Neil Keefe

May 18, 2010

Judging the New Yankees

There is no one in the world that I like to see fail at their job worse than Jonathan Papelbon. A Yankees win is enough for me to have a great night and feel good

There is no one in the world that I like to see fail at their job worse than Jonathan Papelbon. A Yankees win is enough for me to have a great night and feel good about life. A Yankees win over the Red Sox that comes at the expense of Papelbon is my version of euphoria.

Before Monday’s win, the Yankees had been a tease when trailing in the late innings. There was usually a run in them, but for the first 37 games, they always seemed to miss that one hit that would complete the comeback. A couple of first-pitch fastballs from Mr. Papelbon changed that. But as enjoyable as Monday’s win was, it had the emotional swings of no-limit hold ‘em and there was certainly more than one time I had to restrain myself from spiking my Blackberry off the floor like Brandon Jacobs.

Some more disgusting bullpen decisions from Joe Girardi were once again covered up by the offense, and all will be lost and forgotten thanks to the instant Yankees Classic moments that took place in the ninth inning. Except it won’t be forgotten with me. I don’t forget. I don’t forget when Boone Logan comes into a game with the lead and tries to blow it. I don’t forget when Chan Ho Park is summoned to hold a one-run lead and leaves with a two-run deficit. I don’t forget any of the hundreds of questionable decisions made by Joe Girardi.

After the disastrous Sunday loss, the Yankees couldn’t blow a 5-0 first inning lead and lose to the Red Sox at home, but they nearly did just that when Girardi made everyone with talent in his bullpen unavailable. Getting 12 outs from Logan, Park, and the other bullpen benders just wasn’t going to happen without a few Boston runs scoring, and thanks to Joe Girardi’s magical bullpen phone, and the ever-helpful mound visits of Dave Eiland, the Yankees’ lead fell apart like David Ortiz’s career.

Nearly every new addition to the 2010 Yankees played a role in the in the up-and-down affair that resulted in an 11-9 win on Monday, with some more having a more positive impact than others. I always hated tests, surveys or questionnaires that gave you options like Strongly Agree, Agree, Neutral, Disagree and Strongly Disagree, but I am going to use a similar method in judging the new Yankees through the first 38 games of the season.

Love
I am a huge Curtis Granderson fan. So much so that I didn’t care that they traded Austin Jackson (someone I have been following for nearly four years) to acquire. I wasn’t exactly fond of Granderson when he tore apart the Yankees pitching in the 2006 ALDS, but I am happy that he is in pinstripes now. Granderson’s devastating groin injury has turned the Yankees outfield into a gongshow, and the removal of his bat along with Nick Swisher’s and Jorge Posada’s has turned the bottom of the order into an NL lineup. The fact that the Yankees are currently where they are in the standings with so many injuries and without their center fielder and a 30-home run hitter is flat-out scary. The Grandy Man needs to get back ASAP and make people forget about Austin Jackson’s hot start to his career.

I am usually a sucker for homegrown guys, so when the Yankees had a chance to bring Marcus Thames back, I was all for it. Aside from the fact that Thames was just two years removed from a 25-homer season, anything I have read about Thames talks about his strong clubhouse presence and his positive clubhouse chemistry. Thames has been extraordinary against left-handed pitching this year, and after his moon shot off Papelbon on Monday, hopefully Girardi realizes that he can play Thames against right-handed pitchers as well.

Like
Randy Winn isn’t exactly raking, but that’s not what he is here to do. A career starter, Winn has picked up his offense lately with more of a regular spot in the lineup due to injuries. He has played well in the outfield, and despite that one throw that went about four feet on what would have been a play at the plate, Winn has done everything expected of him so far as a Yankee. There hasn’t been anything to really love about Winn, but there is also hasn’t been anything to really not like. Just a solid player doing a sound job while the injury bug makes its way through the clubhouse.

Dislike
Javier Vazquez faced one hitter on Monday and ended up with his second win of the season. Go figure. I want Javier Vazquez to succeed, I really do, because Vazquez’s success means a seamless rotation for the Yankees. However, Vazquez’s early season struggles have been frustrating to watch and tough to take, and I have written some not so nice words about No. 31. Sometimes I feel bad for Vazquez and sometimes I don’t. In his postgame interviews, he seems like a genuinely nice guy, but we are talking about results here and not personalities. So far it’s been a love-hate relationship, but if he can turn it around with a big game against the Mets this Friday night and be consistently good, then the past can be forgotten.

