It’s been ages since we’ve heard or seen or probably thought about Roger Clemens and his legal wranglings. Until today:
The grand jury believed to be investigating Roger Clemens for perjury has issued a subpoena to the owner of a now-defunct Houston-area gym linked to the distribution of steroids and human growth hormone.
[...]
[Richard Emery, one of the attorneys representing Brian McNamee] believes the subpoenas indicate that the Justice Department has gone beyond McNamee’s claims as it investigates Clemens.
“It continues to confirm my belief that it is only a matter of time – and maybe not that much time – until Clemens is indicted,” Emery said. “I would assume they are moving forward. The point is they have gone well beyond the McNamee allegations and are looking at other evidence.”
Bonds skated and continues to skate free. McGwire, Sosa, Palmiero, et al, all free to live free and rich, however under a cloud. Clemens, however, might be sent to jail. Let this be a lesson to every player: legal action, unless you are truly 100% innocent, might not be the tactic of choice.
Those of you who have been with me for any length of time know that I will hold little challenges to get people to make donations to charities. My wife works for American Cancer Society, so naturally I am close to that. The crumbling economy has caused many of these charities to suffer. I’ll just say this: do what you can, when you can, however you can. It doesn’t even have to be writing a check; you can volunteer in countless ways. And this is just what the Yanks will be doing next week, and I like it.
Thus, across five days next week, Manager Joe Girardi and all 25 of his players will divide into groups and take part in five Hope Week events. They will interact with a terminally ill man, with a married couple who are mentors to dozens of children, with children whose disease prevents them being in the sunlight, with a Little Leaguer whose cerebral palsy has confined him to a wheelchair and with two developmentally challenged workers from a law firm’s mailroom.
For Zillo, the events are a way for the Yankees to use their status to help the needy and create a domino effect of good will that other teams may decide to emulate.
“This isn’t about money,” Zillo said of a team quite famous for the size of its payroll. “This is about giving of yourself and giving of your time. Everybody has that ability.”
Cynics, and I usually am one of those, will say that this is merely a way for the Yanks to grab attention. To that I say: so what? Something good is being done and that’s enough for me.
[I was going to post this last night, but wasn't getting out of bed to do so. You can't move me from comfy, sometimes.]
I am spoiled. Spoiled rotten. I know this, I revel in this, I am happy for it. Why?
I have gotten to watch Mariano Rivera his entire career.
That’s it. It’s that simple. Having a guy like him to close games for the last 13, 14 years is just a wonderful thing. His silent assassin-like demeanor, his professionalism, his stoicism, his perfect execution, his ability to seemingly not age or gain an ounce in 15 years. Wonderful.
Mo came into the game last night in his usual role. Ninth inning, one run lead, pressure situation. As cool and relaxed as I am sitting here at my desk, Mo did what he seemingly always does. Break bats, induce awkward swings and shake hands with the catcher. He’s so sublimely efficient, it’s easy to overlook him and his contributions.
Someone recently (I can’t remember who, but will try to find the source) asked it this way: Has any employee ever done their job any better for as long a period as Mo has? Not just baseball player, but any “employee” doing their job as perfectly, efficiently and professionally at the highest of levels with the greatest amount of pressure as Mo? Cap’n Jetes gets the headlines and the captainship, but as most Yanks fans will attest, it was having Mo back there in the 9th inning that helped the Yanks secure those four World Series titles (’96, ’98-’00). And if not for the fact that Mo does have his rare human-like moments (’97, ’01), it might have been six straight. But I will never take him for granted. He’s been that good. No, he’s been better than that.
I know I am spoiled and I’m OK with it.
Thanks, Mo.
Looks like Bud and I are seeing eye-to-eye on this one:
Turns out Commissioner Bud Selig was like the rest of us. He wondered why on Earth should a guy coming off a 50-game steroid suspension be able to have a rehab assignment before the 50 days are up? That was bargained for by the players union and major league baseball, but Selig made it crystal clear this morning speaking before the Baseball Writers of America at the Hilton Hotel in downtown St. Louis, he’d like to see that eliminated during the next negotiations when the basic agreement runs out in 2011.
