Adventures in Local News

A local TV reporter delivers an entire report without having watch the last five seconds of the Michigan-Michigan State game.



I actually blame the producers back at the studio. The reporter has to be outside getting ready, can't wait for the game to end. They needed to tell him what happened, and not go to him until the game truly was over. But he looked like a douche for saying the fans were pouring out of the stadium and celebrating.

Speaking of douches in local news, a reporter in Toronto fails to use a key verb and tricks a poor Blue Jays fan.



Idiot should have said "are you going to get tickets?" The way she said it I can understand why the woman was confused.
But I'd have hated to be the person who had to break it to her.

Rotation Debation

Now that the Mets are in the World Series (the Mets are in the World Series!!!!!) with 5 days off before Game 1, the question has turned to how the Mets should set their pitching rotation.
A lot of people think they should stick with essentially what it is right now, Harvey-Syndergaard-deGrom.
But I think they should set their best pitchers first, deGrom-Harvey-Syndergaard. I want deGrom to go first because he feel he gives the Mets the best chance to win Game 1. And I do not believe in saving deGrom for a potential Game 7, as that could be a recipe for losing before you even get there.
Also, I would prefer to get Thor his first start at home, just in case there is something to his road troubles.

How Sweep It Is

The New York Mets are in the 2015 World Series!

I remember reading/hearing last year or the year before that Theo Epstein was building his team around power hitters, because they are in scarcer supply in today's game than power pitchers.

But I will always believe that most times, good pitching will beat good hitting and the Mets great young power pitchers just shut down the Cubs great power hitters for four straight games.

But we should remember there are no absolutes. Remember when the San Antonio Spurs beat the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals to prove, absolutely and indubitably, once and for all, that team basketball beats one or two great individual players.

Except for the year before, when basically the same two teams met in the Finals and the Heat won.

The Cubs are a good team and I expect many battles with them over the next few years and I would expect different results, at least some of the time.

But this is an amazing triumph for the Mets and I am thrilled as hell that they are in the World Series.

I hope they can keep this going and bring the title home.

They won the World Series when the team was 8 (kind of). The won the World Series when I was 8. And now it's time to win it when Chase is 8.

Two things will be addressed on this blog after the World Series, win or lose: the midseason drama including what I got right and what I got wrong, and the off-season moves the team would and should make.

Song of the Week

"Back in Time" - Huey Lewis and the News
Happy Back to the Future Day!

Tomorrow's Newspaper Today

Today is the day I've been waiting for, for 30 years. Ever since Doc told Marty where we're going we don't roads, and that he was going 30 years into the future because it's a nice round number.

Now that the day is finally here, let's look at the newspaper from that day:

Ok, so the Cubs will not be sweeping the World Series in 5 games, and hopefully not winning at all.
And I don't have the hoverboard I was promised.
And you can't rehydrate a pizza.
But I did think this was pretty cool. The device that took Griff's picture on the steps is pretty similar to what a drone is in the real 2015.

As we pass this momentous date in history, we are reminded now that even the future is history, now.

2015 NLCS Game 2: Mets 4 Cubs 1

I don't know who is having a more amazing postseason: me or Daniel Murphy.
I'm very lucky have to now been to 3 of the Mets home games this postseason.
This time we had seats in left field.

We were just a couple sections over from the Apple which was sporting a bandage after getting bonked by Travis d'Arnaud's home run in Game 3.

Of course it is nice to be anywhere in the ballpark for such a game, and even better to be down on the field level. And I am glad I got to try these outfield seats but were too far back to catch a home run, and we missed some key plays that happened deep in center or left, including David Wright's first inning double.

Now, on to some thoughts about the game:
Daniel Murphy is on an unbelievable, ridiculous, unconscious roll. Not only has he hit home runs in 4 straight playoff games, he's them off Kershaw, Greinke and Arrieta who will surely finish 1-2-3 in the Cy Young voting, and Jon Lester who is no slouch. Just an incredible stretch, that will probably never be replicated but should be thoroughly enjoyed for however long it lasts.

Lucas Duda has been awful. But he has to stay in there against righties, and I don't think Michael Cuddyer is much better against lefties. Hopefully the big man will snap out of it and go on one of his hot streaks.