Hate
The Yankees’ plan to get younger this offseason has gone as well as the Red Sox’ run prevention plan. Johnny Damon and Hideki Matsui are being penciled into their respective lineups everyday for the Tigers and Angels, while Nick Johnson sits in the dugout and works on grooming his hideous moustache. Johnson was close to being my least favorite Yankee during his first go-around in the Bronx, and so far, the second verse has been the same as the first. Johnson’s absence has turned the No. 2 spot in the order into a revolving door between Brett Gardner and Nick Swisher, and Curtis Granderson will join the two-hole platoon once he returns to the lineup. Was signing Nick Johnson in place of Damon or Matsui in the offseason the biggest mistake of the winter? No question. Now instead of watching Nick take called third strikes, we get to watch him watch games from the dugout while Damon and Matsui contribute to their new teams.

When Chan Ho Park was activated from the DL, I knew Phil Hughes had to go at least seven or eight innings or Girardi would be shaking with his anticipation to get Park into the game. Chan Ho Park has pitched in 17 major league seasons. Before last night he had a 3.99 ERA in the NL and a 5.78 ERA in the AL in his career. When you have a chance to give someone a guaranteed spot on the Opening Day roster with numbers like that, you have to do it. Don’t you? Park has made four appearances this season, has allowed runs in three of them, including four home runs in 6 2/3 innings of work with two blown saves to his name. He has had some success in the majors (though not much of it), so he hasn’t fallen to the Boone Logan level yet, but he appears to be have a one-way ticket there.

My hatred for Boone Logan is well documented. I think I would take my chances running across the Major Deegan at 5:30 p.m. before I gave Boone Logan the ball with a lead. For some reason, Joe Girardi doesn’t feel the same. Logan is currently the worst Yankee on the 25-man roster, and he has been since he was called up. Does no one else think it’s weird that Joe Girardi’s favorites are always the worst players on the team (Phil Coke, Brian Bruney, Boone Logan, Chan Ho Park)? Logan has now put 17 men on base in 9 1/3 innings to put new meaning to the term “lefty specialist.” I am willing to pay for his bus ticket back to Scranton-Wilkes Barre if that is what his roster spot is about, and I’m also pretty certain I can take up a collection before tonight’s game to pay off his salary, so the Yankees can rid themselves of him.

Blogs • Yankees

May 11, 2010

A Long Line of Lefty Losers

I hate Boone Logan. Some say “hate” is too strong of a word, but when it comes to Boone Logan, I just don’t think any other word could justify my feelings about his pitching. Maybe

I hate Boone Logan. Some say “hate” is too strong of a word, but when it comes to Boone Logan, I just don’t think any other word could justify my feelings about his pitching. Maybe it’s unfair to hate a guy who doesn’t decide when he is brought into games, and maybe it makes sense to hate the guy that brings him into the games. Either way, I am not a fan of Boone Logan and I am not sure how anyone could be.

Logan is the latest in the era of horrible left-handed relievers that the Yankees have tried to make into something they are not. This era of bad lefties started when Mike Stanton left the Yankees for the first time after 2002, and except for Damaso Marte’s postseason performance last fall, it has yet to end.

Logan is the Yankees’ Creed Bratton. No one is exactly sure how he has a job or what his job is, but he manages to hang around despite these things. He wasn’t good enough to make the Yankees out of spring training, but suddenly he is a jack-of-all-trades for the Bombers. If he’s a lefty specialist, shouldn’t he just pitch to lefties? Instead, he pitches when the Yankees are leading and when they are trailing. He faces lefties and righties, and he comes in with men on base and also to start innings. There isn’t a situation Joe Girardi doesn’t like for Boone Logan. The only problem is that there isn’t a situation that Logan likes for himself.

On a night when former Yankee Phil Coke got Randy Winn to pop up with runners on the corners in a crucial spot, Boone Logan showed Coke that he has stepped in and filled the void as “the last possible person you want to see coming out of the bullpen.” Logan pitched just one inning, but managed to allow a hit, walk two and give up a run that was the difference in the 5-4 loss.

On the Winn at-bat … The Yankees trailed 5-4. There were runners on first and third and one out and Phil Coke was on the mound. Winn had never faced Coke before, so I’m sure Kevin Long went over Coke’s arsenal with him, and I’d like to think the conversation went like this:

Winn: So, what’s he got?

Long: If Boone Logan were any worse, he’d be Phil Coke.

Coke got behind Winn 2-0. The chance of walking prior to the at-bat was 90 percent. After two straight balls (both of which were in the dirt) it had escalated to 100 percent. But on the 2-0 pitch, Winn decided he would become an RBI machine, and he swung at a high pitch that would have produced a 3-0 count if he didn’t swing. And just like that, the eighth-inning rally died.

