Well if you were listening to the Mike Francesa show at three o’clock yesterday afternoon you heard a war. You see clogging up the airways yesterday was a modern day ” Battle of the Bulge between resident know it all Mike ” The Sports Dope ” Francessa and Chris ” Pangea” Carlin. Francesa had Carlin on the show to clear up a report where Carlin had intoned that UCONN Mens Basketball coach Jim Calhoun  might retire.  A local Conneticut paper ripped Carlin is a article and Mike figured he would have Chris on to clear the air - or at least one might think that why he had him on the air. Francesa went on to rip Carlin a new third orifice about how he’s a journalist and why would Carlin report something that was a non- story since Calhoun never admitted that he’s retiring. Carlin getting quite irked explained that he had inside information  that said he “might ” ( key word - might) retire but Carlin never said that he “was ” retiring. The battle of the words became even more heated with Mike pretty much intimating that Chris was irresponsible for going with the story and that Carlin should name his sources ( a journalism 101 no-no - shame on you Mikey !) and Carlin held his ground and refused to take abuse from Francesa. When Francesa saw that he wasn’t going to win this battle of the porcine gods, he called Carlin a clown and abruptly hung up on Carlin - very classy Mike ! Oh and in a bit of disclosure Mike did admit that he has a relationship with Calhoun , so is it quite possible that Mike had a personal axe to grind with Carlin? - Or did Chris steal Mike’s last Diet Coke before he left for SNY ?

Now back to the Mets. Chris Carter continues to make a case for him self, hitting a two run home run is yesterdays loss to the Atlanta Braves. Jonathan Neise had a shaky first inning where he gave up three runs on two hits, walking two. The other fifth starter candidate, Fernando Neive also gave up three runs in three innings, while Bobby Parnell pitched one scoreless and minor leaguer Eric Niessen gave up a walk off homer that ended the game.

It was reported by Tim Dierkes over at www.mlbtr.comthat Kelvim Escobar is considering retirement if is surgically repaired shoulder doesn’t improve. He goes on to say that Escobar , who signed a $1.5MM contractwith the Mets in December World “ further weaken the already-thin New York bullpen and it certainly wouldn’t look good on the Mets given the team’s myriad of injuries last season.” So the media’s negative bent on the Mets continues .

                                     ” That was no earthquake that was Mike & Chris fighting !”

And with that said … HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!

Happy Birthday wishes go out to the late Dock Ellis (1945)  - the only known pitcher to ever pitch a no- hitter on L.S.D.  Unfortunately the no - hitter happened early in his career when he was Pittsburgh Pirate and by the time he came to the Mets in ‘79 he was a shell of his former dominant self.

Pitcher from the ‘02 team, Steve Reed is 45 ( 1965). Steve will forever be known as the player the Mets traded Jason Bay for !

And don’t forget there are just 25 Amos Otis days until the Mets open their 2010 season against the Florida Marlins at Citi Field .

Well the one thing that we can definitely say about the Mets spring training games so far is that they have definitely not been boring. If anything the Mets offense has been on fire scoring over thirty runs in their last three days alone, spearheaded with homers by David Wright, Fernando Martinez, Mike Jacobs and that concussion grenade that was the Ike Davis grand slam ! The problem lies thus far with the pitching. While Jonathan Neise looked impressive in his first start this past Tuesday, yesterday Mike Pelfrey took his first start of the grapefruit league season , and he looked downright rusty. He let up four runs ( three earned) in three innings and his control was spotty at best. Both Sean Green and Eddie Kunz looked better yesterday than they did in their previous efforts, but we need them to be consistent. I know it is only spring training and the games don’t mean anything i, but I have no worries about the Mets offense this year - I think the Mets numbers will be among the tops in the Majors. It is the pitching that I am more worried about, because if this team morphs into the late ’80’s early ’90’s Yankees we will be a better team than last year, but we will be mediocre at best. We need Maine, Perez, Pelfrey (and whoever the fifth starter will be) to give quality starts and better than average performances. They need to keep the pressure of both the offence and the bullpen as well as Johan, because the last thing we need is a repeat of ‘07 and ‘08 where the starting pitching was barely making it to the sixth inning for most of the season - tiring out the bullpen which totally went nuclear down the stretch , which put added pressure on the offence to score more runs to protect the lead. But I still have faith in this rotation, I do believe they will be above average, and who knows they might even surprise us. But they need to throw strikes and throw strikes consistently .

