Jorge Posada Resigns With Yanks - Punches ticket for the Hall Of Fame

The Yankees finally got around to announcing the signing of Jorge Posada today. 4 years and 52 Million is significantly more than most teams would like to spend for a 36 year old catcher. Catchers typically just don't stay productive into their late thirties and early 40s. Here's the thing, though: Posada is not a typical catcher. He's exceptional.

That's where the Posada haters out there will simply have to deal with it. Jorge Posada will be voted to the Hall of Fame. Frankly, it shocked me when I learned that there actually were Posada haters, but they're out there and this will get their panties in a bunch. Yankee fans look at Jorge Posada and say, how could you hate the guy? All he does is play hard every season and You know who you are, haters. The average Posada hater falls into two categories: 1) Members of Jason Varitek's backwards hat wearing boy band, who are jealous of the clearly superior and far less self-aggrandizing Yankee and 2) Met fans who see Posada as a whiny, undeserving rider of the Yankee captain's coattails. Collectively, they spend lots of time dismissing the acheivements of the second best catcher of the last ten years.

Posada is one of only eight catchers in Major League history to record at least 20 home runs in seven or more seasons, joining Mike Piazza (11), Johnny Bench (11), Yogi Berra (10), Gary Carter (9), Carlton Fisk (8), Lance Parrish (7) and Roy Campanella (7). He and Ivan Rodriguez are the only two catchers in Major League history to record two seasons of 40 or more doubles.

Damn right! And all he needs is one more and that list drops to an impressive Piazza, Bench, Berra, Carter, Fisk. Wow. That's like the Mount Rushmore of catchers.

Well, he's just a .277 lifetime hitter! That sucks! Not so fast, haters. Jorge Posada has incredible patience at the plate. His active OBP of .3806 ranks 21st overall and leads all catchers, including the amazing Mike Piazza.

Let's assume that Jorge retires at the end of his Yankee contract, when he is 40 years old. He's averaged 68 runs, 21 HRs and 82 RBIs over the last three years. Were he to match that production for 4 more seasons and do it all as a catcher, his career totals would be

302 HR, 1189 RBI

Those are first ballot hall of fame numbers. Those numbers are right behind Yogi (358 and 1430)and Fisk (376 and 1330) in 17 seasons, rather than 19 and 24 seasons, respectively. They aren't that far behind Bench's (389 and 1376) in the same number of seasons. They are significantly behind Piazza's (427 and 1335 and counting - albeit as a DH now). In short, those numbers are very impressive. They'll get him in.

The obvious question is, is it realistic to expect him to do that? Probably not. You'd have to expect a decline from Jorge as he gets older, despite the fact that he's a very durable player and diligent worker. I do expect him to stay at catcher for the rest of his Yankee career, at least primarily. I don't expect him to move to DH full time like Piazza did, although he's a good enough hitter to warrant it. What I expect is for him to play two more years as the full time catcher before working in a young catcher that is currently in the Yankees system - someone like teenage offensive force Jesus Montero is the main plan for Jorge's successor, but it could be Frankie Cervelli (the yanks most advanced catching prospect - reminds me of LoDuca, hopefully without the crazies), Chase Weems (kind of a lefty Biggio) or Austin Romine (compared to pudge in arm strength and build). At the point that they work those guys in, he'll spend some time at DH or possibly even 1B. He probably will experience a decline in numbers because of age and this potential change in role, so let's discount those numbers 25%. That would make Jorge's final line roughly:

280 homers, 1100 RBI

That, with his championships and being an integral point of the most recent Yankee Dynasty, will be enough. Those numbers may seem a little unremarkable in the "steroid era", but not when you consider the day in, day out wear and tear that 13-17 seasons at catcher puts you through. And don't forget the five all-star appearances. Jorge's durability and production show he's an exceptional player. They count. And when you consider everything he will have achieved when he hangs it up, he'll deserve the honor.

So some day in July of 2016 or so, I'll drag my family to Cooperstown so they can watch Jorge Posada be inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame. And I'll stand and cheer a great Yankee and Hall of Famer.


P.S. And as preparation for the event, Toast and I will have to hit the local Ommegang brewery.

Friend Request Ettiquette

Ok, so I'm new to this whole facebook thing. I recently joined facebook only because I had to in order to see someone else's facebook page and they spammed me with an email asking me to look check it out. Shortly after that, a couple of my actual friends who I didn't know used facebook "friended" me (stupid pseudo-verb, by the way) and voila! I was sucked in and I'm now one of the nine bajillion people who have a facebook page with an entertaining assortment of useless crap on it.

