The NY Yankees' Fans' Thread

[Arethusa]

Calling All Outposters!

For those of you who participated as sponsors of teams in the Yankees' Fans' thread I posted at THC and HFTM, 101 has said I can move it to the Sports Forum at the Outpost.

I've kept the name "Yankees' Fans' Thread" - actually a thread about baseball - in the years since it first started in 2006 at HBO, then moved to Court TV and then THC and then HFTM, all now gone by the wayside more or less for one reason or another - to make it easier to find for long term readers and participants.

TC has been a sponsor of the Rays and SFV from THC the Giants. I've sponsored the Phillies each year as an NL team in my home area.

Justice1 of HBO, THC and the Outpost has been a co-sponsor with me of the Yankees and Ronnie from HBO and THC (under a different nic) has been a long-time sponsor of the Boston Red Sox.

I'm still waiting to hear from HFTM sponsors of teams such as the Reds, Rockies, Braves and Cubbies as to whether or not they want to remain when the thread resumes here.

But, if any of you are fans of these teams, they will continue on the list nonetheless.

The way the thread works is for me to provide a daily list of the upcoming schedules and past scores for the sponsored teams to follow their progress on the way to the postseason.

As well as some news about the Yankees and big headlines from MLB about other sponsored teams and their players, plus regularly posted links to MLB news and informational sources.

Year before last, of the 8 sponsored teams, 6 made it into the playoffs and SF won the World Series.

It didn't work out so well last year with only 2 of the teams making it into the post-season and not for very long either.

So, if you want to add a team - for now, I'm assuming TC still wants to hear about his Rays and we can't leave out 101 and his Tigers, just say the word and I'll include them.

The thread will start up during the first week in April when MLB's regular season begins.

Thanks and Have a great Monday and Week Ahead!

Arethusa

[dustdevil28]

Hey Arethusa,

Good luck with your thread. I'm an A's fan so there are few teams in this world I hate as much as both the Red Sox and the Yankees. The Yankees for the typical reasons, and the Red Sox for having the gall to always play themselves as the perpetual "underdogs" and labeling the Yankees as the "evil empire" when the Red Sox themselves have the 2nd highest payroll in baseball.

I look forward to talking some baseball. This year doesn't look good for the As. We signed Manny Ramirez of all people, so the year is already a wash before it began. I like seeing the Rays challenge in the AL East, it's neat to see someone else contend for a bit.

Overall I think the Phillies have the best shot at winning the World Series. They had all the tools last year to do it, then got stunned by the Cardnals. I think this year they'll come through.

-DD

[Arethusa]

Mar 19, 2012 13:42:23 GMT -8 dustdevil28 said:

Hey Arethusa,

Good luck with your thread. I'm an A's fan so there are few teams in this world I hate as much as both the Red Sox and the Yankees. The Yankees for the typical reasons, and the Red Sox for having the gall to always play themselves as the perpetual "underdogs" and labeling the Yankees as the "evil empire" when the Red Sox themselves have the 2nd highest payroll in baseball.

I look forward to talking some baseball. This year doesn't look good for the As. We signed Manny Ramirez of all people, so the year is already a wash before it began. I like seeing the Rays challenge in the AL East, it's neat to see someone else contend for a bit.

Overall I think the Phillies have the best shot at winning the World Series. They had all the tools last year to do it, then got stunned by the Cardnals. I think this year they'll come through.

-DD

***

Great to see you again, DD, and welcome to the Yankees' Fans' thread!

Wonder how the Cubbies will do with Theo Epstein as GM and how Beantown will do without him?

After seeing "Moneyball", I'm thrilled to add the A's to our list and follow their progress through the season.

Have you seen the movie, and if so, what did you think of it?

And what is your opinion of Billy Beane's signing of the recent Cuban exile, Yoenis Cespedes (hopefully not destined to be named "centepedis"), for "moneyball" dollars because he's an unknown quantity in MLB?

And for which Billy has predictably been subjected to a few liners from MLB pundits, like with his signing of "Manny Being Manny" because nobody else on the face of the earth wants a thing to do with him.

