So Long, But Not Farewell

When I started this blog, five days short of a year ago, I always knew this day would come. And now that it has, I find myself torn between excitement and sadness.

This is the last entry on Ernie Palladino's Giants Beat. Yep, we're closing down. But we're not out of business. A couple of weeks ago, I was approached by Scout.com, which recently became a Foxsports.com affiliate, to handle their Giants website. After much thought, I decided it was a professional move worth making. So, starting at some point over the weekend, you'll find me at http://nyg.scout.com/, where I plan to do much of the same stuff I do here and more. They have something I don't -- resources -- and that will make a world of difference.

They've got the site laid out right now and, I have to tell you, it's kinda snazzy looking. Got my name right up there. It's called Ernie Palladino's The Giants Beat. Sound familiar? We had to add the "the" for legal purposes, but it's close enough. I asked for it so there would be no confusion about where you landed, and the folks at Scout.com were more than happy to oblige.

As far as content goes, it's going to be a lot of the same stuff you've seen here. Stories, opinion, analysis. As soon as I learn the ins and outs of their software, I plan to continue with the videos that were so well received here.

The Big Blue Wrecking Crew runs its message board there, and I know a number of you participate in it already. I'll chime in once in a while. In addition, I'll take direct questions on my own message board as soon as they set it up. And we'll be having regular, hour-long chats.

I hope you'll all come over there with me. Sounds like they have a good, enthusiastic group there, and I'm going to encourage them to welcome your thoughts.

As for Ernie Palladino's Giants Beat, well, let's say it will now recede into the footnoted footnotes of cyberspace history. We were an intimate group, topping out at around 1,000 visitors per day and 57,000 hits per month. Those aren't big numbers. Actually, they're miniscule when put up against the successful blogs and websites. Still, I heard a lot of good things about what we did here, even from people who never responded to the entries. Our conversations were lively, to say the least, but for the most part we managed to have civil, courteous discourse about the Giants. I'm proud of that. And I'm proud of what we all did here at this blog.

Things end, though. Opportunity doesn't knock very often in this economy, so when it does you'd better answer it. That's what I'm doing.

I hope you'll all follow me over to Scout.com and help me build something special there, something just as special as we had over here. For those who do, I'll be waiting. For those who take a pass, I'll miss you.

Thanks for everything.

EP