batmagadanleadoff

The Mets' big head -- their OTHER big head -- speaks By Rob Neyer on Jun 25 2013, 10:07a ? @robneyer 1 A wiser fellow than I once told me, "A fish stinks from the head." Those words always come back to me when a baseball franchise just seems lost, for year after year after year. Maybe it's not the manager, or even the general manager; maybe it's the general manager's boss. Which usually means the owner. Sure, it's fun to enumerate the many mistakes of Ned Yost and Dayton Moore ... but what about the managers and the general manager before them? Hasn't the common thread for many years actually been David Glass, who's controlled the franchise since 1993? When the history of the Kansas City Royals is someday written, doesn't most of the blame for this interminable postseason drought -- the longest in major professional sports, I believe -- go to the man who's made all the big decisions for 20 years? Was placing all three of his children on the Royals' board of directors really the best possible thing for the franchise? I'm sorry. This wasn't supposed to be about the Royals. It's just that they're such a good example of so many things. Terrible things, yes. But still quite instructive, in their own special way. I got to thinking about owners and stinky fish the other day when I saw this interview with Mets owner Fred Wilpon. Like Glass, Wilpon handed a fair amount of power to his son. I don't know if that's a good thing or not, in the Mets' case. Generally speaking, I suspect that nepotism isn't the best way to run a business. I'm sure it can work sometimes. Wilpon certainly can't match Glass's brilliant record, either of failure on the field or nepotism. But the Mets are heading for their fifth straight fourth-place finish, and they've reached the postseason once in the last dozen seasons. That's not real hot for a team with the Mets' natural advantages (or unnatural, depending on your opinion of Major League Baseball's antitrust exemption). And because it's the Mets and they're not going to win again this season, the longtime owner's words seem to come with a certain ... hollowness: "I get it, I suffer with it. I think that we have to see that plan become successful because in today's world, it's not how much money you spend -- although we have invested a lot of money. Some of it has been wasted because right now we have a [$102.2 million] payroll and 50 percent of the payroll is not playing." Wilpon, 76, was largely referring to the injuries of former ace Johan Santana, who is owed $31 million, closer Frank Francisco ($6.5 million) and reliever Scott Atchison ($700,000). Atchison is close to returning. The Mets paid a lump sum and deferred some of the $21 million due outfielder Jason Bay when he agreed to have his contract terminated last November. "That's a shame," Wilpon said. "It might be very different if they were [available]. But that's part of life, you have to go on and see how you can address that, and I think as an organization, we're addressing those needs. Well, Wilpon's missing half the equation here. If Johan Santana and Frank Francisco and Scott Atchison and (heaven forbid!) Jason Bay were actually available, the Mets might be in third place rather than fourth. At 30-42, it's hard to argue that they'd have a winning record if those guys were gracing the 25-man roster. The real roster/payroll story is actually much simpler: The Mets don't have Santana starting every fifth game or the money they're paying Santana, which could otherwise be used to pay other, actual players (assuming Wilpon didn't just use the savings to pay his many creditors). With or without Santana or his $31 million, the Mets are a mess. They have one great pitcher (Matt Harvey) and one great hitter (David Wright). The Mets' only other good hitters are 27-year-old, fielding-challenged Lucas Duda and 35-year-old Marlon Byrd. Even including Zack Wheeler, the Mets' farm system was ranked as the 26th best in the majors last winter by Baseball America. Their first-round pick in last June's draft hasn't done anything in the minors yet, and their first-round pick in the previous draft is still two or three years away from the majors. There's just not a lot happening here. Wilpon can't afford to spend like a New York team should spend, and the farm system's not stocked with hot prospects. Wilpon finishes with this: "This franchise is a very big part of our family," Wilpon said. "We are as passionate as any fan out there to want to do well. We can't always pick the players, obviously. Sometimes we've done very well, people who have represented us have done very well. Sometimes they haven't. "I've been around a very long time. I do get it. I try these days to have two faces of the organization and they're not mine or [son] Jeff's. They're really good representatives -- Sandy and Terry [Collins] are really good people." Getting it is a good thing. Picking a lot more good players is a far better thing. For some years now, too many Mets players have ... well, they've sorta stunk. Statistically speaking. But I blame the big fish more than the little ones. http://www.baseballnation.com/2013/6/25/4460814/ny-mets-owner-fred-wilpon-interview

Overall, the Yahoo Contributor Network and Bleacher Report sports pieces are just about bottom of the barrel in web quality and evoke the blogger in pajamas in mommy's basement. That said, I came across an excellent baseball piece a few weeks ago on the Yahoo network. I can't remember the writer's name or what possessed me to link to the piece in the first place.

According to ESPN's 2013 NL Cy Young Award Predictor, neither Matt Harvey nor Clayton Kershaw would finish in the top 10 in voting as of today.

