December 2008
Favorite Playoff Moment
Even though it’s the off season, I find myself unable to stop thinking about October, the
greatest month of the year. So I think it’s the perfect time to recall some of the best
playoff moments ever.
As a Yankees fan, it’s no surprise that
some of my favorite playoff moments are centered around Derek Jeter,
especially because I’m a child of the 90′s. You have to love the
Jeffrey Maier incident in the 1996 ALCS and the Flip and Mr. November
moments in 2001. To go with that, the Aaron “Bleepin’” Boone walk off
home run against the Red Sox in 2001 is another personal favorite.
But, with the exception of the Jeffrey Maier incident, the Yankees
failed to win the World Series in the same seasons the events took
place, and thus the greats moments were somewhat spoiled.
When
you’re a Yankees fan, it comes with the territory to hate the Red Sox.
It’s part of the contract to hate Boston when you accept the duties of
a Yankees fan. Because of this, it’s pretty obvious that I would
rather see the Yankees lose the World Series than see the Red Sox
become champions.
Having said that, I would say my favorite
moment in playoff history would have to be Bill Buckner’s error. How
awesome was that? There’s nothing more pleasing than enjoying the
misfortunes of the Red Sox. They had a solid hold on the game with a 2
run lead and just 1 out away from winning their first World Series
since 1918 and threw it all away with a botched slow-rolling ground
ball.
What do you guys think? We all have our own favorite
playoff moments that are special to us in certain ways. Please post a
comment and share you favorite moments with us and explain why they are
special to you.
Where Will They Go?
Everybody is at the edge of their seat wondering where this off season’s top free agents and other players on the move will end up. And at this point, one can only speculate…so I have decided to do the same thing. Here are my predictions of what jerseys some of the big name players will be wearing next season.
Mark Teixeira: Los Angeles Angels
C.C. Sabathia: New York Yankees
A.J. Burnett: Atlanta Braves
Brian Fuentes: New York Mets
Raul Ibanez: Philadelphia Phillies
Jake Peavy: Chicago Cubs
Andy Pettitte: Los Angeles Dodgers
Francisco Rodriguez: Los Angeles Angels
Rafael Furcal: Oakland A’s
Derek Lowe: New York Yankees
Manny Ramirez: Los Angeles Dodgers
Braves Ready to Send Offer to A.J.
The endlessly injured pitcher A.J. Burnett is looking for a new home after opting out of the final two years of his contract with the Blue Jays. The only question is: where will end up?
It’s kind of interesting what goes through general managers’ minds when they decide they want to make an offer to Burnett. It’s obvious that going into each season Burnett is always at a high risk of getting injured. But when healthy, Burnett is one of the top pitchers in the game.
And clearly, Burnett’s performance when he is rarely healthy is good enough as many teams are highly interested.
According to MLB Rumor Central, the Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles, Phillies and Braves are considered the front runners in acquiring the 31-year-old right hander.
While the Yankees and Red Sox appear to be sitting back and waiting for top free agent C.C. Sabathia to make his decision of where he will end up next season, the Braves seem to be ready to make the first move in the Burnett sweepstakes.
It is being reported that the Braves are prepared to make a five-year offer to Burnett in the recent future. But where he ends up will most likely be decided in the Winter Meetings in Las Vegas which start Monday.
Hometown Ties
Although the last three baseball-less months have been very slow, it will soon prove to be
one of the biggest off seasons in baseball history as the Winter Meetings are set to start
Monday in Las Vegas.
One name in particular that is on top of every team’s list is first baseman Mark Teixeira.
Over the last few years, Teixeira has established himself as one of the best
hitting and fielding corner infielders in the game. Coming off a 2008
season with a .308 batting average, 33 home runs, and 121 RBI, Teixeira
is certainly the apple in every team’s eye.
At this point, it is uncertain where exactly Teixeira will go, but
it is very likely he will find himself with the New York Yankees, the
Boston Red Sox, or end up resigning with the Los Angeles Angels.
But two teams who have not been known as big spenders are also joining
the hunt. These two teams are the Washington Nationals and the
Baltimore Orioles.
With the Yankees offering top free agent pitcher C.C. Sabathia a
contract worth $140 million, it is expected that Teixeira will receive
a contract, while not as high, still in the $100 million area.
Spending this money would be a huge financial burden on both the
Nationals and Orioles, so both teams are focusing less on the money
and trying to stress the importance of hometown ties.
Teixeira was born in Annapolis, MD., less than an hour from the Washington and Baltimore areas. Both teams feel this fact is their strongest and possibly only shot at luring the switch hitting slugger into their respective clubhouses.
On top of his 54 game stint with the Angels, Teixeira has also played for the Texas Rangers and the Atlanta Braves. Playing for three different teams in only six years is quite a large number. However, no matter where Teixeira plays he has continuously proven to be one of the best players on
each team. He has also continuously failed to win a World Series ring with each of these teams.
Teixeira knows his place in the majors at this point and the only thing
on his mind right now is a championship. Neither the Orioles nor the Nationals
have a legitimate shot at winning the World Series at this point nor
are really in line to even make the playoffs.
While playing so close to home is definitely a juicy offer, playing elsewhere is clearly the better and more likely decision.
mlblogsdailyrant
Recent Comments