Meet a Baseball Fan (Welcome to Anyone)

Keith Hernandez is a hoot, part of the best broadcast booth in baseball. Next to a couple of weekend sweeps, the best medicine for his historical examination of the Phillies’ prowess in the field is laughter.

I didn’t realize how “noisy” the data in advanced defensive stats like DRS, UZR and RAA are until I started looking more closely at them, which is why their creators advise against drawing conclusions from less than three seasons’ worth. 

A friend from the D.C. area has a young daughter who is being raised in Manhattan and who asked whether she should root for the Mets or the Yankees in addition to the Nats. The correct answer is the Mets. 

One reason is that the wild cards mitigate intradivision rivalries. They also diminish the magnitude of the next 10 days of the season. Realistic Phillies fans, for example, long ago took their eyes off a division title and set them on a wild card. The two Mets series that are coming up, and the Braves series they sandwich, are eagerly anticipated tests of what this Phillies team (winner of 13 of its last 15) really is, but the rest of the season doesn’t hang on them.

The Dodgers, man. Justin Verlander, despite a loss yesterday — man.

Will this thread include unjust and arbitrary bans? 

mrincredible said:

Will this thread include unjust and arbitrary bans?

Perish the thought. Phillies fans are renowned throughout the world for the generosity of their spirit. As a matter of fact, this thread comes with a guarantee that any post from T-of-T gets at least one Like.

Is that true about Phillies fans, or tongue in cheek?  I ask as a Phila noobie (our son lives there), only aware of the reputation of Eagles fans.

I'm loving watching the Mets. I'm watching much more baseball than I have in years. The Mets pitching, in particular is so much fun to watch. Beyond the marvelous starting pitchers, the closer Edwin Diaz has an absolutely unbelievable 59% strikeout rate. That means he strikes out 3 of every 5 batters he faces. Among others, I love watching Starling Marte play. 

I watched a game broadcast on ESPN a few weeks ago and they gave Mark Cahna in left field a microphone and chatted with him while he was in the outfield. Very strange but also very interesting. He's very bright and funny and even though I think it was a bad idea, it was fun to hear his thoughts, play-by-play.

And, yes, having Keith in the booth is fantastic. 

Of course, there's plenty of time for a late-season Mets collapse - I carry years of Mets frustration with me. But let's hope this is for real. 

mjc said:

Is that true about Phillies fans, or tongue in cheek?  I ask as a Phila noobie (our son lives there), only aware of the reputation of Eagles fans.

I have only been to one Phillies game. It was David Wright's return from the DL(it was called the DL back then) in 2015. Maybe it was because the half filled stadium was 75% filled with Mets fans, but it was a wonderful experience. In all seriousness, the Phillies fans we encountered were all pleasant and my kids had a great time playing with Phillis' fans' kids in the playground along the first base line. 

mjc said:

Is that true about Phillies fans, or tongue in cheek? I ask as a Phila noobie (our son lives there), only aware of the reputation of Eagles fans.

It was tongue in cheek, because Philly fans in all sports have a reputation for being a-holes. Like jfinnegan, though, I’ve had only pleasant experiences with Mets fans at Phillies games, and vice versa at Citi.

I’ve attended no more than half a dozen Eagles games in my life, one reason being the crowds. Even as a homer I felt uncomfortable. But I feel that way about home NFL crowds in general, with Green Bay, from anecdotal evidence, being at least one exception.

ETA: I hope your son enjoys living in Philly as much as my family (22 years) did. 

jfinnegan said:

Maybe it was because the half filled stadium was 75% filled with Mets fans, but it was a wonderful experience.

A much-belated epiphany occurred to my wife and me last night. We were remarking to each other how it took less time for us to drive to and from CBP than to reach Citi and return home to Maplewood on public transit and realized: Citizens Bank Park isn’t just a visitors’ stadium for Mets fans in North Jersey; in many cases it’s their primary option.

The_Soulful_Mr_T said:

Of course, there's plenty of time for a late-season Mets collapse - I carry years of Mets frustration with me. But let's hope this is for real.

The Mets are for real.

DaveSchmidt said:

A much-belated epiphany occurred to my wife and me last night. We were remarking to each other how it took less time for us to drive to and from CBP than to reach Citi and return home to Maplewood on public transit and realized: Citizens Bank Park isn’t just a visitors’ stadium for Mets fans in North Jersey; in many cases it’s their primary option.

