Tuesday, February 08, 2011

A METS FAN’S GUIDE TO READING THE WILPON COMPLAINT.

“I’ve got the complaint,” TBF said on Friday afternoon. “All 360 pages.” There was some grumbling in his voice, that he hated that he felt he had to read it, but he also felt that he had to read it. There was no way there would be an important legal decision surrounding the New York Mets that he had access to, and wasn’t going to read and form his own opinions about. I was curious myself, given the drama and the volume and general tone of the internets Friday afternoon after the document was unsealed.

By the time I got home on Friday night, around 10 pm, his tone had changed. “There’s a lot of dramatic liberties being taken with the interpretation of the document. It’s called a ‘complaint’ for a reason.” 

I picked it up on Sunday, and I will say this: Friends, I come not to bury the Wilpons, but not to praise them either. But don’t take my word for it, and don’t take the media’s word for it either. Here’s a quick and dirty guide of how to make sense of this document, if you’d like to give it a go.

Monday, February 07, 2011

WHAT IF.

Saturday night, we drove down to Midwood to have pizza at DiFara’s. We always take the same route from North Brooklyn, cutting over to Nostrand, taking Nostrand down to Empire, a right on Empire, and so on down to Avenue J.

When we passed the corner of Empire and Bedford, with the looming towers of the Ebbets Field housing project standing there against the sky, I started Tweeting how it always made me sad to drive by there at almost the same moment TBF raised his middle finger in the New York State salute and said, “Fuck you, Walter O’Malley, where’s my ballpark.”

Monday, January 31, 2011

THE WINTER OF OUR DISCONTENT.

Let’s not forget Dave Howard’s appearance (via telephone) on the Fox Business Channel in August 2009, where he confronted reports that the Mets would have to sell.
He called claims that the Wilpons would sell was “flat-out wrong,” “false,” “irresponsible,” “very disturbing,” “outrageous” and “unfounded,” noting that the team was “not for sale, in whole or in part.”

TBF and I communicate via text message when things are important during the day, since I live in email and he does not. Mostly it’s me sending him news, whether it’s alternate side parking being suspended, Bruce Springsteen being spotted somewhere, Supreme Court decisions, and, of course, the Mets. The quote above is what I got back in email less than five minutes after alerting him to the latest Wilpon situation. Elephants and TBF, they do not forget, not when it comes to the New York Mets.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

EVENT REVIEW: “THE ART OF TELEVISED BASEBALL”

Tonight’s event at the Museum of the Moving Image, “The Art of Televised Baseball” was informative and absolutely fascinating. It was a great off-season diversion for any baseball fan. I learned, I laughed, I missed baseball just a tiny bit less for an hour.

Sunday, January 23, 2011

I WENT TO SEE THE GIANTS WORLD SERIES TROPHY.

When my pal Katie asked me if I wanted to go with her to see the Giants World Series trophy, it seemed like a good idea. I like Katie, it’s the World Series trophy, she just had ACL surgery and has trouble getting around, etc.

When I got on line today outside a bar in the East Village around 2:30 and waited in the freezing cold for the next hour, surrounded by Giants fans in black and orange, it seemed anything but a good idea. Goddamn, but there are a lot of San Francisco transplants in the New York metropolitan area. All of whom decided to suit up and head down to a bar called Finnerty’s on 2nd Avenue, which is a 49’ers bar, but who also has an enormous orange SF painted on the front door, with “2010 WORLD SERIES CHAMPS” in type the size of my head.

It was a little overwhelming.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

SNY & THE ART OF TELEVISED BASEBALL.

This event is Tuesday night at The Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria:

Bill Webb and Curt Gowdy, Jr. in person
A televised baseball game is an unpredictable, multicharacter drama that unfolds in real time. The director and production team make thousands of split-second decisions, cutting between more than a dozen camera angles, and incorporating onscreen graphics and the announcer commentary to make an entertaining, involving show. Emmy-winning director Bill Webb, who directs New York Mets games on SNY, is widely considered to be the best in the business. Curt Gowdy, Jr., senior vice president of production and executive producer for SNY—and son of legendary broadcaster Curt Gowdy—will join Webb in this special behind-the-scenes look at the art and craft of producing a televised baseball broadcast. Their work is on view in a brand new multi-monitor display in Behind the Screen that allows visitors to hear Webb as he calls the plays during a recent broadcast of a Mets vs. San Diego Padres game.

Hey, it’s baseball related!

Monday, January 17, 2011

A TRIP DOWN MEMORY LANE.

So, our DVR is dying. Thanks to the wonderful quality technology that is provided by Time Warner Cable (that’s sarcasm, folks), this will be the third time in six years that we’ve had to replace the DVR. Unfortunately, that also means that we lose everything that’s on the DVR. This time, at least, we had some warning, so we started watching everything. My best friend’s band on Conan O’Brien and then on Jimmy Fallon. The 2006 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame when R.E.M. and Patti Smith were inducted (the original broadcast). Bruce Springsteen on Jimmy Fallon (which I was lucky enough to attend).

And then, of course, the last two games at Shea Stadium, 9/27/08 and 9/28/08....which we had never been able to bring ourselves to watch after the fact.

Friday, December 31, 2010

2010 IN THE REAR VIEW MIRROR.

With time and distance comes peace and acceptance, or something like that. Here below are my favorite baseball memories of 2010:

• Ike Davis’ Debut
• “We Believe In Home Field Advantage”
• Beating the Yankees, especially Francisco Cervelli
• Visiting Target Field
• The “roadtrip” part of going to California & Arizona
• David Wright throwing me a ball during BP at AT&T Park before the game where we had amazing seats
• Getting Rob Dibble fired
• Mike Pelfrey & a puppy
• Baseball’s best mascot starring in the best commercial in the world

My favorite Mets memory of 2010 remains the Jonathon Niese one-hitter. There was enough magic in that night to make up for a lot. Not everything, but a lot.

See you in 2011.

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

HAPPY HOLIDAYS, 2010.

Now, *this* is what I call a Mets-themed holiday card:

I wish I could take credit for it, but this is the completely unique hand-drawn artistry of my colleague-in-blogging, the insanely talented Sam from Roar of the Tigers. She does this kind of stuff all the time over there (including her hilarious Eight Nights of Terrible Chanukah Cartoons), and you should definitely check it out.

Merry Krimble and a festive holiday season to all baseball fans!

Sunday, December 19, 2010

AND NOW, GREINKE.

The objective part of me is all “Well, at least now your choices to see Greinke pitch won’t be the Bronx, Boston or Baltimore” but unobjectively of course I hope we can hit the hell out of him.

It is easier to have pitching crushes on AL pitchers.