All Things Bubba

What a season. I hate to say it, but I'm losing hope. For both the Reds and the Yankees. It's only May, but the post-season already seems like a long shot for both teams. Anything can happen, of course, but things are really looking grim. Fans of both teams are giving up, and I can't blame them. For the first time since I started following baseball, I'm officially pushing the panic button.

In both cities, fans are calling for the managers' heads. And maybe the GMs' too. Steinbrenner says that Torre is safe, but Cashman isn't. While Castellini said again yesterday that he wasn't going to make any changes in management.

I'm not sure what I think about firing the manager and/or GM. I think I'm against it. I'm not sure either team's struggles are due to their managers. Would it be worth firing Torre or Narron just to "send a message"? I'm leaning toward "no." It would just add to the overall chaos at this point. IMO, that kind of move has no chance of saving the season of either team, but could put the final nails in the coffin. Particularly in NY. The players reportedly really like Torre, and I suspect firing him would be disruptive enough to end the Yanks' chances of making the post-season, slim as they are. (Hey, Boston could collapse...again. You never know.)

As for firing Cashman...well, I'm not convinced that he's the genius many fans thought he was last year. Yeah, he cut Bubba, so I have a grudge against him. OTOH, he also traded for Bubba in the first place. I wish he'd given Bubba the starting CFer job, instead of overpaying for the creaky Damon. But Torre would probably have started Bernie in CF if Bubba was the CFer, so I can see why Cashman felt the need to sign a big name star.

Anyway, I like some of things Cashman is doing, like not trading the kids and nurturing the farm system. It's probably a good thing to have one person in charge, rather than the constant power struggle that has been the Yankees organization in the past. But when Cashman insisted on taking sole charge of the Yankees, he also took on sole responsibility. The buck stops with him. If the Yanks don't make the post-season this year, it's his head that will roll. And he asked for it.

Anyways...at least the news is brighter from Louisville. The Bats beat the Bisons like a red-headed stepchild.

And Jim Kelch, one of the Bats' radio broadcasters, had this report yesterday:

I talked to Bubba Crosby today. He says he's throwing at 90 feet now and making progress and he feels pretty good about things. So he's getting closer.