batmagadanleadoff

It's another baseball themed "Caption This" contest from The New Yorker. So caption this.... [fimg=555]http://legacy.newyorker.com/images/2014/09/01/p465/140901_contest_p465.jpg[/fimg] The three finalists: [fimg=633]https://farm6.staticflickr.com/5585/15243942485_8fbf313074_o.jpg[/fimg]

d'Kong76 wrote: Nationals at Metropolitans Clever thread title. How do you decide whether you're gonna go with Mets, Metsies or Metropolitans?

d'Kong76 wrote: He has struggled with the long ball, giving up eight in 32 2/3 innings. Whoa Whoa Wee Wah! Rockies at Metsies. Clever thread title. You must work for an ad agency. Creative Dep't., right?

Lefty Specialist wrote: Perhaps, but remember the outcry when they let Reyes walk? Multiply that by 10 and you'd get the outcry if they'd allowed David to walk a year later. He was the most identifiable Met, and there would have been a revolt. And what if Sandy Alderson used that salary to plug 3 holes with 3 Chris Youngs? I know exactly what you mean. In fact, I think that that, more than anything else, is why Wright was re-signed -- because the Wilpons didn't have the stomach for the shitstorm that would've ensued, instead opting for a half assed, half measured rebuild. I'd bet anything that Sandy would've preferred trading Wright. Maybe with an extra $20M to spend, CYpung wouldn't have been the option chosen.

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Centerfield wrote: He should have been placed on the DL in June to allow the inflammation to calm down.... The best thing for the Mets would've been not to re-sign Wright in the first place. If you can get over your emotional attachment to him, the Mets were farther away from anything in 2012 than they are now. The team's so financially crippled that their payroll is in the low $80M's. So why the hell would they invest about 25% of their entire load on one past his prime and on the wrong side of 30 player? Sandy Alderson could probably plug three holes with the money the Mets are spending on Wright. Plus, if they traded him, there might be some minor league hitting stud ready to produce for the big club right about now ... some prospect about 10 years younger than Wright.

