http://www.geocities.com/coney36_nyy/

Hi everyone!  Well...today's game was pretty dramatic...I really thought
Cone was going to get a win today, and I was very frustrated that he ended
up with yet another no decision...but at least those are better than
losses. :)  I thought he pitched really well, and I also was just very
proud of the team as a whole.  The offense seems to have woken up in the
past few days, and there were also some great defensive plays behind
Cone...and he made a nice play himself...catching that ball as it just
bolted out at him.  I am constantly amazed at how baseball players can
think and act so fast....

For anyone who missed the game there is of course a brief synopsis on the
front page...

Take care~ ~ ~ ~ 
             --KC :)

Origins of the Cone Curve: The Yankee pitcher drew wiffle and pro inspiration 
from the improvisation of Luis Tiant
by Alan Schwartz
(from Yankees Magazine, Volume 21, Issue 2)

They called it Cone-dlestick Park.  In the backyard of the Cone house on St. 
John Ave. in Kansas City, hitting the wiffle ball past the pitcher meant a 
single.  Into the alley, a double.  Against the apartment building that 
formed the short right-field porch, home run.

David Cone still remembers the day his dad took the ladder out and installed 
a floodlight so his boys, Chris, Danny, and little David, could play night 
games.

"We just thought that was the coolest thing", David remembered.  Mrs.Cone 
would call them in for dinner, they'd inhale it, and then scamper out to turn 
on that floodlight.

"We got into it pretty good", recalled Chris Cone, five years older than 
David.  "We'd play all the time.  As an older brother, I was usually more 
busy.  I had more going on.  But David was always bugging me to go out and 
play wiffle ball."

Half the fun for the Cones was pretending to be their favorite major 
leaguers.  George Brett.  Dennis Leonard.  And a king of extemporization 
named Luis Tiant.

Little David in particular marveled at how Tiant would twist on the mound, 
always trying new deliveries, only to make the ball dance even more after it 
left his hand.

"When you're a kid, you want to throw that curve, make it move", Cone 
recalled.  So David learned to turn his wrist, drop down sidearm and press 
his fingers with different force in different places to make the ball dance 
and jump.

"[David] just had a knack for it", Chris said, "I tell you what, he could 
really make that sucker move. You never knew what he was going to do."

Little did the Cones know that 25 years later, as a star major-league 
pitcher, their little brother still would be harkening back to those days, 
devising new pitches as he goes along.  "Sometimes it's still like I'm 
playing wiffle ball out there," Cone said.

As he eases into the final stretch of his career, Cone has had to do it even 
more than before.  After surgery for an aneurysm in his pitching shoulder 
four years ago and later surgery to clean up frayed tissue in the same joint, 
Cone, 37, can't rely on a straightforward, power-pitching strategy.  He has 
to be a little more wily.

As Cone's fastball begins to lose some of its velocity, he dips even deeper 
into his bag of tricks -- enter his old wiffle-ball days.  Even though he 
finished second in the America League with a 3.44 ERA last year, he still was 
using the lessons he learned in his backyard.

"I think a lot of pitchers are afraid to be creative on the mound.  They 
think they have to stay with one certain slot, a certain type of pitch.  I'm 
never afraid to create on the mound or try different things or different 
speeds, different angles.  To me, that's always been the fun part of 
pitching."

Cone has shown his creative side since day one.  When he broke in with the 
Kansas City Royals in 1986, he faced his old minor-league teammate, Cecil 
Fielder, with a runner on second base.  Cone swiveled as if to throw to 
second, Tiant-style, but whipped around and slung a sidearm slider for strike 
three.

"Cecil just walked all the way back to the dugout staring at me," Cone 
said.  "He was kind of smiling and laughing, like "What in the world is that?"

Cone has been criticized from time to time for improvising too much.  
(Occasionally, he admitted, he'll come up with a new pitch _during his 
windup_ -- and wish he hadn't 400 feet  later.) Yet most of the criticism 
comes from opposing hitters who to this day can't figure him out.

