I try to make contact and hit the ball the other way. I'm always making the turn at first looking out for even the slightest hesitation or bobble from the outfielder. I run everything out. I take big leads and extra bases. I will tag from third on a shallow fly ball. I slide in shorts, dusting off the blood and dirt.

In the field, I pencil in everyone else first to see what gap I need to fill--outfield, first, third, pitcher, even short if I have to (but I'd rather play short on turf). I won't make extra throws, but when I do rear back, get your glove up, because it will have a little extra on it. I yell "Call it!" as soon as the ball is in the air.

I eat fly balls for breakfast, but could be better at balls on the ground. I'm always positioned right, though.

As a manager, I play everyone. You show you play. I like high OBP at the top of a lineup before my boppers get up. I like teaching people to play new positions and want everyone to know where the ball is going before it comes to them. Run hard...just run your ass off every play. You don't need talent to just run as fast as you can on every play. You will hear me from the dugout whether or not I'm actually coaching the bases.

I've been playing on a few softball teams with ZogSports over the past three years, but this fall I barely got on a team.  Because only a few NYC softball fields have lights, and the three on 52nd/11th are going to be under construction, the Zog fall league had to be extremely small.  Spots for teams sold out in just an hour or two, and I didn't get my Fordham team in under the wire.  Luckily, I managed to squeeze in another team, but still, lots of people got shut out.

Field space is at a premium in NYC... frankly, every kind of space is at a premium, but places to play are few and far between, so when there is a spot, making sure there's as much access as possible should be a priority.  That should include making all fields--soccer, softball, etc, available at night, including the ones in Central Park--particularly the Heckscher fields, which are right by the Columbus Circle entrance.

It shouldn't be a cost issue.  Most of these leagues are corporate sponsored, and so you've got an audience of people who are more than willing to pay for access--especially if it meant not having to hike up to 138th/Riverside or 145th and Lennox to play a night game.

More games also adds to the local economy--it keeps people staying in the city longer, and certainly makes them more likely to go with their team out to a local bar... and for those that don't overindulge at bars, getting out to a sports game for a couple more months into the fall (and earlier in the spring) keeps them healthy and more active. 

What will it take to get more fields lit up at night? 

Let them play!  Let them play!

Need more proof that the inmates run the asylum?

The Mets are having a fan contest to select the song that gets played during the 8th inning of their last season at Shea.

They're being rickrolled.

"To post a misleading link with a subject that promises to be exciting or interesting, e.g. "World of Starcraft in-game footage!" or "Paris Hilton blows Busta Rhymes' dick" but actually turns out to be the video for Rick Astley's debut single, "Never Gonna Give You Up". A variant on the duckroll. Allegedly hilarious."

I subscribe to mentions of the word "Mets" on twitter...  the stream went crazy this morning with the call for rickrolloing.  It has 1500+ diggs at the moment, too!

Check out the TweetScan of this move by the fans to get Rick Ashley's "Never gonna give you up" played at the stadium.

When Tom Glavine joined the Mets, he was a career Atlanta Brave.  The team had been a playoff mainstay for a decade and he had won a championship with them. 

Instead of continuing to help his team, he opted to take a few million a year more on what would have been a $10 million a year offer with the Braves.  Another factor was the Met's option for a 4th year, which gave him a better shot at 300 wins.  Basically, it was a completely selfish decision.

Mets fans knew he didn't really want to be in New York from the start.  So, not surprisingly, when you prove yourself to be selfish and looking out for #1, then your audience is going to have very little tolerance for anything but perfection.  If you're shooting for millions and a personal milestone, you have to deal with the downside as well as the upside.

He had a pretty mediocre Met career, but Glavine's fail came at the end of the 2007 season.  The Mets were on the brink of one of the worst collapses in sports history, but all they had to do was to win a single game down the stretch to force a playoff... and two to get in.  Glavine's last two performances were abysmal.  Against the hapless Washington Nationals on September 25th, with the Mets still up 2 games, he gave up 6 runs in 5 innings, getting outduled by Justin Bergmann.  Fail.

Nuclear fail came on the last day of the season, when the 300 game winner could only record a single out.  He faced nine batters.  Five got hits.  Two were walked, including a plunking of Dontrelle Willis, the opposing pitcher.  Seven scored.  Thirty six of the worst pitchers he had ever thrown in his life--only 17 of them for strikes.

