 Saturday, September 23, 2006
Remember the Maine
"Remember the Maine!" was a rallying cry in the Spanish-American War of 1898. John Maine takes the mound for the Mets.
Linda laughs when I put on the I Love NY Mets bucket hat from the give away coming into Shea. I promptly put my regular Mets hat back on.
Bombero es la palabra del dia. Fireman is (Professor Reyes') Word of the Day.
No hitter through three on what should have been a strikeout with two outs became a double, then WP to third, a HBP, and walk to load the bases with Brian Schneider coming to bat. Schneider was walked to score the first run. Nook Logan flies out to Reyes in left to thankfully end the inning.
David Wright flies out and the Mets don't score as the Tank went to the restroom. The superstition didn't work.
Bases loaded and 3-2 in the fifth as Kearns is walked so the Nats lead 2-0. Vidro singled in two runs but the runner was tagged out by DW at third.
Linda nor I could identify the song in the Mets video. No, it wasn't an 80s song or "Meet the Mets".
Steve's favorite acquisition Shawn Green doubles to center. Lastings Milledge singles Green in, 4-1. Meeting at the mound. Woodward singles to left as Milledge advances to third and Woodward to second. Valentin pinch hits for Maine but is called out on an inside pitch. Steve's MVP singles Milledge home, 4-2. Woodward to third. Chavez singles Woodward home so 4-3. LoDuca flies out to right-center. Double steal on the 2-1 count to DW who hits a bomb to left to give the Mets a 6-4 lead.
Franco and Green single while Linda and I discuss the best James Bond. We agree on Sean Connery is the best James Bond but looking forward to Daniel Craig as the next James Bond. Milledge flies out to left to end the fifth. Mets lead 6-4.
In the top of the seventh, a foul ball lands a couple of sections over from Linda and me. She's like you almost caught it. Yeah, almost. One of these days, years, or lifetimes. 
Soriano hits a solo shot with one out in the seven to close the game to 6-5.
Get up and stretch! The Mets lead 6-5.
DW hit an infield single to open the 8th. Franco sacrifices him to second. The Nats almost turn two to end the inning but the ball is dropped on the transfer. First and third and Woodward single home a run, 7-5. Michael Tucker pinch hits for Mota. Tucker is walked to load the bases for Profesor Reyes. Reyes doubles to center to score two runs, 9-5. Chavez grounds out to end the inning.
Aaron Heilman pitches to open the eighth.
Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" is the XM Satellite Radio Eighth inning song. This song helped propel the Tank into the "Antarctica Idol" finals in March 2005.
As I go to the rest room, Lo Duca hits a home run, 10-5. DW gets to third after a collision in right field. In light of Mike Cameron's and Carlos Beltran's collision last season, the Mets rightfully don't replay the collision. Out comes the wheeled strecher for tough luck injured prone 1B Nick Johnson whose right leg is immobilized. Austin Kearns was also involved in the collision and is substituted.
Franco hits a ground rule double to drive home DW, 11-5. Franco advances to third after the SS Zimmerman supposedly made the catch in the stands. Milledge doubles home Franco, 12-5.
#1 Anderson Hernandez comes to the plate with a drunk guy chanting "MVP" even though he is hitting .143.
45,247 is the paid attendance.
Billy Wagner comes the game to get some work but no "Enter Sandman". Maybe because it isn't a save situation. A young boy sitting with his parents across the aisle from me sees my Blackberry and I try to explain mobile e-mail to him.
Woodward makes a nice play to keep the runner at second who eventually scores on the force, 12-6. Soriano singles to center with two outs. Castro singles to center. Lombard is up with runners at first and third and strikes out.
Bachman Turner Overdrive's "Takin' Care of Business" blares on the speakers as the Mets win 12-6. Professor Reyes and DW were the players of the game because they each had three RBIs and hits. Maine gets the win.
Posted by The Tank live from Shea.
I don't Care if the Mets Win the World Series
The Mets
have been so exciting to watch, Reyes get a single, steal second, advance on a
FC to third and get home somehow, that I don't care if they win the World
Series. They are the most exciting team in baseball and so much fun to watch. I
just hope that they keep up the excitement.
That
said, I will be rooting and hoping all the way for a WS victory. If the Mets do
make the series, I am pretty sure that the Mets will face the Yankees. Rematch
of 2000. The Yanks will be favorites because they have that insane lineup and
the starting pitching is about the same. I actually think that the Mets have a
slight edge due to superior middle relief. With Mo still a little iffy and
Wagner lights out the only distinction at this point is the middle relief. We'll
see.
Remember
if the Mets win the World Series my picks for
World
Series MVP: Jose Reyes
NLCS MVP:
Carlos Beltran
Posted by
Steve in New York.
