F*&! Joe Torre: Pavano Wins, Paaaavano

F*&! Joe Torre

Since Joe Torre breaks our hearts, this blog will break his balls. Every day of the season I will detail the errors, misjudgements, and omissions that make him the most overrated manger in the history of the game (even more than Tommy Lasorda!). But Joe Torre is not just one bum in hero's clothing (i.e. the pinstripes); he is the quintessential counterfeit of excellence, a figure who embodies the triumph of the ersatz that pervades every aspect of our culture. No organization in sport, nay in civilization generally, has manifested a committment to continuing greatness like the New York Yankees, a beacon to all, in every field of endeavor, that the best is always possible. How intolerable is it then that the Yankees should be managed by a mediocrity on stilts, a figure with a reputation for greatness without any of the attributes thereof. Beginning with Torre and ending with Torre, this blog will look to smash idols we create out of inadvertence, ignorance, and complacency.

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Pavano Wins, Paaaavano

Wins? Yes, apparently, but that's not the weirdest thing. On espn last night, I saw the number 95 after his pitches, and more than once. Is there gun-inflation going on here, or did his off-season conditioning really lift his velocity 3 miles per? If the latter, he can stop nibbling and start challenging batters, which would mean I'd be putting up that unlikely headline again. We'll see.

I'm afraid nothing is going to make me really like this team though. They cannot field, they cannot throw, and many of them cannot run. AROD and Jeter have scattergun arms, AROD has an erratic glove and Jeter can't go left. Cano is inconsistent in the field, Damon throws even worse than Bernie, I think. Matsui is dizzy, Posada looks like the weaker, 2005 version. Watching Giambi, Mankietzvich, and Posada on the bases is positively painful. If their pitching comes around, the Yanks might be good, but they'll never be aesthetic.

1 Comments:

Anonymous said...: from bgw (I'm having trouble with my password)

Going back a few posts, i want to commend Joe V. for his brilliant insight about this being the year A-Rod can have a monster season, even in clutch situations--precisely becuase it may well be the year the pitching is so bad it won't matter in the long run how much offense the team produces. Let it be known it was said here first!

Obviously no one is going to take back any trash that's been talked about Pavano until he repeats last night 15+ times this season.

But it was certainly good to see. I noticed the 95 on the radar too. I was most impressed by his pitch count, though, helped by 2 double plays: 79 pitches in 7 innings. that's David Wells efficiency. It didn't seem like he was throwing that many strikes, a la Boomer, though--but he was getting the Twins out somehow.

Oh and my prediction of the week: if he keeps near this pace of production in the next few games, watch for A-Rod to get drilled in the back sometime real soon. People outside of ESPN love to hate him when he's done, and even more when he's up. We've pulled for him in the past to embrace his swagger and his inner Reggie a bit, and that might be paying off now--but there's an on the field price to that. A real question for A-Rod's toughness-how well can he handle that price? Gardenhire is feisty, so I wouldn't be surprised to see it in this series if arod hits another hr against the twins.; 6:45 PM