Sully Baseball: Joe Torre

Showing posts with label Joe Torre. Show all posts

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Sully Baseball Daily Podcast - May 23, 2013

The Giants remind me of the Yankees.

Specifically the current San Francisco Giants remind me of the Joe Torre Yankees of the 1990's and early 2000's.

I make the comparison today on The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast, Remove all the negative associations with the Yankees and bear with me. The analogy makes sense.

Jose Bautista, C. J. Wilson, Francisco Liriano and Carlos Gonzalez all owned baseball on May 22, 2013.

To see the up to date tally of "Who Owns Baseball?," click HERE.

Sully Baseball Daily Podcast - May 23, 2013

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Scott Proctor signs in Korea... hopes Torre won't follow him

Reliever and former Joe Torre whipping boy Scott Proctor has left the country. He will pitch next year for the Doosan Bears of the Korean League next year.

Now Joe Torre ran his arm into the ground in both New York and Los Angeles. Seeing that Torre would cross a continent to continue wear him down, Proctor figured Torre probably wouldn't cross an ocean to do so.

Not so fast, Scott.

Torre resigned from his job at MLB.

You had better hope his Dodger bid is accepted. If its not, Torre will go back home to Hawaii... and that's half way to Korea. And I hear the Bears need a new manager.

I'm just saying.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Getting overworked is nothing new to Scott Proctor

The game in Atlanta is in its 19th inning and Scott Proctor is pitching in his 3rd.
And frankly there is no end in sight in this game.

I am sure this long outing make Proctor think "Oh please, you think I am overworked? Did you SEE how Joe Torre used me?"

I hope it goes 30.

Sunday, October 03, 2010

"Hey I have as much managing experience as Don Mattingly as well"

And I bet Hasselhoff would know how to fill out a line up card and what constitutes a trip to the mound.

Hey Joe... you are getting out at just the right time.

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Just go Joe... you've already quit

Seriously, what is the point for Joe Torre to stick around?
He seems more interested in discussing the Mets managerial position and showing up to Yankee Stadium than having a motivated team take the field in Chavez Ravine.

Don't believe me that this team is dead from the neck up?

Since August 27th, the Dodgers have lost 17 out of 23 games. They haven't won a single series since. The closest they came was splitting 4 meaningless games with the Astros.

And I live just a few minutes from Dodger Stadium and sadly watch more Dodger games than I care to admit.

They are lifeless.
They aren't even phoning in their game. They are leaving it on their outgoing message.

Save for a comeback win last Sunday, they don't just look like they have made their reservations but they look like they are already on their flights.

I know a lot of Giant fans are upset about how they have rolled over to San Diego (and tonight no doubt the Padres will sweep the Dodgers AGAIN) but actually you have to hand it to the Dodgers... they have been equal opportunity tomato cans.

Since the 26th of August they have lost 2 series to the Rockies... 2 series to the Giants and 2 series to the Padres.

They lie down to EVERYONE!

And since Joe Torre announced he was stepping down and handing the reigns over to Don Mattingly? They are 1-4. Only the come from behind Rockies win saved it from being a big fat 0-5 (and even THEN they got some help from the umps!)

In short, the Dodgers have done the impossible... they made the play on the field more disgraceful than the drama with the McCourt divorce!

Just step down NOW Joe. Maybe playing for Mattingly will give the team a little spark.
Maybe they'll play a little harder for a week.

Maybe there will be a little intensity.

Maybe Mattingly will learn how to fill out a lineup card and make mound visits.

The Dodgers have 3 more meaningful games left after today... 3 more with the Rockies.
Why not give the NL West a chance and have the Dodgers actually SHOW UP.

Step aside physically Joe. You already have mentally.

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Walk away if you win #28, Joe

Hey Joe Girardi… take a good long look at what has happened to the legacy of Joe Torre. Only Joe McCarthy and Casey Stengel had ever managed three straight World Series winners before Torre and he brought class and dignity to the Yankee clubhouse along with his titles.

