Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Baseball Also Ran Update
A couple of late season swoons doomed the New York Metropolitans and the Seattle Mariners this year. The Mets collapse was much more dramatic, folding cataclysmically in the final two weeks, blowing a seven game lead with seventeen to play. The Mariners fade was earlier and more prolonged.
The Mets had the N.L. East division lead almost the whole way, 153 straight days and assumed their ticket was punched. They coasted to 53 up and 55 down in their last 108. The Phils charged, and despite the late season slump, the Mets went into the last day of the season with a chance. They blew it.
The Mariners were not expected to contend. They played great in the first half, grabbed the wild card lead. Their manager quit, yet they continued to hang on into August. But a losing skein, capped off with two defeats in three games in the Bronx was their final hurrah. Their slim wild card lead disappeared. They were unable to challenge the Angels in the A.L. West.
Many questions hang over both franchises this off-season, to date, the Mariners have done a much better job answering them than the Mets. Before the season even ended the Mariners signed their marquee free agent, Ichiro. This week the Mariners dismissed their entire coaching staff to give, John McLaren, newly promoted, from interim manager to full skipper, an opportunity to pick his own staff.
The Mets, conversely, dismissed manager Willie Randolph's selection as hitting coach, Rick Down, mid-season. General Manager Omar Minaya and Randolph agreed on compromise candidate, Howard Johnson, as a replacement. Minaya’s favorite player coach, Julio Franco, was cut, and Ricky Henderson was added to coach first base. Coincidental or not, these coaching moves match the time frame of the Mets worst baseball, a surge of mental mistakes and lazy plays. The Mets were awful after Henderson and Johnson were brought on board. Time and again, they didn’t know how many outs there were, they made baserunning blunders, they loafed, they swung at the first pitch, made the third out at third, failed to take the extra base, played porous defense and were generally atrocious, worse they were lackadaisical about it; David Wright, Carlos Beltran and few other, older, professionals excepted.
The leader of the pack for lousy Mets play was Jose Reyes. The Clarion touted Reyes as our preseason MVP favorite. (If we had a ballot today, we’d vote for Jimmy Rollins.) Reyes started off hot, but was already slumping when the Mets changed coaches against their manager’s will. Reyes slumped further, hitting an anemic .205 in September. His head was somewhere else in the middle of a pennant race as he demonstrated by failing to hustle, getting caught stealing more frequently, playing poor defense and hitting way too many pop flies for a slap singles lead-off man.
Some commentators have suggested the loss of Julio Franco or double play partner Jose Valentin as mentors may have been crucial. Other have questioned Henderson’s influence, noting manager Willie Randolph objected to some of Henderson antics including card playing in the clubhouse before games. There were rumors that Reyes was burning the candle at both ends, hanging out late night on the town with newly acquired double play partner Luis Castillo.
If any of this last is the least bit true, the Mets need to intervene, before Reyes goes the way of their last round of young superstars, Daryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden, et al. Reyes is young. He has terrific baseball potential. From the Mets angle he is signed to a long term, under market value deal. There is no reason to trade him. There is every reason both from a baseball perspective and a much bigger picture perspective for the club and the front office to do everything they can to make sure the young man has his life in order.
Comments:
A few anecdotes and quotes to give an idea where The Rick is coming from and why he might not be the best influence on a young Reyes...
Rickey Henderson, they made him once, then they broke the mold, perhaps deliberately.
The Clarion got these quotes and stories in an email forward, they allegedly about Rickey come from Fantistic from back in 2006 and then appeared on the blog Sour Grapes. But in full disclosure, Fantistic didn't compile the quotes. Someone,
somewhere out on the blogosphere did.
Lou Blasi of Fantistics wrote: "The following stories come from a blog post I ran across last month. I wish I knew who collected and posted his top 25 Rickey stories so I could give him credit. As it is all I can do is thank him for the memories."
So anyway, here you go. The definitive Rickey Henderson.
1) In June 1999, when Henderson was playing with the Mets, he saw reporters running around the clubhouse before a game. He asked a teammate what was going on and he was told that Tom Robson, the team's hitting coach, had just been fired. Henderson said, "Who's he?"
