batmagadanleadoff

[fimg=1166:32p28fiw]https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7590/16679370880_4313fec53e_o.jpg[/fimg:32p28fiw] Right field wall appears darker in picture below even though both photos are from the same game. To my eyes, it looks like sun effects account for the differences, rather than photographic elements. Either that, or the wall gets darker as it approaches the right field bullpen. [fimg=833:32p28fiw]https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8722/16659455238_22fc28edc2_o.jpg[/fimg:32p28fiw]

For two seasons. [fimg=555]http://img2.imagesbn.com/p/2940014777209_p0_v1_s260x420.JPG[/fimg]

batmagadanleadoff wrote: G-Fafif wrote: Not sure if I still have my NFL mini-helmet collection, thoughtfully garnered mostly from a South Florida IHOP by my parents in advance of my ninth birthday. At that juncture, when I became familiar with what every pre-concussed player protected his head with, Oilers wore silver, Redskins were still yella and I had no idea that a bronco was a horse, so it took me a while to match that logo to that team. I also didn't know the Patriot was a patriot, per se. I thought he was some kind of cowboy at first glance, though not a Dallas Cowboy. The IHOP NFL helmet collection (silver Oiler helmet version) [fimg=766]http://image.timepassagesnostalgia.com/watermarked/images83/8396football.jpg[/fimg] Sneaky IHOP probably made sure to stick that placemat in front of every kid, especially if they were dining with their parents. Also, that placemat is, likely, from the 1971-72 season. The Colts and Cowboys as "Super Bowl Stars" is the giveaway. You probably ate your pancakes over that placemat.

Bitter Bill Price is buying the Mets buggy?

G-Fafif wrote: Not sure if I still have my NFL mini-helmet collection, thoughtfully garnered mostly from a South Florida IHOP by my parents in advance of my ninth birthday. At that juncture, when I became familiar with what every pre-concussed player protected his head with, Oilers wore silver, Redskins were still yella and I had no idea that a bronco was a horse, so it took me a while to match that logo to that team. I also didn't know the Patriot was a patriot, per se. I thought he was some kind of cowboy at first glance, though not a Dallas Cowboy. The IHOP NFL helmet collection (silver Oiler helmet version) [fimg=766]http://image.timepassagesnostalgia.com/watermarked/images83/8396football.jpg[/fimg]

Introducing your new Citi Field Scoreboard. Now 10% less ugly. [fimg=666:14qw4uhp]https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CAaST7WWAAAxvxW.jpg[/fimg:14qw4uhp]

That's a track the buggies are parked on, right? I might lean LA Coliseum. That is indeed a telling detail. Plus w/o an Alouettes helmet and a time machine, we'd have to eliminate the Big O. Perhaps here is our answer: http://boards.sportslogos.net/topic/96536-super-bowl-vii-giant-mini-helmets/ Whaddya mean "Perhaps"? Neat find.

