Join us tonight at 9PM ET for PRO BASEBALL CENTRAL. Our guest will be Pulitzer Prize winner, Michael D’Antonio author of the book FOREVER BLUE: The True Story of Walter O’Malley, Baseball’s Most Controversial Owner, and the Dodgers of Brooklyn and Los Angeles (published by Riverhead Books/Penguin)

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Some quick hits for a snowy Saturday:

Growing up in a full blooded Irish household, we were always taught to never ever air your dirty laundry in public, so I guess that’s why I have such a hard time finding sympathy for Steve Phillips. Phillips yesterday spent a full two hours on Mike Francesa’ WFAN radio program and for ninety of those minutes talked about his sex addiction.  If it weren’t for the USA Olympic hockey game being one sided and the Moltrin kicking in to soothe my back from shoveling snow I’d have shut the show off.

Phillips mentioned the pain and suffering he inflicted on his wife and children and all I kept thinking was how does it help alleviate that pain by you coming on this radio show talking about your addiction to sex?  I’ve never hid the fact that I never like Steve Phillips as he always came off to me as huckster and  a phony and I guess I was right. I just think that this was Philips way of getting himself back into the game, maybe not as a scout or front office guy but back into broadcasting. Those therapy session tend to get expensive I guess. Maybe what Phillips needs is some “Irish therapy” a good ass kicking and stiff drink.

The first thing that comes to my mind of course is how can Alex Cora be a better signing than Felipe Lopez? Both players will make the same about of cash this season. Talent wise Lopez is the superior player and he’s five years younger than Cora. Mets fans have a right this morning to question why the Mets didn’t sign Lopez. The Mets won’t come right out and say it but Lopez for all his talent, has played on six different teams in nine years. A couple of weeks ago he was interviewed on MLB Hot Stove and was questioned if it was his attitude or some other issues were scaring off teams to sign him and Lopez got very defensive and got his back up a bit so maybe as the outside of the package looks appealing, the contents may be over priced when it comes to Felipe Lopez.

Mack Ade has some great links on his site this morning including David Wright brining a PB & J sandwich with him to a Mets media event at $iti Field this winter. You hear me making fun of Wright for that as I bring the same sandwich with me to work at least twice a week. Also Buster Onley states that if Ike Davis could make a run on the starting first base job this spring. Again, Daniel Murphy would have to flop big time and Davis would have to hit about 15 HR’s this spring for this to happen. No need to rush Ike. If it comes down to Frank Catalanotto or Mike Jacobs for the 25 spot on the roster, Catalanotto will get the nod.

I feel so bad for my favorite Van-Cougar Curler, Cheryl Bernard settling for the Silver medal for Canada after the loss to Sweden last night. If there is anything I can do Cheryl, take you to lunch or a Caribbean cruise, please drop me a line.

Geez you look familiar, you kinda look like Arturo Lopez?

Every story you read about Fernando Martinez focuses on his potential. Since he signed with the Mets at the age of 16, we heard about the great potential that this young man has. He has the potential to hit for power, run like the wind, hit for average, tons and tons of potential. Well you know what potential means? It means you haven’t done a damn thing yet. You could do some great things or you may be another in a long  line of Mets prospects on the junk heap.

Ina story on MLB.com, Jesse Sanchez talks to F-Mart about his play so far the winter, where he is currently playing for the Dominican Republic rep Escogido where after  a slow start, Martinez has played well.  I thought that this quote though was a little too cocky for a guy who still has a lot to prove:

“I know I’m a big league player, and I can perform at a high level,” Martinez said. “It’s in my hands, so I have to keep working hard and maybe earn a spot. Maybe I make it to the big leagues with the Mets or maybe another team, but I know I can do it. I just have to keep working and waiting for my opportunity.”

I want to like this kid and I would love to see him finally live up to the hype and come back to the Mets and make a big contribution to the team’s future. But the bottom line is, this season is make or break for him, a young man of 20 years old just cannot keep breaking down the way he does. At first I thought that he was so young and the strain on his body of playing professional baseball and the natural progression of his physical growth were colliding and causing his injuries but I am starting to think it may be more a lack of dedication to the craft that has caused him not to be a hard worker or take the time to train and be physically fit.

Martinez claims he is a big leaguer and he knows he needs to work hard to get back to major leagues but as we’ve seen with the four years he has been in the organization, talk is cheap.

To join in the conversation you can reach us at (646) 595-4462.

