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I don't know if this qualifies as a hint, but I thought that the last remaining Met in this quiz would've been the first one solved.

I thought Shingo would stump everybody. One more to go. [u:z9et1ja5]It Sucks to be Here[/u:z9et1ja5] Jeff Kent - 1992 - Blue Jays Frank Taveras - 1979 - Pirates Darrin Jackson - 1993 - Blue Jays Tom Hall - 1975 - Reds Shingo Takatsu - 2005 - White Sox [u:z9et1ja5]It probably still sucks to be here, but not as bad as it must suck for the guys on the list above. Unless you're Richie Hebner. [/u:z9et1ja5] Joe Pignatano Ryan Thompson Richie Hebner Clint Hurdle David Justice Alex Trevino

Farmer Ted wrote: Lost to a Yoshii, Chen, Graeme Lloyd combo. Holy hell. They all pitched for the Mets. It seems as if half of all Montreal Expos once played for the Mets.

[u:3py5r6lc]It Sucks to be Here[/u:3py5r6lc] Jeff Kent - 1992 - Blue Jays Frank Taveras - 1979 - Pirates Darrin Jackson - 1993 - Blue Jays [u:3py5r6lc]It probably still sucks to be here, but not as bad as it must suck for the guys on the list above. Unless you're Richie Hebner. [/u:3py5r6lc] Joe Pignatano Ryan Thompson Richie Hebner Clint Hurdle David Justice Alex Trevino

metsmarathon wrote: [crossout]david justice[/crossout] oops. not "acquired during a season". dangit. And he never played for the Mets either.

metsguyinmichigan wrote: Clint Hurdle Nope.

G-Fafif wrote: Not Al Jackson. Not lotsa guys, but Little Al was PTBNL in a deal in July of '67 from the Cards...but not named until after STL won it all. Correct. But you've sort of stumbled onto Part II of this quiz. When we're done with this one, I'm gonna ask youse all to gimme the It Sucks to Be Here Mets who arrived off-season.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Alex Trevino, 1990? Also, I have a feeling it was somebody from Atlanta in 1995, but I can't think of who it might be. Although Trevino once played for the Reds, he didn't play for their championship 1990 squad. Trevino returned to the Mets in 1990, coming over from the Astros.

G-Fafif wrote: Darrin Jackson Leave it to Prince to blow up my quiz. I overlooked Jackson, who came to the Mets in mid-season 1993 from that season's champion Blue Jays in a trade for Mets malcontent Tony Fernandez. That's three. Three more to go.

dinosaur jesus wrote: Frank Taveras The Mets acquired Taveras during the 1979 season from the eventual WS Champion 1979 Pitttsburgh Pirates. That's two.

