Toeing the Rubber

Joe Mauer at Fenway in 2008 (Photo courtesy of Kelly O'Connor/sittingstill.net and used with permission)

Over the weekend I uttered a phrase that many have spoken when they feel a player is overrated, especially if that player is being considered for the MVP award.  “He isn’t even the MVP on his own team!”

Doesn’t take a psychic to guess that I was referring to Derek Jeter.  I was thoroughly convinced that somehow the writers getting the AL Cy Young and Manager of the Year awards right meant that the MVP was absolutely going to Jeter.  The idea of Mark Teixeira getting it had, honestly, never crossed my mind.  So I was doubly surprised when not only did the writers get it right by giving the award to Joe Mauer, but that they got it even more right by voting for Mark Teixeira over Jeter.

According to Kelly Thesier at mlb.com:

Mauer finished with 327 points, well ahead of Teixeira, who had 225, and Jeter, who had 193. Detroit first baseman Miguel Cabrera, who received the only other first-place vote, was fourth with 171 points.

Special shout-out to Keizo Konishi, the writer from the Seattle chapter of the BBWAA who had the temerity to give Miguel Cabrera his one first-place vote.  Every group needs their renegade, Keizo, and this year the BBWAA can look to you to keep the well-held belief that some members of the BBWAA barely follow the sport they cover.  Well done.

Mind you, I’m not saying that Mauer HAD to get the vote unanimously, but voting for Cabrera over any of the top three vote-getters is absolutely baffling to me.  Cabrera had a really good season, but not first-place MVP voting good (given his competition – yes, even I have to admit that Teixeira and Jeter were pretty damned impressive).   Going 0-11 at the end of the season in the White Sox series when the division was on the line…well I’m not sure that’s MVP-worthy right there.  You judge a player on his entire season but to be MVP of the league…well isn’t part of that coming up big when your team needs you?

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From Saturday’s New York Post. Tip of the hat to Surviving Grady for finding it first!

As I listen to the “Let’s Go Red Sox” chant ringing through CBP and I realize I’ll probably still be watching this game at midnight (it’s about twenty past ten as I start this) I figured why not write something tonight? But what to write about since the game is still ongoing?

How about the tremendously large yaps of the New York Yankees lately?

Where to begin? How about with Brian Bruney? (How many of you just said “Who’s Brian Bruney?” Exactly.) Bruney, while rehabbing, decided to opine about Mets closer Francisco Rodriguez after Friday’s Yankee win:

“Unbelievable, I’ve never seen anything like that,” Bruney told Ashmore. “I have, but in high school. Couldn’t have happened to a better guy on the mound, either. He’s got a tired act. I think that’s bad, but two years ago, when he lost the game…I don’t know if anybody saw it, I did. He was in Oakland and he was pitching for Anaheim, didn’t get a call, and so he was like complaining. The catcher threw it back and he just kind of did one of these (Bruney half-heartedly holds his arm out) and hit off his glove and bounced behind and the guy from third scored and they won the game. He gets what he deserves, man. I just don’t like watching the guy pitch. I think it’s embarrassing.”

Did I mention that Bruney is rehabbing in Trenton? Hasn’t played much this season, let alone has he faced K-Rod. Oh yeah, and there’s a player on his team who does the same kind of histrionics as K-Rod in the middle of games. Glass houses and all, jackass.

K-Rod had his own words for Bruney when told of what he said after today’s Mets win:

“He better keep his mouth shut and do his job and not worry about somebody else,” Rodriguez said. “If it came out from somebody big, I might pay attention to it. But somebody like that, it doesn’t bother me.”

That, my friends, is called being put in your place. But there’s more from K-Rod!

“Instead of sending a message through the paper, next time when he sees me at Citi Field come up to me and say it to my face. Don’t be sending a message through the media. I don’t even know who that guy is. Somewhere in Double-A? I believe he hasn’t even pitched one full season. He’s always been on the DL. That’s all I know right now.”

Wondering what got to Bruney? How about his manager being a jackass as well? Apparently, a day after Brad Penny hit A*Rod with a pitch, Joe decided he wanted to tell the world that Penny plunked him on purpose and should be punished.

“Penny’s control was pretty good. We hit [Jason] Bay [Tuesday]. I always feel if it’s intentional, [the pitcher] should be suspended. I didn’t care for him hitting him in that situation. That’s my opinion, I am not 100 percent sure.”

