Bleacher Report - Articles by Erik Diana

Pete Rose Belongs On The Outside Looking In!

Erik Diana — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 01:05:38 -0400

Dear Bud Selig:

I am taking the time out of my night to write to you. I beg you, please, do not for the love of all that is good, let Pete Rose be reinstated into baseball. He broke the one unbreakable rule in baseball. You have to rule with an iron fist on this one!

Mr. Selig, he committed the unpardonable sin in baseball: Pete Rose bet on baseball. Case closed! He has to be banished for life! Hank Aaron is wrong on this one!

As you and I know baseball is very reflective of its history. You have argued that Jackie Robinson's integration into baseball was one of the most dynamic happenings for civil rights. I agree with your logic on that one because it was decades before Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr and President Obama.

I know you love baseball, Mr. Selig. In fact, one day I want to have your job. It's my dream because of how much I love baseball. But you know the rules, Mr. Selig. Pete Rose has to be banned forever. He has to be persona non-grata!

If you break a decades-old rule for one cheater how can you stand vigilant against the steroid users who have harmed baseball? Plus, you do realize that there are many other forms of gambling that your players could get involved in?

The Internet is ripe with fantasy leagues and betting pools for sports. Long gone are the days that a gangster would come to a baseball players table when he was out to dinner and bribe him with money to fix games.

I understand that the Reserve Clause is no longer in effect and players salaries are exponentially greater than they were a century ago, but the principle is still the same. You can't bend the rules for anyone on this matter, Mr. Selig.

Your predecessor Judge Kennesaw Mountain Landis banished 14 people after the Black Sox scandal in 1919. Gambling and the riddance of gambling has been a foundation piece of the labor history of baseball.

I know people clamor that the Hall of Fame is tainted because he is not in it. I agree. Pete Rose tarnished baseball and his decisions ultimately tarnished the Hall of Fame. He did this to himself. No one made Pete Rose gamble on baseball.

Mr. Selig, Major League Baseball takes gambling so seriously that you can get caught using steroids three times before lifetime banishment kicks in. If a player gets caught gambling once he's supposed to be banished for life. This is no joking matter!

Not only did he commit the one sin that can't be committed he lied over and over and over and over and over again about it! He and Jim Gray ruined Game 2 of the 1999 World Series and the naming of the All Century Team. Furthermore, Chad Curtis wouldn't talk to Jim Gray after Game 3 of the 1999 World Series because Paul O'Neill had such respect for Pete Rose. (Also, what makes Rose's actions even more disgusting is that he made Jim Gray look like a genius!)

Also, what makes Pete Rose more nauseating is the fact that instead of taking what he did seriously he decided to try and make a few bucks with his confession for gambling on baseball. He published a book and tried to garner publicity for it by admitting that he bet on baseball. He disgraced the game of baseball and himself once again by his actions.

I know the people that think he should be in the Hall of Fame say that he will forever be tarnished and nothing will change that. I agree with that. Pete Rose should be tarnished forever and still banished from baseball! His actions warrant this explicitly, Mr. Selig!

Sincerely,

Erik Diana

New York Yankees: What I Like (and Don't Like) About This Year's Team

Erik Diana — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 00:06:43 -0400

A new day has come. The 2009 MLB season is arriving, finally!

Once again the Yankees are going to be must-see TV. Armed with a new stadium and their old-school arrogance the Yankees are expecting nothing less than a championship and there will be a lot of pressure on the manager and players to deliver the 27th World Series to the Bronx.

Seriously, has an offseason ever felt this long to anyone? It honestly feels like yesterday that the Yankees said goodbye to their old friend and stadium with a tribute that was both garish and somewhat classless. (Remember, Joe Torre wasn't mentioned in the festivities.)

But, that tribute to the Old Yankee Stadium was just like the Yankees: Grandiose, brash, somewhat classless and a spectacle worth viewing all at once. Love them or hate them, the tribute really was the epitome of the Yankees franchise.

Now 2009 is here! And the Yankees have many reasons to be excited for the start of a new era in the Bronx. With the start of every season in baseball hope springs eternal. Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things. And with the Yankees, there are a lot of things to like and a few to dislike.

I may miss a few things so please feel free to interject something that you like or hate about the current assembled roster. This piece of writing I want to be a living, breathing article. I'm going to write a point and counterpoint for each of the things on here.

Let me know what you think!

Here are the likes and dislikes:

I like this pitching staff! I like the quality and the depth. I like the addition of CC (Not C.C.) Sabathia. I'm iffy on the Burnett signing. It looks amazing if he stays healthy. If he doesn't, it's another Pavano deal on their books!

I still have trouble thinking this rotation of CC, Wang, Burnett, Pettitte, and Chamberlain can top the potential five starters Boston could throw out. Beckett, Lester, and Dice-K are arguably the three best pitchers in Boston since Clemens, Oil Can Boyd, and Hurst.

Sabathia is already a clubhouse fit at this part of his tenure in pinstripes. Remember 2005 when another really tall, over-sized left-hander made a jackass out of himself and never really got comfortable in the Bronx?

Yeah, me too, that was Randy Johnson and thank God he's gone! The only thing that stunk about getting rid of Johnson was that Brian Cashman got nothing in return for him. Nothing of value, except to get a prick out of the locker room came from that deal.

I like the fact that CC can be an ace and he could potentially carry a franchise on his mammoth back like he did with the Brewers last fall.

What I don't like is the fact that he's never pitched particularly well in the playoffs and is going to a place where learning the ropes in the postseason is unacceptable. This is something that may take a little time to solve because the Yankees aren't guaranteed a spot in the postseason anymore like they used to be.

Here's what else I don't like about the CC Sabathia move. I don't like the innings he's thrown over the last two years. Seriously, 494 innings is a TON of innings. That doesn't count the playoffs either. Also, I wasn't nuts about the Brewers pitching him on three days rest consistently either.

I do like the fact that he asked for the ball, and he had dogged determination to win the games that he pitched. Free agency be damned in his quest for the Brewers playoff hopes. That's respectable. Lord knows the Yankees need more guys on their team like that!

Another thing I don't like about the CC deal is his contract. If he pitches great, and I hope does, he can opt out after three years! He has the Yankees over the barrel on this one. If he's a bust or gets hurt, he doesn't have to opt out at all. Yikes!

Another thing I like about the Yankees in 2009 is the fact they wised up and signed Andy Pettitte. I also like that he doesn't have the steroid admission/guilt hanging over his head like he did last year.

Honestly, the guy should have won 18 games in 2007 and he just seemed off for the start of the year last year. Now, he can breathe in the fresh air and not worry about that stuff anymore.

He still could get called to put his old teammate, Roger Clemens, in a tough spot if he goes to trial. Let's all hope that when Clemens gets indicted for perjury, and he'll get indicted, that it happens next year.

Plus, it would have been stupid for the Yankees to try to save a few million after they committed over 400 million dollars in free agency in the offseason. This deal basically was insurance if one of the starters go down.

You could tell Cashman didn't want to throw Kennedy and Hughes into the fire like he did at this time last year.

The deal with Pettitte is mutualistic at best! Pettitte gets a great contract, gets more money if he hits his incentives and the Yankees have the depth they need at the front end and back end of their rotation now.

Even if two of the starters go down, they still have Hughes and Kennedy that could step up for a few games. No, Igawa probably won't see the mound for the Bombers this year. Thank God; he sucks!

This deal with Pettitte really was like a good one night stand: You get yours, they get theirs, and at the end of the day, they can leave one another after the season is over. Very little commitment is involved here and the Yankees need as much of that right now as they can get.

Here's something I don't like about the Yankees in 2009: their defense. Jeter is spotty, and that's kind. Matsui is a corpse in the outfield with knee troubles. Damon can't throw at all and Cano is consistently lazy. You also know that teams are going to test Posada's repaired shoulder to see if it can still hold up.

Although, if A-Rod is healthy he's a great third baseman and Mark Teixeira is a great first baseman. Brett Gardner can run like the wind and they do have a modicum of depth because of Nick Swisher. Overall, still, they're not great on defense.

Another thing I like about the Yankees in 2009 is the lineup. (Even though I'm not nuts about it now that Matsui is there and Manny isn't.)

I think the Yankees should have taken a page out of the Tigers' book and DFA Matsui. I know he's a great hitter when healthy, that just seems rare now these days. Plus, Matsui is going to be a sitting duck on the base paths that will clog everything up!

I do like the fact that Jeter and Damon are leading off. Double plays will be a lot harder to come by now that Damon, with great speed still, can run out of a lot of double plays. I also love Mark Teixeira batting third once A-Rod comes back.

If Cano can actually take what Kevin Long said to heart he could be great again.

Another thing not to like about the current Yankees is the fact that A-Rod is coming back and may be hurt or mentally fatigued already. Honestly, if you told me A-Rod will hit 35 home runs and drive in 110 runs I could believe that.

If you told me he will blame the hip and opt for surgery because he can't handle the pressure I could believe that.

Anything is possible with A-Rod this year. A-Rod really is in a fascinating spot and a lot of attention will be on him. And that's just the way he likes it!

Another thing I am not nuts about the Yankees in 2009 is Robby Cano. Honestly, he better have a short leash this year! He took off way too many plays last year and way too many at bats were squandered by his laziness.

It took Girardi until the end of the year to deal with this problem, but by that time it was way too late. Cano is young and amazingly talented but it seems like he needs someone like a Larry Bowa to motivate him and ride his ass every freaking day!

It just seemed that once he got fiscal security he stopped giving a damn about playing hard everyday. Say what you want about A-Rod, but he busts his butt everyday, even if it just for people to look at him.

I think 2009 could be a year that Brett Gardner takes off! Seriously, I like Brett Gardner. Any smart Yankees fan knows what Melky Cabrera is: He's a decent outfielder that can't get on base and that will throw a few runners and play decent defense.

Gardner could be a weapon that the Yankees utilize now that the Steroid Era is over. Speed and defense matter now more than ever.

I think a lot of teams, like the Detroit Tigers, are going to suffer a horrible hangover from no speed and even less flexibility. The Tigers were built for 2002, not 2009! Hence the reason Sheffield was released!

Lastly, I think the Yankees bullpen is iffy. Edwar Ramirez is a joke. Phil Coke was terrific last year. Brian Bruney looked great when he was healthy. And Jose Veras can be great and can be bad. Mo is still one of the best closers in the game, if not the best. But they certainly seem like they far from perfect.

So what do you think? Do you like the Yankees' chances? Will they make the playoffs? Can they win the World Series?

Goodbye Roger Clemens

Erik Diana — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 21:23:36 -0400

Dear Roger Clemens:

I've had enough: I'm leaving you behind. It's time to say goodbye. You chose to go the route you did and drag everyone that loved watching you compete down with you.

In the words of Fleetwood Mac, "You can go your own way."

You were once a paragon of athleticism and hard work. You symbolized what ability, hard work and arrogance could accomplish not only in baseball, but also in life. You were an artist on the mound that mixed perfect mechanics, a blazing fastball, splitter, fear and location into 300-plus wins.

You even had Americans fooled, with people believing you were a faithful husband and that you didn't commit infidelity. Maybe that's personal you would say. Maybe you're right.

But when you went on this slash and burn campaign to clear your name of using PEDs, you invited the public to look at your private life.

If you didn't want people to examine the private side of your life, you should just pulled a Barry Bonds or a Mark McGwire and kept your mouth shut. What's worse, looking like a liar and a potential child molester or a PED user?

Honestly, Brian McNamee never said that you used steroids your whole career.

You were the kid from Texas without a dad, a huge chip on your shoulder and a fastball that could hit triple digits, and you could aim it anywhere. What made me even care about you more was that you seemed to stick it to the Red Sox from 1997—2003.

I celebrated with the Yankees and you in 1999 when you finally got your World Series ring. I lost my father that August and that Yankees team seemed to resonate on a level that no team ever has or will.

Bernie Williams, Luis Sojo, Scott Brosius all lost their father at that time period. And to turn up the emotions with me, Paul O'Neill lost his dad right before you pitched game four, which you won. I'll never forget when Joe Torre hugged O'Neill at the end of the game, and the way the Yankees seemed subdued because they needed one another so much that season.

I remember reading how you comforted Paul O'Neill that night. I loved reading how you emotionally invested yourself into your teammates. I loved reading how competitive you were. I loved when you were on the Yankees and you became a protector to your teammates.

Even in 2007, when you hit Alex Rios in the back, after A-Rod (who has his own problems) got hit in the knee.

But you threw it all away, Roger. I wanted to be mad at you after you deserted the Yankees in 2004. I still say if the Bombers had you and Andy Pettitte on that team the Red Sox never sniff the World Series, and the biggest postseason meltdown ever is averted.

But I was happy that you were dominant in that bandbox stadium that used to be called Enron.

I stuck up for you after you hit Piazza in the head in 2000. I stuck up for you after you threw that shattered bat to the sideline in game two of the 2000 World Series.

I stuck up for you after Manny Ramirez charged you in game of the 2003 ALCS. I even stuck up for you after George Mitchell ruined your legacy.

Now, you've become a trainwreck. I don't recognize you anymore. And I don't want to anymore. The saddest thing of all is your pride did this to you. Your Texas-sized pride did this to you.

A-Rod Has Bigger Things to Handle Than Joe Torre's Book!

Erik Diana — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 02:08:57 -0500

Well, the Yankees' hope for a quiet Spring Training just blew up in their faces, thanks to Joe Torre. Let's face it: The Yankees will never have a quiet Spring Training! Not in my lifetime, anyways.

I hope for his sake that A-Rod avoids the issue the way he did with Jose Canseco's outrageous allegations that he took PEDs and steroids. He handled that situation perfectly. Please Alex, handle this one like a pro again. I beg you.

The moment the players arrive and handle the media they are going to be bombarded with The Yankee Years and its aftermath. If Torre was trying to screw with the Yankees, he couldn't have done any better!

Everyone from Mariano Rivera, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada, Joe Girardi, Brian Cashman, Hal Steinbrenner and A-Rod are going to have to devote precious time to sorting all the details out in this book that was released. A-Rod is going to be the one who will really have handle these murky waters with skill because of Torre's book.

From the very top to the bottom of the Yankee hierarchy there are going to be statements and press releases abounding because of The Yankee Years.

Mark Teixeira, CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett should all send Joe Torre a "Thank You" card. Their every move won't be dissected with such alacrity by the press as other big-name free agents have been in the past.

Even Hank Steinbrenner may want to say a comment or two about the book. (I hope and pray nobody puts a microphone around him for the next 50 years.)

Joe Torre was such a powerful force in Yankeeland that this simply can't be tossed under the rug. If someone like a Carl Pavano or a Jaret Wright wrote a book blasting his teammates, no one would care. No one would bother to blink an eye.

What else makes this book release sad is that Joe Torre may never get his just due as one of the absolute and iconic legends for the New York Yankees now. We may see a Yogi Berra standoff before Torre sets foot in the new Yankee Stadium. Torre should have his number retired. We may never see that in Torre's lifetime now. That would be a shame!

Seriously, Joe Torre is in the realm of Miller Huggins, Joe McCarthy, and Casey Stengel. He will always be remembered for the way his Yankees ruthlessly handed the rest of Major League Baseball beatings on an annual basis.

