Humpday Roundup

It's noon on Wednesday, the apex of the hump. It's all downhill from here. You know, in a good way...

According to Joel Sherman, although the Yanks haven't announced it yet, they have decided to put Curtis Granderson in centerfield. I was initially in favor of Granderson playing left field due to Brett Gardner's superior range, but this post in particular from Rob Neyer convinced me that there are some pretty good reasons for Granderson to play center. And of course, that alignment can change during the season if it isn't working out.

Sherman also says that Phil Hughes is likely going to be the 5th starter when the season begins. Not much of a surprise there. Now they just need to send Joba Chamberlain to AAA (not that I'm holding my breath for it).

Via Jennings, the Yanks have released 9 players from minor league camp. Not to many recognizable names, save for Seth Fortenberry and Chirs Malec.

Cliff Corcoran from Bronx Banter took a detailed look at what the Yankees see in Sergio Mitre. He talks about what happened this spring but goes well beyond the typical stats and takes more of a scouting perspective. I'm important to keep that sort of stuff in mind since was only a year removed from Tommy John surgery when he made his debut for them last season. Now he is closer to 20 months and is supposedly feeling much better.

Remember Jason Giambi's motto: Rake like an All-Star, party like a rockstar and hammer like a porno star. Well he wasn't kidding about at least one of those. (via the B-Ref blog)

Craig asks whether this year will be the one that age finally catches up to the Yanks.

This is a couple of days old, but still pretty hilarious.

Steve Sommer from FanGraphs directs us to a spreadsheet courtesy of Cot's detailing how much "dead money" each team is responsible for this season. They Yankees are paying $4.5M, which is pretty low compared to the Blue Jays, Dodgers and Angels, all of whom are close to $16M but high compared to the Cardinals, Mets and White Sox, who are about $8-9M in the black.

For those in the NYC area, 12 Angry Mascots (the folks behind the hilarious Fernando Perez video) doing a show with former Yankee Jeff Nelson this Saturday, March 28th at Comix (14th St & 9th Ave). You can check out some of their stuff on YouTube and buy tickets here.

From around the league and beyond:

Surviving Grady has a video of Youk discussing the options for his facial hair contest with some of his fellow Sawx in the locker room. Judging by Terry Francona's reaction to "clean shaven", (the current leader in the clubhouse) I think we made the right choice with our donation. However, with John Lackey throwing his weight and newfound financial might behind the mustache, the race is far from over.

Do wOBA and linear weights in general undervalue Ichiro by treating all outs the same? Tango, referencing RE24, says yes. In-depth stats not your thing? I think we all can enjoy this awesome catch Ichiro made yesterday.

Elijah Dukes' wife defends her husband on New York Baseball Digest.

David Pinto's Baseball Musings turns 8 years old today. That's like 150 in blog years.

Our friend Josh Levitt, formerly of Jorge Says No!, has moved to the new MLBFreeAgency.com. He joins It's About The Money, Stupid, Wezen-Ball, Pending Pinstripes, NYY Stadium Insider and many others on the Bloguin Network.

Similarly, for hockey fans, Rob from Bronx Baseball Daily has started up Broadway Hockey Daily.

Bad news for Doc Gooden and anyone else who might have been on the road in Franklin Lakes, N.J. last night.

Matt Sussman runs down some farcical ideas that baseball could adopt to prevent marathon extra innings contests.

In that same vein, Josh Zerkle from KSK collects some of the options that the NFL rejected for its new overtime rules. Noticably absent are the sudden death coin flip; one time through the card game War; rock, paper scissors; a punt, pass and kick competition; and a four on four mixed martial arts match in an octagon in the middle of the field.

16 Days Until Spring Training: Dwight Gooden

With the fifth pick of the 1982 draft, the Mets selected a lanky right handed pitcher from Tampa, Florida with an incredible amount of raw talent but only two years of experience pitching in high school. Gooden was not yet Doctor K. and had only begun to harness his talents when the Mets started him in Rookie Ball in Kingsport, Tennesee that year. He won the MVP of that league and finished the '82 season in Little Falls with the Mets' NY-Penn League team.

