The window to win with a certain core of players only lasts for an finite amount of time. The best of dynasties come to an end, just ask the Yankees of the 90’s and the Mets of the late 80’s. For the Mets of the middle to late 2000’s, the window to win with this group of talent is closing and it is closing fast. In the wake of Carlos Beltran’s possible microfracture surgery, which could potentially end his career like it did for NBA players Jamal Mashburn and Terrell Brandon, it may be time for GM Omar Minaya to rebuild this team.

I’m not saying he needs to do a dramatic overhaul like the Florida Marlins seem to do every ten or so years, where they trade off every single player on their team. Obviously David Wright and Jose Reyes are going to stay on this team for at least ten years to come, but I don’t know if it is safe to depend on a guy like Beltran or Carlos Delgado to return to form anymore. Thankfully, the Mets have a prospect in Fernando Martinez, who right now can’t seem to hit, but seems adept at playing a strong center field for years to come. If the slide continues, I think the Mets need to run him out there every day and see what they have in him. The Mets also have two B-prospects in Daniel Murphy and Nick Evans who also should be playing every day. Why not see what we have in them, this way we can either move past them, or phase them into our lineup for this year and years to come. I’m sick of seeing Jerry Manuel run out Fernando Tatis on a daily basis when he hasn’t gotten the job done in the least. Tatis is a bench player and nothing more.

Also, with the word out that the Blue Jays are fed up with the lack of production from Vernon Wells and Alex Rios, why not try to explore a trade for Rios. He is relatively cheap at 12 million dollars per year, has plenty of upside (which I’m pretty sure you cannot say about Vernon), and would be a terrific fit for Citi Field. He has great gap power and is tremendous on defense, not to mention the fact that he has a cannon for an arm. He can also play centerfield, which is a help for this year if Beltran is out.

This type of thinking always seems to elude the Mets. They rely too much on aging veterans and not enough on youthful, agile players. I know you can’t turn over the roster in one fell swoop, but I honestly think the time has come for these changes. It’s not like the Double-A roster that we are churning out there right now is getting the job done now anyway. Do some on the fly evaluation until we get some players back Omar. The window is barely open for this group of Mets right now, so start thinking about the future while also thinking about the present.

Posted in MLB - Mets, Writer - Christian Chiavetta

Merriam-Webster define the word moxie as the following:

1 : energy, pep 2 : courage, determination 3 : know-how

Our very own Tim Sharobem has been known to overuse this word as badly as Barney from How I Met Your Mother overuses the phrase “legendary”. Tonight however, the New York Mets showed a heck of a lot of moxie by overcoming the adversity of a devastating injury to CF Carlos Beltran to defeat the first place St. Louis Cardinals. So Timmy Ballgame, go ahead and revel in your favorite word.

If you would have told me at the beginning of the season that we would have been without Carlos Delgado, Jose Reyes, Beltran, Oliver Perez, JJ Putz, and John Maine for extended periods of time, and yet would still be within striking distance of first place, I wouldn’t have been pleased, but I would have signed on the dotted line. Think of the boost these players are going to give us when they come back, ala the equivalent of a couple of trading deadline halls without having to give up any players.

Something about this team is completely different from last season. In a way, they almost remind me of the 2006 team that took whatever was thrown at them (injuries to Pedro Martinez and El Duque), kept up their swagger and heart, and went with it regardless. They also slighly remind me of the 2000 World Series squad, who featured only one superstar in Mike Piazza, and some quality pitchers in Mike Hampton and Al Leiter. Every player on that team knew what their role was, and played it to perfection. Looking back at the starting line up for that team makes me chuckle, because you almost wonder if this line up would even beat the Washington Nationals. Take a look for yourself:

C- Piazza

1B- Todd Zeile

2B- Edgardo Alfonzo

SS- Mike Bordick

3B- Robin Ventura

LF- Benny Agbayani

CF- Jay Payton

RF- Derek Bell

The 2009 Mets, until their core players come back, can take a few lessons from these guys. I know they fell short in the World Series, but with the team they are putting out their now, I would take that in a second. I really believe guys like Alex Cora and David Wright are going to step it up. I also believe that our pitching staff is going to bring it as well. My reasons? None are logical, but for the first time, I feel like the team has finally put the past behind them and are ready to make a run for the playoffs, at any cost.

Posted in MLB - Mets, Writer - Christian Chiavetta

There are a lot of Yankees fans (and some Mets fans) who need to take a chill pill.

