Firsts

Though it wasn't the first home run hit by a professional baseball player at Citi Field, and wasn't even the first home run of the night, the home run that will stick in Mets fan's memories-- that will stick in my memory-- is David Wright's first home run by a Met in the new stadium. This is partially because it was the first time that the new home run apple rose for a Mets homer (it looks too new; I miss the paper-mache look of the old apple already), but mostly because David Wright is so much the icon for the team already, it was almost preordained that he'd hit that shot. It was a Daryl Strawberry-ish swing that dug that ball out and sent it out of the park, which seemed fitting for a night in which Tom Seaver threw out the first ball to Mike Piazza.

A good night for memories in many ways, but with the loss, it wasn't as good as it could have been. On the bright side, this means I have a real chance of being there for the first win at Citi Field on Wednesday night, and it's hard to be sorry about that.

Opening Night at Citi Field

Game 7: Padres 6, Mets 5
3-4 for the season

It was opening night at Citi Field, and not unlike Citigroup's performance in the last year, the Mets failed to deliver. Pelfrey was wild, and while he settled down after an inning when that was a problem in Cincinnati, he didn't so much settle down tonight. Really, though, it was the lack of hitting that hurt the home team tonight, combined with an unfortunate balk from Pedro Feliciano, the only survivor of last year's Mets bullpen. The hitting hasn't been there to back up the pitching so far, and the pitching hasn't been as good as it can be. Never the less, I can't get too upset about the results of the first seven games of the season; those teams that are hot in April are rarely hot in September.

It must have been disappointing for the fans at the Field tonight, but from where I sat (I didn't see any of the game until the 5th inning), it was sort of like watching the Mets lose away from home, though they were wearing the home whites tonight. That ballpark, no matter how blue and orange, just doesn't feel like home yet. I'm sure that many of the fans that were there tonight felt the same way; for a good portion of the game, the seats were pretty empty, while the lines at the food stands and other attractions were long.

Alexis and I are going to the next game, on Wednesday night, and I have to admit that I'm feeling strange about it; on the one hand, I want to sit and enjoy the sublime pleasure of a baseball game in a stadium built for baseball, but on the other, I want to explore everything the new stadium has to offer. I think the answer might be to get there ridiculously early, walk around the place to get a sense of direction, perhaps sample some of the amazing food options available to me, see the view from all the public areas of the Field. I expect it will be both exciting and disorienting; happily, that's a combination I've learned to live with quite well in the last half-year.

Mazal tov to the Santanas!!

Johan isn't in Queens tonight for the opening of Citi Field, but for good reason; he's in Miami with his wife, who delivered a son today. Felicidades a su hijo nuevo, los Santanas!

Is LIRR ridership really that dumb?

On the schedules page for the Long Island Railroad, the following box appears:




Really?! A Mets fan who has trouble figuring that out probably shouldn't be allowed out of the house, much less on the train.

Were you nervous?

Game 2: Mets 9, Reds 7
2-0 for the season

One of my favorite things about baseball is that one day, you'll have a 2-1 game with great fielding and in which the bullpen is nearly perfect and the next, you'll have a 9-7 nail-biter complete with terrible fielding all around (though more for the Reds than for the Mets, as is reflected in the final score), the bullpen giving up three runs, and Frankie Rodriguez loading the bases before getting the last out. The rules are always the same in baseball, but the outcomes are not as predictable as statistics suggest they might be; that's why every game is its own pleasure to watch.

I was working during the opening game, which ran over its assigned bloc of time for DVR recorders, robbing me of the chance to see JJ Putz and KRod in their first innings as Mets-- so I was particularly looking forward to their innings last night. It was cold and dry in Cinci during the game, making the ball hard to grip, and that showed; all of the pitchers struggled with control throughout the game. Pelfrey couldn't find the strike zone in the first inning, Putz allowed a run in the 8th to bring the lead down to two runs, and Rodriguez allowed three base runners in the 9th.

Interestingly, I never felt all that nervous, even in the 9th. Particularly in the 9th, because KRod's confidence is so strong it seeps through the television screen and into the living room. Call it the confidence of a burglar, or just call it balls of steel; the man never looked nervous, never seemed to consider that he'd give it up, oozed confidence even with a man on each of the bases behind him. I followed his lead, and was rewarded.

Today is Oliver Perez's first game, and it looks as though it's going to be a sunny, warm-ish day in southern Ohio for the afternoon game. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Ollie having his stuff when he takes the mound.

A nearly perfect day

Game 1: Mets 2, Reds 1
1-0 for the season

Did you know that the Mets have, by far, the best opening day record in baseball? They've won nearly 70% of their opening days. Not that this matters in any way, but it's the kind of fun fact that gets bandied around all over the place during the first game of the season.

It was an awful day in Cincinnati; rain, cold, wind, looked like snow-- but it was a good game. The Mets stranded more runners than I'll ever be comfortable with, but Johan threw 99 pitches and held the Reds to one run on three hits, and then it was time for the bullpen. The bullpen, which is responsible for so many blown leads last year I stopped counting at the All-Star break. But it's a new bullpen this year, one that is completely capable of holding a one-run lead for 3 and 1/3 innings, which they did.

