Yankees better not to get off slow start this season…

Did you guys get a chance to take a look at Yankees schedule for this season? I did, Well, the conclusion is Yankees will be fine if they get off hot start this season. Maybe this is why Joe Girardi give bombers hard workout during spring training. This is the breakdown…



Did you guys notice the highlight of breakdown of Yankees 2008 Schedule? That’s why I say Bombers will be fine if Yankees get off hot start right out of gate.

There are two strange months which are April and July. In April, We have a lot of road games. In contract, We have a lot of home games in July.

In April, We not only have a lot of road games but also have difficult opponents. The highest total games will be played at this month. Opponents includes 17 games vs AL East(5 games vs Boston), 6 games vs AL Center Contenders.

In May, We still have heavy schedule which will be played for 28 games, including 10 games vs AL East, 7 games vs AL Center contenders and 6 games vs AL West Contenders.

After April and May, Yankees will have lighter schedule. One other thing need to be noticed is We have 7 games vs Boston in July.

Damm… I hate this…

I have been moving around different places and countries the past 10 years. Because of that, I thought I am very good at making adjustments and getting used to new environment. As you guys know, I love new culture,stuffs and challenges. I got to Australia almost 5 months ago. One thing in Australia I hate and can’t get used to is how to use internet.

In Taiwan(also in America), you pay fixed fee for umlimited internet. You can do whatever you want no matter how long you need online.You even can use internet everywhere in Taiwan. In Australia, You need to calculate usage when you use internet. As long as you stay online and create traffic, you’re using usage. Don’t even think about downloading some music or films. The internet is so experience in Australia because their population is not enough. I can’t image what I can do once baseball season starts.

Right now, I even can’t use internet every day. For example, I posted these couple of posts at my Japanese friends home by using her internet. Sometimes, I need to write my posts in the word format first and post them once I get my chances to use internet. Damm… I hate this…So, please be patient and forgive me if you guys get to my blog and don’t find new posts…Sorry….

Is this kind of illness when I can’t live without internet?

The day Andy Pettitte is going to face media, everyone and yankees fans.....

(From What a Character website)

When you're right, no one remembers
When you're wrong, no one forgets!

What a truth is for baseball games! Maybe for everything in our life

I am not a cartoon fan because I don't really get a chance to fall in love with. Because of all my sibling including me having shortsightedness, my mom doesn't allow us to watch too many cartoons when we were children.

Luckily, Charlie Brown and Snoopy is one of few cartoons I know because my old sister, jean, is so crazy about Snoopy. I always remember this picture and remind myself not to make these kind of mistakes. That's why I try to be positive and forgiving about everything or everyone in my life. I try to remember good things people have done instead of remembering bad or negative things all the time. Steal one line from Wang who said that in 2006 after a game which A-Rod had three errors behind him:"No one is perfect"

That's why sometimes I have problems with some comments from some Yankees fans. Of course, I am not perfect, but try my best for that. Great quote. Share with you guys. This picture probably will show up many times during season.

Why do I want to post this today? Today is the day Andy Pettitte is going to face media, everyone and Yankees fans. Let's Go Yankees! Let's Go Andy!

tough...fair new manager... Joe Girardi.....

We all know Joe Girardi handed his rule to their players already... The most interesting one he handed out for me was this:

Mariano Rivera has a pair of gray uniform pants

And the best quote I like from Joe Girardi is:

Think about this game.Nothing ever actually is in stone. You can't make promises to the people because people have to their job. If you make promises to someone and they didn't do their job, then People are going to say you break your promises.... You have to earn it.....

I don't know how Joe Girardi deal with veterans about playing time, but I think Joe Girardi will choose whoever play better at that moment and that will create more competition. Of course, this will create more conflict as well.

Can't wait part 2

Does Joe Girardi try to send soft messages out?

I don't think too many people can move their eyes away from our new manager Joe Girardi. A lot of news, reports and columns already flood in. The most analysis is all about how the tough, hardworking, organized guy Joe Girardi is. As far as I am concerned, I like what I saw so far from Girardi. Posada even said to reporters he expect Girardi will be tougher and more critical of them than Joe Torre.

