metirish

="SteveJRogers"]="metirish"]All the players I think as nice guys didn't juice , like Thome , Piazza....and the guys I think are dicks did juice..... To be fair, I've heard a smattering of "Piazza is a dick" stories. Again, they aren't as plentiful as say Seaver is a dick, Bonds is a dick or so on. And yes of course the stories tend to boil down to a few seconds of interaction between someone acting like a fanboy and a famous person who just might not be in the proper frame of mind to be gladhanding or whatever, but the point is you can't cherry pick "nice guy" and "dick" like that and judge if someone did something illegal based off of it. suffice it to say I am of the belief that Rogers has and continues to use steroids.

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: I just read that Spider Rico makes a return in the "new" Rocky movie, as a slightly retarded guy. Anyone seen it? The new one, like Rocky 7? I know Stallone played retarded guy in Rocky 6

="Edgy DC":1eop5802]I imagine the correlation between nice-guyness and juiciness isn't nearly as strong a correlation as we'd like it to be.[/quote:1eop5802] exactly , which is one reason I don't like to dwell on it for too long. metsguyinmichigan Jul 29 2009 11:55 AM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jul 29 2009 02:02 PM I'd say no Mets, and most, if not all, of the Yankees. Especially Jeter, who took the one that bulks up the hype and reduces range. SteveJRogers Jul 29 2009 12:00 PM ="metirish"]All the players I think as nice guys didn't juice , like Thome , Piazza....and the guys I think are dicks did juice..... To be fair, I've heard a smattering of "Piazza is a dick" stories. Again, they aren't as plentiful as say Seaver is a dick, Bonds is a dick or so on. And yes of course the stories tend to boil down to a few seconds of interaction between someone acting like a fanboy and a famous person who just might not be in the proper frame of mind to be gladhanding or whatever, but the point is you can't cherry pick "nice guy" and "dick" like that and judge if someone did something illegal based off of it. Edgy DC Jul 29 2009 12:02 PM Exactly nobody is doing that. This is all speculative and we're grown up enough to realize that. seawolf17 Jul 29 2009 12:05 PM I think Irish was taking the piss here, folks. Relax. I, personally, completely agree with MGIM. metirish Jul 29 2009 12:08 PM ="SteveJRogers"]="metirish"]All the players I think as nice guys didn't juice , like Thome , Piazza....and the guys I think are dicks did juice..... To be fair, I've heard a smattering of "Piazza is a dick" stories. Again, they aren't as plentiful as say Seaver is a dick, Bonds is a dick or so on. And yes of course the stories tend to boil down to a few seconds of interaction between someone acting like a fanboy and a famous person who just might not be in the proper frame of mind to be gladhanding or whatever, but the point is you can't cherry pick "nice guy" and "dick" like that and judge if someone did something illegal based off of it. suffice it to say I am of the belief that Rogers has and continues to use steroids. SteveJRogers Jul 29 2009 12:21 PM Easy there you piss taker you... metsguyinmichigan Jul 29 2009 02:12 PM Steve opined: "To be fair, I've heard a smattering of "Piazza is a dick" stories. Again, they aren't as plentiful as say Seaver is a dick, Bonds is a dick or so on." -- I've met Seaver three times, and each time he was very friendly -- and one time exceedingly so. Granted, all three times were at card shows, where he fully expects to be interacting with fans and is getting paid to do so. Maybe if we went up to him in a restaurant when he and Nancy were enjoying dinner and I was being annoying, he'd be less so. The most recent time was at a card show in Chicago and near the end of his signing time and there was no one left on line. I had my young son with me, and didn't want to pay the steep fee -- luckily, I had a number of things signed back in the 1980s when such things were still reasonable -- and asked if I could just go up and shake hands. I explained that I grew up in New York in the 1970s thanked him for being a good role model at the time -- my parents were always grateful that Seaver never grew his hair long -- and introduced him to my son. He was gracious, chatting for a little whole, and we were sure not to overstay our welcome. So Steve, hands off Seaver! Farmer Ted Jul 30 2009 11:26 AM Big Papi, c'mon down. You're the newest to be accused through media leaks. seawolf17 Jul 30 2009 11:30 AM Papi's one of those guys I kinda assumed, all things considered. Not terribly surprising. smg58 Jul 30 2009 11:48 AM Leak every name from that 2003 list or no name. One or two names at a time is just bullshit. Valadius Jul 30 2009 02:24 PM I agree with smg. There's no independent verification for this, so every time a "leak" occurs, I have to assume it's a load of crap. It's guilt without evidence. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 30 2009 02:55 PM ="smg58":yxi25atc]Leak every name from that 2003 list or no name. One or two names at a time is just bullshit.[/quote:yxi25atc] If they can pin down the leak, one or two names at a time is actionable (as it should be).

