yankees228

That's fair. My comments were not directed towards you, or anyone specifically. I just feel that what I've outlined is the overall view point of many of the active members on this board.

You're right, I listed facts, but I can't prove causation. With that being said, I think there are reasonable deductions that can be made. Either way, you're right. As I said a couple of pages ago, this conversation has run it's course over and over again, getting us nowhere each time.

Yes, he says some things that rub people the wrong way, that he probably shouldn't say. There is no denying that. But so many other people on this forum are guilty of the exact same thing. Jacko frequently credits the Red Sox, it is just always ignored because people hear what they want to hear, and everyone wants Jacko to live up to the pre-conceived notions they hold for him.

Ah yes, my position on the "Jacko Defense Team". Believe me, it's grueling.

Hahaha, no offense taken. I appreciate the compliment. Nothing like writing post after post debating the Yankees' financial means...

Haha, yeah, my mistake on "hinderance".

The last injury that happened to a Yankees' player was Christian Garcia. Here is what Jacko had to say about him. http://www.talksox.com/forum/534331-post20.html All of these pre-conceived notions about Jacko are ridiculous, and mostly incorrect. Additionally, because they're such a prominent topic of discussion, they become a hindrance to the quality of the board.

You're ignoring pieces of my argument. I never claimed that their financial advantage didn't play a role. But none of us know exactly why they came to the Yankees, and it is very possible that other factors were at play. Additionally, it was poor word choice on my part. Each of my points still stand, as those things did happen.

http://www.talksox.com/forum/damn-yankees/9017-crunch-has-been-waiting-blow-up-yankees.html That thread is from 2007. There are similar ones from other years. Anyway, this is just silly. Jacko bothers you guys. That is truly ridiculous. But hey, the board, as a whole, will continue to attack all of Jacko's posts, no matter what they say. It really is too bad.

But my contention is what this high payroll allows them to do. It's very overstated, especially in this thread.

Thing is, we completely disagree about Jacko. Yeah, he has said some ridiculous things. But in reality, that's no different than most of us. He says positive things about some guys, and negative things about some guys. He has this reputation because he's a positive Yankees' fan on a Red Sox's forum, more so than someone like me, for instance. Thing is, everyone just knocks Jacko's optimism on here, and they completely ignore when he's right, which is a decent amount of time. Want a huge example of this? When the Yankees were scuffling at times in April and June of last year, Jacko was very positive about this team. He was knocked by a lot of posters on this site, including yourself. But in the end, Jacko was right, and everyone who knocked him was wrong. Unfortunately these things are never noticed. Jacko is like a politician who has made a couple mistakes and miscalculations, but whenever that politician makes positive contributions, they're just completely ignored. So, in this case, he wants to talk about some Yankees' prospects, some of which he'll inevitably overhype. That bothers people. That actually bothers people. I feel like this needs to be repeated a few times to sink in. Jacko wants to talk about Yankees' prospects. That bothers people. It bothers people that Jacko wants to talk about Yankees' prospects. People are bothered that Jacko wants to talk about Yankees' prospects. Maybe a couple people will read this and think to themselves, "Hey, it's pretty ridiculous that it bothers me that Jacko wants to talk about some Yankees' prospects". I won't hold my breath. You want to know what's even more ridiculous? That Jacko's optimism about the Yankees' have become one of the biggest themes on this board. People have been talking for awhile on here about the declining nature of the board. You want reasons? Start there. Jacko, I like this thread. While I don't take everything you say as gospel, it gives me a chance to hear about some of the up and coming Yankees' prospects, as I don't go out of my way to read about these things. Additionally, it gave me a nice opportunity to ask your opinion on someone whose friend I met in Tampa. However people have a problem with these things. There are plenty of things that boggle my mind in this world. Why did John Wilkes Booth intentionally cost himself time and distance while trying to flee down South? Why did Lee Harvey Oswald corner himself in a movie theatre, and draw attention to himself by going in without paying (I'm fascinating by famous assassinations)? But lately there is one more thing that has crept into this category. Why does Jacko talking about Yankees' prospects bother people so much? It has truly become a great mystery.

