Everything In Its Right Place

Monday's season lid-lifter at Citi Field was about everything you could ask for as far as the results of the first game of the season. The weather, which had heretofore been kind of dicey and in April at Citi Field can be downright brutal, suddenly turned bright and sunny and warm at around 11am, right around the time I arrived at Citi Field. George was with me as per usual, marking what I believe is 11 of the last 13 Opening Day games we've been present for. Howie Rose was on the field by 12:40 to blow the Shofar and welcome us to the 2017 National League season in New York, fans warmly welcomed back our team, as well as some fondly-remembered players on the opposing side, and then it was business time. Noah Syndergaard hit the mound and pitched, well, basically the way you'd expect him to pitch, mixing things up, getting out of jams and keeping the Braves off the scoreboard until a blister forced him from the game after 6 innings. The Mets had a hard time with Julio Teheran—because they always have a hard time with Julio Teheran—until he departed in the 7th, where the Mets capitalized on a replay reversal and then bombed the Atlanta bullpen into submission and cruised home with a 6-0 victory to start their season.

It had been some time since I'd seen George; this offseason has been somewhat checkered for me and certainly from a mental standpoint, though I might not have been especially prepared for it, I was more than ready to get back to the sanctuary of Citi Field. But at any rate I spent most of the pregame discussing with him reasons why I believe now that the Mets are going to win the World Series this season, and really, what it boils down to more than anything is that it's simply their time in the arc of this era, if this era of the Mets is going to be what we want it to be. They had the near-miss, they had the regression and somehow turned it into another near-miss, so now, it's time to strike.

But that was preamble and there was still the matter of seats and ceremonies and concessions and hordes of people to work through. I'd mentioned I upgraded my seats; after four years of bouncing between sections 512 and 513, I've moved down to 418, because it's just time for a change. However, the Mets for whatever reason decided to get cute and put me in different seats for Opening Day. Different seats being Section 106, sure, it's the Field level, but it's jammed down in the Right Field Corner. Not exactly where I would have preferred to sit. For one, you can't see the field directly in front of you. Two, you can't see the scoreboard above Right Field, which is where important things like pitch count and scoring calls are generally displayed. Three, because it's the Field Level, and because of the assorted "entertainment" options down there, it seems to be more crowded than the Promenade, and for whatever reason it seems there are substantially fewer restrooms, which is problematic...

...and as you can see in this video, you're kind of displaced from the action. But on the upside I got a real good view of Syndergaard's pregame routine.

Also a lovely view of Bartolo Colon's backside as he was introduced to a roaring ovation.

And then it was time to introduce our guys...

...and get hyped...

...And, finally, get on with the show!

The game from that point was a little bit of a blur, for a few reasons. For one, I, and this should illustrate how ill-prepared I was for Opening Day, didn't eat anything before the game. I almost always get something to eat before the game but for whatever reason, I waited. At the end of the 1st inning, I got up to use the restroom, thinking it would be quick and painless. WRONG. I attempted to use the restroom by Section 103 only to find the line stretching across the concourse and in fact splitting into two lines because everyone stopped caring. So that was already a clusterfuck. Then, I decided to get something to eat while I was up, and found the most palatable line to be at the Sausage stand by Section 105. Only I got on line somewhere in the bottom of the 2nd inning and didn't return to my seat until the top of the 4th. That's a bad job by me. It's a bad job by everyone, really, because there were rumblings of credit card terminals down, but really, it was a bad job by me. That's the kind of rookie move I don't usually make.

Fortunately, in this digital age, I was able to look at my phone and catch up on my scorecard. Of course, I sat down just in time for Freddie Freeman to bang one off the Right Field fence and after Jay Bruce mangled the carom, what should have been a double was a triple and the Braves were primed to strike first. Except that Syndergaard is unmoved by these kind of things and responded by putting the Baseball version of a sleeperhold on the Braves, striking out Matt Kemp and Nick Markakis to end the threat. More trouble unfolded in the 6th when Dansby Swanson and Freeman singled and Atlanta had runners on 1st and 3rd and 1 out, but, again, Syndergaard brushed this aside by striking out Kemp again and getting Markakis to fly out, ending the threat and, of course, thanks to the infamous blister, ending his afternoon.

