Hot Trash

Where to begin? I am beyond aggravated with where the Mets find themselves two days into the Cardinals series, with all that has transpired. I shouldn't blame anybody but the Mets for what they themselves can control. They could have taken adversity and gotten over it. They unfortunately continue to be the first and foremost thing in their own way.

Photo via My Motherlode

What a metaphor. Maybe that is why we all can relate. So many of us have such potential for greatness, yet we find ourselves continuously self-sabotaging. You have to think to yourself, of course, there is no way the Mets are doing so in this particular instance. Whether it is fear of success...for the more we succeed, the more we have to lose...because obviously why would the Mets and their players not want to achieve greatness? They clearly don't WANT to continuously trip over their own two feet. Top down, however, they continue to put themselves in the position to be the most glaring reason they have the entire league shaking their heads wondering if the Mets will ever get it together for a prolonged period of time.

I begin writing this without having gotten enough sleep but with a parking spot on my block in Manhattan that at least renders me some time to gather myself. I, however, am a hot mess indeed, so I might as well take a moment to rant without the rave about the hot trash that has helped to keep the Mets on the losing end of things 2 strange games in a row.

1. The Umpires - Could you make a decision with any conviction at all? Thursday night and the debacle with the tarp is front and center why most fans in the league think you are the worst officiating in sports and with absolutely no accountability amongst your ranks. Of course we all would rather wrap the game up as quickly as possible but the conditions were clearly within the traditional form of unplayable and you stand around, while things get worse, going back and forth about what to do AFTER you've already made a decision to begin the tarp proceedings. I mean, look at that photo I used. It looks like it was taken underwater. There is no thought given to what your indecision means for the young arm being forced to get up and sit down, attempting to stay warm before finally throwing a baseball in a downpour. Edwin Diaz will not be included in my hot trash takes because our young closer whom some fans want to give shit to right now has been nothing but dicked around.

2. Jeurys Familia - There was a hot second when I thought he may be turning a corner, but he continues to be put into high leverage situations and continues to fail miserably. The body language is completely off and the confidence of his youth has been completely wiped away. It is sad considering I keep flashing back to us fans dreaming of what could be when he was just a lil-ol' B-Met in Binghamton. Whether or not he should have even been brought back in the first place this past offseason has no place in my discussion right now. The only thing is he is what brewed the phrase in my head, "Hot Trash" after last night's horrendous 8th inning. At this point he should clearly not be anywhere near situations of that nature, no matter who may be rendered unavailable at the time. Speaking of which...

3. Mickey Callaway - I keep telling myself he will get better as a manager. I see no proof, however, of this way of thinking as of now. He would look much better as a manager if Familia was anywhere near dependable this year but he keeps making himself look bad by continuing to trust Familia in those moments. I can't tell you what the other options could have been considering apparently Gsellman had some back aches after his 7th inning last night, but at some point, Familia clearly once more did not have it, yet Callaway gives him all the room to fail. That isn't even the most egregious moment of the day. WHAT IN GOD'S NAME IS YOUR CLOSER DOING STARTING THE 10TH INNING OF A SUSPENDED GAME WHEN YOU MIGHT NEED HIS ARM COME THE 9TH INNING LATER ON THAT NIGHT?! I'm sure that was indeed the plan had Familia gotten through the 8th, but why, oh why, was Diaz even close to an option earlier?! It makes absolutely no sense. The only thing I can think of is you're trying to save other arms in case it goes deep and also trying to save other arms for the night billing. So, you think, I want my best available arm to shut these guys down immediately. Complete backfire. I just wouldn't have gone that route and I'm irrationally upset Callaway did.


As I write this, I've been back and forth with a fellow fan who said it's time to move Wheeler or Matz. I would keep Matz 'cause he is still cost-controlled for a few more years (and better at this point) and Wheeler is on his way out most likely. I'll just go ahead and copy-and-paste the rest....At some point, if it keeps going this direction, move Frazier, Wheeler, and maybe even Diaz. I don't know, (to reiterate something I wrote way above) the Mets have all the potential in the world but cannot get out of their own way, and the Wilpons keep operating like the way they have all these years has been a formula for success. So frustrating.