Front get-go, first sentence for his first interview on the first workout of Spring training. Joe Girardi said:"This things I prepared for months and bomb here it's...". You can tell from his answers to every reporters' questions. He was well prepared for every words came out his mouth. Every questions is regarding for Joba's position as a setup man or a starting pitcher. He never change his answer. One time he even correct himself and rearrange few words he says about Joba.

In addition, Girardi not only mentions couple of reporters' names during the whole interview but also cracks up few jobs along the way.

Couple of things I saw so far from Girardi are great. I don't know he does them by nature or by design, but I like them. He makes sure to answer questions as short as he can. I believe the less he says, the less mistakes he makes and the less stories reporters or talk show hosts can write or talk about. He also said his message to players is simple: "healthy and care about him"

The most impressive thing he has done is sending some soft messages out to players.

First of all, He brings all three kids to camp with him. He and his wife are playing with them on the field after workout every day. His kids wrote some words down and drew some pictures on the board. They said:"We love you, dad. You are the best".

Secondly, The first thing he told to all pitchers was not trying too hard now. Take it easy and tell them you can't make the team in two days. He understand players are eager to impress people, but it's easy for them to get hurt when their arm strength is not there yet.

Thirdly, He not only spent 30 minutes with Kei Igawa in order to understand him more but also said the most impressive thing he saw from Kyle is his easy emotion without talking to him because he felt Kyle is relax and was not trying to impress him at his first bullpen of Spring training.

So, What's my conclusion? Joe Girardi understands players. If we have a injury free season, we are going to have a great season ahead without questions.

A great interview about Wang from a great Taiwanese Yankees beat reporter

Yes, another post about Wang. I am sorry; It’s very hard for me not to write about Wang, so please stand me for that.

This is a great interview by a great Taiwanese Yankees beat reporter with Wang today. Want to share with you guys. She uses Q&A form for that because we all know Wang is so quiet no matter which language he speaks.

Reporter: I know you took a shower for very long time after ALDS Game 4 last year.
Wang: mm, I was very angry at myself. Very angry.

Reporter: I know you had a travel plan for off-season with family. What happened? Cancel?
Wang: Yes, I cancelled all the plan and stayed at NY home for one month.

Reporter: What were you doing for that one month? Keep thinking? Don't want to face or think about it?
Wang: I kept thinking about that for whole month. Yankees gave me game DVDs I kept watching and thought what I was wrong with me. Try to find out the problems for improvement in the future.

Reporter: So, choose to face it?
Wang: mm, tried to learn new things before new season

Reporter: What did you learn from that?
Wang: Trust my stuff. Don’t think what will happen after every pitch. Don’t drop my arm and keep my arm at the same position for every pitch.

Reporter: You told American media you pitched badly because you were tired during playoff?
Wang: This is not what I mean. I said I couldn’t lift my arm, couldn’t keep the ball down, my body is wide open and my delivery is terrible.

Reporter: Is fatigue part of reason for that?
Wang: m..m..I think..m..m ..just a little bit

Reporter: Did you ever think about telling coach? Especially Game 4 for three days rest
Wang: mm… But, I have velocity….

Reporter: So, you don’t know why?
Wang: Yes

Reporter: Any teammates or fans comfort you or help you out when you were so upset during the period of time?
Wang: mm.. I didn’t get calls from teammates too much, but I am so emotional when I went back to Taiwan because Taiwanese fans still trust me and believe me.

Well, It's all about business

I am not a big fan of "It's all about business" approach because of my Taiwanese culture. We are human being with heart. As a sport fan, the reason I love my team and my players because I passionate about them from my heart. I still can't act that way. I think this is a lesson I probably never get high score on. This is the lesson I probably need to learn if I want to have a successful career as a film producer.

