The Mets Police

And our 19th alternate New York Mets cap is when I finally snap.  This is a New Era 5950 New York Mets (BLK/ORNG).  Of course it is!





I feel like I have seen this design somewhere before.   What an interesting licensed New York Mets product this is.   Perhaps they should wear something like this on a throwback day...but what would it be throwing back to?  The Dodgers never wore anything like this.

It seems so familiar, I just can't place this.














This cap on the left is a 1951 New York Giants hat.  It is completely different.  It has an orange button on top.



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So much has been made of the fact that the Mets & the Wilpons almost go overboard in honoring the memory of the Brooklyn Dodgers while ignoring that other New York NL team, the Giants.

Well, looks like the Mets did decide to recognize the Giants - they just didn't tell anyone about it.

Take a look at the outfield wall at Citi Field. Notice the colors?

Black and orange

Shannon and I looked but could not see that specific combination anywhere else in the park.

Those were the Giants colors.

Now whether it was inadvertent or deliberate, who knows. Regardless it's nice to think that the Giants are being recognized (after all, they did win more World Series than that Brooklyn team).

Citi Field Wall Apr 3, 2009 by Mets View Album Play slideshow

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Always a good thing when someone remembers that there was a baseball team in New York called the Giants.   Fred Dodgers Wilpon likes to ignore them (unless there's a Mel Ott statue at Citi Field I haven't been told about, and no "green seats" doesn't honor the Giants any more than the Orioles do).

Merkle's Boner.  You've heard of it, but what is it.   The Times hooks it up....

On Wednesday, Sept. 23, 1908, the New York Giants and the Cubs were embroiled in a 1-1 tie before 20,000 fans at Harlem’s old Polo Grounds. It was a critical contest, the Giants clinging to a one-game lead over Chicago. With two outs in the bottom of the ninth and New York’s Moose McCormick on first, Merkle, a 19-year-old rookie first baseman making his first start, slammed a single into right field that sent McCormick to third.

“At that, I could have gone to second easily, but with one run needed to win and a man on third, I played it safe,” Merkle remembered later. It was a decision that would haunt him for the rest of his life.

Before Bartman, There Was Merkle 

By KEVIN BAKER

Published: September 23, 2008

A hundred years later, think Chuck Knoblauch meets Steve Bartman, and you will have some idea of the enormity of Fred Merkle’s blunder.

Read this.

The formerly New York Giants are inviting back all their great outfielders, including Bonds.  Bonds by the way holds both home run records and is guilty of nothing.  Good for the Giants.

Interestingly there is no mention of whether or not Willie Mays is coming.  (Thanks to Mike & Mike for that catch).

So the Giants and their 50 year hostory can honor their team, but certain other teams are more interested in the history of the formerly Brooklyn Dodgers than their own history.

What gives Fred?

So let's retire #17 once and for all.   You can visit Mets By The Numbers for a list of all the castoffs, jokes and wanna-be's that have been issued this number - they are pretty darn casual handing it out when they protect #24 with a sword.    Keith was the Captain (the Gary co-captain nonsense was weak), he's revered by the fans, The Former Franchise wants no part of us, and Keith on SNY has seemed enjoying being "The Great Keith Hernandez."



So it's good for him, good for us, good for the franchise.   When there are 17 games left at Shea, tell Fernando Tatis his new number is 24, and hand a 17 on the fence.   Wouldn't mind a statue of a certain pitcher that doesn't love us, and another of Keith Hernandez outside Citi Field.



If they retire The Great Dodger's #31 before they retire Hernandez you will see many a cranky post.   Keith means way more to this franchise than the catcher from the Dodgers did, and there's already way too much Dodgers action over at N'Ebbets Field as it is.



Welcome to the Jonathan Niese bandwagon.  It starts here and it starts now.  I will be accepting members until the end of the year.   If you wait until the spring then you are just trendy.    If you don't know who Niese is, no need to apply.



