Just call it the Winter of Eli. 

Okay, I’ve basked in the glow of the NY Football Giants come from behind win over the New England Brady Belichicks and the four game NY Rangers winning streak (more on that in a moment) so to take me down a notch or two, let me see where we are with our beloved New York Mets (and I don’t mean in Istanbul)

The Skill Sets after trimming away some office staff and guys who wash the uniforms are still selling a load of tripe that the club is on solid financial ground, even though there are reports that Greece’s Minister of Finance has told members of the Greek Parliament who ask about the country’s failing economy “Could be worse, we could be the Mets”.

After trying to pull the ol’ oakie doke on David Einhorn at the last minute, and Einhorn being too smart to fall for their tricks and then with the failure in their “friends and family” share sell, they are now going the Certificate of Deposit route with selling these stakes in the team. You can choose between investing $20-$30 mil and collecting 3% interest on your investment for six years where you can then collect your investment PLUS the interest or you can forgo the interest payments and keep your small percentage of ownership. But wait, there’s more! If you act in the next thirty minutes, Freddy Skill Sets will throw in a Magic Bullet blender, Shake Weight and Genie Bra, absolutely free. Operators are standing by so act fast because those operators may not have a job by today’s close of business.

Here’s where we stand with David Wright :

The Citi Field fences were lowered and brought in for him and Jason Bay to enhance their offensive performance and to raise their self-esteem.

Sandy Alderson has no problem trading Wright or anyone on the roster as long as the deal makes sense for the Mets and makes them a better team.

Some Mets fans think Alderson went to the Minaya-Bernazard School of Stupid Baseball Moves and need to do their homework on how the man runs a baseball team. He’s not going to deal Wright for the sake of dealing Wright. He will trade Wright if the package put before him is overwhelming. If Wright finds his groove and the Mets are out of contention by the trade deadline, Alderson will have a bunch of suitors ringing his phone and Wright will be dealt to the highest bidder.

Jose Reyes is an ex-Met. Read it. Learn it. LIVE WITH IT.

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I haven’t had time to post either yesterday or today so before I head out the door for a full day of football and the evening at MSG for Rangers-Jets, let me just make a quick comment on Joel Sherman’s story on the Mets talking about dealing David Wright to the Angels for Peter Bourjos and one or two pitching prospects.

If Sandy Alderson can pull that deal off it’s a steal for the Mets. Again, again, again this is NOT an anti-Wright sentiment it’s just the realization that Jose Reyes isn’t coming back and this organization is in need of a through rebuilding program and Alderson seems the feel that way as well.

Oh and don’t think that the quotes from a “Mets front office person” is a leak, it’s more of a well placed mole getting the front offices’ message out without getting dirty.

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The regurgitation of Jose Reyes’  free agent news   reminds me of Benjamin “Bubba” Blue in the movie Forest Gump when he talks about all the ways you can prepare shrimp, you can fry ‘em, bake ‘em, sautee ‘em…………………..where only a simpleton like Gump would listen intently. 

Speaking of simpletons, the Phily Phboy of the Daily News had an in depth report on the Mets choices for center field in 2012. Here we see with why he thinks Coco Crisp should be the club’s next CF’er:

Coco Crisp

Upside: Would be a fun name to write and say.

Go back to your coloring books now Andy.

I do agree with Martino on Pagan, the rumblings around the team is Pagan and Ronnie Paulino have piss poor attitudes that both Terry Collins and Sandy Alderson want eradicated  from the clubhouse . Omar would have given both players 5 year deals.

No way do I want to see Rick Ankiel in CF in 2012, I could live with Crisp and his shitty OBP for a year I guess but I’d much rather have B.J. Upton and make him perform for a contract. As I’ve written before make a big deal of Upton and Ben Zorbrist for Pelfrey, Parnell, Murphy and a low level minor leaguer. If that can’t be worked out then get creative with Grady Sizemore.

Joel Sherman and his one note band has more Reyes Reruns. Lather Rinse Repeat.

