Centerfield

Hey Alex Cobb is still available! Who am I kidding. This probably means Montero makes the club.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: Edgy MD wrote: I've tweeted to back page editors for all three NYC tabloids to promote the Derby. I think betting will be heavy. Hmmm.... This is unacceptable. We should totally get royalties from this. Don't we have attorneys or something? There are all sorts of attorneys that post here. What the hell are you guys doing?!?!?

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Little depresses me more than the thought of starting Adrian Gonzalez's corpse at first. The mental image of Jay Bruce wearing a first baseman glove as a first choice gives the first thought some serious competish. No corpses. No defensively challenged corner outfielders playing out of position. Look, if you're going to be this picky I'm not sure I can help you.

A Boy Named Seo wrote: I wonder if Td'A or Plawecki will end up being a question? Neither has made their mark against Martinez. Travis is 1-6 (single, RBI, and 2 K's) and Plaweck is 0-3. As of today, I'm guessing Travis does get the start? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ You'd have to think Travis for now. As good as Plawecki has been this spring, Travis has been even better. Both are hitting .333 but Travis is OPS-ing higher. As for Gonzalez, I am encouraged by the reports on Conforto. We may not have to tolerate him for long. If Nimmo (or Lagares) end up being real, then I see this happening pretty soon: 1. Nimmo CF 2. Conforto RF 3. Cespedes LF 4. Bruce 1B 5. Frazier 3B 6. Cabrera 2B 7. d'arwecki C 8. Rosario SS

So, some team stats: http://mlb.mlb.com/stats/sortable.jsp#elem=%5Bobject+Object%5D&tab_level=child&click_text=Sortable+Team+hitting&game_type='S'&season=2018&season_type=ANY&league_code='MLB'&sectionType=st&statType=hitting&page=1&ts=1521208714924&team_id=121&playerType=ALL&sortColumn=ops&sortOrder='desc'&extended=0 The Mets are 23rd out of 30 teams in runs scored. 27th in OPS. Remember last year when all we did was hit HR's? Well we kinda stopped doing that too. 20th in HR's. But wait. Don't panic. Why? The worst offensive team in all of baseball? Your Washington Nationals. Last in OPS, last in HR's, second to last in runs scored. Basically, unless they're facing Wheeler, they stink! Pitching stats: 21st in team ERA. 24th in WHIP. We are middle of the pack (15th) in strikeouts though. The bad news? Washington's pretty good at pitching. #2 in ERA, #1 in WHIP. #1 in BAA. So a couple of takeaways. Glass Half Full: We've played 12 of our 22 games against Washington, Houston and the Yankees. These pitching staffs are 1,2 and 5 in MLB. So maybe our offense is skewed by having faced the best pitching. Throw in Miami (#7) and that's 17 out of 21 against teams in the top 7. So the offensive numbers are definitely skewed and should not be trusted. Glass Half Empty: The pitching staffs of Washington, Houston, Miami and the MFY's have benefited from basing our punchless offense. Those pitching staffs are probably not as good as their numbers suggest. At 5-15, the Mets have the worst record in all of baseball. The Miami Marlins are 12-6 and have the second best record in MLB. You figure both of these trends will start to correct as the spring wears on.

Braxton Lee was really good in The Crow. But I thought he died.

I had high hopes that he would be better in this, his second season removed from surgery. But unfortunately, the spring looks like only a slightly better version of last year. I guess that TOS is no joke. Middling back end starter. High 4's in ERA. Leaves after this year and is largely forgotten afterwards.

Come on guys. Win some fucking games.

Yeah. I mean, I do tend to agree that spring training records are worthless. Especially if the losses pile up in close games where leads are lost by a bunch of guys that will never see Flushing. What's more disturbing, I guess is that our starting pitching seems to like giving up 5 runs. And our offense, really outside of a few standouts, have not produced at all. That's not a great way to win.

I know it’s spring training but is anyone else concerned that we like never win?

