Lots of interesting, funny, idiotic, and insightful things were said by the Mets—and about them—recently. Here are some of our favorites.
New slogan for the 2014 Mets.
"We don't get blown out by anybody." —Terry Collins on the most recent string of Mets losses [ESPN]
Happy Father’s Day.
"When Noah asks me one day, 'What happened? What was it like when I was born?' I could have answered, 'Well, Stephen Strasburg hung me a breaking ball that day, son, and I slammed it into the right-field corner.' But I think it's going to go so much further in that I'm the one who cut his umbilical cord. And long after they tell me that I'm not good enough to play professional baseball anymore, I'll be a father. And I'll be a husband. So that was a reason on the front end that I wanted to be there for my wife and for my son." —Daniel Murphy [ESPN]
Murph quickly ends another non-controversy.
"That was ad-libbed. That was nothing against Stephen at all. That one kind of came to me. I guess I'll tell him, 'a 1-for-4 day.'" —Daniel Murphy [ESPN]
I picture the plan is to have Alderson sing of Boston’s ‘Peace of Mind’ to a non-amused Matt Harvey.
"I think [Matt Harvey] would like to have in the back of his mind that he threw once or twice and that everything went fine so that he goes into spring training with that kind of peace of mind. I think there are other ways that we can provide that kind of peace of mind, whether it's in instructional league or some other setting. So that's yet to be determined." —Sandy Alderson [ESPN]
Too bad Carlos Torres doesn’t seem to be in Terry’s 2015 plans.
"I'd love [Harvey] to pitch this year, because I think it means we're in the hunt. But I don't find it drastically important, because the one thing we do not want to have is some type of major relapse because we came too fast and this guy sits out 2015. That ain't happening." —Terry Collins [ESPN]
He added, ‘I stand up for my teammates, even if that means throwing some of them under the bus.’
"It’s hard for me to watch David keep getting pushed back. I’m not happy about it. It’s not right how guys are being able to manipulate his entire at-bat by pitching him up and in. It’s tough for him. He’s had to adapt to a different style. And it’s frustrating to watch from the sidelines and not be able to do something about it. When it would happen once in a while last year, I’d be the first guy to throw one behind somebody’s ear. And I don’t forget. Once I’m back I’ll be excited about getting the chance to help the captain. It’s out there, everybody knows. If guys don’t know by now that something needs to be done, it’s going to continue to happen and that’s not acceptable."—Matt Harvey [New York Daily News]
Love professional athletes being like normal fans when it comes to other sports.
"I wore my [Michael] Bradley jersey today. I had the Jozy Altidore one the other day, and I've got a [Clint] Dempsey one, too." —Daniel Murphy [ESPN]
I’m picturing Torres with a box of jerseys next to him.
"Don't be afraid to represent." —Carlos Torres to every teammate who walked by him pregame [ESPN]
Interesting way to set up your top hitting prospect confidence building demotion.
"[Travis d’Arnaud] needs to be there a couple of weeks at least. I think 40-50 at-bats. I spent too many years in that [Pacific Coast] League. That's a very good hitting league. They were playing in Colorado Springs. There's four guys in this [interview] room who could get four hits in Colorado Springs, including [PR man Jay Horwitz]." —Terry Collins [ESPN]
The older I get, the more I realize that what’s actually being said to the ump during a manager/ump argument, is probably a lot lamer then I thought.
"Gary handled it just like he was supposed to. He said, 'The play stands, and I've got nothing else to say.' I said, 'Well, I've got something to say." —Terry Collins [ESPN]
Right now, closer to the ‘died’ end of the spectrum.
"Scott lived and died with the sinker, and I told him he's got to find that pitch." Terry Collins [ESPN]
I guess Dice-K isn’t a Bond fan…*crickets*…because he probably likes his Martinis stirred…because he doesn’t ‘shake’…is this mic on…
"I was kind of fearing that, but [Matsuzaka] and I were actually on the same page quite a bit the whole game. He didn’t shake that much. Whatever I put down, he just tried to execute. He did a great job doing it. A guy like that with that many pitches that doesn’t shake, it’s a lot easier to catch than you think." —Taylor Teagarden [ESPN]
This is the moment Carlos knew he wouldn’t be getting that day off he was promised.
"About two hours before the game I walk in here and I hear throwing up and I see who it is coming out." —Carlos Torres [ESPN]
Rough day at the office.
"I came to the ballpark this morning and had breakfast and then started to feel some pain in my stomach. I just vomited everything out. I knew I wasn’t physically fit to fulfill the starter’s role, but I wanted to do as much as I could. That ended up being only one inning, causing our bullpen to go out longer than they really wanted to." —Daisuke Matsuzaka [ESPN]
Love Reyes, but this is coming from a guy making $16 million this year then $22 million the three years after.
"I know [Wright’s] going through some tough times right now, but he’s a veteran guy. He’s going to do what he can do on the field. … After a little while, you just want to win. It’s not about the money, because we are already set. We’ve got a contract and it’s now about winning. We’re not getting any younger, you know? What is he, 31? I’m 31. I want to win. So I know about that." —Jose Reyes [Newsday]
Et tu, Thole?
"It was there from ’09 through ’12 and it was, ‘Wait till next year, wait till next year.’ I always tell the guys: The hardest thing in the baseball world, in my opinion, is to play in New York for the Mets. No. 1, you have a bunch of young kids coming up. Every day, there’s something. A story. Everything is a story there. So you can get caught up into that quickly. It’s just a tough place to play. I would say it’s been the hardest for David. He just signed that bangin’ deal. It’s just weird." —Josh Thole [Newsday]
AA Quote of the Week
"Nimmo has decided to play in Japan" —M I K E