The Mets lost their Director of Amateur Scouting, Chad MacDonald to the Padres where he will be new GM Josh Byrnes right hand man and as much as it’s sad that MacDonald, a force behind last year’s Mets draft that got high marks from those who follow amateur baseball, it is refreshing to see another team coveting a member of the Mets front office. Really who ever wanted to steal Tony Bernazard away from the Mets? The UFC? The Mets will stay in house by promoting scout Tommy Tanous to MacDonald’s old post.

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Boy oh boy, it’s the 3^rd day of November and already the Mets fan base is restless. Between the outfield renovations, Jose Reyes freedom walk, the Skill Sets crumbling financial situation and the total lack of optimism among those live and die all things Mets ( not that we’re a Mary Sunshine bunch to begin with) has given me a Back to the Future kind of feel to it. I really, really hope this organization is not reverting to the De Roulet-M.Donald Grant Destroy a Thriving Franchise style of management. At least back then I had places like Max’s Kansas City and CBGB’s to go to forget my Mets sorrows all I have now is shots of Milk of Magnesia.

Thanks to Mike Silva, I had to pop TWO high blood pressure pills this morning.

Mark Healy speaks for all of us long (and I mean LLLLLOOOONNNNGGGG) time Mets fans with his piece in Gotham Baseball.

Joe DeMayo of Pt St. Lucie to Flushing has his Top 25 Mets prospect list out and I’m happy he added LHP Jack Leathersich to his list.

Seems that the Skill Sets have settled with the pensioners of Sterling Equities in losing their retirement money if the Madoff nonsense. You know, when all these law suits are settled, maybe we Mets fans can file a lawsuit against the Skill Sets for abandonment.

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The Mets have announced today that they are expanding the Fanwalk where you can purchase a brick with this years 50th Anniversary patch on it. I have a brick from when the Mets first offered them for the Fanwalk, in fact when you purchase a Fanwalk brick you get one on either the first or third base side outside of Citi Field and you get one for your home, mine is on the mantle of the fireplace in my dining room so when family and friends who are Highlander fans they must stare at it while having dinner.

Here is the release put out by the Mets on how who can purchase your Fanwalk Brick:

METS EXPAND CITI FIELD FANWALK FOR 2012 SEASON

“Citi Field Fanwalk: Mets 50^th Anniversary” Bricks Are On Sale Now

Purchase Includes Brick Replica, Net Proceeds to Benefit Mets Foundation;

Mets 2011 Season Ticket and Plan Holders to Receive 15% Discount

FLUSHING, N.Y., November 2 – The New York Mets today announced the expansion of the Citi Field Fanwalk to include a new offering of bricks in honor of the franchise’s 50^th anniversary to be installed for the 2012 season along the first and third base sides of the ballpark outside the Hodges VIP and Seaver VIP entrances. Citi Field Fanwalk: Mets 50^th Anniversary commemorative bricks will provide fans the opportunity to recognize their families, friends, and favorite Mets memories since the franchise first began play in 1962.

Bricks are on sale now at Mets.com/Fanwalk or by phone at 877-NYM-WALK (696-9255).

The first two editions of Citi Field Fanwalk bricks sold out with fans purchasing more than 24,000 bricks.  The first offering of bricks directly outside the Jackie Robinson Rotunda was installed prior to the inaugural season at the new Mets home in 2009.  The Fanwalk was extended down the first base and third base lines the following year with Citi Field Fanwalk: Amazin’ Moments bricks commemorating great moments in Mets history.

Fans will be able to purchase bricks in three sizes:

• 8” x 8” brick engraved with the Mets 50^th anniversary logo or Mets script logo and four lines of text for $395
• 8” x 8” brick with six lines of text for $340
• 4” x 8” brick with three lines of text for $195

Each Citi Field Fanwalk: Mets 50^th Anniversary brick includes a complimentary replica, with additional copies and display cases available for purchase.  All brick engravings will be text only, and each proposed message is subject to the approval of the Mets.  Corporate logos and slogans are not permitted.