An early analysis of the The Mets Suck allegations contained in the Leigh Castergine complaint. Plus Madoff stuff. Discrimination suit poses multiple threats to Jeff Wilpon By Howard Megdal 8:02 a.m. | Sep. 11, 2014 1 follow this reporter Former Mets senior vice president of ticket sales Leigh Castergine has filed a sexual discrimination complaint against Mets chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon, alleging that Wilpon "frequently humiliated" her during her pregnancy, often in the presence of witnesses, and ultimately fired her for seeking a remedy with the team's human resources department. The Mets issued a statement responding to the allegations which said, "The claims are without merit. Our organization maintains strong policies against any and all forms of discrimination." The complaint comes as Wilpon and his family seek to stabilize their finances and their hold on the team. It also happens to be hitting the news in the wake of Donald Sterling's forced exit as owner of the Los Angeles Clippers, Bruce Levenson selling his share of the Atlanta Hawks, means Wilpon's actions are going to be discussed within the framework of another league seeing multiple owners depart over questions of discrimination. Merits aside, the complaint seems designed to take advantage of this, as well as the Wilpon family's involvement in Bernard Madoff's Ponzi schemes, and their subsequent public mistatements about the state of their own and the team's finances. At one point, the complaint says, "Moreover, the team has been unable to acquire premier talent, in part, because of its serious financial woes. ...The Team's ownership and front office have only made things worse. For example, Mets executives persisted in publicly denying the Team's financial difficulties despite the obvious freefall in player payroll ... each season, the Mets' front office insisted that the team had the ability to spend money on new players, only to see payroll drop even further." Castergine is a Wharton-educated businesswoman who received a promotion from the Mets just prior to her pregnancy. She could be a tricky opponent in a courtroom, and she's certain to be a problematic opponent for Wilpon and the Mets in the public eye. That leaves the question of exactly why this case didn't settle before Castergine filed. A two-week period offered the chronological opportunity, and multiple attorneys I spoke to described it as extremely unlikely that Anne C. Vladeck, the decorated, top-shelf attorney representing Castergine (sort of an anti-Gloria Allred), would have proceeded without attempting a settlement. It is of course possible that Wilpon has a solid, factual defense. But cases have often been settled in spite of this, particularly when the defendant is an owner in the litigation-averse world of Major League Baseball. Another possibility is that Castergine is asking for more money than Wilpon, the son of Mets owner Fred Wilpon, is capable of paying. The statutes under which the suit was filed do not carry with them caps on damages. And with Castergine seeking not just compensatory damages but punitive damages, a jury that found Wilpon liable would be instructed to set out an amount commensurate with what he can pay, and one designed to sting. Remember, this is still the same family that managed to settle with Irving Picard, trustee for the Bernie Madoff victims, because they were out of funds back in 2012. Since then, they've managed to stay afloat largely by borrowing against the skyrocketing equity in their 65 percent stake in S.N.Y., using the local sports television network boom to stave off bankruptcy. But borrowing further against that to pay off a potential sexual discrimination lawsuit, doing so quickly, and in time to avoid a lawsuit is not easy. Nor is any insurer they have to cover such events likely to be sympathetic to a quick resolution, avoiding any further damage to Wilpon's reputation. Said insurer wouldn't much care what happens to Wilpon's public standing. It is also possible that this is about more than the possibility of monetary damages. Certainly, the complaint signals that the plaintiff is also well aware of the power of the allegations to affect the Wilpons in the court of public opinion, as well as their standing in the league. The fact that these are still only allegations means that unlike the secret tape and elevator video that forced the N.B.A. and N.F.L. to take action against a racist owner and wife-beating star player, respectively, Major League Baseball isn't yet compelled to do anything. But it faces a potential crisis should it not even try to determine whether a team owner acted as Castergine alleges Wilpon did. Failing to investigate the matter fully, at least, is going to look awful within the public context of N.F.L. commissioner Roger Goodell's actions after the league was sent a tape of Rice knocking his fiancee unconscious and dragging her out of an elevator. The structure of the lawsuit itself, too, makes potential league actions more complicated. As a veteran attorney in sexual discrimination matters explained it, by pointing out how many other people in the organization�such as chief financial officer Lou DiPaoli and chief counsel David Cohen�allegedly failed to act, it poses a threat not just to Jeff Wilpon but to the collective management of the New York Mets. Figuring all this out, for now, is Bud Selig, who is commissioner of baseball until January. In 2014, the conversation has been about Selig's legacy, something clearly important to him. The extent to which the Mets have been gutted, as part of his legacy, is both seldom talked about publicly, and something acutely understood by both the team's fan base and most of Wilpon's fellow owners. But if Jeff Wilpon lacks the cash to make this go away, or Leigh Castergine decides she wants more than cash for it to happen, then Bud Selig will have to make a decision about whether to let one of his owners go to trial, or to do whatever he can to prevent that from happening. Should the proceedings extend beyond January, and Selig punts, new commissioner Rob Manfred will have the opportunity to weigh in. Manfred, whose first public appearance after winning the job of commissioner-elect was to watch Mo'ne Davis pitch, will be acutely aware of what his actions in this matter will tell the public about him. The state of the Wilpons, as owners, wasn't great before the lawsuit. The team's debt of more than $600 million against their ownership stake in S.N.Y. comes due next year. It either needs to be paid, which obviously can't happen, or re-financed the way the $250 million debt against the team was this past year. That would also need to be approved by Major League Baseball. Back in 2011, Selig nixed a potential deal between wayward Dodgers owner Frank McCourt and Fox for the Dodgers' television rights, citing concern over the "further diversion of Dodgers assets for the personal needs of Mr. McCourt." By contrast, Selig approved the re-finance of Mets team debt in 2014, and it was widely expected the same would be true of Manfred with the 2015 S.N.Y. debt. One who clearly expected it was Fred Wilpon, who forcefully advocated for Manfred during a contentious election battle last month before crowing about Manfred's election in the owner-sympathetic Daily News. But it was Selig and Wilpon who shared a long history together. Expecting more of the same from Manfred was less about that relationship and more about not knowing what level of unseemliness would have to become public before he's moved to make a change. http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/media/2014/09/8552336/discrimination-suit-poses-multiple-threats-jeff-wilpon

Edgy MD wrote: And the scoreboard. Don't forget the scoreboard. We shall never forget the ugliest ... scoreboards ... in baseball ... baseball ... baseball.

Ceetar wrote: And if you don't sign him you're even farther from contention You think it matters between finishing 15 or 20 games out? And between the two, I'd prefer a 20 games out finish. (Draft pick)

Ceetar wrote: Ceetar wrote: You could shut down everyone for every little nick and bruise, but then you'd have no players. Or you could spend $20M of your $80M+ allowance on one player. That'll leave you with about $60M to assemble the rest of the 24 guys on the roster. Or you could stop projecting Mets payroll like anyone has any clue what it's going to be. I many not know what precisely the Mets 2015 opening day payroll will be, but I think I've got plenty of clues to guide my thinking. What I do now is what the Mets payroll was during the first two years of Wright's new contract. And I can tell you for sure that given how broke the Mets were, and how bad they were, and how far away from contention they were -- Wright's contract makes little sense.