Still, the Mets offense was stagnant against Teheran, which as I said wasn't terribly surprising since the Mets always have trouble with him. But he too departed after 6 and the Mets attacked the Braves patently awful bullpen right away. Ian Krol was first up and he allowed a hit to Rene Rivera. Wilmer Flores followed, pinch hitting for Hansel Robles, and after being greeted with his usual standing ovation, grounded into a Fielder's choice. He then stole 2nd Base, which I suppose was his way of taking advantage of the Braves kind of falling asleep on him. Jose Reyes walked and then Asdrubal Cabrera followed with a clean single to center for his 3rd hit of the day. Flores was sent home, which if you'll recall is the play that finished his season last year, and although it seemed close he was called out at the plate. However, were I sitting in my normal seats, high up and behind Home Plate, I would have seen that Flores snuck his foot in ahead of the tag. Replay, of course, reversed the call, Flores had the first run of the season for the Mets, and the gates opened up from there. There were pitching changes, walks, more pitching changes, more walks and finally the carcass of Eric O'Flaherty was on the mound and Lucas Duda clanged one off the Center Field fence for a 3-run double that made the score 6-0 and removed any particular drama from the afternoon. Fernando Salas for the 8th, a surprise cameo by Robert Gsellman in the 9th, easy enough and off we go!

Certainly, there will be plenty of bad/irritating/exasperating things to happen to the Mets over the course of the subsequent 161 games. That's Baseball. The goal, really, is to minimize the issues and keep putting forth games like this when you are clearly better than your opponent. One of the Mets larger issues in 2016, besides the fact that everyone was hurt and the replacements stopped hitting for 3 months, was their inability to handle inferior teams. I'm pulling numbers out of my ass but I believe they were something like 7-12 against Atlanta and an equivalent of bad against other non-division lousy teams, and those 7 wins were difficult wins. By and large the Mets should win more of these games this season. Yesterday was a good start.

Break Out The Bunting

George and I were discussing what the plan was for Opening Day tomorrow, as we usually do since we've attended Opening Day I believe 10 out of the past 12 seasons, and he asked me what time to meet out at Citi Field. I thought about it for a few minutes, and this was the answer I gave him:

"You know, every year, I say let's meet at 11:30, and every year I go dashing out there and show up at 11, so why kid myself anymore? Let's meet at 11."

I suppose, in my advancing age, I've become wiser about my own particular patterns, if not so much my aptitude to sit out in freezing temperatures at April Games at Citi Field.

Regardless, as if it were a surprise to anyone, I'll be at Citi Field tomorrow for my 12th consecutive Opening Day or Home Opener as the case may be. I've got the Shofar polished, I have a brand new Game Hat for 2016 (Classic Blue, 2015 World Series patch), and now all we need is Howie Rose, the Bill Shea Good Luck Wreath, the Ceremonial First Car Fire and a whole mess of Bunting and we're ready to go.

Things will be a bit different this year as opposed to prior seasons, for obvious reasons. The usual blind hope that everyone enters Opening Day with has been replaced by actual Hope, and there's going to be a banner-raising ceremony to prove it. I've never actually been to a Mets banner-raising ceremony, and the scuttlebutt I'm hearing is that Rusty Staub, John Franco and Edgardo Alfonzo will be there to perform the banner-raising, so this should be a rollicking good time.

It's going to be a festive day—Opening Day usually is—but with a bit more of a purpose. Usually, when I leave Citi Field at the final game of the season, which more often than not has been the final game of the regular season, I'll detour myself to walk down through the Rotunda and smack a pillar on my way out, as if I were patting an old friend on the back and saying, "See you next year!" This didn't happen last season. On the final day of the regular season last year, I knew I'd be back, and I ended up being back 6 times subsequent to that date of October 4th. I didn't say my traditional farewell after Game 4 of the Dodgers series—that was too depressing an evening and too jammed a crowd. After Game 1 of the Cubs series everyone was too busy reveling. And then, there was the final game against Kansas City, at around 12:30 in the morning on November 2nd. And on that night, saying farewell for the offseason wasn't really on my mind and I'm sure it wasn't on the mind of anyone else who was silently and sullenly streaming out of the building. This hasn't sat well with me, not so much the lack of farewell, but the way it all ended—I'm sure that holds true for most fans—the ending kind of undoes the great vibes of the journey to get to that point—but now we get to start over again. The crowd will probably be as full and as fired up as it was last October, albeit with much lower stakes, but that doesn't matter. It's a festive occasion no matter how you look at it.

Come on! Opening Day has it all! The Shofar, the Wreath, the Bunting, the 11:30am Beer, the Car Fire...Can't wait. Howie Rose at 12:40, First pitch 1:10. Who's Drinkin'!?

Well Wishes!

By now I'm sure we're all aware that the Mets flight to Los Angeles last night had to make an emergency landing due to Howie Rose falling ill. What exactly occurred I'm not sure, but of course Howie Rose is as much of a Mets Lifer as anyone, and one of those key voices of my childhood right alongside Bob Murphy and Ralph Kiner. I'm told that as of now, he's made it back home and is resting comfortably, which is good news, and I and I'm sure everyone else hope he stays that way. We send along all our best wishes for a speedy recovery!

