Looks like Minority Einhorn is getting quite cozy at Citi Field. I’m sure the Skill Sets are sweating and not just because of this recent hot spell in NYC.  Einhorn seems to fancy this period of the media swooning over him trying to feel him out as the white knight that will come in a save the franchise.   

Right now, Einhorn can’t say much as the shysters are still finalizing the paper work but when the ink dries on his signature what happens then? How much say does Minority Einhorn have?  As much as he enjoys taking his kids to Citi Field, I’m sure he didn’t write a $200 mil check just to visit the Mets dugout and avoid the lines at the Shake Shack .

Does Einhorn whisper in Sandy Alderson’ ear “don’t trade Reyes, we’ll pay him but keep it on the down low”?

How about on the day the deal is final, Einhorn announces that he is taking bids from area sculptures for a statue of Tom Seaver that will be placed in the newly renamed Metropolitan Rotunda with Jackie Robinson’s 42 and tribute to John McGraw.

How great would it be if Einhorn came out against the black unis and caps.

How about letting everyone know that #8 will never be worn by a Mets player ever again and as soon as Gary Carter lets the organization know he’s up to it, the Mets will celebrate Gary Carter Day with a number retirement ceremony  

 How about if his kid’s say to him “Dad bring back Banner Day”

Since Einhorn is a family man maybe he will take into account that not all family men run hedge funds but most work at jobs that pay far less. So he will institute family packs at Citi Field for reduced tickets and concessions. Not everyone can feed a family of four at the Shake Shack you know.

Maybe this all just my imagination running wild too. I don’t know what the future holds with Minority Einhorn but from reading about this guy, he didn’t get into this partnership to sit back and watch the Skill Sets piss away what’s left of this organization. The next couple of months could be the most interesting and crucial months in Mets history.

Join me tonight at 11PM ET on THIS CALL TO THE BULLPEN as my guest Ed Marcus (a/k/a Rusty Jr) of The Real Dirty Mets and I recap tonight’s Mets-Pirates game and talk about the on and off the field Mets news on Blog Talk Radio. If you can’t join us live you can hear the podcast here at Kranepool Society (bottom right side bar) or at our show page on Blog Talk Radio or download the show on iTunes.

 THIS CALL TO THE BULLPEN is part of the Seamheads National Podcasting Network.   

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Nothing Mets today, I’m off to the Memorial Day Parade on Staten Island, hopefully the euphoria of the capture and killing of Osama Bin Laden hasn’t worn off yet and the good folks of SI will be out in full force to honor the men and women of the military who gave their lives for the country and to thank all who have served our country . All of them true patriots.

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A stellar outing by Big Plef went for nothing as the once potent Mets bullpen has turned into a pumpkin.  Wasn’t just a few weeks ago, we just hoped for 6 good innings from the Mets starters so the bullpen could cement a win? That’s all changed in the last six games as Mets relievers have gone 0-3 with a 12.46 ERA.

New minority and soon to be majority owner David Einhorn took a look at what he spent $200 mil on last night. Reports flying from allover are stating that Einhorn has bought 33 percent of the NY Mets with the option of buying a majority 60 percent controlling interest in the team in three years. I’d say that’s a done deal. One of the most telling parts of Einhorn’s night at Citi was when he was asked about keeping Jose Reyes and signing him to a long term deal, Einhorn didn’t say it’s not up to me what he said was this is not the time to discuss it.  I guess our new Shark has more say so that he say so.

With the news of Gary Carter’s fight with cancerous brain tumors isn’t it time for someone in the Mets organization step up NOW and announce that the club will retire his #8? Not next season either, DO IT NOW. Make a day in July or August for Gary Carter Day. Retire The Kid’s 8 and give out Mets t-shirts with CARTER 8 on the back. I’m sure Mr. Hedge Fund guy can flip that bill on 40,000 Haines shirts.

That’s it for me , after freezing my ass off all winter, time to shut the computer and suck up the rays.

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Last night I was fortunate enough to be a part of the fastest hour of radio ever on The Kult of Mets Personalities with the crew of Kiner’s Korner and Mike Silva of NY Baseball Digest. We spoke of our late friend Dana Brand, and then we got into our thoughts on the soon to be minority owner, David Einhorn.

To me Einhorn missed his mark yesterday to get Mets fans behind him, all he had to do was say he was investing not only $200mil to bail the organization out but he’s also throwing in an additional $45 mil for the sole purpose of buying out Jason Bay’s contract and as for Jose Reyes, “Jose, have your people call my people”.

Born in Jersey and raised in Milwaukee and a neighbor to the Selig’s this is no co-winky-dink that he was brought in as a minority owner of the Mets. Plus he’s not paying $200 mil for a good parking spot and a cushioned ball park seat; he’s here to fix what’s broken and to take over the whole operation.