Ceetar wrote: You could shut down everyone for every little nick and bruise, but then you'd have no players. Or you could spend $20M of your $80M+ allowance on one player. That'll leave you with about $60M to assemble the rest of the 24 guys on the roster.

Centerfield wrote: He should have been placed on the DL in June to allow the inflammation to calm down.... The best thing for the Mets would've been not to re-sign Wright in the first place. If you can get over your emotional attachment to him, the Mets were farther away from anything in 2012 than they are now. The team's so financially crippled that their payroll is in the low $80M's. So why the hell would they invest about 25% of their entire load on one past his prime and on the wrong side of 30 player? Sandy Alderson could probably plug three holes with the money the Mets are spending on Wright.

It's called Jeterating: I Wanna Like Derek Jeter! I do! Published by jposnanski on March 15, 2014 Jeterate. May 2008. People don�t believe me when I say that I really like Derek Jeter. I do! I think Jeter is an excellent player. I think Jeter is a smart player. I love the guy�s tenacity � he�s only missed 15 games in a season once � and I like his .317/.387/.461 lifetime line, and I respect that he will give you some power, some speed, and more often than not really good at-bats. And heck, I like the personality, the charisma, the star quality, the way other players talk about his leadership � I don�t know what all that�s worth but it�s gotta be worth something. So why is it that I�m often writing negative things about Derek Jeter? I realized Friday that it has absolutely nothing to do with Jeter himself. No, what drives me batty is that Jeter � maybe because of his star power, or maybe because he�s a Yankee, or maybe because he�s made some very big plays on the national stage, or maybe because he dated all the supermodels, I honestly don�t know what it is � Jeter brings out this quality in people, this superiority, this � it just drives me insane I don�t know if there�s a word for this quality so, as we do here, I�m going to invent a word. Jeterate (verb) meaning �to praise someone for something of which he or she is entirely unworthy of praise.� Example: �The father could not but jeterate his daughter for coloring on the wall because she looked so cute.� Or: �The employee, knowing his job was on the line, jeterated his boss for almost making a 3-foot putt. �That was an incredible putt,� the employee said. �With that intense break, I doubt Tiger Woods would have even lipped out like you did.� Or: �The doctor jeterated his patient for not actually gaining any more weight since the visit four days earlier.� And so on. See, the thing is Derek Jeter is such a good baseball player � I mean, we are talking about a no-doubt, first ballot Hall of Famer here � that people don�t need to jeterate him for his fielding. The guy sucks as a defensive shortstop, OK? He�s brutal out there. Every detailed defensive number shows it. He�s back near the bottom again in zone rating and range factor and, I�m sure, the Dewan plus/minus. Plus every scout who pays attention knows he can�t go two steps to his left and his arm is subpar. It�s OK! Really! He doesn�t have to be Mark Belanger. He�s a great hitter! He plays every day! He�s makes up for some of his flaws with his awareness and mental stamina! I wouldn�t be bothered by his defensive liabilities, I really wouldn�t, except, well, you know, so many people don�t think he HAS defensive liabilities. They give him freaking gold gloves. They knight him Sir Derek of Defensive Wizardry because 238 years ago he tagged Jeremy Giambi and jumped into the crowd on a foul ball. You see what happened there. I completely went overboard again. This is what Derek Jeter does to me. I like Derek Jeter. I do! I wouldn�t even care about Jeter�s deficient defense if certain people would just stop jeterating, stop mythmaking, stop telling me that the numbers are wrong and my eyes are wrong and that Jeter�s defensive brilliance is beyond my understanding, like the size of the universe or the appeal of Drew Barrymore. Of course, this rant wasn�t set off by Jeter�s defense. No. I was driving back to New York from Cooperstown*, where I did more 1975 Reds research (did I mention that I�m writing this book), and I was listening to the Yankees radio network and I heard the worst bit of jeterating I�ve heard in my entire life, and that�s saying something. *Here�s how you will know that I was in Cooperstown � I am at this very moment wearing a 1975 Cleveland Indians Crooked C hat. You know I used to be a big hat guy � loved wearing caps � and as my wife will tell you I have like 75 or 80 baseball caps in the closet. But somewhere along the way, I stopped wearing them. This wasn�t a conscious decision; I didn�t wake up one morning, look in the mirror, and say, �That�s it, pally, you�re a grown up now, it�s time to top wearing caps like you�re one of the Peanuts gang.