" You know he's right !"
I wish I could say last night was a special game for us Mets fans, but as we all have come to know and expect – When Mike Pelfrey toes the mound expect major chaos to to ensue !
That is not to say that there were not any bright spots to be had. Lucas Duda once again showed that his bat belongs in this line up ( although his outfield defense says otherwise), Angel Pagan went 3-4 in efforts to secure a contract for next season ( and to try to quiet the whispers of the possibility that he may be non-tendered after the season ends).
But the real focus was probably on the most important player in the Mets organization. No I am not talking about either Wright or Reyes , I am talking about Sandy Alderson. Yes Sandy Alderson traveled with the team to St Louis yesterday and he even sat in the booth for an inning to give a quasi state of the team address to SNY broadcasters Gary Cohen and Ron Darling . Sandy answered both Gary and Ron’s questions in an honest, de facto manner which hearkened back to his days as a marine. He didn’t hem and haw like his predecessor did, and he even found some space for levity when he called October ” Jose Reyes Month” .
He admitted that re-signing Jose was a priority, even though he – as well as the Mets coaching staff feels that Ruben Tejada is ready to be a full time player. He was forthcoming with the fact that he wasn’t sure if there was an in house candidate to fill the closers role next season as well as saying he expects major revisions to the Mets outfield dimensions to take place this off season. He pretty much even admitted that he expects that with the exception of Johan Santana’s return that the starting rotation may stay unchanged.
I know that I have been called a Alderson shill by some people, but if I am so be it. We knew coming into this season that there were some players who more than likely would be gone by the time the season was out ( Beltran, Rodriguez, Perez and Castillo). We knew that Sandy was hamstrung by a bloated payroll and financial restrictions (you know Wilpon’s – possible financial ruin yadda yadda yadda….) . But he soldiered on and he tried to structure a team within the confines of the budget that he had. The team started out flat in April, but they recovered to play some of the grittiest and exciting possible – until late August hit , and the team nose dived.
I keep comparing Alderson to Frank Cashen, and I will keep on doing that because that is who Alderson most reminds me of. He is not afraid to trade the fan favorite in order to get younger players with a higher potential ( see Lee Mazzilli for Ron Darling and Walt Terrell). He knows that sometimes the most unpopular decision is most likely the best decision, that why it would not surprise me if either lets Jose Reyes walks – or trades David Wright. I admit that I am not fond of either of these scenarios, but if it is what will help this team rebound from its recent decline faster – so be it.
But the one thing that you have to take from his interview last night is that Sandy is always watching and evaluating this team. He wants to make this a winning franchise once again- not because he is a fan – but because it is his job !
And with that said…. HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!!!
Mets alumni celebrating a birthday today includes:
Today would have marked the 98th birthday of original Mets Public Relations Director,Tom Meany (1903).
Reserve outfielder from the ’92 season, D. J. Dozier is 46 (1965). William Henry “D.J” Dozier was the first – and to my knowledge only Mets player to ever play both professional baseball and football. He was a running back for the Minnesota Vikings from ’87-’91 and the Detroit Lions for the ’91 season before committing himself to the Mets full time.
Met for a moment, utility infielder, Joaquin Arias is 27 (1984). Yes he was part of Omar Minaya’s salary dump deal which saw Jeff Francoeur shipped off to the American League Champion Texas Rangers. Not that I was the biggest “Frenchie” fan, but couldn’t we have done better than a player who in 22 games with the Mets finished with a batting average of .200 with 4 RBIs ?
Also one of the biggest Mets fans that I know – my big sister Alison Overholser was born on this date. I would tell you the year, but then I most likely would never be able to publish this column ever again since I would cease to exist. ( Happy Birthday ALI!)
The New York Mets sold the contract of pitcher, Dock Ellis to the Pittsburgh Pirates on September 21, 1979.Dock was one of the best pitchers in baseball from the early to mid ’70′s, he even admitted that he threw a no-hitter while under the influence of L.S.D. But by the time he came to the Mets he was a mere shell of the pitcher he once was. In his lone half season as a Met, Ellis had a record of 3-7 (pitching primarily as a starter) with a E.R.A of 6.04. He gave up 9 homers and total of 60 runs 57 of which were earned.
Mo Vaughn is thinking about opening his own dinner theater in Branson Missouri. He plans on calling it ” Mo Vaughn’s Music and Mexican Food Revue” !!! He has even secured a trademark for the name !
Oh and happy birthday wishes go out to blogger in arms ” The Crazy Mets Fan” !!!
Please visit his blog by clicking here
6 comments
Anonymous
9/21/2011-11:12am at 11:12 am (UTC -4)
Should be an interesting off season. A number of big holes to fill, and a lot of excess MiL talent to deal with (guys hitting rule 5 or 40 man ceilings). So, I expect (hope?) for this to be a much more active off season. With hopefully something exciting happening!
Anonymous
9/21/2011-12:24pm at 12:24 pm (UTC -4)
Agreed. I cannot see this as anything but a fairly “trade heavy” offseason. ideally they can turn some of the multitude of 2B prospects (Havens aside) into either higher ceiling lower level prospects to free up rule 5/40 man issues or upgrade the holes of C, CF (yeah, i think it’s a hole), BP or SP.
SaltyGary
9/21/2011-1:07pm at 1:07 pm (UTC -4)
I turned it on in time to catch his discussion about the dimensions. He essentially said IF they do anything it will be major changes.
It was also great to see Pelf up to his old tricks, I almost forgot how crappy he was.
MetsFan4Decades
9/21/2011-1:41pm at 1:41 pm (UTC -4)
As bad as Pelfrey was, the BP was worse.
For anyone that was listening last night Sandy pretty much did insinuate that Pelf would be back. He also said that given the way Murph hits, you almost have to find a position for him to be in the lineup everyday. So expect Murph back as well.
I think they’ll make an honest effort to sign Jose. What they won’t do is outbid every GM out there who might throw multitudes of $$ and years at him. Think anyone being realistic realizes this too. As I want Jose back, I can only hope it’s a fair offer and Jose really does want to stay here.
SaltyGary
9/21/2011-1:47pm at 1:47 pm (UTC -4)
If they don’t make any major upgrades offensively (and I don’t expect this to happen) then Murph has to be in the lineup every day. I have never been one of the folks on the Murph train over the years but he won his spot more than any other youngster.
And as much as Pelf makes me crazy, I am resigned to the fact that he has to stay one more year. For the same cost you will only get different garbage on free agency. 2013 should see some new faces and if Pelf continues to demonstrate that he has no more growth potential then he goes.
MetsFan4Decades
9/21/2011-1:45pm at 1:45 pm (UTC -4)
Said this on a previous post but they really need everyone back healthy and ready to go next year. Pitching woes aside, this piece meal of a team in any given month has really hurt. Mets have the record for LOB this year. They’re very good at getting the hits and walks to get on but they just can’t keep it moving. Part of that is no heavy HR or power hitters on the team. Maybe Ike and/or Duda will change that next year. Murph’s first half bat has been missed as well.
Pretty sad that the RBI total leader on this team is going to wind up being the guy they traded mid season. Carlos had 66 RBIs and the next closest on the team right now is in the low 50s. That’s just beyond poor.