Edgy MD

While Yoenis Cespedes hit 76 different homers for the Mets off of 62 different pitchers playing for 18 different teams, he never went deep off of any version of Craig Kimbrel. Arizona (1) Kansas City (1) Pittsburgh (1) Robbie Ray Ian Kennedy J.A. Happ Atlanta (9) Miami (10) San Diego (5) Aaron Blair Adam Conley Andrew Cashner Arodys Vizcaíno Jarred Cosart Brad Hand Chris Martin José Ureña James Shields Edwin Jackson Justin Nicolino Joey Lucchesi John Gant Mike Dunn Kyle Lloyd Luke Jackson Nick Wittgren (x2) San Francisco (5) Michael Soroka Tom Koehler Jake Peavy Mike Foltynewicz Wei-Yin Chen (x2) Jeff Samardzija Williams Pérez Milwaukee (2) Matt Moore Boston (1) Junior Guerra Mike Broadway Matt Barnes Zach Davies Ty Blach Chicago-N (2) New York-A (2) St. Louis (3) Jason Hammel Domingo Germán Adam Wainwright John Lackey Luis Cessa Luke Weaver Cincinnati (2) Philadelphia (16) Michael Wacha Brandon Finnegan Aaron Harang (x2) Texas (1) Michael Lorenzen Aaron Nola (X3) A.J. Griffin Cleveland (2) Adam Loewen Washington (7) Bryan Shaw Adam Morgan (x2) A.J. Cole Cody Anderson Clay Buchholz Drew Storen Colorado (6) Colton Murray Gio Gonzalez (x2) Christian Bergman (x2) Jeremy Hellickson (x3) Joe Blanton Germán Márquez Jerome Williams Max Scherzer Jon Gray Nick Pivetta Stephen Strasburg Tyler Chatwood Vince Velasquez Daniel Murphy already guested. Correct: David Wright (Gwreck) — May 3, 2013, 9th inning, game tying https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ATL/ATL201305030.shtml Lucas Duda (duan) — 9th inning, tack-on, September 18, 2011 https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ATL/ATL201109180.shtml Mark Vientos (The Hot Corner) — August 21, 2024, 7th inning, go-ahead https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYN/NYN202408210.shtml Incorrect: Pete Alonso Yoenis Cespedes Ike Davis Daniel Murphy (x2) Brandon Nimmo Wilmer Flores Curtis Granderson Jay Bruce

Once and future Mets firstbaseman Jorge Polanco played DH and went 1-2 with a line-drive single, a strikeout, and a run scored in his debut for Binghamton, before being lifted for a pinch-hitter in the fifth. He then took the next day off, and if one trip around the bases for a DH means a day and a half off, I imagine this is going to be a long rehab assignment.

Clifford's got his 11th homer tonight, so that's cool. Really hoping to see Jackson Cluff improve on that .137 batting average.

Well, no, that is false. It was the clear implication. When you make no distinction among the president, the manager, the un-named hitting coach, and the peanut vendor, indiscriminate firings are what you are calling for. If you don't want to back it up, I understand, but shitposting won't change that.

Curtis Granderson, one-time recipient of the Roberto Clemente Humanitarian Award, was 1-for-10 against Craig Kimbrel. Fortunately for you Curtis and for you, that one hit was a homerun! Un-fortunately for you, that homerun came in 2018 as a member of the Blue Jays. As a Met, Curtis went 0-for-4 (with two walks, tho'!) against Kimbrel. Jay Bruce went 0-for-6 (with two walks, tho'!) against Kimbrel lifetime, but merely 0-for-1 as a Met. Bruce did not let that upset him, because he absolutely owned Lance Lynn (!!), going .349 / .392 / .674 // 1.067 against him in 51 plate appearances. When Jay Bruce is having a bad day, he thinks about Lance Lynn and feels a lot better. Correct: David Wright (Gwreck) — May 3, 2013, 9th inning, game tying https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ATL/ATL201305030.shtml Lucas Duda (duan) — 9th inning, tack-on, September 18, 2011 https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ATL/ATL201109180.shtml Mark Vientos (The Hot Corner) — August 21, 2024, 7th inning, go-ahead https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYN/NYN202408210.shtml Incorrect: Pete Alonso Ike Davis Daniel Murphy Brandon Nimmo Wilmer Flores Curtis Granderson Jay Bruce