[fimg=273]https://s0.wp.com/wp-content/themes/vip/espn-grantland/img/grantland-logo@2x.png[/fimg] March Sadness: Understanding the True Cost of the Spring Tommy John Surge March 19, 2015 by Ben Lindbergh [fimg=744]https://espngrantland.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/zack-wheeler-mets-tri.jpg?w=750[/fimg] excerpt: The carefully curated MLB preview plan that Grantland�s baseball brain trust put together last month said that today�s feature would be about the depth of two NL East rotations: the Washington Nationals� and the New York Mets�. The schedule stayed that way until Monday morning, when news broke that Mets starter Zack Wheeler�s sore right elbow, which he said last week wasn�t painful enough to have cost him a start during the regular season, would cost him all of his starts during the regular season. Wheeler has a fully torn ulnar collateral ligament that will require Tommy John surgery, ending his season before it could begin. Wheeler�s absence opens a rotation spot for Dillon Gee � an uninspiring but acceptable replacement by fifth-starter standards � at least until he�s displaced by one or more members of the Mets� trio of just-about-big-league-ready pitching prospects: Noah Syndergaard, Steven Matz, and Rafael Montero. Although the Mets� depth isn�t as enviable as it was a week ago, that�s only because some of their surplus has already served its purpose, cushioning the rotation from what must have seemed to GM Sandy Alderson like an almost inevitable blow. Just as Wheeler�s injury reshaped the right-hander�s anatomy, the Mets� roster, and the NL wild-card race, it altered our topic for today. Instead of writing about the ways in which teams build depth, I�m writing about the way depth gets depleted. It�s a relevant topic at this time of year, because while March probably can�t make a bad baseball team better, it can kill a competitive one. [***] The takeaway: March is a tough time for pitchers, period. (We miss you, Marcus Stroman.) Compared with other pitcher surgeries, TJs are far more front-loaded, but even non-TJ surgeries for pitchers reach their highest point as April approaches. Batters, meanwhile, don�t have it noticeably harder in the spring than they do during the summer. Both groups see significant bumps in the fall, as players break down from fatigue and those who�ve been playing through injuries finish their seasons and have no reason to avoid getting whatever is broken fixed. http://grantland.com/the-triangle/mlb-preview-tommy-john-spring-training-surge-zack-wheeler-yu-darvish/

Zvon wrote: This came out weird. Botz is glowing.

More from the Sandy book: Collins was this close to getting the axe: New book claims lack of walks almost cost Mets manager Terry Collins his job Justin Ferguson Email RSS March 19, 2015 1:03am EDT A new book on Mets general manager Sandy Alderson claims manager Terry Collins was close to not coming back for the 2015 season. One big reason? His hitters weren't drawing enough walks. According to ESPNNewYork.com's Adam Rubin, Alderson was quoted in "Baseball Maverick," written by Steve Kettmann, as saying Collins' chances of returning to the Mets were "51 percent." Alderson was upset with a drop in walks during a sixth consecutive losing season, and the fourth during Alderson's time in charge of the front office. Alderson has preached patience at the plate for decades. "We can't just throw up our hands and say, 'We're not being selective at the plate anymore, so much for that,'" Alderson said in the book, per Rubin. Rubin said a meeting with the Mets' hitters "saved Collins' job." By season's end, New York had drawn 516 walks, eighth-most in MLB. Even with the improved plate discipline, the Mets reassigned interim hitting coach Lamar Johnson to the team's minor league system and hired former Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long to be the permanent hitting coach last October. http://www.sportingnews.com/mlb/story/2015-03-19/sandy-alderson-terry-collins-job-fired-50-50-hitters-walks-new-book-baseball-maverick-new-york-mets