="Frayed Knot":20pz1nth]Surprised to see that Clement has been in AAA all year. Not that he's finished by any means but as a guy who turns 26 in a few weeks he's been disappointing for a #3 overall pick from the loaded 2005 draft (6 picks ahead of Pelfrey). Don't know anything about the other guys. Last one out of Pittsburgh turn out the lights. Nady, Bay, Wilson, Snell, McLouth, LaRoche (and probably others I'm forgetting) in approx the last 365 days.[/quote:20pz1nth] How does ownership sell their fans on this team , or organization for that matter. With all this trading they need to be competing in a few seasons? I know when the current owners came aboard things were supposed to get better , are they? I guess I might need to ask a Pirates fan that though. John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 29 2009 11:36 AM Wilson can be a free agent after the year and Snell burned all his bridges with the club, so getting anything for them seems like a bonus for Pittsburgh's future. Seattle is getting an upgrade at SS and will have super D, hard to keep those kinda teams down. Edgy DC Jul 29 2009 11:52 AM ="metirish":1loaob0o]How does ownership sell their fans on this team , or organization for that matter. With all this trading they need to be competing in a few seasons?[/quote:1loaob0o] Nobody traded like the 1967 Mets and by the December (when they got Agee), their 1969 championship team was pretty much on the field. I think Pittsburgh fans are probably happy to see the action. seawolf17 Jul 29 2009 12:04 PM Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco to the Phils for four minor-leaguers. John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 29 2009 12:08 PM Ph the Phils. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 29 2009 12:21 PM ="seawolf17":1erdgqm1]Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco to the Phils for four minor-leaguers.[/quote:1erdgqm1] Phils gave up a decent haul-- Class A right-handed pitcher Jason Knapp, Class AAA right-handed pitcher Carlos Carrasco, shortstop Jason Donald(notes) and catcher Lou Marson(notes)-- but held onto Happ and Drabek (the two sticking points of the Blue Jay deal). Were it customary to give division race concession speeches, this wouldn't be an inappropriate time to do so. Valadius Jul 29 2009 12:21 PM Pittsburgh absolutely fleeced Seattle. Wow. Snell is... well... I'm not sure what the hell is wrong with him, but he used to have something and it disappeared about two years ago. Jack Wilson, as I have maintained for years, is the single ugliest baseball player I've ever seen, and I'm very glad that he's left the National League so I don't have to see that disastrous-looking face of his as much as I would have before. John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 29 2009 12:29 PM ="LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr":3tw83fst]="seawolf17":3tw83fst]Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco to the Phils for four minor-leaguers.[/quote:3tw83fst] Phils gave up a decent haul-- Class A right-handed pitcher Jason Knapp, Class AAA right-handed pitcher Carlos Carrasco, shortstop Jason Donald(notes) and catcher Lou Marson(notes)-- but held onto Happ and Drabek (the two sticking points of the Blue Jay deal). Were it customary to give division race concession speeches, this wouldn't be an inappropriate time to do so.[/quote:3tw83fst] Eh, instead I'll argue that this helps us. The Mets are suddenly very right handed, so yet another lefty starter isn't gonna kill us, and Lee for all his success is a flyball guy -- not a great match for CBP. Ben Francisco? I hear he's a total homo. See? MFS62 Jul 29 2009 12:37 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jul 29 2009 12:38 PM Something really must have happened to Snell. Once a pretty decent pitcher, he recently has allowed so many base runners, it sometimes looks like they've given him a second infield. If he isn't careful to moisturize, he could get stretch marks. Later Nymr83 Jul 29 2009 12:38 PM They also didnt give up Michael Taylor. . If they had a choice between this trade and a deal involving Happ, Drabek, and someone other guys for Halladay I think they made the right move. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 29 2009 12:48 PM ="Nymr83":3ttov6dp]They also didnt give up Michael Taylor. . If they had a choice between this trade and a deal involving Happ, Drabek, and someone other guys for Halladay I think they made the right move.[/quote:3ttov6dp] Yep. With a good amount of key players above/around 30 (Rollins, Ibanez, Utley), they've got a championship window arguably closing faster than ours. (Of course, they've already helped themselves to some fresh championship pie through said window.) Considering they were looking for a righty bench bat, not a bad throw-in, either-- Ben Francisco plays decent defense, and would be tied for our team lead in home runs. Fman99 Jul 29 2009 12:49 PM This just in... SI_JonHeyman: #mets seek a lefty reliever. apparently wanted to give p. feliciano a break. some candidates: beimel, grabow, downs. (9 minutes ago from web) Nymr83 Jul 29 2009 12:52 PM i'd be upset if a legit mets prospect got dealt for a reliever. a 4 game win streak is nice but it doesnt mean we need to go make another kazmir trade while pretending to be in contention. attgig Jul 29 2009 12:56 PM ="Nymr83":3gk120e6]i'd be upset if a legit mets prospect got dealt for a reliever. a 4 game win streak is nice but it doesnt mean we need to go make another kazmir trade while pretending to be in contention.[/quote:3gk120e6] agreed. putz, wagner coming back in a few weeks (hopefully....), makes a need for another pen arm less pressing. metsmarathon Jul 29 2009 12:57 PM i generally feel that lefty-righty matchups are greatly overrated... bmfc1 Jul 29 2009 12:58 PM If the Blue Jays are hellbent on trading Halladay (and they insist that they are not), the only teams being mentioned, now that Philadelphia is out, are the Dodgers, Angels and Red Sox. If they want to trade him out of the league, perhaps a clever NL GM could come up with an attractive package at the last minute. Omar did that with Santana. Will he do that here? Edgy DC Jul 29 2009 12:58 PM That may be offset somewhat by an as-yet-unannounced understanding that Wagner isn't coming back in a few weeks. Besides, the issue isn't that we don't have enough arms, it's that if Jerry will trust so few of them at a given time, that he's going to use the same guys day after day if the Mets are up by four or less or down by two or less --- which is almost every day. John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 29 2009 01:04 PM ="bmfc1":228lpode]If the Blue Jays are hellbent on trading Halladay (and they insist that they are not), the only teams being mentioned, now that Philadelphia is out, are the Dodgers, Angels and Red Sox. If they want to trade him out of the league, perhaps a clever NL GM could come up with an attractive package at the last minute. Omar did that with Santana. Will he do that here?[/quote:228lpode] Back of my mind too, though despite a rep for the "big splash" Omar's been remarkably gun-shy at the deadline. edit: Could restore his rep at its moment of need! I'm scared all of a sudden. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 29 2009 01:07 PM ="John Cougar Lunchbucket":3k7apit4]="bmfc1":3k7apit4]If the Blue Jays are hellbent on trading Halladay (and they insist that they are not), the only teams being mentioned, now that Philadelphia is out, are the Dodgers, Angels and Red Sox. If they want to trade him out of the league, perhaps a clever NL GM could come up with an attractive package at the last minute. Omar did that with Santana. Will he do that here?[/quote:3k7apit4] Back of my mind too, though despite a rep for the "big splash" Omar's been remarkably gun-shy at the deadline. edit: Could restore his rep at its moment of need! I'm scared all of a sudden.[/quote:3k7apit4] And just like that, the skies open up, in a not-at-all foreboding thunderstorm. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 29 2009 01:11 PM ="Edgy DC"]That may be offset somewhat by an as-yet-unannounced understanding that Wagner isn't coming back in a few weeks. Besides, the issue isn't that we don't have enough arms, it's that if Jerry will trust so few of them at a given time, that he's going to use the same guys day after day if the Mets are up by four or less or down by two or less --- which is almost every day. Which is almost entirely a Jerry issue. He hasn't used Misch or Dessens in 10 days. There have been mop-up innings all around-- including mop-up ninths. Nymr83 Jul 29 2009 01:20 PM ="metsmarathon":20re0oja]i generally feel that lefty-righty matchups are greatly overrated...[/quote:20re0oja] i think it all depends on the batters and pitchers. there are alot of batters who hit righties well enough to play against them but have no business being out there against lefties (and vice versa). i think there are fewer pitchers that would fit that bill. there are also plenty of guys for whom it doesnt matter much which handed player they are facing. its good to have a lefty "specialist" in the pen (feliciano) but i think we learned last year (with both he and schoenweis) that having two of them means letting them face righties regularly or ending up short on pitchers pretty quickly. if jerry wants to give feliciano a break then he should let other guys face key lefties, acquiring another lefty isnt a big help, and may hurt if the guy is treated as a specialist by jerry. Frayed Knot Jul 29 2009 02:49 PM ="seawolf17"]Cliff Lee and Ben Francisco to the Phils for four minor-leaguers. If you're tradin' for Ben Fran-Cisco be sure to include some prospects in your plan ... Two years in a row the seriously, I just used a racist word when I really meant "Guardians" have had the CY Winner, and two years in a row they've traded him before the following season was out. Frayed Knot Jul 29 2009 05:31 PM Pittsburgh continues to deal: Freddie Sanchez to the Giants for AA pitcher Tim Alderson - considered a pretty decent prospect IIRC. Valadius Jul 29 2009 05:36 PM I'll give it to Pittsburgh - they needed to do something to break their decade-and-a-half cycle of misery, and I think they might finally do it this time. seawolf17 Jul 29 2009 06:24 PM ="Valadius":1s76vjc0]I'll give it to Pittsburgh - they needed to do something to break their decade-and-a-half cycle of misery, and I think they might finally do it this time.[/quote:1s76vjc0] What, by fielding a AAA team at the major league level? The Mets have been there, done that. Valadius Jul 29 2009 06:50 PM I'm talking about two years from now, not right this second. Nymr83 Jul 29 2009 07:34 PM The Pirates fire-sale continues as the Giants acquire Freddy Sanchez for minor leaue hurler Tim Alderson. this has been a good job reloading by Pittsburgh. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 29 2009 07:43 PM They gave ALDERSON for him? Alderson and Bumgartner are the two pitching crown jewels of the Giants system. B's got better stuff, but Alderson, by all reports, has incredible control. Great get by the Pirates. Nymr83 Jul 30 2009 12:48 AM The Blue Jays are allegedly shopping 32 year-old Lyle Overbay, who is under contract for next year. Overbay is hitting .250 but with a .370 OBP and 10 homers. Considering the rather weak free agent class at 1B and the uncertainty of Delgado is this something the Mets should look at not just for now but for 2010? metirish Jul 30 2009 06:34 AM I've always been underwhelmed by Overbay , never seemed to have that big breakout year. I could be wrong on that but he doesn't do much for me. Frayed Knot Jul 30 2009 06:42 AM Overbay is merely OK and will turn 33 before next season starts. Plus is LH so a platoon w/Murphy doesn't really work. The thing about 1Bmen is that a decent one isn't really that hard to find -- so I'm not giving up much, if anything, to get one like Overbay. MFS62 Jul 30 2009 07:05 AM Overbay wasn't even the best first baseman in Jays' history to have a last name starting with "O". Later Frayed Knot Jul 30 2009 07:07 AM Wouldn't be ours either. Edgy DC Jul 30 2009 07:27 AM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jul 30 2009 11:17 AM ="Nymr83":o0hvqnu3]The Blue Jays are allegedly shopping 32 year-old Lyle Overbay, who is under contract for next year. Overbay is hitting .250 but with a .370 OBP and 10 homers. Considering the rather weak free agent class at 1B and the uncertainty of Delgado is this something the Mets should look at not just for now but for 2010?