G-Fafif

G-Fafif wrote: Benjamin Grimm wrote: Would it be tacky or respectful to have him lie in state in the Citi Field rotunda? If it's a respectful thing, he certainly deserves it, but I'm afraid it probably falls more on the side of tacky. Fitting in the scheme of baseball history, but given that he died in Florida (I don't know where his final resting place will be), the logistics might be tricky. Rusty arranged to be buried in France, per his brother.

La Grande Victoire.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Would it be tacky or respectful to have him lie in state in the Citi Field rotunda? If it's a respectful thing, he certainly deserves it, but I'm afraid it probably falls more on the side of tacky. Fitting in the scheme of baseball history, but given that he died in Florida (I don't know where his final resting place will be), the logistics might be tricky.

I'm impressed they got Jake in his new 'do.

It's too early on the calendar for Opening Day and about time already.

Only one Rusty Staub.

Sad, sad news to open the season with. From Bill Madden in the Daily News: In every way, Rusty Staub, the beloved Mets' hitting icon, who passed away early Thursday morning at age 73, was bigger than life — a bigger-than-life baseball personality, humanitarian, gourmet chef, wine connoisseur, friend-to-all and, to the fans of Montreal, quite simply, "Le Grand Orange." The hulking 6-2 Staub, whose post-retirement weight fluctuated from 250-300 pounds, had battled a number of health issues in recent years, including a near-fatal heart attack, October 2, 2015, on a plane flight from Ireland to New York. He reportedly became woozy while playing golf near his Palm Beach Gardens, Fl. home in late January and was later discovered to be suffering from cellulitis, which evolved into a blood infection that resulted in a shutdown of his kidneys. Staub died at 12:30 a.m. Thursday at the Good Samaritan Medical Center in Palm Beach, Florida, due to multiple organ failure. He was initially admitted with pneumonia, dehydration and an infection and spent the last eight weeks in the hospital. He would have turned 74 on Sunday. Staub’s legacy is immense, and will be immediately felt at Citi Field where the Mets open their season Thursday afternoon.

Just noticing for the first time that offseason additions Hampton, Zeile and Bell are integrated among the 1999 heroes. It was prior to 9/11/01, so I feel comfortable using that word for baseball players. 2000 reflecting the achievements of 1999 was the strong suit of that year's marketing. Kind of weird seeing Derek Bell's Spring Training cap adjacent to the Grand Slam Single being celebrated. But anything that invokes the successes of 1999 so strongly is going to be wonderful to stare at for a while. I hated the 1979 cover when it appeared. It was a give-up signaling a season of giving up. I sort of appreciate the accidental beauty of it four decades removed from the emotions, but I can't escape the 1979ness of it all. 2000 for the win.

Pitcher batting eighth, speedster batting ninth, slugger batting second, Asdrubal the cleanup man. Mickey Callaway inspired by Step Brothers: We're here to fuck shit up.

83-79, second place, not good enough for anything of a postseason nature, but maybe something to build on.

Coincidence City: I had lunch today with a gentleman whose father's company was responsible for printing the Mets yearbooks during the latter half of their first quarter-century or so. Had several swell stories related to being a kid who occasionally got to meet players and see things in shall we say the classic era of Mets baseball (which is to say when he and I and a number of you were young).

The fireworks are striking. I would have made it the entire 1991 cover. Somebody must have decided, "We need to remind fans how good our players are." An unnecessary augmentation. The 1989 cover was boring then and it's boring now. I don't think I noticed in 1989 that The Big Four were the stars of the show. I might have appreciated it a little more then. I appreciate it now, in a way, though I think I was disappointed in real time that they couldn't bring themselves to celebrate the 1988 division flag. A vote for 1991, ten minutes before the franchise fell off a cliff.

Bartolo's gonna pitch for the Rangers after all. Reportedly one start and we'll see...but we'll see.

