Squawkers Exclusive: Johnny Damon sez Yankee fans need to cheer for A-Rod

People who know me in real life – or at least in my Facebook life – know that I am a big fan of "The Celebrity Apprentice."  I watched every single episode this season and thought that it was one of the most fun shows on TV. Anyhow, thanks to my tweeting about how much I like the show, and how I would love to be at the finale, I got invited to a media viewing party for the last episode, after which I had the opportunity to interview celebrities on the red carpet at Trump Tower! What a thrill.

So last night, I got the chance to interview a number of the contestants. Here is what I heard from each of them, and what my impressions were of these "Apprentice" players:

Michelle and Johnny Damon

Johnny Damon: One of my all-time favorite Yankee moments was Damon's double steal in the 2009 World Series. I got to shake his hand and thank him for that.  I asked him about A-Rod, since Damon was friends with him when he was a Yankee. He told me: "A-Rod was a great teammate of mine. I just hope the fans can go out and cheer for him because they need him to do well if they're going to make the playoffs. If he doesn't have the support, it's going to be a very long year for the Yankees." I thought that was very interesting for a ballplayer to talk about the fans' support being so critical like that.

Also, I asked him about the possibility of him doing a reality show with his family (Damon was with his lovely wife Michelle, who is pregnant with his seventh child, a girl. He said the show is a possibility. He also said that the final task for "The Apprentice" was in Florida, right across the street from his old high school!

I have never had a big urge to meet my favorite Yankees in real life, because I always worried that they may not be as pleasant in person. But I am happy to say that Damon was awesome!

Leeza Gibbons: Just as fabulous, likeable and poised as she was on the show. She talked about how much her "Apprentice" victory meant to her charity,  Leeza's Care Connection, and how being on the show "super-sized" the cause. (I will have more with my interview with her in another article I will link to when it is published.)

Geraldo Rivera: I have to say that of everybody I met last night, I liked him the best (although I still think Leeza was the person who deserved to win.) Here's the deal -- Geraldo is self-aggrandizing and says and does outrageous things that go viral and get mocked on shows like "The Soup."  But he is in on the joke, and knows exactly what he is doing. I found him funny and charming, and his wife Erica was also very fun to talk to as well.

I also told him about how I was watching him on TV on the night Bin Laden was killed (if you may remember, when President Obama announced he was having a press conference late on a Sunday night, Geraldo was the first person to correctly deduce that it must have been that American forces nabbed Bin Laden!)

An aside: my brother, who served in Iraq and Afghanistan in the military, had breakfast once with Geraldo in the Army mess hall. He calls him an "American patriot"!

I asked Geraldo what he thought was the most memorable thing he said this season. He said it was "Screw the terrorists. We won!" I agree -- that was a classic moment for him.

Gilbert Gottfried: Sounds just like he does on TV. He got the best laugh of the night at the press screening during the finale, when he made a menopause joke related to something that happened in a previous episode. He said that that best person won, but if Geraldo had won he would have said the same thing! He also told me about his podcast series.

Ian Ziering: Very passionate about his cause -- the Epidermolysis Bullosa Medical Research Foundation. He did a lot for that charity -- raising not just $300K for charity, but awareness for a disorder most people haven't heard of. Was very fond of Leeza.

Vivica A. Fox: She is a true movie star. Beautiful, with charisma to spare -- she was just so cool to talk to. I asked her about Phonegate (viewers of the show will know what I am talking about) and it was clear that there was no love lost between her and Kenya Moore. She also said she has a bunch of projects coming out, and seemed pretty happy.

Trump kids: I got to talk to Ivanka, Donald Jr., and Eric, my favorite Trump child. I asked him about Kenya saying that the Trumps were America's first family -- the look on his face during that episode showed that even he wasn't buying it! He was very diplomatic about what he said about her, though, and his wife said that they get asked about that moment a lot.

Other people there: I didn't get the chance to talk to the other people in the cast, but I would have loved to have talked to Lorenzo Lamas, Brandi Glanville and Terrell Owens. I could have gotten to talk to Kenya Moore, but I chose not to! (I am on Team Vivica!)

