Wednesday, March 19, 2008

3/19/2008

The decision has been made - Joba is to start the season in the Pen. Which I'm OK with as he didn't truly impress in starting roles this Spring. He'll get another shot for sure, but I'm fine with sticking to where he had success to begin with.

That tells me then the starting five will be: Pettitte, Wang, Mussina, Hughes, and Kennedy.

Karstens gets the mop up role in relief, and Igawa spends another year in the minors. My boy Rassner will end up in Houston.

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Pride, Power, and Pinstripes 2008 debuts this Sunday at 4pm on YES

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Um, when we were debating the Top 5 bands - we all left out The Doors.

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March Madness: If Memphis wants to be considered a major program than they have to win it this year. The PAC 10 is over rated, and UNC won't make it to the Final Four. Mark it down: Winthrop, Butler, Davidson, and Xavier all go to the Sweet 16 or further.

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Joke:
Skip was in trouble. He forgot his wedding anniversary.
His wife was really angry. She told him, 'Tomorrow morning I expect to find a gift in the driveway that goes from 0 to 200 in less than 6 seconds AND IT BETTER BE THERE!!'
The next morning Skip got up early and left for work. When his wife woke up she looked out the window and sure enough there was a box gift-wrapped in the middle of the driveway.
Excited and confused, the wife put on her robe and ran out to the driveway, and brought the box back in the house. She opened it and found a brand new bathroom scale. . . . .. . Skip has been missing since Friday.

33 comments:

old professor said...

With Chamberlain now headed for the pen, it would look as if Kennedy will be the number 5. The questions that has to be asked to ask - if a number 5 is not needed until the middle of April, does Kennedy come north with the team and get called up later; or does he come north and just sit for four weeks?

The final slots in the pen will be up for grabs. Traber has had a solid spring (and he has major league experience), Igwa has not been that bad, Patterson has pitched well and Olendorf has done well too. That would leave Rasner, Henn, Bruney and Briton on the outside looking in. Problem for the Yankees is I can't see Bruney agreeing to go down, and Henn is out of options (to just release him at 26 years old and being a lefty would be risky).

Rasner being traded to Houston?? Where did you come up with that.

The bench for the Yankees still has to be decided. Bettimet has not had a good Spring (why would the Yankees try for two years to obtain him?). Cody Ransom has had a very good spring as well as Ensburg and Lang. Bettimet can play third and first, but not short. Ransom can play all the infield positions. It would look as if Woodward is on the outside with this one and probably will be released.

Anonymous said...

Prof, not sure what schedule you're looking at but the Yankees don't have a day off until April 21. That would suggest they would using a 5 man rotation immediately. I wouldn't be surprised to see Igwa and Karstens, and maybe even Rasner get a spot start in that span as Girardi may not want the regular rotation guys to work that much that soon.

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The Scooter said...

I'm sure Bettimet is going to make the team. He can play short in a pinch, but admittedly it is not his strength. I think they take him and a backup shortstop (Woodward?) leaving Ransom, Ensberg and Lang on the outs. They might substitute Ransom for Woodward.

You guys already know how I feel about Joba in the pen, but I guess I'm ok with it because Moose pitched pretty well this spring. I am VERY happy that Girardi stated that they still see Joba as a starter in the near future.

The Doors don't crack the top five, but what about Pink Floyd?

Every body needs to get their Final Four picks in:

North Carolina
Georgetown
Memphis
Duke

North Carolina bows to Memphis in the title game...Go Calipari!!!!

Mid, you should have put together an NCAA pool for us.

Anonymous said...

Well, we have until 12:15:

My First Round upsets: Ark, Geroge Mason, Winthrop, Butler, Cal St. Davidson, Cornell, St. Mary's and Drake.

My Final Four: Butler, Kansas, Memphis, Xavier

National Champ: Memphis (it is now or never for this program)

Anonymous said...

North Carolina
Georgetown
Texas
UCLA

UCLA beats NC for the title.

Memphis doesn't make it out of the Sweet 16. Butler will beat Tennessee but will lose to Louisville. Siena beats Vanderbilt, but loses to Villanova. Arizona knocks off Duke to make the Sweet 16, but gets knocked out by Xavier.

Anonymous said...

Wholly chalk crash. If your final four happens it will be the most boring bracket in the history of hoops.

CBS is dying for a USC G'Town match up - but it ain't going to happen - DAVIDSON is the real deal!!!

Anonymous said...

