I just got my call from JCP&L asking me to conserve electricity so, being a good citizen (or a not so bad one), I turned off everything but the fridge and Francesa (necessities are after all necessities) and have my PC running on the battery.
There’s a lot happening in the sports world on which to comment, even if not much of it can be positive. The Mets, fuggedaboudit, they’re getting worse, but at least the NFL lockout looks to be ending and we won’t have to contemplate the angry visage of DeMaurice Smith anymore.
I had thought they’d miss the first four games of the regular season. My thinking had been based upon the knowledge that the owners were insured for the first four weeks. But, what I didn’t realize (and neither did the owners apparently) was that the players were insured too, to about 200 thousand bucks per player.
That latter fact certainly accelerated the pace of negotiations. And this marks the first time in my life ‘ve ever been thankful for the insurance industry.
Now we can all get back to perusing our fantasy football magazines while sprawled on the beach listening to some baseball game. And that’s not all. The delay and shortening of the signing period means that our next few weeks will be chock full of surprises, who’s being signed, let go or just asked to take one for the team…..heh-heh.
Meanwhile, as the July 31st trading deadline approaches, Mets fans can wonder how bad things can really get without K-Rod and now probably Beltran. From the looks of things thus far, they can get pretty bad in a hurry, just from the thought of losing Carlos.
I know I’ve become inured already to the poor play and lack of talent on my favorite team. Looking at the bright side, maybe the Mets will finally do something about these pieces of dead wood that litter the roster.
It’s not even so much the really raw players that exasperate me. It’s the players that have been with the team for a long while now, the Pagans of the world and the Bay’s and the Pelfrey’s that just seem to keep stinking it up.
I had thought that Jason Bay might be coming out of his funk finally after almost two years of playing worse than anyone could ever have imagined. Alas, it was not to be. His big day a couple of weeks ago was just a cruel aberration, just another reminder of how much we’re truly missing while he flounders. I mean, it’s not just the poor performance per se, but the opportunity loss of what the man could be.
The entire Mets season kinda reminds me of the Wizard of Oz. The Wizard would have to be the GM Alderson or Manager Terry Collins. The lion looking for courage could be Jason Bay. The scarecrow looking for a brain would definitely be Angel Pagan. The tin man seeking a heart could be Carlos Beltran, that is, seeking another team to love him.
But the Mets have too many scarecrows. Angel Pagan heads the list of stupid players but there is also Mike Pelfrey and especially Lucas Duda. And that sometime closer Bobby Parnell isn’t the brightest light in the heavens either. Willie Harris and Scott Hairston have all the brains they need to play but just lack any discernible talent.
That being said, any professional baseball team needs at least a bit of production from all 25 players. On the Mets, it’s easier to identify the keepers for next year. It’s a much shorter list. In the outfield there are no keepers unless you count Beltran. I suppose he could return after a brief sojourn with the Phils or Giants or Brewers but I wouldn’t count on it.
The infield could be good though. Ike Davis at first base, Justin Turner at second, Tejada at shortstop (if Jose should go elsewhere) and David Wright at third would certainly be representative of a real live major league team. The starters except for Pelfrey are all pretty good too. The catcher, Josh Thole, has a lot of potential and is good enough to be a regular.
As dealing Jason Bay would be next to impossible without a deep discount of some kind, I look for him to continue playing, at the very least, a very steady left field. Maybe he could be viewed as one of those defensive specialists, who are usually found at shortstop or second base. If Reyes could be retained, a weak-hitting left fielder could be tolerated.
So the Mets need to get rid of the dead men walking. That means Duda and Pelfrey and Pagan have to go. They are symbols of losing baseball. At least Bay is a smart player, good outfielder and good on the basepaths and, presumably, in the clubhouse.
So we need two outfielders. Surely there are two outfielders that can be had on the cheap if necessary, players who would make us forget Angel Pagan, Lucas Duda and the horror of Daniel Murphy out there. Murphy has value though, for sure, as a utility infielder who can spell Wright at third, Davis at first and Turner at second.