If you can’t join us live, you can listen to the podcast at our PRO BASEBALL CENTRAL site or right here at Kranepool Society or on iTunes.

Join Joe McDonald and Steve Keane  tonight at 9PM ET on Blog Talk Radio for another edition of PRO BASEBALL CENTRAL as we look at what has transpired at the MLB Winter Meetings in Indianapolis.

To join in the conversation you can reach us at (646) 595-4462.

If you can’t join us live, you can listen to the podcast at our PRO BASEBALL CENTRAL site or right here at Kranepool Society or on iTunes.

I don’t know what’s more bizarre the way the Mets played the last three games with the same enthusiasm I had when I was force to go with my family to visit some old spinster aunt as a kid, or the fact that Jerry Manuel acts like he’s Walter Alston and is manager here for life?

How can J-Man be so confident that he will be back as the skipper of the Flushing Titanic? As much as I’m flamed here as a Daniel Murphy fanboy, there is no way in the world I’d have played him last night after his two miscues last night. The first one to me was inexcusable, as Murph looked like a fat gut afraid to spilt his pants by not going after the ground ball down the first base line? Never ass-u-me Danny, just react. Don’t wait for the umpire to call fair or foul as they say in football “play through the whistle”. The second error was just an all around fuck up but then again and we all know the Mets are the world leaders in all around fuck ups.

By the way Frankie Rodriguez was on the money killing Murphy for the error and calling him out. He deserved it.

Back to J-Man what exactly has he done this year to be so confident he’ll be back as manager. As much as I still watch the Mets it is getting tougher and tougher as they play out the string. Com’on guys can you fake it a few games like you give a shit?

MLB TRADE RUMORS has its 2010 outlook for the Mets up. I haven’t had the time to go over the roster who I feel should go or stay yet but one thing the Mets have to do is buy out JJ Putz at a $1M there is no way you’re paying him $8mil to set up Frankie Rodriguez. I’d be fine with John Maine moving to the 8^th inning spot next year and going after a solid veteran #3 starter with the money saved on Putz.

I can’t get a whole head of steam worked up for this off season as we don’t know how much the Brokester Skill Sets will spend. I’m just waiting for October 5^th when they announce the hike in ticket prices for next year. What? The Skill Sets can’t be that stupid to even think of raising ticket prices. I guess you’re new around here.

WEEK 2 NFL PICKS

(Home team in CAPS)

Patriots -31/2 over JETS

I like my coaches to coach and my players to play and leave the cheering and booing to professional THE FANS. Rex Ryan talks a lot of shit and his still green and needs to back it up just like the rest of the Jets. Even though I’m a Giants fan I hold no hatred for the Jets but when you start bad mouthing Bill Belichick and Tom Brady you look like a jerk. BB and TB will run up the score in this one.

FALCONS -6 ½ over Panthers

The Carolina Cats QB Jack Delhomme is on very shaky ground and Falcons QB Matt Ryan is turning into a first class signal caller. The Panthers have turnover issues and the Dirty Birds thrive on fumbles and INT’s Add in the game is in the DOME the Birds of Hot’lanta will soar.

Cardinals +3 over JAGUARS

Is this a trap? I’ll find out Sunday 

Trying hard to put up a post today as I replay a tough loss over and over in my mind, no not the All Star Game, I gave up on that at 10PM when RESCUE ME came on, no I’m talking about my Babe Ruth team losing 8-0 to the top seed last night.

Don’t let the score fool you it was a closer game than that. We had one bad inning (the 3^rd) letting in 4 runs on a couple of errors and a some solid base hits. But the biggest obstacle was the pitcher we were facing a 13 year old with a big time yellow hammer that buckled my guys knees. We could only muster two hits on the night and three base runners total (my son accounting for two of the base runners with a walk, reaching first on a strike out/passed ball and two stolen bases) and now we face an elimination game on Sunday. Not much to say to the kids but “Hang with ‘em.

After the game we went home to watch the All Star Game and the first thing my son told me was “Dad, let’s get all the when I was a kid stuff out early so we can just watch the game” I guess like how the All Star Game was played during the day and how the two leagues played the game like it was a World Series game and how the NL had all the stars and always won and because of that the AL couldn’t draw fans so they sullied the sport with the DH, and how I miss Curt Gowdy calling the big games and that’s when I get the hand and “that’s enough old timer” and I quiet down.

