42 posts from February 2009

Monthly Roundup - February 2009

Feb 28, 2009
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Here were some of the more interesting items that appeared on the blog this February:

Today, I wrote an entry about the baseball card industry.

On February 26th, I discussed some errors in The Yankee Years.

On February 21st, I received my first TTM success from a Yankee (Mike Mussina).

On February 11th, I referenced an article from foxsports.com and discussed power numbers from the Steroid Era.

On February 9th, I talked about the hypocrisy of baseball.

On February 8th, I did a podcast with Bob from The Voice of the Yankees Universe.

On February 7th, Alex Rodriguez was reported to have taken steroids as a member of the Texas Rangers.

The Baseball Card Industry

Feb 28, 2009
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The sport of baseball has never been more popular or widely-marketed, and yet, the baseball card industry suffers more and more each day. Old timers will tell you how baseball cards were a staple of their childhood; the same cannot be said for today's youth. I have always been an avid baseball card collector, but in today's world, this places me in the minority.

The baseball card industry is struggling to regain relevance in the world of 21st century technology. Why is this? Alan Narz, owner of Big League Cards, offers an explanation: "Everything got too complicated. There was just too much of everything. No one could keep up with it and there was no commonality for collectors. It needs to be simple again so people will want to build (complete) sets and stay excited about it."

Sports cards revenues peaked in 1991 at $1.2 billion. Since then, it has dropped to under $300 million. Many claim the reason to be the arrival of Upper Deck in 1989, which started selling packs for an unprecedented rate of $1. The cards featured improved photography and graphics, but without the gum.

Other new companies followed in Upper Deck's footsteps, targeting their product to nostalgic baby-boomers instead of children. Then, as the 1994 strike approached, the bubble burst. "A proliferation of card purveyors, combined with the 1994 baseball strike and surging popularity of video games, depressed sales," says Erik Spanberg, who has done extensive research on the subject.

Evan Kaplan, the category director of trading cards and collectibles at the Major League Baseball Players Association, is trying to reverse this trend. "There were a number of issues that plagued us during the past 10 years and now the intent is to market and promote the card better and attract kids. We are looking to work very closely with Topps and Upper Deck to improve in those areas."

How will Kaplan go about this? He envisions lower-priced cards and better distribution. He wants more drugstores, convenience stores, and delis selling cards. He also wants to improve display areas at bigger retailers (Wal-Mart, Target).

In my opinion, the biggest thing the baseball card industry needs to improve on is the extensive inserts that have become a nuisance to collectors. It seems that in every pack of five cards, there is at least one card that is either an advertisement, a checklist, or a filler that has nothing to do with an actual player. This has made it harder (and much more expensive) to complete sets in recent years.

There is hope, however. Michael Eisner purchased Topps a few years ago and has promised improvements to his product. There has also been an increase in baseball card blogs and sites - there are literally hundreds of them now. If the industry decreases prices, increases awareness, and makes less inserts, I am confident that baseball card collecting will become a more popular past-time for kids.

(Quotes and information can be credited to csmonitor.com)

Joba, Giese struggle

Feb 28, 2009
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The Yankees are currently down 6-3 in the fourth inning of Game 4 of Spring Training.

Joba Chamberlain struggled in his one inning of work, allowing three hits and two runs. Dan Giese also struggled - in two innings, he gave up four hits, a walk, and four runs.

Combined, the Twins have seven hits in eighteen at bats, and the Yankees have five hits in eleven at bats. It looks like this one is turning into a slugfest real fast.

Update: The Yankees end the day with a 7-3 loss at the hands of the Twins. In two days, the Yankees have lost two games to the Twins, and their spring record now stands at 2-2.

Thanks for the memories, Warner

Feb 27, 2009
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I was just browsing through the videos collection here at The Bronx Insider and came across this video:

Yankees score nine in the seventh inning

I am totally ready for the season to get started and watch some Yankee baseball for the first time in five months (has it really been that long?)

And for the record, you can thank Warner Madrigal for this inning.

Who was the editor for this book?

