Jason Giambi Conundrum

Jason Giambi is a fraud, he injected steroids, which made him a better player than he likely would have been otherwise. To me that is deception. Now both he and the Yankees are paying for it through his lack of output. He is on the bench because he deserves to be on the bench. Joe Torre would have to be insane to write his name on that lineup card right now. If Giambi wants to get back on the roster on a frequent basis, he needs to earn his spot. Tino came back to the Yankees with the knowledge that he was going to be a back up to Giambi, but Tino has earned his role as the everyday first baseman, now Giambi must prove he deserves a chance to play. If he continues to be unable to contribute then, so be it, he will sit.

Giambi needs to go to the minors, F! his feelings, and the fact that he may be 'humiliated' by going down to the minors. This is a baseball team, not a new age retreat, his feelings are of no concern to me, or many fans who pay money to see the Yankees play. If he doesn't think his present situation isn't humiliating, he really is still fuzzy in the head.

He has squandered the good will afforded him during his return in spring training and the early part of the regular season. That too, he will need to earn back.

Giambi, go to the minors immediately, work on your hitting, improve, gain confidence if that is what you are lacking. Don Mattingly would have to be Jesus Christ at this point to get you hitting again, and I've yet to see Mattingly walk across the Hudson river. Go down to Columbus, and if you regain your groove, you can try to earn a position with the team. If you fail in the minor leagues, I guess then you are done, and the Yankees will be fine without you. Don't worry, you'll still get paid. You may have turned out to be a bad investment with poor long term results, but that's OK, the Yankees have lost money in the past, and will probably lose money on players in the future. At least they'll save some lunch money from the luxury tax on you.

---The difference between Tino and Giambi---
(from an article on Yesnetwork.com) Martinez, who agreed to a $3 million, one-year contract on Dec. 31, helped the Yankees win four World Series titles from 1996-00. No Yankee had homered in four straight games since Martinez did it from June 27 to July 1, 2001.

"I told him in the spring that numbers weren't important to me,'' Torre [regarding Martinez] said. "He never stops demanding things of himself. He suffers so much when he doesn't feel he's earning his keep.''

This post can also be found on the yesnetwork.com message boards where I posted it last night.

Pink Pinstripes Player of the Game

The Pink Pinstripes player of the game for May 10, 2005 (Yankees 7, Mariners 4) is once again Tino Martinez. Tino's bat has been on fire and shows no sign of letting up.

May 11th's, Pink Pinstripes player of the game (Yankees 13-Mariners 9) is a shared award to the strong Yankee hitting. Tino had his 5th consecutive hr (Tino's 8th for the season) in the 4th inning to put the Yankees tied with the Mariners 9-9. Every strating hitter during this game had a hit, and home runs were also recorded for, Gary Sheffield, Jorge Posada, and Derek Jeter.

The Yankees appear back on track. Although Pavano's outing was a disappointment, and there were some fielding blunders, the Offense made up for those missteps, and provided the key to this win.

The Newsstand

YANKEES RELEASE RHP STEVER KARSAY
May 12, 2005, YES NETWORK.COM -- The New York Yankees announced today that they have released right-handed pitcher Steve Karsay.
The 33-year old Karsay was 0-0 with a 6.00 ERA in six games with the Yankees in 2005 (6.0IP, 10H, 5R, 4ER, 2BB, 5K). He appeared in only seven games for the Yankees in 2004 and missed the entire 2003 season after rehabilitating from right-shoulder surgery. He was signed by the Yankees as a free agent to a four-year contract with a club option for a fifth year on December 7, 2001.

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SIERRA COULD RETURN NEXT WEEK
May 12 2005, YES NETWORK.COM
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) -- New York Yankees designated hitter Ruben Sierra is scheduled to take batting practice on a field Friday as he rehabilitates a partially torn right biceps.
Sierra has hit the past couple days in a batting cage at New York's spring training complex. He hopes to begin a minor league rehabilitation assignment by Monday and rejoin the Yankees later next week.
``I'm feeling better,'' Sierra said Thursday.
Sierra was hurt while swinging at a changeup during an April 20 game against Toronto and was placed on the 15-day disabled list two days later.
Sierra is hitting .269 with two homers and eight RBIs. He batted .244 with 17 home runs and 65 RBI in 307 at-bats last season.

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The Newsstand

JASON'S CAREER ONE STEP AWAY FROM THE JUNK PILE
May 10, 2005, NY POST -- JASON Giambi, leaning his head into the dugout as Matt Thornton was summoned from the bullpen last night, listened to some advice from hitting coach Don Mattingly about the Seattle lefty reliever. Deeper in the dugout, Joe Torre was not yet ready to signal just how far Giambi has fallen. But that day is coming.