Good job by Tyler Clippard and Addison Reed. The Mets are going to need those two guys if they're going to win the World Series. They can't rely on starting pitchers to enter games on their "throw day."

Yoenis Cespedes has not been hitting but he has been making up for it in the field and on the bases. But the Mets need him to break out.

The Mets have a 2-0 lead with Jacob deGrom on the mound in Game 3. It is still possible to blow the series for sure. But at this point the Mets have to be huge favorites to make the World Series.

Let's hope they keep getting good pitching and timely hitting and add one more year to the curse of the Cubbies.

By the way, did you hear the name of the supposed goat in the Cubs curse story was named Murphy. And I found that in stories written before this week. The world is a crazy place sometimes, let's just enjoy the ride.

Weekly Picks

A very weird week as all 3 of my early teams blew leads and in the case of the Seahawks, completely choked away a game they should have had. But I salvaged it with my best bet, picking the Patriots.

cincinnati -3 BUFFALO
This goes against a lot of my theories, particularly the one about not overestimating how much a backup quarterback will hurt a team. But I really like the Bengals and think they should win this one, even on the road.

arizona -4 PITTSBURGH
Once again, I am not overestimating how much not having Big Ben will hurt the Steelers. I am just correctly valuing how good the Cardinals are. Very good.

carolina +7 SEATTLE
This seems to be a lot of points to get from a team that hasn't been playing very well and may not have their best offensive player.

MINNESOTA -3 1/2 kansas city
I continue to like the Vikings and think this spread is a little too small, considering they are playing a bad team at home.

BEST BET
new england -9 INDIANAPOLIS
I am not doing this because I think the Patriots are on some kind of fuck-you-revenge mission. I am doing this because I think the Patriots are very good Colts are not. And because Belichick doesn't giving a shit about running up the score.
Last week: 2-3 (3 points)
Season: 15-10 (16 points)
Best Bets: 1-0 (3-2)
Home Favorites: 0-2 (5-4)
Home Underdogs: 0-0 (1-1)
Road Favorites: 2-0 (7-4)
Road Underdogs: 0-1 (2-1)

My Popcorn Odyssey

I recently went on a popcorn odyssey, four days and nights of eating popcorn in 4 different places in 3 different states, and I documented the entire thing to share with you guys.

Day 1:
Popcorn from Target for Game 1 of the NLDS.

Day 2:
Popcorn from AMC Theaters for Hotel Transylvania 2. The movie was actually pretty cute and funny. The boys loved it.
The popcorn was also good. And we get the refillable size so we chow down before the movie starts, and refill. Then we refill again after the movie and take home. On this night I enjoyed it with Game 2 of the NLDS.

Day 3:
Popcorn from Sesame Place. With the same bucket we've been using for years, and our season passes, refills are only $2.22. And I can eat the entire bucket in the time it takes the kids to wait on line and ride one ride.

Day 4:
Popcorn from CitiField.
Behind section 125 there is a stand that sells popcorn in a Mets helmet with unlimited refills for $12. It is the best food value at CitiField. I bought and ate one helmet-full myself when I sat down. Then during the introductions I ran to get #2. I sent Poop On Me for refill #3 at which point even I was sick of eating popcorn.

The Mets Move On

Daniel Murphy may not be a Met next year, but tonight he cemented his legacy as a Met.
Not only did Murphy win the game with a game-winning home run (his third of the series) he made one of the biggest surprise heady plays in baseball history when he went from first to third on Duda's walk and scored on d'Arnaud's sacrifice fly.

My favorite part, and you can't really see it in this video, is how he casually trotted to second base and very sneaky like, took off for third.

Add to that his double (could have been a triple) in the first inning that got the Mets on the board you have an amazing legendary performance that will not soon be forgotten by Mets fans.

Tough game for Jacob deGrom. He did not have his good stuff, or his command and was not pounding the strike zone as he normally does. But he was able to dance between the rain drops for six innings, constantly getting out of jams, and not always of his own making.

deGrom taking this through 6 allowed the Mets to go Thor and Familia and skip all the Clippard/Reed craziness.

I admit I was very worried about bringing in Syndergaard, not because of the starter in relief thing, but because he had warmed up and sat down three different times and his arm is not adjusted to that workload. But he looked pretty damn strong.