Feb 26, 2009
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The Yankee Years

Joe Torre

I recently obtained a copy of The Yankee Years and have already found two mistakes in the first four pages. They're pretty significant factual errors, actually, and I'm beginning to question how thoroughly this book was edited (of course, I still have over 400 pages left).

Here was the first mistake I found:

Showalter's crimes in Steinbrenner's book were blowing a two games to one lead in the best-of-five Division Series against the Seattle Mariners.

The Yankees actually blew a two games to none lead (they won the first two games at home and then lost the next three games at Seattle).

The next mistake I found was a bit more obvious:

(Torre) answered questions with humor and optimism, and did not hesitate to talk about his lifetime goal of winning the World Series, something the Yankees had not done in 17 years, the longest drought for the franchise since it won its first in 1921.

The Yankees won their first pennant in 1921, but they won their first World Series in 1923.

I hope I'm not coming off as pretentious, but the fact that a seventeen-year-old like myself has found two mistakes in the first four pages is wrong - especially in a book as widely publicized as The Yankee Years.

Yanks Improve to 2-0

Feb 26, 2009
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I didn't catch the game on YES today, but it's good to see that the Yanks won their second game of the spring, this one by a score of 5-1. Jorge Posada went 2-for-2 with a home run, Shelley Duncan hit a bomb, and all seven Yankees pitchers (Hughes, Coke, Bruney, Marte, Cox, Melancon, Albaladejo) threw well.

I am so looking forward to watching these guys pitch throughout the remainder of the spring and into the regular season. Phil Coke was dominant in his short time in the majors last year, and it seems he has continued his success early on in '09. I haven't seen Melancon pitch yet, but I've heard his stuff is amazing. Hopefully, he continues to progress, since he will probably be the heir to Mariano Rivera. Albaladejo has to be in the conversation too- there is a good chance that he will make the team out of Spring Training.

Boy, it's good to have baseball is back, eh?

Yankees win their first ST game, 6-1

Feb 25, 2009
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A-Rod Homers

The Yankees won their first Spring Training game today by a score of 6-1.

The Yanks sported this lineup:

Brett Gardner CF

Derek Jeter SS

Robinson Cano 2B

Alex Rodriguez 3B

Nick Swisher RF

Shelley Duncan DH

Juan Miranda 1B

Todd Linden LF

Kevin Cash C

Brett Gardner hit a leadoff home run, and Alex Rodriguez was booed (and then promptly hit a home run). After the game, A-Rod said that, "This is what I do. I know how to play baseball. I just hope that this is the start of something really special for this year. I feel really good about our team." Amen to that.

On the pitching side, Brett Tomko started and pitched two shutout innings. Jose Veras, Dan Giese, Kei Igawa, Christian Garcia, Michael Dunn, Steven Jackson, and David Robertson followed (Veras gave up the only run).

All in all, it was a good day for the Yanks, and it's nice to see that they have already established a winning atmosphere for the 2009 season.

Nady or Swisher?

Feb 24, 2009
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Bronx Banter sparks the debate- who should start in right field? They offer a plethora of stats on the two, raising a lot of good points.

My view? I think Nady is a better overall player. That said, the Yanks should give Swisher plenty of at bats, possibly using him as a platoon player. If he can return to where he was a few years ago, Swisher could end up being an invaluable part of the team.

Baseball's top 10 managers

Feb 24, 2009
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Dayn Perry of foxsports.com recently ranked baseball's top 10 managers. It's a very interesting list, check it out:

10) Terry Francona

9) Ozzie Guillen

8) Cito Gaston

7) Jim Leyland

6) Lou Piniella

5) Ron Gardenhire

4) Mike Scioscia

3) Joe Torre

2) Bobby Cox

1) Tony LaRussa

Gardenhire is the only one listed who hasn't won a World Series.

General Joe Moves Up The List

Feb 23, 2009
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Girardi

With the recent firing of New York Rangers head coach Tom Renney, an amendment must be made to this list. Joe Girardi is now the fourth-longest tenured head coach/manager in the metro area.

The 2009 season, unlike 2008, will feature a lot more criticism and second-guessing of Girardi, I'm afraid. And if the team doesn't perform up to par, well, it won't be good times for General Joe.