Say it ain't so, Mo: Why Mariano Rivera would have been better off being "The Closer" of his mouth

Mariano Rivera, arguably the most respected player in MLB in recent years, with the most saintly reputation (he's like Tim Tebow but with Hall of Fame talent), is one of the few things Squawker Jon and I agree on. Not only is Mo my favorite player of the 1990s dynasty years, but I have gone to see him speak on Staten Island, and Jon and I went to eat at his restaurant in New Rochelle a few years ago. Squawker Jon also gave him a standing ovation when he saw him pitch at CitiField and at Yankee Stadium in Mo's last season. Rivera is the rare -- make that pretty much the only -- Yankee that Jon can stand.

In case you haven't figured it out by now, in addition for rooting for different teams, Squawker Jon and I have very different personalities. Where I am brash and impulsive, Jon is quiet and methodical. But one of the things we do do for each other is try to bring out the best, and stop the worst. When I have an opinion or impulse or idea that Jon thinks is too much, he will simply say, "What does that get you?" -- meaning, is it really worth the aggravation in saying or doing what I want to? Sometimes Jon is right, and sometimes he is wrong in asking that, but it is a good question to ponder before saying or writing something controversial.

All this is to say that I wonder why apparently nobody asked Mariano Rivera "What does that get you?" when it comes to his new book, The Closer. Because it seems bizarre to me that he would tarnish his saintly image with some of the things he said in his book, written with Wayne Coffey.

For example, there is this, courtesy of the News' article on the tome, on how he throws Robinson Cano under the bus:

In his new autobiography, “The Closer,” Rivera writes about how much affection he has for his former teammate, but adds, “This guy has so much talent I don’t know where to start... There is no doubt that he is a Hall-of-Fame caliber (player). It’s just a question of whether he finds the drive you need to get there. I don’t think Robby burns to be the best... You don’t see that red-hot passion in him that you see in most elite players.”

As for his favorite second baseman, Rivera says Red Sox Dustin Pedroia is “at the top of the list” of players he admires, adding: “Nobody plays harder, gives more, wants to win more. He comes at you hard for twenty-seven outs. It’s a special thing to see.” He later writes, “If I have to win one game, I’d have a hard time taking anybody over Dustin Pedroia as my second baseman.”

Ask yourself this: would Mo have written that if Cano hadn't gone to the Mariners? The answer is that he wouldn't have. And what does writing this get Mo, anyway? It seems more than a little unseemly for him to question somebody else's drive this way, especially when Rivera himself never showed any "red-hot passion" on the field himself. How would he have liked it if people had said the same about him?

And since when did Cano become some underachieving schlub, anyway? He not only was the best player on the Yankees for the last half-decade, but he played nearly every game and showed up to the park early nearly every day to work on his game. But the moment he leaves the Yankees, he becomes some bum?

To top it off, comparing Cano to Red Sox Pedroia, and finding Cano wanting, is a bit much. Sorry, folks, but Cano IS better than Pedroia. C'mon, Mo, you're better than this.

The other thing that really bothered me from the article about the book is this:

Rivera writes that neither the 2003 team nor the one that lost four straight to the Red Sox in the ALCS a year later was close to having the same championship-quality fiber as the Yankees’ previous championship teams.

“Those teams of ours that won four World Series in five years would’ve hammered (the Marlins),” Rivera writes. “They would’ve found a way and will their way through as a team.”

He isn't the first Yankee to raise that whole "it's not the same team" argument, but it makes me wonder: if the heart of the dynasty team were the players who were no longer on it in the next decade, then what does that say about Rivera and the so-called Core Four? That they weren't really so core?

At any rate, I will still be a fan of Mo, but I am very disappointed that he chose to make such comments. In answer to the question "What does that get you?", I guess it will get him some book sales, but at a cost to his pristine reputation. Not an even trade.

Real Housewives of Boston: Why the Red Sox are the cattiest team in baseball

I have been greatly enjoying the season-long meltdown of the Boston Red Sox. As if last year's fried chicken and beer brigade (and September collapse!) weren't fun enough, this season has had all sorts of schadenfreude for those of us in Yankeeland. Now things have gotten even more ridiculous for the Real Housewives of Boston -- because, frankly, that's what these ballplayers most resemble. The Sox fight like a bunch of mean girls, complete with snide little asides. Good grief.

The latest story is from Yahoo! Sports: Jeff Passan reports that Adrian Gonzalez sent a text message to the team's owners, whining about Valentine leaving Jon Lester in to get shelled in a July game. So, instead of Red Sox's ownership telling him where to go with his complaints, ownership agreed to the meeting, which apparently had as many as 17 players. Oh, the meeting was at the Palace Hotel in New York, just before the Yankees series. Way to prioritize for the big series, guys!

So, as Uncle Mike called it, their "Malice at the Palace" event consisted of a bunch of whiny players like Gonzalez and Dustin Pedroia complaining about mean ol' Bobby V. Look, we've all had our share of bad bosses in our life, but the Sox have zero room to complain after last season. These so-called leaders did nothing to clean up their own clubhouse when Josh Beckett and John Lackey and the rest of the "I like beer" crew got their drink on during games. They cost Terry Francona his job, and now they they whine like little girls about big bad Valentine.