Up until his trade to the Tigers, I had seen every appearance of Phil Coke’s in the majors. He is as scared of throwing strikes as I am of life without Derek Jeter once he retires. Coke was the least trustworthy pitcher the Yankees had seen since Tanyon Sturtze graced the Bronx with his presence. As a Yankee, he was just another lefty that couldn’t get the job done, and I’m sure over time, Tigers fans will come to realize this.

But Coke isn’t alone. Ron Villone, Buddy Groom, Wayne Franklin and Gabe White were all awful as well. The only problem is that they haven’t even been the worst of the post-Stanton era. When it comes to finding the worst Yankee lefty since 2002, none of those pitchers hold a candle to these three (in no specific order):

Number 34, Sean Henn, Number 34
Ahh, Sean Henn. When you hear the old adage that “lefties will get a million chances and hard-throwing lefties will get a million more,” think of Henn. He could throw in the high-90s. The only problem was no one knew where the ball was going when it left his hand. Once it got to the plate, it usually ended up outside the strike zone or in a gap in the outfield somewhere.

I remember seeing Henn start against the Mets on June 25, 2005 and he had his typical outing, (4.1 IP, 6 ER) in which he gave up three home runs. Two of them were to Cliff Floyd, and the first of the two I honestly thought was going to clear the right-field upper deck and land on top of Stan’s.

When people say that if the Mets released Oliver Perez, 20 teams would be willing to pick him up, it’s true. The only problem is that some lefties, no matter how hard they throw just can’t cut it. Sean Henn should be enough evidence for the Mets to realize that the chances of him going somewhere else and succeeding aren’t worth holding onto him. Henn has yet to have success in the majors, but he is still pitching for the Blue Jays’ Triple-A team in Las Vegas. As unbelievable as it is, he will always have a job pitching for some organization.

Number 36, Mike Myers, Number 36
If you looked at Mike Myers’ numbers from 2006 and 2007, you’d probably wonder why he’s on this list. But if you watched him during that time, you fully understand.

There was a time when the Yankees just started recycling the garbage from the Red Sox bullpen. And it just so happened to come after the ALCS loss in 2004. Don’t want Mike Myers? We’ll take him. Don’t want Alan Embree? We’ll take him. The Yankees became the dump for unusable Red Sox talent and even Mark Bellhorn (who magically came alive in Games 6 and 7 of the 2004 ALCS) managed to get in a few games in the Bronx. I’m still waiting for Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz to get their Yankee contracts.

Myers had one job with the Yankees: Get David Ortiz out. He was as good as this job as Isiah Thomas was at his with the Knicks.

If I could sum up Mike Myers’ time with the Yankees in one game it would have to be May 19, 2007 against the Mets. Darrell Rasner started and allowed two hits on nine pitches before getting hurt and leaving the game. Myers came in and allowed both of Rasner’s runners to score, and then gave up four earned runs of his over two innings. Unable to stop the damage and prevent further damage. That was Mike Myers.

Number 61, Billy Traber, Number 61
Before Billy Traber ever put on a Yankees uniform, he had a 5.41 ERA in 76 career games. Why wouldn’t the $200-million Yankees want him to be their left-handed specialist?

Traber only appeared in 19 games in 2008 for the Yankees, but that was enough. The newest edition of “the lefty the Yankees signed solely to get out David Ortiz” needed just 16 2/3 innings to allow 23 hits, post a WHIP of nearly 2 and an ERA of 7.02. Traber pitched at least a full inning 10 times with the Yankees, and only once did he do so without allowing someone to reach base.

For once, the Red Sox decided to take some of the Yankees’ bullpen trash, and Traber got into one game for the Red Sox last season, and it was against the Yankees. His line: 3.2 IP, 9 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 2 HR, 1 BB, 1 K, 12.27 ERA. At least the Yankees got back one of the many wins Traber cost them the year before. Good old Billy Traber.

Blogs • Yankees

May 7, 2010

Time to Bury Boston

When Andy Pettitte left Wednesday’s game after the fifth inning and 77 pitches, I thought I might have seen No. 46 walk off the field for the last time ever. Hearing “tightness in the elbow”

When Andy Pettitte left Wednesday’s game after the fifth inning and 77 pitches, I thought I might have seen No. 46 walk off the field for the last time ever. Hearing “tightness in the elbow” with 37-year-old lefties who have been mulling retirement for four years is like hearing “broken leg” for a fallen horse at the Derby.

