A-P "So You Think You're A Sportswriter" Thread

[Guest Yancy Street Gang]

To be fair, they didn't say that Cairo contributed significantly. The article said that the Mets relied heavily on him.

It's possible to rely heavily on somebody and have them not do the job.

[Guest Rotblatt]

heh. Good point, Yance, although we've relied more heavily on Beltran over that stretch. Since he declared himself healthy, I don't think he's had a day off--unlike Cairo. And if you don't need to produce to be relied upon, then Beltran certainly fits the bill . . .

Anyway, I agree with the article's larger point: that Beltran needs to start producing if we want to reach the playoffs.

[Guest Yancy Street Gang]

If Beltran can strap the team onto his back for about six weeks or so, the Mets can go a long way.

I don't think we can expect that to happen, but it's not unreasonable to hope for it.

[Elster88]

Yancy Street Gang wrote: To be fair, they didn't say that Cairo contributed significantly. The article said that the Mets relied heavily on him. It's possible to rely heavily on somebody and have them not do the job.

Within the context of the entire sentence, I think they actually meant to imply that Cairo was contributing significantly.

_____________________________
This post was made under the posting designation 170) Barry Lyons

[Guest Bret Sabermetric]

it's almost a reasonable hope, given Beltran's surge late last year, and the hopes the Mets have, not unreasonably, pinned on him to live up to. I'd posit the guess that if the Mets are to play like legitimate contenders this month, it's going to be because they had a HOFer suddenly descend onto their lineup, because they've been at least one HOFer* short of being a strong club all year long.


* a player worth 5 or more wins above an average ballplayer's contribution.

[MFS62]

Nice Slap at the Fans:

]Met Magic? Fans Don't Believe August 31, 2005 Jon Heyman Newsday Here's a Newsday exclusive: The Mets are in a pennant race. (OK, I'll admit it. That wasn't any more of an exclusive than some of the "exclusives" claimed by one of our competing tabloids.) Yet it requires mentioning. Because the message obviously is not getting out. This is a fine Mets team, an exciting Mets team, one that's worth watching. Really, it is. This is a contending Mets team, one that has as good a chance as anyone of winning the National League wild card. Ya Gotta Believe, no? Maybe if the team makes the playoffs, it will sell out then. Maybe not. The only games that fill Shea Stadium lately are the ones that guarantee the merengue, the Latin appreciation nights. How about some plain ol' baseball appreciation nights? Maybe the better business model is to 86 the baseball and salsa their way through September. If something doesn't change, the Mets' September will be filled with meaningful yet rarely seen games. They returned from a hugely successful 5-2 trip, after finally proving they can win away from Shea and put a nice streak together, to face the wild-card-leading Phillies and a too-empty house. I wonder which was more demoralizing, the unoccupied seats or the first-inning home runs by Phillies Kenny Lofton and Pat Burrell. No matter, the Mets bounced back from both, erasing a 4-1 deficit to win, 6-4. "I think they're missing something if they don't come. This is a very exciting team they should be proud to come see," manager Willie Randolph said. "I don't know who's here and who isn't, as long as there's a few." The players' performance was typically enthralling last night. The fans' performance was abysmal. The announced crowd was 36,505. That's 20,864 less than it should have been. "The weather didn't help us tonight. I would be more upset if the weather was perfect," Mets COO Jeff Wilpon said. "The weather's been threatening all day. There's a hurricane out there." Wilpon was talking 15 minutes before game time, and Shea was mostly empty. There were a decent number of late arrivers. Yet, even after everyone filed in, the green mezzanine section was nearly half empty and the red upper-deck section was half empty. This team isn't a mirage. The fans need to stop treating it like one. This team deserves your attention, your patronage, your respect. The Yankees routinely sell out, even when they are playing nonentities. They sold out against the Royals in rain on Sunday. The Cyclones sell out. So why not their big club? What's keeping them away? If it's the gas prices, well, they aren't keeping Yankees fans home. If they're waiting for Pedro, they can go to two games. If it's the wild card, that's plain silly. The Marlins won two World Series via the wild card. Is the Red Sox's title tarnished by the wild card? Heck no. "If we win tonight and get to within a half-game, I think you'll start seeing a difference," Wilpon said before the game. Sure, Mets fans are skeptical after enduring the Mo Vaughn Era, which partly coincided with the Art Howe Error. That's understandable. But 130 games have been played. It's time, Mets fans. It's time to forget the past, to embrace the present, and to realize the Mets are worth your time. Mike Cameron made it to the ballpark yesterday. If Cameron, who broke his face diving and colliding for a liner, can make it to Shea, you can make it, too. George Will made it to the park, and he brought family members. Davey Johnson made it to the ballpark to promote the Viagra Comeback Player of the Year award. What, you were expecting Rafael Palmeiro? There's plenty to see. David Wright and Jose Reyes are two of the brightest young players in baseball. Wright is already there, Reyes is almost there. Both feature headfirst slides almost nightly. Carlos Beltran can do many things, and he did some of them last night. He's due to do them more often. The Mets get a well-pitched game almost every night and should be in any game. The Mets are one of the faster, more freewheeling, opportunistic teams around. They fly, and they excite. They should, anyway. Yet the fans are apparently taking a wait-and-don't-see approach. "We've got to get 10 games over .500, and then we'll see where we are," Wilpon said. They'll see where they are. But their fans still may miss it. "You know, we're trying," Wilpon said. I wish the same could be said for Mets fans.

