Big Bag Of Bits: Marte, Nady, BoSox, Joba

Well, with a big trade and a big win, what do you expect?

Here we go (even if it’s 4:30 AM).

• With Yankee fans still swooning over the Nady-Marte trade (I’m still blushing), people forgot that Nady is an outfielder and have automatically labeled him as this years’ DH. Well, basically it seems as though Nady will play LF because Johnny Damon is still rehabbing a troublesome shoulder. With that in mind, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Nady stick out there in LF. Nobody wants to see Johnny Damon’s lollipop throws from left and Nady is a fine replacement (for now).
• The Nady-Marte trade was a 6-player deal. The Yankees lost Ross Ohlendorf, Phil Coke, Jose Tabata (the blue chipper), and George Kontos. To me, it’s a great deal. Tabata was the most valuable player (from the NY side), but you can’t overlook his attitude and development issues. Either way, he wouldn’t have been playing for NY until 2011, so this is a fine deal (and Austin Jackson has moved ahead of him on the depth chart). Ask yourself this, are you really going to miss Ross Ohlendorf or Phil Coke? Exactly, move on. If you don’t believe it’s a good deal, read Joel Sherman’s take.
• Yesterday’s win against the Red Sox has a lot of meaning for Yankee fans and for the ball club itself. As Hank Steinbrenner once noted, the team needed its own Josh Beckett. Well, as ironic as it is, the Yankees installed their own Beckettesque pitcher in the rotation with Joba Chamberlain and last night, Joba outdueled the same pitcher Hank hoped that he would be. You couldn’t ask for a better performance from the young stud (yes, I called Joba a stud, sue my manhood why don’t you), although I’d like to see him throw his fastball a bit more.
• Last but certainly not least, it looks like the Red Sox are wondering why Joba can’t keep the ball down when facing Kevin Youkilis. To be honest, I think the Sox just need to shut the hell up, even if that’s unprofessional of me (I don’t have that much professionalism anyway, I mean I am only a blogger). How many times have we seen Derek Jeter get checked inside? Granted, he’s not headhunted every times he steps out there, but people brush him back. What’s wrong with pitching inside? It’s what Pedro Martinez did for years. I thought Sox fans would like that stuff (guess not). Either way, expect some retaliation tomorrow (I’m picking CANO), even if Wakefield is pitching (knuckleballs to the DOME?). Hell, Terry Francona seems pissed, so why not.

To close, I offer these words from ex-Yankee, Ross Ohlendorf:

“I definitely liked being in New York, and I was hoping to be there for the last game at the Stadium,” Ohlendorf said in a telephone interview from Scranton. “But I’m sure it will be a good opportunity. I feel like I’ve definitely gotten better since I’ve been down here.”

I’ll actually miss Ohlendorf. He was solid (forget the numbers) and did what was necessary for us to have a chance. He pitched whenever Girardi asked him to and did it with no set role. He’s a guy who can really define himself in the NL as a back-end starting pitcher (maybe even better than that?) and I hope he has a great career. I’ll see you later, I need to go and grab a Kleenex.