New York Rangers Have a Long Way to Go but Reasons to be Hopeful

After I got home from Madison Square Garden last night, I realized I forgot to post a "View from the Seats" on the blog. But you aren't missing much (that doesn't mean I wasn't appreciative for the tickets, though, so thanks to Ben W and Glenn). The Rangers lost 3-1 last night to the Pittsburgh Penguins and playing one of the top teams in the NHL showed the Rangers weakness: they don't have enough difference makers. That doesn't mean they don't have a good core--Brandon Dubinsky, Ryan Callahan, Henrik Lundqvist and Marc Staal make up a pretty great young core--but they don't have players who you rely on to finish. 

Sean Avery's Rangers couldn't get the puck into the net last night (WaPo)

Brandon Dubinsky leads the team with 12 goals, Brian Boyle has somehow notched 10 (considering he generally seems to have bad hands), and Marian Gaborik has 5 despite only playing in 13 games, but with the game on the line, there's few guys you want to stop from getting the puck. I admit that I haven't watched as much Rangers hockey as I usually do, but watching the Rangers gameplan for Sidney Crosby (who should have been ejected for a slew-foot and I think has cemented his place as the most hated opposing player in the NHL) and Evgeni Malkin made me realize the Rangers need to find a way to develop more scorers. Maybe a guy like Derek Stepan (6 goals) or Artem Anisimov (7 goals) develops into that sniper, but right now, who from the Rangers really scares the opposition besides Dubi and Gaborik?

The real problem is that the Rangers have been killed in free agency and did the right thing this year going with lesser cost moves to try to fill holes. Unfortunately, guys like Ruslan Fedotenko, Alexander Frolov (who The Blueshirts Blog points out got 1:37 of icetime in the 3rd period last night) and Todd White haven't produced for the Rangers. Ditto Sean Avery, who is stuck at 1 goal on the season. If you're going to have a team that has problems finishing, you need to be dynamtie on defense and the Rangers last night showed they have way too many lapses there. Michael Del Zotto (who has developed into quite a good player despite his propensity to miss the net) made a great defensive play coming back but besides D-Z, no one really looked overly fast or overly skilled which is not good when you're not putting the puck in the back of the net.

Read more>>

UConn men's basketball: from unranked to No. 7 in one week

This week's polls are out.  UConn is ranked #7 (AP) and #9 (ESPN/USA Today coaches poll).  But what really grinds my gears is that Michigan State is ranked ahead of the Huskies in both polls.

Someone please explain this to me.  UConn is undefeated at 5-0.  Michigan State is 5-1.  That loss?  Yeah, it came against UConn.  In the semifinals of the Maui Invitational.  Which UConn went on to win the next night by dominating current No. 10 Kentucky, 84-67.  Which was their third win in as many days.

Alex Oriakhi (photo: Hartford Courant)

I know UConn relies heavily on 30 ppg scorer Kemba Walker, and I know that 5 freshmen receive significant minutes, but after last week's head-to-head matchup, how can anyone say that Michigan State is the better team??  College sports are so wonky sometimes...

A Look at the Giants: An Ugly Win to Save the Season

With less than two minutes left, the New York Giants stopped the Jacksonville Jaguars on a big 3rd and 10 from the Giants 34 and it looked like 4th and 10 was coming up for the game. That was, until a yellow flag appeared. Defensive holding, number 31, Aaron Ross...5 yards, automatic first down at the Giants 29. It felt like déjà vu all over again and as I sat there watching the game I thought it was over for the Giants, whose defense had looked mighty shaky the past three games. And then Perry Fewell and the Giants dialed up the blitz. Sack by Antrel Rolle and Justin Tuck. Sack and forced fumble by Jason Pierre-Paul recovered by the Jags. And then, a sack and forced fumble by Terrell Thomas recovered by Antrel Rolle. Giants victory 24-20.

Kevin Boss was the Bossman once again for the G-men (NY Mag)

It wasn't easy, it wasn't pretty, but in the end, Eli Manning and the Giants defense came up huge when it was needed most to get the Giants back into the playoff picture. In the first half, the Giants looked as if they were going to lose another game to an inferior team (the Jags may have come in 6-4 but they have an ugly -54 point di1fferential). The Giants continually stalled in the red zone and their offense looked lacking without three lineman and their top two wideouts. Thy let David Garrard, Maurice Jones-Drew, and even Rashad Jennings run all over them and the defense looked like the group with injuries. And it really looked pretty dire, even at 17-9 to start the 4th. But the Giants turned up the heat thanks and with Eli Manning connecting to Kevin Boss--with a blitz on its way--who stiff-armed his way for a season-saving TD, all was forgotten.

For the Bossman, that was a good thing. Boss had been flagged for a holding penalty that nullified a 9-yard TD pass to Mario Manningham (who played very well as the #1 WR) in the second quarter and dropped a first down (and much more) pass deep in Giants territory in the 3rd. Boss turned it up from there catching a 17-yard pass with the Giants backed up to their own 12 at the end of the 3rd, catching a 25-yard pass later in the drive, and then taking a 3rd and 10 pass 32 yards on the strength of a stiff-arm for the win. That helped bail out an offense and defense which looked very beatable at halftime. That's supposedly when Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora delivered a stirring halftime speech which according to The Blue Screen Giants' defensive tackle, Barry Cofield called "a halftime speech for the ages" and said "he had tears in his eyes as he ran back onto the field for the second half."

Read more>>

TCU accepts invitation from the Big East

Breaking news from Brett McMurphy of Fanhouse: TCU will join the Big East in 2012.

The Horned Frogs, formerly of the Mountain West Conference, will officially join the Big East on July 1, 2012 and begin play in the 2012-13 school year.

This move will certainly help the Big East shed its current "Big Least" reputation in football.  While it has long been a basketball powerhouse, sometimes sending 9 of its 16 teams to the NCAA tournament in March, the Big East has lost its swagger since Boston College, Virginia Tech, and Miami (FL) defected to the ACC in 2003.  The additions of Louisville, Cincinnati, and South Florida never made up for that loss on the gridiron.

This season, TCU is 11-0 and ranked No. 3 in the BCS, which guarantees it a BCS bowl game.  Even better, the current four-year evaluation period for the BCS concludes in December 2011, so TCU's past BCS rankings – three consecutive top 11 BCS rankings, including this year – will transfer to the Big East since it joined the league before the 2012-13 school year.  And it's clear that the move will benefit TCU's television revenues (their current contract expires at the end of the 2013 season) as well as those of the Big East.


The remaining question is who else will join the Big East's football ranks.  On the basketball side, the conference is now up to 17 teams, so that door is pretty firmly shut.  But there are only 9 football schools now.  The Big East has also extended an offer to Villanova, a 30-year basketball member of the conference.  The Wildcats, who presently play in the Conference Formerly Known as Division 1-AA, are expected to accept or refuse that offer by the end of the 2010-11 school year.  If they turn it down, UCF looks to be next in line.  Either way, the conference is going to have 10 teams and be much stronger in the 2012 season and beyond.  For fans of UConn and all other Big East schools, this is a watershed moment.

