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January 12, 2010

Some more fan McGwire reactions

Although I’m getting a few “shut up and talk about the Mets”type comments, I think this topic falls into the “and frankly anyone else” clause of the blog. If you’re bored with McGwire skip this one and scroll down to some good quality chop-busting below.

Here’s Tom

Shannon,

Well done, young man. Iâ€™m glad that while you still questioned McGwire yourself, you also pointed out all the hypocrites who today are saying McGwire didnâ€™t apologize properly enough for them are many of the same ones who lived off â€™98 vicariously (that is what sportswriters do, live off someone elseâ€™ accomplishments, while having none of their own) . I wonâ€™t go into this, other than to say that this is a good man who made a bad mistake and as a human being who has made my share, I will not get into â€œjudge and juryâ€ on him. Selig, and Fehr and Orza of the Players Association are as much to blame as anyone for this whole situation. Also, I donâ€™t see anyone reminding people that Big Mac donated, what, $1 Million off the top of his contract for three years to Battered Childrenâ€™s funds. Or that he had a 2-year multi-million dollar contract offered to him after 2001and retired instead. He could have fleeced the Cards for a couple of more seasons if he chose to, but did not. So, you can dislike him or be disappointed by him, but you cannot demonize him, as the weakest parts of the media and the ever-growing moron part of the public will now try to do. Mark McGwire thrilled millions. No sportswriter ever did that. That joy in 1998 was real, it doesnâ€™t change in retrospect, as some have comically tried to claim. Finally, I thing the famous words of Teddy Roosevelt are most relevant today:

â€œIt is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.â€

And here’s Adam

I am fully aware that Mark McGuire, even before yesterday’s admission, had used some sort of PED. Even if he had done what I’ve heard some NFL players do, which would be to stay one step ahead of the banned substance list, I knew, and was and still remain a fan.

McGuire never played for a team I rooted for, even as an “out of town” second team to our Amazin’s. However, There are a few moments in baseball history when I can tell you exactly where I was when it occurred.

I can tell you exactly where I was, down to the place where I was sitting (not just “in my living room”) when Mookie hit the roller up the first base line, when Ripken broke the streak, and when McGuire hit 62. I have no idea where I was when he hit 70, nor when Sosa hit 62 or 66.

Did McGuire break a rule of Major League Baseball? Yes. Did he cheat? I don’t know but I don’t think so. Does he belong in the Hall of Fame with the rest of the 500 Club? Yes.

Is there anyone in the Hall of Fame that has thrown a spitball since Burleigh Grimes? Have you heard of Don Drysdale or Gaylord Perry? They cheated. They went out and did something ON THE FIELD that was against the rules of legal play, and knowing this, the sportswriters still elected them to the Hall of Fame.

As Tommy LaSorda has said in many interviews, hitting a baseball is the hardest thing to do in professional sports. Otherwise, why would people think you were great for doing it just 3 out of every 10 times you tried?

I don’t think any PED makes you able to see the ball or hit the ball any easier than someone who never took as much as a multi-vitamin. If they come out with something like that, let me know, I’ll be 40 in a couple of years and would like to get a jump on the rest of the guys in the local softball league.

Thanks for a great blog, keep it up.

Adam

This picture is of the all time leader in home runs for the Mets. He hit the ball 900 feet while weighing 110 pounds.

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January 12, 2010

Meet the Mets…bloggers: Home Run Apple

Meet the Mets Bloggers is powered by you. If you would like your blog mentioned, email shannon@metspolice.com, and since you’re a blogger, make my life easy and format it nicely so I can just hit CTRL-V. Here’s Jason

1. Who are you and what’s the name of your blog?

I am Jason Cronk and my blog is Home Run Apple, which I started writing in October of 2009 and really got off the ground by moving to WordPress in December 2009.

2. What kind of things can we find on your site?

For this question, I’m basically going to condense my “About” page:

I aim to make daily comments on the Mets successes and failures. From the field to the front office, anything Mets will be discussed. Among the many wonderful Mets blogs out there, my goal will be to keep my posts interesting and my opinions original. It wonâ€™t always be Met-centric here, however, as I will take the time to write about goings on in baseball and trash on our rivals, but the blue and orange will be the main topic of discussion. Letâ€™s Go Mets!

3. Expectations for 2010?

From what I’ve been reading over the course of the offseason, my expectations are higher than most other Mets fans. I’ll pull a Francesa here. If you come visit my blog, you’ll get to see my detailed opinions!

I love how “pull a Francesa” is now part of the lexicon.

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Contact: shannon at metspolice.com (Guest posts welcome!)
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January 12, 2010

Shea Stadium, Home of the BCS Champions Alabama

Here’s the find of the week, from Alex.

We have joked last year about the met fans used in ads, and how they obviously are not at shea. With that, I thought you would find the attached photo ad from espn.com marketing Alabama merchandise.

Not only did they use Shea, they added the 50 yard line.

Thanks for the site.

Alex

Alabama’s stadium sure looks familiar!

For previous poor decisions in photoshopping Mets related advertising, such as these “Mets fans” read here and here.

January 12, 2010

New York Mets outerwear

MLB.com sends daily spam, I mean direct marketing, because I bought tickets once in 1971.

Today they want us to buy jackets. I will now shock you, as civilianwear I don’t hate this black one.

However, you would me much happier with this one.

I couldn’t pull this one off, but my friend Mark could. I think the average civilian could choose better.

Finally, there’s this reversable one. Eh. I wonder what it looks like reversed?

Did you guys catch that I said something nice about a black item? It’s ok civilian-wear, but so is a St. Patrick’s Day green Mets hat and I don’t want Jason Bay wearing that either.

January 11, 2010

McGwire and Costas

I can’t believe a thing Mark McGwire says. I started out feeling bad for the guy, always hard to see a grown man cry, but as it went on I got angrier and angrier.

Good job, as always, by Costas. Bob at times seemed like he was thinking “are you really going to sit here and say this stuff?”

First, let me say for not the first time that there are a lot of people who are either hypocrites or fools. Fox, Joe Buck, Sports Illustrated, and most everyone else who covered babseball in ’98 made this guy out to be a hero. Maybe they didn’t know, but wow you had to be an idiot if you didn’t think he was on something.

I love when Costas quotes that 1985-94 there were 21 40+ home run seasons in baseball, from 95-2003 there were 104. Costas brought this stuff up at the time, he brought it up in his book, and he’s one of the few that didn’t have his head in the sand at the time.

For people to not vote for a guy with 583 home runs into the Hall, it’s phony. You knew. Where were the columns at the time? Everyone wanted to write books with titles like “Summer of ’98” and “The Perfect Season: Why 1998 Was Baseball’s Greatest Year” Don’t get righteous now that there’s no more money to be made off that season.

Some other day we can get into what we want our heroes to look like – whether we like two smiling guys playing in midwest towns, or a surly man who didn’t want to play the media’s game.

Some stuff I jotted down while watching:

McGwire is sticking to the language about his God given gift of home runs, and “for injuries” (aka the Pettitte defense).

At one point McGwire went on and on about how people are still talking about his little league home runs. I don’t know how Costas didn’t just get up and leave.

Costas asked McGwire if he thinks he’d hit 70 homers without steroids: “I truly believe so”

“It was the era that we played in.” The Bud Selig era. I will not be surprised when the day comes and someone has some evidence that proves beyond a doubt that Selig knew.

“I didn’t want to look like Arnold Schwarzenegger” – hilarious.

Costas asked him if the timing has anything to do with the statute of limitations now having expired. McGwire says no. Come on dude. Please.