"I hate to always refer to the Yankees, but that’s my history," Ian O’Conner of the Journal News quotes Willie Randolph as saying. "When the opponent walks into your ballpark, like they did in the Bronx, you want them to say, ‘Man, these guys can play. We better get after it because they’re going to come after us.’

“We’re going to keep coming after you, because New Yorkers are gritty, hard-working people who like their teams that way. I’ve been in this town a long time. Whether you’re a Knick, a Yankee, a Jet, or a Met, I know what these people want and what they feel. I want my team to have that approach."

O’Conner, who is one of the more eloquent writers on the New York sports pages, contends that while this season may be bumpy, progress is at hand…

…i have to agree…with all the moans and groans coming from mets fans, i don’t think anyone is foolish enough to ignore that this team has finally shifted from hope to reality…we’re not there yet, of course, but we’re getting there…and the fans, the media, the team and the rest of the league seems to be catching on this…

…for more Mets blogging, go to MetsBlog.com…

“Obviously, things aren’t going the way I want them to,” Tom Glavine said of his recent performances, following yesterday’s loss to the Braves. “But I don’t think they’re going as bad as everybody is going to want to paint it out to be.”…

Here’s how he is being painted today…

Lee Jenkins writes, “It is as if he is still paying a penance for leaving Atlanta in the winter of 2002,” in a terrific column in the New York Times…

Don Burke, in his always appreciated witty way, leads in the Star-Ledger with, “The Atlanta Braves don’t merely have Tom Glavine’s number.  They know where he lives, the ages of each of his children, his preferred dental floss and his wife’s favorite scent of potpourri.”…

Mark Hale of the New York Post asks, “If the Yankees were Pedro Martinez’s daddies last year, what have the Braves become to Tom Glavine?”…

When asked if the Mets should be worried about Glavine, ESPN’s Peter Gammons answered, while appearing on Baseball Tonight, “A little worried…The question is: is he just going to be average, because they need more than average.”…

“The Braves have a nice approach to [Glavine,]" Willie Randolph told reporters following yesterday’s game. “They know what he does. But I don’t analyze it too much.  I don’t ever get concerned about a guy like this.”…

Interesting…but, I’m worried, and it seems most everyone else is, as well…

In his prime, Glavine’s ‘out-pitch’ was a sinker that clipped the outside corner.  Mets fans remember it well.  It was unhittable.  Since joining the Mets, Glavine has removed this pitch from his repertoire because it is no longer called a strike as a result of a newly enforced up-down strike zone.  His only recourse is to throw inside more often, in hopes of pushing a batter back to open up the outer part of the plate.  If he has his fastball working inside, he’ll be okay.  If he doesn’t, like yesterday, he’s in trouble. 

As a result, what was a pitcher who won 60 percent of his starts while in Atlanta, is now a pitcher who loses roughly 60 percent of his starts with the Mets…

In a rotation with two AAAA pitchers, a guy who wouldn’t know the strike zone if he fell on it and three starters on the disabled list, average performances are out of the question for Glavine.  But, that’s what he is, regardless of what surrounds him…

Make whatever adjustments are necessary, Tom, or it’s going to be a long, long year, be it against the Braves, or anyone else…

…for a lot more Mets blogging, check out MetsBlog.com…

Fans and Media…

Yesterday morning I talked quite extensively with NYC Councilman Tony Avella (D-Queens),  who last week conducted a hearing aimed towards investigating the dispute between Time Warner and Cablevision, which is currently keeping millions of Mets fans in New York City from watching their beloved team…

If you’re just coming on board and need details on the ‘dispute,’ reference my March interview with Steve Zipay from Newsday…

In short, the Councilman is ‘hopeful’ that a resolution will eventually be reached.  However, he says, it will not happen without his help, as well as the fans and media…

What can you do?…

Councilman Avella has scheduled a follow-up hearing at 9:30 AM on May 3 at City Hall.  He asks that all fans in the city of New York write letters of concern to his office for him to cite at the hearings.  He asks that you also send letters to Time Warner and Cablevision/MSG stating that their behavior is ”unacceptable.”  The more emails and letters the better.  For details, see below…

Additionally, Councilman Avella and I ask that the media get on board with this story.  The YES situation from a few years back was a national story.  In this case, from television to print to radio, all we have found is the occasional small blurb or paragraph tucked away in the media section of the local papers.  Meanwhile, as millions of fans are being blacked out, Lenny Dykstra’s alleged steroid use makes the front page…

