Holy Cow

by Ron Prezzano

Parity in the baseball business is surely paying dividends. Another season comes trotting around third and heading for home with another walk off home run for attendance.

“Holy Cow, White! Did you see those attendance figures? There aren’t enough canolis on the planet for all these fans. Tell Cora I’ll be home early to beat the rush out of here and happy birthday to Roseallie Bonadondo, from the Bronx, who is eighty-three today and a life long Yankee fan.

God bless the Scooter.

You know the sport is healthy if forty-three thousand fans turn out for a Milwaukee Brewers game on a Monday night in September.

Americans are willing to shell out doles of hard earned cash to watch their favorite pastime sport. This, despite allegations and evidence of unfair play by its players and the blind eyes of its organizers. This is America, this is how we do business. So be it. I love baseball and sport imitates life.

Perhaps we should inject our political constituents with some performance enhancing supplements. Maybe they can rise to the occasion and bring the troops home and return billions of our tax dollars to hard working Americans. Instead of lining the pockets of already financially bloated big business and scheming mercenaries. Revenue sharing in American big business and government is beaurocratically impossible, but it works in baseball. Food for thought.

Can anyone predict a front-runner in this post season? It will once again come down to good starting pitching and a reliable bullpen, plus solid defense. What else is new.

The Yankees have played the best baseball since June 1st. but their pitching has been erratic and the bullpen has been dreadful. Joba Chamberlain has added late inning strength to the pen in the last month and is a true link to Mariano Rivera. Mariano has shown cracks but knows how to close a game. If the Yankee starters cannot get through seven innings then they will be out early. Good pitching will once again shut down this Yankee offense. If the Yankees get through long enough to face the Red Sox, I pick the Yankees. The Red Sox are one of the teams with good starting pitching that the Yankees can handle.

If the Mets make it to the World Series I would suggest that the Washington Nationals kidnap the Mets team bus and uniforms and go about their business.

With the exception of the Chicago Cubs all of the playoff teams will be around the ninety to ninety-five win mark. Can you imagine Lou Pinella pulling this one off? Free Chicago deep dish pizza for life for Lou and family and Steve Bartman can move back home.


This has been an interesting year for baseball. Something is working. Holy Cow!

Shady Brady and Bill Belicheat

Win, lose or draw

By Ron Prezzano

Well, as most logical baseball fans have sensed for months the New York Yankees reign on the American League East title is over. There are thirty one games remaining and New York trails the well balanced division leading Boston Red Sox by seven and one half games. This is not the nineteen seventy-eight New York Yankees.

Although New York leads MLB in many offensive categories their pitching is in the middle of the pack.

Andy Pettitte has been all the Yankees have asked of him with all but three or four bad starts. With a decent bullpen, early on, he would more than likely be among the league leader in wins. After Pettitte and more often than not, Chien-Meng Wang, it is a real crap shoot.

Roger Clemens, playing half a season, has given them innings but at forty-five years of age is not the Clemens of previous years. Still it is amazing how well he pitches at times.

Mike Mussina has been more awful than respectable. He will throw a gem every eighth or so start. His velocity is down, again, and he needs to be almost perfect with his location to be effective. Not an easy task given the diverse strike zone of many umpires. Add to that equation how Mike shows his arrogance and displeasure when an umpire squeezes his strike zone. Not mister public relations along those lines. Umpires are turning into stage performers, but I digress, that is for a future article.

Phil Hughes is poised for a twenty-one year old but is still a rookie with little experience and will make rookie mistakes. This year, with injuries, has been hard but helpful for this future front line starter.

The procession of raw rookie starters that paraded through the Yankee rotation early was not impressive, at all, at this level. With more minor league development they will thrive given their talent. The Yankee farm system has never been stacked with this quality of young gifted arms. This seems to be the trend for many quality franchises to develop their own young talented arms.

The bullpen has been erratic to dreadful, at best, for most of the season.

Luis Vizcaino, Scott Proctor, Brian Bruney and Kyle Farnsworth were basically the same type of pitchers and were having the same kind of problems. Location, location, location. They walked everybody and gave up a ton of extra base hits. So did the likes of Ron Villone, and Mike Myers.

Mariano Rivera, due to lack of work early, has shown signs of age and inactivity. His velocity is down a notch. He really is only a one inning pitcher but unlike Farsworth can pitch on multiple days and still be effective. He still is among the elite in MLB as a closer.

The bench was weak and shallow.

Given that assessment the Yankees have improved both the bullpen and bench dramatically in the past five weeks. With the addition of Joba Chamberlain and Edwar Ramirez, the resurgence of Vizcaino, the bullpen has a more balanced and diverse feel for Torre.

