Griffey Jr graced baseball with his presence

Another baseball great has left the game. Ken Griffey Jr announced the end of his Hall of Fame career after 22 years of gracing baseball with his presence.

"This has been on my mind recently, but it's not an easy decision to come by," he said. "I am extremely thankful for the opportunity to have played Major League Baseball for so long and thankful for all of the friendships I have made, while also being proud of my accomplishments."

It is fitting that Griffey retires from baseball after returning last year to his baseball home, to the place where he started his glorious career. "My hope is that my teammates can focus on baseball and win a championship for themselves and for the great fans of Seattle, who so very much deserve one," Griffey said. "Thanks to all of you for welcoming me back, and thanks again to everyone over the years who has played a part in the success of my career."

Even though his skills were in obvious decline, it doesn't take away from what was a spectacular career both from an offensive and defensive perspective. Griffey leaves the game fifth on the all-time home run list with 630 home runs. He knocked in an impressive 1,836 ribbies and scored 1,662 runs. He made the All-Star team 13 times and won 10 Gold Gloves. And he was a member of Major League Baseball's All-Century team.

Ken Griffey Sr recently said that he was proud of his son. And he is right to be proud of Griffey Jr, one of the few truly great sluggers who is believed not to have fallen prey to the use of performance-enhancing drugs. He was one of the game's best role models and he will be missed.

Baseball was lucky to have him.

Thanks to Keith Allison via Wikipedia for the photo.

Time to start transitioning Posada to DH

Jorge Posada was a bit miffed at not being activated for yesterday's game against the Baltimore Orioles. He's likely to be even angrier if the New York Yankees finally tell him what has become obvious: that they need to start transitioning him to a designated hitter role.

I'm not suggesting that Posada become the Yankees full-time DH right now. I still think he can catch two or three games a week. But I think it's time for the Yankees to acknowledge that the plan to have a 38-year-old catching 100-120 baseball games this year year was unwise. Having Posada catch a few games a week and DH the other games keeps his still superior power bat in the lineup everyday while lowering the risk of a devastating injury that forces him out for an extended period of time.

Posada's been a #1 catcher since 1999 so he's unlikely to take this news well. But I think it would be better for him because it will alleviate the wear-and-tear on his knees and still get him his four at-bats each night. He could keep piling up the offensive numbers that will make him a Hall of Fame candidate.

One of the primary reasons for the Yankees sticking with Posada, despite his defensive problems and trouble interacting with pitchers, was that they really had no solid player to replace him. No-hit defensive guys such as Jose Molina and John Flaherty had fairly lengthy careers as back-ups in the Bronx because of this void. But Francisco Cervelli has proven that he can be an everyday catcher in the big leagues. He has good relationships with his pitchers, a clutch bat and the youthful energy and enthusiasm that a veteran club like the Yankees desperately needs.

Posada is a fierce competitor and will be reluctant to admit that his days as an everyday catcher should end. His mental and physical toughness have made him one of the premier catchers of his era. But part of being a team player is a willingness to do what's best for the team and what's best is for Posada to start transitioning to a DH role and let the youngster get nicked up by all those bouncing pitches and foul balls. After getting over his hurt feelings, Posada may realize he doesn’t miss that part of the game too much.

Vazquez can slowly win over Yankee faithful

Javier Vazquez is making good progress in his attempt to rehabilitate his New York Yankees career. If he keeps it up, he can permanently banish the boo-birds and win over the Yankee faithful.

Known as a solid pitcher on other teams, mostly recently with the Atlanta Braves, Vazquez started the 2010 season once again struggling in the Bronx. But in four of his last five outings, he has shown why the Yankees have so much faith in him.

Last night's start can't count for too much since it came against the hapless Baltimore Orioles and it doesn't erase his rough outing in Minnesota last week. But Vazquez looked strong yesterday, giving up only one run, locating his pitches well and revving up his velocity when necessary. He also showed a lot of guts and poise in getting out of a bases-loaded jam in the seventh inning and ending his outing on a strong note.

"He was great," manager Joe Girardi said. "He attacked the zone all night. He was outstanding tonight and it's kind of what we thought we were going to get from him. We've been really encouraged by the way he's been throwing the baseball."

It would have been a real disappointment to see Vazquez struggle last night, particularly after getting consecutive strong starts from AJ Burnett and Andy Pettitte. But the beleaguered pitcher was rightly pleased with his performance last night. Vazquez even said he felt good in his previous start and was throwing better pitches than he had earlier in the year.

I think it's a good sign that he's focusing on the positives even in his rough starts rather than dwelling on the negatives. It bodes well for making further progress in rehabbing his Yankee career. A couple of more starts like this and he will have the Yankee faithful fully in his corner.

Thanks to sillygwailo via Wikipedia for the photo.

Swisher's magical May ends on high note

Although Joe Girardi might be happy to turn the calendar page, Nick Swisher is one member of the New York Yankees who did not want May to end. He hit more than .370 and his power and RBI numbers were off the charts. And Swisher finished up on a high note, right in the middle of several Yankee rallies and battling the right field wall on key plays this weekend.

