Reasons to Love New York 2013 | New York Magazine

Reason #26: Because Sandy Alderson Is the Best G.M. in Baseball:

"In an age when prospects are the highest-­valued assets in the game, Alderson, somehow, pried away three top ones for players with expiring contracts. No other G.M. has been able to wrangle up even one player like that in a similar deal."

Enough said.

Chasing A-Rod | New York Magazine

I started reading this story about A-Roid and had to take a break. Ted Berg's synopsis however compels me to go back and finish reading it.

Time Is Sort Of On Our Side | Faith and Fear in Flushing

Very well done:

"’Twas four weeks before Christmas
When over by Shea
Chris Young had been hired
And promised he’d play

That was it for a spell
As signings would go
Talk had been active
But action was slow

The fans became restless
Wondering who’d be a Met
With checks to free agents
Not written yet

The club sent out e-mails
Wishing its very top tiding
While nurturing a roster
That wasn’t exciting

Eyes turned to Sandy
Who we thought would spread green
But he offered up quotes
Touting all that we’d seen

“We’ll take another meeting
“Like we did with Peralta
“Just don’t be dismayed
“If again it’s Tejada

“On Davis! On Duda!
“On Flores and Satin!
“Our glut around first
“Is as thick as Manhattan!”

This is the part
Where someone rides to our aid
Who provides us with players
And doesn’t moan they get paid

But we root for the Mets
So that would be folly
At least to this point
When little seems jolly

Still, it’s only November
Let’s hope things grow bright
Enjoy your Thanksgiving
Get protection for Wright"

I hate to admit it but Joel Sherman may be right.

Joel Sherman makes a good point that I hadn't realized before:

"There is a myth that [Tampa Bay and Oakland win] by drafting well. The reality is neither has, and Tampa Bay, in fact, over the past five or six years has been rather dreadful. What both teams are particularly adept at is finding players who have a few above-average skills then unearthing a counterpart who covers the flaws."

Out of order in A-Rod's court | Caple - ESPN.com

Jim Caple with his typical unique viewpoint on A-Rod vs. Bud Selig.

Will Noah Syndergaard Follow In Matt Harvey & Zack Wheeler’s Footsteps? | RotoProfessor

One can only hope, right?

Alderson hints at another cheap off-season for the Mets | Capital New York

I always hope Howard Megdal is wrong. He usually isn't.

D'OH!

Mets will improve, only question is how | Richard Justice - MLB.com

MLB.com's Richard Justice talks Met fans off the ledge:

"So be patient, Mets fans. This is a new kind of offseason, one filled with possibilities. It may be agonizingly slow. Just know that by the time the Mets gather in Port St. Lucie, Fla., in February, they're going to be far different -- and better -- than they are today. That's worth waiting for, isn't it?"

Yes it is Richard. Yes it is.

Top 5 Stories Of Players Selling Their Jersey Numbers | CBS New York

These are some really great stories.

R.A. Dickey: The Gift That Keeps On Giving

Baseball America released its list of the 2014 New York Mets Top 10 Prospects today. The top two guys on the list are 2/3 of the return in the R.A. Dickey trade last December.

Pigeon Racing Is Just as Corrupt as Any Other Sport | Connor Simpson - The Atlantic Wire

"A doping scandal rocked the hallowed sport of pigeon racing this week after six birds tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs. Yes, everything in that sentence was true."

Read more.

Video of Carlos Beltran's Game 1 World Series Catch

Carlos Beltran makes an outstanding catch to rob David Ortiz of a grand slam in Game 1 of the 2013 World Series:

Why Nobody Watches The World Series

Keith Olbermann with a great commentary on why no one is watching the World Series this year and over the past few years in general.

Why Kids Love Baseball | Slate

Great column on Slate.com on the general awesomeness of baseball.

Hilarious new Bud Light commercial!

This new Bud Light commercial cracks me up!

"What is that? A loofah?"

"It's a Kweeno."

American Indian Group Puts the Racism of Some Sports Logos Into Context

“If you wouldn’t wear a New York Jews or San Francisco Chinamen hat, you shouldn’t encourage sports teams to use Native images, names or iconography.”

Well-armed Mets have more on way | NorthJersey.com

You can never have too much pitching. Fortunately for the Mets, they seem to be in good shape there.

Life, Baseball, and Stand-up Comedy

Reading this piece by Patrick Flood reminded me a bit of my six years as a stand-up comic. I've written before about how Patrick Flood was becoming one of my favorite Mets bloggers with his dry humor and vivid use of language.  I was disappointed when he disappeared from the SNY.tv blog network but happy when he briefly surfaced on Amazin' Avenue earlier this year before disappearing yet again.

Then his piece appeared this week, where he explained how seeing things behind the scenes wasn't as fun as those of us on the outside think it is.  The piece is worth reading even if you're not a baseball fan, just from this start alone:

"I have had my sneakers caked with the clay from a Major League Baseball field. I have explored an empty stadium in Florida in the rain. I have sat next to Keith Olbermann during a game and had a brief conversation with him about my hamburger. I have lent a pen to David Wright, and then used that pen to take tests for the rest of my senior year of college. I have tried to explain the infield fly rule to a middle-age man from Scotland who writes a rugby blog. I have successfully snuck into the background of postgame television interviews.

I have also tripped on the dugout stairs as Ike Davis was recording a radio interview, and believe his “whoa, easy there” made it on the air. I have fallen over the soft back of a sofa chair in the Mets clubhouse while trying to lean back casually, and then pretended nothing happened. I have seen far more naked men than I ever wanted, and barring an unforeseen career in adult movies, I believe I will die having seen more naked men in real life than naked women. And I have stolen a hot dog from the media dining room at Citi Field."

