Lastly, according to Ken Rosenthal at FOXSports.com, the essence of Pedro Martinez could help the Mets contend in 2008.
David Wright, on Martinez, as quoted by Rosenthal:
“He’s one of our emotional leaders. He has this knack of keeping everybody smiling and laughing, but still motivated at the same time. Just his presence gives a team a little lift emotionally, doesn’t allow losing streaks to go on so far.”
In a column for ESPN.com, Jim Caple goofs around and writes a phony, spring-training notes column for every major-league team.
For the Mets, he writes, among other things:
General manager Omar Minaya admitted that he faces felony grand theft charges for stealing LHP Johan Santana from the Twins. … Mr. Met vigorously denied Kirk Radomski’s charge that his head is so big because the former clubhouse attendant supplied him with regular doses of HGH. He did, however, say Mrs. Met used the drug while preparing for a Sports Illustrated swimsuit shoot.”
According to the Brooklyn Met Fan, Billy Wagner is ‘a little nutty,’ but we love him anyway.
Lastings Milledge is barking about the Mets again, according to a report by Adam Rubin in the Daily News.
Lastly, at Hot Foot, Andrew Beaton concludes his two-day interview with Tim Marchman from the New York Sun.
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I read that Adam Rubin piece. Isn’t that the same barking we heard about yesterday?
it’s exactly the same. Rubin is “reporting” on the SI article. He just moved the quotes around and added some sensationalist background.
“I can’t go through anything worse than I went through in New York. It only gets better from here,” Milledge told SI.com.
—-have fun battling the Marlins for the basement every season Lastings!!!!
The first opportunity Wagner gets, Milledge is going to get nailed with a 95+-mph fastball . . .
…and I can’t wait. I liked Milledge and thought he took too much heat for too little, but he is obviously a rat and I’m really starting to dislike him. I hope he amounts to nothing and gets bumped around the bigs from team to team with no friends and no big payday.
wow! “no friends”? you win the strongest reaction award.
This is the kind of thing that we, as fans, don’t normally get to see until months or years later. We had a few indications of the things that Milledge did, but didn’t know the extend of them, and I’m sure we will never know all of it.
I think Omar and Willie do a great job of keeping things as quiet as possible, and it’s frustrating to the fans, but it helps the team move players when the time is best, and keeps their value as high as possible under the circumstances. I’d be willing to bet that the word about Milledge spread around the league, and all GM’s knew what kind of person he was, and that’s why his value fell. But he was/is still a prospect, and to get two major league players for him, I think Omar did pretty well.
It seems like Milledge will always be a problem on any team that he goes to, and all the GM’s feel that way too.
I never wish this for anyone…but I hope he gets some chin music from the Mets
“Left-hander Oliver Perez leans so heavily on Martinez, he asked him to call pitches during a postseason game in ‘06. ”
from the rosenthal article…hadn’t heard that one before, but this is extremely interesting. Pedro is a guy that really brings the old “intangibles” .. I am so psyched to see our top 4 guys battling to be the best in an amazing rotation…I’m trying so hard not to get ahead of myself, but it’s tough!
Nobody sees the big picture, just the fact that we traded an overhyped rookie for a catcher who can’t hit and another outfielder. There was a reason why his value was so low, and now we’re seeing it. Even the Twins didn’t want him when they started discussing Johan with the Mets.
I still don’t think Milledge will amount to much, despite what all the critics of the Schneider trade keep saying. I still think the Mets will end up with the better end of the deal.
Hahaha
“Tom Glavine vowed to get the Braves back to the playoffs and a first-round exit”
“Jamie Moyer made news, when he showed during BP that he was right on track for the season, he was clocked at ‘three mississippi”
Hahaha that ESPN article, a lot of them are really funny
hated the trade at the time (or maybe just deeply confused), but I’ve come around. I think LM has a lot of potential, and I really didn’t see his exuberance (or showboating, however you see it) as too troubling. It’s ok for Jose, but not for LM? that dog don’t hunt.
But it bugs the sht of me to read him described as “troubled” because he has attitude. “Troubled” is emotional problems, or drugs, or something of that ilk, not making music or high-fiving fans.
Anyway, I hope Manny gives him a fair shake, and that he grows up. I think he’ll be fun to watch someday soon.
I think the things you mentioned are what we as fans saw, but the problems he has are deeper than that, and we’re hearing some of them little by little. Like showing up late for games, bad presence in the clubhouse, doesn’t get along with veterans, etc.
I understand your point about “troubled” and maybe that’s not the correct word to use, but I think in the world of baseball, he has a bad influence and attitude, and he brings a lot of “baggage” with him.
I don’t know. This was obviously the wrong situation for him, but I can’t put him in “bad apple” category yet; I just think he needs to grow up. I can see why his act rubs people and players the wrong way, though.
I agree. He has a lot of growing up to do, and I hope he does. If he matures and “gets his game on” then he could be very good, otherwise, like the Roach said, he could be the next Milton Bradley, or worse.