Also, the at-bat that produced Daniel Murphy's first hit and home-run of the season? Poetry. Nine pitches, and the kid just wasn't going to hit it fare until he got his pitch. He reminded me of Keith Hernandez up there; at the plate with a plan. I'm really looking forward to watching Murphy develop over this year.

And when it was all over, the Yankee's humiliation in Baltimore was only just beginning. April has arrived, and I'm feeling fortified.

Other sports are games. Baseball is love.

There was a major league baseball game in Philadelphia today, played between the Phillies and the Atlanta Braves. I found myself up against a strange set of feelings; there was baseball being played for real, but I didn't want either team to win. Never the less, by the time I got home, Alexis and I wanted nothing more than to watch the remaining innings of the game.

We're both exhausted, not sleeping well, and probably should have been in bed by the time the 8th inning rolled around. But there was nothing in the world either of us wanted to do more than watch that game. I have strongly negative feelings about both the teams on the field tonight, but watching them there, playing their game, their love-- that was magical. And in the end, it's easy to look at the result of tonight's game this way: we're a half a game up on the Phillies going into tomorrow's game. It's more a loss for Philadelphia than it is a win for Atlanta in mine eyes.

There was some super-fine pitching going on there, too, even if I do hate Derek Lowe.

Joss Wheedon, Mets Fan

This week's Dollhouse (the new show from the creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer) included a couple of overt shout-outs to the '86 Mets and to the team in general. Joss has been a hero of mine for 10 years now, but this? It's too much.

Me too, Jerry. Me too.

"I'm excited," Manuel said. "We're healthy. We're looking forward to it. We can't wait to get going."

--on the beginning of the season... tomorrow!

Sheffield.

As a baseball sage said today, who would you rather have off the bench, Gary Sheffield or Marlon Anderson? He can platoon with Delgado at first and in both of the corners of the outfield. He's a righty. You don't want 30 more homers this year?

In those terms, and in terms of the money, this is the wisest choice that Omar has made this year.

Of course, he makes me nervous. But I think that if Sheff doesn't produce, he'll be cut. I'm feeling good about this move.

go read this now

Maybe when I've been blogging about the Mets for years, I'll be able to be as eloquent as Greg at Faith and Fear. Maybe. In the meantime, he's captured how I feel so well in this post that I'm just going to read it again instead of try to explain how I feel today.

Well, beat the drum, and hold the phone...

I'm so ready for baseball season it's become a little embarrassing; the preoccupation is so great that I found myself wearing one of my favorite Mets long-sleeve t's today, with chinos. I'm not the only one living in my apartment who feels this way; Alexis found herself watching Mets Classic games on SNY today, in lieu of the last spring training game (it was untelevised), just to tide herself over until the season begins on Monday.

Though we didn't land tickets to either of this weekend's exhibition games at Citi Field against the Red Sox, Alexis and I will still be at Willets Point this weekend. We're going on Sunday for Workout Day, when the guys will be on the field and the rest of us will be wandering the new stadium.

It's hard to believe, but my team is sleeping in their regular-season beds tonight, having flown up from Florida tonight in advance of the games at Citi this weekend. Though these are exhibition games, there is an air of excitement surrounding the first games that major-leaguers will play in the new ballpark, and I can't help but feel its breeze.

...the sun came out today
we're born again
there's new grass on the field...

merch

Growing up, I didn't wear much Mets merchandise. This is likely because my dad, the most committed Mets fan I knew growing up, only ever wore the Mets shoe laces I got him for Christmas one year.

When I lived in Los Angeles and went to Mets games in Chavez Ravine, I felt the need to wear something that designated me as a Mets fan in exile. This was almost a decade ago (wow), before the t-shirts specifically designed for women were anything but pink and icky, so I ended up with an ill-fitting men's t-shirt that just said METS across the chest. I still wear that shirt to sleep sometimes. I also bought a Mets cap before going to Israel for the first time, and am still sad that I seem to have lost it in one of my moves since.

As I've spent more time as a fan not living with my dad and with folks who do wear Mets merchandise, I've developed my own feelings about how I dress when I go to games. And I like the t-shirts and sweatshirt and hat that I have. The options for women have expanded, and there are a couple of brands that design t-shirts and outerwear that I really like. Plus, I have some orange t-shirts, which when combined with jeans are Mets colors, too.

But whoever designed the bikini took a big step over the line of taste.

the Sports Illustrated curse

It's bad enough that SI has tagged the New York Mets as the team to win the World Series this year. But then to put CC Sabathia, in all his pin-stripped glory, on the cover?! That's just sadistic.

baseball in Brooklyn

Here's a fun thought experiment that occurred to me while walking to the train today:

How would your loyalties be divided if National League baseball came back to Brooklyn?

I am too young to have my own memories of the Brooklyn Dodgers, but I was raised by Dodger fans, and so I feel a certain inherited longing for Ebbets Field. There is certainly a part of me that would feel a strong pull to root for an MLB team in Brooklyn, particularly now that I live here in the borough of our familial and baseball ancestors.

