GIRARDI NEEDS TO BE GRITTIER

Reflecting on this year's post season gives me the opportunity to see flaws in our team including our dugout management.  My reflection yields one main thought: Joe Girardi needs to be grittier.  Now, when I brought this idea up to my Met fan daughter, she said, "Like Terry Collins?"  I had to agree and added, "like him, Cubs manager Joe Maddon, Royals manager Ned Yost, and Astros manager A. J. Hinch."  They teach grit and it shows in their players who evoke situations that yield opportunities for their teams to dominate games over their opponents.

In an MLB post game interview back in 2014, Ned Yost described grit and persistence best when he talked about how his Royals team used their tremendous energy to battle back and his coaching staff exerted patience and understanding for his young players who were just fighting to win.  "We are doing things differently; we are defending a little bit earlier, we are pinch hitting more in certain situations because we are trying to win baseball games. The scrutiny is the scrutiny.  I've come to find out that I can put a player in the ball game and if he gets a base hit or gets a big out, no one is going to say anything.  But if I put in that same player and he strikes out or gives up a hit, then it's all the second guessing that comes down on you. I've learned that it is neither right or wrong most of the time.  You made the right decision; it either works out or it doesn't work out.  The one thing that has gotten us to this point is the patience we have had with these young guys."  

Am I saying that Joe Girardi doesn't have patience?  Perhaps.  He is just so tight and old school that he seemingly appears outdated for a game that seems to be more about chances and opportunities than playing the odds of lefty vs. righty.  Guys need to be gritty.  They need to be persistent in their quest for the chance to play in the Fall Classic.  Like former New York Giants Coach Tom Coughlin said to his guys, "One week at a time, one game at a time, one win at a time."  Girardi needs to think more like that and take some chances.

"We've been behind a lot of times. We've battled back. We totally expect that out of the Cardinals. A lot of their better record against us was early in the season, their ability to battle back against us in the latter part of a game. So none of that surprises -- you can take nothing for granted. You don't pack up the bats with the last out ever, and I love it for that," said Joe Maddon after moving on to play the Cards in their match up last October.  I feel like the other Joe has forgotten how to battle or perhaps he needs a more energetic team to battle with?

Astros GM Jeff Luhnow said this after learning that they would play our Yankees in a Wild Card game this October.  "We have such a young team, a talented team. This could have gone many different directions this year. A. J. (Hinch) kept the guys focused and they had so much desire inside of them to win. As we started accumulating those wins in April, it started to become a reality for us that we have a chance to make the postseason, and through the ups and downs of a long season they battled through and made it today. I couldn't be happier for them. You know what? They're not done."

Bottom line, Girardi needs to be grittier.  He needs to evoke this persistence in his team.  Some will say we need more youth to finish the deal.  I say sure, but without a teacher and a leader who can help young guys develop into good men, we can't win; we won't win.  Girardi, find some grit and bring it with you to Tampa in February.

--Suzie Pinstripe, BYB Senior Staff Writer
BYB Hot Stove Columnist
Twitter: @suzieprof

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STANDARDS ARE STANDARDS

So, I have been wrestling with a few issues regarding our latest pick up, Aroldis Chapman. Colleagues and friends alike have been bringing up the issue again and again to me and I simply can't turn a deaf ear or a blind eye to their comments.  Even our very own Mike O'Hara has his take on the trade in his piece A MUTT'S A MUTT .  Fox Sports said it best on the last day of the year, "The ugly elephant in the room, and no, we can't ignore it.  Nobody knows exactly what happened on Oct. 30, except the people who were there, and if we know anything about memory, we know that even they'll have different memories. By all accounts, though, it was ugly, considering the non-disputed facts that include physical violence, multiple gunshots and an infant daughter."  Did the Yankees lower their standards by a big margin to pick up an alleged domestic-abuser or in simpler terms, a wife beater?

