What if Thurman had lived?

On August 2, 1979, I was in the front yard of our home doing what I did on most summer days... playing whiffle ball with my brother Ted. My dad came out and told me that Thurman Munson had died in a plane crash.

The 7 year old version of me took a moment to process this information. I remember the first question I asked was "Will he be buried in Cooperstown?"

I don't know why that seemed important to me.
I was very sad that day... and I was, as I am now, a Red Sox fan. But this was still a gut punch. Baseball players weren't supposed to die. Especially players who meant everything to a team.

Jim Rice, Yaz, Fisk, Lynn... they were RED SOX.
Munson? He was a YANKEE.

Using my "you start following baseball when you are 7 years old" formula, I guess people my age are the cut off for people getting emotional over Thurman Munson.

For people in their early 30s and younger, I guess Munson is a shadowy figure from the past... always a martyr.

For Yankee fans my age and older, he is the irreplaceable captain.
I remember my friend Michelle Ciulla, a big Yankee fan, lamenting in the early 1990s when the Yankees were bad (remember those days?) "The Yankees haven't won since they lost Munson. They may never win again."

Diana Munson still gets standing ovations at Yankee Stadium. You still see men in their 40s wearing #15 jerseys.

And you'll still hear Yankee fans say things like "I wasn't a Reggie guy... I was a Munson guy."

Meaning of course they loved the grit and substance of the home grown captain to the flash and style of the imported superstar.

Imagine the Jeter vs. A-Rod debate... but in a clubhouse where the guys were brawling.

His funeral and the following Monday Night game (won by Munson's best friend Bobby Murcer) is one of the most emotional highlights in Yankee history.

And as a Red Sox fan, you MUST know that Munson is off limits for any taunts.
Just out of respect... you can say bad things about ANY Yankee ever... just not Munson.

I often wondered what would have happened if Thurman had lived.

He probably would have left the Yankees eventually.
He only had a year left on his contract and made it very clear that he wanted to play for an Ohio team.

The reason he was taking the flying lessons was to be able to fly to Ohio on off days to be with his family.

And, at least in 1977, was sick of what was happening in the Bronx. During the World Series celebration, he ducked the question "Do you want to be traded to Cleveland?"

He wasn't happy when Reggie Jackson became a higher paid player than he was. And with free agency looming, and an MVP and two World Series titles in the Bronx, he probably would have skedaddled.

And by 1979, the Yankees were quickly transforming. Sparky Lyle, Mickey Rivers, Chris Chambliss, Ed Figueroa, Catfish Hunter, Dick Tidrow and Paul Blair were all gone before the 1980 season was halfway through.

And Reggie had enough, leaving for Anaheim in 1982. Nettles and Gossage weren't far behind.

Munson wouldn't have stayed around for that.
Remember how insane the Bronx was in the 1980?. Steinbrenner would dump beloved players on an impulse. (Remember letting Willie Randolph go for Steve Sax?)

He would alienate his best players (Howie Spira following Dave Winfield anyone?)
And even anger Yogi Berra to the point where he wouldn't come back to the stadium for 14 years.

He probably would have gone to Cleveland and helped young pitchers like Len Barker find their stuff.

The 1980 Indians weren't contenders, but they came damn close to .500. Maybe a tough competitor like Munson in the clubhouse would have sparked the Tribe better than young Ron Hassey.

(Ironically, Hassey became one of the merry go round of Yankee catchers brought in to replace Munson.)

Maybe the more relaxed environment would have rejuvenated Munson.

Getting out of the Bronx certainly seemed to agree with Nettles, Gossage, Randolph and Jackson who continued to produce.

Maybe bringing him closer to his family could have made him more content.


Maybe Munson would have gone to Cincinnati.

With Sparky Anderson (who had slighted Munson after the 1976 World Series) gone and Pete Rose off to Philadelphia, the Reds were changing identity and needed a new spark.

And the oft injured Johnny Bench was playing fewer and fewer games behind the plate.

Maybe he would have gone to a still strong Reds team with a chance to win another ring and be only 200 miles from home.

(Probably not... the competitiveness with Bench would be too strong.)