UConn 1 win away from first BCS berth

Before a sellout crowd at Rentschler Field on Saturday afternoon, the Connecticut Huskies defeated the Cincinnati Bearcats, 38-17.  In doing so, UConn generated some votes for a Top-25 ranking.  But that's besides the point right now.  The Huskies are in first place in the Big East and they control their own destiny: if they win the season finale at South Florida on December 4, they win the Big East (thanks to having tiebreakers over both WestVa and Pitt) and take the conference's AQ bid to the Fiesta Bowl.  Needless to say, this would be UConn's first-ever BCS berth.

UConn's MVP: Jordan Todman (H/T Hartford Courant)

But really, the Big East is wide open right now.  6 of its 8 teams are bowl eligible.  3 different teams could win the conference.  And UConn, which is just 1-4 on the road, must beat South Florida in Tampa next weekend if it wants to emerge as champs.  That is not going to be easy, mind you.  The Bulls have won 4 of their past 5 games, including a 23-20 road win over Miami (FL) on Saturday.

So what can UConn do to help their chances of beating South Florida?

Read more>>

View from the Seats: Nets Edition

Greetings from the Prudential Center in Newark New Jersey as the View from the Seats comes to you courtesy of the New Jersey Nets vs Portland Trailblazers. Now normally this would not be a venture I would not make, but I was offered a seat in a luxury suite--Suite 133--(thanks, Jess!) and could not turn it down.

The Nets are pretty bad still but certainly better than last year's product. They've pulled within 4 of the Blazers here in the 3rd quarter behind strong games from Brook Lopez and Devin Harris but Brandon Roy is almost outplaying both of them himself.

Back soon with more including a very big Giants win today vs. the Jags.

-Andrew

A Big Thank You on Thanksgiving

As the food and football finally winds down for the night, I wanted to share one of the things that I am thankful for: this blog, all the people who contribute to it and all the people who read it. A few days ago someone was shocked to find out I don't make any money from this blog, but while it may be the case of me doing something wrong in the process, a lot of it has to do with that fact that I do it for fun in my spare time and I have a great group of people who help me out when I don't have time to do so. I enjoy it and I appreciate anyone who is out there reading it.

We had a great response to our latest contest and we always have great, informed discussions on the blog. Some other blogs have a lot more followers but the discourse can get quite out of hand. Here we may disagree (and when I write my blog post next week about how the Yankees should move Joba Chamberlain back to the rotation, we'll get a LOT of disagreements), but we do it in a respectful manner and I think that everyone ends up better off in the end. Sports debates are supposed to be fun and I hope this blog has been a fun place to find informative posts for you to enjoy. Thank you all for being a part of it.

From all of us at NYaT, we hope you and your family had a great Thanksgiving.

Boom goes the dynamite: UConn upsets No. 2 Michigan State

Perhaps the 2010-11 Connecticut Huskies are for real.  They sure looked the part last night at the Maui Invitational, taking down No. 2 Michigan State, 70-67, in front of a packed crowd at the Lahaina Civic Center.  UConn is now 4-0 and headed for the championship game tonight against No. 9 Kentucky.

Kemba Walker. (Photo courtesy: Hartford Courant)

Kemba Walker was sensational once again: 30 points (10-19 FG, 6-7 FT), 3 rebs, 4 assts, 3 stls.  Alex Oriakhi is starting to look like a legit number two with 15 points and 17 boards.  And collectively, even as a team full of freshmen and sophomores, UConn is starting to play with the excellence that is expected of this prestigious program.

"We have Kemba Walker and Tom [Izzo] didn't," UConn head coach Jim Calhoun said. "I've had some pretty good players in my career. Kemba is developing into one of the great players and competitors."

 "We ask him to do nearly the impossible and he's producing," Calhoun continued. "Ray Allen to Rip Hamilton to all of the great UConn players. No one has made more progress than Kemba. No one has equaled the work he's done [on his game]."

You can bet Izzo noticed.

"Kemba Walker is a heck of a player. Let's face it," the MSU coach said. "He gets to the free throw line so much. I thought Kalin did a good job on him. Korie [Lucious] did a good job on him. On those 10 made buckets, he had to earn every one of them."

So how good has Kemba Walker been, exactly?  In UConn's first four games, he has already posted three 30-point games.  Only two other UConn players have put up three 30-point games in an entire season: Rip Hamilton (1999) and Ben Gordon (2004).  UConn won the national championship both seasons.

Read more>>

UConn football in the Fiesta Bowl?

No really, I'm serious, and so are others.  By winning out vs. Cincinnati and South Florida (and with a little help from West Virginia by beating Pitt in the Backyard Brawl) UConn can win the Big East and automatically qualify for a BCS bowl.  Namely, the Fiesta Bowl against the Big 12 champ.

The key is that WestVa vs. Pitt matchup.  Pitt currently sits atop the Big East standings, followed by UConn and then WestVa.  UConn owns the tiebreaker over both schools (two huge home wins, by the way).  So if WestVa knocks off Pitt and UConn wins out, UConn takes the cheese.  And a moderately raucous fan base erupts in East Hartford.

This is totally possible, by the way.  As Ty Duffy said, file Dave Wannstedt in a big game under things I don't trust.  And UConn has a winnable game vs. Cincinnati at home (the Bearcats have given up the most points --by far -- of any Big East team this season, and UConn is 5-0 at Rentschler Field), plus a decent matchup against middle-of-the-road South Florida in balmy Tampa on Dec. 4.

Read more>>

UConn's Kemba Walker doing his best John Wall impression

Although the 2010-11 UConn Huskies are not considered an early Final Four contender (or even a tournament contender, really) the team is not ready to sacrifice all the headlines to their Lady Husky counterparts.  Nope, the guys plan to make some waves as well this year.

This afternoon, UConn opened the Maui Invitational with an 83-79 win over the Wichita State Shockers.  Much of the credit for this win can be placed on the narrow shoulders of point guard Kemba Walker.  In just 23 minutes, Walker scored 31 points (on 8-of-16 shooting), including the game-sealing jumper with 41 seconds to go.  Even more impressive, Walker was 14-of-15 from the line (!!) which means, of course, that the rest of the Huskies put up their typically lousy 62% FT.

Kemba doing the Dougie.

This is going to be a recurring theme throughout this season.  Walker, a junior, is surrounded by 5 freshmen and 2 sophomores.  Notwithstanding Alex Oriakhi, who is one of SI's Top 10 Sophomore Breakout Candidates, this is a young and inexperienced team.  The only players besides Walker who played real minutes last year are Donnell Beverly (9.8 mpg), Jamal Coombs-McDaniel (11.2 mpg), and Oriakhi (24.6 mpg).  And those three only combined for 9.9 ppg.  So yes, Walker must play like John Wall did last season at Kentucky if UConn stands any chance of making the tournament in 2010-11.