A couple of relief pitchers are also needed. Izzy and Beato and even Parnell could be keepers but that’s about all. Of the rest of them, only Tim Byrdak has performed pretty creditably. Surely something could be had in return for Beltran and K-Rod, and maybe even a big guy with some power.
Those are just the obvious moves. If one gets imaginative, it’s conceivable that David Wright could be traded as both Turner and Murphy are capable of playing there, if not providing as much power. But at this point anyway, I’d rather see a couple of good outfielders. Wright is the only player on the roster that could provide any appreciable value in return.
Get rid of all the scarecrows. A wizard could certainly do it.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Some of This...Some of That
This week is almost over. WooHoo! There was no baseball at all except for the worst telecast of an All-Star Game ever Tuesday night. Jack Buck and Tim McCarver as hosts wasn’t bad enough. There were also totally obnoxious people Fox threw into the dugouts as well. One used-car salesman lookalike kept saying “talk to me, man”. It was disgusting. Fox now joins ESPN on my “don’t watch” list.
The game itself wasn’t all that bad. The announcers were. One boring guy would be bad enough but Fox felt they needed two. Jack Buck just reeks of smugness. McCarver’s full of insights ad infinitum in that drawl that puts me asleep. Where’s Kevin Millar or Harold Johnson when you really need them?
Then, wonder of wonders, after three years of spending our hard-earned taxpayer money in an effort to nail the arrogant Roger Clemens for lying to Congress about steroids, the prosecution totally blows the trial by defying the judge’s direct order. The judge was awfully quick to call a mistrial too. The whole thing is really suspicious-looking. And in the beginning of September, there’ll be another hearing to determine whether the case should be re-tried.
What a waste of money! It’s just what the American people need right now. I don’t know about anybody else. I’m tired of the way this country is running, or not running. I’m blaming Obama. The same guy who’s dragging out the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan by printing money so that our existing money becomes worthless, the same guy who wants deficits up the ying-yang, the same guy who’s really done nothing but bankrupt the country, he thinks Roger Clemens needs to go down, no matter what the cost.
The government is now 0 and 2 in its perjury efforts against Bonds and Clemens. Yeah, I know, the Bonds jury found Bonds guilty of one count but that verdict didn’t even make any sense. They convicted him of obstruction of justice without one single guilty for perjury. So that will still drag on making all the lawyers very happy.
As this is written, CC Sabathia shut down the Jays earlier in the day and the Mets are beating Cole Hamels and the Phillies 3-0. Beltrans’s not playing today and supposedly has a fever. I’m fine with Carlos sitting out if it’ll help ensure his good health prior to a deal being done. It’ll be good to get some prospects in here.
The Mets traded K-Rod of course already and that move made sense too. It made even more sense that K-Rod was the first to go, this despite his overall good performance this year. That troublesome 17 mill option was negotiated away apparently so that K-Rod wouldn’t have to deal with any awkwardness as to games in which he’ll appear. But it’s unclear what prospects the Mets actually picked up in that trade. It was done mostly to improve their overall salary situation.
If it will help the club to sign Reyes to another contract, or at the least to be able to make him an offer, it makes sense to trade Beltran as well. The Giants had been courting him, supposedly, and there is interest coming from Philly and Boston and maybe some other clubs as well.
I don’t think there can be any question that the Mets will fare worse this year without their closer and leading hitter. But with Wright soon returning and Reyes too, the Mets should at least be positioned to score some more runs.
Not that you could complain today about runs scored as the Mets are now leading the Phils and Hamels 5-0 and even Jason bay just contributed a hit. Ike Davis and Santana are likely out for this entire season though, an eventuality that nobody expected earlier. I’m hoping Wright comes back strong off his fractured back and can perform at least as well as the plug-ins have been playing. He surely wasn’t impressing anybody before he went down.
Hamels is out of this game and now the Mets lead is 7-zip. It looks to be still another hit barrage although Murphy did slug a rather long dinger off Hamels. They’ll need all the hits they can get too. Without K-Rod, the Mets are left with candidates who’ve either never closed or, in Isringhausen’s case, haven’t closed in a long time.
