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June 30, 2006
Three Long Days in Boston
If the last three days were supposed to be a preview of this year’s Fall Classic, then Mets fans probably want a do-over. However, this is the best thing that could have happened to the 2006 Mets. They were getting far too comfortable in their perch atop the NL East. What Boston accomplished in three days, is more than any team has done this season. After all, it is the longest losing streak of the season for the Mets. The Red Sox exposed the few weaknesses of the Mets, notably the fickle starting rotation. The Mets have been winning so frequently, which appropriately, has spared great criticism of Randolph. Still, his in-game tactics leave for some questioning as does his lineups. Take Tuesday night for example. I like Chris Woodward just as much as the next guy, but I never envisioned him starting two out of three games against the Red Sox. Jose Valentin hasn’t exactly been terrible against left-handed pitching this season (.348/.375/.609 in 23 at-bats) and probably should have started Tuesday night. Again, this is all second-guessing, but this is what we do best here. Woodward’s start Thursday night is acceptable. Wednesday night Paul Lo Duca DHed, continuing a string of poor decisions with the extra hitter. In fact, Mets designated hitters are 4-for-21 with one RBI - worst in the National League. Ideally, Carlos Delgado would DH the majority of the time, but the word on the street is he does not prefer it. So instead, Willie uses his mediocre-hitting catcher rather than someone like Julio Franco. It doesn’t make much sense on Randolph’s part. The corner outfielders argument is a much more contentious one. Milledge had an adventurous night Tuesday, with Nady in right field. Wednesday night, with Endy Chavez in the lineup, Randolph kept Milledge in left. Many will point out that in the great debate, right field at Fenway is viewed as the harder defensive position of the two, but Milledge is an above average fielder who was thrown off by the Green Monster. He claimed once the fly balls got above the wall, either the wind played with it or he lost it in the lights. Randolph should have put Chavez in left field Wednesday night. It may have prevented the critical error early in the first inning. Speaking of Milledge, Thursday night may have been his last time in a Mets uniform for a while. In all likelihood, Cliff Floyd will return from the disabled list today, ending the initial Milledge experiment. If the past three games - 0-for-9 at the plate and two horrific defensive blunders - weren’t enough proof, his 25-game body of work is plenty. Milledge lacks the plate discipline for which he was so acclaimed in the minors. His play in the field has been noteworthy at times, but overall, solid. But more importantly, the Mets’ pitching staff let them down. Sure, they have an 11-game lead in the division and it looks all but locked up, but the pitching is far from the caliber of a postseason staff. Even the bullpen, which has been the saving grace of the 2006 Mets looks noticeably vulnerable. Dunaer Sanchez, even before the nerve injury, has looked terrible. Ever since he gave up his first run of the year on May 9, Sanchez has pitched 22.2 innings and allowed 37 batters to reach base. He’s still getting his groundballs (1.67 G/F since 5/9), but the control is missing. With the recent struggles of Heilman, an effective Sanchez is an important need for the Mets at this juncture. His 1.22 WHIP is scary. Look for Heath Bell to get some higher leverage. He’s deserved it. Until Heilman and Sanchez are back on track - if they get there period - Randolph should turn to other options. If the Mets expect to find a third playoff starter out of Alay Soler, Steve Trachsel and Orlando Hernandez, they may be sorely mistaken. Soler has looked promising at times this season, but facing a playoff-caliber team such as the Red Sox, he failed to impress one bit. Trachsel and El Duque - sans the complete game aberration - have demonstrated nothing. The question remains, where will the Mets find pitching help? In the system, there are three legitimate candidates: Mike Pelfrey, John Maine and Brian Bannister. Bannister, out until at least the All-Star Break, despite erratic at times, looked like he had potential. Pelfrey has pitched decently in Binghamton and rumors have the Mets toying with the idea of promoting him to the major league bullpen to get some experience and eventually thrust him into the rotation. At this point, experimenting with one or more of these pitchers shouldn’t provide much less production than Trachsel and El Duque combined. The trade market is scarce in terms of starting pitching, especially if the club is dedicated to not trading Milledge. If all goes according to plan, the Mets will have plenty of time to play around with a postseason roster. This mid-week series serves as an important wake-up call to the shortcomings on this team. Better now than October. 86 Responses to “Three Long Days in Boston”Leave a ReplyYou must be logged in to post a comment. |
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It doesn’t help with our main concern - finding a frontline starter - but I think that Ring, Keppinger, and Owens could help this club right now. LoDuca is hurting us with his outs in the #2 hole, I think Kepp could give us at least .330+ OBP out of that slot. Owens, if he can keep that Kability, would have been perfect for that spot against Lowell and Varitek in the 6th today.
Heath Bell? You mean Chad Bradford. HE’S earned it. Heath Bell still doesn’t know how to be a major league pitcher.
