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Baseball (the talkin' sport)


Tom Strange
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P.S. I remember this franchise eons ago, as the Washington Senators, having the highest ticket prices in the AL. That isn't the case now, is it?

Actually, they weren't that bad till the end of the '60s. I git a pretty good deal in '66 when I got a ten ticket package plus the presidential opener, won by the Indians 5-2 with 4 in the 9th, after Frank Howard had hit one of those low liners over the fence to give the Senators a 2-1 lead.

And LBJ didn't make that game; HHH threw out the first ball. LBJ wasn't at the White House ellipse either when my HS choir sang there at the Pageant of Peace.

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but J.D. better come home with TT still "in the fold"

Ive been liking TT a lot since I read about him about a year ago at this time--I liked the little I saw of him on the major league level this year too---You just never know at this point who will and who wont-but he looks like a cant miss to me---of course Ive said that and been wrong before--I remember arguing that The Dave Clark Five would be remembered way longer than the Beatles too :biglaugh:

There's another young catcher in the Cleveland system named (yes really) Carlos Santana, whos looking good too, but I think he is still a year or two away...

...Ticket prices? I remember the $1.00 for a doubleheader days, this past year was $90 for one decent loge box, which doesnt include the $30 to park (or the 5 hours of driving time round trip).

At least they froze the ticket prices so far--gee big thanks Santa

Edited by mstar1
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At the time I got that 1966 package, the general admission price...which included a very big percentage of the available seats...were still a buck and a half.

I don't remember what my dad paid when he took me to see the Dodgers in the Coliseum in the '50s, and the Angels at Wrigley Field in LA in 1961. I remember well the cheap Disneyland prices, but that is :offtopic: .

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The first time I went to Yankee Stadium was in 1963. My parents broke down and finally brought me to a game. Box seats were 3.50, and that was way too extravagant for my parents.

We 'settled' for 'reserve ' seats that were still on the first level, and just off home plate. Kind of remarkable that my mother could score seats that good by just sending away and requesting them.

By the way, it was a September game, and the Yankees clinched the pennant against the Senators that day.The score was 8-3 if memory serves.

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I enjoy looking up old games at Retrosheet.

Ive looked up several games that I went to as a youngster, they carry the box score and the play by play--which can jog the memory..If i remeber some vague details about a game against the tigers in 67--its all there given around 5 minutes of looking--Its fun and a good site.

I hope you dont mind I looked up Yankees vs Washington in September of '63

They had a two game series on September 3 and 4th--(a tuesday and wednesday--both day games) both look like great games

The first one HERE, Maris won with a 2 run HR in the bottom of the ninth

The second HERE the Yankees won in the bottom of the 12th. Clete Boyer scored the winning run, Ralph Terry got the 12 inning complete game win.

I dont know how many games they were up at the time but it is just about the right time that they may have clinched during one of them...

If you find yourself with time in the winter--like I do--retrosheet can be a blast once you get the hang of it

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Thanks for the retrosheet tip. I'll be spending time there.

Clearly my memory is fuzzy somewhere. When I have the time, I'm going to figure out where. Sept 3 seems a bit early to clinch a pennant to me, but maybe not. For some reason the score 8-3 sticks in my mind, but that was also the score of a memorable little league game I played, so it may be mixed in my head.

I kept a scrapbook as a kid, and cut out the newspaper accounts, but that book is lost to the ages.

Sabbathia wants to go to the Dodgers, according to the LA Times. Colletti isn't biting so far. I guess he figures they don't need Manny and CC, when they have Andruw Jones and Brett Tomko.

I think he's so shell shocked from throwing big money at bad players, that he doesn't know when a gift is dropped in his lap. With Manny and CC, the Dodgers would destroy the weak NL west, and they can afford both of them.

Go figure. I can't.

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I dont understand the Dodgers management--

Its crazy some of the things theyve attempted over the last few years--do they lead the majors in bad contracts? I have to wonder...

CC at the least seems like a no brainer especially since he seems to want to go there, and after what Manny did out there for 1/2 a season--It seems they would be right on top or near it for 4 or 5 years.

I spose they can poke around with Juan Pierre and Andruw if they like--or maybe they really arent baseball guys and will just throw anyone out there , knowing that they have their attendance numbers high pretty much no matter what they do.

I dunno--im too distant and dont follow it closely enough to get a good read on them..It is very odd though....

The Sox are talking to CC, but I think that it is just to be in the bidding to up the ante if the Yankees sign him...I dont think the Sox have any intention of really signing him....

