Yankees need vintage Big Unitposted: Sunday, February 19, 2006
TAMPA, Fla. -- This is George Steinbrenner's town. Go to dinner one place, and they tell you stories about his regular waiter at The Palm, whose wife contracted cancer and Steinbrenner took care of every cost to the family. Or his favorite waitress at the pancake house, same thing.
So a lot of people other than the transplanted New Yorkers here care about their spring training team. And, even with the small sample known as pitchers and catchers, what they see is a 2006 Yankees team with reasons for some optimism.
First, there is a different air around the team. In the negotiations of last summer, Steinbrenner and club president Steve Swindell clearly made Brian Cashman the winner of an internal power struggle, and more than any time in his distinguished tenure as general manager, Cashman has the juice without constant interference from other New York or Tampa offices.
Cashman and Joe Torre have a far different, more energetic coaching staff. They have brought in four ex-managers -- Larry Bowa, Joe Kerrigan, Lee Mazzilli and Tony Pena -- to go with two ex-Yankees whose numbers are up on the wall, Don Mattingly and Ron Guidry. The Yankees' philosophy is if there is someone out there they believe is the best third-base coach in the game, they will pay whatever it takes to get him, so they have Bowa.
Second, Mariano Rivera insists he is in perfect health. Over the winter, there were reports that he had told friends that his arm bothered him last season. "That's not true, not at all," says Rivera. "How could I have thrown as well as I did last season (43 saves, 50 hits, 18 walks, 80 strikeouts in 78 1/3 innings)? I was fine.
"But I still have to be careful leading up to the season. I have pitched in 11 consecutive postseasons, and that takes a toll. Last year and this winter, I haven't thrown much before spring training, so it will take me some time to get ready. But that should pay off at the end of the year. But I still feel very good. I thank God for my good fortune, because I have been lucky to have my health, and because I have it I feel very good about this season."
There is going to come a time when the 36-year-old Rivera will begin to age, and no matter how many power relievers the Yankees sign, it will not be the same without arguably the best relief pitcher who ever lived.
The third reason for optimism is Randy Johnson. "He seems so much relaxed this spring," says Torre. "Maybe he feels more comfortable."
"I did win 17 games, but I know I didn't have the kind of year I expected," says Johnson. "I have heard a lot of comparisons to Roger Clemens' first year as a Yankee; he was 34, I started the year at 41. But my season had nothing whatsoever to do with age. It was entirely mechanics, and they got better in the second half (8-2, 3.31, compared to 9-6, 4.16 in the first half). I have worked hard to get things right, and I will have a better season.
"What I realize is that with the Yankees, there are two seasons, and you'd better excel in both of them. I did not in the playoffs, and I regret it. I just didn't pitch well, but I will again.
"This game can humble you at any time. Do you think it's fun giving up four home runs to the White Sox? Do you think it's fun giving up six runs in an inning to the Devil Rays?"
Johnson insists he "enjoys" the pressures of expecting to win as a Yankee, "because that's what I'm in the game to do." He says he never anticipated "the pressure that exists when the Yankees play the Red Sox," but says that his Sept. 11, 1-0 win over Tim Wakefield was one of his two most enjoyable starts all season, along with his 2-0 win against Seattle wunderkind Felix Hernandez.
If anything, Johnson this spring looks refreshed. Understand, he is a man who loves the game. He knows its history, he enjoys sitting and talking about situations and mechanics and other players. "I will have a better year," he says. "I'm certain of that."
The Yankees need that. Torre is optimistic about Carl Pavano's comeback, while Jaret Wright professes optimism. But along with Mike Mussina and Chien-Ming Wang, they need Johnson to be their ace, and as he heads toward his 43rd birthday on Sept. 10, he is driven to being exactly that.
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TAMPA, Fla. -- This is George Steinbrenner's town. Go to dinner one place, and they tell you stories about his regular waiter at The Palm, whose wife contracted cancer and Steinbrenner took care of every cost to the family. Or his favorite waitress at the pancake house, same thing.
So a lot of people other than the transplanted New Yorkers here care about their spring training team. And, even with the small sample known as pitchers and catchers, what they see is a 2006 Yankees team with reasons for some optimism.
First, there is a different air around the team. In the negotiations of last summer, Steinbrenner and club president Steve Swindell clearly made Brian Cashman the winner of an internal power struggle, and more than any time in his distinguished tenure as general manager, Cashman has the juice without constant interference from other New York or Tampa offices.
Cashman and Joe Torre have a far different, more energetic coaching staff. They have brought in four ex-managers -- Larry Bowa, Joe Kerrigan, Lee Mazzilli and Tony Pena -- to go with two ex-Yankees whose numbers are up on the wall, Don Mattingly and Ron Guidry. The Yankees' philosophy is if there is someone out there they believe is the best third-base coach in the game, they will pay whatever it takes to get him, so they have Bowa.
Second, Mariano Rivera insists he is in perfect health. Over the winter, there were reports that he had told friends that his arm bothered him last season. "That's not true, not at all," says Rivera. "How could I have thrown as well as I did last season (43 saves, 50 hits, 18 walks, 80 strikeouts in 78 1/3 innings)? I was fine.
"But I still have to be careful leading up to the season. I have pitched in 11 consecutive postseasons, and that takes a toll. Last year and this winter, I haven't thrown much before spring training, so it will take me some time to get ready. But that should pay off at the end of the year. But I still feel very good. I thank God for my good fortune, because I have been lucky to have my health, and because I have it I feel very good about this season."
There is going to come a time when the 36-year-old Rivera will begin to age, and no matter how many power relievers the Yankees sign, it will not be the same without arguably the best relief pitcher who ever lived.
The third reason for optimism is Randy Johnson. "He seems so much relaxed this spring," says Torre. "Maybe he feels more comfortable."
"I did win 17 games, but I know I didn't have the kind of year I expected," says Johnson. "I have heard a lot of comparisons to Roger Clemens' first year as a Yankee; he was 34, I started the year at 41. But my season had nothing whatsoever to do with age. It was entirely mechanics, and they got better in the second half (8-2, 3.31, compared to 9-6, 4.16 in the first half). I have worked hard to get things right, and I will have a better season.
"What I realize is that with the Yankees, there are two seasons, and you'd better excel in both of them. I did not in the playoffs, and I regret it. I just didn't pitch well, but I will again.
"This game can humble you at any time. Do you think it's fun giving up four home runs to the White Sox? Do you think it's fun giving up six runs in an inning to the Devil Rays?"
Johnson insists he "enjoys" the pressures of expecting to win as a Yankee, "because that's what I'm in the game to do." He says he never anticipated "the pressure that exists when the Yankees play the Red Sox," but says that his Sept. 11, 1-0 win over Tim Wakefield was one of his two most enjoyable starts all season, along with his 2-0 win against Seattle wunderkind Felix Hernandez.
If anything, Johnson this spring looks refreshed. Understand, he is a man who loves the game. He knows its history, he enjoys sitting and talking about situations and mechanics and other players. "I will have a better year," he says. "I'm certain of that."
The Yankees need that. Torre is optimistic about Carl Pavano's comeback, while Jaret Wright professes optimism. But along with Mike Mussina and Chien-Ming Wang, they need Johnson to be their ace, and as he heads toward his 43rd birthday on Sept. 10, he is driven to being exactly that.
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