MY MVP Voting

Photo courtesy of SI

Here is how I would have voted for the MVP:

1. Joe Mauer C- Minnesota Twins

2. Derek Jeter SS- New York Yankees

3. Mark Teixeira 1B- New York Yankees

4. Kendry Morales 1B- Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

5. Kevin Youkillis 1B- Boston Red Sox

6. Ben Zobrist SS- Tampa Bay Rays

7. Alex Rodriguez 3B- New York Yankees

8. Michael Young SS- Texas Rangers

9. Aaron Hill 2B- Toronto Blue Jays

10. Ichiro CF- Seattle Mariners

Big question: Why no Miguel Cabrera?

You may have heard that he had a fight with his wife the night before one of the last games of the season. He was busy getting drunk while the rest of the teammates were working hard to make the playoffs. I don’t care about stats, that is the poorest excuse of a teammate I have ever seen and that shows no respect for your teammates or your team. No value in that at all.

WORK, WORK, WORK

To characterize this team as a compilation of superstars is to ignore the depth and more importantly the true make-up of these New York Yankees. This is not the same team we have seen in recent years, an odd combination of studded puzzle pieces that never quite fit together. Gone is the concern for individual achievements over team accomplishments, the philosophy that talent alone trumps work and team chemistry. With it’s bloated payroll and impressive lineup I put it to you that in its essence this is truly a blue collar team, a team that works through the errors, the unfortunate bounces, the opportunities lost, work, work, work.

Game 2 of the ALCS is a perfect example: How else do you explain overcoming wild pitches, 3 infield errors, hitting into 3 straight double plays, the middle of the order going 0 for 8. Work, work, work. Alex Rodriguez goes 0 for 5 after charging home plate in game 1, and in the bottom of the 9th with an 0-2 count goes yard for his 3rd game-tying HR of the post-season. Work, work, work. Johnny Damon who hit .083 in the Minnesota series has shown up big time in this series posting a .364 batting average through two games and flashing the leather in key moments tonight. Work, work, work.

These Yankees know anyone can come through in the clutch. The success of the bottom of this lineup in close games have made this team legendary in my eyes, must we recount the number of comeback and walk-off wins? The soul of this team belongs to the likes of Nick Swisher, Melky Cabrera, and Robinson Cano to name a few. This team can overcome squandering a bases loaded opportunity with A-Rod at the plate, only to see Jerry Hairston, Jr (WHO?) get a leadoff single in his first postseason plate appearance and score the winning run. Most people will discount this win to Izturis’ error, but as Captain America put it “you gotta give credit to Jerry for running hard the whole way”.

Everybody works, everybody contributes, everybody runs hard the whole way, this is the 2009 New York Yankees rallying cry. As Mariano Rivera put it when asked what it took to win a game like this tonight, “everything, it took everything, it took everything from everybody”.

About me:

I owe my allegiance to the Yankees to my Father who shared with me his passion for baseball and love for the Pinstripes. In Cuba I was immersed in baseball from a young age, it is after all a right of passage for Cubans and Cuban-Americans both in the Island and in Miami where I reside. I’m fascinated by the unexplored aspects of this game, the hidden rules about behavior on the field and in the locker room, the undefined characteristics of team chemistry, the unequivocal influence of the baseball gods, in short the intricate nature of a sport that in my humble opinion is still America’s game. I hope you enjoy my perspective on things and join in the conversation. Go Yankees!

The Future of Jon Papelbon

With the Yankees win over the Minnesota Twins yesterday, they will go to the ALCS to play the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

Once the Angels swept the Redsox, an interesting question came up: Will this be the last game Jon Papelbon pitches in a Redsox uniform? I hope so!

Here are teams that would be good fits for Papelbon:

TAMPA BAY RAYS: Would be a great fit, but would NEVER ever happen.

DETROIT TIGERS: May be the best fit if the Redsox are willing to send him to an AL team.

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES: Great fit if the Phillies are willing to do it. They would have to get rid of Lidge first.

CHICAGO CUBS: Maybe the Cubs would be a good fit, but they have both Kevin Gregg and Carlos Marmol.

HOUSTON ASTROS: Need a closer with Jose Valverde becoming a free agent.

PREDICTION: The Redsox keep Papelbon and let Billy Wagner go as a free agent.

UPDATE 9:08 PM EST: The reason the Redsox would get rid of Papelbon is because they feel that Daniel Bard is a capable MLB closer.

UPDATE 9:10 PM EST: Check out this prediction in the Miami Herald….bottom of the article…CRAZY!

What a Game

Two down, one to go.