2) Rickey... on referring to himself in the third person: "Listen, people are always saying, 'Rickey says Rickey.' But it's been blown way out of proportion. People might catch me, when they know I'm ticked off, saying, 'Rickey, what the heck are you doing, Rickey?' They say, 'Darn, Rickey, what are you saying Rickey for? Why don't you just say, 'I?' But I never did. I always said, 'Rickey,' and it became something for people to joke about."
3) In the early 1980s, the Oakland A's accounting department was freaking out. The books were off $1 million. After an investigation, it was determined Rickey was the reason why. The GM asked him about a $1 million bonus he had received and Rickey said instead of cashing it, he framed it and hung it on a wall at his house.
4) In 1996, Henderson's first season with San Diego, he boarded the team bus and was looking for a seat. Steve Finley said, "You have tenure, sit wherever you want." Henderson looked at Finley and said, "Ten years? Ricky's been playing at least 16, 17 years."
5) This one might be my second favorite. This wasn't too long ago, I think it was the year he ended up playing with the Red Sox. Anyway, he called San Diego GM Kevin Towers and left the following message: "This is Rickey calling on behalf of Rickey. Rickey wants to play baseball."
6) This one happened in Seattle. Rickey struck out and as the next batter was walking past him, he heard Henderson say, "Don't worry, Rickey, you're still the best."
7) Rickey once asked a teammate how long it would take him to drive to the Dominican Republic.
8) Moments after breaking Lou Brock's stolen base record, Henderson told the crowd - with Brock mere feet next to him - "Lou Brock was a great base stealer, but today, I am the greatest of all-time."
9) Henderson once fell asleep on an ice pack and got frostbite - which forced him to miss three games - in mid-August
.
10) A reporter asked Henderson if Ken Caminiti's estimate that 50 percent of Major League players were taking steroids was accurate. His response was, "Well, Rickey's not one of them, so that's 49 percent right there."
11) Henderson broke Ty Cobb's career record for runs scored with a home run. After taking his usual 45 seconds or so around the bases, Rickey slid into home plate.
12) On being Nolan Ryan's 5,000th career strikeout: "It gave me no chance. He (Ryan) just blew it by me. But it's an honor. I'll have
another paragraph in all the baseball books. I'm already in the books three or four times."
13) San Diego GM Kevin Towers was trying to contact Rickey at a nearby hotel. He knew Henderson always used fake names to avoid the press, fans, etc. He was trying to think like Rickey and after several attempts; he was able to get Henderson on the phone. Rickey had checked in under Richard Pryor.
14) I didn't believe this one at first. However, I emailed a few contacts within the Sox organization and they claim it actually happened. This is priceless, it really is. The morning after the Sox finished off their 2004 World Series sweep against St. Louis, Henderson called someone in the organization looking for tickets to Game 6 at Fenway Park.
15) The Mets were staying in a hotel less than a mile from Cinergy Field in Cincinnati. While some players walked, most took the team bus. A few minutes after they arrived - again it was less than a mile - the last players off the bus noticed a stretched limo that had just pulled up. Of course, Rickey emerged from the back seat.
16) A reporter once asked Rickey if he talked to himself, "Do I talk to myself? No, I just remind myself of what I'm trying to do. You know, I never answer myself so how can I be talking to myself?"
17) OK, I know everyone has been waiting for it. Alas, according to both parties involved, it's not true. I wish it were. Heck, both Rickey Henderson and John Olerud have said they wish it were true. But it just didn't happen.
The story went that a few weeks into Henderson's stint with the Mariners, he walked up to Olerud at the batting cage and asked him why he wore a batting helmet in the field. Olerud explained that he had an aneurysm at nine years old and he wore the helmet for protection. Legend goes that Henderson said, "Yeah, I used to play with a guy that had the same thing." Legend also goes that Olerud said, "That was me, Rickey." Henderson played with Olerud on the Blue Jays and the Mets.
18) Rickey was asked if he had the Garth Brooks album with Friends in Low Places and Henderson said, "Rickey doesn't have albums. Rickey has
CDs."
