Edgy MD

Stop fighting, all grownups. It's 2023 — a new year full of all sorts of wonderful potential — and fights make Tom Seaver cry. Here's your data. https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/screen-shot-2023-01-23-at-1.50.08-pm.png> [TABLE][TR][TH][/TH][TH]1985[/TH][TH]1986[/TH][TH]1987[/TH][TH]1988[/TH][TH]1989[/TH][/TR] [TR][TH]OPS[/TH][TD].669[/TD][TD].822[/TD][TD].806[/TD][TD].706[/TD][TD].777[/TR] [TR][TH]OPS vs. LH[/TH][TD].671[/TD][TD].627[/TD][TD].614[/TD][TD].686[/TD][TD].708[/TR] [TR][TH]OPS vs. RH[/TH][TD].668[/TD][TD].884[/TD][TD].847[/TD][TD].710[/TD][TD].789[/TR][/TABLE]

Lenny was agitating all along for more PT. The platoon with Wilson worked out great for a few seasons, but neither was happy (Lenny agitating more than Mookie), and rather than trade one, they traded both. Davey Johnson, presumably the one who absorbed most of the lobbying, approved the trade. Asking your manager to be a scout probably wasn't the best move at the time, but Frank Cashen tended to run big league deals by Johnson regularly before pulling the switch. Johnson had had enough of Lenny and thought very highly of Samuel's offensive skill set. Samuel had threatened to hit the rare plateau of 20 doubles/20 triples/20 homers for a few years there, and from the opposite bench, looked like an all-around offensive threat similar to Eric Davis. But what a closer inspection might have revealed was that (a) he was very much an astroturf hitter (and the Vet had hard turf), ( he struck out a lot (like, a lot), © was in the midst of a down year that would turn out to be more than a down year, and (d) hadn't fully adapted to his position switch that had only just occurred at the start of the season the trade went down. When a player who has shown a lot of early promise is in the midst of a crappy year, he still may be worth taking a chance on. He may be in the midst of premature decline, or he may quickly turn it around at a new address. He could be Ellis Valentine, or he could be John Olerud. But you sure don't want to put yourself in the position of needing the trade to turn out by (1) overpaying with two guys who were more likely to be sure things, and (2) getting him in the middle of a division race and leaving yourself with no other options if he can't bring it. You probably don't need a whole lot of journalism to get a peek into Lenny's character. The only thing you need to find is if there's anyone out there who is going to write that Dykstra is anything other than a total jerk who has been a total jerk all along. Jim Cramer liked him, I guess.

