Transplanted Ex-Mets Update: Jeromy Burnitz

See Ya Later, 'Nitz!

Twice ex-Met Jeromy Burnitz has retired. My two memories of Jeromy Burnitz are 1. Seeing him get booed mercilessly by the Shea Faithful, and 2. laughing when I read him quoted as saying he was sure he'd never be accused of steroid use due to his underwhelming physique.

Burnitz was a first round draft pick by the Mets in 1990 but was shipped off to Cleveland for Dave Mlicki in 1994. Mliki, of course, has a special spot in the Mets Hall Of Fame for one magical night when he shut down the Yankees in the first ever Subway Series game, a regular-season affair at Yankees Stadium in 1997. I was at that game and it is one of my fondest Mets Memories. But, I digress...

Burnitz returned to the Mets in 2002 via trade with Milwaukee for the esteemed trio of five tooler Alex Ochoa, Mike Piazza's BFF Lenny Harris, and... Glendon Rusch.

Burnitz wore out his welcome in 2003 and the Dodgers took him of our hands in exchange for Victor Diaz. Remember that guy? He was the 2000's version of Butch Huskey.

Best of luck, Jeromy....

Hugs And Kisses In Mets Camp

“He heard me loud and clear. Again, he showed a lot of remorse, he was sorry, maybe a little bit emotional…but I think he understands now his total commitment to and responsibility to this team. We’ll see moving forward, but I’m confident that he understands that this is a team and that we are all working under the same umbrella.”
-Willie Randolph

“It went great, it went great. Good things happened, we talked about a lot of things, it’s just, you know, I apologized to the front office, the coaching staff and I’ll talk to my teammates one on one. I just overslept, there’s nothing else I can say. It’s embarrassing for me, because I should be a little bit more responsible about that, about getting here on time, but, like I said, I’m just trying to move forward from here.
-Duaner Sanchez

After the meeting in the Principal's office, the Mets went out and knocked around the Washington Nationals. Lastings Milledge, Jose Valentin, Ben Johnson, and David Newhan all went deep for the Mets, staking the Mets to a 6-2 lead headed to the Seventh Inning Stretch. Oliver Perez started, and allowed 1 run on 2 hits over 4 innings. Nice. He did walk two batters however, and struck out none. Ambiorix Burgos allowed one hit in one inning, striking out one, and Pedro Feliciano had a perfect frame. Alay Soler did not fare so well. After allowing a run in the 7th, he could not get out of the 8th inning. He allowed a three run homer, and his big problem was he walked four guys - he threw 39 pitches, just 15 of them strikes in his appearance. Then, a non-roster invitee named Clint Nageotte coughed up the tying run in the ninth and Eddie Camacho gave up the winning run in the 10th. The game only went into extra frames because of a nice catch by Anderson Hernandez playing shortstop.

If anyone gets worked up over wins and losses in Spring Training, consider the Mets lineup during the 10th inning: Ben Johnson, Ruben Sierra, Dan Murphy, Anderson Hernandez, Mike DiFelice, and these pitchers have zero chance of making the team.

If the season started today, you would have to figure the pitching staff filling out as:

Glavine
Maine
Perez
Hernandez
Park
Wagner
Feliciano
Heilman
Burgos
Scott Schoeneweis
Joe Smith

But it doesn't, so the speculation, like the outcome of the game, means nothing...

Word On The Scene From Mets Camp

The Tardy Sanchez Issue continues - A surprising development today, when reporters realized Duaner Sanchez was not in camp for a second straight game. Although yesterday Willie said Sanchez's punishment for being late was "a one day thing,"today according to Newsday's Anthony Rieber... the Mets told the injured reliever to stay home again on Friday as a continuing disciplinary measure because of repeated latenesses. "He was told not to report today," Sanchez's agent, Bean Stringfellow, told Newsday. Stringfellow said he was hoping to talk to Mets general manager Omar Minaya later Friday to determine just when the team would allow Sanchez to rejoin his teammates.

Carlos Delgado was not in the lineup today against the tigers, and since Julio Franco is out with some sort of wrist ailment, Shawn Green manned first base. If things continue, this might be Shawn's best chance of keeping his roster spot.

Update: In Demand Unsatisfied with Direct TV's Extra Innings Conditions

Last night I passed along the news that Direct TV's $700 deal with MLB to carry the Extra Innings package contained a provision that allowed In Demand and DISH Network to also carry the package"at consistent rates and carriage requirements with a deal to be concluded before the baseball season begins. The provision also requires the incumbents to agree to carriage rights to the MLB Channel proportionally equivalent to DIRECTV's commitment."