Despite getting swept from Boston, the Yankees are 2 games out of first. Despite being 0-8 against Boston, the Bombers are 35-17 in their other games.

And if that doesn’t make you feel better, Yankees fans, how about that you won’t face the Sox again until August.

102 games of baseball left to play.

As for the Mets, a few good things here:

A) You didn’t get swept

B) The two losses were in extra innings

C) If the Mets were at full strength, the Phillies would have probably pulled out 2 wins anyway. That’s just how this rivalry works.

Of course now that I’ve said this, the Yankees and Mets play each other this  weekend- probably the worst possible scenario after the way these series turned out.

So if either team sweeps, all hell’s gonna break loose. Wonderful.

Posted in MLB - Mets, MLB - Yankees, Writer - Tim Sharobem

Last night, against Mets pitcher Johan Santana, Phillies OF Raul Ibanez hit his 20th homerun of the season. Ibanez, a Manhattan native, has been a tremendous off season addition for the Phillies, batting .327  20 homers 55 RBI in 56 games.

20/55 through 56 games is an incredible pace for any big league player- let alone for a  37 year old outfielder whose previous season best was .289/33/123 in 2006 for the Seattle Mariners.

Some people will consider this a non-issue. But in the day and age we live in, one has to at least ponder the possibility something is a little off. To be honest, as a Mets fan, I have recently questioned whether Ibanez is playing “clean.” I mean maybe I’m just having sour grapes that the Mets didn’t sign Ibanez, right? 33 homers playing in Seattle is probably equivalent to hitting 45 in Citizens Bank Park, right?

Well, a popular sports blog Midwest Sports Fans, recently had a post suggesting that Ibanez may be cheating.

You can read that post by clicking here.

The most “damaging” remark made was the following:

From JROD, www.midwestsportsfans.com

Thirdly, it’s time for me to begrudgingly acknowledge the elephant in the room: any aging hitter who puts up numbers this much better than his career averages is going to immediately generate suspicion that the numbers are not natural, that perhaps he is under the influence of some sort of performance enhancer. And since I was not able to draw any absolute parallels between his prodigously improved HR rate and his new ballpark’s hitter-friendliness, it would be foolish to dismiss the possibility that “other” performance enhancers could be part of the equation.

That post found its way to the Philadelphia Inquirer the other day as columnist John Gonzalez wrote that the post was a cheap shot.

Sure enough, the matter was eventually brought up to Raul Ibanez before last night’s Mets Phillies game at Citifield which led to the following quotes from the Philadelphia left fielder:

From the Philadelphia Inquirer:

“I’ll come after people who defame or slander me, It’s pathetic and disgusting. There should be some accountability for people who put that out there.”

“Unfortunately, I understand the environment we’re in and the events that have led us to this era of speculation. At the same time, you can’t just walk down the street and accuse somebody of being a thief because they didn’t have a nice car yesterday and they do today. You can’t say that guy is a thief.”

“You can have my urine, my hair, my blood, my stool – anything you can test. I’ll give you back every dime I’ve ever made” (if the test is positive).

“I’ll put that up against the jobs of anyone who writes this stuff. Make them accountable. There should be more credibility than some 42-year-old blogger typing in his mother’s basement. It demeans everything you’ve done with one stroke of the pen.”

“Nobody is above the testing policy. We’ve seen that.”

“It’s unfair because this story should be about how hard work, determination, and desire trumps chemicals and shortcuts. That should be the message: desire, character, work ethic. But some guy who doesn’t know me – one idiot – says something like this. They should be held accountable. It’s cowardly.”

An emphatic response to say the least-one fueled by anger and frustration.  For his sake, I hope he’s telling the truth. While I root against the Phillies, I have nothing bad to say about Ibanez. He’s been long recognized as a gentleman in the game and is well respected by many baseball players including the Mets’ Carlos Beltran.

This story also brings up an interesting question: Are we as sports fans allowed to question the authenticity of  athletic performance-if there is reasonable doubt?

I have no problem with Ibanez’s response. He’s suppose to be angry- and chances are he didn’t read the blog post. But what about John Gonzalez’s statement that the post was a cheap shot?

As a blogger, who is free to write anything he wants, is it “cheap” to shine light on reasonable doubts?

