The Unlucky Few - ST Countdown

The number 13 has been thought of as an unlucky number. Well, I guess that means today we will be commemorating the unlucky few who chose to wear it.

Former Met and current Brave Billy Wagner wore #13 for the Mets. Nobody is listed at #13 for the Braves an I'm not familiar with their retired numbers but he would presumably wear that number this year.

Brendan Ryan wears cool socks. Erm, stirrups.

Casey Kotchman wears #13 for the Mariners.

That's all of them. All the players you might have heard of. It's only three but I think people are afraid of wearing the number. Especially for the Mets.

Let's Go Mets!

Only 2 Weeks Away - ST Countdown

I know this post is late but I have been exhausted all day. That is what school will do to you when you have a bad cold and too much work to stay home for even one day.

But, tonight we get to take a look at my favorite number. 14.

The Mets retired #14 for Gil Hodges. Mike Pelfrey wanted to wear it but he was drafted by the Mets so that just wasn't going to happen. I think he probably wanted the number for the same reason I like #14.

I guess I'll give a shout out to Mark Ellis because right now the results of this post look bleak.

Nolan Reimold wears #14. His future looks pretty bright.

And last but definitely not least, is Paul Konerko. He's the other star of the Tim Hudson commercial from yesterday's post.

I guess #14 is too exclusive for other players. There were a few players I didn't mention but if you're really curious you would be willing to find those players yourself. Have fun!

Let's Go Mets!

15 More Days - ST Countdown

Here we go. Just barely over 2 weeks until baseball is back.

And apparently I'm an idiot or just really like forgetting about the D-Backs so I didn't remember Dan Haren.  Now this is fixed.  And he even gets a picture:

The first #15 is obviously Carlos Beltran. Even though I am mad at him, he has to be included.

Tim Hudson is in a really great 'This Is SportsCenter' commercial.

Another #15 is Andy LaRoche of the Pirates.

Dustin Pedroia is pretty cool. He's one of the few Major Leaguers I'm taller than.

And this post would not be complete without Gordon Beckham. Don't ask me why, just accept it.

That's all for today folks!

Let's Go Mets!

I Know It's Late But It's Almost Time To Celebrate

16 days until Pitchers and Catchers report for Spring Training. That means today's number is 16.

The first person I thought of was Andre Ethier. Don't ask me why, but I think it has something to do with his adorableness. Did you know he was on the A's?

Brian McCann is a catcher. Brian McCann wore glasses last season. I am a catcher. I wear glasses. Brian McCann isn't going to wear glasses anymore. Boo. PUPPY!

George Kottaras is a catcher. George Kottaras can catch a knuckle-ball (I think). Cool.

If my brain wasn't so stuffed up I would've remembered that Angel Pagan wears 16 for the Mets. Whoops.

MARCO! SCUTARO! (Okay, I know that was lame).

Hustron Street is pretty good looking. Well, maybe that's an understatement ...

Today's class isn't great. It isn't terrible. But there are definitely a few bright spots. Enjoy your six more weeks of winter!

Let's Go Mets!

We're Getting There - ST Countdown

For as few people there were yesterday, today there is as many. This entry is long because all of these players are basically on the same level as each other, in my opinion. There are a few I like more than the others. But otherwise I felt the need to include the rest. Happy reading!

Ah. The first person I think of is Keith Hernandez. I never got to see him play but I do enjoy his commentary during Mets games. I also enjoy his appearance on Seinfeld. Overall, Keith is a pretty cool guy to associate with #17.

Lance Berkman also plays first base. He also wears #17. Pretty cool (except when he's playing against the Mets).

Half of the Bayou Boys wear the number. Mike Fontenot, the blond and less-interesting half wears #17. The other half will come later in the countdown.

The former ace of the D-Backs, Brandon Webb, wears today's number. Hopefully he'll come back healthy this year. I miss watching him.

Currently Fernando Tatis wears #17 for the Mets. This is despite the fact that he has been asked to switch to 6-4-3.

I'm not really sure why he is a favorite of mine, but he is. Nellie Cruz is awesome.

Manny Delcarmen is the costar of one of my favorite music videos.

TODD HELTON!!!

The #17 on the Twins is Pat Neshek. Owner of the really cool website found here.

Whew. There are a few other players currently wearing #17 but I decided to leave them out. As you can now tell, when I said this post contained a lot of players, I didn't lie. And if you actually looked at all the pics, good for you. Here's a cookie. No! My cookie! I was just showing it to you!