Holiday!

It poses to be a sleepless night for me tonight, as is usually the case before Opening Day at Citi Field, particularly in the now dozen or so consecutive years that I've had tickets to Opening Day, whether it's real Opening Day or the Home Opener. Currently, I feel as though I might be best served waking up at 7am and running out to the ballpark, but conventional wisdom (and my other half, who'll be accompanying me tomorrow in what will be her first Opening Day) will more than likely win out, I'll stay in bed a little later, and then divert my usual trip downtown onto the 7 train for my first sojourn to Flushing for the year.

I've said in the past that Opening Day really only feels official when it's a True Opening Day, such as it has been for the Mets the past 3 seasons. Still, even though the Mets have been playing for a week already, since I've barely seen much action live, the Home Opener will actually feel like Opening Day for me. The Mets have played 6 games; I've seen 0 live, except for a snippet of Friday night's game, and it's made for some pretty shoddy blogging around here of late. I'll try to do better tomorrow since I'll actually have seen the game.

Also, it's hard to not get fired up when you hear Howie Rose get on that microphone and start yelling, "WELCOME TO CITI FIELD, AND THE START OF THE 2015 NATIONAL LEAGUE SEASON IN NEW YORK!!!"

Other nice things about Opening Day, which can happen whether it's True Opening Day or not, is that it's a nice day off from Work, which I've generally requested and received several weeks in advance (although this year as I've recently switched jobs, my new employers were kind enough to honor my request for a personal day in spite of lack of accumulated service time). It's now a rare game where I feel a legitimate need to arrive at Citi Field 2+ hours prior to game time, just because it's nice to walk around the stadium, see what's new, get some food before the masses arrive and be in my seat at a leisurely pace before the Shofar is blown and the home season gets underway.

Even Opening Day has been a tough sell for the Mets in recent years, but this year, it's completely sold out, so I'd have to guess I'm not the only one raring to get going in the morning, but most, unlike me, will probably be driving. The Mets are encouraging fans to use mass transit but most people don't listen to those kinds of things, so the parking lot should be plenty full. You know where this is going. There has, for my money, been no better Opening Day Omen for a good season than a nice car fire during the game. Opening Day 2006, car fire. Mets run away with the division. 2006 NLDS Game 1, car fire. Mets win a nailbiter over LA. Ever since then, no car fire, and we know how things have turned out. Now that the Mets have moved into Citi Field, you can't even see the parking lot from where I'm sitting, so if there's a car fire, I'll have no idea. But maybe I can just sort of generate one with my mind, and that will carry things forward from there. If not, maybe being able to get a pocket schedule on Opening Day will be a fitting equivalent. It's been a good 3-4 years since the Mets have had pocket schedules available on Opening Day (and of course they have more than they know what to do with at the end of the season), but I think it might be just as good a sign if, by some chance, I could get a bunch of pocket schedules. Let's hope for at least 1 out of 2.

Howie Rose at 12:40. First pitch 1:10. See you then!

Change Of Frequency

Loyal readers of this blog will know that I've been know, on certain days, to keep a portable radio in my office and listen to those occasional weekday afternoon games on the Radio. They may also know that I have, over time, become an avid streamer of WFAN programming in general. It's not necessarily because I have some great and deep affinity for Joe Benigno, Evan Roberts or Mike Francesa, it's more because I find the background noise somewhat soothing while I work. It was easy to get away with; for one, I had my own office space at my job, and in general, certain things, like the ubiquitous 1-877-KARS-4-KIDS commercials, would tend to ward off the riff-raff.

Still, it is, as I said, background noise. Even when I would have to pull out the portable radio for game broadcasts. Work is work, and it's got to be done, and more often than not, I'd end up tuning out those lazy afternoon games altogether, only paying attention when the intonations in the voices of Howie Rose or Josh Lewin distracted me (Ed Coleman was also good at knowing when to draw focus. Other fill-in announcers like Jim Duquette were useless non-entities). If things didn't go well, it stood to reason that an entire Mets game could happen and I'd have no idea what went on until I heard Howie Rose talk about being back with a recap in some desultory tone of voice.

I knew that there would be wholesale changes coming in 2014. For one, the Mets weren't going to be on WFAN anymore, after a breakdown in negotiations. I wasn't thrilled about this; although it meant very little as far as the Mets presence on the radio, since they'd just move to another station, I preferred keeping my radio on one station, so I could listen to the dulcet tones of the insane New York sports fans and hear the Mets without touching the dial. The Mets didn't move far, only from 660 to 710 on the AM dial, but a change is still a change. I also didn't particularly like that the Mets were replaced by this other team and their games were now pre-empting the afternoon voices with their voices, which I find highly unpleasant to listen to.

