FIRE ART HOWE ALREADY!

2004-09-15T22:40:00.000-07:00

I'M NOT A QUITTER"

I just play one on TV

"I'm not a quitter, Howe told reporters in his Shea Stadium office before the Mets played Atlanta. "I'm not going to leave this team in the lurch. I'm going to leave them as the worst team in the National League intead. And QUIT he did.

FINALLY! FINALLY! FINALLY!

Ding dong the witch is dead!

Art is toast!

Now the reeeeeeeal fun begins as we watch the Idiot Collective of Jeff and Fred Wilpon bumble their way through the process of hiring another inappropriate manager for the franchise.

"I have mixed emotions about the whole thing, Howe said. "I signed a four-year deal, and I thought I'd be here for all four (no matter how badly I managed). No hard feelings from me.

Well, that's a relief Artie. No hard feelings. That was half of your problem all along.

2004-09-14T23:06:00.000-07:00

AND IF THERE WEREN'T ENOUGH REASONS ALREADY...

Howe's Met record is 128-177, and his .420 winning percentage is the worst among Met managers since George Bamberger's .389 mark in 1982-83.

Woa, hot potato!

In other exciting news, Dark Clouds Continue To Linger Over Howe

2004-09-14T17:45:00.000-07:00

Facts Are Facts

"I'm proud of what I've done here," Howe said. "I've done the best I possibly could. The record speaks for itself. Facts are facts."

*****

Why, Oh Why?

"I'd rather have it happen now," said Howe on Monday of his imminent dismissal. "Why put me through this?"

*****

2004-09-14T17:34:00.000-07:00

HOWE MUCH LONGER DOES HE HAVE?

"They called me in," Howe said before the game against the Atlanta Braves. "We had a very good discussion, a private discussion. A lot of things were discussed.

"When something should be announced, it will be announced. Nothing is being disclosed at this time. All I can say is I'm managing tonight. I take it one day at a time. It's not over yet."

2004-09-13T21:47:00.000-07:00

Bye-Bye Howie

Fans the world-wide can finally rejoice for the Daily News is reporting that Art Howe Is As Good As Gone.

So, it's only taken bozo Fred Wilpon two years to realise the errs of his ways, the idiocy of hiring a second fiddle, the foolishness in taking too quickly, a man Billy Beane was only too happy to get rid of. Don't we all remember Fool Freddy's gushing upon the hiring of Art Howe? "He blew me away," Wilpon said at the news conference to introduce Howe. Eedjit.

By the way, the magic of Art Howe and the success of the Oakland A's? Hmmm. Seems they do quite well without him, imagine that.

And now, so too can the Mets do well without him. Certainly, any monkey they can suit up in the dugout as manager can guide a team to consecutive sub .500 seasons and scraping the basement of the division. But at least now they can find someone with a little more colour to do it.

Naturally, the heart turns to Piniella, the man they SHOULD have gotten the first time. However, he's managing the Devil Rays and they won't give him up easy. Much nicer would be to see The Return of Bobby V, the man they never should have fired in the first place.

Stay tuned. More rumour and innuendo to follow.

2004-09-05T09:05:00.000-07:00

Facts Is Facts

"It isn't fun but it's a fact," manager Art Howe whinged about the injuries. "And we have to deal with the facts."

The first fact we should deal with is that Art Howe is a crap manager.

2004-08-31T12:28:00.000-07:00
Our Favourite Song Is Getting Old

"We only had three hits going into the ninth inning," Art Howe said following another loss in a long season of losses. "That's the same old song. I guess you guys should be tired...

Oh we are, Uncle Artie. We truly are.

If I Say It, It Must Not Be True

After more injuries and more losses, ""Every time we've said it couldn't get any worse, it just does," Howe said. Either God is not on his side, or it's the media's fault.

Oh yes, it must be the media's fault.

Manager Art Howe said the idea the trade of Kazmir has backfired was nothing more than a media concoction and the eight trillion losses he's overseen as a Met manager are a media concoction and the fact that he SUCKS as a manager is a media concoction.

Sing Us A Song Mr Manager Man

"It’s the same old song, the same old story," Mets manager Art Howe said following another loss. "We had three hits until the ninth. We never led..."
Well, you get the picture.

Too Many Nevins Gonna Spoil The Stew

After yet ANOTHER loss, this time to the Padres, Art Howe began to wax philosophic:

"Too many walks and too much Nevin," Art Howe said about the nine walks his pitchers issued and the five RBIs Nevin produced. Wonder how that RESUME is coming along Uncle Artie?

