MFS62

After last season, I had visions of Murphy developing into a Wade Boggs (not-so-)light based on his hitting approach and patience at the plate combined with his play at third base. I envisioned him moving to first base and becoming a doubles machine with a decent glove. Well, I was partially right. I prefer leaving Murph at first until Davis is ready. But lots of replacements from outside the organization have been mentioned. If Davis is the real deal, and we think he is, why spend the resources for another first baseman? If only for a "name" player, the one I do not want, under any circumstances, is Nick Johnson. We've seen the term "DL" too many times this season. Nick lives there when not demonstrating why his reputation as a fielder is far greater than what he shows on the field. (One year he actually made more errors per game than Mo Vaughn. Naturally, he only played 100 games that year in the minors because he was on the DL, but still finished with the second most errors for first basemen in all of organized baseball.) And, if you're looking for more home run power than Murphy has, why bother? Nick doesn't have that, either. I'll climb down off my soapbox now. Later

Speaking of the White Sox, from Baseball Prospectus: "What have I seen from Rios? A lot of outs. The only batting ninth guy making $5 million was me. This motherf��- is making $10, $12, $14 million, he ain't going to be batting ninth. I'm going to make sure he earns his money. But right now I have to put him there because he's struggling. Next year, if we have Rios batting ninth we're in deep shit, once again." �White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen, on outfielder Alex Rios. I'm rooting for Ozzie's team after that quote.

According to Mets Inside Pitch: Ike Davis, Ruben Tejada, Eric Niesen, Scott Moviel, Mejia, Josh Stinson and possibly an outfielder...likely Nieuwenhuis if so. But nothing has been confirmed about him. They will all be playing on the Surprise Rafters Later

I'm with Doc. I wouldn't want the streak to encourage Omar to stand pat. I'd also be curious about who was contributing to the wins, identify who might be used in deals to improve the club and who should stay. Later

Ike went 3-5 with a homer and a triple as the US beat Germany in World Cup competition. The score was 9-1. Later

The UMDB shows that Bobby Wine had 32 career RBI against the Mets. I'd swear that most of them were game winners or back breakers. I hated that guy. Later

But if you tried to drink beer out of the World Series trophy, you'd probably poke your eye out. Later

Last night, Steve Sommers' intro included a bit about a great player chasing an all time team hit record. He used every superlative you can think of. After a while, he let us know he was talking about David Wright being only 455 hits behind Ed Kranepool. Take THAT Yankee fans. I was laughing so hard I almost drove off the road. Later

Nope, nope and nope. OK, Quail was CF Bill Virdon, for the way he ran after a fly ball. Duck was infielder Dick "Ducky" Schofield. Pirate fans just called him Duck. (The best man at my wedding was a lifelong Pirate fan.) Dog was left fielder Bob Skinner. And hitters' nickname for Friend was probably "That f'n spitballer". Later

Buehler? Anyone? Later

Thank you for playing. You win the home version of our Buc trivia game. Next player, COME ON DOWN! Later

Mostly correct. Duck was wrong. Quail and Dog still nameless. Later

Good point. But they have supported the Spurs very well, and IIRC the Missions of the Texas League well, too. Of course, minor league success doesn't guarantee major league success, as the folks in Montreal can tell you. And I'm not saying I'd buy a team and move it there before some heavy duty market research. But it is to be considered. Later

I like parts of both TransMonk's and Val's ideas on realignment. But before we do anything, we have to realize that the Yankees belong in a league of their own. (right Steve?) Now I'll remove my tongue from my cheek and point out that San Antonio is now in the top 10 largest metropolitan areas in the country. They should be considered in any franchise move. To try to have some sort of competition for free agents and for retaining a team's own players, I would establish a salary floor. No team should have a payroll lower than the amount each team receives from the national TV revenue and royalties received from the sale of MLB royaltied products. That figure is between $35 and $43 million per year. (I read those figures in A USA Today spreadsheet several years ago I still can't find, and a NY Daily News article of a few weeks ago. The spreadsheet was used by Selig before Congress when he last testified to retain MLB's exemption ft\rom Anti-Trust laws.) That is what each team receives before a single fan parks his car, buys a ticket, buys food and merchandise and does not include revenue from local media and ballpark advertising and naming revenues. The fact that some teams have payrolls lower than thos figures is just not right. I can't believe the union would have any grief over this, as it would create more buyers for the players) Eliminate the DH in order to restore some historic perspective to some all time records and some strategy to the game. (As others here have mentioned) Have a lifetime ban to prohibit Joe Morgan and Jon Miller from participating in any future baseball telecasts or radiocasts. Name Bob Costas Commissioner of baseball. Later

I still remember the 1960 team that beat the Yankees in the World Series. That team had a lot of players with colorful nicknames. Here are some of them. Can you name the players? (Some should be easy, since they played for the Mets) Arriba! Duck Dog Vinegar Bend Kitten Quail Smokey Deacon Dr. Strangeglove Later

Both good choices, and for the right reasons. They have both earned their shots in the majors. Later

