Ceetar

people too busy insinuating that Cespedes wasn't trying to get back in 2019 because he's lazy, despite not being paid all year. Wonder if we'll get more details on that, or his prognosis now that everyone's on the same page, legally speaking.

=batmagadanleadoff post_id=28400 time=1576270535 user_id=68] =Ceetar post_id=28396 time=1576268136 user_id=102] I don't understand why the both of you insist on characterizing positive about the Mets moves and prospects as having anything to do with the Wilpons,

they're just humoring him. ;-) Earn it and start though, go ahead.

Edgy MD wrote: Interestingly, Fangraphs actually projects them as something of a first place team right now. I don't want to make too much of that, because there's a lot that can improved on or fucked up between now and then. And hey, please use the F-bomb neutrally around here, Ceets, rather than pointed at fellow posters. I thought that was pretty neutral. not 'fuck you' but go 'fuck off' =Centerfield post_id=28390 time=1576263447 user_id=65] Wait. Why do I have to fuck off? I said you spend night and day defending and justifying the Wilpons. Am I wrong? In fact, after telling me to fuck off, you spent the rest of your post defending and justifying the Wilpons.

the Mets could absolutely win the World Series before Cohen (assuming it happens) takes over. The odds of it happening might be greater than the Wheeler, Cole, or Strasburg winning a Cy Young. So biggest story? not a damn chance. Look, "on paper" the Mets were in the hunt last year. Nationals 90 Phillies 86 Mets 85 Braves 84 was the final fangraphs projections. 5 games is a bunch, but it's not really 'run away' territory. the Mets went 12-7 against the Nats, which easily would've bumped them ahead, all other things equal, which of course they're not, but it's hard not to see a team with maybe slightly less projected talent but results that make up for it as "toe to toe". The Braves blowing the projections out of the water is something to look at going forward for sure, but 2019s results factored in and they'll probably bump up. but even if you replayed 2019 with the same rosters you'd get different results. Having 2019 Strasburg or Jacob deGrom is not much of a given for 2020 results. Using how 2019 looked, even how it ended, as a guide to where the teams stand in 2020 isn't super userful, nor is trying to 1-1 replace rotation pieces and saying they're X better. The Mets are in a good position. They've got the 'paper' talent of a team a few tickets above .500 which the potential for even a few more depending on what shakes out in the offseason and who's healthy when the bell rings. They've got a lot of good players, some coaches I'm hopeful about, and a division that while competitive, isn't without plenty of issues. So yes, if they'd signed Cole and Rendon maybe they'd be 50% to make the playoffs instead of 33. But hell, it's not all doom and gloom and you can talk about Cohen all you want as it pertains to the franchise, but it's not particularly interesting to the 2020 construction of the team or what's going to happen with it, which presumably is what we're all 99% interested in. (granted, I know some here actually enjoy sojourns into teams/players from 30 years ago and barely pay attention, but those people aside)

=nymr83 post_id=28380 time=1576259452 user_id=54] Mike Piazza? He was signed 20 years ago before anyone had ever heard of Bernie Madoff. How is he at all an argument for what the Mets do right or wrong now?

23. Jed Lowrie – Athletics. Three years, $30MM. Only two second basemen — Jose Ramirez and Jose Altuve — have been better than Lowrie by measure of WAR over the past two seasons I mean, sure, he wasn't Machado. They should've signed Machado. But this is not a binary situation in that the Mets didn't sign the top 1-2 free agents therefore they're garbage and have no shot. If this is a money implication, Cano certainly counts. Or is this the Republican way of not counting Mike Piazza as a signing or the 1999-2000 teams as good? =Centerfield post_id=28373 time=1576257301 user_id=65] Was he? He spends day and night defending and justifying the Wilpons it's hard to tell.

=nymr83 post_id=28353 time=1576205732 user_id=54] Ok, I don't literally mean it has to be Cole there. It could be Cole, or Strasburg, or Rendon, or the big free agents they didn't sign last year. the point is htat a big market team with the revenue sources of the New York market should be signing guys like Wacha as backups not as their top signing in free agency.

you're underselling league average. hell, better than that. Vargas had a 4.30 ERA on the season, that's 46th of 96 starters with a minimum of 40IP. Jason Vargas' xFIP Was pretty nasty though. There are so many moving factors, I don't even know. Vargas was not good, but put up some results. These guys, 1-6, all likely clear that bar. It's a smoother curve. The Mets took some off the top to patch up the bottom. The whole rotation might be slightly worse, but maybe the corral of 13+ pitchers as a whole is better.

