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Either Nielsen or the writer of that piece is confused. That survey doesn't really measure "most despised." It measures which team gets the most generally negative reaction, which isn't the same thing at all. Ask people about the Indians, and they'll say something like "Yeah, that city sucks. And the team does too, the last time I looked." But does anyone actually hate the Indians? The Yankees have to be the most hated, by the sheer number of people who loathe everything they stand for. And the Mets are probably in the top five, somewhere after, I'm guessing, the Dodgers and the Red Sox, and maybe the Braves or the Cubs (that lovable loser shit gets old pretty fast). But those teams probably also have the most fans across the country, so they're not going to place in a survey like that as a team like Cleveland, which has no fans.

It's hard to say what Earl Weaver would have done with Doc. The only really obviously gifted young pitcher he ever had--the only one you could even compare to Gooden at that age--was Dennis Martinez, and he eased him into a starting role. But that was on a staff that was already loaded. And he had Palmer, just a couple years off arm surgery, pitching 300 innings.

I think one reason I've been able to stay a Mets fan is that I've never lived anywhere near New York. In most places I've been, I've ended up despising the local team, whether it's the Pirates, the Cardinals, or the Blue Jays. Somehow being around the fans makes me not want to be one. (Though I'm not sure the Jays actually have any fans--all those people who used to fill Skydome in the early nineties were really just there to gawk at the roof.) Mets fans are a higher class of people, of course, so maybe it would be different with them.

I knew Jon Heyman's dad, Mark Heyman. A nice old guy. He bought me lunch once for helping him on the book he was writing. Jose Reyes didn't come up in our conversation--I don't think he was in the league yet--but I can tell you that based on what Mr. Heyman didn't say about what his son may or may not have told him regarding his possible inside knowledge about the Mets organization's 2003 plans for 2009, I'm not prepared to rule out a Reyes trade. Just don't say who told you.

Farmer Ted wrote: Looking at the mug shots of the Braves on the ESPN webcast. They have to be the ugliest mother fuckers I've ever seen assembled on one team. I guess you don't remember the early nineties Phillies.

I don't like it much, but I'll get used to it. It's cleaner, but the print's too small. And there's too much crap on the front page. I also don't like the way the Cialis ad follows me around, like a wrapper that's stuck to my foot.

2009's Duke Snider, a class act from a real New York team showing the young Metsies how it's done? Maybe not.

]Even so, most serious architects today strive to create buildings that reflect the values of their own era, not a nostalgic vision of the past, no matter how open they may be toward their surroundings. The whole game of baseball is a nostalgic vision of the past. What values of our own era do we really want to bring to it?

They didn't all win the triple crown. I'm trying to work out what Dean Chance did that Saberhagen (not on this list) didn't.

"Let�s go ahead and say it: no major league team has ever won a pennant with a 35-year-old shortstop." Feel free to say it, but that won't make it true. Major league teams that have won a pennant with a 35-year-old shortstop: Giants, 1905 (Bill Dahlen, 35) White Sox, 1906 (George Davis, 35) Pirates, 1909 (Honus Wagner, 35) Cardinals, 1928 (Rabbit Maranville, 36) Tigers, 1945 (Skeeter Webb, 35) Yankees, 1952 (Phil Rizzuto, 35) Yankees, 1953 (Phil Rizzuto, 36) Dodgers, 1955 (Pee Wee Reese, 36) Dodgers, 1956 (Pee Wee Reese, 37) Braves, 1999 (Walt Weiss, 35, splitting time with Ozzie Guillen, 35)

I claim this guy, because he was the Seaver of his day.

Interesting theory about the Mets being the little brother of New York baseball. I don't think I've ever heard it before. Retarded cousin, awkward sister--those I've heard. But little brother? Wow. Give him points for originality. But he's way off about the Mets having only one Hall of Fame player. Please, the number is two. Gary Carter counts in my book, no matter what cap he's wearing on his plaque.

