G-Fafif

The 15-23 New York Mets begin a series against the 17-23 Chicago Cubs Friday afternoon at 2:20, continuing Saturday at 1:05 and Sunday at 2:20. Three day games at Wrigley. Three chances to hear about ivy, about Ernie, about billy goats and Steve Bartman, about how hard it is to play day games, how great it is to have dinner at a reasonable hour. One of the joys of the schedule is knowing you�ll get these constants annually � though when we were in the same division, it wasn�t treated as a novelty...which may be why one of the irritants of the schedule is having just listened to the St. Louis version of the same thing, which boiled down to the Cardinals are wonderful. Don�t have to worry about that with these Cubs. It doesn�t fit reality or the narrative. Cubs ownership is making noises about leaving their ivy-covered burial ground (h/t Steve Goodman) unless their pockets get filled some more. Cubs haven�t won a world championship in 78 years more than the Mets haven�t yet they keep drawing people to Wrigley, so shut up with the threats, greedy bastards. You�re not going anywhere. Who�s good on the 2013 Cubs? First baseman Anthony Rizzo is hitting plenty and getting paid tons. Left fielder Alfonso Soriano is getting paid tons and hitting lately. Center fielder David DeJesus and shortstop Starlin Castro are getting their offensive act together. Former competent Met outfielder/superb pinch-hitter Scott Hairston is a total bust thus far, but he kind of sucked early in his Met tenure, so give him time. Second baseman Darwin Barney is struggling well below .200, or way above Ike Davis. The closer is Kevin Gregg, erstwhile Marlin bad penny off whom Carlos Beltran hit a huge home run in 2008. Carlos Marmol continues to lurk and get paid for doing so. Pitching matchups and The Happiest Recap episodes that serve as their potential precedent: Friday: Matt Harvey (4-0, 1.44, cover of Sports Illustrated) vs. whoever � technically righty Edwin Jackson, who was part of a division winner last year and once pitched a no-hitter. He�s 1-5, has an ERA of 6.02 and, like the rest of humanity, is no Matt Harvey. One possible outcome: Harvey handcuffs the Cubs on a one-hit complete game shutout as Gary Gentry did at Wrigley on May 13, 1970 (and the Mets actually score a run for Matt). Gentry carried a no-no into the eighth that Wednesday, the first meeting between the 1969 rivals. With two outs, Ernie Banks looped a fly ball into left. Dave Marshall got the tip of his glove on it (he must have transported himself to the future and borrowed it from Jonathon Niese) but couldn�t come up with it. Ruled a base hit, damn it. Gentry comes away a 4-0 winner on the fifth one-hitter in Mets history. Gosh, such great pitching on this team � Gentry, Seaver and Koosman would throw consecutive shutouts in the three-game span this gem kicked off � yet no Mets no-hitter as of 1970. One of these days, for sure! Saturday: Jeremy Hefner (0-4, 4.61, with a voice that�s always cracking in interviews as if he�s decided the Mets� 0-8 record in his starts is attributable to his having sinned against his Lord) vs. righty Scott Feldman (3-3, 2.53). One possible outcome: Hefner and Feldman are long gone in a tie game, as Terry Collins and Dale Sveum overwork their bullpens because that�s what ya do these days. It�s 3-3 in the tenth but then the Mets and Cubs re-enact the eleventh inning of their wild Wrigley Saturday afternoon of June 30, 1979: The Mets put up six in the top of the frame, fueled by a pair of two-run home runs and burnished by a two-run triple (the 34-year-old dingers were struck by Youngblood and Mazzilli, the three-bagger by Hendu). Comfortably ahead by six, Collins calls on Greg Burke just as Joe Torre called on Dale Murray. Murray, for whom my personal nickname that summer of Rocky II was �the master of disaster,� gave up a run-scoring single to Bill Buckner � good bat, shaky glove � and, eventually, a grand slam to ex-Met sensation Mike Vail. With help from Ed Glynn, the Mets hung on, 9-8, able to modestly enjoy the fact that they and the Cubs set a record for most combined runs scored � eleven � in any eleventh inning every played. This time? Hairston will pull the Cubs to within a run by slamming Anthony Recker (Collins took out Burke), but former Cub and current spokesman for baseball decorum LaTroy Hawkins will quell the uprising at last and give the Mets their hot mess of a win. Sunday: Dillon Gee (2-5, 6.13, last seen tweeting good thoughts about tornadoes and his fellow Texans, so I won�t mention how absolutely horrible he�s been) vs. lefty Travis Wood (4-2, 2.03), who beat the Mets twice in the span of two weeks last season. One possible outcome: With the wind blowing out, Gee and Wood last as many innings as they have syllables in their last names, and suddenly there is a harmonic convergence of runners across home plate, as was the case between the Mets and Cubs on Sunday, August 16, 1987, when the Mets gave up 10 runs, but nobody noticed because the Cubs gave up a Met-record 23. Back then, we scored three in the first, were up 4-0 in the third and ahead 7-0 in the fourth. And then it got really good. Before it was over, Strawberry scored five and drove in five; Dykstra batted seven times and collected four hits; Hernandez posted three hits and three runs; starting pitcher Darling scored twice; seven different Mets accumulated at least two RBIs; and Jeff Innis pinch-hit. Twenty-three runs is still the one-game Met record...until this Sunday when Ike busts out in a historic way. Let�s call it 24-9, Mets. And Valdespin will get plunked for hurting Marmol�s feelings when he performs an Olympics-quality somersault after his third triple of the day. Or new history will be made, which would be OK, too, provided it�s the right kind of history. Let's Go Mets! Eat it, Durocher, wherever you are.

