Stadium Fail

The New York Times had this article about the obstructed views at the new Yankee and Shea stadiums. The picture they include of the Yankee Stadium bleachers seats is pretty condemning. Those used to be pretty good seats. I've sat there. Now there's a giant restaurant in my way that doesn't allow me to see left field. After Newsweek first put out the article about the obstructed views, the Yankees dropped the price of those seats to $5, which is pretty good despite the obstructed view. Still, the Yankees messed up here. How you spend a ton of money to build a stadium with this kind of design failure is beyond me, which is partly why I suspect it was known all along and the Yankees didn't care. They stand to make way more money with a restaurant in centerfield, then they do selling bleacher tickets, and I have a seriously hard time believing that no one noticed the design flaw until it was already built. That being said, they're going to start selling alcohol in the bleacher seats again so the rage felt about the obstructed view will soon be fueled with alcohol making for an exciting in game experience. Should be interesting.

Despite this, I'm still very excited for the new stadium. I have tickets to a few games this season, and I may actually bring spending cash to buy things. The food menu looks good, the stadium looks impressive, and its going to be an experience I can share with my grand children many years down the road after my future sons have broken Bonds' homerun record with nothing but flax seed oil, jumping jacks, and homemade rice and beans.

Meet the Author of "The Truth About Ruth and More"

Peter Handrinos, author of the new book "The Truth About Ruth and More" would like to invite everyone to his "meet the author" event taking place this Thursday at 7pm. Below are the details:

The place: Borders Books at Park Avenue & 57^th Street, midtown Manhattan

The date: Thursday, April 2^nd

The time: 7pm

If you're not familiar with the book, we wrote a review a few weeks back you can read. It sounds like it should be a fun event, and we encourage anyone with some free time Thursday night to attend.

Yankees Build Bullpen With Castaways

I was reading the New York Times, the newspaper I read to look smart, when I came across this article by Tyler Kepner about the Yankees bullpen. It said what most have probably already noticed, but it was interesting to hear all the stories. The bullpen is comprised of several castaway players, or players that other teams let go before they ended up with the Yankees. With Damaso Marte the only real big money middle reliever, the Yankees were able to build a consistant bullpen out of guys like Brian Bruney, Jose Veras, Phil Coke, Edwar Ramirez, and Jonathan Albaladejo with Coke being the only player that was drafted by the Yankees. Bruney had been let go by the Diamondbacks where he had once closed for them. He impressed in 2006 before running into some troubles in 2007, but last season was another good one for him. All those guys have similar stories with other teams giving up on them and the Yankees finding their worth.

The New York Post reported today that the new stadium will allow alcohol in the bleacher seats. This is good news for everyone who has had to sneak in their moon shine over the last few years. The article says that there will be more access for those in the bleacher seats to other parts of the stadium, thus allowing us bleacher fans to see more of the stadium. This is a good move since I normally can't afford anything closer than a bleacher seat and always dreamed of seeing the stadium that season ticket holders see.

A-Rod is said to be stepping up his workouts down in Colorado. We have to really give it to him since he has not made a headline in about a week. It could be that Cashman's words finally reached him, but its always fun trying to guess what A-Rod's next headline will be. My guess is that the next big headline will have him dating Jennifer Swindal, and the Steinbrenner family will not be happy.

In former Yankee news Gary Sheffield was just released by the Tigers. After a 72 hour window, any team can pick him up for the league minimum. The Tigers still have to pay him the $14 million they owe this season. I'm not sure where he'll end up but he's 1 homerun shy of 500 for his career. I'm sure some team will take him. For the league minimum, that's some decent pop to have on your bench. Even if he is 40.

And We're Back

The RJG took an unexpected weekend hiatus to head over to Florida and begin pushing the Yankee brass to make some roster decisions. The result was Gardner getting selected as the centerfielder and Albaladejo being named to the bullpen. With the bullpen and outfield shored up, we have a clear sign that opening day is fast approaching. As a matter of fact, one week from today we have the first game of the season against the Baltimore Orioles. For those who can't wait, there are a pair of exhibition games with the Cubs at the new stadium on Friday and Saturday. Excitement is in the air, and opening day is near. Jeter's first .400 average season is soon going to start, and Sabathia's first 30 win season will begin with a victory on that day. Robinson Cano's 40 homeruns begin that day too, as does Brett Gardner's 70 steals. Let this post serve as a reminder that if you haven't requested to leave work early on Monday, now's the time to do so. Let's go Yankees!

Jeter Batting Lead Off

The Yankees have been toying with a lineup that places Derek Jeter as the leadoff hitter, and Johnny Damon as the number two hitter. Jeter last batted lead off regularly in the 2005 season when Tony Womack did not pan out. It was the season before we got Damon. That season was a strange one for Jeter who didn't seem comfortable as a lead off hitter but batted .309 with 19 homeruns, 70 RBI's and 14 stolen bases. Personally, I think its a great move. Jeter has a career .387 OBP, which would look good at the top of the lineup. He gets base hits, and though he isn't the stolen base threat he once was, he can still swipe a few bags on that arthritic left knee. In yesterday's game, Jeter had a pair of hits including a double, but everyone got a pair of hits yesterday so its not a good gauge. We'll have to see how it works out through the rest of spring training and into the season. All I know is that we are inching closer to opening day, and it could not come soon enough. So do you like Jeter as leadoff, or do you think they should stick with Damon? What about Gardner or anyone else?

Season Opener Preparedness Test

As the first game of the season approaches, it is important to take stock and determine whether we are indeed prepared for the season. Since most games are televised on the YES Network, it is important to make sure you have access to cable. Subscribing is one option, but having a neighbor with a subscription and a cable splitter is another option.