As we discussed on the podcast last night, Einhorn made his money taking over companies that were swimming in red ink and making them solvent again. The Skill Sets have proven that running the Mets and investing money is way beyond their “Skill Sets” level.

Listening to Boomer and Carton this morning, Carton was his buffoon self mocking Einhorn on his voice and not being very tall, one thing Carton forgot is Einhorn is as ruthless as any organized crime capo or any so called “Gangsta” . I worked on Wall St for a few years and the only business that is close to it in ruthlessness and taking people down and not giving a shit is the drug trade.  As we’ve seen over that the past few years, Wall Street guys like Einhorn just don’t give a fuck on whom they have to step over to win. If Einhorn has to jack up Freddy and Uncle Saul and smack the shit out of Jeffey to make the Mets profitable for him to takeover when (not if it’s when) the Skill Sets have to sell, he doesn’t want to buy a loser.

Einhorn has said he will be in the background and not heard from. I remember a ship builder from Cleveland saying that nearly 40 years ago in the Bronx. That $200 mil Einhorn is putting down is no gift, it’s a down payment.

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I will be a guest tonight on the Kult of Mets  Personalities on BlogTalk Radio.  We will be discussing the passing of Dana Brand, the infusion of cash by David Einhorn’s minority buy in and the on the field happenings of the Mets

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I was set to write about the new minority owner (soon to be majority owner?) David Einhorn, until I found out about the passing of Dana Brand. To say I’m shocked and saddened is an understatement.

When Dana wrote his book Mets Fans, he was gracious to invite me to the book launch party. Dana was a long time reader of this blog and never hesitated to tell me how much he loved my writing, this from a professor of English and American Literature at Hofstra University who gained his PhD from Yale, loved reading what I wrote. It was because of that, the e-mails I receive about my needing an editor and a grammar course made me laugh, if Professor Brand liked my work what the hell did I care what anyone else thought.

I had attended a few games with Dana and I got to meet up with him at the last game at Shea Stadium. Dana and I grew up in the same era and whenever I’d mention bringing my Boars Head bologna sandwich, Wise onion garlic potato chips and my Key Food Root Beer left in the freezer overnight and wrapped in tin foil, he give me that big hearty laugh of his as he had the same game day routine.  We all did, it was a big part of Metsfandom.

It’s why whenever we met at Citi Field we acted like a couple of old farts, when he’d look around and say “eh, it’s not Shea and shake our heads. We both knew, when Shea was gone so was a major part of our lives as Mets fans.

I am going to miss Dana tremendously as will all of the Mets Bloggers who knew but no one will miss him more than his family and to the Brand family I offer my most heartfelt condolence.

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I recived this press release from the Mets and I’m very happy to pass it on to you guys:

FLUSHING, N.Y., May 25, 2011 – The New York Mets,
the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (NFCA) and Raising Our Celiac Kids
(R.O.C.K.) Long Island have teamed to host Celiac Disease Awareness Night this Friday,
May 27 at Citi Field when the Mets take on the Philadelphia Phillies at 7:10 p.m.

Fans will be treated
to pre-game activities in the Left Field Landing designed to raise awareness of
celiac disease, an autoimmune disorder triggered by the protein gluten found in
wheat, barley and rye.  Along with a
visit by Mr. Met and a menu of gluten-free food and beverages, SNY Field
Reporter Kevin Burkhardt, who suffers from celiac disease, will be on hand to
host a silent auction of sports memorabilia and special packages, including an
opportunity to shadow Burkhardt pre-game at a Mets home game and a chance to
watch the Mets take batting practice from the field.

The Mets have gluten
free options available at every game at the Kozy Shack Gluten Free Stand,
located in the Taste of the City on Field Level in Right Field, which offers a
variety of Kozy Shack puddings and gels, sausage and peppers, hot dogs,
hamburgers, buns and Redbridge beer. These options will also be available in
the Left Field Landing on this special night.

The View’s ElisabethHasselbeck, who also suffers from the disease, will be honored before the game
for her contributions in the Celiac community. Hasselbeck has written a best-selling
book “The G Free Diet” about the disease and started her own line of gluten
free protein bars called nogii.

Celiac disease affectsone in every 100 Americans.  Cases of
celiac disease have increased fourfold since the 1950’s, yet 90% of those
affected by the ailment live undiagnosed.
Left untreated, celiac disease can lead to further complications such as
autoimmune diseases, osteoporosis, thyroid disease and some cancers.  Currently, the only known treatment for
celiac disease is a complete gluten-free diet.
Citi Field offers several gluten-free concessions stands for fans all
season long.

