Zvon

ScarletKnight41 wrote: I want to hear about Zvon's Fregosi encounter(s). I snuck into the after party at the AllStar game,1993 in Philly. The sneaking in part was in and of itself funny. Cuz I was with my brothers and some friends and we all had our own trick to get in. Some didnt make it I actually pulled the classic guy behind me has the pass routine,as did one brother behind me. My 3rd brother in the line wasnt as lucky, since no one was behind him and he had no passes,...lmao. I think thats how it went...Ill have to give one of my brothers a call and refresh my memory. I know that I pulled the pass thing.We scatterd once we got in. But my buddy,lmao,......he followed this caterer guy guy with a the rolling food trays to a room, went in the room, grabbed a white caterers jacket off a wall and a rolling tray that was on the side, and came back, and just strolled in the front entrance,..lmaoaoaoao...ill never forget that. Cuz i was watching and soon after he got in he just kinda left the food cart and started to pull off the jacket...he let the food cart roll and it rolled into a wall while he dumped the jacket behind a plant and walked the opposite way. LMAO. So I got to party with both Fregosi's, drinkin some really nice wine and dabbin snacks, and both were pompus asses, especially the son, who thought his shit didnt stink. The son, if i remember right, had a World Series ring on....or an AllStar one, (dont know if there are AllStar ones) but he had this ring and would tell everyone who didnt notice that he had it on. I do believe it was his dads. He kept talking to me and after awhile I thought maybe he's gay or something. I kid u not. I think him and Sr. were pretty sloshed. Sr was just a typical asshole type. Didnt smile, hardly talked.Just ate and drank and gave out nasty looks.

I looked around for a thread for this, didnt see one. from CBS sportsline: ]The Toronto Blue Jays kept up their spending spree on Tuesday by agreeing to terms with starter A.J. Burnett on a $55 million, five-year contract The deal was announced at baseball's winter meetings just hours after the Blue Jays gave general manager J.P. Ricciardi a three-year contract extension. The Blue Jays, who already gave B.J. Ryan the richest contract ever for a reliever, then reeled in Burnett, the best starter on the free-agent market. "He's got one of the best arms in baseball," Toronto manager John Gibbons said. "On any given night, he can shut out. I just think he'll fit in perfect."

Fregosi's one of the biggest assholes Ive ever met. His son as well. A decent manager, but if the Mets hired him then or if they ever do Ill have a MAJOR problem with it. I think Grady will be a perfect fit in LA. He fits that LAmanager mold.

Johnny Dickshot wrote: Hodges was on Devine's watch, but I understand the Board of Directors liked Hodges more than Devine did when it came to naming Westrum's replacement. That was like "old-time business" going back to Hodges' trade in 63. I could see that.....up until they hit gold in 69 it was all public relations anyway. Dont try and field a winning team, just get the old guys back who the fans will pay to see. If it was on his watch, Ill give him credit for that tho. Bing moves up a notch.

Johnny Dickshot wrote: Muh. I wish Omar would stand up, bang his fist on the podium and say "Matsui is the second baseman, and we believe, a good one who while put into difficult circumstances, still has a lot of talent and the support of the organization, and seeing as we're in a tight spot here, we need him to give his best, so let's cheer for the damn guy. I agree JD. So I guess we are both dreamers. From what I read, the biggest problem with Matsui is that he'll be making 8 million bucks next year. And he has never played well enough to make that much. If the Mets give him the chance and he does have a good season, on the field as well as at the bat, the Mets would look good. They signed him for all that mooolah in the 1st place. But if they stick with him and he's a bust, they look ohhhh so bad. Omar may decide he's not worth the chance to even have an average 2nd basemans type of season at 8mill. It may simply come down to the money. He knows what hes gonna get for a million with Grudzy: if healthy all season 150 plus hits 50 plus RBI .270 plus average good fielding too....the guy turned 108 DPs with StLoo last yr. I wish Matsui well and would begrudge him the chance at 2nd for the Mets next season, but more and more I dont think thats gonna happen. If Minaya can get someone else to take most of that salary or upgrade at another important position, he's gonna do it.

="Johnny Dickshot"] Devine gets a good deal of credit for Seaver, as well as Otis, Garrett and Agee, Weiss, Shamsky, Taylor, Gentry, Dyer. Was Bing also GM for the trade with Washington for manager Gil Hodges? I guess Murphy gets more credit than he deserves for the 69 Mets, but Clendenon was a crucial move.

.....one of the sweetest swings Ive ever seen. Damn, that guy could hit.

