Edgy MD

I don't know what folks are rooting for (anybody but the Wilpons?), but I just want stability. They really have a chance to do something here with this GM and his management team.

I doubt that the team is entering a second Grant's Tomb era. There may be trimming on the payroll expenses, and there frankly ought to be. But the post-Joan Payson period featured one heir who didn't want the team and another who didn't really know what to do with it other than let her daughters play with it and was afraid of losing money on it, while the guy managing the show had an axe to grind about the old days. Jeff Wilpon wants the team, and it's valuable. If they lose control, somebody else who wants it will get it.

Gwreck wrote: Edgy DC wrote: [He's the best player in Mets history to wear that number (though John Olerud will still garner support in some circles) By "some circles," you mean "people who've been in comas since 2004"? Folks who spell it "Olerude" and still think jokes about cardplaying are funny. They also still wake up in the middle of the night just to curse Aaron Heilman.

Ceetar wrote: So, if the Mets got money from a bank, would it negate the money they need from selling a percentage of the team? Is this one of those other options? or is it in addition to? I'm guessing no, this wouldn't negate that. metirish wrote: It's quite possible that the Mets will not meet various payroll obligations without this loan, NT a good working environment for any of the employees. If they secure this loan then how long before they need another? Mr Wilpon, Mr Katz and son of Fred please go, for the sake of the club go. But I wouldn't go that far, either.

That's what happens when you're building a ballpark and a cable TV network at the same time, and you can demonstrate expected revenues convincingly. It's not like the judgment of banks has shown itself to be clear in recent years. The full story for archive porpoises. De$perate Mets in new relief pitch Team's hand out for another huge loan By JOSH KOSMAN, MARK DeCAMBRE and DAN MANGAN Last Updated: 4:51 AM, March 1, 2011 They should change their name to the New York Debts. The cash-starved Mets are desperately seeking a new loan -- totaling tens of millions of dollars -- to cover their basic operating expenses, The Post has learned JPMorgan Chase -- which led the banks that loaned the team about $430 million last year -- is trying to recruit other institutions to join a syndicate to put together a new loan that would tide the Mets over until they sell a minority stake in the ballclub. The Mets' financial health has been imperiled by investments by its owner, Fred Wilpon, in Bernard Madoff's massive Ponzi scheme. A well-placed source said both the Mets and Major League Baseball are exerting strong pressure on JPMorgan to make that loan happen. The bank already has a tight relationship with MLB because it finances MLB operations. "They [JPMorgan] believe the Mets still have the capacity to borrow," a source said. But another source said, "Are you kidding me?" when told about the loan. "You don't lend into a distressed situation," that source said. "This is a very risky loan," with the team losing about $50 million a year. Revelations about the proposed new loan comes days after it was revealed that, in late 2010, the Wilpon family borrowed $25 million from Major League Baseball -- which had previously loaned the Mets $50 million. The $25 million was requested after the Wilpons learned that the bankruptcy trustee in the Madoff case was seeking up to $1 billion for alleged phony profits the family made in the scheme as well as punitive damages under the theory that they were sophisticated enough to know Madoff was a fraud. The Wilpons deny that allegation and say they were net losers in the scheme. Although the MLB's second loan pushed the Mets' total outstanding debt to $505 million, the team may still be worth about $800 million -- theoretically enough to provide collateral for more debt. The new JPMorgan-led loan would be made with the understanding that it would help the Queens team cover its operating costs -- including paying players who recently began spring training -- pending the planned sale. The Mets already have passed on to MLB the qualifications of more than a dozen groups of would-be buyers who are interested in purchasing less than 50 percent of the ballclub, leaving the Wilpons in place as team owners. After MLB vets those prospective purchasers, the team would then entertain offers. Last year, JPMorgan, with a syndicate that included Bank of America and Citigroup, refinanced $430 million of Mets debt despite concerns that the Wilpons lost a bundle with Madoff. Earlier this month, The Post revealed that the banks had been selling off some of that debt at a discount -- about 90 cents on the dollar -- to lower their exposure to the Mets. However, JPMorgan may be willing to offer a new loan to help the team avoid defaulting on the existing debt, which would force the bank to compete with other creditors to recoup money. The bank itself is being sued for $6.4 billion by Madoff bankruptcy trustee Irving Picard, who claims JPMorgan did business with Madoff for years despite numerous red flags that he was a crook. The bank denies those claims. Additional reporting by Joel Sherman and Dan Martin dan.mangan@nypost.com Read more: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/de_perate_mets_in_new_relief_pitch_3Sp88YVWEvp3QZH8q8HwtO#ixzz1FLshIpzJ I like the "additional reporting by Joel Sherman" bit. He probably got the "Are you kidding me?" anonymous quote.

