Friday Afternoon Linkapalooza: 9/21

It's the second straight weekend that I've got major activities planned, people, so you're looking at another light weekend of coverage on AB4AR.  A good friend of mine is getting married in a couple weeks, so it's another bachelor party for me (bummer).  We're doing it in Chicago, and yes I will be wearing pretty much all Yankee stuff per usual, and I'm planning on getting at least as hammered as I was at the bachelor party back in April.  This will be the second straight bachelor party where the overwhelming majority of the wedding party will not be in attendance, including the best man.  Maybe it's just my own pathetic, single, plenty-of-money-in-my-pocket life talking, but I just don't see any scenario where it's acceptable to be chosen to be somebody's best man and then not be present at the bachelor party.  You should have to forfeit your "best man" status for that and let better friends like me move up the groomsmen ladder.  Now onto the links!

- On Monday, SG of the Replacement Level Yankee Weblog used some zone-related advanced stats to compare Derek Jeter and Eduardo Nunez as defensive shortstops.

- El duque of It Is High... argued for Eduardo Nunez and Chris Dickerson getting more ABs over Jones and Ibanez.  Hard to argue against that when you check the numbers.

- On Tuesday, Matt Keegan of Pinstriped Bible looked at CC Sabathia's declining fastball in 2012, and how his approach has changed along with it.

- Mike Eder, TYA's resident PITCHf/x guru, examined the changes to Ivan Nova's delivery mechanics in his first start off the DL and the indication that he's changing his approach as well.

- DBurchHero of The Greedy Pinstripes made his case for why Rafael Soriano might NOT opt out of his deal after this season.  That's been a hot rumor lately, but there are some strong reasons for him to stay.

- On Wednesday, Alex Pugliese of Yanks Go Yard asked if Russell Martin could be back with the Yankees next year.  He could be and he will be.

- On Thursday, Mike Axisa of RAB pointed out that it's been the Yankees' young, homegrown starters getting the job done lately, a fact that all the Yankee haters can take and shove right in their ears.

- Rob Abruzzese of Bronx Baseball Daily mapped out a postseason roster based on recent performance, and didn't find room for Andruw Jones or Raul Ibanez on it.

- William Tasker of IIATMS, inspired by a Twitter exchange with Abruzzese, broke down the numbers to show the big decline in team production in the second half and how the Yankees' season-long offensive numbers can be misleading.

- On Friday, Matthew B of Yankees Fans Unite discussed CC Sabathia's down season and the pivotal role he plays in the team's chances for success going forward.

- William Juliano of The Captain's Blog evaluated the playoff races under the new Wild Card format and concluded that, for this year at least, they have been watered down.

We interrupt the regularly scheduled Friday Jam rotation for some more new Deftones.  They released the first song, "Leathers," from their upcoming album earlier this week, and it's quite good to say the least.  Deftones are just the balls.



Enjoy your weekends, everybody.  I know I will.  See ya sometime late Sunday.