2014 NL East Preview The East is a two-team race, but ample young talent will keep things interesting for the cellar dwellers by Jonah Keri on March 26, 2014 New York Mets Vegas line: 75 wins Key additions: Bartolo Colon, Curtis Granderson, John Lannan, Jose Valverde, Chris Young Key losses: Shaun Marcum, LaTroy Hawkins Projected lineup: LF Eric Young Jr. (.243/.311/.332) 2B Daniel Murphy (.279/.318/.401) 3B David Wright (.280/.364/.469) RF Curtis Granderson (.226/.314/.422) CF Chris Young (.225/.309/.404) 1B Ike Davis (.233/.332/.427) C Travis d’Arnaud (.243/.306/.396) SS Ruben Tejada (.254/.309/.326) While the Never-ending Wilpon Financial Quagmire of Despair sometimes makes it tough to see, GM Sandy Alderson has quietly done a nice job of restocking the Mets with young talent. Zack Wheeler (acquired for a two-month Carlos Beltran rental) showed flashes of brilliance in his debut season last year, while Noah Syndergaard looks ready to become the third member of whatever we’re calling the trio of dynamic young righties Matt Harvey, Wheeler, and Syndergaard should form by 2015. (Generation L?) Alderson has also acquired some bats, and he needs Travis d’Arnaud to come through as much as he needs the pitchers to succeed. The 25-year-old catcher was the 37th overall pick in the 2007 draft, and he spent six seasons in the minors before finally reaching the Mets in August 2013. He posted lousy numbers (.202/.286/.263) as a late-season regular, though to be fair, 112 plate appearances during a player’s first major league stint aren’t much to go on. The real question is whether d’Arnaud can stay healthy. Despite a solid .286/.347/.476 minor league line that included some gaudy numbers in the high minors, he battled injuries for much of his time down on the farm. It’s tough to say whether that means he’s brittle or has simply suffered bad luck, and even the Mets can’t know for sure. What the Mets do know: 25-year-old power-hitting catchers who offer six years of largely cheap team control are extremely valuable. If d’Arnaud develops into a star as the Mets hope, this team could improve faster than many expect. Projected rotation: Dillon Gee (160, 4.15) Bartolo Colon (203, 3.63) Zack Wheeler (171, 3.98) Jon Niese (123, 3.72) Daisuke Matsuzaka (76, 4.93) Syndergaard might not be up until June, if the Mets want to give him some more seasoning and avoid starting his arbitration countdown too early. But since we’ve already talked about the impending Harvey-Wheeler-Syndergaard era, please allow this bit of frivolity: Bartolo Colon is going to hit this year! We got a taste of his sweet stroke on Saturday, and it was magical.... It’s impossible not to get excited about the prospect of a man as big as Colon running the bases. Jokes aside, though, his renaissance remains a genuinely amazing story, even amid past PED issues. He throws fastballs almost exclusively, so hitters know what’s coming, yet they can’t seem to square up and hit the ball all that hard or far. Colon is becoming one of my favorite players, and he’s a big reason why I’m optimistic about the Mets being decent this year, despite losing Harvey to Tommy John surgery. Bullpen, bench, and depth: The Mets’ extensive efforts to trade Ike Davis over the winter went nowhere, so for now they have two players with redundant skills and only one position in Davis and Lucas Duda. While that’s not great for the starting lineup, it is good for the bench. Throw in defensive ace Juan Lagares, who should arguably be starting over Eric Young Jr., and the Mets have some serious bench weapons. The bullpen, on the other hand, could struggle again this season. Jose Valverde projects as one of the top setup men, which bodes poorly. Best-case scenario: The kids all flourish, allowing the Mets to finish this season around .500 and emerge as contenders as soon as next year. Worst-case scenario: At year’s end, people are talking about the Wilpons’ money woes instead of the team’s top young players. Bold prediction: A season after batting .205, Davis finally breaks out and becomes a quality everyday first baseman, maintaining a .260 average while belting 30-plus homers. http://grantland.com/features/2014-nl-east-preview/

Rules for the Final Championship Round. 1. Song parodies are due on or before April 6, noon. 2. The topic is open. You may choose, as your parody subject, any Met player, coach or manager. 3. The Liverpool wrinkle remains in effect. Your song must parody an original Beatles release, just as in the first round. 4. [u:he374bng]The 1964 wrinkle[/u:he374bng] - your song parody must reference at lease one of the following noteworthy news items, events, people places or things from 1964: LBJ MLK The 1964-65 World�s Fair The Beatles Clay/Liston Kitty Genovese The Civil Rights Murders in Philadelphia, Mississippi Mary Poppins The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge James Bond Your 1964 reference may be as brief or as lengthy as you feel comfortable with. The contestant whose second round parody receives the most votes will be crowned Champion of the 2014 Liverpool to Crane Pool Song Parody Contest. Good luck.

Hey, whaddya know. This furshlugginer round ended. Congrats to all the entrants, who did a bang-up Beatles job. I'll unmask the secret identities of the contestants and post the rules for the final round. [fimg=555]http://www.geoffreygolden.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/beatles_masks.jpg[/fimg] Advancing to the Final Champonship Round are: Tagged Together-Paul Lo Duca-Come Together -John Cougar Lunchbucket I'm George Theodore-George Theodore-When I'm 64 - Zvon Richie Hebner Wants Off This Club Bad/Hebner Wasn't Here to Make Friends-Richie Hebner-Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band/With a Little Help From My Friends - G-Fafif You Still Hate Me-Rick Reed-You Won't See Me - sharpie _______________________ Just missing the cut: If I Needed Elster-Kevin Elster-If I Needed Someone - Edgy MD Pick My Scab-Rick Reed-Drive My Car - LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr

Hey, whaddya know. This furshlugginer round ended. Congrats to all the entrants, who did a bang-up Beatles job. I'll unmask the secret identities of the contestants and post the rules for the final round. [fimg=555:2pqbtao1]http://www.geoffreygolden.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/beatles_masks.jpg[/fimg:2pqbtao1]

