The Marlins won the world series. Before that it was the Angels. What teams exactly are unable to compete? The Royals? Do the Brewers need to win the Series before people stop b****ing about payrolls?
He's a Yankee fan. That is always the excuse they use about how they have an unlimited budget compared to everyone else - well we haven't won the World Series in 4 years (never mind that we were there 2 out of the last 3 and have been in the playoffs 12 straight seasons). Sorry, Hydra, but until the Yankees start missing the postseason, I am not buying your argument.
You can't honestly think that the Yankee rotation this year is better then last season can you? It's 5 righty's in a park built for lefty's. Out of the three guys they picked up one guy is an ace, one is coming off of Tommy John and didn't pitch in 2003 and one was a whopping 13-12. But I guess those three are MUCH better then Clemens, Pettitte and Wells? Clemens, Pettitte and Wells were 53-24 last season while Brown, Vasquez and Lieber were a whopping 27-21. Give me a break! Brown and Vasquez did have ERA's under 4, but they also didn't pitch in the AL. The Yankee rotation has the "potential" to be good this season, but three of their pitchers are unproven with the exceptions being Brown and Mussina. They do have a great closer, but their middle relief is far from proven as well. On the flip side the BoSox have three proven aces in Schilling, Pedro and Lowe. Is the Yankees rotation improved upon since last year? No, and the numbers prove it. Is it better then the BoSox rotation? One could make a good argument for both, although 1-3 the BoSox win with ease. With their lineup the Yankees don't need the greatest rotation in the world to win the AL East, but they will need more then two aces to win the series. All I know is that for 190m payroll they should have a bit more then two aces and three starters with "potential."
one more thing...watch contreras this year. the yanks got off good without having to give him up in the arod deal. i am a die hard houston fan....but lets be realistic about things. contreras was dominant when he started. brown is a dominating pitcher who put up over 200 innings like usual. moose is strong. vaz has the control of an ace with the strikeouts too.
In the past two seasons Lowe is 38-15, and last season would have easily been a 20 game winner if Boston's middle-relief wouldn't have sucked so damn bad. As for Contreras, he is still unproven; 71 total innings and 9 games started is far from a good track record. The Yankees only have two proven great starters and the BoSox have three proven great starters. Once again I could really care less about the AL East race until we hit October, but to say Brown/Lieber/Vasquez is better then Clemens/Pettitte/Wells is laughable. The Yankees rotation is very sketchy and by the mid-season trade deadline they'll pick up at least one lefty, if not two.
well vaz is a better pitcher than pettitte brown is better than clemens by far lieber...who knows... contreras...you know my opinion on him. i think he is going to kick ass this year. he is just too good to not kick ass.
also...lowe had a 4.47 era last year...i think the benefit of the best offense in baseball made up for that crappy relief. if you want to throw out his win/loss record as a something that is good then i guess jeriome robertson is good too...
This year's Yankees are going to be like last year's Braves. They are going to overwhelm their opponents with offense and rely less on their pitching.
seriously...do you think kevin brown is nothing? or do you just think he will get hurt? along those lines...do you think javier vazquez sucks? look at his numbers...they are just better than pettitte's we all know moose is a very strong pitcher who hasn't pitched under 200 innings in the past 9 seasons plus the yanks still have the top closer in the game and they have a bad ass bully too. quantrill, karsay, gordon, and prinz. although it kind of sucks when your lefty specialist is felix heredia!!!
I despise the Yankees, but their team is freaking nuts. They're gonna trot out an all-star team. If they stay healthy (a big "if," but one every MLB team has to rely on), they're going to dominate. Is A-Rod a big upgrade over Soriano? Abso-freaking-lutely -- trading one of the best at his position for one of the best in the game is always a positive step. And getting him for $16 million a season (!) is absolutely criminal. The Red Sox were so close to getting the best player in baseball. I admire them for being fiscally responsible, but letting A-Rod slip through their fingers may turn into their biggest boner since 1918. Again: Effin Yankees!!!
Sorry Red Sux fans. According to ESPN it's done! Announcement scheduled at 2pm ET. Welcome aboard ARod!!!!
Yes, it is better due to comparing the past performances of Wells, Clemens, Weaver, and Pettitte to those of Brown, Vazquez, Contreras, and Lieber. The media overemphasizes this. It was NOT built for lefties, it simply has a large LF compared to an average sized RF. Clemens, Pettitte, and Wells played with the second best team last year. These are the three year averages of the above mentioned six pitchers. Put them in order of the best pitcher to the worst pitcher, and guess their names. Player A: 17-6, 3.90 ERA, 31.7 starts, 114 ERA+ Player B: 13-7, 3.76 ERA, 32.5 starts, 110 ERA+ Player C: 16-8, 3.82 ERA, 28.7 starts, 118 ERA+ Player D: 13-12, 3.52 ERA, 33.3 starts, 131 ERA+ Player E: 13-7, 4.08 ERA, 25.6 starts, 109 ERA+ Player F: 9-6, 2.86 ERA, 20.3 starts, 133 ERA+
While I didn't think it was a good deal for Boston because I felt that giving up Man-Ram was too big a price for A-Rod, this deal with the Yankees is almost too good to be true. Boston-fan can argue all he/she wants about how A-Rod shouldn't move to third(and I'll agree), but replacing Soriano in the leadoff spot with Lofton and adding A-Rod to the lineup is simply amazing.
If the Red Sox are one, then so are the Mets and Mariners (and the Braves and Giants aren't far behind). Those three teams have virtually the same revenues. And the Yankees have a $50 million lead on them.
UHHHHH The Curse Lives on.... Im still hoping for my Houston Red Sox World Series.... but It looks like its going to be pinstripes versus pinstripes.....Theo Trade for someone please... get Piazza.... get Frank Thomas... get Pujols.... do something
