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Phil is
publisher of the longest running New York Yankees fan site
on the Internet http://www.behindthebombers.com and did the
2000 season update of The Yankee Encyclopedia 5th Edition
published by Sports Publications LLC. Hideki
Matsui hit town and was welcomed to a circus type
atmosphere. I must admit he was very reserved and happy at
the press conference welcoming him to the Big Apple. He made
no promises just said he would "try" to do his best to help
the team. Why did Warner wolf get to ask two questions while
they had tons of reporters who asked nothing? Matsui will be
wearing his number 55 from Japan. Don Zimmer was wearing the
numbers to correspond to the number of years he is in
baseball. Last year he wore 54, which he stole from Lee
Mazzilli. Maz wore number 13 last season. I am curious to
see what Zim will wear now. Let's hope this media circus
doesn't last too long, it can be a distraction to the team.
OK this leads me to the argument, how can a player, who is
in the twilight of his career, go from U.S. MLB to become a
star overseas while a Japanese player comes here to the
United States and is expected to be a superstar? You have
your Joe Pepitones who were clearly on the decline find new
life in Japan. The most successful player from Japan was
Ichiro and to a lesser extent Nomo. The other Hideki (Irabu)
was a bust and that is fresh in the Yankee fans minds. Heck,
they booed Giambi last April; if Matsui doesn't get off to a
good start the fans will make sushi out of him. Let's hope
Godzilla can wipe out the memory of the "Fat Toad".
Well wishes go out to Boston Red Sox hurler Derek Lowe who underwent skin cancer surgery on his nose. So Gary Carter is going into the HOF as an Expo? No big surprise to me, he played more that 2/3 of his career up north and is probably one of their biggest stars. Not only that his numbers were much better for the Montreal team. It's a shame the plaque isn't in color. He did handle the announcement with class as usual. Carter has always been a class guy who deserves the enshrinement to Cooperstown. You would have to wonder if Thurman Munson would have made it if he survived a few more years. The Bombers bolstered up their bullpen with the addition of Antonio Osuna. He came to the team in the El Duque deal. That brings our starting staff down to seven. The Yankees also received minor league pitcher Delaris Lantigua from the pale hose. Osuna wore number 13 with the White Sox I wonder if Maz will give it up for him? Maz wore 13 when he made his return stint to the Mets because a young Doc Gooden was wearing Mazzilli's number 16 at the time. Kudos goes out to John Sterling for being awarded the "Call of the Year". I won if when they presented the award the presenter said "Joooooooooohn Sterling Wins!" The ever rumored Nick Johnson and/or Juan Rivera trades have not materialized as of yet. The good new is that Andy Pettitte is still in pinstripes thus far. RonDL White and Raul Mondesi are still property of the Yankees. Our old friend and Jeter buddy, Gerald Williams was signed to a one year deal with the Marlins while Shane Spencer is an Indian. Two of our reliable relief pitchers have signed with the enemies. Ramiro Mendosa and Mike Stanton have signed with the Red Sox and Mets (un)respectively. Shane should do great with a change of scene. The Michigan Battlecats who have replaced the Greensboro Bats at the single A level in the Yankees minor league system will be changing their name to the Battle Creek Yankees. The will also be changing their home uniforms to the traditional pinstripe with the interlocking BC over the left breast, number on the back, no name of course. If you want to see their uniforms and learn a little about the team check out their website at www.battlecreekyankees.com. So now the Yankees minor league system stacks up like this: Tampa:
Instructional level Bucky Dent
returns to the Yankee family to manage the Columbus team
(again) in 2003 while Stump Merrill returns to AA (again) to
manage the Trenton Thunder. Both proved they couldn't manage
at the major league level so you have to ask yourself why?
The Yankees let Derek Shelton, who skippered the SI Yanks to
the NY Penn League Title last season slip away to scout for
Cleveland. Shelton was a good baseball man and took a group
of youngsters beyond expectations. He will surely be missed.
Donnie Baseball and Cal Van Ripkin (ouch) have bought minority shares in the South Georgia Waves a Dodger (ouch again) affiliate. The team is planning to move to Mattingly's hometown of Evansville, Indiana for the 2004 season. That's it. Just IMHO. Here is hoping that all your base hits go for extra bases. Until next issue...
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How ya' doin? Best sites on 'da 'net! New York Yankees Mighty Yanks The Bombers Fast Facts: Betcha' didn't know "The Chairman of the Board" holds the World Series records for most wins (10) and most strikeouts (94). Yogi has won more World Championships than any other player in baseball history (10). "The Yankees don't pay me to win everyday, just 2 out of 3." Casey Stengel Trivia: Who was the last pitcher to throw a no-hitter against the Yankees and what year did it happen? Answer In Next Issue |
