Going, Going... Gone!

The Recap: Mets lose 2 of 3 to the Marlins, Injuries and Apathy Signal End of the Season

After a 6-5 series opening comeback win, the Mets fell short in a 5-4 loss, then got embarrassed again last night losing 11-4 and also possibly losing Jose Reyes for the season. The Mets medical staff says it's just a "mild condition", like Hurricane Katrina was just a mild hurricane.

THE GOOD: Looks like the injury bug is hitting this team again, and now that the team is under .500, 10 games out of first, 7 1/2 out of the wild card (with 6 teams to overtake) with only 35 games left to play, Mets fans can finally get any notion of the postseason out of their minds and start enjoying the games for what they are - entertainment away from the daily grind of life.

Carlos Beltran may be on his last legs with the team. David Wright may not be a clutch hitter the team needs to build around. Jose Reyes may not play again. Jason Bay is most likely out for the season. Jon Niese may see his innings cut short in anticipation of next year. We've seen the last of KRod for this year and maybe further. Jeff Francoeur probably won't be back next year. And Rod Barajas is gone to the Dodgers.

Let's just use this time to see what the kids can do and hope the Wilponzi's realize that MAJOR changes need to happen for this team to succeed. The season's gone competitively, but that doesn't mean we can't watch this team for 35 more games with absolutely no expectations of anything good happening. Then, if Carlos Beltran does step it up, or Johan or RA pitch a no-hitter or they somehow do run off a 10-game winning streak with smoke and mirrors, we'll all be pleasantly surprised. See how we just turned negatives into positives?

THE BAD: From a top to bottom perspective, everything's bad with this team. When you go to a game, mention a player's name and the response from the crowd around you consistently is "Dump Him", it's bad. But, as we mentioned above, we've turned all the negatives into positives so there's nothing to worry about anymore, no matter how badly this team plays or what a total disgrace the automatic out batting order is, or how over his head the manager is, or how clueless the GM is, or ... whoops sorry about that - old habits die hard: we're into positive, I forgot.

THE UGLY: Ruben Tejada is now 1-for-41. You would think if you just closed your eyes, swung, and hoped the ball would hit your bat you'd still be hitting better than that. But he's young, so we'll have to give him a break - especially since there's really nothing to play for anymore. This, however, we can't condone: how Oliver Perez actually wants to come back next year and pitch for the Mets. Is this guy for real? U-G-L-Y!!!

New York Media: No Need to Thank Us

From the local newspapers, to the radio airwaves, to fellow bloggers, we see MetsFanClub.com content copied so often, it's gotten to be fairly ridiculous. In fact, there's a certain radio personality where we can actually predict what he's going to be talking about just by posting our opinions and takes to MetsFanClub.com - it's that blatant.

But that's okay. After all, we are the realistic voice of the fans and it's something we enjoy doing .... Although a shout out every once in a while would be nice.

It's Hard to Beat a Bad Team

The Recap: Mets/Astros split a 4-game series in Houston.

After losing 2 of 3 from the Phillies, the Mets stormed into Houston, played 3 one-run games and kept all four games close, leaving the woefully inept Astros mumbling to themselves under their breath: it's hard to beat a bad team! The Mets still haven't won a road series from a National League team all season - but their next stop is Pittsburgh, where Pirate fans have been heard saying "well, at least we get the Mets this weekend"

THE GOOD: The Mets continue to get strong performances by their starting pitchers - none better than R.A. Dickey who bidded for his second consecutive shutout before a hard luck no-decision. He also accounted for both runs the Mets scored while he was in the game, another testiment to how bad the offense is. The guy has to do everything.

And it's good to see the team play hard-ball with KRod, now that Super Tak looks to be in the closer spot and is performing admirably as well. Remember Joe McEwing, aka Super Joe? That guy did everything and played everywhere. Similarily, Takman has pitched in mid-relief, 7th inning spots, 8th inning setups, pitched in the starting rotation and now's the closer, all the while doing the job! (for the most part, at least).

Finally, for all you "the glass is half full" people, the Mets are only 8 1/2 games out of the wild card. (Come on, even the most optimistic die-hard can't possibly expect this team to win the division, right?)

THE BAD: Well, it looks like the honeymoon is over with Ike Davis. After another 0-fer last night, he's now hitting just .240 and looking more and more like Jeff Francoeur each day. That makes Davis, Francoeur, Tejada, any catcher, Chris Carter, and the pitcher's spot all automatic outs in the lineup. Add to that the invisible Carlos Beltran and a totally unpredictable David Wright and it's no wonder this team can't score any runs. Angel Pagan's been cold as well and Reyes is Reyes.

