Hot Stove According to Ryno

The NL Central has been quiet. I am thinking the Cubs will call up Felix Pie to play center. The addition of Howry and Eyre can't hurt the bullpen. If Woody could go see that statue in Sacremento, maybe he would get healed. can DLee put up big numbers again? Can Ryno come back? How about Ernie?

posted by Wrigley South at 01:30 PM - reply - flag:

I'm not sure about bringing Beckett to Fenway Park. Power pitchers in general have a tough time winning there because of the short porch in left. Sure thing.

posted by yerfatma at 01:33 PM - reply - flag:

Wrigley South: rumor has it that the Cubs might make a play for Juan Pierre.

posted by NoMich at 01:53 PM - reply - flag:

Boy, Ryno isn't much of an evaluator, huh? Delgado had a so-so year last year by his standards? He was third in OPS! Beckett won't do well at Fenway because he's a righty power pitcher? Ummm...... cough pedroclemens cough. These guys just think we aren't paying attention.

posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 01:55 PM - reply - flag:

Hey, Ryno's a hall-of-fame player. Who said he had to be a hall-of-fame thinker. I do like that Damon to the Yanks. What timing - right at the end of fabulous Bernie's career. Can anyone say "third base coach". Good bye "whirlwind" Louie.

posted by drevl at 02:07 PM - reply - flag:

Ryno shouldn't quit his day job yet. ... Oops.

posted by rocketman at 02:19 PM - reply - flag:

Juan Pierre is an anomaly. African American with a Spanish first name, French last name. Sure the Cubs will take him.

posted by Wrigley South at 02:40 PM - reply - flag:

I do like that Damon to the Yanks. That's unfortunate, because Damon's agent asked the Yankees for $12 million per year for sevent years. You'll be getting the tail end of Bernie's career all over again.

posted by yerfatma at 02:42 PM - reply - flag:

Damon's not going to be a Yankee. If the Yankees had wanted him they would have made a serious play for him when he left K.C. a few years ago. George would make him cut his hair, shave, then he'd lose his ability to hit.

posted by dyams at 04:05 PM - reply - flag:

Dont go to New York Billy!!

posted by GoBirds at 04:42 PM - reply - flag:

If the Marlins leave, I would look for them to relocate to Las Vegas. Team officials have already met with Las Vegas officials about a possible move and it makes all the sense in the world. The city has the revenue and the tourist dollars to field and support a team and build a new stadium. Marlins in the desert? Only in a flood. Gotta change that name if they go to LV. Oh, and would they have slots in the stadium? They're everywhere else...

posted by STLCardinalfan at 05:20 PM - reply - flag:

Dont go to New York Billy!! He just did. Guaranteed $43 mil over four years, with $3 mil buyout on a fifth year at $8 mil. Good luck with that, Minaya.

posted by cl at 05:21 PM - reply - flag:

yea I just saw it cl.....arrrrgh!!! i hate being from philly!!

posted by GoBirds at 05:35 PM - reply - flag:

That damn New York owner is RUINING baseball with his high-priced contracts.

posted by dyams at 05:40 PM - reply - flag:

Plus, if Pete Rose can't manage in Las Vegas, then something's definitely wrong. It's his kind of town!

posted by dyams at 05:41 PM - reply - flag:

The Las Vegas Knee-Cappers

posted by GoBirds at 05:45 PM - reply - flag:

I'd find it pretty hard after being on a team that hates the Yankees to sign with them and be on a team that hates your old team. While Damon can do what he wants I just find that kind of strange.

posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 05:49 PM - reply - flag:

That damn New York owner is RUINING baseball with his high-priced contracts. And it has always been like this. Why else would one team dominate as they have over the past 80 years. You have the Yankees and their farm system, the rest of the American League.

posted by STLCardinalfan at 06:01 PM - reply - flag:

I understand that. I just thought it was funny that it's the Mets at this point in time doing the wild spending, not the Yankees.

posted by dyams at 08:54 PM - reply - flag:

