Giambi & Ballet Don't Mix

According to today's New York Observer - thanks for the tip Preston - Jason Giambi has turned to ballet to help him overcome his recent proneness to injury.

“I’d get hurt all the time, and I just took it as part of getting older,” Giambi said as he stood near his locker before yesterday's game against Tornoto, a bat leaning against his leg. “But when I worked toward getting back from the plantar fasciitis, I worked with a new doctor, who deals with—well—ballet dancers. And he told me that I had really high arches. I got these inserts—“he gestured toward prescription orthotics in his cleats “and suddenly it didn’t hurt to run anymore.”

Giambi suffered knee and back pain so quickly, along with “dead legs” when running in the past that it was never part of his offseason regimen. But this winter, he said, he ran every day. Giambi found a track near his Las Vegas home, and learned how to run without pain for the first time, 60 yards at a time.

On Giambi's offense:

“Well, for one thing, I hope my doubles go back up,” said Giambi, who had as many as 47 doubles in his prime, but just 8 last year. “A lot of singles last year should be doubles this year. And there should be more first-to-third, more second-to-home.”

Though he’s yet to collect a hit in the season’s first three games, Giambi hit .413 this spring. Giambi believes that if his legs hold up, the hitting will take care of itself.

“I still have the batting eye, the power,” Giambi said. “I’m hoping for a big year.”

Just to point out something to The Big G, a good eye does not produce bat-speed.

Yankees Eek Out Series Win

On a cold night, Yankee fans found warmth in the performance of Philip J. Hughes, the 21 year-old righthander who the Bronx faithful refused to part with - even if it meant a Johan Santana return. No one can know what type of season the young arm will have, but if Thursday night was a preview, the feature presentation will be mighty good. Over six innings, Hughes allowed two runs on four hits, walked one, struck out four and only threw 87 pitches [58 for strikes].

Wednesday night's game was rather simple. AJ Burnett came, threw gas, spiked some curveballs and conquered the highly-praised Yankees offense. The lone blemish came in the form of a rocket launched off the bat of Alex Rodriguez. Though New York was able to put the tying run at the plate in the bottom of the ninth, the team looked flat throughout and never seemed a serious threat to recapture the lead.

Last night, Dustin McGowan mimicked Burnett and frustrated the Yankees lineup for the majority of his six inning effort. As Hughes worked quickly and economically - sideswiped by a weak David Eckstein bloop double and infield single with two outs - it appeared the Yankees bats would again go quiet into that good night. However, the offense rallied with help from McGowan's wildness and ultimately took the lead for good thanks to some poor fielding and a well-placed bloop of their own - thanks to Bobby Abreu.

In all honesty, the Yankees did not deserve to win their opening series, and, had the ball bounced differently on a few occasions, the Bombers could have begun their season like the Detroit Tigers at 0-3. However, they were able to gut out two victories from the jaws of defeat and can now feast their eyes on tomorrow's starter [Andy Sonnanstine] and his robust ERA.

Top Performer:
Phil Hughes -
After already surrendering one run thanks to a patented Eckstein bloop double, Hughes was noticeably on the ropes in the fourth inning. When Alex Rios attempted to swipe second base only to advance to third on Robinson Cano's poor attempt to receive a perfect strike from Jose Molina, the Blue Jays were primed to notch another run. With only one out, Hughes was able to bare down and strike out both Vernon Wells and Frank Thomas to end the threat. The impressive called strike three was not taken so happily by Thomas, whose blow up at homeplate resulted in an early shower for the Big Hurt.

Second Place:
The Bullpen -
Billy Traber came in to face one batter: Lyle Overbay. The lefty specialist did his job by striking out the first baseman and handed the ball to Brian Bruney, who shockingly did not walk a batter or allow a baserunner before closing the seventh inning. Joba Chamberlain came in to pitch the eighth inning, needing 11 pitches [8 for strikes] to retire the side. Mariano Rivera needed 13 pitches to close up shop - but had to record the last out with the tying run standing 90 feet from home.

Honorable mention: Melky Cabrera who continues his habit of finding himself in the middle of or at the start of a crucial rally. The Melkman did it again last night, leading off the sixth inning with a key single.

Last Place:
Derek Jeter -
When did Jeter become such a rally-killer? It's the third game of the season and everyone with a half a brain realizes the Captain will redeem himself ten-fold for his GIDP-itis, but Yankees pitchers hope it comes sooner than later. Cano's poor fielding during the Rios stolen base and an 0-for at the plate were also none too pretty.