Here's a link to a report on the Cespedes signing for those interested:

bleacherreport.com/articles/1064257-yoenis-cespedes-signs-with-oakland-as-5-most-shocking-offseason-moves

Needless to say, Good luck to your Oakland Athletics and may Billy flummox all doubters the way he did in the early 2000's.

It will be fun to watch and see how it all turns out.

See ya' in April!

Arethusa

[dustdevil28]

Haven't seen the movie yet, so can't comment.

My own baseball philosophy is that you need pitching first, everything else second. Beane did great in the early 2000s, but a lot of that had to do with our three headed monster of Hudson, Mulder, and Zito.

Till we get a respectable rotation again I'm afraid we're going to be battling with Seattle to keep from being the bottom of the AL West.

-DD

[Arethusa]

Mar 19, 2012 18:02:46 GMT -8 dustdevil28 said:

Haven't seen the movie yet, so can't comment.

My own baseball philosophy is that you need pitching first, everything else second. Beane did great in the early 2000s, but a lot of that had to do with our three headed monster of Hudson, Mulder, and Zito.

Till we get a respectable rotation again I'm afraid we're going to be battling with Seattle to keep from being the bottom of the AL West.

-DD

*****

'Morning, DD,

I hope you'll see "Moneyball", because I think you'll enjoy it.

With your comments above in mind, I checked out the Spring Training standings yesterday and wondered if you knew that your A's are at the top of the Cactus League with 14 wins and 4 losses?

They're ahead of SF by 3 wins, and neck and neck with the Grapefruit League leading 101's Tigers and the Blue Jays.

It goes without saying that Spring Training standings don't impress me one bit (the Yankees just clawed back to 9-9 after winning yesterday's game LOL), and that doing well before real baseball begins carries the risk of burning out early and not being able to go the distance later on.

But it is a good sign that a team is "clicking" early - another factor besides pitching that helps to earn wins.

Anyway, here's the link to ESPN's page for Spring Training results for 2012:

espn.go.com/mlb/standings

Have a great Wednesday!

Arethusa

[socialcaesar]

I'm a fan of the Blue Jays and I hate both the Yanks and the Red Sox. Here's hoping that this year the Jays will make the playoffs.

[dustdevil28]

Mar 21, 2012 2:41:13 GMT -8 Arethusa said:

Mar 19, 2012 18:02:46 GMT -8 dustdevil28 said:

Haven't seen the movie yet, so can't comment.

My own baseball philosophy is that you need pitching first, everything else second. Beane did great in the early 2000s, but a lot of that had to do with our three headed monster of Hudson, Mulder, and Zito.

Till we get a respectable rotation again I'm afraid we're going to be battling with Seattle to keep from being the bottom of the AL West.

-DD

*****

'Morning, DD,

I hope you'll see "Moneyball", because I think you'll enjoy it.

With your comments above in mind, I checked out the Spring Training standings yesterday and wondered if you knew that your A's are at the top of the Cactus League with 14 wins and 4 losses?

They're ahead of SF by 3 wins, and neck and neck with the Grapefruit League leading 101's Tigers and the Blue Jays.

It goes without saying that Spring Training standings don't impress me one bit (the Yankees just clawed back to 9-9 after winning yesterday's game LOL), and that doing well before real baseball begins carries the risk of burning out early and not being able to go the distance later on.

But it is a good sign that a team is "clicking" early - another factor besides pitching that helps to earn wins.

Anyway, here's the link to ESPN's page for Spring Training results for 2012:

espn.go.com/mlb/standings

Have a great Wednesday!

Arethusa

Huh, I was not aware of that. I normally don't track spring training records, because as you state, it doesn't really matter much in the great scheme of things.

At least this is a small sliver of hope though. Even with the Angels getting Pujols, they still don't have the pitching Texas has so we'll see if the A;s can't create just a little havoc.

