Roster 2017

[Edgy MD]

The legendary Mike Puma reports that Terry and Sandy have met and Terry expects his staff back in its entirety next season.

Projections below work with the assumption that David Wright and Zack Wheeler open the season on the disabled list or on a rehab assignment, but Harvey et al. will be ready for the opening bell. Obviously that's speculation and there's a lot more to be learned.

That bright green font color isn't working. I need to swap that out.


Projected 2017 Mets Coaching Staff

Position	Manager	Hitting Coach	Pitching Coach	First Base Coach	Third Base Coach
	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/coaches/mugshots/492632.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/coaches/mugshots/438989.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/coaches/mugshots/123951.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/coaches/mugshots/114961.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/coaches/mugshots/123212.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Terry Collins #10	Kevin Long #57	Dan Warthen #38	Tom Goodwin #22	Tim Teufel #11
DoB	5/27/49	12/30/66	12/1/52	7/27/68	7/7/58
Position	Bench Coach	Bullpen Coach	Ass't Batting Coach	Strength and Cond. Coach	Strength and Cond. Coach
	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/coaches/mugshots/121944.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/coaches/mugshots/111191.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/pat-roessler-1.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2014/10/mike-barwis.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2015/03/dustin-clarke-1.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Dick Scott #23	Ricky Bones #25	Pat Roessler #6	Mike Barwis	Dustin Clarke
DoB	7/19/62	4/7/69	12/27/59	6/6/73	circa 1987
Position		Bullpen Catcher		Bullpen Catcher
		[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/coaches/mugshots/534948.jpg[/fimg]		[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/coaches/mugshots/430002.jpg[/fimg]
Name		Dave Racaniello #53		Eric Langill #78
DoB		6/3/78		7/7/58

YOUR Projected2017 New York Mets

Position Group	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher
	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_594798.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/607229.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_518774.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_571927.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_592789.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Jacob deGrom #48	Robert Gsellman #65	Matt Harvey #33	Steven Matz #32	Noah Syndergaard #34
DoB	6/19/88	7/18/93	3/27/89	5/29/91	8/29/92
B/T	L/R	R/R	R/R	R/L	L/R
Primary Position	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher
Other Positions		rp			rp
Status Notes	=#FF0000]Coming Off Surgery =#00BF00]Has Options	Has Options	=#FF0000]Coming Off Surgery =#00BF00]Arbitration Eligible	=#FF0000]Coming Off Surgery =#00BF00]Has Options	=#00BF00] Has Options
MLB Stats	7-8, 3.04 ERA 148 IP 36 BB, 143 SO	4-2, 2.42 ERA 44 2/3 IP 15 BB, 42 SO	4-10, 4.86 ERA 92 2/3 IP 25 BB, 76 SO	9-8, 3.40 ERA 132 1/3 IP 31 BB, 129 SO	14-9, 2.60 ERA 183 2/3 IP 43 BB, 218 SO
AAA Stats		1-5, 5.73 ERA 48 2/3 IP 16 BB, 40 SO
AA Stats		3-4, 2.71 ERA 66 1/3 IP 15 BB, 48 SO
Position Group	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher
	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_572831.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_544727.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_592340.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/449104.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/592665.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Josh Edgin #66	Jeurys Familia #27	Erik Goeddel #62	Jim Henderson #51	Addison Reed #43
DoB	12/17/86	10/10/89	12/20/88	10/21/82	12/27/88
B/T	R/L	R/R	R/R	L/R	L/R
Primary Position	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher
Other Positions
Status Notes	=#00BF00]Arbitration Eligible	=#00BF00]Arbitration Eligible	=#00BF00] Has Options	=#00BF00]Arbitration Eligible	=#00BF00]Arbitration Eligible
MLB Stats	1-0, 5.23 ERA 0 S, 10 1/3 IP 6 BB, 11 SO	3-4, 2.55 ERA 51 S, 77 2/3 IP 31 BB, 84 SO	2-2, 4.54 ERA 0 S, 35 2/3 IP 14 BB, 36 SO	2-2, 4.37 ERA 0 S, 35 IP 14 BB, 40 SO	4-2, 1.97 ERA 1 S, 77 2/3 IP 13 BB, 91 SO
AAA Stats	2-2, 3.51 ERA 2 S, 33 1/3 IP 20 BB, 38 SO		1-1, 4.08 ERA 1 S, 28 2/3 IP 15 BB, 34 SO	0-2, 4.50 ERA 2 S, 8 IP 4 BB, 10 SO
AA Stats				0-1, 15.43 ERA 0 S, 4 2/3 IP 5 BB, 4 SO
A+ Stats	0-0, 2.08 ERA 0 S, 4 1/3 IP 1 BB, 7 SO			0-0, 0.00 ERA 0 S, 1 IP 0 BB, 1 SO
Position Group	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#008000] Catcher	=#008000] Catcher	=#8000FF] Infielder
	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_570663.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/519294.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_518595.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/425784.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/452678.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Hansel Robles #47	Josh Smoker #58	Travis d'Arnaud #18	René Rivera #44	Asdrubal Cabrera #13
DoB	8/13/90	11/26/88	5/30/90	7/31/83	11/13/85
B/T	R/R	L/L	R/R	R/R	S/R
Primary Position	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher	=#008000]Catcher	=#008000]Catcher	=#8000FF]Shortstop
Other Positions				1b
Status Notes	=#00BF00]Has Options	=#00BF00] Has Options	=#00BF00]Arbitration Eligible	=#00BF00]Arbitration Eligible
MLB Stats	6-4, 3.48 ERA 1 S, 77 2/3 IP 36 BB, 85 SO	3-0, 4.70 ERA 0 S, 15 1/3 IP 4 BB, 25 SO	.247 / .307 / .323 // .629 276 PA, 4 HR 15 RBI, 0 SB	.222 / .291 / .341 // .632 206 PA, 6 HR 26 RBI, 0 SB	.280 / .336 / .474 // .810 568 PA, 23 HR 62 RBI, 5 SB
AAA Stats		3-2, 4.11 ERA 3 S, 57 IP 18 BB, 81 SO	.333 / .429 / .500 // .929 `4 PA, 0 HR 1 RBI, 0 SB	.280 / .357 / .320 // .677 29 PA, 0 HR 5 RBI, 0 SB
A+ Stats			.310 / .474 / .379 // .853 38 PA, 0 HR 5 RBI, 1 SB		.333 / .286 / .667 // .952 7 PA, 0 HR 2 RBI, 0 SB
Position Group	=#8000FF] Infielder	=#8000FF] Infielder	=#8000FF] Infielder	=#8000FF] Infielder	=#8000FF] Infielder
	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_446263.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_527038.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/408314.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/608703.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/608061.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Lucas Duda #21	Wilmer Flores #4	José Reyes #7	Matt Reynolds #15	T.J. Rivera #54
DoB	2/3/86	8/6/91	6/11/83	12/3/90	10/27/88
B/T	L/R	R/R	S/R	R/R	R/R
Primary Position	=#8000FF]First Base	=#8000FF]Third Base	=#8000FF]Third Base	=#8000FF]Third Base	=#8000FF]Second Base
Other Positions		ss, 2b, 1b	ss	ss, 2b, lf	3b, lf, 1b
Status Notes	=#00BF00]Arbitration Eligible	=#00BF00]Arbitration Eligible	=#00BF00]Club Option Of Unknown Value	=#00BF00] Has Options	=#00BF00] Has Options
MLB Stats	.229 / .302 / .412 // .714 172 PA, 7 HR 23 RBI, 0 SB	.267 / .319 / .469 // .788 335 PA, 16 HR 49 RBI, 1 SB	.267 / .326 / .443 // .769 279 PA, 8 HR 24 RBI, 9 SB	.225 / .266 / .416 // .682 96 PA, 3 HR 16 RBI, 0 SB	.333 / .345 / .476 // .821 113 PA, 3 HR 16 RBI, 0 SB
AAA Stats			.303 / .425 / .485 // .910 33 PA, 2 HR 2 RBI, 3 SB	.264 / .336 / .357 // .692 299 PA, 2 HR 24 RBI, 9 SB	.353 / .393 / .516 // .909 442 PA, 11 HR 85 RBI, 3 SB
AA Stats		.235 / .263 / .235 // .498 19 PA, 0 HR 1 RBI, 0 SB	.207 / .273 / .241 // .514 33 PA, 0 HR 2 RBI, 1 SB
SS A + Stats			.182 / .357 / .273 // .630 14 PA, 0 HR 1 RBI, 2 SB
Position Group	=#0000FF] Outfielder	=#0000FF] Outfielder	=#0000FF] Outfielder	=#0000FF] Outfielder	=#0000FF] Outfielder
	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/457803.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/624424.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_434158.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_501571.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/448605.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Jay Bruce #19	Michael Conforto #30	Curtis Granderson #3	Juan Lagares #12	Justin Ruggiano #1
DoB	4/3/87	3/1/93	3/16/81	3/17/89	4/12/82
B/T	L/R	L/L	L/R	R/R	R/R
Primary Position	=#0000FF]Right Field	=#0000FF]Left Field	=#FF0000]Right Field	=#FF0000]Center Field	=#FF0000]Center Field
Other Positions	cf	rf, cf	cf, lf	rf, lf	lf, rf
Status Notes	=#00BF00]$13,000,000 Club Option $1,000,000 Buyout	=#00BF00] Has Options			=#00BF00]Arbitration Eligible
MLB Stats	.250 / .309 / .506 // .815 589 PA, 33 HR 99 RBI, 4 SB	.220 / .310 / .414 // .725 348 PA, 12 HR 42 RBI, 2 SB	.237 / .335 / .464 // .799 633 PA, 30 HR 59 RBI, 4 SB	.239 / .301 / .380 // .682 160 PA, 3 HR 9 RBI, 4 SB	.350 / .409 / .650 // 1.059 22 PA, 2 HR 6 RBI, 0 SB
AAA Stats		.422 / .483 / .727 // 1.209 144 PA, 9 HR 28 RBI, 2 SB			.229 / .322 / .423 // .745 222 PA, 7 HR 23 RBI, 3 SB
AA Stats				.333 / .368 / .444 // .813 19 PA, 0 HR 2 RBI, 0 SB