John Maine needs to learn to get out of the fourth inning or I will have to give him the nickname of Four Inning.    I wonder if Maine is nice to 70 year old Irish ladies (inside blog joke, scroll down 20 posts).



I like this kid Reyes.   No not the overrated one at SS that everyone put in the Hall of Fame in 2006 - the Argenis one.  Scrappy.  Came from nowhere without annoying hype.  Doesn't pull out his shirt three seconds after the final out. 



Surprisingly, for a crank like me, I don't hate this sign.  But here's the deal Mets:



This stadium is called Citi Field.



That's it. 



Don't in four years tell me Citibank was sold and now you want me to call it Estadio Del Banco Popular or The WaMuDome.



The name of the stadium is Citi Field and shall be, until you move to Mercury in 2021 as previously announced.   Hopefully by that time I will be a billionaire, and will buy the San Francisco Giants and move them to New York and take back the logo and rename the Mel Ott Rotunda.



You think it's crazy to suggest they will rename it?  Here's some lines from The Times:

In the past three quarters, it (Citigroup) has lost $17 billion — including a $2.5 billion loss reported on Friday — caused by $38 billion in credit losses and write-downs for bad mortgage investments. Since early 2007, the company has cut about 28,000 jobs.

I also really appreciate this dig from the same article.

Losses or not, there is no stopping the Citi Field deal, even if some of its laid-off employees may not be able to afford to take their families to a game, or even if some of them could have been retained with the $20 million a year being spent on baseball.

If The Rays win, you get a donut.



Nice to see Joe Torre get the Formerly Brooklyn Dodgers into first place on Friday night to celebrate Joe's birthday.





At 7pm tonight I will post another Open Letter To The Giants about the horrible crime against humanity called a Personal Seat License.   Why again do you need a new stadium? 



Mets-Reds reminds me of the Orosco/McDowell game.   There was something in the air that night, I think everyone saw that game.  It probably has something to do with the Mets putting half their games on cable TV, excpet Queens wasn't even wired for cable (oh for a time machine and Mets Police 1980s) - so that was a Channel 9 game, which was an increasingly rare bird, so we probably all watched.   Anyway - you know the game, a big fight, ejections, Carter at third, and Jesse and Roger taking turns on the mound.  Great great stuff.   Would be one for a DVD if someone has the tape.



The Mets might keep "Nice To Old Ladies But Pitches Four Innings Pedro" skip the Phillies series.  I think that's great because it means the Mets don't have to go to the bullpen in the fifth, plus Pedro can hang around and be nice to seventy year old ladies (I told you, scroll down 20 posts).   Oh wait, Pedro being Pedro means if he ain't pitching he doesn't have to come to Shea.   When Roger Clemens did it in Houston he was selfish, but Pedro is just being Pedro.



I could see Manny Ramirez in left next year.  It seems like the kind of thing Omar does - signs a 37 year old outfielder.   The guy is a Hall of Famer for sure, but much like Four Inning Pedro, he's a Red Sock.  I'd rather lose without him than win with a guy closely identified with another team, and an absolute integral part of their franchise history.



Is Terry Francona like Torre up there in Boston?  He's gotta be, right?  I mean there isn't some 120 year old guy sitting around who also won two rings with Boston is there?



It's hard to take MLS seriously if they are going to play on whatever that was for field in Giants Stadium last night.  What was that, Astroturf?   Why are there football lines and an NFL logo in July.   The former Metrostars can't get a stadium soon enough.





Embrace the AVP.  They are in Brooklyn this weekend.   Misty May and Kerri Walsh came into the weekend having won 90 straight matches (that's them celebrating on the left) and in three weeks you're going to be watching them on NBC every other night during the Olympics.



The men's game is somehow less enjoyable.   Aside from the pretty sights and sounds of the women's game, the men's game just lacks something.  AVP on NBC check it out.

I thought the season might have ended tonight at 7:46pm when the All Star blew it, but they pulled it out.



