Guest Blog: Balk this way

A guest post from Mr. Aaron Schuldiner.  Aaron used to blog over at the now defunt Shea Nation.  Enjoy this post on last night’s balk-filled game.

In light of the rough finishes to the last two seasons in Flushing, it has become easy, if not fashionable, for Met fans to push the panic button after every loss.  But when you’ve won eleven of your last thirteen games, you’re entitled to an off night against a good starting pitcher, right?

Entitled or not, that was the case Sunday, as the Giants edged the Mets 2-0 behind six shutout innings from Matt Cain.  Cain walked five, but allowed only three hits, and got two huge double plays to kill the only two rallies the Mets could muster.  In the second inning, Jeremy Reed, playing for the injured Carlos Delgado, bounced into a bases-loaded double play before Mets starter Mike Pelfrey grounded out to end the inning.  Then in the eighth, Jeremy Affeldt got Angel Pagan to hit into an inning-ending double play, again with the bases loaded.  The Mets went quietly in the ninth, as Giant closer Brian Wilson looked dominant after taking losses on Thursday and Friday.

Cain did not have his best command, but every time the Mets tried to put something together, he buckled down and put out the fire.  That was in contrast to Pelfrey, who pitched well overall, but sabotaged himself with three balks.  Both runners that scored for the Giants advanced from first base to second on balks, the second run coming in on an RBI single by none other than Cain.

It has always been my stance that Pelfrey has front-of-the-rotation talent, but mentally, it sometimes appears he’s not there yet.  After the second balk he was visibly shaken.  After the call was made, Pelfrey almost fell down while kicking the back of the pitcher’s mound in frustration, stirring up memories of his embarrassing tumble off the mound in the Citi Field opener.  After the game, Pelfrey joked that maybe he just likes making a fool out of himself when he’s on national television.  The Mets can only hope that the issue can be worked out of Pelfrey’s mechanics quickly, and doesn’t develop into some kind of Mackey Sasser-esque mental tic.  Since Pelfrey didn’t balk once in his 290-plus innings prior to 2009, I would assume that it’s something he and pitching coach Dan Warthen can get figured out. 

Sure, there’s no such thing as a good loss, and with this team there are no moral victories.  The fan base is insatiably hungry for wins, and both Manager Jerry Manuel and G.M. Omar Minaya could find themselves on the unemployment line if the Mets don’t play their way into October.  There have already been a few bad losses this year, the kind that you lose sleep over.  Both of Johan Santana’s losses in which he didn’t allow a single earned run and the twelve-inning loss to Atlanta come to mind.

So, considering the Mets took three out of four at AT&T Park, where the Giants had the second best home record in the league before this series, it’s hard to be too disappointed.  And considering those three wins featured the Mets setting a franchise record with seven steals in a game, plus an impressive comeback win over reigning Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum (In my mind, the signature win of the season to date), it’s hard not to be encouraged.  Throw in the facts that the Mets essentially played the entire series without Jose Reyes and Delgado, have won eleven of their last fourteen, and currently occupy first place in the N.L. East, and I suspect that last night’s loss might be quickly forgotten by the masses with a win tonight in L.A..

But for Pelfrey, it might take a balk-free start in Boston next weekend.  A second performance like last night’s won’t be nearly as easy for him to laugh off.

THE GOOD

Despite allowing seven walks, Cain, Affeldt, Wilson, and Bob Howry never let the Mets get on the board, stranding nine runners in the process.  Cain moved to 4-1 on the year and lowered his ERA to a stingy 2.65.

THE BAD

Granted it was a makeshift lineup, and it was unfortunate that the Mets’ three bases loaded at-bats were taken by Pagan, Reed, and Pelfrey.  But when you leave the bases loaded twice against a good staff, there’s always a good chance you won’t get another opportunity, as was the case last night.

THE UGLY

It shouldn’t be lost among Pelfrey’s mental lapses that he did pitch pretty well last night, but no starter had balked three times in a game since 1994, when ex-Met Al Leiter completed the trifecta for Toronto.

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Thanks, Aaron!  Good stuff.

