Valadius

It should be us out there celebrating...

Folks with the Mets have said some really strange things. I'll start with these quotes from Ralph Kiner taken from Baseball-Almanac.com: "All of his saves have come in relief appearances" "All of the Mets road wins against the Dodgers this year occurred at Dodger Stadium." "Cadillacs are down at the end of the bat." "Darryl Strawberry has been voted to the Hall of Fame five years in a row." "Hello, everybody. Welcome to Kiner's Korner. This is....uh. I'm...uh" "He's going to be out of action the rest of his career." - about Bruce Sutter "If Casey Stengel were alive today, he'd be spinning in his grave." "I think one of the most difficult things for anyone who's played baseball is to accept the fact that maybe the players today are playing just as well as ever." "It's like watching Mario Andretti park a car." - on Phil Niekro's knuckleball "Jose DeLeon on his career has seventy-three wins and one-hundred and five rbi's." "Kevin McReynolds stops at third and he scores." "Now up to bat for the Mets is Gary Cooper." "On Fathers Day, we again wish you all happy birthday." "Solo homers usually come with no one on base." "(Don) Sutton lost thirteen games in a row without winning a ballgame." "The hall of fame ceremonies are on the thirty-first and thirty-second of July." "The Mets have gotten their leadoff batter on only once this inning." "The reason the Mets have played so well at Shea this year is they have the best home record in baseball." "This one deep to right and it is way back, going, going, it is gone, no off of the top of the wall." "There's a lot of heredity in that family." "Tony Gwynn was named player of the year for April." "Two-thirds of the earth is covered by water. The other third is covered by Garry Maddox." "You know what they say about Chicago. If you don't like the weather, wait fifteen minutes."

This is so painful.

I clipped them from Yahoo News, which got them from RotoWire.

] Update: Pettitte, a free agent, might be attractive to both New York teams, according to Joel Sherman of the NY Post reports. Recommendation: Pettitte has not yet determined whether or not to play in 2007 and if he wants to stay home in Houston if he were to return. Pettitte finished 14-13 with a 4.20 ERA, but he ended strongly, which is a big deal considering that the health of his left elbow has long been the big worry about him. Pettitte's 2.80 second-half ERA was seventh best in the majors (12 start minimum), and he tied for the overall major league lead in starts (35). His familiarity with the Yankees would seem to give them the edge if he does decide to come back for a long-term deal and Houston may have the advantage if he wants to go year-by-year.

How are these, Yancy?

] Update: A source familiar with the Mets' thinking believes that the team will not pursue Soriano or Barry Zito, both of whom are free agents, or Manny Ramirez in a trade, the NY Post reports. Recommendation: The Mets' agenda this offseason still can change, as the team will have organizational meetings shortly. But the strong initial indication, according to the source, is that the Mets are not targeting any specific position player unlike last year when they went after closer Billy Wagner. The Mets will need a top starter and possibly a second baseman and left fielder, but they apparently are not interested in Soriano, Zito, and Ramirez, three big names who have been linked to the Mets over the past few seasons. As for Soriano, the source indicated the lack of interest would not be because of money. Rather, the person said the Mets have not pursued Soriano that much in the past, though he would fill a big hole in either left field or second base, if the team chooses not to re-sign Cliff Floyd or Jose Valentin.

Toby Borland Willie Blair Donne Wall Ryan McGuire Rick Wilkins Dick Tidrow (somebody has to buy this or whatever, so we can get the watermark off. The important thing is that this is out there.) Brady Clark (too bad it's not really a Mets cap) David Lamb Jorge Velandia (this is priceless...) Barry Jones Jeff Tam

Not a player, but here's a coach: Rick Waits

Because I went to the Getty Images website, and I try and pull images from there, but it won't let me.

Black and blue, but... Rick White

OO, are you paying for those pics?

That Ledee is most likely the best out there.

Wow, it's been a while since we heard from Mark.

Wow! Wonderful casting!!!

That is extraordinarily small.

Congrats to Shinjo, he of the lightning-rod at-bat routine and hoppiness in the outfield.

It's back up now.

I can't get there either.

Mets 1B Delgado wins 2006 Roberto Clemente Award ST. LOUIS (Ticker) - First baseman Carlos Delgado, who helped lead the New York Mets to their first National League East title since 1988, was named the 2006 winner of the Roberto Clemente Award on Tuesday. Prior to Game Three of the World Series at Busch Stadium, Delgado was presented with the award, which recognizes the player who best combines outstanding baseball skills with devoted work in the community. The 34-year-old Delgado was selected from a list of 30 nominees, one from each club. "It is an extreme honor for me to be selected for an award that bears the name of Roberto Clemente," Delgado said. "He was a Hall of Fame player and a Hall of Fame person. I wore uniform number 21 this year in his memory. Roberto's legacy to me is that it's an athlete's obligation to give back. That's what I have tried to do throughout my career." Five years ago, Delgado started a foundation called Extra Bases to which he personally donated $500,000. Extra Bases is a non-profit Puerto Rican-based charity that was founded to assist underprivileged and deserving youth in the community and abroad. Currently looking to expand the foundation to help the children of New York, Delgado sponsored two, four-year college scholarships for the second straight year. He also sponsored trips to New York for the top students in Puerto Rico. "On behalf of the entire baseball family, I am thrilled to present Carlos with this award that celebrates his commitment to the community," commissioner Bud Selig said. "His work with youth in Puerto Rico and New York are wonderful examples of the positive influence the game can have on the lives of others." Delgado is coming off a season in which he hit .265 with 38 home runs and 114 RBI. During the season, he became the 10th active player to hit 400 career home runs and the fourth player in Major League history to hit 30 or more homers in 10 consecutive seasons. The award is named for the Hall of Famer who died in a plane crash on December 31, 1972 during a humanitarian mission to assist earthquake victims in Nicaragua. "My congratulations to Carlos Delgado on his selection as the recipient of the 2006 Roberto Clemente Award," said Vera Clemente, Roberto's wife. "His performance on the field and dedication and commitment to the community truly embody the spirit of this award."

Speaking of the minors, not only have we switched AAA affiliates (Norfolk Tides to New Orleans Zephyrs) but we switched Class A affiliates as well (Hagerstown Suns to Savannah Sand Gnats).

The new color scheme doesn't bother me. The db snake head sleeve logo is creative. But D-Backs on the jersey? Please. That's just stupid. Spell out the whole thing or just stick with Arizona.

Darren Oliver probably won't be back? Crap.

You crack me up Yancy!