One year ago today, I wrote my first post here at Bronx Banter. It was about Bill James going to work for the Red Sox. I had been thinking about writing about baseball for some time when my friend Steve hipped me to the world of blogs. In a short time, I set up my own page, with considerable help from John Perricone, and I was off and running.

One year later, writing about baseball every day–or almost every day–has become an intrinsic part of my life. I have made many new friends, and don’t know if I can express how meaningful that has been for me. After all, part of what attracts me to baseball is that it is a way to connect with people.

I never anticipated that I would have a core of regular readers or that I would have the opportunity to interview so many interesting public figures. It just goes to show what a little ambition and a lot of persistence can get you. I’ve always enjoyed reading long, meaty interviews, and it is gratifying to know that I’m not alone. (By the way, if anybody ever has a suggestion about someone they would like me to talk with, don’t hesitate to send me an e-mail.)

I don’t pretend to be a baseball expert. I just can’t bring myself to be that presumptuous. What I do know is what it’s like to be a Yankee fan. So I stick to what I know. I’ve rooted for the Yankees ever since I can remember, and have consciously followed each season since I was eight years old (1979). I try to write an honest, amusing and informative blog, and I think I’ve been able to do just that.

Thanks for coming through. I look forward to another great year with you.

Joe Torre’s father was an abusive lout. Torre will appear on NBC’s “Dateline” this Sunday to talk about his experiences.

Yesterday David Pinto linked a new baseball blog written by an openly gay man. That is a first of sorts. The site is called Ball Talk and it is written by a guy named Alex Ciepley, who is a Cubs fan. I would expect Alex to write more about the baseball from the perspective of a Cubs fan, and not specifically a Gay Cubs fan. Still, it’s great to have Ciepley’s voice out there. Welcome aboard.

Bryan Smith continues his Hot Stove Reports over at Wait ‘Til Next Year. He taps Ben Jacobs and Jeff Kuhn for the state of the Red Sox. This is a particularly detailed article (Ben Jacobs is especially thorough). Bryan contributes his own take this morning. This will be a fascinating year for Boston considering how many of their core players are up for free agency at the end of the 2004 season. I was struck with how measured and rational all three analysis’ were. There is no call for mega trades and huge free agent signings. One thing seems sure: In Theo We Trust.

If you have any interest in Red Sox Nation, you will do yourself a favor and brush up on your Bosox. Great job fellas.

The big news this morning involves Andy Pettitte’s decision to test the free agency waters. There is some speculation that the Yankees are not a lock to re-sign Pettitte, but I still think they are the front-runners. I expect that the Yankees will let teams like the Astros set the market before they overwhelm the southpaw with an offer of their own. Could he sign elsewhere? Of course. But again, Andy Pettitte will rue the day he signs with a team like Houston over the Yankees; he needs the Bombers as much as they need him.

Today’s gossip revolves around Arizona’s right-handed ace, Curt Schilling. Apparently, George would love to replace Rocket Clemens with the 37-year old Schilling. What the Yankees would have to part with (Nick Johnson?) is uncertain. I think Schilling is a loud mouthed shnook, but he is still a stud on the mound, and he probably has a few stellar years left in the tank. The question is: How many, and at what price?

Tyler Kepner has a good history of hitting and pitching coaches in the Steinbrenner era this morning in The Times (who remembers that Champ Summers once served as the hitting coach in the Bronx?). Boss George loves to tweek his managers by abusing their coaches. Rick Down offers some good insights.

Bob Raissman spoke with Yankee announcer Jim Kaat yesterday and as usual Kitty Kaat didn’t pull any punches:

“I thought the Yankees overachieved,” Kaat said over the telephone from his Florida home. “Go man-for-man with Boston, even the Marlins. Who would you rather have at this stage of their career? Well, a few years ago the Yankees would have had an overwhelming number of players you would pick. That’s not the case anymore.”

…”Because they are the Yankees, and they spend a lot of money, and because of the demands of George (Steinbrenner), everybody automatically thinks they should win the World Series,” Kaat said. “A lot of the money being paid to guys is being paid for what they did in the past.”

…’It’s not that Yankee players don’t have the right attitude, but there is such an atmosphere there that if they win it is a relief,” Kaat said. “Lately there has been no joy. No enjoyment. Now it’s like if you don’t win the World Series you’ve had a miserable year.”

