Edgy MD

That's a question?

Whether Tim Byrdak has a chance to pitch well. What number Frank Francisco is going to wear. Tom Seaver being held hostage. I'm sure you and I can easily build a logical bridge from any of these topics to Wilpon's finances (who's going to pay the ransom?). But to immediately respond to these topics with brief and out-of-left-field (and extremely tired) attacks on Wilpon without bothering to build any such bridge is clearly just an exercise in being obnoxious.

If you believe Baseball-Reference.com, Tom Glavine has a higher WAR figure as a Met than Carter, 11.3-11.2. You can put him ahead of Glavine based on his post-season exploits, certainly, but that's the kind of company he's supping with. It's nothing to be ashamed of certainly, but that's where it is. Considering he was briefly the highest paid player in the league while with the Mets, I'm afraid he'd be roasted by fans if today if he slumped continually during the second half of his tenure like he did then. I wish him the best, and I'm sorry that his managing career got derailed as it did, as he certainly showed promise, but that's just what it adds up to. The Mets have honored him plenty and continue to honor him. It's no insult if that particular honor isn't granted, and I don't think it would help him should anybody want to frame it as one.

Johnson. El Sid. Franco.

Gwreck wrote: Now I'm confused. So your question wasn't really a question, but more of a comment? No, it was a question. I still stand by my answer as a reasoned explanation, and object to any insinuations that it might be otherwise. I object to your objection. And if you object to my objection of your objection, I object infinity. What? I asked if people noticed this cloud, not why it exists. I went on to describe what I meant --- the cloud I speak of not being, as I tried to note, how Wilpon sucks and has ruined everything, or even why folks object to that, but how folks are hijacking conversations and injecting the sell-now agenda into everything, and are almost bitchily offended that anybody should talk about anything else. Which I'm trying to do now. Ironically, relevant stuff, like the potential losses in the clawback suit being limited to the Mets withdrawals from their accounts beyond their principle, protecting $600+ million of their principle, and yesterday's ruling on the appeal, gets ignored.

That's not my question nor what I'm speaking of, though it's very certainly emblematic of what I'm speaking of --- that the rage against Wilpon and the demands he sell are un-necessarily hijacking almost every conversation, whether relevant or not.

Getting picked up, with Rubin being half the story: Business Insider: "A Sportswriter Snapped On Twitter And Revealed The New York Mets' Secret History Of Mistreating Injuries." Deadspin: "The Mets� Colossally Inept Medical Staff, Exposed In A Beat Writer�s Twitter Rant."

Ding! Two hundred and control of the board to Willets.

I'm kind of asking a more specific question than whether or not folks think the Mets will be good.

But the future of their most prominent player, David Wright, can't be placed on hold for much longer; soon, the Mets will face a crossroads on what to do with the third baseman. They have control of him for two more seasons, meaning 1.67 seasons to decide whether or not to trade him and two seasons to decide whether or not to extend/re-sign him. The only real pressure here is on writers needing to write about something.

What About Bob?

I'd say retire his number for the Gulf Coast Mets, who he managed to an incredible .698 winning percentage and a GCL championship in 2005. He wouldn't even have to leave Florida for the ceremony. Then I realized they've already retired numbers 1-100 for that team.

Ceetar wrote: Yes, but I think going off on Alderson like it's spin because he didn't come out and claim it was an obvious screwup in process to put him in the boot is a little excessive. Ceetar wrote: It's obviously spin, but he's the GM, not the beat writer. The italics are mine. They're, like, my-talics. So we agree that Sandy's spinning there and we agree that Rubin's over-the-top. Cool.

Well, I don't know where we are. If you're saying I went off, I didn't. If you're saying Rubin went off, I took note of his excesses, and made that the theme of my presentation. I disagree that stating the treatment was correct when it appears to be public knowledge that the initial treatment was incorrect isn't spin. I don't think it's terrible, but it's spin. What's spin is spin Though perhaps not a sin

Ceetar wrote: Except why was it misdiagnosed? This happens all the time, everywhere, where doctors don't think to get a certain test to check for a certain problem because the symptoms often hint at a more probable problem. And I think I acknowledged as much in my second paragraph, didn't I?

I thought the real meat here was Rubin going all Rippy Ripstein on a late-night bender. I like the whole Jeckyl/Hyde thing he's got going here --- respected as the most competent pro on the beat, soberly giving the fans the facts and letting them sort them out, but with this furious opinion monster bubbling under the surface, liable to come out at any given moment. A public insult, an ill-timed mix of medications, and ADAM SMASH!

Sure, but the misdiagnosis --- and the counterproductivity of the boot --- seems to be public knowledge, rather than merely a fan's opinion. It certainly seems to be an open question how costly that was and how incompetent it was --- and there's some level at which we shouldn't ever be taking initial diagnoses as fact --- but Sandy seems to be denying a misdiagnosis ever took place.

Adam Rubin decided last night to go on an absolute Twitter tear, documenting Mets injury diagnostic and treatment issues, mixing fact with opinion, and known stories with new revelations. There's a comprehensive story in here, although he's certainly written it's like before, trying to outline the pattern in the noise, but here he just pours out the noise and lets you draw your inferences. It's like sports journalism as performance art in 140-character pieces. Amazin' Avenue screengrabbed it all (though it remains up) chronologically, top to bottom. Several regimes are represented --- as far as doctors, managers, and rehab trainers that have come and gone.

Anybody else feeling the Wilponian cloud across the Mets blogosphere? So many blogs I read, the first response and too many afterward is always a fuck-you-Freddie. Blog Theme: Tim Byrdak is capable of repeating his numbers or even improving them if he cuts his walk rate, but even if he backslides or falls apart, the Mets' investment in his arm is relatively modest. First Response: I can't get overly excited about Tim Byrdak. Wilpons should sell. Blog Theme: It'll be interesting to see which number the new guy gets, considering the number he's worn throughout his career is unavailable. First Response: The only numbers that matter are the time and date the Wilpon's sell the team. Blog Theme: Tom Seaver has been taken hostage at a strip mall in Portland! First Response: We're all hostages to Fred Wilpon. Sell the team, Fred! Paraphrasing. I certainly realize it's the story of our time, and bloggers are doing their best to discuss it (and in some cases, break parts of the story), but absent any other news, they try and look at the other angles of the team, and BAMMO! the Wilponian left hook from their readership.

I'm not of a mind, but if they are, I'm sure there's somebody they can match up with. Murphy for Scherzer maybe.

Expect everybody and his sister to be calling Detroit with offers of big-stick-no-glove guys. Maybe the Mets'll offer Doodie.

Emotion aside, I go find a useful past-time.

Lefty Specialist wrote: Everyone seems to assume Murphy playing second and batting second. While I agree he's a good second place hitter, he will be a flaming, Krakatoa-East-of-Java, disaster in the middle of this infield. At least he will be for the 30 games he plays before he gets hurt again. Tell me that you won't be cringing every time a ball gets hit to second. And yet, I kind of love it. As Patrick Flood sees it, it's the first-baseyest team in baseball. - Think about the offense! Think about the offense! Don�t think about what an awful fielding team this is going to be � as part of their regular defensive alignment, the Mets will be running out the worst fielding third basemen in baseball, Jason Bay in left field, and then one-time-first-basemen at first base, second base, right field, and catcher. Tejada, Davis, and Torres can all cover their ground and then some, but it�s hard to imagine those three making up for the rest of the defensive booger-eaters.

The Mets don't lag behind their division rivals in talent. They merely exceed them in mercy.

Phillies just locked up Cole Hamels for $15 million.