Machado Explains “Johnny Hustle” Comments, But Does It Matter?

The fans and ownership have spoken, and apparently free agent infielder Manny Machado is listening. Machado had an eventful postseason and World Series that showcased him not only as potentially a dirty player, but as a player that refuses to hustle. Machado did himself no favors when he said in an interview that he was not “Johnny Hustle,” but apparently, we all just misunderstood what he was saying when he said that. Imagine that. This week, before the Thanksgiving holiday and before the GM meetings can kick off later this winter, Machado touched on those comments and offered a bit of clarification on them.

Machado was quoted as saying “I’m not the type of player that’s going to be ‘Johnny Hustle’ and run down the line and slide to first base,” which angered a lot of fans and made a lot of potential free agent bidders question his integrity. Now, to be fair, this quote was mildly taken out of context and blown up by the fans and media alike. Everyone who reads this knows about the quote, but I would venture to say that most don’t remember the part of the interview where Machado stated that he admitted that he should have run the ground ball out and that it looked “terrible.”

Machado has since been on the defensive saying that, “When I was asked that question, I was definitely on the defensive, and I was wrong to answer it the way that I did, because looking back, it doesn’t come across how I meant it,” Machado said. Well, Manny, how did you mean it? “For me, I was trying to talk about how I’m not the guy who is eye wash. There’s a difference between fake hustle for show and being someone who tries hard to win. I’ve always been the guy who does whatever he can to win for his team.” Yeah, I don’t think that really answered the question, but cool? Machado continued, “I know how I said it and how that came across, and it’s something I take responsibility for. I look forward to talking with each GM and owner that we meet with about that, or any other questions they have.”

We all know that Hank Steinbrenner has already raised questions about the comments and stated that before he was to be signed that Machado would have to explain himself. If anything, this tells us that Manny is at least willing to do so and seems to at least be taking responsibility for his actions. Does this really change anything? For me, no. The comments didn’t make me want him any more or any less. For others? I doubt it, because their minds are made up. For Brian Cashman, Hank Steinbrenner and the New York Yankees? Maybe, stay tuned to find out.

So it Seems… Happy Thanksgiving

Good morning everyone, I hope everyone reading this is well. I know Thanksgiving isn’t technically until tomorrow but there will be no guarantees that I will be around then so I wanted to go ahead and send my warm wishes to you all today instead. Happy Thanksgiving to all reading who celebrate, and to everyone else… just enjoy your day.

May your day be filled with love, friends, family, food, football or whatever could possibly make this day special to you. Enjoy and remember, those $1.50 towels at Wal Mart and those “cheap” TV’s aren’t worth it people. They aren’t. Enjoy your day and thank you for your continued support of the blog.

Especially you. Hey you. I loves you. Everything I am is because of you so everything I am thankful for begins and ends with you. You are at the center of everything, you are my universe. You are my soul. You are my heart. I love you. 

Happy Thanksgiving from The Greedy Pinstripes

Good morning everyone and a very Happy Thanksgiving to you all. In years past I have loaded down the site with content like I have every other day on holidays such as today but you know what? Today as I sit here watching the Thanksgiving Day Parade with my two boys I simply just don’t feel like it, you know?

So enjoy the day off from listening to me ramble on about this and that and instead enjoy the day of food, family, football and fighting for stuff on sale at your local department stores. I joke about the latter, kind of.

Enjoy the day and a very Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours from everyone here at TGP. Much love.

Daniel Burch

Potential Black Friday Deals for the New York Yankees

The New York Yankees are preaching austerity once again and the general consensus is the team is not going to be one of 30 trampling over each other to get the next “great deal” via free agency. New York could be looking at adding a starting pitcher, another bullpen piece or maybe even another middle infielder to either upgrade over Brendan Ryan or to fill in at second base if the team doesn’t have the utmost confidence in Robert Refsnyder and Dustin Ackley like I do. New York will be present and accounted for when Black Friday (free agency) really kicks off and rush is on but instead of trampling over people for the latest and greatest toys (David Price, Jordan Zimmerman, Yoenis Cespedes), they will likely be content with these lesser known deals. 

Nobody wants Doug Fister after one bad season in Washington, nobody. If it weren't for the absolutely deep free agent market Fister would still be in high demand. That's baseball and it could be the Yankees gain if they truly want a starting pitcher. Fister may be forced into taking a one year deal to build value and that's right up the Yankees alley. Fister had forearm problems that set the tone for much of his season and if those are behind him the Yankees could get a decent middle-of-the-rotation starter for relatively nothing.

