Wednesday, July 16, 2008

MINDLESS DRIFTER ON THE ROAD.

I’d like to award the first MetsGrrl “Hello Kitty” Award to the following individuals:

1. BILLY WAGNER.
2. DAN UGGLA.
3. BRAD LIDGE.

I also dedicate the Neil Young original composition from which the title of this post comes from. (No Googling!)

I finally went to bed around 1am, and I remember the radio saying “...and we’re going to the 15th.” I also remember hearing the crowd screaming and hearing Justin Morneau was sliding into home and hitting the radio so hard to shut it off that I consider myself lucky that I still have a radio this morning...unlike TBF, who broke his clipboard - he always keeps score during the All-Star Game - after Wagner blew it. I wanted to include photographs of the carnage, but he duct-taped it together and I was waiting for the game to be over before posting.

I’ll leave my one other comment to my friend Lisa, a card-carrying member of Red Sox Nation. I think it says it all:

Did you stay up for that game?  Holy crap that was long.  Do you
remember where they were playing?  It is on the tip of my tongue…

Karen emailed me this morning that NY has this *other* baseball team
and they are called something crazy like The Metropolitans.  I told
her she was losing it and next she was going to tell me they are going
to put a man on the moon.

Monday, July 14, 2008

I BELIEVE IN MIRACLES.

I used to be on an endless run
Believe in miracles ‘cause I’m one
I have been blessed with the power to survive
After all these years I’m still alive…

There’s a Ramones song that’s a big favorite of mine. It’s not one of the songs that everyone, including my mother, would know, it’s not “Rockaway Beach” or “Blitzkrieg Bop” or anything that you’d hear on a commercial or played at a Yankees game. The song is called “I Believe In Miracles,” and if you know the name of the album it was on without Googling, you’re definitely a diehard, because it came out in 1989, long after what’s historically considered their heyday (if they even had one, which is both a shame and a national tragedy).

I thought of this song as I watched Josh Hamilton tonight. In the world of rock and roll, we are accustomed to losing and ruining our best and brightest. Addiction and abuse is glorified and saluted, and no one ever believes that someone has conquered their demons and made it through to the other side, it seems like too many people are waiting for them to slip and fall again. Josh Hamilton could have gone the way of many, but he didn’t. He came back when no one would have ever believed it. And watching him tonight, thinking of the the people who gave him a chance and the people who stood by him, listening to that jaded Yankee-centric crowd show they really do have a heart, was awe-inspiring. Feeling as one with every single person who sat on the edge of their couches at home, rooting for him, should have made the most jaded curmudgeon a little misty. The fact that this was a dream that he’d had, but had never been brave enough to tell anyone about made it an even better story, and watching him trying to hit one out onto the IRT tracks, after he sat in the press conference and told everyone he was going to do it is a story that should make anyone feel better about life.

I’m just sorry he didn’t do it.

Yeah, Justin Morneau won - and it couldn’t have gone to a nicer guy - but tomorrow morning, everyone in the subway and the bus and the playgrounds and the diners and the lunchrooms and the water coolers is going to be talking about Josh Hamilton. And maybe there is some guy or gal out there struggling with their own addiction who might just feel a little bit of strength from it. Maybe some people I know, maybe some people you know.

So Josh, this one’s for you.

Eddie Vedder & Zeke cover “I Believe In Miracles” [mp3, 3.1mb]

REVOLUTION 9.

Friday night, we were cautiously optimistic, still. Good Oliver or Bad Oliver? Would there be bats? Would there be hits? Would there be runs? The 2008 Mets we know are the ones who stomp all over the Yankees and then lose to the Mariners, remember?

Going home, we thought: okay, one game. Nicely played.

Saturday afternoon, arriving later than we wanted to (we became Those People who arrive in the third inning, through no fault of our own), we watched Pedro pitch well, the rest of the Mets play well, and, astonishingly, win again. We came home full of plans to go Sunday night, and were creeping around eBay and StubHub when TBF got a call that he had to go home for the evening, and wouldn’t make it home in time.

I’m still not sure why I didn’t just pack up my scorecard and my camera and go out to Shea myself; MG reader Kelsey, in from Denver, was bravely slogging through a weekend of watching the Mets decide to show up and play and actually beat the Rockies, repeatedly, and I could have just gotten an upper deck ticket and self-upgraded. But nooo, I was going to be all responsible and productive and stuff, and watch the game while tinkering with Wordpress for a much-neglected other project.

Could someone remind me of these kinds of things the next time I misguidedly decide to do something like this? Not only did I have to suffer through Morgan and Miller, I missed an awesome game.

