Join In On The Fun!

Shannon over at Mets Police has posted an informal survey of five questions, for the average Mets fan.

You all know The Coop is FAR from average...but the questions are fun, and you should take part too. Contact details are in the post.

1. When did I start following the Mets?

In 1983 -- 1984 was my first vivid memories associated with the Mets but then, a dude named Seaver was pitching and a guy named Keith was traded to the team. Dad could not stop talking about them.

2. Favorite Mets memory?

I have three -- top being in attendance at Game 7 in 1986. I was old enough to understand but too young to fully appreciate it.

The next one has to be watching Game 4 of the 1999 NLDS (The Pratt HR) at my old apartment with Mr. E, Uncle Gene and two of his three kids. If you remember correctly, the Mets don't win that game, there was force back to Arizona against The Unit himself, Randy Johnson. I remember turning to my dad right before the at-bat, saying, "I DON'T want to go back and face Unit. We can't." A few seconds later, as I like to describe it, four cautious hineys (Kay Jay wasn't a Mets fan at the time yet) lift off the respective sofas...as soon as we saw Finley's face, it was time for cathartic Zorba the Greek-like dances.

Close tie with that game is the grand-slam single game in 1999...Watching that with the same crew except it was at Aunt Melissa and Uncle Gene's house. Same cautious hineys lifting off the sofas...and then of course the Zorba-the-Greek-like dances.

3. Worst Mets memory?

Last game of 2007. Nuff said. After the high of the day before, with John Maine's almost no-no, it was such a deflator. I think I slept most of that offseason.

4. One off-field change I could make?

Start buying out the chop shops in the Iron Triangle and start razing, to make a little community there for fans, and gathering places to watch sports events, even in the offseason. I can't tell you what it's like to go to other stadiums and there are so many fan-friendly options in and around the stadium areas. And what it's like to have to get off a few stops earlier on the train to enjoy some pre-game cocktails.

5. First thing I would change if I owned the team?

Fire everyone. And I mean everyone. And start paying overslot in the draft.

Philosophy 101: Change for the Better

Now that the Season from Hell is over, with the added insult (Yankees World Series win over the Phillies) to (multiple) injuries having occurred, I can finally concentrate on Hot Stove Season and what the Mets can do to improve themselves.

So Happy Hot Stove Season.

We've been hearing quite a bit in the form of trade rumors and faux proposals. I do have to say that in light of previous years where we would hear some crazy-ass stuff on the table (including what was to me the improbable trade of Johan Santana to the Mets which actually did happen), this year the trade rumors seem to be reasonable. As an example, yesterday a pretty strong rumor verified by multiple sources came out that Luis Castillo might be going to the Cubs in a three-way involving Toronto (Mets would get Lyle Overbay) and Chicago (Chicago is looking to dump Milton Bradley). A typical garbage-in garbage-out deal. As I was saying to my Mets office buddy DiLo, this is the year to trade Castillo. He'll NEVER look as good as he did this year. Looks are deceiving. Like fly balls (yes, that still hurts months later). If that's all we have to do, I say pull the trigger and pull it yesterday. We'll worry about 2B when we have to.

Of course the free agent market is very thin this offseason, with the crown jewels unarguably being John Lackey and Matt Holliday. Ed and Joey at Studious Metsimus give us a sounding positive argument as to why the Mets should go all out for John Lackey.

I wouldn't mind getting Holliday. But it also raises the issue of how the Mets operate, why we've gotten into trouble the past few seasons and why, hoping beyond all hope, we'll get out of the mess called 2009 and move on with a strong team.

The current philosophy the Mets employ simply is not working. To move forward in not only a positive manner, but to get the fans back on the side of the team we need something to believe in.

What is the current philosophy? As someone put it to me the other day, the only thing Omar Minaya has demonstrated that he does well is plug in holes. But if you think about it, if there is a hole in a dam, and you keep plugging the holes, chances are more holes are going to pop up and cause more leaks and before you know it...leaks are everywhere and you are stuck with a bizillion dollar repair that could have been avoided SIMPLY if you had fixed the original problem, a good foundation, reinforcements and a game plan to keep that motherfucker tip-top.

