The Idiocy Gene

Who better to leadoff a new installment of The Idiocy Gene than the greatest Idiot any village ever turned out . . .

In answer to the question: Why are the Yankees so up and down this season?

Our favorite baseball expert from BoSPiN, Joe Morgan, answers thusly:

Unfortunately, everything seems to be riding on A-Rod. When he's up they're up, when he's in a lull, they are.

A-Rod’s numbers in April were .355 BA, .415 OBP, .882 SLG% (!!!!), 1.297 OPS, 14 HR, 27 runs, 34 RBI’s . . . Pretty darn awesome! So the Yankee’s must’ve been ‘up’ in April since A-Rod was ‘up’, right? Oh, no, they were only 9-14 in the month. Huh . . . Something seems wrong with Joe’s analysis. Let’s look further.

A-Rod’s numbers in May were ‘in a lull’ at .235 BA, .361 OBP, .422 SLG%, .783 OPS, and only 5 HR and 11 RBI . . . So the Yankee’s must’ve slipped even further. No . . . they actually had a better record in May than in April. But according to the top analyst on BoSPiN the Yankee’s should have ‘lulled’ in May just like A-Rod. Something tells me the Yankees don’t listen to Joe any more than anyone else . . .

But surely during the Yankees only winning streak longer than three games all year (their 9-game winning streak in June), A-Rod was hot, right? YEAH, he was! A-Rod hit almost .500 during the teams’ streak with 5 HR and 21 RBI’s! Joe got one right! Weehoo!

But what a bummer it must’ve been for A-Rod when the Yankees immediately followed that 9-game winning streak with another ‘lull’ by losing 7 of their next 10 games. By Joe-logic, A-Rod hit another ‘lull’ during those 10 games as well . . . To the tune of an almost .500 BA, 5 doubles, 3 HR and a measly 9 RBI. Poor guy couldn’t hit water if he fell out of a boat . . .

So, A-Rod = Absolutely awesome for 2/3 of the year so far in 2007 . . . By Joe-logic that means the Yankees = Absolutely awesome for 2/3 of the year so far in 2007. And the team is 36-38. Something’s amiss here, Joe . . . It seems there is no correlation at all between A-Rod’s performance and the Yankees record so far this year.

So, you got any other ideas why the Yankees are so up and down, Joe?

The biggest mistake they made was getting rid of Sheffield.

Really. Getting rid of SOD, huh? Not trading Randy Johnson to Arizona for Pez? Not failing to outbid their biggest rivals for Daisuke Matsuzaka, and then ‘failing’ by actually winning the rights to Kei Igawa who stinks like 10-A-C roadkill? Not failing to do much at all to a woeful pitching staff until they decided to pay Roger Clemens like a kazillion dollars per breath in mid June?

Even though the Yankees have scored the 3rd most runs in baseball this year, but have a patchwork pitching staff and a far overworked bullpen due to starters continued failures, the biggest mistake the team made was giving up an excess hitter with an attitude only Terrell Owens could appreciate?

Maybe it’s me . . . But I think that’s wrong, Joe. Could you explain why you think this way? Maybe I’m just not seeing it because I’m not close to the game like you are, Joe.

He's [SOD] been the leader on that team offensively the three years that he was there, except the year A-Rod was the MVP. He and A-Rod carried the team. Matsui and Jeter were contributors, but those two carried the team.

Oh, okay, I got it now. SOD was so other-worldly fantastic offensively during his three years in NY that the team couldn’t hope to replace such production in the lineup. Let’s take a look at some numbers to support that cogent analysis, shall we?

2004
SOD - .927 OPS….36 HR….121 RBI…..117 runs
Matsui – .912 OPS..31 HR….108 RBI…..109 runs
A-Rod - .888 OPS..36 HR…..106 RBI…..112 runs
Jeter - .823 OPS…..23 HR……78 RBI…..111 runs

SOD was good, but the best? Maybe. Carried the team? No way, no how. SOD was no more a leader offensively on that team than Matsui, A-Rod, Jeter, or even Bernie Williams (who’s numbers were almost equal to Jeter’s across the board). Not looking good Joe . . .

2005
SOD - .891 OPS…….31 HR….123 RBI….104 runs
A-Rod – 1.031 OPS…48 HR….130 RBI….124 runs
Giambi - .975 OPS…..32 HR…..87 RBI……74 runs
Jeter - .839 OPS……...19 HR….70 RBI…..122 runs
Matsui - .863 OPS……23 HR...116 RBI…..108 runs

This was A-Rod’s MVP year Joe eluded to. So at least he ‘except-ed’ this year as a year SOD was the ‘leader’ of the team offensively. Joe failed to mention though that SOD wasn’t even the 2nd best (Giambi) on the team offensively. And considering Jeter’s year and Matsui almost equaling SOD across the board, the argument could be made that SOD was no more than 4th or 5th best on the team offensively.

But again, Joe conceded this point . . . kinda.

2006
SOD - .806 OPS……6 HR…..25 RBI……22 runs
A-Rod - .914 OPS…35 HR…121 RBI…..113 runs
Jeter - .900 OPS……14 HR….97 RBI…..118 runs
Matsui - .887 OPS…..8 HR….29 RBI……32 runs
Giambi - .971 OPS…37 HR…113 RBI…..92 runs

Now this is hardly even fair to debate, but hey . . . Joe brought it up.

