WHY COULDN'T IT BE A-ROD?

Petitte's perfecto just got broken up by an error made by the Yankee 3B.... Jerry Hairston, Jr.!

Can you imagine if it was A-ROD? He would have actually been burned in effigy.

Oh well!

Obvious Basic Managerial Strategy (that no one uses)

Managers get fired all the time. They get fired for using the wrong batting order (Buddy Bell), overworking their pitchers (Baker, among many others), not changing their lineups enough (Torre? I don't know, there must have been a reason he was fired!), over using their bullpens, misusing their bullpens.

Often managers get fired for decisions that were only even ARGUABLY wrong!

Here is my my proposed, groundbreaking, dare I say brilliant, managerial tactic. You guys (and one, known, gal) tell me if there is a reason NOT to do this everytime.

When you are a road team in the National League, you bat first. Why not "start" someone other than your SP (i.e., yesterday's starting pitcher) batting 9th? Then, if the pitcher's spot gets up in the 1st inning, you will have the option of pinch-hitting for your pitcher in the 1st inning without giving up your pitcher! It's like a 1st inning DH!

Think about this. Your team takes a 3 run lead, makes two outs, then loads the bases. It now has a 3 run lead in the first inning (not even close to an insurmountable lead), the bases loaded, and two outs!

Bases loaded two out is the IDEAL time for a pinch hitter. Indeed, your BEST pinch hitter.

The only reason you wouldn't pinch hit is because it's the first inning and you don't want to take out your starter.

BUT, if you "start" someone other than your starter, that is taken out of the equation. You can pinch hit Lenny Harris (or whoever) and maybe blow the game open right there.

If the situation doesn't come up, you just bring in your intended starting pitcher, as planned.

Why not? Why not do this all the time? What is the downside?

I know the scenario above is rare, but some version of it happens to each team a couple of times a season. Why not take every advantage you can?

Al Franken Chose The Right Title, Wrong Subject!

Al Franken wrote a book entitled "Lies (and the lying liars who tell them)." That was about Republicans (or something).

He should have written it about the Mets front office.

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/mets/2009/08/28/2009-08-28_jose_reyes.html

So, let me get this straight, he has been two weeks from coming back for three months, now it turns out he has a torn hammy and is out for the year and will never be the same (Rubin's calming words notwithstanding).

Two things here, once again, a Met's injury is exacerbated by him pushing himself too hard to fast (in an extended spring training game).

Second, they have to have known for months that he wasn't coming back this season. Once they announce Beltran is done (expect this 9/2 or 9/3), the Mets will officially be a minor league team charging major league prices.

What's worse, is that, since NONE of these guys will be on the field before next year, we now have questions in our lineup at:

SS
CF
3B
LF
RF (if we non-tender Francouer-PLEASE DO THIS OMAR!)
1B (until we sign LaRoche)
1st (Johan), 2nd (Maine), 4th (Ollie), 5th (Niese) spots in the rotation
Set-up (Putz)

The only spots (other than closer) where we don't have questions, we have BAD answers (2B, Catcher, Pelfrey).

The dark ages have begun.

Keith-In-Real-Time

Keith Hernandez has been on such a roll tonight, I am going to try something new.

I am going to quote every stupid thing Keith says for an entire half inning.

This is a gamble, because I don't know how stupid he will be this inning.

HERE WE GO!

"Of all the sports, baseball is the most demanding..."

"You MAY have a point there!"- This is my favorite, when he acts surprised when Gary, the best announcer in baseball, says something smart. I call this "Keith-tronizing," namely when he patronizes someone who has to fight every urge to patronize him.

"He [Francouer] tried to backhand it instead of scooping it."

Gary- "If every sinker was like that, every hitter would [be in trouble]."

Keith- "Actually, it was a ball. If I am being the defense lawyer here."

Not bad! I may try this again. Saves you all the trouble of watching this minor league team.

Finally...some good news!

From CBSSPORSTLINE:

Oliver Perez, SP NYM
News: Mets SP Oliver Perez will have season-ending surgery on his ailing right knee.
Analysis: The Mets will be glad to see the end of 2009, and so will the Fantasy owners who took one of their many injured players in drafts before the season. Perez can be dropped in all Fantasy formats at this time.

