Let's check in with Tim Tebow. Is he batting is weight at AAA?

No, he is not.

.147/.230/.203.

That's a .203 slugging percentage.

One home run and 73 strikeouts in 177 at-bats.

Accomplishments matter compared to your contemporaries, of course ...

... but as every home run record falls, bear in mind that the ball is juiced.

The playoffs are a crapshoot.

"We hear a lot now about what a crapshoot the playoffs are in baseball. And there is something to that. Except that the Red Sox have been playing at the same craps table in this century, and won four Series in the last 15 years. The Giants won three Series in this decade."

The Giants leaned quite a bit on one superstar pitcher.

But, besides the uniform, what does the 2004 Red Sox team have in common with the 2018 Red Sox team?

Nothing.

They have nothing in common.

There is no reason to link the different Championship Red Sox teams in terms of strategy, roster, coaching, managing.

Other than the simple observation that, like, it often pays off to spend a lot of money on payroll. The Red Sox have enough money to survive some of the worst free agent signings in baseball history. Small payroll teams can't do that.

Believe it or not, there is really no reason to think the Red Sox have been smarter than the Yankees the past 15 years. They just came through more often in the playoffs.


"Since the Red Sox started their own winning in ’04, they’ve won the Series with three general managers, three managers, two team presidents."

Exactly.

In other words, it's a crapshoot.

Lots of Jose Devers fans out there in Yankee Universe?

Lupica's back at the Daily News just in time to put pressure on the Yankees to win the World Series.

Because if they don't win the World Series this year, then they'll endure even more ridicule from Mike Lupica next year.


He's back at the Daily News and just as out of touch as ever.

I'm not making this up: A Buck Showalter reference, a Phil Jackson reference, a shot at long-forgotten ARod, and ... get this ... even a gratuitous shot at Jacoby Ellsbury.

Get some new material, for cryin' out loud.


As for a brief mention of current players on current New York teams that are currently playing, he is predictably off the mark:

"How do you think the polling would go among Yankee fans if they got a do-over on the Stanton trade?"

Well, the Yankees traded Starlin Castro, Jose Devers, and Jorge Guzman for Stanton.

I'm not sure how the poll would go.

Smart fans would endorse the trade. Yankee fans, however, are not smart. Baseball columnists who write about the Yankees also are not smart.

So maybe a better question is, "How many professional sports columnists can name the players who the Yankees traded for Stanton?"

Or "How many professional sports columnists can name the Yankee starting rotation?"

Or "How many professional sports columnists are so ignorant of baseball, that they think Encarnacion strikes out a lot?"

Encarnacion does not strke out a lot.

This take is ignorant to the point of being irresponsible.

I mean, yeah, it's an annual ritual: The Yankees add players and Lupica rips them for doing so.

But even for Lupica, this is stretching it.


Encarnacion is cheap, he's effective, he's not that old, the Yankees gave up bupkus to get him, and they didn't even send down Maybin (yet).

Sure, the marginal value of a right-handed power bat is not particularly high for this team ... but the cost was very small ... and the Yankees kept Encarnacion off a rival playoff team.


"Strikeout percentage" is not an advanced stat.

It took me 30 seconds to look it up and dismiss the entire premise of Lupica's dumb article.

Name                    2019 K%     Career K%

Encarnacion            18.2               17.1

 

Frazier                     28.2               29.3

Maybin                     25.8               21.3

Gardner                   14.4               18.2

Judge                        29.2               31.5

Stanton                    33.3               28.0

MLB                         25.5                 ?

This date in Yankees history

"June 19, 2015: Alex Rodriguez became the 29th player in Major League history to collect 3,000 hits, hitting a solo home run off the Tigers' Justin Verlander. A-Rod joined Derek Jeter and Wade Boggs as the only players to homer for their 3,000th hit."

I have no recollection of this moment.

I remember when Jeter and Boggs did it.

Mike Lupica on Twitter

Lupica is suddenly a big Frazier guy ... and, I guess, anti-Encarnacion:

"The Yankees were going to home-run their way to the World Series last year, no matter how many times their big guys struck out. Now they're going to try it again."

 1. Oh, last year was the year the Yankees were going to home-run their way to the World Series.

Thank you for clearing that up.

I had a bet with a buddy of mine, and I kept saying it was 1927 or 1961, but he insisted it was 2018.

Yes: The Bronx Bombers, the team that moved the right field fence in 100 feet and basically invented HRs as a strategy ... the team that has home-runned their way to more championships than any other team ... yes, you are on to something. Just like last year and the previous 90 or so before last year, the Yankees are trying to get batters who hit a lot of HRs.

2. Frazier strikes out more often than Encarnacion.

Very nice comeback.

"Gagnon shot back, telling Desmond that the pitch was accidental, as players from both sides closed around the pair. No one threw a punch. No one did anything more than yell.

'I can see where they’re coming from, but I wasn’t throwing strikes all day,' said Gagnon, who threw only 13 of his 23 pitches across the plate. 'The ball slipped, a two-seamer. It was a complete accident.' "

Unwritten Rules

Getting this riled up about a multi-pitcher no-hitter in double-A.

Clint Frazier is not a leader. He's a individual contributor.

I suppose it puts an unfair burden on your teammates to "force" them to answer questions about your fielding mishaps

I also think Frazier is quite immature.

But it doesn't bother me too much and I actually agree with just about everything he said about Sunday night's debacle:

• His mishaps in the field speak for themselves.
• He probably didn't want to talk to reporters because he was ticked off and embarrassed. Maybe it's a good idea to avoid reporters when you're ticked off.
• People don't like his attitude and they want to tear him down.

Jacoby Ellsbury is the 10th-best CFer of the decade.

What? You don't believe me?

One takeaway.

Stop walking Billy Hamilton.

Billy Hamilton has walked 16 times this season. It is unwise to walk Billy Hamilton. The Yankees have walked Billy Hamilton 6 times this season.

The modern-day ballplayer.

Cano runs hard every game and has always run hard his entire career.

Robinson Cano didn't run hard to first base.

"Cano was immediately anguished at first base after he realized his mistake. The All-Star second baseman thought there were two outs instead of one when he hit the grounder. He took his helmet off and grimaced at his mental lapse. 

Callaway later told reporters the scoreboard at Marlins Park incorrectly read two outs when Cano was at the plate. Cano, a 15-year big-league veteran, trusted the scoreboard and ran, or rather crawled, with it.

'I have been running hard the whole year,' Cano told reporters on Saturday. 'In that situation like anybody I made a mistake, but it’s not my mistake. There were two outs on the board. That’s why I didn’t run it out.

