G-Fafif

One inning in, no score between the Dinos and Lions. Piped-in noise compensating for total lack of fans and it's only kind of bizarre. Players in game are unmasked but other personnel take precautions. Aaron Altherr sighting.

Just got this release: ESPN today announced it has reached an agreement with Eclat Media Group regarding the KBO League – South Korea's most popular sports league – to exclusively televise six, live regular-season games per week in the U.S. starting with Opening Day – NC Dinos vs. Samsung Lions – on Tuesday, May 5, at 1 a.m. ET / Monday, May 4, at 10 p.m. PT. One game will air each day, Tuesday through Sunday, generally on ESPN2 and on the ESPN App. The telecasts will air Tuesdays-Fridays at 5:30 a.m. ET, Saturdays at 4 a.m. ET and Sundays at 1 a.m. ET. The Lions vs. Dinos Opening Day telecast will air on ESPN, following SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt. As part of the agreement, ESPN will become the exclusive English-language home for KBO League live games and highlights for the 2020 season. The deal includes the postseason and the Korea Series best-of-seven championship. ESPN's game selections will be made and announced on a week-to-week basis during the season. The telecast schedule and ESPN platform is subject to change pending future live event considerations. Burke Magnus, ESPN executive vice president, programming: “We're thrilled to become the exclusive English-language home to the KBO League and to showcase its compelling action and high-level of competition. We have a longstanding history of documenting the game of baseball and we're excited to deliver these live events to sports fans.” ESPN play-by-play voices, analysts and reporters will provide commentary in English, remotely, from their home studios. ESPN baseball commentators contributing to KBO League coverage include Karl Ravech, Jon Sciambi, Eduardo Perez, Jessica Mendoza and Kyle Peterson. The team of Ravech and Perez will call the Lions vs. Dinos season-opener, as well as the May 6 and May 7 games. This reminds me of the 1978 newspaper strike when the Philadelphia Inquirer suddenly began showing up in New York and you were damn glad to pick up anything that resembled what you were used to.

Matt Keough, A's pitcher in the early '80s, 64.

I thought No One was gonna pull it out.

And he takes what would loomed as Rodney McCray's other plate appearance with him. A deep dive into something that happened yet officially didn't happen. http://www.faithandfearinflushing.com/2020/04/29/stolen-plate-appearance/http://www.faithandfearinflushing.com/2020/04/29/stolen-plate-appearance/ Only on the 1992 New York Mets, kids.

Players regularly grabbed other players' helmets in ASGs. As long as the jersey said “Mets,” I chalked it up to cheekiness. They talked about expanded all-star rosters in ‘81 and a first pass had Kingman and Allen making the team. Then it was routine size and just Youngblood. I remember being excited to see him hit and distraught to watch him pop up. (That could describe my reaction to most Mets at-bats.)

Latest plan/scheme: three ten-team divisions, empty home parks, start by July 2, 100-110 games, lollipops and rainbows. https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nightengale/2020/04/28/mlb-optimistic-about-starting-season-late-june/3039275001/https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nightengale/2020/04/28/mlb-optimistic-about-starting-season-late-june/3039275001/

Profile of presidential hatchet gal includes mention of her ex-Met hubby. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/27/us/politics/kayleigh-mcenany-trump-coronavirus.htmlhttps://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/27/us/politics/kayleigh-mcenany-trump-coronavirus.html In 2017 Ms. McEnany married Sean Gilmartin, a baseball pitcher currently in the minor leagues as part of the Tampa Bay Rays organization.

The “Seaver” documentary reairs on MLB Network tonight (Monday 4/27) at 7 PM ET and early morning (Tuesday 4/28) at 5 AM ET. View/record accordingly.

Darryl's OD HRs came in 1984, 1987 and 1988 (2). The April 17, 1985, TWIB led with the Mets first-weekend sweep of the Reds, predicting more big things for Bruce Berenyi. Mrs. Fafif noticed Berenyi and rookie reliever Roger McDowell have since had their numbers retired.

Homered as Mets at age 42 or over, according to Jayson Stark's revisit of Bartolo's homer in the Athletic.

April 1985! August 1986! High probability of prime Mets content. Friday evening's “TWIB” featured the 1984 Mets in the Traditional Opener at Cincy. Darryl stole a homer at the wall and launched one himself. Otherwise it was Red and whoopass all over, Mike Torrez getting rocked like a hurricane.

Edgy MD wrote: Gotta get the Mets the fuck off CBS-AM, right? [...] I'm sorry. I've been without baseball too long and I'm confusing them with the WOR interregnum, with commercials for Glenn Beck in between innings. Mark Simone promos and shit. I've never seen the Mets respond to a problem so quickly.