I'm spent. Time to go driving.

TAKE. A. BREATH. NOW.

LET'S. GO. METS.

Escape from the Bronx

It seems to be the way it goes every time these Mets/Yankees series arise. The Mets are starting to turn the corner and the Yankees are swooning some. I am generally optimistic, as you may be aware if you're familiar with my Mets fandom. When the above is the case, however, going into these series, I only see a letdown coming. The Mets have gotten our hopes up that we can handle these bombers, only to see it crash down around us.

Photo via nypost.com

Yesterday, after Monday's game was pushed to Tuesday afternoon, only half of that was true. I felt, with the Mets road record at 13-22 going into the series, you had to be happy with a split of the 2-game series that would bring them to 14-23. Baby steps after all.

Zack Wheeler has been rather home run prone this year, so yesterday, we all knew he would have to be much more finely tuned to stave off the cheap, I mean, short porches that Yankee Stadium provides. I troll, of course, because the home runs hit against him yesterday were anything but cheap.

The first game represented the narrative of the Mets on the road this year. Grab a lead, don't retain it. Luckily, and it began to feel dicey after they gathered a 6-0 lead that was immediately cut to 6-3, last night was handled soundly by Jason Vargas and the bullpen. The 9-3 lead they had finished at 10-4, the Mets able to escape with at least somewhat of a good feeling going into an important series against the consistent St. Louis franchise that always seems to be right there in the mix.

Looking at the standings...and June is an appropriate time to start dissecting them, not APRIL 17 as some like to do who post the Mets in 1st place on days like that...the Mets are a game behind the Cardinals in the Wild Card race. Though they have 3 teams in front of them before getting to the Cubs, who own the 2nd position as of now, followed by a tie for the 1st position with the Braves and the Phillies, you have to start somewhere, as 2016 showed with the Mets clinically making their way through 5 teams to eventually grab a wild card spot. 

This team, as frustrating as they can be and as hard as it has been to finally climb back over .500, is right there with plenty of baseball left for them to get their act together. It's rarely a breezy season for the Metropolitan franchise. As much as our hearts wish for a 1986, even that season eventually became nerve-racking come October. This is what we live for. The excitement, the suspense. This is why we are not Yankees fans. This is why I am no longer a Yankees fan. Fourteen years in and I still would rather the day-in-day-out drama of the Orange and Blue than the ease of the pinstripes. It is a much more realistic way of taking in baseball and a much more realistic representation of life itself. It's easy for some, but for most of us, it is a absolute struggle. We just have to choose to be happy, 'cause you're not going to be able to be ever stave off the eventual misery.

I told you I was optimistic! Um....LAUGHING OUT LOUD NOW...

BEAT. THE. REDBIRDS.

LET'S. GO. METS.

The Starter & The Defender

It was yet another disappointing weekend for the New York Metsies. So far, on Saturdays and Sundays in 2019, the Mets are 1-5. Sue me for the #SmallSampleSizing. For a fanbase busting their butts Monday through Friday (and sometimes through the weekend, like in my case where the most money I can make as a Lyft driver are those party days), our favorite baseball team has been anything but a respite from the work grind. Watching them has been as difficult as any job we do.

Getty Images
Photo via nypost.com

Do I sensationalize much? You betcha, but drama is the name of the game in this day and age, and as much as I personally work towards scaling it back some, my nature can only be suppressed to a point.  When my favorite baseball team's supposed 2nd starter has an ERA pushing 6 (at 5.90) you're going to be in a heightened state as a fan.

Syndergaard has not been able to hone in on finesse yet. It's power, power, power (including a homer created by Dexter Fowler's best Jose Canseco impression), but the control is not there at a WHIP of 1.28 (according to mets.com.) Seven walks in 29 innings, which means he's giving up a base on balls close to a quarter of the time he is facing batters, while also giving up just over a hit an inning. Noah (notice how I have yet to use the word, "Thor" in this post?) needs to figure out what kind of pitcher he is, because outside of his fantastic 2015 and 2016 seasons,  he has been pretty inconsistent when he has been able to stay on the mound. With a slider in the 90's and a fastball pushing 100, if he can hone in the control and consistency, the dream could seriously be reality.