Now just 3.5 back and back to .500.  Tomorrow is a big game and a real opportunity to put the Phillies on notice, and at least get them thinking about you.



Looking ahead to the Mets Police this week - plenty about teams named Giants.  In about an hour I have an open letter from a football Giants fan to the ownership about the Personal Seat Licenses.



Then on Tuesday and Wednesday the Mets Police have done an investigation in to the baseball Giants, and wait til Fred Wilpon hears what we've uncovered!  He will never believe it!  

Jerry forgot Pedro is a 4 inning pitcher. I like that Jerry has been letting the starters go loner but it was obvious that Pedro was gassed. J-Man took his sweet time getting him.

If you think the Mets look like idiots now, wait until Willie is in pinstripes at the All Star Game ceremonies. On Memorial Day Willie the most hated man in town (after his SNY comments) and now he's a folk hero. Unreal. Hurdle's even talking of letting him manage wearing a Yankee uniform.

"Only strippers get fired at 3am." Thanks to The Guardian for that line.

I wonder when the Mets are going to tell us how much tickets at Citi Field will cost. I guess this isn't the week to tell us they are jacking them up (again).

I love that MLB emails me to remind me to scalp tickets on stubhub. Organized scalping. Gotta love it.

Bill Madden has a Mazzilli factoid I did not know: Angelos and the team's attorneys drafted a statement of support for Palmeiro and asked Mazzilli to sign it. He refused, telling the lawyer he would have nothing to do with supporting a player who had lied to him, lied to his son and lied to Congress about taking steroids. Two days later, Mazzilli was fired. Also, by the way, in Anaheim.

Weekly NASCAR mention: Road courses suck. Stop with these. I'm not watching today.

Weekly Soccer mention: Go Spain! My adopted team takes on Italy today. I know you're watching.

Finally, I leave you with this link because it gets into the Giants-ignoring that the Wilpons do:

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/30386-New-York-Mets-Have-Worst-Ownership-in-Baseball

When the Mets added black to their uniforms in the late '90s, Wilpon claimed that it was in honor of the old NY Giants, whose colors were orange and black. There might be some piece of the new facility dedicated to the Giants, perhaps a men's room or a closet in the upper deck. The old Giants fans, many of whom are now Mets fans, cannot believe the balls on Fred Wilpon. The New York Giants actually had a bigger fanbase than the Dodgers. They had more World Series wins and just as many Hall of Famers. But Fred doesn't want you to know about that. The Giants? @#$% the Giants!!

Well not really but you paused enough to recoil in horror didn't you? That's actually the Giants, from which the Mets borrow the NY and for which the seats at Citi Field will be green. (The Mets join the Orioles in honoring the New York Giants with green seats).

In other uniform news, the Mariners were able to wear spanish language jerseys without looking like idiots. When translated, "Mets" is "Mets" and "Mariners is Marineros." "Los Mets" is "The Mets" which is why the Los Mets jerseys are awful.

(credit to uni watch for all this, except the sarcasm - that's mine.)

Cool link here about The Curse of Eddie Grant.

Some say that it's the reason the San Francisco Giants never win.

Others say it's the reason that every single free agent that comes to Shea leaves his best game with another team.

Others still say it causes New York national league managers to lose their mind and say willy words like "machete."

http://underwood.mlblogs.com/archives/2006/05/the_curse_of_ed.html

Legend has it, the only way a curse can be lifted on a franchise is to admit that a team other than the Dodgers once played here.

The Mets Police salute famous New York baseball fan Short Round.

Not sure where he got this hat - it has Yankee coloring, but a Giants logo. (Feel free to correct me.) Maybe he liked both teams. Maybe I'm not an expert in hats.

Here's some Giants hats here but don't tell Fred Wilpon.

http://www.dugout-memories.com/newgia.html

ESPN discusses the new Citi Field, and has even bought the complete nonsense that green seats is a tribute to the New York Giants.

Link below. Nothing you haven't heard already.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/wire?section=mlb&id=3394539&campaign=rsssrch&source=new+york+mets

Another in a long series of ignoring another baseball team ever played in New York City.

