Frayed Knot

LFThe times they were a'changing.After Disco music exploded on the scene in the late '70s replacing the multi-guitar southern rock sound and the ultra-complex (did someone say pretentious?) stuff that so dominated the early decade, it took rock a year or two to adjust. By '79 it struck back, responding with a starker stripped-down sound marked by an angry but often wry 'tude and some clever songwriting, largely dominated by bands from the NYC punk clubs and songwriters from the British pub scene.I tried to steer a middle ground here. No way was I sticking strictly to hit singles but I also didn't want to go dredging up some obscure 5th cut off an album (I'll leave that to Edgy). So, along with the chart-toppers, I mixed in some personal favorites as long as they at least got some airplay in their time.I'll start with NOT the top 30. These bonus 5 songs are ones I personally didn't like but they were so big in their time that I couldn't ignore them ... even though I'd like to.I Will Survive - Gloria GaynorOh Lord did women love this song! Match pseudo-empowering lyrics to a dance beat (like that does a lot for a white boy w/size 12 feet) and they all went nuts! I still despise hearing it.Don't Stop Til You Get Enough - Michael JacksonMJ was still sort of a black male at the time (he isn't either now) but he just never interested me.Ladies Night - Kool and the GangLeftover disco junk. Are you detecting a pattern here?Pop Muzik - MHey, synthesizers are suddenly in this year! Let's make up something hip and stupid and someone will play it.Driver's Seat - Sniff and the TearsOne-hit wonder (and I wondered why it was a hit)Now for the real ones:30 - Devil Went Down to Georgia - Charlie Daniels BandSouthern rock's last gasp was a bit of a novelty really. But it spun a good story.29 - Gold - John StewartUnobjectionable piece of California-style pop which - because it was about music - got lots of attention from DJ's for a summer.28 - Dance Away - Roxy MusicCleaned up, dressed up, high class rock-n-roll ... what in the name of dirt-bags & denim is going on here? Bryan Ferry decides that Rock is not just for hippies anymore.27 - September - Earth, Wind & FireNice to hear some funk that wasn't buried beneath a relentlessly pounding bass beat.26 - Dance the Night Away - Van HalenMore rockers attempt to pick up the dancers from disco's wake.I was never much into VH. Never liked DLR as a vocalist and VH fans always seemed to believe that Eddie invented the electric guitar. But this one represented the fun side of VH that was only occasionally apparent IMO.25 - I Want You to Want Me - Cheap TrickI always thought they were such an aptly named group, but this one was a kick, and even cheesier in the live version.24 - Old Time Rock n Roll - Bob SeegerYeah, I know you're all sick of it, but that's just because it got horribly overplayed for:a) being the background music to Tom Cruise dancing in his underwear ... andb) having the words 'Rock-n-Roll' in the lyrics. Radio program directors love that stuff.23 - What a Fool Believes - Doobie BrothersMichael McDonald's sound and voice had totally taken over the group by this point. He softened their edges and was an easy target for parody, but he could write & sing a great pop song.22 - My Sharona - Knack"Nuke the Knack" were popular tee-shirts at the time for those heavily into music snobbery. The wearers objected to the fact that the group was formed, the album was written, recorded, mixed & pressed in about 11 days by a crew that was about as musical as some punk boy band. The lyrics sucked, the music sucked, the singing sucked and the whole result ... well it just sucked so good when you were in the right mood. 21 - Rapper's Delight - Sugarhill GangThe first pebble of an oncoming avalanche I bet you never saw coming.with a hip hip hop and ya don't stop a rockin20 - Tusk - Fleetwood MacFollowing up 'Rumors' was going to be impossible. Tusk lacked the personal venom of it's disfunctional mega-smash predecesor but, backed by the USC marching band, it had a great sound.19 - Dancin' Fool - Frank ZappaI'm sure the real Zappa fans consider it a noverty throw-away but you gotta love a swift kick in the designer jeans on disco's way out the door.18 - Cruel to be Kind - Nick LoweFor some reason it took a group of songwriters (Lowe/Edmonds/Costello/Parker) from the British pub scene to rediscover rockabilly music.17 - Girls Talk - Dave EdmondsGreat piece of rockabilly from the British pub mafia as Edmonds covers Costello's tune.16 - Cleveland Rocks - Ian HunterI never got into Drew Carey's show, but I found myself watching the intro some nights just to hear the abbreviated version of the theme song. I finally figured out that it was because it was so nice to hear some "fun" rock in the midst of all the late '90s self-pitying angst.15 - Romeo's Tune - Steve Forbert1979 was rotten timing for a demin-clad/guitar & harmonica/singer-songwriter from Meridian, Mississippi to blow into NYC and try to become a star. But it doesn't mean he wasn't spinning some real good music. Meet me in the middle of the daylet me hear you say everything's OKBring me southern kisses from your room14 - Discovering Japan - Graham ParkerNobody did angry-pop better than GP. And any song that rhymes 'posers' with 'film exposures' with 'travel brochures' is A-OK w/me.13 - Dreaming - BlondieMy favorite from the early Blondie days. More rock, less styling and drums that just don't quit.12 - I Need a Lover - John Cougar MellencampTerrific intro made it much better than the more popular Benetar cover ... even if he didn't look nearly as fetching in spandex.Someone who knows the meaning of a ... hey hit the highway11 - What's So Funny 'bout Peace, Love and Understanding - Elvis CostelloMore cross-pollination as Costello covers Lowe this time.10 - Let's Go - The CarsWow, electronica can be fun!I like the night life baby9 - Rock Lobster - B-52'sHow does one begin to write a song like this? As much novelty as song, but it was so damn catchy.8 - I Don't Like Mondays - Boomtown RatsFrom hit songs about homicidal teens to Nobel Prize nominations. So how did your decade measure up?and the silicone chip inside her head gets switched to overload7 - Crawling Fom the Wreckage - Dave EdmondsEdmonds & Parker combine this time. Would a song about drinking and driving even get airplay today?bits of me is scattered in the trees and in the hedges6 - Frederick - Patti SmithPatti's homage to her husband Fred Smith. This is a personal choice over the more popular 'Dancing Barefoot'. The good thing about marrying someone with your same name is that it saves you the trouble of remonogramming those bathroom towels. Hi, hi, hey, hey. Maybe I will come back someday And it was indeed the last we heard of Patti for a long while.5 - Refugee - Tom PettySome guys just spend their entire careers putting out solid stuff. Damn the torpedoes, pure rock ahead.4 - Is She Really Going Out with Him? - Joe JacksonDebut single that stripped away the heavy guitar sounds that preceded it and let you know that there was something new going on around ... here. 3 - Roxanne - The PoliceAnother bare bones debut that signaled there was a new decade in town.you don't have to put on the red light2 - Sultans of Swing - Dire StraightsCheck out gee-tar Mark!The first song from the last group I was running around telling everyone about before the whole world knew they were good. I'm so rarely ahead of the times.1 - Life During Wartime - Talking HeadsPop-apocolypse vision created by dropping design school students into the midst of the NYC punk scene This ain't no foolin aroundTK ROLLINYou took me off the hook on Pop Muzik ... I liked it and thoughtit was in 1980. Had it midway up ... as you said the times werea changin' -- and it reminds me of changin' times.Good list and explanations.ShoobeedoobeedoowappBappbappshowapp.I suppose I shouldn't be lazy and google that up correctly. POP MUSIKFACTOR MGet up...Get down...Radio, videoBoogie with a suitcaseYour livin' in a discoForget about the rat raceLet's do the milkshake, sellin' like a hotcakeTry some buy some fee-fi-fo-fumTalk about, pop musikTalk about, pop musikShoobie doobie do wopI wanna dedicate thisPop pop shoo wopEverybody made itShoobie doobie do wopInfiltrate itPop pop shoo wopActivate itNew York, London, Paris, MunichEverybody talk about pop musikTalk about, pop musikTalk about, pop musikPop pop pop pop musikSinging in the subwayShuffle with a shoe shineFix me a molotovI'm on the headlineWanna be a gun slingerDon't be a rock singerEenie meenie mynie moeTell me where you wanna goTalk about, pop musikTalk