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A STREAK PEAK: THREE IN A ROW

May 10, 2005, NY POST -- Randy Johnson didn't take his vintage Big Unit stuff to the Stadium mound last night. Still, Johnson's second-tier stuff is better than most pitchers' top-drawer stash.
On this night, that was good enough to pitch the Yankees to a 4-3 victory over the Mariners in front of 38,079.
It took the Yankees 33 games to string together three consecutive wins.

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THE MAN OF STEAL
Jason may as well be pickin' The Boss' pockets

May 10, 2005, NY DAILY NEWS -- Brian Cashman was asked yesterday morning what he is going to do about Jason Giambi if this is all Giambi has left. For the time being, maybe forever, Giambi owns as bad a contract as there in sports, certainly the worst since the Chargers gave all that money to a stiff like Ryan Leaf.
After last night's game against the Mariners, Giambi is hitting .195. Three home runs, six RBI. His salary for this season is $15.5 million. It goes to $19 million next season. In total, if you count what the Yankees have already paid Giambi for his .195 batting average, he is still on the books for around $81 million. At the present time, the Yankees couldn't give him away.
"Right now, this is a worst-case scenario you ever could have anticipated," Cashman said.

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THE TORRE FAMILY'S TORMENT

May 10, 2005, NEWSDAY -- In orthopedic sandals and a demure pantsuit, Marguerite Torre stood at a podium in Huntington Station Monday, looking every bit like the Catholic nun and elementary school principal that she is. But as she spoke about how her father used to beat up her mother, her words carried none of the same reserve. As a teenager growing up in Marine Park, Brooklyn, Sister Torre told the crowd how she once held off her father with a table leg. And later, after she left for the convent, she recalled how she would cry herself to sleep.

In her first public speech about the abuse she witnessed growing up, Sister Torre -- the older sister of Yankees manager Joe Torre -- spoke candidly to an interfaith group of domestic violence advocates about her childhood, her siblings' difficulty in coming to terms with their past, and her frustration with the male-dominated Catholic church.She recalled how her baby brother, Joe, would check to see if their father's car was in the driveway before coming into the house. "No one should have to live in fear," she said.

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THERE'S JETER AT SHORT, YES, BUT WHO'S ON SECOND?

May 10, 2005, NY TIMES -- It is no big deal anymore, Derek Jeter says, barely an inconvenience. Change has become his routine, his expectation. It is the lifestyle he has become more wedded to than any double-play partner.

Miguel Cairo in the American League Championship Series last fall, Tony Womack in April, Robinson Cano in May and who can say come September? "At this point, you can pretty much throw anybody out there," Jeter said before the Yankees defeated Seattle, 4-3, last night behind Randy Johnson. Jeter shrugged with resignation, not indifference, and added, "It doesn't make any difference."

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Pink Pinstripes Player of the Game

Tonight's Pink Pinstripes player of the game, is our personal favorite, Tino Martinez. Tino came through again with a 2 run home run in 4th the for his 7th HR of the season. Tino, the veteran Yankee can be counted on for his leadership, fielding, and hitting. What can we say? We adore Tino!

The Newsstand

MARTINEZ, IN THE GROOVE, JUST DOES WHAT COMES NATURALLY
May 9, 2005, NY TIMES -- There was nothing to lose. The Yankees were ahead by two runs in the eighth inning yesterday, and the possibility of breaking the game open was worth the risk of swinging at ball four.
Sound strategy, but it never occurred to Tino Martinez when he decided to pounce on a 3-0 pitch from the Oakland Athletics' Kiko Calero.
"I was just feeling good at the plate," Martinez said. "If I didn't feel good at the plate, I would have taken it and let Jorge do it." Instead, Martinez pulled the pitch just over the right-field fence for a three-run homer, helping to seal a 6-0 Yankees victory. Posada followed with an upper-deck homer to right, giving the Yankees back-to-back homers for the first time this season.

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RED SOX STEP UP POLICING OF ALCOHOL USE
Respond to recent ballpark incidents
May 9, 2005, BOSTON GLOBE -- BBoston police officers are patrolling Fenway Park's busiest beer stands. The Red Sox have nearly doubled the number of alcohol compliance supervisors at the ball yard. And video announcements are reminding fans to follow the park's nine-rule code of conduct that instructs them, among other things, to drink responsibly.

