Check out today's headline from the Athletic. Can you find the dig?
Yep, not hard to miss: "Baseball's best rivalry?"
Well, I'm onboard. Why not? T'wuz a time when the Yanks/Redsocks might have quarreled with such a claim. Not anymore.
In fact, MLB's other "greatest" rivalries probably include Dodgers-Giants, Rangers-Astros, Cubs-Cardinals and Rays-Jays.
Boston v NY?
War of the tomato cans.
The battle for 4th in the AL East.
Less of a draw than the Cortica Jug Game between Ithaca College and SUNY Cortland.
Two big market franchises run by shoe salesmen, who desperately pinch pennies as they piss away vast fortunes, along with the dwindling expectations of fans.
Then there's this.
Of course, you didn't need a headline to hear what everybody knows:
In the bidding war for Ohtani, who once seemed destined for NYC, the Yankees won't even make a rubber ducky squeak. If "the Japanese Babe Ruth" comes to Gotham on a free agent tour, Hal Steinbrenner will don a fake mustache and disconnect the phone. The Bryce Harper treatment.
We all know the bitter truth: If Ohtani has any interest in the East Coast, he'll probably end up with the Mets.
And then, the cruelest headline yet...
Well, in the immortal words of Kevin McCarthy, I say, "Bring it on." Let the spit shower begin, because the Yankees - under Shallow Hal - have done the impossible: They have reincarnated his dad's "worst team money can buy" designation from the late 1980s. We are reliving the Second Era of Danny Tartabull and Sid Thrift.
So... a dead October. We missed the postseason - an expanded set of playoffs. We spent $250 million to just barely win more games than we lost. We're so tied up with bad contracts and misplaced hubris that we have almost no cards to play this winter. And don't expect changes at the top.
Used to be, they talked about Yankee "mystique and aura." Now, it's mockery and disdain.
And let it rain. LET IT RAIN!
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14 comments:
As an old friend of mine has said for years, the Yankees suck.
The Yankees used to embody, "mystique and aura."
Now it's more like, "mistakes and schnorrers"
Stop spending money on the team. It’s the only way
On Ohtani, I don't think it is a good idea to bring him in here. He's got a bad elbow, who knows if he'll ever pitch again. So you're getting a DH, for God only knows how much money it'll cost. If they do go after him, they have to jettison Stanton first.
Bottom line, it ain't such a bad thing for HAL to don the fake moustachio and hide under the bed for the Ohtani sweepstakes.
I do think we should try to keep getting left handed with the bats. A real leadoff man would be nice, something we haven't had here since Jeter retired. We still need another starting pitcher to be an ace or at least a #2. So if that Moto Man guy from Japan is available, why the hell not take a chance? It's only money.
You know Ca$hole has a woody over notani. Injured, check. Overrated, check. Will demand a ridiculous contract that ends in being a poor platoon DH after year 2, check.
The private jet crash is our only hope.
Ohtani doesn't want New York...so it's not worth even chatting about it...
Agreed Ranger, he showed no interest last time.
Also agreed - avoid at all costs, especially if he ever changes his mind about NY. So . . . what shall we chat about then, Ranger?
If we had a Hammer (in the front office)
We'd hammer all the day!
Very true: Ohtani was always overrated—hard not to be, when people are calling you the best player ever—and getting him would likely mean signing yet another free agent to compete with the perennially injured Stanton and (to a lesser degree) Judge.
Great as he is—and I admit, he is great—Shohei will not be Showtime...
Now Yoshinobu Yamamoto would be another thing altogether.
The guy is unbelievably dominant in Japan. He won two straight, pitching Triple Crowns, and his records and ERAs over the last three seasons have been ridiculous: 18-5, 1.39; 15-5, 1.68; 17-6, 1.16. Even if these doubled, he'd still be a top hurler here. Plus the guy is 24 and has never thrown as many as 200 innings in a season.
BUT...don't let the juju gods hear your exaltations.
The ONLY reason why Brian Cashman took a junket over to Japan to scout this kid was so he could miss the 9/9 Old Timers' Game, when the Stadium would've resounded with boos and jeers if he had shown up.
Nope, the payroll is still at a level where HAL will make no big signings for at least another 2-5 years.
What do we talk about? Okay...we could talk about Trout or Soto...that's more likely...
I don't want Trout, that's for sure. Another aging player who's never healthy, best years behind him.
Soto, I still want him. What do you think it would take to land him? I saw something on the 'net about Spencer Jones plus the top Yankee pitching prospect for Soto. I'd do that immediately, no question. Even though The Martian is hurt, I would NOT trade him away, I think I'll take a chance that he makes a full comeback. And I would NOT trade Austin Wells. I suppose everyone else is fully expendable, even Volpe.
@ Hoss, You're spot on about Cashman's trip to Japan and HAL feigning poverty again. Unfortunately, it's just a pipe dream about landing Yamamoto. He'd sure fit nicely into the rotation though. All we have is hope! Yeah, we're clinging to that last piece of wreckage from the Yankee Titanic, scanning the horizon for a rescue ship, sharks circling closer and closer....
Ranger,
My not so humble opinion, is that we should concentrate on the increasing lack of maintenance on private jets out of the Tampa airport. You know they could make more money elsewhere. Maybe they could get a big goodbye kiss for making sure the maintenance was done "correctly".
Just a hopeful thought. It's Friday and I've had my martini.
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