It reminds us all of one of the most amazing lineups ever to play the game: firstbase - Bugs Bunny, second base - Bugs Bunny, third base Bugs Bunny, first base - Bugs Bunny, etc... How bad is the offense? Try these stats on for size:

- Mets record versus NL teams under .500: 17-25
- Mets record in one-run games: 17-24
- Mets record trailing after the 7th inning: 1-46
- Mets record in extra innings: 5-8

Yet HoJo's job is safe. HoJo - a bad major league hitter becomes the batting coach of a bad offensive team and the team's hitting actually gets worse! Now who could have forseen that?

THE UGLY: Nothing says ugly better than the manager. Here's the latest from Jerry (and I quote):

We have to do what we’ve been talking about all of the time, we have to do more offensively. We’ve got to find a way to get that done. I mean, that’s poor. That’s a very poor effort on our part offensively… We have to do better. Period. It’s pathetic. We have to do better.”

We all know the offense is pathetic. Now Jerry Manuel's confirmed it. This is the same manager who last year said the only way the Mets have a shot at winning is if the other team screws up. Yet first place San Diego was a popular pre-season pick for worst team in baseball and the Red Sox, Dodgers, Phillies, and Twins have all experienced injury situations similar to the Mets and continue to prosper. Looks like Jerry is finally seeing the writing on the wall and my guess is he's going to throw everyone under the bus before he gets the axe.

FREQUENCY ... or, Remembering the 1969 World Series NY Mets

Frequency was released in late April of 2000, writer Toby Emmerich and director Gregory Hobit brought to the screen an extraordinary movie about family, love, and fandom, Mets Fandom. Centered around a single father, FDNY firefighter Frank Sullivan (Dennis Quad who has been in so many good movies that we can list), and his son, NYPD homicide detective John (Jim Caviezel the man who play Jesus Christ, and a great one at that). Although released in 2000, this tale spans across thirty years, 1969 to 1999, when John finds his father's old HAM Radio. On a fated evening, a mysterious cloud disturbance forms over the childhood house that John still lives in, and causes a time distortion that connects John to his father thirty years in the past that allows both men to talk to each other on the short-wave radio.

It has been thirty years since Frank had died in a warehouse blaze, and in talking with John he finds out what is to come and what to do to save himself, but in doing so, they had unknowingly changed the future. It is Frank's wife, John's mother, Julia Sullivan (Elizabeth Mitchell) of not only Lost fame as Juliet, but know has a significant role in the ABC series V.), who now falls victim to a serial killer. How this is depicted is awesome. It is nothing explosive, it is the quietness of the film that makes it intense. Spanning the thirty years from past to present, father and son work together to solve the crime that is yet to happen, or has happened.

Just a little aside. Another main character in Frequency is named Jack Shepard played by Shawn Doyle. Doyle also played Attorney Duncan Forrester on Lost in an episode titled Eggtown in Season 4 Episode 4. Talk about coincidences.

What makes this a great film for it's genre, is that the flashing back and forth from present to past, and back to the present is not confusing. The story telling is crisp and as mentioned before, quiet. It draws you in and the final outcome is astonishing.

Now, with all this said, what makes this a worthy mention here on MetsFanCLub.com besides the fact that our present day Mets team has tanked again and there is nothing really new to write about, it is the background story line for the scenes that involve the past and John's growing up that is brought to our attention. It is during the 1969 World Series New York Mets vs. The Baltimore Orioles. The references to the game as father and son talk back and forth is reminiscent of his childhood when it was baseball that brought them together, and it is The Mets and baseball, that again, bring them together. How the series is inter-woven within the story makes watching this movie a bit more fun, even with the seriousness of the plot.

If you have not yet seen this movie, I highly recommend it. The memories it brought back of growing up during a more innocent period of time, and how New York Mets baseball was fun and exciting thanks to Bob Murphy. An era when players played and did not worry about pitch count. An era when players and owners respected the fans. An era when a kid could be a kid.

A near perfect picture. A must see, especially during these trying times.

Well... We're waiting ....

The Happy Recap: Mets 1, Phillies 0

After another masterful performance from RA Dickey, who tossed a complete game 1 hitter last night, the Mets are still waiting for their first no-hitter. But at least they don't have to wait anymore for Carlos Beltran to drive in a significant run with a hit, as he drove in the game's only run in the sixth inning, his first meaningful RBI resulting from a hit since his return from the DL and his first big hit-RBI since May of 2009.

THE GOOD: Could yesterday's game have been the highlight of the season so far? RA Dickey continues to be the man, tossing the Mets second 1-hit shutout this year (while the rest of the league seems to be tossing no-hitters, but were not complaining - a Met no-hitter can't be too much more of a wait in the "Year of the Pitcher"). Only the opposing pitcher Cole Hamels was able to reach base with his soft blooper in the sixth. Other than than, Dickey was brilliant with the Mets 35th 1-hitter in team history and broke the Mets streak of 44-games without back-to-back victories, which in itself is mind-boggling considering the Mets lead the league with 18 shutouts after last night.