Niese 3.5 Murphy 3.0 Wright 1.0 Parnell 0.5 Lyons 0.5 Buck 0.5 Duda 0.5 Valdespin 0.5

Jordany Valdespin � RF Daniel Murphy � 2B David Wright � 3B Ike Davis � 1B Lucas Duda � LF John Buck � C Rick Ankiel � CF Ruben Tejada � SS Jonathon Niese � LHP Wainwright instructed by Collins to plunk Valdespin, lest he get too comfortable. Also, it will give the Mets a leadoff baserunner.

Nady went to Pittsburgh after the midnight ride of Duaner Sanchez, July 31.

Speaking up once more for Lastings Milledge who showed off his gun from opposite corners in impressive fashion before his MLB career was much more than a week old. From : Milledge, who in the second inning misread Johnny Estrada's liner and let it bounce off his glove for an error, sparkled when given another chance. With one out and Craig Counsell on first base, Chad Tracy grounded a single to right field. Milledge fielded the ball and, in one beautifully effortless motion, threw a laser on the fly to third baseman David Wright that beat Counsell by two steps. The fickle crowd, which booed his earlier error, gave him a lengthy standing ovation, and Mart�nez, Valent�n and Wright waited near first base to applaud him. "The whole time the ball was coming, I knew that, if that guy goes, I was going to get him," Milledge said. From June 7, 2006: Milledge hit a two-out, two-run homer off Jae Seo in the seventh to give the Mets a 9-6 lead. Then, Nomar Garciaparra hit a liner down the left field line to open the eighth against Duaner Sanchez, but was thrown out by Milledge trying to stretch the hit into a double. Pinch-hitter Andre Ethier hit a two-out, RBI double later in the inning before Sanchez struck out pinch-hitter Olmedo Saenz to end the inning. Billy Wagner, the Mets' fifth pitcher, worked a 1-2-3 ninth for his 12th save. "You don't know how a young guy is going to do," Mets manager Willie Randolph said of the 21-year-old Milledge, who was playing in his eighth big league game. "It's nice to see the kid help us out. Big, tremendous home run; a great throw. He's making a nice case for himself." Milledge was brought up from the minors last week when Xavier Nady underwent an appendectomy.

Marcum 3.0 Ankiel 2.0

Even worse than this campaign succeeding would be Georgia Roddy putting the Laynce Nix on it by saying, no, Mo's too valuable, we can't upset his routine. I was noticing lately that my anti-MFY bile is at an all-time low, partly because I'm too disgusted by my own team, partly because there's something generically appealing about their castoffs coalescing into a contender. But bile returns with this nonsense. Ptui!

L Marcum's The Spot Or, alternately, eL Shaun.

Well, Jordany's vagina was already mutilated during spring training, so at least Terry didn't have to worry about that. Oh, for this to be slipped to Francesa so he could state it as fact at 5:05 this afternoon.

Just rewatched the HR, which in real time I didn't think was that big a deal in terms of Valdy doing his usual thing because so many players in baseball don't run out of the box when they think they've gone deep. And now that I've seen it again...I still don't see what was so gol'dang unusual about it. Yeah, a little extra mustard, a disturbing trend, call Phil Mushnick, whatever. But did he high-five himself? Dance a jig? They were losing by a bunch...they're always losing by a bunch. I was there Saturday saw him get hit, took me a moment to realize what the "purpose" was...gads, big league ballplayers are touchy. Fuck the Pirates mostly. They're offended they had to wait an extra 30 second to get to the postgame spread? Take it out on Contreras. Collins shouldn't be in trouble over his remarks. He should be in trouble because the Mets are 42-71 in their last 113.

Byrd 2.0 Murphy 1.5

Edgy MD wrote: Interestingly, six months later, the Mets traded a top draft choice of their own --- 1983's #4 overall Eddie Williams --- for Bruce Berenyi, and nary a peep of protest was sounded if I remember right. Jay Tibbs wnet in that deal too. Not everything Cashen touched turned to gold back then. Sure felt that way for a bit, though. Heep for Scott was golden until it wasn't.