[/quote:o0hvqnu3] (oldlunchbucketjoke)Overpay for Overbay!(/oldlunchbucketjoke) MFS62 Jul 30 2009 07:33 AM ="Frayed Knot":mkjbm9g8]Wouldn't be ours either.[/quote:mkjbm9g8] Yup. Later Frayed Knot Jul 30 2009 07:52 AM And I know this is a typo, but at the moment it's better than the Harry Chiti trade: According to BB-Ref -- July 29: Rockies trade Jason Hirsh to the Rockies for a player to be named. I do hope Hirsch turns out to be that player. Nymr83 Jul 30 2009 07:54 AM I'm not saying he's all that great, just that he's better than the free agent options this offseason. list according to mlbtraderumors.com ]Rich Aurilia (38) Russell Branyan (34) Miguel Cairo (36) Frank Catalanotto (36) - $5MM club option with a $2MM buyout Tony Clark (38) Carlos Delgado (38) Nomar Garciaparra (36) Ross Gload (34) - $2.6MM club option Eric Hinske (32) Nick Johnson (31) Adam LaRoche (30) Doug Mientkiewicz (36) Kevin Millar (38) Chad Tracy (30) - $7MM option with a $1MM buyout Daryle Ward (35) Dmitri Young (36) -$6MM option vests with 500 PAs in '09 Branyan is probably more risk and more upside, same with Johnson (in Johnson's case the "more upside" is he's better, the "more risk" is he gets hurt every year) i think the rest of these guys are flat out worse than Overbay, Nymr83 Jul 30 2009 07:55 AM ="Frayed Knot"]And I know this is a typo, but at the moment it's better than the Harry Chiti trade: According to BB-Ref -- July 29: Rockies trade Jason Hirsh to the Rockies for a player to be named. I do hope Hirsch turns out to be that player. he's actually been traded to the Yankees, and given his numbers in AAA this year i hope they plan on using him soon. Edgy DC Jul 30 2009 08:01 AM Let's review. The Bucs have traded their firstbaseman, secondbaseman, and shortstop, spared their thirdbaseman (for now), traded their leftfielder, spared thier centerfielder, and traded thier rightfielder. Their catcher stays. That's 5/8 of their lineup. On pitching, they've been gentler, trading their number four starter (Snell), their number three-ish reliever (Burnett) Joel Hanrahan is as good a mascot for this activity as any, as he actually won a game for the Nats while pitching for the Pirates. John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 30 2009 09:24 AM If Clement is arriving at Pittsburgh, any chance they also trade Doumit? smg58 Jul 30 2009 10:36 AM They traded their centerfielder to the Braves six weeks ago, too. I wouldn't be at all surprised if Doumit gets moved as well. Edgy DC Jul 30 2009 11:06 AM Yeah, I should've counted that three outfielders. Damn. metirish Jul 30 2009 11:09 AM Pirates president Coonelly explains fire sale Posted by: Jon Heyman Pirates president Frank Coonelly, who along with GM Neal Huntington may have the thickest skin in baseball, explained their fire sale in an interview with SI.com. "We feel very good about it. It's tough for the fans, and we understand why. It's tough to see players who were popular and did good things go. But we were not a winning baseball team with the players we had,'' Coonelly said. "Given the ages and service time of those players, if we attempted to patchwork things, we would have been in a very poor position. We would have had Jason Bay, Xavier Nady, Jack Wilson and potentially Freddy Sanchez (he has a vesting option) ready to leave as free agents and get nothing in return. "The reaction of some is negative. But I think most of the fans understand what we're doing and why we're doing it ... I think they understand why these moves are necessary for us to (facilitate) winning Pirates baseball.'' Coonelly won't quite say they are done dealing. Though after trading their longtime double-play combination of Wilson and Sanchez Wednesday following deals of Adam LaRoche and Nate McLouth, Coonelly did say, "We are very close to getting done.'' Reliever John Grabow has been coveted by several teams looking for left-handed bullpen help. So Coonelly can't guarantee the sale is complete. The Pirates received infielder Ronny Cedeno, minor-league hitter Jeff Clement and three Class-A pitching prospects in exchange for Wilson and pitcher Ian Snell, and got well-regarded pitching prospect Tim Alderson back from the Giants for Sanchez. While Giants fans were upset over the loss of Alderson, Coonelly wasn't gloating. Asked whether he thinks Giants fans are right that Alderson will be a star, Coonelly said, "Let's hope so. There's a long list of great prospects who never panned out, and just as long a list of prospects who weren't that highly thought of who became stars. We certainly like Tim.'' Clement, a former No. 3 overall pick, was once considered a big-time prospect. But there are questions now whether he can catch. He'll start as a first baseman in the Pirates organization Vic Sage Jul 30 2009 11:12 AM Doumit is 28, and is a decent defensive catcher with a 280/20 hr bat. I'd take him in a heartbeat, despite his ongoing injury issues. Edgy DC Jul 30 2009 11:25 AM Poor Andy LaRoche. He takes the field every day with an entirely new infield and outfield of borderline players and before he goes to bed looks himself in the mirror and wonders, "Am I not even good enough to trade? Not even to the Mets?" MFS62 Jul 30 2009 12:12 PM Caught the tail end of a sound byte on radio that O. Hernandez has been scratched from his next start. Anyone confirm that? Is he being dealt? Later bmfc1 Jul 30 2009 12:21 PM From Omar's (latest) presser today, as noted by [u:35nri8ss]The Daily News[/u:35nri8ss]: While Manuel said he does not anticipate any moves before tomorrow's trade deadline, Minaya said he's been talking to teams lately and "turned down a couple trades yesterday. Believe it or not, some pretty big names were presented." He also said he had one of his assistants calling another team today about an idea that came up "in the same way we got (Jeff) Francoeur." OlerudOwned Jul 30 2009 12:21 PM ="MFS62":2iteoljm]Caught the tail end of a sound byte on radio that O. Hernandez has been scratched from his next start. Anyone confirm that? Is he being dealt? Later[/quote:2iteoljm] Wait, who? John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 30 2009 12:22 PM Yeah, I think he was DFAed by the rangers a few weeks ago. MFS62 Jul 30 2009 12:31 PM Oops. Meant L. Hernandez. Later Frayed Knot Jul 30 2009 12:46 PM ="Edgy DC":3063ov4l]Poor Andy LaRoche. He takes the field every day with an entirely new infield and outfield of borderline players and before he goes to bed looks himself in the mirror and wonders, "Am I not even good enough to trade? Not even to the Mets?"[/quote:3063ov4l] Except that Andy was one of the guys they traded FOR in the course of their sell-offs. He came from the Dodgers in the three-way Bay/Manny deal. Edgy DC Jul 30 2009 12:48 PM That's so last season. We're talking this year's trades. Catch up. LaRoche is a longtimer now. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 30 2009 01:08 PM ="bmfc1":1t3ovh1v]From Omar's (latest) presser today, as noted by [u:1t3ovh1v]The Daily News[/u:1t3ovh1v]: While Manuel said he does not anticipate any moves before tomorrow's trade deadline, Minaya said he's been talking to teams lately and "turned down a couple trades yesterday. Believe it or not, some pretty big names were presented." He also said he had one of his assistants calling another team today about an idea that came up "in the same way we got (Jeff) Francoeur."[/quote:1t3ovh1v] Oh, Christ, that's scary. Edgy DC Jul 30 2009 01:21 PM Francoeur has been a great addition any way you cut it. Let's try and enjoy it. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 30 2009 01:35 PM ="Edgy DC":37h06uur]Francoeur has been a great addition any way you cut it. Let's try and enjoy it.[/quote:37h06uur] Make no mistake-- I'm enjoying it and him-- between the pluck and the arm and the exuberant country music as his AB-theme, he's tough to root against. That said... Following the same player-eval process that got him here would, in all likelihood, be a grievous mistake. Edgy DC Jul 30 2009 01:38 PM GREVIOUS!! Frayed Knot Jul 30 2009 01:41 PM I suspect what Omar meant was that an asst got wind of a name or two being available while chasing other info. IOW, they didn't necc go after Francoeur but were offered him in the course of persuing other business, not that they're looking for specifically for low-OBP hackers. Some of the best trades happen that way, such as the time Frank Cashen heard the words, "what about Hernandez?", come through his earpiece whilst chatting with the Cardinals about something completely different. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 30 2009 01:44 PM ="Edgy DC"]GREVIOUS!! Yes, grievous. ="Frayed Knot"]... such as the time Frank Cashen heard the words, "what about Hernandez?", come through his earpiece whilst chatting with the Cardinals about something completely different. Is that how the Hernandez trade happened? I dinna know. metirish Jul 30 2009 01:49 PM From a link Edgy linked? earlier from June 13 2004 ] INSIDE PITCH Mets General Manager JIM DUQUETTE said the team was still trying to add players through trades. Duquette has spoken with Kansas City General Manager ALLARD BAIRD about CARLOS BELTRAN, the Royals' center fielder, who will be a free agent after the season. The Mets would like to trade for Beltran, but are not looking to deal the third-base prospect DAVID WRIGHT. If the Mets landed Beltran, they would probably use him in right field and keep MIKE CAMERON in center. Beltran said Friday that he would not sign a long-term contract with a team that would not let him play center field. Frayed Knot Jul 30 2009 01:51 PM ="Nymr83"]="Frayed Knot"]And I know this is a typo, but at the moment it's better than the Harry Chiti trade: According to BB-Ref -- July 29: Rockies trade Jason Hirsh to the Rockies for a player to be named. I do hope Hirsch turns out to be that player. he's actually been traded to the Yankees, and given his numbers in AAA this year i hope they plan on using him soon. His 2009 minor league ERA stands at 6.66 -- is there any other team he could be traded to with those stats? LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 30 2009 01:56 PM ="Frayed Knot"]="Nymr83"]="Frayed Knot"]And I know this is a typo, but at the moment it's better than the Harry Chiti trade: According to BB-Ref -- July 29: Rockies trade Jason Hirsh to the Rockies for a player to be named. I do hope Hirsch turns out to be that player. he's actually been traded to the Yankees, and given his numbers in AAA this year i hope they plan on using him soon. His 2009 minor league ERA stands at 6.66 -- is there any other team he could be traded to with those stats? Fly ball pitcher in MFY Airport/National Bank! JACKPOT. Edgy DC Jul 30 2009 02:02 PM ="Frayed Knot":31ilqb25]I suspect what Omar meant was that an asst got wind of a name or two being available while chasing other info. IOW, they didn't necc go after Francoeur but were offered him in the course of persuing other business, not that they're looking for specifically for low-OBP hackers. Some of the best trades happen that way, such as the time Frank Cashen heard the words, "what about Hernandez?", come through his earpiece whilst chatting with the Cardinals about something completely different.