Edgy MD

Come on. Whatever. My point isn't the date of the release. My point is what it does or doesn't say about the ongoing control of the regime.

Today's news also had the Mets turning down a $250,000 payment by the Yankees to relocate the Scranton-Wilkes Barre Yankees to Newark for a single season. Chump change, but it could be read to suggest both the 'Pons and the Bud Selig are confident they're going to come out on the other side of this.

MFS62 wrote: I have no idea. Just heard on radio that the Judge limited the Wilpons' liability in the lawsuit to under $300 - max. Still don't know what that will do to their ability (or desire) to retain him. Later It's certainly got to help their ability.

Yeah, maybe it's my life, but I always bet on things staying the same, things staying the same. Meanwhile, he makes a lead-preserving diving stop to end the eighth. What a game!

Not a lot of times in history have the Mets lost a free 'gent that they were serious about keeping. Mike Hampton comes to mind as one.

NATIONAL LEAGUE BATTING RACE Through Games of 9/26/2011 REYES .334 (.333962) Braun .333 (.332734) Another at-bat possible.

Vic Sage wrote: A quiet, contemplative, deliberately paced movie with much to say, that avoids most (if not all) sports movie cliches. I liked it alot. And Pitt's perf as aging jock seemed pitch-perfect, working well off of goofball gone straight Jonah Hill. Just enough baseball to keep it a baseball movie and not a business movie. and it makes a folk hero out of Scott Hatteberg. If I recall correctly, I thought it would die in development because sports movies need a Last Second Victory Against Improbable Odds. Vic insisted the story had enough to sail by anyhow. Looking forward to it.

Great. I broke centerfield.

Me neither, but Sage --- who was in fact championing this film years ago --- has.

I'm not sure why I've been quote above there. We haven't mentioned it in a while, but in light of Darryl's comments, it's worth reviewing that Reyes can still take the money and run without leaving New York, if you get my drift. And I think you do.

Not a lot of films released this year have featured fictionalized versions of current and former Mets personnel. This one is a notable exception. What did you think?

Just my opinion, but I imagine back channel tampering goes on all the time.

That Lindsay Nelson quote at the bottom of your post had a new resonance.

Sending messages to each other through the media, despite the easy availability of face-to-face contact, is a time-honored --- if not particularly courageous --- tradition among ballplayers.

Can't hurt, I guess things, I guess. (Though maybe it can.) http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/mets/2011/09/25/2011-09-25_straw_stay_in_nyc_jose.html#ixzz1Z1KGkSOv NY Mets great Darryl Strawberry says Jose Reyes should stay, as he would have if he got 2nd chance BY PETER BOTTE DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER Sunday, September 25th 2011, 4:00 AM Darryl Strawberry regrettably bolted the Mets for his hometown Dodgers as a free agent after the 1990 season. He doesn't want to see history repeat itself with Jose Reyes. "I know if I had to do it all over again, I would have stayed," Strawberry said before the Mets won, 2-1, in the opener of Saturday's day-night doubleheader at Citi Field against the Phillies before taking the nightcap, 6-3. "It looks good on the other side, but it's not always as good as the place that you're used to. When you're young, you don't realize that. For me, I was young and I didn't realize what New York meant to me. "So tell Jose that New York is a great place. No matter what, it's a great place to play. No matter what you have to go through, how difficult it gets, this is the place where you want to play." Strawberry was at Citi to sign autographs and promote the release of "All-Stars for Charities Fruit Snacks" to benefit his Fight for Autism Foundation. The star-crossed former Mets and Yankees slugger hasn't spoken to Reyes - who did not play in the second game - about his pending free agency, but he made it clear he believes the Mets shouldn't let the All-Star shortstop and possible NL batting champion slip away this winter. "No question about it, being a homegrown player, being an exciting player as he is, for Mets fans, you would hope something good will work out for both sides," Strawberry said. "He's a really exciting player. You're not going to find too many players in the game that are more exciting. It's a tough situation to be in. "I'm not saying (he should take less money to stay). I have nothing to do with that. All I could say is I would love to see him stay. New York loves him, the Mets fans love him, all the players love him, we love the way he plays. I just hope that things work out for both sides and he continues to play here." Strawberry admits now that he made a mistake, but says he "was just personally fed up with (Mets) management" when deciding to sign a five-year, $20 million deal with his hometown Dodgers before the 1991 season. He averaged 33 homers over his first eight seasons with the Mets, but totaled just 83 over the next 10 years - including 24 on the Yankees' 1998 World Series championship team - amid intermittent battles with substance abuse and other off-field problems. "You're young and you're stupid, too. You make stupid decisions," the 49-year-old Strawberry said. "You don't realize at the time, but when you look back on it, you realize that was so stupid. What was I thinking to leave New York to go to L.A. or anywhere? "This is the greatest place to play, the greatest fans. Are the expectations high? Is the media tough? Yeah. You just have to learn to live with that. "But it's a different type of feeling after you've played here for so long and been successful here. You appreciate it more than just another player that comes along, or in other places. The fans here never forget. It's incredible. And Jose has a chance to do that. He's a remarkable player and he's had some wonderful years and done some wonderful things and he still has a chance to do some great things before his career is all over with." Asked if he's considered talking to Strawberry or other high-profile players who've been through the free-agency process, Reyes said: "Everything is a consideration. Like I always say, I don't want to leave here. I want to stay here. But at the same time, I don't know, like I told you guys. The decision is not over yet. I don't want to talk with people during the season. I want to play baseball with my head clear and not think about anything." Reyes, who is locked in a close battle with Ryan Braun and Triple Crown threat Matt Kemp in the NL batting race, is hitting .330 after going 1-for-3 with a walk in the opener.

