fullcountpitch.com

By Gary Armida

What follows is the very first article ever published on fullcountpitch.com. Because it was the first one, there wasn’t the readership that we have today. With Major League Baseball’s decision to use instant replay by the end of the season, this article is as timely as the day it was published. After the original text, I have some current thoughts to add. So, to all that missed this the first time (which was practically all of you considering this got viewed 10 times the first day), here’s the first FCP article, in its original form.

Orginally Published on November 7, 2007

Tradition. Baseball is a game built on honoring its past greatness. Fans know what numbers 61, 56, and 755 all mean. It is what makes the game great. While other sports have changed major rules and scoring options, baseball is essentially the same game that it was 100 years ago (well, with the addition of 500 foot homeruns). Whenever a change is brought up, the so-called baseball purists scream from the mountain tops-IT WILL RUIN TRADITION! Well, today is quite possibly a traditionalist’s worst nightmare. The general managers of baseball voted 25-5 to approve the use of instant replay on controversial homerun calls (this still needs Bud Selig’s approval). [Read more →]

By Bill Campione

Last week, the YES Network premiered the latest in their series of Yankeeographies, this one starring Yankee great, Alex Rodriguez. Some have bristled at the notion that A-Rod is worthy of such a distinction, as he has only been a Yankee for five seasons, has yet to win a World Series, and performs poorly in the clutch. Some history: YES has produced two Yankeeographies for those still in uniform (Jorge Posada and Hideki Matsui) and has profiled three Yankees who have not won rings (Don Mattingly, Bobby Murcer, and again, Matsui). Supposedly this show was produced last year, but was held off because of the contentious negotiations that were to come once A-Rod opted out of his contract. Also, Cynthia Rodriguez makes no appearances here, nor do any strippers, mistresses, or Kabala followers.

I understand that A-Rod may not YET be the ideal subject of this biographical treatment, but the Yankees have produced many of these, and eventually you are going to have to dig deeper and be a little less selective than you were in the past. FullCountPitch.com has obtained YES’s list for the 2009 Yankeeography season, and you may agree that Joba and Phil had better live up to expectations, because the bottom of the barrel is clearly visible.

[Read more →]

By Gary Armida

Two weeks ago, Brian Cashman was being congratulated by most media, baseball fans, and baseball people for his adroit moves. In picking up Xavier Nady, Damaso Marte, and Ivan Rodriguez, Cashman seemingly shored up most of the Yankees’ holes. Since then, the Yankees world has shown some serious signs of crumbling. In their last 15 games, they are 4-11, coming off of a terrible weekend in Los Angeles where they were swept by their nemesis Angels. Even worse, they lost Joba Chamberlain to shoulder tendinitis. Chamberlain’s return is still up in the air (He is set to begin a throwing program later this week). One could look at the offense and blame it for the struggles. With Jorge Posada and Hideki Matsui gone for the season, the Yankees lost two players that each had an OPS north of .900. Also, a decline in production from Derek Jeter and Bobby Abreu and the pathetic production from Melky Cabrera are reasons why the Yankees cannot outslug their problems like they did in previous seasons. But, the offensive drop should’ve been predicted as the Yankees have an aging roster. So, the attention has to turn to the pitching. With all of these issues, the back of the rotation is a weak spot. It is the type of weak spot that can and will cost the Yankees a chance to make the playoffs during their last season in historic Yankee Stadium.  Brian Cashman needs to show, one more time, that he is one of the top GM’s in the game. Incredibly, his team was on the cusp of catching the Red Sox. Now, they are struggling, scrambling to fill three rotation spots. With just two weeks to go before the waiver trading deadline, Cashman must look at all options. For some reason, Cashman is slow to make changes unlike his deal for the three additions a couple of weeks ago. Time, unfortunately, is not on his side. [Read more →]

By Gary Armida

Once again, Theo Epstein hits his mark. Acquiring the veteran Paul Byrd for a player to be named later or for cash is another brilliant move. Byrd does not guarantee the Red Sox a pennant, but he does guarantee some stability for their rotation. With Clay Buchholz struggling, Tim Wakefield on the disabled list, and Josh Beckett seemingly a pitch away from the DL, landing the serviceable veteran was a great move. Immediately, Byrd will settle in to the fifth starter job. The Red Sox acquisition is two fold as not only get one of the hottest pitchers in all of baseball, but he does not go to the Yankees who desperately needed his services. With the Rays prime for a collapse, the Red Sox seem to be on their way to another division crown.

While we all sit in awe of Theo Epstein, let’s take a look about what’s making news around the world of baseball… [Read more →]

By Gary Armida

Two division leaders had two very different Monday mornings. One seized an opportunity to strengthen its lead. The other may have seen their playoff chances slip away. First let’s start with the good news. When you have a pitching staff that ranks in the top five in every major category, one would expect the team to be in first place and to be cruising towards the playoffs. The Arizona Diamondbacks had half of that equation. They are in first place, but were just 1.5 games ahead of the Los Angeles Dodgers thanks in large part to a paltry offense. The offense ranks 10^th out of the 16 National League teams in the two most important offensive categories, on base percentage (.323) and slugging percentage (.413). Those two numbers are the reason why the Diamondbacks rank, you guessed it, 10^th in runs scored (534). With the Dodgers acquiring Manny Ramirez, the Diamondbacks were forced to make a move to bolster their dormant offense. On Monday, they addressed all of their needs with the acquisition of one player. Adam Dunn, formerly of the Reds, addresses every need the Diamondbacks had on offense. They agreed to part with 23 year old right handed pitcher Dallas Buck along with two players to be named later. With this trade, the D-Backs may have recaptured the momentum that the Dodgers seemed to have with their new left fielder. The other division leader, the Tampa Rays, lost the two best position players in their lineup over the course of hours. Tampa placed Carl Crawford on the disabled list with hand issues. Later, and perhaps more importantly, they placed their best run producer, Evan Longoria, on the DL with a fractured wrist. With the possibility of losing Longoria for the season, the Rays will find it difficult to maintain their division lead. Yes, two first place teams that could be going in opposite directions. [Read more →]

By Gary Armida

This may sound un-American. The Little League World Series is in its beginning stages and I could care less. It is not the fact that television is broadcasting 11 and 12 year old boys playing a game. On the contrary, television is not at fault. Business is business; television stations would not use precious air time if there was little or no profit involved. It’s not the fact that it’s a game involving 11 and 12 year old boys. In fact, because of their youthful enthusiasm, some games are quite riveting. No, the problem lies in the fact that these young boys are being exploited for the business that has become the Little League Empire. Additionally, and most importantly, everything that is shown on television shows everything that is wrong with baseball. [Read more →]

By Gary Armida

Orginally, the Little League rant was the open to this Fungos column. But, as you can see, the rant went on for an entire column. So, let’s skip the usual introduction and let’s get down to business. Let’s see what’s making news around the world of baseball as we are officially in middle of the “Dog Days” of August. [Read more →]

By Gary Armida

With the Tampa Rays still in first place (3 games ahead of Boston heading into last night’s action), many media outlets are proclaiming them as the official favorite to win the AL East. The young Rays have played some exciting baseball, most recently winning games with an extra innings walk and then coming from six runs down in the ninth. Yes, the Rays are having a tremendous season (as we thought), but they are far from locks to even make the playoffs. Even with a solid run differential of +55, the Rays do have some obstacles that they must overcome to finish off a magical season. Taking into account their youth, their schedule, and their competition, the Rays will have a tough couple of months. Let’s examine the Rays’ chances of staying atop the AL East standings. [Read more →]