ExWNYer

Unfortunately. I take no joy in being right in this instance. I know I said Friday night that if they won Saturday &/or Sunday that it would be "gravy" but they squandered two golden opportunities to overtake Atlanta for first place. Oh, well. Can't complain about a 7-3 road trip but what could have been... <sigh> A much needed off day awaits tomorrow and then it's a homestand against several also rans beginning with the Natalies. Time to make hay and grab the lead from the hated Bravos.

And just after I typed that this one is on the bats, it's coming down to that as SF grabbed the lead in the 8th. Again, 4 runs in back-to-back games against a scuffling team on the ropes is inexcusable. The offense is just too unpredictable when your power options are limited...a problem that went unsolved in the offseason by Eppler.

They snuck that one by me, too. lol I don't know who he is but he did do a nice job. Megill didn't do a whole lot to justify my faith in him but one of the runs he allowed was on Lindor who dropped the ball attempting to transfer it from his mitt and cost them a double play. Otherwise, he would have exited allowing three runs thru four. Far from ideal but not a back breaker like the six over two innings (and seven over five) that Peterson allowed. I know we're talking about back end guys here but someone has to sack up and give an occasional outing that goes at least six innings. This game is now on the bats. They only scored 4 in the loss yesterday and 4 thru 8 tonight. That's not good enough against a bad SF squad. The bullpen can't keep holding the fort. The hitters need to get off of their arses and win this thing for them.

I disagree with you on Megill, which is fine. I think his upside is a solid #3, if it all comes together. Certainly a viable #4, as you stated. He's shown me more in less amount of time than Peterson ever did. Peterson is what he is at this point and I'm not expecting any more than what he is now. I think I was probably holding out hope for him because he's a lefty and they don't grow on trees. If the staff is healthy at the trade deadline, maybe he can be packaged to a team looking for a lefty option. There is probably a team who believes they can unlock the 'potential' of a youngish lefthander like Peterson. I made my thoughts clear on Carrasco a few posts ago. I am done with him but the team needs him to start giving them some quality innings instead of getting shelled and then hurt. I was thrilled when they acquired him in the Lindor trade but he has been a combo of hurt and maddeningly inconsistent since they got him. Maybe the injuries have played a part in that or maybe he's just cooked. He has been a huge disappointment, IMO, and is a shell of the guy who was pitching in Cleveland. He's become 'Stale Cookie' Carrasco. As an aside, apparently, Ronny Mauricio is being tried at 2B in Syracuse which is fantastic, IMO. His path to the Mets is currently blocked at SS with Lindor there so I am all for finding an alternate path for his big stick. The kid had a huge Spring Training and showed a lot of power. I think he has legit 20-25 HR potential. I'd take that out of my second baseman any day of the week. This team is going to need more power in the future. Baty & Alvarez are still scuffling at the plate since their promotions to the bigs and Pete and Lindor will not be able to carry the team by themselves all season long. The back third of the lineup needs to start contributing some, as well. C, 3B, and DH continue to be black holes for this squad.

@SinceThe70s @Another Fan Peterson threw a clunker yesterday to temporarily derail things and, once again, provided the perfect example of what has us all worried about this staff at the moment. These backend guys are going to have to be at least serviceable until the cavalry (some or all of Scherzer, Verlander, Carrasco, & Quintana) arrives. To his (small) credit, Peterson managed to find a way to make it thru five innings after sh*tting the bed to the tune of six earned runs over just the first two innings to a struggling offense. Newly promoted reliever Edwin Uceta did a great job to help preserve the pen and went the final three innings allowing no hits and no runs. I have been in the Peterson camp since he was drafted but I'm afraid we may have seen his limited ceiling and, yesterday, we once again witnessed his extremely low floor. At this point in his career, he is just too inconsistent and will be nothing more than a back of the rotation 'hold your breath and pray' option, IMO. I don't even think he is a decent pen option at this point either. He has the stuff you hope for in a lefty but he just has no control. He reminds me of Matz...flashes potential and then breaks your heart when you let your guard down and try to believe in him. It's Megill's turn to try and right the ship today. I have much more faith in his future but he has been prone to lapses at times, as well. Gives us 'good Megill' today, Tylor. LGM!

@Gugny @Another Fan I was truly worried about losing Nimmo after last season. I know there were several teams after him and I thought the Mets might not value his worth. I know there were plenty of Met fans who undervalued him, as well. He has come a long way since I first saw him play here in Richmond when he was with Binghamton. He has become a legit and really good CFer who is the catalyst of the team. I love watching him at the plate. He has great discipline and goes up there with a plan every time. And he's become a decent base stealer, too (some credit has to go to the bigger bags and new rules, IMO). He's just a true professional with an infectious attitude. They would have regretted letting him get away. Oh, and just another day at the office Friday night against the Giants...2-4 with a sac bunt and a run scored. I agree on the bullpen. This team was supposed to be built on its starting pitching but between the injuries to the top of the rotation, Scherzer's bs suspension (don't get me started), and what's left of the cobbled together staff only going about 5 or barely 5+ innings almost every night, it is a miracle that the pen has not imploded. To their credit, they have been brilliant. It's scary to think about them with Diaz in there as the stopper. And speaking of brilliant, Joey Lucchesi just threw a much needed, 7 inning, shutout gem on Friday night to give the bullpen a sweet reprieve. What a great return for him as it was for Tommy Hunter who pitched a scoreless 9th. Kudos, gents. The Metropolitans are 7-1 so far on this 10 game road trip. Getting either of the last two this weekend would be gravy. I was hoping for 6-4 and they've already exceeded that with Washington on tap for the next homestand. Luckily, the bats have come alive at the right time, too. There are no words for Pete Alonso. He is not a polar bear...he is a BEAST! HR #10 on the year to dead center (2-run shot)...4 RBI (another 2-run single)...leading the majors in HRs...and he just set the Met record for most HRs ever before the end of April...and there are still 8 scheduled games left in the month. He's no longer just a power hitter...he's become a complete, all-around batter/player. It's great to witness it as it's unfolding. The front office should have already locked him into an extension. 'Uncle Steve' will be digging deeper than anticipated to keep him in the fold. Keep it going! LGM!!