I will say that I was a pretty PrOmar person when he first got on board. He got us Pedro Martinez (I was excited about it at first, I'll admit), Carlos Beltran (which is turning out to be one hell of a steal) and went hard after Carlos Delgado. He did what he had to do. That was, get the stars at what was then Shea, get the fans reinvigorated and get the Mets significant again. Then 2006 came and we thought - that's it! We have a foundation. But soon the leaks were exposed and the Mets are pretty much back to irrelevance.

But what a misfire that was. Look at what Frank Cashen and Steve Phillips demonstrated. They can build something strong, then easily dismantle it with one false move. With Phillips, it was a few false-moves that led to the demise of those exciting late-90s-going-into-2000 teams. The problem here I think is Omar Minaya seemed to really believe his hype. Throwing money at a problem doesn't necessarily FIX the cause of it.

What the cause is a lack of fundamentals on the ownership, the management and front office executives and the management of the field teams. It's a classic case of one hand doesn't know what the other is doing. And unfortunately, the root cause is the Wilpons who also believe that if they open the checkbook for overpriced and back-loaded free agents, the fans will get all excited, forget about previous years, and think all our problems are solved.

As long as they are in charge, nothing philosophical is going to change with the Mets. We could trade Castillo for a bag of cow flop, and I may be happy about it. Until they come out with a game plan and say - you know what, we're going to start paying over slot in the draft, we're going to go all out and the young studs of the future are going to WANT to play for the New York Metropolitans. Screw our "gentlemen's agreement" with Selig. Nice guys always finish last.

What I want to see is that they will no longer go after FOO's (Friends-of-Omar) as coaches, managers OR players, and will focus on young exciting players who have exhibited a history of health. Look at Jeff Francoeur. Never liked him on the Braves and he may be allergic to walks. But he is a decent defensive outfielder and can hit. No more Fernando Tatisses or any nonsense. I no longer want to see anyone old enough to be my grandfather playing every day.

Clearly, the issues over the years with the Mets hasn't been their inability to spend money. They can, do and will continue to do so, thinking that money solves everything. What we've seen is that it hasn't. Frankly, it's a little unnerving to me that businessmen like Sterling Enterprises can manage to stay successful in other areas of their business and make money...but fail to have the most rudimentary of business philosophies in tact for the baseball team.

Or maybe they do and that's the scary part. Which to me says -- stay profitable and relevant enough to get the fans invested in us again. Who cares if we don't make the postseason or put competitive teams up after the trade deadline.

As long as we make more money than we spend, we'll be golden.

That philosophy scares the shit out of me. Get better at running the baseball ops, and then we'll talk.

Does This REALLY Surprise Any Of Us?

I have taken a moratorium on the World Series this year. I mean, why bother? It's only gonna piss me off to watch. Then again I hear enough talking from the Yankees fans and other baseball fans in my office or on the street for that matter that I kind of figure out what's going on. (Also if you have a Twitter or Facebook account, you CANNOT get away from it). But I can proudly say I have not watched an inning of this Series from Hell.

As I tell people, I am not rooting for the Phillies, but I'm not exactly rooting against them. But I am definitely NOT rooting for the Yankees. I can however glean SOME joy from things I hear. Cole Hamels looking like the bitch we all know him to be. Derek Jeter is in fact NOT god. A-Rod shutting up his detractors (hey, I hate him as much as the next person but I kind of like that he showed up to the playoffs). Jimmy Rollins shutting the hell up and Shane Victorino looking like an asshole. Pedro not coming through for the Phillies, but also shelling CC Sabathia in the first game, to get the Yankee fans quaking in their boots, even for just one game. And you know what, out of all those douchephuck Phillies, I am glad that it's Chase Utley who is doing so well. I actually like him.

But I have to say I was mentally prepared for the series ending yesterday. I was ready. I didn't have to go to the office today, so I wouldn't have to listen to the blowhards who showed up to my desk waiting to throw my Rally Monkey down the stairs after the ALCS was finished. I could get satisfaction from the Yankees not christening their new stadium but also dancing on the Phillies lawn. I'd kind of like that, even if I wasn't happy about the Yankees winning. But I was NOT mentally prepared for the Series to come back to New York.

There is a lot of in-fighting between Mets fans about the "who" and the "what" they should be rooting for in this Series. Lots of disagreements. Which is silly. This season was terrible for us, it was pretty much a non-issue after July. So are we still that angry about what's happened that we need to take it out on each other? There is no need for it. You want to root for the Phillies, root for the Phillies. Root for "New York" to win, go right ahead and do it.

