N.Y. Yankees retire Bernie Williams' #51 !Bien Hecho!

From the desk of:  BLAME CARLOS MAY

#51

Bernie Williams

CENTER FIELD

N.Y.Y.

1991-2006

New York Yankees: Bernie Williams Inducted Into Monument Park, as Bronx Bombers Retire #51.

I remember when Bernie Williams first came up.  The Yankees were a shell of their former selves.   The owner, George Steinbrenner, was suspended from the team.  And, so Gene "Stick" Michael was free to rebuild the Yankees at his own discretion, direction and speed.

Bernie Williams was promoted to the big club nearly a full 5 years before the Core Four came into being, and boy was he raw - not necessarily with a bat (which was a troubling sight), but in patrolling the expansive Yankees Stadium center field.

After just a few minutes reinstated back into baseball, George Steinbrenner seemed to zero in on Bernie.  There wasn't a day that passed in which the Boss didn't want Bernie traded.  The brilliant Stick Michael kept stonewalling George (perhaps one of the few to possess the balls to do so...), and the Yankees wound up keeping the young Williams.

That said, the Core Four just might owe their existence to Bernie, as he was the Boss' first true exercise in (acute) benevolence and patience in the aftermath of Fay Vincent's suspension.

That said, not another word (from me) without expressing my dismay over the Core Four.  The notion is a disservice to Bernie Williams, and quite honestly, it's disrespectful too.  To me, it has always been the Core Five.

In the strike marred year of 1994, you could sense his game was finally coalescing.  Then in 1995, Bernie arguably broke out.  He slashed .307/.392/.487 with 18 home runs and 82 RBI.

From then on, Bernie Williams was the clean-up hitter for the most recent New York Yankees dynasty.

For 7 years spanning 1996-2002, Bernie Williams averaged .323, 25 HR, and 104 RBI per season.   He appeared in 5 all-star games, won 4 gold gloves, a silver slugger award, and won the 1998 batting title.

Bernie Williams: Career Yankee
Games - 6th
Hits - 5th
Doubles - 3rd
Home Runs - 7th
RBI - 7th
Runs Scored - 6th

He was one of the finest ambassadors of Puerto Rico, ever.

To locals, he was a beloved, and an integral part of four Yankees championships.  He was perhaps the most quiet and unassuming as well.  The man never lacked class.., never.  Outside of the city, there's a chance he'll go down as one of the greatest Yankees that people never heard of.  Blame the Core Four, in a manner of speaking.

Not here though.  New Yorkers will forever know who Bernie Williams was in a town where no one really cares to know your name.

!Bien hecho!



Mike

N.Y. Yankees: On Derek Jeter's Retirement

From the desk of:   BLAME CARLOS MAY

Number

2

New York Yankees: The Captain - Derek Jeter Says The 2014 Season Will Be His Last.

By 1974, I was a young five tool fanchild.  I was born a very secure Mets fan, entertained my pop's love for the Yankees, been to both stadiums, knew how to keep score, and started collecting baseball cards on my own.

Fleeting are the summers.  Forty have passed in my life as a baseball fan.  But, much like the snow piling ever higher outside my house, the passage of time is chilling to ponder.

I spent the years 1974 and 1975 taking mental snapshots of the massive renovations taking place at historic Yankee Stadium.  In the interim, the team played its games at my house, Shea Stadium.  Nevertheless, routine trips to visit relatives meant taking the F.D.R. uptown to the George Washington Bridge, which provided me with an ongoing account of progress.  I was always alert with anticipation, waiting for the moment we drove by.

In 1976, the year of Yankee Stadium's grand reopening, my pop closed out the season by taking me to Game Five of the ALCS - you know, the insane Chris Chambliss home run game.  The images of that night, and watching the transformation of the old stadium, stay with me today.  As an adult, and father myself, I caught chills the day I positioned myself across the river, at that exact point of view, for a final series of photos just prior to her demolition.

The House That Ruth Built was gone.  The loss was great, but my memories, I knew would last forever. Among them, I include the playing days of Thurman Munson, the exploits of Reggie Jackson, and the careers of Dave Winfield and Don Mattingly when they shared a field together.