SOD was injured for most of 5 months in 2006. I would have assumed Joe would have known this, but . . . well, he is Joe Morgan. And he did say that SOD’s been the leader on the team offensively in every year he was a Yankee except A-Rod’s 2005 MVP year. So how exactly did SOD lead the team offensively for 5 months while on the DL? I’m not sure really, you’d have to ask Joe that one.

However, I am sure A-Rod was a far better leader for the offense in 2006. And Jason Giambi was even better than A-Rod. Jeter was probably the best leader of them all for most of the year. Jorge Posada and his 23 HR, 93 RBI, and .867 OPS did a far better job of carrying the team than SOD. Heck, Matsui was more valuable in his limited action. Bobby Abreu was far more valuable to the team and he only played in 1/3 of the Yankee’s games. And Cano . . . And Damon . . . By my count, SOD was no better than the 9th best leader offensively for the Yankee’s in 2006.

So it seems to me, in not even one year he was a Yankee was the SOD the ‘leader of the offense’. And no way, no how did he ever carry the team.

But surely, now that he’s infecting the Tigger clubhouse, the Yankees are showing signs of decline offensively, right?

Now they just have A-Rod.

Just A-Rod, Joe? Then who is Jorge Posada been hitting over .340 for then? And was that Derek Jeter in a D-Ray uniform hitting .340? Hideki Matsui can’t be on pace for over 100 RBI’s for the 4th time in five years, can he? Not for the Yankee’s evidently. All they have is A-Rod.

But I'm shocked when I did their game against the Mets three weeks ago and they had won 11 of 12 and looked like they were on a roll. Now they're back to where they started from.

Three weeks ago, Joe? Three weeks ago the Yankee’s were in Chicago for a 4-game series with the White Sox. Then they had a 3-game weekend series with Pittsburgh and a 3-game series with D-Backs two weeks ago. And then . . . Oh there it is, Joe! Just a week and a half ago the Mets crossed town to take on the A-Rod’s . . . But I can understand, Joe, with alllll those games you watch how it can seem like 3 weeks ago . . .

But, really Joe, why so shocked? Had the Yankee’s addressed their weaknesses? Had they solidified a rotation that had seen the likes of Carl Pavano, Kei Igawa, Chase Wright, Jeff Karstens, Tyler Clippard, Matt DeSalvo, and Darrell Rasner start a full 40% of the teams’ games? Had Farnsworth, Villone, and/or Luis Vizcaino lowered their ERA’s under 5.00? Or their WHIP’s under 1.60? Had any of the starters begun pitching longer than 5 or 6 innings to rest a woefully overworked and underachieving bullpen?

No. Nothing that mindbending. The Yankees simply had a hot streak. Like just about every major league team does at some point during a 162 game season. Listen Joe, the Yankees suck because their pitching sucks. Everyone outside of Bristol knows that. Forget about A-Rod. Forget about Jeter, Posada, or any of the others . . . Oh, yeah, you’ve got that part down already . . . Forget about SOD. The Yankees will continue to suck until their pitching ceases to suck. It’s that simple.

I just don't get how you can not see this, Joe. You cover the Yankees even when you're doing a Rangers/Mariners game. You slip in the Bronx Boys into discussions at every turn. I bet you even know how to spell Yankee. Yet you couldn't see the most obvious flaw the team has if it fell on you like an anvil. The Yankees suck because they let the SOD go and now all they have in NY is A-Rod and a bunch of stiffs . . .

Keep up the good work Joe.

"It is called being a professional. If you take the money, give the effort. If you are a pro in any sport, you are always supposed to give your best effort." ~Joe Morgan.

hunteralan:

Who better to leadoff a new installment of The Idiocy Gene than the greatest Idiot any village ever turned out . . .

In answer to the question: Why are the Yankees so up and down this season?

Our favorite baseball expert from BoSPiN, Joe Morgan, answers thusly:

Unfortunately, everything seems to be riding on A-Rod. When he's up they're up, when he's in a lull, they are.

A-Rod’s numbers in April were .355 BA, .415 OBP, .882 SLG% (!!!!), 1.297 OPS, 14 HR, 27 runs, 34 RBI’s . . . Pretty darn awesome! So the Yankee’s must’ve been ‘up’ in April since A-Rod was ‘up’, right? Oh, no, they were only 9-14 in the month. Huh . . . Something seems wrong with Joe’s analysis. Let’s look further.

A-Rod’s numbers in May were ‘in a lull’ at .235 BA, .361 OBP, .422 SLG%, .783 OPS, and only 5 HR and 11 RBI . . . So the Yankee’s must’ve slipped even further. No . . . they actually had a better record in May than in April. But according to the top analyst on BoSPiN the Yankee’s should have ‘lulled’ in May just like A-Rod. Something tells me the Yankees don’t listen to Joe any more than anyone else . . .

But surely during the Yankees only winning streak longer than three games all year (their 9-game winning streak in June), A-Rod was hot, right? YEAH, he was! A-Rod hit almost .500 during the teams’ streak with 5 HR and 21 RBI’s! Joe got one right! Weehoo!

