ExWNYer Posted July 29 Posted July 29 7 minutes ago, Another Fan said: Very cool. Ive been to Pittsburgh but not the baseball stadium. I liked the city as well. It was just a pain to navigate because as you mentioned all the bridges! It can be be confusing, for sure. I was worried before we went because my brother-in-law (Pirates fan) told me pretty much what you said. We were lucky and didn't have any issues. Got into the city and to our hotel Sunday morning without issue and escaped after Monday's game with minimal trouble, save for post-game traffic.
SinceThe70s Posted July 30 Posted July 30 22 hours ago, ExWNYer said: @Gugny @SinceThe70s Great! Thanks. Yes, you're correct. The Mets won that Sunday game, 3-2. The Mets were up, 1-0, in the bottom of the 8th with two outs and runners on when Mendoza brought in Edwin Diaz to try and get a four out save. When they brought him in I turned to my son and said, "I hope we din't watch them cling to a 1-0 lead all day only to see Diaz blow this..." Sure enough, he gave up a two run single and the Mets trailed, 2-1, heading to the 9th. <*Note to Mendoza* Don't bring him in with traffic on the bags. He's much better coming into a 'clean' inning. He needs a margin for error.> Luckily, the they rallied for two runs in the top of the inning and Diaz pitched a perfect bottom of the 9th. Exciting but stressful and, ultimately, the result we wanted. Since the Monday game was at 12:35 PM, we decided to go to that one, as well. It was a good game thru the top of the 6th when we saw Brandon Nimmo hit a two run HR to tie the game at 2-2 but the wheels fell off in the bottom of the inning when Pittsburgh plated five runs and eventually won, 8-2. Mitch Keller pitched that game for the Pirates so we were not expecting a win but still hoping. All in all, a great experience and a gorgeous ballpark with beautiful sight lines. I would highly recommend catching a game there, if you ever get a chance. Pittsburgh is a nice smaller city, too. After the Sunday game, we walked over the Roberto Clemente/6th Street bridge into Pittsburgh and went to a Primanti Brothers in Market Square to eat and grab a beer. Our hotel was literally across the street from PNC Park so it was a nice walk. We took a bunch of pics after Sunday's game, including on and of the bridges (it is 'The City of Bridges', after all) and with the statues of Willie 'Pops' Stargell and Roberto Clemente. Clemente's statue is near the foot of the bridge named for him, a few yards before you cross. Both statues are outside the stadium over the outfield wall. These two pics are of my younger son and me. Both pics are after the 3-2 win on Sunday. First pic is in the park after the game. In the background is the Pittsburgh skyline. Second pic is of us on the Roberto Clemente bridge on our walk to Primanti Brothers with the Ft. Duquesne bridge in the background. We are facing the Andy Warhol bridge. I made a wardrobe change because it was a very warm day. The black shirt is my David Wright t-shirt. My son is in a faded and worn but original 1986 World Series Champions t-shirt that wouldn't come close to fitting me now. lol LGM! Glad you both had a great time! The Sunday game was epic, you sold it a little short - Lindor's go ahead 2 RBI came with two outs and the bases loaded. Good times. Meanwhile I just got back from vacay and for the second straight year the Mets had a winning streak while I was away. We had the good fortune of watching the better part of both Yankee games and Laureano's debacle for the Braves. Things were looking great on Friday until Senga went down. Why can't we have nice things? Interested to see what moves we make tomorrow. Winker is a nice upgrade over Stewart who unfortunatly turned into Vogelbach v2.0. 1
ExWNYer Posted July 30 Posted July 30 1 hour ago, SinceThe70s said: Glad you both had a great time! The Sunday game was epic, you sold it a little short - Lindor's go ahead 2 RBI came with two outs and the bases loaded. Good times. Meanwhile I just got back from vacay and for the second straight year the Mets had a winning streak while I was away. We had the good fortune of watching the better part of both Yankee games and Laureano's debacle for the Braves. Things were looking great on Friday until Senga went down. Why can't we have nice things? Interested to see what moves we make tomorrow. Winker is a nice upgrade over Stewart who unfortunatly turned into Vogelbach v2.0. Thanks. A win Monday would have capped a perfect visit but you can't always have it all. It was not my intent to sell short Sunday's game. I figured (maybe wrongly) that you guys had seen it. It was edge of your seat stuff in person for sure. There were a ton of Met fans there and we were all in full throat, mostly in jubilation but also in sheer relief. The Senga injury let a lot of the air out of the proverbial balloon. He looked like he was ready to put the team on his back for the stretch run and then it was over almost as fast as it started. <sigh> The Season sweep of the Skanks was a thing of beauty. I was hoping they would get 3 of 4 from Atlanta but the bats went silent for the last two games of the series. Very disappointing. Tonight was a great bounce back with a 15 run thumping of the Twins. I'm curious to see what they do by 6:00 PM Tuesday, as well. I don't know if there are any "low cost" starters available. A couple have already been dealt. I don't want them emptying the farm for a rental or someone like Blake Snell and, luckily, I don't think that's Stearns' style anyway. I always thought Winker was an a-hole but I liked the acquisition and he's growing on me. He's a Buffalo native and a Bills fan so he gets style points for that. 