Tickets for Celiac
Disease Awareness Night can be purchased through Mets.com/celiac or by calling (718)
507-TIXX.  Net proceeds from the night
will go towards celiac education and awareness programs through the NFCA and
R.O.C.K. Long Island.  Fans purchasing tickets through this offer will receive a Mets ticket holder and a
lanyard.

About the National
Foundation for Celiac Awareness:
The National Foundation for Celiac Awareness (NFCA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness of celiac disease in order to gain prompt and accurate diagnoses for those suffering, supporting the health and wellbeing of those with the disease, and facilitating research that will better understand the disorder and find a cure. For more information, visit www.celiaccentral.org.

About Raising Our
Celiac Kids Long Island:
Raising Our Celiac
Kids (R.O.C.K.) Long Island is a free support group for parents, families and
friends of kids on a gluten-free diet. R.O.C.K.
Long Island is raising funds to benefit the Celiac Disease Center at Columbia
University which is the premier Center in the United States that provides
comprehensive medical care, including nutrition, for adult and pediatric
patients with celiac disease.  The Center is diagnosing and treating more
than 2,800 patients annually from around the world.  For more information, visit www.rockli.com.

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After digesting all the fallout from What Said Fred, I was struck by the obvious, Freddy Skill Sets is just like every other suit in high management of a corporation, he’s an ingrate and has no appreciation for his workers. Just like your boss and my boss.

When was the last time someone in the upper management of your job came to you and said “you know your productivity is just amazing? Without a worker like you this company would never be as prosperous as it is, whatever we’re paying you is not enough, so please accept this raise and an additional week of paid vacation”   Ha! Like never.

Management is never appreciative of its workers,” How many orders did you process today, a 1,000? I’m sure you could have done better that if you didn’t need so many bathroom breaks and an hour lunch? ““Are you guys sure that’s how you fix a water main, I mean just cutting the pipe and fusing a new one in, is that the best way to do it, who me? I’ve never fixed a water main in my life, yes, I know you’ve been doing this for 25 years and are the go to guy for these types of jobs, but………OH GOD, I GOT MUD ON MY BROOKS BROTHER SUIT………Arrrrrrrghhhhhhhhhhh.

See Freddy can’t help the way he feels about his team, it comes with the title of Ungrateful Chief Executive Officer. Every company has one. Welcome to the workforce David, Jose and Carlos.

What more can you say about last night’s game, the defense treated the ball like it was “shitty” (that “shitty  quote will live on forever, just like Steve Philips “Skill Sets” and Art “He lights up a room “ Howe) The guy you have to have empathy for is Terry Collins, just when he gets the team playing well and has a bump in the road losing 2 of 3 in the Bronx, I bet he figured this was a good time to go on the road to bond a bit as club and all that good rah-rah stuff and then Freddy goes all crazy old man on him, making his job a little tougher.  It was like the Mets were sending a message to Freddy, “You want shitty, we’ll show you shitty”

Speaking of schmucks (?) I was listening to Boomer and Carton this morning as they took phone calls from Highlander fans that bailed out of last night’s game with the Bronx Bastards down 4-1 in the 7^th.   All the callers expressed their love for the Bombers and said they were long time fans but still they had no faith in their team that they couldn’t come back from a 3 run deficit at home in a park with a right field wall a mere 314 ft away? You call yourselves “die hards” what you are is an embarrassment to baseball fans everywhere. And yes I watch the Mets-Cubs game in its entirety.  I may be a schmuck but at least I’m a loyal schmuck.

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After reading Jeffery Tobin’s piece in the New Yorker, which by the way was the best article  I’ve ever read on Freddy Skill Sets and Uncle Saul Katz and how they’ve went from a couple of shmucks from Bensonhurst to being a couple of schmucks from a gated community in Nassau County , it hit every emotion I have about being a Mets fan.

I laughed at Freddy gushing over his “Ebbets Field” and not having the smarts to realize that the majority of Mets fans hate the design and the Brooklyn Dodger influence of the ball park.  I was angered by his quotes about his best players. David Wright, whether you or Fred think he is not a superstar, has done more for this franchise on a positive level since he came up than anyone in the whole Mets organization. A few years back, Keith Hernandez mentioned on SNY that David needs to learn to say know to all the appearances he was making to promote the team as it just adds to the wear and tear of the season and is not worth it when rest is needed to stay fresh for the season. But Wright’ make up is he can’t say no to a sick child in a hospital, or to a military vet in a VA hospital or a school where he can have a positive influence on kids. This past winter, I attended the Mets Christmas party that was held for some inner city kids. It was one of those unbelievably cold winter days and here was Wright taking off his Santa Claus suit to come over to talk to myself and the other Mets bloggers in attendance. As cold as it was outside, Wright was dripping with sweat as that Santa Suit was stifling hot and he wore it until every kid came up to him to receive a Christmas gift . When I greeted Wright with a handshake I said to him “Is there anything you don’t do around here” and he replied “this isn’t work, this is fun, just to see the kid’s smile makes it worth it” We then began asking a few question and the one response  and image that stuck with me was that of a sweaty, tired David Wright leaning on a wall talking about his accomplishments as a Met saying “all I have to my name as a Met is NL East title and that’s not enough”

