Wednesday, January 20, 2010

HAPPY HOLIDAYS.

“You got a book,” TBF said, pointing at the thin, flat package waiting for me on the kitchen table.
I picked up the bubble mailer and started to open it. I wasn’t expecting anything, thought it might be some random PR mailing. After a few seconds, the item inside felt less like a book and more like… a picture. In a frame.

It was a photo of Opening Day 2009, from the Mets.
“Oh,” said TBF. “It’s our ‘you just bought tickets from us’ gift.”
Except that it wasn’t. There was a little slip of paper - easy to miss - that said “Happy Holidays 2009”.

Thursday, January 14, 2010

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MIKE PELFREY.

Just trying to stay positive. Put up pretty pictures, cross my fingers, close my eyes, and click my heels together. We WILL have a good 2010 season, we WILL have a good 2010 season…

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

BELTRAN.

I was effectively offline for most of the evening, and emerged from the subway around 10pm. While waiting for the bus, I idly checked Twitter. And then realized I couldn’t sort through hours and hours of tweeting. (The best take on tonight’s panic is courtesy Wrigleyville 23, oddly enough.)

I called home.
“No seriously, WTF?! Beltran?”
“12 weeks.”
“Not Beltran!”
“Yep.”
“Our All Star, Gold Glove center fielder.”
“Yep.”
“#$@^%” (Imagine the Tasmanian Devil when you read that.)
The hipster girl standing next to me looks annoyed that my whining is interrupting her listening to the new Vampire Weekend. I hang up.

Waiting for the truth to sort itself out, waiting for the Mets to have an accurate grasp of how to handle the media and the public, and not that I had a ton of hope for 2010, this is really putting the icing on the cake.

And I feel guilty about bitching about any of this with what is going on in Haiti. (Please donate now if you haven’t.) How completely insignificant my team’s season is compared to all of that devastation.

Monday, January 11, 2010

WHERE WERE YOU?

9/8/98: I found out that Mark McGwire broke the HR record from Eddie Vedder on the stage of the Brendan Byrne Arena (okay, so it was actually Continental Airlines Arena at that point, but just barely).

It’s the only original thing I have to add to the McGwire media blitz.

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

BAY WATCH: HOW IT SHOULD HAVE GONE DOWN.

As I walked to the subway against the bitter cold tonight, I came around the corner on 7th Avenue and there, on the Times Square news ticker, I see JASON BAY SIGNS TO THE METS FOR $65M. I should be thrilled. I should be happy. I should be trash-talking the Red Sox fans in my office. Instead, my reaction is “ehhhhh”.

I like Jason Bay. I have always liked Jason Bay. I was sad for Pirates fans and happy for Red Sox fans when he went to Boston. For heaven’s sake, Eddie Vedder once campaigned for him to be in the All Star Game. For once I do not feel like we are getting the bottom scrapings of the free agent barrel. However, the dragging of the feet, and the “Jason Bay would rather play in Beirut than go to the Mets” and the “hey, let’s have MIKE FRANCESA give you HOTT new Mets news!” was all a big pin in my fan balloon.

It could have been different, though. Let’s go visit the gypsy woman and look into her crystal ball for a moment….

Jeff Wilpon sat at his desk in his office at Citi Field, busily tapping away on the computer. There is a knock at the door. He ignores it, and continues to tap. The knock is louder, and he ignores it again. Finally, the knocking gets insistent.
Jeff: “Dammit!”
The door opens and a head appears. “Mr. Wilpon?”
Jeff: “Who are you?”
Barry the intern: “I’m Barry, the intern? You said you wanted to see me.”
Jeff: “Yes, but not now. I was just about to kill this game on Sporcle… come in, come in.”
Barry walks in the room, clutching a report in a clear binder.
Barry: “Is it about my report?”
“You wrote this?” Jeff holds up a copy.
“Yes.”

Monday, December 28, 2009

FUTILITY, THY NAME IS THE METS TICKETING OFFICE.

We renewed our Friday plan. I didn’t want to do it on principle, but in the end it came down to the fact that we have really good seats (the best we could probably get under the circumstances) and the schedule isn’t terrible, now that they took the 1:10pm middle-of-the-week games out of the Friday plan. 

We did not renew the weekday plan. The schedule is terrible. We will buy some extra games, Twins and Tigers for sure, and will look to the secondary market for Opening Day.

The fact that we renewed one plan is probably why we haven’t gotten a call from the Mets asking us why we aren’t renewing one of our plans. Here’s a comment from a friend from yesterday:

So I got a call from the Mets asking about my Sunday plan renewal. This morning. At 9:30 am.

I happened to be up. But I did comment that it was a bit early to be calling people on a Sunday morning.

I went on to tell the guy that I was unhappy about having to buy weekday games with a Sunday plan, with the seats, and with being refused club access/being treated like a second class citizen despite ponying up money in advance. I also said that if Dave Howard says he wants to hear outrage, I wanted to note my outrage on the record. The poor guy on the phone, who seemed like a nice enough kid, did say that they have indeed heard a lot of outrage.

He said the Mets are looking into how to improve things for their fans. I commented that they should treat their fans as well as other teams do.

I wasn’t eloquent. Then again, for 9:30 on a Sunday morning, I wasn’t bad either.

Yes, they are “looking into”  how to improve things, just like they’re “looking into” the Hall of Fame they planned on “all along,” just like they’re “looking into” branding the ballpark WITH THE NAME OF THE TEAM THAT PLAYS THERE… I’ll stop now.

Anyone else get a call? I know about the guy who got called a “bad fan” (which doesn’t surprise me, as I believe that is truly what the organization thinks of us). Would love to hear your comments if you got a call and if you did, what you told them.

Saturday, December 19, 2009

SANTA MET.

This was the scene out at Citi Field early this afternoon. Mr. Met was posing for holiday photos, which was a task we prioritized ahead of running to the grocery store. I told Santa Met that I wanted Matt Holliday and Jason Bay for Christmas. He got very excited and clasped his hands together in the prayer position.

(Yes. I am five years old.)

We were just happy we weren’t the only adults who were there without children.

The new cream-colored jerseys were out, but the lighting was abysmal, and I couldn’t get any photos that were representative. (And to be honest, we were trying to get out of there as quickly as possible before BLIZZARD OF DEATH 2009.) Also, they have emptied out about 2/3 of the store, which we’re guessing is because that’s where the Hall of Fame is going to go. You know, the one they planned on having all along. Other than that, the place looked about the same as usual.

(In case you’re wondering why our photo isn’t on here, we’re saving it for the holiday card!!)

Sorry, I forgot I had turned commenting off while I was on vacation. It’s back now.)

Friday, December 11, 2009

HAPPY CHANUKAH.

Greetings on the Festival of Lights to my readers of the Hebraic faith. I am out of town for a few days, so have disabled comments until my return. See you next week.