And we can't stop there. As mentioned before, Carlos Beltran actually came up with a hit to drive in a big run, David Wright didn't strike out, and since KRod was arrested 2-days ago and not available for the game, Mets starting pitchers both went the distance for the Mets 2-game winning streak. Let's think about that for a second: Jerry Manuel (like just about every other manager in the game) automatically goes to the weakest part of his team (the bullpen) for 44 STRAIGHT GAMES with pathetic results, then lets his starters go 9 and gets 2 impressive wins. Good thing KRod's a hot-head or I can think of 2 games the Mets may have lost had he been available to pitch the ninth. Like we said before, this isn't rocket science - avoid the bullpen at all costs and you'll win games.

That and a hot hitting tandem of Beltran and Wright may help too. Perhaps that'll happen and the Mets have another 16-6 run in them, which may put them right in the race with a Chipper-less Braves team and an offensive-less Phillies team. Who knows?

THE BAD: I thought you needed conclusive evidence to overrule a homerun call, but apparently that's not the case as the umpire crew deliberated for about 10 minutes in overturning Mike Hessman's homerun to left in the fifth inning of a 0-0 game. Video replay blatantly showed that the fat, uncoordinated guy in the left-field stands leaning over trying to catch the ball was clearly in homerun territory, but for whatever reason, the umpires thought differently by reversing the original homerun call and awarded Hessman with a ground rule triple. All this of course, delayed a classic pitchers duel with R.A. Dickey in the process of a no-hitter. Not surprisingly, he lost his no-hit bid the very next inning after the delay. Isn't that always the case when you have a no-hitter? There's always some kind of ridiculous delay so you can lose your rhythm. (at least if you're a Met)

But that's not the bad part. The bad part is the atrocious at-bats that followed by Jeff Francoeur and Hank White (our new name for Henry Blanco), who both struck out while Hessman stood helplessly at third base. We know Cole Hamels is certainly an elite pitcher, but Francoeur especially needs to do a better job of just getting the bat on the ball in that situation. I'd even take a bunt or something, but Hamels made them both look pathetic. After an intentional walk to Ruben Tejada with 2 outs (must be the name Manuel, we couldn't figure that one out either), R.A. Dickey hit a soft comebacker to the mound to end the inning. Ouch... overturned homerun, runner at third with no outs, and you still can't score a run! That's bad.

And talk about the Mets offensive problems: Angel Pagan even missed hitting R.A. Dickey in the face with the obligatory "pie in the face trick" during the post game interview.

THE UGLY: We could point to the KRod situation as ugly, but that would be way too obvious. Plus, like the Jet Blue guy and his 15 minutes of fame, who wouldn't want to deck an annoying family member? (By the way, is Oliver Perez married? I think he should see his father-in-law more often)

And we could mention the 44 straight games without back-to-back wins as ugly, after all, you'd think by just dumb luck you'd win two in a row (the Pirates and Orioles do, right?). But I think the true ugly here is the way the heavy hitting, 2-time National League Champion Philadelphia Phillies bats are being completely silenced by Met pitching at Citi Field. Yesterday's 1-0 shutout loss makes it 4 straight shutouts for the Phils, and outscoring them 17-0 in the process. 36 straight shutout innings? Wow, that's pretty ugly (for the Phillies) and impressive (by the Mets).

Can they keep the streak going tonight with Pat Misch, newly called up from the minor leagues, who has to go against some guy named Roy Halladay?

When Will Manuel Learn? This isn't Rocket Science

Remember this post? For today's recap, just change the "Phillies" to "Rockies" and the score from 7-5 to 6-2... everything else is the same.

What's the definition of insanity?: doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Well, as long as managers continue to manage towards the weakest part of their teams, results like tonight - when the Mets had the game won with a strong starting pitcher, only to automatically hand it over to the bullpen because "the book" says so - will continue to occur over and over again.

I've already heard Met fans wonder why Manuel just didn't go to KRod for the 5-out save. A better question: why take out Jon Niese in the first place?!? (don't tell me pitch-count. We've already proven pitchcounts are completely irrelevant). Tonight was just another easily winable game turned into a loss because of "by-the-book" managing. No wonder this team hasn't won consecutive games in 42 games - Jerry "Manual" always tries to work the bullpen in there when it's entirely unnecessary.

I'm disgusted. And amazed once again that no one's figured this out yet.

It's About Time: MetsFanClub.com Now on Facebook

You'd think this would have happened sooner (like a Mets World Series Championship after 1986), but we finally did it: MetsFanClub.com now has a fan page on Facebook. Please visit our fansite on Facebook, say hello and "like us" as we continue to chronicle the team.

In addition, you'll see a Facebook "share" link on the top right-side navigation where you can comment on any MetsFanClub.com post and have it displayed directly on your Facebook wall. Also, you can "like us" using the Facebook "like" link found after each and every headline story you see on our site.

So tell all your friends - MetsFanClub.com has gone social!

Mike Francesa ... I Cannot Believe I Am Saying This ...