Mets 2011 Season Ticket and Plan Holders will receive a 15% discount on Fanwalk bricks.

A portion of each brick purchase is tax deductible and net proceeds will be donated to the Mets Foundation, which will distribute the funds to area charities.  A registered 501(c) 3 charity, the Mets Foundation takes no portion of the funds raised to offset internal costs. The Mets pay 100% of the Foundation’s overhead to ensure that the entirety of a donation is directed toward helping others.

The Mets will reveal the design for their 50^th anniversary logo and plans for the season-long celebration in the coming weeks.

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This whole changing of the walls at Citi Field has me a bit perplexed to a point of being a bit pissed off. While I agree with lowering the height of the outfield walls to eight feet, which they should have been when the park was first built, it seems the lowering of the walls and bringing them in a bit closer to home plate is because some of the Mets starting eight have been traumatized by the outfield dimensions. According to Pitching Coach Old School Warthen, his pitchers “got a bit lazy” due to the vast pasture of the Citi Field outfield that they had a hard time pitching in a place like Citizen’s Bank or even the Mall of The South Bronx.  What all this tells me is this team collectively is mentally weak and the pitching coach has no idea how to do his job.

I’ve always been a card carrying member of the David Wright Fan Club but his constant crying about the Citi Field dimensions have me wondering if I want to renew my membership. Same with Jason Bay, I was never a fan of his as his signing was just another example of the damage Omar Minaya and Jeffey Skill Sets did to this organization. So now that the fences have been moved in and the walls lowered (I guess it is perfectly clear now that Citi Field was badly planed and put together between the skyscraper outfield walls, the lack of a Mets-eccentric feel and the whole homage to the Brooklyn Dodgers that was met with Mets fans ire) there should be no excuse for Wright and Bay to not have monster seasons in 2012. Right? Wright?

As for Warthen his quote :

“We got into being a little bit mentally lazy and overly secure. … I think that caused a lot of the homers this year. I really do. …[The new dimensions] will help us focus and concentrate and not be so ready to go out there and throw a fastball away and hope they hit it to center field.”

As the pitching coach shouldn’t you have nipped this problem in the bud ? By saying this out loud didn’t you realize that you are just feeding into the frenzy of many Mets fans (this one included) that you have no clue on how to fix this staff and should have been relieved of your duties this off season? It’s quotes like this that make me wonder if it’s Warthen fault that Bobby Parnell, he of the Howitzer arm, had no clue on how to pitch? Same with Mike Pelfrey. Pelf has talent and his a big strong workhorse of a pitcher is that Old School can’t or doesn’t know how to tap into what it takes to make both pitchers the dominate arms we feel they can be?

Jeffey Skill Sets says, not to worry about whom and when these minority shareholders of the Mets come on board. Besides it’s none of your business:

“Some of the people don’t want to be public,” Wilpon said. “Some of the people might never be public. I don’t think anybody knows all the minority shareholders in each of the other teams. Do you know all the minority shareholders in Atlanta or Kansas City or St. Louis, Cincinnati, the Yankees? It’s just not widely known.”

Do I care who holds a minority share in the Braves, Royals, Cardinals or the Bronx Bastards? No, because I don’t root or spend my money on tickets and merchandise on those teams but I do on the Mets. See I want to know as a Mets fan/customer what financial resources the team has to improve the product they are selling to me and my fellow Mets fans. I’m not going to pay Broadway prices for a high school production.  This is just another example of this ownership having not a clue of how to treat or connect with its fan base.

I’ve never been a big fan of Halloween maybe it was because the neighborhood I grew up in was more about ducking flying eggs or avoiding getting jumped by guys with socks full of chalk (usually pulling a knife on the sock hopper curtailed those attacks) than collecting candy but Ed “Rusty Jr.” Marcus went to a Mets Halloween Party last night and saw some interesting costumes. Oh and by the way Ed, the image of you in KISS makeup is disturbing.

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