Commentary on the new Alderson book, including rare insights into the gamesmanship Sandy engaged in to engineer the Beltran trade: Book report: Sandy Alderson, 'Baseball Maverick' March, 18, 2015 Mar 18 7:45 PM ET By Adam Rubin | ESPNNewYork.com PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- A healthy percentage of New York Mets fans may get frustrated by "Baseball Maverick: How Sandy Alderson Revolutionized Baseball and Revived the Mets" before opening the new book. Revived the Mets? After all, the organization has endured six straight losing seasons. Alderson has presided as general manager over the last four. Alderson noted he is not the author. It was penned by friend Steve Kettmann, a former A's beat writer. Alderson did grant Kettmann more than 100 interviews spanning four years. The book is still worth reading, despite its excessively positive tone. It traces Alderson's entire life. He collected incoming cables from U.S. embassies while working in the CIA's basement after college. He studied Vietnamese for months while in the military and stationed in California, and successfully lobbied to be sent to the Vietnam War when his orders instead had him shipping out to a safe perch in Japan. Passionate fans won't be surprised by much covering the Mets years. Yet there are enough details to satisfy: • Amid reports manager Terry Collins' job was safe last August, Collins' chance of returning actually was 51 percent, according to Alderson, who told Kettmann at the time: "Frankly, for me, that percentage has been eroding." Alderson was upset about a drop in walks. "We can't just throw up our hands and say, 'We're not being selective at the plate anymore, so much for that,'" Alderson said. A meeting with hitters saved Collins' job. • Alderson vocally expresses frustration during games. Regarding reliever Gonzalez Germen, Alderson blurted: "How do you go on the DL with an abscess?" • Kettmann writes that Alderson "accepted a nudge" from commissioner Bud Selig to take the Mets' job. "Fred Wilpon is an extremely close friend, and I told him, 'You'll never do better than Sandy Alderson,'" Selig said. • Alderson was naive about the impact of Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme. "Madoff wasn't even a topic of conversation in my interview for the Mets job," Alderson said. "I didn't raise it. Maybe I should have. The bottom line is, I would have taken the job anyway. It just added to the challenge." • Alderson approached Peter Greenberg, the agent for Jose Reyes, in June of Reyes' walk year, but the GM was rebuffed in extension talks. Alderson never made an official offer that winter, but informally indicated the Mets genuinely were prepared to bid $100 million. "The sad thing is if we sign Jose, we're just maintaining the status quo. We're not improving the team," Alderson told Kettmann at the time. • The Mets focused on the Brewers, Phillies, Red Sox, Rangers and Giants in trade talks involving Carlos Beltran in July 2011. Beltran initially only would consider Milwaukee and Philly. Alderson labeled it a "baited hook" that Beltran flew with Giants personnel to the All-Star Game that year, because the publicity increased pressure on Giants GM Brian Sabean. The Mets initially had insisted on Gary Brown, Brandon Belt or Zack Wheeler for Beltran. Belt was preferred. During a lull in Mets-Giants talks, Alderson presumed Sabean was talking to another team. So Alderson pretended to be interested in Hunter Pence. He called Astros GM Ed Wade to see if Pence was available. Told Pence likely would go untraded, Alderson concluded Sabean lacked leverage. Boston offered Chih-Hsien Chiang and Alex Wilson, plus one from a list of seven players, for Beltran. Texas and the Mets agreed on Joe Wieland and Robbie Ross, but Alderson wanted a third player. Alderson asked for Mike Olt or Rougned Odor. Alderson indicated inclusion of either would seal the deal. The Rangers balked. Texas was surprised by Beltran's trade to San Francisco because the Rangers thought they had a deal with Alderson involving Wieland, Ross and a different third player. • The Orioles "toyed" with the idea of giving up heralded Dylan Bundy for R.A. Dickey before the knuckleballer went to Toronto. The Mets wanted Cody Buckel from Texas, which the Rangers wouldn't do, and which Alderson admits would have been a bust. • Ruben Tejada is one of the few criticized. "Gradually you come to the conclusion that Tejada is just a placeholder," Alderson said. "He's not a long-term guy for us." • Alderson wanted to sign Robinson Cano. Alderson told one of Cano's agents: "Anything over $200 million, we're not there." When the agent didn't then dismiss the Mets, "that led me to believe something less than $200 million was feasible," Alderson said. • Alderson explained the "90 wins" hullabaloo from last spring training to Kettmann as sensationalism. Alderson had googled "winning culture" and read articles before spring training. Alderson then said to staff: "We shouldn't just try to be better. Let's have the mind-set that we're going to go out and win 90 games. When we wake up and look in the mirror, let's make our goal to play like we're trying to win 90 games." Regarding the tabloid reaction after the comment leaked, Alderson said: "It was misleading. ... It was really a challenge to change the mind-set." http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/mets/post/_/id/98964/book-report-sandy-alderson-baseball-maverick

That picture's from Miami's perfect 1972-73 season, the only season that that particular Oilers powder blue helmet and the Rams white horns helmet co-existed. That season, the Pro Bowl was held at Texas Stadium in Irving, an artificial turf venue; the Super Bowl was played at the LA Coliseum. Does that look like the Coliseum to you?

d'Kong76 wrote: Ashie62 wrote: I am sick of you as well. You are mean to me on a consistent basis. Im sure you disagree. Oh, can some other than you have a crack at the igts this season.. It was nice when you disappeared for a year or more. It doesn't have to be that way kase. Look at all the crap batmags starts. Ok, you win! I'm sure that by the time you two are done sorting this out, there'll be a Red Light Forum thread that one of youse will have started and the thread title will have my name in it. So what kind of crap are you talking about that I start? What? You don't wanna read some news article that mentions Madoff and the Mets in the same sentence? What am I? Your scapegoat?