And today he is being portrayed as a manipulator, a man with a tarnished legacy and even those are questioning whether he belongs in Cooperstown.

His very rings are being questioned since he couldn’t win a pennant in Atlanta nor in Los Angeles (not to mention with the Mets or Cardinals.)

Now imagine if Joe had left the Yankees after the 2001 season…
He would have been the greatest New Yorker since LaGuardia.

Imagine if he had left after the 2003 World Series…
He would have won 6 pennants in his 8 years and maintained superiority over Boston.

Imagine if he had left after the 2005 playoffs (when EVERYONE thought he was going to.)
Yeah the collapse of 2004 would have hung over his head, but the perception would have been George and company were meddling and undermining him.

Instead it ended after 2007… when with more control he couldn’t make it out of the Division Series, lost the respect of his superstar and left town co authoring a petty (albeit fun) book.

Learn from Mr. Torre. If the Yankees win the 2010 World Series title… BOLT TOWN!
Seriously… don’t wait around for your Yankee legacy to deteriorate.

You’ve shown you could manage when you took the 2006 Marlins team with a payroll under $30 million and kept them in the running for the Wild Card into September. You won a Manager of the Year award. You can do it.

So make your Yankee legacy this if you win it all:
2008 was an adjustment year followed by back to back World Series titles.
Leave a WINNER and finish with more World Series titles than Billy Martin at the helm.

Go home to Chicago. If you win the World Series there, do you know how you will be treated?

Me neither! NOBODY knows. The team hasn’t won it since the series was called the World’s Championship Series and it was still an experiment. Win in Chicago and your ticket to the Hall of Fame will already be punched.

Have some other poor shmuck take over the Yankees and deal with this nonsense.

Heck, Joe Torre is available!

Saturday, September 18, 2010

HOORAY! WE GET TO PLAY THE DODGERS AGAIN!

Laugh it up, Rockies. You are playing the Dodgers... a team that can't even be bothered to turn on "Auto Pilot."

They aren't phoning or mailing it in. Heck they aren't even Tweeting it in.
The Dodgers are playing the intensity of a cashier at Burger King right now and it wouldn't surprise me if Joe Torre just skedaddles to Hawaii and lets Don Mattingly get a head on his managerial career.

Either way, if the Giants (or Padres for that matter) think they are getting any help from Los Angeles, take a look at today's pathetic excuse for a ballgame.

The team is already sucking down Pina Coladas. And I don't mean in their mind. I am convinced they are drinking them during the game... on the field.

Friday, September 17, 2010

Don't take the gig, Donnie Baseball!

Joe Torre is stepping down from the Dodgers gig, never reaching the goal of leading L.A. to the World Series and having the last laugh over the Yankees.

Why is he stepping down?
Is it because he is too old? Please. Yeah he's 70 and is the same age that Casey Stengel was when HE was fired by the Yankees. But he's in great shape and clearly still wants to win.

He's leaving because he has surveyed the landscape and realized that the McCourt divorce is going to get uglier and the Dodgers are going to be the little child crying on the stand during the hearing.

Next season is going to be a dumpster fire in Los Angeles. The payroll will be slashed again and the players can read the writing on the wall.

Matt Kemp wants out and trust me, no free agents will want in.
One of the proud franchises in baseball playing in one of the true major media markets could be doing their 1998 Marlins fire sale impersonation.

What are they selling now? Not Torre bringing glory back to Dodgertown. Mannywood is, for the time being, in the South Side of Chicago.

Dodger memories? They've been tough to remember since Kirk Gibson, which was 22 years ago.

The 2011 Dodgers have disaster written all over them.

Which is why I am telling Don Mattingly to NOT take the job as manager.

It won't be your FAULT but the team will collapse under your watch. Truth be told they are already collapsing.