The other day I was driving in my car, scanning the radio dial, and I come across the FAN with Mike Francesa talking to someone about the Mets. Since I returned to my self-imposed exile, from most things Mets, I was about to change the station when what Francesa was saying peaked my interest. This I found strange since I find him arrogant and uninteresting. This day would become an exception.

You see, part of the reason we started MetsFanClub.com was due to the fact that most of the radio sports personalities never quite did it for us. Once in a while, they would step up and confront a sports personality in an interview, or when they blew a game and not coddle them, or admit when a prediction was wrong. It was when we listened to then WFAN's Sports Show Mike and the Mad Dog, that we would really get even madder with the New York sports media. Any time they would make a prediction, comment on a player or situation, both of them would always hedge their bets, play both sides as not to get anyone upset, and when they were wrong, never admit it. Simply, they would never commit to a prediction. They always left themselves an out.

When "The Dog" left to pave his own way into the sport world, the arrogance still continued. One of the things that always bothered me as a listener was the way in which some callers were handled. Now, even I would have hung up on a few when they couldn't get to the point, or would talk in all directions and could not be precise. I understand that in any business time is money, but the difference between a caller and the on-air personality is that the on-air personality has connections, and has access to behind the scenes. Without that, the on-air personality is just like us, a sports fan who happens to have their own sports talk show.

Which brings me back to the other day and Francesa on the 'FAN. He proceeded to give in detail the moves that the Mets organization has made going all the way back to the Piazza trade. One that the Wilponzies did not want to make, thank you Mr. Doubleday, and it was this trade that basically saved the Mets at the time. Without Piazza, the Mets would have been nothing for so many more years.

Francesa continued on the trades made over the last years, and how this organization is happy with mediocrity, something MetsFanClub.com has been referring to for years. (On a personal note, I believe that this Mets organization will not win, let alone make it to and win, the World Series, as long as they are owned and controlled by the Wilponzies.)

He continued to recount the Phillips years as General Manager with the moves and trades that were a bust and how they could have gone further but did not, up to the present with now GM Omar Minaya who was allowed by ownership to again not make a much needed trade at this years deadline.

Francesa did a great job in illustrating how with each year, and since the Beltran caught looking game, the Mets did nothing to further their cause. They did nothing to get ahead of the competition. He pointed out that if you look at the teams that do not accept mediocrity, it is because no one is untouchable, and that if a deal can be made, they will make it.

His comments were clear, direct, to the point, and spot on.

So, Mike Francesa, I Cannot Beleive That I Am Saying This ... WELL DONE!

Rope Off the Crime Scene 'Cause Beltran's Killing the Mets

The Recap: Phillies 6, Mets 5

The Mets fell below .500 on the season and lost another one-run game, even despite "getting to" one of the best pitchers in baseball, Roy Halladay with absolutely no positive contribution at all by All-Star Carlos Beltran, whose return from the disabled list ironically continues to be the impetus of the Mets second half nightmare.

THE GOOD: Last night's 1-0 victory was nice, as Jerry Manuel took our advice by avoiding middle-relief entirely and went straight for his closer (who made the game interesting nonetheless before settling in for his 24th save) as Johan Santana won his 9th game of the year against 6 losses. (By the way, is that the best 9-6 record of all time? I remember 2 bad starts for this guy all season!)

In today's game, Jose Reyes and Angel Pagan went a combined 4-for-8 to breathe some life into the Mets lineup, but it wasn't enough to offset the criminal plate appearances by the Mets 3rd and cleanup hitters. Reyes need to atone for his atrocious fielding (he missed a routine play in the 3rd which allowed the Phillies to pile on the runs) while catcher Josh Thole had a 3-for-4 day at the plate.

If only the Mets could hit in the clutch, we'd probably also be speaking good of the Mets bullpen, who didn't allow any runs after Dickey's meltdown in the third and kept the Mets in the game, but of course that goes unnoticed since the offense is so pathetic when it really counts.

THE BAD: RA Dickey was off today and saw his record drop to 7-5 on the year, but that's okay because he's built up enough credits this year so far to offset a bad performance. (By the way, is that the best 7-5 record of all time? He's been outstanding.) However, the same can't be said for other members of this Bad News Bears ensemble.

It's a crime what Carlos Beltran is doing out there: lack-luster on defense, game-buster on offense. Many Beltran apologists are pointing out how long it takes to come back from a severe injury like he had and how it took Jose Reyes a month before he got going - but seriously folks, he's already had 77 at-bats this year with 1 meaningless homerun, with not one hit resulting in an important rbi coming in a big spot (batting in the #3 or cleanup part of the order to boot!), an average below the Mendoza line at this point (.195), and fielding his position that's making Jay Payton look like Willie Mays.

What gives here? Is he still hurt? Because if he is, we apologize for the rant, but then if that's the case, don't play. There's a difference between playing hurt and playing injured. Beltran needs to be stopped immediately because he's absolutely killing this team.