Never the less, I've been a Mets fan all my life. I think my friend Joe put it perfectly when he said, "I mean, they'd totally be my second favorite team..." Mine, too. Right after the Mets.

food at Citi Field

I'd love to tell you all about the food options at Citi Field, but my friend Matt already did, and did it better than I would.

Just to whet your appetite, here was Matt's view from work today:



I'm soooooooo jealous, and can't decide if it's more because of the view and being able to be at Citi, or because of the amazing food he got to sample. Either way, I'm grateful to Tamron for passing along the picture!

Boomball

This article in the current New York Magazine is all about how the Yankees look a lot like the image of New York that crashed last fall along with the American banking system. The article builds on a feeling about the Yanks that I've long held; they're the team that represents the richest, most outlandishly displayed wealth that is New York for many people who live here and even more who don't. There is a sense of entitlement that surrounds the Yankees and their fans, one that says that any loss is unjustified, and that a whole nine years without a pennant is beneath them. All in all, I don't like the way the Yankees personify New York.

My New York has as many Latinos on the field as Anglos (often more), a black man managing the team, and another Latino as GM. My New York is proud of its talent but not impressed by it. My New York is the one David Wright, Johan Santana, Ryan Church, and Brian Schneider are happy to call home. My New York is one in which Jose Reyes is as important to the future of the team as David Wright is. Yes, the Mets have a heavy payroll too. Never the less, the people who root for the Mets, and the people the Mets choose to employ, say a lot about the New York that is my home.

a week late

Usually, the MLB season starts this week. This season, it's starting a week later than usual, because of the WBC. I'm a WBC supporter (though I think there's a better time of the year to pay the classic than during spring training), but today I'm sweating that extra week. If holding my breath would make April 6th come sooner, I'd do it. Alexis was wearing her Mets hat when I got home last night, and I wore orange today; baseball season is clearly in the air in Brooklyn.

Like any good Mets fan, I'm a bit concerned about pitching, but like any good baseball fan, I'm dismissing spring training results as any sort of predictor for how even the beginning of the season will unfold. It's simply not predictive.

It's nice to have a manager who thinks the way I do; today in Port St. Lucie, Jerry said this: "The Major Leagues will tell you," Manuel said. "Spring Training just won't."

The Baseball Calendar

Last week, Alexis and I did the baseball calendar... which meant she read me the dates we have tickets to games, and I put them in our calendar. Three days ago, she told me that the Brooklyn Cyclones (a Mets farm club) were having a "Baracklyn Cyclones" game, and that she'd gotten us tickets.

And then she told me about the bobble-head. I have the best roommate ever, and my president isn't half-bad, either.

another sign of spring

this one courtesy of the LIRR:

I'm not sure how I feel about the name "Mets - Willets Point" for either the subway or railroad station at the new park. It makes perfect sense that the MTA wasn't going to put Citigroup's name all over their signage as long as Citi wasn't paying for it, but I don't really like the choice. It lacks... it lacks poetry.

Why not just call it Willets Point? We all know where to go to find the stadium the Mets play in, don't we?

responding to a prompt

I was asked a while back to post some thoughts about ARod's most recent debacle. I haven't, mostly because I don't have any original thoughts about *this* debacle. I think the same of Rodriguez now as I did before I knew he did steroids: this is a teenager in an extraordinarily talented adult's body. He's been treated as though rules don't apply to him for most of his life, because of that talent. It's not at all surprising that he took drugs when everyone else was, too.

Though I won't actually say that I feel badly for ARod, I do recognize in him a deeply talented, deeply hurting guy. He wants to be liked and has no idea how to go about doing that-- his social instincts are all off, and yet he follows them. For me, the truly sad part is that he would have been among the best baseball players ever without drugs. He's tainted that legacy, which is too bad-- because in the end, baseball talent may be all the man has.

the last thing I ever thought I'd hear on ESPN

David Wright drove in Jimmy Rollins and Derek Jeter was the first one out there patting David Wright on the helmet... and Jeter's locker was put between the two so they wouldn't fight!

--Orel Hershiser on D.Wright's walk-off heroics to get the USA to the semi's of the WBC.

Why I don't play fantasy baseball

there's a whole long-winded version of the answer to that question, and then there's this YouTube video, which pretty much says it all.






Thanks, Dan, for the link that nearly made me choke on my coffee from the laughing!

That's Our David

this article, from Marty Noble, nearly made me cry.

I'm in the middle of a post about the USA-Puerto Rico game, but I didn't want to delay in expressing how awesome, in the classic sense of the word, it was to see David Wright hit the walk-off single for the USA on Tuesday night. It had never occurred to me that I'd want to root for team USA; I'm far to into Latin baseball to have considered it, really. But that was David Wright, and he's playing 81 games in Queens this year. He's ours... and he was the hero. There was a dog-pile of major-leaguers on the field on top of Wright in March. It was the sort of sight that makes a baseball fan, and a Mets fan, feel all kinds of things we're not used to feeling in March.

I loved every second of it.

