What Your Friendly Bloggers Are Up To

[Edgy MD]

Faith and Fear in Flushing looks at the legend of Daniel Murphy, credit deflector.

Amazin' Avenue is reviewing each player's season. They're on Harvey. (Spoiler Alert: It doesn't end well.)

Mets360 goes way back and conducts an interview with former prospect Jeff Grose.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Amazin' Avenue is reviewing each player's season. They're on Harvey. (Spoiler Alert: It doesn't end well.)

"Borderline"?

[Edgy MD]

Yeah, tough to give a review of a season that's been so vividly memorable. A tossed-off adjective like that comes off as a real boner.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Loved the Jeff Grose piece.

[Edgy MD]

Yeah, almost nothing bad there. Adds to the legends of Stearns, Reardon, Chuck Fuckin' Hiller, and himself a little bit too.

Dude somehow managed to be a modestly effective minor league pitcher, climbing the ladder each year and sticking in the rotation, while somehow walking 6.1 batters per nine innings. Amazin'!

[Edgy MD]

1970s Baseball gives us 20 facts you may not know about Dave Kingman.

The Daily Stache talks with knuckleballing prospect/suspect Mickey Jannis.

And going back to October, Cardboard Gods looks at the Mets, the Royals, Bret Saberhagen, Ron Hodges, and everything.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Edgy MD wrote: 1970s Baseball gives us 20 facts you may not know about Dave Kingman.

I was just thinking about Kingman this week. He's one of the most fascinating players, ever, really, and I was surprised that there isn't a biography of Kingman out there. I suppose Kingman's not exactly the cooperating type either, but time does change things.

[Edgy MD]

I meant to mention this in the post, but Kingman turned 67 yesterday.

I want to someday co-write a paper on Kingman, looking at his career from a psychological standpoint. There's something about the psyche of giants (lower-case g) that they're damned for doing what their good at and damned for not doing what they aren't good at. The world can be to them like Curley in Of Mice and Men, picking fights with them that they just can't win even when they win.

It can get them screwed up and getting in their own way. He, Strawberry, and Duda all have had their own ways of adapting to being the biggest guy on the bus. They've adopted differing mindsets of (speculatively) varying levels of emotional health, but all seemingly got crossed up to one degree or another along the way.

[Guest d'Kong76]

Our friend at Studious Metsimus is more upbeat than some of us...

Mets Already Have Enough Offense to Win 90+ Games There's a veritable All-Star team of unsigned free agent hitters heading into the new year. Players like Chris Davis, Justin Upton, Alex Gordon, Denard Span, Dexter Fowler and yes, even Yoenis Cespedes are still available for any team to sign. The Mets have signed two free agents in shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera and outfielder Alejandro De Aza. They also traded for second baseman Neil Walker. All signs point to the Mets being done as far as bringing in another big-name hitter is concerned. This has made a number of Mets fans unhappy, as they claim that the team is not much better than it was last spring and early summer, when it struggled to stay above .500 until Sandy Alderson acquired Kelly Johnson, Juan Uribe and Cespedes. But I disagree with those complaining fans.

Read the rest here

[Zvon]

A blog sharing tip:

Before you link a blog page (if it's the current lead piece on the blog) click on the title of the entry on that blog page. Nothing will change (it might re-load) and you will be provided with a more specific URL.

It will isolate the work (in this case an article) and give it a separate URL that will take you right to the page desired, even if it is no longer the lead (other articles have been written and posted, so it falls off-further and further as time goes by) article on the blog.

You usually end up with a link that includes the name of the article/piece/page or post. So the above article will be forever and directly linked if this URL is used:

http://studiousmetsimus.blogspot.com/2016/01/mets-already-have-enough-offense-to-win.html

Other wise the link will forever take you to whatever lead story StMetsimus is currently displaying on its lead page.

[Zvon]

What is said there is nice and comforting but I think the lack of one big bat puts too much pressure on those young pitchers. How many games were decided by 1 run last year? I feel it's a lot to expect the pitching to completely carry the team. I don't think that the new additions replace what was lost offensively. I want these young guns to be able to relax and do their jobs. That's so much more difficult when the team doesn't score runs.

