It’s a win all the way around. I circumvent Joe Buck and McCarver, who apparently think that the majority of the world is watching their first game of the season–or their first ever, and I utilize my education and get culture. That inning So Taguchi scored the solamente carrera for the Cardinales. And I get to hear Manny Mota do color commentary. And when I think of Manny Mota, I think of Airplane. And I laugh.

7 years of Spanish in school and almost 14 years working in restaurants. Yo puedo hablar and escribir espanol muy bien. And never was it so practical as it was anoche when I had an epiphany and pushed el boton pequeno on my remote control.

Preston Wilson—peligroso! Un mas y los Cardinales se arriba dos juegos a uno en el Serio Mundial! It was great. El jugador del partido Chevrolet…Jim Edmonds. Oh! Chris Carpenter…Chris Carpenter. Well, everyone makes mistakes.

A lot of people think SAP stands for spanish on their remote. It actually means Secondary Audio Program. It can be used for foreign language or even teletext, which is descriptive commentary for the blind on regular programs. But I do wonder–why is it when you turn on a Spanish TV channel and hit SAP you don’t get an English translation? Doesn’t seem fair.

But for now I rejoice. Mi problemas se fue. Adios Joe Buck.

Technorati tags: Joe Buck / Tim McCarver / World Series / Tigers / Cardinals

I also spent some time laughing at the Tigers for inking Rogers to a 2-year-$16 million contract when they were so far from being a contender.

I’ve spent this postseason realizing how wrong I was about it all. And I wasn’t the only one. Last night Rogers became the oldest pitcher to ever win a World Series game.

I’ve marveled at Rogers along with the world this October, wondering when he would implode or explode or just melt.

Last night he gooped away all of my newfound respect for him. Over at ESPN.com, Gene Wojciechowski has a great summary of the whole story. I still want to know how Rogers was allowed to stay in the game.

Technorati tags: Kenny Rogers / Tigers / Cardinals

Don’t get me wrong, having a hefty payroll helps. But teams that fail to develop players from their own farm systems are doomed. It’s the best way to control player costs and those players have value that can be used to obtain other players.

The Yankees were brought up, of course. But when the Yanks were winning post-strike championships, what was the core of their team? Jeter, Rivera, Bernie Baseball (an all-time Zoner favorite), Pettitte, Posada, Leyritz, Mendoza.

Now they have a $200 million payroll yet can’t seem to win it all. The farm system dried up. They have Cano and Wang this year–2 more players they developed and have made an impact. Without them they likely don’t make the postseason.

So it was then brought up, of course, that teams like the Royals can’t compete because they have low payrolls. I argued that it wasn’t so long ago the Royals were winning and packing Kauffman Stadium, mostly due to players they developed. Saberhagen, Brett, Willie Wilson, Frank White, Quiz, Gubizca and others made that team great.

Their farm system quit bearing fruit and their major league club suffered. People quit coming to games and it was baseball’s version of a vicious circle.

It was then argued, of course, that teams like the Royals cannot keep their star players because they will make too much money for them to retain them. I won’t disagree on that although I remember the 90′s Indians doing a great job of signing all of their young players and getting them locked up through arbitration and in some cases the first year or two of free agency. They developed players, identified who their core was and signed them long-term. And though they never won a title, they were very good for a long stretch.

The problem with teams like the Royals is that throguh mismanagement they have not received adequate return for their star players. Cases in point are Carlos Beltran and Johnny Damon.

Damon was coming off a huge season in 2000 in which he hit .327/.382/.495 with 214 hits, 136 runs, 88 RBI and 46 stolen bases. He received some votes for MVP on a Royals team that went 77-85.

The Royals had to deal him as he had only one year left on his deal. He wasn’t re-signing with K.C. so it was time to get something for him while they still could. But they failed terribly. Not only did they deal Damon but also 2B Mark Ellis. They took part in a 3-way trade and in return all they received was Angel Berroa, A.J. Hinch and Roberto Hernandez.

Hernandez was a 36 year-old closer. Berroa and Hinch have been total busts.

The next opportunity the Royals had to capitalize on was the Carlos Beltran trade. They participated in another 3-way deal and again the results were not favorable.

The Royals received pitcher Mike Wood, 3B Mark Teahen and catcher John Buck. Buck and Wood are major leaguers but not good ones. Teahen finally showed promise this season. But the deal is another bust overall.

The Royals don’t suck because they have a low payroll. They suck because they can’t develop many good major league players. And the ones they do develop they fail to turn into other good players.

Technorati tags: Royals / Yankees / MLB / Carlos Beltran / Johnny Damon / Derek Jeter / World Series

In the AL:

A’s over Twins

Yanks over Tigers

Yanks over A’s

In the NL:

Padres over Cards

Dodgers over Mets

Dodgers over Padres

World Series:

We go old school to 1978, Yanks vs. Dodgers. I really want to pick the Dodgers. But the Yanks get their first trophy since 2000.

Technorati tags: MLB Playoffs

“I have no doubt that whoever represents the National League in the Fall Classic will be taken out quicker than a bowlegged asthmatic kid in a grade school dodgeball match.”

What about the Mets? Only Minnesota, Oakland and San Diego have allowed less runs. Only the White Sox, Yanks, Indians and Phils have scored more. They have a run differential of +134, topped only by the Tigers and Yanks. Their starters don’t look that great, but they can thump, their defense is incredible and their bullpen is awesome. And don’t forget the El Duque factor.

The AL is the dominant league. But I give the Mets a chance, assuming Pedro is healthy.

Technorati tags: World Series / Pennant Races / MLB / Mets

Labels: MLB, Pennant Races, World Series

He wrote about Garner choosing–again–to bunt in the 1st inning. “Phil Garner was playing for one run early, which is a good idea the way his team has been hitting. So Willy Taveras sacrifices Craig Biggio to second. But Lance Berkman strikes out and Morgan Ensberg bounces out.” That’s twice in 2 nights that didn’t work. Van Dyck says it’s the right move. No way.

It’s the exact opposite of what he should be doing. Guys who are in a funk don’t need to be hitting with men in scoring position and 2 outs, down 3 games to zip in the World Series. It’s added pressure. You need a big inning. Big innings release pressure and restore confidence. Why would you be playing for one run in the 1st inning? What happens in game 3 if Garner does not give away an out? Do they score 2, 3 or 4? Does the game go to 14? What about last night? Suppose they get a hit or two and score one or two that way–how are they feeling about themselves then? Much was made of the Sox sweeping with a run differential of only 6 in the 4 games. Well Garner is a huge part of that.