Meet the new kids, the froshies, the recent signees for the Mets, all bound for the DSL. In no order, we're most curious about: Osiris Calvo — because we've seen video of his slider. Jamdrick Corneilia — because recruitees from the non-Hispanophone Caribbean countries are always interesting. Also, He's legit 6'4" but his face looks nine years old. Marcos Terrero — because he appears to have no face. Julio Zayas — because he's reportedly a catcher who also plays everywhere else all over the diamond. Ramón Henriquez — who somehow got signed at 22 1/2. We're also curious because such classes as these usually include 60% or more pitchers, presumably under the notion that it's so hard to get a teenage pitcher to pan out (and pan out without injury), so you had better get a lot of them. But the Mets have gone against that trend in 2023, signing only 35.7% pitchers. Also, the division between starters and relievers is mostly guesswork at this point, but folks have to go somewhere in the database. Transactions, 1/15/2023 [th]Direction[/th][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][th]Transaction [/th][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Venezuela[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Cuba[/td90][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Venezuela[/td90][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Venezuela[/td90][th]Position Group [/th][th]=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher[/th][th]=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher[/th][th]=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher[/th][th]=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher[/th][th]=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher[/th][th][/th][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/anton-jesus-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/ceballos-luis-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/hurtado-daviel-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/mijares-elwis-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/brito-jean-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][th]Name [/th][td90]Jesús Anton [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/venezuelan-flag-small.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Luis Ceballos [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Daviel Hurtado [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/cuba-flag.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Elwis Mijares [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/venezuelan-flag-small.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Jean Brito [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/venezuelan-flag-small.jpg[/fimg][/td90][th]DoB[/th][td90]2/17/06[/td90][td90]6/13/05[/td90][td90]1/26/05[/td90][td90]12/29/05[/td90][td90]3/28/06[/td90][th]B/T[/th][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]L/L[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][th]High Level[/th][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][th]Direction[/th][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][th]Transaction [/th][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Curaçao[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Venezuela[/td90][th]Position Group [/th][th]=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher[/th][th]=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher[/th][th]=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher[/th][th]=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher[/th][th]=#FF8000]Relief Pitcher[/th][th][/th][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/calvo-osiris-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/cornelia-jamdrick-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/henriquez-ramon-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/lopez-misael-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/lugo-wilmer-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][th]Name [/th][td90]Osiris Calvo [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Jamdrick Cornelia [fimg=50]https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2019/11/curacao-flag.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Ramón Henriquez [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Misael Lopez [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Wilmer Lugo [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/venezuelan-flag-small.jpg[/fimg][/td90][th]DoB[/th][td90]5/6/04[/td90][td90]11/17/05[/td90][td90]6/29/99[/td90][td90]4/8/03[/td90][td90]3/5/06[/td90][th]B/T[/th][td90]L/L[/td90][td90]L/L[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]L/L[/td90][td90]L/L[/td90][th]High Level[/th][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][th]Direction[/th][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][th]Transaction [/th][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Venezuela[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Venezuela[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][th]Position Group [/th][th]=#00BF00] Catcher[/th][th]=#00BF00] Catcher[/th][th]=#00BF00] Catcher[/th][th]=#00BF00] Catcher[/th][th]=#00BF00] Catcher[/th][th][/th][td90][fimg=90]https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/gutierrez-daiverson-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/hernandez-julian-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/pizani-henry-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://www.milb.com/images/silhouette/180x270.jpg[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/zayas-julio-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][th]Name [/th][td90]Daiverson Gutiérrez [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/venezuelan-flag-small.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Julian Hernandez [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Henry Pizani [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/venezuelan-flag-small.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Marcos Terrero [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Julio Zayas [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][th]DoB[/th][td90]9/11/05[/td90][td90]9/24/05[/td90][td90]6/5/06[/td90][td90]11/11/05[/td90][td90]2/16/06[/td90][th]B/T[/th][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]L/L[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]L/R[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][th]High Level[/th][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][th]Direction[/th][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][th]Transaction [/th][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Venezuela[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Venezuela[/td90][th]Position Group [/th][th]=#BF80FF] Infielder[/th][th]=#BF80FF] Infielder[/th][th]=#BF80FF] Infielder[/th][th]=#BF80FF] Infielder[/th][th]=#BF80FF] Infielder[/th][th][/th][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/cordero-danis-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/de-oleo-branny-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/garcia-keiver-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/gomez-vladi-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/larez-christopher-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][th]Name [/th][td90]Daris Cordero [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Branny De Olio [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Keiver Garcia [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/venezuelan-flag-small.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Vladi Gomez [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Christiopher Larez [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/venezuelan-flag-small.jpg[/fimg][/td90][th]DoB[/th][td90]9/2/05[/td90][td90]5/15/05[/td90][td90]8/6/06[/td90][td90]9/12/05[/td90][td90]1/10/06[/td90][th]B/T[/th][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]S/R[/td90][td90]L/R[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][th]High Level[/th][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][th]Direction[/th][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][th]Transaction [/th][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Venezuela[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][th]Position Group [/th][th]=#BF80FF] Infielder[/th][th]=#FFC2C2] Outfielder[/th][th]=#FFC2C2] Outfielder[/th][th]=#FFC2C2] Outfielder[/th][th]=#FFC2C2] Outfielder[/th][th][/th][td90][fimg=90]https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/ruiz-leyderman-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/acosta-alex-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/asencio-enderson-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/baptist-anthony-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/diaz-reinel-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][th]Name [/th][td90]Leyderman Ruíz [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/venezuelan-flag-small.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Alex Acosta [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Enderson Asencio [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Anthony Baptíst [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Reniel Diaz [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][th]DoB[/th][td90]12/4/05[/td90][td90]11/24/05[/td90][td90]3/17/06[/td90][td90]10/17/05[/td90][td90]4/3/06[/td90][th]B/T[/th][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]L/L[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][th]High Level[/th][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][th]Direction[/th][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][th]Transaction [/th][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Venezuela[/td90][td90]Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic[/td90][td90] Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of Venezuela[/td90][th]Position Group [/th][th]=#FFC2C2] Outfielder[/th][th]=#FFC2C2] Outfielder[/th][th]=#FFC2C2] Outfielder[/th][th][/th][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/perez-jonathan-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/rincon-heriberto-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsinpeace.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/rodrigues-derek-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][th]Name [/th][td90]Jonathan Peréz [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/venezuelan-flag-small.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Heriberto Rincón [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Derek Rodriguez [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/venezuelan-flag-small.jpg[/fimg][/td90][th]DoB[/th][td90]2/27/06[/td90][td90]2/16/06[/td90][td90]3/5/06[/td90][th]B/T[/th][td90]L/L[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][th]High Level[/th][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90][td90]Academy (2022)[/td90]

