Baseball's Back Applesauce - Ryan Church is back, Angel Berroa improvements on the Met brand, brave Pedro, Musial

by Joe Budd on Jul 16, 2009 9:18 AM EDT in Applesauce

Yesterday was a SLOW baseball day. I usually wake up to 300 new items in the amazing Google Reader (my Applesauce ingredients), but there were only 150 stories this morning, most of them about Pedro who, if you haven't heard, is now a Phillie.

Meet the Mets

This Met fan attended five Met games in 18 days. The Mets scored a total of 0 runs. The odds of that happening are 1.42 out of a million.

Angel Berroa has been called up from Brooklyn to the Mets, replacing Argenis Reyes. I would get worked up, but once again, he's replacing Argenis Reyes.

We get to see Ryan Church again.

Mets Police has some good suggestions to build brand loyalty.

Around the NL East

Pedro says that he was "too brave" when playing for the Mets. "Brave" is not exactly the word I was thinking of, although he did stand tall against those sprinklers.

Around MLB

Justin Morneau is ticked about the piped-in recording of Oh Canada a the All Star game.

Here is the most important stat of the week.

Albert Pujols is this generation's Stan Musial. Joe Posnanski picks up on Musial's underrated legend status and politics at the All Star game.

Tyler Yates has had surgery and is out for the year.

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So I come to you on March 31st

And tell you I am from the future, in a world in which Jeff Francoeur and Angel Berroa are on the Mets, Pedro Martinez is on the Phillies, Ryan Church is on the Braves, our starting catcher is Omir Santos, and our starting rotation includes Fernando Nieve.

At what point do you tell me you don’t have any change and to please leave you alone?

by Pat Andriola on Jul 16, 2009 9:25 AM EDT reply actions 2 recs

And if that wasn't enough . . .

That D-dub would be leading the Mets in steals, with a reasonable shot at 40 (no mentioning his CS%, please), yet has only 5 homers and more than twice as many strikeouts as the next closest Met not named . . . Francoeur?
Or that Gary Sheffield would be leading the Mets in home runs with 10 and that the Mets would be dead last in HRs, yet leading the league in steals, even though Reyes only has 11?

by TomDC on Jul 16, 2009 12:47 PM EDT up reply actions

Or that we are now a $60m team

by Michkin on Jul 16, 2009 3:48 PM EDT up reply actions

good post by the Mets Police

Keep calling the organization on their BS, Mets Police.

We've got ourselves a ball club, the Mets of New York town!

by kingcritical on Jul 16, 2009 9:40 AM EDT reply actions

I'm on the meh fence with this suggestion list.

1. “More Mets stuff at Citi.” Sure.
2. Retire #17. Keith was a great player and a guy I would love to grab a beer with but I think the whole retire number thing is overrated. Keith basically spent 8 years with the Mets, accumanting 26.5 WAR. If that becomes the baseline for a retired number, then Al Leiter’s 26.3 WAR in 7 seasons gets retired, Edgardo Alfonzo put up 29.1 WAR in 8 seasons so retire his numbers, and Carlos Beltran’s 22.2 WAR prior to this season means his number will have to be retired, I know the counter argument is that it’s more than just the numbers, “Keith was influential.” More influential how; Turk Wendall influenced me to love the number 99. Lastly, the point that Mets Police wants to see “The List” before retiring Piazza’s number but says that fans are over Keith’s cocaine addiction is kind of silly. I’m not getting into the steriod argument.
3. Have old timers day – My problem with this suggestion is just that he uses the line “Throw $50,000 at Seaver and tell him to leave the grapes for a day and just have it.” This is not directed at Mets Police but I really dislike when someone uses made up monatary values regarding how to spend someone elses money.
4. Have Banner Day – I don’t have a problem with Banner Day, but knowing Mets fan the banners will probably read “Get Manny Freddie Coupon” “Beltran never plays hurt” “The only reason Omir is slumping is because his back is hurting him from carrying the Mets in May and early June.”
5. No Ticket Fee – I think everyone can get behind this but it’s not just the Mets, it’s every baseball team, every sports team, every music event, ecetera. If Wilpon 29 angry owstopped this, he would have ners, countless angry businesses and even the players union would probably be mad as less money for the owners means less money for them.
I apologize if this came off as an attack on Mets Police, just a slow work day and I felt like putting my two cents on each suggestion.

by Sokojoe on Jul 16, 2009 11:16 AM EDT up reply actions

I think Banner Day would be a hilarious debacle.

By time they got done censoring it, there would be no one left.

Everyone is entitled to be stupid, but Jerry abuses the privilege.

by AnthonyR on Jul 16, 2009 11:23 AM EDT up reply actions

What they really should have done

was have Banner Day one last time last year, at Shea.

That would have been classy, but this is the Mets, after all.

We've got ourselves a ball club, the Mets of New York town!

by kingcritical on Jul 16, 2009 11:24 AM EDT up reply actions

You'd think that out of the entire organization, they would have someone who thought like that.

