At 8:34 this evening Keith Hernandez repeated The Professor's immortal words on the CW11 broadcast of Mets-Marlins. The ketchup on your ice cream analogy has finally made it big time.
Jose Reyes will play today. After a scare in a meaningless AB last night (this morning) against the Cubs and Bobby Howry, Reyes slapped an opposite-field single and seemed to limp to first base. He was immediately taken out of the game and replaced by Ruben Gotay. As Keith, Ron, and Gary speculated, Mets fans across the country held their collective breath.
It's just not baseball season until the greatest Blue Jays pitcher ever signs for a ridiculous amount of money and works out in Kentucky...oh wait, that's old news?
Keith: "I was in the clubhouse having my first Michelob in the third inning."
(Not only is he rich, he also fights terrorism.)When you read about Julio Franco vs. Randy Johnson last night, you don't know where to pause for healthy reflection.Do you pause (and reflect) upon learning this was "the oldest hitter-pitcher matchup in Major League Baseball history"?
Do you pause upon learning that Franco is going to turn 49 in a few months?
Do you pause upon learning that a (nearly) 49-year-old man can hit a good fastball 418 feet? Upon learning the same man stole a base? Upon learning that after the game, he lifted weights for 20 minutes?
Take a moment, and make a short list of the greatest players in the game's long history. Now circle the names of the ones who were still playing when they were 48.
Right. No circles. In 1982, Julio Franco played with Pete Rose and Steve Carlton and Tug McGraw. In 2006, he's playing with Jose Reyes and David Wright and Lastings Milledge. You want to make sense of it all? You'll need a scientist, and a good one.
Courtesy of Always Amazin', here's a link to a 2003 interview with Rick Peterson. Ketchup on ice cream and comparing Mike Pelfrey to red wine aside, you can't argue the fact that The Professor knows his shit up, down, and sideways.
RP: We did personality factor tests to learn more about each player. When we first rolled out these tests, there were norms for people like teachers and lawyers, but not for professional baseball players. For example one test measures whether a person is self-motivated or works better through instruction. What we found is that self-motivated, practical thinkers tend to fare well in baseball. By keeping your motivation up, you overcome the fear, worry, and doubt which can hurt performance. Then we look at an umbrella of skills in 12 major areas. Those include: keeping things in perspective, self-knowledge of strong points and limits, discipline, and ability to learn.We want to quantify as much of the process as possible, whether it's mechanical or psychological. The expression I like to use is: In God we trust, all others must have data.
And when you're done chewing that, you can thank It's Mets For Me, for the classic page of Jacket truths.
Does anyone else feel bad for Randy Johnson? Seemingly washed up 6'11' LHPs aside, the oldest man to take a dump in a major league clubhouse continued his astounding career knocking a RJ fastball into the hot tub at Chase Field and stealing a base as well.
Thank you Ryan McConnell. Ever since Rob Neyer went to ESPN Insider I haven't been able to read him, and since I knew there was a Chan Ho column by Neyer after Monday's debacle I was searching for it (for free...go figure). Ryan posted the Neyer column over on Always Amazin' and I'm re-posting it here because it's dead-on. After Park signed a huge, five-year contract following the 2001 season, his ERAs went like this: 5.75, 7.58, 5.46, 5.74, 4.81. That 4.81 came last season with the Padres, who happen to play in the pitcher-friendliest ballpark in the major leagues. His ERA away from that pitcher-friendliest ballpark last season: 5.45. So leaving aside that 7.58 mark in 2003 -- he was hurt that season, and started only seven games in the majors -- Park seems to have established a fairly consistent level of "ability." ... That said, the decision to turn to Park upon Orlando Hernandez's injury seems like a strange one. There's not only the last five years of awfulness; there's also the last three weeks, as Hernandez racked up a 7.29 ERA in four starts with New Orleans. So why not fellow Zephyr Jorge Sosa (4-0, 1.13 ERA)? Because today was Park's turn to pitch. Which just reinforces my suspicion that today's pitching staffs are far, far too regimented.There was no good reason for Chan Ho Park to pitch on Monday other than the fact that it "was his day." If this thinking isn't backwards I don't know what is...Bring up a guy with a 7.29 ERA over one with a 1.13 ERA because of a 24 hour difference?Every staff should carry at least one pitcher -- "swingman," they used to call him -- who's capable of giving you five or six decent innings in a pinch. But instead you bring up Park to get hammered. Again.
I knew there was a reason to go to a Marlins game
Those currently enjoying the broadcast on SNY were just treated to the following exchange:Keith: "I always liked the way Willie handled his players. Even I needed a pat on the back once in a while in the prime of my career."
Gary: Well, you were fragile.
Your 2007 Emmy winners ladies and gentlemen.
People booed David Wright (left, in the low cut shirt) at last night's game. People booed Carlos Delgado at last night's game. It's not quite the Bronx circa 2004 when they booed Jeter, but it's not really the time or the place when you want the face of the franchise to snap out of a season opening funk.I sat there and I was as upset as anyone. I saw the wheels come off in the 3rd inning. I saw the poor defense and the men left stranded time and time again. But did I boo David Wright? Of course not. And those of you who did should be ashamed of yourselves. This crowd turned on the entire team in a New York minute. They booed David, they booed Delgado, they booed Easley, they booed everyone and when they weren't booing, they were moaning and groaning. Actually, I may have moaned on the dropped balls myself...
The weird vibe at Shea last night almost made me long for the good 'ole days when no one expected to win and if we did it was a nice bonus to a night at the ball game. Almost. I want to win. I want to win badly. But c'mon guys. Relax. These aren't the years when we were 35 games under .500 and we have to let management know that we aren't going to stand for this anymore. I think that everyone knows we want to win. I don' think booing our team is going to help David break out of his slump or make Easley feel any better about dropping that ball in the 3rd.
I hate to scold all of you who booed. I know you have every right to boo if you want. And believe me, I know how much those tickets cost and you have paid for your right to boo if you so chose. I was just taken aback last night by the sheer negativity in the crowd. Yes, I stayed till the end. No, I did not think we would win at any point last night. I did not think we would win once I heard that Chan Ho Park was starting. Yet, I try to be supportive. Try and look at the bigger picture. We're a good team now - remember?
Agreed.
My apologies for the lack of posting over the last week+... school and a broken computer caught up to me. Now that CSTB linked to me...well I have to do some work on the blog front.