And now for some perspective: When Keith Hernandez mentioned in the booth the other day that no one should expect Beltran to start playing well because it takes at least a month to come back and get into a grove, 84-year old Ralph Kiner immediately set him straight: "In my time, we had guys missing years due to the war and they came back strong in one week. I needed 3 days when I was injured... and if a player needs more than a week to get back into playing shape and form, it's laziness on their part and it's their fault"

Well there you have it: the apologists of today and the sane thinking of yesteryear when it was all about taking responsibility. It must be tough for Beltran (and other under-performing athletes) to cash those weekly gigantic checks without getting the job done. Someone call a cop because we fans are investing our hard earned money and time into watching this crap and getting screwed in the process.

And we weren't even going to mention it because it's become so obvious, but did you check out David Wright's stat line for this game (0-for-3, 3 strikeouts) and roadtrip (2 for 23 with strikeouts a-plenty)? Once again, he came up small in games that most Mets fans would consider "big". In fact, Wright, Beltran, and Ike Davis combined to go 1-for-12 on the day. Wright and Beltran went a combined 5-for45 on the entire road trip - against Philly and Atlanta. You know.. the good teams... the teams we need to beat for a shot at, oh, I don't know... the postseason?!?!? The games that were entirely winable if we could just count on either Beltran or Wright to come up big just one time apiece in a clutch situation?!?!?

Thank goodness the Mets have Johan Santana or we'd be looking at another embarrassing sweep to a hated divisional rival.

THE UGLY: They say the true indicator of how good a team really is is by their record in one run games, where the mets are now 14-22 in such instances. Keith Hernandez always says he knew the Mets were turning a corner when he first got to Shea when the team started winning one runners and knew at that point a World Series was not too far in the future (which it obviously wasn't). Well, with these Mets, I much fear a long wait as this team was once again just 2-4 on their latest roadtrip and have not even won a road series against any National League team all season so far. It's August!... that's plain ugly.

All You Need to Know: No Reason Niese Can't Finish His Game

The Recap: Phillies 7, Mets 5

It continues to baffle us all how Major League managers continue to manage towards the weakest part of their teams by definition: the bullpen. The Mets had total control of this game with an effective Jon Niese on the mound until Jerry went "by the manual" and pulled his strong starter for no reason other than he was "supposed" to hand the game over to his bullpen. Once again, we see the ridiculous and totally irrelevant "pitch count" cost a team a victory in what most Mets fans would consider a "big game" against a hated divisional rival.

THE GOOD: To be totally honest, I expected a 1-2-3 ninth inning for the Mets after their disastrous 8th frame when the Phillies put up a 6-spot. That's what they always seem to do when the opposition steps all over them and leaves them for dead like an animal carcass on the highway. But they actually made it a game with a 3-run comeback that (of course) fell short.

Not surprisingly, slumping David Wright struck out to start the ninth as expected (please, do not put ANY pressure on this guy or bad things will happen), but career minor league home run leader Mike Hessman totally blasted a 3-run 400-footer to at least make the impending game-ending strikeout of Jose Feliciano at the hands of Brad Lidge interesting. But as we mentioned in an earlier post, excitement is for losers and there's no such thing as a moral victory or a loveable loser anymore in the days of the high-priced ballplayer. Fans expect results!

And just to recap the last Braves series, I would say the good part is that the team actually overachieved by at least winning one game to avoid being swept. Boy it feels good to beat the Braves! How pathetic is that team where they can't even humiliate this Mets team 3 times?

THE BAD: Let's run through this basic fallacy one more time so Jerry Manuel and every other Tony LaRussa wannabe major league manager finally gets it. The bullpen is the weakest part of ANY major league baseball team, by definition. Here's the simple reason why: if you're a bullpen pitcher, you're not good enough to start, and you're not good enough to close. Period. On EVERY TEAM! Therefore, your WORST pitchers on your team (and the weakest part of your team for that matter) are in your bullpen. Why manage toward that end?

Can you imagine in football, having your quarterback go the entire game, playing well, leading on the scoreboard, then all of a sudden the coach decides, "eh, we got a good start out of Elway... let's bring in Brooks Bollinger to finish the last 3 minutes"?!?!

"You know... Kobe's been playing great today. He's done enough... let's sit him for the final 2 minutes and maybe the bench can win the game for us,"

"Tiger, great effort. You did all you can. But we're going to put Barkley in to play your last 3 holes of the tournament."

Can you see how ridiculous this is? Yet it is EXACTLY what has become the norm for baseball. Doesn't anyone realize this? Now pay strict attention for the next point because it's really going to throw you for a loop:

The pitch count stat is completely and totally I-R-R-E-L-E-V-A-N-T. It is. It's made up. Completely made up. We've said this over and over again and you better believe it because quite frankly, it's actually the CAUSE of more injuries to pitchers than not (and certainly is the prime reason why teams that have strong solid pitchers pitching great tend to lose ballgames in the late innings - like last night's Met game for instance.)

