This time of year there are always so many stories about how pitchers are throwing great and looking great and feeling great. And if you're a geek like me hungry for any kind of fantasy baseball insight, I love reading that Johnny Damon says he had a great off-season and Jose Reyes says he's going to be more serious and Eric Chavez says he's finally healthy again.I know 99 percent of these stories are sportswriters looking to fill up column inches before the spring training games start. There's nothing to do right now but talk to players and what are they going to say? "I spent the off-season eating pizza and ice cream. Really! There's this place by my house where you can get ice cream as a topping."
Here's my favorite story from today:
Girardi caught Kyle Farnsworth 73 times when both were with the Chicago Cubs from 2000 to 2002, and both think their prior relationship could help Farnsworth bounce back after two shaky seasons.
"He was kind of a mentor to me when I was coming up as a young player," Farnsworth said. "So I think it's going to be a good time.
"He looked out for me. ... He knows how to get the best out of me."
Girardi said he believes in Farnsworth, who has a 4.57 ERA as a Yankee.
"The first thing is, I believe he's got good stuff," Girardi said, "because I've seen it first-hand, and I believe he still has it."
What they didn't tell you: Farnsie had a 2.74 ERA and 1.15 WHIP with the Cubs in '01... but in the '00 and '02 versions, he combined for a 6.77 ERA and 1.75 WHIP. So the much-celebrated Farnsworth/Girardi years produced a 5.16 ERA, which is more than a half-run worse than what he's done in two years as a Yankee!
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