The bench has been shored up with power defense and diversity. The acquisitions of Jose Molina, and Wilson Betemit proved to be wise. The promotion of Andy Phillips and Shelley Duncan ads some power and energy to the mix.

Back to basics. The Yankees are awful in one run and extra inning games. They do not play consistently well against the better teams in the league. They play bad on the road.
On the plus side, they play well at home (excluding Baltimore) and have beaten up on the lesser teams in the AL.

Losing to a Sheffied-less Detroit on Friday night/ Saturday morning and again on Sunday was telling and painful. Derek Jeter was hurt and was hitting into many double plays lately. If he were healthy perhaps they win those two games. Perhaps.

Seattle has ten of it's next thirteen games against playoff contending teams. Will they crack? I thought they would a month ago. I was wrong, again. They are a legitimate club, with good hitting, pitching and a good bullpen.

The Yankees need to approach and play each game as a potential seventh game playoff. I am not crazy, this is what they need to do thanks to the enormous hole they dug themselves early on.

With Mussina going tonight there is a chance that the Yankees will be eight games behind the Red Sox when they meet at home on Tuesday. A sweep of Boston, while not impossible, is mandatory.

The Yankees are chasing two teams, well, really only one. The Red Sox are not going to fold with that pitching staff and their momentum.

More than likely the Yankees need to play .650 ball to advance into the playoffs as the wild card. Even that is not a given with Seattle playing superb baseball.

The Yankees play Boston six times Seattle three times and Baltimore (ouch) six times in the remaining thirty-one games. With tonights game against the Tigers that is more than half their remaining games against teams who will play them tough. Not an impossible task but not one favoring the Yankees given their season's history.

October in August

By Ron Prezzano

Watching the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim consistently feast off the New York Yankees is a work of art. How this team has not won more championships is more about timing than anything else. They have been a solid, if not an elite, team in MLB for more years than W. has been president.

Their pitching has always had quality starters and the bullpen, not so much this year, has been among the best in baseball. K-Rod is a quality closer despite his quirky mechanics. He has managed to stay healthy and consistent ever since his promotion several years ago.

Power has not been a mainstay for this Mike Scioscia managed team but don't let that fool you. They play situational baseball as well as any team in baseball and they score runs.

Base stealing, which they lead all teams in MLB, bunting, taking the extra base and challenging the defense is a characteristic part of their game. They are well managed and coached. There is only one player who swings wildly 100% of the time and that is Vladimir Guerrero. All he does is hit thirty plus home runs and drive in 120 RBI's on a yearly basis. By the way, his career batting average is .324. So swing away Vlad. Imagine A-Rod in this lineup.

Okay, that said, The Yankees continue to put up good offensive numbers 90% of the time but their pitching, still is their Achilles heal. Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens give them good quality starts and innings. So does Chien-Ming Wang, although he has slumped in his last four starts.

Mike Mussina is a huge question mark and not that reliable. He certainly will not get them innings and the bull pen has to be rested for his starts. Mike's performance can be a product of the home plate umpire. If the ump is liberal with his strike zone Mussina can have a good game. If not, it will be a short game for Mike and a long one for the Yankees and their bullpen.

Phil Hughes is going to be a solid pitcher and his mound presence is very stoic for a lad of twenty one. It would have been interesting to see how this staff would have performed if Hughes were not injured early on.

The bullpen looks different now than it did three weeks ago. The addition of Joba Chamberlain and Edwar Ramirez have given Joe Torre a diversity that was not there earlier this season. Joba throws strikes and has good velocity and a quality sinker. Ramirez has a career changing change up. Prior to these two young arms in the pen Joe was stuck with power pitching relievers with poor location, as the bullpen led the Majors in walks.

Luis Vizcaino, after a rough couple of months, has been much improved. Although the ability for Torre to overuse and abuse him still exists.

Then there is Mariano Rivera. Nothing needs to be mentioned here.

The rest of the bullpen is just awful. Kyle Farnsworth is a head case, Sean Henn is inexperienced and unpredictable and Ron Villone is the left hander no one else wants. Nothing to hang your hat on here.

The Yankees, with their injuries and inexperienced young rookie pitching replacements, early on, dug themselves a huge hole to climb out of. Add to that absolutely no offence, other than A-Rod and Posada, for the first two months and you have a formula for the possibility of no post season for New York. It is a realistic scenario.

This two week stretch where the Yankees play Anaheim, Detroit, Boston and Seattle is the make or break part of the season. So far the only thing predictable is their inconsistency. That won't make it. The Yankees need to win more than they lose. .500 baseball will not cut it for a chance at the playoffs.