Donald Trump himself: I briefly got to talk to the man himself. I asked him about his plans for next season, but he said he hadn't even thought about it yet.

Anyhow, I will have another article about this, but here is what I saw last night. Thanks to NBC for letting me attend this cool event!

Why Yankee fans should cheer, not boo, Robinson Cano tonight, and why that Jimmy Fallon skit had it right

I am still debating whether I should go to see Robinson Cano return to Yankee Stadium tonight, but I am worried I will get into arguments with booing Yankee fans!

Sorry, folks, there is no reason to hate Cano. Depending upon whatever final Yankee salary offer you believe, Cano was offered at least $70+ million more by the Mariners -- not exactly chump change.  If Yankee fans are going to complain about players going for the money, then they must have to hate  pretty much every free agent the Yankees have signed, because nearly all of them got their best contract offer from the Bombers. The Yanks would literally have a last-place team if it weren't for this "greed"!

Anyhow, I cannot blame Cano one bit for taking the Mariners' offer. And I never get why fans who didn't want Cano to go are not more ticked off at the Yankees. Hal Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman spent over $500 million this offseason, but they pled poverty when it came to paying Cano market rate? Puh-lease. If they had $153 million for Jacoby Ellsbury, who had exactly one elite year, they could have ponied up the money to keep Cano, who not only had over a half-dozen elite years, but he stayed healthy and played nearly every game. If you want to boo anybody, boo the Yankee brass for not keeping Cano.

But instead, I expect that there will be a majority of boos tonight for Cano for his first at-bat in the Bronx as a Mariner. Of course, the two most notorious examples in recent years of fans booing their former stars was in 2006, when Johnny Damon returned to Fenway Park, and 2012, when Jose Reyes returned to Citi Field. Both times, the fans were out of line, IMHO. (Squawker Jon and I went to Reyes' return, and in retrospect, the boos were even dumber than at the time. Fans were mad that Reyes benched himself in his last game to win the batting title? You know who he kept from winning the title that year -- Ryan Braun!)

At any rate, I think for at least the first at-bat, you should cheer a former star for what they did for your old team (only exception for this would be for a Carl Pavano, who did nothing but collect a paycheck for the Yankees!) And I think Cano absolutely should be cheered tonight, which he will be, by some sensible Yankee fans. However, I am fairly sure that the booers griping about "greed" will outnumber the cheerers.

The thing is, though, is that if any of these vociferious booers actually met Cano in person, they would probably be all excited and shake his hand. Which is exactly what happened in a stunt on Jimmy Fallon's Tonight Show. Hilarious!


 

Scott Boras gets new jobs -- but less money -- for Manny Ramirez, Johnny Damon and Andruw Jones

A day after the news broke that the Yankees were signing Scott Boras client Andruw Jones, Sports Illustrated columnist Jon Heyman revealed that Manny Ramirez and Johnny Damon, two of Boras' other clients are headed to Tampa together. And the next time Derek Jeter reportedly gripes about having to take a pay cut, somebody ought to tell him to take a look at what these one-time stars will be making next season (stats from Baseball-Reference.com):

* Manny Ramirez: The enigmatic superstar has made over $205 million in his career, and just finished up a two-year, $45 million deal. Now, he'll be making just $2 million in 2011, with no reported incentive clauses. Yikes!

* Johnny Damon: Rays will pay him $5.25 million with an additional $750K in "attendance bonuses," Big League Stew reports, saying "Don't laugh. There are a lot of Red Sox fans in Florida." Damon has made $105 million in his career, with his top salary being the $13 million a year the Yankees paid him. He made $8 million with the Tigers last season.

* Andruw Jones: The outfielder is getting $2 million from the Yanks in 2011, plus a potential $1.2 million in incentives. He's made $103 million in his career, with a top salary of $14.725 million in 2008. Then Jones made just $500K for the following two seasons. (Come to think of it, I guess his new contract with the Yankees is a raise of sorts for him!) It's interesting to me that Jones could actually make more money than Manny. How the mighty have fallen!