Torre's Yankees played the game with class (for the most part) and he always seemed above the fray that engulfed the teams he managed from George Steinbrenner and the New York media.

For the record: I think anyone who comments on this book and Joe Torre better read the book first. Personally, I am going to hold judgment until I read the book. It's a long book and many people are already making this out to be another Ball Four for the "Yankee betrayal" that the pages will unleash. I doubt this book sniffs that much controversy, but we'll see.

Also, Tom Verducci and Joe Torre must be loving the attention this book is already garnering. In works like this, there is no such thing as bad publicity. Seriously, kudos to the advertising wizards that came up with this strategy. The Yankee Years is going to be a top seller.

But what if The Yankee Years is as bad as people think it is. (Which it most likely isn't. Like, 99 percent most likely.) So what? Seriously, anyone who voluntarily signs on with the Yankees knows this sort of thing is a distinct possibility.

Last I checked, A-Rod signed up for a 10-year tour of duty with the Bronx Bombers. Don't feel sorry for Alex; worry about you and yours before you feel pity for him!

People have often said, "You take George Steinbrenner's money, you take his crap." Well, let's include the tabloids and the pressure of the New York media and the Yankees' fans in that sentiment as well. A-Rod knows the drill. He's been loved and loathed since he arrived here in 2004. He doesn't have a cherry when it comes to this!

Even if Joe Torre threw A-Rod under the bus, I still won't feel that bad for him. A-Rod did much of this to himself. He invited a lot of this nonsense, not all of it, but a lot it into the Yankee locker room. He's been a media whore ever since he put the pinstripes on. Remember his biracial comments in 2006? Cut me a break!

Many of Torre's former players have had to deal with A-Rod dealt with in 2006. Chuck Knoblauch was embarrassed daily for not being able to throw to first. He even had to switch positions because he couldn't overcome his throwing jitters.

You don't think Jorge Posada had his head messed with in 1999 when Joe Girardi was catching more often with certain pitchers? How do you think Posada felt when Clemens worked exclusively with Girardi to get some things straight late in the '99 season?

And now through his cronies, A-Rod is saying that it doesn't hurt because Torre hurt him so deeply in the 2006 playoffs that he could never feel close to Joe Torre. Well, you know what? A lot of of Torre's players were dropped or benched in the playoffs, and they got over it! Jason Giambi and Tino Martinez most notably come to mind.

Jason Giambi, the epitome of the Yankees losing their soul this millennium, got dropped to seventh in the batting order before Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS. Giambi who was supposed to help carry the offense to multiple World Series titles was struggling and subsequently dropped in the lineup.

That had to be a piercing blow to his pride. He was getting flogged in front of everyone for not coming through. Giambi was only in front of Enrique Wilson and Karim Garcia to start the game. That's got to be a tough one to take!

To Giambi's credit, he handled it with class. He also bashed two mammoth home runs against Pedro Martinez that kept the game within striking distance. We all know how that game turned out.

Many, including myself, think that Game 7 was the greatest game ever played at Yankee Stadium. Well, if Giambi doesn't brush it off, that ending doesn't happen. Give a nod to the Big G for that one!

Now let's imagine that was Alex Rodriguez was dropped against the Red Sox like that, his psyche would be ground to dust! Remember how he played in 2006 against the Tigers? I do.

A-Rod struggled mightily in the 2006 ALDS. Torre shouldn't have to protect a struggling star because they're a star. It's the playoffs. You put pride aside for the greater good of the team.

Most people don't remember the two instances that swung the momentum completely in Detroit's favor that series. 1) Curtis Granderson's triple to make it 4-3 took the wind out of the Yankees' sail entirely. 2) A-Rod gaffing in the first inning with the bases loaded. Classic A-Rod for the Yankees in that situation. If A-Rod hits even a double in that at-bat, it's a different series.

A-Rod deserved to get dropped! Even if Torre was trying to humiliate him, which is doubtful, A-Rod still choked. The last time I checked Torre didn't swing a bat or throw a pitch in that series.

A-Rod could have stepped up and rubbed his skipper's nose in it and humiliated Torre himself if he would have wanted to. But he failed to do so, mirroring so many other times in the playoffs for the Yankees.

Tino Martinez also had to deal with what A-Rod and Giambi had to deal with in the 1996 World Series. Martinez struggled at the outset of that series and let his fervor to be great hinder his ability. Sounds a lot like A-Rod to me.

Tino Martinez had to deal with getting benched in favor of Cecil Fielder. Tino seethed at the decision, But, he acted like the consummate professional even though he was smoldering on the inside.

Martinez took the benching in stride and later played an invaluable role on many championship teams. A-Rod still has hurt to get over apparently. His last comments about the '06 ALDS benching make me wonder if he can handle the ups and downs of a World Series run.

There's still no doubt that A-Rod is one of the three best right-handed hitters on the planet. Pujols and Manny are the other two. Pujols and Manny have also led their teams to the World Series and were victorious in the Fall Classic.

My whole point of this article is to state that A-Rod shouldn't even concern himself about anything Joe Torre may or may not have said in The Yankee Years. Unfortunately, he's going to have to fend off questions about this. I understand that. But Alex, you have much bigger things to worry about.

Why Keeping Andy Pettitte Was the Right Move for the Yankees

Erik Diana — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 23:57:25 -0500

Well, the rigmarole is finally over. The Yankees today locked up Andy Pettitte. This was a necessary move for the Yankees to bolster their rotation and protect their young pitchers. This move was for Phil Hughes as much as it was for Andy Pettitte.

Let me first say that I really have no sentimental feelings about this move. I really don't care about Andy Pettitte the way I did at this time in 2007. Andy Pettitte definitely has taken more than a few blows to his image since he's returned. And he almost managed to ruin a lot of the goodwill his comeback started.

It was Andy Pettitte that exercised his option a day before the Mitchell Report was released. It was Andy Pettitte that didn't handle the stress well and was way behind because his mind was elsewhere after the Mitchell Report surfaced.

This move is mutualistic at best. Pettitte gets to cash in on another contract and gets to try to reach incentives that make him richer. He also gets to make more money than he would have with this contract than he did with the Yankees' preliminary offer.

If Brian Cashman were going to try and be thrifty with the rotation after signing CC (not C.C) Sabathia, Burnett and Teixeira it would have been a terrible move. It would be like trying to save gas money on a Ferrari. It's not practical. Cashman and Joe Girardi need Pettitte just as much as he needs them.

The Yankees get to protect the youngsters in Phil Hughes, Phil Coke, Alfredo Aceves, and Joba Chamberlain. If Pettitte pitches his usual 200 innings and gets around 13-15 wins, the Yankees really should prosper from the move as Pettitte will prosper.

A rotation of Sabathia, Wang, Burnett, Chamberlain, and Pettitte should be pretty solid. Also, what makes this move even shrewder is the fact that Burnett may not stay healthy as his history indicates. If Pettitte is your No. 4 pitcher your rotation is stacked. He was the No. 2 starter in 2007.

Another thing that makes this move even more palatable for the Yankees is that they are betting on Andy Pettitte being fully functional at the start of Spring Training this go around. If that happens and he returns to 2007 form the Yankees are going to take off. Remember, Pettitte should have won 18 games in '07.

Who knows what was going on in Pettitte's psyche after his press conference where he came clean about steroid use. He was physically behind and mentally lagging at the start of the year last year. You could just see that he wasn't the same.

Unless he has to testify against Roger Clemens, he should be in a great state of mind for the whole year. He won't have any unnecessary press coverage hounding him because of a poor choice he made years ago.

And if Pettitte doesn't have a relapse of that "cranky shoulder" he dealt with at the end of last year, he should be able to reach all of his incentives. Remember, Pettitte is a great second-half pitcher and he has a great history with this organization.

Hopefully this deal works out for both sides. The Yankees need it to work out for both sides. Even with Pettitte at his best they may not be able to beat out Tampa Bay and Boston.

What The HELL Was Matt Millen Doing On TV?

Erik Diana — Sun, 04 Jan 2009 15:16:52 -0500

Dear NBC,

How in the holy hell can you have Matt Millen analyze anything on your air? As Joe Buck would say "We apologize for showing that on our air!" Shouldn't you do the same with Matt Millen?

Matt Millen being allowed on "your air" is more offensive than any nipple or fake mooning incident ever could be. It's really kind of obscenity if you think about it. I am a transplant Steelers fan that has to live close to the Motor City. You may not know this, but Detroit has had a lot of bad things happening lately.

The Big Three are hemorrhaging money and may not survive. If that happens, this part of the country will have its darkest day ever!

The Detroit Tigers were supposed to be the darlings of baseball at this time last year. In case you didn't know they finished in last place. The Royals had a better year than the Tigers.

Former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick is in jail and the Lions became the first team EVER to go 0-16. The only thing that has gone right in Detroit was the Red Wings beat my beloved Penguins in the 2008 Stanley Cup Finals.

My point is: The fine people in Detroit have suffered enough. I know many people that were enraged to the point of swearing at their TV and turning the channel when he was on the screen. Do you really want someone like this on "your air" to analyze winning football?

And may I ask you what are the qualifications that Matt Millen brought to the TV screen? Couldn't ANYONE else bring the same skill set to the TV set? Do you really think anyone on set had any respect for NBC or Matt Millen the moment they found out he was arriving?

In case you forgot, Matt Millen was the architect of the first 0-16 team ever. He's lost all credibility. He has none, nada, zip credibility in being able to parlay information on winning football at this point in his career. Two of his first round draft choices aren't even in the NFL any longer. He's never had one good draft pick except for Calvin Johnson!

Joey Harrington, Roy Williams, Mike Williams, Ernie Simms and Co. are just repulsive! They're all busts. The jury is still out on Goster Cherilus. If you want to run a segment on how to ruin a franchise then Matt Millen is your guy! If you wanted to learn how to have your draft picks never pan out, Matt Millen should have a Ph. D!

I know Matt Millen played on winning football teams. But so did thousands of other ex-NFL players. Franco Harris has multiple Super Bowls and is available to my knowledge. Someone like a John Taylor or Roger Craig would be perfect from those amazing 49ers teams.

Matt Millen should be hiding in the same hole that Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds are hiding in. He should not be on your air! If you have to put him on the air, let him wear a "Dunce" cap at all times. The man needs further humiliation for what he did. He doesn't need to be rewarded for his idiocy.

If I can boast about myself for a second, I have as much, maybe even more credibility than Matt Millen. I'm a Steelers fan, a negative one at that. I never raped and pillaged a franchise the way Matt Millen has. Never, never has there been one "Fire Erik Diana" banner strewn about at different Major League Baseball and National Hockey League games.

I also know that Matt Millen was an acclaimed analyst on TV before. So was O.J. Simpson! Why not have him analyze the different playoff games from his cell? Seriously, more people would take "The Juice" seriously than Matt Millen. Who wouldn't tune into to watch this? Actually, this may be an award-winning idea.

Lastly, do you realize the joke that Matt Millen has made himself and the Detroit Lions around your studios? There's no way in hell that Jerome Bettis, Tiki Barber, Bob Costas, Peter King, Chris Collinsworth, Dan Patrick, and Keith Olbermann can look this guy in the face.

Please do the right thing and have "Fire Millen" signs around the studio before you fire Matt Millen! I just hope it won't take seven years to do so.

Does MLB Need a Salary Cap? A Looming Labor Struggle Is On The Horizon

Erik Diana — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 11:19:03 -0500

Yes, the rich just got richer. The New York Yankees just stuck their middle finger up at the establishment again and sent shockwaves throughout Major League Baseball. The signings of A.J. Burnett, CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira really have separated the Yankees from everyone else in terms of payroll. And the Yankees will claim this is good for baseball.

The Yankees now have the four highest paid players in baseball: A-Rod, Jeter, CC Sabathia and Mark Teixeira. Is this good for baseball? Well, let's examine this thoroughly.

The Yankees are all the rage in baseball right now. Everybody is talking about this signing. The NFL is about to have its last week before the playoffs and the Yankees made another huge splash in December.

George Steinbrenner would be proud of his sons Hank and Hal. They've made their big splash. They followed in their old man's footsteps and cut checks that have their fans talking and giddy with excitement.

Brian Cashman also looks somewhat smart here because he still can claim that the Yankees are being frugal (as much as the Yankees can be) because their payroll threshold will be markedly lower than last year. He also avoided a potential Manny vs Girardi showdown that could have raped team chemistry. The Yankees also still keep their 1st and 2nd round draft picks.

The reason that the Yankees can indulge in this type of excess and put player development on the back burner (again) is because Yankee Stadium is going to be a cash-cow! For Star Wars fans, the New Yankee Stadium represents the Death Star!

Seriously, the Yankees just leaped past every team, including the Red Sox, in the amount of revenue they have coming in now. Between the New Yankee Stadium and YES Network the Yankees have shown how they can be recession proof. Or they'll give the appearance that they are insulated from a recession.

What makes the new stadium even more palatable for New York is they can write off any and all maintenance on New Yankee Stadium against the amount of luxury tax they'll pay. And this is fair. If you have a mortgage you get to write off the payments when it's income tax season.

The Yankees just paid a $26.9 million tab because of the amount of their payroll. Them being serial offenders of the luxury tax threshold they were taxed at a 40% level.

Now, the Yankees can bring in a lot more revenue to sign free agents and they get to write some of this money off they pay to other teams for spending their own money. The Yankees get two huge victories here. Other teams got reliant on the Yankees' money that they had to dole out every year for going past the luxury tax threshold.

The Rays, Pirates and Royals definitely enjoyed the revenue. Now, that stream is drying up a bit. Small market teams may not have enough money to subsidize signing their free agents as they pass through arbitration onto their free agent years. This perpetuates the gap between the Yankees and everyone else.

What else is frustrating for small market teams is that a team like the Tampa Rays gave hope to baseball and its fans that it is possible to win with a small payroll. But what if the Rays don't make it to the playoffs next year? What happens when their core of players like Longoria, Upton, Garza, Pena, Shields and Kazmir all become free agents? The Rays had to do a lot of losing to get a farm system and organization that became loaded the way it is.

What also makes this maddening for the Boston Red Sox is that they now have to adjust their model of doing business because the Yankees are going to be light years ahead of them financially. Their respective markets are just too far apart for things to remain status-quo for Boston. John Henry has even admitted that the Yankees are significantly ahead of the Red Sox in terms of financial capabilities again.

If you remember correctly, the Red Sox blew everyone, including the Yankees, out of the water to sign Matsuzaka. Their posting bid for the star pitcher was over $50 million dollars. The Yankees looked cheap compared to Boston in the process.

Because the Yankees didn't have the money rolling in from a new stadium they couldn't afford to pay the luxury tax, their bad contracts and a myriad of other things they had to contend with. The Yankees appeared to be in a quandary with their payroll and players with their respective performance on the field.

The team was bloated and inflexible by 2004 and they had no prospects they could deal to trade for talent. And the Yankees certainly couldn't step back and rebuild. The Steinbrenners never would have gone for that, especially George himself.

It's also the biggest reason why the Yankees didn't sign Carlos Beltran and the Mets did. The Yankees had to choose between Randy Johnson and Carlos Beltran. If this situation were to happen today, the Yankees could have their cake and eat it too.