I'm not trying to be exciting here. It's just the facts. Generally speaking two #1 seeds make it and a couple of 2's and/or 3's. No one outside the top 8 has ever made it. Further no 7 seed has ever made it to the Final Four, while a 6 and 8 seed made it to the Final Four a combined six times times (that's 6 team out of 184). Something like 82% of #7 seeds don't make it out of the 2nd round. So you go ahead and take Butler and Davidson because you heard their names dropped by some idiot on ESPN earlier in the week. I'll just take the $$ in whatever pool in your in.

Anonymous said...

Wasn't George Mason ranked 8th last year?
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Great, mid way through 2nd half, one of my final four teams - Xavier is getting smoked by the .500 Georgia.

old professor said...

Crash, actually the Yankees play on the 31st of March and have April 1 off. By process of elimination, the first time they will need a number five starter would be April 9th. And that would hold only if there isn't a snow or rainout. So if Kennedy is the number 5, I would think they would work him in somewhere versus letting him sit for ten days out of Spring Camp.

Anonymous said...

I don't really remember what Mason was last year but it only validates what I said. No one outside of the 8 seed has one it all (that was Villanova over Georgetown). I'll take my 3 or 4 from the big boys and you can have the rest of the field...I'll win it.

57 said...

sorry boys, have been on the road for quite some time.

A few items to note: My picks:

Louisville
Duke
Michigan State
Georgetown

Duke wins it all.

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Obama is done. Clinton(s) vs. McCain

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How high brow can the Red Sox be with their holier than thou attitude towards the Japan stipends? It is the people that MAKE only $40,000 a year pay the salaries of these pre-madonnas. I used to root for the Red Sox, but I will now root for the Yankees when they play them because of this..... but then I think of Sonny talking to Cologero in the bar in a scene from 'A Bronx Tale' when Sonny asked 'C' if Mikey Mantle cared about him..'nobody cares' Sonny exclaimed. One of the best short lines in a movie ever.

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I am hoping the Mets get Millar... would be a perfect replacement for Delgado.

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Joba in the pen is a good move for the Yankees. They will be tough to beat... the move should remind you all of 1996 with Wetland and Rivera making it a 6 inning game.

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Ok.. here we go... name the 5 best movie lines of all time:

1) "Life comes down to a few moments...this is one of them" ~ Bud Fox, Wall Street
2) "Leave the gun, take the cannole" ~ Clemenza, I
3) "Im gonna make him an offer he can't refuse" ~ Don Corleone, I
4) "...you ask me if I have a God complex, let me tell you something.... I AM GOD!" ~ Baldwin ~ Malice
5) "PUT THAT COFFEE DOWN...Coffee is for closers only...you think im fucking with you? im not fucking with you..." ~ Baldwin, Glenngarry Glenross

Middle Relief said...

I think the BoSox protest had to do with the coaches and managers not getting a travel stipend and the players voluntarily protested - I hate the Sox, but I guess though that is what you'd like to see out of your team - players having the coaches' back.
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Wow, Winthrop bitch slapped - glad to see USC out
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Best line: So that happened. . Bob Barrenger, State and Main

The Scooter said...

So many great movie lines.

57, I like all of yours especially the Godfather ones and the Glengarry, Glenross.

Here are a few more to chew on:

"You talking to me?" Bobby D in Taxi Driver

"Say Hello to my Little Friend" Pacino/Montana

But the best of all time is rather lengthy:

"The path of the righteous man is beset on all sides by the iniquities of the selfish and the tyranny of evil men. Blessed is he, who in the name of charity and good will, shepherds the weak through the valley of darkness, for he is truly his brother's keeper and the finder of lost children. And I will strike down upon thee with great vengeance and furious anger those who would attempt to poison and destroy my brothers. And you will know my name is the Lord when I lay my vengeance upon thee."

~~Samuel L; Pulp Fiction~~

The Scooter said...

And I almost forgot...does anything beat Joe Pesci's Tommy Devito in Goodfellas?

"You mean, let me understand this cause, ya know maybe it's me, I'm a little fucked up maybe, but I'm funny how, I mean funny like I'm a clown, I amuse you? I make you laugh, I'm here to fuckin' amuse you? What do you mean funny, funny how? How am I funny? How the fuck am I funny?"

Anonymous said...

Scooter good call on the Pulp Fiction reference...