Brandon Nimmo wasn't quite established in the Kimbrel GLORY years in Atlanta, and didn't cross his path much after CK became a journeyman, and so far homerless vs. Dirty Craig. Mark Vientos indeed caught up with Kimmy in 2024 while the great man had been reduced to working as a setup man for Jose Alvarado. That shot put the Mets up by one, in a game that ended as a one-run Met victory. A pretty big shot when you consider that the 2024 Mets ended up clinching on the last day of the season. Good job! Famously so, but none against the crane-posing closer of the Braves. Correct: David Wright (Gwreck) — May 3, 2013, 9th inning, game tying https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ATL/ATL201305030.shtml Lucas Duda (duan) — 9th inning, tack-on, September 18, 2011 https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ATL/ATL201109180.shtml Mark Vientos (The Hot Corner) — August 21, 2024, 7th inning, go-ahead https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/NYN/NYN202408210.shtml Incorrect: Pete Alonso Ike Davis Daniel Murphy Brandon Nimmo Wilmer Flores

Seen it. Meh.

So yeah, we have Lucas Duda and David Wright who homered off of Craig Kimbrel ClassickTM back in his indomitable Brave days. Our other two victimized subsequent versions of Journeyman Kimbrel.

Meanwhile in Binghamton, Chris Suero is trying to get above .180.

Not Soto. Not as a Met, anyhow. In fairness, Juan Soto hasn't faced Craig Kimbrel as a Met, as Kimbrel only threw 12 innings in the bigs last year, 11 in the American League with Houston. And of course, Soto and Kimbrel were teammates this year. (But holy crap! Kimbrel has already thrown one inning for Tampa Bay!)

Something of a dangerous day for Mendoza today. I don't think he's about to get it, but if he was to get it, it would be a day like today. A day off at home for a flailing team, giving a PoBO room to strategize without having to fly everybody around to get replacements in place. A win last night gives the firing team cover from any notion that the move is impulsive. (I bet a lot of in-season firings, like Willie's, come following wins.) A feel-good highly publicized Hall-of-Fame weekend coming up gives the Mets cover to obscure some of the drama, and even brings two experienced managers (Valentine and Mazzilli) in house as potential interims for a short period. Probably not, but if I am Mendoza, days like this are uneasy days.

There's always someone out there. Especially since first base is a position everybody gravitates toward. The next firstbaseman might currently be playing left field someplace. Or catcher. Or third. And the trade market is always there. The Astros may want to get out from under Christian Walker's contract. But I don't think the Mets have closed the door on Vientos yet.

Caps are insane. Floors an insult also.

Lucas Duda is our second dude to take ClassickTM Kimbrell downtown. Daniel Mufftone is incorrect. Ike's Valley Fever journey is one of the more bizarre incidents in Mets history. Davis was a contemporary and something of a rival asset with Paul Goldschmidt his first year or two. Now he's a trivia question (literally, in this thread), long consigned to civilian life, who even made a switch to pitching in his failed quest to remain on stage, while Goldschmidt is in his 16th season playing first base for the Yankees. He just got sick and was never good again, from an exotic illness unheard of in baseball circles, as radio commenters continually spewed ignorant hot-takes about "Ike and his Jungle Fever." Ike Davis should be starring in a Ben Stiller-directed dark comedy called Go to Hell, Paul Goldschmidt. Correct: David Wright (Gwreck)— May 3, 2013, 9th inning, game tying) https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ATL/ATL201305030.shtml Lucas Duda (9th inning, tack-on, September 18, 2011) https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ATL/ATL201109180.shtml Incorrect: Pete Alonso Ike Davis Daniel Murphy

The broadcast featured an extended shot of Katz's, with commentary from the Mets' booth.

I think it's going to be all of the above until somebody steps forward. It's also going to include a big chunk o' Baty after Lindor returns. In the short term, it's probably going to be largely Baty and Vientos while Polanco tries to stay healthy enough to even DH. With extra bits of Young, Melendez, Waggy, until Clifford breaks through. Tauchman is pretty close to urban myth status, but it would be lovely to be surprised by an appearance.

No Alonso homer. No Ike Davis homer. Correct: David Wright (Gwreck)— May 3, 2013, 9th inning, game tying) https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ATL/ATL201305030.shtml Incorrect: Pete Alonso Ike Davis

Only four Mets have homered off of Craig Kimbrel in MLB regular season play. Name those four Mets. One answer per post. No consecuposting.

There's always room for one more.