Also on 40-Man Roster

Position Group	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher
	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_543219.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/607625.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_606160.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/548337.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_554430.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Sean Gilmartin #36	Seth Lugo #67	Rafael Montero #50	Logan Verrett #35	Zack Wheeler #45
DoB	11/4/86	11/17/89	10/17/90	6/19/90	5/30/90
B/T	L/L	R/R	R/R	R/R	L/R
Primary Position	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher
Other Positions	rp	rp	rp	rp
Status Notes			=#00BF00] Out of Options		=#FF0000]Projected To Open Season On Disabled List
MLB Stats	0-1, 7.13 ERA 17 2/3 IP 7 BB, 11 SO	5-2, 2.67 ERA 64 IP 21 BB, 45 SO	0-1, 8.05 ERA 19 IP 16 BB, 20 SO	3-8, 5.20 ERA 91 2/3 IP 43 BB, 66 SO	No 2016 Statistics
AAA Stats	9-7, 4.86 ERA 107 1/3 IP 31 BB, 94 SO	3-4, 6.50 ERA 73 1/3 IP 20 BB, 62 SO	4-6, 7.20 ERA 80 IP 40 BB, 68 SO	2-0, 1.50 ERA 12 IP 8 BB, 5 SO
AA Stats			4-3, 2.20 ERA 49 IP 19 BB, 40 SO
Position Group	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#008000] Catcher	=#8000FF] Infielder	=#8000FF] Infielder	=#8000FF] Infielder
	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/593679.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_608700.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_493472.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/608325.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/571841.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Gabriel Ynoa #63	Kevin Plawecki #26	Eric Campbell #29	Gavin Cecchini #2	Ty Kelly #56
DoB	5/26/93	2/26/91	4/9/87	12/22/93	7/20/88
B/T	R/R	R/R	R/R	R/R	S/R
Primary Position	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#008000]Catcher	=#8000FF]First Base	=#8000FF]Shortstop	=#8000FF]Second Base
Other Positions	rp	1b	3b, lf, rf, 2b		3b, cf, lf, 1b, rf
Status Notes			=#00BF00] Out of Options
MLB Stats	1-0, 6.38 ERA 18 1/3 IP 7 BB, 17 SO	.197 / .298 / .265 // .563 151 PA, 1 HR 11 RBI, 0 SB	.173 / .284 / .227 // .511 88 PA, 1 HR 9 RBI, 1 SB	.333 / .429 / .667 // 1.095 7 PA, 0 HR 2 RBI, 0 SB	.241 / .352 / .345 // .697 71 PA, 1 HR 7 RBI, 0 SB
AAA Stats	12-5, 3.97 ERA 154 1/3 IP 40 BB, 78 SO	.300 / .348 / .484 // .832 147 PA, 1 HR 10 RBI, 0 SB	.301 / .390 / .447 // .837 354 PA, 7 HR 47 RBI, 7 SB	.325 / .390 / .448 // .838 499 PA, 8 HR 55 RBI, 4 SB	.328 / .409 / .435 // .844 316 PA, 2 HR 35 RBI, 5 SB
Position Group		=#8000FF] Infielder		=#0000FF] Outfielder
		[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_431151.jpg[/fimg]		[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/607043.jpg[/fimg]
Name		David Wright #5		Brandon Nimmo #9
DoB		12/20/82		3/27/93
B/T		R/R		L/R
Primary Position		=#8000FF]Third Base		=#0000FF]Center Field
Other Positions				lf, rf
Status Notes		=#FF0000]Projected To Open Season On Disabled List
MLB Stats		.226 / .350 / .438 // .788 164 PA, 7 HR 14 RBI, 3 SB		.274 / .338 / .329 // .666 80 PA, 1 HR 6 RBI, 0 SB
AAA Stats				.352 / .423 / .541 // .964 392 PA, 11 HR 61 RBI, 7 SB

