Written by Nikki DeMaio | 28 October 2010

It's been awhile since anything interesting happened to the Mets.  Reports last night indicate that the Mets have agreed in principle to hire Sandy Alderson as the new GM, with the announcement expected to come tomorrow.  I'll be honest, I wasn't all that wrapped up in the interview process.  Obviously, I want the Mets to hire someone with a coherent plan and the ability to properly set the tone of the team this off season... but at the same time, I couldn't get worked up over the candidates.  And I won't be getting worked up over the possible managers either.  Assuming the announcement with Alderson goes through without incident, (and we know there is always the potential for incidents with the Mets) I'm going to go out on a limb and say he already knows who he wants to hire.  No amount of screaming into the blogosphere will change that.  When the GM and manager are in place and I've actually heard some kind of mission statement come out of the front office, then I'll get excited.

By the way, has anyone noticed how much money the Mets have locked up for the 2011 season?  I'm not really sure what kind of room the new GM is going to have to make the changes we so desperately need.  Then again, it could be a repeat of Omar Minaya's first year or so as GM, where the payroll skyrocketed in order to give him a chance and see what he could do.  Whoever comes into the front office will certainly have his work cut out for him, including but not limited to dealing with:  finding a new manager, the contracts of Castillo and Perez, Carlos Beltran's contract year, and a piecemeal starting rotation.  It's exhausting for me and I don't really even have to deal with it if I don't want to (I'm not sure what the fact that I *choose* to deal with it says about me).  Anyway, I'm ready for this new regime to start and to bring some good news and interesting updates with it because I haven't had inspiration for about 3 months now.

Last point for today - the Bizarro World Series got started last night with the Giants taking Game 1 in a surprise 11-7 victory.  I've been dead wrong about nearly everything this post season.  I got lucky with some things, such as willing the Giants to take out the Braves in the NLDS.  But then I went on record with my friends saying that Philadelphia would win the NLCS because their line up on a bad day was still better than the Giants' line up on a good day.  I severely underestimated San Francisco's starting pitching, Buster Posey, and Cody Ross (well, maybe not Cody Ross.  No one saw him breaking out in the post season).  I thought the Rays were going to dismantle the Rangers - that obviously did not happen - and then I thought the magic was going to wear off when the Yankees faced off with Texas.  But I'm pretty sure that one is just my classically conditioned response to watching the Yankees in the post season.  And then in the Bizarro World Series, we watched Cliff Lee get shelled.  And not in the "well, he gave up some runs which we're not used to" way.  In the legitimate, Mike Pelfrey-pacing-around-talking-to-himself way.  It was shocking to say the least.  Maybe these Giants have more magic than we gave them credit for... after all, they do kind of remind me of the '69 Mets.

Written by Nikki DeMaio | 04 October 2010

I have a theory that, collectively, the current Mets fan base was a serial killer in a previous lifetime.  I'm convinced we are being punished for something.  I mean really, could this season have ended in a more ridiculous (read:  torturous) way?  14 innings against the Nationals and Oliver Perez gives up the winning run.  Oh, sorry - HANDS THEM the winning run.  I do have to say something in Perez's defense - that was a no win situation.  His last outing was September 6th - 27 days prior to yesterday's debacle.  It was only his fifth appearance in the second half.  But, Ollie is still Ollie.  No one expected him to do well yesterday, and maybe that's better.  There were no delusions that maybe the Mets could pull out one last win this season.  I thought we were looking at an 82 win team this year and I suppose I wasn't too far off the mark.  But 79-83 just seems so much worse.

With all that being said, there are definitely some positives to be taken from this season.  To name a few, Mike Pelfrey finished strong, allowing just 1 run over seven innings, showing that he is capable of bouncing back from rough stretches, which was something I refused to believe until it actually happened.  Angel Pagan made huge strides in his development as a well-rounded ball player - although he's not exactly young, so take that with a grain of salt.  RA Dickey was a much needed shot in the arm and has the potential to be more than just catching lightning in a bottle.  Despite the media telling you otherwise, David Wright had another good season, finishing with 29 home runs, 103 RBI, and an OPS of .856.  (I know, I know... the 161 strikeouts are alarming.  But I'm focusing on the bigger picture at the moment and quite frankly I'll take 103 RBI with 161 strikeouts with no complaints).