-DD

[tankcommander]

The Rays should have some great pitching again this year. If they can get a little bit more out of their bats, I think they'll be a real contender. I'm glad to see Carlos Pena' back after a year with the Cubs. I think the AL East is gonna' be a dogfight between the Yankmee's, Red Pox, and Rays! ;D

[socialcaesar]

Mar 22, 2012 5:41:30 GMT -8 tankcommander said:

The Rays should have some great pitching again this year. If they can get a little bit more out of their bats, I think they'll be a real contender. I'm glad to see Carlos Pena' back after a year with the Cubs. I think the AL East is gonna' be a dogfight between the Yankmee's, Red Pox, and Rays! ;D

The Blue Jays have a very good starting pitching staff and have some pretty good hitters also. I think they'll be in the thick of the AL East race too.

[Arethusa]

Hi Again DD and HELLO TC, my friend, and Socialcaesar, my fellow poster about the Roman Empire and fine art!

What fun it's going to be to have most of the AL East on the list of teams to follow this year!

I'm thinking of placing them in the order of finish last season.

Yanks, Rays, Boston and Toronto.

Or should we make it alphabetical with the Blue Jays first? ;D

Decisions decisions!!!

This year, with the off season trades and acquisitions, including Theo Epstein becoming a Cub and Albert Pujols an Angel, real baseball is going to be especially fun to watch.

And I must say I'm particularly excited that A.J. Burnett has joined the Buccos.

A team as popular and accomplished in the NL as the Orioles are in the AL.

But, I never underestimate their capacity as spoilers.

See y'all the first week in April and others who want their teams followed as well.

Have a great evening and weekend ahead,

Arethusa

[Arethusa]

Greetings All Yankees' Fans' Threadsters - Posters, Readers and Team Sponsors Alike!

Wednesday, which was yesterday in Japan, marked the first of a two game series between the conquering hero, Ichiro Suzuki, and his Seattle Mariners and DustDevil's Oakland Athletics to mark the start of MLB's 2012 Regular Season.

And harkening back to your comment that, without a good rotation, the A's will wind up in the tank with Seattle, DD, this is not a promising omen.

But, then again, there is still a lot of baseball to play.

Including a game on Thursday (which is today in Japan for those who live in the US), between the two teams that are there more to boost morale for the Japanese Nippon League and the country's citizens after the devastating quake and tsunami of March 11, 2011, than to set markers for their success over the next 7 months.

According to this piece from VOA about the visit, the games are doing the trick because everywhere the A's and Mariners are playing, their games are completely sold out.


Ichiro Sparks Mariners Win in Japan for MLB Opener

Voice of America
Wednesday, March 28th, 2012 at 6:20 pm

Japanese baseball legend Ichiro Suzuki had four hits and drove in a run, leading the Seattle Mariners to a 3-1 win over the Oakland Athletics in the opener of U.S. Major League Baseball's 2012 season in Tokyo Wednesday.

Suzuki finished 4 for 5 batting third for the first time after playing lead-off nearly all his career. Infielder Dustin Ackley fired the game-winning hit in the top of the 11th inning for Seattle, who had the worst offensive record in the majors last season.

The game is the fourth time MLB has opened its season in Japan. But it is the first time Ichiro returned with the Mariners to play in his home country since the superstar left Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball league in 2001.

The season opener and a second game Thursday at the Tokyo Dome are sold out, with tickets going for as much as $250 per seat.

The two U.S. teams will spend a total of a week in Japan. They have already played several exhibition games in front of sell-out crowds against professional Japanese teams. They also held a baseball clinic earlier in the week in a tsunami-battered district in northern Japan.

Seattle Mariners President Howard Lincoln says he hopes the game will encourage victims of the devastating earthquake and tsunami that struck northeast Japan one year ago.

“One of the things I hope this opening series will bring is small measure of help to all the victims of the great earthquake and tsunami of last year. Let's hope that all of the people that are still suffering get some small measure of joy from these games.”

Mariners pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma, who played last year for a Japanese team in the tsunami-struck region, says he wants his performance to inspire those in the region who are still struggling to recover.

“Because I played last year for the team that was based in the disaster area, I really wanted to give something back to the local community there. I thought one way to achieve that goal was to play for a major league team. I hope what I have done will inspire people in the disaster area and encourage them.”