Long Nights At The Howe House

"We're getting only one or two chances a game," Art Howe said after another predictable and demoralising loss. "When we don't take advantage of that, it becomes a long night." Yeah, that and the ticking of the clock.

Stop, Please! We're Not At Full Strength!

"We're not at full strength and they got us at a good time," manager Art Howe said after yet another loss last week, as though the Mets are the only team this season to suffer a few injuries. "They took advantage of it." Clever buggers, weren't they?

Is That My Brain Or Did Someone Take A Dump In My Skull?

After two baseball games and no Barry Bonds home runs in sunny San Francisco, Art Howe rapped his knuckles on the desk of the visiting manager's office two Sunday mornings ago as he said, "At least we kept him in the park."

Right, we lost both games but at least we kept Barry Bonds in the park.

Well, not quite.

The streak lasted all of one inning into the third and final game of the Mets' series against the Giants. Bonds' two-run homer off Matt Ginter proved the difference in the Giants' 3-1 victory that Sunday afternoon.

D'oh! Artie!

Oh Howe We Hate Howe!

More evidence from the front were John Heyman's exasperated remarks about Howe's Losership in his Newsday column the other day:

"It's hard to make a compelling case for Howe, particularly if they follow one tank job (2003) with another. Howe consistently says the wrong thing, such as opining that fans disliked the Scott Kazmir trade "because you guys write it up that way," then complaining he has to sing "the same old song" when the media visits him after a loss. Following losses with cliches - that's his thing, not ours.

Ouch. Uncle Artie can feel that one up in the nose-bleeds.

The Secret To Winning Is Getting Out of the Chute

In a seemingly incomprehensible act of God, the Mets opened with a six-run first inning against the Dodgers the other night. As always, Art Howe was right on with his analysis:

"It was nice, especially right out of the chute," Howe elaborated. "First inning, putting up a six spot, especially when you have your ace going."

Of course, later on, Howe was willing to take all of the credit:

"I talked to them in general," Howe explained wisely and in general, "I just felt it was time to sit down and talk a little"

Hmmm. Maybe if you'd talked a little less general and a little LONGER, they might have not lost their next four games following that weird twist of fate that was a rare victory.

Let's Call the Whole Thing Off

Following the stereotypical, humiliating loss, this time at the hands of the Padres, this gem of wisdom was passed along:

"If we pack it in we're going to have major problems," manager Art Howe said. IF?. Wake up and smell the coffee Uncle Artie. Your boys packed it in about two months ago.

At Least He Knows He Made A Mistake. That Makes Up For BLOWING THE GAME

This time, it was Mike Cameron's turn. In a humiliating 10-2 loss to the Dodgers, Cameron dropped a routine fly ball in the 4th. This isn't necessarily Art Howe's fault perse, but at least he was there to clear up any ambiguity:

"Cliff knows he made a mistake," Art Howe said.

A Big Threat When His Little BooBoos Don't Hurt

A few days ago, after Mike Piazza hinted that his delicate little body and in particular, his left knee, is free of pain, Mets manager Art Howe concluded that "Hopefully he can give us a little spark," (At this point in the season Artie, you don't need a little spark you need a fucking forest fire) "When he's in there he's a definite threat." Ohhh, that'll scare everyone Artie. When he's in there (like, one game out of five, maximum and he isn't already busy screwing up defensively and costing the Mets a game or hurting himself, that is)

Milquetoast Howe and A Side of Snooze

(A yes, one of my favourites is from a fellow-Howe-hater, Scott Lauber of the Binghamton Press and Sun Bulletin (Howe bad must you be to be mocked by a sportswriter who covers your AA team??!!) Anyway, here it is:

"Milquetoast manager Art Howe dismissed the criticism of the trade as a product of negative media coverage and said he had better things to do with his idle time than watch Kazmir's second start Sunday against the Oakland Athletics in which he was chased in the fourth inning after giving up six runs."

Holy Howe, That Kid Has Special, Magical Powers!

"To show that kind of power to that part of the ballpark, that's special power," Art Howe said. "This kid has a lot of upside yet. He's still kind of feeling his way right now, I think. Sorta like Art, mediocrity won't just come to him all on it's own, he's gotta feel his way around for it, call it like a little kitty.