And so far, he has.  Kemba scored 42 points to beat Vermont 89-73 in Hartford last week.  Today he once again carried his team to victory.  UConn is in a rebuilding mode following their late season collapse a year ago, a second-round NIT exit, and an NCAA scandal involving head coach Jim Calhoun.  But in order to stay out of the Big East basement and retain an air of respectability, expect Kemba Walker to carry the Huskies much like John Wall carried the Coach Cal's Wildcats last season.  He may get tested real early with a possible matchup against No. 2 Michigan State in the next round.

And now for some UConn & Kemba Walker thoughts from ESPN Insider -- and fellow attorney -- Jay Bilas:

Read more>>

A Look at the Giants: Frustration Begins to Mount

Last night's loss by the New York Giants was frustrating. They had a chance to steal a game they truly had no business winning, but even after finding a way to take a fourth quarter lead, they managed to blow the game behind awful special teams, untimely penalties, costly turnovers and decisions that made you just shake your head. That all combined with the fact the Giants are a team with a ton of key injuries made for a second Sunday in a row that can only be described as frustrating. Here were my top 5 frustrating moments:

Eli Manning's fumble added to a frustrating night of football (Star-Ledger)

1. Eli's Fumble. So Eli Manning decides to scramble on an important 4th down and 6 with 2:51 left and actually has a first down. I repeat: ELI MANNING SCRAMBLED ON FOURTH DOWN AND ACTUALLY RAN PAST THE MARKER. Awesome! Well, until Manning decides he needs to get down and instead of a) sliding feet first, b) running into the defenders and trying to get more yards, or c) just dropping to a knee, Manning chooses d) and bellyflops (or something just as graceful that may not have words until now). And in doing so, he fumbles the ball and basically ends the game for the Giants. True, the game wasn't over there (look at what happened in the Texans-Jets game), but nothing could be more frustrating then how that play ended. And The Blue Screen reports that the team is frustrated by what Tom Coughlin is calling "a callous disregard for the football." Can't think of a better way to describe this bonehead play. As the Star-Ledger's Steve Politi wrote: "[Manning] is a Super Bowl MVP with a $100 million contract. He has to be smarter than that at this stage of his career." Yup.
2. Pierre-Paul's jump. Most will remember the 4th down run for a TD (which was awesome playcalling by the Eagles, so I tip my hat there even though the frustration of how lucky the Eagles got on that play from the bobbled snap to Osi's just-miss of the ball still bother me), but the most frustrating play on the drive (to me) was the offsides on Jason Pierre-Paul, a rookie I really do like but once in a while gets caught making rookie mistakes like this. I'll just let ESPN's Matt Mosely take over here: "The Eagles faced a third-and-5 from their 45-yard line when Pierre-Paul was called for being offside. That put the Eagles in a much better situation, allowing them the luxury of trying to throw on third down. We may never have heard about "39 Crunch" if not for Pierre-Paul's mistake. How can a team coached by the ultimate disciplinarian make so many critical mistakes? It's a mystery to me, but the Giants once again had a double-digit penalty game. And this was after they only had six penalties in a loss to the Cowboys." It will not be easy to practice under Coughlin this week.
3. Not taking a timeout before halftime.

Read more>>

A Look at the Giants: Eagles Flying High Heading Into Giants Match-up

In an episode of Season 5 of It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia Charlie, Mac and Dennis debate the merits of being "birdmen". These are sort of like eagles, but as the song they end up singing states "'Cuz we're birds of war now, but we're also men!" In some ways, this is Michael Vick too. As an Eagle he's been  a bird (attacking through the air) as well as a man (attacking on the ground). It is with that convoluted story that I bring you to the greatest challenge for the Giants defense: how to contain Michael Vick.

The Giants want to see Vick on the ground a lot Sunday (SI)

Justin Tuck tells SI's Peter King that the Giants gameplan is to pressure Vick. After watching Vick pick apart a passive Redskins defense, the Giants have decided to disrupt Vick's timing which makes a ton of sense. I think with Vick's ability now to be a pocket passer (and also the fact that the Eagles very wisely play Vick out of shotgun to keep him away from the line) makes him too dangerous to just sit in the pocket. When Vick was with the Falcons, the Giants would basically allow Vick to run around the pocket with a "shadow" designed to watch him from the linebacking position. With Vick's passing ability, you can't do that anymore. Especially not with the Giants' serious issues on deep throws.

The real issue for the G-men on Sunday may actually not be Vick--it may be themselves. Already with injuries at the offensive line and wide receiver, the Giants saw Ramses Barden hit Injured Reserve and now Shawn Andrews isn't even a definite for Sunday. If Andrews can't go, Will Beatty will get the start at left tackle with Kevin Boothe at left guard. This normally wouldn't be such an issue if Eli Manning had his best short yardage receiver, Steve Smith, to go to. But with Smith out until at least early December, Manning will have to find some way to gain time to throw the ball (more tight end sets? more shotgun? more bootlegs? more playaction?). Or the Giants will have to win the game on the ground with Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs leading the way to victory.

Read more>>

Adding Another MLB Playoff Team Would Be Bad For Baseball

Bud Selig has an amazing product (read: money printer) in Major League Baseball but like a spoiled, rich kid, Selig sees the National Football League and thinks: "hey, we're still not them". So with that in mind--and totally ignoring the fact baseball has a 162-game regular season or the fact that World Series are already played in November--this amazingly idiotic idea of adding yet another playoff team is gaining steam. As a Yankee fan, I should be happy since this basically guarantees the Yankees will make the playoffs every season, but I can't help but feel sad for the sport. Baseball actually made a great move with the first Wild Card back in 1995 but a second Wild Card would be totally counterproductive. To prove why, I would like to show you the "immortal" teams that would have finished as the second Wild Card team in each of the past few years:

The Yankees 2008 Games 3 starter, Sidney Ponson (NYDN)

The 2010 San Diego Padres: Totally collapse and lose the division? Don't worry, you're still in the playoffs! You may have not really been up to snuff, but this is America in 2010 and you get extra credit points for trying. Congrats, kids...you're going to the playoffs!

The 2010 Boston Red Sox: All those injuries weren't really your fault so we're just going to give you a ticket to the big dance. Besides, you had to battle hard to make sure you won the second Wild Card spot over those tough Chicago White Sox and Manny Ramirez!

The 2009 Florida Marlins: Your owner doesn't care enough to spend on the team? It's OK! That's what Uncle Bud is here for! You'll love all that extra revenue from making the playoffs and can spend it on your guys next year--well, if you want to, of course.

The 2009 Detroit Tigers: Sober up Miguel Cabrera, because you're going to the playoffs! Forget that epic collapse down the stretch! Forget that embarassing arrest! You can booze it up when the World Series is over right after Thanksgiving!

The 2008 New York Mets: Don't you worry your little heads about blowing that big lead--again. For a second year in a row, we've got you covered with Wild Card #2! Jerry Manuel is a hero leading you guys to the playoffs. The Wilpons will have to wait before bulldozing Shea.