Interesting how the human body can't throw more than 100 pitches, huh? 100 pitches. How convenient of a round number is that? Not 80, or 90, or 115, or whatever, but 100 is the limit to "save a pitchers" arm. That should give you the first clue that's it's made up from nothing. Yet you see examples all over baseball of how babying a pitcher endangers them far more often (as there are more pitchers on the disabled list or hurt now than at any point in the history of the game!).

See what babying a pitcher does to Stephan Strassberg? He's been pitch-counted his entire professional career... and he's hurt. How's the pitch count doing with John Maine... or Kerry Wood... or Ben Sheets... or Brandon Webb... or Josh Beckett... or (well, you get the point - I can go on and on).

The simple fact is this: if a pitcher is predisposed to get hurt, he'll get hurt - whether he throws 70 pitches or 170 pitches. Everyone points to Billy Martin's A's team 30 years ago as the poster staff for pitchers who supposedly all got burned out by throwing excessive innings. No one looks at the countless other staffs before and after where pitchers wouldn't LET their managers take them out of a game for fear of being labeled "soft".

Take out Bob Gibson, Steve Carlton, Tom Seaver, Jack Morris, et al because of a ridiculous pitch-count? Please! We need to stop the theory of the bullpen "owning" the late innings of a ballgame. When did this crazy "starter goes 6, automatically go to your 7th inning guy, who gives way to the 8th inning set-up guy, for the ninth inning closer" start? - and why do managers buy into it when it clearly does not work?!?! The bullpen is the worst part of your team! Why trust them to decide a game?

Why would you trust putting someone from the bullpen (who may not "have-it" that day - you don't know when you put him into a game) when you KNOW your starter's doing the job and still going strong. A bad starting pitcher is still better than your best middle reliever.

Taking last night's game as an example, here's all you need to know: Jon Niese was pitching well and if the Mets kept him in the game to finish it, they would have won. Simple. Case closed. A bad, tired, wild, awkward, 100-pitch throwing, hungover, and migrained debilitated Jon Niese is still better than a fresh Bobby Parnell. That's just the way it is.

The bad news is that until major league managers start "getting it" regarding this pitch count, you'll see teams with strong starters continue to lose games they had in the bag in the late innings. Yesterday's game should easily have been a victory for the Mets if logical heads prevailed.

THE UGLY: Did you hear Omar Minaya's job is safe for all of 2011? How many times did you cost your company over $36 million in bad contracts and kept your job? How many times did you sit behind your desk and do nothing (as Omar did while every other GM was trying to benefit their teams at the trading deadline) and kept your job? How many times did you embarrass your company with ridiculous press conferences and publicly throw people under the bus and kept your job?

Now all that may be fine and dandy if you're the Wilponzi's and not care about who's running the show for you, but nothing can be uglier than the Knick's James Dolan's decision to rehire the man who ran his franchise into the ground a few short years ago (I thought this was a joke when I first heard it reported). It's really ugly when you can find owners that are more pathetic than Fred and his son Paris.

Strawberry's Sports Grill ... Fun Had By All!

As promised, we headed out to Strawberry's Sports Grill in Douglaston, New York to join them in their continued Grand Opening that started this past Wednesday. Since the decision to venture out to Queens was made a few days before, the only trepidation I had was how the parking was going to be.

Living out here on the Island, parking, for the most part, is never a problem when venturing out to unknown parts, but having been to Queens for both work and fun over the years, parking has always been a near deal killer.

As I drove through a quaint neighborhood, I began to wonder if my GPS was failing me, but then the street opened up to a row of small stores on both sides. It was then that I spotted Strawberry's on the right. I made it in better time than I thought I would, and found parking right in front.

Lucky me! I arrived early to watch a line of fans forming at the door. How did I know that they were fans? The abundance of blue and orange shirts, and ball caps with the Mets logo gave it away. The immediate area is metered parking until 7pm, but I later found out that if you park in the LIRR parking lot, let them know that you are going to Strawberry's. When you get your parking stub validated at Strawberry's, your parking fee is only $2. A definite bargain. They also have a deal with Ollie's Taxi. If you are within the Douglaston area, cab fare is only $5. Check Strawberry's website for additional information.

After tossing the needed amount of coinage into the meter, I headed in only to bump into MetsFanClub.com faithful Taylor Tears. After telling me that long time MFC member Shawna Shea could not make it, we got a table together. It takes a lot to get me excited about most things these days, but this seemed to have both of us ready to enjoy an experience, and what an experience it was!

First, we were greeted by a lovely trio of Hostesses ready to seat us. Jeannette, Stephanie, and Vanessa could not have been friendlier. Their excitement in welcoming us seemed to add to ours. Vanessa took us to our seat and while handing us our menus, made us feel like we were long time patrons. And the place just opened.

