OK count me in on the Bring John Lackey To The Mets club. If 5yr/$80-85 mil gets him here to be it.

$20 bucks a month for NEWSDAY online? Who the hell is running the show over there, Jimmy Dolan? What a MA-ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON

Matt Pignataro of Seven Train to Shea says Josh Johnson could be on the block in So Florida. If the Mets could pry Johnson from Miami and sign Lackey to go with Johan, well I’d let Jeffey Skill Set ride on the Mets Bloggers float at the parade.

Another chapter of my childhood is closed with the word today of the death of Soupy Sales. For you youngins’ Sales had a kids afternoon show on Ch 5 here in NY that feature comedy, puppets and cartoons that was goofy enough to keep kids entertained and over the top enough for adults to laugh at as well. Now I got to go, I need to find my 45 of Do The Mouse!.

First off, Livan Hernandez was hotter than a jalapeño after the game as he wanted to finish the inning and I have to say I can’t blame him as Livan wants to live up to his reputation as work horse. He threw 127 pitches in his last start but also got an extra days rest for this one and at 103 pitches he’s just hitting his stride.

But J-Man decided to make the move but he brought in his best reliever not named Rodriguez to finish the inning in Bobby Parnell. Why not bring in Brian Stokes in that spot with his exploding fastball and save Parnell for the 8^th inning? I know JJ Putz had this incredible bullpen session with Old School Dan Werthen earlier in the day but lets face it Putz is an MRI patient ready to happen. His velocity is down a bit and his pitches are as flat as stale beer so maybe that bone spur he took a shot for is effecting him? How long will it be until Putz hears the words “Dr. Andrews will see you now”

Outstanding work by Landon Evanson at Bugs and Cranks with this interview of Dr. Ron Taylor the standout reliever on the 1969 World Champs. Of all the Q & A’s in interview this is made my day:

   Who was one player, or what was one aspect of that ‘69 Mets club that has never gotten just due for their contributions to that championship? Lost in the shuffle, so to speak.

Jerry Grote. He was an All-Star catcher, and he was the one that made that pitching staff great.

What was it that Grote did that made the pitching staff great? Was it calling games or handling the staff in pressure situations? What was it that Grote did that was so important to New York’s success?

We had confidence in the pitches he called, we very rarely shook Jerry off. And coming into a big game, in the World Series or in the playoffs, he would go out to the mound to meet you and support you.

Did you see Gary Sheffield running first to third last night? My legs hurt just watching him. The 40 year old Sheff is not built for everyday wear and tear.

How depressing a scene was PNC Ball Park last night? Rows and rows of empty seats as far as the eye can see. I know the Pirates have stunk for almost two decades but from what you hear the ballparks is a gem so between that and the nice weather you’d think they could get at least 25,000 fans to come out to see our Metsises.