� No. It just sort of gradually went in that direction. These days, for the most part, I only wear caps when I�m trying to prevent sun stroke. But this Crooked C hat that I got in Cooperstown could change all that. I love this hat. So, here�s the Jeter scenario. He gets hit by a pitch to lead off the fifth inning. Then the MBGPIBH* Bobby Abreu singles Jeter to third. A-Rod is up. You have the situation in your mind now, right? First and third, nobody out. A-Rod at the plate. *Most Boring Good Player In Baseball History. You can change �Good� to �Great� if you feel strongly about it. This is a versatile title. OK, you ready? A-Rod hits a ground ball to third base. Jeter takes off for home. Now, you can argue about whether or not heading home was the right call. I wasn�t watching the game, so I couldn�t tell you if this was a contact play, or if the Mariners were set up for the double play, or if Jeter (gasp) just got caught up. I don�t know, and it doesn�t matter. What matters is this, Mariners� third baseman Adrian Beltre threw home and got Jeter into a rundown. Because Jeter is a good athlete, it took the Mariners three throws to get him and this gave the MBGPIBH and A-Rod enough time to get to second and third. So � you got the play in your mind, right? Now, do I need to say any more? If that had been David DeJesus getting caught up in the rundown, or Coco Crisp, or Melvin Mora or Placido Polanco or Endy Chavez or Mark Kotsay or just about anyone else you can think of, it would be described pretty plainly. The runner took off, it was unfortunate, but at least he stayed out there in the rundown long enough to allow the runners to move up. The words �at least� would have been used, no doubt about it. You don�t throw roses at players for getting caught in rundowns on third base with nobody out. But � this is Derek Jeter. And so, well, you know what�s coming. The Yankees radio crew � and these are good folk, hard workers, they�re just lost in the Jeter flood like so many � basically sang Hosanas to Derek Jeter for getting caught in a rundown. I�m not kidding here. They went on for five minutes about how the Captain willed those runners to second and third. They kept talking about how not only did Jeter stay in the rundown but he WAVED THOSE OTHER RUNNERS to the bag while he was doing it. Imagine. I was sitting there in the car absolutely stunned. This was Jeterating on a whole new level. He waved the other runners to their bags? Really? Like this: Mind of Derek Jeter: �Oh oh, I�m in a rundown here. I better let those other guys know what to do.� Mind of MBGPIBH: �I like cookies. They are delicious. Especially when they have chocolate chips.� Mind of Jeter: �No, Bobby! No! Dammit. I�ll bet he�s thinking about cookies. No! Run to the next base Bobby! No, that base! Third base! Come on Bobby, I can�t stay in this rundown all day.� Mind of MBGPIBH: �I don�t like oatmeal cookies so much. I wonder if it�s the oatmeal.� Mind of Jeter: �NO! That base! I�m waving here! Hello! I�m waving! Third base!� Mind of A-Rod: �Wow, what�s all the waving about. I think Derek�s trying to tell us something!� Mind of Mencia: �Something utterly not funny.� Mind of MBGPIBH: �Um, now, I also like doughnuts, but not the cake ones so much and � oh, hey, Derek�s waving. I better go to third base.� Mind of Jeter: �Whew. Thank you and, oh no, A-Rod, man, you�ve got to run too. Come on, I�m waving here.� Mind of A-Rod: �Is he waving goodbye? Is he leaving? I wonder if I�ll be the shortstop again. Man, I liked being shortstop, you know, I could tell pitchers what to throw and � oh, wait, he�s waving me to second base. Here I go!� No, seriously, this was what they were saying on the radio. He waved them to the next base! What a leader! What a man! Who else in the world could have gotten caught in a rundown long enough to get runners to move up? Wait, did he save a young child from a burning building during the rundown? I believe he did! What a player! What a humanitarian! And then, when Hideki Matsui singled to score both runners, they took it up another step and canonized Jeter. I suppose posts like this are why people don�t believe me when I tell them that I really like Derek Jeter. I do! I really, really, really do. If only people would just stop. http://joeposnanski.com/joevault/?p=27

This Mets fan collects everything. Even souvenir cups. Credit cards, too. Chipper Jones in a noose. 250,000 baseball cards, over 1,500 jerseys (including about 250 Mike Piazzas) and 900 caps (all fitted) That's his mom in the rocking chair. Read the full story and comments and watch videos of his collection here: http://zackhample.mlblogs.com/2012/01/03/ben-weil/