David Allen Wright (Seems like half the US born guys on this team bear the middle name of "Allen," "Alan," or "Allan.") Pos: ; BR-TR. Born: December 20, 1982 in Norfolk, Virginia. (He'll be 28 in 2011.) Birth Context Karma: Four days after the Mets traded Charlie Puleo, Lloyd McClendon, and Jason Felice to the Cincinnati Reds for Tom Seaver, pianist/conductor Artur Rubenstein died, and his soul passed into the body of David Wright, born the same day. Acquired: Drafted by the New York Mets June 5, 2001 in the sandwich round (38th pick) of the 2001 amateur draft. That pick was compensation for the Mets losing Mike Hampton to the Colorado Rockies. Wright was signed July 12, 2001. 2010 Stats: GPAABRH2B3BHRRBISBCSBBSOBAOBPSLGOPSOPS+TBGDPHBPSHSFIBBPosBB-R WARFG WARAwards1576705878716636329103191169161.283.354.503.85613129512201293B3.9 (4.7 off)5.5AS,MVP-24, Schaefer PotY, April Schaefer PotM, June Schaefer PotM Number: 5. He's the best player in Mets history to wear that number (though John Olerud will still garner support in some circles) and will someday join fellow fiver Davey Johnson in the Mets Hall of Fame. Wife: Single and trying to make the best of it. Nickname: Dudley Do-Wright. It just fits. Namesakes: Do you think old school aviation is... sexy? Best Day in 2010: On June 13, the Mets were hot, and so was David, hitting a two-run blast off of Kevin Millwood of the Orioles in the first inning and finishing his demolition of Baltimore by going 3-5, with a double, two homers, and four RBI. Two of those RBIs came with two outs. Last Word: Typical to his act, Wright has been bending over backwards to ease Terry Collins' transition into the Mets manager seat. He's also allegedly working hard on his defense this spring. What do you expect of David Wright in 2011?

The correct answer is that he goes 1-6 with a double. Plays two months in Bingo and three in Buff.

Vic Sage wrote: probably my least favorite of the Cameron Crowe ouevre ... Then you've wisely spared yourself an evening with Elizabethtown.

Yeah, but other than that, it was a turd. I gave it 4.5.

One and a half from me. I just can't believe they can't frame the decision of young Winona's life as a choice between two equally contemptable, equally self-interested assholes --- each bent on exploiting and consuming whatever spirit she has left. That's the choice Gen-Xers have? Between giving your sex to corporate douchebags or Byronic ones? Women of earth, there's a third way!

Four recent Gen-X college graduates with broken professional compasses share a life, drugs, and general contempt for the society they are struggling to enter with their souls intact. The bonds of their common alienation hold fast even as treat each other unspeakably.

That's how rich Bob Hope was. He has his regular grave and his fucking grave.

TransMonk wrote: Not for nothing, but I'll be a lot happier about our outfield situation when the words "Beltran" and "hobbled" stop appearing in articles together. Yeah, it's good that he's not going to waste time kidding himself that he's still the best centerfielder on the team. But that doesn't necessarily mean he's not kidding himself.

An island beach community is menaced by a 30-foot great white shark. The police chief, obstructed by the self-interest of local politics, goes shark hunting with an academic and a grizzled salty sea dog.

Yeah, that was Stoltz. I have a little trouble accepting this as a watermark for "my generation," even though the characters were about my age. Though I liked a lot of grunge, I never fully trusted it or gave myself to it, as much as folks three or four years younger. It makes sense that Seattle folk were early adopters of course, but for that reason, these folks kind of stand apart from representing a broader cross-section of their national peers at the time. They are caught here as earlier adopters of gourmet coffee also. My brother was convinced he saw me in the Ethan Hawke-portrayed solipsistic slacker of Reality Bites. When I saw the film, I wanted to punch him in the face for the comparison. Probably before I saw the film, even.

