DJ Joey B Presents: Frankie Knuckles' Greatest Hits

What's up, homies? You may know me as Joey Beartran, the roving reporter and culinary expert for Studious Metsimus. But ever since I met Howie Rose during a Mets game in Texas a few weeks ago, I've begun to dream about a career in radio.

The Mets aren't currently hiring, so I decided to go into the radio business for myself as DJ Joey B. And as a bonus to you, the Studious Metsimus reader, I've decided to give you a firsthand look at my first Top Ten countdown. Today's countdown will focus on a former Met who was just traded to Milwaukee. That's right, Mets fans. I'm talking about Frankie Knuckles.

Now, in case you forgot, Frankie Knuckles is not the name of the newest character on MTV's "Jersey Shore". Rather, it is the pseudonym for Francisco Rodriguez, a nickname given to him by my colleague after he took part in last year's "Beat Your Dad-In-Law At Work" Day.

Now that Frankie Knuckles has been traded to the Milwaukee Brewers for two players to be named later, (I'm surprised they don't have names yet. Their parents are either very slow or expected to have a girl.) I'd like to present to you Frankie Knuckles' Greatest Hits (pun very much intended). These are the top ten infamous moments in Francisco Rodriguez's short Mets career.


10. Justin Maxwell Goes Grand (9/30/09)

With the season winding down and the Mets already having lost over 90 games for the first time since 2004, Frankie Knuckles was called upon to protect a two-run lead in the ninth inning against the Washington Nationals. In what was a microcosm of the Mets' lost season, K-Rod loaded up the bases with two outs, then forced in a run by walking Adam Dunn. He then found the plate and Justin Maxwell found his home run swing. Maxwell's walk-off grand slam gave the Mets their final loss of the season.


9. Second Verse, Same As The First (7/3/10)

Less than a year after his Maxwell Meltdown, it was deja vu all over again for Frankie Knuckles and the Mets. In a game started by Nationals' phenom Stephen Strasburg, it was the Mets who held a 5-3 lead going to the bottom of the ninth inning. Three walks and three hits later (including a two-run double by Adam Dunn that might have been called a walk-off grand slam had it not been for instant replay), the Nationals had the victory and K-Rod had ruined my first Mets game in Washington (yes, I was there...you can read about my experience at the game here.)


8. When A Win Feels Like A Loss (7/18/10)

In yet another game I attended (this time at AT&T Park in San Francisco), the Mets held a two-run lead over the Giants going to the bottom of the ninth inning. Of course, your fav'rit Mr. Knuckles coughed up the lead, giving up two runs in the inning. However, it should have been three runs and a loss for K-Rod and the Mets, but a blown call by home plate umpire Phil Cuzzi on what should have been Travis Ishikawa's game-winning run, gave the Mets a second chance. The Mets took advantage of Cuzzi's call, scoring a run in the tenth inning, before K-Rod got out of a self-induced jam in the bottom of the inning. We gave a courtesy cheer after K-Rod retired the final batter with the tying and winning runs on base, but it sure felt like a loss.


7. The Game Just Kept Going...And Going...And Going (4/17/10)

In one of the craziest games in recent memory, the Mets and Cardinals played to a scoreless tie through 18 innings at Busch Stadium. St. Louis had already used their entire bullpen and utility infielder Felipe Lopez (who pitched a scoreless 18th). Then they relieved their position player with another position player, Joe Mather, who promptly gave up the first run of the game in the top of the 19th inning. Enter Frankie Knuckles. He allowed St. Louis to tie the game in the bottom of the 19th. Fortunately, Mather was left in the game to pitch the 20th inning and the Mets re-took the lead. This time, K-Rod was not allowed to finish what he started, and Mike Pelfrey was brought in to record his first career save.


6. S.D.S.D. (San Diego Slam Dancing) (8/7/09)

Everth Cabrera had hit a whopping one home run in his major league career. Then he came up to bat against Frankie Knuckles with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth inning after the Padres had already tied the game. Nine pitches later, Cabrera had doubled his career home run total. Another day, another walk-off grand slam.


5. What The 'Eck Is Going On Here? (6/2/10)

Little David Eckstein, all three feet, six inches of him (give or take a few inches) was the Padres' last chance when he batted against Frankie Knuckles with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning in a game led by the Mets, 1-0. K-Rod had just struck out the previous two batters (Matt Stairs, Jerry Hairston) with the tying run in scoring position. First pitch to Eckstein, strike one. Second pitch, strike two. Third pitch, base hit up the middle, tying run scores. Sigh. At least K-Rod didn't lose this game. That "honor" went to Raul Valdes, who gave up the Frankie Knuckles Special, a walk-off grand slam to Adrian Gonzalez.