about, pop musikShoobie doobie do wopLyin' in the tree (?)Pop pop shoo wopEenee meenieShoobie doobie do wop(?)Pop pop shoo wopYou know what I meanHit it...Now you know what to say...Talk about, pop musikPop pop pop pop musikAll around the world wherever you aredance in the street anything you likedo it in your car in the middle of the nightLa la la la la la la la laLa la la la la la laDance in the supermartDig it in the fastlaneListen to the countdownThey're playin' our song againI can't get jumping jackI wanna hold - get back (?)Moonlight muzak (?)Knick knack patty whackTalk about, pop musikTalk about, pop musikShoobie doobie do wopIt's all around youPop pop shoo wopGonna suround youShoobie doobie do wopIt's all aroundPop pop shoo wopHit it...New York, London, Paris, MunichEverybody talk about pop musikTalk about, pop musikTalk about, pop musikPop pop pop pop musikNow... listen...Talk about,Pop pop pop pop musik...WIDE BEE GEEIf you saw my drunken karaoke rendition at the Cyclones game, you'da made it like, 5th.Seriously, good list. Criticisms forthcoming! London CallingPowderfingerMessage in a BottleTHE BIG TRAINGreat list. Stop beating up on the Knack, though.And stop taking preemptive shots at me. My list will crush your puny list. LF'London Calling' was released in December '79. I will the contents of that album to KC.'Message in a Bottle' got bumped for RoxanneIf 'Powderfinger' was '79 then my badI so wanted to stick 'The Knack' with the flunkies in the 'not quite' list. I just couldn't. WIDE BEE GEEI so wanted to stick 'The Knack' with the flunkies in the 'not quite' list. I just couldn't. It was that guitar solo! You listened to it .... and said: "Godamn! This friggin song actually ROCKS!"I think all the "Rusty" Neil Young came out in '79.Both Police records: Outlandos and Regatta have '79 release dates so one is likely early and the other late. So London Calls for KC and says "Don't forget the second Police album. It might be their best!" THE BIG TRAIN25 - I Want You to Want Me - Cheap Trick...and even cheesier in the live version.There was another version?Seriously, I'm with Maurice here on the Knack here. Something happens to "My Sharona" at that bridge. The rhythm changes, I think the key changes. If you haven't heard the full-length version in a while, you'd think they're segueing into another (better) song. As I would have said in '79, it was wickit.GF212121Have you seen the 'Behind The Music' on Weird Al Yankovic? Doug Feiger of The Knack heard Al's 'My Bologna' and recommended to his record label that he sign Al and release the disc. Nice to see that he didn't take himself too seriously. THE BIG TRAINIf not London Calling, surely there's a track or two from Sandanista! And if those tee-shirts were half as clever as the band they were targeting, they wouldn't have said "Nuke the Knack," but "Knuke the Knack."C'mon. SOUPCANWasn't 'Boys Don't Cry' released in '79?Probably not since none of you audiophiles mentioned it. LFI'll cease making fun of The Knack when they pry this keyboard from my cold, dead fingers! THE BIG TRAINI recently (like one web page ago) found out Joe Jackson has been playing with the band from his first three albums again. CENTERFIELD"I Want You to Want Me - Cheap Trick"I usually hate remakes, but this song was recently remade by Letters to Cleo for the soundtrack of some teen movie (probably had Freddy Prinze Jr.) and it was much better than the original.Some dude singing "I want you to want me" is kinda pathetic. A chick singing "I want you to want me" is like, really cool. THE BIG TRAINTen Things I Hate About You.It was a closing credits song.No Freddy. CENTERFIELDThanks. Haven't seen the movie...just heard the song. If it has no Freddy, it must suck. LFNo, but 'Ten Things' had Julia Stiles in it which beats the hell out of Freddie Prinze Jr. nine ways to Sunday.I personally love cover versions.List adjustment:Powderfinger looks like it was '79 and I've liked that song ever since the river took Emmylou. I got a little confused because it apparently appeared on not only Rust Never Sleeps, but also Live Rust, Live Rust 2, Son of Rust, Rust Meets Abbott & Costello, and a few others as well.So I'll throw that in instead of Cruel to be Kind which, because it was on several Edmonds albums, seems to belong better in '78.

