An interview with a rich man, Metsense

If we had a poll at the site for favorite commenter, my belief is that at least 95% of the people would pick Metsense.  Like many, he’s passionate.  But he brings so much more to the table than that.  Two things that stand out are his ability to change his mind when presented with convincing evidence and his ability to disagree with you without being disagreeable.  This may sound weird but I wish we could clone him and have others at the site with his skill set.  Moving on, it should be noted he answered these questions before the Edwin Diaz signing.  On to the interview!

How old are you?  Under 25, 25-34, 35-44, 45-54, 55+

I’ll be 69 in December.

Do you live within an hour’s drive of Citi Field?

I retired to the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina. The last time I went to Citi Field was 2019. I lived in Nassau County and went to Shea when I was young.  I moved to the East End of Long Island and was a Sunday season ticket holder in 1986-1991. My fondest memory as a Mets fan was Game 6. Now I go to Met away games.  I’ve been to Atlanta, Washington, Miami, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Baltimore.

What are the memories of first Mets game you saw in person, whether Polo Grounds, Shea Stadium or Citi Field?

My two older brothers took me to the Polo Grounds for a double header when I was 8 years old. The only thing I remember of those games was that Lou Brock of the Cubs hit a homer into the center field bleachers, 450′ away! I researched it with ultimatemets.com a few years ago to check my memory. It was June 17, 1962 and it make reference to Brock’s home run. The Mets lost both games by a run and that was the beginning for me as a long-suffering Mets fan.

How did you get involved with Mets360?

I stumbled upon an article, that was probably linked in Baseball-Reference.com, and you were the author. It was as informative, intelligent article and the comments were equally intelligent. I was hooked. It was probably 2011 and I’ve been here ever since.

You said something many years ago in regards to a Mets offseason that’s always stuck with me.  I’m paraphrasing but essentially you said that you liked all of the moves the Mets made individually but they didn’t form a great overall plan, they weren’t cohesive.  With all of the moving parts to this offseason, do we risk having the same type of result – fine individual moves but maybe not the best team building that could have occurred?

I don’t see the risk of this off season. Eppler is a very good GM and I’m confident that he’ll make the proper and intelligent moves. He doesn’t put a square peg in a round hole like past regimes. He strives for a balanced team; pitching, hitting and defense. The personnel are more cohesive in the locker room and this manager is more focused. Finally, the Mets have an overall plan for the franchise.

My belief is that the Mets are going to try to get a little younger in the rotation and the way they do that is to sign either Chris Bassitt or Jacob deGrom but not both.  Do you see any way both Bassitt and deGrom are Mets next year?

Yes I do. The free agent starting pitcher class is older too except Carlos Rodon. They don’t have the trading chips to trade for a top of the rotation pitcher. If deGrom decides to move then Rodon is a priority for a substitute for him. If Bassitt rejects his $19m player option the Mets would have other options replace him. I hope that he signs with the Mets. The Mets have to “buy” time because their minor league pitchers are still far away.

Aaron Judge to the Mets a pipe dream or is it something the team should prioritize, especially if deGrom goes elsewhere?

If Cohen wants Judge, Cohen should get him. I don’t think Cohen cares about a spending limit and he wouldn’t sacrifice others to get him. deGrom’s decision shouldn’t affect getting Judge but will affect the Rodon decision.  I think that Judge is a pipe dream though.

As one of the few people in the Mets360 universe who’ve actually met me, what do you think would surprise readers who only know me virtually?

That you are not just a stat geek. You are a good family man and are involved with your two great children, which I had the pleasure to meet them. I met you through the site and we have been to numerous minor league games since then. We always have a good time and you are a lot of fun.

A few years ago, you had a major health scare.  How are you doing today and what’s your long-term outlook?  (If you don’t want to talk about this – that’s 100% fine.  Just let me know.)

You and Gus are the only people in the Mets360 world that I talked about it. I always was appreciative for the support. In the summer 2018, I had brain surgery to remove a grapefruit size tumor. God blessed me to have a skilled surgeon and wonderful wife that guided and managed me through this ordeal. The surgery was successful and wasn’t cancerous.  In 2020 the tumor grew back just little bit. This time radiation, not surgery, took care of it. The brain tumor resulted in the loss of feeling in my right hand. I have difficulty in sentence structure and proper tense when I write and verbalize. I have to get a MRI every year but so far I have a clean bill of health. I’ve had more MRIs than deGrom!

I always think of you as “the voice of reason” in the comments section.  But now I want you to go against type.  What’s your most outlandish, outrageous thought pertaining to the Mets?

The Mets trade Baty, Megill, Vientos and Dom Smith to Boston for Devers and then sign him to a 10 year extension.

You’re one of the regulars in the Game Chatters.  What would you say to those who think that typing about the game while it’s going on doesn’t sound like fun?

The Chatters are like going to a bar to see a game with friends. We joke, needle each other, root, have serious discussions, we learn, get disappointed when they lose, celebrate when they win, but most of all we have a good time.

Sandy Alderson is a polarizing figure.  Some view him as the one who brought much-needed structure and dignity to the late-era Wilpon Mets, including a trip to the World Series.  Others view him as pushing an outdated team-building philosophy and one who was a major contributor to the culture that Steve Cohen had to overhaul when he took over.  What’s your view on Alderson and what should we think of when we try to characterize his Mets tenure?

Alderson was too conservative and tentative. Thirty years ago he was innovative but the game passed him by. He weathered the storm with the post Madoff money crunch while dealing with Jeff Wilpon’s meddling. I think his tenure would be classified as a failure because there were too many losing seasons.