But it's all now a moot point. For one, the portable radio that I had in my office died an untimely death, as most cheaply-made electronic devices are wont to do. I could have anted up for a streaming audio subscription, but I couldn't really justify paying for something that I could listen to for free, and in reality, I only listen to so many games on the radio a season. To date, though the Mets have had multiple weekday afternoon games this season, I've gone without listening. But an even greater change happened when I got a new job, and moved to a new office, where, rather than an office space, I now have a cubicle (the tradeoff is worth it for a multitude of reasons not worth discussing). Unfortunately, this means no more radio games, though when you think about it, without a radio in my old office, I was kind of in the same situation anyway. Considering I have yet to hear a Mets broadcast on WOR (a station whose "Radio 7-10, W-OHH-RRRR!" jingle was one of those sounds of my youth), maybe it's not that much of an adjustment.

Heart

 2014 begins in earnest for the Mets this afternoon at Citi Field, where for the 10th consecutive year I will make my New Year's voyage to Flushing and join 41,999 of my brethren to hear Howie Rose welcome us to the National League Season in New York, and kick off Baseball 2014 with a ceremonial blow of the Shofar. 

The six intervening months between my last trip to Citi Field on September 29th and now have been somewhat turbulent, and that's not taking the Mets into account at all. By comparison, the Mets offseason was rather placid. Perhaps too placid when you consider that 2014 was supposed to be The Year, at least as far as the Alderson regime would have us believe. True, there's some new, somewhat flashier faces that will grace the field this overcast Monday afternoon, but whether it's the quantity or the quality of the new names, I know some Mets fans seem to want more. 

Given the way the past five versions of the Mets have played out, that's understandable.

Certainly, not having Matt Harvey around to take some hapless opponent's lunch money every 5th game is kind of a buzzkill. I do expect he'll be around to stand on the chalk and wave hello to everyone, but that's about all we'll get from him for a while. Other young, sexy names like Syndergaard, Montero et, al. won't be in Queens at all on Monday, leaving the Mets with an Opening Day roster that at first glance seems kind of perplexing. I'm not sure what to make of it other than to keep reminding myself that every Opening Day roster is littered with names that don't last the season. Remember how we hailed Collin Cowgill after last Opening Day?

So, without saying too much about what I expect, I'll offer up this: I expect that the following players will make meaningful/impactful contributions to the 2014 Mets (impactful, inasmuch as they will be as impactful as can be expected of players of their caliber):

David Wright

Zack Wheeler

Travis d'Arnaud

Josh Satin

Dillon Gee

Jenrry Mejia

Curtis Granderson

Juan Lagares

Jeurys Familia

I expect that the following players probably won't surprise us very much:

Daniel Murphy

Anthony Recker

Eric Young, Jr

Chris Young

Jonathon Niese

Bobby Parnell

Scott Rice

Gonzalez Germen

I have no idea what the hell to expect from the following players:

Ike Davis

Lucas Duda

Bartolo Colon

Jose Valverde

Ruben Tejada

I expect the following players won't be here very long (and in many cases wonder what the hell they're doing here altogether):

Omar Quintanilla

John Lannan

Carlos Torres

Valverde

Andrew Brown

Not much else new can be said about Citi Field this season. Even the concession stands weren't made over, so if I want Blue Smoke, I've got to go downstairs, and if I want Pat LaFreida, I better be prepared to wait on line because the concessionaires at the Promenade level stand never really got it together from an expediency standpoint. And if I want Nathans Chicken and Hot Dogs? Well, I don't have to look too far. And if I'm feeling like a high roller, there's always the Promenade Club and their bucket of wings (part of me is hopeful that maybe they've expanded the food options there).  So there's not much I can expect on that end. It all comes back to the product on the field to provide something better.

I wrote, in my NL Preview, that the Mets needed an awful lot to go right this season if they expect to contend late into the season. The fact that there are 10 names comprising these last two lists (and yes, Valverde is a duplicate) says a lot, but again, rosters turn over quite a bit during the season, and the Mets have a number of players that are going to be kicking around AAA Ball this year that probably deserve a shot just as much as any of the fringe guys that actually made the team. Point is, the fringe guys that just snuck on here, well, don't get too comfortable (That means you, Quintanilla/Brown/Torres/Lannan). Come midseason, these names are going to be replaced with names like Syndergaard, Montero, den Dekker, Leathersich, Black and others, names that have made the Mets organization so highly regarded of late and names that will be counted on to return the Mets to a prominent level of play.