Kazmir trade practically prehistoric times by now. Not that a hasty prospect trade can't be made now but that one felt like a tipping point not just for Mets but for how top draft picks are valued. Or maybe Mets were just super drunk that day. Milledge at least got significant MLB exposure.

I contend Bailor-for-Fernandez trade could never happen today. Too much sophistication in scouting, too much scrutiny within industry. Less quality control in those days, so a Lasorda who could just decide young El Sid was too large or whatever would be overruled. Loved Bailor and rued his absence for years on end but geez, what a heist.

I'm glad McEwing finished his tour of Met duty before his limited effectiveness became minute-to-minute fodder for those who would notice and slice it to bits because, gosh darn it, he's such a mensch. Joe McEwing is no stranger to ballgames in Queens, even though the super sub has not played a game as a Met since 2004. He quietly sat in the stands behind home plate for a game late in the 2008 season, just so he could pay his respects to Shea Stadium in its final days. "I needed to," McEwing, now third base coach for the White Sox, said about seeing Shea one last time. "It's such a historic place -- in my heart anyway. I needed to see it before they knocked it down. I brought my son back to let him know that's where daddy played and it's not going to be here any longer." He then came back to Flushing the following September, after managing Class A Winston-Salem in the Chicago White Sox organization, in order to check out Citi Field. He also attended the 10th anniversary ceremony remembering the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, which also brought Robin Ventura to Citi Field. "I snuck in the first year in September, and it was really disappointing, because they were on the verge of losing 100 games and I heard no booing," McEwing recalled about his 2009 visit. "I wasn't used to that. ... We'll see how the atmosphere is during the game [tonight]. I kind of miss that Shea feeling. The booing is what motivates you and makes you strive to be the best player you can be every single day. As a player, you should want that." What does McEwing most fondly remember about his Mets career, which spanned 2000 through 2004? "You hate to pinpoint one," McEwing said. "Obviously fulfilling your childhood dreams, and that's competing in the World Series, being able to play against the Yankees. You figure the whole world is focused on one city. For that to happen, it's pretty special. And the biggest thing for me is being part of the relief efforts after 9/11. That holds the biggest impact, because it had nothing to do with this game. It was us as a ballclub contributing to the city of New York and the country. That really sticks out and means a lot to me as an individual. To be able to take the pressures and everything off a lot of individuals for a couple of hours a night, to give peace and happiness and something positive to cheer for." McEwing was David Wright's first mentor in major league camp. In fact, Wright's first spring training he ate dinner at McEwing's apartment every night during camp. Wright surprised McEwing and attended a ceremony today in Manhattan in which McEwing was inducted into the Irish American Baseball Hall of Fame. "David was easy," McEwing said. "David is a special kid and special person and a good friend. Every rookie that comes up, you just try to guide them the right way to go about things. It wasn't hard to guide David the right way. He has outstanding core values."

Let's?

The top four were all Blue Jays at one point or another. Fleet birds!

Rubin with deeper comments here. Terry Collins became agitated with continued questions about Jordany Valdespin getting plunked Saturday. That was especially evident when the manager was asked pregame Tuesday about whether the Mets hung Valdespin �out to dry� by pinch-hitting him when there was a reasonable suspicion �Spin would be hit with a pitch. �I don�t answer to fans. They don�t play this game,� Collins said. �They have no idea what goes on. They have no idea what goes on in there. They have absolutely no idea what it means to be a professional teammate at this level. � I�ll tell you one thing: Jordany knew they were going to throw at him. He knew it. And you�ve got to go take your medicine. That�s part of being a big guy in this league.� Asked a follow-up question about the perception of the incident as the Mets not defending Valdespin, Collins cut off the question. �I don�t care what the perception is,� the manager said. �All I know is what goes on here. I�ve been doing this for 42 years. I don�t care what anybody on the outside thinks. I know how to get it done in the clubhouse. I�ve been doing it a lot longer than a lot of people. He�s fine. He handled it great, I thought, the way he went about it. He went to first base. He didn�t throw his bat any place. � He did it the right way. And now it�s over. Now we move on.� As Marc Carig of Newsday noted savvily, other teams with "problem child" players just send them down but Mets don't have the depth to be without their part-time OF/PH.

Not that thrilled with what goes on "out there," either.

We have at least a little idea of what goes on "in there," maybe.

batmagadanleadoff wrote: G-Fafif wrote: Joe Torre? G-Fafif wrote: No, that was crazy. Why crazy? Because Torre was slow? I thought maybe 1971, all that hitting, not enough speed for triples even in Busch. Crazy slow.

Looked it up. Almost had it in the sense that I guessed one of his erstwhile teammates who came mighty close. Actual answer guy did not occur to me.

No, that was crazy.

Joe Torre?

I don't answer to fans. They don't play this game. They have no idea what goes on in there. They have absolutely no idea what it takes to be a professional teammate. As reported by Record's Mike Kerwick. Not that inflammatory but definitely something smoldering there, considering the question wasn't about fans.