HAPPY BIRTHDAY BYB. WE TURNED 1 BECAUSE OF YOU.

In my wildest dreams, I never thought I would actually have a Yankees blog that anyone would care about. But you readers out there are pretty damn passionate and need your Yankees news and opinion and we love it.

When we started on September 14, 2010, Bleeding Yankee Blue started as a rant page because I was tired of yelling at the TV because of another Yankee loss. Sergio Mitre, the thorn in my side was involved, so you can only imagine why I freaked out. Here’s the first post ever on Bleeding Yankee Blue titled WHY LAST NIGHT WAS IMPORTANT.

Since then we’ve posted 975 posts and we have writers who have developed into personalities and readers look for their work. Some of you think we’re the cat’s meow. Well, we know you are but what am I? This journey has been incredible. What we have built here isn’t because of any of us. It really has more to do with all of you. If you don’t read us, we write for no one. When you read, you send it to a friend who sends it to a friend. You Tweet it, you "Like" it on Facebook. Maybe Google news picks it up, or ESPN picks it up and calls us Intrepid Bloggers and some of you even send us pictures of yourself for Bleeding Yankee Blue’s Fan of the week. It’s pretty damn cool.I still remember our first "BYB Fan of the Week" on a chilly week in February. It was Robert in full Yankee gear and suddenly BYB's Fan of the Week was born. Since then we’ve had a fan of the week, well, every week and the pictures are pouring in, it’s just amazing. Keep it up by the way, just send them to mailto:Bleednyankeeblu@gmail.com

We do Yankee interviews here, many blogs do not. Our first was EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: STEVE KARSAY and since then we’ve interviewed Mickey Rivers, Scott Brosius, Chuck Knoblauch and our favorite gal of all time, Kimberly Jones. We love her.If BYB didn't exist, we would have never got to interview Kimberly Jones. But we do and we did and we're very happy about it. We've even helped bring awareness to David Robertson's charity High Socks for Hope.
On the flip side, people like to rain on our parade too. It’s OK, but the viciuous stuff needs to be checked at the door. Don’t hate, be constructive, that’s all we ask here. Hey, bottom line, we’re still relatively new, we haven’t worked out all the kinks yet and we’re not perfect, but we’re trying our best. You want to hear a funny story? I was on a commuter train maybe a month ago looking at Bleeding Yankee Blue on my phone. Pathetic right? That's not the story though. This is... It was tight quarters. There was a guy standing next to me and said “You read them?” He was looking over my shoulder at my phone. I said “Sure.” He said “9 times out of ten, Casey nails it, every once in a while, he ticks me off.” “Totally”, I said with a smile. What am I going to do, argue with a New Yorker and Yankee fan? Hell no. It was totally bizarre and a moment I'll never forget.

The point is, today we turn 1 and at this moment I have one focus; We will keep moving forward, for you. We vow to keep getting you interesting material, news and opinion as well as personality, something some of the others lack. We’ll try and keep it fresh, we’ll try to keep it fun and the day it doesn’t become fun for me personally, I’m closing shop. But right now, it’s really fun and you make it fun... so thank you.

We’ve had some real great posts over our 1^st year. Christy Lee wrote a truly touching piece called FAMILY RIVALRY & THE LAST WORD that has received tremendous feedback. Christy's like my sis and I'm glad she's in the BYB family.

I love Jesse Schindler’s piece titled WHY ROBERTSON DESERVES MORE CREDIT. He wrote it back in May and since then David Robertson has developed into one of the greatest set up men of all time.

There’s Mikey Blue’s piece titled WHY JORGE'S HEART BEATS STRONG. In our BYB world, we love Jorge Posada and this particular post hit home. Not only did Jorge have a great game in that 9-2 victory, we saw some life from the gritty veteran.

Grant Cederquist wrote WHY THE KIDS ARE GROWING UP and has proven he's one of the best bloggers out there when it comes to the minor league guys.

Jeana Bellezza, a newcomer and my go-to-gal who wrote a piece on Derek Jeter which is my favorite by her titled WHY IT'S MORE THAN 3000, IT'S DESTINY.

Lem Allen is a friend of mine and this one of his was my favorite: WHY IT'S JUST BASEBALL SUZYN.

Will Cohen, my first writer ever wrote WHY DOESN'T CASH LIKE SPENDING CASH? This was his first piece and with it, he became published and had a new passion in life.And Me? Well, I love to write, but if I had to choose, there would be 2; WHY JETER IS EPIC FOR 1 GOOD REASON and AN OPEN LETTER TO JORGE POSADA. They are 2 of my baseball heroes, never to be forgotten.

