Well, if anything was proven this past weekend, it’s that the talent gap between the two New York teams is as wide as ever. While it’s been a fun year so far in Met land, it has become clear that they can’t quite compete with their neighbors to the north. If someone told you Johan [...]
By the time you read this, the Mets will be taking on the Washington Nationals on getaway day (6/7). For me, the Mets can’t get away quick enough. This dispiriting series has been filled with mopey, dopey play and hard-fought comebacks in spite of themselves. This set in DC has reminded me of nothing less [...]
I should admit, right off the bat, that I was not riveted to my TV from inning one through the post-game pie. I did not sit there chewing my nails to my knuckles when there were two walks in the second inning. I did not see Carlos Beltran’s fair foul in real time. I was [...]
It finally happened. And it couldn’t happen to a better guy. History was made tonight, in case you hadn’t heard. Johan Santana – “Johan The Magnificent” – threw the very first no-hitter in the history of the New York Mets. Mere moments ago. It took a spectacular Mike Baxter robbery of a long fly to [...]
Two entities celebrating fiftieth anniversaries this year grab my interest. The first, obviously, is the New York Mets. The second is the Beach Boys. We’ve heard a lot about both lately and reflections on their respective pasts, both glories and warts. There have been retrospectives on the radio, revisits on the field. Face it: for [...]
Regression to the mean can be a cruel thing. Maybe that’s why it’s called “mean.” The Mets seem to be running full-speed, headlong in that direction. Since busting out 4-0 against Atlanta and Washington, Terry Collins’s crew has gone a definition-of-mediocre 18-20. Much as I hate to say it, perhaps the preseason prognosticators were right: [...]
I heard something happened in Philadelphia the last couple of days. Maybe you've heard something about that. Trailing in the sixth inning or later every game. Having to surmount the vaunted arms belonging to Roy Halladay, Joe Blanton and Cliff Lee. Dealing with injuries to Mike Pelfrey, Ronny Cedeno, Jason Bay, Ruben Tejada and Josh [...]
“Baseball is a game of redeeming features.” – Bob Murphy This was shaping up to be a horrible night. Jonathon Niese gave up a couple of runs early. Normally, this isn’t cause for alarm, dread, or despair, except for two reasons: first of all, it’s Niese’s third start out of the past four where that’s [...]
The Mets finished April ahead of even the most optimistic Met fans’ hopes. I should know; I’m one of them. 13-10 is a damn sight better than the 11-16 of last year, and those of us with longer memories will recall that they had to scramble to achieve even that wretched mark -- the 2011 [...]
It’s getaway day today (4/26) and the Mets are looking to sweep the Marlins before heading to Colorado, even as we speak. The lineup looks like this: Kirk Nieuwenhuis – CF Ruben Tejada – SS Daniel Murphy – 2B David Wright – 3B Lucas Duda – RF Ike Davis – 1B Josh Thole – C [...]
I went to my first game of 2012 last Friday (4/20). Dinner at McFadden’s with my wife & my cousin & his wife beforehand, meeting up with my friend Greg Prince during and a surprisingly – and dispiritingly – quick exit after. It was a great night and a very good game, despite the final [...]
The atmosphere here is decidedly different in 2012 than the past couple of years. The Mets have lost two straight games to the Braves at their own personal chamber of horrors, Turner Field. Add in the fact that the aggregate score of the two debacles was 23-9 against. This could be vintage late-’09 or most [...]