Monthly Archives: August 2010

No use in steerin, now.

As fun as dumb can be:

Dig this most excellent essay on the old New York Herald Tribune by William Zinsser (who wrote a helpful book about writing):

Much has been written about the Herald Tribune’s bright stars in those postwar years: the foreign editor Joseph Barnes, the foreign correspondent Homer Bigart, the city reporter Peter Kihss, the sports columnist Red Smith, the Pulitzer Prize–winning photographer Nat Fein, the music critic and Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Virgil Thomson, and many others. But the paper never forgot that its readers were an infinitely mixed stew of interests and curiosities, and it had experts squirreled away in various nooks to cater to their needs: the food critic Clementine Paddleford, the fashion columnist Eugenia Sheppard, the stamps editor, the crossword-puzzle editor, the garden editor, the racing columnist Joe H. Palmer.

Palmer was typical of the paper’s passion for good writing, nowhere better exemplified than in the sports section. It was in those pages, as a child baseball addict, that I found my first literary influences. The Trib sportswriters were my Faulkner and my Hemingway, and now I was in the same room with those bylines-come-to-life: Rud Rennie, Jesse Abramson, Al Laney. Laney, who covered golf and tennis, never took off his hat. I often paused at the sports department to watch those Olympians, wreathed in cigarette smoke, tapping out their stories with ferocious speed—especially Abramson, who seemed to have the entire history of boxing at his fingertips.

Ruling over that domain was the sports editor, Stanley Woodward. Built like a 250-pound fullback, he was as sensitive to good writing as a 125-pound poet. No hoopsters or pucksters played in his pages, no batsmen bounced into twin killings. Woodward had recently hired two stylists to add luster to his stable. First he plucked Red Smith from the Philadelphia Record, thereby presenting to a national audience the best sportswriter of his generation. Then he imported Palmer, an English professor at a college in Kentucky, to write a column called “Views of the Turf.” I knew nothing about horses, but Palmer’s columns, a blend of erudition and wit, strewn with allusions to Shakespeare and Chaucer, took me into a picaresque new world, often straying far from “the turf.” I still remember a column extolling the virtues of Kentucky jellied bourbon.

Ivan Nova came out for his first Major League start spitting fire. With adrenaline flowing to his lanky right arm, and his spirits lifted by a fantastic Gardner-to-Cervelli double play, he blazed fastballs of 97 and 98 miles per hour to get himself out of trouble in the first inning. And Yankee fans rushed to mlb.com to check the pitchFX to validate the startling reading on the YES gun. They were not disappointed by those results, but they were disappointed that the Jays won the battle of the bullpens, 3-2.

Coming into the 2010 season, River Ave Blues filed this report on the young hurler. After being unprotected in the rule 5 draft, claimed and quickly returned, Nova put a few nice starts together in Trenton in 2009, earned a promotion to Scranton. With most of the Yankee pitching talent in the low minors to start 2010, Nova was an easy choice to add to the 40 man roster this offseason as there was a good chance he could provide depth for the Major League staff if injuries or Javy Vazquez came to pass. And here we are.

Nova comes in with a reputation as a bit of a worm-killer. He’s a tall-drink-of water, and his motion and action on the fastball (after he calmed down and found his 94 mph groove) and lack of a quality second pitch, reminded me of Chien Min Wang. I really liked Wang, even when he was forced to carry the load as the Yankees de facto ace. A healthy Wang is an ideal back-of-the-rotation innings eater. Solid, if unspectacular. I doubt that Nova could be as good as Wang, but, for now, I’d like to see more of him and less of some other guys.

Aside from a good fastball, however, Nova did not show much else. Filed under “not much else” should be that lame curve that Jose Bautista hit into the stands to pad his league leading total. The game was tied in the sixth when Nova sent a high fastball Bautista’s way (did he expect another non-breaking curve?). Notice I didn’t say high and inside. It might have been a little off the plate, but it never had a chance to hit the guy. It was exactly like that time Manny Ramirez lost his junk and caused all that commotion when Clemens threw a high, but not-that-inside, fastball back in the 2003 ALCS.