Gooden started 1983 in High-A ball and proceeded to destroy the Carolina League with a 2.50 ERA and 19-4 record, leading the 1983 Lynchburg Mets to a 96-43 campaign, 10.5 games ahead of their next closest competitor. After jumping all the way from from High A-ball to the Big Show in 1984, he pitched 218 innings at a 2.60 ERA and won 17 games. He also took home the Rookie of the Year, finished second in the Cy Young voting, became the youngest All-Star in the history of the MLB, and struck out all three hitters he faced in the game.

Doc's '85 season made his rookie campaign look pedestrian. Dr. K tossed 276 2/3 innings and the only time his ERA was over 2.00 that year was after his first start of the season. He won pitching's Triple Crown, leading the league in ERA (1.53), wins (24) and strikeouts (268). He threw 16 complete games, including two back to back CG shutouts in September although he received a no decision in both. That year the Mets won 98 games but finished 3 games out of the postseason.

When the Mets won the World Series in 1986, Gooden threw 250 regular season innings at a 2.84 ERA, won 17 games and made it back to his third All-Star game in his first three years as a pro. He didn't get the decision in any of the games he started that postseason (and actually took three losses), but in Game 5 of the NLCS against Houston, Doc went 10 innings and only gave up one run. He missed the Mets victory parade that year and told people he overslept, but those closest to him knew the truth. He was already an alcoholic with an even more serious addiction about to be publicly revealed.

In December of that year, Gooden's legal troubles began, when he was arrested after being involved in vicious brawl with Tampa police. The officers were accused of racism and thought to have used excessive force so when the District Attorney released a report clearing them of any wrongdoing, 3 nights of rioting in Tampa ensued. In Spring Training in 1987, Gooden tested positive for cocaine, agreed to enter a rehab center, and as a result didn't make his first start until June 5th. However, that didn't stop him from winning 15 games and finishing 5th in the Cy Young Voting.

Still only 23 years old in 1988, Gooden threw 248 more innings of a 3.19 ERA, picked up 18 wins and made another All-Star team. Unfortunately, his 1988 season might best be remembered by the game tying home run he gave up to Mike Scioscia in a game they eventually lost to the Dodgers, leveling the NLCS at 2-2, instead of giving the Mets a 3-1 lead.

After missing more than half of the '89 season (but still pitching effectively in his appearances), Gooden had another very solid season in 1990. He struck out 223 in 232 2/3 innings, finished 4th in the Cy Young voting, and even got some acknowledgment in the MVP race. On two terrible Mets teams in 1992 & 1993, Gooden threw over 200 innings to about a 3.50 ERA twice, but picked up only 10 & 12 wins respectively.

Doc started off his 1994 season on the wrong foot, giving up 7 runs against the Cubs. He responded by kicking a step in the dugout and breaking his toe and went on the disabled list after only three starts. After he returned in June, he did cocaine for the first time in more than 6 years after it was offered to him at a nightclub in Manhattan. The downward spiral began quickly and the Mets announced on June 28th that he had violated the terms of his after-care program and would be suspended 60 days. After a month-long stay at the Betty Ford Center, Gooden fell off the wagon and began drinking and doing coke once again. He failed at least 8 drug tests and received a letter from Bud Selig that September informing him that he would be suspended for the entire 1995 season. It was during that time that he entered narcotics anonymous and began really trying to stop his destructive habits.

His problems with substance abuse, the extended period without pitching and the 1172 2/3 innings he threw from the ages of 19-23, all took their toll on Gooden. He returned to baseball in 1996 and signed with the Yankees but - except for some brief flashes - he was never the same again.

One of those fleeting moments of greatness game on May 14th against the Mariners when Gooden threw a threw a no-hitter. Just before the game, he had learned that his father needed a double by-pass surgery but he decided to take the mound instead of flying back to Tampa to be with his family. Unfortunately that game was the equivalent of sinking a hole-in-one on the way to shooting an 85, as he finished the season with an ERA of 5.01 and was left off the postseason roster.

He returned to the Yanks in 1997 and threw only 108 1/3 innings, but this time he did manage to be included on the 25 man for October. He started Game 4 of the ALDS and handed the bullpen a 2-1 lead after 5 2/3 innings but Mariano Rivera blew the save in the 8th. Despite appearing in 12 of them, Doc was never able to record a win in a postseason game.