Later

[seawolf17]

Hey, Jon Heyman! STFU!

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

Obviously a Castro-ized, late-night re-write of his earlier peice: FANS RIGHTLY STAY AWAY FROM PATHETIC PRETENDER

[Guest Edgy DC]

I didn't go because the Mets didn't give up two top prospects for Danys Baez like he said they have to.

[metirish]

Not for nothing Jon but the weather forecast was not the best yesterday, it did turn out fine though, tonight might be another story, plus the US Open is on.

[metirish]

]Shaun Powell SPORTS COLUMNIST Guys, is this really worth it? Three celebrated baseball players, after much thought, made the career-altering decision to chuck it all and come to New York. Three celebrated baseball players, after weighing their options, figured this was the best one for them. Three celebrated baseball players, thumbing their noses at conventional wisdom, dumped their winning ballclubs to cash in and play for the Mets. Are you like me? Do you strongly suspect that Carlos Beltran, Pedro Martinez and Tom Glavine - in private moments while sitting in the dugout or the clubhouse - have asked themselves: "Was I nuts or something?" Of course, they'd never admit that. Never in 200 million years, which is roughly what they're being paid in dollars for their misery. They are three prideful players, and in the case of Pedro and Glavine, two likely Hall of Famers. Besides, who knows? Maybe in some strange, obscure way, for reasons known only to them, they truly believe this decision has worked out. But I don't see it. I see a Frankensteinian experiment that has gone horribly wrong for the three of them. Not in terms of bank account. That part was deeply enriched by taking the money of a desperate team. But the competitor and the winner within Pedro and Glavine and Beltran are suffering right now along with the Mets. That part cannot be denied or disputed. The Mets are still bleeding from a devastating road trip that all but erased their postseason chances. After flirting and teasing and pretending to be serious players in the National League wild-card chase, they stumbled badly in Miami, Atlanta and St. Louis. As initially advertised, the Mets remain a work in progress. They now must save face with a respectable home stretch at Shea Stadium, where the fans are just waiting to vent, if given a reason to do so. All season long, despite solid pitching, the Mets haven't found the winning formula to break the malaise of mediocrity that grips them by the throat. Meanwhile: Glavine's former team, the Braves, is about to wrap up a division title for the 92nd straight season. Beltran's former team, the Astros, is arm-wrestling the Marlins for the wild-card lead. Pedro's former team, the Red Sox, is playoff-bound and could win the World Series again. You suppose Glavine, Beltran and Pedro have noticed? Glavine signed with the Mets on Dec. 5, 2002 in search of a little love. And a lot of money. Notice how they go together in sports. The Braves were tomahawking their payroll and weren't willing to offer Glavine much in terms of long-term security. But they could offer a chance to extend a special relationship dating to 1984 with an organization that constantly invents ways to win. Glavine wasn't exactly broke at the time, but he decided cash was better than another division championship. Welcome to the Mets. In the process, Glavine took another risk. His chances of joining the 300-win club would depend heavily on how much run support the Mets supplied. This was dicey. Well, here's an update: Glavine has given the Mets mixed results, and when he has pitched well - such as since the All-Star break - the Mets haven't always helped. He's 30-40 as a Met and has 272 victories. How much closer to 300 would he be had he stayed with the Braves? Beltran sacrificed plenty by leaving Houston: Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte, the comfort of a small media market, forgiving fans. At Shea, he's often singled out as the reason the Mets are in last place. All the questions about whether Beltran was made for New York will surface again if he doesn't finish strong. And another thing: He stood to make $100 million had he stayed with the Astros. Once you factor in the absence of a state tax in Texas, was the money that big a difference? Pedro made more than $80 million on his last Sox contract, but he still fussed about a fourth year on a new deal, which clinched it for the Mets. Free of the insufferable shadow of Curt Schilling, Pedro is clearly the man on his new team. But why should that ego-stroking perk still matter to a player at this stage of his career? And isn't it supposed to be about winning? Pedro (14-7, 2.93 ERA) traded Manny Ramirez and Big Papi Ortiz for a Mets lineup that has denied him at least four wins. Imagine, then, how many victories Pedro might have with the Red Sox lineup. And how smug he'd feel with Schilling missing much of the year. And how scary the Red Sox would be whenever he pitched. "I think he's happy with his decision," Ortiz said. "I hope he is." Why would anyone think otherwise?

