The first all professional baseball team, that is, the first team to pay all of its players, was the 1869 Cincinnati Red Stockings. The team was owned and operated by members of a Ohio Law firm. Since that time, the business of baseball has evolved in countless ways. Player unions, media revenue, sponsorships, advertising dollars, taxpayer funded ballparks, revenue sharing, and collective bargaining agreements are just a few of the many ways the business of [...]

Steve:  Hello. Petey:  Hey Steve? Steve:  Hey. Petey:  How you doin? It’s Pete Shapiro from MetsMerizedOnline.com. Steve:  Hey how’s it going? Petey:  Great how you doin today? Steve:  Not too bad. Petey:  Last time I talked to you was the end of April I guess, something like that, and you had undergone a setback in spring training where you had to shut it down and go back to Alabama to see Dr. James Andrews again. [...]

R.A. Dickey has been a cornerstone of the New York Mets’ early success during the 2012 season. While he had pitched well in the previous two seasons, nobody was expecting a sub-3.00 ERA, thirteen wins and an All-Star appearance. His success has presented the Mets with a dilemma, and the team must decide whether to keep Dickey or trade him. * How will the Mets perform?  The Mets were one of the surprise teams of [...]

The buzz all week in New Britain was all about one player, and it wasn’t top Twins prospect Oswaldo Arcia that everyone was talking about. When I initially arrived at the Stadium on Monday, I went first to the press-box to drop off my lap-top, and other assorted in-game items I require. I was about to drop my gear and race down to the dugout to see if there was any life down there yet, [...]

Louisville 5, Buffalo 4 By Sean Kenny After a great outing by Colin McHugh, the Bisons bullpen blew the lead in the eighth, and lost the game in the ninth by the score of 5-4. Colin McHugh had a phenomenal outing today, going six and two-third innings, allowing five hits, no runs, one walk and five strikeouts. Colin was throwing strikes, and throwing strikes will always leave a pitcher in a great position to pick [...]

Mets Season Prospects Coming off a series sweep by the Atlanta Braves that left nothing undamaged and a series loss to the Washington Nationals, the New York Mets season appears to be in jeopardy. While the Mets started the season with a respectable win-loss ratio (46-43) at the All-Star break, the second half is off to a rocky start. It is too soon to call the season over at this point, but as the days slip away, [...]

I asked Brandon Nimmo if he had a few minutes to spare at some point before the game against the Hudson Valley Renegades on Sunday. He said, “when?” I said, “you tell me, anytime your available.” He turned around and caught the eye of his hitting coach Bobby Malek who simply nodded, and Nimmo turned back to me and said, “I have time now.” Here’s the rest of what transpired: Petey:  I’m talking to Brandon [...]

Most brothers grow up doing almost everything together. They go to school together, hang out in the same circle of friends, and often play the same sports with one another. Be it baseball, football or whatever sport under the sun, said brothers will usually go from little league, to high school, to maybe even collegiate ball playing with or against one another. Most however, can only dream of getting the chance to play with one another at [...]

A couple of weeks ago I had a chance to send out a few general questions to our old pal Tejesh of Mets Prospect Hub. Tej was kind enough to take some time to share his thoughts about the Mets with regard to the First Year Player Draft and some other minor league things I threw at him. Duck! 1. Let’s begin with the just completed draft. You have Courtney Hawkins, Lucas Giolito and Gavin [...]

In the 2011 MLB Draft, the Mets used their sixth round selection on a high school outfielder from Pennsylvania named Joe Tuschak. Tuschak is a speedy left-handed hitter with some pop, and a talented defender. With the Rookie League season starting up today, I wanted to get this interview posted since I actually spoke to Joe two weeks ago, but was too busy to finish up the transcription. At the time we spoke Joe was [...]