World Series memories are very personal. They don’t have to be about who won and who lost. One of my first memories of the World Series was in 1963 when the Yankees faced the Dodgers. In game one, Sandy Koufax dominated, striking out fifteen Yankees. But what I remember is that I didn’t have school that day because of a Jewish holiday. (Koufax still pitched since it was the day...
Read MoreAs I had mentioned in my previous post, it has been nearly a year since the Mets acquired J.J. Putz from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for a bevy of players. When they acquired the hard throwing righty, the Mets envisioned having a proven closer that could fill in the closer’s role if needed. However, as usual, things did not work out as planned for the Mets. Throughout his brief season...
Read MoreLast off-season, I started writing a series of columns that profiled each member of the Mets bullpen and analyzed their performance in the previous season. At the conclusion of each article, I would make a determination on whether or not I thought the pitcher should be brought back. The articles, for the most part, were met with solid reader reception so this year we will continue the tradition....
Read MoreThere is so much talk about what the Mets need next year. Should we build a team to take advantage of the CitiField dimensions? That means pitching, defense, and speed. Maybe the answer is yes. But you cannot ignore the need for power in the lineup. Here are some interesting statistics. The Mets had 93 homerless games during the 2009 season: 46 at CitiField and 47 on the road. The...
Read MoreI just finished reading Michael Shapiro’s very good baseball book, Bottom of the Ninth. This book focuses on the efforts of Branch Rickey, William Shea, and other would be baseball owners, and their efforts to get major league baseball (the owners) to allow major league expansion. A secondary, and probably unneeded storyline focuses on Yankee manager Casey Stengel’s final years with...
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