I like what he says, but I can't agree. If it goes that way I will not complain and gladly be wrong.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Saturday, January 2, 2016
Mets Already Have Enough Offense to Win 90+ Games

fair use excerpt:

as long as the Mets don't have a 1987-like epidemic of injuries to their pitchers, the team as constructed today should surpass last season's 90-win total. Here's why. In 2015, the brilliant quartet of Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz combined to start 89 of the team's 162 games. The Mets' record in those games was 55-34. When someone other than the fearsome foursome started, the team went 35-38.... In the days before Conforto, Johnson, Uribe and Cespedes were on the team, the young core of homegrown starting pitchers combined to start 51 of the club's 96 games. The Mets had a 29-22 record in those games, for a .569 winning percentage. The team did not fare as well when the other starters were on the mound in the first 96 games, going 20-25 (.444 winning percentage) in those 45 contests. In the final 66 games, when the offense was among the best in the game, the Mets went 26-12 in games started by deGrom, Harvey, Syndergaard and Matz. They also had a winning record in games not started by those four hurlers, going 15-13 in those 28 affairs. Think about that for a moment. The Mets were 90-72 during the 2015 regular season. That's a .556 winning percentage. Yet through July 24, when the likes of Michael Cuddyer, Eric Campbell, John Mayberry Jr., Darrell Ceciliani and Kevin Plawecki were starting games regularly, the team had a .569 winning percentage when deGrom, Harvey, Syndergaard and Matz started games with those offensively-challenged players in the lineup. That's a 92-win pace.

http://studiousmetsimus.blogspot.com/2016/01/mets-already-have-enough-offense-to-win.html


[fimg=333]http://cdn.rsvlts.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/Babe-Ruth-Boston-Red-Sox-26.jpg[/fimg]

[Centerfield]

What is said there is nice and comforting but I think the lack of one big bat puts too much pressure on those young pitchers. How many games were decided by 1 run last year? I feel it's a lot to expect the pitching to completely carry the team. I don't think that the new additions replace what was lost offensively. I want these young guns to be able to relax and do their jobs. That's so much more difficult when the team doesn't score runs. I like what he says, but I can't agree. If it goes that way I will not complain and gladly be wrong.

Agree 100%.

The author does some good work. It is a much better argument than some who try to justify the Mets' lackluster offseason, but I think he makes some big assumptions:

1. Injuries: He mentions it in brief. But his idea is that absent a 1987-like epidemic, the Mets should be fine. This is faulty thinking. A couple of minor trips to the DL for even just two of those starters can have a big impact on his theory. A few missed starts by the big four and suddenly his 92 win projection drops to 88 or 89. Suddenly, the outcome of the season is much more in question.

2. Performance: You mentioned the 1 run games. Definitely a factor. On top of that, imagine if the big four take just a small step back. This is not out of the question since Matz and Syndergaard don't even have a full season's experience combined. And the pressure you cite. I think it's a dick move to tell your young guns "Hey, we skimped out on the bats because you guys are great. Now go out there and pitch like aces." These four pitched great last season. If they fall to "pretty good", we fall below 90 wins.

3. The Rest of the Division: Last year the Mets reached 90 wins in large part by beating up on some crap teams. Atlanta will suck again. They might even be worse. But Philly had some nice young players and may take a step forward (they won't contend, but they might be better). And Miami you'd think would definitely take step up with the return of Jose Fernandez. (Suddenly some of those 2-1 wins become 1-0 losses). Washington is the wild card here. As they stand now, they might not win much more than 83 games. But the indications are that Washington is not done yet. They've been linked to some big names, so we'll have to wait and see. My point is that you can't assume last year's win percentages will hold since the competition will be different. And most likely, better.

And most importantly, since when is "good enough" our goal. The goal of the offseason should be to put the best team possible on the field. Opportunities to put together a 110 win juggernaut don't come around often. I am not exaggerating when I say an opportunity this good with four potential aces may never happen again in our lifetimes (many of us are middle aged, when has this ever happened before?). It is absolutely foolish not to take advantage of it.

