Saturday, April 27, 2013

WHILE THE INJURIES MOUNT UP...

...so do the victories.  The Yanks lost two more guys yesterday, but still won. Even the Yankees don't know how they're doing it. They started the season with two second-string catchers vying for the starting job, and are now down to the second-string guy who LOST.

Ivan Nova, who pitches like he doesn't really want the job, hurt his elbow and left the game in the third inning. The logical choice to take his place is David Phelps, who has been teetering on the edge of winning a starting slot for a year now, but seems too good in his long relief job to be moved. So the Yanks look to the class AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees...er, Roadrunners...er, Railrunners. There seem to be two main choices: a retread, Chien Ming-Wang, that, as Annie-O says, would be Chien Ming-Wrong, or someone named Vidal Nuno. The name suggests an expensive shampoo, but in reality, he's a former Cleveland Indian draft pick. Here is Buster Olney's description, to help you decide -

"But every season, there are players who seem to come out of nowhere to play important roles. With that in mind, we present Vidal Nuno. He is 5-foot-not very much, weighs 100-and-not very much, and his fastball velocity is 80 mph plus not very much. He signed with the Yankees and was assigned to Class A ball, because he isn't very big and doesn't throw very hard. But it turns out there are two things that Vidal Nuno does very well. First, he has a tremendous changeup, secondly, he throws strikes. Like a machine."
 
In the meantime, Austin Romine has been called and may get the start behind the plate this afternoon. So far the Yanks have lost five starters plus one starting pitcher. They don't need more players, they need more doctors.

Edwin Encarnacion hit two more homers for the Blue Jays last night, and both times ran the bases with one elbow raised up. This kind of "showmanship" can irritate some pitchers and result in a little lesson for Encarnacion. That's not the Yankees style, but I think somewhere down the line, he's going to run into a pitcher who's not having a good day and be in for a little retaliation. We'll see.

## Rick Pitino, coach of the NCAA Champion Louisville Cardinals, has fulfilled a promise and has honored his team by getting a tattoo. It's on his back and is an elaborate "L". It's a nice gesture but it does limit future coaching jobs to places like Long Beach State, Loyola Maramount and LIU Brooklyn. Or any other team with a good sense of humor.

## Who is the hottest hitter in baseball? It's 37-year old David Ortiz. "Big Papi" is currently hitting .500 with 2 homers and 6 RBIs in only 24 at bats. That gives new meaning to "Boston Strong."

***THEY SAID IT***
" Los Angeles #Lakers against the San Antonio #Spurs. As far as Jack Nicholson is concerned, it’s Too Few Good Men." --  Janice Hough
"The San Diego Chargers selected Manti Te’o. Or is it just somebody on twitter and Facebook pretending to be the San Diego Chargers?"  -- Alex Kaseberg
" Thack Moor hill in England has been declared a mountain after surveyors measured it at 610 metres tall instead of 609. So it isn't just Yankees - Red Sox fans making mountains out of moor hills."  -- RJ Currie
" How about that NFL Draft? I wouldn't say there are a lot of large men bear-hugging the commissioner, but by the end of the first round, he was keeping them at bay with a taser."  -- Brad Dickson
"A Bulls fan is suing Derrick Rose, claiming Rose's missing the entire season caused the fan to get depressed, which led to the fan becoming fat. If disappointment led to sports fans in Chicago putting on weight, Wrigley Field would have a capacity of nine."  -- Brad Dickson
"The Falcons beefed up their defensive line by signing former Giants star Osi Umenyiora. Everyone in Atlanta went bonkers - except for the unfortunate soul who sews the letters on the back of the Falcon jerseys."  -- Dwight Perry
 "The Jets vowed to take the best athlete available in the NFL draft. It's the same strategy the Kardashian sisters use."  -- David Lettrman
 "Liverpool forward Luis Suarez bit Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic during a Premier League soccer match, earning himself a 10-game ban. Or as eye-for-an-eve advocates prefer to call it, a penalty with some teeth in it."  -- Dwight Perry

CP-




 
 


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