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“Let me tell you this: Without Santana, we felt as a team we have a chance to win in our division. With him now, I have no doubt that we’re going to win in our division. I have no doubt in that. We’ve got what it takes. We have good chemistry as a team. He fits great because he’s a great guy. He’s one of the best pitchers in the game. Who doesn’t want to have him on any ballclub? Without him last year we did good until the end of the season. So this year, to Jimmy Rollins, we are the team to beat.”

Carlos Beltran, New York Mets

I know that when I heard these words uttered out of Carlos Beltran’s mouth, that this season was going to be different. The indifference that defined the 2007 Mets seemed to be a thing of the past. The Mets finally had a fire lit underneath them, something that I hadn’t seen since 2006 when they ran away with the division. In Spring Training, it didn’t seem as if they were just going through the motions of saying the right things to make us forget about last season, they genuinely seemed pained by the thought of it. They had a chip on their shoulder, and were going to play their hearts out.

Forty games into the season, there is no chip on their shoulder. There is no fire. There is nothing but sloppy baseball that defined their September. There is Carlos Beltran getting doubled off of third base with one out in the ninth, down 1-0. There is Jose Reyes not making routine sliding plays. There is a split down the middle of the clubhouse, almost like the Gulf of Mexico separating the United States from the Caribbean. There are many to blame.

There are more inherent flaws in this team that the casual fan will not see. The obvious person to take the fall is Willie Randolph. I look at Willie and can’t help but cheer for the guy. The way he played baseball defined who I was a youth sports player. Gritty, doing the small things, not the best at his job but always working with what he has. I don’t necessarily think Willie is part of the problem, and I don’t necessarily think that he should be fired. However, as part of a cure, Willie needs to go, and this is the first time that I have honestly realized this.

Everyone wants to see a “rah-rah” kind of coach jump in here, and instantaneously change the culture. Someone like a Bobby Valentine, Larry Bowa, or Wally Backman. Someone who will go out and get in your face and let you know when you have done something wrong, but who says that Willie doesn’t do this? The only difference between them and a guy like Willie is that they do it publicly. In a culture like New York, it probably is better that these guys aren’t coaching the Mets right now. Remember how fast we (and the Wilpon’s) wanted to run Bobby V out after 2001? I don’t debate that we need a different voice in the clubhouse, just to give a different perspective and a fresh take on things. I just don’t think that one of those guys is the answer. Honestly, I have no idea who is going to get through to present bunch.

I understand Billy Wagner’s ire yesterday to the media. I even appreciate it. I used to think that Billy’s mouth was a serious problem, and more often then not I couldn’t deal with what he was saying. Now though, I see where his frustrations come from. Paul Lo Duca voiced the same problems last year, that the Latin players hide behind while guys like Wright and Wagner field questions about the dire straits of the team. Heck, Aaron Heilman has been horrendous this season, but he still gets up there after games and takes it like a man. Personally, when the Mets acquired Carlos Delgado, I thought he was going to be that bridge between the Latin and American players on the team, a real leader, and someone who really made themselves available. Boy was I wrong. I think he has become more of a cancer in the locker room then anything. He epitomizes the attitude of the Mets. I want him gone more then I want Willie gone.

In the grand scheme of things, it is still so early. Look at the Yankees for the past three years. Granted they haven’t won a World Series since 2000, but time in and time out, they find their way. Maybe it is just the distrust that has been placed in me as a Mets fan since birth, but I really don’t have the high aspirations for the team that I had in March.

But then again, they could right the ship this weekend, go on a run, and this article will have been all for naught. Just show some damn fire guys! I know it’s in there somewhere, because I saw it in 2006, and this team isn’t that much different.

Yeah, that is the optimistic part of me speaking that has been placed in me since I am a Met fan as well. That’s the funny thing, when you are a Met fan, you are pessimistic and optimistic at the same time.

Tomorrow afternoon Fordham University will hold its commencement for the Class of 2008. Charlie Rose will give the commencement address and I’m sure that all of the graduates and their families will be praying for nice weather. This time of year makes me think back to last spring, when I was graduating from Fordham University. The commencement speaker for the Class of 2007 was Mets manager Willie Randolph, whose team was flying high en route to the Subway Series against the rival Yankees. It was a great time for Randolph, as his team was the superior New York squad at that point in time (a very brief point in time) and he received loud ovations from the graduates. The most memorable part of his speech was when he talked about the troubles he had finding managerial positions:

“It makes no difference what job you may have years from now: never give up. If I had given up, I would not be at Shea Stadium. If I had listened to the critics along the way, who knows where I might have wound up? I went on 11 managerial job interviews and was rejected on each one of them, and it was their loss. The excuses were different, but the message was the same: No job for Willie Randolph.”

