Here is a "Behind the Squawkers" look at this blog: Way back in early 2006, when Squawker Jon and I worked together at the web department of the New York Daily News, we used to trash talk each other on our respective teams. That winter, it looked like both the Yankees and Mets would be playoff-worthy for the first time since the Subway Series year of 2000. So Squawker Jon suggested we do this thing called a "blog" together, our boss Kevin gave us permission, and we started writing Subway Squawkers (Jon came up with the name) on March 1, 2006.
In our first season, we didn't even have blog software! Instead, it was just one long article entry each month on the Daily News website. And Jon was right -- both the Yankees and Mets would make the playoffs that year, with the Yankees losing to the Detroit Tigers in the ALDS (and Joe Torre batting A-Rod eighth!) and the Mets going further, getting all the way to Game 7 of the NLCS. Then Carlos Beltran took that called third strike, and the Mets went on a downward spiral, choking in 2007 and 2008 without making the playoffs, and not even having a winning record since 2008.
The Mets' losing ways changed the state of this blog a lot, taking away much of the trash talk. It was one thing for me to mock the Mets when they were actually a decent team. But mocking Jon and his team when the Mets were in last place didn't have the same cachet. I just looked kinda mean doing so. That meant I had to pull my punches a lot over the last few years.
- I see that Jon brought up 1986 in the very first sentence of this morning's Squawk. If we did a drinking game based on how often Mets fans (and their broadcasters) bring up 1986 during a typical game, this photo is what we would all look like by the second inning.
- If you go to the Mets' franchise page on Baseball-Reference.com, you will see pictures of the top 20 Mets, according to their WAR numbers. No. 3 is Dwight Gooden, who pitched a no-hitter for my Yankees. No. 5 is Darryl Strawberry, who has three rings as a Yankee. No. 6 is Carlos Beltran, who has (oh, wait, there is no Beltran highlight as a Yankee! Never mind!) Anyhow, No. 11 and No. 16 are Al Leiter and David Cone. Cone has four rings as a Yankee, none as a Met. And both Leiter and Cone are Yankee broadcasters. Tell me, Jon, how many franchises have five of their top 20 players with such connections to their biggest rivals?
- Then there is the great Chris Young. When he was a Met, your fans all hated him. Now that he is a Yankee, he is a star! Must be that being in our team's pinstripes worked some magic on him!
So Squawker Jon and Mets fans, watch out! Now that your team is good again, I am free to bring the pain!
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