At the beginning, I thought the reason Wang ends up with arbitration hearing is Wang's agent(Camp) insisting on not splitting difference. As thing turn out, I am wrong about that, This is the quote from Brain Cashman,

“There was no reason to go higher than four,” Cashman said. “Settling at the midpoint because of an inflated file number would have made no sense.”(New York Times)

This is the reaction from Wang's agent Alan Nero,

“The disappointment here is the Yankees made little or no effort to settle. We move on and now it’s time to play baseball.”(New York Times)

As you guys know, I am against going into arbitration hearing. If you haven't read them, there are two links for that. Before I talk about my feeling and reactions for this whole arbitration hearing, I am going to tell you guys what both sides debated about, what Wang feel, what reactions from Taiwanese media and fans during the whole arbitration hearing.

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What Yankees said

ERA is too high. Get hurt too many times. Strikeout rate is too low. Wang won that many games because of Yankees' excellent defense and offense. The main point? Two terrible playoff games against Indian last year.

This is my o.s. for what Yankees said

ERA is too high(It's not low for sure, but is it really high for AL East pitcher). Get hurt too many times(Who doesn't get hurt as a pitcher). Strikeout rate is too low(Wang goes to get your strikeouts and who cares how many innings you pitch). Wang won that many games because of Yankees' excellent defense and offense(Why not every Yankees pitchers get 19 wins two years in a row). The main point? Two terrible playoff games against Indian last year(Of course, no doubt, he is terrible and I am upset about his performance too, but Yankees has to have a chance to fail).

What Wang's agent said

Consistency throughout his career as far. Bring a lot of Asian markets and fan bases on the table. Win a lot of games for Yankees

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How and What Wang Feel during the whole process

Wang said He kept waiting a clear answer from Yankees the whole off-season and decided to wait until camp. He keep waiting until the last minute and realize Yankees are not interested in signing him long-term deal and doesn't budge from their offer as well. That's why he ends up with arbitration hearing. Why not just give up? Wang said he wants to know what Yankees think about him and how much he need to improve from Yankees' standpoint, especially what they think about his failure of last year playoff.

The whole arbitration hearing is like a meeting, unlike a court. It lasts 4.5 hours. Each side has one hour to express their arguments, 30 minutes to answer questions from other side and 5 minutes to make a conclusion. Wang feel tired after that and prefer to play ball on the field.

It's great learning experience for him. The outcome is not bad at all because at least I have a contract which let me keep playing baseball. It's also not bad to hear which areas he need to improve. Of course, he doesn't feel good to hear what Yankees said, but He tries to treat what Yankees said as advices. He understands almost everything what Yankees said.

Wang said he know his strikeout rate is too low since he uses his sinker too much. When he was asked by Taiwanese media if he feel hurt when Yankees mention his playoff failure again during arbitration hearing, He pauses a few seconds and said:"Of course, a little bit. I keep thinking how to improve that after playoff" A lot of Taiwanese reporters all mention one thing in their articles, they feel Wang care about that, try to forget about that and feel upset when they mention his playoff failures every time.

He is happy it's over and feel excited at new season. He will do his best to pitch better and hope he doesn't have to go into arbitration hearing again. Unfortunately for Wang, this probably won't be the last time. According to his agent Alan Nero told to Taiwanese media at a media conference, he said:" It's good for Wang to get used to this process as early as possible because the next three years before reaching free agency he has to go through this process every year.

Alan Nero also said:"Wang shows me a lot of courage and trust me during the whole process, I don't think there will have any negative affects on Wang because he is a smart person with stable personality and understand it's business."

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Taiwanese fans and media reactions

A lot of Taiwanese fans love Yankees and wish us to do well because of Wang. Taiwanese fans are upset about this for sure, but they feel fine because Wang feel fine, especially Wang, Taiwanese fans and media all expect 3~4 million from the beginning.

The reason Yankees go into arbitration hearing from Taiwanese media perspectives is Wang isn't special from Yankees' standpoint because they have a lot of pitchers on their farm system. Unlike Cano. Yankees don't have too many position players in the farm.

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Benchmark??