19) During a contract holdout with Oakland in the early 1990s, Henderson said, "If they want to pay me like Mike Gallego, I'll play like Gallego."
20) In the late 1980s, the Yankees sent Henderson a six-figure bonus check. After a few months passed, an internal audit revealed the check had not been cashed. Current Yankees GM Brian Cashman - then a low-level nobody with the organization - called Rickey and asked if there was a problem with the check. Henderson said, "I'm just waiting for the money market rates to go up."
21) This is my all-time favorite. Rickey was pulled over by a San Diego police officer for speeding. As the officer was approaching Rickey's car, the window went down a few inches and a folded $100 bill emerged. The officer let Rickey and his money head home without a ticket.
22) When he was on the Yankees in the mid-1980s, Henderson told teammates that his condo had such a great view that he could see, "The Entire State Building."
23) During one of his stays with Oakland, Henderson's locker was next to Billy Beane's. After making the team out of spring training, Beane was sent to the minors after a few months. Upon his return, about six weeks later, Henderson looked at Beane and said, "Hey, man, where have you been? Haven't seen you in awhile."
24) To this day and dating back 25 years, before every game he plays, Henderson stands completely naked in front of a full length locker room mirror and says, "Ricky's the best," for several minutes.
25) In the last week of his lone season with the Red Sox, Chairman Tom Werner asked Henderson what he would like for his 'going-away' gift. Henderson said he wasn't going anywhere, but he would like owner John Henry's Mercedes. Werner said it would be tough to get the same make and model in less than a week and Henderson said, "No, I want his car." Turns out the Sox got Henderson a Red Thunderbird and when he saw it on the field before the last game of the season, Rickey said, "Whose ugly car is on the field?"
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Rickey Henderson, they made him once, then they broke the mold, perhaps deliberately.
The Clarion got these quotes and stories in an email forward, they allegedly about Rickey come from Fantistic from back in 2006 and then appeared on the blog Sour Grapes. But in full disclosure, Fantistic didn't compile the quotes. Someone,
somewhere out on the blogosphere did.
Lou Blasi of Fantistics wrote: "The following stories come from a blog post I ran across last month. I wish I knew who collected and posted his top 25 Rickey stories so I could give him credit. As it is all I can do is thank him for the memories."
So anyway, here you go. The definitive Rickey Henderson.
1) In June 1999, when Henderson was playing with the Mets, he saw reporters running around the clubhouse before a game. He asked a teammate what was going on and he was told that Tom Robson, the team's hitting coach, had just been fired. Henderson said, "Who's he?"
2) Rickey... on referring to himself in the third person: "Listen, people are always saying, 'Rickey says Rickey.' But it's been blown way out of proportion. People might catch me, when they know I'm ticked off, saying, 'Rickey, what the heck are you doing, Rickey?' They say, 'Darn, Rickey, what are you saying Rickey for? Why don't you just say, 'I?' But I never did. I always said, 'Rickey,' and it became something for people to joke about."
3) In the early 1980s, the Oakland A's accounting department was freaking out. The books were off $1 million. After an investigation, it was determined Rickey was the reason why. The GM asked him about a $1 million bonus he had received and Rickey said instead of cashing it, he framed it and hung it on a wall at his house.
4) In 1996, Henderson's first season with San Diego, he boarded the team bus and was looking for a seat. Steve Finley said, "You have tenure, sit wherever you want." Henderson looked at Finley and said, "Ten years? Ricky's been playing at least 16, 17 years."
5) This one might be my second favorite. This wasn't too long ago, I think it was the year he ended up playing with the Red Sox. Anyway, he called San Diego GM Kevin Towers and left the following message: "This is Rickey calling on behalf of Rickey. Rickey wants to play baseball."
6) This one happened in Seattle. Rickey struck out and as the next batter was walking past him, he heard Henderson say, "Don't worry, Rickey, you're still the best."
7) Rickey once asked a teammate how long it would take him to drive to the Dominican Republic.
8) Moments after breaking Lou Brock's stolen base record, Henderson told the crowd - with Brock mere feet next to him - "Lou Brock was a great base stealer, but today, I am the greatest of all-time."