Puerto Rico vs. USA

Remember when I said that I'm not watching the WBC?

That ended last night, when USA had a must-win game against Puerto Rico. It was straight up weird watching David Wright up against a team with los Carlos (Beltran and Delgado). Though I found myself rooting for PR for most of the night, I can't help but root for David Wright when he's playing. He's the face of my team, and he had a great night.

More than a great night. Wright had an heroic night. There was a dogpile on the field when he drove in the winning run against Puerto Rico, which is not something one is used to seeing in March. That kind of smile on David's face isn't something one is used to seeing in March. David getting an RBI by getting Jimmy Rollins across the plate and Derek Jeter starting the dogpile on Wright, because they're all playing for the same team? Surreal. Not something one expects to see, ever. In a winter of many inspiring moments, this was definitely among them. Perhaps it has something to do with what happened in our electoral politics this winter, perhaps it doesn't at all. But for me, the outpouring of love from a Yankee and Phillie to a guy who plays for the Mets was another moment when I felt proud of my country. It's a new one. I like it.

40/56

Johan Santana threw a few innings in an intra-team game (with the minor league kids) rather than make the trip to wherever the rest of the team went yesterday, and the title of this post is the fraction of his total pitches that he threw for strikes. 71%.

I know it wasn't against major league hitters, but damn. I hope Johan is feeling as good as he looks.

intel

from my friend who's initials are, incidentally, MLB:

just saw on NY1 Citigroup wasn't willing to fork money over for to the MTA, so that station isn't going to be named after Citi Field. It's instead going to be "Mets - Willets Point"

I guess it's good that Citigroup is saving money somewhere, and I'm actually kind of happy that it's just going to be named after the Mets. Maybe my favorite sign ever will still be there come opening day this year. 

Our new idea for re-naming Citi Field

Alexis had an idea that I like; given that Citigroup only exists because of the unreal amount of taxpayer money the bank has received in the last months, it should be named after the people who are paying for it: those of us who both pay taxes and buy tickets at the new field. The name could change daily, for as long as it takes to get through the whole roll. One day it would be Adam Field, the next Alexis Field, Andrew Field the next, etc. 

Why not?

a confession

I'm not watching the WBC.

I caught half an inning of Panama v. Puerto Rico on Saturday, and it looked fun, but... I just want it to be MLB time already. Or maybe it's just that the games are being played at inconvenient times for me, or that a game between Italy and Venezuela just isn't going to be interesting; it's going to be Venezuela beating Italy into the ground, which is exactly what happened.

Perhaps in the later rounds, when we're getting some good Republica Dominica vs. Japan action, I'll be more interested. Or maybe I'll still just want it to be time for MLB already.

giddy

I had the extreme pleasure of driving by Citi Field this evening with Alexis, who hadn't seen it in person since the last day of the the '08 season. Her bodily and voiced excitement at seeing the new field all lit up was awesome; I was so glad I was sitting next to her to experience it with her.

Only 26 days 'till we open in St. Louis; only 33 days 'till the new park. I'm giddy with anticipation.

from the 7

I took the 7 to Flushing today, and so went by the absence of Shea and the presence of Citi Field. I didn't have my camera with me and it was dark and rainy out, so these pictures aren't very good, but the sight had me standing in the window of the train looking from every angle I could see.



















It says Lets Go Mets above the big screen, below the big Citi Field sign. What do we call that screen now? It's not DiamondVision anymore.




















Of course, we might not be calling it Citi Field for long, either. Perhaps it'll be re-named appropriately, as Taxpayer Field.





















That's where Shea was. It's rubble.





















More of the garbage heap that used to be Shea Stadium.



The signs on the subway haven't been changed yet; they still all say Willets Point-- Shea Stadium. Perhaps the MTA didn't want to commit to Citi before they're sure it'll still exist on Opening Day?

Spring is in the window

spotted on Flatbush Ave, downtown Brooklyn today:


Just 28 days to go.

30 days

...until opening day.

I've been telling myself all winter that all I really needed to do was make it to baseball season again. It's been a horrible winter for all kinds of reasons, and there were times in December, January and February when I wasn't sure I'd make it to the beginning of April, or be able to look forward to the season once March inevitably arrived.

I've made it six months. 30 days is nothing. And I AM looking forward with great anticipation to the season. Plus, I've got the WBC to tide me over!

spring training games

The day before 10 of the Mets' major leaguers left to play in the World Baseball Classic, they shellacked the Astros 13-1 in Port St. Lucie. The day after 10 of the Mets major leaguers went off to play for their countries, St. Louis (including Albert Pujols, who apparently feels no particular national pride in wherever it is he comes from) killed the Mets 15-4, and the lowly Washington Nationals beat the Mets B-Team 6-4 the next day. The Mets, however, managed to beat the Italian WBC 3-2 team on Thursday, and the Cardinals 5-6 on Friday. So maybe it won't be nothing but mis-matches until the guys playing in the WBC get back to Florida.

I hate to say it, but I'm willing to bet that Wright and Putz (both playing for the US) will be the first to return to spring training after they're eliminated from the tournament.

