Tuesday, May 01, 2007

Forgive Me, For I've Been Away Too Long

Let me ask you a question:

If I worked at King Kullen during the ages of...say...15 and 25, and years later I went off and sold drugs to minors, or had Anna Nicole Smith's baby, or called my 11 year old daughter and left a message calling her a rude, thoughtless little pig and made headlines around the world, it wouldn't be called a "King Kullen Scandal" now, would it?

So why is it when a kid works as a clubhouse lackey for the Mets between 1985 and 1995, then goes on to distribute steroids to major league baseball players after he leaves the Mets, how did this become a Mets story? Why do I have to watch SportsCenter and see shots of Shea Stadium as they tease the story that this Kirk Radomski character supplied half the league with anabolics and other good stuff?

Look, it's guaranteed...let me say that again, it's guaranteed that when all is said and done with this steroid mess, that there are going to be former Mets involved. Fine. But this Radomski nonsense is a baseball story. The Mets were a damn summer job for this kid. But of course, it's the Mets guy that gives out the steroids if you go by everything you read. "Former Mets employee gives out steroids" you hear, like Shea Stadium was the steroid market of baseball. Give me a damn break.

That was what started my weekend away.

***

When can you be happy with a loss, and pissed off after a win? I'll tell you when...

When Oliver Perez gives up a three spot in the first inning against Washington on Friday, yet still went seven innings, striking out nine without giving up a walk. It shows that Perez, with all his past control problems, isn't scared of going to the strike zone after getting touched for a long home run. Pitchers get hit. It's a fact of life. It's no reason to become scared of the strike zone. Perez trusted his stuff, and came away with a strong outing. And even though the Mets lost the game, yet still came away intact.

Meanwhile, I don't want to be the one to write about how much Aaron Heilman pitches like garbage, and then find out that he's been pitching hurt all season, as has been speculated on. But look, if Aaron Heilman is hurt, he needs to go on the disabled list. If he's on the field (as he was on Saturday night as he gave the Nationals the lead in the eighth inning), then he's healthy, and is open for criticism. If he's trying to pitch through an injury that is seriously hampering him and he's trying to be brave, then I would look pretty dumb if I raked him over the coals for making me sweat every eighth inning he's been in on this season.

But damn, does Aaron Heilman need to give me heart attacks every game? He did it on Saturday in a game the Mets were lucky to win, and gave up two hits on Sunday in a game that he did his best to take away from John Maine but finally pulled through.

Maybe I've been spoiled regarding the stellar pitching of the '06 pen, but I'll reiterate that you never quite know where Aaron Heilman's head and heart at regarding not starting, and who knows just how good is concentration is this season because of his mental/emotional state. I'll admit that I may be totally off base because of the elbow tendinitis, but Heilman now officially scares me.

***

And now, the Mets get hit with the double whammy of losing Orlando Hernandez to shoulder bursitis (we knew that was coming), and Jose Valentin to a partial ACL tear (not to mention Moises Alou's pending MRI on his right shoulder...yikes!) So because of that, we get treated to a heaping spoonful of Marlins bloop hits off of Chan Ho Park in a 9-6 Mets loss. But as far as I'm concerned, if a pitcher gives up a home run to Alfredo Amezaga, who hadn't hit a dinger since last August, that pitcher forfeits all rights to sympathy regarding bloop hits. It's an unwritten rule of baseball.

***

Finally, condolences to the family and friends of Josh Hancock. It's incredible that this franchise has to go through this all over again, five years after Darryl Kile. Hopefully, they can find the strength to get through it again.

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

Chan Ho deserves no sympathy for the homers, but the drop by Easley was brutal. Not sure how that wasn't scored an error.

We all knew Park wasn't gonna throw a shut out (or really anything close to a shut out), so he needed the defense to step up, and he didn't get it.

Anonymous said...

Our first challenge - two of our main guys go on the DL. Let's see how they respond. It'd be nice if, say, Delgado and Wright started knocking in a few runs here and there. Wright, especially, look brutal up there right now. Is it me or does it look like his stance has changed? Is he moving the bat around too much? I always remembered his bat as being fairly still when the pitch came in. It was also flatter, parallel to the ground, I think.

Rickey said...

Ha--great post sir. Well done.

Toasty Joe said...

Not only did Chan Ho give up a home run to Amezega - he gave up a HR that HIT THE FREAKING SCOREBOARD. Hey Chan Ho - you, good sir, stink.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous,

Yah, Easley let him down, not catching that ball. But even the best defense in baseball is going to drop a ball here and there, and the key is how a pitcher is going to respond to that. Chan Ho Park responded to it by throwing something like ten balls in a row, after looking like an ace for the first eight batters. So enough with the Sympathy for Mr. Park.

Don S. said...

I have 3 words-CHAN HO PUKE

Don S. said...

Also, This must be the second coming.... OF LIMA TIME!!!!

Anonymous said...

It's frustrating that Sosa, Humber and Vargas are all pitching well in New Orleans and we get the guy who's struggling down there.

I bet it's Sosa next time out - not that I feel that much better about Sosa but at least he's pitching well.

Hopefully Pelfrey steps it up tonight.

MP said...

Didn't see a replay of the Easley play yet...but from the Upper Deck it looked like he should have caught it...Agree completely with you on the Heilman situation...if he's hurt I don't want to hear how gutsy he is...put him on the DL...One last thing...I wasn't sure Amezega had EVER hit a home run...thanks for letting me know it had been since August.

Anonymous said...

M;

1.You have the best commentaries ...ever. Chris Berman look out.

2. agreed on Park. but I doubt there will be patience shown.

3. I'm glad I am not the only one that thinks Heilman cant be allowed to continue doing this number.

Sassdawg. said...

Chan Ho Park doesn't even deserve his own nickname. I therefore dub him Chan "Lima Time" Ho Park. She Stinks.

Anonymous said...

LIberals like Alec Baldwin always hate children and freedom and anyone who disagrees with them. It is not surprising he did this because he is another immoral liberal. That is why America believes in morality and the teachings of Bill O'Really and Rush Limbaguh who actually practice what they preach and love their country.

Mookie McFly said...

Congratulations on fitting Jarrod Saltalamacchia into the hate list...his name doesn't even fit on his uniform! Did you see it? I have never seen a name go from one side of the hip all the way to the other side. Is it true that he has the longest name in MLB history???

Anonymous said...

hello? where are you, oh mighty metstra?

Anonymous said...

Oh yeah... a special request, can you please have a permanent hate list?

Let me help you get it started:
(in no particular order)

Andrew Jones (stupid smirk)
Larry Chipper Jones (stupid nickname)
Miguel Cabrera
Tim McCarver (stupid commentary)
Fox TV Network (stupid programming Albany, NY Region)