JPW(rong)!!!!!

  

  I can’t believe it’s almost September! Boy does time fly! Baseball season is in its thickest moments as the pennant races are really starting to heat up. If both the Yankees and Mets make the playoffs it will help all of New York sports. We’ve seen in recent history that Boston sports had its high, especially with the Patriots winning the Super Bowl this year. Speaking of which, football season is upon us!  It’s hard to say what I’m looking forward to more, fantasy football or how my New York Football Giants perform. Let’s just pause for a second. We are only half way through the PRESESASON and both New York football teams have had their off the field issues.

   When you think of 4^th of July what comes to mind? We have barbeques, days off from work, fireworks? If you’re a Giants fan, you have all that plus Jason Pierre-Paul and 9 fingers. Instantly, my first question was what the hell was he thinking? Playing around with fireworks? Granted he is allowed to have some fun, but he can have fun in other ways. The very first reports to come out were that he had just severely burned his hand. About a week later, reports came out through the media(not the Giants) that he had his right finger amputated. Everyone, including Giants management, were shocked and stunned.

     How can I say that the Giants were stunned? You can say that literally and emotionally. JPP would not let the team doctor and other staff to come visit him. They flew down special to Florida to come check him out and see what they can do to help. He would not let them into his hospital room. After that, the Giants had not heard from him for weeks. If you want the truth, it was utterly disgusting of JPP to not allow the Giants to help him in a time of need. Little did anyone know, the Giants had a long term extension on the table before this incident. After this incident, more importantly after he wouldn’t let the team to see him, they pulled it off the table. That was the right move by the Giants.

   Once everyone found out that he had his right index finger amputated, the first question that was asked was how affective he will be this season. As a defensive end, you use your hands a lot trying to rush the passer. Will not having his right index finger affect his play? If he figures out a way to focus, he will have no problems. Marty McFly once said, “If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything.” If JPP has that feeling, it will be as if none of this ever happened.

   The Giants had two consecutive subpar seasons. The first season, the offense was the problem. The defense was a top 10 defense in the league. Last season, the offense was drastically fixed, but the defense had the problems. If Jason Pierre Paul comes back strong, he can anchor the defense. The Giants can have a great season if their strengths of the past 2 seasons work together this year.  Was JPP stupid for this stint? Absolutely! Should he have let the Giants medical staff and others come see him? Hell Yes! You never want to upset your employer. Most importantly, if JPP works hard towards his goals, will the Giants be better off? Of course! Let’s hope for the tens of thousands, upon tens of thousands, of Giants fans that JPP produces, as well as the Giants as a team!

Counting Pitches

             

 

  If you are a father, or ever plan on being one, you always dream of taking your children to a baseball game. My father did that with my sister and me growing up. On Wednesday, my father and I were supposed to go to Washington D.C. and catch a Nationals game, instead we saw Yankees-Red Sox game. It was the highly anticipated debut of Luis Serevino, the Yankees top overall prospect. When I found out that he was pitching the game we were attending I was very excited. This was the future of the Yankees. He honestly did not have a bad pitching line: 5 IP, 2 H, 2R/1ER 0 BB and 7K. The Yankees are moving in the right direction.

     When we sat down at our seats last night, we were very excited to see this kid pitch. My dad grew up watching likes of Whitey Ford, Tom Seaver, and Ron Guidry take the mound. Those were pitchers that would always go the distance. Bullpens were rarely used through the late 1970's. Pitchers, managers, and owners barely ever worried about a pitchers pitch count. Whitey Ford pitched 14 seasons with no injuries. The only interruption he had was service time during the Korean War. Ron Guidry and Tom Seaver both had nice and lengthy careers with barely any problems. My dad did not seem to to understand why Luis Serevino was taken out after 5 innings and 94 pitches. I tried explaining to him that it was about "protecting" the pitchers arm.

   If you want my honest opinion, why do you need to "protect" a pitchers arm with innings limits and pitch counts if they may need to fix it regardless. Many pitchers have Tommy John surgery and come back stronger, but you can't prevent that from happening. If you look at the Mets, they have fantastic young starting pitching. Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler already have had TJ surgery. Innings limits already messed up Stephen Strausburg's and forced him out for a season. Masahiro Tanaka did the right thing. He pitched until he couldn't anymore and rehabbed his arm. He came back in the same season.

   I understand that people want to "protect" their investments, short term or long term, but what's the point of investing if you don't get their full potential. Do you think Whitey Ford, Sandy Koufax, or Bob Gibson ever let their managers give them an innings limit or pitch count? People have to understand that thinking for the present and the future is about tapping your potential. You can't get oil unless you drill all the way to the bottom right? Same concept with pitchers. Let's give them another shot. If Major League Baseball wants to "pretend" the steroid era never happened, this is a good start.

Trading Thoughts(and Players)?

     

    The non-waiver Trade deadline came and went this past Friday. There were a lot of deals and no deals. Many teams had many needs, but were their questions really answered? Houston getting Scott Kazmir and Carlos Gomez, Toronto getting David Price and Tulo, or the the Mets getting Tyler Clippard and Yoenis Cespedes, all these teams got a quality hitter and pitcher. Other teams like Kansas City and Washington made upgrades at possible weaknesses, will it work out for everyone Only time will really tell. There are so many things that the trade deadline tells me. 

   The first big trade of the summer was Scott Kazmir going from the A's to the Astros. A few weeks later, the Astros got Carlos Gomez and Mike Fiers from the Milwaukee Brewers. It shows a lot of the Astros when it comes to these 2 moves. First of all, after rebuilding through a terrific farm system, they are ready to win now and are confident with their way of play. Second of all, it shows that the Astros are serious about building a contender. Houston fans should be really excited about their team, even if they fall short of the playoffs(they will make the postseason).

   Both the Blue Jays and the Mets showed that they are all in, even if they have "Rent-A-Players." They Mets are more in contention than the Blue Jays, but the Blue Jays are more built to win now. Honestly, I have no problem with what the Blue Jays did, but the main question is whether David Price decides to stay there. My main concern is with the Mets. They desperately need offense, which is why they got Juan Uribe, Kelly Johnson, and Yoenis Cespedes. Uribe and Johnson are both role players, but Cespedes is a power hitter that can help make the lineup better. Lucas Duda hit 3 home runs this weekend with Cespedes in the lineup. The main concern with this trade is if they can sign him after the season ends. It is more of a concern if the Mets can sign Cespedes than if the Blue Jays will sign David Price.

    The real question everyone has is what happened to those high and mighty New York Yankees. They are in first place in their division, but in desperate need of starting pitching. Cole Hamels, Johnny Cueto, and David Price were all on the market, but they didn't want to part with their top 4 prospects. If you want my honest opinion, I completely agree with what the Yankees did. We all know how great Price, Hamels, and Cueto are, but the Yankees have finally built up a respectable farm system. They are trying to win now with the intent of getting younger. It does not mean that they will not sign free agents or make trades, it just means that they will be smarter with the way they build their team. For example, the C.C. Sabathia signing was great for them the first 3 1/2 years. The past 2 plus years of C.C. has been wear and tear on his body. Bringing up youth will help the team now and in the future.

   Baseball is a funny game in so many ways.We had a team like the Pittsburgh Pirates, who for 20 years had losing seasons, finally made the postseason 2 years ago. They built through their farm system and are paying major dividends. The Kansas City Royals made it to Game 7 of the World Series. On the other hand, look at the Boston Red Sox. In 2012, they finished in last place in the A.L., but the next year in 2013 they won the World Series, followed by a last place finish. Never underestimate baseball executives and managers on how they run their teams, its all up to the players on how they play.