Major League Free Agents

Position Group	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#8000FF] Infielder
	[fimg=90]http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_112526.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/477003.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://washington.nationals.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_460283.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/477569.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/430637.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Bartolo Colón #40	Jonathon Niese #49	Jerry Blevins #39	Fernando Salas #59	Kelly Johnson #55
DoB	5/24/73	10/27/86	6/6/83	5/30/85	2/22/82
B/T	R/R	L/L	L/L	R/R	L/R
Primary Position	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#8000FF]Second Base
Other Positions	rp	rp			3b, lf, 1b, rf, ss
Status Notes		=#00BF00]$10,000,000 Club Option $500,000 Buyout
MLB Stats	15-8, 3.43 ERA 191 2/3 IP 31 BB, 128 SO	8-7, 5.50 ERA 121 IP 47 BB, 88 SO	4-2, 2.79 ERA 2 S, 42 IP 15 BB, 52 SO	3-7, 3.91 ERA 6 S, 73 2/3 IP 19 BB, 64 SO	.247 / .306 / .391 // .698 333 PA, 10 HR 34 RBI, 4 SB
Position Group	=#8000FF] Infielder	=#8000FF] Infielder		=#0000FF] Outfielder	=#0000FF] Outfielder
	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/425766.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/435522.jpg[/fimg]		[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/493316.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/images/players/head_shot/457477.jpg[/fimg]
Name	James Loney #28	Neil Walker #20		Yoenis Céspedes #52	Alejandro de Aza #16
DoB	5/7/84	4/9/87		10/18/85	4/11/84
B/T	L/L	S/R		R/R	L/L
Primary Position	=#8000FF]First Base	=#8000FF]Second Base		=#0000FF]Left Field	=#0000FF]Center Field
Other Positions				cf	lf, rf
Status Notes		=#FF0000]Coming Off Surgery		=#00BF00]Two-Year Player Option At $23.75M Per Year
MLB Stats	.265 / .307 / .397 // .703 366 PA, 9 HR 34 RBI, 0 SB	.282 / .347 / .476 // .823 458 PA, 23 HR 55 RBI, 3 SB		.280 / .354 / .530 // .884 543 PA, 31 HR 86 RBI, 3 SB	.205 / .297 / .321 // .618 267 PA, 6 HR 25 RBI, 4 SB
AAA Stats	.342 / .373 / .424 // .797 169 PA, 2 HR 28 RBI, 0 SB

