Monthly Archives: August 2007
…as i understand it, if a player is on the 25–man roster before Saturday, September 1, or if he crosses that date while on the major-league disabled list, like Pedro Martinez, he is eligible to for the team’s post-season roster…
…the loop hole in this rule, as you may recall from last season, is that a player on the 60–day disabled list can be replaced on the post-season roster by any player from the same position regardless of whether he was on the team before September 1…so, from what i can gather, players like Joe Smith and Mike Pelfrey could both be added to the post-season roster, despite not being promoted before Saturday, because they can replace Duaner Sanchez and Juan Padilla…
Prior to a game this week, Mets GM Omar Minaya told reporters that he will likely make two rounds of promotions, with the first coming on Saturday, and the second coming after the minor-league season ends.
…from what i can gather, you will see David Newhan, Mike Pelfrey and Phil Humber on Saturday…smith would have been promoted, but he was recently put on the seven-day disabled list with biceps tendonitis…he can come off the dl Saturday, but the word from n’ola is that he’ll pitch an inning or two there this weekend before returning to shea…
…Sandy Alomar Jr. cleared waivers on Thursday and was assigned to Double-A Binghamton, but i get no sense he will be promoted…especially since Ramon Castro is expected back within two weeks, though he only recently began taking batting practice…
…i do not expect to see Dave Williams, Jason Vargas, Kevin Mulvey, Willie Collazo or Carlos Muniz, since they are not on the team’s 40–man roster…it should be noted that i have yet to hear a negative comment about collazo, be from his general manager, to scouts to minor-league experts…theyd on’t rave about him, but he’s clearly intriguing and his absence this season has been quite curious, to say the least…
Despite getting 21,782 votes, Mr. Met is currently trailing the Coyote by roughly 8,800 votes in this year’s ballot for the Mascot Hall of Fame.
To submit your vote, go to Mascot Hall of Fame.
…once your vote it submitted, if you click Cast Your Vote, from the Virtual Hall tab in the header, you will be able to vote again and again and again…i’m not saying you should cheat, but, yeah, you know…
Today, on The MetsBlog Podcast, I talked with Triple-A New Orleans GM Mike Schline about Mets RHP 
Mike Pelfrey, RHP Philip Humber and LHP Willie Collazo, among other members of the Mets Triple-A affiliate in New Oreleans.
To listen to this interview, use the audio player in the left-hand column.
To subscribe to The MetsBlog Podcast, and receive new and old editions directly to your iPod, use this url, or simply search MetsBlog on iTunes and click subscribe.
…yes, the Mets have lost five straight, including three
straight of the brutal variety, and their lead in the National League East is
down to two, but it’s no time to turn on this team…
the stretch run…enough with the bickering about Willie Randolph’s moves or Carlos
Beltran’s perceived passionless attitude or Carlos Delgado’s struggles at the plate…it’s time for us as fans
to stop booing our team and help them win this division…
that tenth man on the field cheering our team to victory…
with the lovable loser attitude, enough with the booing of our team’s players
when then fail…
recently said, believe in your team and if you love your team, you have to have
faith…ya gotta believe…
will this team to a World Championship…
Tonight, MetsBlog.com will host MetsBlog Night at McFadden’s, 
which is located on 42nd St. and Second Avenue in New York City.
The bar will feature the Mets game against the Braves in Atlanta, with available audio from SNY’s broadcast, as well as an optional, but recommended $20 drink special, i.e., unlimited domestic drought beer through the game.
During the recently-concluded, four-game series with the Phillies, Mets SS Jose Reyes went 1 for 15 and, though he stole one base, he was caught 
stealing twice.
Over the last two weeks, Reyes is batting .213.
…i did a radio interview last night, and the producer of the show, who is a Mets fan, noted how Derek Jeter never takes a day off, just like jose, but yet jeter is always fresh, never slacks off and is nine years older…
…of course, the producer’s reasoning for this is that reyes does not care and that he’s distracted by off-field endeavors…
…that may be true, i have no idea…instead, to me, the big difference today between reyes and jeter is that jeter is a veteran, who has been through this sort of grueling, roller-coaster type pennant race many, many times before, and he knows how to pace himself…
…we’d like to think these people can be great in every moment and keep their pedal to the metal for 162 games, nine innings every night, but that’s not human…eventually, if he does that, he’ll burn out mentally and physical…and, from what i can tell, reyes is going through a bit of burn out right now…
…meanwhile, jeter is clawing with his team to nibble at a playoff spot, and yet the guy has not hit below .300 in any month this season…
…look, it pains me to compliment jeter…more than you know…but, the fact is, in this specific case, jose could learn a lot from him…and jose will, over time…it’s all part of growing up, and gaining experience, i think…
In Newsday, Kan Davidoff recaps yesterday’s loss to the Phillies, while quoting SS Jimmy Rollins as saying…
“We’re not in the lead of anything. So, right now, we still don’t get in the playoffs.”
Davidoff concludes his column by writing…
“Just two games back. The Phillies are ready for an old-fashioned September race. Are the Mets?”
Meanwhile, in the Star-Ledger, Dan Graziano describes the Mets as a lazy, uninterested, emotionless group of nice guys who do not get worked up enough about losing, writing…
“That’s it. I’ve had it with the Mets. Had it with their underachieving lineup. Had it with their prevent-defense bullpen. Had it with their lame, emotionless approach to every aspect of the game, their stubborn refusal to do anything great to separate themselves from the pathetic National League pack. They lost again yesterday, of course, but it’s not the losing that turns me off. It’s that losing doesn’t seem to bother them that much.”