But since this is a baseball and sports blog I'm going with some sports movies. Would you have guessed that Crash Davis gets my vote with this classic Bull Durham quote: "Well, I believe in the soul, the cock, the pussy, the small of a woman's back, the hanging curve ball, high fiber, good scotch, that the novels of Susan Sontag are self-indulgent, overrated crap. I believe Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. I believe there ought to be a constitutional amendment outlawing Astroturf and the designated hitter. I believe in the sweet spot, soft-core pornography, opening your presents Christmas morning rather than Christmas Eve and I believe in long, slow, deep, soft, wet kisses that last three days."

Gene Hackman in The Replacements: "Winners always want the ball when the game is on the line."

Eddie Harris from Major League: "Bartender, JoBu needs a refill..."

Roy Hobbs The Natural: "And then when I walked down the street people would've looked and they would've said there goes Roy Hobbs, the best there ever was in this game."

57 said...

excellent sports quotes. May I add this one:

"I dont bet on golf, for money, against people." "well how do you measure yourself against other golfer's then?" "by height." ~ ty Webb and judge smells Caddyshack.

"STARTING DEFEnSE!! PLACE AT THE TABLE, BABY!!!!"~ lattimore/the program

"nice catch Hayes, dont ever fucking do it again" ~ major league

The Scooter said...

Happy Gilmore: [to Bob Barker] The price is wrong, bitch.

Sandler

Anonymous said...

At least Butler and Davidson didn't let me down,.

Don't disrespect the MAAC - Go Sienna!

57 said...

Im a little concerned that David Wright waits until yesterday to hit his first home-run of the spring. Pedro pitched well, again, and Johann had another GREAT outing this week. I think for the first time in years, the Mets pitching staff will carry this team and not the bats. As we learned from one NY team already this year, Defense wins championships...

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old professor said...

57, Duke barely got out of the first round. They will have a rough road ahead and will not make it to the final four.

You know it has to be a slow spring training when we have to critique movies.

Rasner stock went up with a solid pitching performance yesterday.

57 said...

I thought I would say I was wrong about Duke before Prof chimed in with the proverbial, 'I told you so'.

But I Will not be wrong about my Mets this year.

The Scooter said...

I was wrong about Duke.

57 said...

boy, El Duque looked awful today. He has a new delivery that does not work for him at all. His fastball was clocked at 83 mph, with his change up only 76... Not too much off a drop off. Good pitchers have a 10-15 mph drop off. Granted, it was his first outing of the spring, but it will take him a LONG time to adjust to a new delivery. No more leg kick...might be no more Orlando.

Best pitching delivery of all time? Tie between Doc Gooden and Luis Tiant.

old professor said...

It would appear the Yankees are close to finalizing their roster for the upcoming season. Morgan Ensberg and Traber were added to the forty man roster. They would not do that if they weren't strong consideration for the 25 man roster. It also looks as if Igwa and/or Rasner may have a chance to be part of the mix. Karstens will be sent down by the end of the week.

Interesting quote from Ian Kennedy when asked if he would prefer to see Joba Chamberlain in the starting rotation or in the pen. His response was "obviously in the pen because that keeps me in the rotation, if he is in the starting rotation, I am in Scranton."

Anonymous said...

At least Davidson came through for me, Butler was close, Xavier still has a shot at final 4.

Anonymous said...

I agree Old Prof. after Sunday's outing against the Pirates Karstens should already be packing his bags. The guy has an ERA close to 10 for the spring. Girardi is still sounding impressed with Igawa. Don't be surprised if he gets the "long man" role over Rasner.

Anonymous said...

So basically I was correct.

Called Igawa as a lock a little while ago. . . so step off.

old professor said...

Mid, the last thing I remember you writing about Igwa occurred after Mussina's and his first outting of the Spring when you made the comment about Igwa being shelled so he must have talked to Mussina. Now all of a sudden you are talking about him being a lock. You really do take after your mother with this selective memory stuff and talking credit when none is due.

Anonymous said...

Even if he did call Igawa as the long man, he loses credit for having both Karstens and Rasner in the rotation.

The Scooter said...

Believe me, I'm not sticking up for Mid, but I haven't exactly heard Horne's name bandied about much this Spring, Prof.

Anonymous said...

I know Scooter had dreams of Joe Nathan signing with the Yankees next year...kiss that one goodbye. He signed a 3 year extension that has him in Minnesota through the 2012 season.

The Scooter said...

No Crash, i got my eyes on a starter...How about Roy Oswalt at the trading deadline?

Middle Relief said...

If Roy becomes a Yankee, than I will personally chair Cashman's run for Governor!!!!!!!!

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