"I get baseball tickets -- mostly the Mets." --Dr. Arnold Rosen, to Don Draper, late in the 1968 season, Mad Men, "Favors" (S. 6 Ep. 11; aired 6/9/2013) 'Mad Men' mocks Mets 45 m ago By Neil Best Linda Cardellini as Sylvia Rosen and Jon Hamm as Don Draper in a scene from "Mad Men." The season finale airs June 23 on AMC. It is not unusual for the 2013 Mets to be a pop culture punch line, but at least they have company. Take the 1968 Mets. Please. On a recent �Mad Men,�� the character Arnold Rosen tells his �friend�� (long story) Don Draper that he has been meaning to invite him to a game and often has access to Mets tickets. �Well, I�m glad you didn�t,�� Draper says. Jon Hamm, who plays Draper, is a Cardinals fan. He told the Sporting News he was pleased by the dig at the Mets, who finished 24 games behind the pennant-winning Cards in '68. One year later Draper might have felt differently about Mets tickets, but Rosen might not have been offering. Tags: AMC , Mets http://www.newsday.com/sports/media/watchdog-1.812020/mad-men-mocks-mets-1.5541258 The Mad Men discover the dead body of Lane Pryce; in the background, a Mets pennant, circa 1965

DIoKr9VDg3A Ike Davis belts two HRs at Triple-A Vegas

Debut Tuesday: Two Heralded Prospects Get the Call By Jonah Keri on June 19, 2013 11:04 AM ET There's something about big-league debuts in baseball that makes them different than first games in any sport. Maybe it's the anticipation built up through years of minor league toil. Maybe it's the wide range of possible outcomes, from no-hitters to Golden Sombreros. From Junior to Strasmas, baseball fans know to drop everything when a big-time rookie finally gets the call. The promotions of Wil Myers and Zack Wheeler garnered a tiny fraction of the buzz reserved for the likes of Stephen Strasburg and Ken Griffey Jr. � rightfully so. But with both players getting their first taste of the show on the same day, there was no way we weren't going to watch. [***] Mets fans scoff at such complaints. The team is on its way to its fifth straight losing season, the lineup is stuffed with Double-A-caliber talent, and the bullpen has been awful for three years running. But Tuesday offered Metropolitan enthusiasts a rare glimpse of a brighter future. Before Wheeler could make his debut, the Mets called on their other phenom, Matt Harvey. The game was glorious, stupefying, maddening, and, in the end, a huge relief. The flame-throwing right-hander had already put up Cy Young�level numbers through his first 14 starts of the year, highlighted by a 10-strikeout, no-run, one-hit, seven-inning gem his first time out and a 12-strikeout, one-hit, no-run performance on May 7 against the White Sox, the only blemish over nine innings coming on an infield hit. His first six innings against the Braves Tuesday might have topped those and every other one of Harvey's killer highlights this year. He recorded 18 swinging strikes on his first 80 pitches thrown. The curveball he deployed to strike out Jordan Schafer in the sixth was obscene, though not nearly as filthy as the 90 mph slider that rung up Reed Johnson, a pitch that plunged to his ankles and likely crushed his soul forever. At that point, the pitch count hawks started squawking. How long should Harvey stay in? Were the Mets thinking about Johan Santana's no-hitter, the one that took 134 pitches to complete but also preceded a season- and potentially career-ending shoulder injury? In a way, it's encouraging to see everyone from managers to the masses thinking about injury prevention and pitcher preservation, in a way that neither did before. But when alarms are getting sounded at the mere hint of a possibility of a pitch count-related decision two-plus innings later, on a strapping, perfectly healthy 24-year-old who has struck out 12 through six innings and is in complete control of the game and himself, we've probably swung too far in the other direction. That debate became moot in the seventh, when Lucas Duda's indecision clinched Jason Heyward's safe slide into first (it was to avoid a tag, so we'll allow it), netting the Braves their first hit of the game and the Mets their first cringe-worthy moment of the game. This was the story of the Mets season, in one animated incident of buffoonery: Harvey trying his damnedest to bail out his team, only to have his teammates mess it up. (One of the most depressing stats for the Mets: Heading into Tuesday's games, Harvey and David Wright had combined to net about six and a half wins above replacement � about three times what every other Met combined had delivered to the cause.) Mercifully, Harvey wouldn't end the game with his second nine-innings-and-one-infield-hit performance of the year. Two misplays by Wright, combined with some shaky work by the always suspect pen, nearly cost the Mets the game. But Bobby Parnell tossed 1? innings of killer relief, striking out Chris Johnson on a vicious slider with two outs and the bases loaded in the eighth, preserving a 4-3 lead that New York wouldn't give up. The 23-year-old Wheeler wasn't quite as sharp as Harvey. But he did fire six scoreless innings of his own, which, combined with the Mets scoring six times between the seventh and eighth, proved enough to complete an impressive road doubleheader sweep. You could see both Wheeler's strengths and weaknesses on display from the start. He started his evening by issuing a leadoff walk to Andrelton Simmons. When he went to 2-0 on no. 2 hitter Jason Heyward, Wright jogged over to the mound, fake-kicked at the dirt, and said something to Wheeler that made the rookie crack a big smile. Five pitches later, Wheeler had his first major league strikeout, fanning Heyward on a 97 mph fastball, up and just enough off the outside corner to land out of Heyward's reach. This was a theme Wheeler would repeat often throughout the game. Two batters after the Heyward strikeout came a four-pitch walk to Freddie Freeman, with ball four a pitch that nearly sailed to the backstop. But Wheeler's tailing fastball � regarded as by far his best pitch � didn't disappoint. That was the pitch that got Brian McCann in the second (96), the one that mowed down Chris Johnson two batters later (96), and the one that clipped the outside corner against Paul Maholm (96 again) to wrap Wheeler's first-ever three-strikeout inning. Wheeler walked Simmons again to lead off the third, struggling that inning to locate his curve and slider. The 3-2 fastball to get Justin Upton for the second out of the inning, though? Yet another belt-high, tailing fastball � this one at 97 � that few, if any, hitters could hope to reach. And while Wheeler got by mostly on killer velocity early on, both his command and game plan improved as the game wore on. He broke two bats on inside fastballs, firing pitches right at catcher Anthony Recker's targets. When McCann came up in a big spot with the score tied 0-0, a runner on second, and one out, Wheeler started pounding in more fastballs. When McCann looked like he might have a read on the heater, Wheeler grasped the hitter's timing and first-base-open situation and unleashed a nasty, biting curve in the dirt. McCann was awarded a walk, though replays suggested he may have gone around for strike three. Either way, it was a great sign for a young pitcher learning how to pitch. After a mound consultation, Wheeler got a chance to work out of his own jam. Running the count to 2-2 on Dan Uggla, Wheeler again threw an unpredictable pitch, a wicked, 90 mph slider that the Braves second baseman swung through for strike three. Since throwing his third- (or fourth-) best pitch for strike three in the biggest spot of the game wasn't quite enough, Wheeler slung a 1-0 fastball right in on Chris Johnson's fists, inducing an inning-ending popout and preserving the rookie's six shutout innings. The end result was a 6-1 Mets win, the fifth-ever MLB debut of six-plus innings and no runs for a Mets starter, and a Grade-A beer shower from his teammates at game's end. More than that, the day offered a glimmer of hope for a franchise that sorely needed one. One Mets fan on Twitter described the doubleheader sweep and the knockout performances by Harvey and Wheeler as the team's best day since clinching the NL East in 2006. "Better than the Santana no-no, the only no-hitter ever thrown in the franchise's 51-year history?" I asked. "This is better," he replied. A no-hitter is fleeting, he said, but this could be the day he and his orange-and-blue-wearing pals look back upon in a few years. Let's hope so. For Mets fans, the past has been filled mostly with heartache and loss. Here's to a bright Harvey-and-Wheeler future. http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/65968/debut-tuesday-two-heralded-prospects-get-the-call

