Tuesday, November 23, 2021

Yankee fans excited about receiving "cash considerations" from Angels. And Giants face "Tanksgiving."

We're still waiting to forensically assess the haul for Tyler Wade, whom the Yankees yesterday dealt to the Angels. From all indications, Cooperstown Cashman has once again pulled the wool over some GM dupe's eyes. 

We will receive either a Player To Be Named Later (aka PTBNL) or "cash considerations" (aka CC$?

The problem: Figuring out which to prefer.

We must decide, because Clint Frazier will likely go today, and Rougned Odor tomorrow, if anybody returns Cashman's calls. The Yankee cupboard needs to be cleared for the Winter Pre-Lockdown Clearance Sale, which begins Black Friday. 

This Christmas, do you really need to send steak knives? What better way to say "Happy Holidays" than with cash considerations!

But these days, what is fair exchange for a functional, 27-year-old, all-purpose, lefty-hitting utility man with speed? Remember: Because the Yankees waived Wade, they had no bargaining spunk. Also, a confession: In all the years of following baseball, I've never figured out why some deals involve a player to be named later. 

Does that mean that right now, without knowing it, some unwitting Angel is actually a Yankee? If so, he will celebrate Thanksgiving while living a lie: He is in a veritable Limbo of the Lost? Or... is there a Secret List of the Damned, from which one player will be chosen to by the Death Barge? Are DNA samples currently being analyzed on ancestry.com? Or... wait: What it if it's not a player at all? What are "cash considerations?" 

Obviously, I dunno. Best estimate. The Angels might need to clear a player or two after the December Rule 5 draft, and one of those players might go to the Yankees... unless we don't want him, in which case LA send Cashman a gift card to Starbucks. Does that make sense?

My hope: We get a kid deep in their system that some Yankee scout remembers fondly. Yeah, I know, teenage lottery tickets seldom pay off, but I hate to think we followed Tyler Wade for seven years... then gave him away for chickenfeed. And Red Thunder goes next.

Other Tuesday thoughts:

1. I get it that Cashman might wait until spring - until a new labor agreement is in place - before making his move on a SS. Right now, there is a huge free agent logjam at the position, headed by Carlos Correa and Cory Seager. Until they sign, everything is murky. Still, it strikes me that the next few weeks will be the perfect time to fortify the rotation - sign a pitcher or two. Nothing should hold us back here. We can always use pitching. And we have those extra cash considerations, right?

2. Next season, the Yankees will employ three batting coaches. Three. One for each strike. Does anybody understand this? I sure don't, unless they're messing with us. Still... I wonder: Will any of the three coaches push batters to hit to the opposite field, to adjust to over-shifts, to bunt, or to tighten his swing with two strikes - or any of the things that old codgers bloviate about, when they start yipping about the sad state of the game? Will one coach do that? If not, I say hire a fourth?

3. Never - EVER - express hope for the NY Giants. If you think of something positive, keep it to yourself. Last night they once again sucked on national TV, leaving fans with no recourse but to want them to tank. But here's the crusher: They'll spend all spring talking about the need for an offensive line, and then, when the draft comes, they'll pick a "playmaker." That's what they call them. An "offensive weapons" for Daniel Jones, "a tool from his tool box." And a year from now, I'll be cutting and pasting this same paragraph. Because that's the Giants.

4. Here are the MLB free agent catchers: Yan Gomes, Luke Maile, Stephen Vogt, Jeff Mathis, Rob Brantly, Roberto Pérez, Wilson Ramos, Jose Lobaton, Robinson Chirinos, Kurt Suzuki, Andrew Knapp, Chance Sisco, Sandy León, and Austin Romine. 

Yeah. Happy Fucking Thanksgiving, eh?

26 comments:

  1. El duque, in the spirit of the season, let me be the first to offer you a Happy Fucking Thanksgiving to you to matey

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  2. El duque, in the spirit of the season, let me be the first to offer you a Happy Fucking Thanksgiving matey

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  3. I did that twice just to clean out the cobwebs in my head

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  4. YES indeed> Happy Fucking Thanksgiving to you ALL!

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  5. My wife and I are heading to my hometown of Schenectady. I just checked the Times Covid risk map, and sure enough, the risk level in Sch'dy County is Very High.

    Just when we thought it was safe to go into the cold.

    I haven't mentioned this, but my brother, who lived in a Dallas suburb, died suddenly early last week. An anti-vaxxer who died of Covid within 48 hours of feeling sick. We had a sometimes very contentious relationship, but I will miss him and his idiotic rants on our phone calls.

