Oye Como Va! The 2008 NEW YORK METS

Santana to help Mets forget Historic Collapse

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=txsantanaftr&prov=st&type=lgns

"And the fact that the Mets landed Santana - the jewel of the offseason - almost is as stunning as their September collapse."

AND NOW SHASTA WILL FORGET IT.

John Maine could throw a no-hitter this year. Duaner Sanchez will yet another way to be on the disabled list all year. Delgado might be hearing a lot of boos.

I hope there is some plan in place to help prevent the entire team from being exhausted in September this time.

sort of amusing from page six via mlb fleece factor:

If there was ever an Off-Field Fleece Olympics, this might take the gold. Richard Johnson of the NY Post’s Page Six (a leading gossip column) has the scoop on what was allegedly a very rough night for the Mets #2 starter Pedro Martinez.

While in Miami last week, Pedro decided to check out Prime 112 in Miami for some dinner. It seems that he walked in and was told to wait for a table. I mean, this is Pedro Martinez we are talking about here. So, Pedro was clearly miffed and one of Johnson’s spies said that Martinez began cursing and demanded to be seated. Eventually, he was seated.

Here is the kicker! As Pedro is waiting, Star Jones walks on in and gets seated IMMEDIATELY! Yes, Star Jones…formerly of The View! The spy said, at this point, Pedro ended his dinner quite early.

Miami: not a baseball town

miami IS a dominican town, though!

http://blog.nj.com/ledgerupdates_impact/2008/02/large_AJOHAN.jpg

Mets not happy about Milledge's comments

"I can't go through anything worse than I went through in New York. It only gets better from here," Milledge said. "A lot of veterans didn't like the way I play the game. They thought I didn't respect it."...

"Everyone in the organization babied the heck out of him," Wagner said. "We couldn't get on him too much because we were told to lay off of him. It could have been a whole lot worse for him and all we did was try to help him to help us."

"The veterans were never mean to him or singled him out," Wright said. "They always tried to teach him. Some of that comes through tough love. I went through it, Jose went through it. All the young guys in the game go through that tough-love period. Some handle it better than others.

"Personally, I like Lastings. There were times when he messed up and he knew it and he learned from it. I don't see where this is coming from. I don't know if it's just trying to play that 'bitter traded guy' role. I don't know what he's trying to accomplish by the things that he's saying."

"The good vibes didn't last long, however. Chris Duncan and Albert Pujols both touched Santana for hits in the first inning before Gonzalez's blast just cleared the left-field fence."

^_^

wau, FEBRUARY GOPHER BALLS!

Delgadow

http://www.savetheapple.com/

"The apple is one of the most electrifying home run displays in baseball"

They've already said there'll be an apple in the new place. Probably "upgraded."

Nick Stone (East Village, New York City): Hey Jay, How much do the Mets's mounting injuries effect their status as NL east favorites? Who to blame for the spate of injuries? Luck? The front office of not making better contingency plans considering their fragile line up? Or the medical staff?

Jay Jaffe: Between the news about Delgado's hip, Beltran's knees, and Alou's hernia, I'd say that Mets fans should be very worried right now. New York doesn't have a ton of depth at the positions in question -- particularly at 1B -- they don't have prospects to deal anymore, and the NL East is looking to be a very competitive division, with the Phillies and Braves both capable of working their way past the Mets.

If you want to cast blame, it's on Minaya, who's assembled an aged lineup that's in win-now mode. I mean, signing Luis Castillo to a four-year deal is just a recipe for disaster.

o. perez not looking too hot today

Doesn't mean anything.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b103/crills/Mets_choke.jpg

yes, I've seen you in that T shirt.

experts, would any of these be especially advisable?

4/26 day v ATL (MR) (or 4/27 foam finger day, poorer seats)
6/1 day v LAD (UB)
6/23 schoolnight v SEA (LR)
7/26 night v STL (MR, Take HER to the Ball Game)
9/13 day v ATL (MR)
9/25 schoolnight v CHC (LR)

i say either ATL game, nothing like longstanding division rivalry.

I'll be there on 7/26, keep yr distance

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDSh5wUtXt4

Foam finger 4/26 gets my vote. Although there will be plentiful good seats for the meaningless Cubs game in September.

4/27 that is. All seats are made better with +4 blessed finger of foam.

Thanks for the advice. Attractions for the cubs game included proximity to The End, in addition to seat quality.

Gotay claimed off waivers by the Braves.

wtf? gotay was good. that bannister trade looking even more shit now

And to save a spot for Fernando Tatis?!

I am surprised they made Pelfrey #5, ie the right choice.

Sidd Finch, Phenom of '85

lol nice 4 inning season pedro

pedro: possible torn ligaments

Finch is probably one of my favorite pitchers ever.

he works for nails now

Yeah I heard that too.

Terri and Luke went home. Lenny and I went to the Four Seasons, for dinner. He walked in wearing his baseball cap, and with a laptop open. After telling the waitress that she shouldn’t offer Evian (“We saved the French”), he asked whether she had an extension cord and wouldn’t mind running it across to our table. “We’re low on juice,” he said. She indulged him, and even placed a chair from an unoccupied table over the cord at its midpoint, to serve as a kind of traffic cone. No matter: first one woman, and then another, tripped over it. “Why is everyone walking through here?” Dykstra exclaimed. “It’s a fucking magnet.”

This is better than that scene in The Blues Brothers

By the time he returned, the piano player had started his set. “Brutal—can’t take this,” Dykstra said. We moved to a table on the opposite side of the restaurant. After some consultation with her manager, the waitress informed Dykstra that the Four Seasons didn’t offer iceberg lettuce. “I do have romaine,” she said. “Would that be O.K.?”
“Give me a cheeseburger,” he said.

"Do you have Fruit Roll-Ups?"

"No, but we do have fresh fruit salad."

"Give me a hot dog."

im pretty sure from seeing him on hbo real sports that he has alzheimers so these quotes arent that crazy

who's surprised about Pedro? not me.

Randolph w/ classic can't-use-closer-in-tie-bullshit last night.

hey little omar, maybe you should spend more time cornholing andtwat than trying to pull that shit here?

did they kick you off the 30 minute computers at the Brooklyn Library?

no, I'm still employed.

Nelson Figueroa may be rotation-bound.

^_^

Could someone please explain to me how to prevent that fucking rickroller site from locking my Firefox and requiring me to shut down my computer and losing all the fucking work I had open?

Also, omar little, please die.

Trading Brian Bannister still seems dumb.

Kazmir was worse.

No doubt.

Could someone please explain to me how to prevent that fucking rickroller site from locking my Firefox and requiring me to shut down my computer and losing all the fucking work I had open?

Also, omar little, please die.

-- polyphonic, Wednesday, April 2, 2008 12:35 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Link

Further loss can be prevented by not clicking omar little's link.

As a fellow rickroller, I submit that it was April Fool's Day. Voros "Quentin" McCracken has not yet quantified the mystery of defense, either.

If that's the LOL site:

1) Once the singing actually starts, you can control your browser again (as it stops doing the 4 corners)
2) If you try closing the window / tab, you'll just have to click through dialog boxes spitting out the song's lyrics

If it actually crashed your browser, there's some other stuff going on w/ your computer.

It just kept cycling through the lyrics and video, and I never got control back of my browser at all. Now I've installed a firefox add-on that prevented it from happening again, but I'm still pissed about the work I lost.

It didn't crash my browser, it merely rendered it inoperable, and not close-able.

Sorry to hijack the Mets thread, Morbs et al.

sanskrit's Ollie Perez voodoo doll not yet operational.

hey at least you got 4 more innings than Pavano will ever put in

pedro: possible torn ligaments

-- omar little, Tuesday, April 1, 2008 8:48 PM (3 days ago) Bookmark Link

OMAR LITTLE YOU ARE A GENIUS
http://digg.com/baseball/Digg_users_unite_Let_s_Rickroll_the_NY_Mets_all_year

lmbo i just voted

Enter "Other" : "Never Gonna Give You Up - Rick Astley"

We should all use that same formatting, just to be sure.

LOL OCD baseball rickrollers. Consistency is the key!

yankee stadium drops "Cotton Eyed Joe" after the stretch. i would take rick astley in a heartbeat.

DEL-GOT-IT

The Mets organization will "Rick Roll" the fans on April 8, 2008 in the 8th inning.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rickroll

Dr. Morbius, as a true Mets fan, do you think Shea should play "Never Gonna Give You Up" as per the five million? Or do the revote over the next 6 days?

I didn't know this fucking Astley song when Nick Lowe and the Wonder Stuff sang about it, have not seen any of this Rickroll shit, and will go take a piss in the 8th whenever I'm at Shea this year.

(ie, fuck populism but it can't be worse than "Sweet Caroline")

Where's that "Best Things Said on ILB" thread...