Bah Humbug.

UNDER THE RADAR

By Tim Marchman

Tim Marchman writes about baseball for The New York Sun and is one of the brightest voices currently working in the alternative press. He had a piece today that is worth bringing to your attention, but because it is difficult to link to The Sun on-line, Tim has generously agreed to let me reprint the article for “Bronx Banter.”

Frank Coonelly may be the most powerful person in baseball youíve never heard of.

Coonellyís job title is chief labor counsel for Major League Baseball. One AL executive told me that so far as he knew,Coonelly “coordinates our side on the arbitration stuff” and that he is on managementís committee on salaries and relations with the union. Doug Pappas, who is the chairman of the Society for American Baseball Researchís Business of Baseball Committee, puts it this way: “Coonelly is in charge of monitoring compliance with suggested draft bonuses and free-agent negotiations.”

Aside from Pappas, no one I talked to wanted to say anything about Coonelly on the record, and he didnít answer a phone message I left at his office yesterday. But an article by the Seattle Post-Intelligencerís John Hickey on Mariners pitcher Freddy Garciaís salary arbitration case earlier this year is telling. Coonelly, in an unusual

David Pinto has an forthright and instructional post today about “How to Become a Stat Head.” Keep this one handy in case you ever run across someone who would like to learn about sabermetrics but doesn’t necessarily know where to start.

Here is more from Red Smith, on the agony of writing:

I don’t enjoy the actual labor of writing. I love my job, but I find one of the disadvantages is the several hours at the typewriter each day. That’s how I pay for this nice job. And I pay pretty dearly. I sweat. I bleed. I’m a slow writer.

…When I began doing a column…I found it wasn’t something that I could rip off the top of my head. I had to do it painstakingly. I’m always unhappy, very unhappy, at anything that takes less than two hours. I can do it in two hours, if I must. But my usual answer to the question, “How long does it take to write a column?” is “How much time do I have?” If I have six hours, I take it. I wish I could say that the ones that take six hours turn out better. Not necessarily. But I will say this: I do think that, over three hundred days, effort pays off. If you do the best you can every day, taking as much time as necessary, or as much time as you have, then it’s going to be better than if you brushed it off.

“No Cheering in the Press Box” was released in 1973, and along with Lawrence Ritter’s seminal work, “The Glory of Our Times,” remains one of the great oral histories in baseball literature.

The Mets officially introduced Rick Peterson as their new pitching coach yesterday. Again, I think this should give Mets fans something to be excited about, as Peterson has earned his reputation as one of the best in the business.

When I was growing up, Reggie Jackson was my favorite player. He dominanted my thoughts; he was my idol. Ron Guidry and Willie Randolph came next, but they were a distant second. The irony is when I played baseball—through high school–I actually modeled myself on Randolph, the quiet, but solid professional. Reggie was the perfect hero for a child; Randolph is the ideal role-model for an adult.

Harvey Araton has a piece in The Times this morning about why Willie should be next in line as Yankee skipper (an assumption that Don Mattingly agrees with):

He has come to work, done his job, never once embarrassed the uniform he wore. One day last season he mentioned to me how a reporter had asked him before a game against the Red Sox if he felt entitled to succeed Torre. Randolph said he couldn’t believe someone who knew anything about him would have thought he would answer, at that time or any time. “I would never talk about it out of respect to that man in there,” he said, nodding toward the manager’s office.

The Yankee realist in me thinks that Randolph is unlikely to ever manage in the Bronx. To be fair, I don’t know if he’d actually be good at the job, but it’s simply too sensible to ever happen in Boss George’s world. But stranger things have happened. After all, how long has Joe Torre been managing the Yanks now?

I spoke with Christian Ruzich, The Cub Reporter, who recently lost his home in the wild fires that ravaged southern California. He is alive and doing as well as can be expected. Ruz and his wife, Darryl were in Europe when their house went up in flames. Would you believe that Christian works in the fire-insurance business? Fortunately, they were able to place a call to a co-worker before the fire claimed their home, and Darryl’s wedding dress, as well as many of their photographs were saved. (As I mentioned earlier, so were their dogs as well as their automobiles.)

Instead of flying directly home, Christian and D chose to stay in Paris for a few days. They went to the Louvre, and then went to the movies. They needed an escape. So they went to see Clint Eastwood’s skillfully constructed, yet emotionally opaque, “Mystic River.” Talk about a pick-me-up. Yeesh.