Hopefully the inflammation in Pettitte’s elbow is just that and a missed turn in the rotation will be enough to get him back on track and let him continue the best start to a season in his career. If not, then there’s a problem for a rotation that includes the incompetent Javier Vazquez who is being skipped over on Friday because of a mental injury and not a physical one. But we’ll cross that bridge if and when we get to it.

Pettitte’s injury, coupled with the minor injuries to Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada has the Core Four suddenly being the Sore Four and people are just waiting to see what type of injury Derek Jeter will come up with. And all of this is apparently because the old guard appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated. It’s obvious that the Sports Illustrated cover jinx is to blame for the injuries, and not the fact that Pettitte is 37, Rivera is 40 and Posada is 38.

I believe in the Sports Illustrated jinx and all curses as much as I believe in the abilities of Javier Vazquez and Boone Logan. I don’t understand the whole no-hitter or perfect game jinx thing either. How can someone watching the game at home on their TV who says “no-hitter” during one change the outcome of a pitch thrown by someone who doesn’t know they exist? Did no one in the world say “it” when Ubaldo Jimenez threw a no-no on April 17? Doubtful.

But the same way I believed in Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy at one point in my life, I did believe in jinxes and curses, or at least one curse. A few games in October 2004 changed that.

This weekend the Yankees have a chance to do something they haven’t had a chance to do since 2006: Go to Fenway Park and end the Red Sox’ season. And in 2006 they didn’t get that chance until August.

Sitting five games up (six in the loss column) with two games in hand, the Yankees have a chance to bury the Red Sox in the AL East and make “run prevention” just as evil to say in Boston as it to say “Bucky Dent” or “Aaron Boone.” The Yankees have a chance to officially make the AL East race a two-team race (if it isn’t already) and push the Red Sox back under .500, where they have been treading water since the start of the year.

Yes, the Red Sox are winners of four straight, but those four were against the awful Angels (losers of seven straight) and who might be just as bad as the Orioles (who swept the Red Sox last weekend. I guess Mike Scioscia isn’t looking like much of a genius these days with that 12-18 record. The Angels are a mess, but at the same time, it looks like the Red Sox might be coming out of their month-long coma. If that’s the case, it’s time to pull the plug and make sure they don’t wake up.

There is enough trouble in the division right now with the Rays winning every day and Tampa Bay apparently not an option on the injury bug’s GPS. The last thing I need is the Red Sox coming around the corner like Super Saver. Let the city of Boston focus on the NHL and NBA playoffs and trying to keep their water clean. The Yankees need to further distance themselves from the Red Sox this weekend, and here’s how:

The Heart
When was the last time A-Rod dropped an A-Bomb over the Green Monster and onto the Mass. Pike? I don’t know either, but I am ready for him to revisit Lansdowne Street this weekend. I am still waiting for the best 3-4 combination in the league from 2009 to show up in 2010.

Tex has come alive in May, as expected, (7-for-20, five RBIs in five games), and with Nick Johnson showing a pulse on Wednesday, all the Yankees need is for A-Rod to find his power stroke to get the heart of the order to start beating again.

At some point in the near future, Brett Gardner and Francisco Cervelli are going to stop raking (at least I think they will) and the Yankees are going to need Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez to be Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez. Why not in Boston?

The Phranchise
Series sweeps and series wins come with your Game 1 starter, and in this case it happens to be Phil Hughes who gets the ball on Friday night. Hughes has made everyone forget about the deal that would have brought Johan Santana to the Bronx, and Johan has done his part (Thanks, Phillies) in helping everyone forget as well.

Hughes is 3-0 and could be 4-0 if Boone Logan and David Robertson weren’t so good at making leads disappear. His counterpart on Friday will Josh Beckett and his shark-tooth necklace, who is carrying around a 6.31 ERA with his new $68 million extension.

Hughes has allowed just 10 hits in 24 innings so far this season, and if he can do what he has done in his first four starts then it will make for a good night and a great start to the weekend.

The Bridge
Right now when the bullpen door opens, only bad things seem to happen. I’m not worried about Mariano Rivera’s health, but I am worried that he hasn’t pitched in a game since last Friday and is now available against the Red Sox in a place where he has had the most trouble in his career. After Mariano, the level of trust falls fast. Here is the pecking order of trust after Mariano:

Alfredo Aceves

Joba Chamberlain

David Robertson

Sergio Mitre

Damaso Marte

Boone Logan

Joba has yet to fully gain back my trust, but he has looked better of late. As for David Robertson, I think he left his deceiving fastball in 2009. If Sergio Mitre has to pitch this weekend, then you can forget a sweep. And if he has to pitch twice, then you can forget about a series win too. You should never be able to trust Mitre over any other pitcher on your team, let alone both the lefties in of the ‘pen.