Guest Blog: Overpricing and charity

This guest post come from my good friend Jeremy Schilling, who maintains his own blog at jschil.wordpress.com.  Enjoy…

No, this is not another blog post about the overpricing of tickets or the lack of perfect attendance at early Yankee and Mets games this season. This post is about ideas.

NBC Nightly News has been doing a segment for about a month and a half now called “Making a Difference” – how average Americans are helping their neighbors in tough times. It’s by far the most popular segment Nightly News has run in a long time.

So let’s have these teams make a difference.

There are hundreds of charities out there which would love to go to a baseball game. Give the tickets to them.

Now I understand that yes, this comes with a financial loss. But you know what – hopefully they’ll pay it forward, and eventually, it’ll all come full circle. No one wants to see empty seats in a ballpark, no one. So why don’t we fill it up with worthy people – baseball’s next generation.

Does this next generation care about tax-exempt bonds, personal seat licenses or obstructed seats? I bet you not. Most just want a day out in the sun and fun, seeing America’s pastime, and a time away from all their troubles.

Change was the keyword for a good 5 or 6 months in this country in late 2008. So why don’t we CHANGE the lives of Americans by giving them prime seats, the expensive seats that no one wants, to worthy charities and letting deserving people see a baseball game.

That is the American way of doing things.

Thank you, Jeremy.  Check out his blog at jschil.wordpress.com.

Comment: About last night

From a faithful friend and commenter, Paul Mannino...

Much like Glavine's performance last year, I think that might have been Ollie's tryout for being re-signed. I was looking at the free agent pitchers, though. And he is still the youngest "proven" commodity. I don't know...

I think the same can be said for tonight. Too many people rolling their eyes over a Haren vs. Pedro match up. Pedro can either bring it or flounder. And, again, whether it is right or not, I think that this start (almost on its own) will determine whether or not the Mets get creative about pursuing him past 2008.

I so badly want the poetry of Pedro stepping up. That sense of vindication that I felt yesterday when Delgado hit that grand slam (and all the boo birds went away)...oh, I wish Pedro could have that. I would love for him to go out a champ.

We floundered for so long in mediocrity. Pedro ushered in that era of relevance. It would only be fitting for him to get into a classic pitching duel with a pitcher who could be his grandson. Whizzing a myriad of pitched at flummoxed Cubbies. Yeah, don't forget, Andy, sports are about dreaming too!

And believing. Maybe I'm just the faith guy. But, I still see this happening. How beautiful would a one-game playoff be in the last game at Shea? Oh...wow. We're on-line for that right now. I will get nervous when we are on the outside looking in. We're not now.

Am I aggravated? Yeah.
Do I hate the bullpen? Yeah.

I am a Met fan. Tried and true. Sometimes I think the "true"-ness comes from the "try"-ing. So...we're in trying times, but we are not finished or dead. Shoot, we don't even stink. We just need to play even with the Brewers for the rest of the week to have an awesome Shea farewell moment.

That's what I'm hoping for now. Screw the Phillies. They've already proven that they don't know what to do with a division title (sweep to the Rockies?). So...let's have a fun week against the Brew Crew!

Guest Post: Blame the Shave Zone

From The 'Ropolitans good friend, Mr. Ryan Punzalan...

I'm not sure if you noticed, but I have. Where is Giuseppe Franco? As much as that commercial is annoying, I think he's the one that has the winning magic for us. Not Jerry Manuel, not Mr. Met, not Ramon Castro.

It's Giuseppe Franco.

His "Procede" commercials clogged SNY for about 90 percent of the broadcast's commercial spot. His signature phrase, "I don't even know anything about it" was in our heads as we went along our daily routine.

Gary Busey's expression when he hugged Giuseppe and his crazy hair is still in our brains. But, the Mets were in good spirit and winning during those times, especially when it was played about every commercial break during Mets game.

Call it coincidence, but that tide has changed. A new commercial has appeared, and it's annoying as hell.

Enter, "Shave Zone."

The cheesy "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" tune in the background is really what makes me want to punch my TV. It was filmed in probably the late 90's to early 00's, but it feels like a low-budget 80's commercial.

There are two commercials, one featuring SNY's own Lee Mazzilli and some other sarcastic guy named Sean Garcia. His name is so common that when I try to Google "Sean Garcia MLB" I get something related to Freddy Garcia in a Tiger uniform.