“I believe that should be changed in the next labor negotiations,” Selig said. “(Serve) Fifty games and then you do what you got to do,” Selig said.
Select View Full Post to continue reading.
When the Mets let a potential pricey mid-season acquisition slide or are curiously quiet next Hot Stove season, this might be why:
CNN’s Larry King says that close friend Fred Wilpon lost a staggering $700 million in the Bernie Madoff scheme.
[...]
Earlier reports had put Wilpon’s loss at between $300 million-$500 million.
Wilpon and the Mets have insisted repeatedly since the Madoff scam erupted last December that the losses would not impact the team’s ability to take on payroll or sign free agents, but their actions since then indicate otherwise.
Have fun with that, Metsies.
Jake, my 9 year old, while watching the introductions, when seeing the camera pan from Hunter Pence (6’4″) to Miguel Tejada (5’10″):
“Dad, how come he’s sitting down?”
Me, laughing like mad:
“Um, he’s not!”
I love a good conspiracy theory as much as the next wacko out there. Some are baseless and totally irrational. Some, like this one, might actually have a basis in truth. Or, Ian Kinsler got shafted 6 times this season. You decide:
The most curious case of all, though, is Kinsler. By my count, he has now been snubbed exactly six times, which must be a record. (1) He lost the fan vote at second base to Dustin Pedroia, in one of the closest votes ever. (2) He wasn’t picked by the players, losing out to Michael Young. (3) He wasn’t picked by the manager, despite having lead the vote at his position just days before, leaving his hopes resting entirely on the “final man” vote. (4) He lost the “final man” vote. (5) He was passed over in favor of inferior teammate Cruz as a replacement for Hunter. (6) When Pedroia decided to skip the game due to a family matter, making it virtually impossible to leave him off the team, Maddon picked Carlos Pena instead.
[...]
Let’s put all of this together and see what we’ve got: (a) AL hitters refusing to swing in the home run derby + (b) Cruz and Pena selected over more obvious candidates Lind and Kinsler = (c) theory: replacement candidates were informed that their selection would be conditioned upon agreement to participate in the derby, and Lind & Kinsler either declined, or didn’t accept quickly enough to give the league comfort.
Interesting. Just sayin’… I don’t buy that Lind was more worthy than Pena or Cruz, but I definitely think Kinsler deserved a spot on this team.
In fact, the Mets prefer that Santana goes unused in Tuesday’s Midsummer Classic. The Phillies’ coaching staff, which is running the NL operation, appears willing to comply with the wishes of its rival.
[...]
“They want me to stay away from the game, I believe, so we’ll see,” Santana said.
So Johan will eat up a roster spot and puts his manager in a tough spot, merely so he gets the glory of being introduced in the pre-game? That’s lame. Just decline the invite and invite Yovanni Gallardo or some other worthy pitcher to take your place, Johan. Having to rely on the manager –the manager of the team your are chasing in real life– is silly. Good thing they expanded the rosters to 33, I guess.
But then again, many things around this game are pretty absurd.
This is just flat out terrible, irresponsible and embarrassing. I hope they have the author, Greg Doyel, on OTL, skewering him. But they won’t.
This thing is filthy. The symbol of the Home Run Derby should be a syringe. From 2001-06, 48 players took part in the Derby. Almost half of them — 21 by my count — were confirmed steroids users or have been linked to steroids by the Mitchell Report or some other form of testimony. That includes Bret Boone, who partook in the Derby in 2003 amid one of the more shocking power trips in baseball history. Boone, a small guy who hit .223 with seven home runs and 46 RBI in 501 at-bats in 1997, was damn near DiMaggio-like in 2001: .331, 37 home runs, 141 RBI. The power surge continued a few more years, and Canseco has said Boone was on the juice at the time. And Canseco, bless him, has been more accurate about the founding fathers of the steroid era than anyone.
[...]
