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)

Song of the Week

"September Morn" - Neil Diamond

Weekly Picks

One of the craziest weeks in recent history, the top 6 teams in ESPN.com's eliminator pool all lost (Saints, Ravens, Dolphins, Colts, Rams & Titans) knocking out 87% of the field, but I avoided most of those games.

But here's where the hard part comes in. First off, in order to do well in this format you need to string together strong weeks, can't go 1 and 1. Also, you know I love good teams coming off a loss, and bad teams coming off a win, but not all the matchups turned out the way I would have liked them.

atlanta -1 DALLAS
I normally don't pick against a team solely because they lost their quarterback, because I feel the impact is generally overrated. But I feel like the Cowboys at 2-0 and a couple lucky wins at that, could be in trouble this week.

indianapolis -3 TENNESSEE
The Colts have to turn this around? Don't they?

ARIZONA -6 1/2 san francisco
I really like the Cardinals and continue to hate the 49ers.

SEATTLE -14 1/2 chicago
I know Seattle is going to win this game. The only question is, will they win by enough. I think the answer is yes.

BEST BET
philadelphia +1 NEW YORK JETS
I know this pick is going to upset some of you but this is exactly what I want, a team that seems like the world is ending, against a team that is suddenly hot. The Eagles offense can't possibly be this bad and the Jets are not this good. They are benefiting from 10 turnovers so far, that cannot continue.

Last week: 4-1 (5 points)
Season: 6-4 (6 points)
Best Bets: 1-0 (1-1)
Home Favorites: 2-0 (2-0)
Home Underdogs: 0-0 (0-1)
Road Favorites: 2-1 (4-3)
Road Underdogs: 0-0 (0-0)

I Better Go To His Funeral

Or he won't come to mine.

Yogi Berra passed away at age 90 and he will best be remembered for his funny one-liners and malaprops.

"My wife said he took my son to see Dr. Zhivago. I said 'what's wrong with him now?'"

"No one goes there anymore, it's too crowded."

"Baseball is 90% mental. The other half is physical."

It's like deja vu all over again."

"I didn't say all those things they said I said."

And of course "it ain't over til it's over."

As much as I love a funny quip, I am saddened that his humor overshadowed what was an incredible baseball career.
From 1950 through 1956, Berra posted WARs of 6.0, 5.3, 5.8, 5.4, 5.9, 5.2 and 6.4.
In 1950, he played 151 out of 154 games, making 656 plate appearances and striking out only 12 times. That's 1.8% strikeout rate. In 2015, Daniel Murphy has the lowest strikeout rate in the majors at 6.9%.

But we have a policy here at The Poop to post something ridiculous or trivial about people when they die. So here is Yogi Berra in a Miller Lite commercial from 1987, alongside a young Jason Alexander.

Song of the Week

"Cool for the Summer" - Demi Lovato
Can someone please tell me what this song is about?

Weekly Picks

The hot start I was hoping for did not materialize as my Bill Cosby (sleeper) team, the Vikings, let me down. And San Francisco which is starting 21 new players after everyone from last year's team except Colin Kaepernick left or retired, shocked me as well. No time to lick our wounds, another slate of games is upon us.

new england -2 1/2 BUFFALO
As you know by now, I place very little value on intangibles like Rex Ryan's attitude, or the Patriots wanting to come out hot in week 1 to stick in to the league. I believe in Tom Brady vs. Tyrod Taylor. Taylor may well turn into the black Tom Brady someday, but he's gonna have to prove it to me first.

tennessee -1 1/2 CLEVELAND
This is a tricky one for me because I know Mariota is not going to play like that again. But this is a pick against Manziel. He is not a NFL level starting QB. He's very Tebow-like in his ability, great college player, not NFL-caliber.

arizona -2 CHICAGO
I really like the Cardinals offense and hate just about everything about the Bears.

PITTSBURGH -6 1/2 san francisco
I'll give picking against the 49ers one more chance.

BEST BET
CAROLINA -3 houston
Maybe I put a little too much faith in the Texans defense. It can't be a good sign that they changed QBs after one week.

Last week: 2-3 (1 point)
Season: 2-3 (1 point)
Best Bets: 0-1 (0-1)
Home Favorites: 0-0 (0-0)
Home Underdogs: 0-1 (0-1)
Road Favorites: 2-2 (2-2)
Road Underdogs: 0-0 (0-0)

3000 Words

A high school football field in Illinois was treated with weed killer and not fertilizer.

A seal hitches a ride on the back of a humpback whale.

Former President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalyn share a smooch on "Kiss Cam" during an Atlanta Braves game.

Song of the Week

"I Do" - The Marvelows
Classic doo-wop song. Took me a long time to track down the name of it with only these lyrics "do I love you? I do (doo-doo doo-doo)" in my head.

Weekly Picks

Each new season provides a new opportunity. An opportunity for what? That remains to be seen. I haven't been doing well the past few seasons but I trust this is my year to turn it around.

indianapolis -2 1/2 BUFFALO
The Colts are my Super Bowl pick and Andrew Luck is my MVP. And Buffalo doesn't have a QB anywhere close.

carolina -3 JACKSONVILLE
The Jaguars are still really bad, thought I don't love the Panthers this year I do think they are better than the Jags.

HOUSTON +1 kansas city
I don't like Alex Smith going up against this defense. Though with Foster and without a real QB, the Texans might have trouble scoring.

green bay -7 CHICAGO
This is a pretty big spread but I trust the Packers to put up enough points to cover.

BEST BET
minnesota -2 1/2 SAN FRANCISCO
Pretty sure the 49ers have 100% turnover rate on their roster from last season, and no Harbaugh either. The Vikings are my Bill Cosby (sleeper) pick this year thanks to Teddy PuenteAgua (Spanish for Bridgewater).