Vic Sage

the enemy of my enemy is my friend... go Sox.

good. in this contest, i'm rooting for injuries.

i'd make that deal in a heartbeat

i can see the argument for Santana over Lincecum (i.e., unlike Lincecum, Santana had to pitch in a pennant race, with a bad bullpen), even though i don't necessarily agree with it, but Heyman doesn't even bother articulating any justification for picking the guy with 16 wins for a winning team over the guy with 18 wins on a losing team (with ERA, IP, WHIP, Ks, and most other peripherals running neck-and-neck) but to rank over Lincecum one guy who pitched in the NL for less than 1/2 a season, and another who, as a closer, pitched less than 1/4 of Lincecum's innings, is just plain stupid.

]Castillo either gets traded with the Mets eating a ton of money, and *possibly* getting something useful back; or the Mets eating less money and definitely not getting anything useful back. not quite. the Mets will have to eat most of the contract, just to dump him for next to nothing. If they don't eat the contract, they WILL NOT MOVE HIM AT ALL. all they can do is hope to reduce some of the cost of his contract, and just move on. They can't ALSO expect to get any kind of return in terms of talent. the worst thing Omah can do now is to hold onto Castillo just because he can't get back any decent talent. It would be adding insult to injury. They must cut ties with him and move on. Whatever they can save on his salary, they can put into the bullpen.

Based on my research, the Mets have about $96M due to 13 players under contract for 2009: 2009 salaries: 1) Johan Santana - $20M 2) Carlos Beltran - $18.5M 3) Carlos Delgado - $12M 4) Billy Wagner - $10.5M (DL) 5) David Wright - $7.5M 6) Luis Castillo - $6M 7) Jose Reyes - $5.75M 8) Brian Schneider - $4.9M 9) Scott Schoeneweis - $3.6M 10) Ramon Castro - $2.5M 11) Endy Chavez - $2.05M 12) Mike Pelfrey ~$2M 13) Marlon Anderson - $1.15M TOTAL = ~$96.5m Mets have the following players under their control for `09: 3-6 years of ML service (arb eligible) - Ryan Church (08=$2M) Aaron Heilman (08=$1.2M) Pedro Feliciano (08=$1.025M) Duaner Sanchez (08=$0.85M) 1-3 years of ML service (NOT arb eligible) - John Maine (08=$0.45M) Ambiorix Burgos (08=$0.415M) Brian Stokes (08=$0.402M) Angel Pagan (08=$0.4015M) Joe Smith (08=$0.398M) Jason Vargas (08=$0.394M) ALSO: Adam Bostick Robinson Cancel Nick Evans Nelson Figueroa Brandon Knight Eddie Kunz G. Molina C.Muniz D. Murphy J. Niese B.Parnell A.Reyes C.Aguila W. Collazo unrestricted FAs: Pedro Martinez (08=$11m) Moises Alou (08=$7.5m) O.Hernandez (08=$6.5m) O.Perez (08=$6.5m) Luis Ayala - (08=$1.7m) Matt Wise - (08=$1.2m) T.Armas,jr - (08=$1m) Damien Easley - (08=$0.95m) F.Tatis - (08=$0.56m) ALSO: R.Martinez B.Clark T.Nixon A.Nunez R.Rincon R.Casanova

I'm sure Peterson could fix him in 10 minutes.

as between Santana and Lincecum, all other things being equal (and they pretty much are in this case, with Lincecum right behind Santana in ERA and IP, and ahead in Ks) you have to give the nod to the guy who had 18 wins for a team that only won 72 games, over a guy who won 16 of his teams 89 wins... Don't you? You could certainly argue, however, that because the Mets were in a race all season, Santana had to pitch in more "big games" and invariably performed well, whereas SF was out of it since May and Lincecum had no "big games", so why should he be rewarded simply because the Giants had a better bullpen then the Mets? I agree, with FK, however. the voters will go for the wins. One can only hope they aren't so myopic on the subject that they vote for Webb over Lincecum.

It's sort of refreshing to have a big-time FA sign a huge megabuck deal with the Metsies and actually perform as expected... or, at least, as hoped. waytago, Jo.

I knew it was going to be a bad year when i couldn't draft my fantasy team. But to have the Mets ACTUALLY suck while my fantasy team virtually sucked was suckitude of too high an order to tolerate. congrats to Smeggy.

too many runs; not enough doubles.

dunn (162g avg) = 554ab /100r /40hr / 96rbi/ 114bb /180k / .247ba / .381 ob/ .518 slg 130 ops+/ 287 TB/ 137h / 29 2b /1 3b / 8 gdp his dearth of triples is also quite damning.

Since I live in a perpetual state of anger anyway, the Mets fit into my lifestyle perfectly. In fact, i'm thinking of naming my home. You know, like "Tara", or "Xanadu"? I'm going to name it Stage II.