'If I know it was two outs, it’s a different story for me. I would’ve run my ass off. I will be the first one to motivate this team and the last guy not to run it out.' "

In related news, Greg Bird was moved to the Forever IL.

Can't say he's having a good year, that's for sure.

It's just odd that Bryce Harper is leading the league in strikeouts and walks.

"Right now" can mean just about anything.

Hey, look! It's Mike Lupica on Yankees.com:

"For now, it looks like a tweet that should have been heard ‘round the world -- or at least the world of Yankees fans, considering that it involves the best player they’ve got right now."

The best player the Yankees have right now is Aaron Judge. Some would argue Didi Gregorius.

So I'm assuming Mike Lupica is not writing an article about either of them because there isn't much to say about them while they're on the IL.

So it's active players ... best players so far this season. Best Yankee players for the first 40 games of the 2019 season.

Who could it be?

Off the top of my head, Top Five, in order: German, LeMahieu, Sanchez, Chapman, and Kahnle.


"The Yankees were on their way to 100 wins and they were still chasing the Red Sox hard last August, so hardly anybody noted or long remember the news we got that day on Twitter from @BlueJaysPR:

'Minor league trade: Gio Urshela has been sent to the Yankees for cash considerations.'"


I'm sure you were on top of it at the time, Mr. Twitter.

Whenever Lupica is wrong, it's "we."

But this is incorrect..

While Urshela has obviously far exceeded expectations and might be the Value MVP of the whole league ... no, I have not researched the rest of the league ... he is not the best player on the Yankees right now.


"So nobody paid much attention to Urshela -- now 27, out of Cartagena, Colombia -- who, in a season when the Yankees tried to line up guys on the injured list the way they line up Old Timers on Old Timers’ Day at Yankee Stadium, has turned out to be more important and indispensable than anybody they have."


I simply don't consider him the most indispensable player on the Yankees.

His replacement wouldn't field as well and obviously wouldn't be hitting .341 ... but a lot of people not name Tyler Wade could have been almost as productive.


"Even the guy who knows everything on 'Jeopardy' couldn’t have seen this coming."

Jesus.

If I may, let me put a [sic] on Jeopardy ... I think it's customary to include the exclamation point.

Good pop culture reference, though. I'll check out the Sports Reporters podcast to hear it 20 more times this summer.


"There have been other unlikely heroes in the American League so far. Michael Chavis, who had five RBIs for the Red Sox on Sunday as they were sweeping the Mariners and has injected life and pop into Boston’s batting order when it badly needed it, comes right to mind."

Does he?

Does Michael Chavis come right to mind?

You had to look that up on the Internet. You're not fooling anyone.


So you've got two unlikely heroes in the AL so far.

Name a few more and then you can pretend you pay attention to the entire AL and not just the Red Sox and the Yankees.


"But there has been no more unlikely hero in baseball so far than Urshela for the Yankees."

Domingo German.

Urshela has 15 RBIs and 2 HRs. 11-for-27 with RISP is AMAZING ... and it's also only 27 at-bats.

German is a #6 starter who leads MLB in wins. I'd say that's unlikely for a player whose under/over for 2019 wins was probably 1.5.


"And understand: It’s not as if he just fell into Cashman’s lap. The GM had first tried to get him away from the Indians when the Indians had him. Could not. Liked his defense."

Content notwithstanding, that is some outstanding writing right there, chopping up one simple thought into 4 choppy sentences and one unnecessary colon. Well done.


"The Yankees shouldn’t be as close to first place as they are after all the injuries they’ve had, to Stanton and Aaron Judge and Aaron Hicks and Luis Severino and Dellin Betances and everybody else. "

Agreed.


"There have been other guys who have hit. But their best hitter and their biggest star has been Urshela, who grew up worshipping a soccer star, Cristiano Ronaldo, as a kid in Colombia, and dreaming of being one himself. Now he’s a baseball star in the spring of 2019 at Yankee Stadium. Obviously his manager recognizes an unlikely star like this when he sees one. Takes one to know one."

I have no freaking idea what Cristiano Ronaldo has to do with any of this ... and I guess describing Boone as an "unlikely star" is referencing a HR he hit 16 years ago? ... but Lupica just jinxed Gio Urshela.

It was nice knowing you, Gio.

Say hi to Tony Womack, Sonny Gray, Josh Satin, and every Mets team since 1986.

The game has really changed.

Listen to this guy and this guy.

These pitches were practically strikes, for cryin' out loud.

The Mets really shouldn't waste the roster spot.

At this point, I think it's conceivable that Tebow is taking the roster spot away from a player who could help the big league club.

I wouldn't say that about the single-A team.

On the single-A team, just let him play so you can attract a crowd and sell a few more hot dogs.

But at triple-A, it's no good.

I had no idea this was happening.

It's just hard to keep track of a middle reliever's individual performance nowadays. They all kind of blend together.

Attendance is down ...

... maybe MLB should lighten up and do more stuff like this. It couldn't hurt.

Career WAR of 2.0.

... and, at the time of the Dickey trade, he was considered a better prospect than Syndergaard.

Picking an MVP in April.

I'm still pretty sure it's Greg Bird.

A most happy fella, Gio Urshela.

NorthJersey.com with the near-instantaneous breaking story.

Checking in on Tim Tebow in AAA.

BA of .167, OPS of .460.

He's back behind the plate.

Bottom 4: "Goodwin safe at first on a sacrifice plus fielding error by catcher G.Sánchez, Pujols to second."

Chad Green's ERA is 16.43.

It sounds like the answer to a question on a History quiz.

"In what year did the House of Plantagenet end its reign in England?"

Voit wins

I actually thought Bird/Voit would be a plausible platoon.

Voit leads the Yankees in RBIs and he leads the league in consecutive games on base.

Catching up with the Dark Knight.

2019: 0-1, 10.05 ERA.

Career: 41 W, 45 L.

What if I told you ...

Brett Gardner has a higher OPS than Robinson Cano?

I can't prove it, but I think Chris Davis is a steroid cheat.

"No amount of money shortens the distance from the batter’s box to the dugout. No amount of money covers the hard right at first base to the far dugout stairs, not after a while. No house is big enough to soften the looping and hopeless left turn to the dugout on the other side of the field. No fancy car is so smart it would refuse to deliver him to the ballpark, or quite dumb enough to leave him there."

I'm not quite sure I'm in total agreement, but, OK.