Soon after that, I was choosing musical artists I like, taking movie trivia quizzes, basically wasting a lot of time. I even apparently breached facebook ettiquette (or at least actual friend etiquette) by "poke"-ing Toast's wife, inadvertently thinking this was how you made her a friend so she could see the pointless crap on my particular facebook page. Toast and I dueled with swords and seconds at dawn and moved on with our lives. By the way, I later looked up the real meaning of "poke" and it turns out it doesn't have one - you cheeky facebook bastards...

Anyway, this brings me to friend requests. I recently got one from a woman whom I have never met. She is apparently a "facebook friend" of one of my actual friends. What's the ettiquette here? I've learned that I probably shouldn't "poke" her. She's a married woman. But, I don't know her. Am I obligated to accept such a request? My instincts say I should tell her to piss off. Is that a gross facebook violation? Is the point of this exercise racing to have the most friends? If so, maybe I'm not cut out for this facebook thing after all. What say you?

If I wasn't me meme

Hmmm... I've been tagged by Toast. On a nice short meme created by konagod. Personally, I prefer ten questions or less memes. The 25+ memes are tedious.

What would Fridge be if Fridge weren't Fridge? I'm actually pretty happy with my career now. I mostly really enjoy what I do and more importantly, I'm good at it and I am very well suited for what I do. It fits me in many ways.

1) GM of a Major League baseball team - I would absolutely love this. I am the greatest fantasy baseball player of all time and would love nothing better than to have the opportunity to run a team. I'd also be excellent at it. Wouldn't matter which team, really. I'd enjoy running any one of them.

2) Movie/TV Producer - When I was in college, I balked at the sheer nerdiness of my chosen profession, wrote some goofy screenplays and applied to NYU film school and was rejected. I certainly didn't deserve admission by any stretch. But, had I been, I think I would have been pretty good for it and enjoyed it. I really think I have excellent movie and TV taste. In a true geeks dream, I always wanted to make a movie of the Elric Saga by Michael Moorcock.

3) Standup Comedian - First, I'm a funny bastard. Second, I enjoy speaking in front of people. And lastly, I've been best man twice and each time I gave a toast that had people laughing and DJ's saying I should rent myself out as a best man. I loved it. I've also liked the construction of a good joke. I'm still looking for an open-mic comedy night so that I could really try it out. Not that I'd actually do it. The life of all but the most famous comedians is kinda crappy. But, I'd like writing jokes.

4) Governor of Connecticut - I think being Governor is the sweet spot of American Politics. Being president is too much of a pain in the ass and the republicans would be all over my ass for inhaling many times, etc. Being a congressman is a pain because you're in a constant election cycle and only have one vote once you're in there. Nope, Governor is where it's at. You can affect real change and I could help the people of the state I love. I could bring them health care, better roads and probably higher taxes. But, my state would kick even more ass and then maybe I could get tapped as a Vice Presidential candidate (the other sweet spot of politics).

5) Gadget geek - I love gadgets. And the only thing better than having lots of gadgets is getting rid of them and getting new ones. I'd love to have a David Pogue type gig, or work for C|Net or Gizmodo. Traveling to those shows, having manufacturers send you all that stuff? Constantly trying new gadgets and then giving them the thumbs up or down? Heaven.

There you go! That's what Fridge would do if Fridge weren't already Fridge (and therefore already pretty kick-ass).

I tag Manny and my brother in the comments.

Don't you do it!!!!

Don't cancel Journeyman, NBC. By my reckoning, it's the only good new show of the season. What are you gonna do, make the office into an hour and a half? Clearly the network of brilliant ideas.



Watch that clip. Please excuse the stupid use of Evanesence. Then set your TiVos. It's on at 10pm tonight.

Thus ends another pathetic blogger plea for their favorite new show. You may now resume your regularly scheduled programming (now that it includes Journeyman).

See? It's not just me

Yes, Google is trying to take over the world.

Google's truest and most formidable foes are much older and more powerful. Today we call them Verizon and AT&T, but their real name is the Bell system. Their ideology, which today governs the cell phone world, is called "Vailism," and it can be traced back to 1907 and the origins of AT&T's domination of American telephony. The Bells' philosophy, as promulgated by AT&T's greatest president, Theodore Vail, is based on closed systems, centralized power, and as much control as possible over every part of the network. Vailism is the antithesis, in short, of everything Google stands for. It is this—conquering the business culture of the telephone, as opposed to the computer—that is Google's great challenge.

