Every year more than dozen new baseball books hit the shelf at this time of the year. If you only have time to read one, then let me suggest Ron Darling’s new book entitled “The Complete Game”. The book is a wonderful look into the life of a major league pitcher. Darling includes his own trials and tribulations as well as his triumphs and accomplishments. One of the things you’ll notice right away is the [...]

Adam Rubin of the Daily News has been covering the Mets since 2003. He also writes extensively about the Mets minor league prospects for Baseball America. For the third straight year, he takes some time to answer a few questions for Mets Merized Online. Please check out his blog, Surfing The Mets for the latest Mets news.    1. I really loved your piece on Wilmer Flores the other day. My first question focuses on the [...]

Rich Lederer of Baseball Analysts, was kind enough to take some of my questions this week. I frequently visit his website for some great baseball insights. I hope you check it out and add him to your favorites. Enjoy the interview.   The Mets just made great strides in upgrading the bullpen with the additions of Putz and K-Rod. Will that be enough to secure a division title?   The Mets are looking good.  Adding J.J. and K-Rod [...]

 I spoke with author and Sports Illustrated journalist Jeff Pearlman, who wrote the New York Times best selling book on the New York Mets, “The Bad Guys Won”.  The book is a must read, a great gift for any Mets fan, and is available at Amazon.com. In the title of your book, “The Bad Guys Won”, who was the baddest and why? I’d say Lenny Dykstra. He had a certain I-don’t-give-a-f**k approach to life and baseball, and [...]

On Friday, I spoke to former Minnesota Twins pitching prospect, Alex Merricks, who signed a minor league contract with the New York Mets last month, and was invited to participate in Spring Training.   During the 30 minute interview, I spoke with Alex about his return to the game of baseball after being released by the Twins in 2005.   It’s a remarkable story of perseverance and determination from a hard throwing lefthander who did not take the usual [...]

As last season came to a sad close, many of us pushed back our tears and wondered out loud, “How could this have happened to us”.  We searched for answers, but there were none that can console us. We were broken and we needed someone or something to restore our faith. January 5th seemed just like an ordinary day. Most of us were still feeling down, and so far the off season had not been [...]

Here’s the the final part of the interview I did with Steve Popper of the Bergen Record.  JD - Should the Mets get off to a slow start in 2008, and find themselves hovering around .500 and in third place at the All Star Break, should either Willie Randolph or Omar Minaya be worried about their job security? SP: I think Willie Randolph might want to worry this time around if he starts 0-1. Clearly, he was dangling [...]

Yesterday, Steve Popper of the Bergen Record was nice enough to answer a few questions for us. Steve covers the New York Mets for the Record and also has a great blog, Amazin’ Stories which I love to check out each day. Okay, here goes… JD – Before I throw some Mets related questions at you, I’ve noticed that you have been keeping a watchful eye on the latest round of steroids hearings on your blog. It [...]

    This is it guys. The final report card. And today, we’re gonna grade the Coaching Staff and the Management. It’s been a fun ride; these past two weeks have been a blast. Thank you Met fans for believeing and hearing what we have to say. We truly appreciate it. Coaching Staff & Management(Willie Randolph, Omar Minaya, Howard Johnson, Rick Peterson, Rickey Henderson, Sandy Alomar Sr.,  various others) Ryan P. – This season was [...]

Once again, Adam Rubin of the Daily News, took some time to answer a few questions for Mets Merized Online. Adam is the Mets’ beat writer, and is also the author of the book "Pedro, Carlos and Omar." 1. It seems like the Mets’ chances of securing the NL East title, have gotten a lot better with the addition of Luis Castillo, and the healthy returns of Moses Alou and Carlos Beltran. What is the feeling in the clubhouse with most of [...]

I love New York. No, really, I mean it – I looooove New York. Born in Flushing just minutes from Shea, it was inevitable that I would grow up to be a Mets fan. Dad was a die-hard fan; so was Mom. Both were originally Brooklyn Dodgers fans, growing up in Brooklyn. So it was no wonder why they rooted for the team that brought National League baseball back to New York. Taking the blue from [...]