OF Nick Swisher (World Champion New York Yankees)

[sparcboxbuck]

Originally Posted by muffler dragon

At the beginning of May, I was in Chicago for a trade show. I got invited to see the ChiSox play the Twins. The game, ambiance, and stadium were all great. It was one of those situations where a run was scored on an error, but the ChiSox pitcher still could have had no-hitter. That was deleted at the top of the 9th, but anyway... I recall really enjoying the hustle of Nick Swisher. I had no idea about his background or anything. I got home from the trade show, and I told my Dad about the game. I didn't realize that Nick had spent some time in Parkersburg, WV. Apparently, he just bought the one huge house in the city for his parents. I recall driving past it frequently when I'd go through Vienna to P-burg from Marietta. That info left an endearing feeling for Nick. And then I see today that he was a Buckeye!!! Killer stuff is being learnt on a daily basis.

Nick is the first reason to root for the Sox in my opinion. The second, the Sox are not the Cubs.

I've enjoyed him being here in Chicago. Looking forward to a loooooong sucessful run for him here.

[muffler dragon]

Originally Posted by sparcboxbuck

Nick is the first reason to root for the Sox in my opinion. The second, the Sox are not the Cubs.

I've enjoyed him being here in Chicago. Looking forward to a loooooong sucessful run for him here.

May he do well now and in the future!!! Professional sports can always use a "good" guy.

[redbenn]

ESPN - Sources: New York Yankees acquire Nick Swisher from Chicago White Sox

[muffler dragon]

Originally Posted by redbenn

ESPN - Sources: New York Yankees acquire Nick Swisher from Chicago White Sox

[censored].

Why can't those cannibals leave a good guy alone?

[Brutus1]

Originally Posted by redbenn

ESPN - Sources: New York Yankees acquire Nick Swisher from Chicago White Sox

Blasphemy!!

Good pickup for the Wankees. It still won't help their [censored]ty-assed pitching.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Link

Swisher anticipates a fresh start

Newest Bomber looks ahead to new opportunities in New York

By Bryan Hoch / MLB.com

NEW YORK -- Nick Swisher is doing his best to shrug off his disappointing 2008 season, in which not much seemed to go right. Next year may already be off to a better start, as the newest Yankee still hasn't stopped pinching himself.

Acquired last week from the White Sox in a swap that included Wilson Betemit and two Minor Leaguers, Swisher is looking forward for a chance to bounce back in New York, where he will have a chance to don the organization's famous pinstripes and attempt to make an impact on a club that expects to contend. "It really is a dream come true," Swisher said on Tuesday in a telephone news conference. "I think every little kid in America, at one point or another, dreams about playing for the New York Yankees. Lucky for me, it's coming true. I couldn't be more excited, not only with the tradition but, more than anything, to just have the honor to be able to wear a uniform like that."

Continued............

[Buckskin86]

Nick Swisher sweet on his new role
BY Mark Feinsand
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER
Monday, February 16th 2009

TAMPA - When the Yankees traded for Nick Swisher back in November, he was penciled in as their starting first baseman for 2009. That plan was quickly erased when the Bombers signed Mark Teixeira to an eight-year, $180 million contract, leaving Swisher unclear on his role.

Swisher arrived at camp Monday, one day ahead of the report date for position players. Earlier this week, Joe Girardi said Swisher would have a chance to battle Xavier Nady for the right field job, giving the 28-year-old switch-hitter something to shoot for over the next seven weeks.

"I'm just happy to be over here," Swisher said as he unpacked his belongings into his new locker - the one previously occupied by Jason Giambi. "Whatever my role is going to be, I'm excited for it. We'll just see how it goes. Competition is always a good thing."

Swisher wasn't upset when he learned the Yankees had signed Teixeira. In fact, he was quite pleased to find out his new team had added one of the premier hitters in the game to an already impressive lineup.

"I couldn't have been more happy," Swisher said. "A guy like that, the ability he has on the offensive and defensive side, and he's a good dude, too. To have guys like that on your team is always a plus."