Whole-Hearted Howe

Mets manager Art Howe, not wanting to give his opinion publicly, listened to Duquette and said: "I agree wholeheartedly.". Brilliant.

Hmmmm, Maybe By The Time He Retires, We'll Have Figured Out Where To Play Piazza So He'll Do The Least Amount of Damage To Himself And The Team

"General manager Jim Duquette and manager Art Howe got together just prior to New York's 6-4 loss and discussed the situation with Piazza, who said afterward that they were all "on the same page." Piazza will play first for the remainder of this season with a day here and there behind the plate as well as the occasional day off."

The missing piece to the puzzle is finding what AL team wouldn't mind spending $20 million on a DH or figuring out how they can employ the DH in the NL next season so Piazza has a position to "play". Of course, Art Howe COULD have sorted this out in Spring Training about SEVEN months ago back when it might have made a difference, but instead, here we are over a year later still scratching our genius heads about what to do about Piazza...hmmmm.

Wait Til Next Year, I've Already Cocked Up THIS Season For You

"A lot of what we're doing now is geared toward next year," manager Art Howe said. "It's out of necessity because of the injuries. ... Ahh yes, the INJURIES. Art Howe, in case you hadn't noticed the injustice, is the ONLY manager in baseball who has had to deal with injuries...oh the horror!

My Arm's Tired, Can I Go Home Please?

"He feels like it's a tired arm and if it is, then we'd like to keep it at that and not turn it into a sore shoulder," manager Art Howe said of the genius acquisition of former Pittsburgh Pirate loser Kris Benson.

Fire Away, It's Art Howe Disease!
In the middle of last night's game, an ESPN.com article was posted that suggested Mets manager Art Howe had "lost touch with his players" and could be on the verge of getting fired if his team continues to spiral. In a seemingly unrelated event, Center fielder Mike Cameron was still unavailable Monday night, continuing to suffer from what Howe called "something viral." -- COULD IT BE??? ART HOWE DISEASE??

2004-07-27T00:01:00.000-07:00
Somebody's Gotta Lose and It'll Probably Be Us

"It was a heckuva ballgame, but the wrong team won," Howe said after the Braves beat the Mets AGAIN two nights ago.

Mistakes R Us (not Them)

"We made mistakes and you can't give a team of that caliber extra outs," Howe said after three unearned runs undid his team in a 4-3 loss to the Braves before 32,542 at Shea Stadium.

Boom! We Suck!

"Two outs, nobody on, you think you're out of the woods and boom," Art
Howe said. "That's baseball." After Mets lost to Marlins instead of the Braves, Expos and Phillies, for a change of pace.

Must...Have...More...Discipline

"There wasn't a whole lot of discipline at times," Art Howe said after another loss to the crappiest team in the NL East, Montreal Expos.

2004-07-20T13:13:00.000-07:00
"In the ninth, every ground ball seemed to find a hole," said New York manager Art Howe after his bullpen blew another, this time against the Marlins. "It's unfortunate, but it happens.

"We post a zero there," Art Howe said, of the failure to hold the lead last night agains the Marlins "and it's a different game." Wow. And if they'd won it'd be a different game and if they'd had a different manager, it'd be a different season.

"It was surprising that he was hurt," Manager Art Howe said about the dubious move to place Parra on the DL with a "strained hip" because he had a little stiffness from the hotel air conditioning behind too high. "It made it a little easier for us.". Indeed it does. What an amazing coincidence, Art.

"He's been a closer before and he's got good stuff," Mets manager Art Howe said in an heroic effort to find something good to say about Mike DeJean. "If he gets back to the way he's shown he can pitch..."

WOW! Then the Mets can win the pennant!

On why he sat Mike Piazza in last Sunday's "sorta must-win" game against the Phillies:

"That's why it's a 25-man team," Howe said. "We can't ride Mike into the ground. That's basically the way I felt."

That's the way I feel too Uncle Artie. Just because you're paying a selfish wanna be catcher millions of dollars a year to lead your team into oblivion, there's no reason at all you should play him in important games. Mikey might hurt his little self. Mikey might get tired.

"I told you, we're resilient," Art Howe said of the subsequent victory over the Phillies that vindicated his decision somewhat. "Before we're dead, they're going to have to pound those nails in the coffin before we quit."

How about if we just pound those nails into your head Uncle Artie?...

2004-07-11T22:24:00.000-07:00
My Goal Has Always Been Mediocrity

"I'd be lying to you to say I thought we would be in first place at the All-Star break when we were coming out of spring training," Artless Howe said.