After 2 straight Division Titles and NLCS appearances, the Dodgers are sleep walking to a losing season. Their offense was nonexistent in San Francisco and the last few innings of the game last night, the team looked like an 8th grade algebra class waiting for the bell to ring. They were physically there, but bored out of their minds.

Is that Torre's fault? Perhaps a little but the team has been assembled by orders of a guy is going through a Henry VIII level marital spat (except he doesn't have the beheading option.)

If the McCourt's could have been civil these past few years, the Dodgers could have acquired an ace pitcher. Roy Halladay was traded in the time Joe Torre was manager. So was Danny Haren. CC Sabathia changed uniforms twice. Cliff Lee moved three times.

With an ace pitcher, I am convinced the Dodgers would have made either the 2008 or 2009 World Series and be a contender in 2010.

Instead they are a near miss team... like the George Bell/Dave Steib Blue Jays... a team with talent but can't put it together.

You want THAT gig, Mattingly?
You want all the bad of the McCourt Dodgers without the Manny crowds or playoff appearances?

A gig like this should go to one of two candidates:

1. A lifelong minor leaguer who would be just itching to get their first shot in the bigs of any kind.

2. A career big leaguer who every once in a while lands a gig, does little or nothing there, and winds up on someone's coaching staff. (That was Jim Riggleman's job for years... keeping managerial seats warm.)

But Mattingly supposedly is a big managerial candidate.

Is he though? Could he be a little overhyped as a managerial candidate just like his career was overhyped a little in New York?

His lone chance to show us his managing chops, he screwed up the whole "trip to the mound" concept.

I mentioned Mattingly as a Dodger manager candidate to my dad.
He shook his head.

"He doesn't strike me as very smart." He said.

Prove my dad wrong, Donnie... and turn this job down.
It's shoddy and designed to fail. Have it fail on someone else's watch.

Hell, Grady Little isn't doing anything!
Tell the Dodgers to hire him.

Tuesday, August 03, 2010

The Dodgers are toast

The Dodgers went into last night's game 9 back in the loss column and a mere 3 games over .500. That is a perilous position for the two time defending NL West Champs. The only two branches they could hang on to at this point are they have a head to head series against the Padres and a sweep of that series would set themselves up for a potential comeback in August and September.

So how did they do?

They didn't show up.
A 10-5 crushing at home.

10 games back in the loss column and their 6th straight loss.

Keep in mind on June 16th, the Dodgers were in first place by themselves.
In the 41 game since then, they've had three different 6 game losing streaks.

They have been 16-25 since then. Only the long left for dead Pirates and Diamondbacks have been worse since.

Now they are facing a double digit deficit in the loss column and a .500 record right in the face.

The ship has sailed and no doubt so will the Joe Torre era in L.A.

It started off so promising... Torre leading the Dodgers to the NLCS while the Yankees failed to make the playoffs and a core of nice players like Ether, Kemp, Loney, Kershaw, Martin and Broxton giving the team hope and Manny giving the team character.

And now they are in the express lane to total irrelevance. With all of their losing streaks, they may have trouble staying above .500.

This current Dodgers team is probably going to go down along with the Mike Piazza/Eric Karros/Raul Mondesi years or perhaps the Adrian Beltre/Paul LoDuca/Eric Gagne years.

Good enough to make the post season but not good enough to make any sort of dent in the post season.

(Ironically the are ALL deeper in talent than the 1988 team that won it all.)

So Torre will probably step down, Manny is out the door and the McCourts will try to make us all feel like the divorce had nothing to do with anything.

They aren't showing much pride at this point and maybe a fresh start will do the organization well.

But for the rest of the year? Put butter on them. They are toast.

Sunday, June 27, 2010

So was Torre's plan to have Broxton pitch until he died?

Yankee fans got to have all sorts of nostalgia this weekend.

They got to see Don Mattingly again.
They got to root against Manny Ramirez again.
They got to rewind lots of great clips of World Series past again.

And they got to see Joe Torre bungle the bullpen again.

Three batters into the 9th inning it was clear that Jonathan Broxton was toast. Even Charlie Steiner and Rick Monday were talking about it on the broadcast. His fastball was flat and he was nibbling.

And the inning kept going... kind of like a Star Wars prequel... you kept hoping for that awesome thing to happen but as it kept going on you realized it was going to end up sucking.

And Charlie and Rick kept pointing out "nobody is warming up in the Dodger bullpen."

Once the Yankees tied it 6-6, I turned it off. They won it right then and there. There was no need to play the bottom of the 9th nor the 10th. The entire planet knew the game was over.

And I had a great blog post all written in my head... and instead all I've got is this half assed entry.

Tip of the cap, Joe.
Now off to San Francisco.

Friday, April 30, 2010

Evaluating The Yankee Warm Up Jackets

My wife thinks I've been obsessing over uniforms on the blog these days. And as usual, my bride is right.

I've criticized the Royals and Rays for their tops and the Indians for their hats while praising the new Pirates uniforms.

But now I am turning my uniform thoughts to a bigger fish. The Yankees.

Wait a second Sully, you might be saying. What can be said about the Yankees uniforms? They haven't changed since the days of Babe Ruth!

Actually during Ruth's playing days they didn't have the interlocking N-Y on their uniform.

Any pictures you see with Babe Ruth wearing the N-Y on his jersey were taken at Old Timers Day after he had retired.

But since the days of Joe DiMaggio and Lou Gehrig, the uniforms, both home and away have remained constant.

The hats are the same...

The home jerseys are the same...

The road unis are the same...

There's no names on the back...

What is there to discuss?

This is Sully Baseball and there is ALWAYS something to pick apart, and for the Yankees it is the warm up jackets which have changed over the years.

And seeing that the managers are usually the ones who wear the warm up jackets, let's take a look at them over the years as worn by some of the best Yankee managers of all time.

MILLER HUGGINS models the 1920s
BLOCK LETTER SIDE BY SIDE WARM UP JACKET

The manager of the first great Yankee dynasty had one of the dullest jackets in their teams history. It was probably an after thought. "Here's a jacket... just sew an N and a Y on them." They didn't have the interlocking NY on it. Yeah I know it wasn't on the uniform but it IS on the hat.

But give them a break. They didn't know how much dough was to be made from merchandising.

GRADE: C

JOE McCARTHY models the 1930s and 1940s
SLOPPY INTERLOCKING N-Y WARM UP JACKET

That's a little better. When the Yankees became the first team to win 4 straight World Series, their manager was wearing a jacket that actually can be identified with the Yankees.

The N-Y matches the hat logo, but it is a little sloppy. It kind of resembles an elementary school art project where they have to cut out the N and the Y carefully... and inevitably isn't even. But at least the effort is there.

GRADE: B

CASEY STENGEL models the 1950s
CURSIVE YANKEES WARM UP JACKET

The greatest Yankee manager of them all guided the greatest Yankee dynasty of all time in a radically different jacket.

The script Yankees never appeared on their uniforms and oddly looked too much like the Dodgers script for my liking.

Also, there is another problem I have with this jacket. They introduced red outlines to the letters and the collars. It is hard to tell from this picture, but it can be seen clearly here. Red does NOT belong on the Yankee uniform.

GRADE: C+

BILLY MARTIN models the 1970s and 1980s
SLICK INTERLOCKING N-Y WARM UP JACKET

Now THIS is a jacket. The right N-Y logo on the chest and the top hat logo on the arm. Only white (no red) on the collar and the sleeves. Buttoned up (or not in the case of this picture with Billy Martin.)

The Yankees regained their glory in the late 1970s with Billy wearing this jacket, yelling "don't you try and intimidate me!" at the umps in the World Series.

The best jacket of them all.

