The big news surrounding the Mets has been the announcement that SNY is going to purchase a bunch of the shares that the Wilpons are offering in the team as a way to raise money. Some see this as nothing more than rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. But is there anything wrong about taking money from a profitable venture and using it to support a struggling one in your financial empire?
It seems that fans are so eager to get rid of the Wilpons that any news is interpreted exclusively through that viewpoint. If they hire a firm to advise on their balance sheet, it must mean they are going to declare bankruptcy. If Commissioner Selig decides he’s healthy enough to remain in his job, it’s not because he doesn’t want to walk away from a $20 million gig, it’s because he’s helping out his buddy Fred so that a new commissioner doesn’t come in and demand the $25 million loan be repaid immediately. If one of Sterling’s successful businesses invests in the Mets, it means they are doing underhanded financial shenanigans.
Please, everyone just take a deep breath and relax. The Wilpons are here to stay unless the results of the Madoff clawback lawsuits are an overwhelming victory for Irving Picard. If Picard gets the full $386 million to which he currently seeks, then we can think about the Wilpons selling the Mets. Of course, it wouldn’t hurt if the decision to limit the look-back period to two years was overturned.
Well, enough of the Wilpons’ financial stuff that only depresses us. The following links are guaranteed to not have any mention of the team’s off-the-field woes.
I don’t feel like Darin Gorski has gotten enough attention from the Mets blogosphere. A lot of that has been his out of nowhere season in 2011 and part of it is coming on the heels of what Mark Cohoon did first in 2010 and then in 2011. Still, I think Gorski will end up being a contributor in the majors. Here is a Q&A with Gorski by Michael Baron.
http://www.metsblog.com/2012/02/03/qa-michael-baron-talks-with-mets-prospect-darin-gorski/
Hey, have you ever thought about getting to second base with Tanya Mercado? No, no, no, no – this is Tanya talking second base and the Mets in her new video blog.
http://citifieldofdreams.com/2012/02/03/video-spring-training-and-second-base/
We all thought Wilmer Flores was going to be one of the top prospects in the game by now. But it just hasn’t happened. David Groveman has an idea how to salvage some value from Flores – make him a catcher. It’s a more interesting plan than one discussed in the comments section – turning Reese Havens into a backstop. Geez, that guy can’t stay healthy now, just imagine how long his injury list would be if he spent time behind the plate!
http://macksmets.blogspot.com/2012/02/david-groveman-wait-do-mets-have.html
Jerry Koosman gets the Centerfield Maz treatment and it’s the typical nice career retrospective along with a fantastic collection of photos, including Kooz gracing the cover of Life Magazine in one. Too bad the powers to be at Life put a caption for a story about Astrology on the same issue.
http://www.centerfieldmaz.com/2012/02/all-time-mets-winningest-left-hander.html
It’s a well-known fact that the reason Jason Bay is struggling is his choice of uniform number . But here Joe Janish talks about the constantly-evolving batting stance being a contributing factor.
http://www.metstoday.com/7415/11-12-offseason/mets-spring-training-question-18-jason-bays-batting-stance/
Taryn Cooper takes readers on her journey to being a Mets fan. Along the way we hear about Duran Duran, RC Cola and some big oaf named Mike.
http://galforallseasons.com/2012/02/03/married-to-the-mets-the-beginnings/
The Mets don’t have an obvious choice to bat leadoff. Here Rich Coutinho suggests Daniel Murphy could be a good fit.
http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2012/01/31/coutinho-can-daniel-murphy-bat-leadoff-for-mets/
Thanks for the linkage Brian. I really appreciate it, and thanks for reading 🙂