HAHAHA awesome

it can't be worse than "Sweet Caroline")

low bar there. I think rickrolling is pretty stupid, but this could be great

nothin about "Eighties Music" is great

Oliver Perex starting to vaguely resemble who he was supposed to be?

I am a noted 80s-hater, but I liked SAW way back when too. The long 90s?

Schoeneweis in, I can't bear to listen

picking up right where he left off

CHASE UTLEY HAS TIED AN MLB RECORD FOR 3 HBP IN ONE GAME

beat me to that one

and Delgado taketh away

"Sweet Caroline" and "Never Gonna Give You Up" are both great tunes! (Maybe I'd feel differently about SC if I lived on the east coast, where it is seemingly omnipresent.)

Left off

Has Shoeneweis ever had a season ERA under 5.00 since becoming a reliever?

2005, which was TWO years before the Mets signed him. He also had a most excellent 14.2 IP in 2006 after coming to the NL -- if the Mets were on the fence, that probably pushed them over.

I guess it's better than the severed head of Austin Kearns.

DID YOU KNOW Shoeneweis is monorchid.

no, is he a PC survivor, or shouldn't I ask?

Lidge got off the DL quickly. He was on it, wasn't he?

yeah. lidge was on the dl retroactive to march something, i believe.

L, Schoeneweis (0-1)

Hard to hear Astley above all the booing.

ha hahaha!

schoenrolled?

LOL @ crafty Reyes sneaking in there w/ perfect acting. good work dude.

PHILLY BOY ROY MUST BE PISSED RITE NOW

I didn't see any conclusive replays -- did YES have one, you shill?

dude i'm a SNY SportsNite dude. can't stand all the bullshit on ESPN SportsCenter, esp how they spread out the baseball coverage with an hour's worth of fluff. and YES has 101 worthless attempts at programming but they DON'T have a 30 minute sports news broadcast.

YES has 101 worthless attempts at programming but they DON'T have a 30 minute sports news broadcast.

Wait until they conclude negotiations with Van Earl Wright!

http://www.tvshowsondvd.net/graphics/news3/WhiteShadow_S1.jpg

I stop on TWS more often than "CenterStage."

I keep running into "Yogi & A Movie" (the non-Yogi bits).

lol keith hernandez dropped a silence of the lambs line "the mets covet what they know" referring to pagan, figeroa & casanova originally being drafted by the mets

acknowleged as such by Cohen?

acknowleged as such by Kiner

that Ben Sheets is an angry young man. I don't think I like the Brewers, only their nice logo they're not allowed to use.

ahahahahaa at whiteshadow.jpg
must have been steinbrenner's favorite show or something

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJLJ91Xoet4

I eagerly await the results of Gabe Kapler's drug test.

Johan was booed at Shea on Saturday?

by some, when he was relieved, i believe

thanks gareth

DUANER is back! Release some bullpen deadwood, Omar, plz.

I thought the deadwoodies most worthy of release are those making the most bank?

I didn't know this fucking Astley song when Nick Lowe and the Wonder Stuff sang about it, have not seen any of this Rickroll shit, and will go take a piss in the 8th whenever I'm at Shea this year.

-- Dr Morbius, Tuesday, April 8, 2008 11:43 AM (1 week ago) Bookmark Link

Let's ask the players

Lol @ MattWiseGamgee

HOW ABOUT JOURNEYS' DON'T STOP BELIEVING!!!!!
OR CHEAP TICKETS BY ALABAMA

AND WHERE THE HECK IS THIS CONTEST POSTED!!!!!!

omg.

Associated Press

NEW YORK -- A man attending a New York Mets game with his family lost his balance on an escalator and fell two stories to his death, police said.

Antonio Nararainsami, 36, and several relatives, including his two young daughters, were leaving the stadium at the end of Tuesday night's game against the Washington Nationals when he fell in a section below the left field stands and landed on a concrete floor. Nararainsami, a Guyanese native who lived in Brooklyn, was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead half an hour later.

Kevin Prashad, a cousin who attended the game, said Nararainsami was walking down the escalator, which wasn't moving, and was holding the hand rail when he "lost his footing."

The Mets said in a statement that they had been "advised of a tragic accident that resulted in the death of a fan." They said team officials and police were investigating.

"Our deepest and heartfelt condolences go out to the fan's family," the team's statement said.

The death of Nararainsami, who was wearing a Mets cap when he fell, appeared to be an accident, and no charges had been filed, police said.

Nararainsami installed heating and air conditioning systems for a living, loved sports and was the captain of a local cricket club, his relatives said. His wife, pregnant with their third child, had stayed home while he attended the game.

Nararainsami's death wasn't the first at Shea. In 1985, a 21-year-old Yonkers man fell 100 feet from an escalator and was killed.

walking down the escalator, which wasn't moving

I thought they stopped AND blocked off the escalators at Shea when the game's over, just to ensure eveyone uses the ramps and this wouldn't happen.

Sad. Coming down from the really upper deck seats at Shea is pretty friggan scary.

OK, so that 14th inning was shaping up to be something pretty exciting. Easley gets on board w/ a single; Reyes tries to bunt WHY I DON'T KNOW and pops out, but Easley advances on a wild pitch to Church, then gets to 3rd when the pitcher (Hannarhan?) throws a wild pick-off to 2nd WHY I DON'T KNOW that gets Easley to third with Church still up but instead of automatically walking the bases loaded Acta decides to have the pitcher finish the AB and he gets Church swinging for the 2nd out!

And then it looks like Acta's going to actually pitch to David Wright too instead of walking the bases loaded to get to the pitcher's spot, and all the while Willie doesn't have anyone warming up to replace the pitcher whose spot is invariably going to come up WHY I DON'T KNOW, except after 2 balls to Wright (one of which I believe was a 97 MPH dart far outside that the catcher successfully lunged and stabbed @ to keep the game from ending) they decide to load the bases anyway, and Willie responds by sending up Brian Schneider to pinch-hit while finally deciding to get a pitcher (Schoenweis?!) up and throwing. And then, instead of just pitching to Schneider quick-like to maybe force the Mets to bring in a still-cold reliever, there's a mini conference on the mound to discuss how to pitch to Schneider. All sorts of holy WTF is going on glourious late inning nuttiness.

And then the pitcher bounces the first pitch to Schneider 10 feet in front of the plate that hops up over the catcher's right shoulder, and Easley scores with ease, and the game's over.

And I saw it all from my upgraded seat (loge sec 13)!

Was a little worried I'd be there til 3 a.m., but then I remembered if it went to the 15th Schoeneweis was the only pitcher left (ie Dave, warming up wdn't have meant much).

Ppl on the 7-train were trashing the Reyes bunt, too, but only the execution sucked! It's the Earl Weaver Run That Wins the Ballgame, if he gets it on the ground it's fine.

Please spare me from having to watch Raul Casanova bat ever again.

Also, I didn't realize former Yankee great Aaron Boone is on the Nationals, and is pretty fucking hot.

Meh -- with the runner @ 1st, let Reyes swing away, keep the out.

Whoah, how many total innings of baseball were played in the aggregate yesterday? 22 in San Diego, 14 in New York, over 10 in Baltimore?

did anyone else hear Ron Darling's midgame SNY rant about the high number of pitches per batter in today's game -- I believe he referred to "this Moneyball junk"?

Ha -- more like "this amorphous strike-zone junk"!

Raul Casanova never gets a hit when I'm watching.

It's all Moneyball's fault that players take pitches! Thanks a lot Billy Beane!

ugh

This was not a trip worth taking.

and I don't care what it costs, I want "Slammy" Sosa off this team.

damn santana just drove a ball to center over milledge!

possibly harder than beltran has hit a ball all season

question of the morning is can he play first?

ok so who broke Heilman?

time to cut losses on delgado

oh, pleazzzze -- with whom? Don't be a sports-call-in-style pantywaist. Bullpen a bigger problem than Delgado at the moment.

keep the faith, morbs. big fat zero in the 5 spot gonna bring the pennant! (i know they have nothing right now to replace, perhaps time to start looking, unless you think the second coming of todd zeile is a good thing)

i know omar's got another bannister-style deal in him, make the magic happen

haha effoff gershy; Delgado is hitting 6th right now, moran!

i've actually been working on a deal, gershy

Currently, the best point-and-laugh situation is the Big Apple, where both first basemen are redefining the term anchor. Despite the fact that they're both in contract years, Jason Giambi and Carlos Delgado are both headed for a non-guaranteed contract with some has-been team come next spring.

If they're lucky.

Anyway, it's time for a BLS poll. Vote below for the worst first baseman in New York City.