"He is oh-fer-ever, has gotten rich for it, and this is the oh-fer-ever part of the story, that he stinks, and extra stinks because he’s paid to be great and isn’t, isn’t close, refuses to be, has no pride, and I don’t believe it. This is what it looks like to fall, to have it all go wrong, to endure it publicly and personally. Who knows why."

I have my suspicions.


"Not him, clearly. The money is not the soft landing, however. It is – or can be – the burden, which almost no one would view as the burden, which doesn’t make it not so."

I don't think Chris Davis is having fun. I don't think he stopped caring. I think he stopped taking steroids.

I also don't feel particularly sorry for the chumps who have to pay him.

"So then it wouldn’t much matter anymore, right? Then it would go back to being a slump, a horrible, unthinkable slump, and a guy caught between swings, between pitches, between routines. Then maybe he can start again, restart the career that brought all that attention, all that responsibility and, sure, all that money.

So, be disappointed he isn’t the player you thought or hoped he would continue to be. It’d also be OK to feel for the person – Chris Davis – who isn’t the player he thought he would continue to be.

Because then he came to the plate in the seventh inning and struck out."

All things considered, I think a disinterested fan base in Baltimore is mostly letting him off the hook.

Same goes for the press, who have ignored one of the worst contracts ever until he set a hitless record. 

I mean, sure: Money does not buy happiness. Neither does being poor.

We all look and this guy and think we'd be fired if we were this bad at our jobs.

In other Yankee news, Greg Bird still stinks.

.192 with 1 HR and 13 Ks in 26 at-bats.

Also a bad fielder and a bad baserunner.

The Mets have one great starting pitcher.

One great starting pitcher and a lot of hype.

The Dark Knight

Matt Harvey is 0-1 with an ERA of 9.00.

Sure, it's only two starts.

I still recall a lot of praise after one mediocre start.

I'll say it again ... he's 26 years old and has played 273 major league games.

"And this blunder occurred in Sanchez’s first game since he was picked off second base during Thursday’s series opener at Oriole Park, an 8-4 Yankees win.

How is this happening?

When Boone was asked if Sanchez’s focus still is an issue, the skipper said 'no' and then did what he always does when his catcher is criticized. He went on the defense.

'I think they’re teachable moments is what I think,' Boone said. 'I think he’s been really hooked up as far as his prep, as far as his game-calling, as far as his focus offensively. I think it’s a case (on Saturday) of getting himself in a little bit of an un-athletic position where he got himself in trouble, and that’s where we’ve got to teach and clean it up. And we will.' "

An empty non-answer from Boone which requires no scrutiny because it's not intended to provide information.

He tripped over third base like a first-grader playing kickball for the first time. I'll say he got himself in a "little bit of an un-athletic position."

Of course, people can trip on the basepaths on occasion, even the best players.

Clearly, Sanchez's problems are more than an occasional physical slip up.

Sanchez is 26 years old.

"These kinds of things shouldn’t happen in high school ball let along the big leagues, but as talented as Sanchez and Torres are, both have made way more than their share of mental mistakes over the last two seasons."

An article that didn't age well.

Fatigue.

Stop talking about this guy! Please!

Let's talk about the 2019 Mets: Buck Showalter, Joe Torre, Chili Davis, and Robinson Cano.

"Robinson Cano is 36 years old now and coming off a suspension that took half of a season away from him, damaged his reputation and effectively finished his career with the Seattle Mariners, who had once given him a 10-year contract worth $240 million. Now, he is back in New York, where it all began for him with the Yankees, playing second base for the Mets. Just by showing up, even at his age and even with what happened to him last year, it is worth noting that he is as good of a pure hitter as the Mets have ever had."

He's "pure," alright.

As the driven snow.


" 'Situational hitting,' is what Chili Davis calls it, and what Cano has always done with smart hitting his whole career, until he did so much dumb and lasting damage to his reputation last year."

What was that, Mr. Lupica?

What dumb thing did he do?

You still haven't mentioned what he was suspended for.

0-for-11 start for Gardner.

So much for the "prove his critics wrong out of the gate" narrative.

If a little league catcher said this, you would laugh.

" 'On that play, we were actually set to throw to third base," Sanchez said via the team’s Spanish translator. 'But the runner got a really big jump there and I noticed that the opportunity to make an out there, it was to go to second base. I’ve made that throw many times before. I felt that if I make an accurate throw we have a chance to get that guy out.

Unfortunately, I felt that I pulled on the ball a little bit and I bounced that throw.'
 

He took the blame.

'That’s my fault,' said Sanchez, who went 1-for-4 and nearly hit two home runs — one ball went foul, the other was a long fly out to center field."

Congrats on the warning track fly ball, though.

Ten Things

If all of these "key" things have to occur for the Yankees to win the World Series, then we can all delay ordering the ticker tape.

I am not a big fan of Boone.

"Look around the American League and tell me which projected playoff manager you’d take Boone over in an October series.

Boston’s Alex Cora? No way. Been there, done that.

Cleveland’s Terry Francona? The future Hall of Famer was out-managed by Boone’s predecessor, Joe Girardi, in 2017. It’ll be surprising if we can say the same about the current Yankees skipper this year.

Houston’s A.J. Hinch? No one would seriously take Boone over one of the best in the game right now.

Tampa Bay’s (my pick to get there as the second AL Wild Card) Kevin Cash? Watch the two teams play, and try to make a sound case for Boone."

I'm surprised Tampa is listed as a projected playoff team, but I suppose they are. Upon closer inspection, it becomes clear that the AL has a lot of bad teams.

As for Boone, I guess I'm still a fan of Girardi. He may not cost the team a playoff series, but there's no reason to think he offers a competitive advantage.

I thought for sure it was the strikeout record. Or the GIDP record.

You know why nobody cares about this record?

The Yankees offense wasn't historically great by any means.

It was good, of course ... second in runs behind the Red Sox ... but we've seen 850 runs plenty of times before.

I love HRs. They're great. They're the best thing a batter can do. But they're not the only thing.

The Yankees were 7th in on-base%, 27th in stolen bases, twice as many strikeouts as walks.

So if they hit 300 HRs, 250 of them are Mark Teixeira solo jobs, and they can't hit with RISP, and every batter strikes out 150 times ... who cares?

Tyler Wade is fast and he's a good fielder.

His lifetime batting average in the major leagues is .161 in 124 at-bats.

He also doesn't hit very well in the minors.

So he had a good Spring Training and expected to make the squad.

But he didn't.

Why are we talking about Tyler Wade again?"

