Mets Are One Win Away From World Series

Now I know what Terry Collins meant when he said that even if the Mets had lost to the Dodgers in the NLCS, this season was still 'gravy'. Because with the great young starters we have, I would've been happy with just a division title this year too, while looking forward to plenty of years of competing, success and more division titles to come--as long as DeGrom, Harvey, Syndergaad and Matz stay healthy. But now, for the first time in 15 years, we're one win away from the World Series and it just feels too good to be true. Now I just want the sweep and then bring on the Blue Jays or Royals.

Eric Young Should be On Mets NLCS Roster

To me, this is an easy decision. Eric Young represents speed, something the Mets seriously lack. And ask the 2004 Yankees how important speed can be in the playoffs. Then too Kirk Nieuwenhuis
seems to be a good guy and had some big knocks for us this season, but Juan Lagares is playing really well and in the playoffs, where runs can often be a premium, having Young on your roster could give Terry Collins a more valuable option in a tight spot against the Cubs. Bottom line, Sandy Alderson needs to do the right thing and replace Nieuwenhuis with Young.

Mets Have To Resign Daniel Murphy

Obviously, the logistics of saving money and having Dilson Herrera take over 2nd base next year make sense. But really, who says Herrera is gonna be a star (anyone remember Greg Jefferies???) regardless of how well he hit in Triple AAA. Then too is the horrible decision Frank Cashen and the Mets made in not resigning World Series MVP and true leader Ray Knight back in the offseason of '86. Lastly, if it wasn't for mostly Murphy and Jacob DeGrom, the Mets wouldn't even be still playing right now. I say trade Herrera and maybe Jon Niese for some quality middle relief and extend Murphy a qualifying offer--he's more proven to be worth it.

Joe Torre Needs To Suspend Chase Utley

Joe Torre's already called the horrible Utley slide a 'little late' (big huge DUH!!! for Mr. Torre on that one). And of course, Justin Upton put it best on Twitter: If that was a superstar shortstop we would have a Tulo Rule being enforced tomorrow. Exactly. Because Tejada's not an all-star shortstop like Troy Tulowitzki is. Or even Buster Posey, you know that MVP catcher for the SF Giants, who Major League Baseball changed the rule regarding collisions at home plate after a violent home plate smash-up broke his left leg and ended his season back in 2011. But to take it even further, I can't imagine Joe Torre saying Utley slid 'a little late' if he was managing the Yankees and Derek Jeter's leg got broken like that. Sure, it's understandable for Met fans to take the high road, be happy we got a split in L.A. and look forward to Harvey and Matz starting at home in games 3 and 4. But what Utley did was wrong, Mets fans have a right to be angry and Torre needs to do the right thing and suspend Utley for a slide that was not only late, but reckless, dangerous, dirty and flat-out wrong.

Clayton Kershaw Has A Lifetime 5.12 Postseason ERA, Zack Greinke 3.63

For all the praise and accolades given to Kershaw and Greinke over the past few days (and deservedly so, as the back of their baseball cards can attest to), neither one of them has done much when it comes to postseason play, especially 3-time Cy Young award winner Kershaw. who's pitched in 11 playoff games (51 innings) and has a 5.12 ERA to show for it. Greinke has slightly less playoff experience, yet has still be pretty average in 7 games, 44.2 innings overall and a 3.63 ERA. Neither one of them has pitched in a World Series and considering that they're both aces who've each posted very pedestrian numbers during their teams division and championship series, you can point to each of them as being a huge reason why. In other words, the postseason is NOT the regular season and Met fans may want to keep that in mind this weekend.

One Game Playoffs Are Unfair To Everybody

The Yankees season is done and that's a good thing (btw, anyone who bought into that "We Play For CC" mantra is just as stupid as the guy who said it). But to be fair, one-game, win-or-go-home playoffs just aren't right for teams who've just played a grueling 162-game regular season. I like the wild-card because it gives teams who had great seasons, but didn't win their division thanks to a superior team who happened to play in the same division, a chance to still compete for a championship. But something's gotta change to make and my suggestion is to convert the one-game playoff into a best-of-three series with the team with the better record getting game 1 at home and if necessary, game 3 too. May not be ideal logistically, but it's a hell of a lot better than what we have now.

Nationals Fire Matt Williams, Should Look At Willie Randolph

WaPo.com:

Two years ago, the Washington Nationals hired Matt Williams as manager, eschewing experience for youth and energy. Believed to be on the verge of a deep playoff run, the Nationals — led by General Manager Mike Rizzo — wanted Williams, who had never managed in the major leagues, to lead them to the World Series.

But after winning the National League East title a year ago, the Nationals endured a tumultuous and disappointing 2015 season, missing the postseason and winning 13 fewer games than the year before. So on Monday morning — after much evaluation and conversations with players and team owners — Rizzo told Williams he would not return in 2016. 

“Really a tough day here at Nationals Park,” Rizzo said Monday afternoon in a conference call with reporters. “Tough day for me personally, a tough day for our entire organization, but these are the first of the decisions we have to make as we meticulously evaluate why the 2015 season didn’t go the way we hoped. It wasn’t our best year. It wasn’t Matt’s best year. It wasn’t my best year. As an organization, it wasn’t our best year.”

Even to a Mets fan like me, some of the decisions Williams made during the season, especially against us, weren't just mind-boggling but let's face it, really beneficial to the Mets. And even worse than Williams's decision-making were his explanations for them. And now with Williams gone, there's already plenty of talk on who should replace him: Cal Ripken Jr. (?!?), Bud Black, Dusty Baker, Larry Bowa, etc. But what about Willie Randolph? A guy with a NL East Division title and a 302-253 Won-Loss record on his resume who expressed earlier this year that he still has an itch to manage again. I mean, no disrespect to Ripken, but an Orioles icon managing the crosstown Nats just makes no sense. And other than Baker, the other names are just retreads with no real history of winning. The Nats should take a chance on Randolph.

Thoughts and Prayers for Rusty Staub

USAToday.com:

The New York Mets say former star Rusty Staub is recovering in a hospital in Ireland after a heart attack on an overseas flight.

The Mets said Saturday the 71-year-old Staub is "resting comfortably."

The team said Staub was on a flight from Ireland to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York this week when he had a medical emergency. The team said the plane was diverted back to Ireland, where Staub was treated.

Staub played nine seasons for the Mets over two stints in the 1970s and 1980s. An outfielder, first baseman and pinch-hitter, he is a member of the Mets Hall of Fame and was a six-time All-Star in a 23-year career.

Staub was recently at Citi Field and has remained popular with Mets fans. His foundation raises money for the families of New York police officers and firefighters killed in the line of duty.

A 6-time All-Star and arguably the greatest pinch-hitter of all-time...hope he has a speedy recovery.