Alan Nero said the most comparable case for Wang is Dontrelle Willis. Nero also thinks Wang is better than Dontrelle Willis. He think Wang's value worth 5 million, but he know he won't get that. That's why they put up 4.6 million figure because he think Yankees will negotiate to settle at the mid-point. Nero said he will accept 4.3 million if Yankees offer this figure, but they hold their line firm. During the negotiation, Yankees starts at 3.6 million and Nero starts at 5 million.

I know a lot of fans mention Dontrelle Willis(4.35 million for 2006) and Scott Kazmir(3.8 million for 2008) as example why Wang shouldn't get more than them. I am not a big stat person. You guys probably can find out all stats to prove it. I will just say what I saw and what I feel.

First of all, they weren't pitching for contenders. Their records didn't effect their teams' chances to make the playoff no matter how good they pitch. You can say all you want about Wang, but Yankees may not make the playoff without Wang from 2005~2007.

They also pitch for small market teams with lower expectation and payroll. They didn't have tons of expectation and pressure from fans and media about winning. I think expectation and pressure carry big weight on players.

Secondly, Dontrelles Willis pitched for Marlins which is NL team with big ballpark and Scott Kazmir didn't pitch more innings than Wang for past two years. Keep in mind Wang has comparable number with them under those circumstances. Don't get me wrong. I am not saying Wang is perfect and he is better than Dontrelles Willis and Scott Kazmir for sure, but don't tell me Wang's not worthy for Yankees at least to split difference and show appreciation.

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My feeling and reactions?

Are you kidding me? Why waste a lot of time and efforts for 0.3 million to risk the chances may hurt Wang's feeling? Well, obviously, Yankees don't think so and probably don't care. It's all about business and why pay more if you don't have to. How about Cano? Well, Yankees feel they may need to pay more in the future. For Wang? Well, He will be there anyway if all young pitchers Yankees have in the farm don't pan out as expected.

I have to confess this. It's very hard for me to stay unbiased about Wang even though I am a long time Yankees fan. The most upset part of this whole process for me is why not just pay 0.3 million to avoid arbitration hearing and show some appreciation, not about long-term contract, especially when you consider this sentence may come out,

"However, if Wang gets off to a slow start, he can expect to hear that as the reason(about losing arbitration hearing)."(From NY Post)

Does Wang want to go into arbitration hearing?No. Do this cause a distraction when Wang gets off to a slow start and then media come up with this sentence? Yes.(The same probably goes with Pettitte's HGH case). Not to mention we may already hurt Wang's feeling, added more pressure on Wang and reminded him how bad he is during the whole arbitration hearing. Sure, You can say if he can't deal with, he is not the player we are looking for. But, why increase that chances or create more distractions when you can avoid.

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The things I care

You know what. The most thing I care after reading all news from Taiwanese and American media about this whole arbitration hearing is this: Wang is healthy and good to go. Wang told Taiwanese media he kept workout the whole off-season. That's why he lose weight to 227 pounds which is the lightest weight he has since 2005. He also threw three bullpen before coming to camp .

In addition, I hope this whole arbitration process let Taiwanese pro baseball team learn how to set up good system for our pro baseball system. Of course, MLB System is not perfect, but there is something good which is worthy to learn from. Good system for players to get good benefits will be one of them.

Funny photos from Pitchers and Catchers report day

Anyway, I got some pictures from Taiwanese website. Share some photos with you guys in order to smell spring training more and escape from other news.

I realize how terrible my English is

I just find out there are three different kind of spelling I have on my blog for the same word. Sorry, guys, I realize how painful or difficult for you guys to read my blog. Please don't run away. I am getting better.

Steorids... Steroids... Steriods...

OK, I corrected that already. The middle one is the right one. If there is other things wrong and you guys have some free time, please tell me.

What I expect from Joe Girardi?

Well, Steal one line from Todd Drew:”Let’s Play ball”. We’re almost there. Spring training is coming. We certainly feel good about our team, right? Why not? Even though we don’t require Johan Santana who is the best pitcher on the planet, who does? Only one team which is the Mets can say that, but every team can say they feel good about their chances at champion in 2008 at this point of season.