There has been talk about the Yankees potentially dealing away either Swisher or Nady, but Girardi doesn't believe that needs to happen in order for both to see ample playing time.

"I don't think you can ever have too many players," Girardi said. "You don't know what's going to happen in the next seven weeks or if we'll come out of spring training completely healthy

Nick Swisher sweet on his new role

[scooter1369]

I can't root for Nick while he's in pin stripes. sorry

[Buckskin86]

02/22/09
Swisher not worried about spring battle
Roster competition 'not our style,' outfielder says of him and Nady
By Bryan Hoch / MLB.com


Outfielder Nick Swisher is all smiles signing autographs for fans at Spring Training. (Mary Altaffer/AP)

TAMPA, Fla. -- It was November when Nick Swisher jumped on a conference call with the New York media, excitedly saying all the right things and introducing himself as the Yankees' new first baseman.
That assignment lasted only a month. Two days before Christmas, the Yankees agreed to an eight-year, $180 million contract with Mark Teixeira, immediately displacing Swisher and sending him into what figures to be a fierce spring competition for right field with Xavier Nady.

"At first, I was like, 'Man!'" Swisher said. "It would have been fun to play first base for the Yankees and be in one spot for the entire season. But getting a player like [Teixeira] with that sort of talent ... it's nice to have him on our side, instead of him killing us."

Swisher not worried about spring battle | MLB.com: News

[BB73]

Originally Posted by scooter1369

I can't root for Nick while he's in pin stripes. sorry

I'm just hoping for his HR total to match the team's number of wins this year.

[Buckskin86]

New Yankee Nick Swisher in no position to complain
Wednesday, February 25th 2009

TAMPA - From the double locker in the rear of the room where Jason Giambi resided for seven springs, a boom box is blaring Bobby McFerrin's "Don't Worry, Be Happy," which would seem to be the new occupant's personal anthem.

Nick Swisher is a bundle of "be happy" effervescence in this Yankee camp, to the point where you wonder if he drinks a couple of quarts of Red Bull each morning just to get all his happy juices flowing. Somebody needs to tell this guy to cheer down. Dare anyone remind him, in his new surroundings, he's a man without a job? I mean, when you consider all that's happened to him since he left Oakland after the 2007 season, the question positively begs:

Why is Nick Swisher so happy? Why is this man smiling - constantly?

"Why does everyone keep asking me that?" he counters. "You guys are just trying to stir things up, when there's nothing to be stirred up."

Okay, if he says so. Tuesday, I got my first Nick Swisher experience, and it was quite a trip. I had been warned that the man's exuberance in the face of queries about his uncertain status as a Yankee was unwavering and it absolutely is. Yes, he says, first base is his best position, and, yes, he knows, with Mark Teixeira on board with a $180 million contract for the next eight years, he doesn't figure to have any future there with the Yankees.

But don't ask Swisher if his heart sank when, a month after the Yankees had liberated him from the Chicago White Sox, he heard the news that they had signed Teixeira. You can't get him to go there because it's no big deal. Don't worry, be flexible.

"I feel great!" Swisher said, greeting me at his locker. "Look at me, all clean-shaven like this! Can't remember the last time I didn't have a beard. I look in the mirror and I see a guy 10 years younger! But that's part of the rules here and that's cool."

New Yankee Nick Swisher in no position to complain

[Buckskin86]

New York Yankees' Nick Swisher hoping for a bounce-back year
by Marc Carig/The Star-Ledger
Sunday March 01, 2009


Noah K. Murray/The Star-Ledger

The Yankees traded for Nick Swisher with the idea he'd replace Jason Giambi at first base. Now he's battling Xavier Nady for the right field job.TAMPA, Fla. -- When he showed up at his father's doorstep last October, Nick Swisher could hardly recognize what was left of the swing that had once made him a first-round draft pick, a swing taught to him since childhood by his father.

Swisher joined the Chicago White Sox at the start of last season as the presumed final piece of a playoff-ready roster, bringing with him a switch-hitting power bat and glove versatile enough to field four positions.

But he languished from the start, and every attempt he made to turn his season around only made things worse.

