(Lynbrook, New York)  Mark Healey, the founder of Gotham Baseball magazine, and Joseph M. Lara, the owner of JML Media, LLC  are proud to announce the online release of the Fall 2011 issue of digital version of Gotham Baseball magazine.

Gotham Baseball, which launched in April of 2005, is dedicated to the celebration of the Past, Present and Future of New York Baseball.

READ THE NEW GOTHAM BASEBALL – FALL 2011 ISSUE  HERE

“Since starting Gotham Baseball, it never ceases to amaze me how exciting the release of each new issue is for me,”  Healey said. “The things that are in the works for Gotham make it even more so. The response to our digital product has been incredible, and this latest issue is deserving of that same praise.”

This past April, Gotham Baseball was re-released in magazine form for the first time since 2008.

“When you have a magazine that has already found a place in Cooperstown, I knew I needed to find the right type of partnership to bring Gotham Baseball back in magazine form,” Healey said. “Joe Lara’s JML Media and Stacy Lavender and her design team from BallyHoo Media have done an incredible job since coming on board.”

Once a print publication, the entire print run of Gotham Baseball  is part of the permanent archive at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum’s A. Bartlett Giamatti Research Center in Cooperstown, NY. The new Gotham Baseball is a digital product, available for download on all mobile devices.

READ THE NEW GOTHAM BASEBALL – FALL 2011 ISSUE HERE

“I’m extremely proud of this issue and what we are accomplishing each day with Gotham Baseball,” Lara said. “The world of New York Baseball is a never ending story, and we’re bringing it to our readers from every unique angle whether looking back at titans like The Say Hey Kid, The Mick, and the Duke of Flatbush, looking forward with our All-Gotham team full of the best up and coming college students from our area, or grabbing a beer and a bite at Foley’s the ultimate New York sports bar.

We are easily the most entertaining, enjoyable, and high quality read on the market. We are truly the 21st Century home of the New York Game and we’re cooking up some awesome things to come!”

The magazine’s digital version will feature several writers from the print edition, providing comprehensive coverage of all facets of the New York game from college to the minors to the majors.

In addition to another incredible cover illustration by Gotham Baseball’s own John Pennisi, other highlights of the Fall 2011 issue include:

The Leadoff Spot – Shai Kushner and Gary Armida debate who has the toughest jobs in Sports, New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi or New York Mets manager Terry Collins.

The All Gotham Team – Chip Armonaitis selects the members of the 2011 All-Gotham Collegiate Baseball Team.

Cooperstown Archive – Cecilia Tan shares an incredible baseball moment in “The More Things Change”, as she recounts the time legendary Christopher Morley took in a ballgame; the 1921 World Series.

Crowding The Plate – “Foley’s NY”, also known as the “Irish Bar With a Baseball Attitude” is lauded by Jerry Milani as the best baseball bar in Gotham.

On Deck – Jessica Quiroli makes her Gotham debut with a feature on Tommy Phelps, the pitching coach for the Double-A Trenton Thunder the Eastern League Affiliate of the New York Yankees.

Going Nine – Mark Healey’s critically-acclaimed column this time revolves around former Mets owner and Chairman Nelson Doubleday,k who saved the Mets from the ruins of the late 1970′s.

Other articles include “Full Circle”, a look back at the Mets career of Jason Isringhausen, “Sixty Summers” a visual essay noting the summer of 1951, the first time NYC boasted the future HOF trio of Willie. Mickey and the Duke.

About JML Media Group, LLC

JML Media Group, LLC is a multi-faceted Queens, NY based media corporation specializing in re-shaping the way people view local media.  Since 2006, JML Media has changed the face of local publishing with its two marquee products Forest Hills and Astoria Celebrity Magazines, producing the quality of major national titles on a municipal and localized level, as well as garnering a reputation for accessibility and social responsibility.

