The usually reserved Hunter apparently got rubbed the wrong way this week and claimed that MLB is trying to pass off Latino players as African American.  

"People see dark faces out there, and the perception is that they're African-American. They're not us. They're impostors. Even people I know come up and say: 'Hey, what color is Vladimir Guerrero? Is he a black player?' I say, 'Come on, he's Dominican. He's not black.'

"As African-American players, we have a theory that baseball can go get an imitator and pass them off as us. It's like they had to get some kind of dark faces, so they go to the Dominican or Venezuela because you can get them cheaper. It's like, 'Why should I get this kid from the South Side of Chicago and have Scott Boras represent him and pay him $5 million when you can get a Dominican guy for a bag of chips?' ... I'm telling you, it's sad,"

You ticked off the wrong person Mr. Hunter.  Ozzie Guillen, in a strange moment of seemingly rational thought, had this to say:

"I was laughing because when he said, `They go there and sign for potato chips,' I said, `Well, we've got Chapman. They gave him $12 million. [Cincinnati actually agreed to a $30.25 million, six-year contract with pitcher Aroldis Chapman.] We've got [prospect Dayan] Viciedo. They gave him $10 million. I remember in my time, one scout goes [to Venezuela and] 30 players show up. Now, 30 scouts go there and one player shows up. In our country, we play baseball. That's no choice. Here you can play basketball, you can be another athlete, you can do so many things when you have the opportunity. And that's why there's not many [African-American] players out there."

In reading this title perhaps you thought I initially made an error since the more common phrase used is "adds insult to injury", but for Mets fans they are fed up with dealing with the word "injury" after this season.  Add to that, the last 3 seasons in Met land have been nothing short of insulting.

Watching both the Yankees and Phillies successes this season really has put a severe dent on the framework that was once a promising future at what is now called Citifield.  Look back to 2006.  The Mets finished tied with their cross-town rivals for the best record in the majors.  They easily disposed of the Dodgers in the first round and were a huge favorite to reach the World Series considering their opponent had won just 83 regular season games.

After winning Game 1 thanks to a terrific performance from Tom Glavine, Carlos Delgado gave the Mets a quick 3-0 lead in Game 2.  The Cardinals rallied to tied the game, but the Mets jumped ahead again with single runs in the 5th and 6th innings.  Then came the turning point of the series.  With 2 outs, little used Scot Spiezio launched a fly ball to right field.  Shawn Green looked to have made a terrific catch, but the ball somehow eluded his glove allowing both base runners to score.

That one play seemed to really damage the Mets.  After that they never regained the swagger and offensive dominance they had during the regular season, despite a brief resurgence in Game 4.  Twice in that series they were embarrassed by a journey man starter in Jeff Suppan.  The series couldn't have ended any more perfectly with the hope of the "NEW METS" at the plate.  The "LOS METS".  The bat never left his shoulder in what would become the obvious difference between the Mets and the contenders from there on.

The Mets started the 2007 season with a gusto that wanted to prove they were the best team in baseball and that losing to the Cardinals was a fluke.  They were 34-18 on June 1st.  Then things changed again.  For the rest of the season the Mets played in an inconsistent funk.  They never relinquished their division lead, although they came close.  After a 4-game sweep in Philadelphia at the end of August the Mets saw their lead dwindle to 2 games.  However, the team seemed to rebound after sweeping the Braves the next series in Atlanta, and putting themselves up 7 games on the Phillies with just 17 games left.  The best part of the final 17 games for the Mets would be that they would be playing 14 games against teams under .500.  Six of those games would be against the lowly Nationals who were last in the NL in runs scored.

In what would become the greatest collapse in regular season history, the Phillies dealt the first blow to the Mets, sweeping a 3-game series at Shea Stadium in which the Mets held 2-run leads in the 6th inning or later in 2 of those games.   Over the final 14 games after the Phillies series, blown leads became the norm.  Against the Nationals, they blew leads of 4 runs in each of the 2 losses at Washington.  After rallying to take a 3-run lead in the 9th inning against the Marlins, a bullpen without Billy Wagner (who had back spasms) couldn't hold a 3-run lead as the Mets lost in extra-innings.   They rallied to win their final 3 games in Florida and take a 2-and-half game lead coming home for the final 7 games.  They went 1-6 over those games, which included another huge blown lead, this one of 5 runs, vs the Nationals.   The Phillies went 13-4 over those final 17 games to steal the division away.   How could that happen?  Mets fans everywhere wanted to understand how a team with so many talented players could fall so hard and so fast without any fight.  Welcome to "LOS METS".

