4/13/20

John From Albany – Mets Breakfast Links 4/13/2020



A Baseball game is played in Taiwan on the anniversary of Tom Seaver's MLB debut, but first some very sad news. 

NY Post: Anthony Causi, beloved Post sports photographer, dies of coronavirus at 48.  Mack talked about his personal connection to Anthony back on April 2nd.  Our prayers are with his family and with everyone impacted by this virus.  


NY Post: Mets COO Jeff Wilpon also released a statement, on behalf of the team, as “RIP Anthony” trended on Twitter: “We are deeply saddened to learn of Anthony’s passing. He was a charismatic photographer who brought fans closer to the action with his breathtaking images of the Mets. More importantly, he was a friend to so many of us through his numerous spring trainings in Port St. Lucie as well as being a fixture at Citi Field. Our heartfelt condolences go out to his wife, Romina, son John, daughter Mia and the entire family.”

Now some good news.

Baseball is back!  The Uni Lions beat the Chinatrust Brothers yesterday in 11 innings (Line Score).

CBS Sports: Actual baseball highlights: Chinese Professional Baseball League becomes first to play ball in 2020. [Other than Latin America's winter league that is.]  Kai-Wen Cheng, an outfielder with the Uni-Lions, hit the first home run of the CPBL season in the first inning (video from Twitter.)  The home run came off Ariel Miranda, former pitcher for the Seattle Mariners and Baltimore Orioles.


Taiwan News: “Meanwhile, the Lions starting pitcher was Ryan Feierabend, who played for the MLB's Seattle Mariners from 2006-2008, the Texas Rangers in 2014, and the Toronto Blue Jays in 2019… Richard Wang, World Baseball Softball Confederation's Asia correspondent, told CNA that a baseball season means Taiwan is still able to have a normal way of life. ‘We are very lucky that Taiwan can have a baseball season, and at the same time, it also reflects the solid achievements by the government in coronavirus prevention,’ Wang said.”

NY Post: The game was played without fans in the stands. There were, however, some strategically placed robot fans, including some that beat drums to add an aura of atmosphere to the game.



SNY.TV: 'So many Mets greats wore the black'. Pete Alonso again clamors for return of Mets' black uniforms.

Deesha Thosar NY Daily News: Pete Alonso finds silver lining in celebrating Easter without baseball. “I hope everyone has a blessed and Happy Easter! Today is really special for me because I haven’t been able to celebrate Easter since I was in high school,” Alonso wrote in a tweet on Sunday. “I understand the gravity of what’s going on, but there are little victories in each day.”


Mike’s Mets: Great Games: June 11, 2005 Mets vs. Angels. That was a great game featuring an inside the park home run by Marlon Anderson (video included).


Centerfield Maz: Remembering Mets History: (1967) Tom Seaver's MLB Debut, April 13, 1967.

Centerfield Maz: Tomas Nido: Mets Back Up Catcher (2017-2020).  Maz gives an in depth recap of Tomas’ career so far. 



Bill Madden NY Daily News: '62 Mets were 'loveable loser' newcomer to National League. It was not the greatest of days, gray, cold and drizzling throughout, which accounted for the sparse crowd of 12,447. But as Dick Young wrote in the Daily News of that April 13, 1962 game: “They sat and stood in the steady rain, chattered incessant encouragement, cheered Frank Thomas’ mid-game homer and rooted right up to the end for the Mets to avert the eventual 4-3 defeat by Pitt.”

Rising Apple: Shortened Mets season could help Jeff McNeil set a new franchise record. In a shorter season, John Olerud's .354 New York Mets batting average record could be in even more danger with a guy like Jeff McNeil around.

Rising Apple: Will Jacob deGrom reach David Wright status with the fans?


Ranking MLB's top 100 players with 2020 season on hold. #1. Mike Trout; #2. Mookie Betts; #3. Gerrit Cole; #4. Christian Yelich; #5. Jacob deGrom; Other Mets on the list: #37. Pete Alonso; #72 Michael Conforto; #92. Jeff McNeil.







Brian Joura Mets 360.com: Thoughts on the Arizona plan and a shortened MLB season.  Brian likes the discussion of different ideas even if they never happen.  He adds: “My strong preference is to abolish the DH. But if you told me the “cost” of a computerized strike zone was the adoption of the DH, I’d sign on the dotted line. And who knows, we may see both of those things if/when the Arizona plan for the 2020 season goes into effect.”


Deesha Thosar NY Daily News: Yoenis Cespedes could thrive in MLB's Grapefruit League plan. Picture this: Yoenis Cespedes comes up to hit every two or three innings because he’s batting cleanup as the Mets designated hitter against the Nationals in the middle of August.


Steve Contursi Reflections On Baseball: The MLB Florida-Arizona plan for a resumption of the 2020 season is a winner. Add some bells and whistles, and this could turn into a home run for baseball.

Stephanie Apstein Sports Illustrated.com: Bursting the Bubble: Why Sports Aren't Coming Back Soon.  The NBA, NFL and MLB are dreaming up ways to play amid a pandemic, with talk of isolating players in Arizona or Las Vegas or maybe on the moon. It all sounds great, until you talk to people who actually know science.

NBC Sports: Should Baseball come back this year?  The Arizona plan outright calls for players to be separated from their families. That’s no way to live. The players would be treated like livestock or robots, not like people. It’s putting profit before common sense.


USA Today: Phillies' Zack Wheeler not for MLB's proposed idea: 'Not going to miss the birth of my first child'.

12UP.com: Cole Hamels Makes it Clear He Would Leave Family to Play Baseball This Season.