The Red Sox have done their business diligently. Adding seats and improvements to Fenway park, most notably seats on the Green Monster. They created NESN that brought in much-needed revenue to fulfill their quest of being an A+ franchise. This still might not be enough to lure in certain free agents.

If the Yankees can blow them out of the water this is going to be a problem. Luckily, if you're a Sox fan, they have a very deep farm system that will need to churn out propsect after prospect. But it is still a problem.

All of this will create a problem in the next couple of years. You and I both know that the MLBPA is ecstatic about the Yankees spending over 420 million on players' salaries. And their is going to be a testy negotiation period coming in two years.

Lest you and I forget the Players Union opened up the Basic Agreement and amended a collaboratively signed labor agreement twice to test for steroids. This is no small matter when one thinks of the history of the Union in baseball. Marvin Miller built the powerful union in the world and was a master at winning public sentiment and making the owners look like fools.

The other owners are enraged by the Yankees' spending may decide to try and put a hard salary cap on the game. The Yankees have already signaled that they will spend whether the country is in a recession or not. They're not afraid to stick their middle finger up and cut a check. They've even been called "drunken sailors" by their counterparts in ownership.

In 2002, there was a 29-1 vote to put a luxury tax on teams that spent over the allotted threshold. Guess who had the lone dissenting voice? Yep, you guessed it. The Yankees voted against it! Did that stop them from spending maniacally? No, George Steinbrenner plowed ahead with his middle finger raised high.

The acquisitions of Gary Sheffield, Kevin Brown, Alex Rodriguez, Raul Mondesi and others proved his point: The New York Yankees play by their own rules! It still wasn't enough. The Yankees signed Johnny Damon, Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens to exorbitant contracts after that. Again, it was the Yankees flexing their financial might.

Now, there could be a movement to reign in the Yankees massive spending by putting a hard salary cap. The only team that would have a problem with this would again be the New York Yankees.

This was the biggest point of contention in 1994 when there was strike. If the owners decide to try and place a salary cap on the game the MLBPA will have a major problem with this.

The Players Union is already going to have a litany of issues to bring about at the bargaining table. There are many issues that will come up in this contentious process and now the very thought, whisper or even murmur of a salary cap could sound the alarm for a strike.

The Players Union has suffered their first significant setbacks in the last few years ever. And no, it wasn't because the owners were smart enough to pull the wool over their eyes. It was because they got taken through the ringer by Congress over the steroids issue. The Players Union was so combative that they lost sight of the fact that the public opinion differed markedly than their stance.

Bud Selig, a former owner whose job it is to work for the owners, delivered the heads of Gene Orza and Donald Fehr on a platter to Congress. It was his only play and he almost didn't play that correctly. To further alienate the Players Union he had George Mitchell, a man who profits from the Red Sox launch an investigation into steroid abuse. Needless to say the Union did not greet the situation with alacrity.

But to the credit of Bud Selig and the Players Union they did negotiate a much tougher steroid policy that also included amphetamine use. Congress was pleased with the progress and Bud Selig's Mitchell Report may have saved even more Congressional oversight. Trust me, the Players Union will not forget this.

Also, what sticks in the craw of the Union is the fact that Barry Bonds is not employed. Many players from Bobby Abreu, Jason Giambi, Manny Ramirez and Derek Lowe are still unemployed and their market value is declining day by day. The owners were already found guilty of collusion once under the leadership of Peter Ueberroth. Many players still have never forgot what the owners did and will never let them forget it either.

What also makes things interesting is the fact that Alex Rodriguez only had one offer on the table. Granted, it was highest offer ever in the history of baseball. The Yankees ended up bidding against themselves and gave A-Rod a 10 year deal worth $275 million and added clauses that will escalate the contract up to the $300 million after he hits milestone homeruns. But still one offer nonetheless!

So this is the landscape that a new Basic Agreement must be forged with. A process that is painstaking for years will be made tougher because of a recession and the steroids issue. The Yankees are going to have to fight against other owners in the game wanting to place a hard salary cap on the game of baseball.

If the owners are persistent and want to put a cap on the game it could spell another painful, terrible and lengthy strike. Let's not forget that the homeruns that steroid users were belting out of the parks were the reason why fans started to embrace the game of baseball again. And Bud Selig sat back and termed the Steroids Era a "Renaissance."

If baseball has another strike it may deal a deadly blow to the establishment of Major League Baseball.

It's weird the Yankees excess is both good and potentially bad for baseball. This is why the Yankees, not the Red Sox, not any other team, are far and away the most important entity in Major League Baseball.

Can the Pittsburgh Steelers Really Go Anywhere in the Playoffs?

Erik Diana — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 13:44:53 -0500

For the first time in a long time, I'm completely clueless about the Steelers. I don't know if the Steelers are the worst eleven-win team ever. I don't know if they were just tired and beat up and at the end of a brutal schedule when they got their butt kicked today.

With the Steelers, anything almost makes sense. If you want to say that they are terrible and their defense has saved them all season, I would have to concede that. If you said that they played well all season despite a rash of injuries and rose to the occasion more often than not, I would concur.

What makes the Steelers so maddening is that they have not found an identity yet on offense. Correction, they've found an identity. They just need to shred the identity that they are soft! Playoff teams will bring the house against the Steelers.

What else is obvious is that the fate of the Steelers will rest in the hands of Ben Roethlisberger. The defense is good enough to keep the Steelers in every game they play. If Big Ben and Co. can make plays, they have a legitimate shot at glory.

If Big Ben is careless with the football and puts the defense in terrible field position (like he did against the Titans and Colts), then the Steelers have no shot to go anywhere significant.

It's no secret that the offensive line is the worst it has been in quite some time. Ben Roethlisberger will need to get rid of the football as fast as he can. He also better get rid of it accurately as well. You might as well toss out the running game being a factor because this line sucks so bad.

But, if you tell me that the Steelers won't turn the ball over, I'll start to believe in this team. James Harrison, Troy Polamalu, James Farrrior, and others are just too good to give up 35 points. That's why the Steelers haven't been blown out once this year. They got beat badly in Philadelphia and really could have been one play from winning that game most of the day.

That's why Brice Arian's play calling was heinous; he cost them that game single-handedly. This is easily the best defense the Steelers have had since 1994.

The one thing that is refreshing about Mike Tomlin is that he seems to be better at making adjustments than Bill Cowher. I'm not dogging Cowher, but if the Steelers couldn't run the ball they hardly ever had a chance with him at the helm (think of the '01 and '04 AFC Championship Games). Cleveland or Detroit may figure out he's not the genius everyone thinks he is.

So what will happen with the Steelers? Who knows. Mike Tomlin, Bruce Arians, and Dick Lebeau could look like savants. Or Arians and Tomlin could have some explaining to do if they lose and lose miserably like last year.

If the Steelers make it to the Super Bowl after the schedule they've had, it would be amazing. If they fail at home in their first game, Arians should be canned and Kevin Colbert should apologize for wasting an amazing defense!

The Steelers and Ravens Meet for the Game of the Year!

Erik Diana — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 16:46:31 -0500

For the people that like to see the football games that feature Tom Brady and Peyton Manning lighting up scoreboards, you better turn your eyes, because this one will be ugly to you! Field goals may even be hard to come by. This game is going to challenge the collective manhood of these teams.

Seriously, this is a matchup of defensive teams that could result in multiple trips to the hospital. Many doctors and ambulance should be on the field to get ready to cart a lot of players off the field. I'm not a historian, but I can't think of two defensive juggernauts that faced off like this in the last 15 years.

What also makes this matchup so electric is not only the hatred, but the fact that these teams have traded absolute ass-kickings the last two years. Seriously, I had to turn the television off in 2006 and pray that Roethlisberger was OK after that 27-0 drubbing in 2006.

I also remember thinking that Steve McNair probably played his last game after the Steelers killed the Ravens 35-7 on Monday Night Football last year.

The Steelers and the Ravens don't like one another! In fact, they flat out hate one another. Is there respect? Yes, yes there is! But the Steelers and Ravens are so similar that it's scary.They've met in the playoffs in the 2001 season, and they've won seven of the last eight AFC North titles between them. No wonder the hatred for one another!

Here's a sample of the hard-hitting hatred: Joey Porter wanted to fight Ray Lewis after a game in 2003. (He called for him to come off of his team bus!) Hines Ward leveled Bart Scott and Ed Reed last year.

Ray Lewis knocked Rashard Mendenhall out for the year this year. Bart Scott delivered a head-turning hit (if you're a Steelers fan) to Ben Roethlisberger and bragged about it to Sports Illustrated. Joey Porter knocked Todd Heap out for a few games in 2004 when he hit the hobbled tight end. There have been talks of bounties and other things we don't even know of. This is nasty stuff!

Here are some of the similarities of the two teams: Ed Reed and Troy Polamulu are the best two safeties in the NFL. Who's better? It all depends on who you ask. Either one could win Defensive Player of the Year. (Even though James Harrison should win it, slam-dunk style to me!)

James Harrison and Terrell Suggs are beasts that are almost impossible to block and can change the momentum of a game in one play. (Imagine how scary the Ravens would be if they still had him.) Ray Lewis and James Farrior are ageless defenders that command the respect of their defense and man the middle.

As far as the offenses go, it will be a long day for both, especially the Steelers and their suspect offensive line. If Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers offense can quickly get rid of the ball, they may have a chance to score a touchdown or two.

If Ben Roethlisberger dances around with the ball and looks around and waits too long, he's going to get creamed! If that happens the Steelers will get shutout just like they did in 2006 when they lost 27-0. (Arguably the worst game Bill Cowher ever coached!)

Also, you know the Ravens are going to bring the blitz damn near every play. You know they are going to send more blitzers than the Steelers have blockers. This game is going to be the ultimate litmus test of how smart Roethlisberger and Bruce Arians are. If they aren't up for the challenge they have NO SHOT in this game!

On the other side, if Joe Flacco struggles and throws a pick or two, the Ravens are going to be put in terrible field position which would put their defense in a compromised position. This happened in the 35-7 game that the Steelers blew the Ravens out in 2007.

Furthermore, you can cancel each team having a good running game in this contest. It simply won't happen. The Ravens have a better shot at running the ball because the Steelers' line is so bad and so suspect. They will be lucky to have 75 yards rushing all game.

Also, memo to Bruce Arians and Mike Tomlin, STOP TRYING TO PUNCH IT ONE FROM THE ONE-YARD LINE! Your offensive line sucks and Jerome Bettis doesn't play for the Steelers anymore. You're not going to get a touchdown that way; be creative!

This game might be the hardest hitting game since a Steelers vs. Raiders game of the 1970's. There will be a lot of trash talking and a lot of personal fouls called. If Bruce Arians has any hope to stay as offensive coordinator he better call a smart game and coach Ben Roethlisberger this week on how to get rid of the ball quickly, because if he doesn't, this game is over before it ever started.

I am a diehard Steelers fan, but even I think it may be a bit much to ask them to win this game after the last couple of weeks they've had. The Steelers schedule has been brutal and it may catch up them now.

The Steelers' offense still isn't a unit that can be believed in. Until they are, they won't go anywhere in the playoffs. I think Baltimore will win this game and they'll win the division too!

I'm gonna go punch a wall now, because I'm already so mad at Bruce Arians. Eff him!

Let's Play Devil's Advocate For Plaxico For a Minute Here

Erik Diana — Sat, 06 Dec 2008 17:51:51 -0500

Warning: This article may piss you off! If you don't like it, please post a comment as to why.

However, if you're a hippie who thinks people should fingerpaint their way out of trouble, go smoke a bowl and log off of the website. Your thoughts don't matter.

Let me get this out of the way first: Plaxico Burress is an idiot. I don't support what he did. And if you wear sweatpants at a club, stash a gun in said sweatpants, you deserve what you get! Guns and alcohol don't mix.

My issue will be a deeper one in this article, much deeper in fact.

Here's my issue: It's time for professional athletes to start heavily supporting candidates that have good a good record regarding gun rights. It's time for professional athletes to get involved with the NRA. It's time for athletes to be able to get trained in proper firearm safety that could prove useful. It's time for them to hire bodyguards like their going out of style.

Guns in the hands of properly trained people can save lives, not eliminate them. And whether people want to admit or not, there are evil people in the world too! The case of Sean Taylor is proof!

Why not let the NRA properly train on the laws of carrying a gun? Why not let the NRA show you how to properly store, load, and fire your firearm for when you need to learn how? This is teaching safety! Athletes need to know how to be protected because their life is fragile and even more vulnerable than the average person.

Also, athletes should be monitoring Congress and their state legislatures on guns laws that could have an immediate and swift impact on their own safety. Gun laws are not to be taken lightly and should be pondered over and debated rigorously. And laws that curtail CCW permits and gun ownership can have a direct impact on whether or not they are protected or not! It can impact whether they feel safe or not.

It's time for these young men to take a stand and stop being the victim. They need to be pro-active in defending themselves. A gun in the hand of someone who is PROPERLY trained and armed can save their life and give them a modicum of peace and security.

This can also pertain to having a bodyguard who is paid to watch your back. A person like a Plaxico Burress has just as much to lose as you and I (again, I don't excuse what he did!).

Even the most ardent cynic can agree that athletes (especially pro football players) are targets by thugs and criminals. These athletes are men that wildly popular and excessively paid and they are viewed by criminals as targets. Do these athletes invite trouble? Yes, yes they do sometimes!

Now, it's time for athletes to gird their loins, be SMART, and not put themselves in a position where they or someone they care about can get harmed. Common sense goes a long way when you live the lifestyle that a pro athlete lives. Keep your circle of friends close and don't trust people for a long time.

With the Plaxico Burress situation ESPN reported (almost excessively to the point of stirring up fear) about the death of Sean Taylor and the impact that it had on many NFL players like Ben Roethlisberger, Clinton Portis, and others. Athletes admitted their fear and vulnerability in the ESPN The Magazine piece.

Also, Plaxico had to hear that one of his brethren on the Giants, Steve Smith, was robbed at gunpoint by a driver (of all people) earlier that week as well. This was certainly one hell of a confluence of fear. Wouldn't it be natural for Plaxico to feel a pang of fear? Yes it would! I don't blame Plaxico for being scared.

Again, I'm not excusing what Plaxico did! Carrying guns into a club is STUPID! Alcohol and guns don't mix. Just like guns and anger or insanity don't mix. But, it's time for people like Plaxico and others to get smart and hire a bodyguard(s). Seriously, a person in his salary range is practically a CEO of their own company. They can't afford not to have one.

And more than anything, an athlete should be protected in their home as well. If the Sean Taylor case proved anything, it again proved that proper training of a firearm could have saved his life. If Sean Taylor had a gun, he would have had a chance.

If this article offended you please tell me why. Please though, keep it respectful!

2009 Will Be a Crucible For Alex Rodriguez:....How Will He Handle It?

Erik Diana — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 19:36:27 -0500

Attention: Either Alex Rodriguez is out fawning for attention again or is just letting his insecurity bubble over again.

2009 does not appear to be starting off on the right track for A-Rod.

Warning: The World Baseball Classic may have unnecessary coverage of Alex Rodriguez upstaging another signature event in baseball. So brace yourself.

A-Rod appears to want to play for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic at the start of the 2009 season. So, one year he's American (after much deliberation) and now he's Dominican.

