Thursday, July 19, 2007

BOOK REVIEW: Watching Baseball Smarter

I bought “Watching Baseball Smarter: A Professional Fan’s Guide for Beginners, Semi-experts, and Deeply Serious Geeks” based on a recommendation from Deanna at Marinerds. At the time, I didn’t make the connection between the author of the book, and the guy with 2,389,087 baseballs and the MLB blog about said baseball collecting.  Because if I had, there is no way I would have ever bought this book. I only made the connection a few days later, watching Kids Clubhouse on SNY (hey. sometimes it’s MILES better than Mets Weekly. And they don’t have a dumb puppet.), when Zack Hample was on the show. TBF’s immediate reaction was, “Oh god, not THIS guy.” But you know what? His on-camera, in-person explanation of the various pitches was excellent and we both felt like we’d learned something. So I now had a different, but still open mind toward this book. He clearly knew his stuff and was able to explain it.

Until I started reading the book.

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

BOYS OF SUMMER.

Last Thursday, TBF and I headed up to the Museum of the City of New York to hear Roger Kahn speak as part of their Glory Days exhibit. This was our second trip up, having visited during opening week, when the museum was open late and admission was free. 

The description of the lecture on the Museum’s web site read as follows:

The Era, 1947-1957: When the Yankees, the Giants, and the Dodgers Ruled the World
Roger Kahn, the dean of American sports writers, will moderate a discussion of the legendary plays, moments, and players that made the years 1947 to 1957 the greatest in baseball history.

A more accurate description would have read:

Roger Kahn, Brooklyn Dodger fan, will sit around with two of his good friends, Dave Anderson and Bob Wolff (who have also seen a heck of a lot of baseball back in the day) and kibbitz for an hour. It will feel like you are eavesdropping on three friends hanging out on the back porch on a Sunday afternoon. The conversation will have absolutely no form or structure. It will meander all over the place. You will hold your breath the entire time that it’s going on and not want it to stop. Towards the end of the panel’s allotted time, you will consider running out to the nearest bodega and buying a case of beer in order to bribe them to continue.

[more after the jump]

WEST COAST.

I fully intended to watch the game last night, but apparently it was my turn to get the migraine. This had me saying, “Maybe I’ll just get in bed and listen to Howie and Tom,” at 10:15pm, which ended up being me falling asleep not long after that.

I’m kind of glad I missed it.

This particular West Coast swing is going to be tough for me to keep up with, and frankly I wonder if that’s not for the best right now. If we’re going to lose, let me at least not lose sleep in order to watch it.

So I probably won’t write too much about the games; I have a lot of other pieces stacked up that I’ve been saving for a less busy time, or for when game-specific posts aren’t dominating the site.

And I’ll believe Moises Alou is back when I see him on the field with the Mets.

Saturday, July 14, 2007

HEADACHE REMEDY. [7-13-07]

Here are the two pictures that tell you everything you need to know about last night’s game:

The Mets sucked, and TBF got such a monumental migraine he finally agreed to leave at the bottom of the 5th inning (which is, of course, how I knew exactly how bad his headache was. We don’t leave games early.)

More, and more photos (including Rickey), after the jump.

“YOU HAVE TO GO TO THE BACK.”

The Mets owe me a goddamn baseball hat.

A few months ago, TBF and were wandering from the Lower East Side towards Washington Square Park when I said, “Oh, let’s go to the hat store.”
“The hat store?”
The Hat Store is the New Era store on E. 4th Street, made infamous now by the commercial. I had found it on my own a few months before that day, which I hadn’t shared with TBF. This time, we went into the store, and I took him to the back and showed him this lovely tricked-out black and grey paisley-and-sparkle, velvet cutout, Mets hat. More as a joke than anything, I tried it on.
“What do you think?”
TBF got that weird expression on his face. The one he gets when we walk by the Coach store and I see something new. The one right before his wallet comes out of his pocket.
I took the hat off quickly. “We’re going NOW,” I said.
“But I want to buy you the hat.”
“No.”
“If the Mets sweep this weekend, I’ll buy you the hat.”
For Mr. Purist, I-only-wear-blue-with-orange-button-fitted-hat to agree to buy me a non-regulation hat, it had to have looked pretty adorable.
I was in love. I wanted that hat.