CBSsportsline: ]Florida gets two players to be named from the Mets, and the players won't be announced until after Thursday's winter meeting draft. Officials familiar with the trade have identified one as 19-year-old right-hander Gaby Hernandez. Hernandez, a 19-year-old right-hander, was 6-1 with a 2.43 ERA for Class-A Hagerstown of the South Atlantic League, then went 2-5 with a 5.74 ERA for Class-A St. Lucie of the Florida State League. He had a combined 131 strikeouts in 135 innings. Lo Duca is owed $6.25 million in each of the next two seasons, which will be paid by the Mets, and Florida remains responsible for the final $1 million of his signing bonus, which is due to be paid Nov. 30, 2008. The article also includes Minaya's 2nd slot quote, and I agree thats crazy. If Randolf bats Lo Duca 2nd Ill eat my 1986 Met 25th anniversary hat. ........I love that hat. Id rather see freakin Beltran batting there. And if we do land Manny, I would think thats where Beltran will bat opening day. (think about it... ) And if we dont, Wright even. Or whoever ends up playing second, if the guy has some speed and good contact. But LoDuca dont bat second. Seventh at best.

Johnny Dickshot wrote: Of Met catchers acquired in lopsided trades, the early verdict on Lo Duca for Gaby Hernandez likely ranks it behind Tom Parsons for Grote; Brooks, Winningham, Youmans, Fitzgerald foir Carter; and Preston Wilson & friends for Piazza. LOL@Dick^ I assume thats a joke, anyway. I love the trade itself. Havent heard who the second minor leaguer is yet, but the name Gaby and Hernandez just never seemed to go together. Read he's a top prospect of ours out of Miami. That means both players are goin home. LoDuca born in NYC. I saw Lo Duca make some great plays for the Dodgers around the turn of the century. I have nothing on how he handles pitchers or baserunners. He should fill that gap for a season or two. He's steady.

Ive read this as both confirmed and pending today, from different sources. I guess its pretty much a done deal. DeLuca was at the bottom of my list, but he was on it. Hes a good catcher. Im surprised this went down before the winter meetings. I figured Omar was gonna wait it out with Molina and Hernandez. Well,...you snooze,...you loose. Omar aint waitin.

]"We would never, ever have signed with New York if they had said they were going to trade us," said Anna Benson, 29. "They wanted [veteran pitcher] Tommy [Glavine] to school him, and then they turn around and trade us?" she asked. "The whole thing is upsetting to everybody." "We wanted to help the city because of 9/11," Anna Benson said. "We specifically did it for New York, and then they turn around and trade us? I just don't understand." ....suit up of shut up, beeeeeeatch.

SwitchHitter wrote: ....but Jason Lane is coming to the Walmart by my house next Sunday!!!!!! .....do all those Asstros announce their shopping schedules?

="TheOldMole"]Bill Denehy. he shares Tom Terrifics Topps rookie card. kool beans

wow,,,,Rico Brogna and Doug Flynn. I like that company. Gonna have to send em a card.

TheOldMole wrote: Is this a team even Bret Sabermetric could love? if he loves at all..........................

DocTee wrote: Or someone give me a block or a shape and Ill create it within it. How's about a diamond? lmao.....thatll work. LMAOOOOOOOOOOOO. I luv it Edge. That is classic. The tree,HA! And yer right...playin in the CYO I led my team in homers one year and never hit one over a wall or fence during a game. All were over their heads or gappers, and nothin to stop em. Led the team with 3 Kaboomers in '71, Im proud to say. lol.

G-Fafif wrote: My dad's a Newtown grad, from waaay before Omar and you. Newtown has been around for.....ever. Love that old architecture. They dont make structures like that anymore.

G-Fafif wrote: The back page business is a Yankcentric contrivance. As my FAFIF partner Jason once put it, who cares if the Mets are on the back page, they're on my front page every day of the year. lol. I can dig it. I have to go a lil out of my way to get the NY papers down here in south NJ and when Im sittin sippin on my coffee, I want to read about the Mets,.....for the whole cup hopefully. The more words written, the merrier I am, whatever page its on.

I agree that Omar is sure making the off season an exciting time. Ive always had a problem in general with the money being thrown around in baseball, the spiraling inflation of salaries that just dont seem to be in scale with what I think players are worth. But it is what it is, in all sports. If it was logical hocky players would make the most money, cuz they really have the toughest gig. Its the price of doin business these days, and Im glad the Mets are using thier money and trying to get the most out of it. Going for the best instead of just dealin with one hand and wishin and hopin with the other. Your always still takin a chance, but I like the chances Minaya takes. Im not really familiar with other baseball G.M.'s (aside from the Skanks and Phils), but I really believe we have one of the top three in the game right now. (#1 to me, of course, cuz he's doin this stuff for the Mets). And im sure that he will end up being one of the best Met GMs of all time, up there with Frank "Bowtie" Cashen, Johnny "Ol'stogie" Murphy and Steve "Glamourboy" Phillips. Maybe the best. Kinda early to go there, but he has what it takes, and I noticed this when he was doing Phillips job for him. Never met the guy but we both attended Newtown High School the same years, from what Ive read. I try using that as a brag with my brothers, but they arent too impressed. Well, maybe the 1st time I told them,....but not the other dozen times after that. I really wish Minaya the best of success, and with the Mets. I didnt exactly feel that way when he was GM'n up north. And I do love the fact the Mets have had most off season back pages and press. I like to read and it bites when theres nothing to read about the Mets. Or a lil blurb and then 2 full pages on the Yanks. Since seasons end the trend has tilted the other way, and I luuuuuuuv it.