[u:1wzwzagj]It Sucks to be Here[/u:1wzwzagj] Jeff Kent - 1992 - Blue Jays [u:1wzwzagj]It probably still sucks to be here, but not as bad as it must suck for the guys on the list above. Unless you're Richie Hebner. [/u:1wzwzagj] Joe Pignatano Ryan Thompson Richie Hebner

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Richie Hebner Hebner was acquired by the Mets during the off-season between '78 and '79, so he doesn't qualify. Besides, his last team prior to joining the Mets -- the Phillies -- didn't win the '79 WS. So there's that, too.

Jeff Kent came to the Mets during the 1992 season from the Toronto Blue Jays, the eventual 1992 WS Champs. That's one. Ryan Thompson was the player to be named later in the Kent deal, coming to the Mets in September of 1992. But Thompson never played for the 1992 Blue Jays, or any other Blue Jays team. He made his Major League debut with the Mets.

Edgy MD wrote: Joe Hognatano. OE: Nope. The 1962 Giants won the pennant, not the World Series. That was the McCovey line drive WS. But Piggy did come to the Mets after the start of the '62 season, so you got that part right. You seem to understand the question, which means I phrased it good enough.

Quizzes to take while waiting for the riveting first round of the Liverpool to Crane Pool Tournament to end: I've got five players who were acquired by the Mets during a season (as opposed to during an off-season or in between seasons) in which the last teams those five players played for immediately before coming to the Mets went on to win the World Series in their respective first Met seasons. Got it? I hope I phrased this properly and didn't leave anybody out. One guess per post.

G-Fafif wrote: G-Fafif wrote: Whither Brooklyn Burgers? And what of Keith's Grill, where Brooklyn Burgers were featured? G-Fafif wrote: Keith's featured Brooklyn Burgers, the former official burgers of Citi Field. Strange that his stand wouldn't be mentioned if it was converting to Pat's meat. Culinary intrigue. The answers await a mere Wright days away. I heard that the meat company that makes the Brooklyn Burger decided that Citi Field and other local arenas, including Barclay's Center were charging them too much for product placement and advertising, and so decided to market the Brooklyn Burger on their own without any local stadium tie ins. Thanks for the meaty answer. KG lives, according to the later release (mentioned in passing by Mets). Funny how for years the Mets touted BB and then they don't exist. I get why, but still feels Orwellian. I know. We'd like to think that the world is pure and Keith Hernandez sampled competing burgers before choosing the Brooklyn Burger on its merits.

G-Fafif wrote: Whither Brooklyn Burgers? And what of Keith's Grill, where Brooklyn Burgers were featured? G-Fafif wrote: Keith's featured Brooklyn Burgers, the former official burgers of Citi Field. Strange that his stand wouldn't be mentioned if it was converting to Pat's meat. Culinary intrigue. The answers await a mere Wright days away. I heard that the meat company that makes the Brooklyn Burger decided that Citi Field and other local arenas, including Barclay's Center were charging them too much for product placement and advertising, and so decided to market the Brooklyn Burger on their own without any local stadium tie ins.

Blue Monday: The Day That Haunts Montreal An exclusive first serial from �Up, Up, and Away: The Kid, the Hawk, Rock, Vladi, Pedro, le Grand Orange, Youppi!, the Crazy Business of Baseball, and the Ill-fated but Unforgettable Montreal Expos� by Jonah Keri on March 23, 2014 The following is an excerpt from Grantland staff writer Jonah Keri�s new book, Up, Up, and Away, which details the history of the Montreal Expos. The book will be released on March 25 and is now available for preorder. ??? The first playoff berth in franchise history had been secured. The first playoff series in franchise history had been won. All that remained was a five-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, with the winner earning the National League pennant and a trip to the 1981 World Series. Ray Burris� five shutout innings in Game 2 sent the Expos back home to Montreal with the series tied 1�1. Jerry White decided Game 3 with a three-run homer in the sixth inning that turned the crowd at Olympic Stadium into a delirious mess. The Expos had a chance to clinch the series in Game 4, only for the Dodgers to score six runs over the final two innings en route to a 7�1 win. Now, with the League Championship Series tied 2�2, the Expos were a single victory away from advancing to their first World Series. What transpired next became one of the darkest moments in Expos history, one that would haunt the team for the rest of its existence and turn one man into a pariah for the rest of his career. This is the story of Blue Monday. Read the rest at http://grantland.com/features/jonah-keri-up-up-and-away-book-excerpt/