We do need a starter, I always thought we did. The one thought in my mind is if we give up Milledge, we could probably get Zito. Now that would probably get us a ring for 06, but you’re probably giving up a what could be a great player. Very hard decision- give up a player for a ring now or keep a player for a core of Beltran, Reyes, Wright, Milledge. 4 outta 8 positions look fantastic if you keep him.
With the great ratings for SNY, dishing out a few extra bucks for Ramon Hernandez looks like a great idea now, his OPS is 150 points better than Lo Duca. Cliff should bat second when he comes back. The worst part about Lo Duca is that in ‘03 and ‘04 he did a wonderful job of completely flopping in the second half. Mets should play Castro more, he is a comparable hitter and a better defender.
Mets definetly should not trade Milledge just to get Zito three monthts early (he is definetly coming in the offseason). Pelfrey would be a good solution, he could/would have a Lackey ver. 2002-like impact. The back of the rotation is not the only problem, I doubt that Peter and Glavine will hold up in the postseason as they close on 270 innings. You know, there is a young kid, lefthanded, who pitches somewhere in the South, I hear that he is pretty good. Maybe the Mets could trade Victor Zambrano for him, that would be a great solution…
I think the Oakland Aaa’s trade Zito for Heilman & Nady in a minute. They know they are not getting Milledge. Its win-win: We dump heilman, Nady is back home on the west coast. Oakland gets some value for Zito who is gone forever come fall… sheesh what a no brainer…
how about kazmir for milledge????
Matt, I think you summed it up great.
Dave, you may have angered the fan club. I believe Bradford is already in a more advance roll as he was @ the begining of the season. I’m one of the few who actually believe he can get the lefty out as long as it isn’t an elite lefty, thats where Pedro comes into the equation.
Ever catcher gets knicked up but b4 throwing out stuff like Castro is better defender, do some research. There is a fielding stat that you might want to look @ called catcher’s ERA. Loduca is as solid as they come in that department, probably the most important stat when rating a catcher. Castro has a much better arm but that is probably the only area defensively that Castro does better than Loduca. Have you watched Castro react to foul pop ups? He looks lost everytime. As for Loduca’s second half declines, Willie, to his credit, has rested Loduca twice a week since the first week of the season. He never got that kind of rest in Florida or LA. Castro is a good power guy but he offers very little beyond that offensively. He is a great backup.
Where do you play Keppinger? I’d like to see Owens in AAA and Ring pitch another month in Norfolk. Steve Schmoll has actually been the best pitcher since april in Norfolk’s pen. If Bradford were to get an extended look as a pure setup man, maybe Schmoll could slot in with Feliciano as a two headed monster of sort.
I myself, I’m concerned about Alay SOler. I’m worried about his arm getting tired in regards to his 2 year hiatis from pitching.
if oakland does not trade Zito, and he signs for 3+ and 25mm+ they get a 1st and a 1/2 sandwich pick. They will not trade him for Helmann and Nady.
Milledge hurt his trade value. That sucks.
I think you wait as long as possible. Lets say the unthinkable happens. Mets lose 6 straight. Then u have the Pirates coming in with an 8 game lead…at worst…
I know we’d all love to pull the trigger on an impact trade right now, but let’s take a deep breath and try to remember the last time something like that worked. Every time we flip our future for immediate returns it backfires. For now (the next 4 weeks or so), Plan A has to be looking for help from withing. Floyd will give us a boost, with Milledge back in the minors Nady can get in a groove & Chavez will see more playing time, and, last but not least, Pelfrey WILL get called up if either Soler/Hernandez starting looking like Gonzalez/Lima.
Then, for those of us eagerly awaiting some trades, July 31st is only a month a way. Something or other will go down by then. If Plan A is looking good we might see some minor moves, if Plan A starts looking shaky–then, and only then, should we be talking about Plan Z(ito).
I agree. Plus Oakland is loaded with players @ 1st, 3rd, OF & DH that are better than or are expected to be better than Nady.
I couldn’t possibly disagree with you more, pal. Have you seen Castro’s numbers with Billy Wagner pitching? If you think the Orioles will trade Ramon Hernandez, you are kidding yourself. LoDuca knows what to do when runners are on base. What makes or breaks the lineup is Jose Reyes being on base. This series proved that.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy that the Mets have Castro, because they will sorely need him in the second half, but let’s not sell Lo Duca short…he’s more that competent. The Mets lost three games in a row. Relax.
It’s interesting you make recommendations to improve the team, but never mention pitching, which is what they actually need.