He might not have been 100% sure but that didn’t stop the Yankees from calling MLB and asking that Penny be suspended. I’m beginning to think that Girardi is at the end of his rope when it comes to the Red Sox and he’s just throwing shit against the wall to see what sticks.

In all fairness, I should post what Penny’s response was to Girardi’s accusation. Thanks to Adam Kilgore, I can do that right here:

“I don’t give two f—- what Joe Girardi says,” Penny said. “I’m coming inside. I don’t care. Anybody can say that. We can say that about the time they hit our guys. I’m just trying to pitch inside. Maybe he should worry about managing and not trying to be the commissioner.

“Why wouldn’t he say that the night before? Don’t wait a day, then say it. He should worry about managing and let the umpire crew do their job.”

Here is where I propose my undying admiration to Mr. Penny. Nothing like cutting to the chase, Brad. Well done.

But my favorite of all these outburst to the media comes from Mark Teixeira. You all remember Mark. Jerked around the Red Sox to get the Yankees to up their price, knowing all along that he wouldn’t be signing with Boston. The guy who practically begged Red Sox fans to boo him when he first showed up at Fenway in pinstripes. That guy. When the Red Sox swept the Yankees this week, John Henry tweeted (how did I have no idea Henry used Twitter? As I told Rob Bradford, finding his tweets was like Christmas in June!) a simple line: “the MT curse?”. When I read it, I laughed out loud. It was a joke and, I thought, a funny one. I understand why Mark Teixeira wouldn’t think it was funny but his response to it not only told us that but it told us a little more about Mark. I guess I’m disappointed to find out that he’s a big a doofus as he looks.

“How old is Mr. Henry?” Teixeira asked of Henry, who is 59. “There is no reason for me to get into any war of words with some 70-something-year-old man. It doesn’t make sense.” The Teixeira-Red Sox discord dates back to 1998 when Teixeira declined to sign with Boston out of high school. It continued this off-season when the Red Sox appeared to be the favorites to sign him before the Yankees swooped in.

“Everybody knows the Yankees paid the most,” Teixeira said. “This is a business. It was a family decision and a business decision. They can have their opinions — that’s fine. I made the best decision for me, and it’s worked out great.”

“You guys make that decision,” Teixeira said when describing his actions compared to Henry’s. “Whose reputation looks better?

Mark, really, you can say all that and then ask whose reputation looks better? Without giving it more than a second of thought I’m fairly certain that most anyone who reads all of the above will say “Not yours, sunshine”.

I’m thoroughly enjoying this new Yankee era. Gone are mystique and aura. Say hello to bellyacher and bore.

Only good vibes for the Crab Man tonight. (Photo taken by me in Baltimore – 2008.)

So I “hate” the Yankees, right? Sure, I suppose in the realm of baseball fandom you can use the word “hate”. I took immense pleasure out of the 22-4 drubbing the Indians put down last weekend and I am quite pleased whenever they lose. Heck, even when they were playing the Rays this year I wanted them to lose. So I suppose you can label me as a Yankees-Hater.

With that in mind, why is it that I’m not more charged up about this weekend? I even went to a few different Yankees message boards to read the Yankees fans trash talking the Red Sox and their fans and I came away from it feeling quite…meh.

I didn’t get riled up reading Yankees fans insulting Kevin Youkilis or David Ortiz. I just kind of laughed at the idea that it’s stupid to be concerned about a pitcher who consistently throws at the head of specific players (or playeR). But there was no fire in me. I wasn’t compelled to log in and write a mean-spirited response.

This has been happening for a few years now. I still don’t like the Yankees or a good portion of their fans (I actually do know some Yankees fans you wouldn’t feel the urge to boil in oil) but I guess the intimidation factor is gone for me. Hell, I follow Nick Swisher on Twitter and laugh at a lot of his stuff. (I think the reason there, though, is I still don’t consider Swisher really a Yankee. I feel like he’s wearing a costume when he plays and he’ll rip it off soon enough. I have no idea why I feel like that.) So when the Yankees come to town, or the Sox go to the Bronx, I’m not thinking “Ooh, the Sox HAVE to win these games because it’s the Yankees!”, I’m thinking, “I want the Sox to win these games. As a bonus, we get Yankee losses if they do. It’s win-win!”.

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