A Boy Named Seo wrote: Zimmo 2.0! BA at .364. OPS approaching 1.200. Go young man, go. Quick! Trade him for Josh Harrison!

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Talk to this president all you want. Might as well talk to your hat. Or your cat, for all the good that's gonna do. This president stopped listening to anyone probably when he was a teen-ager. He's been exhibiting psychopathic traits since he was a child. As a young boy, he used to throw rocks at baby's heads and then laugh about it. He's worse than a bad presixent. He's a bad seed. I don't think talking to the President would have any effect on the President, as the Parkland kids are finding out. But I think it demonstrates a spirit of cooperation that is necessary to pull our country out of this mess. Lead by example. Still, it would be hard to be in the same room as this asshat without wanting to punch him.

smg58 wrote: Walker (.823 and .801 OPS the last two seasons) and Cabrera (.810 and .785) aren't radically different with the bat. Cabrera's defensive value at second is a bit of an unknown commodity -- he might improve with a full-time commitment there -- so Walker (no gold glover) is not guaranteed to be better with the glove. Paying $6.5M more to pick up Cabrera's option (factoring in the $2M the Mets were already committed to spend) seemed perfectly reasonable in November. If we're stuck paying slightly more for a slightly less productive player, it's disappointing but hardly backbreaking. I think Walker is better. 26 points higher in career OPS. Walker has been .800+ in 3 of the last four seasons. Cabrera has been over .800 once in his career (2016). Lucas Duda has also put up low .800's OPS in 3 of the last 4 seasons. To get to Lucas Duda level production, Gonzalez has to go back to, not 2016, but 2015. Look I get that Sandy had no way of knowing prices would drop as much as they have, but none of the other GM's knew this either. And yet they were able to take advantage of these bargains. If Sandy is considered one of the smarter ones, he should be one of the ones taking advantage of this drop in price. If Sandy doesn't give us an advantage, then we are really screwed. That means we will have an average GM, signing players to average contracts, with a league average budget. No wonder we are projected to finish 81-81.

Edgy MD wrote: I spend a pointlessly stupid amount of time wondering what I'd do if I were in Altuve's position. I'd love to think I could show up and stun him to his knees with my 30-second eloquent, compassionate, and irrefutable indictment of his agenda, but I'd likely make a babbling fool of myself, and end up only solidifying his grip on power. I'd do better staying away and stating my reasons in writing, which I do far better, but that would feel cowardly. Any past president, I'd shake his hand warmly and wish him well. I keep waffling on this. I would either: *Not go. I'd make the trip to DC with my teammates but would decline to visit the White House. I'd rather visit a school or hospital anyway. I'd issue a statement making it very clear that my election not to go was intentional. *Go. And I'd issue a statement ahead of time explaining why. I can't stand what this administration has done, and what they stand for is hard to stomach. But I'll go, and I'll give my thoughts to the President directly, in private. I think it's important that if we are to come out of this, then we have to come together. And so I'm doing my part by coming to the table.

I predict he will have the ugliest swing we have ever seen on a Met.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I think he gets displaced by Bruce when Conforto returns and Nimmo takes Bruce's spot in the outfield. I think so too. I guess a lot of that depends on how Nimmo performs during that first month.