Posted in MLB - Mets, Other, Writer - Tim Sharobem

You can’t get better baseball in New York than we have this week

Mets v. Phillies  Yankees v. Red Sox   on Tuesday-Thursday

Mets v. Yankees  on Friday-Sunday

First thoughts: Gotta feel bad for the Yankees here. They have a lot of pressure to deliver big. Consider that this is the biggest test the Yankees will have since gaining first place in the AL East-with a modest 1.0 game lead over Boston. They are 0-5 against the Sox this season and will have to fix that by playing at Fenway. The circus will in town as this will be A-Rod’s first game in Boston since admitting to steroid use from 2001-2003 with Texas.

Then, after they survive that chaos, they get to host a depleted Mets team. In Yankee country the expectation is ALWAYS that the Yankees will destroy the Mets. Anything less than 4-2 in the season series is considered a disappointment and a PR nightmare. Now, with all of the injuries the Mets are facing the Yankees may face grief if the don’t sweep.

It’s lose-lose for the Bronx Bombers. If you’re a Yankees fan, enjoy the games and close your ears to the sports talk for the next few days.

As for the Mets, the key is survival. Don’t get swept by the Phillies and fall 6 games out of the divisional race. Starting Johan Santana in one of these games is a HUGE plus. Cole Hamels starting at Citifield should also be interesting…following his “choke artists”comments made last offseason.

I would think the Mets will play loose in the Subway Series as they really have no pressure to deliver against the Yanks-even more so this year. But these are the Mets, who seem to play tight even when they face the Washington Nationals. So who knows.

Posted in MLB - Mets, MLB - Yankees, Writer - Tim Sharobem

I don’t believe in curses, jinxes, or “luck.”  I’m too pragmatic to buy into that stuff.

But as a Mets fan, it’s really hard to accept the fact that so much destruction has befallen this franchise in such a short time: two late season collapses- unprecedented in baseball, weakened ownership at the hand of the biggest Ponzi scheme in US history,  and a season with a myriad of injuries.

It’s one thing to lose a first basemen to a hip injury. And another to lose your  starting (All-star) shortstop to a torn hamstring. And yet another to lose two outfielders, and utility man, AND a starting pitcher, AND a set up man to other ailments all in the same season, all within the timespan of THREE WEEKS.

Oh, and have a SWINE FLU SCARE for yet another starting pitcher and a franchise center fielder.

Are you kidding me?

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?

Roughly 22 years ago, the Mets won their last world championship…arguably in the most improbable fashion in baseball history. In Game 6, the Mets were trailing the World Series 3 games to 2 and were down to their final strike THREE times before tying the game off the Red Sox bullpen and eventually winning the game upon the infamous error by  Boston first basemen Bill Buckner. The Mets would then go on to win Game 7-rallying from behind once again, although not as dramatically.

It’s almost as if all the karma required to allow the Mets to win the 1986 has been left the franchise unlucky since.  Real unlucky. The listing of which would require an encyclopedia.

That is of course, if you believe in curse, jinxes, or “luck”. Which I don’t.

At least I thought I didn’t.

Posted in MLB - Mets, Writer - Tim Sharobem

Jose Reyes‘ much ballyhooed arrival to the New York Mets in late 2003 had him labeled by fans and scouts as a future star. Even though he fought through injuries in 2003 and 2004, it seemed as if he was on an upward trend towards reaching these lofty goals. 2005 was another stepping stone in Jose’s career, and finally in 2006, it seemed as if Jose had finally arrived. He continued his success into 2007, slumped at the end of the season (much like the entire team), and bounced back from that horrendous slump and put up extremely good numbers in 2008.

Jose Reyes is a superstar now. The New York Mets need him to succeed. Right?

My first reaction is “absolutely”. Reyes brings speed to our lineup, defense to the middle of the infield, great hitting, and more. My second reaction? Well, we are winning now…without Reyes.

Yes, yes, before you jump up and down and say we have only beaten up on some bad teams without Reyes, I say to you, what have we won with Reyes on the Mets? We got beaten in 2006 by an 82-win Cardinals team. We collapsed in 2007 and 2008, two years where we occupied first place with only a few games left in the season. The point is, nothing has changed with Reyes in the lineup, and now with him out of the lineup, we are still winning games. Is Reyes really the difference maker that we all think that he is, or is he just an overhyped, above average shortstop?