Minor League Free Agents

Position Group	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher
	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/606491/t3705/180x270/606491.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/502373/t505/180x270/502373.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/502102/t400/180x270/502102.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/571719/t400/180x270/571719.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/451131/generic/180x270/451131.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Gabe Almonte	Andrew Barbosa	Duane Below	Darin Gorski	Tyler Herron
DoB	8/15/92	11/18/87	11/15/85	10/6/87	8/5/86
B/T	R/R	R/L	L/L	L/L	R/R
Primary Position	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher
Other Positions	rp	rp	rp	rp
Status Notes
AAA Stats		0-0, 1.80 ERA 5 IP 0 BB, 6 SO	5-12, 5.27 ERA 140 IP 30 BB, 103 SO	6-4, 5.90 ERA 68 2/3 IP 29 BB, 53 SO	1-0, 2.70 ERA 6 2/3 IP 3 BB, 7 SO
AA Stats		2-0, 2.33 ERA 38 2/3 IP 16 BB, 36 SO			2-7, 6.32 ERA 57 IP 17 BB, 45 SO
A+ Stats		1-0, 0.40 ERA 22 1/3 IP 3 BB, 25 SO
A Stats	4-5, 4.78 ERA 81 IP 16 BB, 44 SO
Rookie Stats		0-0, 0.00 ERA 5 2/3 IP 0 BB, 4 SO
Position Group	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher
	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/595263/t505/180x270/595263.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/593670/t505/180x270/593670.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/473646/generic/180x270/473646.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/593604/t505/180x270/593604.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/595231/t507/180x270/595231.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Mickey Jannis	Rainy Lara	Josh Zeid	Alberto Baldonado	Ben Griset
DoB	12/16/87	3/14/91	3/24/87	2/1/93	3/12/92
B/T	R/R	R/R	R/R	L/L	L/L
Primary Position	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher
Other Positions	rp	rp	rp		sp
Status Notes
AAA Stats		1-0, 3.18 ERA 5 2/3 IP 2 BB, 4 SO	3-2, 5.54 ERA 37 1/3 IP 18 BB, 33 SO
AA Stats	3-11, 5.65 ERA 121 IP 66 BB, 71 SO	7-11, 5.27 ERA 107 2/3 IP 40 BB, 67 SO	4-4, 3.98 ERA 54 1/3 IP 26 BB, 40 SO	0-1, 5.13 ERA 0 S, 40 1/3 IP 23 BB, 47 SO
A+ Stats	2-1, 5.95 ERA 19 2/3 IP 19 2/3 IP]/b] 10 BB, 111 SO			0-1, 0.93 ERA 0 S, 19 1/3 IP 8 BB, 21 SO	4-2, 1.80 ERA 3 S, yp IP 20 BB, 66 SO
Position Group	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher
	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/597972/t400/180x270/597972.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/silhouette/180x270.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/593619/t507/180x270/593619.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/543856/t400/180x270/543856.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/502368/t400/180x270/502368.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Chase Huchingson	Ronald Sanchez	Domingo Tapia	Zack Thornton	Jeff Walters
DoB	4/14/89	9/20/93	8/4/91	5/19/88	11/6/87
B/T	L/L	R/R	R/R	L/L	R/R
Primary Position	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher	=#FF0000]Relief Pitcher
Other Positions	sp	sp
Status Notes
AAA Stats	1-1, 5.93 ERA 0 S, 27 1/3 IP 21 BB, 26 SO			0-3, 7.03 ERA 0 S, 39 2/3 IP 15 BB, 25 SO	4-3, 5.98 ERA 1 S, 39 2/3 IP 161 BB, 25 SO
AA Stats			0-0, 3.86 ERA 0 S, 2 1/3 IP 1 BB, 1 SO
A Stats	0-0, 0.00 ERA 0 S, 1 IP 0 BB, 2 SO
A+ Stats			0-2, 3.54 ERA 0 S, 28 IP 13 BB, 34 SO
Rookie Stats	0-0, 3.38 ERA 0 S, 2 2/3 IP 1 BB, 5 SO	1-2, 5.23 ERA 3 S, 20 2/3 IP 12 BB, 20 SO
Position Group	=#008000] Catcher	=#008000] Catcher	=#008000] Catcher	=#008000] Catcher	=#8000FF] Infielder
	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/593680/generic/180x270/593680.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/571712/generic/180x270/571712.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/542466/t505/180x270/542466.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/476192/t400/180x270/476192.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/543214/t505/180x270/543214.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Adrian Abreu	Jeff Glenn	Raywilly Gomez	Johnny Monell	Derrik Gibson
DoB	6/14/91	9/22/91	1/25/90	3/27/86	12/5/89
B/T	R/R	R/R	S/R	L/R	R/R
Primary Position	=#008000]Catcher	=#008000]Catcher	=#008000]Catcher	=#008000]Catcher	=#8000FF]Third Base
Other Positions	1b	1b		1b	ss, 2b, lf, cf
Status Notes	Suspended In 2016, DNP
AAA Stats		.400 / .400 / 1.000 // 1.400 5 PA, 1 HR 3 RBI, 0 SB		.276 / .336 / .470 // .806 461 PA, 19 HR 75 RBI, 2 SB
AA Stats			.182 / .250 / .242 // .492 37 PA, 0 HR 4 RBI, 0 SB		.281 / .363 / .362 // .725 446 PA, 2 HR 35 RBI, 14 SB
Position Group	=#8000FF] Infielder	=#8000FF] Infielder	=#8000FF] Infielder	=#8000FF] Infielder	=#8000FF] Infielder
	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/571868/t400/180x270/571868.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/silhouette/180x270.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/606322/t3705/180x270/606322.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/462962/generic/180x270/462962.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/607741/t507/180x270/607741.jpg[/fimg]
Name	Marc Krauss	Victor Moscote	J.C. Rodriguez	Niuman Romero	Kevin Taylor
DoB	10/5/87	5/10/94	9/3/92	1/24/85	7/13/91
B/T	L/R	R/R	S/R	S/R	L/R
Primary Position	=#8000FF]First Base	=#8000FF]Shortstop	=#8000FF]Second Base	=#8000FF]Shortstop	=#8000FF]First Base
Other Positions	lf, rp	3b, 2b, 1b, rf	ss, 3b, lf	3b, 2b, 1b, rf	lf, 2b, 3b
Status Notes
AAA Stats	.214 / .327 / .437 // .764 272 PA, 14 HR 39 RBI, 2 SB			.226 / .310 / .274 // .584 143 PA, 0 HR 9 RBI, 1 SB
AA Stats				.266 / .349 / .351 // .699 175 PA, 1 HR 12 RBI, 0 SB
A+ Stats					.288 / .386 / .404 // .789 464 PA, 8 HR 58 RBI, 56 SB
A Stats			.237 / .303 / .350 // .653 524 PA, 9 HR 49 RBI, 18 SB
Rookie Stats		.293 / .385 / .367 // .752 169 PA, 1 HR 16 RBI, 0 SB
Position Group		=#0000FF] Outfielder	=#0000FF] Outfielder	=#0000FF] Outfielder
		[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/465668/t400/180x270/465668.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/606323/t505/180x270/606323.jpg[/fimg]	[fimg=90]http://www.milb.com/images/606324/t3705/180x270/606324.jpg[/fimg]
Name		Roger Bernadina	Victor Cruzado	Vicente Lupo
DoB		6/12/84	6/30/92	11/27/93
B/T		L/L	S/R	R/R
Primary Position		=#0000FF]Center Field	=#0000FF]Left Field	=#0000FF]Left Field
Other Positions		lf, rf	rf, cf	rf
Status Notes
AAA Stats		.292 / .376 / .465 // .841 446 PA, 10 HR 55 RBI, 20 SB
AA Stats			.261 / .353 / .374 // .727 420 PA, 8 HR 53 RBI, 6 SB
A Stats				.221 / .330 / .355 // .685 307 PA, 5 HR 34 RBI, 3 SB
SS A+ Stats				.000 / .000 / .000 // .000 3 PA, 0 HR 0 RBI, 0 SB

[bmfc1]

Sandy has a lot of work:
C--d'Arnaud wasn't good enough to start a majority of the games at the end of the year. Do they think he will rebound? Rene doesn't hit well enough to start everyday. Do they look for a new C?
1B--Duda? Conforto? Not Loney, I think.
2B--Work out something with Walker? Rivera? Flores?
3B--Wright? Reyes?
SS--Cabrera.
LF--Ces? Conforto? Nimmo?
CF--Granderson? Lagares?
RF--Granderson? Bruce?
Does Kelly Johnson comes back as the super-sub or does Sandy wait until mid-season to trade for him again?

