Benjamin Grimm

Now that we're underway, here's a little more information on how this is going to work. There are 114 covers.* Imagine that they're in a pile, like a deck of cards, arranged in chronological order. I deal the covers into 32 piles. There are 18 piles with four covers each and 14 piles with three covers each. These are our 32 first-round polls. This is why we're seeing a choice between three or four covers, all from different eras of Mets history. When the first round is complete, the covers will be ranked from 1 to 32 based on the percentage of votes earned in the first round. The leader of Round 1.01, Casey of the Mets, currently has 94.4 per cent of the vote, and is therefore likely to be ranked very highly when the second round starts. Once the rankings are done, we'll have, as we've had in other Cover Derbies, a traditional bracket-based single-elimination tournament, where the #1 cover faces off against #32, #2 against #31, etc. Polls will be posted four days a week, from Monday through Thursday. We'll take Friday and weekends off. Each new poll will be pinned to the top of the forum, but no more than two will be pinned at a time. As each new poll gets pinned, one older poll will be unpinned. *If anyone spots any new eligible covers that get published before the first round ends, let me know and I'll squeeze them in where appropriate. Once the final poll of the first round (1.32) is posted, the competition will be closed to any additional covers.

http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/images/magazines/MCD.png> Vote for the cover that you like the best. Voting will run for seven days. The Baseball Battle for New York Sports Illustrated, March 2, 1964. http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/magazines/19640302_SI.jpg> These Hitters Are Toughest to Fan Baseball Digest, June 1974. http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/magazines/19740600_BD.jpg> Who's On First? Sport Magazine, April 1988. http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/magazines/19880400_SPORT.jpg> Mix Master Sports Illustrated, June 18, 2007. http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/magazines/20070618_SI.jpg>

http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/images/magazines/MCD.png> Vote for the cover that you like the best. Voting will run for seven days. Casey of the Mets Sports Illustrated, March 5, 1962. http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/magazines/19620305_SI.jpg> How the A's Tamed the Mets Baseball Digest, January 1974. http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/magazines/19740100_BD.jpg> New York New York Sports Illustrated, July 13, 1987. http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/magazines/19870713_SI.jpg> Double Take The New Yorker, April 2, 2007. http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/magazines/20070402_TNY.jpg>

Maybe I'm the only one, but I like the three-batter rule. It will probably add as much strategy (if not more) than it takes away, and seems likely to reduce one of the most tedious aspects of watching a game, the commercial breaks that comes again after a few pitches as the LOOGY is removed from the game. And yes, it might have been better to just find a way to make pitching changes quicker, but this rule is better than doing nothing. Let's say Bryce Harper is at bat with two outs and two runners on base. Do you bring in a lefty to pitch to him, knowing that he's followed in the lineup by two right-handed hitters? And if you're the Phillies manager, do you intentionally put two righties after Harper in the lineup (rather than going right-left-right-left) to make that choice tougher for the opposing manager? Is this rule contrived? Sure it is, but not as much as some other things we've seen, such as the DH and the artificial turf of the 1970s and 80s. (Not to mention the start-the-inning-with-a-runner-on-second-base thing, which I hope we never see in a game that counts for anything.)

I remember there was a time that Jim Fregosi was rumored to be in the running for the Mets manager job. (Maybe when they hired Terry Collins for 2011?) I liked the idea; I thought it would be great if Jim Fregosi had a chance for redemption, and could be known as a World Series winning Mets manager instead of the guy in the Nolan Ryan trade. While he was certainly disappointing as a Met, I never saw any reason to dislike him. http://www.wmbfnews.com/2019/03/14/troopers-driver-hit-tree-thrown-vehicle-deadly-crash/Coroner identifies 72-year-old man killed in Florence crash I was eight years old when the Mets traded Leroy Stanton. He was the one I was sorriest to see go, because he was black and to my eight-year-old brain, black players were better than white players. What I didn't understand, of course, was that a mediocre black player had less of a chance than a mediocre white player, and that's why a higher percentage of black players were stars. https://www.tradingcarddb.com/Images/Cards/Baseball/8665/8665-495871Fr.jpg> https://www.tradingcarddb.com/Images/Cards/Baseball/72/72-755Fr.jpg> https://www.tradingcarddb.com/Images/Cards/Baseball/72/72-755Bk.jpg> https://www.tradingcarddb.com/Images/Cards/Baseball/72/72-595Fr.jpg>

We'll get started on Monday, March 18.

A larger first base wouldn't necessarily require shortening the distance from home to first. They could position it so that the extra three inches are on the side of the bag that's farthest from the plate. However... unless they position part of the bag in foul territory, it would shorten the distance between first base and second base.

