Hello everyone, Andrew Vazzano here. I'm the creator, writer and editor of this website and I think something needs to be addressed.
If you're making your way here from another websites comments section, I'm talking directly to you. A kid has been going around literally spamming my blog in the comments of tons of different websites and blogs across the 'net. I want to say that I am deeply sorry.
I know it sucks to get that pointless, worthless comment that adds nothing to the conversation and you can tell is absolutely just a way to drive traffic to your site. I hate those comments.
So again, I am sorry for those spammed comments. If you are here, feel free to stick around and throw in your two cents on whatever you want. Feel free to e-mail me with further questions or comments.
Thanks, and again, I am sorry,
Andrew Vazzano
4/26/08
Keith Hernandez, Legend
I'll be out and about all day, so I'll leave you with a guest blog from Ryan Punzalan. Feel free to e-mail me your own articles, and if they're good, I'll run them!
Anyway, here is Ryan's article:
You're probably thinking, why legend? Let's face it, Keith Hernandez is the king of comedy with it comes to color commentary. There's something about his informations or antics that make the game even better. No offense to Ron Darling, but every pre-game show I just can't wait to see who's sitting next to Gary. Just to display how great this man is, I prepared a short list on what he says in the booth that makes me crack a smile:
Thanks Ryan!
Anyway, here is Ryan's article:
You're probably thinking, why legend? Let's face it, Keith Hernandez is the king of comedy with it comes to color commentary. There's something about his informations or antics that make the game even better. No offense to Ron Darling, but every pre-game show I just can't wait to see who's sitting next to Gary. Just to display how great this man is, I prepared a short list on what he says in the booth that makes me crack a smile:
- He calls Gary Cohen, "Gaer" as in, "I noticed something about Delgado's swing Gaer."
- Keith loves to talk about footwear, especially Crocs, or lack of them.
- Mex loves to talk about his Tootsie Pop, usually in a bin or in his mouth.
- Keith seems to point out every ad-placements as possible.
- The Coors Freeze seems to amaze him more than anything
- New SNY camera angles also seem to astonish him as he's always caught saying, "Great angle guys."
- He seems to like color too, as he's always talking about the colored highlighters for his scorecard.
- I keep noticing that Keith makes fun of Kevin Burkhardt so much, especially around other fans and stuff.
- ..and to top it all off, Keith just loves to talk about the Cardinals and how events during his time there. He also loves to talk about the Cardinals Minor League system and his events there too. Hello Tulsa.
That's not all of them, but yeah, those are the great ones that pop into my head. He has such great chemistry with Gary and he gets extremely entertaining during a blow-out or an extra inning game. His spontaneous jokes are just great and I firmly believe he loves his job way too much.
With fun comes controversy. Of course you all remember the incident with the comment towards women being in the dugout and how he states that a woman should not be in the dugout. Comment aside, he brushed it off and continued to be as random a commentator can be, and every enjoys it.
I may be a bit biased, but I truly think that the team of Cohen, Hernandez, and Darling is easily the best broadcasting team in the business right now. Cohen's perfect play-by-play, Darling's in-depht analysis, and Keith's speech about how he hates the head-first slide just fits every position. Keith's great, and he know's he great.Thanks Ryan!
4/25/08
Game Recap: Braves 6 -- Mets 3
The Mets are slumping. Hard.
They lost to the Braves 6-3 tonight and only picked up two hits. All their runs came on back-to-back-to-back bases loaded walks in the third inning.
The Mets have dropped five of their last six. Rough.
Use this thread to vent.
They lost to the Braves 6-3 tonight and only picked up two hits. All their runs came on back-to-back-to-back bases loaded walks in the third inning.
The Mets have dropped five of their last six. Rough.
Use this thread to vent.
Delgado sits
Carlos Delgado was not in the starting lineup for the Mets tonight.
He was replaced by Marlon Anderson, batting seventh.
It's. About. Time.
He was replaced by Marlon Anderson, batting seventh.
It's. About. Time.
Schneider out longer than thought
Brian Schneider will stay in the hospital longer than thought, most likely until Sunday, receiving IV and the like to try and get healthy.
Gustavo Molina will stick on the roster, probably blocking Moises Alou.
We'll see how that goes.
Gustavo Molina will stick on the roster, probably blocking Moises Alou.
We'll see how that goes.
Trip to Maine
Today I will be heading up to the great state of Maine for a Society of Professional Journalists conference. I'm bringing my trusty laptop along, but I'm not sure if I'll have internet in the hotel room. We're leaving in a few hours, the car ride is roughly four hours long, and we're heading straight to some sort of event, so if I do have internet, it won't be until later this afternoon.Brian Schneider went down with the infected thumb yesterday, but did not land on the DL, yet. He may still need a trip there if it does not improve from the IV he received. This may stall Moises Alou's trip back to Shea, as the Mets will be carrying three catchers if Schneider can avoid the DL. Once Schneider is healed and Gustavo Molina is sent back to AAA, expect Alou to return, possibly by the middle of next week.
Enjoy Mike Pelfrey and Jair Jurrjens tonight. See you on the other side.