Rodriguez has shown over the years he just can't get out of his own way, especially when it comes to dealing himself in matters of his public image. Remember when he upstaged the World Series by opting out right before the end of Game 4?

Are we really going to have to go through this song and dance routine again? And yes, I know it's his right to play for either team, but this just seems disingenuous. It may also show that he is uncomfortable once again with a very minor matter.

If Alex is going to keep struggling with minor matters, how is he going to be able to focus on what really matters? A-Rod will need more than a clear mind if he's going to succeed against Papelbon in the 9th inning at Fenway. He's going to need self confidence and clarity!

Most players can separate their personal lives from their professional ones, but Alex has not been able to show this to be the case for him. It's an honest question.

One of the reasons that 2007 was such an unbelievable year for A-Rod was it looked like he just didn't care what people thought of him anymore. He didn't worry about things beyond his control.

He didn't care that what people knew was obvious: He and Derek Jeter weren't best friends anymore. He didn't care that he got spotted in Toronto with a blonde bimbo outside a strip club.

He appeared to be gaining temerity and callousness. Needless to say, both are a winning combination to succeed in New York.

Hopefully, the 2009 season brings more of that back to the surface. Odd years recently have been a launch pad for A-Rod. He won the MVP in 2003, 2005 and 2007.

What's so maddening about A-Rod is the fact that he has the most security in the game, and has had it for quite some time. He bilked the Yankees into a 10-year, $275 million deal last winter. And this was after he opted out of his record-setting deal of 10 years and $252 million. That's security!

But A-Rod's insecurities came to light fast. His insecurities are due to the fact that he plays in New York and he hasn't been fortunate enough to win a championship. And until he does, he's going to continue to be the main target for the press and fans.

Let's imagine for one second that Mariano Rivera converted the save in Game 4 of the 2004 ALCS and the Yankees won their 27th World Series championship.

If that had happened, A-Rod would be untouchable. He, Hideki Matsui, or Rivera could have won ALCS MVP. Because A-Rod is so talented, his potential to be revered in New York is almost unfathomable. He could have rocketed into the stratosphere of Ruth, Gehrig, DiMaggio, Mantle, and Jeter.

And for the record, Derek Jeter will never face the type of pressure that A-Rod will. As team captain and Mr. November, he is absolved all wrongdoing because he's played on four championship teams and has so many amazing moments in the playoffs.

If A-Rod wants to succeed and win the ultimate prize he covets in New York, he needs peace of mind to get there. I don't know if people realize this, but 2009 is going to be A-Rod's most pressure-packed year.

The Yankees probably won't bring back Bobby Abreu and Jason Giambi. Robinson Cano was a rotting corpse at the plate last year. Jeter and Johnny Damon will be a year older and more susceptible to injury. Abreu won't be in front of A-Rod to soak up pitches and work counts. The Yankees' offense is going to rely on A-Rod more then ever.

And A-Rod left a lot of ducks on the pond last year. And he really didn't have one signature at-bat like he did in 2007, either.

The Yankees stupidly didn't offer Abreu arbitration. Even if they didn't want to bring him back, Abreu and Andy Pettitte could have netted two picks as compensation each.

One-year deals aren't that bad of an investment right now in the baseball world. And if and when they sign CC Sabathia, they'll lose two draft picks for him. If they sign Derek Lowe or AJ Burnett, they'll lose even more picks.

Brian Cashman looks like he screwed the pooch again. How can you build your team through the draft when you can't even sign your first two picks for 2008? And you're already sacrificing your potential 2009 picks. This is why Boston's Theo Epstein is such a better GM.

And no, the thought of Nick Swisher, Cano and Matsui in the lineup everyday does not pump me up. (The Yankees could use Manny Ramirez now more than ever. But I digress.)

If A-Rod slumps mentally with the opening of the new Yankee Stadium, he'll be able to taste the pressure for breakfast every day. If there is an injury in the lineup, A-Rod will be called to pick up the slack. If the Yankees' pitching has a horrible game and A-Rod has a chance to tie in the eighth on one swing, he will be expected to do so.

If Edwar Ramirez serves up a gopher ball or walks runs home (both are specialties of his) A-Rod will be booed if he fails to drive in a run in his next at-bat.

Let's not forget either that CC could have a hard first year in New York. Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, Joba Chamberlain and Phil Coke could all struggle next year, as many young players do.

And if A-Rod struggles at the plate or is injured, one thing will come to mind. It'll be the salary figure and years that A-Rod and the Yankees are handcuffed together.

For all we know, A-Rod could be fine. He's not going to have to deal with his divorce being splashed across the tabloids like before. Maybe Madonna can help his psyche out. A-Rod is arguably the hardest worker in the game and he will work his rear end off to succeed.

Yankees fans everywhere should pray that the Yankees can pick someone up like Mark Teixeira or Manny Ramirez who can help A-Rod out in his journey. I know it's a different sport, but John Elway never won a title without Terrell Davis. And think about it: Dan Marino never received help like that.

But maybe this is exactly the story that needs to be written about A-Rod. I know I'm not the only one that thinks that if the Yankees get into the playoffs, and he figures out what he's lacked in New York, we could see something we tell our grandchildren about!

That's the type of player Alex Rodriguez is. He's a once-in-a-generation talent. And I hope he figures it out and gets the help that he needs along the way. Because with the path the Yankees are heading, he's going to need it!

The Mitchell Report: What Have We Learned in the Past Year?

Erik Diana — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 18:12:12 -0500

In what seems to have been a blur, the Mitchell Report was released almost a year ago. A year ago, baseball had come seemingly face to face with its dark, twisted, and contorted past that saw salaries grow the size of Barry Bond's head and witnessed players' salaries rise to extraordinary levels.

Was it really as messy as it seemed? What have we as baseball fans learned because of the report?

We definitely learned to be more cynical! Looking back on the summer of 1998, it's like looking at a family photo and realizing that your parents were cheating on one another and spending their 401k on cocaine. It just seems so hollow, so empty!

More than anything, looking back at what happened 10 years ago, we all seemed so naive! We were duped by guys like McGwire, Palmeiro, Sosa, Bonds, Clemens, and Giambi.

One of the most wonderful things about baseball is that no matter what it endures, baseball has the power to move on. Because of the Mitchell Report, all baseball could do was move on.

Just like real life, baseball is a game that is played every day. The baseball season, like life, keeps moving at a break-neck speed. The team that is awarded a championship in Major League Baseball is a team that has endured over a long season. The team that is crowned is one that overcame injuries, adversity, obstacles, and setbacks.

The same ingredient for a successful baseball season is also the same ingredient needed in life: endurance against all odds!

What's the biggest thing we learned?

Major League Baseball has endurance and was unfairly treated by the media. Baseball was held to a ridiculous standard by many members of the press that gave the NFL a carte blanche in regards to the steroids era.

(Maybe it was because the networks like ESPN and others can't fairly report on the NFL because they are afraid of losing the revenue that comes with having the rights to their telecast, but there was a double standard to say the least. Imagine if four players would have got suspended this season in one fell swoop like what happened in the NFL? It would lead every SportsCenter telecast for a week!)

Here's another thing we learned: There was a terrible anti-Yankee bias with the Mitchell Report, and think about it: How many times was Roger Clemens shown in a Yankees uniform after the Mitchell Report was released rather than a member of Toronto, Houston, or Boston? Clemens spent 5.5 seasons with the Yankees. He spent time in Boston much longer.

Almost all of the time now, when there is bad new for Clemens they always show him in a Yankees uniform!

And George Mitchell is a board member of the Boston Red Sox. Sorry, but I have a problem with this! Major League Baseball could have avoided the appearance of impropriety by asking someone else who didn't have ties to the Red Sox to lead an investigation that fingered many Yankees as cheaters.

There appeared to be very little reason for Mitchell to go after members of the Red Sox. And the fact that he only had two witnesses from New York gave him even less credibility.

And Kirk Radmoski and Brian McNamee certainly have their baggage. I'm not saying they're not telling the truth, but what Mitchell lacked was more quality witnesses, especially outside of New York.

Let me be the first one to say that all of Senator Mitchell's recommendations should be implemented. And all 20 of those appear to be acted upon. But, if you're going to name players for using steroids, you better make damn sure that you point out steroids users in every clubhouse and not just New York clubhouses.

For instance, how does someone not investigate Albert Belle? His career ended because of a debilitating hip injury. He was notorious for his temper tantrums, like throwing plates in the shower, causing damage to a clubhouse, and smashing thermostats with a baseball bat. And he was built like a tank.

Do we really give him a free pass? Well, Mitchell did! And that's what sucks about his report. The Yankees and Mets appeared to be singled out!

What else have we learned? Well, we learned that Roger Clemens lost a lot!

Never has someone's integrity and reputation been ruined as quickly and decisively as Roger Clemens'. The guy may not even make the Hall of Fame because his reputation has been so tarnished.

And now that we learn that the Rocket was not the family man he portrayed himself as. He was an adulterer, a prick, and maybe even a child molester. Seriously, Clemens' case on this may lead to Public Relations professors teaching their students what not to do!

And getting grilled in front of Congress didn't help him either.

We've learned a lot in the last year. We've learned that the Steroids Era will go down in infamy like the Cocaine Trials, Black Sox Scandal, and owners committing collusion against the players union.

But more than anything, we learned that baseball has the power to move on. We learned that baseball is not perfect, but it can survive by putting one foot in front of the other, day by day.

That's why baseball, to me, is the greatest game on the face of the earth!

Just Do It Yankees: Sign Manny Ramirez!

Erik Diana — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 05:52:14 -0500

Enough is enough! If you're the New York Yankees, you have to sign Manny Ramirez. You have approximately $80 million of payroll freeing up; use some of it to grab Manny Ramirez. If truly the goal for the Yankees is a championship every year, this is a must!

The Yankees will not and cannot practice frugality now that their farm system doesn't look as good as advertised. If they have any guts whatsoever, they'll sign Manny Ramirez and in the process show their middle finger to the rest of Major League Baseball, especially the hated Red Sox.

Imagine how despised Manny would be in Boston if he went to the Yankees. Imagine if he hit a walkoff home run off of Jonathon Papelbon at Fenway in September. Imagine how heated the rivalry between the Yanks and Sox would be if this would happen.

Major League Baseball needs the Yankees and Red Sox rivalry to be more heated, to be more dramatic. Manny would make A-Rod look lovable to Sox fans. This has to happen!

Sorry, but I don't care about the Rays and White Sox getting into it next year. I want to see Manny in pinstripes, trotting leisurely around the basepaths after he crushes a Papelbon fastball over the Green Monster. How can MLB not root for this? Major League Baseball will never admit this, but they need the Yankees to be hated!

What would be a bigger middle finger to the Red Sox and the rest of Major League Baseball than for the Yankees to get Manny Ramirez, CC Sabathia, Derek Lowe, and A.J. Burnett? The Steinbrenner boys could make their pops proud and just go full speed ahead and really go hog wild!

The reason to sign Manny is simple: the Yankees offense, as constructed, is unreliable to say the least. Do Yankees fans really want to see A-Rod struggle again with RISP and leave a ton of runners on base?

The Yankees aren't going to go after Teixeira (which is a mistake!). So let Manny and A-Rod bat in the third and fourth spots and stick it to the Red Sox 19 times a year. What could be better than that?

With Manny Ramirez in the lineup, all the sudden the Yankees' offense looks a lot better than it was supposed to be in 2004. Even in Sheffield's heyday with the Yankees, he was no Manny Ramirez! The Yankees have nine years and approximately $245-255 million tied in A-Rod; they can get a lot more mileage out of him with a Manny Ramirez in the lineup!

Do you remember how scary Ortiz and Manny were? Ortiz wasn't the same without Manny after he left. Even A-Rod might not be able to comprehend the pitches that he would see because Manny's presence in the lineup. Now, as constructed, who's there that can adequately protect A-Rod? Nick Swisher? Nope! Abreu is most likely not coming back, so he can't. A-Rod needs Manny more than ever now.

Imagine Damon, Jeter, A-Rod, and Manny as the one-through-four-spots in the lineup. Three out of those four have championship pedigree. Two of those four have multiple World Series rings, and also Jeter and Manny have World Series MVPs. It's amazing to think what those four could do together. No pitcher in the world would want to pitch to that part of the lineup!

Now, I know what people are thinking: The Yankees already have a terrible left fielder who's going to occupy the DH spot in Matsui. So there's no room for him is the argument. Sure, they do! How about the Yankees just dumping Hideki Matsui altogether?

Seriously, it's time for the Matsui era to end! He's only going to cost $13 million to dump. I know that seems insane to say that's cheap, but the Yankees have made a lot more costly moves (remember Carl Pavano.) Matsui can't stay healthy at this phase in his career either. Matsui has missed significant time the last three years. His four year, $52 million deal he signed after the 2009 season looks like a wash to say the least.

And is Matsui really much better defensively than Manny? Nope! Remember his throw in Game Six of the 2003 ALCS? That ranks right up there with any blunder Manny has ever had in the field.

And with his bad knees, he'll only regress more and more. He'll be even a bigger liability on the basepaths as well. Damon plays a good left; leave him there and let Manny just concentrate on hitting!

Now, is Matsui much more professional and a better teammate than Manny? Yes, yes he is! Remember though, when the Yankees acquired Roger Clemens in 1999, people thought he was a jerk. So, there could be hope. But, very little hope if any.

Does Manny have some serious image problems to repair? Yes he does! But, the Yankees would tolerate the Manny Circus if he can produce in the postseason the way he did the last few years. Who has produced like that for the Bombers in the postseason? Nobody for a while! And even Joe Girardi and Brian Cashman would have to accept that.

If the Yankees are serious about putting together a championship team together, like they say they are, they should sign Manny Ramirez. It's time to get rid of Matsui. It's time for the Yankees to make cut-throat decisions and have the guts to go out and make a risky move. Plus, Cashman, at this point in time, needs to stick to the Red Sox and his teacher, Theo Epstein.

If the Yankees have any balls, they sign Manny, and in the process stick their middle finger up to the Red Sox. Major League Baseball needs the Yankees to be hated and a juggernaut again.

Manny is one of the steps to get that again!

The Rays Came Together Because They Fought Together!

Erik Diana — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 17:34:24 -0400

Do you want to know when the Rays developed the mojo of a championship caliber team?

I'll give you a hint; it involves Shelley Duncan and a Spring Training Game! Yep, that's when the Rays started their season out with such a focus that it was contagious.They stood up to the Yankees and made a statement that they were going to play them hard every single pitch in every single game!

It carried on because of Coco Crisp and the Red Sox's arrogance. When Coco bum-rushed James Shields after a brushback pitch, the Rays seemed more determined than ever to make the Red Sox pay whenever they could.

Sure, Tampa is talented and deeper than most organizations in baseball, but brawling made them have a steely focus.

When Shelley Duncan came in with his spikes high Johnny Gomes came in from right field to fight and stand up for his teammates. It was an amazing moment that solidified that Tampa was a team.

Those moments might have seemed insignificant, but in the grand-scheme of things it proved that the Tampa Bay Rays have character and heart. They proved to the bullies on the block that they would punch them in the mouth if they tried to bully them! Boston and New York were put on notice after that the Rays were for real!