Screw the Brew Crew. And while I'm at it... ...Phuck the Phils, ...the Cubs are cokksukkers, and ...the dodgers are dildoes. As for the AL: ...the Sox sukk (both red & white), ...the Rays reak, ...the Twinnies are ninnies, and ...I ani-hate Aniheim J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS!

Batting average? seriously? seriously??

Oh, and Ibanez will be 37 next June, with inferior numbers to Dunn in all the above-refenced categories.

yeah, except there is a guy on that list who is 28, has hit 40+ hrs the last 5 seasons, with a career OPS+ of 130. Burrell, is 32, hits 30+ hrs (in a good year), and has a lower OB%, SLG% and OPS+ (119). so why no love for Adam Dunn? Don't talk to me about Ks, unless your willing to talk about his BBs.

from the weather channel, as of 3:55pm: 7pm: 64�F - chance of showers - 50% 8pm: 64�F - chance of showers - 60% 9pm: 64�F - chance of showers - 90% 10pm: 65�F - chance of showers - 90% 11pm: 65�F - chance of showers - 90%

so, are they playing tonight?

i don't have the stomach for this, but i said i'd do it, so i'll do it. The weather is predicting a weekend washout, but assuming the games are played (and the Bucks don't lose so much that the Mets games are meaningless): MARLINS (82-76) V METS (87-71) The Marlins were eliminated by a loss to the Nats on Tuesday, but they've played well down the stretch, and will end with a winning record. FRIDAY 9/26 Volstad v Pelfrey The Baby Brawl features 2 1st round picks battling it out. Voldstad, 21, is 5-4 with a 3.10 ERA, since coming up in July. And Pelfrey (13-10 / 3.70) has had his breakthrough season, but has been fading a bit down the stretch as he gets into an IP range he has never seen before. His last win was Aug 25th. SATURDAY 9/27 Nolasco v ? (figueroa, Knight, Niese) Nolasco (15-7 / 3.55 era / 1.12 whip) is another young FLA pitcher with a breakout year. He's 9-3 on the road. Who will he go up against? Who knows? The mets are praying for rain. SUNDAY 9/28 S.Olson v Santana Olson (8-11 / 4.23 / 1.33) is a young power lefty who, while erratic can be dominating. But he's matched up against Johan the Man (15-7, 2.64, 1.17) who, if not for the flammability of the bullpen, would have a 20 win season and a possible Cy Young. Mets Lineup: - Reyes (SS) - while not exactly another "september swoon" Jose is having his least productive month since April. Still, he's hit well v FLA this year. - Murphy (Lf) - the mets ROY has continued to produce, even tho he ocasionally sits for Nick Evans, who continues not to. - Wright (3b) - That K in the 9th on Wednesday was tough to watch. But despite talk-show claims, Wright continues to have an OPS over .900 this month. Yes, his production with RISP is down this year overall, but he carried the team in those situations for the last few years, so the notion that he is a "choker" is typical radiohead bullshit. "D-Rod" my ass. - Delgado (1b)- he has continued his amazing second-half resurgence. Props to C-dog. - Beltran (Cf)- A strong september, though recently banged up. His stats are almost exactly his career averages, which is all you can really expect from a player. - Church(Rf) - Since returning from the DL in August, Ryan has been a black hole where the Mets offense has gone to die. I think we may need to see more Nick Evans. - Castillo (2b) - this catastrophic signing continues to spin out of control, as Manuel benches El Pollo because the media and fan heat is getting to him. A.Reyes continues to show why he's not a major league hitter, and Easley is injured. How about we give ole Marlon a shot? or even Ramon Martinez? - Schneider © - After a 3-month slide, Schneider has shown some decent pop the last 2 months. His defense and throwing are, as always, top notch. Bench - a thin bunch, with Castro, Evans (or Murphy), Chavez, R.Martinez, Cancel, and A.Reyes (or Castillo). No game changers or guys who'll make an opposing manager think twice. Bullpen - better not to discuss it. medical watch - RHP John Maine (bone spur behind right shoulder) needs surgery this winter, if not sooner. He went on the 15-day disabled list Aug. 25 and resumed throwing in mid-September. He threw a simulated inning Sept. 22, and he was activated Sept. 24. - 2B Damion Easley (strained right quadriceps) was injured Sept. 13 and hasn�t started since. He appeared as a pinch hitter Sept. 21. FLORIDA LINEUP - H. Ramirez (SS) - a little banged up, but still banging. Another 30/30 season for their shortstop. a Typical Marlins player -- high Ks, high errors, big bopper. - Maybin (CF) - they've just brought up the phenom, and he's been ... well, phenomenal. - Cantu (3b) - a comeback year for the Cantu Kid, and he saved his best for last, with a great September. - Jacobs (1b) - another slugger with a smoking hot September. - Uggla (2b) - after a cold July-August chilled the ridiculous comparisons to Utley, Dan has gotten back on track a bit recently. It should be noted that the Marlins IF is the first team in history with 4 infielders to hit 25+ HRs each. If Cantu hits 1 more, they'll be the first with 30+ HRs each. The Baseball Hall of Fame next month will have a display recognizing the accomplishment. I wonder if they'll also note their large number of errors, too (67 and counting)? NTTAWT. - Willingham (lf) - got off to a great start and then got hurt; he's been scuffling along ever since. - Hermida (Rf) - he was finally dropped down in the order after months of unproductive ABs. He's still young, but so far has not lived up to his hype. - Baker / LoDuca © - the rookie catcher has hit well for about a month, but tweaked his knee on Wednesday. With Treanor hurt, too, LoDuca may fill in, and LoDuca is pretty much over. Bench: Ross had been betting regular ABs in CF before Maybin came up, and shows great power. Almazeaga plays everywhere and has been hot lately. McPherson hit 42hrs in the minors this year. Wes Helms = professional hitter. Luis Gonzalez is over 40... and over and out. Bullpen:It's nice to see we're not the only team blaming their demise on their bullpen. Here's a quote from their local paper, after a loss on Monday. ]The bullpen that blew seven games during a 5-10 stretch from Aug. 13 through Aug. 29 and that saw the Marlins fall from 1 � games out of first to seven games back couldn't hang on Monday either. The Marlins blew a 4-0 lead and a six-run seventh all but ended Florida's dim playoff hopes. The loss Monday wasn't as devastating as the 5-4 setback to the Mets on Aug. 29, which might have been the worst of the season. That's when Kevin Gregg had a 2-1 lead with two outs and two strikes in the ninth. The Mets loaded the bases, Carlos Beltran hit a grand slam, and the Marlins stormed back, only to lose 5-4 in probably the most pivotal game of the season. Soon after that game at the end of August, Gregg lost the closer's job to ex-met Lindstrom, who has done the job pretty well so far. Rhodes came over in August and has been lights out. Hey, Omar, waytago! medical watch - CF Cameron Maybin (sore left hip) left the Sept. 24 game and is day-to-day. - C John Baker (sore left knee) didn�t start Sept. 24 but was available to pinch-hit. - C Matt Treanor (deep bone bruise on left knee) left the Sept. 7 game and didn�t play Sept. 8-9. He returned to action Sept. 10 but sat out Sept. 11-23. He returned to start Sept. 24. He will require offseason surgery to repair three muscle tears in his left hip area.