                                      ” Hopefully Mike can serve up a better season than he did last year !”

And with tht said … HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!!!

Happy Birthday wishes go out to the original Mets back up first baseman,Ed Bouchee (1933) .

One of the better Mets pitchers from their first four seasons, Galen Cisco is 74 (1936) . In his four year stint with the Mets he went 18-43 with a e.r.a. of 4.04 .

Middle reliever from the the ‘93 - ‘94 seasons, Mauro Gozzo is 44 (1966) .
Future Hall Of Fame second baseman ( and all around malcontent with the Mets) Jeff Kent is 42 (1968) .

Los Angeles Dodgers signed one time “can’t miss”  first base prospect,Craig Brazell of the New York Mets as a free agent on March 7, 2006.
And while you are watching today’s game versus the Washington Nationals on SNY, just remember that there are just 29 Dave Magadan days until the Mets open the 2010 season against the Florida Marlins at Citi Field.

One Month to go.
One month until baseball comes back to Citi Field.
Thirty days until ” meaningful games”.
One month before Jose steals his first base.
Thirty Days until Johan wins his first game.
One month until David, Jason, Frenchy and the Murph hit their first home runs.
Thirty Days until we see amazing fielding plays being made.
One month until Frankie notches his first save.
Thirty days until the demons from ‘09 are exorcised.
And sixty days until Carlos Beltran comes back to the line up ! (knock wood !)
One month the BELIEVE !!

                                                                      ” I think this says it all!!!”

And with that said … HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!!

Happy Birthday wishes go out to the Mets third base coach from ‘97 - ‘00 , Cookie Rojas (1939)

Los Angeles Dodgers signed backup catcher Rick Wilkins of the New York Mets as a free agent on March 6, 1999.

New York Mets signed free agent Tony ” Bong Hit” Tarasco on March 6, 2001. It appeared that he hit the bong more than he hit the baseball and was not resigned by the Mets after the ‘01 season had ended.

New York Mets signed free agent relief pitcher, Orber Moreno on March 6, 2003.
And don’t forget - There are just thirty Mike Scott ( he wore the number 30 when he was a Met) days until the Mets open the 2010 season against the Florida Marlins at Citi Field.

Okay guys it is time to settle down about Jose Reyes and his recently diagnosed case of Hyperthyroidism. I was talking with Mrs. Rustyjr who is a hospital pharmacist ( read : legalized drug dealer) and she said that all this could be is that the lab results that came back might have indicated his thyroid levels may be slightly elevated than normal, And if his he is suffering from a over active thyroid it is easily treatable with the medications Tapazole and PTU.
A cousin from the maternal side of my wife’s family was diagnosed with this syndrome while she was pregnant in her later 20’s . Both she and her 20 year old son live healthy active lifestyles . The only thing we have to worry about is not the treatment( if this proves to be a minor occurrence) , but how all this will effect Jose’s psyche.

                                                                         ” Don’t worry - Jose is strong like bull !!!”

And with that said …. HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!!!

Happy Birthday wishes go out to outfielder from ‘64- 66 Larry Elliot (1938) . He was traded in ‘67 to the Kansas City A’s for veteran third baseman and all time Mets great Ed ” The Glider” Charles.

The relatively unknown pitcher from the ‘69 team Les Rohr is 64 (1946) .
Pitcher from the ‘90 team , Kevin Brown is 44 (1966) And no he is not the same Kevin Brown who pitched for the Dodgers!

And don’t forget - There are just 31 Mike Piazza days until the Mets open the 2010 season against the Florida Marlins at Citi Field.

