batmagadanleadoff

G-Fafif wrote: If Michael Moraitis is the competition, Bill Price sweeps the Pulitzers. It was either this piece or more stuff about whether the Mets are or aren't to blame for Wheeler's season ending injury.

No surprise there, as the Yankees have a longer tradition dating over a century, while the Mets came into existence in the 1960's. Not to mention, it also helps that the Yankees are one of the most successful sports franchises on the planet.... Some say the Mets could takeover in New York with the potential of having a better team, but even if that dream does become reality, it never lasts long. The Yankees are by far more consistent year-to-year and spend the money to stay competitive, thus keeping their fans interested. For the first 30-35 years of their existence, the Mets were always more popular than the Yankees, save for the years roughly covering when the Mets wore their two-button jersey tops (The Youngblood Era). [fimg=444]https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTTn5fxe6O2YsGOA2vx8kbeLuCdm94maup_jkA_7FkvZJbqV0tG[/fimg]

G-Fafif wrote: For those of us who grew up in the 70s and early 80s, we don't have too many wonderful memories from Shea Stadium. I realize this isn't the point of this thread, but can everybody who writes ledes like this -- even if or especially if your shtick is Long Suffering Mets Fan -- be reassigned to lacrosse? (No offense to any lacrosse fans out there.) The topic is aqua green walls.

[fimg=433:4pvbqeok]http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.2154363.1426710830!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_970/jul-13.jpg?enlarged[/fimg:4pvbqeok] [fimg=433:4pvbqeok]http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51cehlDqSFL._SY445_.jpg[/fimg:4pvbqeok] Looks like the bullpen cart was given a permanent hard hat. Makes sense. The removable cloth covers were a space saver back when most teams also maintained a second cart for the visitors.

[fimg=333]http://dmv.ny.gov/sites/default/files/styles/dmv_featured/public/pages/New-Mets-Psngr.png?itok=QvNaNBhT[/fimg][fimg=333]http://dmv.ny.gov/sites/default/files/styles/dmv_featured/public/pages/New-Yankees-Psngr_0.png?itok=uQEhYeST[/fimg][fimg=333]http://dmv.ny.gov/sites/default/files/styles/dmv_featured/public/pages/New-Brooklyn-Dodgers-Psngr.png?itok=7CYBwbwF[/fimg] Yankees License Plates Outnumber Mets Plates in New York State March 18th, 2015 at 12:00 PM By Michael Moraitis It turns out the Department of Motor Vehicles in New York has a count of how many Yankees and New York Mets license plates are out there in the state and it's the Bronx Bombers who took home the higher total. According to Katie Hinds of WNYC radio, the Yankees fans show their support more than Mets ones by 4:1: No surprise there, as the Yankees have a longer tradition dating over a century, while the Mets came into existence in the 1960's. Not to mention, it also helps that the Yankees are one of the most successful sports franchises on the planet. The real surprising thing is that with close to 20 million people in the state, only about 5,400 people care to show their pride in Yankees or Mets baseball on their license plate. I must admit, I am one of the people that don't have such a form of fandom. Hats off to those who do show their baseball pride on the back and front of their car. Some say the Mets could takeover in New York with the potential of having a better team, but even if that dream does become reality, it never lasts long. The Yankees are by far more consistent year-to-year and spend the money to stay competitive, thus keeping their fans interested. If things turn around for the Mets, don't be shocked to see more Mets plates, though. On any given year, investing in a Mets license plate could turn out to be a huge, embarrassing mistake. More often than not, you're doing OK without taking many risks if you purchase a Yankees license plate. http://www.sportsmedia101.com/newyorkyankees/2015/03/18/yankees-license-plates-outnumber-mets-plates-in-new-york/