You can now add the cast of recent Core players, and in particular, the career of Derek Jeter.  The Yankees shortstop of the last 18+ years, the man dubbed Mr. November, announced Wednesday he will retire at season's end.  The 11th team captain in Yankees history decided it's time to leave the game.

In my lifetime, there has perhaps been no athlete in New York City, who has gotten IT more right, than him. The Boss was never more spot on, than when he named Derek captain of the Yankees, just as he was correct in naming Thurman Munson.  I understand more each day why those two were so perfectly suited for the role.  I mean no slight towards Mattingly, but I was a bigger Winfield fan.  That said, Munson, Mariano Rivera, and Derek Jeter, are whom I would define as the modern ideal of a Yankee.  In the Steinbrenner era, I believe no players brought more balance, and commanded genuine league wide, or even cross-town respect, despite the club's prevailing early Bronx Zoo, and later Evil Empire personas, than those three.

*    *    *    *

As part of my own personal Hall of Fame criteria, a player's late years, should rate similarly to those of, say, his prime years.  Loosely stated, I feel a player's 17th season, should somewhat resemble, say, his 7th year in the league. I believe one or two late, great seasons, serves as a punctuation mark to a potential HOF career.  It's a statement saying - I stayed great to the end.

For example, Dave Winfield did that in 1992, by posting 108 RBI at age 40, for the eighth 100+ RBI season of his career - a prestigious level of production by any measure.  Seven times?  Not so much.  Winfield additionally amassed 75 home runs in his final three full seasons.  He then only managed another 123 games over the next two seasons, and retired.  Had Dave Winfield not lost all of 1989 to injury, 500 home runs, and 2,000 RBI were very distinct possibilities.

Derek Jeter's 2012 regular season qualifies as one of those punctuation marks.  And like Winfield, Derek was sidelined for an entire season, all except for 17 games last year.  I'm not sure, however, if that helped or harmed his career numbers.  It just makes this season all the more intriguing.

*    *    *    *

There is also much about Derek Jeter that reminds me of Pete Rose.  Why bring Rose into this?  They shared an unrelenting, rabid determination, and thirst for competition at the highest level, and, because Derek Jeter could conceivably wind up 5th, 6th, or 7th on baseball's all-time hits list.  Currently in 6th place, is Tris Speaker, with 3,514 hits.  Derek needs 198 hits to match Speaker.

Pete Rose's last great season came at age 40, during the 1981 strike-shortened campaign, in which he led the N.L. in hits, and batted .325 for the season.  That's a punctuation mark.  He retired five years later, after passing Ty Cobb for 1st place on the all-time hits list.  Of course, Pete Rose held on till age 45, with the sole intention of chasing down Ty Cobb's record, so naturally, there was an expected drop in Charlie Hustle's production.  But had Rose retired after the 1981 season at age 40, he would still have amassed 3,697 hits. Derek Jeter currently sits at 3,316 and counting.  That's a difference of only 381 hits before a single pitch gets thrown in 2014.

Derek Jeter will turn 40 years old this June, and his bounce back 2012 season is right up there with Pete Rose's 1981 campaign.  Derek once again surpassed 200 hits, and in fact, led the league with 216, and batted .316 for the season.  That's punctuation.

Baseball's all-time hit king averaged 639 at-bats a season over his 24 year career.  Entering his 20th campaign, Jeter has averaged 661 at-bats a season.  Pete Rose eclipsed 200 hits in a season ten times, while Jeter has done so eight times.

*    *    *    *

Upon completion of Derek's final game as a Yankee, the Core FIVE era will officially come to an end. Despite arriving in the Bronx a few years earlier, I will always include Bernie Williams among the core, along with Andy, Mo, and Jorge Posada.

Bernie's enduring legacy could have been further enhanced, but he never provided that punctuating season at the end of his career.  He, in effect, ruined his .300 career batting average with four final pedestrian seasons before Brian Cashman unceremoniously pushed him out the door.  He batted above .300 for eight straight seasons, but (unofficially) retired after 16 seasons with the Yankees, owning a .297 batting average.