One thing we could ALL agree on, though, is that we'd want a swiftly won series, so we can concentrate on our offseason and subsequent hot stove.

Those bastard Phillies. They couldn't just BLOW the game last night so that ideal scenario would play out. We all know that even if they win Game 6, Game 7 will not be an NL winner unfortunately. Cause that punk ass bitch Cole Hamels is starting and he'll be going wee-wee-wee-wee-wee all the way home since that's where he wants to be. We all know we'll have to hear about that whole "mystique" and "aura" and all the other verbal masturbation we hear about the Yankees in this town, and how it's the House that Jeetuh Built, although the superior shortstop on that team is playing third base.

Those bastard Phillies. Couldn't make it easy for us, could they. Noooooo. So wait it is. We'll wait. Simply because there is no choice. But does this really surprise any of us? Of course 2009 is prolonged, OF COURSE IT IS. Cause that means most Mets fans will keep torturing themselves by watching the games and being emotionally invested. Well, that's redundant, the whole Mets fan torturing ourselves. We are, after all, Mets fans. If it were easy, we'd be Yankee fans.

Here's the ideal situation now. The Phillies win Game 6. Pedro redeems himself. Andy Pettitte gets old in a matter of days. Then comes Game 7. Yankee fans have visions of 2004 once again, although this time the stakes are higher. Jimmy Rollins starts running his mouth again. Cole Hamels is still crying like a little bitch.

But there is a tie game in the 9th inning. They go into extras. Charlie Manuel and Joe Girardi go through each and every pitcher they have in the 'pen and each starter, because no matter what, there is no Game 8 or Game 9. There is only Game 7. The Phillies go ahead in, oh let's say the 14th inning. The Yankees come back immediately to keep the game going.

There is a tie game in the 21st inning. This is Game 9. They've gone through each pitcher. Even the position players who can pitch are done.

Both managers have to forfeit the game. There is no World Champion of 2009. No parades. No banners. No flags going up on Opening Day. Bud Selig is ousted as MLB Commissioner. He's replaced by Keith Hernandez who automatically legalizes greenies. This is the absolute best case scenario for all Mets fans.

It won't happen. But a gal can dream, can't she?

What Would Pop-Pop Do?

Some Mets fans are having moral and ethical dilemmas in this World Series. I totally understand. While I'll pay attention to the overall stats, scores of the games, etc, I didn't turn the game on once last night. I could care less who wins or loses, they could get swine flu for all I care, and at the end of it all, I can do without the general Yankee ball-washing that occurs in times like this.

But I will say this. It's interesting to see some of the questions arising about who should be rooting for who or what this series, especially Mets fans. Why Yankee fans care about what or who the Mets should be rooting for is beyond me. Metstradamus said it best a few days ago. This is Satan's Series, no one wins here (for us).

Yankee fans will say you should root for New York. Phillies fans are okay with Mets fans jumping on their wagon. Here's the thing though: Most Mets fans I know are not exactly rooting for the Phillies. Someone told me today, Yay! The Yankees Lost! BOO! The Phillies WON! It's a lose-lose situation on either end. It's a different scenario where the Yankees root for the Mets. It's tougher when the shoe is on the other foot. Obviously, if the Angels were playing the Phillies, or the Dodgers were playing the Yankees, our allegiance would be easier to see.

But why do most Mets fans have a problem with rooting for New York? Yankees fans arguments center around, shouldn't you root for NY, even if it's the Yankees?

I think it goes to the roots the old school American League versus National League rivalries. Imagine this: let's say the year is 1946 and you are a dyed-in-the-wool New York Giants fan (the baseball variety, of course). The hated Dodgers are playing the Yankees in the World Series. As a Giants fan, I would have to believe you would root for the National League. Although the Dodgers were hated, I think Yankee hatred ran deep even then. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Although the enemy of my enemy of my enemy are all my enemies. Maybe no one cared. But life was different then. There was no Internet, no blogs, no Twitter feeds. All that was there were your friends. But if you were a baseball, you knew the World Series was going on.