    Get the shots if you haven't. And Happy Fucking Thanksgiving to all.

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  6. I'm so sorry to hear of your loss JM, sincere condolences my friend!

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  7. JM,

    Sorry to hear that. Truly.

    All too frequently when I read about someone like your brother passing I get callous. "That's on them." But I forget that these people could be, I don't know, the brother of a friend of mine. The whole thing is just so unbelievably sad.

    My condolences.


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  9. Duque,

    The Giants -

    So I'm sitting in the bar at Morton's waiting for a friend and the game is on and I watch Barkley run into the heart of the line for a no gain and they cut to Jason Garrett on the sideline and I swear, I SWEAR that I saw him smirk and then cover his face with that big play calling card so no one would see.

    But I saw! He smirked at their failure.

    Seriously! Fire him today!

    As to tanking. I figured out how to handle it.

    Basically I root for them while they are playing - because as I learned with the Yankees this year, I can't not.

    In the other NFL games I root for the team with the lesser record to improve the Giants draft order. It's been helpful.

    As an example, while the Eagles won yesterday what they really did was let us leapfrog them. So their win is actually a loss and for the Giants a loss is a win unless they actually win a game and then that's a win too.

    Basically a lot of winning!

    Tomorrow I'll explain how Evan Fournier is actually a modern day Kiki Vandeweghe. A great talent that inadvertently destroyed the Knicks chemistry.

    As an aside, when I went to look up how to spell his name I learned that, according to Wikipedia, it is actually...

    Ernest Maurice VanDeWeghe III.

    Here at IIHIIF we entertain AND inform.

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  10. JM,

    So sorry. Have a great Thanksgiving. I know it won't be the same.

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  11. So sorry to hear that, JM. Yes, sometimes it's those we have the most contentious relationships with who we miss the most. I hope all of you are holding up as well as can be expected.

    And Happy Fucking Thanksgiving to one and all.

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  12. "The Giants have fired offensive coordinator Jason Garrett"

    Hey, maybe they read my above comment (and I'm starting to realize, too soon to get back to trivial matters - much like this one but..)

    As long as magical things are happening.

    Fire Cashman.
    Hal sell the team!
    Sign Suzuki!
    Fire Gettleman.
    Trade Fournier and Randle.
    Trade Gallo and Sanchez
    and Pass a voting rights bill!

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  13. Quick story: A friend of mine was invited to drive for a non-profit in a Thanksgiving parade in a big metro area. The friend thought about it, then consulted TWO police officers in the area -- and bugged out. That's what they advised, basically.

    Then the Waukesha thing happened. Makes that decision look good.

    Put that together with JM's brother, and this crap is coming just a bit too close to home. I'm sorry, JM.

    I used to call myself a "wordsmith"......but I can't come up with the words + logic necessary to convince folks to get the jab and put it behind them.

    I guess I'm not as smart as I used to be. Either that, or there was nothing you could say, JM -- you, or any of us.

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  14. So sorry to hear that, JM.

    And yes, Happy fucking Thanksgiving, Merry Fucking Christmas, and Happy fucking New Year.

    Pitchers and catchers is just around the corner.

    Suicide Season has begun. Cue up Jose Feliciano singing "Feliz Navidad" as I sprint to the Verrazzano Bridge...

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  15. via Heyman
    Clint Frazier has been released by the Yankees, and he is now a free agent

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  16. What a waste of talent.

    Brian Cashman, aka The Intern.

    Get his latest book "How to Fuck Up a Career"

    Coming soon to a store near you, for a player to be fucked up later.

    RIP Clint. You join the growing club of Yankees, past and present, who have lost years of their life under the regime of this incompetent, scumsucking dickhead general manager.



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  17. Hi JM:

    I am so terribly sorry for your loss. I have no words.

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  18. I am late to this comment section, but sorry for your loss JM,. This is a tough time of year to lose a close family member. I know, I've been there. Just try to love those that remain

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  19. I signed on the the blog late, being a sleepy Southern California celebrity.

    My condolences, JM. A terrible shock.

    And we agree. Get the vax.

    Happy turkey.

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  20. Same here. Just saw that JM's brother had died.
    My condolences JM. Having lost a sister when we were both in our early-mid 30's, I understand the pain. Thankfully, it eases as time passes. But you never forget. And you will always remember his soul.

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