I watched Notre Dame lose a big game on New Year's Day. It hurt me to see them lose to Ohio State. Injuries plagued the Fighting Irish all season and you can't help that. But, when the Irish sit two star players because they violated team policy, that's upholding its program to a standard. Unlike Ohio State who let their star player, Ezekiel Elliott, into the big game despite being charged with driving under suspension, operating without a license, and failure to control his vehicle after a Sunday afternoon crash before Ohio State's scheduled flight to the Fiesta Bowl. Oh and let's not forget their star quarterback's, JT Barrett's, DUI incident earlier in the fall.

Standards are standards and organizations set them. Much like the New York Giants' statement regarding Odell Beckham, Jr.'s performance against the Carolina Panthers. Bad calls and bad tempers can't remove bad behaviors and Tom Coughlin believes in his young player despite his bad decisions two weeks ago.

"Coughlin insisted that, although Beckham was provoked, his reaction was wrong. Coughlin does not believe this situation accurately reflects Beckham's character. "I will not defend his actions yesterday because they were wrong," Coughlin said Monday. "But I will defend the young man and the quality of his person. I will defend him as long as I'm able. I told our team that. Our team feels the same way about Odell." The quality of his person; this can't be overlooked, ever.

Standards are standards and I have always believed in the Yankees' persona and character for doing the right thing.  They are a team with dignity and integrity, at least that's what I have always known. But, this time, my faith in them has been shaken.  As Fox Sports says and I concur, "And what of the Yankees? What sort of message are they sending? They're sending the same message that probably 90 percent of sports teams send every year: We don't care about what the guy does, as long as he performs well and doesn't particularly annoy his teammates. And that second one's negotiable."  

Needless to say, I won't be purchasing any Chapman jerseys for the kids in my life this season.  I have worked too hard to show them the importance of sportsmanship, kindness, commitment, and work ethic both on and off the playing field.  Standards are standards and this time the Yankees picked up a different set of these to make a deal.  Not sure how Joe Hardy would feel about this deal with the devil, but I know that this Damn Yankee fan isn't pleased.

--Suzie Pinstripe, BYB Senior Staff Writer
BYB Hot Stove Columnist
Twitter: @suzieprof

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ODELL BECKHAM JR.- HITS, BATS & SHOWBOATING

I had the opportunity to capture the full game experience last Sunday at the MetLife Stadium for an all out civil war battle between the north and south NFC teams, the New York Giants and Carolina Panthers.

This was an anxiety-ridden competition, filled with high energy tempers and hard hits. I was on the field for pre-game warm ups and what I saw was a lot of showboating and a virtual light show from Odell Beckham Jr., the target of much controversy for his helmet-to-helmet hit on Panthers' cornerback Josh Norman.

As an educator, journalist and sister to an NCAA referee I can say with much confidence that referees have as much to do with the landscape of a game as do the players and coaches.  When refs let things go or turn a blind eye to incidents on the field or simply miss something multiple times or even one time, tempers get heated followed by behaviors that take away from how the game is meant to be played.  "We all know that the personal battles have no presence in the game of football, not at any level," Coughlin said, echoing the message he said he gave his team in Monday's meeting. "They're a distraction. They break concentration. They prevent the great game of football from being played as a team, team sport," stated ESPN following Sunday's match up.

I was on the field, as I mentioned, I did not see anything out of the ordinary except that I have changed my feelings for Beckham Jr. after seeing his "light up" cleats and his cocky showboating. Now, I realize that there is a lot of adrenaline out there and players look to psyche themselves up so that they play at their maximum potential.  Between music, and fanfare and a lot of testosterone, it's an energetic forum.  Here's the video I took from my vantage point.

Now, I did not see any bats, but apparently they were there according to ESPN's Adam Schefter and other videos and still shots that have surfaced from the pre-game warm ups.  My problem is the assumption and gossip around the bat or why the bat was on the field before the game.  According to Schefter's Facebook post:

"In pregame warm ups, at least one Panthers official, and possibly more, carried black baseball bats on to the field and were motioning with them towards Odell Beckham Jr. while making comments to him, per a league source. Norman later grabbed the black bat and was swinging it in pregame warm ups – which, by the way, an NFL Films camera captured. Beckham, according to another source, felt threatened and it helped put him in a certain frame of mind. It does not excuse what he did during the course of the game, but it does explain what led up to the battle that still is the talk of the league today."