Gotta change that name if they go to LV. I dunno, for some reason, I believe Marlins in Vegas before I believe Jazz in Utah.

posted by The_Black_Hand at 09:21 PM - reply - flag:

Gotta change that name if they go to LV. I dunno, for some reason, I believe Marlins in Vegas before I believe Jazz in Utah. Or lakes in LA, or ANGELS anywhere in California.

posted by drevl at 09:15 AM - reply - flag:

if u think that was really Ryno then u r on crack!!!

posted by fetty 929 at 09:15 AM - reply - flag:

C'mon. The Lakers in L.A. What lakes? Go back to Minnesota!

posted by StropsRetlif at 09:19 AM - reply - flag:

if u think that was really Ryno then u r on crack!!! In the words of Ronnie Dobbs: "Speak English, motherfucker! I can't understand a word you're sayin'!"

posted by yerfatma at 09:40 AM - reply - flag:

Gotta change that name if they go to LV. I like the Las Vegas Escorts (because they are going to suck a big one), change the name of the Jazz to the Utah Latter Day Saints (music is an implement of the devil)

posted by HATER 187 at 10:24 AM - reply - flag:

And it has always been like this. Why else would one team dominate as they have over the past 80 years. You have the Yankees and their farm system, the rest of the American League. The Yankees haven't even made a move other then keeping Matsui and people are still whining. Let's not look at the other payrolls that are rapidly catching up. Mets, Redsox. When the yankees make some blockbuster deal then you can bitch and moan. At least wait until they do something.

posted by jtrluva at 11:13 AM - reply - flag:

When the yankees make some blockbuster deal then you can bitch and moan. At least wait until they do something. I've been watching one blockbuster after another for 50+ years. And what do you call their payroll, blockbusterless?

posted by STLCardinalfan at 11:43 AM - reply - flag:

What have they done this year??? I'm not talking about what has happened 50 years ago. They appear to be sitting back while other teams are acting like the Yankees usually do. All I'm saying is what reason have they given you THIS offseason to complain. The redsox have the second highest payroll in baseball yet no one complains about that. Yet that is the first thing people shout about when it comes to the yankees. I could care less about how much their payroll is. At least it gives everyone reason to bitch.

posted by jtrluva at 12:12 PM - reply - flag:

jtrluva This may sound weird coming from me but I say let the haters hate. There is no shame in rooting for a franchise commited to its fans, and to its winning tradition. If the Yanks make money they spend money, nothing wrong with that. STLCardinalfan is just pissed off because his team is real close to replaceing the Braves as the suck ass choke artisits of the NL. Please I beg someone to tell me what is wrong with trying to field a winning team year in and year out?

posted by HATER 187 at 03:31 PM - reply - flag:

ryno (or his ghostwriter) = one of the worst 'columnists' ever. this piece seriously reminds me too much of that onion gossip column.

posted by maura at 11:50 PM - reply - flag:

STLCardinalfan is just pissed off because his team is real close to replaceing the Braves as the suck ass choke artisits of the NL. The Cardinals have the second best world series record next to your Yankees. If they keep choking along with 100 wins per year I'll be happy knowing they'll pick up a world series here and there. My point about the Yankees stands. Nothing wrong with what they do because they're within the framework of MLB rules. I certainly do not blame them for trying to win by buying up the best talent available with a seemingly unlimited budget. The fact remains, however, that they begin each year with an advantage that cannot be matched by most teams. Fair?

posted by STLCardinalfan at 10:11 AM - reply - flag:

Whether a team has THE highest payroll in baseball, or the second, third, fourth, or fifth highest, those particular squads will have the perceived advantage in baseball. Take the Yankees away and it's still not going to help the real small-market teams. That being said, the formula the Yankees have used hasn't resulted in any championships in the past few years, so it's definitely not foolproof. All teams still need to have a good eye for talent and be aware of how certain players are going to impact the overall team chemistry. It's never as easy as just buying the "best" players every off season. The Orioles tried that a few years back and it was a miserable failure. Sometimes big free agent signings are nothing but huge busts, and many times teams let go of big stars (with big contracts) in exchange for "can't miss" prospects that end up missing big time. People can compain about the Yankees, but while they're wasting their time doing that, other teams are walking off with the World Series trophy.