…i’m so tired of this debate about passion and emotion…i just don’t get it…first off, how passionless and carefree were the Mets in the eighth inning after rallying to take the lead yesterday…or, how emotionless were they during their seven walk-off wins, or their 28 come-from-behind victories, or when rebounding to beat the Dodgers and Padres out west last week…i guess i would agree with dan if the Mets were emotionless after a win, because that would suggest they have no interest in winning, which would be scary…however, i actually respect their ability to stay calm and stoic after a loss…it says to me that they are focused and not preoccupied with what just happened…turn the page and move on, so to get back to winning…i see nothing wrong with this, and actually think it’s the best way to be in baseball…
…and frankly, why does this even matter…
…passion does not hit a curve ball, or bury a slider in on a right-handed batter…performance and focus equal wins, not passion…this is not football…to win in baseball you need focus, balance and pin-point execution by players who are calm and cool under pressure; not people who are all riled up, angry and full of adrenaline…in baseball, those emotions will always get the best of you…sure, the overt, passionate baseball player helps to recognize our obsession with the game, and they’re good for post-game quotes, but passion is not the direct cause of victory…sure, it helps…it helps create the desire to be focused and to perform…and it’s fun for us to watch…but, winning in baseball is about performance, and has very little to do with buffet-table flipping and fist pumps…passion is important, but it’s not that important…
David Wright, on losing four to the Phillies, while talking to reporters after yesterday’s loss…
“We just can’t allow ourselves to hang our heads and feel sorry for ourselves because Atlanta will beat us all over the field if we do that. We need to end this right now, forget about it, get fresh and win some games in Atlanta because we can’t allow this to affect how we go about our business…
“The way we have played against Atlanta this year it’s never good for us to see Atlanta, but we need to change that. To win the National League East you’re going to have to beat Philadelphia, you’re going to have to beat Atlanta. We haven’t proven we can do that on a consistent basis this season.
“We’re still in the position we want to be in.
“We’re in the driver’s seat. Everything we want to accomplish is right there in front of us. We have to go out there and take it.”
…i wrote the following last Thursday…
… i am starting to believe the Mets will expand this lead, see it shrink next week when they play in Atlanta and Philadelphia, expand it again, see it shrink a bit again, then expand it over the final two weeks, when playing the Nationals and Marlins, to win the division by about five or six games, which is the same number they lead by now…
…in other words, as a fan, i expect to feel good, freak out, feel good, i’ll panic, and then i’ll celebrate…and i can handle that…
…so, i guess today is the freak out stage…buckle up…
Willie Randolph, talking to reporters after yesterday’s loss, had the following to say regarding…
…the loss, and sweep by the Phillies…
“[The Phillies] deserved to win the game. They got a lot of breaks. I mean, you make your breaks, and all that stuff, but, the bottom line is that they did everything they had to do…
“It’s a tough, tough loss, but we’ll bounce back, we’re not gonna quit or anything like that, or pass it over to the next game, we don’t do that. Every loss and win is a separate entity and that’s they way we look at it. We’ve always been that way. It was a tough four games for us, but we’ll re-group, we’ll re-group.”
…whether or not using Billy Wagner was a sign of how important this game actually was…
“No, not necessarily. He was rested. He had, what, this was his fourth day without pitching. So, we wanted to get him some work…He knew about that, he was ready for that. So, we took advantage of that. He was going through the meat of their lineup, that’s what he’s paid to do: to get the big boys. So, it was set up perfectly for us.”
…why Wagner did not hold Jayson Werth to second and third, since the runner stole two bases and eventually scored the tying run…
“Closers do not usually have great moves, so that’s not something he was preoccupied with in any way.”
…whether it is a silver-lining knowing how hard his team fought back to tie the game twice, despite losing…
“Yeah, we fought back – it was an excellent ball game. I’m proud of the guys for bouncing back from last night…I’m always proud of the way my guys play. You know, every one is gonna go through their ups and downs, and we’re no different. We ran in to a situation this week where they just took it to us, and that’s the way it goes. Like I said, we’re not gonna fold any tents or anything like that, or start worrying. We got our butts beat, but we’ll be back to get some payback.”
Yesterday, Mets LHP Billy 
Wagner allowed three runs and four hits while walking two for a blown save against the Phillies.
Wagner has blown his last two save opportunities. It is the first time he has done so since 2002.
He has allowed six runs to score in his previous four outings, prior to which he had allowed a run to score in only one of his previous 25 appearances, during which he notched 15 saves in 16 attempts.
Following last night’s game, while talking to reporters, Wagner had the following to say regarding…
…whether it was his call to go for a six-out save…
“It’s something that I had to do. It was a good decision, and I should be able to do that.”
…whether he and his arm felt fresh…
“Yeah, that’s fine.”
…whether he was asked or told to go for the six-out save…
“I was told.”
…the loss, and if it is ‘devastating.’…
“I wouldn’t call it devastating. I mean, we still lead our division, but it does put a little damper…
“We need to go to Atlanta and get back to winning and take care of business. We have to forget about how tough and ugly this series was for us and pick ourselves up and go battle.”
…is it gut check time…
“Yes, definitely, it is for all of us. We’re out there battling and competing and it’s just, you know, we have to dig down deeper and get it done.”
…whether this blown save hurts more than ones in the past…
“Nah, man, they all stink. No one is better than the other one. I mean, every time a closer blows a save it’s always a big game.”