Bonus fact: Heath Bell is happy to tackle any assignment Willie has for him during the game. He has toilet bowl cleaning experiance with the St. Lucie Merry maids.
why the hate for heath…the noyl pitcher who actually pitched good in this series is heath bell….heath has great strikeout numbers…his slider and occasional splitter are great pitches….he would be a great bullpen option for any team in the league easily, no doubt about it!
ok so during this season i noticed and especially during this series i noticed that the mets lack that power arm…that guy who can just throw his fastball hard as heck at batters….for example
soler - throws slop..barely has touched 90 every start i have seen him in…throws all kinds of junk….inconsistent, definitely would not want him starting in a playoff game
pedro - not a power arm anymore…yes he is good but he is not a power pitcher..definitely not on soler’s status but hes not a power pitcher point blank, get it together pedro, and p.s. you’re a met not a red sock
glavine - never been a power pitcher…but doesnt just chuck slop up at the plate..no complaints tho
trachsel - slop written all over
el duque - slop pitcher, over the hill, inconsistent blah blah blah….
in the boston series i saw lester throwing 92,93,94
schillnig 92,93
papelbon throws heat
becket throws heat
thats 3 starters throwing hard as heck….power arms
so what do we do fellas….we call up pelfrey and put him in the pen and gradually give him work in the big leagues and then move him into the rotation, if not him then call up henry owens and see what he has…either way omar has to do something with the SP because they wont get it done in the playoffs…yes i kno the sox are sick and hot right now but no excuses they embarrased the hell out of us
Right on, AP. Those of you who have seen my posts, I was saying this back in February. We need a hard thrower sandwiched bet’w Pedro and Glavine. I think there needs to be a better balance in the rotation.
I am virtually certain that Omar will make a deal next month. He almost has to at this point with Glavine being the only true reliable starter.
I think he’d be wasted in the pen and wouldn’t have a very defined role.
So why not slot him right into the rotation? He does have all those college years, so it’s not like the guy has too little experience. I say it’s certainly worth a try. I would also do it while the Mets still have this double-digit lead, less pressure on Pelfrey.
A couple of things. Everyone on the site seems to think you can get starting pitching cheap. It the Nats wanted Milledge for Livan what makes you think the A’s in a pennant race would take Heilman and Nady. First off Nady isn’t anything more than a 4th outfielder. He is bad defensively and… well, lets just say he would be a good platoon player for most teams. And he wouldn’t start for the A’s either.
Also, Zito for 3 years at 25M. So Zito a 28 year old lefty and former Cy Young award winner is equal to Chris Benson? Come on people, you are better than this. We aren’t callers on the Mike and the Mad Dog show.
To get him, we would have to probably trade, Milledge and Heilman. Beane would also probably get a third player from Omar too. That is if, he was willing to trade a starting pitcher while in 1st place!!!
Zito will command at minimum 4 @ 40M. Supply and demand. Didn’t Carl Pavano get that?
Finally, I also want to comment on Paul Lo Duca’s defense. It isn’t very good. Have we watched plays at the plate? Have we watched him block balls? He is a great interview and a good guy, but, he is merely an average catcher or as the stats show, a below average catcher.
Just for comparison purposes:
Lo Duca 282/325/395
Piazza 264/327/478
And Lo Duca has another year on his contract at 6.25M
If we rank Lo Duca on OPS (720) against the top 30 catchers (by games played) he only beats:
B Ausmus 635
Toby Hall 659
Yadier Molina 560
B Schneider 597
M Mattheny 614
S Fasano 685
jose Molina 566
So our offensive catcher is 22 out of 30 offensively and makes significantly more money.
I was very suprised when I learned that the Mets got LoDuca. I had strong preferences of Johjima, Ramon H, and Piazza over LoDuca. I thought the language problem regarding Johjima was overrated. I mean, the guy does not need to master the language. Short lines like “no throw curve, curve sucks” would be sufficient. Don’t know why he never came for his “interview”. It might be that the sensed that the Mets weren’t all that interested. It might be that he noticed that Seattle was closer to Japan and that his Japanese teamate was more likely to stay. It might be that Matsui told him that NY fans could get ugly if you slump (a truism). I suppose that with LoDuca, his only strong positive contribution might be “team chemistry”. I don’t think that at season’s end, we’ll be able to say that he was either an offensive or defensive upgrade to Piazza.
I must admit that I was sure that Valentin would have faltered long ago. Credit is due. If he does falter, I’d really like to see Keppinger given a shot.
Still think that Heilman in the rotation is worth a shot. I think he would shine. Couldn’t do worse that Trachsel or Soler or Duque. For that matter, I don’t think he would do worse than Pedro the last month.
I would take any one of the Angels pitchers not named Weaver (Jeff) to be my third starter, Is Ervin actually on the block because i would consider Millledge for him.
Pedro probably should have been DL’d after his start in L.A., when it became clear the hip injury was affecting his command. They’ve been fiddling with his mechanics to compensate, and it has shown. On Wednesday, he might have been able to tough it out for 5 innings like Glavine if not for the gaffes in the 1st inning, one of them his own. But I don’t think he should have even been out there.
Willie acknowledges Pedro’s not 100% physically, and that “he’s been missing his spots” as a result, but then he just keeps letting Pedro go out there. Pedro could have missed 2-3 starts this month, rested, gotten healthy, and we could have given Maine a few starts. And it’s not too late to do that with Pedro.
