A huge tip of the Mets cap to AwfulAnnoucing for the video of Little Man Bob and Bugsy Buzz as they attack truth justice and the American way. After the show Little Man and Bugsy drowned kittens in East River. My offer of a good old fashion Brooklyn ass kicking still stands for Costas if I ever see him in midtown. I’d go after Bugsy Buzz as well but he’s elderly and that’s just not right even by blogger standards.

By the way Braylon Edwards has contacted Al Sharpton for a march on HBO’s studios as he had to witness two angry old white men spew hate.    

The last thing the Mets needed was an extra inning game last night with a day game today but that’s what they got after Jose Reyes ‘ throwing error set the Pirates up to tie the game in the 9^th and of course no Mets game is complete with the daily Cavalcade of Relievers as it was a six reliever night for Willie’s Guys to pick up a win.

If it weren’t bad enough that last nights rain out messes up this weekends pitching rotation it also let this ridiculous controversy over Carlos Delgado and Curtain Call-gate percolate.  Again I’ll state my position here as Pro-Delgado. Fans have every right to boo and as I’ve stated in the past as well I have never booed a player for any team I root for (why boo when I can kill them here) but as a fan it’s your right to voice your displeasure but fans have to remember you get what you give. You tell a guy he sucks over and over again and then when he does something positive, you want love. Like I said I applaud Delgado for not giving in and waving to the masses, if it were me I’d drop trou and give you my ass to kiss.

Look NYC is a very tough place to play and it does take some inner toughness to make it here. Just look at Eli Manning. This guy was roasted more than anyone on the Mets could ever  think of getting kicked around but now after winning the Super Bowl and be named the MVP he’s untouchable. Same with Lawrence Taylor or Phil Sims. How about Joe Namath or Mark Messier or Brain Leetch, or Adam Graves or Mike Richter or Tom Seaver or Keith Hernandez or Mookie Wilson or Lenny Dykstra or Wally Backman or Darryl Strawberry or Willis Reed or Walt “Clyde” Frazier  or Patrick Ewing or John Starks or Paul O’Neil or David Cone or Don Mattingly. Some of these guys have won and some didn’t but what they all did was go out and play balls to wall. You can’t go through the motions in this city because this city’s sports fans will put a foot so far up your ass you’ll have the Nike “swish” on your tongue.

As much as has been made about the Mets fans behavior the Mets players need to grow a pair and stop the “oh woe is me” bullshit and that’s the fault of Willie Randolph. You think Jim Leyland would put up with that? How about old Dallas Green YIKES! I can’t ask a guy to be something he’s not but at some point Randolph needs to get his team together and tell them if you’re worried about the fans booing, then your not really concentrating on what you need to be doing., and that is a big problem with this team, they lose focus and it’s up to Randolph to straighten them out. 

The Curley Haired Douche Bag (CHDB a/k/a Fillip Bondy) has TWO Mets columns today. I guess he tried to slip in a few extra receipts for Summers Eve on his Daily News expense account past Leon Carter and this is his (and our) punishment.

The first column was on Jane Jarvis and her departure from the Shea scene. Now we all know the Mets are the least creative team in sports when it comes to marketing the team and events at the ball park but you would think someone would have the idea of letting Lady Jane play the organ for one last weekend of the Final Season at Shea.  On that same note, why no Old Timers Day this year? Are they saving it for the final home game? Do the Skill Sets know what a great event it would be to bring back every player (still breathing that is) who wore a Mets uni to Shea? You could even have a weekend for fans when the Mets are on the road where you open Shea and let fans walk on the outfield and have a catch with kids or other fans (no baseballs of course wiffle balls or Spaldeens only) set up photo ops in the dugout and bring down the two World Series Trophy’s for the photos. Set up autograph tables with as many former Mets players as you can get. On the DiamondVision show all the great moments in Mets history and have fans send in their own memories of Shea. Open the concessions and charge 1964 prices (they could do this for a couple of games as well) and what ever money the Skill Sets make give it all to different charities around the city. A weekend like this would be a huge success and maybe work towards alleviating all the bad blood and negativity between the fans and the team.