It is a great read and it really spoke to me because it describes my time as a stand-up comic.  I took a comedy workshop in 2004 just to avoid having regrets 20 years later of how I could have tried to do stand-up but never did.  After a six-week workshop and a "final exam" performing in front of a live audience, I found myself asked back to perform in another show three weeks later.

Eventually this led to other shows and other venues and even a few private events that paid money, although it was clearly a hobby.  I even won 3rd prize at a company talent show, where I was the only non-musical act out of 24 performers.  Four years later, in 2008, I took advantage of a layoff situation to try to make a career out of it.  Unfortunately, that happened in August 2008 and with the entire financial system collapsing in September 2008, opportunities dried up since no one had any money for luxuries like entertainment anymore.  I still plugged away but found that trying to turn a hobby into a job isn't as much fun because you're constantly stressed about the next opportunity, the next payday, when the big break is actually going to happen, is it going to happen, will the material get stale, how much material do I need and on and on.

Then in February 2009 I performed in a "bringer" show, where you only got stage time if you brought someone to the show.  It was the day of a major snowstorm so no one I knew was able to show up.  I had done bringers before but the producer would always let the comics that didn't bring anyone get a few minutes of stage time near the end of the show out of pity.  However, I trekked all the way to The Comic Strip to do a show only to be told by the producer that I couldn't get my stage time because I didn't bring anyone.  He wasn't willing to consider the fact that there had been a major snowstorm outside so the club wasn't full anyway.

As luck would have it, the headliner for that show, Ted Alexandro, was also running late getting the the club for, I assume to be the aforementioned snowstorm.  I told the producer that if Ted can't make it, he can end the show but if he needs someone to stall for five minutes, send me on stage until Ted arrives because I have enough material to go as long as he needs.  Just as the MC was about to close the show, he grabbed her and said, "Send Amod up there."  Apparently he finally heard back from Ted that he was five minutes away.  As you can see here, I ended up doing a six-minute set:



As I got off stage after this set, I saw the producer of the show standing with Ted in the back of the room.  I mentioned a mutual friend to Ted, so he knew who I was.  (My mentor from the job I left in 2008 is a deacon in Ted's church.)  After the show, the producer told me I owed him for giving me stage time without bringing anyone to the club.  I was tempted to say that I saved his ass from closing the show with the crowd never seeing the advertized headliner for the show.  Instead I begrudgingly got the DVD of my set that I posted above and left to go home.  I did send him an e-mail a day later telling him how I thought it was unethical for bringer shows to be strictly enforced.  I also sent an e-mail to Ted because he was trying to unionize comics and I thought the barker/bringer practice was an issue.  I wasn't surprised when I didn't get a response to either e-mail.

I also decided that I had had enough of this business.  If I want to be funny, I'll get a job and add humor into boring and uptight corporate settings, which I'm proud to say that I try to do as much as possible now.  If I want to do something involving public speaking, I'll stand and yell at a street corner, or go to strangers' funerals and give cheerful eulogies (don't worry, I haven't done either of these.)  I have performed twice since then but both times were to help out my dear friend Judy Vincent in her stand-up pursuits, including one show headlined by the hilarious Vidur Kapur, one of the nicest people in a business that needs more people like him.

In a way, I still do stand-up, however it's the toughest crowd I could ever have.  My audience consists of two people: my 7 and 2 year old daughters.  And I couldn't be happier.

Analysis of Matt Harvey's Pitching Mechanics

Very interesting analysis by someone that was contacted for advice by Matt Harvey's father when Matt was in high school.  I always thought Harvey had great mechanics but as the GIF from the link that I posted below shows, his throwing mechanics as a high school pitcher were actually much better:

If you hate Mike Francesa, you have to watch this great spoof!

This is hilarious! This guy's cadence and voice are just like Francesa. Probably all the same things Mike Francesa would say at the time of the American Revolution too:

Major League Baseball's Next Possible Commissioner

Yahoo! Sports handicaps the next potential commissioner of Major League Baseball, including this tidbit:

"George W. Bush. He once owned the Texas Rangers. He has expressed interest in the job in the past. He did run the entire country for eight years. And best of all, the worst war he could wage is in the labor department, so that's a step up."

Major Changes Could Come For Cuban Talent | BaseballAmerica.com

I have a feeling this is only going to be step one and things will get more interesting if this becomes a reality.

Let's go Mets, or not | Capital New York

Let's go Mets, or not | Capital New York

Meet the man who built Pirates' analytics department | Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

With the recent popularity of "Moneyball" (the book and the movie) and this year's success of the Pittsburgh Pirates, a lot has been written about the analytical department of baseball teams.

In general, sports analytics is becoming a big business that many science and engineering grads are flocking to.

R.I.P. Buttfumble

ESPN has decided to retire Mark Sanchez's infamous buttfumble from its "Not Top Ten" list.

Ted Berg of USA Today's For The Win blog has his usual funny take on why the buttfumble can never be retired.

Castro fighting for sport he loves | ESPN.com

Fascinating article about Antonio Castro, the son of Fidel Castro. In the unlikeliest of partnerships, he's working with American baseball officials to try to get baseball back into the Olympics.

