Now Is the Time - Show Brian Cashman Who the Yankees Should Add as Outfielder/DH By Voting for the IIH Yankee Outfielders and DH of the Decade

Frustrated?

Anxious?

Verbose?


At risk for carpal tunnel syndrome?

Ease your troubled mind and body about the pending Yankees 2010 outfielding crisis by casting your vote for the IIH Yankee Outfielders and DH of the Decade (2000 thru 2009).

An outpouring of support could be just the thing Brian Cashman needs to convince him to sign that special someone for another season, assuming that someone is not already engaged in another career or under contract to another team.

The top three vote-getters in the outfield category will be named Yankee Outfielders of the Decade, so be sure to vote for three or more candidates.

Ready? Go!

Thuuuhhh Yankees Win! - Infielders Celebrate IIH YODA Awards

Yankee infielders Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Robinson Cano celebrate their winning IT IS HIGH Yankee of the Decade Awards (YODA) in the Shortstop, Third Baseman and Second Baseman categories respectively. Teammate Mark Teixeira celebrates his one-vote margin over Jason Giambi to finish second in the First Baseman voting. If First Baseman YODA winner Tino Martinez cannot fulfill the duties of the office, Teixeira will join his teammates as an IIH Yankee Infielder of the Decade.

While Martinez talks trash to Teixeira about the IIH YODA First Base balloting, Tex inquires discretely about any debilitating diseases that Tino might have.

Torre Takes YODA Lead with Yankee Manager of Decade Award

"Maybe this YODA could have saved my job. . ."

The Yankiverse, albeit a discouragingly small slice of it, has spoken. Former Yankee manager Joe Torre, current skipper of the Los Angeles Dodgers, has won the coveted IT IS HIGH Yankee Manager of the Decade award.

Leader of Yankee teams that won the 2000 World Series, three American League pennants and earned eight postseason appearances during the decade, Torre outpolled current Yankee manager and noted Good Samaritan Joe Girardi by a 52% to 36% margin. None of the Above, representing such third party candidates as Luis Sojo and Billy Crystal, finished well up the track with just 11% of the vote.

By adding Manager of the Decade to his previously-won Ex-Yankee of the Decade award, Torre takes the lead for most YODAs with two. Other YODA winners - Rudy Giuliani, Celebrity Fan; Brian Cashman - Executive; LoHud Yankees - Blog; El Duque - IIH Blogger.

Bobby and Ron Need Your Nominations - Yankee Outfielders and DH of the Decade

Remember these guys? Well, they're not eligible because the next set of nominations are for Yankee Outfielders and DH of the Decade 2000-2009.

Let's try to get enough nominations to choose three outfielders and one DH.

I'm sure Ricky Ledee and Shane Spencer are on the edge of their seats about this one. It's their big chance for glory!

Nominate Your Favorites for Yankee Players of the Decade

I suggest three posts to collect nominations for the Yankee Players of the Decade (by position)


#1 - Infielders (3B, SS, 2B, 1B)


#2 - Outfielders (LF, RF, CF) and DH


#3 - Pitchers (Starting Pitcher and Relief Pitcher) and Catcher


Okay, that's settled. Bring on your nominations for Yankee Infielders of the Decade!


No, that's not a map of Jorge Posada's trips to the mound during the 2009 World Series. It's the Apollo 11 Lunar Module mission activity map superimposed on a baseball field.

One More Time - Nominate Yourself for the "IT IS HIGH Yankee Blogger of the Decade" Award

An earlier call for nominations resulted in confusion , solicitation, and just one actual nomination for the IT IS HIGH Yankee Blogger of the Decade Award.

You bloggers know who you are. You commenters know who you are. Nominate yourselves or others. Let's get to work so we can have an election and move on.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Photo is for illustrative purposes only. No endorsement of a particular candidate, either living or dead, for this award should be implied.

Yankiverse Pleas For Next YODA Election

After a difficult week that included the Red Sox signing John Lackey and the breakup of Kate and A-Rod, the Yankiverse has turned its lonely eyes inward to call for the next YODA (Yankee Of the Decade Award) election. And with the outside world crashing around them, what more fitting award than the IT IS HIGH, IT IS FAR, IT IS... caught Blogger of the Decade, an orgy of self-congratulation if there ever was one.

IIH took a trip on the superhighways (info and otherwise) and byways of the Yankiverse to take its pulse on this important issue.

Angry crowds protested day and night around IIH headquarters in Syracuse, NY.

In countries around the world, supplicants invoked prayer.

Little children looked longingly to their parents for answers.

More than 600 people voted in the recent "IIH Yankee Blog of the Decade" Award poll. Less than 10% of who those responded to the "Are You Sick of All These Polls" poll said yes.

In the city, suburbs, upstate, across the nation and around the world, in a time of crisis and hardship, Yankee fans are calling to IIH for help. We need another Yankee Of the Decade Award (poll). The time is now. Use the Force, IIH. Please. The Yankiverse need you.

It's Time to Nominate Yourself For "IT IS HIGH Yankee Blogger Of the Decade"

Nominate yourself. Nominate your friends. Nominate your enemies.

(Please do not nominate Rudy Giuliani.)

It's time for nominations for the YODA for IT IS HIGH Yankee Blogger of the Decade.

(not to be confused with Yankee Blog of the Decade (non-IIH websites))

The winner could be you, or you, or you, or even YOU.

