Centerfield

41Forever wrote: I went for the Tebow Major Leap of Faith cover. I like the word play on that one. You get major for Major Leagues as well as showing that it would a considerable step for him. The leap of faith makes reference to his faith without belittling him for it. Clearly not going to advance beyond this round, or even win this one. But I like it. Admittedly I'm not a football fan, but I really don't understand why this guy is such a story. Failed football player trying a second career as a baseball player. Nice story I guess, but worth the cover page? And no one has ever been able to explain to me why his faith is such a big deal. In every football game there is a huddle of players kneeling and joining hands in prayer. Why is his faith even newsworthy? Is he really belittled for his faith? I can't see how decent person could stand for that.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I think we may see better covers when we get to that 11-1 start in April. And then after that, well... I haven't seen the covers from David Wright's last game. If I had to guess, I think the winner will come from that weekend. Or it could be something to do with deGrom and the Cy Young. The 11-1 start was nice, but it's more of a bittersweet memory. And like the start itself, the cover would not be indicative of the season.

These were better. But no winners in this round either. I guess we knew in February that Wright was basically done. I don't know why I held out hope as long as I did. I guess I thought he could play on a semi-regular basis at some point in the future.

We won’t see him until the extra year of control has been secured. Nor should we.

I can see us going Ramos too. If he can keep his production a few more years it will be a good move.

From January 2018: Welcome Back Jay Bruce, The Trade Was Your Ticket Out Hey, look at what you wrote way back then: "Joy in Metsville" is a bit of an overstatement. The Mets could have done more, but they also could have done less, so I'm pleased but not thrilled. Looking back over the thread, the reactions were a bit more positive then I thought. I guess I projected my "bleh" feelings on everyone else. But it was a mixed back. And certainly nothing close to "Glee".

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Only four of the covers picture a player in a Mets uniform. For what it's worth, Daphne and Erika like BRUCE GLEE. Me, I voted for BRUCE ENCORE and THUMB ON DOWN. That was one of covers that made me laugh. I have a hard time believing that the Post was serious with that cover. I wouldn't describe the reaction to Bruce as anything close to "Glee". But I guess it's harder to pun "Mild Dissatisfaction". Joy in Metville? Obviously the headline writer didn't consult the CPF reaction poll (that I searched for but couldn't find. But I think the reaction was tepid at best.)

Assuming the starting OF is Conforto-Nimmo-Bruce, then we already have our 4th outfielder in Lagares. Smith becomes OF #5 once Alonso is called up. If Cespedes comes back then he's in the mix as well. I think there is room for another OF with expected injuries etc., but I don't know if we can afford someone as high profile as Adam Jones.

These covers were laughable at the time, and even more so in hindsight. Struggling to even select one.

Edgy MD wrote: Yeah, getting in the mindset that this is the deal that has to happen is another way of saying "Screw me, please." Right. Which is why Jeter got screwed in the Stanton trade. He went in with the mindset that he had to move him, and he had a guy with a no-trade clause. Realmuto is just the opposite. Young, controllable good. Tons of market for that guy. Someone will give up multiple blue chips for him. I'd rather it not be us. And while he's a very good hitter, especially for a catcher, he's not a front line masher. If you give up multiple blue chips, you want someone back like Nolan Arenado or Paul Goldschmidt. I think the ship has sailed on d'Arnaud. I think he tinkers with his swing too much to hit with any consistency. And maybe his throwing will be more accurate after the TJ surgery, but I don't think he'll ever have a quick enough trigger for his throwing to not be a liability. And at 29 he's not going to get any faster.

...so we might as well give him a thread. Price will likely be too high in my book. But discuss away.

For me, the biggest thing is that the statheads are all consistent that he hits the ball really hard. Which suggests his power will translate at sea level. Unlike McNeil who seemed to have warning track power when he arrived at Citi, and may have benefited from a high BABiP, the nerds seem to think this skill will carry over. Only time will tell. The defense is really a concern though. Remember, they raved about Dom Smith. And he’s just been ok. So I cringe to think how bad Alonso must be.

And remember, I was dead on about Brandon Nimmo last year. So I have serious credibility here. (As long as you ignore similar predictions for Juan Lagares, Kevin Plawecki and Gavin Cecchini. 25% of the time, I’m right every time.)

