Alex Rodriguez
Minnesota Twins, Joe Mauer Agree to 8-Year, $184 Extension
Monday, March 22nd, 2010 | Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins, MLB, Sports | No Comments
Joe Mauer will be in a Minnesota Twins uniform for a very long time. The Twins and Mauer agreed upon an 8-year extension that will keep the best hitter in baseball in Minnesota through the 2018 MLB schedule. The extension kicks in in 2011 and is worth $184 million. It contains a no trade clause as well.
The average annual salary comes out to $23 million. Only 2 other players – Alex Rodriguez ($27.5 million) and CC Sabathia ($23 million) of the New York Yankees – have greater annual salaries. It is also the largest contract ever signed by a catcher, crushing the 7-year, $91 million deal that Mike Piazza signed with the New York Mets in 1999.
Mauer is a stud that has delivered for the Twins at the major league level each and every season. He is a career .327 hitter with a career .408 on-base percentage. 2009 was clearly his best year – .365 batting average, .444 on-base percentage, 28 HR’s, 96 RBI’s and only 63 strike outs in 523 at-bats. WOW!
At the ripe young age of 26, Mauer deserved the deal and the Twins are lucky to have him as their back-stop for the foreseeable future.
Utley, Lee Force Series Back to New York: Phillies 8, Yankees 6
Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009 | 2009 Fall Classic, MLB, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Sports, World Series | No Comments
It wasn’t pretty, but a win is a win, especially when a loss sends you home for a long winter break…
The Phillies defeated the Yankees on Monday night, forcing the World Series back to the Bronx for a Game 6 on Wednesday night at the New Yankee Stadium. Cliff Lee rose to the challenge and picked up his 2nd win of the Series. After giving up a single run in the 1st inning on an Alex Rodriguez double, Lee held the Yankees scoreless until Johnny Damon’s RBI groundout in the 5th inning. By that time, the Phillies led 6-2 and looked like they were going to cruise to victory. But Lee gave up hits to the 1st 3 batters he faced in the 8th inning, and Manager Charlie Manuel was forced to go to his troubled bullpen after A-Rod crushed Lee’s 112th pitch for a 2-run double that cut the lead to 8-4. But Chan Ho Park rose to the challenge, getting the next 3 outs and limiting the threat to just 1 more run. Manuel then opted to go with Ryan Madsen instead of closer Brad Lidge in the 9th inning. After a double and single to start the inning brought the tying run to the plate, Madsend induced Derek Jeter to hit into a run-scoring double play. Johnny Damon singled to prolong the inning, but Madsen rallied to end the game by striking out Mark Teixeira. You’d hate to see what will happen if the Phillies have a 1-run lead heading into the 9th inning. Given how Lidge and Madsen have pitched thus far, you might just want to leave your starter in the game.
Lee ended up with a ho-hum night – 7 innings pitched, 5 ER, 7 hits, 3 walks and 3 K’s. It was only a matter of time before the Yankees middle of the lineup got to him. But he did what he had to do to keep the series going. And given the way Cole Hamels has pitched this post-season, if the Phillies had not acquired Lee from the Indians mid-season, we might be looking at a different National League representative in the World Series.
The other big story – Chase Utley – can’t believe it took me this long to get to him. Utley answered A-Rod’s 1st inning double with a 3-run home run of his own to stake the Phillies to a 3-1 lead. He also hit a solo home run in the 7th inning that extended the Phillies lead to 7-2. On the night, Utley went 2 for 3 with a walk, 2 home runs, 4 RBI’s and 3 runs scored. Utley is hitting .333, with 5 home runs, 8 RBI’s and 6 runs scored for the Series. Utley and former Yankees slugger Reggie Jackson are the only 2 players to ever hit 5 home runs in a single World Series. If the Phillies somehow come back and win this World Series, he and Lee will be sharing the MVP trophy.