Who's the worst first baseman in New York?
Carlos Delgado
Jason Giambi
View Results »

ROY SMALLEY 82%

DANNY HEEP 18%

http://www.onlinesports.com/images/phf-aacy022.jpg

i've actually been working on a deal, gershy

-- omar little

please link to the proposed deal

my taunting of carlos clearly worked

yeah thx gershy! I think Carlos had front-running stiffs like you in mind when he declined curtain call.

: D

Alou w/ possible fracture in foot *sigh*

How has Raul Casanova temporarily turned into Piazza?

that's his hotel check-in name

Re: today's game -- ouch.

wholly comedy of errors. ive been watching for 5 minutes and ive seen two bad errors. wtf mets

got a seat on the 7 train after the game

I'm glad you were the one keeping score.

For Morbs:

It's time for the Mets to fire Willie Randolph. They should fire him if his team sweeps the Arizona Diamondbacks this weekend. They should fire him if his team wins all three games by a total score of 27-0. They should fire him if his team puts on such a display this weekend that the greater Phoenix area literally burns to the ground around them, lit by nothing but the intensity of their passion and brilliance.

Also -- am I wrong in thinking that the next time Wagner actually says something POSITIVE about a teammate (instead of just talking pointlessly stupid shit that just makes reporters and Mets haters happy) it'll be the first time?

well, I've always thought Willie is a bad manager, but bad managers can win World Series in this era (see Arizona, 2001).

Jay Jaffe:

Despite the fact that the Mets are over .500 and within a whisker of first place, fans, media and players continue to generate so much negative energy that it would surprise no one if Bobby Bonilla came out of retirement and offered to show somebody the Bronx.

wau, Mets hit Owings last night like they were Owings.

mets need to find a way to play in AZ more often

uh other than vs. webb obv

why does pelfrey wear a mouth guard on the mound?

lol @ sosa leading team in wins

why does pelfrey wear a mouth guard on the mound?

Lockjaw

Left bases loaded three times in the first four innings...

I think Johnny Maine can hold this lead (and only 45 pitches thru 4, for a change).

lol @ scott proctor

dude, what the hell happened to brad penny?!

Curse of Alyssa

Skully - "So after 10 runs, you can now close the book on Penny, and it wasn't a best-seller."

lol

Angel Pagan with JETERLIKE header into stands!!

dammit, I go to Shea tom'w but I bet Santana gets bumped to Sunday when they're rained out tonight

well I did get Johan and the right game of the two...

lol ollie perez just stole a bag

I really hope that's Nelson Figleaf's last start, and not just cuz the Nats' cheerleading upset him:

"They were cheering in the dugout like a bunch of softball girls," he said. "I am a professional, I take great offense to that. ... They won tonight, but in the long run, look who they are, a last-place team."

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=280512121

holy smokes! anybody see this thing about delgado's agent?

http://www.nj.com/mets/index.ssf/2008/05/breaking_news_delgados_agent_i.html

dios mio!

sounds like the 'professional standard' for an agent

Activated pitcher Matt Wise from the 15-day disabled list; purchased the contracts of pitcher Claudio Vargas and infielder-outfielder Fernando Tatis; placed outfielder Angel Pagan on the 15-day disabled list; designated pitchers Jorge Sosa and Nelson Figueroa for assignment; announced catcher Raul Casanova cleared waivers and assigned him to New Orleans of the Pacific Coast League (AAA).

Lots of movement today!

Apologize this retard,

beautiful

So's your mom

GOODBYE SOSA!! about time, Omar.

I nearly did a spit take when Tatis came to bat last night.

"if he's a latin ballplayer and he has a pulse, i'll find him!"

--motto of the omar minaya detective agency

designated pitcher Nelson Figueroa for assignment

"I'm a professional like anybody else, so I take a huge offense to that."

if only he had pitched like a professional after the first 2 starts.

The next team that faces him should get a softball team to sit in the stands and do cheers.

Castillo back in lineup...

The next team he faces WILL be a softball team! har

hey look at Pelfrey, dere.

(not that I'm excited -- seen this movie)

no surprise...

Mets shut out for 7 by Bergmann and his 8+ ERA.

ugh, glad I wasn't awake to see Church get clobbered.

if it makes you feel any better, bergmann shut out the phils for 8 yesterday.

Joe Simpson (Braves broadcaster) is really, really good at carefully letting the viewers in on behind-the-scenes stuff about players, and the other day he was talking about the knock on Yunel Escobar being his "Cuban-style exuberance," which is seen in some quarters as showboating and rubs some players/scouts/managers the wrong way. (He got warned last week about how carelessly he flings his bat after he hits the ball -- it flew a little too close to the ump for comfort.)

Anyway, this is all to say that Escobar tried to turn a DP last night with an acrobatic jump-over-the-runner move that left him with a thigh bruise, and some teammates were trying to coach him in the dugout about alternate routes to turning two that didn't risk injury. So in the 9th, he tried the same exact jump, clobbered Church, and clobbered his own knee. Don't be surprised if you see him start to get a rep for "attitude."

Anyway, Church got knocked the fuck out.

http://bp1.blogger.com/_x2cVkSwxSQ/R8JaIFa1M_I/AAAAAAAADMc/KYn6H9U3bHg/s1600-h/ct.jpg

christucker.jpg

lol, most hits given up by santana in a major league game

keith said 'nadir' abt 7 times last night

pronouncing it as NAYder instead of naDEAR

losing 4 at Turner, since when is this news?

lol i thought it was pronounced nay-der too :[

well obv I listened to someone who thought differently, bcz you & Keith are right acc to Merriam-Webster!

You know he was dying to say Shit City.

pretty trees out in center in Denver

Keith said "tough chance" at least five times last night from the ninth onward.

I liked the reaction to the fried dough

Carter Has Eye on Randolph’s Job

(Gary) Carter said that when he heard of Randolph’s troubles, he “immediately” called Jay Horwitz, the Mets’ vice president for media relations, and asked if he should call the team’s principal owner, Fred Wilpon. “I just want them to know of my availability.” Carter said. “I’m only a phone call away. I could be in New York tomorrow.

"There’s way too much talent there for them to be a game under .500 and to lose four in a row to the Braves. I think that they’ve just become complacent in some ways ever since their demise of last year. And if you look at Willie’s record, it is right around .500 since June of last year. And when you have that much talent, there are a lot more expectations than where they’re at right now.”

lol hernandez's head would explode

http://fantasybaseballnonsense.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/backman_w.jpg

is that from dateline: to catch a predator??

Keith's had it with Kid (me too, around 1987):

"I have great respect for Gary as a player," said Hernandez, now a TV analyst. "He's a Hall of Famer. When Johnny Bench left the game, he was the premier catcher in the National League.

"But that being said, and I've kept quiet for such a long time, but for the people out there listening, just go in the dictionary and look up 'unconscious' and you'll find a picture of Gary Carter.

"I know that's strong, but it just happens too many times and it's just, you're walking around unconscious."

http://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/ny-spmbox265703210may26,0,1977636.story

btw, it sounds like Randolph's meeting yesterday might've added up to "Willie, just don't call the family cable net racist, mmmmkay?"

this guy nick evans is the most awkward and clumsy looking baseball player ive ever seen

he looks like a high school freshman out there catching fly balls

http://www.tvblabla.net/mt-static/FCKeditor/UserFiles/Image/Les-vacances-monsieur-Hulot.jpg

TATIS!

I'm not a huge believer in Big Wins at the end of May, but that'll do.

now I have a Met to like again

plz don't bother

i've come to the conclusion that duaner is my fav met

Fav Met = Ryan Church.

How's he doing since he got clocked by Escobar?

Acc to the Times yesterday, he's very dizzy, and docs are roasting the Mets for letting him pinch-hit.

Were you in the Nats prayer group w/ him, Shasta?

http://www.cantstopthebleeding.com/?p=3034

Yes, Dr. Morbius I was there with Steven Spielberg.

morbs/shasta baseball feud is so cuet

favorite met = ENDY

It's funny when statheads turn on their own.

Endy used to be my favorite Met, but I dunno about this lol'ing in the dugout during losses stuff.

http://i296.photobucket.com/albums/mm165/CoxBahamas/2533837650_09c2755f0a.jpg

the other night my wife asked me why baseball players wear such gay necklaces

OMG Jose candy Rey-ves

Endy had a nice assist last night!

WHY HEILMAN STILL ON TEAM?

boy am I glad I went out and got drunk instead of seein that.

ladies & gents, Willie Randolph, the anti-LaRussa of tie games:

San Diego - Bottom of 9th

Scott Schoeneweis pitching for New York
S Schoeneweis relieved D Sanchez.

S Hairston hit for T Hoffman.
S Hairston walked.
B Giles walked, S Hairston to second.
A Gonzalez grounded out to pitcher, S Hairston to third, B Giles to second.
K Kouzmanoff intentionally walked.
P McAnulty hit by pitch, S Hairston scored

Don't worry, you'll win the other two games by like fifty runs.

Oh yeah?

