Afternoon Baseball

Well, it's obvious why Grimsley is an idiot. From taking illegal substances to cooperating, then not, with a federal investigation, to blowing the credibility of the players union on the enhancing substance issue.

Why is Todd Jones an idiot? Because he says Grimsley's retired, so adding a 50-game suspension on top of that is stupid. Here's his reasoning: "He didn't test positive, but because he said he did, they're going to suspend him? It's kind of like giving a speeding ticket to a guy that got killed in a car wreck."

OK, well if there's not enough evidence to convict someone of a crime, or merely circumstantial, but the guy admits his guilt, don't you process that guilty plea? Furthermore, Grimsley retiring is not the same as someone killed in a car crash. First of all, he has not officially filed retirement papers (a la Clemens, in a different scenario, after the 2003 season). Secondly, the suspension only takes effect if Grimsley joins another team, which I suppose would be like the car-wreck guy pulling a Lazarus and resurrecting from the dead. So Todd Jones, go back to being a middle-tier fat guy who closes some games.

A final note on Grimsley: His two years with the Yankees, he would always start off strongly, and then peter off after May or June. In 1999, he had 4 wins by May 9, including a four-inning outing. But after May, which he finished with 7 ER in 29.1 innings, he posted monthly ERAs of 6.57, 4.41 and 7.11 before finishing up with 1 ER in 10.2 Sept./Oct. innings.
The next year, the same thing. 2.70 and 2.57 to begin, followed by 5.25, 8.76, 4.40 and 8.44.
I realized that back then without looking at any stats. He must have noticed it, too, and maybe that's when he took a turn down a dark path. Who knows? I haven't read anything regarding the dates of when he first began using. But I'd be surprised if it was before those 1999-2000 campaigns.