The Pen in Ten

[TransMonk]

Is Takahashi already not impressing?

[Benjamin Grimm]

I imagine that they want their eggs in multiple baskets.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Pet peeve of mine: GMs going after "a lefty" instead of "someone to handle lefties."

Not sure how much of this is due to "old-school" baseball guys and how much is due to "old-school" baseball writers.

On the plus side, Igarashi seems to be impressing with his command and curve.

[smg58]

Ohman is at camp with the Orioles. Beimel at a million is pretty good value. On the right side, Kiko Calero at $2M or less would be even better value. Other than Frankie and Feliciano there are no sure things in the Mets pen, so I have no problem with adding legit guys on the cheap.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Once we're talking about 2M for BP help, I start thinking the money's better spent elsewhere.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

smg58 wrote: Ohman is at camp with the Orioles. Beimel at a million is pretty good value. On the right side, Kiko Calero at $2M or less would be even better value. Other than Frankie and Feliciano there are no sure things in the Mets pen, so I have no problem with adding legit guys on the cheap.

Rubin's twittered correction:

Mets official misspoke yesterday when mentioning Ohman as LH reliever to sign. He's inked. Insider meant Ron Mahay, Joe Beimel. about an hour ago

[Frayed Knot]

Bring up Ike Davis and make him a situational LHP when he's not playing elsewhere.

















OK I'm not really serious but it can't hurt to think about once he is called up

[MFS62]

Been there, done that, with a guy named Clint Hartung. He was a NY Giants prospect. They couldn't figure out if he would turn out to be a great pitcher or a great hitter. He was neither.

Although, there was this guy named Babe Ruth ...

Later

[Gwreck]

Mets extended an offer to Beimel (says Beimel): http://www.nydailynews.com/blogs/mets/2010/02/beimel-confirms-mets-offer.html

Beimel is the idiot who cut his hand on a broken glass while getting boozed up prior to the Division Series in 2006. Some funny stuff here: http://laist.com/2007/04/12/better_know_a_dodger_joe_beimel.php

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Thanks for that. Needed an explanation for 97.

[MFS62]

By Alden Gonzalez / MLB.com

03/25/10 8:02 PM ET JUPITER, Fla. -- Considering he's relied upon so heavily in the Mets' bullpen, Pedro Feliciano was given a nice little break recently. Now, with about a week and a half remaining in Spring Training, he'll be used rather steadily as he aims to prepare himself for what will probably be another 80-appearance season in relief for the Amazin's. But the veteran left-hander has something else in mind. "I just want to be the setup man," Feliciano said prior to his club's game against the Cardinals at Roger Dean Stadium, which resulted in a 2-1 loss. "I don't want to be the lefty specialist. ... I want to be the setup man. I want to be the eighth-inning guy, and I want to prove to the organization that I can pitch to righties like I pitch to lefties." Feliciano has been one of the key cogs in the Mets' bullpen for a while. Over the last four years, he's put up a 3.04 ERA while appearing in an average of 79 games per season. In 2008 and '09, he led the Major Leagues in games pitched with 86 and 88, respectively. And last season, he put up a 3.04 ERA with a career-best 3.28 strikeout-to-walk ratio. With hopeful setup man Kelvim Escobar starting the season on the disabled list, the eighth inning is a relative toss-up in Mets camp, one that could eventually be inhabited by Kiko Calero, Ryota Igarashi or even Jenrry Mejia -- after he's eased into the big leagues first. But Feliciano said pitching coach Dan Warthen asked him recently if he would embrace the eighth-inning role if it fell upon him. Now, he wants it. "I see [J.J.] Putz is gone, and nobody's set up as the setup man," Feliciano said. "I want to get that position. I want to win it. I'm working with the righties like I'm doing with the lefties. And I just want to leave Spring Training as the setup man." But Feliciano may be a victim of his past success. The 33-year-old southpaw has held lefties to a .214 batting average throughout his seven-year career. Other than Feliciano, the Mets don't really have a lefty who could come in and get a big out against a lefty slugger -- say, Ryan Howard or Chase Utley -- late in the game. Japanese lefty Hisanori Takahashi is a candidate for the bullpen, but he's been mostly a starter throughout his pro career. While dominating lefties, Feliciano has surrendered a .272 career batting average to righties. But after right-handed hitters pounded him for a .357 batting average in '08, they hit just .264 against him in '09. This spring, he's continued to work on implementing a cut fastball against righty hitters. If it turns out that he's not the setup man to begin the season, that's fine with Feliciano. But he wants to be a full-inning guy. "If they decide with me to be ... the seventh-inning [guy], I'll be there, whatever they want," said Feliciano, who amassed just 59 1/3 innings in his 88 appearances last year. "But I don't want to be the lefty specialist." Since taking a one-hopper off the right knee against the Marlins last Thursday, Feliciano hasn't pitched. Not because he's been hurt, but because the Mets want to save his arm as much as possible for the rigors of the season. Now, after throwing to one batter on Thursday, Feliciano is scheduled to pitch again on Friday, then get an off-day on Saturday before pitching in back-to-back days to get himself cranked up again for the season. Despite pitching for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic last year before leading the big leagues in appearances, Feliciano said his arm was never sore "at all," and Mets manager Jerry Manuel said: "He can probably go to New York right now and wait for us to get there." "Hopefully I break my record again this year," Feliciano said with a smile. And though he'll be 34 by the end of August, Feliciano believes he can keep making 80-some appearances again this season and possibly beyond. "I work so hard in the offseason that I'm not scared of pitching 90 games, I'm not scared of getting up [in the bullpen] 100 times," Feliciano said. "I'm ready, and I know that my body's ready for more and more years."