Ruz is back home in California now, and he is doing OK. One thing that is certain is that Christian has been absolutely humbled by the amount of support that he has recieved from the internet community. I suggested to him that the love he’s gotten is a reflection of what a good man he is. Not that people wouldn’t have sympathized with him regardless, but if he were a shmuck, I doubt folks would have reached out to him in the same fashion.

Good morning, readers. What better way to start the day, than some words of wisdom from the late, great sportswriter, Red Smith:

Over the years people have said to me, “Isn’t it dull covering baseball every day?” My answer used to be “It becomes dull only to dull minds.” Today’s game is always different from yesterday’s game. If you have the perception and the interest to see it, and the wit to express it, your story is always different from yesterday’s story. I thoroughly enjoyed covering baseball daily.

I still think every game is different, not that some of them aren’t dull, but it’s a rare person who lives his life without encountering dull spots. It’s up to the writer to take a lively interest and see the difference.

This quote was lifted from Jerome Holtzman’s fine collection of interviews with old time sports writers, “No Cheering From the Press Box.” (More later…)

Donald Hall is a poet as well as a baseball fan. He co-wrote Doc Ellis’ autiobiography, “The Country of Baseball,” and also appeared in Ken Burns’ “Baseball” documentary. If you are looking to fill your off-season reading list, Hall has a book of sports essays called, “Fathers Playing Catch With Sons.” The collection as a whole is well worth reading, but there is one article that I especially like: “Proseball: Sports, Stories, and Style,” (1982) a criticial examination of baseball writing and literature. (The article is dated, but Hall’s observations are still interesting.)

Hall’s analysis is sharp without being vicious. He calls out newspaper hacks (Chass), as well as pompous eggheads (Updike). However, he fawns over Roger Angell, and admires Peter Gammons and Tom Boswell (as well as Roger Kahn). I’ve never been a huge fan of Kahn’s work, but Angell, Gammons and Boswell are three of my favorite baseball writers. Hall’s description of Angell’s talent is spot on:

Angell’s prose is graceful and pleasant, with never a misstep, never cliche or corn or overstatement or pomposity. What a pleasure it is to read him, like the pleasure of watching effortless fielding around second base: Angell can pick it. And his overall essay construction, as well as the dance of syntax and the proportion of analogies, makes for our pleasure. He paces his paragraphs with a perfection of tact–up and down, slow and fast, back and forth–leading readers lightly, giving them just enough of each subject to leave them wanting more. I watch his essayistic trickery with admiration and despair, much as a beer league softball pitcher might observe Luis Tiant.

As for Gammons, Hall opines:

Peter Gammons is strictly a newspaper writer; he left the Globe for a year at Sports Illustrated and wasted his talent. He writes a lively, tight, observant game story, and he excels at the background column. His prose is witty, authoritative, and factual, strong with moral judgement, like an eighteenth-century historian’s.

Next, Hall dubs Boswell, “the other great newspaper baseball writer of our day:”

Unlike Gammons, Boswell is inconsistent, and unlike Gammons, he is not limited to newsprint…Boswell is pure scholar of the sport as well as a naturally gifted prose writer. He is quick to write a game story on a word processor, and when he slows down to write for a monthly magazine, his pace remains lively.

But here is the kicker:

Writers are as different as athletes, who perpetually divide themselves into those who feel natural in what they do, born to their skills, and those who pride themselves on the difficulty with which they learned those skills. The first type climbed from the crib with the eye’s ability to discriminate the spin of a slider. The second, instead, listened to an American Legion coach explain the virtues of the batting stance; at the hundred-thousandth repetition, the lesson was learned…Thus, there are writers who boast about the number of their revisions, and others who brag about their facility. No doubt we are never quite what we think we are or what we pretend to be; no doubt the difference represents character more than history; yet character differences are as appreciable as history. Roger Angell writes as if he practiced, Thomas Boswell as if he didn’t, Peter Gammons as if he didn’t need to.

I am in no way trying to compare myself with any of these great writers, but if I had to critique myself, I’d say I write as if I didn’t practice (and boy does it show), but I strive to be more like Angell, who writes as if he did practice. (Actually, that’s not entirely true: writing a blog every day has to count for some kind of practice.) I don’t think I’m talented enough to fantasize about being a member of the third category. All I know is that writing is very difficult, and that these three writers–along with Hall–allow the reader to enjoy the fruits of their labor with a kind of pleasure that can seduce you into believing that this stuff is actually easy to do.