I am still waiting for an explanation as to why Boone Logan is on the team because being a lefty just isn’t cutting it. He has put seven people on base in three innings, and the Yankees are 2-3 in games he pitches in, and were almost 1-4 thanks to his walk-a-thon in the ninth inning on Wednesday. I pray that the starters go at least seven, and then Boone can stay where he belongs: on the bench.

Blogs • Email Exchanges • Yankees

May 5, 2010

Bald Vinny and the Bleachers

I can only remember a handful of times over the last seven or eight seasons that I have been to Yankee Stadium and haven’t sat in the right field bleachers. Vinny Milano is responsible for

I can only remember a handful of times over the last seven or eight seasons that I have been to Yankee Stadium and haven’t sat in the right field bleachers. Vinny Milano is responsible for that.

Milano, known as “Bald Vinny” to Yankees fans, has been the face of the Bleacher Creatures over the last few seasons, helping create an exciting environment in Section 203 (formerly Section 39) at the Stadium. The voice behind roll call in the Bronx and the leader of the “real” fans, Bald Vinny has become the most recognizable Yankees fan around.

Bald Vinny is also recognized for creating some of the best Yankees-related T-shirts (http://www.baldvinny.com) and for making his pregame home at his T-shirt stand on River Ave. before taking his familiar spot in right field. Vinny talked with me about the history behind roll call, his T-shirt business and the state of the Yankees. Here’s a transcript:

Keefe: As the leading voice of the roll call in Section 203, how did roll call come to fruition?

Bald Vinny: Roll call really came about out of boredom. As fans, we never know what players on the field can “actually” hear. We had always shouted out the outfielders (all the way back to the Dave Winfield days), but one afternoon in 1996, someone posed the question: “Hey, do you think we can get Tino Martinez to hear us?” At this point, we would regularly call out to outfielders Bernie Williams, Paul O’Neill etc. From there, we just went around the infield, and we wouldn’t stop until we got some sort of response. It just took on a life of it’s own after that, and it became our way to let the players know we were in the house and that we were pumped up and ready to go.

Keefe: Who has been your favorite player name to chant since roll call was established?

Bald Vinny: My favorite player to chant has always been Bernie Williams. Since roll call starts with the center fielder, I got to yell Bernie’s name a lot. So much so, that I would often do a one-man roll call (for Bernie only) at road games. He knew my voice from the “Yo Bernie” intro, and would always tip his cap to me. He loved it so much, that he even asked me to help introduce him to the stage at the Nokia Theater for his album release party.

These days, I love that the guys all have their own responses. It started with Johnny Damon, who would get down on one knee and shoot out “the double-finger point”, and now each guy has his own wave (even if it’s non-descript, like Derek Jeter). It means a lot to me, and the other fans, when you read of new guys coming over and stressing over how to respond like Curtis Granderson did when he wrote a blog about it for MLB.com the day before Opening Day.

Keefe: Since you are the leading man of roll call, and therefore the official starter of the “slow clap” that leads into roll call, is it frustrating when people try to jump the gun and put the clap and roll call in motion before you do?

Bald Vinny: I only get frustrated with people who sit out there who have no clue what roll call is (Thanks, StubHub). As for clapping, I just try to be the one to keep everyone on pace. If people want to clap because they are excited, then they should go for it. Our whole atmosphere is built on making noise, so no one will look at you crooked if you jump on your bench and start screaming. If you try that in the box seats, they look at you like you have two heads! We start with the big yell then everyone follows in because, frankly, it sounds like a mess otherwise! As unruly as we are, even our group needs some organization.

Keefe: There seems to be a lot of “unwritten rules” to sitting in Section 203, like not talking on the phone, participating in “The Wave” or joining into the untimely and awkward chants from Sections 201 and 202. What would you say is the most important “unwritten rule” to follow when sitting in Section 203 among the Bleacher Creatures?

Bald Vinny: I think our biggest un-written rule is “don’t get caught”. The core group of creatures is there on a fairly regular basis (60-plus games a year). We do what we can to police the section so that newbies don’t ruin it for the rest of us. Without blowing up any spots, let’s just say that membership has its privileges, and we don’t let strangers give us a bad name. For the most part, chanting profanities is a big no-no. Our guys know not to do it because then it makes the cops and security keep more of an eye on us because we’re troublemakers. More security means you get away with less, so we do our part to make sure they don’t have more reason than necessary to watch over us.