About Gotham Baseball

Gotham Baseball was founded and first published in 2005. Its mission is to fully cover the past, present and future of the New York baseball. Gotham Baseball, first recognized by Amazon.com as one of the Top 10 New magazines of 2005 (and the only sports magazine on the list), reports the latest news, photos and features on the New York game, from the big leagues, the minor leagues and independent leagues, from the Old Time game to the college game. For more information, visit Gotham Baseball online at GothamBaseball.com

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For more information or to schedule an interview with Mark Healey or Joseph M. Lara, please contact Faith Ballantine-Armonaitis at (201) 288-6312 or email, faithpr@optonline.net.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Faith Ballantine-Armonaitis

Tel. 201.288.6312

Email: faithpr@optonline.net

Gotham Baseball magazine is proud to announce its selections for the 2011 All-Gotham team, a group of players we have deemed worthy of recognition for their stellar play during this past collegiate baseball season. Selected by Gotham Baseball’s College Baseball editor Chip Armonaitis, this group of individuals truly represent the best ballplayers from this area.

Utility – Ben Koenigsberg, Army
Starting Pitchers – Nick Tropeano (Stony Brook), Joe DiRocco (Seton Hall), Nick Meyers (Monmouth), Mike Thomas (Rider)
Closer – Tyler Smith (Rider)
Catcher – Tyler Jones, Long Island University.
First Base – Effrey Valdez – New York Tech
Second Base – Zach Price – Army
Shortstop – Joe Panik – St. John’s
Third Base – Ryan Terry
Outfield – Dario Pizzano (Columbia), Jeromy Baltz (St. John’s), Mark Onorati (Manhattan).
Designated Hitter – William Carmona – (Stony Brook)

READ THE REST OF THIS ARTICLE AND MORE! DOWNLOAD THE NEW GOTHAM BASEBALL – FALL 2011 ISSUE – HERE

We’ve been talking about it for months, and just like baseball season, Gotham Baseball magazine has returned.

Our awesome staff here at Gotham Baseball has teamed up with the very talented folks at JML Media to create what we think is the best Gotham Baseball mag EVER!

Read the Press release HERE

Thanks to a lot of great, great people, a new issue of Gotham Baseball is now available for all our readership.  The loyal ones who’ve stayed with us all these years, the folks who found us on Facebook and Twitter after we stopped printing the old Gotham Baseball, and to you, our new audience, who might be coming here for the first time.

As a token of our appreciation, we’d like to give you this new online magazine and ask you with everyone you know who’s a New York baseball fan.  By following us on Facebook and Twitter you can spread the word even further about the new Gotham Baseball.

Best of all, you can read it on your computer and on any mobile device!

Click to download the latest issue, and view it right there on your screen. Save it to your iBooks library so you’ll always have the best of New York Baseball, Fantasy tips, and more right at your fingertips!

Staten Island Yankees first baseman Kyle Roller had a big night at the plate, going 3 for 5 with a double, triple and a homerun while working a walk and driving in three runs raising his batting average to .315.  He was one of six Staten Island Yankee batters to have multiple hits in the game as Francisco Arcia, Kelvin De Leon and Mike Ferraro had two hits a piece while Eduardo Sosa and Luis Parache had three hits.  Jose Mojica and Francisco Arcia each had two RBIs in the game while Jeff Farnham worked two walks.

The Baby Bombers were the first to get on the board, plating a single run in the top half of the first.  With two-outs Francisco Arcia grounded the ball into center field for a single and then went to third when Kyle Roller lined the ball to left for a double.  Arcia scored on a line drive since by Kelvin De Leon, giving the Yankees 1-0 lead.

Mike O'Brien File Photo - Credit: Robert M Pimpsner

Auburn responded by plating two runs off of State Island Yankees starter Mikey O’Brien in their half of the first.  However that would be only two runs they could muster off of the right-hander as he went six inning allowing two runs on six hits and a walk while striking out one to earn the win.  With that victory O’Brien took over sole position with the most wins in the New York-Penn League.

Staten Island tied it up in the top of the second inning when Jeff Farnham walked, went to second on a single by Luis Parache, to third when Jose Mojica walked and then scored when Francisco Arcia was hit by the pitch.

The Baby Bombers took the lead in the top of the fourth inning when Jeff Farnham singled to left, then went to second on a fielding error by the left fielder and to third on a sacrifice bunt by Luis Parache.  Eduardo Sosa hit an infield single to second to score Farnham before going to second when Jose Mojica was hit by the pitch.  After both runners advanced on a ground out to second by Francisco Arcia Kyle Roller hit a fly ball to right field for a two-RBI triple.