16 players

That's the number of men who left camp this week to go play in the World Baseball Classic. Though many-- six, to be exact--are minor-leaguers, pretty much every guy who really hits for the Mets has gone: Wright, Reyes, Delgado, and Beltran are playing for the USA, Republica Dominica and Puerto Rico, respectively. Both our closers, Putz and KRod, will also be playing for their countries in the Classic.

I'm a WBC supporter, and one of the things I love about the current incarnation of the Mets is how well it represents the diversity of the floor, neighborhood, building, and city I grew up in. The city has changed a lot, but my parents' building has not, and so as I said in an earlier post, it would feel totally natural to me to root either for the Dominican, Puerto Rican or Puerto Rican teams in the classic.

Funny, I never considered rooting for Team USA.

Never the less, the Mets have sent more men to the Classic than any other team in Baseball, and more with major league contracts, guaranteed to make the team, than any other team by far. The Red Sox, who are sending fifteen players to the WBC (the closest number to the Mets' sixteen), only 5 of them have major league contracts.

It follows that the Mets have more on the line in the WBC than any other team in baseball.

Pray to the deity of your choice for no injuries.

with my own eyes

I took the train to Manhasset today, which is the Port Washington line, the one that goes to Sh... Citi Field. So I strained to see it from every angle possible from the train, and I have to say, it's a beautiful park. I couldn't be more looking forward to going to games there.

But.

Shea really isn't there anymore. I said a few days ago that it would take me seeing it with my own eyes to believe it, though I said at the time that it would be when I first got off the train to go to Citi Field that it really hit me that Shea was gone. I was obviously wrong about the second part, because the lack of Shea made me a little teary-eyed.

I'll miss you, old girl.

Go Mac!!

Warning: this post has only tangential, at best, relation to the Mets.

My sister's boyfriend (hereafter referred to as MSB), like her, is a freshman at Macalester. He's a pitcher. For the last five months, he's been claiming that he's not that great a pitcher.

He was lying.

Today was opening day for Macalester Baseball, which happens to have taken place in the Metrodome, where the Twins play. That's awesome enough all on it's own, but MSB was
pretty sure he wasn't gonna play today. He was wrong. Not only was he the first freshman pitcher to take the mound, he threw two scoreless innings, including a strikeout on three pitches. That's MSB in his wind-up in the picture above.

What does all this have to do with the Mets? Nothing, really, except that I'm SO JEALOUS that my sister got to watch a baseball game live and in person today, and I'm really, really proud of MSB.

Go Mac Baseball!!


thanks to Molly Frean for the picture.

yet more WBC fun

It's pretty unusual for most of the regular starters to play full (or close to full) games this early in spring training. But because of the Classic, Manuel wants the guys who are going off to play for their teams as much work as possible before they go. Which means that in the first three games of the exhibition season, we've seen a very close approximation of the opening day lineup (or, at least the opening day fielding lineup-- I'm still betting that come April, Reyes will be back hitting lead-off).

Which just makes the exhibition games even more fun to watch.

the DH in spring training

According to the rules of spring training, the manager of the home team (National or American league) gets to decide whether the teams can use a DH. Jerry Manuel made it known early that he and Dan Wharthen had no intention of using the DH in spring training, for the most rational reason possible: National League pitchers have to hit. They need practice, too. So Jerry has been putting the pitcher in the #2 spot, to make sure the starter gets a chance at the plate.

Strictly speaking, a team using the DH has a giant advantage over a team letting their pitchers hit. The Mets have played three spring training games thus far. All were against teams using the DH, while the Mets let their pitchers go to the plate.

And we've won 2 of 3, losing the last one by just one run.

Rock on, Jerry.

Quotable Cohen

Don’t you think that it would make more sense for Axe Men to be sponsoring the batting line-up instead of the defensive line up?

--Gary Cohen, commenting on sponsorship.

When is the best time to play the World Baseball Classic?

According to MLB, I guess, in the middle of spring training.

I've written before about the hazards of playing the classic before the season starts, so I won't re-hash them here, except to say that I can't find a rational explanation for it on the internet. If you can, I'd appreciate the help with my terrible internet-searching skills.

Gary Cohen suggested on today's broadcast that perhaps a better time would be in the middle of the season; to lengthen the All-Star break to 8 days or so, and play the Classic then.

Keith pointed out the problem with that proposal: managers already don't want their best players playing for more than a few innings in the All-Star game, in particular they don't want their best pitchers to go more than 60 pitches (and would prefer fewer). This managerial position makes plenty of sense, given that there's still half a season to go after the break, and who wants to risk their best players in the middle of the season? Moreover, if it were the WBC rather than the All-Star game in the middle of the season, national pride is likely to make the players push themselves even harder than they would for the All-Star game. Johan Santana would never pitch more than two innings in an All-Star game, but for Venezuela? He'd go longer, and it would be silly to pretend otherwise.

The only thing I really like about the idea of playing the Classic instead of the All-Star game is that it would put an end to the utterly stupid practice of having the winner of the All-Star game gain home field advantage in the World Series.

