TWiB 9/4 - 9/10

[Guest Felonies!]

Which WGN programming was more painful today: the Cubs booting another game to the worst team in the National League, or the Rando-esque hack comics on the Jerry Lewis telethon?

[Guest Felonies!]

Waitaminute. We traded Phil Nevin AND cash? I thought we traded him FOR cash! Oh, brother.

[Bruiser Chong 0]

Which WGN programming was more painful today: the Cubs booting another game to the worst team in the National League, or the Rando-esque hack comics on the Jerry Lewis telethon?

You may not be able to say that after tomorrow.

[therealworldschampion 0]

I don't know what was worse, Garner intentionally walking Howard to start the bottom of the 9th, or Manuel's genius strategy after Howard got on.

[therealworldschampion 0]

Chase Utley hits a 2-out HR in the bottom of the 10th to finally beat the Astros.

[vivalaultra 0]

I was surprised in the 10th that Garner didn't walk Utley and Howard. I think Roberson was up after that. That's what I woulda done. Oh well, good game.

[UseTheSledgehammerUh 0]

Ladies and gentlemen, the Phillies are currently looking for the pet monkey that likes to hang on their back, it wears an Astros jersey and answers to "Loss".

[vivalaultra 0]

That's a very abstract metaphor, but I assume you mean the fact that the Astros are 12-1 in the last 13 games to the Phils. Hopefully 13-1 after tomorrow. They're usually always good games.

[Hawk 34 0]

During a joint superman attempt from Ryan Freel and Junior, Mr. Glass himself dislocated his foot and will be day to day. The good thing was that Junior held onto the wall, otherwise he would have landed on Freel, whom was directly underneath him.

[mike546 0]

I'm not bitter or anything, but that was such a better example of "runner interference" than when the ump called it on the Yanks in game 5 against the Angels last year.

[mike546 0]

That ump had a PERFECT, absolute PERFECT view of that play at home, and he still gets it wrong. I don't care much with a nine game lead, but the umps eyes were RIGHT on home plate, the runners hand wasn't close to home plate, and he still made the wrong call!

 

Unreal.

[Open the Muggy Gate 0]

mike is bitter.

[Guest NYankees]

Thank god the Royals bullpen sucks. I didn't want to see Wang lose tonight. Captain Clutch finally strikes out in a nice situation. Abreu with a 2 run double to give the Yankees the 7-5 lead. Thank you Phillies for him.

[Guest NYankees]

I turned the game on at the right time. Cano hits a bomb to make it 11-5 Yankees as they score 10 runs in the 8th inning. Does anybody here know the name of the Royals pitcher from the 8th inning? Ken Singleton mentioned that the pitcher has given up 16 homeruns in 60 innings pitched.

[mike546 0]

WHY IS SCOTT PROCTOR PITCHING WITH A SIX RUN LEAD!?!?!?!?!?!:??????

[Guest NYankees]

WHY IS SCOTT PROCTOR PITCHING WITH A SIX RUN LEAD!?!?!?!?!?!:??????

 

 

How dare you question Clueless Joe. Maybe TJ Beam might give up 4 runs.

[mike546 0]

Joe Torre has won FOUR world titles, he's been to the WS 6 times, hes made the playoffs in all 10 of his seasons as coach, and about to be 11. If hes clueless Joe after that, I wonder what teams like the Royals call their managers.

[naiwf 0]

Joe Torre has won FOUR world titles, he's been to the WS 6 times, hes made the playoffs in all 10 of his seasons as coach, and about to be 11. If hes clueless Joe after that, I wonder what teams like the Royals call their managers.

 

Jesus Christ himself would not lead the Royals to the playoffs. Anyone could have won at least 2 of those 4 titles given the players the Yankees had between '96 and '00. The Yanks win in spite of Torre's managerial skills, not because of them. Choosing lineups/rotations from a dozen future HOF'ers and handing the ball to Mo is not exactly a difficult decade.

[strummer 0]

so how was Joe Torre when he was managing the Mets when he was throwing out Craig Swan and Lee F'n Mazzilli was his "best" player.

 

Or the Cardinals with Rene Arocha or Donovan Osborne?

 

He started to win once he got better players. It's that simple

[Guest]

Joe Torre has won FOUR world titles, he's been to the WS 6 times, hes made the playoffs in all 10 of his seasons as coach, and about to be 11. If hes clueless Joe after that, I wonder what teams like the Royals call their managers.

 

Jesus Christ himself would not lead the Royals to the playoffs. Anyone could have won at least 2 of those 4 titles given the players the Yankees had between '96 and '00. The Yanks win in spite of Torre's managerial skills, not because of them. Choosing lineups/rotations from a dozen future HOF'ers and handing the ball to Mo is not exactly a difficult decade.

You make it sound like the teams in 96 and 98 were superstar laden teams. They weren't.

[mike546 0]

so how was Joe Torre when he was managing the Mets when he was throwing out Craig Swan and Lee F'n Mazzilli was his "best" player.

