Valadius

Frank Thomas, eh? Sweet. How old is he now?

Wait... who was the first one?

You know, if the Astros win the World Series, by virtue of his having pitched in 31 games for them this year, John Franco would be on tap to finally get a World Series ring. Here's how the Mets Factor works out: Houston: John Franco Dan Wheeler Scott Strickland Jose Vizcaino Todd Self (incredibly, our Invisible Man actually played in 21 games for the Astros this season) Chicago: Shingo Takatsu Ross Gload (we acquired him in the second of three Burnitz trades, IIRC) Raul Casanova (drafted by us in 1990) Timo Perez Carl Everett

IT HAS BEGUN!!! At long last, the Braves dynasty will crumble without Ol' Rocking Chair.

I'm gonna start the thread. First of all I'd like to congratulate both teams on making it to the World Series. They worked hard as hell to get here. Secondly, I'm quite happy. This is EXACTLY what I wanted to see. The only other time I can remember being happy with BOTH teams in the World Series is in 2002.

For this dude, they ought to move him.

Brandon Wood. I just read about him like a week ago. He had a RIDICULOUS year in the minors this year. .321, 43 HR, 116 RBI. 53 doubles. 101 extra-base hits. 1.046 OPS. He's a shortstop in the Angels organization.

The article doesn't say it. I'm saying it. What do I mean? He'd be a power-hitting catcher with a below-average arm. Our tools at the position would remain the same.

Here's an update on our dudes from scout.com: Through 10 games, Ken Oberkfell's Grand Canyon Rafters find themselves in the shallow cellar of the Arizona Fall League's National division, posting a 4-6 record to rank third in the three-team division. The Rafters return to action with six more games this week. Our weekly look at how the Mets' prospects are faring in the AFL: Jeremy Hill , RHP: Through four appearances for Grand Canyon, Hill has had two very good outings, one OK one and one poor showing. His last effort came on Oct. 14 against PDD and was the poor showing, allowing two hits and three runs while walking one in a third of an inning. Prior to that, Hill turned in his strongest effort of the AFL to date on Oct. 11, facing seven batters and not allowing a hit in a two-inning stint against Surprise - his first AFL victory. Overall, Hill is 1-1 with a 6.75 ERA in 5.1 innings pitched, and hitters are batting .190 against him. Chase Lambin , IF: Has played six games in the Arizona Fall League so far, spreading his time between shortstop (two games), second base (two games) and designated hitter (two games). Overall, Lambin is hitting 286 (6-for-21) with one home run, two doubles, three runs scored and three RBI. The home run and all three RBI came in Grand Canyon's victory over Phoenix on Oct. 8; Lambin also stroked two hits and scored a run on Oct. 15 against Mesa. Matt Lindstrom, RHP: Is still looking for his first AFL appearance in which he doesn't allow a run. Overall, Lindstrom has taken the mound three times for Grand Canyon, and he's posted a 13.50 ERA in four innings pitched; opposing batters are clubbing him at a .500 (9-for-18) clip. His worst outing came on Oct. 8, when Lindstrom faced eight batters, walking three and allowing four hits. Evan MacLane , LHP: Has made two starts for Grand Canyon, going 0-1 with a 13.50 ERA. After a horrid debut, allowing seven runs in two innings on Oct. 8 against Phoenix, MacLane got another crack at the Desert Dogs on Oct. 14 and fared better, allowing two earned runs in four innings. He's been stroked for a .345 average (10-for-29) so far, walking four and striking out six. The walk totals are unusually high for MacLane, even given the small sample size. Lastings Milledge , OF: The Mets' top prospect has not played since bruising his left heel running to first base on Oct. 12; before the injury, Milledge had gone 7-for-21 (.333) in his first taste of the AFL. Milledge wrote in his player journal on MLB.com that the injury was nothing to worry about, and that he expects to be back on the field shortly. He has scored five runs and has a home run, two doubles, one stolen base and six RBI so far. Three of his games came in center field, but Milledge's first game for Grand Canyon was as a left fielder. Andy Wilson, C: The utilityman has played four games, all at catcher, for Grand Canyon. He's batting .231 (3-for-13) with two runs scored and has six strikeouts already, including five in his last two games.