Now we can move on, and see if Pat Misch and Nelson Figueroa and Bobby Parnell and Daniel Murphy (why not, we've tried him everywhere else) fit into our rotation for next year.

Mark my words, the Mets are not signing ANYONE of note. They will make a big "splash" by signing Adam LaRoche. That will be it.

What you see is what you get for the foreseeable future. Yikes!

Whew...that was close!

All day yesterday, I was terrified that my blog's first bonafied prediction (Wagner to the Sox) would prove wrong.

However...

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4421684

I love the dispute. He wants the Sox to promise NOT to pick up his $8M option and NOT offer him arbitration. The articles don't say how that was resolved.

However, is there really a risk that the Sox will pay him $8M next year to pitch in the 8th inning? Or that they might offer him arbitration (where his salary is based, in part, on his previous salary)?

If they offer him arbitration...he should take it! Why not? $10M to pitch in low leverage situations for a contender. He can set the lefty save record in 2011!

BTW, do you think if I talk enough about Wagner being traded for two nameless prospects, I can make the Johan injury disappear? Nahhh, me neither. But it was worth a shot.

Wipe them out...all of them!

Down goes Santana.

WHY WAS HE PITCHING THROUGH ELBOW DISCOMFORT SINCE THE ALLSTAR BREAK????

That is what Manuel said he was doing.

For what? To avoid falling behind the Nationals?

The season ended with Beltran's bone bruise.

The Mets push and push and push their players, and it always makes it worse. Reyes's calf turns into a season ending hammy, Church sits on the bench last year for weeks trying to play through a concussion (only to be called soft by Manuel anyway), now Santana.

It's not like he was pitching through a canker-sore. He was pitching through ELBOW PAIN!

I hate to say it, but their treatment of Santana, combined with the lying about Beltran and Reyes and Delgado's injuries, leads me to one conclusion: the Wilpons are BROKE. They need every nickel, so they make Johan pitch through pain, and they imply Reyes is on his way back (to give false hope to the fans who buy tickets).

When they let Wagner go for nothing tomorrow, that will be the final proof.

At least Sanchez is starting tonight for the Jets.

Wayne Hagen Turns Into Harry Doyle

A lot will be said about today's game. You can all guess my thoughts about Ollie earning another $400K for today's performance.

Also Frenchie ending the game on an unassisted triple play. Why would you send the runners? Just randomly?

I would like to focus on something Wayne Hagen said during the second inning of the game, after Nelslon Figueroa had come in. Figueroa threw a spinner/hanger/straight/meatball curveball. After commenting on that pitch, Hagen said:

"I think Figueroa will be focusing on his fastball and slider today, at least judging by that pitch!"

He is so fed up with this team, he couldn't stop himself.

Later, he and Howie envisioned this 1PM game ending as a "night" game.

You know you suck when your announcers can't keep from making sarcastic, harsh remarks on the air.

Give Me Cheaters or Give Me Death!

Howie Rose (the Mets radio guy) was on the pre-game today.

He told a story of Gil Hodges telling Koosman to put shoe polish on a ball that landed in the dugout, in order to get a "hit-by-pitch" awarded. It worked. That was during the WORLD SERIES!

The story was told as a funny, old anecdote. It WAS a funny old anecdote.

How is proactively doctoring a baseball (at the direction of a mangager, no less) not cheating? Of course it's cheating.

If anyone can distinguish that form of cheating from using steroids, please include it in the comments. If anything, steroids were only marginally illegal until just recently. Doctoring a baseball to deceive an umpire was JUST PLAIN WRONG.

No one talks about removing the Mets '69 Series win from the record books. That would be ridiculous. It was just something that happened when guys got competitive, trying to win a game.

Isn't that (and steroid use) better than a bunch of indifferent loafers playing for a paycheck? Think the NBA (and the Knicks).