"Whoever told me that, I'd take them out to dinner anyplace in the world," said Hungry Howe on the possibility that the Mets would be two games out of first place on the Fourth of July?

"The leadoff walks, that's what's coming back to haunt us," Art Howe said, adding to the missed-opportunity theme. "We put some heat on them, got the lead, but we couldn't hold it down." following last night's second straight loss to the Marlins that dropped the Mets down to 4th. Ho hum.

Art Howe on Aging
"He's not getting any younger, just like the rest of us," Howe said after resting old man Mike Piazza in a game against the Marlins two days ago.

"We played as hard as we could," Art Howe said the Mets split a 4 game series with the Phillies this week in a matchup of miscalculating managers.

Dealing With Reality
"You deal with reality tonight," Howe said after a Mets loss to the Phillies this week.

Don't Ask Him, He Doesn't Know
...even Mets manager Art Howe struggled to explain it. "I don’t know," he said. ...

"Listen, that's a great team over there, and they showed their mettle again today," Art Howe said, describing his feelings on his permanent residence in Loserville after a game against the Yankees.

The Key
"The key is not to get beyond ourselves right here," Howe said incoherently.

Digestives
"I'm not even going to talk about that until we have a chance to digest everything," Howe said. ...

2004-07-04T22:55:00.000-07:00
Howe No, We Haven't Forgotten About Yea!

Lest one come to believe that the lack of posts on the Fire Art Howe Already website is an indication of a more general malaise, or perhaps even a growing satsifaction with his managing, let it be noted LOUD AND CLEAR, we begin the campaign anew by allowing the ARTLESS Howe machine, speak for itself:

The Art of managing

Howe opens up about baseball, life in N.Y. and Lou Piniella

BY ADAM RUBIN
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

Mets manager Art Howe is a man who appreciates his privacy and is not known for blowing his top, like the skipper Mets owner Fred Wilpon wanted in New York, Lou Piniella.

After owner Fred Wilpon couldn't get permission from the Mariners to negotiate with Lou Piniella in October 2002, the Mets turned to Art Howe. And Howe instantly received his share of criticism for being, well, not Piniella.

"I guess this means I'll never get a roast, because I've already had one," Howe noted at his introductory news conference.

Twenty months later, Howe still has his share of detractors. He admits he doesn't have Joe Torre's gift of gab. He doesn't explode like Piniella - not usually, anyway. Bottom line, he says, he's a winner.

He sat down with Mets beat writer Adam Rubin to discuss his stay in New York.

DN: To finally be able to fill out a full lineup card after a year and a half of injuries, how comforting is that? Was there a helpless feeling at times?

AH: It wasn't a helpless feeling, but you always felt like you were missing a few pieces. But the guys who did go out there for us battled, gave me everything they had. It's a good feeling now to be able to put basically the same guys on the field each day. That helps with the consistency up and down the order.

DN: Everyone is being judged. You're being judged. To be judged while being undermanned, I imagine it was a little unfair before?

AH: It comes with the territory. Injuries are part of the game. It's been unfortunate here that we've had so many since I've been here. I mean, it's been uncanny. But you have to go out and still do your job and do the best you can. I'm proud of what we've been able to achieve to be honest with you. Now it's nice. Things are starting to round into shape as far as the health issues and we're holding our own.

DN: Teams take on the personality of their manager sometimes. Do you feel like this team has your personality or is that overstating it?

AH: I don't know if that's true or not. I've heard people say that. Who knows if that's true or not? If they do, I like it, because there's no quit in me. I know that. I think they've shown that. They don't quit. They keep fighting until the end.

DN: Obviously you use the term "battle" a lot and they've picked it up in the clubhouse. It's used so often that fans tend to mock it a little. Are you aware?

AH: No. … That's basically what we do with everybody. It's a war out there. It's little skirmishes every night and you try to win as many as you can.

DN: Does your personality suit this team? People suggested, fairly or unfairly, you're best suited for a young team?

AH: I've had veterans, too, everywhere I've been. We've rebuilt in the two places I've been and developed a nice club each time. But I've also had veterans play for me almost every year. If you ask the veterans, they've enjoyed playing for me. And I've gotten the most out of them, too.

DN: And the managerial style is delegation and hands-off? You know that's different from Lou Piniella, who had been talked about a lot for the job, who is a little more …

AH: Gregarious. Is that a good word? Outgoing. Emotional.