With two-outs in the top of the seven the Yankees plated another run as Mike Ferraro doubled to center, went to third on a wild pitch before Jeff Farnham walked and then came home on a Luis Parache single to right.

That run worked in the advantage of the Staten Island Yankees as pitcher Nathan Forer came in to the game in the bottom of the inning and allowed three runs on three hits and two walks while striking out one.  Preston Claiborne got out of the seventh with a strike out to stop the damage there.

Staten Island added another insurance run in the top of the eighth on Kyle Roller’s first professional homerun that went over the right field fence.

In the bottom of the eighth inning the Doubledays plated their final run of the game.  Preston Claiborne pitched an inning and a third of one-run ball, allowing three hits and striking out two.

Mike Ferraro File Photo - Credit: Robert M Pimpsner

The top of the ninth saw another offensive explosion as the Yankees plated four runs in that half of the inning.  Mike Ferraro started it off with an infield single to second, then went to second on a ground out by Jeff Farnham and then to third when Luis Parache reached on a fielding error by the second baseman.  Ferraro then scored and Parache went to second when the Auburn pitcher threw a wild pitch with Eduardo Sosa at the plate.  Sosa then had an infield single to short that brought Parache to third.  Both of the runners would then score on a fly ball double to left field by Jose Mojica.  Mojica would then score as Francisco Arcia singled on a fly ball to center.

With the win the Staten Island Yankees remain a game and a half on top of the McNamara Division and took the series from the Doubledays.  Wilton Rodriguez is scheduled to pitch the third and final game of the series before the team enjoys one of only two off days.

Robert M Pimpsner is the New York Yankees minor league beat writer for Gotham Baseball Magazine.  He joined Gotham Baseball in July 2009 after spending over six years as the owner and senior writer of Baby-Bombers.com, bringing over his in depth coverage of the Staten Island Yankees.  He also contributes to GothamBaseball.com and BaseballDigest.com as a Graphic Designer.

In the short time he has been with Gotham Baseball, Jay Ferraro has demonstrated his commitment, complete enthusiasm and passion for our efforts to celebrate the Past, Present and Future of the New York Game.

So, it makes perfect sense that I’ve named him Assignment Editor for Gotham Baseball.

As Executive Producer of Baseball Digest LIVE, Jay has proven to be adept at booking high quality guests, long-term planning and organization. He also does an incredible job as a featured contributor, discussing all aspect of the game of baseball, including serving as the show’s Fantasy Baseball expert.

As the host of Gotham Baseball LIVE, he and co-host Dan “Hawk” Drobnis have successfully re-launched the popular GBL format, and his work as Fantasy Baseball editor for Gotham Baseball has earned many accolades as well.

Ferraro’s success is due to his diverse background. In addition to being a huge baseball fan and fantasy baseball enthusiast, he is a filmmaker, writer, comedian and a member of the Screen Actors Guild and AFTRA.

Please join me in welcoming him to his new position.

Jay Ferraro & Dan “Hawk” Drobnis explore the world of fantasy baseball on a Waiver Wire Abyss edition of Gotham Baseball LIVE. Jay and Hawk will touch upon everything fantasy baseball including who to “Pitch or Ditch” and who to fish out of the Abyss. Just another day at the ball park for Gotham Baseball LIVE!

Please click the link to listen live or to past shows: Gotham Baseball LIVE

Jay Ferraro is the Executive Producer of Baseball Digest LIVE and Gotham Baseball LIVE.  He is also the Fantasy Editor for Baseballdigest.com as well as a columnist for Baseball Digest Magazine and Gothambaseball.com. You can reach him at Jay_Ferraro@Juno.com , follow him on Twitter and add him on Facebook.

Jay Ferraro & Dan “Hawk” Drobnis explore the world of New York City baseball on a brand new edition of Gotham Baseball LIVE.  The guys will be joined by Matthew Cerrone of Metsblog.com to help make sense of a poor 2010 opening for the Mets and answer the question: Where the heck is Ike Davis?!?!

Darren Levine, director of the NYC Filmmaker’s Festival drops by to talk movies with us. Jay and Hawk will also touch upon everything fantasy baseball including who to “Pitch or Ditch”.