....Retrosheet can be a lot of fun...especially this time of year when there is no baseball to watch....I often will remember some little detail of some game 40 or 15, or 5 or 2 years ago, and start wondering about it. If you can get the year and the opposing teams right, you can hunt it down fairly easily after awhile. It then gives you the box and the play by play--even the attendance and the weather, and with a little luck can unlock a whole cascade of memories of players and plays you had forgotten all about.

Reading through the play by play isnt being at the game, but this time of year, with a little imagination, it can be not too bad to get your baseball fix.

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Looks like CC is going to be wearing pinstripes while K-rod goes across town. . . . ironic how both teams are now begging the city for money. . . hmmmm

Who's next? Texeira, Burnett, Lowe, Petitte??

Now it begins. . . .

What do we think? Will Petitte be having Fenway Franks next year??

Edited by geisha779
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Looks like CC is going to be wearing pinstripes while K-rod goes across town. . . . ironic how both teams are now begging the city for money. . . hmmmm

You mean like one of those cash strapped businesses that can't find enough money to pay it's poor workers???

I've often wondered how much people like the team physician and others get.

Edited by Lifted Up
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You mean like one of those cash strapped businesses that can't find enough money to pay it's poor workers???

I've often wondered how much people like the team physician and others get.

Well, I think the timing is really odd? Big salaries and begging for cash??

Some team Doctors--non-salaried I guess---actually have to PAY the team for the right to use their name in advertising. Dr. So & So . . . Doctor to the New York Yankees . . . . they pay for that right.

These teams must use a plethora of Doc's as everything is soooo specialized. Not like it used to be --when the GP took care of everything. They probably have a specialist just for stubbed toes! It must be mostly "Sub-contracted" out. I think. . . . I am just guessing.

It would be interesting to know--how much goes out for medical. I never really thought about it. . . but, I bet it is a bundle!!

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It would be interesting to know--how much goes out for medical. I never really thought about it. . . but, I bet it is a bundle!!

Well, I guess that is logical. If you have invested $160 million bucks in someone or something, it is worth a chunk to be sure you can get some return on your investment!

But I won't argue your first point, yea the timing is odd. But that applies to some other asking for dough that's going around these days in and out of the sports world.

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ooks like CC is going to be wearing pinstripes while K-rod goes across town. . . . ironic how both teams are now begging the city for money. . . hmmmm

Who's next? Texeira, Burnett, Lowe, Petitte??

Ive been working long hours so this is the first Ive heard of the CC deal... This may be good for the RS, by signing a huge contract with CC --Im thinking that this will probably take the Yankees out of any Teixeira deal, which could open up the way for the Sox to sign him --plus CC's post season numbers are pretty poor--he always seems to be burned out by October (which is always a concern for me), also at his weight 7 years seems a little long--will he eat his way out of this contract in 3 years?

No doubt its a BIG win for the caterers and restauranteurs of NYC, :) I'll measure the plus or minus of this deal by what happens on the field come next October

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CC is a lock to go with the Yankees after all, from what I am reading today. No further comments at this time!

7 years, $161Million.

Troubling on soooooooooo many levels.

Well, I think the timing is really odd? Big salaries and begging for cash??

Screw 'em.

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:biglaugh:

Not with Baltimore in the AL East

Though hes good, Its still a bafflingly large number for me to digest-- rumor has that they are offering Derek Lowe

a ton (4/$66m) too...another move I dont get...

as always we'll have to wait and see how it all plays out

It's just more of the same Steinbrenner strategy that he's been using (successfully?) for many years. I can't see how continuing to do the same thing and expecting a different result is going to work this time.

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It's more of realization that they need pitching, and going after it with all the money they can.

My personal wish is that baseball had a salary cap, but that will never happen.

I won't even try to explain why the Yankees are in a different stratosphere-mostly not in a good way-than most teams. Any other team would be considered a success with 6 world series, 4 rings, and 14 playoff appearances since the mid 90's. With the Yankees, they're 'failures' because they haven't won the series since 2000. Horrors !

It's a monster that's not going away.

Amid all that, they put together one of my all time favorite teams of non 'superstars' and 'good guys' in the 90's that won 4 , and almost 5 world series. Recapturing that 'magic' is what I'd like to see, but they're a far way from that.

I still find it interesting that besides the 90's, my most passionate Yankee years were the late 60's Horace Clarke, cellar dwelling Yankees. It was fun to watch that team slowly come together.

It was a different world back then.