Well I have to admit that I wasn’t able to hear the ” General” Jerry press conference yesterday. But from the comments that I saw in regards of inserting Jose Reyes into the third spot in the batting order - I do believe the man is as clueless as Col. Klink ! I have to disagree with my fellow brother in Mets Blue and Orange - Kingman25 when he says this might be a brilliant idea because it will bring balance to the batting order. The way I see it Jose - like Lenny Dykstra is a prototypical lead-off hitter. Generally when Jose first comes to bat it is usually a barometer of how the game will go ( If he gets on base he will more times than not get himself into scoring position, and eventually score). I do agree that Jose can successfully bat in any slot of the order since he has speed, ample power and good baserunning instincts. I don’t think that Angel Pagan can be trusted in number one slot neither do I believe Luis ” Slappy” Castillo can either. Speaking of Castillo, I believe he is best suited in either the two ( like Wally Backman) or the eight slot in the batting order. The problem with Luis ( or Jerry Manuel) is that he is more prone to sacrifice the runner over with no outs to put them into scoring position than to try to hit away and find a hole in the infield. Remember how that drove us fans crazy last year because it killed many a rally ?!? But the choice ultimately lies with Jerry . He is the manager ( god help us) and he makes the in game decisions. Lets just hope he is wise with this decision and let us hope that Jose really embraces batting where ever in the order he is slotted. Because a happy Jose will go along way - and remember the old saying “ As Jose Reyes goes - The team goes “.

                                                     ” Who is the better  strategist?”

And now … ON WITH THE INFAMY !!!

Happy Birthday Phil Lombardi (1963), the one time fourth string catcher for the ‘89 team.

Utility outfielder and all around punk from the ‘04 team Shane Spencer is 38 (1972) .

Starting pitcher from last season - Livan Hernandez is 35 ( YEAH RIGHT !!! ) (1975) .

New York Mets signed free agent Don Aase on February 20, 1989. It’s funny because exactly a year later - The Los Angeles Dodgers signed Don Aase of the New York Mets as a free agent on February 20, 1990.

New York Yankees signed Dwight Gooden of the New York Mets as a free agent on February 20, 1996. This was the ultimate slap in the face for us Mets fans ! Yes Darryl was successful in a limited role for the Yanks. But Dwight showed flashes of the stuff that endeared us Mets fans to him - and the most painful thing is that he pitched a no - hitter for the enemy ! Look I was one of the jilted fans that called for his release after his last relapse and suspension in ‘94, but I felt that the Mets at the very least should have reached out to him to give him another shot - instead of his comeback being splashed on the covers of local papers in a Yankee uniform. And to have him shut us down in the 2000 World Series was hard to swallow!

New York Mets signed free agent Tony Clark on February 20, 2003.Tony Clark was a good addition for the Mets. He stepped in for the ailing Mo Vaughn ( insert joke here) and he played rather well.

And while we wait for Rob Barajas to sign with the Mets just remember - There are only 44 days until the Mets open the 2010 season against the Florida Marlins at Citi Field.

First Off I would like to take the time out to thank everyone here associated with the Real Dirty Mets Blog for their kind words and concerns about my wife Jeanne who recently had surgery. She is doing fine but is relegated to bed rest for at least a week.

It’s funny. Yesterday I was pondering the ‘06 season and what might have been. Well actually what I was really wondering is what would have happened if Duaner Sanchez never had gotten into that cab to feed his need for authentic Dominican food. Would Pedro Martinez and Orlando ” El Duque” Hernandez both still have suffered the freak injuries that prevented them from pitching in the post season? If they had pitched in the post season would the Mets still have swept the Los Angeles Dodgers only to lose in seven games to the lowly St. Louis Cardinals ? If Duaner hadn’t been injured would we have beaten the Cards? Are we putting too much stock in both John Maine an Oliver Perez because of the gutsy pitching that they displayed during that post season? I don’t have the answer to many of those questions. But I would venture a guess that if Duaner had ordered room service that night the Mets would have been celebrating their first World Series win in twenty years. But alas you can’t change the past …. your thoughts?

                                    ” Were these men the key to winning the ‘06 World Series?”

And with that being said ….. HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!!
Happy Birthday to journeyman major league catcher who would become a coach for the Mets from ‘92 - 93, Barry Foote (1952) .
Utility-man from the ‘ 92 team - Bill Pecota is 50 (1960). Bill is more famous now for developing the PECOTA system which predicts how a team or it’s players will perform based on their previous stats.

New York Mets signed free agent pitcher, Clem Labine on February 16, 1962. Clem was a pitcher for the legendary ” Boys of Summer ” Brooklyn Dodgers. and he stayed on the Mets roster for just 13 days before being released. In three games with the ‘62 Mets he had no record and a E.R.A of 11.25.
And as we look to February 18th ( Spring Training begins) with open arms, Don’t forget that there are just 48 days until the Mets open the 2010 season against the Florida Marlins at Citi Field.