smg58

I remember going to two Mets games in 1999, when they had a slightly better offense than they do right now. They lost those two games by a combined score of 26-1.

You know, given some of the names in the Mets' 82-83 lineup, it's actually impressive how categorically awful they were.

I'm OK with two lefties. And besides, we have bigger holes.

="Edgy DC":1w8w744z]You're for it at what price?[/quote:1w8w744z] I'm guessing the magic number is four, based on the Johan deal. So I'll offer Wil Flores, Daniel Murphy, Brad Holt and a PTBNL -- John Maine if he passes a postseason physical, Jon Niese otherwise. Willets Point Jul 15 2009 07:25 PM All I need is a Halladay. Fman99 Jul 15 2009 07:56 PM ="Edgy DC":1wweomsw]They have developed their own Halladay and his name is Bobby Parnell. If the SHaMs start Parnell, by August, the notion that we were once interested in selling the farm for Halladay (and giving him $100 mills+ over five years) will seem quaint.[/quote:1wweomsw] Wow, I've been drinking for a few hours now, but this seems euphoric even to me. I love it. metirish Jul 15 2009 08:16 PM You crack me up fman Ashie62 Jul 15 2009 08:22 PM ="Edgy DC":1tcz4d67]They have developed their own Halladay and his name is Bobby Parnell. If the SHaMs start Parnell, by August, the notion that we were once interested in selling the farm for Halladay (and giving him $100 mills+ over five years) will seem quaint.[/quote:1tcz4d67] Son, is this some sort of a sick joke? Edgy DC Jul 15 2009 10:42 PM Call my bluff and start him. MFS62 Jul 16 2009 08:00 AM I agree with Edgy - let's see what Parnell can do as a starter. Also Halliday, Holliday, Shmaliday, Shmoliday, Joel Sherman put his two cents in intimating Minata hasn't been trying: http://www.nypost.com/seven/07162009/sports/mets/holliday_slumber_shows_omars_failures_179579.htm?&page=0 Later Ashie62 Jul 16 2009 08:11 AM ="Edgy DC":3f7k326p]Call my bluff and start him.[/quote:3f7k326p] Edgy. I was actually joking..Earlier in the year I posted giving Parnell a shot as a starter but the common response was he couldn't bring heat for more than an inning or 2 and he didn't have enough pitches. If the season gets uglier come late August I'm all for starting him for a 5 or 6 start sample. Edgy DC Jul 16 2009 08:26 AM I don't recall that exchange. I understand steering guys with a limited array of pitches toward the pen, but there are plenty of guys who've succeeded as starters with only two pitches. There are plenty more who throw their third or fourth pitch only five times a game. Centerfield Jul 16 2009 09:31 AM If you're a two pitch starter, but pitches are plus pitches. Parnell has a good fastball, ok slider. I see him in middle relief. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 16 2009 10:07 AM Parnell's slider is just okay. Iffy command, middling movement. Also, he didn't throw nearly as hard when starting (91-92 rather than 95-96). Since his slider is 86-87, that would make his speed differential just about 5 mph... meaning that hitters wouldn't have to adjust their timing significantly to hit his "off-speed" stuff. Unless he does some serious workshopping on the slider and/or a third pitch, and that work proves successful, there are significantly better options in Niese and/or Holt for late-season show-me starts.

I'm for it.