Great post about the best broadcast team in baseball

Anthony DiComo of Mets.com has a fantastic post about the Mets' SNY broadcast team, including this nugget about one of their pre-game prep sessions:

"Eventually, their conversation drifted back to that night's broadcast, which was to feature a heavy dose of Harvey analysis. Picker asked Darling to address Bob Ojeda's comments, made earlier in the day, regarding the stress that Harvey's low-90s slider may have contributed to his season-ending elbow tear. That led to a discussion of pitching mechanics in general, which somehow funneled to a commentary on foreign exchange rates, which melted into talk of Hillary Clinton's potential presidential candidacy, then a dissection of Juan Lagares' batting stance."

I'm curious to know how they got from pitching mechanics to foreign exchange rates but sadly that wasn't covered in the post.

Diana Nyad becomes the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida without the help of a shark cage

Amazing feat, although I have a strange feeling someone has secretly completed this swim.

MLB.com interview with Zack Wheeler

Nice interview with Zack Wheeler.

Overthinking It: A Search for Matt Harvey Injury Indicators | Baseball Prospectus

Baseball Prospectus has a nice technical analysis proving nothing could have predicted Matt Harvey's elbow injury.

Meanwhile, The Sporting News has a great piece on Harvey the pitcher and that if he opts for the Tommy John surgery, he could still come back dominant.

Both are great reads.

Keith Law on the Mets-Pirates trade

ESPN's Keith Law wrote a nice recap of the trade today that sent Marlon Byrd and John Buck to the Pittsburgh Pirates. ESPN Insiders can read the whole post here. As long and dedicated a baseball fan as I've been, it's passages like this one that remind me that I still have a lot to learn about a game I've watched religiously for nearly 35 of my 40 years of existence:

"For about five weeks of Byrd and Buck, the Mets get a very solid second-base prospect in Herrera. Playing full-time at age 19 in the low Class A Sally League, Herrera has shown somewhat surprising pop, with a .156 isolated power and 41 extra-base hits in 109 games. He's got a simple, quiet approach, just loading his hands a little higher than he should, with adequate hip rotation for 15-20 homer power at his peak."

Law also mentions the Mets are supposed to get another "solid" piece as the player to be named later. Players to be named later are generally 40-man roster members that have not cleared waivers so they don't get named until after the post-season is over. So we can eliminate any thoughts of the other throw-in piece being Gift Ngoepe and his .177 Double-A batting average and fascinating backstory.

Chris Walendin of tpgmets tweeted the names of the Pirates 40-man roster members that are not on the active roster:

Pirates on 40-man roster, not on active roster or DL: Vic Black, Brandon Cumpton, Kris Johnson, Kyle McPherson, Andy Oliver, ... (1 of 2)
— Chris (@tpgMets) August 27, 2013

... Stolmy Pimentel, Ryan Reid, Duke Welker, Russ Canzler, Chase d'Arnaud, Alex Presley, Jerry Sands. (2 of 2)
— Chris (@tpgMets) August 27, 2013

It'll be interesting to see who the Mets get. I'm not sure if he'd be a "solid" piece but reuniting the d'Arnaud brothers in New York might be interesting to see.

The Odds of Matt Harvey Breaking Down (from FanGraphs and others)

Great piece on FanGraphs about how there were no glaring red flags around Matt Harvey's UCL tear. CBS Sports also has a great piece that points out:

"Harvey has a classic workhorse build -- listed at 6-feet-4 and 225 pounds on the team's official site -- that makes you think he'll log 200-plus innings year after year, but he still got hurt. The human body is a jerk like that. Smooth mechanics, big frame, controlled workload ... it doesn't matter. Sometimes pitchers get hurt and there's nothing anyone can do about it."

Will Carroll has a great summary on Harvey's injury. Also, more from Ted Berg and Howard Megdal on how there was nothing the Mets could do to avoid Matt Harvey's injury. All great pieces worth reading.

Now THIS could be interesting...

NFL - Farmers' Almanac predicts winter storm will hit Northeast around time of Super Bowl XLVIII in N.J.

The d'Eal with d'Arnaud's n'Ame on his j'Ersey

Apparently the jersey manufacturer doesn't make lower case letters, just small caps.

Why Soccer Is The Last Sport For Grown-Ups | ThePostGame. - Yahoo! Sports

"Gone are the drum-beat prompts that attempt to start a "defense" chant. Likewise, the synthesized horns that signal fans to yell "charge" are nowhere to be found. The music supervisor for Sun Life Stadium has mercifully left the Jock Jams playlist at home and a prerecorded team theme song has yet to be played during the match. No announcer shrieked a soccer version of "Another [insert your team here] first down!" after every positive outcome for either team.

In place of all these things are actual cheers. Unsolicited, unabashed, unscheduled cheers. Whistles and chants and claps and legitimate "oohs" and "aahs" and boos and rowdy taunts are heard when, and only when, the on-field play deserves it. It's entirely organic and completely refreshing. It's a major sporting event that treats adults like adults. It's fandom without training wheels.

And maybe that's exactly why soccer's window of opportunity in America appears to be opening -- it is inherently free of so many of the most popular annoyances hoisted upon us by the owners of our favorite sports."

Read the whole piece. It's well worth it.

Dwight Gooden | WNYC Here's the Thing with Alec Baldwin

I never even knew Alec Baldwin had a podcast, but he interviewed Dwight Gooden recently.

Overthinking It: How the Mets Got Great (at Taking the Extra Base) | Baseball Prospectus

The Mets are the best team in baseball at taking the extra base. (WAIT; WHAT?!?) This part of the post is a nice indicator of team chemistry (and perhaps explains why Justin Turner is still on the roster):

"At this point in the season, the team doesn’t require constant reminders; the focus on baserunning is self-sustaining. That’s largely attributable to a team-wide competition created by Justin Turner, in which players fight to record the most positive plays. The fierce internal baserunning rivalry keeps everyone engaged, in a perfect example of a cohesive clubhouse enhancing on-field performance."