Calvin Ziegler is also expected to play for Team Canada. Not concerning Ziegler, but I've never been keen on players representing nations they have only a coincidental connection to by way of heritage. A least in the World Cup, once a player commits to play for the nation of his forefathers, that's his international squad. If his status improves or declines, he can't suddenly declare his loyalty to a nu flag.

... after signing with the Mets.

The 1978 Brewers are a random favorite team of mine, and Sal knocked in 72 runs for them. He might have deserved more Hall of Fame support than he got, considering the number of MVP votes he accumulated. Along with Rick Monday, he was one of the early stars out of Arizona State, where they played alongside Duffy Dyer.

Ronny Mauricio is your Dominican Winter League MVP, and his Licey team are the league champs in walkoff style, as Ronny scores the winning run.

Also, some (most?) of them have umped at the big league level, substituting for guys during vacations and other downtime. I looked up one or two at https://umpscorecards.com/Umpire Scorecards, and if the data on them is an indicator of the whole set, these guys seemingly earned their stripes by performing better than the mean.

I feel like I've mentally consigned Johnny Cueto to the "Finished" pile for a decade now. Every time I see him, he looks labored and possibly pitching through an injury. He's proven me wrong over and over, though.

Yeah, I was thinking a Puerto Rican who'd been up since 1966 would have a better feel for the city than an Atlantan who had come up at the butt end of 1971. Maybe Milner gravitated toward Millan because he'd watched him play with the Braves. At any rate, it's nice to read a counterpoint to Marty Noble's observation of Milner as a surly jerk.

I thought you were down on Pillar.

Rich Chiles in the city!!

It's odd how these things come in bursts. After Tommie A-GEE was inducted in 2002, the door remained shut for seven seasons before — BAM!-BAM!-BAM!-BAM! — four folks went in 2010. They passed on following that up in 2011, before John Franco and Mike Piazza joined in 2012 and 2013. We feel like we're on a healthy and somewhat leisurely one-per season track, and then the team takes ANOTHER seven-year pass before calling out Ron Darling and Jon Matlack in 2021. All the honoring-our-past hoop-la goes down in 2022 with the Old Timer's Day cermonies and two number retirements, but they again induct ZERO Hall of Famers. You'd like to think that was a considered decision and not an omission, but — POW!-POW!-POW!-POW! — four more in 2023. I'm good with the choices — Leiter was the best 1998 Met there was — but it's as if the Mets, despite employing a thousand or more people, have to keep being reminded that there is a Hall of Fame.