="seawolf17":15pnzoax]="Edgy DC":15pnzoax]I hope he stays where is and beats the Yankees six times a year.[/quote:15pnzoax] Eff that. I hope he comes to the Mets and beats the Phillies six times a year. Who cares who beats the Yankees?[/quote:15pnzoax] I hope he beats the Phillies six times and the Yankees twice. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 15 2009 09:42 AM ="smg58":2jjhq1hq]The guy to watch for in the system is Jennry Mejia. He's holding his own since the promotion to AA (3.74 ERA, 24 K's in 21 IP), and he doesn't turn 20 until October.[/quote:2jjhq1hq] And he'll be in Triple-A by then, and in the majors by mid-next year, and "flamed out" by September, and traded in October. Then he'll be an All-Star. [And the system also looks barren because its high-ceiling guys-- Martinez aside-- aren't the ones who've seen major-league time. (Compare Evans, Murphy and Niese to Alvarez, Bard, Buchholz, Jayson Heyward, Feliz, McCutchens, Buster Posey or any of the Giant pitchers.) Benjamin Grimm Jul 15 2009 09:47 AM Buster Posey? LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 15 2009 09:58 AM ="Benjamin Grimm":2fume5nr]Buster Posey?[/quote:2fume5nr] Giants catching prospect with live arm (he pitched in college), great batting eye and stroke. Could probably be a good backup in the majors right now. Edgy DC Jul 15 2009 10:06 AM I doubt any of the OBGYN columinists who've declared barren-ness the last week or so know crap about the Giants' system. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 15 2009 10:19 AM ="Edgy DC":2sv7tji6]I doubt any of the OBGYN columinists who've declared barren-ness the last week or so know crap about the Giants' system.[/quote:2sv7tji6] Hell, I doubt they know crap about the Giants beyond Lincecum (maybe). To those who actually do pay attention, though, the fact that we've got a bit of a Dannon system-- fruit on the bottom-- is a valid sticking point, and a big reason the system as a whole doesn't grade out higher. Frayed Knot Jul 15 2009 12:03 PM ="LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr"]To those who actually do pay attention, though, the fact that we've got a bit of a Dannon system-- fruit on the bottom-- is a valid sticking point, and a big reason the system as a whole doesn't grade out higher. True, the best ones (aside from Martinez) in terms of high ceiling are generally further away. That's also a reason why some* hear the phrase; 'no one ready to step in now' and translate that into "barren" since for teams wanting a haul of ML-ready players in exchange for their Halladays or Hollidays there's not a match in the Met system. * Francesa, just to name one, has been dismissing Fartinez for about two years now based on the reasoning that; 'if he was any good he'd be here already' Edgy DC Jul 15 2009 12:09 PM Because there are so many 18-year-olds in the league. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Jul 15 2009 03:21 PM Thought someone would have mentioned this-- yipes: ]I never met him, never talked to him. We�d get the monthly statement. He was kind of like a mystery man. He�d turn down people. My brother said, �Can I get to invest with him?��he turned him down. I think that added to the mystique.� King mentions that the man who got King with Madoff, New York Mets owner Fred Wilpon, lost $700 million. �Freddie says he�s not angry,� King says, �he�s betrayed.� http://men.style.com/gq/features/full?id=content_9237&pageNum=12 So... we're not going to be buyers at the deadline, then? Mex17 Jul 24 2009 04:05 PM And now the new Bernazard things. . .with the reports that he probaby will not get the ax because he is "Jeff's guy". . .along with Phillips commenting on the "collegial atmosphere" and how it does not work for the team. I'm just gonna keep collecting my evidence in this thread I guess. Mex17 Jul 26 2009 07:02 AM http://www.nypost.com/seven/07262009/sports/mets/amazins_next_moves_will_be_more_of_same_181474.htm?page=0 metirish Jul 26 2009 07:57 AM Steve Phillips: The most trusted name in baseball. Nymr83 Jul 26 2009 08:22 AM Steve Phillips: The most trusted name in baseball Met-bashing. Mex17 Jul 26 2009 08:50 AM He may have a point regardless. Overly-lenient parents usually result in disobedient children. metirish Jul 26 2009 10:02 AM Steveo certainly had a fun time working there , at least until he was dragged into court. Mex17 Jul 26 2009 11:04 AM ="metirish":2bhds3vd]Steveo certainly had a fun time working there , at least until he was dragged into court.[/quote:2bhds3vd] With all due respect, you're still ducking the issue. Tabloid sensationalism and personal agenas from critics notwithstanding, there is too much smoke around this front office/ownership group to ignore the presense of a fire. Kong76 Jul 26 2009 11:15 AM It's largely your issue (here), people don't need to entertain it if they don't want to. Valadius Jul 26 2009 03:09 PM I'm just scared what happens when Daddy Wilpon is no longer around and Jeffy takes total control.

If the system looks barren, it's because a lot of prospects (Murphy, Evans, Niese, Martinez) have already played at the top level. Maybe you could be critical of rushing them along or counting on them too much at this stage (none of them had even seen AAA until about this time a year ago), but I don't think it's fair to exclude those players and then say the system is thin. John Sickels, who knows more about the minors than any NY sportswriter does, said the Mets system was in the middle of the pack and improving. The guy to watch for in the system is Jennry Mejia. He's holding his own since the promotion to AA (3.74 ERA, 24 K's in 21 IP), and he doesn't turn 20 until October.

