This Week in Mets Quotes: deGrom is ready to go, Dom Smith is not

RIP - MLB

“Tonight, that was probably the best I’ve felt in a long time. I don’t even know. I felt smooth, I wasn’t falling off hard. Whenever I say that, I feel like you could almost -- after you throw -- just walk to home plate. It’s none of the falling off to first. It’s a direct line. I felt that tonight.” -Jacob deGrom [MLB]

Mickey Robot says words when asked if deGrom has ‘weapons’.

“Probably the best weapons. It’s kind of showing up that he probably has the best stuff in all the Major Leagues -- or maybe for a long time. What he’s doing is historic, and you have to have really nasty stuff to do that. It’s great weapons, and there’s four of them.” -Mickey Callaway [MLB]

What the fuck?

“[With MLB drug testers at Marlins Park awaiting a urine sample from Smith, the Mets first baseman simply couldn’t go, delaying the team bus about 40 minutes Wednesday night. The Mets were facing a flight home and quick turnaround for their afternoon game against the Nationals. Smith says he was informed around the ninth inning that he would be tested after the game, and began drinking copious amounts of water.]”

“I went, but I didn’t go enough, so I had to wait until my bladder was ready to go.” -Dom Smith [New York Post]

“Some guys just don’t have to go after the game and it takes a while. If you catch him on any other night, then he just stays and gets an Uber, but we had a day game and we didn’t want to risk the earliest flight [for Smith] the next day, I am pretty sure, so we waited for him. It’s not his fault at all.” -Brandon Nimmo [New York Post]

“It got us out of batting practice today, so some people were happy about that.” -Dom Smith [New York Post]

Full Disclosure: TWIMQ loves Dom but Mickey’s quote is a perfect cliche for this time of year.

“[Dom has] been fantastic. I have to give credit to the players in that room. Nobody is worried about playing time. You don’t see anybody hanging their head because they’re not starting. They just want to go out there and win games.” -Mickey Callaway [Newsday]

With the above said, I love finding quotes that “get inside baseball”; Dom asked how to be a ML by being a professional PH.

“That’s how [Nimmo] started off his career. He was a really good pinch hitter.” -Dom Smith [Newsday]

“How do you get ready for game speed after not being a part of it for six innings, seven inning? I talked with [Smith] about what he thinks gets him ready. For me, it’s bumping that [pitching] machine up as high as it’ll go. I tried to impart some of that onto him. And tell him to not treat it like an at-bat in-game where you’re trying to feel out a pitcher. You need to research beforehand, know the pitcher before you go in there and be prepared — and once you go in there, that’s an important at-bat.” -Brandon Nimmo [Newsday]

“It’s better to be ready early than it is to be ambushed. [Smith] likes to soak it up and listen to what the guys like to do, but he’s very confident in his abilities and knows what he does well. I think he’s really done well.” -Brandon Nimmo [Newsday]

Narrator: It was not a thing.

“[Teammates held Bud Lights in their hands and shouted for Alonso, the rookie first baseman, to hurry. They were ready to celebrate the first home run of his major league career. He jumped into a laundry cart at Marlins Park, and they wheeled him into the shower. He was doused with beer, barbecue sauce, ketchup, mustard, eggs and relish. He kept his mouth shut the whole time as his eyes started to burn.] That was really cool. I didn’t know that was a thing.” -Pete Alonso [New York Times]

Narrator: That’s not how numbers work.

“Getting four hits … is never an indicator of how a person’s going to do the next day. That’s just how numbers work.” -Mickey Callaway [MLB]

JD Davis is a support of numbers.

“That [offensive troubles at home] has been brought to my attention. I would have to see more games here to say there is a different mentality here. Numbers are numbers. I don’t deny the numbers.” -JD Davis [New York Post]

Keep batting .207 and he’ll see Mets fans true side.

“I felt the love. Once you commit to play for a team, your heart and everything is going to that team. The way I’ve been embraced since spring training, it’s made me feel right away like part of this team. It felt good today to go out and see all those fans, the way they support the team.” -Robinson Cano [New York Post]

Going to go ahead and assume Nimmo is still smiling while giving this quote about his early season struggles.

“I don’t want to overdo it, because it is just seven games in and I do have a lot of confidence that this is going to turn around, but obviously I look at the next game and I’m like, this is the game I want it to turn around. I don’t want to wait for two weeks or whatever and be like, ‘Ah, it’s just a thing.’ The competitor in me wants it to happen now. I’m going to work as hard as I can for that right now.” -Brandon Nimmo [New York Post]

‘Wasn’t ideal’ is a very nice way of putting it.

“I love it [in Syracuse] compared to Vegas. For one, the stadium’s nice. The fans are nice. Vegas wasn’t ideal. … I don’t mind the cold as long as I don’t have to deal with 120 degrees in the summer.” -Jacob Rhame [New York Post]

Well, cross Ron Darling’s new book off my reading list.

[Kevin Elster] liked to think of himself as a ladies’ man, and he was. He was always talking about his exploits … in a way that would probably come back to bite him in today’s #MeToo environment.” -Ron Darling [New York Post]

No Context Quote of the Week

“We are grown men. We are professionals.” -Michael Conforto [New York Post]

Mets Tweet of the Week

AA Quote of the Week

“It was pretty stupid but the idea of bring your instrument to the game for a fan jam is just as stupid. Second only to bark in the park day” -frank73535

“DO NOT CRITICIZE BARK IN THE PARK” -theboggsaccount

SiteBot FacePalm of the Week

“I don’t understand a lot of it tonight, to be honest with you… I understand the whole Marlins aren’t supposed to be good this year, and I guess it’s OK to pile on. But it’s got to be better than that. It was shaky tonight. We’re looking at it and the ball hits the bat and then hits his hand. I’m not quite sure about that one. He’s got his hands on the bat and I’m not sure about that one. I’m sure the league will look at that and we’ll get some kind of response and they’ll tell us the judgment or whatever. That’s a little shaky right there. That was a shaky call, to be honest with you. They cost us a run early. Sam [Holbrook] misses two, Conforto’s strike three and McNeil’s strike three in the run inning. That cost us probably 15 pitches with [Caleb Smith] and it cost us a run. I guess I’m not supposed to complain about calls or whatever, but the league needs to look at it because it was shaky tonight.” -Don Mattingly [Miami Herald]