Friday, November 4, 2016

Dellin Betances to Pitch in 2017 World Baseball Classic


In the now immortal words of Yankees manager Joe Girardi "it's not what you want" when you hear about the New York Yankees closer Dellin Betances being listed on the preliminary rosters for Team USA in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. It's not what you want at all. 

A list of 50 players were released according to Joel Sherman and Betances was the only Yankee on the list. Andrew Miller was also on the list in case you were wondering. The list is obviously preliminary as their is a long time between then and now but as I look at Betances' innings total over the last few years and as I see him wearing down and becoming less effective towards the end of each of those last few seasons you'll have to excuse me if I don't worry just a little. 

Final rosters will be finalized sometime in January.... here's to hoping Betances, or any Yankees player for that matter, won't be there. Sorry. 

The World Baseball Classic begins on March 7th and runs through March 22nd.


Jacoby Ellsbury 2016 Highlights


Enjoy. 

Potential Destinations For New Expansion Teams

There isn't any talk of expanding Major League Baseball to 32 teams anytime soon but we here at The Greedy Pinstripes like to be ahead of the curve. I was bored the other day and got to thinking about potential city landing spots for any hypothetical expansion teams. I believe I came up with a few interesting spots that could support a Major League Baseball franchise.

Major League Baseball seems destined to have a team in Mexico before it is all said and done with the emergence of the Mexican League and the influx of players from Mexico over the past few years. While Mexico City has the population to support a franchise it is nearly 1,000 miles away from it's closest MLB franchise in the United States. Enter Monterrey, Mexico which is right across the border of the United States and Mexico and could easily be protected and support a franchise in my opinion.

There are also rumors circulating that MLB may be headed back to Canada and Montreal specifically. Putting a franchise back in Montreal could work if it's done right and that plan would have to include a new stadium deal. The Montreal and Toronto rivalry would automatically be born, especially if an AL East team like the Rays were to relocate there, and the league would extend its global reach. If Montreal could not build a new stadium for the team then Vancouver could be a viable second option for MLB.

If the league wants to keep their teams domestic then cities who have popular and successful NBA, NHL, or NBA franchises come to mind in Indianapolis, Charlotte, New Orleans, and Portland. Portland would give the Seattle Mariners a travel break every once in a while and a true rival in the West. Charlotte and New Orleans have booming economies and no legitimate MLB franchises close by to have a true fandom for. Indianapolis supports the Indiana Pacers and the Indianapolis Colts pretty well and could be the perfect addition to a Central Division for either league.

This is not based on any rumors, speculation, etc. this is just for fun so take it as that. It's the offseason when everything is not so realistic and not so active. Have fun with it and add your location ideas in the comments section.

The Greatest End to the Greatest World Series Ever...


I may be in the minority here either because of my age or because of my ignorance but I truly believe that the 2001 World Series was the greatest World Series ever played. There was dramatics, there was dominating pitching, there was dominant hitting there were 20 game winners and Hall of Fame closers and just about everything in between. It was the classic David vs. Goliath with the New York Yankees playing the former and the expansion Arizona Diamondbacks playing the latter. This World Series had it all and it ended on this day in 2001.


You have to remember that this World Series was played just a month to two months after the devastating attacks on New York, the Pentagon, and Pennsylvania on 9/11. The New York Yankees were in the World Series for the fourth time in five years and the eyes of the country were on them in this Fall Classic. Game 7 of the 2001 World Series pitted a pair of 20 game winners against each other for the first time since 1985 when the Yankees send 20-3 Roger Clemens to the mound to face off with 22-6 Curt Schilling for the Diamondbacks. The last time this happened was in 1985 when the Royals sent rookie Brett Saberhagen to the mound to face off with the St. Louis Cardinals ace John Tudor.


New York took a lead into the 9th inning of Game 7 and the great Mariano Rivera was on the mound. Luis Gonzalez came up to the plate with a runner on second base and a drawn-in infield. Gonzalez broke his bat and sent a little blooper over the heads of the Yankees infield as the Arizona Diamondbacks went on to win their first World Series of the franchise’s history. This one hurt to lose as an American and especially as a New Yorker but this was easily the best World Series to ever be played, again in my opinion.

Weekly AFL Check In: Dillon Tate


The Arizona Fall League All Star Game is tomorrow night on MLB.com and MLB Network and if you tune into the contest you can see two members of the Yankees. One is shortstop Gleyber Torres and the other is the subject of today's weekly check in post Dillon Tate. What has Tate done to earn the nod in the AFL All-Star Game? See below.


This Day in New York Yankees History 11/4: “The Yankees Are Back on Top”


On this day in 2009 Hideki Matsui and the Yankees went crazy on the Philadelphia Phillies to capture their 27th World Series championship. The Yankees would beat the defending champions 7-3 in this game and would win the series in six games with Hideki Matsui taking home the World Series MVP award. Matsui tied a World Series record with six RBI's while Andy Pettitte became only the second pitcher to ever collect the victory in the clinching game in all three postseason series. Joe Buck was quoted as saying “the Yankees are back on top” as the final out was being recorded.


Also on this day in 2005 the New York Yankees hired former co-captain and Cy Young Award winner Ron Guidry as their new pitching coach replacing Mel Stottlemyer. Former Red Sox Joe Kerrigan also joined the team on this day as the bullpen coach.



Finally on this day in 2003 the Yankees hired Don Mattingly to be their hitting coach replacing Rick Down. It is always kind of cool to bring back Yankees legends to be part of the coaching staff. Mattingly would later be promoted to bench coach for Joe Torre and was one of the top candidates to replace Torre in 2008 before the Yankees decided on Joe Girardi.