Hotlanta! Saturday/Sunday Report

Saturday morning actually brings the final indignity, as housekeeping inexplicably knocks on the door at 9 AM (two hours before checkout, and even though I had put the sign out) and pokes their head in to ask if I’m checking out today.

The game’s at 4:00, so I have some time to kill. First I head over to check into the hotel I already paid for the previous night. In my head I am contemplating the worst complaint letter in the history of the world, it may well topple the whole hotel chain. In the end, I decide not to be so negative, and not tear someone a new asshole when I get there. I calmly inform them of what happened and they agree to refund the previous night’s fee.

This room’s better than the Econo Lodge (in that it’s not 80+ degree), and it even has internet! ESPN’s showing some car auction or something, so there’s no reason to stick by the TV. I decided to make a driving tour of downtown Atlanta. Not sure if I even saw the downtown, but I did see the other sports arenas and some Olympic stuff.

I decided to park in the same spot I had the previous night for this game, and once again walk it. The official box score says that the game temperature was 95 degrees. That was taken at 4:00 PM. I walked to the park at about 3:00 PM, when the temp was a few degrees higher, the (somewhat high) gauge in the car was reading 104. The pads of my feet were burning by the time the 10 block walk was behind me. The pavement was so hot from the sun that the layer of rubber wasn’t enough to fully shield the high temperatures. It was definitely Hotlanta that day. As promised, here's some pictures of the sketchy walk to the park:

There was only standing room seats for the game, Justin Verlander, two starts removed from a no hitter, versus Kyle Davies. I made my way into a batch of open seats on the first base side, but was thwarted by bad luck, as the next people that came had those exact seats and I got booted. Thus, I spent the first several innings standing, which really wasn’t a bad thing, seeing as I was directly behind home plate.

Verlander was mowing them down. The Tigers scratched out a run in the 2^nd, and another run in the 4^th on a Carlos Guillen solo shot. Chipper Jones answered with a solo shot in the bottom of the 4^th and the score sat at 2-1 frame after frame. Verlander ended up striking out 11 (which I didn’t realize until after the game, the Ted doesn’t give you a pitchers cumulative in-game stats besides pitch count).

It was a nailbiter, and the Tigers’ up and down bullpen certainly put a few men on base, but they got it to “Roller Coaster” himself, Todd Jones in the ninth. I got to see history, as Jones struck out Brian McCann to start the 9^th. McCann argued the call, Bobby Cox came out as well and got thrown out for the 131^st time in his career, tying the all time record for ejections. He locked it down and the Tigers were winners again, this time 2-1.

It was an uneventful night. Next day I got on the road early, making a brief stop in Auburn, AL to take a picture of their massive football stadium.

On the return back I decided to skip the Biscuits game. I passed through Montgomery around noon, and didn’t want to kick around until 5 waiting for the game to start. Plus, game three of the Tigers/Braves series was on ESPN, and I wanted to see it on TV, having been to the first two games in person. Turns out to be a good thing, as I had misread their schedule, and they were actually on the road that day.

So I just headed back to Mobile. On the way I heard Andy Gresh who I used to hear on Rhode Island sports talk, on EPSNradio which was weird. Once I got back into town I got myself a Hardee’s Thickburger and called it a weekend.

Hotlanta! Friday Report

So when I found out I was coming down to ‘bama I was all bummed out, seeing as it meant I was going to miss seeing the Tigers play at Fenway. I did some looking into which ballpark was the closest but none were really all that close. Basically it was: Atlanta – 5 hours, Houston or Tampa – 7 hours, Arlington or Miami – 10 hours. I thought about heading to one of those cities but at first it never even occurred to me to see if the Tigers were playing one of those teams in interleague.

A few weeks back, after reading an article in which Chipper Jones bitched about the Braves’ tough schedule I decided to see if the Tigers played the Braves. Sure enough, they were scheduled to play in Atlanta June 22 thru 24. To Travelocity I went and booked myself a room for Friday night. The plan was to bounce from work around noonish on Friday, blast up to Hotlanta, see the Friday night game, stay Friday night, see the Saturday afternoon game, then jet back to Mobile.

Soon after I decided to extend the trip, taking in a Montgomery Biscuits (AA) game in Montgomery, Alabama on my way back on Sunday. Off I went to Travelocity again to book Saturday night at the same place.

