Daily Archives: October 18, 2007
…because it’s new york related, and could significantly impact how the Yankees operate this off-season…
The Yankees have announced that Joe Torre has turned down a one-year, $5 million offer to return as their manager.
During a conference call with reporters, the team 
announced that the deal also included an additional $1 million for every round that the Yankees advanced through the post season.
Meanwhile, at FOXSports.com, Ken Rosenthal calls the offer an ‘insult.’
…basically, they offered him a pay-cut and a performance-based contract, which is beyond disrespectful when you consider all that he has accomplished and done for that organization…
…if you get to hear the conference call, you too will feel like the Yankees are not all that shocked that torre turned this down…which is strange…plus, torre flew down to florida from new york to meet with the team, only to reject the offer and immediately fly back to new york…which suggests there is more to this break down then we’re probably aware of…
…crazy…it’s soap opera time in the bronx, folks…and all is quiet in queens…sleep tight…
…Update…5:27 pm…
…considering this performance-based contract that was offered to torre, and listening to some media and callers in to talk radio, it occurs to me that the Yankees biggest problem right now as a baseball team is that they have totally unrealistic expectations, which are setting them up for failure and a ton of anxiety…i mean, since the mid-1990s this club’s ownership and players have been talking like the only acceptable option is to win a world series every season, which is totally silly and never going to happen, considering that this means they’ve failed most times than not in their 100 year history…
…seriously, if winning a ring is the only option, then every team, including the Yankees, fail more time than it succeeds…the problem, though, is that their fans are buying in to this silly, unrealistic expectation, as well, especially the newbie fan…look, if i’m a manager, who has spent a career in baseball, or a player looking for a new deal, why on earth would i go be a part of that, since i know i will never meet their insane expectations…it’s a bad, bad model…
Tagged Yankees |At MLB.com, Marty Noble catches up with potential-free agent Shawn Green, who continues to struggle with the shock and disappointment of not 
making the post-season.
…join the club…
Green, as quoted by Noble…
“It wasn’t easy to look people in the eye…We let everyone down - the fans, the staff, people who would have profited from our being in it…You feel so good as a player when you make people happy. We thought we were going to, we were going to bring people so much joy. We made people happy last year, just getting in for the first time in a long time. They expected more this year, so did we.”
…two things, 1) i truly believe this team is going to learn and benefit from that painful finish, and 2) while i would not go into next season counting on green as a starting outfielder, i am totally comfortable with him assuming a similar role to what he played last season, i.e., part– to regular-time first baseman, outfielder and left-handed bat off the bench…i am sure he will pursue more playing time from another team, more towards the west coast, as he should…but, if no other option appeals to him, and he wants to stay in new york, i’d certainly welcome him back…
The Mets hold a $10 million option on Green’s contract for next season, or can buy him out for $2 million.
In 130 games for the Mets this past season, Green hit .291 with 10 HR, 30 doubles and 62 RBI.
Tagged Shawn Green |
Christopher Reina of RealGM Baseball continues his “State of the Franchise” series with a look at Mets.
Reina, who says the Mets are in a “win-now and win-every season mode” through the first few seasons of Citi Field, breaks down each position, from the General Manager to the farm system, and provides his take on the Mets needs this off-season.
According to Reina, the Mets should pass on re-signing Luis Castillo and make Ruben Gotay the everyday second baseman.
Reina also suggests the Mets should consider trading SS Jose Reyes, but does not indicate what the Mets should look to receive in return, writing…
“The deal would have to be perfect of course, but there is no reason why Minaya shouldn’t dip his toe in the water while the former injury-plagued shortstop comes off his third straight healthy season.”
…i’m not in favor of trading jose at all…reyes is still young enough and talented enough for his late season swoon not to become a major concern, at this point…
…as for the rest of reina’s state of the franchise, i did not agree with him n the fact of Carlos Beltran being overpaid…at the time and over the course of his first season in New York, yes, it may have looked like minaya and company overpaid, but beltran has since put up back-to-back 30 HR/100RBI seasons, while playing gold glove defense and from what i can gather, many consider his contract in line with current market values…
…i do agree with reina on several points, including the Mets trying to sign lhp Jeremy Affeldt, who is a free agent at the end of the season, and adding him to the bullpen…affeldt would be a nice addition to the bullpen…he is equally effective versus right and left-handed batters and has started in the past, which may allow him to spot start on occasion, although he was used exclusively as a reliever this year with the Rockies…
Tagged Mike Nichols |At the blog for Baseball America, Matt Eddy provides a listing of the most recent Minor League transactions from the past week.
According to Eddy, the Mets have granted free agency to OF Chip Ambres.
Ambres made three plate appearances for the Mets in 2007, including driving in the game-winning run in the Mets 5-4 ten-inning win over the Dodgers on June 22.
Tagged Mike Nichols |
In the Daily News, Richard Weir profiles Darryl Strawberry, and the work he is doing on behalf of children and families with autism.
…in early september, i had the opportunity to interview darryl at length about his work with autistic children, which you can listen to hear…
…if you’re a new parent, know 1 in 150 peope are diagnosed with autism, making it more common than pediatric cancer, diabetes, and AIDS combined…also, new research suggests that children as young as 1 year old can show signs of autism, and so the most important thing you can do is to learn the early signs of autism and understand the typical developmental milestones your child should be reaching at different ages…for more, go to Autism Speaks…
At his blog for SNY, Ted Berg takes a closer look at Japanese pitchers RHP Koji Uehara, RHP Hiroki Kuroda, RHP Kenshin Kawakami, LHP Hitoki Iwase and RHP Masahide Kobayashi, all of whom could find their way to MLB this off-season.
Berg writes…
“As for Japanese free-agent pitchers, I’m ambivalent. A lot of people have written that the level of Japanese baseball is somewhere around that of Triple-A, but I’m dubious. Really only two Japanese players have enjoyed prolonged success in the Majors — Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui — and there have been far more monumental disappointments than there have been pleasant surprises.”
…the Mets were next in line to land Daisuke Matsuzaka, had the Red Sox not gone totally overboard in their bidding…and although dice-k had an average season for the sox in the american league, for the Mets in the national league i believe he would have been far more successful…but, he was a rare case, i think…i don’t ever recall such universal hype around any one player from Japan before, and from a pitcher at that…all of these guys have hype, though…i mean, remember Kei Igawa…
…i think it’s clear that there is a serious adjustment period for most of these japanese-league pitchers, mostly because the strike zone is so much bigger over there and they work off a different schedule…the shift to american baseball does not typically seem to be a smooth one…and so that has to be considered in the hype…
…however, from what i understand, since teams have begun striking strategic partnerships with scouting departments and teams from japan, the ability to project overseas talent is getting far more accurate…if this is true, i hope the Mets bring on a pitcher or two to compete for a spot in the bullpen…i mean, the more help the merrier…