[fimg=373]http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.1626791.1395759102!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_635/bitter-bill-jpg.jpg[/fimg] Start saving up Mets fans, the ultimate Met memoribilia is going on auction BY Bill Price NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Published: Wednesday, March 18, 2015, 4:37 PM [fimg=544]http://assets.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.2154363.1426710830!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_970/jul-13.jpg?enlarged[/fimg] John Franco drives Tug McGraw onto the field in 2003 in bullpen cart that will be up for auction on April 1. For those of us who grew up in the 70s and early 80s, we don't have too many wonderful memories from Shea Stadium. Sure, we will never forget the first time we went to a game, and a Mets-Dodgers game in 1982 when Randy Jones and Fernando Valenzuela went toe-to-toe was one of the greatest times I ever had at big Shea. But win or lose, one of the greatest thrills always came when the bullpen cart with the Mets cap on top, or the visiting cart with the cap for the road team, would roll out of the bullpen down the baseline and deliver a relief pitcher to the field. Well, on April 1, Sotheby's will be holding The New York Sale - an auction centered on things from New York City - and one of the big items in the collection is the Mets bullpen cart. According to the catalog, it's "A fantastic example of whimsical Major League Baseball marketing from the late 1960s, used intermittently at Shea Stadium for more than 20 years. Highights of its use include a memorable appearance at the 1986 World Series versus the Boston Red Sox and again in 2003 when Mets Captain John Franco drove Mets legend Tug McGraw onto the field as part of the team's celebration of the legendary 1973 team. "Immortalized by its dramatic appearance at the monumental 1986 World Series Championship in which it entered the field of play following the culmination of the game seven win, it promptly ran out of power adding further delight to the victory celebration. "Presented in largely original condition and displaying a lovely patina throughout, it is fully operational and represents an iconic piece of New York sports history celebrating one of New York's most memorable and important World Series Championship wins." Wow, that's a mouthful. Listen, in this case, Sotheby's could have saved a lot of time and just say the Mets bullpen cart is up for auction and end it at that, as I'm sure there are tons of Mets fans who don't need a description of the thing. When I saw the picture, I knew I wanted it. When I saw it may go from anywhere from 20-30 grand, well, my dream of having the cart shuttle players in and out of Wifflefest went out the window. But if you have the cash, and you do buy it, please, just give me a ride. And if you are wondering, it doesn't appear as if the pinstriped Toyota from Yankee Stadium is up for sale. http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/bitterbill/mets-bullpen-cart-auction-blog-entry-1.2154340

Mets Dominate List. Where have I read that before? [fimg=644]https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7645/16670490559_0025d7b589_o.jpg[/fimg]

Clubhouse Ed [fimg=566:35o2wg1x]https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7612/16643646117_854a11f448_o.jpg[/fimg:35o2wg1x]

I was only kidding.

And underneath the visiting bullpen, they kept separate bullpen carts for each NFL team, for the Jets relievers. And the Jets opponents. [fimg=666:h0ojjrgg]https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8588/16851006745_e7a7003916_o.jpg[/fimg:h0ojjrgg]

Zvon wrote: batmagadanleadoff wrote: The "caps" were cloth fabric that stretched over the plastic helmet mold that was the roof of the cart. Wow. I did not know that. Amazin'. I really thought there was a giant hat collection in the bowls of Shea. Actually, they had separate carts --- one for each team. And they had all the AL teams, too, just in case the Mets won the pennant. [fimg=755]https://farm8.staticflickr.com/7597/16228622624_84f2e13363_o.jpg[/fimg]

The "caps" were cloth fabric that stretched over the plastic helmet mold that was the roof of the cart.

[fimg=555:2b4v0z2y]http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2133/1590869165_8e0872dca8.jpg?v=0[/fimg:2b4v0z2y] During the celebrations right after the Mets clinch the NL East in September, 1986, a Mets fan carjacks the Mets bullpen cart and takes it for a spin all over the field. The cart eventually stalls.

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Here's a photo of Dave Giusti being driven in during the Mets home opener, 1970. [fimg=444]https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8632/16660168578_64ef7560cb_o.jpg[/fimg] The rain must've thinned out the crowd. Otherwise, it'd be a pretty shabby showing for the opener of the reigning World Champion, World Sensation Amazin' Mets.

I also think of toothpaste whenever I try to describe those walls. The earliest the Mets used the baseball cap bullpen cart would've been 1971. Here's a photo of Dave Giusti being driven in during the Mets home opener, 1970. [fimg=744:28twyv6k]https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8632/16660168578_64ef7560cb_o.jpg[/fimg:28twyv6k] Mets bullpen buggy, 1972: [fimg=555:28twyv6k]http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51cehlDqSFL._SY445_.jpg[/fimg:28twyv6k] (unless the cap buggy was introduced in mid-70, I suppose. Though I doubt it, going by memory.

I thought you were responding to my post, that's all.

Edgy MD wrote: Well, those two statements don't necessarily follow each other. it's certainly possible, as the Time speculates, that he did have the tear, but the examination didn't show it. Yeah. But if you're addressing my post, that's why I used the word "unless". All three possibilities are in play.

Ceetar wrote: he _didn't_ have the tear. The MRI in January did not show it. Unless the MRI did show it, but was missed by Mets doctors. Or unless the MRI ought to have shown it, but not enough dye was injected into Wheeler, so as to reveal the already existing injury. See NYT piece, above.

