During the same week that it was revealed Ryan Braun failed a drug test and John Rocker admitted using performance enhancing drugs during his career, the player I thought most about was Pedro Martinez. Martinez officially announced his retirement earlier in the month. To be fair, most thought of him as retired after he didn’t pitch in 2010. So now [...]

I always hate hearing the old saying that a certain pitcher is more of a National League vs. American League hurler. It comes across arrogant, as if the National League isn’t Major League Baseball. Yes, there is a clear advantage to pitching against eight hitters versus a nine man lineup that includes the DH. But [...]

Yesterday was Jose Reyes 1,000th career game in the big leagues. We learned that only Ty Cobb has more hits/triples than Reyes after 1,000 games since 1898. You may have heard that Reyes is a free agent after the season, and will probably demand a major payday. Ty Cobb‘s highest salary came in 1927 when, according [...]

When you have 100 plus years of history it’s hard to list every opposing player that tormented your organization. When it comes to the Yankees, a few from the last 15 years come to mind immediately: Edgar Martinez, Ken Griffey Jr., Randy Johnson, Mike Piazza, Cliff Lee, and Roy Halladay. I don’t think anyone would [...]

When we talk about war in the modern game its normally in relation to Wins Above Replacement (WAR). We never consider the impact real war, and those who fought to serve our country, had on our National Pastime. When NFL star Pat Tillman volunteered to fight in Afghanistan it was a headline story. How many [...]

I find it interesting that Philadelphia is now being tabbed as the “mystery team” in the Cliff Lee sweepstakes (good job Joe Delgrippo calling this during our Winter Meetings podcasts). It was just a year ago that Lee was traded from the Phillies after he declined the same extension that Roy Halladay would eventually sign. [...]

Since Roy Halladay no hit the Reds the other night many have been talking about Don Larsen’s perfect game from the 1956 World Series. Ironically, Larsen had no idea he was about to pitch! Watch Bob Wolff discuss the event with Larsen, as well as Yogi Berra.

There was a New York connection to Roy Halladay‘s no hitter tonight. Yes, the obvious is how Halladay became the second pitcher to throw a postseason no hitter since Don Larsen did it for the Yankees in 1956. The other connection was the pursuit of Halladay last summer by both New York teams. Seeing how [...]

I was mocked last week for saying that Mets knuckleballer R.A. Dickey was equally as good, if not better, than Roy Oswalt this year and going forward. Some compare Dickey to Aaron Small, who went 10-0 for the Yankees in 2005. The big difference is that while Dickey has shown statistical evidence that his work [...]

Very rarely does the NBA take center stage on the fourth of July weekend, but the class of 2010 and Lebron James were the big story as fans relaxed, watched the fireworks, and barbequed the last four days. So while everyone is watching this unfold on the internet, what does it take to land a [...]

The weekend series in Philadelphia ended with the Phils retaking first place in the National League East. For all the praise heaped on the Phillies, they aren’t the powerhouse team everyone is making them out to be. Yes, the Phillies are a tough out, and very good, but I heard some say this could be [...]

I will be joined by two NYBD contributors this morning during another edition of the “Weekly Digest” First, Howard Megdal of SNY will talk about the Mets/Phils series and if this turnaround by the Mets can be sustained. Hear my thoughts on why a fan should be cautious, but optimistic, on the team. Jed Weisberger [...]

While Roy Halladay was shutting out the Mets Saturday afternoon, the Yankees were experiencing a bit of bad news 90 miles north. First, Javier Vazquez was pounded for another 5 runs in 3 innings to raise his ERA to 9.78. A few innings later, Curtis Granderson injured his groin and could be lost from the [...]

The Mets and Phillies play their first game of the season tonight in good old Citizen’s Bank Ballpark. I have the Mets pegged for 85 wins this season and believe a Wild Card is their only chance to make the playoffs. However, keep some of these questions in mind: What if the Phillies starting rotation [...]

Bill James is at it again, this time stirring debate on a new way of evaluating pitchers in the Hall of Fame. The Bill James Gold Mine 2010 compares starting pitchers across history. I won’t get into the nuts and bolts of it, you can read it for yourself, but essentially its system that measures [...]