Just another day at the ball park for Gotham Baseball LIVE, lets play two!

Please follow the link to listen live or to past shows:  Gotham Baseball LIVE

Jay Ferraro is the Executive Producer of Baseball Digest LIVE and Gotham Baseball LIVE.  He is also the Fantasy Editor for Baseballdigest.com as well as a columnist for Baseball Digest Magazine and Gothambaseball.com. You can reach him at Jay_Ferraro@Juno.com , follow him on Twitter and add him on Facebook.

Every fantasy baseball season is made or broken via acquisitions made from free agency. Jay Ferraro & Dan “Hawk” Drobnis go  into the Waiver Wire Abyss and break down position by position free agent targets.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/gotham-baseball-live/2010/04/02/waiver-wire-abyss

Jay Ferraro is the Executive Producer of Baseball Digest LIVE and Gotham Baseball LIVE.  He is also the Fantasy Editor for Baseballdigest.com as well as a columnist for Baseball Digest Magazine and Gothambaseball.com. You can reach him at Jay_Ferraro@Juno.com , follow him on Twitter and add him on Facebook.

(Editor’s Note- This story was originally published in the Summer 2008 issue of Gotham Baseball Magazine – MH)

Living in New York City offers me the opportunity to continually reminisce about the 1969 World Champion New York Mets.  There isn’t a day that goes by that someone doesn’t want to talk to me about that team.  Over the years I have come to understand the significance of the “miracle” that took place in 1969.  Reliving my days with that wonderful team reminds me just how special that time was.  With that in mind, there is no way to describe the feelings I have when I receive the dreaded telephone call telling me another one of my teammates from 1969 has passed away.  Now, I’ve gotten seven of those calls, the latest being Don Cardwell.

All of us receive sad news from time to time and each of us deals with loss in our own way.   For me, having another teammate pass away is agonizing to say the least, as I feel my own mortality and the loss of someone special. But that is life and no one escapes this reality.  These calls bearing the sad news tear at my soul and leave me not only at a loss for words, but feeling that another part of my youth has gone.

The first of these telephone calls came in the spring of 1972.   It was from a sportswriter and like any other call I assumed it was for an interview.  I had been traded to the St. Louis Cardinals over the winter.  I was with a new team and new teammates, but my heart was still with the Mets.  When the first thing that came out of this reporter’s mouth was that Gil Hodges had collapsed and died I couldn’t have been more shocked.  Although, I knew that Gil had heart problems, he was still relatively young and I thought he was taking better care of himself.  But, it was hard to believe that Gil had just died.  After all, it had only been a couple of years since Gil led us all to the World Championship in 1969. This couldn’t have happened to our leader, the rock of that championship team and the person who guided us to that remarkable victory.  But it did, and that was my very first telephone call of that nature.

There have been six calls since.  First Gil, then Rube Walker, then Cal Koonce, then Tommie Agee, then Tug McGraw, then Donn Clendenon, and the latest, Don Cardwell   who passed away recently in North Carolina after a long illness.

While it is true that death is in fact part of life I am still torn with the knowledge that one more special person in my life is gone.  It takes from me someone who shared one of the most incredible sports stories in the history of our country.  The 1969 Mets aren’t just another team who won a World Series.  I always tell people that maybe the ’69 Mets weren’t the greatest team to win a World Championship, but they certainly are the most memorable.  No team, unless perhaps the 1927 Yankees, have been idolized more or talked about over the years.  To write about all the things that have taken place to individual players and the team collectively since October 16th, 1969 would take pages and pages.  As an example, do you think I would have a dog named after me on the popular sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond and would have appeared on the show if I wouldn’t have been part of that World Championship team?   How many other teams will celebrate a 40th Anniversary and fans remember every player on that team?  Very few I would suspect.  Yes, 2009 will be the 40th Anniversary and I will venture to say that 40 years from then fans will still be talking about and remembering the 1969 Mets.  The legacy of that team will live on forever, passed on from generation to generation.

