G-Fafif

Tyler Yates and Tyler Walker. Jason Roach and Jeremy Griffiths. Orber Marino and Edwin Almonte and Jason Anderson. Pat Strange and Jason Middlebrook. Matt Watson and Matt Ginter. Joe DePastino and Joe Hietpas. Conflation was spiraling out of control from 2002 to 2004.

Edgy DC wrote: The Mets were losing so consistently then, I doubt Glavine was appearing in many games that Watson didn't show up in. That team needed lefty stick. If you recall, it was the team that prompted a doomed Bobby Valentine, when told he should play out the end of the season "like it was the World Series," to respond, "Well, then, can I have a lefthanded pinch-hitter? --- everyone else has one." Glavine (both of them, actually) and Watson (Matt, not Allen) were not on Valentine's watch. They were part of the Art Howe's Rich Pageant.

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Jim Duquette blew Yates smoke up our asses all winter long. I desperately hoped Duke knew something everyone else didn't. One more Matt Watson nugget: He slugged better than 500 in AA and AAA that year, but upon his recall to the Mets he lost ABs to another callup, also a lefty, Mike F. Glavine. Mike Glavine...fuuuuck.

Yates I remember clearly, at least his mysterious earning of a slot in my favorite team's pitching rotation despite my being murky in real time on how got it and his much celebrated (by Fran Healy if no one else) Hawaiian background. Tyler Walker could walk in here right now doing shots of Turkey while sporting his (I had to MBTN it) No. 46 Mets uniform and I'd be more alarmed than welcoming. Neil Allen, Brian Bohanon, even Ollie walks in wearing No. 46, I'd offer them something.

Gwreck wrote: I would've forgotten these people but I recall G-Fafif recently remarking about he always forgot (or confused) Tyler Walker, and I think metirish was discussing Strickland recently. But I could've never gotten Watson. "Smithers, who is that young righthanded dynamo with the robust earned run average?" "That's Tyler Walker, sir. He's one of your relief pitchers in Sector 7G." "Tyler Walker, eh? I'm going to remember that name!" Tyler Walker does bump up against Tyler Yates on conflationary impact but mostly he's become The Met I Have No Memory Of. I was at his only two Shea appearances in 2002 but I must've been out taking up smoking or needlepoint or something because the name meant nothing to me whenever it kept popping up in later years with other teams and it was mentioned he was once a Met. He was? Tyler, too, has the distinction of making his Shea bow in the one game in my Log that I also have zero recollection of -- though I've no doubt I was there since I had Friday tickets that year and it was a Friday. Surely they were wearing the alternate unis that night, for Tyler Walker must be one of the Men In Black. How else would have he erased my memory of everything about him so thoroughly?

I hope MLB doesn't pull it down too soon (as they have with other '73 WS footage). It's a gem. Kind of sad hearing the crowd turn completely silent when the introductions morphed from Willie to Cleon. But it was Oakland. Decent ovations for Tom as well as Buddy and Tug -- Northern/Central California boys all. Ray Sadecki got a little love as well for his years with the Giants, perhaps. Jim McAndrew: active for two postseasons, never got into a game.

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Matt F. Watson Technically, Matthew Kyle Watson of the 2003 Art Howe Mets, the Bobby Valentine Chiba Lotte Marines of 2006 and 2007 and the 2010 Oakland Athletics, managed by Bob Geren. Possibly revealing factoid: Watson, Strickland, Chen, Walker, Payton, Hampton and Feliciano have not played in the majors in a straight line, each missing from MLB for at least one entire season since their debuts. Watson and Strickland were big leaguers in 2010 after not having been since 2005. Most of them have faced the end of the line yet pushed back from it, marking them as successful reclamation projects given that they reclaimed their major league status. Coincidence or something about having played under a manager who resuscitated a fistful of overlooked/underappreciated 4-A types in his time? You decide.

