Edgy MD

I think though, that if the qualifications to get a player off the shit list are qualifications that only 10% of the players starting regularly at that position can meet, we're gonna find ourselves awash in shit, even if the team succeeds wildly. FanGraphs has the guy eighth in WAR among all shortstops, at 0.9. Ian Desmond, who the Mets were supposed to trade Syndergaard for and so prove their seriousness, is 15th, at 0.2. Tulowitzki, whose non-aquisition has Met fans burning their jerseys, is 17th at -0.1. As much as the team's offense has struggled, we all might do well to think about where they might be without Flores.

I see. It's my job to research your claim. Got it.

What percentage of everyday shortstops do you suppose out-homer their error total in a given year? ... I don't know either, but I'd venture a guess that it's decidedly in the minority, both now and in the history of the game. The always-remarkable Cal Ripken did it 13 times in 14 full seasons at shortstop. (And with him, a full season was a full season.) The 14th year, he was dead even: 26 errors and 26 homers. LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: A cursory review of the last few years makes it seem like the more-boom-than-boot rate is around 10 percent these days. 3 out of 22 qualifying shortstops did it last year (Jhonny Peralta, Jordy Mercer, and Jimmy Rollins), with Ian Desmond and Alexei Ramirez achieving the rare push. Hey, you can believe what you want, but the statistics say oth... oh, wait.

Ceetar wrote: I don't know about you but I've known Lucas Duda has been good for years and am not surprised. I'm not surprised. That's more or less a big part of my point. Will these conclusive statistics be forthcoming?

well, you can disagree all you want, the statistics bare out the truth. The best way to know how a guy will hit in the majors is to see him hit in the majors. What statistics would those be? Do they account for the cost in terms of money and talent of bringing in veteran players? Do they account for the fungibility of younger players being easier to move in and out of the lineup? Or the presence of secondary skills in younger players that have often faded in veteran talent? Do they account for the long term benefits beyond this year of developing younger players. Do they account for paying Bobby Bonilla beyond the expected lifetime of Fred and possibly Jeff Wilpon? Please, show me the statistics. I'm quoting 'work' because A. I doubt guys aren't doing what they need to do, and B. no amount of work can replace a guy's talent ceiling. This is like Terry Collins saying "uh guys, maybe don't strike out so much?" like they're not trying to hit the damn baseball. (A) Neither do I, but success comes when it comes, in fits and starts. ( No, it's not like that all. Players improve all the time. Last year, it was: Hey, we pretty much know what Lucas Duda is. It's been over three years now. He worked hard, and well, he had a breakthrough. He seems to be having another one this year. If you are mystically privy to Dilson Herrera's talent ceiling � or Muno's, or d'Arnaud's, or Flores', or Lagares' � please tell me now. #BrilliantManagement #YaGottaBelieve #YaGottaHaveFaithUhFaithUhFaithUHHH

Oh, shit. Jumping on my IGT privileges. COULD ANYTHING GOOD COME FROM THIS?!!

Life is a gamble. There's no need to quote "work." It's an established term and the activities I'm describing meet the criteria. I disagree that less major league experience necessarily means a bigger risk.

Ceetar wrote: Ahh, the glorious "Let's just play the guys we have and hope they're good/get better" plan.Guys DO get better. And it's not just a matter of hope. It's a matter of work. It's a matter of a philosophy that folks are on board with. It's a matter of the right personnel. It's a matter of investing in youth. It's a matter of major and minor league track records. It's a matter of intelligently experimenting with combinations. It's a matter of rehabilitation and having information about your players that other people don't have.

Or, alternatively, a guy whose name sounds like "One RBI."

Edgy MD wrote: The Braves scratched Alberto Callaspo from the lineup last night, leading to reports that a trade was imminent. He's had a 10-year career, and has rarely been any good during it. If they're just trying to get something/anything for Nieuwenhuis, well, he's cheaper than McGehee, but still more expensive than Nieuwenhuis. Reports now have the Braves potentially sending Collaspo to the Dodgers for Juan Uribe. Or more specifically, Uribe and a minor leaguer for Callaspo and three minor leaguers.