The Yanx took this kind of tack for a while: identifying the best Latin kids while real young and signing them to huge $$ deals. Problem is, they found it to be a fairly expensive high risk/low reward action and have pretty much abandoned that strategy and are going for quantity over (supposed) quality.Not that it didn't ever work - although Soriano sorta doesn't count because he was older having gone through a Japanese farm system at the time - but there were more misses than hits: Jackson Melian, Ruben Rivera, a host of Cubans besides El Ducky, etc. Let's hope they picked the right one to splurge on. Reyes was signed for 80K btw.

In an 'Ask BA' column just following their new 'Top-100' prospect list I submitted a question about the high pitching draft picks from last year. Specifically, since they had Neimann (4th overall to the DRays) somewhere in the top 30 or so, Humber (3rd, Mets) around 50-something, and Verlander (2nd, Tigers) not on the list at all, I asked about the large discrepancy since they were drafted consecutively and all signed at about the same time and came in essentially cold this season.Their answer was something along the lines of thinking that Neimann's ceiling was higher (although they admitted to not taking his pre-draft injury into consideration) than Humber's and that they considered Verlander to be not nearly as good as either and the most likely to wind up in the pen.So Verlander then went out and tore up high-A ball, ripped through AA, and got himself into the majors prior to mid-season.Go figure.

- Supposedly Willie told Graves he was going to lean on him more in the 2nd half. Of course that was before the Saturday Night Massacre.- Mcz will supposedly be ready before Matsu. Not sure if they'll do much juggling around 1st base until then. Valent is hitting better in AAA, but of course Daubach was killing the ball in AAA and Met fans were clamoring for his arrival ... until he got here that is.- Now that Zambrano is pitching better can we please stop trying to farm him out (plus throw-ins, plus cash) for Single-A maybes who will hopefully crack the lineup in 2 years IF everything goes well?- As long as our OFers continue to be every inning guys, why not have Gerald as the backup? Diaz was farmed out specifically because there weren't ABs for him here, although there might be if they let him play 1st.- Any one of the multitude of somewhat redundant 2nd-base types - Anderson/Cairo/Woodward/Offerman could certainly be moved, or packaged w/something else. Of course it would help if Matsui ever showed his face again ... and brought his bat w/him.

]What does this have to do with your assertion that Jose's low OBP has anything to do with how much minor league ball he played?Maybe nothing, or maybe he'd be better prepared for ML pitching had he not been jumped from Single-A to the majors inside of a year and before he turned 20.In any case, it has at least as much to do with his performance now as does the logic of; 'look, these [greatest of all time] players were promoted at similar ages/experiences' which shows that the Mets engaged in senseless foot-dragging by not bringing Reyes (and Wright) up sooner.