At George Steinbrenner's insistence, Gooden was added to the Yankees in the middle of the 2000 season after he was released by the Devil Rays. He was a pretty useful piece for the Yanks that year, pitching 64 innings split between starts and relief appearances and recording a 3.36 ERA. He came in from the bullpen twice that postseason but sadly not against his former team in the World Series.

Since he retired in 2001, Gooden has had more than his fair share of legal troubles, spending time in jail and rehab for DWI, cocaine use and violating probation. In 2006, he chose to do time as opposed to extending his probation in hopes that being in prison would finally help rid himself of the addictions that dragged down his career. So far, it has. Gooden is now working as a Senior VP for the Newark Bears and has plans to open the Dwight Gooden Baseball Academy in New Jersey this year.

Gooden's story is simultaneously incredible and terrible. He had an ephemeral, meteoric rise at an impossibly young age. He also had an inescapable and tragic decline far too soon. Although he won 91 games by the age of 24, he ended his career with only 194.

Like many of the Yankee greats we have profiled in this countdown, Gooden holds a special place in the minds of the franchise with which he was most inextricably linked though his career wasn't great enough to get him into Cooperstown. Happily, the Mets recently announced that Doctor K, former Yankee Darryl Strawberry, Davey Johnson and Frank Cashen would be inducted into their Hall of Fame.

No word on whether their musical efforts will ever be given such recognition:

Burnett Returns, Carter Departs

Good morning Fackers. At the risk of spoiling our preview for later, A.J. Burnett will start for the Yankees tonight. Burnett left the club after Sunday's clincher to fly back to Arkansas, where his father had triple bypass surgery yesterday. Reports from around the club prior to last night's game indicated that the procedure went well and that Burnett will rejoin the team in time for tonight's start.

While Burnett will be pitching the night after his father had open heart surgery, on May 14, 1996 Dwight Gooden took the ball the night before his father was to have open heart surgery. Doc tossed a no-hitter that night. The Yankees would settle for less than that from Burnett tonight, as a third straight respectable start would further alleviate concerns generated by Burnett's struggles through August and early September. Regardless of his performance tonight though, Burnett and his family have already cleared their biggest hurdle this week, and it had nothing to do with anything that happened on baseball diamond.

---

In entirely unrelated and far less important news, the Red Sox DFA'd minor league first baseman Chris Carter yesterday. You may recall that the Yankees placed a waiver claim on Carter last month, as the Red Sox apparently tried to sneak him through as the player to be named later in the Billy Wagner deal. It was a bit of a dick move on the Yankees part, as they clearly had no interest in Carter, but it was also strategical as it forced the Sox to pull him back and continue to use a 40 man roster spot on him.

In the Yankees defense, the Sox were trying to skirt the system by sneaking a player on their 40 man roster through waivers as a PTBNL. While that's no consolation to Carter, who likely would have been in the Big League's for the last month had he made it through waivers, it was a risk that both the Red Sox and Mets took by agreeing to a creative deal.

The Sox have ten days to trade, waive, or release Carter. Because the season has not ended and it's after July 31st, Carter still has to clear waivers in order to be traded. And since the Sox pulled him off waivers once already, they no longer have that option to pull him back should he be waived this time around. There's a chance he could be released outright and sign with the Mets, though I'm not sure MLB would view that as being completely on the level. While this has absolutely no bearing on the Yankees or really even the Sox any longer, I am interested to see how it plays out and how the Wagner deal ends up being completed.

Paging Doctor Goodwin

My buddy Frank spotted this rather amusing typo in the Post yesterday on our way down to the Giants game.

You guys remember Dwight Goodwin, don't you? I believe he used to play left field for the Yankings and the Vets.

And check out this guy who was sitting in front of us in section 306.

He spent 90% of the game standing up and gesturing wildly to the people behind him. I believe that by buying patterned shirt of your favorite NFL team, you thereby agree to attend every home game and act like a douchebag. Fun times though, as the Giants won by a final score of 23-17 even though they outplayed the Redskins by far more than that. Eli Manning looked sharp, completing 20 of his 29 passes to his new receiving crew. We also walked away with roughly 3 of the calendars and towels they were giving away at the door per person. The only bummer is that rookie wideout Hakeen Nicks is out for a couple of weeks with a sprained foot.