Great article. Please read it and then stop shaking your head dismissively at my paranoia. Thanks.

Long live my iPod!

Well, my iPod is back. Welcome back my little black shiny friend. As it happens, the problem seemed to be an incompatibility between the version of iTunes I had on the PC that has my library and the new iPod software update that Apple just published. My iPod will sync just fine with iTunes version 7.5, but I was kicking it old school at 7.3.2. So, if your iPod seems to sync but doesn't show any songs listed when you spin the wheel, that's likely the problem. I updated my iTunes version, synced and all was right with the world again. On that note, a here goes a shuffle!

1) Ryan Adams - "New York, New York" Gold
Can't you just picture A-Rod strolling down the street bopping his head to this peppy tune, his pockets filled with million-dollar bills? Yep, I can. Welcome back A-Rod.

2) Radiohead - "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" The Bends
This would be a kick-ass song for my funeral. You hear that, people? Play this tune, get your sobbing and weeping over with chop-like and then tap the keg!

3) Stereophonics - "Lying In The Sun" Just Enough Education To Perform
Kelly Jones has a fantastic voice. That is all. This shuffle is going very well, if I do say so. Three quality cuts. Time for an iPod curveball, I'd think. We'll see.

4) Evanesence - "My Immortal" Fallen
I know, I know. They suck, right? They're the Hootie and the Blowfish of goth crap music. That's what I keep hearing. Still, another amazing voice. Frankly, I'll forgive lackluster songwriting and general lameness if an exceptional voice is in play and this girl has one. And this lyric truly fits my current situation.

And if you have to leave
I wish that you would just leave
'Cause your presence still lingers here
And it won't leave me alone

5) Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - "Shuffle Your Feet" Howl
One of the best albums you're probably not listening to. I think they have a new one. I'll have to find out.

6) Queens Of The Stone Age - "Broken Box" Lullabies to Paralyze

In my head you're all brand new
I guess you're really all the same
In my head you're all brand new
Tell your new boy where i came
In my head you're all brand new
Take that broken pussy elsewhere
In my head you're all brand new
Save it baby, i don't care

Excellent eff-you break up song!

7) Haven - "Beautiful Thing" Between the Senses

learn to live, you're not alone
take your time, and it will come and die
don't know when

These guys are ok. An able example of the whiny Britpop genre, but not a distinguished one. That lyric is a perfect example.

8) Ash - "There's a Star" Free All Angels
This is a song that starts out sounding like a Bond theme and then slips into muddled lameness. This band had an outstanding single in Burn Baby Burn (see video below). But the rest of the album is merely ok.


9) AC\DC - "Shake A Leg" Back In Black

Idle juvenile on the street, on the street
Who is kicking everything with his feet, with his feet
Fighting on the wrong side of the law, of the law
Don't kick, don't fight, don't sleep at night

10) Weezer - "Simple Pages" Weezer
Rivers Cuomo is probably the greatest living Connecticut Rocker. That is, until I finish Guitar Hero III.

No iPod curveball. Glad to have you back in my life, my little buddy. I had forgotten how much radio sucked without you. Now that I've remembered, I can go back to forgetting again.

QuickHits

Item #1 - A Fan's website buys an English Soccer team. Apparently they're gonna let people vote to approve roster moves and lineup changes. Sounds just crazy enough to work. I am now going to GoDaddy.com to see if I can register a good URL so I can do the same to my poor ridiculous Knicks.

Item #2 - A pictorial Album Review/Analogy.

Devil Without a Cause by Kid Rock is to 1985 Kelly LeBrock
















as Kid Rock's new Album Rock And Roll Jesus is to 2007 Kelly LeBrock.


Meaning, you can see how they came from the same place, but it's just not at all the same.









Item #3 - Tom Morello, I'm gunning for you this weekend. I will Rock You Like a Hurricane.


Item #4 - Yankee Update:
- Welcome Back Jorge.
- Welcome Back (after much unnecessary nonsense) A-Rod
- Mo, Please sober up and sign.
- Dear Andy Pettitte. Couldn't you use another 15 million dollars? Please?
- Dear Hank Steinbrenner. You sir, are the new "Big Stein". Glad to have you aboard.

Item #5 - Don't be this Bluetooth guy. Larry David will school you.