The first thing you do notice it the the inside decor. There is just enough sport memorabilia without being to over the top. The dark cherry wood look gives you a warmth in that comfortable homey manner.

As Taylor and I started to catch up, we looked over the menu and was immediately impressed with its offerings. There were items on it that I have never been offered before at other sports bars, let alone restaurants. Some of the Apps included Pulled Pork Sliders w/ Creamy Slaw, Crawfish and Cheddar Hushpuppies, Philly Cheese Steak Egg Roll, although sounding delish, it has to be renamed for obvious reason, the menu is also loaded with Salad choices, Entrees, and special selections for the Kids, both of us were hankering for a juicy burger and since neither one of us had ever had a lamb burger before, or even heard of one, we both ordered the Lamb Burger. When it was served it smelled 100 times better than it looked, and it looked juicy, so I dug right in forgetting to take a photo of the presentation. It was unbelievable. Take my word on this one. You must try the Lamb Burger. It is my new favorite type of burger.

Our server for the experience was Melissa. From first introducing herself and getting our drink orders, to checking up on us periodically to see if we needed anything to suggesting dessert, she was great, even while wearing the Yankee colors and not Mets, but that's OK. We let that one slide, we were in too good a mood and enjoying ourselves.

When the dessert menu was presented to us and we finally had to decide whether we wanted dessert. The choices were mouth watering, and dangerous to those who need to stay away from the treats.

First looking at the desserts listed the Deep Fried Twinkies jumped out at me. When we asked Melissa for suggestions she had suggested the Deep Fried Twinkies. The way a smile crossed her lips and eyes sparkled said it all. I was ready to dig into one, but it was our second choice, Banana Pudding with Nilla Wafers, that we settled for. For a second choice that was awesome in itself.

What was also nice, and surprising, were the visits from Manager Rebecca Lory who stopped by our table to see how everything was going and if the food and service was up to par. She could not have been more cordial and accommodating.

Rebecca is the one that gave us the 411 on the parking at the LIRR lot, Ollie's Taxi, and Curbside To Go. Contact them for more information on that one. We were even introduced to Manager Chris Rhodes, who also took time out to talk with us. The one thing I did forget to tell them was that the strategically placed blackouts did add to the entire experience.

Hearing the gathered crowds banter was fun. As as the day went on the crowd did grow with the faithful hoping to get a possible glance at "The Darryl", but alas he was a no shown during our stay.

Before we left I continued to take a few more photos, that was when one of the Hostess, Jeannette, asked me if I had seen the backroom. I did not even know that there was one.

Where we sat there is a room adjacent to us. From that room there is a hallway that takes you back to another area, and if you keep following it, you end up in a room roped off that has a cool ceiling with banners of all of the New York teams logos and multiple televisions. Cool for that party room for a bunch of you and your friend to watch that long awaited playoff game.

We also chatted up with a table full of fans that were having a grand ole time, including Darren Meenan from The 7 line. As the place was a buzzin' with hoots, hollerin' and laughter we talked up a storm about the game, The Team, and what it was like being a fan. I had so much fun that I have been reconsidering coming out of my self-imposed exile and possibly go to a few games before seasons end.

From the moment we sat down, until the moment we left, more and more people started filling up the joint. The camaraderie was captivating.

For those who take the LIRR line that passes through Douglaston. It is a must stop, especially after that long day at work, or when that Friday Happy Hour is most needed. It is only a short walk to relief from the Summer Heat.

Whether a fan or not, visit Strawberry's Sports Grill. It is a guaranteed good time to be had by all ... if not, you must be a yankee fan...

As If the Mets Hall of Fame Wasn't Enough: Strawberry's Bar & Grill ...

Hey fellow MetsFanClub.com members and readers. We wanted to give you all a heads up and a reminder that we will be there this Thursday, July 5th, 2010, for the continued Grand Opening Festivities of New York Mets great Darryl Strawberry's new venture, Darryl Strawberry's Bar and Grill located at 42-15 235th Street in Douglaston, New York 11363.(Next to the LIRR Train Station). Here's the latest agenda:

Wed, Aug 4, 2010 4:00pm
Grand opening sponsored by none-other than SNAPPLE! A mighty tasty Trop-A-Rocka if I say so myself. Come join everyone for BBQ, burgers, beer, and more.

Thu, Aug 5, 2010 4:00pm
Grand opening continues with BBQ, burgers, beer, and still more.

Fri, Aug 6, 2010 4:00pm- 7:00pm
HAPPY HOUR: $6 Frozen Margaritas - $5 Well Drinks - $3 Drafts

Sat, Aug 7, 2010 11:00am-3:00pm
BRUNCH: $10 Pitchers - $3 Bloody Marys - $3 Mimosas and come back on Sundays for more of the same.

To keep up with what is happening at Strawberry's Bar & Grill, visit their website where you can sign up for their eNewsletter or follow them on Twitter.You can also contact Strawberry's Bar & Grill during business hours at 717-517-8787 or send them an email at info@strawberrysgrill.com.