DN: Well, you know, you got credit in some places for throwing the garbage can in Kansas City after the game, even though it was David Weathers. But that doesn't seem to be your style.

AH: I've been known to kick something every once in a while. I'm a private kind of guy. I don't like people to know what I do behind closed doors. But I think these guys know I want to win as badly as they do. I don't have to come out and throw tantrums to show that to them, because they know. They're around me. They know how much I want to win.

DN: Is the "privacy thing" a mismatch for New York, because everybody wants to know …

AH: Everybody wants to know everything. That's where I have my problems with it, because I like to deal with players in private. And if there are issues to be dealt with, I think it should be kept out of the papers. You never want anything to get out in the papers as far as I'm concerned, whether it's a private issue between you and a player or you're trying to help somebody. No one else has to know that. It's not everyone else's business. When I was a player, that's the way I felt. I think it's important for a manager to keep some things under wraps.

DN: Are you sick of hearing the name "Lou Piniella," because people are still suggesting he might come?

AH: Lou is a friend of mine. We respect each other. We've battled against each other. We were in the same division for years. It was either us or them, except maybe one year Anaheim snuck in.

DN: There was a lot more to you getting hired than a brief meeting with Fred Wilpon. You, Lou Piniella and Ken Macha all have the same agent, Alan Nero, and when Fred couldn't get Mariners CEO Howard Lincoln to deal with him and Lou wanted to take the sure thing in Tampa Bay, this was the best of all worlds for all three of you. Wasn't there a lot more behind the scenes than people realize?

AH: Actually, I took my name out of the running for the Mets job for a while, because I wasn't going to let anybody use me as leverage. I had accomplished too much to be treated that way. I wasn't going to accept that. Once Lou decided to go to Tampa Bay, then I thought the Mets were serious about talking with me. It was just me.

DN: I think it was in Houston when you said, "The stolen base does have some value," which was a little shot that went over some heads, referring to the "Moneyball" theories in Oakland. You took a lot of flak with the book, was that one small way to finally shoot back?

AH: At heart, I'm a National League guy. That's where I played my career and started off managing there. It's a different game in the National League. Totally different. Stolen bases are important when you get them at the right time, when the percentages are good. You don't have to sit back and wait for a big inning. The American League you tend to do that.

DN: Is it hard, though, at least public-perception-wise to have not gotten more credit for the success in Oakland, particularly because of the book?

AH: As far as I'm concerned, I know I deserved a lot of credit and I think I got a lot of credit. Everybody out there knows who ran that team. It was me.

DN: Did you get told horror stories about the New York media before you arrived?

AH: No. I've been in the big leagues. I know what New York is all about. I've been in the postseason against the Yankees. I enjoy you guys, talking to you about baseball or whatever.

DN: We heard a lot over the years about people thinking lesser of Armando Benitez because of Mariano Rivera's presence in the city. Is the bar set so high with Joe Torre, because he is so at ease with the media and good filling reporters' notebooks?

AH: Joe is a great guy. He's had a ton of success. He's a New Yorker. Some people have a better gift of gab than others. I try to watch what I say because I don't want to say something that's going to be misconstrued or come out wrong. So I try to limit what I say. That's why guys probably feel I'm kind of guarded. And that's the reason I am. Already some things I've said didn't come out the way I intended them to come out.

DN: Even before with Oakland, you had that incident in the playoffs where you said, "It's going to take a great series from the Yankees to have a shot to beat us" and it turned into a back-page story.

AH: I'm supposed to come in there with a team and say we're going to lose? No. It just gets crazy in New York sometimes.

DN: Steve Phillips was on the radio a few days ago and was contrasting you with Bobby Valentine. He said Bobby can get a lot out of a team in a shorter term. And that you're built for sustained winning, that his style can grate on players and make it a shorter window of success. You agree?

AH: Yeah. I think that's the way it's always been for me. We've always slowly but surely progressed and gotten better and better wherever I've been.

DN: People were bashing you before you came. Do you think you have enemies for no good reason?

AH: Yeah. That's what has surprised me. There are enough people out there. Everybody is not going to like you for whatever reason. But I'd just like to know why.

DN: Are you suited to manage in New York?

AH: I'm suited to win. If that's New York, that's great. If it's not, then I'll win someplace else, because I really consider myself a winner. I know what it takes to win. The difference I have, that doesn't seem to exist in New York, is patience.