Oh, and the line used in these commercials is something related to, "Hey tough guy, blah blah blah, you need to use Shave Zone."

They premiered this commercial probably at the end of August and slowly turned it into another Procede commercial, except it really is a bad commercial not because of it's repetition but rather because of it's quality. Now it's mid-September and I can't go without a Met game without whistling "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" or smiling while rubbing my chin.

The more times they played it, the worse the Mets looked. When they premiered it, I feel that the Mets haven't seen it enough for them to be affected by it. Now that they pretty much see it 24/7, it probably dug a permanent hole in their brains.

Sorry "Shave Zone." You're making our Mets play like a repeat of something we don't want to remember. This commercial is a cancer; it is hurting the team and it is hurting the fan base.

I thought I would never say this, but SNY, please put Giuseppe Franco and his steroidic (I made up this word) hair back on-air.

Guest Blog: Where have all the aces gone?

Another guest post from Doug Helferich...

A recent trend in Major League Baseball has changed the face of free agency. It has led to the current distribution of power, and will continue to shape the results of baseball for at least the next few years. First, let me define what I mean by the term ace. I refer to a pitcher in his prime, your number 1 pitcher that you would unconditionally choose to pitch in the big game. So, this doesn't include the free-agent deals of Pedro Martinez, Greg Maddux, or Jason Schmidt. This guy would be the (pitching) face of your franchise for years to come upon his arrival to your franchise.

Instead of letting their aces go to free agency, teams are resigning them, sometimes for a few years, sometimes to rather long-term deals. For example, Carlos Zambrano (2007), Roy Oswalt (2006), Ben Sheets (2005), Kevin Brown (1998), Randy Johnson (2003, 2005, 2007), Jake Peavy (2007), Josh Beckett (2006), Brandon Webb (2006), and Johan Santana (2008) [Santana was traded and then signed a new contract with his new team.] all signed extensions instead of ending up as free agents (one exception here is Barry Zito; however, the Athletics certainly tried their hardest to trade him, and he most certainly would have been resigned upon landing with a new team). This has had a number of effects.

Most importantly, it has inflated the price of free agent pitching to astronomical levels. Some truly horrible contracts have been inked in the past few years, including Russ Ortiz (Orioles) Carl Pavano (Yankees), Mike Hampton (Rockies), and Carlos Silva (Mariners). Some others have been merely been priced above their actual value: A.J. Burnett (Blue Jays), Ted Lilly (Cubs), Jason Marquis (Cubs), and Gil Meche (Royals). Teams have to pay the big bucks to get even mediocre pitchers, making these deals much riskier. Even if a team receives the expected production out of a pitcher, they are still more restricted in their financial matters. They are not maximizing the value of their money.

Trades are now the way to acquire a game-changing pitcher. This last year alone has seen Santana, Rich Harden, Dan Haren, and CC Sabathia change teams (and leagues). The Athletics are constant sellers, trading away Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder, Harden, and Haren over the last several years. The Marlins have seen the departure of Brad Penny and Beckett. The Marlins have won two championships in the last decade, but traded away or did not resign key players in both instances. However, they used prospects acquired in those trades to bolster their farm system. The Athletics don't have the money to keep their dominating pitchers, and have to trade them away to at least bring more than a compensatory draft pick back to the team. However, they do continue to churn out ace-quality pitchers. Depending on the talent evaluation abilities of the teams involved in a trade, things can work out well for either side. Some aces succeed with their new teams, and some don't live up to expectations. Prospects are also hit or miss, but some teams definitely have more success than others.

Which leads me to how this applies to the Mets. You can't buy aces anymore; they have their contracts extended before they even get to smell the salt of the proverbial free agent waters. The pitchers that do take the dip are generally not worth the market price for one reason or another, and likely wouldn't make a significant enough impact anyway. We acquired our difference maker in Santana, but looking towards the future, it is crucial that we hoard our young pitching talent. Quality arms can no longer simply be purchased; it is time we take heed of this trend and react accordingly. My plan to react to this situation is this: small market team talent evaluation while utilizing our large market budget.