5. Thank You Sir, May I Have Another? (5/27/11)

The Mets had come from behind against their arch-rivals from Philadelphia at Citi Field, erasing a 2-0 deficit by scoring single runs in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings. They kept that 3-2 lead until the eighth inning, when the Phillies tied it. With the game knotted at 3 going to the ninth inning, Frankie Knuckles was summoned from the bullpen, trying desperately to keep the game tied. He started out fine, retiring Raul Ibañez on a fly ball to center. Then the hits kept coming, and coming, and coming some more. Carlos Ruiz stroked a single. Then Ross Gload picked up a hit. Then Domonic Brown did the same. So did Chase Utley. And Placido Polanco. When all was said and done, the Phillies had scored three runs on five hits off K-Rod. At least there was a bright side to this performance, as K-Rod didn't give up a grand slam.


4. A Gift For Mariano (6/28/09)

In this game, K-Rod did not blow a lead. Rather, he was called upon to keep the game close. The Mets were trailing the Yankees by a run in the ninth inning. However, K-Rod decided to give the gift that keeps on giving, walking Brett Gardner and Derek Jeter after allowing a leadoff single to Jorge Posada. Up came Mariano Rivera, the Yankees' closer who had never driven in a run in his storied major league career. After this at-bat, that was no longer the case, as Frankie Knuckles gave Rivera a free pass, forcing in a run. Mariano went on to record his 500th career save after retiring the Mets in the bottom of the ninth, making K-Rod's gift take on a special meaning.


3. Conrad The Barbarian (6/16/11)

In the most recent addition to the list, the Mets appeared to have registered one of their most spirited wins of the year, erasing a four-run deficit against the Braves to take an 8-6 lead into the bottom of the ninth inning. Terry Collins brought in K-Rod to protect the two-run lead, but he gave up a one-out single to Jason Heyward. Up came pinch-hitter Brooks Conrad, who wasn't exactly tearing it up at the major league level (.205, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 17 strikeouts in 39 at-bats) at the time. Too bad Frankie Knuckles wasn't aware of those numbers, as Conrad launched a game-tying two-run homer off the Mets closer. The Braves went on to win the game in the tenth inning, preventing the Mets from going above .500.


2. Two Hands (6/12/09)

Although this moment ranks at No. 2, it was the lack of that number that caused K-Rod to lose the game, as Luis Castillo failed to use two hands to catch Alex Rodriguez's pop-up on what should have been the final out in a Mets victory. Instead, he dropped the ball, the Yankees scored the tying and winning runs (with Mark Teixeira hustling all the way home from first), and Frankie Knuckles probably pondered using those knuckles on Luis Castillo's head. Speaking of using one's fists...


The No. 1 Infamous Moment For Frankie Knuckles As A Met Is...

What else could it be? It's the one moment that didn't take place on the baseball diamond, but got more coverage than anything K-Rod ever did on the field. On August 11, 2010, Francisco Rodriguez earned the name Frankie Knuckles by assaulting his girlfriend's father in the Mets clubhouse following the Mets' 6-2 loss to the Colorado Rockies. He was arrested and did not play for the Mets again in 2010, as the Papi Punch tore a ligament in K-Rod's thumb. It also bought him an anger management course and began the countdown towards his departure from the Mets, which was made official after this week's All-Star Game.

So long, K-Rod. You can leave your time card behind. We'll remember to punch out for you.

If At Second You Don't Succeed...

Second base was a question mark for the Mets going into the 2011 season. After deciding to cut ties with the incumbent Luis Castillo during spring training, the team decided to go with Rule 5 pick Brad Emaus as their starting second baseman, with Daniel Murphy and Chin-Lung Hu serving as his backups.

So how has the second base experiment gone so far? Let's look at the game-by-game performances for Emaus, Murphy and Hu over the first 16 games of the season. (Note: Stats are for players while they were playing second base. Pinch-hitting appearances are not included in individual game stats.)

• April 1 @Fla: Brad Emaus (0-for-2, BB)
• April 2 @Fla: Brad Emaus (1-for-4, K), Chin-Lung Hu (0-for-1, K)
• April 3 @Fla: Daniel Murphy (1-for-3, R, RBI, BB), Chi-Lung Hu (0-for-2, R)
• April 5 @Phi: Brad Emaus (1-for-4, RBI), Chin-Lung Hu (1-for-1)
• April 6 @Phi: Brad Emaus (2-for-3, BB)
• April 7 @Phi: Brad Emaus (0-for-4, K)
• April 8 vs. Was: Brad Emaus (0-for-3, BB, K)
• April 9 vs. Was: Chin-Lung Hu (0-for-2, 2K), Brad Emaus (0-for-o, R)
• April 10 vs. Was: Brad Emaus (0-for-3, 2K), Daniel Murphy (o-for-1)
• April 11 vs. Col: Daniel Murphy (1-for-5, R, K)
• April 13 vs. Col: Daniel Murphy (1-for-4, R, RBI, BB)
• April 14 vs. Col: Daniel Murphy (1-for-4, BB)
• April 14 vs. Col: Brad Emaus (1-for-4, R)
• April 16 @Atl: Brad Emaus (0-for-4, K)
• April 16 @Atl: Daniel Murphy (1-for-3)
• April 17 @Atl: Brad Emaus (0-for-3, BB, K)