All in all, I’d expect them to still be able to play .500 ball throughout this season and maybe it’ll be next year that will smile on our heroes. Gee, that sounds vaguely familiar. Maybe that pirate of a lawyer for the other losers in that Ponzi scheme can finally be made to seek and sink some other unfortunate ships.
Oh well, at least the NFL lockout may be winding down. Both sides seem fairly confident at this juncture. I hadn’t been optimistic at all re a settlement. I did think it rather amazing that the owners didn’t find out until Thursday that the Players Association had secured an insurance policy against a lockout, the proceeds of which would assure up to 200, 000 dollars per player. That surely did speed things right along.
It’ll be great to finally be able to watch the NFL Network again. And, with Mets prospects this year looking rather bleak at the moment, there’ll be some measure of happiness thinking about the ridiculous Giants and Jets fortunes for the upcoming year. And fantasy football drafts can proceed without further ado.
It’s times like these that focus one’s priorities in life. Continuations of ridiculous wars while we’re broke, stupid failed prosecutions for minor offenses, and the only winners are the lawyers and the judges. If any country needs an outlet rather than reality, it’s our good ol’ USA.
And, speaking of the USA, tomorrow our women’s soccer team can win the FIFA Gold Cup if they can get by Japan, this after putting on the show of their lives against France in the semifinal. I know I’ll be watching.
The game itself wasn’t all that bad. The announcers were. One boring guy would be bad enough but Fox felt they needed two. Jack Buck just reeks of smugness. McCarver’s full of insights ad infinitum in that drawl that puts me asleep. Where’s Kevin Millar or Harold Johnson when you really need them?
Then, wonder of wonders, after three years of spending our hard-earned taxpayer money in an effort to nail the arrogant Roger Clemens for lying to Congress about steroids, the prosecution totally blows the trial by defying the judge’s direct order. The judge was awfully quick to call a mistrial too. The whole thing is really suspicious-looking. And in the beginning of September, there’ll be another hearing to determine whether the case should be re-tried.
What a waste of money! It’s just what the American people need right now. I don’t know about anybody else. I’m tired of the way this country is running, or not running. I’m blaming Obama. The same guy who’s dragging out the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan by printing money so that our existing money becomes worthless, the same guy who wants deficits up the ying-yang, the same guy who’s really done nothing but bankrupt the country, he thinks Roger Clemens needs to go down, no matter what the cost.
The government is now 0 and 2 in its perjury efforts against Bonds and Clemens. Yeah, I know, the Bonds jury found Bonds guilty of one count but that verdict didn’t even make any sense. They convicted him of obstruction of justice without one single guilty for perjury. So that will still drag on making all the lawyers very happy.
As this is written, CC Sabathia shut down the Jays earlier in the day and the Mets are beating Cole Hamels and the Phillies 3-0. Beltrans’s not playing today and supposedly has a fever. I’m fine with Carlos sitting out if it’ll help ensure his good health prior to a deal being done. It’ll be good to get some prospects in here.
The Mets traded K-Rod of course already and that move made sense too. It made even more sense that K-Rod was the first to go, this despite his overall good performance this year. That troublesome 17 mill option was negotiated away apparently so that K-Rod wouldn’t have to deal with any awkwardness as to games in which he’ll appear. But it’s unclear what prospects the Mets actually picked up in that trade. It was done mostly to improve their overall salary situation.
If it will help the club to sign Reyes to another contract, or at the least to be able to make him an offer, it makes sense to trade Beltran as well. The Giants had been courting him, supposedly, and there is interest coming from Philly and Boston and maybe some other clubs as well.
I don’t think there can be any question that the Mets will fare worse this year without their closer and leading hitter. But with Wright soon returning and Reyes too, the Mets should at least be positioned to score some more runs.
Not that you could complain today about runs scored as the Mets are now leading the Phils and Hamels 5-0 and even Jason bay just contributed a hit. Ike Davis and Santana are likely out for this entire season though, an eventuality that nobody expected earlier. I’m hoping Wright comes back strong off his fractured back and can perform at least as well as the plug-ins have been playing. He surely wasn’t impressing anybody before he went down.