Specifically:

1. Improve system-wide talent evaluation abilities. Use the organization's resources to lure away better scouts and front office executives to locate, draft, sign, and trade for the best prospects available.

2. Keep the pitchers we have. Give potential aces a little longer than in past years. Mike Pelfrey is finally starting to blossom, and obviously we didn't wait long enough (or even give a fair chance to) Scott Kazmir. Use our resources to retain players, not obtain them (ostensibly through free agency).

Note: This is a medium to long term plan, really a change in our organizational philosophy. This will not help us win tomorrow; do not think that it will. It would probably mean less trades at the deadline and offseason. However, I do think that it would pay long term dividends. Just imagine if the Athletics got to keep their good pitchers for more than one or two good seasons, or if the Marlins didn't have to resort to fire sales as their response to winning a championship.

Rebuttal: My problem with veterans

Yesterday, I wrote about "my problem with prospects." Today, in a guest post, Doug Helferich is going to explain his problem with veterans...

They've seen it all. They know the pitchers, they know how to play each hitter in the field. The provide stability. But are they a sure bet? I think it depends.

Over the years, the Mets have perennially been buyers at the trading deadline. Trading for such gems as Kris Benson (losing the young Ty Wigginton who, while never a stay, provided decent defense and adequate hitting ability) and practically giving away the fireballing Scott Kazmir for the miserable Victor Zambrano, the Mets have time and again thrown away promising young stars for players with a few more years under their belts. Luis Castillo is another recent name added at the deadline.

Other free agent deals and trades in the offseason brought the likes of Mo Vaughn, Roberto Alomar, Jeromy Burnitz, Tom Glavine, Pedro Martinez, Paul Lo Duca, Carlos Delgado, Johan Santana, Cliff Floyd, and Moises Alou into the orange and blue. While most of those deals (certainly more recently) have been at least good if not excellent, some have been questionable at best (read: Castillo).

At some point, you have to plan for the future. The Mets will never truly rebuild like they need to, purging the team of old fallen stars and getting valuable playing experience. However, there are small circumstances where they have had the chance without losing much, if any, skill at a given position. For example, why won't the Mets commit to a youngster at second base? As much as I love Gotay, he was a terrible fielder, and he has not had a good year with the Braves. However, we really didn't give him a real chance to start. Same thing this year with Argenis Reyes; he splits the starts with Easley, and clearly will get less time with Castillo coming back soon.

The Mets opt for veterans time and again, when, by the end of the year, the kid that is replaced would be nearly as good (and certainly not as injury-prone) as the older player. Every veteran we sign is one less opportunity to build a team of players we can keep for years at a time. We don't have to sign or trade for a whole new team each year. 2006 is a good example of solid veteran signings; they unquestionably put experienced players in the needed positions. But what did Luis Castillo offer that necessitated a 4 year deal? Why did we resign Alou when we could have gotten away with a platoon of Endy and friends?

Veterans can be great mentors and provide stability to an inexperienced team. However, they also impede the progress of a franchise. The Mets need to decide whether they are going to sign a new team of old-timers every year, or actually put together a real team that will play together for years.

Guest Post: Beard power!

This post comes from Ramble7321.com. Check it out for articles on the Mets and other assorted topics.

The new look New York Mets have just rattled off nine wins in a row and look poised to make a push for a playoff spot this year.

After the release of manager Willie Randolph the New York Mets have an extra spring in their step. The change is noticeable enough on the field as the Mets have climbed within a half game of the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League East with a nine game win streak. But a closer look reveals even more.

New manager Jerry Manuel has the team playing loose and easy with his new style. By contrast, former manager Randolph was very strict. His style was born from his many seasons with the business-like New York Yankees. The old style of clean shaven faces, no music in the club house and business-like attitudes has changed to a loud club house with a bevy of music blaring loudly, players joking and having fun and of course lots of facial hair.

This team transition brings to mind another team in recent years that was more the proud of the unkempt look of the players. Yes, the 2004 World Champion Boston Red Sox.

Please take time to compare:

The 'Ropolitans take: I was going to write about the power derived from the beard, as I went through something similar when I shaved mine off to help the team. Now, since Manuel has taken over, I've grown my beard back, much to the chagrin of my parents.