But the worst part about the whole thing was his response after the game.  He said he wasn't "devasted" and that was a word he reserved for life and death situations.  What Glavine didn't get was that many fans feel like it is life and death when they watch a team... it's certainly bigger than just a game to them.  Regardless of what he felt like on the inside, as a $13 million a year entertainer, it shouldn't be too much trouble to feign a little devastation for the fans sake.

In fact, he never showed much emotion at all, and that was the worst part of it.  It wasn't just that he failed... he never really seemed to acknowledge it.

Similarly, when Sarah Lacy got to interview Mark Zuckerberg at the SXSW keynote--conveniently close to the timing of her book about the company--she put herself in the spotlight.  It was a huge opportunity to step up.  A fantastic interview could have meant some great wind at her back for book sales and certainly a nice notch in her journalist belt.  It reminded me of when Kara Swisher had an opportunity to get inside AOL during the late 90's on the way up her great journalistic career.  Sarah Lacy could have been the next Kara Swisher.  Instead, we sat there wishing it was Kara Swisher doing the interview with Mark.

She failed to bring an already uncomfortable young founder out of his shell.  She failed to pick up on what the audience wanted out of the interview.  She patronized and then even seemed to flirt with Zuckerberg during the interview.  I sat there in person... it was like watching a car accident.  Arrington thinks people are being sexist, but girl or guy, flirting is flirting.  If Robert Scoble did the interview and started twirling his hair at the mention that Mark is the youngest billionaire, everyone would have said, "WTF...  Is Scoble flirting?"  It didn't have a place no matter who was interviewing.

Even my friend Ariel, who is most definitely a woman, said it live on Twitter:

I'm not a developer.  I didn't want to hear about the specifics of API's either... but "You don't believe Facebook is really worth 15 billion, do you?"

What kind of question is that?  What's the expected answer?

And, "Beacon, WTF?"

I'd like to just to interviews like that...   Maybe I'll get to interview GW and I'll just say, "Iraq, WTF?"

Eliot Spitzer interview, "Hookers, WTF?"

Certainly more efficient.  Why waste words?

And let's keep in kind that this is someone who, just a week ago, "asked for the ball" in the big game.  She made a big deal about not getting into TED.  So, she got to step up to the keynote interview at SXSW and she blew it...   hey, you know, it happens, but she's got to own up to it, just the same way she would have owned up to the upside of great book sales, big stories, etc.

Instead, she blamed everyone else but herself.  She blamed the people in the room for possibly preventing any big name people from ever attending again.  Her now famous "screw you all" twitter...  it's Glavine's "this is not devastating" all over again.

She needs to admit that she was poorly prepared for the interview and apologize...   save some face and take some of the hit she's tried unsuccessfully to dodge so far.

Blogged with Flock

Blogged with Flock

All I know is, when I saw this catch, I thought of one thing: Endy Chavez.

Back in the World Series, the Mets' Endy Chavez made one of the most unbelievable gamesaving catches I've ever seen.  It was the kind of catch that was supposed to be a sign that things were going there way, only it never happend.

When David Tyree made this catch...  squeezing the ball against his helmet and then holding on behind his head as he fell to the crowd, I just thought of Chavez.

This was the catch that meant the Giants were going to score...  I just hoped the Giants were going to be able to follow through on what was clearly a little help from points unknown.

All I know is, the Giants are Super Bowl champs, and Eli Manning led them there.

When I was 11, I watched Scott Norwood miss a field goal.  Coulda.  Shoulda.  Last night, the Patriots had plenty of opportunities.  Coulda.  Shoulda.

Only one thing matters now.

The Giants were the last team standing and the Patriots had a very fine year at 18-1.

Blogged with Flock

Once the Mets wrap up his contract in the next couple of days, Johan Santana will be pitching for the New York Mets...  in the National League.

Anyone want to take a guess what his numbers are going to be like?  I think it's fair to say that he's a lock for 18 wins and a 2.50 ERA.  In '04, he whiffed 265 batters.  Now, he'll get to face pitchers about 80 more times a year than he does now.  Can we say 300k's? 