Let's Go Mets!

Spring Training Countdown

I have come to the realization that there are not nearly enough players who wear the #18. So, to countdown to Pitchers and Catchers today we will have to semi-improvise.

First, there is the player that contributed to the most-terrifying moment I can remember in my baseball fan career. Matt Cain. He's the one who the sent the 94 MPH fastball spiraling towards David Wright's noggin. Thankfully, David returned to the field on September 1 and played the rest of the season healthily.


The other player is Australian pitching hottie, Ryan Rowland-Smith. He is on twitter @hyphen18. He pitches for the Mariners and in 2008 I would mix him up with R.A. Dickey. I'm not really sure why I would do that, but now Dickey is on the Mets and Hyphen is still with the Mariners.


Tomorrow it will be easier to find players with #17. Spring Training is so close.

All For Naught

I guess I can be pretty convincing. Too bad I convinced the wrong team. Xavier Nady finally signed a contract today. With the Cubs. Yup. The team in Chicago I previously had no interest in ever rooting for. The Cubs are signing Xavier to be a fourth outfielder and possibly backup first baseman. What they are getting is a possibility that their fourth outfielder could become a major run producer and be a very capable starting outfielder. Xavier is also one heck of a clubhouse presence that any team would be thankful for.

I was obviously really hoping the Mets would sign X. But the Mets don't seem to be making any more moves.

I wanted to know how the fans were accepting the news, so of course I went to Twitter. First of all, there are a lot more Xavier Nady fans out in the world than I ever could've imagined. But, anyway, the Cubs fans were mostly excited about the move. They see that if X is healthy he would be quite the bench player. I'm glad he will be welcomed by the Cubs and their fans.

Let's Go Mets!
... and Cubs!

Mike Nickeas Still Exists!

Well, I was pretty sure he still existed. But he still plays baseball with the Mets! Thanks to Twitter I found out Mike Nickeas is at the Mets 3-day mini camp in Port St. Lucie. Surfing the Mets has this tidbit on Nickeas:

Catcher Mike Nickeas is back after August surgery to remove a bone spur from his elbow that was irritating a nerve. Nickeas spent the fall semester taking classes at Georgia Tech, leaving him one semester shy of a management degree. He was in the same recruiting class at David Wright with the Yellow Jackets, although Wright obviously signed with the Mets instead and Nickeas and Wright didn't become roommates at the school, as had been planned. "He probably made the right decision," Nickeas quipped.

I cannot express in words how happy this makes me. It's been a long day and I probably won't be online for long but this makes me happy.

The New Case For Xavier Nady

I previously had a brief post about why the Mets should sign Xavier Nady. Now, I have to add to that. Kinda like a new way to convince the Mets that Xavier Nady is a good idea.

Now that the Mets have a left fielder they don't need Xavier for that. But the Mets are still hung up on the fact that Daniel Murphy didn't hit well against left handed pitchers. I think the Mets should give Murph another shot at having the full job at first base. After all, he was basically a rookie and spent very little time in the minors. But this post isn't about Daniel.

Xavier Nady has hit .308 in his career against left handed pitchers. He has also played in New York on both the Mets and Yankees. He doesn't have much of a history at first base but he played 3B before he played the outfield in the Padres organization. He was never ever a liability in the outfield and I can't imagine him being a liability at first base. When he's not playing first base he could give any of the outfielders a rest without detracting from the outfield defense or offense.

Xavier also has the part of the game that can't be measured with stats. He is a great personality to have in the clubhouse. The link I have no longer works, but former Pirates closer Matt Capps called Xavier the funniest guy on the team. Also with the Pirates, it was his job to bring candy and snacks for the entire team. He also played a big role in the Yankees famous Kangaroo Court during the time he was with the team last year. Xavier got along well with David Wright (who doesn't?) and was looking forward to the Mets clinching 2006 in Pittsburgh. Although that didn't happen, he still wanted to celebrate with them and would've gotten a ring had the Mets won anything. He has a good sense of humor and brightens a clubhouse. What's not to like?

The Mets should really give him a chance. Why not? Low risk, high reward.

Let's Go Mets!

Zach Parise Is Cuter Than Puppies

The Rangers are sucking right now so I thought I should introduce you to Zach Parise of the New Jersey Devils.



No words are needed.