People hate the mouthpiece
Newsday's David Lennon writes one of the longest articles on mouthpieces published, this one dealing with Mike Pelfrey and his chunk of plastic. Lennon writes that many batters are distracted with the mouthguard, though Pelfrey needs it for a condition called TMJ or Tempromandibular Joint Disorder.
From Lennon:
Hey, whatever works for you Pelfrey. If you have to bend over backwards to distract the hitter in the slightest bit, do it. Pelfrey claims he prefers the store bought versions to the ones that are custom made for ones mouth. He also said he doesn't even boil them for a more custom fit. He just likes them right off the shelf.
Gag.
From Lennon:
Pointing to an area alongside the right side of his jaw, he added, "This muscle right here gets real, real tight, It's like a cramp almost. You have to pop it back out."I nearly gagged like 10 times while writing this.
The condition, Pelfrey believes, is a souvenir of his trip to Taiwan with Team USA in 2004, when he was part of the group that won the gold medal at the World University Baseball Championships.
Pelfrey struck out 20 in 16 2/3 innings. But in his meeting with Japan, one of the few hitters who did make contact came within inches of ending his career before it really even began. Pelfrey took a line drive off his right cheekbone, and when he points to the spot, it's perilously close to his eye.
---
"I hated that thing," said catcher Brian Schneider, who faced him last year as a National. "I couldn't stop looking at it. Other guys were always talking about it, too. Everybody hates it."
Hey, whatever works for you Pelfrey. If you have to bend over backwards to distract the hitter in the slightest bit, do it. Pelfrey claims he prefers the store bought versions to the ones that are custom made for ones mouth. He also said he doesn't even boil them for a more custom fit. He just likes them right off the shelf.
Gag.
4/24/08
Game Recap: Nationals 10 -- Mets 5
Every time Oliver Perez pitches, the Mets fear they will get this sort of start out of him. When Perez was removed, the Mets bullpen fared even worse. The Mets dropped game two to the Nationals by a score of 10-5.
Perez lasted 5 2-3 of an inning, allowing five earned runs on six hits and four walks. Perez struck out three, and benefited from a double play in the third inning. The Nats got on the board against Perez in the bottom of the fifth, when after two walks and a single to start the inning, Felipe Lopez singled to center field, driving in two runs. Later in that inning, Ryan Zimmerman brought home Ronnie Belliard on an RBI ground out. Perez went out to start the sixth and allowed two singles and recorded two outs before being removed in favor of Aaron Heilman.
This was one of those Perez-will-be-wild-and-walk-everyone kind of games. It was bound to happen sooner or later. He's got the talent, but he still lacks the concentration a pitcher needs. Still, this wasn't downright bad, but it wasn't good either.
Heilman entered the game with two on and two out in the sixth inning. The first batter he faced, Lastings Milledge, working as a pinch hitter, was quickly walked to load the bases. Lopez came to the plate again, and knocked a grand slam home run to the right field bleachers. Heilman then allowed two singles before getting Austin Kearns to strike out swinging. Heilman's line: .1 IP, 3 hits, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K.
I'm actually starting to feel bad for this guy. Nothing he does works out. Eighth inning or sixth inning, he still gets rocked. Rough, but he's a professional baseball player, so he needs to step up and get back on track ASAP.
Jorge Sosa came in for the seventh, getting the first out of the inning before Aaron Boone reached base on a Jose Reyes fielding error. Willie Harris followed this with a walk and Wil Nieves came to the plate and singled to right, bringing Boone home. Johnny Estrada, pinch hitting, again singled to right, scoring Harris. After recording another out, Sosa allowed another RBI single to right off the bat of Christian Guzman.
See: Above.
Pedro Feliciano made an appearance and recorded outs, three of them, allowing a single to Wily Mo Pena and striking out Boone in the eighth inning.
Celebrate! A relief pitcher didn't give up runs!
The Mets jumped out to a 3-0 lead, but could not hold on. Two out RBI hits were the specialty tonight, as all but one run came with two outs.
In the third, Raul Casanova singled to right field to start off the inning. After being sacrificed to second by Perez, and moving to third on a ground out to the right side by Reyes, Casanova came home on Luis Castillo's first hit of the game.
First two out RBI: Castillo. He had a very good night, and a very good series overall. Read on...
The next inning, Ryan Church walked to leadoff. After Carlos Delgado struck out swinging, Church stole second with Angel Pagan at bat. Pagan later walked, and Casanova put a charge into one, to the warning track, which allowed Church to move to third. Perez came to the plate and helped his own cause, singling up the middle and driving home Church.
Second two out RBI: Perez. Strange place to get your first two RBI's of a game, that's for sure. I love when Perez hits. He does that little hop swing. It's just beautiful.
Castillo singled to right to start the fifth. With David Wright batting, Castillo took second on a wild pitch. Castillo moved to third when a pickoff attempt hit him in the leg and skipped into the outfield. With two out, Church singled to right, driving home Castillo.
I love me my Ryan Church. How good is this guy? I'm OK with people jumping on the Church bandwagon, because he's just so good.