😁 If he flips to being a Jest fan, he's officially back on my sh*t list. lol I'm disappointed in Stewart, too, and had grown tired of seeing him. He was almost an automatic out when he was in the lineup. Thankfully, Winker has pushed him back down to Syracuse. I wanted him to do well, as he's a likable guy, but he's just...not...good. He hadn't hit a lick but I don't entirely agree on the Vogelbach comparison. Vogie was useless if he couldn't hit...a positionless bat. Stewart can at least be put in the field. Regardless, neither were very helpful and a black hole in the lineup. Here's to hoping they get a useful chess piece or two for the stretch run. LGM! 1
Another Fan Posted August 16 Author Posted August 16 @SinceThe70s @ExWNYer @Gugny Checking in with you guys. It's been what feels like a strange year. If strange is the right word? The team I was ready to bury for the season at the end of May. Then the whole Grimace & winning streak. Sweeping the Yankees this year still no matter how the season ends I can't take that away for them. But the team has been struggling of late. Pretty bad loss today. Yet still within a few games of the last Wild Card. See how the next month and half play out. Nothing would surprise me for the most part
ExWNYer Posted August 18 Posted August 18 On 8/15/2024 at 9:29 PM, Another Fan said: @SinceThe70s @ExWNYer @Gugny Checking in with you guys. It's been what feels like a strange year. If strange is the right word? The team I was ready to bury for the season at the end of May. Then the whole Grimace & winning streak. Sweeping the Yankees this year still no matter how the season ends I can't take that away for them. But the team has been struggling of late. Pretty bad loss today. Yet still within a few games of the last Wild Card. See how the next month and half play out. Nothing would surprise me for the most part @Gugny @SinceThe70s It has been a strange year for sure. Up and down, super high and super low. That loss at home to a horrific A's team after leading 5-0 in the 4th was inexcusable, IMO. You can't just give away games like that against bad teams when you're fighting for a WC spot. That loss was the worst of the year, in my eyes, even worse than the 9-5 collapse in the 9th earlier in the year at Miami. But, what's done is done, can't look back. That said... They haven't played great since the All-Star break and it looks like now it's going to be a battle for that last WC spot only. They've almost let San Diego and Arizona run away from them at this point. Some of it is that the Padres & D-backs have just played out of their heads but the Mets have also been too Jekyll & Hyde during the heater those two teams have been riding. The Mets have to sweep the Marlins today and then a brutal ten game stretch will likely determine their fate. After today, they have three at home against Baltimore and then hit the road for four at San Diego and three at Arizona. We'll know after that whether they're still in the thick of it or if they're "also-rans" playing out the string. If they can stay afloat for that ten game stretch, it may come down to the final three games of the year at Atlanta. Be still my PTSD... 1
Another Fan Posted August 18 Author Posted August 18 11 minutes ago, ExWNYer said: @Gugny @SinceThe70s It has been a strange year for sure. Up and down, super high and super low. That loss at home to a horrific A's team after leading 5-0 in the 4th was inexcusable, IMO. You can't just give away games like that against bad teams when you're fighting for a WC spot. That loss was the worst of the year, in my eyes, even worse than the 9-5 collapse in the 9th earlier in the year at Miami. But, what's done is done, can't look back. That said... They haven't played great since the All-Star break and it looks like now it's going to be a battle for that last WC spot only. They've almost let San Diego and Arizona run away from them at this point. Some of it is that the Padres & D-backs have just played out of their heads but the Mets have also been too Jekyll & Hyde during the heater those two teams have been riding. The Mets have to sweep the Marlins today and then a brutal ten game stretch will likely determine their fate. After today, they have