This is why I'm considering going next Friday night. 90s night with Vanilla Ice is just an added bonus. 

going off on a tangent, but I really miss the Newark Bears. It was so convenient and pretty good baseball. Got to see a washed up Jose Canseco, and Robinson Cano's cousin Burt Reynolds. Yes, he had a cousin named Burt Reynolds playing for the Newark Bears.

DaveSchmidt said:

jfinnegan said:

Maybe it was because the half filled stadium was 75% filled with Mets fans, but it was a wonderful experience.

A much-belated epiphany occurred to my wife and me last night. We were remarking to each other how it took less time for us to drive to and from CBP than to reach Citi and return home to Maplewood on public transit and realized: Citizens Bank Park isn’t just a visitors’ stadium for Mets fans in North Jersey; in many cases it’s their primary option.

When we go to Citi, we park in the self park lot at the Skyview Mall on Roosevelt Ave. in Flushing and walk back to the stadium.  Much faster cheaper (maybe $10) and convenient.  I hate the traffic jams in and out of the stadium lots, especially at the exorbitant price.  

bub said:

DaveSchmidt said:

jfinnegan said:

Maybe it was because the half filled stadium was 75% filled with Mets fans, but it was a wonderful experience.

A much-belated epiphany occurred to my wife and me last night. We were remarking to each other how it took less time for us to drive to and from CBP than to reach Citi and return home to Maplewood on public transit and realized: Citizens Bank Park isn’t just a visitors’ stadium for Mets fans in North Jersey; in many cases it’s their primary option.

When we go to Citi, we park in the self park lot at the Skyview Mall on Roosevelt Ave. in Flushing and walk back to the stadium.  Much faster cheaper (maybe $10) and convenient.  I hate the traffic jams in and out of the stadium lots, especially at the exorbitant price.  

I haven't driven to Shea/Citi in many years. The #7 train isn't elegant nor very pleasant, but it means no driving, no parking and no traffic jams getting out at the end of the game. Unfortunately, there's no express 7 heading west and it takes a looong time, but so does driving home. Always lots of Met fans on the #7, many quite drunk heading westbound after the game. And I can drink a beer or two if I take the train, which I can't if I'm driving. 

The stadium is totally cash-free, which is to say you can't pay chas for anything. It's a bit odd at first, but you get used to it. 

The_Soulful_Mr_T said:

I haven't driven to Shea/Citi in many years. The 7 train isn't elegant nor very pleasant, but it means no driving, no parking and no traffic jams getting out at the end of the game. Unfortunately, there's no express 7 heading west and it takes a looong time, but so does driving home. And I can drink a beer or two if I take the train, which I can't if I'm driving. 

I use the same rationale, but I take the LIRR to Penn. 

(slight drift)

DaveSchmidt says: "ETA: I hope your son enjoys living in Philly as much as my family (22 years) did."

"Kid" loves Philly, and we may wind up there too, who knows?

jfinnegan said:

going off on a tangent, but I really miss the Newark Bears. It was so convenient and pretty good baseball. Got to see a washed up Jose Canseco, and Robinson Cano's cousin Burt Reynolds. Yes, he had a cousin named Burt Reynolds playing for the Newark Bears.

I was fortunate enough to see Rickey Henderson in Newark. It was a fun ballpark but never loved independent minor league ball. 

LOVING my 12-game-pack with the Somerset Patriots. $300 all-in with parking. Nice seats behind home plate. I ignore the fact (mostly) that they're a Yankees farm team. 35 minutes door-to-door from Maplewood. Straight shoot out 78. The Patriots staff are incredible and my ticket rep treats me like I spent 10 times what I did. Highly recommended. 

PS. I plan on organizing a trip next year to see the Patriots play the Binghamton Rumble Ponies! 

mjc said:

(slight drift)

DaveSchmidt says: "ETA: I hope your son enjoys living in Philly as much as my family (22 years) did."

"Kid" loves Philly, and we may wind up there too, who knows?

I don't think I've ever said this before, but I have a mansion there I can sell you if you ever move there.