[Guest Edgy DC]

Glavine has done more or less as well as expected. A crafty pitcher in decline. On the Mets, his wins are down. But he bears some responsiblity there.

Pedro has done even better than expected --- a dominant pitcher still able to dominate despite losing velocity. But the Met pen and --- moreso --- batsmen haven't helped him pile up wins. He seems to be having fun as best he can though.

]Beltran sacrificed plenty by leaving Houston: Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte, the comfort of a small media market, forgiving fans.

Beltran has nowhere to look but in the mirror. Pettitte and Clemens can't help him.

Those fans weren't exactly a bunch of cupcakes to him when he was down in Houston, either.

[metirish]

Piazza best position player ever for the Mets?From Jon Heyman

]Give Piazza suitable send-off September 14, 2005 Mike Piazza shook the fuzziness out of his concussed head long enough to paint the clearest picture yet regarding his future. Assuming someone will have him next season, Piazza plans to play. "Yeah, of course," Piazza told a group of reporters. "Everyone kind of assumes I'm not going to be here. I've never said either way. I'm just going to finish as strong as I can, and see what the options are." We are assuming both things are true. He is gone from here, and he will have other options. Two National League executives agreed yesterday that Piazza should draw interest, but in the other league. "I assume he'd be attractive as a DH, as long as he's physically capable," one exec said. "He's not going to make the same kind of money ... but then, I assume he doesn't need the money." With the Mets, the catcher has earned plenty of loot, nearly $100 million. Now, they owe him just one more thing before he goes. The Mets should honor Piazza with a day of his own. It's a ghost town at Shea now, so they would actually be doing themselves a favor. Anyway, he deserves his day. Piazza, who is hitting .263 with 15 homers and 56 RBIs, was the Mets' greatest position player ever. He always played hard, often played hurt and never acted like the superstar he was. His talent is outsized, his ego contained. Hall of Famers are supposed to be high maintenance. Piazza never was. He was supposed to be out six to eight weeks with his broken hand. He returned in three, then homered in his first at-bat back. Originally, he was stolen from the Dodgers via the Marlins. But it's ensured he'll enter Cooperstown as a Met, the first position player to do so. He almost always did the right thing. Some fight aficionados (plus noted hothead Mike Hampton) salivated to see him duke it out with Roger Clemens at the 2000 World Series. But that wouldn't have been Mike, and it wouldn't have been right. About the worst thing we can say about Piazza is he could be moody. He had a right. He carried the team at times (once all the way to the World Series) and was nicked up a lot more than he let on. A Mets person said they will do something "appropriate" to honor Piazza's accomplishments in his seven seasons. Appropriate means barely noticeable. The thinking is if they do too much, they will be implying he's gone for good. As if we didn't know that already. Piazza won't complain either way. "I don't know," he said when asked whether he'd like to have a day in his honor. "I feel like I've been appreciated enough here. I truly feel the fans have been great. Plus, it's not in my nature ..." Piazza never called attention to himself, and he still won't. The attention was unavoidable. Almost from the moment Piazza arrived, on May 23, 1998, for Preston Wilson, Ed Yarnall and Geoff Goetz, the Mets were a different team. In short order, they were winners. Piazza will be remembered as the greatest hitting catcher ever, but also as one player who could hack it being the one big gun, no small thing. He was the best player on all of Bobby Valentine's teams. Some say there was no one defining moment. There were many. He drove Clemens crazy. He hit two home runs in the 2000 League Championship Series vs. St. Louis, and two more against the Yankees in the Subway Series. Fittingly, he and Derek Jeter were the two players to homer at both Shea Stadium and Yankee Stadium. He played for the second team in town, but was never the second fiddle on his own team, back when the Mets were good enough for October. Yet he never acted like he deserved special treatment. He still doesn't. When Willie Randolph told him he would only be sharing the catching duties with Ramon Castro, Piazza nodded. "Whatever Willie feels is best for the team," Piazza said. He seemed out of place from the start with the "new" Mets, the one notable holdover from Steve Phillips' regime. So there's no reason to suspect his stay will be lengthened even more. A Mets executive fairly well confirmed that, saying that "unless we get the DH" it wouldn't make sense to bring Piazza back. "I don't expect anything," Piazza said. "No underlying tones or negative energy. It's all positive." That's the way Piazza's Mets tenure should be remembered, almost all positive.