Go beards! Go Mets!

Reader comment: Longest ever?

Here is a reader comment posted a few days back, with a new section added last night. Tom, whoever you are, this is some serious stuff for a comment! Here it is, originally posted on June 20:
The Mets may actually be coming along a little bit now. I watched the game with MLB TV with the home (Angels) announcers, so I don't know if people with SNY caught the statistic of the Angel's being 201-2 in the last three seasons when leading after the 8th inning.

For the Mets to be able to beat them was somewhat impressive.I've noticed some weird things about the Mets lately though. When the Mets are done one or two runs (especially when they gave up a lead), they're bullpen throws great. People don't realize it, but Scott Schoeneweis has improved a lot. I also think Pedro Feliciano is one of the most underrated lefty relievers in the game.The problem I've noticed are two big things. One, when they're down say 4-3 like they did when Perez gave up the lead, they go into what I call crap mode with the bats.

The second problem is when they do get a lead, they're bullpen begins to collapse. It happened last week when Joe Smith gave up three runs and it really angered me when Billy Wagner blew three saves in a row.If there's one thing that should have angered Met fans more than anything else, it was the constant using of Aaron Heilman in pressure situations. Heilman was lost his solidness and the Mets can't afford to be giving him loads of opportunities to rejuvenate himself. That's what AAA is for. The same problem existed with Guillermo Mota last year. I blame Minaya for not designating him for assignment too. The one thing I like about Jerry Manuel so far is that he's more out to designate roles. Hopefully, that means Aaron Heilman will be the ''mop up'' man.

Another thing is that the Mets simply have to get as much for Oliver Perez as they can. Honestly, Oliver can be a great pitcher at times, but he just isn't the guy you want to put out onto the mound in an important game. It's not even that he caves under pressure situations because he pitched great in game seven of the 06' NLCS, but he's literally like going to Atlantic City and playing black or red on the roulette table. I just can't stand watching him pitch and walk lots of people.The Mets have to continue to stay at least around .500 and hopefully at least a couple games above it by the All-Star break to determine how competitive they are.

The two four game sets against the Yankees and Phillies can make or break this season. Since pressure was put on Pelfrey about losing his role to Vargas, he's stepped up. He should be at least 5-6. In a playoff situation, you only need 4 pitchers. I'd rather have Pelfrey out there than Perez. Plus, who knows, maybe El Duque can actually pick the right time to stay healthy this year. Even if the Mets are competitive, I'd trade Oliver Perez. Right now he's 5-4 with a 5.06 ERA which isn't the most attractive so now isn't the time, but by the deadline if he's ERA is in the mid-4's and he still has a .500 type record and is healthy, the Mets could bring back a couple of decent prospects for him. Or maybe a good hitting OF. Unless Minaya's an idiot (he's half Genius/half Idiot in my mind kind of like Perez's pitching and the Mets abroad), he'd have to realize Perez is not the 14-15 million a year for a mediocre pitcher. The same production could come out of Livan Hernandez for one-third to half the price. And especially Kyle Lohse, who's having a good year.

I don't know how interested the Pirates would be in a guy like Perez if they aren't competitive, but if they Mets could swing a three way trade with a team that needs pitching that can send prospects over there possibly with a couple lower-level prospects from the Mets, the Mets should try to get Xavier Nady back. That way they can use him as their 1B or as their LF until Fernando Martinez is ready. The Pirates are too cheap to give Nady the money he'll want. Not even counting Pedro and Perez, the Mets have a lot of money coming off the books between Alou (7.5 mi), Delgado (16 mi), O. Hernandez (6 mi) and even 3.2 mi between J. Sosa and Wise.

Also, I know Robinson Cancel had a nice hit against Texas, but I can't comprehend why he's been on the roster for like twelve games and has two at bats. I don't know how good Castro could be at 1B, but they'd be able to utilize his bat against lefties instead of using Delgado. Also, Jose Valentin's had 42 at bats in the minors, so he's got to be healthy by now. He should be on the time with Church, Alou and Pagan injured. He'd help a lot more than Cancel in Manuel's plan to give Wright and Reyes more rest.