This team, sheeit.

O SO MUCH MORE THERE ^_^

http://flickr.com/photos/67827566@N00/2565813399/

http://flickr.com/photos/67827566@N00/2565812901/

GUH

http://flickr.com/photos/67827566@N00/2566638426/

O_O

I have those books, sonny!

I had maybe the best seat I ever had at Shea last night (Sec 2 loge box, basically at the top of the home-area screen behind the RH batter's box) ... and that's maybe the most infuriating Mets win I've witnessed. Didn't count on Pelfrey's best game ever.

Inside Randolph's Mind:

BETTER LET PELF HIT, FANS/MEDIA WILL EAT UP SENTIMENT & TRUST IN OLDTIME COMPLETE GAME

LEADOFF HIT, OH NO, MUST CALL HOMERRIFIC CLOSER

it's time for carlos d to rip wagner in the media

I would say, go to it.

WHAT A BALLCLUB

wright scorched that ball in the bottom of the 9th. ojeda's play on it was unbelievable.

bring on tejas hopefully mets can hit their bullpen. certainly couldnt hit AZ's or SD's

david wright is wearing eye-blue today

Got to sit through Shea's worst rainstorm ever, and watch Rangers do tarp slip 'n slide.

Robinson Cancel's FIRST 21st-CENTURY HIT!

Shea Goodbye, Willie

Wow, you're up early.

Well duh, the Mets fired him in the middle of the night because they knew most people would be sleeping and wouldn't notice he was gone. If a tree falls in the forest, etc.

that's a lotta meat

way to defy those odds willie!

http://bp1.blogger.com/_Xtn5bp8dZEg/R-1A7FuuIfI/AAAAAAAABWc/Np9mpQ1DSfo/s1600-h/managerodds.bmp

doh. this is the link:

http://bp1.blogger.com/_Xtn5bp8dZEg/R-1A7FuuIfI/AAAAAAAABWc/Np9mpQ1DSfo/s1600-h/managerodds.bmp

^^1st manager to "leave" odds @ start of season

Scioscia that far up?

admittedly those were a bit strange. mcLaren @ 40:1 had been lookin good

The Wilpons are lucky the standard for being the biggest asshole owners in this town is so "high." That said, no more dodo ex-Yankees for managers plz.

Torre for manager plz

would it make sense to give Alou some sort of leadership role?

Piss Commander?

gab, you know JT's already employed (& not exactly doing such a bang-up job), right?

Are the Wilpons actually 2nd graders? Shitcanning Willie & Co like they did could possibly be the most passive-aggresive hold-my-breath move I've ever seen executed in professional sports (or baseball, at least), and I'd like to think guys that hit puberty would be above that sort of stuff.

sorta like piss jokes, right?

gab, you know JT's already employed (& not exactly doing such a bang-up job), right?

yes

So that's why you guys ignore him.

yes

why should he stay in LA? he's spent most of his life/career in NY, including with guess who. maybe he's 'not exactly doing such a bang-up job' because he's with the wrong team in the wrong city.

he's spent most of his life/career in NY

RONG.

1 Playing career
1.1 Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves (1960-68)--8 years
1.2 St. Louis Cardinals (1969-74)--6 years
1.3 New York Mets (1975-77)--2 years
2 Managing career
2.1 New York Mets (1977-81) --5 years
2.2 Atlanta Braves (1982-84) --3 years
2.3 St. Louis Cardinals (1990-95) --5 years
2.4 New York Yankees (1996-2007) --11 years

Years spent in New York=18
Years spent not in New York=22

Joseph Paul Torre (pronounced /ˈtɔɹi/, born July 18, 1940 in Brooklyn, New York

Years spent in New York=42
Years 'spent not' in New York=28

i was talking about his career. i am well aware that he's from NYC tho

i understand that lee mazzilli and wally backman are available

you were responding to my "life/career"

gabbneb do you have a point besides "there is sand in my vagina and i have a hard on for all things NYC???"

i didn't say he had spent most of his life and most of his career in NY < / lawyer>

do you have a point besides 'anything gabbneb says must be ridiculed?'

< / lawyer>

;)

gabbnerd, Torre already proved that he can't manage the Mets during my adolescence.

would it make sense to give Alou some sort of leadership role?

Assistant trainer? Can't you confine your "expertise" to political horse races?

yes, the mesozoic is very relevant here. are you proposing some sort of trade?

you for Nude Spock

cash considerations

a dozen broken bats

maybe i'm missing something - but what's so 2nd grade about how willie was let go? did they make some douche comments that i missed in the stuff i've read?

big xposts

Minaya's been saying "He's the manager right this second" for about 3 weeks.

i guess maybe the bar has been set pretty high - doesn't seem so bad to me (mind you this is coming from the man in the city of Ted "douche-fuck" Rogers and JP "completely full of shit" Riccardi).

maybe he's 'not exactly doing such a bang-up job' because he's with the wrong team in the wrong city.

OK, I'll bite.

Maybe he's 'not exactly doing such a bang-up job' because he's not a good manager? He came on board in NYY w/ a team that Buck Showalter just took to the playoffs, and was gifted with A) Tino Martinez replacing the retiring and power-sapped Don Mattingly and B) Derek Jeter falling into his lap to start the season after (IIRC) Tony Fernandez went down with an injury. The core of that '96 team, coupled with key trade acquisitions and savvy free-agent pick-ups, was undoubtedly the most talented team of its time. It's not like he had trouble filling out the line-up card.

Then came the post-2000 "drought," which everyone attributes to the Yankees losing that special chemistry they had during those halcyon Bernie / O'Neil / Tino days (bullshit) and the front office stuffing gaps w/ all sorts of overpaid free agents & trade-deadline castoffs (true). But it's safe to say that Torre's to blame as well, due to his inability to:

1) give kids a chance to earn a starting / bench spot in lieu of a veteran they could easily outperform
2) figure out how to not overpitch / utilize his bullpen during the regular season
3) successfully utilize his bench
4) avoid using small-ball tactics with a potent hitting lineup

And, shocker of shockers, former Torre disciple Willie Randolph seems to have come up short in those four very things! No wonder he got shitcanned! But Joe will right the ship, of course -- after all, he's better because he's a proven winner, right?

I can't believe I spent so long typing that nonsense up.

DNFTT

I'm going to pretend that 2nd T is for Torre.

i don't believe i said Torre would be better because he's a proven winner. while i'm obviously not mr baseball, my argument is simple - what he demonstrated with NYY was the ability to command the respect/affection of the players/coaching staff, something willie appeared far less successful at. of course Torre might not be able to do the same with the NYM (tho perhaps elevating someone like Alou to captain or some sort of assistant would help get there?). but i think it would certainly help for him to be with a city/franchise where he has more of a history and commands a lot more respect/affection in general. i'd imagine it wouldn't be bad for business either.

^killfiled

does Shasta think I know what that acronym means?

Except for the very best and the very worst, managers don't matter much.
Neither does "commanding respect," as interpreted by the bitter knaves of the sports media aka Toy Dept.

key to Torre's Yankee success: MARIANO RIVERA

all I am taking from this is that DaveR wants Jeter to fall into his lap

managers don't matter much

except to scott proctor's arm

More like MARIANO RIVERA & Stanton & Nelson & those 2-3 glorious years of Ramiro Mendoza. Once he broke those last 3, and began breaking their replacements, the Bronx was sad. ;_;

bnw, I'd prefer he DOVE into my lap, thx.

Most classless way to fire anyone. Why didn't they do this Sunday night?

"while i'm obviously not mr baseball"

Or mr politics or mr has half-a-brain either.

sunday = happy father's day! gtfo!

bonus joe torre reliever-breaking fact: tanyon sturtze is now with the dodgers' triple-a club

Haha fire him at 12:01 then!

why am i a troll, steve? ;-)

Devin (Green Brook, NJ): Where does this rank historically as far as "most mismanaged transitions"? Have talk go on for weeks, fly out to California, win, get canned - has to be pretty high up there, right?

Rob Neyer: Yeah. And as others have pointed out, what made it worse was all the leaks from ownership and upper management. It's been the continuing uncertainty that ultimately made Randolph's position untenable.

Todd (Charleston, SC): What are the chances the Mets actually turn this thing around? Can Manuel lead the team to a playoff berth?

Rob Neyer: There are only three teams ahead of the Mets in the WC standings, and I believe they'll still be in the hunt in September.

Justin (az): how about Keith Olbermann?

Rob Neyer: I'm afraid he's too busy saving the country.

(AWESOME)

Mets are below .500 in the past calendar year.

Rob Neyer's IF YOU LOOK AT MY PROJECTIONS meme is pretty tiresome.

HIS projections? Doesn't he just say "everyone's," collectively? (Not that I didn't think the Mets could easily win 85 or fewer.)

People in real life don't use "meme," do they?