Hamels is out of this game and now the Mets lead is 7-zip. It looks to be still another hit barrage although Murphy did slug a rather long dinger off Hamels. They’ll need all the hits they can get too. Without K-Rod, the Mets are left with candidates who’ve either never closed or, in Isringhausen’s case, haven’t closed in a long time.
All in all, I’d expect them to still be able to play .500 ball throughout this season and maybe it’ll be next year that will smile on our heroes. Gee, that sounds vaguely familiar. Maybe that pirate of a lawyer for the other losers in that Ponzi scheme can finally be made to seek and sink some other unfortunate ships.
Oh well, at least the NFL lockout may be winding down. Both sides seem fairly confident at this juncture. I hadn’t been optimistic at all re a settlement. I did think it rather amazing that the owners didn’t find out until Thursday that the Players Association had secured an insurance policy against a lockout, the proceeds of which would assure up to 200, 000 dollars per player. That surely did speed things right along.
It’ll be great to finally be able to watch the NFL Network again. And, with Mets prospects this year looking rather bleak at the moment, there’ll be some measure of happiness thinking about the ridiculous Giants and Jets fortunes for the upcoming year. And fantasy football drafts can proceed without further ado.
It’s times like these that focus one’s priorities in life. Continuations of ridiculous wars while we’re broke, stupid failed prosecutions for minor offenses, and the only winners are the lawyers and the judges. If any country needs an outlet rather than reality, it’s our good ol’ USA.
And, speaking of the USA, tomorrow our women’s soccer team can win the FIFA Gold Cup if they can get by Japan, this after putting on the show of their lives against France in the semifinal. I know I’ll be watching.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
A Moment Made For Jeter and by Jeter
A Mets fan has it rough these days, all of which seem to be Yankee days. First, there was the 3000th hit by the most famous Yankee of them all, oh what is his name? Then tonight I got to watch as Robinson Cano won the Home Run Derby in Arizona with some really prodigious shots.
Oh well, at least I did get to see Jose Reyes interviewing Carlos Beltran before the festivities began on the MLB Network, one of the funniest things I’ve seen in a while.
But, truth to tell, I was really happy for Jeter on Saturday. If he had just dribbled a seeing-eye grounder for that long-awaited milestone, it wouldn’t have meant anything. But Jeter always had a flair for the dramatic and Saturday was certainly no exception.
It kills me to say so but the whole day validated all the ballyhoo and the high esteem he’s held in by every fan of Major League Baseball. I mean, really!
He needed two hits and he started his day off by getting the first one he needed right off the bat, so to speak. Then, with the whole world watching, and a great pitcher, David Price, on the mound, he had one of the best at-bats I’ve ever seen, fouling off pitch after pitch, taking the close balls, and then just driving that ball, no doubt about it, into the left-center field seats.
It was one of those moments you remember. I was in my garage workin’ out, one eye on the screen and the other on the mat. But I was watching every pitch. If he had struck out, it would have been a great at-bat. I jumped in the air as I heard the crack of the bat and watched that drive and heard that call.
It was a moment made for Jeter and by Jeter. Of course, there have been other Jeter moments, but everybody remembers two especially, his flip to the plate to nail the incredibly stupid Jeremy Giambi at the plate in a playoff game against Oakland and that flying leap into the seats in short left-center field to complete a catch that couldn’t have been made any other way.
But those other moments had been surprises, moments made by Jeter but not especially for him, as was his quest for that elusive 3000th hit. There had been the injury, then the rainout and the interminable questions about his feelings about the whole thing. When he stepped into that batter’s box for that second at-bat, he had to know the whole baseball world was watching.
And that’s why Jeter is a great player. When the pressure is on, he turns up his game. He feels he can make the play, no, not just can but will make the play. Other players don’t make that flying leap, other players don’t have the presence of mind to stay with that play in Oakland, one he admits to this day had only been made because the runner didn’t slide, and, even then, it had been a close thing.
