Let's go, Yankees!
Showing posts with label Yankees. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Yankees. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Q: Where have I been this whole time?
A: I have no idea. And no excuse. Now, I don't want to underestimate the impact that my blog absence has caused for all of you guys -- or the two or three of you who have ever actually read this blog. Oh well, I've decided that I will try to do better from now on. For now indulge me as I give y'all a few updates, thoughts, observations, and predictions:
UPDATES
THOUGHTS
OBSERVATIONS
"Georgia is a powerhouse right now, and they were at the end of last year with the way they displayed it in their bowl game." -- Mike Aresco, CBS' senior vice president of programming.
UPDATES
- I'm heading to San Diego in six days for a Risk Mgmt conference! I'll try to give some daily updates -- with pictures -- for all you guys who will be in Athens studying for finals. :)
- I successfully got into the Terry Real Estate program!
- I have three tests, two projects and two papers due this week!
- We now have an official hammock at our apt!!!!1!11!!!!!1
- All of our roommates are now officially 21!
- I love exclamation marks!!!111!1!!!!!!
- I actually joined an Athens Church community group...which is really exciting for me. And I'm trying to get back into the whole "Christian walk" thing, so I'll occasionally let you guys know what's up.
- I just subscribed to Twitter. Follow me. We'll see how this goes.
THOUGHTS
- Not sure...I don't know why I included this category in my list above. I don't really have anything to put here.
OBSERVATIONS
- The weather here in the ol' G-A is annoying. Annoying like the fat guy who always has the seat next to you on a long plane flight. Annoying like the crumbs and such at the bottom of a cereal box that, no matter how you try to avoid pouring them in your bowl, always seem to flood the top and get mushy with the milk. That annoying. Seriously, high of 58 two days ago, misty and windy yesterday morning, beautiful tropical weather today. What's the deal?
- Sometimes you get what you ask for. And sometimes what you ask for turns out to not be what you wanted at all. Case in point the Target case study for my leadership class. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to win a $3,000 scholarship for the group, but I'd also love to keep my sanity this week (see above). I hate it when this happens.
- We've got a lot to look forward to for this season's Dawgs. Below is just one reason.
- Holy crap! And how about this one?
- Get excited. I'm buying red pants. Debate ensues. I look good regardless because I still have these. Be jealous. And I don't have any Friday class(es) next semester, so I'll be rockin' the UGA class all across the great Southeast. But not to Arizona State, because I'm poor.
- The Yankees will right the ship...soon...hopefully. Boy, I hate the Red Sox.
- I will somehow survive this semester and have an incredible summer in Tanzania and Atlanta.
"Georgia is a powerhouse right now, and they were at the end of last year with the way they displayed it in their bowl game." -- Mike Aresco, CBS' senior vice president of programming.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Witnessing my childhood crumble before my eyes
So the Mitchell Report came out today...and I have no idea what to say. First, maybe a little background is in order:
Some of my earliest and fondest memories of childhood involve the Yankees and my dad. It's not the typical "my dad took me to my first Yankees game when I was three and I've been a fan ever since" kind of story -- mostly because we have lived in Alabama ever since I reached the ripe old age of one-and-a-half. It's more like a "my dad is my dad and I've been a Yankees fan ever since birth." You could call it brainwashing, or you could call it devotion, but I'll always be a Yankees fan, no matter what happens. And, though I'm not really one for packratting all my things through the years, I still have my Yankees World Series Champs 1996 poster in my room back home. Complete with Andy Pettitte front and center. And at that point in my life, my dream was to be a pitcher for the Yankees. Sure, I would go on to wear out my shoulder from overuse, and yes, I would eventually grow to idolize Bernie Williams because I would switch to centerfield. [Tangent: Maybe Bernie and I have a deeper connection than I imagined after looking at his website. I play guitar...he plays guitar...he's tall, dark, and handsome...and I stunted my growth with asthma medicine at a young age. But I digress...] But I was always drawn to Andy's folksy attitude, his laid-back Texas drawl and his knack for coming up big in the biggest spots. So now fast forward to the present...