Can't Blame This On A-Rod

Girl walks into Fenway Park. Girl sits down to watch the Red Sox. Girl gets attacked by territorial hawk dwelling at the stadium.

Her name? Alexa Rodriguez...

Alexa's friends, Maria Rivera and Justine Chamberlain, were taken to a safehouse. The hawk, who travels under the alias "Boras," was last seen brainwashing Nancy Drew in rightfield, and is still at large in the Greater Boston area.

Posada Shelved Again

Jorge Posada remains day-to-day with a stiff shoulder, and will miss tonight's matchup against Dustin McGowan and the Blue Jays, with Jose Molina filling in as backstop. According to Joe Girardi, Posada will DH tomorrow against Tampa Bay, though that contest is already in doubt because of another heavy rainstorm working its way into the area. Hideki Matsui will man leftfield - in preparation for Melky Cabrera's suspension - and Johnny Damon will DH.

The lineup:

Damon DH,
Jeter SS,
Abreu RF,
Rodriguez 3B,
Giambi 1B,
Cano 2B,
Matsui LF,
Molina C,
Cabrera CF,

Hughes P

The Yankees are 0 for 10 with runners in scoring position so far this year. So, there's that.

Jeter Has A Statue In His Future

From Newsday comes the story of a young man from Kalamazoo, Michigan who wanted to grow up and become the starting shortstop for the New York Yankees. Sure enough, the kid made his dream a reality and now has several others coming true as his playing career winds down.

According to the piece, there is only one question to answer pending Derek Jeter's retirement, much like paper or plastic:

At this stage of his career, which is to say his prime, there is only one question left about Derek Jeter: monument or plaque?

Jeter couldn't escape history's tap on the shoulder. He was asked about the impending move on Monday, before the originally scheduled Opening Day was rained out. He had agreed to appear at a rare pregame news conference because what he thinks matters. At 33, he is too young to be an elder statesman, but he has been around long enough to be the face and heart and soul of the most famous team on Earth.

He has simply done too much unforgettable stuff to deny him getting his career etched in granite. The home run that broke the Mets' back, the backhanded relay flip that doomed the Athletics, the face-busting rush into the seats for that foul ball against the Red Sox.

There also is the Jeter that most people don't see. At 3:40 yesterday afternoon, before the Yankees' 3-2 win over the Blue Jays, neophyte first baseman Shelley Duncan was taking ground balls and practicing throws to second. Only one other infielder was out there, serving as a target, encourager, teacher. It was Jeter. He even helped pick up the practice baseballs and put them in the bag.

"It wasn't the first time," Duncan said. "Aside from Derek being made into some sort of character, when you're actually working with him, he's amazing. He's an amazing teammate."

If only he could get to groundballs up the middle, he would be completely infallible.

Thomas Has No Prob With Joba

Yesterday, the Mike & The Mad Dog sports radio talk show endlessly mulled over what they deemed to be a controversial fistpump following Joba Chamberlain's strikeout of Frank Thomas to end the eighth inning on Tuesday night. The two radio icons labeled the gesture as "showing up" the competition and Russo said 'you shouldn't do that to Frank Thomas.'

Well after all the commotion, the Big Hurt told the Daily News he had no problem with Chamberlain's enthusiasm that night. One reason for Thomas' graciousness is the fact that Joba's father, Harlan Chamberlain, was on the field during last night's pregame warmups. The elder Chamberlain sought out Thomas to tell the aging slugger his son had a large poster of Thomas lining his bedroom wall throughout his childhood:

There was a time earlier in his career when Frank Thomas would've taken umbrage at Joba Chamberlain whirling around and pumping his fist after striking out the future Hall of Famer to end the eighth inning of the Yankees' 3-2 victory on Opening Night.

But the Big Hurt wasn't even a little miffed about Joba's big back-page celebration on Tuesday.

"Hey, you strike me out at 98 (mph), you can do what you want," Thomas told the Daily News before Wednesday night's game at the Stadium. "There's a lot of young guys like that nowadays. The game has changed so much.

"That wasn't really accepted when I came through, but the game has changed. These guys are all doing that. I remember a couple of years ago, the whole Detroit staff was out there fist-pumping, so I'm used to it by now. Years ago, I would've taken offense to it, but I'm used to it now.

"He was pumped up, did a good job, and he struck me out in a big situation. So go ahead."