Next: beer, pretzels, hot dogs, a bookie, and Pete Rose's phone number should be readily accessible. I suggest some sort of cooler, cell phone combination.

It is also a good idea to have some excuses ready as the regular consumption of beer, pretzels, and hot dogs destroys the physique you worked so hard to achieve in the off-season and begins to repulse your significant other. "These pants make me look fat," is a good one. Other ones include, "This couch is like a funhouse mirror, it's an optical illusion," or, "I haven't gained weight, you have a parasite and so you just think I've gotten bigger." "That's your mother speaking, she's tearing this family apart!" is also a classic.

Now you are ready for opening day, as well as the next six months. Congratulations. You can thank me later, or preferably right now in the comments section.

Baby Stealing Illegal in Most States

I read this bizarre story involving former Yankee prospect Jose Tabata's wife and a stolen baby. According to the report, Tabata's wife, Amalia Tabata Pereira posed as an immigration official at a health department where an unsuspecting mother was bringing her daughter for a checkup. Amalia, who was going by the name of Janet, told her that there were immigration officers at their house and were going to deport them. She could help them, but she needed to take the baby. They drove to the farm where the father worked and Amalia told him the same story. They handed over the baby and now Amalia is in custody. Apparently she has a pretty long record of fraud and theft, and has gone by several aliases. So Tabata's wife is all sorts of crazy. Reports would seem to suggest that this is not the first time Tabata's wife has robbed the cradle. Amalia, who is 43, is married to Tabata who is 20. Zing! Okay now onto some baseball.

I watched the last couple innings of the spring training game last night when AJax hit the grandslam. Its a promising sign for him. We can't get too excited just yet since he still needs to get his time in triple A, but he seems to be progressing well.

Finding at bats for Swisher may not be as hard as it looks right now. For the month of April, sure, it may be a little difficult fitting him in, but injuries come, and we're not exactly stocked with the youngest position players in the world. I want Swisher to get at-bats because I think he can look more like the Swisher in Oakland and less like the Swisher in Chicago. After this season however, they really need to give him a fair shake at right field. The Yankees knew who was going to play right field from the moment they entered camp. If Swisher plays well in the time he's given, they should let him have right field for 2010, or they should trade him.

Opening Day, How Far Thou Art

We're only a few days away from opening day. We all know what that means, I can resume my compulsive gambling activities. Now that the WBC is over, great final by the way, just spectacular, I have nothing to do for the next week. I tried kissing a mirror, but it was not nearly as satisfying as Details would have you believe. Swedish med school was another option, but I decided against it.

If opening day were today, life would be so different. I'd be writing stunning, insightful, pullitzer prize winning, baseball commentary like, "CC better win," and, "Boston blows!" I'd email Timmy Geithner and help him come up with a better plan to unfreeze the credit markets and then tell him that the Nationals suck, devastating him and probably causing a life-long struggle with drugs and alcohol.

I'd call up Melky, pretend to be Joe Girardi, and tell him that I planned to announce he was going to be the starting center fielder. Then I'd watch the game and laugh whenever the camera showed the dugout and Melky just looked miserable.

Then I'd call Bronny Cash and tell him I mailed him a new ninja costume that should arrive before first pitch. Then I'd watch the game and laugh whenever the camera showed Cash, tears forming in his eyes, as he realizes there is no ninja suit.

Man, I can't wait for opening day.

Face it America, Japan Owns

I stayed up until nearly 2am last night to finish watching the final game of the World Baseball Classic. It was a great game, with Korea and Japan going into extra innings before Ichiro hit a 2-run single to put Japan ahead in the 10th. As I watched it, I wondered why anyone would pitch to Ichiro with runners on 2nd and 3rd and two outs. The man is a base hit machine. He already had 3 hits in that game alone. For those counting at home, that's two WBC championships for Japan, and zero for the rest of the baseball playing world. I have to hand it to both Japan and Korea, because the game that I watched was played extremely well. It was worth the extra cup of coffee I have to drink to become a passable employee this morning.

I started thinking that if the USA put a team together of its best players it could take on Japan, but then I remembered that that's what the classic was. To anyone who reads this blog from Japan I salute you, and congratulations on the win. I was very impressed with the game your team put on. If anyone's reading from Korea, take pride in the fact that your guys played a great game, made it to the final round of the classic, and really opened some eyes as to the quality of Korean baseball.

A-Rod Goes to Far Lengths to Remain in Headlines

First he had four friends leak the fact that he had tested positive for steroids in 2003 to Selena Roberts. Then he hurt his hip after a photo-op at the WBC DR practice. Then he made out with his reflection after having his surgery, then calling his former pimp/girlfriend to leak the fact that they dated while he was married to the Daily News. Now A-Rod has gone too far, flying to Spain in order to knock Lance Armstrong off his bike, possibly injuring his collar bone and affecting his ability to come back to the Tour de France. We asked A-Rod why he knocked lance over, he responded simply, "It's been more than 24 hours." When asked what he meant, A-Rod explained. "I haven't made a headline in over 24 hours. People will forget about me if I stay in Colorado. Before you know it, Melky's playing third and Jeter will change his haircut so mine no longer looks like his." A-Rod's clearly lost it, but attacking a national icon is not the way to go, unless that icon is someone like Bernie Madoff, or anyone working on Wall Street for that matter (excluding cleaning people and support staff). When will A-Rod's thirst for making headlines be quenched? We asked him. "Never. I'm like Tantalus. Every time I reach down for a sip of self-confidence from the font of gossip pages it all drains away, leaving me forever thirsty." A bit surprised by this answer, we asked what he thinks he'll do next. "Probably get photographed with a hooker in Colorado, then have my cousin leak the fact that I created credit default swaps. I'm quite the derivatives trader. E-Trade baby!"