A Mortal Hero

Let's be honest...for a baseball and football fan, this is probably the slowest time of the year. We're not that close to the NFL draft and the Super Bowl is over. Major League Baseball is still several weeks away from Opening Day, and position players are finally all reporting to their Spring Training facilities. It's time that The Inside Corner blog pays tribute to a legend, and once again, vies for his Hall of Fame Induction (see the post about John Sterling last month).

George M. Steinbrenner III, at the helm of the Yankees since the 1970's, has provided some classic moments, championship teams, pure entertainment, and been the backbone of the greatest sports franchise in the world. Now, it pains me to see him at a mortal state battling various health issues. How much fun would it have been to see George, not Hal, accept the World Series trophy at the new Yankee Stadium this past November?

Many people, mostly non-Yankee fans, have negative opinions of The Boss. We hear it every time the Yankees pick up a free agent, or win a title. The team is accused of buying championships, and controlling baseball like a monopoly. The bottom line: other teams' fans are jealous because their owners don't work as hard, or they put the majority of the team's revenue in their pockets. George Steinbrenner loves winning, loves New York, and loves his Yankees. Without him, there's no YES Network, no new stadium, and who knows how many of his 7 titles would have been won without him in the owner's booth?

I had a chance to see George Steinbrenner once, at Game 3 of the '99 World Series, also known as the "Chad Curtis Game." I was walking from the bathroom on the loge level with my dad, when I yelled out that I saw George Steinbrenner. Dad didn't catch a glimpse of him, but we turned and there he was: blue blazer, white turtle neck, chest out. I raced back, and as a short 13-year-old, yelled out, "Hi Mr. Steinbrenner!" I received a pat on the back from The Boss, and a "Hiya pal!" Never will I forget this moment.

Most kids grew up wanting to be Don Mattingly or Derek Jeter. I wanted to be George Steinbrenner. There is no reason whatsoever that George is not yet enshrined in Cooperstown. You could argue that he is the greatest owner in the history of sports. He bought the Yankees for about $10 million in 1973, and now they are worth over $1 billion and really are a worldwide enterprise. Sadly, it looks like if he is elected to Cooperstown, he may not be around to see it. I'll never forget crying when he rode out on a golf cart during the '08 All Star Game festivities at the old Yankee Stadium. It was tough to see him like that, crying and shaking hands with his former players and opponents.

George Steinbrenner is no longer the screaming, criticizing, media circus that he once was. I wasn't really around for the five firings of Billy Martin, his phone calls in the dugout, or issuing an apology to New York City after the Yankees blew the '81 World Series to Tommy Lasorda's Dodgers. He proves the point that we all get older, but legacies will never die. The Yankees play in the House that George Built, and the franchise still starts every year with the hope, no, the expectation, that the World Series title will be hoisted in New York once again. Thanks, George.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

For many of you, when you see a palm tree, you think about a vacation, or just heading to the beach to lie out in the sun all day. Not me. This palm tree brings about the hope that warm weather is coming soon, and the excitement of the start of Major League Baseball Spring Training. For Yankees fans, it does not really provoke the thought of hope. It brings about continued expectations. Expectations that just winning last year simply is not good enough. Expectations brought about by the number 28 on Joe Girardi's back, and expectations of the pinstripes. As a fan, a member of the media, or a player, you go into Spring Training with this thought: The 2010 New York Yankees are expected to win the World Series.

That's what takes the fun out of it. You win, and you were supposed to. You lose, and it is pretty much the end of the world. The Spring Training home of the Yankees was once called Legends Field. As if that did not cast a shadow over the organization, it was renamed "George M. Steinbrenner III Field" two years ago. Even though he's not his normal self anymore, The Boss and his values still surround this organization. Take a look at some of the interviews from the first optional day of workouts. Are Girardi, Sabathia, and Phil Hughes talking about how much fun they had this winter, and how nice it was to spend time with their families? Nope. All they say is what they want people to hear: "We were hungry last year. We're still hungry to win. Last year's not going to matter at the end of next year."