People like to talk about how good Tim Duncan is. He is quite good. However, the reason the Spurs have been competing for a championship every year for a decade is simple:

THEY ARE ALL TRYING TO WIN A CHAMPIOSHIP.

They are the only team for whom that is true all the time. Say what you will about Bruce Bowen, but he is certainly trying! Same for Rip Hamilton, by the way.

Dirty? Maybe. Trying? ABSO-FREAKING-LUTELY.

In baseball, EVERYONE is trying. When someone doesn't (Reyes) they catch hell.

Steroids and shoe-polishing baseballs and vaseline balls are just an extension of trying.

Give me a bunch of cheating, trying, steroid using, ball doctoring players on my team over a bunch of going through the motions, happy to have a job, ethics first players. Every day of the week.

Sports is one place in my life where entertainment trumps ethics.

Win. Entertain me. Give me meaningful games in September (or December or April).

Fair and square

I am all for standing up for your friends.

I hope I am the kind of guy you call to bail you out of jail.

The Daily News writers have taken this concept a bit too far.

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/mets/2009/08/21/2009-08-21_gary_sheffields_.html

For those who won't click through, Tim Smith calls the Mets decision to keep Sheffield a "hostage crisis."

I hate Gary Sheffield. I am on the record as not having wanted him the first place. He is a cancer, he dumped games to get out of Milwaukee. He trashed Joe Torre for no reason.

However, he is also the best Mets position player left standing. By a lot. He is also making the veteran minimum. Do you need better reasons than those to keep him? The Mets won't win the world series, but isn't winning better than losing? Am I missing something?

It's not like the Giants were offering some A-list prospect for him.

I think Mr. Smith may have been blinded by his friendship with Mr. Rubin (he of the Omar fiasco last month). Better biased than just plain stupid.

If he doesn't see that the Mets are better with Sheffield than without him, he has no business writing about baseball for a living.

The Mets owe Sheffield NOTHING. They picked him off the scrap heap and saved his career. He will be offered a contract (by someone) ONLY because the Mets picked him up in April (when the rest of baseball had written him off). If anything, HE owes THEM.

I will now begin holding my breath waiting for Sheffield to repay that debt. Call the paramedics!!!

Jon Garland Cleared Waivers!

You can never have too much pitching.

If Omar thought Oliver Perez was worth $12M X 3 years, isn't Jon Garland and his 4.4 ERA (in Arizona!) worth a look at $10M for next year?

Right now, the Mets have a rotation of 1) Santana, 2) Pelfrey, 3) MAINE?, 4) Niese (assuming heever gets healthy), 5) Parnell, 6) Nelson Figueroa, 7) Random Guy on the Street, 8) Ollie.

Garland is better than all but two of those guys (assuming Pelfrey contines to progress), and he is healthy. Wagner is coming off the books, the $10M lines up perfectly.

Done and done!

Nahh. On second thought, let's just extend Ollie another decade.

A Million Dollars Ain't What It Used To Be....

....and you can't find a good yacht anymore!"- Toby Ziegler (The West Wing).

I am not looking for luxury. I am not even looking for average.

Is it too much to ask to have a no-hit middle infielder utility type?

A-Hern just threw a two-hopper from the hole at SS. Then Luis Castillo doesn't cover 2nd on a groundball because: Hey! I got my money!

Now its 8-0 and I am left to watch the O'Reilly Factor.

Man, for a guy fighting for his career, A-Hern has looked just awful. How long is this "look" going to last?

How many of these guys have we gone through? Cora, Valdes, A-Hern... Jeez!

You know you're in trouble when you long for the days of Miguel Cairo. Or Joe McEwing!

Give me Omar's Bumbling and Stumbling Over This

Did Jerry Manuel really imply that David Wright is tough and Ryan Church is not tough, based on their ability to recover from a concussion?

Apparently...

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/sweetspot/0-4-179/Manuel-of-New-York--Medieval-Manager.html (h/t to Neyer quoting Davidoff)

Has this guy lost his mind?????

Are they fighting a war? Is this a matter of life and death?

This isn't a case of Cliff Floyd hamming it up over a twisted ankle (more on that later, I am sure).