They were too focused securing Brooklyn Dodgers memorabilia to worry about things like that.

Everyone is entitled to be stupid, but Jerry abuses the privilege.

by AnthonyR on Jul 16, 2009 11:42 AM EDT up reply actions

The Brewers don't charge a fee for online purchases

but they’re the only ones.: http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/article/the-cost-of-gouging/

by dtro on Jul 16, 2009 11:25 AM EDT up reply actions

Good to know.

If I’m ever in Wisconson, I’ll be sure to support their decision by buying a ticket, a brut, a beer and listening to Bob Uecker.

by Sokojoe on Jul 16, 2009 11:46 AM EDT up reply actions

In rebuttal to your point #2:

… but he’s Keith Hernandez.

You don't cheer for the Mets. You drink for the Mets.

by Kevin H on Jul 16, 2009 11:59 AM EDT up reply actions

if Stengel got his number retired

Keith should too. He’s all sorts of awesome, and helped get us a championship.

by jasondg on Jul 16, 2009 12:05 PM EDT up reply actions

I just wanted to 3rd this, Hernandez rocked.

by Mark D on Jul 16, 2009 12:16 PM EDT up reply actions

Yeah I have no problem with #17 being retired

He’s also been a terrific announcer for the Mets in addition to his playing career. That should be factored as well.

by James Kannengieser on Jul 16, 2009 12:46 PM EDT up reply actions

I also don't have a problem with Keith's number being retired

I more meant the retiring numbers in general is overrated. I have always liked Hernandez because of Seinfeld and my dad’s vcr tapes of the mid-80s Mets. Whenever I played baseball I always wore 17 and if I was actually any good when I made the Mets, I would’ve wore 17 as a tribute to my favorite player growing up. But when you retire numbers you can’t do that, Lastings wore 44 as a tribute to Hank Aaron and Delgado switched for Clemente. Plus, like I said, you retire Keith, shouldn’t you retire more players as well. But if you guys/the average fans are into it then it doesn’t really matter to me as I think my chance to play for the Mets passed.

by Sokojoe on Jul 16, 2009 1:49 PM EDT up reply actions

Agreed

The whole “_ player should have his number retired” thing generally doesn’t interest me. Not anything to get bent out of shape over. Everyone knows these guys were great – do we need to validate it by hanging their number up for all eternity? Plus Fernando Tatis would get upset about no longer being able to wear 17. And we can’t have a disgruntled Tatis in the 2nd half, otherwise his production might really start to suffer (facepalm).

Also, off-topic, but your mention of Leiter above sparked it. Seems like a lot of Met fans don’t have much affection for Leiter – he’s one of my favorites though. However, I understand why a lot might not care for him (the way his tenure with the Mets ended, his Yankee announcing). It’s rare to see a Leiter t-shirt at a Mets game nowadays.

by James Kannengieser on Jul 16, 2009 2:33 PM EDT up reply actions

Plus Hernandez did most of it while allegedly taking large amounts of coke. Leiter always struck me as too clean cut.

by Mark D on Jul 16, 2009 3:37 PM EDT up reply actions

I love Al Leiter

He’s my Jersey compatriot. If I had money to spend on jerseys or t-shirts while he was playing for the Mets, I’d probably have one of his.

by JoshNY on Jul 16, 2009 3:51 PM EDT up reply actions

I think there was a four year stretch

where I attended nothing but Trachsel starts. Where was my times article huh?

by dtro on Jul 16, 2009 11:11 AM EDT reply actions

I would retire

Hernandez’ #. He was the leader, and he always got the clutch hit, whether it was game 6 in Houston, or games 6 & 7 in the Series. Citi Field would go crazy. I’d due it on a night where they played the Cards or Phils, too. It would fire the place up.

And I’d even give Doc and Dwight their night, or retire them together, since they are so intertwined. They paid the price for their mistakes, give them their day.

by David G on Jul 16, 2009 12:46 PM EDT reply actions

sorry

Doc and Darryl.

by David G on Jul 16, 2009 12:46 PM EDT reply actions

link to Musial column

I wish I hadn’t followed that link. I love Stan the Man , even though I never saw him play, but that long winded blowhard , Joe Posnanski, seems to be carrying the chip that all of St. Louis has on it’s shoulder.

apparently, Musial’s “Ted Williams Moment” was ruined because the first african american president in history was invited to throw out the ball. Well, Musial has chosen to live a low profile life; he is not a shameless self promoter, he has not authored several books, appeared on countless television programs, or lived the very public kind of life that Williams did.

by coyote522000 on Jul 16, 2009 1:34 PM EDT reply actions

I think that misses the point.

“Well, Musial has chosen to live a low profile life; he is not a shameless self promoter, he has not authored several books, appeared on countless television programs, or lived the very public kind of life that Williams did.”

And that’s why he deserved better than a golfcart ride and some nice words from Joe Buck.

by dtro on Jul 16, 2009 2:09 PM EDT up reply actions