Ghost of Steinbrenner lives on in trade deals

Somewhere, George Steinbrenner is looking on his team and loving what he's seeing.

Steinbrenner enjoyed making splashy deals almost as much as he enjoyed winning baseball games. He would have loved the frenzy of trade activity Brian Cashman engaged in during the last 36 hours. Beyond just making the deals, the Boss would have loved the big names coming to the New York Yankees: Lance Berkman and Kerry Wood. Both have their best days well behind them, but if they can help the Yankees win even one or two extra games, that could make all the difference in the world in the ultra-tight race with the Tampa Bay Rays.

I'm somewhat worried about Berkman's comments: he doesn't seem too happy about leaving the comfort of the team he spent his whole career with, even if the Houston Astros are scuffling in the National League Central. But it was his choice and he waved his no-trade clause, perhaps with an eye toward winning his first World Series championship.

And Wood is the pitcher's equivalent of Nick Johnson, a player who has consistently failed to live up to all the promise and hype because of numerous injuries. But the cost for these players doesn't appear to be too high, with the Yankees sending pitcher Mark Melancon and minor league infielder Jimmy Paredes to Houston for Berkman. And if they don't work out in New York, the Yankees can say goodbye at the end of the season.

Cashman is a man of his word, promising to look at options for his bullpen and bench. With Berkman, Wood and outfielder Austin Kearns, he has managed to plug all the holes on his team pretty quickly. These moves may not work out, but no one can accuse Cashman of not trying.

The Boss would be proud.

Thanks to dremiel and MissChatter/UCInternational via Wikipedia for the photos.

Maddon adds juice to Battle on the Bay

Just in case this weekend's matchup between baseball's top teams didn't have enough spice, Tampa Bay Rays manager Joe Maddon added some juice to the Battle on the Bay by referencing the steroid history of Alex Rodriguez.

To be clear, it does not seem like Maddon was taking a shot at ARod. It seems like he was just stating the obvious: that ARod's admitted steroids use took the drama out of his quest for 600 home runs for most of the country. But Maddon's comments and ARod's attempt to hit the elusive blast off of one of Maddon’s pitchers ensures there will be plenty of fireworks between the New York Yankees and the Rays as they battle for first place in the American League East division.

Not that the matchup needed any more juice, as shown by the fact that Tampa Bay has sold out all three games this weekend (a major first for the organization). The best teams in baseball are a mere two games apart. Tampa Bay can't be considered an upstart or even an underdog. Rather this is going to be a battle between two very different but well-matched teams that don’t like each other very much. Should be a lot of fun.

Thanks to imagesbyferg via Wikipedia for the photo.

ESPN losing journalistic credibility

I couldn't possibly care less about the National Basketball Association and LeBron James. But James is playing a major role in a developing issue that I care deeply about as a journalist: the apparent loosening of ethical standards at ESPN.

First there was ESPN's agreement to cede all revenues and editorial control over key decisions for the overhyped interview in which James announced he would be leaving Cleveland to play for the Miami Heat. (Full disclosure: I actually didn't watch "The Decision,” but I couldn't get away from the fallout, which dominated even non-sports news outlets the following day). Now comes news that ESPN quickly pulled an article that portrayed James in an unflattering way, consuming alcohol and surrounded by naked women.

Personally, I don't care about James partying in Las Vegas. He's a wealthy, unmarried young man and I wouldn't expect any less than his exercise in excess. Unless laws were broken, it doesn't qualify as a news story that ESPN should be covering in the first place. But I can’t help but wonder what was behind the decision to pull the story. Was it removed from the website because it was a story of questionable news value at best? Or was it pulled because LeBron's people made it known that they didn't like it? Worse, was it pulled by ESPN decision makers because of fear they would fracture their too cozy relationship with the NBA's biggest star?

I used to be a regular ESPN viewer, but started to pull away when the YES Network came into existence. That pullback accelerated when the MLB Network was launched, but I have watched more SportsCenter in recent months due to my MLB Network boycott (I remain firmly committed to my boycott until Armando Galarraga's perfect game is restored and Bud Selig reconsiders the use of instant replay in baseball). But now that I know more of what's going on behind the scenes at ESPN, I won't be a regular SportsCenter viewer any longer.

As a journalist, I know that the line between editorial and business is disappearing, largely due to the perilous economic condition of the news media. I've had to fight back efforts to infringe on my editorial independence on more than one occasion. But ESPN is well established as the broadcast leader in the sports world while attempting to expand that dominance into print and online sports reporting. The network is highly profitable and a success story in every way, which makes the decision to acquiesce to a coddled superstar and sacrifice its editorial integrity incomprehensible.

ESPN viewers deserve better and network officials know it.

Thanks to Keith Allison via Wikipedia for the photo.

Honest Andy easier to forgive for HGH use

When I first heard about Andy Pettitte's use of human growth hormone, I didn't believe it. Knowing what a good Christian the New York Yankees lefty is, I had a hard time reconciling his faith with that kind of bad behavior. During his Centerstage Interview with Michael Kay, I finally got the answer: he lost his faith during that period of his life when he was suffering from major arm injuries.

"My Christian faith is not something I just dreamed up," Pettitte said. "I believe that God puts you in certain places at certain times in your life and I got away from thinking that God had me here in a certain place at a certain time."

