Gwreck

My Uribe vote went to Nieuwenhuis too.

Uribe officially ruled out. Steven Matz threw a bullpen today, Alderson says team is "encouraged" by this.

Edgy MD wrote: Matt Harvey is the only player not to show up to the mandatory gathering, attributing his absence to traffic. A subway ride costs $2.75. Take it like everyone else, asshole

Edgy MD wrote: So, 33 guys remain, of whom, one can be certain that Stauffer, O'Flaherty, and Monell are all but officially not to be included. Five hard choices remain. Ivy League choices. Rubin reports that Monell, Herrera, Stauffer, Alvarez and O'Flaherty have now been sent home.

I would keep Duda in, I think, because of the limited number of players who play first base. The options for first base basically require one of the three situations: Cuddyer OF / Duda 1B (my preference) Cuddyer OF / Murphy 1B / Flores 2B / Tejada SS (intriguing, but I'd rather Murphy sit than Duda) Cuddyer 1B / Granderson or Conforto OF (undesirable) Also, Duda has fared better against lefty pitching than any of the other Mets lefty batters.

I also think it's crucial to note that this is not just "any" generic left handed pitcher going against the Mets; it's the best left handed pitcher in the major leagues. This is the game, more than any other, where the Mets should take advantage of the ability to platoon in order to get as much offense off this guy as possible.

Unlike Conforto, we have seen Curtis Granderson play against left handed pitching quite a bit this year. The results are ugly: Only 2 of his 26 homers; a .183 batting average; a .273 on base percentage; a .286 slugging percentage. I am suspicious of the "team cohesion" argument, particularly given the great success the team had while the platoons in August and September were used. Players aren't stupid; they realize what was going on when the team was winning big.

I am a bit surprised by the Saturday choice too. One would think an 8:00 or even 8:30 start would maximize the two TV markets but since they are all about the money in these decisions I guess I am wrong on that.

And 9:07 PM EDT for Saturday. No "hitting in shadows" problem apparently.

As noted in the game thread, Bill Shaikin of the LA Times reporting a 9:45 EDT start for game 1 on Friday and 9:07 PM EDT start for Game 2 on Saturday.

28 Voters x 25 players = 700 spots to pick. Somehow only 695 spots were picked though. Hence the problem.

El Segundo Escupidor wrote: I would do it, however there are two overriding considerations: (1) I want to pass through US customs hassle-free (2) Every jabroni in this city is wearing one. You forgot #3: Playoff beards are stupid. (Sorry guys, but it's the truth)

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: Wow. I can't face another subway series. I never wanna see one again. I couldn't bring myself to vote for that as my preference either, even though there's not an iota of doubt in my mind that a Mets victory over the MFYs would be about 100% sweeter than a victory over any other AL opponent.

The NLDS Games are TBS and the ALDS games are Fox/FS1/MLB Network. The Mets/Dodgers will certainly get the main TBS announcing team which is Ernie Johnson, Cal Ripken Jr. and Ronnie.

The decision on whether Matz makes the roster is made by 10:00 AM this Friday. If he does not make it, obviously Colon is not going to pitch in relief.

Titled the thread "thoughts" because MLB and their television partners will of course won't be announcing things until they know the wild card winners. Friday, October 9 is the only day where there are guaranteed to be four playoff games. In 2014, the games were at 12:07, 3:07, 6:37 and 9:37. In 2013, they were 1:07, 3:07, 6:37 and 9:37. Assuming a similar breakdown for this year: Mets/Dodgers is the only game being played on the West coast and will have the highest TV ratings. It will get the 9:37 slot [crossout](which might be moved up to 9:07 or even 8:37).[/crossout] The early slot would likely get Rangers/Blue Jays. The 3:07 and 6:37 slot probably depends on whether the Yankees win the wild card game. If they do, they might play at 6:37 versus Kansas City. If the Astros win, the NL Wildcard/Cardinals game would get the 6:37 slot. Saturday October 10 is an NL-only day. TBS tentatively has the games listed for 5:07 PM and 8:37 PM. Mets/Dodgers would obviously be the late game. Edit: Pushed back to 9:07 EDT Monday October 12 is another day in which there could be as many as 4 games. The early slot disappears if one of the AL teams sweeps. Otherwise: Royals at Astros would be the early game Cardinals at Wildcard would be the 3:07 PM Dodgers at Mets would seemingly be the 6:37 PM game Blue Jays at Rangers is a good candidate for 9:37 PM Things get trickier if the Yankees win. In that case, the Cardinals at Wildcard might get the first slot. I would think that Dodgers at Mets would get a better TV draw than Royals at Yankees, and accordingly the Yankees would play at 3:07 and the Mets at 6:37 but it could be the opposite. Tuesday October 13 Same as Saturday October 10.