Yeah, it pretty much has to be something like this: https://imagesvc.timeincapp.com/v3/fan/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcalltothepen.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2Fgetty-images%2F2016%2F04%2F51494563.jpeg&c=sc&w=850&h=560>

I think the Mets will find out where that original Lucy statue is warehoused, buy it for $100, put a Mets cap on the head and a 41 on the back and say that it's Tom Seaver.

They'll probably commission the artist who sculpted this statue of Lucille Ball: http://mediad.publicbroadcasting.net/p/wbfo/files/styles/medium/public/201504/lucille_ball_statue_0.jpg> The good news is that they realized their mistake (which should have happened before the dedication of the statue) and replaced it with this: https://static01.nyt.com/images/2016/08/10/us/10xp-lucille1/10xp-lucille1-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale>

Unless he manages to be healthier than a lot of other guys, (and he might) I don't see him playing much. Wouldn't be surprised if he's traded or released by June or July.

I can only identify (in addition to Doc, of course) Walter Johnson and Babe Ruth. Who's the third guy in the top row? He stands out because he, unlike the others, has a facial expression.

http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/2019/20190308_NYP_02.jpg> http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/2019/20190308_NSD_02.jpg> http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/2019/20190308_NYDN_02.jpg>

If you keep sharing these covers you're going to spoil all the fun!

Oops, forgot to mention Baseball Digest. Actually, we'll see 16 covers from them.

=batmagadanleadoff post_id=3956 time=1551994409 user_id=68]I own a ton of Met themed magazine covers that I'd bet you don't have and 'd be really impressed if you did.

From 2013: http://archives.thecranepool.net/19200/f1_t19209.shtmlTom Seaver vs. Lyme Disease

I should also add that we're including only weekly, monthly, or quarterly publications, but not the annual baseball preview issues that come out each spring. And we will only see covers from publications that are not exclusively devoted to the Mets. So no Street & Smith, etc. And no Mets Magazine or Mets Inside Pitch. There are more Sports Illustrated than anything else. KC has contributed some additional covers today, and there may be more to come, but at the moment SI will comprise 38 of 113 covers, and two others will be variants of SI.

Psyched for this. So is Shelby's daughter Daenerys! (She's the one on the right, soiled by fingerpaint.) Here's how it's going to work. There are (so far) 112 covers. We'll have 32 first-round polls, with each poll offering three or four covers. In the first round, we'll be able to vote for one cover. (Unlike in the Tabloid Cover Derby, where we can vote up to three times.) The 32 covers that advance will be ranked according to the percentage of the vote received and from there we'll have the typical single-elimination bracket. Some of the covers are well-known and iconic, like the one that Shelby is holding. Some are quirky. Some are surprising. There was one that I was almost sure was a gag cover that someone Photoshopped, but I verified that it was real. The winning cover won't be hanging in the lobby in Stockholm; MIDNIGHT BADNESS has been guaranteed twelve months in its prime spot behind the reception desk. But maybe, like last year's Yearbook Cover Derby winner, it will end up on Maja's shower curtain. Or maybe someone else's shower curtain. Maybe YOUR shower curtain! http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/yearbooks/showercurtain.jpg> We'll get started in a couple of weeks.

Tom Seaver makes a stealth appearance on Mannix in the fall of '74. http://i65.tinypic.com/2z820rd.jpghttp://i65.tinypic.com/2z820rd.jpg Speaking of that... COMING THIS SPRING: http://leaptoad.com/mets/covers/images/magazines/shelby_and_casey.png>

At least now we know how to pronounce his name, thanks to G-Fafif. Now if we could only get Gary Cohen to learn it.

=G-Fafif post_id=3782 time=1551736062 user_id=55] Rosario's x-ray negative.

They need to bring his mom to Port St. Lucie to cook for him. EDIT: Now the story is that it wasn't food poisoning, but a virus instead: https://www.si.com/mlb/2019/03/01/mets-brandon-nimmo-chicken-food-poisoning-virusIt Turns Out the Chicken Really Didn't Make Brandon Nimmo Sick

The two lists have 19 of 20 players in common. The differences are that the Schaefer list includes Ike Davis while the Rankings list has Jeurys Familia. The lists may diverge a bit more once the final season of the decade is complete. Cabrera is more vulnerable on the Schaefer list but Gee and Tejada, for example, are more secure. And yes, I do expect Schaefer to continue in 2019. Since it's almost completely automated, I might as well keep doing it despite the growing apathy.

1977 Lenny Randle!