It's official. We have seen way too much Obama-mania in this country over the past 20 months or so.
How so? I was watching Mike Piazza's dramatic home run in the bottom of the eighth inning on September 21, 2001. That was the first (professional) baseball game played in New York City after the 9/11 attacks. With the Mets down by a run with one out and Desi Relaford* on first base, Piazza cranked a home run over the center field fence. This was a huge moment for New York. The TV cameras showed the ebullient fans jumping up and down and cheering like crazy. Then it showed the auxiliary scoreboard down the left-field line which flashed "Home Run!"
*Remember him? Desi Relaford was the backup infielder for the Mets for that lone 2001 season. I was probably his biggest fan. In what was one of the best years of his career, he put up a .302/.364/.472 line. Not bad for a backup infielder. He'd be batting second on the 2009 Mets. He also pitched a perfect inning for the Mets (to give some relief to the relief pitchers) when they were getting shelled by the Padres.
As you may recall, (okay, probably not) Desi was included in the deal with the Giants that netted the Mets Shawn Estes. Though, you probably have not heard much (if anything) about him of late (since the end of the 2005 season, he's started 9 Major League games), Shawn was in the major leagues with the Padres last year, and pitched, quite frankly, a lot better than Livan Hernandez did. Maybe the Mets should have gotten him instead.
He began this year with the Dodgers Triple-A affiliate and pitched quite well, posting 3-4 record, but an ERA of 3.07. He is no longer playing, but is officially "not retired."
The TV flashed to a fan jumping up and down with a sign that read "WE BELIEVE." Then it showed Piazza getting greeted by his teammated near the dugout steps. It flashes to the auxiliary scoreboard down the right-field line, which scrolls "YES." And my mind immediately expects to see "WE CAN."
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
It's Not that Hard to Defend.
A lot of people seem to be making a big deal over Pedro Martinez's victory over the Mets on Sunday night. Pedro threw a great game, no doubt, with 8 shutout innings in which he allowed just 6 hits, while striking out 7 and walking just two. He also lowered his ERA to 2.87 and received the victory to improve his record to 5-0. Not bad. In fact, with numbers like those combined with the fact that Johan Santana's on the disabled list, Pedro would probably be the Mets best starter.
But if you ask me, it's pretty darn hard to blame the Mets for not signing him when he became available this summer.
1. He wouldn't be helping the Mets anyway. You know that. Give the Mets five more wins, and they're 15 games out of first place. And that's besides the fact that with the Mets anemic offense and with the actuality that the Mets don't have any pitchers who are 0-5, he's not giving them five wins anyway.
2. He stank last year. Did you forget. After an encouraging five games after he returned from surgery at the end of the 2007 season, Pedro pitched terribly in 2008. How badly? 5-6 with a 5.61 ERA.
How bad is that?
Let's put it this way. When Livan Hernandez was released by the Mets this year, his ERA was 5.47.
But if you ask me, it's pretty darn hard to blame the Mets for not signing him when he became available this summer.
1. He wouldn't be helping the Mets anyway. You know that. Give the Mets five more wins, and they're 15 games out of first place. And that's besides the fact that with the Mets anemic offense and with the actuality that the Mets don't have any pitchers who are 0-5, he's not giving them five wins anyway.
2. He stank last year. Did you forget. After an encouraging five games after he returned from surgery at the end of the 2007 season, Pedro pitched terribly in 2008. How badly? 5-6 with a 5.61 ERA.
How bad is that?
Let's put it this way. When Livan Hernandez was released by the Mets this year, his ERA was 5.47.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
2.721
Derek Jeter, as you no doubt know, has 2,721 hits. At that, he's tied with Lou Gehrig for 53rd on the all-time hits list. He's also tied with said Lou Gehrig for first on the Yankees hit list.
Now, this is not a particularly big deal. * First of all, it's a team record. Is anybody going to make a big deal in a couple of years if/when David Wright or Jose Reyes breaks Ed Kranepool's franchise record of 1,418 hits? I hope not. It's not that big a deal. Remember, with his next hit, Derek Jeter will get sole possession of 53rd place on the all-time hits list.
*Obviously it's a big deal. Approximately 1 in 5,000,000 people on this planet are in the Major Leagues in any given year. To excel in a talent group of that caliber is amazing. To lead the Rays franchise in hits (as ---------- [guess who - answer at the end] does with 1,274) is an amazing thing. John Maine, who has 1 home run and a .107 batting average is practically an athletic freak of nature. The difference between his accomplishments and those of Derek Jeter's are as huge as the distance to right in Citi Field.
But as baseball "records" go, it's not a big deal.
Well, you might be thinking, maybe people are making a big deal about this because he's about to break Lou Gehrig's record. I mean, we're talking Lou Gehrig - The Iron Horse, the sidekick of the great Babe Ruth, the guy that baseball-reference.com says was nicknamed "Biscuit Pants." That was some special dude - of COURSE they're making a big deal about Derek Jeter. Except for the itsy-bitsy fact that Lou Gehrig's game was not base hits. Lou Gehrig hit more than twice as many home runs as Derek Jeter hit. When Derek hits his 493rd home run, you can start to argue about who was greater. (Fine, 393rd)
I have a good one. Let's make a big deal because Derek Jeter has more stolen bases than Babe Ruth. BABE FREAKING RUTH - the guy who practically invented baseball. The problem with that is that stolen bases were not Babe Ruth. Singles were not Lou Gehrig. Did you know that from 1926-1934, Lou Gehrig had over 80 extra-base hits in every single year. He had over 80 again in 1936 and 1937. Derek Jeter's never done it.
Which is not, once again, to say that Derek Jeter's not a good ballplayer. He's a really good ballplayer. But making a big deal because he is about to break a team stat from a ballplayer whose expertise was in a different field is just ridiculous.
By the way, did you know that Derek Jeter's 52nd on the all-time strikeouts list? Just saying...
Poll Results: Our poll question asked "How Many Games will the Mets Win this Year?" The winning answer was 70-74. That's optimism.
Trivia Answer: Carl Crawford. You should've known that.
New Poll: Our new poll asks you, "Who is the Mets MVP this year?"
Now, this is not a particularly big deal. * First of all, it's a team record. Is anybody going to make a big deal in a couple of years if/when David Wright or Jose Reyes breaks Ed Kranepool's franchise record of 1,418 hits? I hope not. It's not that big a deal. Remember, with his next hit, Derek Jeter will get sole possession of 53rd place on the all-time hits list.
*Obviously it's a big deal. Approximately 1 in 5,000,000 people on this planet are in the Major Leagues in any given year. To excel in a talent group of that caliber is amazing. To lead the Rays franchise in hits (as ---------- [guess who - answer at the end] does with 1,274) is an amazing thing. John Maine, who has 1 home run and a .107 batting average is practically an athletic freak of nature. The difference between his accomplishments and those of Derek Jeter's are as huge as the distance to right in Citi Field.
But as baseball "records" go, it's not a big deal.
Well, you might be thinking, maybe people are making a big deal about this because he's about to break Lou Gehrig's record. I mean, we're talking Lou Gehrig - The Iron Horse, the sidekick of the great Babe Ruth, the guy that baseball-reference.com says was nicknamed "Biscuit Pants." That was some special dude - of COURSE they're making a big deal about Derek Jeter. Except for the itsy-bitsy fact that Lou Gehrig's game was not base hits. Lou Gehrig hit more than twice as many home runs as Derek Jeter hit. When Derek hits his 493rd home run, you can start to argue about who was greater. (Fine, 393rd)
I have a good one. Let's make a big deal because Derek Jeter has more stolen bases than Babe Ruth. BABE FREAKING RUTH - the guy who practically invented baseball. The problem with that is that stolen bases were not Babe Ruth. Singles were not Lou Gehrig. Did you know that from 1926-1934, Lou Gehrig had over 80 extra-base hits in every single year. He had over 80 again in 1936 and 1937. Derek Jeter's never done it.
Which is not, once again, to say that Derek Jeter's not a good ballplayer. He's a really good ballplayer. But making a big deal because he is about to break a team stat from a ballplayer whose expertise was in a different field is just ridiculous.
By the way, did you know that Derek Jeter's 52nd on the all-time strikeouts list? Just saying...
Poll Results: Our poll question asked "How Many Games will the Mets Win this Year?" The winning answer was 70-74. That's optimism.
Trivia Answer: Carl Crawford. You should've known that.
New Poll: Our new poll asks you, "Who is the Mets MVP this year?"
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