Steve Pearce is a name I keep linking to the Yankees because it makes so much sense. He'll likely come on a one year deal and can play the outfield, first base and second base. Pearce is a right-handed bat with pop potential that pretty much finishes out the Yankees bench. Well, if they didn't have Brendan Ryan and a platoon at second base.

Yovani Gallardo is getting ground balls on nearly 50% of his pitches thrown, that's huge. He doesn't strike out as many batters as he used to but he doesn't give up home runs either. Gallardo proved he could pitch in a hitter friendly ball park after pitching for the Texas Rangers last year so I can't see him pitching inside Yankee Stadium being the problem. You know what is the problem though? Texas offered him a qualifying offer. 

Let the Free Agency Black Friday Deals Begin

Thanksgiving is over. The turkey is cooked, the ham is eaten and the stuffing has me stuffed. What better way to follow up a day of gluttonous eating and showing our thanks for everything we have in this world than to trample over people in a retail store for our own greed and pleasure. In America we call this “Black Friday” where you can risk your life and get in a fist fight over some cheap and flimsy Wal Mart towels all to save a couple hundred bucks. Me personally, I prefer to stay home under the covers and do all my Christmas shopping online, something that many teams around the league are likely doing right about now in free agency.

The first major free agents have yet to fall off the board this season and with the family functions over and the endless traveling back and forth for this dinner and that dinner the wheeling and dealing (you know, to burn calories and such) can begin. We’ve all seen these offseason’s before, it just takes one of these major free agents to pick a destination and the rest of the league scurries to grab up the remaining talent before it’s gone. Free agency is just like Black Friday, and these deals could be going fast.

Ben Zobrist is likely the most highly sought after 34-year old on the entire free agent market. When teams like the New York Yankees and the New York Mets are interested in your services you can understand why the switch hitting utility player is taking his time but until Zobrist comes off the board you are unlikely to see Howie Kendrick, Alexei Ramirez, Ian Desmond or any of the middle infield free agents specifically come off the board.

The Yankees are dangling Brett Gardner out in any and all trade offers this offseason and may have log-jammed the entire outfield market. Until Gardner is secure either in the Bronx or elsewhere it may be a while before we see a Denard Span or a Dexter Fowler come off the free agency board.

The Cincinnati Reds know how to get us all worked up just to let us down as fans. Last season we all thought Aroldis Chapman was going to be traded before the deadline and he wasn’t. Then recently a report surfaced that Chapman was going to be moved again and by that weekend. Chapman is still in Cincinnati which means no one is looking at trading for the Yankees Andrew Miller or any other closer until Chapman’s 2016 home is secure, even if it’s still inside the Great American Ball Park.

David Price despite being older than and presumably more expensive than Jordan Zimmermann is likely going to set the tone for the starting pitching market this winter. Until Price comes off the board Zimmermann, Johnny Cueto and others may simply sit by and wait idly while the left-hander makes up his mind.

And finally the relief pitching department, as fickle as it can be, may be at a standstill until former Baltimore Orioles right-hander Darren O’Day makes up his mind. O’Day is likely the best and most sought after free agent in the bullpen that’s not already a closer and is said to have much of the league interested in his services. Tyler Clippard, Ryan Madson and maybe even Joakim Soria continue to sit in limbo until someone grabs O’Day off that Black Friday pallet and brings him home this Christmas.

I hope everyone had a great and Happy Thanksgiving, an even better and a safe Black Friday and a great weekend.

Trenton Thunder: Holiday Purchases Will Benefit The Children's Home Society of New Jersey

The 11th annual Trenton Thunder Gift of Baseball program begins today, giving fans the chance to share the experience of cheering on the hometown team with underprivileged families in our community. For each Season Ticket, Pic-A-Plan and Mini Plan purchased before December 24, the Thunder will provide tickets for families in the Holiday Gift Outreach program run by the Children's Home Society of New Jersey to attend a 2016 Thunder game.

"Families attending baseball games together is one of the oldest pastimes in our country and we're thrilled to continue a program with a great partner like the Children's Home Society," said Thunder GM/COO Jeff Hurley.

In the first ten years of the Gift of Baseball program, the Thunder have donated 6,980 tickets to CHSofNJ.

"Trenton Thunder continues to be a strong and caring community partner," praised Donna Pressma, President & CEO of CHSofNJ. "The Children's Home Society of New Jersey is honored to have the opportunity through their generosity to offer the Gift of Baseball to so many of our children and families.

The emphasis on family values that the Thunder and CHSofNJ shares has remained a high priority for both organizations throughout their ten-year partnership.

"Family outings are often too rare for our children," said Pressma. "Spending a day at the ballpark watching our home team play with determination and heart gives hope and makes memories that our children will keep for the rest of their lives. Thank you Trenton Thunder and all of your caring fans who make this possible."