The rest of the Mets runs came on solo shots. In the seventh, with two out of course, Carlos Beltran hit a home run to the first row of seats in the right field bleachers. In the ninth, Marlon Anderson came in for a pinch hitting opportunity and crushed his first home run of the year to right.
I'll say it again. I love Beltran's swing. So sweet. Too bad he struck out three times tonight. But when he makes contact, I like it. It's only rivaled by Moises Alou's swing, which we should see at Shea very soon. Good for Anderson, who was only 1-15 before this at bat. He needs to get going in case we need him late in a game.
Numbers: Castillo: 3-5, RBI, run tonight, 5-10, RBI, 2 runs last two games...Castillo: 6 SB this season...Church and Casanova: 2 hits apiece...XBH: Church (2B), Beltran (HR), Anderson (HR)...Mets: 11 hits...Team LOB: 7...Perez pitches: 100 (58 for strikes)...Beltran: 3 K's...Delgado and Wright: 0-4...Felipe Lopez: 6 RBI...
Game Ball: Castillo.
Perez lasted 5 2-3 of an inning, allowing five earned runs on six hits and four walks. Perez struck out three, and benefited from a double play in the third inning. The Nats got on the board against Perez in the bottom of the fifth, when after two walks and a single to start the inning, Felipe Lopez singled to center field, driving in two runs. Later in that inning, Ryan Zimmerman brought home Ronnie Belliard on an RBI ground out. Perez went out to start the sixth and allowed two singles and recorded two outs before being removed in favor of Aaron Heilman.
This was one of those Perez-will-be-wild-and-walk-everyone kind of games. It was bound to happen sooner or later. He's got the talent, but he still lacks the concentration a pitcher needs. Still, this wasn't downright bad, but it wasn't good either.
Heilman entered the game with two on and two out in the sixth inning. The first batter he faced, Lastings Milledge, working as a pinch hitter, was quickly walked to load the bases. Lopez came to the plate again, and knocked a grand slam home run to the right field bleachers. Heilman then allowed two singles before getting Austin Kearns to strike out swinging. Heilman's line: .1 IP, 3 hits, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K.
I'm actually starting to feel bad for this guy. Nothing he does works out. Eighth inning or sixth inning, he still gets rocked. Rough, but he's a professional baseball player, so he needs to step up and get back on track ASAP.
Jorge Sosa came in for the seventh, getting the first out of the inning before Aaron Boone reached base on a Jose Reyes fielding error. Willie Harris followed this with a walk and Wil Nieves came to the plate and singled to right, bringing Boone home. Johnny Estrada, pinch hitting, again singled to right, scoring Harris. After recording another out, Sosa allowed another RBI single to right off the bat of Christian Guzman.
See: Above.
Pedro Feliciano made an appearance and recorded outs, three of them, allowing a single to Wily Mo Pena and striking out Boone in the eighth inning.
Celebrate! A relief pitcher didn't give up runs!
The Mets jumped out to a 3-0 lead, but could not hold on. Two out RBI hits were the specialty tonight, as all but one run came with two outs.
In the third, Raul Casanova singled to right field to start off the inning. After being sacrificed to second by Perez, and moving to third on a ground out to the right side by Reyes, Casanova came home on Luis Castillo's first hit of the game.
First two out RBI: Castillo. He had a very good night, and a very good series overall. Read on...
The next inning, Ryan Church walked to leadoff. After Carlos Delgado struck out swinging, Church stole second with Angel Pagan at bat. Pagan later walked, and Casanova put a charge into one, to the warning track, which allowed Church to move to third. Perez came to the plate and helped his own cause, singling up the middle and driving home Church.
Second two out RBI: Perez. Strange place to get your first two RBI's of a game, that's for sure. I love when Perez hits. He does that little hop swing. It's just beautiful.
Castillo singled to right to start the fifth. With David Wright batting, Castillo took second on a wild pitch. Castillo moved to third when a pickoff attempt hit him in the leg and skipped into the outfield. With two out, Church singled to right, driving home Castillo.
I love me my Ryan Church. How good is this guy? I'm OK with people jumping on the Church bandwagon, because he's just so good.
The rest of the Mets runs came on solo shots. In the seventh, with two out of course, Carlos Beltran hit a home run to the first row of seats in the right field bleachers. In the ninth, Marlon Anderson came in for a pinch hitting opportunity and crushed his first home run of the year to right.
I'll say it again. I love Beltran's swing. So sweet. Too bad he struck out three times tonight. But when he makes contact, I like it. It's only rivaled by Moises Alou's swing, which we should see at Shea very soon. Good for Anderson, who was only 1-15 before this at bat. He needs to get going in case we need him late in a game.
Numbers: Castillo: 3-5, RBI, run tonight, 5-10, RBI, 2 runs last two games...Castillo: 6 SB this season...Church and Casanova: 2 hits apiece...XBH: Church (2B), Beltran (HR), Anderson (HR)...Mets: 11 hits...Team LOB: 7...Perez pitches: 100 (58 for strikes)...Beltran: 3 K's...Delgado and Wright: 0-4...Felipe Lopez: 6 RBI...
Game Ball: Castillo.
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