But what a bummer it must’ve been for A-Rod when the Yankees immediately followed that 9-game winning streak with another ‘lull’ by losing 7 of their next 10 games. By Joe-logic, A-Rod hit another ‘lull’ during those 10 games as well . . . To the tune of an almost .500 BA, 5 doubles, 3 HR and a measly 9 RBI. Poor guy couldn’t hit water if he fell out of a boat . . .

So, A-Rod = Absolutely awesome for 2/3 of the year so far in 2007 . . . By Joe-logic that means the Yankees = Absolutely awesome for 2/3 of the year so far in 2007. And the team is 36-38. Something’s amiss here, Joe . . . It seems there is no correlation at all between A-Rod’s performance and the Yankees record so far this year.

So, you got any other ideas why the Yankees are so up and down, Joe?

The biggest mistake they made was getting rid of Sheffield.

Really. Getting rid of SOD, huh? Not trading Randy Johnson to Arizona for Pez? Not failing to outbid their biggest rivals for Daisuke Matsuzaka, and then ‘failing’ by actually winning the rights to Kei Igawa who stinks like 10-A-C roadkill? Not failing to do much at all to a woeful pitching staff until they decided to pay Roger Clemens like a kazillion dollars per breath in mid June?

Even though the Yankees have scored the 3rd most runs in baseball this year, but have a patchwork pitching staff and a far overworked bullpen due to starters continued failures, the biggest mistake the team made was giving up an excess hitter with an attitude only Terrell Owens could appreciate?

Maybe it’s me . . . But I think that’s wrong, Joe. Could you explain why you think this way? Maybe I’m just not seeing it because I’m not close to the game like you are, Joe.

He's [SOD] been the leader on that team offensively the three years that he was there, except the year A-Rod was the MVP. He and A-Rod carried the team. Matsui and Jeter were contributors, but those two carried the team.

Oh, okay, I got it now. SOD was so other-worldly fantastic offensively during his three years in NY that the team couldn’t hope to replace such production in the lineup. Let’s take a look at some numbers to support that cogent analysis, shall we?

2004
SOD - .927 OPS….36 HR….121 RBI…..117 runs
Matsui – .912 OPS..31 HR….108 RBI…..109 runs
A-Rod - .888 OPS..36 HR…..106 RBI…..112 runs
Jeter - .823 OPS…..23 HR……78 RBI…..111 runs

SOD was good, but the best? Maybe. Carried the team? No way, no how. SOD was no more a leader offensively on that team than Matsui, A-Rod, Jeter, or even Bernie Williams (who’s numbers were almost equal to Jeter’s across the board). Not looking good Joe . . .

2005
SOD - .891 OPS…….31 HR….123 RBI….104 runs
A-Rod – 1.031 OPS…48 HR….130 RBI….124 runs
Giambi - .975 OPS…..32 HR…..87 RBI……74 runs
Jeter - .839 OPS……...19 HR….70 RBI…..122 runs
Matsui - .863 OPS……23 HR...116 RBI…..108 runs

This was A-Rod’s MVP year Joe eluded to. So at least he ‘except-ed’ this year as a year SOD was the ‘leader’ of the team offensively. Joe failed to mention though that SOD wasn’t even the 2nd best (Giambi) on the team offensively. And considering Jeter’s year and Matsui almost equaling SOD across the board, the argument could be made that SOD was no more than 4th or 5th best on the team offensively.

But again, Joe conceded this point . . . kinda.

2006
SOD - .806 OPS……6 HR…..25 RBI……22 runs
A-Rod - .914 OPS…35 HR…121 RBI…..113 runs
Jeter - .900 OPS……14 HR….97 RBI…..118 runs
Matsui - .887 OPS…..8 HR….29 RBI……32 runs
Giambi - .971 OPS…37 HR…113 RBI…..92 runs

Now this is hardly even fair to debate, but hey . . . Joe brought it up.

SOD was injured for most of 5 months in 2006. I would have assumed Joe would have known this, but . . . well, he is Joe Morgan. And he did say that SOD’s been the leader on the team offensively in every year he was a Yankee except A-Rod’s 2005 MVP year. So how exactly did SOD lead the team offensively for 5 months while on the DL? I’m not sure really, you’d have to ask Joe that one.

However, I am sure A-Rod was a far better leader for the offense in 2006. And Jason Giambi was even better than A-Rod. Jeter was probably the best leader of them all for most of the year. Jorge Posada and his 23 HR, 93 RBI, and .867 OPS did a far better job of carrying the team than SOD. Heck, Matsui was more valuable in his limited action. Bobby Abreu was far more valuable to the team and he only played in 1/3 of the Yankee’s games. And Cano . . . And Damon . . . By my count, SOD was no better than the 9th best leader offensively for the Yankee’s in 2006.

So it seems to me, in not even one year he was a Yankee was the SOD the ‘leader of the offense’. And no way, no how did he ever carry the team.

But surely, now that he’s infecting the Tigger clubhouse, the Yankees are showing signs of decline offensively, right?

Now they just have A-Rod.

Just A-Rod, Joe? Then who is Jorge Posada been hitting over .340 for then? And was that Derek Jeter in a D-Ray uniform hitting .340? Hideki Matsui can’t be on pace for over 100 RBI’s for the 4th time in five years, can he? Not for the Yankee’s evidently. All they have is A-Rod.