Anyway, Bautista decided to take serious offense and was looking to hit one a thousand feet his next time up in the eighth. He came  up a couple hundred feet short, but still deposited the game winning homer after turning on an inside heater by David Robertson. He styled to the extreme and relished his curtain call. Oh, how I wanted that to come back to bite his ass, but, alas. Earlier in the game, Flash mentioned Bautista has 38 home runs, and zero to the opposite field. He couldn’t imagine that the Yankees would pitch him inside in this series. He ended up hitting 2 inside pitches (mistakes, no doubt) over the left field wall for all of Toronto’s runs.

Bautista now has six home runs and twelve RBI versus the Yankees in 2010. And the Jays have taken six out of ten from the Yanks. The Red Sox already won, so all that’s left to do tonight is to root for the Angels (and clean the living room, do the dishes, take out the garbage, put the laundry away, check work emails). Go, uh, let’s see, Scott Kazmir. Hmm. That’s probably not going to work.

On another note, does anybody watch the Little League World Series? I tune in on occasion, but almost always turn it off quickly because the umpiring is so atrocious. The pitcher can get a strike any time he hits the catcher’s glove, no matter how far into the opposite batter’s box the catcher sets up. Jose Molina employs the same strategy. It never seemed to work for the Yankees, but it sure worked for the Blue Jays tonight. The one to Granderson in the ninth was closer to the on-deck circle than to home plate.

Yanks Jays.

No frills, just banter.

Ivan Nova, the World is Yours.

[Picture by Bags]

Sorry about this folks, but the Banter is taking the day off on the count of I’m sick at home. I twisted my lower back over the weekend and am in no position to be doing much of anything.

To keep you busy with baseball news, don’t forget to check out these spots:

Baseball Think Factory, Hardball Talk, The Pinstriped Bible, River Ave Blues and Was Watching.

Oh yeah, and check out this piece by Glenn Stout on Josh Beckett’s historically bad season:

How bad has Josh Beckett been? Using ERA and a minimum of fourteen starts as a measure, every other pitcher in Red Sox history – with one notable exception – has been NABAB – Not As Bad As Beckett. Matt Young in 1991? Sixteen Starts and a 5.18 ERA, but Not As Bad As Beckett. Danny Darwin in 1994? Thirteen starts and 6.30 – NABAB. Frank Castillo in 2002? NABAB. Ramon Martinez in 2000, Jerry Casale in 1960, Gordon Rhodes in 1935, Frank Heimach in 1926? You can look ‘em up, NABABs all. Even the immortal Joe Harris, who went 2-21 for the 1906 Red Sox, was NABAB – his ERA was a sparkling 3.52, a number Josh Beckett and Theo Epstein would both kill for. And the list goes on and on and on and on.

Somehow this historic achievement has gone unnoticed. In a season best defined by the disabled list it has been easy to overlook Beckett’s expressionless appearances on the mound. Then again, they’ve often been so brief he’s been easy to miss. The fact is even with all the injuries, if Josh Beckett was pitching like an average starting pitcher, rather than a historically bad one, the Red Sox would be making plans for October.

We’ll have a game thread up tonight for the game…

[Picture by Bags]

Much has been made of CC Sabathia’s prowess in Yankee Stadium.  Here was what Sunday’s Yankee “Game Notes” had on Sabathia’s hometown hammer:

CREATURE OF COMFORT: Is undefeated in his last 19 starts at Yankee Stadium – dating back to the 2009 All-Star break, posting a 14-0 record with a 2.27 ERA (135.0IP, 34ER) and a .207 opp BA. (100-for-483)…the Yankees have gone 17-2 in those starts…according to Elias, it is the longest active home winning streak in the Majors.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, it is the longest undefeated streak of starts by any pitcher at any stadium since Johan Santana’s 24-start undefeated streak at the Metrodome from 8/6/05-4/2/07.