Also, what helped the Rays develop the team to contend with Boston and New York was trading away Delmon Young and getting rid of Elijah Dukes. The Rays wouldn't even sniff the World Series if these two guys were on their team. (Even if Matt Garza was gift-wrapped for the Rays in another way, I would still make this statement!)

Dukes and Young were low-character guys. Sure, they were athletic as all-get-out, but because the baseball season is a long grind, character eventually wins out! Not all the time, but character proves itself out over the life of the season. The teams that have had character throughout the years have won a lot more than they have lost. (Think New York Yankees in 1998, Boston in 2004.)

They also got Matt Garza in that deal! When Garza is on he is comparable to Josh Beckett. He's the truest type of ace an MLB can have. He can dominate with his fastball. Like Beckett, all he needs is to work off of that one pitch to dominate.

Lastly, what is great about the Tampa Bay Rays is they have shown that you can win in a tough division with minimal payroll if you have intelligence. They have won with smarts, great drafting and amazing player development. That is a trait that runs all throughout the organization.

The Yankees and Brian Cashman can learn from the Rays' success! Money doesn't solve all of your problems. Drafting and developing your players for a long-term paradigm are much better than flushing money down the drain with guys like Giambi.

Now, the Rays could be scary for years!

Brian Cashman's Back: Let's Look at His Legacy

Erik Diana — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 17:19:00 -0400

So, Brian Cashman is back. He's back for another three-year giddy up in the Bronx. He's back to finish what he started, and he's back to clean up a mess that he's largely not responsible for either. Needless to say, the pressure is on Cashman now.

Cashman staked his legacy of the last 10 years to Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, and Joba Chamberlain this season. He put his neck on the line in the hiring of a manager that seemed oblivious on how to help his team score runs and how to handle the media.

The story for Cashman does not start in 1998, when he first became the caretaker of the Yankee dynasty. The story really begins in 2005, when Cashman was dead set to walk away.

Cashman was finished! He grew weary of George Steinbrenner. He was fed up with George's dictatorial influence and the fractured organization his micromanaging had wrought.

At this time, the Yankees were years behind Boston, Cleveland, Minnesota, and Tampa Bay in player development. They were old, slow, and broken. The payroll was bloated and it grew obvious that they just needed to blow the whole organization up and start over.

Cashman knew that with the way the Yankees were run and being run, that it would make much more sense to walk away with his dignity intact.

But something changed dramatically. George Steinbrenner, whose role with the Yankees became convoluted because of health reasons, actually ceded power over to Cashman. Cashman, for as smart as he is, had Steinbrenner sign to the agreement in writing so he could keep his word.

More than anything, Cashman wanted the Yankees to get loaded with blue-chip prospects. He wanted to rebuild the farm system to not only be able to call on a stud prospect at any time, but he wanted a freshly stocked farm system to be able to use for trade bait, just in case he needed it.

What a lot of people forget is that the Yankees were drooling over Carlos Beltran and Randy Johnson in the summer of 2004 but had no way to get them onto their roster. Because the team's farm system was so depleted and payroll was so high, they had to choose between Beltran and "The Big Unit" again in the winter of 2004 and the start of 2005 season, because both would have been too expensive.

They chose Randy Johnson, who would up winning 34 games for the Yankees but had a rough go with the press and in the postseason. In the end, Randy Johnson asked to be let out of New York after he was practically useless in the 2006 playoffs with a bad back.

People will always ponder to themselves that the Red Sox may not have had their amazing comeback if the Yankees would have had the prospects to snag both of these players in the 2004 season. Because of Steinbrenner’s paradigm, he was mostly to blame for the fact that the Yankees couldn't have these players. The Yankees continually robbed Peter to pay Paul.

Cashman's first run with using prospects came in the summer of 2005 when Robinson Cano and Wang were called upon to help save the sinking ship that was the Yankees team. They played well for the most part.

The Yankees eventually made the playoffs because of Wang and Cano. Also, they found life in Aaron Small and Shawn Chacon spinning gems on a consistent basis as well.

Also, what shocked Cashman was the fact that Yankee fans, who are impatient to the point of being moronic a lot the times, actually gave the younger players a lot more time to develop than they would a big free-agent signing like a Jason Giambi or Carl Pavano. Even typical Yankees fans were smart enough to let these young kids have a shot and see if they would sink or swim.

(A typical Yankees fan is someone who thinks that they should always go after the big name, no matter the cost or how pragmatic their thoughts are. Jack-O, who is on the B.S. report will Bill Simmons, seems to embody a typical Yankees fan!)

Through Cashman's influence, the Yankees changed their paradigm and formed a linear chain of command, at which he sat at the top. He alone, not anyone else, would report to George Steinbrenner. Scouts, pitching gurus, player-development people, and others in the organization would report directly to Cashman. Cashman alone would have Steinbrenner's ear.

So how has Cashman done with his overhaul of the organization? Really, we can't say yet! Honestly, Cashman got killed this year, fairly or unfairly, for not dealing Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, and Melky Cabrera for Johan Santana.

Cashman was not comfortable giving up Kennedy and Hughes, when their stocks were soaring up, to the Twins for Santana and then paying him a record-setting contract. He also had an ally in Hal Steinbrenner (the much smarter and shrewder of the Steinbrenner boys) and had a dissenting voice in Hank Steinbrenner (the buffoonish oldest son of George Steinbrenner who doesn't attend games and hardly ever goes to New York.)

Through Cashman's influence and ideas, the Yankees' season was saved in 2005 and sustained in 2007 through Joba Chamberlain. If the Yankees had their previous paradigm, they may have never drafted Chamberlain.

Cashman hasn't done a lot of things yet. He hasn't developed one stud starting pitcher. He hasn't drafted one unreal infielder or outfield prospect that will change the Yankees instantly. And no, Cano is not one of these can't-miss players anymore. He looks compromised as of right now!

So, all in all, Cashman's legacy is incomplete. The teams of the late 1990s and early 2000s were set enough for the most part that Cashman just needed to sign free agents and pull the triggers on trades that would help the Yankees. (Which he did in 2000, the Yankees don't sniff the World Series that year if they didn't overhaul their roster with the likes of David Justice etc.)

Cashman still needs time to develop his plan for the organization. If the Yankees miss the playoffs for the next three years and seem to be getting worse and have more poor drafts like they did this year, then by all means Cashman has to go. And this is a very real possibility because of the beast that now resides in Tampa Bay!

It's just hard to compare Cashman to Theo Epstein right now because Cashman is just finally able to wield his power that he was given a few years ago. Yankees fans need to get over the fact they didn't land Santana. Cashman was protective of his draftees and that's admirable. There are much worse things than the Yankees missing the playoffs! Plus, the real ramifications of this deal shouldn't even be discussed for another three years!

Now that Cashman has more time to implement his plan, it'll be interesting to see how the Yankees' makeup and philosophy will change. Now that Cashman has the time, he really is writing his own legacy!

Should Roberto Clemente Have His Number Retired Like Jackie Robinson?

Erik Diana — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 09:32:59 -0400

Should Roberto Clemente have his number retired the way Jackie Robinson does? This question is only going to continue until Major League Baseball and Bud Selig come to a decision.

No one should be angered by this...I think everyone can agree, whether you think Clemente is deserving of this honor or not, is that Clemente and Robinson made Major League Baseball much better through their contributions. So, let's take a deep breath and discuss this rationally.

Did Clemente face the same challenges of Robinson and Larry Doby (who for some reason, doesn't get nearly enough respect for being the first American League black baseball player) had to face? No, he did not.

But that doesn't diminish what they Clemente went through. I couldn't imagine what it was like facing the racism that Doby and Robinson had to face, but how does lessen what Clemente did? It doesn't!

Like Robinson and Doby, Clemente infused racial diversity into a sport that desperately needed it. Major League rosters are now heavily Latino, and Clemente was the trail blazer for this occurrence. Every Latino baseball player owes Clemente a debt of gratitude.

Major League Baseball can thank Robinson for getting black players involved. No question that black ball players have been the foundation and soul of baseball for decades. Major League Baseball is also facing a crisis with a diminishing number of black baseball players and something needs to be done about this. (This is something that is very scary and needs to be addressed ASAP!)

Another reason that people say that Clemente should not be honored this way is because it could lead to others having their number being retired that aren't as deserving.

The only other figure in Major League Baseball history that you could conceivably consider is Babe Ruth. And Ruth did save baseball after the Black Sox scandal in 1919. He also did things that nobody ever thought was possible and lifted baseball to heights never seen before!

Ruth, Clemente, and Robinson, how would that hurt baseball? Baseball is the one sport that can reach fans as well as they do with their history. Why not celebrate it more?

It's not like people are going to be rioting to get Mickey Morandini's number retired for turning the first unassisted triple play in 1992 since 1968. (Yes, I just referenced Mickey Morandini, can you name the number he wore when he turned that triple play against Barry Bonds?)

So if worse came to worse in this scenario, Ruth, Robinson, and Clemente would have their numbers retired. What's wrong with that? Can you think of three other players that have had as much impact on the game? They all had an indelible impact on the game of baseball and their contributions should be honored forever!

Personally, I think Clemente should have his legacy honored this way because of the impact he had with the Latino infusion he helped bring about. I also think the way that Clemente died was so heroic, and that should also be honored. It will not diminish what Jackie Robinson did if Roberto Clemente is honored. In fact, it may even honor Robinson more.

(If you disagree or agree with me please post a comment!)

Is the "Giambino" Era Over? A Definitive Look at Giambi's Rollercoaster Ride

Erik Diana — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 14:21:49 -0400

Just like that, it's over! That's what Giambi's seven-year, $120 million deal feels like. Remember back in 2002, Giambi was supposed to be the guy that was going to help the Yankees become invincible again?

The Yankees had just lost an incredible World Series and the only thing they seemed to be missing was a slugger that could not only drive in runs but could get on base and hit for a high average. Giambi was the very epitome of what the Yankees thought they needed!

The Yankees even released one of the main cogs in their dynastic run of the late 1990s in Tino Martinez to make room for Giambi. Joe Torre even gave his blessing to letting Martinez go to bring Jason Giambi.

This is sort of when the Yankees forgot what made them into champions and Steinbrenner tried to buy the heart and soul that those teams that won the 23rd-26th championships had.

Also, what hurt Giambi's arrival into the Bronx was the retirement of Paul O'Neill. He would have been the model Yankee for him to follow, along with Jeter and Rivera. O'Neill's influence on Giambi would have either further stifled him in New York or challenged him and made him better.

Giambi was not your typical superstar. He was accountable (for the most part), self-deprecating, and was a good interview for the many beat writers that cover the team.

Giambi started his career in pinstripes as an outsider and eventually became an endearing figure for Yankees fans. (And really who can't find that porn-stache of his amazing?)

The Yankees looked past the fact that he may have been a steroid user. There was really no reliable way to tell, and they couldn't have afforded to lose him to the Red Sox just because of these suspicions. What made Giambi vilified was the fact that Arn Tellem, Giambi's agent, had the word "steroids" removed from his slugger's contract.

It was not going to be a question of "if" Giambi would help get the Yankees over the hump, it was only a question of how many rings he would win in pinstripes. It was an afterthought for Giambi to be in the World Series every year now. (This sounds a lot like February of 2004, when A-Rod came aboard too doesn't it?)

The Yankees were riding the wave of all the years of making it to the World Series, there was no revenue sharing yet, and George Steinbrenner was dead set on plowing ahead with spending as much money as he could to get the Yankees back on top.

Steinbrenner was so dead set on getting Giambi that he probably would have fired Brian Cashman if he failed to sign him. Steinbrenner decided, midway through the 2001 season, that Giambi would be a Yankee and didn't care what the cost was.

He even bid against himself to get Giambi into the Bronx! Seven years and $120 million to a guy that was an offensive superstar from Oakland. (The signing was slightly reminiscent of Reggie Jackson—come to think of it, A-Rod's arrival into the Bronx was too, but I digress.)

Obviously, he would never admit this, but I think if Giambi had to do it all over again, he would have stayed in Oakland. Maybe, maybe not. Sure, the brief highs that Giambi experienced in Yankeeland were in the stratosphere, but the lows were equal to the depths that very few ballplayers have ever endured.

All in all, you would have to say that Giambi had one wild ride in pinstripes! He survived every moment of it and was professional about a lot of it.

In 2002, Giambi struggled with the enormous expectations that come with wearing those pinstripes. (It also didn't help that he wore the number 25, which is what Joe Girardi, a very popular Yankee player a few years back wore. If you add the two and five up, it equals the number seven, which is Giambi's dad John's favorite player: Mickey Mantle!)

Giambi seemed to breakthrough against the Twins in extra innings by unleashing a grand slam and finally bought some breathing room. In 2002, Giambi was great, slightly artificial, but great. His batting stats were a .314 average, with a .435 OBP, 41 home runs, 122 RBI, and a gaudy 1.033 OPS. Those numbers are insane for someone's first year in New York.

In 2003, Giambi's average dropped to .250, but he made up for it with two huge home runs against Pedro Martinez (the supposed best pitcher of his generation) in Game Seven of the 2003 ALCS, arguably the greatest game that Yankee Stadium ever saw.

What a lot of people don't remember is that he was dropped to seventh in the order that night. (A-Rod wasn't the first superstar slugger that Torre demoted in the lineup.)

He also lost a lot of respect from his teammates and the organization for not playing Game Five of the 2003 World Series with a knee injury. (That was also the game that David Wells left the first inning with a back injury.) The Yankees ultimately lost that World Series. (Everyone sort of forgot that because of the way they beat Boston and the fact that A-Rod came bursting into town.)

2004 was the lowest of the low for Giambi. He left the team for a significant amount of time dealing with a tumor on his pituitary gland. He was so bad when he came back that Torre and the rest of the coaching staff elected not to put their slugger, who was making almost $20 million, on the playoff roster.

It only got worse for Giambi. His sealed grand-jury testimony was leaked, and he was now front and center in the steroids saga that engulfed baseball. He and Barry Bonds were the posterboys for the BALCO Era that baseball painfully waded through.

In 2005, Giambi began the season slowly, and it appeared that it would only get worse. At that point, Giambi was owed four years and around $82 million. A lot of people wondered if he would be designated for assignment. The Yankees made subtle efforts to have his contract voided (the MLBPA and the Players Union never would have let that happen!)

And he even humiliated himself by offering a lame apology (he never actually said what he was apologizing for either, the whole scene was weird).

Giambi did have one ally that may have kept him afloat in Derek Jeter. Jeter defended him publicly, not in a controversial way, which is a Jeter characteristic. Jeter noted to the press that what Jose Canseco and what Giambi did was different because of the ramifications that were in play in how both people admitted their steroid use.

He also promised to stick by his friend and fellow Yankee. (Many people, not me, thought he left A-Rod in the wind in 2006).

Through hard work and the Yankees hope, Giambi eventually put together a solid campaign that netted him the Comeback Player of the Year Award. (What exactly he was coming back from was widely mocked, but he still won the award.) And in the five-game playoff series to the Angels later that fall, Giambi batted .421 in that series. (A-Rod's flameout that year certainly kept a lot of the spotlight off of him, too. This time it would have been positive overall.)

In 2006, Giambi bashed 37 home runs and seemed to be a beloved fixture on the team. It also helped him out big time that A-Rod was getting lambasted and castigated by the fans and the press that year!