Mr. E's dad, Pop-Pop, was a baseball fan. He had National League roots, and leaned towards the Dodgers. My dad was too young to understand the true rivalries. But even when the NL skipped town in 1957, Pop-Pop could not root for the Yankees in good conscience so he, like most NL fans, had to wait till the Mets came around.

So maybe some old schoolers can shed some light on this. I know why I'm not rooting for the Yankees. I know why I'm not exactly rooting for the Phillies either. But I'm not rooting for the Yankees to win, that much I know.

Back when it was the two NL teams and one AL team, was it fashionable to root for the NL team playing them, even if they were your arch rival in the regular season? I think a lot of this overexposure now has to do with saturation of social media. Maybe it mattered back then, maybe it didn't. But I'm curious to know from anyone who was either around or knew from people who were around.

Seventh Layer of Baseball Hell

Someone asked me this a few days ago.

"Being a Mets fan, how could you root for the Phillies in a Phillies/Yankees World Series?"

His reasoning: if I were a Yankees fan, and the Red Sox were playing the Mets, I'd have to root for the Mets.

My answer was two-fold. My first response was: I am not rooting for the Phillies. I'm also not rooting for the Yankees, but that's neither here nor there. The Sox/Yankees rivalry is a LOT different than the Mets/Phillies. The latter been over the last few years while the former has run deep through decades and decades. Even in 1999, when the Mets lost to the Braves in the NLCS, I had to think I didn't want the Yankees to win, and the Braves were our direct rival. My Yankee hate is pretty independent of my Mets love. I hate the Phillies less, direct rivalry or no. But that doesn't mean I'm rooting for the Phillies.

The other response was: if the Yankees win, I'll have to hear about it all winter. If the Phillies win, well, they are the reigning World Champions so it's deserving. Plus we'll never hear about it -- a World Series win will keep them occupied until the next time the Eagles play.

But again, I keep going back to the whole, I am not rooting for the Phillies, the Yankees or anyone in this World Series. Even when I pledged my allegiance to the Angels a few weeks back, it was mostly because I liked their story, I liked their fans, I liked their team and their stadium. It had absolutely nothing to do with them playing the Yankees. In fact it didn't even occur to me they could play the Yankees in the ALCS. I was rooting for them to win not to simply beat the Yankees.

I happen to be a person who believes in the law-of-attraction. I know my Yankee hate is pretty deep rooted, but I wonder if all the Yankee haters out in full-force was maybe causing them to win. When I saw people with "No Yankees" shirts or symbols on their websites, I had to remind them for the common good, BE POSITIVE! Root FOR the Angels. Root FOR the Dodgers. But don't root against something or someone.

So much for that method of thinking. Instead of the Freeway Series I was rooting for, the other part I was not believing would EVER happen -- a Turnpike Series -- is going to happen.

I have some Yankee friends who are trying to get me to come to their side. It's tempting but I have to pass. If it were ever easy for me, I'd never have been a Mets fan.

But I can't in good conscience root for the Phillies either.

So what do I root for? Barring a destructive earthquake, flood or catastrophe, maybe everyone gets swine flu and they have to forfeit the Series? Someone posted a similar situation in an old Stanley Cup Playoffs, where once upon a time it had to be forfeited. That is the best scenario we can think of as Mets fans.

I can't dictate who people are going to root for, against or ignore. I know a guy who says to keep peace in his household, he's going to root for the Yankees. Some are going the whole "National League vs. American League" old-time rule: root for your league.

But what is the verdict for The Coop? I'm pretending that baseball does not exist until February 2010, and in order not to burn in baseball hell, I would think we should do the same to satisfy our souls. I could see a conflict occurring if the Mets were a part of the problem this year, but they were non-factors. I hate both those teams, but could care less about the series. Just too much negativity to hate on one or the other.

Go Rangers, Go Jets. Go whatever team not related to baseball. But I truly could care less about who takes home the Commissioner's Trophy in 2009.

Roll Call 2009

The Roll Call of My Summer Family has taken a life of its own. I started this site in the 2007 offseason because I wanted to reach out to the friends I have made over the years from going to baseball games, and to also reach out to a new community of Mets fans. The Electronic Generation. The "Shea Generation," if you will. MSF's Roll Call started as a shout-out to my old community and also for the new generation I have met. (see 2007 and 2008)

I hereby dedicate this season to...all Mets fans. Give yourselves a hand!! It was a long one, but a good one. We stuck by our team when it was tough (not that being a Mets fan is EVER easy), we mourned two straight years of disappointment capped by a move to a new home that none of us grew into (yet), some of us believed till the absolute possible second (CrazyMetGirl and I remarked in September that we still believed a Wild Card was within reach at the end of July), some of us knew that this clearly wasn't the year (this was pretty much everyone else besides us!), and others well, enjoyed the season for what it was.