I'm still recovering from yesterday, so content may be a little fluffier than usual around these parts. Bear with me.

Through The Looking Glass

The second leg of the 2009 Subway Series slated to get underway at New Shea later this evening. In preparation for this, I made an advance scouting trip to the park last Friday evening. In many ways New York City's other new taxpayer (and bailout) funded baseball stadium is similar to the one in the Bronx; in others it's entirely different. In both regards, it was a bit of a trip to Bizarro World.
The most striking thing about the park is that Shea Stadium is gone. Not even a trace of it. While a trip to the Bronx still gives us a fleeting glimpse of the place the Yankees used to call home, a parking lot now exists where Shea once stood. If you'd never been there before, you'd never know it was once there.

Unlike the new Stadium, the outside of Citi Field features many adornments. In addition to the banners on the structure, the Mets also have a courtyard like area where Mets fans had the luxury of purchasing personalized bricks to be stepped upon for all time. Somewhere Lonn Trost is kicking himself for not tapping this revenue stream. As you can see in the picture below, Hooked on Phonics did not quite work for all Mets fans.

Inside the difference is quite stark. Whereas the Yankees have their spacious but cold Great Hall paying tribute to the legends of their past, the Mets have the Jackie Robinson Rotunda, an inviting and intimate entraceway that is smaller and feels more welcoming. What Jackie Robinson accomplished and endured in breaking the color barrier is remarkable, and he, his memory, and what he represented are deserving of accolades and remembrance. But I find it somewhat off that the Mets feel it appropriate to name their rotunda for him because he used to play in the same league but a different borough more than half a century ago.

Off the rotunda is the main clubhouse store. I happened upon the section called Rehab Row and snapped the shot below. Note the prison jumpsuit orange in the shirt to the left. Not pictured: the Keith Hernandez Collectible Airplane Bathroom (mound of cocaine sold separately).

The concourses at Citi are narrower than at the Stadium. They also lack a frieze of photos of World Championship Mets teams wrapping the circumference of the concourse. 1969 and 1986 can only stretch so far. The Citi concourses, like the Jackie Robinson Rotunda, feel more welcoming than the Stadium's. Instead of cold concrete walls, art galleries, and butcher shops, the walls are covered in a red brick facing. The concourses also have a leg up on the Stadium in that they feature high top tables from which you can eat, drink, and watch the game all at once.

We made our way to the open air food court beyond the bleachers. This is a really cool area. There are arcades and play areas to keep the kiddies occupied and Mr. Met himself was there glad-handing with the fans. Starving, I elected to skip the absurdly long line for the Shake Shack and saddled up for some Blue Smoke Barbeque. I would have taken a picture of the pulled pork sandwhich, but I downed that thing before it ever had a chance.

Now I'm as big a fan of Brother Jimmy's as they come. But as a far as ballpark eating experiences go Blue Smoke > Brother Jimmy's. However, until I see a bartender repeatedly light the bar on fire at Blue Smoke, as far as binge drinking experiences go Brother Jimmy's >> Blue Smoke.

Our seats were located directly behind home plate in the upper deck, with convenient access to the upper deck level open air food court. This made it quite easy to run down and get a beer, which by the way are more reasonably priced than in the Bronx.

Another beef I have with Citi Field is the ridiculously shaped outfield, and not just because it's sapping David Wright's power thereby hurting my fantasy team. There's absolutely no reason for the outfield to be shaped that way. Like the dangerous hill in centerfield at Minute Maid Park, it's weird just for the sake of weird.

Attention owners and architects: old ballparks had quirky dimensions out of necessity. In the days before owners could bilk the taxpayers out of public funds to secure proper land for their parks, the parks were built to fit the cityscape around them. Landsdowne Street begot the Green Monster, Ipswich Street begot the Pesky Pole. Designing your outfield wall to take the shape of a drunken sailor's walk is not retro. It's contrived. It's stupid. It puts players at risk and prevents relief pitchers from seeing the actual field. In Citi Field's case, the dimensions are not that way to work around one of Flushing's prized chop shops. It's an attempt at duplicating Ebbets Field, just another example of Fred Wilpon's sick obsession with the Brooklyn Dodgers. Next thing you know he'll try to move the Mets to L.A. too. End rant.