I'm now reading that Texiara may command close to 200 million, whoever gets him, but so long as it's not the Yankees it's no big deal.

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It's more of realization that they need pitching, and going after it with all the money they can.

My personal wish is that baseball had a salary cap, but that will never happen.

I won't even try to explain why the Yankees are in a different stratosphere-mostly not in a good way-than most teams. Any other team would be considered a success with 6 world series, 4 rings, and 14 playoff appearances since the mid 90's. With the Yankees, they're 'failures' because they haven't won the series since 2000. Horrors !

It's a monster that's not going away.

Amid all that, they put together one of my all time favorite teams of non 'superstars' and 'good guys' in the 90's that won 4 , and almost 5 world series. Recapturing that 'magic' is what I'd like to see, but they're a far way from that.

I still find it interesting that besides the 90's, my most passionate Yankee years were the late 60's Horace Clarke, cellar dwelling Yankees. It was fun to watch that team slowly come together.

It was a different world back then.

I'm now reading that Texiara may command close to 200 million, whoever gets him, but so long as it's not the Yankees it's no big deal.

You can also rest assured that the Dbacks won't be in that contest...!

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The Yanks and Mets are already asking for a ""Bailout"

EW YORK (AP)—The Yankees and Mets are asking the city for $450 million more in public bonds to finance their new ballparks, on top of nearly $1.5 billion they were already granted, according to the city’s Economic Development Corp...

In the Yankees’ application, the team is asking for another $259 million in tax-exempt bonds and $111 million in taxable bonds, on top of $940 million in tax-exempt bonds and $25 million in taxable bonds already granted for its $1.3 billion stadium.

-----

Maybe the reported offers are all hyperbole..aside from CC's massive contract which is 'weighted' hugely in his favor, the numbers that are being reported for good but not great pitchers like Lowe and Burnett are insanely high. I know they have to fill up the staff but $17mil a year for Lowe? Thats way out of bounds to me, especially considering hes a groundball pitcher and the yanks infield defense is (well I'll be polite..and say...) porous. To me that doesnt make sense

I have to wonder if they are trying a little desperately to win one more for the "Old Man" before he either passes away or forgets who he is-and bypassing reasonableness to do it...

The back end of these contracts (especially if they sign anymore) could bite them hard in future years

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I agree that the price for Lowe is nutty, though I'm not sure why the Dodgers didn't want to keep him. He can be lousy to unhittable on any given day-but he does have more good days than bad. Plus, he's always healthy, which I can't say for many pitchers.

I'm not sure I agree with the slamming of the infield, though I know Mstar is in the trash Derek Jeter's ability camp. Last I looked Arod , and Cano were pretty good fielders. I don't know who's on first, but who knows,it might still be Tiexiera. ( part of me would like to see the Nationals get him. At least there 'd be one player I've heard of when they come to town. What I'd most like to see is Tiex stay with the Angels, and Manny with the Dodgers-both prospects unlikely).

I will also admit that Jeter has never had a lot of range, and probably less now, but there's no team that wouldn't jump cartwheels to have him.

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Well sure but thats for his hitting and leadership. Im not out to 'trash' him just trying to be objective.

I purposely did not post THIS STORY about a month ago just for trashing him sake-- but I do think that it is probably a somewhat fair analysis.

I have no problem mentioning that Varitek is declining or any ballplayer--they all do.

The Fielding Bible that does the same type of analysis on every ball hit in play throughout the year also ranked both Cano, and Arod as 10th in the league at their positions. They are great offensive players, I dont argue with that, but defense has not been something that the Yankees seem to focus on.

They will improve some with Swisher at first instead of Giambi, and Cano could improve, he seems to be streaky in the field as he is at bat, but my point was that Lowe might not be a good fit for them and their style of play for that type of money especially ( and Im not trashing just being realistic) as the left side of the infield gets older.

Its gotta be a tough call being Cashman, When they got ARod I thought he was actually the better SS and he still might be, but Jeter is an icon and will stay at Short until he decides its time to move the same way Cal Ripken stayed in the lineup even when it started hurting the O's.

I didnt mean this to open up a can of worms--I like Derek Jeter as a player i really do, --even though I fume about him from time to time.--but it does come up over the years with different players that have become iconic, when and how do you move them gracefully when their performance starts to effect the overall team--its asticky question

and dont get me wrong he is still good--I just think the Yankees could switch things up and be better defensively if they moved him to 3rd or 2nd--which they'll never do..

just my opinion

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