Q&A: Ian Levin, Mets manager of baseball analytics | FanGraphs Baseball

Great Q& A session with Ian Levin, Mets manager of baseball analytics. Really gets into what goes on in the analytical shop within the front office.

Now, are they hiring?  ;-)

The fragile, very hard-earned success of Jenrry Mejia | Capital New York

Howard Megdal goes through Jenrry Mejia's journey from stud prospect to afterthought to finally fulfilling his potential.

Before he was A-Rod - Inside Baseball | MiamiHerald.com

A very nice profile of Alex Rodriguez' childhood in Miami. Aside from the number of people named 'Rodriguez' quoted in the article, this other tidbit was interesting to read:

"Just when Rodriguez began taking performance enhancing drugs is a source of debate. Some have speculated it may have began as early as high school when he had a sudden growth spurt between his sophomore and junior year. Rodriguez has admitted he took steroids from 2001 to 2003 when he played for the Texas Rangers but has insisted he hadn’t used PED’s before or since."

I had a friend that played some minor league baseball tell me this exact same story in 2003 about A-Rod's sudden high school growth spurt between his sophomore and junior year. The allegations have always been there with him. Who knows what will happen to him now.

Great story about a team that won by forfeit but still got to celebrate on the field.

A really nice story about a high school baseball team that won by forfeit and played an inning against their dads so they could celebrate winning a championship on the field.

‘Some Sort of Rally’ by Aaron Sorkin | Faith and Fear in Flushing

A very interesting take on both, Jose Reyes winning the 2011 batting title and Ryan Braun PED use, written in the style of the HBO series "The Newsroom".

Small Sample Size Song (and Video)

This is funny but also true. Enjoy the video:

Before you tweet anything about Matt Harvey versus the Marlins, please consult this helpful video. http://t.co/662cjNRQwr
— Jeffrey Paternostro (@jeffpaternostro) August 1, 2013

If the embedded Tweet doesn't load, you can watch the video here too:

Mike Vaccaro: New York Mets rookie pitcher Zack Wheeler has been a difference maker since promotion to majors | NYPOST.com

I hadn't realized this:

"The day [Zack Wheeler] first arrived for work as a big-leaguer, June 18, the Mets were 15 games under .500 and on pace to lose exactly 100 games. Then he and Harvey teamed up to sweep the Braves on Super Tuesday, the Mets have gone 20-13, and that’s a 98-win pace."

Larry Brooks: New York Mets can draw inspiration from 1967 team in bid for brighter future | NYPOST.com

Great column from Larry Brooks:

"There are years in sports that become shortcut references to eras, such as 1965, the gateway between dynasty and a famine, for the Yankees.

But if 1965 is an accepted historical reference point, 1967 deserves our attention as it applies to the Mets, the year the team started to turn the corner on the corner on their way to attaining mythical and miracle status two years later.

No Yankees team would ever invite association with 1965. But it does not damn the 2013 Mets to turn back the pages of the franchise’s history to a year when, for the first time, glimmers of hope shined through a half decade of darkness.

If the answer to the baseball SAT question ever becomes, “1967 is to 1969 as 2013 is to 2015,” well, what Mets fan wouldn’t sign up for that right now?"

Francisco Rodriguez helps the Mets, from afar | Capital New York

I had the same thought as Howard Megdal when I heard about the K-Rod trade to the Orioles: If K-Rod can return a relatively high-upside prospect, what could Bobby Parnell fetch? Castellanos? Garcia? Bogaerts? Bradley, Jr.?

Check back in a week or so...

Klapisch: With Ryan Braun suspended, Yankees' Alex Rodriguez is sure to be next | NorthJersey.com

Great column by Bob Klapisch about Ryan Braun, A-Roid, and how their situations impact each other.

Our hero! | The Scranton Times-Tribune

This is great!

Matt Harvey, 'tough as nails,' rises to stardom | Ted Berg - USA Today Sports

""Man, he's a stud," Washington Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper says. "I really think he's probably the best pitcher in the league right now."

Klapisch: Mets' Matt Harvey ready for his blaze of glory | NorthJersey.com

I remember this from the 1984 All-Star Game:

"For one, maybe two innings tonight, Harvey has a chance to pull Mets fans into the organization’s time tunnel – back to 1984 when Doc Gooden introduced himself to the world with a blow-away fifth inning in that year’s All-Star Game.

Gooden struck out Lance Parrish, Chet Lemon and Alvin Davis with a fastball that might as well have been shot out of a rifle – that’s how overmatched the American League’s sluggers were. Gooden, only 19, was the advertisement of the gathering storm in Flushing, which is why the parallel to Harvey is so striking, even though he’s five years older."

Humble David Wright is All-Star | USA Today Sports

This is why David Wright is Captain America.

Mets Pitcher Matt Harvey Pitching With Blister On Right Index Finger | CBS New York

NNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!! (But it does explain the sudden lack of command on his breaking pitches.)

Ten years later, revisiting Darko Milicic

Interesting piece in Slate on 2003 NBA Draft bust Darko Milicic.

Dear Misters Wilpon, the town is here for the taking. Take it back for the Mets. | Mets Police

Well said Shannon. Well said.

Unlike that other 3B, Wright a credit to his Citi | Steve Serby - New York Post

Nice column comparing David Wright to A-Roid.