What it all boils down to – Game 6 – Andy Pettitte on 3 days’ rest v. Pedro Martinez on full 4 days’ rest. Pettitte gave up 4 ER on 5 hits and 3 walks in Saturday night’s World Series win, but he does not have a good history of pitching on 3 days’ rest. Martinez pitched as well as could be expected of him in Game 2 in New York last week. Although he took the loss – 3 ER on 6 hits and 2 walks in 6 inning – he lost to the better pitcher that night – A.J. Burnett. Could Martinez outduel Pettitte? You betcha…
Should be fun to watch, especially if the Phillies can force a Game 7. Sabathia is definitely going for the Yankees, but who will get the shot at glory for the Phillies – Cole Hamels, Joe Blanton, Lee? Ah the suspense…
Yankees in Driver’s Seat with 7-4 Game 4 Win; World Series Title in Sight!
Monday, November 2nd, 2009 | 2009 Fall Classic, MLB, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Sports, World Series | No Comments
The New York Yankees are in the driver’s seat. With their 7-4 win on Sunday night, the Yankees now lead the Phillies 3-1 in the 2009 World Series. One more win, and the Yankees will have the franchise’s 27th World Series Championship.
Sunday night’s game was a game for the ages. CC Sabathia pitching on 3 days’ rest. Phillies Manager Charlie Manuel going with Joe Blanton instead of his ace Cliff Lee on 3 days’ rest. Lead changes galore. Home runs, hit batsmen – what more could you ask for.
The Yankees struck 1st with 2 runs in the top of the 1st, but the Phillies answered with single runs in the 1st and 4th innings to tie the game at 2. The Yankees jumped back on top with run scoring singles from Derek Jeter and Johnny Damon in the top of the 5th inning. The Yankees still held that 4-2 going into the bottom of the 7th inning, but the Phillies would not be denied. Chase Utley hit a solo home run off of Sabathia (his 3rd off of Sabathia in this series) in the 7th inning and Carlos Ruiz tied the game at 4 with his solo shot off of Joba Chamberlain in the 8th inning.
Manuel opted to go with his closer – Brad Lidge – in a tie game to start the 9th inning, and that move proved to be costly. Although Lidge got the 1st 2 outs of the inning, Damon singled and stole second to get into scoring position. After Lidge plunked Mark Teixeira, Alex Rodriguez delivered the big blow just as he had done the night before (he hit a 2-run HR off of Cole Hamels to get the Yankees back in the game and was also hit by pitches twice). A-Rod’s double gave the Yankees a 5-4 lead and Jorge Posada followed that up with a 2-run single that plated Teixeira and A-Rod for a 7-4 Yankees lead. Just like that, the air left Citizens Bank Ballpark – Phillies fans knew it was over.
Cliff Lee will try to avoid letting the Yankees celebrate on their home turf. Lee outdueled Sabathia in Game 1 of the World Series, but he will go up against A.J. Burnett this time around. Burnett stymied the Phillies in Game 2 of the World Series, but will be pitching on 3 days’ rest, something he has not done so well in his past. If the Phillies can somehow win tonight, it will be Andy Pettitte for the Yankees on 3 days’ rest on Wednesday night in the Bronx. Pettitte does not like pitching on 3 days’ rest, so the Yankees will not be bringing their best lineup in Game 6. Tonight is the key – if the Phillies win, it would not be surprising to see the Phillies take this thing to a dramatic Game 7 in NY. Sabathia would make his 3rd start of the series and we would likely see Cliff Lee for a few innings out of the bullpen on just 2 days’ rest. Bring on the drama…
Yankees Top Angels 5-2, Advance to 2009 World Series
Monday, October 26th, 2009 | Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, MLB, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Sports | No Comments
The World Series is finally back in New York. The Yankees defeated the Angels 5-2 on Sunday night to advance to their 40th World Series in franchise history. If the Yankees can defeat the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2009 Fall Classic, it will be the Yankees 27th World Championship.
Andy Pettitte pitched a solid game in Game 6 of the ALCS – 1 ER on 7 hits and 1 walk in 6 1/3 innings pitched. Pettitte struck out 6 Angels batters and he won his 16th career post-season game – a major league record. Joba Chamberlain retired the only 2 batters he faced in the 7th inning to get Pettitte and the Yankees out of a “mini” 1-out, 1-on “jam” to preserve the Yankees 3-1 lead. And Mariano Rivera came on for his “typical” 6-out save, although he did give up a run on 2 singles to Chone Figgins and Vladimir Guerrero in the 8th inning. But Rivera worked a perfect 1-2-3 9th inning, striking out Gary Matthews, Jr. to end the game and send the Yankees faithful into a tizzy.