Noah, however, has not gotten much help behind him these days. I'd like to hone in on one particular player whose elite defense has not come to fruition. Amed Rosario, while trying to figure out consistency at the plate, has left much to be desired with his defense up the middle. Mike, Rich and I discussed this on last week's episode of A Metsian Podcast, wondering when we were going to see the range we have been looking for out of our young shortstop. He followed that conversation up with 2 errors behind Noah yesterday. In 1826.1 innings fielded in the majors, according to Fangraphs, 20 runs have scored because of his defense. That is a far cry from the bill of goods sold to us. We have wanted him to come around offensively, but I will take a .250 avg if he can tighten up that defense ASAP.

Our "superhero" starter may be leaving much to be desired, but players like Amed Rosario are not giving him the best chance with a lack of defensive prowess behind him. They both need to tighten up considerably, but if the latter can do so sooner than later, Noah's success may follow as well.

There was a lot of concern to be had from the weekend series in St. Louis (outside of the continuing power prowess by Pete Alonso), but one of the more disappointing moments was Robinson Cano's HBP wrist injury (I'm not embedding any of these because most of them are eye-roll inducing, outside of Alonso's homer yesterday. Click at your own risk.) We'll see how it ends up affecting Cano, but he was JUST starting to hit his offensive stride. It is too cliché from a Metsian standpoint for a heralded acquisition to finally be coming around only to go down in throbbing pain.

The Mets stumble home for a weekday series against their Turnpike rivals, the Phillies. I wish I could say they desperately need some of that home cooking, but home has given them plenty of food poisoning over the years.

TIGHTEN. UP. NOW.

LET'S. GO. METS.

Let's Talk About Pete, Bay-bee

(Firstly, Happy Passover to my Jewish brethren, and a Happy Easter to all reading who celebrate.)

Though the 800-pound gorilla in the room is Jacob deGrom's elbow, I will address this more once we have info after the MRI. Clearly not the headline we wanted to see yesterday afternoon, but we're almost numb to headlines of this nature at this point so let's all take a breath, hope for the best (try not to expect the worst) and focus on the recent win at hand.

I don't want to talk about Jason Vargas, who was serviceable albeit not very trusted to give quality longevity, as he was taken out after 4 innings of work.

I do want to talk about Robinson Cano, who I believe was the offensive star of this game but was overshadowed, like last Thursday in Atlanta in the case of Amed Rosario, by one swing, which we'll get to shortly. Cano showed off why Brodie Van Wagenen wasn't hesitant to accept that contract in the trade with Seattle focused on closer Edwin Diaz. That sweet swing was on full display as Cano collected 3 hits, scoring once and driving one in as well, getting his average up to .218 in the early part of this season. He was driving the ball soundly and thoroughly, which hopefully are good signs of great things to come.

Jeff Roberson/Associated Press
Photo via washingtonpost.com

Once more, however, Pete Alonso, who collected 2 hits and scored twice in 4 turns at bat, is all anyone is talking about. He hit yet another straight-away center field home run, this time onto the grass in Busch Stadium in St. Louis. What is so impressive is the way he went down to get it and drove the barrel so far through the ball, I'm amazed it even survived to make its way out there. When a ballplayer can drive the ball from spots on the plate as you'll see below. That is a hard thing to formulate a pitching plan against.

That's RIDICULOUS strength. How in the hell, with such a swing, did he get ANY power behind that?! It is the type of swing that cuts the gap, or falls in for a single. NOT a straight-away center field 432 footer!

Color me massively impressed by what we have seen so far from this rookie sensation. He will have to continue to work as hard as he has to adjust to whatever the league throws his way, but the signs all point to him not being just an April wonder. Keep powering through, Polar Bear.

Meanwhile, the Mets struggled to keep the lead as wide as it was initially, but they hung on, with runners on the corners, no less, in the bottom of the 9th to pull out a much-needed 1-run 5-4 victory. It is always sweet to beat Adam Wainwright, Yadier Molina (who was the last out) and those red-bird Cards (and I had started the day actually seeing a real-live cardinal in far-north Jersey. I had worried it was a bad omen like the other day but maybe it was actually a good omen after all...gotta win the series first, though.)