And here was Vernon Wells on Chamberlain:

"He's not doing it to show anybody up, he's doing it because he's excited about the moment. It's not easy for essentially a first-year kid to come in and be a setup man to the best closer in the game (Mariano Rivera).

"But that's his job and he's doing it so far."

I could not agree more with Wells. Staring in at an opposing batter after striking him out - ahem, any pitcher come to mind - is showing up the competition. Fistpumping your way into the dugout is an expression of enthusiasm. Sure he should tone it down a bit, but it's not like Chamberlain does it after every appearance.

If You Missed It On HBO

Lenny's Still Hittin'. In case you missed his appearance on Real Sports, the article takes readers a bit further into Lenny Dykstra's newfound talent and fortune, as "Nails" is now hammering out investment deals instead of stolen bases.

Dykstra says he monitors 30 stocks, then narrows it down to three based on the stock being close to the bottom, the company being good and the number of shares involved. He attributes his stock success, meanwhile, to two things - work ethic and self-control.

"Discipline," he says. "Play by the rules."

In Dykstra's mind, "growing up" is the difference between what he was as a player and what he is now. But in reality, he's still a combination of youth and adult. He has a kid's grin, which he flashed when he was injesting multiple fries at a time.

But he also wore a suit, had Elton John's "Your Song" as one of his cell phone ring-tones and said, "I'm always an entrepreneur." He was constantly on his MacBook laptop computer during his Post sit-downs, and he revealed that the laptop is one of 10 - yep, 10 - computers that he owns.

He also has four cell phones.

The Dykstra interview on HBO Sports revealed three things: the former pesky ballplayer is now an entrepreneur; he definitely did steroids and lied about it to HBO; and he is unusually frail, despondent and unable to speak clearly for a 45 year-old. Gordon Gecko he is not.

* Keep Keepsakes @ Stadium

A press release via LoHud tells the story of two enthusiastic Yankee fans who tried to bring home some keepsakes from the final home opener during Yankee Stadium's final season:

The New York Yankees announced today that two fans were arrested during Tuesday’s Opening Day game vs. the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium for attempting to steal Stadium bunting and causing damage to the bunting and façade.

Both fans were charged with attempted larceny and criminal mischief. Each charge is punishable by up to one year imprisonment and/or fines. They were detained and booked by the New York City Police Department and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. The Yankees have also revoked their season ticket accounts.

And the harshest cut of all, waving bye-bye to those season tickets.

Sour Grapes From Toronto Columnist

Richard Griffin, a biased frustrated reporter from the Toronto Star voiced his displeasure over the appeal situation which allowed Melky Cabrera to play and star in last night's game. I find it hard to believe the Blue Jays players and coaching staff were in the locker room throwing up their arms before the game, incensed that a juggernaut such as the Melk Man would be permitted to play through his suspension:

Cabrera’s suspension stemmed from a fighting incident on March 12 vs. the Rays at spring training. That’s 21 days ago. Appeals are heard in the offices of Major League Baseball in New York. We are in New York. The hearing on the appeal should have been held Monday, or at least yesterday morning. It’s ridiculous.

Anyway, the way major league rules work, Cabrera had the right to appeal and, thus, was allowed to play in the opener. He will probably wait for this weekend against the Rays or when the Yanks travel to Kansas City and drop the appeal, immediately serving his three days against an inferior opponent. Baseball justice?

Had it been Alex Rodriguez shirking a suspension for sucker punching an ump or Derek Jeter skipping a penalty stemming from a corked bat incident, then it would be believable. As it stands, the writer sounds like he's chomping down on some serious sour grapes.

Outside Box Gets Bowa Ejected

I saw this incident live last night and no way did Larry Bowa deserve to be ejected from the game. Bowa was merely standing five or so feets outside the coaches third base box when the nearby ump, Ed Montague, decided to stop the game and tell him to get back into the box.

At first Bowa calmly explained he couldn't see the outfield well enough - with men on first and second - to gauge whether or not to send runners on anything in the gaps. Then, once Bowa felt he was getting undressed, the veins began popping:

“We got a memo and an edict, and they’re adamant about the box and stuff,’’ [Montague] said. “Don’t go up in front of the box toward home plate, and don’t get any closer to the foul lines. I told Bowa in the bottom of the fifth, because he got up close. And that’s what caught my eye. And I just told him, ‘Bo, you got the memo, we got the memo, and you’ve got to stay back.’ I went over and told Joe in-between innings what I told Bo. And Bo just said, ‘I’m going to do it the way I’ve always been doing it.’