On the Other Side: I was requested by a faithful reader to discuss the other baseball franchise in New York (yes, there is another team), the New York Mets. The Mets and their fans have been subjected to some serious pain over the last few seasons. It really goes back to '06, watching Carlos Beltran go down looking with the bases juiced to end the NLCS against St. Louis. Then they go through two consecutive September collapses to the Phillies in 2007 and 2008. Maybe that's what made last year a little bit more enjoyable. No collapse, and at least they got a new stadium.

I do want to point out that even though I do not root for them, the New York Mets have a solid baseball club. David Wright and Jose Reyes are still premiere players. Carlos Beltran, when healthy, is a top-tier center fielder, and Jason Bay was certainly a coveted free agent. But it's really tough for these guys to put up power numbers in Citi Field, and the Mets could have used another starter in the off-season. Johan Santana has been injured lately, and he cannot carry the team on his back. Oliver Perez is a total crap shoot on the mound, Mike Pelfrey is the king of the balk, and John Maine is simply inconsistent. Lots of things have to go right for a long time in order for the Mets to surpass the Phillies and get back on top of the NL East. Don't look now, but even the Washington Nationals have added some big-name pitching.

All in all, if you're a Yankee fan or a Met fan, you still feel that excitement of Spring Training. Really, you could be a Pittsburgh Pirates fan or a Kansas City Royals fan, and the hope is still there. From now until the second game of the regular season, every team has the same record, and just as good a shot as anyone to win the World Series. You can look great on paper, but you have to play the game (thank you, Herman Edwards). If you root for a team that hasn't been all that successful lately, enjoy it! What's the worst that could happen? If you're a fan of a big-market club, or the defending World Champions for that matter, get ready for a long, stressful ride.

The Ten Greatest Moments in New York Yankees History

Again, February is a slow month. I don't want to get into the Gene Monahan situation yet until we hear more details on his illness and how long he'll be gone from the team. All I can say is that the guy is a total legend...he's been with the club since the 1970's. I certainly hope everything is ok.

I was born in 1986, so I certainly was not alive for what I believe are the ten greatest moments in franchise history, but this is certainly something fun to debate about. I'm not going to mention the greatest seasons, or the greatest games, but these are just moments. Ten of them. Let the debating begin.

10. David Wells' Perfect Game- May 17, 1998 Another great moment from a guy I don't love. But how can you not include a perfect game on this list? On this date, the Boomer retired 27 Twins in a row, getting Pat Meares on a fly ball to Paul O'Neill to end the masterpiece. This was the first of many great moments that occurred during the '98 campaign, possibly the greatest season in Yankees history. Wells would later admit that he was somewhat loaded during that game, that he hardly had much sleep from the previous night's activities, and it really wouldn't surprise me based on some of his personal character traits.

9. Jim Leyritz's Game Tying Blast- Game 4, 1996 World Series Here's another guy with some questionable character traits, but he got it done when it counted. Leyritz's eighth inning homer off of Mark Wohlers in Atlanta tied the game at 6, after the Yankees and Kenny Rogers were down 6-0 just a few innings earlier. The Yanks would go on to win the game in extra innings, and would never trail again in the series. It began the most recent Yankee dynasty, which allowed the team to create its own network and a brand new stadium.

8. David Cone's Perfect Game on Yogi Berra Day- July 18, 1999 This day was already special as it was Yogi Berra's second time back at Yankee Stadium after ending his 14-year exile. The former perfect game tandem took part in the game's ceremonial first pitch: Don Larsen threw it to Yogi Berra, who borrowed catcher Joe Girardi's glove and handed it back to him to catch Coney. Cone, who dealt with an aneurysm just three years earlier, climbed to the top of the world after dealing with a rain delay, tossing a perfecto against the hapless Montreal Expos during another Yankees championship season.

7. Tino, Jeter, and Brosius- Games 4 and 5, 2001 World Series I know the Yankees lost this series in heartbreaking fashion to the D-Backs, but these two games, in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, were absolutely incredible to watch. I was fortunate enough to attend Game 4, and when Tino tied the game with a two-out, two-run ninth inning homer, he promised me that I would never see that again for the rest of my life. An inning later, Jeter became Mr. November with a walk-off. And a night later, Scott Brosius disproved my father, as I only had to wait 24 hours for another two-out, two-run ninth inning homer. I guess there's only one other thing to say about these three blasts: Thank you, Byung-Hyun Kim!

