My “man-crush” (Daniel Murphy) possibly cost us a game over the weekend.

I was scheduled to be at CitiField today but decided to finish off the basement and spend the money for a new fireplace. Therefore, I’ll be at a game next week during NFL Draft weekend.

Does CitiField mean “new” memories for Met Fans? So I assume we are to forget about the heartbreak over the last two years based entirely on a new home for our beloved Mets?  Sure, I’ll agree with the new memories stuff, but I also have a lot of old memories from the past two years that I’d like to forget.

$7500 for Opening Day tickets.

Josh Johnson is pretty damn good.  Fantasy owners take note!

Something to look forward to?  Tim Redding will be back in Mid-May.

Something that really scares me… Jerry Manuel says he will use K-Rod in non-save situations!

The Padres come to CitiField with a four-game winning streak.

Padres starter Walter Silva is a 32-year-old right-hander who is a veteran of the Mexican League.

Am I the only who thinks this should have been a Santana vs Peavy opener?

David Lennon posted in his blog that Daniel Murphy was seen shagging fly balls this afternoon.

I can’t go wait to find the brick my wife got me for Christmas last year!

Go Mets — Beat the Padres!

Ok –

So it’s early, but that doesn’t mean it’s not painful.

Watching Derek Lowe throw a gem on opening night and then watching the Oliver Perez meltdown today was terrible. It’s difficult for me to swallow.

I’m tired of hearing about his potential.

I’m tired of hearing about his “upside”.

I’m tired of hearing he was “younger”.

The bottom line is because Omar Minaya couldn’t convince the Madoff restricted Wilpons to open their check book, we are left trying to find a stable starter behind Johan.

Think about it.

Who can the Mets count on in this rotation to fill the gaps?  Sure, Maine is decent and has good stuff but he’s not a legitimate #2 starter.  Pelfrey was pretty good in the second half but he’s young and not consistent enough to be relied upon. The leaves us with Oliver Perez and, um, Livan Hernandez who seriously shouldn’t still be pitching in the major leagues.

The Mets need Perez to pull his head out and quit trying to be a superhero.  I’m tired of the inconsistent outings and the non-post season efforts.

If he doesn’t turn it around soon, it’ll be a tough season for the Mets in a division full of teams that appear to have much stronger starting pitching.

Welcome to GodBlessBuckner.com.

I’m, obviously, a New York Mets fan. Have the 86 Lenny Dykstra throwback, the Mr. Met bobble heads, the David Wright Autographed Silver Slugger bat, Jose Reyes game enjoyed champagne bottle from the NLDS a couple years back and entire shrine dedicated to Gary Carter’s greatness.

Favorite Met of all-time: Darryl Strawberry

So why “GodBlessBuckner.com”?

For obvious reasons. I can still remember the camping trip my parents made me go on during the 86 series. Sitting in the front seat of our 1981 Mercury Tracer, I listened to the entire game.  Tears started to roll, I was crippled by the fact we were going to lose and my beloved Mets were going down to the hated Red Sox.  I was so excited when Vin Scully said the “ball gets through Buckner” that I started jumping around, wiped my tears and began the journey of begging my parents to allow me to go home the next day to watch the next game.

They finally gave in but it meant I had to stop for what was termed a “family outing” at the yearly Amish festival. You know the one… the huge guy with an even bigger beard is walking around saying “Ale for Sale!”.  Everyone is eating smoked turkey legs.  Kids are playing in the dirt with some wooden toys their grandparents made. Despite all these distractions, I just wanted to get home and watch the Mets.

So forever, I will be indebted to Bill Buckner.

However, the true reason I decided to do this blog is not because of the 86 series, but one that happened many years later.  It just so happened that Bill Buckner was going to do an autograph signing at the Long Beach Coin and Card Expo. I decided it would be a GREAT opportunity to ask him to sign the Mets cap I held so dear.  Ok — I admit it,  I was one of those kids!

I paid the $25 bucks or so for the autograph ticket (which literally meant I wasn’t going to eat that week) and simply wanted to shake his hand and get him to sign the hat.  I get to the front of the line – for one short instance thought maybe this was a bad idea and proceeded to the table where he was sitting.  As I wandered up, I saw him call someone over.  With the Mets hat in hand, I never got a chance to even meet Billy Buck – he had security escort me out based entirely on the fact I wanted him to sign my Mets cap. Now, the moral to this story is, I’m not even sure Buckner knew I wanted my Mets hat signed, but he knew something was up.

So for that Mr. Buckner – I dedicate this blog to you.

Thanks again for allowing the Mets to have the opportunity to win the World Series.

Thanks to Bob Stanley as well — but GodBlessStanley.com just didn’t sound nearly as cool!

The only other one I thought about was MitchellScoresonawildpitch.com but my editors told me it was too long. (Sorry Bob – had to take a shot, remember – I’m “that” kid!)

So I’ll be discussing the Mets as often as I can. I’m hopeful this year will be far superior to the past two seasons.  I’m tired of having my friends email me pictures of guys / gals choking.

Enjoy GodBlessBuckner.com and don’t hesitate to let me know what else can be done to make it a spot you have to visit early and often.

Ryan Houston