Don Mattingly was officially introduced as the Yankees’ new hitting coach yesterday. After spending the last eight years on his farm in Indiana, it was time to return to baseball. Just ask his wife Kim, who got Boss George on the phone last week:

A booming voice said, “Big Man.”

Kim answered, “It’s Big Woman.”

“Where’s Donnie?”

“He’s at the farm.”

“I want to talk to him Kimmy, I really want him up here.”

“Then it just kind of flew out of my mouth,” Kim Mattingly related yesterday at Yankee Stadium. “Before I could stop myself, I said, ‘You know what, I think it’s time he comes back your way. I’m glad I got you on the phone, I want to tell you that.’

“So then when I get hold of Donnie, I say, ‘You need to come home right away and call Mr. Steinbrenner.’

“He asked, ‘Why?’ And I just said, ‘You just need to come home and talk to him. I just told him you need to go back to coaching. And Donnie said, ‘What?!’ “
(Kernan: New York Post)

With his wife giving her blessings, Mattingly returns to New York, where he will presumably start the second part of his career in baseball. John Harper has a good take on Mattingly in the Daily News today and suggests that Donnie Baseball’s much-publicized humility and work ethic are anything but phoney.

Mattingly wasn’t born yesterday either. He understands how things work in Boss George’s Universe:

“You don’t get out of here alive…Everybody talks to me about ‘It’s great to have you back’ and whatever. I am not naive in the fact that if the ballclub isn’t swinging the bat after a month that I am going to be on the hot seat. That’s the way it is here, and you relate that to guys and hopefully help them out.”

…”There is pressure to play here and do the job,” Mattingly said. “You can’t be a guy who comes to New York afraid of performing. I think the same thing is expected as a coach. You have a job to do and I am not afraid of that. I feel I can help guys. I am not a savior or anything else, but I bring something to the table.”

As expected, Willie Randolph will replace Don Zimmer as Joe Torre’s bench coach and Luis Sojo will become the first base coach. Lee Mazzilli will coach third unless he is hired to manage the Orioles.

In other Yankee news, Andy Pettitte will become a free agent and test the market. This doesn’t mean that the Yankees won’t still sign him. In fact, it would come as a surprise if Pettitte didn’t return to the Bronx next year. The Yankees declined to pick up Boomer Wells’ option, making the hefty lefty a free agent. There is still a possibility that he could return as well. Felix Heredia also filed for free agency–declining a player option for 2004—but Yankee GM, Brian Cashman maintains that the Yankees are interested in signing both Heredia and Gabe White. Allen Barra thnks bringing the two lefty relievers back is the right move.

Lastly, Mike Mussina won the gold glove for the best fielding pitcher in the American League. Four Seattle Mariners were awarded Gold Gloves, and the M’s made their fans happy yesterday by signing Edgar Martinez to a one-year deal. Somewhere, Derek Zumsteg is smiling.

Larry Mahnken has some ideas about how the Yankees should look in 2004. Warning: if you do not root for the Yankees, I think you’ll be seeing red by the time you finish Larry’s most recent article. Still, Mahnken’s stuff is worth reading. He is a passionate fan with a talent for analysis. Oh yeah, he knows how to write too.

Bryan Smith continues his Hot Stove reports this week, covering the Giants with Matt Durham of The Southpaw, and the A’s with fellas over at Elephants in Oakland. These are wonderfully in-depth posts. It’s hard not to be impressed with just how bright and well-informed some blogger-analysts–like the guys at Elephants in Oakland–are. Well worth the trip.

Billy Wagner is sad to be leaving Houston, and he’s offended that nobody in the Astros front office had the decency to talk to him about the trade in person:

“There’s no hard feelings about being traded, because I knew it was coming,” Wagner told the Chronicle from his home in Virginia. “I just don’t see the respect. If you’re going to try to show me up, that’s just disrespectful. I never said anything negative about them. I just said what I thought we should do to win.”

…”If you’re trying to win a championship, you don’t get rid of a closer you continually say is one of the best,” Wagner said. “If you want to win, you don’t cut salary. That’s just common sense.”

