All hail Helen!!

All hail Helen!!
Helen Carmona and your humble blogger

Thursday, March 13, 2008

I was wrong, kinda sorta

As always, the understated strength of a George Vecsey column nails an issue dead-on. (The link to Vecsey's latest Yankee column appears at the bottom of this post.)

But having said that, I'd like to mildly disagree with St. George.

In yesterday's post I bashed -- immaturely, I might add, and probably with a touch of envy, although I honestly didn't feel any at the time -- the decision to allow Billy Crystal a one-day deal so he could fulfill a lifelong dream of being announced as a Yankee player. (I'm convinced it was hearing his name called just before his at bat, and not the at bat itself, that was the real thrill for Crystal, as it would be for any of us in his position. Lord knows he had no shot at doing anything meaningful at the plate, surprisingly decent foul ball aside...) And I still stand by my initial feeling that the Yankees are, or at least should be, above that kind of sophomoric publicity stunt.

But having watched it, and having seen the genuine thrill it brought Crystal, I have to admit that from a purely human perspective, no one can begrudge someone the chance to realize the thrill of a lifetime. Anytime you witness another person experiencing total joy, you have to tip your cap and say 'Good for you, fella.' (And let's be honest, no one was hurt by this stunt, and baseball has far bigger black-eye issues than a comedian taking swings in a sanctioned game.)

Yes, there is a bit of lustre removed when you learn that Crystal's dream chance came about only because he and Derek Jeter just happened to be at the same (luxury) hotel in Costa Rica in December, and the Yankee captain decided to do Crystal a favor after the comedian whined about turning 60. (Who goes to Costa Rica at Christmastime and moans about a March birthday....???)

And yes, had the one-time-only Yankee offer been given to someone a little less privileged in their every day life -- like, say, someone from Make-A-Wish, or some otherwise underprivileged person -- the moment would have rung a bit more genuine.

But now that it's over, it's time to forget about whatever bad feelings the idea aroused initially. Good for Billy Crystal, and Happy 60th to him. He has a memory today that many of us wish we could have. Now, can we just play real baseball again?

(Read the Vecsey column here: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/14/sports/baseball/14vecsey.html?ref=sports)

Perfect Moose

Mike Mussina looked terrific throwing five perfect innings Thursday afternoon, but a few facts need to remain in the conversation.

One, it was spring training, and two, it was the Pittsburgh Pirates (which may render the first issue moot, since there may be no real difference between the Pirates in March and the Pirates in June.)

And a third item requires mentioning: Mussina, although he was locating pitches well, benefitted -- as did Pirate starter Paul Maholm -- from home plate umpire Mark Carlson's rather generous stike zone.

But all in all, Mussina did what starting pitchers are supposed to do in their third spring start. He gave Joe Girardi and Yankee fans something to feel good about and to build on. Nobody expects perfection in spring, but with Mussina's recent history, fans will take it, even if it's only March 13.

Other game notes

After his unfortunate performance running the bases on Wednesday, Shelley Duncan on Thursday showed what he can do to base runners. After Mo Rivera allowed two batters to get on in the sixth inning, Duncan fielded a sharp ground ball at first with men on second and third and one out. After checking the runners, spinning and stepping on first for the force out, Duncan whipped a perfect throw home to nail Pittsburgh's Jose Bautista, who then tried to return to third base but was caught in the rundown for the 3-2-5 inning-ending double play. It was a smart, perfectly executed play by Duncan, who continues to flash genuine baseball skills to go with his gritty, balls-to-the-wall gametime disposition.

It's going to be fun watching this guy grow into the uniform.

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