MFS62 wrote: A sports caroonist named Willard Mullin had a book of his hand drawings of all the stadia, with cartoons that showed famous moments in each. Mullin's books got me interested in drawing them myself. I loved his stuff. Those were fun to look at. I love that stadium drawing Edge but its not very Clemsian,lol. I started this thing, but Im stuck. I was thinkin along the lines of something like the pic you put up DC. Design wise. Now, does anyone know for sure where the Mets hope or plan to build the new stadium? Cuz Im always reading the city block type architecture layout. I started one within a rectangle, but it dont look right........... Once i get past that I should be able to put something together. Or someone give me a block or a shape and Ill create it within it. Alls I need is a starting point and this will be fun to do.

This trade pissed me off. Not that it was or wasnt a good trade. I grew up with Matlack and Milner. But hell, I was in shock when they traded Agee in 72(?), and the only time I ever turned my back on the Mets was when the traded Seaver in 78. I wanted M Donald Grants (or whatever his name was) head on a pole. The Mets were still my team, but I dont think I went to another game until about the time Mookie came up. I use to call Montan~ez hotdog. These were tough times for Met fans, those years. Eww...I shiver at the Met memories.

Benson,...to clear salary? Benson: 2005 Salary: $5,333,333 Trachsel: 2005 Salary: $6,782,500 Im not sure how that stands for 2006 or complete contract wise but Id move Trashy first. I like Trachsel, he's a good vet, but Im hopin to see good things from Benson the next few years.

Rumour, inuendo, speculation, fact or fiction......it dont matter to me. As long as writers are writing about my Mets. You read stuff, you process it, you form your own conclusions. Whats the winter for baseball wise if not for speculation until the facts come in? The Mets should hold on to Lastings Milledge, at least until we see if Beltran can live up to his potential in NYC, and also see if Floyd can come close to matching his '05 numbers. Im more worried about the latter. From all I read about Milledge, he'd be a nice addition to Reyes and Wright as a future homegrown Met. Ramirez would be nice and I wouldnt mind the Mets getting him, but he's a distracting ballplayer and Victor Diaz and/or Xavier Nady will be fine in right (if Beltran can post all-star type numbers). Ramirez playing right? To me thats a lil scary. Fun to watch, but Id rather see Diaz do his little circle around the ball dance. He usually catches it and has an okay arm.(I know little about Nady) Manny would never have had as many assists if he wasnt playing the green monster and people ran on him hoping his head was where it sometimes is, when he's on the field. Personally, if the Mets did get Ramirez, Id rather see him in left and Floyd in right. But I dont think we need him. We need to settle the catching situation, and it will be settled before long. We need a healthy 30 plus game starting Benson or someone in that slot who can give us that. We need the same from Trachsel, a veteran workhorse who I like, but Id rather see him moved before Benson this winter. We need afew more dependable middle relief arms, but who doesnt. We need afew bench players like the departing Marlon Anderson who can step in and step up when the need be. We need to either give Kaz Matsui another chance, or fill that gap. I hope he's somewhere workin on turning the double play right now. In the infield he's the weakest link. Id rather give Matsui the shot than see Cairo out there anymore on a regular basis. But an upgrade at 2nd would be nice given the right deal. Im sure I can think of afew more things we need. We do need Beltran to play up to his potential, as I said earlier. I cant stress that enough. Delgado's bat should take some pressure off him. I hope so. But we don't need Manny. We could use him and Id love it if they did get him. But I wont be bitchin if they dont. The more I read about Omar Minaya, the more Im thrilled he's the Mets GM. And I do mean thrilled. Hes a smart and savy baseball man. He's almost always available for comment, not off on some 3 week sea cruise. He's aware that he may be being played right now in the Manny situation, and lets face it, thats something GMs do at times, among their other skills. Play the market. The baseball market. Keep writing Mark, and as long as its about the New York Mets, Ill read it and enjoy.

Ill give this a go Spaceman. Just gimme a week or two to make one.

Manny would love that cute little ballpark in Philly(I have heard they are moving the leftfield wall back, tho). Abreu gets hard knocks because he never seems to get the big hit, but he's as solid as they come. The Phils would be fools to trade him. If they do, it better be to the AL cuz Abreu is a sleeping giant. Id rather see him stayin too comfortable with the Phils. Dont know if he'd be able to handle NY. If he starts gettin the big hit, he could,lol.