It was nice of the Mets to give out foam fingers yesterday as the finger the fans have been using so far this season was cramping up. There were no fingers extended yesterday as it was also Turn Back The Clock Day as Carlos Delgado went Blue Jay on the Braves yesterday with two round trippers. Kudos to Delgado for NOT stepping out of the dugout for a curtain call I have more respect for him now that he DIDN’T come out than if he did. Seriously Mets fans, what do you expect, the guy gets the shit booed out of him and fans call up Joe Bada Bing and his little side kick to scream that he’s finished and then you want him to take a bow? If I were Delgado I’d come out waving my own foam finger.

Two out of three from the Braves is nice but now the Mets must dominate the Bucs and take three from them. Tonight’s game looks like a wash out especially with Johan Santana getting the start against object of my off season affection Ian Snell, so it looks like a two game series coming up. You want to go in with guns blazing this weekend into Phoenix and then LA where you can prove to your fan base that you’re a legit contender so until I see what our Mets do this weekend I’ll save my finger waving.

What you’re surprised about the latest injury news on Moises Alou? Alou is in Manhattan today to get an MRI on his left ankle that reports say is fractured. So now, get used to seeing Chavez Pagan in LF.

Matt Wise, Paging Matt Wise!

Second straight start for Figgy that he could not get past 5 innings but at least this one was a win. In his last 10 1/3 IP Nelson Figueroa has given up 14 hits 6 runs all earned and walked 8 and K’d 5. That’s why Claudio Vargas has been promoted to NOLA.

I’m not ready to offer a full apology to Omar Minaya over the Lasting Milledge-Ryan Church, Brian Schneider deal yet but I’m coming close. Schneider can’t stay on the field but when he does he has handled the pitching staff well but Church has really surprised the hell out of me. Yesterday’s catch was a game saver and his bat has been the saving grace so far this season. Hey sometimes I’m wrong about shit okay!

You would think that Ramon Castro would get his fat ass in gear with the sudden surge from Raul Casanova to get back and regain his backup catcher’s job. Castro never ever rises to the challenge when either Mike Piazza or Paul LoDuca went down with injuries. If anything, pick up a first base mans glove and show some damn initiative

As per Neil Best, he was at the Tribeca Film Festival and watched a film made by three NYU Students called “The Zen of Bobby V’ in which the three film makers followed Bobby Valentine for eight months in Japan. This film will air on ESPN May 13^th

This weeks MVP, Cy Young and ROY voting at Baseball Happenings is for the NL here is the way my vote went:

    NL MVP  1. Chase Utley 2. Hanley Ramirez  3. Brandon Webb With 20 extra base hits (10 HR’s) and an outlandish 1.236 OPS and Hanley Ramirez leading the first place Fish it kills this Mets fan to write their names 1-2 in this weeks MVP voting. Brandon Webb needs for the Snakes to start their games a 4PM so the East Coast can get a glimpse of this super pitcher. NL Cy Young 1. Brandon Webb 2. Tim Lincecum 3. Carlos Zambrano No Johan Santana? Not with the way these three have been pitching. NL ROY 1. Joey Votto 2. Kosuke Fukudome 3. Geovony Soto Since Fukudome is eligible for the award I have to give him a vote but Vovtto goes first for doing more in the less at bats.  

Didn’t see the games yesterday but it looks like John Maine is OK as he may have just had a cramp in the forearm but it took five pitchers to close out the last four innings of the game YIKES!

Nice interview by Wayne Coffey in the Daily News today with Davey Johnson especially the revelation that someone in the organization (Davey doesn’t say who) change Dwight Goodens delivery as they were worried about him not being adept in holding runs on. Johnson’s claim is it wasn’t him or pitchiching coach at the time Mel Stotlemeyer who did this.

The Klapper hits one out of the park today with his assement of Randolph and Minaya both on-the hot seat and how the Skill Sets will want to see a more competitive team by June 1st or heads will roll. Klapper hits the mood of Randolph on the head when he says he’s joyless. Those post game presser are depressing.

Mark Hermann sticks up for Mets fans for showing more passion than the team they root for.

Welcome back to the set up role Dirty Duaner.