Yeah, but (1) that's not necessarily the bottom line, and (2) one of our stupid offseason fake Mets scandals was the Mets' intransigence in not giving up Syndergaard for Desmond.

dgwphotography wrote: Edgy MD wrote: Syndie is auditioning to stay on the roster here, as Gee aced his rehab start. Gaard pitches well and he stays, with Gee going to the pen. Not so well and Gee returns to the rotation and the big guy to Las Vegas for a bit. I think. Anything less than a no-hitter, and Syndergaard is sent down. 3 more weeks in the minors = another year before arbitration kicks in. The accountants dictate the baseball moves with this team. Check out Syndiebaby, still hanging around. And six-man rotation talk does abound.

Duane Below is having a quietly excellent season down there on the old farm. He was announced to be the PCL pitcher of the week and then he went out and pitched a complete game over the Colorado Springs Sky Sox for good measure. He wasn't even expected to be in the rotation, and now he's Wally Backman's anchor, working with a 4-2 record and a 2.18 ERA. He's only struck out 23 in his 41.1 innings, but he's only walked six and that ain't bad for a guy who didn't even get a spring training invite. When you're looking for lefty help, look Below.

The Braves scratched Alberto Callaspo from the lineup last night, leading to reports that a trade was imminent. He's had a 10-year career, and has rarely been any good during it. If they're just trying to get something/anything for Nieuwenhuis, well, he's cheaper than McGehee, but still more expensive than Nieuwenhuis.

Dominic is up to a respectable .233 / .287 / .308 // .595. And by "respectable," I mean, "a barely tolerable for the best fielding shortstop the Florida State League has ever seen." For Smith, it remains deeply perturbing. It's an improvement from April, to be certain, but the man wasn't signed to put up an Ordóñezian slugging percentage. No sir.

He just doesn't look the part. Lacks confidence. Fran Healy tells me that's important.

That guy is no Met.

The Mets' win and the Cubs' loss to the Nationals bring the Mets back into a tie for the second Wild Card spot.

The funny thing is that the Mets don't really need a versatile guy. They have enough infield/outfield versatility at is, that they could stand to add a guy (presumably the best available guy) who plays virtually any position, save first or catcher. And if there's a setback for d'Arnaud, they could stand to add a catcher also.

Then throw in Nimmo. This is BEN ZOBRIST we're talking about.

I'll take any one who references the Jackson Mets. Haven't been a Mets affiliate since 1990, when they were Clint Hurdle's second managerial assignment, after two years in St. Lucie.

Is Muno expected to play every day?

You're right. Get Matz a plane ticket.

Then later, gator. The Mets have two super utility men in Murphy and Flores. They're not as dear as all that.

It's a sad reality that, while we decry the caterpillarian lowness of Adam Sandler's act, when he does endeavor to try a more honorable project � Punch Drunk Love, Love Reign o'er Me, and this � it disappears quickly in the marketplace. Then he returns to the sewer and America handsomely rewards him. We can tut-tut that his latest project appears to be a borderline hate crime, but YOU MADE HIM, America. And YOU MADE HIM DO IT! That bit of anti-moralizing moralizing aside, the film � categorizable as Jewish magic realism � is something of a departure for McCarthy as well but it ends up being hit-and-miss. Some of the plot turns are clever, and the portrayal of a dying Lower East Side tradesman-and-merchant community is authentic enough (though far from pitch perfect), but some of the protagonist's choices are head-scratchers and the themes are a little Disney facile. Certainly not a wasted evening, though. It kind of feels like a John Sayles movie, in that the you're getting a bigger picture of good-and-bad American values in an ordinary, low-budget/low-scale life, but you don't realize it unless you think about it. What have you all been watching?