Fast forward to May 16, 2008. About one year since his memorable address, the headlines this year could read the same way as his speech: “No Job for Willie Randolph.” It’s amazing how much things can change in just one year. At this time last year, Willie was the celebrated manager of the up and coming Mets. Today (ironically, the birthday of his former manager Billy Martin, a guy who was fired 5 times by the Yanks) Willie Randolph is the lame-duck manager of the underachieving Mets and his job is very much in doubt. My good friend Timmy Ballgame went almost as far as calling for Randolph’s dismissal. The New York Post is saying his job is in jeopardy. Even Peter Abraham, a Yankee beat writer, said, “Willie Randolph may not last the weekend as manager of the Mets. The question at this point may not be whether he goes, it’s who they can find to replace him.” But I think it was Abraham who raised the best point: If the Mets fire Willie, who will replace him???

Let me first give a disclaimer: I’m a Willie Randolph guy. You see, I possess a virtue that’s very rare these days: loyalty. Even though Willie manages the hated Mets, I am and will always be a Willie Randolph loyalist. He was a key member of 2 Yankee championship teams and a coach on 4 World Series winners. He was so well respected in the Bronx that he was a Yankee captain from 1986 to 1989. Anyone who is or was worthy of being a Yankee captain is an icon to me. So yes, I’m very partial to Willie Randolph and I will hesitate to place blame on him. But truth be told, how much of this is Willie’s fault?

1. Will Carlos Delgado re-emerge as a feared power hitter if Howard Johnson makes the line-up?
2. Will Aaron Heilman not suck so much if Ken Oberkfell is handing him the ball?
3. Would Tom Glavine have pitched well in that final games against the Marlins if Sandy Alomar Sr. was the guy sitting in the manager’s office?
4. Would Jose Reyes have been able to produce anything during that awful collapse if Mako Oliveras were at the helm?
5. Would the team have won the NL East and not blown that seemingly insurmountable lead if Jerry Manuel was the manager?

If you answered “Yes” to all 5 of those questions, then I guess you believe that Willie Randolph should go. I personally believe that very little of this is Willie’s fault, and the blame should go directly to the players, the guys who are out there losing these games. But I also understand that when a team underachieves as badly as the Mets have, there must be a guy who takes the fall. And whether it’s right or wrong, the guy who takes the fall is more often than not the guy in charge. So if the Mets continue their uninspired play, the ax will likely fall on Willie Randolph. I don’t think that’s right, but that’s how it is.

For me, the upside is that I can go back to hating the Mets without feeling guilty about rooting against one of my guys. And from there all I can do is hope that Willie Randolph gets back on his feet and uses his own words to Fordham’s Class of 2007, “Keep fighting back like I did. Quitting is the easy way out. Whatever your goals in life, it is imperative that you stay focused, determined.”

Happy Birthday to Henry Fonda, Liberace, Merton Miller, Billy Martin, Pierce Brosnan, Jack Morris, Charles Wright (the wrestler known as the Godfather), Janet Jackson, Thurman Thomas, Tucker Carlson, Special Ed, Tori Spelling, Jensen Lewis and Megan Fox

Yesterday on the blog, immediately following the Mets’ 1-0 loss to the Washington Nationals, I wrote that I no longer endorse Willie Randolph as manager. Furthermore, I could see him being fired  as early as in two weeks from now.

Being a more or less optimistic person, I went to the bed last night thinking I’d feel better about the Mets in the morning and retract from my previous post.

Well, I’m not feeling better and I don’t regret a word….In fact, many media members agree with my sentiments as I’m sure you’ve seen or will see in the various NY papers.

This issue now falls squarely on the players’ shoulders, specifically the position players like David Wright, Carlos Beltran, Jose Reyes, and Carlos Delgado. Those four players specifically are the foundation of the team. As they go, the team goes.

They can talk about injuries, or slumps, or the “feel for the game.” Frankly, I don’t give a damn.

If they want Willie as their manager, they have to prove it on the field and in the win-loss column, and IMMEDIATELY. If they don’t, willingly or unwillingly, they will in fact end the tenure of Willie Randolph.

That’s the challenge and I think they’re aware of it. Now, comes the interesting part…What will they do?

Oh, yea, the Mets are playing the Yankees this weekend. I think I’m gonna be sick.

This is a case of “enough is enough.”

With a 1-0 loss this afternoon, the Mets have finished their latest homestand with a 3-4 record, one that included the Cincinnati Reds and Washington Nationals. Both the Reds and Nats are last place teams, both have inferior rosters in comparison with the Mets.

While the Mets still have a winning record, barely, at 20-19, the Mets performance these 39 games is nothing short of a failure.

If you disagree, let’s review some facts:

• The Marlins are in first place. Seriously.
• The Phillies have a better record than the Mets… and that’s without Jimmy Rollins for a month.
• The Braves have a comparable record and I have no clue who starts for them anymore.
• 9 of the 19 Mets losses have come this season when the Mets had a lead.
• Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado, and Luis Castillo are all hitting below .250.