The 2008 New York Yankees: You really shouldn't close the Old Yankee Stadium without some playoff games so here they are! Imagine a playoff rotation of Andy Pettitte, Mike Mussina, Darrell Rasner and Sidney Ponson! The competition will be shaking in their boots!

Read more>>

You Can Get With This Or You Can Get With That Week 11

Get with Shaun Hill not with Ben Roethlisberger

All signs point to avoiding Big Ben as QB in Week 11 (WaPo)

Looking at Roethlisberger’s gaudy stat line last week can be very deceiving. All 3 of his touchdown passes against the inconsistent New England secondary came in the 4th quarter when the game was already out of reach. Against Oakland this week, the game will either be a lot closer or more likely a blowout in the Steeler’s favor, which will mean more Mendenhall than Big Ben. Hines Ward is recovering from a concussion and Mike Wallace will be blanketed by Nnamdi Asomugha. Plus, let’s not forget the Raiders are the second best team in the league against the pass.

The Lions love to throw and they have Calvin Johnson on their team. I don’t care who their quarterback is, I’m signed up. Shaun Hill has been more than serviceable this year, with his hefty weekly yardage numbers more than making up for his occasional pick. This week the Lions get the underachieving Cowboys secondary, which comes in a little nicked up after last week. The game will likely be a shootout and I fully expect Hill to play his part.

Get with Felix Jones not with Knowshon Moreno

With a blowout win against Kansas City, the Broncos we’re able to hand Moreno quite the week as he topped 100 yards rushing for the first time this season. When healthy, Moreno has been very much up and down this season. Against poor rush defenses (Jags, Seahawks, Raiders, Chiefs) Moreno has been great, but against better rush defenses (Jets and Niners) the story hasn’t been the same. The Chargers are 4th in the league this year against the run. You do the math.

Read more>>

NYAT’s Official Review of Jane Leavy’s Mickey Mantle: The Last Boy

I recently had the pleasure of reading Jane Leavy’s latest work, Mickey Mantle: The Last Boy.  Although this is certainly not the first book written about or by Mickey Mantle, I found Leavy’s work to be rather insightful, particularly for someone like me, who is several generations removed from the days in which The Mick roamed centerfield for the Yankees.

Mind you, Leavy’s work is not a traditional biography or biopic of Mantle. Her work is an attempt to not simply understand who the really Mickey Mantle was, but how he came to become the Mickey Mantle that we remember.  More importantly, she attempts to ascertain what it was that may have contributed to this distinction.

As you might be able to deduce from the title, Mantle was the last of his generation, a boy in a man’s world, playing a boy’s game yet also being asked to be a man at the same time.  Like many of his teammates, be it Billy Martin or Whitey Ford, it was easy to remain a boy in a man’s world, but even easier when you were Mickey Mantle and your potential for baseball greatness outweighed your need to mature into an adult.  At his core, Mickey Mantle was really just ballplayer who felt most secure on the baseball field and most vulnerable when he was not there.  Tormented by several factors, including the young death of his father, instances of child molestation from a former babysitter, and his consistent bouts with injuries, he turned to the psychologically numbing effects of alcohol.  His affection for liquor became his greatest and most public vice, as it stuck with him for almost his entire adult life.

Read more>>

Applying the "Unearned Run" Principal to Other Sports Stats

In baseball, there is a such thing as an unearned run. It's a run that not the pitcher's fault because some player on his team made an error. Errors themselves are not exactly cut and dry: "could the player have caught the ball?", "did they touch the ball?" and "is this a catch you expect the player to make?" are all questions asked before an official scorer gives an "E" or a hit. I think this is a great way of figuring out the true performance of a pitcher. While the pitcher should be expected to hunker down and not let runners score even when an error is made, the fact that a run resulted from that error can't always be seen as a pitcher's fault. Here's a few other statistics in sports that need to be changed among the same principal idea:

Eli Manning's numbers would look a lot better if tINTs were taken out (WSJ)

NFL -- The Tipped Interception: Eli Manning has had a really good season overall. He has the 5th-most passing yards in the league and is tied for Phillip Rivers for the most passing touchdowns...but he has 13 interceptions to 19 touchdowns, a pretty bad ratio for someone considered an "elite" quarterback. Those 13 INTs put him second-worst in the league to Brett Favre. But anyone who has watched the Giants this season know that Eli Manning didn't truly throw 13 INTs--over half (the Wall Street Journal says at least seven) of those were balls that were either tipped or went through the hands of a receiver right into the arms of a waiting defensive back. Tom Coughlin calls it a "damn plague". In my opinion, those types of picks need to be separated from the chuck-em-up-into-a-crowd INTs (which Manning will throw some of as well). My proposal? A tINT stat that measures the amount of balls that were tipped for INTs. Now balls that the QB threw horribly, a receiver gets his fingertips on and is intercepted by the defense doesn't count here (some of it will take a scorekeeper's ruling like an error), but this will help separate real INTs from the Tipped Interceptions.

MLB -- Team Errors. I know we already have the unearned run in baseball, but we need the team error as well. A pop up to shallow right has the right fielder, second baseman and first baseman all racing for it. All 3 get there but then they look at each other as the ball falls to the ground. No one touched it so no one can be charged with an error, but is this truly the pitcher's fault? No. This should go as an error as well. E-Team. It is totally ridiculous that a player usually has to touch the ball to get an error (mostly in the outfield) since many of the time the issue is that the player doesn't touch the ball. If a player should have caught it but there really is no one to give the error to, just give it to the whole goddamn team. It's totally ridiculous that the announcers blame the ball for falling into the "Bermuda Triangle" when it really just falls in between a bunch of fielders who should have caught it. E-Team.

Read more>>

What Will Derek Jeter's Next Contract Be? (The Guesses & Contest Winner)

Our contest got a ton of entries, but the first prize winner of a copy of Jane Leavy's New York Times bestseller, "The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America's Childhood" is Peter McLaughlin (@pjmclaugh on Twitter). Congrats to him, but there were many, many more guesses of what Derek Jeter's contract will look like. It will be interesting to come back to these in a few weeks and see who wins the second book as the person who got closest (in years/dollars combination) to the actual result. Here are the predictions from our crowd sourcing prognostication (in annual value order and with options picked up):

Name	Years	Dollar	Average
@JayHyne	4	$48	$12.0
@Laurenmass	4	$60	$15.0
Alex O	4	$60	$15.0
@Scroiata	5	$75	$15.0
@NYsportSpace	4	$65	$16.3
@danreilly11	4	$65	$16.3
@hbk2369	4	$65	$16.3
Richie K	4	$66	$16.5
@eric_weinberg	4	$70	$17.5
@JobaRules26	5	$90	$17.9
@NYYEric	3	$54	$18.0
@AndyNY2	4	$76	$19.0
@pjmclaugh	4	$84	$21.0
@theharryadams	3	$65	$21.7
@treyalex09	3	$65	$21.7
Average	4	$67	$17.3