He flips back and forth between the projections being his and everyone's. Either way it's annoying. He should just stop saying projections, period.

NYT Manuel profile

well, it's a way of saying almost everyone thought they were close to co-favorites with the Phils. (Exception: Goldman in BP annual)

So that's why you guys ignore him.

We ignore him because he is a horrible manager who doesn't help and often hurts the Dodgers' chances of winning, e.g., yanks starting pitchers that are doing well too early in the game, hangs out in the dugout until AFTER players or third base coaches get ejected from the game by arguing calls THEN comes running out out like he cares, etc.

He kind of provides stupimmetry for Andruw Jones and Colletti's other bonehead moves.

But even so, why would Torre go running back to NY from LA at this point?

Oh wait I have another call coming in. BRB

I think they were talking about ignoring gabbneb.

Jeez, Alex, thanks for mentioning that. I was like a starting pitcher doing really, really well.

Oh you can still argue with gabbneb. Don't let us stop you. ;)

LOL my reading comprehension is not my strong suit and has been declining rapidly lately, as any Shasta will tell you.

she's pretty sharp by her lonesome, mr meta man

Should I ask what he's talking about?

I'm going to be in SF for the Sonoma race this weekend, btw.

Friday night is our meetup with peeps at a bar night, for those who care to cross over from the virtual barrier. Sonoma winery tasting recs also appreciated.

Where you guys meeting up?

I was just in Healdsburg this weekend and I hit up Hop Kiln , Rochiole, and La Crema (I know very little about Sonoma wineries.)

Provisionally Chop House, assuming they have a bar. La Crema looks excellent. Sorry, I guess I should take this to SF thread on ILE.

You may resume FTT.

I will be in Santa Barbara again for the last of the spring wedding flurry.

Also DNFTT.

http://www.acmechophouse.com/

This Chop House?

Yes! Not the Superb one or whatever.

Ha well there is a Joe Dimaggio one too.

Scratch Acme. I think we'll be at House of Delino De Shields near Union Square, 7 to 9:30 ish.

Also FFR gabb according to stuffwhitepeoplelike.com you're not supposed to mention New York City to people from SF. Apparently it makes them sad and/or angry.

ok:
1)I live in SF and you guys should just go to a taqueria instead of a winery or the acme chophouse, unless of course your fraternity brothers just refuse to do otherwise.

2)it's not wednesday june 18, it's tuesday june 17. the timestamp on the posts is way off, isnt it?

3)the best thing about the willie randolph firing is the fact that it has stopped everyone from talking about tiger woods and the us open. enough already.

Good points, dbx and welcome to ILBB. Acme is vetoed by the Lincoln Park Chads and Trixies I will be with as overpriced. House of Shields is near our hotel. Any reviews?

We are committed to Sonoma however for NASCAR, the King of Beers of sporting events.

You can change your default time date stamp in user preferences I believe.

And way to bring the thread back on topic. Good play.

leaving aside the appointment/club places, my hack Sonoma list would probably be Benziger for the wine for dummies intro (or maybe unpretty Gundlach Bundschu for a smaller scale), Matanzas Creek for the June flora, and maybe Ravenswood for tasting (or Kenwood for vibe or St Francis for $$$ good stuff). (or maybe i'd skip the vineyards and just go for a walk here and some food here.) industry types might be interested in BR Cohn.

some people might find it worthwhile to stop and shop here and get a burger here or here or tacos here.

House of Shields is actually pretty cool, but I dont think they have food. You have to get there before quitting time too, or else you wont be able to find a seat.

If you just want a drink, I'd go check out 111 Minna, which is only 2blks away from House of Shields.

Marcus Thames just crushed a shot dead center on a 3-2 from Vinnie Chulk. Must have gone about 430 ft.

hey, I know I'm the only REAL Mets fan left on the board and it's never been a worse time to be one since last September, but could we move all yr FAP plans elsewhere? thx.

FTT = Fight The Turd?

As Manuel's first postgame press conference concluded, he made reference to Omar Minaya's afternoon remarks about how he didn't want to fire Randolph before Monday's game because he's opposed to firing a proud man in his uniform.

"I made it through," Manuel said. "I'm going to sleep in the uniform, though."

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20080617/capt.1ff2ebb61e734df2bf1a075030f97c66.mets_randolph_fired_baseball_la119.jpg

Morbs, are you so committed to your Waldorf / Statler act that you can't take 15-30 seconds to just use Google and find out what DNFTT actually means?

TURNAROUND win! (12th in a series)

Google, feh! Speak English.

Ha -- do you send in your Slant reviews by Western Union or carrier pigeon?

dick-tation

Krivsky, eh?

whoa, first I've read of it....

Hey, look who's 3-1/2 outta first.

LOL

what have you done with the real Shasta?

Kruk wants to eat Runge.

John Maine's at-bat music = "Seek & Destroy"?!?!?!?

God bless the Subway Series

Xp

new mets record 9 ribeye for carlos d

Oooh Hank Steinbrenner Jr is going to be pissed.

oooh! i hope he says stuff!

good ollie today, apparently

Reyes a strong contender for this year's Lilly Glove Slam Award.

http://assets.espn.go.com/i/mlb/profiles/players/65x90/7382.jpg

When photoshop goes bad.

or is his skull really that crooked?

worst win yet last night! Fuckin' Mets.

lol C0sl0y:

"The ‘08 New York Mets might be the only ballclub in recent memory that has a goat after each victory."

NY Mets June 2007 - June 2008

94 Wins, 98 Losses

will you shut up?

An actual winning streak! I forgot what it looked like.

Church back on the DL, wtf all-around. Minaya needs to get a helpful outfielder.

But how...

Taking Raul Ibanez off the Titanic's deck has been suggested.

nady, holliday - there's supposedly lots of quality of'ers up for grabs. but what can they offer that hasn't been given up already for santana? (i know nothing about the mets' system).

Tatis seems like an acceptable fill-in, though his defense is pretty bad.

Tatis is not a fulltime player.

The Mets' farm is reputedly close to bare -- they sure as hell aren't gonna be in the Holliday market.

i wouldn't give up shit for holliday anyway

a career .793 ops when not at home!

Tatis is not a fulltime player.

why's that, again?

learn about baseball before you ask those questions. (small sample size)

Going to Shea tomw for Pedro v Rox.

so if i knew more about baseball, someone who said the mets shouldn't fulltime a guy who hits two game-winning hr's in a row wouldn't sound like a moron?

^ ESPN.com Comment Of The Day

Players prove who they are by a longer span than two game-winning hr's in a row (sic); Tatis had had about 2800 plate appearances that say he's not an ideal regular for a contending team.

you probably shouldn't count the roughly 600 from 1999, if you're trying to make a point here!

Those 600 are the exception that proves the rule!

I gather he had injury problems post-99. i don't know about all your fancy numbers, but dude's bio suggests his motivation might be pretty high. and anyway, like a good dilettante, i care about entertainment - tatis has entertained me more than any other met this season.

dude's bio suggests his motivation might be pretty high

gabbnerd for BBTN analyst

yes, i wondered if motivation might be a foreign concept. i suppose it's never occurred to you, Dr Dorkius, that 'nerd' is an appellation that those of my awesome intellectual capacity might wear with extreme pride.

I think WARP adjusts for high motivation and clubhouse moxie.

("gabbnerd" is some Custosian prop-comic nonsense, tho)

(and "Dr. Dorkius" takes that bar & goes right under it!)

(I call dibs on "Steve Shyster")

David R-tard

when are you going to awake from your Repose and come to Shea?

and "Dr. Dorkius" takes that bar & goes right under it!

that's the idea

save it for the Cards threads, bnweiner HO SNAP

btw, if Ibanez is on the table, he shd probably be considered a replacement for Delgado -- dude's defense (from what I heard) is 2nd only to Jack Cust in terms of unseemliness

Vito from BedStuy probably thinks Omar would snap up Barry if he added an O to his last name

Morbs, lemme look @ the upcoming schedule & see what tickles my fancy (since I've been the one to break all our playdates)

david "arse"

gear? more like queer!

We've made some real progress here.

fattbot

gaygax

thermho fatwall

felishitty

mookiepoop

our 2007 ilbb fantasy password: shafta

eve shasta

always the Mets thread.

steve shifty

dr morbidly obese

i saw a whole bunch of high school kids with foam fingers on the train last night, but it wasn't foam finger night? maybe they were from the fair? or the cyclones? they were smaller than i thought, but so cute - they had mr. met on them!

i missed my foam finger, but i'm looking forward to my date with Dr Morbius on 7/26.

Hottest team in baseball. 7 straight!

xp: not if I see you first.

They sell foam fingers all year.

