Edgy MD

That was an astounding (and possibly well oiled) comment from Steverino. Hopefully, five years down the road, he's climbed as far up the ladder as the Times has slid down. Maybe they'll pass each other going in different directions one of these years.

One thing about WAR. Whether you use it or not, respect it or not it is designed to measure the player's contribution in toto. This thread asks you to measure their offensive and defensive contributions as outfielders alone, and some of these guys' WAR points represent their contributions as pinch-hitters or as infielders. With Hairston and Harris, that would seemingly be meaningful.

Whoah. Homer by Suppan.

Fangraphs has it: Bay --- 0.7 Pridie --- 0.5

People's goatly focus on Beltran and Heilman and Randolph (for not bunting with Floyd or sending Glavine up there to pinch-hit) is just mis-applied. Floyd and Valentin where the key whiffers. Which is whatever. It's a team game. But Floyd joining in the piling on of Randolph after the fact was weak.

I've read Met fans declare that they hate seeing the catch replayed because of it's associations.

Seven outfield homers from an ephemeral Eric Valent that year, with six more coming as a firstbaseman or pinch-hitter.

Vic Sage wrote: Gwreck wrote: Beltran Duda Hairston Pagan Pridie Pridie over Bay? Really? Isn't that just flaunting an agenda in the face of reality? Are you seriously suggesting that Pridie contributed more to the Mets OF this year, with his .390 OPS and 17TB in 200+ PA, then Bay did with a .700+OPS, 166TB in 500+PA? Even factoring in superior defense, there is no reasonable argument for either Pridie (OR Hairston for that matter) over Bay, except your pre-season expectations and the size of Bay's contract, neither of which have anything to do with assessing his actual production. Look, i'm not a Bay fan, and i'm disappointed in him, too, but this is an exercise in which we should all be using our own best judgment, not just beating dead horses. While I agree with this, that OPS was way off. That should be a .690 for Pridie.

Yeah, I got some code missing there.

Please. As you can see from reading up the chart, it can and does get far worse.

Beltran solidified rightfield as almost nobody has since Strawberry left.

metirish wrote: Why would they want a retired politician type, not being a smart asre here but it's baseball not the middle east. That didn't stop them from running to George Mitchell when they had to clean up the steroids scandal. A retired and respected politician will (1) offer them the credibility with the public that they are acting responsibly and (2) buy them leverage in Congress to keep Uncle Sam out of their hair and maintain their anti-trust exemption. Bush would likely not provide these things very effectively.

Not a good bet for universal adoption, but I'm on board.

I'm sure they'd love a minority candidate --- and will interview more than a few --- but I doubt they'll find one that's willing to operate in the best interests of the owners as the first, second, and sometimes third priority. Torre? I don't know that he knows the business end at all. As the Met hat flap indicates, just doing what you're told is all well and good, but makes you look pretty foolish when you have to express your thoughts as if you came up with them independently. And will he have the juice to do the consensus building that the job requires? Because it's not like the owners are always on the same page. I think they'll try to get a retired politician, but not Cuomo and not Mitchell. Somebody with some vitality still left.

A guy reaches over the fence and grabs a ball apparently destined to be a homerun. It's one of the most exciting and signature plays in the game, but what do you call it? When it's happening, the player is said to "rob (Batter's Name) of a homerun." But what is the play called as a noun or noun phrase when recollected and discussed? "Has Shinjo ever had a... homer-catch-thingy?" You strike a guy out, you get a strikeout. You steal a base, you get a stolen base. In baseball, actions become nouns for recollection and tabulation. A "Homerun Theft" Is brief enough, but a little awkward and formal and suggestive of something underhanded about a play that's all about skill and effort and has nothing to do with deviousness or scheming. It only gets 71 hits on Google. A "Pullback" is descriptive enough but sort of understates the heroic scale of the thing. This gets 15,000,000 hits, but how many are about baseball? It's financial definition is the only one cited in the dictionaries I consulted. Do you have a term? Do we need a term? Should we coin a term? YaxpAkOWNM0

I realize those defensive stats must look like a lot of noise, but check it out. Bay, despite playing with the Great Wall of China behind him half the time, had our only two home-run pullbacks on the year. I seem to remember another one... Harris?