I bounced out of work on Friday at noon on the dot. Google Maps figured the trip would take me 5 hours. Unfortunately, I had forgotten about the difference in time zones, so this meant I only had an hour’s margin for error in which to find the stadium, park nearby (but not so close by that I had to pay, which would probably necessitate a 15 minutes walk) scalp tickets, and then get into a seat (although probably not the one I was ticketed for). Of course, there’s really nothing between Mobile and Atlanta besides brief passes through Montgomery, AL and Auburn, AL (home of the college football powerhouse of the same name). With a few hours averaging over 80 mph, I was able to buy some time and get into Hotlanta with plenty of time to spare. It also helped that the game actually started at 7:30, rather than 7:00.

The area around the ballpark left MUCH to be desired. Needless to say, there were areas one would be afraid to walk alone at night. Parking lots immediately near the stadium were all offering parking at the low-low price of $20. All the streets surrounding the park, if you dared to park and walk, had signs requiring resident parking passes. I eventually went down a major thoroughfare (not quite as sketchy, but still bad) and ultimately parking a good 10 blocks or so from the park in a decent residential area. 15 minutes of walking brought me to the park. It turns out scalping is outlawed within 2700 feet (half a mile!) of the park, so that was right out. So I was forced to shell out $12 (I was hoping to pay a scalper $7) for stratosphere seats.

The Ted was a nice park. It didn’t really have any features that made it exceptional. It had statues of the franchise’s greats out front, but these can be found in most parks. Probably the most noteworthy aspect of the park is that the bullpens are open above. You can stand at a railing and look right down on the pitcher warming up (actually, he’s about 5 feet under the overhang for beer-poured-on-visiting-players-related-reasons). This was the first start of the season for the just-off-the-DL Kenny Rogers, and he was matched up against John Smoltz in a battle of the oldsters.

Being only one person, I was easily able to make my way into vastly superior seats probably 50 rows from the field. The Ted only had ushers from first base wrapped around to third base. If you were further down the line, they didn’t seem to be as aggressive in ticket checking. In any event I settled into the seat and only left once (the obligatory beer run).

The game itself went by pretty quick. Smoltz and Rogers matched zeros (although I had my doubts when Kenny beaned the first batter he faced) until the 6^th inning. The Tigers exploded for 5 runs in the top of the 6^th and that was it. I moved out to centerfield for the last half inning, to be closer to the exit, as well as to get a different vantage point.

It was a fireworks night at the park, which I didn’t stick around for. I hiked back to the car as quickly as possible. Much of the route was poorly lit, but the walk went by uneventfully. I was only scared for 9 ½ of the 10 block walk. Little did I know my adventure for the evening was far from being over.

I headed for my hotel. My first thought that I might have problems was that I was able to get a room through Travelocity for the obscene price of $30. I’d printed directions from the park to the hotel and had not trouble finding it. I rolled up at 11:01 PM. The hotel lobby was dark. That’s Ok I thought, they probably have someone onsight, they’ve just retreated to the back room. My Travelocity printout informed me that the lobby was open until 11, and instructed me to ring the bell after 11 to check in. No problem.

Problem.

Bang on the door. Ring the bell. Walk around the perimeter, maybe they are making a tour of the grounds. Walk around the building and look in the windows. Bang on the door some more. Call the phone number, and get sent right to voicemail. Ring the bell some more. Contemplate all sorts of vandalism. Contemplate calling 911 so that the hotel owner is notified and shows up. Call Travelocity. After 20 minutes on the phone, Travelocity offers to book another hotel for the low cost of $90. Take out your anger on the guy on the phone, sarcastically citing Travelocity’s “we’ll make it right” guarantee. Wait on hold longer. Get Travelocity to eat the cost of another hotel. Depart the hotel you’ve already paid for at 11:45. Find the Airport Econo Lodge based on a vague recollection of passing the airport coming into town.

So after that joyous ordeal I was at the Econo Lodge, all checked in. I was looking forward to some air conditioning, jumping online for a little bit (the sign out front advertised that they had wireless internet) and then some sleep. Up to the room I go, and man is it warm, probably 80 or 82. The Ec has a remote control style thermostat for adjusting the air conditioning. There’s a bracket on the wall to hold the remote. And that’s it. No remote, just the bracket to hold it. No way to turn the AC on. Nice.