When I first read this headline, I thought the Mets were the squanderers, and then wondered how that angle would be worked into a Mets-Jays series. ____________________________________________ Baseball City That Squandered Baseball Relishes Brief Return Montreal Hopes Mets-Blue Jays Exhibition Is Just the Beginning By KEN BELSON MARCH 23, 2014 [fimg=744]http://static01.nyt.com/images/2014/03/24/sports/24METS1/24METS1-master675.jpg[/fimg] Montreal Expos fans watching their team play its final home game at Olympic Stadium on Sept. 29. 2004, before the franchise left for Washington. For the Mets and the Toronto Blue Jays, they are just games at the end of the long spring training schedule, the final chance for the players to work out the kinks and the managers to trim their rosters. But to the city of Montreal and the universe of misty-eyed Expos fans, the games are a chance to celebrate a much-maligned team that left town a decade ago. On Friday and Saturday, Major League Baseball will return to Montreal for the first time since 2004, the final year the Expos played there before moving to Washington and becoming the Nationals. The team�s departure came after years of underinvestment, declining attendance and unsuccessful negotiations for a new stadium. Fans and former players talk wistfully about the Expos, but a tragicomedy of errors off the field doomed the team, which was often successful on it. Despite the ragged past, a group led by the former Expos outfielder Warren Cromartie hopes to draw a team back to Montreal. It is a long shot because Major League Baseball has no interest in expanding and a team moving to Canada is unlikely. But Cromartie and several silent partners funded a study by Ernst & Young that outlined what would be needed to attract a team, including an owner capable of spending an estimated $1 billion to buy one and build a stadium. Cromartie said that much had changed since the Expos left town and that in time, Major League Baseball would return. �We need a second chance,� Cromartie said. �The games are the beginning of getting our team back.� The games between the Mets and the Blue Jays, their final two of the spring, will be played at Olympic Stadium, the former home of the Expos, which was often mocked because it was ill-suited for baseball. The organizers have already sold more than 75,000 tickets for the exhibitions, a sign of the growing nostalgia for the Expos. The games are likely to be a sideshow, though, compared with the pregame ceremonies. On Friday, Gary Carter, a Hall of Fame catcher and perhaps the most beloved Expo, will be honored. Carter, who also starred for the Mets and died of brain cancer in 2012, will be represented by his wife and daughter and honored by former teammates, including Cromartie, Tim Raines and Steve Rogers. On Saturday, the fans will recognize the 1994 Expos, whose run toward a championship was derailed by a players� strike that led to the cancellation of the playoffs. The team, which will be represented by outfielders Moises Alou, Marquis Grissom and Larry Walker and pitchers Ken Hill and Pedro Martinez, among others, had the major leagues� best record, at 74-40, when play stopped in August. The strike not only spoiled a season in which the Expos were on pace to win more than 100 games and wrest control of the National League East from the Atlanta Braves, but also damaged the team�s contentious bid for a new stadium. When baseball returned in 1995, the Expos� owners were vilified for dismantling a talented roster, a move that drove fans away and is seen as the beginning of the end for the team in Montreal. The team�s spiral downward left Expos fans bitter. But in recent years, their animosity has turned into affection, partly because of Carter�s death and the induction of the former Expos outfielder Andre Dawson into the Hall of Fame. In Montreal, chic youngsters who never saw the Expos play have sported the team�s cap. A street was renamed after Carter. The weekend celebration �is a big, big deal,� said Jonah Keri, a writer for Grantland whose new book, �Up, Up and Away,� traces the team�s history. �If you can�t have games, there is a rich nostalgia,� Keri said. �That�s all you have to celebrate � no opening day, no playoffs. You root for symbols of the past.� The games and the celebration of the Expos� glory years were the brainchild of Evenko, a Montreal-based company that produces concerts and sporting events. Simon Arsenault, the company�s manager of events and business development, said the idea of inviting the Blue Jays to play was spawned three years ago. After the Toronto Raptors played the Knicks in Montreal during the 2012 N.B.A. preseason, the idea picked up steam. Arsenault and his group realized that the 10th anniversary of the Expos� departure and the 20th anniversary of the 1994 team were approaching, so he contacted the Blue Jays in January 2013. He also reached out to Cromartie, who was planning an alumni gala, and the events, along with a celebration of Carter�s life, were combined. �For us, it was important to do something for Expos fans and do something for one of the greatest players, Gary Carter,� Arsenault said. �It was a chance to remember all these great people.