Mansion probably not in our range, but thanks : )

Ha! It's all about location, and my place is not in a great one.  But I digress, I'd rather talk about Michael Jack Schmidt and the Sarge.  I grew up a Mets fan in a house full of Phillie fans.  

jfinnegan said:

going off on a tangent, but I really miss the Newark Bears. It was so convenient and pretty good baseball.

Soul_29 beat me to the Somerset punch. The drive is a breeze, and parking is free in the shopping center lot right across the street. The only downside, I'd say, is the major-league price of the food. (And take it from someone who used to say that some cheesesteaks were better than others but that he'd never had a bad one: Skip the cheesesteak.)

Schwarber is out for the opener with the Mets and day to day after that with a calf strain. If disaster strikes the Phillies this weekend, I now have a bonus excuse to add to Harper's absence to soothe me.

As my Dad is a Marlins die-hard and we talk baseball literally every day, I took in a few innings of Phils-Marlins this afternoon. All I could think about was how those light blue and maroon Phillies throwbacks are absolute fire. I was waiting for Bake McBride to emerge from the dugout. 

Mr. McBride was added to the Phillies’ Wall of Fame, along with NBA veteran Ron Reed, just this past Sunday. Bake didn’t attend, however, leaving the field clear for Pete Rose to charm the sports world.

DaveSchmidt said:

Soul_29 beat me to the Somerset punch. The drive is a breeze, and parking is free in the shopping center lot right across the street. The only downside, I'd say, is the major-league price of the food. (And take it from someone who used to say that some cheesesteaks were better than others but that he'd never had a bad one: Skip the cheesesteak.)

I love that ballpark. What hits me in the wallet is the few games they have to play. My kids spend a lot of money on those. I enjoyed them playing The Piano Man at 9 o'clock on a Saturday,

I loved Garry Maddox and still enjoy those light blue and maroon uniforms. My only issue is they remind me of Rose and how he used to bounce the ball on the turf. I was hoping Jeter would pass his total hits record. And I'm not a Yankee fan. 

I don't have much to say right now about the Phils since it's been about three months since they've played the Mets.  All I know is that they have won an awful lot of ballgames lately against mostly really bad teams.

But that's MLB 2022. There are at least 5 teams in each league that aren't much better than AAA. So when teams get hot, I look at who they've been playing. The Braves played almost entirely crappy teams during their hot streak, so are the Braves really that good, or are the Pirates, Nats and A's just that bad?  More than ever it takes 162 games when everyone has played their entire schedules to determine what teams really are the best in the league.

That said, the Phils are clearly one of the post-season contending teams, and they'll probably win close to 95 games. I perused their schedule and outside of the Mets and Braves, they don't play many good (or even decent) teams the rest of the way.

It really is a shame how few teams in MLB set out to legitimately contend for the postseason each year.

to my point above, the Astros have the best record against >.500 teams at 32-17.  The Mets are 3rd at 31-22.  The Braves are in the middle of the pack at #13 with a 22-27 record. The Phils are a bit better at 27-29 (#8).

The best teams agains the winning teams are exactly which ones you'd expect

1. Astros
2. Dodgers
3. Mets
4. Yanks

https://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/MLB-standings.shtml#all_expanded_standings_overall

ml1 said:

The Phils are a bit better at 27-29 (#8).

That's .482. If the Phillies make the playoffs and, with all their flaws, carry that winning percentage through the NLDS (winning the wild-card round 2-1, say, and then bowing out either 1-3 or 2-3), I'll be a satisfied fan.

That said, the Phils are clearly one of the post-season contending teams, and they'll probably win close to 95 games.

They're not going 33-18 the rest of the way. Or probably even 30-21. I expect 28-23 should do the trick. (It's a beneficent schedule from here on out, but they still have series with the Giants, Blue Jays and Astros in addition to two each with the Mets and Braves. Regarding which, I misspoke about the coming week. The Mets sandwich the Reds, not the Braves.)

DaveSchmidt said:

That's .482. If the Phillies make the playoffs and, with all their flaws, carry that winning percentage through the NLDS (winning the wild-card round 2-1, say, and then bowing out either 1-3 or 2-3), I'll be a satisfied fan.

the Phils have done well against winning teams not named Mets. 

Oh man, Tatis busted for PEDs two years into his $340 million contract.  80 game suspension.  The Padres are just screwed.