What most people forget is the Phillies weren't the Phillies yet.  They had yet to win a division title.  Their own history was filled with choking and embarrassment.  Yes, they went 13-4, but all the Mets had to do was not collapse.  They couldn't do it.  The "LOS METS" created the Phillies who are trying to secure their 2nd consecutive World Title.

2008 started with hope and a lock-down starter in Johan Santana.  After struggling early, the Mets righted the ship under Jerry Manuel and held a 1-and-a-half game lead entering the final 7 games.  Although they improved over 2007 to go 3-4 over that span, the Brewers went 6-1 and stole the Wild Card away.  This time "LOS METS" lost more than a playoff birth.  In an embarrassing ceremony, the loyal fans who had to watch these enormous collapses from a seemingly uninterested team and franchise, said goodbye to Shea Stadium AFTER the Mets lost on the final day of the season to eliminate themselves from the postseason for the 2nd straight year.

The Yankees had their own problems starting after the 2007 season when they failed to re-sign Joe Torre as their manager.   Yankees fans were split upon the departure of Torre since they won 4 titles and reached the postseason 12 straight seasons under him.  In came Joe Girardi and a new era of Yankee baseball.  Instead of going after Santana themselves, they decided to go with a young rotation led by Joba Chamberlain and Phil Hughes.    Although they managed to win 89 games in 2008, they missed the postseason for the first time since 1993.

When the Yankees miss the postseason, there is a sense that something in the universe is off.  The Yankees went into the 2008 offseason knowing what they had to do to get back on top and they did so.  They went out and spent and spent and spent.   First came C.C. Sabathia, the best free-agent pitcher on the market.  Next came A.J. Burnett, perhaps the 2nd best free-agent pitcher on the market.  Then when it looked like they were all done for the offseason, they went and landed the best offensive free-agent player in first baseman Mark Teixiera.  The Yankees do what they have to do to win, and the 2008 offseason meant spending money.

"LOS METS" on the other hand, do ALMOST everything it takes to win.  Instead of getting a Manny Ramirez and securing a playoff spot, the Mets settle for a platoon of Daniel Murphy and Fernando Tatis.  Instead of signing Orlando Hudson, they sign Alex Cora.  No one could predict the rash of injuries and bad fortune that would strike the 2009 Mets.  After playing well into mid-May, the injuries started to mount.  First Delgado, then Reyes, then Beltran, then rookie Martinez.  The front office kept up hope that they would be back, promising a return, but never giving a date.  By the time any of this mattered, the Mets had fallen far behind the Phillies and the Wild Card leading Rockies.

Many times during the last 3 seasons I have gone on the Mets fan board on Mets.com and argued with "HOMER" fans who kept insisting that nothing was wrong.   Carlos Beltran is awesome, Reyes is better than Jeter, Wright is better than A-Rod...it was almost embarrassing to be recognized as a Mets fan when this type of nonsense was being spewed.  The rest of us who live in reality still have not been able to forgive the Mets for the collapse of 2007.  After another collapse in 2008, the front office thought that they could make everything better with a new ballpark.  Again, there was no explanation and handling of the collapses of the prior 2 seasons.  The front office pretended it didn't exist.  2009 taught the Mets a painful lesson in what happens when you ignore glaring weaknesses.  Depth is one of them.

Throughout the 2009 season Mets fans were faced with the prospect of well, NO PROSPECTS.  An incredibly depleted minor league system with only one real prospect ready to contribute, but who can't seem to stay healthy (Fernando Martinez).  They were also faced with the embarrassment of Bernie Madoff.  No one knew exactly how much money the Mets lost, but the Mets made it clear that the days of spending were on hold.   As the season winded down, the front office spoke of lowering payroll.   Nothing like a Yankees-Phillies World Series to add to the humiliation.  Instead of being recognized as a peer of those 2 teams, the Mets now are anything but.  The Phillies and Yankees are not going anywhere anytime soon.  Looks like the only things the Mets fan has to look forward to is whom to look at as the lesser of two evils.