Elias also notes it is the longest undefeated streak of starts by a Yankee at any stadium since Ron Guidry did not record a loss over 19 starts at the original Yankee Stadium from 5/4/85-4/29/86…should Sabathia not lose today, it will mark the longest home winning streak by a Yankee since Whitey Ford from 8/8/64-8/18/65 (21GS).

So, with his win today, he marches up the list of longest streaks without a loss at home.  Yes, that is *the* Kenny Rogers topping the list, with an amazing 38 consecutive starts at home without a loss, spread over four different teams over a nearly three year period.

It was raining at the Stadium this afternoon when Robinson Cano launched a gram slam into the bleachers. That gave the home team a 5-0 lead for CC Sabathia, more than enough even after a long rain delay. When it was all said and done, Cano had a career-high six RBI and the Score Truck put a ten spot on the board as the Bombers cruised to a 10-0 win. That’s win number 17 for CC.

Wet and damp in the Boogie Down today. Yanks look to win the series.

Go git ’em, boys!

[Picture by Bags]

From Diane Firstman…

It started ugly but ended, if not pretty, than well enough for the Yanks today in the Bronx as they beat the Mariners, 9-5. Ichiro! led off the game with a home run against Javier Vazquez and then Russell Branyon became the first man to hit a home run into the right field upper deck at the new Yankee Stadium (Branyon is also the only player to hit the Mohegan Sun bar in center). The Yanks scored four in the bottom of the first (two-run single by Robinson Cano and a two-run dinger by Jorge Posada) but Vazquez gave it back and didn’t last long–three innings. This after not making it into the fifth in his previous two starts.

Right now, it’s CC Sabathia and pray for the Score Truck…

Jason Vargas, meanwhile, retired fifteen straight Yankees after the tough first inning. The score remained tied at four until the bottom of the sixth when Eduardo Nunez got his first big league hit–punching a high change-up, well out of the strike zone, through the hole in the right side of the infield for an RBI single. The ball came back to the infield and was passed over to the Yankee dugout. On its way, Nunez, briefly held it. He was standing on first, smiling. He kissed the ball, smiled some more and tossed the ball to Gene Monahan, the Yankee trainer, for safe keeping.

The Yanks added a couple of more runs, then another one in the ninth on their way to the win. Mariano Rivera, that bum, that zero, that dog, allowed a run in the ninth raising his season ERA to 1.18 (bum!). Otherwise, the Yankee bullpen was terrific, especially Chad Gaudin, who pitched three scoreless innings.

A nice win for the Yanks, though another rotten outing for Vazquez does nothing to help the digestion. On top of that, Alex Rodriguez is headed to the DL. “We’re going to play it safe,” Joe Girardi said after the game. “We don’t think he’s any worse than the time before.”

Right-handed pitcher Ivan Nova will take his place on the active roster. Nova will make his first major league start on Monday.

* * * *

Elsewhere, around the majors, Cliff Lee got beaten about the face and neck again today, this time by the Orioles (eight runs in 5.2 innings). The Red Sox and Jays play at 7, the Rays are in Oakland again later tonight.

[Picture by Bags]

The summer is almost over. The city is relatively quiet. The farmer’s markets are bursting with corn and tomatoes and peaches and all that good stuff.

Javier Vazquez hasn’t impressed lately. Perhaps he turns it around today. We’ll be root, root, rootin’ him on.

Let’s Go Yan-Kees.

Taking the Mrs downtown for a bite today. We’re gunna go slurp some soup dumplings.

[Picture by Bags]

Or Corner’s Keener, as it was sometimes known, is making a comeback thanks to SNY.