There is one very important thing to remember about the 1969 Mets.  While we had a number of star players, it truly was a team where everyone contributed to our success.   When you talk about the team, the conversation isn’t just about Seaver, Koosman or Jones.  It’s about Agee, Boswell, Kranepool, Weis, Grote, Charles, Swoboda, Clendenon and all the others who were so important in that championship season.  The one true thing about the team is that all the names will be etched in people’s memories forever.  That memory of everyone is the true legacy of the 1969 Miracle Mets.

We weren’t just teammates.  When we won the World Series in 1969, we collectively became something different.  Besides the team itself being very special all of the players, coaches and manager became bonded in a way that is hard to describe.   Teammates will always be teammates but when you win a championship like we did, in the way we did, at the time we did, in a city, country and a world in chaos and despair, there is a bond, a special camaraderie that goes beyond words.  To this day most of us keep in touch.  Whether some of us are at an appearance together or a conversation on the telephone, we stay connected and continue to be in touch.  Just the other day I spoke to Ken Boswell my former roommate, and reminded him that he still owes me money for all the hotel room service charges I paid for on the road.

Now Don Cardwell is gone.  He was very simply a good friend and a great teammate.  There’s really no need to mention his records.  The fact that he was part of that team insures his name will live on forever.  But, I would be remiss if I didn’t pay tribute to one game in particular that stands out for Don in 1969.  In September, in a doubleheader in Pittsburgh against the Pirates, Jerry Koosman started the first game and pitched a shutout and drove in the winning run in a 1-0 game.  In the second game, Cardwell started, pitched 8 innings (Tug McGraw pitched 1 inning) and Don drove in the winning run in the second game that ended up 1-0 also.   A doubleheader won by the Mets, both 1-0 shutouts and both starting pitchers driving in the winning runs.  It had never been done before.  It was great clutch performances and to this day I can still hear Koosman and Don arguing about whose base hit was hit the best.  Great memories!

I hope it’s a very long time before the next dreaded telephone call.

Art Shamsky was a member of the 1969 World Champion New York Mets.  Read more about Art at artshamsky.com

After years of exile, former Met named skipper of the Single-A Brooklyn Cyclones

There have been few things in Wally Backman’s life that have come to him easily. Now that he’s finally gotten a second chance to resume his managing career in affiliated baseball, he welcomes both the challenge and the opportunity to stay there.

“I couldn’t really ask for a better minor league job.” Backman told reporters at a press conference held at Keyspan Park on Tuesday, formally announcing his selection as the manager of the Single-A Brooklyn Cyclones, an affiliate of the New York Mets. “This organization is where I started, and my heart never left New York. A piece of you never leaves the first place you play.”

Since being fired from the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2004, a job he held for four days, the two-time Minor League Manager of the Year has been trying to repair his reputation and get a job in affiliated baseball.

I had interviewed Backman during the 2005 season, trying to ascertain why he hadn’t hooked up with another major league club. I met up with him again during the 2005 Winter Meetings in Dallas, where Backman was looking to earn a spot with another team. He received no offers.

He had hoped the Mets would call. He’d had a few conversations with team insiders about the then-vacancy at Double-A Binghamton before Jeff Wilpon handed over the discussions to the baseball operations people. According to Bob Klapisch in the Bergen Record (1/15/2006), Backman was told he “wasn’t a fit.”

At the time, while covering the Mets for Gotham Baseball Magazine, I was also told by a minor league official that Backman “wasn’t in Tony Bernazard’s little black book”, putting the blame on the now departed VP of Player Development.

“I gave that organization 13 years of my life,” Backman told me at the time. “I don’t understand it.”

Interesting, isn’t it, that the door has opened for Backman now that Bernazard is gone? In any event, Backman went about trying to get back into baseball. One of those efforts, an otherwise ill-fated stint (because of the buffoons that ran the league and the team, not because of Backman, who took his team to the championship) with the South Georgia Peanuts in the now-defunct South Coast League during the 2007 season, actually played a major factor in Backman’s return.

Award-winning filmmaker John Fitzgerald (The Emerald Diamond) spent that spring and summer with Backman and the Peanuts filming the reality series “Playing For Peanuts”.

Joe Janish, the former Managing Editor of BaseballDigest.com and the publisher of MetsToday.com — who has spent many a day lobbying for Backman’s return to the Mets – interviewed Fitzgerald when “Peanuts” debuted in the spring on 2008 on SNY.