"That's what makes him so successful -- you never know what to expect," 
Detroit Tigers third baseman Dean Palmer said.  "He throws from so many 
angles, fastballs and breaking balls.  He'll drop down and sneak a sidearm 
fastball on you, or a sidearm slider.  You see him drop down, and you're 
like, Oh no, what's coming now?'"

"He has more different looks than anybody," Palmer said.  "And the stuff from 
those different looks is as good as anyone.  If you look at my numbers 
against him, you can see he's picked a few out of the bag for me."

As he gets older, Cone picks out even more.  It isn't just for fun anymore. 
Or to keep hitters off balance.  It's a way to survive.

"The days of 150 pitches and nine innings are over," Cone said,  Given that, 
his days of improvising become even more important.

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http://www.geocities.com/coney36_nyy/

Akino-- Thank you so much for sending us that article!  It actually
brought tears to my eyes it was so sweet!!! :) :)  I love little personal
insights like that...but I also loved all the discussion of Cone's
creativity and how he'll just invent a pitch during a windup...hee
hee...that's one of the things that fascinates me about David...I just
love his inventive creativity...he totally makes pitching an art and a
science...he's truly extraordinary. :)

Also thanks for the picture...but the funny thing is is that just happens
to be my current desktop already! LOL!  I found it a couple months ago as
I was randomly web surfing...It makes a very nice desktop image...:)

Take care~ ~ ~ ~
            --KC :)

http://www.geocities.com/coney36_nyy/

Hello everyone...Well, tonight's game was pretty cruddy, no denying
that...:(  Aside from the first couple innings though Cone pitched pretty
well!!  I just feel so frustrated for him that he seems to be having some
hard luck with the offense and such...in any other game the Yankees are
scoring 7, 11, 12 runs...but when Cone is on the mound...they manage to
squeeze out 1 or *maybe* 2!!  Cone is so hard on himself though, he just
puts all the blame on his shoulders...I know it sounds goofy but I worry
about him feeling down and frustrated...I hope the Yankees start to come
through for him and help him get a winning streak going!  He deserves it!!

I know the list has been pretty quiet but I hope y'all haven't lost faith
in our Cone!!!

The front page has been updated....

Take care~ ~ ~ ~ ~
             --KC :)

In a message dated 5/27/00 3:18:38 AM Eastern Daylight Time, 
[email protected] writes:

> Hello everyone...Well, tonight's game was pretty cruddy, no denying
>  that...:(  Aside from the first couple innings though Cone pitched pretty
>  well!!  I just feel so frustrated for him that he seems to be having some
>  hard luck with the offense and such...in any other game the Yankees are
>  scoring 7, 11, 12 runs...but when Cone is on the mound...they manage to
>  squeeze out 1 or *maybe* 2!!  Cone is so hard on himself though, he just
>  puts all the blame on his shoulders...I know it sounds goofy but I worry
>  about him feeling down and frustrated...I hope the Yankees start to come
>  through for him and help him get a winning streak going!  He deserves it!!

It doesn't sound goofy. I worry about him too. Heck, I'd be frustrated if I 
was in his position. I can see how he can blame himself, I would too and I 
did when I pitched a game, but since we won...it was okay....
  
>  I know the list has been pretty quiet but I hope y'all haven't lost faith
>  in our Cone!!!

Naw, it isn't that I've lost faith, he's one of the best and he's trying...I 
can't blame him for trying, can I? 

-kris

KC~
I know what you mean.  Every time he's pitched, the offense has been dead.  
So when he's pitching well, he still loses because the offense doesn't back 
him up.  It IS frustrating, especially on him.  But I still have faith in 
him...I always will. :)

~Jaycee

http://www.geocities.com/coney36_nyy/

Hello everyone...Well tonight's game was a pretty big disappointment,
especially for Cone I'm sure.  I really hope he isn't doubting himself or
any of that nonsense...I know he can get through this, and I know that you
all know he can, too!! :)  Looking on the bright side though, the offense
was doing pretty well!!  Too bad they made a couple of errors, but I was
pleased to see the bats were a little more active than they have been
lately...