Martinez - 4Reyes - 3Beltran - 2Hernandez - 1

And if Jose bats .317 (or anything resembling it) then guess what ... his OBP will improve!!I don't expect him ever to be a high-BB guy (although walk rates can and do improve). My point was that he can become a better hitter with better pitch recognition and choosing better pitches just within the strike zone. Shirley you acknowledge that even if players don't change their "type" that's not the same as saying that their skills peak in their rookie years.btw, some OBP numbers:Larry Walker; 1st few seasons ~ .340 ... career = .401Ted Williams; ~.340 ... .480Gehrig; ~.390 ... .447Bonds; ~ .330 ... .443Helton; ~.390 ... .432Mantle; ~.390 ... .420

I thought I'd revive some of our music threads from the old place -- these were fun. For those who weren't around back then: someone found one of those ubiquitous 'Top 100' lists that were popular right after the turn of the century. This one was something like 'Best 100 Songs of the Last 25 Years', and while it wasn't a bad list, it was kinda boring; y'know, one from coumn A, one from column B, only the big hits thing, etc. So it didn't take long until someone said; 'hah, WE could make a better list than that' ... which led to a challenge to do exactly that. So everyone grabbed a year or two (1978-2002) and named their top 30 (or so) songs from that year to be subject to scrutiny, ridicule or maybe even praise.Cal/Sharpie kicked it off with 1978CAL KOONCEHere, finally, the Top 30 for the first year of the last 25.That year found me in college madly listening to a lot of this stuff and shunning other songs that appear here. Disco reaches its apotheosis with the release of "Saturday Night Fever" and the 355 hit singles that were spawned offa it.The Sex Pistols broke up (I saw their last show in SF) but protopunk songs started hitting the mainstream airways.The list is mostly comprised of familiar songs but I had to stick on some that were important to me then or are important to me now even if they didn't resonate for most people at the time. I also used the one-song-per-artist rule. Songs listed alphabetically.Badlands - Bruce Springsteen"Promised Land" was the single but this is the one that really gets me going. Especially the opening -- the drum fill followed by the keyboards and guitar and finally that slidy bass thingee right before the vocal. One of his best songs.Baker Street - Gerry RaffertyIt's all about the saxaphone solo. Because the Night - Patti Smith GroupA Bruce song which Patti improved by adding the "Touch me now" bit. Her only hit single.Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis - Tom WaitsFrom the "Blue Valentine" album where Tom begins to move away from the piano crooner stuff of his first 2 albums. The best was yet to come but this song is good.Crazy Little Thing Called Love - QueenRetro-rockabilly. Totally fake but I love it.Cruel to Be Kind - Nick LoweLF listed this as a '79 release and maybe the single got released then but the album was this year. Never got why he didn't make it bigger.Hey Hey My My (Into the Black) - Neil YoungFrom "Rust Never Sleeps." Neil mentioning Johnny Rotten in a song at that time seemed somehow important then. Can't remember why now.I Wanna Be Sedated - RamonesOne of those songs that have gotten more popular years later than they were at the time. At this point their most well-known song.Just What I Needed - The CarsThe Cars were the first of the new wave acts that broke on the radio. Ultimately they weren't as big or as good as people thought they'd be but this song rocks.Kaya Bob - MarleyBob during his spiritual phase which lasted the rest of his life.King Tut - Steve MartinA novelty song which I hadn't heard for many years til about 2 years ago. It still works for me and his Saturday Night Live performance of it was hysterical.King’s Lead Hat - EnoFrom "Before and After Science." I love those Eno pop records of the time. That same year he did "Music for Airports" and it was downhill for him for me as a performer. This might be my favorite song of his.Miss You - Rolling StonesCoulda picked "Shattered" or "Beast of Burden" and I would've felt just as good about myself. "Some Girls" the last worthwhile album from these guys and a surprise at the time as the few albums before that (It's Only Rock 'n' Roll, Goat's Head Soup, Black and Blue) indicated a band in decline.Mongoloid - DevoA friend of mine got me the singles from when they were an indie band in Ohio and I was a little disappointed in the Eno-produced "Are We Not Men? We Are Devo!" album but this song always does it for me.On Broadway - George BensonUsed as the opening for "All That Jazz" a couple of years later. An odd radio hit for a jazz guitar guy.One Way or Another - Blondie"Parallel Lines" was a huge hit and contained a number of good songs. Always liked Debbie Harry's "I'm gonna getcha getcha getcha getcha" phrasing.Pump It Up - Elvis CostelloA great song from a great album by a great artist. Have listened to it innumerable times over these 25 years and still don't know most of the words.Roxanne - PoliceLF had this one as '79 also but again might've been an album/single thing. Safe European Home The ClashOne of the best opening tracks of any album ever. The littlest Koonce is playing the Clash a lot these days and daddy couldn't be prouder.Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll - Ian Dury & the BlockheadsThe song that inspired the catchphrase.Shake Your Groove Thing - Peaches & HerbHaven't put on many disco songs (being from the "disco sucks" school of the time) but I've always liked this one.Short People - Randy NewmanAnother novelty song. Not his best (his decline just started) but still fun.Sign of the Times - Bryan FerryFrom the transitionary period where Bryan Ferry moved to California. One of the last of the songs that sounded like the original Roxy Music before the squishy "Avalon" era began.Stayin’ Alive - Bee GeesI promised Wide that I would put a Bee Gees song on this list but of all the "Saturday Night Fever" songs this one will live as long as people have oldies radio.Sultans of Swing - Dire StraitsWe all thought "who are these Dylan poseurs" but we all liked it anyway.Thank You For Sending Me An Angel - Talking HeadsThe hit from "More Songs About Buildings and Food" was "Take Me to the River" and "The Big Country" has always had a special place in my heart but this one about a guy teaching a baby how to walk is the one that has run through my head the most so it gets the nod.Tropical Hot Dog Night - Captain Beefheart & his Magic BandFrom "Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller)" the only Beefheart album that I still put on every now and then. This song made it onto a tape that was played at my wedding. It cleared the dance floor.Two Doors Down - Dolly PartonGreat lyrics and an odd crossover hit.Werewolves of London - Warren ZevonHis first hit. Still probably his best known.Who Are You - The WhoTheir last gasp. The album was weak and they'd done far better songs but even second rate Who is better than most.SALAMANDER QAlice doesn't live here anymore, Cal.You've included songs from the last year I was an active music consumer. Thank you very much. I still listen to "Some Girls," "King Tut," "Werewolves of London"---they're my latest music purchases, in fact.For the last twenty-four years, there seems to be a lot of music I've never heard of. A lot of catching up to do. Widey turned me on to the Smithereens, which surprised me in its retro-sixties qualities. I suspect that I got to thinking sometime around 1979 that the stuff the kids were listening to was anti-melodic, anti-harmonic, deliberately and in-your-face unmusical, so I felt better about giving it up while I hit the books for a few years. But I see I've missed quite a lot.Unless you're all crazy, of course. THE BIG TRAINIs this top to bottom or bottom to top?"My Best Friend’s Girl Rick Springfield"Isn't this a Cars song?You and LF have some fighting to do over some songs. "Miss You" is great. I love Jagger singing falsetto. I love Prince's and Bono's falsettos also. Why?CAL KOONCEList is alphabetical. You're right about the Cars doing "Best Friends Girl" -- which violates the no two by same band. I'll fix. LFThese overlap things are going to happen.Music, unlike baseball, doesn't have an off-season. METHEADWow, Tropical Hot Dog Night. Seems like it gets better with repeated listens... Beefheart is like Tom Waits on acid. WIDE BEE GEEI demand order from this fine list. Make the hard calls... NOW!!!! CAL KOONCEOK, OK, here's an order (from top to bottom):Pump It Up Badlands Because the Night Hey Hey My My (Into the Black) Miss You Safe European Home MongoloidKing’s Lead HatThank You For Sending Me An AngelRoxanneI Wanna Be Sedated Stayin’ Alive Sultans of SwingCruel to Be KindOne Way or Another Tropical Hot Dog NightWho Are You Just What I Needed Shake Your Groove ThingCrazy Little Thing Called Love Werewolves of LondonSex & Drugs & Rock & Roll Sign of the TimesTwo Doors DownBaker Street Kaya Christmas Card from a Hooker in MinneapolisKing TutOn Broadway Short PeopleTHE BIG TRAINKnow what would have been cool? If number 30 on his list was "My, My, Hey, Hey" and number one was "Hey, Hey, My, My."Too late for that thrill, though. OHSHEACANKC>>>Safe European Home The ClashOne of the best opening tracks of any album ever.<<<Cal / KC similarity scores sky-rocket in early morning trading. CAL KOONCE"Clash City Rockers" and "London Calling" were also great opening tracks. Those guys knew how to start it off. FK: I'll revive more of these as I get around to it.If someone wants to create a specific place for them since they're not technically 'MOFO' archives then be my guest ... although it's not like we're going to have a lot of other stuff to put here.