6. Lou Gehrig Day- July 4, 1939 This was the number one reason why I said that this list was going to contain moments- so I could include this speech. We all know the story. Lou Gehrig was the ultimate symbol of Yankees' pride and the greatest first baseman who ever lived. After he was diagnosed with the disease that would later take his life, Gehrig stood in front of a capacity crowd and his teammates, calling himself the "luckiest man on the face of the earth." It would be referred to as baseball's Gettysburg Address. Even if you don't know baseball, you know Lou Gehrig and you know his speech.

5. Roger Maris hits 61- October 1, 1961 In 1961, one of the greatest seasons in Yankees history, two teammates squared off to take on a hallowed record: Babe Ruth's 60 homers from 1927. Most fans rooted for Mantle, who'd been with the team since '51. Although Maris was league MVP in 1960, fans hated him and writers made his hair fall out. After Mantle went down and finished with 54, Maris etched his name into history by hitting his 61st on the season's final day against the Boston Red Sox. Although Ford Frick ruled that Maris would have an asterisk next to his record for the extra eight games teams played compared to the 1927 season, it would be removed in 1991, years after Maris was dead. If you think about the guys that have surpassed 61 since then- Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire, Barry Bonds- Maris really is the true single-season home run record holder.

4. Bucky Beats Boston- October 2, 1978 We all know this one, and there's no way we could have a list of great Yankee moments without Bucky F'n Dent, as he's still known in Boston. George Steinbrenner called this the greatest baseball game he'd ever witnessed in person. The one-game AL East playoff had Boston and Mike Torrez in control with a 2-0 lead until Bucky's three run homer over the Green Monster in the seventh inning silenced Fenway. Not only did the Yankees go on to win the game 5-4, they captured their second consecutive world title a couple of weeks later. It also culminated the greatest comeback in their history, after once trailing by as many as 14 games in the division standings to the Sawx. The Curse of the Bambino was never more prominent.

3. Chris Chambliss rocks Yankee Stadium- October 14, 1976 If you haven't seen the images of the aftermath of this walk-off blast, you're not a true fan. In the first season of the newly remodeled Yankee Stadium, Chris Chambliss' home run in Game 5 of the 1976 ALCS gave the Yanks their first pennant since 1964. Oh, and security was a little bit different then it was today. Fans raced in from the seats and bleachers to swarm the field. Chambliss would never touch home plate, as it was dug up by a nutty fan. Later, he would be escorted out by two police officers to touch the area where home plate once rested.

2. Don Larsen's Perfect Game- Game 5, 1956 World Series When Casey Stengel put the ball in Don Larsen's shoe on this historic date, many of his teammates, like Hank Bauer, were pretty disgusted with his decision. Larsen was never a great pitcher, but he's a guy who had one perfect day, which turned him into a true Yankee legend for life. You might get tired of hearing about it, but there's no way that this game should be any less than number 2 on this list. A no-name retires 27 Brooklyn Dodgers in order...during a WORLD SERIES! The final strike three pitch to Dale Mitchell was probably a foot above the strike zone, but who really cares at this point?

1. Aaron Boone Keeps the Curse Alive- October 17, 2003 This game started on October 16, but by the time it ended in the eleventh inning, it was after midnight. Of all of the post-season magical wins the Yankees have had over their amazing history, this game was by far the greatest. Down by four runs to Pedro and the Sox, the Yankees looked as if their season was over, and Boston would finally head back to the Fall Classic. But the rest was history. Giambi homered twice, Grady Little left Petey in the game, and Jorge dunked a two-run double in front of some idiot named Damon. Then, after Mariano Rivera's third scoreless inning of relief, Aaron Boone sent a knuckleball from Tim Wakefield into the left field seats for the Yankees' 39th pennant. It wasn't just how they won, but it was who they beat.