Keith Hernandez thinks the best time would be right after the World Series, in October. Of course, there are drawbacks to this plan, too; guys who played in the playoffs will be, to put it mildly, tired. Guys who didn't get to participate in the post-season will be much more ready to play after the World Series than the guys who did when it comes time to play for their country.

Never the less, as is so often the case, I think Kieth's proposal is the best. After the World Series is the only time of the year when the Classic would have no effect on the season, which is obviously the way everyone with a financial stake in MLB would prefer it be, as would most fans.

Plus, more competitive baseball in October! Yay!

What do you think?

more WBC fun

Guess who's the batting coach for the Italian team?

Mike Piazza, who was at Tradition Field yesterday when the Mets played the Italian WBC team in the morning. Pelfrey pitched brilliantly during that game, by the way.

Guess who knew they played baseball in Italy?

Not me.

scoring

thanks to the magic of the Digital Video Recorder, I got to see all of today's game in Florida, and was in the mood for experimentation. So I looked all over the web for scorecard templates, finding most of them woefully inadequate for my scoring needs. I ended up with a Word template, which actually worked just fine, until the Mets started hitting in the second inning. I tried, but it just took too long to record the plays in Word the way I want to record the plays.

So I went back to my old standby, the legal pad, which never fails me. But by the 6th inning, it became your basic spring training game, with so many substitutions that I stopped scoring and just started watching. Which was pretty awesome, too.

Unfortunately, my camera is broken, but I'll add pictures both of the Word scorecard and the legal pad scorecard ASAP.

New Orleans to Buffalo

the Mets tripple-A farm team is moving from New Orleans to Buffalo this year.

Good: Buffalo is much closer to NY, makes call-ups easier, and will better prepare minor leaguers or the cold they will encounter in NYC at the end of the season.

Bad: Buffalo? Really?

Mets Baseball! On Television!

They've got the full broadcast team working today's spring training game, and I am loving every second. So much, it's inspired me to clean the living room, just to stay in earshot of the game.

I'd jump up and down and squeal with excitement, but not only wouldn't that translate to the blog, I'm a little embarrassed by how thrilled I am to be watching baseball, even exhibition games.

Its 6-0 Mets against Florida, and Nelson Figeroa just threw a 1-2-3 inning to end the 6th which is always a good thing. I also notice that Delgado is playing first (and just hit a nice double), and that Reyes is in the game (not just in the game, he just hit his second home run of the game), as are Wright and Beltran (who just hit his second homer of the day). This must be because these are the guys who are going to play in the WBC, and Jerry Manuel wants to send them off in as best shape as possible.

Have I mentioned recently that I love Manuel?

P.S. We won on a three-hit shutout. I'm a happy girl.

Opening Day in the Grapefruit League

I've written before about how little I pay attention to spring training games; they mean so little for the season that it hardly seems worth caring about. Never the less, these are exactly the headlines a Mets fan wants to see after the first exhibition game:

Church, Castillo start spring on right note
Ryan Church shines in Mets's spring win
Castillo, Church thrill their skipper with strong performances

Why? Church and Castillo are x-factors on the team's success this year, so even though this game means nothing, it's great to see that those men performed in a way that will impress their manager, and their GM. Let's keep our fingers crossed for more of the same.

My Maine Man also pitched well today, and just because I love him so much, here's some video of John talking about coming back from surgery and his performance today.

I'm just annoyed that I missed watching the game while sitting in the doctors office for EVER today. SNY seems not to be re-playing it tonight, which also annoys me. I've take precautions, though-- tomorrow's game is set to record on DVR.

picture and links via Mets/MLB.com and NYPost.com

Which team am I going to root for in the World Baseball Classic?

I've been struggling with this question since I realized the second WBC was happening this year. Given the floor I grew up on, the building and neighborhood I grew up in, I would be equally comfortable rooting for the Puerto Rican, Cuban and Dominican Republic teams. Which one to go with has never been an obvious choice.

But then this week it came out that Edgardo Alfanso, our beloved Fonzie, is going to play for Venezuela. That sealed the deal for me, even without Santana pitching for the team.

I'm rooting for Venezuela, and am very much looking forward to the WBC, which starts in 12 days. I've come around to the idea that the WBC is nothing but good for baseball as an entity, and I hope it promotes the fandom around the world that is it's intent.

Dave Racaniello, or I love Marginalia

There are days when I think Dave Racaniello has the best job in baseball. This guy catches pitches in the bullpen during the year, and is reportedly responsible for the start of the Great Shave of '07. During spring training, he literally plays. He's good friends with David Wright and has a reputation as a good guy. He's a part of every game, in the bullpen the whole game. And when the Mets lose a game, he is in *no way* responsible.

At spring training last year, every time we saw Racaniello, SJ and I would scream at the top of our lungs, "Love you, Dave!! Go Rac!!" Perhaps it hadn't occurred to hm that the average fan not only knew who he is but wanted to cheer for him. The big smile on his face when he heard us tells me that he appreciated being noticed by the average fan, and that's something that likely doesn't happen to him much. But I love the guy, for all kinds of reasons, and I'm glad to have been able to let him know for a second or two that he's appreciated by Mets fans.

not the first time, nor the last

in posts over the last couple of weeks, I've both said that I've been affected by the end of Shea and that it hasn't really hit me yet that it's gone, and that it has hit me in some ways. Contradictions in terms, all of then, but still true.