So anyway … the guy from this year’s crop could be Pujols. Could be Brandon Inge, who is slugging 100 points above his career average and on pace for 37 home runs, one year after he hit .205 with 11 homers. It’ll be somebody, unless the cheaters are finally starting to wise up to the point where they realize they shouldn’t be flaunting their ill-gotten power gains at the Home Run Derby, for God’s sake.
Pathetic.
I’m not the biggest ARod fan out there; heck, I only root for him because he’s on the team that I choose to root for. He’s been playing this year on half a bum hip, fresh off surgery just to get him back ON the field this season, with a larger surgery looming in the off-season. He’s been great at times, achy and slow others. That doesn’t mean he’s done as a top player in the game. Might not be THE top player (I am a worshipper at the altar of Pujols, sorry), though.
But we do have to stop the snap judgements based upon half of 2009.
Can a player who will be 34 on July 25, who is coming off an injury that needed one surgery during spring training and could need another one after the season, who admitted he used steroids, really return to being the game’s premier player? Or, in a question the Yankees are probably afraid to ponder considering he is their property for the next nine years, have we already seen the best of A-Rod?
In a random, unscientific survey that included several scouts, executives, players and other observers, none said Rodriguez was still the best player in baseball.
Select View Full Post to continue reading.
You’ll read thousands of words about last night’s HR Derby, so I will be brief here:
- I made it home from my softball game around 8:20, figuring I missed the beginning. Of course, ESPN dragged it out.
- I really like the Cardinals’ stadium and I hope to make it there one day.
- The fans were rocking, as expected. Good to see.
- I’m amazed there aren’t injuries to some of those kids in the OF; some of the non-HR’s nearly took out a few of ‘em.
- Enough of Chris Berman, although he clearly got the message to dial back the “back, back, back”‘s.
- Berman calling Pujols “Winnie the Poo-holes” is enough to slam my hand on my coffee table, which I did. Seriously? Enough “Bermanisms”. They were fine and cute a decade before Berman was “with Leather“, I think. (Original “with Leather” story here). Maybe not even then.
- I marvel at batting practice pitchers for some reason. The ability for guys in their 50′s or 60′s to bring consistent heat to a consistent spot is fun to see.
- Speaking of Pujols, my mancrush remains intact.
- Oh yeah, the Derby itself: BORING. Three-plus hours to broadcast? Yawn.
- That yellow-to-green laser tail didn’t work for hockey; what made MLB think it would work here? Terribly unnecessary, guys. As Craig said, “just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should.”
- Soon MLB will announce that in order to “spruce up interest in the Derby”, it will now count for which league gets to use the DH. And my head will then explode.
- Remember, it counts tonite. Yay.
I dig the long hair. But the wool cap in St.Louis in July? Nope. But I am old.
There was an Associated Press-Knowledge Networks poll released Sunday which tells me that most of you (or is it us?) tend to agree about the All Star Game rules being askew. Funny, this sounds awfully like some of my recent rants, doesn’t it?
- By a margin of 56 percent to 42 percent, fans said the All-Star game shouldn’t be used to determine which league’s champion gets to open the World Series at home.
- More than half of fans said every team shouldn’t have a guaranteed spot on the All-Star rosters. [...] The rosters have been expanded over the years, making it easier to include every team. Even so, 55 percent of surveyed fans said teams shouldn’t be assured a spot.
- Eighty-two percent said players penalized under MLB’s drug policy shouldn’t be allowed into the All-Star game in the year they are punished.
Boston’s Jason Bay, who led AL outfielders in fan balloting, referenced the NFL rule: A player suspended for a league drug offense cannot play in the Pro Bowl that season. -
A similar percentage [55%] of fans want to eliminate the tie between the All-Star game and World Series. The chances of that happening anytime soon are about zero – what began as a two-year experiment in 2003 is now part of the labor contract through 2011, and neither the players’ union nor management seems interested in a change.
-
[Carl] Crawford would like to see best overall record determine home field for the World Series. Some others have suggested whichever league does best in interleague play should earn it.
Why not just Vote For Manny to prove to MLB how silly some of these conflicting rules really are. Wait, voting ended? Bummer.
Hat tip to Craig over at Circling The Bases.