Ok, I figure, let’s fire up the laptop and check the old fantasy team. The laptop can’t find a wireless network. After making the tour of the room with the laptop looking for a spot that works, and trying to using the power cord as a crude antenna, I call down to the front desk. I’m informed that they don’t have the internet yet. So THAT’S what the sign meant when it said “Free Wireless Internet.” Now it’s bedtime so I go to set the alarm, and in the final indignity, the clock is broken and doesn’t even display the time. So ends the Friday adventure.

Thank you Todd Jones

For finally getting me fully invested in the 2007 Detroit Tigers.

I unabashedly loved the 2006 Tigers. Baseball is my favorite sport, and I've stuck with the Tigers through a lot of losing. I watched them probably 120 times in 2006. I wept when they made it to the World Series. I wept even more when they got bounced. I am not ashamed to admit this. They brought me a lot of joy.

I hadn't become emotionally invested in the 2007 team. I've watched most of their games, but it hasn't been the same. Until tonight.

I have Todd Jones to thank.

Not 15 minutes after I posted about the Chinese Water Torture that has been the Tigers bullpen, Todd showed me real terror. That sickening feeling of dread/horror in my stomach as Todd gave up single, after single, after triple, after single, after double fully sucked me in to Tigers 2007. I'm finally emotionally invested.

He managed to somehow nail down an incredibly shaky 9th inning and preserve the win. For that, I suppose I should also thank him.

An unexpected major league debut

SO I'm taking in the Tigers/Nats game still. The game went from a 9-1 laugher to a much closer 9-5 score due to the Tigers' predictably mediocre bullpen. I swear Jason Grilli (who, to be fair worked 1 1/3 scoreless tonight) haunts my dreams.

Anyway, it turns out that the Tigers called up one of their many hotshot pitching prospects today, Eulogio de la Cruz. I had heard that the Tigers shifted him back to starting this season, but then shifted him again recently, back to the bullpen. This is a move directly caused by the suckitude of the likes of Jose Mesa.

Eulogio made it safely through a scoreless inning of work in his major league debut. He did display some nerves, bouncing a 55 footer to the plate at one point. In an inning of work, he pretty much pitched like BP2007 predicted. BP2007 says that he has 3 good pitches, but sometime lacks command. Well, as I said, he certainly was a little scattershot with the aim, but he did have a good arsenal. He features a high 90's fastball, a change, and a curve. In one at bat he dropped a nasty curve on the batter after throwing him a 98 mph heater the previous pitch.

It's only one inning, and it is the Nats, but Eulogio is a guy to watch. His fantasy impact is likely minimal, but maybe he can help relieve the Tigers of the Chinese Water Torture that has been a consistently awful bullpen.

He DeLines one to left....

That quote has always stuck in my head. It rattles around in there, occasionally surfacing once a year or so. I believe it's one from the insufferable Chris Berman collection... This particular quote refers to former speedy major league second baseman, Delino DeShields.

So anyway, I'm watching the Tigers/Nats collision on MLB.tv. By the way, some of the rejects from the bad old Tigers seem to be having a reunion on the 2007 Nationals, Dmitri Young, Robert Fick, Nook Logan. Again, anyway, the Nat's broadcaster made a statement that I just had to look up, and I have to say, I agree. He said that Curtis Granderson looks eerily like Delino DeShields. I must say, it's not eerie, but it definitely is a strong resemblance:

Checking out Eva(n) Longoria

Sorry, not her:



Him:

I decided to spend a hot Sunday afternoon taking in a Mobile Bay Bear/Montgomery Biscuits game. Yes, Montgomery Biscuits. AL fanatics have heard the name Evan Longoria; he's Tampa Bay's hotshot third base prospect. He's also been tearing up Double A so far this year, hitting .285 with 14 HR and 46 RBI coming into the game.

The game took place at Hank Aaron stadium in Mobile, Alabama. Game time temperature was a balmy 98 degrees.

The picture above of #6 would be our boy Longoria. This photo is taken just before he went down swinging to end the first inning. The strikeout started a trend for him. Evan ended the day 0 for 5, with 3 strikeouts. He had the distinction of recording the first and last outs for Montgomery in the 6th inning.