Giambi seemed to be in the clear when all of New York had their eyes set towards A-Rod. Most people forget that he batted .125 that postseason. (Again, he can thank A-Rod for taking the majority of the heat off of him!)

Giambi had an injury-riddled year in 2007 and only played in 83 games because of a foot injury. For most of the year, he was a non-factor. His deal thankfully appeared to be reaching an ending point, and he would be one of the many huge Yankee contracts coming off of their books. (A-Rod's amazing year kept the media scrutiny off of him again.)

In 2008, Joe Girardi implored him to show up in game shape and ready to play first base. Giambi did do that, and he had a year that you would expect from a 37-year old. He left many players on base and was terrible defensively sometimes. He did hit 32 home runs and almost got to the 100 RBI plateau.

He finally was accepted by the fans and organizations in 2008. The Yankees started a huge advertising campaign to get him to the All-Star Game. They gave away free replica mustaches to get the fans involved in online voting. (No one cared that he may or may not have been wearing a gold thong to the plate when he was batting.)

There's no way in hell that the Yankees will pick up Giambi's option! But he may be back at a lower price. If he does sign somewhere else, it would be kind of sad. Giambi's tenure as a Yankee has been a microcosm of what fame and fortune can bring: The highs were high and the lows were low! And it was in front of everyone. (It also could have been a lot worse too if people weren't killing A-Rod publicly, too.)

Jason Giambi probably changed the Yankees paradigms for signing players in their 30s to long-term contracts, too. You'll never see them ante up for a player that old ever again, now that the Steroids Era is practically over (except for A-Rod).

Jason Giambi never did help the Yankees win a World Series title in the life of this enormous contract. He failed in many big spots and bottomed out in many at-bats in the postseason. He came through in a few moments. Giambi's legacy certainly is a mixed bag.

It would be myopic to say that his deal is the worst deal ever. Carl Pavano's deal and Barry Zito's deal probably will be viewed as a lot worse. Hell, even A-Rod's deal could wind up being a lot worse!

Giambi was a great teammate for the most part. (It's still odd that he went into Torre's office and told Joe to quit coddling A-Rod in the summer of 2006.) Ultimately, his time, if it is truly over, was disappointing because the Yankees got older, slower, and regressed defensively, and Giambi seemed to resemble that.

He had some great moments and some really humiliating ones, too. He played on some great teams with amazing ball players next to him. I'm sure he'll look back on his time in the Bronx and be in awe of it when he's retired.

All in all, Jason Giambi had one wild ride in Yankee pinstripes!

Mike Tomlin Keeps Learning as the Pittsburgh Steelers Keep Winning!

Erik Diana — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 17:25:12 -0400

It was only six days ago that the Steelers' season appeared to be imminently doomed because of poor offensive-line play and terrible coaching from Head Coach Mike Tomlin and Offensive Coordinator Bruce Arians.

After the debacle in Philadelphia, Tomlin seems to have not only learned his lesson but is reaping the rewards of learning so quickly. The Steelers are overcoming their flaws and are getting better at working within their faults.

The Steelers have the hardest schedule in the NFL and there are no "breathers" on their schedule. (Even the Bengals will provide a serious challenge this year...maybe not.)

Ben Roethlisberger has been hit multiple times in the last few games, but all in all, it could have been a lot worse! Ben is getting rid of the ball quicker, and the Steelers are also going into "max-protection" by having two people on the sides of him to pick up defenders to give him more breathing room.

The reason that this is so important now for Ben and Tomlin is, because of the Steelers' defense, they are in every single game. Teams simply can't pin too many points on the board against this unit. If the offense can avoid sputtering like it did in Philadelphia, the Steelers will consistently win games.

With Polamalu having a rebirth, and Woodley looking like a mix between Greg Lloyd and Joey Porter, the defense is tough and nasty. Harrison is looking like an All Pro and Bryant McFadden is proving that he deserves to start and stay with the Steelers beyond this year.

Now, if the Steelers can get the offense moving consistently and not kill their momentum with penalties and sacks, the Steelers will have a chance to play deep into January. They need to keep learning to protect Roethlisberger, because the games are only going to get tougher.

If someone were to tell me that the Steelers would be 4-1 after five games with Willie Parker injured, Mendenhall out for the year, and Hampton missing significant time, I would be thrilled!

Hopefully the Steelers can get healthier over the bye week by getting Parker and Hampton back. And hopefully, Tomlin is helping this team and preparing them to get better.

Mike Tomlin May Start To Feel Pressure if This Keeps Up!

Erik Diana — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 17:17:18 -0400

The Steelers have invested over $100 million in their starting quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger, and he may be in a coma by the end of the first year because of his head coach!

To say that Mike Tomlin called a terrible game, along with Bruce Arians, last Sunday in Philadelphia would be the understatement of the year! Mike Tomlin looked like a JV coach against Jim Johnson's blitz package.

Tomlin couldn't figure out to call screen plays, draws, or roll outs that would protect his quarterback a bit more than leaving empty-backfield sets against a team that was throwing two more blitzers than blockers. And it only gets better!

It looked like Tomlin couldn't figure out that something, anything needed to change to give his team a shot to win. Let's not forget that the Steelers were one touchdown away from being in the lead most of that game.

The worst part of that game was not watching Ben Roethlisberger get hit over and over and over again: The worst part was knowing that the NFL is a copycat league and every team the Steelers face are going to bring the house down until the Steelers prove they can stop it!

Or until Mike Tomlin proves that he is smart enough to stop it!

In the 2006 season, the Ravens pasted the Steelers 27-0 in Baltimore and then humbled them again in Heinz Field to knock them out of the playoffs. And the way Baltimore's defense is looking again, the Steelers easily could get shut out again.

And there will be Tomlin, sticking up for his offensive coordinator, who was fired from the powerhouse Browns, about getting prepared for the next week. It was a joke the way he handled his team last week.

I know many Steelers fans are remembering the butt-kicking that they handed the Ravens on Monday Night Football last year. I'm not trying to be too cynical here, but the Ravens were without their two starting cornerbacks that day, and Big Ben took advantage of that big time!

You know the Ravens are licking their chops, thinking about confusing Roethlisberger the way they did two years ago and making him pay with punishing hit after punishing hit. And Rex Ryan is thinking of ways to outclass his opponents on the other side of the ball. The way Tomlin's career has gone, it won't be that tough!

Since he's been the head coach of the Steelers, they have put no significant stock in trying to upgrade their offensive line. Kevin Colbert is to blame for a lot of this, too!

You would think that they would have realized that they needed an offensive lineman big time after Jacksonville humiliated them twice at Heinz Field. But who did they draft? A running back that appears at least a year away from making any kind of difference.

Who did they take in the second round? A lineman perhaps? No, they took a wide receiver that doesn't even suit up for them on gamedays! A second-round pick that contributes nothing already; that looks genius.

Their third-round pick was a lineman, right? Nope, they drafted another position that they completely bolstered in last year's draft and were already stockpiled in at linebacker with the choice of Bruce Davis.

Tony Hills and a freshly released Justin Hartwig from the Carolina Panthers were their attempts at trying to buttress the offensive line! What a shame! What a joke! Meanwhile, Ben Roethlisberger is praying to be able to have two seconds to release the ball and not get hit on every pass play.

If this keeps up for another year or two, the Steelers are going to be cellar dwellers for quite some time, and Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert should pay the price. The great offense they hoped to have is going to sputter constantly until Tomlin and Colbert realize that their offensive line is in need of an overhaul!

The Steelers have the worst schedule in the NFL, and injuries are already catching up with them. They have a head coach that can't counter for anything, a porous offensive line, and no depth at defensive line.

Tomlin has a lot of say in whom the team drafts, too, he needs to be held accountable for these choices the Steelers have made. He only had one year as a defensive coordinator and he already looks over his head trying to be the main man in a town like Pittsburgh.

If things go badly on Monday night, Steelers fans will already be calling for his head, and rightfully so!

Joe Torre Deserved Better!

Erik Diana — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 17:00:48 -0400

It is not known who really had the final say in creating last night's ceremony. Yankee Stadium celebrated greatness, championships, and its rich history while playing "New York, New York" over and over again. For the most part it was an amazing night to be a Yankees fan. That regular season game had the feel of a World Series clinching game from the late '90s.

One thing is for sure: Whoever decided to exclude Joe Torre did all of the Yankees fans an incredible disservice! Joe Torre deserved to be honored along with McCarthy, Stengel, Huggins, and Billy Martin. Torre is one of the greatest managers ever and a class act as well.

Joe Torre is a Yankee great along with Mantle, Ruth, DiMaggio, Berra, and Jackson. Torre even got voted second in a 2001 poll asking which sports figure could best lead the country. As jealous as he was, Steinbrenner and his arrogant son Hank will never be as loved and respected as Torre.

They simply have too much baggage. Hank is already blowing hot air trying to fill his father's shoes and failing miserably at it! George is more of a sentimental figure now that there is so much mystery clouding his health and his role with the team. But, Hank Steinbrenner is only increasing Torre's popularity.

Torre restored pride and dignity to the Yankees. He inherited a great team from Buck Showalter, but then got the Yankees over the "hump" in his first season. Torre served as the greatest buffer between the pressure of New York and George Steinbrenner. Players generally revered him for the way he treated them. (Except for Gary Sheffield who is the most miserable ballplayer alive!)

Yes, Torre had the best teams with the highest payroll, but he also knew how to manage egos and emotions from players that were perennial All-Stars. In case you forgot, he handled Cecil Fielder and Tino Martinez in the 1996 World Series and he handled a lineup of Jose Canseco, Glenallen Hill, and Cecil Fielder again in the 2000 season.

It was Torre's steady hand that took the pressure off of the players after they lost the first two games of the 1996 World Series in New York. They were beaten badly the first game and shutout in the second. Everyone thought they would be swept by the defending champs, but Torre believed in his men and the Yankees won four straight games. LaRussa or Showalter wouldn't have been able to do that!

It was Torre's ongoing demeanor that helped the Yankees dominate the 1998 season. They played with pride, focus, and ruthless determination in their romp through the regular season that year, accumulating 125 wins including the playoffs.

It was during the end of the year that the team seemed to get bored with the high standard of excellence they set and Torre snapped the team back into focus at the start of the playoffs. They only lost two games in the 1998 playoffs.

It was Torre's calm attitude the next season that helped the Yankees get out of their early season rut after he returned from prostate cancer onto another World Championship. They only lost one playoff game that year.

In 2000, when Roger Clemens did the unthinkable and managed to almost get himself ejected out of a World Series game it was Torre who defended his player to the media after Game Two of the 2000 World Series that night.

It was Torre that defended Strawberry from critics as long as he could. It was Torre who would cancel batting practice when he thought Paul O'Neill and Tino Martinez were grinding themselves down with too much practice.

It was Torre that fought to keep Andy Pettitte on the Yankees when he was struggling and Steinbrenner wanted him traded.

Torre was the manager of a dynasty that won 14 straight World Series games. It was Torre who helped guide his team to six pennants. He was there through thick and thin. After he was neutered following the 2006 season it was Torre that managed to keep the pressure off of his team when he was almost suffocated from that pressure.

Torre was such a class act that he had the Yankees cheer the Red Sox, their rival, when they were presented with their 2004 World Series rings in the 2005 home opener in Boston.

I know his handling of the bullpen was questionable, especially at the end of his tenure. But he was expected to win every game and he managed his team that way. I also know that Torre seemed to leave Chad Curtis in the wind after the 1999 World Series for what he did to Jim Grey. But overall, no one could have done the job that Torre did!

For the Yankees not to honor Torre is classless and a shame. How fitting that Torre will most likely be in the playoffs and Hank Steinbrenner gets to watch the playoffs at home!

Where Was Roger Clemens?

Erik Diana — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 10:15:48 -0400

Yankee Stadium is no more. There will be no more playoff games, no chance to pad onto the 100 World Series games that have been played. No more "ghosts" that float around to help the Yankees win games in the post-season in the "House That Ruth Built." There was just two things missing from the ceremony last night: Joe Torre and Roger Clemens!

Many people realized that in 2003, the Yankees as many people knew them, were starting to mutate before our very own eyes. In 2003, Andy Pettitte would leave as a free agent and play for the Houston Astros. His friend, at the time, Roger Clemens would quickly egress out of retirement and help lead his hometown Astros within one game of the World Series.

(For the record, I always will feel that if Pettitte had not been hurt with his elbow injury in '04 or if Drayton McClane had ponied up and signed Beltran they would have won a World Series in one of those three years Clemens was there.)

The whole time that Pettitte and Clemens were in Houston, the Yankees openly expressed their affection towards both of them for helping sustain a dynasty that was flickering before the Yankees eyes. Fans had fond memories of both pitchers, especially Pettitte and how they performed in the clutch and how when the dynasty was on the line they could rely on of those horses and not some scion like Kevin Brown or Javier Vazquez.

Even Clemens was missed terribly. In 2003, at Yankee Stadium no less, he recorded his 300th win and 4000th strikeout in the very same game. Clemens also did something that other Yankee starters were incapable of doing: knocking someone into the dirt by throwing hard and high to a batter.

It was a fact that Jeter and his teammates were protected by the Rocket. (Ask A-Rod how many Yankee pitchers have protected him the way that Clemens did last August when he hit Alex Rios in the back after he got pelted in the knee cap with a pitch!)

Clemens also used intimidation techniques in the biggest games of the season in the playoffs (see Game Two of the 2000 World Series and Game Four of the 2000 ALCS.) It was a wonderful part of the package: Clemens had impeccable control and could manipulate a hitter's fear with his fastball and then get their head out of the game and dominate!

Whether Yankee fans want to admit this now or not, Clemens was beloved in those years for being an intimidator. If someone had too much success off of him, they were liable to get hit high and hard for that. His hazel eyes that were barely peering through his black glove and bill of his hat were all made to intimidate the hitter.

When Clemens hit Piazza in the head many Yankee fans rallied around Clemens! The fans knew they were the hated Yankees and just like Patriot fans rallied around the Spygate issue, Yankees fans rallied around Clemens this way.

Sure, Yankee fans admitted that Game Two of the 2000 World Series was odd, but people still remember that when they had the Rocket, the Red Sox didn't win a World Series. The year after he left, the Yankees didn't have enough pitching to hold off the Red Sox in the '04 ALCS.Many have said that if Pettitte and Clemens were there, that comeback never happens.

Clemens and Pettitte were so incredibly missed that the Yankees, in the words of Brian Cashman, "put on a full court press", to get Pettitte back and maybe Clemens could join his buddy along side of him in pinstripes at the beginning of the 2007 season. It worked! The Yankees paid Pettitte 16 million and gave Roger Clemens a pro-rated 28 million dollar contract to pitch from the end of May through Game Three of the ALDS.

Now here's what was vexing about the ceremony last night in Yankee Stadium: How come Pettitte (an admitted steroid user) got honored to start the final game and Clemens doesn't even get a blurb uttered about him?

(Joe Torre wasn't mentioned either, which is both shameful and disappointing! He really is going to be the next Yogi Berra for the standoff that will occur between him and the Yankees. I pray to God that both parties can heal after some time off, because if Joe Torre passes away without being honored by the Yankees there would be nothing more shameful!)