Over the first 16 games, the three men who have played second base for the Mets are hitting a combined .183 (11-for-60) with five runs scored, three runs batted in, seven walks and eleven strikeouts. It almost makes you wonder if Sandy Alderson still has Luis Castillo's number on speed dial.

After today's 3-2 victory against the Braves, the Mets have now played approximately 10% of their schedule. If they plan on having winning streaks that are longer than one game, they're going to need their second basemen to stop playing at 10% of their capabilities and contribute positively to the team's success.

Even former Mets' second baseman Kaz Matsui, who knows a thing or two about being booed in New York, could do better than the team's current second sackers.

Somewhere out there, Matsui is looking at this team and laughing. If the trio of Emaus, Murphy and Hu can't break free of their early season doldrums, Kaz won't be the only one laughing. The rest of the National League will be joining him.

Joey's Small Bites: While My Co-Blogger Gently Sleeps

Yesterday, I made my first appearance at Citi Field to "enjoy" the home opener . I invited my co-blogger and my fav'rit Studious Metsimus consultant to join me on Opening Day. After all, they could swipe me through the turnstiles with their MetroCards since I had no pockets in my hoodie to carry mine.

Unfortunately, my co-blogger decided to wear shorts and not wear his gray Mets hoodie on an overcast 40-something degree day. Now he's lying in bed with such a horrible sore throat and cough, you'd think he swallowed Keith Hernandez's mustache.

Therefore, since he's too sick to say it, I'll give you the rundown on what's happening today at Citi Field before the game. The aforementioned fav'rit Studious Metsimus consultant and I will be taking the field to meet and greet an unnamed Met before the first pitch. It will not be the first time I've taken the field at a ballgame, as I once stole second base last year.

Luis Castillo wasn't able to keep a hold on second base for the Mets. I found it quite easy to do.

In case you were wondering, I did not get injured as I slid into second base, but I did have a few pebbles up my...

As I was saying earlier, before tonight's 7:10 PM game against the Washington Nationals, I will be taking the field with Taryn Cooper. You know her from Kiner's Korner (the website, not the show that former Cardinals' pitcher Ricky Horton wanted to get on so badly that he would practice in front of his mirror as a youth) and Mets Merized Online.

If you're at the game, please look out for us wreaking havoc on the infield dirt or outfield grass. We won't know which player we'll be meeting or which position we'll be occupying. But we do know that it will be lots of fun and a once in a lifetime experience that we hope happens again.

(Note: For those of you wondering about the so-called "Joey Jinx", where I take a photo with a Mets player and that player subsequently gets injured and/or traded, we are taking all precautions so that that doesn't happen tonight. But the players are signing waivers just in case...)

Also, to my co-blogger, please feel better soon. As you know, I couldn't carry my wallet in my hoodie either, so it'll be up to you to carry the money for food. I hope you have my chicken nachos ready for me for when I come back to my seat. After all, if the Mets lose again today, I might need to drown my sorrows in shredded chicken and chips.

Nachos Grande, $7.75. Chicken Nachos, $9.25. The experience of eating them at Citi Field, priceless.

Fantasy Baseball Advice: PICK UP LUIS CASTILLO

The flaming dirigible known as the New York Mets are starting to chuck out live bodies before the carnage continues.

Luis Castillo, best known for dropping a potential game ending pop up against the Yankees, has been cut. Still owed $6 million, the Mets realized that they are better using that money to pay him to play elsewhere. (More money wisely spent by the Mets!)

They couldn't even trade him away in one of my trash for trash deals.

And now, with Chase Utley hurt, it looks like Castillo is going to be picked up by the rival Phillies.

Pick him up!
Yes, I know he was HORRIBLE last year. That's not the point. He's only a year removed from being a .300 hitter with 20 stolen bases. But he is also a two time former World Series champ (with the Marlins) and a former Gold Glover and All Star who was just humiliated.

Revenge is a wonderful motivating factor.
So is inflicting humiliation. The idea of picking up a pay check every two weeks from the Mets while helping the Phillies back to the World Series could lead Castillo to a career season!