"He wasn’t the only one. Because there is no timeline for Hicks’ return at this point, Tauchman will make the Opening Day roster, which led to Tyler Wade being optioned to Triple-A. Wade was vocally upset Sunday. When asked if he was pissed off, Wade replied, 'very.' "

Boone said Monday he was not upset about Wade’s comments to the media Sunday.

'Guys are allowed to be upset, guys are allowed to be frustrated. If ever there is a point where it’s unhealthy or a distraction then conversations happen,' Boone said. 'But Tyler Wade came in here and I think continued to make strides in his game every which way and was probably set to make our roster. I get the disappointment, I get the frustration and that’s OK. I expect that. We’re playing for a lot. These guys put a lot into their craft. I am OK with that. Now channeling the frustration in the right way becomes very important.' "

In the micro-world of Yankee Opening Day Roster, this is what I predicted the whole time.

"First base (2): Greg Bird, Luke Voit
What changed? General manager Brian Cashman said earlier this month that he did not envision carrying both first basemen, but that was before Aaron Hicks' lingering lower back injury. Bird and Voit both had impactful springs at the plate, and both should see playing time in the early going, though Boone believes Bird has the defensive edge."

I think Voit might be a better defender.

I don't know why anyone thinks Bird is a better defender than Voit.

Bird may still mature into a good MLB player. He isn't yet. It just seems that he gets the benefit of the doubt because he looks like a good MLB player.

Frazier has not earned the benefit of the doubt.

"Frazier had a terrible spring, hitting just .130 with no homers and five RBI in 14 games. His 46 at-bats were tied for the most on the team with third baseman Miguel Andujar. He struck out 15 times and drew four walks."

His major league stats are no good.

His minor league stats are quite good.

No reason to give up on him, but also no reason to give him a roster spot.

His advisory role with the Yankees is no longer in effect? Huh.

Slow death during the metaphorical rebirth symbolized by Spring Training.

We all feel so past our prime. Thanks for reminding me, Mike Lupica:

"For this one season, even with a won-loss record of 10-9, deGrom was to Mets fans what Tom Seaver once was. In what became a lost season after the team's 11-1 start, deGrom felt like The Franchise. Because when deGrom had the ball last season, the Mets' season still mattered. He became one of 11 qualified starters in the last 100 years to have an ERA of 1.70 or lower. Since the mound was lowered by Major League Baseball in 1969, deGrom became one of just three pitchers -- Dwight Gooden and Zack Greinke were the others -- to have at least 30 starts and 210 innings pitched and have an ERA of 1.70 or lower.

In the end, deGrom would finish his dazzling season with 29 straight starts of giving up three earned runs or fewer. He finished the season with 24 straight quality starts. These are all numbers that give off a beam of light, and always will. Seaver and Gooden pitched like this for the Mets once."

We know. He won the Cy Young Award and everything.


“ 'Watching him last year was like watching Doc [Gooden] in ’85,' John Franco said at Roger Dean Stadium on Tuesday, watching deGrom begin to stretch himself out for his Opening Day start with five innings against the Marlins.

In 1985, of course, Gooden was 24-4 for the Mets, with an ERA of 1.53, and looked like a right-handed Sandy Koufax. But that Mets team, a year away from a World Series championship, chased the Cardinals in the National League East all the way to a rousing three-game series at old Busch Stadium in September. They had Keith Hernandez and Gary Carter and other young starters. The Mets had other young starters in 2018. Mostly all they had was deGrom."

Dwight Gooden?

Keith Hernandez?

Gary Carter?

Is this your annual Spring Training "NY is really a Mets town" article?


"Matt Harvey was supposed to be the next Seaver once. He was the Dark Knight of Gotham City. Then Noah Syndergaard, known as Thor, became the new comic book pitching hero. Syndergaard won more games than deGrom did last year, but deGrom was still the one. Every five days, he made you watch Mets games, and care, and showed you how much he cared even when his team couldn’t buy or steal him enough runs. deGrom beat out Max Scherzer for the NL Cy Young Award. He beat them all. He was that good."

Other than some typical examples dubious "supposed tos," there is nothing here that everyone doesn't already know.


"Franco is a Brooklyn kid. He was 9 years old when Seaver was 25-7 in 1969 and the Mets became the Miracle Mets. Franco grew up to become a closer for the Reds, and then with the Mets after that. Franco has always loved talking about pitching. Now here he was in a seat on the first-base side of Roger Dean Stadium watching deGrom work, on a day when he didn’t nearly have his best stuff but who was, when he was at his best, still something to see.

'He has it all and does it all,' Franco said. 'He comes at you with the same motion, and the same arm angle. He works both sides of the plate. He changes your eye angle when he wants to. And when he wants to dial it up in the high 90s, he dials it up. Watching him pitch like this is a beautiful thing.' "

Maybe Buck Showalter wasn't available to really get things cooking, but this is what we've gotten so far:

- Mike Lupica sat next to John Franco at a Spring Training game.

- John Franco is from Brooklyn.

- John Franco, along with every other person who follows baseball, thinks Jacob deGrom is a great pitcher.


Then the rest is a recap of a Spring Training game that no one cares about and in which deGrom didn't even pitch well.

So maybe this is worthy of a tweet? A 100 character limit post on Instagram?

Tebow is a brand.

He is not a professional athlete of any renown:

" 'Just so much more experience and opportunity to work every day,' Tebow said. 'And try to perform as well, but I think the learning aspect of it and being able to learn from all the players, from coaches and really take it as a huge opportunity to grow and get better.'
Tebow said he leaned on eight-time All-Star Robinson Cano and hitting coach Chili Davis throughout this year’s Mets camp. He enjoyed picking Cano’s brain and attempting to adapt the second baseman’s mindset."

Cano explained that, if you want success in MLB, you should take lots of PEDs.

I'm coming around to some of these ideas.

"The umpire will be assisted by a radar system that tracks where balls land in the strike zone. Baseball did not elaborate on how the system — called TrackMan — would be used, whether umpires could consult it if they chose, or whether it would overrule calls made by the umpires."

I like it. I'm tired of umps using balls and strikes to mete out justice; every 0-2 pitch is a ball; every 3-0 pitch is a strike.  

"No players or coaches will be allowed to visit the mound unless a pitching change is being made. This move would seem designed to speed games, which can be slowed by frequent conferences at the mound."

Candle sticks are always a good wedding gift, or you can check the registry.

"Pitchers will be required to face a minimum of three batters. This move, which has also been proposed for the major leagues, is designed to speed the game by reducing pitching changes, which have proliferated in the modern game."

I don't know about this one. Is this really designed to speed up the game? Or just to help the offense?