The Mets, however, have not cooperated.

Which brings us to where we are now. The Mets have not swept anybody, but I am going to Chicago (and Milwaukee) in August to see the Mets, and TBF wants to buy me The Hat for the occasion, referring to it as my “Cliff Floyd ‘big pimpin’’ hat.” We each had errands in the neighborhood and around downtown today, so we agreed to meet at the hat store at 3:30.

We entered the store in search of the hat, only to discover a slight problem.
They don’t make that hat any more.
The paisley-and-sparkles, pseudo-velvet cutout Mets hat. It’s gone.

TBF is undeterred. He wants to buy me a hat. He starts perusing hats up and down the store. Every time he finds a model that would be suitable, we discover that they only have it for The Other New York Team, but not the Mets (but also for Atlanta, LA, the Orioles, Boston - wtf? Can I see this demographic data?)

After trying on and rejecting a hat I would later learn had a $80 price tag, I settled on this adorable number:

But am still cranky that the Mets cost me my paisley hat.

(Don’t worry. There’s plenty of other things the Mets are making me cranky over.)

Friday, July 13, 2007

IN 1977/I HOPE I GO TO HEAVEN.

Shea Stadium went dark at approximately 9:30 p.m., in the bottom of the sixth inning, with Lenny Randle at bat. The New York Mets were losing 2-1 against the Chicago Cubs. Jane Jarvis, Shea’s Organist and “Queen of Melody”, played Jingle Bells and White Christmas. The game was completed on September 16, with the Cubs winning 5-2.

[thanks, Ray]

FRIDAY PHOTO. [LA WOMAN]

MetsGrrl reader on the West Coast, Andrew Lasky, graciously sent these FANTASTIC photos along from the 6-11-07 Dodgers series. Be sure to enjoy the entire slideshow. Thanks, Andrew!!

MEMO TO SNY.

WHEN A MET HITS A HOME RUN, WE DO NOT WANT TO SEE FANS HOLDING UP THEIR LAME SIGNS IN THE STANDS. WE WANT TO SEE THE DUGOUT DANCING. REPEAT: DUGOUT DANCING GOOD, UNORIGINAL SIGNS BAD.

kthxbye

xo,
MG

Thursday, July 12, 2007

PEOPLE GET READY.

METS PART WAY WITH FRANCO.

Any other joke I would make would likely offend someone. And I don’t want to offend anyone.

I just don’t ever want to see Julio Franco called as the PH at the top of the 9th when we’re behind and have runners in scoring position ever, ever again.

That might make me belie—

nevermind.

On a serious note, what I said to TBF last night about Rick Downs’ dismissal and Rickey’s elevation, is that Omar can’t buy anyone or anything right now, so they’ve got to get creative if they want someone or something to make an impact in the second half. Omar isn’t going to do something stupid (e.g., 99.9% of the trades suggested on your local sports talk radio show), so he’s going to get creative.

They’re getting sufficiently creative for me.

WHY, INDEED?

Why does Jeanne Zelasko get to be snotty about Barry Bonds? But let me not be sexist; why do so many tedious unworthy men get to be snotty about Barry Bonds? Still, at times like that I find myself thinking: Why hasn’t feminism produced a woman paid by sports networks who’s worth listening to about baseball? Why hasn’t baseball?

—Baseball fan and San Franciscan Joan Walsh in Salon on the All Star Game

[FWIW, Joan *is* a woman who’s worth listening to about baseball; regrettably she doesn’t write about it that often these days.]

[I was heartened to learn that the Portwalk at AT&T Park was open, and free, during the festivities.]