Like Bernie, the great Mickey Mantle probably held on too long, and likewise ruined his career batting average.  The Mick retired with a .299 mark.  In his mind, and with his words, Mickey was defiant to the end, insisting he was a .300 hitter.  Unfortunately, his baseball card disagreed by a fraction, and he always regretted that.

When Derek Jeter signed his current contract, his lifetime batting average stood at .314, which means he's lost two points over the last three years.  That's been my main concern regarding Jeter's latter years - I want him to retire with a career batting average above the .310 mark.  Over a 20 year career, I would view that as a majestic baseball achievement.  With the hopeful completion of a healthy, and even mildly productive 2014 season, his lifetime average will likely rank 15th all-time for players with 20 or more years of service.

Pete Rose was far from being a home run hitter, but remains one of the greatest players I ever saw - period! Home runs do not a Hall of Famer make.  Rose retired with a .303 career batting average, and holds a considerable advantage in doubles, while Derek Jeter easily beats Rose in home runs, and was an overall higher slugger.

Derek currently has 256 home runs, and with any luck, can reach 270+ before he retires, if, he sticks to his career average of 16 per season.  Keeping in mind that he has primarily been a lead-off, or number two hitter, here are other milestones within reach this season:

39 more RBI for 1,300
24 runs scored for 1,900
2 stolen bases for 350
25 more doubles for 550

*    *    *    *

It wasn't too long ago that Derek Jeter was being ranked behind contemporaries such as the beleaguered Alex Rodriguez, Nomar Garciaparra, Miguel Tejada, and other various shortstops of the day.  Of the former shortstops mentioned, two have been established as cheaters of the game, and the third couldn't withstand the test of time.

Not coincidentally, Nomar Garciaparra also owns a .312 career batting average, but only lasted 14 years before injuries forced him into retirement.  It was ironic that during the 2004 season, then Red Sox GM Theo Epstein traded then face of the franchise, Nomar Garciaparra.  The Sox went on to win their first World Series in 86 years without him, and two more for good measure.  In 2009, Derek Jeter earned his fifth ring as a Yankee.

Derek Jeter's Hall of Fame career needs no championing from me.  His career spans two decades of sustained excellence that speaks for itself.  He not only outlasted, and outclassed his contemporaries, he will retire as one of baseball's all-time titans.

How about that....



Mike.BTB
Mets fan

n.y. Yankees ~ Jorge Forged His Pinstripes With Fire

From the desk of:   BLAME CARLOS MAY

new york YANKEES:  ADIOS JORGE; The Feistiest of the Core.


And then there were two.


Faced and charged with the most unenviable task of putting an Era to pasture, Brian Cashman effectively did to Jorge Posada what he did in similarly cold fashion to Bernie Williams and began instigating with Derek Jeter during last year's off-season.  It's official now; Jorge Posada will play Major League Baseball no more.


Only Andy Pettitte remained ahead of Simon Bar Sinister's plots ever since the Yanks unceremoniously let the lefty mosey-on back home to play for Houston.  Andy came back as shrewed towards Cashman, as the GM himself, and exited the game on his own terms.  Mariano Rivera appears destined to do the same.


Ultimately however, The Core is No More.  The modern day River Avenue Legends are increasingly being raided and signed by the Retirement Club.  Like Andy and Bernie before him, Jorge Posada has turned in his Pinstripes for civilian life again.


I have long stated my high regard for Jorge Posada.  I went through the BTB archives and pulled these two posts:


ONE: - was just a post of appreciation for the Yankee catcher and about his Hall of Fame potential.  January 30, 2010 - Jorge Posada; the Jack Morris of Catchers


TWO: - came on the heels of the infamous day Jorge "called-in sick".  Looking back on that incident now gets me to thinking Jorge left this game in perfect Posada fashion; ever resistive and defiantly. - May 15, 2011 - Posada Deserves a Free Pass




Brought to you by the magic of copy-and-paste, and with some minor editing, here's a summary:

ONE:  Jorge Posada will never get the true credit for being, in a most literal sense, the Yankees Back Bone.   Jorge has always been willing to stick his neck out for his team mates, when so many of them over the last 8 years have not.   He was always willing to do what needed to be done when so many wouldn't.  Even if it meant going against the Yankee way.   Who else I ask you, Who? - took it upon himself to send an occasional message to the American League, - Don't Mistake Yankee Kindness For Our Weakness!  I defy you to compile that list for me.   Jorge always had his team mates backs!   So many would never step their game up and bring to the game what, at times, the situation dictated.

