Some Old Friends (and Enemies)

Tonight the Yankees return to action against the LA Dodgers who are led by former Yankee manager Joe Torre and coaches Don Mattingly and Larry Bowa. Much has been made about whether or not the Yankee players will embrace Torre tonight, especially after the way he left and the book that he wrote. Alex Rodriguez did not want to comment on it, but any Yankee that was part of a championship team with Torre will probably be all hugs and reminiscing before the game tonight.

This also leads me to the way the fans may think of Torre now. We won't know the kind of reception he'd get in New York because these games are in LA. But I get the feeling many fans would boo Torre. Sure, the last four or five years weren't very great, but you can't blame all that on him. You have to remember the good times Torre brought to the Yankees, and remember how he was the man who helped the Yankees get back on top of the sports world. They were in an 18-year World Series drought before Torre arrived, and he won four in five years and led them to six AL pennants in his 12 year stint with the Yankees.

Torre is a Yankee legend and I hope the Yankee fans treat him like one whenever the next time he arrives at the Stadium may be. We don't boo our World Series heroes. We are not Red Sox fans.

Speaking of Red Sox fans booing World Series heroes, the Yankees are reunited with their all-time villain Manny Ramirez tonight. Ramirez has haunted Yankees fans as a member of the Indians and Red Sox, but now he is at the end of his career and his numbers have been on the decline. But say what you want about Manny, he always turned it up a notch whenever he was facing the pinstripes, and expect the same during this weekend.

Read more...

Mid Season Awards

We have reached the All-Star Break so we will give you what many professional writers and analysts like to do around this time: Mid Season Awards. Here is what we have come up with for who we thought were the best of the first-half around the majors.

MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

AL: Joe Mauer. Mauer leads the majors in hitting with a .373 batting average. He has 15 home runs, which is already more than his career high, and 49 RBI in only 64 games played due to missing the beginning of the season with an injury. Not to mention he has thrown out 10 of 23 runners behind the plate and has a .994 fielding percentage.

Runner Up: Tori Hunter

NL: This one is a no-brainer: Albert Pujols. Pujols leads the majors with 32 home runs and 87 RBI. Pujols is also hitting .332, which is second in the NL, making him a threat to be the first Triple Crown winner since Carl Yastrzemski. In short, he's a machine.

Runner Up: Ryan Braun

CY YOUNG AWARD

AL: Probably the toughest choice. Zach Greinke, he's having a breakout season for the lowly Royals, with a 10-5 record and league leading 2.12 ERA. He gets the nod over Halladay because of he isn't on his way out the door.

Runner Up: Roy Halladay. Halladay has been great this season, but with the Blue Jays sinking fast in the AL East so his 10-3 record and 2.85 ERA will soon be headed to another team, possibly another league, making his bid at a Cy Young unlikely.

NL: Another close call, but I'll go with my fantasy stud Tim Lincecum. Lincecum is 10-2 with a 2.33 ERA and will be the starting pitcher for the NL All-Star team. He leads the NL in strikeouts with 149 and has 3 complete games and 2 shutouts.

Runner Up: Dan Haren. Haren is leading the league with a 2.01 ERA and is third in the NL with 129 strikeouts. He has a record of 9-5 and batters are hitting .189 against him.

ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
AL: Blue Jays pitcher Rickey Romero. He is 7-3 with a 3.00 ERA and 69 strikeouts this season. He will most likely be the ace of the staff once Halladay is dealt.

Runner Up: Andrew Bailey.

NL: The St. Louis Cardinals's Colby Rasmus. .278/.329/.478 11 HR 34 RBI, 46 R. Those stats don't lie.

Runner Up: Tommy Hanson

MANAGER OF THE YEAR
AL: Ron Washington of the Texas Rangers. The Rangers are notorious of having a power-filled lineup but they never had the pitching to contend. Well Washington, whose job was once in jeopardy, has the pitching straightened out and the team on the right track. They finish the first half only 1.5 games behind the LA Angels.

Runner Up: Mike Sciosca of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, California, USA. Or, for short, the Earth Angels. Sciosca's team has been battling with injuries all season long, but they finish the break sweeping the Yankees and standing atop the NL West.

NL: Our old friend, Joe Torre. Torre's Dodgers have the best record in the MLB. His team has had to deal with the absence of their best hitter and what was also a huge distraction in the Manny Ramirez steroid suspension, and they still are the best team in baseball.

Runner Up: Ken Macha of the Milwaukee Brewers. The Brewers lost CC Sabathia to free agency, and Ben Sheets to injury before the season began, yet Macha has them in the thick of the NL Central division race and wild card race.

Read more...