This is good news, indeed. According to Richard Sandomir:

“Kiner’s Korner” is getting a new life online, providing Mets fans with a chance to see Ralph Kiner in his television heyday as the host of Channel 9’s postgame (and rain delay) show from a cramped studio in Shea Stadium.

Starting Tuesday, SNY.tv. will post the first of nine weekly webisodes that combine clips from Kiner’s postgame interviews and new chats between him and the host Ted Berg for the Mets network’s dip into nostalgia.

“When I’m in town or in the car, people yell out, ‘Kiner’s Korner,’” Kiner said by telephone Friday. “I can’t tell you how many people tell me that they grew up with ‘Kiner’s Korner.’”

The footage that will be seen is about all that is known to have been rediscovered. Only some of it is usable.

Nearly all the “Korners” are gone, tossed out or taped over at a time when few local stations, networks or teams understood the value of a video archive of their history and broadcasts.

Earlier this summer, former Yankee left-hander Dennis Rasmussen visited the Cooperstown area to play in the annual Hall of Fame Classic old-timers game. A six-foot, seven-inch left-hander with a good overhand curve, Rasmussen won 91 games and posted a 4.15 ERA over a 12-year career in the major leagues. The Yankees liked Rasmussen enough to trade for him twice–once as part of a deal for Tommy John and later as part of a package for Graig Nettles. At his best, Rasmussen won 18 games for the Yankees in 1986, one of five seasons in which he won in double figures. After a four-year stint with the Yankees, Rasmussen pitched for the Reds, Padres, Cubs, and Royals.

Approachable and friendly in spite of his intimidating size, Rasmussen talked about his previous visits to Cooperstown, the way that he dealt with being traded, and his feelings toward the Yankees.

Markusen: Dennis, coming to Cooperstown, this is very much Yankee country, and you’re wearing the pinstripes, a recognizable figure from the 1980s. What does it feel like when you see so many fans who remember you from 25 years ago?

Rasmussen: Well, it’s very refreshing and humbling at the same time. New York fans were the greatest fans ever. I was fortunate to play there my first four years in the big leagues [after a brief debut with the Padres]. And they haven’t forgotten me. I was just in the city, and I ran into a couple of people that recognized me. It’s kind of amazing. It probably has to a lot to do with my size. They figure I must have done something and then recognize me.

It’s a lot of fun coming to Cooperstown. I haven’t been here since ‘98, when I was coaching in the Red Sox’ chain. And then before that, I pitched in the ’87 Hall of Fame game against the Braves, which was a big thrill. I didn’t know it at the time, but that was a make-or-break game for me. I was told to bring all my stuff to meet the Yankees and join them on a road trip. I pitched well enough to join them, I pitched seven innings, gave up one run. They told me, “Kid, you’re on the bus. You’re joining us back in New York.” So that was a big thrill.

Today was great. The clinic we did yesterday [in Cooperstown] was great. We had about 150 kids who came out for a free clinic. A great weekend.

Markusen: What did you work on with the kids at the clinic?

Rasmussen: I happened to be at the pitching station, but I’ve done a lot of different parts to the clinic. Just teaching them some of the basics, like we always do [with the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association]. We showed them how to throw the ball, depending on how old they are; I stressed to them the importance of going to school, getting the job done in the classroom, and being a good sport.

I always enjoy asking them the question, “What is the best pitch in baseball?” They normally can’t answer. Of course, I tell them, “It’s a strike.” They like that!

Markusen: Tell us what it was like for you after you had success here, winning 18 games, and then I believe it was the following year, you’re traded to the Reds for right-hander Bill Gullickson. Was that a devastating thing that happened, was that real difficult?

Rasmussen: I wouldn’t say it was devastating. I looked at everything as a new opportunity. I was looking forward to that. I guess when you’re getting traded, somebody wants you. And I always looked at it that way.