[Guest Edgy DC]

I've never been big on tribute days to active players, unless they're being saluted for off-the-field stuff or something.

Perspective is a good thing, ghost towns notwithstanding.

[metirish]

]At playoff time, Red Sox missing their soul: Pedro At playoff time, Red Sox missing their soul: Pedro Oct 5, 2005 CHICAGO -- He's either tending to the lovely petunias in his garden, or toe-tapping to salsa, or primping his pretty hair, or dancing around in a goofy lime green suit, or maybe all the above. One thing we do know, quirky Pedro Martinez, far away from Chicago at the moment, is wasting away at home. Which is where his former team will be in a few days, if this keeps up. You only had to see where the Mets finished the season, and how Matt Clement started the postseason, to know Pedro and the Red Sox blew it last winter when they decided to part ways. Pedro went to the Mets, who barely escaped last place in the National League East. The desperate Red Sox then signed Clement, who couldn't escape the fourth inning in Game 1 of the Division Series. Isn't it apparent by now that Pedro and the Red Sox, in hindsight, needed each other like a left shoe needs the right? As they began defense of their championship in earnest yesterday, the Red Sox were whipped at their own game. Meaning, the White Sox pulled a Papi and slugged their way to a 14-2 victory for an early edge in a short series. The White Sox bloodied Clement from the get-go, punishing the Red Sox starter with a five-run first inning to suck all the suspense from the game. Then the final insult, and the inevitable yanking from the game, came when Clement gave up a two-run homer to the No. 9 hitter, Juan Uribe. Therefore, the biggest fear of the Red Sox was frighteningly realized on a picnic-perfect afternoon at U.S. Cellular Field, dis-affectionately known as the Cell. They came into this season without a certified ace, because Curt Schilling was mending from offseason surgery. And even if Schilling is fit enough to regain the imposing presence he had last October, he'll pitch only once this series. The issue isn't whether Clement is a capable, steady pitcher. He's coming off a respectable 13-6 season, Boston was 22-10 in his starts and at one point he was 9-1. Given all that, he's not Pedro, nor did he have the same impact on his team that Pedro had on his. Pedro brought fans to the ballpark and some long-awaited luster to the Mets in a debut that was borderline smashing. All season, he demonstrated that he was hardly finished as a dominant pitcher, and whenever Pedro was on the mound the Mets knew they stood a great chance of winning. Problem was, they often failed to support him when he did pitch, and couldn't win much when he didn't. In a sense, Pedro was Michael Schumacher behind the wheel of a mid-sized car and, given the rampant mediocrity of the Mets, was appropriately stuck in neutral. He came to a team that wasn't ready to win now, and left a team that might be a pitcher shy of winning it all again. That was his bad, and Boston's. Both allowed their ego to interfere last winter and spoil a seven-year relationship that produced Hall of Fame credentials and 117 wins. The Red Sox thought they could add Clement and David Wells and get by in a year in which they knew Schilling would be iffy. As for Pedro, he was, by most accounts, threatened by Schilling and hurt that he couldn't be the main diva anymore. When the Red Sox hesitated on a guaranteed fourth year of a new deal, which the Mets supplied, that cemented the separation. Well, boo on Pedro for being more about money than winning, even after he already pocketed $90 million on his previous deal. And boo on the Red Sox for not showing more respect to someone who meant so much to the franchise. They both got what they deserved. Curiously, the last time the Red Sox were blown out in a postseason game was also the last time they lost one. After taking a 19-8 punch to the mouth to fall behind 0-3 to the Yankees last October, they staged a historic rally and maintained it through the World Series. "That was a long time ago," said manager Terry Francona. "This is a different team." Yes, with one noticeable absence. Subscribe to Newsday home delivery | Article licensing and reprint options