“I said, ‘Bo, if you go up, I’m going to have to run you.’ And he said, ‘Do what you’ve got to do, and it is what it is.’ When he got up in front of it again, I said, ‘Bo, I told you once, now get back in the box.’ He argued it, and finally I said, ‘You’re gone.’ So I gave him every chance in the book and he defied it.’’

"I did it all spring, nobody said a word,'' [Bowa] said. "I did it yesterday, nobody said a word. It's impossible to coach third and stay in the box with a runner at second.''

It was even more uncomfortable once Joe Torre came out to calm his third base guru. Torre's bad knees had him helplessly tussling with the hotheaded Bowa to no avail. Any moment, it seemed, Torre's knees would buckle and yet another replacement surgery waited on the horizon.

McNamee EBays Clemens Items

Brian McNamee is selling all of his Roger Clemens related paraphernalia. No word on how much the deca-durabolin vials and blood-encrusted needles fetched:

With legal bills mounting, lawsuits pending and his professional future uncertain, Brian McNamee, former trainer to the stars, is very clear on at least one aspect of his life:

He wants no part of any gifts from a man who calls him a liar.

McNamee has 50 to 60 signed pieces of memorabilia - photos, baseballs, hats and jerseys - given to him by Roger Clemens, his former client. Clemens has spent the last three months assailing his character - basically since McNamee stated in the Mitchell Report that he injected Clemens with performance-enhancing drugs. Six weeks after his nationally televised congressional showdown with Clemens, McNamee has turned over the entire collection to Phil Castinetti, owner of Sportsworld in Saugus, Mass., one of the biggest sports-memorabilia dealers in New England.

McNamee is also selling other items signed by Jose Canseco, Andy Pettitte and Jason Grimsley.

“He was going to throw this stuff away,” said Castinetti, who has already begun listing the items on eBay and believes the pieces could generate up to $75,000 in all. “Because of the hard feelings between him and Clemens, he wanted nothing to do with it.”

Melky, Shelley's Appeals Update

From Ed Price of the Star Ledger:

Melky Cabrera's appeal of his three-game suspension will be heard Monday, along with Shelley Duncan.

Both players were suspended for their parts in an April 12 altercation with the Tampa Bay Rays. It started when Shelley Duncan spiked second baseman Akinori Iwamura with a slide, and Cabrera is alleged to have thrown a punch as the benches emptied.

Tampa Bay's Jonny Gomes was suspended two games, and his appeal is set for Friday.

Fans will pray for an eighth inning in which Joba Chamberlain takes the mound against Gomes. He could ask Kevin Youkilis for advice.

The Ledger On Last Night

The only Yankee booed during last night's pregame introduction was LaTroy Hawkins:

Apparently because [Hawkins] had the audacity to wear No. 21 -- which had not been given out since Paul O'Neill retired.

Really?

First, Paul O'Neill's number can still be retired. Eight players -- EIGHT -- wore No. 3 for the Yankees after Babe Ruth.

Second, while Paul O'Neill is inextricably linked to the 1996-2000 dynasty, is he really an all-time great? You have to figure Nos. 2 (Jeter), 6 (Torre), 13 (A-Rod) and 20 (will be retired), and Mariano Rivera's No. 42 will never be worn again because of him and Jackie Robinson.

I agree with Mr. Price on this one. O'Neill was the heart and soul of the 1990's dynasty, but is not among the Yankee greats who deserve to see their number retired. I do believe it is only respectful to let the number sit in mothballs for a few more years before a rent-a-reliever like Hawkins is able to wear #21. Had it been Jose Tabata or Action Jackson, it would have been much easier for the Yankees faithful to handle.

Also, I didn't see it myself, but I had heard there were some jeers when Andy Pettitte was announced - guess not all Mets fans can fly down to Florida to see Pedro.

The Star Ledger further reported that Hank Steinbrenner's favorite portion of the game was "the Big Two," which refers to Joba Chamberlain and Mariano Rivera.

Wang, Joba, Mo and Head Home

Opening Night . . .

First and foremost, Tuesday's opening night was a tremendous baseball game. The fact that the Yankees won the game is secondary. There's no doubt who the player of the game was, as Melky Cabrera made two solid catches [one good, one great] along with a 315 foot homerun which landed approximately six inches over the 314 foot sign.