Jayson Stark covers the trade over at ESPN, and confirms the Astros interest in Andy Pettitte.

Meanwhile, the White Sox hired Ozzie Guillen as their new manager yesterday. It will be interesting to see if the affable Guillen gets the White Sox to play the spirited kind of ball that Tony Pena got out of the Royals this past year.

Jay Jaffe has a great post about The Cub Reporter, Christian Ruzich over at Futility Infielder. Edward Cossette offered his thoughts on Ruz’s recent loss yesterday. Will Carroll and I were talking about how we can offer support Ruz, and for the time being I think Jay has the right idea:

Ruz already has a means of accepting donations to support his weblog via PayPal. If you’re reading this, I ask you to consider digging a little something out of your wallet. It’s not going to bring his home or his possessions back, but it will remind him that he’s got a lot of people pulling for him, and taken altogether, the money might be enough to replace an item that really meant something to him.

I couldn’t have said it better myself.

Later this afternoon, the Yankees will announce that Don Mattingly–one of the most popular players in team history–will return to the Bronx next season as hitting coach. This is a move that is certain to appease Yankee fans. Outside of New York, I doubt that anyone will even raise an eyebrow. And if they do it will be to wonder why Mattingly is so venerated in New York.

The New York papers are speculating that Willie Randolph will replace Don Zimmer as bench coach, and if Lee Maz isn’t hired to manage the Orioles, he will move from first to third, opening first for Luis Sojo. Former Yankee cather, Joe Girardi was offered Sojo’s gig as special assignment coach, but turned it down. Mel Stottlemyre is still a question mark to return as pitching coach, but it’s my feeling that he’ll be back too.

I don’t know how much better the Yankees offense will be next season simply because Mattingly is the hitting coach. I tend to think that the importance of a hitting coach is inflated. However, as a ceremonial move, I absolutely love it. According to Bill Madden, so does George. I was thirteen years old when Mattingly played his first full season (1984), and he was one of my favorite players during my teenage years. He was the patron Saint of Joe Torre’s Yankees: The Man Who Wasn’t There.

Mattingly was still active when Derek Jeter, Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada got their first glimpse of the Majors, and Bernie Williams played with him for several seasons. The Yankees are hoping that Mattingly will help the Yankee offense become more selective and patient. Mattingly didn’t strike out much during his career, but he also didn’t walk much either. Mattingly’s season-high in walks was 61 (1993). For his career, Mattingly whiffed 444 times and walked 588 times. Mattingly was a line drive hitter, who put the ball in play.

Tom Boswell remarked on Mattingly’s talent back 1985 (from the collection “Heart of the Order”):

For historical reference, the Musial analogy works [with Mattingly]. Left-handed hitter. Eccentric closed and coiled stance. Sprays the ball. Tons of doubles. Not too many walks. Hard to strike out.

“He doesn’t look like Musial, but he hits like him,” says Orioles manager Earl Weaver. “Musial was the best at adjusting once the ball left the pitcher’s hand. He’d hit the pitcher’s pitch. Williams was the best at making them throw his pitch. He didn’t believe in adjusting. If it wasn’t what he wanted, he knew enough to walk to first base. That’s why he hit .406.

Once every coupla games, a Musial or Mattingly is going to adjust and put that tough pitch in play instead of walking and you’re going to get some extra outs. But he’s also going to drive you crazy by popping a perfect fastball on the fists down the left-field line for a double.”

Perhaps Mattingly can help Soriano or Aaron Boone a bit, but what he really brings to the team, is a solid work ethic. He was a grinder as a player, and I’m sure he’ll be a grinder as a coach (to be fair, it was often said that Rick Down was one of the hardest workers on the Yankee staff last year as well). Mattingly is young enough to command respect from the players, and he fits right in with Randolph, Sojo and Torre. While it may make Yankee-haters roll their eyes, it sure feels good to have Donnie Baseball back in the Bronx.

Things just got more difficult for the Mets and the rest of the National League East. Peter Gammons is reporting that the Phillies have traded starting pitcher Brandon Duckworth to the Astros in exchange for closer Billy Wagner. The teams are scheduled to have a press conference this afternoon. We’ll know more later in the day.

Worried Yankee fans can breath a sigh of relief: Wagner will not be a Red Sox. Greedy Yankee fans: Go Fly a Kite. He won’t be wearing Pinstripes either.