GRADE: A+

BUCK SHOWALTER models the 1990s
ZIP UP SLICK INTERLOCKING N-Y WARM UP JACKET

Buck had to pick up the pieces of the mess that was the Yankees of the early 1990s... and the players strike of 1994 probably cost him his best shot of being a World Series winner. But he brought pride back to the Bronx and looked good in the lighter zip up jacket.

There was less chance to be slightly unbuttoned like Billy in the 1970s, but that wasn't Buck's style. He ran a tight ship and wore a tight jacket in the process.

GRADE: A

JOE TORRE models the 1990s and 2000s
NEW CURSIVE YANKEES WARM UP JACKET

Joe Torre brought stability, class and oh yeah titles back to the Bronx. But he also brought back the era of the cursive logo jacket.

As I said with the Stengel entry, I've never been thrilled with the cursive Yankees (although this time they at least removed the red from it.)

But there is something cynical about how the jacket was introduced. They didn't wear it at all until game 1 of the 1996 World Series. Did they have them sitting in a warehouse, ready to spring them out in front of the biggest audience? What if Baltimore won the pennant that year? Would they wait until spring training? The 1997 playoffs? I say put them back into moth balls.

GRADE: C

JOE GIRARDI models the 2000s and 2010s
INEXCUSABLY DULL BLOCK LETTER AWAY WARM UP JACKET

Look, I get it. Merchandising is king and the Yankees need to sell lots of variations of clothes in order to pay for A-Rod, Jeter and Sabathia. And they don't have tons of alternate uniforms, so they need to mix and match something else... so they have home and away warm up jackets.

But how LAZY is this jacket. How dull. Do you know what this looks like? When a beer commercial wants to recreate a baseball game but they don't want to pay the licensing fee so they make up a boring fake generic bargain basement uniform. That's this jacket. If they HAVE to have the cursive Yankee for the home jacket, then just do the interlocking N-Y on the away jacket.

GRADE: F

So let's get at it Yankees... even as a Red Sox fan I can admit your uniforms look awesome. It doesn't take a big effort to have your jackets also look great.

Hmm... I wonder what uniform I can obsess about next...?

Sunday, September 06, 2009

Should Dodgertown be nervous?

Remember when the Dodgers had the best record in baseball?

Remember when they had the biggest lead in baseball?

Remember when they looked like they were going to stampede to the World Series, Manny or not?

Even with the win tonight, they are tied with the Cardinals for best record in the NL, but are also tied in the loss column with the Phillies.

They could have home field through out the NL playoffs... or could start the Division Series on the road.

And the Dodgers lead is tied for the smallest in baseball... and they have 6 games against the Dodgers and 3 against the Rockies to end the season.

Is it POSSIBLE the Dodgers can miss the playoffs all together?

Would Joe Torre's job be in trouble?

(Of course not! This is L.A.!)

But keep an eye on the Dodgers. I know my dad will.

Tuesday, June 02, 2009

May is done... and Sully can be right and he can be wrong

There's a long way to go until the end of the season... but it's not THAT early!
More or less 1/3 of the season is in the books and this is the time we start separating the good from the bad...
The contenders from the pretenders...

And everyone else from the Nationals and the A's.

And as I did when April ended, I think we should take a look at how my my picks are panning out at the end of two months.

DIVISION AND WILD CARD PICKS

AL East - NEW YORK YANKEES

As recently as May 13th, the day before my birthday, the Yankees were a sub .500 team.
Everyone was having a laugh. There was even talk of firing Girardi.

They are 13-4 since and are now in first place by themselves. Plus with Phil Hughes and Joba Chamberlain pitching well with Sabathia, and You Know Who back helping the lineup, the Yankees look poised to beat up a bunch of teams in June.

Verdict: SOLID PICK.

AL Central - MINNESOTA TWINS

After a .500 April, the Twins got Joe Mauer back. He homered in his first game back and I thought the Twins were off and running.