Maybe in 1980, Munson would have joined his old manager Billy Martin in Oakland.

The team was brimming with young talent in the pitching staff including Rick Langford, Steve McCatty and Mike Norris.

Munson could have handled the staff instead of Mike Heath and who knows? Maybe faces the Yankees in the 1981 ALCS.

That's a long shot... his heart would have been in Cleveland.


Munson could have become the manager in Cleveland... Maybe he could have squeezed some wins out of the Joe Carter/Julio Franco years.

The Billy Martin Yankees produced future managers like Lou Piniella, Willie Randolph and Bucky Dent (for some reason Chris Chambliss never got his shot... but that's another post.)

I am sure Willie, Lou, Bucky and Chambliss would all tell you to a man that Munson was the best managerial prospect.

Eventually he would have come back to the Bronx. In the end, they always do.
If Winfield and Yogi could mend their fences with Steinbrenner, then no doubt Munson could have as well.

Even if it was just as a fixture at Old Timer's Day where he would get a rousing ovation each year, he would have been welcomed home.

No doubt there would be many Yankee fans insisting that he manage the team, just like there were people who wanted Don Mattingly to manage the team in 2008 and no doubt people will call for Jeter to helm the club if Girardi leaves.

No matter what would have happened, there would have been happiness and closure.

Munson would have found peace and time with his family as a player... and eventually Yankee fans would have had their captain back, even if it were only ceremonial.

Would he have been a Hall of Famer?
It would have been close... but he would have been a beloved Yankee and maybe even have his number retired. And it would have been a joyous celebration of a man who played the game the right way and honored the uniform in an era of great turmoil.

If only he had lived.

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...?

Sully Baseball Honors... THE 1977 WORLD SERIES LOCKER ROOM CELEBRATION

I stumbled across this gem on YouTube and it is worth a look.

It is the locker room celebration after the 1977 World Series. And it is kind of startling to watch when you compare it to the carefully choreographed for TV post game celebrations that go on now. Perhaps it is appropriate that the team that inspired The Bronx is Burning have a chaotic celebration.

I may be a Red Sox fan, but I know a good celebration when I see one!

Let's take a closer look




0:00 - Bill White interviews Billy Martin. First of all, ABC needs to bring back those yellow blazers. Secondly it is a shame that the Yankees won in 1977 and not 1976. In 1976 NBC had Phil Rizzuto in the booth and it would have been amazing to hear Scooter call a Yankees World Series title with ZERO objectivity.

0:18 - White poses the "Nobel Peace Prize" question. When you think about it, John Turturro doesn't really look like Billy Martin at all... but he got his affectations and mannerisms down to a T.

0:33 - How about next year? Well the Yankees would turn around and do it again in 1978... just without Billy. Don't worry... Billy would be back in 1979... and 1983... and 1985... and 1988.

0:41 - Yes Red Sox fans, that is Mike Torrez being hugged. He got the last out in the 1977 series and as a Red Sox pitcher would cough up the Bucky Dent homer. Some Sox fans believe he was a double agent in that 1978 playoff.

0:58 - More people pass in front of the camera and more cops surround the interview. Isn't there a TV production assistant waving people out of the shot?

1:01 - I guess not! The first appearance of the William Howard Taft looking guy with the plastic helmet. There is no way he was an employee of the Yankees, the NYPD nor ABC. For all we know he jumped onto the field and somehow made it into the locker room.

1:03 - The cops wisk away the yahoo in the plastic hat. Hey, Lenny Briscoe. Thanks for the help, but could you keep the people from walking IN FRONT of the interview?

1:15 - Lou Piniella celebrates. Sadly we don't see Billy's face as he actually compliments Reggie Jackson. You don't cut away when the impossible happens!

1:22 - Billy is let go to go and drink. Never a good idea.

1:25 - A crazed Yankee comes in to spray Bill White and his amazing yellow blazer with champagne.

1:26 - It turns out that Yankee isn't a player but former Yankee great Elston Howard. Possibly revenge for the 1964 World Series. (White was on the winning Cardinals team. Howard was on the losing Yankees team.)

