Happy Birthday Carlos Beltran

We have truly entered the Twilight Zone, Mets fans. Castillo is getting cheered and David Wright is getting booed. On the bright side, Johan Santana has two runs to support his pitching effort, thanks to the birthday boy and some shoddy Expos defense.

Comparing the Mets and Angels respective homes

If the Mets have an American League soulmate, surely it's the California Angels of Anaheim.  They're an expansion team that shares a media market with one of the most storied franchises in baseball... And maybe that's about it.  But as I sat in the club level of Angel Stadium on a gorgeous night' I couldn't help but compare and contrast the stadium with Citi Field.  This was my first visit to this stadium, but I've only been to Citi twice so it's as fair as I can be...

The first thing I noticed was all the green.  The seats were green, the walls were green, and the railings were green... Yet it didn't occur to me that I was sitting in a ballpark that could be the home field for any team other than the Angels.  A big part of this, of course, must be the fact that the place is called Angel Stadium! And when you approach the entrance to the stadium you know exactly what you're there to see - the giant A's caps leave no doubt.    Does anyone think there'd be nearly as much griping about black outfield walls or Dodgers Rotunda if Citi Field were named Mets Park?  Maybe.  But actually the biggest signal of all that I was at an Angels game was: the fans.  The green seats were awash in red.  Something about that color red that unifies fans - go to a Cardinals game or even a Rutgers game and the place will be filled with fans donning the same color.  (He other thing that's red are the ads.  Almost without exception, all the ads in the park are red.  Maybe if the schlubs who "designed" that Arpielle sign had incorporated some orange and blue - it would still be ugly, but at least it'd be Mets ugly.

We have the Pepsi Porch, the Angels have the Budweiser Patio.  In centerfield we have a giant apple, they have, a waterfall! They have open air bullpens as well, but there is no tarp blocking the view from or of above.  Parking cost eight bucks but the food inside wasn't cheap.  I did get a free banner as a giveaway, commemorating the fact that Vlad Guerrero and Lou Gherig are the only 2 players to have achieved some sort of esoteric offensive feat I neglected to take note of.

The crowd was into the game pretty well, and I felt some tremors that were either caused by fan frenzy, trucks on the nearby freeway, or maybe it was an earthquake?

It was a real nice experience, even though I saw the Mets blow the 4-0 lead I heard them achieve on the xm radio in the car, on the centerfield out of town scoreboard.  You can't have everything, you know.  

Live Video from the California Angels Of Anaheim game

This video was sent without the express written consent of the commissioner

Reporting Live From Angel Stadium

I find myself in Anaheim today and managed to get into Angel Stadium for free thanks to a generous fan in the parking lot. Parking was $8.00 by the way, on a beautiful night for baseball

Can You Spot The Differences Between These Two Photos?

The first photo shows the view from section 522 Promenade at Citi Field, according to Mets.com. The second is the photo I snapped from my seat in section 522 on April 19th. Not even counting the giant heads in my way, the silver bar, black bar, and yes the plexiglass all blocked my view (never mind that what went on on the field that day weren't worth watching anyway). These were not sold to me as "obstructed view" but should qualify as such under Dave Howards declaration of the definition of an obstructed view on WFAN. I will let you know what the Mets response to me is.

Speaking of Dave Howard's appearance on WFAN, he was untruthful when he said there are TV's at every concession stand. That is absolutely false. In the food court above the Jackie Robinson Rotunda there is not one TV in the whole section. You can hear the audio, but there are no sets. It would be a perfect place to put a giant screen behind the seats, like they have in the centerfield food area, but alas there is nothing. Dave Howard needs to walk around his stadium a little more before he goes on the radio.

And while he may be playing a weird game of semantics when he says there is blue in the forest green colored seats, will he also try to say there is blue in the black outfield walls? These black walls need to be turned blue, pronto. Just erase the black like you want to do with Doc Gooden's signature!

Look, all in all it is a beautiful ballpark, but the Mets should get a partial refund from HOK, and I should get one as well for my obstructed view seat.

