Thursday, June 24, 2010

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICHAEL!!!!



Today, Michael Del Zotto turns 20 years old.

Michael plays defense for my other sports obsession, the New York Rangers.















HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICHAEL!!!!!

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Throw A Strike Gosh-Darnit!

But, this time, the strike is a bowling strike.  And Johan Santana isn't quite as good at throwing these strikes.  Yesterday, Johan Santana had a bowling charity event for his foundation.  David Wright, Mike Pelfrey, Chris Carter, Alex Cora, Francisco Rodriguez, Henry Blanco and Jesus Feliciano were all in attendance.

David is probably a pretty good bowler.  He's had his own bowling charity events and he was on Mets Weekly bowling, and winning, against Paul Lo Duca.  That episode of Mets Weekly also showed that David has his own bowling bag and ball.  I also remember John Maine bowling on Mets Weekly, but I don't remember who he was bowling against.

To read more about the charity event and see video go here.

Let's Go Mets!

Mike Pelfrey This Morning

This morning at about 9:20 Mike Pelfrey will be on NBC's Today Show.  He'll be talking about the Mets Teammates Week and the Mets work in the community.

Let's Go Mets!


I'll be watching.  Will you?

Monday, June 21, 2010

Pitch Back 1, Ellie 0

Today, I was very bored.  There was no Mets game and most of my friends still had finals.  So, I decided to create a game with my pitch back.  In creating this game I also made the decision that I don't care how crappy my legs look for the surprise party I have tomorrow or if I can move afterward.

So, I went outside and was originally just throwing the softball to the pitch back and chasing after it when it would only bounce part of the way back.  Very boring.  I decided I was going to go about 15 feet away and throw the ball as hard as I could a few times and then go inside and be bored again.  I threw the softball to the net and it bounced back to me and I made a nice catch.  Hmm, maybe this could be fun.  I threw the softball a few more times and made a few more cool catches.  Then I decided to stay outside and see what kind of catches I could make.  There were a few times I had to dive/slide for the ball, but I thought that just made it more fun.

Obviously, for half an hour my mind turned into one of an eight year old boy, because now my legs are all scratched up.  But it was fun for a while.

Vote For David and Do D-Wright Thing

As of last week's MLB.com All-Star Game voting update, David Wright was still in second place for starting 3rd baseman.  That's just wrong on so many levels.  David is near the top of league-leaders with 53 RBI.  The votes leader has 25 RBI.  David has 12 home runs this year.  The leader has 5.  David has an .877 OPS.  The leader has .778.  I'm not even going to tell you who is leading the votes because I don't want any other name to go through your mind while you're voting.

Simply click here to go to the All-Star Game ballot.  You can vote up to 25 times with one email address.  But remember, you most likely have more than one, and if not, make another.  Do it for David.

Yes, I know what I just said.

Let's Go Mets!

Somebody Had To Leave

In all of my B-Parnz excitement I neglected to mention the corresponding move that brought him up.  The Mets sent Jenrry Mejia to AA Binghamton to let Mike Nickeas catch some really good pitching.

Just kidding.  The Mets sent Mejia to AA so he could go back to being a starter.  And I finally agree with something the Mets did.  Jenrry has been a starter until this season and there was really no reason for him to ever become a relief pitcher.  During Spring Training the Mets were still living in the shadow of last season and needed something to get the fans excited.  Jenrry Mejia was pitching well and it was easy to build excitement around a 20-year old flamethrower.  Now we've seen Mejia as a relief pitcher.  The Mets have been winning and fans want him back in the minor leagues and back as a starting pitcher.

Jenrry was never going to live up to his full potential in the bullpen.  He can flat-out pitch but wasn't getting the chance as a reliever.  He was on his way to being the youngest mop-up man in the history of the game.  As a starter he will either become a bright spot of the Mets future, or become trade bait for somebody else to become the Mets future.  Either way, there is only positives that can come from this move.

Including giving me a reason to hang around the bullpen when I go to see the Mets with the less-than-stellar seats I got my dad for Father's Day.  Hooray Bobby Parnell!

Let's Go Mets!

Big Daddy Pelf

My love for Mike Pelfrey just keeps growing.  His strong start to the season definitely helped, and now an amazing piece in the Daily News has my love.  Besides having 9 wins and an ERA under 3, Michael Alan Pelfrey has an adorable son named Chase.  As discussed in the piece, Chase has really helped Mike both on and off the field.  I really can't say anything better than it is described by Andy Martino, so you really should just read it.

I'm not particularly worried about Mikey P. after two less-than-stellar starts.  It's has to be hard to adjust to the heat after having nice temperatures for so long.  I was at Yankee Stadium on Saturday and it was gross just sitting in the seats.  I can't possibly imagine what it felt like for the players.  He's making his next start against the Twins, a good team, but then again, this time it's not at a stadium where people can hit 315 foot home runs.

Let's Go Mets!

Welcome Back

Not only to my blogging but also to ROBERT ALLEN PARNELL.

Yes, Bobby Parnell was called up by the Mets.  Yes, I am excited.  Bobby's minor league stats don't show much improvement.  He had a 4.14 ERA with 42 strikeouts in 41.1 innings.  In his last 10 games he has a 3.57 ERA in 17.2 innings.  Bobby has been working on adjustments all season and his stats of late has shown he's getting better.

But, I'm not a big stats person.  Bobby Parnell has shown he can succeed as a Major League relief pitcher.  This year he should have a lot less pressure instead of being declared the 8th inning setup guy in the first two months of his MLB career.  Bobby looked lost in Spring Training.  It looked like he wanted to work on adjustments and a  new off-speed pitch but he was trying so hard to succeed.  Going to Buffalo was good for him.  Bobby had the chance to work on any pitches he wanted without the pressure of immediate success.  Learning a new pitch can only help him.  His ERA or strikeouts doesn't show if he is throwing a nasty cutter or high heat.  Only watching him pitch will show if he has really improved.

I'm excited for his return.  Are you?

Let's Go Mets!

Saturday, June 12, 2010

Vote For Mike!

If you've read my blog for any period of time you know that I have been following the Minor League career of Mike Nickeas since I went to Spring Training in 2008.  This year, Mike has greatly improved his offense with consistent playing time from the B-Mets.  He's batting .283 with 11 RBI in 32 games.  He has thrown out 9 runners trying to steal.  This year Mike has shown he can improve his offense and is finally having a good year, and his defense has continued to be the best part of his game.  In a year when Mets catchers have shuffled through the Minor Leagues, Mike has stayed consistent.

Mike's play this year even has Adam Rubin of ESPN noticing.  In one of his recent Minor League Recaps he noted, "Nickeas, a major league-ready catcher defensively, is enjoying his finest offensive season in seven years as a professional."


Most of you probably haven't voted for the Eastern League All Star Game.  Now you can.  And now you know who to vote for.  VOTE FOR MIKE NICKEAS and maybe the Mets will notice him.


Click here to vote.


Let's Go Mets!

This Should Be Fun

Yesterday, it was made official that the Mets will host the 2013 All-Star Game.  I can't wait.  I loved being able to go to Fan Fest and the Home Run Derby two years ago, even if it was at the House of Evil.  Having the game at Citi Field means a Mets-spin on everything, and it means what was fun in 2008 will be even better in 2013.

Just imagine a Home Run Derby at Citi Field.

Let's Go Mets!

Thursday, June 3, 2010