Instead, despite sweeping the first place Tigers, finished below .500 in May. A four game sweep by the Yankees (all walk off losses) hamstrung the team.

Still, only 4 1/2 games back and the Tigers could collapse.

Verdict: NOT LOOKING TOO GOOD NOW... COULD TURN AROUND

AL West - OAKLAND A'S

Who would have thought the A's would look back at their 8-11 April as "The Good Old Days"?

The Angels have struggled as I predicted and a team filled the vacuum... but it turned out to be the upstart Rangers instead of the Hindenberg-esque A's.

There's nothing to analyze. Without a major turnaround they will have their third straight losing season. The previous 8 seasons were all winning seasons including 5 playoff appearances.

The losing began when Bob Geren arrived. He is still employed. The Bermuda Triangle is a less baffling mystery than Geren's employment.

Verdict: THE WORST PREDICTION OF THE DECADE THAT DIDN'T INVOLVE IRAQ

AL Wild Card - BOSTON RED SOX

The Octomom's babies have one fewer homers than Ortiz and are tied with Dice-K with wins.

Throw in Lester's 5.65 ERA, Penny's 5.63 ERA, more teeth grinding games than dodged bullets and a surging Yankees team and the Red Sox look like they are in deep trouble.

Except a week ago they were the best team in the AL.

And as of this writing would be the Wild Card team with a sickeningly deep bullpen, All Star worthy contributions from Youkilis, Pedroia, Bay and Lowell, surprising pop from Varitek and Josh Beckett finding his stuff.

Throw in an improving Lester and reinforcements coming for the pitching staff and the Red Sox look like they can absorb the rapid decline of Big Papi.

Verdict: SOLID PICK... AND EXPECT SOME CHANGES

NL East - PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES

Brett Myers, who has the lowest ERA on their ravaged starting rotation, is probably gone for the season. The rest of their rotation has 5+ ERAs and are looking everywhere for help.

Throw in the fact that Brad Lidge's ERA is 7.40 and Jimmy Rollins' .230 average and you would think the World Champs would be flopping.

Instead they are in first place, thanks in part to Raul Ibanez MVP bid.

Verdict: SOLID PICK THAT WILL NO DOUBT MAKE A DEAL FOR A PITCHER

NL Central - CINCINNATI REDS

I felt like the only person on the planet who DIDN'T pick the Cubs to win the Central. And while the Reds aren't in first, they are only 2 1/2 games behind the surprising Brewers. Plus they are getting power from Joey Votto, Jay Bruce and Brandon Phillips and their bullpen has a comically low ERA.

Shore up their starting pitching and they can make up a few games.

Verdict: COULD PAN OUT... AND I STILL THINK THE CUBS ARE A BUST

NL West - LOS ANGELES DODGERS

Sure this was an easy pick, especially when the Dodgers were rampaging through April and into early May.

Then you-know-who got suspended and the NL West was put into play.

Turmoil came to Dodgertown. What were they going to do without Manny?

They are 14-9 since and have opened up an 8 game lead on the Division. Two of the other NL West teams fired their managers.

Not only is this race over, but Joe Torre might have manager of the year locked up as well.

Verdict: FORT KNOX ISN'T AS LOCKED UP AS THE NL WEST

NL Wild Card: ST. LOUIS CARDINALS

Another off the wall pick of mine... and unlike my A's pick this one looks smart.

Albert Pujols looks like he is well on his way to MVP #3 and Ryan Franklin is locking down the bullpen.

Their three game sweep of the Cubs in mid May probably put Wrigleyville in panic mode. With the Brewers, Cardinals and Reds all looking solid, the Cubbies might end up in FOURTH!

Verdict: LOOKING GOOD SO FAR... DOESN'T CANCEL OUT THE OAKLAND PICK, BUT SOLID NONE THE LESS

June is starting up and today alone has potential playoff match ups in the AL.

The best team in the AL is playing in the Bronx tonight... I'm talking about the visiting Rangers.

