Drama...Thy Name Is Middle Relief

I don't care if they get thrown out of the game....if Manny's not flat on his ass for admiring yet another home run he's hit off a Yankee pitcher....I'm going flip.

I'm tired of watching him crush ball into the ionosphere, knocking satellites out of the sky....pissing off DirecTV customers as a result....and then twirling around to first base like he's friggin Julie Andrews on the mountain in Sound Of Music.

"The Hills are Alive...With The Sound Of Dingers!!!"

I don't want to hear about how he's harmless and doesn't mean any harm. How he's not malicious. He may not be malicious, but his swing is the moral equivalent of Michael Corleone's look when he's hugging Fredo at his mother's wake. This guy is an assasin at the plate. Arguably the best right-handed hitter of his generation. But I hate all the deference this asshole get because he's not an asshole like Albert Belle or Barry Bonds. If they did that there would be a national outcry about it. And I don't want to hear all this man-child foolishness. He's a 34 year old man with a wife and child. He's knows exactly what he's doing when he's shuffling to first like Steppin Fetchit. And if he doesn't...well someone needs to show him. How's a 97 mph fastball at your ear work for you as a visual aid?

Someone needs to give him an MP3 of Sweet Chin Music. I'm not saying he should get beaned like Clemens did Piazza. But he's far more deserving of it than Mike ever was. All Piazza ever did to Rocket was wear him out whenever he faced him. He never showed him up. Ramirez does that almost everytime he cranks one out. And noone ever backs him off the plate. It has to stop.

I'm willing to give Proctor and Farnsworth a pass this time. The walks drove me nuts more than Manny's homer did. Mo nailed it down with minimal damage so I'm willing to let it go this time. With the way Johnson's been pitching lately, they're probably going to be called into service tonight. Johnson versus Clement has 10-7 written all over it.

That was a huge home run that 6-4-3...I mean, A-Rod hit last night. The difference maker. But he needs to be more consistent in RISP situations. Getting Sheff back will probably relax him a little, but he can't use Gary as a crutch. What happens if he throws another temper tantrum? A-Rod has to find a way and stay consistent at the plate.

Torre was right in pulling out Wright as a precaution. You can't trust these guys to tell you the truth. Particularly when they've been injured in the past and are itching to get back on the field. He looked great last night, but better to pull him out early and get his groin treated and hand it over to the bullpen. Then let him stay in for a couple of frames, he gets bombed and his injury gets worse. It's May not September. No time to throw caution out with the red-headed step children.

More later.....