I'd say it's tough to argue that these ten moments should not be on there. You could argue for Reggie's three homers in Game 6 of the 1977 World Series, and maybe a couple of no hitters here and there. You could also argue for The Babe's Called Shot, but Frank Crosetti said that it never really happened, so we'll stick with The Crow and leave him off of this list. That's my 10 greatest moments- what's yours?

The Greatest Yankees Team of All-Time

Probably the most exciting and rewarding thing about working in education is a day like today. You go to bed like a second grader, dreaming about the possibility of a snow day. Then at 5:34 AM, you get the call from an exhausted co-worker that school is closed, and then before shutting off my alarm clock, it's my duty to bring joy to another employee on the snow chain, informing him that we've got the day off. So as I'm snowed in and dreaming about the possibility of another potential snow day tomorrow, I decided that it's time to name the all-time Yankees team by position. Enjoy!

CATCHER: This one is really no contest. The greatest catcher in Yankees' history is Lawrence Peter "Yogi" Berra. Yogi has won ten World Series rings as a player, the most in history. As a catcher, he was named MVP three times, and clubbed 12 World Series homers along the way. You will probably never see a catcher aside from Johnny Bench and Joe Mauer have the kind of success that Yogi had over a long career. Bench won two rings, Mauer has none, unless he wants to sign with the Yankees next year...

FIRST BASE: First base may be the position that I feel most passionate about. Like catcher, this position is also no contest. The greatest first baseman who ever lived happen to wear the pinstripes for his entire career: Henry Louis Gehrig. "Larrupin' Lou" lived in Babe Ruth's shadow for most of his career, and quietly put together a simply amazing record. Lou picked up two MVP awards, and a triple crown in 1934. In 8 World Series, Gehrig clubbed 10 homers and hit a whopping .361. Lou Gehrig to me still is the number one symbol of Yankee pride and traidition. While other legendary Yankees were out carousing with women or battling personal issues, Lou was nothing but quiet, courageous, and a true team captain. As we know, he delievered baseball's Gettysburg Address in 1939, calling himself the "luckiest man on the face of the earth" despite being diagnosed with a fatal disease. No first baseman will ever likely top Gehrig's career.

SECOND BASE: The greatest second baseman in Yankees history goes to one of the lesser-known Hall of Famers, Anthony Michael Lazzeri. "Poosh 'em up Tony" was a member of five championship teams from 1926-1937 and hit 169 homers during his 12 year tenure in pinstripes. Not bad for a second baseman today, even better for a second baseman during that era, especially one who hit in lineups with Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, and Joe DiMaggio. Many people may mention Willie Randolph, Joe Gordon, or even Bobby Richardson, but if you take a look at the record, Tony wins this honor.

SHORTSTOP: With respect to the lovable Phil Rizzuto, this one is not even close. Derek Sanderson Jeter is by far the greatest shortstop in Yankees history. He's won 5 rings during an era of extended postseasons, and already has the most base hits in franchise history. He's the only Yankee to win an All Star Game MVP, and he was named MVP of the Fall Classic after defeating the hated Mets back in 2000. Jeter, like Gehrig, is a symbol of Yankee pride, honor, and tradition. He and Lou Gehrig are by far the greatest captains in franchise history.

THIRD BASE: I literally had to sit and think about this one for a while. I could go in a few different directions here: Graig Nettles, maybe even Red Rolfe, Clete Boyer? Nope. It's Alex Rodriguez. This 2009 playoffs have offiically cemented him into this position. In six seasons with the Yankees, he has picked up two MVP awards, and finally, a World Series ring. He arguably carried the Yankees to the World Series this year, forever eliminating any non-clutch criticisms from members of the media and from yours truly. No Yankee third baseman has put up numbers anywhere the seasons he's had in New York. Steroids or not, A-Rod is the greatest third baseman the franchise has ever had.

LEFT FIELD: You could say I'm cheating here, but Babe Ruth is the greatest left fielder in Yankee history. And you know what, he played left field quiet a bit in Yankee stadium when the sun was out. The Babe was, I guess, a little too heavy for the heat, so Bob Meusel would take over right field. If you want to hear an argument for why the Babe is the greatest at any position in Yankee history, read my most recent blog post. Enough said.

