Did Gary Sheffield get the respect he deserved? (PHOTO BY ICON SMI)

Gary Sheffield made a positive impact on the 2009 New York Mets even though the season ended in an extremely disappointing way, but most likely Sheffield has played his last game as a New York Met.

When Sheffield was brought to the Mets in April, due mainly to the recruitment efforts of David Wright, there was a huge buzz about it because of Sheffield’s bad boy reputation from his days in Detroit and New York as a Yankee.

With the barrage of injuries to the star players, Sheffield stepped up and played the game as a true professional on and off the field, he was a model citizen and many fans did admit that they were wrong about the perceived negative impact he would have on the Mets.
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Guys like Nelson Figueroa shouldn't be a part of the Mets' long-term future. (PHOTO BY ICON SMI)

BY MICHAEL GANCI
EDITOR

I don’t know if you have noticed the past couple of weeks, but I am starting to get a bit fed up with the team. I understand how people can get a bit excited over the performance that we saw from Nelson Figueroa, but it is quite another thing to start discussing him as a part of the future. I saw an article this morning regarding whether it has finally “come together” for Nelson, and it would be a nice story considering.

But I think it’s not going to happen. The Mets need to be focused on guys who have hope. Investing their already limited resources in an aging 35-year old career minor leaguer would be a big mistake.
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Gary Sheffield thinks that he deserves a contract extension, but the Mets do not share the same sentiment. (PHOTO BY ICON SMI)

BY MICHAEL GANCI
EDITOR

When the Mets signed Gary Sheffield, I admit that I thought he was going to be cut shortly thereafter. This was a guy who was on the downside of his career and had proved nothing in terms of production in the recent past. Surely enough, he would be a pivotal part of the anemic lineup Jerry has had to send out there every day.

Sheffield has been one of the nicer stories in baseball this season. When he signed with the Mets, many worried that he would be a clubhouse cancer, but Sheffield has been nothing short of a class act. In fact, when he hit his 500th career homer, the former Yankee made a replica bat for all of his teammates. That is a class act.
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Francisco Ridriguez has certainly been a bit off lately. (PHOTO BY ICON SMI)

BY ANTHONY LAFAMAN
STACHE WRITER

Just need to get a couple of things off my chest on this off-day. I think the fans needed this off-day just as much as the players. Honestly it’s been brutal watching this team post All-Star break. Record aside they just don’t seem to be having fun out there.

Wright looks like his dog died via Con Ed manhole electrocution. Can’t blame him. I mean this season has been a real drag on him I assume. His numbers don’t bother me as much as it obviously bothers everyone else. No doubt in my mind if two of those injured stars are in the lineup David’s numbers would be more in-line with his career averages.

You have to remember there is no reason to pitch to him, there is no one behind him that strikes fear into the opposing pitcher.

On Bobby V, of course I’d like him to manage the Mets again. Who wouldn’t? But it won’t happen unless Omar is fired. Minaya and Manuel seem tied at the hip.
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Only The Mets Could Pass On Getting Something for a 40 Yr Old With A Bad Hammy

BY AARON YORKE
STACHE WRITER

Yesterday we talked about how the Mets put Gary Sheffield and Pedro Feliciano on waivers in an effort to salvage something from the last remaining useful parts of the 2009 season. Now it turns out that both players have been pulled back by the Mets, meaning they cannot be traded for the rest of the year.

The keeping of Feliciano makes sense: He has one year of arbitration left, is making less than $2 million, and will be a useful left handed reliever on what should be a contender in 2010. However, I don’t see what the Mets hope to gain by not trading Gary Sheffield.

Are they convinced that by letting him stay on this year he will be more likely to sign for 2010 (and for a reasonable price)? Even if Sheffield wanted to stay with the Mets and not with an AL contender that could guarantee him more at bats, I think it would be difficult to get your 2009 franchise home run leader to sign for a reasonable amount.

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The guys who have replaced the injured stars have let go, even though they promised not to.

BY MICHAEL GANCI
EDITOR

I still can’t forgive Rose. She told Jack Dawson that she would never let go, but then she did. There was plenty of room on the big door when she was waiting in the ocean to be rescued, but she was more concerned for her own well being.

Sounds like someone we know right? It is the story of the 2009 Mets.

They have hid behind their injuries and stopped playing. I have heard all of the arguments. How can a team win when they are missing three of their top offensive players? Simple. People need to step up. Not only has the hitting been pathetic, but the pitching has been spotty as well.

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The Mets are living a real life "Final Destination" and D Wright could be next

BY ANDREW CAVAGNARO
STACHE WRITER

It’s about that time where those few healthy bodies that fill the Mets’ roster run away and hide. Obviously, there is some sort of peculiar disease or curse that descends upon the Citi Field clubhouse.

After Jon Niese and Gary Sheffield bit the dust today, so did my belief that it was bad luck that has crippled the team. It’s clearly apparent that something more mysterious has darkened the skies in Flushing.

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Building a Team after this Moment has been very hard for the Mets (Courtesy of Boston.com)

BY JOSEPH STONE
STACHE WRITER

I have heard it said the the Mets mission statement over the last two years was to win Game 7 of the 2006 NLCS. That they wanted to eradicate the memory of the loss and somehow change the course of history. I don’t think that’s quite true. I think that was something we the interactive fans and the professional writers inferred upon the team, that that particular game was somehow still winnable.

The Mets, in a wise move, just stuck with the core of a team over the next three years that was thisclose to the World Series in 2006, and are just now feeling the fallout from a long barren run at post-season success. After the outcome of the 2006 season, obviously the Mets, as an organization, felt that essentially standing pat with a team that was so close to the promised land was the right choice, hence the Alou signing as a stopgap to shore up RBI production and keep the train rolling.

Management felt that the veteran presence would assist, and not even a beat would be missed on the march back to October. They were absolutely correct. The 2007 season was going along according to script until…no need for specifics in rehashing at this point, we are all well versed. The team that had steamrolled along all year hit the wall and blew up. It happens. Only once in a blue moon, but strange things can happen in baseball. Ask the Cubs, or the Phillies.

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The Fans Should Celebrate with Gary, The Mets Medical Staff didnt Screw Up! (Courtesy of the NY Daily News)

BY ANDREW CAVAGNARO
STACHE WRITER

I was listening to WFAN the other day and I found the hypocrisy of some Mets’ fans just plain amusing. Instead of applauding the Mets for taking caution with Gary Sheffield, people were bashing them for it.

The belief that Sheffield shouldn’t have gone on the disabled list, since he said he was ok, is almost comical. How many times have we heard a player claim that they were perfectly healthy, only to take the pilgrimage to the DL a few days later.

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Jerry is thinking of gretting creative with his lineup due to the Injuries. (Courtesy of the NY Post)

BY DANIEL SIEGEL
STACHE WRITER

We joke many times when a team is going badly that maybe us fans should go try out and step on the field. At the rate injuries are coming to the Mets, with Gary Sheffield and Fernando Nieve going down this past week, maybe some fans actually thought they had a realistic shot of stepping on the field with the injuries piling up. However, the Mets are no ordinary team as history has shown and these circumstances are no different.

Jerry Manuel recently told reporters that if he ran out of options, he would use Livan Hernandez as a pinch hitter OR at a corner infield spot. Livan Hernandez, the starting pitcher tonight, is going to be used at one of the hot corners? I get the whole pinch hitting idea, I mean look at Micah Owings who is used as a pinch hitter on more than a regular basis for Cincinnati, and Livan does have a good career batting average.

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