The strange little details of the game Options

[Ron Fortier]

Too funny!!!

[AaronSmith]

And the Yankees will now join the Red Sox on the golf course. Time for hockey season.

[Ron Fortier]

Sorry about that for you Aaron, and all my amigos who are loyal Yankees fans. Last night's game was just weird and I was really shocked that Girardi pulled Hughes so fast. Gonna be a decision I think he's going to be thinking about a lot this winter.

[AaronSmith]

Well Ron, the one thing about the series that made me very happy was that our battered old catcher/DH, Jorge posada, who has probably finished his career as a Yankee now, went out well, batting .429 for the series. If it's time to go, go out in style!

[Ron Fortier]

I agree. Watching him play last night, I had the same feeling, ala here's a really classy ball-player going out in style. I'm really hoping our own Wakefield does the same thing and chooses to retire now. I worry should his ego get the best of him and he actually comes back next year, that he'll end up on the washed-up bench, a sad fate for any old timer.
Knowing when to hang up the gloves is always tricky.

[AaronSmith]

I am so glad I lived through the 1980s. If that decade taught me anything, it's that nobody wins all the time. The Yankees just couldnt make the playoffs then, despite having Don Mattingly, who was debatably the best hitter in the game at the time. I spent a decade watching my favorite player struggle along on a losing team. After that, I count myself as lucky each time the Yankees do win, or even make the playoffs. I think 7 Wolrd Series wins in my lifetime is pretty damn good (although i only remember 5 of them; the '77 and '78 series I was just a baby for).

Much of this current generation of fans, the ones who came along just in time to see the unbeatable Yankees of the 90s...come across as spoiled brats sometimes. Sure, I wish we'd beat Detroit, but I think we had a pretty good season despite pitching problems. We got to see Jeter and Rivera reach serious milestones, saw Sabathia and Cano and Granderson have incredible years, saw the emergence of a great new pitcher in Ivan Nova, witnessed a few last moments of glory for Jorge Posada, and at least outlasted the Red Sox. Now we just wait for next season.

But of course everybody has to overreact. Yesterday I listened to the inevitable parade of idiots calling up the radio sports shows about how to "fix" the Yankees for next season. Why must these guys try to lay all the blame on the couple guys who didn't hit well in the playoffs while ignoring all the good those guys did to get the team to the postseason in the first place? All day yesterday it was "Texiera needs to go!" Excuse me? The man hit 39 home runs this year! He was lousy in the playoff series, but a team can't depend on just one man. And of course the rest of the blame goes to A-Rod, year after year. What do these people expect from this guy? He was hurt this year, but every year before he's never failed to give the Yankees at least 30 homers and 100 rbi. Who do you replace that with?

As far as I'm concerned, the only changes that need to be made for next year are the addition of somebody to fill the gaping hole in the starting rotation, and to figure out how the catching/ DH situation is going to work with Posada presumably leaving and this kid Montero moving up to try to fill his shoes. Other than that, I'll take this same line-up again and trust them to get the job done. Some of these people need to just shut up, stop looking for things to complain about, and be glad they weren't unfotunate enough to be born as Mets fans!

OK, done ranting.

[Ron Fortier]

Hahahaha, Aaron, you're a true fan and even though belong to the "enemy" camp, I truly respect your testimony here and do agree. Unlike the Red Sox, who do have a truly lousy pitching staff, the Yankees weakness was minor in comparison, which is why they did make it to the playoffs. My concern with your line up (and its one we always have with teams) is how much longer can Jeter, A-Rod and others of their age group produce effectively.
Tweaking during the Winter months is called for, but not the radical knee-jerk surgery those idiot fans scream for. Sigh.
We all want our guys to win, but true loyalty means supporting them even when they don't.
Here's hoping for some reasonable fixes for both teams.

[Glen Davis]

The D-Backs almost took the Brewers with that suicide squeeze in the top of the ninth. I never saw it coming. What a great moment.

[Ron Fortier]

A few minutes from recording this week's episode of Zone 4 and the Texas Rangers are leading the Detroit Tigers by 3 to 0. Looks to be a cold night in Arlington with heavy rains. Hope they can get through and finish the game. We'll have to see how it all came after we do the show.