I'm getting sick and tired of how anyone who dares to criticize Derek Jeter acts as if they're also obligated to qualify their objections by first reminding everyone of just how great and awesome Jeter supposedly is.

http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/news/article/nyy/why-you-shouldnt-wait-to-grab-a-jeter-jersey?ymd=20140821&content_id=90739230&vkey=news_nyy

Before the cage: [fimg=644:1oln4hdg]https://farm4.staticflickr.com/3911/14931912527_c23ca7a9f7_o.jpg[/fimg:1oln4hdg]

Frayed Knot wrote: batmagadanleadoff wrote: And what kind of available outfielder, one year removed from the major league minimum salary, do you think the Mets might pluck from some other team's trash pile? We can hope that the Mets might finally get on the right side of some Amos Otis to the Royals type deal, but me, I wouldn't count on something like that happening. You don't think a team would give up a young, promising OF'r for a young, promising catcher? Sure. And if the Mets think they have a surplus of young, major league caliber catchers, they can turn that excess into a strength. But if the hypothetical trade target isn't far removed from the major league minimum --like d'Arnaud-- then he's coming cheap. NTTAWWT! And that hypothetical move would probably be dictated by finances. How do I know this? Because the Mets are broke. But would the Mets trade d'Arnaud for a LF'er earning around $10M a year, assuming d'Arnaud is expendable?

With no more games against the Phillies, the Mets can now resume their inevitable descent into last place. At least they'll get a higher draft pick (whatever that's worth) come next Summer.

Roger Angell's latest New Yorker piece is also the cover story. [fimg=444]http://www.newyorker.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/140908_r254591-320-426.jpg[/fimg]

It's another baseball themed "Caption This" contest from The New Yorker. So caption this.... [fimg=555]http://legacy.newyorker.com/images/2014/09/01/p465/140901_contest_p465.jpg[/fimg]

bmfc1 wrote: As with everything Mets related, you have to wonder if this is money related because it also removes the need for acquiring an established LF while putting much lower-priced players at C and LF. I hope that this is motivated by other reasons (finding a place for Pawlecki to play; moving d'Arnaud to a place where fewer balls are coming at him; protecting d'Arnaud's head). Wonder away! I think that's a reasonable thought. The Mets appear to be so financially crippled, that their relative poverty touches upon every move they make. Edgy MD wrote: It's just about keeping options open. If this was purely about being cheap, well, trade one of them for an actual (and similarly priced) young leftfielder. And what kind of available outfielder, one year removed from the major league minimum salary, do you think the Mets might pluck from some other team's trash pile? We can hope that the Mets might finally get on the right side of some Amos Otis to the Royals type deal, but me, I wouldn't count on something like that happening.

Why would anyone listen to cassettes today? Unless the technology improved, the sound's inferior to other forms of music and cassettes degrade every time you play 'em, just like the bottom of your shoes wear out some with every step you take. I listened to cassettes when I was a teenager, but only because I was a teenager. And maybe in an auto, because before CD's, cassettes (and 8-tracks) were the only way to listen to music you specifically selected while in an automobile. OE: Vic Sage wrote: Do record companies even bother creating "liner notes" anymore? Do you only get them if you buy a hard copy of the music? As for an audio tape version, maybe if it sells well enough, they'll do that. Is there really a market for that now? I had no idea. Maybe the technology has changed alot, i don't know, but tape used to be a poor 2nd choice to vinyl, and used only for its portability. Now, downloads (and even CDs) have better portability, while delivering superior sound. I shoulda waited until I read the whole thread before posting.

Braves 1969 sleeve patch: [fimg=444:2s5fq9sh]http://cdn3.vox-cdn.com/assets/4754780/Braves_throwback_patch_medium.jpg[/fimg:2s5fq9sh] Braves bobblehead, circa 1969: [fimg=422:2s5fq9sh]http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTYwMFg4NjI=/z/FaoAAOSwirZTva7o/$_57.JPG[/fimg:2s5fq9sh]

Star Spangled Baseball [youtube:2ca04znr]x1-jWl0O34U[/youtube:2ca04znr] [youtube:2ca04znr]9mBVex8kosw[/youtube:2ca04znr]

Good thing those vets didn't make it out to Woodstock a year later. [youtube:329q5ioj]VPwrlKUtpwk[/youtube:329q5ioj]