=batmagadanleadoff post_id=28304 time=1576180345 user_id=68] =Ceetar post_id=28303 time=1576180018 user_id=102] Steamer thinks so. 0.8 for Vargas, 1.1 for Wacha, 1.8 for Porcello. fWAR.

Steamer thinks so. 0.8 for Vargas, 1.1 for Wacha, 1.8 for Porcello. fWAR.

Plenty of offseason left. Things still to be done. But yeah, it'd be a not-shocking result. hell, Fangraphs depth charts (on the right) has the Mets with the most fWAR in the NL East right now. https://www.fangraphs.com/depthcharts.aspx?position=ALL&teamid=0https://www.fangraphs.com/depthcharts.aspx?position=ALL&teamid=0

continue to say I said things I didn't say, go ahead. oh and pretend you're objective, sure. That's believable. Why are you talking about Wheeler? The Mets rotation is probably slightly worse overall right now than it was last year, but not noticeably so and obviously things don't play exactly to talent, could go either way, though a guy like Porcello is pretty steady, which is a hell of a lot more than you could say about Jason Vargas. Everyone keeps spouting off about 'competitive in the division' like the Mets aren't already there, and are making offseason moves. Maybe not the "potentially dominate the division" ones that signing Rendon and Cole and Ryu would've been, but you're not being objective if you don't think, at this moment, the Mets are a reasonable guess to win the division/make the playoffs.

broken record. you say the same things, and yet I'm the one over here happily enjoying baseball and the Mets. It always sounds like i'm saying the same things because you've decided you're going to needlessly exaggerate every modicum of positivity to the extreme. "long stretch of being league average, which is useful" becomes 25 game winner, like pitcher wins even means anything. But go ahead, tell me how re-signing a pitcher you already had and letting your star 3B go is an upgrade.

better than a broken record

rough glance suggests record high fastball usage last year. Record low sinkers. I don't really know what to make of that. grip/break/juiced ball thing? He's got a 10+ year streak of basically being at least league average. That's actually immensely valuable and also Mike Pelfrey level infuriating. (Pelf did the odd/even year thing for a while too) Depending how 2020 turns out Jeremy Hefner might really make a name for himself.

=batmagadanleadoff post_id=28197 time=1576103650 user_id=68] Wacha's slowball is his fastball. Also, the incentive clause is that the Mets'll pay Wacha whatever Gerrit Cole's making if Wacha fans 600 batters in 2020. Plus, the Mets were all set to sign Cole until Sandy Alderson put a gun to Fred's head and threatened to pull the trigger unless the Mets instead signed Wacha. It's Michael Cuddyer all over again. To tell you the truth, the only Mets news I'm looking for these days is stuff about Steve Cohen. And more anecdotes about how much Katz's kids think Jeff Wilpon is a dick. Because that Kaz Matsui story can't possibly be the only one.

it's junk change. They absolutely shouldn't hardwire him to a rotation spot (though I'm sure they implied it to him, and anyone else they're slow playing), but in it of itself? Whatever. It looks like it's been control issues (walk issues at any rate ,without digging deeper) the last two years for the most part. If they think they can address that? great, he's league averagish to slightly better.

he's a fine flyer guy. What can you do with him Hef?

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51FHC7JQ9ML._SX308_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg>

Benitez was a nutjob taking like long voodoo baths or something?

I mean this is mostly Martino combining rumors as far as I can tell. If they did acquire Marte it would definitely behoove them to move an outfielder. Nimmo's better, but the idea would be to get more value back for him than you lose in swapping in Marte there. This also assumes playing a lot of Jeff McNeil in the outfield regularly. And Dom Smith, if you don't trade him, which you should.

here's hoping those improvements were a product of the Astros and not necessarily transferrable.

yes, which is why guys like Boras tell guys like Heyman stuff like this.

=batmagadanleadoff post_id=28066 time=1576000645 user_id=68] Meanwhile, the Mets strategy will continue to be to compete against teams that have elite top tier talent with second tier talent. Yeah deGrom's a superduperstar but when a team has more than one of those, it's likely that they tapped the top of the FA market. The Mets have an excellent pitching staff but the Nats had three of the top 10 pitchers last year and Scherzer is about as good, if not maybe better than deGrom.