[Willets Point]

"the Mets, who barely escaped last place in the National League East."

Or would have finished in first place in the National League West, but you phrase your facts in the way that makes your case strongest, you putz.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Yeah, boo on Pedro for going to the team that paid him more. Other players don't do that sort of thing.

[Guest Rotblatt]

I suspect the Sox are missing Petey more than Petey's missing the Sox.

[Guest Edgy DC]

I suspect the press corps misses him also.

[metirish]

]I suspect the press corps misses him also.

I saw Bob Ryan from the Globe talk about that the other day, he admits to missing him a lot.

[MFS62]

From Today's Dallas Fort- Worth paper.
The guy usually covers the AL Rangers.

"In My Opinion
T.R. SULLIVAN


Chris Burke hit a home run in the 18th inning so Phil Garner looks brilliant and the Houston Astros are on their way to the National League Championship Series with a 7-6 victory over the Atlanta Braves on Sunday.
That it took the Astros nine extra innings to finally score the winning run against Braves pitching may have had something to do with Garner mistakenly using Burke as a pinch-runner for Lance Berkman, his best hitter, with two outs in the 10th and the game tied.

That appeared to be folly, but Burke saved him with his home run and the world was left to marvel at Roger Clemens, at age 43, pitching three scoreless innings in his first relief appearance since he was a rookie in 1984.

Forever lost to obscurity will be the fact that Dan Wheeler also pitched three scoreless innings, which may suggest that all those zeros on the scoreboard had more to do with the Braves' futile offense than with the Astros pitching.

The Braves have won 14 straight division titles simply because they have some of the best starting pitching on the planet.

But when they get to the playoffs, it becomes painfully obvious that they never bring enough offense to finish the job.

Most ridiculous was ESPN broadcaster Rick Sutcliffe comparing Braves slugger Chipper Jones to Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter, who is renowned for his terrific play under pressure.

Sutcliffe was way off-base. Chipper Jones is to the baseball playoffs as a French cyclist is to the Tour de France, the English are to World Cup soccer and Lindsay Davenport is to women�s tennis.

No matter how good you think they are, there�s always someone who proves to be at least a little better, whether it�s Lance Armstrong, South America, the Williams sisters - or Roger Clemens.

Sutcliffe was much more astute when ESPN showed Nolan Ryan sitting behind home plate with a credential around his neck. Sutcliffe wondered why baseball�s all-time strikeout king actually needed identification for a baseball game in Houston.

Speaking of ageless wonders: Enough of the Braves using Julio Franco at first base. He�s 47 years old and ought to be in the stands next to Ryan.

Sure he has his uses. So do ice trays, Corona typewriters and four on the floor. But at some point you have to join the 21st century, and the Braves need to mix in a little offense with all that pitching.

So the Astros are off to St. Louis for a rematch of last year�s National League Championship Series. Those who were paying attention will remember it as seven games of absolutely outstanding baseball.

Most of America was far more engrossed in the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees, particularly since their slugfests lasted twice as long as the crisp baseball being played on the National League side.

The Red Sox, though, are sitting the rest of this one out, and the Yankees could be as well if they can�t survive their overnight cross-country flight and take care of business tonight against the Los Angeles Angels in Game 5.

The idea of the Red Sox and the Yankees both out of the playoffs no doubt is a nightmare to the network bean counters, who rely on big ratings to justify their existence.