Derek Jeter's $15 million 2011 salary looks awfully good in comparison, even if it was a $4 million drop from the average annual value of the $190 million, 10-year contract he just finished up with the Yankees. Not to mention that Jeter has two more years at that salary, plus an option year, so he won't be in the position of these big names in having to take such a drastic pay cut.

BTW, have you seen the pictures of Jeter's 30,000 square foot new house, aka St. Jetersburg? I wonder if astronauts can see it from space!

Anyhow, I was wondering on Facebook last night whether the Rays would reunite even more of the 2004 Red Sox. Could Pedro Martinez be pitching for the team? What about hauling Kevin Millar out of retirement?  Or Keith Foulke?

There are a ton of Red Sox fans in Florida (and a few of them are regular Squawkers readers!), so in theory, this could get some of them out to Rays games. However, isn't it also possible that Boston fans might hold grudges against Manny and Damon because of their respective exits from Boston?

Damon and Ramirez facing the Yankees -- and the Red Sox -- 19 times a year should add a little more drama to the games. Damon was one of my very favorite Yankees ever, so I'm looking forward to seeing him again. And Manny is one of the top five most entertaining hitters I've seen play, even though way too many of those hits were against the Yankees! At the very least, he'll add some entertainment value to the games -- as long as he stays healthy, that is.

What do you think? Tell us about it!

Merry Christmas, but I don't want to see Manny Ramirez under the Yankee tree

Squawker Jon and I would like wish all our Subway Squawkers readers a very merry Christmas, or whatever holiday you're celebrating this year.

This is our fifth season of writing this blog, and we're happy that we've had this opportunity to squawk about our teams -- and about each other. We also really appreciate that we've gotten to know our readers a little better, via Facebook, Twitter, and real-life meetings. Thanks for reading us!

Anyhow, I went to church for Christmas Eve, and they had a Las Posadas ceremony as part of the service. But there was no mention of Jorge!

Now, I did get the Bruce Springsteen box set The Promise: The Darkness On The Edge Of Town Story under my Christmas tree. But I don't want to see Manny Ramirez under the Yankee tree!

There have been rumors flying about that the Yankees are targeting him and Johnny Damon. I wanted Manny as a Yankee after the phenomenal end to his 2008 season, and I of course wanted Damon back last season. This year, not so much.

Sure, Ramirez might be the all-time Yankee killer with the bat, and Damon is one of my favorite Yankee players, but neither of them really fit on this team right now, in no small part due to Jorge Posada being paid $13 million for 2011 to be the DH.

I can't see Damon being happy to be a part-time player. And Manny hasn't been the same hitter ever since The Man took away his right to take fertility drugs! Besides, I think the Yanks have enough superstars on the decline right now. They don't need another one.
Anyhow, I told Jon that Posada ought to send a big Christmas card to Omar Minaya -- their meal at the Four Seasons when the catcher was a free agent got Posada a fourth year!

Anyhow, thanks again for reading us. If you got any cool Yankees- or Mets-related loot under the tree, let us know!

What do you think? Tell us about it!

Sorry, Tino, but Derek Jeter IS being greedy

Today's New York Post features interviews with former Yankees Tino Martinez and Johnny Damon on -- what else -- the Derek Jeter contract situation. Tino tries to tell George King that even though Derek Jeter reportedly wants between $24-25 million for the next four to six seasons, the captain really isn't being a money-grubbing egomaniac who has a delusional opinion of how much he's worth:

A byproduct of this process is the perception that Jeter has gotten greedy. That bothers Tino Martinez, a close friend of Jeter and a special assistant to Cashman.


"It's making it seem like he is greedy, Martinez said of the public opinion. "He is not being greedy. He is going through a baseball negotiation like everybody else. It's made him look like he doesn't know what's happening in the real world, and he is not like that.


"This guy gives millions to charity. He is only going through a baseball negotiation and for people to think he is greedy, that bothers me. Derek is my friend, and I would say the same thing about Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera. They all are quality people. 