And of course great job by Jeurys Familia doing his best Mariano Rivera impression during the game and his best Mary Lou Retton after it.

I am very tough on Terry Collins as I think he uses emotion and intangibles over logic and data in too many of his decisions. But tonight he did all the right things. I would have taken deGrom out earlier, I would have been nervous about using Thor after all that up and down, but he made all the right moves. I might have wanted him to let Thor start the 8th and bring in Familia if anyone got on, to avoid the awkward situation of Familia batting with two men on. But it all worked out and I hope he continues pushing all the right buttons in the next round.

Speaking of the next round, I am terrified about playing the Cubs because they are pounding the ball right now and we have two key hitters, Wright and Duda who didn't do shit in this series, and Cespedes who for the most part didn't look much better.

The Mets survived the spotty offense and the less than stellar pitching (though no starter allowed more than 3 runs) but they will need to step it up to advance.

Let's home they can, I don't want this ride to end.

Let's Go Mets!

If Martha Stewart Were a Mets Fan

A few years ago we bought a pumpkin painted with the Mets logo. When we went back to that store this year they didn't have any. So I tried to do it myself.

Here's what I did:

I printed out a Mets logo on a piece of paper and then covered the entire back of it with blue painter's tape.

Using scissors and a box cutter I cut out the logo and those little empty bits in the middle were a bitch.

Then I folded a bunch of pieces of tape into tiny little circles to make sure the edges would stick to the pumpkin.

Then I slapped it on the face of the pumpkin and tried to smooth it out as much as possible.

I sprayed the entire thing with blue spray paint and let it dry overnight.

We removed the paper and tape logo and lo and behold the orange of the pumpkin made a pretty nice Mets logo.

2015 NLDS Game 4: Dodgers 3 Mets 1

I just never had a good feeling about Game 4.
I was still tired from Game 3. My energy wasn't the same, the crowd's energy wasn't the same and certainly the offensive production wasn't the same.
Our seats weren't as good either, though we still had a nice view from left field.

Steven Matz did not pitch great, though he could have easily avoided that disastrous innings if a couple of those hits didn't drop in or get by.

But the Mets just ran into the best pitcher in baseball on a good night.
All that stuff about Kershaw not being good in the playoffs was just nonsense. He's a great pitcher and he doesn't turn into a pumpkin on October 1.
Yes, his results were puzzling but they weren't as bad as they seemed because W-L record is not a good indication of a pitcher's individual performance, and because even 40 or 50 innings is a very small sample size.

But please remember, momentum is only as good as the next day's starting pitcher. We've got Jacob deGrom, but they've got Zack Greinke.

So who knows what will happen.

All we can do is wait, watch and scream "Lets! Go! Mets!"

Song of the Week

"Back in My Arms" - Jaheim
Whenever I make a song like this the SOTW, I feel I need to post a disclaimer that Mrs. Poop and I are not having problems.
It's the downside of a happy, healthy relationship that I never get to sit in my room and listening to this song on repeat while crying.

2015 NLDS Game 3: Mets 13 Dodgers 7

Thanks to the connections of Master Bates, I was able to attend Game 3 of the NLDS at Citifield.
After the controversial Utley slide, emotions were running high, especially when Ruben Tejada limped onto the field in pregame introductions.

The game got off to a rough start as Matt Harvey, clearly without his best stuff, allowed 4 straight hits and 3 runs in the second inning.

But the Mets immediately turned that around and Curtis Granderson got a huge hit off a lefty (he struggled vs lefties all season, finishing with a 559 OPS against them), a bases-clearing double.

Harvey settled down a little, and then d'Arnaud homered to make it 6-3 and Cespedes put the final nail in the coffin with a three run homer to make it 10-3.

From our seats in left field

we had a great view of both home runs, passing right in front of us. d'Arnaud's was in doubt, but Cespedes's was a bomb.

Cespedes with quite the bat flip, justifiably excited.

The atmosphere for the entire game was awesome. Mets fans being happy and excited to have such a good team and such a good chance to win this series now.

And I was thrilled to have gotten to share this special moment with my family.