CENTER FIELD: The outfield itself is pretty easy here. This honor goes to Joseph Paul DiMaggio, the most graceful Yankee in history. Despite missing a few seasons to serve his country overseas, "Joltin' Joe" was named an All Star during all 13 of his seasons, and picked up three MVP awards as well. He's been honored in songs, and called by Yogi Berra the greatest ball player he ever saw. Good enough for me.

RIGHT FIELD: I might be cheating here as well, since he played center field for a good portion of his career, but he played right field during his first season, 1951. Mickey Charles Mantle gets the honor here. Regardless of position, the three greatest outfielders are named here: Ruth, DiMaggio, and Mantle. The Mick played the most games in franchise history, and in 18 seaons, was selected to 16 All Star games. Like Joe D and Yogi, the Mick also won three MVP awards. Mickey and Lou Gehrig are the only Yanks to take home the Triple Crown. Despite his personal battles which took his life, Mickey was always referred to as a "Great Teammate," two words on his monument at Yankee Stadium.

DESIGNATED HITTER: Disagree with my answer all you want, but in my mind, the greatest DH in Yankees history is probably one of my favorites of all time, Hideki Matsui. The man was nothing but classy for seven seasons, and capped off his Yankees career with a World Series MVP in 2009. He averaged 20 homers a season, should have won the '03 Rookie of the Year, and most certainly would have taken home the '04 ALCS MVP if not for the massive collapse. I know who everyone will argue for: Reggie. Maybe I've been brainwashed by my father, or maybe I'm just being honest. Reggie played five seasons and really acted like a jerk. I will always consider Hideki Mastui a true Yankee.

STARTING PITCHER: I'm just going to name one starting pitcher here so the post does not get ridiculously long. There is absolutely no doubt that Edward Charles Ford is the greatest starting pitcher in Yankees history. If nothing else should impress you, Whitey set the record for most consecutive scoreless innings pitched in World Series play, breaking the Babe's record from his Red Sox days. 236 wins over 16 seasons, a career 2.75 ERA, 10 World Series victories, and a 2.71 World Series ERA. No one will ever argue this one.

RELIEF PITCHER: Do I even need to write this one? I guess I should. Mariano Rivera is not only the greatest relief pitcher in history, but I believe that Mo is the greatest pitcher in Yankees history. In 15 seasons with the Yankees, he absolutely defies logic, throwing one single pitch and completely dominating opponents. He's second all time with 526 saves to Trevor Hoffman, but Hoffman has been nothing but a choke artist in the post-season. Rivera? Not quite. 8-1 in post-season play, a 0.74 ERA, and 39 saves. A classy, charitable, and amazing human being. Mo is the perfect person to end any game with. And he'll end this blog entry as well.

Thanks for reading such a long post. Maybe it can get you through a boring snow day. It sure helped me.

Happy Birthday Babe!

Today marks the 115th birthday of the greatest baseball player of all time, Babe Ruth. Ruth has done more for baseball than any one individual player, manager, coach, or executive. He saved baseball after the Black Sox scandal of 1919, built Yankee Stadium all by himself, and kept a pretty enjoyable curse going for 86 years. Babe Ruth was and still is baseball. Hank Aaron is the true career home run leader, but The Bambino is still the standard for greatness.

In 1997, Major League Baseball did a fantastic thing when they retired Jackie Robinson's number 42 throughout baseball to commemorate the 50th anniversary his debut. It was a way to honor a pioneer for his everlasting impact on the game. I see no reason why Babe Ruth should not receive the same treatment. Jackie Robinson will always be an icon, but so will Babe Ruth. The Yankees have given Ruth the royal treatment, retiring his number and making him monument-worthy, but it's time for all of baseball to do the same.

Ruth's numbers seem more shocking today than ever before. Think about it: without steroids or even much weight-lifting, Babe Ruth hit 59 home runs in 1921, breaking his single season record of 54, which he set the year before. Then in 1927, he goes out and clobbers 60. What did he do after '27? Well, the drinking must have gotten to him, because he only hit 54, 46, 49, 46, and 41 over the next five seasons.

