Damon is a Yankee :(

[Guest Bret Sabermetric]

Elster88 wrote: This is a huge change in your stance from "Don't sign veterans on the tail of their career to high priced contracts." Doesn't anyone else think 13 million a year is a huge waste of money for Damon? I guess the Yanks can afford it. I'd much rather have Beltran for the next 6 at his rate (16?) than 4 years of Damon at 13. Even after Beltran had a bad year and Damon had a career year.

Don't want to turn this thread into a detailed justification of my baseball philosophy, Elster, but two or three exculpating factors need to be noted:

1) There's a difference between a four-year deal with a productive and healthy player and a seven year deal. Damon at 13 mil for 7 years is foolish, 13 mil for 4 years approaches acceptable (as long as you don't expect too much from him in 2008 and 2009.).

2) There's a difference between spending bigbux when your team is a proven contender already and the bigbux represents one final push, and when your team is riddled with problems after the bigbux signing, which you then try to peddle to your deluded fanbase as the final piece in the puzzle. Which starter do the Yankees have now that compares to the Mets holes' last spring at 1B and 2B?

and 3) The only problem I ever had with the Mets' signing of Beltran (even now) would have been if they DIDN'T do it.

[Elster88]

I was only teasing you Bret. I agree with all three of your points.

Well, almost all three. I think 13 mil is too much.

[Frayed Knot]

Now comes word that the Yanx have re-upped Bernie to a 1-year deal, presumably to be the main DH & occasional OF sub.

]There's a difference between a four-year deal with a productive and healthy player and a seven year deal.

Damon looked beat up at the end of last season* and had problems with either one or both shoulders. Maybe that was all temporary, I'm not sure. Shirley the Yanx checked into this and the contract is technically not done yet given the usual "pending a physical" caveat.




* (on edit):
2005 Pre A-S Break: 343 / 386 / 473
2005 Post A-S Break: 282 / 343 / 397
2002-2004 Composite: 298 / 364 / 440

[Guest silverdsl]

Edgy DC wrote: Does he perhaps think that the Sawx, post-Theo, can't sustain their level of performance, and he's getting out while the getting is good, because who wants to be the face of a team in decline? (See Piazza, Mike, 2001-2005.)

Well, the Yankees haven't won anything other than the division for a few years so while I definitely wouldn't call that a decline by any means I don't think there are necessarily any guarantees about how long they're going to continue their current level of success. Personally, I think Damon loved the attention he got from the media and fans in Boston and I suspect thoughts of being even more of a media-star were dancing in his head. That and the money.

I would have liked to have seen the Yankees get a centerfielder who is better defensively. But Damon is a decent hitter and I think he will be an asset. He's certainly better than the Yankees other options which were Bubba Crosby or Bernie Williams. Someone upthread brought up Knoblauch and the possiblity of Yankee fans turning on Damon like they did Knoblauch and I think that only happens if Damon turns out to develop a mysterious throwing problem that likely stems from him being a headcase, loses his ability to be productive at the plate, turns surly, refuses to talk to the media and is a jerk to fans.

[Elster88]

I think it was just the money. It always is.
__________________
This post had the designation 94)Rico Brogna

[Guest ScarletKnight41]

Caple Thinks Damon Will Regret This

[Elster88]

Caple goes from saying that players don't care as much about winning as the fans, and then in his next few paragraphs says that Damon is ruining his legacy. So players don't care about winning, but care about their legacy?

Give me a fucking break. I do this every time a free agent signs, so I deserve a dead horse award: It's about the money, it will always be about the money. Damon will feel just fine as he watches his game checks pile up in his bank account.

Now that that is dealt with for the second time in the last three posts, I can move on to my next question: Where do millionaires keep their money? Banks only insure up to one hundred grand right? I guess stocks and bonds and shit.

[soupcan]

soupcan thinks this will facilitate the Manny to the Mets deal with the Sox management selling it their fans by touting Milledge as the second coming.

[Guest Yancy Street Gang]

Did Mark Bomback speak of himself in the third person?

Or is soupcan talking that way to celebrate Rickey Henderson's circumcision?