After falling behind 1-0 on a Bobby Abreu RBI single in the 3rd inning, the Yankees rallied to take the lead for good with 3 runs in the 4th inning. Two walks and a single from a patient Yankees lineup loaded the bases with just 1 out. Johnny Damon delivered a clutch 2-run single to left, and then after a Mark Teixeira single loaded the bases again, Angels starter Joe Saunders walked Alex Rodriguez to force in a run. Just like that, the Yankees led 3-1 and they could taste another AL pennant. When the Angels cut the Yankees lead to 3-2 with a run off Rivera in the 8th inning, the Yankees answered right back in the bottom of the inning. Robinson Cano led off with another walk just like he did in the 4th inning. Then the Angels defense deserted them again. Nick Swisher reached on a Howie Kendrick error and then Scott Kazmir threw away Melky Cabrera’s sacrifice bunt allowing Cano to score from 2nd base. The Yankees had 2nd and 3rd with nobody out and after a Derek Jeter ground out and a Damon walk, Teixeira drove in the game’s final run with a sacrifice fly to deep center field.
Yankees 5, Angels 2. Game over…
The Yankees will host the Phillies in Game 1 of the World Series on Wednesday night. The $201 million payroll – the largest in all of baseball – finally delivered a shot at a World Series to George Steinbrenner and the Yankee brass – it has been 6 years since the Yankees have played in the Fall Classic. Alex Rodriguez – in his 16-year MLB career – is finally going to get to play in his 1st World Series. After struggling in his post-season performance to date, A-Rod delivered in 2009 – .438 batting average, 5 home runs and 12 RBI’s in the Yankees 9 playoffs games in 2009. CC Sabathia – the Yankees high-priced ace – will square off against his former Cleveland Indians teammate Cliff Lee on Wednesday night. Both pitchers have been “lights-out during the playoff in 2009. Sabathia is 3-0 with a 1.19 ERA in 3 starts (3 ER, 20 K’s and 3 walks in 22 2/3 innings pitched). Lee is 2-0 with a 0.74 ERA in 3 starts (2 ER, 20 K’s and 3 walks in 24 1/3 innings pitched). Should be a classic battle – wouldn’t it be great to see these 2 duke it out in Games 1, 4 and 7?! Can’t wait. We’ll have our predictions over the next 2 days leading up to Wednesday’s contest.
Maybe it isn’t over just yet?! Angels Prolong ALCS with Thrilling 7-6 Win over Yankees
Friday, October 23rd, 2009 | Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Los Angeles Dodgers, MLB, New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies, Sports | No Comments
Talk about a gutsy performance – I was shocked (on so many different levels) to see the Angels defeat the Yankees 7-6 to push the ALCS back to the Bronx for Game 6 on Saturday night.
First: I could not believe how the Angels jumped out to a 4-0 lead before even recording their 1st out in the 1st inning. Torii Hunter’s big 2-run single seemed to relax the rest of the team and electrify the Angels fans. The place went nuts, and when Vladimir Guerrero and Kendry Morales got hits to drive in 2 more runs, I thought I was back on the east coast in Fenway Park or Yankee Stadium. That set the tone for what looked to be an easy Angels win.
Second: But then it all went wrong in the 7th inning. John Lackey, who had allowed just 5 hits to the Yankees through 6 innings, seemed to implode. After Lackey got the 1st out, he gave up a double to Melky Cabrera. Lackey thought he had struck out Jorge Posada, but the home plate umpire called the 3-2 pitch a ball – instead of man on 2nd 2 outs, it was now 1st and 2nd with just 1 out. Lackey lost all focus when he walked Derek Jeter to load the bases, and even after he got the 2nd out of the inning on a Johnny Damon fly out, Manager Mike Scioscia opted to go with a lefty reliever – Darren Oliver – to turn Mark Teixeira around to his “weaker” right side of the plate. Teixeira ended up delivering a 3-run double that cut the Angels lead to 1. After intentionally walking Alex Rodriguez, Oliver served up a Hideki Matsui run-scoring single that tied the game at 4. The Angels still had a chance to get out of the inning all even, but another Scioscia move backfired when K Jepsen gave up a rocket triple to Robinson Cano that brought home 2 runs to give the Yankees a 6-4 lead. You could have heard a pin drop in the stadium as the Yankees players were going nuts in their dugout. Game over, right? No way the Angels could rebound from this disaster – they would go quietly with their final 9 outs and the Yankees would advance to yet another World Series to take on the Philadelphia Phillies who had already disposed of the Los Angeles Dodgers in ho-hum 5-game NLCS for the 2nd year in a row.