[/quote:31ilqb25] That's my guess. Not very grevious. DocTee Jul 30 2009 05:16 PM Buccos continue bullimic purge, sending Grabow and Gorzelanny to Cubbies. Also, Dodgers land Orioles closer George Sherill to bolster bullpen. Nymr83 Jul 30 2009 06:11 PM ]Poor Andy LaRoche. He takes the field every day with an entirely new infield and outfield of borderline players and before he goes to bed looks himself in the mirror and wonders, "Am I not even good enough to trade? Not even to the Mets?" AND he gets to look over his shoulder every day as their top prospect is 3rd baseman Pedro Alvarez smg58 Jul 30 2009 07:53 PM ="DocTee":ijqu6ckw]Buccos continue bullimic purge, sending Grabow and Gorzelanny to Cubbies. Also, Dodgers land Orioles closer George Sherill to bolster bullpen.[/quote:ijqu6ckw] If the Cubs are stocking up on lefties, that might mean Sean Marshall is available. He'd be a good sleeper pickup assuming the Cubs aren't valuing him highly. Edgy DC Jul 30 2009 08:05 PM I count Capps, Doumit, Dukes, LaRouche, and Maholm still standing. One more day. Valadius Jul 30 2009 08:41 PM Rumor flying around: Mets talking trade with Cleveland and Tampa that might result in the prodigal son returning home. Yes, that's right - Scott Kazmir. [url:1g57httn]http://www.amazinavenue.com/2009/7/30/970076/rumor-mets-talking-3-way-deal-with?ref=yahoo[/url:1g57httn] John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 30 2009 08:54 PM Do not want. Edgy DC Jul 30 2009 09:12 PM Not on a bus. Not with a guy named Gus. Valadius Jul 30 2009 09:21 PM I would much rather have Victor Martinez come our way in that deal instead of to Tampa. Frayed Knot Jul 30 2009 09:28 PM Not to mention that it sounds like that "talk" essentially consists of one web site quoting another. IOW, the Fan-Boy Internet Press Scoop Association (FBIPSA) is in full trade-deadline mode. seawolf17 Jul 31 2009 07:31 AM I'd take Kazmir back. Frayed Knot Jul 31 2009 07:51 AM Pirates lineup on June 11, 2008: Nate McLouth CF Freddy Sanchez 2B Jason Bay LF Ryan Doumit C Xavier Nady RF Adam LaRoche 1B Jose Bautista 3B Jack Wilson SS Ian Snell P That's about 400 days - or only 200 baseball days - ago and yet only Ryan Doumit remains ... and that might only be because it's not 4 o'clock yet. The other thing about this process is that, with the exception of Andy LaRoche and a few back-end pitchers, I don't think any of the guys they dealt [u:1idne2hb]for[/u:1idne2hb] are on the major league roster yet. This whole experiment is going to be a huge wait-and-see project. Nymr83 Jul 31 2009 08:59 AM i like pittsburgh's approach though. the team just isnt very good as constituted and with the exception of Bay i don't consider any of those players to be of the irreplaceable variety. they took the necessary steps to rebuild, i hope ownership is patient enough with the manager and GM to see if it works rather than firing them in two years and letting the next guy reap the benefits of the trades. I think they did a very good job of selling high on a few of these guys, particularly McLouth and Sanchez. Edgy DC Jul 31 2009 09:20 AM They'll survive the season. It's a raw team but no rawer than what the Mets have sent out the last two months. PosGuyBAOBPSLGOPScRyan Doumit.255.324.398.7221bSteve Pearce.184.279.289.5682bDelwyn Young.316.381.427.8083bAndy LaRoche.256.330.372.702ssRonny Cedeno.167.213.290.503lfBrandon Moss.250.310.385.695cfAndrew McCutcheon.275.332.430.762rfGarret Jones.323.375.7291.104 John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 31 2009 09:53 AM Tigers trade for Jerrod Washburn, rumored for some time to be bound for the MFYs. Lefty pitchers Luke French and Mauricio Robles going to Seattle. Frayed Knot Jul 31 2009 11:08 AM ="Edgy DC":yh9lywsb]They'll survive the season. It's a raw team but no rawer than what the Mets have sent out the last two months. PosGuyBAOBPSLGOPScRyan Doumit.255.324.398.7221bSteve Pearce.184.279.289.5682bDelwyn Young.316.381.427.8083bAndy LaRoche.256.330.372.702ssRonny Cedeno.167.213.290.503lfBrandon Moss.250.310.385.695cfAndrew McCutcheon.275.332.430.762rfGarret Jones.323.375.7291.104[/quote:yh9lywsb] Of course the best of those raw guys are McCutcheon and Jones who were coming anyway. My objection isn't that they're going about it the wrong way but that they seem intent on trading everyone whether they get a good return or not. A lot of Can-Miss guys in that haul. Farmer Ted Jul 31 2009 11:46 AM Minny lands Orlando Cabrera from the A's. I never understood the Orlando attraction. metirish Jul 31 2009 11:49 AM Claudio Vargas back to the Brewers from LA for a minor league catcher.....Vinny Rottino MFS62 Jul 31 2009 11:51 AM ="Farmer Ted":1md20mfn]Minny lands Orlando Cabrera from the A's. I never understood the Orlando attraction.[/quote:1md20mfn] What was confusing about EPCOT? The trade was for a kid shortstop named Ladendorf (sp?). No link yet. Later Valadius Jul 31 2009 01:25 PM Joe Beimel traded to Rockies. Nymr83 Jul 31 2009 01:27 PM Victor Martinez to Boston, Adam LaRoche to the Braves in two seperate but related deals. Nymr83 Jul 31 2009 01:28 PM Jerry Hairston jr. to the Evil Empire Fman99 Jul 31 2009 01:29 PM Aw we're just sitting on our dongs doing nothing! C'mon, Omar. When you're done offending white people get on the stick, get us another arm/bat. Edgy DC Jul 31 2009 01:30 PM No news = good news. Nymr83 Jul 31 2009 01:30 PM What did I miss? when was Omar "offending white people"? Valadius Jul 31 2009 01:30 PM Okay - Boston still has an overload of corner infielders. Now they have Youkilis, Mike Lowell, V-Mart, and Casey Kotchman. One of them can be had. Valadius Jul 31 2009 01:32 PM Heath Bell may be headed to the Dodgers. John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 31 2009 01:34 PM Apparently a deal that would send Bell to the Marlins fell though. Another deal discussing Bell & Adrian Gonzo to the Dodgers for Loney + Fman99 Jul 31 2009 01:39 PM ="Nymr83":mq4iuo9l]What did I miss? when was Omar "offending white people"?[/quote:mq4iuo9l] Just Rubin. Valadius Jul 31 2009 01:39 PM Rolen to the Reds. metirish Jul 31 2009 01:40 PM SI_JonHeyman: rolen has been traded to the reds. he just has to waive his no trade clause. indy boy cant turn down cincy, can he? John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 31 2009 01:40 PM Scott Rolen to the Reds. "Mets aren;t doing anything" Heyman adds bmfc1 Jul 31 2009 01:42 PM ="Edgy DC":f3ne8dnq]No news = good news.[/quote:f3ne8dnq] Why? Are the Mets are such a powerhouse that they can't be improved or a trade would be a mistake, a la Zambrano/Kazmir, given their place in the standings, or you don't trust Omar to make a deal that's good for the Mets. Omar should do something to show the team that management believes they can still make the playoffs. It maybe symbolic but it's a vote of confidence. metirish Jul 31 2009 01:45 PM ="bmfc1":12wu0gbu]="Edgy DC":12wu0gbu]No news = good news.[/quote:12wu0gbu] Why? Are the Mets are such a powerhouse that they can't be improved or a trade would be a mistake, a la Zambrano/Kazmir, given their place in the standings, or you don't trust Omar to make a deal that's good for the Mets. Omar should do something to show the team that management believes they can still make the playoffs. It maybe symbolic but it's a vote of confidence.[/quote:12wu0gbu] I'd like some action too but this team is more than one impact player away ,don't you think? Nymr83 Jul 31 2009 01:46 PM The Reds have reportedly traded for Scott Roleb, subject to Rolen's approval(NT Clause) Valadius Jul 31 2009 01:48 PM Sean Smith to the Jays. Fman99 Jul 31 2009 01:49 PM Nationals deal Joe Biemel to Colorado for two minor leaguers. Edgy DC Jul 31 2009 01:49 PM ="bmfc1"]="Edgy DC"]No news = good news. Why? Are the Mets are such a powerhouse that they can't be improved or a trade would be a mistake, a la Zambrano/Kazmir, given their place in the standings, or you don't trust Omar to make a deal that's good for the Mets. Omar should do something to show the team that management believes they can still make the playoffs. It maybe symbolic but it's a vote of confidence. I think many trades can do more harm than good. I don't think that trading at the deadline shows belief that a team can make the playoffs. I think it shows belief that it can't without mystical craftiness. And mystical craftiness too often turns out to be hokum. Valadius Jul 31 2009 01:50 PM Hairston deal apparently sends the vaunted Austin Jackson to Cincy. bmfc1 Jul 31 2009 01:50 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jul 31 2009 01:51 PM ="metirish":3c3fy6qu]I'd like some action too but this team is more than one impact player away ,don't you think?[/quote:3c3fy6qu] Unless the one player is Babe Ruth, yes I agree but I'd be happy with something minor, such as Aubrey Huff. The Mets were supposed to be after a lefty RP but Joe Beimel went to Colorado for 2 minor leaguers. Edgy DC Jul 31 2009 01:50 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jul 31 2009 01:51 PM I'm hoping that the Mets acquire Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado, John Maine, Jose Reyes and Billy Wagner and give up nothing. Not too many teams have a chance to do that. metirish Jul 31 2009 01:51 PM MFY's apparently sent Austin Jackson to Cincy in that deal , is he a highly touted prospect? bmfc1 Jul 31 2009 01:52 PM lenno212 No #Mets lineup yet. Hmm. Last time this happened, Church was sent to Atlanta. Nymr83 Jul 31 2009 01:52 PM ="metirish":1kmxpyuu]MFY's apparently sent Austin Jackson to Cincy in that deal , is he a highly touted prospect?[/quote:1kmxpyuu] yes. kinda suprised hairston was worth that much. metirish Jul 31 2009 01:53 PM the buzz around Citi Field continues to suggest the Mets will not be making any major deals today� �in fact, as reporters file in to the ballpark, they�ll encounter team officials, media reps, etc., and if something was going down we�d probably have known about it by now� �in the end, i believe the Mets had options, but they chose to hang on to their top prospects, knowing a) players will be available on the waiver wire, and getting Jose Reyes, Carlos Delgado, Carlos Beltran and Billy Wagner is better than any one trade they could have possibly made� metsblog metirish Jul 31 2009 01:55 PM ="Nymr83":2llmme19]="metirish":2llmme19]MFY's apparently sent Austin Jackson to Cincy in that deal , is he a highly touted prospect?[/quote:2llmme19] yes. kinda suprised hairston was worth that much.[/quote:2llmme19] not true now apparently.......I was wary of this becasue this guy gets mentioned in every big deal that's talked about for them.....close to untouchable bmfc1 Jul 31 2009 02:03 PM Edgy's happy but I'm not. Omar confirms my opinion that he is an awful in-season GM. He can wine, dine, schmooze, and attract big name FAs but for the second year in a row, he failed to make a deadline deal to help the team. metirish Jul 31 2009 02:04 PM ck Johnson to the Marlins per fox sports Edgy DC Jul 31 2009 02:08 PM ="bmfc1"]Edgy's happy but I'm not. Omar confirms my opinion that he is an awful in-season GM. He can wine, dine, schmooze, and attract big name FAs but for the second year in a row, he failed to make a deadline deal to help the team. Awful GMs make deals that hurt teams. "You've gotta know when to hold." --- K. Rogers Nymr83 Jul 31 2009 02:09 PM Johnson to the Marlins for AA-lefty Aaron Thompson. never heard of him. bmfc1 Jul 31 2009 02:10 PM Does that mean that Omar is an awful GM? Good GMs get creative to help their teams. Omar certainly isn't a good GM. Is someone going to start an IGT with a clever name. The lineup is in. Edgy DC Jul 31 2009 02:13 PM ="bmfc1"]Does that mean that Omar is an awful GM? Does what mean that? ]Good GMs get creative to help their teams. Trades aren't the only way to help a team. Often, perhaps half the time or more, not trading has helped a team more. Nymr83 Jul 31 2009 02:13 PM ="Nymr83":28x0vm8e]Johnson to the Marlins for AA-lefty Aaron Thompson. never heard of him.