Thanks a lot, New York Post

Not that there are jinxes or anything.

Note the time and date. Let's see how this game ends before we crucify them, but it doesn't look pretty.

Update: Mets lose 7-4.

As if you haven't read enough about the Mets bullpen already

I give you two more articles from the mainstream media.

The first is from Senor Bill Madden of the Daily News. In it, he ponders who the Mets will use at closer with Billy Wagner on the shelf indefinitely. While he comes to absolutely no conclusion whatsoever, he does point out that both Huston Street and Brian Fuentes would be way too expensive to attempt to pick up.

Madden:

For his part, Minaya has to hope Wagner's loss can be filled from within because, as he said, "there are few other options" on the outside. Although no closers were dealt at the trading deadline, only Oakland's Huston Street is believed to have cleared waivers. And even though Street is having a subpar season, A's GM Billy Beane is going to want premium prospects back for him. Same thing for Colorado's Brian Fuentes, a free agent after the season who may also have cleared, but is probably not going to be moved.

The Rox wanted Aaron Heilman for Fuentes, something that made little to no sense to me. If they had asked for a guy like, say, Endy Chavez, that would have been something the Mets should have thought about. Swapping a relief pitcher for a relief pitcher is dicey territory, especially for a rental like Fuentes.

I'm glad the Mets didn't trade for him, but Street would have been perfect right about now. He's young and talented, so you know Beane would have wanted a boatload for him, but he's the kind of GM that would be willing to take a crop of players from A-ball and let them prosper in his own system.

Either way, the Mets are going to have to patch together the bullpen from here on out. Luis Ayala looked good in his first two-thirds of an inning, but he's got a long way to go before I trust him. (Side note: Read Mets Today's game recap from last night. He's not impressed either.)

Star-Ledger payroll participant, Dan Graziano, penned an article entitled "New York Mets bullpen not built for October."

Believe me, Dan, we know.

Graziano does give the Mets one thumbs up, claiming the team is good enough to win the NL East, but at the same time jinxes the team with the earliest known usage of that terrible term: magic number.

Graziano:

The Mets' bullpen may well be good enough, even without Billy Wagner, to win the NL East. Their starting pitching is excellent. Their lineup is very good. Their schedule is cream cheese. (Seriously - eight more against the Braves, six more against the Nationals. CAKE.) The Phillies don't seem to have that...whatever it is they had last year. The Mets' magic number is 36, and they're in a groove.

It's true. The schedule sets up nicely for the Mets, but it could also set up for 2007 redux. We all figured that games against the Nationals and Marlins would be easy as pie (pie and cake references accounted for) in the last few weeks. And again, we all know what happened there.

But he goes on to put this whole whining ordeal into perspective:

If one or two of these guys get hot for the next three weeks, and then one or two other guys get hot for the three weeks after that, and Manuel does a good job of identifying who's hot at what time, then they're home. And if that does happen, they may well get to October with a couple of guys on a roll. Wagner's absence could have the effect of instilling some confidence in a couple of these relief pitchers, if they're able to have success between now and then.

I've never heard fans of a team in first place bellyache so much, but the bullpen is an issue. All it takes is one or two pitchers to rattle off a nice scoreless streak and we'll all shut up. And the world will be a better place.

Trade for Ichiro?? Really??

Sometimes I cringe when I read newspaper articles. That is never a good thing.

Let's walk through this gem from Jim Buambach, Newsday, piece by piece, Fire Joe Morgan style.
"Mets should make a run at Ichiro"
The countdown to the trade deadline is almost at 24 hours, just enough time for Omar Minaya to pick up the phone, dial the Mariners' interim general manager and blow his mind away with these words.

"Forget about Ibanez. We want Ichiro."

Yeah, right.

Yes, interim GM Lee Pelekoudas will probably laugh, but his cackling might stop once Minaya mentions the names Fernando Martinez and Jon Neise.