1:27 - The field is chaos. According to one of his monologues, one of the people on the field is a young Artie Lange and his father. It's a good thing all of those police officers are in the locker room and not on the field making arrests!

1:30 - We still hear the sound of Elston Howard spraying Bill White. I wonder why they cut away. White calls for Yogi Berra... no doubt Yogi will bring some dignity to the proceedings.

1:41 - It took long enough to cut back to Bill White and Yogi Berra that I wonder if there is some sort of rule against showing champagne sprayed.

1:42 - Billy didn't get that far. He's actually closer to the camera now than he was during his interview.

1:43 - Yogi is loving this. As a player and a coach, this was his 12th World Series clinching celebration. He would have one more... 1978.

1:48 - Holy Cow! A FILM camera. Now they don't even use tapes, but someone is shooting 16mm film! (Sorry, the film school grad came out there.)

1:50 - The second appearance of the William Howard Taft looking guy with the plastic helmet. He made it past the Andy Sipowicz looking cop to regain his close up.

1:58 - You've got to give the guy in the plastic helmet some credit... he knows where to stand. Essentially if you had to describe this frame, he's be the focal point. I think he is actually in focus! He's laughing like he's good buddies with Yogi and Bill White.

2:00 - The guy in the plastic hat has a glance and a smile with the Bruno Kirby looking cop on frame right. I wonder if he is in the Steinbrenner family. Mitch Steinbrenner.

2:08 - The William Howard Taft looking guy in the plastic helmet is now cheering on an off screen Thurman Munson to douse Yogi Berra with champagne on National TV. I am convinced he won the strangest "Make A Wish" foundation award ever.

2:10 - The William Howard Taft looking guy in the plastic helmet removes his helmet and asks Thurman Munson to spray him with champagne. I am convinced he will never wash his hair again.

2:11 - More people in front of the camera. There was less confusion in front of a TV camera when Hinckley shot Reagan.

2:17 - It's a wonderful blind leading the blind live TV moment. Bill White can't see because he has champagne in his eyes. Meanwhile the viewers can't see because we are literally looking through arm pits and elbows to see the interview subject. Basically they have achieved radio.

2:24 - Now it is just getting strange. A guy rises from the floor in what looks like an Orioles hat. Was he trampled? Was he washing the floor? Is there a trap door he climbed up from?

2:47 - Munson, knowing the "Do you still want to be traded?" question is coming up, pours beer on Bill White's mike. Today parents groups would be fretting over what kind of message this sends to our youth. In 1977, it was kind of funny.

2:51 - Bill White asks Munson if he wants to go back to Cleveland. It's a strange question when you think about it because he never actually ever played for Cleveland. Nor did he live in Cleveland. His family was in Canton. But we know what he meant... he wanted to be traded to an Ohio team... preferably one that did not employ Johnny Bench at the time.

2:53 - Munson basically dodges the question. Actually there was no basically about it. He avoids it, "I'm trying to be happy."

3:00 - Munson says "I'm going to play baseball somewhere." I need to tread carefully here as a Red Sox fan. One thing I've learned when you deal with Yankees fans is you do NOT f--- with Thurman Munson. And I am not going to do that. I do think that had he lived past the 1979 season, he would have eventually left for Cleveland. Lest we forget the reason he was taking the flying lessons was to get to Ohio quicker.

3:05 - Is that Napoleon Dynamite over Bill White's shoulder, screen right?

3:09 - THIS is why they now build a little stage in the clubhouse during the celebration. Poor Bill White has to pull Reggie Jackson in from the crowd... which at this point looks looks less orderly than than Tokyo with Godzilla approaching.

3:11 - It is officially a scrum. Bill White even gives a "Hey!" to someone crowding him. Seriously, is Bill White all alone at this point? Aren't there... I don't know... producers from ABC Sports who can give the former All Star first baseman a 2 foot perimeter?

3:14 - Bill White pulls Reggie into the shot like he was pulling a castaway onto a lifeboat.