Look, I still think we can be a good team, and I think we will win 90 games too. But it's certainly not a given.

On Edit:
I may be wrong about Washington. I just looked a their team. Their lineup is pretty solid. Daniel Murphy, Anthony Rendon and Bryce Harper are a nice core. Throw in Werth and Zimmerman and they're going to score some runs. Their rotation lost Zimmerman, but they still have Scherzer, Strassburg and Gio Gonzalez. If they don't underachieve again, they might be at 85-90 wins as constructed.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Not that I'm first to this assessment, but basically, the offensive floor's been raised, but the ceiling is nowhere near where it was during last year's second half. (And even then, other, slightly more expensive signings would have raised the floor more.)

And now I use the feelings I just re-raised in myself to fuel an angry morning workout.

[Edgy MD]

Splice Today looks at the the Cespedes signing through the lens of 1980s hardcore and rejects the thinking behind it.

Studious Metsimus tries to play a similar game with the Beatles, looking at the too-easily overlooked Mets career of Chris Jones.

Uni Watch looks at the grossly under-reported story of mesh panels added to the bottoms of Majestic jerseys, which is a cheap and perhaps more lightweight and comfortable way to help tops stay tucked in, but will look bonkers on fans, who tend to wear their jerseys untucked.

[Guest d'Kong76]

That Spike Vrusho piece gave me a headache.

[TransMonk]

Edgy MD wrote: Uni Watch looks at the grossly under-reported story of mesh panels added to the bottoms of Majestic jerseys, which is a cheap and perhaps more lightweight and comfortable way to help tops stay tucked in, but will look bonkers on fans, who tend to wear their jerseys untucked.

I bought two jerseys last season and now I'm extremely glad I did. Still, I don't see how those mesh tails can last.

The '86 throwbacks look cool.

[TransMonk]

[Zvon]

I've been up to no good.

My 69mfc MOBILE METS needed to be corrected. The original design I used was a mishmash of the '67 & '69 Topps designs.
All that work colorizing the photo and only a sliver is used. lol.

[fimg=400]https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-6M8Avr7-tQg/VrQHrqoGZAI/AAAAAAAAlBk/ZX3KXnYZASI/s800-Ic42/69mfcMETSoutfield-z16.png[/fimg]

http://metsfantasycards.blogspot.com/2016/02/mfc-celebrates-mets-outfielders.html

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Updating uni number assignments:

http://www.mbtn.net/?p=2484
--DeAza gets 16
--Plawecki switching to 26
--Blevins selects 39
--Hererra retakes 2
--Bastrado unseats Warthen at 59
--Matt Reynolds assigned 15
etc

[Edgy MD]

Good call on the Bastardo takeover.

Plawecki better start raking if he wants to wear 26.

[Benjamin Grimm]

So what number does Warthen get? He's become such a fixture with the Mets that I'd be tempted to give him Rube Walker's 54.

[Edgy MD]

Curious if they give Brandon Nimmo #1.

[ashie62]

Bloggers- Opinions are like aholes, everybody has one,

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Ashie62 wrote: Bloggers- Opinions are like aholes, everybody has one,

Thanks for that thoughtful contribution.

Nimmo is listed in 77 as he was last year, but I could see a 1 in his future when and if he ascends to the 25. Lots of numbers still open in the 50s for coaches.

The Mets have apparently furnished news outlets with a copy of the updated 40 but not with #s for coaches or NRIs (Stony Pimental, et al).

Would be cool if Wheeler switched 45 to 35 and deGrom into 36.

Then you'd have the starting 5 in a row as the 88 Mets sorta tried to do

[Edgy MD]

Ashie62 wrote: Bloggers- Opinions are like aholes, everybody has one,

I put up a thoughtful thread and populated it with thoughtful contributions — which, clearly, not everybody has.

[seawolf17]

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Would be cool if Wheeler switched 45 to 35 and deGrom into 36.

Yeah, but then in 2028 you have to have the "do we retire 36 for deGrom or Koos?" debate.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

I'm not a blogger I'm a effin reporter:



Bringin home the journalism

[TransMonk]

Very cool.

[Edgy MD]

A round of boilermakers for everybody!!