Mike Pelfrey, if the team store doesn’t have a shirt for you, I swear I’m going to make one tomorrow. Hell, my 2008 jersey might just end up having your name and number on it instead.  What a beautiful, brilliant, inspiring effort.

On to the All-Star break.  We’re buying extra tickets to that Phillies series to make up for missing tonight.

P. S. Should we be going to Fan Fest? I mean, we decided not to in the end, but are we being dumb about this?

Sunday, July 13, 2008

READY TO ORDER!

I wanted to find another vendor since CafePress sucks.

MAINE-TALLICA by metsgrrl
Create Customized T-Shirts With zazzle

There is a small profit on each one that I’ll be putting towards my hosting bill.

You can choose size/style and I am assured that the finished product will look even better than the mockup. I ordered a shirt from this vendor for the Crane Pool Forum’s fundraiser and it was a great quality shirt delivered super-fast.

Wednesday, July 09, 2008

THINGS I LIKE.

• Watching Johan Santana in the stretch, taut like an statue of a Roman archer
• Having multiple reasons to break out my CHAVEZ 10 shirt
• Watching Carlos Beltran glide underneath a ball everyone is screaming at like it’s a home run… and he catches it without breaking a sweat or doing Web-Gem-worthy acrobatics
• Watching Carlos Delgado HIT THE BALL. Remember that first playoff game in 06, back when Citifield was nothing more than big concrete towers? And there was a car burning out in the parking lot? Carlos hit one to the car, I’d swear it to this day. It went past the batter’s eye and probably landed in the fire truck there to put out the car fire. He’s hitting like that again. (how do cars catch on fire with such alarming frequency at Shea, anyway?)
• Smiling faces in the dugout. Friday-level smiles. Three-day-weekend smiles. Not rainy-Monday-morning-and-that-damn-presentation-is-due smiles. Jose Reyes high-beam smiles. Carlos Delgado Cheshire Cat smiles.
• The parade of changing facial hair (Pelfrey Church Schneider Beltran etc.) I guess it’s the only real sense of visible fashion they can have when they’re in uniform.
• Watching Duaner come onto the mound, pick up the resin ball, and plunk it on the brim of his hat. (I know why he does it, I just like that he does.)
• Watching David Wright run out to third base and pick up a handful of dirt, which he always does the first time he comes on the field every game
• Watching the parade of dirt-stained uniforms
• High socks
• Blue hats
• Third strikes
• The home run apple lit up and the Dunkin Donuts cup spinning (although that f’ing Joba Chamberlain promotion is making me boycott them for the summer I think)
• The first view of Shea through the 7 train window just after the 103rd street stop

See you Friday.

P.S. A special welcome to MG reader Kelsey, who’s in town from Denver for the Rockies series.

Tuesday, July 08, 2008

COULD IT BE?

[idea totally stolen from Sister Daedalus]

Monday, July 07, 2008

WATCH THAT MAN.

Yes! The Mets won the Phillies series, by a hair and a breath and every other lame analogy you can think of. I really, really want to put some kind of shiny brand new faith in these 2008 Mark II Mets, believe that the proverbial corner has been turned, that whatever wasn’t working last year and this year is starting to work. Yes, I freely admit that all the signs are there, that Reyes has that number 3 in front of his average, that Damion Easley’s own average is somewhere around .290 (I believe), that Carlos Delgado is no longer Carlos Del Whiffo, that David Wright doesn’t have to try to carry the entire team on his shoulders. But who knows? As TBF noted last week, he was reasonably positive that the Mets would go into Philly and take the series—but that he was equally sure that we would get stomped by the Giants and the Rockies next week.

Time, of course, will tell.

We are at Shea only one day this week, on Friday, due to family and other obligations. We had briefly discussed ponying up for tickets to Wednesday’s Santana-Linceceum matchup - until that option was removed from us. (TBF had also said, “Let’s see how we do on Monday,” which I felt was fair enough.)

Speaking of David Wright, I am pleased that he understood (which hopefully means the entire clubhouse understood) why the Mets representation to the All-Star roster was nonexistent. TBF, he of the “take an enormous stack of ballots and spend tv time punching them” school finally tossed out the stack this weekend. We never got around to it because we didn’t care, because it sure looked like they didn’t care. However, I am about to start remedying that online, and so should you. Go vote.

I cannot believe All-Star Week is next week, and that the All-Star Game is going to be in NYC. The subways are already full of Yankee-propaganda All-Star ads, Mariano Rivera’s face looming over 34th and 7th, and other monstrosities that I am sure will need to be borne as the days approach. The Yankee-centricness of the city will increase in volume, and the fact that A-rod managed to get his marital difficulties into the tabloids will only amplify that a million times. Is this as big of a deal in the rest of America as it is here? My god, I hope not.