Kris and Jaycee-- Thank you both for your positive attitudes...it's good
to know there are people who don't give up when things get to be a little
less than perfect....:)

As always, the front page has been updated...

Take care and look forward to the next game~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
                                   --KC :)

http://www.geocities.com/coney36_nyy/

Hi everyone.  Sorry this update is so late!  I was waiting to see if I
could find a picture of Cone hitting his single, which was arguably the
highlight of my night last night!!  I really wish he could get another
win...a lot of other wins.  People are beginning to be cruel, and I don't
like to see him look so frustrated out there.  You know he can't be happy
about this...  But apparently he says he feels just fine, and doesn't need
any extra rest or any of that.  I would really like to believe him, and I
will never lose my faith in him...I just hope things start turning around
for him very soon so everyone will get off his back!  What do you all
think....?

The page has been updated....

Take care~ ~ ~ ~ 
              --KC :)

In a message dated 6/7/00 3:44:51 AM Eastern Daylight Time, 
[email protected] writes:

> Hi everyone.  Sorry this update is so late!  I was waiting to see if I
>  could find a picture of Cone hitting his single, which was arguably the
>  highlight of my night last night!!  I really wish he could get another
>  win...a lot of other wins.  People are beginning to be cruel, and I don't
>  like to see him look so frustrated out there.  You know he can't be happy
>  about this...  But apparently he says he feels just fine, and doesn't need
>  any extra rest or any of that.  I would really like to believe him, and I
>  will never lose my faith in him...I just hope things start turning around
>  for him very soon so everyone will get off his back!  What do you all
>  think....?
>  

I hope he gets his stuff back. I think he's been pitchin great lately, but 
the fielders aren't backing him up. I don't want to sound negative, but I 
think it's sorta true. Another way I think of it, is that he's great, but the 
other pitchers are just a tad bit better. I think he'll get a win soon, I 
hope. 

-kris

http://www.geocities.com/coney36_nyy/

Hey everyone...Well how did you like that game tonight?!  Cone was
pitching sooo well only to get his parade rained on and postponed!  Could
the guy have any more bad luck?  Gahh!  Everything else was working...his
pitching was *great*, the offense was hitting, and the defense was
fabulous!  Now it was the weather....sheesh!  I just hope this brief
outing at least helped him get his confidence back, and hopefully he will
carry his unfinished business into his next start!  Boy, would I hate to
be that team....! ;)

Front page has been updated...

Take care~ ~ ~ ~
            --KC :)

In a message dated 6/13/00 12:47:25 AM Eastern Daylight Time, 
[email protected] writes:

> Hey everyone...Well how did you like that game tonight?!  Cone was
>  pitching sooo well only to get his parade rained on and postponed!  Could
>  the guy have any more bad luck?  Gahh!  Everything else was working...his
>  pitching was *great*, the offense was hitting, and the defense was
>  fabulous!  Now it was the weather....sheesh!  I just hope this brief
>  outing at least helped him get his confidence back, and hopefully he will
>  carry his unfinished business into his next start!  Boy, would I hate to
>  be that team....! ;)
>  

I know what you mean! I saw it into the third until rain delay, and Coney 
looked so confident and all. I hate when the games get rained out..it's 
supposed to rain all week here! :( I think he will be able to use the stuff 
he had from Sunday's game into his next start. 

:) Kris

http://www.geocities.com/coney36_nyy/

Hey everyone!  Just my little weekly note stating that the front page has
been updated and my little comments on the game...;)  Cone was *awesome*!!
I was so happy for him, he was really in a groove last night!!  He hardly
threw any balls, which I found to be very encouraging!  It means his
control was on, which means that he has not lost that ability and he still
has the strength and the talent to go out there and do his part for his
team!  Hey Kris, it did look like he still had the same energy he had last
Sunday, didn't it? :)  I am just so happy for him, now I just hope that he
can start capatalizing on these great performances and get some more
WINS!!  We need some more offense, dangit!! :) I can't wait until his next
game...!

