smg58

I would put our biggest needs at the corner outfield spots and shortstop. Our trade resources consist of Wilmer Flores, either Duda or Davis, and either Murphy or Young. The "great surplus of pitching talent" looks like a lot less of a surplus without Harvey. But Montero pitched more innings at AAA than Wheeler and was better, and Mejia looked very good when he pitched up here. We (and 29 other teams) could use more depth, but I see no reason to make a major priority out of a starting pitcher. If I'm going to pay a premium for an outfielder, I want somebody I'm confident will be a major asset in 2015 as well as 2014. That rules out Beltran and Byrd (and Raul Ibanez, for that matter). Choo's bat is superb against righties, but the defensive metrics and extreme platoon splits are legit concerns for the price he will likely get. Granderson might have over-adjusted his swing to hit home runs in Dipshit Park I mean Yankee Stadium. The one-dimensional approach won't play here, but he could still be useful if he can re-adjust and the price is not exorbitant. Talking about Nelson Cruz as though switching ballparks will have the biggest negative effect on his numbers is a bit silly. It's one thing to take a guy like Byrd off the scrap heap because he was once a good player and you're really freaking desperate, but it's another to make a serious commitment in money and years to a guy who deserves (for character reasons) to be on that same scrap heap, based on numbers that are most likely an illusion. I'm for avoiding Jhonny Peralta like the plague for similar reasons. Ellsbury is undoubtedly the safest bet, but is he worth 9 digits? The good news is that there are a whole bunch of options, and somebody's price is bound to fall. I wonder if there's a buy-low opportunity on Josh Hamilton. He sucked this year and has a bloated, back-loaded contract, but if there's a possibility that the Angels would eat some money on the back end of it and not ask for much in return, I'm willing to talk. And if his knee checks out OK, don't overlook Corey Hart. His numbers were as good as those for most of the guys being talked about. The only question is his health, but if I can get him for 2 and 15 I'll be as patient as necessary with him this coming season. On one hand, Stephen Drew is OK but not great. On the other hand, OK but not great would be a major upgrade.

Congrats!

Does tonight's game count for fantasy stats though?

3100 posts gets me to Keith Miller? I guess I need to try harder.

metirish wrote: That video is hilarious, filmed in NYC look like, was that the Whitestone? 5 years $90 million I saw in Twitter.....they said it was close. For my tastes, that's a little too generous for a pretty good ballplayer on the wrong side of 30. But the Giants know him and obviously like him. It's still shaping up to be a buyers' market for outfielders, so I'm not overly concerned for the Mets' choices.

Like a hungry man chasing a taco. I wonder if 3 and 40 would bring him to Queens.

I thought Ike did a number of things right after he came back. He certainly did a much better job of forcing the pitchers to pitch him in the zone if they didn't want to walk him, and I'm sure it will eventually translate into home runs more than it did over that stretch. At any rate he was a tough out, which Duda is not right now.

If Johan's in any position to pitch next year he'll command a major league deal. It took quite a long time for Wang to get back to that. The Nationals threw a few million away on Wang waiting for him to be ready, if I recall. I wouldn't say no to giving Johan a look, but I wouldn't be in a hurry to open my wallet for him.

You can't ignore the positive influence Coors had on his stats. I think he's not quite HOF caliber. Olerud is a fair comparison.

John Cougar Lunchbucket wrote: That was the genius of this poll. I'm in the "yes" camp now but surely things could change. Too often he looks like a rookie who missed most of the year with an injury. But that's precisely why I think saying he sucks would be unfair.

Screw the innings limits if we're contending in September.

Actually, the forgotten man in this discussion is Jennry Mejia, who should be fine for ST. I've got no problem with Niese, Wheeler, Gee, Mejia, and Montero to start the year. (Montero is pitching quite a bit better at Vegas over more innings than Wheeler did, so I see no reason to keep him there.) Barring another injury (and really, we're overdue for some good luck in that regard), I'm not looking for more than organizational depth. Hell, we can always use Torres in a pinch again.

Whichever pitcher is willing to take a one-year deal is who I'm looking at. I'm guessing Lincecum's reputation is sufficient to get him more than that, even if his recent performance doesn't justify it.

Choo's defensive metrics are actually pretty bad, and his .671 career OPS against lefties (.546 this year) suggests that he will never see a righthanded pitcher in a meaningful late-game situation. There are some serious caveats for the price tag. I'm not spending $60M over four years for a guy who shouldn't start ahead of Andrew Brown against lefties. Morneau has less upside at this point than either Duda or Davis. I'd have no problem playing Young at second if Murphy gets effectively swapped out for a better-hitting left fielder. Lagares and den Dekker might make an interesting platoon, but I'm not sure I'd want both starting.

Well they ate a sizeable chunk of Delgado's contract. If they didn't do the same with Reyes, the Jays are in a hell of a bind.

He must have cleared waivers, allowing the deal to be finalized now.

I'm surprised he wasn't put through waivers long before now. (It's routine, post-deadline.) I'm not at all surprised he didn't clear them. The Mets could conceivably try to work a deal out with the team who claimed him, but if they really wanted to deal him it would have happened a month ago when there were most likely multiple suitors. I'm assuming he stays put.

EY got the memo that V-Mart is catching his first game in two years.

In the quarterfinal of the 1998 Summer Koshien (Ed: the high school championship in Japan), Matsuzaka threw 250 pitches in 17 innings in a win over PL Gakuen. (The previous day he had thrown a 148-pitch complete game shutout.) The next day, despite trailing 6�0 in the top of the eighth inning, the team miraculously won the game after scoring 7 runs in the final two innings (four in the eighth and three in the ninth). He started the game in left field, but came in as a reliever in the ninth inning to record the win in 15 pitches. In the final, he threw a no-hitter, the second ever in a final. This performance garnered him the attention of many scouts. And any coaches reading, that's the way you treat a young arm. I think the Red Sox should have read Wikipedia before they signed him.

metsguyinmichigan wrote: Considering the injuries to Mejia and Hefner, and the lack of someone able to step up from Vegas, I don't think this is a bad signing at all. I'm assuming he'll just get us through the end of the season. Pretty much my thinking. I mean, why not?

As long as they understand that both were accidents and that Young and Niese (along with all of us as fans) were sorry to see those things happen.

Pitching with the bone spurs gave Mejia the opportunity to put himself squarely back on the Mets radar. And if it's reached the point where it's no longer worth the risk to send him out there, then so be it. Get the surgery done, and get him to 100% by spring training. Hefner's status is less good; the docs recommended TJS. Calling it a shitty break for him and the team would be an understatement.

I'd give him another year. This Mets team was doomed to irrelevancy before the season started, and they don't have another in-house option at first base with the talent to take the team out of irrelevancy next spring. He's gone several weeks with a near .500 OBP, and I see no reason to dismiss that. The power will come, because eventually pitchers will stop handing him first base and throw him more fastballs.

http://magazine.columbia.edu/college-walk/summer-2013/safe-home Pete Falcone gets a brief mention in this interesting article about his son, a 27-year-old DH for the Columbia University Lions.

Let me rephrase that: there are people who claim that crossing an innings threshold is dangerous for young arms, and there is a considerable amount of debate on the subject. I found this interesting (if long) article on the subject: http://scoresheetwiz.tripod.com/id155.html