Keefe: Being the face of the bleachers got you publicity in Filip Bondy’s book Bleeding Pinstripes: A Season with the Bleacher Creatures of Yankee Stadium when he chronicled the 2004 season from Section 39, and it also landed you on the Ultimate Road Trip on the YES Network during the 2005 season. What was the bigger thrill: having a book written about the Creatures or getting to attend all 162 games during the ’05 season?

Bald Vinny: Bondy’s book helped me become the face of the group. We certainly weren’t “big” back then and not many people would really know of us if it wasn’t for Bondy’s coverage, first in the Daily News for a number of years and then the book. That certainly helped get me on the reality show. Both were really great experiences, but going to the Hall of Fame and seeing a book for sale with your face on it is pretty humbling.

Keefe: What was it like to have to sit in box seats during the year and watch the show go on without you?

Bald Vinny: The absolute worst part of the Ultimate Road Trip was not being able to sit in the bleachers. I’ve known most of the people out there for 14 years and consider many to be like my second family. Missing out on the good times was tough, especially because my wife (then girlfriend) would still get to hang with the group while I did Ultimate Road Trip stuff. After the first month or so, they did allow me to work out a deal. There were a few mandatory times that I had to be with the rest of the group, but they would let me sneak into the bleachers for a few innings.

Keefe: Now that you have become a recognizable face around the Stadium through the book and the show, how has that helped your t-shirt business outside the Stadium? What kind of response have you gotten from Yankees fans?

Bald Vinny: The exposure from the book and show has helped my business tremendously. It’s tough for any small business to compete in a large market, and it’s even tougher to compete against the Yankees and Major League Baseball. Fans know that I am a real person trying to accommodate a niche market, and not some corporation trying to exploit the popularity of the group. The “real” fans know that I have put my time in, and have worked tirelessly to promote a positive image for the bleachers as well as my brand. Being on the show really taught me about how passionate Yankees fans are, and I try to capture that passion in my designs. Yankees fans have been very supportive over the years. Without their loyalty, I would have been out of business years ago.

Keefe: How does it feel to have players like Nick Swisher stop by the stand before games and also wear your shirts?

Bald Vinny: It’s even more special when I get the support from players like Swisher and before him, Jason Giambi. I think they realize that I’m trying to build a brand extension of the Yankees franchise, and they “get it.” They know I’m not running some sweatshop that cranks out bootleg tees. Everything is original, and I don’t use any logos or trademarks (which makes design a lot more difficult). When I hear that guys like Swisher wear my tees in the clubhouse or under their uniforms, it’s pretty flattering.

Keefe: Now for some baseball talk. Everyone misses the “Home run, Matsui” chants from Section 203, the Johnny Damon point during roll call and the excitement Melky Cabrera brought to the team. Do you agree with the decisions to not bring either of them back?

Bald Vinny: It’s always tough when the team you support doesn’t re-sign a fan favorite. I’ve followed baseball enough to know that it’s a business, and sometimes players you really like go elsewhere. There are 1,000 disappointed Melky Cabrera fans, but I bet if Javier Vazquez can ever get his act together, he’ll do more for this team than Melky ever could.

Keefe: Have you enjoyed seeing Curtis Granderson in center field and as the new leadoff man for roll call?

Bald Vinny: The good part about being a fan of this franchise is that you know they are going to do their best to replace guys who left. Curtis Granderson is our first legitimate center fielder since Bernie in his prime. It’s a shame he went down with this groin injury, and I hope it doesn’t keep him out too long because I think he’s really going to make an impact this year.

Keefe: How about the new Yankees (or second go-around Yankees) like Javier Vazquez and Nick Johnson? I have been an advocate against both guys and so far neither of them has performed up to par, though there is still more reason to believe in Johnson than there seems to be with Vazquez.

Bald Vinny: Nick Johnson was a deal that really didn’t make much sense to me. He’s injury prone, and he’s not going to play first base all that often. For similar money, they could have had Damon back and at least had another outfield option. Ultimately, I think Jorge is going to shift to the DH role and the Yanks are going to get younger behind the plate with Francisco Cervelli.

Vazquez is a tough case. The guy can pitch in the National League, but I just don’t think he is suited for the Yankees. There are so many pitchers that just can’t cut it here for whatever reason, and I think Javy is one of them. Personally, I don’t think skipping his next start in Boston is the right move. He already has very little confidence in himself, and this shows him that everyone else has little confidence too.