“Once I found out Wally Backman was managing a team, I chose to follow his team because he had the most interesting story in all aspects (playing, coaching, personal). Other than that, I had NO idea what to expect.”

He was right, because not long after the show debuted, Fitzgerald, despite facing horrendous budget costs (which still exist), pulled the show after the Mets’ flagship network refused to promote it.

“SNY refused to promote the show even though it is being promoted in other cities as part of the same agreement. I tried to compromise on the level of promotion and I never got anywhere with it,” Fitzgerald said in a statement. “… I can’t give the show away for free in New York if SNY won’t promote it. It isn’t fair to the show, the show’s investors or the production crew – many of whom worked for deferred payment and are still waiting for the show to turn a profit.”

It still hasn’t, and in this writer’s opinion, SNY has yet to provide it’s viewership with an equally compelling alternative.

SNY’s lack of desire to promote the show was, according to several people we spoke with at the time, mainly due to pressure from ownership. The feeling was that any direct attention given to Backman would be a distraction to the big club. The daily broadcast presence of the enormously popular Backman, coupled by a growing dissatisfaction with then-manager Willie Randolph, would create too much “Backman Should Manage The Mets” hype from the media and fanbase. It strengthened the belief of many that Backman would never be allowed to work for the Mets in any capacity.

Perhaps the most ironic twist is that Fitzgerald, whose work on the “Peanuts” series helped spark the friendship with Backman that remains strong to this day, was actually the person who provided Backman with Jeff Wilpon’s cell number. The former second baseman then made the call that got the process of his getting back into baseball started.

I don’t shock very easily, but when I was told several weeks ago about that Backman was flying into New York to meet with Jeff Wilpon about possibly joining the Mets in some capacity, I was floored. I asked myself (and the person who gave me the information), “What’s changed from 2005 or 2008 or this past season? I still haven’t been able to figure it out, but it would seem that Jeff Wilpon’s willingness to bring in former Mets with a baseball pedigree and a winning attitude is a major factor these days.

Some might argue that it’s a flawed way of doing things, but when comparing the likes of Backman, Teufel, Howard Johnson and Mookie Wilson to Bernazard hiring his buddies (Luis Aguayo and Mako Olivares), it’s pretty safe to say the Mets, and their fans, might be better off. Time will tell.

In truth, Backman would probably have taken any job the Mets had offered him. Single-A Port St. Lucie, the hub of the team’s minor league operations, was the destination most figured would make the most sense. However, in the end, it was the Brooklyn job that was offered. A cynic would say that this was the Mets’ way of pumping up the ‘Clones attendance, but that’s dopey, as the team in Brooklyn regularly draws better crows than any club in the entire farm system.

In many ways, the Brooklyn job is tougher than any in the organization, save the Mets gig. Based on what other former Cyclones managers past and present have told me (and I’ve covered every one since the inaugural season of 2001), it’s the most demanding job in the system. In addition to the mounds of paperwork, constant directives from the minor league department and major league front office on who to play, where to play, who’s in the bullpen, who should start, etc, there the media.

Yes, even in little ol’ Brooklyn, the media demands are very heavy. From the weekly newspapers in Brooklyn, to the ever-growing internet media outlets, to the stringers from the tabloids, there are always media folks in the managers’ office following games. One former Cyclones manager once told me in confidence that if he “ever imagined there would be even half of you (bleeps) in this (bleeping) office, I would have took the Kingsport job instead.”

Backman seemed more than up to the task on Tuesday, as several of the Mets’ beat writers made the trek to Coney Island for the press conference. He also made several video segments for the Cyclones, answered some questions for some of the broadcast crews. He also stuck around long enough to do one-on-one interviews with MLB.com’s Marty Noble and myself. He spent the rest of his day going on WFAN with Mike Francesa as well as appearing on SNY’s Daily News LIVE. It was a long day, but Backman had a smile on this face that even Darryl Strawberry would warm up to.

So Backman is back in baseball and back with the Mets. He’s going to be expected to win, keep his nose clean and be media-friendly. Shouldn’t be too hard for a guy that’s been waiting five years to get back into the game – and a city — he loves.