The rest? Well, it's going to require a lot of heart to make this team into something more than what everyone expects them to be. For whatever reason, I found myself thinking of this particular song, and of this particular recording (the musical it comes from need not be mentioned), because if there was ever a team that had heart, and the kind of insatiable heart that could be looked to for inspiration generations later, it would be the '69 Mets. What other team could get away with not only recording this song, but then going on the Ed Sullivan show and singing it after winning a World Series Championship? 

It's 45 years later, and if there's one thing this group of Mets has gotta have, well, They gotta have Heart.

It Happens

It really does happen. Sometimes, the Mets win a game.

Usually, it seems to be in those weekday afternoon Getaway Games, because for the past few years, it seems like having the game on the radio in my office appears to be some kind of demented good luck charm. Or at least it just seems that way. I don't know.

Today's game was kind of a blur. I say this because when I'm working and humming along in my office, large chunks of game can happen and I'm only marginally aware of it. I remember hearing the beginning of the day, of course, and I know that the Mets didn't score in the first, but I sort of lost track of things from there. I was in the midst of multitasking, and it was particularly involved multitasking, because when I started paying attention again, I assumed it was 3-0 Cardinals in the 3rd, but it was actually 2-1 Mets in the 5th. Of course, it may also just be because, after these past few weeks, I've been conditioned to think that the Mets are always down 3-0, like some demented Stockholm Syndrome or something to that effect.

At any rate, I was kind of surprised that it was 2-1, and I was even more surprised a few moments later after Daniel Murphy hit a ball through the fence at Jack Buck Stadium (and I can tell you that Howie and Josh did not do a very good job of describing exactly how Murphy's ball went through the fence, leaving me to some bizarre visuals) which spurred another 2-run rally, meaning the Mets had actually scored 4 runs for the first time in about 3 weeks. Meanwhile, Jonathon Niese was very neatly setting the Cardinals aside with rather dutiful efficiency, which may also have been a reason why I wasn't really following things—it wasn't an incredibly attention-grabbing performance. But one does not have to be attention-grabbing in order to be effective, and in doing both, Niese put together his best start in about a month, something sorely needed at this particular moment in time. Couple that with Daniel Murphy's 4 hits and the Mets actually won a game rather than going down in flames like they usually do in St. Louis. Believe it or not, it does happen.

WELCOME TO NEW YORK!!!

Well, here we go once again, just a few hours from Howie Rose welcoming us to Citi Field and the blowing of the shofar to raise the curtain on the 2013 National League Baseball Season in New York. The calendar may just show the benign date of April 1st, but it's really a holiday for me and approximately 40,000 other people who will be making our first pilgrimage of the year to Citi Field. It's tradition. This will be my 9th consecutive Opening Day and 12th overall. How can I possibly miss Opening Day? It never gets old, because it's always the start of something new. I put in for the Day Off from work 2 months ago and even my boss knew exactly why I was requesting off for April 1st. "IT'S METS DAY, ISN'T IT?!" is what she told me.

A few bits of housekeeping to discuss here before game time, though.

1) THE TEAM
We've already been through this in short form and longer form, but this is a transitional year for the Mets. It's going to be a lot of throwing spaghetti at a wall and seeing what sticks (I read this somewhere about some team, but I don't recall where. It applies well to the Mets, though, so I'm stealing it), and seeing what the givens do. I expect that the Mets will win somewhere in the neighborhood of 75-76 games. I said that last year and they finished with 74, but I think the Mets this year can be better, or at least more interesting down the stretch. If, by some chance, they have a hot start at the beginning of the season like they did last year, I don't think anyone is going to buy into it, though. They have to prove they can finish strong. Individually, I look for impactful things from the following players (take "impactful" to mean whatever you want)
1) David Wright
2) Ike Davis
3) Ruben Tejada
4) Jonathon Niese
5) Matt Harvey
6) Lucas Duda
7) Bobby Parnell

I look for meaningful contributions from the following players (meaningful contributions is not "impactful"):
1) Marlon Byrd
2) Colin Cowgill
3) Shaun Marcum
4) Zach Wheeler*
5) Travis d'Arnaud*

*I assume they'll be called up around May 1st, or whenever that mythical service time clock resets itself. That might not be enough time to impact the season in the larger picture, but enough to do something worthwhile.

Everyone else, just do the best you can and don't screw up too badly. You know what I mean.