The team also made strides to begin making some necessary changes.  Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo barely saw playing time in the second half, especially once the rosters expanded.  Although they each have one more year left on their respective contracts, I really can't imagine that either of them will be back in a Mets uniform in 2011.  According to a report from MetsBlog.com, the Mets have informed Omar Minaya that he has been relieved of his duties as the General Manager and Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations and additionally, they will not be exercising their option on Jerry Manuel's contract.  I'm curious to see who the Wilpons will bring in to lead this team and the organization as a whole in a new direction.  They need some productive tension in the front office, because when all you do is hire people who agree with you, you become blind to the changes taking place outside of your office and that makes your organization less effective as a whole.

The Wilpons need to adopt a strategy from one of my favorite fictional characters, Isaac Jaffe from the short-lived television series Sports Night:  "If you're dumb, surround yourself with smart people.  If you're smart, surround yourself with smart people who disagree with you."  Unfortunately, this theory does require quite a bit of self-awareness and I'm not sure the Wilpons have any of that.  Only time will tell, and for now I'm going to hold on to the hope that when Jeff Wilpon says they need "a new General Manager with a fresh perspective who will transform this club into a winner that we want and our fans deserve" - he actually means it this time.

Written by Nikki DeMaio | 16 September 2010

A friend sent me this link, and I really think it says it all:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVkalfhzvVA

Doesn't everyone wish the New York Mets were actually hiring for all positions??  Is anyone even watching these games anymore?  I have to admit,  I've stopped tuning in for various reasons - one of which being that I'm stuck in a class three nights per week - but honestly, it's just painful to watch.  I don't even have the heart to get into a debate about who's going to be the next manager.  Let's not kid ourselves here... the Wilpons already know everything they're going to do.  The funny thing though is that there will still be some sort of ridiculous miscommunication that sends a message that the Mets' front office is incompetent.  I'm pretty tired of that story.

You know what else I'm tired of?  The media (and really, the team) turning Carlos Beltran into Public Enemy #1.  Ok, I get it, he didn't go on a team trip to see veterans.  BECAUSE HE WAS BUILDING A SCHOOL IN PUERTO RICO.  Beltran is one person who has always been generous with his time and money, and I just don't understand the need to slander him constantly.  People think he has underperformed for the Mets - I could not disagree more.  Beltran will be missed when he is no longer part of this team, and I think it's terrible that the fan base as a whole has never truly appreciated his talent.  Not to mention all the craziness revolving around his knee surgery in the off season - was it approved?  Did he go behind the team's back?  A whole lot of "he said, she said" if you ask me.  I was as frustrated as anyone when I found out Beltran was getting surgery, but that was because I didn't understand why he didn't just have the surgery in the first place.  The Mets are running this guy out of town, and I know there are fans who will say "good riddance" but it's a dumb move on the team's part and I don't understand why they continually give the impression that Beltran doesn't matter.  Especially because it makes them look terrible to upcoming free agents.  Why would anyone want to join a company that treats its employees like they don't matter?  People are assets and in order to be successful, you need to protect your assets.

And really, does any of this ridiculous stuff even matter if the team is winning?  I don't think the Mets are the only team that has miscommunication among its staff (although it does seem to happen to them A LOT).  They're certainly not the only team with players who don't go on voluntary-but-actually-mandatory team trips.  In order to keep my sanity for the remainder of this season and to prepare myself for the inane utterances that are sure to come from the Wilpons, Omar Minaya, and Jerry, I've chosen to believe that if the Mets were successful - that is, living up to their potential - no one would even know about all this behind the scenes stuff.  All I want from the front office is a coherent plan of action.  If we're going to rebuild, just say it.  Is it frustrating to know you won't compete for a few years?  Of course.  But how is that any worse than what's been going on for the past few seasons?  This organization needs a change from as high up the ladder as possible all the way down.  I wonder if anyone other than the fan base realizes it yet.