I am glad We are able to turn the page on Santana saga and finally foucus on yankees, right? (Well, almost here come steroids saga, Unbelievable distractions keep coming in New York) Hopefully, I don’t have to discuss Johan Santana and steroids anymore, but unfortunately it’s near impossible.

I keep thinking the difference between Joe Torre and Joe Girardi as a Yankee manager. I am not looking for how much improvement we can get from Joe Girardi as a Yankee manager because everyone has their own styles. Without questions, Joe Torre is a good manager. I am just wondering how 2008 Yankees team will look like. Of course, we can see more evidences as the spring training go along. This will be the most interesting part for me in 2008 season. Let’s us wait and see I am right or wrong about this.

This is the quote from A-Rod at May 16^th last year after losing to White Sox 3-5 whose winning pitcher is John Danks.

“It seems like every lefty we’ve faced has been extremely aggressive,” said Alex Rodriguez, who was 0 for 8 in the doubleheader to extend his slump to 2 for 25. “I don’t think a lot of lefties have walked us much, and that’s one of the main sources of our offense: walking, being patient and popping a three-run homer or two-run double.”

Don Mattingly also warned Tiger manager Jim Leyland to pay attention on his offense during winter meeting. Mattingly said every one starts thinking if I don’t do it, the next guy will do it when you have too many good hitters in the lineup.

I think the stratgy A-Rod said it works only when we face mediocre pitchers or Red Sox pitchers because we face each other too many times every year. Why it doesn’t work on some conditions in my opinion? We all know one thing in common for good pitchers is they throwing strikes. We can’t just keep looking for walks or waiting something to happen.

This becomes huge problem for Yankees recent years because they keep waiting something to happen or someone to delivery a big hit that may never come, Of course, certain spots in the lineup they need to take pitches in order to get on bases. But, at some point, Yankees need to be able to play small ball, steal more bases, move runners over and come up with much needed situational hitting.

One more thing I expect from Joe Girardi on offense side is moving the lineup around. I am not sure how Joe Girardi deals with playing time with veterans because this may create conflict between veterans and managers. But, It not only puts every one in the proper order in the lineup depend on their conditions at that moment but also adds more competition into the mix. For example, If Posada or Cano hits well, they don’t have to hit at the bottom of order in the lineup. Or, Jeter also can hit leadoff or the middle order in the lineup if other people in the lineup struggle.

Others:

1 Pay more attention on defense among the choices he has, not just for late-inning replacement.
2 Use his bench more and give regulars more break during season.
3 Gives more people in the bullpen a chance to prove themselves.
4 Of course, better in-game statics

My take on Clemens public hearing

We all know who is going to lose this battle before even coming into that public hearing. It’s Clemens. Why? In Taiwan, an old saying goes, which side need to provide more evidences, which side is going to lose that trial. Why? The more evidences you have to provide, the more holes other side is going to find out.

No one is a winner in my opinion after this public hearing. Am I disappointed at this whole steroids issue? Yes. As I said earlier regard of this issue, What is the whole point of looking past? They should look forward and find out how to solve this problems which may occur among young athletes.

If Roger Clemens is innocent, there must be too many coincidences which lead to this conclusion or Clemens must have problems how to get along very well with his friends.

Who get the best reaction for this whole Clemens public hearing?
Jeter. Jeter said:”I realize I can’t hit a lot of homeruns long time ago” when he was asked has he ever wanted to use steroids or HGH? Ha! Our great captain. Priceless.

What is the most surprising part for whole Clemens public hearing?
In Australia, I can’t get any news related to this topic on TV at all. I guess baseball is really not popular at all here. Good news is Yankees just signed two Australian players recently. This may increase the population of Yankees fans or baseball fans one day.