This is not reporting; this is hearsay and opinion.  The Carolina team has apparently carried a bat or two on the field with them all season.  So, MetLife Stadium was not the first or last venue to see bats on the field.  According to the NFL, "Tension between Beckham and Norman brewed long before kickoff, with NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport reporting that OBJ had to be separated before the game from Panthers practice squad player Marcus Ball, who was wielding a black baseball bat that Carolina players tend to tote around during warm ups. Ball reportedly handed the bat to Norman at one point, leaving Beckham to supposedly feel threatened. The NFL on Monday was also looking into that confrontation."

Symbols of success, winning, motivation and drive are not new to football or sports in general.  Sure, a bat could mean that you want to give someone a beating, a team a beating, or you want to drive home a win.  Shoes that light up like laser pointers could mean that you are going to run all over the opposing team, drawing attention to your lightning-like feet or swiftness of your body.  Clearly there is a difference in might and power between light up shoes and baseball bats, but I think the whole game has been blown way out of proportion.  You can't blame tensions on baseball bats; you have to blame it on the context of the game itself.  And that's part of the sport.

The game was heated; it was going to be heated.  Each of the teams is vying for a win; the Panthers are on a 13-0 season and the Giants are fighting for a playoff spot.  Tensions are going to be high.  I honestly go back to my original theory that the refs need to control the energy on the field, the players and their coaches.  I saw no attempt from the refs to do that; instead they fed into the unwieldy atmosphere and missed calls.  I think Tom Coughlin said it best when he stated, "There are qualities that Odell Beckham, this young man, bring to this football team the likes of which I've never seen. He has great energy. He has great enthusiasm. He gives great effort. He does it literally every day that he walks out on the field. I will not defend his actions yesterday, because they were wrong and this particular franchise and organization does not tolerate that. But I will defend the young man, and the quality of the person. I will defend him as long as I am able."

That's our take on the incident as we synthesize reports from various sources, including our own, from the field and stands of the game on Sunday.  Take time to let this all sink in and then let us know your thoughts!

--Suzie Pinstripe, BYB Senior Staff Writer
BYB Hot Stove & Senior Writer
Twitter: @suzieprof



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LET LEADERSHIP LEAD THE WAY

As we experience unseasonably warm weather this mid-December, it is hard to focus on the "cold" sports season, like football and hockey, without thinking that it is time for the "warm" weather sports like baseball.  I guess that's why when I read about New York Giants Quarterback Eli Manning's pre-game speech for the sake of salvaging what's left of his wavering team, I thought about one of the key needs for our team across the river; our very own New York Yankees.  "According to Ralph Vacchiano of the New York Daily News, Manning brought his Giants teammates in for a speech last week, stirring his troops to action with a “passionate speech," mentions NBC Sports on Tuesday.  Yes, Eli Manning stepped up to the plate, so to speak, and gave an awarding winning speech that seemed to have made a difference in his team's performance in Monday night's contest against Miami.  The Giants won more than the game. They learned that effective leadership leads the way to success.

We have discussed the importance of effective team leadership a number of times on BYB.  It is a huge part of an organization's success, including our own here. Our Chief, Robert Casey, gives us pep talks all of time. He gives us the motivation we need to write and contribute to this outlet for fans.  Sometimes we all need a good kick in the butt and like the Giants and the Yankees, we need a leader who will do just that.

As former president Ronald Reagan of our great country once said, "The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things. He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things." And this is what Manning did.  Although, many would argue that Manning performed at his top capacity, completing 27-of-31 passes including four touchdowns. According to NBC Sports, “He played superbly tonight,” Tom Coughlin said. “I had a good feeling that he would. He had a nice week of practice. He again was in command of everything out there.” The Yankees don't seem to have that level of command.  Nor do they seem to have a fearless leader, like Coughlin, who goes out with the team and leads workouts with his guys from time to time.  At least, nothing I have heard or seen lately.