Because he's in the shadow of Jete and ARod, and other players and contracts of yore..(Giambi et-al), Jorge is made to simmer inside.   Sometimes the criticisms leveled against him are warranted where it concerns defense, but I'm not here to speak of that today.


Casey Stengel used to say of Yogi Berra, "I never play without my Guy".   Whether Yogi was behind the dish, left field or first base, Casey always played with his Guy.  Torre treated Jorge much the same way with little outward conveyance.  But you knew it.  For long the Yanks remained reliant on their Guy's bat in spite of so many "other" significant players on the field.


He gets knocked, disrespected, barreled over, nicked and under appreciated for all of it.   Pitchers and their own issues with Jorge were no less guilty contributing to this phenomena.   But I will tell you those same pitchers loved him when he connected in clutch moments.   WHO'S Knocking Jorge Then?  And I'm Not Even A Yankee Friendly.


No catcher has more RBI over the last 10 years in baseball.   Championships?   He's moving on to the next hand.  As it stands today, no he is not a Hall of Famer.  He's kind of like the Jack Morris of Catchers for his work over a decade.   He's close...Real close.   He should be able to solidify opinions over the next 2 years if hopefully Father Time is good to him.   Let's see.




TWO:   The distasteful wrangling and public debate involved in determining when a career should end sort of becomes a pseudo-arbitration hearing that takes place in the last three to four years of a player's career. A player's waining years similarly engages player and club into a contentious confrontation.   A player sets out to justify his continued value to the team, while the club sometimes is looking for his career, or just their time together, to end.


Jorge Posada was wrong ("calling in sick") Saturday.   There's no getting around that.   But I'm not about to start bashing Jorge's actions prior to game time nor for his post-game follow-up.   If you have an understanding that most careers do not end on the greatest of terms, Saturday's incident would preclude you from criticizing Jorge.  Additionally, you're a Yankee Fan, a New Yorker, an astute baseball fan, or a Mets Fan like myself, we all know Jorge is a really, really proud guy.


There is a constant in sports and with players; - athletes almost never go out on top.   They're usually forced into retirement because a replacement arrived on the scene, or they don't heal/recover from injuries as well as they once did, or, their skills have eroded to the point where the club is forced to take action against said player.   Those are just a few of many reasons why careers end on less than positive notes and we see it more and more all the time.


Players rarely take the initiative and alleviate clubs from having to make unpopular decisions against them.   Millions of modern day dollars make players even more reluctant to exercise pragmatism when their skills, stature, and role on the team all come into question.   But when a team is ultimately compelled to take action, it's almost always a contentious situation.   Many times the player takes it as a slight and views it as a form of disrespect.   How much they decide to wear their emotions on their sleeves and share their displeasure with the Media is another matter.   But this is not a posting regarding Jorge Posada's issues of comportment.


In Baseball, retirement is now more often than not, an ugly, unsympathetic, adversarial process. Modern Baseball has made the decision to, retire or release, much more cut-throat because of the money involved.   It used to be, the waining days of a career were times fans as well as owners and their GM's knowingly looked the other way out of respect for their years of hometown play.   But with that accorded respect, a return of favor was somewhat expected.   A silent acknowledgement by the player often set in motion a plan to set a Date of Announcement.  Then on-field and on-going celebrations of appreciation could be properly planned.  An opportunity for the player to leave the game with dignity while in front of adoring fans and in a setting that also gave Clubs an honest and genuine opportunity to share their own warm sentiments and regard, used to be standard; once.


Bad Karma is brewing in the Bronx.  Brian Cashman, Joe Girardi, and Jorge Posada are three converging forces and it's not good.   Only Posada runs the risk of getting subducted.   Cashman is intent on being a schmuck the rest of his time in the Bronx.  Girardi still has a job to do and this will not be the last time Girardi and Posada bump heads this season.   There is no love between the two. Girardi has slighted Jorge once too many times as manager for his catching.   More of this is definitely on the way should Posada continue to struggle and chose not to retire.