The Dodger outfield has a lot of mixing and matching going on, depending on who's healthy and what hand the pitcher throws with. Let's run it down: Carl Crawford (L) will play in left. 2015 was his worst season since his disastrous first year with Boston in 2011. He put up .268/.307/.408 numbers this year. He doesn't run much anymore (10 steals in 12 tries). He missed 3 months this year with a torn oblique muscle. Scott Van Slyke ® (Andy's kid) was the primary platoon partner to play when there is a lefty starter going. He wasn't hitting much either: .239/.317/.383 but is a reasonably good defender. He has a sore wrist though and it's not a given he makes the postseason roster. There's also Justin Ruggiano ®, who played quite well (.986 OPS) since coming over from the Mariners at the trade deadline, but his career numbers as a journeyman suggest that he was playing over his head. 23-year-old Joc Pederson (L) is the Dodgers' everyday centerfielder. He started the season strong (20 homers, .851 OPS, was an All-Star) but had a poor second half (5 homers, .596 OPS). He still figures to start against the Mets' righties. 168 Ks on the year. Pederson lost some playing time in center to Enrique Hernandez ®, also 23-years old. Hernandez was originally drafted by Houston, traded to the Marlins at the deadline in 2014 and then to the Dodgers this past offseason for Dee Gordon. He's had a strong second half (when playing) and put up a .918 OPS in 100 PAs in the second half. Andre Ethier (L) plays primarily in right field, although he also played left for a while this year while Crawford was out. He's had his best season in quite a while, with .295/.368/.489 numbers; 14 homers and only 74 strikeouts. He may never be worth the money the Dodgers are paying him but he's at least given them good value this year. He has a huge L/R split (.900 OPS against righties, .495 against lefties). Jon Niese, this is your man to get out. And then there's Yasiel Puig. ® He was limited to about 300 plate appearances this year due to injuries, including a strained hamstring. He just came back to the Dodgers this past week but is likely to make the postseason roster, although he might not start. He's played exclusively right field this year, so Ethier will move over to left if Puig is going to get a start. The injuries have limited his effectiveness (.257/.324/.439).

Interesting thought you have there. I like it. New lineup for game 1 against Kershaw Tejada SS Wright 3B Cespedes CF D'Arnaud C Flores 2B Cuddyer LF Duda 1B Lagares RF deGrom P Game 2 against Grienke: Granderson RF Wright 3B Duda 1B Cespdes CF D'Arnaud C Conforto LF Murphy 2B Tejada SS Syndergaard P

Ruben Tejada's got a .340 OPS against lefties and is pretty close to that against righties. I'd definitely start Ruben in game 2 against Greinke. Wilmer however holds a .600 slugging percentage against lefties. Ruben: .395.

Astros because they're the crappiest of those 5 teams and we want the Mets to win.

Edgy MD wrote: What's the appeal of Flores as a leadoff hitter? Someone's got to lead off and Wilmer's got a .355 OBP against lefties, and that's better than Lagares? I'm not really sure who should lead off in this lineup. I am positive that Flores should be in the lineup and Granderson should not. If there was ever a game to go all-in on offense, it's the game with Kershaw pitching.

Lineup the Mets SHOULD use in game 1 versus Kershaw: Flores SS Wright 3B Cespedes CF D'Arnaud C Cuddyer LF Duda 1B Lagares RF Murphy 2B deGrom P

Texas wins. Clinch division, and clinches Wild Card for Astros. Pirates win. (Cubs also win their 8th game in a row). Wild Card game in Pittsburgh on Wednesday. Toronto loses, gives Royals best record in the AL. Rangers will face Toronto in the Division Series. Royals will get the winner of the wild card game. Orioles in a heroic effort, on verge of sweeping Yankees (leading in the bottom of the 8th). Houston loses, though, and will play at MFYs on Tuesday in Wild Card game.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: If the Mets had held on to win Game 6 of the 1999 NLCS, Al Leiter would have started Game 7, which would have made him the only Mets pitcher ever to get starts on two consecutive days. Reed would have started game 7 on 3 days rest. (He started Game 4, and was the only Mets pitcher to not pitch in Game 5 or 6).

Can they win 90 games (and avoid being the first Met playoff team to have fewer since 1973)? Yes! Can they win on the final day, for the fans, for pride, or simply to remind Washington who's boss? Yes! For all of the above. How will Jacob DeGrom do in his final warm-up start? deGromination, baby. Will they ever get a hit or score runs again? Eventually, yes.