seawolf17

Gooden?

Bobby Jones. Homegrown boy on the big stage.

Flushing, NY (AP) -- The New York Mets have placed outfielder Jason Bay on the 15-day disabled list with a strained hip flexor. Bay, who only a few hours earlier had agreed to a four-year, $66 million contract with the team, injured the hip holding the elevator for general manager Omar Minaya after their contract meeting. "It's certainly a disappointment," Bay said through his agent. "But I'm hoping that the surgery goes well, and I should be back on the field in time for the 2011 season." Minaya was not concerned. "It's certainly not what you want to see out of a guy you just signed, but we'll have our doctors take a look at it, and I'm sure Jason will be healthy soon." Minaya also noted that the Mets signed 46-year-old lefthanded pitcher Terry Mulholland, who hasn't pitched since 2006, to a guaranteed one-year deal.

Voted Keith, then changed my mind and voted Doc.

Things got ugly by mid-season, so I decided to back up the truck. In June, I made a couple of deals: * I packed up angry fireballer Dave Smith (not happy that John Franco was closing and he wasn't) and the rejuvenated Jim Rice and shipped them off to the contending White Sox in exchange for Bobby Thigpen and a few minor leaguers. * I dealt Frankie Viola (2-9, 4.50) to Pittsburgh for Rick Reed and two minor leaguers. * Dwight Gooden, pending free agency and no longer open to discussing an extension, got dealt to Kansas City for 23-year-old Tom Gordon. * HoJo, pending free agency as well, got dealt to the Giants for Rod Beck and minor leaguer Jeff Kent. Alan Trammell was lost for the year in June, so I called up Todd Hundley to catch, slid Biggio to second, Jefferies to third, and HoJo to short; with HoJo now gone to San Francisco, Jose Vizcaino is playing shortstop every day. I signed David Cone (4 years, $4.44 million per year), El Sid (3 years, $666,666 per year) and Vince Coleman (2 years, $1.25 million per year) to extensions. Went on a little bit of a post-trades run, but we're in third place behind the runaway Pirates and Cubs, 21 games back. Joe Magrane, who I called up to replace Viola, is 8-2, 2.66 in twelve starts, which has been encouraging. The bullpen has been lights-out since I retooled: Innis (68 IP, 2.90 ERA) Pena (51 IP, 1.24 ERA) Simons (44 IP, 1.64 ERA) Franco (51 IP, 23 SV, 2.12 ERA) Beck (9 IP, 3 SV, 3.72 ERA since the trade) Thigpen (17 IP, 2 SV, 4.15 ERA since the trade) Wetteland (ugly numbers, but he's a mop-up guy for me since he's out of options and I'm stuck with him) Satisfied with the direction we're headed, although I'm regretting the Coleman extension, since you can't steal first base.

Any ESPN Insiders willing to help us out with this? His first (of eight) recommendations is Orlando Hudson, but I'm curious to read what else he has to say.

Shinjo is the backup outfielder on my all-time Mets team. Loved the guy.

One of my favorite TTM autograph successes this year, because I didn't expect to get it back because of the language barrier.

Fossum is the guy I don't remember getting big league time. Thought he was just a ST/AAA arm. Oh, and WTF? Elmer Dessens pitched in 28 games for us this year? I don't remember a single one. Not totally thrilled with the order, but something like this: Johan Santana David Wright Luis Castillo Pedro Feliciano Daniel Murphy Francisco Rodriguez Mike Pelfrey Gary Sheffield Carlos Beltran Jeff Francoeur Fernando Tatis Angel Pagan Brian Stokes Livan Hernandez Omir Santos Bobby Parnell Alex Cora José Reyes Sean Green John Maine Oliver Perez Tim Redding Jeremy Reed Nelson Figueroa Ryan Church Ken Takahashi Carlos Delgado Fernando Nieve Pat Misch Elmer Dessens

Curse of Darryl, indeed. The last time the Mets had the same guy lead the team in RF appearances two years in a row? Alex Ochoa, 1996-1997. Burnitz and Green, but I'm not happy about it.

My revamped 1991 Mets have hit an early season rough patch. The division rival Pirates just came into town and bitch-slapped us: Game 1: Pirates 9, Mets 4 -- Frank Viola gives up six runs in 4 1/3 innings and we never recover. Game 2: Pirates 7, Mets 1 -- El Sid gives up three in the first (including a Bonds HR) and one in the second. Even though he settles down, rookie Hector Fajardo, making his major league debut, throws a four-hit complete game. Game 3: Pirates 17, Mets 2 -- It's 4-2 Pirates through seven behind a struggling Pete Harnisch (only two hits, but seven walks through six). But Dave Smith (four runs), Alejandro Pena (two runs), and Danny Darwin (one run) give up seven in the eighth and emergency pitcher Casey Candaele walks five and gives up six in the ninth to complete the blowout. So we're 9-10, 4.5 games behind the Cubs (and now two behind Pittsburgh). Day off to recover, then the 12-8 Padres come to town, followed by the 11-8 Giants (and then, mercifully, the last-place Dodgers.) Got tired of watching Andre Dawson flounder, so I flipped him and two minor leaguers to Atlanta for Dave Justice. Tough end for a guy I had high hopes for, but he was OPSing less than .500.

Sentimental? 1) July 22, 2004. Blew off work with a colleague on a beautiful Thursday afternoon to head to Shea to see this Wright kid everyone was talking about. Kid got his first major league hit; I just sold the ticket stub on eBay for eleventy billion dollars. 2) May 31, 2008. MiniWolf's first and only trip to Shea. 3) September 24, 2008. The extra-inning Cubs loss during the spiral that year. My last trip to Shea; I cried like someone had eaten my dog. (Obviously, none of those are real Top 50 material.)

The Mr. Koo game.

metirish wrote: The NFL model, really? , I find it a most boring league , and it seems to me in the 15 years I have lived here the it's the same teams that are rubbish and not much changes at all. Was that a crack at the Jets? Well played.

Okay, I'm giving Larkin my tenth vote.