According to an article in today's Daily News, Robert Jacobson, In Demand's president/CEO, said those conditions are designed "to be impossible for cable and Dish Network to meet."

Dirty Tardy Sanchez!

Yesterday, Willie Randolph announced that he'd sent Duaner Sanchez home for the day for disciplinary reasons for repeated tardiness:

"He's been a little tardy for a couple of days, we have a rule for being on time, so I sent him home," Randolph said after the Mets' 8-7 loss to Baltimore. "I spoke to him about being on time, he'd been warned. ... I don't have a lot of rules, except come to work and get your work in."

Matt Cerrone speculates that Willie is sending a message to the team that anything short of your best effort will not be tolerated.

C'mon Dirty! We need you!

Mets Fan In Oklahoma Is Un-Transplanting Himself

Our favorite weatherman, Mets Fan In Oklahoma is moving back to the New York City area and needs to change the name of his Mets blog. Head over to his site and give him some suggestions! I'll need them if I ever un-transplant myself too.

My Blog Is Worth B$4,262.91 (or Something)

I came across a listing for this blog on something called B$ - The Fantasy Blog Stock Market. I have no idea what to make of this, but apparently my stock is up:



Again, not sure what this means but if you have an account with this fantasy blog stock market thing, buy my blog! They say 4,000 out of 5,000 shares are available @ B$37.91 ea. - 44.46 p/e.

Seems like they like my site because I have a lot of incoming and outgoing links. My good buddy Mets Guy In Michigan is worth $877.35! But MetsBlog, the king of all Mets Blogs, is worth just B$42.14. Or maybe I'm reading this wrong.

Mets Blogs

I've added two new blogs to my blogroll:

Check out Mets Heads and Shea Nation for your Mets needs!

News: Direct TV's Extra Innings Deal Is Not Necessarily Exclusive

The expected announcement about Direct TV's $700 deal with MLB to carry the Extra Innings package came with an unexpected wrinkle:

The seven-year deal... allows MLB EXTRA INNINGS to be offered to other incumbents - In Demand and DISH Network - at consistent rates and carriage requirements with a deal to be concluded before the baseball season begins. The provision also requires the incumbents to agree to carriage rights to the MLB Channel proportionally equivalent to DIRECTV's commitment. Should the incumbents decide not to match DIRECTV's commitment, the MLB EXTRA INNINGS package will be exclusive to DIRECTV.

It seems quite clear to me that MLB caved to public pressure. Well done, fellow bloggers and fans!

Mets Tie Phillies in Wife-Beaters On Roster

A huge thank you to Ryan McConnell for alerting us to the fact that new Met Wil Cordero has a history of spousal abuse accusations against him.

The Phillies may have improved themselves this offseason, but one thing Mets fans could feel good about was that we definitely outclassed their organization. The Phils had rewarded Brett Myers with a new 3 year deal, not shying away from the despicable eyewitness accounts of Myers being seen pulling his wife by the hair through the streets of Boston.

Now the Mets give Cordero a minor league deal. As McConnell accurately states, there is zero upside to this move which potentially clogs a roster spot that a Mike Carp or Michel Abreu could fill just as well. Hey Omar, dump this bum and take a stand that violence against women is unacceptable. It's a GD shame that Jeter's relationship with A-Rod gets more press than Brett Myers and Wil Cordero's relationship with their wives.

Injury Bug Strikes Transplanted Ex-Mets

Mike Hampton won't be available for Opening Day after "seriously injuring his ‘left side’ while taking batting practice," according to MLB.com, via MetsBlog.

Kris Benson's attempt to forgo surgery and instead try to rehab his shoulder looks doubtful after reporting increased soreness during training sessions.

Scott Kazmir looked rough in his first appearance since his 2006 season was cut short due to shoulder problems.

First rule of baseball superstition: NEVER celebrate the injury of another team's player, even if you can't stand that player or that team.

Mets Fall To O's

Today's game (an 8-7 loss to the Orioles) was not on Gameday Audio, but here's what I was able to gather from various blogs, and the box score on MLB.com:

• El Duque stunk
• Pelfrey, Vargas and Smith pitched well
• Shawn Green finally got a hit after starting the spring 0 for 15
• Delgado is still out with a sore neck, after sleeping on a "bad pillow," and is still listed as day-to-day. X-rays taken yesterday were negative, (which is positive).
• The other Jose Reyes went 1 for 1.
• Transplanted ex-Met Roger Cedeno went 0 for 1 in pinch hitting duties.
• Transplanted ex-Met Jay Payton went 2-3 with an RBI and a run scored.

I'll update this post if I glean any noteworthy notes further...

Mets Pitching Gets Banged Around in Grapefruit League Loss To Red Sox

Not exactly a banner day for Mets pitching. I listened at my desk on MLB.com radio, and heard the Boston team call the game. Chan Ho Park started out rough, (maybe a little too careful?) but then settled in OK. Aaron Sele got knocked around, and Ambiorix Burgos got hammered. He allowed a walk off grand slam homerun to a Mister Eddie Rogers. Sheesh. Damion Easley is looking to make it very hard on Willie and Omar, as he hit a homerun yesterday in his quest to make this team. Checkout this post by grateful mets in the comments section of Metsblog for a scouting report of a guy in attendance. Easley is competing with David Newhan for the backup infielder job, and Newhan had his 7th RBI of the spring yesterday.

Pedro Martinez threw a ball for the first time yesterday since his surgery in October. The first time playing catch. And we expect him back pitching by August? Remember how long it took to come back from the toe thing last year? I'll be shocked if we see him this year.

Transplanted ex-Met Gary Matthews is in danger of getting suspended, or even having his $50 million contract voided, if he doesn't admit buying HGH, according to the Daily News. Whats weird is, according to the article, if he would just admit what happened, he likely wouldn't face any punishment because the substance wasn't officially banned until 2005. So, what is he hiding or whom is he protecting?

El Duque throws vs. the O's today at 1 PM. I'll be tuned in to MLB Radio on Mets.com. Expect plenty of coverage on ex-Mets Kris Benson, Stephen Trachsel, et al, in tomorrows papers. Lets Go Mets!

Best Of The Blogs:

Metstradamus alerts us to the news that Greg Maddux is a weirdo, in the same story where David Wells says that transplanted ex-Met David Cone has a "silent sickness" when it comes to clubhouse pranks.

Mets Grrl bought some fresh new kicks!

Toasty Joe translates some recent Mets interviews he heard on WFAN.

Collision Of The Ex-Mets - Bannister Drills Piazza

In a Cactus League matchup between the Royals and the A's, transplanted ex-Mets Brian Bannister hit Mike Piazza, who is the Athletics' new designated hitter. From the AP:

Piazza was hit just above his left elbow by a pitch from Kansas City's Brian Bannister, and the designated hitter came out of Oakland's 3-2 loss in 10 innings.

Piazza has a bruised left triceps. Impressions from the seams of the baseball were visible on his elbow in the clubhouse after the game. Piazza doubled earlier to raise his spring training average to .444, third-best among A's regulars.

"He got it pretty good," said Piazza, who initially put a thick bag of ice on his elbow. "I'm just going to ice it again, see how it feels and go from there. If everything's all right, I'm sure it will calm down in a day or two."

It's just nice to know these games are going on, isn't it? We're now just about 25 days from Opening Day in St. Louis! Yesterday the guy at the local pizza place noticed my Mets keychain. He said he was glad to see a Mets fan in Greensboro. We chatted a bit, and laughed about the latest A-Rod - Jeter - and now David Wright rumor mill. Seriously, how hilarious would it be if A-Rod came to the Mets after all this and succeeded in the postseason? Junkees fans could never live it down. Anyway, it will never happen. Why would the Mets bring in a guy and pay him $25 million to do a job the current guy is doing, superbly, for much less? Can A-Rod pitch?

Some other notes:
Tom Glavine pitched well yesterday, and looks poised to be the team's ace for 2007. As for the other guys in the rotation, Oliver Perez pitched a decent game on Monday, and forgotten soldier Alay Soler had his second good outing as well. John Maine pitched well on Sunday against the O's and will go again tomorrow, as will Orlando Hernandez, making his first start since being out with arthritis. Those in Fort Meyers today will get the opportunity to see Chan Ho Park's first outing in a Mets uniform. Park had been barred from pitching in games because of problems with a work visa. Hot Foot suggests we try and tune into the Mets game at 890ESPN.com.

Guide For An Out Of Market Mets Fan

We are not alone, fellow transplants!

Over at Hot Foot, Wxstevo has posted a nice guide to our options for Mets games, including the new MLB TV Premium Package.