Joe Smith Getting Used To NY

Marty Noble at Mets.com, writes about Joe Smith and how he's trying toget used to New York City:

His first ticket, happened on Wednesday -- $115 for illegal parking in Long Island City. He wasn't real pleased.

"The sign said 'No standing.' Well, I wasn't standing. I was parking," Smith said. "If they mean 'No parking,' shouldn't it say 'No parking?' I mean, I just figured they didn't want anyone standing there. I don't know why. I mean, obviously, there are a few things I don't know about New York.

"But there was a lot of room to park."

Clearly, Smith is learning. He drove to Shea on Friday afternoon, only the second time he's done so without following John Maine, and the first such trip on which he didn't get lost. And he made it back on Saturday without incident, escort or a citation.