Passing the Hat for Endy

[Guest Edgy DC]

Praise be to number ten.

[seawolf17]

Dear Mr. Chavez,

When you signed your contract this off-season, I questioned the sanity of Omar Minaya, and made several statements to the effect that you were "not worthy of a major league roster spot." Please accept my humblest apologies and best wishes for your continued success.

Sincerely,
Seawolf

[metirish]

[Guest KC]

Diamond Dad sung praise for brining in Endy to me on opening day. I don't
remember what I answered to him, it may have just been a nod and a yah
hah at best. Damn know-it-all roto guys.

[Elster88]

Good job kid.

[Frayed Knot]

Remember that the choice was between him and Tike Redman -- the vote would have been close.

[Zvon]

Endy,

I am making you your own custom KaBOOM.
Reyes doesnt even have one of those yet.
Now, dont be swingin for the fences everytime up,
but dont let me down either.
Next time you hit one out, Ill be ready.
Theres no rush-- dont feel pressured.
Make it count.

Zvon, the wizard of graphics.

[Guest Edgy DC]

I take the blame.

Prematurely celebrating a performance outside of the IGT while the game was still to be finished.

My very own Milledge faux pas.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

Mothballing the Give it up for Endy thread has had grave consequences as well.

And the fact that they keep hitting first inning home runs -- think it has something to do with the fact we never knew this enemy? Goddamn it, this is 100% true, at the game the other night the first two things I wondered were "Why isn't Nomar in the starting lineup?" and "Why's that guy (Ronny Cedeno) wearing Nomar's number?" And it took me a whole inning to remember Craig Brazell's name.

[Willets Point]

If you're going to keep criticizing that I wish you'd at least respond to one of my posts on the subject.

[metirish]

Very true Dickshot, the KTE has suffered lately......I was surprised to see Dusty in the dugout for fecks sake...

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

Willets Point wrote: If you're going to keep criticizing that I wish you'd at least respond to one of my posts on the subject.

On Endy? Or on mothballing? I know, you gotta keep it clean, I'm not complaining about you, just remarking it's a shame that sometimes you can't find what you need when you need it. I don't have good enuf memory or enuf time to remind myself to remind you which threads oughta survive, and Endy is a pretty wobbly topic to put up a fight for, so nevermind. Sorry.

[Willets Point]

Here is Give it up for Endy. The mothballs are keeping it from evil internet moths.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

Ya just neever know when you're gonna hafta give it up for Endy.

[Gwreck]

For what it's worth, I think quite a few people at the game last night already got the message. Cheers had died down after he got back to the dugout but then an "En-dy! En-dy!" chant broke out and he got what I think might've been his first curtain call.

[MFS62]

="Frayed Knot"]Remember that the choice was between him and Tike Redman -- the vote would have been close.

I've read several times that Endy is one of Omar's personal favorites. I think he may have been the one who originally scouted/ signed him. And whern he was available, Omar drafted him for Montreal. When he was signed by the Mets, we looked at the fact that he had low OBPs for a "Speedy little leadoff type centerfielder". But Willie hasn't used him much (if ever) in either role, and he has performed well when needed.

Quick side note - because Omar seems to be very loyal to players likes/ has done business with before, when Nady went down I expected him to try to lure Sammy Sosa to the Mets. Last week, Sammy announced that he migh come back for the "right offer". And This week, Omar said something like not all deals have to be done by the end of this month. Stay tuned once the rosters expand in September.

We now return you to your love for Endy thread.

Later

[Elster88]

Bringing Sammy Sosa to the team will prove to me that Omar is stupid. No matter what else happens. If we win the WS this year and go 162-0 next year, it will not change that opinion of Omar if Sammy ever puts on a Met jersey.

[Guest Edgy DC]

]And This week, Omar said something like not all deals have to be done by the end of this month. Stay tuned once the rosters expand in September.

He was very specific in saying that he was referring to trades of players that pass through the waiver wire. And anybody acquired after roster expansion is scarcely relevant.

