Author: Shannon

Posted on

Honoring Gary Carter, Both Here and Abroad

Two organizations honored the memory of Gar Carter this week. First, the Long Island Ducks, an independent baseball team, dedicated their entire 2012 campaign to Carter. Much like the “Magic 8’s” that seemed to surround Johan Santana’s no-hitter, perhaps Carter’s presence surrounding the team helped propel them to the championship, ousting the Lancaster Barnstormers in a winner-take-all Game 5 of the Atlantic League Championship Series. Carter managed the Ducks for the 2009 season. Along with dedicating their championship run to The Kid, they also wore an “8” patch on their sleeve the entire season.

The second dedication to Carter’s Hall of Fame career and philanthropic life will occur in Montreal. On Wednesday, the city announced the details of the renaming of a street and park after Carter. The street that will be renamed boarders Jarry Park, the site where Carter made his Major League debut. There is a park in the north-end Ahuntsic district that will also be named in his honor. The renaming ceremony is scheduled to take place next February on the one year anniversary of Carter’s passing after a battle with brain cancer.

Posted on

The End of the FAN as We Know it

This year was the 25th anniversary of WFAN.  Think what you will about Mike and The Mad Dog, IMUS, and Steve Sommers, but 25 years of success in radio is rather amazing.  Now comes word that the station will begin simulcasting on FM 101.9 in New York, and at some point thereafter, WFAN will no longer broadcast at 660 AM as the 50,000 Watt clear channel voice of the Mets, et al.

CBS bought WRXP (101.9 FM) from Merlin Media, for $75 million.  This must have been a great deal for CBS, as the old owners of that station surely decimated its value by switching formats 3 times in the past 2 years.

Think about it this way: $75 Million is just $5Million more than what Jeff Smulyan sold WFAN to Mel Karmazin’s Infinity Broadcasting way back in 1992.

Photo credit: watchdog

Meanwhile, I don’t understand the point of this move.  I know FM radio sounds better than AM, but not sure why this matters for talk radio.  WFAN loses a lot of geographical coverage at the FM band.  Travel around the country, in every market there is a different station broadcasting at 101.9FM.  There is only one 660 AM in the country, and as a clear channel (not ClearChannel) station, you can hear WFAN all the way to Florida on a clear night.  Or, at least you used to be able to… I swear radio reception is not what it used to be.  I am in central Jersey and get all kinds of interference on WFAN now.Anyhow, I’d like to know what the Mets feel about this move.  If they are paying any attention they should be against it.  My cousin grew up in Western PA, and grew up a Mets fan because he could get the games on the radio.  If the Mets are stuck on FM, their geographical coverage is limited too.  Why concede the fandom of kids in Western Pennsylvania to the Pirates or Indians just so we can listen to Mike Francesa snore in stereo?

At the New York Times, Richard Sandomir quoted talk radio commentator Michael Harrison as saying “I don’t think they need to reach 25 states, because WFAN already has a tremendous following on the Internet. So the idea of a radio station that is heard in 25 states is kind of a quaint concept.”  This may or may not be true, but Mets games don’t get carried on the internet feed of WFAN.  To get that online, you have to be a subscriber of GameDay Audio for $19.99 a year.  Gameday Audio is great for out of market baseball fans, as it covers every single game, with home and away broadcasts, with no blackouts.

ESPN 1050 moved their broadcast to the FM dial a few months ago, and Dan Mason, President of CBS told the NY times that he “wasn’t happy that they beat us by a few months”  but But Don Bouloukos, senior vice president  for CBS Radio told the Daily News that the WFAN simulcast “had nothing to do with ESPN moving to FM here.”  Neither one of these guys will admit their plans for what to do at 660AM once they “migrate” current listeners to the new frequency.  It makes no sense to have a permanent simulcast, obviously.  Which of course leads one to wonder if that’s what they’ll do.  Nah, they will probably do something that makes even less sense.

Posted on

What If The Mets Had Never Fired Davey Johnson?

A Tale of Two Ex Mets Managers

Bobby Valentine was fired by the Red Sox…  It’s hard to argue that he did anything to deserve keeping his job, but it’s also hard to blame much of the Red Sox team’s failures on Bobby V, either.  From afar, Bobby’s biggest sins seem to have been contributing to the circus atmosphere at Fenway, rather than calm the craziness that surrounded the squad that collapsed at the end of 2011.

I will always remember Bobby V fondly as a Mets manager.  He was a know-it-all, for sure, and he always had outlandish things to say, but,  I liked him because at least most of the time he actually did have the knowledge to back up his assertions.  And, when he said outrageous things, he was usually right, even if his decision to assert those things was somewhat dubious.  For instance, I don’t know why he chose to randomly pick on Derek Jeter’s “The Flip” play, but he probably had a point.

On the other end of the spectrum, another ex-Mets manager is back in the playoffs, again.  Davey Johnson has taken the heretofore sub .500 team The Nationals to a Division Championship.

Davey Johnson took the Mets to the playoffs twice in two years (1986 and 1988), they finished 2nd in 1989, and then he was fired 42 games into the  1990  season with the team 2 games below .500.

Pretty astonishing to think about 25 years later, huh?

Buddy Harrelson took over the team and they went on to finish with 91 wins, good enough for 2nd place.  Bud didn’t survive the 1991 Season though, as he was fired with a week to play and replaced by Mike Cubbage.

I’m not even going to mar this column by talking about 1992, but suffice it to say that the Dark Ages were upon us.  But what if they hadn’t fired Davey?

Davey himself did just fine; he was hired by the Reds mid-season in 1993 and took the team to finish 1st in the strike shortened 1994 season and the 1995 season.  Somehow he wore out his welcome anyway and was fired at the end of 1995.

In 1996, Davey took over the Baltimore Orioles and took them to the playoffs in 1996 and 1997.  He won manager of the year in 1997 but was fired anyway.

Davey’s Dodgers weren’t as successful in 1999 and 2000, while Bobby V’s Mets made the playoffs in consecutive years.

I have no idea why Davey is such a difficult employee that owners can’t stand winning with him, but it begs the question… what would have become of the Mets between 1989 and 1999 if Davey Johnson were their manager instead of Buddy Harrelson, Mike Cubbage, Jeff Torborg and Dallas Green?

And what if the Mets had stuck with Bobby V after 2002 instead of hiring Art Howe, or Willie Randolph instead of Jerry Manuel.

Handsome fellow

I just notice the Mets don’t seem to do very well with replacing successful managers.  Whenever the guy who takes them to the playoffs is replaced, they seem to slip into a dark period of ineptitude that makes the previous manager’s years seem like Glory Days.

Not that the current Mets have to worry about that – the Good Ol Days are creeping further and further into the rearview mirror.. but at a time when two ex-Managers  are at opposite ends of the success spectrum,, it made me wonder whether they should have stuck it out longer with the last guy with whom they went to the World Series.

Over 25 years ago.

Posted on

So Long, Boys of Summer

Doctor Seuss once said, “Don’t cry because it’s over; smile because it happened.” This is the quote I will take with me into this off-season. As a fourth straight losing season comes to a close, some may look to the bleak but I want to take a page out of Terry Collins’ book and look towards the positive.

I am of the younger faction of Mets fans (often referred to on here as Generation Piazza) and I can honestly say this season has been my most memorable season. I have three playoff experiences, one World Series appearance, and zero rings. And although this season provided none of those three, I find myself more satisfied after this Game 162 than I have any other since 2006.

The obvious choice for top memory of the season is the franchise’s first no-hitter, thrown by Johan Santana on June 1st. I still haven’t moved on from the fact I wasn’t in attendance, but the fact I was able to share that moment at the bar with my dad eased that sting. More important than a Mets pitcher getting 27 outs without a hit was the fact that Citi Field finally had a positive memory to build upon – something we haven’t seen as fans since its opening in 2009.

Monday June 18th against the Orioles was the most energetic game I’ve ever been a part of at Citi Field. The Mets were once again in a June pennant race, but the building had a different feel. R.A. Dickey was on the mound and from the first inning you knew it could be a special night. It ended up being a one-hitter, his second in a row.

And finally the last week at Citi Field featured two milestones that really meant something to me. First was David Wright passing Ed Kranepool as the franchise’s all-time hits leader. I was at other games this season when Wright put himself atop a franchise list, but never had I seen a bigger smile on his face than standing on second base watching a career highlight reel of himself on Citi Vision and getting two standing ovations. The next day R.A. Dickey nailed down his 20th win of the season – the first time a Mets pitcher has done so since 1990. And if everything goes accordingly, he should be rewarded with a Cy Young award next month.

There were countless other memories of big moments on the field (Wright walk-off versus Phillies), road trips to see the Mets and Bisons, and Blogger Tailgates. But more importantly, what made this season memorable, was meeting so many fans that feel as passionate about the orange and blue as I do and sharing these moments with them. So until Opening Day (or maybe even PSL), keep calm and cheer on.

Posted on

Five Astonishing Things About NASCAR (From a Mets Fan Perspective)

(Or A Mets Fan’s Guide To The Monster Mile)

My four-year old son loves the movie CARS, so he loves racecars, so father of the year here took him to his (and my) very first NASCAR race at Dover International Speedway, otherwise known as The Monster Mile.  Here are some things I learned that I bet you didn’t know about the NASCAR experience:

5. NASCAR tickets are cheap – Yeah, you can pay for premium seats, but they have some great deals.  We went on a Saturday and got two tickets for a total of $55.  Even on Sundays for the big race you can get a Walmart 4 Pack which is $100 for 4 tickets and includes hot dogs and sodas for everyone and a program too.  The Mets have had some innovative pricing deals lately but to my knowledge most of them are in the crap seats, whereas our seats were right at the starting gate/finish line and I don’t believe in the entire 100,000 seat capacity is there a single obstructed view

4. NASCAR parking is FREE – On Fridays and Saturdays parking is absolutely FREE, and on Sundays it’s just $10.  FREE.  And they encourage taligating.  Meanwhile CityFiled is charging $19.

3. A FREE Mini Amusement park for the Kids – They have a giant FUN ZONE where you can walk around and see the cars and the kids can sit in Military vehicles and what not, and a special Monster Fun Zone for the kiddies, complete with a church-fair style whirly-gig ride, a bunch of bouncy house things… we spent over two hours at this place without spending a nickel.  There was even a free raffle where they give away a bunch of NASCAR souvenirs, and you just have to stick around and be present for the drawing, about an hour before the race starts.

2. From Central New Jersey, it’s easier to get to Dover than it is to Flushing.  I just shot down 295 to Delaware… it took about two hours, I didn’t hit traffic at all, all the way into the FREE parking lot.  No Goethels or Verrazano tolls, no taking your life into your hands on the BQE or the Belt.  Mass Transit doesn’t seem to be an option, but have you checked the prices lately for two people taking New Jersey Transit and the LIRR to Flushing?

1. They let every single person attending Bring a Cooler full of Beer and Ice inside the stadium.  This has to be the most astonishing thing in all of sports in 2012.  NASCAR leaves all that Beer Money on the table and lets everyone bring in their own cans of Milwaukee Best Light.  All 100,000 people, after tailgating all day outside, are allowed to bring more beer into the place.  I would like to go on and on about this but really the first sentence says it all.  They let every single person attending Bring a Cooler full of Beer and Ice inside the stadium.

So, those are the headlines.. but here’s why hopefully that was my last race…

1. NASCAR is LOUD.  Holy crap, loud.  We all had ear protection, and even then it was LOUD.  So my son would ask me questions and it was either too loud to understand his questions and/or too loud to explain the answers (assuming I knew any answers).  I’ve never been to a sporting event where you can’t have a conversation with the people you are with.  This was a “short” 200 lap race, that took under 2 hours. We actually left the seats at lap 150 because we couldn’t take sitting there anymore.  More than half the fun of a live sporting event, for me, is experiencing it with someone and B-S’ing with someone.  That’s why I love Mets games and am willing to shell out the cash for the experience even when the on-field event is sub-par.

2. The Food is Horrible.  This is not a problem for the die-hards because they are all tailgating anyway, but for those of us who are buying the food… I had the single worst cheeseburger I’ve ever had.  At least they didn’t charge extra for the e.coli.  I wasn’t expecting a Shake Shack, or a Two Boots, but I am not sure why they can’t step up this part of the experience… You don’t need fancy facilities to have great food – grease trucks, anyone?

3. The Facilities are No Frills.  If you want the pee-in-a-trough Wrigley/Fenway experience without the joy of baseball, look no further than Diver Speedway.  They are at the perfect height so you’ll have to lift up your kid by the shoulders so he can pee in the thing.

4. Free Parking is Not Worth the Price. This was a Saturday, so the place was about 1/5th capacity.  We left the race at lap 150 to beat the traffic, but had to make a bathroom break, a stop at teh souvenir tent, and another bathroom break, before reaching the car.  By that time the race was over, and we missed our advantage.  There is one path in and out of the parking lot, so it is a very slow go out of the lot.  So slow, in fact, that we sat there for 40 minutes and did. not. move. an. inch.  Luckily, some redneck cut a hole in the fence and we drove through.  Otherwise we might still be there.  On the way in I saw all these signs for people charging $20 or $30 to park, and I was so confused because I knew parking was free.  Now I understood.  Pay $20 and get out easy.  Pay nothing and sit there for eternity.

5.  I had no idea what I was watching.  Wow, these cars are fast.  Unbelievably fast, and I was blown away by seeing these 46 race cars whip around this track.  For about 5 laps.  I didn’t have anyone to root for, and really didn’t understand the dynamics of what was happening, despite my watching CARS 483 times in the past two years, so I was rather bored by lap 10.  Granted, this was not NASCAR’s fault, and only my own, but without being able to understand what was happening, the novelty wore off for me fast.  And due to the noise, there was no way for the more knowledgeable fans around us to give us some explanations.  My son said he had fun today, but I am pretty sure it was mostly because of the Monster Fun Zone, the ice cream, the souvenir Monster stuffed toy, and the McDonalds after the race. Most of the race itself he was climbing on the grandstands… I dunno, maybe he liked it.  I am sure I will take him again if he really wants to.  Please please please son… grow out of it!  At least I got to listen to Howie on the drive home.

Here’s the takeaway – The Mets could learn a little bit about fan relations by attending a NASCAR event… bring back/expand the fan fest, don’t be afraid to leave a little money on the table, and, noisier does not equal better.  How long until the home opener?