Daily Archives: August 13, 2009
Mike: Has it gotten tougher for you to wake up day after day and continue to devote your days to this site and the Mets? I realize that this is your livelihood and that there is still a lot of content for the site, but do you feel as though it has become more of a drag as compared to say a 10–game over .500 season.
Matthew Cerrone: I started MetsBlog.com in 2003, so I have blogged at this same rate about Art Howe, Kaz Matsui and even Jeff Duncan. That said, this has been a particularly exhausting season, mostly because of the drama.
The game, the players, the on-field moments, the injuries, etc., that’s easy to blog about because I love baseball. However, the Soap Opera that circles above this organization like a buzzard has seemingly grown 
in volume over the last few years – whether it’s sing-a-longs or beat writers lobbying for jobs or where to the put Apple or 3 a.m. firings, among other things. I blame me, and the new media environment, frankly, which has brought the 24–7 News Cycle to sports. In other words, stories that may have gone to bed in years past now last a full day to be picked over all afternoon on fan blogs, Twitter, beat writer blogs, SNY and talk radio.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining, I love every second of it. I just wish, one day, the Mets could win in peace – and I know you agree.
In the end, though, I see this as just another year in the long, crazy story of being a Mets fan. So, yes, while it’s sad to see the team lose, and while I’m frustrated about the direction they may be going, I am also excited about the potential for change, tomorrow’s roller coaster, and about blogging my experience being a fan going forward, be it tomorrow, or the day after that, or the day after that.
Joe Sokolowski of Mets Geek thinks at the 2007 could have been the worst draft ever.
In this the video clip on You Tube, see a Cubs fan dump a beer on Shane Victorino’s head in a game at Wrigley Field yesterday.
…eh, hem… no comment…
Ted Berg of SNY.TV explains why the Tony Bernazard-Adam Rubin Fiasco simply distracted from Omar Minaya’s true failures in Flushing.
To read about today’s significance for the 1969 Mets, check out Mets Walkoffs.
Joe Janish of Mets Today looks at what to do with Billy Wagner, when he likely returns from the disabled list this Sunday.
Lastly, to watch Toby Hyde’s most recent video for SNY, during which he talks about Stephen Matz, use the video player in the sidebar.
Last week, in a post to We’re the Team to Beat, 
Matt Ryan suggested five Mets minor-leaguers who should be considered for a September Call Ups.
…two things… 1) it’s not as simple as just saying, ‘Hey, promote so and so kid from Double A,’ and 2) a player can be promoted any day during September, it does not have to be September 1…
…from what i can gather, the Mets will have a few spots on the 40–man roster to play with… guys like Lance Broadway, Eddie Kunz and Nick Evans are on it, and so i suppose they can be promoted… a guy like Adam Bostick, who should probably be in the big leagues right now, is not on the 40–man roster… as for young prospects, if a guy is going to play in the Arizona Fall League, and his team is not making the post season, he’ll probably get a rest in September, and not be promoted to the big league club… in any case, i sense the only way a minor-leaguer gets promoted by the Mets is if he has to promoted and protected from the Rule V Draft…
For more on what that means, click here.
…the question is, who in the Mets system meets that mark…
…for instance, Double-C Josh Thole appears to, in that he was drafted four seasons ago before he turned 19 years old… however, will another team really select him in the Rule V if he isn’t added to the 40–man… the Mets made that same mistake with Jesus Flores… that said, if thole is added to the 40–man, the clock starts ticking on his major-league service team, meaning he is that much closer to salary arbitration and free agency…
…by the way, thanks to everyone on Twitter for helping with links and references to rules regarding this subject…
Tagged News |
Papoon: I’ve notice that John Ricco has been talking to reporters a lot out on this road trip. Did Omar not take the trip? If so, this clearly does play into the idea that he is getting phased out.
Matthew Cerrone: Like most GMs, Minaya does not always with the team – this is not exclusive to the Mets, by the way. Additionally, Ricco has traveled with the team quite often this season, and he quite often holds press conferences with reporters to update them on injuries, transactions, etc. Interestingly, you are not the first person today to suggest this conspiracy theory to me. I have written Ricco’s name many times before on MetsBlog. Instead, I believe people are simply noticing it more now, because he’s been linked in print and on radio as a possible replacement for Minaya. Last month, if people read ‘Ricco,’ they’d think, ‘Who’s that,’ and gloss over it. Now, they think, ‘Oh, Minaya’s replacement,’ and it has people wondering what’s up.
David Wright injured his knee yesterday in the ninth inning while running the bases, but stayed in the game.
Jerry Manuel described the injury as a strain behind the right knee, though Wright said it was just general soreness that will not keep him out of the lineup on Friday.
That said, Manuel said he expects Wright to be examined by doctors in New York before Friday’s game.
Wright dismissed the idea that he needs to be examined, telling MLB.com:
“There’s nothing wrong… They’re always too cautious with all of us… I’m just a little banged up. I’ll be in there. I’m good to go.”
…too cautious… really… from what i can gather, communication between the team’s trainers and players may be the biggest culprit in how injuries are handled on this club… it’s not the actual trainers, not the training regimen, not the doctors, who are tops in their industry, etc., it’s the way pain and possible injuries, etc., are relayed to the trainers by players, who may be given too much slack in how their injuries are treated…
John Ricco told reporters yesterday that Carlos Delgado returned from St. Lucie to be re-examined by doctors in New York.
He will remain inactive for two weeks, before resuming baseball activities.
…i’d think delgado had been working to come back as much for the Mets as he was for himself, since he’s going to be a free agent at the end of this season… much like i wrote about with wagner yesterday, Eddie Bajek and MLB Trade Rumors predict delgado will be a Type B free agent… meaning, if he’s offered arbitration by the Mets, they can net a compensatory draft pick if delgado leaves to sign with a new team…
…in other words, there will be a lot less questions for all sides involved if delgado can at least get back on the field this season and start hitting again, which now seems unlikely given this recent set back…
Will of Mets Fans Forever posts a Q&A with Toby Hyde of Mets Minor League Blog, who answers questions about how Brad Holt is different from Mike Pelfrey; what happened to Eddie Kunz; and Bobby Parnell as a starting pitcher; among other things.
In a post to Mets Police, Shannon walks you through how to park a few blocks from Citi Field, saving you money and time, all while getting you exercise.
Aaron Yorke of the Daily Stache wonders why the Mets did not trade Gary Sheffield when a team claimed him on waivers.
…well, it depends on what the team who claimed him offered…
…i assume there is a point where sheffield is worth more to the Mets on the roster than the likely useless minor-leaguer who was offered to them for sheffield… or, the Mets missed the boat…
In a video for On the Black, Kerel Cooper answers reader questions about the importance of pitching, and new ballparks.
John from Metstradamus explains why he’s skeptical of Cory Sullivan, who is 4 for 8 with two triples and an RBI in his last two games.
…this morning, WFAN’s Boomer and Carton talked about sullivan as though he’s a rookie, or some young prospect getting a chance at the major league level… let’s be clear here, sullivan has played in 375 games in his five-year career, during which he’s hitting .279… he can hit… he’s a decent hitter… he’s 30 years old… if he was going to be a great hitter it would have happened already in the hitter-friendly Coors Field, where he was a starting outfielder for a couple of years… he’s hardly a prospect, and he is what he is, which is a good bench player, who can hit well enough, play strong defense, and who runs the bases hard, and who will have an impressive week here and there, but who is not an every-day outfielder…
Lastly, to watch my segment from yesterday’s Mets Pre Game show on SNY, during which I talk about Pedro Martinez and off-season priorities, use the video player in the sidebar of MetsBlog.com.