[Lefty Specialist]

Not exactly a spoiler alert, but it all depends on whether Cespedes opts out or not, and if he does, how much they have to pay to keep him.

Bruce has his option picked up and they trade him. There'll be a market.

Catcher is a glaring need. There's no one close in the minors, so you have to trade for them. I'm done with Travis; Rene is a good backup, but he's not an everyday guy.

Keep Duda for one more season, but Dom Smith may be ready to take over by the end of the year.

I'd like to see TJ get the nod at second. He played well enough to get his shot. There are viable backups in Flores/Reynolds/Cecchini if it goes sideways.

I really don't think you can count on Wright at all next year. At best, he's platooning with Reyes, who can also give Asdrubal a breather. At worst, Reyes plays third every day.

OF, until the elephant in the room is dealt with, you can't speculate.

[Centerfield]

Agreed on both sentiments. But one advantage that the Mets have is that the pitching, overall, looks to be in pretty good shape. You have our five horses that you hope can be ready to go when the bell rings. You have Gsellman and Lugo that you can throw into the mix. And you have (hopefully) a fairly simple negotiation to bring back Colon. Could use a 7th inning guy, and a few lefties, but the pitching looks pretty good.

But yes, have to resolve the Cespedes situation before anything else. The challenge will be if you can wrap it up quickly or whether this drags to New Year's like it did last time.

[Guest Mets Guy in Michigan]

Realizing that too much good pitching is a good problem.

But, assuming these five are ready by spring training, do you go with a sixth starter with Colon? Do you start Colon in the bullpen? Do you pencil in all six in the rotation and assume that one of them won't be ready by April 1? The guy won 15 games, so it's hard to tell him to go to the pen until someone gets hurt.

Syndergaard
deGrom
Harvey
Matz
Wheeler

Colon?


Then, what do you do with Lugo and Gsellman? Send them to Vegas to keep pitching regularly until the inevitable injuries? Use them in the pen?

[Edgy MD]

Colón's a free agent, so the issue there isn't particularly whether to keep him in the rotation, but whether to resign him at all.

I imagine if they do sign him, it's to open the season in the rotation.

[Centerfield]

It comes down to how much faith you have that the big 5 will be ready. It sounds like deGrom and Noah (as of now) project healthy. Matz's shoulder won't require any surgery, and the elbow bone spur is fairly routine. But Harvey's surgery was major, and we have no idea how he will bounce back. Or even if that was the reason that he sucked last year. Wheeler is a complete mystery. Even when healthy, I don't know that he was better than Bartolo.

So you figure between the last two, there will likely be a need for Bartolo throughout the season.

I think you start Gsellman and Lugo in the minors, and have them as insurance in the event of injury. I guess one of those guys might end up the 7th inning guy as well.

Just wish we had a better place to put them than LV. Seth seemed to really hate the air there.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

You guys are right about Sandy's considerable to-do list, and there's got to be one plan that involves signing Cespedes and another that contemplates him going.

Like last year, I'm agnostic. All I ask is they replicate the production Cespedes provides, not Cespedes himself, necessarily.

It also seems that quite a few trades could be necessary. I think we need to prepare for the possibility that anyone could go. The only 40-man guys I explicitly don't trade are Rosario, deGrom, Syndergaard and I suppose, Wright. And that's it.

Matz, Harvey, Cabrera, Grandyman, Bruce, Conforto, Lagares, Familia, Reed, Reyes, Zimmo, Gsellman, d'Arnaud, Wheeler, Lugo etc: Gotta figure 1 or 2 of those guys will be in new unis next year.

[Centerfield]

I'm guessing Sandy already has the basics of a Plan A (With Yo) and a Plan B (without Yo) in mind. The tough thing is that unless Cespedes makes his mind up quickly, and there is a good possibility he may not, then you have to start moving on Plan B before you know what he decides.

Like for instance, if Yo comes back, maybe you don't need Neil Walker as much. But if he walks, his bat becomes more crucial. And that decision might have to be made before Cespedes. Or maybe you trade Bruce for a catcher. I don't know.

Tough situation.

I'm fine with replacing Cespedes' production with someone else should he choose to walk, but like last year, I would want that replacement to bring us what Cespedes brings. A legitimate, middle of the order threat.

In 2016, we learned how silly it was to suggest that the loss of Cespedes could be somehow be offset by some combination of De Aza and full years from Wright and d'Arnaud.

If we start hearing that we won't need Cespedes in 2017 because "Duda will be healthy and we'll have a full year of Jay Bruce", then I think we should treat such statements similarly.

[Edgy MD]

A sidenote as we look at our roster: every shot of Jim Henderson seems to betray crooked neck syndrome.





[fimg=100]http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/7N3mIeEqQrIxb3MrRjAgDw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3NfbGVnbztpbD1wbGFuZTtxPTc1O3c9NjAw/http://media.zenfs.com/en/person/Ysports/jim-henderson-baseball-headshot-photo.jpg[/fimg]



Every time I post this roster thingie, I worry about this man and suspect an undiagnosed disk issue.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Centerfield wrote: In 2016, we learned how silly it was to suggest that the loss of Cespedes could be somehow be offset by some combination of De Aza and full years from Wright and d'Arnaud. If we start hearing that we won't need Cespedes in 2017 because "Duda will be healthy and we'll have a full year of Jay Bruce", then I think we should treat such statements similarly.

Runs are runs are runs. It doesn't matter that much how they all sum up.

[Centerfield]

Sure. But players are not players. And elite players are better at producing runs than mediocre players.

Am I crazy? I think elite teams are made up of elite players. One need only look at the rosters of these playoff teams to see that. And I don't think you can make up for the loss of an elite player by replacing him with 3 mediocre players. Despite what my avatar suggests, this shit ain't Voltron.

[Edgy MD]

I just don't think he is categorically elite in any unique sense, and am open to the idea that their filthy money might find more productivity on the trade and/or free agent market. I don't know. There's certainly an argument to return the same team, and hope for better health, and there's certainly an argument to transition at a bunch of key offensive spots. They'll probably go for something in between.

It's strange how little success they on one hand had at establishing new offensive starters this season, with Conforto and d'Arnaud taking a step back and others failing to take a step forward (except Rivera); but on the other hand, established new starters in the pitching rotation where there seemed to be few genuine top-level prospects left and little room for opportunity for them that remained.

