Monday Morning — July, 21th, 2003
Today the Mets begin a quick two-game series against the Phillies in Philadelphia. Then it's up to Montreal for two games against the Expos before returning to Shea to face the Cincinnati Reds this weekend.
Trade Winds Are Blowing - Last Monday the Mets traded Jeromy Burnitz to the Dodgers in exchange for minor leaguers Victor Diaz, Joselo Diaz and Kole Strahorn. This was a good move for the Mets, since Burnitz will be a free agent at the end of the season -- at least this way the team received some prospects in return for the slugger. This is also a good move for Burnitz, who will be closer to his family and his San Diego home.
On Wednesday, the Mets traded beleaguered closer Armando Benitez to the Yankees for three right-handed pitchers - Jason Anderson, and minor leaguers Anderson Garcia and Ryan Bicondoa. Anderson, who has some major league experience, is now at Triple A Norfolk.
Roster Moves - On Thursday, Prentice Redman and Jorge Velandia were called up from Norfolk to take the roster spots that were vacated by the Burnitz and Benitez trades. To make room for Velandia on the 40 man roster, Tsuyoshi Shinjo was designated for assignment. The following day, Redman was returned to Norfolk, and Edwin Almonte was called up from Norfolk in his place. Then on Sunday, Velandia was optioned back to Norfolk when Al Leiter was activated from the disabled list.
Honoring Gary - Mets Hall of Famer Gary Carter, who will be inducted into Cooperstown's Hall of Fame on Sunday, will also be honored at Shea prior to the July 29th game against the Brewers.
In Rehab - Grant Roberts, who had been pitching with the Single A St. Lucie team, is continuing his rehab assignment with Triple A Norfolk.
In the Broadcast Booth - Mike Piazza joined Gary Cohen in the WFAN broadcast booth as a guest commentator in Atlanta last Friday.
Friend or Foe? - Lawrence Rocca alleges in the Star Ledger that, prior to the Armando Benitez trade, former manager Bobby Valentine advised Yankees general manager Brian Cashman that Benitez's biggest problem with the Mets was that John Franco acted in a backstabbing manner towards the man who replaced him as Mets closer. Neither Cashman nor Valentine would confirm or deny the conversation, and Franco denied the allegations.
Benitez, however, defends his former teammate, saying, "I know Johnny wouldn't do that. If Johnny has something to say to you, he'll come right to your face. What Johnny did for me was he taught me how to pitch."
Seo's Fashion File - Back on May 23, Atlanta Braves manager Bobby Cox insisted that Jae Weong Seo remove his bracelet, a Buddhist religious piece that was a gift from Seo's mother, during the game. The publicity surrounding this incident has been huge in Seo's native Korea, and it has spawned a cottage industry -- companies have begun manufacturing replica bracelets that are being sold on the streets of Korea.
Meanwhile, during last Friday's game in Atlanta, Seo sported a bone-colored bracelet, also a gift from his mother and with the same religious and good luck significance as the old one. The new bracelet matches the beige color of Seo's glove.
Before Saturday's game, Seo and Atlanta's Jung Keun Bong presented a jersey to Korean Consulate General Kim Sung-Yup.
Bell Lashes Out - In a television interview with Atlanta's WAGA station, Jay Bell criticized Braves fans for their treatment of Tom Glavine. "It's just extremely disappointing to be from the Southeast and come to Atlanta and see the quality of fans they have here in Atlanta," Bell said. "It's a shame to look up on the scoreboard and see 11 flags up there and to hear a great majority booing for a guy who won (242) games here. It's just disappointing from a fan of the game standpoint, a fan of Glavine as a competitor against him for so many years. To come in here and hear that is really, really disappointing." Bell declined to discuss the matter with New York reporters, saying that his statement was intended for the audience in Georgia.
Rant of the Week - OK, this isn't Mets related. But this is my column, and I can rant about whatever I like.
I didn't think it was possible for Major League Baseball to muck up the All-Star game more than it did last year, but once again Bud Selig proved that I should never underestimate his ability to foul up the Midsummer Classic. It is debatable that Roger Clemens, headhunter extraordinaire, merited a place on the American League team in his final season (sure, he won his 300th game and struck out his 4,000th batter, but his record this year was uneven and he wasn't even the top pitcher on his team. AL manager Mike Scioscia had many opportunities to name Clemens to the team, and passed on them all), but for Selig to orchestrate the bumping of reigning American League Cy Young winner, Barry Zito, at the last minute in order to make room for Clemens was a hoax. To add to the ridiculousness of the situation, Zito was informed of this switch by reporters during a Q&A session with his fellow Oakland All-Stars - not by his team and not by the Commissioner's office. To his credit, the 25-year-old Zito, while understandably confused at the news that he came to Chicago for nothing, handled the situation with class and grace. But the fact that one of baseball's rising stars put the game of baseball above his own ego doesn't excuse the shoddy way in which he was treated. Selig should be ashamed of himself for permitting this situation to have occurred.
In the aftermath of this debacle, the Major League Baseball Players Association has stated that it will not allow such a situation to occur in the future. Gene Orza, the union's Associate General Counsel, stated, "Next year, we have to make it clear that players who are elected by their peers to be in the All-Star game can't be removed unless they agree to be removed, and it's not up to clubs to make that determination on their own."
Condolences - To the family of Kathy Cannon, who worked in the Mets' minor league department. She was a College Point native and an employee of the Mets for over 20 years. Cannon died last Friday after a short illness.
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.