The spots where Castillo gets the day off from Easley can be replaced by Valentin so Easley can stay more fresh in LF/1B against lefties. The way how Kenny Lofton's able to adapt to new teams quick and produce, he might be worth taking a shot on too. Kind of like Nick Evans, I think Trot Nixon was a guy had a first great game, but hasn't been productive since.Minaya's got to start using his mind better, otherwise he'll turn out like Bill Bavasi.

I don't think it's much of a coincidence that the firing of Willie came shortly after such. It probably got him nervous. The Mets were 3-1 in Willie's last four games, so the firing really came at an awkward time.I've looked at the Mets record and noticed in their previous thirty games they've had a weird order too. Following the 2 game series against the Yankees in May, the Mets went on a 1-7 in eight games. Than after that, they went 7-2 in nine games. Than after that, they went 1-6 in four games. Now, they're 4-2 in their last six.

If they were to sweep the Rockies this weekend, they'd be 7-2 in their last nine identically to the same pattern following a nearly identical losing streak. They're on a little role now so anything is possible.Or a more simpler way to think about this streakiness the Mets have come across since the Yankees series, the Mets went 0-5, than 8-4, back to 0-5 and now 5-3. Either way, they're 13-17 in their last 30 games which isn't that good. Even if the Mets were able to take one out of each of those 4 game sets against ATL and SD which wouldn't have been a lot to ask for, they'd only be 3.5 games out of the NL East and Wildcard.

I think we should be watching the Wild Card just as much as the NL East now too because the horrible Royals just swept St. Louis.What's really killed the Mets are those two 0-5 slumps. The right time to fire Willie would have been following the Padres sweep. I think this is really the time though when the Mets turn it around. All it takes is one good streak to make yourself competitive. Either that or lots of other teams need to play crappy. Now's the time though and all of us can breath now that the deadbeat and guy who thought he could fix Victor Zambrano in ten minutes are gone.

That was only part one...Obviously since that was posted the Mets have played a few games and some news has come to light. Still, pretty good analysis. Here's the rest:

No problem. Yeah, you were right about Valentin. Valentin probably wouldn't have been able to help the Mets too much. He probably would have gotten injured again. I remember last year I kept on hearing a lot about replacing him because of injuries, even though the more plausible reason would have been to replace his .241 average.

Minaya was smart to pick Castillo up because he was really good, but he's only mediocre this year. The Mets are still playing mediocre baseball. On Monday and Tuesday, they simply couldn't drive in runs. The Mariners scored eleven runs and had 15 hits. The Mets had 8 hits, which is still more than half of Seattle's, but no runs. I went to the game on Tuesday and saw Perez once again not have it. It used to have been that he'd have one really good start and than a bad one, but now it's starting to side more the wrong way. Heilman's gotten a little better lately (I think Jerry's taken my advice on him being the mop up man lol), but if a starter pitcher with lots of starts has an ERA higher than him, that's not good. It's amazing how he has a .500 record, yet Pelfrey has average one less run a game than him. And Santana's average two less, but only has one win above .500. Sometimes judging on wins isn't always adequate, although more often are.

I like Jerry Manuel's energy though. I don't think he would have gotten in that umpire's face who showed up Beltran. Hopefully the Phillies lose tonight, because the Mets would only be three out. I don't think anyone would think that'd be possible with the Mets technically below .500.

Texeira's come on a little bit too now, but I'd expect the Yankees to compete for him. The Braves probably won't trade him even if they are around .500 around the deadline. He'd make some sense though. Pat Burrell could be an option in the outfield too. He's had some solid years and he wouldn't be able to kill the Mets anymore.

With Robinson Cancel, it didn't make much sense. If Castro were pinch hitting against lots of lefties it'd make sense, but the Mets have a bad habit of liking to hold onto useless catcher's who in their 30's. He'll be gone now that the Mets picked up Andy Phillips.Even though he hits righties better than lefties, he might work out good for them. Plus, now that the Mets should be getting back Church for the Yankees series, that'll be good too. It'll give the Mets a reason to get rid of Nixon, who was on a 1 for 24 slump.