I love ya guys, but YOU GUYS = CRAZY
NYM MLB Team Rank:
ERA: #3
BAA: #3
OPS-A: #4
WHIP: #3
K/9: #1
And for the bullpen all those are pretty much #1. Yeah, pitching is the real problem, we’re going to tank in the playoffs, we need a frontline starter to even have a chance at competing so let’s trade the future for three months of Barry Blah Blah Fucking Zito blah blah.
The only better pitching staff in BASEBALL is the Detroit Tigers’, and their CLOSER has an ERA of 6.39 and he’s still given opportunities. Think about that for a second.
This isn’t 1986. The average ERA is 4.5+. We will never have an allstar at every position. It’s okay.
…and he hits #2.
It would actually be fine if he were a bottom of the order hitter. Every team has deficiencies, and our biggest one, by far in my opinion, is OBP at the top of the order. Why even bat Beltran/Delgado/Wright 3 4 5 if no one’s on, why not hit them 1 2 3 and give them some extra hacks at a solo HR?
But wait. If you stop to think about it, they’d actually get more opportunities to drive in runs that way…who lead the team in AB with RISP? Jose Reyes!!!
Scratch that, he was leading last time, but now he’s slipped to #2. The point still holds…8/9 are about as good as 1/2 at getting on base.
Reyes actually has the same number of HR and more RBIs with RISP than Delgado. Damn. Okay I shut up now.
The ABs with runners in scoring position is a little misleading. Reyes has considerably more PA than most of the guys on the team, so it isn’t so surprising. Only Wright is with 50 PA of him (he leads the team). And only 4 guys are within 100 PA of him.
Joe Torre once said that although interleague play is a good idea, it goes on for too long. I couldn’t agree more. Clearly the METs were psyched out of Fenway, causing the sweep. Milledge looked like he was in a CSI Lineup in left, Pedro seemed to be waiting for his parade, and Reyes is still shaking off the cobwebs fom that Varitek slam. No biggie. Sox are on fire now, even the ‘86 team wouldnt beat them right now. We move on. I agree that Omar should make moves within, not make any bad deals, or trade LM. We are close, maybe one solid starter away from the WS. Trading anything of value now reeks of panic.
Some solid comments, and I agree very much with Matt’s sentiments.
The issue now isn’t whether the Mets bullpen has been pretty good (it has) or whether their starters ERA is ranked 1st or 4th in the NL. Or that The Prince & El Rapido have been great, or whether LoDuca’s been an asset in the two hole, etc.
No. The issue is whether this team is ready for Prime Time, for October ball. And I think many of us agree there are serious concerns, most of which Matt addressed nicely. I think Omillie (Mindolph?) needs to skip at least one Pedro start; shift Chad-Brad & Bell up & Heilman & Sanchez down a bit; start Castro at least twice a week; find a way to get real PT for Floyd/Chavez/Nady; and try to get some new blood, maybe a 2nd baseman, maybe a right-handed arm in the pen, maybe a number 3 or 4 type starter.
The goal is winning THE SERIES, not just the division.
* * *
Anyway, on to a topic upon which there’s no disagreement (heh, heh), click on my name for the latest Mets post: not much, thankfully, on the Boston Massacre, but lots ‘o fun tidbits on the Three Headed Monster known as Keith/Ron/Gary, Everlastings Milledge, “Simply Amazing,” and of course the bizarre cast of characters on the ridiculous SNY commercial rotation.
Enjoy.
I know this sounds crazy, but maybe just maybe this team is just in a simple losing streak. That instead of trading the farm or getting parinoid, that maybe we should just wait it out. This series means nothing to me except that the Red Soxes were hot and the Mets for once weren’t. And getting the team’s first 3 game losing streak in late June is not the worst thing in the world. Personally, I’m not worried. And as far as the World Series, first lets get there, second anything can happen in the playoffs. You don’t judge the playoffs on a three game series in late June. At any rate, given that Zito and Willis are likely to stay put, do you really think that a guy like Livan Hernandez is a big upgrade?
I have this strange gut feeling that Omar is going to pull off something that none of us expect at all. I think he will go for a big name pitcher, but not any of the obvious ones (i.e. Zito). Maybe possibly a pitcher that an organization is down on because of injury concerns or lack of performance lately (a name that pops into my head is actually someone along the lines of Sheets, who has had a lot of DL time the past 2 seasons and has underperformed when healthy the past 2 seasons and has a big contract the Mets can take). I also have a feeling it won’t just be a pitcher coming back to us in any deal. I think that if Omar is going to make a trade involving multiple Mets prospects, he’s going to want a little more than just a pitcher, probably a couple of players to be named later, one of which will probably be a 2nd baseman that he and his scouts have decided can project to be a major leaguer.