One note on the game. It was exactly one week after Luis Castillo's error against the Yankees snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. As two fans both made spectacular barehanded catches on foul balls in the early going, I made sure to point out that they had better hands than Castillo. Later in the night, I shit you not, Castillo dropped the ball as the Mets attempted to go around the horn.

All in all, it was a worthwhile experience. There are few things I enjoy more than a day at the ballpark and I try to check out as many as I can. With a few Mets fans amongst my friends, I make it to a Mets game every year or so. Without a vested interest in the game I usually end up relaxing, having a few cold ones, and thoroughly enjoying myself.

D-D-D-D-Dr. K.!

I know this is no way "newsy" or current, but it's never the wrong time to make fun of the Mets.

I've listened to a lot of music in my life, but I can say with reasonable certainty that these are the two worst songs I've ever heard (aside from this one):


I'm going to put the over under of the amount of times "Dr. K." is said/sang in that song at 75. And take the over...

Notice the "sound effects" in the beginning. It's basically just some guy going "Sssshhhhhhh. Pppffff. Stteeeeerike One." into the microphone.

Here are some of the masterfully written lines which I painstakingly transcribed, just in case you overcame the masochistic impulses to keep listening, and turned it off after 15 seconds like any normal person should have.

Please note the commas, because the flow of the song is really that broken and choppy.

"There's a man named Gooden, from Tampa Bay,
But the Big Apple calls him, Dr. Kkkkkk!
He mows them down, with the greatest of ease,
Bringing big league hitters, down to they knees,
The number sixteen, is on his chest,
and he does a mean thing, for the New York Mets"

At the 0:53 mark, I'm pretty sure the line is:

"Smokin' with speed any night or day, that's why the fans like, D-D-Dr. K."

Wow. Please tell me I'm wrong.

The Chorus:
"Who's the baddest pit-cher today? Dr. K.! Dr. K!
Who's the Cy Young winner who hurls a K? Dr. K.! Dr. K!
Who leaves all the batters in dis-array? Dr. K.! Dr. K!
The premier Met Ace on displaaaaay! Dr. K.! Dr. K!
Uh Dr. K., Dr. K...
Doctor Kaaayyyyyyy...

"The Mets were hot in eighty-six, they came that year, with a lot of tricks"

"From New York City to Hollywood, everybody knows, the Doc is good"

-----

Not to be outdone, Darryl Strawberry made a song called Chocolate Strawberry.


Here is Darryl's solo verse, with some added commentary:

"My name is Dar-ryl, I'm a baseball playa,
One thing I forgot to say-uh,

You forgot to say something? It's your second fucking line. And you could have probably tried a little harder to make that rhyme. I just wrote a better rhyme by accident.

When I'm on the field on on top of the world,
I get screams from all the girls,

Wow, I'm really glad you remembered that!

Everybody in the Stadium screams for me,

Including the girls?

Strike one, strike two, but no strike three,
When I'm runnin', all the players make space,

Well, yes, because otherwise they would be called for interference.

I run, I slide, and then I'm safe
Yo, I ain't soft,
I even get paid on my days off,

Doesn't getting paid on your days off make you soft?

Grand Slamma!

Non sequitir!

(Are you as good as they, SAY?)
I guess you never came to see me play!
Any pitch you throw, I control it,

Me? The listener? I'm not pitching to you.

Lookin' for third base, Yo I stole it,
That's riiight,
I took it while you wasn't lookin',

Again, I think you are talking to the wrong person.

So gimme your beef, homeboy,
I'm cookin'.

No. No you are not. They should have cut your part after the first bar. You and Eddie Murphy must have had the same producer...

I can get loose so don't you try,
I graduated from Crenshaw High,

I'm actually surprised by that, could you provide some verification?

You can even ask Eric Boogie, E?

Oh, excellent. Eric Boogie, did Darryl graduate from Crenshaw High?

(My name is Darryl, but you can call me D, hit it)

Ladies: Straaaaawwwbeeeerrrr....