Come on down and join the MetsFanClub.com faithful and support "The Darryl" in his new venture. At least there is something good to look forward to and salvage for the rest of this season. Cheers all!

Did You Order the Code Red!?

The Recap: D'Backs - 14, Mets - Embarrassment

We see and hear the Mets owners, management, staff, players, and manager - all the way down to RA Dickey - all saying the team has not given up on the season, yet the fans who showed up at Citi Field yesterday were subjected to perhaps the worst effort of the season, all in front of some of the all-time great Mets who were being honored on the day. The Mets organization taking the fans money for yesterday's game amounts to stealing and everyone in attendance should have received their money back. You want a recap? You can't handle the recap!!! : A total and complete disgrace.

THE GOOD: It was great to see Dwight Gooden, Darryl Strawberry, former manager Davey Johnson, and longtime GM Frank Cashen being inducted into the Hall of Fame. And that's about the only good news we can come up with today. Oh, the memories of 1986, when the team had a real manager, real GM, and players like Gooden and Strawberry who refused to lose. Now we have to watch this team lose at home in humiliating fashion to the likes of the last-place Arizona Diamondbacks while Jerry Manuel tells us he's "happy with the players efforts" and Omar Minaya tells us he's "happy with the job being done by Jerry Manuel".

Oh, and let's give credit where credit is due. Despite just about every Met fan anticipating disaster with Carlos Beltran's ninth inning at bat with the bases loaded in an attempt to win the game, he not only swung the bat, but he actually hit the ball in the air far enough to score the winning run on a sacrifice fly in Saturday's 5-4 win. It was Beltran's first meaningful rbi since returning from the DL and his first "big hit" since May 25th, 2009. Sadly, it wasn't even a hit. Beltran still hasn't driven in a significant run with a hit since his return, which bizarrely coincides with the Mets free fall.

You want more good?! You can't handle more good!!! But don't forget about David Wright's 2-homer, 5-rbi night in a 9-6 losing cause on Friday. Or another 3-hit performance by Angel Pagan on Saturday. Jose Reyes is hitting too and Ike Davis is as solid as they come. Season long slumping Jason Bay is on the disabled list with a misdiagnosed concussion and Josh Thole is impressing so much that Omar won't entertain ANY trade talks involving his name. SO WHY ISN'T THIS TEAM WINNING MORE OFTEN!?!?!

THE BAD: Like Jack Nicholsen in "A Few Good Men", could it be any clearer that the Mets ownership needs to order the Code Red and take some drastic action at this point? The bad is obvious at this point, we don't need to go through it all - Mets fans already know. And that's all I have to say about that.

THE UGLY: If everything we've talked about so far isn't ugly enough, here's an interesting story that Mets ownership should be very concerned about. After calling a few friends yesterday to set up a quick round of golf, my buddies decided not to play because (and I quote): "I think we're going to settle in to watch the Yankee game today instead". These are lifelong Mets fans, who would rather watch the Yankees than play golf. And what makes it really ugly? The Mets were playing at the exact same time! Think of what that means: one-time diehard Mets fans are now snubbing the team and watching the Mets crosstown rivals instead. CitiField - the new Titanic!

Anybody Have Any $289 Million Dollar Checks You Haven't Cashed Yet?

Diehard Met fan Shawna Shea has another idea to help the Mets, but is she really serious? You have to judge for yourself and get out your checkbooks:

"While watching today’s game, I couldn’t help but be completely embarrassed for the 2010 team, especially with the greats of Frank Cashen, Davey Johnson, Doc Gooden and Darryl Strawberry being honored there along with other Mets greats. How could they turn a beautiful day into that “@$%#^%$^%” ?!?!?!?

I only wish that Frank Cashen was our General Manager again. He knew baseball. He was the greatest GM we ever had. Maybe he should quickly write a “How To” book!!! We need it.

Shawna has a serious idea to help save this team. Instead of thinking of one person to buy the team, how about a group??? I know “the fans” should be the first ones to do it, but seriously who has the money! How about getting some Mets Alum together? Especially the 1986 team (except maybe Lenny Dykstra – he’s not so good at managing money).

That team showed heart, guts and determination. You could get Darryl Strawberry, Doc Gooden, Davey Johnson, Gary Carter, Keith Hernandez, Mookie Wilson, etc to pool their money together and they could raise funds from all their contacts. The new association to buy the Mets would be called “Glory Days”. In all honesty, these are the only people that love baseball and the Mets enough to help save it and return the Mets to their glory days!!!

As Davey Johnson stated in his acceptance speech: “It was a great thrill in my life to come to New York and have the opportunity to manage in front of the most intelligent fans in all the world. All I had to do was listen to the radio and I knew exactly how I was going to manage the team the next day. So I thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

Can we get Davey Johnson out of retirement to be our new manager??"

- Shawna Shea