Meet the Ex-Mets (Continuing Careers 2014)

[metirish]

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Speaking of Mr. Gomez, this may be my favorite thing that I've ever heard about the guy, on-field greatness inclusive. He says that recently Gomez informed him, while holding a plate full of kiwi, that the fruit had three times as much potassium as bananas. "I asked him how he heard it," Braun says. "He told me, now that he's wealthy, he's been Googling rich-people conversations, so he knows what to talk to wealthy people about, and he came across that data."

I love that ......

[Edgy MD]

Willie continues to feel sorry for Willie.

I like Willie. Makes me feel even worse that he seems so clueless.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

White Sox release Jeff Keppinger.

Then they release Frank Frank.

[Frayed Knot]

Pedro Feliciano signs with StL -- but it's a minor league deal so he still hasn't broken his 'Mets and only Mets' ML stretch despite being property, at one time or another, of the Dodgers, Reds, Yanx, Tigers, and now Cardinals.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I had been wondering what ever happened to Pedro. I don't recall hearing anything about the Mets cutting ties with him, and yet he was in the picture in 2013 but not in 2014.

[Edgy MD]

Nick Evans, terrifying PCL pitchers to the tune of .335 / .393 / .641 // 1.034, called back up to the majors.

Had been part of a devastating ex-Met firstbaseman 1-2 punch for the Reno Aces, alongside, Mike Jacobs (.353 / .424 / .605 // 1.029).

[Edgy MD]

Daniel Ray Herrera, Somerset Patriot.

[Frayed Knot]

Johan Santana - torn achilles tendon -- done for the season

[smg58]

Sometimes life just isn't fair.

[Guest Mets Guy in Michigan]

Nice story in the Detroit papers today about former Met Mike Hessman and his home run chase.


http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20140619/SPORTS0104/306190037/Love-game-drives-Tigers-farmhand-Mike-Hessman-he-chases-home-run-record

[Vic Sage]

Has he passed Crash Davis?

[batmagadanleadoff]

Frayed Knot wrote: Johan Santana - torn achilles tendon -- done for the season

smg58 wrote: Sometimes life just isn't fair.

Johan really got the short end of the stick, there. What a sad life he's lived.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Great job making your point(?) with a proportionate, tasteful response, there.

[batmagadanleadoff]

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Great job making your point(?) with a proportionate, tasteful response, there.

You can count on me for that.

[batmagadanleadoff]

batmagadanleadoff wrote: LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Great job making your point(?) with a proportionate, tasteful response, there. You can count on me for that.

Would you consider it to be in good taste if Johan were to get up in front of the podium at his press conference to announce, not only his latest setback, but then to go into a whole "life is unfair" rant?

[Benjamin Grimm]

There's quite a wide gap between "life is unfair" and "I'm the most unfortunate person on Earth."

[Edgy MD]

There is also a wide gap between smg saying it and Johan saying it.

But this is pretty much an insult to all of our intelligences and a desperate play for attention.

magadan, please stop playing the troll.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Edgy MD wrote: There is also a wide gap between smg saying it and Johan saying it. But this is pretty much an insult to all of our intelligences and a desperate play for attention. magadan, please stop playing the troll.

I know Johan didn't say it. I wasn't knocking Johan, either. Just Johan as a poster boy for "life is unfair". Now Bill Denehy on the other hand: he could be a poster boy for life being unfair. He wasn't just a prospect, ya know. His ceiling was ace of the staff strikeout king kind of stuff. He blew his arm out in his 4th start. And he's blind now.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I don't think it's not valid to feel sympathy for somebody who worked hard and had a setback, even if they're a millionaire who has eyesight.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I don't think it's not valid to feel sympathy for somebody who worked hard and had a setback, even if they're a millionaire who has eyesight.

I agree totally. Really. No sarcasm here. Honest injun.



Not that I'm surprised anyways that my post turned into another clusterfuck. Was your intelligence offended? Like some others here. (rolls eyes) (I doubt it).