And then he'll cackle more and more. Sorry, but Ichiro is the only reason the Mariners even matter right now. Without him, it'd be amazing if they had double-digit wins. When I was in Seattle a few years ago, there was a photo of him on the side of a 30-story building.

Don't think they're going to trade the man who graces the side of a building.

Yes, give them both untouchables, the top two prospects in the Mets' system.

Can somebody tell me why Niese is so spectacular? I understand he's "untouchable," but isn't that because he's the best pitcher in a depleted minor league system? He's not projected to be a #1 or #2 starter. More of a solid middle rotation guy. Good but not great sort of thing.

Plus, the Mets might need him if Pedro Martinez falters.

And you know what? If throwing in Binghamton reliever Eddie Kunz seals the deal, I'd do that, too.

No doubt every Mets fan will disagree with me,

Dead on.

and probably Pelekoudas wouldn't do that deal, either.

(see above)

Heck, this is the same guy that has been requesting talented prospects in return for Ibanez with the Mets and Jarrod Washburn with the Yankees, when those deals should scream salary dump.

Plus he's an interim GM, who is scared to trade away huge contracts on a team going nowhere. This guy is going to trade away his franchise? Please, continue...

But there's an enormous gap between a prospect and a major leaguer, and there's no telling that Martinez, Neise or Kunz is going to help the Mets ever, let alone this year. Ichiro, on the other hand, is very likely headed to the Hall of Fame. Imagine the Mets lineup with him and Jose Reyes at the top?

Wow. I actually agree with all of that.

That's all this is, obviously, imagining. It's not going to happen because there is just too much risk involved for both clubs.

Then...why...are...you...writing...about...it...?

The Mariners risk alienating what's left of their fan base by trading the face of their organization for three unproven kids. And if the Mets did this deal, they would essentially be throwing a grenade in their already depleted minor-league system, blowing up the little that remains of their system right now.

One would think the article would end there, but no, it continues on.

But I'd still do this deal for the sole reason that Ichiro's presence at the top of the order combined with his stellar defense and arm in rightfield could be enough to put the Mets over the top in the National League.

Pretty sure the Mets already have a right fielder. I know he's been out for a while, but I think Ryan Church is pretty capable in RF. Don't you?

Ichiro does have a limited no-trade clause, which could present a problem, but let's see him stand in the way of joining a team that could contend for a title before we worry about it.

One reason the Mariners might at least listen to this proposal is because Ichiro is in the first year of a five-year, $90-million contract and he turns 35 in October. This would jumpstart the Mariners' rebuilding plan, freeing up major money to spend on someone such as C.C. Sabathia while bolstering their farm system.

He prefers "CC," and I would not want to cross a man of his stature.

You might think that the biggest problem with this deal from the Mets' perspective obviously lies with their farm system. But keep in mind that the only way to rebuild a farm system is with good drafts each year, so their system is already at least two years from turning around, much like the Yankees' system was in 2005.

I agree, again! The farm system isn't going to change overnight, and if these "prospects" are really as good as some people are making them out to be, then when they get promoted, the minors will be even more barren. Think about that one for a while.

This deal would just be ripping the mask off their system, like a Band-Aid covering a fresh, bloody wound. No team likes to give away prospects, but at the same time you shouldn't value your prospects more than they are worth just because these are the only prospects of value that you own.

That was a bit confusing. I think Baumbach is trying to say: Just because you have them, doesn't mean they're good. I think. Does anyone speak Baumbachian?

With Delgado and Pedro Martinez coming off the books after the season, taking on Ichiro's $17 million annual salary is doable. And, not that this should matter, but wouldn't the Mets love the promotional possibilities of a team nucleus of Ichiro, Reyes, Wright and Santana as they enter Citi Field?

All those Asian places around in Flushing would love this. The Mets have the money, and they'll have even more with Citi Field opening, so I don't think that should be a problem.

This is most likely dreaming, yes. But it's worth a call.