Boston and Seattle continue to win. These are the teams who the Yankees are chasing. Seattle has surprised everyone. Their season is about to get harder though, as they come east to play the quality teams from both the East and Central divisions.

Boston has too much pitching for them to fold. Unless they let Eric Gagne close all of their games.

It should be interesting. My guess? The Yankees make it into the playoffs as the wild card. I like this scenario as it puts less pressure on A-Rod and the Yankees to be the team to beat.

October in April

By Ron Prezzano

The New York Yankees vs. the Boston Red Sox, never have two teams generated more media hype, or fan rivalry in American sports history. That statement, in itself, sounds very egotistical and biased coming from a New York Yankee baseball fanatic like myself. Truth be told, this stuff just gets the old blood flowing, even this early into the season. It’s April 20th and, besides the weather, it feels like October baseball.

These two teams have been competitive as siblings for the past several seasons, hell the last eighty plus seasons.. This year seems to be following that same pattern. Almost always though, the results of their rivalry made the Yankees appear to be the older wiser big brother.

What better pitching match up could a Sox and Yankee fan expect in the first game than Curt Schilling facing Any Pettitte. These two seasoned veterans handle pressure with the confidence of a certain NYC Mayor during a city crisis, with leadership and determination.

Both teams have good offenses with the edge going New York’s way. I say this because with the loss of Sheffield the Yankee hitters are taking a more situational approach to the game. The injury to Sheffield last year was a blessing to this Yankee team. It forced them to play more of an aggressive type of offensive game and it paid off. When Sheffield returned they looked like that “long ball offense” once again, and that wasn’t working. Replacing Sheffiled’s bat with Abreu’s changed this lineup to a more consistent situational hitting one and this one works. When Hideki Matsui returns from the DL the Yankee lineup is obscenely loaded with good hitters. Sidebar…(the Mets offense is equally as obscene) but I digress; we are talking Yankee Red Sox here.

One last thing on Yankee offense, Jorge Posada just seems to get better with age. His hitting is to all fields from both sides of the plate. Jorge will make a formidable DH when his catching days are over.

The Red Sox offense centers around Ortiz and Ramirez and has been bolstered by the addition of J.D. Drew. Drew has gotten off to a very good start. That part of the line up could produce up to 380 to 400 RBI’s at years end. Scary.

Pitching, at this particular time, seems to be heavily in the favor of the Red Sox. This is in part to the Yankees having four starters on the DL (Wang, Mussina, Pavano and Rasner). The Red Sox starters have been formidable, to say the least. Schilling, Matsuzaka and Beckett all pitched well, even Wakefeild has had a decent start; their combined ERA is 2.09.

I have got to give New York the advantage in the middle relief department in the bullpen. The closers, (Rivera NY, Papelbon Bos.) at this time, cancel each other out, although Papelbon has four saves and Rivera none.

We never know what lies ahead in life, so enjoying the moment is essential and I truly recommend it. Right now I am not going to worry if Alex Rodriguez opts out of his contract at years end. Alex is here right now. I will ride the current wave of majestic performance he is displaying, knowing this might not happen again in my lifetime. Watching him hit right now is a feeling of provocative anticipation. The past is the past, so now this is fun.

So, I am treating this weekend like a playoff weekend just because it has been a long winter and the atmosphere is there. Enjoy, and guess what? We get to do it next weekend again and at home. Priceless.

Yankee Weather Chart

By Ron Prezzano


With injuries throughout MLB appearing to coincide with the unusual weather patterns this spring, the New York Yankees are on familiar turf. After all, it was a year ago that the same injury plague descended on the Bronx. The difference this year is that, so far, none of these injuries appear to be season or career ending.

The Yankees can probably count on right-handers Chien-Ming Wang, Mike Mussina and Jeff Karstens to return and contribute quality innings.

Carl Pavano, on the other hand, is as fragile as a mobile home in a trailer park during a hurricane. He is also becoming that predictable. (I just had to say that because the thought was lurking there in the frontal part of my brain). The problem really is his reliance and durability. This latest injury, to the area around his elbow, appeared to be minor last week, but this week may be more tenuous. Hopefully it is an injury of fatigue related to not pitching competitively in the last year and a half. Stay tuned.

The Yankees biggest concern going into the season was their starting pitching. On paper it looked formidable to pretty darn good. There were veterans’ and a Cy Young runner up to take the mound every four or five days. The return of Andy Pettitte was a great acquisition. Fill that out with a couple of young semi tested prospects and hope springs eternal. Unfortunately the questions concerning age, injuries and experience, early on, are becoming issues of reality.