The New York Times raises the possibility that Wheeler might have been misdiagnosed, noting that those tears, in their earliest stages, can be missed, even on MRI images. Bad Luck or Bad Practices? It�s Tough for Mets to Tell By DAVID WALDSTEIN MARCH 16, 2015 So extensive is the growing list of Mets pitchers who have needed Tommy John surgery in recent years that even their general manager had difficulty recalling all of them on Monday. �I don�t have all the cases in front of me,� the general manager, Sandy Alderson, said on a conference call with reporters, �but the four I can think of are deGrom, Matz, Wheeler now and Harvey. As well as Hefner, I guess, will be five.� More formally, the five are Jacob deGrom, Steven Matz, Matt Harvey, Jeremy Hefner and Zack Wheeler, who is the latest Mets pitcher found to have a tear in his ulnar collateral ligament, that tiny bit of sinew in the elbow that has cost so many pitchers at least a year of their careers. Alderson did not mention four other past and present Mets pitchers of note � Jenrry Mejia, Mike Pelfrey, Bobby Parnell and Josh Edgin � who have required the operation since 2010, with the team announcing Sunday that Edgin would have it this week. That makes for nine Mets pitchers in all � or 10 if you factor in that Hefner has had the procedure twice � a total that seems excessive even as teams across baseball lose more and more pitchers to elbow injuries. �You can always look at your practices in developing pitching,� Alderson said during the conference call. �Also look at mechanics and whether mechanics are clean or not clean, velocities, types and assortments of pitches. We will certainly continue to look at what we�re doing. But this is an industrywide problem, and there is some suggestion this goes back to pitching loads and things that predate even college. So it�s something baseball has to continue to look at. We do as well.� Because there is no real consensus on why so many pitchers are tearing their elbow ligaments, Alderson and the Mets will have a hard time figuring out whether they have simply been victims of bad luck or whether practices within the organization need to be addressed. �It does seem as if the Mets are consistently dealing with this issue,� said Dr. Craig Levitz, the chairman of orthopedic surgery at South Nassau Communities Hospital on Long Island. �It could be some of the things they are doing, it could be the pitchers that they pursue, and it could just be bad luck. It�s very hard to know.� After Harvey hurt his elbow in 2013, the Mets looked into pitch counts and rest days but made no substantial changes regarding the way their pitchers were treated, Alderson said. �Caution is the best thing one can learn from any of these,� he said. Still, the Mets did not act more cautiously with Wheeler in camp this year than they did with other pitchers, Alderson said, citing advice from the team�s medical staff. Wheeler had pitched with elbow discomfort in 2014 and had magnetic resonance imaging tests on his elbow in September and January. �If the doctors had felt that we needed to treat him in a different way, we would have,� Alderson said. Levitz, who has worked alongside Dr. James Andrews, the orthopedic surgeon widely regarded as the leading expert on Tommy John surgery, has not examined Wheeler but followed his case in recent days through published reports. Levitz said Wheeler�s injury � a full tear of the ligament, as detected by an M.R.I. over the weekend � almost certainly did not come out of nowhere in the last week. In all likelihood, Levitz said, the two previous M.R.I.s missed a small partial tear in Wheeler�s elbow that eventually became a full one. Had the full tear occurred several months from now, in the middle of the season, it might have been independent of the elbow tendinitis that Wheeler was feeling last year, Levitz said. But the fact that he felt discomfort after only one spring training start indicated that it was related to his problems from last season. M.R.I.s sometimes give false negatives, especially when they are used without a dye that can help expose even the smallest tears, Levitz said. But Levitz, citing the three M.R.I.s the Mets gave Wheeler in seven months, said it was clear that the team�s doctors had been suspicious of something. �It was probably ulnar collateral ligament stuff that masqueraded as tendinitis because the M.R.I. was normal,� Levitz said. �Ulnar collateral ligament tears are very difficult to diagnose sometimes. It could have been a very small tear that didn�t show up, and even if it did, you might have followed the same protocol for the player that they did.� http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/17/sports/baseball/bad-luck-or-bad-practices-its-tough-for-mets-to-tell.html?_r=0

I'd bet anything that I haven't cast an MLB ASG ballot since Joe Frazier managed the Mets.

Look at that scoreboard. It's a Seaver start. It's gotta be 4/20/67.

What color would you call these walls? [fimg=1222:1rxlmn2h]https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8722/16659455238_22fc28edc2_o.jpg[/fimg:1rxlmn2h]

First thing I thought when I read this is that the tickets season ticket holders get are also closer to extinction.

Zvon wrote: Wow, what a shot. That is quite a find. That has to go on a card. 67 or 68 Topps? Whats this shit about aqua green? Are you saying that cause it's St Patty's Day? If that's aqua green, then I suppose those walls weren't 't aqua green. Isn't there a lighter aqua green? If not, then what would you call that color? And don't tell me white!

Oh c'mon. You know that most of my Mets posts are upbeat.