Other players of note were Reid Brignac and John Jaso of Montgomery, and Justin Upton of Mobile. Reid Brignac manned shortstop beside Evan and had himself a nice 2 for 5 day, including a 2 run triple off the right field wall. He hammered this pitch, and it just barely missed being a home run. Justin Upton had a 2 for 4 day as well. He did, however misplay at least one ball in the outfield (he was in center). He started back on the ball, then saw it fall in in front of him. Here's Brignac and Upton at the dish:



Brignac and Upton (as well as Longoria) are well known prospects of course. The player I was most impressed with however, was Montgomery Biscuits catcher John Jaso. On the day, he was 2 for 3, with 2 walks. He also made two diving catches of foul popups.

Baseball Prospectus 2006 essentially says that his defense is sub par, and that he'll need to stay behind the plate because he won't hit enough to play 1st or DH. Two nice dives notwithstanding, I can't honestly say how good/bad he is defensively. He certainly seemed to know what he was doing at the dish though. So far this season he has 1 more walk than strikeout (26/25) an an OPS of 944, and that's not bad from a catcher. He's not old, but not especially young (born 9/19/83) for a double A prospect (by comparison, did you realize Dioner Navarro was born 2/9/84?!?, seems like he's been kicking around forever) but I'll be keeping my eye on him...

Running Diary

Inspired by Bill Simmons, as well as the fact that I'm rather ill (seriously) and didn't go into work today, I figured I'd try to do a running diary of the MLB draft :

1:02 CT: We've got Pete Gammons, Steve Phillips, and Karl Ravech as our panel. They're all chilling in big comfy leather chairs with a coffee table. Certainly a different feel than the Mel Kiper monolithic desk.

1:08 CT: They just showed on the crawl at the bottom that 27th is the latest the Tigers have EVER picked.

1:09 CT: Bud Selig gets a raucous round of cheers! Then gives a patently Seligian stilted speech. He even thanks MLB.com for covering it, like they are doing baseball a favor. Bud, it's you're own website!

1:14 CT: They're showing highlights of past #1 overall picks from their high school/college days. Everyone one of them is an absolute bean-pole! Chipper Jones looks like he'd disappear if he turned sideways.

1:15 CT: Tampa Bay takes David Price. I think Chucky just officially added him to his draft board for next season.

1:21 CT: Kansas City drafts Michael Moustakas, 3B/1B/SS/P. Apparently the dude can hit 97 but his preferred position is SS and he can rake. The only film clip ESPN has is a clip of him hitting a triple in a high school game. Certainly a different feel to the baseball draft.

1:27 CT: The Cubs take Josh Vitters, 3B. Peter Gammons and Steve Phillips drop the word "polished" 4 times in 30 seconds.

1:32 CT: The Pirates select: a bust!, sorry, just a prediction based on the Pirates' Reverse Midas touch. Seriously, they take Daniel Moskos from Clemson. If Mel Kiper were here, he'd be going nuts about them taking him too early apparently.

1:39 CT: Baltimore takes "once in a decade talent" Matt Wieters, 7' 8" catcher. Apparently he's a "two way" catcher according to Steve Phillips, because he's good with pitchers, and can also hit. Funny, I thought all catchers did that.

1:42 CT: This draft definitely has the feel of the NHL draft more than the NFL draft. Nowhere near the amount of fanfare, few of the players are actually there, a bunch of grainy footage of the players. The Nats take Ross Detwiler. Thank God each team only gets 5 minutes.

1:46 CT: ESPN is a sucker for punishment. They are attempting to revise the disaster that was ESPN Mobile as part of a Verizon service.

1:48 CT: The Brew Crew take Matt LaPorta, 1B from Florida. Apparently they are expecting Prince Fielder to eat himself out of the league the way Cecil did.

1:52 CT: Apparently LaPorta is a bombshell of a pick by the Brewers. Keith Law suggests that maybe they took him with an eye towards trade bait, now that they are in "winning mode." How crazy is that? The Brewers in winning mode.

1:53 CT: The Rox take Casey Weathers. Peter Gammons just called him "cruder" than Huston Street. C'mon Peter, the best way to build a quality team is to draft a "crude" college relief pitcher!

1:59 CT: The Snakes take Jarrod Parker, a high school pitcher. "A fast track high school pitcher" according to Steve Phillips. I think every pick so far has been "fast track" according to Steve.

2:02 CT: Everyone is falling all over themselves in praise of Parker. I must admit, I'm a bit fired up to see him pitch. Who knows, maybe he'll make an appearance with the Mobile Bay Bears by the end of the year...

