Upon Crosstown Moves

Owner Fred Wilpon and GM Omar Minaya have decided to throw open the coffers in an attempt to improve the NY Mets organization. First, they traded Mike Cameron and his broken face to the Padres for Xavier Nady. This move will free up some cash, and still gives the Mets a glove in the outfield to replace Cameron, who hopefully won't crash headlong into Beltran. They then sent Mike Jacobs and a pitching prospect to the Florida Marlins yard sale, and picked up Carlos Delgado, some lawn chairs, and a toaster. Next, they drastically overpaid for reliever Billy Wagner. Wagner will help them in the short run, and does constitute an improvement over Braden Looper. However, Wagner is 38 (I think) and the Mets were forced to make the deal 4 years long, and throw on a no-trade clause. I really do not see him working out for more than 2 seasons at max, and still chafe at the notion of guys like Wagner and B.J. Ryan making Mariano Rivera money. (Don't make me pull out the stat book, because you know I will.)

I think that the Mets are rounding into a solid ballclub. Their lineup's top 5 of Reyes, Beltran, Wright, Delgado, Floyd are all dangerous. The infield defense will be improved, and Nady shoulod help the outfield play solidly. The afforementioned Wagner should be a gamer with regular shots of Geritol. Their next move will likely be to sign a Molina brother or Ramon Hernandez to do the catching, ensuring that Piazza will not be missed. So with a power lineup, good defense, solid closer, and a new backstop, this team should contend for the NL East all year, right? Or am I, and the rest of the front office, forgetting about something?? Riiiiiiight, starting pitching.

Pedro Martinez made a successful switch to the NL, and had some good numbers. However, you will not see much more than 6.1 IP out of him anymore. Tom Glavine's best days are behind him, and I would love to see him keep some of the momentum he established in the second half, but I doubt its still there. Jae Seo looked strong upon his return in the second half,but he is an unproven commodity. Kris Benson has not proven himself yet, and Steve Traschel is Steve Traschel. With all the cash flying around for the Mets, they might have addressed their needs at SP. For now, I will give them the benefit of the doubt in that they are filling the holes they can with the best players available.

My outlook on the Mets as they stand now (with the name Manny Ramirez still being bandied about): 87 Wins, 2nd Place NL East, Wild Card, first round Exit.

Upon trade value

The Florida Marlins are once again dumping players left and right. In 1997 the Marlins won the World Series, and the next year players like Kevin Brown, Al Leiter, Gary Sheffield...etc were gone in a large-scale dump. The team mired in mediocrity until 2003, when they stunned the Yankees to win another championship. Last year Carl Pavano came to the Bombers, and now an ESPN report suggests that Mike Lowell and Josh Beckett are now members of the Red Sox, in a trade for prospects. This trade, combined with the impending free agent move of AJ Burnett implies that the Fish are agian dumping payroll. The Sox are certainly well off if the trade finishes, as Beckett was a stud before blister problems this year, and Lowell is a Gold Glover who can have pop. However, I would have clicked the "protest this trade" button in my fantasy league. Seems like 10 cents on the dollar to me.

The Widening Geier

In a nod to my basketball skills, ESPN's Sports Guy Bill Simmons mirrors my suggested lineup for the Knicks in today's article.


"Is there any possible way that Brown can pull together this particular Knicks team?

(sic)From what I've seen, their best chance to compete looks like this: Marbury and Richardson at the guards, Ariza and Frye at the forwards, Curry at center, Crawford in the Vinnie Johnson role, with Davis, Robinson and Rose spotting the starters, and Lee as the energy guy. Playing as hard as possible, with a set rotation and everyone knowing their roles, that's a 40-win team. Maybe. "

I like it when columnists, especially those who are true fans, agree with me. Here is my post from a few days earlier:

"STARTERS ----SUBS
PG- Steph -----Nate
SG- Q ---------Jamal
SF- Ariza-------- Malik/Barnes
PF- Frye------- David Lee
C- Curry-------- Antonio D/James"

Upon Godzilla

The Yankees made the entirely correct decision yesterday in re-signing Hideki Matsui.

Matsui is one of the most dependable Yankees, and you can write his name down for .300, 20+ HR, and 110 RBI for the rest of his career. He has improved in each year in the US, and does not ask for any days off. He also happens to be one of my favorite Yankees. Of all the potential moves to occur this off-season, this was the biggest no-brainer. The Yankees would have been fools not to lock-up left field for the next 4 years, and to load this contract with options to retain him if he continues to perform. (Plus I love shouting "Mat-suiiiiiiiiiiiii!" in a mock-samurai voice when he does well.)

