The Worst Team Money Could Buy : The Collapse of the New York Mets

Rating:
Summary: 10 Year Anniversary Edition of this book is due
Review: I was born a Met fan and will remain one as long as the Mets exist. As I type this, I'm listening to Fred Wilpon talk about how Art Howe is going to turn the Mets around. This after the 2002 Mets, the team with the third highest payroll in baseball, finished last in the National League East.

My thoughts, naturally, turn to this book.

At the end of the abyssmal 1992 season for the New York Mets, Bob Klapisch and John Harper--beat writers for the NY Post and NY Daily News--felt the need to rant, to give the fans the necessary information to answer the question "how could this have happened?" The highest payrolled team in the history of baseball, the team that made Bobby Bonilla the highest paid player ever, finished with the third lowest record in the National League. I mean, we had David Cone, Dwight Gooden and Sid Fernandez in our starting rotation! We got Bobby Bonilla to replace Darryl Strawberry! That ring should have been ours!

Any Met fan reading the above knows what happened on the surface (and what continued to happen in 1993 and --UCK-- 1994), but the deeper story is nastier still.

This book lifts the rock on the Mets and what is crawling underneath is not pretty. The egos alone are ridiculous, but throw in the infighting, the firecrackers, the rape accusations, the press lockouts, and the non-stop party attitude that looks from here like Animal House without the humor.

You've got to feel sorry for Jeff Torborg and Buddy Harrelson, who didn't have a chance with this pack. As you'll see, though, the owner and General Managers also get their due.

NOW I want to see the 2002 edition of this book. This book proved to me that there is tons of stuff that go on behind the scenes. What happened in 2002?

It's also nice to reminisce about a time when sports writers didn't pull as many punches with their writing. Nobody is spared; the GM, the owners, past managers, players, etc.

Not to knock ESPN which is not local enough, or radio commentary like "Mike & The Maddog" which I believe to be too much a mouthpiece of the team, but this book also stands up as a testament to newspaper coverage which goes into more and better detail than cable can offer.

These guys bled Blue and Orange every day from spring training to the end of the year because it was their job. When that blood went bad, they wrote this book. As a Met fan, let me say "Thank You". This book takes that coverage to the next power. It is something you do not see enough of.

The only real flaw in this book is that it could have been a little better organized. The chronology is a bit vague; background-setting flashbacks show up and go on for pages until you've forgotten what you're getting background on. It is a minor quip, though, and I didn't even notice it until subsequent readings.

This book will probably shock you, but you should still pick it up.

Rating:
Summary: Very good book
Review: Money isn't everything - and the money paid to the star talent the Mets had in Bobby Bonilla, Eddie Murray, Vince Coleman, etc., proves it. Especially when the money certain players earn is being spent on partying - one way to help your team finish last. Worth reading just for what Ron Darling said about Frank Viola's cross-country flight activities.

Rating:
Summary: Very good book
Review: The book talks about the 1992 New York Mets which was full of overpaid underachievers who were expected to get into the World Series after finishing below .500 in 1991 for the first time since 1983. It shows the apparent rape and other sexual charges to players like Vince Coleman, Daryl Boston, David Cone and Doc Gooden. It showed the Mets of '92 did more off the field then on the field and you can tell by there record and the fans of New York were outraged that a proud franchise would sink to this level and not succedd. Its a very good book, every Mets fan should have it.

Rating:
Summary: Fascinating look at how sports journalism has changed
Review: The competition between newspapers in the New York market of the late '80s and early '90s was a precursor to 24-hour sports networks and the Internet in terms of bringing the personal and the issues of the locker room to the fore. Every paper was printing a game story, so the way to distinguish your coverage was to get the office politics, the behind-the-scenes stuff -- Vince Coleman and the golf club. David Cone and the allegations. Sid Fernandez in the doghouse. Buddy Harrelson, the manager who lost control. Bobby Bonilla and everybody. While the player stuff was interesting, I found this much more intriguing as a study of mass media and competition, and just as valid now as ever. A must-read for anyone interested in sports journalism.