9) Henderson once fell asleep on an ice pack and got frostbite - which forced him to miss three games - in mid-August
.
10) A reporter asked Henderson if Ken Caminiti's estimate that 50 percent of Major League players were taking steroids was accurate. His response was, "Well, Rickey's not one of them, so that's 49 percent right there."
11) Henderson broke Ty Cobb's career record for runs scored with a home run. After taking his usual 45 seconds or so around the bases, Rickey slid into home plate.
12) On being Nolan Ryan's 5,000th career strikeout: "It gave me no chance. He (Ryan) just blew it by me. But it's an honor. I'll have
another paragraph in all the baseball books. I'm already in the books three or four times."
13) San Diego GM Kevin Towers was trying to contact Rickey at a nearby hotel. He knew Henderson always used fake names to avoid the press, fans, etc. He was trying to think like Rickey and after several attempts; he was able to get Henderson on the phone. Rickey had checked in under Richard Pryor.
14) I didn't believe this one at first. However, I emailed a few contacts within the Sox organization and they claim it actually happened. This is priceless, it really is. The morning after the Sox finished off their 2004 World Series sweep against St. Louis, Henderson called someone in the organization looking for tickets to Game 6 at Fenway Park.
15) The Mets were staying in a hotel less than a mile from Cinergy Field in Cincinnati. While some players walked, most took the team bus. A few minutes after they arrived - again it was less than a mile - the last players off the bus noticed a stretched limo that had just pulled up. Of course, Rickey emerged from the back seat.
16) A reporter once asked Rickey if he talked to himself, "Do I talk to myself? No, I just remind myself of what I'm trying to do. You know, I never answer myself so how can I be talking to myself?"
17) OK, I know everyone has been waiting for it. Alas, according to both parties involved, it's not true. I wish it were. Heck, both Rickey Henderson and John Olerud have said they wish it were true. But it just didn't happen.
The story went that a few weeks into Henderson's stint with the Mariners, he walked up to Olerud at the batting cage and asked him why he wore a batting helmet in the field. Olerud explained that he had an aneurysm at nine years old and he wore the helmet for protection. Legend goes that Henderson said, "Yeah, I used to play with a guy that had the same thing." Legend also goes that Olerud said, "That was me, Rickey." Henderson played with Olerud on the Blue Jays and the Mets.
18) Rickey was asked if he had the Garth Brooks album with Friends in Low Places and Henderson said, "Rickey doesn't have albums. Rickey has
CDs."
19) During a contract holdout with Oakland in the early 1990s, Henderson said, "If they want to pay me like Mike Gallego, I'll play like Gallego."
20) In the late 1980s, the Yankees sent Henderson a six-figure bonus check. After a few months passed, an internal audit revealed the check had not been cashed. Current Yankees GM Brian Cashman - then a low-level nobody with the organization - called Rickey and asked if there was a problem with the check. Henderson said, "I'm just waiting for the money market rates to go up."
21) This is my all-time favorite. Rickey was pulled over by a San Diego police officer for speeding. As the officer was approaching Rickey's car, the window went down a few inches and a folded $100 bill emerged. The officer let Rickey and his money head home without a ticket.
22) When he was on the Yankees in the mid-1980s, Henderson told teammates that his condo had such a great view that he could see, "The Entire State Building."
23) During one of his stays with Oakland, Henderson's locker was next to Billy Beane's. After making the team out of spring training, Beane was sent to the minors after a few months. Upon his return, about six weeks later, Henderson looked at Beane and said, "Hey, man, where have you been? Haven't seen you in awhile."
24) To this day and dating back 25 years, before every game he plays, Henderson stands completely naked in front of a full length locker room mirror and says, "Ricky's the best," for several minutes.
25) In the last week of his lone season with the Red Sox, Chairman Tom Werner asked Henderson what he would like for his 'going-away' gift. Henderson said he wasn't going anywhere, but he would like owner John Henry's Mercedes. Werner said it would be tough to get the same make and model in less than a week and Henderson said, "No, I want his car." Turns out the Sox got Henderson a Red Thunderbird and when he saw it on the field before the last game of the season, Rickey said, "Whose ugly car is on the field?"