"The love of the game and this city is in my DNA," Wilpon said. "I've lived here all my life. People have asked me why I am building a smaller stadium . I didn't build a smaller stadium to make money. I'm doing it because that is the way to give fans the best experience of being close, like in Ebbets Field."

The rest in today's Newsday
http://www.newsday.com/services/newspaper/printedition/sunday/sports/ny-spwilpon045673509may04,0,3897483.story

Wow. I can't believe it. It's as if New York never had a team that won 10 pennants and played at the Polo Grounds!

Green seats? Really? Green Seats are the shout out to the Giants? I'd like to thank the Orioles for honoring the Giants too.

Newsday.com
Giants fans won't be forgotten at Citi Field
Ken Davidoff

Gary Mintz of South Huntington, a Giants fan dating back to their days in the Polo Grounds, e-mailed me last week with this concern:"At the meeting of the New York Giants Baseball Nostalgia Society [recently], many of the members (all in their 60s through 80s) feel slighted that Mr. Wilpon has made Citi Field look like Ebbets Field and are honoring Jackie Robinson with the rotunda."Granted, he is the owner of the team, and the one who pays the bills.

But the old-timers feel that since the Mets took the orange of the Giants when they were formed, something in the stadium should honor the N.Y. Giants, whether it be a section or the like."That seemed like a reasonable question, so I took it to Mets COO Jeff Wilpon Tuesday. And Wilpon took me to Citi Field itself, to convey the message that, while the Dodgers - Fred Wilpon's favorite team as a Brooklyn youth - do get the majority of the love, you long-time Giants fans were not forgotten.While I'm not quite old enough to have made it to the Polo Grounds, it seems that Mintz and his fellow Giants loyalists will be heartened by two elements of the new, impressive ballpark:The seats are dark green, just like those at the Polo Grounds.

(WHAT??? Are you kidding me??? Green Seats = Remember The Giants??? Please.)

This serves a direct tribute to the Mets' first home, according to Dave Howard, the team's executive vice president of business operations.Citi Field's outfield features a plethora of unique angles and wall heights, as did the Polo Grounds. Consider this more of an indirect shout-out. "We looked at pictures of the Polo Grounds that made you think about it," Wilpon said.Wilpon wanted me to see the outfield because it was hard for him to put into words, and even after seeing it, it's difficult to describe it to you. The key area is right-centerfield. That's where the fence slams on the breaks and takes a sharp turn. It's not as deep as Fenway Park's "triangle" in centerfield. It's more of a right angle than a triangle. It should prove challenging for outfielders, and memorable for fans.Rightfield also has the upper-deck overhang in fair territory, reminiscent of the old Tiger Stadium, that should be manna to lefty pull hitters who can regularly put the ball in the air.The heights of the walls, too, stand out. The fence rises as high as 18 feet in left-centerfield, where it's 379 feet from home plate, and then down to eight feet in dead center, which rests 408 feet from the batter's box. In rightfield, where it's about 370 feet for a homer, it's back up to 14 feet.It's anything but a perfect replica of the Polo Grounds. But it's quirky like the Giants' long-time home, and its uniqueness will strike you - and, the Mets hope, their opponents, once Carlos Beltran and his corner outfielders get the hang of it."A lot of people said, 'Why don't you make it symmetrical?' " Jeff Wilpon said. "But symmetrical is not going to make it work. We want a homefield advantage."They should have that, and the old-time New Yorkers should possess some sense of comfort that the Mets know they are the National League descendants of both the Dodgers and the Giants.The ballpark, by the way, is scheduled to be completed on Jan. 25 of next year, giving the Mets a healthy 10 weeks or so of room for error.

NICE TRY METS. NICE TRY. WE'RE WATCHING YOU. YOU'RE NOT THE DODGERS AND YOU WILL NEVER BE THE BROOKLYN DODGERS. HONOR THE GIANTS CORRECTLY.