I'm sitting here more than a decade wiser from that magical '96 season, and my fond childhood memories are quickly deteriorating. Now the details might state that Pettitte didn't even consider using until well after that season -- and the following seasons in that great dynasty -- but that means nothing to me now. Pettitte's reputation will forever be tarnished by this, now much more a Western outlaw instead of the righteous Texas cowboy. And that, my friends, is the travesty of this situation. While I definitely can't agree with John Kruk's examination of the Report [paraphrased: "MLB should have kept the Report quiet and in-house so as to not damage the images of the players involved."], I realize that there are many more people who will hold my same opinion(s). Much like I mentioned earlier, I will always love Andy Pettitte -- Roger, I'm not surprised you were implicated in this, and, I'm sorry, but I don't hold you in the same personal esteem as your buddy, Andy -- whether he admits his use, denies it completely, or allows it to just blow over. But instead of being akin to one of heaven's angels, he'll probably have to be content as simply a man with more ability and talent than myself.
And let me revisit those comments of ol' Krukky for just a second. Quite frankly, they don't make any sense. You made your millions playing -- and are making millions broadcasting -- solely because the game of baseball is so constantly in the public eye. If the nation didn't care and didn't have a healthy stake in this whole ordeal, then your job would have been marginalized long ago. Simply put, no sport can capture the attention and ire of the whole nation quite like Major League Baseball -- excepting, of course, this -- and that is precisely the reason that the American public deserves to be informed to the fullest extent about what is going on. If the freaking Congress can get involved -- the same Congress that is supposed to represent the interests of, you guess it, the American public -- then I think this issue is big enough to keep that public involved. On the other hand, Bud Selig could have kept it quiet, could have called the named players into his office privately, and could have handled the whole situation without involving any outsiders. And then where would that leave the league? Still with a debilitating steroid scandal, but now also with a crooked commish who covers up embarrassing issues, a more suspicious public perception, and -- probably not avoidable even with the Report out in the open -- a vicious cloud hanging over each and every player, named or unnamed by some Report. So I guess, looking at every possibility, "keeping it quiet and in-house" would be the best option, right, John? Maybe you could stick to standing up in the batter's box. Or maybe to plugging your products on TV [listen closely...I don't think it's a joke]. But again, I digress...
Bringing it back full circle:
1) No, this does not tarnish the Yankees' reputation as a whole and, no, it does not invalidate their legitimate championships before Andy started using.
2) Yes, it tarnishes every single one of the named players' reputations, probably forever, regardless of what comes of this debacle.
3) I don't want to hear the "Oh, but they haven't been proven guilty, and since this is America, you should be innocent until proven guilty" argument. It doesn't matter when you're being tried in the courts of public opinion. You can be cleared of all charges but still be seen as scum by the public [see: "If the glove doesn't fit, you've got to acquit."].
4) We're still the Yankees. We still have A-Rod -- who, by the way, was NOT implicated in the Report, and we still have Joba, Phil, Ian, Melky, and Robby. So, Yanks' fans, don't worry, we'll be fine for years to come. Just grit your teeth and bear it for now, and we'll get through this together. At least we don't have to deal with Manny or Varitek everyday, right? Maybe next time he'll take the mask off like a man.
Check out this reaction to the Report from a guy who's feeling it as much as I am.
Until next time...