Mets GM Sandy Alderson; in the background - the ugliest scoreboards in major league baseball

Why don't you link directly to the Atlanta papers?

Edgy MD wrote: I've clearly conflated Bob Shaw with Seaver/Koosman-rookie-era relief filler Don Shaw. I used to do that all the time, until I read Ryczek's book in 2010.

Ceetar wrote: is there a good place to search for backpage images? was looking for something from Atlanta (or hell, see if the upstate NY papers did a punnier job) I don't remember the link or the name of the web site, but I do remember a site that would display front and back page newspaper covers from around the nation. Keep on searchin'. It's out there. BTW, those images from yesterday's NYC back page tabloids annoy the crap out of me because up until a few years ago, the images were considerably larger.

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Edgy MD wrote: Maybe, like getting Mike Torrez after Gooden and Darling in 1984 or maybe Bob Shaw after Seaver and Koosman, but sometimes vet guys find themselves too. Bob Shaw was a Met before Seaver (and thus, Koosman) and for a time, was the Mets best starting pitcher. It was Shaw who taught Gaylord Perry how to throw the spitball.

Edgy MD wrote: Maybe, like getting Mike Torrez after Gooden and Darling in 1984 or maybe Bob Shaw after Seaver and Koosman, but sometimes vet guys find themselves too. Bob Shaw was a Met before Seaver (and thus, Koosman) and for a time, was the Mets best starting pitcher.

batmagadanleadoff wrote:

Centerfield wrote: Fuck Seaver. My son and I have been on an elevator at Shea with Seaver, and he made it very clear that he wanted everyone on that elevator to pretend we didn't know who he was. I have Seaver's autograph. My mommy got it for me 35 years ago.

So what's the record for most K's by Mets starting pitchers in one doubleheader?

Lefty Specialist wrote: Is 12 Kormans his major league best?

NL K leaders at the start of today.

Sorry I'm late. Is there any leftover fruit cup?

Frayed Knot wrote: batmagadanleadoff wrote: From 1998 ... through 2012, the Mets have hit three walk off home runs -- Three come from behind walk-off HRs