G-Fafif

One more coach…

Kevin Plawecki: not into TC anymore (if he ever was).

Mike Cameron fondly remembers his teammate. “He got me through my first year in New York. He was always so positive. I struggled the first half of that season, but he stayed with me and never let me get frustrated. He was a special guy. He would take care of you as a teammate and give you good advice where to go after a game or where not to go. It's hard to go out and just perform without a support system and he was one of those guys who provided it.” https://www.nj.com/yankees/2022/02/ex-mets-star-pays-his-respects-to-former-yankees-outfielder-gerald-williams.htmlhttps://www.nj.com/yankees/2022/02/ex-mets-star-pays-his-respects-to-former-yankees-outfielder-gerald-williams.html

Ken MacKenzie posted the Mets' only winning record in 1962 and, as demonstrated in the Hartford Courant, still knows the strike zone. The magazine was slipped across the kitchen table. Ken MacKenzie picked it up and stared at it smiling and chuckling. “We thought he was an old man,” MacKenzie said as craggy Casey Stengel stared back from the cover of the Sports Illustrated dated March 5, 1962. “Casey knew what was going on. There were no flies on Casey.” Great visit with an Original Met who plans on joining us for Old Timers Day. https://www.courant.com/sports/hc-sp-amore-column-mlb-1962-mets-ken-mackenzie-20220215-20220215-t6hborsqczgf7kymf7zhwgfv3q-story.htmlhttps://www.courant.com/sports/hc-sp-amore-column-mlb-1962-mets-ken-mackenzie-20220215-20220215-t6hborsqczgf7kymf7zhwgfv3q-story.html

Terry tells what he knows to Puma of the Post. Reached by phone, Harvey's manager for most of his Mets tenure, Terry Collins, was asked if he was surprised to hear the pitcher had admitted to cocaine usage. “The answer is, probably not,” Collins told The Post. “There was a testing program going on throughout Major League Baseball. We weren't allowed to do any of our own stuff. There were accusations that were being thrown around the clubhouse, for sure, but I had no proof of it at all. I can just tell you what guys were saying. “There was a time I addressed an off-the-field issue with one of the other guys on the team and his statement was, ‘Well, I'm not doing what Matt Harvey is doing.' I said, ‘This isn't about Matt Harvey, this is about you.' I tried to get off that subject as fast as I could. Was there knowledge in the clubhouse? Without question.” MLB's testing program at the time — it has been amended since Skaggs' death — did not test players for “drugs of abuse” (including cocaine) without reasonable cause that a player had used, sold or distributed such a drug in the previous 12-month period. Reasonable cause extended beyond rumors, and to be established needed eyewitness testimony or evidence. Harvey's tumultuous Mets tenure included a missed game, for which he was suspended, after a night of partying in 2017 and instances of reporting late to the ballpark. Harvey notably went AWOL from the Mets workout at Citi Field before the team traveled to Los Angeles for the NL Division Series in 2015. Sandy Alderson, the Mets general manager during most of Harvey's Mets tenure — he has since returned to the organization as team president — declined comment through a team spokesman as did GM Billy Eppler, who served in the same role for the Angels at the time of Skaggs' death. Former Mets COO Jeff Wilpon also declined comment. Collins said the Mets tried to address Harvey's rumored cocaine usage without accusing him of it. “Was there a time someone said, ‘Are you on something?' without naming anything? That was probably brought up,” Collins said. “But pretty much you addressed it as, ‘Look, you have got to clean up your off-the-field situation.' That was it.” Harvey was so despondent at times that he openly talked about killing himself, according to a source. Collins acknowledged Monday that Harvey's behavior was erratic enough to warrant counseling with the Mets' mental skills coach. “Certainly, that was addressed,” Collins said. “Again, it's Matt, and one time he talked about, ‘I should just kill myself.' That's kind of a common excuse. You try to deal with it the best you can. We certainly tried to get him help, get him some assistance.” https://nypost.com/2022/02/15/matt-harvey-talked-about-killing-himself-while-with-the-mets/https://nypost.com/2022/02/15/matt-harvey-talked-about-killing-himself-while-with-the-mets/

Ryan Zimmerman joins Adrian Gonzalez in retirement.

GO NUTS, SQUIRREL! would read JAKE'S LAST STAND or something similar if back pages had ESP. That game was deGrom's final start of 2021…not that the Daily News or any us had that scoop at the time. It also turned out to be Peraza's last signature swing as a Met.

Davidoff knew how to push buttons, for better and otherwise. His Ron Hunt in twilight profiles were beauties.

Boooooooooo….

Jeremy Giambi, 47. https://www.tmz.com/2022/02/09/ex-mlb-player-jeremy-giambi-dead-dies/https://www.tmz.com/2022/02/09/ex-mlb-player-jeremy-giambi-dead-dies/

G. Williams doubled to start the eleventh off K. Rogers and scored the deciding run on the final ball four, but I'm willing to forget about that for now.

Gather any three Mets on a Zoom for any or no reason every Tuesday afternoon into perpetuity and I'm tuning in.

