Frayed Knot

Monday, August 11 - Astrodome: Astros 3 - Mets 0 -- Jim McAndrew vs Tom Griffin A credible start by McAndrew gets buried in the result as Met bats are held to 5 singles (2 by Kranepool) by a combination of starter Griffin (8 IP - 4 hits) and reliever Fred Gladding. Best chances to score come in the 2nd when they load the bases with 2 outs - but McAndrew Ks, and in the 6th when they get 2 on w/1 out only to have Kranepool hit into a GiDP. The loss knocks them into a virtual tie with the Cards for 3rd place. Mets have somehow played 4 fewer games than StL to date. Game Time = 2:22 62 - 49; 3rd place; 8.0 games out of 1st, percentage points behind StL (Cards beat Dodgers 4 - 2; Cubs idle) The Astros, why does it always have to be the Astros?

Pelfrey - 1.0 Tatis - 1.0 AHernandez - 1.5 Pagan - 1.0

="Valadius":378nv5x2]Oh boy - Omar's vendetta on Adam Rubin just flared up again.[/quote:378nv5x2] Do you honestly believe that's what this article is about? soupcan Aug 11 2009 07:18 AM Oh please, its obvious that Adam Rubin wants Omar's job. MFS62 Aug 11 2009 07:25 AM ="soupcan":g0dbzkhk]Oh please, its obvious that Adam Rubin wants Omar's job.[/quote:g0dbzkhk] So do I. Later John Cougar Lunchbucket Aug 11 2009 07:25 AM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Aug 11 2009 07:26 AM doublepost John Cougar Lunchbucket Aug 11 2009 07:25 AM If I had to guess, the Mets won't fire Omar but instead "kick him upstairs" -- give him a title of Czar of Baseballness, and have him handle some of the responsibilities that formerly were with Bernazard. Make Ricco the new GM if he promises to explain better than Omar did why they got Francoeur. The problem with bringing in a "new" front office is that it would mean a lot of tearing down and rebuilding only a few years after Omar rebuilt the scouting/development people, and their guys (Meija, Holt, Marte, etc) aren't even arrived yet. New guys tend to discard the old regime's projects and so the near term effect could be a setback. That's why to me the critical piece in the front office scenario is making certain Bernazard's job doesn;t go unfulfilled. The Mets had the same issues in 02-03 after Omar flew the coop: Nobody but Phillips was around to watch the store, baseball-wise. metirish Aug 11 2009 07:30 AM I hope Omar doesn't end up on SNY in any speaking capacity. Frayed Knot Aug 11 2009 07:31 AM "Make Ricco the new GM if he promises to explain better than Omar did why they got Francoeur." Interesting that the so-called "stats" guy was apparently the one to tout Francoeur. seawolf17 Aug 11 2009 07:33 AM Interesting that "John Ricco" and "Adam Rubin" have the same number of letters. There's a conspiracy afoot. MFS62 Aug 11 2009 07:36 AM He seems to be an organization/ administrative kind of guy rather than a heads down talent evaluator. With the downturn in both revenue and salary that Rubin mentions, I wonder if Omar or his successor will be able to continue the current Kash4klunkers program. Later Frayed Knot Aug 11 2009 07:36 AM ]Interesting that "John Ricco" and "Adam Rubin" have the same number of letters. There's a conspiracy afoot. And both are NY-area natives who went to college in the Philly area. In fact, has anyone ever seen Rubin & Ricco at the same time? HUH?!? John Cougar Lunchbucket Aug 11 2009 07:46 AM Omar btw, was in Buffalo yesterday to personally apologize for that debacle of a farm team, mentioning they signed Jason Dubois so as to improve it. He said that farm director Adam Wogin was given Bernazard's responsibilities following the whacking but that ... wait for it ... "the entire hierarchy would be reevaluated after the season." Edgy DC Aug 11 2009 07:47 AM Re: Adam Rubin on Omar's Successor ="bmfc1":151o3yv4]If you're going to fire the GM, why hire his Assistant? Doesn't the #2 guy bear some responsibility for the failures that caused his boss to be fired? If not, then is he just a flunky and if so, how is he capable of becoming #1?[/quote:151o3yv4] The third possibitlity is that he is a frustrated talent unable to assert his abilities fuller in a regime that stifles his best efforts. I don't know that this is true of him. It's just that it's, you know, true of me. seawolf17 Aug 11 2009 07:54 AM ="John Cougar Lunchbucket"]He said that farm director Adam Wogin was given Bernazard's responsibilities following the whacking but that ... wait for it ... "the entire hierarchy would be reevaluated after the season." Wait, wait, wait. After the whole Adam Rubin-pining-for-a-job escapade, they replace Bernazard with a guy named "Adam Wogin"?!? That's hilarious. Nymr83 Aug 11 2009 08:19 AM If they get rid of Omar they should really CLEAN HOUSE and get rid of everyone from the Omar or Phillips era left in the front office. MFS62 Aug 11 2009 08:27 AM ="John Cougar Lunchbucket"]He said that farm director Adam Wogin was given Bernazard's responsibilities following the whacking but that ... wait for it ... "the entire hierarchy would be reevaluated after the season." If "entire heirarchy" includes ownership, I'm all for it. The only thing is, if Donald Trump bought the team, he might install Joan Rivers as GM. Later Methead Aug 11 2009 08:45 AM ="seawolf17":10fd64sa]Interesting that "John Ricco" and "Adam Rubin" have the same number of letters. There's a conspiracy afoot.