Dice-K goes for win #1 in Detroit against rookie Rick Porcello, who has won his last 5 starts.

Roy Halladay goes for win #9 to revive the Blue Jays against an Angels team looking for new live.

Ichiro has a 26 game hitting streak to keep alive...

Johan Santana is gunning for another win, just as long as J. J. Putz doesn't live up to his name...

Speaking of bad names in harsh markets, Antonio Bastardo is making his debut for the Phillies. Would love to hear what they chant if he doesn't throw well!

Tim Lincecum is pitching tonight in Washington, who has a pitching staff so bad that the Giants might actually score a run...

Meanwhile the Reds and the Cardinals are squaring off as two teams trying to make up ground.

May is over... bring on June!

(And some more homers for Papi and wins for Dice-K!!!)

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Folks... this is why you pay Joe Torre the big bucks

I know a lot of Yankee fans have been critical of Joe Torre's managing abilities.

And truth be told, his skills as an in game strategist sometimes leaves a lot to be desired.

But I always felt his greatest strength was to keep outside problems out of the clubhouse, unite a team against distractions and keep the cart moving even as the dogs bark.

Well, let's just say he is earning every cent of his three year $13 million contract this year!

When the whole Manny thing exploded on May 7th, I said the NL West was going to get interesting and that Joe would have to work his magic.

So how have the Dodgers done since their biggest star was removed from the lineup, sending L.A. into turmoil and making the NL West wide open?

The Dodgers lost 4 of the first 5 games without Manny... and are 6-1 since.

Their 8 1/2 game lead (7 in the loss column) is more than twice as big as the next widest Division Lead.

They are winning with clutch pitching and timely hitting. And they are beating teams like the Phillies, Marlins and Mets... teams with talent.

In other words the team is focused.

And the team isn't saying "Woe is me, we lost Manny."

THAT is the value of Joe Torre.

Yes, he shouldn't have had Jeff Weaver pitch in the World Series game in 2003. But he's a Hall of Famer. I stand by that.

Even the Padres can see that as they are starting their fire sale early.

This West is all but won.

Thursday, May 07, 2009

Many Manny Thoughts

I was in a meeting this morning when the announcement of Manny Ramirez being on the juice came out. When I came back to my desk and opened my e mails, you would have thought there was a death in my family.

So let's not dance around it anymore... let's talk Manny.

In honor of my reader, Chris...

I will show him only in a Red Sox uniform

Chris wrote "You should put him in a Red Sox uniform. That's how I like to remember him" in my comments section.

I suppose to imply that showing him in a Dodgers uni would imply he was clean in Boston.

I have no idea if he was or not... but chances are he wasn't and I am not going to cower away from that.

Is this REALLY stunning?

Some people wrote, acting stunned that Manny had tested positive for a banned substance.

Honestly can any of this be stunning anymore?

Exactly how many sluggers from the 1990s and 2000s who put up Hall of Fame numbers have to test positive before you stop getting surprised?

Haven't you seen a pattern developing here?

I think from this point forward, there can be no shock... except Julio Lugo.

This negates the Red Sox World Championships!

I've read that sentiments from some people. Most of them are called Yankee fans who missed chanting 19-18.

Nonsense.

As I said before, the entire era was filled with so many users of P.E.D.s that we will never know for sure who was clean or not.

It's time to just say the era itself wasn't clean and use the adjustment for numbers I proposed earlier.

Besides, the Yankees won World Series with Chuck Knoblauch, Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens.

Didn't Luis Gonzalez look a little pumped up in 2001?

How about Troy Glaus in 2002?

Pudge Rodriguez in 2003?

And Tony LaRussa's Cardinals in 2006... it's only a matter of time.

Should we wipe ALL of those out?

Please.

My fellow Red Sox fans had better not get holier than thou about A-Rod and using P.E.D.s

Both teams used them.

Both have players who weren't honest about it.

The difference is whatever Manny did still worked in October.

