Joey Soapbox: Revisiting The Joey Jinx (With Apologies To Eddie Kunz and Jason Bay)

A few months ago, I wrote a piece about an accidental jinx I may have started. You see, while performing my Studious Metsimus roving reporter duties, I have met numerous Mets players and had them take a photograph with me. For example, last year I had the pleasure of meeting players such as Pedro Feliciano and Chris Carter, but in addition to meeting them, I also posed for pictures with them.

Less than a year later, both players are no longer on the Mets, with Feliciano moving on to the Yankees and Carter going south to Tampa. In addition, Perpetual Pedro is about to be placed on the disabled list for the first time in his career with muscle soreness in his left shoulder.

So as legend has it, anytime I take a photo with a Mets player, he either gets injured or traded (or sometimes both). It's getting to the point where I almost expect the Mystery Machine to pull up to the Studious Metsimus offices so that the Scooby Gang can investigate "The Case of the Joey Jinx". (If those meddling kids don't bring Scooby Snacks, I'm not cooperating!)

I was going to dismiss this jinx as being nothing but a co-inky-dink. After all, many people take their pictures with athletes and many of those athletes get injured and/or traded. But after today's events, it appears my dismissal of the Joey Jinx may have been premature.

Photo of Eddie Kunz and I taken by Sharon Chapman. Photo of Jason Bay, my colleague and I taken by Taryn Cooper.

Earlier today, the Mets traded Eddie Kunz to the San Diego Padres for minor league first baseman Allan Dykstra. (Hopefully, he will never be referred to as "the wrong Dykstra", like Victor "the wrong Zambrano" and Kaz "the wrong Matsui".) Of course, last year, Eddie and I had a good time together posing for this photo (see above, left) during a spring training break in Port St. Lucie.

As if Kunz's trade wasn't enough, later today it was revealed that Mets' starting leftfielder Jason Bay might have to start the season on the disabled list after feeling discomfort in his ribcage. Bay reported back to Port St. Lucie for further examination hoping for the best, but since he was photographed with me (and my Studious Metsimus colleague) last December (see above, right), the news does not bode well for the slugger.

Is there really a Joey Jinx? Nothing has been proven scientifically, but judging by the trades and injuries that have befallen numerous Mets and ex-Mets, it's something that might have to be looked at.

Personally, I don't believe I have the power to influence Mets transactions. I barely have the power to get a full night's sleep. You see, I've been having nightmares about Mr. Met falling down the dugout steps after finding out that he'd been traded for the Phillie Phanatic. Why would I ever dream of something as ridiculous as that?

Joey's Soapbox: The Joey Jinx Strikes Again!

Chris Carter, the man known as "The Animal" to Mets fans, has become the latest player to fall victim to what is now known as The Joey Jinx. What, pray tell, is The Joey Jinx? I'm Joey Beartran and if you're not afraid of my jinx, I will get on my soapbox to tell you all about it.

Take a look at the photo below. That's Chris Carter holding me in the Mets' press conference room.


The photo was taken after the Mets' last regular season game in October. It was also the last time The Animal (not me...I'm talking about Chris!) was photographed as an employee of the Mets. In the offseason, the Mets decided to non-tender him, making him available to sign with any other team.

The Tampa Bay Rays have decided to fill the role of "any other team", as they have signed The Animal to a minor league contract.

If you haven't been able to figure it out yet, The Joey Jinx strikes whenever a Mets player holds me in a photograph. Carter is now the third former Met to fall victim to the Joey Jinx.

The first one was Eddie Kunz (see photo, right). Sweaty Eddie was invited to Port St. Lucie in February, after a brief cup of coffee with the Mets in 2008 and a full season at AAA-Buffalo in 2009. Then he met me in Spring Training and agreed to hold me for a picture. You can imagine what happened next.

Not only did Eddie Kunz fail to break camp with the Mets, he didn't even make it back to Triple-A. He played his entire 2010 season at AA-Binghamton and had the type of season that only his mother and Oliver Perez could be proud of.

He pitched in 42 games, of which 12 were starts. In 111.1 innings, Kunz recorded a 5.34 ERA, 1.65 WHIP and actually walked more batters than he struck out (68 walks/63 strikeouts). The only positive thing to come out of our meeting was his great Wikipedia photo (taken by Sharon Chapman).