Take care~ ~ ~ ~ ~
            --KC :)

In a message dated 6/17/00 6:09:06 PM Eastern Daylight Time, 
[email protected] writes:

> Hey everyone!  Just my little weekly note stating that the front page has
>  been updated and my little comments on the game...;)  Cone was *awesome*!!
>  I was so happy for him, he was really in a groove last night!!  He hardly
>  threw any balls, which I found to be very encouraging!  It means his
>  control was on, which means that he has not lost that ability and he still
>  has the strength and the talent to go out there and do his part for his
>  team!  Hey Kris, it did look like he still had the same energy he had last
>  Sunday, didn't it? :)  I am just so happy for him, now I just hope that he
>  can start capatalizing on these great performances and get some more
>  WINS!!  We need some more offense, dangit!! :) I can't wait until his next
>  game...!
>  

That's great to hear! I couldn't watch last night's game. :( My cousin was 
having her wedding ceremony even though she's already married. ::shrugs:: 
don't ask. I heard he did real great, so I guess he did have some of that 
power from Sunday. He did great, but offensively, the bats weren't doing 
their thing. :( 

-kris

http://www.geocities.com/coney36_nyy/

Hello everyone!  Just droppin' yet another note saying the page has been
updated!  That was really some game tonight...wow!  I was really hoping
Cone would get that win, and he was *so* close!!  With the exception of
the 1st inning I thought he pitched *very* well, and I think he can still
pitch on 4 days rest.  It was great to hear the announcers speak so well
of Cone, saying how his record is very deceiving of how he has actually
played this season and how he is just a guy you don't give up on.  I'm
glad there are people who can realize that!  It was also nice to see the
little interview snipits on ESPN2...for those of you who may not have seen
them he just talked about having to make a lot of adjustments as a veteran
pitcher and also how it's frustrating that physically he feels so well but
how he hasn't been exactly consistent in his performances.  However, I
think his consistency is starting to come back...he's coming out of that
slump and pitching nicely...now let's just keep hopin' for him that he can
get some more wins!!  He so deserves them!!

Look for the biography soon...I am almost finished...! :)

Take care~ ~ ~ ~ ~
              --KC :)

http://www.geocities.com/coney36_nyy/

Hey everyone...Well the frustrations continue!  I just feel so bad for
Cone!  When I saw the score in the 5th, I thought for sure he was going to
have his win... he just keeps coming so close!!  Though I guess tonight
wasn't exactly one of his "good" nights...he did give up a lot of hits.
However a friend of mine who saw the game (I don't get the games here...)
did point out that he had thrown a handful of really sneaky sliders and
that he still has it, so I found that to be very encouraging as he is very
baseball knowledgeable!  So keep believing in him, I know this is not over
yet!  There's still a lot of baseball left, and July tends to be his
month!  Here's to waiting for his next start....!

On a side note, what about Torre and Zimmer getting thrown out of the
game?!  That was very odd..!  I mean, I didn't see what happened or
anything, but just hearing that is so weird, stuff like that doesn't
happen to them very often!

The page has been updated, and I'm still wrapping up the biography...I'll
get it up there someday, I promise! ;)

Take care~ ~ ~ ~ ~
               --KC <<<<:)

Well, it is very frustrating to see David going through
this! He did give up a lot of hits last night, but that
grand slam just did him in:( It was very upsetting to
watch but I thought they were gonna pull through for
him, but I guess it just wasn't their night. Yeah, July
tends to be a good month for Coney, we all know what happened
last July, LOL! Coney has a lot left....I wouldnt worry too
much,

Eyde

http://www.geocities.com/coney36_nyy/

Hi everyone...Well, just my weekly note saying I've updated the page...but
I really didn't have much to say.  I am really worried...and not about a
win-loss record or going to the WS or anything like that, I am just so
worried about Cone and how horrible he must be feeling right now.  I can't
believe the fans BOOED him!!!  When I heard that my heart just ripped
right in half.  I mean, this is the same guy they cheered last July when
he pitched his PG...how can people be so two-faced?!  I know he pitched
badly, but he still didn't deserve that, not after all he's been through,
not after all he has done...