In second place would be Chien Ming-Wang who battled through seven innings, allowing two runs on six hits and two walks. He was nowhere near his sharpest and yet when the box-score is printed tomorrow morning it shows he fought, got the ball to Joba Chamberlain and Mariano Rivera and earned himself the win.

It was slightly strange yet interesting to see Joe Girardi jog out to the mound in the seventh inning to chat with Wang [before the pitcher induced a crucial groundout to keep the score tied at 2]. Rivera handed Girardi the ball from the final out, and during his postgame interview the new skipper was noticeably emotional before composing himself.

So as to avoid wasting your time, here are some aspects which stood out during tonight's ballgame:

• Jason Giambi looked cat-like in the field, snatching a screaming line drive with the infield in, and avoiding a tag on an important baserunning play in the seventh.

• Bobby Abreu smoked two balls into rightfield and obviously is planning to start a bit hotter than his dreary 2007 opening.

• Alex Rodriguez - 2 for 3 on the night - picked up where he left off gobbling up his first RBI opportunity in the first inning with an opposite field double.

• Joba Chamberlain is not yet in midseason form - as many last remember him in the Bronx - but he was still able to strike out two and post a zero before passing the baton to Mariano Rivera. Mo, did look like he was pitching in June, pitching a perfect inning and striking out one to earn the first save of 2008. Last season Mariano earned his first save of the season on April 28.

• Roy Halladay caught the short end of the stick after dominating the Yankees for the majority of the game. The "Doc" absolutely dominated through the first five innings, throwing less than 10 pitches per inning through those five frames.
  
  He was throwing his two-seam and four-seam fastballs on either side of the plate. His cutter or slider and spike curveball were also working. That meant Yankees hitters were digging in and had no clue what Halladay would throw next. He is truly a rare breed, the #1 starter in Major League Baseball. Unfortunately, his x-rated reaction to Leche's homerun is nowhere near top-notch.
  

LA Fan Knocks Out BoSox Fan

From Red Sox Monster comes the delightful story of a 115,000 capacity crowd at the LA Coliseum whose fun was interrupted when Red Sox fans and Dodger fans began brawling.

Appears it's a more difficult task for Sox fans to fight when they don't have a four-on-one advantage against a Yankee fan [and Boston resident] spending the night out with his girlfriend:

NoMaas Gets It

NoMaas offers the same message I've been hocking since the Yankees pulled Phil Hughes off the table of any potential Johan Santana deal. To all of the sports writers and ESPN analysts who - due to a young back of their rotation - predict this is the year the Yankees miss the playoffs:

The Yankees made the playoffs in 2007 with the following assortment of fecal matter plopped into the starting rotation:

Pitcher - Games started
Matt DeSalvo - 6
Kei Igawa - 12
Chase Wright - 2
Darrell Rasner - 6
Jeff Karstens - 3
Tyler Clippard - 6 (We've got nothing but love for you, Clip.)

Replace those starters with Phil Hughes, Ian Kennedy, and eventually (hopefully) Joba Chamberlain. We'd say the Yanks' rotation is in much better shape than last season's playoff team.

Amen my friend.

Late Night With Dave & Jose

• Dan Graziano offers his thoughts on Jose Canseco following his appearance on David Letterman last night.

• Tyler Kepner rode shotgun with Joe Girardi yesterday, discussing the manager's distaste for packing, traveling and his fondness for Yogi.

• Kevin Kernan echoes what I said yesterday about the MLB schedule makers.

• Melky Cabrera is honored to man centerfield on Opening Day.

• Why Hank Steinbrenner's glad Opening Day was posponed.

• Today's exhibition between the Trenton Thunder and Scranton Yankees is also in doubt due to rain. Phil Coke goes for Trenton and faces Jeff Marquez of SWB.

• Kat O'Brien offers her 2008 predictions and no one's listening.

Good Thing They Didn't Sign This Guy

The fall of Barry Zito is perhaps as perplexing a baseball scenario as I've come across. He was the epitome of an innings-eater in the mold of an Andy Pettitte in that he allowed far too many baserunners yet frequently beguiled his way out of trouble.

Since his first full season in the majors, Zito was the model of health and stability, throwing at least 200 innings all six years in Oakland, missing bats, winning a Cy Young and posting healthy ERA's. With only 2004 serving as a disappointment, Zito was making his way into the National League and an expected bounce in his performance would all but validate the $126 million San Francisco had given him.

