Daily Archives: February 16, 2009

Drama.

Oh, the drama.

Alex Rodriguez will address the media tomorrow afternoon and word is, his teammates will be there behind him. Even by Bronx Zoo standards, this is beyond boffo.

Our Man Mo…

This morning, Diane linked to an article Pete Abe wrote about Mariano Rivera.  Tyler Kepner also had a piece on Rivera yesterday.  I liked this bit:

At 39, Rivera understands that he is close to the end of his career. The statistics do not show it, but his body told him so last season.

“Oh, the end is coming,” Rivera said. “Sooner or later, it’s going to come. That’s why I don’t worry about those things, because it’s going to come. Only God knows when it will come; I don’t. But whatever I have left, I will give you my best.”

I have conflicting feelings about PEDs and seem to change my mind on the subject every few days. Without getting into morality, it does strike me that players, especially older ones, who use drugs to gain an edge, are essentially trying to cheat nature, to cheat time. While I can understand this from a players point-of-view, there is something satisfying about watching a great athlete grow old, watching them compete with diminishing skills, especially when they have a few tricks left (like we saw last year with Mike Mussina).

For the past seven or eight years, I’ve spent more time than any reasonable person should concerned about the health and effectiveness of Mariano Rivera. He’s defied all of my concerns, and yet I’m a greedy Yankee fan at heart–I want more. Who knows how much he’s got left? No matter, I’ll enjoy each and every time I get to watch him pitch, grateful that I’ve been able to root for the kind of sustained greatness that doesn’t come around often, and certainly won’t last much longer.

Since today is President’s Day, the news is powered by this video:

• PeteAbe has an article detailing that Rivera pitched with some discomfort during ’08:

During his annual state-of-the-closer address, Rivera revealed that he pitched much of last season in pain because of a bone spur on top of his collarbone. The lump, which was visible through his skin, caused discomfort even when he slept.

“I felt it all day,” Rivera said. “I don’t want to go through that again.”

Dr. David Altchek shaved down the bone on Oct. 7, but only after Rivera had appeared in 64 games and recorded 39 saves. Rivera had a 1.40 ERA and allowed only 41 hits over 70 2/3 innings. He struck out 77 and walked six.

In a superlative career, it was one of Rivera’s best seasons.

“It was painful but I did it,” said Rivera, who said the worst days were the ones when he pitched more than an inning or for the third game in a row.

[My take: Carl Pavano strained his ego reading that article.]

• Ken Davidoff reflects on the void in Yankeeland left by the departure of Boss George from day-to-day operations:

He sure made life difficult for everyone. Yet in virtual absentia, Steinbrenner’s stature has only grown. It has become painfully apparent that for all of his flaws, he has left an immense void. One that is even more noticeable when the organization is under siege, like right now.

“Those are some big shoes to fill,” said Rich Gossage, here as a guest instructor. “There is only one George Steinbrenner, I can tell you that. The current regime, it’s going to take a while for the transition to happen.”

• PeteAbe also blogs about Day 2 of camp, including this tidbit:

Joe Girardi mentioned that he wants to carry a long reliever. But it would hurt the development of Phil Hughes or Ian Kennedy to use them in such a fashion. “Those guys need innings,” the manager said. Hughes and I had a little talk about it. “The paychecks would be great but that’s not what I need,” he said. “I’m good with pitching in AAA if that is what happens and being ready for when they need me.”

You watch, he’ll get 10-15 starts in the majors this season.

• At least Hughes is saying the right things:

“As long as I pitch well, I think I’ll have an opportunity,” Hughes said Sunday after his first bullpen session of the year at Steinbrenner Field. “And if all five of our starters go through the year and make every one of their starts, great. That’s obviously what they’re looking forward to. I’m just trying to work hard and find a place to fit it somewhere.”

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