The Yankees and Jay Bruce have come to an agreement on a minor league deal. My first question is “Why?” I know the answer is going to be some form of “low risk, high reward” but only one of those things is true. Any reward that comes from Bruce will be much lower than most … Continue reading Jay Bruce (…?)

The key to lineup construction is being aware of what situations each spot in the lineup is most likely to face, and to insert players whose skills are best suited for each of those situations into the the appropriate spots. Obviously a high OBP is necessary for the leadoff hitter as the best hitters in … Continue reading (Not so) crazy NYY lineup

It’s Nolan Ryan’s birthday today, so the first order of business is to wish an all-time great a happy 74th. Yet, on a less pleasant note, when I hear Nolan Ryan’s name I always ask the same question: “Why aren’t more questions asked about Nolan Ryan’s extremely suspicious late career performances?” If we’re going to … Continue reading Happy B’day Nolan Ryan. I have questions…

After seeing star player after star player simply given away by his team, and after listening to nonsensical debates about Hall of Fame balloting, I think we all need a few quick reminders about baseball history - specifically with regards to one person, and how much actual damage he’s done to the game we love. … Continue reading History, Cliffs Notes, MBP version:

Yesterday the Yankees and their fans said goodbye to Masahiro Tanaka, a great Yankee by any measurement. Signed as a free agent in January of 2014 for $155 million, Tanaka delivered on the high expectations and then some. Despite pitching with an elbow that was not 100% for a good stretch of those seven seasons, … Continue reading Sayonara Ma-kun

This is not something I expected to address today: The New York Yankees are dumping salary. They’ve sent Adam Ottavino, minor leaguer Frank German and $850,000 to Boston to take Ottavino’s salary and signing bonus off their hands. (The bonus is payable after the contract ends.) Yes, the franchise with a value of $5 billion … Continue reading Bye jersey number “0”

Yesterday the Yankees finalized a trade with the Pittsburgh Pirates in which the Yankees acquired Jameson Taillon for four minor leaguers. The first thing that came to my mind was the thought that Paul O’Neill now has to have a wrestling match with the pronunciation of Jameson’s last name, a contest he’ll likely lose. For … Continue reading The newest Yankee

“I couldn’t believe there was so much hatred in people. It’s something I’m still trying to get over, and maybe I never will.” – Hank Aaron Those of you who know me personally, and any of you who’ve followed me online for any period of time, likely know that I was a Strat-O-Matic addict as … Continue reading RIP Mr. Aaron

Here’s something you do not need to worry about Yankee fans: The Yankees are going to score a lot of runs in 2021. I promise you, if they don’t win the World Series, it won’t be due to offensive shortcomings. This seems obvious, but many fans (and as usual, many journalists who get paid to … Continue reading Worry about this, not that.

“I’m the most loyal player money can buy.” – Don Sutton Sutton entered MLB just as players, en masse for the first time, were awakening to the financial realities of the sport. Emboldened with that mindset, an arm and a brain that were seemingly genetically designed to throw a baseball, Sutton’s nickname may as well … Continue reading RIP, Don Sutton