CORRECT 1. Melvin Mora (Metirish) 2. Jay Payton (batmagadanleadoff) 3. Pedro Feliciano (batmagadanleadoff) 4. Ty Wigginton (batmagadanleadoff) 5. Gary Matthews, Jr. (batmagadanleadoff) 6. Marco Scutaro (Metirish) 7. Mike Hampton (bml) 8. Octavio Dotel (bml) 9. Ivan Rodriguez (Edgy) 10. Jamie Moyer (Edgy) 11. Bruce Chen (Gwreck) 12. Scott Strickland (Gwreck) 13. Tyler Walker (Gwreck) 14. Matt Watson (JCL) INCORRECT Darren Oliver (not managed by BV) David Weathers (not active in 2010) Jason Isringhausen (not active in 2010) Timo Perez (not active in 2010) A.J. Burnett (not managed by BV) Jose Reyes (not managed by BV) Glendon Rusch (not active in 2010) Saul Rivera (not active in 2010 and never managed by BV)

Gwreck wrote: ...no idea who that third player is. Elementary, my dear...BLANK. Remember, Bobby Valentine had to manage him somewhere in this world.

CORRECT 1. Melvin Mora (Metirish) 2. Jay Payton (batmagadanleadoff) 3. Pedro Feliciano (batmagadanleadoff) 4. Ty Wigginton (batmagadanleadoff) 5. Gary Matthews, Jr. (batmagadanleadoff) 6. Marco Scutaro (Metirish) 7. Mike Hampton (bml) 8. Octavio Dotel (bml) 9. Ivan Rodriguez (Edgy) 10. Jamie Moyer (Edgy) 11. Bruce Chen (Gwreck) 12. Scott Strickland (Gwreck) 13. Tyler Walker (Gwreck) 14. INCORRECT Darren Oliver (not managed by BV) David Weathers (not active in 2010) Jason Isringhausen (not active in 2010) Timo Perez (not active in 2010) A.J. Burnett (not managed by BV) Jose Reyes (not managed by BV) Glendon Rusch (not active in 2010)

CORRECT 1. Melvin Mora (Metirish) 2. Jay Payton (batmagadanleadoff) 3. Pedro Feliciano (batmagadanleadoff) 4. Ty Wigginton (batmagadanleadoff) 5. Gary Matthews, Jr. (batmagadanleadoff) 6. Marco Scutaro (Metirish) 7. Mike Hampton (bml) 8. Octavio Dotel (bml) 9. Ivan Rodriguez (Edgy) 10. Jamie Moyer (Edgy) 11. 12. 13. 14. INCORRECT Darren Oliver (not managed by BV) David Weathers (not active in 2010) Jason Isringhausen (not active in 2010) Timo Perez (not active in 2010) A.J. Burnett (not managed by BV) Jose Reyes (not managed by BV) Glendon Rusch (not active in 2010)

CORRECT 1. Melvin Mora (Metirish) 2. Jay Payton (batmagadanleadoff) 3. Pedro Feliciano (batmagadanleadoff) 4. Ty Wigginton (batmagadanleadoff) 5. Gary Matthews, Jr. (batmagadanleadoff) 6. Marco Scutaro (Metirish) 7. Mike Hampton (bml) 8. Octavio Dotel (bml) 9. Ivan Rodriguez (Edgy) 10. Jamie Moyer (Edgy) 11. 12. 13. 14. INCORRECT Darren Oliver (not managed by BV) David Weathers (not active in 2010) Jason Isringhausen (not active in 2010) Timo Perez (not active in 2010) A.J. Burnett (not managed by BV) Jose Reyes (not managed by BV)

CORRECT 1. Melvin Mora (Metirish) 2. Jay Payton (batmagadanleadoff) 3. Pedro Feliciano (batmagadanleadoff) 4. Ty Wigginton (batmagadanleadoff) 5. Gary Matthews, Jr. (batmagadanleadoff) 6. Marco Scutaro (Metirish) 7. Mike Hampton (bml) 8. Octavio Dotel (bml) 9. Ivan Rodriguez (Edgy) 10. Jamie Moyer (Edgy) 11. 12. 13. 14. INCORRECT Darren Oliver (not managed by BV) David Weathers (not active in 2010) Jason Isringhausen (not active in 2010) Timo Perez (not active in 2010) A.J. Burnett (not managed by BV)

HINT: Three of the remaining four players were once involved in the same trade.