The point is, we love what we do because you love to read it. So, do me a favor, on our first birthday, today is important to us. So comment today on our blog, use the comment section and take a moment and tell us what you think, you can even wish us a happy birthday. Just take a moment and let us know what you like and don’t like. Keep it clean and have a good time with it. Tell us what you like about our pieces, the writers, me and the site itself. After all, feedback rules and that’s how we know how to improve. You have questions? Ask, we’ll try to answer. All I ask is you keep reading and enjoy it. Also, Word of mouth is key, so if there’s something you like, tell someone about it, after all, the playoffs are right around the corner and this is what we have been writing for all year... the Quest for 28.

And a special personal note to the Bleeding Yankee Blue writers. You do a great job. You approached me and I approached you and a marriage was made. Thank you for being there and thank for you taking this ride with me.

Again, thanks to the BYB readers, it’s been swell and you guys made it happen. We couldn’t do it without you… well, we could, but we’d be 8 writers reading each other’s material and that’s no fun, right?

We received some great notes from many of you, and decided to publish some of them in this post so you can be part of our history. I couldn't get you all in here, but I hope I got most of you. Thank you all. We now move on to our "Quest for 2."

"Bleeding Yankee Blue describes exactly what it's like to be a NY Yankee Fan!"
--Brittany Canal Fulton, Ohio

"I like Bleeding Yankee Blue because it is awesome and one of the best out there, Happy Birthday to you!" --Dana Trentacost

"Happy B-day BYB!!! Keep up the great job!!!" --Kiley

"You bring me the most informative YANKEE information available!"
--Mike, Loxahatchee, Florida

"It's run by true Yankee fans who write their posts from the heart and also appreciate other peoples views." -- Charles, Sydney Australia

"Happy Birthday! Keep the blogs coming~ One year? Went fast." --Debi

"Happy Birthday BYB! Living in Seattle, WA, it's hard to stay current with Pinstripe Pals and BYB has been an awesome resource for game summaries and info on future stars and all things Yankees! Great job!" --Tom, Seattle

"I like Bleeding Yankee Blue because they are informative, honest, and are HOPELESSLY biased towards the NY Yankees!" -- Marianne

"I like Bleeding Yankee Blue because they love and support The Greatest Baseball Team ever. The New York Yankees. Sing it Frankie!" --Judith

Please comment, we use DISQUS. Let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.

WHY HE CHOKES UP LIKE BUCKY DENT

(Photo: AP)

I was having a discussion with my son the other day because he was swinging a bat that was clearly too heavy. But, to kids, they want to do what their peers do and want to use what their friends use, hence the bat that their friends use too. Well, sometimes it just doesn’t work.

“Choke up like Bucky Dent and maybe you’ll crank it out of here. “ I said to my frustrated son. “Who’s Dent?” he asked. I thought about it for a second. To every Yankee fan he offered one of the greatest moments in sports. To Red Sox fans, he’s Bucky "Bleeping" Dent. I went through the whole story about how the first pitch coming out of Mike Torrez’s hands was fouled off by Bucky and it hit him in the foot. Dent went down hard, but got up, regrouped and as he was about to get back to work, the bat boy ran over with Mickey Rivers' bat. The next pitch was cranked over the big green monster and I just remember watching him in the box before he hit it. Bucky Dent was choked up unusually high.

It’s a moment I’ll never forget because at that time in my life I was a kid, who, you guessed it, didn’t like to choke up. After Bucky hit his homer, I remember not being embarrassed about choking up anymore. Believe me, I didn’t know why I was choking up, I just figured if this little guy named Dent could crank it out, so could I. After all, I was little and I wasn’t that good at 7 years old so I needed all the help I could get. Over time, I started hitting, and I started using my legs and running too and eventually I was the spark plug of the team, and it goes back to Bucky Dent choking up.

Now, I’m in the middle of the baseball field with my 8 year old who’s telling me in so many ways that it’s not exactly “cool” to choke up. Reluctantly, he choked up. I chucked it in and he creamed it over first base into right field. “Yeah, choking up probably isn’t a good idea.” I said smiling. My son glanced over and smirked, he had a sparkle in his eye, “Did you see that?” he asked. It was a breakthrough. Sure, baseball season is over for him now, but he’s already told me we’re gonna practice through the winter so we’re ready next spring.