Paranoid Android

I once wrote that Google frightened me. But they also do some wicked cool stuff as well. Like the demo above, which is for a development platform that Google has created for phones called Android. They've engaged loads of handset makers and will let them battle it out for making the phones Not exactly Motorola Razr type phones, but combo devices like the iPhone or a smart phone. Check it out and see what they've done in the prototype phase. It's pretty impressive. Additionally, the tools are free for developer nerds like me and will eventually be open source. As an open platform, I can develop apps for my phone for free.

It's completely the opposite model of the super-closed, super-controlled iPhone Apple model. There have been lots of rumors about an gPhone to compete in the cell phone market. But clearly this is not that. Instead, Google couldn't give a crap about which phone you're running. They just want you to be using their software and by extension, viewing data that they send to your handset. And they will give away LOTS of free functionality to do that.

So, I'm in a weird position. I'm still a little dubious of the ever increasing control that Google seems to like to have over information. While they are probably benevolent now, that could change. On the other hand, the phone looks sweet. As a gadget lover, I want one (especially if I can trade if for my windows mobile phone - what a POS) and it would be tons of fun to write an app for one. Anyway, I find the whole notion truly fascinating. I'm gonna download it and try it out.

Noooooooo!!!!!!

First, the Giants get their collective asses handed to them by the Cowboys. Now, my iPod has died. I tried the "reset" sequence. I tried "restore". My poor little ipod doesn't show any songs...

Hold me.

Updated:
I decided to try and sync it to a different machine (my vista laptop) and that appeared to wake my little black buddy up. It now accepts and plays songs. So, it's apparently not a hardware problem as I feared, but more likely a software bug. In my panic, I had forgotten that the problem began on first use after my last sync, which included a software update. Phew.

Updated 2:
I checked and, unfortunately, the Giants still lost.

Goin to the game!

Won't be around the couch on Sunday. Due to the kindness of a long time friend who got a ticket for me, I will be tailgating at Giants Stadium with 70+ thousand other Giant fans as we ready for the Showdown at the Swamp.

I'm unbelievably pumped for the game, despite the fact that I have to drive to the off site parking, take the shuttle and then find my friends in the vast parking lot before I can get down to some serious pre-game drinking.

The Cowgirls are a very good team, but this is the healthiest the Giants have been at this point in the season in a long time. It should be a great matchup.

I'd say Go Big Blue! at this point, but we're wearing red. Go Red!

Can't wait!

South Park does Guitar Hero

Imagine my surprise when my TiVo listed the title of the latest South Park episode as "Guitar Queero". I took a deep breath and readied myself to be mocked by Parker and Stone. It's hysterical. Along the way, they also spoof the stereotypical musician movie, where the talented young artist is scooped up by the music business, corrupted, hits bottom only to find redemption by going back to his roots. Great stuff.

BTW, my imaginary band, "The Fridges" is steadily climbing through the set list, and absolutely I picked the Gene Simmons character as my avatar. Screw you, South Park, Guitar Hero is totally awesome. And I rock because Guitar Hero says I do.

Quick Hits

Sorry to anyone that might have come to this blog hoping to find anything of interest to read. Things have been crazy in Fridge's world and thus blogging opportunities have been few.

In lieu of some engrossing long diatribe, here are a few quick thoughts:

1) This is hysterical: Jerry Seinfeld tooling on Larry King.

2) Halloween with the mini-Fridges was a lot of fun. It also prompted this exchange with my 4 year old son.
Me: Okay, don't forget to wash your hands after you go potty.
Him: Uh, dad. Batman doesn't wash his hands.
Me: Sure he does.
Him: No, he has gloves.
Me: You don't have gloves.
Him: But I am Batman.
Me: Ok, listen. Even Batman has a Dad. Wash your hands.
Him: Oh, alright...

3) How egotistical do you have to be to think that God helped you win the World Series? Why would God give a crap? But, hey many thanks to Curt for taking himself out of the running for Yanks 5th starter. The Yankees had of course centered their offseason plans around signing this bloated ego-maniacal asshole. Oh well, back to the drawing board.

4) P-Krug has a book. I'm reading it now. You should, too.

5) Guitar Hero III for the Wii could be one of the coolest things I've ever owned. I have mastered Foghat and Pat Benatar (yes, Pat Benatar. I was initially confused, too).

6) Because you didn't ask for it, here it is. The history of LOLCats.


http://view.break.com/392548 - Watch more free videos