Crushed a 103 MPH pitch yesterday at the AFL all star game. https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.mlb.com/300208000-mets-peter-alonso-homers-in-fall-stars-game.amp.html Super excited about him. I know that FK raises some very valid reasons to temper enthusiasm, and keep in mind I have not seen him play, so make of it what you will, but I think this guy can be great. He’s not just a masher. Hits for average and gets on base. Supposedly hits to all fields. Plus he hits right handed. Defensively? Um. I heard he made a nice play yesterday.

It’s a good article. I don’t think I’m convinced, but it made me think. I did like the part about picking a lane. It validates exactly what we have been saying. If Brodie is in that camp, then he might just go down this route. If he doesn’t, we’ll know he’s full of shit. And that’s not to mean we have to get Machado, but if he’s going for it, then commit to going for it.

Understood, and although I'd be disappointed if they traded him 1 for 1 for Realmuto, I can certainly understand if they did. But Miami won't. Because someone else will offer multiple Alonso-level prospects like they did for Yelich. In other words, it ain't happenin'.

It's tough to talk about guys like Machado, or Harper, or Keuchel or anyone else really until we get an idea of how aggressively the Mets will spend. If it's the same old story, forget it. It'll be a couple of re-treads and a whole lot of excuse making and wishful thinking. But if the Mets are serious about contending, and Brodie is able to get the Wilpons to open it up, then yes, you have to talk to Machado. I said in the postseason threads that I have my reservations about Machado. I get that he's good. But he's not likeable. But that's just me. I could get over it I imagine.

Frayed Knot wrote: As I've said before, I think some of youse guys is over-rating Mr. Alonso, or at least over-rating the odds of him becoming what we hope he can become. But, until then, he's a 1st baseman who'll turn 24 in a few weeks with contact issues and defensive issues who can't play anywhere else and who might some day be better than the slightly younger Dom Smith and who might some day hit ML pitching enough to justify the aforementioned potential downsides. Yeah, admittedly I fall into this camp. And I get we have to take LV numbers with pillars of salt. That being said, the guy has a .940 OPS throughout his entire Minor League career (over 1000 PA's). Hits .290 with a .381 OBP. All the reports are that he'll be tough to shift against because he hits to all fields, and the exit velocity folks rave about him. So I'm hoping (and I think he can be) a middle of the order type of guy.

Te Mets need to either get creative, or be willing to overpay. I'm hoping for the former, assuming that it's creative in a good way. Welcome Starting Catcher Hunter Wendelstedt The New York Mets announced today that the club has named Hunter Wendelstedt the club's starting catcher for 2019. He will be introduced at a press conference tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. at Citi Field, which you can watch via SNY, the Mets social media channels and mets.com. Wendelstedt, 47, has been a major league umpire since 1998 and has headed the Wendelstedt Umpire School in Florida since the death of his father. He has worked one all star game, four postseasons and one World Series. In 2017, he was named on USA Today's Top 100 "People who Squat in MLB." "Hunter is a tremendous overall athlete, has significant experience behind the plate, and is in a great position to take us to the next level," said Brodie Van Wagenen, Mets GM. "He is from a respected baseball family and we are excited to welcome him into the Mets family. "A great day for the Mets," added Mets COO Jeff Wilpon said. "An excellent step toward sustainable success." Several online posters at the Cranepool Forum praised the move as "innovative" and "outside the box thinking." Van Wagenen stated that Wendelstedt will continue to call balls and strikes during games, it being determined that such an arrangement presented "absolutely no conflict of interest."

I forgot how funny some of these are. Terry Collins looking visibly uncomfortable next to Maja. And each time I open this thread I laugh about MVP. This thread has our best stuff. Which is good because that conflict of interest argument is our worst stuff. Our absolute worst stuff. Funny they are the top two threads.

