Mets Look To Put Philly Out To Pasture

The Mets start a three game series tonight at home against second-place Philadelphia. If the Phillies have any aspirations of catching the Mets, this series may be their first best shot, as the Phils will miss the two big guns of the Mets rotation, and instead will face Trachsel, Jeremi Gonzalez, and Cuban defector Alay Soler, who is making his major league debut Thursday. The Phillies are three games out heading into the series, and will send Gavin Floyd, rookie Cole Hamels, and Jon Lieber to the hill. Of course, these games are only numbers four through six of the eighteen total games the teams will play against each other, so there's plenty of time whichever way it goes.

Don't forget to listen to Gameday Audio on Thursday, to hear Mike and The Mad Dog do the play by play. Mike Francessa thinks he's a good play by play guy, but everytime I've heard him "call" a game that the two nitwits are watching on TV in the studio, he sounds like a stammering wannabe who serves only to suck all the emotion and drama out of the action while getting his jollies over hearing the sound of his own voice. I look forward to Thursday to find more things to make fun of the duo about.

Bob Raissman reminded me of another comment made during the weekend by the esteemed ESPN crew that had me muttering obscenities at the television set.

Describing David Wright's Sunday night blast, ESPN's Jon Miller said: "Over everything. ... out into the streets of New York." Didn't know Fred (Skill Sets) Wilpon repaved Shea parking lot with Lexington Ave.

Exactly. Most viewers around the country probably had no idea that this was a gaffe, but New Yorkers and transplants like me had to be shaking our collective heads at the screen. I'm guessing Big Shot Miller never looks outside the windows of his limo that just drops him off at the Shea press gate.


Transplanted Ex-Mets Update: Seo, Long

Jae Seo outdueled Byung Hyun Kim in the Battle of the Koreans, going seven innings and allowing just a single run off six hits, as the Dodgers beat the Rockies, 6-1.

Terrence Long (remember him?), called up by the Yankees to help out in the outfield

yesterday, went 0 for 4 and flied out to end the game and a Yankees rally in a 9-5 loss. Long was originally drafted by the Mets but was traded to Oakland in 1999 for Kenny Rogers. Long was a Rookie of the Year candidate for the A's in 2000 but his career has kind of faded since then.


Must Read Of The Day - Metstradamus's Quarter-season grades