If Jeter asking for more money per season than he ever earned in his career, after the worst season he ever had, during the most brutal economic times since the Great Depression isn't greedy, then what is? I mean, really.

While it's great that Jeter gives money to charity, that doesn't mean that he deserves to be paid $80-100 million more than he's worth for doing so. It doesn't work that way.

And Tino sets up a bit of a straw man for his good friend by bringing Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera into the conversation. They're all going through negotiations with the Yankees, but by the accounts so far, Mo and Andy don't appear to be asking for anything unreasonable. Jeter is.

As for the idea that asking for such a huge contract is a standard part of negotiations, Johnny Damon is living proof that this doesn't always work with the Yankees. Heck, Damon had a great 2009, with 24 homers and the most memorable play of the World Series. But when he started making noise about not taking a pay cut, Brian Cashman lost interest pretty quickly.

Granted, I thought the Yankees should have re-signed Damon, and that Cashman's last-minute, $2 million offer to Johnny was insulting. That being said, Damon and agent Scott Boras' initial demand for two years at $13 million each season was unreasonable.

Damon talked to George King about Jeter's contract situation, saying:

"There is no way around it, older players are being looked at differently," he said. "But what a lot of people forget is that guys like me and Jeter, we came out at the same time and we are special players. If things need to get done on a baseball field, we get it done."

If I were Damon, I would have told King in the Post's interview to tell Jeter to lower his demands right now. But King didn't appear to directly ask him about how his negotiation failed for him. The Yanks offered him $7 million, he balked at that, then Cashman did the $2 million offer, then Damon finally ended up signing with the Detroit Tigers for $8 million.

What do you think? Tell  us about it!

WWJD: What Will Johnny Do? Could Damon be a (gulp) Red Sox again?

What a nightmare. I was driving in the car yesterday when I heard that the Boston Red Sox had claimed Johnny Damon on waivers. I went all, "Nooooooo!" and nearly drove off the road when I heard the terrible news!

Anyhow, since Damon has a no-trade clause involving the Sox, he has the right to reject going back to Beantown. And so far, he has said he's "leaning toward" staying with Detroit, also saying, "My gut and everything else tells me Detroit’s the place for me."

Now, did the Red Sox really want Damon back, or did they want to prevent him from being dealt to Tampa Bay? Peter Gammons is reporting this on Twitter:

"Tigers explained to Damon Boston didn't claim to block, they want him. Tampa didn't even claimed him"

Very interesting! Unfortunately, while I hope Damon does the right thing and spurns Boston, I'm afraid he is going to go back there. I wrote on Facebook yesterday that a competitive player like him would want to be in a pennant race. A Sox fan friend was surprised to hear me think that the Sox were still in the pennant race. I said that they were like the villain in a horror movie -- you could never count them out!

Anyhow, I'm not going to be happy to see Damon wearing Boston red again, but I'm not going to boo him the way Sox fans did when he went to the Yankees. If only Brian Cashman had done the right thing in the first place and re-signed Damon this winter, none of this would be an issue.

What do you think? Tell us about it!

Johnny Damon: Positively Damonic to the Yankees

Johnny Damon leaving the Yankees was one of the low points of this offseason. And last night was a huge reminder of what he brings to the table, both on and off the field. I was happy to see him again last night, but it still ticks me off - bigtime - that Damon is no longer a Yankee. But hey, at least we have Nick Johnson in the lineup. Oh, wait!

I miss Damon hitting home runs as a Yankee. I miss his hair - he now has a fauxhawk! And I miss his goofy personality. Did you see him wearing one of those Sportrobes last night? They're the new Snuggie - the Sportrobe is this superplush bathrobe with team logos (and personalized with players' names and numbers if you want.) Damon wore his in the postgame. And when his new teammates admired his Detroit Tiger robe earlier this year, Johnny bought one for each of them!