Please vote for your top five Mets outfielders of 2011. They will be awarded five points for each first-place vote, four for each second-place vote, etc. He with most points after a week is awarded the 2011 Crane Pool Forum Darryl Strawberry Award for Outstanding Mets Outfielder. By my count, 11 Mets and ex-Mets toiled in the great green expanse while garbed in Metly colors this season: Mike Baxter, Jason Bay, Carlos Beltran, Lucas Duda, Nick Evans, Scott Hairston, Willie Harris, Fernando Martinez, Daniel Murphy, Angel Pagan, and Jason Pridie. Please vote so we may honor the most esteemed of the Mets' ballhawks. Note that many of our eligible players also played other positions. In voting, please consider only the performance of the players in question that occurred while they were outfielding. Their numbers below represent only their contributions as outfielders. As always, I ask for promotional support on the Twitterverse and Facebook. Outfielder Batting PlayerGPAABRH2B3BHRRBISBCSBBSOBAOBPSLGOPSTBGDPHBPSHSFIBBROEMike Baxter1132265601130058.231.375.344.71911010000Jason Bay12250944459109191125711156109.245.329.374.703166821637Carlos Beltran9140233761982921463305958.291.396.513.909173920453Lucas Duda44177151234080626101828.265.350.373.72366350311Nick Evans922212420030119.190.227.273.5006000001Scott Hairston30888312227041511417.265.307.307.61427110001Willie Harris42142121183280212322032.264.373.303.67643210032Fernando Martinez3991310000003.333.333.444.7784000000Daniel Murphy1110000000000.000.000.000.0000000000Angel Pagan121529475681242447553174462.261.322.373.695177414547Jason Pridie632071842145103419511957.245.308.382.69017000110 Outfielder Fielding =#FF0000](See Glossary of Terms Below) LeftfielderGGSCGInnChPOAEDPFld%RtotRtot/yrRtzRofRdrsRdrs/yrRpmRofRhrRF/9RF/GMike�Baxter3005.0220001.00002400124010---3.600.67Jason�Bay1221211141053.1226220421.991-5-6-50-1-1-6321.911.84Carlos�BeltranLucas�Duda44129.0330001.0000-100014110---0.930.75Nick�Evans1001.000000---00000000---0.000.00Scott�Hairston104348.11110010.909-2-55-200000---1.861.00Willie�Harris332619241.148480001.000-5-25-50-3-15-2-1---1.791.45Fernando�Martinez1001.010010.000-1-7080-10000---0.000.00Daniel�Murphy1002.0110001.0000000-1-600-10---4.501.00Angel�PaganJason�Pridie137667.010100001.00011610-1-18-10---1.340.77 CenterfielderGGSCGInnChPOAEDPFld%RtotRtot/yrRtzRofRdrsRdrs/yrRpmRofRhrRF/9RF/GMike�BaxterJason�BayCarlos�BeltranLucas�DudaNick�EvansScott�Hairston108259.117170001.00025020-1-20-10---2.581.70Willie�Harris73131.0990001.000020013910---2.611.29Fernando�MartinezDaniel�MurphyAngel�Pagan1211191131045.03173025101.968-17-19-12-4-1-11-2---2.642.54Jason�Pridie433229312.28885120.9770-11-12820---2.482.00 