]I had the same trouble when I was in Hawaii last month... go fuck yourself.

I've got a 25-year headstart on all youse guys!

Murphy wasn't on the list in this thread, But, if you want to include him: DALE MURPHY - he was a guy with a very high peak, whose career completely fell off the table at a relatively young age. I presume it was injuries. But he won 2 MVPs and, in 6 of 8 seasons from 1980-1987, he was a GG-calibre CFer and as good a hitter as their was in the NL. But after that, at age 32, it was like his switch got turned off. So, unfortunately, I'd have to say NO.

It would neither shock my conscience nor surprise me if no one got in. That being said: Ron Santo - Santo wasn't an accumulator, didn't lead the league in anything important, and didn't win any championships; he does meet the "5-year/10-year" test (at least 5 years great, and at least 10 years very good), but just barely. But from 63-67, he won GGs and was as good a hitter as their was in the league. I'd say he's borderline for a reason, but it wouldn't bother me to see him go in. YES. Dick Allen - a better case than Santo; a ROY and MVP, top 10 in OPS+ for 10 years (1st = 3x), and top 10 in RC for 8 of those years (1st = 3x). But as a bad glove at 1b, and bad rep with press, he's been kept out. Again, borderline, but I'd say YES. Gil Hodges - As a manager, his career was too brief to achieve HOF credentials. As a player, he was Norm Cash, playing in a bandbox. NO. Jim Kaat - the ultimate accumulator. NO. Tony Oliva - at the other end of the spectrum, Oliva was great for 5-6 years, but couldn't sustain it. NO. Al Oliver - a very good player, but not great; but how many guys have their career years at age 35? but NO. Vada Pinson - like Santo, just barely makes the 5-y/10-y threshold, but hung around for another decade. I don't think so. NO. Luis Tiant - had a few great years, but mostly just good. NO. Joe Torre - great year in 71, and a few other excellent seasons, but not enough. As a manager, he sucked until he managed to stay out of the way of some great teams. I can't possibly go along with his enshrinement. NO. Maury Wills - 1 great year, a few other good ones. Um, NO.

Lucky Charms? I've heard that they're magically delicious!