I hope Willie Randolph took a lesson from Bobby Cox on Friday night when Cox went out and took a bullet for his team and his rookie pitcher Jair Jurrgens. Jurrgens was a victim of one of the worst umpires in baseball Tim “Look at me, Look at me” Mc Clelland when he missed a strike out that would have gotten Jurrgens out of a jam. The way Cox, who has two very bad wheels ran out as he was shot from a cannon must have had Mets players looking at Randolph wondering when he will do something like this.      

Is there a correlation between Harold Reynolds’ hiring by SNY and Lee Mazzilli getting a uniform job with the Mets? Am I nuts with this theory? Could Maz be the next manager of the Mets? Has the lackadaisical play that has carried over from The Collapse of last season made me rush to judgement? Is it easier to watch this team play baseball drunk rather than sober? I love a good conspiracy.

It’s not his fault but he has to go. Just like Rick Down was axed for the purpose of shaking up the offense, Rick Peterson should be relived of his duties as NY Mets pitching coach because it’s time for a new voice. I guess it’s my Bensonhurst upbringing to be cold hearted as they say in the social clubs of Brooklyn, “it’s not personal, it’s business”.

Peterson is a very bright man and a terrific teacher who uses all the latest technology available to build up his pitchers. From looking at the latest collapse last night I just feel it’s time to go another way.

I know Aaron Heilman is not a fan favorite and I  screamed FUCK last night as well after Felipe Lopez’ Grand Salami but I’m not ready to throw in the towel on him. Same with Sosa and Scott Schoenwiese as well. I’m not ready to burry these guys because my opinion of there struggles is it’s between the ears and not the shoulders.

I have never met Rick Peterson but from reading and seeing him in interviews he comes off as a very analytical guy but  and he has done some great things in the four years he’s been the pitching coach but it seems to me his analytical ways have worn the pitchers out. Just looking at the body language of Heilman, Schoenwiese, Perez and Sosa proves that to me. I don’t know how much input Peterson has with Willie Randolph when it comes to who pitches when and where but Peterson doesn’t look like the type to push the issue with Randolph and in that lies another problem where Peterson and Randolph have the same passive personality and that rubs off on the team as well.

Now who would replace Peterson with? The first name that jumps in my head is Leo Mazzone. Mazzone is working regional Saturday FOX telecasts and would most likely jump at the chance to work for the Mets. But the guy I have in mind has just what I’m looking for. He pitched in the big leagues and was successful. He fought back from setbacks. He’s worked in the bushes with young arms who responded to his coaching. He has a Mets pedigree and a Mets World Championship ring He is Bobby Ojeda.

Remember back when Peterson was hired, Ojeda was a little rough with his comment  as he thought the job was his as he was in the organization working with HOJO  in Brooklyn and when the job went to Peterson he was angry. If there is one thing missing from this Mets team right now its anger.

Bringing Ojeda in as pitching coach you go from the lets review the data approach of Petersons to a more old school strap it on mentality that Ojeda would bring. Peterson was very good with the hand on the shoulder way of dealing with pitchers maybe it’s time for a guy to get in someone’s face and challenge these pitchers (and players) to achieve an other level.

For all of Peterson’ learned ways he never pitched in a big league game. Ojeda has been through the wars of big league baseball in a fifteen year career. He’s started most games he was in but he has come out of the bullpen as well he can relate to pitchers as he has lived through highs and lows. He’s pitched in the two biggest pressure cookers in the sports world NYC and Boston. There is nothing the Mets pitchers are going through right now that he himself has not had to battle.

This is a MUST move by Omar Minaya  as it not only brings a new voice to a beleaguered pitching staff but it adds some life in a coach staff that is old, tired and stale.

Let me just thank the women of SOHO and TRIBECA for a wonderful show this afternoon at lunch time. 75 degrees, sunshine, tank tops and shorts make for a fabulous lunch time experience and the pizza was good as well.

The toughest part of the day was retuning back to the office to serve the people of the City of New York but upon my return I saw a few things of interest that I thought I’d comment on:

Hugs and ass grabs to SNY for the hiring of Harold Reynolds. BASEBALL TONIGHT has not been the same since Reynolds left. I feel sorry for Karl Ravich as he is burden with Larry the Cable Guys twin brother in John Kruck, the whinny Tim Kurkjian, Franchise Killer Steve Phillips. HR will be a studio analyst with Lee Mazzilli and the insufferable Matt Yalloff who must be a cousin of the Skill Sets to keep his SNY gig.