3:21 - This is basically a shot of one of Reggie Jackson's eyes. At this point I am convinced the ABC camera man has the single worst vantage point of anyone in the locker room. For all I know the William Howard Taft looking guy in the plastic helmet is closer to the World Series MVP than the cameras for ABC.

3:22 - Holy Cow! That Napoleon Dynamite guy is back... AND IT'S DAN SHAUGHNESSY!!! Man, this is when he was youthful and painfully awkward... as opposed to older and painfully awkward.

3:36 - Shaughnessy is basically resting his head on Reggie's shoulder.

3:48 - Shaughnessy can't believe how damn boring Reggie's response is as he gives Bill White a history lesson. White seems like he is about to say "I know those players, Reggie. I was on All Star teams with them!"

3:58 - DOWN IN FRONT!

4:00 - Reggie says "I can say I know there is a God in Heaven." I never can understand that leap in logic. He smacks three homers off of three different pitchers and somehow that confirms there is a Deity watching over us? What does that say to Burt Hooton, Elias Sosa and Charlie Hough? Either it makes them doubt there is a God in Heaven or they now know that God in Heaven hates their guts.

4:09 - "I'm not important." Humble Reggie is hilarious!

4:12 - The camera man zooms back. I am convinced that isn't for our benefit. I am sure the director in the ABC truck is screaming at the camera man through his headset to "Get a better shot." By zooming back, he's showing the director of what he's dealing with.

4:17 - Now zoomed all the way back, we see the camera man has basically put his tripod in Shea Stadium and zoomed in. What were they thinking setting up that far away?

4:19 - This shot is entering "Lee Harvey Oswald Prisoner Transfer" territory.

4:38 - What a novel idea! They cut to a different camera... one that was within 300 yards of the subject.

4:50 - Bill White informs Reggie that he is the series MVP. Today this announcement is done with a staged ceremony in front of a car. In 1977, the camera work resembles a Jason Bourne movie.

4:52 - Reggie tells Bill that he has a sister who needs the car awarded to the World Series MVP. I hope that admission didn't get her into tax trouble.

5:00 - Reggie disappears into the crowd... never to be seen again.

5:01 - Bill White apologizes for the free for all in front of the camera. I can only imagine what the director in the truck is screaming into his earpiece.

5:06 - Commissioner Kuhn comes in with the trophy. Someone could seriously lose their eye on that thing. In fact you could lose 26 eyes on that trophy!

5:15 - Again, in today's World Series celebration the network makes sure the owner, GM, President and manager are on the stage with the Commissioner and Jeanne Zelasko. Here poor Bowie Kuhn is standing there with a trophy and nobody to give it to. Maybe he can just give it to Bill White... or maybe Dan Shaughnessy.

5:23 - Poor Bill White has to adlib while Steinbrenner, Billy Martin and Gabe Paul trudge through what looks like the streets of Pamplona. "That's a beee-youtiful trophy there" is the best that he can do. It's actually kind of an ugly trophy, but what else is White going to say?

5:27 - Poor Bowie Kuhn has to return the adlib patter. He tells us that is goes to the Champion of the World. Thanks for clearing that up. I thought it went to "Best Penmanship."

5:31 - Bill says "There's a guy right behind you that maybe we can talk to." The subtext of that statement is wonderful. "Thanks for trying to play along Commissioner Kuhn, but there is someone in this sea of humanity that might actually have something interesting to say!"

5:36 - Mike Torrez is dragged into the shot. These are his last moments as a New York Yankee but as Red Sox fans will remember, won't be the last time he contributes to a Yankees World Championship.

6:00 - Bill White's assumption that Mike Torrez has something interesting to say is painfully wrong.

6:26 - Enter King George.

6:32 - They all wait for Billy Martin... who is probably getting 'faced with Art Fowler.

6:43 - George says the tough year is "worth it all." That thing on top of his head is positively Donald Trump-esque.

6:48 - Bill White keeps looking off camera for Billy Martin... clearly hoping for some decent TV to happen when he arrives. Maybe Steinbrenner will fire him right then and there.

6:52 - George asks for Billy. It might be the only time he ever does so for a positive reason.