[/quote:28x0vm8e] and the Nats are paying the salary. wow, are the marlins the cheapest franchise on earth or what? metirish Jul 31 2009 02:14 PM I'd rather do nothing than trade for a Huff or Scott Downs for the bullpen...... Valadius Jul 31 2009 02:14 PM I started the IGT already. bmfc1 Jul 31 2009 02:14 PM Do you think that Omar is incapable of making a good trade so any trade would be bad? Frayed Knot Jul 31 2009 02:15 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jul 31 2009 02:18 PM ="Valadius":nlpyoup8]Hairston deal apparently sends the vaunted Austin Jackson to Cincy.[/quote:nlpyoup8] Wow! Not a sure-fire future star but is potentially one and he's a guy they spent a decent signing bonus on in order to wrest him away from a hoops scholarship (Arizona I think) --- sounds like a lot to spend for essentially a good utility man. Essentially this is the price paid for Brent Gardener breaking his hand (finger?) last week. Ceetar Jul 31 2009 02:16 PM metsblog mentioned it earlier, and I noticed it last night, but apparently the Yankees are having money concerns? Supposedly they balked at the idea of paying Bannister's 650k salary. Edgy DC Jul 31 2009 02:16 PM ="bmfc1":1ihptp6l]Do you think that Omar is incapable of making a good trade so any trade would be bad?[/quote:1ihptp6l] No. I don't think he or anybody is incapable of making a good trade. I'm still trying to figure out the last question. Nymr83 Jul 31 2009 02:17 PM Scott Rolen has reportedly waived his no trade clause and escaped hockey loving Canada to play baseball in Cincinatti. metirish Jul 31 2009 02:18 PM ="Frayed Knot":11hlah5p]="Valadius":11hlah5p]Hairston deal apparently sends the vaunted Austin Jackson to Cincy.[/quote:11hlah5p] Wow![/quote:11hlah5p] That was posted and then I posted it here but apparently it's not true. bmfc1 Jul 31 2009 02:19 PM And I'm trying to figure out why the GM of a team under .500 with hopes of making the playoffs couldn't make a trade. Edgy--I'm not going to continue this but congrats to you that nothing was done. If they make the playoffs, I'll eat crow and buy you a drink. Nymr83 Jul 31 2009 02:24 PM ="bmfc1":pmjfgign]And I'm trying to figure out why the GM of a team under .500 with hopes of making the playoffs couldn't make a trade. Edgy--I'm not going to continue this but congrats to you that nothing was done. If they make the playoffs, I'll eat crow and buy you a drink.[/quote:pmjfgign] even if they don't make the playoffs they've done fine not making a trade unless they miss the playoffs by a number of games that the potentially traded-for player would have won them. trading for Nick Johnson and missing the playoffs by 2 games instead of missing it by 4 without him only hurts the team's farm system. I look at net games back and i don't see a team that should trade even a small part of the future for help in 2009. if the guy you were acquiring would still be under contract for 2010 thats another issue, but this shouldnt be treated as a 'win now' team Nymr83 Jul 31 2009 02:26 PM Heyman is reporting that Peavy has been dealt to the White Sox again, no word on if he has agreed to it this time. Frayed Knot Jul 31 2009 02:27 PM I propose we trade Sullivan and/or Reed, plus Berroa and Cancel for Reyes, Beltran & Delgado sometime in the next few weeks. That'll improve the team. Edgy DC Jul 31 2009 02:28 PM ="bmfc1":488nciud]And I'm trying to figure out why the GM of a team under .500 with hopes of making the playoffs couldn't make a trade.[/quote:488nciud] Because, in theory, the only available trades may have hurt them in the long term more than helped them in the short term. Or hurt them flat out. John Cougar Lunchbucket Jul 31 2009 02:33 PM Jake PV to the White Sox: This time it's for real. Edgy DC Jul 31 2009 02:33 PM Fo nucking way! metirish Jul 31 2009 02:34 PM Big guns that didn't go Halladay and Gonzalez duan Jul 31 2009 02:37 PM as everyone else has rightly pointed out, the pieces that this team needs are the ones that are on the DL, if heaven forbid, we're back IN a race over the next two weeks, there's plenty of time then to get an Aubrey Huff type power bat who'll float through waivers cause of salary. I don't see anyone out there who got traded that I think would have helped a healthy mets team bar Victor Martinez, Jake Peavy & Cliff Lee.I don't think we were really in the race to get them and they all have plenty of limitations. Frayed Knot Jul 31 2009 03:05 PM ="metirish"]="Frayed Knot"]="Valadius"]Hairston deal apparently sends the vaunted Austin Jackson to Cincy. Wow! That was posted and then I posted it here but apparently it's not true. Well then never mind my above rant. The truth apparently: The Reds received minor league catcher Chase Weems in the deal. The 20-year-old Weems was batting .260 with a homer and 14 RBIs in 55 games with Class-A Charleston this season. He was picked in the sixth round of the 2007 draft. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 31 2009 03:11 PM ="Edgy DC"]="bmfc1"]Edgy's happy but I'm not. Omar confirms my opinion that he is an awful in-season GM. He can wine, dine, schmooze, and attract big name FAs but for the second year in a row, he failed to make a deadline deal to help the team. Awful GMs make deals that hurt teams. "You've gotta know when to hold." --- K. Rogers Hear, hear. I'm in Edge's corner on this. They moved the Peavy? Those crazy bastards! (A LOT of good young arms on the Pods now.) Nymr83 Jul 31 2009 03:22 PM Peavy was a good young arm, and under contract a few more years, I don't know who they got yet but its hard to believe its worth it for a guy you're not about to lose. Farmer Ted Jul 31 2009 03:55 PM Which of the three...Washburn, Peavy, or Halladay...will be with the Mets next year? MFS62 Jul 31 2009 04:13 PM Omar's like the ugly girl - all alone by the telephone - waiting for a call inviting her to the dance. Later smg58 Jul 31 2009 05:01 PM Minaya could very easily have been told not to take on more payroll for this season, so I wouldn't point the finger too quickly. I actually think the fact that Halladay is still a Jay is a good thing -- assuming you can wait until the offseason to obtain him. Peavy is guaranteed $52M over the next 3 seasons and is now an established injury risk who'll fail to reach 175 IP for the second straight year. I'm perfectly OK with passing on him. I wouldn't have minded V-Mart, though. metirish Jul 31 2009 05:51 PM I just don't get the Minaya bashing today , if he had traded for Francouer today would the people who are unhappy be happy with that? I read in one of the rags the other day.....Madden I think it was proclaiming that Minaya NEEDED to get Halladay to change the subject around the team. Could you blame the guy if he did that , make a splash trade for the sake of it? , I'd love to have a Halladay or a Peavey but would have preferred V Martinez. At what cost though would they have come for? I'm not upset that we didn't get middle of the road players and never expected top tier players so i am not disappointed. MFS62 Jul 31 2009 06:14 PM Not bashing. Just saying. Add me to the group who didn't want to see a deal that drained the farm of key prospects. As Edgy said, no news = good news. Later seawolf17 Jul 31 2009 06:19 PM I actually would have liked to see them move some guys, like Livan or Schneider, even if just for middling prospects. But I'm okay with inaction too. Let's get healthy, fellas! Nymr83 Aug 01 2009 12:53 AM ESPN had the Pirates deals put together for convenience ]IN: RHP Nathan Adcock, RHP Tim Alderson, RHP Jose Ascanio, SS Ronny Cedeno, 1B Jeff Clement, SS Argenis Diaz, RHP Joel Hanrahan, RHP Kevin Hart, OF Gorkys Hernandez, RHP Jeff Locke, RHP Brett Lorin, OF Lastings Milledge, RHP Charlie Morton, RHP Aaron Pribanic, RHP Hunter Strickland OUT: RHP Sean Burnett, LHP Tom Gorzelanny, LHP John Grabow, OF Eric Hinske, 1B Adam LaRoche, OF Nate McLouth, OF Nyjer Morgan, INF Freddy Sanchez, RHP Ian Snell, SS Jack Wilson dgwphotography Aug 01 2009 05:17 AM Personally, I'm glad Omar didn't make any deals. This team is too many players away from contending right now, and I just didn't want him to do any more damage.... As FK said, trading Sullivan, Reed, plus Berroa and Cancel for Reyes, Beltran & Delgado sometime in the next few weeks would be the best trade possible... metirish Aug 01 2009 07:52 AM Minaya ] �As a general manager, I�ve been six games out before, and it�s kind of hard to go out and make a trade,� Minaya said. �And you guys know our situation. The situation is not one player. Our situation is a couple players.� In the clubhouse, no one seemed concerned that he might be traded � or, for that matter, that anyone else would be. Only a few players lounged on couches watching updates on the MLB Network, as many more bolted outside to fly a remote-controlled helicopter Wright ] �I don�t think the reason for our record being what it is is that we needed one more piece,� David Wright said. �It�s that we played poorly at times and we�re pretty banged up. We�re not one piece away that�s going to put us over the top at the trade deadline. It�s not like we�re not going to get more than that when we get these guys healthy.� Rockin' Doc Aug 01 2009 09:04 AM No one player was going to suddenly put this team over the top. Injuries have been the story of this season. All teams get hit with injuries and must work to overcome them, the Mets have unfortunately been with a rash of long term injuries to a multitiude of their key players. I'm more disappointed at the lost opportunity to see how good this team could have been this season had they not been decimated with injuries, than I am over the absence of any desperate trades in hopes of miraculously putting this team into contention. Vince Coleman Firecracker Aug 01 2009 10:41 AM I'm with Seawolf. Would have liked to see Omar sell off a few players. Valadius Aug 01 2009 11:25 AM I would have liked to see another lefty for the bullpen, at least. Edgy DC Aug 01 2009 11:51 AM We have Misch, and we're getting Wagner, and I'm uncertain anybody else will have made a difference worth giving somebody up for, except that maybe Manuel may trust an import more than he does Misch. Valadius Aug 01 2009 12:33 PM Honestly, I don't think Misch knows how to get Jerry to trust him enough to get him in a meaningful game. Edgy DC Aug 01 2009 01:44 PM And if our issue is that it takes a trade for Manuel to give somebody a chance who may or may not be better than a pitcher he's got rotting in the back of the bullpen, its' not a trade we should be clamoring for. metirish Aug 01 2009 04:33 PM ="Valadius":oqm0lk9w]Honestly, I don't think Misch knows how to get Jerry to trust him enough to get him in a meaningful game.[/quote:oqm0lk9w] What is this " Days of our Lives"? Frayed Knot Aug 01 2009 08:37 PM Back to the Pirates for a sec; 3 HRs for McCutcheon today (and power is supposed to be his weakest suit). Would have been nice to see him in an OF [u:3uw4r55j]WITH[/u:3uw4r55j] McLouth and a few of the others. btw, they brought up Milledge as one of the guys tying to fill all these newly created spots. Fman99 Aug 01 2009 09:15 PM ="Frayed Knot":qeskhzrl]Back to the Pirates for a sec; 3 HRs for McCutcheon today (and power is supposed to be his weakest suit). Would have been nice to see him in an OF [u:qeskhzrl]WITH[/u:qeskhzrl] McLouth and a few of the others. btw, they brought up Milledge as one of the guys tying to fill all these newly created spots.[/quote:qeskhzrl] Good, I am still rooting for LMillz and his gangsta ass. Valadius Aug 02 2009 07:55 AM My most lasting memory of Lastings: Nymr83 Aug 02 2009 08:07 AM ="Valadius":narzpqw5]My most lasting memory of Lastings[/quote:narzpqw5] first drink my ass. Valadius Aug 02 2009 08:23 AM ="Nymr83":1zjqc8zc]="Valadius":1zjqc8zc]My most lasting memory of Lastings[/quote:1zjqc8zc] first drink my ass.[/quote:1zjqc8zc] Exactly.