Originally published on July 3, 2004

2004-05-17T20:53:00.000-07:00

What's His Face

There's nothing that says "competence" like a manager who knows the names of all of his players. Jason Phillips, who has been in a season-long slump, was referred to by Manager Art Howe "What's his face" during a pregame meeting with reporters.

Howe To Leave

"I only wanted him to get help," said Howe, meaning he requested that Young ask third-base umpire Angel Hernandez for his opinion in a moment during the big Piazza v Clemens victory in Houston that really wasn't. Young refused, and that's when Howe really got steamed.

"I think in the back of his mind, maybe he knew he missed the play because he gave me every opportunity not to get thrown out," Howe said. "In my mind, there was only one way I was leaving."

Let's hope he finds his way out of NYC without further encouragement.

*****

Mike Piazza primarily will play at first base from now on. Manager Art Howe decided to move Piazza from catcher to first more often after discussing it with the slugger last week. Howe still plans to play Piazza behind the plate about two times a week. "We're going in that direction. I want the younger guys to get the work," Howe said. Yeah, "what's his face" and "who's on first"....

2004-05-09T02:00:00.000-07:00
Effectively Wild

"He was effectively wild," Mets manager Art Howe said of Milwaukee Ace, El Duquecito's 4 1/3 no-hit innings in his first start of the season, before being removed after walking the bases loaded in the fifth and throwing 45 of 79 pitches for balls.

"You don't win too many games with two hits," Art Howe on trying to win a game while getting only two hits like they did yesterday against the lowly Brewers. Do you win more games with two hits than you do with one hit? How many hits are required to win too many games, Oh, Manager of the Year?

"We'll keep him in the mix until somebody gets red hot and we'll ride that horse." Uncle Artie on Jason Phillips starting yesterday against the stinkin' Brewers.

2004-05-08T02:59:00.000-07:00
Happy Howe, Sad Howe

“I’ve been through it, man,” Howe said after a Mets’ 2-1 walk-off homer victory. “Maybe you don’t have the camera on me enough. When you’re losing, you don’t show a lot of emotion. But when you’re winning, it’s a lot more fun.”

Winning is more fun.

Hmmmm.

Losers show no emotion.

Hmmmm.

Of course, all of this sudden, giddy enthusiasm was washed down the toilet when the Mets lost to the lowly Milwaukee Brewers last night.

"Maybe we did [have a letdown]," Howe said. "I don't know. Hopefully we'll come back tomorrow with some energy and get back into it."

Looks like it's back to the old stoic face of losers Howe can sport again.

2004-05-08T02:45:00.000-07:00
Captain Decisive

"Somewhere down the road he'll be playing a lot of first base," Howe said of All-Time Homers For A Catcher But Armelss Twat Behind the Plate, Mike Piazza. "When that is, I couldn't say.".

Indeed Uncle Artie. Somewhere over the rainbow.

Probably whenever Mr Pampered Loser stops putting himself above the team, Uncle Artie. But you can't do anything about that, being such a player's manager and knowing it's best for the team that Piazza continue to dictate when and where he will lower himself to playing first base.

2004-05-08T02:30:00.000-07:00
Professional Hypnotist

Looking for a way to put your friends to sleep? Why not try Art Howe For Corporate Entertainment?

He certainly isn't working out as a manager.

Maybe he'd be better dressed in tassles and popping out of birthday cakes.

2004-04-26T21:55:00.000-07:00
"It's not constructive or helpful to have negative-type thoughts," Leiter said, of being pulled by Mets manager Art Howe after throwing only 79 pitches, "because it will only permeate the room and make things worse."

Howe apparently was "too scared" of the Mets being no-hit, so he lifted Leiter for pinch-hitter Danny Garcia after only 79 pitches, in the 5th inning. Way to go, winnah!

2004-04-24T10:53:00.000-07:00
Confucious Say...

"You can't make mistakes in a low-scoring game," Mets manager Art Howe said after the Mets lost to the Cubs last night.

Oh Shit! And here all along, I thought it was ONLY low-scoring games you could make mistakes in!

Wow, look out for the Mets now! Now that they've straightened that bit of confusion out, there'll be no stopping them!

Stay off the Wrong Way Momentum Train!

More philosophy from the managing intellectual giant after their predictable loss:

"That was the momentum," Art Howe said, "and the momentum went the wrong way."

Woa....All aboard for the wrong way momentum train!