Saturday, July 05, 2008

ENNUI.

We made a decision to get up early yesterday and GO somewhere. Atlantic City won the coin flip, and as we were getting ready, TBF said, “Of course, we could always consider a spontaneous trip to Philly...” which we then thought better of. Going to CBP now is worse (IMO) than going to the House of Evil. 7-year-old children heckle us in Philly for doing nothing more than applauding our team. TBF hates it even more than I do, because the hassle is always balanced out by the fact that it’s just more comfortable physically to watch a game there.

We did sit and watch some of the game, and kept walking over to a television to see what was going on. Every single time, all I could think was, “We can’t do better than that?” To which the answer is, no, they can’t. And what should follow here is a rehash of what everyone else is saying, but it’s boring. I have no idea what I’m going to write about for the rest of the season.

When we got into town yesterday afternoon, we sat down for lunch while Yankees-Red Sox was on, and all I could think during that game was, “Man, if I was Jason Veritek, I would spend the entire series singing Madonna songs behind the plate.” Or as TBF put it, “Hey, A-rod, are you gonna go my way?”

Wednesday, July 02, 2008

ROBOT HORSE.*

“I like baseball, but the world knows I’m a football guy,” Jon Bon Jovi said at a City Hall announcement Monday. “I own an arena team. I live and love football.”

“Major League Baseball wants All-Star Summer to be the ultimate celebration for baseball fans in New York City,” said Tim Brosnan, the executive vice president for business for Major League Baseball.

Okay, who woke up and decided that Jon Bon Jovi was going to become the official rock band of Major League Baseball? Has Bud Selig ever *listened* to Bon Jovi? I know I have bitched in the past about the various country bands getting in on the act, but at least I feel like they were genuine choices that represented a majority of MLB fans, not to mention their players. I am trying very hard to figure out how this decision was made, except for the one that’s most obvious to me: it’s the one most likely to appeal to the white frat boy type, at least in the minds of someone at MLB. However, the only people I know that still care about Bon Jovi are women, not that coveted 21-35 male demographic that MLB slavishly worships in a manner not suitable to describe to a family audience.

Why doesn’t this “honor” get to go to an artist who is legitimately a huge baseball fan - or even just a fan? I realize it’s tough to find someone who the world actually knows and cares about, but - the Hold Steady? Pearl Jam? I realize that six people in the world care about The Baseball Project but half that band are in or perform with R.E.M., who are still capable of selling out Madison Square Garden.

Finally, this concert offends me not just because I fucking HATE Jon Bon Jovi more than I hate most bands on this planet, but because it’s such a obvious pander to the white male 21-35 demographic. It’s not representative of the baseball audience in New York City, which is where the All-Star Game is being held. Of course, Mayor Bloomberg would have never ever approved a concert in Central Park with Daddy Yankee or any reggaeton act on the bill (just like he wouldn’t allow the protestors against the RNC in 2005 to use the park, but was a-ok with Dave Matthews being there), which is of course an incredibly popular musical genre amongst the Latino players in the MLB.  (He wouldn’t have approved Metallica or any heavy metal band, either, for what it’s worth.)

Finally, for the highest of high comedy, I present to you the New York Times’ City Room blog (written by the awesome Sewell Chan) discussing the concert. Please be sure to read the comment thread. Do not consume liquids while doing so.

--
*Bonus points and some kind of prize if you can tell me where this reference is from.

RUMORS OF MY DEATH ARE GREATLY EXAGGERATED.

I’ve been trying to gear up any enthusiasm to post, when I read this post by Mike Steffanos over at Mike’s Mets. The post, entitled “Dreariness,” made me feel 100% times better, because if a long-time fan like Mike can’t muster up the enthusiasm to write anything about the Mets, then I’m in good company.

I’m even tired of writing about my issues. For example, I have become incredibly leery of Carlos Delgado. I think he’s acted like a complete and total dick, or at least that’s what the media has made him seen (a distinction I completely recognize). I really, really like Carlos Delgado. I even really, really liked his refusal to stand up for “God Bless America,” because truth be told, if I could get away with it I would too (given our household’s belief that God blesses Bangladesh just as much as s/he blesses America). But the feeling I get is that he doesn’t give a damn any more. I think fans have been racist, and quick to boo, but the booing is because of the situation that Omar and the Wilpons put him in: Omar for keeping him and others around too long, the Wilpons for jacking ticket prices and the eternal specter of Citi Field, a place most of us will not be able to afford, looming over every game they play at home.

...and now I’m running out of steam. Again.

I think it’s time to do some book reviews.