Things I will be interested in watching this coming season

1 How Phil Hughes deal with pressure or questions from fans on his blog if he doesn’t pitch well? Will he keep blogging continuously throughout the season?
2 How Joba Chamberlain deal with pressure when he faces failures?
3 How Joe Girardi deal with pressure from veterans about playing time or the order of lineup?
4 Will Joe Girardi have a big fight with Hank Steinbrenner?
5 Will Joe Girardi argue with umpires more about unfair events happen on the field than Joe Torre?
6 Will Joe Girardi have problems to deal with media well?
7 Will Melky be more consistent on offense to show everyone he is our center outfielder for the future without doubt?
8 Will Wang get his strike out pitch to shut everyone up?
9 Who will be our 2008 version of Joba who was excellent as a setup man for Mo in 2007?
10 Who will be the first one hit a homerun in the spring training game?
11 What will be the most memorable event happen at the last year of Yankees Stadium? or What kind of event you wish to happen at the last year of Yankees Stadium?
12 Who will win homerun derby in the All Star Game?
13 Will AL All star game win again over NL all star game?
14 What kind of reception Terry Francona will get when he is introduced at Yankees stadium during All Star game?
15 Will we have a yankee pitcher represent Yankees this All Star game? If yes, Who?
16 Who will pitch the best among Hughes, Kennedy, and Joba?
17 What kind of reception Pettitte will get on his first game at the Yankees Stadium? How about on the road?
18 Who will the most surprising rookie this coming season?
19 Who will win first baseman job?
20 Who will win bench jobs except backup catcher Jose Molina?
21 Will we have a 5th outfielder on the bench?and who?
22 Who we will have on the bullpen except Mo, Kyle Farnsworth and Latroy Hawkins?
23 Which job(starter or setup man) Joba will stay longer this season?

What do you guys think?

There are two sides to everything

This is the picture from Taiwanese website when Wang went to arbitration hearing yesterday. We will know the result today. No matter what the result is, I am with Wang as this matter. Just like this line from Wang on Peter's blog "I am happy it's over".

The best thing about Wang's arbitration hearing is he doesn't have to answer all questions about steroids regard for Clemens and Pettitte at all, right?

Can't wait...

This is the 100th post on my blog. I am not going to waste it on other boring subjects, such as public hearing, etc. This is the picture from Daily News beat reporter Mark Feinsand's blog. Thanks, Mark. I can't wait for this. How about you guys? Mark asked his readers for their concerns for new season. Me? How about best wish? I wish all Yankees have a injury-free 2008 season and Pettitte decides to keep pitching for us this season after all distractions.

My take for Wang's situation again...

After reading through some comments at different sites, this is my take. I don't want to talk about this issue again until the result come out. Let's play ball and stop talking about money. For me, Money is not equal to respect. Respect comes from heart, soul and behavior.

Yankees front office probably want to keep their standard because they have too many young players coming. That’s why they insist their number and don’t want to bend for Wang. For them, This is business and is part of process. Nothing wrong with that. I don’t think they go to arbitration hearing because of money or punishing Wang for his poor 2007 ALDS performance.

Wang’s agent Alan Nero probably wants to set new mark for pitcher who is eligible for arbitration for the first time. I remember the old mark which set by Dontrelle Willis in 2006 at 4.35 million for his 22-10,2.63 ERA,236IP record at 2005.

If you guys think Wang doesn’t understand the economics and the process of baseball, you’re wrong about that. He respect specialty and let his agent deal with that for him. If you guys think Wang do this because of money, you are wrong about that too. He already made more money than he need to and made more money than his salary during off-season. He has a lot of opportunities of making more money during off-season, but he chooses to reduce that chances and do more charity stuffs every year.

In our culture, Parents always tell us we have to be humble, expect someone is better than you and listen to other people’s advices because we are not perfect and we get a lot of things to improve.

In our culture, talking is cheap and we don’t express our opinion or defense us a lot. When something goes wrong, we always think about ourselves first and want to find out what’s wrong with us first. We won’t think it may be someone else’s fault or there is maybe nothing wrong with us. Because of that, my American teachers always tell me I should be more confident of myself, I should express my opinion and I should defense myself more. After few years learning process, I am getting better. But, I am still not quite there yet.