2) CITI FIELD
They didn't make any more major improvements to the field, so I've heard, but one thing I did notice is that some of the concession stands have been moved around. I've talked plenty about eschewing the Shake Shack Zone for the concession stands near my seats in the Promenade, because the lines are always short and the food is just as good. I was a fan of the Blue Smoke outpost up there, but apparently it's been moved out in favor of "Nathan's Hot Dogs and Chicken," which appears to be the same thing as regular old Nathan's, except that they offer a larger array of Chicken-involved food. I suppose I'll find out what they mean by this chicanery tomorrow, but if it's not as good as the Blue Smoke chicken sandwich, I will be very upset. Of note is that Blue Smoke downstairs is now Blue Smoke "On The Go," and doesn't offer the chicken sandwich either, so Citi Field may well be lacking in a good chicken sandwich. What it will not be lacking in, however, is the absurdly good Pat LaFrieda Filet Mignon sandwich. This sandwich debuted midway through last season and took Citi Field by storm, proving itself so popular that the single location on the Field Level is no longer enough, so popular that it's successfully managed to boot Keith's Grill out of the Promenade level and take over the stand for itself. So, maybe I'll be eating a lot of steak sandwiches this year. Until I run out of money.

3) NEW GAME HAT
For the first time since 2009, I'll be debuting a new Game Hat. And not a moment too soon, since that hat has brought me no luck as far as team success is concerned. The new model for 2013 is not so dissimilar from the old one, Blue on Blue, with the classic orange NY and orange button on top, and the 50th Anniversary logo on the back. Yes, it's from last year, but I bought it at the end of the season (when the Mets kindly discounted all 50th Anniversary merchandise) and it's been sitting in the plastic bag I bought it in in my drawer for the entire offseason, so it's properly marinated for today's maiden voyage. Hopefully a new hat will bring some new success to the team.

4) CAR FIRE?
It's just not Opening Day without a good Car Fire. But I haven't seen one out there in a few years. Anyone else out there know what I mean? It seems like every time there's a good Opening Day Car Fire, the Mets have a good year...

I think that about covers it. Now on to the more official matters. Opening Ceremonies at 12:40, First pitch at 1:10!

I'm In My Office...

It seems as though the weekday afternoon game has been a fairly regular occurrence this season, much more than I remember it being in past seasons. I've made mention of keeping a radio in my office for just such an occasion. I'm assuming there must be some sort of stipulation in the new CBA requiring getaway games to be played in the afternoon when someone's got a long plane flight ahead of them and a game the next day. That's the only thing that makes sense to me. But I digress.

I'd barely put the radio on when Kirk Nieuwenhuis led off the game with a 2nd pitch Home Run. I'd left my office altogether when he hit his 2nd HR in the 4th. In between, the game was vaguely a blur.. I know it was rather back and forth at the beginning, but I tend to tune these things out, particularly while I'm working on whatever it is I need to work on, only drifting into the game whenever I hear a raised voice. Josh Lewin is particularly good for this; he has a certain punctuation to his calls, to the effect of "...and he LINES ONE DOWN THE LEFT FIELD LINE..." loud enough that you can't help but pay attention to him.

Howie Rose doesn't have quite the same intonation of Lewin, and since I've been listening to him for 20 or so years in one capacity or another, I'm sort of used to his vocal inflections. He will raise his voice in certain important moments, and you can really hear the despair in his voice when something goes against the Mets, and of course, he will elevate to a shout in those exceptionally big moments (like, say, the first No Hitter in Mets history). There's something about Lewin's timbre, however, that appears to catch the ears a bit more. Maybe it's because he's new. I did have some limited exposure to Lewin on Fox games, where I found him to be overly irritating, and since he voiced the Texas Rangers during their run of success, his voice would pop up on MLB Network bumpers here and there. I wasn't especially thrilled to see him as the new announcer alongside Howie Rose, but for the most part, he's done a fine job complementing Rose, and since Lewin apparently grew up a Mets fan as well, he has some accurate notes to banter with Howie on. And he hasn't been as screamy or lispy or grating as I thought he'd be.

So, at any rate, I heard Lewin raising his voice a few times in the 3rd and 4th inning, so I knew something good must have been going on, and if he got really loud, I might have even stopped what I was doing for a second or two to pay attention. At some point, someone came into my office and asked me the score and the inning, and I wasn't sure of the inning. I did know that the Mets were up 8-4, so that must have counted for something. Ultimately, things got a bit hairy in the 9th, I know that because Howie was getting a bit worked up by Frank Francisco, but the Mets did hold on and complete their sweep of the Rays. So much for the certain doom facing the Mets in Tampa.

So, home again, home again, jiggety jig for the Mets, after a rather schizophrenic road trip. The Reds are coming back this weekend, followed by more AL teams. Who knows what will happen. Another madcap weekend with the 2012 Mets awaits...