SteveJRogers wrote: Okay, the current guy does seem to be catching up. When I posted that I thought Terry might be in the lead, I guess that what I was saying, on some subconscious level, was that Terry' been managing for quite a while now given the Mets terrible record under him, and given that he doesn't have the excuse that Casey did. Unless the Madoff mess really has given Terry a longer leash and the FO privately recognizes what a sad mess of players Terry's been dealt.

G-Fafif wrote: That white one with the space for a stripe where there isn't a stripe has me flummoxed. Also, the one toward the back that I'm believing to be the Browns -- is that the Niners, except with the color not reproducing correctly? That's a Brown helmet. It took me a few minutes to distinguish the Browns from the Saints from the Packers.

I had no intention of buying it. I just wanted to take a better resolution photo of it to determine whether it was shot at Butterball.

Oilers '72 to '74. [fimg=444:2js6uv71]http://prod.static.titans.clubs.nfl.com/assets/images/team/helmet1972-74.gif[/fimg:2js6uv71] The other missing helmet you weren't entirely sure about was the Eagles. During that era, the wings on the Eagles helmets ran all the way up to the front, and would be visible in the photo. So the white helmet with no center stripe has to be a Cardinals hat.

G-Fafif wrote: Also, am I mistaking the Oilers helmet for the Broncos? Yep, you did. The Broncos blue was darker.

G-Fafif wrote: Seeing, NFC edition... Seeing, AFC edition... Close. But not quite there.

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Where did gathering of helmets convene? My first guess is the Murph, when it was still San Diego Stadium. But maybe wherever in Hawaii they have the Pro Bowl? Though I think the Pro Bowl wasn't yet a Hawaiian entity when the white Rams horn was still in effect. The Pro Bowl was held at mainland warm weather sites during the period when that photo could have been taken. I'd eliminate Irving Stadium, Arrowhead and the Superdome because of the turf fields and indoor conditions. That's clearly an outdoor photo. But the LA Coliseum and the Orange Bowl are possibilities. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pro_Bowl The photo could also have been taken at a Super Bowl. If so, Rice Stadium and Tulane Stadium are possibilities.

G-Fafif wrote: Where did gathering of helmets convene? My first guess is the Murph, when it was still San Diego Stadium. But maybe wherever in Hawaii they have the Pro Bowl? Though I think the Pro Bowl wasn't yet a Hawaiian entity when the white Rams horn was still in effect. The Pro Bowl was held at mainland warm weather sites during the period when that photo could have been taken. I'd eliminate Irving Stadium, Arrowhead and the Superdome because of the turf fields and indoor conditions. That's clearly an outdoor photo. But the LA Coliseum and the Orange Bowl are possibilities. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pro_Bowl

What a coincidence. I was there yesterday and also asked about that poster. The clerk said they're on re-order and that I should check back in a week.

Edgy MD wrote: If you're at loose ends, but really want to bring something to the table, get us some new posters before the season starts. God knows I'm not bringing them in. Okay. Here's a poster. I'd normally post it in the Butterball thread but I'm not entirely sure whether the photo was shot in front of the Butterball Batting Eye or at the Payson Complex. Still, those are some mean dudes. Hide the women and children. The dude in the middle is so fast, he don't need no ride. [fimg=666]https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7588/16856706792_302e94f998_o.jpg[/fimg]

G-Fafif wrote: I realize this isn't the point of this thread.... Let's all stay on topic by playing the Whose Team NFL Carts are Missing? quiz. Give me the complete list of NFL teams whose carts aren't pictured below -- in one post --- to claim credit for winning this quiz. Don't include the names of any NFL teams that didn't yet exist when the picture below was taken. [fimg=866]https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8588/16851006745_e7a7003916_o.jpg[/fimg]