6:54 - Everyone is calling for Billy Martin. No doubt the William Howard Taft looking guy with the plastic helmet is one of the guys calling for Billy.

6:57 - Bill White, realizing that at least five seconds of network television air time has been killed by waiting for Billy Martin says "somebody has taken Billy Martin from us." Probably not the best wording from Bill, but he has clearly drawn the short straw with this locker room assignment.

7:02 - Elston Howard strikes again with the champagne.

7:10 - Bill White says "Billy gets a lot of flack" while pointing at Steinbrenner. I wonder if George wanted to fire White at that moment.

7:41 - George reluctantly takes a swig of champagne. Funny, Elston Howard won't pour any bubbly over George!

7:47 - Steinbrenner says Happy Birthday to a very small man. No doubt that man was fired by November.

7:53 - Bill White asks what George wants to do with the club. George claims "I'm not going to touch it!" A month later he would sign Rich Gossage to essentially replace Cy Young winner Sparky Lyle.

8:07 - Mercifully Bill White throws it back to the booth. People are walking on the Yankee Stadium grass at this point. It resembles the Sheep Meadow in Central Park. I wouldn't be surprised to see someone having a picnic in center field.

8:20 - The great Keith Jackson informs us there is a rule from the Commissioner that we can not go into the losing team's locker room. That's a shame because a camera man could probably actually get a half way decent shot in there.

8:39 - Back from a commercial break and there is still a sea of humanity on the field, I wonder at what point do the people on the field think "Alright, let's go home." And I also wonder how many fans needed to be on the field before the cops all thought "F--- this, I'm going into the Yankees locker room."

8:42 - Bill White interviews Don Sutton, who somehow has wandered into the Yankees locker room. The strange thing in this shot is there is an African American man named "White" and a white guy with a bigger Afro than the African American man. Go figure.

All Hail Hank Steinbrenner!

I'll say it. I've missed George Steinbrenner. He made Yankee hating so easy and so much fun.

Yeah he was an arrogant A-Hole.
Yeah he was guilty of shady dealings with Nixon and hiring private investigators to get dirt on Dave Winfield.
Yeah I'm sure he was awful to work for.

But do you know what?

He was also fun... from a distance at least.

It was fun seeing how predictable he was.
It was fun seeing how you could set your watch to when he would fire a manager... or a pitching coach... or chew out his best player.
It was fun thinking about him watching Patton over and over again

And in the end he was a big kid playing with the biggest set of toys.
And despite the fact the he was probably in person a repugnant human being... he also had fun with his personality.

You can never accuse George of not having a sense of humor about himself. He did those Miller Lite ads with Billy Martin (Martin's suit should be in Cooperstown)

He also appeared on SNL, he was practically the only good thing in The Scout, he seemed to get a kick out of being a character on Seinfeld and those Visa ads he did with Jeter and the other one with Torre were pretty funny.

Steinbrenner evidently was a pro wrestling fan and he understood the need to have a good villain. He seemed to relish being the bad guy and in his own logic he was helping the team with his rants, his tinkering with the manager and gobbling up super star players.

In fact during Joe Torre's run from 1996-2001 when the Yankees could do no wrong, you almost got the sense that Steinbrenner was chomping at the bit. He wanted to make big splashy moves but the team was winning... the stadium was full and the Yankee dynasty was reborn. But Torre was getting the credit.

When Rivera collapsed in the 9th inning of Game 7 of the 2001 World Series, Steinbrenner said "There are going to be some changes for next year."

And the old Steinbrenner emerged briefly with gobbling up Giambi, Matsui, Sheffield and A-Rod.

But over the last few years, George has faded into the background. George is obviously sick and fading... and chances are he is sicker than the Yankees are letting on.

The public appearances have dwindled and the only public opinions are expressed in carefully released press statements that were clearly written by subordinates. Yeah it's funny to hear Mike and the Mad Dog read them with the Patton music playing.

But I missed the rage... I missed the spontaneity.
At one point after watching The Bronx is Burning I thought maybe the Yankees should just hire Oliver Platt to play Steinbrenner in press conferences.