And MASSIVE props to Jeff McNeil, who just keeps impressing more and more at 3rd base. Also, he always seems to be even sharper with his defense at the most crucial moments of these games. Keep collecting those acorns, Squirrel.

BEAT. THOSE. RED. BIRDS.

LET'S. GO. METS.

The Exhaustion

I hadn't gotten too much sleep over that last week. I had eyed these offdays, Monday and Tuesday, as days to soak up sequences of R.E.M. The only thing is I'm broke, in need of an apartment, and some short-term supplemental income luckily bursted onto the scene. I was left with no choice. Less sleep it was.

Around gametime, my friend and I, who helped get me the gig, wrapped it up. So, from 7:10 on, with a walk through Soho, Noho and up towards Union Sq., onto the Q train to Flatbush Brooklyn, it was around the middle of the game that I laid down on my bed. Clearly, there was the risk of falling asleep with this crucial matchup on, but after a long day into a hard day's night, I just wanted to relax with the game on, and relax with the game on I did.

And longer than I freakin' expected to.

As those innings kept dragging on, I was in that perfect zone of completely awake but sleeping to the rest of the world except for you and your game. The fact it went all the way to the 14th inning wasn't a detriment. It felt like the perfect world.

That seems to be the Mets number lately. 14 runs Saturday, 14 innings Monday. We're lucky the game didn't go into Tuesday.

I can only hope 14 is a good omen, with a certain Gil watching over us more so this year.

Good things happen when luck and preparation meet.

I'm glad I got to sleep before midnight.

NO. MORE. SLEEPING.

LET'S. GO. METS.

Enough With the Thor Puns

The thing is...he really DID bring the hammer down. I unfortunately wasn't able to view how sick he pitched in the moment, letting Howie and Josh wax poetically regarding the filth that Mr. Syndergaard was bringing. According to the video proof that SNY captured and cut down into a fun-filled minute 20, to think that THAT SET UP HARVEY DAY is something that can tickle the Orange and Blue fancy of Metsian folk all over.

Call them the Bounce Back Kids, because that's what they've been, and it takes a day like this and all the interviews after to be reminded that we're not talking about Rod Barajas giving it the ol' college try, or Tim Redding reminding us why you don't inexplicably trot journeyman pitchers out for a photo op. These are mostly very VERY talented young players who are ready and determined to not only make a name for themselves but make a name while lifting the Mets across their chest out of an ugly era where what felt like 100 years of heartbreak was compacted into the matter of 6 years...and go ahead and throw in 15 years considering how Amazin' the letdown was in 2009 after 2002-2004 occurred. You also have some able veterans with a lot left in their career to prove. These aren't your Manny Acosta Metropolitans. This team belongs to this great young pitching, and some amazin' bats that will follow over the coming years...and Juan Lagares.

It was ironic and unsettling that one of those hopeful anchors of our newest era made direct contact with what was considered in the summer of 2007 to be hopeful anchor for the Metsian future, but Carlos Gomez was traded in the Johan Santana trade, inadvertently bringing on the 1st No-Hitter in Mets history. The scary moment between the two young players yesterday also ended up showing off how classy athletes can sometimes be with how they spoke to each other post-game. Thankfully, Carlos is OK.

And now, the Cardinals. We all hate them. We all know how we perform against them, and at home no less, will go a long way to solidifying how good this team could possibly be. Or whether things will continue to trend south.

But this isn't Nick Evans' Mets anymore. 

#HappyHarveyDay

BEAT. DEM. RED. BOIDS.

LET'S. GO. METS.

The "Cavalry" Marches Home...

It's been a weird week, hence the lack of posts, but I couldn't let an off day go without getting a podcast in. Mike Lecolant joined me, along with author Matt Silverman (New York Mets: The Complete Illustrated History and 100 Things Mets Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die) and Rich Sparago in the latter half of the show. We talked about the recent road trip, Dillon Gee's workhorse nature, the 1969 New York Mets squad, Matt's books, Shea Stadium and its 50th Anniversary yesterday, Anthony Recker "cashing in for his backup catcher union card", Gene Mauch... and many many other Metsian items of interest.