“I actually chaired the City Council hearing on the YES Network and Cablevision, and I can tell you it was widely covered,” Councilman Avella recalls.  “I mean, every TV station was there.  It’s interesting to see the difference between the Mets and the Yankees, in terms of media coverage in the city of New York, and I think it’s unfortunate.  That needs to change.”… 

I agree… 

While we appreciate the efforts of Steve Zipay inNewsday and Richard Sandomir in the New York Times, whose column today is quite impressive, their work is unfortunatly not enough…

Again, Councilman Avella calls on the fans to reinvigorate the media.  He asks that fans call their local television stations and newspapers and demand that the May 3 hearings be more widely covered.  He says, simply ask the station’s producers or newspaper’s editors, “Are you going to cover the hearings, because I want my Mets games on cable TV.”…   

Our only ammunition, as Mets fans, Councilman Avella says, is to keep a constant pressure on Time Warner and Cablevision/MSG.  The more public pressure there is, the better the chances both parties opt to reach a settlement…

In other words, be relentless…

To send Councilman Avella a letter of support, stating your outrage with both Time Warner and Cablevision, you can do so by writing to one of the following address…

38-50 Bell Blvd. (Suite C), Bayside
Bayside, New York, 11361

or

250 Broadway, 17th Floor
New York, 10007

or send an email to his office at avella@council.nyc.ny.us.

Lastly, our friend Jay Kim has an online petition in circulation at OnlinePetition.com requesting the involvement of NYS Attorney General Eliot Spitzer.  If you’ve yet to sign it, I encourage you to do.  So far, roughly 2,000 people have signed on.  Councilman Avella is aware of the petition, and has asked me for a copy to be used at his hearings.  Furthermore, Kim has been hounding Spitzer’s office, who, according to Kim, is well aware of our efforts…

Good luck…

And keep up the pressure…

Your friend…

Matthew Cerrone
MetsBlog.com

To listen to my interview with Councilman Avella, or to download the attached mp3 file, go to MetsBlog.com…

Every time I attempt to pen a column about Mike Piazza’s inability to perform offensively at a consistent and productive level, he does just enough at
the plate, that day, to make me hit the delete key on my laptop, and put the
rant aside…

Having gone hitless in his previous eight at-bats, Piazza stepped to
the plate with the bases loaded yesterday against the Nationals.  Thinking to
myself, ‘man, i wish Cliff Floyd were up, instead,’ Piazza ripped a double
scoring all three men on base…

Once again, I hit delete on my keyboard, put the rant aside and smiled
for Mike…

As a fan of the Mets, I am conditioned to have doubt and to worry. 
I’ll worry as much when the team is in first place, as I’ll worry when they are
in last.  I can’t help it…

Lately, I worry more and more about Piazza…

I’m not blind.  I’ve been watching him.  And, lately, when he steps to
the plate, I feel less and less confident.  I don’t need to look and see what
his batting average is with runners in scoring position.  I don’t need to check
in on how often he grounds into a double play.  When he steps to bat, my gut
tells me all I need to know…

“Mike’s been in the game a long, long time,” Willie Randolph told
reporters over the weekend. “He’s gone up and down before.  He’ll be
fine.”…

I know this, Willie.  Again, I’ve been watching.  I know Piazza goes
into slumps.  I know that when he is flailing at the low-and-away slider, he’s
going to struggle for a while.  And, I know that when he’s hot, he’ll ‘carry a
team for months.’…

The thing is, I like Mike.  Therefore, I still want to feel comfortable
when he steps to the plate.  He’s like an old shoe, I guess.  I believe most
people in baseball like Mike too, including his manager, and are comfortable
with his presence…

He’s a nice guy.  He’s s a legend at his position.  He’s one of my
favorite all-time Mets.  But, he isn’t a clean-up hitter anymore – though I wish
he still were.  Like his manager, I feel Mike’s history at the plate warrants
more than batting him sixth.  I want to believe that given the chance to drive
in 100 runs, that he’ll do so…

Like my failure to say, ‘Piazza is done,’ Willie Randolph seems like
he, too, can’t accept reality and move Piazza down in the order…

It has to happen, though, Willie.  I think it may be time for you, and
for me, to see Piazza for not what he was, but for what he is: a .270 hitter
who’ll squander plenty of opportunities to drive in runs, who struggles with
balls on the outer half of the plate and who’ll strike out more than we ever
thought possible.  These aren’t traits of a clean-up hitter.  They’re traits of
an average hitter at the bottom of a lineup, which, as much as it pains me to
say is, is what Piazza has become…