Read more>>

A Look at the Giants: The Dreaded Coughlin Trap Game Bites the Giants...Again

Yesterday's Giants game had all the makings of a trap game: a bad team that just fired its coach, a Giants team with a few key injuries, no one giving the opposition a chance to win the game, and, most importantly, a big match-up coming up the next game that the Giants were looking forward to and maybe looking past their current game. Every year under Tom Coughlin the Giants seem to play one of these games. For a coach who is supposed to be a disciplinarian who keeps his troops focused, this seems like it never should happen. But yesterday afternoon, as the power went out at New Meadowlands Stadium, the power went out of the Giants. Let's take a look at the trap games losses throughout the years under Coughlin:

A big Eli Manning INT again led to a Giants "trap game" loss (Star-Ledger)

Nov 14, 2010 (Week 10): Dallas Cowboys at Giants. The Giants had spoiled the home opener of the Cowboys in their new stadium and then had walloped them a few weeks ago. You knew that the Cowboys were going to come in and play with a purpose (so you thought maybe the Cowboys would cover the 14-point spread). But a 13-point win marred by a ton of Giants mistakes and 3 key turnovers? Awful. The Giants had plenty of chances to get back in this game and instead gave up long 3rd down gains, had a huge touchdown pass to Hakeem Nicks overturned because of a penalty, threw a 101-yard Pick 6 after first down at the 1, and generally looked like, well, the Cowboys of the past few weeks (the Cowboys have the 4th-worst defense and point differential in the NFL). With the Eagles looming on the schedule, the Giants were definitely looking ahead to that game and totally underestimated their opponent. The Giants are now going from a possible 1st round bye to possibly having to fight for their playoff lives in a span of one week. Trap game, indeed.

Nov 26, 2009 (Week 12): Giants at Denver Broncos. The Broncos had lost 4 in a row and looked totally lost when the Giants came in town having just won a huge post-bye week game against the Falcons but had a quick turnaround to play a Thursday night game only 4 days later against the Broncos. With Dallas coming next, the Giants got caught looking ahead once again as they fell behind 16-0 and were unable to recover. The Giants committed three turnovers including a costly fumble by Eli Manning in the 4th Quarter to seal the deal for the Broncos. The Giants got killed on the ground game with Brandon Jacobs and Danny Ware sharing the rushing lead with only 27 yards. The Giants defense continued to get slaughtered as they would finish the season giving up the 3rd-most point in the NFL (26.7 per game). The Broncos finished the season 8-8 and the Giants missed a golden opportunity to win a game and have a chance at a playoff berth.

Read more>>

In Favor of a Catching Competition This Spring

In 2003, Bernie Williams looked to be about done manning centerfield. He was only one year removed from a tremendous 2002 campaign, but after only playing 119 games in 2003 and with bad knees in centerfield to boot, the Yankees weren't content just letting Williams flounder around in center (his UZR was -20.2 in 2003 after -16.2 in 2002) and in the off-season they brought in Kenny Lofton as a free agent and told Williams he could fight it out with Lofton for CF and Ruben Sierra for DH. That's tough love for one of the most important Yankees of the past few decades, but it was just what Williams needed. That tough love--that competition--lit a fire under Williams. Williams would never be that pre-2003 player again, but at least in 2004 he gave the Yankees what he had given them in 2004, beat out Lofton in CF*, and, more importantly, he worked hard to win the job--and stuck around for two more years after that.

Montero will righfully have to earn it this Spring (LoHud)

The Yankees are in a similar situation with Jorge Posada. They have a very important player to their organization, a player who has probably been one of the top catchers of all-time (at least on the offensive side), a border-line Hall of Famer. But Posada's defense has gotten so bad and his hitting isn't anymore to the point where you can excuse that defensive liability just because of the hitting he provides. Having gone through the entire slate of external back-up catchers and realizing that Posada was eventually was going to turn into a pumpkin like Williams did, Brian Cashman and the Yankees organization has done a good job of stockpiling catching prospects. Jesus Montero, Austin Romine, Francisco Cervelli, Gary Sanchez, JR Murphy and others fill the Yankees organization throughout and provide themselves with an opportunity to not go out there and pay for old, mediocre players (as they did with Lofton in 2004).

But they shouldn't just hand the reigns of the DH to Posada nor the hands of the catching game to Montero, Romine, or Cervelli. After the 2007 season, the Yankees decided to hand the pitching over to a youth movement without any competition. Ian Kennedy and Phil Hughes managed to win zero games in 2008 as the Yankees back-of-the-rotation starters. Now this would be fine if the Yankees could afford a rebuilding year because look at what Hughes and Kennedy did this past season--they won a combined 27 games in each of their first full years as starters. But this is the Yankees and with most of their top players on the wrong side of the baseball age, they need to field a team next year that will make the playoffs.

Read more>>

A Look at the Giants: Say it ain't sO

What was the second-most anticipated game (behind the opener) in the New Giants (Meadowlands) Stadium kicks off at 4:15 PM this Sunday between the Cowboys and Giants. Before the season even began Giants fans were already circling November 14th for what was expected to be a division influencing game against a heated, and highly competitive rival. This game was supposed to be a big test for the Giants, especially after the infamous Eli signature in the opener at the new Cowboys Stadium infuriated the Boys; they made it clear they would like nothing more than to return the favor in their first game in the Giants new house.

Unfortunately, as so often is the case in the NFL, that incredible matchup that had tickets going at a premium is not the game the game we will see this Sunday. The Cowboys, at 1-7, are off to one of the worst starts in the history of their franchise and have seemingly given up on the season and avoided contact while being absolutely demolished in their last two games. The losing attitude became so pervasive that despite Jerry Jones commitment to keep moribund head coach Wade Phillips in place through the end of 2010 he was dismissed this past Monday, leaving former heir-apparent Jason Garrett to pick up the pieces.

Unfortunately for the Giants they are now not without their own issues. Their aging offensive line, one of their strengths back in 2007 when they won the Superbowl, has begun to break down and deteriorate. Injuries to Center Shaun O'Hara, Tack David Diehl and backup Center Adam Koets will force reserve Shaun Andrews and newly activated Kevin Boothe into starting action, with Guard Rich Seubert moving over to center. While the Giants were able to maintain continuity last week while shuffling their line up in Seattle, this will be a much taller challenge with Demarcus Ware starting across from this group. Look for the Giants to employ some extra protect schemes to keep Ware, who would likely love to avenge the Giants knockout of Tony Romo on Eli. The game will certainly test the Giants O-Line depth, but given how poorly the Cowboys have played they will likely get away with it for this week at least.

Now on to predictions. With Steve Smith unable to play and the O-Line shuffled yet again I expect the Giants will struggle a little bit on offense.

Giants 24
Cowboys 13

The Price Of Yankees Tickets in the Early 1980s (and Other Yankee Notes)

A few random thoughts on the Yankees and baseball:

• One of my co-workers, Adam, a die-hard Red Sox fan, had two Yankee season ticket stubs at his desk today from the 80s (a picture of them posted to the right from 1980 and 1982 for Field Box seats). Check out the price for a season plan on those tickets. The Sports Illustrated Photo Vault had posted the ticket prices from 1987 a few weeks back but these make you saw "wow" even more.

