What’s wrong with the Mets? If you listen to Manager-for-the-moment Terry Collins, the answer is “Nothing. We just have to play better.” Well we’re all certainly glad he cleared that one up. Good to know he has the solution right at his fingertips. Meanwhile the Mets have just notched their second six-game losing skein of the season – they still haven’t played 40 games yet, mind you, so this is a feat that’s only been…
Your intrepid columnist likes to think he has a pretty good memory, especially about things that wouldn’t appear to particularly important to anybody else. I can forget work-related things with the best of ‘em. If I have to remember to mail something out, it’s a better than even chance I won’t remember to do it until it’s already too late. But trivia? Baseball stuff? Movies & TV? Old rock ‘n’ roll? I’m your man. So…
Earlier, my friend Dan Stack made some great points regarding the promotion of pitching phenom Zack Wheeler sooner, rather than later. Your intrepid columnist can’t help but agree. Of course there’s no guarantee that Wheeler will match the near-perfect Matt Harvey in either technique or temperament – the way Harvey’s been dealing, it’s barely possible to consider that – but there is talent there. If scouts, prospect handicappers — like Toby Hyde and John Sickles…
I’m not a huge proponent of invoking precedent because every situation is different… but Mets teams that wander through [May] gaining no traction have been known to Do Something. • When attendance fell through the floor in May 1983, the Mets called up Darryl Strawberry to sweeten a dour 6-15 proposition. • When masses failed to materialize in May 1998, despite a reasonably capable 23-20 product, they thought big and netted Mike Piazza. • The…
Full disclosure: your intrepid columnist did not watch or follow all of last night’s (4/29) Mets game. He took an hour off to watch Revolution. That was probably the best move of the night, seeing as the game was near-unwatchable — fifteen innings worth of unwatchable. The Mets took a 2-1 lead into the ninth on the strength of a John Buck 4th inning home run. Bobby Parnell pitched pretty well to try and protect…
For those of us who hung with last night’s (4/24) game vs. the Dodgers – and your intrepid columnist was barely one of those – there were numerous rewards. Working backwards, there was Jordany Valdespin’s walkoff grand slam, of course. There was the grit – Oh! That Word! – on display in the eighth and ninth, typified by Mike Baxter’s hustling double in front of the egregious Carl Crawford. There was the spectacle of Dodger…
Longtime Mets beat writer Adam Rubin of ESPN tells us today that the Mets will be promoting outfielder Juan Lagares from Las Vegas in the very near term. Lagares is currently “tearing up the Pacific Coast League,” according to Rubin. Apparently, Lagares’s fine numbers have little to do with the PCL-is-a-hitter’s-league meme, since his form, technique, mechanics and makeup have been impressive in every league he’s played in. Putting him in the same outfield as…
In the winter of 1925, a couple of New York hustlers approached noted Wall Street broker and bookmaker – a legitimate profession back then – Tim Mara, looking for an investor. They had an idea of starting a new team in the fledgling National Football League. When Mara inquired as to the amount of his money they were looking for, the answer was either $500 or $2,500 – accounts differ to this day. Mr. Mara’s…
Let’s say a MLB team is not expected to compete much in its division. They’re short on talent, been known to have money troubles and have been having difficulty attracting fans to its ballpark. Let’s say most pundits have picked them to finish no better than fourth – and only because the team that’s projected to finish fifth can scarcely be called a “major league” team at all. There are no illusions about this team.…
There’s something about a young pitcher throwing well that makes you stop and look. Met fans are all too familiar with the concept, having made Tom Seaver, and Dwight Gooden must-see experiences. There was always the chance that you’d see something extraordinary: 15+ strikeouts, say, or a one-hitter – in those pre-6/1/12 days, you didn’t dare dream of a no-no – with baffled batter after batter slumping back to his dugout, muttering to himself. In…
Recent Comments