This week the Yankees face two very good offences. Cleveland and the Red Sox. To put it into missionary terms, pitching wise, the Yankees could be horizontally violated several times in the next six days. The rotation looks rather adolescent with Chase Wright, Kei Igawa, Darrell Rasner, Andy (Milf) Pettitte and Jeff Karstens to pitch these six games. Meanwhile, the schedule has the Red Sox throwing Curt Schilling, Josh Beckett and Daisuke Matsuzaka at the Yankees The onus is on the Yankee offence to act like knights protecting the chastity of their loved ones.

The tide is changing and the future is rapidly descending on the Bronx. What I like is the Yankees will now be forced into giving some of their young arms major league experience. It is early in the season allowing Cashman and Torre to get a feeling for quality moves, if needed, later on. This is how Brian Cashman has set up his system. Not bad in my book, plenty of young resources and flexibility. No hostage situation here.

As far as Philip Hughes coming up to the big club, he is not ready and will be best served pitching in AAA, hopefully the Yankees will not pop his cherry too early.

As Ari Gold says “ we may be whores but we are not pimps.” Please Brian, no pimping allowed.

Now about that Clemens guy…..

Joe Torre's Last Stand

By Ron Prezzano


Judging by the amount of injuries and lack of post season fight this New York Yankee team has displayed in the past two seasons It is definitely time for a managerial change for the New York Yankees. That last statement exceeded my self-imposed allotment of twenty two words per sentence. That just goes to show you how frustrated and tired I am with Joe and his laid back approach to managing.

The Yankees have once again gotten off to a slow start. I guess we can also blame the atrocious weather conditions across the country for this sub-par showing. Why not, Joe does, but yet the Mets continue to play well in equally poor weather. Can you guess where I am going with this?

Look across town and you will see a manager who does not take poor or lackadaisical play lightly. Willie Randolph will let his players know when he sees things that are not to his liking. The Met players will run through a wall for Randolph and their on field play shows it.

Joe's decision to go with a three headed first baseman is a signal that he is showing signs of dementia. This move has created a logjam at first base and will cost the team a much needed roster spot. By electing to nurture this three headed sinkhole, and go with twelve pitchers, Joe leaves himself short handed with position players. This has already been obvious regarding the injury plagued start of the season.


Johnny Damon had a calf muscle strain and Hideki Matsui has a hamstring issue that has put him on the disabled list. This transformed into playing Miguel Cairo in left field for a couple of games. Cairo is a utility infielder and played four games in the outfield last season. This is the New York Yankees for God's sake. The highest pay-rolled team in baseball. Miguel Cairo, Josh Phelps, Doug Mientkiewicz manning two power positions for the highest paid team in baseball? This is like Having a Bentley and letting your wife use it to pick up groceries.

The Yankee defense has been nothing short of frightening. Derek Jeter's weakness to cover ground up the middle, and to his left, has always been his Achilles heel. Now his inaccurate throwing to first base is being exposed. Tino Martinez and Jason Giambi were great at making that scoop play at first base and saving Jeter a ton of errors. With Josh Phelps now playing some games at first base it is evident that The Captain will long for days past. There goes that Gold Glove Award.

A-Rod, at third base, has shown signs early that he has more agility at the hot corner, but still is a defensive question mark.

Robinson Cano, at second base, makes the hard plays look easy, and at times the easy plays look hard.

Hideki Matsui, in left field, has looked less than stellar defensively as time goes on.


Johnny Damon, in center field, covers adequate ground but he throws like I do left handed and I am right handed.

Bobby Abreu, in left field, is not the most graceful or fluid of players to play that position. Sometimes, (as in recently) he has shown his Reggie Jackson "Iron Glove" impersonation. Not pretty.

Combine this with a very shaky (so far) and injured starting pitching staff and the formula looks bad for this year's Yankee team.

If there is a positive and a strength to this team it is their offense and bullpen. Somehow, between Joe Torre's ability to mismanage and over use his bullpen this could turn into another weak link.

The offense will be solid for the regular season. If the Yankees make the playoffs, and that is not a given this year, good opposing pitching will shut them down again.

Although the Yankees have improved themselves in the off season with a younger farm system and pitching staff, that is not enough. Baltimore, Toronto and even the Tampa Bay Devil Rays have improved significantly. They are all good offensive teams and Baltimore and Toronto have a decent bullpen. Sound familiar?



The American League East is turning into a cloned division, with the exception of Tampa Bay at least. They will beat up on one another and Boston could open up a good lead by June.

The Red Sox, to me, seem to have an upper hand on the division. Good Starting pitching, the usual decent offense, and Jonathan Papelbon as the closer, this will be the team to beat. There, I said it, as painful as it is.

Injuries always play an important role and that could dictate who survives.

Pitching and defense win titles and the Yankees are falling short once again in that department.

This will be Joe Torre's last stand.