From Saturday:

Martinez and four relievers combined on a one-hitter... It was the fifth straight game in which the Mets held an opponent to three hits or less, which breaks the modern major league record they shared with the 1974 Baltimore Orioles. The San Francisco Giants were swept of a three-game series earlier this week, collecting three hits in each contest, and the Rockies had just three in Friday's series opener.

E_T IT, SH_ST_!

Why are Mets games rarely on my TV? I have cable but barely any sports channels, save a Spanish soccer one. Are these games not on regular broadcast channels anymore? Also, where is a good bar in Queens (Astoria) to watch Mets games?

(Our custodian just told me that Mets are on channel 9 and Yankees on channel 11?)

no, about 130 of the Mets games are exclusively on their cable outlet, Sports NY. The rest are on Ch. 11, usually on Friday nights or Sundays.

(9 was the old Mets broadcast outlet for eons, as 11 was the Yanks')

(and, of course, some are on the Fox Whoosh of the Week or that ESPN Sunday night reading of Joe Morgan's Fictional History of Baseball)

Joe Morgan's Fictional History of Baseball

please tell me this is a real thing!

Oh, you don't get to hear it up North. Not in book form yet!

I figured: our custodian's news is usually at least 5 years outdated. It's so unpopulist how the cable companies keep stealing all of the sports.

just wait til it's the Newscorp World Series.

Jerry Manuel: The New Willie Randolph (tho I thought Willie learned to not throw SS against RHB)

Jerry eats at Subway?

hey, Shasta KEEPING QUIET

hey you wanna celebrate giving up 8 runs to the reds and having the highest paid pitcher in baseball out early after being lit up for 5 runs and yet another lol heilman blowup be my guest.

a WIN, toots. I leave the celebrating to fantasy players.

i thought wins were an overrated stat?

very funny, kev.

Steven Goldman:

Maybe we shouldn't give too much credit to any one factor for the Mets' 10-game winning streak, but it can't be a coincidence that the Mets took off once Luis Castillo went out of the lineup. Damian Easley has hit .389 over the last 15 games, and though at 38 years old Easley covers less territory than Lichtenstein, Castillo was something of an island himself. An awesomely bad contract from America's most overrated general manager.

I'm no fan of Omar OR that Castillo contract, but Luis does have a .365 OBP this year (albeit with his standard lack of power).

forget omar, a lot of people in l.a. rep for colleti. mostly b/c he's not de podesta [ / plaschke]

I think Omar's pretty damned good. He isn't perfect, but he's had a lot more success with gap fillers than Cashman, on like half the budget. Plus, he's created a team that feels very "Mets" to me.

1) Yankees $209,081,579
3) Mets $138,293,378
11) Cardinals $100,624,450 ("half" the salary)

That's true, it isn't exactly half, you're correct.

it is exactly 66.143262674%

Give a responsible GM 138M in salary and see how good you team becomes.

The Red Sox.

"I think Omar's pretty damned good. He isn't perfect, but he's had a lot more success with gap fillers than Cashman, on like half the budget. Plus, he's created a team that feels very "Mets" to me."

Define more success here. Cashman hasn't missed a post-season and his farm system isn't completely barren and he's competing in the more difficult league. I hate the Yankees, but by any reasonable definition they've been leagues more successful over the course of Omar's reign than the Mets' have.

I feel that Omar has spent his money more wisely, I guess.

It'd be more wise if they spent money in the draft if you ask me, but no disputing Beltran, Santana, Reyes, Wright were good deals. The rest are more debateable.

Meet Mr. Met (and some other Mets!) at the Court Square branch of Queens Library in LIC this Friday --

(might go to this as I have the day off)

http://www.queenslibrary.org/index.aspx?page_nm=branch%20events&date=07-25-2008&branch_id=LIC

Well I should know by now that it's just a spasm

how to tell the good & bad Pelfreys apart:

http://drivelinemechanics.com/2008/07/16/has-mike-pelfrey-turned-the-corner-a-pitch-fx-analysis/

VP, are you interested in Saturday Mets?

did Reyes come out to "Shut Up and Let Me Go"? general Stadium music? SNY bumper music?

ugh

the Curse of Mookieproof

ENDY, WTF WIT DA BASERUNNING

I pay so little attention to coaches I had no idea that the Mets' traffic cop was Luis Aguayo.

Santana has 1 win in the last six (6!) weeks. Barry Zito (5-12) has 4x as many wins over the same period. The Mets are one of four teams this season w/o a CG.

i suppose you're suggesting that baked ziti is a better pitcher than taco santana? or that the giants are a better team than the mets?

no, Shasta may be a goad but he's not stupid.

where is the killfile script again and does it really work?

ALSO:

a WIN, toots.
-- Dr Morbius, Friday, July 18, 2008 7:40 AM (5 days ago)

^^^truth bomb^^^

yes. I'm sure there'll be more to come, as Endy Chavez really doesn't get on base that often.

His favorite musician is Ben Folds.

i lol'd

Santana 3.05, 8-7
Zito 5.56, 5-12

^^^truth bomb^^^

[sigh, this must be what watching your child ride without training wheels for the first time feels like]

it must be so tough steve

got to check out the W

Keith Hernandez, cat lover.

i love SNY

I'd love it more if they didn't run two Jeter car ads in one break.

Thanks, meteorological community, for making me avoid Shea attendance last night cuz it was obv gonna pour.

it was biblical out there last night, once they got through with the game

2 hits off ancient Moyer in 7 IP, now he's outta there...

who's gonna throw Sat nite?

good ollie

in first, ALONE!

who's gonna throw Sat nite?

oh boy, exciting

A former pitching prospect in the Yankees system, Brandon Knight will make his first Major League start -- and his first big league appearance in six years -- against the Cardinals Saturday. Knight, the reigning Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week, was 5-1 with a 1.60 ERA for Triple-A New Orleans. He last pitched Saturday, striking out 12 batters over six scoreless innings to record the win. Knight briefly considered retiring from baseball this offseason before latching on with the Somerset (N.J.) Patriots of the Atlantic League, and, ultimately, with the Mets.

sham promotion for the dark knight

no it's "Ladies Night" with a new PC name

Vagin-o-rama?

Take HER Out to the Ballgame

I want to call next Phils game at Shea "Bring It On, You Fat Fuck Charlie" Night

AYO

Who the hell is this guy?

Ok maybe not so bad

TATIS

OTMFM

man that was fun

Mets lose 2 games at home this month, and I'm there to suffer thru both...

I wonder if the 2 Cardinal fans (stupidly baiting the NY fans throughout the game) in my section included the one who fell off the Shea escalator after the game.

nice. there were lots of non-Mets fans in my section and no one was baited.

http://gothamist.com/2008/07/28/shea_stadium_escalator_fall_victim.php

sitting/sliding on rail in middle of game = social Darwinism in action

Maybe that tuesday quick-pull of Johan was a Pyrrhic victory, as Manuel wil lerr on side of maxing him out now.

he didn't really have a choice, no?

David R, ck your email.

16 of 21! Delgado in July: .374/.459/.725

Tatis last 28 days: .406/.474/.797

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/29/sports/baseball/29shea.html

can ppl be banned from just one thread?

your crush on Church is pretty big, huh

MORBIUS

check yr e-mail, plz

ah did, ck yrs

otay!

FUCKIN WAGNER

bullpen is broken

why? because of the wagn

fuckin heilman

With Maine on Disabled List, Mets Call for Help
By JOE LAPOINTE

HOUSTON — For the second consecutive day, the Mets brought up a new player, another young rookie ready to make his major league debut. Sunday’s addition was Eddie Kunz, 22, a large relief pitcher who has been the closer in Class AA Binghamton.

But Kunz’s happiness, palpable when he entered the clubhouse before Sunday’s game with the Astros, was tempered by more injury developments on the pitching staff of a suddenly slumping team that began the day in third place in the National League East.

Billy Wagner, the closer, who squandered a save Saturday in the ninth inning, was unavailable to pitch Sunday with what the Mets called soreness in his left forearm. That made Kunz a possible closer Sunday in the finale of a three-series.

And John Maine, a regular in the starting rotation, was placed on the disabled list with soreness in the rotator cuff in his right shoulder. Maine said the shoulder felt better and was able to throw off a mound before Sunday’s game.

But the Mets will need at least one start from someone outside their regular rotation to replace Maine, who was supposed to start Sunday and then was rescheduled to start next Friday night. His 15-day disabled status is retroactive to July 29.

Who the hell is this guy?
-- gabbneb, Saturday, 26 July 2008 23:37 (1 week ago)

TATIS

-- Andy K, Saturday, July 26, 2008 10:33 PM (Saturday, July 26, 2008 10:33 PM) Bookmark Link

fuckin heilman

-- gabbneb, Saturday, August 2, 2008 11:02 PM (Saturday, August 2, 2008 11:02 PM) Bookmark Link

Heilman needs to paint it black in New Orleans for a bit

Heilman needs to START

NYT:

The last fans will not be leaving Shea Stadium for at least two months — three, if the Mets put themselves back on track for the playoffs — but the Mets and the City of New York began selling off the green, blue, orange and red seats on Tuesday.