CORRECT 1. Melvin Mora (Metirish) 2. Jay Payton (batmagadanleadoff) 3. Pedro Feliciano (batmagadanleadoff) 4. Ty Wigginton (batmagadanleadoff) 5. Gary Matthews, Jr. (batmagadanleadoff) 6. Marco Scutaro (Metirish) 7. Mike Hampton (bml) 8. Octavio Dotel (bml) 9. Ivan Rodriguez (Edgy) 10. Jamie Moyer (Edgy) 11. 12. 13. 14. INCORRECT Darren Oliver David Weathers Jason Isringhausen Timo Perez

CORRECT 1. Melvin Mora (Metirish) 2. Jay Payton (batmagadanleadoff) 3. Pedro Feliciano (batmagadanleadoff) 4. Ty Wigginton (batmagadanleadoff) 5. Gary Matthews, Jr. (batmagadanleadoff) 6. Marco Scutaro (Metirish) 7. Mike Hampton (bml) 8. Octavio Dotel (bml) 9. Ivan Rodriguez (Edgy) 10. Jamie Moyer (Edgy) 11. 12. 13. 14. INCORRECT Darren Oliver David Weathers Jason Isringhausen

Edgy DC wrote: Are we counting guys who played with him in Japan? "...once managed by Bobby Valentine" would imply managed anywhere (though I can't swear that one of his waiters from the old place in Corona didn't make the majors last year). So anyway, yes.

CORRECT 1. Melvin Mora (Metirish) 2. Jay Payton (batmagadanleadoff) 3. Pedro Feliciano (batmagadanleadoff) 4. Ty Wigginton (batmagadanleadoff) 5. Gary Matthews, Jr. (batmagadanleadoff) 6. Marco Scutaro (Metirish) 7. Mike Hampton (bml) 8. Octavio Dotel (bml) 9. Ivan Rodriguez (Edgy) 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. INCORRECT Darren Oliver David Weathers Jason Isringhausen

metirish wrote: Weathers never played for V???? He did, but he wasn't active in MLB in 2010. Nor was Izzy. Oliver never played for Bobby.

CORRECT 1. Melvin Mora (Metirish) 2. Jay Payton (batmagadanleadoff) 3. Pedro Feliciano (batmagadanleadoff) 4. Ty Wigginton (batmagadanleadoff) 5. Gary Matthews, Jr. (batmagadanleadoff) 6. Marco Scutaro (Metirish) 7. Mike Hampton (bml) 8. Octavio Dotel (bml) 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. INCORRECT Darren Oliver David Weathers Jason Isringhausen

CORRECT 1. Melvin Mora (Metirish) 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14.

Another managerial hiring season has come and gone without our Valentine getting any love. Could Bobby V still manage big leaguers in 2011? We don't know for sure, but we do know that 14 players who were active in Major League Baseball in 2010 were once managed by Bobby Valentine. Try to name them.

Teddy Martinez looms in Terry Collins' backstory, per Q&A with Steve Serby of Post. Also would like to talk to Willie Mays and Casey Stengel despite the fact that one of those gentlemen is dead at the present time.

I'm psyched to see the damage HoJo is about to do to Three Rivers.

What's overlooked in the easy "Mays didn't know when to quit" formulation is Mays had already announced his retirement before he "fell down in center field". If only he hadn't gotten a key hit against Cincinnati in the deciding game of the NLCS and helped the Mets to get to the World Series. Then he never would have fallen down and nobody would instantly used him as the example of what not to do. Henry Aaron didn't much have it going on in 1976 but nobody mentions it because the Brewers played no games in the national spotlight (and he DH'd). If the 82-79 Mets had gone 79-82, Mays as a Met would be mostly remembered for his return in 1972 and his speech in September. Somebody would look up his .211 average and think, oh, I guess he was about done -- like most 42-year-old legends before year-round conditioning kicked in.