Edgy MD

My other brother Darrell getting a start. Murphy put in charge of cleaning up the joint. [*:2iue603y]Granderson, rf[/*:m:2iue603y] [*:2iue603y]Lagares, cf[/*:m:2iue603y] [*:2iue603y]Duda, 1b[/*:m:2iue603y] [*:2iue603y]Murphy, 2b[/*:m:2iue603y] [*:2iue603y]Flores, ss[/*:m:2iue603y] [*:2iue603y]Campbell, 3b[/*:m:2iue603y] [*:2iue603y]Ceciliani, lf[/*:m:2iue603y] [*:2iue603y]Plawecki, c[/*:m:2iue603y] [*:2iue603y]Harvey, p[/*:m:2iue603y][/list:o:2iue603y]

TransMonk for manager.

Aaron Barrett is more patriotic than you. Or at least more patriotic than any of the Phillies. On a beautiful spring night, a children�s choir sang the National anthem, a clear and smooth rendition. The crowd cheered their efforts, and the Phillies and Nationals headed to their dugouts. Barrett, a 27-year-old right-handed reliever, did not move. As is his post-anthem custom, Barrett scanned the opposing dugout, making sure the opponent�s line had dispersed. He held his hat over his heart and kept it there, standing a few feet from the fence in front of the Nationals dugout. What he saw changed the course of pregame history. �I don�t even know how it happened,� Barrett said. �Five of them were out there basically challenging me. I was like, �Great.� I didn�t want to do it. I thought they were going to give up way earlier than that. It turned out to be � well, obviously we are at home, so I thought, �I can�t lose this.� � [fimg=800]https://img.washingtonpost.com/wp-apps/imrs.php?src=https://img.washingtonpost.com/blogs/nationals-journal/files/2015/05/Barrett.jpg&w=1484[/fimg] I'm a little confused as to what the point of doffing your hat is if you're going to wear a backwards batting helmet.

Mets fall into a tie (but a few percentage points back) for the second Wild Card slot.

In other words, it was a three-run game, but a lot of small things added up to those three runs. A lot of one-base plays that they executed and the Mets did not, did not.

When I think of all the games we've lost to guys named Gerritt...

Here we go-ski. Tying run up in the form of Dudissima.

Campbell came out hackin', too.

Instead, Ceciliani inexplicably swings for a grand slam on the first pitch.

Cole coming out for the ninth, with the pitcher's spot due up. If the pattern holds, Wally Backman should get the pinch-hit assignment and try to reach on a bunt.

Bad swings everywhere tonight.

Can we actually challenge a baserunner?

McCutcheon is hurting. That double should have been a standup trip.

We tailor them double plays like a high-end haberdashery, do we not?

Still got good organ playing in Pittsburgh.

Noah better join the offensive attack.

Ruben ain't rolled out for a staring assignment in about a week.

If it sticks, I'm gonna beat myself up.

Impressed by this, we rented Godzilla, and found ourselves bored out of our minds. I'd put up a thread, but I fell asleep halfway-ish. Give some people a budget, and you're not doing them a favor, sometimes.

Syndie is auditioning to stay on the roster here, as Gee aced his rehab start. Gaard pitches well and he stays, with Gee going to the pen. Not so well and Gee returns to the rotation and the big guy to Las Vegas for a bit. I think.

Bucs who were Mets include manager Clint Hurdle and pitching coach Ray Searage. Mets bench coach of 2010 Dave Jauss holds the same job now with the Pirates. First base coach Nick Leyva used to manage the Kingsport Mets.

I'm sure it'll come out within the week, public contract or no.

The Dodgers have been perhaps the biggest investors in Cuban talent in recent years, but one of those apples has mysteriously soured as they have remarkably suspended infielder Erisbel Arruebarrena for the remainder of the season, according to a brief and cryptic announcement that cited "repeated failures to comply with his contract." He hasn't played at all this season, but is under a five-year, $25 million contract. Nothing in the announcement I've read clarifies whether his pay will be withheld. He presumably has an agent, but fighting this decision means the dirt the Dodgers are keeping just below the surface will come up. http://www.latimes.com/sports/dodgers/dodgersnow/la-sp-dn-dodgers-suspend-erisbel-arruebarrena-20150521-story.html It's probably just a refusal to get in shape and a stinky attitude, but... .

"We are excited about returning to Columbia, where we had a presence for over two decades," said general manager Sandy Alderson, who traveled to Columbia to help make the announcement. "So many of the top Mets stars, like current team captain David Wright, got their start in Columbia. The plans for Spirit Communications Park look spectacular, and we can't wait to develop the next generation of Mets Major Leaguers here." http://m.mets.mlb.com/news/article/125811714/mets-shifting-class-a-affiliate-from-savannah-to-columbia-south-carolina Very disappointed they didn't get Tony Bennett for the big announcement.

Newsday digs for the story of how LuDu (new terrible nickname coined just now) became adept at hitting lefties, and ties it to a pre-spring session he had with Keith Hernandez. Interesting is that the Mets arranged it after scheduling a sit-down with Sandy and Keith to discuss the organizational hitting philosophy. Unclear is whether they wanted to sell the philosophy to Keith the critical broadcaster or to Keith the occasional instructor, so Duda wouldn't be getting mixed messages. https://www.newsday.com/sports/columnists/anthony-rieber/give-keith-no-last-name-needed-credit-for-helping-lucas-duda-1.10461108