He changed his approach at the plate, focusing on the simplest tasks, like trying to see the baseball better. He tweaked his batting stance frequently, hoping to trigger a turnaround. He talked himself into resisting the urge to press, even as he watched hard-hit balls disappear into the gloves of opposing fielders.

Nothing worked. As his batting average spiraled to a career-low .219, Swisher drifted further away from what he knew. By the time he arrived at the West Virginia home of his father, former big-league catcher Steve Swisher, he was filled with doubt.

"I didn't know what a normal swing was anymore," said Nick Swisher, so angered by his horrendous season that he took only five days off before beginning the process of making sure it would never happen again. "I had to get back to my roots. I had to get back to doing the right thing."

New York Yankees' Nick Swisher hoping for a bounce-back year - New York Yankees baseball - NJ.com

[Buckskin86]

Yankees? Swisher Is Set at Upbeat Tempo and High Volume
BY JOE LAPOINTE
Published: March 10, 2009

TAMPA, Fla. ? Nick Swisher of the Yankees is the son of Steve Swisher, a former major league catcher. When Nick was 6, Steve managed a minor league team in Waterloo, Iowa. Steve knew no baby sitters there, so he took Nick to games.

?When I had to go to sleep, he needed to know where I was, so I slept right on top of the bat rack,? Nick Swisher said. ?My dad?s a great man, he?s my best friend, my idol. But he?s quiet. I?m not quiet. I don?t know what happened.?

Swisher, an outfielder and first baseman who is on his third team in three years, was acquired in an off-season trade with the Chicago White Sox. He is not a stereotypical staid Yankee. His Twitter profile picture shows him sticking out his tongue.

He is a friend of the country singer Kenny Chesney, he said, and plans to take guitar lessons. With a back-slapping demeanor and a fondness for chewing tobacco, loud talk and loud music, Swisher has altered the sedate Yankees clubhouse of recent seasons.

If the switch-hitting Swisher can be a tough out and a versatile defender, his energy could significantly affect the team?s personality. So far, he has hit only .133 in the exhibition season, but his teammates seem to enjoy him.

?I?ve heard the stories, everyone has, that the New York Yankees are a corporate-type atmosphere,? Swisher said. ?It couldn?t be further from the truth. I never came in here to try and change things up. I just came over being myself, and it just so happened that it turned out to be like this.?

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/11/sp...tml?ref=sports

[Buckskin86]

Nick Swisher stays upbeat for New York Yankees
by Marc Carig/The Star-Ledger
Tuesday March 24, 2009

TAMPA, Fla. - A day after announcing that Xavier Nady is the frontrunner for the starting job in right field, New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi said he was on the lookout for Nick Swisher's reaction. As it turns out, Girardi didn't have to do too much looking. Just listening.

In the clubhouse before the game, Swisher pumped up the volume on his iPod dock to the highest decibel levels of the spring. As his soundtrack blared, Swisher bounced around the clubhouse, joking with teammates.

"He was the same guy," Girardi said. "And that's what I want."

Nick Swisher stays upbeat for New York Yankees - New York Yankees baseball - NJ.com

[Buckskin86]

Different view on opening day for New York Yankees' Nick Swisher
by Marc Carig/The Star-Ledger
Tuesday April 07, 2009


Kathy Willens/Associated Press
Right fielder Nick Swisher is enjoying his time with the Yankees, but would prefer playing every day in a starting role.

BALTIMORE -- Having a player of Nick Swisher's caliber on the bench should be proof that the Yankees have some depth. The assumption is that he should be able to provide what he did on Monday, when he delivered a pinch-hit double in the Yankees' 10-5 loss to the Orioles.

But will manager Joe Girardi find enough at-bats to keep Swisher sharp?

Swisher, a starter throughout his career, wants to be in the lineup every day. So sitting on the bench for Opening Day was tough on him. Still, Swisher said he is putting his emotions aside.

"I'm with the team," he said after the game. "All that stuff I'm thinking, you've got to put that stuff aside. I am for the team and I want to win."

Different view on opening day for New York Yankees' Nick Swisher - NJ.com