However, 2007 was not nearly as kind to Zito as most everyone in baseball expected. His fastball had dropped into the low-80s and he posted the poorest k/9 in his career. A mystifying feat considering the weaker lineups he encountered in the NL. Which begs the question, can a 29 year-old really regress so rapidly and so drastically?

The Yankees [as well as a host of other potential suitors] are now rejoicing they did not throw $100+ million at the previously dominant lefty.

From the article:

Zito went after the hitters. He didn’t mess around. He threw strikes.

And the Dodgers ate them up, every juicy morsel.

That shouldn’t have been surprising, given Zito’s horrendous spring training. In fact, every detail of the Giants’ 5-0 loss seemed to fulfill the scorched-earth expectations of this club.
...
How does a 29-year-old decline as much as Zito has? Even at his absolute worst during seven years in Oakland, he promised to be a steady 14-game winner. At his best, he offered stunning mastery, the ability to stare down the brilliant Johan Santana in a playoff game.
...
The number of hits wasn’t as disturbing as the authority behind them. The Dodgers made great contact, getting nothing on the cheap. The radar gun offered another bad verdict. For the most part, Zito didn’t throw harder than 84 mph all day. He knows his fastball has lost velocity, and doesn’t quite understand why.

“Right now, it’s 84-85 at the high end, which obviously is frustrating for me,” he said. “You’ve got a look at, usually when things like this happen, it’s either an injury, which it is not, or it’s something mechanical. So, you know, I’m always learning and trying to get better, and those things and obviously looking at old tapes and things like that and want to get that 88-89 back, and I’m sure it’s just a small tweak away.”

Strange. It will be an interesting story to watch, especially with the poor start to Zito's 2008. However, the southpaw still has the dynamite 12-to-6 curve and should he ever rediscover his high 80's heater, he could quickly regain his status as a frontline starter.

Brian Sabean and Company are hoping praying they aren't the April Fools again this year.

REJECTED: Yankees To Joba

Joba Chamberlain was hoping to seal a deal which would put him on 1050 ESPN radio with Michael Kay on a weekly basis. Unfortunately for the Nebraska native, Brian Cashman and the Yankees organization called off the gabfest, citing a longstanding policy.

Joba Chamberlain found that out when he came within a midge’s whisker of signing up for a weekly spot on Michael Kay’s ESPN 1050 show, which recently added controversy-in-waiting Billy Wagner.

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman nixed the idea. Turns out such gigs are a Yankees no-no. “It’s a policy I’ve had in place for a long time now,” he said before yesterday’s mist-out. “We should speak with one voice, whether it is the manager or general manager. They can speak postgame or pregame or in their normal interview process but not have a regular schedule.”

(Asked about being denied a place on Kay’s show, Chamberlain said he was not aware of any such deal. Strange. Maybe his agent worked on it without telling him.)

Cashman said the Yankees also prohibit players from writing diaries or columns for newspapers come playoff time. “We’ve had that shut down for years now,” he said. “These guys are paid to play baseball; they’re not paid to be columnists or talk show hosts. They can do that when their playing careers are over.”

This is probably a good idea. Attempting to answer Kay's questions on a weekly basis may cause brain bubbles.

Jeter: It Won't Be The Same

From the Bergen Record comes Derek Jeter's comments on the New Yankee Stadium gradually making its way toward completion. Seems the players, like the fans, are essentially split on the idea of tearing down national monument in the hopes of replicating it across the street:

Building a new home for Jeter, A-Rod, Rivera and Posada is like sculpting a new Mount Rushmore for Washington, Jefferson, Roosevelt and Lincoln.

“Just a hundred yards away?” Derek Jeter said. “That’s not too far for the ghosts to go.”

Later, after the hope of morning surrendered to the grim forecast for the afternoon and a postponed debut for Joe Girardi, the shortstop sounded a bit less enthusiastic about leaving the field of his childhood dreams.

“It’s not going to be the same,” Jeter said. “It’s a different stadium, so it’s impossible to have the same thing. It could have the same feel. It could have the same look. But it just won’t be the same.

“Regardless of how you try to duplicate something, it’s still a duplicate.”

..."I was saying I was building a house in Florida,” Jeter said, “and you’ve got the plans and you’ve got the model, but you still can’t picture yourself in it. ... You look over there and see a new Stadium, but I just can’t picture myself in it.”

It will be sad when children of the future ask, is there where Babe Ruth played, and we all have to reply: Well, sort of... they played next door where that Starbucks now sells Mocha Lattes.