I love watching Jose Reyes play but he wouldn’t have made either of those Jeter plays. He doesn’t have that presence of mind and he doesn’t have the kind of drive that would mean possibly sacrificing his body. Now don’t get me wrong. Jose will make a lot of plays that Jeter couldn’t ever make but Jeter will make every play he can possibly make. Jeter is in the game.
There’s a little hot dog in all the greats and Jeter is no exception to that either. But, to me, only hot dogs make those impossible plays.
Not that that 3000th hit was an impossible play. If anything, it was inevitable. But hitting the homer was something else again, and it was a moment that really cried out for something special. Jeter heard the call and made the most of it. He knew he could hit one in that spot so he did.
With every player on both sides hanging over the dugout, with many thousands watching live and millions taking it in on television, Jeter made the moment one worth everybody’s time. He knocked one over the wall. It was great, even the probably scripted Posada dash to the front of the congratulatory line and Mariano there too at the forefront, three old soldiers of baseball just really happy in the moment. The captain had done it again.
And, of course, he didn’t stop there. Jeter was on fire. He was 3 for 3 and 4 for 4 and 5 for 5 and the game-winner. What else? It was a glorious Jeter day, a great day to be a Yankee fan.
A total of 27 other players have reached 3000 hits, most of them notable names too, and all but two made it to the Hall of Fame. And one of those two, Pete Rose, should be in there too. The other is Rafael Palmeiro, not a Hall of Fame player to me, even discounting the juice.
The 3000 hit plateau is one that speaks of greatness and longevity. You have to be a pretty damned good player to be in the game that long, but other marks of longevity such as most consecutive games played
If Jeter hadn’t been assured of always having a place in New York’s hearts before Saturday, he has it now, no matter what follows, much as was and is the case for Eli Manning and Broadway Joe and Walt Frazier.
He may not finish his career as the leadoff man for the Yankees but will hardly matter now. Those other icons won titles but Jeter already had more titles than any of them. What he may not have had before Saturday was that one big day.
Well, he sure had one Saturday. Five for five, the 3000th hit a homer, and the game-winning hit to top it all off.
The 3000th after all had to come on a winning day.
(Christian Lopez made the day even more special by returning the ball he caught, passing up many thousands of dollars in the bargain).
Oh well, at least I did get to see Jose Reyes interviewing Carlos Beltran before the festivities began on the MLB Network, one of the funniest things I’ve seen in a while.
But, truth to tell, I was really happy for Jeter on Saturday. If he had just dribbled a seeing-eye grounder for that long-awaited milestone, it wouldn’t have meant anything. But Jeter always had a flair for the dramatic and Saturday was certainly no exception.
It kills me to say so but the whole day validated all the ballyhoo and the high esteem he’s held in by every fan of Major League Baseball. I mean, really!
He needed two hits and he started his day off by getting the first one he needed right off the bat, so to speak. Then, with the whole world watching, and a great pitcher, David Price, on the mound, he had one of the best at-bats I’ve ever seen, fouling off pitch after pitch, taking the close balls, and then just driving that ball, no doubt about it, into the left-center field seats.
It was one of those moments you remember. I was in my garage workin’ out, one eye on the screen and the other on the mat. But I was watching every pitch. If he had struck out, it would have been a great at-bat. I jumped in the air as I heard the crack of the bat and watched that drive and heard that call.
It was a moment made for Jeter and by Jeter. Of course, there have been other Jeter moments, but everybody remembers two especially, his flip to the plate to nail the incredibly stupid Jeremy Giambi at the plate in a playoff game against Oakland and that flying leap into the seats in short left-center field to complete a catch that couldn’t have been made any other way.
But those other moments had been surprises, moments made by Jeter but not especially for him, as was his quest for that elusive 3000th hit. There had been the injury, then the rainout and the interminable questions about his feelings about the whole thing. When he stepped into that batter’s box for that second at-bat, he had to know the whole baseball world was watching.