Upon Quick Updates

Alex Rodriguez was awarded the AL MVP yesterday, and award that he richly deserved for his regualr season performance. The voting occurs before the playoffs, which eliminated his awful post-season from consideration. A-rod was the superior player to second place finisher David Ortiz, and the debate over the matter was a bit trumped up. Alex said the right thing in voicing his desire to trade the MVP for Ortiz' world series ring, as he was already an MVP before we brought him to town.We brought him to win us rings, and he has to deliver in October.

The Knicks won their second straight game in Utah last night, and defense was the word of the day in an UGLY game. The Knicks held the Jazz to a shot-clock era low 62 points. While much of the action was poor, two straigh road wins are encouraging. Larry Brown's imprint has always been defense, and the team may be catching on. The Jazz were without Kirilenko, Boozer, and Giricheck, and the offense showed this absence. I am encouraged by the jumpshot of Channing Frye. The rookie picked up several cheap fouls which limited his time on the floor, but he demonstrated an 18-20 jumper that I did not know he possessed. Jamal Crawford continues his maddening ride. Just when I am ready to write him off as helter-skelter, after getting another crossover swiped by a defender for a fast-break layup, he comes back and shows offensive flair and clutch shot-making ability. I may not always be thrilled by the play, but if this is going to be a grinding 70-point a night team that wins and contends, I will take that over the up-and-down style we have seen in recent years.

Anyone who wants to discount the effect that Owens has on the Eagles, citing the fact that the Eagles made it to the playoffs before him and without him down the stretch last year, I submit this year's T.O.-less games as Exhibit A for the defense. This team has no runners, and the rookie who was supposed to make us forget Owens' absence dropped a pass in the final seconds. This pass would have put the Eagles well in Akers range for the GW field goal, and Owens would most certainly have hauled it in. McNabb has to throw all the time, and he can not count on his receivers. His running game is not fooling anyone, and the O-line can only do so much. He takes a beating now, and if he is injured and T.O. is out this team is not much better than the 2 wins squads around the league.

With yesterday's passing of WWF wrestler Eddy Guererro, I reflected on the damage that drugs and steroids does in that industry. When my buddies and I watch old tapes, or talk about old wrestling, it amazes me how many guys are dead. They dont make it past 40 a lot of times, and I honestly expected news like this when I saw a 5'7" man carrying 230 pounds of muscle, and smashing his body night after night. A sad reality that may never be addressed.

Thats all for now. enjoy the day

Upon First things First

Confetti is still pouring from the rafters, as fireworks explosions blanket the horizon. The Knicks won a game!!!! (ok I'm done)

Last night in Arco Arena, the Knicks got their first win of the year at the expense of the Sacramento Kings. To borrow a phrase from good old Marv Albert "the Knicks in control, right throughout." The team opened up large double digit leads in the first and second halves, and didn't fold down the stretch. Coach Brown used a balanced attacked, which featured several players in double figures. Below is a minute/point breakdown of the major contributors:

Mins Points
M. Barnes 13 2
A. Davis 27 3
E. Curry 21 16
Q. Richardson 25 11
S. Marbury 39 17
M. Rose 27 0
T. Ariza 34 13
C. Frye 19 19
J. Crawford 22 16
N. Robinson 9 6


The young guns had great games, and Frye showed he belongs in the bigs. David Lee didn't manage more than a minute, but at this stage in the game we will all take a win. It is worth mentioning that Ariza played the second most minutes behind Steph, and that Curry/Frye/Crawford all scored nearly 20 in only 20 mins. Lets go turning point?

Upon Recommended Reading

The Country Universe currently has a countdown going of the 300 greatest modern era country singles. Well worth a visit if you are into the genre, or to lists that obviously were a labor of love.


Top 300 Singles

Upon the Cy Young

The award season in baseball is often hotly debated, with the debateable characteristics of what makes a player the"most valuable", or what makes a pitcher "Cy Young" material. This year, the award in the AL went to Angels starter Bartolo Colon.

Colon went 21-8 with a 3.48 ERA. His complete stats can be found HERE. When compared with someone like say Johan Santana one might assume that team wins and playoff contention determine the award, as Santana had the superior stats otherwise. I think that Colons wins down the stretch in a tight as a drum AL West give him the edge there. However, if you look to your left, I have proposed a second candidate who I think deserved the Award.