Ok I am a Yankees fan. Huge Yankees fan. However winning the AL East Title is not really a big deal fellow Yankees fans. We are going to go up against one of 2 teams that have our number in the post season. (Angels or Boston). I will not celebrate until we win the World Series. If you look at the locker room photos after they clinched it was like they won the World Series. Goggles?!?!?! I mean come on; I was a little embarrassed as a Yankees fan. Now all I hear around the office is "how 'bout them Yankees!" My response: What about them? Let’s wait and see if we can get the big trophy then and only then will I celebrate! Remember everyone is 0-0 in October.

How do you start a blog post? I'm not new to blogging (That's obvious. My ROFL inducing humor mixed with my stunningly unique takes might even lead you to the conclusion that I've blogged before, professionally.), and I'm not even really asking the question, but I've noticed that most people just jump right in to what they're going to say. That's fine, of course. It just seems rather intense. Intense is fine for some subjects, especially if you're steaming mad and have something to get out, but when you're talking about something like the New York Mets' run totals over the last couple months, does it really need to be intense? I like to give an intro, something like this, before I jump in to what I'm going to say. And isn't this a nice, little, compact intro? I think so.

Ha ha, okay, randomness over.

The New York Mets scored 10 runs last night and beat the Houston Astros 10-3. This begs the question: (Did I use that colon right? Whatever. Makes me feel smart, though...) just how bad was the Astros pitching? A very, very good question, but not one I'm out to answer. It did lead me to wonder about the Mets' run totals, though. So I did some research -and well, yes, all that I did was go to the Mets' website and look at their games over the last several weeks, calling it research sounds a lot better.

In 20 games in July, the Mets have scored 3 runs or less in 12 of those games.

The Mets have played 96 games this year. Over the course of those 96 games, the Mets have scored in double digits just 3 times. The Boston Red Sox have scored in double digits 12 times this season (Even with their recent offensive slump), and the New York Yankees have scored in double digits 13 times.

Before the season, I thought the Mets would win over 100 games, be the major's best team, and eventually win the World Series. I'm kind of regretting that now. I couldn't have possibly known about the Mets' injuries -Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado, John Maine, Jose Reyes. Nor could I have known that Oliver Perez would completely collapse, and leave Johan Santana standing alone as the only consistent starter.

Nor could I have known that David Wright would have a down year. I picked him as the NL MVP. But that was before the season, of course.

He's having a nice year -.317, 6 HRs, 46 RBI, 21 SB. But don't let anyone tell you that he's having a good year. Obviously some of it is due to the fact that he has absolutely no help around him in the lineup, but some of it is him. Heck, just listen to the SNY announcers when he's up to bat, and they'll tell you that he hasn't been catching up to the fastball like he has in the past several years. He's fooled more easily, and looks baffled at times (Despite sporting a .317 average).

You kind of have to feel sorry for the Mets. First year in their fancy new digs and just about the entire front cover of the media guide gets hurt. And even when they do something right in Citi Field, it doesn't quite work out -like when the Mets hit back to back Home Runs, but too quickly (The Home Run Apple needs 30 seconds to recharge), and the Home Run Apple didn't rise for the second. The Apple rose after the inning, but it was too little, too late -which seems will be the Mets season when Beltran, Delgado, and Reyes finally return.

This was longer than I expected. Thanks for reading!

The National League will be welcoming back one of it's former sluggers, as the St. Louis Cardinals have traded  for OF Matt Holliday.  St Louis apparently has sent three prospects, 3B Brett Wallace, OF Shane Peterson and RHP Clayton Mortensen, in exchange for the services of Matt Holliday, who immediately joins the pennent race in the NL Central.

He must be pumped, because not only is he off the dreadful A's, but now he gets to hit ahead of the best player in baseball, Albert Pujols.  He absolutely mashed NL pitching when he was with the Rockies - I can only think this will make him and the Cardinals that much better.

Somewhere, Lee ties himself a noose.

Also published at Mind Pinball

Last night on Fox, Major League Baseball held one of its signature events, the All-Star Game, in St. Louis. After the first couple of innings, I stopped watching it.