Written by Mike Mariano | 15 September 2010

Cole Hamels has started 30 games this season and only sports a 11-10 record to show for it.  However the Phillies often scrutinized starter is another great start away from pushing his season ERA under 3.00.  Run support has always been hit or miss for Hamels, but he's putting together the best pitching season of his career.  These days you can chalk him up for 7 innings, 2 runs, no problem.  And with this offense, that's winning baseball.  Look at his line from last night:

The Phillies are thick into a pennant race and Hamels steps his game up higher and higher every night.  Since the end of June, Hamels has lowered his ERA a full run from 4.08 to 3.01.  That coincides directly with the Phillies resurgance as one of the best teams in the National League.  Hamels hasn't allowed a home run in his last four starts and hasn't allowed more than one in a game since June.

Cole is the pitcher we've always wanted him to be right now.  If the Phillies continue on into the Playoffs, a three man rotation of him and the Roy's is going to make the Phillies a handful for any team NL or AL.

Written by Nikki DeMaio | 09 September 2010

I have to be honest here:  I don't really know what to write about anymore.  I've been watching the Braves occupy first place for far too long and then when they were unseated... it's because of the Phillies.  I do want to be clear about one thing - I don't hate the Phillies nearly as much as most Mets fans.  There are two reasons for this:  the first is that I spent 4 years in college in Pennsylvania and, while there, had the incredible fortune of meeting Phillies fans who really just love baseball and want to discuss everything and not get into a Mets suck/Phillies suck "debate".  The second is that although the Phillies have topped the Mets recently - starting with that first collapse - I really think that the Mets' woes are their own doing, so I don't turn the Phillies into a scapegoat for our failures.

With all that being said, the NL East race is dead to me.  I can't handle watching the Braves and Phillies fight for first place while the Mets struggle to take two out of three from last place teams.  I considered reverting back to spring training mode here and talking about how the kids the Mets have called up have been pretty impressive... but then I realized I don't actually care.  Fans always have this somewhat irrational infatuation with homegrown talent - they never want to see anyone traded for anything.  And that is just unrealistic.  When a team has as many issues as the Mets do, how can you honestly say that anyone is untouchable?  I'm not jumping on a "Trade Wright! Trade Reyes!" bandwagon by any means because I firmly believe that they are part of the solution, not the problem.  For now, I'm playing out the string just like the Mets are.  As my dad likes to say when it's September and the Mets are irrelevant, "Who cares... it's football season."

In a few weeks, the Wilpons and Omar Minaya will grace us with their presence and issue some PR concocted statement about how the failures of the team were unacceptable and change is coming.  Some Mets fans will allow themselves to be caught up in the promises of hope and greener pastures.  Most will have adopted one of my favorite sayings:  Actions speak louder than words.  I'll believe ownership will do "whatever it takes" when I see it.

So on that note, I'm throwing this to the comments.  Is there anything about this season (or next season, I'm not picky here) you'd like to see discussed over the next few weeks?  Let me know and I'll do my best to make it happen.

Written by Mike Mariano | 08 September 2010

For the first time since May 30th the Phillies sit in the drivers seat.  It's been a long road, but yesterday the team beat the Marlins on an Atlanta off day and slipped into first place in the NL East.

The offense overcame one of the worst slumps in recent memory to regain a devastating nightly attack.  Rollins, Utley, Howard, are all healthy and hitting the playoff stride we're used to.  Polanco has been everything and more as a free agent acquisition. Ibanez rediscovered his hitting stroke after early struggles and quietly Jayson Werth is having the best offensive season out of all of them.