I told Squawker Jon I think we should have Subway Squawkers uniforms for public appearances at games and such. So I suggested that I get a Yankee Sportrobe, and he get a Met one. The look on Jon's face over my suggestion was priceless. Suffice it to say that my request was denied!

Oh, and did John Sterling do his old Damon home run call last night? Anybody know?

Anyhow, last night was a very frustrating game, with all the missed opportunities, and seeing Damon on the other side. Not to mention Jose Valverde - is he done celebrating yet?

And why is it that most of the so-called unwritten rules in baseball seem to favor the pitchers? Imagine the uproar if Manny Ramirez did that kind of strutting and dancing after each hit that Valverde did after every strike last night. Valverde made Joba look subtle!

What do you think? Leave us a comment!

Does Scott Boras need to get his groove back?

I'm on a roll. I just wrote something for The Faster Times about Scott Boras, and how he didn't exactly have a postseason to remember. Please check out my article.

In other news, the snow continues - again - on Staten Island. It's been snowing since late last night. I've had enough of winter, thank you very much!

What do you think? Tell us about it!

Javier-self a lousy little Christmas, or why I don't want Javier Vazquez as a Yankee again!

The news that Javier Vazquez is putting on the pinstripes once more - he was just traded for Melky Cabrera and Mike Dunn - is literally the worst thing I've heard all day. And given that I have been stuck at Newark Airport for over five hours now, and am looking at maybe another eight to ten hours before I can get a standby flight to Austin, that is really saying something!

Yes, I'm angrier about Home Run Javy's return than I am at missing my flight to Texas this morning thanks to wretchedly slow security and baggage check. Grrrrrr.

I called Squawker Jon a little while ago to tell him about my flight debacle, and he told me the trade news. I didn't exactly take it well - I screamed "Noooooooo!" into the phone.

As I wrote on Facebook this morning, if Javier Vazquez is the answer, then I don't want to know the question.

Yes, I know Vazquez had a great 2009 with the Braves. Carl Pavano also had a very good year as well, but I don't want him back, either. The first time for both of them in pinstripes was more than enough for me.

Remember Vazquez's 5.00 ERA against the Sox in 2004, or his 9.95 ERA in the postseason against Boston? (Yes, I know that most of the 2004 roster is gone, but still.) While Javy did have a strong first half in 2004, he was so terrible in the last few months of the season that he was out of the postseason rotation. Yes, Joe Torre trusted Kevin Brown - broken hand and all - more than he did Vazquez.

And I still have nightmares about witnessing Vazquez's last performance in pinstripes in person, on October 20, 2004, when he gave up a grand slam to Johnny Damon on the very first pitch, breaking Yankee hearts everywhere, and making me weep.

A Red Sox fan/Squawker reader on Facebook asked me who I thought the Yankees should have traded for instead. I said Carlos Zambrano. He's a little wacky, but at least there's the hope he could be successful in New York. I have no such hope for Vazquez.

Brian Cashman appears to be systematically getting rid of the postseason stars/good personality guys/players able to handle New York on this team, like Johnny Damon, Hideki Matsui, and now Melky Cabrera. It's one thing to trade Cabrera and get a pitcher in return - I can understand that. I just can't understand giving Vazquez another try. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt.

We all know how important it is for a player to be able to handle New York. It's why Johnny Damon was worth every penny of that $52 million contract - he's a winner. Hideki Matsui hit a grand slam in his first game as a Yankee and became a fan favorite - and MVP of the World Series. Javier Vazquez, not so much.

Yahoo Sports' Big League Stew calls Javy a "baseball chameleon," noting:

It's often been said that Vazquez is a pitcher that throws best when the expectations are low and his stats do back that up. Three of his top ERA+ years came in the anonymity of Montreal and one came for the 2007 White Sox, who went 72-90. This year's ERA+ of 139 equals his career-best with the 2003 Expos, but while the Braves stuck around as a potential contender for longer than expected, they didn't occupy striking distance space for long.

Meanwhile, Vazquez's worst ERA+ years — with the exception of his first two seasons — all came with contenders: the '04 Yankees, the '05 D'Backs and the '06 and '08 White Sox.

