Marty Lurie Talks San Francisco Giants Baseball
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A Rod a New Yorker, So What Does it Mean?


The Red Sox have no one to blame for this mess other than themselves. I wrote two months ago that egos were preventing the deal between Boston and Texas from going down.

The Yankees will simply hammer the bad pitching staffs even more unmercilessly than they have in the past.

A Rod will have motivation to play all out instead of mailing in his at bats when they really mattered for Texas.

I’ve never been a big A Rod fan ever since Roger Clemens brushed him back in the playoffs between Seattle and New York. Ever since then A Rod has been a loser in my mind.

I don’t doubt any of A Rod’s numbers, but it takes more than that to be a difference maker on a championship team, just take one look at Manny Ramirez and all his numbers and tell me how many rings he has?

Click below and let’s look at the Yankees and their prospects with A Rod in the lineup.Pitching is still the number one determining factor for a championship team. The Yankees throw Mike Mussina, a wonderful pitcher who has seen his best day, Javier Vasquez, a young man still learning how to pitch who is changing leagues and coming to the toughest city to play in in the league, Kevin Brown, a “muscleman” pitcher, who if he was a hitter you would say was taking some enhancements, also prone to breaking down, Jose Contreras who has not succeeded in pro ball as of yet, and Jon Leiber who missed all of last season.

Is it a good staff? Maybe, is it invincible, no way.

The Yankee offense will have to bail this staff out more times than not.

Derek Jeter is being talked about as a future hall of famer, not so fast please. His stats have gone down each of the past few years and he is injury prone.

Jason Giambi will be unusually thin this season, I wonder why?

Kenny Lofton is a pain in any club house, Bernie Williams is a liability in the field and coming off a serious knee injury.

Hideki Matsui is a glorified singles hitter, but comes to play.

Gary Sheffield may be the best hitter on the team.

Jorge Posada ia liability as a catcher and will have his hands full with this staff.

Second base will be anyone who can catch a ground ball.

Set up: Tom Gordon hasn’t last a full season in a while. Paul Quantrill is steady but unspectacular. Gabe White, see you later, Felix Heredia same thing.

Mariano Rivera one of the all time best with some injury concerns.

So, is this team the reincarnation of the ’27 Yankees?

No, but they will crush lousy pitching and play more 7-6 games than 3-2 or 4-3.

The Red Sox can hang with them, they just better be prepared to score some runs.

The A’s have handled A Rod almost in every big game, the rest of the Yankees too. If Hudson, Mulder, and Zito are on their game that day, it will be a close contest as in the past, A Rod or no A Rod.

Nomar just got much richer because the Sox better not let him go and should sign him now.

Also Eric Chavez just lost some of his market if A Rod stays at third and Jeter at short. A’s should jump on that now.

Paul DePodesta to LA! I hope BB doesn’t follow soon to become the president of the Dodgers in 2005.

Texas should turn around and trade Soriano for some pitching, LA might be listening…Paul is a smart man and he knows Grady Fuson well.

Yankees a lock….not so fast…only one winner from the East and A Rod doesn’t do it for me…that team still has questions on the hill and on defense, but watch out Baltimore, Tampa Bay, Cleveland, Detroit, Texas and Kansas City, there will be some fireworks when the Yanks show up.

0 comments

1 Anonymous { 02.16.04 at 2:31 pm }

paul depodesta and bb in la? wow that opens the door for jerry f and marty l to have a chance at running the a’s

what could be better?

2 glenpark { 02.16.04 at 3:41 pm }

Marty:

You are correct, there is no need to glorify New York yet — still there is one undeniable fact about them — they never spend more than they have in their budget, and in this deal, Alex is coming to them at good numbers as relates to their budget –of the original 252 M contract Hicks executed, Texas is covering 140 million. Of the 179 M left on it at this date, the Yankees get Alex for 7 years at a 112 M payout –incredible isn’t it?

Every team just needs to look at Florida and what McKeon did –focus on your own game, make your own game strong, make your whole 25 man roster valuable and contributing. Toronto, Baltimore, and Tampa are so vastly improved that it is likely the AL East will only get one playoff spot. I love KC in the Central, and AL West looks to be so strong that two of the top three should go to the playoffs.

If the Yanks have big salary guys like Jason and Brown and Jeter sustain injuries, if Vasquez doesn’t adapt to AL game strategies, well Boston could simply post more wins and get into the playoffs. Boston does have a very solid 25 man roster, and over 162 games, may have enough strength to out run the Yanks.

Oakland must have Dye be Dye again, must get solid performances from Redmond and Harden, and must have really solid infield play and reliable offense from those 4 spots. The OF will be much improved, even Byrnes had a super winter league. and Miller / Melhuse should be just fine.