You didn't answer my question.

-----

If it's slow here today, it's because I'm off to Tampa to record my new tracks "Left and Large" with CC Sabathia and "Juicy Goosey" with A-Rod (his verse is in Spanish!).

Number of Days Until Spring Training: Dwight Gooden (#16)

When Doc Gooden played for the Yankees, he wore #11 in 1996 & 1997, and #17 when he returned in 2000. Obviously, he would have liked to wear #16, which he adorned while with the Mets, but it had already been retired in honor of Whitey Ford, who Cliff will pay tribute to later today.

Gooden burst on to the scene as a 19 year old in 1984, after destroying the Carolina League and leading the 1983 Lynchburg Mets to a 96-43 record, 10.5 games ahead of their next closest competitor. After jumping all the way from from High A-ball to the Big Show, he won the Rookie of the Year, finished second in the Cy Young voting, became the youngest All-Star in the history of the MLB, and struck out all three hitters he faced in the game.

His '85 season made his rookie campaign look pedestrian. Dr. K tossed 276 2/3 innings and the only time he had an ERA of over 2.00 was after his first start of the season. He won pitching's Triple Crown, leading the league in ERA (1.53), wins (24) and strikeouts (268). He threw 16 complete games, including two back to back CG shutouts in September in both of which, he got a no decision. That year the Mets won 98 games, but missed the playoffs.

When the Mets won the World Series in 1986, Gooden threw 250 regular season innings at a 2.84 ERA, won 17 games and made it back to his third All-Star game in three years as a pro. He didn't get the decision in any of the games he started that postseason, but in the NLCS against Houston, Doc went 10 innings and only gave up one run.

In December of that year, Gooden's legal troubles began, when he was arrested after being involved in a "full scale brawl" that took 20 police officers to contain. In Spring Training in 1987, Gooden tested positive for cocaine, agreed to enter a rehab center, and as a result didn't make his first start until June 5th. That didn't stop him from winning 15 games and finishing 5th in the Cy Young Voting.

Still only 23 years old in 1988, Gooden threw 248 more innings of a 3.19 ERA, picked up 18 wins and made another All-Star team. Unfortunately, his 1988 season might best be remembered by the game tying home run he gave up to Mike Scioscia in a game they eventually lost, leveling the NLCS at 2-2, instead of giving the Mets a 3-1 lead.

After missing more than half of the '89 season (but still pitching effectively in his appearances), Gooden had another very solid season in 1990. He struck out 223 in 232 2/3 innings, finished 4th in the Cy Young voting, and even got some acknowledgment in the MVP race. On two terrible Mets teams in 1992 & 1993, Gooden threw over 200 innings to about a 3.50ERA twice, but picked up 10 & 12 wins respectively.

Perhaps it was his problems with substance abuse or the 1172 2/3 innings he threw from the ages of 19-23, but Gooden never regained his dominant form.

After signing with the Yankees in 1996, he threw a no-hitter on May 14th against the Mariners, which was unfortunately the equivalent of sinking a hole-in-one on the way to shooting an 85, and was left off the postseason roster.

He returned to the Yanks in 1997, threw only 108 1/3 innings, but managed to make the postseason roster, where he started Game 4 of the ALDS. Gooden left after 5 2/3 leading 2-1, but Mariano Rivera blew the save in the 8th inning. Despite appearing in 12, Doc never got the decision in a postseason game.

At George Steinbrenner's insistence, Gooden was added to the Yankees in the middle of the 2000 season, but didn't pitch against the Mets in the World Series, thereby summing up the anticlimactic nature of his career. Although he won 91 games by the age of 24, he ended his career with only 194.

Since he retired in 2001, Gooden has had more than his fair share of legal troubles, spending time in jail and rehab for DWI, cocaine use and violating probation. In 2006, he chose to do time as opposed to extending his probation in hopes that being in prison would finally help rid himself of the addictions that dragged down his career.

Gooden's story is simultaneously incredible and terrible. He had an ephemeral, meteoric rise at an impossibly young age. He also had an inescapable and tragic decline far too soon.

We all know people who have tussled with the demons of addiction and substance abuse. Here's to hoping Dr. K can summon "Lord Charles" and strike them out for good.