And that’s why Jeter is a great player. When the pressure is on, he turns up his game. He feels he can make the play, no, not just can but will make the play. Other players don’t make that flying leap, other players don’t have the presence of mind to stay with that play in Oakland, one he admits to this day had only been made because the runner didn’t slide, and, even then, it had been a close thing.
I love watching Jose Reyes play but he wouldn’t have made either of those Jeter plays. He doesn’t have that presence of mind and he doesn’t have the kind of drive that would mean possibly sacrificing his body. Now don’t get me wrong. Jose will make a lot of plays that Jeter couldn’t ever make but Jeter will make every play he can possibly make. Jeter is in the game.
There’s a little hot dog in all the greats and Jeter is no exception to that either. But, to me, only hot dogs make those impossible plays.
Not that that 3000th hit was an impossible play. If anything, it was inevitable. But hitting the homer was something else again, and it was a moment that really cried out for something special. Jeter heard the call and made the most of it. He knew he could hit one in that spot so he did.
With every player on both sides hanging over the dugout, with many thousands watching live and millions taking it in on television, Jeter made the moment one worth everybody’s time. He knocked one over the wall. It was great, even the probably scripted Posada dash to the front of the congratulatory line and Mariano there too at the forefront, three old soldiers of baseball just really happy in the moment. The captain had done it again.
And, of course, he didn’t stop there. Jeter was on fire. He was 3 for 3 and 4 for 4 and 5 for 5 and the game-winner. What else? It was a glorious Jeter day, a great day to be a Yankee fan.
A total of 27 other players have reached 3000 hits, most of them notable names too, and all but two made it to the Hall of Fame. And one of those two, Pete Rose, should be in there too. The other is Rafael Palmeiro, not a Hall of Fame player to me, even discounting the juice.
The 3000 hit plateau is one that speaks of greatness and longevity. You have to be a pretty damned good player to be in the game that long, but other marks of longevity such as most consecutive games played
If Jeter hadn’t been assured of always having a place in New York’s hearts before Saturday, he has it now, no matter what follows, much as was and is the case for Eli Manning and Broadway Joe and Walt Frazier.
He may not finish his career as the leadoff man for the Yankees but will hardly matter now. Those other icons won titles but Jeter already had more titles than any of them. What he may not have had before Saturday was that one big day.
Well, he sure had one Saturday. Five for five, the 3000th hit a homer, and the game-winning hit to top it all off.
The 3000th after all had to come on a winning day.
(Christian Lopez made the day even more special by returning the ball he caught, passing up many thousands of dollars in the bargain).
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
A Nice Place To Be
Why is this Mets team so hard to root for? Maybe it’s that Atlanta is already about 7 or so ahead of them for the wildcard. Maybe it’s just that Pelfrey’s pitching. Maybe I can’t believe that Daniel friggin’ Murphy had been batting cleanup. And Duda’s playing first base. I know I like some of those other guys, Turner and Tejada and Thole and all those new pitchers who’ve been doing so well.
But when is Reyes coming back?
I’m watching the Mets-Dodgers game, of course, the one that starts at 9 PM Eastern, and it could be worse as they are 3000 miles away. But I do get to watch the Yankees and the Mets this way. So life is good, unless you begin to think that maybe you’re just a little tired of this whole Mets situation…all the uncertainty.
It’s not as if you can even be happy when they win. They’re a .500 team basically. And that’s with Reyes and Beltran and K-Rod. What happens when they hit the dusty trail? What happens if just one of them leaves? I guess that’s what I’m witnessing now, the Mets playing Tejada at short, in a lineup that doesn’t terrify anybody even with Reyes.
And thank God they’re playing the Dodgers tonight, a team that’s not likely to overwhelm anyone, and a team that has its own ownership problems. Ethier’s been pretty quiet but they do have Loney and Kemp, especially Kemp. Their pitching is a little suspect, and overall as a team they’re not scaring anybody, or exciting anybody either, just like the Mets.