MFS62 wrote: I handled the 1963 yearbook in the Polo Grounds, too. /adds touching MFS62's 1963 yearbook to bucket list

This is a battle for the ages. Or a battle of the ages. I imagine that had the 2017 yearbook caught me while impressionable, it would have made a greater impression upon purchase. I scooped it up last Opening Day, gave it a couple of leaf-throughs and more or less forgot about it. Before this competition, I couldn't have described from memory the 2017 cover. By late April of 2017, I couldn't have described it from memory, either. Now that I'm compelled to examine the cover closely, I'm reasonably impressed. Last year's glance didn't do justice to the "we've got your backs/you've got our backs" concept, which is pretty strong. I appreciate that Wright lives on as central to Mets fan allegiance and that somebody's old black Reyes jersey made the cut (nobody would go to the plate more in 2017 than Jose). Inevitably my eye is drawn to the one instantly recognizable image, Asdrubal Cabrera raising his arms in victory after hitting one of the most momentous home runs in recent Mets history. To consign it to one box among many doesn't indicate how important it was to the fortunes of the 2016 Wild Card New York Mets. Those Mets probably didn't go far enough to merit this comparison, but to me it's a bit like making Bobby Thomson's Shot Heard Round the World one of many among a collage of Giants Who Helped Win The Pennant (Win The Pennant). I love a good collage, but if you have a strong central image that tells your story in one blast, I'd love to see it. Had the 2007 yearbook, for example, been graced simply by Endy making his catch (yeah, I know, they lost the game) or, theoretically had he not been traded, the 1981 yearbook been focused on Steve Henderson crossing home plate the previous June 14, I'd count those as aesthetic and journalistic successes. So Asdrubal leaves me wanting more and bigger Asdrubal, inadvertently making me less thrilled to notice Neil Walker accepting high-fives (though kudos for a picture capturing the 1986 throwbacks in 2016). The 1963 cover doesn't lack for a strong central image. It certainly conveys a simpler time, and the debut of Mr. Met definitely rates as a historic moment in the history of the franchise. I wonder who they considered their yearbook audience in 1963, given the kid-friendly cover. They always used illustrations in the '60s, but the Mullins were clever and knowing, portraits adults could get a kick out of. In a way this was forward-looking, as the Mets did seem marketing-conscious the way they began sticking Mr. Met on things, including the 45 for "Meet the Mets". Anecdotally, I have detected, among those whose were youths (or yutes) in 1963, a specific fondness for that Mets season, distinct from 1962. Maybe they really were saying "Metsie, Metsie, Metsie," and somehow Mr. Met on the front of the yearbook nudged them along. A very good friend gave me a copy of the 1963 yearbook in 2010, and both the act of generosity and the authenticity of the item ("holy crap, this was handled by somebody inside the Polo Grounds") blew me away. Hard not to give it an extra point for sentimentality. While I'd love to swear I'm judging each entry on its own merits within the vacuum of design, I'm reminded of what the crooked judge in The Verdict instructed the jury when it heard testimony he didn't want expressed: “Her entire testimony must be stricken from the record. You shouldn’t have heard it, but you did. Now, that was my mistake...and you must strike it from your minds, give it no weight.” It didn't work in the movie, and it won't necessarily work here. That said, I also think I will need corrective surgery for all the leaning I do toward my sentimental/nostalgic impulses in this competition, thus I'm going to try to straighten out my balance just a tad and surprise myself (in light of how instinctively I tend to dismiss the Mets' modern efforts) with a vote for 2017. A good look at what it seemed to be trying to accomplish won me over.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Our most lopsided poll so far, and one that has the potential to be unanimous. (1970 has all 12 votes at this point.) I looked up the 2010 Mets, and that last photo in the lower left may be... Jesus Feliciano? If Jesus Feliciano was expected to be the tenth most prominent Met in 2010, they probably should have just put nine photos on the cover. That was Jeff Francoeur.