[soupcan]

Yancy Street Gang wrote: Did Mark Bomback speak of himself in the third person? Or is soupcan talking that way to celebrate Rickey Henderson's circumcision?

I thought my post would be following Scarlet's 'Jim Caple thinks...'

Then it would have made sense. Now I just look like an ass (in keeping with the private parts theme).

[Guest cooby]

And my coworkers are wondering why I am laughing my ass off. Also in keeping with the private parts theme

[metsmarathon]

goodness...

[Guest ScarletKnight41]

The Queer Eye guys are going to be really pissed off. He wouldn't let them touch his hair.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

Very funny photo essay:

http://drop.thesoundofrane.com/viewtopic.php?t=749&start=0&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight=&sid=2813cc01baf60857d7048dfb5c7d27fb

[Zvon]

lmao,..it was JD.

OMG!
Look at those ears!
I thought mine were big.

The more you think about it the more the Skanks simply HAD to do this deal.
If they went with Bubba Crosby for 2006 while Damon was out there to be had, Skank fans would have went ballistic.
And the Mets moves would have been the only big off season stories.

[Frayed Knot]

There might be worse public speakers than Damon ... but I wouldn't want to have to listen to them.

[Guest KC]

That hairdresser looks like she was embalmed a week ago.

[nymr83]

Zvon wrote: If they went with Bubba Crosby for 2006 while Damon was out there to be had, Skank fans would have went ballistic. And the Mets moves would have been the only big off season stories.

i think if the best remaining Free Agent was Rey Ordonez the yankees would feel the need to sign him and have a huge press conference just so they could have one.

[Guest Little Napoleon]

Johnny Dickshot wrote: He also has a shitty arm.

And thats an understatement. Yankee fans bitch about Bernies arm non-stop. Damons arm is a noodle, the kind of rag you wax your car with.

[seawolf17]

You know what's startling? Damon is a moron. Did you listen to any of his interviews? He might be the worst non-language-barrier-based interview in the history of interviews. He can't speak! And MFY fans think he's going to be a media darling?!?! Doubt it.

Mariano Rivera -- with apologies to The Shortstop Who Will Not Be Named -- might be the most important part of the MFYs' last ten years. Is he a media darling? No, partially because he can't speak English. Guess what? Neither can Damon.

Mike Piazza is a media king. TSWWNBN is a media king. It ain't happening for Johnny Damon.

[Guest Edgy DC]

It's the beginning of Sampson Syndrome.

[Guest ScarletKnight41]

The good part about Damon's inarticulateness is that we didn't have to hear "the speech" yesterday.

[Guest mlbaseballtalk]

Thing I'm really going to love is to listen to The Michael Kay Show on 1050 ESPN Radio.

The two Red Sox Kay and his chronies (well mostly just his board op Joey Salvia) hated upon on that show with such visceral passion were Damon and Pedro

And now they are both in New York! And Damon is a MFY!

Not to mention Damon was the guy Kay apparantly alluded to being one of "the next to be suspended" for steriods

How Kay and Salvia will kiss up to the guy will be quite hillarious. All of a sudden Damon's quips will be just the quotes of a fun-loving lovable MFY instead of coming from an unarticulate moron that is beloved only by legions of New England college frat boys because they think he was "one of us" with the hair and beard

This could make for entertaining radio...

Kind of like Russo becoming a Barr-iod apologist since Bonds signed with his G-Men back in 93 after hating on him during the Pirate years

Steve

[Guest Edgy DC]

Johnny and Michelle.

[Elster88]

]TSWWNBN

?

[Guest ScarletKnight41]

BTW, Michelle is Johnny's second wife. He left his first wife and his boy and girl twins for her.

The people whom I know from A's sites haven't forgiven him for that yet.

[Guest SwitchHitter]

I think seawolf means punkin-eater.

[Guest mlbaseballtalk]

Elster88 wrote: ]TSWWNBN ?

Derek Jeter

[Guest Edgy DC]

His second wife is also a frighteningly plastic-looking apparition.

Check out the second post here by yerfatma.

[Elster88]

mlbaseballtalk wrote: ="Elster88"] ]TSWWNBN ? Derek Jeter

But what does it stand for?