An interesting thing about grabbing guys off the waiver wire, or signing them as freegies after they pass through waivers, is you often see your team grabbing guys out of the same organization, losing teams to the same organization. Maybe there's a favorite scout that they trust who has just returned from a look at that team. Transactions, 5/26/2026 GOING Transferred from 10-Day to 60-Day Injured List with Lubar Spine Disc Herniation Signed away by TBR to Minor-League Contract Outfielders Luis Robert, Jr. Austin Slater R/R DoB: 1997-08-03 High Level: MLB (2026) R/R DoB: 1992-12-13 High Level: MLB (2026) Merely hours after signing a post-waivers Craig Kimbrel to a minor-league contract, the Rays extended the same courtesy to Austin Slater, who similarly exercised his veteran's right to refuse a minor-league assignment and shop himself around. At 34-18 and in first place in the big-spending AL East, all the while playing in a park they had to fix up just to get the team to return in preparation for leaving again, the Rays may the best team in baseball at the same time as being the most irrelevant. It's a strange world, and the Rays may be collecting players waived by a last-place team, but they are sure doing something right. Luis Robert, Jr. got bumped to the 60-Man IL to make room for recent roster jugglage, so while the assignment may not represent a change in his health status, there isn't much of a peep of his improvement, leaving the Mets, among other things, a little short of righthanded hitters. Transactions, 5/27/2026 COMING Sent to Binghamton on Rehab Assignment Infielders Jorge Polanco S/R DoB: 1999-11-13 High Level: MLB (2026) While that righthanded hitter shortage has led the Mets to give a second look to corner infielder/corner outfielder Eric Wagaman, Jorge Polanco looms in the professional on-deck circle, suggesting Waggy's time could again be short. Polanco has historically been better from the left side, so he wouldn't particularly solve that righty issue. It is unclear how mobile he will be when he comes back, so he might well be seeing the bulk of his time at DH, leaving a deeply slumping (but still possibly the team's best righthanded hitter) Mark Vientos at first. We mean, yeah, that's not the way it is supposed to be, but putting the Vientos season side by side with those of Bo Bichette, Marcus Semien, and Luis Torrens, you kinda know what we mean, right? Your 2026 New York Mets Starting Pitchers Nolan McLean Freddy Peralta David Peterson Christian Scott Jonah Tong R/R DoB: 2001-07-24 R/R DoB: 2996-06-04 L/L DoB: 1995-09-03 R/R DoB: 1999-06-15 R/R DoB: 2003-06-19 Relief Pitchers Huascar Brazobán Sean Manaea A.J. Minter Tobias Myers Brooks Raley Austin Warren Luke Weaver R/R DoB: 1989-10-15 R/L DoB: 1992-02-01 L/L DoB: 1993-09-02 R/R DoB: 1998-08-05 L/L DoB: 1988-06-29 R/R DoB: 1996-02-05 R/R DoB: 1993-08-21 Relief Pitchers Catchers Infielders Devin Williams Hayden Senger Luís Torrens Bo Bichette Brett Baty Vidal Brujan Marcus Semien R/R DoB: 1994-09-21 R/R DoB: 1997-04-03 R/R DoB: 1996-05-02 R/R DoB: 1998-03-05 L/R DoB: 1999-11-13 S/R DoB: 1998-02-09 R/R DoB: 1990-09-17 Infielders Outfielders Mark Vientos Eric Wagaman Carson Benge A.J. Ewing MJ Melendez Juan Soto Jared Young R/R DoB: 1993-12-11 R/R DoB: 1997-08-14 L/R DoB: 2003-01-20 L/R DoB: 2004-08-10 L/R DoB: 1993-11-29 L/L DoB: 1998-10-25 L/R DoB: 1995-07-09 Also on 40-Player Roster Starting Pitchers Relief Pitchers Clay Holmes Tylor Megill Kodai Senga Zach Thornton Alex Carrillo Daniel Duarte Reed Garrett R/R DoB: 1993-03-27 R/R DoB: 1995-07-28 L/R DoB: 1993-01-30 L/L DoB: 2002-01-17 R/R DoB: 1997-06-06 R/R DoB: 1996-12-04 R/R DoB: 1993-01-02 Relief Pitchers Catchers Infielders Justin Hagenman Dedniel Núñez Jonathan Pintaro Dylan Ross Francisco Alvarez Francisco Lindor Ronny Mauricio R/R DoB: 1996-10-07 R/R DoB: 1996-06-05 R/R DoB: 1997-11-07 R/R DoB: 2000-09-01 R/R DoB: 2001-11-01 S/R DoB: 1993-11-14 S/R DoB: 2001-04-04 Infielders Outfielders Jorge Polanco Luis Robert, Jr. Nick Morabito Tyrone Taylor S/R DoB: 1999-11-13 R/R DoB: 1997-08-03 R/R DoB: 2003-05-07 R/R DoB: 1994-01-22 Your Mets Coaching Staff Manager Bench Coach Pitching Coach Hitting Coordinator Third Base Coach First Base Coach Bullpen Coach Ass't Pitching Coach Carlos Mendoza Kai Correa Justin Willard Jeff Albert Tim Leiper Gilbert Gomez José Rosado Dan McKinney DoB: 1979-11-27 DoB: 1989-07-14 DoB: 1990-09-09 DoB: 1992-08-16 DoB: 1996-07-19 DoB: 1992-03-08 DoB: 1974-11-09 DoB: 1989-06-06 Hitting Coach Strategy Coach Catching Coach Coaching Assistant Bat'g Practice Pitcher Equipment Manager Bullpen Catchers Bullpen Catchers Troy Snitker Danny Barnes J.P. Arencibia Rafael Fernandez Kevin Mahoney Kevin Kierst Eric Langill Dave Racaniello DoB: 1988-12-05 DoB: 1989-10021 DoB: 1986-01-05 DoB: 1988-08-03 DoB: 1987-05-11 DoB: 1964-07-09 DoB: 1979-04-09 DoB: 1978-06-03 Your Mets Training Staff Director of Player Health Head Athletic Trainer Assistant Athletic Trainer Reconditioning Coordinator Reconditioning Therapist Head Performance Coach Assistant Performance Coach Performance Coordinator Soft Tissue Specialist Brian Chicklo Joseph Golia Bryan Baca Sean Bardanett Josh Bickel Dustin Clarke Tanner Miracle Jeremy Chiang Hiroto Kawamura DoB: 1972-07-17 DoB: 1978-??-?? DoB: Circa 1980 DoB: 1988-06-23 DoB: 1996-??-?? DoB: 1987-??-?? DoB: 1991-??-?? DoB: ????-??-?? DoB: 22846 View full article

