Message to Joe Girardi: Just say no to Chan Ho Park

Squawker Jon may be relieved that the Mets won, but I'm, of course, angry that the Yankees lost. And I'm also irate that Joe Girardi chose to use Chan Ho Park in a 1-0 game. Javier Vazquez - who pitched very well last night - may be the person with the L next to his name, but Park is the one who really deserves it.

From ESPN.com:

Friday night's awful outing was just another in a season full of them for the South Korean righty. Park has allowed a run in eight of his 15 appearances this season and given up a glaring 25 hits in just 19 innings.

"He's just not making pitches," manager Joe Girardi said. "He just didn't locate well enough to get people out. When you get behind the leadoff hitter and walk him, you're asking for trouble."

You're also asking for trouble pitching him at all, Joe. And where was Joba, anyway? Off hiding with the Yankee bats these days?

Seeing Chan Ho Park in Friday's game was as inexplicable as seeing Roger Clemens at Fenway Park last night. At least Roger's appearance was funny, in a twisted way - he's trying to clear his name on using steroids, and he shows up to see...Manny Ramirez? Heh!


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Should Manny Ramirez be cheered - or booed - at Fenway?

I wrote a piece for The Faster Times about Manny Ramirez's return to Fenway Park tonight, saying that I thought most fans would cheer him in his first at-bat.

So I'm wondering what our Red Sox fan readers think. What say you, Boston fans?

As for myself, I do kind of miss seeing Manny 19 games a year - at least the personality part. I found "Manny being Manny" pretty darn entertaining over the years. Don't miss him killing the Yankees at every turn, though!

What do you think? Tell us about it!

Late night, late loss, for Joba Chamberlain and the Yankees

What a day. The Yankees have a lousy loss that kept fans up way past their bedtime, thanks to that endless rain delay. Joba Chamberlain looked terrible, and only lasted four innings. The Yankee bullpen was ineffective, to say the least. Melky Cabrera got banged up in the game, and needs an MRI. And Brian Bruney is off to see the Wizard, err, I mean Dr. James Andrews. Not exactly a red letter day for the Yankees.

So now, after winning nine in a row, the Bombers have lost three of five. Is this cause for concern? It depends if you're a glass-half-full or glass-half-empty type of person, I guess. I'm most worried about Melky Cabrera. If there's anybody who's been a sparkplug for Yankee rallies, it's him.

Let's hope A.J. Burnett can get his first victory in over a month today. It would be a shame to lose this series to the Rangers.

* * *

Jason of the great baseball blog It Is About the Money, Stupid has another website - and a rather devious plan. He's asking fans to Vote for Manny Ramirez for the All-Star Game.

Why does he want Manny as a starter? Jason writes:

To highlight the silliness that are the MLB rules towards PED users as well as their "head in the sand" approach to this situation. Rather than confront it head-on, MLB is choosing to do nothing and simply hope there are three higher vote getters in the NL OF.

Manny Ramirez is currently ranked fourth in the All-Star outfield balloting. And you know who's leading for NL catchers? Yadier Molina! I vote for him every time I fill out an All-Star ballot, just so I can tick off Squawker Jon about the 2006 NLCS!

What do you think? Leave us a comment!

Oh Manny! Some songs which sum up Manny Ramirez

In response to Manny Ramirez's 50-game suspension, mobile music site mSpot.com sent Subway Squawkers a list of five ringtones that sum up the the Manny mess. Their site lets you edit your own ringtones to the part of the song you want, so mSpot picked the most applicable lyrics for each ringtone choice.