A’s fans need to focus on holding off Seattle, and keeping level with the Angels. Somehow, all my AL charts have the Angels coming in as the top team, and I can’t find a NL team to out chart them either.

3 marty { 02.17.04 at 9:20 am }

this is the week that we have been waiting for since the marlins beat the new yorkers last october. It’s spring traing. the camps open this week with pitchers and catchers first then the whole squad next week. 6 weeks then the season begins. I can’t wait. Hope springs eternal and every fan hopes that his or her team will make it to the playoffs and then go on and win the world series.

That used to be the way. It now seems that the small market guys don’t have a prayer. Will Milwaukee,Kansas City,Minnesota ever make it back to the playoffs? will these teams develop stars for teams like the Yankees or Red Sox. Must the Yankees win every year? It was thrilling to see the angels win the whole enchilada 2 years ago.

too bad for the giants,though. I would have liked to see bonds and company get world series rings.

Players come and go now. I suppose they always were hired guns but I used to think there was an element of loyalty between the taem and the players. How naive of me. Players do develop friendships and I think we shold all read “Teammates” by David Halberstam before the season begins. Lifelong friemdships of 4 players and good insight into the mind of one Ted Williams.

So let’s read the papers and listen to the sports guys fill us in on the camps and we shall see if there will be a new pheenom at camp. We shall see if some veteran player is over the hill and be released by his club unexpectedly. we shall see if

the clubs make trades before the season starts

and we will hope that Oakland and San Francisco

will win their divisions and for me, the Red Sox .

Can they do it ? Will they be able to beat the Yanks? Will the league be able to beat the Yanks?

Time will tell but for now let’s enjoy the beginning of a new season

Jerry F

4 Anonymous { 02.17.04 at 1:57 pm }

Finally! Spring Training is at hand!

Do you know when the first A’s broadcast on KFRC will be?

5 Anonymous { 02.19.04 at 2:35 pm }

In all the hoopla, over the A-Rod situation I’ve yet to see this All-Star lineup on paper. I don’t think the full force of what the Yankees have done to their lineup hits home until you look at in on paper (or in this case on screen). Obviously this alters a bit depending on match ups, opponents, injuries, rest days, etc. At least, here’s what opening day might look like. So let’s lay it out.
1. Kenny Lofton–CF
2. Derek Jeter–SS
3. A-Rod–3B
4. Jason Giambi–1B
5. Gary Sheffield–RF
6. Bernie Williams–DH
7. Jorge Posada–C
8. Hideki Matsui–LF
9. Maya Angelou–2B

Honestly, would it really matter if Maya Angelou played 2B?
—Ned

6 marty { 02.19.04 at 3:43 pm }

Alot of balls are hit to second. Don’t forget many of the returning Yankees struggled in the post season, let’s see how healthy they are. Sheffield and A Rod make a difference, no doubt. When was the last time A Rod got a big hit off an A’s pitcher not named Lidle or Lilly?
Marty

7 glenpark { 02.21.04 at 12:57 pm }

The Yankees sold a huge number of tickets this week. since the Alex press conference — and when the cash count was added up, they figure his entire 2004 salary is already paid. When you add up Soriano’s expected salary and the savings they experienced from voiding Boone’s contract, and the termination of Drew Henson’s contract, they are actually ahead in the deal.

One further thing — in comments to the press the Yankees stated that the way they choose to do business is what got them Alex. They just laid down on the table what they needed, and let the process go forward. They conducted all their affairs in maximum secrecy. They were willing to give Texas an All-Star player, not a nightmare player as Boston was forcing on Texas. They asked Alex to play third, nit give up money which casued union problems.

Lucchino and Henry, and of course Hicks and Hart, were heavily out classed and out smarted. And Selig is a disgrace. But its wrong to blame the Yankees for competing within the law and within the rules. The real gap between franchises is as much in the front offices as it is on the field.

8 marty { 02.21.04 at 1:31 pm }

Glen,
Very astute as usual. I said it months ago that the Red sox were nitpicking over 5 mil when the future of the team was at stake. The Red Sox have no one to blame but themselves. I don’t begrudge the Yankees one bit for what they do, it just makes it more interesting to beat them which can happen. The AL gets very nervous without a strong Yankee team (goes back to the 1920’s) so the commisioner wouldn’t think of getting in the way of anything they do. Bowie Kuhn jumped in in 1976 stopping NY from buying Vida Blue’s contract but only because Kuhn wanted to destroy Finley which he eventually did.
Thanks for the comments,
Marty

9 Anonymous { 09.22.07 at 1:14 pm }

10 Anonymous { 09.22.07 at 1:51 pm }

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