This Next One...Is...The First Song...On Our New Album.

Last year, I talked about how I'd been ready for Opening Day for about two months before the day came. I think this year, you can double the time and magnify the intensity factor by about 100%.

For the past 2-3 days, I've been hearing the voice of Howie Rose in my head, as he bellows "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, WELCOME TO CITI FIELD, AND THE START OF THE 2009 NATIONAL LEAGUE BASEBALL SEASON IN NEW YORK!!!" A more beautiful sentence, I don't think I could hear on a day like this.

Over the weekend, Rose was talking about how the Mets should be playing the Pirates today, since the Mets first home game ever was against the Pirates in the Polo Grounds, and their first game at Shea was against the Pirates. I think I may be the only one who sees any symmetry in the Mets playing the Padres tonight. It's fitting for me, because the first Mets game I ever attended at Shea Stadium was against the Padres. And on the 20th Anniversary of my first game ever, the Mets played the Padres, and I was at the game. And now, tonight, the Mets will play the Padres in my first game at Citi Field.

There's going to be a lot to get used to for a lot of people as we open Citi Field tonight, and not just for the players on the field, or the fans getting used to a whole new set of stairs, escalators and food options. For me, it will mean the formation of a new series of pregame superstitions. As I'd mentioned, I would always enter Shea Stadium through the same gate, go up the same escalator, walk around through the Loge and then resume up on the same escalator. Now, I've got to figure out a new way to do things. My tickets specify that I enter through the Jackie Robinson Routunda, which I didn't actually get to see in my maiden voyage last weekend. No doubt, this is the easiest gate to get to, even easier than it was to get to Gate E from the Subway at Shea. You get off the subway and you're right there. The Left Field gate holds some potential as well, but you do have to walk a bit to get there. I may never see the Bullpen gate if things remain equal. Where will the program vendors be? What is the easiest route by escalator to get to my seats in the Promenade level? Will the lines at the JRR be ridiculous? I suppose we'll all find out tonight.

One final thought: With the Construction of Citi Field taking up most of the parking lot, it's obscured my view of the action and I've noticed that we haven't had a good Car Fire for a few years, or at least not one that I've been able to see. I think the Opening Day Car Fire is always a good omen for a new season (and our plans to set our own Car Fire last year on Opening Day were thwarted by better judgement), and though the Parking Lot now exists behind the stadium and not in view of anyone watching the game, it is very easy for me to turn around, look behind me and see the entire lot, thereby getting a clear view of any car fires that may occur. I think we're overdue for one, and it should be in order for tonight.

Happy Opening Day, everyone!!!

And he's not even getting a Divorce!

In April, 2001, El Guapo and I were taking in a Mets game on a lazy weekend afternoon, when the following exchange took place between Gary Thorne and Tom Seaver.

Thorne: Lemme tell you about Pittsburgh...

(Pause)

(Pause)

(Pause)

(Long Pause)

Seaver: Go ahead.

Truly a watershed moment in Mets History.

It really makes you think about what the qualifications must be to announce a Baseball game. And through the years we have followed the Mets, we've heard some of the best and quite a bit of the worst you can get out of an announcing team. Let's take a look at some of the men who we listen to as we watch, or listen, as some of us prefer, to our team.

Gary Cohen, SNY TV

Now, Cohen sounds just like what a good announcer should sound like. Crisp, clean and to the point. I really feel comfortable listening to him announce games. His calls are never over the top (well, unless Benny Agbayani was involved), and he does an excellent job playing the straight man in the booth to the clown that is Keith Hernandez (Or Ron Darling, depending on the day). For years, he was the radio voice, and as a radio listener, I can certainly say that the Mets Radio broadcast suffers without him.

Howie Rose, WFAN Radio

Let's face it, Rose is and will always be remembered for a certain Hockey call made on May 27, 1994.

Rose is where we start to get into some trouble. Rose is now the #1 man on the Radio. He was, for many years, the host of Mets Extra, the Radio version of the Pre/Post game show, and was fired in 1992 or 93 for being overly critical of the team. He then spent many years on TV, jockeying for time during the Dark Ages of Mets Broadcasting, when the TV team consisted of Rose, Tim McCarver, Fran Healy and Rusty Staub. Now you know why I always listened to the radio.

But Rose seems to be much more at home on the Radio. He doesn't have to fill in with idiotic banter, and as far as being too opinionated, well, some men you just can't reach. But he peaked in 2004/05 when he was teamed with Cohen in the Radio booth. Thoroughly enjoyable listening. He's still decent, but I much prefer him over Tom McCarthy.