Later

[metirish]

" That Pedro is crazy"

Not going to happen is it?

[Guest Edgy DC]

Depends on how the situation unfolds. He's been allowed to pitch full innings before. And lefty specialist work often occurs in the eighth.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Yes, the pen's packed with candidates, and they'd probably have to exercise both the Green and Parnell options to get him on the Opening Day roster, but if they're really interested in a second lefty-shutdown guy, the Red Sox just let one go in Brian Shouse. How good has he been against lefties?

2007 (Brewers) vs LH: 23.2 IP, 7.99 K/9, 2.28 BB/9, .212 AVG, 3.26 xFIP

2008 (Brewers) vs LH: 29.0 IP, 8.69 K/9, 0.62 BB/9, .180 AVG, 2.11 xFIP

2009 (Rays) vs LH: 17.2 IP, 7.13 K/9, 0.51 BB/9, .231 AVG, 2.55 xFIP

Basically, he's Pedro Dos... Dos. (Just whiter and older... but spry enough for a brisk, say, 40 IP.)

[Guest Edgy DC]

That's some tiny workloads. Those look like a week for Tom Seaver.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Well, yeah-- keep in mind, though, that in the age of the LOOGY/ROOGY, those 25-30 IP can come in 45-50 appearances; add in mop-up/stopgap work and he's clocking 45-50 IP in a season. (His workload's about what PedroDos' was before last year's lunchpail-hefting.)

[seawolf17]

Shouse closed for the Red Wings many years ago when I was in Rochester, and he was a shutdown guy for them then.

[Guest metsguyinmichigan]

seawolf17 wrote: Shouse closed for the Red Wings many years ago when I was in Rochester, and he was a shutdown guy for them then.

The late Silver Stadium! Sweet! I have a Red Wings jacket I bought from the stadium there when I spent that weekend with Mickey Weston. But when I where it around here people think it's the hockey team.

As for the pen, PedroDos is in a scenario Aaron Heilman was in when he was good -- too good at what he was doing to put him in a different role.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Which can be unhealthy.

Weekend with Mickey Weston? You don't say.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

MGiM: Did you and Mickey go bed-and-breakfast? Or did you go bargain hotel, and save your money for meals?

[seawolf17]

I don't want to interrupt the flow, because this thread is going to get good now, but it was at the new Frontier Field after they closed Silver after the 1996 season.

[metirish]

Feliciano is the 8th inning guy says Marty Noble


http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20100329&content_id=8982670&vkey=news_nym&fext=.jsp&c_id=nym&partnerId=rss_nym

[ashie62]

Pedro has earned it

[metirish]

Manuel on Mejia

Newsday


Regarding Jenrry

It appears as if the Mets are going to bring 20-year-old reliever Jenrry Mejia along slowly. Manuel was asked if he would bring Mejia into the game in the eighth inning Monday if the Mets held a one- or two-run lead.

"I wouldn't give him the ball [today]," he said. "Not in that situation. No."

I guess my thoughts on that would be why not have him in AAA working those types of situations.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Metirish wrote: I guess my thoughts on that would be why not have him in AAA working those types of situations.

I'm not sayin' nothin'.

(I'm just nodding so vigorously they should give me away at a ballgame.)

[Guest OlerudOwned]

I'd rather he be in AAA working on the type of situation where he gets the ball at the beginning of the game and uses multiple secondary pitches over the course of at least 5 innings. What's that called again?

[Benjamin Grimm]

I'm with Olerud.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

That's what I meant.

Opening Day lowers my reading comp.

[metirish]

Well yeah , it's what I would like too.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

So, Green goes down, Valdes comes up, we've got 7 nations represented at the major-league level, and all's hunky-dory, right?

Well, except for the fact that, since Escobar's on the 15-day DL and not the 60-man (on which he wouldn't count against the 40-man roster), the Mets had to release Rule V pick Clint Everts (live-armed 25-year-old former first-rounder who had minor-league success last year) to make room for Portside Dessens over there (situational lefty with no platoon split, and, like, 20 innings of organized ball pitched in the last two years) on the 40-man.

A little fumble, yes, but... it's just nice to know the team's learned its lesson regarding not giving away talent for free when there are other alternatives.