A full season of Lastings Milledge will lead to a lot of chin music around the league. If the Nationals let him run amok, they will have a chaacter but he will bounced all over the Major Leauges and will probably be the type of player you will seed on 7 teams in 9 years, never getting a foothold anywhere. I think he had potential but his tude will cause problems wherever he goes.
He has Milton Bradley written all over him!
Despite his troubles, i dont see what is so SPECIAL about him? Too many people buying into the hype!
He was NOT another Daryl…get over it
Hoping Millz is “All bark, and no bat”……at least when the Nats face the Mets.
Absolutely agree regarding Milton Bradley, I have been thinking the same thing. That’s probably Milledge’s ceiling (both statistically and attitudinally).
There is no way I would trade Schneider and Church for Bradley, so why would I have a problem trading someone who only has the potential to become him? And the more LM flaps his piehole the fewer problems I will have with it.
oh i get it now….when in doubt, blame lastings. ok i do get it.
i mean lastings “celebration” after his home run made the marlins so angry.
its not like a fight didn’t take place in that game, or a veteran starting pitcher wasn’t knocked out in a 1/3 of a inning, that would of been more civilized than a “celebration” right?
some of you people here are jokes.
Oh come on now….what exactly are you arguing? You’re gettiing a little too defensive of this kid, dont you think?
Tell me, please…what was SO special about him?
Sorry gentlemen…I’m just not seeing it.
The Millege bashing is so incredibly juvenile. All this appears to be is a massive amount of sour grapes with fans expanding their negative sentiment about a player simply b/c he no longer plays on our team. You guys are all over-emotional sheep with little merit to justify your positions.
I’m still confused. What did Milledge do here that was just so intolerable? Is he really THAT bad of a guy? And does it really mask his ability and contributions? It’s as if he makes past clubhouse cancers like Foster, Bonilla, Strawberry, Alomar, Rickey, and Cedeno appear to be saints. I’ve been a Mets fan for over 25 years, and LM’s minor immature indiscretions are nothing we hadn’t seen before. In fact, this guy would have fit in perfectly in ‘86 or in the BobbyV era.
Milledge is young, a bit stupid, and cocky as all hell. But you know what? He also played hard and produced a high level of excitement whenever he was on the field. I loved that. Unfortunately, he was black-balled by Willie, something he was never going to shed. He didn’t fit into Willie’s “style of play” and the clubhouse environment Willie prefers, which is supported by Wagner’s comments. SImple as that.
Milledge is no saint, but for most fans here to blindly take the side of manager who after 3 seasons has yet to develop a team identity and whose philosophy has reaped nothing but underachievment; and a big mouth hick reliever who has never won anything and has burnt every bridge he has crossed in his career, especially considering their contributions (or lack thereof)to last year’s failure, is just mindless and incredibly premature. Milledge is being used as a scapegoat, and it’s a damn shame that so many Mets fans are accepting the crap Willie and co. are feeding us.
I believe that, in the long run, guys like Milledge can help your team more than he can hurt. Perfect example….He’s already ignited a team and fanbase in WASH w/o even swinging a bat (I take that back…he already went 2-3 with 2 runs scored in his first ST game). Isn’t it odd that we have yet to hear him being chastised by Nick Johnson or Manny Acta for any of his comments? That would had been different if LM was still in NY. Those confident attributes should be welcomed, not punished. It’s odd that what’s generally welcomed elsewhere, Is looked down upon in only 2 other clubhouses, Willie’s and the NY Yankees. That fine when you are successful, but Willie has proven little and won nothing. I don’t understand why we have evolved into a team that decides to punish this behavior. But this is what we have become.
So now LM gets away from Willie’s judgemental and condescending shadow, and gets to start fresh on a team that actually welcomes him. And if Manny Acta is able to get the most out of LM, something Willie could not and debatedly would not even try doing, than just add it to the pile of proof against Willie’s flawed philosphy to managing this game.
Funny….going into 2008, who wouldn’t rather be in LM’s shoes as opposed to Willie’s? To me, nothing defines this situation better.
wait, i’m sorry…what BS are the mets spewing right now? Are we not reacting to comments that MILLEDGE made?
Tell us, whose fault is it that he showed up to games/practices late???
Is going after the umpire like a crazed maniac part of the way the game should be played???? (Am i talking about Milton Bradley or Milledge????)
How about celebrating like he was Joe Carter (slightly exaggerating) after hitting a HR after the team was up by 10+? Is that the way the game should be played?
You call this sour grapes, maybe so…can’t speak for everyone. However, from my point of view, it’s not. It’s looking back on an overhyped, unproven player who acted like he already made it as a huge star. I didn’t like it then…i don’t like it now.
The way i see it, the only sour grapes are coming from people who bought into his hype and are upset he is gone….and like clock-work, they blame it on Willie. It’s ridiculous
i guess we just have a different appreciation for this game and those who play it.
I LOVE an excitable and exciting player…i really really do.