[/quote:10fd64sa] Did you guys know John Ricco has a secretary named Rubin, and Adam Rubin has a secretary named Ricco? Benjamin Grimm Aug 11 2009 09:10 AM ="John Cougar Lunchbucket":21qhopfe]Omar btw, was in Buffalo yesterday to personally apologize for that debacle of a farm team, mentioning they signed Jason Dubois so as to improve it. [/quote:21qhopfe] Did he keep his shirt on? metsguyinmichigan Aug 11 2009 09:11 AM We keep forgetting that the team was in first place prior to losing everybody. I don't know if there are too many team who could sustain such losses. Blame Omar for the horrid off-season two years ago, but he's been on more than he's been off. But I might start wondering about the training staff. You can't blame them for Church getting a concussion from getting whacked in head with a knee, but there sure have been a lot of other problems and the sheer volume makes you wonder if they're doing something wrong. Vic Sage Aug 11 2009 09:22 AM ="metsguyinmichigan":350jsmxr]We keep forgetting that the team was in first place prior to losing everybody. [/quote:350jsmxr] That's totally disingenuous. They were under .500 when the bodies started dropping, after failing to make the playoffs since Beltran watched strike 3. John Cougar Lunchbucket Aug 11 2009 09:27 AM I think if there was a time Omar should have been whacked it was last off-season, seeing as the all-stars he assembled nearly all performed to the best of their abilities and they still shat the bed because he did such a rotten job of addressing the bullpen/bench before and during the season. He also had the Willie debacle to answer for. I think Omar did a decent job of improving that depth and flexibility for this year, but the injuries just go to show how wasted an opportunity last year was. soupcan Aug 11 2009 09:39 AM You guys are making me sad. Edgy DC Aug 11 2009 09:45 AM ="Nymr83":138c2a9j]If they get rid of Omar they should really CLEAN HOUSE and get rid of everyone from the Omar or Phillips era left in the front office.[/quote:138c2a9j] And I hope they're a lot more deliberate and less bloodthirsty than that. Valadius Aug 11 2009 09:48 AM ="Nymr83":5jhw86yi]If they get rid of Omar they should really CLEAN HOUSE and get rid of everyone from the Omar or Phillips era left in the front office.[/quote:5jhw86yi] It's been my experience that if you totally clean house and get rid of everybody from the previous regime, the new regime won't have anybody who can show them where the bodies are buried. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 11 2009 10:27 AM ="seawolf17"]="John Cougar Lunchbucket"]He said that farm director Adam Wogin was given Bernazard's responsibilities following the whacking but that ... wait for it ... "the entire hierarchy would be reevaluated after the season." Wait, wait, wait. After the whole Adam Rubin-pining-for-a-job escapade, they replace Bernazard with a guy named "Adam Wogin"?!? That's hilarious. This guy was taken. (If running a farm system isn't "Foreign Assets Control," what is it?) LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Aug 11 2009 07:07 PM Finally got around to actually reading the Rubin article. ]Minaya credited Ricco with proposing the Francoeur-for-Ryan Church swap that was swiftly executed a month ago, but Ricco's background primarily is administrative and not in evaluating players - more along the lines of former GM Jim Duquette than Minaya. As a result, Ricco likely would need to lean on his deputies for recommendations. Is nobody else getting a Harazin-like whiff here? (Non-player eval guy who didn't seem to let that get in the way of his getting hipdeep in player eval once the opportunity arose...) metirish Aug 11 2009 07:38 PM I hope Ricco suave doesn't like Grudzielanek Ashie62 Aug 11 2009 08:10 PM I don't think Rubin has an axe here. Ricco would appear to be in training for a promotion A change in appearance and voice from Omar..thats for sure I hope he is not better suited to do morning swauk on cnbc This is an ill franchise Mex17 Aug 12 2009 04:33 AM ="metsguyinmichigan":wysemdh8]You can't blame them for Church getting a concussion from getting whacked in head with a knee[/quote:wysemdh8] No, but you can certainly blame them for making him endure multiple transcontinental flights after the incident.

It's like Pelfrey has two paths he takes; the innings are either 1-2-3 or he gives up runs.

So let's review: - not getting the ball in allows the runner to get to 2nd - if that doesn't happen then there's no need for the IW a batter later - also the subsequent FO to CF doesn't result in a tag to 3rd - and finally, when one more out would allow us to escape unscathed, Pelfrey serves up a 2-out RBI single because there's some kind of fucking law that prevents him from getting an out there.

Oh good, there's another mistake which will come back to bite us.

And now this AB - with no one on - the pitcher swings like a 3rd grade girl.

It's like every single mistake of any kind this year has led directly to runs. It's bad enough that they've made a ton of them but would it be so bad if we could maybe get away unscathed once or twice?