Sic Semper Mets Fans

Everything seemed to be going the Mets way, up 1-0 in games, 2-0 in Game 2 with Syndergaard dealing, but if you've been a Mets fan for more than five minutes you know stuff like this happens to us.
For the quick review, Syndergaard allows two base runners in the 7th (I thought Terry should have yanked him), Colon gets Kendrick to hit one back up the middle, Murphy flips to Tejada who gets destroyed by Utley as the tying run scores. As Tejada is being carted off, the umpires review the play and say Tejada never touched the base. They put Utley back, making it 1st and 2nd with one out, and Addison Reed came in and allowed 3 runs to score.

Here are some quick thoughts:

1) The slide was borderline, but on the dirty side. Excessive force to break up the double play, and he slid as late as you can to possibly be considered starting to slide before the base.

2) The ruling to put Utley back on second even though he touch the bag makes a little sense. If you're going to have replay you have to give umpires the latitude to make reasonable corrections in conjunction with their calls.

For instance, a running back fumbles, defender, the only player near it picks it up. But refs blow the play dead so they can't grant a recovery after the whistle. On review they see it was a fumble but can't grant a change of possession. That used to be the case in the NFL. It sucked, so they have to give umpires some leeway.

3) Terry Collins still should have appealed to second base and played the game under protest because both are no-risk propositions.

4) I have no problem with bringing Colon in. He had a great record against Kendrick and he got him to hit a potentially inning-ending double play.

As for the series going forward:
1) The loss of Tejada hurts, but I love Flores and think his defense at short has been just as good or better than Tejada's this season. And his bat is far superior even though he never walks. Let's see if Wilmer can have another magical moment to further cement his status as a fan favorite.

2) The bullpen is absolutely awful. They pretty much need every starter to go 8 innings, or have a 3-run lead to win a game. That's not a recipe for postseason success. If you're Terry Collins can you really trust Addison Reed or Tyler Clippard in the next big spot in the 7th or 8th inning.

3) The core of the Mets lineup is not hitting. Cespedes is 1-7 (the one was a huge home run), Wright is 1-7 (the 1 being the game-winning hit), Duda is 1-6 and D'Arnaud is 0-7. I know it was against Kershaw and Greinke but if those guys don't hit, and the bullpen sucks this bad, they Mets have no chance.

But this is the Mets fan experience: hope, hope, hope, crushing defeat. But this is what we signed up for. And when we ever do win, or IF we ever do win, all that pain will be turned to a feeling so wonderful we'll all agree it was worth it.

Remember this one last thing though,

Momentum is only as good as the next game's starting pitcher and they have Brett Anderson and we have Matt Harvey.

Let's Go Mets!

Weekly Picks

A promising start to the week until the Cardinals went down in flames. As always with my seasons I do much better on regular picks (11-5) as opposed to best bets. Let's see what Week 5 holds.

BALTIMORE -7 cleveland
Remember when the Ravens were a Super Bowl contender? They could easily be 0-4 right now. But I still think they are a good team. And should be able to beat a bad one at home.

KANSAS CITY -8 1/2 chicago
I correctly picked the Bears last week and Jay Cutler came back like a hero and led them to their first game. Well, the Bears still stink. And even though there's a lot of points to lay here, I like the Chefs, great googley-moogley, the Chiefs.

seattle +3 CINCINNATI
All of the sudden the Bengals are world-beaters? Well, they still have Andy Dalton and the Seahawks still have a good defense.

arizona -3 DETROIT
The Cardinals are still good. The Lions still suck.

BEST BET
new england -8 DALLAS
I've just got a feeling the Patriots are going to kill the Cowboys.

Last week: 3-2 (2 points)
Season: 13-7 (13 points)
Best Bets: 0-1 (2-2)
Home Favorites: 1-2 (5-2)
Home Underdogs: 1-0 (1-1)
Road Favorites: 0-0 (5-4)
Road Underdogs: 1-0 (2-0)

Song of the Week

"Wet Dreamz" - J. Cole
I don't know whether to be amused or disgusted about the use of the dogs in the video.

It's like a rap version of Betty Wright's "Tonight is the Night" without the awesome live set up.