This is a concussion! A guy's brain banging against his skull!

Not to mention that Church DID come back quickly from the concussion, and it ruined his season.

Manuel should be fired for saying what he said. Simple as that.

No wonder every met injured under Manuel has pushed himself and hurt himself worse (except for Wright). Beltran, Reyes, Delgado, Church (kinda). They all think Manuel will throw them under the bus as being "soft" for not "playing through" their injuries. Remember Manuel saying Sheffield had a "cramp," and he ended up on the DL? This guy is unreal.

If this is what he is saying to the press, imagine what he said behind closed doors to Church. All the while saying that there wasn't a rift between them.

Normally, I try to end with a pithy comment, but it's hard to be pithy when your blood is boiling. That said, I'll give it a shot:

Manuel was quoted as saying Omar Minaya "owed it to the team" to try to play through his injury. Unconfirmed reports indicate Minaya broke his pinky toe tripping over his own tongue.

(How was that?)

FIRST EVER! A Man Crush On A Golfer!

The onlything more boring than hearing about someone else's fantasy team is hearing about someone else's golf.

However, watching today's PGA Championship has forced me to tell you about my golf.

For those who missed it, Padraig Harrington got an 8 on a par 3. That is really hard. He accomplished it by putting two in the drink on that hole. The second one dunked was on a 20 yard pitch he skulled over the green and into the water.

Not to go into two much detail (there may be kids reading this) but let's just say Padraig is a man after my own short game.

Throw in that his cousin is Dan Harrington (one of the best 10 poker players on earth), and I think I have a new favorite golfer.

Right now our relationship is strictly athlete/fan.

Emphasis on "right now"!

A-Hern on Any Given Sunday

I went to the Met game today. Nothing more inspiring than a lineup that features 8 players that would not make the Yankees 25 man roster (Pelfrey would likely make the roster as a long reliever).

Shock of shocks...they won!

All the best moments of the game involved Anderson Hernandez, the once and current Met.

For those of you who don't know, he is being given a "look" as a defensive replacement/pinch-runner for next years team.

Now, he stinks, so even that "look" is troubling.

However, to avoid any doubt about whether he deserves a job next year, A-Hern, in the same game:

1. Made a high throw allowing a runner to get a hit.

2. Made a high throw that uber-1B Daniel Murphy caught for an out.

3. Missed a slow roller to his left.

4. Missed a slow roller to his right, that, had he gotten a glove on it, would have saved a run.

5. Got picked off first base.

That is like a month of misplays in one day.

On the flip side, the mere threat of his presence caused Luis Castillo to man up and hit a huge, no-doubter, home run. So there's that.

Evil Triumphs Over Good!

Today, SSB favorite John Garland faced off against SSB sworn enemy Oliver Perez.

Ollie won! Look out your window. It may be dark, but if you squint, you will see the pigs flying!

On the all important "Ollie" score (walks + HBP + WPs + HRs):

Ollie: 7

Garland: 3

Ollie walked 6 people in less than 6 innings. As Crash Davis says: "I don't know where it's gonna go. I swear to god!"

On a related (sign of the apocolypse) note, Jeff Francouer walked twice in a game for the 3rd time this season. Granted, one was an intentional walk, and the other might as well have been (2nd and 3rd less than two outs). Still, two walks is two walks.

The silver lining with Ollie is that Omar can't give him any more money for a few years. He already has $24M coming the next two years.

Frenchie, on the other hand? Not so much. I expect that he will get a new contract equal to .7 X RBIs as a Met X $1M. For example, 42 RBIs, $6M per year. The years will be determined by how "clutch" he seems to Manuel. Since no one seems to remember his outs, I expect Frenchie to get a $24M extension at the end of the year. Hard as it will be to believe, that contract will be worse than the Castillo contract.

On the bright side, when Omar gives Frenchie $24M this offseason, it will quiet the "Omar only pays Latinos" mob. Not sure if that is worth being stuck with Frenchie as our RF for the next half decade. I guess we will find out.

A Steroids Angle

Suffice it to say, I am bored of all the steroids moralizing. Half the league was using, some knowingly, some not.