Sending Moyer to the pen they are.

Essentially what they're banking on is that they'll be able to buy a better player (or several better ones) with the money saved, essentially what the Sox tried to do w/Manny all those years ago (2002-03 I think) during a depressed time in the market. Although you can never know what would have happened had he actually been claimed, the fact that the market came somewhat back towards Manny's salary plus their two WS titles means it probably couldn't have gone a lot better for the Sox and they were probably better off in the long run that he wasn't grabbed.

That'll be an interesting move to track over the next few years: whether the ChiSox get enough out of him to justify the cost or if the Jays put all that saved money to better use. Can't remember a waiver claim involving that much outstanding loot.

... vs Cubs

I got bored after about 20 seconds and clicked off.

Roof Hotline Report: Closed from early May through mid-September cuz it's too fucking hot here!! For games in April and the final two weeks of the year the status will be decided at game time, or the day in advance should that complaining totem pole Randy Johnson ever come back for his 8th go-around. He hated the open roof because he thought it made balls go further and how can he be expected to operate on a level playing field.

="Edgy DC":8wq591f4]And, in fairness to the Reds, all of baseball was pretty much facial-hair-free for about 50 years leading up to the Swinging A's era. [/quote:8wq591f4] Reds just kept that policy going much longer than other clubs. It was some mgr/exec from the Cincy org that switched over to StL at one point during Keith's time there who made him shave off his 'stache. Edgy DC Aug 10 2009 08:44 AM And to be honest, I kind of liked the policy. Yeah, it seems starkly retrograde, but I like anything that makes teams culturally different from one another, even if it's something I wouldn't like on my team. Maybe especially if it's something I wouldn't like on my team. dgwphotography Aug 10 2009 01:29 PM I remember seeing both Kranepool and Harrelson sporting mustaches... Farmer Ted Aug 11 2009 09:25 AM Bobby O last night said that Pelfry's form on a bunch of pitches looked lazy and he wasn't waiting for Santos to finish giving signs before he started his windup. In Pelfry's defense, the guy was just with his wife who gave birth. So, he's up for how long during that process? Then the Mets shove him onto a plan, across the freaking country, and pitch with his head obviously in a fog. Farmer Ted Aug 16 2009 01:08 PM Switched over to NESN in between innings to catch a Red Sox score. Frank Viola doing color and sounds pretty good. Any openings at SNY? Frayed Knot Aug 16 2009 01:20 PM ="Farmer Ted":jupihupn]Switched over to NESN in between innings to catch a Red Sox score. Frank Viola doing color and sounds pretty good. Any openings at SNY?[/quote:jupihupn] I've heard him before. He might rival Johnny Franco for the most identifiable Noo Yawk accent working in the media. G-Fafif Aug 16 2009 03:54 PM ="dgwphotography":2hba0iah]I remember seeing both Kranepool and Harrelson sporting mustaches...[/quote:2hba0iah] Been listening to the radio broadcast of Tom Seaver's final start before he was traded. One of things I learned, from Bob Murphy, was Dave Kingman just shaved his mustache because he realized (according to Murph) that he couldn't grow a good one.

Santana - 5.0 Rodriguez - 0.2 Francoeur - 1.3 AHernandez - 1.0 Murphy - 1.0 Castillo - 0.6 Santos - 0.9

But can't you just picture Johnny F trying to cultivate at least the beginnings of one in Jr High? The Reds - despite the mascot - were long a conservative club with 'no facial hair' restrictions going back even before the Schott era. I suspect he wasn't clean-shaven there out of choice.

Sunday, August 10 - Fulton County Stadium: Mets 3 - Braves 0 -- Nolan Ryan vs Jim Britton Ryan hasn�t given up a hit when he�s pulled from the game with one out in the 3rd inning (Injury? blisters?) Don Cardwell takes over with 4 scoreless innings (4 hits) before handing off to Tug McGraw for the remaining 2-2/3 (1 H, 2 BB). Met pitchers record no strikeouts in the game. Agee�s leadoff HR in the 4th is the only run off starter Britton. They later add 2 in the 9th via an Agee double, Jones single & Garrett single Game Time = 2:27 62 - 48; 2nd place; 7.5 games out of 1st, 1.0 game ahead of 3rd place StL (Cubs lose to Dodgers 4 - 2) I have no memory of Jim Britton

The Yanquis make me dislike life more. Sawx finally score and even take a lead (2R HR from Victor Matinez) but then promptly cough up 4 runs and blow the game.

Boston offense held hostage: Inning 31

I'm guessing Franco's had that mustache since, oh I dunno, maybe age 12.

See, that wasn't so hard was it Frankie boy?

dgwphotography wrote: Frankie is in - why? To get his shit back together and the memory of his last two outings out of his head.

So we've got (at least) a 4 run lead and a half-inning to go and Frankie warming up. So what are our odds of pulling this one out? 30% I figure, maybe 40%.

="MFS62"]Can someone please tell the Mets wives and girlfriends to read Lysistrata? Read it? Even money says half couldn't spell it!