All the players I think as nice guys didn't juice , like Thome , Piazza....and the guys I think are dicks did juice.....

Is Neal Huntington trying to set a record for most trades in a season?

Edgy DC wrote: Rocky learned how to play righthanded as a pre-game strategy to screw with Jerry's head. Pretty sure he swung 80 times one handed until he mastered it, several times a day of course.

Only 6 SO's , that's a surprise I suppose, One walk isn't . Francouer credits working with Wright , Sheff and Hojo "The coolest thing here is that with David and Sheffield I have a couple righthanded guys I can talk to about hitting. In Atlanta it was lefthanders I talked to, but this has helped," said Francoeur. "To have some guys that go through what I go through with sinkers and sliders and to able to pick their brains, it's been awesome." Wright and (hitting coach Howard) Johnson told Francoeur he needed to get his front foot planted quicker, and Sheffield showed Francoeur how to change his grip to use his top hand more. "For a big, strong guy he's already a talented player, he just wasn't in control of his bat," Sheffield said. "When you can tap into something you never tapped into then you can see the talent really comes through."

Just for prosperities sake here is the Wilpon Q&A ] Today's Q & A with Jeff Wilpon Tuesday July 28, 2009 9:52 PM By David Lennon Opening apologies: �After what went on yesterday, I thought it was important on behalf of ownership to come out and talk to everybody. I know a lot of you have called and I apologize for not returning the calls and stuff, but you know we�re very sorry about what happened yesterday. It was the wrong forum, the wrong time, a wrong situation for Omar to express himself in that way.� �I have a call into Adam [Rubin] right now to apologize on behalf of myself, the organization, ownership and I know I�m going to ask him if he�ll accept a call from omar. Omar would very much like to call him and apologize for the venue that he took to embarrass him and talk to him in that manner and I�m hoping that Adam will accept that phone call, and I hope he accepts my phone call and the apology from the organization.� Is Minaya sorry? �Omar is extremely remorseful. Omar is upset about this. This has taken a toll on him in a very big way. I think he�s feeling the effects of what he did. He was angry. He was upset. A little bit about Tony, a little bit about some of the things that have been portrayed about the organization, trying to protect it.� �I think he really understands he made a very large mistake here and he�s apologized to ownership, he�s apologized to a bunch of the staff, he understands he put us in a bad spot here.� Did Rubin act inappropriately? �In terms of what Adam did with me, he did nothing wrong. Like I said last night, there are people that come to me all the time and want to know about the sports business, want to know about the real estate business, and what I try to do is be helpful to them in terms of putting them in touch with other people or having a conversation with them about what they might want to do with their career.� I did put Adam in touch with Curt Gowdy Jr. on the network side. I did put him in touch with [assistant GM] John Ricco on the baseball side, I didn�t think twice about it because it does happen a lot.� What is Minaya apologizing for? �Omar will have to address his comments. I know he�s told me he�s remorseful about what he said, and what was done, and I can only apologize from the organization standpoint. Omar made a mistake and he admitted to me that he made a mistake, and he�s apologetic for his mistake.� Minaya�s state of mind? �Omar�s around. As I said, he�s not in a great state right now, this has taken a great toll on him, and I think if you guys can give him a day or so, he�ll be back to Omar. And if we can all give him a chance, I think he�ll come back and make this organization proud.� Are you supporting him as GM? �Yeah. Omar�s our general manager. Omar�s going to be our general manager.� �He hasn�t been reprimanded. I think his remorse in what he�s shown is his sorrow for this and what he knows he did, the collateral damage it caused me, the collateral damage it caused my father, my uncle, the organization as a whole, he feels bad for. And I think that�s more punishment than anybody can ever put on him.� What damage did Monday�s fiasco do? �It hurt the organization. Omar admitted he hurt the organization, and he feels bad about that, and we�ll overcome it. It didn�t go to our values. He didn�t do the right thing. And all I can do is apologize for that and Omar will do that at the right time as well. We have to move on from there and rebuild ourselves. What was Fred Wilpon�s reaction? �Same as mine. He sort of couldn�t believe it was happening when it was happening. I don�t think a lot of us could believe it was happening when it was happening. He was just very angry and got out of his usual mode of dealing with the media and press conferences and stuff, and I think that is what you saw.� Did you know Minaya was going to attack Rubin? �Absolutely not. I didn�t have any knowledge, he didn�t talk to us about it. Omar had been upset with some of the things in the paper, I knew that. But going into this press conference yesterday was to talk about Tony, talk about the situation with Tony and why he was letting Tony go. It had nothing to do with Adam at the time he went into that conference.� Is Minaya still in hot water? �No. I think he knows what he did and I think he knows what the values we want to have here in our organization and he�s willing to deal with the consequences of it.� Did Minaya understand the impact of his accusations? �I think he does regret that. I think he has to answer that. I�m talking about what he said. The question was to me, and what I thought. Did I think Adam stepped over the line? I don�t believe that in terms of my dealings with Adam. Are you going to take a more visible role going forward? �The problem is it was Omar�s direct report that he was talking about, so for me to go in and do a press conference for Omar, for his direct report, that�s never happened before and I don�t think it should happen. Omar knows how to deal with the press and press conferences -- that�s his job. So I don�t think I would do it any differently.� Was Bernazard fired for performance or behavior? �I think our minor leagues � and I think Omar can talk to this better than I can � but he believes are minor leagues are in good shape. He spent a couple of days in Florida and was very happy with some of the A-ball kids. This thing with Tony hurt him, Omar, and it hurt me. I was very close with Tony and I learned a lot from him.� What�s the Mets� overall direction right now? �We need to do better. We need to do better. Ownership is not happy with the direction right now and obviously we have to play better on the field. We need to get the guys back. Once that happens, we�ll see how well this team can do. But it is disappointing, and I can understand the fans� disappointment as well.� Does Minaya�s future depend on the next two monts? Or is he the GM for 2010? Right now, the idea is that Omar is our general manager -- period. Do you need to become more visible? �Omar is the face of the organization when it comes to the overall direction. Jerry [Manuel] is our face of the organization when it comes to the day-to-day baseball. I�m here, believe me. I�ve got my finger on the pulse. You might not see me, but I�m here.� Has Minaya been compromised by his behavior? �I think he can get through it. I think right now it compromised him a little bit, yeah.� How is Minaya doing? �He�s really hurt by this guys. I don�t know how to explain it any better. He was visibly shaken yesterday. He was visibly shaken again today. I spent a good amount of time with him today. He�s still doing his job. He needs a day.�

I would have pegged Creed as a first baseman , good feet for the dancing around the bag.

Brian Costello wrote ] Alex Cora came up with the concept on the flight from Washington to Houston last week. With the team reeling after dropping two of three to the lowly Nationals, Cora and the others thought some team unity couldn't hurt. What a concept. I'm truly surprised no one ever thought of this until Cora did.

I expect Putz listens to Toby Keith , loves freedom and his momma too. What was Parnell thinking here?

That's some serious sack movement there from Carl Weathers. I saw Survivor years ago at Hunter mountain, it's like the whole crowd was waiting for eye of the tiger. I was pumped after hearing it, you are on a roll JCL

Keith just makes me laugh every time he goes on about how important icing an injury overnight it, he's so adamant about his technique. Ron Hunt it was that told him , ice it all night and you'll play the next day.

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: You guys are missing a good game. Go Big Pelf! fun to watch too, the face that Wright made rounding into second as he realized that his well hit ball was going to hit the wall was great.

Could Jeff have come across anymore insincere in his apology?

="seawolf17":1daq6btk]="Valadius":1daq6btk]If I had to rate Bernazard on the player development that occurred during his tenure, I'd guess that he's somewhere in the middle of major league teams. Like around 14-17. Which isn't bad, but I'd like to expect something in the top 5.[/quote:1daq6btk] I'd love to see your methodology; where'd you rank, say, Cleveland? Or the Twins?[/quote:1daq6btk] it's similar to the methodology Val has for giving nicknames to players, just needs to be tweaked a little.

I for one have lost respect for Rubin . I do dread a Jon Harper taking over the beat if it came to that, or a Bondy. I like Lennon more anyway but Newsday the paper is a mess to read and the website just as bad.

I do find it interesting to read what Chass and other journalists like PGIM have to say on this.

With all the tumult I didn't get a chance to read this. Nice job.

="A Boy Named Seo"]="John Cougar Lunchbucket"]Snoozeday's David Lennon seems to think Omar was on script, and that the Mets typically miscalculated how it would play. ]Adam Rubin vs. Omar Minaya: What happens now? 39 m ago By David Lennon So what happens now? How do the Mets start picking up the pieces after yesterday�s news conference went nuclear? And what effect will Omar Minaya�s bizarre accusations ultimately have on the careers of both him and Adam Rubin? I�ve covered baseball in New York since 1995, both the Yankees and Mets, and I�ve never been part of a news conference like that before. That was an all-timer. In terms of a media circus, that probably surpassed the infamous �Valentine-Stoner� event from 2003, after Newsday�s own report about recreational drug use on the Mets. To sum it up, Valentine acted as if he were batting while high, as both Wilpons and GM Steve Phillips watched in horror. Valentine was fired at the end of that season, more for the team�s woeful performance than his behavior at that news conference, as Phillips won that battle of wills. In this case, yesterday�s attack on Rubin is not going to cost Minaya his job. Not immediately anyway. And here�s why: I don�t believe COO Jeff Wilpon was upset with Minaya for what he said yesterday and I don�t believe that was a spontaneous assault on Rubin. The Mets� decision-makers certainly huddled at length before Minaya sat behind the microphone yesterday and rarely do team officials veer off the script. The GM also walked in that room with a full page of notes, so there were definitely items to cross off his agenda. It wouldn�t surprise me at all if Rubin was among those items. It�s never fun for a reporter to become the story, as Rubin was yesterday. As much as people might think it�s great to get that kind of attention, or that beat writers crave to be in the middle of that spotlight, that�s not really the case. Once we become the story, and have a personal stake in the outcome, it�s very difficult to do the job. We�re supposed to report on such conflicts, and when we become targets, it�s hard to defend yourself and also report objectively on people trying to damage our reputations. So why did Minaya take that shot at Rubin? Clearly, the GM was angry he had to fire a friend in Tony Bernazard, and Jeff Wilpon also was not thrilled by it. Both were close to Bernazard � they each admitted as much yesterday � and I think Minaya�s attack on Rubin was meant as revenge, plain and simple. Obviously, it was a blockhead move, but Minaya only half-apologized. He did not regret what he said about Rubin � only that he said it during the news conference. But again, I believe that was part of the plan. The Mets probably didn�t realize how bad it would come off � and it made them look ridiculous, broadcast live, on their own TV network. After getting battered in the media for a couple of hours, Minaya appeared with Wilpon in the back of the press box for yet another briefing, this time for the half-hearted apology. It was more spin, with Wilpon going as far to say that Rubin did ask him for career advice, adding that there is nothing wrong with that. In doing so, however, Wilpon actually pulled more at the threads that Rubin had provided earlier during his own news conference, when he talked about trying to gather information about getting into the baseball business on the development level. These things usually blow over in time, but yesterday was a fascinating � if extremely awkward � meltdown on a very public stage. Even in New York, that doesn�t happen very often. Sitting in that room yesterday, I can say the media members were stunned. It was a bona fide �Can you believe this is really happening?� moment. For the Mets� sake, they better hope there�s not any more this season. I don't remember that Valentine press conference. Any of you guys? It was classic Bobby , up at the podium head shaking , eyes wide open ,arms flailing about imitating a stoned player trying to get in the hitters box and hit. It was the Grant Roberts incident that brought it on IIRC