The second player to be victimized by my jinx was Pedro Feliciano. He may have been known as Perpetual Pedro, but once he put his hands up my...I mean, once he was photographed holding me, his stay with the Mets was no longer perpetual.

Feliciano was a mainstay in the Mets bullpen for almost a full decade. He set the franchise record for appearances in each of the last three years. His 86, 88 and 92 games pitched from 2008-2010 also led the National League. Pedro has a solid 2009 season for the Mets, finishing the year with a 6-4 won-loss record, to go with a tidy 3.03 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP.

Then in between the 2009 and 2010 season, our photo op occurred. During the ensuing regular season, Pedro's record dropped to 3-6, while his ERA increased slightly (3.30) and his WHIP increased dramatically (1.53).

The Mets decided not to re-sign Pedro during the offseason, and he signed with the crosstown New York Yankees for two years and $8 million. Just between you and me, I hope he brings my jinx over to The House That Juice Built.

Chris Carter and Eddie Kunz were probably never going to be big stars in New York, while Pedro Feliciano, although important to the team, was only a middle reliever. I've been careful not to spread The Joey Jinx to one of the Mets' everyday players...or have I?

It is with great regret that I must inform you that this past December, I attended the Mets MVP Reception at Citi Field. Numerous players were in attendance that afternoon. I went for the food and the opportunity to discuss team politics with new GM Sandy Alderson and new manager Terry Collins.

Except those weren't the only people I ran into.

In a faraway corner of the Caesar's Club, one lone figure stood. I couldn't help but notice his unshaven face. He had the look of a man wise beyond his years and appeared slightly exhausted, perhaps due to months of throwing his body around into immovable objects, like a dugout railing or three.

I felt sorry for the bearded fellow, so I walked over to him and asked him if it would make him feel better if I took a photograph with him. He thought to himself for a moment, then smiled as he answered (and I quote) "uh...sure, why not?" It was then that I realized who this hirsute Metropolitan was...


Ladies and Gentle-Mets, the lonely bearded man in the corner was Mets first baseman Ike Davis.

It is unknown whether The Joey Jinx will cause Ike Davis to have a Sophomore Slump in 2011. He did finish the 2010 season well, hitting .330 and compiling a .427 on-base percentage after the calendar turned to September. But we have already seen the negative effects of being photographed with me.

Three times a Mets player has posed with me for a photo. Three times that player's production suffered and he was either demoted or signed with another team.

So to all you Mets fans out there, I would like to apologize in advance for going over to Ike Davis on that cold December day in the Caesar's Club. Had he been standing next to a railing instead of alone in the corner, perhaps I would have recognized him before I had the chance to jinx his 2011 season.

I promise that if I am ever photographed again with another baseball player, it will either be with Cliff Lee, Roy Halladay or Chase Utley. The Joey Jinx doesn't discriminate.

Bears Gone Wild: Port St. Lucie Edition

Studious Metsimus decided to send one of its bloggers to Port St. Lucie to cover the Mets and their activities. Since Joey is cuter and stands a much better chance of getting away with things that might cause other bloggers to have their Blogger Union membership revoked, he was sent to Tradition Field. We now turn things over to Joey (seen in the picture to the left with Slider) with his PSL report.

Thanks, esteemed colleague! This is Joey Beartran reporting for Studious Metsimus. I had a great time covering the Mets in Port St. Lucie during Open Workouts. From sampling great breakfast dishes to delicious lunches to sumptuous dinners (and an occasional Mets player here and there), I did my best to bring you the most complete coverage of what the fan experience is like at Open Workouts. So sit back, turn on your favorite sports radio station to listen to the latest Mets pitcher getting rocked while throwing strikes and enjoy what I like to call "Bears Gone Wild: Port St. Lucie Edition".

I woke up at the crack of dawn and to my surprise, I found myself greeted with breakfast in bed. I love the smell of Corn Pops in the morning!


Then it was off to Tradition Field to see batting practice. However, there was not much action going on in the batting cages. Is it possible that Daylight Savings ended and I was the only one who didn't get the memo?