I saw somewhere that Jason Schmidt was available. What would it take to get him? Would the Heilman/Nady combo be enough? With his recent injuries, would it even take that much? I’m not too sure what the Giants are looking for right now, but they have a 75 year old leftfielder who will be in the AL next year…so, would we start with an OF’er?
I think we’ll have to wait for any Schmidt trades until closer to the deadline, SF is only 1.0 game out in the West, so they are still in the thick of things. Plus waiting is profitable for the Giants, if they are out of it by then, Schmidt becomes a huge commodity for a NY team or a St. Louis in order to bolster their rotations, in effect, making the possible trade partners desperate.
My commentary on the series, for what it is worth
Poo
just poo.
Now, I agree with Steven D, this is simply a streak. No reason to panic (as I wrote yesterday), but there are concerns (as I wrote yesterday, and others posted here today).
We need another starter. Personally, given his DL time, I would be opposed to Sheets at this point, since there is no guarantee that he will be healthy enough to help. Maybe in the offseason you can take that chance, but not now.
Zito would be nice, but alas, the cost may be too high (Milledge + Heilman). I would not want to give up both of them. One plus another piece or two maybe, but not both.
Livan Hernandez is not much of an upgrade. If Omar is going to make a deal, I would hope it is for a #3, who can potentially be a #2.
Bannister is not much of an upgrade over what we already have in terms of a #3. He is at best a 4 or a 5. This team needs a solid #3.
Interesting that Heilman pitched two innings last night I thought. Maybe trying to lenghten him for a starting spot?
Pelfry is not ready fellow geeks. He may get the job done for one or two starts as a new guy, but he may be exposed quickly with only 1 “plus” pitch. Bullpen I have no problem with, rotation is a concern for me.
The Los Angeles Angels (piss on them, that’s who they are) have concerns about their rotation, it would be strange for them to trade Ervin Santana. Jeff Weaver is bad, they need to replace him, and Colon has not been all that great either. I do not think they are going to deal Santana.
As I wrote yesterday, I would rather Omar look into a 2nd baseman. ‘Stache has been a good story, but I do not think he can keep it up. I do not have faith on Woodward to play significant games, given his bat. I would like someone who can slot into the 2 hole ideally, moving The Undertaker down to the 7/8 spot.
I am not all that bummed about losing 3 straight, it had to happen eventually, better that it not cost them anything off of their lead. I just hope the streak ends tonight, and they can take two of three in the Bronx.
I’m of the opinion that the Mets will be rather angry at themselves for the last 3 nights, especially last night and will just go insane on the Yankees tonight. Hopefully they don’t press too much or they most likely won’t crush the Yankees. I want to go 3-0 this weekend. Show those damn frontrunning Yankees fans who the true New York team is right now.
I think they should be even more drastic: why shuoldn’t Willie rest LoDuca for 3-4 games in a row (or even DL him for a bit)? He’s obviously in pain with his thumb, and he’s not producing enough to make it worth sticking with him through the pain. He can still be a “clubhouse leader” in the dugout, and then in when it comes to important games later in the season, he’ll be healthy and rested.
LoDuca is a major catalyst for this team, regardless of whether there were better options in the off-season. I personally think he should be batting #8, but that isn’t the point here. We have a very capable back-up and yet we’re playing a hurting LoDuca 2-3 games per series.
What’s the point of an 11-game lead if you don’t use it to be absolutely healthy for the playoff drive?
I repeat, Ervin Santana was only made available to acquire one player, Carl Crawford. The NL West stinks which means that the Giants will be in it come septemeber so acquiring Schmidt is out. Oaklands in 1st place and Beane doesn’t trade marque players in walk years during the season.
As for the 3 game losing streak, we were banged up and psychological not ready. We lost the series when Alay threw the first pitch. He was caught up in the moment of starting @ one of the wonders of the baseball world. The mental mistakes actually got worse from there. Lastings first misplayed ball in left, Acta’s itching trigger, Reyes trying to knock down Varitek, Willie’s lineup in game 2 with a catcher nursing a hand injury dhing, Martinez’s brain fart on the double play, Milledge’s second misplayed ball, Castro’s passed ball, The lineups approach to Schilling *swing at the first pitch or else*, Franco’s baserunning blunder. This series was a learning experiance for the team which will no doubt help them come october. As long as we cut down on the mental mistakes this weekend, I’ll be happy. It’s never fun when we lose but it’s worse when we play the kind of crap we played this week
Great as always Mike. To quote a very wise man “Say something funny Mikey”
Couldn’t have said it better myself.
Don’t want Livan. Already have one meber of his family pitching ok (at best) for this team. Don’t need another.
There was talk earlier about Santana being on the block - I believe Anaheim is in serious need for a bat and Colon was coming back, they need to clear a pitching spot. Instead they got rid of the wrong Weaver. Kind of like when the Mets got the wromng Maddux or Zambrano.
Sheets is avaialble?
