Yankees and Red Sox - tied for last place in AL East at the quarter pole

[Judge Jude]

21-21 apiece, so not exactly out of it, lol

but still

[revo]

with their payrolls, I don't want to say both need a miracle, but they are kinda in the same boat -- lots of old men, lots of injuries, lots of holes.

For the Yanks -- their staff is atrocious. CC is having a marginal year, Kuroda hasn't translated well, Hughes stinks, and who knows about Andy. Despite solid K/BB numbers, they're all giving up HRs like they're going out of style. And obviously losing Mo AND Robertson is like ripping off a leg. Plus, A-Rod is in a huge decline, without Gardner they have NO speed, their catchers stink & Tex is also in a major decline. Jeter hitting like he's been is a minor miracle, and Grandy is doing well but no one's one base. If George were still around, heads would've rolled already.

For the Sox -- just all over crap. The rotation stinks, the pen stinks, AGonz hasn't got it going yet, and Sweeney & Byrd are providing pure emptiness.


Will it last? Who knows. But the other three teams have caught up, that's for sure.

[Don Quixote]

Will it last? Who knows. But the other three teams have caught up, that's for sure.

Isn't life just a b***h?

BTW, I wouldn't say that the Rays have just caught up. It seems to me that they've done alright the last four years. Toronto has been better than expected, and the big surprise is the Orioles (well, at least so far).

[JudeBaldo]

Isn't life just a b***h?

BTW, I wouldn't say that the Rays have just caught up. It seems to me that they've done alright the last four years. Toronto has been better than expected, and the big surprise is the Orioles (well, at least so far).

I think that's actually an understatement.


Revo, I'm with you though I think the Sox still have a potent offense. Just look at Buchholz's win total. He has no business having that many wins with the way he's been pitching. I think Aceves has improved dramatically and may be on his way to dominant.

I do think the Orioles will fade eventually given how they use their bullpen. I think the Yankees bats will eventually come around and while Toronto can mash, their pitching can be schizophrenic.

I think the Rays are still the most complete team but damn that AL East is friggin' brutal.

[onejayhawk]

[grumble]There was a thread for this kind of thing. [/grumble]

Imagine where the Yankees would be if Jeter were not super human. The Sox have some young talent to like, but NYY have been getting old for a while.

J

[revo]

Isn't life just a b***h?

BTW, I wouldn't say that the Rays have just caught up. It seems to me that they've done alright the last four years. Toronto has been better than expected, and the big surprise is the Orioles (well, at least so far).

Right, TB has become more than a one-year wonder. They're not a powerhouse yet, but they have enough talent to keep them as an AL East contender for years to come.

As far as BAL/TOR, who knows? They could fall off the tracks after the break, they could stink next year. But with the Yanks' fiscal sanity and the Sox with a new GM who doesn't want to buy titles, any of these teams could be in it this year.

[cavebird]

The Red Sox's problems are pretty obvious. While they have a huge payroll ($175 M or so), half of it is on the DL. Until Youkilis is activated today, this is the carnage:

Crawford $19.4 M
Lackey $15.25 M
Youkilis $12 M
Dice-K $10 M
Ellsbury $8.05 M
Bobby Jenks $6 M (yeah, he's still under contract, lol)
Bailey $3.9 M
Ross $3 M

That's $73.6 M in annual salary on the DL.

[Moonlight J]

and if the Rays weren't all hurt, they could take advantage of that

[Moonlight J]

The Red Sox's problems are pretty obvious. While they have a huge payroll ($175 M or so), half of it is on the DL. Until Youkilis is activated today, this is the carnage:

Crawford $19.4 M
Lackey $15.25 M
Youkilis $12 M
Dice-K $10 M
Ellsbury $8.05 M
Bobby Jenks $6 M (yeah, he's still under contract, lol)
Bailey $3.9 M
Ross $3 M

That's $73.6 M in annual salary on the DL.

Lackey -- no loss
Dice K -- no loss, Doubront is better
Bobby Jenks -- see above

Salary is nothing look at talent

Rays payroll: $63.6 M

players out:

Longoria: $4.5M
Farnsworth: $3.3M
Niemann: $2.75M
Keppinger: $1.53M
Fuld: $489K
Jennings: $486K
Lobaton: $482K
Chirinos: $481K

That's 23% of the team's salary including the cleanup hitter, the leadoff hitter, the presumptive closer, the 4th outfielder, second and third catcher, and top reserve infielder & why Pena has to keep playing 1B because there is no reserve

[Fresno Bob]

[grumble]There was a thread for this kind of thing. [/grumble]

Imagine where the Yankees would be if Jeter were not super human. The Sox have some young talent to like, but NYY have been getting old for a while.

J

Thread, hell, there's 4 channels on my TV that can't stop talking about these two teams....

[heyelander]

with their payrolls, I don't want to say both need a miracle, but they are kinda in the same boat -- lots of old men, lots of injuries, lots of holes.

You can throw the phillies in this group as well on pretty much all accounts.