G-Fafif

First time since 2002 that no Met has elicited a single vote in any of the major awards: MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, Manager of the Year. If you add in Gold Glove and Silver Slugger winners (not votes; those aren't widely disseminated), this is the most barren offseason since 1993. Luis Castillo finished seventh for N.L. Comeback Player of the Year (one second-place, two third-place votes), an award presented by MLB.com and voted on by its beat writers.

Found vote on BBWAA site. No Mets listed among 30 vote-getters.

Pujols unanimous N.L. MVP choice. Ramirez, Howard, Fielder, Tulowitzki follow. Full totals not yet released.

I didn't vote for him in this round due to the strong competition (how did two deserving managers wind up in the same bracket?) but Matlack should eventually get the nod. Once he was established, which was pretty quickly, the pecking order wasn't so much Seaver, Koosman, Matlack as it was Seaver, Matlack, Koosman. There's a great Sport magazine piece published after the season ended in '77 that gave me the impression Jon wasn't particularly enamored of Tom, even in the wake of Tom's departure. I'd slot him in there on the Darling-Fernandez tier of Met starters, maybe an inch down given the shorter tenure, but he was explosive in his day.

I think Cashen rates highly because the Mets set a precedent by inducting key front office types early on (holy crap, a compliment for the Mets!). They did the HOF for four years without a single player going in. Interesting, in retrospect (and even at the time), that the first players were Rusty and Buddy, in 1986; they skipped 1985 altogether. I understand Seaver was still active, but Rusty struck me as a bit of a stretch for the first class. Not insane (and not undeserved eventually), just a little curious in its timing. Four years as a regular, five years as a pinch-hitter, more than half his career elsewhere. They were giving him his Day with the red wigs around then so I guess it all made sense to somebody. Buddy and Krane or Buddy and Kooz or Buddy and Cleon would have seemed a neater fit. But Rusty was a significant enough character for the good in two eras and ultrapopular always. Not that it should be attendance-dependent by any means, but I'm thinking the presence of George Weiss on the same 1982 induction bill as Gil Hodges didn't sell too many additional tickets.

And if these uniforms are so worth rising early for on Friday morning to score murky discounts on (it's like Gold/Silver pricing in November), then how come the Mets didn't do a fashion show a la the Twins and other teams who've introduced new looks? Keep Omar the bleep away from it lest he attempt to answer a question, but get one of those Bravo hosts to emcee. Fly in Francoeur or Pagan or whoever. Make a hot stove day of it. I don't know that they're not planning that for later on, but if you anticipate this as your big sales weekend, why not now? If Tina Mannix's marketing instincts are this sharp, I can't wait to see her Hall of Fame ballot.

And now the actual release, posted at mets.com: FLUSHING, N.Y. - The New York Mets today announced they will wear a new pinstripe home uniform next season inspired by the early years of the franchise. The design combines new and old elements of Mets uniforms. The Mets created the retro uniform following research and positive responses to the jerseys the 1969 World Champion Mets wore during their 40th anniversary celebration in August. The natural color and pinstripes were staples of the original Mets uniform when the team debuted in 1962. The Mets will also continue to wear their white uniform at home with the black jerseys as an alternate. The new pinstripe jerseys will go on sale this Friday, November 27 at the Mets Team Store at Citi Field and will kick off the store's special Thanksgiving Sale. The jersey will also be available the same day on Mets.com. From 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., the new pinstripe jersey will be 20 percent off, Season Ticket Holders will receive 40 percent off all regularly priced merchandise, and all fans will get 35 percent off regularly priced merchandise. The new pinstripe jersey will be 15 percent off from 10:00 a.m. until the store closes at 5:00 p.m. After 10:00 a.m., the following schedule will apply for regularly priced items: 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.: 30 percent off 12:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.: 25 percent off 2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.: 20 percent off The sale continues Saturday, November 28 and Sunday, November 29 with fans receiving 20 percent off regularly priced merchandise, and 10 percent off the new pinstripe jersey with a purchase of $200 or more. The Mets Team Store, located next to the Jackie Robinson Rotunda, is open seven days a week from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. during the holiday season. Beginning Friday, November 27, the new jersey will also be available at Modell's Sporting Goods stores; the Mets Clubhouse stores at the Roosevelt Field Mall and on 42nd Street across from Bryant Park in Manhattan; and Keyspan Park in Brooklyn.

Sayeth Cerrone: The Mets have officially announced the addition of a new pinstripe home uniform for next season. According to the press release: �The design combines new and old elements of Mets uniforms. The Mets created the retro uniform following research and positive responses to the jerseys the 1969 World Champion Mets wore during their 40th anniversary celebration in August� �The natural color and pinstripes were staples of the original Mets uniform when the team debuted in 1962. The Mets will also continue to wear their white uniform at home with the black jerseys as an alternate.� The new jersey will go on sale this Friday at the Mets Team Store at Citi Field, on Mets.com, all Modell�s Sporting Goods stores; and the team Clubhouse stores at the Roosevelt Field Mall and on 42nd Street.

Darryl, Fonzie, Jane and Rube. If Fonzie somehow earns an invitation to Spring Training and a spot on the roster, consider his vote forwarded into the future and Ron Hunt in his place. Probably the omission I'm sorriest about here, but Jane deserves to ride her tidal wave a little longer. They both had big 1964s, you know.

As much as I relish voting for Doc, I can't stand voting for Franco, but I do it anyway because there's too much of him to ignore. Karl Ehrhardt and Dave Kingman carry the rest of the day. The Tim McCarver of the Mets '80s got strong consideration and wasn't necessarily negated by the later, irritating Tim McCarver. It's just that Kingman was so much the symbol of what little Met power there was for so long.

I'm totally with Seawolf here.

Tough call, but I had to ask Gary to wait another year in deference to Ron. I'm sure he'd understand. Davey, Mike and Bobby were easy.

My mother's long gone, and the house where we lived is no longer in the family. I've no basement in my co-op. Blogging was invented once I was past 30. But pajamas can be comfy, I'll cop to that. Anyway, the JR thing was definitely in the air, but I didn't get the sense it was a "You better name it for him or we're shutting this thing down" situation. I believe the Rotunda wasn't a sop but a heartfelt gesture. IMO, the result was somewhat over the top the way it elbows out all Met messages and, quite frankly, it's not all that exciting. Certainly not as exciting as Jackie was on the bases. From Michael Kimmelman's "Bad New Ballparks" in The New York Review of Books (an article, predating the HOF announcement, in which Dana Brand's latest book is quoted at length...though I don't know his stance on jammies), a pretty good take: Wilpon installed a tribute to Jackie Robinson, the former Dodgers star who never played for the Mets. An unimpeachable object of respect, the display of Robinson nonetheless embodies the cluelessness and historical amnesia (in this case I won't say cynicism) of an owner and club officials who in effect are implying that the Mets have no past of their own worth enshrining. This is also the message, as Brand laments, behind the absence of a museum to honor Mets stars like Tom Seaver and Keith Hernandez, but also to recall the Mets' crazy fans and both the great and horrible moments the team has experienced. It suggests management believes fans care only about winning, not about the continuum of history, notwithstanding that the sport is absorbed in the historical minutiae of its own records. Loyalty and memory are what fill stadiums year in and year out, Brand reminds us, even Yankee Stadium. Vague words like "teamwork," "determination," "persistence," and "courage" are now emblazoned around the Citi Field rotunda like slogans from some corporate retreat. These platitudes dovetail with the sense of business people, however well-meaning, who are disconnected from the game and its true followers.