Q&A: Noah Syndergaard, Mets Pitching Prospect | FanGraphs Baseball

Nice Q&A with Mets pitching prospect Noah Syndergaard. Really seems to be self aware beyond his years.

Matt Harvey says nude photo shoot for magazine 'was really cool' | NJ.com

The only line worth reading in the article:

"“Obviously, they’re not showing my junk,” Harvey quipped."

No, seriously, Matt Harvey is getting even better | Capital New York

Howard Megdal writes something positive about the Mets without bringing up the Wilpons' finances:

"On Sunday, Harvey averaged better than 98 miles per hour with both his four-seam fastball and the sinking two-seamer. He maxed out at 99.8 miles per hour with the two-seamer, and a ridiculous 100.97 with the four seamer. Alone, these two pitches would make for an awfully difficult afternoon for any hitter.

But Harvey has more than this. On Sunday, his slider averaged 91.75 miles per hour, or around the average velocity for a major league fastball. He threw a slider at 93.7 miles per hour. This is unheard of.

Add in his changeup at an average of 87.8, and his curveball at 84.8, and Harvey had five pitches, with a range of better than 14 miles per hour, operating at four different eye levels. The surprising part is that the Phillies managed two hits. It's not any wonder that Harvey has taken a no-hitter into the seventh inning three times this season.

Just as important as the velocity is Harvey's level of command. That slider is extraordinary, speed-wise, but Harvey also threw eight of them, six for strikes. Five of his seven curveballs were strikes. All four of his changeups were strikes. Just under 80 percent of that four-seam fastball were strikes. Only the two-seamer, at 60 percent, missed with any regularity."

Mets360 compares Matt Harvey to Secretariat.

Blue Jays' Reyes will rejoin team in Tampa | Toronto Sun

Nice piece about the bundle of energy that is Jose Reyes.

It does gloss over one of my favorite traditions in baseball: rehabbing major leaguers buying the post-game spread for the minor leaguers.  Most minor leaguers feast on low cost options (Chipotle seems to be the most popular) so I'm sure they appreciated Reyes' gesture:

"The post-game, spread was different: Reyes forked over his credit card for steak and shrimp, an estimated $1,200 bill, for players, coaches and trainers from Pettibone’s the restaurant inside Coca-Cola Field.

Earlier in the home stand he ordered in from P.F. Chang’s. During his three games at Dunedin he ordered steak and Bloomin’ Onion from The Outback."

Kevin Kernan: If Zack Wheeler can be another ace, New York Mets are really onto something | NYPOST.com

Kevin Kernan's column about the future of the Mets pitching staff:

"If Zack Wheeler can follow in Matt Harvey’s footsteps, the Mets will have two tremendous power pitchers for years to come.

In the post-steroids era, the value of two power starters cannot be understated. A true power pitcher in this generation of wild swingers is worth his weight in baseball gold, and to have two of them would catapult any team to success — even the Mets."

While the column is mostly about Zack Wheeler, this great quote about Matt Harvey is succinct and to the point:

"He’s also throwing his slider in the 91-93 mph range, which is basically unfair."

Mets phenom Harvey still talk of MLB | NYPOST.com

Two awesome quotes from Kevin Kernan's column:

"There is no stopping Harvey. He upped his record to 7-1 with the Mets’ 8-0 win over the Phillies as he produced six shutout innings, allowing only two hits and one walk as he struck out six. A rain storm got him out of the game."

"When Ryan Howard managed a broken-bat single to lead off the second he went to first base and muttered something along the lines of: “His [bleeping] curveball is breaking my bat.’’"

Klapisch: Blue Jays creeping up on AL East | NorthJersey.com

Interesting column by Bob Klapisch on how the Blue Jays have clawed back into the AL East Divisional race.

Mets Investing In Bright Future | ESPN Buster Olney Video Blog

Buster Olney has a great video blog post on the future of Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler for the New York Mets:

MUST READ column for Met fans (and people that laugh at the Mets)

Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports with a great column on the young Met phenoms Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler. Definitely a must read for Met fans and for people that laugh at the Mets who should now think twice before doing so. Here are a few snippets to whet your appetite:

“From that day forth, everyone who witnessed the incident or heard about it understood a new Mets commandment: Thou shalt not trifle with Matt Harvey. And they gleaned something that they may not have understood at the time but certainly will going forward: If he can stand up against the big, bad leviathan and turn into the alpha dog just like that, so can the team that for the last five years has been nothing but joke after punch line after clown bait.”

And this:

“...he came against Freeman, the Braves' best hitter, with a changeup, then a fastball, then two more changeups, then a slider. And with the count full, he twirled in a curve ball, like he was marking his territory, that this mound was going to be his for a long, long time, and using his fourth-best pitch on a 3-2 count was kosher.

Freeman turned back to John Buck, the Mets' catcher.

"Are you serious?" he asked.

"He can throw whatever he wants to now, bro," Buck replied.

"That son of a bitch," Freeman said.

That son of a bitch followed with a 97-mph fastball that Freeman spoiled and a 96-mph fastball through which he swung.”

Read the whole thing. It’s worth it.

Matt Harvey, Overwhelming | FanGraphs Baseball

Great post on FanGraphs on how many fastballs over the plate have been swinging strikes for Matt Harvey.

It’s Zack Wheeler Time | FanGraphs Baseball

It’s Zack Wheeler Time | FanGraphs Baseball

Mets Give Fans Glimpse Of Future With Harvey, Wheeler Doubleheader | CBS New York

Mets Give Fans Glimpse Of Future With Harvey, Wheeler Doubleheader « CBS New York

Mets Introduce Must-See Tournament For Scouts | BaseballAmerica.com

This sounds like a fun event. It should be fun watching high school kids playing in a Major League ballpark.