The Babe really does hold a spot in my heart. When I was in eighth grade, I was given the assignment of writing a paper about a different time period that I would love to travel back to. Some wrote of the Renaissance, others wrote of the Colonial Period in the United States, but I said I wanted to sit in the right field bleachers at Yankee Stadium during the 1920's. I thought it might be fun to watch Babe Ruth, and catch a home run off of his bat.

Although he died 38 years before I was born, Babe Ruth provided me with one of the greatest thrills of my life. I was fortunate enough to do well in high school, well enough to earn a large academic scholarship to attend college. When I left for college, my father promised that if I maintained my award for all four years, he would buy me a Babe Ruth signed ball. Well, I kept my scholarship. The day I came home after my final thesis presentation, he handed me a box. Inside was a National League ball signed by Babe Ruth and some of his Boston Braves teammates! It remains the only time I have cried after being presented with a gift. To be able to hold something signed by a hero, a pioneer, and an American Icon is something I will cherish forever.

Thank you Babe, for what you did, and what you continue to do for the game of baseball. On your birthday, I hope you're up there enjoying a good cigar and a drink with Waite Hoyt and Joe Dugan. Babe Ruth received more accolades than anyone in baseball history. Isn't it time for Major League Baseball to give him the greatest of honors?

Please visit http://retirebabesnumber.com to sign the petition to retire Ruth's number 3 throughout baseball. The website was created by Babe's granddaughter, Linda Ruth Tossetti.

A Stroke of Luck

Yankees' Hall of Fame pitcher Lefty "Goofy" Gomez once said, "I'd rather be lucky than good." In baseball, sometimes the best team wins. Other times, the luckiest team wins. And more often than not, the hottest team heading into the playoffs win. This past posteason, the best and luckiest team came out on top. While the Minnesota Twins were the hottest club heading into the American League Division Series after their miraculous comeback to capture the AL Central crown, their hot streak ran out against the Yankees.

The Yankees had plenty of lucky moments against the Twins and Angels in American League playoffs. First there was Carlos Gomez calling on his Mets days, over-running second base and costing the Twins a run in Game 2, which would go into extra innings. Then in extra innings, the Yankees got a break when Joe Mauer's sure ground-rule double was ruled a foul ball down the left field line. Replays showed that it wasn't even close- the ball was about a foot inside the line.

Against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, it was more of the same. In Game One, Erick Aybar and Chone Figgins let a run-scoring pop up drop in between them. The following night, Jerry Hairston scored the game winner for the Yankees after a potential double play ball turned into a throwing error. And in the clinching game six for the Yanks, Scott Kazmir turned a sacrifice bunt into a touchdown pass down the right field line, putting the game out of reach for the Halos.

Then came the World Series. After Cliff Lee and A.J. Burnett picked up dominant victories in the first two contests, the series shifted to a crucial Game 3 in Philly. This game was unquestionably the turning point of the Series as the Yankees would take a 2 games to 1 lead. But what was the turning point in this series? Many would argue that it was Alex Rodriguez's replay home run off of a camera just beyond the right field fence. For me this series turned on a game tying, run scoring single from the most unlikely Yankee batter: Andy Pettitte. Not only did Pettitte grit his way through a rain delay to earn a Game 3 victory, but his run scoring bloop single to tie the game at 3 turned the World Series in the Yanks' favor for good. Just a handful of pitches later, the Yankees had a 5-3 lead. They would win the game and never look back in the series, winning their 27th title in 6 games.

Sure it takes skill for a pitcher to pick up a base hit. But a bloop type single is really luck. Especially when it comes from someone that only bats a couple of times each year. Andy Pettitte came up to the plate after Melky Cabrera failed to move a runner to third with no one out. So he took matters into his own hands and dunked a single to center field. His swing was ugly, and he kind of ran like a duck. But he tied the game and completely turned the momentum, and ruined Cole Hamels' psychie. This was one of many breaks the Yanks' would earn en route to the World Championship.