I was there a brief time, in Cincinnati, and then went on to San Diego. I had some pretty good years there and continued to develop as a young pitcher. I looked at every place, and every release, and surely every trade, as an opportunity, and took advantage of those opportunities. That’s the nature of the game, and most of the guys will tell you that you’re going to get a series of jolts. It’s going to go up and down. You take advantages of certain opportunities at the right time, and you’ll look back at it, and you’ll have played 10, 12, 14 years.

Markusen: You can’t have too many bad feelings for the Yankees, because you’re wearing the pinstripes today.

Rasmussen: Oh, I have great feelings for them. They treated me great. I enjoy working Yankee fantasy camp. It’s a lot of fun wearing the pinstripes, plus they’re probably slenderizing. [laughing] So that might be part of it. But no, it was my first true opportunity to play in the big leagues. When I got called up in 1984, [manager] Yogi Berra said, “Kid, you’re here. You’re gonna get the ball every five days. Show us what you can do” And I did. I took every start–one pitch, one hitter, one inning at a time–and didn’t want to give up the ball every fifth day.

(more…)

It was over before it started. Ichiro singled to begin the game last night and Chone Figgins followed with a walk before Russell Branyon hit a long three-run homer, putting the Yankees in a hole that they would not climb out of against the dominant Felix Hernandez who tossed another gem at ’em in the Bronx. Actually, dominant might be overstating things, the man only threw eight shut-out innings this time, and didn’t have the nerve or reserve to finish them out. By that time, the game was in hand, however, as the Mariners skipped to a 6-0 win.

The bad news is that Alex Rodriguez had to come out of the game after just one at-bat. He hasn’t been placed on the DL but is back to being day-to-day.

Good news from out-of-town helped ease any hard feelings Yankee fans might have. The Red Sox were pounded at Fenway to the tune of 16-2, and the A’s staged a late-inning comeback to beat the Rays, 5-4. Yanks are still in first, ahead of the Rays by a game and in front of the Sox by six. And although Jason Vargas, today’s pitcher for the Mariners, has been outstanding this year, the Yankees can at least take stock in the fact that he’s not a King.

The Mariners are in town for a three-game series this weekend. As usual, our man Cliff has the preview over at the Pinstriped Bible.

Felix Hernandez has pitched thrown two complete games against the Yanks this year, allowing just one run. 

Here’s hoping to woim toins tonight and the Yanks show the King who is:

Let’s Go Yan-Kees!

[Picture by Bags]

Herman Leonard, the famed jazz photographer passed away last weekend. He was 87. Here is some of his work:

Duke Ellington

Sinatra

Miles

Art Blakey

Dexter Gordon

Thank you, Mr. Leonard. You left us some bounty.

Off the Broiler is off the chain in this piece about the perfect BLT:

Say Word.

The Man Who Loved Women (and the women who loved him right back):

Man, I love this movie, a real beaut by Robert Towne, Hal Ashby and company:

George: Let’s face it. I f***ed them all. That’s what I do. That’s why I went to beauty school. They’re always there, and l…I don’t know why I’m apologizing. So sometimes I f*** them. I go into that shop and they’re so great-looking. I do their hair. They feel and smell great. I’d be on the street…at a stoplight, or go into an elevator. There’s…a beautiful girl. I don’t know. That’s it. It makes my day. It makes me feel like I’m gonna live forever. As far as I’m concerned with what I’d liked to have done in my life…I know I should’ve accomplished more but I have no regrets. I mean…Maybe that means I don’t love them. Maybe it means I don’t love you. Nobody’s gonna tell me I don’t like them very much.

While we’re in the Eighties, here goes one of my favorites from those fun-lovin’ sombitches, Van Halen:

I was never a huge Van Halen head like some of my friends but their David Lee Roth records bring me back to middle school, and dag, a lot of those records really kicked ass. Still do, though Eddie’s guitar playing style sounds dated to me now. Can’t believe anyone would prefer Van Hagar to the original. Once they parted ways with Diamond Dave, they didn’t have the same magic.

Aw, hell, here’s another one that always makes me smile: