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All I know is that after the chain of events that happened in Mets camp yesterday , I wish I was a fan of curling at this moment. I kid I kid ! But anyone who thought Johan Santana in his first appearance since mid August was going to be dominant and show no signs of rust needs to have their heads examined. Okay so the Mets lost to the Houston Astros by the score of 8-4  , but lets look at the bright side. David Wright had another home run yesterday , which was encouraging, and first baseman of the future, Ike Davis is still making his case by going 1-3 with a solo homer ( he still needs to start the year in Buffalo). But of course there always has to be some controversy surrounding regarding a interview that was published last night by ESPN Deportes in which Jose Reyes contradicts earlier reports that stated that he is suffering from a over active thyroid. He claims that the doctors told him not to worry and to lay off seafood that contains high amounts of iodine. Whatever the case may be it seems that whatever Jose is suffering from can be treated with medication, and I expect ( or is that holding out all hope ?) to see Jose in a  Mets uniform when I see the Mets on Opening Day at Shea -Err I mean Citi Field.
This leads me to my next question. I will be attending Citi Field on Opening Day – will there be anyone else there also? If so I would like to have a pregame meet up so that we can all put the faces to the names . So if you are expecting to attend either write me at rustyjr@nleastchatter.comor write in the comments section where you think a good location to congregate .
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                                                 ” Don’t worry about Johan , The force is with him !”
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With that said HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!!!
Happy Birthday wishes go out to original Mets reliever from ’62- 63, Ken MacKenzie (1934). Ken was one of the better Mets pitchers from that era, posting a record of 8-5 with a e.r.a of 4.96.
Middle reliever from the ’79 team, Wayne ” The Twitch” Twitchell is 62Â (1948). He was one of the few bright spots on that ’79 team – so bright that they sold him to the Seattle Mariners in August of that year because the team was strapped for cash.
Mets bullpen coach for much of the ’90′s, Greg Pavlick is 60 . (1950)
Emergency starter from ’92 – ’95, Mike Birkbeck is 49 .(1961)
Brooklyn’s own John Cangelosi is 47 (1963) . He was a reserve outfielder for a horrible ‘94 Mets team. He didn’t play all that well, but he became a fan favorite .
New York Mets released Duaner Sanchez on March 10, 2009. Lets face it , Duaner was never the same after that car accident in ’06 , in ’07he came into spring training out of shape and proceeded to reinjure his shoulder. And by the time spring training ’09 came along he was not the dominant reliever he once was. He later signed with the San Diego Padres , where he was released two months later.
And don’t forget , there are just 26Â Dave Kingman days until the Mets open the 2010 season against the Florida Marlins at Citi Field.
57 comments
darknova306
3/10/2010-6:15am at 6:15 am (UTC -4)
Sigh… this is why I wish there was no media coverage of ST sometimes. Our starters have poor first ST outings, and suddenly we need to go find 5 guys to bring in for a new rotation. It was irritating seeing so much whining about Santana’s outing on Twitter yesterday. People need to f*&$ing relax. Johan Santana is an elite pitcher, he will be fine and win between 16 and 22 games depending on how tons of variables shake out. The only thing to have looked for yesterday was how he said his arm felt afterward.
Rusty says it perfectly:
“But anyone who thought Johan Santana in his first appearance since mid August was going to be dominant and show no signs of rust needs to have their heads examined.”
rustyjr
3/10/2010-6:37am at 6:37 am (UTC -4)
i know man it i found it frustrating listening to both innings on my ipod mlb atbat 2010 – the astros guys are so plain it was killing me – then the matsui homer made me feel ugh – but then u have to put it in perspective that it is only a s.t game and he was working on his mechanics – if this was may 9th and he was pitching the same way – then id be worried
btw dark u going to opening day?
darknova306
3/10/2010-7:01am at 7:01 am (UTC -4)
I’ll be there opening day. When I get there I’ll probably be headed straight for the team store to pick up a new player shirt, otherwise I should be congregating around the beer taps in RF.
rustyjr
3/10/2010-7:21am at 7:21 am (UTC -4)
lol well i was thinking about all of us that show up to meet by either the left field entrance or the rotunda – thoughts?
CaseStreet
3/10/2010-10:09am at 10:09 am (UTC -4)
rotunda is a bad idea, too crowded, especially on Opening Day
ceetar
3/10/2010-7:30am at 7:30 am (UTC -4)
awesome beer taps. mmm, beer taps.
I’ll be there, I’ll probably tag along with the MetsPolice Blue Cap Army. check out the Museum, McFadden’s, etc.
stickguy
3/10/2010-7:27am at 7:27 am (UTC -4)
I would like to go again this year, but a lack of tickets is a minor issue.
You should have an outside meeting area for early birds (aka tailgaters), and something inside for those that arrive late, or do not care to hang out in the concrete jungle.
metsfan4decades
3/10/2010-7:35am at 7:35 am (UTC -4)
Wish I was going to opening day but it’s not to be. I’ll have a seat front row center in front of my TV.
Here’s to a great home opener with Johan for all of us.
Kingman 26
3/10/2010-7:49am at 7:49 am (UTC -4)
Ah, 26 Kingman days till the opener.
That has a damn fine sound to it!
trs86
3/10/2010-7:54am at 7:54 am (UTC -4)
I can’t wait until it’s 1 Luis Castillo to opening day.
Or even better 0 Rey Ordonez to opening day.
ceetar
3/10/2010-8:07am at 8:07 am (UTC -4)
Gotta go Mookie over Luis I think.
trs86
3/10/2010-8:12am at 8:12 am (UTC -4)
Went current.
ceetar
3/10/2010-8:40am at 8:40 am (UTC -4)
Anderson Hernandez used to wear 1 and is ‘current’ sorta. heh.
trs86
3/10/2010-8:43am at 8:43 am (UTC -4)
Uh, then I for sure pick Castillo.
ceetar
3/10/2010-8:48am at 8:48 am (UTC -4)
how about Bobby Valentine the player?
trs86
3/10/2010-9:01am at 9:01 am (UTC -4)
LOL, I don’t remember that.
ceetar
3/10/2010-9:04am at 9:04 am (UTC -4)
me neither. looked up #1 on Mets by the Numbers.
njstuckintx
3/10/2010-8:54am at 8:54 am (UTC -4)
What’s with Johan in the Minny Hat?
DNDJohan aka kistics
3/10/2010-9:40am at 9:40 am (UTC -4)
I said the same thing. LOL
trs86
3/10/2010-9:02am at 9:02 am (UTC -4)
Interesting comment. Who knows if it’s true:
Angels manager of baseball operations Tory Hernandez, who says the impact of John Lackey’s departure is “very minor.” Hernandez adds that the club never considered offering a contract that included long-term medical precautions like the Red Sox did.
Kingman 26
3/10/2010-9:10am at 9:10 am (UTC -4)
Well, if true, yet another feather in Omar’s offseason cap.
If true, then, when performance and/or money and/or injury issues were considered, there was NOT ONE free agent starter worth signing.
njstuckintx
3/10/2010-9:17am at 9:17 am (UTC -4)
Other than the soap opera, I do think Omar had a very good off season. If he swings a #2 by the end of spring training, then he had to be in the top 3-5 for best offseasons. I don’t think he will and it will end up being a midseason trade. Either way, I am a great deal happier with the current roster than I was with last years at the start of the ’09 season.
Kingman 26
3/10/2010-9:30am at 9:30 am (UTC -4)
Agreed all around, and by not trading prospects for someone like Cincy’s crappy starters or signing CRAP like Pineiro or true garbage like Marquis, Omar has millions to spend and a farm system whose top handful of prospects’ value literally grows by the hour this spring.
Again, 2010 is a crapshoot to some extent due to The Axis of Uncertainty of Ollie/Pelf/Maine, but this team is lined up beautifully for 2011 and beyond.
DNDJohan aka kistics
3/10/2010-9:19am at 9:19 am (UTC -4)
Well the BoSox seemed to have similar opinion about Bay. I think they are just trying to cover their rear end.
DNDJohan aka kistics
3/10/2010-9:39am at 9:39 am (UTC -4)
Ok here I go again.
I know some of you say that this whole Reyes thing is a non-story and we shouldn’t really care about it. True. I could careless whether Reyes has the thyroid problem or not as long as he’s the starting SS come opening day.
But the issue here is not Reyes and his thyroid problems. The issue here is how the Mets organization have been handling these kinds of issues all year last year and this year too.
Maybe it’s the language barrier that the Hispanic players have. Maybe it’s the PR people that’s screwing up. Maybe it’s the medical staff. Or maybe it’s just an organization issue in general. One thing is clear. There is an image problem here. Just see what has happened.
’08 Season
- Church’s concussion problem.
’09 Season
- Reyes has a leg problem and is only out for couple days. Maybe a week, Maybe couple weeks. We think it’s calf or knee or hamstring. Maybe he can come back in a month with rehab. Now he’s injured again. Perhaps we should try the surgery.
- Beltran has a bone bruise. It won’t get any worse, so if he can play, he’ll play. Well actually the bone bruise got worse. He’s out for extended period. But he’ll be fine next season.
- Ollie has a mysterious knee injury all of sudden. Perhaps we should examine his head for his knee injury.
- Adam Rubin wants a job with the Mets. And Omar regrets, but does not regret, but does regret, but does not regret saying that.
Offseason
- Beltran all of sudden has a surgery and could be out till May/June. The team had no knowledge. Well maybe they did. Maybe not. He said, she said.
- KRod has a pink eye diagnosed by Ed Coleman. But the doctors say otherwise. Or maybe he does have pink eye.
- This whole Reyes debacle.
Maybe I’m over-reacting. But what do you guys think? Am I the only one saying that there’s an issue here?
Perhaps this issue does not impact the players and the product on the field. Perhaps it will all go away once the Mets start winning. But if I were Wilpons, I would be furious.
trs86
3/10/2010-10:06am at 10:06 am (UTC -4)
You are over-reacting but the Mets bungling each of these has caused you, me and others to overreact.
njstuckintx
3/10/2010-10:07am at 10:07 am (UTC -4)
All teams have injury issues. I have to agree with what TRS stated above. If the PR was better and all the little details coming piecemeal weren’t released as they are, maybe we could be given a story that is consistent and does not alter every 15 mins, we’d have a great deal more faith in what is present to us, the fans. It’s that lack of trust that starts to invade all our thoughts, our medical staff, our GM, our players abilities, etc. etc.
I see bad management every day (i love my job… i love my job… serenity now… serenity now…) and there is nothing more crippling to morale and individual initiative than poor leadership. I think the Mets do a pretty good job of showing that to all. As a worker in that type of environment, it blows me away that my management team can’t see the issues that everyone else is seeing. Same thing I apply to the Wilpons, PR, Management… What will it actually take for them to go, “Um, maybe were going at this wrong”.
trs86
3/10/2010-10:10am at 10:10 am (UTC -4)
Yeah, I just wonder if they are still in the blaming stage and blaming the media instead of looking at themselves.
ceetar
3/10/2010-10:15am at 10:15 am (UTC -4)
The media gets plenty of the blame.
However, just cause the other guy is screwing up doesn’t mean you aren’t. In fact, the other guy screwing up is only making your own screw ups worse.
trs86
3/10/2010-10:19am at 10:19 am (UTC -4)
Agreed. As a coach I compare this to complaining about the referee. Stop whining. The referee did not cause the problem, you did by not taking them out of the decision to start with.
DNDJohan aka kistics
3/10/2010-10:21am at 10:21 am (UTC -4)
Yes. The media is partly blame for this crap. But look what the Yankees and RedSox are doing. They are scrutinized just as much as the Mets if not more. Why is it that they are doing just fine and are well respected clubs where our beloved team is a joke of the league?
trs86
3/10/2010-10:30am at 10:30 am (UTC -4)
Because they are winning. LOL. But seriously it’s because there is a disconnect between the Mets and the media.
DNDJohan aka kistics
3/10/2010-10:37am at 10:37 am (UTC -4)
And who’s fault is that? You just cannot simply blame the media for everything that went wrong.
trs86
3/10/2010-10:39am at 10:39 am (UTC -4)
Obviously.
DNDJohan aka kistics
3/10/2010-10:40am at 10:40 am (UTC -4)
Btw, you and I are playing each other 1st week of the season.
Get ready sucka!
ceetar
3/10/2010-10:43am at 10:43 am (UTC -4)
On the other hand, the media is fast becoming a little redundant with twitter and blogs and the Internet. They are no longer the only or best conduit from the Mets to the fans. The Mets need to get a twitter account together and deal with how they get the message out to the fans, not how they present it to the media.
Put a scrolling message on SNY, or a broadcast, put it on Mets.com, tweet the links. Tada. Everything the media says is now speculation. They’re drawing from teh same pool of info we are, and if they want to expand it they actually have to do research/work and call agents, etc.
In fact, this may warrant a longer thought out post on how the Mets should go about things.
DNDJohan aka kistics
3/10/2010-10:17am at 10:17 am (UTC -4)
My only concern is that this series of silliness will continue through 2010 season and has impact on players’ performances. How can we trust the Mets organization to do the right thing when it comes to handling players. Maybe they will piss off yet another player like Reyes or Johan. Maybe Johan or Reyes demands a trade. Who knows what will happen at this pace?
trs86
3/10/2010-10:28am at 10:28 am (UTC -4)
OK so that’s where I think you are overreacting. I think that it’s impact on players will be minimal.
DNDJohan aka kistics
3/10/2010-10:35am at 10:35 am (UTC -4)
You are probably right, but I’m just saying that there are enough things going on with this ball club. We don’t need any more issue stirred up just because of managerial incompetency.
njstuckintx
3/10/2010-10:30am at 10:30 am (UTC -4)
I don’t think we’ll see the “trade me” demand. We’ll most likely see an environment that outsiders will not want to be a part of unless they are compensated extremely well. (i think we actually have that now.) Anyone’s job gets a tad easier as the salary levels increase. As such, you’ll get more and more people who are more concerned with the green backs coming to the mets and less concerned about winning. I am not saying that they have no concerns about winning at all, I’m just saying no one will be taking a home town discount to make it work in NY.
trs86
3/10/2010-10:37am at 10:37 am (UTC -4)
I don’t think we have that right now at all. Look at a lot of the lesser names that chose the Mets not because of money. Calero? Jacobs? Barajas, etc. You got Molina still whining because the Mets did not sign him.
DNDJohan aka kistics
3/10/2010-10:39am at 10:39 am (UTC -4)
But that can affect the trade market. There could be a situation where a player has to waive his no-trade clause, but doesn’t want to come to the Mets because he does not trust the Mets organization caused by all this crap.
trs86
3/10/2010-10:48am at 10:48 am (UTC -4)
But again we have no evidence that so far any player does not want to come to the Mets because of issues.
Pineiro and Molina were both offended the Mets did NOT up their offers and try and get them.
DNDJohan aka kistics
3/10/2010-10:56am at 10:56 am (UTC -4)
Say if you are a major star that the Mets are trying to pursue. The only way to get him is if he waives his NTC. He sees what the Mets have done with Beltran and now with Reyes (although to lesser degree), what would he think?
trs86
3/10/2010-11:28am at 11:28 am (UTC -4)
Who knows? Right now we have nothing to say they would not. If we are winning they will want to come here.
njstuckintx
3/10/2010-10:48am at 10:48 am (UTC -4)
Where exactly were those players going to go? It’s not like there were multiple suitors banging down their doors.
If the NY Mets were a wonderful location to play, environment wise, I’m sure Lackey would have at least entertained some offers before jumping to the Sox or others who would/could demand a trade would be like “i want to go THERE!”. My statement was more geared towards the bigger named guys. For the Scrubs, utility guys, 23rd-25th men on the roster, hanger’s on, they will take what they can get, no matter where that may be.
trs86
3/10/2010-11:27am at 11:27 am (UTC -4)
I just don’t see it. Perhaps the Mets let Lackey know right away they were not going 5 years so he took the one that would. Just because a player might prefer another team over the Mets does not mean it’s because of something they did.
stickguy
3/10/2010-12:05pm at 12:05 pm (UTC -4)
FOr many reasons, I hope the wheels come off the Phillies bus soon.
but a great side benefit? Halladay was so hell bent on playing in Philly. and if a few key injuries hit, and the team folds, and the fans remember they are philly fans, he can experience the “real” philly experience!
metsfan4decades
3/10/2010-10:57am at 10:57 am (UTC -4)
LOL – ‘KRod has pin eye diagnosed by Ed Coleman’.
That about sums up our wonderful PR group…..
metsfan4decades
3/10/2010-10:58am at 10:58 am (UTC -4)
oops – ‘pink’
trs86
3/10/2010-10:11am at 10:11 am (UTC -4)
“We’re waiting for the final results tomorrow,†Greenberg said from Arizona, “but all indications are that it’s the most minimal case of hyperthyroidism possible. The doctor was very pleased and so is Jose.â€
CaseStreet
3/10/2010-10:14am at 10:14 am (UTC -4)
I should’ve bought tix during the presale, but figured I had time. Unfortunately by Friday, only the Caesar’s Club tix were available. I’m hoping tix prices will go down on stubhub. If so, I’ll be around the Beer Island.
GravediggerHebner
3/10/2010-11:30am at 11:30 am (UTC -4)
I enjoy singing Jay Ferguson’s “Thunder Island” while inserting the phrase “Beer Island.”
CaseStreet
3/10/2010-10:24am at 10:24 am (UTC -4)
Can we all agree that Jay Horowitz needs to be fired? I’m sure he did his job well in the 70s but it’s time to send this guy into retirement.
metsfan4decades
3/10/2010-11:00am at 11:00 am (UTC -4)
I’m not sure Jay is the problem. Is he really the head PR guy on all things Mets?
I’ve never seen him connected to any other story regarding injury or health. To me, it’s more on Omar to be coordinating this. And could be he’s somehow handcuffing Jay by not keeping him in the loop.
Who knows? Just speculating….
ceetar
3/10/2010-11:05am at 11:05 am (UTC -4)
I think Jay is ‘media relations’ i.e. setting up interviews, getting the clubhouse ready, things of that nature. Don’t think he issues press releases or spins anything.
CaseStreet
3/10/2010-11:52am at 11:52 am (UTC -4)
Then they should hire a PR guy or gal.