[G-Fafif]

Texas Rangers hitting coach Dave Magadan remembers his time on the Padre bench alongside Tony Gwynn for Tyler Kepner in the Times:

Dave Magadan played the last three years of his career for the San Diego Padres, from 1999 to 2001. Those were also the final years of Tony Gwynn�s career, and the two filled a similar role as veteran left-handed hitters off the bench. Naturally, they talked a lot about hitting. �A lot of the routines that I do now, in the cage with guys, are directly related to conversations that we had,� said Magadan, the Texas Rangers� hitting coach. �He was a big proponent of the tee and things you could do off the tee to improve your bat path and make you more direct to the ball. He loved that, and a lot of that stuff I still teach today.� Magadan still marvels at the prescience of Gwynn, who died of cancer last week at 54. As a pinch-hitter in his final years, Gwynn would tell Magadan how the pitcher would set him up, and he would almost always guess right. If he guessed wrong before there were two strikes, Magadan said, Gwynn simply took the pitch. For Magadan, watching Gwynn sharpened his understanding of what it meant to be a disciplined hitter. �If he was looking for a breaking ball, he wouldn�t swing at a fastball � he would still stay on the breaking ball,� Magadan said. �That�s how he was disciplined. He wasn�t disciplined by walking a hundred times, but he was disciplined in staying on the pitch he was looking for. �And that�s where I get my definition of discipline from. Some guys are disciplined that walk a lot; some guys are disciplined that are really good hitters and stay on the pitch they�re looking for. If he gets it, he hits it. If he doesn�t get it, then he doesn�t swing at it. Then if he gets to two strikes, of course, he battles.� Magadan said he was never much of a guess hitter until he played with Gwynn. But by then, it was too late to salvage much more from his career. �I wish I knew what I knew then a lot earlier in my career,� Magadan said, �because I probably would have been a lot better hitter.�

[G-Fafif]

Adding color commentary to last night's Las Vegas 51s affair on the CBS Sports Network, and weekly on the channel's minor league coverage...Doug Flynn!

[MFS62]

Josh Thole was interviewed on the MFY pregame show before one of the Tarana games this week.

Later

[bmfc1]

Congratulations to Mike Hessman:
http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2014/07/01/mike-hessman-sets-the-international-league-home-run-record/

[dgwphotography]

Prentice Redman still plays for the Bridgeport Bluefish.



Sunday night, the Bluefish played the Stratford Brakettes in a charity softball game at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport. Prentice's expression says it all regarding the difficulty in hitting a fast-pitch softball.

[G-Fafif]

Nick Evans joining Zach Lutz on the Rakuten Golden Eagles out east...out Far East.

[dgwphotography]

Yesterday I joined several friends at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport to see the Bluefish play the Lancaster Barnstormers in some Independent League action. One of our group noted that he saw a lot of people wearing Met paraphernalia waiting to get in, and I couldn't figure out why.

When the starting line-ups were announced, I saw that former Met Chris Schwinden was starting for Lancaster:



I doubted that was it.

There was even almost-but-never-was-Met Boof Bonser coming out of the bullpen:



That wasn't it, either.

There was this announcement from the PA announcer just before the game, "To throw out the first pitch, please welcome former Major League great, Dwight Gooden":



Didn't see that one coming.

[Edgy MD]

Chris Young, promoted by the Yankees.

[Guest Mets Guy in Michigan]

Yesterday I joined several friends at Harbor Yard in Bridgeport to see the Bluefish play the Lancaster Barnstormers in some Independent League action. One of our group noted that he saw a lot of people wearing Met paraphernalia waiting to get in, and I couldn't figure out why. When the starting line-ups were announced, I saw that former Met Chris Schwinden was starting for Lancaster: I doubted that was it. There was even almost-but-never-was-Met Boof Bonser coming out of the bullpen: That wasn't it, either. There was this announcement from the PA announcer just before the game, "To throw out the first pitch, please welcome former Major League great, Dwight Gooden": Didn't see that one coming.

I wish Bridgeport had a team during the three years we lived near there! We had to go all the way to New Britain to see a game.

[G-Fafif]

John Buck a September callup by MLB best-record possessor Angels.

http://www.latimes.com/sports/sportsnow/la-sp-sn-angels-add-11-players-20140902-story.html