David Wells got honored (yes, I know he threw a perfect game, but he also kept himself so out of shape that it cost them Game Five of the 2003 World Series along with many other unprofessional acts he accrued in pinstripes.)

For the record, I do believe that Clemens probably used PEDs. Okay, he most likely did. And I know it would have been a huge distraction for him to be there. The very least they could have played a couple of his highlights at Yankee Stadium (like his 300th win, his 350th win or his 4000th strikeout. That all happened at Yankee Stadium: It's a small part of the mystique and aura that Yankee Stadium has.) How hard would that have been, it's not like the Yankees from other generations were perfect human beings.

Clemens was a keeper of the flame from the moment he arrived in the Yankees organization. He started and won Game Four of the 1999 World Series. He got his first ring for pitching well that game. Sure, Roger had a little bit of a hard time adjusting to the spotlight that was New York, but he played brilliantly on that stage at times.

In 2000, the Yankees needed him to pitch well in the ALCS against a scrappy Seattle team and he pitched a near no-hitter in Game Four and recorded 15 strikeouts that game. (Also, in case you forget, he knocked A-Rod on his butt twice in a row in the 1st inning to set a tone for the rest of the game.)

In 2001, he won 20 games and squared off against Curt Schilling in Game Seven after he won Game Three to get the Yankees back into contention in the World Series. In 2003 he reached several milestones and really was a beloved fixture on that team (even so much that the Yankees bought him a Hummer with the University of Texas burnt orange as the color.)

And let's not forget that he beat Pedro in Game Three of the '03 ALCS and did so after he was warned because Pedro hit Karim Garcia in the back with a pitch the inning prior! (Whether he threw at Manny's head will forever be speculated on, but he won that game for his team against a person who known for intimidating hitters himself.)

For the Yankees not to even mention Clemens was shameful! As much evidence is against him, and there is a lot, he's never been convicted of anything. Jason Giambi got to start at 1st base and was honored and he's an admitted steroid user like Pettitte.

I can understand if they didn't want a Pete Rose from the 1999 World Series moment, but Clemens deserved to get honored by the Yankees. He's still the pitcher that instilled a professional attitude that helped turn the season around last year, he's still the 2nd best steal the Yankees got from Boston and it would have been a fitting tribute for him to be honored next to guys like David Wells and David Cone!

I Hope Joe Torre Is Laughing, Because He Deserves To!

Erik Diana — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 18:07:15 -0400

Let’s face it: the Yankees are finished. There’s officially no hope. Between the horrible pitching all year, the lack of clutch hits, the poor coaching, and atrocious managing, the Yankees should have seen this coming for quite some time. And honestly the situation may not get better for quite a while.

And you know the one man who looks like a genius now? Joe Torre, that’s who! The man should enjoy every moment of watching Brian (the weasel) Cashman’s plans blow up in his face and he should slightly chuckle to himself every time A-Rod can’t cash in RBIs in a clutch spot. The man should be belly-laughing for a long while whether the Dodgers make the playoffs or not!

Here’s why I say this: the Yankees may be a few years away from being dominant even after they spend anywhere from 60 – 95 million upgrading their roster. And why in the world would anyone want to go into that pressure cooker anymore?

And it’s not like the Yankees can have the amazing track record of having Torre defuse powder-keg media issues to reassure potential free agents to alleviate their concerns anymore. Most people thought that playing for Torre was the best experience they ever had!

The heart and soul that resided in that Yankees team in the late 90’s is gone, now that Hank (the Ogre) Steinbrenner and Hal are running the show, who knows when people will have enough respect for them to sign there.

It would only make sense for history to repeat itself and have free agents catered all over town, drive their market price up because they’re talking to the Yankees and sign elsewhere.

Think about it: if you’re CC (not C.C.) Sabathia, why go to the Yankees and pitch to a phenomenal Rays team that will only get better and a meat-grinder of a lineup in Boston? Why not go to a place like the LA Dodgers and play for Torre and really give yourself a chance to rack up a lot of victories?

Seriously, LA, Chicago (Cubs), St. Louis and even a place like Arizona would be much more palatable than being in Yankeeland with one loud-mouthed jackass and some sniveling snake like Cashman running the team (and he may not even be there, which would make Hank the Moron even more potent and toxic)

Throw in an aging Jeter, Pettitte, Posada, Rivera, Damon, Giambi (who’s doubtful to come back next year), Mike Mussina (who could leave as a free agent), and a grossly overrated Robinson Cano, and you really have self a nasty stew brewing.

The farm system has pitching arms to spare (supposedly) but no real depth anywhere else; this all looks like it could add up to a long postseason drought. Not a Pittsburgh Pirate drought, but it could stretch to 3-4 years theoretically.

Another element to add to this fun recipe is the fact that Joe Girardi hasn’t proven that he can reach this team and he will be on the hot seat by the middle of the year if they continue to flounder, which would make going to manage the Yankees as fun as getting a test for an STD.

Girardi hasn’t been helped by Bobby Meacham at third base and you can really tell the Yankees miss Larry Bowa (especially Robinson Cano). Girardi simply doesn’t have the people skills that Torre had and it’s beginning to show big time!

And another cynical thought here too: What if Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, Andrew Brackman and company aren’t as good as everyone expects them to be? Just because they got acquired by the Yankees gives them no special powers to go out and throw perfect games and magically be able to shut the Red Sox down in a game that matters like it does in September.

It is the pure and utter arrogance of the Steinbrenner boys that make them prop the farm system up the way they do. All of these guys have walked into the greatness of the Yankees and none of them have earned it the way Rivera, Pettitte, Jeter and Posada did. The younger players are riding the veterans’ coattails and it’s disgusting!

(And you can throw Hank in there as well, he’ll never come close to what his old man has done, but there he is, acting like he’s been a baseball insider for years. He acts like he constructed the dynasty that guys like Gene Michael, Buck Showalter and others laid the foundation for! He’s simply disgusting!)

The one person who deserves to laugh more than anyone about this is Joe Torre. When you think about some of the teams he was handed in 2005 and 2007 it is amazing that they won the division one year and won the Wild Card another year.

He was so rudely exited out of the Yankees organization that karma may be biting the Yankees in the rear a lot like the way it did when Yogi Berra was terribly dismissed from the organization in the 1980’s.

Seriously, I hope Joe Torre enjoys being with the Dodgers. His 4 rings that he won should get him into the Hall of Fame and when he goes in, he should scold that buffoon Hank Steinbrenner and teach the Yankees what class is all about.

When he was with the Yankees they were a classy, dominant juggernaut and now everyone knows it’s not his fault that the Yankees failed to win 12 Words Series titles in a row!

And if he really wanted to stick it to the Yankees organization, he shouldn’t even bother to show up for the inevitable “Joe Torre Day” that will happen after he’s done managing for good! The real “Clueless Joe” is Joe Girardi!

The NFL Is the Epitome of a Good-Ol'-Boy Network

Erik Diana — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 04:16:56 -0400

As someone who has bled black and gold for all of his Pittsburgh teams, let me just first say that the Rooneys (Dan especially) are the absolute definition of class and stewardship of any professional owners in all of North American sports.

I love the Rooneys and actually consider them a part of my life for the way they have cared for my favorite team in all of sports. And many "Pittsburghers" feel the same way!

There may not be a more honest and fair owner in all of sports than Mr. Dan Rooney himself. My issue that will come of this article will not be about that; it'll be about the way the league may be engaged in collusion to keep another man from owning the Steelers, and that's just wrong!

The Rooney family owns considerable investments in gambling interests, and the NFL, in practicing due diligence, is wanting them to step away from these sources of income.

Since each brother of the Rooney family owns a 16 percent share of their 80 percent stake (with the McGinley family owning the other 20 percent stake), Dan Rooney faces a real possibility that his brothers could sell to a higher bidder if he can't garner the capital needed to buy them out of their shares. If that were to happen, Dan Rooney could still run the day-to-day operations, theoretically.

Billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller, a successful hedge fund manager on Wall Street, wants to purchase the Rooney brothers' shares and become the majority owner. (If one of the brothers sold their interest in the Steelers to Dan Rooney, then this whole circus would be pointless.)

Here lies the problem: The NFL owners could just collude and block Druckenmiller from purchasing the shares. Never mind that he may make the best offer, all that is needed is for nine out of the 32 owners to scuttle the whole deal. Mr. Druckenmiller needs approval from 75 percent of the league to become the majority owner of the Steelers.

It would be a sad day if Dan Rooney weren't the chairman of the Steelers. But, in life, everything must change. All good things come to an end. The Rooney brothers also want to get rid of a huge tax burden for when they pass away and leave the shares to their children.

The children would be liable for what each share is worth on the day that any Rooney brother passes away. (Remember, Art Sr. plopped down $2,500 to buy the Steelers and now they're a billion-dollar entity at least.) And they should have the freedom to do so and not be bogged down by other majority owners of the NFL.

Dan Rooney has done so much for the NFL—everything from collective bargaining, soothing the AFL/NFL merger by putting his team in the AFC, and helping implement the "Rooney Rule," which requires teams to interview a minority candidate—that the other owners may just block any sale that his brothers want to accomplish. If that were to happen, it would be terribly wrong!

Roger Goodell is already stating publicly that he wants Dan to own the franchise still. "There's great respect for the Rooney family in the National Football League, and we want to do everything we can to ensure that the Steelers continue to be operated by the Rooneys and the way they've been operated." (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Another Goodell quote on the matter: "They've run a model franchise, and I think everyone in Pittsburgh recognizes how proud they are of the Steelers, and we in the NFL recognize how fortunate we've been to have Dan Rooney's leadership and now Art's leadership,''

Mr. Goodell said. "That is certainly a consideration and the ownership wants to make sure this team is run consistently with those principles, and that if Dan Rooney wants an opportunity to continue to run the franchise, I think that's an interest some owners have." (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

If that's not collusion, I don't know what is!

I will say this: I do want to see the Steelers in the Rooney's hands. However, I would love the Steelers to have a billionaire's capital as well. It's a fact that if Dan buys all of his brothers out, he may go into to too much debt to do so. He also hasn't given the name of his minority investors to the public.

This situation is far from over, and hopefully it will resolve peacefully and not with the Rooneys split apart because of money. If that were to happen, then everything they've all worked for would be slightly tarnished.

What Will 2009 Hold For The Yankees?

Erik Diana — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 09:22:01 -0400

Now that the second half of the Major League Baseball season is upon us, prognosticators are saying that the Yankees have a very real chance to overtake the Rays for a playoff spot let's take a look at what happens to this proud franchise once the season is over.

No matter what way you look at it, the Yankees will have money to spend. And now that they will get to use the new Yankee Stadium and all the maintenance costs and deduct from the revenue they have to pay they will only have more to spend. Also, the Yankees are getting a lot of contracts (mostly bad) off of their books.

1. Alex Rodriguez	28,000,000
2. Jason Giambi	23,428,571
3. Derek Jeter	21,600,000
4 a. Andy Pettitte	16,000,000
4 b. Bobby Abreu	16,000,000
6. Mariano Rivera	15,000,000
7. Jorge Posada	13,100,000
8 a. Johnny Damon	13,000,000
8 b. Hideki Matsui	13,000,000
10. Mike Mussina	11,071,029
11. Carl Pavano	11,000,000
12. Kyle Farnsworth	5,916,666
13. Chien-Ming Wang	4,000,000
14. LaTroy Hawkins	3,750,000
15. Robinson Cano	3,000,000
16. Jose Molina	1,875,000
17. Wilson Betemit	1,165,000
18. Brian Bruney	725,000
19. Billy Traber	500,000
20. Melky Cabrera	461,200
21. Phil Hughes	406,350
22. Jonathan Albaladejo	393,225
23 a. Humberto Sanchez	390,000
23 b. Joba Chamberlain	390,000
Total Team Salary:	207,108,489

Giambi has a buyout of $5 million, which the Yankees will most likely exercise. Mussina's contract is over, along with Andy Pettitte, Kyle Farnsworth, and LaTroy Hawkins. So is Carl Pavano's deal (worst signing ever) and Bobby Abreu's tenure is likely over.

All in all, it's about $75-$80 million coming off of their books. That is a lot of weight to shed for an organization. However, it will also leave some gaping holes on the roster. Two starting pitchers potentially need to be replaced, a couple arms in the bullpen, and a right fielder that drives in 100 runs consistently and is supposed to see a lot of pitches for A-Rod will have to be replaced.

Now let's see who's available for some of that excess cash to be spent on. This a list of who the Yankees maybe interested in and people who could make sense for their needs.

Mark Teixeira, 1B, 29-years-old

Milton Bradley, OF/DH, 31-years-old

Manny Ramirez, OF, 37-years-old

- This would be highly unlikely considering he's too old and Boston still needs him, which means they'll pick up his option. The Red Sox could sign him to a cheaper deal, say $14-$16 million after the season for a year.

Rocco Baldelli, OF, 27-years-old

- Also very unlikely considering his injuries during the last few years.

Vladamir Guerrero, OF/DH, 33-years-old

Jim Thome, DH, 37-years-old

- He'd be perfect with the short porch at the new Yankee Stadium.

Jon Garland, SP, 29-years-old

CC Sabathia, SP, 28-years-old

Ben Sheets, SP, 30-years-old

Francisco Rodriguez, Closer, 27-years-old

- The Yankees are going to need a replacement for Mariano Rivera some time soon right?

Let's assume that the Yankees don't make the playoffs (which is a very likely scenario), you know Hank and Hal Steinbrenner are going to want to spend money to show they can pick-up where their old man left off in 2002 and 2003.

The Yankees need power arms in their rotation and I think the days of them waiting around for Phil Hughes to get healthy and dominate are over (not sure I agree with that, but he at least to earn his way back, just like Ian Kennedy.)

The Yankees also need a dependable setup man for Mariano Rivera. And if they spend big time they could get their future closer in K-Rod.

The Yankees will also probably sign Pettitte at the very least. He should retire a Yankee and the Yankees realize that. Mussina could come back. But he could get a huge contract in say Chicago and play for San Diego, Philadelphia or the Cubs and dominate in the NL. It would be a lot easier for him to get 300 wins that way.

They could sign Giambi to a cheaper deal the way the Red Sox will with Manny Ramirez, but his baggage is remarkable and he's been really up (2002, 2005 and 2006) and really down with them too (2004 and 2007.) And they may want to wash away the memories of steroid users on their teams. (That's why they refuse to accept the fact that Barry Bonds could help them right now.)

Well, one thing is for sure: the Yankees are going to have a busy off-season with Cashman's deal up and with all the free agents that will come and go through town making their decisions on who to sign with.

I do expect them to snag at least 3 quality guys though. CC Sabathia, Mark Teixeiram and maybe one more starter along with resigning Pettitte. I'd love to see K-Rod in pinstripes, but it won't happen!

Stick a fork in them.......the Yankees are DONE!!

Erik Diana — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 17:15:48 -0400

The news was devastating for the Yankees.

Just barely above .500 and (finally) climbing, they were looking for another huge effort from their staff ace when disaster struck in the form of a Taiwanese man not knowing how to run the bases properly.

Now that man is out for basically the season. Chien-Ming Wang, a two-time 19-game winner, is now out with a foot injury.

So what should the Yankees do?

Should they stick their middle finger up at the AL and go all-out for C.C. Sabathia?