2:05: CT: Madison Bumgardner, SF Giant. ESPN's footage consist of warm up pitches. Gammons and Phillips seem to be struggling to talk about these guys. Keith Law loves this pick. He can be the MLB draft's Mel Kiper, I'm convinced of it.

2:09 CT: The Mariners take Phillippe Aumont and immediately send him to Triple A. Well, not really, but with the way the M's aggressively promote their players I wouldn't be surprised.

2:12 CT: The interview with Aumont was so awkward, I felt embarrassed watching it. Words cannot do it justice. It featured gems such as the question "I know you went through a lot of stuff growing up."

2:15 CT: The Marlins take Matt Dominguez. That makes 2 guys from the same high school already gone. We see some clips of him hitting in a batting cage. The word "polished" is dropped a bunch more times. It's the MLB equivalent of the NBA usage of "upside" or "long."

2:20 CT: The Indians take Idaho high schooler Beau Mills. If he's smart, he'll change his name to Bo.

2:22 CT: Apparently Beau is the son of Brad Mills, Red Sox bench coach. How the hell does his son end up going to a NAIA school in Idaho? Pete Gammons tells a fun story about Beau diving onto a concrete slab while playing in the Cape Cod league. As a Tigers fan, I already hate him (but have added him to my draft board).

2:26 CT: The Braves take Georgia high schooler Jason Heyward. Steve Phillips is effervescent in his praise.

2:29 CT: I'm trying to watch what I eat, but you know I'll be at the Sonic down the street tonight for a free root beer float. You're jealous.

2:31 CT: Reds take Devin Mesoraco from Punxatawney HS. I am suprised at the restraint of the guys at ESPN for resisting the temptation to make some sort of groundhog joke.

2:36 CT: Let me just say, Keith Law is great. I demand he become the Mel Kiper of the MLB Draft. I DEMAND IT!

2:37 CT: Toronto takes Kevin Ahrens, Houston HS third baseman. Man there've been a lot of third basemen taken. This is getting monotonous. Tigers are still 10 picks away....

2:42 CT: Texas takes Blake Beavan, the 42nd high school pitcher who hits 97 on the gun and is 6' 7" tall taken so far in this draft.

2:45 CT: ESPN woke up Jim Callis to talk about the draft so far. He's gotten me excited again by saying that Rick Porcello, high school pitcher from New Jersey is possibly the best pitcher in the draft and he's still sitting there due to Scott Boras related concerns. No doubt he hits 97 on the gun and is 6'7" tall. C'mon, drop to the Tigers!

2:47 CT: Cards takes Pete Kozma, Oklahoma high school SS. Karl makes the obligatory Eckstein reference. Keith Law doesn't like this pick. He's like Mel Kiper without the gallon of coffee and gallon of hair lacquer.

2:53 CT: Phillies take Joe Savery, leftie from Rice. Ho hum.

2:58 CT: Just saw a shot of Tommy Lasorda. I can't look at him without thinking of this. Dodgers take Chris Withrow, Texas high school righthand pitcher.

3:04 CT: Toronto takes Tennessee catcher JP Arencibia. Seems like every catcher drafted, there is doubt about whether they can stay behind the plate. Toronto has a thing for guys who go by JP.

3:09 CT: Another 6'7" high school pitcher! I'm not even kidding! The Gints take Tim Alderson from Horizon High School in Scottsdale, AZ. Did you know Scottsdale, AZ has 226,000 people?!?

3:14 CT: Pods take Nick Schmidt. When the analyst describe your pick as "inning eater" with "no out pitch" who "might be a #3 starter" I guess you made a conservative pick.

3:18 CT: I just figured out that Jim Callis reminds me of Rivers Cuomo of Weezer, check it out (sorry for the small pic, it was the only one I could find of Callis):

3:19 CT: Rangers take Mike Main, Florida high school pitcher. He's not 6'7" but he does hit 97 on the gun. Seriously.

3:25 CT: White Sox take Aaron Poreda, college pitcher from San Fran. He's 6'6" (c'mon, couldn't have generously given him an extra inch) and, you guess it, hits 97 on the gun. This is like the twilight zone. By the way I just realized ESPN gave up on the grainy highlight footage a while ago.

3:30 CT: The A's take someone from college. Of course. James Simmons from UC Riverside. Gammons likes the pick, having seen him in the Cape Cod league. Tigers are on the clock! C'mon Rick Porcello!