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: One of those flicks that I always watch when it comes on, partly in horror for the douchy railroad guy ("Good coffee and good tunes"). STFU. It's a great theme of literature: "Coming of age, marked by destroyed illusions." And the huge zoom-in on Tom Skerritt's (a pretty big-shotty supporting player for a one-scene part) oily smile as he says NO really underscores the explosion of the illusions in the young man's soul. Campbell Scott also has this monologue where he says, "My dad left home when I was eight. He said to me, 'Have fun. Stay single.' I was eight!" I can't watch the scene without picturing George C. Scott, shaved head and all, walking out on his family to command some army with his riding crop. It has a talking mime, but I'm sure there are others in filmdom.

Has Nilsson had a Very Important Poll?

I think we run the middle syllable and go with JORD-nee.

Best parts of the soundtrack were non-Seattlian.

Xavier McDaniel stars in Cameron Crowe's tale of the dating scene in Seattle among young scenesters with earnest careers and terrible taste.

Jordany V. (Guzman) Valdespin Pos: 2b and ss; BL-TR. Born: December 23, 1987 in San Pedro de Marcoris, DR (He'll be 23 in 2011.) Birth Context Karma: Within the first week of Jordany's life, Prozac would debut in the United States, and Pope John Paul II would issue the landmark encyclical Sollicitudo Rei Socialis (On Social Concern). Is this some sort of existential choice for young Jordany? To medicate his torment or respond with love for mankind? To look outward or to dull it all? Acquired: Signed by the Mets as an amateur free agent on June 6, 2007. TmLgGPAABRH2B3BHRRBISBCSBBSOBAOBPSLGOPSTBGDPHBPSHSFIBBSt. LucieFLOR (A+)6528827040781636331310845.289.323.437.76011816310BinghamtonEL (AA)28117112826800842223.232.243.304.5473440210MesaAFL19807619273111170412.355.388.461.8483500LiceyDWL819181400021014.222.263.222.485400TotalsAll1205044766813527475425121584.284.308.401.71019156520 Number: 63. IN the unlikely event that Jordany makes the big league team and retains his offensive left guard jersey number, he'll be the first Met to take the field with those digits, coaches included. Wife: Doesn't look like it. For now, he's married to his skills. Nickname: I call him Cabeza Caliente. He has a history of clashing with authority, but I'm trying to file that in a drawer marked "Bernazard Era." Namesakes: Are you kidding? Best Day in 2010: Hard to say, as game results are hard to review all in one place, but check out the acrobatic tag here. Last Word: Valdespin may just be the secondbaseman of the future, but he has too many guys to climb over in this camp. If he didn't show you much in AA, maybe he made up for it by treating the AFL as his plaything, before straining a forearm, wrapping early, and getting little action in the Dominican. He's likely to return to Bingo and spring training is about showing that, no way, he belongs in Buffalo. Most likely he'll get there soon enough, but not out of spring training. In yesterday's game, he showed some excellent range and ripped a game-tying RBI double in the ninth. Awesome! What do you expect of Jordany Valdespin in 2011?

That's pretty much where I am, except to say that casting Neill and Dern and Attenborough were off-book choices that were just as effective as the obvious ones. That said, what an impressive spread on the voting.

Well, I wouldn't argue with that. But that's true of a lot of films --- most even --- and some of them are still OK. Like Titanic and maybe Mary Shelly's Frankenstein, you get the idea that if the filmmakers really believed in the message of the danger of man's hubris, they'd've not made these films in the first place.

Stupid? Well, it's an action film. Implausable? I think the last 18 years say otherwise. Scientists are about to start breeding wooly mammoths. Who cares? Well, it goes a long way --- through the character of Ian Malcolm --- to try to get folks to ask questions about new technology before unleashing the wonder. It also bangs a signature Speilberg drum, trying to remind folks of the importance of prioritizing family. So it sure wants you to care. I give it two puntos for the second-tier John Williams score alone.

Two paleoscientists and a mathematician are summoned to a Central American island to give a professional opinion on a natural preserve, only to find out it's operator has used cloning technology to bring dinosaurs back from the extinction. Power shuts down in the park, everything goes pear-shaped, and children are placed in grave danger.