 

Or the Cardinals with Rene Arocha or Donovan Osborne?

 

He started to win once he got better players. It's that simple

 

 

I totally realize that.

 

 

I just find it ridiculous how anyone can call him "clueless joe" after the success he's had. He's a good manager. He's doing something right.

 

The 1996 won because they had Mo and Wettland. They had an again Wade Boggs platooning with Charlie Hayes, Mario Duncan at 2nd base, and absolutley no power besides Stawberry and Cecill. They didn't have great starting pitching. They had Pettie, half a season of David Cone, and an aging Jimmy Keys and Kenny Rogers!?@ the 2000 team had an ageing O'Neil, an ageing Tino, an ageing Brosouis ect. They only won 89 freaking games that year.

 

I don't care how many good players hes had, Joe Torre is not "clueless"

[Guest NYankees]

Joe Torre has won FOUR world titles, he's been to the WS 6 times, hes made the playoffs in all 10 of his seasons as coach, and about to be 11. If hes clueless Joe after that, I wonder what teams like the Royals call their managers.

 

Jesus Christ himself would not lead the Royals to the playoffs. Anyone could have won at least 2 of those 4 titles given the players the Yankees had between '96 and '00. The Yanks win in spite of Torre's managerial skills, not because of them. Choosing lineups/rotations from a dozen future HOF'ers and handing the ball to Mo is not exactly a difficult decade.

You make it sound like the teams in 96 and 98 were superstar laden teams. They weren't.

 

They weren't? The 1996 NY Yankees had 20 players on their team that season who at one point in their life made it to an All Star game. Past, present or future. The 1998 Yankees had 18 players who at one point made it to an All Star Game. Neither team had a player put up a big superstar numbers but they had so much talent.

[mike546 0]

Who cares if they had ONE point made it to an allstar game. I don't care if Wade Boggs made the allstar team in 96, he had to freaking platoon at third base with Charlie Hayes. Just because a player on that team had made the allstar game 8 years prior, doesn't mean he's just as goood now. That statement honestly means nothing.

 

edit: Yanks had 3 allstars in 96, Boggs (shouldn't have been), Wettland and Pettite.

[Guest NYankees]

My point is that the Yankees almost had a full 25 man roster filled up with players who at one point in their career where all stars. How many teams in history can say that. I wasn't saying that everybody on the 96 Yankees put up all star numbers.

[CanadianChris 0]

The Yankees won in 1996 because Baltimore did them the favour of beating the Indians, who had the best shot at preventing New York from getting to the World Series, and because the Braves straight up choked.

 

They won in 2000 because they had the best top-to-bottom pitching staff in the majors.

[randomguy 0]

Obviously having good players is important. No manager can win with a terrible team, but it is quite possible to lose with a good one. Also Torre's in game strategy is pretty good overall, he doesn't make a lot of head-scratching calls.

 

Compare that to the last few guys the Red Sox have had before Francona, especially Jimy Williams. That guy had no clue.

 

---

 

As far as runner interference goes - after the playoff game with the Yankees where the throw hit the guy in the back running to first and Knoblauch stood around arguing while runs scored I've hated the way they call interference. It is so arbitrary.

[Guest NYankees]

The Yankees won in 1996 because Baltimore did them the favour of beating the Indians, who had the best shot at preventing New York from getting to the World Series, and because the Braves straight up choked.

 

They won in 2000 because they had the best top-to-bottom pitching staff in the majors.

 

In 1996, the Yankees were 9-3 against the Indians during the regular season. The Yankees always played well against the Indians during the mid to late 1990's. I honestly thought that if the Yankees had beat the Mariners in 1995 they would have beat the Indians in the ALCS. The only reason why the Yankees lost to the Indians in 1997 is because Rivera gave up a fluke homerun to Sanday Alomar Jr. in game 4.

 

The 2000 Yankees were a very funny team. They had a horrible September and backed into the playoffs winning only 87 games for the season. That was by far the lowest victory total for any Yankee team during the Joe Torre era. Lets not forget that the A's had the Yankees on the ropes that year and the Yankees had to win a game 5 in Oakland.

 

Yankees vrs Indians

1995 6-6

1996 9-3

1997 6-5

1998 7-4

1999 7-3

 

Not a bad record against one of the best regular season teams in the late 1990's.

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

Minor League Game worth noting: Indianapolis @ Toledo, 7pm ET. A one game playoff to decide who advances into the International League Playoffs (and would play Charlotte in Round One).

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

Good News: Francisco Liriano is rumored to make a rehab start Saturday.

 

Bad News: It would be in the playoffs against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

 

Well, at least he'll be on a pitch count.

[Bruiser Chong 0]

Cubs put Jerome Williams on waivers and Oakland's claimed him.

 

Considering they got David Aardsma from the Hawkins deal, it was still a good trade for the Cubs, but I'm disappointed it came to this. He seemed to have the makings of a reliable middle-of-the-rotation starter.