What the heck is Cashman thinking? He offers Damon $7 million a year (as one of our readers notes, less than even Mike Cameron is getting from the Red Sox), but takes on Vazquez's $11.5 million contract? Good grief.

What do you think? Leave us a comment!

Will you boo or cheer Johnny Damon when he comes marching into the stadium?

I'm not happy that the Johnny Damon Era appears to be over for the Yankees. And I'm even less happy that Nick Johnson is the new DH. But, unlike Red Sox fans did, I plan on cheering Damon whenever he does come back to Yankee Stadium. And I would cheer even louder if he and the Yankees could somehow come to terms, and bring him back next year.

Look, I didn't expect both Damon and Hideki Matsui to come back. But I also didn't expect Matsui to get such a cheap deal with the Angels - $6.5 million for a one-year deal. Or for him to be "replaced" with somebody more injury-prone than he is. So what if Johnson is younger - he can't stay healthy.

While I was happy with the Curtis Granderson deal, I'm not happy with these other moves. But I will try to be optimistic that Brian Cashman has something good up his sleeve. A year ago this week, he gave us the best Christmas gift possible, with Mark Teixeira. Is it too much to ask for some other move this week to make Red Sox wail and gnash their teeth? Dare to dream!

What do you think? Leave us a comment!

On Razor Shines, Gary Sheffield, and the Yankees' Magic Bus

Squawker Jon isn't the only person to get advice from Razor Shines. In a Faster Times column, I also consulted the Mets third base coach to ask him about the Mets' season, and the Yankees' playoff chances. I even asked him if Derek Jeter is really underrated! His answers are pretty amusing.

Oh, and I had to laugh at the fact that Gary Sheffield appears to have thrown the mother of all hissy fits with the Mets. Surprise, surprise, as Gomer Pyle would say.

In other news, Peter Abraham reports that Johnny Damon has rented a bus and invited Yankee teammates to go to see a Creed concert with him. Phil Coke, Brian Bruney, Dave Robertson, Eric Hinske, and Kevin Long are among the Yankees going along.

I'm wondering what the bus looks like. Is it like the Who's Magic Bus, or the bus in the Beatles' "Magical Mystery Tour"? How about Ken Kesey's "Furthur"? (Come to think of it, the 60s were a big time for buses!) Let's hope the bus doesn't look the way Furthur does now!

Coming later today, my highly anticipated predictions for Yankees-Red Sox. But in the meantime, leave us some predictions of your own!

Yankees are 'comeback kids' against Tampa Bay

This weekend, one of our readers anonymously opined about the difference between Squawker Jon and me. Jon, the reader said, sounds "like Eeyore" (hmmm, does that make me Tigger?) Meanwhile, I assume "every game should be a Yankees victory, and any decision that is slightly against [my] team is a travesty." And that's a problem, why, exactly?

Fortunately, this season it appears that the Yankees feel the same way; Johnny Damon was recently quoted saying something like that. No, not that Squawker Jon is Eeyore, but about how the Yankees have swagger this year. "We think we can win every game," Damon told the New York Post.

And Nick Swisher posted this on his Twitter account yesterday: "Comeback kids strike again. Awesome game today. Never quit attitude. Amazing."

Anyhow, it's getting to the point where no matter what kind of hole the Yanks are in, you can expect them to make some sort of thrilling comeback rally in late innings. I missed hearing parts of the first half of yesterday's game (like the Jeter bunt controversy) but I did listen to the last few innings, so I got to hear the great Yankee comeback. (But hearing it isn't as exciting as seeing it, and doesn't really paint the full picture of what happened!)

Squawker Jon told me the other day that it's no surprise the Yanks keep on having all these come-from-behind wins, giving that they have a great lineup playing in a bandbox. But yesterday's rally had more to do with small ball than the long ball.

