Friday August 28, 2009 8:37 PM By Ken Davidoff
Back in the halcyon days of Newsday's old Web site, I was able to categorize posts in styles unique to our community here. For instance, a "Spadafore Style" entry was a simple "News and Views" approach, named after former Detroit News writer Jim spadafore.
The new software doesn't allow for such personal touches, but let's pretend it's, say, two months ago and give it a whirl, based on an unusually busy Friday.
News: The Yankees revise The Joba Rules. Instead of pitching haphazardly, Joba Chamberlain will pitch every five games, with his workload limited.
Views: It's essentially a different means to the same end. My Newsday teammate Anthony Rieber, in the above linked column, thinks the Yankees should just let Joba pitch. I would respectully advise Anthony to look at what happened to pitchers throughout the years like Mark Fidrych, Dwight Gooden (It wasn't just his personal issues that led to his downfall), Kerry Wood, Francisco Liriano and Fausto Carmona whose workloads weren't monitored carefully enough.
Besides, the Yankees aren't reinventing the wheel as much as we make them out to do so. Look at how carefully Seattle has handled Felix Hernandez over the past six years (look at his minor-league numbers, too), and it's no coincidence that King Felix has managed to stay healthy.
News: The Angels acquire Scott Kazmir from Tampa Bay.
Views: Gotta give the victory here to the Rays, who pick up some much desired payroll relief while giving up a guy who, while he'll always have a special place in the hearts of Mets fans, has been in decline for two years now.
Out of curiosity, I matched Kazmir's 5.92 ERA against his FIP, which measures pitchers independent of their fielders. The answer? 4.68, which is still not very good but certainly better than the 5.92. Kazmir had pitched well in his last three starts for Tampa Bay, so maybe he's turning his season around.
Nevertheless, considering that Kazmir has over $20 million coming to him through 2011, this is a significant risk for the Angels.
News: Jose Reyes might need surgery to repair his hamstring tendon.
Views: Newsday teammate David Lennon reported this a couple of days ago. Look, based on all of the nasty speculation surrounding Reyes - by people who have conveniently forgotten how much he played from 2005 through 2008 - perhaps it will make Mets fans feel better if Reyes' condition is serious enough to warrant surgery.
News: The Twins acquired Ron Mahay and Jon Rauch in an attempt to upgrade their bullpen.
Views: It's out of character for the Twins to be so aggressive on the trade market; they also picked up Carl "American Idle" Pavano earlier this month. Hey, if these moves don't get the Twins into the playoffs - a longshot, undoubtedly - perhaps they'll at least get Joe Mauer the serious consideration he deserves as AL MVP. The Twins are certainly in the pennant race, even if they're not quite at the front of the line.
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