ET
Some of my earliest and fondest memories of childhood involve the Yankees and my dad. It's not the typical "my dad took me to my first Yankees game when I was three and I've been a fan ever since" kind of story -- mostly because we have lived in Alabama ever since I reached the ripe old age of one-and-a-half. It's more like a "my dad is my dad and I've been a Yankees fan ever since birth." You could call it brainwashing, or you could call it devotion, but I'll always be a Yankees fan, no matter what happens. And, though I'm not really one for packratting all my things through the years, I still have my Yankees World Series Champs 1996 poster in my room back home. Complete with Andy Pettitte front and center. And at that point in my life, my dream was to be a pitcher for the Yankees. Sure, I would go on to wear out my shoulder from overuse, and yes, I would eventually grow to idolize Bernie Williams because I would switch to centerfield. [Tangent: Maybe Bernie and I have a deeper connection than I imagined after looking at his website. I play guitar...he plays guitar...he's tall, dark, and handsome...and I stunted my growth with asthma medicine at a young age. But I digress...] But I was always drawn to Andy's folksy attitude, his laid-back Texas drawl and his knack for coming up big in the biggest spots. So now fast forward to the present...
I'm sitting here more than a decade wiser from that magical '96 season, and my fond childhood memories are quickly deteriorating. Now the details might state that Pettitte didn't even consider using until well after that season -- and the following seasons in that great dynasty -- but that means nothing to me now. Pettitte's reputation will forever be tarnished by this, now much more a Western outlaw instead of the righteous Texas cowboy. And that, my friends, is the travesty of this situation. While I definitely can't agree with John Kruk's examination of the Report [paraphrased: "MLB should have kept the Report quiet and in-house so as to not damage the images of the players involved."], I realize that there are many more people who will hold my same opinion(s). Much like I mentioned earlier, I will always love Andy Pettitte -- Roger, I'm not surprised you were implicated in this, and, I'm sorry, but I don't hold you in the same personal esteem as your buddy, Andy -- whether he admits his use, denies it completely, or allows it to just blow over. But instead of being akin to one of heaven's angels, he'll probably have to be content as simply a man with more ability and talent than myself.
And let me revisit those comments of ol' Krukky for just a second. Quite frankly, they don't make any sense. You made your millions playing -- and are making millions broadcasting -- solely because the game of baseball is so constantly in the public eye. If the nation didn't care and didn't have a healthy stake in this whole ordeal, then your job would have been marginalized long ago. Simply put, no sport can capture the attention and ire of the whole nation quite like Major League Baseball -- excepting, of course, this -- and that is precisely the reason that the American public deserves to be informed to the fullest extent about what is going on. If the freaking Congress can get involved -- the same Congress that is supposed to represent the interests of, you guess it, the American public -- then I think this issue is big enough to keep that public involved. On the other hand, Bud Selig could have kept it quiet, could have called the named players into his office privately, and could have handled the whole situation without involving any outsiders. And then where would that leave the league? Still with a debilitating steroid scandal, but now also with a crooked commish who covers up embarrassing issues, a more suspicious public perception, and -- probably not avoidable even with the Report out in the open -- a vicious cloud hanging over each and every player, named or unnamed by some Report. So I guess, looking at every possibility, "keeping it quiet and in-house" would be the best option, right, John? Maybe you could stick to standing up in the batter's box. Or maybe to plugging your products on TV [listen closely...I don't think it's a joke]. But again, I digress...
Bringing it back full circle:
1) No, this does not tarnish the Yankees' reputation as a whole and, no, it does not invalidate their legitimate championships before Andy started using.
2) Yes, it tarnishes every single one of the named players' reputations, probably forever, regardless of what comes of this debacle.
3) I don't want to hear the "Oh, but they haven't been proven guilty, and since this is America, you should be innocent until proven guilty" argument. It doesn't matter when you're being tried in the courts of public opinion. You can be cleared of all charges but still be seen as scum by the public [see: "If the glove doesn't fit, you've got to acquit."].
4) We're still the Yankees. We still have A-Rod -- who, by the way, was NOT implicated in the Report, and we still have Joba, Phil, Ian, Melky, and Robby. So, Yanks' fans, don't worry, we'll be fine for years to come. Just grit your teeth and bear it for now, and we'll get through this together. At least we don't have to deal with Manny or Varitek everyday, right? Maybe next time he'll take the mask off like a man.
Check out this reaction to the Report from a guy who's feeling it as much as I am.
Until next time...
ET
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