But when a team survives an injury-laden year and makes the playoffs anyway, they're left with a lot of compelling depth the next season — as both the injured guys and their replacements return — and some hard decisions to make as they choose which of these platoons to put their faith in.

[Frayed Knot]

Centerfield wrote: Am I crazy? I think elite teams are made up of elite players. One need only look at the rosters of these playoff teams to see that. And I don't think you can make up for the loss of an elite player by replacing him with 3 mediocre players.

And yet the Cardinals survived and even thrived (certainly better than the Angels have) after allowing Pujols to walk, as did the Mariners who set a record by eking out 116 regular season victories the very year ARod took his bat and glove to Texas. Both teams, in fact, scored more runs the following season without those two guys who probably rate as the most productive hitters of last 30 years or more.
And there are other examples of this throughout the game.

The problem isn't in recognizing that Cespedes is certainly A key ingredient in building a team, particularly one seemingly on the brink. The problem is allowing yourself to get locked into the line of thinking that treats retaining him as the only way to do things.

[Centerfield]

I guess it depends what you mean by "elite". He's the only Met in the top 40 of MLB for OPS.

http://www.espn.com/mlb/stats/batting/_/seasontype/2/sort/OPS/qualified/true

If he were to leave, we would not have anyone in the top 40, and we'd be the only playoff team without such a player. But I get what you mean. He's not a top 10 HR guy, he's not going to hit .300, and his OBP is not amazing. But he's the best we got, and barring a trade, I don't see us getting anyone else elite for next year.

It's a tall order. Even with Cespedes and Walker, this team was 26 out of 30 in runs scored. The idea this winter should be to get better on offense, not just tread water. And improvement is going to be hard to do if you lose Cespedes, or Walker, or both.

And again, not impossible if you fill in with other elite talent, but please don't try to sell me on "Journeyman A, platooned with Justin Ruggiano will make up the difference...blah blah blah."

[Centerfield]

Frayed Knot wrote: Am I crazy? I think elite teams are made up of elite players. One need only look at the rosters of these playoff teams to see that. And I don't think you can make up for the loss of an elite player by replacing him with 3 mediocre players. And yet the Cardinals survived and even thrived (certainly better than the Angels have) after allowing Pujols to walk, as did the Mariners who set a record by eking out 116 regular season victories the very year ARod took his bat and glove to Texas. Both teams, in fact, scored more runs the following season without those two guys who probably rate as the most productive hitters of last 30 years or more. And there are other examples of this throughout the game. The problem isn't in recognizing that Cespedes is certainly A key ingredient in building a team, particularly one seemingly on the brink. The problem is allowing yourself to get locked into the line of thinking that treats retaining him as the only way to do things.

I understand that. Which is why I said:

I'm fine with replacing Cespedes' production with someone else should he choose to walk, but like last year, I would want that replacement to bring us what Cespedes brings. A legitimate, middle of the order threat.

The 2012 Cardinals brought in Carlos Beltran, who hit 32 HR's and drove in 97. The 2001 Mariners signed some guy named Ichiro who went on the win the MVP.

Again, I have no problem with the Mets replacing Cespedes with elite talent, like the 2012 Cardinals and the 2001 Mariners. But if the Cards and Mariners had relied on Alejandro De Aza and a healthy d'Arnaud, I suspect their fates would have been different.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

I mean the obvious parallel is the A's making up for losing Giambi with Dave Jutice & Hattiberg, which of course happened on Sandy's watch. Nobody but the accountants has said it was preferable, just one way to go it.

[Centerfield]

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: I mean the obvious parallel is the A's making up for losing Giambi with Dave Jutice & Hattiberg, which of course happened on Sandy's watch. Nobody but the accountants has said it was preferable, just one way to go it.

Sure. One way to go about it. And I guess we could try that. Except we are not the 2001 A's. That team had MVP Giambi, and studs Eric Chavez and Miguel Tejada, who all mashed over 30 HR's and drove in more than 110. That team scored 884 runs, 5th in MLB.

After losing Giambi, and replacing him with very capable and serviceable replacements, they scored 84 fewer runs in 2002. But they were still 9th in MLB in scoring, and behind their strong pitching, won the division.

If the 2016 Mets did the same thing (lose Cespedes, replace him with capable and serviceable replacements, and score 84 fewer runs) in 2017, they will score 587 runs. Which would have been good for dead last (23 runs behind Philadelphia) this past season.

[Frayed Knot]

Cespedes was 60th this season in 'Runs Created'. He passes about half of those above him when you instead look at RC/G (RC is a cumulative stat so more ABs helps) but then he's lower on RC/G to some who had fewer ABs than him (Rockie rookie Dahl & MFY catcher Sanchez for ex.)

Replacing a star in the aggregate rather than with one greater-than or equal-to star isn't guaranteed, but neither is the one-for-one replacement.
Imagine had we allowed Yoenis and his 6.5 RC/G to walk last winter in favor of 'Elite Talent' like Upton (4.5 RC/G) or Hayward (3.4)? Nor did Seattle know, back in 2000, that Ichiro was going to turn into the HoF-caliber guy he became much less do so immediately.

Going after one star to replace another is one way but it's not the only way and sometimes that sort of thinking leads to mis-steps like Coleman for Strawberry or Appier for Hampton, where you not only end up with a worse player but also a long-term contract where you have buyer's remorse practically during your drive out of the showroom.

[Edgy MD]

Edwin Encarnacion. He's pretty fly.

[Centerfield]

Replacing a star in the aggregate rather than with one greater-than or equal-to star isn't guaranteed, but neither is the one-for-one replacement.

Well, nothing is guaranteed. Not even bringing back the star himself. The object of the off-season is to field the team that gives you the best chance of success.

Going after one star to replace another is one way but it's not the only way and sometimes that sort of thinking leads to mis-steps like Coleman for Strawberry or Appier for Hampton, where you not only end up with a worse player but also a long-term contract where you have buyer's remorse practically during your drive out of the showroom.

Agreed. And this is the type of move I hate the most. Spending money on B-level talent. I feel like in most of these instances your cheap-in-house option is not far off, and the money is better invested elsewhere. But sometimes they do get you close to what you lost, which is why I guess these moves continue to get made.

The way I see it, in terms of likelihood of success, the team facing the loss of a superstar can:

1. Bring back the Star himself. You know your guy. You know what he can do. Barring injury or decline, you can generally expect your guy to be your guy. Sure. This costs money, but this is your best chance of success.

