Sterling Equities Inc. made money off Madoff scheme, may be sued for it

Remember all we heard about the Mets losing $700 million or more in the Bernie Madoff disaster?  Well, apparently they made money off of it.

From Bloomberg…

An entity tied to the New York Mets baseball team and its owner Sterling Equities Inc. might be sued for withdrawing $47.8 million more from Bernard Madoff’s firm than it deposited with the con man, a lawyer said.

Mets LP placed a total of $522.7 million in two Madoff accounts and withdrew $570.5 million over an unspecified period, Irving Picard, the court-appointed liquidator, said in a filing Oct. 19 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York.

This is nuts.  First, they lost a ton of money.  Now, it seems like they made money.  But they might be sued for it.

Oy vey.

Who thought you had to be a finance major to be a Mets fan?

Another ex-Met with money trouble

This one is a little more recent.  According to the Tax Watchdog blog, Livan Hernandez owes quite a lot of money to many people.

From the Tax Watchdog blog…

What's owed:

• On Aug. 19, SunTrust Bank sued Hernandez in Miami, and is trying to foreclose on the mortgage for his 4,643-square-foot home (see below), according to this public record. The home, coincidentally, is for sale for $1.42 million, according to this listing.
• A day earlier, on Aug. 18, the neighborhood association that governs the pitcher's $981,000 Miami Beach condo filed a $3,587 lien for unpaid bills, which you can see here.
• He's also catching heat from a second neighborhood association. The Bay Point Property Owners Association filed a lien July 8, claiming the pitcher owed more than $2,700 for property maintenance, attorney fees and costs associated with the Miami home, according to this public record.
• Even the pool guy is pursuing Hernandez. David Cohen, president of All Florida Pools & Spa Center, filed this lien on Sept. 17, claiming Hernandez failed to pay $1,102 in pool repairs.
• The state of California filed a $29,791 lien against Hernandez on Jan. 25, 2008, in Sacramento County Court. It is the second lien filed against Hernandez in recent years.
• On Aug. 20, 2008, the IRS released a $307,268 income tax lien that had been filed three months earlier in Miami, according to this public record.

Pay your bills!

Happy birthday, Keith Hernandez

On Oct. 20, 1953 in San Francisco, Calif.,
Keith Barlow Hernandez was born. 
Happy birthday, Keith!

Ken Takahashi released

The Mets have released 40-year-old Ken Takahashi, according to Ben Shpigel.

Takahashi signed with the Mets on March 30 after being released by the Toronto Blue Jays.  He made 28 appearances for the Mets, compiling a 2.96 ERA and 1.354 WHIP in 27 1-3 innings.

Let the roster changes begin!

StubHub issues apology for Mets playoff ticket e-mail

Yesterday, I posted this e-mail that ticket broker StubHub sent out to Mets fans (and apparently Cubs fans, too).

A few hours later, they issued an apology that read…

Earlier today, an email promoting New York Mets postseason tickets was sent to you. This, unfortunately, was a mistake. We regret the error and apologize for any inconvenience or confusion this may have caused.

Sincerely,
The StubHub Team

I wonder what Phillies fan was bored at work and felt like taunting Mets fans yesterday?

The Jacket had landed

Rick Peterson, former Mets pitching coach, has been hired by the Milwaukee Brewers for the same role.

Interestingly, Willie Randolph is also on the Brewers staff as a bench coach.

Hey Milwaukee, I heard Manny Acta is still available.  You’ve almost reassembled the 2006 Mets coaching staff.

Also, when they announce Peterson’s signing, will they present him with a jacket instead of a jersey?

Here’s a real kick in the pants

It's one thing that the Mets aren't in the playoffs. But now StubHub is here to take Mets fans down yet another notch.

From a StubHub e-mail…

Where do you want to sit?

Hey Tony,
Be there alongside your New York Mets as they chase baseball immortality. Go to StubHub, where you’ll find a fantastic selection of tickets to every playoff game – so you experience the championship chase live and in person.Check it out. Go to StubHub and get the seats you want today.

An obvious automated response, but still.

Ouch.

Not only do Mets fans want to forget 2009 as quick as possible, now they’re being teased by ticket brokers?

Thanks, Tony!

Mejia pitched some high praise

Here’s what ESPN’s Keith Law had to say about Jenrry Mejia in AFL action…

The most impressive arm so far has been Jenrry Mejia of the New York Mets, who was on a short pitch count but showed two above-average pitches and a chance for a third. Mejia's fastball sat from 93-96 mph and touched 98, he also threw a plus changeup that looked more like a two-seamer at 85-87.
---
The velocity comes easily, and if his command is better than what he showed on Wednesday and he can snap off that good curveball more frequently, he's a potential No. 1 or No. 2 starter.

I like the sound of that.  Don’t you?

For more from Law, click here.

Poll Results: Fans feel Mets fired the wrong coaches

In the latest poll, I asked fans if they thought the Mets fired the right coaches when they cut Sandy Alomar Sr. and Luis Alicea from the coaching staff and reassigned Razor Shines and Sandy Alomar Jr.

Here are the results…What do you think?

Next poll: Are you watching the playoffs this year?

Twitter Poll: Thoughts on Citi Field in it’s first season

I asked my Twitter followers what they thought about Citi Field this year.  Here are some responses…

DonCheech said: loved it

Ceetar said: I loved it. Needs more Mets stuff, but love it.

metsfanmurph said: Love Citi Field. Needs more Mets stuff. I would like to see the seats blue and orange, more Mets pictures, and blue walls

metsfanmurph continued: All in all I like watching a game there and I like that it is a pitchers park. I wouldn't want them to change the dimensions

scratchbomb said: fantastic. still needs more Met presence, but I think that's the only real complaint you can make about it

elZi said: Citi Field was an A+ in my book

DatNYCStar said: Looks great. Great food. Great stores. Not enuff Mets stuff though. A little bit too big maybe?

Metsfanfeed said: I love it. But it won't replace Shea.

Schulmania said: Great stadium, even better food, terrible product

What are your thoughts on Citi Field this year?