Rays React to Duncan/Cabrera Suspensions

From PA’s LoHud Blog:

I was able to obtain some reaction from the Rays to the suspensions. They’re not pleased than Duncan received only one more game than Gomes.

“I don’t necessarily think that the actions were equitable to have a suspension be that close,” executive VP Andrew Friedman said, “but it’s also not my place to opine on that. I don’t think Jonny’s intent was to hurt Duncan, and I think that’s important in this. That’s something that if we do go to a hearing, that’s something that we’ll talk about. I definitely do not think his intent was to hurt Duncan and that should be a big part of this.”

Jonny Gomes on Duncan and Cabrera: Those guys are trying to inflict injuries, those guys are trying to inflict pain, and I don’t know how much room there is for that in this game. There’s the old ‘we hit you, you hit us’ type of deal, but it’s different with spikes high and punches being thrown.

These people sound foolish. Jonny Gomes ran in from RF after an ejection had already occurred. He didn’t just run in, he literally threw what could be defined as a modified shoulder block (including elbows) directly into Shelley Duncan’s lower back. There was no intent there to hurt Duncan? On top of that, Gomes is trying to say that Melky’s punches were worse than his reaction? Riiight.

This is one of those incidents that you can tell will linger on, maybe even for the entire season. There’s no turning back on it now as neither side seems willing to concede. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Gomes get plunked in the regular season.

Shelley Duncan Suspended, Along With… Melky Cabrera?

From SI’s Jon Heyman:

Yankees outfielders Shelley Duncan and Melky Cabrera and Rays outfielder Jonny Gomes are expected to receive short suspensions for their roles in the bench-clearing skirmish between the Yankees and Rays on Wednesday in St. Petersburg, but Yankees manager Joe Girardi will be fined but not suspended, SI.com has learned.

Duncan and Cabrera are expected to get a three-game ban and Gomes two. Duncan ignited the brawl by going in with his cleats high on Rays infielder Akinori Iwamura, while Gomes blindsided Duncan with a shove in the fight that ensued. A review of the film seemed to show Cabrera throwing a punch at a Rays player.

The suspensions will begin Opening Day but can be challenged by the players through a grievance hearing if they so choose.

So, Joe Girardi is in the clear and will manage in the season opener. What’s surprising to me is that Duncan received a longer suspension than Jonny Gomes. Why not suspend them both for a 3-game period? Hell, even Melky Cabrera was suspended for 3 days.

How does that make sense? I mean, yes, you can come to the conclusion that Duncan’s play was inherently mean spirited (e.g. “dirty), but by giving Gomes a 2-day pass, you’re essentially justifying his reaction to Duncan’s slide. He gets a shorter suspension because he was only reacting to Duncan’s “dirty play”? How about giving Melky a 2-day suspension? I mean, by throwing a punch, all he did was react to Gomes’ behind the back shoulder block.

Baseball’s discipline game is a strange one indeed.

UPDATE– Here’s a video of the incident from ESPN. If you skip through and watch the clip at 3:11, you can definitely see Melky (#28) running in and throwing an arm in there. The Melk Man Cometh.

On The Rise

From the AP:

NEW YORK — Top ticket price for a box seat at Yankee Stadium. All seats in this area sold as parts of season tickets in recent seasons, and listed price includes discount for season ticket holders.

2008 $250

2007 $150

2006 $110

2005 $ 90

2004 $ 80

2003 $ 72

2002 $ 62

2001 $ 62

2000 $ 55

1999 $ 50

1998 $ 45

1997 $ 35

1996 $ 25

1995 $ 25

1994 $ 17

1993 $ 16

1992 $ 14.50

1991 $ 12.50

1990 $ 12

1989 $ 12

1988 $ 11

1987 $ 10

1986 $ 9.75

1985 $ 9.75

1984 $ 9

1983 $ 9

1982 $ 8.50

1981 $ 7.50

1980 $ 7.50

1979 $ 7

1978 $ 6.50

1977 $ 6

1976 $ 5.50

1975 $ 5

1974 $ 4

1973 $ 4

1972 $ 4

1971 $ 4

1970 $ 4

1969 $ 4

1968 $ 4

1967 $ 3.50

Recently, I bought 6 tickets to the Yankees-Mariners 3-day series in September. For some perspective, the combined total of these 6 tickets which are all located directly on the field (Safeco), was around $310 dollars.

Friday’s Bits: Crystal’s Experience, Pettitte’s Elbow, Duncan’s Slide, Girardi’s Punishment

Here are a couple of bits to start off your weekend:

• First, Tyler Kepner (NY Times) has a great piece on Billy Crystal’s recent Yankee experience. The article talks about Crystal’s AB against Paul Maholm and features commentary from both Crystal and Maholm (as well as some other Yankees) about the highly publicized matchup.
• Secondly, we’ve got some info on Shelley Duncan and his now infamous play against the Rays. Tyler Kepner has another nice article, about the incident, focusing on Duncan’s “old school” mentality, which many cite as the real reason for his “hard slide” into Aki (it wasn’t meant to be a “dirty play”). Mark Hale of the NY Post reports that some of Duncan’s teammates, including Johnny Damon, have tried to explain to Duncan how his “old school” style can be misunderstood. However, Shelley states that he has no intention of changing his style, anytime soon.
• Moving on, Andy Pettitte says he’s feeling fine and that he’ll throw a bullpen session today, in preparation for his Monday start against the Boston Red Sox. Pettitte’s “tendinitis” appears to be an extremely minor injury, so no worries just yet.
• Finally, Mark Feinsand is reporting that Joe Girardi could face a suspension due to the Rays-Yankees fracas that occurred on Wednesday. Additionally, Feinsand states that Shelley Duncan could also face a lengthy suspension (which, at this point, seems inevitable).

Back with more, later.