But I'm shocked when I did their game against the Mets three weeks ago and they had won 11 of 12 and looked like they were on a roll. Now they're back to where they started from.

Three weeks ago, Joe? Three weeks ago the Yankee’s were in Chicago for a 4-game series with the White Sox. Then they had a 3-game weekend series with Pittsburgh and a 3-game series with D-Backs two weeks ago. And then . . . Oh there it is, Joe! Just a week and a half ago the Mets crossed town to take on the A-Rod’s . . . But I can understand, Joe, with alllll those games you watch how it can seem like 3 weeks ago . . .

But, really Joe, why so shocked? Had the Yankee’s addressed their weaknesses? Had they solidified a rotation that had seen the likes of Carl Pavano, Kei Igawa, Chase Wright, Jeff Karstens, Tyler Clippard, Matt DeSalvo, and Darrell Rasner start a full 40% of the teams’ games? Had Farnsworth, Villone, and/or Luis Vizcaino lowered their ERA’s under 5.00? Or their WHIP’s under 1.60? Had any of the starters begun pitching longer than 5 or 6 innings to rest a woefully overworked and underachieving bullpen?

No. Nothing that mindbending. The Yankees simply had a hot streak. Like just about every major league team does at some point during a 162 game season. Listen Joe, the Yankees suck because their pitching sucks. Everyone outside of Bristol knows that. Forget about A-Rod. Forget about Jeter, Posada, or any of the others . . . Oh, yeah, you’ve got that part down already . . . Forget about SOD. The Yankees will continue to suck until their pitching ceases to suck. It’s that simple.

I just don't get how you can not see this, Joe. You cover the Yankees even when you're doing a Rangers/Mariners game. You slip in the Bronx Boys into discussions at every turn. I bet you even know how to spell Yankee. Yet you couldn't see the most obvious flaw the team has if it fell on you like an anvil. The Yankees suck because they let the SOD go and now all they have in NY is A-Rod and a bunch of stiffs . . .

Keep up the good work Joe.

Remember, HA, stats don't tell the whole story. I heard that from Mark Grace and I am sure that Morgan is receiving more than a few e-mails (if he can operate his 'puter) explaining that his thinking is moronic on almost every level. I guess if you have the gift of bullshit and can sound convincing, you can make people believe that you invented the wheel. The problem with Joe is that he doesn't realize this is the the 21st century and any schmo with a 'puter and five minutes of free time can refute his arguments. Right now, Jae makes more sense than Joe. Hell, the freakin' chihuahua knows what is wrong with the Yankees - pitching, pitching, and more pitching.

I'll play the radio on Southern stations because Southern Belles are Hell at night...

How in the world does Joe Morgan keep getting asked these types of questions? At some point don't these "reporters" realize that they'd be better off asking high school girls at Nordstrom's their thoughts?

Here's some stupidity from Rosenthal.

Dodgers: What would they do with Nomar Garciaparra, who has hit only one homer in 247 at-bats but is signed through next season with no-trade protection? If they could get Teixeira, perhaps their answer should be, "Who cares?" uncomfortable as it might be with Garciaparra, a favorite son in southern California.

The Rangers almost certainly would want right-hander Chad Billingsley in any deal for Teixeira, and probably would target first baseman James Loney and/or outfielder Matt Kemp as well. The Dodgers are deep enough in prospects to make it work.

If we trade Billingsley, Loney and Kemp it better be for Albert Pujols and a healthy Chris Carpenter...and cash.

ceyheyjay:

Here's some stupidity from Rosenthal.

Dodgers: What would they do with Nomar Garciaparra, who has hit only one homer in 247 at-bats but is signed through next season with no-trade protection? If they could get Teixeira, perhaps their answer should be, "Who cares?" uncomfortable as it might be with Garciaparra, a favorite son in southern California.

The Midget is an Idiot for sure . . . Doesn't he know we resigned Nomar simply to keep Mrs. Garciaparra around the stadium for a couple more years. She alone has to account for a few thousand in attendance each game...

"It is called being a professional. If you take the money, give the effort. If you are a pro in any sport, you are always supposed to give your best effort." ~Joe Morgan.

Hey HA.. FireJoeMorgan.com says, "what's up".

Mike Scioscia's tragic illness - the blog! For Dodger analysis, reviews, and hilarity.

TBoneShelby:

Man Rosenthal is blowing the hippy lettuce this morning. Sure, why don't we throw in Kershaw too, he's from Texas. Gimme a break, Tex is on the freaking DL anyways.

And HA, that is the best sig line I've seen...good work

This is about the fourth rumor I have seen that features Kershaw. That tells me something, every scout worth his three martini lunch is pining for this lefty from Texas. Catch a clue, Midget, Stark, Phillips, Krukashit, and Co....he ain't on the table and he ain't goin' nowhere but to Inland Empire, Jacksonville, Las Vegas and Los Angeles...see ya in September of 2008. Freakin' tools!

I'll play the radio on Southern stations because Southern Belles are Hell at night...

Man, HA, you start this thread and it gets hot. I guess you knew what was coming with the trade deadline approaching. Found this on the auld board.

Found this article in today's DALLAS MORNING NEWS. The writer suggests the Dodgers are showcasing James Loney for a trade with the Texas Rangers for 1B Mark Teixeira.

PLEASE SAY IT AIN'T SO!!