I swear I never laid a hand on Jimmy Rollins.

The secret is out the Tampa Bay Rays mascot is a girl.

Joe Smith goes off on the Bleacherites at Wrigley Field. Looks like the Old Style was flowing as usual in the bleachers as the Cub fan is drunk on barley and hops and winning baseball. But remember Cubs fan your season always ends badly. Bottoms up ass hats.

Interesting Q & A with David Wright:

Q: Which one of these sounds like the best date:

a) Surfing the North Shore with Cameron Diaz

b) Ghost Whispering with Jennifer Love Hewitt

c) Working the counter at Mooby’s with Rosario Dawson

d) Skee Ball at Chuck E. Cheese with Paul LoDuca

DW: Definitely not Paul Lo Duca [laughs]. Um … I’d probably say surfing the North Shore.

The only wrong answer of course is D DW goes with A good choice I myself would choose B

Over at Baseball Happenings the AL MVP, CY YOUNG and ROY numbers are up for this week my picks are as follows:

  AL MVP 1. Manny Ramirez 2. Raul Ibanez 3. Chone Figgins It’s time for people to get past the whole “Manny Being Manny” and acknowledge Manny for being right with Joe DiMaggio, Jimmy Foxx and Rogers Hornsby as the greatest right handed hitter in baseball history. AL Cy Young 1. Felix Hernandez 2. Jonathan Papelbon 3. Zack Greinke I’m Ridin’ With the King and his 24K/9BB in 30 innings pitched. Papelbon is THE BEST closer in the game (sorry Highlander fans) and Greinke just continues to become a great comeback story AL R O Y  1. Evan Longoria 2. David Murphy 3. Clete Thomas I was going to give all three votes to Longoria but I figured give Murphy and Thomas a little getting used to playing second fiddle to the great Rays rookie.  

NOTE: The kiss of death for Clete Thomas as he was sent to Triple A with Curtis Granderson coming off the DL

Not an overwhelming start by Johan Santana last night but hey, a win is win.  Maybe it’s just me but I long for the day of the ace that goes out there and throws a complete game with double digit strike oust. I guess I’m showing my age with that dream. Any way Santana did show he’s the ace going 7 full (a complete game more or less these days) handing it off to Dirty Duaner in the set up role and the rejuvenated Billy Wags in the 9^th. Ah if every Mets game could be like last night what would be have to bitch about?

Santana also chipped in with a couple doubles, so maybe he can play some first base between starts. Speaking of first base, as much as Carlos Delgado gets hammered by Mets fans, you have to give the guy credit as he came out 5 hours before last nights game to work on his hitting with HOJO, specifically working on going to left field. Also he has not run and hid during this slump/career decline and has answered each and every question. Take that Paul LoDuca.

In the burg of Douchebagville Wallace Mathews is its Emperor.

According to Adam Rubin, In John Feinstein’ new book Titan Tom Glavine, wanted Roger Clemens treatment by leaving the team between starts to go home to Atlanta. Tell me again you main streamers what a classy guy Glavine is?  Props to Jeffy for telling him NO !

Check out this new site Develop Willets Point which points out the need to develop the chop shops in the Iron Triangle. The site also has a link to a story on the Den of Thieves (a/k/a the NYC City Council)

NON-BASEBALL——As much as Jeremy Shockey pisses me off by not working out with his teammates but instead works out in Miami I don’t think I’d deal him right now. Is he overrated? Yes. Is he injury prone? Yes. But a couple of things here, first the Giants won without him and Eli Manning won the e Super Bowl MVP. That means when Shockey opens his big fat pie hole Eli can take him for a ride in his Escalade that he won for being MVP and explain to Shockey  that I’M IN CHARGE!!. Second, I agree with Shockey that he’s not used properly he should be used as a receiver first to be more effective. With Shockey and Kevin Boss the G-Men can go with a double tight end formation that would be highly effective. I like that Jerry Reese lets it leak out that Shockey can be moved maybe and it’s a big maybe he can be humbled.

The easy thing to do today is kill Jorge Sosa or pile on Aaron Heilman but when you ask your relievers to not only pitch everyday but walk a tightrope in those appearances you get what you deserve these past two days in Chicago.