Well, probably not, it was a reach by me. But injury concerns normally = availability at some point just so a team can cash in on a name like Sheets. I think for the right deal (say, Heilman, Milledge, probably some minor league arms) it might be possible to grab him. They would probably want Milledge to move into Carlos Lee’s spot in the outfield after he leaves to make more money.
Yup! After reading the entire article, it says Sabean has said (not that that means anything) he will not trade Schmidt unless they completely fall out of the race and that would take a ten game losing streak…it was worth a thought.
Not that I support this in any way, but what are the odds Minaya goes after the elder Weaver once he is free from the Angels…scary thought…
For any male mets fan that needs something to make them smile:
http://www.idontlikeyouinthatway.com/pictures/20060629/maria%20sharapova/sharp1.html
emad–dont worry, I know you dont like that cold look in her eyes. But they have nothing to do with this pic.
I guarantee all of you i have had the worst day dealing with this garbage.
I had 20, yes twenty, red sox bobbleheads waiting for me in my office when I got in. I am actually scared by how much time & money was spent just to mess with me. Did you even know they had a alex gonzalez bobble-head? i sure didnt. grrrrrrr
I feel like they did all these preparations b4 the series even started, like they knew they were gonna kick our ass. That bothers me the most. grrrrrrrrr
we better kick the living daylights outta those yanks.
Decapitate them all and put their head in their mailboxes and burn the bodies outside on the street. Ok, maybe I’m just feeling a little crazy because we lost three games in a row. Like I said before, I most definitely feel a 3-0 weekend coming.
I took Manny’s head off and roped a noose around it and hung it over one of their desks.
They took most of ‘em back right after that. HA!
The worst is, like every time i open a new drawer or cabinet in my office I find another one.
Mets-cheer me up tonite.
dep, you gotta give them credit for creativity. That is, all else aside, quite freaking funny.
I allowed the young pup from yesterday (the one I reminded that I am much bigger than him) the chance to blast me, but he did not. The Yankee fan of course was upset, but not too much.
Alas, filters at work will not allow me to view the pic, I shall have to check when I get home.
All is not lost my fellow geeks. It is June 30, they are 11 games up. They are in a rough stretch, which was bound to happen. Cripes, the first 3 game losing streak comes in June, who would not have been thrilled with that in March?
I have no doubt this team is pissed off about the streak. The mental lapses were not there last night, that is a positive. Call me wishy-washy or say I am grasping at straws, but to me, it shows that they woke up a bit. Now, they need to be fully roused, and ready to go. If we think the BS from the press is bad after this series (exposed, overrated, whatever else His Pompousness and the Screaming Ninny are saying), it will only get worse if they lose to the Yanks. None of the guys want that. Even though they are facing the Yanks two top pitchers (Johnson and Mussina), they still have enough talent to beat them.
My hope is to see Cliffy as DH, Edny in left, Lastings in right. My lineup is
Reyes
Lo Duca
Beltran
Delgado
Wright
Floyd
Valentin
Chavez
Milledge
If need be, swap in Nady for Chavez and move Lastings to left.
It would be nice if they could take 2 of 3 this weekend. Right the ship, go into Pittsburgh and smack them around a bit. Confidence is big in this game. They need some now. Take some from last night, and build on it this weekend and next week.
You should have strung up lard a$$ “big papi” right next to him. Man, if there was no DH, that man would probably be the same place Calvin Pickering is…In the minors because he is too fat.
Then who would you send down?
Yeah? I’d take that “fat a**” hitting cleanup for the Mets any day of the week.
Great post Ed. I hope you are right, I hope the team is spitting fire tonite.
Yea, the little plot against me was very creative and very funny. I was steamed when I saw it, but i was smirking a little. It was a good burn.
That’s the problem when you mess with young men than have intelligence and money, the sky is the limit to what they can do to get back at ya.
FMF-Ortiz was the one i wanted to string up, but it kinda looked like an expensive bobblehead, not your standard cheap plastic one. It was made out of like a porcelain or something similar….needless to say I went with a cheap plastic one to hang in effigy.
Oh my…they make porcelain ones? Wow. I am not being sarcastic, I had no idea that they did. Oh well, I guess Manny was enough. What we need is Reyes to heat up again. He went cold and the team did nothing at all this series.
The kid wonder. Lastings Milledge
Or as I was calling him over the boston series. the Kid Blunder
metswin2006 - I asked beacuse Ed has Lastings & Floyd in the lineup
With the AL winning 8 straight World Series games, and the dominance shown in the interleague games, baseball is almost starting to feel like the NFL of the mid 80’s to late 90’s when the AFC champion was basically cannon fodder for the NFC champ. I don’t think the AL’s streak of championships will last as long as the NFC’s, but right now, the sign definitely point to another AL team winning it all. That being said, I still believe that with a few tweaks here and there (mostly to the starting pitching), the Mets can still take the whole thing.