Seats are being sold online, for $869 a pair, and Mets season-ticket holders are being offered the chance to purchase their own seats first. The seats will available to the public beginning Aug. 25, on a first-come-first-served basis. The seats have been a part of the stadium since 1980, when they replaced the original 55,300 wooden seats. The metal frames, however, date to 1964. The seats will be removed within weeks of the final home game.

The sale is the first part of a larger memorabilia sale that will continue to expand. The Mets said they would donate their portion of the proceeds to the Mets Foundation.

David Wright, KNOW YOUR OUTS.

yowch, what a game he had.

If the New York media's willing to jump down the throats of 2 of the 3 best players on the team for being too emotional or not being a perennial 40-40 threat, I'd hope they give shit to the remaining player from that group for doing something TANGIBLE that directly contributed to a loss.

Has the media gotten on Reyes? I thought that was mostly the Phillies.

Wasn't there some BS about him throwing his glove or kicking dirt after an error, in addition to the "Reyes needs to be SERIOUS" horseshit in April?

oh yeah. I've moved on.

Hang on, here goes the bullpen house of horrors nailbiting again, Johan...

Motherfucker I have a fantasy win on the line here Manuel cut out the TLR act!

And now Yahoo! is taking a siesta wrt updating the box score!

so Schoeneweis is the New Wags...

hey look a blown save that's new

HEILMAN????

Jerry going through THREE guys in the 8th kinda forces his hand -- who else does he have?

oh, it was Scottsweis, v 2007, who gave up the HR to fuckin' GERUT

I have a fantasy win on the line here Manuel

We'll address this Sunday.

Sure -- I'll bring the hand you can talk to. :p

Ha -- and here's Heath Bell to rub it in Sterling Mets' faces.

cmon Reyes, score this fucking run.

Johan needs to work up to 150 pitches.

- E. Chavez singled to center
- J. Reyes popped bunt out to pitcher ARE YOU KIDDING ME
- A. Reyes lined out to left

YES< DAVE_O (not you)

So how many games have the Mets won in spite of their bullpen this year -- all of them?

Heilman winning pitcher -- PUT IT IN THE BOOKS

Ha -- didn't realize SS got out a righty (switch-hitting), but couldn't put down the same-sided dude. Tho Gerut's having a Tatisesque comeback this year. (Anyone have Benny Agbayani stashed somewhere in their system?)

The Mets said ticket sales had reached 3.86 million, the third straight season they set a team record. New York projects it will draw 4 million in its final season at Shea Stadium.

I think Benny is still w/ Bobby V in Japan!

robinson cancel <3

ILB: Which player's name shall festoon the back of my desired Mets T-shirt? Daniel Murphy is too new, so I will have to go with someone else.

Kevin McReynolds

VP pinch-hit yesterday (ie you missed a depressing game)

i am getting a Tatis shirt, obv

Next 15 games vs Pirates, Astros, Nats, Braves -- time TO GO 10-5 or 11-4.

2008 NYM vs.

PIT: 1-1
HOU: 0-3
WAS: 5-4
ATL: 2-7

= 8-15

YEAH, WE'RE TALKIN BOUT THE FUTURE, NOT THE BEFORETIME

WRIGHT NOW

Pedro's pitch count through 5: 90
Pedro's pitch count through 6: 99

work that count!

oh bullpenpaws

OH COME ON:

- J. Smith relieved P. Martinez
- C. Gomez walked
- F. Sanchez hit for Z. Duke
- F. Sanchez doubled to deep center, C. Gomez scored
- P. Feliciano relieved J. Smith
- N. McLouth sacrificed to pitcher, F. Sanchez to third WTF????
- L. Rivas walked WTF??????????
- D. Mientkiewicz doubled to deep right, F. Sanchez scored, L. Rivas to third

there goes the HEILMAN REDEMPTION fiction.

lol

and HOLY SHIT SS gave up a hit to a rightie!

nice scoop by carlos d

whatd'd Tony LaManuel get tossed for?

Randolphian Bullpen Management?

(ha -- just saw what you did there)

arguing balls & strikes before beltran's hit

hey, another game I dont have to watch on tnite's replay.

YO YAHOO WHAT ABOUT IT LET'S GOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

feh

8-16

ha!

where's the mod to stop silly trolling when you need one?

monitoring "his team"

My team is just fine. Shasta, stop silly trolling. :)

Summer Reading with the New York Mets!

http://www.summerreading.org/extras/metspsa.asp

felicitous Feliciano

I'm getting a bunch of tix to Summer Reading night in August, but I think I have to give them to kids or something.

undefeated since Shasta's last TROLL

wow, they beat the Nationals based on some homer umpiring and the ball bouncing off dude's head. they will go all the way ok.

lol bitterness

Wagner return indefinite -- hey, WHO NEEDS HIM?

NL Pitching VORP Leaders

Lincecum 53.9
JOHAN 49.1
Webb 48.6
Haren 47.3

No Wagner, no cry

I have an extra ticket for the Mets game tonight (Wednesday). It is free. E-mail me if interested.

Will Carroll:

Did someone say flexor tendon? Yeah, that’s the problem with Billy Wagner as well. The continued inflammation is going to keep him off the mound indefinitely, but the Mets think that with rest and treatment, they can get him back towards the end of the season. Sources say September 15th is the target date.

I sat right above Daniel Murphy--who made some great catches--but why did they take him out at the end?

for ostensibly improved 9th-inning defense (Endy)?

Oh, and is the "I'm a Believer" sing-a-long a tradition?

as of this year. (They stopped stealing the unbearable "Sweet Caroline" from the Red Sox)

i think they do that at half the stadiums, don't they?

(Sweet Caroline)

NOT VERY BOLD PREDICTION: tears in Queens by end of September

I think you need a hug.

I cry every night in Queens!

8-16

-- Steve Shasta, Monday, August 11, 2008 9:12 PM (1 week ago) Bookmark Link

17-17, honeybun!

lol Seaver

http://www.cantstopthebleeding.com/?p=14063

Did the Mets pee in Shasta's Cheerios or something, wtf.

The team payroll IS over 60 million.

Shasta's following the Willets Point story closely

looks like Ayala is interim closer.

Going to Maine-Backe tonight.

Might go Sunday. Let's go Mets!

feliciano sux

Is the last regular-season game at Shea worth $120?

well, that's $85 more than I paid. (Also, it depends if Orosco's glove finally comes down.)

Keith H on SNY yesterday, bleating about the plan to keep Pelfrey's career high in innings down: "There's too much thinking in today's game. Just go out an do it!... It's society-wide, lowering the bar."

I expected him to append a McCain endorsement.

I assume your other ticket for that day is spoken for? Yesterday's game was blah, but Daniel Murphy now has his own song--by the Dropkick Murphys.

yes, I'm taking a friend who has been going to Shea for almost 40 years, like me.

Maine to DL :p

Castillo activated

Goodbye Maine. Castillo won't bow out again?

Pelfrey!!!!

I was at the game the first time he pitched all the way through. The fans were ecstatic.

Not like last Sunday when they seemed to boo every pitcher on the mound.

Not to bait 'pitching machismo' types, but I would not have let Pelfrey pitch the 9th. Remember how important a 9-1 complete game is if he runs out of gas in the last 2 weeks.

I thought it was more to give the bullpen a rest (way to shoot your load, Manuel) than to get Pelfrey that beloved 2nd-straight CG (and he threw under 110 pitchers while allowing only 3 baserunners through the fisrt 8 -- not exactly pitching under the gun).

yes, the mitigating factors are bullpen rest (I think mopup guy Stokes was sent down?) and total count was 108 at game's end. Still seems like bowing to sentimentality / media-crowd crap to me.

^ tru warier

The best seats at Citi Field, which cost $276 at Shea Stadium this season, will soar to $495, with other season tickets ranging from $125 to $225 a game. Single-game tickets this season ranged from $5 to $117.

yes; they haven't announce the quantity and number of "affordable" Citi(shitty)seats at single games yet.

How to give Dr. Morbius a stroke (emphasis mine):

"The Mets are expected to make an off-season push to trade for Mariners right-hander Carlos Silva, who they feel would thrive if reunited with former Twins teammate Johan Santana." -- John Perrotto, August 24th (BP.com)

the Corsican pitchers

...

8-17

Phillips says Mets offense deserves much of blame for last night (SEVEN RUNS WINS MOST GAMES, NO?), needed to take pressure off that bullpen.

Probably thinks it's better psychologically for a pitching staff to have its offense score a single run in four consecutive innings from the fifth through eighth than seven in the first four.