I’m not trying to sound like Mario from Queens calling WFAN demanding Reyes to be traded. But since his exit from the lineup, I have found myself wondering what the Mets could get for Reyes if they decided to put him on the market. Think what the Red Sox did with Nomar Garciaparra in ‘04 before they won the World Series. We are talking about a 25 year old lead-off hitter, who is just entering his prime, is affordable, and plays a premium position. Could the Mets get a major package from a team like the Red Sox, where shortstop has been a black hole since they signed Julio Lugo? What if the Sox offered up something like Clay Buchholz, Lars Anderson, and Jed Lowrie? What if the Rays offered Jason Bartlett and David Price? I know these packages might even seem a bit high, but the point is, if you can round out the depths of the roster, perhaps with future stars, are we better off than being top heavy like we are now with Reyes on the team.

I love Jose Reyes. I don’t think he is going anywhere for a second, and as long as the Yankees keep their noses away from him when he becomes a free agent in 2011, I think he is a Met for life. I just wonder if he is part of the core that is going to take us to the next level. If not, it can’t hurt to sniff around and see what we can get for him.

Posted in MLB - Mets, Writer - Christian Chiavetta

I just came across a great link from the Daily News‘ website, which was put up about three months ago. It’s a slideshow of the greatest plays in Big Apple Sports History, encompassing all the tri-state area teams in the four major sports. Keep in mind it’s the greatest “plays” not the  ” greatest moments”. So, if you were looking for “Yankees win 26th world title” or “Rangers break 54 year championship drought” you won’t find it. But you will find “Jim Leyritz Game 4 1996 World Series HR ” and “Richter stops Bure on Penalty Shot Game 4 1994 Cup Finals.”

Interestingly, the Daily News does not attempt to rank the events, but lists them in reverse chronological order. This brings up an interesting question: Can we rank the greatest plays in BAS history?

It’s a hard task, especially considering team biases, and considering I am too young to have experienced many of those moments. And I think that’s a big factor. You have to have experienced watching that play or in being in attendance of that play to be able to judge it.

So, the best I can do is rank the top plays within the last 15 years (so no earlier than 1994)

Here’s my Top 5:

5.  Jason Arnott’s double OT goal to win 2000 Stanley Cup Finals (vs. Dallas Stars)

Look at me giving the Devils some DAP!  But seriously, an overtime goal to win a championship?!? It was a dramatic play and a terrific way to end a hockey season.

4.  Aaron Boone’s Walk off Homer sends Yanks to 2003 World Series (Yankees vs. Red Sox)

Yankees. Red Sox. World Series Implications. Boston Chokes.  Can it get better than that?

3.  Stephane Matteau’s OT Goal Game 7 1994 Eastern Conference Finals ( Rangers vs. Devils)

Howie Rose on WFAN:  “Matteau swoops in to intercept. Matteau behind the net, swings it in front. HE SCORES! MATTEAU!! MATTEAU!! MATTEAU!! STÉPHANE MATTEAU!!”

2.  Scott Brosius Homer Game 5 2001 WS (Yankees vs. Arizona Diamondbacks)

One of the most improbable of sports feats occuring for the second time in consecutive nights.  Everyone in NY knows where they were when Scott Brosius homered of Byung-Hyun Kim.

1. David Tyre’s Catch in Super Bowl XLII (Giants vs. New England Patriots)

The defining moment in what is arguably the greatest Super Bowl Game ever. “The catch”  had everything: suspense, surprise, and a tremendous athletic play.

Posted in MLB - Mets, MLB - Yankees, NBA - Knicks, NBA - Nets, NFL - Giants, NFL - Jets, NHL - Devils, NHL - Islanders, NHL - Rangers, Writer - Tim Sharobem

How have the Yankees and Mets fared the first quarter of the season? Let’s take a look:

YANKEES

Record: 26-20 (.565 winning %)

Place: 2nd AL East (1 GB of Boston)

Biggest Win: May 17 against Minnesota; Yanks get 3rd straight walk off win against a formidable opponent

Biggest Loss: May 5 against Boston; Yanks now 0-5 against the Red Sox this season

Largest Winning Streak: 9 (May 13-May 21)

Largest Losing Streak: 5 (May 2-May 7)

Biggest Surprise(s): Melky Cabrera (.323-5-20)

Biggest Disappointment(s): Chien Ming Wang (0-3, 43.00 ERA)

Who to watch for: Phil Hughes (Last 3 starts, 2-0 3.00 ERA)

Interesting Stat: 4-the number of homers hit per game at the New Yankee Stadium

After a miserable start to the season, the Yankees pitching staff has really come on strong-especially the bullpen with the emergence of Aceves, Coke, and Veras.  CC Sabathia is starting to bring it like he did in Millwaukee and Cleveland. And now, with a healthy A-Rod protecting Mark Texiera, and a rejuvenated Robby Cano, the Yankees offense is ready to put up some gaudy numbers throughout the summer.Good pitching + great offense + stable bullpen = many wins.