• While it doesn't look like the Yankees will be raising ticket prices to pay for Cliff Lee, the Yankees will be raising the parking prices. If people are still paying to park at Yankee Stadium, I'm very sorry. Meanwhile, the Red Sox will be raising ticket prices next year so they can retroactively have had enough money to sign Mark Teixeira.

• A report by Big League Stew at the end of October stated that the Florida Marlins were considering dealing their top prospect, Mike Stanton, for...wait for it...Ozzie Guillen. That amazing story had River Ave Blues and Tango trying to figure out what the Yankees could get for an actually good manager like Joe Girardi.

• When Joe Girardi was a Yankee, he went from the starting catcher to being slowly replaced by the young stud, Jorge Posada. Now Posada is the veteran who may be giving way this spring to super-stud prospect, Jesus Montero. With Posada only signed for one more season and Montero having nothing left to prove offensively in the minors, this makes all the sense in the world to me. I know he may not be great defensively but, really, is Posada or Francisco Cervelli being mistaken for Bench back there? Meanwhile, as Steven Goldman writes for Pinstriped Bible, Jorge is bowling for controversy with his comments. I think the Yankees should just tell the moody Posada he'll be lucky to catch more than 90 games in 2011 (though Joel Sherman thinks it will be a lot more). Make it simple

Read more>>

You Can Get With This or You Can Get With That Week 10

Get with David Garrard not with Tom Brady

Follow David Garrard to Fantasy success this week (KC Star)

The New England vs. Pittsburgh game promises to be a doozy on Sunday night, pitting two of the NFL’s best teams head-to-head under the lights. The Steelers' running defense is the best in the league, but their passing defense is only so-so. One might think this gives Brady some potential against a highly touted defense, but the Patriots passing game is primarily a short, dink and dunk, affair, which more closely resembles a running game. Woodhead and Welker better be ready for some big hits when they come over the middle. Couple that with the fact that Brady hasn’t been the same without Moss, and I’m very concerned about his performance this week. In his past 3 games he hasn’t topped 250 yards or a 60% completion percentage.

David Garrard is fresh off a bye and is ready to it to stick it to the league’s worst passing defense. The Jaguars will be home, where Garrard always plays better, and in his last game against Houston Garrard had a QB Rating of 106. Garrard is having a better season than people realize with 13 TDs and he’s been hot of late with 9 of those 13 have come in his last 4 games.

Get with LeGarrette Blount not with LaDainian Tomlinson

Read more>>

Family Guy Takes a Shot at the New York Mets

For those that missed last night's Family Guy, Stewie Griffin is shown wearing a Mets hat (sort of) and at a Mets game. Those who know Family Guy know that's not a good sign for Mets fans. Let's just say that Stewie isn't enthused by the Sandy Alderson signing in this very quick clip from the Family Guy Halloween episode:

Read more>>

Just for the heck of it: Tim Tebow Edition

In a recent episode of The Office, we learn that Andy Bernard once wrote a daily op-ed column in the Cornell student newspaper entitled "Bernard's Regards."  This may or may not have inspired me to start writing a daily NYaT op-ed entitled "Hyne Opines."

Okay, I probably don't have enough on my mind to justify a daily op-ed, but I hereby promise that from time to time I will post random sports-related bits "just for the heck of it."  So let's get started.

In case you haven't had a good eye-roll lately, I think I've found something that'll do the trick: Tim Tebow is writing an inspirational memoir.

In no way does Tim Tebow want to use football as a basis for converting you to Christianity.  Of course not.

The book is due to be released in April by HarperCollins.  23-year-old Tebow, who has now rushed the ball ten times in four professional football games, said his memoir will be a story "of faith, family and football" and hopes it will inspire people to "fulfill their dreams."  Excuse me while I go vomit.

A Look at the Giants: New York at Seattle

For the rest of the NFL season one of us who are fans of Big Blue will be providing you a mini-preview of the Giants game coming up on the Friday before. Now as we say Bye-Bye Bye (week), the 5-2 Giants head up to the great Northwest to face the Seattle Seahawks, a team coming off a drubbing. Here's what I see:

Pierre-Paul and the Giants D are looking to stop the 'Hawks (WSJ)

The Tom Coughlin/Eli Manning Giants don't play well in Seattle. In 2005 the Giants went into Seattle and lost in OT. A year later the Giants got the tar beaten out of them (the score made it look a lot better than it was as the Giants reeled off 27 4th Quarter point in garbage time). The Giants head into Seattle again with Eli Manning at the helm and this time, they're hoping for better results. But with a Seattle crowd to disrupt Manning (who is always dangerously close to an expiring play-clock), a careless manner to their recent play, and the Giants special teams in disarray, can they win a very winnable game and take down the 'Hawks?

The 2010 Seattle Seahawks have been easy to bet: beasts at home (thanks to a league-high 99 false starts since 2005) and brutal on the road.  But this is a different level of home game. A quick look at ESPN's Power Rankings from the time that Coughlin took over in 2004 shows that most of the Giants teams he's coached have peaked around this time of the season (except for the disaster that was last year). This Giants team is no exception with Eli Manning, Ahmad Bradshaw and Hakeem Nicks providing a QB/RB/WR combination as good as any Giants team and a defense that has stepped it up, especially Defensive Player of the Month, Osi Umenyiora and improved rookie Jason Pierre-Paul. It's usually bad news, however, when people start picking the Giants for the Super Bowl.

So what happens on Sunday? The Giants need to control first downs on both sides of the ball as well as they have so far this season--which can be a natural noise reducer--but they need to find a way to stop Leon Washington from killing them on special teams. With a much healthier Giants team (only missing their center, Shaun O'Hara with the dreaded Lis Franc sprain) than the Seahawks (who are without their starting quarterback), this should be a blowout. But, alas, the Giants seem to be unable to blow any bad teams out this season, winning closer-than-needed-to-be games over Detroit and Dallas--and I see another one of those this week. My prediction: Giants 20 - Seattle 16. 

Guest Post: A Second Look at the Knicks

When asbestos isn't falling from their ceiling, the 2010-2011 New York Knicks are adjusting to their new-look lineup (minus LeBron). Thankfully, Alex O is watching them--also, thankfully, he's watching them from the safety of his own couch--and he is back with another guest post on the Knickerbockers:

Considered a reach pick by many, Landry Fields has shined for the Knicks (NYT)

-----------------------------------------------
Time to give a quick update after the Knicks preview I posted. After a mind-boggling shooting performance of 16-24 from 3-Land the Knicks beat up on the Bulls in Chicago. It was great to see a team effort on a night that Amare did not play well and continued to make a lot of turnovers (above his career avg. so far). Toney Douglas continues to impress as does Raymond Felton, both with their D, abilities to increase tempo of the game and certainly the three point shooting.

A friend of mine pointed out my lack of discussion of Landry Fields who is now the starting shooting guard for the New York Knicks. He has not disappointed. David Thorpe from ESPN has him listed as the #5 rookie.

