26 Reasons to Hate Us

That's what I thought. The Tigers are first in ERA and DER (BABIP from a defensive perspective).

link? just asking because I was pretty sure it was the Tigers..

So they are forced to do them, how does that mean they don't do them? Surely the Yankees don't want to pay all that money, they would be stupid to want to give away all that cash. The Yankees are held to the same rules that every other team is, I'm not sure what your argument is here..

Again, this guy (and myself) never contended that the system was fair. Just that there are a couple good things about what the Yankees do. Honestly, I don't know if a salary cap would help. Good owners with tons of money find ways around it and manage to circumvent cap restrictions (see Dan Snyder). Certainly the Yankees would still have an advantage even with a cap, albeit a smaller one.

If that's what you want to call it, sure. It's not meant to be taken real seriously or anything, but there are some decent points in it. Teams definitely benefit from the luxury tax that the Yankees pay, they benefit from ticket sales when they come to town, and they benefit by being able to dump large salaries. If the small teams didn't have these benefits, they would be even less competitive than they are. Those are just some of the points he makes...

The guy never contends that they arent ruining the competitive balance. He basically just gives other reasons why what they do is good for baseball in some ways.

Time to tip our caps to the Yankees Randy Hill / Special to FOXSports.com Posted: 16 hours ago They've been credited with ruining baseball, but have no direct affiliation with Bud Selig, Scott Boras, Victor Conte or Chris Berman. They're the alleged architects of a lopsided playing field, but have failed to win the World Series since Al Gore finally realized he no longer had a shot at the White House. Their players are believed to be self-absorbed, but have been the focus of fewer egomaniacal publishing efforts than fans of the Boston Red Sox. So, back in the crosshairs by popular demand, we now tip our caps to the New York Yankees. Yeah, even though we can't seem to live with 'em or get away with settin' 'em on fire, the Yankees remain crucial to the success of Major League Baseball. Sure, you may have had it up to your eyeballs with the Yankees, but MLB would be in lousy shape if Selig — finally sick of a little prosperity — decided to contract George Steinbrenner's team. Let's begin this celebration of the Yankees' existence by thanking them for goosing an otherwise lackluster trading-deadline countdown. In case you were busy paying attention to the Washington National's clumsy auction of Alfonso Soriano, the Yankees were able to pry Bobby Abreu — and his mighty contract — from the Philadelphia Phillies. Yankees GM Brian Cashman surrendered an allegedly-pedestrian prospect list (that failed to include hotshot pitcher Phillip Hughes) in exchange for Abreu and pitcher Cory Lidle. According to critics who expect a lot from a multi-millionaire, Abreu quite possibly is even more overrated than Paris Hilton. When the trade was made, "Sock it to 'Em" Bobby wasn't exactly providing much sock, ranking 107th among National League hitters in slugging percentage. http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/5834882

didnt we send ponson to the bullpen to be the mopup guy?

Yeah, something like that. I thought the stats spoke for themselves, but I guess not.

No point really. That's why I put FWIW at the top.

FWIW... http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/stats/rosters Yankees avg. age is 31.6 (2nd oldest), Boston's is 31.1 (T-4th oldest)

Lidle 6IP 4H ER 5K 2BB

I was thinking the same thing myself, but I didn't feel like getting into it. Some people around here have some pretty thin skin..

Lidle looks good so far.. 3IP 0ER 1H 3-0 yanks.

I don't mind them

haha...I'm just gonna enjoy seeing him every once in a while...he's got that rediculous throwback 70's look.

07/26/2006 11:25 AM ET Yankees acquire catcher Sal Fasano from Philadelphia Phillies for Minor League infielder Hector Made; Designate catcher Kelly Stinnett for assignment The Yankees announced today that they have acquired catcher Sal Fasano from the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for minor-league infielder Hector Made. To make room for Fasano on their 25-man and 40-man rosters, the Yankees designated catcher Kelly Stinnett for assignment. Fasano, 34, batted .243 (34-for-140) with four home runs and 10 RBI in 50 games with the Phillies before he was placed on the 15-day disabled list on July 4 with left knee inflammation and subsequently designated for assignment on July 22. In 64 games with the Baltimore Orioles in 2005, Fasano posted a career-high 11 home runs in 160 at-bats (a ratio of one home run every 14.55 at-bats). http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20060726&content_id=1576112&vkey=pr_nyy&fext=.jsp&c_id=nyy

Wasn't the loser supposed to go home last year too? I think both teams will come on strong and either the Tigers or ChiSox fall back. They still have 13 games remaining vs. each other, and both have to play the Yanks (3 times) and BoSox (3 times) again, which neither team has been real successful against.

this is a nice clip too: It's slo-mo so you can see the rotation of the ball..

The Red Sox have significant Japanese ties? I find that kind of odd considering they almost never sign any japanese players..

Maybe that's the difference between a screwball and a gyroball?:dunno: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gyroball The gyroball is the name given to a breaking baseball pitch purported to be used by players in Japan. The pitch was developed by two Japanese researchers, Ryutaro Himeno and Kazushi Tezuka, who used computer simulations to create a new style of delivery intended to reduce stress on the pitcher. At the point of release, instead of having the pitcher's arm move inwards towards the body (the standard method used in the United States), the pitcher rotates his arm so that it moves away from his body. The unusual method of delivery creates a bullet-like spin on the ball, or like a bicycle tire spins when facing the spokes. When thrown by a right hander, the pitch moves sharply down and away from right handed batters and towards left handed batters.

For what it's worth... "You want big hits? Guess who has more hits (16) and a better batting average (.364) in close-and-late situations than Thome, Dye and Ortiz? Yep, Jeter. Guess who has more hits with runners in scoring position (30)? Jeter, a .357 hitter in those spots, including .371 with two outs." http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/writers/tom_verducci/07/11/inside.baseball/index.html

It is now official... http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=2517046 Astros deal two minor-leaguers for HuffAssociated Press HOUSTON -- Houston acquired outfielder Aubrey Huff from Tampa Bay on Wednesday. The Devil Rays agreed to pay the Astros more than $1.6 million to offset Huff's contract. The Devil Rays get two minor leaguers -- right-handed pitcher Mitch Talbot and infielder Ben Zobrist. Houston also optioned outfielder Jason Lane to Triple-A Round Rock and designated minor league infielder Joe McEwing for assignment. Huff hit .283 with eight home runs, 15 doubles and 28 RBI in 63 games this year for the Devil Rays. He spent three weeks on the disabled list with a strained left knee -- returning in early May.

About two batters too late torre...

i thought for sure that would drop in front of bernie