Who is Jake?

Friday brought the Mets into Washington for the first of a 4-game series and, well, if there was ever a time when it seemed like the Mets would go into Washington and get absolutely murdered, this would be it.

But that didn't happen. The Mets are totally neutered at this point, but Washington, who I have always felt to be kind of a paper tiger, doesn't look so great either. Take Bryce Hairdo out of that lineup and it seems a little more pedestrian. But I digress. I hate the Nationals so why the hell would I have anything nice to say about them ever?

With the backdrop of this partially amusing, partially embarrassing, mostly silly Player's Weekend thing going on, the Mets played the Nationals and actually won on Friday night, mostly because Jacob deGrom pitched like Jacob deGrom, even if he couldn't be bothered to come up with a more inventive nickname to put on his jersey than "Jake." "Jake" did what he needed to do, pitching into the 8th inning, striking out 10 batters, crossing 200 strikeouts for the season and allowing 1 run and 5 hits.

On the other side, A.J. Cole started for Washington and looked every bit like he was ready to hit the showers. He was walking guys and giving up hits, but the Mets kept letting him off the hook. They scored a run in the first and probably would have had more had Dominic Smith's single not hit the umpire and, subsequently, led to Yoenis Cespedes coming up lame once again with another hamstring injury. "La Potencia," of course, was done for the night right then and there and the way things are going I'd be surprised if we see him at all the rest of the season. And maybe the Mets should just wrap his legs in bubble wrap and tell him to keep off them for a month or so until everything heals up and he doesn't do this again next season. Because that's a problem.

So the Mets had 1 run when it felt like they should have had 4 or 5 off of Cole, but then they did plate two runs in the 8th, thanks to Rey Rey (playing Left in place of Cespedes) and Dominic Smith, and another in the 9th to ice away this Pyrrhic 4-2 victory. This season, even the good ends up being kind of ugly.

Back in Black

My Birthday passed recently, and, on my birthday, I happened to be looking on eBay at Mets jerseys, when I should have been working. I didn't actually plan on buying anything. I only own one jersey, a snow white David Wright "Genuine" Jersey that I bought in 2005, and recently sewed the shoulder and neck patches onto so it would appear more like the "Authentic" jerseys that the players supposedly wear (Yes, if you can believe it, I know how to sew).

There wasn't any particular player I was looking for, although I've always wanted to get a Piazza jersey, but I've always been outbid on those, and the John Maine jerseys just look a little too fishy for my liking. If I'm going to buy a jersey, I'd at least like it to look real.

Which is why I was skeptical when I happened on a Black Carlos Beltran "Authentic" jersey, with a Buy it Now price of $38.00 (with shipping). New, with tags, yes. The seller was based out of Seoul, South Korea. He very likely turned it out in his Basement. But he had plenty of photos of the jersey, and it certainly looked real enough. Good feedback rating, too.

There was another dilemma I faced. There is, at least among the circle I run in, a bit of taboo about the Black jerseys. Just about everyone I know hates them, and wishes they would go away. One friend in particular will only acknowledge the pinstriped jersey as "real." For a while, there was even a petition running to get rid of the Black Jerseys. I put my name on it, although for what it was worth, I never had anything against the Blacks. In fact, when the Mets first introduced them in 1998, I kind of liked them. Yes, they were a trendy marketing ploy, but so what? The Black and Blue cap that accompanies it has been my official Game Hat for the past two seasons, and it's primed to ring out Shea this upcoming season.

But I had to ponder whether or not I should purchase this particular jersey. My father used to tell me, "What does finding the right price mean if it isn't the right thing to do?" Well, the price was certainly right. But in addition to wondering if the jersey would actually make it from Korea to New York, I had to think about whether or not it was worth it to potentially ruin my credibility and actually be seen out in one of those oh-so-shameful black jerseys. I thought long and hard about it, staring intently at the computer screen, ready to click that "Buy It Now" button that was singing out to me.

"Screw it," I said. I bought the Jersey. Street Cred be damned. Got it in 10 days. Happy Birthday to me!