Blogs • Email Exchanges • Giants

Apr 29, 2010

Behind Big Blue’s Offseason

It’s hard to stay on top of everything with the Giants during the Yankees season when I have to worry daily about whether or not Nick Johnson will start hitting or if the bullpen will

It’s hard to stay on top of everything with the Giants during the Yankees season when I have to worry daily about whether or not Nick Johnson will start hitting or if the bullpen will hold a lead. Luckily I have Ralph Vacchiano, Giants beat writer for the New York Daily News, to trade e-mails with.

If you’re a Giants fan, Ralph’s Giants blog, The Blue Screen, is the best there is, and his book, Eli Manning: The Making of a Quarterback, is a must read for any Giants fan and Eli Manning fan for inside information on Eli’s career, and the inner workings of the Giants front office under Ernie Accorsi.

In our discussion, we analyzed the Giants’ draft, tried to make sense of Osi Umenyiora’s career downward spiral, picked apart the Giants schedule and tried to figure out how the defense will rebound in 2010.

Keefe: The Giants’ biggest hole entering the draft was in the middle of their defense and they didn’t address that need until Day 3 of the draft. You predicted that the Giants would take Jason Pierre-Paul, which they did, if Rolando McClain was gone by the time they were able to pick, which continued your near flawless record of Giants’ draft predictions.

From what I know and have read about Jason Pierre-Paul, I think I will be happy, as will every other Giants fan with the selection, though Osi Umenyiora might not be as happy. Did the team make a mistake by not addressing their most significant need with one their first three picks and by passing on Sean Lee and Brandon Spikes? And what does the selection of Pierre-Paul mean for Umenyiora’s role on the team and his career with the Giants?

Vacchiano: Well, they didn’t have a choice with their first pick. I still think they would’ve taken Rolando McClain if he were there. But he wasn’t. Could they have taken Lee or Spikes in Round 2? I guess, but they wanted a DT too and they may have gotten a steal in Linval Joseph. In the days before the draft a lot of people started mentioning him as a potential late first-rounder. A lot of teams liked him and he slipped into the Giants’ lap. They felt like they couldn’t pass that value up. They also apparently didn’t have Phillip Dillard rated too far behind Lee on their board (I heard they weren’t crazy about Spikes). So, was it a mistake? I guess that depends on Joseph and Dillard. They don’t think they made a mistake, though.

And I don’t think Pierre-Paul’s arrival will affect Osi much immediately. For now, Pierre-Paul is the fourth end and likely to be used as a situational pass rusher. How much he affects Osi in the future depends on a lot of factors — Osi’s happiness, how fast Pierre-Paul develops, what happens with Mathias Kiwanuka’s contract. But there’s enough uncertainty and defensive end for the Giants that I don’t mind them adding another. Things have a way of working themselves out, just like they did after they added Kiwanuka as a fourth end in 2006.

Keefe: The Umenyiora situation is pretty fascinating to me, considering I don’t spend every day in the locker room and I’m not in the Giants front office to know how good and bad some relationships are between the players and front office executives. All I know is that, Osi was an essential piece to the Super Bowl puzzle, and when Michael Strahan decided to retire, it was Osi along with Justin Tuck who were supposed to lead the defense into the future. Then, Osi goes down with the knee injury and Trent Dilfer says on ESPN that the Giants will “be the biggest disappointment in 2008,” only to have them win the division and get the No. 1 seed without Osi. Then he comes back and the team collapses, and he gets benched and is rumored to be on his way out of town. The whole thing doesn’t make sense.

I guess what I’m saying is Osi was supposed to be a staple in the defense for the future. Then because of injuries and some of the worst defensive performances (by the team, not just Osi), he became the scapegoat for the Giants’ defensive woes. We’re talking about a defense that had C.C. Brown starting before he was eventually benched. There are certainly no excuses for what happened last season and the abysmal play of the defense, but doesn’t it seem ridiculous that Osi comes out looking like bad guy in all of this? The way everything has unfolded with him since the Giants beat the Patriots just seems unfair.

Vacchiano: Yeah, I agree … for the most part. But Osi hasn’t exactly done himself any favors. I don’t think anyone considers him the biggest problem in last year’s defense. Bill Sheridan, injuries, the safeties, the linebackers, the defensive tackles, all would be listed ahead of him. But he wasn’t playing well against the run. He could rush the passer — though depending on whom you ask, he may not have been doing that at his usual standard either — but he was being pushed off the line of scrimmage and seemingly taking the wrong lanes on run defense. The Giants — Sheridan and Tom Coughlin — confronted him about that. And at that point, he had a real bad attitude about the whole thing. One of his teammates told me that he basically checked out mentally, which led to Coughlin and Sheridan to bench him. After that he was useless because he was ticked off.