I was actually being serious. I heard there calling him down tonight. Cant say I disagree. He was tested at the big level and he still needs to work on things. He will be a good player dont get be wrong. Also he was put in some real tight spots.
Dpty-
Thank you, good sir. A little camel toe always brings a smile to my face . . . and a pitch to my tent.
Or something like that.
Especially when I spent lunch (all two-and-a-half hours of it) watching the World Cup at a bar. I love the taste of Guiness in the afternoon; it tastes like . . . drunkenness.
Brian - Heath Bell. Then call him up Monday and send down Lastings.
how come the mets play the talented teams in the AL east, not to mention the yankees TWICE, but dont get to beat up on the devil rays?
They do. My daughter (read, wife) got me one for my first Fathers Day. A generic Mets one. It sits on my desk in my office. Genuine MLB license and all.
Dep - seeing Mike’s response to the pic makes me want to go home right now.
Great post Mike. Funny. No thanks necessary, I’m just doing my part to keep us all sane. And remind us what’s important in life. ;) That tournament must have been in Saudi Arabia or something. The camels are running wild!!!!
Your website cracks me up too, good stuff.
OK, now I am officially pissed. ESPN just posted the Power Rankings. Mets are 5th. OK, I can buy that a little. But guess who is 4th….
The Yankees
Now, I know this is a little hard for the guys at ESPN, but the Mets are 47-31, 11 games up. Yanks are 44-32, 4 games BACK.
Yeah, I know the Sox just took 3 from the Mets, but for pet’s f’ing sake, the Mets took 2 of 3 from the Yanks this year. Now, if it goes the other way this weekend, fine. For now, it is a bullshit move on the part of ESPN. All the talk in the media is how this team was “exposed” against the class of the AL. Bullshit. They ran into a hot team. Just cause you lose a season series to a team does not mean you will lose to them in the playoffs. The 88 Mets dominated the Dodgers, what happened? Yanks beat the Sox in 2004, what happened?
The media, who was so quick to jump on the bandwagon, now can’t jump off fast enough. Fuck them, I don’t want them on board. Let them call the Mets underdogs to the AL. Give them the bulletin board material. This team will get pissed off and run away with the NL and then beat the everliving shit out of whoever they play in the WS.
OK, I have to go have a smoke now. And a few beers tonight while I watch the game.
Because of the stupid rule about geographic rivals, which forces the Mets to play the Yanks twice. Utter BS of course.
Ed-you have AOL Instant Messenger? You can find me by the same handle.
If you want post your email, and i’ll paste the pic in and send it, if you dont wanna post your email, then you got to wait ;)
and totally f**k ESPN, i’d rather have them against us than for us.
The idiots last nite on baseball tonight, said the mets werent prepared to win enough since Delgado and Cliff Floyd didnt play against Schilling. They didnt want it enough they said. Floyd was in the minors you fools!!!!!
I am surprised that minaya hasnt pulled a trigger on Oliver Perez of the pirates. Like the article in always amazin said you should be able to get him cheap and he did have an aewsome year in 2004. Hard to believe he just flat out lost it. With some tickering he coould be a steal.
Dep - no AOL instant messenger. Can’t access home email from work either (no webmail ability, crap). Thanks though.
I can wait. Sounds like it might be worth it.
Baseball Tonight morons are further proof of ESPN being a bunch of assholes. They probably think Floyd should have been called up after 1 freaking rehab game after missing 3 weeks. And these guys (some of them) used to play the game. Yeah, Jeff Brantley was a good player. Jerk. Hey Jeff, here’s a quarter, go buy a f’ing clue. Even with the two if them out, they only lost 4-2. Give me a break. Let them continue to kneel for the Yanks and the Sox. Then, they will be well prepared for the Mets to kick them in the back of the head.
Ed - I like your moves. I like your style :)
Jesus I go out for a few hours and we get Camel toe hanging bobble heads. I can’t leave you guys alone.:)
We need to kick the Yanks ass tonight especially because I am going to watch it at a Yankee fans house.
I think everyone forgets that Ramon Hernandez and Molina were trying to play the Mets and he was left sitting there to sign for cheap once Omar said Screw you to him.
Your plan is Flawed because Heath can’t comeback up, unless someone goes on the DL, for 7 days. I say just send Lastings down now
Chris is right and I agree with him. Send the wonder/blunder kid down now.
I’ve done some research
Vs. Moose
Delgado 18-85 5hr
Valentin 11-47 4hr
Beltran 8-27 6 XBH
Franco 5-26
Floyd 6-22 2hr
Reyes 1-12
Woodward 2-8
Wright 1-5
Castro 0-5
Nady 0-3
Well he has just flat out lost it- I saw him pitch two years ago, and this year- he’s obviously injured, and he’s probably lying about it- but the Pirates coaching/med staff is too effing incompetent to see.