I fell into all of those schizo kind of personalities, as evidence on this site. I was sad about the last few years but tried to be encouraging for 2009. I kept saying as Mets were dropping like flies one-by-one, well as long as "This Guy" doesn't get hurt, we'll be fine. But then "this guy" turned into "That Guy" and before I knew it...I knew no one on the team. And especially (I just speak for myself here) I had NO IDEA how losing Shea would impact me. Even at the Fernando Tatis grand slam game (one of the best games of the year to witness), I wanted to go to Shea Stadium. Not CitiField. If I close my eyes, I can still see her and I can at least walk around the cavernous stadium in my dreams. I couldn't be a Baseball Chick if my heart wasn't completely in it and it wasn't.

It was so bad that I became a frontrunner and rooted for the team with a stadium that reminded me most of Shea. So Go Halos, I am getting back out there for the World Series.

In any case, like many other years, it's the people, the Mets Community, that kept me coming back for more. That is why I dedicate my 2009 Memories to y'all, my Met family, my summer compadres who I have grown to love and cherish as much as my real family.

Roll Call honors the past and is a call-out to the present of those special people who make the season more special simply by just being there. As Woody Allen once said, 80% of success is just showing up. So I guess that makes the Mets about 80% successful (I keed, I keed).

Where to begin? This is no particular order, just a stream of consciousness.

LadyMet, the reigning diva of Mets baseball, who is basically a nicer version of me (ha ha). LOTF, GOTB is a fun and lively read.

The guys over at OH! Murph, who coined themselves the Onion of Mets news. It was fun meeting you guys at CitiField this year -- I know we'd rather watch a game, not participate in dunk tanks (their words, not mine). At least there's one thing some fans could look forward to during games in 2009 -- our back-and-forth on Twitter. Can't wait for what we have in store for 2010.

Jason at Remembering Shea. I think we found each other's sites by accident. I am very pleased to not only know about it, but to discuss fond memories of Shea as well. It's people like you that can honor the past and acknowledge the present in a way that makes me proud to be a Mets fan.

Speaking of being proud to be a Mets fan, networking amongst blogs and FOBs (friends-of-bloggers), I met some FOBs that I am happy to consider just the F part of FOB. The Chaps, CharlieH and Whit (you all know who you are) I had the opportunity to meet through mutual bloggers. These folks are incredibly special as they keep me humble as a Mets fan (a very tough thing to do, I can assure you), but they all have the ability to make me want to be a better human being. Outside of being a Mets fan. Very honored to have you guys in my life.

Perhaps you follow Ed on Facebook or his posts on Metsmerized, but one thing is for sure -- his creative stories with his family of bears -- Joey, Jerry and Billy (cousin to my Chester) -- has put him on a par with Cow-Bell Man and Pin Man with the moniker Bear Man. I love to see what adventures they will have in the offseason and perhaps, a game or five with Aunt Coop in 2010. Also, mad props go to him for having great taste in music and movies. Chocolate-covered pretzel, anyone?

Danielle from the Wright Stuff attended several games with me...all losses. Then we figured out it was just US sitting together that caused the losses (okay, well that makes me feel a LITTLE better about their performance). Such a shame we can no longer attend games seated next to each other, as I really enjoyed myself.

Mad love to the electronic generation of Mets fans I have met as a result of Facebook and Twitter. I don't know if I'm going to remember everyone, as there are way too many to list! But I'd like to point out some who I've met in person -- on the West Coast trip, if you can believe.

I met BradH and his lady at the San Diego hotel we had unwittingly booked in anticipation of seeing the Mets at Petco Park. Of course, the game we went to left a little (okay LOTS) to be desired, but how funny we just recognize each other simply from our Facebook profiles. They are also Jersey people, so they gotta be cool automatically.