I was at the Yankees game last night and boy was it amazing. I was jumping, screaming, and getting chills all at the same time. I will never forget this game and for some reason, Alex Rodriguez loves it when I am at Yankees games!

I was at his walk-off grand slam game.

Also, Joe Nathan must hate me! I was at the May 15th game in which he gave up a walk-off RBI single to Melky Cabrera.

Regardless, it was the greatest game i’ve ever been to and I will never forget it. The fact that the Redsox lost and the Yankees won on the same night, again, makes it that much more special.

What a Season for Alex Rodriguez

What a season. I am currently speechless and that does not happen very often. Alex Rodriguez has now hit for 100 RBI on the season and 7-YES I MEAN SEVEN RBI in the top of the 6th inning in todays game. First, Rodriguez hit a three-run homer. Next, the Yankees got 2nd and 3rd with two outs for Mark Teixeira. They intentionally walked Teixeira to get to A-Rod. A-Rod then hit a grand slam and now has 100 RBI on the season.

I am going to be honest here. I was not a fan of Rodriguez going into the season. I was one of the people making jokes like “the Yankees should trade A-Rod for Joe Crede” but now I have to issue an apology to him. Rodriguez has been the Yankees MVP this season. Rodrgiuez has been the most valuable player to his team in the AL outside of Joe Mauer in my opinion. Mark Teixeira took off when Rodriguez came back. Rodriguez hit for 100 RBI in less time than most of the players that hit for 80. It is unbelievable that Rodriguez hit for 100 RBI and it just shows how good of a player he is.

Can he do this in the playoffs? I think so. If game two of the ALDS is a night game, I will be there. I was at Game 4 of the 07 ALDS when A-Rod hit a HR. I am very, very interested in seeing how he does in the postseason. I predict in the ALDS he hits .310 with 2 HR and 6 RBI.

Oh-one more note. Yankees fans or any fans that are reading this: please do not boo Alex Rodriguez in the post-season. Don’t boo him. I don’t care if he goes 0-489379537 do not boo him. He relies on the fans and his teammates for support. So please give it to him.

Yankees Win the AL East, Root for the Twins

Congrats to the Yankees, as they defeated the Boston Redsox 4-2 today to win the AL East. I was watching the game from start to finish and let me tell you it was exciting. I don’t know why, but this game had some special feeling to it.

-Twins and Tigers both lost today

-Root for the Twins to win the AL Central. The pitching is much worse in Minnesota and the Tigers have Justin Verlander.

Trade Deadline Deals, Roster Moves

Here are the biggest trades that occurred today on trade deadline day:

-Tigers acquired Jarrod Washburn for Luke French and a minor-league pitcher

-Redsox acquired Victor Martinez for Justin Masterson, and two minor-league pitchers

-Redsox acquired Casey Kotchman for Adam LaRoche

-Twins acquired Orlando Cabrera for a minor-leaguer

-Reds acquired Scott Rolen for Edwin Encarnacion and a few minor-leaguers.

-Brewers acquired Claudio Vargas for Vinny Rotino

-Rockies acquired Joe Beimel for two minor-leaguers

-Marlins acquired Nick Johnson for a minor-leaguer

FROM YESTERDAY:

Late last night, the Dodgers acquired George Sherrill for two minor-leaguers.

YANKEES MOVES:

Saved this for last, but the Yankees made a few moves today, only one trade.

-Yankees acquired Jerry Hairston Jr. for minor-league catcher Chase Weems

-Yankees called up Shelley Duncan.

-Yankees will have two more moves to make to free up room for Duncan and Hairston Jr.

The Yankees did add to their infield/outfield depth with Hairston and the call-up of Duncan, which is always good. Duncan plays 1b/lf/rf, while Hairston plays 2b/3b/ss/lf/cf/rf.

I would expect the Yankees to DFA Cody Ransom and option out one of Mark Melancon or Jon Albaladejo. Also, they will probably transfer Xavier Nady to the 60 day DL.

ONE LAST PIECE OF NEWS:

Shocking news out of Chicago. The Whitesox have traded for Jake Peavy….again….pending his approval. The trade has Clayton Richard, Adam Russell, Aaron Poreda, and Dexter Carter for Peavy. Richard is scheduled to start tonight against the Yankees. I’d expect Peavy to approve it if they made the deal again. When the original deal was made, the Padres had a better record than the Whitesox.

MY ANALYSIS

My immediate analysis is that the Redsox came away as the big winners of the trade deadline. The Yankees also did well, filling a utility need, but they did not acquire the starting pitcher they needed.