Squawker reader Bostowned said this last week about the Yankees, and I tend to agree:

This team is different. As a fan, I see a 3 game sweep I immediately think...well lets see how they do in the next series against a better team. Then they sweep them. Then I start thinking...hmm....well I wonder how well they'll respond after they finally lose a series. Will they lose all confidence as I've seen so many times in the past? Nope, went on to take the next 2 series. After the last 20 games, Im ready to believe that this team isn't the 2004-2008 teams at all. Nothing seems to get them down and break their confidence. Every game appears winnable no matter what the score is or who's on the mound.

Yesterday not only had a thrilling rally, but Mariano Rivera earning the WWE belt for his save, which included getting Evan Longoria out this time! But the real MVP of yesterday's game, and the unsung hero of this season, was Alfredo Aceves, who pitched two scoreless innings to keep the Yankees in the game. He mentioned something about wanting to be like Ramiro Mendoza in Suzyn Waldman's postgame interview with him. As Suzyn pointed out, he's done his homework!
Good stuff.

I'm guessing, though, that Joba Chamberlain's performance yesterday will push Mike Francesa to go on yet another rant about how he should pitch in the bullpen. Good grief.

What do you think? Leave us a comment!

Positively Swishalicious! Yanks win eighth in a row on back-to-back-to-back homers

Lots of nice moments yesterday at the Stadium, and the Yankees seem to have found a partial solution to filling up those empty seats.

First up, the game. Squawker reader The Emperor said that John Sterling exclaimed, "Positively Swishalicious" over Nick Swisher's homer. And yes, he went there - he did do a back-to-back-to-back and belly-to-belly-belly call! And the other night, Sterling had the stellar call, "Two and two for Swisharoo." Heh.

Swisher, who has been slumping as of late, finally got his first homer at the new Stadium. I wonder if honorary bat girl Polly Tompkins, the schoolteacher fighting Stage 4 cancer who got to throw out the first pitch, brought him good luck with her cheerful attitude. They seemed to have bonded, hugging after the game. Bryan Hoch of yankees.com wrote a very touching story on Tompkins - click here to read it.

Phil Hughes made it harder for the Yanks to send him down to the minors with his nine-strikeout win. I think the Yanks should keep him up for a while as a long reliever - I'm not sold that Chien-Ming Wang is ready just yet.

Oh, snap! Johnny Damon seemed to call out Joe Torre, saying about how "family-oriented" Joe Girardi runs his clubhouse, suggesting that's why this year's free agents came to play in the Bronx. I don't think that's the case - I think the $423 million the Yanks spent had a bit more to do with it. But I guess Damon couldn't say, "Girardi actually pays attention to players besides the four rings guys," or "Hey, I don't have to worry that Girardi is going to sell me out in a tell-all book."

And somebody in the front office seems to have gotten a clue. Instead of shunting the servicemen and servicewomen in town for Fleet Week to the obstructed view bleacher seats, the way the Yanks did with the West Point cadets on Opening Day, the Yanks put them in the Legends seats right up front. Cool!

Only thing I didn't like about last night's game was Mariano Rivera pitching the ninth. I had no problem with Girardi bringing in Mo in the eighth to shut down the O's. But after the Yanks scored six runs at the end of the inning, Mariano should have been out of the game. Getting him the save isn't worth him pitching the ninth, even if he did throw only 14 pitches in the game.

Speaking of Rivera, I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall at the Yankees' first Kangaroo Court since 2005. He was the judge, A. J. Burnett, Johnny Damon, and Derek Jeter were the jury, and Xavier Nady was the court stenographer. Sounds like it was great fun. I think Brian Bruney should have been the bailiff.

* * *

In honor of the Yanks winning eight in a row, here's a classic video about the number eight. It's Sesame Street's Jazzy Spies segment, featuring Grace Slick on vocals. Yes, Grace Slick. It's like having Amy Winehouse on Barney and Friends or something! Anyhow, the tribute to No. 8 is from early 1969, back when Oscar the Grouch was orange. It

And for Mets fans, click here to check out the day when Keith Hernandez and Mookie Wilson made a cameo on Sesame Street. They told Ernie to put down the duckie. Good advice!