Category: Latest News

Mike Piazza Wants Hall Call With Mets Cap

Image courtesy of WikimediaThe NY Times has a good article today by Joe Brescia about Mike Piazza. Basically, Piazza says that he wants to go into the Hall of Fame with a Mets cap on. That’s great to hear and I was talking about this recently with a friend of mine. We were discussing whether he will go as a Dodger or a Met. I think it’s a foregone conclusion that he’s in the Hall in 2013, his first year of eligibility.

There have always been rumors about Piazza using steroids during his career. But nobody ever found anything in his locker like Mark McGwire. And he wasn’t linked to BALCO like Barry Bonds. So I don’t think the unfounded rumors will keep him out like it will McGwire and Bonds. Continue reading “Mike Piazza Wants Hall Call With Mets Cap”

Mets Links: Mike Pelfrey, David Wright, More

David Wright
Image via Wikipedia

It’s time for an off-day full of links after a poor road trip. The Giants are coming to town tomorrow for a weekend series. And there were several curious decisions made by Jerry Manuel during the road trip that made many of us scratch our heads. It’s a good day to take a breath, get back on track this weekend, and get ready for the Mother’s Day pink bats and sweatbands on Sunday.

Here are the links:

  • Daily News– Mike Pelfrey asked to go back to New York after Sunday’s game in Philly to have his right shoulder examined. He felt some tightness in it before Saturday’s start.
  • Mets.com – The MRI on Pelfrey’s shoulder didn’t show anything and he says that he’s ready to make his next scheduled start on Friday night.
  • Metsblog.com – Interesting stats on the Mets poor pinch-hitting this season. Good questions are raised about some of the guys in Buffalo that are raking right now.
  • Daily News – Carlos Beltran has a new knee brace and plans to start running late this week or early next week. Didn’t we hear the same thing about Beltran a month ago?
  • Daily News – Daniel Murphy is still rehabbing his knee injury in Port St. Lucie with no timetable for a return to games.
  • NJ.com – Kelvim Escobar is having season-ending shoulder surgery. He never even made it to opening day. But the Mets owe him $1.25 million for his troubles this season.
  • Fangraphs – Dave Allen writes a good piece examining Dan Warthen’s strategy for Johan Santana to throw more inside fastballs the first time through the order and then change it up subsequently.
  • Daily News – David Wright was involved, at some point, with the financial advisers that are being sued by Cliff Floyd and Rondell White over a failed real estate deal. The article says Wright isn’t involved in the lawsuit.
  • Fangraphs – R.J. Anderson writes about the odd moves that Jerry Manuel has been making recently, and the fact that this is the kind of thing that could cost him his job.
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Mets-Yankees Tickets May 21-23 2010 On Sale

Cap logo of the New York Yankees
Image via Wikipedia

The Mets are putting some more tickets on sale this morning at 10am EDT for the Mets-Yankees series at Citi Field. It goes without saying that these were tickets that they held out from the single game ticket sales expecting them to be sold as part of season or partial season packages. That goes to show you just how few tickets sold this season. I would guess they were especially hard hit in the packages that they’re trying to sell.

The games are listed as:

Friday May 21 7:10pm SNY

Saturday May 22 7:10pm Fox

Sunday May 23 8:05pm ESPN

We’ve written before that they’re running a promotion that weekend too. It’s a cap trade promotion. And we’ve written that 2010 ticket sales are down this year. So it’s a good chance for all of us to get out and see the Mets take on the reigning World Series champs.

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Mets Cap Trade Day – May 21-23 2010

Flickr photo courtesy of Ed Yourdon

I am looking ahead to the next few home series and I noticed something very interesting. May 21st – 23 the Yankees are in town. The Mets have some king of weird promotion called Mets cap trade day but the day is for the entire series. The first 5,000 fans at these three games will get a Mets cap. Being that it’s cap trade day are you supposed to trade in a Yankee cap for a Mets one?

If so, how many Yankee fans will be rushing to Citi Field for their free cap? How many Yankee fans will give up their Yankee caps for a Mets one? Will Yankee fans, proud fans of a team that are the defending World Series champions, expect to change allegiances because of a free Mets cap?

Promotion Fail. The person who thought up this promotion should go before Omar or Jerry. Continue reading “Mets Cap Trade Day – May 21-23 2010”

Mets Links: Mike Pelfrey, Carlos Beltran, Hubie Brooks

New York Mets at New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium in New York

http://cdn.pis.picapp.com/IamProd/PicAppPIS/JavaScript/PisV4.jsThe past week has been the best that I’ve felt about the Mets since September 2008. They went into Philly on a great run, even without their best player Carlos Beltran. The month of April was really on the backs of Mike Pelfrey and Johan Santana, for the most part. But the offense did start to come alive towards the end of the month. Here are some month-end links for you for this Sunday.

  • NY Sports Dog– This post has an interesting scatter plot of Pelfrey’s called strikes comparing April 2009 to April 2010
  • Amazin’ Avenue– Sam Page created a stat to measure which Mets player would be the best fighter in a brawl and Henry Blanco came out on top
  • On The Black – A poll to determine the fan pick for Mets player of the month in April
  • ESPN – Adam Rubin writes that Beltran doesn’t appear to be anywhere near returning to the team from his knee surgery
  • Daily News – This is a funny piece on reporter Kevin Deutsch in Philly taunting fans with “Let’s Go Mets!” chants while wearing a Mets jersey and hat
  • Daily News – Catching up with Hubie Brooks
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Arizona Immigration Law and Baseball

Thousands turn out for a May day march and rally in support of immigrant rights in Los Angeles

http://cdn.pis.picapp.com/IamProd/PicAppPIS/JavaScript/PisV4.jsThe impact of the new Arizona immigration law on baseball is far-reaching and potentially could cause a problem between labor and management. Of course, this is only a mirror of the effect it will have on society, in general, in Arizona. I’ve spent some time in Arizona on business trips in the past. It doesn’t take long to figure out that this is a serious and overt problem for the legal residents of the state.

I understand, and agree, with the notion that the people that are here in the U.S. should be here legally. If they’re not, they should be deported. That’s not a groundbreaking idea. But the implementation of the law in Arizona is absurd. The police are required to check the legal residency of anyone they think is here illegally? And do so without profiling? It’s beyond comprehension that this can be implemented without racial profiling. “Show me your papers” will be the new mantra in Arizona. Continue reading “Arizona Immigration Law and Baseball”

Mets’ Daniel Murphy To Minors After DL

New York Mets Daniel Murphy walks to the dugout against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Citi Field in New York

http://cdn.pis.picapp.com/IamProd/PicAppPIS/JavaScript/PisV4.jsThe Mets beat writers all had posts about Daniel Murphy recovering from his strained knee ligament in Florida, then going to Triple-A Buffalo when he comes off the disabled list. The plan is for Muphy to play first base immediately just to get some at-bats. Then they’re going to work with him on becoming a utility player.

The odd thing is that you don’t see many 25 year-old utility players out there. It’s usually older players that have been around for a while doing that job. I wouldn’t be happy about it if I was Murphy. That really cuts into his earning potential. Utility players are typically the lowest paid players on a team. His long-term earning potential in the Major Leagues is cut significantly by being pigeon-holed as a utility player. I’m sure he seems himself differently than the Mets organization does.

If Murphy comes back to the big’s after transforming himself into a utility player, who’s roster spot is he going to take? Frank Catalanotto and Fernando Tatis would be the obvious players to go. They’ve both been rotting on the Mets bench in April. Catalanotto has 20 at-bats this season and Tatis has 29. Continue reading “Mets’ Daniel Murphy To Minors After DL”