YOU can do it.

GO!

http://nominations.yankeeblogofthedecade.org

That's right. It's time for nominations for YODA #3, the Yankee Blog of the Decade (all non-IIH websites)

As you well know, the Yankees love their bloggers.

Being a newcomer to the Yankee blogging scene, I have no initial nominations to offer. I cannot in good conscience nominate the one Yankee blog I'm familiar with from my work at MyTeamRivals.

Go for it! The sooner you clear this one out, the sooner we can move on to the gory internecine warfare that's sure to break out in the competition for the next Yankee of the Decade award - the IIH, IIF, IIc... Blogger of the Decade.

Call For Nominations - Yankee Celebrity Fan of the Decade

You guys and gals know a lot more about this category than I do, so let's get the nominations flowing for the YODA for the Yankee Celebrity Fan of the Decade.

I'll prime the pump, so to speak, by nominating Kate Hudson, Rudy Giuliani (though his status was reduced by his willingness to root for the Red Sox), Jay-Z, Billy Crystal, the dyspeptic Michael Bloomberg (comes with the job, Mike), and of course, renown central New York journalist, author, poet, quasi-film critic and humanitarian Hart Seely.

The vote on this prestigious award will take place after the Yankee Employee of the Month for November 2009 is chosen.

The Nominees Are...

For the first YODA, ex-Yankee of the Decade.


Players


Alfonso Soriano - Currently active with Cubs. Also played with Rangers. 7-time AS.

1999-2003 with Yankees - 2010 AB, .284 BA, 98 HR

2000-2009 5403 AB, 289 HR, .836 OPS

Good hit, no field wherever he plays.

Nick Johnson 2539 AB, 693 H, .849 OPS in eight seasons, all in 2000s. .402 career OBP. Still active with Marlins.

2001-2003 with NYY - 769 AB, .256 AB, .800 OPS as 1B/DH

Jason Giambi 4257 AB, 303 HR, .961 OPS in 2000s

2002-2008 with NYY, 2934 AB, 209 HR, .925 OPS

May retire after 2009 with Oakland and Colorado.

Admitted to steroid use in first tour with Oakland A's.

Pitchers

David Wells 98-58, 4.25 ERA in 2000s

1997-98, 2002-03 with NYY, 124 games, 68-28, 3.90 ERA

Now a baseball broadcaster with TBS.

Makes fat people feel better about themselves.

Jose Contreras 71-63, 4.61 ERA in 2000s

2003-04 with NYY, 15-7, 4.64 ERA

Pitched for Chicago White Sox and Colorado Rockies during 2009 season.

Started MLB career at age 32 after defecting from Cuba.

Randy Johnson 143-78, 3.34 ERA in 2000s

2005-06 with NYY, 34-19, 4.37 ERA

Pitched for Giants in 2009.

Freak of nature. Still pitching at age 46.

I did not consider players who retired as Yankees, even though they played with other teams (Tino Martinez and Mike Mussina are examples).

Other nominations?

Top Ten Yankee End of Decade Awards

In the face of the pesky anti-Yankee-spending letter writing campaign going on across the country (or at least across western NY state), what better way to fight back than by displaying the arrogance for which Yankee fans are renown? And in a way that is sure to be unique! With a flurry, a flood, a blizzard, a veritable gusher of self-aggrandizement in the form of self-generated best-of-the-decade awards.

It is with great pride and pleasure that I propose the IIH Top Ten Yankee End of Decade Awards (I-YEDAs or I-YODAs - still to be determined). Each award would be made with appropriate fanfare, accompanied by a widely distributed news release. I'm thinking a Today Show appearance by the end of the I-YODA cycle.

10. Ex-Yankee of the Decade - to be awarded to the ex-Yankee player who had the best on-field performance during the period 2000-2009.

9. Yankee Celebrity Fan of the Decade - a shoe-in for the blond actress who's dating A-Rod? What about Billy Crystal? Rudy?

8. Yankee Blog of the Decade (all non-IIH websites) - self-explanatory

7. It Is High Yankee Blogger of the Decade - for meritorious service to IT IS HIGH, IT IS FAR, IT IS...caught.

6. Yankee Executive of the Decade - Cashman vs. The Boss or someone else (the treasurer?). Could be fun.

5. Yankee Manager of the Decade - Settle once and for all the question - is one ring plus a Good Samaritan act greater than one ring plus several AL pennants? (Note that this award is for service during the years 2000-2009 only)

4. Yankee Team of the Decade - 2000 or 2009, you choose. Non-World Series winning teams need not apply.

3. Yankee All-Decade Team (by position) - at least a couple positions aren't slam dunks.

2. Yankee Employee of the Decade - Could be an amazing list of nominees here.

1. Yankee Player of the Decade - Future Hall-of-Famers only need apply.

And finally, an eleventh award - in keeping with the IIH charter, an award too prestigious to be contained in a mere Top Ten list.

0. Yankee Broadcaster of the Decade - surely there can only be one choice. But we'll let democracy speak.

I propose that the Yankiverse's most capable, fair and creative election commissioner be appointed to post the appropriate polls on the IIH site and to announce the results as only he can. I am of course referring to the one and only El Duque.

What say ye, Yankiverse? To award or not to award, that is the question. There can only be one answer. I say that answer is YES!