The best part is, everyone seems to be in agreement that we got him for a song.  I liked Carlos Gomez, too, but I don't think the guy's ever going to hit .300.  I think the guy will wind up being an Alfonso Soriano type, without as much power...  bat .280, hit 25, steal 35, but whiff 130 times and rarely take a walk.  And the pitchers we sent over?  Meh.... You never know with pitchers.  Plus, Santana's only going to be 29 this season.

The Mets off-season went from a disaster to a huge victory in the blink of an eye, and you gotta hand it to Omar Minaya for getting his guy without giving up too much.

So I'm trying to figure out when Santana's Shea debut is.  I say its Saturday, April 12th, because clearly he starts opening day, but the Mets have two off days in the first 10 games... so they'll use Santana, Martinez, Maine, and Perez, with a day of rest, and probably use Santana again that first Sunday on the road against Atlanta.  It wouldn't make sense to push him back, because they're off that Monday, too, so it would be a week in between starts, and I doubt they're rushing to get El Duque more starts than necessary.

Anyway, nothing is guaranteed, as we saw last year, but with the best rotation in baseball, the Mets now have to be frontrunners for the World Series on day one.

Blogged with Flock

I got some good coverage on the Sportsvite blog, WreckSports...  apparently word is getting out about my phenom status in dodgeball.

Therefore, I'd like to announce that I am in training for the Beijing '08 Summer Olympics.  Yes, dodgeball is finally an Olympic sport and I've been selected to captain the team. 

Don't believe me?

Check out these videos:

Block, block, block, throw! from ceonyc on Vimeo.

Block and fast catch from ceonyc on Vimeo.

Throw, Dodge, Throw from ceonyc on Vimeo.

Blogged with Flock

Blogged with Flock

Embedded Video

Blogged with Flock

Don Mattingly: The people who want you to vote for him say he was great before he hurt his back. Well let me tell you something: My cousin used to be a math whiz until he fell out of a pickup truck when he was 12 and hit his head on the curb. He couldn't count his fingers after that. Did they let him into MIT anyway? No, they did not. End of parable.

Blogged with Flock

Joe Sheehan from Baseball Analysts writes this great piece about keeping the ball on the ground.  He notes two things:

"...What was a little surprising to me is how the groundball percentage of every pitch decreases at almost the same rate with increasing height."

And that sinkers have a "...huge advantage... in generating grounders compared to any other pitch. "

Best part about a sinker?  It won't wreck a young arm, because you don't twist your wrist.  Here's how Jake Westbrook does it.

Blogged with Flock

YO BRO IT’S ME LITTY » Blog Archive » The Steroid Name Game

My faves:

Pudge
He slimmed down, to the tune of 30lbs, during one off-season. Someone switched from peaches and cream for breakfast to just peaches.

Glenallen Hill
He didn’t swing. He flexed his chest and the bat moved.

Blogged with Flock

Major League Rule 3 (b) (5), which states no contract shall be approved "if it contains a bonus for playing, pitching or batting skill or if it provides for the payment of a bonus contingent on the standing of the signing club at the end of the championship season."

Blogged with Flock

We used to have a guy on my street who pitched like this, but he didn't have the same kind of velocity.  I'd say this is as unhittable as you can get.

1985, 1987, Ojeda and the hedge clipper, Orel Hershiser, they can't hit for El Sid, trading Randall K for no Johnny no, Ojeda for Hubie Brooks,  Wally Whitehurst, Trading Coney away, Pete Schourek and Eric Hillman, Anthony Young keeps losing and losing and losing, the worst team money can buy, Bret Saberhagan, Vince Coleman, Bobby Bo, Gooden's demons, I don't think McReynold's saw it right away, The Future: Pulsipher, Isringhausen, and Wilson, Butch Huskey, Bernard "I'll never hit like this" Gilkey, Kent for Baerga, Carlos Baerga, Rey Ordonez, Hideous Nomo, the Todd Hundley in leftfield experiment, Mel Rojas,  Piazza driving in 100 meaningless runs a year and grounding out into 100 double plays a year, Armando Benetiz...  Armando friggin' Benetiz, Kenny Rogers can't throw a strike, Izzy for Billy Taylor, Todd Zeile, Subway Series, Piazza plunked, Roger Clemens tossing wood, Mo Vaughn, Roger Cedeno, Jeromy Burnitz, Shawn Estes, Roberto Alomar, Tom Glavine, the Mike Piazza at first experiment, Kaz "I am under contract for $7 million to play short, even though I can't field the position" Matsui, Anna Benson, Victor "This is the guy we got for Kazmir?"  Zambrano, Doug Mientkiewicz, Kaz Ishii, Duaner Sanchez's cab ride, Mota juiced, Lima Time, Wright's second half slump, Shawn Green, Pedro hurt, The Catch... and they still lose, Yadier Molina, losing Bradford, Oliver, Bell and Bannister, Carlos Delgado, Reyes's second half slump, Mike Pelfrey, The Poison Pen, The Collapse.

