Edgy MD

So... we got this new scoreboard on the way.

[fimg=500:wz5nzi95]http://ellisart.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/sleep_of_reason.jpg[/fimg:wz5nzi95]

I'm going to cry for the love of all that is reasonable and thoughtful. For these things have died. Steve has killed them.

How is the Mets staff being petty? When exactly should they have announced this? Do you really think I need to be shown how negative the online fanbase has gotten?

Wasn't that smartypants physics guy from the Mets' early years from University of Missouri?

Already decried as a marketing blunder.

Ceetar wrote: Wright in 2014 batting .307 with 14 homers? THIS IS A SCOREBOARD OF LIES!!

Mets stop the insanity, going to work on a bigger, better scoreboard.

"Listen, I'm meeting with the Nationals owner... yeah, I got the GM to rope the owner into this meeting. I dunno, apparently he can't tie his shoes without Lerner's permission. But listen, exactly eight minutes after I go in, I need you to call me. I'm gonna pretend you're the Yankees. What's that? Nah, you don't have to say anything. I probably won't even pick up. But my phone will be on the table and I've got it set to flash the Yankees logo and play the Yankees' song when you call. I'll be too polite to pick up. They'll shit their pants right there in the room. Works every time. You make that call at just the right time, it's good for another $20 million."

Assuming here that Strasburg gets hometown privileges and slots in ahead of Scherzer for the opening day start. [fimg=250]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/7/7b/New_York_Mets.svg/1024px-New_York_Mets.svg.png[/fimg][fimg=250]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg180/bohob_4_life/WashingtonNationals_PML1_2011-9999.png?t=1290008638[/fimg]Mets=#FF0000]NatsLagares, cf=#FF0000]Granderson, lfWright, 3bDuda, 1bCuddyer, rf=#FF0000]Murphy, 2bd�Arnaud, cFlores, ss=#FF0000]deGrom, spSpan, cfRendon, 3bWerth, rfHarper, lfZimmerman, 1bDesmond, ssRamos, c=#FF0000]Escobar, 2bStrasburg, sp

I'm a-thinking of that opening serie between the Mets and Nats, and wondering if the two teams are going to score about five runs total over the three games.

Frayed Knot wrote: Edgy MD wrote: Itchy is a counter, and no doubt would love to somehow chalk up the final 156 hits to get to 3,000 stateside. But with who? Colorady? Arizona? Toronto? Would the Padres pay tribute to Tony Gwynn by signing the Tony Gwynn of Japan as their Outfielder Emeritus? He'll almost certainly need two seasons to get those 156 more hits (that's 50% more than he got in 2014) and at this point he's a singles hitter who doesn't run or play defense as well as he used to. I'm not so sure he'll get a deal for next year much less for two. Buzz is a-buzzin' about Ichiro possibly getting a two-year offer from Miami.

Bring on Dexter Fowler!

I can certainly think of a fourth way for it to go away. But it's January. The Mets certainly aren't losing playoff games. Or any games at all. They're in fact riding a two-game winning streak.

It's tough to settle on an upside. The difference between the Mets being middling team and a kinda good one last season was their wanting record against the Nats (4-15), their most losses against one team since achieving the same 4-15 against the Marlins in 2004 (the year Armando saved 11 games vs. the Mets alone). In fact, the Mets have been struggling against the Natburgers pretty steadily for quite some time now, capping a disappointing trend of declining success since the Expos came to Washington: 2005: 11-7 2006: 12-6 2007: 11-7 2008: 12-6 2009: 10-8 2010: 9-9 2011: 8-10 2012: 4-14 2013: 7-12 2014: 4-15 Closest things to upside: Starting pitching already represents a position of strength for the Nats, so the possible marginal improvement of Scherzer (6.0 pitching WAR in 2014) over (say) Zimmerman (4.9) isn't really going to buy them as many wins as it would have if he replaced a real stooge. It's almost like giving Scherzer the contract extension they haven't been able to hammer out with Zimmerman. Not really an upside, but... . Seven years to a pitcher is always a dramatic commitment. You hate to root for injury, but if his seven years is anything like Johan's seven with the Mets, well... he might really hurt us for the next 2.5 years. Not really an upside, but... . Scherzer disappearing from the market advances the narrative that the Yankees can be seen as possibly just as disappointing as the Mets (or more!) in their non-filling of their alleged glaring need. Not really and upside, but... .

2014 Cyclone Brandon Welch joins LJ in the suspension chamber.

You'll find out in two-five days!

I don't know what you mean by "now." I certainly don't think I've been insulting you.

Lefty Specialist seems to think it was a "WTF" maneuver. I haven't advocated for anybody. The thing I advocate for is for a fan base having more sense than the to get agitated about another silly fake scandal because Mets.

I have a lot of problems with how MLB does their business, but I sure don't expect them to make decisions about who is on which committee based on anticipated fan perceptions. Should we really believe that one dollar is made or lost based on the PR considerations of which owner is appointed to which committee whose authority and mandate we don't really know? If MLB is like most other organizations I've been a part of, the finance committee meets maybe twice a year, receives an accounting sheet from the CFO, 75% of them don't read it, they ask the CFO a handful of questions, 75% of which aren't pertinent to operations, and the chair publishes a financial status letter in the annual report, that he probably didn't write.

What's up with this article? Was it forced through a synonym finder or translated to Russian and back again? �I nevertheless type of have to pinch myself to make sure it�s actual,� deGrom admitted. �When I consider about it, it is sort of crazy hunting back at this previous year and all the stuff that occurred and then winning the Rookie of the Year Award. It�s taken some finding utilized to, receiving recognized and stuff. Also �I try to retain items straightforward, try not to let any of that modify me.� You tell 'em, Yuri!

Mets Guy in Michigan wrote: Howard's getting loopier and loopier. The Mets haven't had what you would call an active offseason. They signed Michael Cuddyer, a mid-grade free agent, but have done almost nothing since. (An MLB agent pointed out to me that they haven't signed a pitcher at any level all winter.) Why would they sign a pitcher when the one thing they have in abundance, outside of players with names starting with lower-case ds, is pitchers? They've signed several pitchers --- to minor league deals (how about some Buddy Carlyle up in you, MLB agent?), because their major league staff is close to set. And you know, if Tracky is "owner-friendly," is the word of an MLB agent somehow bias-free? Off season isn't over yet, but I certainly didn't go in hoping the Mets would spill open the purse on pitching.

Frayed Knot wrote: It would seem to me that players would be required to pay for workouts during times that they're NOT on club time in order to be compliant with the CBA. That's the way I saw it. But I don't know.

San Jose's suit against MLB dies unglamorously in a unanimous decision by a federal appeals court. The anti-trust exemption lives another day. The city intends to appeal to the Supreme Court. I have a strong feeling the Supremes won't even hear it, but maybe Sotomayor will pick it up. "Like Casey," 9th Circuit Judge Alex Kozinski wrote, "San Jose has struck out here." I'd have a difficult time refraining from punching that guy.

Anthropomorphic bear moves from Peru to London. Hijinx follow. [fimg=450:1pi69cto]http://images.fandango.com/images/fandangoblog/Paddington_Teaser2_900.jpg[/fimg:1pi69cto]