So when Freddy Skill Sets says about Wright, “He’s a really good kid, A very good player, not a superstar” I find that totally offensive. Last season I wrote that I felt Wright should approach the Skill Sets and demand a trade. I felt he needed to go to a better baseball environment where smart baseball people were in charge and rich owners just sat back and mined their own business. I pictured Wright on the Cardinals, Red Sox or Giants teams that are on solid ground and excelling as not the main cog in the engine but one of the pistons. So I guess that means I think like Freddy, that Wright is a very good player not a superstar, well on the Mets he’s a superstar because he has never, ever embarrassed this franchise and everything he does on and off the field is to promote the Mets in a positive light, which is an a near impossible task. No one in ownership has ever done iota of good for this franchise than Wright has done and for Freddy Skill Sets to disrespect Wright like he did in this article is totally classless.  

Do you know how much money and how many years Jose Reyes wants in his next contract? No you don’t and neither do I and neither does anyone else. Reyes has said that he wants to remain a Met for his whole career, during a media gathering at Cit Field right before spring training.  Reyes has made Long Island his permanent home. He has moved his parents from the Dominican Republic here to live with him, his wife and his kids. Jose Reyes loves being a Met and loves being a New Yorker, so where does Freddy get this idea that Reyes is looking for a “Carl Crawford contract”? Reyes is not getting a 7 year deal from the Mets or anyone else. The highest I can see for Jose is 5/$100mil but now with the diss from Freddy, I’m sure Reyes will look for the best deal he can get. Freddy’s big mouth might have just cost the Mets a hometown discount.

Carlos Beltran had to battle through a gauntlet of assholes to get his knee operated on and then rehabs his ass off to get back on the field to earn his paycheck. A lot of players after getting dicked around by management over a medical procedure would take their sweet time and come back when they thought it was best for them and not the team.  The thought never came into Carlos Beltran’s mind. He has not only worked his ass off to get back on the field, he’s changed position (unlike a certain diva shortstop in the Bronx who refuses to move off a position he hasn’t play well at in about three years) and has been giving the team a solid bat and adjusting to his new position flawlessly and has helped both his replacements, Angel Pagan and Jason Pridie with instructions on how to play the tough centerfield of Citi Field and for all this, he hears Freddy Skill Set say what a dick he was to sign him. Enjoy Carlos Beltran for the next month he is as good as gone from the Mets.

Just when you think there was no more earth for Freddy to scorch I’m sure his statement about his “shitty team” and that’s how “lousy clubs play” has gone over well with the ticket sales department and the public relations group.

From spending some time with the people behind the scenes at City Field these statements are an out and out punch in the gut to those folks who work hard and try and try and try to make this team relevant, to the point that people would actually spend money to come out to Citi Field.  Is Fred this delusional that he thinks he can call his team “lousy and shitty” and have these folks spin it positively? How does a ticket rep for the Mets call a prospective season ticket purchaser today and convince them to but Mets tickets? How does the P.R. staff come up with an ad campaign to get you to come out to Citi Field to see the Mets?  Freddy and Saul can spew old man stupidity all day and night, I’ll still go out to Citi Field this summer to watch the team, I’m sure Freddy and Saul laugh about a schmuck like me and that’s cool ,they can laugh now but I’ll be laughing later when Irv Picard beats their dumb ass in court and they have to sell the team and I’ll still being coming to Citi Field and rooting for my favorite baseball team and Freddy and Saul will be looking for that two-family house in Bensonhurst so Freddy can live upstairs and Saul down the basement. Just like old times.

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When I turned on my computer this morning there was a e-mail from the New Yorker with a link to a story written by Jeffery Tobin about Freddy Skill Sets and the rise and fall of the Skill Sets financial world. There are quotes it seems from Bernie Madoff, that makes both Freddy and Uncle Saul look like a couple of patsies when it came to finances.

The real bombeshell though is Freddy’s take on some of players, these comments are sure to start a violent shit storm with the Mets fan base.

The piece is long and I’m going to read it now so here’s the link so you can get a gander of it for yourself. Sometime later this morning I’ll be back with some comments but from reading Mets Blog and Adam Rubin’s Mets Blog this morning, losing two of three to the Highlanders will be a fart in the wind after this story gets it fill of eyeballs.

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