His shooting and scoring make you forget he is a rookie and his rebounding has been a big bonus as the Knicks need all the help they can get in this area.

The extra time off the Knicks got because of the asbestos issue in the Garden may have been what Danilo Gallinari needed to get out of his shooting slump as he broke out last night with 24 points (7-11 shooting, 4-4 from 3 and 6-6 from the line). He has been nursing a wrist and he says it is still not 100%.

After the game last night Amare Stoudemire pointed out that the league’s scouting report on the Knicks is clog the lane and let the Knicks shoot. Last night they moved the ball and nailed the wide open threes. There is a learning process going on with so many new players getting used to a new system and playing with each other. Anthony Randolph saw his first action last night which was less than 3 minutes. When he gets healthy he will eat into the time of several Knicks.

Read more>>

Last Chance to Win a Great Prize

As we told you on Monday, we're giving out TWO copies of Jane Leavy's New York Times bestselling book, "The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America's Childhood." For those of you who missed it, all you have to do to win is to tell us what you think Derek Jeter's next contract will be. Simple as that. We'll extend the guessing to the end of the day to give everyone a chance to win. Then we'll announce the first winner on the book on Monday here at NYaT. Here are the rest of the rules:

Go on to Twitter and reply to us at @NoYoureaTowel and let us know what you think Derek Jeter's next contract will look like (years and dollar amount) with the hashtag #NextJeterContract. So a sample tweet would look something like this "@NoYoureaTowel I think that Derek Jeter will get a 3 year, $50 million contract #NextJeterContract".

If you don't have Twitter, you can let us know in the comments below as well. You have until Friday to get your guesses in. If you retweet this blog post (you can do so just by clicking that button below the post), you will double your chances to win.

Remember, you must be following us on Twitter at NoYoureaTowel to win (but you really should be already). Good luck and make sure to get your guesses in! Don't miss out on this great opportunity to win a fabulous book.

Hot Stove Coal: Should the Yankees Trade An Outfielder? (Nick Swisher Edition)

I know, I know: the report today from Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News is that the Yankees are out of the Carl Crawford and Jayson Werth sweepstakes. But I don't believe that for a second. The Yankees were also out on Mark Teixeira and look what happened there. Plus, I've already gone through the rest of the outfield having covered Brett Gardner and Curtis Granderson. So let's finish up the series and see if the Yankees should keep or trade their righfielder (and about-to-be-married-man), Nick Swisher.

Swish was a Yank for 2 postseasons; will he be around for a 3rd? (LoHud)

When the Yankees acquired Nick Swisher after the 2008 season, it was seen as a reclamation project. After putting up 3+ win seasons for the Athletics in 2007 and 2008, Swisher had struggled playing under Ozzie Guillen and looked like he needed a change of scenery. The Yankees acquired Swisher for three bags of baseballs players: Wilson Betemit, Jeff Marquez and Jhonny Nunez. He was owed just over $22 M for the next three years or $31.3 M for the next four depending on the option the club controlled. Swisher was originally acquired to be the Yankees everyday first baseman until the Yankees surprised many and signed the aforementioned Teixeira to a long-term deal. Suddenly, with first filled by Tex and the OF/DH spots all covered, Swisher was relegated to a bench role. That quickly changed in April of 2009 as Swisher's hot start combined with a Xavier Nady injury got Swish into the lineup everyday in rightfield. And since that time he's been one of the Yankees most important players.

After putting up 3.3 WAR last season in helping the Yankees win the World Series, Nick Swisher had the best season of his career, putting up a WAR of 4.1. Although Swisher became more free swinging and walked less in 2010 (only 9.1% of the time, a far cry from 16% last season), he improved his average (career high .288) and slugging numbers and combined that with improved defense in right. He seemed to come into camp in much better shape and besides a late-season knee injury, seemed to be playing with much better comfort in the field. He was also moved around quite a bit in the lineup, filling in the second slot at times and moving further down in the order at others (he batted in every slot except lead-off).

Read more>>

You Can Get With This or You Can Get With That Week 9

Get with Chad Henne not with Matthew Stafford

Matthew Stafford had a big game last week coming back from his injury with a 4 TD performance. While the TD’s were great, his other numbers weren’t. He completed less than 60% of his passes and averaged less than 5 yards per pass attempt. This week Stafford goes against the Jets. Revis is finally healthy and they made top QB Aaron Rodgers look terrible last week. The Jets will bounce back from last week’s embarrassment, and shutting down Stafford will be a focus of their gameplan.

Last time the Ravens played, they gave up 380 yards and 4 TD’s to Ryan Fitzpatrick. No disrespect to the Harvard grad, who’s actually playing pretty well this year, but the Ravens are vulnerable in their secondary. Brandon Marshal and Davone Bess are an excellent WR combination and now they go against a Ravens secondary that couldn’t stop Lee Evans and Steve Johnson. The Dolphins are slowly becoming a passing team with Ronnie Brown not giving them much on the ground. I see Henne following in Fitzpatrick’s footsteps this week.

Get with Jonathan Stewart not with Marshawn Lynch

I thought Marshawn Lynch’s move to Seattle would lead to a resurgence for the much maligned rusher. However, Lynch has not been able to take advantage of the opportunity. Last week he gained 7 yards on 9 carries against the Raiders. He can blame it on a banged up O-line, but I don’t see things improving much against the G-Men this week who are 3rd in the league against the run and have shut down the likes of Arian Fost, Jahvid Best, and DeAngelo Williams. If Hasselbeck can’t go, Lynch will get more opportunities but even less room to run.

Jonathan Stewart again gets the backfield all to himself this week after not doing much last week with DeAngelo Williams ailing. When Stewart played the Saints earlier this year, he had 76 total yards and a TD. I can only see those numbers improving as he will undoubtedly get more than 8 touches this week. Carolina always plays the Saints close, especially at home. After a big win against the Steelers last week, I think the Saints are poised for a let down. Last year Stewart was great when Williams was out, and I think he gets back to that this week.

Get with Patrick Crayton not with Marques Colston

Read more>>

Hot Stove Coal: Should the Yankees Trade An Outfielder? (Curtis Granderson Edition)

Yesterday we looked at whether the Yankees should trade Brett Gardner to make room for Jayson Werth or Carl Crawford. The overwhelming response seemed to be against it. But let's move around the outfield and check out Curtis Granderson. Although heading into September it looked like there was no way the Yankees could trade The Grandyman, a strong end to the season coupled with a really hot playoffs could change some minds. But is it enough to make it worth trading Granderson? Let's take a look.

In the end, The Grandy Man could for the Yanks in 2010 (NYP)

Curtis Granderson came to the Yankees with great expectations, having been traded for much-heralded prospect Austin Jackson and two pitchers who were on the Major League team in 2009 (Ian Kennedy and Phil Coke). So when Jackson (and Kennedy) hit the ground running and Granderson failed to produce at the beginning of 2010, many saw it as a bust. And they weren't so far off. Although he missed most of May, Granderson wasn't missed much in the Yankees lineup as he hit .233/.302/.392 through July 20th with only 7 HR and 24 RBI. Part of Granderson's problem was a BABIP one, but at times he looked just plain overmatched at the plate. He was awful against lefties and wasn't much better against righties and his inability to get on base was making his speed worthless.