Therefore, I can tell you what Wang will feel or think if he go through that arbitration hearing. That’s why If I were Yankees front office and his agent, I would not let Wang hear how bad he is for 0.6 million. Wang is mentally tough guy. He won’t give it up because he doesn’t want to hear what Yankees will say about him. Instead, I think He wants to hear that. He may take what Yankees say about him very serious and may believe how bad he is. He may want to improve himself too much after hearing all of them. He may start wondering and believing Yankees don’t want him at all. This hearing may mess up his mind. Wang told Taiwanese media he spent a lot of time to get over his bad playoff performance. That’s why you don’t want to add something else on top of that or remind him how bad he is during this past playoff.

Let's play ball and look forward to new season. Stop looking back to the past which we can't change it at all.

Different Culture...

There are a lot of different cultures in the world. There is no clear cut which culture is right and which culture is wrong. Everyone is right from their own perspectives. Don't make a judgement on other people from our standpoint and learn to accept the difference. I know it's easy to say than done, but if everyone can do that better little by little , this world will be more peaceful without wars. Especially, somethings were considered wrong in the past, but they are considered right now.

True story from my side. In Asian countries, students are supposed to be quiet and listen to what teachers teach in the class. After I had studied in the United States for a while, I realized this was considered wrong attitude in American culture. Students are supposed to express their opinion and have interactions with teachers. Teachers even hope students challenge and question them.

I had been heard Pedro Martinez's cockfight story. Don't get me wrong. I love animal as well, but my reaction is this is his culture. They don't think there is anything wrong. Why so many people criticize Pedro for joining this in his country. Maybe they will think this behavior is wrong one day, but this takes time for everyone learning from different cultures and then making adjustment.

As for Wang, Wang is only unsigned Yankees player after Cano's deal became officially yesterday. I understand Yankees concern about the health of Wang, after effect of playoff performance from last year and how long Wang can maintain his success regard for giving him long term contract or not. I said this before. I don't care Yankees give Wang long term contract or not as long as Wang stays healthy and keep pitching which he likes and cares most.

But, If I were Yankees front office, I would not play hardball with Wang to this far. Trust me, I understand how big difference between American culture and Taiwanese culture. I hope Yankees front office and his agent don't put Wang to hearing which he has to hear how bad he is for 0.6 million.

Of course, Wang can choose to tell his agent and then give it up, but Wang won't do this. He won't express his opinion and he will follow his agent's decision. I remember Wang let Yankees renew his contract after 2006 season because of the advice of his agent. During signing, he apologized to Cashman and said he didn't want to do this. This is just part of Taiwanese culture which we respect specialty and older people's advices a lot.

Interesting...

I for one don't cheer any player on other teams to get injury. I just hope Yankees have injury free 2008 season. I think you guys probably know Curt Schilling has a should injury by now. The most interesting part of Schilling's comment about his shoulder on his 38pitches blog for me is this,

"Things have changed since then and I contacted the team early last month with concerns and we’ve been working diligently to resolve them"

It seems I am right about Red Sox's intention on the Johan Santana Sweepstakes back to December because Red Sox front office knew Curt Schilling's injury when they still have a chance to get Santana. Instead of chasing Santana more aggressively to replace Curt Schilling with Santana, Red Sox front office pulled a lot of main pieces off table and chose to stay put.

Just image Yankees get Santana and this Curt Schilling's injury news came out, how panic Red Sox nation will be. But, again, just like Jeter said earlier, he doesn't care what other teams do and he only cares about Yankees. I am with Jeter. The one plays better on the field wins ball game, not on the paper.

Santana is great, but....

Do I the only one feel this way? I know I shouldn't read into too much, but there are four quotes from four different players. You can decide what you feel by yourself after reading them.