I felt the end of Shea at the last game I went to at the stadium. I was aware the last time I went to the park that the next time I'd be there, she would no longer be standing. Saying Goodbye to Shea was something I acknowledged at the time; never the less, I am SURE that it will be a very, very strange experience the first time I go to Cifi Field, when Shea is merely a parking lot.

so, I contradict myself. I'm a human being; this is bound to happen any times in my life. I feel a lot about the end of Shea, but I think I'll feel excited to visit Citi once I get there. The two opposite feelings contradict; never the less, I'm sure I'll continue to feel this way until I wake my way to Citi Field. After that... well, that's another post.

Jose on hitting third, and why the Phillies suck

Reyes reported to camp yesterday, and gave an interesting interview to the Post, which you should read here. Before giving that interview, he worked out at Tradition Field with the man who will most likely replace him at lead-off: Jose Castillo.

There is going to be some serious beef between the Mets and the Phillies this year, and I agree with Jose: the Phils won the World Series. Why are they so concerned with trash-talking the Mets?

Routine

Baseball players are creatures of habit, of routine. Most hitters do exactly the same things in the on-deck circle in exactly the same order every single time they're in the hole. Most pitchers come to a set position using exactly the same movements every time-- Joe Smith with his routine of pants, belt, hat, then onto the mound is an extreme example, but Johan has a routine too-- the adorable shaking of the hips while staring over his glove at the catcher, then coming to a set.

Baseball fans tend to mirror baseball players in the desire for routine. I've written before about how, during the season, baseball tends to order a fan's days; everything is measured in terms of how much of the game you'll see on TV, how much you'll get to on the radio, whether you'll be relegated to watching on your preferred internet gameday application, whether you'll miss the game entirely and will be furtively checking for updates during whatever is keeping you from seeing tonight's game.

There's not a lot in the world one can count on; I've had more examples of this in my life recently than I care to think about. But during the season, one can count on baseball, every single day. This has been perhaps the hardest winter of my life; I cannot possibly be more looking forward to the daily routine of baseball to bring the kind of order to my days that it does during the season, and to bring the daily feelings of joy and disappointment and anticipation and excitement and interest and love and competition and loyalty that one can only get from being a fan.

Only 46 days to go.

Shea, Nostalgia, friends and facebook

I posted in my status on facebook this afternoon about watching the last standing piece of Shea come down today, and my friend Dave (one of the many fantastic people who have re-entered my life as a result of facebook, and as devoted as fan as one will find in this city) commented on the staus update. This is one of my favorite things about facebook: the ability to connect with other people on exactly the level that is right for the relationship you have with that person.

Here's the text of our status-commenting:

Dave at 7:41pm February 18

it really just hit me that shea is gone, and i have very mixed feelings about citifield (starting with the name, the color of the seats, etc.). i can vividly recall coming to shea as a kid, seeing the last game of the '88 season there, chanting "darrrrryyyyyl". perhaps it's just nostalgia taking hold and i'll get over it. although putting it in perspective, i feel for the yankee fans (dare i say it), especially the older ones.

This Fan at 2:56am February 19

it still hasn't really hit me that Shea is gone. I don't think it will until my first trip to Citi this year and I see with my own eyes that Shea is no longer standing. I also have such a hard time thinking of the "Shea Faithful" being referred to as the "Citi Faithful" that my brain shuts down when I consider it.

and, wrt nostalgia, I just don't think there's a baseball fan in the world who doesn't feel its pull. I mean, as much as I love the Mets (and I don't think I have to convince anyone of how much I love the Mets), I would be so happy if Robert Moses hadn't fucked it all up and we still had major league baseball in Brooklyn. Nostalgia for something you've never actually experienced?! now THAT'S the kind of magical shit only baseball can pull.

I'm trying to have the long-view on this one: I'm thinking about how I'll tell my kids about Shea, about my experiences there, about how I acquired one of the true loves of my life there. Still, it's not real yet to me that she's gone, and I know I'm gonna feel it hard when it finally does hit.

**************

In truth, I'm sure it will hit me hard when I go to Citi Field for the first time and Shea is a parking lot. I'm sure of it because I'm a nostalgia addict, and I'm sure of it because despite all its many faults, Shea has been my baseball home my whole life. But the fact is, no matter how many pictures and videos I see of Shea's destruction, it doesn't yet feel real to me that it's gone. This reminds me, interestingly enough, that I felt similarly (though obviously of different emotional impact) that I needed to see the remains of the World Trade Center before I could really believe it was gone (and this after seeing the second tower fall with my own eyes, out a window, not on TV). Until I'm there and can see it, until it's tangible, very little is real to me. And that's definitely the head-space I'm in with regard to the absence of Shea; it won't be real until I get off the train for the first time to go to Citi Field.