George now stays in Tampa sheltered from the press. Some people compare the situation to Weekend at Bernies. I think it is more like the Diving Bell and the Butterfly with George watching the games but unable to do anything about it.

Like Lear, Steinbrenner's kingdom is being split up.
First it was going to go to his son in law Steve Swindal, but as I said earlier, he turned out to be even stupider than Carlo in The Godfather.

He has two daughters, but King George isn't going to hand the keys over to them... this is a man's job. (Not my opinion, no angry e mails please.)

There's Hal Steinbrenner, last seen hogging the stage after the 1996 World Series from Bob Watson. He evidently isn't a big baseball guy.

And finally there is Hank.
Evidently Hank watched those old clips of his dad and said "I can do that!"
He's been in charge for less than one season and already he has run a Hall of Fame manager out of town.

Now he is screaming to have Joba moved from the bullpen to the rotation... now.
As if making the switch from the pen to the rotation is so simple.
As if the Yankees have an army of relievers who can nail down the 8th inning.

And he is saying Mike Mussina needs to pitch like Jamie Moyer.
No doubt he said that because he just saw Jamie Moyer pitch and probably would recognize Jamie Moyer if he showed up in full uniform.

Rejoice Yankee haters! There's a new Steinbrenner in town!
And the proud tradition of front office meddling could last for 2 more generations.


Now why do I want Hank to be the next George?
Because a meddling Steinbrenner running the show is the worst thing to happen to the Yankees.

I can hear people saying "What are you talking about, Sully? The Steinbrenners sign all of those superstars and win all of those titles."

Well let me say something that will no doubt make my many Yankee friends shake their heads:

The worst thing to happen to the Yankees for nearly 20 years was winning the 1978 World Series.

This isn't left over angst from a Red Sox fan (even though I will NEVER forgive Don Zimmer.)

The Yankees won the AL Pennant in 1976 due mainly to the creative trades by GM Gabe Paul (all he did was trade for Chris Chambliss, Willie Randolph, Graig Nettles, Lou Piniella, Micky Rivers, Oscar Gamble, Ed Figeroa, Dock Ellis and Dick Tidrow... not bad.) But George got the credit for bringing in Catfish Hunter.

The Yankees won the World Series in 1977 when George brought in Reggie and rode Billy and Gabe Paul all season.

In 1978, Gabe Paul had enough and quit. And George brought in a big free agent (Goose Gossage) to replace a Cy Young award winner (Sparky Lyle). He rode Martin even harder and then fired him in midseason... and of course the Yankees went on their great run, beat the greatest Red Sox team to not make the playoffs and won the World Series again.

So what could be wrong with that?
I'll tell you.
Steinbrenner always looked at 1978 as the example of his meddling being productive.
"It worked in 1978."
So the manager position kept being changed. The coaches were moved around. The GMs were fired. Big players were trashed publically and signed and dealt with no rhyme or reason.

During the 1988 season, the Yankees had Don Mattingly at first and Jack Clark at DH. Steinbrenner dealt young Jay Buhner for another DH Ken Phelps... who literally had no position to play. Don Mattingly, the best defensive first baseman in baseball had to play games in left field.

From 1979 to 1993 the Yankees made 16 managerial changes.

From 1982 to 1993, the Yankees spent more money than any team and never once made the post season.

Yankee fans love George now... forgetting the George Must Go chants of the early 1990s when the Yankees were losing (yet still signing big free agents like Danny Tartabull) and Yankee Stadium was attracting 15,000 a night.

In fact the latest Yankee dynasty was formed when Steinbrenner was suspended from baseball allowing Gene Michael to piece together young players like Pettite, Posada, Rivera, Bernie Williams and Derek Jeter (whom Steinbrenner wanted to trade to Florida for Bryan Harvey.)

A new Steinbrenner meddling could lead to yet another decade of big priced free agents, a merry go round of managers, prospects like Willie McGee and Jose Rijo shining for other teams and who knows? Maybe another decade of quiet Octobers in the Bronx.

So I think I speak for all Yankee haters as the team moves to the new stadium next year when I ask...

"What would YOUdo with the team, Hank?"