Ever since his HGH admission, I have felt very conflicted about cheering for Pettitte, wanting him to do well for the Yankees and knowing that he is a good guy, but also knowing what he did was terribly wrong and frustrated by the lack of punishment for him and other users. But Pettitte's honesty about his use of performance-enhancing drugs makes it easier to forgive him and root for him, especially since he seems determined to make up for the wrong. He is genuinely bothered and still disappointed in himself for the bad example he set for kids.

“You can either make a heart mistake or a head mistake,” he said. "I know my heart was in the right place. I screwed up. I made a bad choice and I made the wrong decision."

Does this mean that I've changed my mind and would vote Pettitte into the Baseball Hall of Fame if I had a vote? Absolutely not. I'm a hardliner on this issue. By Pettitte's own admission, he knew he was doing something wrong and his behavior and that of other PED users cast a permanent pall over the sport I love. For that, there needs to be consequences. Since players who used PEDs before the new drug rules went into effect are not being suspended, keeping them out of the Hall is the only available, suitable punishment.

"I would imagine it would with some people," Pettitte said of his HGH use keeping him out of the Hall. “If you believe what I say … then I would think it probably wouldn’t be that big an issue. If you don’t believe me and you think I’m lying, than it’s probably a huge issue.”

I do believe Pettitte’s faith is genuine and I also believe that he is truly sorry for his HGH mistake. I still wouldn’t put him in the Hall of Fame, but I will have an easier time cheering for him at his next start.

Torre would up the ante in Yanks-Mets rivalry

The Mets, mired in another disappointing season, have watched helplessly as the New York Yankees steamroll toward another playoff berth (and hopefully a second consecutive World Series title). But they could up the ante of the Subway Series rivalry by hiring Joe Torre to be their next manager.

I'm not advocating Jerry Manuel be fired. I think he's a good guy caught in a very bad situation, but it's hard to imagine him being the manager next year. And the Metsies are in desperate need of someone who brings instant credibility to the organization. Torre is that guy.

This column by Ian O'Connor outlines all the very good reasons why the Mets should go with Torre over all other choices, including Bobby Valentine (although I would love to see what kind of insanity would happen in Queens under Bobby V the Redux).

But to O’Conner’s argument, I would add another reason: the Mets are a dysfunctional mess where all jobs are in jeopardy while the Yankees’ biggest problem is trying to straighten out Joba Chamberlain. Say what you will about Joe Girardi, but he will likely be the Yankees manager for many more years (unless he decides the lure of home and the Chicago Cubs job is too much to resist).

Bringing Torre back to New York would be a good way to stick it to the Yankees, who are still unhappy with Torre's decision to spill the dirt in his book the Yankee Years. Of course, there are many reasons to hire Torre, but grabbing the spotlight back from the Bronx Bombers would be good enough for the Mets faithful.

Thanks to Matt314 via Wikipedia for the photo.

Snub could motivate Joba Chamberlain

Joe Girardi can spin it anyway he likes, but yesterday he snubbed Joba Chamberlain. It might have been the best thing he could have done for the struggling reliever.

Girardi had a chance to show he still has faith in Joba, but chose not to last night with the game on the line for the New York Yankees against the Cleveland Indians. When Javier Vazquez walked leadoff hitter Michael Brantley in the 8th inning, Girardi called in David Robertson, who promptly induced a double-play groundball. If Joba was still the bridge to Mariano Rivera, that would have been his spot to come into the game. Instead, Robertson got the call and the Yankees got the win.

The Yankees manager insisted he liked the matchup with Robertson facing Asdrubal Cabrera, which makes no sense considering that the two had never faced each other and Cabrera was 0 for 5 versus Joba. Girardi refused to say what he was probably really thinking, that he just didn't trust Joba in that spot after watching him struggle again in his outing Sunday against the Kansas City Royals.

It's clear right now that Joba is suffering from a major confidence problem. His outing last Thursday was evidence of that. As he was walking off the mound after escaping the inning allowing two hits and a walk but not giving up any runs, Joba didn't looked happy. He looked relieved that his outing was over. It's such a stark difference from the guy who used to annoy opponents with his overexcited antics on the mound after striking batters out with his 97-mph fastballs.

Girardi knows his players better than we do. Perhaps snubbing him yesterday was a way to motivate Joba, to encourage him to step up and be the dominant reliever the Yankees and their fans had gotten used to seeing. Let's hope it works.

Dickey completely out of line with Manuel

R.A. Dickey has been a savior for the New York Mets this season, helping to keep the team afloat during some very tough times. But yesterday he was completely out of line, vociferously arguing with his manager Jerry Manuel on the mound.

I was sitting in a restaurant watching the baseball game with the television on mute, but I had absolutely no problem getting the gist of what Dickey was saying to his manager in public and what he kept saying as he walked off the mound with the trainer. It was shameful behavior on Dickey's part considering Manuel was trying to protect him from serious injury. I understand players sometimes overreact in the heat of competition, but his sustained verbal assault on Manuel was uncalled for.

Manuel seems like a forgiving guy and he chalked it up to Dickey's ultra competitive nature. But with the Mets flailing, the last thing the manager needs is to be publicly challenged and embarrassed by one of his players. The Mets hierarchy doesn't need a reason to fire him, especially after this abysmal road trip.

In truth, it seems like Manuel had the Mets playing over their heads for most of the season so it would be sad if he were forced to take the fall. I wonder how Dickey would feel if he helped get his manager fired.

Thanks to dbking via Wikipedia for the photo.