There's a scout.com free preview of premium content that just came out that grades the Mets and MFYs catching prospects. http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylt=AocLUzlI_ZhafhSLM5s8CJwRvLYF?slug=citadel-2_453590_228&prov=citadel&type=story Basically what it says is that the Mets are dominating the MFYs in catching prospects. Here's the full text: The Two Farm Systems : Perhaps the largest disparity position-wise between the Yankees and the Mets is at catcher, where the Yankees are devoid of any legitimate impact players at the catcher's position after Dioner Navarro was traded this past season. The Mets have quite a few catching prospects that not only could, but should, reach the Major Leagues as quality back-ups at minimum. Two-time Mets' Minor League Hitter of the Year Mike Jacobs made a splash in New York towards the tail end of the season by hitting 11 home runs while adjusting to playing first base. Jacobs came through the Mets' farm system as a quality backstop, with a few questions marks about his ability to throw out runners. Like Mike Piazza , Jacobs is a solid all-around catcher with his arm being the lone drawback defensively. Hagerstown catcher Jesus Flores is arguably the best all-around catcher, both offensively and defensively, between the two farm systems. He broke his hand in the final exhibition game in Spring Training and after missing the first six weeks of the season, took a bit longer to shake off the rust upon his return to action. Flores, still just 20 years old, has a lot of potential despite the pedestrian offensive numbers he posted in 2005. Aside from Jacobs and Flores, neither the Yankees nor the Mets have any other catching prospects that project to become starting catchers at the Major League level. However, between the likes of Omir Santos , Jose Gil , and Irwil Rojas of the Yankees, and Joe Hietpas , Aaron Hathaway , and Drew Butera of the Mets, there are some quality catchers that could eventually make their way into the Major Leagues as excellent second catchers. How Do They Compare In... Power : With sluggers like Mike Jacobs and Jesus Flores already behind the dish, and with Andrew Wilson making the transition to the catcher's position this past year and in the Arizona Fall League, the Mets clearly have an edge over the Yankees in the power department among the catcher prospects. The Yankees don't really have one catching prospect that projects to hit 20+ home runs at the Major League level. Advantage: Mets Hitting For Average : Again, the depth of catching prospects for the Mets gives them another edge over their cross-town rivals at the catcher's spot. Mike Jacobs has proven, albeit in a small number of at-bats, that he can hit Major League pitching with regularity. Flores is a much better hitter than his .216 average this past season and Andrew Wilson is a very good hitter as well. The Yankees have underrated Wil Nieves , a very good hitter in his own right, and Irwil Rojas , one of the better contact hitters around , keeps this race a little closer. Advantage: Mets Defense : You'd be hard-pressed to find four better defensive catching prospects in one farm system than the New York Mets . Joe Hietpas is widely regarded as one of the elite signal callers at the minor league level. While Hietpas has a plus arm, catchers Aaron Hathaway and Drew Butera may have better arms. Throw in the all-around defensive ability of Jesus Flores, the defensive competition at catcher between the two farm systems is not even close. Omir Santos of the Yankees is also a very good defensive catcher, but the rest of the Yankees' catching prospects are nowhere near as good as the Mets' quartet of catching prospects. Advantage: Mets Speed : Does it really matter? The catcher's spot is traditionally known to house some of the slowest players on the baseball field and that is certainly the case with the combined catching field from the Mets and Yankees. Athletic players like Andrew Wilson, Aaron Hathaway, and Drew Butera give the Mets a slight edge in the speed department, but it is negligible overall because none project to be a difference maker on the base paths. Advantage: Mets . Overall Potential : What the Mets decide to do with Mike Jacobs slightly effects the overall landscape of the overall potential between the two sets of catching prospects. Even if Jacobs remains at first base, the depth of quality defensive catching prospects in the Mets' farm system is too good to ignore. If Jacobs is left behind the plate as Mike Piazza appears done in a Mets' uniform, and if Andrew Wilson can make a smooth transition to catching defensively, the Mets would have the top three catching prospects with the highest ceilings because of their offensive potential. But the two systems combined do have a few quality catching prospects that could become excellent second catchers for their respective teams. Highest Ceilings : Mike Jacobs (Mets) , Jesus Flores (Mets) , Andrew Wilson (Mets) , Jose Gil (Yankees) , Irwil Rojas (Yankees) Best Power : Mike Jacobs (Mets) , Andrew Wilson (Mets) , Jesus Flores (Mets) , Omir Santos (Yankees) , Joan Martinez (Mets) Best Average : Mike Jacobs (Mets) , Irwil Rojas (Yankees) , Andrew Wilson (Mets) , Jesus Flores (Mets) , Wil Nieves (Yankees) Best Defense : Joe Hietpas (Mets) , Aaron Hathaway (Mets) , Andrew Butera (Mets) , Jesus Flores (Mets) , Omir Santos (Yankees) Best Speed : Aaron Hathaway (Mets) , Jose Gil (Yankees) , Andrew Wilson (Mets) , Joan Martinez (Mets) , Andrew Butera (Mets) . So... Jacobs isn't as bad behind the plate as some people have speculated. He'd essentially be the second coming of Mike Piazza. This Jesus Flores, though, looks like he deserves watching.