3:35 CT: I am legitimately worried about who the Tigers are gonna pick.

3:35 CT: Tigres take.... Rick Porcello! Steve Phillips says he's the best high school pitcher since Josh Beckett, I'm giddy. "A franchise arm." Put a Tigers hat on this guy:

3:38 CT: "Draft day is turning into Christmas for the Tigers." from Keith Law. I am exultant. Someone throw some water on me.

3:39 CT: Jim Callis says that there is a lot of muttering about how the Tigers sign over slot money. Apparently they're the Yankees of the drafting process.

3:41 CT: Twins take Ben Revere, short outfielder from a Lexington high school. The first player that ESPN didn't even have a picture of!

3:43 CT: I am still pumped about the pick of Porcello. Imagine this rotation: Jeremy Bonderman, Justin Verlander, Andrew Miller, Rick Porcello, Nate Robertson. That is just sick. By the way, the Tigers called up Miller today to start on Sunday.

3:46 CT: Giants take Wendell Fairley, another guy without a picture, yet ESPN has some footage of him. The Yanks are on the clock. There's a lot of love for this pick among the analysts. Keith Law says he's a top 10 talent, and Peter Gammons compares him to Carl Crawford. I have to keep reminding myself that a lot of these guys won't pan out.

3:51 CT: Just noticed Curt Schilling has a no hitter through 5 innings, time to fire up the old MLB.tv.

3:52 CT: The Yankees draft Roger Clemens. Actually, they take Andrew Brackman from NC State. Dude is 6'10" and can crank it up to 99! Unfortunately there are concerns about his elbow. Looks like it could be a decent gamble. That ends the first round. A lot of love for this pick, apparently they aren't scared about possible Tommy John surgery. We'll see.

3:57 CT: The first interview with a GM. We're talking to Andrew Friedman. Man, the picture quality is awful on this interview, it looks like they are pointing the camera a projection screen with Friedman on it. I hate Friedman for sending down one of my binkies, Jonny Gomes.

4:04 CT: Well, I guess I missed a pick or two so I guess I'll pack this in. Schilling still has the no-no through 6. He would have had a perfect game going but one guy reached on an error.
Matt Adams, signing off.

Whither Bernie?

Not that Bernie.

With all the struggles of the Yankees, it's a wonder that (to my knowledge) no one in the media has trotted out Bernie Williams' absence as a contributor. With sports media these days (and schlubs like me voicing their opinions on the internet) no dumb idea seems to go un-explored.

Just take a trip over to FireJoeMorgan.com and you'll find all sorts of asinine articles written about "gritty" players like David Eckstein and Darin Erstad (did you know he used to punt at Nebraska? Seriously, just read every damn article ever written about him) and how they are the glue that holds their team together. Add in all the "true Yankee" crapola and it's a wonder that every injury, every sucky pitching performance, every botched defensive play isn't attributed to "The Curse of the Bernbino."

Hey, someone get Bernie on the phone, the Yankees are gonna need someone to play first with Mienkiewicz (note I didn't make the easy Mieljljsldkvjlklkjcz joke) and Giambi on the shelf. Surely, the Yankees are missing the soothing sounds of Bernie's guitar in the clubhouse. Apparently it was the source of their true Yankee clutchness.

The Yankees have already brought back Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens, why not bring back Bernie and party like it's 1999? Of course, Bernie put up a 157 OPS+ in 1999, and if he came back this year, he'd be lucky to put up an OPS+ greater than 100.

In all honesty though, I always liked Bernie Williams. I always thought he was underrated in some ways, playing on those Yankee teams. I mean, in 1999, he hit .342/.435/.536 which is very good, with 25 HR and 115 RBI (although he had 9 steals and was caught stealing TEN TIMES). He was a great player in his prime, although not a hall of famer. By the way, did you know his full name is Bernabe Williams Figueroa? Also, did you know that he has more career HRs than Frank Thomas? (Not the Frank you were thinking of, but still!)

Bernabe's not what the Yankees need now though, what they need starts with P and rhymes with "pitching." The answer of course is: "better defense." Well, not really, what they need is pitching. After finding out that "Kei Igawa" is Japanese for "Jaret Wright" and that "Jeff Karstens" is English for "Jeff Karstens" the Yanks find themselves short on pitching.

I find it odd however, that there hasn't really been much call for Bernie since the news flap about him being invited to spring training.