4:00pm February 25th, 2009The Alternate-Reality Mets

The Mets beat the Orioles somewhere down in Florida today, which means nothing except that it's no longer completely, utterly winter. Which isn't a bad bit of meaning to extract from a gray New York February day, but it's no longer transformative. At least not for me.

I'm even busier than usual this spring (three Star Wars books to push across the finish line), which isn't a great thing...

9:04am February 24th, 2009Around In Right, A Black Hole

Do we blame this on Hubie Brooks? If we give him the credit for starting a trend at one position, do we pin accountability on him for a far more insidious trend at another position?

It's Mets 101 that third base was the perpetually hexed corner for a very long time, roughly from the dawn of time throu...

3:12am February 23rd, 2009Some Gone Millionaires

The Academy would like to pause for a moment to remember those Mets who have left us in the past year...

Gustavo Molina, 2008
I was surprised — and, oddly, a little disappointed — to find Gustavo isn't, in fact, part of the seemingly inescapable Molina catching clan. Perhaps "molina" means "receiver" in some Spanish dialect, much the way someone named Cooper ca...

6:17am February 22nd, 2009Cliché Stadium Stands

Just saw David Wright on MLB Network declare the Mets need to let "our bats and gloves do the talking" when it comes to competing with the Phillies.

"Hey David," said his bat, "don't be afraid to make contact with me if there's a runner on third and nobody out."

"Yeah David," added his glove, "and steady yourself before throwing to first. Just a little friendly advice."
...

5:23am February 20th, 2009When Shea Would Go 'Boom!'

Welcome to Flashback Friday: I Saw The Decade End, a milestone-anniversary salute to the New York Mets of 1969, 1979, 1989 and 1999. Each week, we immerse ourselves in or at least touch upon something that transpired within the Metsian realm 40, 30, 20 or 10 years ago. Amazin' or not, here it comes....

10:21am February 18th, 2009Golden Now

"You've got your new address here. There really isn't anything else you need."
"Hold up. That's it?"
"Sure. You're golden now."
"I don't get it."
"It's not unexpected. You're not the first one to move here and be a little frazzled from the whole experience. But honestly, you don't need anything else."
"How about an explanation?"
"That's fair. I tend to forget you new ...

12:08pm February 16th, 2009The Community for Mets Fans Who Like to Read

We're a team. We win together, we lose together, we celebrate and we mourn together. And defeats are softened and victories sweetened because we did them together.
—Toby Ziegler

It was fairly early in the life of this enterprise, which turns four years

10:02pm February 13th, 2009Long, Long Ago

Spring training 2009 is finally here, but last night and tonight I found myself in another season and another year.

I'm not normally much moved by baseball rebroadcasts, much as I wish it were otherwise. No matter how improbable the comeback or triumphant the victory, knowing the end result robs the game of its tension and its drama -- I wind up waiting around for the denouement instead...

1:17pm February 13th, 2009Before & After

Welcome to Flashback Friday: I Saw The Decade End, a milestone-anniversary salute to the New York Mets of 1969, 1979, 1989 and 1999. Each week, we immerse ourselves in or at least touch upon something that transpired within the Metsian realm 40, 30, 20 or 10 years ago. Amazin' or not, here it comes....

1:37pm February 12th, 2009Falling In Love Again

The longest offseason in human history is about to end, giving way to the longest Spring Training in human history (thanks, WBC). In about eight minutes, the thrill of Pitchers & Catchers will wear off when it occurs to us all at once that they're tossing, they're drilling but they're not playing. Soon enough, they'll be pretend-playing, which will seem really cool for a good two days before we're...