This state of affairs would have been unimaginable years ago, when I was a child. When I was younger, it was baseball that ruled my sports kingdom. Today, that is no longer the case. Don't get me wrong, I still love the sport, but as I often say, it is no longer the national pastime and it is no longer my favorite sport. Why? Let me count the ways:

First, labor strife and the cancellation of the 1994 World Series. Baseball took a serious hit when the World Series was cancelled in the 1994 season. While the sport supposedly came back during Cal Ripken's run at Lou Gehrig's consecutive game streak, I'm sure it lost some fans that never really came back. I was one of those, though I kept track of the Orioles through Cal's streak and the two playoff seasons after it. And while I still follow the O's, it isn't with the same fervor that I did before that season.

Next, the steroid controversy. As a fan of the game, I'm a fan of Albert Pujols. I love watching Albert hit. Even though he isn't an Oriole, I am a fan of the player who may be the best all-around hitter in the game. However, as Pujols' stats pile up, the spectre of "is he or isn't he" in regards to use of performance enhancing drugs keeps being whispered about  him. Now, I am willing to give Albert the benefit of the doubt, but the whole question of steroids, coupled with the report of the people who were caught using now means that anyone is automatically eyed suspiciously. This too, robbed the game of some of its joy.

Third, the rise of the NFL. Anyone who follows sports will admit that the NFL is king of the sports leagues right now. Proof, at least for me, are the many complaints I've been hearing about how many fans cannot wait for the football season to begin. Heck, a great many of them can't even wait for training camp. I don't get that same feeling when spring training comes around. Not to mention the many statements from people that baseball has become boring. It doesn't bore me, but that may be because I grew up with the game as my favorite sport. Yet it is easy to see how people can feel that way. With the length of games and the stretches where there seems to be nothing going on, baseball requires patience to watch. But football (when allowing for television breaks) has lots of action, and it has become a year-round sport, so much so that even the off-season can be entertaining-the combine, the draft, OTA's, contract signings, the free agency period, etc. whets the fan's appetite for the season to come. Baseball's hot stove just doesn't compare.

Last, and it pains me to say this, the recent struggles of the Orioles. It's hard to stay interested in baseball if your team isn't winning, or at least in the hunt for the postseason. For the Orioles, it has been eleven (and possibly twelve) consecutive losing seasons. The franchise's last playoff appearance was in 1997. I'm thankful that I'm old enough to remember when the Orioles were good, and actually saw them win a World Series. But as year after year the losses piled up, and the club became mismanaged (in my opinion), it became harder and harder to stay interested in the game. Yet, because I root for the locals, I'll always love the Orioles. But the sport itself has fallen below football in the pecking order.

I'm still a baseball fan. I'll always be a baseball fan. It's the game I grew up loving so I'll never let it go. It just isn't my favorite sport anymore.

Not a lot of top sports analysts had them sniffing the top of the central and even though they had a rough stretch towards the break, they are currently in 2nd, just a couple games behind the Cards.  A few major concerns need to be addressed, however, if they are to stay in the race.

1.  Starting pitching had started out a ton better than expected.  I feel this is due to the fact that Gallardo was hurt most of last season, and many didn't feel he could step up to fill the shoes of Ben Sheets, which he has admirably.  However, with Parra's consistent inconsistency and Bush's trip to the dl, the Brewers need another good if not only serviceable pitcher.  McClung has been their stud in long relief, but just has too many deficiencies with control and quality number of pitches to be a serviceable starter.  Also, his insertion into the starting rotation, really put a strain on the bullpen which has broken down in recent weeks.

2.  Ricky Weeks... I never thought I'd say this, but his absence has really killed their lineup.  They didn't have a true leadoff hitter to start the season, but Weeks started off extremely hot and they haven't found a replacement yet.  Counsell is a great utility guy, but can't handle playing every day and isn't what you want at leadoff, though he does a great job working pitches.  The fact he has to ice his knees every day isn't a good sign that he can handle it and may break down if continued to ask to continue in that role.

Now, I don't expect both areas to be addressed, but at least one should be, depending on the market.   However, mortaging the future to a short term answer is something that can come back to bite them as well... see Nelson Cruz.  I don't know.  I know that many Brewers' fans are up in arms, but right now Doug Melvin, the GM, is put into a really tough position.   Will the addition of one player make them a borderline playoff contender, or put them into a spot where they would be a legit World Series contender this year.  Having Prince for only another year, most likely, also adds a difficult twist.  I'm glad I can just sit at home and criticize decisions I would never want to make...lol.