This takes us up to 1/15, when the signings of the new class of international prospects become official. They will follow, but SHMEESH, they look young. In all the photos I was able to find of the first guy, he looks about nine. Transactions, 1/10/2023 [th]Direction[/th][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]COMING[/td90][td90]=#000000]NEUTRAL[/td90][td90]=#000000]NEUTRAL[/td90][th]Transaction [/th][td90]Promoted from St. Lucie Bench Coach to St. Lucie Manager[/td90][td90]Promoted from Brooklyn Bench Coach to Brooklyn Manager[/td90][td90]Transferred from Catching Coordinator to Syracuse Manager[/td90][td90] Renewed as Binghamton Manager[/td90][th]Position Group [/th][th]=#FF0000] Manager[/th][th]=#FF0000] Manager[/th][th]=#FF0000] Manager[/th][th]=#FF0000] Manager[/th][th][/th][td90][fimg=90]https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2021/04/gomez-gilbert-2021.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2021/04/newell-chris-2021.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2023/01/scott-dick-2023.png[/fIMG][/td90][td90][fimg=90]https://metsrostercentral.files.wordpress.com/2021/04/brignac-reid-2021.png[/fimg][/td90][th]Name [/th][td90]Gilbert Gomez [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][td90]Chris Newell [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/US-flag.png[/fimg][/td90][td60]Dick Scott [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/US-flag.png[/fimg][/td60][td90]Reid Brignac [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/US-flag.png[/fimg][/td90] [th]DoB[/th][td60]3/8/92[/td60][td60]Circa 1974[/td60][td60]7/19/62[/td60][td90]1/16/86[/td90][th]B/T[/th][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90][td90]R/R[/td90] [th]High Level[/th][td90]A Bench Coach (2022)[/td90][td90]A+ Bench Coach (2022)[/td90][td90]MLB Bench Coach (2022)[/td90][td90]AA Manager (2022)[/td90] Gilbert Gomez is a real comer, taking over St. Lucie at 30, clearly making an impression after a few seasons in the organization. He had previously been an outfielder in the organization from 2009 to 2015, however, exhibiting a batting eye, but not much else, having perhaps his best season with St. Loo in 2014. May be worth keeping an eye on. Reid Brignac had a nine-year career career as an MLB futility infielder, his career highlight happening at spring training when he revived his girlfriend (now wife) who had collapsed in his shower. Transactions, 1/13/2023 [th]Direction[/th][td90]COMING[/td90][th]Transaction [/th][td90]Acquired via Trade from BAL as Player to Be Named Later in Deal That Originally Sent James McCann to BAL, Projected for Complex League[/td90][th]Position Group [/th][th]=#BF80FF] Infielder[/th][th][/th][td90][fimg=90]https://www.milb.com/images/silhouette/180x270.jpg[/fIMG][/td90][th]Name [/th][td90]Luis De La Cruz [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Dominican_Republic.jpg[/fimg][/td90][th]DoB[/th][td90]10/15/02[/td90][th]B/T[/th][td90]L/R[/td90][th]High Level[/th][td90]DSL (2022)[/td90] Luis De La Cruz has never played above the DSL, and has shown neither power nor speed, but when a .252 batting average over 195 career trips to the plate also comes with a .405 OBP, that's lottery ticket worth cashing in your James McCann chip for. If he only had a face. Transactions, 1/13/2023 [th]Direction[/th][td90]COMING[/td90][th]Transaction [/th][td90]Re-Signed to Minor League Contract and Projected for Syracuse[/td90][th]Position Group [/th][th]=#FF0000]Starting Pitcher[/th][th][/th][td90][fimg=90]https://img.mlbstatic.com/mlb-photos/image/upload/w_180,g_auto,c_fill/v1/people/670119/headshot/milb/current[/fIMG][/td90][th]Name [/th][td60]Connor Grey [fimg=50]https://thecranepool.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/US-flag.png[/fimg][/td60][th]DoB[/th][td60]5/6/94[/td60][th]B/T[/th][td90]L/R[/td90][th]High Level[/th][td90]AAA (2022)[/td90] Connor Grey was a phantom Met in 2022, called up from September 1 to September 4 without making an appearance. That's a rare status, but he's returning to the organization, hoping the shed the "phantom" part of it. MRC guesses we've got to root for him.

Yeah, I feel bad about voting down a well executed photo of an outstandingly executed catch. But it's a poorly executed cover, and it would be wrong to overlook that. Memoirs of a Geisha can give me a really well photographed capture of an excellent performance by its star, but it's still kind of a dumb movie.

Pham has seemingly been a bit of a mercurial character. Raised in Vegas, he went to three different high schools, before committing to two different top baseball universities, before attending neither. He's had problematic relationships with both his father (who has been incarcerated most of his life) and his stepfather. He's a big-time gambler, which he openly brags about. He's been stabbed twice and, as noted, slugged an opponent over an internet fantasy football beef, which may or may not be related to how seriously he takes the gambling thing. As attractive as he might be as a deadline acquisition, he didn't help the Red Sox that much last season. Tore it up for the Rays after a deadline deal in 2018, though.

I'm always a tad confused by backdoor honors like achievement award (as if the others aren't being honored for achieving things), but I guess the idea is that it goes to non-public facing characters.

Here's to the ongoing vitality of Hobie Landrith, Met Zero.

Hopefully, Craig is still getting out there and golfing with Soupcan's father.

There are probably dozens of useful comps out there, depending on which criteria you favor. Chris Davis, Paul Goldschmidt, José Abreu ... .

Made it to Old Timer's Day in August.

Kiss him goodbye.

Forever a http://phpbb3.leaptoad.com/mets/archives/1900/f1_t1946.shtmlmember of the community.

Ryan Howard's precipitous decline was accelerated by having to regularly face Pedro Feliciano. And Jon Niese, for that matter.

Two winners here.