Live press conference with Robin and Murph streaming now (Cliff TK). More names TBA later.

2004 and 2005 Met outfielder Gerald Williams has died at 55, from cancer, per The Players' Tribune.

The release… FLUSHING, N.Y., February 8, 2022 — The New York Mets today announced the team will host an Old Timers' Day Game prior to the Saturday, August 27 game vs. Colorado. The Old Timers' Day player introductions will begin at 5 p.m. ahead of the scheduled 7:10 p.m. game vs. the Rockies. Single game tickets are available on Mets.com/tickets. Gates will open at 4:10 p.m. “Bringing back Old Timers' Day was one of the most passionate requests I heard from our fans,” said Mets Chairman, CEO and Owner Steve Cohen. “As we celebrate our 60th Anniversary season, having these legendary players return to the ballpark to hear cheers from Mets fans once again is the perfect way to honor our past.” Frank Thomas, Ron Swoboda, Jon Matlack, Felix Millán, Mookie Wilson, Howard Johnson, Bobby Ojeda, Robin Ventura, Turk Wendell, Endy Chávez, Cliff Floyd and Daniel Murphy are among some of the over 40 players scheduled to attend. The Mets will be announcing additional former players who will be participating in the game in the coming months. Thomas, who led the original 1962 Mets with 34 home runs, is excited to return to Queens. “I plan on taking some BP before the game,” said Thomas, now 92. “I hit homers at the Polo Grounds and at Shea. I would love to hit one at Citi Field.” Ventura, who starred at third base from 1999–2001 for the Amazin's, will be among those participating. “Maybe we can recreate my Grand Slam Single,” laughed Ventura, referring to his memorable hit in Game Five of the 1999 NLCS vs. Atlanta. “Fans remember that hit more than if I had actually been credited with a grand slam.” Matlack, who was inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame in 2021, pitched for the Mets from 1971–1977. “Being back in the clubhouse with the guys will be great,” said Matlack. “But probably the thing I'm looking forward to the most is being able to see the Tom Seaver statue. Tom meant everything to my career. He was such a terrific teammate.” Murphy, who was the Most Valuable Player of the 2015 National League Championship Series and played with the Mets from 2008–2015, is thrilled to be back at Citi Field. “It will be great to put on a Mets uniform again,” said Murphy. “I'm sure when I hit the field my mind will be racing back to 2015. That was an incredibly special time.” The Mets last hosted an Old Timers' Day Game in 1994.

Did you guys hear Adrian Gonzalez retired?

In case you weren't certain if he was still active, Adrian Gonzalez has has announced his retirement. He last played in MLB in 2018, as a Met, but made a comeback with Guadalajara in the Mexican League last year.

Mets alumni relations still not extending to Jim Gosger. Gosger played 10 games with New York between Sept. 7 and Oct. 1 that year. But he didn't appear in the National League Championship Series or the World Series, which the Mets won. "So at the end of the year I get a check in the mail from my World Series share," Gosger said. "A hundred dollars. I said, 'What is this? A hundred dollars and I'm there for five weeks?' " Disgusted, he signed the check and sent it back. He wanted the championship ring. "That's what irritated me," Gosger said. "The fact that I played there and never got the ring." He was traded to the San Francisco Giants in late 1969 but never played a game with them. The Expos bought his contract early in the 1970 season. He spent two years in Montreal and was traded back to New York after the 1971 campaign. Gosger played two more seasons with the Mets from 1973-74. New York won the National League pennant in 1973 before falling to the Oakland Athletics (his old team) in the World Series. Gosger was rewarded for his efforts this time and received the National League championship ring. He retired after the Mets released him following the 1974 season. But it wouldn't be his last brush with the club. In 2019, the organization welcomed back the 1969 team to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its championship. The Mets paid tribute to those on the team who had died. Gosger's name and photo appeared on the video board at Citi Field during that segment. "So then they have this reunion, and they declare me dead," Gosger said. "I'm thinking, 'What the hell is going on?' So I had a bunch of people on Facebook that contacted me and said, 'Jim, that's a mistake.' I said, 'I think so. I feel alive.' " He got a call from the Mets later that night. A representative apologized and tried to explain the mishap. Gosger hung up. "I said, 'I don't want to talk to you.' " He eventually called the Mets and told them he'd like to purchase the ring. They estimated that it would cost around $5,000. That was the end of that conversation. His friends even sent the team a petition with 600 signatures in an effort to get the ring. "Nothing has ever come of it," Gosger said. https://www.thetimesherald.com/story/sports/2022/02/02/port-huron-native-jim-gosger-reflects-unique-mlb-career/9251636002https://www.thetimesherald.com/story/sports/2022/02/02/port-huron-native-jim-gosger-reflects-unique-mlb-career/9251636002

Carl Everett is an interesting editorial choice. Chills-generating grand slam, to be sure.

Steve Henderson was my gaping void, especially knowing his signature home run exists in clean footage featured in the Shea Goodbye documentary.

The Mets: Not always the whitest kids u' know. [media=youtube]RcV8genml0s[/media]

Not all the time, just when merited.