Jorge Posada: His Pinstripes Didn't Bend.


Allow me to introduce you to whom I thought was your real/unofficial/un-named Yankee Captain; all along - Jorge Posada. 
 

Derek Jeter was named Captain of the Yankees because The Boss thought he exuded Yankee Class, Winning, the confident Yankee Stoicism in a hot bed like NYC, and a belief Jeter would never embarrass the organization.  That's cool with me.  I'm not going there.


But sorry, Jorge Posada was the Yankees' back-bone in a most literal sense.   For all his fire, passion, and grit, he never received his full share of respect.   He wasn't the best or flashiest player in Pinstripes.   He had flaws.., like fans; like regular people; like us!   But he provided the Yankees with something very few of his team mates over the years couldn't or wouldn't provide; - like I said - A Back-Bone, and a Response.
 

Over his years, Jorge Posada above all Yankee regulars was the one player who consistently relished facing the more dastardly aspects of Baseball head-on.   I simply remind you of the playoffs versus Boston and the verbal/visual exchange Jorge and Pedro Martinez engaged in.   That would probably be the most famous instance, but Jorge's edgy spirit was a nightly attribute.   During those Torre Years, the book was out on the Yankees.   They were capable of being PUNKED-Out.   If no one else, Jorge Posada was always the first to step up and make known that Wouldn't Fly.


Back in the days of the heated Mariners/Yankees Rivalries, tempers often flared-up causing both teams to empty dugouts and bullpens numerous times.   When A-Rod still played in Seattle, Derek Jeter was infamously criticized many times for conveniently finding Alex Rodriguez in the crowd and therefore, cancelling each other out, while also smiling and laughing along the way.


Once upon a time, a left fielder named Chad Curtis dared criticize the Captain for such cowardly acts. He was disappeared to the Island of Misfit and Outspoken Yankees.   Jorge Posada wouldn't have thrown Jeter under the bus like Curtis did to the Media.   But Jorge's actions on the field speak loud and clear.   Then after a game with the Media, he'd be the one to say what everyone was thinking, but speaking loudly so as to be heard.   That was Jorge.  And Hip Hip to that.


But here's something I'm not so Hip on.


I never did subscribe to the Big Brother-Little Brother cow-chip the Media always tried to throw at us in the late 1990's when discussing the relationship between Jorge Posada and Joe Girardi.   That's over-rated.   I remember Jorge chomping at the bit, dying to get Girardi out of the way so as to become the everyday starter.   And I'm just guessing and stabbing here - but why wouldn't Jorge be somewhat puzzled as to why Girardi received so much credit for Jorge's early successes?   Hmmm?   How ponderous is it Girardi gets too much credit for training his understudy and now finds himself as the guy trying to take him out?


It would seem to me Joe Girardi has been more of a hindrance to Jorge's early and late career like a recurring bout of herpes.   I remember Joe Girardi being signed to be their catcher to great ridicule.  And today, all Posada knows is that he just can't make him totally go away.  During the years Girardi spent out of Pinstripes, Jorge Posada went on to total more RBI than any other catcher in Baseball during the 2000's.   Ever since Joe flared back into Jorge's life a few years ago as manager, things have been going down hill for the embattled "ex-present-catcher" ever since.

*     *     *     *

Today, I just wish him well.  I'll leave the retiring his number thing up to Yankee Fans.

Mike.BTB

N.Y. YANKEES ~ Brian Cashman Doesn't Mince Words

From the desk of:  Blame Carlos May




New York Yankees:  The GM laughs little, jokes less, and just doesn't play at all.


There's only one way I can classify Yankee GM Brian Cashman's comments regarding Pedro Feliciano.  First this is the Tweet by YES Network's Jack Curry:

@JackCurryYES   Jack Curry Feliciano led the major lgs in appearances with the Mets the last 3 yrs. "He was abused," Cashman said

 

Cashman's comments were a direct indictment levied against the New York Mets.  As for what I think of that comment? - It's completely comical and absurd.  And his increasing curt choice of words delivered with a smug matter-of-fact cockiness is an ongoing indication of how high Cashman's ego has skyrocketed over the last few years.