The pitching rides along as an underrated component of the Phillies second half run.  The Roys get the headlines and they've been great, but Cole Hamels has been the guy we've always wanted him to be.  His 9-10 record does an injustice to a guy who is consistently pitching deep into games and making quality start after quality start.  The bullpen mess has been cleaned up and even Brad Lidge is showing consistency out of the pen.

The Phillies are a long way from the playoffs but where they are now on the roll they're on now, things are as bright as they've been all season.  The Phillies showed last year that all they need to do is get to the playoffs and they'll be dangerous.  With their offense and the big 3 starters, another deep playoff run looks good right about now.

Written by Mike Mariano | 01 September 2010

Roy Oswalt has been throwing great as of late and it all started a few weeks ago in a seven inning showing against these very Dodgers.  Oswalt has been doing work his last four outings and can keep the Phillies rolling in the wild card race with another strong outing today.  The Phils are currently 1.5 up on the Giants in the wild card and 3 behind the Braves in the division.  It seems the Braves find walk off wins daily so keeping the foot on the gas pedal is important for the Phillies who've found their way since the all-star break playing much improved baseball ever since a disappointing first half.

Kershaw throws for the Dodgers who is having a good year and is apparently a dominating afternoon starting posting: 4-1 with a 1.94 ERA in seven afternoon starts.  Being a talented lefty he naturally gives the Phillies big bats some problems.

The Phillies bounced back last night in an 8-4 win after a few lackluster offensive efforts pounding a couple homers, most importantly from the slumping Ryan Howard.  The Rhyno has been playing poorly since his return from the DL, but last night should get him moving again.

The first pitch is at 3:05, tune in to see your pennant racing Phils take on the Manny-less Dodgers.

Written by Nikki DeMaio | 31 August 2010

And apparently, most of them  grow up to be Mets fans.  I don't really know what I was expecting to get in Atlanta last night, but it wasn't a 9-3 loss.  I'm not sure why, given that the Braves are in first place for a reason, we have an anemic offense, and Pat Misch was starting.  I wasn't holding out delusions for a sweep, like Keith Hernandez keeps telling us we needed, but I was at least looking for some competitive spark from my team.  And this is what I mean about being a sucker.

Why should I expect the Mets to show up and fight?  In the past two months, that kind of gritty, smart baseball they were playing in June has disappeared.  The interesting thing there is that their record has suffered as well.  Now, I'm a psychology person - I know that just because two things are related, it does not necessarily mean that there is a cause and effect situation at work - but I think it's worth pointing out for all the people who think intangibles are a stupid way to evaluate players.  The difference in the way the Mets and Braves play baseball is startling.  The Mets have taken on this kind of listless, world-weary approach to the season - and that's not going to win any games.  Even Jerry Manuel gave up on last night's game, calling on Oliver Perez to pitch the 8th inning - the first action Perez has seen since August 1st.  At least that kind of tricked people into believing we've been playing with a full roster (thankfully, that issue will be moot starting tomorrow when the rosters expand).  It's amazing how a team can look competitive on paper and then just not be able to translate that talent into winning.  And the thing that's so hard to grasp (for me at least) is the fact that the Mets had a fighting chance just a few weeks ago.  How is that even possible??

Bobby Ojeda said last night that the team should be embarassed.  I agree with him.  They are a better team than the one that showed up for the series opener in Atlanta.  I didn't think that I could be disappointed in the Mets this year after last season's fiasco.  I told myself going into Opening Day that this was an 82-85 win team at best - and that that was probably not good enough for a playoff run.  But I still got sucked into the hype and that impressive June.  Since then, the team I was starting to believe in has completely disappeared.  If they weren't going to make the playoffs, I wanted them to go down swinging.  Instead, they're just taking the punches and collapsing.

Written by Mike Mariano | 25 August 2010

16 innings of madness.  The Phillies 4-2 loss last night took over 5 hours and saw all kinds of a wild things by its finish.

Ryan Howard lost his shit and was ejected in the 14th inning.