When you watch the Yankees, it’s a whole different deal. Usually that consistent winning just aggravates me when it’s the big-spending Bombers from the Bronx. But they just keep winning all the time. If they need somebody to pitch or somebody to hit, they go and get them. Some of them are even easy to root for, players like Granderson and, um, Swisher.
Tonight the Mets heroes have been Beltran and Bay. I guess you could credit Pelfrey too as the Dodgers are still scoreless. But he did pout when Collins took him out of the game. He remimds me more and more of John Maine and what’s he doing now?
This game is finally heating up a little as Beltran and Paulino just managed a couple of singles, there are no outs and I love watching Bay lately when runners are on base. And, whoa!! Bay hits the three-run homer, his second of the day! And he’s not going anywhere. WooHoo!!
Now it’s the rather healthy looking Isringhausen trying to keep this thing rolling along. Izzy hasn’t been super lately but he has had his moments. And Tejada just made a diving stab of a Uribe hard grounder to his left and calmly got the force at second. But Izzy won’t make it easy as he walks some Dodger nobody. But he gets another weak-hitting Dodger, Ellis to fly out to center. And, wadda ya know? Here’s still another weak hitter at the plate. Izzy might get through this day.
And he does. Izzy gets a weak ground ball to end the 8th. The 6-zip lead would seem to be insurmountable. And the Dodgers have no closer either. It seems as if Donnie Baseball has his work cut out for him in La-La land.
Duda just muffed a hard grounder from the Dodgers’ venerable shortstop, Rafael Furcal. But, lo and behold, he then grabs a short-hopper to get the force. All is not lost. Maybe he really can play first. Mets reliever Carrasco now has two outs in the ninth….and now three. The Mets win the game, 6-0. Not too shabby.
So that ends the sports day at 1 o’clock in the morning. Of course, there will be the Mets post-game show but they’ll kill it with commercials. The YES network will be showing a re-play of the Yankees-Indians but, even with Granderson and Cano on my fantasy team, I can’t really see myself doing that.
But the commercials finally end and the show features Jason Bay. Deservedly so. And he’s all humble pie and graciousness. Maybe he’s over his troubles. Maybe he just had a severe case of the first-year with a new club syndrome. Maybe he’ll make this club a little more fun to watch, maybe even a lot more fun.
Maybe I’m just getting carried away. The World Series Champion Giants are next on the schedule as we approach the All-Star break. The Mets will see some better pitching for sure, names like Vogelsong and Lincecum and Cain. Those fellows could definitely screw up your chances for getting wins.
The Mets are 44-42 now and have 2 more with the Dodgers before they even get to the city by the bay. They’ll have to face the Dodgers Kuroda and Kershaw too so, all in all, things don’t look too rosy for our heroes before the break. If they can split the remaining two with the Dodgers and take just one of three from those tough Giants starters, they’ll be 46-45, creditable but not very much in real contention for anything.
What will the Mets do? Re-sign Reyes? Keep Beltran and K-Rod for the rest of the year? I’d love to see it. If the big guys all stay, maybe these upstarts can even make a run for a wildcard. After all, Atlanta isn’t so formidable either, especially if Bay can really keep producing.
Niese, Gee, Dickey, Capuano, Pelfrey. Can these guys keep going out there and giving the Mets a chance to win? I think they can. The relievers haven’t been too shabby either. Maybe they won’t be too hard to watch after all!
Keep the big guns, Sandy. To hell with the prospects. You’ll give Mets fans something to shout about, maybe even a wildcard spot. You have to believe, right? As long as we have Jose and Carlos playing for new contracts, that’s a nice place to be.
But when is Reyes coming back?
I’m watching the Mets-Dodgers game, of course, the one that starts at 9 PM Eastern, and it could be worse as they are 3000 miles away. But I do get to watch the Yankees and the Mets this way. So life is good, unless you begin to think that maybe you’re just a little tired of this whole Mets situation…all the uncertainty.
It’s not as if you can even be happy when they win. They’re a .500 team basically. And that’s with Reyes and Beltran and K-Rod. What happens when they hit the dusty trail? What happens if just one of them leaves? I guess that’s what I’m witnessing now, the Mets playing Tejada at short, in a lineup that doesn’t terrify anybody even with Reyes.