three at home against Baltimore and then hit the road for four at San Diego and three at Arizona. We'll know after that whether they're still in the thick of it or if they're "also-rans" playing out the string. If they can stay afloat for that ten game stretch, it may come down to the final three games of the year at Atlanta. Be still my PTSD... Maybe just what baseball is today the Mets season isn't that unusual if that makes any sense at all. I was listening to this interview with David Wells and he made me laugh even though I associate him still strongly with the Yankees. His modern takes on baseball today. WFAN didn't cut out when he called pitchers today the p word. lol And I said this to two other people this guy had as a long a career as he had not taking care of himself at all. And Matt Milano who is 220 pounds with like 2% body fat is out it looks like all year. Uggh 1
ExWNYer Posted August 18 Posted August 18 @Gugny @SinceThe70s @Another Fan So they inexcusably gave away another game today to the Marlins, 3-2. They ended the season 7-6 against Miami. The Marlins record against the rest of the NL East coming into play today? 7-19. That, in a nutshell, is why the Mets will ultimately fall short in their quest to make the playoffs this season. They squandered a quality start by Blackburn (1 run in 6 innings) and two of their other pitching trade acquisitions gave it away...Brazoban & Maton. SMH 1
Another Fan Posted August 18 Author Posted August 18 42 minutes ago, ExWNYer said: @Gugny @SinceThe70s @Another Fan So they inexcusably gave away another game today to the Marlins, 3-2. They ended the season 7-6 against Miami. The Marlins record against the rest of the NL East coming into play today? 7-19. That, in a nutshell, is why the Mets will ultimately fall short in their quest to make the playoffs this season. They squandered a quality start by Blackburn (1 run in 6 innings) and two of their other pitching trade acquisitions gave it away...Brazoban & Maton. SMH Well thankfully now Sunday is the one day of the week I get in my physical activity playing tennis so I missed this debacle. But yeah even with the watered down format to get in the playoffs these are the games the team needs to win. 1
SinceThe70s Posted August 19 Posted August 19 @Another Fan @ExWNYer @Gugny Not much to add beyond what's already been said. It's been a feat or famine season for the most part. I figured they'd level out after their hot streak but instead they've had too many bad losses. I thought the Angels series was deflating. It'll be interesting to see how they fare in the next 10 games, I feel like they've played better against good teams this year, but I'm not really confident. I give credit to Stearns for some of the in-season moves. Nothing flashy but Torrens and Iglesias were positive additions, Winker was an improvement over Stewart, Vientos looks like a major league hitter and even though it hasn't worked out, he definitely tried to turn the bullpen over. Also, starting pitching has held up for the most part despite gettting nothing from Senga. Unfortunately among other problems, Pete hasn't been Pete, Squirrel has been disappointing until recently, Marte can't stay on the field and Alvarez hasn't distinguished himself at the plate. 2
Gugny Posted August 19 Posted August 19 @ExWNYer @SinceThe70s @Another Fan Hi, fellas. This season, record-wise, is playing out just how I thought it might. However, not for the reasons it’s happening. As has been brought up, our stars aren’t playing like stars. Disappointing, because the playoffs are within reach for any semi-consistent team. We are not that. As of now, I’m okay with Mendoza getting another shot that said, I’d take an upgrade any day. I was actually in NYC on Saturday. Girlfriend and lI drove down primarily to hit the Brooklyn Museum to see the Paul McCartney photo exhibit. We were done there by 2pm and I had a decision to make … Mets game or non Mets game. She was fine either way. But we decided to hit midtown Manhattan for a bit, then took in Central Park (Strawberry Fields). McCartney in the early afternoon, Lennon a bit later. Tough to beat. Ended up back in Brooklyn by around 6:30 for dinner. Mets game was just getting over (saw the last couple outs). The way they celebrated, I thought Severino may have thrown a no-no. I had to google the box score because I would have been PISSED if I’d missed that!!! I’ll take the CG shut out! This season was a throw away to me from preseason, so I’m enjoying the wins as they come and a playoff an appearance would be a wonderful overachievement. #LFGM