I agree that this 'we the fans care more than the players do' attitude is a trend that I'm hearing more of recently. Chris Russo & Joe Badabingo are the worst enablers.Fans interpreting Johnny Franco's "smirk" to mean lack of both interest and effort became a cottage industry for a time.

It's the Official Scorer's decision there but it sounds like he screwed up to me. The way I've heard that rule is that a scorer can 'take away' the win from the guy who seems to have earned it when said guy pitches "both briefly and ineffectively". Roa, in this case, rode out an inning & 1/3 negating the "briefly" part (and pretty much the "ineffectively" part too). I'd give him the 'W'.

Ooh wow ... we're finding Hall-of-Famers who were real good when they came up as young players. Whoda thunk it? Must mean that they were good because they were brought up young (as opposed to the other way around) and therefore ALL players should be able to come up at that age and not have any adjustment periods!

My point is that this notion that a flip of Piazza & Wright in the batting order would make a huge difference in the offensive output of the Mets - something which is a current and constant cry from Met fans - doesn't stand up to reason. But since many of those making that point are so wrapped up in it as their launching point for what ails the team that they don't even realize when it's NOT true (like for the last 4-5 weeks) because they don't WANT to realize that it's not true.I personally don't care where Piazza hits but, wherever it is, I'm not going to pretend that it's the major factor in the lack of runs scored simply because it fits a pre-determined agenda. It's like Reyes and the leadoff spot; we can bitch and moan all we want about how some player shouldn't be hitting where he is, but let's not pretend that there are great alternatives when there aren't.

Reyes's problem is NOT that he's taking too few pitches. His per/AB pitch count is actually somewhat high (I heard some numbers the other day but forgot the specifics); and it isn't even that he's swinging at too many bad pitches, at least not until he gets 2 strikes. At times, in fact, I think he takes too many pitches.The problem is the ones he chooses to take. It seems that he often decides before the pitch is ever thrown whether or not he's going to swing - and therefore winds up taking too many fat strikes either with his fake bunts or because he's got this notion that he's supposed to take more often and takes fat pitches just to take them. But "Plate discipline" isn't just merely looking at as many piches as possible, sometimes it's sitting on a pitch in a favorable count and whacking the snot out of it. Where that strategy fails to work for him is that Jose lacks the skill to pick out a particular strike in those cases - again, he decides ahead of time to swing no matter what - and so he winds up taking mediocre swings at pitches he should leave alone.And I can't imagine how bad his pitch selection would be if we hadn't left him down in the minors so long.

I'd be willing to bet that very few of those Met fans who are whining about how WWSB's refusal to swap Piazza & Wright in the lineup is costing this lineup 10-15 runs/day and is the downfall of the season have noticed that they've been about equal hitters over the last month. Wright, in fact, has HRed once in the last month.Most haven't noticed, of course, because they don't want to.P.S. Wright has batted 5th & 6th collectively more often than 7th, and, despite constant wails to the contrary, has never once hit 8th this season.

