Bobby Valentine has guided baseball teams to championship titles in faraway countries, helped professional baseball players gain free agency rights and won a National League pennant with the New York Mets.
Now, the Stamford native will attempt to reform the city's fire service.
Valentine, the hometown celebrity whose career in professional baseball brought him from manager of two Major League Baseball teams to the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan, will join local fire officials, attorneys and politicians on a group formed by Mayor Michael Pavia. The group's goal, the mayor said, is to improve the city's fire service after years of litigation, mistrust and dysfunction between the city and its six fire departments - link
Even closer to the organization, a Mets’ employee has observed to a friend from outside the baseball operations department that “Minaya is a ‘puppet,’ a ‘figurehead’ as he put it – for Jeff Wilpon and John Ricco,” the assistant general manager. “Wilpon and Ricco are making decisions and running the show. Further, the real decision-making authority on baseball operations rests with Jeff Wilpon. My college buddy feels that Jeff thinks he knows a lot more about running a baseball organization than he actually does, and ‘it’s just not working out for him.’”
Despite these reports, I have found no evidence of their credibility. If, as ESPN.com reported, Wilpon has been the Mets’ lead negotiator with free agents, why did only one agent acknowledge having spoken with Wilpon and he and all of the rest with Minaya? - link
Carlos Delgado - Options are dwindling for the 37-year-old veteran. The Orioles and Mets filled their first base holes. Sources say he has looked stiff playing Winter Ball in Puerto Rico. Delgado had hip surgery last season and played just 26 games. His best bet may be as an American League DH - link
A couple years ago Nelson Figeroa pitched the Uni-President Lions to the Taiwan championship by winning three of the seven games in 2007. That same year he pitched Aguilas to the championship of the Dominican Republic, but played for Mexico during the Series del Caribe. Escogido picked him up to represent the Dominican Republic and the move has already paid off with a complete game three hitter in the Dominican Republic’s 7-1 pounding of Mexico. The win puts the Dominican Republic alone in the early rounds of the Series del Caribe in first place as the only undefeated team.
Figueroa only gave up three hits and struck out eight in his complete game victory. The only blemish to his effort was the solo homer he surrendered to Carlos Valencia in the eighth inning after the team had taken a 7-0 lead. Valencia led the Mexican League in RBIs during the regular season. Vinny Castilla hit a 2-out single in the first inning for Mexico, so there was never any threat of a no hitter.
Fernando Martinez crushed a two run homerun in the first inning as the Dom Rep jumped out to a 6-0 lead after the first two innings. Willis Otanez and the recently signed Freddy Guzman also had two RBIs in the win. Hector Rodriguez started for Mexico and gave up the six runs in the first two innings. - link
“Chemistry” presents a good metaphor because it suggests that players react to each other. Chemistry depends upon relations and reactions can, break or diffuse bonds among team members. Reactions can explode, go passive or create dynamic equilibriums. Reactions can disrupt and disorganize a system or bring it coherence and new levels. Relations altered by chemistry can form strong or negative bond, push people apart or bring them together into coherent entities. We’ve all experienced teams that fall apart with players recriminating and blaming each other; teams that lose heart, go inert and players “go through the motions.” We’ve also experienced teams where players challenge each other to perform to their highest levels; where struggling or injured players get help and support from each other; where team bonds and relations help players accept roles and perform with competence while supporting and rooting for their starting teammates even as they compete with them - link
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