Hopefully Omar calls 1-800-COLLECT so he doesn't spend any money on that call.

Early Morning Madness: Fatigued arm edition

Each morning, I wake up way too early, sit down in front of my computer, and rattle off the top three (or so) Mets related things that are swimming around in my head. All without coffee:

John Maine may have a dead arm.

Well that's just dandy, ain't it? Maine has struggled mightily for most of this year and while a dead arm can't be the cause of it all, it certainly could be a new wrinkle. Maine has only gone past the seventh inning once this season, and that was when he pitched into the ninth against the Dodgers on May 7.

Hopefully everything is all right. Losing him would be rough.

** * **

I wonder if he'll get paid minimum wage? Luis Castillo has apparently been tabbed as Jose Reyes' babysitter.

For a grown man to have someone around to keep his emotions in check is pretty sad. In the case of Texas Ranger Josh Hamilton, it makes sense, because he's struggled with addictions and it almost cost him his career. With Reyes, it's just that he's still very immature.

As I said before, I like the emotion from him, but instead of him using it to move forward and make the next play, he sulks and mopes around the field.

Castillo is expensive for the caliber of player he is now, but if he can keep Reyes in check and get him to perform at the top of his potential, he'll be worth every penny.

** * **

This article is just bad.

It's attempts at humor and wit are poor, to say the least. It doesn't even read like it was written in New York, for New York.

And for the record, I agree with Jerry Manuel that the Mets are the second team. It's common sense people. Not to get down on my knees and bow to the almighty Yankees, but they're a storied franchise. You can't deny what the Yanks have accomplished. Heck, I've watched them since I was a little kid at my grandma's house.

Some of their fans on the other hand...well, that's a completely different story.

We're about to have a beat writer throwdown

It all started with Jerry Manuel's "fertilizer" comment, which I called "the biggest non story in a long time."

On Tuesday, I linked to a David Lennon post about the NY Post blowing the story out of proportion. Apparently, I picked the wrong beat writer.

Just read this quote from Bart Hubbuch (the man behind the NY Post article), as he talks about the Keith Olbermann (yuck) video, in which he was ranked as one of the "worst people." The juicy part is italicized and bolded for good measure:

Here's the bottom line for Olbermann, the radio and blogger blowhards, one of my gutless, sycophantic counterparts (yeah, I'm talking about you, Adam) and all the cranks that have been filling my inbox with e-mails I never read and automatically delete:

Every reporter in the room at Coors Field laughed out loud when Manuel said the word "fertilizer." I know this because I was sitting right there. You know why we all laughed? Because every one of us knew exactly what Manuel was talking about.

The fans.

That right there is a potshot at Daily News writer, Mr. Adam Rubin.

Oh baby!! Somebody get Don King on the phone and tell him there is going to be a good ol' fashion fist fight in the press box at Shea Stadium tonight!! Yee haw!

The biggest non-story in a long time

When Jerry Manuel said “It's very, very fertile ground for growth in Shea Stadium. It's fertile ground for a team's growth and development. Sometimes, fertile ground has fertilizer," I immediately knew it would be blown entirely out of proportion.

Just as I predicted, the NY Post took this story and ran with it. Here is the classic example of “taking the quote out of context.” When you look that term up in the dictionary, you see an issue of the New York Post. (Please don’t fire me, News Corp.)

If they wanted to be correct, they would have noted that Manuel said this, laughed, and then continued. He was smart enough to attempt to clarify, simply because he knows how some media outlets work.

It worked on one radio host, Mr. Craig Carton of WFAN. Hopefully, he was doing it for the ratings because I simply cannot believe that anyone who is sane and of clear mind would actually thing a new manager would come out and say the fans are akin to cow manure.

Of course, as I walked to Penn Station today, people were scooping up issues of the NY Post to see what Manuel had said. Obviously they’re doing something right, but I wish some of the editors had just the tiniest bit of discretion when it comes to using quotes out of context.