Zack Wheeler, Matt Harvey to start doubleheader Tuesday in Atlanta

It's official! The future on display in Atlanta next Tuesday for Met fans.

R.A. Dickey Talks About His Health | FanGraphs Baseball

R.A. Dickey Talks About His Health | FanGraphs Baseball

The Mets have finally crushed their fans' spirits. | SportsonEarth.com

Will Leitch captures it all right here:

"Being a Mets fan has always contained an inherent sense of fatalism and self-loathing for liking such a painful franchise; the torture the Mets regularly provide is a feature, not a bug. But in my 13-plus years here, I've never seen it like this. It's not even pain anymore: It's just numb, blank stares."

The Mets have finally crushed their fans' spirits. | SportsonEarth.com : Will Leitch Article

Jeff Wilpon and the myth of a free-spending Mets winter to come | Capital New York

Howard Megdal pours some cold water on the hopes of Met fans thinking the club is capable of spending money this offseason:

"So now consider the real winter ahead for the New York Mets owners. They have less than a year to either find a way to pay J.P. Morgan Chase $320 million, or convince the bank to give them more time. And they'll have to do so with more than just a Fred Wilpon press conference sunnily declaring his money problems a thing of the past. If the bank believes, unlike Standard and Poor's, that the Mets are on the cusp of profitability, or that a forced sale now will produce less revenue than giving ownership more time, then a stay of execution is possible.

But it's more complicated than that. Any additional time built into this loan needs to also pass muster with the group holding the more than $600 million in debt against ownership's S.N.Y. holdings in 2015. The structures of the two loans, both held by ownership's parent company, will need to be reconciled.

At that point, can the Mets spend money to sign new players? In theory, if J.P. Morgan Chase decides that an infusion of new talent is worth seeing a bunch of money go to, say, Shin-Soo Choo ahead of the bank to help turn the Mets profitable. And if the S.N.Y. creditors agree."

Klapisch: Wally Backman's Mets managerial audition begins with Ike Davis | NorthJersey.com

Bob Klapisch is starting a fire where one isn't needed:

"Now Davis is Wally Backman’s problem, although it’s worth asking the question that could lead to a more intriguing dialogue: What happens if Backman and his old-school, man’s-man approach actually fixes Davis? Then what?

Such a reclamation project would be more of a reflection of Backman’s interpersonal skills than Davis’ ability to hit for a respectable average. At least we know Davis has talent – we’ve seen it in the past, albeit not consistently since the second half of last season. But Backman is the wild card here, especially because he’s been languishing in the Mets’ farm system for four summers hoping to prove to someone, anyone, that he’s long since outrun his darker demons.

That’s why Backman relishes the chance to work on Davis’ swing, confidence and career, although not necessarily in that order."

Now Send Down 16 More of Them | Faith and Fear in Flushing

This might be true but seriously, OUCH!

"The number of Mets for whom a demotion would be unjust is perilously small: If your name’s not Wright, Murphy, Harvey, Parnell, Niese or Byrd, you have no reason to squawk if someone’s preparing a pink slip or a [Mets' Triple-A affiliate Las Vegas] 51s uniform with your name on it."

Popper: 20 years later, Drazen Petrovic tragedy still stings | NorthJersey.com

The only guy willing to talk trash with Michael Jordan during the 1992 Olympics. Taken from the NBA way too soon: Popper: 20 years later, Drazen Petrovic tragedy still stings - NorthJersey.com

Mets Go Back To Cali, Draft Sweet-Swinging Dominic Smith In 1st Round | CBS New York

I wasn't high on the Mets' pick of 1B Dominic Smith in the first round, but after hearing more about his personality and background he is starting to grow on me.

Bullpen Banter has a great video of Smith posted on YouTube. This is one smooth, sweet swing!

BP Unfiltered: Dissecting the Draft: Dominic Smith (Player Report) | Baseball Prospectus

Great scouting report at Baseball Prospectus on Mets first round draft pick Dominic Smith. It says he has great defensive upside at 1B. Fortunately for Smith and the Mets, the Mets have the greatest defensive 1B in MLB history sitting in their broadcast booth every night.

Perfect storm in 2010 draft brought stud righty Harvey to Mets | NYPOST.com

Great column by Ken Davidoff in the New York Post about how all the different pieces had to precisely fall into place for the Mets to snag Matt Harvey with the 7th overall pick in the 2010 MLB Draft.

Does MLB have a case this time? | The Hardball Times

Does MLB have a case this time?

When it comes to drugs, Major League Baseball has learned nothing from the past, wishes to learn nothing in the future | HardballTalk

When it comes to drugs, Major League Baseball has learned nothing from the past, wishes to learn nothing in the future | HardballTalk

Steroids Bad, Leaks Worse | Mets Minor League Blog

Great writeup at Mets Minor League Blog. This story is slowly creeping away from Major League Baseball:

Steroids Bad, Leaks Worse | Mets Minor League Blog

Klapisch: Alex Rodriguez in fight to save his legacy - NorthJersey.com

Klapisch: Alex Rodriguez in fight to save his legacy - NorthJersey.com

How the Biogenesis suspensions could help the Yankees, and hurt the Mets | Capital New York

How the Biogenesis suspensions could help the Yankees, and hurt the Mets | Capital New York

THIS is going to get very, VERY interesting...