2. Replace the Superstar with Another Superstar. Like the Cardinals and Mariners in the examples above. And depending on the guy you bring in, maybe he can even be better. Variables like switching teams, new ballpark, how he'll react to a new city factor in (in Ichiro's case, crossing the ocean), so your chance of success is probably a tick lower. But I'm cool with this option too.

3. Replace the Star with B Level Talent. The Kevin Appier Principle. Like I mentioned above, I don't like this route at all, but going this way helps minimize the chance that you have a complete black hole. I mean, Kevin Appier wasn't bad. And neither was Todd Zeile. They just may not have been worth the money. Chance of success is less than options 1 and 2, but undoubtedly higher than...

4. Replacing the Star with two C- players and trying to justify it with arguments about splits and improving the bench. Which is what the prevailing thought was last year. If Cespedes had walked, and we trotted out the De Aza/Lagares platoon, we would have been fucked. We would have been under .500 and not sniffed the Wild Card. And for all the talk of minimizing AB's for quadruple A players, we still trotted out our fair share of Campbells and Ty Kellys. And that is the risk of trying to go the cheap route. The chances of success are low, and the downside is tremendous. Even the much celebrated Scott Hatteberg "success" resulted in 84 fewer runs for the A's the following year.

Look, I get the draw of wanting to root for a team of scrappy overachievers who outperform expectations. That team is the micro-brewery of baseball. But if your goal is to win, building a team that way is not sound logic. Keeping your star, or replacing him with another star, may be unimaginative and boring, but it is the best chance of success.

The Mets, with all their injuries, were third in MLB in ERA. That is terrific. You're probably not going to improve much on that, even if our horses get healthy next year. Where we were fucked was offense. 26th in baseball. And now we are facing a winter where two of our top 3 guys in OWAR (Walker and Cespedes) are free agents. And the third (Cabrera) is probably looking at a correction year. And sure, maybe you get some offense back with a healthy Duda, but we are looking at a big hill to climb, just to get back to sucking.

I mean, everyone involved with the Mets (management, players, fans) all agree the offense has to get better. If Walker and Cespedes leave and take their 54 HR's with them, you have to make up this production, before you even think about actually improving the offense.

How Sandy can do that in this market? I have no clue. But I'm open to suggestions.

[Centerfield]

Edgy MD wrote: Edwin Encarnacion. He's pretty fly.

Thought about that. Nice numbers, hits from the right side. He's a DH, but can play first and third. Might be an interesting fit, but while looking him up, I saw that his nickname is E5.

[Benjamin Grimm]

That's better than Jason Bay's nickname which, as I recall, was GIDP.

[Lefty Specialist]

I get that the loss of hitters like Cespedes and Walker will have an effect on a run-starved offense, but these guys were 26th in offense despite being 5th in home runs. They need to create baserunners and drive in the ones that get into scoring position, two things that they were really crappy at. Walker had 23 HR and 55 RBI. Cabrera had 23 HR and 62 RBI. Granderson had a mind-boggling 30 HR and 59 RBI.

They don't have to be the 1985 Cardinals, but they need to create runs better. Yes, keep Cespedes. But what this team really needs is a Dee Gordon type to lead off, have a .380-.400 OBP, and get around the bases. This team has absolutely no speed, goes first to third poorly and probably leads the league in getting hits with runners in scoring position and NOT scoring.

Reyes used to be that kind of guy, but his skills have eroded. It's why I like TJ Rivera and think he'd be a good #2 hitter on this team (unless he falls into Conforto-hell, that is). TJ isn't a speedster, but he can hit for average, something a team with the 29th-ranked BA can use.

Since they need a CF (Lagares notwithstanding), this is the kind of guy they should pursue. Just my .02, your mileage may vary.

[Centerfield]

If on-basey leadoff CF's are what your looking for, Dexter Fowler is your guy. .393 OBP, .840 OPS. Plays CF and leads off. Still only 30 years old. Steals a base here and there.

I know the OF is crowded, but he would fit the Mets like a glove.

Really, I thought that his team needed a leadoff hitter, and a 3 hitter. When they lost Murphy, they lost the guy who can really handle the bat well and hit elite pitching. David Wright used to be that guy, but obviously is no longer. Was hoping Conforto could turn into that guy. I think he might still, despite the struggles this year.

Tough decisions.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I'm inclined to let Walker go and stick with inexpensive internal options at second base. They have a lot to choose from.

And if they can sign Cespedes promptly, I'd trade Jay Bruce to free up more money. Spend the savings from Walker and Bruce at catcher and outfield. I'd like the outfielder to be able to bat right handed, so Fowler, a switch-hitter, may be a good choice.

[Frayed Knot]

Centerfield wrote: Look, I get the draw of wanting to root for a team of scrappy overachievers who outperform expectations. That team is the micro-brewery of baseball.

This has nothing to do with trying to build a particular type of team. Don't care about that, never did.


Look, ideally Cespedes resigns and/or doesn't opt out of the in-place deal to begin with (yeah right!).
But in the event that he leaves -- either because he wants to or because negotiations get to the point where Sandy et al make a judgement call that it doesn't make long-term sense to meet his demands -- then you move on and make other plans. My point is that there are lots of ways to move forward at that point not all of which follow in the simple 'must sign X to replace Y' format and if X < Y then we'll suck.

If Cespedes leaves you lose not his total production but the difference between what he produce and what whoever gets the LF ABs next season puts out, whether it's someone already here, someone imported, or some combo of the two. And if whoever it/they wind up being looks likely to produce less then the team will need to make up that gap elsewhere; at 1B?, at catcher?, at 3rd?, CF?, or in several of the above slots.

But you can't look at each move like it's unconnected to the whole. I know that's not what you mean to be saying but, when you limit the choices to saying that a team can't afford to lose an 'A' player unless he's replaced by a different 'A' because the sum total of the other options are replacing him with a 'B' or with two 'C-' guys and that means the whole season will be worse, then you kind of are.