Rest for some, Rehabbing for others. Weekend Football Preview
As the Yankees and Mets have now thankfully clinched, it is now time to rest key players like Jason Giambi and rehabiliate others like Gary Sheffield who played for Giambi at first base and Mariano Rivera who got the save. Though Pedro lost last night, he pitched four great innings before fatigueing in the fifth and is getting stronger as he only pitched three innings in Pittsburgh last week. Steve's, my, and I am sure other people's "Prayers for Pedro" helped.
The Jets travel to Buffalo for a key intra-division matchup. The Bills should win a close game.
The Giants travel to Seattle. Seattle is a tough place to play and the Giants won't win there.
Though college doesn't have as many great games as last weeke, please note the following fearless predictions:
Ohio State beats Penn State.
Notre Dame wins at Michigan State.
California beats Arizona State.
Posted by The Tank in NY.
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Subway Series Here We Come!
The Yanks cliched the AL East yesterday and the post says it all. Nine in a row is quite impressive. Since divisional play started in 1969, the NL and AL East has never been dominated by both New York teams. Until now. Awesome!
Hopefully the Mets and Yanks will meet in the Fall Classic and have the battle of the two best shortstops in the league. (The Mets clearly have the better third baseman. :))
Posted by Steve in New York.
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
No longer a mojito virgin, Why women are better at 35 than 18.
While at the Harvest in the Square Tuesday evening, the Tank hung out with new and old friends.
As the heaviest lightweight drinker going, The Tank was already slurring his words by the time Kathleen got there about 30 minutes late from work. A brief transcript appears below:
Kathleen: "You're drunk aren't you?"
Tank: "Yup." No use in lying after ten or so shot glasses of wine and Brooklyn Brewery Oktoberfest Beer. (On the back of the Brooklyn Brewery's beer coasters was the fact that Brooklyn Brewery is the first NYC company to switch to 100% wind generated electricity thanks to NewWind Energy. Though the Tank has a more than a few drinks in him, can he get windmills going on his 51.78 acres Upstate which is not far from a current planned wind farm in Jordanville? What are the zoning requirements? Anything is worth a shot to improve the environment and get America away from OPEC supplied oil. Fingers crossed as the Tank investigates.)
Talk about a cool gig, Steve is on the board of John's startup Internet Wine Database company. The reason I drank so much is that Steve and I would wait until John sampled the wine. If he liked it (and took their business card), Steve and I knew it was something we should try. If you don't have a chance to party with John because he is the walking wine version of Internet Movie Database, please check out his Internet Wine Database which is in the process of construction so please keep checking back.
If you're going to marathon "train" with Linda, Steve, and Kathleen, you better be ready to "train". After The Tank already had too much to eat and drink, we had mojitos at a nearby bar courtesy of "White Fedora Mike". The Tank has heard about mojitos, especially in the recent hit movie "Miami Vice", so it was worth a shot.
Speaking of the NYC Marathon, Lance Armstrong is training for it. We then started making predictions about how we thought Lance would do. Steve's goal is to finish two hours or less behind Lance Armstrong. Our predictions for Lance's finish are as follows in hours:minutes:
John: 2:45
Mike: 3:10
Steve: 2:39
Kathleen: 2:32.30
Linda: 3:00
Tank: 2:40
The conversation then staggered wildly from "Pushing Tin" with John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, and Angelina Jolie to (b) John's sales trip in a Winnebago from Mansfeld, Ohio, to Wrigley Field, and back to movies (c) "Monster's Ball".
Conclusion of this inebriated conversation: John and I decreed a new Miller Lite Man Law that women are better at 35 than 18. More details when Steve and I get the premium content part of the website going. Until then, please trust us.
Mega thanks to Linda for organizing this and inviting me!
Go Mets! / Yankees! / The Gang!
Posted by The Tank in Union Square, Manhattan.
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Finally!
18 years +3 days. The cover of the NY Post says it all. Now its the Yanks turn. Oddly enough it was three Yankees fans to text me first when the Mets won: Jack, Mike and The Tank.
Posted by Steve in Mets Heaven.
Monday, September 18, 2006
Jinxed by the Mets fan on the 7 train, Pour No Champagne in Pittsburgh or the Stadium
He jinxed us for sure.
Just like in '86, the Mets could not get it done on the road.
They are killing me. I've been waiting 18 years. :)
Posted by The Tank, edited by Steve in New York.
------------
Tom's original message (mega thanks to Steve to reposting after my friend's Mac Safari stripped out the text):
As the Tank was enroute to Shea for the Mets - Dodgers game on Saturday, September 9, he saw a fan on the 7 train writing "2006 NL East Champs" with a black Sharpie. Being very superstitious, I yelled out "No!!!!!" to no avail.