SportsCenter - Outside the Lines has learned MLB preparing to suspend Alex Rodriguez, Ryan Braun, others connected to Biogenesis clinic.

"[Jason] Kidd was magician in New Jersey", says ESPN's Ian O'Conner (but I'll always remember the 1993 game against Duke.)

Jason Kidd announced yesterday that he is retiring from basketball. Ian O'Conner wrote a great column about what Kidd meant to the New Jersey (now Brooklyn) Nets as a franchise mired in what could have optimistically been called 'mediocrity' at the time. This is also a bittersweet moment for me as a fan.

I first saw Jason Kidd single-handedly defeat the defending national champion Duke Blue Devils in the 1993 NCAA tournament. What amazed me was this is a guy playing on a highly competitive level the way I liked to play on the playground (with much less success): pass first, pass second, no-look pass third, and then maybe shoot the ball himself. As great as other great point guards have been (John Stockton, Magic Johnson), no one played with the same flair as Jason Kidd. The only recent player I've seen come close is Minnesota's Ricky Rubio, who is also one of my favorite players in the league today.

For all his off-court troubles, Jason Kidd has been a fun player to watch over the years and his retirement makes me feel really old, especially since I have very fond memories of his game against Duke, which is posted below. ENJOY!

Baseball's new executives are Ivy Leaguers | Newsday

Great article in Newsday about the increase in Ivy League grads in MLB:

Baseball's new executives are Ivy Leaguers

After Pitching In WBC At 16, Brazil's Daniel Missaki Signs With Mariners | BaseballAmerica.com

I was wondering what happened to this kid. You figure if he was Dominican or Venezuelan he would have been signed on the day of his 16th birthday. Nice to read the Mariners are giving him a shot.

PUT A BROOM IN THAT BOOK | Metstradamus

Metstradamus has to be the best writer among the Mets bloggers, especially this blurb from today's post. (Extra points for the "8 Mile" reference too.)

"Now I know how the Yankee fans will react and how they already are reacting. After they spew out about 27 titles, they will try to shame us, Met fans, into feeling like garbage because "oh, you're celebrating meaningless regular season games in a season where you're going nowhere. This is like saying "Yeah, well we're on this beautiful cruise ship while you're in that piddly little row boat", meanwhile the cruise ship they're on is owned by Carnival and its sinking to the bottom. This is what Yankee fans like to do: make other people feel like imbeciles for merely being happy. They want us to golf clap and slink away while still slurping the 27 titles. And that's why we're happy. Because we know that trick is coming ... and it's silly and we will ignore it. And the only thing left for Yankee fans to do is bring up shit that we already know about. Bernie Madoff, Bobby Bonilla ... all of it. Sweeping the Yankees gives Met fans that feeling of Eminem in the final battle against Papa Doc. We know what's coming. But what they don't know is that we know what Papa Doc's real name is ..."

How SWEEP It Is!!

In case you haven't heard yet:

MLB - Mets complete Subway Series sweep of Yankees with 3-1 victory Thursday; Mets won 2 at Citi Field, 2 at Yankee Stadium

Why We Watch: Mike Baxter, Intangible Man | The Classical

Nice little piece about "Mike from Whitestone".

The making of a T-shirt mogul and leader of Mets fans | Capital New York

The making of a T-shirt mogul and leader of Mets fans | Capital New York

In case you forgot, David Wright = Captain America

Mets' David Wright hits clutch home run off Phil Hughes to bring team back - Daily News

“Brett Gardner’s spectacular catch was proof this would be another night when the Yankees and Mets would go their separate ways.

And then Captain America intervened.”

Matt Harvey and Doing It the Hard Way | FanGraphs Baseball

Apparently Matt Harvey has a pretty significant reverse-platoon split.

You learn something new every day. Happy Harvey Day!

Matt Harvey’s Nearly Perfect Outing | FanGraphs Baseball

The GIF images in this Fangraphs post are great, especially the ones where multiple pitches are overlaid onto the same GIF, like this one showing the difference between his fastball and slider:



I'm amazed at how his release point on both pitches is in exactly the same spot. The image gives the appearance of the ball multiplying into two baseballs on its way to the plate.

Maybe It’s Time We Stop Underrating Pitchers From Asian Countries | FanGraphs Baseball

Very interesting post at Fangraphs about the 2013 performance of the nine MLB pitchers from Asian countries:

"All told, the 2013 active pitchers from Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea have put up the near equivalent of one Justin Verlander season. Darvish is obviously driving the numbers up with his ridiculous start to the season, but Iwakuma, Kuroda, and Ryu have also been excellent in their own right, while Chen is succeeding by keeping the ball in the ballpark, at least for now."

Baseball: Brandon Nimmo experiences highs, and lows, of full season pro ball | Casper Star-Tribune

A nice article in a home state newspaper of Mets’ 2011 1st round draft pick Brandon Nimmo.

Mets: David Wright stealing the show | NorthJersey.com

"There was a time when he was a legitimate thief, a threat to opposing pitchers who underestimated his legs. One season, David Wright stole 34 bases. Another, he stole 27..."

Backman On Wheeler: ‘He’s Going To Be Pushing The Door Open Himself’ | CBS New York

Too early to get excited about this but the day is coming soon enough.

Mets’ Ynoa and Lara Add to Dominican Pitching Pipeline | FanGraphs Baseball

Fangraphs with a great review of two Mets pitching prospects further down the pipeline, Gabriel Ynoa and Rainy Lara. (Yes, his name actually is Rainy. No word yet if he has a brother named Sunny.)