This doesn't qualify as an obstructed seat at Citi Field?

What is tendinitis? What does tendonitis look like in an MRI?

Still waiting on word on who will be the starter for the Mets on Sunday - it may be Nelson Figueroa, in which case I told my buddy Tubby that we have to sing, bugs Bunny opera-style Figaro! Figaro! Figaro!  Anyway, it could still be Mike Pelfrey who doesn't seem concerned about his diagnosis of tendinitis.  So what is tendonitis anyway?  I asked my cousin, who is an out-of-market Mets fan in the Washington, D.C. area who just happens to be a PT.  Here's what he said: 

 

"...looking at an MRI is very interesting because of the details.  They show everything from muscles, tendons, ligaments, bones in a black or white picture.  Problems usually show up in a brighter contrast, usually white.  Tendinitis is swelling in the tendon so you will usually see a bright white color around the affected tendon, or the tendon will appear enlarged."

 

So there you go!

 

Citi Mets: Watch The Financial News Tomorrow

Citigroup will announce its first quarter earnings tomorrow.  They are expected to "post a small first-quarter loss."  Anything worse than that will make big news, and will undoubtedly renew attention on the naming rights of the Mets ballpark. 

 

 

Citi Field Revue Review

I made it to Opening Day! This post is a few days late but unfortunately there are just some things that take precedence over barking at the moon.

It was a tremendous experience to be able to be at the first home game at Citibank Field. It was really cool, yet very very surreal to be at a Mets home game in this brand new place. My friends and I just kept saying that over and over again. After going to Shea for so many years, it was just downright bizarre.

I took the old 7 train to the new ballpark, and got jitters the first time I saw the place from the windows of the subway car. The old whatchamacallit with the circular staircase is gone, and the new platform works just fine. SNY was broadcasting from the plaza in front of the promenade, and I am sure the Wilpons were just thrilled that the station the own was broadcasting from the stadium they built, and Bob Raissman was criticizing elements of the ballpark amplified so it was the first voice we heard when arriving "Who plays here, the New York Citis? Where's all the Mets stuff?"

It was a gorgeous evening for a ballgame, and when my friends arrived we hunted around the outside of the Jackie Robinson Rotunda for our bricks. I found mine really quickly and was thrilled at my purchase. Then, we shunned the masses and headed for the Endy Chavez Rotunda at Left Field to go into the ballpark. Thanks MetsGrrl, for the tip!

We mosied around the concourse to find something to eat - I was starving - but first decided to relieve ourselves in the new bathrooms. It was my first time with a waterless urinal - kind of like peeing into a shower drain, I guess is the best comparison I can give you. There were lots of food choices, as we've heard time and again. The line at Shake Shack was crazy an hour before first pitch, so we walked around for a different place to get a burger. Most of the concession stands are specialized - you can get hot dogs at one counter but no burgers. You can get chicken at another, but no hot dogs. So we had to walk around awhile to find the burger stand. Let me tell you, this was the most maddeningly sh*tty experience of the night. Apparently Aramark's claim that all their shortcomings were due to Shea's antiquated facilities were just bogus. They had no idea how to execute these burger transactions. You ordered your food at the counter and then paid at a separate register. There were some hot trays containing burgers that I guess you could self-serve, but none of the items were labeled so you didn't know what was a cheeseburger or what was a "drive-in burger" We stood there forever to give our order, and then even though there seemed to be plenty of food around, it actually took 20 minutes to get the food. They handed out burgers out of order, and no management stepped up to organize what could have been very easily managed into a quick and orderly process. Either this will get better or worse as Aramark either "works out the kinks" or ignores it as the focus shifts away and people just accept the crappy service as expected.

Our seats were out in left field, and yes, we had some blind spots in deep left, but I think people may be making too much of these "obstructed" views. I've only sat in one place so far, of course, and I didn't pay for my tickets, so I'll have to see how the experience plays out after a few more trips. Sunday night I'll get the Upper Deck, I mean Promenade experience and let you know what I think. It was strange to watch a Mets game from the outfield, but the best part was being so close to the giant apple (or tomato as my buddy Tubby called it) when David Wright hit his three run bomb.