RightfielderGGSCGInnChPOAEDPFld%RtotRtot/yrRtzRofRdrsRdrs/yrRpmRofRhrRF/9RF/GMike�Baxter107568.011101001.000-2-29-3111801---1.461.10Jason�BayCarlos�Beltran919182790.1155150412.994-3-4-305832---1.751.69Lucas�Duda423831335.17472110.986-12-41-10-1-8-29-80---1.961.74Nick�Evans84145.0990001.00001200-2-53-20---1.801.13Scott�Hairston1511485.11817010.944-3-42-30-2-28-1-1---1.791.13Willie�Harris63122.1660001.000-1-60-10-1-54-21---2.421.00Fernando�Martinez32217.0440001.0000800-1-71-10---2.121.33Daniel�MurphyAngel�PaganJason�Pridie216584.226251001.00002-1111410---2.761.24 G -- Games Played or Pitched. GS -- Games Started. CG -- Complete Game. Inn -- Innings Played in Field. Ch -- Defensive Chances. (Putouts + Assists + Errors). PO -- Putouts. A -- Assists. E -- Errors Committed. DP -- Double Plays Turned. Fld% -- Fielding Percentage. (Putouts + Assists) / (Putouts + Assists + Errors). Rtot -- Total Zone Total Fielding Runs Above Avg. The number of runs above or below average the player was worth based on the number of plays made. This number combines the Rtz, Rdp, Rof, Rcatch numbers into a total defensive contribution. Rtot/yr -- Total Zone Total Fielding Runs Above Avg per 1,200 Inn. The number of runs above or below average the fielder was worth per 1,200 Innings (approx 135 games). This number combines the Rtz, Rdp, Rof, Rcatch numbers into a total defensive contribution. Provided by BaseballProjection.com Rtz -- Total Zone Fielding Runs Above Avg. The number of runs above or below average the player was worth based on fielding plays made. This number does not include OF kills, or double plays turned. Rof -- Total Zone Outfield Arm Runs Above Avg. The number of runs above or below average the player was worth based on baserunner kills and baserunner advances. Rdrs -- BIS Defensive Runs Saved Above Avg. The number of runs above or below average the player was worth based on the number of plays made. This number combines the Rpm, Rbdp, Rbof, Rbcatch numbers into a total defensive contribution. Rdrs/yr -- BIS Defensive Runs Saved Above Avg per 1,200 Inn. The number of runs above or below average the fielder was worth per 1,200 Innings (approx 135 games). This number combines the Rpm, Rbdp, Rbof, Rbcatch numbers into a total defensive contribution. Rpm -- BIS Plus/Minus Fielding Runs Above Avg. The number of runs above or below average the player was worth based on fielding plays made. This number does not include OF kills, or double plays turned. Rof -- BIS Outfield Arm Runs Above Avg. The number of runs above or below average the player was worth based on baserunner kills and baserunner advance. Rhr -- BIS Outfield HR Saving Catches. The number of runs above or below average the player was worth for catches robbing batters of home runs. RF/9 -- Range Factor per 9 Inn. 9 * (Putouts + Assists) / Innings Played RF/G -- Range Factor per Game. (Putouts + Assists) / Games Played