We got home and I pulled up You tube and of course, Dent’s homerun is on there. We watched it together and as the ball went over the green monster and the video clip ended, my son looked at me and said “That was cool.” As he went into the other room to watch some Spongebob, he asked me… “Just curious, do they make Bucky Dent Jerseys?”

"Yeah," I thought... "it looks like Jorge Posada's." Note to Santa… another request is on the way.

Please comment and let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.

WHY SWISHER NEEDS TO STAY IN YANKEELAND

Believe it or not, Nick Swisher is in his last year of his contract and in 2012 he has a team option (HERE). If the Yankees are no longer interested, Swisher could walk away into the sunset and millions of Yankee fans would be devastated. It’s just not fair.

Nick Swisher has done more than any of us thought he would do in the Bronx. Let me back up, I knew he could do it but many didn't. Don’t forget, Nick Swisher is talented and he and Chavez ran Oakland for quite a few years. Ironically, now their both in the Bronx, but the point is, Nick can still hit, he’s got right field locked down and he’s not only become a New York celebrity, he’s a baseball icon at this point. The "Bronx Elvis" has an unbelievable following on Facebook. Because of his incredibly charismatic personality and energy, people flock to him. WE WANT NICK SWISHER TO HOST SNL is in full effect and the more people that join that group, the better. It’s not just a page, it’s an operation run by Beth Hucke who runs a tight ship and is doing her best to get Swisher to host Saturday Night Live. We all believe in her and you should too. Click on the link HERE. Join the group…. Do it. Click HERE. Don’t read past it. Click WE WANT NICK SWISHER TO HOST SNL, then, pass it on to a friend and tell them to join, the more, the merrier. Also, check out this interview with Beth Hucke about the page. Our interview with Beth was our first interview on Bleeding Yankee Blue and since then we’ve been rolling with a lot of great interviews, Kimberly Jones, Mickey Rivers, Steve Karsay, Scott Brosius and Roy White, and the list goes on. The point is, Beth needs our help and we all want Nick to host Saturday Night Live so it’s going to take a grassroots effort to get it done.

I can’t imagine Nick Swisher NOT on the New York Yankees. It just doesn’t seem right to me. To think that when he came over before the 2009 season, it wasn’t hyped as much as say Mark Teixeira, CC Sabathia and AJ Burnett, yet, Swisher took the reigns and made his own hype. (In Photo: Joanna Garcia)

Since then, Swish won a ring in 2009, appeared in the All-Star game in 2010 and married his babe, Joanna Garcia. He’s also the King of New York and to me, having Swisher walk away at the end of this season would just suck beyond belief.

Take a moment, check out WE WANT NICK SWISHER TO HOST SNL. Also check out Swish’s Wishes, Nick’s charity and then of course, check out Joanna Garcia’s official website because she’s absolutely gorgeous. What's my point of this? Get Swish and the Yankees fired up, let them realize how important they are to each other. He can’t leave at the end of the season. Let’s remind him and the Yankee brass just how important this guy is to our team. Oh… and click HERE.

Please comment and let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.

WHY THE BOMBERS STILL GOT IT

(In Photo: Ron Guidry)
After Opening Day, Old Timer's day is probably the best day at Yankee Stadium during the baseball year. It gives the fans a chance to see some of their favorite Yankee players comeback and play a friendly game with the rest of the old timers. They also saw the Bombers beat the Clippers 2-0 in two and a half innings of entertaining baseball.
(In Photo: Joe Pepitone, Mike Torrez)
Ron Guidry, aka "Louisiana Lightning", started the game for the Bombers. He allowed the first two to reach. But, Rick "Goose" Gossage came to the rescue and made Lee Mazzilli to hit a shallow fly ball into center field, caught by Bernie Williams, and Joe Pepitone grounded into a 4-6-3 double play to end the inning.
(Photo: David Wells, David Cone, Darryl Strawberry)
David "Boomer" Wells started the bottom half of the first on the mound for the Clippers as he faced "Mick the Quick", Mickey Rivers. After throwing one behind Mickey, he forced him to ground to third. You can read our interview with Mr. Rivers titled: EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: MICKEY RIVERS.

Then, Boomer faced Bernie Williams--who received another nice ovation from the crowd--drilled a double in the left center field gap for the first hit for the Bombers.