Any way, in hindsight, getting swept by the BosOx sux- but
1: It impresses upon Minaya that maybe, just maybe he needs another strong SP;
2: Philly largely flopped, so it’s not like they made up much ground;
3: It hurt the Yankees more than the Mets; and
4: If we turn around and take 2/3 or better yet sweep the Yankees- well I can think of NOTHING that woudl hurt Yankee fans more at this point
Yankee Hitters vs. El DUque
Damon 16-38 1hr 14singles
A-Rod 7-25 3hr
Cairo 4-18
Giambi 0-16 7BB
Jeter 1-6
Posada 1-5
Bernie 1-2
For the life of me, I don’t understand why anyone gives a s— about weekly power ratings.
Talk about meaningless.
As many of you know, I’m a Phoenix Suns fan. I just found this in the post which made me laugh
http://www.nypost.com/sports/knicks/blight__early_knicks_marc_berman.htm
You kill me Isiah!
I agree
I don’t forget that. I like Lo Duca.
Chris- that link was awesome. Thank you so much. It gave me my biggest smile of the day.
My favorite lines from the Suns:
“we wouldnt had taken Rolanda Belkman at pick #45 if he was available”
“We might not had taken him in a 3rd round if one existed”
Toooooo funny.
Yeah, they are meaningless, but when ESPN goes from singing the praises to a ranking like that, it annoys me. It’s more than them, it’s the whole media flip-flop on the Mets. It is pissing me off. ESPN was just a convenient outlet for my rant. They led the press on Lastings and the Hi-5’s. They got on the bandwagon, and now are trpiing over themselves jumping off. They continue to talk about all the money Omar spent, when payroll is flat to last year.
I am possibly a little more pissed about the sweep than I thought. Plus, this team is getting no credit for taking 2 of 3 from the Jays, and then having to run into the buzzsaw in Boston.
It is Friday, I need a drink. The wife is going to be home earlier than I, and she will be icing a couple of Sam Adams Summer Ale for me.
OK, she is icing about 6 of them for me. She loves me.
Why, I have no idea.
Isiah has the potential to make people forget about how bad a GM Mike Milbury was. I’m not a basketball fan in any way, but even I can tell that he is awful. He gives Mad Mike a run for village idiot.
Now if only Isiah would STOP killing the Knicks…I get the feeling the Knicks are the new Red Sox. Only, instead of selling Babe Ruth, the league rigged the draft so they could get Ewing. Call it the “Curse of the Frozen Envelope”…They will not win a championship in our lifetimes…
Actually I think three men screwed that situation up- Omar and teh two agents.
On teh one hand it’s easy to look at what Molina and Hernandez got and say teh mets made a mistake in getting LoDuca (and paying what they’ll be paying him), But there’s market economics at work, everyone knew the Mets wanted a catcher, the agents priced their guys accordingly, what they failed to anticipate, was once the Mets were out of the running the market would change dramatically. What the agents shoudl have realized was that if the Mets signed the other guy, my guy is screwed.
In the end Molina got royally screwed (hell he should sue his agent for malpractice)- after the Mets traded for LoDuca he lost the best offer he had on the table (from the Mets), and he got low balled by Balt (which preferred Hernandez). When hernandez signed, that was it, all high payroll teams had a catcher.
Personally, I’d have gone with Castro and looked for a backup. LoDuca’s a decent enough catcher, but he’s horribly overpaid, and that leadership crap about him is largely the result of reporters and announcers wanting to throw dirt on the former GM who tarded him from LA (DePodesta).
I like Castro, as a back up. When he was playing a lot last year, he slumped. He had hit well, but once he started to play full time, he faltered. He does not appear to be an every day type of guy.
We have 1 more season of Lo Duca being overpaid. No big deal. Worst case, they let Castro go, and try to get someone in the offseason to be the backup and then take over for Lo Duca.
As for the leadership, while I have never met the man, everything I read, and hear, is about how he is a positive guy, who people listen to and respect. Leadership is not a quality which can be taken lightly. I liked Piazza as much as the next guy, but I wish he would have gotten vocal once in a while. I know, it is not his style, but the team needed that at times. Paul brings that. It is needed. No one else seems to do it. His rep goes back to before he was traded, so I do not think it is solely the result of people trying to bury DePodesta.
I just noticed this
Congrats to Royce Ring for making the AAA all start team
Congrats to Mike Pelfrey, Henry Owens, Michael Abreu & Jorge Padilla for making the AA all star team
Jesus Flores in 2008!!!!
LoDuca has been solid, even though I have to admit, I’ve been a bit disappointed with his defense. Not even the not throwing out runners, but really the passed balls and missing some throws into the plate. Its not his fault Willie bats him in the #2 hole, and he’s done ok there.
His double last nite b4 the Beltran HR was huge at the time.
Joe hietpas in 2009!
Pena’s kid in 2010!!!
From our friends @ rotoworld
:( on Delgado
:) on FLoyd
Trying to upset the Fan Club Ed?
Milledge is officially in AAA @ Norfolk. Loduca is Dhing
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