Ninth inning single today by Reyes gets him back up to .331.

At the start of what appears to be Alexander the Great's second season, he's pitching in spring training facing a talented but green and luckless rookie named Hornsby. The catcher calls time and trots out to the mound. "This kid's having a really tough time, Alex." "Well, then let's pitch him right down the middle." "OK." He goes back to the plate and tells the batter, "Coming right down the middle, kid." Rajah is incredulous, and still has his jaw kind of open as the first one grooves down the pike. "Don't just stand there, kid. I don't know how many more of those he's gonna give ya." Hornsby strokes a pitch into the outfield for a hard-hit single. He stares lovingly at the mound, turns to the firstbaseman and says, "Gee, what a great guy!" It was as if Pride of the Yankees and The Babe Ruth Story were such winners, they needed to produced mythologized biopics of every baseball great, and decided to start with one of the guys who needed the most mythologizing. In this telling, he wasn't a drunk at all, but suffered from an (apparently wholly fabricated) baseball to the skull he took in the minors. It would thereafter give him occasional spells that would make people think he was drunk. He was just misunderstood! And here's the gold: He learned to bring the spells under control, when he felt one coming on, by finding his wife in the box seats and staring deeply into her eyes until the crisis passed. See, they were a winning team that way. The whole 1926 World Series? That was won by Mrs. Alexander. Seriously, I loved it, and I can't say why. It's like a writer's challenge. Take a baseball figure and make a saint out of him by re-writing the public narrative. Mark McGwire? He was taking roids to fight a one-man war against Al Quaeda in the offseason. LaMarr Hoyt? He was in Mexico running an orphanage. He was smuggling to get medicine to children. To CHILDREN, YOU HATERS!

A submission from Trogdor?

Love that movie. Can't even say why.

Which two pitchers have the most career victories over the Mets?

Turd base: Wright, Turner, Murphy, Harris, Evans.

So, while we're looking at a wanting staff, it's important to consider that we may not really looking at the worst Mets pitching staff ever at all, but perhaps at the worst Mets defense ever. Gooden as pitching coach? Maybe five years from now --- as a carrot. I prefer my coaches to be a few more years removed from Celebrity Rehab.

metsmarathon wrote: at only one defensive position were the mets above average. can you guess which? the answer might surprise you. I'll guess first base, based mostly on Murphy's contributions. So my offseason plan is to replace Oberkfell with a better infield coach and replace Pagan with somebody more like Angel Pagan, and try not to worry too much about the pitching --- getting whatever's left of Santana back and letting the younger guys grow. Is that it?

One thing to keep in mind for everybody on the staff is that the defense has been a turd (Reyes and Bay and Tejada being modest exceptions), and with a low-strikeout staff and a huge ballpark, the gloves come into play more than usual. A more solid defense and that makes a lot of pitchers look better, but it'd take a smarter man than me to figure out how to do that without bolluxing up the offense. I think replacing Angel Pagan with that centerfielder we had last year would be a good start. My first thought when I saw this thread is that ceetar is going to get his wish with regards to Dan Warthan.