Bionic Style Like Steve Austin

Allow me to apologize straightaway for the nightmare fuel; it comes courtesy of Tug Haines, Meech and my friends at The Fightins.

A quick thought before this ship officially sails and the new Blue Jays epoch dawns. I find it quite strange that people are making noise (the bad kind) about the six million dollars the Jays sent along with Halladay.

This money, as it relates to 2010 and beyond, means nothing. Let it go. If it makes the Phillies more willing to part with valued prospects; so be it. It has no connection to unsigned draft picks, between monies given to Johnny Mac or not given to Bobby Abreu or whomever. This money is immaterial.

It isn't standing between the Jays and competing in 2010. It isn't going to impact the next draft or the next deal or the next anything. It is lubricant; grease to help extract three of the Phillies four best prospects.

Don't sweat this cash. Don't hold it up as reason to fault AA. There will be plenty of time for that once Kyle Drabek's arm falls off or Brett Wallace follows Beyonce into 2011 pear-shaped hell.

Update: Hey, look at that! Jeff "The Bavarian Bobsleigher" Blair returns in time to write a much better version of this very same post! Check it out.

Inconvenient Truths and the Shape of Things to Come

Baseball's version of the New Deal is nearly upon us. The good men at Mop Up Duty lay the awful truth on the table, exposing the Jays sudden interest in Ricky Romero as a cynical way to keep from starting the clocks of Messers Cecil and Mills. The money quote from Kman:

In-fact, I’d say that Mills would have made the team if he was LESS impressive. Brad upped his stock so much this spring that the Jays want another year of control.

Ugh. You pitched well, congrats. We're sending you to Vegas for two months to get knocked around in the hot, thin air when you're hung over and haven't slept for three days. PS. Don't get robbed. (h/t Iracane Sir)

The ever-informative Bart Given posed this question with regard to Travis Snider as well. While I agree that maintaining that extra year of control is a good idea, I think that ship has sailed. Why wouldn't they have called him in September, rather than on August 29th? That started his clock, while waiting three days would have spared the Jays those 30 days of service time.

While he seems like a pre-arb Sizemore/Longoria deal candidate, some think this isn't a sure thing. With these extra years of control being so valuable, agents recognize everyone is trying to weasel a below market deal. Sometimes they work out, like Sizemore. Sometimes they end up like Manny Corpas or Troy Tulowitzki, good ideas at the time that beging to look less attractive as the injuries mount. Attractiveness is of course relative; and an $18 million bust is certainly preferable to a $60 million dollar one.

Sad and Unfortunate Update: Best regards, Mr. Brattain. You'll be missed.

...and then, when everybody loses

Crazy Yankee Fan is suing team...

Evidently a long-time New York yankee fan is suing the team over "some players"
reported use of performance enhancing drugs, saying he wants payback for $221 US
dollars in tickets and a public response from his once-cherished and beloved team.

Calling it consumer fraud, Matthew Mitchell, a 30 year old Brooklyn resident who saw
his first live Yankee game in 1984 says, "If I'm going to watch a baseball game, then I
expect the real thing".

The Yankees shockingly have declined to comment.

Mitchell filed his lawsuit in small claims court in Brooklyn last week, about a month after former US Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell released a report linking 85 Major League Baseball players - including 20 current and former Yankees - to illegal use of steroids and other performance-enhancing drugs such as HGH (Human Growth Hormone).

Mitchell wants to be reimbursed for tickets to five games between 2002 and 2007. They include Game 2 of the 2003 World Series, in which pitcher Andy Pettitte led the Yankees to a win.
Coincidently Pettitte recently admitted to have used HGH to "help him rehab" following an injury.

Mitchell claims he's filed this lawsuit to "force" the team to come forward and answer his claims.

NOTE - I hate the New York yankees including their idiot fans such as this Mitchell character.
File your lawsuit against MLB if you're going to file it against anyone you clown.