Link:

www.dallasnews.com/s/dws/nwsltr/sports/rangers/stories/062707dnsporangletter.2cf9f26.html

12:05 AM CDT on Wednesday, June 27, 2007

Sorry, but I'm coming at you with a cliché: Where there is smoke, there is fire. Taken to the next level: When that smoke burns your eyes, that fire is awfully close, even if you can't see it.

There is an awful lot of smoke around the Rangers and the Los Angeles Dodgers right now. It smells like they might be cooking up something.

In the reality that has become the Rangers' 2007 season, nothing could be more perfect. The Rangers will be sellers on the trade market that is just starting to simmer. The Dodgers, locked into a three-way fight with San Diego and Arizona, are going to be buyers. Los Angeles could use a power hitter and some late-inning relief help to put it over the top. Funny, you should ask. The Rangers have those things to offer.

Come this time next month, if the Rangers execute things exactly as they'd like, Mark Teixeira will be in Dodgers blue. Eric Gagne or Akinori Otsuka, too.

And the Rangers? They'll get the bounty of talent they need to accelerate their rebuilding plan. How about James Loney to replace Teixeira at first base? Chad Billingsley to slide into the rotation? Highland Park's left-handed whiz kid Clayton Kershaw to throw into the minor league system?

Look at some of this as supposition on my part, but it's not like there aren't abundant clues to make the conspiracy theorist in me believe these two clubs are a perfect fit for one another.

Let's go through those clues:

•The Dodgers have recently scouted the Rangers. Hard. It's almost impossible to go to a Rangers game these days and not run into a different Dodgers scout.

•The Rangers know the Dodgers' system more intimately than others. A.J. Preller and Don Welke, who serve in top advisory roles to GM Jon Daniels, both worked in the Dodgers organization recently. Both are well-acquainted with the system. If there is a minor leaguer to be plucked to complete a deal, the Rangers should have a better feel about the Dodgers than just about any other team in baseball.

•The Dodgers moved Nomar Garciaparra to third base this week. They are going to play Loney there for the time being. One previous hangup to any Dodgers-Rangers talk was whether LA would be willing to move Garciaparra in midseason.

•There is perhaps no deeper minor league system in the majors than the Dodgers. In other words, if there is anybody who can afford to deal a number of top-level prospects, it's LA.

•Oh, and did we mention Teixeira's agent, Scott Boras, has season tickets at Dodger Stadium? Makes it that much easier for Boras to negotiate a long-term deal with LA.

There is legitimate reason to think these two teams can get a deal done.

The next step is much harder: Bringing a logical, practical deal that helps both clubs with their goals to fruition. What seems to be logical in baseball often turns to nothingness, because both parties involved have over inflated sense of their players' worth or worse, they try to "win" a trade. Often, a team can get bogged down in weighing offers to find the "best" deal, and the Rangers undoubtedly will have other offers for Teixeira, Gagne and Otsuka or for some combination of all three.

The best way for the Rangers to maximize the value of Teixeira and Gagne is to package them together. If the Rangers dealt Teixeira alone to Los Angeles, they might get one of the trio of players (Loney, Kershaw, Billingsley) and a lesser minor leaguer. If they dealt Gagne alone, they might get one of the three. In a package deal, the Rangers might be able to land a ready-for-prime-time player, a ready-for-prime-time pitcher, a Texas-born, left-handed stud pitching prospect and maybe even a lesser prospect.

The Rangers aren't going to make a Herschel Walker deal for Teixeira, but if they can see things through with Los Angeles, a "Mark Teixeira kind of deal" might become the benchmark for this team's future.

Over the next three weeks, we'll see if the smoke erupts into a blaze or if it can be doused with a cup of water.

HA, you've got me rolling today. This is a response from Billy Beane to an idiotic column written by some baffoon in Oakland. Actually made me gain a little respect for Beane as I think he handled the situation extremely well.

A's exec Beane refutes column
Comments that Bradley move was 'racially motivated' were 'without a merit of truth'
By Billy Beane
Article Last Updated: 06/27/2007 08:45:05 AM PDT

I don't make a habit of writing letters to express my opinion, deflect criticism or debate someone else's viewpoint that has been expressed in this paper or in any other medium.

I accept the fact that criticism and second-guessing come with my job.

I will not, however, accept personal attacks such as those expressed by Dave Del Grande in his Monday column, "A's whitewashed by Beane, Mets," where the writer stated very clearly the decision to cut ties with Milton Bradley was racially motivated.

The decision to part ways with Milton was well-chronicled in this paper and in others after I spoke to the media on a conference call last Thursday. This letter is not intended to reiterate or defend the reasoning behind the decision, but to express my personal disappointment and hurt over such an egregiously irresponsible column that slanders my name, questions my morals and attacks the integrity of the A's organization, its ownership and staff that has been a longtime member of the East Bay community.

Let me state first of all that I have never met Dave Del Grande, and as my public relations people inform me, he hasn't been out to cover a game in years. He formed his opinions expressed in Monday's column without talking to me, our players or manager, as is common practice by other responsible and well-respected columnists in the Bay Area.