Happy to have games back in Queens, and ones that celebrate at the Shea-tastic price of $3.50 (well...plus those online fees, but still, much much cheaper. That would be very SHEA of them to remove the fees, but I understand there's some annoying web code to be written to get what is usually there out of there. Yeah. 1964 it ain't.)

It's clearly redundant to say, but they HAVE to start winning at home if they are to take the next step. Why since 2011 they have sucked at home and done what winning teams do on the road, which is go .500 or one better, I have no idea. No idea why where they should feel more comfortable they have not and lost. But it has to change. Maybe celebrating some Mets history will bring some relaxation and get us some W's against the Braves, the Cardinals or the Marlins!

Enjoy the weekend, folks. MAKE IT OUT TO THE METS AT WILLETS POINT!!!

CITY. BASEBALL.

LET'S. GO. METS.

Online Sports Radio at Blog Talk Radio with Rising Apple Report on BlogTalkRadio

Thanks for reading! Follow me on Twitter @convertedmetfan. And for the latest on a Brooklyn Baseball TV Series I am developing, Like the Bedford & Sullivan Facebook page, follow on Twitter here, and listen to the research process here.

And Onward Into the Offseason We Go.

Well, those Red Sox Fans saw a World Series won on their turf for the first since 1918.

They took care of business, and of course, with Shane Victorino up with the bases loaded once more....

(Until now, I didn't even notice the crowd singing Three Little Birds...I wonder what song I'm gonna go with down below...)

And isn't it lovely to see Yadir hang his head like that?

So, here it is. I have been waiting with bated breath- What am I talking about? My breath hasn't been BATED at all!!!!!

The offseason has finally arrived. All the debate about what the Mets will or won't do....well, I guess it will continue, but this time with actual action or non-action literally right around the corner.

Enough speculation. Time to see it for ourselves.

(Sidenote: I am conducting a special Halloween edition of the Bedford & Sullivan podcast at 12PM ET. The former SF Giants owner Peter Magowan, who grew up a baseball Giants fan in Manhattan and was instrumental in helping to keep them in San Francisco and in signing Barry Bonds, will be on the program. Brooklyn Dodgers outfielder Duke Snider (and a 1963 Met) once said that he hated Halloween because it shared the colors of black and orange with the Dodgers' rival, so it is fitting to have someone so connected with the franchise on today. Make sure to tune in.)

So, cue up the free agents. 

Strike up the trades. 

Bang on the hot stove drums and bring us a championship again.

The 2014 New York Mets are closer than they seem.

It's your move, Mr. General Manager.

Let's see what you have up your sleeve.

God, I love baseball.

And I love the New York Mets.

BRING. ON. NEXT. YEAR.

LET'S. GO. METS.

Thanks for reading! Follow me on Twitter @convertedmetfan. And for the latest on a Brooklyn Baseball TV Series I am developing, Like the Bedford & Sullivan Facebook page, and follow on Twitter here.

Will Tonight be the Last Game of the Year?

I always want more baseball, but I wouldn't mind if this is it tonight.

As I said yesterday, because the Red Sox have lost World Series games for the first time since game 7 of the 1986 World Series, they have the potential to clinch in Fenway for the first time since 1918.

I am itching for this offseason to get started so we can stop speculating on what the Mets will do. I just want it to get underway. Though I wouldn't mind a Halloween Game 7, I'd much rather the Red Sox just take care of business this evening.

In many ways, I already wish it were Spring Training already....though the winter process is still part of the fun.

Once these games are over, for Mets fans, the REAL fun begins.

....So we can get closer to winning the last game of the year once more.......

Enjoy Game 6 everybody.

Here's the Random Song of the Day.

iTUNES. SHUFFLE.

LET'S. GO. METS.

Thanks for reading! Follow me on Twitter @convertedmetfan. And for the latest on a Brooklyn Baseball TV Series I am developing, Like the Bedford & Sullivan Facebook page, and follow on Twitter here.

For the First time since 1918...?

So, get this....

And I thought about it a bit before the series was definitely heading back to Fenway, but now we're on the possible brink.

And I didn't think about all these little details till last night...

