WHY GRANDERSON'S RAMPAGE WILL CONTINUE

Now that Curtis Granderson has found that Yankee rhythm, there will be no stopping him. He is truly the leader of GGS, demonstrating power and speed and he's growing every year. I was always fond of ballplayers that could crank out home runs as well as run. I think that’s why I was fascinated by Rickey Henderson. When you think speed, you don’t always think of power too. Granderson has both, and not only that, the guy can be mad clutch at the right time. Looking back on that trade that send Austin Jackson and Phil Coke to the Detroit Tigers, I knew it would be interesting, but I wasn’t confident. My buddy told me at the time that he expected Granderson to develop into a Yankee superstar and he didn’t have a doubt in his mind, but I did. But I’m glad I was wrong and I’m glad "The Gentleman" is roaming centerfield at Yankee Stadium... in fact, I couldn't be happier.

You can see it in our outfielders, they genuinely like each other, they feed off each other and that makes them all better. It's funny, I thought about it when I heard a report about the Jets' LaDainian Tomlinson say that the Jets' "turmoil was the worst he's seen." (Read HERE). You don't hear that about our Yankees, about our boys, and that's a good thing. Our outfield gels. You want your guys to get along... no one wants a poison on a team, and if Tomlinson is telling the truth, it makes sense to why the Jets collapsed. You have to have respect for each other on a team. Granderson, Brett Gardner and Nick Swisher have that respect, and it shows.

And not to get off topic, but then my mind wondered to Yoennis Cespedes. I often think about this Yoennis Cespedes stuff and wonder if the Yankee Brass are going to tinker a bit with the outfield. After all, as much as we love Nick Swisher, the "Bronx Elvis", his time is almost up. Cespedes is clearly an upgrade on paper, but the popularity among fans may not ever be the same as Nick's popularity, always saluting the bleacher creatures...the kid's a God to us all. The point is, would that "gel" be the same if it was Granderson, Gardner and Cespedes? Would the dynamic be different than GGS? Who knows... there I go again, strange scenarios that won't ever happen.

But back to Curtis Granderson; I expect big things from the man. Curtis is a leader on and off the field and he leads by example. He doesn’t call himself a “role model” as his way to lead and teach the kids. Manny Ramirez needs to take notice. If Granderson stays in the zone, expect big things in 2012. Just look at the numbers, comparing 2010 to 2011.

2010: .247 AVG / 24 HR / 67 RBI / .324 OBP / .468 SLG / .792 OPS

2011: .262 AVG / 41 HR / 119 RBI / .364 OBP / .552 SLG / .916 OPS

Everything is up, including strikeouts by the way... he had 169 K's in 2011, up from 116 in 2010, he needs to work on that. But anyway, my point is, how do you NOT want a guy like this in your lineup? How can you not love his leadership on this ball club? You have to... he's "The Gentleman" and his rampage will continue in 2012 and I have not doubt about it.

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