batmagadanleadoff

In five minutes, at 1:00AM, the MLB network is airing Jacob deGrom's 2014 MLB debut against the Yankees.

If there were all those doubleheaders, then there hadda be rainouts. And I went to one of those rainouts. I remember waiting inside the stadium for what hadda be at least an hour and a half to find out if the game would be played or canceled. It was canceled. That's what made it a rainout.

From Philip Roth's Pulitzer Prize winning American Pastoral: One night in the Summer of 1985, while visiting New York, I went out to see the Mets play the Astros, and while circling the stadium with my friends, looking for the gate to our seats, I saw the Swede, thirty-six years older than when I'd watched him play ball for Upsala. He wore a white shirt, a striped tie, and a charcoal-gray summer suit, and he was still terrifically handsome. [***] "You're Zuckerman?", he replied, vigorously shaking my hand. "The author?" [***] "These are my friends," I said, sweeping an arm out to introduce the three people with me. "And this man", I said to them, "is the greatest athlete in the history of Weequahic High. A real artist in three sports. Played first base like Keith Hernandez - thinking. A line drive doubles hitter. Do you know that?" I said to his son. "Your dad was our Hernandez." "Hernandez's a lefty," he replied. [***] The following letter reached me by way of my publisher a couple of weeks before Memorial Day, 1995. Dear Skip Zuckerman: I apologize for any inconvenience this letter may cause you. You may not remember our meeting at Shea Stadium. I was with my oldest son (now a first year college student) and you were out with some friends to see the Mets. That was ten years ago, the era of Carter-Gooden-Hernandez, when you could still watch the Mets. You can't anymore. [***] Sincerely, Seymour "Swede" Levov, WHS 1945 [FIMG=333]https://readwithstyle.files.wordpress.com/2013/05/american-pastoral-book-cover.jpg[/FIMG]

Zvon would like this pic of Beckert. It's from when the walls were white. Or toothpasty. [FIMG=666]https://ansel.frgimages.com/chicago-cubs/signed-glenn-beckert-picture-8x10_ss2_p-10934557+u-pdty9cun7825uaynwtzh+v-36fd98bd397c4d68b67797b777306cfb.jpg?_hv=1&w=900[/FIMG]

Benjamin Grimm wrote: You knew [beckert]was a good player because he got an IN ACTION card! https://www.tradingcarddb.com/Images/Cards/Baseball/72/72-46Fr.jpg> And you knew Beckert was a good player because he was also on a league leader card! [FIMG=888]https://images.psacard.com/s3/cu-psa/cardfacts/1972-topps-85-nl-batting-leaders-jtorrergarrgbeckert-36047.jpg?h=1000&format=png&s.roundcorners=10[/FIMG]

https://metsmerizedonline.com/2020/04/mets-video-vault-docs-debut-vs-astros.html/https://metsmerizedonline.com/2020/04/mets-video-vault-docs-debut-vs-astros.html/ Dwight Gooden's Mets debut, 1984, at the Astrodome. Full broadcast. Kiner, McCarver and Zabriskie. Blue road unis. It's all there.

The film season highlights, not the print annuals. SNY is showing all of them, in order - 1962-1982. Right now, we're up to 1968 and a bull session between Lindsey Nelson, Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Jim Mcandrew on how to pitch to Willie Mccovey.

And then they can vote in Tony Congliaro, too, from projections based on a beaning-free career. That's what some voters will argue for (sarcastically) if deGrom's on the fence and projecting deGrom'a potentially lost 2020 season is a make or break issue re his HOF candidacy. I understand that projecting one lost season isn't the same as projecting an entire career. Or is it?

Under the proposed plan, players would sit, not in the dugouts, but in the stands, sufficiently apart from each other to comply with social distancing. Also: Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler and his wife, Dominique, are expecting their first child in July. Wheeler said he could not endorse a plan that would keep him apart from them during the summer. “I couldn't even imagine missing the birth and just not being around and going ‘hey, I'll see you in December' or whenever it is,” Wheeler said. “That's not going to work.”

That's the question posed by an article in The Athletic, the gist being that deGrom's first six seasons are on a HOF trajectory but that he came up relatively late and so his career numbers are likely to be lesser than other HOF'ers and that therefore, deGrom cannot afford to lose a season from his precious prime when today, he is baseball's best pitcher. https://theathletic.com/1728833/2020/04/08/how-will-a-delayed-season-affect-jacob-degroms-hall-of-fame-chances/https://theathletic.com/1728833/2020/04/08/how-will-a-delayed-season-affect-jacob-degroms-hall-of-fame-chances/

And then what about the hotel workers? Are they sequestered, too? Or do they get to go back to their families after their shifts? And then to the groceries and the banks and post offices? And then back to the hotels for next day's games?