They�re no doubt quivering at the prospect that the Chicago White Sox and the Astros have both the pitching and, unlike the Braves, the supporting cast to get to the World Series.

A Heartland World Series would be perceived with utter disdain on Madison Avenue.

The networks don�t mind crossing the Appalachians to cover our hurricanes, tornadoes and the occasional presidential caucus in Iowa, but they prefer to have their World Series based as close to the Hudson River as possible.

Yet nobody will shed many tears for the demise of the Braves, the one team that still has trouble selling out their home playoff games.

Some insist that Braves fans have become spoiled by success. But those fans may also understand that relying on some guy named Chipper and little else isn�t going to get the job done.

That's true whether the opposing pitcher is Roger Clemens or Dan Wheeler."

Later

[Theoldmole]

Why do people become sportswriters if they don't like sports?

[Guest mlbaseballtalk]

TheOldMole wrote: Why do people become sportswriters if they don't like sports?

I think they liked it fine when they started. In some cases its more with athletes where writers will say "The more you know, the less you like" and there are plenty of BS that wears you down over the years that it sucks whatever fandom of sports out of you.

So at some point it becomes more of a job and less "Getting paid just to watch sports"

Wally Mathews really brought that point up often when telling his radio audience why he no longer rooted for the Mets/Islanders/Jets/Knicks/Rangers/whomever when he really started full time reporting

Steve

[Guest Edgy DC]

]Most ridiculous was ESPN broadcaster Rick Sutcliffe comparing Braves slugger Chipper Jones to Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter, who is renowned for his terrific play under pressure. Sutcliffe was way off-base. Chipper Jones is to the baseball playoffs as a French cyclist is to the Tour de France, the English are to World Cup soccer and Lindsay Davenport is to women�s tennis. No matter how good you think they are, there�s always someone who proves to be at least a little better, whether it�s Lance Armstrong, South America, the Williams sisters - or Roger Clemens.

What a terrible analogy.

Did this guy miss what the Braves pulled off this year?

Post-Season Hitting, Jeter vs. Jones

PLAYER	G	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	TB	BB	SO	SB	CS	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS
Jeter	114	458	80	139	18	3	15	45	208	50	90	16	3	.303	.376	.454	.830
Jones	91	333	58	96	18	0	13	47	153	72	60	8	3	.288	.411	.459	.870

Game and set to Davenport, if not quite match.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

It's amazin' what knuckleheads are out there.

Steven Goldman of the Pinstriped Bible does an excellent job carving up some of Bill Madden's inanity here (scroll to 'Bankruptcy")

[url]http://www.yesnetwork.com/yankees/pinstripedbible.asp[/url]

[metirish]

That's a pretty decent article form Goldman, I'm surprised is is form the YES machine.So he writes for Baseball Prospectus too, that explains a lot.

[metirish]

Klapisch on Rodriguez.

