Jon Lieber: Yankee Legend.

Gee, and I thought I was a fan of Jon Lieber:

"Lieber had turned those Yankee high command hopes into about the best money they ever spent.

His 14 wins, including seven down the stretch, tied Vazquez for the staff high; his control (102 strikeouts and just 18 walks in 176-2/3 innings) was the stuff of long ago Yankee legends such as Whitey Ford and Eddie Lopat. His 0.92 walks per nine innings was the best in the majors, while his 5.67 strikeouts-to-walks ratio was fourth best behind Ben Sheets, Randy Johnson and Schilling.

In a season in which the Yankee starting rotation crumbled, Lieber rose from the rubble to wind up as Joe Torre's No. 2 in the postseason. If there was one person, it seemed, they could count on for 2005, it was Lieber."

Naturally, if the Yankees had picked up the $8 mill option, Madden would point out Lieber's 4.33 era and 216 hits allowed in 176-2/3 innings.

You know, I truly think Lieber was an underrated Yankee pitcher in 2004, especially in the second half. Nobody else seemed to think he could pitch well in "Pettitte's spot," the number two game of the playoffs series.

I thought the Yankees would pick up his $8 mill option in 2005, as Madden insists they should have. Even Cashman says they probably should have picked up Lieber's option:

"In retrospect we probably should have picked up the option," Yankee GM Brian Cashman said yesterday. "But who knew the market was going to explode the way it did?"

Whoops!

So I actually agree overall with the point of the article. The Yankees should not have let Lieber get away, he was purty darn good.

But I can't help but think that Bill Madden is suddenly jumping on the Lieber bandwagon only because it's a way to take a dig at Brian Cashman and the Yankee decision-makers in general. I don't recall anybody jumping to Lieber's defense last year when the playoffs rolled around, much less comparing him to Whitey Ford.

I'll give you an example of what I mean.

On October 12, Madden previewed the Yankees/Sox ALCS.

"YANKEES STRENGTHS: Theirs is the second best offense in baseball, ranking second behind the Red Sox in runs, on-base percentage and slugging while tied for first with the White Sox in homers. Yanks had six players with 20 or more homers and 1-through-9, they're well balanced between righties and lefties. In Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Miguel Cairo they also have three genuine base stealing threats so they can play 'little ball' as well. There's no underestimating the Yankees' record 61 come-from-behind wins. Assuming he's able to put aside his personal tragedy, Mariano Rivera (53-for-57 in saves) remains the most dominant closer in baseball, and Tom Gordon has been the best set-up man (9-4, 2.21 ERA, 96 strikeouts, 23 walks in 89 2/3 innings) Joe Torre has had. Yanks are 81-5 when leading after seven innings.

YANKEES WEAKNESSES: Despite Kevin Brown's five-inning renaissance in the ALDS, the starting rotation remains very suspect. It now looks as if Orlando Hernandez will go in Game 4, but who knows what to expect after his almost two-week layoff? The Yankee starters must be able to get into the seventh inning - which they have not done, especially the second half of the season - because their middle relief is where they're most vulnerable. Despite his late-season efficiency, Tanyon Sturtze is still a work in progress. The enigmatic Javy Vazquez is slated to be the other long man. There's not much firepower on the bench, especially when Ruben Sierra starts."

So no mention of Lieber in YANKEE STRENGTHS or YANKEE WEAKNESSES.

What about KEY [sic] TO THE SERIES?

"KEY TO THE SERIES: The starters, particularly Kevin Brown and (presumably) El Duque, are going to have to provide innings if the Yanks are to have any chance of getting past the best Sox team since 1975. Yanks could be catching a break with the decision to start Schilling only twice, but that might be irrelevant if they are unable to solve Wakefield."

So what's the problem here?

The problem is that Madden is creating another revisionist history and reporting it as fact. This is revisionist history from just one year ago.

Reading Madden's article in February -- now that Lieber is on the Phillies -- you'd come to the conclusion that Lieber was a Cy Young candidate and a fan favorite.

If Jon Lieber was a Yankee legend, a fan favorite, the most reliable Yankee starter in the playoffs, the sole warrior emerging from the ashes of a decimated Yankee starting staff ... then why didn't anybody notice last October? Why didn't Bill Madden mention Jon Lieber's name one time in an article that previewed the ALCS?

I'll answer my own question because I know why. Because Madden is going to overrate every player the Yankees get rid of and underrate every player the Yankees sign. It's not journalism, it's playa hatin'.