Getting all high and mighty about David Ortiz is just not interesting.

However, one important result of the "Steroid Era" is that it gave some GMs more credit than they deserved.

People love to talk about Oakland's "Big Three" and Billy Beane's "Moneyball' methodology. Ask yourself this question: How many divisions would Mr. Beane have won without Tejada and Giambi (both huge 'roiders)? Not many.

Being a GM (especially in baseball) is, at its core, a job about deciding who you believe is going to be good for the next 5 years, and offering contracts to those that you think will be.

Steroids bailed out a bunch of GMs from what otherwise would have been terrible decisions.

How many extra divisions did Schuerholz win because of Sheffied's "cream and the clear"? Would he have continued to perform at that level without the steroids? Doubtful.

Maybe the best example is Brian Sabean. He is the worst GM in baseball. His policy is to bestow enormous contracts on old, marginal players (Omar Vizquel, for example). But if you look at his record, it looks pretty good. Mostly because Bonds carried the team on his back for like 5 more years than he should have.

Normally the last few years of a multi-year deal in baseball is flushed down the toilet, as a player who was good at 32, turns not so good at 37.

Examples abound, all over baseball.

Cashman (the Yankees GM) won 2 extra rings by trading gifted (if lazy) David Wells for the roiding Clemens. Two extra rings is a lot. Would Cashman even have a job if he had stopped winning rings in 1998?

This extends to mangers as well. Dusty Baker manages 162 games like they are the 7th game of the world series. He bats guys with <.300 OBPs lead off (h/t Posnanski). he has destroyed the careers of at least two pitchers (Prior, Wood). Aweful. But his time(and record) in San Fransisco (bouyed by Bonds) gives the impression that he has some magical, intangible skill that trumps his inability to understand simple baseball strategy.

Steroids don't taint the game. Baseball is still fun to watch (maybe more so) when the players are on PEDs.

The problem is how to evaluate the EVALUATORS.

Thank God For Small Favors

Being a Jet fan is tough. To quote Sidney Dean (from White Men Can't Jump), it's "Hard Goddamn work!"

There was a stretch where we went from Parcells to Groh to Herm. Ouch!

Everyone likes to focus on his "You Play to Win the GAME!" press conference. Lots of us Jet fans, at the time wondered whether he had a future in broadcasting, since he obviously didn't have a future in, you know, coaching professional football.

On my drive to work today, I got to relive just a small piece of the Herm era.

Herm was co-hosting Mike & Mike this morning. During an interview of Bill Cosby, Cosby asked Herm how he dealt with players who didn't do exactly what he said. In response, Herm said (and this is a direct quote):

"To be human is error!"

The Hundley Directive

What makes a bad franchise?

So much goes into it. It doesn't happen by accident.

A great way to make a bad franchise is to follow, what I like to call, the Hundley Directive.

Named after Todd Hundley, the Hundley Directive is a relatively simple plan. It goes like this:

Develop an elite/allstar level player at a scarce position (Catcher, CF, Closer), then sign or trade for another player who plays the same position, only worse, forcing your home grown prospect to change positions or leave the team.

The METS specialize in this.

Hundley (Piazza)

Reyes!!!! (Matsui)

Dykstra (Juan Samuel)

Randy Myers (John Franco)

Dave Magadan (Eddie Murray)

Edgardo Alfonzo (Robin Ventura)

Those are just off the top of my head.

Say what you will about the Yankees (and I will, believe me!), when A-Rod arrived, they made HIM move so their boy Cap'n Jetes (to quote Neyer) could still play SS.

Can you imagine if the yankees had given Rivera's job to, say, Keith Foulke? The course of history could have been changed!

What's odd is that I can't think of another team doing this. EVER! And yet the Mets do it every year!

If there is some master plan in play, please tell me!

Omar, Jeff, Fred? Anyone? Bueller?

I LOVE Having Kids

There are lots of reasons,

Their first steps, their unique look on life, unconditional love, cooking them dinner.

Now I have a new reason:

If I didn't have kids, I almost CERTAINLY would have been at the Met game tonight.