Brandon Nimmo Stands Out For Savannah | FanGraphs Baseball

Great post on Fangraphs about Brandon Nimmo, the Mets 1st round draft pick (13th overall) in 2011. I've written about and posted about Nimmo in the past. The Fangraphs post has some great video, which I re-posted below. This quote pretty much sums up the post:

"Finally in full season, Nimmo has achieved a .447/.518/.574 line through twelve games and shows no signs of slowing down. Having scouted him a couple of times against the Rome Braves, the left-handed hitter deserves mention with the very best the South Atlantic League has to offer."

The Sand Gnats are actually in Lakewood, NJ this weekend playing the Phillies Low-A Affiliate, Lakewood Blue Claws. Unfortunately I can't make it this weekend to any of the games but hopefully enough local fans will make it out and post lots of video of Nimmo, Steven Matz, Gabriel Ynoa, Rainy Lara, Phillip Evans, Kevin Plawecki, and others.

Johan Santana: The Lost Man of Mets Camp

One of my favorite Mets bloggers, Patrick Flood, has joined one of my favorite Mets blogs, Amazin Avenue. If you've never read Patrick's writing before, he has a way of creating vivid imagery with words that very few sports bloggers are able to do. This was a particularly interesting post about Johan Santana, with this astute observation as to why he flew under the radar before becoming an All-Star and two-time Cy Young Award winner with the Minnesota Twins:

"...at his best Santana was genius. He didn’t throw remarkably hard by major league standards, his slider was just a junky waste pitch he only threw to lefties, and he always seemed to be fighting himself. He’s not unusual physically, maybe other than being broad shouldered. There are good reasons he was never a prospect and the Astros now-famously let a young Santana go in the Rule 5 draft. His gifts were never obvious because they were always hidden away in his mind. Santana’s brilliance was not only in reconciling his body and his will in the way all great control pitchers do, but in that his will was able to dominate the physical in ways that seemed, at times, almost supernatural. Like he could actually decide, after throwing a pitch, whether it was a fastball or a changeup. Or he could cause a popup to hang in the air just long enough for the shortstop to chase it down. Or he could not only manipulate most hitters, but actually control some. As in some poor slugger like Dan Uggla didn't even have a choice as whether to swing, he just swung or didn't swing because Santana made him."

Punk Hits: Why I'm Rooting for the Dutch in the WBC | Baseball Prospectus

I'm tempted to subscribe to Baseball Prospectus just to read the rest of this article, oddly written by the groom from "My Big Fat Greek Wedding".

The Bullpen: R.A. Dickey is in a world of his own | TheStar.com

Nice little piece about R.A. Dickey:

"I cannot think of another athlete with a world view and personal priorities quite like this pitcher that is arriving in uniform with the Jays on Wednesday. There was debate about whether he was a clubhouse leader or was just looking out for himself in the Mets’ room. That point is moot."

How Much Time the Pitchers Took | FanGraphs Baseball

A very interesting piece on which pitchers work fast and which ones work slow. Among the quick workers include new Toronto Blue Jays Mark Buehrle and R.A. Dickey, including these two games that I recall vividly from last season:

"It’s worth noting that Mark Buehrle and R.A. Dickey went head-to-head twice last season, on April 25 and September 22. The first game lasted two hours and 29 minutes, while the second game lasted two hours and 26 minutes. Last year’s average Marlins game lasted two hours and 57 minutes, while last year’s average Mets game lasted two hours and 56 minutes. That, of course, is with Buehrle and Dickey starts included. That would’ve been some nicely-tempoed baseball, between sometimes unwatchable teams."

Pitcher Noah Syndergaard has the stuff big league dreams are made of | The Star-Telegram

A nice little piece on New York Mets pitching prospect Noah Syndergaard:

"I didn't think I'd be traded, but being traded for the reigning Cy Young winner is pretty cool," said Syndergaard, who reported to Mets spring training in Port St. Lucie, Fla., on Monday.

"Now I'm going to do whatever I can to contribute to the Mets' organization and try and help them win the World Series."

Good luck Noah! As the #3 prospect in the Mets organization, I hope you're right.

NY Closers: Keep Your Eye On Mariano Rivera, Bobby Parnell | CBS New York

This is cause for concern:

"Parnell, you see, has all the confidence of a Mark Sanchez. In other words, he’s a tad shaky upstairs."

Not good. Not good at all.

Turning Boiling or Hot Water into Snow at -13°F (-25°C)

This is very cool (no pun intended):

Bridging cultural divides in sports and in life.

A fascinating article in The Los Angeles Times about Dodgers first baseman Adrian Gonzalez and his fully bilingual upbringing:

"Born in the United States to Mexican parents, Gonzalez is fluent and literate in English and Spanish, having been raised on both sides of the border in a blend of the cultures.

"I'm Mexican and I'm American," he says.

That's evident in his tastes. While he admired how former Dodger Fernando Valenzuela broke down cultural barriers, his childhood hero was San Diego Padres Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn. Gonzalez watches both football and futbol, supporting the San Diego Chargers and Mexican striker Javier Hernandez. He sings to his 13-month-old daughter in Spanish during the day and watches reruns of "The King of Queens" at night."

Very interesting, especially with the changing demographics in America today.

Shark-eating seal among rare and stunning scenes documented off South Africa

I've never read anything like this before:

"The seal consumed the stomach and livers of the first two sharks, before killing three others."

 

Coutinho: The Mets Are On The Rise, And The First Steps Will Take Place In 2013 « CBS New York

Coutinho: The Mets Are On The Rise, And The First Steps Will Take Place In 2013 « CBS New York