After rolling some dice: Maine Beltran Wagner Reyes Delgado Putz

Rey never got to 600 PA, or he'd have qualified on multiple occasions. Doug Flynn, perhaps?

He didn't have enough of an audition with the Yanks to say where he's at right now. His career OPS is .680, hardly good but still potentially useful to us if he can play to that.

I've got no problem at all with giving him a chance. I wouldn't have brought him here, but the bottom line is he's here. I'm rooting to be wrong (certainly wouldn't be the first time, and probably wouldn't be the last either).

The best thing you can say about Francoeur is that a change might do him good. He drove in over 100 runs as recently as 2007, but he's never had an .800 OPS in a full season; I don't know what kind of upside people think he has. As for a power boost, he has five homers in 308 AB's, and I don't see him finding the left field wall in Citi easy to clear. Plus, until and unless he turns things around in a really big way, there's no reason to think of him as more than a two-month rental. The Braves would have almost certainly non-tendered him -- he's already making over $3M in his first year of arbitration (half a million more than Church, but at least the Mets got some cash thrown in to acquire the inferior player), and guys generally don't get pay cuts in their second year of arbitration. How well does he have to perform before you'd bring him back at $5M?

Dislike. Church is simply the better player.

At least one of Wil Flores and Brad Holt would have to be in it. Plus Parnell, their choice of Murphy or Evans, perhaps a major league PTBNL that they get after the season (like maybe John Maine). I see no harm in asking.

Cora's range might be slightly south of average at short, but that's still comfortably better than Jeter. (He's also better at second than Castillo, which ought to be taken into consideration if/when Reyes returns.) Speaking of Castillo: his walks are negated by his complete lack of power, his range (while improved from last year) is still below average, and the drop tops Glavine's last start on the unforgivability scale. I'll refer to my comments in the Phillies post-mortem thread concerning Murphy, Tatis, and Church. Stop swinging defensively and drive the ball already. I've been encouraged by Evans so far, actually. Nieve was a decent prospect before TJS, so he has more upside than people realize. He must cut down on the walks, though. I can't give a B to Green while his ERA is 5.00. That's more like D territory to me. And K-Rod and Feliciano should both at least get an A-. The D for Redding is, unfortunately, generous.

Some of our lack of power is in the nature of our roster. Cora and Castillo are both slugging in the .320s, but I don't know if we have the right to expect much more than that from them. The same is true for Jeremy Reed. But we have a number of guys (Murphy, Tatis, and Church) who've cut their strikeout rates significantly down and have sub-.400 slugging percentages to show for it (not to mention, in Tatis' case, a shitload of double plays). I almost get the feeling that Hojo should tell them to do the opposite of whatever he's told them to do up to this point. Wright, of course, is at the opposite extreme, striking out a lot but still with a high batting average. But where is his power? (PS We have more home runs in fewer games at home than on the road, so it's definitely not the park.)

I'm going to nominate Pelfrey's gem on July 1. The Mets desperately needed a pitcher to step up, and hopefully we will look back on that game as the turning point of the season.

Exhale.

I guess the Nyjer Morgan trade means that Willie Harris, with his .791 OPS and superlative outfield defense, has been relegated to the bench. I wonder how much he would cost...

="G-Fafif":212up8wr]Nyjer Morgan will do something insidious as well but look so sartorially splendid doing it that it will be hard to stay mad at him.[/quote:212up8wr] The Nats are playing Atlanta this weekend, so Nyjer can be as insidious as he wants.

The Mets are already well-stocked on guys who can draw walks but aren't slugging .400. Hinske's not somebody to get worked up over.

I don't understand how somebody with his K/AB ratio could have such a low average, unless he's either getting really unlucky or getting nothing on his swings. But if the latter were true, how come he has more home runs than Wright?

I think he's got a bright future, but I'm not sure he's presently better than Jeremy Reed. A little more seasoning might do him good.

Is anybody else reporting this? And if not, who is rotoinfo claiming as the source?