Mets' second baseman Castillo said that when he was traded to the Mets on July 30, Santana told him he wanted to come there as well, and Castillo relayed that to Mets general manager Omar Minaya(From Journal News)

"I was a little worried about getting traded because I wanted to stay with my teammates," Cabrera said through an interpreter last night at the Marriott Marquis(From Journal News)

"That's kind of been my goal the whole time, and to finally know that it's somewhat intact, it's a good feeling," the 21-year-old right-hander said Thursday at the Yankees' minor league complex.(From AP)

"I want to stay with them forever,"Wang said.(From AP)

Me? Santana is great, but I rather have Hughes, Melky and Wang.

Updated: Obviously, the readers of my blog don't want to deal these three players to Santana because of different reasons. I am with you guys about this poll. Here is the result.
35% No, Because of Wang
35% No, Because I want to keep all kids
28% No, Because of new philosophy

Happy Chinese New Year!!!

As you guys may know, Chinese people have another calendar called the lunar calendar. Today is Chinese New Year. I haven't celebrated Chinese New Year with my family for a long time. It's very hard to feel Chinese New Year in another countries.

There are two traditions for Chinese People I like to mention with you guys.

For Chinese people, All family members always do their best to get together during Chinese New Year in order to feel "Love and safety". At the Eve of Chinese New Year, we have to clear all the house and take a shower before 12am because we believe you can throw all the bad luck you had from this past year away by cleaning all the dirty things.

At the second day of New Year which will be tomorrow, we will find a mountain to climb as high as we can and then make a wish. If you can't find a mountain, you can try to find a high building to climb to replace with. Chinese people believe the higher you climb, the better chance your wish will come true or the more good luck you will have for this coming year.

So, Try that and make a wish if you can.

Yankees Problem 1:against lefty

I think Yankees notice this problem and build up a nice bench for Joe Girardi. I do think Joe Girardi will be very creative for his lineup and in-game decisions. Great. At least nice competition for backup infielder or outfielder at the spring training, right?

Morgan Ensberg
Jason Lane
Nick Green
Kevin Mench(Yankees show interest recently)

New York vs Boston Again...at Super Bowl......

Well...I know you guys probably are so emotional right now...

I am not expert of Amrican Football. American football is not a popular sport in Taiwan at all. The first time I knew American Football was when I studied in America few years ago. It's so hard not to get involved in American Football because all my American classmates are so crazy about that. At the beginning, I didn't understand why Americans so crazy about a sport which players just keep crashing into each other. The more I watch, the more I like it. I don't have specific team I root for right now. I try to learn more about this sport and enjoy watching this game little by little.

My reaction? Man, does this victory mean New York Yankees for 2008 World Series Champion? I think this game tells us who plays better on the field on that most important day who wins the champion. How to win? Defense plus good situational hitting. I believe Girardi will put the best defense team on the field and emphasize on situational hitting while he put a good show on in-game decisions and bullpen management. Unbeatable? Expectation sometimes carries extra weight on players' shoulders. Being a underdog sometimes is a good thing. Let Red Sox enjoy that pressure and let us win 2008 World Series Champion.

Bobby Abreu visit Taiwan for business purpose

Well, you guys probably knew this news from Peter's blog by now. For what? Well, Bobby Abreu has his own sport brand called 30/30 which means 30 homers/30 steal bases. This short trip starts from Taiwan to Japan and then finishes at China in order to check the status of OEM(Original Equipment Manufacturer) in Taiwan, promote his brand in Japan and then visit his business in China. After this business trip, he will go to Rome for a short trip before go back to USA for spring training.

Even though Wang is not in Taiwan now, but he asked his teacher who is the general manager of one of Taiwan pro baseball team to take care of Bobby Abreu for him before he left Taiwan. Bobby jokes with Taiwan media about his goal for 2008 season. He hopes he can reach 30/30 just like his own sport brand. Of course, Later, The true goal for him is getting his first champion with Yankees this season. He even writes "Good Luck" in Mandarin to Taiwanese media.(The picture is that Good Luck autograph)(picture from自由時報)

During this whole trip in Taiwan, Bobby is very friendly and signs autographs as many as he can.