Frayed Knot wrote: One of the Yanx' infielders rolled his wrist during the NYM/MFY game at Tampa the other day so this might partially be in reaction to that. This kind of reminds me of when Todd Zeile signed a late-career contract w/the Yanx. That one ended up with him being released in August after just 66 games played and after he complained about being promised him a lot more playing time at signing time than they wound up giving him. This one smells like it might turn out similarly. You may wind up being right about that. Who knows. But Zeile was 38 years old when he signed with the Yankees. Walker is 32 years old. If you're making the comparison, that would be the equivalent of Zeile's 1998 season. (.271, 19 HR's, 94 RBI, .787 OPS). Two years before he signed with the Mets.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: If we had a normal president, of either party, then yes, it would be above politics. But Trump is NOT a normal president and the White House and the Oval Office and the entire United States of America are therefore diminished. As I said above, the whole "respect the office" thing is temporarily suspended. I didn't vote for either President Bush, but I would have happily visited either of them in the White House. I would have visited a President McCain or a President Romney too. Or a President Rubio or a President Cruz. But NOT a President Trump. Deep down someplace in what remains of 41Forever's soul, he knows this too. He knows it before you typed it, because that message has been given so many times before. But he wasn't interested in hearing it then and he won't hear it now. Because what's important for him (and others like him) is to spin this as just "politics". Convince himself, and others, that's it's not nearly as bad those snowflakes are making it seem. Pretend that there was some way to support this man while maintaining a shred of decency or morality. He wants to maintain this self image of being a good guy. Not realizing that having to search for ways to justify your position with that of basic human decency means you are on the wrong side of right and wrong. All because he had already chosen his side before Trump showed up. And when he did, rather than re-thinking his party's position, went straight into justification and spin. If you pay attention to his posts, he does this so instinctively he's long since forgotten that this is wrong.

And Jose Altuve had an awesome time. https://deadspin.com/jose-altuves-day-at-the-white-house-looked-pretty-awkwa-1823704161

The Mets are spending $10.5 million on Reyes and Cabrera. If you assume Cabrera's buyout was guaranteed, that' still $8.5 million. For that same $8.5 million, the Mets could have had Walker and Lucas Duda. Two guys who are good bets to have an .800+ OPS and hit 50HR's between the two of them.

.800+ OPS in 3 of the last 4 seasons. For a second baseman. Bit by injury the past few seasons, but only 32 years old. Can play 2B, 3B and 1B. He'll make $5 million. Backup money. He's better than Cabrera, Reyes, Frazier and any option we currently have for 1B. Logan Morrison, Lucas Duda, Lance Lynn, Neil Walker, Mike Moustakas. So many guys signed for bargain deals this winter.

Pending physical. That's going to be one crazy lineup.

Edgy MD wrote: Good summary. I think it's more likely that Bruce floats to first base (experience, age), but yeah. Crap. That is totally what I meant. What a stupid I am.

Sure. Like spring training records, spring training stats don't mean a heck of a lot. But still, worth taking a look. Your 2018 Spring Training Mets: http://mlb.mlb.com/stats/sortable.jsp#elem=%5Bobject+Object%5D&tab_level=child&click_text=Sortable+Player+hitting&game_type='S'&season=2018&season_type=ANY&league_code='NL'&sectionType=sp&statType=hitting&page=1&ts=1520862576573&team_id=121&playerType=ALL A few things: *Nimmo. Had really high hopes for him coming into this season and the kid hasn't disappointed. Always had the good OBP in the minors, but now the power is starting to emerge. In 2017, he had 3 HR's over 200 PA in Las Vegas. He has 2 HR's, 2 triples, 2 doubles over 36 PA this spring. *Plawecki also continues to rake. Has been killing it since he went town to LV last year and hasn't stopped. Would love to see him continue this and take over the starting catcher job. *Cheech. Would love to see him keep this up. Nimmo and Cecchini have been considered Alderson busts, but maybe they just needed time to break out. Cabrera and Reyes haven't done a lot, so maybe Gavin will force the issue a bit. *Lagares 2.0. Of the four young guys I was high on coming into spring, only Lagares has fallen short so far. I don't know. Maybe he gets hot before the season, but so far all his new swing has done is increase his K rate. *Adrian Gonzalez looks like crap. Old. Slow. Get 90 minutes of treatment every morning just to perform at this level. Maybe after Conforto gets back, Nimmo stays a regular and Conforto shifts to 1B. *Nice to see Yo crushing the ball.

Will be the same as he always has. Perform at career norms, gets hurt for a stretch. No one will care because it's the Kevin Plawecki Breakout Year. Gets a bit hit for us in the World Series.