I'm One Sick Puppy

Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Know who said that? Albert Einstein. Think he was talking about the Mets and their fans? Probably not, he died in 1955. The definition makes a lot of sense for the Mets, because what could be more batty than expecting new things out of the same players? Ever hear: You can't teach an old dog new tricks? How about: You can't teach players who have played for 20+ years and reached the professional level to have sound fundamentals?

So, what? Am I saying that all Met fans are insane? You decide.

Mike Pelfrey will round into a front of the rotation pitcher

Mike Pelfrey is not an Ace. No, he's not. Mike Pelfrey is a major league middle of the rotation guy. I think that most people in baseball and even the Mets would agree. It's simply that the Mets had no "Ace" and anointed Pelfrey the best man left.

The issue with this is that Pelfrey is nearing his pay day. That is fine, but I worry about the label that the Mets have placed on their valuing of Pelfrey. He's not an Ace on 80% of teams... but on the Mets... Insanity: Mike Pelfrey deserves Ollie Perez money.

Bobby Parnell is the closer of the future

BP was responsible for an awful disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. Well... actually... massive corporate corruption was responsible. Anyway, Bobby Parnell did not rupture and spill gallons of tar into the ocean, but he also didn't clamp down the role as setup man that he was expected to.

Take a look at this list: Duaner Sanchez, Heath Bell, Aaron Heilman and ... oh yeah... Jason Isringhausen. All of these guys convinced my insane Met Id (Read Freud Kids) that they were top relievers and capable of maybe someday closing. Sanchez had an accident, Bell was traded, Heilman imploded and Isringhausen was traded years before I really cared.

What does this tell us? The Mets cannot grow their own closers. They are perfectly capable of raising relievers and trading them before their greatest success, but they can't raise their own. Insanity: Bobby Parnell is more than a hard thrower.

Daniel Murphy's bat demands MLB playing time

Murph played half a glorious season as a surprising call-up who could play okay left field and get clutch hits. I loved Murph and got high on all the fumes of his hustle and go gettem attitude.

Murphy then displayed that he... could NOT play the outfield. Okay... that's alright, he could manage 1st base... except he doesn't have a ton of power and Met fans ranted and raved about how meek he made our lineup. Insanity: Murphy is more than an MLB bench player.

Jonathan Niese is an Ace in the making

My name is Phlavio Phega, and I thought that Niese was an Ace in the making...

Hi, Phlavio!

Anywho... Jonathan Niese is NOT a bad pitcher. I'd go as far as to say he could be a GOOD pitcher. What I regret saying is that he was a TOP pitcher. Sorry. My bad. Insanity: Projecting vast improvements in a starters second season.

See... I thought ALL of those things at one point or another. I don't think all of them now, though. Well...

• I do think that Bobby Parnell could still be a good setup guy...
• and Murphy's bat should be pretty sweet at second...
• and Niese showed signs last night (when Tulowitzki wasn't up)...
• Maybe...

Face it, I'm sick. I'm a Met fan, it's part of the package deal.

Duck Season! Wabbit Season!

The season has officially started... so I... am going to take a break for a week. Sorry, it's bad timing, but it can't be avoided. In the meantime I'll try to give you plenty to think about... and avoid making any April Fools jokes.

Let us start with the Mets... Why? Well because this is a Met blog, that's why.

First, A Story:

I have a small number of friends who are as into baseball as me... strike that, I have ONE friend who is as obsessed with baseball as me... strike that, nearly as obsessed. Ross is a Yankee fan and I am a Met fan. Ross is one of the only types of Yankee fans I can stand. Sure he has that smugness that drives Met fans to murder but he's at least a fan through and through. When the Yankees are bad and miss the playoffs... he's still a fan. He cares about the Yankees from Opening Day... To Opening Day the next year. This story could be about Ross... but it's not.

This story is about Dave. In high school, Dave was a Met fan. That means that he and I could debate Ross on the various reasons that Robin Ventura was better than Scott Brosius. Since college etc... Dave moved to Boston and did what any Yankee hating fan would do... he got local and threw his support behind the Red Sox. This I forgive... heck, I root for the sox when the Mets are not involved in the equation. Anything is better than hearing about Mariano and Jeter.

I get a message from Dave that he's heading back to the mother land. (In this case that swampy state that I call home) He asks me if he should become a Yankee or Met fan now that he's coming home. THAT IS RIGHT! He asks... should I admit to never actually being a Met fan and become a scum sucking, martini drinking, fair weather, yuppy Yankee fan? Well... he had to have guessed how this would hit me. He might have also guessed that I'd blog about it... but I'm sure he regrets asking it now. At least... I hope he does.

What Color Do You Bleed:

Do you bleed blue and orange? I don't. If I did, I'd probably have mere seconds to live. It just couldn't be healthy. But... am I a Met fan through thick and thin? Absolutely. Ready for it, it's the Fan Test.

Fan Test:

1. Name your teams starting lineup. (If you failed to get through all 8 or 9... please go back to waiting for the NFL lock-out to end.)
2. Name the starting rotation. (Again... this is so basic that ANY fan should be able to do it.)
3. Name the closer. (Can't do it? Well we'll say that you are an EXTREMELY Casual Fan. Thanks for playing!)
4. Name the Manager. (Real fans will know this because they spend hours yelling at the guy for not pinch running Davis with the game tied in the 8th.)
5. Name the highest paid player on the team. (This is where we leave the realm of casual fan and enter the realm of ACTUAL fan. Actual fans know this guy because he's the first guy they blame when things go wrong.)
6. Name the General Manager. (Sometimes this is easier than naming the manager, but the GM is less important to a casual fan.)
7. Name the Owner. (This is easier or harder depending on which team you root for, if you get it wrong but know that you hate them... you're still allowed to go on.)
8. Name the backup catcher. (Every team has one. He's usually paid pennies and spends most of his time warming guys up in the bullpen.)
9. Name the team's top prospect. (We're getting into TRUE Fan territory here.)
10. Name the team's AAA, AA, and A+ facilities. (You've gotten through 10 questions. You are a True Fan. Congrats!)
11. Name the pitchers in the starting rotation of each of your teams divisional rivals. (Wait... this is getting hard.)
12. Name your teams pitching and hitting coaches. (This is getting hard. Can I just name the mascot?)
13. Name the first and third base coaches. (Really? Those guys?)
14. Name 5 of your teams top 10 prospects. (This is actually pretty advanced stuff but stick with it.)
15. Name the starting roster from your teams last championship. (You get a pass if you were not yet alive. It's not easy for me... I was 2 years old in 86. If you've come this far... You are a SUPER Fan.)
16. Name 3 top prospects from your divisional rivals. (Do people actually know that stuff?)
17. Name your teams last 3 top draft picks. (Why are they important?)
18. Name who on your team enjoys positive splits vs. left handed pitchers. (Oooo... statistics.)
19. Name the rest of those top 10 prospects. (Gee... I know that we have someone from Puerto Rico who can pitch... or something.)
20. Quote from memory the lengths of your teams 10 largest contracts and the dates they expire. (Can you do it? Are you an UBER FAN?)

UBER FAN, Super Fan, True Fan, Actual Fan, Casual Fan, Extremely Casual Fan or Non-Fan... enjoy the season. It's gonna be a long one. This is baseball... it's ALWAYS a long one.