Archie Bunker's Army

SI reports rather ominously considering the Mets roster: "The past five world champs combined have used only four regular position players older than 32. (This excludes DH's, considers the player most frequently used at each of the eight fielding positions and uses July 1 of that season to determine a player's age.) That's 40 players, and only four of them were older than 32: Tim Salmon, then 33, of the 2002 Angels, Bill Mueller, 33, of the 2004 Red Sox, and Jim Edmonds, 36, and So Taguchi, 36, (largely a reserve in October) of the 2006 Cardinals." Perhaps based upon this, SI have also slotted the Mets 5th in the MLB power poll, predict they will win the NL East again this year but lose in the NLCS again this season, this time to the Dodgers. G'won. A Freeway Series , they're calling it. Pshaw. Dream on. ****** Duaner Throws Off Mound, Throws Off Shoulder ***** Meanwhile, the reliever who is only 27, Duaner Sanchez , appears to have broken a bone in h...

6-14-1 in the Spring, that's how the "meaningless" Spring Training reads to date. The Mets teams that have won championships have been moderately successful in Spring Training -- 14-10 in 1969 , 11-13 in 1973 , 13-13 in 1986 , 19-10 in 1988 , 15-16 in 1999 , 14-12 in 2000 and 16-14-1 last year . Their record in 1994 was 21-13. (that's nicked off the mlb site, not my own research, ha!) - Pernt is, there is no history for the Mets to take that kind of losing record from Spring Training and turn it into NL East magic. Spring Training Come Hither Consolation Prize... No one is pushing the panic button and of course even if they were, the panic button is broken this time of year. Willie isn't showing his sweat. "We'll tighten things up a little bit," he says as though the ship is steady and on course. "We've got another 10 days to go, and we'll tighten up a little bit. We will." Well, tighten up as in not so many mistakes or tighten...

What's that greyish matter in the middle of that pan Babu is eyeing? Intestine? The Chef's vomit? A giant worm? In certain circles they are alleging that the Number Five spot in the rotation is down to Park or The Pelfrey . Not to be confused with bats in the belfry . "He was especially charmed with the phrase 'bats in the belfry', and would indubitably substitute it for 'possessed of a devil', the Scriptural diagnosis of insanity." Oh yes lads, this will be one meandering post today which I will try over and over to reign back to the topic at hand, i.e. The Rotation . The first thing I think is hang on, let's not get ahead of ourselves - 5th starter? Who are the others? Glavine , five shutout innings yesterday against the Marlins, sure. El Duque is a muscle injury waiting to happen. John Maine , yes, whilst the auld boy Mr Anna Benson is out for the year with shoulder surgery , the sly move by Omar is still paying dividends. And hey, wh...

You might have been wondering like myself, where the hell are all the articles on Spring Training? Where are the promised positional comparisons with infinite, meticulous, forensic examinations of each team and each player in the NL East? No birthing articles on Mets prospects to date... Well, to use metaphors, the rite of Spring, I will not admit to not actually writing these columns much in the way that players will not admit they are actually hurt and their seasons are probably fecked. No, I will continue to string the fans along with a performance here and there willing my writing arm back to strength, nursing it through bottles of pino grigio and belgian witbeers as the planes fly overhead from Gatwick airport and tinge my outdoor evenings with memories of Shea Stadium and LaGuardia flight patterns. But this is to be about the Mets, not the Army in it's preseason embryonic form. And so we can start off with a few observations to date about the Spring: 1. Maybe Lastings Mil...