While a .500 record is OK for many teams, this is not an acceptable outcome for the Mets. Given the collapse last September, given the new stadium that awaits, and given the investment management has taken in bringing “all-star” caliber to Queens (e.g. Johan Santana), the minimum result this season, and I mean minimum, is making the playoffs. Even in the National League, I don’t think .500 is good enough to make the playoffs.

It should be noted that off the record and on this blog, I have been a supporter of Willie Randolph. I liked his demeanor, and I believed that his experience as a longtime New York player, captain, coach, and manager would allow him to weather the storm from what was a bizarre turn of events last fall.

Now, I have no sympathy.

If you believe, as I do, that the Mets are failing to produce, the first blame is and should always be placed on the men in charge. And in this case, the guy that should take the blame is Willie. Randolph notoriously states that “he has the pulse of his players” and that he “knows his players better than anyone.” Yet, in a time in the season where he needs to get the most out of his players and wash away any stench from last season, they have failed…IN FACT they are failing THE SAME WAY they failed last September- namely losing to teams they should flat out beat. Period.

I am not necessarily advocating for Randolph’s firing. I’ve seen the 1999 Mets under Bobby Valentine go 27-28 and proceed to win the NL Wild Card with 96 wins. The season is a marathon and not a sprint…I know that…I also know it is not likely that the Marlins will go wire to wire and win the division.

However, I will no longer endorse Randolph. If management chooses to fire him, I am in favor of their decision.

Enough is enough.

The NFL’s all-time leading rusher turns 39 today. Emmitt Smtih, who ran for 18,355 yards in his career, will always rank as one of my favorite athletes of all-time. With quarterback Troy Aikman and wide receiver Michael Irvin, Emmitt was one of the highly acclaimed Dallas “Triplets” that led the team to 3 Super Bowl titles in the 1990s.

Emmitt was the definition of a DY-NO-MITE player. In 1993, he became the first ever running back to win a Super Bowl, the NFL Most Valuable Player award, the NFL rushing crown, and the Super Bowl Most Valuable Player award all in the same season. Not only was he a fantastic rusher, but he was a complete running back. He was an asset as a receiver out of the backfield and was also an amazing blocker in pass protection, possibly the best ever in that regard. In my opinion, he’s the best running back of all-time. Keep in mind that a running back involves a lot more than just running the ball. You need to run for long touchdowns, grind out tough yards in key short-yardage situations, be an effective receiving option and reliable pass blocker. Emmitt may not be the best pure runner of all-time, but he’s the best running back of all-time. Happy Birthday 22. Enjoy the tribute video to the greatest running back of all-time.

Also Happy Birthday to Don Nelson, Chazz Palminteri, George Brett, Dan Patrick, Janet Jackson, John Smoltz, Hideki “The Fat Toad” Irabu, Desmond Howard, Rod Smith, Ray Lewis, Tyler Walker, Jamie Lynn-Sigler and another one of my personal favorite football players: Ryan Leaf

I didn’t realize this until Ken Singleton mentioned it during the telecast of tonight’s Yankee game, but tonight is the 12th anniversary of Doc Gooden’s no-hitter against the Seattle Mariners at Yankee Stadium.  May 14, 1996 seems like just the other day, I can’t believe it’s been 12 years.  I was 10 years old at the time and remember waking up the following morning to find out that Gooden had thrown a no-no.  I still hadn’t fully embraced Gooden as a Yankee at that time, because of both his legal issues and prior affiliation with the second-rate Mets.  But a no-hitter is a good way to get in the good graces of fans.  Unfortunately for Doc his issues have continued over the years, but I’m sure that he will always have fond memories of his only no-hitter, as a Yankee.

From the mouth of the loudest quasi-owner in sports, Mr. Henry (Hank) Steinbrenner:

“The bottom line is that the team is not playing the way it is capable of playing. These players are being paid a lot of money and they had better decide for themselves to earn that money.

“This is going to get turned around. If it’s not turned around this year, then it will be turned around next year, by force if we have to.”

“We have good professional hitters and I have a lot of faith in them. I’m not saying they are not giving the effort, but they need to be playing harder.”

“We’ve got to forget about all the injuries and start playing our butts off.”

“They’ve got to start playing the way the [Tampa Bay] Rays are playing.”

“[The Yankees] need to start treating it like when they were younger players and going after that big contract, like they’re in [Triple-A] and trying to make the majors,” he said, according to the report. “That’s the kind of attitude and fire the players have to have.”

Ok, so that wasn’t really general-ish. But when Hank makes these long winded, public evaluations of the Yanks, I cannot help but remember his father’s, George Steinbrenner’s timeless Patton-esque rants.