Maybe the best part of the experience is if you don't like your seats you can walk around the park and get a better view elsewhere. We watched the last two innings over by the right field foul pole. Different sounds, different view. Mets games are a whole new experience!

What's really great about having the new stadium is, to be honest, is that it's no longer embarrassing! I mean, to take an out of towner to the place where your heart lives, and have it be, well, a dump, kind of hurts the experience. Shea had it's charm, but that charm was in it's history, not it's aesthetics.

Speaking of aesthetics, other than Aramark, the one criticism of the new stadium I have to agree on, is the lack of Mets-ness to the place. There are very few reminders that you're playing at the Mets home stadium! The green seats don't bother me at all, and I'll take Dave Howard at his word that there will be more Mets stuff "rolled out" in time. But the one thing that really annoys me is those black outfield walls. Having black and orange as the dominant backdrop just does not feel right, and I think it's an easy change for the Mets to make. I'm hoping we can get a bit of a groundswell of support going for this change.

All in all, it was a fun experience, even if the play on the field was frustrating. Ryan Church's error, Mike Pelfrey's balk, Duaner Sanchez and Heath Bell's performances, and the final score certainly did not add to the fun of the evening. But cold beer, a good friend, seeing Seaver and Piazza throw out the first pitch, and a freakin cat running on the field of our new home made for quite a fun night indeed.

Can't wait to get back!

Today, We All Become Transplanted Mets Fans

It was a tearful day last September when we left Shea for the last time.  It was torturous, all winter long, to see our home dismantled bit by bit.  It was a twist of the knife to see Citi in the headlines for all the wrong reasons.  And it was just plain surreal to see the videos of the old scoreboard being torn down and the last of Shea imploded.

 

Today, the surreal becomes real as we all become Transplanted Mets Fans.  We've moved.  And while it will take a long time for our house to feel like a home, we officially have a new permanent address starting tonight at 7-ish.  Sure, they already had those exhibition games, but since they didn't count in the standings we could watch the games on SNY and let our hearts fool us into thinking we were watching some weird road game.  The most startling difference were the colors.  The colors!  Gone is the backdrop of blue walls and orange seats, replaced by greens and reds - where are they playing anyway?  PetCo?  Fenway?  There will be no denying it after tonight, when the Mets will have a home record for 2009 without any games having been played at Shea.

 

I'll ride in on the 7 train, meet my buddy Tubby for a pregame tailgate and pour a little for our homie Mr Shea, go look for my brick, and settle in for the first home game of the post-Shea era.  I'll take plenty of photos for posterity and I'll even post a couple mobile ones too, but tonight is all about settling in and feeling what it's like to root for the Mets with a sell out crowd 13,000 people or so smaller than the last time I did so.  I'm very curious to see what it sounds like and feels like since I sorta already have an idea of what it looks like inside what must be the most photographed building ever.  We'll be seated behind the left field outfield wall, sorta where the old picnic area was at Shea.  That was the one place at Shea I never managed to sit, so it's a little ironic that we'll be in that spot in the ballpark tonight.  Hopefully we'll spot that GIANT apple popping out of the hat, er, I mean, concrete cylinder. 

 

Go Big Pelf!  Lets Go Mets!

Transplanted ex-Mets Update: Tom Glavine suffers shoulder discomfort

Agent Glavine ended a minor league start early on Sunday after experiencing shoulder discomfort.  He left the game after only 36 in two innings. Glavine earned a spot in the Braves' rotation in spring training but began the season on the disabled list until the Braves need a fifth starter.

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news?slug=ap-braves-glavine&prov=ap&type=lgns

The Marlon Anderson Era is Over

Matt Cerrone posts the inevitable news that The Marlon Anderson Era is Over. Marlon's been released and put out to pasture and should be turned into glue or something.