Then, to make matters worse, he goes on that silly rant at the Super Bowl, demanding his starting job back or he’ll retire. He looked like a baby. Then, given the chance to back off it the next day, he insists that he wasn’t kidding — as if he’d really give up all that money. Then, a few months later, he has that “no comment” press conference where he looks even more ridiculous. Never once does he stand up and say “You know what? Nothing is given to you in life. I get paid a lot of money. I want to start. I’m going to go out and earn it and be a good guy and teammate.”

That would’ve gone a long way towards making him look like a good guy again. The whole defensive collapse definitely wasn’t his fault. But his own actions are what has put him in the spotlight.

Keefe: When it became evident that the Eagles were willing to part with Donovan McNabb, it was almost as relieving as when the Red Sox were finally ready to deal Manny Ramirez, except Manny left the division and went to the National League. For Giants fans, the only place that would have been worse for McNabb to end up other than staying in Philadelphia was Washington. Now he’s a Redskin, and if anyone wanted to question what division is the toughest in football, I don’t think there is really anything to question now.

But here’s the biggest problem with McNabb going to Washington: Where are the Giants going to get those two wins from? Sure, the Giants might still sweep the Redskins in the season series, but now a split is more likely and getting swept is even a possibility. I look at their 2010 schedule and I am having trouble finding 10 wins. Maybe it’s just me being down on the Giants after last year’s debacle, but where are the wins on this schedule that are going to get them in the playoffs? Where are the Giants going to finish in the division and the conference? Is it going to be another winter without a postseason for the G-Men?

Vacchiano: First of all, I won’t play the schedule game with you. I think it’s silly to look at a schedule in April and May and project wins. In the NFL, the success of teams varies wildly from year to year. Plus, it’s not always who you play, but when you play them. The Redskins games look a lot different if McNabb is hurt. The Green Bay games looks a lot different if it snows or if their defense is a mess, so who can tell this early? All I can tell you is the Giants were a disaster last year and still won eight games. Why can’t they win 10 with better health? I mean, they lost everyone on defense last year. Everyone, for at least a game or two. If they can stay in one piece, that’s got to be worth two wins, right?

Besides, if you insist on playing the schedule game, shouldn’t some of those wins come from Philly? Do you really believe the Eagles will be as good as ever now that McNabb is gone? I don’t know about Kevin Kolb. I really don’t. Maybe he’s Aaron Rodgers II. Maybe not. We’ll find out.

But for the moment — and this is really, really early, so I reserve the right to change my mind — I don’t see why the Giants can’t be right up there with the Cowboys as the best teams in this division. I really don’t.

Keefe: I agree that playing the schedule game is pretty ridiculous, but it’s hard to not look at it and try and play the season out in your mind.

I was never the biggest Antonio Pierce fan, but I understood what he meant to the team and what he meant to the defense. Now that he is gone, who steps up and takes leadership of the defense, and how will the team respond to the absence of Pierce for an entire season?

Vacchiano: I would hope by now that they’re used to Pierce being gone, since he was out the second half of last year. So I would hope they’d respond better to his absence. Who the leader will be is not real clear. I thought it was telling in the after-the-season press conference that when Tom Coughlin was asked about leaders he mentioned Jeff Feagles and then pretty much drew a blank. He had none on defense and he knew it.

I think the feeling is that Justin Tuck will be one, and that if he wasn’t so hurt last year he might have even emerged. They also have high hopes that Antrel Rolle will step in and be a leader, too.

Keefe: With the emergence of Hakeem Nicks and Mario Manningham and the outstanding season Steve Smith had, how good can the Giants offense be with Eli now having a full season under his belt with Nicks and Manningham? And how do you think Brandon Jacobs will respond after having a letdown season last year?

Vacchiano: I think the sky is the limit for the passing game. I really do. I have great respect for Eli Manning and think he’s going to be an upper echelon QB in this league before he’s done. And I think he’s got a good and diverse receiving corps. I do have questions about the running game, though. With Jacobs coming off knee surgery, and Ahmad Bradshaw coming off surgery to both his feet and his ankle, and with Andre Brown coming off a torn Achilles, I just don’t know what’s there. The potential is great, but I have serious reservations about whether any of these guys can stay healthy for a full season. That’s definitely a worry with Jacobs. I don’t see any evidence that he can take a pounding and survive. If he can, this has the ingredients to be one of the best offenses in football. If he can’t, it’s one-dimensional and that is just not good.

Author: Neil Keefe

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