The only ones who should have to answer for such an erroneous column are Dave and his editors at the MediaNews Group. By allowing a column to run that states, "The A's basically cut an extremely talented black outfielder because they have a dime-a-dozen white guys who complain less about being a backup," along with, "This was a matter of Bradley being ... well, black," calls into question the decision-making at the top levels of the MediaNews Group that continues to employ Dave and those who allowed such an irresponsible column to run in the first place.

Dave's comments were beyond offensive and, of course, unsubstantiated and without a merit of truth, and they have no room in a newspaper that supposedly prides itself on journalistic integrity and serving the community.

Billy Beane is the vice president and general manager of the Oakland Athletics.

A player's race, religion or culture shouldn't determine his opportunity to play the game. Nor should it be used to excuse bad behavior.

GameBoy has had numerous run-ins with numerous authority figures. Authority figures most of us know as "the boss" don't usually put up with such behavior very long.

An aspect that normally gets me to chuckle is in regard to the scarcity of black managers. Personnaly, I find the low number of black managers to indicate that something is going on in regard to their opportunites for jobs other than their relative experience. Based on blacks % of the total population and their representation in MLB there should be many more black managers than there are now, or ever have been.

However, it seems disengenuous to argue that blacks don't get enough opportunity when white managers get fired left and right and then claim racism when a black manager gets FIRED. If managers get fired left and right, then black's who do get manager jobs are subject to the same bandsaw. To expect them not to get fired at the same rate as GMs of other races or cultures seems to be encouraging an opposite form of racism.

GameBoy got the opportunity to play big league ball, and several teams have taken a chance on him to continue that opportunity despite his earlier transgressions. That he continues to get punted from one org after another points less to racism and more to him having problems.

Every silver lining has a cloud.

hunteralan:

Who better to leadoff a new installment of The Idiocy Gene than the greatest Idiot any village ever turned out . . .

In answer to the question: Why are the Yankees so up and down this season?

Our favorite baseball expert from BoSPiN, Joe Morgan, answers thusly:

Unfortunately, everything seems to be riding on A-Rod. When he's up they're up, when he's in a lull, they are.

A-Rod’s numbers in April were .355 BA, .415 OBP, .882 SLG% (!!!!), 1.297 OPS, 14 HR, 27 runs, 34 RBI’s . . . Pretty darn awesome! So the Yankee’s must’ve been ‘up’ in April since A-Rod was ‘up’, right? Oh, no, they were only 9-14 in the month. Huh . . . Something seems wrong with Joe’s analysis. Let’s look further.

A-Rod’s numbers in May were ‘in a lull’ at .235 BA, .361 OBP, .422 SLG%, .783 OPS, and only 5 HR and 11 RBI . . . So the Yankee’s must’ve slipped even further. No . . . they actually had a better record in May than in April. But according to the top analyst on BoSPiN the Yankee’s should have ‘lulled’ in May just like A-Rod. Something tells me the Yankees don’t listen to Joe any more than anyone else . . .

But surely during the Yankees only winning streak longer than three games all year (their 9-game winning streak in June), A-Rod was hot, right? YEAH, he was! A-Rod hit almost .500 during the teams’ streak with 5 HR and 21 RBI’s! Joe got one right! Weehoo!

But what a bummer it must’ve been for A-Rod when the Yankees immediately followed that 9-game winning streak with another ‘lull’ by losing 7 of their next 10 games. By Joe-logic, A-Rod hit another ‘lull’ during those 10 games as well . . . To the tune of an almost .500 BA, 5 doubles, 3 HR and a measly 9 RBI. Poor guy couldn’t hit water if he fell out of a boat . . .

So, A-Rod = Absolutely awesome for 2/3 of the year so far in 2007 . . . By Joe-logic that means the Yankees = Absolutely awesome for 2/3 of the year so far in 2007. And the team is 36-38. Something’s amiss here, Joe . . . It seems there is no correlation at all between A-Rod’s performance and the Yankees record so far this year.

So, you got any other ideas why the Yankees are so up and down, Joe?

The biggest mistake they made was getting rid of Sheffield.

Really. Getting rid of SOD, huh? Not trading Randy Johnson to Arizona for Pez? Not failing to outbid their biggest rivals for Daisuke Matsuzaka, and then ‘failing’ by actually winning the rights to Kei Igawa who stinks like 10-A-C roadkill? Not failing to do much at all to a woeful pitching staff until they decided to pay Roger Clemens like a kazillion dollars per breath in mid June?

Even though the Yankees have scored the 3rd most runs in baseball this year, but have a patchwork pitching staff and a far overworked bullpen due to starters continued failures, the biggest mistake the team made was giving up an excess hitter with an attitude only Terrell Owens could appreciate?

Maybe it’s me . . . But I think that’s wrong, Joe. Could you explain why you think this way? Maybe I’m just not seeing it because I’m not close to the game like you are, Joe.

He's [SOD] been the leader on that team offensively the three years that he was there, except the year A-Rod was the MVP. He and A-Rod carried the team. Matsui and Jeter were contributors, but those two carried the team.

Oh, okay, I got it now. SOD was so other-worldly fantastic offensively during his three years in NY that the team couldn’t hope to replace such production in the lineup. Let’s take a look at some numbers to support that cogent analysis, shall we?