But you will never, ever get another moment out of him like "MATTEAU! MATTEAU! MATTEAU!"


Keith Hernandez, SNY TV

I think Keith Hernandez just lives his life in complete "I'm Keith Hernandez" mode. He truly plays the role of the clown on the air, and much of his charm comes from his love of mindless banter and idle chit-chat. Nobody knows more about the game of Baseball, and what a specific player could be thinking about at a specific game moment like Keith Hernandez. As a player, he had the reputation as a thinking man's player, and it came across in his performance. Now, with nothing more to prove, he can just kick back and say whatever he feels.

Well, until he offends somebody...





Ron Darling, SNY TV

Darling's purpose in the booth is mainly to counter Hernandez and provide an ex-Pitcher's perspective to the game, which he does quite well. He and Keith were, of course, ex-teammates, forever bonded by a 1986 World Championship, and they're both lionized by Mets fans because of it. In fact, few remember that Darling was the starting pitcher in Game 7 of the 1986 World Series, and by his own admission, he pitched rather poorly in that game. We hadn't heard much from Darling since his retirement in 1995 until he resurfaced as an announcer for the Washington Nationals, and then was hired by SNY for the '06 season.

Darling and Hernandez in particular seem to have a good rapport in the booth, and as El Guapo noted, they often joke around about their playing days together. It's fun during Spring Training. It can get a little annoying when they start talking about Mentos during a blowout.

Tom McCarthy, WFAN Radio

Because there is usually one announcer who is universally disliked by Mets fans, and the other four are generally liked, it's McCarthy who is the fall guy. His calls aren't necessarily bad, and he seems to get along well with Rose on the radio, but I swear to God when I listen to him announcing, it's almost as if Gilbert Gottfried stepped into the booth. And he came to the Mets after several years of working for the Phillies. That right there should give you bad vibes.

Ralph Kiner, SNY TV (occasionally)

The absolute King of Unintentional Comedy. Kiner has been butchering the English Language for as long as the Mets have been in existence. His quips are legendary. Kiner's Korner is ingrained in all of our minds. His comments page on the UMDB alone tell you how loved and revered Kiner is among Mets fans. Yes, his ability to call a game has been compromised by Bell's Palsy, and his appearances in the booth are always few and far between, but always enjoyed. The Mets are holding a night for him on July 14th this season. Nobody deserves it more.

And those who are gone, but surely not forgotten...

Fran Healy

OK, we all wish we could forget Fran. It's hilarious now, when you turn on FSNY, and there's Fran, randomly interviewing some Lacrosse player on the "Regional Sports Re-Port!" or talking to a retired basketball player on "Halls of Fame."

Every Mets fan has that moment when Fran simply threw them over the edge. For me, it was in July, 2000. The Mets were playing a game in Toronto, and Mike Piazza hit a Grand Slam over an advertisement in the outfield that read "PIZZA PIZZA." And no less than 20 times over the course of the rest of the game, Fran kept repeating, "And Mike Piazza...Hit a Ga-Rand Sa-Lam! And he hit it OVER THE PIZZA SIGN!" And who can forget that "THE NEW YORK METS 22 YEAR OLD SHORTSTOP IS CREATING ALL KINDS OF EXCITEMENT!!!" Fran would never hesitate to beat a fact into your head repeatedly.

Bob Murphy, Emeritus

I was at Murph's last game in 2003, and I admit that I cried. And I cried again when he passed away the following summer. I know I'm going to sound a little cheesy when I say this, but Murphy was the voice of my childhood, and the first voice I remember associating with the Mets. Murphy was the perfect announcer because he always remained positive about the team without being a homer (hear that, Sterling?). You knew he rooted for the Mets, but it was always something gentle, like the Happy Recap. Of course, like Kiner, Murphy had his moments with the English Language, and as a comment on the UMDB said, "If there was ever a man on this earth who looked like Porky Pig it's Bob Murphy," but all of those things just added to his charm. Sultry Summer nights are not the same without him.

I'll close with another anecdote. Again, it's April of 2001. El Guapo and I are watching a Mets game, I believe they were playing Montreal. Fran was announcing, and Keith was in the booth, filling in (so they were in "MUHN-tree-al"). Keith had been talking about the times he had hit 2 Home Runs in a game. He had mentioned that one of the times was the day his divorce was finalized. Almost as if on cue, Lee Stevens of the Expos cranked a HR, his second of the day (most likely off Trachsel). This, of course, prompted Fran to yell with glee, "HIS SECOND HOMER OF THE DAY! AND HE'S NOT EVEN GETTING A DIVORCE!"