Friday News, Views & Miscues

~Did the Padres become the Chargers last night? Because I don't think anyone thought they were capable of all that offense in one game, let alone an entire series. The next time anyone complains about injuries devastating their team, tell them the Pads lost 4/5 of their rotation and a third or so of their line-up and THEN let them go back to their regularly scheduled programming...although they DO have a catcher in the minors by the name of Grandal whom Mack STILL lusts over, so maybe a deal can be worked out one day...

~As someone who lives on the other side of the country, I often have to suffer through out-of-town radio and television broadcasts in order to see/hear my beloved Mets. I've always LOVED the Gary-Keith-Ron trio, and I think that a lot of NYC-based fans take them for granted, not realizing how truly fortunate we are having such a great trio to listen to 162 times a year (not to mention the great Howie Rose on WFAN!) Growing up with the Nelson-Kiner-Murphy trio, I felt like "baseball school" was always in session; as an adult, listening to Gary-Keith-Ron serves as "baseball GRAD school."  Vin Scully remains the greatest announcer of all-time; the Kuiper/Krukow/Miller combo in San Fran are one of the best; but, for me, I'll take Mr. Cohen, Mr. Mex & Mr. Darling over any other combo- PERIOD!!

~I just received 3 baseball cards from a friend, each autographed by one of the Mets' top 3 pitching prospects - Matt Harvey, Zack Wheeler and Jenrry Mejia.  I still have balls signed by the likes of Fernando Martinez, Victor Diaz and Phil Humber buried in a dresser drawer, (and if anyone wants to take them off of my hands, I'll happily trade/sell them for any reasonable offer- lol) so I'm reluctant to display any of these cards just yet, lest I jinx the amazing progress that each are making, in their own way. Mejia' is going to be the first to be promoted to the bigs this season, and he'll probably be promoted in late June or early July, as long as he continues to make progress in his recovery from Tommy John Surgery. Forget the numbers from his performance yesterday- he's hitting reasonable speeds on the gun, is throwing all of his pitches and is simply brushing off all of the cobwebs that a year of inactivity accumulates.

~How much longer until Manny Acosta is on waivers and Elvin Ramirez is promoted to the majors???  My over/under is 1 week...

~I can't believe how quickly the baseball draft has come upon us. I really don't know in what direction "Team Sandy" is going to head in, but I DO know that, for the first time in a long time, I have complete faith in the direction they are headed. Remember to keep checking back here at Mack's Mets for the best draft coverage anywhere on the web!!!

~I am 3 yearbooks away from having all 50 Mets yearbooks. Somehow I've misplaced my 2003 and 2009 yearbooks, and apparently I never bought one in 1998 (who knew- maybe I thought PRINCE bought it for me??!) If anyone has any of these 3 yearbooks and wants to trade, I have a number of duplicates from the 70's and 80's - email me and let me know- djrubin@aol.com. Your kindness in helping me complete this collection is greatly appreciated, as I can't seem to find any of them on ebay or, for that matter, anywhere else for sale on the internet. It's kind of ironic, actually, that I can find literally dozens of copies of yearbooks for sale from 1965, for example, and none from 1998!! 

~DAVID WRIGHT: you can't stop him, you can't contain him, and it's beyond gratifying to see his comeback happen in spite of Fred Wilpon's (seemingly long-ago) comments in New York Magazine. I don't think there's ever been a Met player who fans wanted to succeed as desperately as they want Wright to; we can only hope that Sandy Alderson puts aside his aversion to long-term, market-value contracts and makes Wright a lifte-long Met who can retire with almost every offensive record in team history. Isn't it time that Ed Kranepool's numbers were wiped from the book once and for all? (No offense to Bronx-boy Kranepool, but should a mediocre first-sacker whose claim to fame was longevity remain in the record books any longer? I think not!)

~We are "officially" taking applications for membership in the Mets pitching staff- preferably one starter who can go 6-7 innings every fifth day, provide more strike-outs then walks allowed (hopefully at a 3-to-1 ratio), and two relievers with nerves of steel and heaters in the 95-97 range. Applicants named "Manny," "Miguel," "Chris," "Jeremy" or "Brian Lawrence" need not apply!

~This weekend is Rusty Staub bobblehead doll give-away in NY, and not to show my age but I still remember the trade of Singleton/Foli/Jorgensen for "Le Grande Orange" as if it was yesterday. Amazingly, it was 40 years ago!! I had to ask my dad why the team would trade 3 players for one, especially since I had my 1971 yearbook (at the time) signed by Jorgensen. My dad told me that I'd be very, very happy with Rusty once I saw him hit; he was spot-on, as usual, and Staub soon became one of my 3 favorite Mets at the time (behind Tom Seaver & eventually, Willie Mays!) When Staub was traded to the Tigers for Mickey Lolich prior to the '76 season, after knocking in 105 runs in '75, the first doubts about the Mets "braintrust" crept into my mind...so it was with great happiness that we welcomed him back to the fold in 1981, (after he destroyed AL pitching for nearly 4 seasons) and spent the last 4 years of his career in NY. I remember his first restaurant, aptly named "Rusty Staub's" as well as his second, "Rusty Staub's on Fifth" where I was lucky enough to meet Staub in person after sharing a rack of ribs with my dad. It's very fitting that Staub is the bobblehead representing the "70's" as part of the Mets 50th anniversary celebration, although one of my friends suggested it would be better if either Joel Youngblood or Doug Flynn's likeness replaced Staub's as a show of frustration with the way the second half of that decade played itself out. IMO, no need to re-live those years, although I will do so in a few weeks when the anniversary of the "'77 Trade Deadline Massacre" is relived once again...

~A note to Ike Davis: I am praying for you daily, the way Brooklyn fans in the 50's prayed for Gil Hodges. Going down to AAA isn't the solution any of us wish for you; please work off the momentum of your pinch-hit yesterday, relax and do the things we KNOW you are capable of!!

~Finally, a HUGE shout out this Memorial Day to our soldiers all over the world, keeping us safe daily; to the families of our soldiers, who support them and make it all possible; to the families of those who have served and are no longer with us; and, for me, to my Uncle Moishe, who served as a Warrant Officer in Patton's 4th Armored Division in WWII and to my dad, who served in Korea, and who are both no longer with us. You are my true heroes, as every soldier who has ever served our great country are, and may your memories sustain us while blessing those who continue to serve!!