When I said he in the last paragraph of message 5, I meant Willie. Than again though, maybe he would, although he appeared burnt out at times. They really got to do something about the LF situation, because Alou will never be healthy. He'd probably make a great player on a video game. Pagan has really fallen out of the picture too, but Chavez has done better lately.

The Andy Phillips move makes some sense too right before this series against the Mets, because he might be able to give them some stuff he knows on the pitcher's staff. Willie may have actually been a little bit of a weapon for that, although a lot of their roster has changed since the end of 04'.Phillips was on the Yankees last year and hit .292 for them, so he might be able to help them out a little bit. The Yankees have really been turning it up lately too.

This will definitely be an important series. Not really even because of the hype, but because they need these games while the Phillies and Marlins aren't playing well.

And if you read all that, like I did, then you deserve a pat on your back. Great stuff, Tom!

Guest blog: Minor League Player of the Week

Another guest post from Ryan Punzalan. You can guest post too! Just send what you want to TheRopolitans@gmail.com!

He was selected in the third round of the 1997 First-Year Player Draft. Christopher Louis Aguila graduated from McQueen High School (NV) in 1997. While in McQueen, he set the single-season home run record. Although Aguila may not be a prospect, he is showing signs he belongs with the big club. The 29-year-old outfielder played for the Marlins from 2004-2006 and the Pirates minor leagues in 2007. The Mets signed him in March has been playing with the New Orleans Zephyrs ever since.

In 2008, Aguila is hitting .297 with 15 home runs and 31 RBI. However, in the past 10 games, Aguila is batting a hefty, .457 with 6 home runs and 12 RBI. He has 16 hits in 35 at-bats. These 10 games also included a hitting streak of 8 games which ended last night. His performance even gave him PCL Hitter of the Week.

This is Aguila's 12th professional year of playing, the majority while in the Minors. But he's shown poise and maturity. Aguila can play any outfield position, and is ready for a spot. If any of the current Met gets hurt, Aguila can easily take the spot on the bench. With a struggling Endy Chavez and a not so healthy Ryan Church, Aguila may make an appearance if Abraham Nunez and Fernando Tatis can't get the job done.

Keith Hernandez, Legend

I'll be out and about all day, so I'll leave you with a guest blog from Ryan Punzalan. Feel free to e-mail me your own articles, and if they're good, I'll run them!

Anyway, here is Ryan's article:

You're probably thinking, why legend? Let's face it, Keith Hernandez is the king of comedy with it comes to color commentary. There's something about his informations or antics that make the game even better. No offense to Ron Darling, but every pre-game show I just can't wait to see who's sitting next to Gary. Just to display how great this man is, I prepared a short list on what he says in the booth that makes me crack a smile:

• He calls Gary Cohen, "Gaer" as in, "I noticed something about Delgado's swing Gaer."
• Keith loves to talk about footwear, especially Crocs, or lack of them.
• Mex loves to talk about his Tootsie Pop, usually in a bin or in his mouth.
• Keith seems to point out every ad-placements as possible.
• The Coors Freeze seems to amaze him more than anything
• New SNY camera angles also seem to astonish him as he's always caught saying, "Great angle guys."
• He seems to like color too, as he's always talking about the colored highlighters for his scorecard.
• I keep noticing that Keith makes fun of Kevin Burkhardt so much, especially around other fans and stuff.
  
• ..and to top it all off, Keith just loves to talk about the Cardinals and how events during his time there. He also loves to talk about the Cardinals Minor League system and his events there too. Hello Tulsa.
  

That's not all of them, but yeah, those are the great ones that pop into my head. He has such great chemistry with Gary and he gets extremely entertaining during a blow-out or an extra inning game. His spontaneous jokes are just great and I firmly believe he loves his job way too much.

With fun comes controversy. Of course you all remember the incident with the comment towards women being in the dugout and how he states that a woman should not be in the dugout. Comment aside, he brushed it off and continued to be as random a commentator can be, and every enjoys it.

I may be a bit biased, but I truly think that the team of Cohen, Hernandez, and Darling is easily the best broadcasting team in the business right now. Cohen's perfect play-by-play, Darling's in-depht analysis, and Keith's speech about how he hates the head-first slide just fits every position. Keith's great, and he know's he great.

Thanks Ryan!