"Defensive shifts will be limited, as teams will be required to have two players on each side of second base. Many fans dislike the elaborate shifting that has come into play in recent years, feeling that infielders’ positioning has become too different from the traditional placements they are used to."

I'm starting to think this is a good idea, though the batters can still solve this problem themselves.

"Time between innings will be reduced to 1 minute 45 seconds from 2:05, another timesaving move."

Easy call. 

"The distance from the pitcher’s rubber to home plate will be increased to 62 feet 6 inches, a two-foot increase. Such a move would be an aid to batters, and would presumably cut down on strikeouts, which have drastically increased in recent years."

This seems nuts and quite possibly a cause of injuries and other unintended consequences.

 

"All the infield bases — first, second and third — will be increased in size, to 18 inches from 15 inches. A larger base would provide more room for both a fielder and a runner to have a part of the bag."

Very good idea.

Not even sure why runners need to touch first base at all. Just cross a line or something.

Another split squad Spring Training ace. For three whole innings.

I give him credit for being ... delusional in his optimistic evaluations of himself:

" 'They love sliders,' Gray sounded off to The Athletic about his Yankees tenure. 'Sliders are a great pitch. The numbers say slider is a good pitch, but you might not realize how many s----- counts you’re getting in while throwing all those sliders. They wanted me to be (Masahiro) Tanaka and I’m way different from him.

In my very last outing against the Red Sox, second-to-last game of the season in New York, I threw two innings out of the pen, all I did was throw cutters,' Gray added. 'I said, "F--- ’em, all I’m going to do is throw cutters today." I just threw 94-mph cutters. … [Pitched well, and] I thought maybe I’ll make the postseason roster here … but I didn’t.' "

It seems a platoon at first base is out.

The game has changed and this is a consequence of carrying 70 bullpen pitchers.

I'm buying it.

"Curry: I’m going to throw Greg Bird at you. … Watching Bird on a daily basis (at spring training), talking to Bird, I think there’s a little bit of a fire in his belly. I think he understands that there’s a competition now, and first base is not his. He’s going to have to win it, and then if he does win it, he’s going to have to continue to produce. … If Greg Bird could kind of be that X-factor, with their right-handed-dominant lineup, having another lefty hitter would be so important for them."

Look at Bird's 162-game average.

.214, 29 HRs, 89 RBIs.

He’s still young and inexpensive.

His injuries may have been holding him back.

So would you take .214, 29, 89? Strikes out too much, yes. Walks too little. Not a good fielder or runner. 

But he can’t platoon with Luke Voit? He can’t put a mistake by any pitcher into the RF porch?

Would you sign up for a prorated .214/29/89 from a platoon first baseman? So he’s not Keith Hernanez after all. He’s Oscar Gamble.

Spring Training. Great Stuff.

Didn't Greg Bird hit, like, .500 in Spring Training before the 2018 season?:

"Steven Matz looked like a pro in his second start of spring Monday, but his final pitching line wouldn’t show it. Matz allowed four earned runs on five hits (one home run) with two walks and two strikeouts over 2.2 innings during the Mets’ 9-3 loss to Boston."

Your guess is as good as mine as to what this could possibly mean.


"Matz said he wasn’t focusing on the box score and instead just wanted to perfect his curveball, which lost command on Monday. Several of Boston’s hits came on Matz’s 0-2 curveballs because he kept going back to the pitch throughout his outing."

Sounds like he perfected his curveball indeed. A regular Bert Blyleven over here.

"Callaway was impressed with Matz’s ability to make a mid-game change and slow it down on the mound.

'That's unbelievable,' Callaway said. 'He's growing up. He probably wouldn't of done that last year. He would've been worried about the result. Now he’s worried about getting better. Even though he gave up the 0-2 hits, so what. At least he was working on his craft and trying to get better.' "

"Wouldn't of." 

It's a subpar sportswriter dictating the words of a subpar manager describing a subpar pitcher.

Then the Matz portion of the article ends.

The big "unbelievable" to-do is that, even though Steven Matz pitched very poorly, but he did so in a nonchalant manner.

 

By the way, I was wrong about Bird.

It was 2017, not 2018.

The Phillies are going to be good, no?

I think they're going to be good:

"Now that the deed is done and Bryce Harper is officially a $330 million Phillie, it’s worth examining just what happened here, how it happened, and why it may not have near the impact it’s cracked up to be."

Depends on what you mean by "impact."

A great player moved from one NL East team to another.


"Given the fact Harper was coming off a comparatively 'down' season for him (in which he hit just .249 with more strikeouts than hits) and most of the big spending teams like the Yankees, Red Sox, Cubs and Dodgers (at first) signaled early on they would not be in the bidding, it was problematic Harper was going to get the kind of barrier-breaking ($400 million?) deal his agent, Scott Boras, had been touting almost since the day he arrived in the big leagues with the Nationals in 2012. So for that, you have to give Boras credit for once again finding the One Dumb Owner who would essentially bid against himself to get the contract over the 10-year/$300 million plateau."

I always do a double-take when I see Bryce Harper's age. He's only 25. He has already hit 184 HRs.

2018 was a relatively down season with a lot of strikeouts. Also, an OPS of .889.


I'll take .250 BA, 34 doubles, 34 HRs, 130 walks ... I mean, jeez, will ya? ... yeah, I agree ... too many strikeouts.

He's not Mike Trout, but he's also on the fast track for Cooperstown, no doubt about it.


"In this case, that would be Phillies owner John Middleton, a nobody on the big league stage up until a couple of years ago when he decided to exercise his majority share-holding clout with the team and push out the longstanding senior management decision makers in Philly, Bill Giles and Dave Montgomery.

Like so many owners before him, going all the way back to George Steinbrenner, Middleton wanted to make a statement by signing one of the biggest free agents of the winter, no matter what the cost."

Gimme a break.


"Harper will thrive in the Phillies’ bandbox Citizens Bank Park, but there is nothing to suggest he is the savior who will lead them to the World Series Promised Land. In his seven years in Washington, the Nationals went to the postseason four times and were bounced in the first round in all of them. Harper’s best postseason was 2014 when he .294 with three homers and four RBI in four games against the Giants. In the other three, he hit .186 with two homers and six RBI in 15 games."

I think the Phillies will win a World Series with Bryce Harper.

But, again ... why are we even talking about winning the World Series as a barometer for success?

Ticket sales, merch, franchise value.

Also, why are you seriously examining his previous playoff appearances?

Who cares?