Should've changed his name to 'Sideshow Bob'...

Jest brass (internally): "Will we suck more with him or without him?"

Still nothing official from OBD.

Two starts from Carrasco this year and I've seen all I need to see. He's a bum.

An RBI single in his first AB. Nice start.

Francisco Alvarez gets his first start behind the dish this afternoon with Carrasco on the bump. Good luck, young man. Let's get it!

New year, new number for C/DH Francisco Alvarez...trades in last year's #50 'Sid Fernandez' for the #4 'Lenny Dykstra'.

@Gugny @SinceThe70s @Another Fan And so it continues in Metsland...yet another injury. Maybe this one finally works out in our favor as Alvarez is on his way back to the bigs. Narvaez will be out 8-9 weeks. 'Wally Pipp' his arse, kid!* *Not in the starting lineup today. https://nypost.com/2023/04/06/francisco-alvarez-getting-big-mets-chance-with-omar-narvaez-injury-blow/e In the 'Good News Department', the shiny new behemoth of a scoreboard will be on display for today's home opener. Bring on the buntings, bring on the pageantry, bring on the victory. Squish the Fish! LGM!!

Have you checked with Sean Payton? If not, you're about to get beaten within an inch of your life.

As with any prospect, time will tell. @GunnerBilllaid out for you why he thinks Flowers will be a bust.

I saw this yesterday and found it perplexing, as well. I agree that they have always had a well run organization and have more or less been a model franchise. That said, if they never win another game (unless it's against someone in the NL East other than the Mets), it will be too soon. I still harbor a lot of ill will towards those Whitey Herzog Cards of the 1980s. F them. Always.

Given New England's* track record of drafting WRs, this makes perfect sense:

A mercy killing for the home team?

Home opener scheduled for today has been postponed. Maybe tomorrow.

I think it's probably the only way to get these pitchers and batters acclimated to the new rules. The best way to drill it into them and keep them honest is to enforce it early on, IMO. I don't like much of what MLB has done to revamp the game but I get why they are doing it and accept it. What choice do I really have? They are targeting a younger demographic to try and hook them and sustain the game's future. They don't care about the people our age because they know we're watching either way and we are not their future revenue stream. I know you guys hate the rule banning the shift but I personally hate the shift itself and think it is garbage. To each his or her own, I guess. That's fine. WRT the Mets, I know it's early but they have been over-hyped and oversold. The best closer in the game was lost prior to the season, they are relying on a 40 year old starter who was already hurt before the season even started and their other 38 year old 'ace' has looked every bit of his age in his first two starts following a horrible post-season last year. Guillorme is a nice utility player who starts way too much, Escobar is 'meh' again, both of their catchers are light-hitting backups at best, and their DH tandem of Vogelbach and Pham are spare parts thrust into a starting position which calls for power. I fully expect that Baty and Alvarez will be called up at some point this season and I hope they are as advertised because the team did nothing to address the woeful lack of power in the offense. Save for Alonso and Lindor, there is none. And, speaking of Lindor... His bat finally woke up today...albeit in a loss and he has been stellar in the field...but he has been atrocious at the plate up until now. The starters and pen surrendered 26 runs over a mere 25 innings while getting swept in Milwaukee and the most expensive players Steve Cohen could buy were shutout 10-0 and 9-0 in back-to-back games...the worst in franchise history. Again, I realize it's early but, other than the 'gimme' opening day win, they have gone 2-4 and looked awful in doing it. I think this is easily Atlanta's division to lose with the Mets and Phillies battling for second and third and hoping for another Wild Card berth. * *Disclaimer: The bolded is predicated on Batty &/or Alvarez not contributing as expected and no 'meaningful' deadline additions being acquired. If the kids produce &/or help is acquired at the deadline then the Mets may challenge the Braves for the division, if they are still within striking distance by then. It just feels like another 'typical' Mets season in the making rather than a 'historical' one. Time will tell...7 down and 155 to go. LGM

An obvious reference to the Easter Bunny.

'The Official Fan Base Divider of the Buffalo Bills'

RIP, Mike. He was one of my favorite Bills of the '70s. I still have his football card. FYI, I met Earl Edwards as a kid. My dad was a store manager at the Firestone on Niagara Falls Boulevard and Edwards was there for an in-store promo. My dad took my younger sister, brother, & me down to the store in the snow...wearing our pajamas...to meet him that night just before the store closed. We were the only ones in the store (boy have times changed) and got to talk with him for a while before going back home to bed. I was in awe of him. I was in the presence of real live Buffalo Bill whom I had watched play on TV...and he was talking to ME! I remember thinking that he looked like a giant...just seemed massive to a little boy like me. I was on cloud nine for a week. To this day it's still one of my most cherished Bills memories. Despite only making the playoffs once in the '70s, the Bills players on those teams are still some of my favorite of all-time. Thanks for the stroll down memory lane. RIP, Mr. Kadish.