Ha -- Gary Cohen made a similar point (not laying blame, but saying that the Mets' failure to not pick up insurance runs has been killing them); then Ron Darling mentioned that, hey, you're pitching w/ a 7-run lead, YOU SHOULD WIN THE GAME.

WIN THE GAME should be capitalized from now on (in memory of Morbs' favorite football coach, Herm Edwards).

8-17

-- Steve Shasta, Wednesday, August 27, 2008 4:41 AM (

wtf you talkin bout, asshole?

I can't take another 5 weeks of this shit.

This shit=

2008 Mets Bullpen
W-L: 20-22
ERA: 4.27
WHIP: 1.36
K:BB: 0.47
SV:SVO: 35:57 = 61.40%

???

Did you mean "8-7"?

your W-L snark was about their record vs Pit, Wash, Atl, Hou (now 19-19)

just a little fun let's be cool

now answer my other question!

Dale Carnegie graduate Steve Shasta, ladies & germs.

more like a Dale Berra grad, amirite

there's gonna be tears i say!

have we ever had a thread get locked on ilbb?

Always Amazin' on the Mets' post-6th inning offensive outages:

http://blog.nj.com/mets/2008/08/the_power_outage_and_the_pen.html

What are these "tears" he keeps writing about.

There's no crying in this sport.

http://bp3.blogger.com/_T3P6IpqNr4M/Rwv2G05vrKI/AAAAAAAAACs/9bkRUtH147o/s1600-h/Jeter+Crying.jpg

I think he's talking about roadwork

Oh, maybe tears in labrums. Labra?

COMEBACK to retake first led by Delgado and Not-Danny Murphy! No Shasta trolls today (unless he's a nosepicker).

yay Murph! I read that he starts against righthanders, which explains why sometimes that Nick Evans is in his spot. And now Tatis is over there too I guess.

have we ever had a thread get locked on ilbb?

Maybe in the k3rry meltdown era of 2005?

another CARDIAC WIN! my meds...

less cardiac yesterday!

The redoubtable Keith Hernandez, along with other dodos, has been floating Delgado as an NL MVP candidate. Ludicrous! You'd have to give Carlos "credit" for stinking so mightily for the first 2 months. Reyes, Wright, Santana and Beltran have all been more valuable Mets.

http://www.atariage.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/icon_tears.gif

shoddy froid

There's still a hellacious fortnight left.

At worst, NYM has a 1-game lead in the wild card. If in addition to the Phils, they can't outplay the Brewers, Astros, or Cards the rest of the way, I wouldn't waive them into the postseason if I had the power.

I'm glad I can't watch that.

Rob Neyer thinks Mets & Phils both getting into October is most likely and that's my gut feeling (aside from the pain) too. Thoughts?

I think they're hoping that the Cubs clinch before they have to play them.

heartfelt emotion tears for tatis

http://blogs.suntimes.com/scanners/tpgiant.jpg

it is happening again...

(can some one 'shop in that caption along with phillies hat on the giant and mets cap on coop?)

it's 1990 again?

NL EAST WHOLLWINNITATRON

Can't you ever whoop it up on the Yankees Suck thread, SS?

But for the Harris catch, they win that fucking game, even with the ludicrous perf vs Odalis.

Starting Argenis Reyes over Castillo = idiocy

spent game at David Lean movie, easier on my stomach.

Easley likely out for year. No bullpen, no bench.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/09/18/actor.cat.cruelty.ap/index.html

AHHH WHAT A DELIGHTFUL METS LEGACY

could we have some actual Mets posts from someone besides me?

I'm going to Mets-Cubs Monday and it's RALLY TOWEL NIGHT. Fucking gay Minnesota Twins bullshit.

Morbs, you of all football-hating people should know that the "rally towel" was no doubt partially inspired by the Pittsburgh Steeler's TERRIBLE TOWEL.

& plz save the bullshit pronouncements for the clowns in the Mets' bullpen and the head clown in the front office.

and Varitek. :p

Hey, I'm with you on that one -- I'd (almost) rather they sign Miguel Olivo and an upright trampoline next year than give The Captain another shot at posting a low-voltage .220.

Isn't playing the Cubs in a 3 of 5 preferable to a 4 of 7? just oddswise.

also, Keith "Piniella Has Won Everywhere He's Gone" Hernandez:

TAMPA BAY

I'm sitting right in front of the celebrity website contingent at Shea tonight. Don't make me come up there.

Ha -- I figured you'd be PART of the celebrity website contingent!

Drinking: Brooklyn Pennant Ale '55

Drinking: hemlock

How's your lefty / righty split, Morbs?

not ambidextrous

And to make the Marlins series / Bataan Death March / Shea Goodbye extra joyful, here comes a tropical storm!

glad i missed this

lol jason marquis grand slam

September brings Shasta-wannabe trolls out?

I really hope you fuckers lose the WS to da Rays

believe it or not, i'm not trolling. a jason marquis grand slam is pretty funny.

I looked over my shoulder for this crew, didn't see em:

http://www.cantstopthebleeding.com/?p=14330

Q: “What’s the record for grand slams given up to pitchers in a season? This has to be it, right?” — Ira, Hoboken, NJ, after Jason Marquis’ home run slipped over (by like 20 feet) the right field fence.

It turns out that the Mets are indeed the first team to yield two grand slams to pitchers in the same season…since 1977. The other team to do it? That would be the 1977 Cubs.

btw my seatmate last night mentioned that Marquis had a HR already this year about 10 seconds before he connected. And I didn't strike the guy.

sounds like you're at peace with the grand slam by a pitcher, then

no I'm getting in a time machine to shoot Niese before he can deliver the pitch.

http://www.thebaseballcube.com/lists/hitting-pitchers.shtml

So who's on Omar's bullpen wishlist for next year? Foulke? Guardado? Gregg Olson? Roy Face?

And will they FINALLY turn Heilman into a starter, if only to give him some semblance of versatility / (self-)worth?

xp: yes, Felix Hernandez' slam off Santana in June was much "funnier."

The highlight of last night was Ed Kranepool peeling off the Games Left number.

I don't want a "wish" list, that's what we have now as in I WISH I WASN'T WATCHING.

Heilman: CHANGE OF SCENERY

i'm glad marquis finally did something to earn that dumb contract~

Kerri (Las Kewgas): Any reason at all for Met fans to believe? I know we have Wright, Reyes and Beltran for years to come but we've also had the this year and the previous two and to no real positive end. Met fans are crying for Omar to "blow it up" but I don't see any major changes to be made ... and little reason to hope!

Joe Sheehan: Same answer. It's a championship-caliber core, and a better job needs to be done around the edges. The Mets probably need to start over with the bottom 15 spots on the roster, remake the bullpen and outfield corners, among other things, but the core is very, very good.

i'm glad marquis finally did something to earn that dumb contract~

Yeah, it's great that he's earning his keep by ... hitting a grand slam in a game that means fuck-all to the Cubs' playoff hopes?

i didn't say it was a big something!

Harden was bumped back to Thurs, so Santana's game vs Cat Power Marshall tonight is... key.

i shoulda gotten it together to go tonight. i didn't know you could run over a zamboni.

HOW DO YOU NOT SCORE FROM THIRD WITH NO OUTS?!?!?!?

That was a brutal sequence. Every pitch from Howry was a fastball 91-92 and they couldn't put anything in the air.

IT'S NOT THE SAME. This time is Theatre of the Absurd, not tragedy.

I only hope Omar's next 4 bullpens (WHAT THE FUCK???) are this efficient.

Not trying to pile on, but I love signs written with a disgusted tone.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2027/2888591664_9fd09c1ffe_m.jpg

that was a 1986 game

http://www.theonion.com/content/files/images/Sports-Struggling-Mets-R.jpg

http://www.theonion.com/content/news/struggling_mets_combine_to_form

how bout that Church "slide"! But I am so glad I didn't get home til the 9th.

Manuel's postgame sessions with the media are actually funny and watchable (where Randolph was Yankee rather than human), but you gotta be stopped cold by a manager saying after Game 159 "I feel we're ready to take off."

how bout that Church "slide"!

comedyandtragedy,jpg

where's the RAIN, motherfucking weatherman??

did anyone see tim kurkijan on espn these past few days? he kept saying "LOOOK THERE IS NOOOO WAY BASEBALL IS GOING TO BE ABLE TO GET THESE GAMES IN THERE IS JUST NO WAY!" shit was mad annoying. it kept reminding me of mccain ppl saying obama was cheering on the fall of the economy.

"tim kurkjian ... mad annoying" always and forever OTM.

PITCH JOHAN AGAIN TOMORROW

PITCH JOHAN EVERY DAY

“How many did he pitch? How many did he throw?” manager Jerry Manuel said with a grin. “Wow, wow, wow, wow. I think if I had to describe that one, I would say that was gangsta. That was real gangsta.”