Edgy MD wrote: There's more than one way to look at this. Shortstop might be the more valuable position, but Keith revolutionized his position and might be the best defensive first baseman in the history of baseball. Keith played first base better than Rey played shortstop Sure, but Rey would've likely played first base better than Keith played shortstop, for what that's worth. Keith did what he could do better than anybody, but Rey could do more. I dunno. That's just speculatoon. Also, it's like saying that Jerry Grote would've played centerfield better than Brandon Nimmo. And besides, Rey's right-handed. He wouldn't have been able to do half the things Keith did at all, let alone better than. And as to "Rey could do more", that's already baked in because SS carries more defensive value. Keith won 11 Gold Gloves. Rey might've been more valuable, but Keith was better.

There's more than one way to look at this. Shortstop might be the more valuable position, but Keith revolutionized his position and might be the best defensive first baseman in the history of baseball. Keith played first base better than Rey played shortstop

https://joeposnanski.substack.com/p/dwar-to-end-all-warshttps://joeposnanski.substack.com/p/dwar-to-end-all-wars

=smg58 post_id=34794 time=1586219087 user_id=62] Rey. His 99 was as good a defensive season as anybody has ever had.

Edgy MD wrote: Al Kaline never played a day in the minors. I don't know who else can make such a claim. Did Ichiro Suzuki bypass the Japanese minors? Bob Horner and Jim Abbott. Al Kaline taught me the value of the base on balls. Strat-o-Matic, 1971 set. By the time I was in Junior High,, the walks column would be the first place my eyes went when I scanned the back of some hitter's baseball card. Here's this Posnanski piece on Al Kaline I read last week: https://theathletic.com/1568128/2020/02/05/the-baseball-100-no-51-al-kaline/https://theathletic.com/1568128/2020/02/05/the-baseball-100-no-51-al-kaline/

https://theathletic.com/1723690/2020/04/06/the-red-seats-pub-whos-the-best-defender-in-mets-history/https://theathletic.com/1723690/2020/04/06/the-red-seats-pub-whos-the-best-defender-in-mets-history/ Who's the best defender in Mets history?

Johnny Lunchbucket wrote: I demand more featured faces Current twelve are Terry Leach, Max Scherzer, Mariano, and nine black-and-white guys from the turn of the century. Maybe next cycle. That's Nellie Fox next to Scherzer. Good luck with the old old timers.

That's a funny story. Patch that tape into the forum. [FIMG=555]https://i.ytimg.com/vi/QzN5Lg2rl9U/hqdefault.jpg[/FIMG]

Are we supposed to be trying to identify all of the faces, or just the one-time Mets?

Edgy MD wrote: I like Ernie Borgnine's evil villain getup. That's funny you said/wrote that because last night I was googling "Blue Blazer" for ideas or inspiration on how to dress this villain. I was also wondering if "Blue Blazer" is some sort of wrestling term. I don't know much about wrestling. I know and have heard of the stuff that everybody probably knows, like a half-nelson and Hulk Hogan and Gorgeous George. My 4th grade buddy was a big Bruno Sammartino fan. And Gorilla Monsoon, too. Back in the 4th grade. Anyways, it turns out that "Blue Blazer" is the name of an actual modern-day wrestler. Did you know that?

Johnny Lunchbucket wrote: I can't remember specifically why why [!Mets?] fans see him as a dick.... If I'm remembering correctly, it might be that he had what was considered an inappropriately gruff attitude for a rookie. Among other perceived sins, Kent flat out refused to participate in the traditional rookie hazing stuff, maybe even to the point where he threatened to come to blows with any teammate that tried to haze him.

I get it. I dunno that the 60s censors, or the execs, would've approved of "Slaughterhouse". The name's too violent. I know that I went with "Cereal Killer", but still.

The first and last guys are eezy-peezy. Kenny Rogers is the red-hatted Ranger.

So tell me about this "psionic claw". What is it and how does it work? Is it a physical power or a psychic or mental power? It would be unusual if the villain has some special psychic power: most Batman super-villains rely on gadgets and contraptions to sow their mayhem -- like Louie, the Lilac's scented flowers, or the Penguin's smoke emitting umbrellas. I'm trying to think about this and the only villain I could think of with some kind of natural or biological "super-power" is Siren, with her extremely high octave range that can incapacitate others. Maybe Mr. Freeze, who can exist only in extremely cold conditions, but I'm not sure that's a "super-power".