Third: A.J. Burnett has settled down after his awful 1st inning, but he let 2 Angels reach base to start the bottom of the 7th inning, and it was Manager Joe Girardi’s turn to remove his starter for a bad reliever. Damaso Marte gave up a sacrifice to Chone Figgins and then got Bobby Abreu to ground out for the 2nd run of the inning. The Angels scored a run to cut the lead to 6-5, but there 2 outs and Phil Hughes could get that final out for the Yankees. Think again… Hughes promptly walked Torii Hunter to put the go-ahead run on base. Then he gave up Vladimir Guerrero’s game-tying single that scored Erick Aybar. Kendry Morales then drove in Hunter with the go-ahead run to give the Angels a 7-6 lead, but would it be enough.
Fourth: Brian Fuentes had blown a save before in the series – on A-Rod’s solo home run way back in the 11th inning of Game 2 that the Yankees ultimately won in 13 innings. Fuentes had to go through the heart of the Yankees order 2-3-4 to record the save. But the baseball gods wouldn’t let the Angels get this far just to have Fuentes blow it, would they?! Well Fuentes sure made it interesting, even after he recorded the 1st 2 outs of the inning. Fuentes then intentionally walked A-Rod – great move Scioscia (seriously!) – but then he walked Matsui and hit Cano to load the bases. What in the hell is going on here? Here we go again – another come-from-behind win for the Yankees as we are forced to listen to Joe Buck and Tim McCarver get all goo-goo over how good the Yankees are at erasing leads late in games. But my prayers were answered – Fuentes got Nick Swisher to pop out to left field and the Angels lived to see another day.
And I get another day (2 actually) to hope that the Yankees somehow blow this 3 games to 1 lead over the Angels to let the Angels battle the Phillies in the 2009 World Series. Gotta love October baseball…
A-Rod out 10 weeks
Thursday, March 5th, 2009 | MLB | No Comments
Looks like A-Rod should have stayed on steroids, it was announced today that he will have surgery to remove a cyst from his right hip. The team thinks he will be out for 10 weeks. Joe Dunand, Rodriguez’s brother told ESPN that doctors recommended immediate surgery and that it would take 10 weeks of rehabilitation. This new development means that A-Rod will not play with the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic. “It’s a big blow for the whole family. Alex is destroyed,” Dunand said. The Yankees are 20-23 in the 43 games Rodriguez missed since he joined the team in 2004. I’m sure the Yankees are hoping he is back fast, this team spent big money this year.
A-Rod was stupid
Monday, February 9th, 2009 | MLB | No Comments
Alex Rodriguez admitted Monday that he did take performance-enhancing drugs while playing for the Rangers during a three-year period. “When I arrived in Texas in 2001, I felt an enormous amount of pressure, felt all the weight of the world on top of me to perform,” A-Rod said. “It was very loose. I was young, I was stupid, I was naive.” Sources who know about the testing results told sports illustrated he tested positive for testosterone and Primobolan, which are anabolic steroids.
A Rod and Bonds both like the roids
Saturday, February 7th, 2009 | MLB | No Comments
Looks things are going to get a lot worse for Alex Rodriguez in the coming weeks, according to many news sources he tested positive to steroids back in 2003. In 2003 there was no real penalty for using steroids and it was big joke in MLB. More than 5 percent of players in the majors tested positive in the ’03 survey, and mandatory testing was implemented — including provisions for penalties — in 2004. Rodriguez is the highest paid player in the MLB. What will Madonna say about all of this?
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