But the main draw for Japanese fans is Ichiro, who is by far the most successful Japan-born player to make the transition to the U.S. league. In 11 years, he has won a Most Valuable Player award, two batting titles, 10 Gold Glove awards, and appeared in 10 All-Star games. But the 38-year-old outfielder is coming off his worst season so far, and the only one in which he has failed to reach 200 base hits.

Even so, Japanese baseball fans still have another reason to keep a close eye on the MLB this year. Another one of their baseball stars – Yu Darvish – signed a record-breaking $60-million contract with the Texas Rangers in January. The son of an Iranian father and a Japanese mother, the right-handed pitcher was the most highly sought-after international player in several years.

Through last season, 38 Japan-born players have appeared in the major leagues.

Link: blogs.voanews.com/breaking-news/2012/03/28/ichiro-sparks-mariners-win-in-japan-for-mlb-opener/

***

The rest of the MLB teams will start playing next Thursday on the 4th, which is when regular coverage will begin in this thread of the sponsored teams scores' and schedules.

Here are links for ESPN's MLB opening week schedule and team standings, respectively for taking a look in the meantime:

MLB Schedule of Games w/ Some TV Listings Where You Can Watch Them:

espn.go.com/mlb/schedule?date=20120404


MLB Team Standings' Link:

espn.go.com/mlb/standings


Lastly - Here is the Current List of YF's Thread Sponsored Teams (with Notation of Where Their Sponsorship Originated) Whose Scores and Schedules Will Be Posted Daily Starting Next Week:

American League:

DustDevil's (The Outpost) Oakland Athletics - ALW

Socialcaesar's (The Outpost) Toronto Blue Jays - ALE

Ronnie's/Marie's (HBO & THC) Boston Red Sox - ALE

101ABN's (The Outpost) Detroit Tigers - ALC

TankCommander's (THC & The Outpost) Tampa Bay Rays - ALE

Arethusa's (HBO, CT TV, THC and The Outpost), Justice 1's (THC & The Outpost) and Grins' (HFTM) New York Yankees - ALE

****

National League:

Rem16's (HFTM) Chicago Cubs - NLC

SFV's (THC) San Francisco Giants - NLW

Littlewheel's (CT TV and HFTM) Colorado Rockies - NLW

Arethusa's (HBO, CT TV, THC and The Outpost) Philadelphia Phillies - NLE


All tolled we have ten teams to follow with some perennial top contenders in both leagues.

If there are other teams any of you wish to add to this list, you can do so at any time, but I'd like to hear soon because it's easier to fit them into our "rotation" from the beginning.

Thanks and good luck to all of you for a great 2012 MLB Regular Season!

Arethusa

[dustdevil28]

What the hell?

Does the MLB have the worst publicists in the world?

Everyone already knows when the NFL season will start and which game will kick off the season, but nobody knew today was opening day for MLB.

I didn't even know the A's were in Japan to play the Mariners, and i watch sportcenter every day!!!

Anyway, just random comments.

-DD

[Arethusa]

Mar 28, 2012 17:36:30 GMT -8 dustdevil28 said:

What the hell?

Does the MLB have the worst publicists in the world?

Everyone already knows when the NFL season will start and which game will kick off the season, but nobody knew today was opening day for MLB.

I didn't even know the A's were in Japan to play the Mariners, and i watch sportcenter every day!!!

Anyway, just random comments.

-DD

*****

I completely agree!

I discovered this news only yesterday morning, although I'd heard of the plan to start this season in Japan way back in the off season.

It didn't hit the MSN headlines that reach the masses of readers until yesterday, sad to say.

So everyone else who'd lost track of the time and the names of the teams that were involved was caught off guard as well.

That's unfortunate for MLB because this effort says so many great things about the A's, the Mariners and American baseball!

Edited to add this live game track feed from Foxsports.com for the second game now underway between the A's and the Mariners that is still scoreless as we speak (3/29/12 at 6:20 a.m. EDT) in the 5th:

msn.foxsports.com/mlb/gameTrax?gameId=320329111

Enjoy your Thursday!

Arethusa

[socialcaesar]

I also didn't know today was opening day. What the hell!? Thanks for the info Arethusa. You are a gem. A gem I say!!!!

[socialcaesar]

THC? Are you telling me the History Channel has opened up its community boards again?