Okay all you Joba apologists. Just admit it. It was intentional. His control is too good to buy the excuses.

So here’s what really happened: Saint Joba has been spending too much with Clemens in the dugout (isn’t he supposed to go back to see his kid on the off days?) and The Rocket tells him all about how to make an impression in a big game. Only in the heat of the moment, Saint Joba made two mistakes. He didn’t throw at an elite player. And he did it twice in a row. Apparently the kid still has a few things to learn.

And what’s the matter with the Smartest fans in baseball anyway? You should be celebrating. Not trying to make excuses for him. After all, you have been praying for a headhunter for years.

Post Comments

There’s only one reason to turn on YES each day (or every other day). And that is to witness Joba Mania. With each new 10 to 15 pitch performance from Saint Joba, YES reaches ridiculously new heights of madness. Last night for example… That pitch was 98 miles per hour, gushes Michael Kay. Never mind that little missing detail that it was a ball. That’s right. The pitch was out of the strike zone.

And if the umpire dares to call one of those sacred pitches a ball, we get Posada looking back as if to say, “Are you kidding me?”. Saint Joba couldn’t possibly throw a ball.

And once again, do we really need to hear the speed gun readings after every single pitch? The kid throws heat. But so does everyone else these days - including bad pitchers. Heat is nice for sure. But back in the old days, we used to care about pitch location.

Post Comments

Hughes gives up five runs and Torre calls him ’special’. Mussina gives up six but no one would mistake him for being ’special’. Either way, neither of these two are helping the Yankees’ playoff chances much right now. Throw in an inconsistent Clemens (and even a Pettitte that we still don’t fully trust) and you have the biggest reason why the Bombers are teetering. And for all you believers in the revamped bullpen, don’t forget about these names: Henn, Ramirez, and Farnsworth. They don’t exactly instill a lot of confidence going into the pennant stretch.

Post Comments

Does Mike Mussina really deserve this recent wave of criticism, after two poor starts? Maybe. But would Clemens’ or Pettitte’s job security become an issue after two bad games? True, he’s been awful for much of the year. But do you mean to say that Torre can’t back up him up with even a small vote of confidence?

At least some of this is coming from the Yankees long-standing disappointment with the pitcher. He was supposed to be ‘the next big thing’. He was supposed to lead the Yanks to a World Series title. And he’s moody as hell and no one likes him. Now he is on the downside and apparently everyone has a free pass to pile on.

Mussina is right, like it or not. He still represents the Yanks best chance to win. Who is going to replace him? One of the kids? Igawa? At least Mussina has been there before. He’s done enough to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Post Comments

When your best reliever comes with instructions, you are going to have problems. Case in point, Monday night. When the Yanks really could have used Mr. Joba, he was unavailable. Wednesday he pitches in a laugher, which was basically a waste of his arm. But these are the rules. And in addition to all the spoken ones, it seems there are some unspoken rules too. For example, he doesn’t inherit baserunners. He doesn’t appear in tight games.

So you end up with a pitcher shrouded in mystery and mystique. He looks good but can he handle pressure? How can he be considered a real weapon if he’s only allowed to come out and play when mommy says it’s okay? But would you rather that Torre use him up like Quantrill or Proctor? And what does it say about the organization that they have so little trust in Torre’s ability to manage his bullpen?

Post Comments

Attention Barry Bonds, the new MLB steroid policy is in effect: admit to taking ‘roids and then walk away free.

Selig says The Balco Bomber was ‘very frank and candid’. But this meeting wouldn’t have ever taken place were it not for that little agreement that enabled Jason Giambi to avoid speaking out against any of his ‘roid buddies. Maybe Giambi possesses the knowledge to bring down and clean up the game once and for all. But we’ll never know. But hey, all that charity work for kids has to count for something.

Post Comments

The ’smartest fans in baseball’ are at it again, irate with Torre for having the nerve to bring in Mariano instead of Joba in the 10th inning of yesterday’s ballgame. We can forgive the fans for their general ignorance of Phil Rizzuto. Most of them only go back to ‘96 and probably only a handful of those actually sat through his Yankeeography. But to want the unproven kid (yes, believe it or not, he is unproven) over one of the great relievers in history is just nonsense. Joba may turn out to be a star someday. But can we at least see a few more relief appearances before making up our mind?

Post Comments

From your favorite source for Yankee news comes this gem concerning everyone’s favorite slugger. In the new book called ‘Five O’Clock Lightning’, we finally get to learn all about Babe Ruth’s antics with prostitutes. And who in their right mind could pass up on insightful quotes like this: “Babe was inherently a phallus worshipper… His phallus and his home-run bat were his prize possessions, in that order.”

So support your Yankee legends and order the book now.

Post Comments

Scott Boras comes to his client’s defense today. But the media seems to have it all wrong. Chipper never stated that he thought A-Rod was juiced. He just said there would always be suspicion. In this era, there should be suspicion. With every extraordinary player.

But is there? Why do we assume that A-Rod is clean? Just because he has had consistent power numbers throughout his career? Maybe he was juicing from the get go.

Why do we assume that Roger Clemens is clean? Because he is a legend? His body and career parallel Bonds’. It looked like he was done years ago. And then suddenly, he is The Rocket again. How did that happen?

Post Comments

For wanting to be as big and bad as McGuire and Sosa.
For lying about everything.
For being the best player of the steroid generation.
For being so angry and forcing everyone to hate you.

See, baseball is our life. But it is just a game. And given the opportunity, we might have made some of the same mistakes as you.

So we forgive you, Barry Bonds. We really do.

Post Comments