Bart Johnson, White Sox pitcher who appeared in every pack of baseball cards in the 1970s, 70. https://chicago.suntimes.com/white-sox/2020/4/23/21233802/former-white-sox-pitcher-and-scout-bart-johnson-dieshttps://chicago.suntimes.com/white-sox/2020/4/23/21233802/former-white-sox-pitcher-and-scout-bart-johnson-dies

Joe Posnanski profiled Dalkowski last month as part of his Favorite Players series. All 16 big-league teams made a pitch to him. Dalkowski ended up signing with Baltimore after scout Beauty McGowan gave him a $4,000 signing bonus, the largest allowed at the time. Yes, it's true that the other 15 teams probably also offered him the maximum bonus, but I'm not sure how many of the others paid him 12 grand under the table and bought him a new car. Anyway, that's how the story went. Whatever the Orioles paid, they undoubtedly would have paid more. An arm like that comes along once a century — maybe not even that often. “Steve is faster than any pitcher I've ever seen,” former big leaguer Billy DeMars said, “and I played against Bob Feller and Rex Barney.” The pitch was an absurdity. It's not like Dalkowski was some giant. He was a sturdy 5-foot-11, weighed 175 pounds or so, but there was something about his arm action, something about his wrist action, the baseball just jumped to light speed when it left his hand. And he had no earthly idea where it was going. Oh, he had a decent sense of the width of the plate. Of course, he wasn't exactly going to pitch to corners, but in general, his problem was not longitude. He could get somewhat over the plate. But how far over? Well, that was a problem. The Orioles would tell him to aim for the dirt in front of the plate, he'd throw the pitch nine feet over the catcher's head. There was some thought among the Orioles coaches that he simply put too much backspin on the ball and that made it rise beyond his ability to control it. https://theathletic.com/1711134/2020/03/31/favorite-players-steve-dalkowski/?source=user_shared_articlehttps://theathletic.com/1711134/2020/03/31/favorite-players-steve-dalkowski/?source=user_shared_article

Steve Dalkowski, the Orioles minor leaguer with the legendary stuff who never pitched in the majors, 80. From complications related to COVID-19.

Robinson was also the Rangers GM who sent the Mets Ron Darling and Walt Terrell for Lee Mazzilli.

Al Ferrara was on with Howie. Eighty and sounds great. Called Seaver cocky.

WFAN is rebroadcasting the game tonight. Howie with the pregame at 6:30 ET.

An enterprising story exploring one of the great underknown performances in Mets history: Rob Gardner's 15 scoreless innings in service to an 18-inning tie that needed to be replayed as part of a doubleheader the next day, the final day of the 1965 season. https://au.sports.yahoo.com/youve-probably-never-heard-the-story-of-the-best-pitching-performance-in-mets-history-184309965.htmlhttps://au.sports.yahoo.com/youve-probably-never-heard-the-story-of-the-best-pitching-performance-in-mets-history-184309965.html Features young and always fascinating Ron Swoboda.

The halftime shows are gonna be lit.

Bob Oliver, 77, 1B-OF for five teams from 1965-1975 and father of 2006 Met Darren.

Ann Mulvey Branca, widow of Ralph Branca, mother-in-law of Bobby Valentine. Her name often comes up in retelling of the aftermath of the Shot Heard 'Round the World, as Ralph and Ann were preparing to marry after the World Series.

Seven years ago tonight, batmags and I were among those who witnessed Harvey being Better than Stephen Strasburg and Citi Field being livelier than it had ever been without an obvious cue. There was no prompt on the scoreboard. There were no t-shirts distributed ahead of time. There was no social network behind it. There was just a chant rising from the seats, the seats that were being occupied for baseball instead of abandoned in search of Shack Burgers and frozen cocktails. It was the first sign that Citi Field, then early in its fifth season, could carry on where Shea left off. A great night despite the hindsight that tells us the great pitcher didn't have the career ahead of him we all would have vouched for on our way out. Relive it http://www.faithandfearinflushing.com/2013/04/20/it-feels-like-the-very-first-time/here if you care to.

This week's episodes, from June and August of 1983, have featured: —A salute to Bill Buckner and his defense —Rusty Staub pinch-singling in Bob Bailor for a game-winner while maintaining his shirt —The Mets on an 11-3 tear (Tom Seaver gains his first win in a month; career W 271) Reairing the June ep at 7 AM ET Sunday on FS1.