I thought the guys in the booth last night were brilliant , in a still developing story they jumped right in. Mets broadcasters (from l.) Keith Hernandez, Ron Darling and Gary Cohen focus opening of Monday night's Mets-Rockies telecast on bizarre accusations of GM Omar Minaya Transcript - from the Daily news Gary Cohen, Keith Hernandez and Ron Darling talk about the Omar Minaya-Adam Rubin press conference. GARY COHEN: THIS HAS BEEN A VERY BIZARRE DAY IN METS LAND. THE METS TODAY FINALLY FIRED VICE PRESIDENT TONY BERNAZARD BUT THE BIGGER STORY BECAME THE WAY OMAR MINAYA HANDLED HIS PRESS CONFERENCE, CALLING OUT A REPORTER FROM THE DAILY NEWS, LEADING TO OMAR ISSUING A NON-APOLOGY, APOLOGY JUST MINUTES AGAIN. WE WILL TALK MUCH MORE ABOUT THIS AS WE PROCEED THROUGH THE BROADCAST TONIGHT. UNFORTUNATELY THE EVENTS REGARDING TONY BERNAZARD AND OMAR MINAYA AND ADAM RUBIN ARE DISTRACTING FROM THE FACT THAT THE METS COME OFF TWO TERRIFIC GAMES... GARY COHEN: BUT THE DAY STARTED EARLY TODAY WITH A PRESS CONFERENCE WHICH INTIALLY WAS CALLED BY OMAR MINAYA TO ANNOUNCE THE FIRING OF TONY BERNAZARD. OMAR THE METS GENERAL MANAGER ELLUDING TO VARIOUS INCIDENTS INVOLVING TONY, MANY OF WHICH WERE REPORTED ON BY THE DAILY NEWS, INVOLVING TAKING YOUR SHIRT OFF AND CHALLENGING A DOUBLE-A TEAM TO A FIGHT, GETTING INTO A SHOUTING MATCH WITH FRANCISCO RODRIGUEZ ON A TEAM BUS AND SEVERAL OTHER THINGS. AND AT FIRST, WHAT OMAR TALKED ABOUT WAS THAT HUMAN RESOURCES DEPARTMENT OF THE METS HAD LAUNCHED AN INVESTIGATION BEFORE THE STORIES IN THE PAPER CAME OUT AND IT CAME TO FRUITION TODAY. (OMAR MINAYA SOUND ON TAPE) I MET WITH TONY BERNAZARD YESTERDAY, SHOWED HIM THE FACTS THAT WERE THERE AND WHEN IT WAS ALL SAID AND DONE, I HAD TO MAKE MY RECOMMENDATION TO OWNERSHIP. MY RECOMMENDATION TO OWNERSHIP WAS TO, THAT WE NEEDED TO LET TONY BERNAZARD GO. (OMAR MINAYA SOUND ON TAPE) I WAS SURPRISED BY SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WERE IN THE REPORT. I HAD TO BE SURPRISED OF COURSE THEY WERE THINGS THAT I DID NOT KNOW ABOUT. SO I WAS VERY SURPRISED BY SOME OF THE THINGS IN THE REPORT. GARY COHEN: NOW OMAR DIDN'T ADDRESS ANY OF THE SPECIFICS IN THE REPORT BUT HE TALKED A LITTLE AFTER THAT ABOUT TONY'S JOB PERFORMANCE AND ABOUT HIS PERSONALITY AND THEN THE PRESS CONFERENCE TOOK A BIZARRE TURN AS OMAR STARTED TO BRING UP THE FACT THAT ADAM RUBIN WHO WROTE THE STORIES IN THE DAILY NEWS THAT EVENTUALLY LED TO THIS COMING DOWN TODAY... THAT ADAM HAD SOMETIME IN THE PAST LOBBIED FOR A JOB IN PLAYER DEVELOPMENT IN THE METS ORGANIZATION AND THAT LED TO THIS EXCHANGE BETWEEN OMAR AND ADAM RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE IN FRONT OF ALL THE MEDIA. (OMAR MINAYA AND ADAM RUBIN SOUND ON TAPE) ADAM RUBIN: IS WHAT YOU'RE ALLEGING THAT I TRIED TO TEAR TONY DOWN TO TAKE HIS JOB? IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE SAYING? OMAR MINAYA: NO, NO I'M NOT SAYING THAT. ALL IM SAYING WAS THAT I KNOW THAT WHEN YOU WROTE THE REPORTS, THAT IN THE PAST, YOU HAVE LOBBIED HAVE LOBBIED FOR A JOB. ADAM RUBIN: IF I WERE INTERESTED IN WORKING IN PLAYER DEVELOPMENT SOMEWHERE IN THE MAJOR LEAGUES AT SOME POINT IN MY LIFE, HOW DID THAT IMPACT THIS SITUATION AT ALL. OMAR MINAYA: I SAID BECAUSE WHEN THE REPORTS CAME OUT, A LOT OF THESE THINGS, I SAID WHO'S WRITING THESE REPORTS. I SAID OK HE'S WRITING THE REPORTS BUT IN THE BACK OF MY MIND ADAM, YOU HAVE TOLD ME YOU HAVE TOLD OTHER PEOPLE IN THE FRONT OFFICE, THAT YOU WANT TO WORK FOR PLAYER DEVELOPMENT, IN THE FRONT OFFICE. ADAM RUBIN: SO WHAT YOU'RE ALLEGING IS THAT, THE ONLY CONCLUSION I CAN DRAW FROM THAT, IS THAT YOU'RE TRYING TO ALLEGE THAT I TRIED TO TEAR EVERYONE DOWN SO I COULD TAKE THEIR POSITION. IS THAT WHAT YOU'RE SAYING? IT'S PRETTY DISPICABLE TO SAY THAT. GARY COHEN: THAT WAS ABOUT 4 O-CLOCK THIS AFTERNOON. NOW ABOUT 10 MINUTES AGO, IN A HASTILY CALLED PRESS CONFERENCE IN THE BACK OF THE PRESS BOX HERE AT CITI FIELD, OMAR APPEARED AGAIN, THIS TIME ALONG WITH CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER JEFF WILPON TO SORT OF APOLOGIZE. (OMAR MINAYA SOUND ON TAPE) I WANNA BASICALLY, REALLY APOLOGIZE FOR WHAT I RAISED IN THE FORUM. THAT WAS NOT THE PROPER FORUM FOR ME TO RAISE THOSE ISSUES. AND I JUST FEEL THAT I YOU KNOW IN BRINGING IT UP OVER THERE THOSE ISSUES, I DON'T THINK THAT WAS RIGHT AND I WANNA APOLOGIZE FOR THAT. GARY COHEN: NOW WHAT OMAR WENT ON TO SAY. HE SAID THAT HE STOOD BY WHAT HE HAD SAID ABOUT ADAM RUBIN BUT THAT IT WAS MERELY THE WRONG PLACE FOR HIM TO BRING IT UP. AND SO WE ARRIVE AT THIS MOMENT. YOU KNOW IT SEEMED AT FIRST THAT THE FIRING OF TONY BERNAZARD TODAY WOULD BE A POSITIVE STORY... A POSITIVE TAG AT THE END OF A KIND OF NEGATIVE STORY FOR THE METS. THAT THEY HAD KIND OF MOVED ASIDE A GUY THAT HAD CAUSED THEM GREAT EMBARRASSMENT BUT IT SEEMS AS THOUGH THEY ONLY CAUSED THEMSELF GREATER EMBARRASSMENT TODAY. RON DARLING: THEY DID. THEY DID. I WOULD HAVE LIKED IT IF THE MEA CULPA THING THAT WHAT HE DID WAS WRONG AGAINST ADAM RUBIN WOULD HAVE BEEN MORE FORTHCOMING THAN IT WAS BY OMAR. I THINK THAT THEY'VE TURNED SOMETHING THAT LIKE GARY SAID SHOULD HAVE BEEN A LOOSE WHEEL, A BAD WHEEL, EXBRAGATED (SIC?) BACK TO BUSINESS OF BASEBALL, A TEAM THAT HAD WON TWO GAMES COMING INTO A HUGE HOMESTAND AND NOW THIS BECOMES THE HUGE STORY AND IT'S JUST AN AWFUL DAY HERE IN MET LAND. KEITH HERNANDEZ: I'M JUST WONDERING ONE WAY OR ANOTHER IF OMAR GOT OFF HIS TALKING POINTS OR IF THIS WAS SOMETHING THAT WAS TO BE BROUGHT UP. I KIND OF FIND IT HARD TO BELIEVE THAT ADAM RUBIN WAS BROUGHT INTO THIS. AND THIS WAS AS YOU SAID GARY, JUST A FIRING OF A GUY WHO MADE A LOT OF ENEMIES IN THIS ORGANIZATION, UP AND DOWN. AND IT WAS A SIMPLE JOB OF HEY, THERE WAS AN INVESTIGATION AND HE HAD TO GO AND IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN BOOM, LET GO, GO FORWARD. GARY COHEN: YEAH AND THE THING THAT IS SO PUZZLING ABOUT OMAR BRINGING ADAM INTO IT IS THAT AT NOT POINT DID HE SAY THAT ANYTHING THAT ADAM WROTE IS WRONG. AND WE ALL KNOW THAT ADAM RUBIN, NOBODY WORKS HARDER THAN THIS GUY IN TERMS OF COVERING THE TEAM, IN TERMS OF COVERING THE MINOR LEAGUES, HE'S BEEN ON THIS BEAT FOR A LONG, LONG TIME AND DONE A GREAT JOB WITH IT BUT THAT HAVING BEEN SAID, HE'S NOT PART OF THE STORY, HE'S MERELY THE GUY WHO REPORTED THE STORY. RON DARLING: BUT THINK ABOUT IT, THAT THEY HAVE SAID THAT THEY STARTED THIS HUMAN RESOURCES INVESTIGATION 3 WEEKS AGO AND THAT ADAM RELEASED HIS FINDINGS IN THE PAPER AND FOR ALL INTENTS AND PURPOSES, WE FIND THEM TO BE ALL TRUE JUST THEY CAME OUT BEFORE ANYONE IN THE METS ORGANIZATION WANTED TO HEAR THEM. AND I THINK THAT HAS BEEN A BIG PROBLEM AND A BIG STICKING POINT. BUT I STILL DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY OMAR AT SOME POINT FELT ADAM RUBIN WAS ANY KIND OF STORY BECAUSE THEY'VE TURNED, LIKE I SAID WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN, IT'S HARD FOR SOMEONE BEING FIRED TO BE A POSITIVE STORY BUT IT COULD BE A STORY WHERE YOU'RE MOVING FORWARD AND THEY'VE TAKEN TWO STEPS BACK. KEITH HERNANDEZ: AND THE POINT IS ADAM RUBIN IS NOT THE ISSUE HERE. ADAM RUBIN IS A BEAT WRITER AND HIS JOB IS TO COVER THE TEAM. HE GOT A LEAD ON A STORY AND GUESS WHAT, HE REPORTED IT CORRECTLY, HE DID NOTHING WRONG. GARY COHEN: AND THIS WHOLE IDEA ABOUT ADAM WANTING A JOB IN BASEBALL. JEFF WILPON GOT UP IN FRONT OF THE MEDIA IN THAT PRESS CONFERENCE ABOUT 10 MINUTES AGO AND SAID LOOK IT'S NOT THE FIRST TIME A WRITER OR A COLUMNIST HAS ASKED, CALLED ME AND ASKED FOR JOB ADVICE FOR HOW TO GET A JOB WITHIN BASEBALL. IT'S KIND OF LIKE NEWSPAPER REPORTERS WHO BECOME PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SECRETARIES. THE BOND IS PRETTY CLOSE BETWEEN THE PEOPLE WHO RUN THE TEAM AND THE PEOPLE WHO COVER THE TEAM AND SOMETIMES THOSE LINES CROSS BUT FOR OMAR TO BRING IT UP IN THIS FORUM OBVIOUSLY DID NOT DO HIM OR THE ORGANIZATION ANY GOOD. RON DARLING: WELL I LEARNED ONE THING, I DON'T WANNA BE A JOURNALIST I KNOW THAT. AND I KNOW A LOT OF THE WRITERS ARE OFFENDED AND THIS IS GOING TO BE A VERY INTERESTING THING FOR ME, HOW YOU MOVE FORWARD FROM THIS BECAUSE THIS IS SOMETHING THAT WILL BE THERE FOR A LONG PERIOD OF TIME. HOW DO YOU TALK TO OMAR NOW WITHOUT THINKING THAT SOMETHING IS GONNA BE ON, OFF OR WHATEVER THE RECORD. KEITH HERNANDEZ: I THINK THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS GONNA BE HOW THE PLAYERS REACT TO THIS. THIS IS A BIG SERIES RIGHT HERE, TO GET BACK TO WHAT'S REALLY IMPORTANT DOWN HERE, WHAT WE'RE SUPPOSED TO COVERING THIS BALL CLUB, THE NEW YORK METS. YOU KNOW HAVE AN IMPORTANT SERIES HERE HOW'S IT GONNA AFFECT THEM. I DON'T THINK IT'S GONNA HAVE ANY EFFECT ON THEM ONE WAY OR THE OTHER. THE PLAYERS GO OUT THERE, THEY GET THEIR UNIFORM ON, THEY PREPARE TO PLAY AND YOU CAN PRETTY MUCH WIPE ALL THIS OUT, TAKE A DEEP BREATH, THEY KNOW THE IMPORTANCE OF THIS SERIES. RON DARLING: THE ONLY PROBLEM IS, AND I THINK KEITH YOU'RE RIGHT, ONCE THEY GET IN THE WHITE LINES IT'S EASY. THE ONLY PROBLEM FOR A PLAYER, AND YOU KNOW THIS, WHEN THESE TYPES OF THINGS HAPPEN, YOU HAVE TO ADDRESS THEM. BECAUSE BEFORE AND AFTER THE GAME PEOPLE ARE GONNA BE IN THERE AND THEY'RE GONNA WANNA KNOW THEIR REACTION TO THIS REACTION TO ADAM OR OMAR OR WHATEVER AND THAT'S WHEN IT CAN BE A PAIN IN THE YOU KNOW WHAT. GARY COHEN: AND THE FUNNY THING ABOUT THIS WHOLE CONFLAGRATION IS THAT NORMALLY FANS DON'T CARE ABOUT WHO THE VICE PRESIDENT OF PERSONNEL IN AN ORGANIZATION IS. ALL THEY CARE ABOUT IS THAT THEIR TEAM WINS AND LOSES. THEY KNOW WHO THE G-M IS, THEY KNOW WHO THE MANAGER IS. TONY BERNAZARD HAS TAKEN A HIGHER PROFILE BECAUSE OF ALL THE STORIES THAT HAVE COME OUT ABOUT HIM BOTH IN PAST YEARS AND MORE RECENTLY BUT THE FACT THAT HAS BECOME AN EVEN LARGER STORY WITH THE FIRING OF BERNAZARD WHEN THEY COULD HAVE SIMPLY PUT OUT A PRESS RELEASE SAYING THAT HE HAD BEEN FIRED, THAT'S THE SHAME OF IT, BECAUSE NONE OF THIS REALLY HAD TO HAPPEN. RON DARLING: IF HIS INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS WERE, WHERE I'M FROM, THAT MEANS HE HAD A HARD TIME GETTING ALONG WITH FOLKS, AT SOME POINT HAVE SOME OF THE RELATIONSHIPS BEEN COMPROMISED DOWN IN YOUR MINOR LEAGUE SYSTEM. THAT WILL BE SOMETHING THAT I REALLY THINK IS MORE IMPORTANT TO ADDRESS FOR THIS ORGANIZATION. THAT, NOT ONLY THE PLAYERS WHO ARE YOUR PRIZED POSSESSIONS WHO YOU HAVE IN YOUR SYSTEM. THESE ARE THE GUYS WHO YOU'RE TRYING TO TEACH YOUNG MEN HOW TO PLAY BUT ALSO THESE PEOPLE WHO WORK FOR YOU THAT ARE LIFERS, THAT ARE WORKING AS A MANAGER, OR ARE WORKING AS A PITCHING COACH IN SINGLE-A AND ARE MAKING PEANUTS, THAT HAVE GONE THRU A PROCESS OF NOT HAVING A GREAT RELATIONSHIP, THOSE ARE THE FENCES YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO MEND. KEITH HERNANDEZ: AND I DON'T THINK WITH THE THINGS THAT HAVE TRANSPIRED WITH THE WAY BERNAZARD HANDLED THINGS IN THE MINOR LEAGUES, THAT'S NOT A GOOD EXAMPLE TO BUILD CHARACTER IN THE MINOR LEAGUES FOR GUYS WHO ARE TRYING TO MOVE UP. RON DARLING: THE ONLY PROBLEM IS, AND I THINK KEITH YOU'RE RIGHT, ONCE THEY GET IN THE WHITE LINES IT'S EASY. THE ONLY PROBLEM FOR A PLAYER, AND YOU KNOW THIS, WHEN THESE TYPES OF THINGS HAPPEN, YOU HAVE TO ADDRESS THEM. BECAUSE BEFORE AND AFTER THE GAME PEOPLE ARE GONNA BE IN THERE AND THEY'RE GONNA WANNA KNOW THEIR REACTION TO THIS REACTION TO ADAM OR OMAR OR WHATEVER AND THAT'S WHEN IT CAN BE A PAIN IN THE YOU KNOW WHAT. GARY COHEN: AND THE FUNNY THING ABOUT THIS WHOLE CONFLAGRATION IS THAT NORMALLY FANS DON'T CARE ABOUT WHO THE VICE PRESIDENT OF PERSONNEL IN AN ORGANIZATION IS. ALL THEY CARE ABOUT IS THAT THEIR TEAM WINS AND LOSES. THEY KNOW WHO THE G-M IS, THEY KNOW WHO THE MANAGER IS. TONY BERNAZARD HAS TAKEN A HIGHER PROFILE BECAUSE OF ALL THE STORIES THAT HAVE COME OUT ABOUT HIM BOTH IN PAST YEARS AND MORE RECENTLY BUT THE FACT THAT HAS BECOME AN EVEN LARGER STORY WITH THE FIRING OF BERNAZARD WHEN THEY COULD HAVE SIMPLY PUT OUT A PRESS RELEASE SAYING THAT HE HAD BEEN FIRED, THAT'S THE SHAME OF IT, BECAUSE NONE OF THIS REALLY HAD TO HAPPEN. RON DARLING: IF HIS INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS WERE, WHERE I'M FROM, THAT MEANS HE HAD A HARD TIME GETTING ALONG WITH FOLKS, AT SOME POINT HAVE SOME OF THE RELATIONSHIPS BEEN COMPROMISED DOWN IN YOUR MINOR LEAGUE SYSTEM. THAT WILL BE SOMETHING THAT I REALLY THINK IS MORE IMPORTANT TO ADDRESS FOR THIS ORGANIZATION. THAT, NOT ONLY THE PLAYERS WHO ARE YOUR PRIZED POSSESSIONS WHO YOU HAVE IN YOUR SYSTEM. THESE ARE THE GUYS WHO YOU'RE TRYING TO TEACH YOUNG MEN HOW TO PLAY BUT ALSO THESE PEOPLE WHO WORK FOR YOU THAT ARE LIFERS, THAT ARE WORKING AS A MANAGER, OR ARE WORKING AS A PITCHING COACH IN SINGLE-A AND ARE MAKING PEANUTS, THAT HAVE GONE THRU A PROCESS OF NOT HAVING A GREAT RELATIONSHIP, THOSE ARE THE FENCES YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO MEND. KEITH HERNANDEZ: AND I DON'T THINK WITH THE THINGS THAT HAVE TRANSPIRED WITH THE WAY BERNAZARD HANDLED THINGS IN THE MINOR LEAGUES, THAT'S NOT A GOOD EXAMPLE TO BUILD CHARACTER IN THE MINOR LEAGUES FOR GUYS WHO ARE TRYING TO MOVE UP. Transcript

Makes for good reading that, certainly better than what I am led to believe in the media.

I have no knowledge how these work but would the Mets PR department "coach" Minaya before a press conference?. Obviously the PR people would not have known(I hope) that Minaya was going to turn pear shaped during the conference but would they then not jump in to save the situation? Having asked all that the Mets PR department might need an overhaul.

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Three in a row...unstoppable. Just get that IGT with snappy title up before someone else does