Should they just concede the season and get Joba used to starting, seeing who among their prospects can actually live up to the immense hype they've received? (If they do that, then there will be a lot more suffering through Ian Kennedy and Phil Hughes.)

Now that it looks as though Cashman is going to stay on as general manager, it would really be smart for them to see who can play in the big leagues and who can't.

There are a couple of young outfielders in Austin Jackson and Brett Gardner that would appreciate the playing time in the last season at Yankee Stadium.

Also, David Robertson, Alan Horne, Dan McCutheon, Mark Melancon, Jeff Marquez, J.B. Cox, Humberto Sanchez, and Andrew Brackman represent quite a bit of the future in the pitching department and should see playing time within two years.

They also might throw $100 million at Yu Darvish's team to get him to leave Japan so he can take his high-90s fastball and devastating curveball to the new Yankee Stadium. I would guarantee this: if he becomes available they won't lose him to the Red Sox!

(They also just drafted Gerrit Cole, but let's not assume anything right now, because some of their picks are unsigned and Cole has Scott Boras as his agent and a commitment to UCLA.)

If Cashman has boasted about the farm system, why not let him really try and exploit it? They could be much more valuable if they have shown glimpses of brilliance.

Damon, Matsui, and Abreu all have contracts up at the end of the 2009 season. Wouldn't it be nice to see if the guys down below are trade bait or can really help the Yankees win that ever-fading 27th World Championship?

I say yes!

The Red Sox have been smart building their team through their farm system and smart trades (Beckett and Lowell) and Cashman has been ridiculously outclassed by his Sox counterpart, Theo Epstein.

If Cashman is really the genius people claim he is, he should take his lumps now and leave the Yankees completely loaded for the future.

Plus, the Yankees need to stop chasing the Red Sox (like they'll ever catch them with a Steinbrenner at the helm) and just worry about forming the most insanely deep organization that money can buy.

And you know that all of the other 28 teams in the big leagues are frightened if this happens—not the Red Sox so much—but the other ones that saw the Yankees strip mine their farm system.

Imagine how scary the Yankees could be if they slightly shifted their paradigm.

People always wonder, well what if there's too much talent to go around in the farm system?

Let's just pray that Yankees fans can get to a place where the big league and farm system teams being full to the gills with young talent is a problem!

That would really make Cashman look smart.

In the meantime, Rasner, Chamberlain, Hughes, and Kennedy will try and learn what it's like to be quality starting pitchers, and the Yankees will pay for the mistakes they've made for years with the team of Steinbrenner and Cashman at the helm.

NBA: David Stern Simply Doesn't Get It!

Erik Diana — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 20:21:57 -0400

There was once a day, not so long ago, that a man sat on top of a throne and was considered the smartest man in sports.

He was a man that had turned the NBA from curiosity to must-see television. He reigned over a new golden era, skillfully and masterfully, and he was always referred to as the "smartest man in the room."

But now those days have come to a close. This man, like so many great leaders before him, has become drunk with power. He has become his own worst enemy!

I'm sure you know the man who I am referring to is David Stern. It's not even a question of which commissioner was the best and smartest during their heyday—it was Stern, hands down.

David accomplished many things in his tenure and the NBA has reaped a mighty profit over his lifetime as the commish. If he doesn't have something named after him when he leaves, it will be stunning.

Stern never had to face an unbeatable union, like most baseball commissioners. Stern never had to battle a Marvin Miller—one of the most important people ever in professional sports. (If you don't know who Marvin Miller is, please read Juicing the Game by Howard Bryant to realize his importance to the game.)

Stern never had many of the problems to face as a Pete Rozelle or Bud Selig had to face. He never saw his owners get convicted of collusion. He never had to deal with extreme payroll disparity in his league. There was never a steroids scandal that baseball had to deal with, or a spying scandal like King Goodell will always be accountable for.

All in all, David Stern had it ridiculously easy as compared to some of his contemporaries. And maybe that's where things went wrong.

Stern never faced real adversity until 2004. He had little things biting at his heels, but nothing like Paul Tags, Goodell or Bud Selig dealt with. Not that any of those three men handled adversity well—especially Selig!

Stern always had the ability of falling back on the accomplishments of Michael Jordan. Jordan helped Stern's reign the way Rommell helped Hitler's.
His Bulls were so tremendous and MJ so unreal that the NBA was certainly blessed with the most dominant team in any sport of the 1990s.

The Bulls could have realistically won 8 rings in a row if it weren't for MJ's "hiatus." Still, six titles in eight years will never be accomplished again. That team was the most dominant team in sports in all of the 90's. Maybe the 1998 Yankees had the best season, but the Bulls were the best team throughout a decade!

But since Jordan left Chicago, David Stern has shown himself to be a man that just doesn't get it.

In 2004, he did what was absolutely necessary to protect his sport and killed the Pacers season for their incident in Detroit. Maybe he should have suspended Ben Wallace for longer than he did, but all in all, it was impressive to see him come out guns blazing and castrate a few thugs and the union all at once.

Many people knew this had to be a hard decision for him, but he did it with mostly a lot of guts and brains. It's a Stern trademark.

Now, fast forward to 2007. There's a horribly called playoff series that also has a brawl where a few people step off of the bench. Stern goes out of his way to talk on air about "the letter of the law," and why people are being punished for their transgressions. Suns fans feel violated, but the pattern is consistent

Then this year, Stern acts completely hypocritically and decides not to suspend Kevin Garnett, when he clearly violated the letter of the law and should have been reprimanded for his actions. Stern looks like a huge hypocrite. I will always think that if KG played for another team, he would have been suspended!

Let's go back to 2007. A commissioner's worst nightmare is staring Stern in the face—a referee was betting on games he was calling. Stern realized quickly that everything he worked for was in jeopardy. All the little things that bit at his heels now seemed to be slowing him down significantly.

Bravely, Stern stands in front of the media and tries to take on the storm on in the best way he can—while still showing absolute power and utter arrogance for everything that is occurring before him. His immense pride takes a few blows, but he comes out mostly unscathed.

I will give Stern credit for how he handled the situation. But many people were left scratching their heads about how horrible the officiating has been in certain playoff games. And one in particular comes back to the forefront. It's arguably the NBA's darkest moment, other than the Malice at the Palace in 2004—Game Six of the 2002 Western Conference Finals.

Flash forward to June 10, 2008. The game that needed to be buried forever to avoid all the second-guessing by critics and talking heads gets mentioned by Donaghy. All hell breaks loose.

This game is being talked about more than a Celtics-Lakers Finals, the most amazing aspect of all this season. How can such a great season be ruined by horrible memories from six years ago? It's like getting ready to have sex with your girlfriend and she flashes back to a time you got drunk and puked in her hair, says she needs to talk, and your boner dies a horrible death.

The little things that Stern has to deal with up to this point honestly are trivial when compared with the appearance of public mistrust of the officials. (Notice I didn't say throwing games.)

So what that hard fouls are eliminated, that you can't get off the bench to fight, or that teams mail it in at the end of the season to try and get more balls in the lottery? None of that is important when compared to the fact that many casual fans don't trust the product they're seeing on NBA floors.

ESPN recently ran a poll to ask if the most controversial game in NBA Playoffs history was rigged. The vote was yes, by about 76 percent.

Stern needs to fix this problem. Race and hip-hop aren't eroding the league the way bad, controversial officiating is!

And what doesn't help David Stern is that basketball is the easiest for officials to determine the outcome—whether it be extending the season or shaving points—because of the free-throw line.

Stern in the last couple months let an official he suspended for trying to fight a player on the Spurs call an extremely important playoff game. He hypocritically lets KG off the hook. He arrogantly dismisses his foil by trying to discredit him (a lot like the way Roger Clemens and Rusty Hardin dismissed Brian MacNamee.)

Oh yeah, and he's punished anyone who said anything bad about the NBA's refs, making him indirectly complicit in the biggest scandal his sport has ever faced!

I know it's absurd, but maybe David Stern should be called on the carpet by his employers—the owners—and really be held responsible. He needs to tighten up officiating, making them an independent entity not under league control. It honestly would be the best move he's ever made, in a career full of many smart moves.

It would be the most important one, too. Public trust has to be restored. Otherwise, if he doesn't fix this, Stern never really accomplished much!

The Real All-Century Team for Major League Baseball

Erik Diana — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 16:49:44 -0400

So, do you remember 1999? When the steroid era was in full bloom? It was before iPods and way before everyone and their mother had a cell phone?

Does anyone remember MLB's All-Century Team? I thought about this recently as I was watching a World Series game on MLB.com (MLBtv—amazing gift for anyone), and I remember thinking that if we had to do it all over again, who would we omit and who would we add in. Well, I'll attempt to do that the best way I can.

Here's the list, just in case you can't remember it verbatim:

All Century Team Official Starting Line-Up (1999)
Position	Name	Final Rank
Pitchers	Nolan Ryan	1.
	Sandy Koufax	2.
	Cy Young	3.
	Roger Clemens	4.
	Bob Gibson	5.
	Walter Johnson	6.
	Warren Spahn	10.
	Christy Mathewson	14.
	Lefty Grove	18.
Catchers	Johnny Bench	1.
Catchers	Yogi Berra	2.
First Basemen	Lou Gehrig	1.
First Basemen	Mark McGwire	2.
Second Basemen	Jackie Robinson	1.
Second Basemen	Rogers Hornsby	2.
Third Basemen	Mike Schmidt	1.
Third Basemen	Brooks Robinson	2.
Shortstops	Cal Ripken, Jr.	1.
	Ernie Banks	2.
	Honus Wagner	4.
Outfielders	Babe Ruth	1.
	Hank Aaron	2.
	Ted Williams	3.
	Willie Mays	4.
	Joe DiMaggio	5.
	Mickey Mantle	6.
	Ty Cobb	7.
	Ken Griffey, Jr.	8.
	Pete Rose	9.
	Stan Musial	11.

Ok, let's establish a few ground rules first, so I don't come off as a total hypocrite. I hope you can see my logic heading in. For the guys that got omitted; one was simply because they were overshadowed by steroid users (Bonds), and the other two were left off simply because they weren't playing long enough. But we all know they'd be on the list today. And no, Derek Jeter is not on this list, I am torn up about this!

NOTABLE OMISSIONS:

1) Barry Bonds. Ok, count me in as a person who thinks he absolutely, knowingly used steroids. I don't doubt this for a second. However, he is still the greatest all-around player that I have ever seen in my lifetime, sans Ken Griffey Jr., on any list.

Bonds's numbers before the 2000 season were good enough to be on this list, and Stan Musial should be kicked off. Again, I don't care that Musial may not have done steroids and Bonds most likely did. Bonds has to be on this list. More MVPs than Stan the Man, and seriously, people forget how versatile he was before he was a BALCO All-Star. As much as I hate people parading the race card around, but what if Bonds was white? Would we even be having this discussion? Maybe, maybe not!

2) Alex Rodriguez will go down as one of, if not the greatest infielder statistically ever. I know he hasn't won a ring; I know he hasn't produced in the clutch like everyone though he would, YET. But he has to be on this list. Kick off Ozzie Smith, who was just a wizard in the field, and put A-Rod on there. Anyone who says I'm wrong really needs to get a Breathalyzer.

3) Mariano Rivera was just in his second year as a closer when this list was compiled, but he may have been the best player in the MLB since the start of the 1999 season, and no one has been as valuable. Maybe Jason Varitek and maybe Barry Bonds, but Mo has a World Series MVP since this list was made, and won another ring and the 2003 ALCS MVP against one of the best offensive teams I've ever seen.

(I may hate the Red Sox, but I'll always give them their due, even though I'd rather stick a red-hot poker up my urethra than admit how good they are!)

PEOPLE THAT HAVE NO BUSINESS BEING ON THE ALL-CENTURY TEAM

1) Mark McGwire is easily a runaway to be on this list. I've never seen someone so revered fall so far from grace for avoiding questions. There's no doubt in my mind that he was a steroids user, and he was the quintessential one-trick pony. He could bash a lot of long balls, but he couldn't run, throw, hit for a high average consistently, and now that we know he was juicing (most likely), he really is not an all-time great.

He was Dave Kingman on 'roids, and was so ridiculously overrated it still makes me sick. Was I awed at what happened in 1998? Yes, but I was 16 back then, gimme a little credit!

I hope he gets into a horrible car accident with Tom Brady and they both slowly smolder to death. (Sorry, but that's the way I feel.)

UP FOR DISCUSSION

Roger Clemens is definitely up for discussion. If he didn't have those two years in '97 and '98, would he have been on this list in the first place? Hmmm, tough to say.

Also, up until that point on this list, he never had won a ring (granted it was two games away, but still he did not win a ring yet, and if I recall, he may have asked not to pitch in Game Six of the World Series. He adamantly denies that, and he did have a blister on his pitching finger, but who knows?).

Before he went to Toronto, Roger Clemens looked to be on his last leg in Boston. I know every Red Sox fan has a special place in their sports inferno for him, but he did have two separate 20-strikeout games. He was hands-down the best pitcher for a five-year stretch, but stuff like getting kicked out of a playoff game in '90 and not being able to beat Dave Stewart and the A's (and pieces of shit like McGwire and Canseco) certainly would have gone against him.

Let's be honest here: Clemens' legacy is destroyed. But, looking at things objectively. I honestly don't know if he should be on this list or not now. Also, to really stick it to Red Sox fans, he wore a Yankees cap to that ceremony and he certainly wasn't a revered Yankee then, if he ever was. The whole thing still seems surreal.

But was he doing steroids in his best season of 2001? Also, what about 2004? If he only used steroids in '97, '98, '99 and 2000 like McNamee claims? Can we arbitrarily throw out those two years that he won Cy Young awards?

This is what sucks when one of your favorite athletes ever most likely did steroids and made an ass of himself trying to defend his name and legacy. You just can't speak definitively about matters like this. It's really up to conjecture with Clemens!

Randy Johnson could be on this list if it came out today. He'll get 300 wins, he's second all time in strikeouts, and he pitched his team to victory in the greatest World Series ever!

Curt Schilling, if you recall gave up a huge home run, but R.J. came in and solidified the game from getting out of control to give the D'backs a shot at beating the Yankees. Randy Johnson has to be the best left-handed pitcher ever.

Now that Clemens will forever be in limbo (at least until HOF voters get their say), either Randy Johnson or Pedro has to be the best pitcher of their generation. Remember, Randy Johnson has more wins, Ks, and more important wins against the Yankees than Pedro. (But that's another discussion for another day.)

Pedro Martinez would at least have to be in the discussion an all-time great. Again, he may be the best of his generation, and he may be closer to Sandy Koufax than anyone today. And let's be honest here, from 1997-2000, nobody was in Pedro's universe. Nobody! He should have won the MVP in '99, and I was screaming that as a Yankees fan. He still got robbed of that like A-Rod did in 1996.

Every time he started, it was an event. Throw in his relief appearance in the '99 ALDS, his 17-strikeout game in Yankee Stadium, and the fact that he owned Clemens in their '99 ALCS Game Three matchup, and he may have more of a case than any pitcher today. Maybe! Overall, I'd take Randy Johnson's career, but in his prime, Pedro was better.

Well that's the list, I'm sure it could be a tad infuriating trying to think about this thing. But I did my best. Let me know what you think!

Giddy up,

Erik Diana