Firstly,  the 2 losses the Red Sox have in this 109th edition of the Fall Classic are their first World Series losses since Game 7 of 1986.

They swept their last 2 series, and had home field advantage in both, meaning they clinched on the road every time.

SO, they now have a chance to win a World Series at Fenway for the first time since beating the Chicago Cubs at home in Game 6 of the 1918 World Series by a score of 2-1.

How about that?

That's pretty damn cool for Red Sox fans, though obviously, and they are well aware, everything could crash and burn. Don't think for one second those fans are saying to themselves, "Well, we've had the spoils after going 86 years, it's not gonna feel as sweet." They very well know, #1, how hard it is to win a World Series, and #2, how long it could be till they're back.

So, take the bull by the horns.

And beat dem Redbirds to oblivion.

Here's the Random Song of the Day.

WAIT. TILL. NEXT. YEAR.

LET'S. GO. METS.

Thanks for reading! Follow me on Twitter @convertedmetfan. And for the latest on a Brooklyn Baseball TV Series I am developing, Like the Bedford & Sullivan Facebook page, and follow on Twitter here.

A Thrilling But Bizarre World Series So Far

First off, you can't let a World Series game end like this.

I said in the Dodgers/Cardinals series that the whole thing might come down to Mike Matheny just being a better manager, and as this Fall Classic played on, I thought that might again be the case with John Farrell making so many 2nd guess-type moves, seemingly unable to navigate the National League waters with the series now in St. Louis. But it appears this World Series is just going to come down to who makes the least amount of rookie mistakes.

There was Beltran, standing at the plate, having a great World Series in his first trip to the Fall Classic, unable to do anything about the end of Game 4, arguably the most important game in a 7-game series.

In regards to the obstruction call of Saturday night, I had been on my way home, listening to the game on the radio, pumped up to get home with a "Kinda-Halloween Weekend" buzz goin', turn the TV on, sit on the couch, have a glass of wine, and watch some extra innings of the World Series. I turn it on, turn my MLB Gameday Radio off, and literally, the next pitch I see is this ending.

Just as many of us, I couldn't believe what I just saw. Even Tim McCarver said he couldn't remember a GAME ending that way, much less a World Series game. Firstly, Jarrod Saltalamacchia thinking he had the bum-legged Allen Craig at 3rd was a bit overaggressive, and the throw arguably shouldn't have been made. In regards to the actual obstruction call, I'll say what I said that night….WHERE WAS THE FIELDER SUPPOSED TO GO?! 

"Incidental contact," to quote Ted.

But I guess….I guess….the umps and Joe explained the whole thing enough for me to drop it.

Anyway, outside of all the actual baseball still being played, I had a blast this weekend reviewing the 2013 seasons of Omar Quintanilla and Josh Satin. Over at Rising Apple, we have been going through the entire 2013 Mets roster this month and reviewing the players' individual seasons, as well as speculating what their next role will be, either on the Mets or someplace else. As many people have been saying- those players may be mediocre at best...but my posts regarding them certainly aren't. Make sure to take a read.

I also interviewed retired SF State lecturer Svein Arber on the Bedford & Sullivan podcast regarding "Seasons Past," a book he co-wrote with Ford Hovis under the pen name, "Damon Rice." The book informally rides through baseball history, mainly New York's, leading up to the Dodgers and Giants exit, as told through 3 generations of the Rice family. The book is great, and with so many questions and so much material to cover, the podcast episode from the weekend is certainly the first of more to come about the novel. Take a listen.

And lastly, a legend of Rock 'n Roll died yesterday. New York's own Lou Reed, the lead singer of the 60's Velvet Underground (a band that is said to have spawned millions of people to start their own band after buying their first record) also had a great solo career, and that is where I go for a Song of the Day. If you haven't heard all of the album, "New York," do yourself a favor and listen to the record either today or over the next couple days. For now, we go to the album's 2nd track, "The Halloween Parade."

REST. EA. SY. LOU.

LET'S. GO. METS.

Thanks for reading! Follow me on Twitter @convertedmetfan. And for the latest on a Brooklyn Baseball TV Series I am developing, Like the Bedford & Sullivan Facebook page, and follow on Twitter here.