Wells' good friend David Cone relieved him and gave up a big two run homer which reached about the seventh row in the first deck of the right field seats. The crowd went crazy, and rightfully so. It brought back some great memories, and I even got a couple of chills down my spine when he hit that blast.

Final Score: Bombers-2 Clippers-0 in the 65th annual Old Timers Day Game.
(Photo: Ron Antonelli/NY Daily News)
It was certainly an entertaining game to watch. It was great to see Bernie Williams, Joe Torre, and Lou Piniella--who grounded out in his at bat against Jeff Nelson--back, along with all of the other Old Timers who played in this game, and were apart of the on field ceremonies.



--Jesse Schindler, BYB Staff Writer




Please comment and let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.

WHY OLD TIMER'S DAY IS COMFORTING

(Photo: NY Daily News)
Every year the Yankees have Old Timer’s Day at Yankee Stadium and to me, besides Spring training and the World Series, it may be one of my favorite times of year. For 1, I have officially been a Yankee fan since I was about 7 years old. That would put me at the 1978 season and guys like Ron Guidry, Reggie Jackson and Goose Gossage were the kings of New York. So, seeing them years later, while strange because they are so much older, is really a treat for me. First off, Ron Guidry is my idol. I too am a lefty and I have had my Ron Guidry Wilson mitt since about 1985. Seeing my idol years later just pleases me to the core.

(Photo: William Perlman/The Star-Ledger)

My fondest memory of Old Timer’s Day was watching Bobby Murcer with a pinned on lavaliere mic in the field talking to the booth while he was playing. I always liked Bobby Murcer, and even though he played for other teams in his career, like the Giants and the Cubs, to me, he was always a New York Yankee. He had so much heart and pride for the pinstripes and the fans loved it and I know the Yankee family did too. Back in the beginning of Murcer’s career, many thought because he was from Oklahoma, he was going to be the next Mickey Mantle. Well, Murcer never hit as many home runs like the Mick, but he hit his fair share and hit them at the right time. We obviously remember August 6, 1979, the funeral day of Thurman Munson and Murcer both gave Munson eulogy and hit a 3 run home run in the game that night. It will be forever known as the Munson game. What touched me the most was the report of he gave his home run bat to Thurman’s widow. Man, I still get chills thinking about that. Bobby was a good ballplayer and a great broadcaster and when he was out there on Old Timer’s Day, he was having fun. There were a lot of laughs and you couldn’t help but love Bobby Murcer.

This year, another couple Yankees are making their Old Timer’s Day debut. Joe Torre, Lou Piniella and Bernie Williams will be there. Joe Torre, whom I’ve had the opportunity of meeting many times, is one of my favorite managers ever. I loved his managing skill and I loved Zimmer by his side. It will be good to see him and I wrote about it in WHY IT'S ABOUT TIME.

Lou Piniella was in the Bronx Zoo back in the 70’s and there is no doubt there will be a standing Ovation for Lou as well. Lou was always a decent ballplayer and then, over time he became a successful manager with the Reds and Mariners. He always had a tight bond with the Yankees and I appreciated Lou, even though we played against him for so many years when he was with Seattle. Lou is a Yankee and I’m glad he’s coming home.

Bernie Williams is coming back to the Bronx this weekend and even though I didn’t like the way the Yankees handled Bernie at the end of the 2006 season, I guess I need to get over it. Bernie probably did. I have to realize that it was business, but the way it was handled just bothered me. Whatever the case, it’s clear whatever riff they had is over and I couldn’t be happier to see him back in pinstripes, at least for just 1 day. This is a guy that I watched his entire career. I remember when things really started clicking for Bernie and I thought “Man, we have many more years of this guy.” That was probably in 1996. Next thing I know, it’s 10 years later and he’s walking off the field for the last time. To me, today will be special with Bernie back in the big house.

(In Photo: Al Downing)

Seeing all the greats is a comforting experience for me. You know that Al Downing will be there, he’s always there. Yogi Berra, Brian Doyle and hopefully Wade Boggs too. I am looking forward to seeing Paul O’Neill back in pinstripes, Mickey Rivers (Read EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: MICKEY RIVERS), Moose Skowron and Darryl Strawberry. These are the Yankee greats that have made significant contributions to the team during their time in the Bronx. It’s an elite group and a group I admire and have worshipped all my life.