SinceThe70s Posted August 19 Posted August 19 21 minutes ago, Gugny said: @ExWNYer @SinceThe70s @Another Fan Hi, fellas. This season, record-wise, is playing out just how I thought it might. However, not for the reasons it’s happening. As has been brought up, our stars aren’t playing like stars. Disappointing, because the playoffs are within reach for any semi-consistent team. We are not that. As of now, I’m okay with Mendoza getting another shot that said, I’d take an upgrade any day. I was actually in NYC on Saturday. Girlfriend and lI drove down primarily to hit the Brooklyn Museum to see the Paul McCartney photo exhibit. We were done there by 2pm and I had a decision to make … Mets game or non Mets game. She was fine either way. But we decided to hit midtown Manhattan for a bit, then took in Central Park (Strawberry Fields). McCartney in the early afternoon, Lennon a bit later. Tough to beat. Ended up back in Brooklyn by around 6:30 for dinner. Mets game was just getting over (saw the last couple outs). The way they celebrated, I thought Severino may have thrown a no-no. I had to google the box score because I would have been PISSED if I’d missed that!!! I’ll take the CG shut out! This season was a throw away to me from preseason, so I’m enjoying the wins as they come and a playoff an appearance would be a wonderful overachievement. #LFGM Completely agree that the season is playing out the way I hoped/expected but the road to where we are right now has been unexpected. It's hard to believe in a team that as been so inconsistent. I'm OK with Mendoza. He gets credit for keeping the clubhouse together the first two months when they were playing poorly and I like that he isn't afraid to experiment with different lineups (assuming that's his call). I've been critical of some of his moves with the starting pitching and bullpen, but I think that's a common complaint for any manager. 1
Another Fan Posted August 21 Author Posted August 21 On 8/19/2024 at 10:08 AM, SinceThe70s said: Completely agree that the season is playing out the way I hoped/expected but the road to where we are right now has been unexpected. It's hard to believe in a team that as been so inconsistent. I'm OK with Mendoza. He gets credit for keeping the clubhouse together the first two months when they were playing poorly and I like that he isn't afraid to experiment with different lineups (assuming that's his call). I've been critical of some of his moves with the starting pitching and bullpen, but I think that's a common complaint for any manager. @ExWNYer @Gugny I didn't like the Mendoza hire but I can't complain overall. I'm not sure how much say he has though with making lineups. But I think all teams fanbases feel that way.... with how prevalent analytics departments are with organizations just how much do managers dictate (if at all)? The days of the strong manager type like Sweet Lou, Billy Martin, or even Bobby V are gone ain't aren't coming back. Mendoza kinda strikes me as the modern manager. He speaks the players language in more ways than one. I just saw it's been 20 years since Bob Murphy's passing. Since I usually couldn't see the Mets on TV growing up he was the voice of the team for me as a kid. By all accounts the same jovial guy in real life as was on the radio. I'm hoping some tributes come to him in the next few years since Cohen seems to embrace the club's history. https://metsmerizedonline.com/remembering-mets-broadcaster-bob-murphy/
SinceThe70s Posted August 21 Posted August 21 9 hours ago, Another Fan said: @ExWNYer @Gugny I didn't like the Mendoza hire but I can't complain overall. I'm not sure how much say he has though with making lineups. But I think all teams fanbases feel that way.... with how prevalent analytics departments are with organizations just how much do managers dictate (if at all)? The days of the strong manager type like Sweet Lou, Billy Martin, or even Bobby V are gone ain't aren't coming back. Mendoza kinda strikes me as the modern manager. He speaks the players language in more ways than one. I just saw it's been 20 years since Bob Murphy's passing. Since I usually couldn't see the Mets on TV growing up he was the voice of the team for me as a kid. By all accounts the same jovial guy in real life as was on the radio. I'm hoping some tributes come to him in the next few years since Cohen seems to embrace the club's history. https://metsmerizedonline.com/remembering-mets-broadcaster-bob-murphy/ 1
SinceThe70s Posted August 21 Posted August 21 @Another Fan I grew up with Bob Murphy, Ralph Kiner and Lindsey Nelson on WOR/9. I'm pretty sure they'd do 3 innings each and then also do radio for the same game. They may have kept two in the TV booth and one on radio. Another fun fact is that back in the day for the WS they'd bring in a home team announcer to join the national crew for each teams home games. Lindsey Nelson got the nod in '73. 1
SinceThe70s Posted August 28 Posted August 28 @ExWNYer @Another Fan @Gugny Turned on SNY early tonight and they were replaying an epic win against the Dbacks in early July. What struck me was that Senga went 8 and only gave up one run before a 9th inning rally. When was the last season that the Mets didn't have a frontline starter miss significant time? DeGrom, Scherzer, Verlander, Senga. We have to be going on 5+ years, no?
