The High.
Andy un-retired and just about everyone I know – including those I haven’t heard from in months – either called or emailed to share the excitement. It was just so damn good to see Pettitte’s smiling face again, to feel assured that the Yankees will have his broad shoulders to lean on should he be able to recapture his old form, and to add another arm to an already solid rotation.
The Low.
Joba jumped on a trampoline and suddenly the drama-free spring training camp turned turbulent. Everybody in the media weighed in, including some otherwise level-headed writers who decided to inflame the situation further. Joba has been discharged from the hospital and his recovery has begun. Hopefully, the hysteria surrounding his injury will die down too. I thought it was the height of irresponsibility for one of the NY papers to quote some random orthopedist saying that Joba could lose his foot if there’s an infection. Why even go there? Sure, there’s always a worst case scenario, but Harlan Chamberlain has been in a wheelchair for years so I’m guessing his son wouldn’t really want to hear the word “amputation.”
In other news:
- Ibanez actually hit a homer, proving either that he might bounce back after all or that it was a complete fluke.
- Pineda still isn’t firing at 95 mph (or whatever speed people think he should be firing at).
- Kuroda, Hughes, Nova and Garcia are looking good now.
- Mo has thrown nothing but scoreless innings so far.
- A-Rod got plunked in the ribs and Swisher is still ailing, but Jeter, D-Rob, Cano and Nunez are back in business.
Let’s just get the show on the road already.
I was in the car when I heard of Jova and the trampoline but I had not heard Pettitte un-retired. Really!? Wow!
Yeah, I had enough of Spring Training. I want real games! Can you believe that it was hotter in NH than here in LA last week?
-Emma
The Joba thing reminds me of Ken Griffey Jr.’s injury from playing with his kids. This is why I don’t have kids. No kids = injury free. LOL. At least they weren’t banking on Joba for anything. He was out most of last year and the bullpen seemed to be pretty good anyway.
The Pettitte thing was big news around here, Emma. And yes, I can believe this crazy weather because whenever I speak to my mother back east she tells me how warm it is there – while I’m shivering in my six layers of clothes here in California! Brrr. Maybe it’s time to move to Florida.
I don’t remember Griffey getting hurt that way, Jeff, so thanks for the reminder. I guess it’s understandable given that these guys are fathers and not robots. And you’re right – the loss of Joba isn’t that crushing to the team because of how good the pen already is. It just seems like every time we look forward to seeing him realize his potential, something happens to derail it.
I’ve continued to barely pay any attention to the ST games and just want the regular season to start with games that matter. Yes overall this week has been crazy for the news. Joba was released from the hospital with no signs of infection thankfully so hopefully that means he’s on his way to fully recovering. For his career’s sake, I hope he has learned to have better judgement. Pineda doesn’t concern me. From what I’ve read and the little I’ve seen, he seems very focused on working on his change up so throwing the fastball as hard as possible isn’t his focus. Good reasoning by him. He has no need of prematurely overworking his arm just to throw hard in games that don’t matter. Ibanez needs to get released though.
Ibanez seems to be working with Kevin Long a lot, Leo, so if he can get the same results as Granderson did when he came to the Yankees, maybe it’ll work out. Then again, Granderson had a lot more upside to begin with.
Just reading about Joba’s injury was giving me the willies. Ugh! Saw it in the paper over the weekend, and used it as an admonition to my 13-year-old to stay off the neighbor’s trampoline, along the lines of “See what can happen. If a professional athlete can hurt himself like that imagine what could happen to you.” Of course, both my children have already managed to break bones on this trampoline, and believe it or not neither were actually jumping at the time. I really hate those things and wish they could be outlawed!
Your kids broke bones after jumping on a trampoline, Sue? Without jumping on it? (I’m trying to picture this.) I had no idea they were dangerous until the Joba thing. I thought they looked like fun, but I’m learning.
Well, this is what happened – a few years ago (about 6, actually) my son, who had been told he was not allowed to jump on the trampoline, thought it would be a good idea to sit in the middle of it while several older boys were bouncing. One of them slipped and landed on him, breaking his collarbone. Then last fall, daughter, son, and neighbor were on it. Neighbor asks son to zip up the net enclosure. When he didn’t do it right away, daughter says she will, they both race towards it, he bumps into her, she falls out through still unzipped net and breaks arm landing on the ground. Oddly enough, after I left my earlier comment hating on the trampoline, I drove past the neighbor’s house and noticed mangled trampoline; apparently damaged after having been blown over in the wind. :-)
Yikes, Sue. The collarbone story is bad enough, but the broken arm is really fluky. Now I’m never going near a trampoline. (I once put one in a novel. It was “Crystal Clear” and the little girl jumps on it to catch the crook!)
So sorry to learn of Joba’s trials and tribulations. Hope he can mend, and fully. Unreal.
Yeah, but…trampolines can be a mess. Still have bad memories of being in 10th Grade Gym class, bouncing around on one…then class was over, everybody off please…like the dummy I was, I went back on the damn thing for a few more bounces…somebody said “Mr. Menna’s coming! Get off NOW!!” So I tried to jump to the edge, then jump off…caught my foot at the edge, went down on the floor on my right knee. The first of many many knee injuries…culminating in ’08 with a knee replacement…now I get damn near strip-searched at every airport security line ’cause the bells & buzzers go crazy…
Another evil trampoline story, Dave. Seems everybody’s got one. I’m glad I’ve managed to stay off them. They look so benign in the movie “Big,” one of my favorites ever. Oh well.