This is just boilerplate hack garbage: So and so is paid too much and isn't clutch based on a small playoff sample size.


"Finally, this notion the Yankees and Mets should have been in on Harper – the Mets just to keep him away from the Phillies and the Yankees because they’re, well, the Yankees – is utterly ridiculous. Neither team needed him – certainly not at 13 years/$330M. The Yankees are realizing how much they’re going to regret down the road taking on Stanton’s contract, while the Mets need to be spending what it takes to get Jacob deGrom signed longterm."

The Yankees are expecting future mammoth contracts for Judge (and others) and probably can't afford to spend $1 billion in the outfield. $750 million maybe, but not $1 billion.

Stanton had a disappointing 2018, no doubt about it, and he needs to cut down on his strikeouts. Figure something out where he doesn't swing at everything.

But he still hit 38 HRs, scored 100 runs, and drove in 100 runs. I see no reason to think he won't be a premier hitter for a long time. Do it in the playoffs and the Yankees will have no regrets.

As for Jacob deGrom, there is no longterm. He's a 30-year-old pitcher.

Maybe it's Spring Training optimism ...

But I'm expecting .325, 25 HRs, 50 stolen bases.

Hicks Contract

This is a strange one.

Cashman may have gotten a long-term bargain ... or he may have paid twice as much as he needed to.

The Mendoza Line ain't what it used to be.

About half the players bat under .200 nowadays.

I agree that Stanton will have a big year.

The second year of a big Yankee contract is always a big year.

By "always," I mean Alex Rodriguez in 2005.

And you thought he wasn't a hustler ...

Though I was just estimating, those ending up being the exact figures ... so much for his bad attitude or lack of hustle.

Steroids are the fountain of youth.

I'm skeptical. I'm optimistic.

On the one hand, they said the same thing about Gary Sanchez.

On the other hand, the fundamentals shouldn't be too hard to learn.

Some players are easy to root for.

Other players are Matt Harvey.

Maybe the Mets are contenders.

"Despite Van Wagenen's assertions, the Mets are not favored to win the AL East."

I should say not. That would be quite a trick to win the AL East.

Aside from the gaffe, this take doesn't seem unreasonable.

But a couple of things should be pointed out:

1. Contending for the division or contending for a wild card? Contending for a wild card means what as September rolls around? Two games over .500?

2. A majority of New York sportswriters recycle this story every single year.

Only tangentially related to baseball ...

... but I was thinking about Edelman's suspension before, during, and after the game.

Just waiting for someone to bring it up.

Now there is a growing movement to put Edelman in the HOF.

Mark McGwire does not approve.

Humans evolve.

"Not surprisingly, new Yankees reliever Adam Ottavino was asked about Babe Ruth in his first interview since signing with his hometown club on January 13."

Not surprisingly, people are stupid.


"That comment, along with the one in which Ottavino claimed Ruth would be a .140 hitter with eight homers a season as a present-day player, led to a lot of angry comments from fans on social media."

People are stupid, exhibit B.


Most agree that Babe Ruth was the best baseball player of all time and certainly the most important.

It was also almost 100 years ago.

Like all others, Ruth's superiority is in comparison to his peers.

Jesse Owens ran the 100-meter dash in 10.3 seconds, rattling Hitler in 1936. In 2019, that time is probably good enough to make varsity in most high schools.

Ottavino wasn't disrespecting Babe Ruth ... and so what if he was, anyway?


"On Friday, a day after the three-year, $27-million contract that Ottavino signed on Jan. 13 became official with a passed physical, the Brooklyn native admitted that he probably shouldn’t have taken a shot at Ruth while hammering home his point about how much baseball has changed over the last century."

It sure has.

HOF Voting

Andruw Jones: 10 gold gloves, 62.8 WAR, 7.5% HOF votes.

Omar Vizquel: 11 gold gloves, 45.6 WAR, 42.8% HOF votes.

Jones also had 10 playoff HRs (vs. 0) and a 150-point higher playoff OPS.

Vizquel stole many more bases and that's the only notable way in which the guy getting 42.8% of the votes was superior to the guy getting 7.5% of the votes.

"Lost in all the Internet outrage" ... which was self-inflicted ...

Schilling is a borderline HOF candidate.

"One of the few truly divisive candidates for enshrinement who were never associated with performance-enhancing drugs, Schilling’s Hall hopes have not been helped by his somewhat frequent online indiscretions."

That is a very odd thing to say.

For better or for worse, about half the baseball HOF candidates end up being "divisive."

Al Oliver is divisive. Tim Raines is divisive. Keith Hernandez is divisive. Jeff Kent is divisive.

The list of divisive candidates is almost endless.

 

Baseball fans like to gaze at their navels and think about these things. 

Kevin Brown had five fewer wins than Schillilng and one fewer bloody sock than Schilling ... and Brown only got 2% of the HOF votes.

Maybe Brown could have gotten more attention if he had put on a MAGA cap and blogged?

 

"A right-leaning political firebrand whose failed video-game company cost Rhode Island taxpayers millions, Schilling has created headlines in his post-playing days by gleefully sharing specious xenophobic, transphobic and conspiratorial memes."

I personally think Schilling belongs in the HOF, but it's close.

I think most of the hesitance is based on his numbers and not on his character.

Hard to look into the future, of course.

I generally agree.

The retorts don't make sense.

Spoiled Yankee fans are thinking too hard and nitpicking. I'm not even sure why so many fans spend so much time playing GM and trying to efficiently spend the Steinbrenners' money.

I wouldn't say the Yankees will "regret" doing anything. The Yankees might win three World Series in a row.

But, unless there's a better player out there they're saving up for, why not sign Machado or Harper?

Makes sense to me.

I don't think Machado will play SS with the Yankees.

This is an article with good information that the average fan can't get.

Sonny Gray is a True Yankee and irreplaceable.

This guy is submitting a blank ballot.

It really strains the limits of people taking themselves too seriously.

Just get somebody in there unanimously, then we can end this nonsense.

A unanimous vote for Mariano does not mean that Mariano is the greatest baseball player ever.

It means the the writers collectively ended this hand-wringing garbage.

I don't always agree with Mike Lupica.

But I think Mussina is an obvious HOFer. Mussina was a dominant pitcher for an extended period of time. I think his dominance was overlooked partially because, as Lupica mentions, he was overshadowed by some of his power pitching contemporaries. Also, I just think the fans are enamored with strikeout pitchers.

Machado in Pinstripes?

I'll believe it when I see it, but it's amazing how few Yankee fans want this to happen.

I didn't think it would happen and I'm still not 100% sure.