And thank God they’re playing the Dodgers tonight, a team that’s not likely to overwhelm anyone, and a team that has its own ownership problems. Ethier’s been pretty quiet but they do have Loney and Kemp, especially Kemp. Their pitching is a little suspect, and overall as a team they’re not scaring anybody, or exciting anybody either, just like the Mets.
When you watch the Yankees, it’s a whole different deal. Usually that consistent winning just aggravates me when it’s the big-spending Bombers from the Bronx. But they just keep winning all the time. If they need somebody to pitch or somebody to hit, they go and get them. Some of them are even easy to root for, players like Granderson and, um, Swisher.
Tonight the Mets heroes have been Beltran and Bay. I guess you could credit Pelfrey too as the Dodgers are still scoreless. But he did pout when Collins took him out of the game. He remimds me more and more of John Maine and what’s he doing now?
This game is finally heating up a little as Beltran and Paulino just managed a couple of singles, there are no outs and I love watching Bay lately when runners are on base. And, whoa!! Bay hits the three-run homer, his second of the day! And he’s not going anywhere. WooHoo!!
Now it’s the rather healthy looking Isringhausen trying to keep this thing rolling along. Izzy hasn’t been super lately but he has had his moments. And Tejada just made a diving stab of a Uribe hard grounder to his left and calmly got the force at second. But Izzy won’t make it easy as he walks some Dodger nobody. But he gets another weak-hitting Dodger, Ellis to fly out to center. And, wadda ya know? Here’s still another weak hitter at the plate. Izzy might get through this day.
And he does. Izzy gets a weak ground ball to end the 8th. The 6-zip lead would seem to be insurmountable. And the Dodgers have no closer either. It seems as if Donnie Baseball has his work cut out for him in La-La land.
Duda just muffed a hard grounder from the Dodgers’ venerable shortstop, Rafael Furcal. But, lo and behold, he then grabs a short-hopper to get the force. All is not lost. Maybe he really can play first. Mets reliever Carrasco now has two outs in the ninth….and now three. The Mets win the game, 6-0. Not too shabby.
So that ends the sports day at 1 o’clock in the morning. Of course, there will be the Mets post-game show but they’ll kill it with commercials. The YES network will be showing a re-play of the Yankees-Indians but, even with Granderson and Cano on my fantasy team, I can’t really see myself doing that.
But the commercials finally end and the show features Jason Bay. Deservedly so. And he’s all humble pie and graciousness. Maybe he’s over his troubles. Maybe he just had a severe case of the first-year with a new club syndrome. Maybe he’ll make this club a little more fun to watch, maybe even a lot more fun.
Maybe I’m just getting carried away. The World Series Champion Giants are next on the schedule as we approach the All-Star break. The Mets will see some better pitching for sure, names like Vogelsong and Lincecum and Cain. Those fellows could definitely screw up your chances for getting wins.
The Mets are 44-42 now and have 2 more with the Dodgers before they even get to the city by the bay. They’ll have to face the Dodgers Kuroda and Kershaw too so, all in all, things don’t look too rosy for our heroes before the break. If they can split the remaining two with the Dodgers and take just one of three from those tough Giants starters, they’ll be 46-45, creditable but not very much in real contention for anything.
What will the Mets do? Re-sign Reyes? Keep Beltran and K-Rod for the rest of the year? I’d love to see it. If the big guys all stay, maybe these upstarts can even make a run for a wildcard. After all, Atlanta isn’t so formidable either, especially if Bay can really keep producing.
Niese, Gee, Dickey, Capuano, Pelfrey. Can these guys keep going out there and giving the Mets a chance to win? I think they can. The relievers haven’t been too shabby either. Maybe they won’t be too hard to watch after all!
Keep the big guns, Sandy. To hell with the prospects. You’ll give Mets fans something to shout about, maybe even a wildcard spot. You have to believe, right? As long as we have Jose and Carlos playing for new contracts, that’s a nice place to be.
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