But as the season went on things started to click. Granderson hit two solo homers on July 25th against the Royals and including that win, Granderson would hit .255/.342/.557 the rest of the season with 17 HR and 43 RBI. But at the time he wasn't hitting southpaws. Anyone who watched Yankees games all season could see that Granderson's swing was too long and had too many moving parts and after swallowing his pride and working with Kevin Long in August, Granderson turned around his season against pitchers regardless of which side they threw from. From the New York Times' piece on Kevin Long we linked to a few weeks back "with a shorter swing, Granderson hit more homers (14 to 10) and drove in more runs (34 to 33) over his final 165 at-bats than he did in his first 301." September was Granderson's best month of the year as he hit .263./.362/.596 with 9 HR and 25 RBI.

His hot hitting spilled over to the playoffs where Joe Girardi started him regardless of what hand the starter was going to be pitching with and he rewarded Girardi's faith with a big hit in Game 1 of the ALDS. In the Yankees 2010 postseason Granderson hit .357/.514/.607 with 4 XBH and 6 RBI. He also had 8 walks (and one HBP) to only 5 K. Although the Yankees were eliminated, Granderson went from zero to hero for the Yankees and a lot of credit has to be given to him for his willingness to adjust mid-season when needed. Overall Granderson put up a WAR of 3.6 for the regular season which was his highest output since an amazing 7.4 in 2007. Although he got terrible jumps for much of the season, Granderson finished eighth in the Fielding Bible Awards for centerfield and had an UZR of 5.3 which was his first positive output in the past three years. And although we don't get to see the inner workings of the clubhouse, Granderson seemed to fit in well there and his adjustment to New York was completed in the playoff run.

But will the Yankees keep him in the clubhouse in 2011?

Read more>>

Hot Stove Coal: Should the Yankees Trade An Outfielder? (Brett Gardner Edition)

The World Series is over so it's time to fire up the Hot Stove Coal series once again. Last off-season the Yankees passed up on bidding for Jason Bay or Matt Holliday. Some of the thought behind that was that they would wait one season and bid heavily on Carl Crawford or Jayson Werth, both seen as better options for the Yankees than last year's duo. But with free agency about to descend upon us, the question has to be asked: do the Yankees have any interest in acquiring an outfielder? And if that answer is yes, who do the Yankees trade in the outfield? We'll take a look at each of the Yankees outfielders over the next week but let's start in leftfield with Brett Gardner.

Brett Gardner's defense was huge for the Yankees in 2010 (Star-Ledger)

It's funny to look back at the uproar that was caused by the Yankees not signing Holliday or Bay, trading away Melky Cabrera, and handing the leftfield job to Brett Gardner. Even the prognosticators saw Gardy as only slightly improved on his 2009 self. Gardner responded by hitting .277/.383/.379 with a .358 wOBA and 47 SB. Almost as impressively, Gardner's defense was among the best in the game. He won the Fielding Bible Award in a 10-point upset over 3-time winner Carl Crawford. Mike Axisa of River Ave Blues followed that up by writing: "it didn’t factor into voting, but Gardner did finish with the highest UZR (+22.3) and UZR/150 (+39.7) in baseball this season, regardless of position." He also set the record for most pitches per plate appearance (since the stat has been tracked). All this added up to 52.1 runs above replacement which was roughly 5.4 wins, good for 9th among American League position players according to FanGraphs, ahead of such guys as Joe Mauer, Ichiro, Victor Martinez, and any Yankee besides Robinson Cano (which means he also produced the greatest value relative to his salary). Baseball-Reference was slightly less kind, putting Gardner at 4.0 WAR, though his defensive WAR was 7th in the American League among position players putting him into the upper echelon.

The problem with Gardner is that he needs to duplicate that success of getting on base to be successful. Gardner was on a tear early in the season, hitting .321/.403/.418 through the end of June. That also coincided with the time that Clayton Kershaw nailed Garnder with a 91 MPH fastball on the right wrist. Although X-rays came back negative and Gardner said he felt better, his results after that told a different story. Gardy hit .232/.363/.340 the rest of the season and really seemed to struggle to drive the ball. In mid-September an MRI showed considerable inflammation in that wrist and he received a cortisone shot. Although he hit a little better the rest of the regular season, his bat was dead in the playoffs as he hit .185/.285/.185 in the postseason with no extra-base hits, 2 SB, 8 K and 3 BB. Although he still saw a lot of pitches, he looked like he was unwilling to swing the bat until absolutely necessary, making some wonder if his wrist was not bothering him some more. And it sure didn't help that C.J. Wilson supposedly stepped on Gardner's left hand when he slid into first on that fateful play in Game 1 of the ALCS.

Read more>>

Trivia Tuesday: Derek Jeter and Mickey Mantle Edition (with a prize!)

Well it's not exactly our regular trivia, but we're continuing our contest from yesterday: guess Derek Jeter's next contract and win a prize. Click on that link and check out the rules but it's really as simple as that. You don't even have to be right as one random guesser will win a book too. Don't miss out on this great and easy opportunity to take home a copy of the New York Times' Bestseller by Jane Leavy for free. For all those Mickey Mantle, Yankees and baseball buffs out there, this is an opportunity not to be missed. So go on Twitter and let us know your thoughts!

What Will Derek Jeter's Next Contract Look Like? (with a prize!)

Last week we gave out a copy of Jane Leavy's new book that everyone is talking about, the New York Times bestseller, "The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle and the End of America's Childhood." The Tuesday Trivia winner was Richard Iurilli and we want to congratulate him on winning the first book (it will be in the mail very shortly). While Ben W is diligently reading through the book to write a review on the blog and Richard will be starting to read his shortly, we have two more books to give away.

Here's how we're going to do it: go on to Twitter and reply to us at @NoYoureaTowel and let us know what you think Derek Jeter's next contract will look like (years and dollar amount) with the hashtag #NextJeterContract. So a sample tweet would look something like this "@NoYoureaTowel I think that Derek Jeter will get a 3 year, $50 million contract #NextJeterContract".

If you don't have Twitter, you can let us know in the comments below as well. You have until Friday to get your guesses in. If you retweet this blog post (you can do so just by clicking that button below the post), you will double your chances to win.

On Friday I'll select one random Twitter guesser to get a book (you must be following NoYoureaTowel to be eligible--and remember, retweeting gets you 2x the chances!). The last book will go to the person who comes the closest to the actual Derek Jeter contract when that is signed (and can be on Twitter or here in the comments). The crowdsourcing answers will be compiled into a blog post so make sure to send good guesses. You don't know when he'll actually sign that contract, so make sure to get your guesses in quickly just in case he signs this week!  Good luck!