If he has one more good season in him, he is going to dig down and shove it in the Mets face.
And if and when that happens, he might as well help your Fantasy Baseball team.

The Mets and Cubs should trade their trash

I am currently writing a new post for The Hardball Times where I try to put together a mega trade involving lousy contracts.



I wrote two similar pieces last off season... one where I had a three way trade involving Vernon Wells, Alfonso Soriano and Barry Zito.



The other one was a 9 team 11 player deal that was totally insane... although one part of it DID come true: Carlos Silva was in fact traded for Milton Bradley.



So I was doing the same thing this year... put together a mega trade of insanely bad long term contracts (Zito, Wells and Soriano are still subjects although Wells did have a good year for Toronto.)



And I was going to suggest which expensive short team deals should be swapped. (As I said before, who knows? A change of scenery might be what some of these guys need.)



As I was compiling a list of rotten 2011 contracts, I noticed something.

A lot of them were Met players.

And a lot of them were on the Cubs.



It just goes to show that a big payroll does not always mean a winning product.

The Cubs had the highest payroll in the National League.

The Mets had the third highest payroll in the National League.



Both had losing seasons and were not a factor in any playoff chase.



But guess what, Cubs and Mets fans! A lot of the same players who put on an uninspired yet expensive show for you ARE COMING BACK!



I say let's shake a few things up.



Take the bad contracts for the Mets, swap them for the bad contracts from the Cubs.

The worst thing that will happen is they will both have bad teams with big payrolls.



But guess what? That will happen no matter what!



The best thing that could happen is one of the players blossoms in a new environment. Maybe a new coach will give him some good advice. Maybe a player will relax wearing a new uniform without people reminding him how awful his contract is.



Maybe a new player will just fit in well with a different group of guys.



Maybe someone will say "Hey, my contract is running out. I should pull an Adrian Beltre and put together a great season."



So let's make the big trade.

The Cubs acquire





Carlos Beltran





Jason Bay





Francisco Rodriguez





Luis Castillo



plus Cash

The Mets acquire





Carlos Zambrano







Aramis Ramirez





Kosuke Fukudome





Carlos Silva





John Grabow

So let's take a look at what each team gets...



THE CUBS

If they catch lightning in a bottle, they can get Carlos Beltran playing for one more contract and have the yoke of New York off of his shoulders.



They can get Jason Bay happy to be swinging in a hitters ballpark again.



It is safe to say that Francisco Rodriguez isn't fitting in with New York. But what if all he needs is a change of scenery?



And Luis Castillo... wouldn't it be nice to see the guy who hit "The Bartman Ball" in Wrigleyville?



THE METS

Carlos Zambrano's time in Chicago might be winding down. Yeah he looked like a good soldier coming back, but anytime a team's ace needs time away for some sort of anger management, it might be time to change addresses. If he gets his act together he can be a wonderful 1-2 punch with Santana. Or he could beat up new manager Terry Collins. Either way, it would be fun to watch.



Aramis Ramirez has been super injury prone since signing his behemoth of a contract so maybe a change of position would be ideal for him. First base? Left field? Or probably sitting his butt on the bench while on the disabled list.



Kosuke Fukudome hasn't been the Ichiro type of superstar that the Cubs were hoping for. But he has some pop in his bat and maybe decreased expectations could help. Thanks to Kaz Matsui, there is no way he will ever be the biggest Japanese flop in Mets history. And if he plays badly for the Mets, it's not like he has a last name that New York fans could turn into an obscene chant.



With Carlos Silva the Mets get a guy who got off to a great start last year before injuries caught up with him. Perhaps he can stay healthy long enough to contribute. After Santana, Pelfrey and Zambrano, he'd be a nice #4 starter.



And John Grabow had a truly rotten year for the Cubs... but he is left handed and can pitch, ergo he is a millionaire several times over.







After the dust settles on this trade, the Cubs would have sent $82.16 million in payroll to the Mets.



The Mets would have sent $87 million in payroll to the Cubs (so the cash makes up the difference.)



And after 2011, all of the players would be off the Mets roster save for Carlos Zambrano who would have one more season at $18 million... so they would have almost $65 million of salaries coming off the books for 2012.



The Cubs? They would be on the hook for Jason Bay, but he could be an ideal fit in that hitters ballpark the way he was in Boston. Meanwhile they'd have $55 million to spend after the 2011 season.



But then again, neither one of these teams seem very good at spending money wisely. Otherwise they wouldn't have to deal all of these big contracts.



Now for those of you who are wondering why I didn't include Alfonso Soriano nor Oliver Perez in these deals... well just wait. I am working out two more blockbuster trades that should happen but won't.



Players WILL be on the move!



At least in my strange parallel universe.