New York Mets

The 2010 season for the New York Mets didn't end the way anyone wanted, least of all the fans. We suffered through another season of disappointment, highlighted by season ending injuries to Jason Bay and Johan Santana. There were some bright spots in the Mets' season. The emergence of Ike Davis and Josh Thole showed the Mets' minor league system isn't as weak as previously thought. R.A. Dickey gave Mets fans something to cheer about down the stretch and David Wright had a great bounce-back season after a disappointing 2009.

There is something timeless about fathers and sons and knuckleballers. Flying to New York City to visit my parents, I pondered the question of how to help my about-to-turn 79 year old father celebrate his birthday later that week. A suitable gift is always easiest to find for one who has little or wants a lot.

By Cooper L. Train

This is the message sent to Mets fans earlier today from our good friend, Mets COO Jeff Wilpon:

“Dear Mets Fans:

As you may know, earlier today we completed the initial round of interviews with six talented candidates to become the new General Manager of the New York Mets.

After giving the Ike Davis for Prince Fielder trade some time to be debated, I'd like to propose another possible trade option for the 2011 New York Mets.

It would involve the Mets trading Carlos Beltran and some minor leaguers (maybe a pitcher and one of Duda or Evans) to the Kansas City Royals for Zack Greinke and David DeJesus.

This deal would involve many moving parts so here is the rationale I have to support it.

With the departure of Mets' GM Omar Minaya, the Wilpons are on the hunt for a replacement. Whoever they choose will have a large and difficult task ahead of him. They must deal with a team coming off another disappointing year in which they finished under .500, fourth in the division, a disillusioned fanbase tired of high ticket prices and an overall lack of leadership and direction.

Yesterday, SI.com’s Jon Heyman tweeted that Mets have been ‘asking around about Daniels.' Even though Jon Daniels is still under contract with the Rangers, the native New Yorker and childhood Mets fan still tops the list of the Mets need for a new GM, along with GM veteran Sandy Alderson.

He is able to opt out of his contract with the Rangers because of the change in ownership of the team, but the question still remains: will he do this?

In today’s issue of the New York Daily News, there is a sidebar that contains the names and faces of 15 current players on the baseball team from New York that isn’t the Yankees. This team has been my favorite team ever since I was a young child, when my dad, who apparently hated me and wanted to doom my baseball dreams for the rest of my life, raised me as a fan of this team.

ESPN.com reports today that the Mets have scheduled a second interview with former Oakland A's GM Sandy Alderson next week, and Alderson could be named the next general manager of the Mets when it's all said and done.

Since the arrival of Citi Field in New York, the classic folk song "Meet the Mets" is rarely rejoiced around the stadiums 41,000 plus seats. 

As much as each and every Met fan still enjoys referencing the song from time to time, "Meet the Mets" went out with Shea Stadium, and is no longer the team anthem that so many generations came to admire.