Gugny Posted August 28 Posted August 28 44 minutes ago, SinceThe70s said: @ExWNYer @Another Fan @Gugny Turned on SNY early tonight and they were replaying an epic win against the Dbacks in early July. What struck me was that Senga went 8 and only gave up one run before a 9th inning rally. When was the last season that the Mets didn't have a frontline starter miss significant time? DeGrom, Scherzer, Verlander, Senga. We have to be going on 5+ years, no? I feel like it’s been very year, at the very least going back to the John Maine days.
SinceThe70s Posted August 28 Posted August 28 2 minutes ago, Gugny said: I feel like it’s been very year, at the very least going back to the John Maine days. ty I hate playing the injury card - hell, look at the Braves this year - but it struck me when I saw Senga coming off a strong performance last year. 1
ExWNYer Posted August 29 Posted August 29 23 hours ago, SinceThe70s said: @ExWNYer @Another Fan @Gugny Turned on SNY early tonight and they were replaying an epic win against the Dbacks in early July. What struck me was that Senga went 8 and only gave up one run before a 9th inning rally. When was the last season that the Mets didn't have a frontline starter miss significant time? DeGrom, Scherzer, Verlander, Senga. We have to be going on 5+ years, no? 22 hours ago, Gugny said: I feel like it’s been very year, at the very least going back to the John Maine days. 22 hours ago, SinceThe70s said: ty I hate playing the injury card - hell, look at the Braves this year - but it struck me when I saw Senga coming off a strong performance last year. Agree with both of you. It seems to be an endless aggravation with this organization. I don't believe in curses but I truly think they are cursed. lol Just once, I'd like to see the players counted on to carry them be healthy. I'm tired of seeing scrapheap 'also-rans' and 'never-weres' making up the staff and bullpen. 1
ExWNYer Posted August 29 Posted August 29 @SinceThe70s @Gugny @Another Fan I'm sure this is mostly emotion and recency bias but I am done with Diaz. That POS has given up game winning walk-off HRs in his last two outings against the Padres and D-backs. Those were games they could ill afford to lose and he has effectively knocked them out of the playoff race. It's one thing if it's someone else but he's supposed to be their one constant in the bullpen, their f'ing lockdown closer. You can't get any more 'Metsy' than this putz. Another Armando Benitez. Meanwhile, the walking-wounded Braves keep right on rolling and pull four games in front. Only the 'NY Mess'...
Gugny Posted August 29 Posted August 29 15 minutes ago, ExWNYer said: @SinceThe70s @Gugny @Another Fan I'm sure this is mostly emotion and recency bias but I am done with Diaz. That POS has given up game winning walk-off HRs in his last two outings against the Padres and D-backs. Those were games they could ill afford to lose and he has effectively knocked them out of the playoff race. It's one thing if it's someone else but he's supposed to be their one constant in the bullpen, their f'ing lockdown closer. You can't get any more 'Metsy' than this putz. Another Armando Benitez. Meanwhile, the walking-wounded Braves keep right on rolling and pull four games in front. Only the 'NY Mess'... I think most Mets fans feel the same. I was pissed last night. If we can’t count on Diaz to close out big/must-win games, then he’s worthless. Period. 1
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