Thankfully, we had big news with the Yankees signing of Kevin Youkilis this week, giving us a chance to dissect the actions of the turncoat. So buckle in and enjoy the armchair quarterbacking of 2 Yankees fans (Tripodi and Dan), 2 Sox fans (Schirmer and Pat Shores), and 1 impartial observer (yours truly). I asked everyone to give their take on (a) the Youk signing, (b) the Cuse team so far this season, and (c) a prediction for tonight's game. Here's what transpired...
The Yankees Corner:
Tripodi - As a Yankees fan it pains me to say Youk is now somebody I'll have to root for, but on paper he actually fits in well. If A-Rod wasn't on the shelf for almost half the season I'd feel differently because no team needs two aging, injury-prone players at the same position, but his surgery changes everything. Youk is a patient hitter who takes pitches, something certain Yankees (ahem, Granderson and Cano) seemed to get away from last year, especially in the playoffs. While I would have preferred to pay him $8M instead of $12M, what's an extra couple million to the Yankees? I've warmed up to the signing but he will need to stay healthy and hit at least .280 to fully get me on board. Over anything, I root for the name on the front of the jersey and not the (non-existent) one on the back.
As for 'Cuse, they have done everything expected of them with their usual weak non-conference schedule. I have been pleasantly surprised with the ability of Michael Carter-Williams as far as distributing the basketball goes. Either I was ignorant to his true abilities from the start or he has developed this part of his game in practice but either way, I'm on board and his talent is top-5 NBA pick legitimate. I'm intrigued to see how he performs once conference play begins and teams start to focus on shutting him down and making other players create offensively.
Canisius may be 8-1 so far this year but I don't think they can hang with the Orange for more than 30 minutes, if that. Syracuse 76, Canisius 64.
Dan Theal - The Greek god of walks comes to the Yankees: Should I be excited? Had this move been made two years ago, I would have been thrilled. After the 2010 season, the career .294 hitter was at the pinnacle of his career. He was launching a homer every 19 at bats over a three year stretch where his slugging percentage was averaging .560. Surely, even as a corner utility infielder splitting time as a DH, this bat would have been welcomed in any lineup. But there were two reasons that he was traded to the Pale Hose last season: Health and Production. The guy has NEVER in his career eclipsed 150 regular season games played and over the past 3 seasons, he has only averaged 115 games. In that stretch, we have seen his batting average tail from .307 to .258 to .235. That, my friends, is the wrong direction. His 51 walks in 2012 amounted for his lowest total since he was a part-time starter in 2005. He hasn't hit 20 homers since 2009. To sum it up, the guy is washed up. Will he be the next Wade Boggs and make the Red Sox look silly when he produces in Pinstripes? Perhaps. I guess I am a rare breed of Yankee skeptics, the type of fan that doesn't expect to win the World Series every season. Good enough to win 95 games, sure. But with too much money tied up to players on the wrong side of 35, Youk will not be the solution to the quest for the 28th Championship.
Side note: Many readers may not know this, but the author of this blog is an avid Fantasy Baseball player. He has perennial success in our keeper league because he manages to pick up players in the Braves farm-system right before they make major league impact. In 2011, he drafted Kevin Youkilis in the 1st round. With Youk's lineup protection of newly acquired Adrian Gonzalez, it seemed like a safe pick. Well, blame it on Jay's wedding or Arinze Onuaku's injury, but Jay finished in 2nd last place that year. Lesson learned: Don't get married in the middle of baseball season and don't draft Kevin Youkilis.
Question: As a proud alum of Canisius College and former Mr. Canisius, how will your upstart Golden Griffins (6-1) under new head coach Jim Baron fare against your first love: the Orange?