But the writers have sources and that information should count for something.

• This signing will not preclude the Yankees improving other areas of their team, such as starting pitching.
• Wait for the numbers before declaring the contract too onerous.
• Imagine this lineup if Sanchez has a bounce back year. If Stanton rebounds a bit after getting used to the AL pitchers and getting more comfortable in pinstripes. If Judge is healthy all year. 
• If Frazier and Bird get healthy and productive ... that may be second-level wishful thinking ... they have more in common with Rob Refsnyder than with Mike Trout ... but if the Yankees sign Machado, you can have pre-season sweet dreams of 950 runs.

Cashman spoke too soon.

"YOU START TO WONDER IF … the Yankees will actually end up holding on to Gray as a sixth starter/swingman type, considering the state of the rotation. Nah, just kidding. The chances Gray sticks in pinstripes seem infinitesimal. It would look bad on general manager Brian Cashman to talk about how Gray can’t pitch in New York, how the Yankees are done trying to fix him, how he expects to trade Gray … and then he actually keeps him."

I would say the chances are higher than infinitesimal.

By the way, in case you didn't already know, Didi Gregorius is the shortstop for the Yankees.

Were he to join the Yankees, Machado would play third base.


For the fans clamoring to witness the emergence of Andujar firsthand, please keep in mind that, in the best imaginable scenario, Andujar develops into a player similar to Machado.

Also keep in mind that Andujar is a horrible defensive third baseman.


What would the Yankees do with all their infielders?

Maybe Andujar would get traded for a defensive catcher and Sanchez would learn how to play first base.

Or Andujar would play some first base and left field.

Because if you're unwilling to exchange Andujar for Machado ... are you  seriously unwilling to exchange Gardner for Machado? Or Voit for Machado?

It doesn't require much imagination to move players around:

1. Hicks - CF
2. Stanton - LF
3. Machado - 3B
4. Judge - RF
5. Sanchez - DH
6. Gregorius - SS
7. Torres - 2B
8. Andujar - 1B
9. Romine - C

Who's the shortstop while Didi is on the DL?

Who cares?

Bat him ninth and the team still scores 7 runs every game.


Yankee fans are spoiled, simple as that.

This absurd backlash occurs every time the Yankees pursue great players.

It would be amazing if the Mets signed Machado.

Machado would suddenly be everyone's favorite.

Like everyone suddenly forgot that Cano doesn't hustle. Or that Cano was suspended for steroid use:

"And you know who is on record as thinking that the Yankees and the new No. 13 might be a really good fit? The old No. 13, Alex Rodriguez himself, who said this to the New York Post not long ago:

'I haven't had a chance to talk to Hal [Steinbrenner] or [Brian] Cashman, but I know ownership is as hungry as ever to put a great product and winner on the field. And he's a great player.'

So was Rodriguez. Back in '04, the Yankees were going to add a star like him to their infield and they were going to win a lot of World Series and play in even more. They played in one."

They both wore number 13.

So ... I've got nothing.


Lupica presents all this as a warning. 

As if ARod didn't work out for the Yankees.

It would be a dream come true if Machado signed with the Yankees, sold out the Stadium, won two MVPs, doubled the value of the franchise, hit 350 HRs, and maybe even gave the Daily News sports staff something to write about.

Few see the irony.

All the years and wasted ink of faux outrage when the Yankees spent a lot of money to buy Championships.

The Red Sox are, like, gritty Nathan Eovaldi putting on the greatest pitching performance in the history of baseball.

He could never be a .500 mercenary who has seldom lived up to his potential or his paycheck.

Though he pitched pretty well at times for the Yankees, I must admit.

Right ... and what happened to the Death Star?

In, like, three movies in a row?

The importance of closers.

Heard one of my favorite theories the other day on WFAN. 

Guy calls up WFAN and points out that the Mets blew 15 saves last season. They plugged that gap by signing a supposedly great closer. The Mets also lost the division by approximately 15 games (13, actually).

Add it up, and one player will give the Mets the NL East title.

This illustrates a surprisingly common misunderstanding of what saves are, what blown saves are, and how things work in the real world.

I agree.

We won't know for a while, but what is all the hubbub about a .500 pitcher?

And when we say "no," we mean, "he isn't ARod, so no one cares."

“If I had any concern about what Robbie's physical state or performance ability going forward is, I would not have made the deal,” Van Wagenen said. "I do think it's important remembering, Robbie was not suspended for a PED. He was suspended for a diuretic."

Cranberry juice.

He was suspended by MLB because he drank too much cranberry juice.

How was he supposed to know cranberry juice is a banned substance?

OK, OK.

I think we should all collectively stop pretending that we care about players hustling.

Melky drove me crazy.

Cano drove me crazier.

Still, it wasn't a deal breaker. As long as they're productive due to steroids, the fans will embrace them.

Machado is insincerely spinning and we are supposed to be alarmed by his immature behavior and commentary.

Get over it.

If you sign Machado, you will get a player who tanks it from time to time and drives in 125 runs.

Reggie Jackson even chimed in and said not hustling doesn't cut it in New York.

This Reggie Jackson.

I'll take Harper and Macahado, thanks.

A lot of great ballplayers have bad attitudes.

A lot of Championship ballplayers have bad attitudes.

The fans will forgive them if they win.



This silly yearly ritual of acting shocked at the large size of the pending free agent contracts.

Gimme a break.


I don't expect the Yankee to sign Harper or Machado ... I expect they'll stick with the rookie of the year runner-ups and spend money on starting pitching.

We'll all find out together in October if that's a wise decision.

Five-game series, one win apiece.

Here's the new guy to win Game Three.

If he wins, we're all happy.

If he doesn't, he's a bust.

Nobody knows if he will and no pitcher on Earth can guarantee a victory.

No need to apologize for putting Scherzer ahead of deGrom.

Jeez, I'm surprised Steve Somers treated this guy so rudely.

Who cares, anyway?

Almost unanimous is no shame.