Of course, Swisher being the jokester that he is, was more eager to talk about the ugly Memorial Day hats the Yankees had to wear (I didn't think they were so bad, but I didn't have to put one on either). He did pledge to wear the hat again if the Yankees continue their hot hitting, living up to the stereotype of the superstitious ballplayer.

Swisher's had a good month personally too. The Yankees outfielder confirmed he will marry actress Joanna Garcia (who has been on two of my favorite TV shows: Gossip Girl and How I Met Your Mother). He must really enjoy being engaged because he has had several big hits since then, including a clutch home run against the Minnesota Twins to help Andy Pettitte win a game.
Here's hoping Swisher's magical run continues, even if it is June now.

AJ, Andy restore order in Yankee land

A day after CC Sabathia struggled and the New York Yankees' relievers coughed up a huge lead, AJ Burnett gave his team what it desperately needed: eight innings of tough pitching and a day off for all hurlers not named Mariano Rivera. Today, Andy Pettitte stepped up to provide more relief to the beleaguered bullpen.

Burnett only gave up one earned run and kept his team in the game on Sunday. He was rewarded when the Yankees offense was able to mount a late comeback, which upped his record to 6-2. Burnett has become one of the Yankees most dependable pitchers, a shocking development given his previous propensity for wildness.

Pettitte, meanwhile, is off to a 7-1 start, the best of his career. It’s an amazing feat for a 37-year-old pitcher. It seems like his many years of experience are contributing to his success this season as he is using his smarts to get out of jams when his stuff isn’t there. But today’s victory was particularly special to Pettitte because it was #236, which ties him with legendary Yankee lefty Whitey Ford on the all-time wins list.

"He's a great man," Pettitte said. "I love Whitey to death. He's been a huge supporter of mine."

"Andy's in great company," manager Joe Girardi said.

Girardi knows the importance of having good starting pitching and he's determined to protect them, not letting Pettitte come out for the eighth inning despite only throwing 90 pitches because of the long bottom of the seventh by the offense. It was a wise move.

Sabathia is supposed to be the Yankees ace. But in truth, he has been outpitched this year by AJ, Andy and Phil Hughes, who have a combined 19-4 record. After a really rough week against the Tampa Bay Rays and Mets, all is right in Yankee land again.

Near tragedy turns into good day for Indians

A day that started with a near tragedy ended up being a good day for the Cleveland Indians.

The best news, of course, is that David Huff appears to be okay after getting slammed in the head by a fierce line drive off the bat of Alex Rodriguez. It was a terrifying moment, with Huff motionless on the ground for what seemed like an endless amount of time while the Indians trainers worked on him, with the help of the New York Yankees training staff and emergency medical services stationed at Yankee Stadium.

ARod was distraught and appeared near tears on the field and could not speak to the media, sending out a statement expressing sheer gratitude after it became clear that Huff's injury would not be as damaging as we all feared. No matter how much baseball players want to beat each other on the field, they never want to see their adversaries get hurt in such a scary way.

After what could have been a deflating accident, the Indians, despite their concern for their teammate, mounted an improbable comeback. But they were aided by another collapse by Joba Chamberlain and the Yankees bullpen. Once again, Joe Girardi's management (or over management of his bullpen) raised a puzzling question: why bring in Sergio Mitre if the long man/spot starter was only going to face one batter? But ultimately this loss is on Joba's shoulders, with the Indians smacking him all over the park.

But on a day like yesterday, wins and losses are meaningless. The main reason it ended up being a good day for the Indians was that Huff, who gave a thumbs up to the Yankee Stadium crowd as he was being carted off the field, seems like he will be OK physically. Let's hope the 25-year-old can overcome the horror of that moment and return to the mound soon. I'll be rooting for Huff big time.

Happy anniversary Captain Jeter

Has it really been 15 years? On May 29, 1995, the course of New York Yankees history was changed forever with Derek Jeter's big-league debut.

All he has done since that fateful day in Seattle is get more than 2,800 hits, drive in nearly 1,100 runs, steal more than 300 bases and hit almost 230 homers. Jeter has taken on a leadership role as the captain of the most famous and successful baseball franchise. He has become the best role model of all modern athletes and the face of everything that is good about baseball. He has taken his rightful place on the list of all-time Yankee greats and will someday take a similar spot in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

“The one thing I do remember is how confident this kid was when he came up,” his former teammate Paul O’Neill said. “In your organization, you have your gems and he was definitely one.”

Most importantly, Jeter still looks like he's having as much fun playing baseball as he did when he was a rookie. Whether he is mocking third baseman Alex Rodriguez's approach to fly balls as he did today, accusing former Yankee pitcher Al Leiter of dyeing his hair or warning YES Network reporter Kimberly Jones not to tell him who won American Idol under threat of no interviews until after the All-Star break, his sense of humor remains intact.

“The one thing I still see today out on the field 15 years later is still the enthusiasm that Derek Jeter has to play baseball,” O’ Neill said.

Happy anniversary, Derek!