="metirish":3nsi0yhk]="TheOldMole":3nsi0yhk]A friend of mine who was a baseball writer back in the day told me that Yogi Berra was the best-hung athlete he ever saw.[/quote:3nsi0yhk] Some great posting here today. Yogi must have had a yogism for being hung like that.[/quote:3nsi0yhk] As I recall, according to David Halberstam it was the late Johnny Blanchard who set the standard in the Yankee clubhouse. TransMonk Mar 25 2009 12:23 PM ="metirish":2sh23i0j]="TheOldMole":2sh23i0j]A friend of mine who was a baseball writer back in the day told me that Yogi Berra was the best-hung athlete he ever saw.[/quote:2sh23i0j] Some great posting here today. Yogi must have had a yogism for being hung like that.[/quote:2sh23i0j] "Bill Dickey is learning me his experience." G-Fafif Mar 25 2009 12:38 PM ="TheOldMole":300nag1k]A friend of mine who was a baseball writer back in the day told me that Yogi Berra was the best-hung athlete he ever saw.[/quote:300nag1k] Imagine your agent taking that stat to arbitration. MFS62 Mar 25 2009 12:46 PM I worked with a guy who was a long time friend of MArty Appell. Marty worked in the YAnkee PR office for many years. My friend told me that not all the members on those "great" Yankee teams were great. Marty told my friend that Horace Clarke had severe shortcomings. Later Benjamin Grimm Mar 25 2009 12:49 PM This should be the "Too Much Information" thread. Edgy DC Mar 25 2009 12:53 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Mar 25 2009 09:08 PM I think it should be the "Guys I know who tell me about other guys dicks" thread. Fman99 Mar 25 2009 08:46 PM Cut. Print. Gay. MFS62 Mar 27 2009 12:53 PM Back to Piazza. IIRC he had a "personal trainer" living with him in Spring Training a few years ago. He said the guy prepared meatless meals and "protein shakes". Y'mean that was just a sham? A coverup? Horrors! Later Benjamin Grimm Mar 27 2009 01:06 PM Are you implying that the "trainer" was a "boyfriend?" Time for another press conference! MFS62 Mar 27 2009 01:31 PM ="Benjamin Grimm":3uuccp5b]Are you implying that the "trainer" was a "boyfriend?" Time for another press conference![/quote:3uuccp5b] No! We're talking the stories about Mike on steroids here. Nothing else intended. Mike is married to a hottie. Those rumors about his sexuality were answered IMO. (Or should I say they have been put to bed?) Later LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Mar 27 2009 01:51 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Mar 27 2009 03:17 PM http://www.babychums.com/?p=741 Also... he's two times a daddy, so there goes the Playmate-as-beard rumor; he had to have shut the eyes and come into home standing up at least twice. If one of the kids grows up to have a biblical-scale case of bacne, does that help clear Pops? Benjamin Grimm Mar 27 2009 01:54 PM

You know, I'm all for full disclosure and getting to the truth about the steroids era. But somehow I really don't want to know the name of every major league player with back acne.

Equal of Seaver and Gibson--that's crap, ERA+ or not. But how about Dazzy Vance? They're both great strikeout pitchers who had their best years after they turned 30.

I think he's a Hall of Famer. His total wins and ERA might not look that impressive, but in the context of his time they're just fine. And the bloody sock is the best piece of theater in baseball history, whether he was faking it or not. Better than Ruth calling the home run, better than Gil Hodges and the shoeshine ball. Just fantastic stuff. I don't have to like the guy to give him that.

Wouldn't a poor man's Colon be a cecum or something? Sorry.

It was a good setup. Sorry I dropped it.

The URL.

That picture is from 1978, not 1976.

I never saw the boils on Mickey Cochrane's butt cheeks, or the blackheads on Ernie Lombardi's nose. But I saw John Stearns go 3 for 3 and steal two bases with a zit on the inside of his thigh that would have crippled an ordinary man. I saw a whitehead on Jerry Grote's forehead that got so inflamed when he squeezed it, Tug McGraw asked him if he was a Hindu, and couldn't stop laughing even when Jerry punched him out. And I saw Ron Hodges catch a doubleheader with a case of shingles you could cover a house with. But these old eyes have never seen anything like the opposite field power and back acne that Mike Piazza brought to the table every night. The drugstore in Cooperstown had better stock up on Clearasil, because Mike is moving in to stay.

Mookie and Preston Wilson.

I really didn't like the Henderson-for-Kingman deal. I actually got a letter in Times about it. That was a kick--me, an eighteen-year-old kid in Pennsylvania. I wrote, "Steve Henderson will still be hitting .300 when Dave Kingman has uppercut his way into oblivion." And I'm not going to change my mind on that now, just to be fashionable.

Eephus--Rip Sewell's blooper pitch; Ted Williams was the only batter ever to hit a home run off it, in the 1946 All Star game. Seaver had a blooper pitch at the end of his career, though I guess he didn't call it an eephus. It was kind of embarrassing, whatever he called it.