Whew! Crisis Averted!

It is 3-0 and Figeroa is not out of the top of the first. Runners on first and second.

Lucky CitiField's a pitchers park, or this could have gotten ugly.

Figeroa is already at a 3 on the Ollie Index, and is not out of the first inning.

Wonderful.

"Cripple Pitch"

Now,

I am anything but squeamish. You could spend a long time trying to offend me, and fail.

I also think I know a lot of words (if I do say so myself).

But this afternoon, I heard a word (quoted above) that made me question whether I even know myself.

The update guy on the sports talk station here in NY, in an attempt to pay a compliment to Albert Pujols, used the phrase "Cripple Pitch," to mean, I think, a slow, meatball-type, very hitable pitch (i.e., "When Albert gets a Cripple Pitch, he crushes it!").

Never heard that one before. Not sure I even understand it. Does he mean a pitch you would throw to a "Cripple"? Or a pitch a "Cripple" would throw?

In any event, if the last presidential campaign taught me anything, its this: don't randomly insult people with disabilities! Remember Obama's special olymics comment?

That just seemed like a random attack on people who have it much tougher than that update guy.

Just a thought.

(PS- I think today's met game was officially the last one that counted. How sad!)

Angel's In the Outfield

Always an encouraging sign when you need a grand slam by a guy who hasn't homered in 2 years to beat the team with the 14th best record in the NL.

But, it what will be an ongoing theme of this blog...A win is a win?

Today, we have SSB hero Jon Garland against handlicker Mike Pelfrey.

At this point, I am just hoping the Mets win enough to keep it interesting until football season. With a $150M payroll, that isn't too much to ask, is it?

One more thing

Ollie's career "Ollie":

4.2

Ollie's "Ollie" in the year immediately preceding Omar bestowing $36M on him:

4.3

I bet Tony Bernazard had something to do with this signing. If so, he will be showing up in my driveway ripping off his shirt...

Ollie Ollie Oxen Free!

OK,

It's not that I hate Oliver Perez. To quote Fredo (re: Johnny Ola), "I never met him."

It's just that he is so aweful to watch. I mean, watch pitch. Maybe it is a heavenly delight to say, watch him core an apple.

Pitching, though, not so much.

And the longer he is in the game, the worse it gets.

As such, I propose a stat, akin to a "Game Score."

I am going to call the stat the "Ollie."

Here is how it works,

You simply add up a pitcher's walks, wild pitches, HRs allowed, and hit batsmen in a given start. That's it.

The stat measures a pitcher's "watchability" rather than his effectiveness.

Anything lower than 3 is good. Anything more is...well....

For example, Mark Buehrle is one of the most watchable pitchers in baseball. Throws strikes, moves the game along. He is averaging a 2.5 Ollie this year.

For some scale, Jon Garland, the most average pitcher on earth. This year he is averaging a 3.2 Ollie. In fact, Garland is averaging a 3.2 Ollie FOR HIS CAREER (talk about consistently average!).

Tonight, $12M Oliver Perez had a 7.0 Ollie.

Yikes!

Ollie is on tonight!

Through two innings, he is averaging merely one walk per inning.

Omar, how do you give this guy $36M? Tell me the truth (it'll be our little secret), was someone else really offering him $35M? Did Boras really convince you of that?

Welcome to the world!

This is my first foray into the world of sports blogging.

Like my predecessors (Shysterball, Posnanski) I needed an outlet.

A little about me.

I am a New Yorker and, quite obviously, a Mets, Jets, and Knicks fan.

Let that sink in. Pretty much every day (or every other day in January and February), I have to watch one of these teams play. Ouch!

I am 32. In my whole life, my teams have won ONE championship ('86 Mets). Even that one required some luck (Buckner), a druggie (Keith), and a 'Roider (Lenny).

That said, winning is better than losing, so I'll take it.

Nothing like losing while blowing through the salary cap (Knicks), destroying the legacy of an all-time great (Jets), and/or having the #2 payroll (Mets). We don't even have any "small market" excuse. How sad.