2004
SOD - .927 OPS….36 HR….121 RBI…..117 runs
Matsui – .912 OPS..31 HR….108 RBI…..109 runs
A-Rod - .888 OPS..36 HR…..106 RBI…..112 runs
Jeter - .823 OPS…..23 HR……78 RBI…..111 runs

SOD was good, but the best? Maybe. Carried the team? No way, no how. SOD was no more a leader offensively on that team than Matsui, A-Rod, Jeter, or even Bernie Williams (who’s numbers were almost equal to Jeter’s across the board). Not looking good Joe . . .

2005
SOD - .891 OPS…….31 HR….123 RBI….104 runs
A-Rod – 1.031 OPS…48 HR….130 RBI….124 runs
Giambi - .975 OPS…..32 HR…..87 RBI……74 runs
Jeter - .839 OPS……...19 HR….70 RBI…..122 runs
Matsui - .863 OPS……23 HR...116 RBI…..108 runs

This was A-Rod’s MVP year Joe eluded to. So at least he ‘except-ed’ this year as a year SOD was the ‘leader’ of the team offensively. Joe failed to mention though that SOD wasn’t even the 2nd best (Giambi) on the team offensively. And considering Jeter’s year and Matsui almost equaling SOD across the board, the argument could be made that SOD was no more than 4th or 5th best on the team offensively.

But again, Joe conceded this point . . . kinda.

2006
SOD - .806 OPS……6 HR…..25 RBI……22 runs
A-Rod - .914 OPS…35 HR…121 RBI…..113 runs
Jeter - .900 OPS……14 HR….97 RBI…..118 runs
Matsui - .887 OPS…..8 HR….29 RBI……32 runs
Giambi - .971 OPS…37 HR…113 RBI…..92 runs

Now this is hardly even fair to debate, but hey . . . Joe brought it up.

SOD was injured for most of 5 months in 2006. I would have assumed Joe would have known this, but . . . well, he is Joe Morgan. And he did say that SOD’s been the leader on the team offensively in every year he was a Yankee except A-Rod’s 2005 MVP year. So how exactly did SOD lead the team offensively for 5 months while on the DL? I’m not sure really, you’d have to ask Joe that one.

However, I am sure A-Rod was a far better leader for the offense in 2006. And Jason Giambi was even better than A-Rod. Jeter was probably the best leader of them all for most of the year. Jorge Posada and his 23 HR, 93 RBI, and .867 OPS did a far better job of carrying the team than SOD. Heck, Matsui was more valuable in his limited action. Bobby Abreu was far more valuable to the team and he only played in 1/3 of the Yankee’s games. And Cano . . . And Damon . . . By my count, SOD was no better than the 9th best leader offensively for the Yankee’s in 2006.

So it seems to me, in not even one year he was a Yankee was the SOD the ‘leader of the offense’. And no way, no how did he ever carry the team.

But surely, now that he’s infecting the Tigger clubhouse, the Yankees are showing signs of decline offensively, right?

Now they just have A-Rod.

Just A-Rod, Joe? Then who is Jorge Posada been hitting over .340 for then? And was that Derek Jeter in a D-Ray uniform hitting .340? Hideki Matsui can’t be on pace for over 100 RBI’s for the 4th time in five years, can he? Not for the Yankee’s evidently. All they have is A-Rod.

But I'm shocked when I did their game against the Mets three weeks ago and they had won 11 of 12 and looked like they were on a roll. Now they're back to where they started from.

Three weeks ago, Joe? Three weeks ago the Yankee’s were in Chicago for a 4-game series with the White Sox. Then they had a 3-game weekend series with Pittsburgh and a 3-game series with D-Backs two weeks ago. And then . . . Oh there it is, Joe! Just a week and a half ago the Mets crossed town to take on the A-Rod’s . . . But I can understand, Joe, with alllll those games you watch how it can seem like 3 weeks ago . . .

But, really Joe, why so shocked? Had the Yankee’s addressed their weaknesses? Had they solidified a rotation that had seen the likes of Carl Pavano, Kei Igawa, Chase Wright, Jeff Karstens, Tyler Clippard, Matt DeSalvo, and Darrell Rasner start a full 40% of the teams’ games? Had Farnsworth, Villone, and/or Luis Vizcaino lowered their ERA’s under 5.00? Or their WHIP’s under 1.60? Had any of the starters begun pitching longer than 5 or 6 innings to rest a woefully overworked and underachieving bullpen?

No. Nothing that mindbending. The Yankees simply had a hot streak. Like just about every major league team does at some point during a 162 game season. Listen Joe, the Yankees suck because their pitching sucks. Everyone outside of Bristol knows that. Forget about A-Rod. Forget about Jeter, Posada, or any of the others . . . Oh, yeah, you’ve got that part down already . . . Forget about SOD. The Yankees will continue to suck until their pitching ceases to suck. It’s that simple.

I just don't get how you can not see this, Joe. You cover the Yankees even when you're doing a Rangers/Mariners game. You slip in the Bronx Boys into discussions at every turn. I bet you even know how to spell Yankee. Yet you couldn't see the most obvious flaw the team has if it fell on you like an anvil. The Yankees suck because they let the SOD go and now all they have in NY is A-Rod and a bunch of stiffs . . .

Keep up the good work Joe.

Great piece, but surely Joe Morgan doesn't deserve so many words. I've got a good short piece on Joe Morgan:

"Joe Morgan is an idiot. Joe, shut up."

www.shmolnick.com

Billy Beane sure did respond with strength, yet was professional about the whole thing. I guess that idjit columnist has been hanging around Dumb and Dumber (aka Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson) much too long.