Hey! It was a prescription drug!

Scott Boros told us this was a misunderstanding involving a prescription, so that should be enough of an explanation.

Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight!

And Barry Bonds thought he was rubbing flax oil on his knee and Alex Rodriguez didn't know what his cousin was injecting into his butt.

Alireza, one of my loyal readers, wrote me " Your opinion on steroid use is a valid one and you are entitled to it, but there isn't any evidence that Manny did anything other than take a legally prescribed medication that was banned by the drug policy."

Of COURSE! He took a drug that increases testosterone levels for people who are have trouble producing more.

And what causes a drop in testosterone levels?
Hmmmmmm. I wonder.

Is that enough to convict him of a crime?

No. But when a guy is taking a drug that is used to combat one of the main side effects of an illegal drug, and he has the physique of a juicer, came up during the height of the steroid era and, oh yeah, is serving a suspension for using a banned substance... I think I can be suspicious.

Or maybe he's just trying to have a baby.

How did he get caught?

Seriously!!!

When you know people are testing now, how can you let yourself be caught on a test?

The only thing I could think of was he left so many urine samples in the Green Monster that they probably analyzed it.

How lucky are the Red Sox that THEY aren't dealing with this now!!!!

I just now have complete and utter faith in EVERYTHING Theo Epstein does!

It's like he knew exactly when to deal Manny away.

The Dodgers deal with this while Jason Bay has become the Yankee killer.

That's worked out pretty well for the Sox!

Speaking of the Dodgers... this makes the NL West a little more interesting

Suddenly the team that was running away with the NL West has a giant hole in the line up.

So giant that they might soon resemble the Giants!

I don't 100% understand how VORP (Value Over Replacement Player) works, but I know that when you take Manny Ramirez out of the line up and insert Juan Pierre, you've taken a step down!

And it goes beyond stats. Players like James Loney and Andre Ethier have done well with Manny taking all of the pressure off of them.

Now they have to carry a lineup in a pennant race in a tense clubhouse.

This isn't trial by fire. This is trial by HELL!

Time for Joe Torre to earn his money

Joe Torre woke up this morning, feeling badly for his friend Joe Girardi. All that turmoil in New York must have seemed like a world away.

He probably looked over to his wife Ali and thought "Thank Heaven all I have to worry about in L.A. is winning the easiest division in baseball."

Then the phone rang.

If he can keep THIS team focused and win, then he should have silenced whatever critics he had left. He isn't an X's and O's manager. He handles crises.

Guess what? The barn is on fire.

Torre must be so nostalgic for yesterday!

Jose Canseco is ALWAYS right

Canseco said it was 90% in favor that Manny Ramirez was on something?

People laughed it off?

Folks, how many times does Canseco have to be right on this subject before people start realizing he ISN'T a laughing stock?

Cassandra must look at Canseco and think "I know what you are going through, pal!"

So you must hate Manny

Nope.

Manny gave me so many moments of joy as a Red Sox fan, so many happy memories in the regular season and the World Series that I can never hate him.

And everyone hates their own juicer.

San Franciscans still cheer Bonds.

New Yorkers still cheer Pettitte.

And as I said in my Homegrown vs. Acquired post for the Cardinals, I equating celebrating Mark McGwire with thinking about an old girlfriend of mine who dumped me. Once the hurt of the dumping subsided, I have nice memories of our time together.

That's how Red Sox fans should look at the Manny years. Lots of good memories.

Lots of silly memories.

Lots of clutch hits.

I'll never boo him. He was too much fun.

And remember, this game is supposed to be fun!

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Sunday, October 03, 2010

Thursday, September 23, 2010

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Saturday, September 18, 2010

Friday, September 17, 2010

Tuesday, August 03, 2010

Sunday, June 27, 2010

Friday, April 30, 2010

Sunday, September 06, 2009

Tuesday, June 02, 2009

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Thursday, May 07, 2009

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