2018 AL MVP

BBWAA

Name	Points
Mookie Betts	410
Mike Trout	265
Jose Ramirez	208
J.D. Martinez	198
Alex Bregman	192
Francisco Lindor	169
Matt Chapman	141
Khris Davis	41
Blake Snell	38
Justin Verlander	26
Mitch Haniger	16
Aaron Judge	10
Xander Bogaerts	9
Jose Altuve	9
Blake Treinen	7
Andrelton Simmons	7
Whit Merrifield	6
Edwin Diaz	5
Giancarlo Stanton	4
Didi Gregorius	3
Jed Lowrie	3
Trevor Bauer	1
Aaron Hicks	1
Chris Sale	1

Felz Poll

Name	Points
Mookie Betts	35
J.D. Martinez	19
Mike Trout	16
Jose Ramirez	10
Alex Bregman	7
Khris Davis	3
Francisco Lindor	1

2018 NL MVP

BBWAA

Name	Points
Christian Yelich	415
Javier Baez	250
Nolan Arenado	203
Freddie Freeman	174
Jacob deGrom	141
Paul Goldschmidt	115
Lorenzo Cain	109
Trevor Story	108
Matt Carpenter	105
Max Scherzer	59
Anthony Rendon	21
Ronald Acuna Jr.	19
Aaron Nola	16
Justin Turner	10
Max Muncy	8
Jesus Aguilar	7
Anthony Rizzo	6
Nick Markakis	2
Eugenio Suarez	2

Felz Poll

Name	Points
Christian Yelich	38
Nolan Arenado	13
Javier Baez	12
Matt Carpenter	5
Justin Turner	4
Lorenzo Cain	3
Trevor Story	3
Jesus Aguilar	2
Freddie Freeman	2
Paul Goldschmidt	2
Brandon Nimmo	2
Jacob deGrom	1
Bryce Harper	1

2018 NL Cy Young Award

BBWAA

Name	Points
Jacob deGrom	207
Max Scherzer	123
Aaron Nola	86
Kyle Freeland	49
Patrick Corbin	23
Miles Mikolas	13
Josh Hader	4
Mike Foltynewicz	3
Jon Lester	2

Felz Poll

Name	Points
Jacob deGrom	44
Max Scherzer	22
Aaron Nola	19
Kyle Freeland	3
Miles Mikolas	2
Walker Buehler	1
Patrick Corbin	1
Jeremy Jeffress	1

2018 AL Cy Young Award

Happy to get decent participation this year. I had forgotten that I skipped the poll in 2017.

BBWAA

Name	Points
Blake Snell	169
Justin Verlander	154
Corey Kluber	71
Chris Sale	59
Gerrit Cole	26
Trevor Bauer	13
Blake Treinen	13
Edwin Diaz	4
Luis Severino	1

Felz Poll

Name	Points
Blake Snell	40
Justin Verlander	18
Corey Kluber	14
Chris Sale	11
Trevor Bauer	2
Blake Treinen	2
Luis Severino	1

Recalling a gripe from 15 years ago.

I think Andujar had a decent case, but that's not my gripe.

My gripe is the voters who wouldn't give the Rookie of the Year to Matsui in 2003, arguing that he was overpaid and a veteran from Japan, and therefore not really a rookie.

This was right after giving the Rookie of the Year award to Sasaki and Ichiro.

What Bill James said is not controversial.

Of course the players are replaceable. More talented and expensive than beer vendors, but replaceable.

No one knows who will win a title.

Sonny Gray and J.A. Happ will be the final piece of the puzzle.

"And yet, there might be a deal to be made if the Yankees are willing to sacrifice their best young players outside of Gleyber Torres and Miguel Andujar. Coincidentally, these include left-hander Justus Sheffield (MLB.com's No. 31 prospect) and slugging outfielder Clint Frazier, who originated in Cleveland's system. Outfield prospect Estevan Florial (No. 45) would also have to be involved."

Of course the Yankees want Kluber, but this price seems high to me.

He lost zero dollars and zero cents.

This article was posted on the same day Kershaw signed a $31M-per-year extension.

Win more games than Tampa and then do better in Game Three.

The Red Sox were 8 games better than the Yankees and then the Red Sox steamrolled through the playoffs.

We don't need Wallace Matthews to tell us that.

The Yankees still won 100 games and may be poised for greater things.

Sorry, but MLB made the rules. The Yankees don't need to catch the Red Sox.

While the Red Sox dominated from beginning to end, how did you feel when Sanchez hit two dingers in Game Two and Severino was getting to ready start Game Three?

Did you think the Yankee had no chance?

Matthews said this was merely an "illusion." Easy to say after the fact.


Now let's take a gratuitous dig at Giancarlo Stanton:

"But the real end of the Yankees season came a lot earlier than anyone could have known. That was on Dec. 11, 2017, the day they decided to swallow the bait, trading Starlin Castro and a couple of minor-leaguers for Giancarlo Stanton and his $325 million contract, reduced just enough by the Miami Marlins’ contribution to keep them under the luxury tax threshold.

That move took them out of the running for J.D. Martinez, who two months later became a member of the Boston Red Sox."

Martinez was undoubtedly better than Stanton ... in 2018.

Not in 2017, though, and maybe not for the next 10 years.

Stanton was a disappointment and his all-or-nothing 212 strikeouts approach is not benefiting him.

But it was still .266/38/100 and a WAR of 4.0 (compared to Martinez's WAR of 6.4).

The Yankees don't "need" Machado and they don't need a Didi replacement.

Didi will be off the DL by the all star break, right?

Or even if Didi misses the whole season, that's a small percentage of the length of Machado's impending contract.

He's going to get a lot of time and a lot of money. Probably not from the Yankees. Maybe from, I dunno ... the Dodgers.

The Yankees have Didi and Andujar and they're going to rely on them.

As for the laziness in the playoffs?

I'm against it.

It reminded me of Cano and Cabrera ... and they signed free agent contracts worth a combined value of approximately $1 trillion. And they both were on steroids.

Not as good as the 1998 Yankees. A $200 million team being praised for its mid-season acquisitions. Times sure have changed.

The Best Teams Ever are not judged on one season alone.

Of course the 1998 Yankees were not the exact same team that won in 1996, 1999, and 2000.

But they are the same team:

"Principal owner John Henry was a partner with the 1998 Yankees, who won 114 games and the Fall Classic, so he knows a bit about dominance.

'The ’98 Yankees didn’t have to beat two 100-win teams before they got to the World Series,' " he pointed out."

No, but the Padres beat two 100-win teams before they got to the World Series ... and the Padres got swept by the Yankees.

I realize full well that the transitive property does not apply to sports.

Neither does the compare-teams-who-are-twenty-years-apart property.


Four rings in fourteen years is quite an accomplishment.

Try four rings in five years.

That's what the '98(ish) Yankees did and it's why they can call themselves one of the Best Teams Ever.

The current Red Sox team may be able to do it, and they seen insistent on re-upping the rivalry, which is good for baseball and may be good for the Yankees.

But don't get blinded by the champagne in your eyes.

Yeah, really.

What's coming off here?