[Frayed Knot]

The media seem to work under the assumption that everyone who has ever played for Omar was there (and will eventually be here) specifically and solely because he's a personal favorite and whether or not he can actually play is treated as a non-factor in the decision process. The only one who seems to even remotely fit that bill that I've seen is Julio Franco and, given the role he's in, it's not like that's been a bad move roster-wise. So until shown othewise, I think I'm going to refrain from panicking in advance over moves that might be made in the name of favoritism.


And my only point on keeping N. D. Chavez is that it was hardly a clear cut move as the season broke - yet it's tough to believe that it could have worked out better had they chosen to go w/Redman.


On a side note, I was making a case the other night for Endy as a poor-man's Ichiro.
Think about it: Similar size & build, both lefty/lefty speedy OFers w/good gloves & arms. Similar type of lithe flexible body with that hips-bailing-toward-1st kind of swing that slaps the ball around most of the time yet can & will put a charge into it when all those moving parts time things out just right.
Same type of skills, only, y'know .... not as good; specifically not the amazing hand/eye coordination that puts wood to leather as consistantly.

[Guest Edgy DC]

I decided to look up Tike Redman today. He's now laboring for the AA Corpus Christi Hooks after turning in some dreadful numbers in his first 300 at-bats for the Toledo Mud Hens.

http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/app/milb/stats/stats.jsp?n=Tike%20Redman&pos=LF&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=276523

[metirish]

] On a side note, I was making a case the other night for Endy as a poor-man's Ichiro.

Word outta Seattle is that Ichiro is not that keen to sign another contract as he wants to play for a winner, his current contrat expires after the 07 season,appaernetly he's not happy with the direction the club is going in.

[Guest ScarletKnight41]

metirish wrote: ] On a side note, I was making a case the other night for Endy as a poor-man's Ichiro. Word outta Seattle is that Ichiro is not that keen to sign another contract as he wants to play for a winner, his current contrat expires after the 07 season,appaernetly he's not happy with the direction the club is going in.

Wow - I can imagine my mother-in-law's reaction when Ichiro signs with the MFYs.

[Frayed Knot]

I heard that "report" too but it's basically just speculation at this point.

The thinking is that since his contract is up after next season that this winter would be the time to either talk to him about signing longer or maybe explore trading him before he can walk on his own if the Mariners' slide into mediocrity (or worse) is getting to him enough to make him want to look elsewhere.

[Gwreck]

Badump for the 4-4 with 2 RBI.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

The bunt was fun and well-done but as he showed in his next turn, the drag bunt rarely beats the drive over the right fielder's head as a strategy.

That said, Endy plays like he got a blood transfusion from Mookie Wilson.

Poor Phillies: They may have cost themselves a postseason or two waiting for Marlon Byrd to be the man, and finally gave up, getting Chavez in a trade. Then they let Chavez fly and he goes around killing a new round of playoff hopes.

[metirish]

I didn't know Endy was part of the Mets organization before.