Why I think his comments are comical have nothing to do with his taking a jab and my team of choice; the New York Mets.  No; Cashman's choice words to describe the situation he and his off season bullpen acquisition find themselves in are a reflection of Cashman himself knowing full well the work load Feliciano has endured these last three years and signed him anyway.  Feliciano is the latest in a long line of horrible pitching acquisitions by Cashman.  Maybe I'll get into that more later.  But you know who they are. 

Going back to Mariano Rivera's first year as an understudy under John Wetteland...Now that was abuse.  I believe he had over 100 innings pitched as a reliever.  Every year Joe Torre had at least one mule that he abused and they were never the same again.  Because when Joe Torre didn't trust you, someone else's arm was going to get spent.

If Pedro Feliciano didn't break down he'd be a work horse and Cashman would have authored a savvy signing.  But because the "known to be overly taxed" reliever now finds himself on the Yankees DL, he suddenly became a victim of Met Abuse.  Forget that the Mets knew enough not to sign him.  How convenient for Cashman to say such a thing.  If Brian Cashman believes that to be so, then it's time for the Mets to set up a Hot-Line so as to prevent this from ever happening again.  How dare Brian Cashman sign a former Met who suddenly became damaged goods.  We owe him better than that.  Did we forget our lot in life?

But it's more than just Feliciano.  Brian Cashman has come a long long way since his days as a Yankee intern.  He now rules them with an iron fist and a tongue laced with a dismissive attitude to boot.  He was once the master of saying nothing.  Now-a-days what he says and how he says it, is an astonishing listen in SMUG - straight out of the School of Robert Moses for Effective Dismissive Speaking and Advancements in Elitism.

Working backwards, the most recent line in the sand he drew was with Jeter's off-season contract extension.  The General Manager's demeanor took an unusually disparaging approach in his negotiations.  A "be-lucky-you-still-have-a-job" Cashman gauntlet prevents Jorge Posada from "ever" being the Yankees' prideful backstop again.  Then there's Joba.  In my opinion, the Yankees, and Cashman in particular ruined this kid. And Brian Cashman seems so "Oh Well" about Joba's status.  The GM was very displeased with the apparent shape the young hurler came into camp in.  But in describing his lack of satisfaction with the situation, he chose to use some very cutting words.

Let's go further; - Back to when A-Rod and Scott Boras chose to use the World Series as their personal platform to announce they were opting out of the rest of their contract (signed with Texas) the Yankees were now in possession of.  Brian Cashman ever so matter-of-factly, basically told Alex Rodriguez to beat it.  I'd bet the word "scram" was even a thought.  If the decision were left solely to Cashman, A-Rod would not be a Yankee today.

There are more players; more instances.  Think Bernie Williams.  Think Andy Pettitte the first time.

But think back to the ultimatum he challenged George Steinbrenner with.  Brian was prepared to walk out the door but still offered advice on what needed to be done in order for the Yankees to maintain sustained success.  Some of Cashman's plans addressed the farm system, and other parts of his plan covered salary controls.  But most of all, Brian Cashman insisted George dis-ban the little gaggle of subversives in Tampa; Team Tamper as I used to call them.  George always played his GM's against his boys in Tampa; among them, pitching "guru" Billy Connors.  Cashman basically told George it's either them or me, but someone has to go.  So George said, OK Brian.  Stay, and you'll have full control.  But now your posterior is on the line.. - is basically the tone Boss held with his emboldened GM (almost former GM).

Ever since then, Brian Cashman has spoken with a tongue as shape as a Ginsu.

He now operates like someone who knows he's ready to leave and will walk on the edge just for fun because quitting or getting fired is something he can give less that two fungos about at this point in his Yankee career.

I'm not saying any of this is a bad thing; or good - I'm just saying.  It's interesting to remember where he came from within this organization, to the megalomaniac he's slowly growing into now.







Mike.BTB