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Baseball today: Thursday, May 24

TURNABOUT IS FAIR PLAY: Yesterday the talk was how the Red Sox have gotten the pitching this year and the Yankees haven't. Today -- at least regarding last night's game -- it's the opposite, as Curt Schilling (AP Photo, left) was outdone by Andy Pettitte in the Yankees' 8-3 win. (projo.com) On his blog, Schilling says he felt ''great during the day, even better after warmups,'' (38pitches.com) but none of it carried over into the game. ''24 base runners in the past 12 innings means there isn’t just one problem here,'' he wrote. ''From lack of command to horrible execution, the problems run the gamut. This game always is and always will be about making adjustments and right now there is a plethora of adjustments that need to be made.'' The folks at Sons of Sam Horn are getting a little nervous about Schilling, based on his last three starts (sonsofsamhorn.net); be interesting to see if he weighs in on the discussion, as he sometimes does.

DON'T YOU GET WHIPLASH FROM JERKING BACK AND FORTH LIKE THAT? In the manic-depressive world that is New York -- and Boston -- baseball, the Yanks' victory was heralded as "a statement'' by the Daily News' John Harper, one day after many pundits had declared the Yankees to be dead and buried following their Tuesday night defeat. The New York Post's George King says the victory probably saved some Yankee hides, because ''at 11 1/2 lengths back, George Steinbrenner would have been looking for a scapegoat or two.''

Imagine if there were only 100 games left in the season, instead of 116 . . .

PERSPECTIVE, PERSPECTIVE: The Boston Herald's Steve Buckley says that ''even in losing two of the three games, the Red Sox look like the better team. '' And our own Bill Reynolds notes that what's happening with the Yankees can't be a surprise, as Buster Olney foresaw it all in his book 'The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty' years ago.

WHY AM I PAYING SO MUCH FOR SO LITTLE? Take a look at Ben Fry's salary-vs.-performance chart. Notice that big red line going from low performance to high salary . . . (benfry.com)

SAME STORY, NEW CHAPTER: The A-Rod-as-Boston-villain storyline appeared to have blown over by 2005, but all it took was one slide into second base to reignite the embers. Dustin Pedroia was in the spotlight yesterday, talking about A-Rod's hard slide Tuesday night. (projo.com) The Globe's Dan Shaughnessy devoted a column to it. For his part, Rodriguez says he has no idea what the fuss is all about. (New York Daily News) The Boston Herald's Tony Massarotti, meanwhile, defends A-Rod, calling the Pedroia/Rodriguez matchup "baseball’s answer to Godzilla and Bambi.''

WE'RE WITH YOU, DUSTIN: Both David Pinto (baseballmusings.com) and Seth Mnookin (sethmnookin.com) think Alex Rodriguez' takeout slide on Dustin Pedroia Tuesday night was wrong. Pinto stated his point calmly, Mnookin less so.

I DON'T SEE ALEX GONZALEZ ANYWHERE ON THIS LIST: Fielding expert John Dewan says Julio Lugo has been the fifth-best defensive shortstop in baseball so far this year (actasports.com)

DOWN ON THE FARM . . . Roger Clemens was less than overpowering last night in Trenton, raising questions about whether he's ready for prime time. (New York Daily News) The big guy declared himself to be ''a little bit further down the road'' to New York. (New York Post) ESPN's Jerry Crasnick, however, talked to a couple of scouts who don't think he's ready.

TOLD YA: Jim Kaat, writing for YESNetwork.com, says don't expect too much from Clemens. And he wrote that before last night.

ANOTHER COUNTY HEARD FROM: Frank Robinson is the latest to criticize Clemens' come-and-go contract. (cbs.sportsline.com) Is there anybody out there besides Brian Cashman and Joe Torre who thinks this is a good idea?

WHO CARES? Mike and The Mad Dog certainly don't, at least when it comes to Jason Giambi allegedly testing positive for amphetimines. The Daily News' Bob Raismann has a field day with what he calls the No Big Deal defense of the New York radio icons.

CARL, WE HARDLY KNEW YE: And so ends the star-crossed Yankee career of Carl Pavano. (New York Daily News) Remembering how hard the Red Sox pursued him in the 2004-05 offseason brings to mind the old saying: Be careful what you wish for. You might get it.

BE LIKE US: The Washington Post's William Arkin was at Fenway Park last weekend and was struck by the thought that ''if we could cover the military like sports, with transparency and intimate knowledge and a play-by-play that was both affectionate and unsparingly critical, we'd have a healthier debate. Interest and knowledge on the part of the typical American in foreign affairs and national security would actually increase.'' (blog.washingtonpost.com/earlywarning)

William also says he noticed ''five, six, seven tiers of desks'' in the press box. There are only four, though there are more in a workroom in the back.

I LIVE FOR THIS: One of the great things about the Internet is the video gems you sometimes find. The blog The Southpaw has remarkably clear video of the last inning of the Cubs' Don Cardwell's no-hitter against the Cardinals in 1960. (108mag.typepad.com/the_southpaw)

VOICE OF REASON: You don't normally associated that phrase with Denny McLain, but he has some very interesting thoughts on baseball's policy towards alcohol. McLain, whose daughter was killed by a drunk driver 15 years ago, was prompted to make a blog entry by Josh Hancock's recent death, and notes that when he played 40 years ago, ''[the] best place to get high on booze was a Major League clubhouse''. He also notes that three fellow members of the 1968 World Series champion Tigers -- manager Mayo Smith, first baseman Norm Cash and shortstop Ray Oyler -- were alcoholics, and all died premature deaths. (blogs.britannica.com/blog)

WE'RE BACK! You know the Milwaukee Brewers, who've been out of the spotlight since the True Blue Brew Crew days of the 1980s, have re-arrived when they make an appearance on a soap opera. (espn.go.com)

OLD FRIENDS: Looks like Alan Embree is Oakland's new closer (San Francisco Chronicle).

-- ART MARTONE

Posted by Art Martone  at 10:22 PM | Permalink