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May 31, 2003



by Larry Mahnken

Okay, I can understand why FOX has exclusive rights, but was there any particular reason that the Yankees game had to be played at 1:05, instead of 4:05? That's just stupid. And because of this, I got to listen to Sterling and Steiner. Ergh.

Hey, it would have been okay if it was a Yankee win, but they go out and lose. Whee. It was pretty sad, watching, er, listening to the soft-tossing Bernero shut down the Yanks. Jeff Weaver probably got knocked out of the rotation today, too, although he doesn't really deserve to be demoted. Contreras was good last night, but it was just one start against a weak-hitting team. Weaver, on the other hand, didn't pitch poorly, and suffered from some bad luck. I'm okay with giving Contreras a start next time around, but I'm afraid that the Yanks are going to place too much weight on last night's start and leave him in the rotation if he gets knocked around in his next start.

The Tigers play "small ball"--they bunt and run and all that "fundamental" crap. It's more fun to watch that style than Home Run Derby, that's for sure, but it's usually a pretty bad strategy overall. Giving up outs for an extra base is almost never a good idea, and the added value of a stolen base is often not worth the risk of losing the baserunner and the out. But for a team as poor as the Tigers, I guess that the second half of that strategy is not a bad idea. I'm still completely against bunting, but maybe taking risks in stealing bases is a good idea. You're going to lose a whole lot anyway, so losing some more isn't really that bad, and playing the odds more or less means settling for a loss. But if you get lucky and steal bases above the break-even rate, you're increasing your chances to win. Maybe by some miracle, you can put together a half-decent record, for a short stretch at least, and even though you're probably still going to lose, it's a much more entertaining product for the fans. Even if you're stealing at below the break-even rate, it's still fun to watch. But stop bunting, cause that's probably not helping at all, and it's boring, too.

So now the Yanks have to rely on the red-hot Jays to remain in first for another day. Not that it really matters. I'll be happy if they're within three games going into the next series.

Rocket goes for 300 again tomorrow, against Jeremy Bonderman. If they lose, I will react much as Billy Beane did when the A's drafted Bonderman, by combining a chair and wall to make a hybrid chair-wall, or chall, if you will. Just be glad I haven't been bombarded with Gamma Rays, folks. LARRY SMASH!