Mike Silva's New York Baseball Digest » Joe Torre

Did the Yankees Front Office Build Kim Jones’ Profile?

Wednesday, January 25th, 2012

Over at Sports Media Watchdog, I broke down the news regarding Kim Jones departure from the YES Network. It appears that Newsday’s Neil Best and Bob Raissman of the Daily News have a difference of opinion about how “expendable” Jones was to the network. I have long admiRed Jones‘ work from the sidelines. In a time where […]

Bobby Valentine, Executive Producer, But What’s Next?

Monday, October 17th, 2011

Big league manager on two continents, ESPN broadcaster, civil servant in Stamford, CT and now executive producer is a term you can use to describe Bobby Valentine. The man that seems to have his hand in just about everything made an appearance on Saturday at the Hamptons Film Festival. His latest venture is a film […]

What Is Your Favorite Old Ballpark? Honoring Torre, Wright’s Crossroad and Friendly Neighborhood

Thursday, September 15th, 2011

Last night the SNY booth was discussing old ballparks and it gave me the idea to reach out to my Twitter and Facebook followers to ask what old ballpark would they have liked to watch a game. Here are the responses I received: Ebbetts Field Polo Grounds Crosley Field Jarry Park Original Yankee Stadium Astrodome […]

Girardi Will Perish If He Doesn’t Embrace the NY Media

Thursday, August 25th, 2011

The firestorm of Saturday’s Joe Girardi/A.J. Burnett/Jack Curry confrontation has been put on the backburner. It will take a lot more than Burnett cursing at a home plate umpire to derail the Yankees title aspirations in 2011. The frustrating part about the aftermath, even 5 days later, is that Girardi doesn’t understand why the incident […]

Martin Yanks MVP, Best Mgr Job in NYY History, Dickey’s Twittergate, Golden Age of Philadelphia Sports

Wednesday, August 24th, 2011

Yesterday, I talked about Curtis Granderson being my favorite for the AL MVP. But if you read Jeff Bradley’s column in the Star Ledger it might be Russell Martin that is one of the most valuable Yankees. The Yankees starting rotation is one of the biggest surprises in baseball. Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia are performing as if they are in their pre-injury prime. Ivan Nova is a […]

Hughes/Nova Swap, Last Look at ’06, Wright’s Future at 3b, DH as a Skill

Saturday, July 23rd, 2011

Phil Hughes was handed a 14-2 lead last night and couldn’t make it out of the fifth. Nothing would frustrate me more as a manager than watching a starter unable to navigate a ballgame that could be done by a pitching machine. His velocity topped out at 90 mph (a couple of miles below last year) […]

Are Yankees Fans Tired of the Nineties?

Wednesday, June 15th, 2011

It’s always hard to take the temperature of an entire fan base. The internet is a great tool to accomplish this; however it’s hardly scientific. Talk radio? The cream of the crop usually doesn’t wait on hold during working hours. These tools are all I have to go by on a daily basis, so for […]

New York Becoming the Place for Athletes to Avoid

Saturday, June 4th, 2011

This city is rotten. At least that is what it appears athletes outside the Big Apple believe. Yesterday, Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Ronde Barber told the NY Post he doesn’t visit his brother Tiki in New York “because of the way it treats it athletes.” Barber went on to tell Post scribe Justin Terranova that […]

MLB Fraternizing and Pat Riley

Monday, May 9th, 2011

This blurb on Sunday by ESPN’s Buster Olney (subscription required) caught my attention: Before every game, position players on both teams will gather on the foul lines and do their last sprints before the first pitch, and often this leads to greetings in the outfield behind second base — hearty handshakes and hugs. If Joe […]

My Perspective on Joe Torre

Saturday, March 19th, 2011

The perception of Joe Torre by Yankees fans is one of the more interesting dynamics we have seen in this town. You have two camps which I will call the “St. Joe Acolytes” who believe Torre walked on water and was integral to the team’s success. The other side is the “Clueless Joe” crowd who […]

Talking CC, Starting Rotation, and Mets Fandom at 9pm

Sunday, September 26th, 2010

Another hour of great baseball conversation tonight with a host of NYBD contributors. We kick off the first half hour talking Yankees baseball. Yes the Yankees are struggling, but the playoffs are inevitable. What should the playoff rotation be? Does A.J. Burnett get a start? What about Ivan Nova on the roster? My CC Sabathia […]

Joe Torre’s Q Rating

Tuesday, September 21st, 2010

I find it interesting how negative a reaction you get from Yankees fans when Joe Torre is brought up. Perhaps the younger fans forget the revolving door of managers the Yankees experienced before Torre took over in 1996. Torre’s 12 years on the bench is the longest tenure of any Yankees manager under George Steinbrenner, […]

Managerial Musical Chairs?

Saturday, September 18th, 2010

NYBD contributor Frank Russo threw me an interesting tidbit from a National League executive. The sudden retirement of Joe Torre may not be a complete surprise, after all the McCourt divorce has destroyed the Dodgers from the inside, but it could lead to multiple changes across the landscape that impacts the local teams. There is […]

Vote: NYBD Strat-O-Matic All Star Managers

Monday, July 5th, 2010

This one is the final vote (all polls close on Wednesday night at midnight) Select who you want to manage the NYBD Strat-O-Matic All Star Team. Don’t think it matters? The simulation will take that managers tendency into consideration for in game X’s and O’s so choose wisely! Yankees Vote: NYBD Strat-O-Matic Yanks All Star […]

From Voting to Managers All Star Game a Joke

Monday, July 5th, 2010

I am not a fan of All Star Game’s so this view is one of bias. Starting with allowing the fans to vote for their favorite, I mean the best, players via a ballot. This has been an age old problem in MLB as commissioner Ford Frick had to strip the fans of their voting […]