] The Mets had Endy Chávez for five seasons before deciding in 2000 that they did not want him anymore. They did not want him in 2001. Or in 2002, either. Now Manager Willie Randolph cannot imagine life without him. How Chávez went from disposable to indispensable, in his fourth tour in the Mets’ organization, is one of the captivating storylines of the Mets’ ascent in the National League. Signed in December as a free agent after playing not particularly well for two teams last season, Chávez has become the Mets’ Mr. Everything. “You always have guys on your team who you appreciate more than others, and that’s Endy,” Randolph said. “When you look at him play, he’s as fundamentally sound as you get. He does everything well. He hits, he throws, he plays defense, he puts the bat on the ball. He’s a real luxury.” Injuries and trades have done their best to disrupt the Mets’ outfield, but the one constant has been Chávez. He began the season as a pinch-hitter, and he ingratiated himself by thriving as a replacement for injured players. Now, given a chance to play every day, Chávez often finds himself as the central figure in a game’s most decisive moments. Most recently, it was his two-run double that keyed the Mets’ seven-run seventh inning in their 11-5 victory Saturday night against surging Philadelphia. The hit capped a 4-for-4 evening and raised his average to .307, the highest it has been since the end of May. When the Mets took two of three games against Arizona in late May, Chávez scored the winning run in the first victory, then drove in the winner in the 13th inning of the second. On July 20 in Cincinnati, Chávez hit a two-out double in the 10th inning that scored the go-ahead run. “Sometimes, I say, ‘Wow, this is crazy,’ ” Chávez said of his late-game dramatics. “I’ve done this before, but not as much as I’ve done this season.” A key, Chávez acknowledged, has been embracing who he is. Listed generously as 6 feet and 165 pounds, Chávez came into spring training with the reputation as a superb defensive outfielder but a batter with a long, loopy swing and a high leg kick befitting a power hitter. After returning from the World Baseball Classic, where he played for Venezuela, Chávez worked extensively with the Mets’ hitting coach, Rick Down, to develop a compact swing. Chávez would make the team, he figured, by putting the ball in play. He has a keen instinct for the rhythm of a game, knowing when to bunt or swing away, how to track a fly ball and which route to take when cutting off a ball in the gap or down the line. Chávez has nine outfield assists, tied for sixth in the N.L., and he has not committed an error in the 613 2/3 innings he has played this season. On several occasions, Randolph said he had marveled that Chávez had caught balls he assumed would be extra-base hits. “I’m always trying to be a better player and do everything right,” Chávez said. “That means not being lazy, that means always having energy and having good body language. I know kids are watching, so I try to be a good example for them.” Indirectly, the 28-year-old Chávez has served as a model for one of the Mets’ kids — José Reyes. When instructing the excitable and free-swinging Reyes, Randolph often tells him to watch Chávez hit with two strikes. In that situation, Chávez chokes up on the bat, shortens his swing and waits until late in the pitch’s path, giving him valuable extra time to see the ball. He is trying to hit to the opposite field, usually on the ground, to take advantage of his speed. Chávez has struck out only four times since July 30, and his .274 average with two strikes is seventh in the N.L. “I pay more attention when Chavy bats now,” Reyes said. “He knows what to do with two strikes, and I don’t want to strike out.” Chávez was signed out of Valencia, Venezuela, as an undrafted free agent in 1996 and was voted the top player on his rookie-league team in 1997, but he never advanced above Class A over the next three seasons. Left unprotected for the Rule 5 draft in 2000, Chávez was taken by the Kansas City Royals. He returned to the Mets briefly, then went back to the Royals. In December 2001, the Detroit Tigers claimed him off waivers, where he lasted six weeks before the Mets signed him again. Three weeks later, the Mets dropped him. He had a fan, however, in Omar Minaya, the Expos’ general manager at the time, and 10 days after taking over in Montreal, Minaya signed him. Chávez had his best season in 2004, when he batted .277 for the Expos, hit 6 triples, scored 65 runs, stole 32 bases and struck out only 40 times in 502 at-bats. After the Expos moved to Washington and changed general managers, Chávez fell out of favor for his reluctance to bunt and take pitches. He was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies on May 14, 2005. He batted .215 in 91 games and was not offered a contract after the season. Two teams — the Mets and the Orioles — pursued Chávez, but he signed with the Mets because of his familiarity with Minaya and the chance to play all outfield positions. The deal has worked out better than expected for both sides. “Omar liked him a lot, but I didn’t know a lot about him,” Randolph said. “Omar told me that he could play defense and promised me that I’d like him. Well, I like him.” The Mets are paying a bench player’s salary ($500,000) for a solid and steady everyday outfielder. Chávez earned the opportunity to start — and start fresh — for a team that once had little use for him. “They’ve treated me very well,” Chávez said. “You never know where this game will take you, “but I’d like to come back next season. I’m having a lot of fun here.’’

[Benjamin Grimm]

I hope Endy doesn't slip away like Marlon Anderson did. He's the type of role player that championship teams always seem to have.

[Guest Johnny Dickshot]

] didn't know Endy was part of the Mets organization before.

As the article sez, several times. Endy also had a brother in the org called Ender Chavez. I wonder what happened to him.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Endy should marry Edgardo Alfonzo's sister.

They'd have to compromise on what they'd name the children. Maybe half of the kids would be named a variant of Endy and the other half would be a variant of Edgar.

[Guest ScarletKnight41]

Endgar