The Pirates played this weekend like Willie Stargell, Dave Parker, and the rest of the 1979 "We Are Family" World Champions. I guess their theme was "Pour No Champagne" in honor of the sponsor their ballpark, PNC. The Mets will hopefully clinch Monday night against the Marlins at Shea, touch wood.
I read a disturbing article on MLB.com unfortunately "reinforced the increasingly strong notion that the Mets no longer can handle left-handed pitching. They now have lost 14 of their last 19 games in which they have been opposed by a left-handed starter."
Let's hope the Mets turn it around the rest of the season and playoffs.
As for the Yankees, they split Saturday's day-night doubleheader and lost the Sunday doubleheader at the Stadium against the Red Sox. The Yankees number to clinch is 4.
Go Mets! / Yankees!
Tom
Saturday, September 16, 2006
Orange and Blue beats Orange and Blue
Early NFL Showdowns
Friday's Red Sox-Yankees game was rained out. The Mets unfortunately lost 5-3 at Pittsburgh and Pedro only pitched three innings and 68 pitches but both he and the Mets have the luxury of knocking the rust off. They will hopefully clinch Saturday as the Fighting Phillies held off a late bases loaded rally at Houston to win 4-3.
As a huge football fan, I would be remiss without mentioning some key matches. Unlike a single of the 162 regular MLB season games, each of the 16 NFL regular season literally counts 10 times as much. For instance, the Giants are 0-1 after losing to the Colts last Sunday night. It's odd to say that the Giants visit to the Eagles is a must win but it almost is as the Giants have a very difficult schedule and the NFC East is arguably the best division in the NFC. Prediction: Giants lose a close game at Philly.
As for the Jets, they travel to New England to play the Patriots. It is student, Eric Mangini, against teacher, Bill Belichick. The two used to be close but no hardly speak since Mangini took the Jets Head Coaching job. Prediction: As much as I want the Jets to beat the Patriots, the Patriots still have Tom Brady, Tedy Bruschi, and other key veterans. Patriots win a close game.
Speaking of the Patriots, the Bills had a lead on the Patriots last week but gave it away late in the game on a safety 19-17. It doesn't get much easier as they travel to South Beach to take on the Dolphins who lost the NFL opener to the Steelers 28-17. Prediction: The Dolphins win.
Posted by The Tank in NY.
Thursday, September 14, 2006
College Football Shifts Into Overdrive
What more can a college football fan ask for than seven games involving Top 25 opponents?!
While #11 Michigan at #2 Notre Dame gets much of the Establishment Media attention, does it get better than #6 LSU at #3 Auburn? The home teams should hold serve though Michigan hasn't won at South Bend since 1994 and is way overdue. Notre Dame should win but Michigan will put up a fight.
#17 Miami at #12 Louisville is a must win for Miami if it wants to get back into the BCS. Miami should win.
A game that many will overlook or not see at 3:30 p.m. Eastern is #15 Oklahoma at #18 Oregon. Oregon is a tough place to play but the Sooners should pull it out.
#24 Texas Tech should beat #20 TCU at home.
The 8 p.m. Eastern games are the icing on an unbelievable early season cake:
#4 USC has the edge over #19 Nebraska because one of the Cornhuskers former defensive backups (and now starter because of injury) shot his mouth this week. If USC wins, they should move up at least one spot, especially if #3 Auburn versus #6 LSU.
#7 Florida travels to Rocky Top #13 Tennessee. Buckle up, Florida wins a close one.
Posted by the Tank from College Football Heaven in NY.
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
A New King is about to be crowned
In keeping with last night's regal theme of the Japanese Baseball Emperor's return, the Atlanta Braves are no longer 14 time NL East Champions. The new King is most likely the Mets as their magic number is 2 who will hopefully clinch this weekend in Pittsburgh against the Pirates. (I know that it is almost certain but I am very superstitious and don't want to jinx the Mets.)
The Mets had another come from behind win, 7-4 in 11 innings, against the young and tough Florida Marlins team. It was also their 90th win of the season. As much as I love Willie Randolph as a former Yankee and current Mets manager, Joe Girardi (another former Yankee btw) is the NL Manager of the year as he brought back a vastly underfunded and young team back from 20 games under .500. Even though I am not Roman Catholic, I will name Joe my patent pending "Mother Teresa" Miracle Manager Award (MTMMA) for winning when despite low payrolls, inexperienced players, careless owners, poor morale, etc. The first MTMMA winner was former Tampa D-Rays manager Lou Pinella, also a former Yankee, btw.
Speaking of the Tampa D-Rays, the Yankees beat them 8-4. Derek Jeter extended his hitting streak to 22.
Praying for a Subway Series.
Post by The Tank in NY.
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