Will the Pitching Improve or Regress? (split from IWST)

[metsmarathon]

[crossout:37pom1i3]solid[/crossout:37pom1i3] stellar pitching and a bevy of inexpensive players capable of giving you marginal wins.

[batmagadanleadoff]

It helps when the team knows how to get the best rather than the worst from its players. One team limits Francoeur, for the most part, to starts against lefty pitchers and late inning defense while another team (that we're all familiar with) plays him as if he were Willie Mays.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Relatedly, giving a reasonable chance to guys like Carter is a good way to find out if their impressive but narrow skills are enough get you anywhere.

[Centerfield]

So what you're saying is, we're good enough to win.

We're just too dumb.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Well, I don't know about we, but I certainly felt last year that Jerry's strategy made a lesser team of them.

[Gwreck]

Centerfield wrote: So what you're saying is, we're good enough to win. We're just too dumb.

Interesting point but wrong.

It's about the pitching. We don't have pitching anywhere near as good as what San Francisco or Philadelphia (or even San Diego, who missed the playoffs) have.

[Guest Edgy DC]

The Giants were in a class by themselves, but the Mets, with an ERA+ of 105, sat just behind Philadelphia and San Diego, who posted figures of 110 and 108, respectively.

The Mets pitching was fine.

[Gwreck]

I thought we were looking towards 2011 more than back at 2010. I think it's a reasonable assumption that the Mets will get (significantly?) more production from their outfielders in 2011 than 2010, but also reasonable to assume that pitching stands to get worse (as the team is currently composed).

[Guest Edgy DC]

I thought we we looking backward.

I think the notion that the Mets pitching as currently will get worse is a reasonable asssumption, but I wouldn't call it a safe one.

[Ceetar]

Gwreck wrote: I thought we were looking towards 2011 more than back at 2010. I think it's a reasonable assumption that the Mets will get (significantly?) more production from their outfielders in 2011 than 2010, but also reasonable to assume that pitching stands to get worse (as the team is currently composed).

Will it? I think Santana could have roughly the same season (missing the beginning over the end)

I don't know that Dickey will regress.

Niese theoretically will grow a bit.

I think Pelfrey could improve, slightly, by minimizing the horrendous bottoms, something I hope a new pitching coach helps with.

I don't think we have a fifth right now. Perez? (can't get worse) Maine? (Finally not injured) Misch? (He'll be Misch-like) I don't think it's unreasonable for Alderson to find a contributing starting pitching somewhere out there.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I fear that Santana will miss more time in 2011 than he did in 2010. Maine will probably be gone, but I do think that the starts that Perez and Maine got in 2010 will be replaced by better efforts from someone else in 2011. And I also agree that Niese will probably be better.

Pelfrey had a really good year, but in the middle had a really horrible July. I don't know what to think about him for 2011. Hopefully we'll see more consistency and/or some improvement, but he could, perhaps, just as easily go the other way and decline.

[Ceetar]

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I fear that Santana will miss more time in 2011 than he did in 2010. Maine will probably be gone, but I do think that the starts that Perez and Maine got in 2010 will be replaced by better efforts from someone else in 2011. And I also agree that Niese will probably be better. Pelfrey had a really good year, but in the middle had a really horrible July. I don't know what to think about him for 2011. Hopefully we'll see more consistency and/or some improvement, but he could, perhaps, just as easily go the other way and decline.

Yeah, Pelfrey's a conundrum. A lot could hinge on what filler Sandy finds for the 5th spot and how they do. We'll know more about Santana by spring, but it'd be a nice change for him to be healthy and part of a pennant race, even if that means a slow start to the season by all.

[Gwreck]

I think we're heading into needing-a-split-topic territory.

I think the safe assumption is that Santana misses more time in 2011 than he missed in 2010. The next time a Mets player returns from surgery in a timely fashion and performs at a high-quality level will be the first time.*


*Ok, maybe not exactly. But recent history tells us to expect a longer-than-originally-predicted recovery, and an adjustment period of lesser results from the player when they return.