Random Mets Highlight of the Day

So, we got ourselves the 4th all-time installment of the Red Sox and Cardinals World Series matchup. It was fitting back in 2004 that Boston, who at the time had lost twice to St. Louis in 7 games (1946 and 1967), had to beat their Fall Classic foes to "reverse the curse" after exorcising their Yankee demons.

Now, though I'm a HUGE Carlos Beltran fan and will always wish him the best (that swing is so sweet...), it will certainly sting to see him win his first World Series with the Redbird on his chest. The series should be a great one, and I expect it to go either 6 or 7 games. Let's Go Red Sox. I can't do my usual thing here and root for the NL team.

Clearly, there is too much Red in our October faces, and not enough Orange and Blue. We crave that feeling in this (finally) chilly Fall air once more, and will have to wait at least a year till those Metsian hues are in our eyesights this late into the season.

I don't care what any of you say, however you find a way to complain about every bit of news or no news that comes across your brains. The bottom line is we love this game, we love this team, and there's no way in the Fall of '68 when the Tigers and Cardinals took each other on in the World Series that people were saying, "Don't worry. We'll finally see the Mets in the series next year."

So, as the old adage goes...Wait 'till Next Year.

For now, though, for the sake of a quick smile and for the sake of maintaining this blog, I present to you the Random Mets Highlight of the Day.

In the stream of consciousness that is me writing this right now, I have yet to pick this Random Met Highlight.....So, let's see what we can find...

Yeah...This'll do.

ORANGE. AND. BLUE.

LET'S. GO. METS.

Thanks for reading! Follow me on Twitter @convertedmetfan. And for the latest on a Brooklyn Baseball TV Series I am developing, Like the Bedford & Sullivan Facebook page, and follow on Twitter here.

Settling back into the current norm

Clearly, it's not just that Matt Harvey is usually taking on the other team's ace. You would think with all their opportunities they'd be able to urk out at least a run before the Byrd's solo shot in the ninth. But this has been a touchstone of this franchise since their inception: almost there, but not quite there enough. It pains us beyond belief that Matt Harvey has 8 no-decisions, and though even in a perfect world that doesn't mean 8 more wins, the trend is outlandish.

Even Tom Seaver went 16-13 in 1967...

Actually that makes me think we're really lucky yesterday was his first loss. Let's explore this real quick...though obviously conditions in 1967 are pretty different than 2013...but still.

In 1967...Tom Seaver was 5-3 with a 2.39 ERA on June 14.

He finished 16-13 with a 2.76 ERA.

So, there's still plenty of time....

And unfortunately more time for more hard-luck losses and no-decisions.

But I'm an optimist.

Even when the Mets don't give you anything to be optimistic about.

Apparently We Need to Podcast Everyday

For the 2nd straight week, the Mets helped Gee get a win after a couple of us talked about how awful everything is on the Rising Apple Report podcast. The Mets gave us and Gee a 10-1 win after the podcast returned from a hiatus, and this week a lovely "Feeling comfortable about this 5-1 lead is a strange feeling" victory right after a podcast that had 39 innings of listless baseball very much still in the air.

It's not like all that is wrong with this team went away after one crisp win, so enjoy this week's podcast, with myself and Dan Haefeli discussing how everything's wrong and it all needs to change.

We look forward to talking about Zack Wheeler's successful debut on Tuesday in ATL on next Wednesday's podcast.

Listen to internet radio with Rising Apple Report on BlogTalkRadio

Worse...and Worse...And Worse...

Last night, it was oneathose things again where I wasn't able to check the score till a lot later in the evening. When I have class at 6, my laptop attempts to send all these alerts out about the game at 7, but I'm still having trouble connecting to the New School wifi, so my email program goes haywire saying it can't send out the automatic alerts.

Two hours later, I've gotten so distracted from anything Metsie that I have forgotten to turn on my At Bat App to see what's going on.

OH.

More of THAT?

The quote I received that probably sums it up to all those who were able to watch comes from a Mr. Danny Abriano.

"7 unearned runs..sloppy, listless baseball."

Unfortunately, I can respond by saying, "Word."


More words to come on the podcast tonight at 6:30PM EST.