They'll break your heart, these Mutts.

Wanted:  Bucket of baseballs.   Willing to trade:  Guillermo Mota.

Here's a question... where would the Mets be if instead of Pelfrey starting the season as the 5th starter, it was Brian Bannister, and instead of Schowenweis, Mota, and Aaron Sele, it was Chad Bradford, Heath Bell, and Darren Oliver?

Pelfrey 3-7, 5.24
Bannister 12-9, 3.61 (For the Royals!)

Schowenweis 0-2, 5.27
Bradford 3-7, 3.38

Mota 2-2, 5.91
Bell  6-2, 2.22

Sele 3-2, 5.29
Oliver 3-0, 3.36

The Mets let go of four pitchers from last year that could have had major impacts on this season.  So, if the Mets don't see this thing through, don't blame Willie... blame Omar.

We might not score 30 runs, but at least we'll get in a few pitching position players. 

Come on up to Central Park's Hecksher Field #2, right by Columbus Circle at 6:15 today (Friday, August 24th).  We'll try and get the first pitch off at 6:30, but if we have some 1.0 guys, they might need a little more time to stretch.  :)

Feel free to pull friends and folks from your companies...   we have extra spots.

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Can you handle a glove as well as you can handle code?

What's more lightweight?  Your Web 2.0 app or your bat?

Show up at Central Park (RSVP here, please) and play softball with the folks from nextNY.

Details:

What: nextNY Exhibition Softball (6-12ft soft toss, co-ed)

Two teams of 15.

10 in the field, 15 in the lineup subbing in defensively each inning.

When:  Friday, August 24, 2007 @ 6:15PM  (First pitch: 6:30PM)

Where: Hecksher Field #2, Central Park (by W63rd, use this to locate: http://urltea.com/16l5

Barry Bonds hit his 755th home run last night...

...off a pitcher who had previously been suspended 15 games for using steriods back in 2005.

How's that for ironic?

When Mark McGwire hit number 62, we were all pretty much excited for him... at least if you go by the ratings and the fannies in the seats.  That's because he was a likeable guy.  A likeable, acne scarred guy whose body was freakishly bigger that it had been ten years prior.  His head didn't seem to swell in proportion to the way Bonds had (literally and figuratively), but we knew what the deal was, and frankly we didn't care.

Last night, Barry Bonds was that nice guy.  He carried his son, dodged any questions about the controversy, and even pointed the spotlight on A-Rod and Tom Glavine during his press conference.  He was even gracious about the Bud Selig hubbub.

As a fan, I'll tell you right now, I could seriously care less whether or not Selig's ugly mug is at the 756 game and I don't think Bonds cares either. 

We all know what the deal is with Barry and not only would he have been a first ballot Hall of Famer regardless of the steroids, but A-Rod will likely break his record.  So, in the grand scheme of things, Barry is going to be a blip, and hopefully, so will Selig.   I don't know how someone gets to be elected commisioner or if they can be fired, but Selig has acted like a first class jerk this whole time.  Baseball never had drug testing before very recently, and benefitted greatly from the juicy home run chases of the late 90's.  Now we're "clean", but lets not pretend that Buddy boy wasn't looking the other way to protect the bottom line.

So, now that we're on the verge of history--a history like all other history, clouded by human fallibility--the least Bud can do for baseball is to sit back and watch another ball fly like the rest of us and allow us to move on.  Smile and clap or stay home, Bud.  I don't like Barry Bonds... I almost did last night... ok, I sorta did...  but this is my game and I'm behind it, and looking forward to the future.  Unless you were bashing McGwire out of the side of your mouth nine years ago, you have no right to muddy this moment now.