This Week in Mets Quotes

Remembering 10 years ago

"Because the games were called on 9/11, we went back to Pittsburgh before we actually played a game in New York.  At that time we had been impacted by meeting with the families of the rescue workers. And so we had hats and T-shirts that we wanted to wear under our jerseys and on our heads during the game. And I can remember MLB saying we could do it as a tribute at the beginning, but we had to put our regular hats on for the rest of the game.  "The quote was attributed to me that I said, 'They're going to have to pry them off our heads if they think we're going to take those off.' But the quote was really attributed to me because I was the player rep. It was really a collective feeling from everybody in the clubhouse, and Bobby Valentine included, that, 'Hey, we're wearing these out there as a tribute. This is not some trivial, novel little sign and gesture. This is a tribute. And we're going to wear these hats until we can't wear them anymore, until they're ripped off our heads.' That was the feeling we had toward New York. There was a unity there."  Todd Zeile via espn

What a unique insider opinion on the matter

"I don't know what's going on, but my guess is (the Mets are) going to do the best they can to keep him. That's my guess. I think it's fair to say, I know Jose and I'm pretty sure this is his favorite place."  Minaya via newsday

Most swingmen tend to get that phase out of the way in their 20s

"I’m very proud of my career, for what you guys call a ‘swingman.’ And I’m happy -- very happy -- I got it out of the way." Batista via espn

Beast Mode Activated

"That was tough. I was trying to put the ball in play. He threw me two sliders -- one in the dirt and one down the middle. And then I just kind of went into battle mode because he's tough. I just tried to put the ball up the middle."  Duda via espn

"He fouls off two nasty sliders. And then the ball he hits, Dave Hudgens came back and said, 'Wait until you see the replay of that at-bat.' He said he hit a 95 mph fastball on the outside corner. A terrific at-bat."  TC via espn

All excellent points

"I root for [Reyes] because he is a friend, and I root for him because he is a teammate.  I also root for him because I like hitting with runners in scoring position."  Wright via dailynews

Andy Martino nods in agreement

"I could do it. Absolutely, I think I told you guys before: I don’t feel like I’m Willie Mays in left. So I’m definitely not going to be Willie Mays in center. But I think I can definitely be adequate. There’s some smart guys up there [in the front office.] They realize I’m not going to be the best center fielder in the league. I guess it’s the tradeoff, if that were to happen."  Bay via espn 

Canadian Smacktalk

"For the most part, right now, we’ve got a center fielder. There would be a lot of dominoes that would have to go one way or another for that to happen. We’ll cross that bridge if and when we come to it. It’s really the last thing on my mind right now."  Bay via espn 

For every happy story like this…

"I mean, all the years I played baseball, the goal was always to get to the big leagues. It’s been 20 years since I started playing baseball. You always dream, but you never know if it’s going to happen. And now it happens. I honestly don’t even know what to think. I’m happy, proud and just ready to go."  Satin via espn

…there’s many sad stories that like this

"It’s tough to stay patient.  It’s definitely tough, because you always want to be on the fast track. You have former teammates and friends up there. It’s awesome playing in the big leagues, and that’s the goal from when you’re 5 years old.  I’ve had the opportunities. That’s for sure. It’s been wide open for me to make an impact and get my foot in the door and get up there. It hasn’t happened that way. The only thing I can do is keep working and try to make the best out of getting up there as soon as possible."  Havens via espn

But back to happy stories

"I’ve never really gotten to play this many days in a row, so it’s exciting.  I love it."  Evans via espn

Satin may be the new Who

"I explained to [Satin] that I made a little bit of a commitment to Nick.  ... He understood. I just told him I was very, very, very proud of the fact that he's here. I think it's one of the great stories in our game in this organization for a guy who was pretty much maligned because people didn't like his swing, people didn't like that he didn't really have a position. And all he's done is battled and battled and battled." TC via espn

Interesting way to phrase it

"I don't want to form a relationship that can't be broken." Collins regarding not letting Tejada work exclusively with Reyes via espn

All your base are belong to Reyes

"I asked [Reyes] between games, ‘Did you get yourself loose yet?’ He looked at me right in the eye and he said, ‘I’m ready to play some baseball.’"  TC via espn

That

"It's about DNA, a project between the government and United Nations that doesn't go as planned and the people who have to be brought in from the outside to clean it up... In the research I interviewed a doctor who spoke to Congress about cloning."  Batista via dailynews

The team reacts to Einhorn:  Pretty canned, but what are they supposed to say

"I think it has zero effect on us.  I got a chance to meet him. He seemed like a nice guy, seemed like a very smart guy. I enjoyed the conversations I had with him.  But at the end of the day, it has really no effect on anybody in here. It’s obviously the people upstairs that know more about it than we do. We just read the headlines. I just don’t think it has much effect on the guys on here at all."  Wright via espn

"When I took this job, I was going to try and stay out of stuff that I have no control over, that doesn’t include me.  (I knew) going in that there’s a lot to this job on the outside away from the field, but I’m responsible for the promotion of this team, the play of this team and that’s pretty much where I leave it.  Yes, am I informed on things going on? Of course. But Jeff (Wilpon) was just in and just said, ‘Look, I want you to know we’re moving forward, and it’s business as usual as far as you’re concerned.’ ‘And I said, ‘I didn’t expect to hear anything else of you, except that.’  TC via espn

"Like I told you guys, I don’t worry about that man.  Right now, my concern is staying on the field and finishing the season strong. Whatever happens after, so I don’t pay any attention to what’s going on. I just worry about going on the field and giving it 100 percent everyday."  Reyes via espn

"Ask me again in spring training, you may get a different answer. But the truth of it is, in this moment, I'm neither curious nor anxious about it."  R.A. Dickey via newsday   

The State of the Mets

"We can't spend at will the same way they can spend. And we're not going to attempt to try to do that, at least not over the next several years. Our revenues, basically we've got to get people back in the ballpark to generate the kind of revenues that would be needed to have an even larger payroll. But the fact is, even at $100 million or $110 million, we're still in the upper echelon of payrolls. That ought to allow us plenty of latitude.  When you have $75 million of that tied up in four or five players, some of whom aren't playing, it's not a good situation to be in where you're trying to fill out the rest of the team and be competitive in a very difficult division.  It's very difficult, unless you're one of a couple of teams, to have three, four guys making $15 million-plus. I don't care who you are -- again, with the exception maybe of a couple of teams. So I would expect we'll be looking actively in the free-agent market, but we've got to get it to a position where we can be active every year and not be hamstrung by existing contracts. Part of that is making good decisions in the first place. I mean, if you invest $15 million, you hope you're going to get $15 million worth of performance. We haven't always gotten that."  Alderson via espn           

SiteBot FacePalm of the Week

"That explains things I shouldn’t understand what Turmer was doing running to second. Really made me mad at Turner. Now I blame pelfrey and his inability to execute in clutch."  Seaver73

AA Quote of the Week

"Herrera.  It makes you really want to have Chris Young in the rotation, just so Herrera can relieve him. They have almost an 18 inch difference in height."  jacksonvillesuns