The Coop's Summer Family went coastal, baby, and had connections made on the West Coast even prior to my vacation plans, simply online! Introducing my West Coast Mets Family in the Solly-Sollies -- Solly and J-Sol, some of the most fun I've had a game and maybe, just maybe...a post-season trip in 2009? If there is a baseball god, she will be working on this already.

My usual suspects list is longer than last year so I won't go into incredible detail (read the previous years, you'll see who has made the cut!). I'd especially like to thank BrooklynMetFan and all the motley crew who shows up there. This is the heart of the Mets community. Though we were at each other's throats most of the year (even before the season started!!), we are a tight community and supportive of each other once again. BMF, BlondiesJake, Ft Greene Met Fan, El Duderino, Phanatic, GroteFan, Joesky the Met Brawler, WWMD, USMF, Matt the Met Fan among others, you are all second to none.

Special thanks go to the supporting blog network and the people behind them. You all know who you are!! It's tough to build a community in CitiField because of the lack of box seats and the regularity (or lack thereof) of the mini-plans. I miss all my Section 14 peeps, I miss everyone I used to see on a regular basis at Shea. But we need to band together, against all odds and make our own community!!

Here's the Mets 2010 but until then - this will be an Angels site. Go Halos!!!

2009 Met-Nificent Moments

I can't be negative all the damn time. Especially after a sweep at home to salvage what was left of the season, I thought, well, it wasn't always so bad this season.

A 70-win season was totally not what we thought on Opening Day, Jose Reyes' injury is questionable, David Wright has lost his power...but it wasn't always so bad, was it?

So let's take a look and see...what were the Met-nificent Moments of 2009?

1.) Gary Sheffield hits #500. I watched this one on television, but wasn't it nice to get a moment like that at our house and NOT be on the receiving end of it? Seriously, something like that is usually like -- what Mets pitcher gave up #500 to Sheffield? All kidding aside, I would say most Mets fans were torn on getting Gary Sheffield. He's a clubhouse CANCER! He's a bad guy! He did roids! The Tigers are paying him to NOT play for them! All of that was washed aside as he made his mark as a Met. True, he earned 499 of them not playing for them, but it was still fun nonetheless.

2.) Jonathon Niese and Josh Thole: Battery of the Future. While they never played together due to Jon Niese's injury, what we saw of Thole in the last few weeks of the season and what we saw of Niese prior to his injury reminded us that the Kids are not only Alright, but that maybe, just maybe, our future wasn't as shabby as some would like us to think. Which leads me to...

3.) F-Mart's first game with the big team. I attended this game with Dykstraw, Fort Greene Met Fan and El Duderino hanging out on the right field bridge, trying to get a good glimpse of Fernando Martinez in the field. This was significant for two reasons: one was -- it was F-Mart for pete's sakes, and the other -- this was something most Mets fans could rally around at CitiField (and as FGMF pointed out, the slice of lemon in her fried calamari was better than anything she ever had at Shea). Although the injury bug didn't miss him either, he has a lot of growing up to do yet at the same time most fans are anxious to see what other contributions to expect from him.

4.) Jeff Francoeur becomes a Met. Although I might have been happier to lose Ryan Church as a result of it (sorry Julie), I was initially upset that a Brave bastard was on our team. This was quickly put to rest with his games -- yes, I know he is allergic to walks, and he thinks OBP is a song by Naughty by Nature...but seeing a guy who isn't afraid to hit and smart on defense is pretty hot (and so is his tush).

5.) Carlos Beltran returns home, sort of, in Brooklyn! I attended this game in early September with CrazyMetGirl, and we saw him get a base hit and RBI in his very first at-bat. There was even a close-call with a long fly ball out, but as CMG said later on, it was like seeing an old friend again. It ended up being bittersweet, though. While it was commendable that he wanted to come back this season, no one would have faulted him for not returning...at the same time, as GK&R said today, you can't help but look at his numbers and wonder what might have been (and SNK and I were saying he would have been an MVP candidate were it not for bruised knee bones).

6.) Nelson Figueroa. I will admit, I was not jazzed about depending on Figgy for much. In fact, I have been known to say that I was quote-unquote done with him after calling out the Nationals on being "softball girls" from his stint in 2008. I get that he's a local boy, he grew up a Mets fan, etc etc. Local guy gone good. I was ready to cut him off, though. Well, I'm actually glad for once I was not the general manager, although he came back with something to prove after being DFA'd, clearing waivers, and then ultimately coming back only to be our most reliable pitcher down the stretch (unfortunately, it was the rest of the team that didn't come through). Nelson Figueroa became this generation's Steve Trachsel, save the whole human rain delay factor.