One Mets player did show up and was kind enough to pose for a picture with me. Here I am with minor league prospect Eddie Kunz. I asked him if he felt he had a chance to make the team out of Spring Training and all he did was smile and hide his pitching hand behind my back. Apparently, he was nervous to meet me because he was covered in sweat. That's okay. When you meet the only bear blogger for the Mets, I can understand if you have a sudden case of the jitters.


Later on, I met a member of the 1986 World Champion Mets. He was the starting pitcher in Game 6 of the 1986 NLCS and Game 6 of the World Series. It was an honor to meet fellow lefty Bobby Ojeda.

I talked to Bobby about how he managed to make the transition from the pitcher's mound to the SNY studio in the hopes that someday I can make a similar move from blogger to SNY on-air personality. He just smiled as I overheard him say "am I on Candid Camera?" to our Studious Metsimus photographer.


After a long day of interviewing, photo ops and wondering whose hand was where, it was time to sample the fine cuisine in Port St. Lucie. There was no shortage of fine Floridian food to partake of. Take a look for yourself...



After a wild night of hot wings and brownie sundaes, it was time to hibernate for the evening. Fortunately, Studious Metsimus had enough funds available in the budget (a.k.a. the piggy bank that serves as our petty cash tin) to allow me to stay for another night. Our photographer had to stay in the car, but I promised to share my breakfast the following day as compensation for the room.


As the sun rose and the roosters cock-a-doodle-doo-dooed, (I should know. I accidentally stepped in some of it.) it was time to get back to the field. This time, I arrived a little bit late and the players were already doing some running. Just watching them perform their drills made me tired so I decided to take a load off and rest on the warning track. Had it been batting practice at Citi Field, I would have been in a perfect position to catch a David Wright just-short-of-the-wall double.


After players were done running around (no truth to the rumor that Angel Pagan was messing up the rhythm of the drill by running too aggressively), it was time to meet some more players. I went after a few more lefties and ended up with the motherlode. (sorry, I didn't get to meet my hero, Keith Hernandez. He's the ultimate lefty and the reason why I became a Mets fan. How can any bear not love him after he was caught by the SNY cameras feeding corn chips to a teddy bear in the TV booth during the 17-inning marathon in Houston during the 2007 season? Ah, but I digress...)

First I met the man known as Perpetual Pedro. He's the Mets' all-time single season leader in appearances by a pitcher. He was also the first Mets player, past or present, to actually talk to me when he told me that I looked a little like him. Personally, I didn't see any resemblance other than the two of us wearing a "Mets" on our chests and the fact that we're both lefties. Here I am with Pedro Feliciano.


Finally, I met up with my Aunt Coop and together we were able to attract the attention of the man with the most home runs in Mets history (no, not Tim Bogar). The "Coop" de grâce of the entire trip was getting this picture with the Straw Man himself, Darryl Strawberry!

If I looked like I wanted to be somewhere else, it's because we were about to miss Happy Hour! Fortunately, we were done with our meet and greet session with Mets players, so we headed out to Duffy's for an hour of liquid happiness.

I had to stow away in the bag because I left my "special ID" at home. Fortunately, I was able to partake in Duffy's 2 for 1 offer, although I can't say I remember much after that. I don't even remember being photographed in the picture you see below to the right.



I was told we didn't do anything else after Happy Hour, so we packed up our belongings and headed back to New York. I was hoping to fly over Citi Field to get some overhead shots of the new additions for 2010, such as McFadden's, the reconstructed bullpens and the Mets Museum and Hall of Fame. Unfortunately, the pilot was a Yankee fan so I couldn't convince him to change his flight pattern so that we could land at LaGuardia Airport instead of Newark Liberty.

It's okay. When he wasn't looking, I unbuckled my seatbelt and left him a surprise in the lavatory (and I'm not talking about the iPhone in my lap, if you know what I mean).


Thank you for reading about my experiences as a bear blogger gone wild in Port St. Lucie. With your continued support of Studious Metsimus, we hope to continue to bring you more exclusive content such as this year's Late Winter Training escapades. Maybe next year, our budget will increase. You can never have enough meal money.

For Studious Metsimus, this has been Joey Beartran reporting. Hope to see you all at Citi Field this season!

Special thanks go out to Sharon Chapman and Taryn Cooper for their wonderful photographs and their credit cards. Oh wait, they don't know about the room service I ordered, do they?