Now if they only can beat the Boston Red Sox…

Grade So Far: B+/B

METS

Record: 25-20 (.556 winning %)

Place: 2nd NL East (0.5 GB of Philadelphia)

Biggest Win: May 23 against Boston; Take first two at Fenway, beat Papelbon in 9th inning

Biggest Loss: May 18 against Los Angeles Dodgers: Mets Committ 5 Errors, lose run via 3rd base appeal

Largest Winning Streak: 7 (May 4-May 10)

Largest Losing Streak: 4 (April 19-23, May 17-20)

Biggest Surprise(s): Omir Santos (26 GP, .737 OPS)

Biggest Disappointment(s): Oliver Perez (1-2, 9.97 ERA, 2.26 WHIP)

Who to watch for: John Maine (2-1, 3.00 ERA last 4 starts)

Interesting Stat: Mets have committed 35 errors in 42 games

The Mets have battled through injuries and a comedy of errors to somehow have a winning record. Unsurprisngly the team is rescued by Johan Santana, who has proven he is the best pitcher in baseball. Carlos Beltran has carried the team the first two months of the season with his inspired play as well.

If the back of the Mets rotation can show some consistency, and if the bullpen remains solid, look for the Mets to stay in the hunt all summer.

Grade so far: B/B-

Posted in MLB - Mets, MLB - Yankees, Writer - Tim Sharobem

I hope everyone had an enjoyable Memorial Day weekend. MDW is one of my favorite times of  the year: BBQ’s, patriotism, baseball and my birthday. It really doesn’t get much better than that.

With that said, what an incredible weekend it was for baseball fans in NY! I can’t think of any weekend where Mets fans and Yankees fans had a common cause and were rooting FOR each other-as the Mets played the Red Sox and the Yankees faced the Phillies.

The highlight was by far Saturday when both NY teams had dramatic come from behind wins. In the Bronx, an A-Bomb from A-Rod added to the recent miseries of Phillies closer Brad Lidge. And then, Melky Cabrera continued his solid season with his third walkoff rbi. A few hours later in Boston, Sox closer and first class pinhead Jonathan Papelbon surrendered a two out, 2 run homer to Mets secret weapon Omir Santos!

The weekend closed out an eventful homestand/roadtrip for both teams. The Yankees finished the home stand 8-2 with four dramatic walk off wins, including a ridiculous three in a row against the Twins last weekend. ABSURD. Seriously. The Yankees have truly made that ballpark a home field advantage. While it isn’t the real Yankee Stadium, somehow I’d like to think the fanbase will warm up to it just because the Yankees will NEVER be out of a ballgame.

Not with how the ball flies. Not with the Yankees murderous lineup. NEVER.

The Mets meanwhile finished 5-5 on a very arduous road trip that took them to San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Boston all while missing the following for at least one game on the road trip:

Carlos Delgado; Jose Reyes; Alex Cora; JJ Putz; Francisco Rodriguez; Gary Sheffield; Ryan Church.

I’m pretty sure Tom Seaver, Mike Piazza, and Darryl Strawberry had MRI’s done too.

It’s pretty ridiculous how injured the Mets are and that they were able to manage anything in the wins column. That said, the Mets should have finished BETTER than 5-5 on this road trip-especially since they gave away one game in LA when Ryan Church forgot to touch third base while trying to score.

Fail to touch third base while trying to score? You’d better be injured Ryan…in the head.

Anyway, since they won 2 out of three in Fenway, I’m still happy…especially since last time the Mets were in Fenway (2006) they were swept and I got to see it firsthand. Ugh.

With the conclusion of MDW, were are also now finished with roughly a quarter of the baseball season. And thankfully, it seems like we’ll have  a very exciting summer for both teams.

Of course, whether the Mets will have an exciting September is a whole other story…

Posted in MLB - Mets, MLB - Yankees, Writer - Tim Sharobem