And here's the part that's too bad. Most of you view my posts on the Yankees' financial situation as just a dumb Yankees' fan trying to downplay the Yankees' financial advantage. But every single one of my posts on the topic are filled with facts and reasonable conjecture. I never claim that they don't have an advantage. The only points I ever argue are when I feel someone overstates their advantage, which happens quite often in my opinion.

You brought up Pavano, not me. If you want to talk about trades and each team being interested in someone, then it's relatively even on those counts. That's why it was necessary for me to debate you on Pavano, to prove a larger point. You can talk about trades, or one team being interested in someone, but there really have only been three free agents that both teams have bid on this decade. This is a fact. Additionally, especially with Contreras, there were a lot of other factors involved besides money (many of them being made public in all three cases), all of which you choose to ignore because they don't fit your argument. The Yankees have an advantage, no question about it. Additionally, they do have the ability (at times), if they want, to get a guy no matter what. I would say this happened twice during the decade, with Sabathia and Giambi. The Yankees were going to get them, no matter what. But here's where the advantage is overstated. There have been a ton of guys over the past decade that the Yankees have wanted, but haven't ended up acquiring. They have limits, just like every other team, but their limits happen to be higher. I get it, it's easier to look at the Yankees, who spend the most money, and discuss them as if they have infinite funds. It's easy to discuss them as if they get whoever they want. But the facts, which are indisputable, disagree with this notion. I'll say it once more, so it's clear. The Yankees have an advantage over every other team in Major League Baseball. They have a larger advantage over some teams than they do over others. There is no question about it. But the advantage isn't infinite, and in some cases, it isn't even that large. Also, I'd like to touch once more on the Yankees vs. Red Sox aspect of the discussion. The Yankees money plays a role, no question, but there are probably other factors at work. Can I prove these, or speak about them as if they are fact? No I can't. But I can't do this for the same reason you guys can't claim that the Yankees would just top every bid that the Red Sox put out there.

You're making an assumption that Mo is not at full strength because it is early. He might not be, but he has looked as sharp as ever in his first three outings. I really don't think getting an extra out has any kind of adverse effect on Mo, but obviously there is no way for me to know this for sure.

Joba did a bad job against Crawford, but I think you just have to give Bartlett a lot of credit leading off. He fouled some tough pitches off, and also took some tough pitches to get himself back in the count. As a team, they also seemed scared of Pena, while they go right after Longoria. Also, I completely agree about the approach against Shields. It's what they didn't do on Friday. Price came out throwing well, but the Yankees abandoned being patient right away, and left themselves no chance to get him out of the game early.

I wasn't asking for two innings, I was asking for four outs, with an off day tomorrow, and three days of previous rest. It's Mo, and he's showing time and time again that he has absolutely no problem doing it. The Yankees have one of the greatest weapons in the history of the sport. They should take full advantage of it.

Paul O'Neill had never heard of calling Jeter, Rivera, Posada, and Pettitte the "Core 4". Why in the world does he broadcast games lol?

I'm not a huge hockey fan, but Lundqvist is playing great, and the Rangers are up 1-0 after two periods in Philadelphia.

I'd like to see Mo ready if this inning gets any dicier.

Joba for the 8th, and Mo for the 9th. Hopefully they get it done.

You can say about anything that the pitcher needs to hitch up his belt and get out of it, even a bad call. There are things that shouldn't have an influence on the outcome. Weird field dimensions are entirely different thing than obstructions, no matter how infrequently it happens. Let me try to draw a comparison for you, and don't get caught up in the frequency of the event. How would you feel if there was a screen right in front of the third basemen? Sure, it's going to have a much bigger impact on the game than the catwalks, but the principle is still the game. Objects and obstructions like that should not have any impact on the outcome of the game. And for the record, I think they shouldn't be allowed to play in a stadium like this, but, at the very least, any ball that hits a catwalk that isn't going to be a home run has got to be foul. You cannot have a pop up like that turn into a hit because of obstructions. It is a direct hinderance to the integrity of the game.

This sport is such a joke without instant replay. EDIT: This is obviously an exaggerated, heat of the moment comment, but the general point still stands.