2010 looks like a brochure. In fact, the cover was the same used for season ticket sales material and other stuff. Not an inspiring tableau, though points for capturing a blip when Jeff Francoeur and Oliver Perez were considered marketable. I gladly handed over 15 or so bucks to get a copy of the 1970 yearbook in a card store in the early 2000s. I wanted it more than 1969 (which I still don't have) because it was a look back on the most miraculous feat ever, as opposed to the limited achievements of 1968 serving as the base point of reference. As such, I was a wee bit disappointed that the Mets didn't truly scream WORLD CHAMPIONS from this most obvious perch. Then again, if you watch the 1969 highlight film, it almost takes winning the World Series in stride, featuring it right there with Borden Night. To be fair, it's not like the Mets Department of Yearbooks & Other Vital Organs had experience reflecting on outsize success. No doubt the cover captures the ebullience all felt in 1969. Reviewing it now makes me give a slight pass to the marauders who took the field in 1973 and 1986 because it was in our DNA to storm from the stands. The Mets sanctioned it. It was what we did...or so you'd be convinced from the 1970 yearbook. An easy choice where the vote is concerned. Sorry, 2010. You had an impossible task.

The Mets have picked up lefty reliever Fernando Abad, recently released by the Phillies, on a minor league deal.

I don't remember when the broadcasts stopped advertising the yearbook, particularly the opportunity to send a check or money order for a dollar-fifty (including postage and handling) to Shea Stadium, Flushing, N.Y. 11368 (which I did to obtain my first). Bob, Ralph and Lindsey showing it and talking it up made every edition -- with its suitable for framing team picture -- a must have for every baseball library. I doubt I would have made a beeline every year for the concession to get one had I not been so expertly primed to part with my 75 cents or dollar or whatever it rose to as time went by. Though I've dutifully laid down my cash for one every year of my sentient game-going life, they now feel part curio from another age, part orphaned from the entire Met experience. The announcers don't mention them. I don't believe there's any real push to sell them via PA. Like so much of what we are ingrained to look for as baseball fans, the yearbook is one of those things you wouldn't necessarily invent today if it hadn't been invented already.

Carlos Torres cut by Cleveland.

I retain a soft spot for the 1977 cover. I bought it on the first trip I ever took to Shea that didn't include adult (or at least older-sibling) supervision. It did seem very up to date, and I was pro-Torre throughout Joe's Mets tenure, despite my misgivings when the manager is sold as the star attraction. Then again, post-June 15, who were you going to feature -- M. Donald Grant? The 2002 cover gets my vote, however, because I'm always amazed when the Mets manage to skillfully communicate the breadth of their history, which I think they did here. Whatever quibbles one might have with which picture goes where, they managed to tell their story well in a few photos and make it click with their contemporary situation. It was fortunate that Piazza and Valentine had just been at the head of the third successful era in Mets history so they didn't have to pretend somebody they recently let go hadn't existed. A year later, the same concept would not have worked so well had Art Howe been positioned as an essential element to be celebrated in this context. The cover hits all the high notes: origins, championships and The Franchise. (The media guide had a similar design, one of those times when the unified look paid off across publications.)

Mex17 wrote: G-Fafif wrote: RHP Zack Wheeler demoted on March 24. There goes that rotation everybody's been sort of dreaming about a little, maybe. I'm guessing this means that Evans makes the team. Lugo will be "in the rotation" but my guess is not really due to the normal preponderance of off days in early April. Unless Conforto has surged into consideration, it appears Evans will jump on in. If Michael doesn't, he starts the season DL'd along with Wright, Rivera, Vargas and Montero.

Braves release Scott Kazmir, beset by arm fatigue.

RHP Zack Wheeler demoted on March 24. There goes that rotation everybody's been sort of dreaming about a little, maybe.

September 2014 Met callups Erik Goeddel (let go by the Rangers) and Dario Alvarez (let go by the Cubs) have reunited as Mariners. The unchoosy Diamondbacks have selected the contract of Fernando Salas. The Rangers gave up on Jon Niese. Texas also cut Bartolo Colon but are reportedly negotiating to send him to Triple A where he can stand by for more pitching. The Phillies released Frankie Rodriguez and sent down Collin Cowgill and Pedro Beato.