Effective leadership, along with solid pitching, is what is missing from the Yankees.  I don't see an effective leader in the dugout or in the front office. I don't see a solid leader on the field or in the bull pen.  I am waiting for one to arise from the rafters, but to no avail.  No one seems to be able to step up or at least not someone who is clearly visible and audible from my view.  Press conference of that is most welcome!

My Wednesday shout out to the Yankees is simply this: Let Leadership Lead the Way!  

Leaders are physically present, clearly heard, respected individuals who aren't afraid to take the heat, give the heat and turn on the heat.  So, not only do we need to recruit and retain quality players, we need to ensure that these same players hold the qualities of good leadership.  Without it, we will continue to sit out the second and third rounds of the playoffs, if we even make it that far, for a long. long time.

--Suzie Pinstripe, BYB Senior Staff Writer
BYB Hot Stove Columnist
Twitter: @suzieprof




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REFLECTIONS: AN IMPORTANT PART OF WINNING

All that ridiculous banter about Rex Ryan’s tasteless tattoo basking in the sun of the Bahamas last week really got me thinking—shouldn’t Rex be reflecting on his season as head coach of the New York Jets?  Reflection is an important ingredient for lifelong learning and if the notion of “Hit me once, shame on you, hit me twice shame on me” is true then shouldn’t all coaches engage in reflection?

From his frenzied conversation with WFAN, to his press conference soundbites, New York Giants coach, Tom Coughlin, is doing everything but lying in the tropical sun.  He is frantically searching for answers and reflecting on a losing season.  "For us, right now, to not be in the playoffs; to be the Super Bowl champion and not be in the playoffs, if that doesn’t bring you down to earth and create the kind of humility that comes along with getting your nose back to the grindstone, I don’t know what does,” said the lamenting coach according to an article published in the New Jersey Star Ledger.

And let’s not forget that our very own Joe Girardi did his soul searching in the early part of the fall.  "I don't look back and second-guess myself. I was making moves, trying to win ballgames,” said Girardi at the end of October according to the New Jersey Star Ledger’s article Joe Girardi:  Yankees didn’t accomplish what they set out to do.  He added later in the article, "I believe when spring training starts we'll have a championship caliber club."  This kind of positive talk parallels the post we had up titled, THINK POSITIVE, NOT PERFECT. 

Sure, reflection needs to be ugly.  It needs to be honest and truthful.  That’s how you get answers on how to improve.  It’s where you conduct a full “Crime Scene Investigation” of your season, pick out the clues and artifacts that caused the season to go in that direction, make decisions, and move on positively.  You can’t cry over it, but you can do something about it.

It was hard, emotionally for the Yankees, who rely on their captain for not only offense but persistence and passion, to lose Jeter at the end of last season.  It was a terrible blow for them.  “It’s hard to put into words just how much losing Jeter hurts the Yankees. Not only is it a huge psychological and emotional blow to see the face of your franchise, a guy who doggedly plays through pain like Jete has been doing for a month, literally carried off of the field like that, but Jeter was one of their best hitters at the moment to boot,” said SNY’s Brien Jackson (HERE.)  And let’s not forget that we lost Mo at the beginning of the season, for the whole season. 

But, we know and certainly, Girardi knows that it was more than that.  Frankly, both Girardi and Coughlin both thought their teams were good enough to win.  But something very different happened on the field.  Something was clearly missing when it came down to actually closing the deal.  And each New York coach may have been missing something that you can’t readily see when everyone’s working hard in practice.  Yet Coughlin saw it as he reflected and Girardi may have also.

 "I had gotten myself so into this preparation, so into us playing well, my competitive juices were flowing so, I should have made sure everyone was drug along with me,” said Coughlin in the Ledger article Giants’ Tom Coughlin ‘walking around like a crazy man’ after missing the playoffs, (HERE.)

That sort of high-level reflection is what makes losing, gaining.  It makes losers, winners.  Coaches need to taste humility a little in order to be better in touch with their players.  Reflection teaches you that. 

What are your reflections?  We want to hear them because as fans we need to all be on that same competitive drug if we are going to cheer on champions in 2013.

--Suzie Pinstripe, BYB Opinion Columnist
Twitter: @suzieprof




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