RealityChuck

I just happened to look up a bit more about a player I've liked since I heard of him: Ned Garver. What I knew before: Garver was a pitcher for the St. Louis Browns in 1950. He did something quite remarkable: he won 20 games for a team that lost over a hundred games, only one of two pitchers who managed that. He was responsible for 38% of the team's wins; Steve Carlton in 1972 was probably the only pitcher to have a higher percentage. Garver finished second in the MVP voting to Yogi Berra. If there had been a Cy Young Award back then, he probably would have won it. What I learned: Garver hit .305 that year, with an OPS of .786, leading all regular batters on the team (yes, the Browns stunk, but that's still pretty remarkable). He batted as high as third in the lineup. Garver also had hit .286 the previous year. This was probably the best year for a pitcher and hitter since Babe Ruth.

Low risk move, but you have wonder the message this is sending to Don Smith, as they just signed two people to play his position.

Edgy MD wrote: And the Central New York location. I don't know if the fictional town of the movie was actually set in CNY (most sasquatch sitings are associated with the Northwest), but it was shot in and around Hamilton/Colgate. It also borrows sequences and plot turns from Jaws.The real Pottersville, NY is in the Adirondacks, about ten miles south of Schroon Lake. I used to vacation there.

Speaking of relatives: Randy Moffitt -- a pitcher for the Giants in the early 70s. Was the younger brother of Billie Jean King. (I did know that back then, so it's not new.)

I'm curious as to whether this has happened before: a team dumps an upcoming free agent for prospects and then re-signs him during the off-season.

Sad story in today's Times (If you're blocked, open in Incognito mode). https://goo.gl/VARjr3 Ed Kranepool insists he is not selling his World Series ring, the one he won during his 18 years with the Mets. Everything else, however, must go. Kranepool’s decision to sell off his extensive collection of baseball memorabilia — including items signed by Stan Musial, Joe DiMaggio and Willie Mays — comes at a tough time. A former first baseman, Kranepool, 73, is confronting serious health issues as well as a continuing rift with the only major league team he ever played for. The health problems — Kranepool has lived with diabetes for much of his life — have led to the amputation of all the toes on his left foot and left him awaiting a kidney transplant that he hopes will take place early next year. The rift has left Kranepool wondering if a sympathetic phone call from the Mets’ owners will ever come. Kranepool was one of my heroes when I started following the Mets, one of three original Mets to play for pennant-winning Mets teams. One winter, he was one of the Mets who came out to Riverhead on a promotional tour (I got Larry Miller's autograph, but not Ed's).

I was at that game, in the third base grandstand (second deck).

Svengoolie is an excellent host; in among the corny jokes are bits of background on the films that truly add to the enjoyment of them. MST3K is currently being rebroadcast on Comet TV. You can also stream it at Shout Factory TV.

I enjoyed it. I had read the book, so I knew the killer, but it'd been a long time and, like any train trip, the best part is the journey. Branagh was a good Poirot once you got used to the moustache. I was a big fan of his when he started out. This is nothing like his best, but still a classy entertainment.

It best to tender Harvey. It looks like his problem is bad mechanics, something he can work on over the winter. It may be due to the thoracic outlet syndrome, but he did have good mechanics in a couple of games (where he pitched well). It's worth a gamble if he can fix them.

Purkey? Isn

I haven't been to many. In order. 1. Yankee Stadium 2. Shea Stadium 3. Fenway Park 4. Remodeled Yankee Stadium. I actually ran onto the field before the 1977 All-Star Game and got in no trouble whatsoever (I had press credentials). 5. Wrigley Field

It's a pretty obvious choice. He's still a useful player. What I find potentially more interesting news today is that Phillip Evans was signed to a minor league contract with an invite to spring training. He looked intriguing in his cup of coffee last year and I'm glad they home on to him.

1969: Bowie Kuhn voids the trade of Rusty Staub for Donn Clendenon, when Clendenon refuses to report to the Astros. The Mets package Amos Otis, Ken Boswell, Ron Swoboda, and Nolan Ryan to the Astros for Staub and Joe Morgan. While it comes back to hurt them, Morgan and Staub give the team an offensive boost to win several pennants.

Edgy MD wrote: Ten Fact-Like Things About Jerry Grote [*]On April 22, 1970, when Tom Seaver struck out a record 19 Padres, Grote also set a major league record with 20 putouts, handling each of the 20 strikeouts and corralling a popup off the bat of Van Kelly. Also, Grote set a record in that game for the most consecutive putouts by a catcher with ten. He was also the last catcher to be named all star catcher before Johnny Bench monopolized the honor.

Reports are that Acta "lit up the room" in his interview. Uh-oh.......

Williams Shift (Not name for Ted, BTW).

d'Kong76 wrote: they can take the bus back to AAA, but I'd like the call-ups to get to Queens pronto! Syracuse has a fine airport; not sure how big the market is for shuttling planes back and forth to Syracuse (unlike Boston or Washington). Google shows plenty of flights each day. They take about 1 1/2 hours. You could call someone up at 10:00 a.m. and he could be on the field for a day game.

Actually, I'm disappointed that Washington didn't change the team name to the Syracuse Nationals.

Now there will be two Mets farm clubs within two hours of me. Not that I'm likely to go, but who knows?

Jason Isaacs of Star Trek: Discovery at NY Comic Con.

I remember him from a 1960 baseball card, before there were Mets. The little cartoon on the back made a big deal that the previous season he was a player-manager. And that "knack for getting on base"? His lifetime OBA was .390.

They're going to need two catchers. Why trade either of them away? If they both have figured it out, it fills a hole.

Still a good movie, but at the final scene, I wanted to shout, "It's a cookbook!" [youtube:340241wp]vdl24bLAs1k?t=22m10s[/youtube:340241wp]

Disney's animated films are . . . consistent. You won't find a bad one, but it's been a long time since there was a great one (the most recent I can think of was Mulan). Aardmann and Laika are making far better movies, and even Pixar -- which lately has had some duds -- managed with Inside Out The problem with Disney is that they always play it safe. Moana is fine, but pretty much routine.