Roy Oswalt played two innings of left field: making a play on a fly ball and coming to the plate with the game on the line.

Hamels threw well (only allowing two ER) but didn't get the win, again.

The Phillies had their regular starting eight in the lineup for the first time since May 21, vs. Boston.

Jimmy Rollins hit a home run in the bottom of the ninth to send the game into extra innings to begin with.

At the end of the game, the Phillies just couldn't find a way to win.  It was fitting that since Oswalt had to come into the game for Ryan Howard (because of a depleted bench) he would come to the plate in the bottom of the 16th with two on and two out.  Astros manager Brad Mills walked Utley to bring Oswalt (the winning run) to the plate.  In the end he was right and Oswalt harmlessly grounded out to end the game.

As for the Ryan Howard check-swing-strike-three-explosion, it's rare to see the big man that fired up.  You could see him saying, "don't fuckin' talk to me" and he had arms swinging and spit flying the whole time.  As you'd expect it took more than one guy to keep him from bashing the third base umps skull in.  And why wouldn't he be heated?  He went 0-7 with 5 STRIKEOUTS!  There isn't even a funny hat name for that many K's.  Three is the hat trick, four is the golden sombrero, and five is the platinum sobrero or something like that.  If I pulled off an 0-7 platinum sobrero I'd most likely pull this move.

Here are some good clubhouse quotes from the game:

“I’ve seen him mad, but never upset like that,” Manuel on Ryan Howard's ejection.

“I’m not sure what I think about the whole situation, I think I’ll take a nap, wake up refreshed and pretend the whole think didn’t happen.” Werth on the game.

“There’s a saying in baseball, the ball will find you when you’re out of position,” said Ibanez, who also recorded a putout on a diving play at first base. “The ball found him and he caught it.” on Oswalt out in left field.

“I had visions of an out,” Mills said. “I had no visions of a hit.” of Oswalt hitting in the sixteenth.

Written by Nikki DeMaio | 25 August 2010

This is how the Mets keep fans around and the Wilpons get away with not making organizational changes.  Just think of all the things that happened last night:  the team overcame a so-so starting effort with offense, rallied back, and actually WON a game they had trailed after the 7th inning (on a hit from Luis Castillo, no less).  Games like this are what make ownership believe that they've done the right things in putting this team together AND that they can continue to market it to the fan base.

I'm going to go out on a limb though and say that games like the one against the Marlins last night are exactly what's wrong with this team.  There aren't enough games like this, but by showing up with the effort every so often, the team manages to maintain a spark.  And that's what is being sold to fans after every disappointing season.  I think it's become a foregone conclusion that major changes need to occur this off season, but that's what a lot of people thought last year too, regardless of the injuries.  And through it all, I'd like to know where the Wilpons are.  I have this mental image of Fred and Jeff locking themselves in a room and refusing contact with the outside world - not to come up with any sort of cohesive battle plan, but to avoid being held responsible for the decisions they've made and the things they've said over the past few years.

With rumors going around that the Mets are looking to cut payroll once again next season, I'm unsure of where the off season will take us.  When your team isn't producing, you can't label guys as untouchables.  As a fan, I'm somewhat irrationally emotionally attached to certain players - but this is why I'm not a GM.  At the same time, even I realize that the team simply can not look the same next year.  The Mets need to entertain any and all trade talks this year.  I know that the young guys are cheaper and that money is a concern with this team, but something's gotta give.  And most importantly, I want to play with a full 25-man roster again.  It's time to cut Oliver Perez loose, work something out with Luis Castillo and move on.  Find a manager and GM who can fill and manage the roster effectively (honestly - three catchers on a roster already one spot short because of Perez?  Come on).  Jeff Francoeur will most likely be non-tendered.  Maybe the team can get out of Frankie Rodriguez's contract.  There's still plenty of time to show case the younger guys with September call ups around the corner.  Add in a few breaks, and all of a sudden things look just a bit brighter.  Unfortunately, that's all easier said than done.  Especially since it's not my money.