2016 Mini Plans are on sale now. Mini plans include five or six of the most popular games on the schedule, free food at each a game, a free Thunder pint glass, a complimentary ticket to Opening Night and start as low as $60. More information about Mini Plans can be found here: MINI PLANS
Pic-A-Plans allow fans to choose any 10 or more games that best fit their schedule. This flexible plan also includes free ice cream, a $1 savings on every ticket, a free food option, free tickets to Opening Night and a limited edition Thunder pint glass. More information can be found here: PIC-A-PLANS

Season Tickets are available as either a full (71 games) or half (36 games) and include added value like early entry, a picnic with the players, bus trips and more. More information about Season Tickets can be found here: SEASON TICKETS

The Children's Home Society of New Jersey provides at-risk children and their families with a range of services that empower them to achieve their potential. They are child-oriented, family focused, community based and outcome-oriented.

The 2016 season, the 23rd in franchise history, will begin at ARM & HAMMER Park on April 7 when the Thunder host the Erie SeaWolves (Detroit Tigers) at 7:00 p.m. Single game tickets will go on sale in March 2016. For more information on the Thunder, visit www.TrentonThunder.com or call609-394-3300.

What I’m Thankful For: The New York Yankees Edition

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! While I truly love this day I also can see the irony in it all, especially having a significant amount of Native American blood in my body. We, and I say we as a society, spend Thursday praising each other and showing thanks for everything we have and have received and then later that night the greed and avarice is right back in our blood for Black Friday. This post isn’t about society though and what I think is wrong with the world, it’s about what I am thankful for when it comes to the New York Yankees.

The New York Yankees, in my very humble yet biased opinion, is the greatest sports franchise in all of the major North American sports. Once donned the “Evil Empire” the Yankees do what they can to compete year in and year out. While many complain about the owner of the team or the team’s GM you haven’t, at least during the current regime, seen the Yankees fall that far. Even in their worst years New York is in the hunt for a Wild Card, no tanking is allowed in the Bronx. That is something, that while it frustrates me sometimes because it leads to ill-advised deals and free agent signings, I can truly appreciate.

The team understands that you need the big names, the marquee players and the veteran players to make it in New York and despite having a “cheap” owner we still as a fan base get to enjoy the Masahiro Tanaka’s, the Mark Teixeira’s, the Brett Gardner’s and the Andrew Miller’s just to name a few. Speaking of the players I am also thankful for Brian Cashman’s willingness to not only make the plan to build the farm system and build from within but finally stick to it. Thank you for Greg Bird, thank you for Luis Severino, thank you for Gary Sanchez, thank you for Dellin Betances, thank you for Aaron Judge, thank you for Jacob Lindgren and thank you for Robert Refsnyder.

I’m not hard to please and I’m easy to get along with, especially during the holidays. Even more important is the fact that no matter what I am a fan of this team and that will never change. 100-62 record and a World Series or a 62-100 record because of too much World Series of Poker watching, I just love the New York Yankees and I am truly thankful that I get to not only watch them on a daily basis but write about them as well. 

The Yankees and a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

I can remember watching a Charlie Brown Thanksgiving every year growing up with my family. While we lacked in many areas of being a family we had our own quirky traditions and rituals that always included, for whatever reason, Charlie Brown at almost every holiday. Charlie Brown Valentine’s Day specials and Charlie Brown Christmas specials and even a Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown but the Thanksgiving special was always my favorite. With that special in mind I thought it would be fun to discuss which Yankees I think would fit the mold of the key Charlie Brown Thanksgiving characters. Enjoy, it was meant to be for fun.

Charlie Brown:

Big bald head, check. Seems like he would be a terrible dancer and an even worse kicker in football, check. Got caught by the cameras screaming “GOOD GRIEF” or something close to that in the AL Wild Card Game after a ground out, check. Brian McCann ladies and gentleman.

Snoopy:

Cool character. Never flustered, always calm under pressure. I used to have Derek Jeter pegged as Snoopy, especially when he is the fighter pilot, so why not use another guy with ice in his veins? Throw a pair of aviators on Greg Bird and tell me he doesn’t look like snoopy.

Peppermint Patty:

Athletic. A leader and a teacher. Knows a lot of stuff about a lot of topics. No disrespect intended here but Alex Rodriguez, come on down.

Sally:

For some reason when I think of Sally I either think of her dancing or running around with Woodstock. And for some reason the first person that comes to mind on the Yankees when I think of Sally is Andrew Miller. Maybe it’s the, what looks awkward to me anyway, high five and hug after a save or the high fives he gives everyone after knocking down a save but he came to mind first and it’s always good to go with your first instinct.

