Dave James

Depends on who called the pitch. Not sure how the Rays operate, but Garza was probably just following directions, either from the catcher or from the bench. Regardless, I'm pleased with the results. After a brief slump, Cano is back in the groove. Man, that guy can hit. I'm hearing that Manny Ramirez was briefly in play and that the Yankees at one point were sniffing around. How great would it have been to see Man Ram in pinstripes the next time the Yanks went into Boston? Holy jumpin' up and down Martha.

My link

Buster Olney is reporting that the Yankees will get Kerry Wood from the Indians and that Cleveland will pay a huge chunk of his remaining salary for the privilege of dumping him. WTF? I am not a happy camper.

ESPN is reporting the the Yankees are close to a deal with the Astros for Lance Berkman. Sure hope if they get him he's old Lance and not new Lance. This is strictly a rental. No major Montero-like prospects are involved and New York will not pick up his option for next year. I still think they need bullpen help more than another bat, but what do I know.

Sports Illustrated weighs in on the Strasburg throwing motion issue after an interview with Don Cooper, the White Sox pitching coach: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/tom_verducci/07/30/strasburg.trades/index.html?eref=sihp

Not to mention one of the most anemic offenses in recent memory. Their suckitude has reached epic proportions this year. Not to rub it in, but Justin Smoak is hitting .159 since he came to the Mariners in the Cliff Lee deal.

Only if you didn't buy them.

Not to worry. I'm sure the two or three cortisone injections he's had recently are just precautionary. If I was a Phillies fan, I'd be asking the same question. Why let Lee go and then a year later pick up Oswalt for even more money. Of course, Oswalt still has to approve the deal and Philadelphia was not one of the teams he had indicated he would be willing to waive his no-trade clause to join.

Is there a U.S. equivalent of an international unit? If so, what would 1,000 I.U.'s translate to here?

I've read several trade related reports the last couple of days involving Joba Chamberlain. The latest one has him in play with Toronto for reliever Scott Downs. Unfortunately, the Yankees appear unwilling to consider any deals that include him. My question is "why?" Nothing Chamberlain has done this year or last provides any evidence that he's capable of resurrecting his career in the Bronx. For sure, he'd be better off at this point any place other than in New York and the Yankees would be better off without him. Has there ever been anyone whose career has been more poorly handled by his team than this guy?

Not to mention one of the most anemic offenses in recent memory.

Greg, Just checked UPS tracking and my set is actually out of delivery today. Hope your's is as well or will be shortly. Seems to me UPS delivery even from across the country used to be a lot faster than it is now. I suppose, given Mosaic's recent financial woes, that they probably have opted for the least expensive UPS S&H option available. When the Mosaic operation first began, they worked out of Charlie Lourie's house in, if memory serves, San Jose, California. Sure wish they'd never moved.

What is it about the Yankees that guarantees when they face a rookie pitcher making his first or second start in the big leagues, they invariably fold their tent. The same thing happened again tonight in Cleveland when they lost 4-1 to some guy named J. Tomlin who throws three hit ball over seven innings. I don't get it.

Same here. Mine was sent on the 21st via UPS, left Secaucus, N.J. on the 22nd and disappeared into the void. Guess us we're paying the price for living out here on the left coast..

I have a hunch that the Yankee's play for more pitching nets them Dan Haren. RIght now, the Diamondbacks want the sun, the moon and most of the stars, but their asking price is bound to come down as the end of the month approaches. That's because, as much as they'd like their fans to think otherwise, this isn't about beefing up for the future, it's about dumping salary. The rest of the league is aware of their predicament and this will wind up undermining the strength of their bargaining position. If you're a Yankee fan, one thing you know for sure is that Sergio Mitre isn't the answer, not even on an interim basis. He was dreadful today against the Royals. With the reliability of Burnett and Vazquez still in question, a solid, dependable guy like Haren would be a welcome addition.

Mobley was in the midst of the most productive part of his career when the Blackhawk recordings were made in early '61. During this and the prior year, Hank recorded Soul Station, Workout, Another Workout and Roll Call, so you certainly can't say he was off his game. When you look at the stylistic spread of the players Miles auditioned during this period, from the outside work of Sam Rivers to the advanced hard bop of Sonny Rollins to the inside guys like Hank, Stitt and Strozier, he was obviously looking for something that none of these guys had, something that would move him in the direction of the second great quartet. I'm also pretty sure that playing with someone of Davis' stature and personna would intimidate just about anyone. Lord knows, the image he was cultivating at the time was not exactly what I'd call warm and fuzzy. Truth be told, it was probably a combination of factors that led to a series of pink slips, but the bottom line was that Miles knew what he was after and these guys weren't it.

I always thought that Mobley wasn't progressive enough for Miles' evolving tastes. He does sound rather constricted on these recordings, like maybe he wasn't quite sure what Miles wanted of him. Maybe Miles didn't help him out very much, leaving him kind of on his own to see what he brought to the table. This was the immediate post-Coltrane period when Davis went through a number of saxophone players. Guys like Stitt, Rollins, Sam Rivers and Frank Strozier in addition to Hank. For whatever reason, none of them measured up until he found Wayne Shorter.

I love Michael Kay. Wish I could listen to him all the time. As "good" as he is, though, he's no Jerry Coleman. Some examples: "Enos Cabell started out here with the Astros and before that he was with the Orioles." "He slides into second with a stand up double." "If Rose's streak was still intact, with that single to left, the fans would be throwing babies out of the upper deck." "Larry Lintz steals second standing up — he slid, but he didn't have to." "McCovey swings and misses, and it's fouled back." "Rich Folkers is throwing up in the bullpen." "There's a hard shot to LeMaster and he throws Madlock into the dugout." "There's someone warming up in the bullpen, but he's obscured by his number." "They throw Winfield out at second — and he's safe." "Whenever you get an inflamed tendon, you've got a problem. OK, here's the next pitch to Gene (Tenace) Tendon." "Willie Davis is not as young as he used to be." And my all-time favorite: "Winfield goes back to the wall, he hits his head on the wall and it rolls off! It's rolling all the way back to second base. This is a terrible thing for the Padres."

Inside the park home run for Derek Jeter tonight against the Royals.

I guess for Yankee fans, this validates the old adage, "bad things happen in threes." Although not at the same level as the passing of The Boss and The Voice of God, Houk certainly has his place in the team's historical heirarchy. Don't forget, he was the guy who replaced Casey Stengel. No small shoes to fill, those. He won two world championships with New York and later managed both the Red Sox and the Tigers. He was 90.

Malaguena.

When someone is as good a guitar player as Roy Clark, they tend to make everything look easy. The fact that this doesn't look easy tells you all you need to know.

The Angels took Hughes to the woodshed tonight. Not a good sign. He's been shaky of late. Not what you want to see when your rotation is in disarray. Not only that, but the bullpen proved once again why it deserves to be the biggest concern in all of Yankee nation.

Seems to me Pettitte's injury makes it even more likely that the Yankees will seek pitching help at the major league level. Apparently, teams have soured on Roy Oswalt for reasons having to do with the $16 million he's owed for his option year. If he's off the table, I'm not sure who that leaves, but with the way Burnett is pitching and with Vazquez still operating on a now you see me, now you don't basis, I don't see how you survive at least a month without Pettitte and not look for help. No way do you get by with Sergio Mitre. Problem is, the Yanks could use another bat, but if you spend your chits on pitching, whatever offensive needs they have go wanting.

A couple of OOP Mosaics: