The Mets Police

I see the radio show wants attention, and I am killing time since the Mets aren’t on, so sure, I’ll play.

“And it’s not because of injury, but … it’s more about notoriety,” Esiason said. “It’s more about celebrity than it is actually about pitching. (via WFAN website)

My #1 follower is not Matt Harvey.  I got your back here Thor.

So the comparisons are easy and lazy. Mets Pitchers.  Check.   Superhero nicknames.  Check.   Except one guy actually took the superhero thing seriously and hung a Batman logo on his locker, whereas the other is clearly having fun with it.  Clearly having fun with it.

One guy seemed to actually think he was Bruce Wayne.  The other walked around in a slightly too small Thor costume and lets you know he’s in on the joke.  It’s a goof.  He doesn’t think he’s Thor.

One guy got anointed THE NEXT SEAVER.   Noah is just Noah.  The guy some of you didn’t want because he cost you a journeyman knuckle who had an extreme outlier of a year once.   Noah has long blonde hair and a last name that sounds “Nordic” so he’s Thor.  It’s not as forced as THE DARK KNIGHT or even CAPTAIN AMERICA.

So Noah goes to sports games and dates pretty women.  I bet a lot of athletes do that.  Does that make them Matt Harvey?  No.  Matt Harvey would show up at Spring Training in a Maserati because at heart he’s a 14 year old boy with money and access to naked women.

Noah isn’t that.

The guy is actually entertaining on social media.  Sure there have been some missteps like the thing with cuckolding the mascot – but that’s over now.

Noah is just going about his business, and tweets a little more than the next guy.  Matt Harvey went FULL NAMATH before having the resume.

Thor has not gone FULL NAMATH, he’s just having some fun.  And we’re all in on the joke.  He’s also 40-26 in his career.

 

Back on May 17th I asked if bad site traffic here at MP was a sign that the Mets’ product was not connecting with fans.

Now I know my site sucks and all….but I can compare relative sucking and the site has been sucking at January like levels.  That was very extraordinary.   I have been doing this for 11 years and here’s the pattern.  March and April are up.  Then the site stays hot until the comedians and front runners check out.  Then August-January is low and it picks up again in February when hope springs eternal.  Things like All Star Games, rare playoff appearances or Captains retiring will spike the numbers as you expect.

So as lame as my content is, May should not be at January numbers.  Unless the fanbase has checked out early.

Today I saw this…

This just in…We now have 10-game plans!

ℹ️: https://t.co/4jj1OHpvNT pic.twitter.com/qtAo7ld58u

— New York Mets (@Mets) May 29, 2019

…and friends, I have been doing this a long time. The Mets didn’t wake up today and decide to be cool and offer 10 game plans. This is a big loud sign to me that ticket sales must be poor. Oh I’m sure they have their base, but they must see something in the numbers telling them that the incremental attendance won’t be coming.

10 Game Plans are traditionally offered in bad seasons.  Then when the Mets get some young players 10 game plans become 15, and when the Mets get good 15 becomes 20.

This is a VERY interesting development.

Right now the Mets are averaging 28,459, up from 2018’s 28,164.

This is interesting..

“I appreciate the opportunity they gave me,” Alderson said in a phone interview. (via NY Times)

That’s it?  That’s it.

That’s our old pal Sandy Alderson talking about the Mets.   That’s also the way I speak in public about one of my former employers.

What do we make about this?  Sandy being his usual wordsmith?  Sandy not having much else to say?  Much ado about nothing but the Mets aren’t on until 10?

Hmmm I thought you’d find this interesting, but I don’t have much to add other than the Sports Illustrated link, so I will send you there rather than be a jerk and scrape their entire story.  But in a nutshell, a 15 foot wave tipped his boat.  Scary.

April 3, 2018.  14 months ago.  Matt Harvey takes the mound for the Mets.  For the Mets.  14 months ago.

He pitches 5 innings.  Five Shutout innings.  One hit.

He’s got that look in his eye back,” said Mets catcher Travis d’Arnaud, who has caught Harvey off and on since 2013. He added later: “He didn’t have his best stuff but he was still in it. He wasn’t going to give up.” (via NY Times)

I woke up this morning and opened my eyes to my son’s old toy Batman Castle and immediately thought of our old pal TDKOALA.

14 months ago.

Just 15 months ago he was walking round in MH33 socks.    You gotta be pretty confident in yourself to walk around in custom socks.  15 months ago.

13 months ago Matt found himself in Cincinnati.

The Reds version of Matt was…..OK.   Nothing amazing.  Some nights terrible.  Some nights could eat some innings.  Lots of 380 foot outs.

On to Anaheim and a one year $11 million contract.  More 380 fly balls that are finding the parts of the fence that are less than 379 feet away.

Now he’s hurt, and when he comes back, will he have a spot in the rotation?

What’s Matt’s future from here?   Back-end warm body because someone has to pitch?  A mop-up guy?

What happens in 2020?  I can’t imagine anyone will pay $11M for this version of Matt Harvey.   Will a team take one last flier on him at a low price tag?  I guess?  Pitching is pitching, even with a 7.50 ERA.  Some teams give starts to the likes of Wilmer Font so anything’s possible.

April 3, 2018 was Matt’s last good start as a Met.  The next one was 4 runs in 5 innings, which is what passes for Good Matt in 2019.  Then another 4 runs in 5…then 6 runs in 5…then the bullpen…then he got left behind during a visit to Cincinnati.

August 11th 2018 doesn’t look too bad.  7 innings, 2 runs, 7Ks.  Maybe that’s what the Angels thought they were buying.

Remember that after some waffling about shutting it down in 2015 he went out there and pitched trying to win a World Series for himself, for you and for me.  For that we should always be grateful.  Who knows what damage he may or may not have done…but he showed up for the World Series and pitched great.

But that was 2015, and that pitcher no longer exists.

From here, who knows?