7.) Fernando Tatis' grand slam game. This game came on a day that was potentially one of the strangest I've ever known as a Mets fan. It was a Monday night, I missed Shea, Omar Minaya made a complete ass of himself earlier in the day at the mother of all press conferences, Tony Bernazard was fired, Adam Rubin's motives were questioned, and it was hot. Africa hot. Hot hot hot outside. I went to the game basically because, well, I didn't want to go to the gym, and I sat with Howard Megdal and CharlieH. I was with CharlieH during the actual home run, and what was funny was that because of our vantage point in the Promenade, we needed to actually watch the hit on the TVs they put up there and we kind of looked at each other like -- um, did that REALLY just go over the wall? The reaction from the rest of the stadium said it all...As we have called it with 20-20 hindsight, CharlieH and I felt like we were getting settled into our new home.

8.) Nolan Ryan returns to Flushing. At the 1969 reunion ceremonies, perhaps the Curse of Nolan Ryan has been lifted by this inviting him back to New York. It was nice seeing him on the mound with Tom Seaver and Jerry Koosman for the ceremonial first pitch at the August 22 game.

9.) Macca plays CitiField. I know, this isn't exactly Mets-nificent, but it's my damn site, and I'll calls it like I sees it. It was cool to see a Beatle christen our new stadium and maybe he can sprinkle some of that old Beatles magic around. I think we need it.

10.) Gary, Keith and Ron, and KB too! This is the gift that keeps on giving folks. I know I am particularly grateful that we have such a great trio in the booth, and I know for a fact many fans fear losing Kevin Burkhardt to another network or MLB. We are selfish bastards who want him all to ourselves on SNY!!! When it was evident that the team we signed on for was not going according to plan, if there was anyone who knew how we were feeling as a fan base, it was GK&R. It was bittersweet listening to them say goodbye today, as I felt like I was sending some good friends away for the winter. And I miss Howie Rose too. I gotta start listening to the FAN more often.

I feel like I could find more, but at the top of my head, this is all I can think of. Maybe ending the season with a Bang and not a whimper helped too. If anyone has any other suggestions, feel free to comment below.

Some Other Beginning's End

Well, wasn't that special? 2009 that is.

I had a dream last night. A dream that today was a cold and blustery day. A day where I would inevitably get up and put on layers and wonder why, of all days, I was going "today."

I should have gone, but I didn't. I should have gone to Closing Day, but Mr. E couldn't go and it was tough this year, you know, to say goodbye to the "community" when I hadn't seen anyone of my community mostly all year. The old Section 14 crew was spread out around the new stadium. Section 22 had disbanded years ago. Section 10 I don't believe re-upped their season to get a mini-plan ("Saturday plans").

So it was easier to stay home. And I wish I hadn't. It was easier without my partner-in-crime, who had said after the Castillo game in the House of Evil wasn't "going to another FUCKIN' game again." Well, he stayed true to his word. I did, but I was barely there in spirit. It usually consisted of me drinking a lot.

But if there were a game, or a series to attend, it was this one. There was heart, there was passion, and heck, it even looked like the team had FUN. All I wanted that they went out with a bang and not a whimper. Greg, you got your wish. It's a 70-win season.

And the fans. Sigh, the fans. The fans that I have made my friends and family over the years showed up one last time to send off our boys into the winter.

I'll be attending my first hockey game next week. And then I guess in about a month, we'll shut down the Grand Dame of the Games to be played till early spring. Then we'll start our countdowns again.

This may have been a lost season. And we've been lost, I think, as a fan base, getting used to a new home and subsequently new players.

I know most of us have been disappointed by the circle of events that have occurred. It was tough for most of us to go to games. We did, and I was so proud of the fans for standing up and cheering. At last, we got the series we wanted from them. (to think what might have been if we saw them sweep the last three years' home series)

I seem to have forgotten that was why I became a fan in the first place. Sure, the uniform helps. But it's the fans that have kept me coming back for more.

Let's go Mets. And Lets go Mets fans. How many days till P's and C's?

My annual Roll Call posting will be up this week!