So, Ladies and Gentlemen, today will be no different. I will be transformed into a 7 year old kid in just a few hours, watching my favorite Yankees play alittle ball; granted it’s alittle slower and alittle funnier, but never the less, they're my favorites and all of yours too and most importantly, it’s baseball…Yankee baseball, the greatest sport in the world involving the greatest team in the world.

Yankee Tradition… that’s what it’s all about and I’ll watch every inning today…I can’t wait.

Please comment and let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: MICKEY RIVERS

Mickey Rivers, aka "Mick the Quick" came on board with the Yankees in 1976, and was a very key member for the Yankees Championship teams in 1977 and 1978. He was able to get on base many times with his speed to set up the power from Reggie Jackson and Chris Chambliss.

Fortunately, with a little luck, we were able to contact Mr. Rivers and get an exclusive interview with him. He was very nice to take some time and answer a few questions, and we're very appreciative of that.
(Photo: Topps 1973 Card)
BYB: You were drafted by the Atlanta Braves in 1969, but played five years with the California Angels from 1970 to '75. What was your reaction when you got traded to the Yanks before the 1976 season?

Mickey Rivers: My initial reaction was shock. I didn't know too much about New York, but after talking to my wife, she convinced me it would be alright.

BYB: 1976 was a great year for you; A .312 average, 43 stolen bases, 95 runs scored and you made the All-Star team for the first time. How important was it to get off to a great start in your first year as a New York Yankee?

Mickey Rivers: It was very important because you want to show your teammates that you belonged.(In Photo: Oscar Gamble)
BYB: Which New York Yankee were you closest to on the 1970's teams and why?

Mickey Rivers: Oscar Gamble, Roy White, Catfish Hunter, Chris Chambliss, Thurman Munson, and Ken Holtzman. But in all fairness, I can probably name 10 more because I was close to the whole team.

BYB: In 1977, the Yankees signed Reggie Jackson and you two were teammates from '77 until midway through the 1979 season. What was it like playing with him? And what was it like playing for Billy Martin considering a lot of the turmoil of "The Bronx Zoo" as it was called?

Mickey Rivers: Reggie was a great player. I admired him because he liked to help the young kids on the team. As far as Billy Martin, I loved playing for him. He was a players manager. He always got my back and I liked that a lot. It made you play even harder for him.BYB: What is it like playing in Yankee Stadium as a truly dominant team in the 70's?

Mickey Rivers: The tradition was amazing. I really enjoy seeing all the old-timers and talking to all the legends.

BYB: In 1977, you won the World Series over the Los Angeles Dodgers. What was it like winning that World Series considering you guys got swept in 1976?

Mickey Rivers: 1976 was a great experience, and because of that it gave us more confidence in 1977.
BYB: In 1978, the Yankees were at one time 14 1/2 games behind the Boston Red Sox, but came back to make the playoffs, and eventually win the World Series, again against the Dodgers. Which wins felt sweeter, the Sox or Dodgers and why?

Mickey Rivers: I would have to say the Red Sox. That was just truly amazing, and a memory I will never forget.

BYB: Who is your favorite Yankee of all time and why?

Mickey Rivers: I would have to say Thurman Munson. I never saw anyone play the game like he did. He just played the game hard and wanted to win. He taught me a lot.BYB: Years later, are you still involved in baseball and the Yankees family? If so, in what capacity?

Mickey Rivers: I do public relations work with the Yankees. They will always be considered my family.
BYB: Can you tell us about your website Mick the Quick?

Mickey Rivers: That's my website that I've been wanting to do for years. So many of my fans want to know how to meet me and if you go on Mick the Quick, it details meeting me in person, getting my autograph, or just finding out more information about me. My fans have been great to me over the years and I really appreciate that. What's even better is when you purchase an autograph of me on this site, it not only comes with a mickthequick.com hologram, but all my autographs include Mick the Quick, which is rare. Plus we will be having contests coming very soon.

BYB: Do you ever read Bleeding Yankee Blue?
Mickey Rivers: I've never read Bleeding Yankee Blue, but I will definitely check it out now.

It was most certainly an honor to interview Mr. Mickey Rivers. We appreciate him answering all of our questions, and be sure to check out his website www.mickthequick.com.

Mickey, You were a critical member of the Yanks during the mid-late 1970's Championship teams and we salute you for your efforts on the field for the Yankees. We wish you the best!



--Jesse Schindler, BYB Staff Writer




Please comment and let me know what you think and follow me on Twitter @BleednYankeeBlu and join the group Bleeding Yankee Blue on Facebook, just type it in.