If Hamilton hits like Hamilton, this would be a series and a half.

Yeah, def. I suppose you could view it as a sequel to Daredevil, therefore redeeming DD from the fate of failed franchises. But it's not a sequel so much as a spinoff. A failed franchise spun off from a failed franchise. Ouch. The happiness of their marriage must be based on agreeing not to speak of these films.

Winter training in Japan is a brutal intensive gymnastics regimen, and I'm guessing you're looking at an image from there.

A lot of longtime Mets employees have been disappearing of late, and longtime scout Harry Minor is joining Pete Flynn in retirement this offseason. Harry was the national cross-checker in the late seventies and eighties, and greenlighted the Mets in signing Wally Backman, Gregg Jefferies, Darryl Strawberry, Lenny Dykstra, Mike Scott, Kevin Mitchell, Mookie Wilson, Dwight Gooden, Rick Aguilera and Roger McDowell, among others. He had been in baseball 65 years, 44 of those with the Mets.

I don't remember Wayne Gomes at all. Surely he did something memorable against the Mets. The others come from a long, dark period when the Phillies were usually the most irrelevant team in the big leagues.

Our last four hotshots, all from the pre-Met era: 25. Dick Selma (23 points for batmagadanleadoff) 24. Andy Karl (1943-1947, Phillies 1943-1946) actually came up with the Red Sox at 29 years old, but refused to go down when they farmed him out, reasoning out loud that if he couldn't stick at 29 with so much of the talent away in the armed forces, then he'd never stick. The Sox relented, and instead dealt him to Philadelphia, where he stunk to the tune of a 7.09 ERA in mopup duty. Remarkably welcomed back in 1944, he turned into a hoss of hosses, throwing 89 innings in relief in 38 games and another 180.7 the next season (including two starts and one complete game) over a league leading 67 games. After posting ERAs of 2.33 and 2.96 those years, he naturally regressed after all that work. With the stars coming home, he disappeared after one more season with the Boston Braves. Put his Manhattan College degree to good use and became a plumber. 23. Jack Meyer (1955-1961, all with the Phillies) came out of the Baker Bowl pen in the late fifties, splitting the work with converted starter Bob Miller, who probably deserved placement on this list more. 22. Wayne Gomes (1997-2002, Phillies 1997-2001) was a number four overall pick who never became a star, but was a fixture and sometimes closer in a late nineties pen where an ERA in the low 4.00s wasn't as troubling as it should have been. Had control issues. 21. Syl Johnson (1922-1940, Philadelphia 1934-1940) saw a lot of baseball, and finished his career as a swingman on the Phillies staff in the 1930s when that was about the worst job in baseball. Somehow he held on to that job for six and a half years. Great bio on this guy. 20. Jim Kostanzy (25 points for Ben Grimm) 19. Jose Mesa (9 points for sharpie) 18. Turk Farrell (20 points for JC Lunchbucket 17. Tom Gordon (22 points fof JC Lunchbucket) 16. Larry Andersen (18 points for LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr) 15. Jack Baldshun (18 points for dinosaur jesus) 14. Ricky Bottalico (24 points for JC Lunchbucket) 13. Roger McDowell (21 points for JC Lunchbucket) 12. Ryan Madson (16 points for JC Lunchbucket) 11. Al Holland (24 points for JC Lunchbucket) 10. Brad Lidge (24 points for Ceetar) 9. Steve Bedrosian (24 points for Ben Grimm) 8. Kent Tekulve (23 points for Ben Grimm) 7. Mitch Williams (25 points for JC Lunchbucket) 6. Heathcliff Slocumb (19 points for JC Lunchbucket) 5. Billy Wagner (25 points for Ceetar) 4. Gene Garber (25 points for JC Lunchbucket) 3. Joe Hoerner (5 points for batmagadanleadoff) 2. Ron Reed (25 points for JC Lunchbucket) 1. Tug McGraw (25 points for JC Lunchbucket) Thanks for playing Sillie Phillie Quiz!

Larry Andersen is eighties/nineties guy indeed. I'll leave this up an open to inspired guesses for an hour or so before I pull the curtain away on our remaining Phillie bullpenners. 25. Dick Selma (23 points for batmagadanleadoff) 24. 23. 22. 21. 20. Jim Kostanzy (25 points for Ben Grimm) 19. Jose Mesa (9 points for sharpie) 18. Turk Farrell (20 points for JC Lunchbucket 17. Tom Gordon (22 points fof JC Lunchbucket) 16. Larry Andersen (18 points for LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr) 15. Jack Baldshun (18 points for dinosaur jesus) 14. Ricky Bottalico (24 points for JC Lunchbucket) 13. Roger McDowell (21 points for JC Lunchbucket) 12. Ryan Madson (16 points for JC Lunchbucket) 11. Al Holland (24 points for JC Lunchbucket) 10. Brad Lidge (24 points for Ceetar) 9. Steve Bedrosian (24 points for Ben Grimm) 8. Kent Tekulve (23 points for Ben Grimm) 7. Mitch Williams (25 points for JC Lunchbucket) 6. Heathcliff Slocumb (19 points for JC Lunchbucket) 5. Billy Wagner (25 points for Ceetar) 4. Gene Garber (25 points for JC Lunchbucket) 3. Joe Hoerner (5 points for batmagadanleadoff) 2. Ron Reed (25 points for JC Lunchbucket) 1. Tug McGraw (25 points for JC Lunchbucket) Not Ranked: Willie Hernandez, Mike Jackson, Bruce Ruffin, Alejandro Pena, Dennis Cook, Jeff Gray, Cole Hamels, Turk Wendell, Cory Lidle, Charlie Hudson, Kip Gross, Wayne Twitchell, Don Carman, Rheal Cormier, JC Romero Standings 1. John Cougar Lunchbucket (196) 2. Ben Grimm (62) 3. Ceetar (49) T4. batmagadanleadoff (18) T4. dinosaur jesus (18) T4. LeiterWagnerFasterSTrongr 7. sharpie (9) T8. Transmonk (-10) T9. MFS62 (-10) T10. Metirish (-20) T10. Gwreck (-20) 11. seawolf (-30)

Well, gosh, Wally. It's only a game.