G-Fafif

Yogi-isms.

Haven't heard anybody refer to it in ages, but the rule under which the infield is dragged at regular in-game intervals was dubbed the Murphy Drag, instituted at the behest of Mets general manager Johnny Murphy after the Astrodome infield became messy during the 24-inning game in 1968.

The three-way trade that sent Landis from the White Sox to the Kansas City A's prior to the 1965 season brought another defensively gifted center fielder to the South Side of Chicago: Tommie Agee. Three seasons later, Agee is a Met, and the season after that...well, you know. In the same deal, the White Sox received a 22-year-old lefty who'd compiled a 2-11 lifetime record in two seasons. Two Hundred Eighty-Six more wins and a pretty famous surgical procedure awaited young Tommy John over the next quarter-century.

Not exactly popular culture, since it falls within the realm of sports non-fiction, but in the NFL Network's most recent installment of A Football Life, which touchingly remembers the late Sam Mills, Ron Swoboda appears out of the blue and orange as a talking head. Mills was a New Orleans Saint and Rocky has gone on to a long career in sportscasting in New Orleans. He must be to generations of New Orleanians what Ralph Kiner is to us: an esteemed local voice who was famous for something somewhere else, we're pretty sure, but we know him for what we know him for first and foremost.

Takahashi was a capable closer, pressed into a new role when K-Rod went out for the year (injured after his suspension). Eight saves for a mediocre club otherwise going through the late-season motions, Would probably be the No. 2 starter on the 2017 Mets, too. Miss Rheingold got all the publicity, but Schaefer voting attracts some very attractive spokespeople.

Sewald did win with, by a considerable margin, the lowest total ever for a leading reliever. PREVIOUS WINNERS: 2006 - Billy Wagner, 40.39 points; 2007 - Aaron Heilman, 34.86; 2008 - Aaron Heilman, 34.50; 2009 - Francisco Rodriguez, 38.58; 2010 - Hisanori Takahashi 28.69; 2011 - Pedro Beato, 25.93; 2012 - Bobby Parnell, 29.01; 2013 - LaTroy Hawkins, 32.30; 2014 - Carlos Torres, 35.75; 2015 - Jeurys Familia, 35.85; 2016 - Jeurys Familia, 36.70. But how about the fact that Jacob deGrom was the only pitcher who finished in the Top Eleven? If Jacob deGrom didn't exist, the winner would have been Robert Gsellman, with nearly 55 fewer points than deGrom had! Pedro Beato's self-esteem has suddenly shot skyward. If Jacob deGrom hadn't existed, I might have preferred the 2017 Mets not doing so, either.

Based on cumulative voting totals reflecting positive contributions on a game-by-game basis, twenty-one non-relief pitching Mets were deemed better than any single Mets relief pitcher across an entire season. That might be the underlying story here. I do like that Sewald card, though.

[youtube:1gvmwdzm]G1Kw9dCZq7Q[/youtube:1gvmwdzm] When Houston versus New York in the middle of October stopped a city in its commuting tracks. Count all the retailers that no longer exist.

Congratulations Jake on a well-deserved Schaefer and thank you Ben for giving us more than one. Still fun to vote in game after game despite this having been one of the lamest Met years of the current century. I definitely did not have Paul Sewald winning the reliever award back in April. I'm a little surprised in that every time I paid attention to Sewald, he imploded like he was a latter-day Dale Murray, but he compiled just enough yeoman work and Terry Collins gave just enough days of rest to Blevins, apparently. Only four of the overall Top 10 were still playing in Mets games as the season wound down. Maybe attrition should have been the Player of the Year.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Thank you! And I don't know if this is what you meant, but I do think that this is the first month this year that none of the four cards had been reused from previous months (or years). That's what I meant. Fresh faces from a stale season. Most appreciated. While I'm glad to have seen Reyes eke out a win for old time's sake, I remain surprised Cabrera is 0-for-12 in all the months he's been such a solid Met.

What a wonderfully disheveled assortment of winners for the month when the Mets could barely keep it together. Love seeing a whole new batch of cards to send 2017 on its way. Ben Grimm, you're the Topps!

Benjamin Grimm wrote: And Sybil, of course, is Sybil Gooley. She worked at Ferguson's Market, didn't she? Yes, indeed.

Oh, Sybil, you know the way Archie is. I mean, he says he hates everybody. President Carter. Mayor Beame. Walter Cronkite. Bella Abzug. Mr. Abzug. The Mets, the Jets, all the United Nations. And they don’t get upset, so why should you? —Edith Bunker, All In The Family, “Edith’s 50th Birthday (Part One),” October 16, 1977

Chicago Tribune update, including lots of David Ross bashing Strasburg. Former Cubs catcher David Ross, said Tuesday night on ESPN's "Baseball Tonight," the original decision by Strasburg not to start makes “the whole organization look bad.” Ross called Strasburg’s ailment “the sniffles" in downplaying his sickness. “For me, as a teammate and the guy that I rely on, your guy, your No. 1 starter, says ‘I’ve got the sniffles and I can’t go?’” Ross said. “I’m like ‘What? They asked you to go. We gave you $175 million dollars, if I’m the manager of that team and I ask you to take the ball… “There’s not one dude that doesn’t want the ball in the playoffs. You want to know why the Washington Nationals can’t get over the hump? That tells tells me a lot about him. I don’t know about that clubhouse, but that tells me a lot about him if these reports are true.” Ross suggested Strasburg is a bad teammate. "If I’m his teammate and I walk in the clubhouse the next day, I can’t make eye contact with this dude,” Ross said. “This is as bad as it gets for me as a teammate.”

Unlike most of the rest of the Washington, the Nationals are capable of changing their minds: Strasburg now reportedly will start Game Four.

Mr. Baker says he's sticking with Roark, as Strasburg is under the crappy weather.

The series-ender was a classic, but hard to believe a 5-4 game that took nine innings needed 4:07 to conduct. By comparison, the Astros' predecessors in 1986 lost a series to the Mets in an afternoon game that took 16 innings, yet went only 35 minutes longer. Or, from a Red Sox point of view, Boston lost its divisional tiebreaker playoff by the same score in 1978 in 2:52.

The winner of this series will face the Dodgers, which isn't a scoop, but we didn't have a Dodgers-D'Backs thread, so it seemed worth acknowledging L.A. swept Arizona in their series.

Jim Landis, 83, celebrated defensive center fielder for the Chicago White Sox, member of their first pennant-winner in 40 years and their last for the next 46. An All-Century White Sock, and really stayed true to his team right to the end. The Sox said Landis died surrounded by family and friends in a room that featured bobbleheads and photos of teammates such as Nellie Fox, Billy Pierce and Moose Skowron.

Huzzah!

If the Mets are going to own the Syracuse franchise, call it the Syracuse Franchise.

Tony DeFrancesco's first win as a major league manager, with the Astros over the Mets in 2012, generated many congratulatory messages -- and a few "hang with 'em" calls to his opposite number.

Can't reveal the contents of my imaginary conversations with Met higher-ups, but I can suggest Bill Virdon knew the way to Flushing once upon a time and still very well might.

The Late Show with Stephen Colbert recently replaced MFYS III with Citi Field in its opening montage of NYC landmarks. Fair weather types they are not.

Tom Seaver is the best pitching prospect the Mets have ever signed. Tom has a 35-year-old head on top of a 21-year-old arm. Usually we get a 35-year-old arm attached to a 21-year-old head. —Solly Hemus after Seaver's first Jacksonville start, 1966