What the hell are we arguing about?

The same way the third Die Hard movie wasn't Die Hard 3.

Here's another pic of Bobby V:

That's right. You read correctly. No, I'm not making this up. Sylvester Stallone is making the sixth "Rocky" movie, titled "Rocky Balboa". Still don't believe me? Check it out: http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20051017/en_nm/stallone_dc He's actually goddamn doing it.

Bobby V! You are awesome.

That's just how Guillen does it, I suppose...

Happy 45th Metsies!!!

Ah. Gotcha.

Yeah. Case in point: David Eckstein.

I don't think we should have O'Malley and Stoneham portrayed in a '62 film, though - someone will be upset by it. The only way we could use them is in radio broadcasts or newspapers.

If you insist: 1. David Wright 2. Cliff Floyd 3. Pedro Martinez 4. Jose Reyes 5. Carlos Beltran 6. Tom Glavine 7. Mike Piazza 8. Kris Benson 9. Mike Cameron 10. Victor Zambrano 11. Roberto Hernandez 12. Victor Diaz 13. Jae Seo 14. Mike Jacobs 15. Braden Looper 16. Aaron Heilman 17. Ramon Castro 18. Kazuo Matsui 19. Marlon Anderson 20. Chris Woodward 21. Doug Mientkiewicz 22. Miguel Cairo 23. Juan Padilla 24. Kaz Ishii 25. Heath Bell 26. Steve Trachsel 27. Jose Offerman 28. Dae Sung Koo 29. Gerald Williams 30. Danny Graves

Ok... time to begin my first foray into this hallowed process! The first thing I would do is begin to lump players into four categories: Major: Players who played a major role during the season Supporting: Players who played a large supporting role during the season Minor: Players who played a minor role during the season Not Enough: Players we can disqualify immediately for not having much impact So here is my grouping (in no particular order within the grouping unless otherwise noted): Major David Wright (1) Cliff Floyd (2) Pedro Martinez (3) Jose Reyes (4) Carlos Beltran Mike Piazza Kris Benson Tom Glavine Braden Looper Victor Zambrano Roberto Hernandez Aaron Heilman Mike Cameron Victor Diaz Mike Jacobs Jae Seo Supporting Chris Woodward Ramon Castro Marlon Anderson Doug Mientkiewicz Juan Padilla Kaz Ishii Kazuo Matsui Miguel Cairo Minor Steve Trachsel Danny Graves Dae Sung Koo Heath Bell Jose Offerman Gerald Williams Not Enough Anderson Hernandez Tim Hamulack Mike DiFelice Brian Daubach Felix Heredia Eric Valent Mike Matthews Mike DeJean Jose Santiago Manny Aybar Shingo Takatsu Royce Ring Can we agree upon the twelve players I have listed as "Not Enough" as the players we exclude from the rankings?

Post the text of the full article... I'm not a member, nor do I wish to be.

Do you start with 1957-58 for a '62 movie? If so, I would open up with a montage of great Giants and Dodgers moments, and in the first scene a newsflash that the teams moved. Cut to reaction of New Yorkers.

I can't wait to be a part of this. How is this done each year?