Sunday, July 01, 2007
3 To Go To All-Star Game
Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez and shortstop Derek Jeter steamrolled their paths toward the All-Star Game in San Francisco, tallying enough votes to finish first and second, respectively, among all Major League leaders.
The voting was less certain for Jorge Posada, who made it into the Midsummer Classic as an American League reserve.
Because the votes that spurred the catcher on to the Bay Area were cast by his fellow big leaguers, they're just as meaningful -- if not more -- as the accolades accumulated by A-Rod and Jeter.
Posada has arguably been the Yankees' most irreplaceable player in the first half, as the 35-year-old backstop has improved his physical conditioning to enjoy one of his finer offensive seasons.
Drawing regular work behind the plate, Posada ranks fifth in the AL with a .333 batting average and could be the first Yankees catcher to finish in the top 10 in AL hitting since Thurman Munson in 1978.
Posada has proved durable as well, which the Yankees have needed -- a steady, guiding influence behind the plate, particularly in the first weeks of the season, when the Bombers trotted out seven different rookie pitchers to make starts.
Then again, Posada's reliability has never been in question; Posada has never landed on the disabled list in his career and has started at least 120 games behind the plate in each of the last seven seasons.
Ever the team player, Posada couldn't fully enjoy his selection over Cleveland's Victor Martinez. Posada was understandably sour after the Yankees' 11-5 loss to the Oakland Athletics on All-Star Selection Sunday.
As the Major League votes leader with 3,890,515 votes cast for the All-Star Game, Rodriguez echoed similar thoughts, downplaying his 11th selection -- but first time leading balloting -- in favor of the club's fortunes.
A-Rod set a new personal high for RBIs in a single month during his incredible April, when he slugged a Major League-leading 14 home runs and drove in 34 runs. Rodriguez came right back and equaled the mark with another 34 RBIs in June, leading the Majors.
The National League should beware. Rodriguez was tied with former Seattle Mariners teammate Ken Griffey Jr. for the Interleague lead with eight home runs this season and led the Majors with 23 RBIs, his numbers buoyed by a red-hot trip to San Francisco in late June.
For all of Rodriguez's theatrics and fireworks, Jeter has been a quietly consistent complement in the Yankees' lineup. Jeter ran off three separate hitting streaks of 17 games or more in the first half of the season, making him the first player since 1950 to do so.
Jeter logged 3,199,571 votes to win starting honors in San Francisco, the third time he will start in the All-Star Game.
Though he has been nicked and bruised all season, most recently fighting a bout with knee tendinitis, Jeter hasn't seen his reliability affected, batting a team-leading .335 with five home runs and 38 RBIs.
Left-hander Andy Pettitte, right-hander Chien-Ming Wang and second baseman Robinson Cano were among those not selected to head to San Francisco. The voting ends a three-year All-Star streak for Yankees closer Mariano Rivera.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Labels: Alex Rodriguez, All-Star, All-Star Game, Derek Jeter, Jorge Posada


Posted by Steve Kenul at 8:47 PM

Friday, February 09, 2007
Hank Bauer
1922-2007

Hank Bauer
(pictured left of Stengle), a key component of seven New York Yankees World Series championship clubs, died Friday after a lengthy battle with cancer. He was 84.
Bauer played 14 seasons in the Major Leagues from 1948-61, his first 12 with the Yankees. A three-time All-Star outfielder, he batted .277 with 164 home runs and 703 RBIs in 1,544 games, and helped the Yankees to nine American League pennants.
A strong runner and fielder with a powerful arm, Bauer became an accomplished Major League manager after his playing career. He earned Manager of the Year honors at the helm of the Baltimore Orioles in 1964 and 1966, including one World Series title.
Bauer was traded to the Kansas City Athletics as part of a deal that brought Roger Maris to the Yankees prior to the 1960 season. While Bauer's association with the club ended, his friendships with many Yankees teammates endured for decades.
Bauer guided the Kansas City Athletics in 1962 and 1963, then moved on to spend five years with the Orioles before finishing his managerial career with Oakland in 1969. In eight seasons as a big-league manager, Bauer compiled a record of 594-534.
The youngest of nine children, Bauer was born to a blue-collar background in East St. Louis, Ill., and went on to serve in the U.S. Marine Corps. Battling malaria in the South Pacific, Bauer earned 11 campaign ribbons, two Bronze Stars and two Purple Hearts in 32 months of combat.
His gruff military background translated to his playing career, which delivered him to the Yankees for a 1948 debut.
As a tough presence in the clubhouse, Bauer is said to have chastised a young Mickey Mantle for not running out a ground ball, yelling, "Don't fool with my money" -- a reference to the regularity with which Bauer cashed Yankees World Series checks.
Indeed, many of Bauer's most memorable moments with the Yankees came in October. Bauer contributed a game-saving catch to rob the Giants' Sal Yvars in the 1951 Fall Classic, and set a
World Series record with a 17-game hitting streak from 1956-58.
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Labels: All-Star, Baltimore Orioles, death, first baseman, Hank Bauer, Kansas City Athletics, World Series, Yankees



Posted by Steve Kenul at 7:22 PM

Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Yankee Stadium to Host 2008 All-Star Game
From the New York Post:The home stretch for Yankee Stadium figures to be the 2008 season, and part of it is likely to include the All-Star Game.
The Midsummer Classic hasn't been in The Bronx since 1977, but 31 years later, Yankee Stadium is the probable revenue.
On seven prior occasions the All-Star Game has been held in New York, with Yankee Stadium having it three times (1977, 1960, 1939), the Polo Grounds twice (1942, 1934) and Shea Stadium and Ebbets Field once each (1964 and 1949 respectively).
In those seven games, the American League had won four times, though the NL had won the three most recent contests in New York. The AL hasn;t lost an All-Star Game since 1996.
The Yankees had four All-Stars last season: Robinson Cano, Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, and Alex Rodriguez.
The replacement for Yankee Stadium figures to open for the 2009 season.
Labels: All-Star, All-Star Game, American League, Ebbets Field, Midsummer Classic, New York, Polo Grounds, Shea Stadium, Yankee Stadium, Yankees



Posted by Steve Kenul at 5:17 PM