Answer: For the first time in as long as I can remember, Canisius basketball is relevant in Buffalo. The Griffins have escaped from under the broad shadows of University at Buffalo, Niagara, and St. Bonaventure. Will they manage to pull off an upset at the Dome? Probably not. But when these teams played in 2006, Canisius led at halftime. So don't go thinking this will be blow-out city. It might be, but I will not allow myself to predict such outcome. Final score: Cuse 126, Canisius 117, 6OT. Go Griffs.
The Red Sox Corner:
Pat Shores - I can learn to hate Youkilis just like any other Yankee. It was painful to watch the way his exit went down and would have loved to see him consider coming back now that Bobby V is gone, but that is just wishful thinking. I think the Yanks made out well as Youk is going to come back to the AL East with a bit of fire to ensure Boston understands just how much they could use him - and for just a one-year deal, Yanks played that one well. Unfortunately, the free agent market looks weak - so I hope all those prospects the Sox have lined up become major league quality quick or we're going to have another painful year. Hey at least we don't have to pay Dice-K anymore!
On to a more encouraging topic: Cuse basketball. I really like how Cuse is looking this year so far. However, as with most years of the past I am grateful for the first 2 months of lesser conference games as we clearly need it. One of our greatest strengths this year is that we don't have one all-star player which allows different members of the team to step up each game (much tougher for the competition to design a game plan around a team whose best player will rotate throughout the season). Unfortunately, this is also what makes Cuse vulnerable. The way I see it, the whole team gets a lot better if Cooney starts to become a threat behind the ark. Defenses will need to push up and guard him tight. Triche and Southerland will become more effective shooting with less pressure. Carter-Williams will become even more of an assist machine.
Canisius' chances of winning reflect their mascot: mythological, they don't exist. Cuse 74 over the Griffins 61. Sorry for those going to the game, Cuse will leave you 1 point short of the free taco.
Schirmer - I distinctly remember when I started to realize that Santa Clause wasn't real. My first grader brain had reached the mental capacity to analytically deduce that there's no way in hell that Santa could travel to every Christian kid's house, have enough time to put the presents under the tree, eat the cookies, feed the carrots to Rudolph, and move on to the next house. I mean, I even considered that maybe he could have been aided by time zones! But I resigned myself that despite this crushing blow to my childhood, it was a rational realization and a fair one, and that I'd still be getting Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles under the Christmas tree from my loving parents.
Youkilis signing with the Yankees is sort of like this. My head can logically fit the pieces together, only instead of life moving on for Little Steve Schirmer, my parents then abducted the Marketplace Mall Santa every year, doused him in gasoline, and forced me to set him ablaze as I watched what I once loved turn into ashes.
Listen, I get that baseball players, let alone athletes in general, have short shelf lives and have to capitalize on getting the buck when they can. Particularly in cases where franchises irresponsibly throw their money around like they were starring in a Flo Rida video. But for Kevin Youkilis to sell out? Seriously?!? This was the one guy on the Red Sox the past 7 years that seemed like he really, truly hated the Yankees. Even David Ortiz and Dustin Pedoia was often seen getting chummy with the likes of Derek Jeter and Robbie Cano. But Youk? Ooohhh, Youk. That annoying batting stance that drove Yankee fans nuts. Shooting death stares at Joba when a pitch flew two inches inside. And you can bet he was game to slide spikes up into the groin of Jeter just to break up a double play in a 10-2 ball game. He embodied everything that Red Sox Nation could rally behind towards our unrelenting hatred of everything Yankees.
Was his divorce from the Red Sox ugly? Absolutely. It wasn't fun seeing him painted as a clubhouse cancer and a distraction. But when he ultimately proved to be right on that homicidal maniac Bobby Valentine, at least I started to take solace that he directly contributed to one World Series and left a trail of aggravated Yankee fans in his wake.
Only instead of relishing in these memories, I now have to watch him don the pinstripes. Maybe Yankee fans were right. Maybe he really was that douchebag that I so vehemently defended for years. Hopefully he'll be so unrecognizable after he's forced to shave that trademark beard that he'll just become another forgettable member of the evil empire. Not the player I once loved.
