, Rodriguez wants even more.
More than that, he wants a hand in running the franchise. Before he signed with the Rangers, he wanted a rundown on the team's minor league system.The Rangers were foolish enough to think their farm system would be a deciding factor. In the end, the fact that Boras fleeced owner Tom Hicks for another $100 million was all that counted.Rodriguez began complaining about the lack of talent in Texas about six months after he arrived. Never mind that his $25 million salary kept the Rangers from adding meaningful pieces.Boras said two of the reasons A-Rod opted out of his Yankees deal were his concerns about free agents Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera and how the club will be operated under Hank and Hal Steinbrenner.
He has to be kidding. Did he think the Yankees were on the verge of becoming the Reds?
Baseball people don't believe his line about evaluating farm systems before he finds a proper home. They believe money will decide it. And that's sad.
2007 AOL LLC. All Rights Reserved.
By RICHARD JUSTICE,
AOL
Posted: 2007-11-08 00:54:06
Filed Under: MLB
Sports CommentaryAlex Rodriguez is seeking a contract worth at least $30 million per season. If it's for, say, 10 years, that's a $300 million commitment.
How in the world will agent Scott Boras be able to convince a team owner that A-Rod is worth that kind of dough? Only the large-market teams -- Dodgers, Mets, Angels, Cubs, etc. -- will even consider that kind of contract.
Since those teams are already among the MLB leaders in attendance and since they're all raking in big dollars with their local broadcasting contracts, it's almost impossible to see what other card he can play.He'll talk up sponsorships, corporate partnerships, franchise value, etc. He'll tell teams that A-Rod will be the perfect partner.
But how can A-Rod be worth $300 million? Seven big-league teams are worth less than that, according to Forbes. There's nothing to believe A-Rod will deliver a championship, either.When the Astros won the National League pennant in 2005, they were the first team in history to make the World Series with one player (Roger Clemens) making more than 20 percent of the club's total payroll.That same year, the Chicago White Sox won the World Series despite not having a single player making $10 million. This year, the White Sox had six players making that much and finished 24 games out of first.The Boston Red Sox didn't have a single player taking up more than 12 percent of their $143 million payroll this season.
OK, numbers can be twisted to make whatever argument you'd like to make. A-Rod's other numbers can't.In four years with the Yankees, his postseason batting average was .245. That's 61 points below his career average.To put it another way, when the games count the most, Alex Rodriguez delivers the least. In seven trips to the postseason with the Mariners and Yankees, his teams failed to get out of the first round four times and never got to the World Series.
Is it fair to put the failures of an entire franchise on the shoulders of a single player? Of course not. But when a player demands extraordinary compensation, isn't it fair to demand extraordinary production?Plenty of great players have been great postseason performers. Jack Morris and Kirk Gibson. Reggie Jackson and Bob Gibson.When the Kansas City Royals won the World Series in 1985, it seemed George Brett was going to do whatever needed to be done. Inside the clubhouse, there was a feeling that Brett simply wouldn't let the Royals lose.
Alex Rodriguez is about two-thirds through a marvelous career. He has 518 career home runs and a .306 career batting average. He seems on track to become the game's all-time home run king and is a slam-dunk first-ballot Hall of Famer even if he never plays another game.But I keep wondering if he has regrets about the way he'll be remembered. He has been all about the money.
No one should ever fault A-Rod or Boras for taking full advantage of baseball's economic system. But Rodriguez has allowed himself to be defined more by the money than by his production.When he signed that $252 million contract with the Texas Rangers, that number had significance. It was exactly twice what the Minnesota Timberwolves were paying Kevin Garnett, who was then the highest-paid professional athlete in a team sport.Now with $92 million left on the table and the Yankees offering an extension that would have raised the value of his deal to more than $200 million, Rodriguez wants even more.
More than that, he wants a hand in running the franchise. Before he signed with the Rangers, he wanted a rundown on the team's minor league system.The Rangers were foolish enough to think their farm system would be a deciding factor. In the end, the fact that Boras fleeced owner Tom Hicks for another $100 million was all that counted.Rodriguez began complaining about the lack of talent in Texas about six months after he arrived. Never mind that his $25 million salary kept the Rangers from adding meaningful pieces.Boras said two of the reasons A-Rod opted out of his Yankees deal were his concerns about free agents Jorge Posada and Mariano Rivera and how the club will be operated under Hank and Hal Steinbrenner.
He has to be kidding. Did he think the Yankees were on the verge of becoming the Reds?
Baseball people don't believe his line about evaluating farm systems before he finds a proper home. They believe money will decide it. And that's sad.
2007 AOL LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Friday, November 16, 2007
Unsung Tragedy
One of the unsung tragedies of the 20th Century was the removal of the Boston Braves, the oldest . franchise in professional baseball history, to Milwaukee, from where the team detrained to Atlanta in the mid-60's. This forever quashed the hopes of Boston Red Sox fans of having a "Trolley World Series".
This site is dedicated to the idea of bringing a National League franchise back to the Hub of the Universe. Since it is unlikely that the Braves will be pried away from Time-Warner before the Apocalypse, this blogger will have to be satisfied with a Stratomatic team called the Boston Blue Stockings (Blue Sox, for short, natch).
This site is dedicated to the idea of bringing a National League franchise back to the Hub of the Universe. Since it is unlikely that the Braves will be pried away from Time-Warner before the Apocalypse, this blogger will have to be satisfied with a Stratomatic team called the Boston Blue Stockings (Blue Sox, for short, natch).
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