HEY, YU, $20 MILLION ANNUALLY

That’s right, that is what Yu Darvish is asking for, $20 million annually, is he kidding? Seems to be what some media is reporting, and if true, shouldn’t he sign a major league contract before becoming arrogant?

The Rangers have exclusive negotiating rights to Darvish through 4 p.m. on Jan. 18. The Japanese media outlet Sponichi said Darvish wants a five-year deal with an average annual value of about $20 million.

He has yet to strike out anyone, win a game, or even face a batter! That is a lot of nerve and blind faith at the major league level for a lot of money. Are the Rangers dumb enough to pay that? Daisuke Matsuzaka received a six-year, $52MM deal from the Red Sox about five years ago, and the Sox are still reeling from it.

The Rangers won the exclusive right to negotiate with Darvish for $51,703,411, which would be returned from the Nippon Ham Fighters if they fail to reach an agreement with Darvish.

What amazes me is that the US teams would pay for the negotiating rights to any player, Japanese, Chinese or American. If they want to come here and play, let them try out like everybody else!

IT’S SO OBVIOUS, NO ONE SAW IT!

Is Disney interested in buying the Dodgers? Just think of the possibilities if they did. Dodger Stadium would become a theme ballpark! They could hire the McCourts to run the ‘Hall of Horrors’. The possible asking price is well over $1 billion for the storied franchise. Other expected bidders being Magic Johnson, Joe Torre, Mark Cuban, Peter O’Malley and East Coast hedge fund executive, Steven Cohen. At least Mark Cuban would make it lively, and Joe Torre would return it to its former status as a venerated major league baseball club.

EVERYONE LOVES CINDERELLA

There are so many teams that could be dubbed; “Cinderella teams” this year in the playoffs that it is hard to choose. Mine is the NY Giants, and I’m a Jets fan. The reason being that no one selected the Giants to go far, and the fact that Tom Coughlin was almost axed by the media before the season was even over.

The media had to keep chopping with a dull ax since the Giants are deeper into the playoffs. If the Giants pull off an upset, and win against the vaunted Green Bay Packers, Mr. Coughlin, who never smiles, will have the last laugh.

Fred Wilpon

TIME TO SELL

Mr. Wilpon, I am begging you, sell the Mets and get out of baseball, you are ruining it for the fans. This is not going to be pretty in 2012, and if you can’t compete, and you know you can’t, you will lose more money than you already owe. The fans look forward to this time of the year, and you have done nothing.

Next year, the franchise player, David Wright will be gone, maybe to a rival. I use ‘rival’ generously, since you can’t beat anyone anymore that give you a rivalry. It seems to be a pointless ownership when you think about it-losing team and losing money; should equal “SELL”.

ABOUT TIME

The Kansas City Chiefs got it right this time, in hiring Romeo Crennel as head coach and removing the ‘interim’ from the name.

Crennel as you know was the head coach of the Browns and did a great job of taking over the last two weeks of the season and winning both games for Kansas City.

OBIT

Former Yankee third baseman Andy Carey 80; passed away on Dec. 15 of Lewy body dementia. The former Yankee was at the corner for New Yorkers for four years when the Yankees won four American League pennants and two World Series. Playing along side of Phil Rizzuto, Yogi Berra, Mickey Mantle, and Whitey Ford, he helped the team to establish itself as the one great franchise.

In 1952, Carey joined the Yankees and anchored at the hot corner, without any publicity or theatrics, just solid everyday baseball. In 1955 he led the league in triples with 11 and the first of four consecutive pennants.

Andy Carey played for Kansas City, Chicago White Sox and the Los Angeles Dodgers before hanging it up in 1962.

AN ALL STAR IN THE HALL

Barry Larkin, 12 time All-Star. 3 time Golden Glove Winner and 1995 MVP winner was elected into Baseball’s Hall of Fame.

Receiving 86.4 percent of the vote from the Baseball Writers Association, this was his third year on the ballot. The newest member of the Hall received 495 votes. 

That's all I wrote, folks!