Anyhow, I can't resist posting this list, and adding a few of my own:

1. Stars Are Blind (Paris Hilton): “…some people never get beyond their stupid pride…”

2. Before you Accuse Me (Eric Clapton): “Before you accuse me take a look at yourself…”

3. Rehab (Amy Winehouse): “When I come back you’ll know, know, know…”

4. Blame It (Jamie Foxx feat. T Pain): “I ain’t sayin what you won’t do but you know what we’re probably gonna do…”

5. Wasn't Me - Shaggy: “Never admit to a word…”

I have a few other suggestions of my own for Manny's ringtone, focused on the fact that he took the female fertility drug human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG):

• "Man, I Feel Like a Woman": Shania Twain
• "Mother's Little Helper": The Rolling Stones
• "Having My Baby": Paul Anka

What songs fit Manny Ramirez - or any other baseball player, for that matter. Leave us a comment!

PR guru Ronn Torossian's thoughts on A-Rod, Manny, Clemens, and the Yankee front office

Can the Yankees get their new stadium filled? Did Alex Rodriguez kill his image for good by kissing himself in the mirror, dating Madonna, and using steroids? And what about how the steroid scandal has affected the reputations of Manny Ramirez and Roger Clemens? I asked a public relations expert about these issues and more.

Ronn Torossian is President & CEO of 5W Public Relations. His client list, which includes Coca-Cola, McDonald's, P.Diddy's Bad Boy Worldwide Entertainment Group, the Christian Trinity Broadcasting Network to the President of Serbia, is as diverse as his native Bronx, he quips.

Torossian, 34, grew up five minutes from Yankee Stadium and said he used to cut school to go watch Don Mattingly and Dave Winfield play. He calls the Yankees the "icon of American sports," but says that "the entire world has taken a fall," and the team isn't immune.

"The world has changed drastically financially," Torossian notes, "and the Yankees need to change with it." He says the Yankees front office has to "be receptive to what the fans have to say" regarding their criticisms of the new Stadium.

As for the team's dealings in the press, Torossian said "I didn't love" Randy Levine's response to Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber, where the Yankee president told Garber to "worry about Beckham, not the Yankees."

How can the Yankees stand out in this challenging economic climate? By being a positive story. "Many out there would like to see sports become fun again, Torossian says, "especially in these times."

The use of performance-enhancing drugs, of course, is one of the more negative issues facing Major League Baseball. I asked Torossian his thoughts on the players caught up in the scandal - Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, and Roger Clemens.

Alex Rodriguez is "not likeable.", the PR maven says, noting "his brand has really evolved in a bad way," Besides the steroids, there was the reported relationship with Madonna and that "absurd photo" of A-Rod kissing himself in the mirror. Rodriguez "doesn't do things to help himself," Torossian says.

So what can Alex do to fix his image? Torossian has a simple solution - "shut up and play ball."

These days, Torossian says that people think ballplayers make a lot of money from endorsements, but "the reality is very few athletes make money off the field."

Manny Ramirez, the PR expert notes, is one of the players whose star power has never translated to big commercials. As for Manny's marketability, "my perception is he really doesn't care that much" about that, Torossian says.

The 5WPR CEO says "the fall of Roger Clemens" coincides with "the rise of steroids" as a hot issue.

But the biggest issue facing baseball these days is the recession. So will the Yanks weather the current stormy economic climate? Torossian says yes. While the team is affected by what's going on in the world, the Yankees "won't fail," Torossian says. "They can't fail."


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A-Rod's A-Hip problem means A--Mess for Yankees

I have a busy day ahead of me, after a busy day yesterday, so I don't have time for a full-fledged Squawk. But the A-Rod hip news, combined with the Yanks missing out on Manny Ramirez, has me down.

Alex Rodriguez is the oxygen thief of all oxygen thieves, to be sure. Squawker Jon wrote yesterday about it. And I do agree with Jon that there is a reality show idea in there. In addition to Squawker Jon's choices of A-Rod, T.O, and Manny, you could have Michael Jackson, Octomom, Britney Spears, and Lindsay Lohan trapped in a room, trying to see which one can get the most attention. Sheesh.

On a more serious note, this really messes up the Yanks' season, obviously. If A-Rod needs to have the surgery eventually, though, I would prefer he do it sooner rather than later. I do wonder why he didn't get this checked out last year, when the hip was first bothering him.

What do you think? Leave us a comment!