After yet another loss in which the Yankees failed to score enough runs to win the game, some Yankee pitchers expressed their frustration over the offense’s inability to put up runs. In last night’s 2-1 loss to Tampa Bay, the Yankees let down starting pitcher Chien-Ming Wang, who pitched 7 strong innings. Hideki Matsui hit a solo home run to tie the game in the ninth, but then the offense went back to sleep during extra innings as Tampa was able to score a run in the 11th inning to win the game.

It was the second straight game in which the Yankees scored only one run, as the team’s offensive struggles continued. In Peter Abraham’s blog, he has quotes from some of the Yankee pitchers showing their frustration over the lack of runs.

Chien-Ming Wang: “It’s tough pitching with no runs. It’s surprising because we have good hitters. I got my job done and kept the team close.”

Mariano Rivera: “We have to score some runs and we haven’t done that.”

Joba Chamberlain: “It’s tough right now. Every run against us looks huge.”

What’s shocking is the guys who made those comments. Wang barely talks in the first place, so it’s very surprising to hear him level criticism at the offense. I don’t think I’ve ever heard Rivera criticize anybody before, so you need to take what he says seriously. Joba hasn’t spent enough time in the bigs to have revealed his entire personality yet, but I can’t recall any instances where he’s criticized anyone. So these comments are coming from three guys who don’t normally vent their frustration to the media. If the comments came from blowhards like Curt Schilling or David Wells, it would be hard to take seriously because they mouth off so much. But for a stand-up guy like Mariano Rivera to level criticism at his offense, that shows that there is a problem with the hitters.

Happy Birthday to Ed Walsh, Hans Albert Einstein, Herb Morrison, Tony Perez, George Lucas, Dick Tidrow, Dennis Martinez, Tim Roth, Pat Borders, Suzy Kolber, Fabrice Morvan of Milli Vanilli, Tony Siragusa, Sofia Coppola, Voshon Lenard, Brian Lawrence, Roy Halladay and Eddie House

In order to clear the way for reliever Matt Wise to return from the disabled list, the Mets designated Jorge Sosa for assignment. Sosa had been awful this year, with a 7.06 ERA and a deceiving 4-1 record. The Mets also cleared the way for Claudio Vargas to begin his Mets career, ending the Nelson Figueroa feel good story in New York. Figueroa went 2-3 with a 5.12ERA. The Mets also placed Angel Pagan on the DL, and called up Fernando Tatis.

While it is tough to see Figgy go, he just didn’t get the job done in his last few outings. And when you have an decent selections of veterans at Triple A waiting for a shot, you need to produce. Hopefully Nelson passes through waivers and figures himself out in Triple A, because I still think he can be very valuable to us in the long haul.

And as for you Jorge Sosa, good riddance. I don’t remember the last time you got through an entire inning without giving up a hit. We all know no one is going to claim you, so hopefully you spend the rest of your season buried in Triple A as well.

I’m interested to see what Vargas has got. He was pretty decent for the Brewers last year. Lets see if he steps up his game.

Saw a couple of interesting things on SI.com’s NBA Truth and Rumors page regarding the New York Knicks.  Obviously most of it has to do with new head coach Mike D’Antoni and changes around the organization that could result from his hiring.  Here they are:

• “Will Knicks Go After Nash?“

in one week, at the NBA Draft Lottery, the new Knicks coach will find out if he has someone whom he privately believes also can run his breakneck attack to perfection - University of Memphis point guard Derrick Rose. Mark D’Antoni has told confidants he believes Rose could be the next Steve Nash. While D’Antoni pines for Rose, he also can try to get Nash to New York if he really wants. Nash can opt out of his contract after next season and force Phoenix into a sign-and-trade with the Knicks.

• “Why Phoenix Let D’Antoni Go“

In the playoffs, Mark D’Antoni became completely unraveled by the Suns‘ failure to beat the Spurs. He’d been sarcastic toward opposing coaches for some time and had been condescending to anybody within the organization who disagreed with his philosophy. But in the San Antonio series, he advised fickle fans who were on the ledge to jump. And he got testy with those in the media who questioned his refusal to order fouling at the end of regulation and OT in Game 1. However, the biggest shock was his aversion to make offseason defensive and practice adjustments strongly required by owner Robert Sarver and team president Steve Kerr.

• “Marbury In Knicks-Suns Swap“

One of the first plays Mike D’Antoni is expected to draw up as the Knicks‘ new coach is for Stephon Marbury to run up the Garden floor … and out the door back to Phoenix to rejoin the Suns. Once D’Antoni is formally named to succeed Isiah Thomas, he is expected to try to make a push for two of his favorite Suns - forward Boris Diaw and guard Leandro Barbosa, who reportedly have fallen out of favor with Suns management. According to a person close to D’Antoni, one of his first moves would be to get the Knicks to offer Marbury and his expiring $22 million contract as a central part of the deal.