Archive for March, 2012
2012 New York Yankees: Battle for the Fifth Starter »
The Yankees’ rotation was the biggest weakness on the team last season. Phil Hughes fell victim to a dead arm and A.J. Burnett floundered through another sporadic season. Players like Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia came back from the dead to perform well far beyond their prime. The same success could not be counted on going into another [...]
2012 MLB Predictions: New York Yankees Season Preview »
The New York Yankees were busy bees this offseason, and as a result, they look considerably stronger at the start of the 2012 season than they did at the end of the 2011 season.The most important thing the Bombers did this offseason was upgrade their starting rotation. They traded for young fireballer Michael Pineda and signed innings-eater Hiroki [...]
Roger Maris: “I’d Rather Have the Dough »
Roger Maris looked straight into baseball writer Joe Reichler's eyes. With what Reichler described as a slight sneer, Maris told him, "I was born surly and I'm going to stay that way. Everything is tough in life." In 1961, Maris was referred to as an angry young man. On occasions, even some New York Yankees' players called him "the red-necked [...]
2012 American League East Division Preview from Dugout »
We will dive into the American League East for our next set of predictions, given that ESPN’s coverage will largely focus on them.The story of the East has been well documented: The Yankees and Red Sox use their tremendous resources to dominate the division, combining to win 12 division championships, eight wild cards and six world [...]
Don Mattingly Wanted the New York Yankees to Trade Him »
On Aug. 15, 1991, the New York Yankees were in fifth place in the seven-team American League East Division. Their 51-62 record put them 10.5 games behind the first place Toronto Blue Jays. The last time the Yankees won anything had been 1981. The last time the Yankees won the World Series was in 1978. Although their chances of [...]
New York Yankees: Does Spring Training Matter for »
The New York Yankees have some depth in their starting rotation as they head into the 2012 season.Manager Joe Girardi has said that he will narrow the rotation down to a five-man rotation, and it is going to be an open competition for the final three spots. With C.C Sabathia and Hiroki Kuroda already locked in the rotation, that leaves Ivan Nova, [...]
New York Yankees: David Robertson and Other Dumb »
Throughout the history of sports and specifically the New York Yankees, many athletes have abandoned the health of their own bodies for the sake of winning.However, there have been some who have injured themselves in some of the most asinine ways possible.Recently, Yankees' setup man David Robertson added himself to the illustrious history of dumb [...]
MLB Spring Training 2012: Michael Pineda Wild but »
In his second start of spring training 2012, Michael Pineda of the New York Yankees showed some control issues against the Atlanta Braves but still made some progress. However, his issues were ones we didn't see in his first start against the Philadelphia Phillies. Pineda didn't make it out of the third inning, and in 2.3 innings pitched, the [...]
George Frazier and the Los Angeles Dodgers Were Happy »
George Frazier attempted to put his three World Series losses into perspective. After being charged with losses in the third, fourth and sixth games of the 1981 World Series, the New York Yankees relief pitcher spoke to the media. "How many guys get to pitch in a World Series?" Frazier asked reporters. Then he took it down a notch. "How many [...]
George “Who?” Lost 3 Games for the New »
The 1981 strike resulted in a strange situation in which the season was split into two halves. The teams that won the first half of the season would meet the team that won the second half in a best-of-five playoff series with the winners playing another best-of-five series for the pennant. The New York Yankees, under Gene Michael, won the first [...]