But when you come into the game barely old enough to drink and you’re showing up to games late, acting like youre the star, while not playing like one–i have to say, i dont like that in a player.
This would all be a moot point if he was lighting up the box score, but, frankly, he looked very average (even in his extended playing time).
I honestly dont put too much in these reports…i look at the field, and i did not see anything that strikes me as SUPERSTAR
As others have alluded, there HAS TO be a reason only the nationals would trade for him…
It’s obvious that I have a much higher opinion of LMs talents and contributions than you. I believe he is going to haunt us for years to come. Let’s just leave it at that. I won’t convince you otherwise, and you certainly won’t convince me the other way. So I refuse to argue that point any further.
Your second paragraph describes LM in ‘06. He clearly matured more in ‘07. He’s a 22 year-old kid and his progress is hardly against the norm. Nothing he did was any different from what we’ve seen in the past from other key young prospects like Strawberry, Gooden, or Dykstra. Difference is…those guys still were given a chance to display their positiives on the field. Do you honestly think LM was given a chance to excel and have us see beyond his minor indiscretions? Face it, we as fans were forced to evaluate him as he sat in the doghouse WIllie put him in. So it is of no surprise to me that LM is not given the benefit of the doubt in this situation by fans like yourself, who chose to take Willie’s side w/o even attempting to question his approach.
and finally….”there HAS TO be a reason only the nationals would trade for him…”. I have your answer. No one brought the LM market value to the floor more than Willie and the Mets brass. In roughly the same number of ABs and Games played compared to 2006, the kid improved in every statistical category last year (greatly in some instances) . The only reason why he went from being packaged in a Zito trade to an obvioulsy downgraded exchange for Scheider/Chruch is all b/c of the comments and rumblings coming out of the Mets organization. In fact, I bet the LM market value was even lower, but I have a hunch that Acta, being more familar with LM, had much to do with seeing past it and pulling the trigger.
Mets were there own worst enemy on this one.
Agreed on your first point.
To your last point, if i were a Nationals fan, i would LOVE this move. When you’re in the position they are in, it’s not hard to see why they took a chance at a young kid who has some skills.
You see him as a superstar…i see him in the mold of a payton/bradley/kotsay mold….good and serviceable, but nothing irreplaceable.
We’ll have to wait and see….
Exactly. We have to wait and see.
But I refuse to take the easy route that so many of therse knuckleheads on this post are choosing to do.
The kid doesn’t deserve chin music or any harm b/c he didn’t wrong us as fans in any way. Your bad opinoions on LM are not due to anythign direct, but only due to what you have herad from Willie and Wagner. If anything, LM was wronged by being black-balled by Willie and now has the desire to prove that notion wrong. That is all he is saying in these statemetns.
He is speaking the truth. Good for him. And for anyone here to take that as ‘barking’, disrespect, or trash talk is just desperately fishing for for reasons to be negative about LM.
It’s funny how you view this as the Nationals being risky or ‘taking a chance’ on LM, who can field, hit, run, and throw. This as opposed to the Mets taking a chance on a light hitting catcher and trading a right-handed hitting OFer for yet another lefthanded bat who is one dimensional and can’t hit lefties. hmmm…..
exactly. all this stuff has been way overblown. acting like joe carter? haha. he was never gonna make it here because people in the media, as well as those prima donna veterans were gonna nitpick every thing he does.
I agree, Danny. There’s ZERO reason why he deserves to get plunked….for WHAT?!
Why do i say the nationals are taking a risk? Well, like you said, you can’t tell right now what you’re going to get out of him. The mets, in their current state, can’t take the risk of him under performing.
The Nationals on the other hand, if Milledge fails: eh, status quo for a .500 or below franchise. If he excels, they have a star, and a division rival has egg on their face.
I just personally don’t see that happening with him. sure, he might have one or two very good seasons, but i’m curious to see if he’ll be able to sustain.
and NYChurch….did i not say i was exaggerating? RELAX. However, you completely glossed over the point. He was celebrating a homerun as if the game depended on it….it didnt…he showboated and the marlins were justifiably pissed off
you’re talking about me glossing over, but yet you just glossed over THE FIGHT that took place with reyes, which was probably more of a factor in “angering” the marlins than milledge supposed antics.
and all this angering the marlins BS is overblown, because if they were already dead, why did they sweep the cubs earlier that week, then beat the mets that friday night?
Who was angry. Who wasn’t. Who disrespected who. Why were they disrespected? BLAH BLAH BLAH.
The only thing that mattered in that entire game is that Glavine didn’t show up. Once the home plate ump decided he wasn’t going to give Tommy the outside corner, Mr. Glavine turned into what equates to a BP pitcher. ONce he folded….the entire team folded.
SImple as that.
OH…..and Willie didn’t have his boys ready. Forgot about that one. Kind of a big one.
You got your facts mixed-up man. That HR celebration happened BEFORE the fight….definitely part of the motivation.
unless i’m wrong….i WAS drinking at a wedding that day
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