The headline says it all.
Some quickies:
- The controversy surrounding A-Rod is 100 percent acceptable. It doesn’t matter if he shouted “mine!” or “hah!” It’s specifically against the rules. There is a rule in baseball (I have to run, otherwise I’d hunt it down and cite it) that states you cannot attempt to deceive someone into not making a play. That can be interference. And by the way, I used this tactic all the time in my playing days. The difference? He got caught.
- Jason Giambi is out for three weeks. Considering he’s slated to return when the Yankees visit NL ballparks, it’s more like a month. Good news for the Sox, bad news for a Yankee team that couldn’t take anymore bad news.
- Runelvys Hernandez, who had a 3.06 ERA in seven starts for Triple-A Pawtucket, opted out of his contract today. Not a surprise, as the 26-year old was enjoying a bounceback season and was not going to get a shot in Boston. He should land with a team with rotation issues, such as the Cardinals or Nationals. Best of luck to Hernandez, but Royals fans will forever hate him.
- Some AL east news around the network:
Do you remember when the Red Sox fans were not loved by the owners? That was what it was like back in the John Harrington/Dan Duquette regime. I got a not so pleasant reminder of how it used to be today with this news: Owner Peter Angelos is in a petty war with a radio station. The war is so petty that this radio station, which was supporting news that the city ‘Baltimore’ was to be placed back on away jerseys for 2008, now is reporting that Angelos is yanking this change just because the radio station is supporting it. Wow. I honestly feel bad for Orioles fans. They don’t deserve this.
Amid news that Brian Cashman could be held accountable for the Yankees’ season so far, The Bronx Block’s Mitchell Plitnick asks the question: SHOULD Cashman be accountable?
Japanese import Akinori Iwamura is back in the lineup for the Devil Rays, having missed significant time due to injury. Does anyone realize we haven’t played the Devil Rays yet? Wow. The first time ALL YEAR we play the D-Rays comes July 3rd. This means we’ll be seeing a lot of them over the last three months. Kill me now.
The team that A-Rod pulled the bush league play against was none other than the Toronto Blue Jays. The take of a Jays fan is here, as is his concern that manager John Gibbons is not doing a good job managing the pen.
Categories: Akinori Iwamura Alex Rodriguez Baltimore Orioles Jason Giambi New York Yankees Runelvys Hernandez Tampa Bay Rays Toronto Blue Jays
Where did Edelman go? His stuff kicked ass.
No offense Josh, I bet your stuff kicks ass also.
Evan funny story for you. This story was told to me by an umpire that I met at a high school baseball game.
He said he read a book of a major league umpire and the story went like this.
Fastest way to end an inning. 2-2 count pitcher throws to home. Guy on first takes off for second. Shortstop yells strike three. Runner thinks the inning is over seeing there are two outs, but it was ball 3. They throw to second and tag him out. The runner stopped halfway to second.
good story
I couldnt not stop laughing over it.
JCS-
I'll have news on that in tomorrow's article. Check back for it!
A-Rod is dirty, but the Jays' 3rd baseman should have stayed with the ball. He had a bead on it, and you don't duck out on a sure catch until you get blindsided and they have to roll you onto a stretcher while you're bleeding from the ears.
Besides, doesn't he recognize the voice of his own teammates yet?
The rule states you cannot confuse the fielder in his attempt for fielding a ball. He broke the rules technically and it was bush league. A team that prides itself in professionalism and class so much shouldnt stoop to that level. It's not as bad as the slap, but A-Rod probably regrets it.
Rick-
I think it was the 3B first game up fromt the minors.
I don't care if he broke a rule when it's a rule that's broken all the time. Umpires don't call strikes just under the letters, but that's a rule. Batters don't stay within the batter's box, but that's a rule. Batter's don't try to avoid pitches inside, but get 1B when they're hit anyway – that's against the rules. Phantom touches of 2B are against the rules, but that doesn't stop people from turning double plays. The only reason this is an issue is that a AAA 3B was embarassed it worked and made a big stink, and everyone jumped on because what's better than an A-Rod controversy? This is the silly stuff, folks. You want to go after A-Rod, jump on him for his weak May. Not for the stuff that happens in a ton of ballgames, year-round. Hell, even Dusty Baker on Baseball Tonight last night says that this happens every time a fielder runs down a pop-up near an opposing dugout. This whole thing is just another example of the A-Rod double standard, and it's really annoying.