WOW! I Don't Believe My Eyes ... or Dillon Gee's Got My Vote

As I am writing this Tim Byrdak is closing the ninth inning for Dillon Gee and just stuck the the first batter, Neil Walker, OUT! It still amazes me, no pun intended, that Gee was allowed to pitch through the eighth. That is baseball as I remember it, the pitchers doing great, let him finish what he started. I would have liked to have seen Gee finish up, but as it is, since following the game online, I do not know if it was Gee's decision, or Collins'. Either way, I'll accept it.

Just received a text from a fellow Mets fan responding from my earlier text that I could not believe that Gee was still in the game with the Mets so far ahead ... he responded "I like that. This is all of a sudden a fun team to watch!" and I could not agree more. These past few weeks have been fun. OK, so they did not come back to win it the other night, but at least they came back, and that is something that under the last GM and Managers was something that was a rarity. Still chilled of the days of Jerry Manuel actually stating the defeatist attitude. With Sandy Alderson and Terry Collin you cannot help but feel the optimism. It does seem to have an effect on the younger players, they do not seem jaded and defeated even when the team is in a hole. Now, they have the drive to fight back. That never say die attitude. Something that has been missing from this team for a while. It is infectious, so much so, that the it even seems to be spreading to the veterans who at one time seemed to be happy just getting by.

Think about this ... even with Santana, Wright, and Davis out, this team still seems to be moving in the right direction ... dare we say it? Let alone think it? and to those in the media .. why not? what makes your opinion better the ours? The fans? As far as I can see, not much.

Oh, and as for Dillon Gee ... as of tonight he is (7-0) with the Mets defeating the Pirates (8-1) ... forget All-Star .. he has my vote for the Cy Young Award ..... when he pitches, it is like fire igniting this team ...

Gary Carter: So Much More than a Superstar

I've been a Met fan for a long time, really my entire life. And being a Met fan meant that you rout for your team and against your opponents. Growing up it was always "the Mets" or "the other guys". That held true for me for just about every player, except in the case of Gary Carter. I've always been a fan of Gary Carter and he was always an idol of mine - even as a Montreal Expo. And when the Mets acquired him, there wasn't a happier Met fan out there. Very few players create a legacy in their first game with a new team, but Carter's homer off of Neil Allen to open the 1985 season is an ingrained memory that I'll always remember as a lifelong Mets fan... his storybook Met career began.


That is why I feel a profound heartache hearing the latest news of his being diagnosed with grade 4 glioblastoma, a horrible disease affecting the brain and central nervous system. For some strange reason, I feel like he's a friend of mine, probably because he was the catalyst that made a good team in 1984 a great team in 1985, and a championship team in 1986.

Many words such as superstar and legend are way overused in today's media, but they certainly apply to Carter. As the final piece of the Mets championship team, Carter quickly rose to the status of fan favorite. He's in the Mets Hall of Fame. He was an 11-time All Star. He was enshrined in Cooperstown in 2003 (where he wanted to go in as a Met, but the powers that be in baseball thought otherwise). He had a lifetime batting average of .262 with 324 home runs and 1,225 RBI in a 19-year career with the Expos, Mets, Giants and Dodgers. From 1977-1986, he was as big a star as baseball had.

He's won a World Series. He was the co-captain and backbone of that 1986 Championship team and remains in my mind as one of the best clutch hitters I have ever seen. In addition, he was unparalled defensively where I've seen him throw out speedy baserunners after catching breaking balls in the dirt. Carter did everything right, and always with a smile. There's not much more to say other than I loved watching him play the game. With apologies to Mike Piazza, Carter's probably the best all around catcher in Mets history, kind of like Piazza's hitting combined with Jerry Grote's catching. He was as competitive as any player ever. Clutchness defined him.

Take the infamous Game 6 as an example. When asked his thoughts batting in extra innings with 2 outs and no one on base, about to see the Red Sox win their first championship since 1918, all he was thinking was "I wasn't going to make the last out". He always personified the true heart of a champion. His hit paved the way to arguably not the greatest moment in all of baseball history, but all of SPORTS history!, a moment embedded into the minds of all Mets fans to forever savor. (little known fact: his sacrifice fly tied that game in the eight inning as well - the man was clutch!)

For all Gary Carter has given to baseball, and specifically to the Mets, I call for the team to officially retire his #8, and to schedule a special day at Citi Field to bestow this honor on him.

What a great and emotional day that would be! When you think of #8, you think of Carter. Notice how the numbers of other "significant" Mets have been recycled over and over (#17 comes to mind, but that's a topic for another story), but rarely has #8 been worn since Gary Carter left the Mets in 1989 after 5 phenomenal seasons and 2176 at-bats in a Met uniform. Carter has provided the Mets and Mets fans with countless memorable moments - now it should be our turn to support "our own". Retiring his number is the right thing to do, and it should be done soon, anything to help him fight the fight of his life. I'm sure all Met fans join me in wishing him the best in his recovery.

I actually had the pleasure of meeting Gary Carter in person for one fleeting moment in 1988. While walking down the streets of New York with a friend of mine, we saw Carter approaching us. We knew who it was from a distance. (When you're a Met fan, you know an idol when you see one.) Just as he was passing by, I uttered "Gary Carter... thanks!". What happened next has stayed with me till this day.

He stopped, and asked "thanks for what?" I responded, "for all the baseball memories". He then said (and I quote), "No, thank YOU for being a fan", shook both our hands, and continued on his path. Now, we weren't even kids at the time, but "The Kid" took it upon himself to engage a couple of strangers in a short conversation that will never be forgotten. He probably didn't even realize the impact that moment had on two of his fans.

That's why I'm a Met fan. And that's why I was, and always will be, a Gary Carter fan. "The Kid" always epitomizes optimism, which is something we'll need in major doses in the upcoming days, weeks, and months. We need to honor Carter NOW, retire #8, and not wait before it's too late. No one is more deserving. In fact, the Mets have had other legends affected by brain tumors, such as Tug McGraw (who I also had the pleasure to meet on several occasions well after his retirement). Perhaps the team can launch some kind of charitable program with a priority to raise money to find a cure for brain diseases.

In 1986, things looked bleak and hopeless in game six until Gary Carter dug his heels in to spark an amazing comeback rally. Now, he'll need that courage and determination that defined him as a player, husband, coach, friend, and man to beat the odds once again. I really hope Gary will fight hard to beat this disease, If anyone can fight this, it's the 57-year old Carter.

I'm praying for him and his family to stay strong. And if I have just one thing to say to him at this time, it would be this: "Gary, do not make that final out"