Guest Post: Mets and Madoff

As football season draws to a close, Drawing Contact looks forward to the rest of basketball season and, of course, that magical summer of baseball coming up. Let's be honest, there are few things better on a weekend afternoon in the summer than being at the ballpark with friends, enjoying some over-priced food and really over-priced beers watching America's favorite past-time: greed.


*vinyl scratch*


Yeah, I said it. Don't get me wrong - I absolutely love baseball. However, there is positively no country for franchises to profit from maintaining the streak for most consecutive losing seasons. Baseball financials have always been a bit shady, from top to bottom, and no where is this more the case than with the New York Mets. Below are some thoughts from good friend, loyal reader and suffering Mets fan, @JasonIsaacs1.

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Recently, it was reported that Fred Wilpon, Chairman and CEO of the New York Mets was close friends with Ponzi scheme artist, Bernie Madoff. Madoff played a large role in big free agent deals during the last 15 years and was usually present during contract negotiations. Today, Mets owner’s Wilpon and President Saul Katz denied any allegations that they knew about the scheme and the $300 million profit the Mets somehow were able to make from it prior to Madoff’s arrest in late 2008.

It is time for a change. Wilpon’s access to the Mets should be revoked. Granted Enron had issues of its own but haven’t we learned from that already?? Seriously, dude.

The Mets are now looking to sell 25% of their shares (shout out to Mark Cuban). And until the time they settle this debacle I can only imagine what it will mean for the fans: higher ticket prices, $7.50 hot dogs and (dare I say) $11 Bud Lights. This does not bode well for me as a poor pseudo-college student who will be even poorer come baseball season when I do not have a job at all. So I say this, and I would like all Mets fans join in (all 3 of us):

Dear Mets:

Why do you build me up? Buttercup just to let me down….and make me pay more? And the worst of all, you never come through when you say you will. But I love you still.

Love,

A Once Again Disappointed Mets Fan

Unsportsmanlike Conduct?

I was looking forward to Sunday's Miami Heat/Oklahoma City Thunder game not only with fingers crossed for an OKC victory, but also for the display of raw basketball talent that would be on the court: Durant, LeBron, Westbrook and Wade on the floor at any given time as well as some guy named Bosh that everyone keeps talking about. Epic Game Potential (EGP) was sitting at about 60-70%.

And it was quite the game - hotly contested down to the end with Durant hitting some clutch shots down the stretch, but at the end of the day it was all for naught. With about 25 seconds left in the game, there was an interesting moment on the Miami offensive side of the ball.

After Wade missed a well contested 19-footer, Heat down 102-103, Mike Miller corralled a crucial offensive rebound and dished out to a completely open LeBron James - I mean COMPLETELY open, as in no OKC Thunder player was within 8-10 feet of LBJ. What happened next was fascinating: James started to go up with the shot, stopped, then dished to Eddie House who hadn't taken a single shot all game.

For you numbers people, LBJ for the game: 23pts on 7-14 shooting, and 2-5 from 3pt range - not too shabby, which makes his decision to pass even more interesting.

However, I don't find much use in speculating on what was going through LeBron's head at the time of the shot. I will point out that Eddie House drilled that shot, took a page out of Sam Cassell's celebration book, and was promptly fined $25,000 by the NBA. Check out the footage below:



Final score: MIA 108 - OKC 103.