I was listening to Joe (Bada Bing Bada Boom) Beningno and Evan Roberts yesterday and I agree with Joe that there is so much baseball available for us to watch that the All Star Game is no big deal, as it used to be a chance for fans to see players they never get to see much but with the Extra Innings package and ESPN and MLB Network and Mets and Highlander games on every night there isn’t a team or a player I haven’t seen add in that there is no more rivalry between the NL and AL with so much player movement and the fact that both leagues are not run as separate entities (remember when there were League Presidents ?) That has made the All Star Game hum drum.

Admit it you were hoping that President Obama would have brought Artie Lang with him to the game to hang with Doofus Joe Buck. Now that would have been riveting TV.

With a win under their belt in thrilling fashion no less, the talk this morning is not about Big Pelf’ outstanding performance pounding the strike zone down low like a blacksmith, but about a former Met who is still on the Skill Set dole as a roving instructor, SNY commentator and the now the spokesman for management John Franco.

Those statements that Franco made on Sirius/XM  MLB Home Plate channel with Jeff Joyce and Kevin Kennedy was part Franco’ observation and mostly it was John doing his duty for the Skill Sets. The only thing missing was at the end of the interview hearing Jeffey Skill Set saying “I’m Jeff Wilpon and I approve this message”

See Jeffey wants no part of taking on his team, instead of himself waiting for the team to come home and going into the clubhouse and letting them know that he does not hold Omar Minaya, Jerry Manuel or any of the front office people responsible for this slide and is putting the bulls eye right on the players back. And I (I hope you all are sitting down) applaud him for that. I just wish he would have the balls to do it himself and not send Clemenza Franco to do his dirty work. Franco in fact went out of his way to praise Jerry Manuel and his coaches for giving the players the proper instruction during spring training and working extremely hard in the ‘fundies” and making it out that it’s the players who are at fault. It’s about time that the players got a good swift kick in the ass. The message from management is loud and clear to the team “Don’t worry about what management is doing, just shut the fuck up and play”

Nothing that Franco said was out of line in fact in fact isn’t in a convenient  winky-dink that as Franco was telling Joyce and Kennedy that he feels the Mets play more like individuals than as a team and that some players are more “me” than “we” guys that J-Man had all his ladies take the bus”  Franco called out the team as looking at padding their stats than worrying about moving runners over and stealing a base when it’s to the teams advantage and not the individuals gain, and how many times have we wanted D-Wright to take the reins of the clubhouse ?

I know this for a fact Franco will have no problem walking into that clubhouse when the team arrives back in Queens on Tuesday. Ask any Met who played with Franco and they will tell you he was the most feared guy in that clubhouse, and I guarantee that if D-Wright wants a sit down with Franco, Johnny will be more than happy to accommodate him.  

What this message does as well is let the players, media and fans know that Jerry Manuel and Omar Minaya are not getting fired today, tomorrow or next year but if I were a Mets player I’d be careful buying green bananas.

Guess what? It’s raining again. That’s all it does around here lately but it doesn’t look like it will be an all day rain just thunderstorms this morning and afternoon but foggy and overall shitty tonight as Johan Santana takes his perfect 3-0 mark on the line against the Phucking Phillies at $iti Field.

Santana will go up against J.A. Happ who is helping the Phillies forget Brett Myers by stepping up and going 3-0 in his lat 7 outings and in his 4 no decisions Happ was very effective.

It wil be interesting to see the lineup J-Man puts out there tonight. You would hope he goes with his best 8 guys:

Castillo 2b

Cora SS

Beltran CF

Wright 3B

Sheffield LF

Church RF

Murphy 1B

Santos C

Santana P

What a contest they have over at Oh Murph. As much as the thought of “getting with” Julia Alexandria would be on my bucket list, the price is much too steep.

Today is the MLB Draft and I really should have looked at the landscape of players out there to be taken. I’ll have to take out my Baseball America at lunch time to brush up on what amateurs that are out there. The Mets first pick is a number 72 and unlike other sports, the first round picks in baseball are usually overrated. In fact I feel sorry for the Washington Nationals as they have no choice but to pick Stephen Strasburg because of all the hype and then they have to go through holy hell with Scott Boras to get him signed and hope he lives up to his advanced billing and pray to God he’s not another first round flop.

Join us tonight for Pro Baseball Central as we follow the action of Mets-Phillies and talk about everything going on in MLB, with Manny and his little malfunctioning Manny and the return of Alex Rodriguez (to bad he can’t pitch as the Highlander bullpen is atrocious) so tune in and call in at (646) 595-4462. Listen live here at Blogtalk Radio or later on the podcast at our PBC site.