Maybe it was luck, maybe it was having the highest payroll, or maybe it was just putting the most talented team on the field. Think about it: the Yankees' infield of Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Robinson Cano, and Mark Teixeira is by far one of the greatest, if not the greatest, of all time. All four can be Hall of Famers. Think what you want about A-Rod, but he's good enough to get to Cooperstown. Jeter is a lock, Teixeira can get there if he keeps it up, and Cano quietly puts together 200-hit seasons.

Miller Huggins, who managed the 1927 Murderer's Row Yankees, said, "Luck, I never put any stock in it. A smart team makes its own breaks." The 2009 Yankees did just that. Clutch hitting, lucky breaks, smart plays. That's the equation for any championship team.

Sterling Shafted

OK, I know there's not much baseball talk going on in New York right now. The most recent headlines were made when San Francisco Giants and ESPN baseball broadcaster John Miller received the Ford C. Frick Award and will be enshrined in Baseball's Hall of Fame in Cooperstown this summer. I have a lot of respect for John Miller, and despite his obnoxious "SAAAAFE!" call, he's a lot better than his partner Joe Morgan, who doesn't do much other than talk about the Big Red Machine. Maybe Miller deserves to be there, but John Sterling was not even one of the final nominees.

Most people that do not listen to him regularly make fun of him. But John Sterling is an icon, whose ridiculous shouting and nicknames have made him almost as famous as the Yankees. Be honest Yankees fans: When the Yankees have a huge victory, a walk-off, or even just a dramatic homer, do you not race to the radio to hear the post-game show just for Sterling's highlights? My first Sterling moment came after attending Game 1 of the 1996 American League Championship series. That's right, the Jeffrey Maier game. After Bernie Williams' walk-off, extra-inning bomb, my father insisted that we race to the parking lot to hear Sterling's highlight. I couldn't really understand why until for the first time ever, I heard his "BERN, BABY, BERN" call, along with "THHHHEEEEE YANKEES WIN!"

Let's also discuss the fact that Sterling is downright hilarious. Is Wikipedia correct in stating that his real name is Harold Moskowitz? Who knows? Who cares? It adds to the hilarity of the phenomenon that is John Sterling. He manages to put an enjoyable broadcast on the air night in and night out, despite his cackling color commentator (JAWN!) The guy includes show tunes when the game is boring, complains outright if the game is taking too long, and laughs at his own jokes before he is able to get them out.

Everything I just described to you might sound like a poor sportscaster if you do not know who I am talking about. But John Sterling is someone I look forward to hearing every night, much more than any local or national television announcer. When you get some time, head over to YouTube and search for "The Sterling Shake." You'll see why I'm saying this guy deserves to be in Cooperstown. Maybe next year he and John Miller can stand back to back (and belly to belly).

Bird Watching in Miami

Rex Ryan is completely bananas, and I love him for it. Not only does the guy run his mouth all season and live up to expectations by taking the Jets to the AFC title game, but now he's in Miami flipping off Dolphins fans at an MMA event. Say what you want, but this guy is exactly what the Jets franchise needed. He makes headlines. Thanks to him, the Jets are still making front page news in the off-season. Now when's the last time anyone can remember that happening?

Ryan obviously was asking to be heckled. First he gets interviewed and declares that the Jets will beat the Dolphins twice next season. Then, when fans start booing him, he gives them the finger and tells them to go ---- themselves. Woody Johnson came out and said what he had to say- that the organization was disappointed, and Rex himself even apologized. But both of them are totally full of it. Johnson's at home patting himself on the back for picking up someone that can put fannies in the seats at the new stadium, while Ryan is probably heading to a Boston Celtics game to flip off the state of Massachusetts.

Any Jets fan that tells you he is disappointed with the coach's actions hasn't been around this team long enough. If Eric Mangini was getting teased at a sporting event, or the ballet, he'd probably start crying, or just sit there quietly and choose to be the "better man." But this isn't politics, it's football. And even though the season is over, Rex Ryan is keeping up the same mentality that endeared him to Jets fans this year. The same mentality that pushed the Jets in front of the Giants on a national scale, and the same mentality that makes the Jets the favorites to win the AFC East next season.