Friday, May 13, 2005
The New Curse?
Unlike the Boston Red Sox, something tells me it won't take the Yankees 86 years to exorcise the "Curse of the Giam-bino." But, here's a scary thought: Is the real "curse" around the Yankees actually Don Mattingly?
Around New York, it's sacriligeous to say this, considering how many Yankee fans love "Donnie Baseball," but look it up: Mattingly's first arrived with the big club in 1982, the year after the Bronx Bombers lost to the Dodgers in the World Series. The 1981 Series concluded a period where they made the World Series in four out of six years (going 2-2). They wouldn't make it back to the Fall Classic Series until 1996, the year Mattingly was replaced at first base by Tino Martinez. With Mattingly gone off to retirment and Martinez holding down first, the Yankees won four World Series in five years (and narrowly missed making it five out of six, losing a seven-game heart-stopper in 2001). Martinez left after that year, replaced by $120 million man Jason Giambi.
Mattingly came back to the Yankees as a hitting coach in 2004 -- when the Yankees became the first team in baseball history to lose a seven-game playoff series after winning the first three (to the hated Red Sox to boot)!
Get rid of Jason Giambi by all means -- but maybe Donnie Jinx should hit the road too.
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Around New York, it's sacriligeous to say this, considering how many Yankee fans love "Donnie Baseball," but look it up: Mattingly's first arrived with the big club in 1982, the year after the Bronx Bombers lost to the Dodgers in the World Series. The 1981 Series concluded a period where they made the World Series in four out of six years (going 2-2). They wouldn't make it back to the Fall Classic Series until 1996, the year Mattingly was replaced at first base by Tino Martinez. With Mattingly gone off to retirment and Martinez holding down first, the Yankees won four World Series in five years (and narrowly missed making it five out of six, losing a seven-game heart-stopper in 2001). Martinez left after that year, replaced by $120 million man Jason Giambi.
Mattingly came back to the Yankees as a hitting coach in 2004 -- when the Yankees became the first team in baseball history to lose a seven-game playoff series after winning the first three (to the hated Red Sox to boot)!
Get rid of Jason Giambi by all means -- but maybe Donnie Jinx should hit the road too.