In Jayson Stark's article on ESPN.com, he raises the question of who should be the Cy. While he picks Santana, his stat regarding Mo jumped off the page for me:
"Rivera, the runner-up, had the best season of his career. And that's saying something. He
had his lowest ERA ever (1.38). He allowed his fewest baserunners ever (only 0.87 per inning). He had his best strikeout-walk ratio ever (4.44 whiffs per walk). He gave up one run all season on the road. And he gave up one
extra-base hit all year to the 120 hitters he faced with runners on base. Yep,
one. "

So if I can recap; THE MAN GAVE UP 1 RUN ON THE ROAD ALL YEAR!. The man went 7-4 with 43 saves, 80 Ks vs 50 hits and 18 walks. And people left him off the ballot. Alltogether? its far past the time when relievers are not considered for the Cy Young. This is not the MVP going to a DH. This is a pitcher who had more value to his team than any other pitcher had to theirs.

Now lets see if Clemens beats Dontrelle and Carpenter and we can write off the entire award this year.

Upon Revision

this began as a rather mundane post about election day, but I am not really feeling that any more. I am however tired of the pass-the-buck attitude that permeates the work environment. People who fail to take ownership of their own responsibilities really bother me to no end. 5 minutes ago I was called in to review a letter. While reviewing this letter, and co-worker (supervisory capacity) volunteers "Did we ever write a thank you letter to ________?" Without going Bill Clinton on her, I wanted to inquire "What is your definition of 'we'"? Is this a royal we? Do you have a cat in your pocket? Now, I will leave it to the reader to guess who was assigned to create this letter:

(A)Perhaps the person who suggested the letter, and should be responsible for creating it?? Never.
(B)This person's secretary, who often creates letters for them?? Of course not.
(C)Me?? Ding-ding-ding

I hate when these people conveniently happen to mention work that needs doing in front of my bosses, when there just happens to be no one else around. It is obvious who is going to get stuck with the work.

If this were an isolated incident, it would be much easier to dismiss as a mere annoyance. However, passing the buck (PTB) afflicts the workplace in pandemic proportions. Bird-flu has nothing on this disease. I certainly understand a chain of command structure, and the fact that supervisors need to prioritize and delegate. I am not shirking my own responsibilities off onto others, or hoping someone will do my job for me. I do chafe at the notion of others trying to do so to me. The most galling aspect of this is when someone attempts to out-wit me to PTB. I am certainly one of the youngest people who works in my entire building, but I am also far from naive. When someone disregards me to the point where they feel they can use a simple ruse ot fool me, I get offended. give me some credit here. An example:

I have written an email from my boss to a person, directing that person to complete a task and return it to me for my boss' review. I have received the language directly from my boss, typed it on their computer, and sent it out with their permission. I have had the person who is assigned the task subsequently come to me, and tell me that I had been assigned this task, and was to complete it and give the finished product to them. I have then taken this person over to the computer that I wrote the email on, showed them the "error" that they made.

It makes you sick.

Upon the NBA

If you are a fan of the current NBA THIS ARTICLE serves to debunk a series of myths about the game.

The Knicks are now 0-3, following a close loss to the Warriors yesterday afternoon. You can refer back to my comments at this blog's inception regarding Larry Brown and his use of young talent. I said during the Olympics that his "stick with veterans" stance was wasteful when he is loaded with young talent. Flash-forward to yesterday, when it was readily apparent to the entire viewing audience that youth was getting the Knicks their best shot to win. Nate Rob, Ariza, David Lee, Channing Frye, and one of the vets was the winning combination. These are all hustle players who get after the ball, and whose effort makes up for rookie mistakes. Antonio Davis is a veteran, but I still take what the #9 pick in the draft gives you. Just for S&G, here's my rotation:

STARTERS ----SUBS
PG- Steph -----Nate
SG- Q ---------Jamal
SF- Ariza-------- Malik/Barnes
PF- Frye------- David Lee
C- Curry-------- Antonio D/James


Here are some in game units that could work

PG- Steph------ Nate------ Steph
SG- Nate------- Jamal------ Q
SF- Q -----------Ariza------ Lee
PF- Lee--------- Malik----- Frye
C- Curry-------- Frye------ Curry


Larry Brown should look into this before we start looking for ping-pong balls.

Upon Rhyme

Just because I want to:

eschewing pages of prose for rythmic thought, brewed in the cortex,
emerging unscathed on the screen, after braving cerebral vortex
and constant clouds of distraction, rendering action into stasis,
on the corporate dole for a dime, with a constant refrain of "I hate this"

waking up in the morning, dawn and the yawning arriving as one,
heading to realms of mourning, but at least the driving is fun,
slaving attached to a desk, alarm bells signal an absence of seconds
possessing the means for change, but somehow lacking the methods