A glimpse of Acta was seen in one of the shots, he was considerably down the line which is where coaches usually are in those situations. Couldn't see what he was doing at that moment. What it sounds like is that Cairo was running up Castro's ample butt due to Ramon's initial mis-reading of the hit in the first place. Acta was probably in the midst of a 'you go - but YOU stop' pantomime which led to Castro's second mis-reading in the span of 10 seconds or so.All I know is that one night's sleep and one long bike ride later and I'm still pissed off.

Didn't like the trade when it happened, don't like it any better now; but liking the deal and bashing Zambrano because of it - particularly when it's based on just a handful of starts - is a seperate issue. Although that's exactly what many fans have bene doing. Judged on his own merits he's been good a lot more than bad, and the bad mostly came following the long layoff.

Apparently this deal is dead, or at least on the back burner for a while. Seems that they couldn't agree on the minor league/money aspects of the deal.

Not to say 'I told ya so' ... well because I really didn't; I honestly didn't know what to expect from this guy. BUT, I think that a huge portion of Met fans jumped to premature conclusions here (so unlike them too!). Considering that we got a whopping 3 starts out of this guy last year before he went down - meaning he then started this year effectively having sat for 8 months - it's not surprising that it took him awhile before hitting his groove* and even less surprising that there were few willing to give him the time to do so.I mean ... despite the deafening amount of silence taking credit for the deal, somebody saw something in him that they liked.* at least I hope it's a groove and not a temporary fluke

Fuckup Rollcall Checklist:1st base: Yup. Anderson's error leads to a run2nd base: Yup. Cairo's error leads to the winning runSS: Yup. Reyes w/an error3B: Not that I can think ofLF: Yup. An oh-fer, plus the critical mis-playCF: Nothing specific, but can you look at a pitch now and then?RF: Oh-fer, including 2 Ks plus the ball off your glove led to run #1C: Umm yeah. You mis-judged that fly ball about 3 different timesP: Heilman = Yup. Looper = didn't get a lot of help but still Yup

WORST. LOSS. EVER.Well, this year anyway -- worse than opening day!

Shouldn'ta left the bar

I never saw 'Malcolm X' because I was afraid I'd be lost for not having seen the first 9 episodes.

I kinda like this deal from a Nats standpoint. They need hitting more than pitching and it's not like Day has even been there for them for over a month now. And, although I confess to knowing little about Davis, he is a former 1st round pick by Pittsburgh (1997 - 6th overall) but is almost 27 w/only pieces of 4 seasons in the majors. Sounds like he may have been a high prospect at one time, but not sure he is anymore.Preston's certainly erratic and overpaid (tho they won't pay all of it anyway) but maybe he performs well enough and even likes it back on the east coast and hangs around past this year.

BA:Signed out of the Dominican as a 16-year-old, the Mets' Carlos Gomez is putting together an impressive SAL campaign. The speedster went 3-for-3 last night for the second straight game while stealing his SAL-leading 43rd base. The Hagerstown outfielder has seen his batting average improve each month this season and his hitting .275/.320/.400. The 19-year-old has just 14 walks in 280 at-bats and will need to improve on that to make himself a true force as a leadoff hitter. Sounds like another Mets leadoff hitter.

Good to see this Pittsburgh team carrying on the tradition of earlier Pirate teams; namely stocking their staffs with one-syllable named pitchers -- although this year's squad of Josh Fogg, Zack Duke, Kip Wells, Rick White and Ian Snell doesn't quite stand up to the mid-'60s rosters containing: Roy Face, Bob Veale, Steve Blass, Bob Friend, Vern Law, Wilbur Wood, Tommie Sisk, Bob Moose, Ron Kline & Bill Short.I know you all secretly want to be kept up on facts like these.