I'm also worried about what's going to happen to him with regards to the
rest of the season...people keep talking about trades and releases, or
that he should just retire...I just don't know what to think!  A part of
me still believes he can snap out of this, but at the same time, it just
kills me to see him go out like he did today because I know how much he
beats himself up when he doesn't do well...Knowing him he'd probably say
he deserved the boos and that actually the fans let him off easy...that
just sounds like something he would say, doesn't it?  Plus, I don't want
him to be remembered for a last crappy season, he's worked so hard and had
so many highlights in his career to have it all overshadowed by the
present.  But like I said, there's that part of me that thinks he can
still find his way out, like he's always done.  He had 5 strikeouts, and
he only walked 2 batters...so I think he still has stuff left, he just has
to...he's shown it throughout this season so far, just inconsistently...I
just hope he can get it all together again, for his sake.....

I can't even bring myself to go to the forums, and fortunately, I don't
have time to go there anyways as I have to go to work...but I can't bear
to see people saying whatever mean, horrible things they're saying...

So I'd like to know where all of you stand on the whole situation...I'd
love to hear your thoughts...and if anyone hears any interviews or
anything from Cone, posting info from them here would be greatly
appreciated....

Just for the record, no matter what I will always stand behind Cone and I
will always respect him...! :)

Thank you, and take care~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
                            --KC

KC:  Here's a bit of info from the AP article about this game.  Yes, as you 
predicted, Cone did day he deserved to be booed...sigh...

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

BRONX, NEW YORK (TICKER) -- The Baltimore Orioles smacked four home runs off 
David Cone and barely held on for a 7-6 victory over the New York Yankees.

The Orioles did not take batting practice after their late flight from 
Toronto, but they built a 7-2 lead after six innings against Cone on homers 
by Mike Bordick, Harold Baines, Brady Anderson and Mark Lewis.

Cone (1-7) allowed four home runs in a game for the first time in his 406-
start career, remained winless since April 28 and left to a smattering of 
boos after allowing seven runs over 5 2/3 innings.

"I deserved it and I don't blame them," he said.

The veteran righthander also committed a costly throwing error to start the 
sixth. Four batters later, Lewis smacked a three-run homer for a 7-2 lead.

New York nearly got Cone out of the hole by scoring three times in the ninth, 
but Mike Trombley got Paul O'Neill to ground out with the tying run at second 
base to end the game.

"Great comeback at the end by us, but it was too big a hole to come out of," 
Cone said. "Pretty disappointing when you give up six hits and four of them 
are home runs."

Scott Erickson (4-6), mentioned in trade rumors, snapped a three-start losing 
streak, giving up three runs over 7 2/3 innings.

"I was just trying to keep the ball down, and we scored some runs early, 
which always helps the pitcher out," Erickson said. "And we played good 
defense."

Trombley notched only his second save in seven chances, despite giving up an 
RBI single to Chuck Knoblauch and a run-scoring double to Derek Jeter in the 
ninth.

Knoblauch went 3-for-4 and scored three times for the Yankees, who returned 
from a 13-game road trip, their longest in 14 years, and lost for the 12th 
time in 18 games. It came on owner George Steinbrenner's 70th birthday.

"This ballclub knows that we haven't played up to our potential and yet we're 
still in a situation that we can still win," New York manager Joe Torre said.

What kind of fans would boo their own player? EVERY fan has to support any 
player no matter what happens. I can't believe that fans would boo him 
because he was doing bad. It's like what happened with Chuck Knoblauch. 
Instead of supporting him, they boo him to lower his self esteem, which 
sometimes will make the player think like he really is doing bad. I know at 
times he just doesn't cut it, but that doesn't mean that he should be put 
down. I'm worried he can't cut it, but than he's trying his best, and people 
haven't a heart to support him when they really need him. I remembering 
hearing that they can't trade him or release him..he has somethiing left. 

Perhaps, to support the team and David Cone, the Courtier's should go to a 
game. The CBers are doing it, for Chuck, so why not David??? 

=-Kris-=