By the way, the reason I have always announced the departure of a Met by saying The _____ Era Is Over is as a tribute to a dear departed friend of mine, Dino Tortu, who used to always say that. I believe "The Butch Huskey Era Is Over" was the first time I heard him say it, but I'm not sure. Anyway, I'll raise a glass to my good friend Dino on Tuesday. Thanks for the memories.

Cantu. Cantu. The Guy Named Jorge Cantu.

I have an every-other night agreement with my wife this season. We only have one TV in the house, and I can only take it over every other night. I've reluctantly agreed so far, but it hasn't yet become much of an issue. Since the season started on Monday there have been off days and day games that have made it easy to comply. Tonight is the first night that it's really a pain, and I'll have to "watch" Livan make his first start on the radio or internet or something.

Not as much of a pain as it was to actually watch the game last night though. One for Eleven with runners in scoring position is not fun. And Luis Castillo has done nothing to stave off the inevitable boos that are about to come his way when the road trip is over. I hope the fans aren't too rough on him. He stinks, no doubt about it, but what has he done to incur our wrath, really? It's Omar who signed him, and Willie who refused to bench him. Argenis Reyes isn't breathing down his neck anymore for his job, so if we boo, what are we asking for? Alex Cora? I don't think Jerry Manuel will stick with Luis through thick and thin, but I don't really understand the vitrol. There have been plenty of Mets enemies to don teh orange and blue who deserved every expletive they recieved, but Luis is trying. He's just not very good.

Even though the Mets are only 2-2, I had a very good Friday myself. I fininished Faith and Fear In Flushing (the book) and found out that my Opening Day streak will continue!

I will not say how I came by the tickets, but I will just say that I did not give in and pay a scalper or mortgage my home for a ticket plan. They were a gift, and I am thrilled thrilled thrilled. I will absolutely post photos on Tuesday, even though there are so many photos of this building out there that I feel like I've already been to the place. I'll try and find something unique that I can share for all you transplanted Mets fans out there.

One Down

It was so difficult to avoid the temptation Monday afternoon to check out the various live blogs, etc. to see what was going on between the Mets and Reds on Opening Day 2009 over in Cincinnati while I distractedly worked in my office.  My company has a pretty hefty firewall that blocks out most sports sites, so following any GameDay apps on Yahoo or ESPN were out anyway, so it wasn't as hard to avoid as it might have been, but I still am proud of myself for avoiding any sites that might have hinted at the latest updates.  I even hunkered down in office, rather than venture out into the hallways where I might run into someone who did have word from the outside world.  Anyone I did talk to I made sure to start off the conversation by saying I was trying to avoid hearing about the Mets game... all so I could watch the "Encore" presentation that night on SNY and pretend it was a live night game.   Success!  And SNY themselves were smart enough to leave the final score out of their news roll on the bottom of the screen.  Instead viewers only learned that Plaxico Burress had been released and Gary Sheffield had been signed, over and over and over again.

 

I'll spare a lengthy postgame recap here, as I can't come up with any scenario to explain why you'd be reading Transplanted Mets Fan 44 hours after the game ended hoping to find out what happened.  However, I must say I am thrilled to have seen Johan Santana pitch 5 and a 1/3 innings, give up just one run, and have his 2-1 win preserved by Sean Green JJ Putz and K-Rod.  Daniel Murphy drove in both runs and Ryan Church looked sweet in the outfield, making all of wonder exactly how Jerry will Cook Up A Way To Use Shef this season.  I was pretty annoyed when I heard the news about the Sheffeild signing, wondering why Omar thought we needed one of the biggest jerks in baseball on the roster, although I was happier the next day after reading about how Doc Gooden felt more connected to the team because of it, and especially after reading Gary say he was willing to be a bench player if it meant winning a World Championship, as well as after finding out David Wright had done some recruiting for the Mets.  So who am I to judge?

 

Game Two is this evening and we'll tune in to see Big Pelf take the mound for the first time this regular season.  Of course we'll also tune in to see glimpses of Mr. Met's evil twin brother.

Happy Opening Day 2009!

The Mets are already 1/2 game up on the Phillies!