Author: Shannon Shark @metspolice

With so many Mets-related people at the conference, it got me thinking about one major Mets employee whos not expected to attend: principal owner Fred Wilpon.There are a lot of reasons for Mr. Wilpon to skip the event. By and large, its a celebration for fans, organized by fans.Its not as if Sandy Alderson will make an appearance, either. Terry Collins wont be at Hofstra, as the Mets will be playing on all three days of the conference.However, I believe Mr. Wilpon has an opportunity to create some goodwill with the fans, perhaps.If he were to show up at the conference, say a few words and show some appreciation for the loyal fans who bleed for this team, through thick and thin, I really think that could go a long way.

via Should Fred Wilpon Make An Appearance at the New York Mets Anniversary Conference at Hofstra?.

Another day another link to the great Faith & Fear…but this time it’s Jason Fry at the keyboard.

Tacky, tasteless, awful. For nearly two decades, those were your Florida Marlins. I could never bring myself to hate them so much as I simply wanted them to go away — to San Antonio or Portland or Contraction, whatever was available first. No, I’m not missing the fact that they were also a constant, gigantic thorn in the Mets’ side. They finished ahead of us in their inaugural season. They sat on our casket in 2007 and then again in 2008. Lots and lots of Marlins I loathed became Mets I loathed just as much if not more. They have as many World Series titles as we do. I am not blind to any of this.

via In Which I Finally Learn to Hate the Marlins « Faith and Fear in Flushing.

As for Jason’s partner Greg Prince – I hope Hofstra crushes today.  I wish I could sneak out but can’t.  Looking forward to Saturday!

Uh oh – I think my “black just doesn’t look good” panel needs a little more work.  Holy crap…

On the 1969 Baltimore Orioles as Cyclops, the 2007 Mets as the lotus fruit, and José Reyes’ free agency as the choice between a six-headed monster and a deadly whirlpool:

“So many stirring moments in The Odyssey can be recast in Mets terms — at least with some creative stretching. The massive Cyclops, putting the immovable boulder at the entrance to his cave so that Odysseus and his men have no chance of getting out alive? Surely those are the 1969 Baltimore Orioles, supposedly unbeatable, yet the Miracle Mets found a way. The lotus fruit, which causes anyone who eats it to stop striving, to just relax and while away the hours? Surely that fruit was consumed by the 2007 Mets, as they complacently sat on their division lead; that team never realized until it was too late that once you eat the lotus, you can’t stop eating it. Scylla and Charybdis, one a six-headed monster, the other a devastating whirlpool? There is no good choice here; whichever way Odysseus’ ship sails, men will die. Surely that was the decision faced by the Mets front office regarding Jose Reyes: the Scylla of signing an injury-plagued shortstop to a long-term contract that would extend well past the point when his greatest asset, his speed, would cease to matter, or the Charybdis of losing their most exciting player to a division rival.”

via Mets Hofstra Conference Excerpt: The Odyssey — The Sports Section.