As for Cuse, I could deliver more divine inspirations from our Lord and Savior Trevor Cooney, or wax philosophical on Michael Carter-William's wingspan. But considering I just gave a eulogy to one thing I love, I think it's time I give one more eulogy. The Big East.
With news today that the seven Catholic Schools were officially leaving the conference, the despicable destruction of the Big East was complete. Sure, Syracuse had already abandoned ship long before the conference hit the iceberg. But as a general College Basketball fan, it really is a sad day for me personally.
The Big East Tournament was always near and dear to my heart. In college, I remember rushing home from my Accounting 101 class my sophomore year, just in time to stand at the edge of my throw rug to watch Gerry McNamara nail the game winning 3 against Cincinnati. Being the superstitious whack job that I am, I stood in that same spot for each game forward, all the way towards Syracuse capturing the most improbably Big East Title in its history.
And who can forget the 6 OT game vs. UConn? Jay and I certainly cant. Mired in the middle of our busy season, we told our sleep schedules and client obligations to cram it and stayed up for the whole shebang. We howled along with Devendorf when he seemingly hit the game winning three, only to be cripplingly disappointed when it was called off. We cursed Paul Harris again, and again, and again, and again. We giggled like school girls when our most hated UConn player, A.J. Price, finally fouled out. We wondered who this Kris Joseph fellow was as he took the floor in the 4th OT. And finally, we shared a relieved bro-hug after Andy Rautins put the game away in the 6th OT, as it dawned on us that we had just been a part of sports history.
And now with the mass exodus that occurred today, it's all over. All because of a collegiate sport that's decided by stat geeks. I hope you're happy Kirk Herbstreit and Lou Holtz. I'm just glad I got to attend a Big East Tournament game in my lifetime before the conference came tumbling down.
The Agnostic Center:
Jay - I think it's important to take a step back here and judge this signing from the perspective of some of the key stakeholders...
Joe Girardi:
Positive - He can't possibly hate me as much as Bobby Valentine
Negative - I already know my binder doesn't have any plays for aging, broken down corner infielders
Alex Rodriguez:
Positive - If Youkilis bounces back, I might not have a position in the lineup anymore
Negative - If I'm stuck on the bench, I'll have more time to hit on women in the bleachers.
Derek Jeter:
Positive - I don't have to listen to A-Rod hit on women in the bleachers from 3rd base anymore.
Negative - People might actually start paying attention to me hitting on women in the bleachers.
C.C. Sabbathia:
Positive - Finally somebody to point me to all the best fried chicken restaurants on the road.
Negative - It's going to be very hard to pitch 200+ innings when I weigh 500 pounds.
Hal and Hank Steinbrenner:
Positive - This brings us one step closer to obtaining all the 2004 Red Sox, so that we can perform some sort of Freaky Friday type voo-doo magic and go back in time to change the course of history.
Negative - In order for this premise to work, we'd also have to obtain Jamie Lee Curtis.
America:
Positive - We don't have to stare at this anymore
Negative - We don't get to see this anymore. There just aren't enough good fu manchu's anymore.
As for Syracuse, I won't waste a lot of breath here since my opinions on this year's team are already readily available throughout this site. However, I will point out one thought that popped into my head the other day which seems even more relevant as I watch Butler pulling the upset over the #1 ranked Hoosiers while writing this piece...
Prior to 2010, Syracuse had not been ranked #1 in the country in 20 years. Now, we're just a few more games breaking the right way away from being #1 3 times in 4 seasons. I guess you can teach an old dog new tricks. That'll do Jim, that'll do.
If Canisius had the audacity to bestow the label of Mr. Canisius on one Daniel Theal, then I have to question their judgment of character. Clearly they can't be good at recruiting with that kind of taste. I'll take the Orange to start slow, but then bust out in a big way midway through the 1st half before ultimately cruising to an 84 - 68 victory.