]Klap: A-Rod comes up short Tuesday, October 11, 2005 By BOB KLAPISCH SPORTS COLUMNIST ANAHEIM - Alex Rodriguez' eyes had the sort of shimmer that suggested he'd just been crying - or was about to. Either way, there was no mistaking the misery of the Yankees' most talented, but least clutch player in the failed Division Series. "I played like a dog in these last five games," Rodriguez said quietly, getting no argument from anyone. In a roomful of culprits, including Hideki Matsui and Bernie Williams, it was the third baseman who represented everything that is both rich and empty about the new millennium Yankees. It's been five long years since they've won a world championship, and to hear the Yankees talk about their 5-3 loss to Angels in Game Five Monday night, the drought might as well be 100 years. Everyone made sure to say they were disappointed and frustrated. Those were the key phrases being thrown around. But no one was angry, not really. Beside Joe Torre, who admitted he'd never taken a loss as badly as this, no one had the burning desire to tear up the room, if not their own skin, while the Angels were outside partying like it was the end of the world. For all the money George Steinbrenner has sunk into his team - nearly $1 billion since 2000 - no one had Derek Jeter's back in the final game. It was the captain who launched a seventh-inning home run that gave the Yankees hope, bringing them to within 5-3. It was Jeter who led off the ninth inning with a single off Frankie Rodriguez deep into the leftfield corner, bringing A-Rod to the plate as the tying run. It's been an awful Series until this point - no RBIs in five games - but here was the third baseman's chance to pay off his debt to greater New York. One swing and all would've been forgiven. The Angels, all of them, took a deep breath as K-Rod went to work on the AL's soon-to-be-anointed Most Valuable Player. Anaheim's infield played back; third baseman Chone Figgins wasn't anywhere near the bag at double play depth. He was merely trying to keep any grounders from getting through, hugging the line to prevent an extra base hit into the corner. And then the impossible happened. A-Rod chopped a one-bouncer directly at Figgins, as if there'd been a magnet sewn into his glove. Before A-Rod could escape the batter's box he'd been sucked into the vortex of a 5-4-3 double play that killed the Yankees' season. Jason Giambi followed with a double. Gary Sheffield's infield single put runners on first and second. But it was too late. Rodriguez got Hideki Matsui to bounce to first to end the game, but the closer had already won the most important battle of the inning, getting A-Rod to succumb one last time. How? Why? The summer's impressive body of work - .a 321 average, 48 homers, 130 RBIs - is just air now. A-Rod's .133 average in the Division Series makes it two consecutive empty Octobers. He's 4-for-32 since Game Four of last year's collapse against the Red Sox, his legacy in fast decline. Rodriguez was man enough to answer every last question about his failure. He deserves credit for that. When reporters finally drifted away, A-Rod sat at his locker, waiting for anyone else who had a follow-up question or needed a clarification. No one came by. After all, what else was there to ask when the game's best player says, "I have to take a long look in the mirror. I just didn't show up in this series." Even if Rodriguez wins the MVP award, as expected, he's still running from his ghosts, the ones who make him grip the bat too tightly and swing too hard with runners in scoring position. Such poisons will eventually leave Rodriguez with the ultimate "loser" tag, and although there's still time to re-write that epitaph, Rodriguez can't travel this road indefinitely. Already, it appears the Yankees will be re-making themselves in 2006, beginning a sixth year of searching for the intangible that once made them champions. Tom Gordon and Bernie Williams will be gone. Tino Martinez will likely retire. GM Brian Cashman might walk away from his contract once it expires on October 31. Rodriguez isn't going anywhere, of course, not at $20 million a year. But the Yankees must be re-thinking whether he's the player to take them to the promised land. The Rangers came to that same disturbing conclusion three years ago and were thrilled to finally move his contract into Steinbrenner's waiting hands. A-Rod craved the big city's energy, but no amount of glitz could save him from missing a easy ground ball in Game Two, leading to a 5-2 loss. And nothing could spare A-Rod from hitting .000 with runners in scoring position, and even worse, failing to get the ball out of the infield in those situations. Obviously, he's not the only reason the Yankees were drummed out of the playoffs in the first round. The middle-relief corps needs a complete make-over, evidenced by that Torre could only trust Randy Johnson on two days' rest when Mike Mussina was knocked out in the third inning. But while the Unit kept the Angels quiet, no one really stepped up. There were just different degrees of failure. If the Yankees take cue A-Rod's cue and look in the mirror, they'll see the ugliness of Matsui's .200 average; Williams' .211 mark, and the five runs Mussina allowed despite being the only Yankee not fighting jet-lag. Five years without a ring, they're instead all being fitted with asterisks - but none as pronounced as A-Rod's. The Invisible Man, is what October now cruelly whispers in his ear.

1Billion since 2000, that's some money.

[Guest Edgy DC]

How about this paragraph?

]Jason Giambi followed with a double. [It was a single.] Gary Sheffield's infield single put runners on first and second. [First and third, as pinch runner Mark Bellhorn had taken second on defensive indifference.] But it was too late. Rodriguez got Hideki Matsui to bounce to first to end the game, [hard grounder, not a bouncer] but the closer had already won the most important battle of the inning, getting A-Rod to succumb one last time.

Keen work, Klap.

[Frayed Knot]

][First and third, as pinch runner Mark Bellhorn had taken second on defensive indifference.]

1st & 2nd actually. Bellhorn never advanced on the Sheffield chopper.

Minor potatoes maybe -- although it's possible that having no runner on 2rd would have meant that Erstad would have had to hold on Womack (Sheff's pr) to keep him from stealing and therefore would have been in a worse position to snag Matsui's shot for the final out.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Keen work, Edgy. I got too excited and full of myself over him blowing the double call.