I'm sure I'll have a whole post about that when it happens, but until then? In my mind, there are still two stadia in Flushing, standing next to each other, and I go to see my team play in the old, decrepit, inferior of the two parks. It's going to take lived experience, I think, to change that vision.

Ch-ch-ch-changes...

Jerry Manuel is talking about moving Reyes down to the 3rd position, presumably ahead of Wright and Delgado (depending on Carlos' performance) and behind Beltran in the 2 slot. I can't decide if I think this is a good idea; I think it depends too much on the performance of Castillo, which isn't a performance I feel comfortable relying on. This strikes me a little too much like the behavior of Willie Randolph constantly changing the #2 hitter, with little success. That said, this is the only thing Jerry Manuel has ever done that has reminded me of Willie, and I was never a Willie-hater to begin with. I've been impressed with Manuel, and I think he can have real success with this team; I'd just hate to see a constant revolution of players hitting first this season, for reasons I can't yet fully express. It just feels a bit like throwing stuff on the wall to see if it sticks, a strategy I can appreciate in business but not much in baseball.

Things seem to be looking good down in Port St. Lucie; it's weird to think that in a short time, many of the most important guys to the team will leave to play in the WBC. I wonder, given Manuel's stated goal of making this year about the team rather than individual performances, how this can do anything but harm Manuel's project. I can see getting really pumped up to play for your country (or Puerto Rico), and then having a hard time getting pumped to play for a random assemblage of major league players with nothing in common other than being paid by the Wilpons, having just left the camaraderie of one's countrymen while doing your favorite thing (playing baseball). I hope I'm wrong about that, and that playing in the WBC will hurt the Mets neither physically (I'm praying, along with every Major League owner and GM in baseball, for no injuries) nor emotionally.

All Gone

via Marty Noble's blog:

"The final upright moment of any part of Shea Stadium passed at 11:25 a.m. today. That piece was from Section 5, between the plate and first base. Jeff Wilpon says the plan remains to have all the debris replaced by a parking lot by Opening Day."

Somehow, I feel this deserves more commemoration than it's getting. Of course, as was pointed out to me last night, I get very sentimental over baseball. And I'm a sentimental Mets fan, so I think pretty much everything about its coming down deserves some sort of commemoration.

UPDDATE:

This is from William Valderrama, and is almost hard to watch. The sound of the fall is intense.

Noble on Shea

I've mentioned before that I generally agree with Marty Noble, enjoy his writing, and especially love his answers to fan's questions. And like most of the press and a lot of Mets fans, he didn't expect to feel any nostalgia for Shea. Because I'm a bit of a nostalgia freak, I expected to feel something at some point, but it didn't really hit me until the last game I went to there, the second-to-last of the season and among the most beautiful (if not THE most beautiful) games Johan Santana has ever thrown. In fact, it didn't even hit me until I was pulling up to the Shea station on the LIRR.


But it did hit me. Shea, for all it's faults (and there were many), is the only place the Mets have played in my lifetime, the field on which they've won both their World Series pennants. It's where I went to my first baseball game; it's where I've had so many happy times with my father and the rest of my family. And as much as I am looking forward to Citi, I know I'll miss Shea.

As it turns out, it took much longer to hit Marty Noble than it did me that he would fell nostalgia for the old stadium, and writes about it nicely today.

We’re born again, there’s new grass on the field.

Pitchers and catchers are due at Spring Training in Port St. Lucie today!!

And so a new countdown starts: 52 days until Opening Day.

I need to kill trees

Though my terrible spelling can be (mostly) masked by spell-check, I am absolutely horrible at editing for grammar and punctuation on-screen. I need paper to be a decent writer, one who is actually quite capable of writing grammatical sentences. And since I'm not going to destroy trees in the service of this blog, you'll run across errors from time to time. OK, more like often.

When I see these kinds of errors (which I often do, long after the fact), I do go back and edit them. But then, I'm probably the only one going through old posts and noting grammatical errors anyway.

I'm with John Maine on the weather in Florida

There's a sweet promo* up on Mets.com from Port St. Lucie, mostly centered on my Main Maine.

I am, however, disappointed to see that Ollie Perez is apparently clean shaven.

*Though it's not completely clear when you click the link, if you click the orange arrow in the middle right of the screen, you'll see the vid. A warning: it will go on to more videos after the Maine one, because I can't seem to figure out how isolate just one vid from MLB.com. I find this unsurprising.

One more day

Until the most important of the year, which for so many of us is Opening Day, tomorrow is the most exciting day of the year for baseball fans: pitchers and catchers are due at spring training. In truth, most of them are already there, guys like Perez and Santana (who's been rehabbing his knee in Pt. St. Lucie for a while now) as are a lot of the position players (David Wright likes to get to spring training early, and given that he lives in New York, who could blame him?).

Never the less, there is a special magic to the day when pitchers and catchers are due, whether they've arrived earlier or not. It means winter is almost over, and it's less than two months until there's baseball again. Baseball fans are creatures both of habit and routine (how else can you like a game that goes on for 162 games?), and pitchers and catchers at camp is one of the special days in the yearly cycle.