[Edgy MD]

Replacing a star in the aggregate rather than with one greater-than or equal-to star isn't guaranteed, but neither is the one-for-one replacement. Well, nothing is guaranteed. Not even bringing back the star himself. The object of the off-season is to field the team that gives you the best chance of success. Going after one star to replace another is one way but it's not the only way and sometimes that sort of thinking leads to mis-steps like Coleman for Strawberry or Appier for Hampton, where you not only end up with a worse player but also a long-term contract where you have buyer's remorse practically during your drive out of the showroom. Agreed. And this is the type of move I hate the most. Spending money on B-level talent. I feel like in most of these instances your cheap-in-house option is not far off, and the money is better invested elsewhere. But sometimes they do get you close to what you lost, which is why I guess these moves continue to get made. The way I see it, in terms of likelihood of success, the team facing the loss of a superstar can: 1. Bring back the Star himself. You know your guy. You know what he can do. Barring injury or decline, you can generally expect your guy to be your guy. Sure. This costs money, but this is your best chance of success. 2. Replace the Superstar with Another Superstar. Like the Cardinals and Mariners in the examples above. And depending on the guy you bring in, maybe he can even be better. Variables like switching teams, new ballpark, how he'll react to a new city factor in (in Ichiro's case, crossing the ocean), so your chance of success is probably a tick lower. But I'm cool with this option too. 3. Replace the Star with B Level Talent. The Kevin Appier Principle. Like I mentioned above, I don't like this route at all, but going this way helps minimize the chance that you have a complete black hole. I mean, Kevin Appier wasn't bad. And neither was Todd Zeile. They just may not have been worth the money. Chance of success is less than options 1 and 2, but undoubtedly higher than... 4. Replacing the Star with two C- players and trying to justify it with arguments about splits and improving the bench. Which is what the prevailing thought was last year. If Cespedes had walked, and we trotted out the De Aza/Lagares platoon, we would have been fucked. We would have been under .500 and not sniffed the Wild Card. And for all the talk of minimizing AB's for quadruple A players, we still trotted out our fair share of Campbells and Ty Kellys. And that is the risk of trying to go the cheap route. The chances of success are low, and the downside is tremendous. Even the much celebrated Scott Hatteberg "success" resulted in 84 fewer runs for the A's the following year.

There's also Replacing the Star with a Guy or Guys You Already Have, That You Strongly Feel Is/Are Ready to Break Through, and Are More Likely, by Your Estimation, to Provide Stardom over the Duration of the Terms of the Contract that the Star Is Asking for, While Freeing Up Money for Upgrades Elsewhere.

[Centerfield]

Look, I get the draw of wanting to root for a team of scrappy overachievers who outperform expectations. That team is the micro-brewery of baseball. This has nothing to do with trying to build a particular type of team. Don't care about that, never did. Look, ideally Cespedes resigns and/or doesn't opt out of the in-place deal to begin with (yeah right!). But in the event that he leaves -- either because he wants to or because negotiations get to the point where Sandy et al make a judgement call that it doesn't make long-term sense to meet his demands -- then you move on and make other plans. My point is that there are lots of ways to move forward at that point not all of which follow in the simple 'must sign X to replace Y' format and if X < Y then we'll suck. If Cespedes leaves you lose not his total production but the difference between what he produce and what whoever gets the LF ABs next season puts out, whether it's someone already here, someone imported, or some combo of the two. And if whoever it/they wind up being looks likely to produce less then the team will need to make up that gap elsewhere; at 1B?, at catcher?, at 3rd?, CF?, or in several of the above slots. But you can't look at each move like it's unconnected to the whole. I know that's not what you mean to be saying but, when you limit the choices to saying that a team can't afford to lose an 'A' player unless he's replaced by a different 'A' because the sum total of the other options are replacing him with a 'B' or with two 'C-' guys and that means the whole season will be worse, then you kind of are.

I think we are largely agreeing with each other.

(But please, let's not let that fact keep us from discussing over two pages, it's the CPF after all!)

And I get what you are saying that I seem to by isolating it to "by-position" production. You're right that overall upgrades throughout the team can offset the loss of any one star. But I guess I am skeptical that this approach is as easy as some think it is. I would say my reservations to that approach are twofold:

1. Oftentimes the "replacement-by-aggregate" approach is overly optimistic. You often see arguments along the lines of:

"We will get Player A, who is not that great a player overall, but is pretty good against righties, and couple him with Player B who hits lefties, and between those two, we will have a decent player. Plus, we'll get Player C back from injury, and you'd think Player D would have to bounce back, because he couldn't be any worse than he was this past year."

Except that platoon players don't always bat from their strong side. Lagares had 77 PA's against lefties, 76 against RHP. And sometimes those fringe players just tank. De Aza had a .618 OPS. Star players, generally, tend not to hit that type of floor. And counting on Duda to come back from injury doesn't take into account the guy that will go down unexpectedly in 2017. And sometimes, Jason Bay doesn't bounce back. He just sucks. So, if I saw an analysis that said we can make up for losing Cespedes and Walker because of expected increased projection in A, B, and C, and also took into account expected injuries that are typical in a given year, decline in performance for aging players, regression to norms from guys who may have overachieved in 2016, and all the other things that typically derail best case scenarios in any given year, and if after taking all of those things into account, it was still reasonable to conclude that there would be a better overall offense, then yes, I could get behind such a plan.

2. Intimidation Factor: I have no way of quantifying or proving this, but I feel like a lineup just has to have someone that scares you. We saw how lackluster this lineup looked in the first half of 2015, and when Cespedes was hurt in 2016. Again, I can't prove it, but a lineup without a bona fide star seems to lack that serious threat that causes pitchers to break down.* We saw it in the 90's when Piazza arrived. We saw the difference that Delgado made, and we saw it again when Cespedes was traded here. And I know I'm making an argument based on feelings, and I'm well aware of what I've said about feelings before, but man, I feel like the difference is palpable. So yes, I can get behind a lineup of 8 very good hitters, like I mentioned above, but if I had my preference, I would love to have that thumper (or 3) to scare the shit out of opposing pitchers.


*And I know someone will raise Kansas City, but that lineup was stacked. 6 guys with an OPS in the .800's, plus a catcher who hit 21 HR's.

[Centerfield]

Edgy MD wrote: There's also Replacing the Star with a Guy or Guys You Already Have, That You Strongly Feel Is/Are Ready to Break Through, and Are More Likely, by Your Estimation, to Provide Stardom over the Duration of the Terms of the Contract that the Star Is Asking for, While Freeing Up Money for Upgrades Elsewhere.

Yes, that is very much true.