God bless the EMTs, Medics, Firefighters, and all other emergency responders

I was sort of surprised when I clicked on it that it said "tooth." I would have thought knowing everyone around here that when I clicked on it, it would have said "Jay," or more likely "Jae."

I just spent some time on FireJoeMorgan.com. After reading many Joe Morgan comments, I feel very bad. All these years, I have said that Jon Kruk and Steve Phillips were the two biggest idiots in the world, and it's not close.

Silly me. I still consider Kruk as the #1 idiot, but Morgan is obviously very close, and ahead of Phillips.

But, here's the kicker. Joe Morgan is the biggest liar in the world. If his wife walked in and caught him with another woman, he could easily say with a straight face, "It wasn't me." How do I know? Read the following quote:

Joe Morgan: I'm just like every other fan - I watch every game. I check the box scores and check the stats like everyone else. I'm as interested in the Kansas City Royals as I am the Yankees or Red Sox. I'm a baseball fan. I just like to watch everybody.

If you will all excuse me, I'm going to go bang my head against a wall for a couple of hours.

We can officially add Rick Sutcliffe to the pantheon of idiots at BoSPiN. This may not be news to some of you, but I had yet to have the privilege of hearing him announce a game as I usually shun games on BoSPiN. Yesterday I tuned in because I wanted to see why Roger Clemens has had so much trouble so far this year and was able to stomach only 2 ½ innings before I had to turn the game off. But what a fantastically Idiotic 2 ½ innings it was!

Some snippets from Sutcliffe . . .

~ With Cano on first after he had stolen 2nd base earlier, Twins starter Boof Bonser threw over to first. Sutcliffe made a snide remark to the effect of it was about time Bonser threw over there to keep Cano close – as if 8 career steals in 17 attempts would classify him as a huge threat. But Sutcliffe’s next ‘analysis’ of the situation was even better . . . He commented that the throw over would ‘keep Cano anchored at 1st base’ and that it would also finally give catcher Joe Mauer ‘a chance to throw him out when he ran’ . . . Got that? Cano will be staying at 1st base and stealing second all at the same time. Pretty impressive, huh? And beyond the complete contradiction Sutcliffe made in one sentence, he also implied that without the throw over by Bonser, Mauer would never have had a chance to nail Cano. As if Cano and his 33% success rate this year is any challenge for Mauer and his 53% caught stealing percentage. Of course, lest we forget, Cano is a Super-human Yankee and Mauer just a lowly Twin . . .

~ I firmly believe Sutcliffe has forgotten the given name of The Rocket. In the 2 ½ innings I watched, not once did he refer to The Rocket by The Rocket’s actual name. Never mind that Sutcliffe’s partner kept calling The Rocket by his actual name, I still opine that Sutcliffe does not know The Rocket’s real name. I got so tired of hearing him say The Rocket, I started saying ‘Roger Clemens’ out loud every time Sutcliffe said The Rocket. At one point my son came into the room, looked at the TV, and then asked if #22 was Roger Clemens . . . Yup, a six year old knows more than the BoSPiN analyst. But really, does that surprise anyone?

~ Torii Hunter made as routine a catch as he’s ever made to end one of the innings and Sutcliffe chuckled as if it was another incredible catch by Hunter. Hunter made the catch on the warning track, so I can only surmise that Sutcliffe believes that any ball caught on the warning track automatically enrolls the player making the catch in the ‘Incredible Catch’ club. (Good thing he doesn’t have a vote in the Web Gems every night.) He followed by announcing through his chuckling that Hunter has six Gold Gloves and that with that catch, ‘we should award him his seventh Gold Glove right now’. Good grief . . . The Rocket pitched 8 innings of 2-hit, one run ball, should we award him his 8th Cy Young award right now too, Rick?

~ A reference was made to the Wednesday night BoSPiN game this week between Detroit and Cleveland (I guess the Yankees, Red Sux, and Mets all have the day off). Sutcliffe commented that there was a ‘good pitching matchup in that one’. Nevermind that the game will match the two top offenses in baseball . . . Sutcliffe believes that Jake Westbrook and his 6.10 ERA vs. Kenny Rogers and his 12 whole innings pitched this year is a good pitching matchup? Well, personally Rick, if I tune in to that game, I’m going to pay more attention to Grady Sizemore, Travis Hafner, Victor Martinez, Jhonny Peralta, Magglio Ordonez, Carlos Guillen, Curtis Granderson, Ivan Rodriguez, the SOD, and probably the Detroit mascot before I even notice either pitcher on the mound. But maybe that's just me . . .

~ And lastly, just for the record . . . Rick Sutcliffe believes the New York Yankee fans ‘will not care if A-Rod leaves at the end of the year’. Evidently, they will not miss 50+ HR, 140+ RBI, and a 1.000+ OPS. Either Sutcliffe thinks the Yankee fans are as petty and stupid as he is, or . . . . . . . . well . . . I can’t think of any other way to take that comment.

What a maroon . . . Wecome to the club Rick!

"It is called being a professional. If you take the money, give the effort. If you are a pro in any sport, you are always supposed to give your best effort." ~Joe Morgan.