2004-04-24T10:46:00.000-07:00
Don't Worry Be Happy Is Contagious

The Laid Back Artie Howe is spreading like a disease through the Mets coaching staff. And why not? With the Mets having scored eight runs in five games heading into Thursday with four of those runs coming in one game, you might have thought this had something to do with the batting coach, Denny Walling, whom we all know, with his whopping .271 lifetime batting average, is the guy you'd turn to when the team bats like they're supposed to be playing bocci ball. I mean this guy was practically Myril Hoag out there at the plate. Nothing to sneeze at. Just something to cough in unison to.

"Everyone knows when they take the job that eventually it's going to happen," Walling said of being blamed for being a crap batting coach instead of pointing the finger at the batters who are being poorly coached. "But I have strong faith, we have a good rapport here and I know we have a good plan.

Yeah. A good plan. Faith. Let's just bloody PRAY that the Mets learn how to hit despite Walling.

"At this time we're just a little out of sync.

We're just a little out of sync?

How about I've confused them so much, they don't know if they're swinging or standing still any more?

2004-04-24T10:34:00.000-07:00
Uncle Artie Calls For Meeting of the Minds

"I've been in this game a long time and I know that you hit streaks like this throughout the season," Howe said. "It's part of a long season. You've got to keep the high points a lot longer than the low points."

Thanks for clearing that up, oh honourable one. I was beginning to think it had something to do with The Mets being outmanaged every night!

Later on, he attempted to blame his players for the Mets shameful record in close games: "They're in such close games and everybody is trying to hit it out of the ballpark, to either get us back in it when we're one down or trying to break it open,". Howe said. "We're going to take what they're going to give us."

Oh, thanks for clearing that up, Uncle Artie. I thought maybe they were losing those close games because Art Howe is a crap manager!

Guess not. Sign him up to an extension, Governor Wilpon!

2004-04-24T10:27:00.000-07:00
Notes Following the Pitiable 20th of April loss to the Expos

Wednesday's 2-1 loss to the Expos in front of an announced crowd of 23,565 was seemingly yet another example. It was their sixth one-run game this season and their fourth in the last six games. Only one of those games figured in the Mets favor. That's SIX one-run games, FOUR losses for those of you keeping score at home. Outmanaged in one-run games is Artie Howe's nickname, isn't it?

Said manager Art Howe: "You've got to make them throw them out." regarding Karim Garcia perfecting the getting-thrown-out-at-home plate theorum.

2004-04-24T10:21:00.000-07:00
Artie the Orthopaedic Surgeon

"He did a heck of a job, but when your starter says his shoulder is stiffening up, he can't go back out there... Howe on why he pulled Glavine after 78 pitches in a game against Pittsburgh that went from a 2-0 lead before Glavine was pulled to a 7-6 loss (ahem, to the Pirates no less) --

2004-04-24T10:14:00.000-07:00
He's Phillips' Phavourite Manager

Jason Phillips, benched for the third time in four games, fumed on Tuesday, the 20th of April, after a 2-1 loss to the Expos, and suggested he had forfeited his first-base job to Todd Zeile. "It took 11 games for me to lose the job," said Phillips, whose average dropped to .171 after a pinch-hit ground out in the seventh.

The reaction might have been a bit of an exaggeration, with Art Howe maintaining that he simply went with the same lineup that won Monday's series opener. But Phillips perceived himself as being the manager's scapegoat and clearly was upset.

2004-04-17T21:00:00.000-07:00
"It was a pitchers' duel and we came up on the short end of it," Mets manager Art Howe said after the Mets second straight loss to the Pirates.

2004-04-15T23:07:00.000-07:00
Art Howe and Mike Piazza denied there was a problem after the manager forgot to tell Piazza he was starting at first base - before he told the media.

Hula Howe is too stupid to learn from his mistakes: This was not the first time Piazza got one of Howe's messages through the media. Last year, Howe leaked the Mets' plans to move him to first base before mentioning it to Piazza, upsetting the superstar. Howe told someone if this was any other city but New York the original story would have deserved a headline the size of an inch-worm.

2004-04-13T12:01:00.000-07:00
"You adjust," Howe said upon injuries and lineup changes prior to yesterday's home opener. "That's what you have to do."

Yes, adjust. That's it. That's what you have to do, Art.

2004-04-12T22:37:00.000-07:00
It was quite a turnaround from the Shea opener a year ago, when the Mets and Tom Glavine were crushed, 15-2, by the Cubs. Asked about that, Howe snapped, "I don't want to talk about last year."