An interesting thing about grabbing guys off the waiver wire, or signing them as freegies after they pass through waivers, is you often see your team grabbing guys out of the same organization, losing teams to the same organization. Maybe there's a favorite scout that they trust who has just returned from a look at that team. Transactions, 5/26/2026 GOING Transferred from 10-Day to 60-Day Injured List with Lubar Spine Disc Herniation Signed away by TBR to Minor-League Contract Outfielders Luis Robert, Jr. Austin Slater R/R DoB: 1997-08-03 High Level: MLB (2026) R/R DoB: 1992-12-13 High Level: MLB (2026) Merely hours after signing a post-waivers Craig Kimbrel to a minor-league contract, the Rays extended the same courtesy to Austin Slater, who similarly exercised his veteran's right to refuse a minor-league assignment and shop himself around. At 34-18 and in first place in the big-spending AL East, all the while playing in a park they had to fix up just to get the team to return in preparation for leaving again, the Rays may the best team in baseball at the same time as being the most irrelevant. It's a strange world, and the Rays may be collecting players waived by a last-place team, but they are sure doing something right. Luis Robert, Jr. got bumped to the 60-Man IL to make room for recent roster jugglage, so while the assignment may not represent a change in his health status, there isn't much of a peep of his improvement, leaving the Mets, among other things, a little short of righthanded hitters. Transactions, 5/27/2026 COMING Sent to Binghamton on Rehab Assignment Infielders Jorge Polanco S/R DoB: 1999-11-13 High Level: MLB (2026) While that righthanded hitter shortage has led the Mets to give a second look to corner infielder/corner outfielder Eric Wagaman, Jorge Polanco looms in the professional on-deck circle, suggesting Waggy's time could again be short. Polanco has historically been better from the left side, so he wouldn't particularly solve that righty issue. It is unclear how mobile he will be when he comes back, so he might well be seeing the bulk of his time at DH, leaving a deeply slumping (but still possibly the team's best righthanded hitter) Mark Vientos at first. We mean, yeah, that's not the way it is supposed to be, but putting the Vientos season side by side with those of Bo Bichette, Marcus Semien, and Luis Torrens, you kinda know what we mean, right?

Gary and Todd should do the post-game from Katz's.

All that drama in that inning, and not a single ball put in play. All the Mets have to do to win is strand 17 opposition runners. That's a plan, right?