2015 Playoff Predictions

AL Wild Card: Houston Astros over New York Yankees
AL Division Series: Toronto Blue Jays over Texas Rangers, Kansas City Royals over Houston Astros
AL Championship Series: Toronto Blue Jays over Kansas City Royals

NL Wild Card: Chicago Cubs over Pittsburgh Pirates
NL Division Series: St. Louis Cardinals over Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers over New York Mets
NL Championship Series: St. Louis Cardinals over Los Angeles Dodgers

World Series: St. Louis Cardinals over Toronto Blue Jays

I did get half the division winners correct in my preseason predictions, not terrible.

Good Thing I Didn't Die While Mike Piazza Was on the Mets

85-year-old Helen Fowler of Cranford, NJ passed away recently and in her obituary she (and/or her surviving family members) wanted the world to know how much Helen loved the New York Yankees.

Except for that miserable bum, Alex Rodriguez.
God bless you Helen.

Niggling Worries

I don't believe in momentum but I have some serious concerns about the way the Mets limped into the playoffs and what that portends for their chances to beat the Dodgers.

1) The offense is back to July levels of ineptitude. I know the Mets fielded a Triple A lineup against Max Scherzer, but he essentially threw a perfect game and struck out 17. The Mets August hot streak wasn't caused solely by the presence of Yoenis Cespedes. It was that Cespedes was hitting, which helped everyone around him hit as well. Even a 2-game slump in the Division Series is enough to knock you out of the playoffs.

2) The bullpen has been horrible. Tyler Clippard was horrible in September and October (6.14 ERA), Hansel Robles allowed runs in 4 of his last 6 outings, Jon Niese had 4 relief appearances and allowed 6 hits to 15 batters faced. Addison Reed has been good, and I trust Familia, but these are going to be close games and the Mets starters tend to falter in the 7th and 8th innings.

3) Terry Collins is a moron. I really dislike the way Collins manages this team, both from the broad view and from the specific in game moves. I am flabbergasted and befuddled as to why he rested all his regular position players down the stretch, but felt the need to keep his fragile starters "fresh" forgoing innings limits, doctors' warnings and common sense. If home field and staying fresh was important, why weren't some real hitters playing those games?

4) Thor on the road. The main job of the manager is to put his players in the best position to perform at their best. Noah Syndergaard is much more likely to perform at his best in CitiField compared to Dodger Stadium. I don't know why this is, I just know that it is. Sure it could change next year, and for the rest of his career, but for right now, it makes no sense to throw him out there in Game 2, and maybe again in Game 5 on the road when he clearly pitches much better at home.

5) Kershaw and Greinke. Even if the Mets were playing their best ball right now, it would still be a monumental task to face the Dodgers, the one team with a better top 2 than the Mets have. I know Kershaw hasn't done so great in the postseason, but he's still one of the best pitchers in the majors and can be absolutely unhittable at times. I pity Granderson, Murphy and Duda if they are forced to face him.

Weekly Picks

Another good week, two fives in a row, and a late touchdown robbed us of a perfect 6. The only problem is, I don't love any of the games this week.

ATLANTA -6 houston
I already like the way the Falcons were playing with a great offense and Julio Jones and a big comeback against the Cowboys. But then I saw that the spread on this game moved heavy towards Houston throughout the week. I enjoy going against the crowd.

carolina -3 TAMPA BAY
I hate picking all these 3-0 teams to keep winning but I really think this line is just too attractive.

CHICAGO +3 oakland
Ok, this might seem crazy but I am going on on a limb here because the Bears looked so bad and all of the sudden everyone loves the Raiders. Again, bucking the crowd here.

SAN DIEGO -6 1/2 cleveland
Ok, let's take one more bad team. The Chargers are 1-2 and giving up a lot of points at home, but I think the Browns are a pretty weak opponent.

BEST BET
ARIZONA -6 1/2 st. louis
The rest of the world is starting to wake up to how good the Cardinals are. I hate this spread. Hate it. But the Cards have been killing people and I don't see any better options out there.

Last week: 4-1 (5 points)
Season: 10-5 (11 points)
Best Bets: 1-0 (2-1)
Home Favorites: 2-0 (4-0)
Home Underdogs: 0-0 (0-1)
Road Favorites: 1-1 (5-4)
Road Underdogs: 1-0 (1-0)