2004-04-12T03:42:00.000-07:00
HOWETZERS

"When you know your starting pitcher is done for the night before he even gets to the mound, it's tough," manager Art Howe said 9 april after hearing Scott Erickson wasn't going to make his scheduled start.

"Injuries are part of the game," Howe said after hearing Floyd went down with an injury on April 11th. Manager Art Howe said Floyd will be out of the lineup indefinitely. "It doesn't look like he's going to be able to play in a while," he said.

"Injuries, I'm tired of saying it, are part of the game," Art Howe said after the game.

Manager Art Howe said the new turf at Hiram Bithorn Stadium in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is the slowest artificial turf he has seen. "It feels like sand," he said. "It's very soft on the feet, too.

"It's a terrible schedule," manager Art Howe said. "You should get a day off after being in Puerto Rico. That's a long haul for us, considering we started the season on the road. But you have to play it the way it's handed down."

No kidding, Art? Can you play it a different way than how it's handed down perhaps? Can you stop accepting your miserable fate with such unemotional indifference please? Make us perhaps capable of imagining a limit to your apathy and Charlie Brown philosophy?

Summing up a recent 1-0 loss, "They got the big hit when they had to," Art Howe said after the Mets' 1-0 loss, "and we didn't."

"I see the Mets as a tremendous opportunity," Howe said after signing to manage the Mets

The Manager: The Art Howe Song
"Piano Man" Based on the performance by Billy Joel
"The Manager (The Art Howe Song)" Parody by Craig Scott

"It's 7 o clock on a gamenight
The meager crowd shuffles in
There's 15 rookies sitting next to me
And i want some tonic and gin

I say "man can anyone here play this game?"
I think every player here blows
I should have stayed with the A's
They made simple plays
Now I'm stuck in these f'n Mets clothes

Da, da-de-da, la-da, la-de-da, da-dum.

Win us some games your the manager
Win us a game tonight
Well we're all the mood for a victory
But the mets are playing like shyte

Now cliff out in left was a star at one point
Has a 6 million dollar fee
And his achillies is aching, or mabye hes faking
Cause there's some place that he'd rather be

He says "Art i believe this is killing me"
As a smile ran away from his face
Well I'm sure i could be a superstar
If I could get out of this place

Da, da-de-da, la-da, la-de-da, da-dum.

Now Raul is a triple A veteran
Who would have been down there for life
And he's talkin to Roger, who should still be a dodger
Does anyone have a gun or sharp knife?

And the staff ace is practicing mechanics
As Leiter also gets rocked
Yes they're starting to think, they should call it quits
Cause' its better than both being mocked

Win us some games your the manager
Win us a game tonight
Well we're all the mood for a victory
But the mets are playing like shyte

It's a pretty good crowd for shea stadium
And Wilpon gives me a smile
Cause' we know that its reyes, the reason fans pay us
To forget about the standings for a while

And the organ it sounds like a funeral
Because there's no future here
And they call up the fan
To put blame on one man
And say "man, there's nothing to cheer"

Win us some games your the manager
Win us a game tonight
Well we're all the mood for a victory
But the mets are playing like shyte"

2004-04-12T02:08:00.000-07:00
"As a manager, a player or a coach, you have certain expectations," Howe said, "and when you don't live up to them, it hurts." Ouch. Howe must be hurting by now!

2004-04-12T02:07:00.000-07:00
"I know some media people criticize him for not being in somebody's face, but that's not his style," Betty Howe said. "But he will take care of it behind closed doors. I think you get a lot more out of people that way. If he's really angry, what he usually does is wait until the next day to talk to that guy. He'll sleep on it so that he won't say something that he'd be sorry for. Usually, he starts the conversation by asking, 'Why did you do what you did?' He wants to know what they were thinking. Then he'll say, 'Do you think it might've been better to go about it this way instead?' Even if he were really upset, I'd be shocked if he ever got in a player's face."

2004-04-12T02:00:00.000-07:00
"He's laying in bed playing things over and over and thinking, 'How could we have done this, that or the other thing?' " said Betty Howe, who has known her husband since they were 16-year-old high school sweethearts. "He'll take walks after the game. That's when he does a lot of thinking. But from the middle to the end of the season . . . he had a lot of sleepless nights."

2004-04-12T01:37:00.000-07:00
Welcome to the Fire Art Howe Already Website