posted by dyams at 10:23 AM - reply - flag:

dyams: You seem to be saying payrolls matter not. While big payrolls and the super stars they can buy are no guarantee of success, especially in the short term, over the long haul they will result in wins. Witness the Yankees run from the 20's to now. How many of those years was the Yankee payroll less than other American League teams?

posted by STLCardinalfan at 10:42 AM - reply - flag:

Witness the Yankees run from the 20's to now. How many of those years was the Yankee payroll less than other American League teams? More than you imagine. Jacob Rupert was just about the cheapest owner in the game. The Babe made a fortune, by depression era standards, but the rest of the Yankees (and most everyone else in baseball) held full-time jobs in the off season in order to make ends meet. I don't know about the Dell Webb/Dan Topping era, but the years that CBS owned the team they returned to the ultra-cheap mode. Any Yankee able to afford a new pair of shoes was gotten rid of - except Therman Munson. They probably would have gotten rid of him too, but for fear of riots in the Bronx.

posted by drevl at 11:38 AM - reply - flag:

You seem to be saying payrolls matter not. No, I'm not saying that. What I'm trying to say is payroll DOES matter, obviously, but it matters most when talking about the discrepancy between the extreme haves (Yankees, Red Sox, etc.) and the extreme have-nots (all teams at the bottom end of the payroll list). Teams towards the top-half of the payroll list have generally shown the ability to be competitive and to win. For the Pittsburgh's and Tampa's, I don't know what the answer is. Overall, the game is doing very well, and a salary cap at this particular time seems out of the question. I just don't think it's fair to always point to the Yankees as being such a gigantic negative. They draw 4 million fans at home, second in overall attendance on the road, and do good on television ratings. The team flat-out makes money. And you can't say it's only because of being in New York, because the Mets are still trying to find that formula. With the way things are currently set up in MLB, I still think the positives a team like the Yanks bring to the league still outweigh the negatives. I know, way off topic and a bit rambling, but believe me, I'm trying hard to make a point (don't know if I succeeded).

posted by dyams at 01:26 PM - reply - flag:

(don't know if I succeeded). You did, as usual - and I'm getting damn sick of it.

posted by drevl at 02:58 PM - reply - flag:

Thanks, drevl. Don't get too sick. I'll write something really stupid very soon and piss a lot of people off. It's just a matter of time.

posted by dyams at 03:44 PM - reply - flag:

You make good points and I essentially agree with most. I'm not sure how the playing field gets leveled better or even if it's a good idea. I'm just saying there has been a systemic problem that goes way back. When the super-star sweepstakes begin I would like to see the other clubs with an equal shot. By the way, my perspective is of a life-long Cards fan and just about the only American League team anybody ever heard of in St. Louis was the Yankees. We always considered that league to be the junior circuit. Times have changed.

posted by STLCardinalfan at 07:37 PM - reply - flag:

We always considered that league to be the junior circuit. Times have changed. Isn't perspective an amazing thing. As a lifelong Yankee fan, growing up in the 50's, I always thought of the National League as that minor league whos only reason for existance was to provide a team for the Yankees to play in the world series.

posted by drevl at 08:12 PM - reply - flag:

By the way, the Cards had been the dominant NL team before the 50's, but the Dodgers and Giants were the usual NL representatives during the 50's.

posted by drevl at 08:15 PM - reply - flag:

By the way, the Cards had been the dominant NL team before the 50's, but the Dodgers and Giants were the usual NL representatives during the 50's. Ouch! Don't remind me of the pain I suffered as a kid growing up all the way up to 1964.

posted by STLCardinalfan at 09:30 AM - reply - flag:

Monday, November 28, 2005

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