These changes in enforcement, which went into effect on Friday, were made after two liquor license violations, a recent scuffle between a fan and New York Yankees right fielder Gary Sheffield, and reports that the volume of beer sold was up sharply at Fenway.

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Curt Schilling's Ankle?

Pink Pinstripes is proud to add links on our blog to charitable organizations that we feel are helping to find a cure for debilitating illnesses, and are helping to make life more pleasant for people who are suffering. Our first featured link is for the Curt Schilling Bobble Ankle figurine. Now you might be wondering why a site primarily devoted to the NY Yankees would feature a Red Sox themed item? We feel that Curt Schilling has been a tireless advocate on behalf of those suffering from ALS, a devastating disease with no known cure that is ultimately fatal. We applaud athletes who are role models, and who utilize their stature in society for good works, regardless of the uniforms they wear and the teams they play for. Both Curt Schilling and his wife Shonda (a skin cancer and Melanoma survivor) devote countless hours to fundraising and awareness of ALS, as well as Melanoma.

Please take a few moments to click on the link for 'the Ankle' to learn more about ALS, and how you can help Curt strike out this disease. The Bobble Ankle will make a nice addition to your bobble doll collection, and it will become a conversation piece where ever you decide to display it. We will be ordering ours this week, and will post photos of it on this site at a later date.

Half of the proceeds from the Bobble Ankle will go directly to both Curt and Shonda's foundations.

From the Bobble Ankle website:

Curt Schilling’s ankle became famous around the world. It became the moment amongst so many memorable moments. The Brockton Rox sought a way to commemorate this unforgettable feat in an unforgettable fashion. Not everyone could get a World Series ring as a keepsake of this event, but everyone deserved something that they could look at to remember and cherish the moment. With that in mind, the Rox developed “The Ankle.” “The Ankle” is a bobble ankle doll. You read that correctly, not a bobble head but a beautiful Curt Schilling figurine with a bobbling ankle.

There are three important things you need to know about “The Ankle”:
It looks great - you will be proud to own it and display it.

It’s fun - there is an aura about the doll that will bring a smile to your face and even a smile to the most ardent Yankees or Cardinals fan.

It raises funds - Half of every purchase goes to: “Curt’s Pitch for ALS” and the “SHADE Foundation”.

Your purchase of “The Ankle” bobble ankle doll is a great way to say thank you to Curt and will provide you with a distinctive memento of an event that was 86 years in the making.
Buy a doll for yourself and buy some for your friends and have fun with it, because as the Brockton Rox love to say, “Fun is Good!”

Happy Mother's Day

You may be wondering why many of your favorite baseball players are sporting pink armbands today. Is it a new fashion statement? Today in honor of Mother's Day, Major League Baseball has decided to recognize the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer foundation. Along with those pink armbands, the players will also be wearing pink ribbons on their jerseys in support of breast cancer awareness. The lineup cards for today's games are pink and the bases are also commemorative of today's effort, many of these items will be available for auction at a later date (we will post a link here as soon as it is available). Please take the time today to tell your Mother how much she means to you, and also help the Susan G. Komen foundation along with MLB find a cure for breast cancer. Pink Pinstripes hopes that you will, 'think pink' this Mother's day, and every day!

Pink Pinstripes Player of the Game

Today's Pink Pinstripes Yankee Player of the Game recognition goes to a truly unexpected candidate, Kevin Brown. Brown got into a jam in the 2nd inning with bases loaded, but was able to extract himself from a potentially sticky situation. Kevin Brown ultimately was solid for 7 innings pitching shutout ball. Normally, when Kevin Brown is the starter, I count the game as an automatic loss before it starts. Thank you KB, for proving me wrong today. Continue to keep your head straight, and perhaps there is some hope for you yet. Tom Gordon didn't disappoint in the 8th, and Tanyan Sturtze coming into the 9th, closed the door on another Yankee win giving up 2 hits and no runs. Honorable mention goes to Tino Martinez. Tino Martinez for his 3 run homerun (Tino's 6th HR for the season) in the 8th inning. Pink Pinstripes asks, Jason who? Signing Tino was viewed by many as a choice of sentiment, but Tino has proven himself as the consummate veteran, and the symbol of those championship years past. Tino is an outstanding fielder, and while he has slowed down somewhat since his prime, is still a valuable asset in the Yankee arsenal. Tino, you can be counted on in the clutch. Joe Torre earns his 900th win as Yankee Manager, and the Yankees finally win a series. Final score Yankees 6, Oakland 0.