Lucy:

Lucy. Mean as a snake and has a fire unmatched by anyone at that Thanksgiving table. Lucy is passionate and while she may lack in some areas she’s definitely a good friend and there when you need her. Kind of like CC Sabathia. Sabathia is the first one out of the dugout to pick-up his teammates and has a fire unrivaled on the current Yankees staff.

Pigpen:

When you see pigpen what else do you see? Usually that cloud of dirt and flies surrounding him, dude is dirty and in serious need of a bath. Now I’m not saying that Brett Gardner stinks but because of the way he plays, all out, his uniform is always dirty. Gardner is pigpen, just in a nice way.

Linus:

What is Linus best known for? His security blanket. Who was the security blanket for the entire Yankees infield in 2015? Mark Teixeira. Who needed that security blanket the most? Chase “Linus” Headley.

Schroeder:

Artistic and has a little bird on his shoulder at all times. Sounds a lot like Didi Gregorius and the ghost of Derek Jeter, no?

Happy Thanksgiving from The Greedy Pinstripes

Happy Thanksgiving Yankees family. I know many of you are waking up either gearing for a full day of football, cooking, shopping or all of the above so I won't take up much of your time this morning. I just wanted to take a second to wish everyone a safe and Happy Thanksgiving 2015. I have an absolute ton to be thankful for. I'm healthy, my family is healthy, my kids aren't teenagers so they still love me, heck my wife even acts like she loves me most of the time. I have the blog, I have my job and so much more to list but I promised I wouldn't take up much of your time.

I am wishing the best to you and yours and I'm sending all the well wishes and prayers that I can for this holiday season. Have a great day everyone, make the best of it.

Happy Thanksgiving from The Greedy Pinstripes

I just wanted to take a quick minute to wish all of you guys and girls reading this a very Happy Thanksgiving from everyone here at The Greedy Pinstripes. We are so very humble, thankful, and appreciative for each and every one of your views, your comments, your tweets, etc. and we would not do this without your support. Thank you!

Everyone be safe out there, eat too much and spend time with family because that’s what this day is for. Enjoy the day everyone and we will be back at it at full strength again tomorrow. Happy Thanksgiving. 

What I’m Thankful For: New York Yankees Edition

Earlier in the day I got all sappy and I laid out everything I was thankful for and I urged people to also be thankful and help thy neighbor. I’m over the sappy mushy stuff now and it’s back to work as we take a look at what certain members of the New York Yankees have to be thankful for.

Brendan Ryan

“As of right now I am the Yankees starting shortstop.”

Masahiro Tanaka

My Japanese is rusty so something that loosely translated to “I’m thankful my arm has not fallen off.”

Alex Rodriguez

“I’m back #*%&$”

John Ryan Murphy

“See ya Cervelli”

Chris Young

“I’m thankful for two walk off hits and a hot two weeks in September that has kept me from unemployment checks.”

Brian Cashman

“I’m thankful for Chase Headley and Brandon McCarthy bringing me three more years.”

Hal Steinbrenner

“The Greedy Pinstripes for giving me ideas to sign players that Brian Cashman doesn’t want.”

What I’m Thankful for This Year

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and there’s no better time to be thankful then right now. I love the holidays, if you have been following the blog long enough you know that, so I tend to perk up a little more than usual this time of year. Good food, better friends, and family are my thing and I especially buy into the “giving and not receiving” category. This year I am especially thankful when I have more going on than ever just because I’m here, I’m alive, and I have you guys.

There is a ton going on in my life right now and it seems like everything I own is tearing up, stopped up, or won’t stop when it’s supposed to. Those things can be fixed, replaced, or redone but what cannot be redone is what I have built in my life. I have a beautiful Italian wife and two even more beautiful children that consume every bit of my heart. I have a successful blog that I love getting up every day and working on and I have a few guys and gals that get on, read my stuff, comment in the comments section, tweet us on Twitter, and seem to genuinely care about us. For that I am forever indebted and I am forever grateful, thank you all.

So on this Thanksgiving eve let’s make a vow to make this holiday season the best yet for everybody. So what your car is broke down and your toilet is stopped up because your four year old flushed a cell phone and it got in the trap. You’re alive and for that reason alone you’re blessed. If you’re fortunate enough to have everything you need and them some help someone who isn’t. If you’re not fortunate enough to have everything you need, I’m sorry, please tell me how I can help you.

I’ve babbled a lot longer then I planned to here but that’s only because I feel so strongly about it. Help people and be thankful that you can and if you receive help then be thankful that you did and pass it along. We can all have a great Thanksgiving and we can all have a great holiday season but it has to be done together. Stay well my friends and an early Happy Thanksgiving.