They got this fence up REALLY fast in my opinion. Must have practiced.
All-Star Scavenger Hunt: Can You Get 30?
I created a little side game when I went to the All-Star Game in 2006, and it’s applicable at all of them. Whether you’re at FanFest or at the events at Citi Field, try to find a representation of all 30 Major League teams.
In 2006 I found all but the Colorado Rockies. I suspect with this being New York, there’s a fair shot finding all 30 should be easy, with bonus points for the Montreal Expos.
Keep in mind it can be a little tricky, because often times those fans will have bought an All-Star Jersey and you’ll have to try to remember what team Castro or Crain belong to. (Astros and White Sox respectively in that case)
So go forth and find all the baseball fans from across the country enjoying the festivities!
Enjoying the All-Star Game
I went to the All-Star Game, on a whim, in 2006. It really changed how I felt about the game in general. I had a blast, and I can’t wait to get back to another one, or for it to hopefully be at Citi Field in 2013. It was like being at a party devoted to baseball.
Here’s the article I wrote about it, in 2007. Mid-Summer Excitement
Vuvuzelas, Dickey and the Mets Win Again
I arrived at Citi Field with plenty of time to get my foam finger to vote for Wright (and Pagan), get some fries, and get to my seat. It was a hot and steamy night, but the Mets made it worthwhile as I improve to 8-2 on the season at Mets games.
All-Star Votes and David Wright Foam Finger
We should all be voting for the Mets to make the All-Star Game. I know some fans think they should just stay home and rest, but in most cases the players themselves don’t want to stay home and rest, would rather have the honor of an All-Star appearance, would be running around doing media appearances anyway, and if they really need the rest they’d bow out. So let’s vote our Mets into the game. More All-Star appearances by Mets just increases their presumed value to the national audience and their overall resume.
David Wright has a chance at catching Placido Polanco of the hated Phillies, and would certainly be a deserving starter. Additionally, the Mets have announced that the first 20,000 fans at Citi Field for Wednesday’s game against the Tigers will receive a Blue “Make Wright #1” Foam Finger.
Jose Reyes got a slow start to the season off the thyroid issue, but he’s back to playing ball like an All-Star, and there is no reason we shouldn’t vote for him to be there.
Rod Barajas has been a great addition to our team. Why not honor him with a vote?
Most importantly, Angel Pagan has been an amazing fill-in for Carlos Beltran and extremely valuable. Everyone reads stats differently, but there are categories where Angel Pagan excels. WAR, Wins Above Replacement, a stat that tries to calculate how much a player contributes to the success of a team over an easy to find replacement, lists Angel Pagan as the top centerfielder in the National League. Not just that, but he’s tied for 7th overall! (Wright is second). So voting for Pagan wouldn’t be a homer pick, he actually deserves it.
Since the ballot contains the AL portion too, my general philosophy is to vote for guys that have a chance to beat out Yankees. Justin Morneau is one that can, and should, beat out Mark Texiera. Andrus for SS and Pedroia for 2B are both long shots, but they’re the runners up at the moment.
We should all be voting for the Mets to make the All-Star Game. I know some fans think they should just stay home and rest, but in most cases the players themselves don’t want to stay home and rest, would rather have the honor of an All-Star appearance, would be running around doing media appearances anyway, and if they really need the rest they’d bow out. So let’s vote our Mets into the game. More All-Star appearances by Mets just increases their presumed value to the national audience and their overall resume.
This Team Is Good
Take a break and think about it for three days; The Mets are good. Mike Pelfrey is good.
They can now take three days really feeling this, knowing that destiny is in their own hands again, knowing they are better than the Phillies and just having to lose less games than them to win the division this year. They know that despite a collapse and a poor first half, they’re right where they need to be for the second half, having played as well as their competition despite struggling. They get that confidence back, and can take off in the second half without all the nagging questions and doubts.
It’s freaking unbelievable the way this team has been playing, it’s like they suddenly turned a switch and started working. I don’t know what happened, maybe it was just they finally stopped west coast trips, or maybe it’s the excitement of having a player like Pelfrey step up and the bench players, while not playing great, are playing well enough when they need to to cover the injuries and holes on this team at the moment.
Got some All-Star posts coming tomorrow.