Monday Morning — April 7th, 2003
The season is underway, and despite Opening Day's debacle the Mets look like they are ready for these games that count. After today's off day the Mets hit the road for the first time this year. Tomorrow they will embark on a there game series against the Marlins in Florida, followed by a four game set against Los Expos in Puerto Rico. Since the Mets were the Expos first opponent in Montreal back in 1969, it's only fitting that they be their first opponent for this unique and historic "home" series.
Suspension Served - Mike Piazza's suspension for his March 12 altercation with Guillermo Mota was reduced from five games to four on appeal. After missing the last two games of the Cubs series and the first two games of the Expos series, Piazza was back in the lineup for yesterday's game.
Get Well Wishes - It seems that every week, a new Mets coach develops a serious ailment. Last week was Denny Walling's turn -- the hitting coach underwent angioplasty at the NYU Medical Center. Chris Chambliss, who was the hitting coach last year and who is currently the Mets minor league hitting coordinator, is filling in for Walling during his absence. Monday Morning Mets wishes Walling a speedy recovery.
They're Baaaaaaack!!!! The return of David Cone to the Mets also brought the return of his fans, the Coneheads. Rain and cold temperatures couldn't deter this loyal crew as they showed up at Shea to cheer on their hero, who rewarded them by pitching five scoreless innings in the Mets 4-0 defeat of the Expos.
Missing Murph - Last week marked the first time since the Mets' inception in 1962 that the Opening Day game wasn't called by Bob Murphy. Because of the harsh New York weather, 78-year-old Murphy reluctantly opted to remain in his Florida home for a little while longer. Murphy is scheduled to broadcast his first game of the season on April 19, when the Marlins meet the Mets at Shea.
Kudos for Kiner - Ralph Kiner, who has also announced Mets games since their 1962 inception, is being honored today in Pittsburgh. Kiner, who played for the Pirates from 1946 through 1953, will be in Pittsburgh to have a bronze statue in his honor unveiled at PNC Park before today's home opener, and he will throw out the ceremonial first pitch.
The "Leiter Side" - Listen for Al Leiter when he appears on The Michael Kay Show on ESPN Radio (1050 am in the New York market). On the days he is on the show, which will never be on days when he is scheduled to pitch, Leiter will be on the air between 10:00 AM and 1:00 PM.
In the Community - Mo Vaughn, in conjunction with The Jackie Robinson Foundation, made a $125,000 donation to endow a Jackie Robinson scholarship. The Jackie Robinson/Mo Vaughn scholarship will be given out ever four years in perpetuity to a talented minority high school student with financial need from Southwestern Connecticut.
New on the Net - For daily updates on the Mets, check out my New York Mets Inside Pitch colleague Bryan Hoch's new weblog at nj.com!
Special Feature: Baseball as America
Special Feature: Talkin' Baseball with Terry Cashman
Unless otherwise stated, these stories have been extracted from reports on www.nydailynews.com, www.nypost.com, www.nytimes.com, www.njo.com, www.newsday.com, www.bergenrecord.com, AP , and www.mets.com reports.