Get out the barf bags, Martha. Later

In the post game interview, Jerry wasn't exactly thrilled with Pagan's failure to lay down a bunt. Twice. Then making an out. Later

IIRC, when ESPN started, they were accused of being "East Coast centric". I guess they since have bent over backwards to try to undo that perception. Since there's nothing they can really say bad about the Yanks, they are taking it out on the Mets, who have recently been a target-rich environment, both on the field and off. Later

At least according to Peter Gammons. Not sure the link will work, I've had problems with the "message" on the new board. sports.espn.go.com/mlb/notebook?page=bbtn its nice to read some positive articles regarding 2010 as opposed to just the doom and gloom that has become so trendy amongst the media lately. according to Gammons.... "This is not hopeless. Johan Santana and Carlos Beltran should be fine in 2010. So should David Wright. So there are three of the top 15 to 20 players in the National League, and that's before even beginning to try to figure out what Jose Reyes is at this point in his career. And they're not going to be able to restock the franchise by trading any of the above. That doesn't happen these days, as the Twins found out when they traded Santana. However, here is some advice for the Wilpons: Hire a really strong, competent, forceful CEO with a widespread understanding of the business, development and people. The list should start with Sandy Alderson, and as he becomes the face of the organization, he should begin with these promises: 1. They will not allow the commissioner's office to determine whom they draft, and use their market and SNY television network advantage to acquire talent through the draft and the international stage. 2. Stop worrying about comparisons with the Yankees, because in the Hal Steinbrenner/Brian Cashman Era, they are not fading. An Alderson or Pat Gillick or Gerry Hunsicker can help Omar Minaya assemble all he needs in terms of the organization. Then they address their needs. 1. One quality starting pitcher. Santana should be back. As we saw with Mike Pelfrey on Sunday, it is there. Jonathon Niese looks to be a quality back-end guy, as does Bobby Parnell. So go try to sign a front-end pitcher. John Lackey wants close to CC Sabathia cash, which may be tough to do with the Santana contract. They can do what Colorado did, find a Jason Marquis; in this case, it could be to accept Bronson Arroyo's contract � there are ways, and the bullpen should be fine. Maybe Brad Holt and/or Jenrry Mejia can help by June. A big key is sitting down with Scott Boras and forcing Oliver Perez to get serious about his future. 2. Catcher. They may be tempted to take a short-term solution like Jason Varitek, but more likely they will make a deal for a younger catcher like Arizona's Chris Snyder, the Angels' Jeff Mathis, Colorado's Chris Iannetta or Cleveland's Kelly Shoppach. 3. One corner bat. Even with Carlos Delgado's contract off the books, going above $15 million for Jason Bay or Matt Holliday and taking on a free-agent pitching contract may be tough for the Wilpons right now. So they will have to be creative, using Daniel Murphy at first or in left. Jeff Francoeur may continue to make strides and deserves every opportunity. With Holt, Mejia, first baseman Ike Davis (.905 OPS between Single-A and Double-A), Fernando Martinez, Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Ruben Tejada (who led the Eastern League in chances and double plays) knocking at the door, the farm system is nowhere near as bad as has been colored. Beltran, Wright and Santana are core players; heck, Luis Castillo has a .397 on-base percentage. They need Reyes, they need Pelfrey, they need Perez, and it's not hapless and hopeless. The Mets need work -- a lot of work -- and they need someone at the top like Alderson to channel the talents of Minaya, John Ricco, et al. The Wilpons have to realize that, as Bobby Knight always said, if you listen to the guys in the stands, pretty soon you'll be sitting up there with them." Not sure I agree with everything he says, but at least he doesn't seem to share the doom and gloom of the other folks at ESPN. Later

That link doesn't work. When I tried to edit my post, I got the dreaded "forbidden 403" message. Later

Righthander Tobi Stoner is expected to join the Mets on Tuesday with the completion of Triple-A Buffalo's season. The 24-year-old Stoner, a 16th-round pick in 2006 out of Davis & Elkins College in West Virginia, went 7-7 with a 3.96 ERA in 16 starts for the Bisons. Stoner spent spring training with the Mets, but didn't appear in a Grapefruit League game because of shoulder difficulty. The injury didn't allow him to join Buffalo's rotation until June. Courtesy of The Buffalo News' Mike Harrington: * Buffalo's season ended today with a 3-0 loss at Lehigh Valley. The final record was 56-87 (one game not made up). It was the Bisons' worst record since a 55-89 mark in 1994, the final season of their Pittsburgh affiliation. They set a franchise record for home futility with a 29-43 record, but were 14-11 at home after the All-Star break. * Jesus Feliciano did not play today. He finished the season batting .311 with an International League-high 154 hits, fifth-most in Buffalo's modern era of Triple-A (dates to 1985). * The Bisons were 0-63 when trailing after eight innings, and 2-59 when trailing after seven innings. www.nydailynews.com/blogs/mets...l#ixzz0QTCjidM7 I'm not sure that last item needed any bolding, but it sure is mind boggling. Welcome, Tobi. Later