Friday Afternoon Linkapalooza: 9/14

It's the annual company outing tomorrow, and for the 3rd year out of 4 my company is doing a big tailgate at the Brewers game.  The company outing is always a bit of a minefield.  It's supposed to be fun, supposed to be a time when everybody can put their professional guard down and just enjoy each other's company for a day, but at the same time you know you're being judged by everybody in a position of authority while you're there and you're judging the fuck out of everybody else too.  Tomorrow's event could be especially entertaining because not only are we having beer, the powers that be decided not to limit it.  I know there are plenty of people who I work with who can DRINK, and I am fully prepared to witness some legendary drunken shenanigans.  And when it's all said and done we all get to go in and watch the Brewers and the Mets continue their epic battle for the top spot in the "middle of the pack" group of NL teams.  Riveting.  Now onto the links!

- On Monday, Jimmy Kraft of Yanks Go Yard wondered if we were starting to see the beginning of CC Sabathia's decline.  It's not a comforting question to ask, but one that's fair to after watching him pitch since coming off the DL.

- Lisa Swan of Subway Squawkers weighed in with her opinions on the "Joe vs. Joel" dustup from last weekend.  Hers is decidedly pro-Girardi and anti-Sherman, and I can dig a lot of what she's saying.

- Josh Kramer of IIATMS put Russell Martin's season in the context of salary and concluded that Martin hasn't been worth his $7.5 mil this year.  Hard to argue with that, and even harder to comprehend how screwed up the Yankee catching situation has gotten.

- Chad Jennings of LoHud went position-by-position through the best 2012 MiL performers in the system.  With all the injuries down there, it's easy to forget that there were plenty of players who had really good years.

- On Tuesday, Matt Keegan of Pinstriped Bible examined Nick Swisher's approach and spray charts to try to explain his sudden and extra-slumpy slump.

- William Juliano of The Captain's Blog checked the remaining schedules for the playoff contenders to help set some confidence for the Yankees' chances and ID who they should be watching.

- On Wednesday, Greg Corcoran of Bronx Baseball Daily compiled and unveiled his list of the top 10 greatest rookie seasons in Yankee history.  No surprise that there isn't one season on there since '96.

- George S of Gutty Gritty Yankees discussed the team's failure to implement and execute the hit-and-run as another way to generate runs with their current watered down lineup.

- Brian D. of Yankees Fans Unite offered up his 9/11 tribute by looking back at the Yankees' 2001 postseason run.

- On Thursday, Mike Axisa of RAB broke down how the rotation would line up for the rest of the year if Nova and Pettitte rejoin soon as planned.  Assuming they stay healthy and pitch well, that rotation order inspires a lot more confidence.

- Mike Eder of TYA looked at Andruw Jones' struggles against the fastball recently to see if he's losing bat speed.  That would certainly explain his non-existent second half.

- On Friday, Robert Casey of Bleeding Yankee Blue mused on the legitimacy of Derek Jeter's MVP case.  He won't win it, we know that, but I'm intrigued to see where Jeter ends up finishing on the ballot.

- Last but not least, I'm throwing the link up to my buddy's Tunnels to Towers 5K donation page again.  If you aren't already donating and supporting someone doing the run, here's a great chance to help a great cause.

For this week's jam I'm going with "Unsung" by Helmet.  It's catchy, it's got a great guitar riff, and it doesn't get nearly enough play on the radio out here despite being an awesome 90s song.



Enjoy your weekends, everybody.