� Including the Blue Jays was natural because they are the only Canadian team left in the majors and, even though they compete in the American League, they were an Expos rival. For several years, the teams played an annual exhibition game known as the Pearson Cup, named after a former Canadian prime minister. The Blue Jays see the events in Montreal as a way to promote themselves in Quebec, where their games are broadcast on television and radio, said Howard Starkman, the Blue Jays� vice president for special projects. �Our territory is Canada,� he said. �We get people from eastern Ontario and Quebec coming to Jays home games.� [fimg=644]http://static01.nyt.com/images/2014/03/24/sports/24METS4/24METS4-articleLarge.jpg[/fimg] Some of the Expos faithful showing support for their major league team before a game against the Mets on Oct. 3, 2004. The Blue Jays have helped the exhibitions� organizers prepare the field and the clubhouses and work with Major League Baseball. They also recruited the Mets, who played in the same division as Montreal during the Expos� 35-year run. The choice of the Mets is poignant, too, because the first and the final regular-season games the Expos played, in 1969 and 2004, were at Shea Stadium. (The Expos won, 11-10, in their debut and lost, 8-1, in their finale.) Like Carter, Rusty Staub, whose number was also retired by the Expos, was a popular Met after leaving Montreal. Jackie Robinson played at the Brooklyn Dodgers� Class AAA affiliate in Montreal before he broke the major league color barrier in 1947. The swirl of history has helped sell far more tickets than anticipated, Arsenault said. Some seats in the top deck with obstructed views could be made available, depending on demand. To complete the reunion, the organizers have hired several former Expos employees, including the groundskeeper and the public-address announcer. Batting cages, bands and family zones should help create a festival atmosphere, and some of the proceeds from the games will be donated to a local baseball federation. �The games will not only be baseball games but a celebration of baseball,� Arsenault said. That celebration includes memories � of when fans dressed up in three-piece suits and fur coats to see the Expos play; of when Canadian movie stars such as Donald Sutherland were in the stands; of when the team regularly attracted more than two million fans a year and, for a few seasons, outdrew the Yankees. �I was right in the middle when we were pulling 35,000 in nightly, and it was fun to play in front of those crowds,� said Rogers, a pitcher who played his entire 13-year career with Montreal. Largely forgotten will be the freezing weather, blinding sunsets and poor sight lines at Jarry Park, the team�s first home; the problems of the cavernous Olympic Stadium, with its yellow seats, crumbling concrete and incomplete roof; and the procession of owners who were unwilling to spend enough to revive the team. �From 1995 to 2004, it�s amazing they survived that long,� said Dave Van Horne, a longtime announcer for the Expos who, in 2000, was forced to call games on the Internet because the team was unable to sell its radio rights. �Everything fell apart, and they were never able to get a movement to keep the team together and put a good product on the field to keep the fans in the seats.� Cromartie and the Expos� supporters hope to put fans back in the seats, not just this weekend but in the years to come. �We still have a long way to go to get our team back,� Cromartie said, �but this is the first step.� [fimg=344]http://static01.nyt.com/images/2014/03/24/sports/24METS3/24METS3-master180.jpg[/fimg] Gary Carter was a beloved Expos player. http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/24/sports/baseball/montreal-hopes-mets-blue-jays-exhibition-is-just-the-beginning.html?_r=0

Whaddya mean this wasn't funny? This woulda been hysterical even if Pelf really was addressing the Wichita State basketball team.

Tough to vote here, as I see it. I haven't been casting votes in these contests because the submissions are anonymous and as moderator, I know the secret identities of the contestants. But I'd have a tough time deciding which two parodies not to vote for. They all have their charms and I don't see how, so far, the top song could have garnered three times as many votes as the bottom vote-getters. And this isn't any sort of criticism of the top vote-getter, but rather, my way of saying that the bottom vote-getters are pretty good, too.