You would figure that Sox ownership would tell them to drink a nice steaming cup of shut the bleep up about any of their players complaining about the manager, especially ones underachieving this year like Pedroia and Gonzalez. But since Boston puts the fun in dysfunction, they actually had this dopey meeting. It seems like it went as well as one of those "Real Housewives" reunion shows. No word if there was any hair pulling.

If there anybody who has an undeserved reputation as being a great leader, it's Pedroia. Among other things, he posed with a sleeping Valentine for a photo making fun of the manager, which got sent around the team. Can you imagine any Yankee pulling such nonsense? Pedroia is a world-class jerk. You have to wonder if Pedroia (and for that matter, Gonzalez) is tanking it this year to get Valentine fired. Classy.

It's funny -- Derek Lowe should be happy the Red Sox didn't want him. He dodged a bullet there, and is now with a functional, calm team. The Yanks are more like the 2004 Red Sox than the 2004 Yankees these days, and the Sox are like the Bronx Zoo Yankees, except for not being able to win!

As for the Red Sox, Bobby Valentine is not doing a good job as manager. But when you aren't able to pick your own coaches, and certain spoiled brat stars are going to tank the season to get you fired, then it's hard not to feel a twinge of sympathy. Of course, every time Valentine looks a little sympathetic, he will do something stupid. At any rate, these are good times to be a Yankee fan!

What do you think? Tell us about it!

Stunning News: Jonathan Papelbon is not a Rhodes Scholar

Quick note: Check out my Faster Times piece on how Red Sox GM Theo Epstein admitted that Jonathan Papelbon is "not a Rhodes scholar." The thing is, I actually think Papelbon was right in his concerns about Billy Wagner, so I come to his defense - a little!

In other news, Squawker readers and Twitter followers are unanimous - if Kevin Youkilis is Fred "Twinkletoes" Flintstone, then Dustin Pedroia is Barney Rubble!

What do you think? Tell us about it!

The lost weekend: Yankees get touched by the Angels

This is one weekend I'm glad I didn't get to see much of the Yankee games. What a nightmare. Especially given that the Mets won two out of three of the Reds series, and Squawker Jon is preening.

Then again, his team's vaunted Home Run Apple had a wardrobe malfunction. What's the deal on that?

So now we head to the All-Star break. And three Yankees - Mariano Rivera, Derek Jeter, and Mark Teixeira - are representing the Bombers in the game. I'm so glad that voters picked Teix over Youk!

Squawker Jon saw a headline about how Dustin Pedroia begged off the All-Star team due to personal reasons. Jon sardonically suggested that my campaign against Pedroia for the All-Star team depressed Dustin so much, that he couldn't face playing! Actually, Pedroia is taking care of his pregnant wife. But I'd like to think he was also anguished that I can't stand him!

On a completely different note, I'm looking forward to finishing "Munson," the great book by Marty Appel about the Yankee catcher. You can read an excerpt of the book here.

What do you think? Leave us a comment!

Last chance to vote for Mark Teixeira over Kevin Youkilis on the All-Star Game ballot

Vote for Mark Teixeira over Kevin Youkilis for the All-Star Game. Let's give John Henry something to Twitter about. Let's help good defeat evil. Well, maybe Kevin Youkilis isn't evil - just terminally annoying - but I still don't want to see him start at first base at the All-Star Game!

Youk is leading Tex by 40,000 votes with just one day to go. This cannot happen. So go to MLB.com and vote on the mark. Send a Tex message to the All-Star Game! You can vote up to 25 times - the ballot saves your picks, so it's easy to keep on resubmitting your choices.

In addition to voting for Teixeira, this Squawker has a few other suggestions for the All-Star ballot:

The good folks at VoteSwisher.com wanted to remind Yankee fans to write in Nick Swisher for an outfield spot.

Dustin Pedroia is less than 7,000 votes behind Ian Kinsler for second base. Why should a Red Sox player who left the field when there were only two outs be rewarded with an All-Star spot? Hope this survey says no!

As I have done every time I've voted on an All-Star ballot since the 2006 NLCS, I voted for the Cardinals' Yadier Molina, just to tweak Squawker Jon. And this year, Jose Molina's brother is actually leading the NL All-Star ballot at catcher. Are there that many Met-haters out there?

I also used the NL ballot to vote for the best second baseman out there. The pop-up king! Yes, I went there - I voted 25 times for the Mets' Luis Castillo!

Speaking of the Mets, I just went to Mets.com to see who they were promoting on their site for the All-Star Game. Each team is promoting one or more players: the Yanks are pushing Teixeira, while the Red Sox are asking fans to vote for Youkilis and Pedroia. The Mets? Well, they're pushing somebody who won't be able to play in the All-Star Game - the injured Carlos Beltran! Granted, he did have an All-Star caliber year until getting hurt, but it's still funny that they're promoting him over their supposed franchise player, David Wright.

Voting for the All-Star Game ends at 11:59 tonight. Get your votes in!

Who are you voting for? Leave us a comment!