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Then there are those days when I wonder if you're some mad genius and this all one big Andy Kaufman inspired put-on. Me too. At times it seems too out there to be real. Like he's a caricature instead of a real person.

batmagadanleadoff wrote: batmagadanleadoff wrote: Just because this happened before, doesn't make it right. You dont resolve conflicts of interest by putting the fiduciaries on the honor system and getting them to promise not to abuse their trusts. You eliminate the conflict. That means that the conflicted lawyer has to give up the case. The conflicted judge has to recuse herself. And the conflicted investor has to divest. And I agree with that criticism. But the Wilpons didn't set the rules. And if the Wilpons think (for whatever reason) that Van Wagenen is their best choice, they are acting properly within the current rules. They cannot be blamed for a set of rules that they did not institute. I'm not necessarily blaming the Wilpons. I think they made a sleazy move that wont hurt them but might benefit them if the Mets negotiate with BVW'S ex clients using confidential information gained by BVW acting as a former fiduciary. So good for the owners, I guess. If BVW truly won't involve himself in those specific negotiations, which I doubt and can't even see how that's possible, then I call more incompetence on the Wilpons. It's a really strange situation they are in no? Consider this. Once you consider Van Wagenen as a candidate, you have to hire him. If you don't hire him, you have strained the relationship. Imagine sending Chaim Bloom to negotiate extensions for deGrom and Syndergaard. How is Brodie going to feel about negotiating these deals with the snot-nosed nerd that you hired over him? But now you've hired Van Wagenen. No one on earth believes that he will truly sit out these negotiations. So you look sleazy. Everyone believes you are going to use inside information against Jake and Noah. Jake and Noah probably believe this. So I guess, you might as well do it. Unless you do the right thing and really have BVW sit out. In which case everyone thinks your sleazy and used an advantage, when in fact you didn't even use the advantage. This also sucks. The only way to sway public opinion is to grossly overpay for Jake and Noah. That's the only way Van Wagenen can say he sat out and have any credibility. But then the public will think "Wow, those Wilpons are such suckers. They got swindled by Van Wagenen, who is clearly working in the interests of his former clients." It's a lose-lose-lose.

Vic Sage wrote: If you think a fiduciary obligation to a client, who divulged personal and confidential information to you, is a "technicality", then there is nothing left to say. You state that he's clearly going to violate that obligation and then say there's no conflict. I don't know what to do with that. Multiple people have now explained it in multiple ways. It's a concept so simple that he shouldn't even need the explanation. In the end, it's clear he's going to believe what he wants to believe, no matter what evidence/facts/logic are presented to him. No matter how obvious. He doesn't see a conflict of interest, not because he doesn't understand it, but because he doesn't want to see it. This has been his MO since he's joined the board. Each time I go down this route, I swear to myself not to engage in this stupid exercise, but here I am again. Lack of critical thinking indeed.

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Just because this happened before, doesn't make it right. You dont resolve conflicts of interest by putting the fiduciaries on the honor system and getting them to promise not to abuse their trusts. You eliminate the conflict. That means that the conflicted lawyer has to give up the case. The conflicted judge has to recuse herself. And the conflicted investor has to divest. I'm not really speaking to right or wrong. Like I said before, I think the protocols in place serve to minimize the appearance of a conflict of interest, rather than remove them in practice. But those are the rules. One can criticize the rules. And I agree with that criticism. But the Wilpons didn't set the rules. And if the Wilpons think (for whatever reason) that Van Wagenen is their best choice, they are acting properly within the current rules. They cannot be blamed for a set of rules that they did not institute. And whether or not BVW is the right decision, well, my opinion on that is well documented in this thread.

Ceetar wrote: And yet, you still haven't managed to articulate what Brodie is conflicted about. What are his two competing interests? Ceetar, When Brodie acts as deGrom's agent, he learns confidential information. What price he will accept, his preferences, a possible concern about an injury, etc. As his fiduciary, he cannot make that information public, nor does he want to, because his goal is to maximize salary for deGrom. This fiduciary duty continues even after the relationship is over. If deGrom fired Brodie as an agent, Brodie is not absolved of all responsibility. He must still keep that information in confidence and he cannot, even though the representation is over, turn around and work against deGrom's interest. Same is true, obviously, if Brodie is the one that ends the relationship. So now, as the GM of the Mets, his responsibility to his new employer is to get the best deal for the Mets. He continues to have, based upon his prior role, a fiduciary obligation not to work against Jacob deGrom, especially with the inside information he still has. He has a fiduciary duty to both sides of this transaction. And therefore, he cannot act in either of their interests. This is the conflict of interest.