Mack’s Blast From The Past comes from April 13, 2012.  Mack talked about Baseball Stuff - Drew Storen, Brandon Kline.  “Nationals closer Drew Storen underwent surgery today in Washington to remove a small bone fragment from his right elbow joint, said his agent…Brodie Van Wagenen”


Born April 12:
Died on April 12:
Transactions:

New York Mets signed free agent 
Ralph Terry on April 12, 1967.


New York Mets signed free agent Jesus Alou on April 12, 1975.

New York Mets signed free agent Dyar Miller on April 12, 1980.


Born April 13:
Transactions:

Blaine Boyer granted free agency on April 13, 2011.


Toronto Blue Jays claimed Aaron Laffey of the New York Mets on waivers on April 13, 2013.

1962
On a wintry day, the Mets play their first home game ever when only 12,000 fans show up at the Polo Grounds to see the return of National League baseball to the Big Apple. On Friday the 13th, the Pirates score the decisive run on two eighth-inning wild pitches thrown by Ray Diavault, beating the New York expansion team, 4-3.
1983
The Phillies, trailing by five runs entering the final frame, beat the Mets, 10-9, when Bo Diaz hits a walk-off bases-loaded home run. The Philadelphia catcher's 'ultimate grand slam', a home run which wins a game when a team is down by three runs in the bottom of the final inning, is tossed by Neil Allen, who faces only the final batter.

2012
Josh Thole's bizarre base running blunder leads to a very odd double play in the second inning of the Mets' 5-2 victory at Citizens Bank Park. After successfully reaching second base on R.A. Dickey's sacrifice bunt, the 25 year-old Mets' catcher shocks everyone, including the Philadelphia defense, by trying to return to first base, where he is tagged out to complete the unusual 3-1-6-4 twin killing.


2009:  San Diego beats the Mets, 6 - 5, in the first game to be played at Citi Field in New York. The first batter of the game, Jody Gerut, hits a home run off Mike Pelfrey as the Padres jump to an early 5 - 1 lead. New York ties it on a three-run home run by David Wright, but the winning run scores when Luis Rodríguez reaches on a three-base error by RF Ryan Church and crosses the plate when Pedro Feliciano commits a balk.

2013 - Matt Harvey takes a no-hitter into the 7th inning, until the Twins' Justin Morneau hits a homer that clanks against the right field foul pole at Target Field with two outs. Harvey has the longest outing of his career, giving up only two hits in 8 innings in the Mets' 4 - 2 win. The Mets have seven consecutive hits in the 5th to score all their runs.

2017 - In the longest game yet played at Marlins Park, the Mets defeat Miami, 9 - 8, on a homer by Travis d'Arnaud in the 16th inning. Mets starter Robert Gsellman gives up 8 runs in 4 2/3 innings, but seven relievers combine to pitch 10 1/3 scoreless innings. Yoenis Cespedes hits a pair of homers, while d'Arnaud has four hits, including a bases-loaded triple and his game-winning homer off Adam Conley, who had been scheduled to start the next day. For the Marlins, Marcell Ozuna hits a grand slam in the 1st.


Want something else tracked here each day?  Please leave a comment below.

7 comments:

Tom Brennan said...

Hope everyone had a happy, healthy Easter and Passover.

Sad news about Causi. Simply put, it is a killing field in NYC Metro. A death to COVID in less than every 2 minutes, for a week now. Our leaders were far slower than Taiwan in taking this killer seriously. And Taiwan should be applauded for their extraordinarily low death rate. The “we’re NY” false pride is being torn away, leaving fear and mortality.

By the way, deaths at local nursing homes are soaring, and the spike is no doubt due to COVID but is being undercounted, and deaths at home due to COVID are undercounted too.

That said, why not consider one “league” playing its 2020 baseball in Taiwan. Among other things, it would stick it to the deceptive leaders of Beijing.

In the good new department, my brother Jim and nephew Michael have recovered from COVID. Most people do recover once they get it.

It was fun watching the Mets’ 1986 and 1988 clinchers. Gooden and Darling threw complete games. No doubt both were well over 100 pitches. Topic never seemed to come up.

Mack Ade said...

They say things like this don't truly sink in until it knocks on your door.

Found out yesterday that my sister-in-law's cousin died of this in Queens.

Now comes the beginning of your post.

This fucking virus...

Tom Brennan said...

Sorry to hear about the family death, Mack.

Queens is insane, due to too many poor immigrants living in high density housing. Like a match being struck around dry tinder. I guess Bill de Blasio was too preoccupied with how his sanctuary city policies would look in a COVID spotlight to act quickly. My guess is your family member’s death could be collateral damage from those policies.

Those living conditions will remain, unless someone gets creative and sets up massive tent cities in very rural areas for them north of the city, like Turkey’s migrant camps, to spread them out, so how you really get the death and infection rates down, and get them to stay down, around here in NYC Metro is beyond me.

John From Albany said...

Mack, Sorry for your loss.

Don't want to get political here and point blame here or there. Taiwan has handled the virus better than anyone. The US and other other countries need to learn from that. Also, they make PPE and masks in their own country and don't have to depend on imports for these.

Mack Ade said...

Both deaths shares a period that looked like they were coming out of this. Same for singer-songwriter John Prine.

DO NOT think any rallying means you are done with this.

Tom Brennan said...

Mack, true on that.

I just have to wonder what drugs they both got, and at what stage, and if earlier administration of the current drugs of hope might have saved either of them.

Mack Ade said...

Tom

And you know how I hate to get political here, but that being said, if The President removes Tony Fausi from the task force, I am done with him and his ego BS.

I will write in Mark Cuban.