Up Along First

Why All The Hate For Sandy Alderson?

Alright, I know these past few weeks have been frustrating. The Mets have gone from a playoff contender to almost completely out of it. The team has obvious holes and inconsistencies. But why are so many people mad at Sandy Alderson?

If we look back to late 2010, when it was obvious that Omar Minaya was going to be fired, the Mets were in bad shape. Word of financial troubles were emerging and flexibility was limited. Jason Bay was coming off a really bad year for the Mets in the first year of his contract. That, combined with concerns regarding his concussion made him untradeable. Then you had Johan Santana who had major surgery late in the season and with a huge contract, he was stuck there, too. The list goes on and on. The bullpen was decimated. And on top of all that, the farm system had been decimated by Omar Minaya. Sandy Alderson was put in a really tough spot.

Throughout last season, it was more of the same. The outlook for the team financially looked very bleak and with quite a few unmovable contracts, Alderson couldn’t do much then either. All he was able to do was unload Francisco Rodriguez’s bad contract as well as get a stud prospect from the Giants in Zack Wheeler.

Now this season comes along. Before this season, the mindset was all about development, and preparing this team for the future. The “core” of this team was, for the most part, extremely young and inexperienced. If the front office stayed the course, it would all turn out pretty well. Then came the season.

With he Mets’ hot start, expectations rose to a level unfair to the players. Yes, the team was a few games over .500. They were fun to watch and for the first time in a few years, they really showed fight and resilience. However, this team had deep flaws. Flaws that couldn’t be fixed with one simple deadline deal and I think Alderson realized that.

When you look at the farm system you see that it is just starting to recover from what Omar Minaya did to it. We are now finally producing some notable prospects. After that comes legitimate big league talent. Do fans really want to risk the future by trading some of those rising minor league stars away? Is it really worth it?

The way I think of it is this: The Mets are a long, long ways away from being a playoff team. They need a completely new bullpen and a reorganized outfield. They may also need a catcher. The flaws are so deep that even multiple mid-season, blockbuster trades may not guarantee a playoff berth. I’d much rather stick it out with the young prospects, which can help the team much longer than any 35 year-old veteran outfielder can.

Accepting this might be hard for Mets fans, especially ones that don’t follow the minor league system closely. However, Sandy Alderson has an eye on the future and isn’t going to throw it all away for this season. I have to admit that these past three weeks have been tough to swallow, but I know that the Mets will be better off in the long-run without making impulsive deals.

Original Article

Jason Bay May Be Getting His Last Chance As A Met

While Terry Collins has always been patient with Jason Bay, even he has to be sick of his perforemance right now. He stuck with him these past two years based on his long track-record of success in Pittsburgh and Boston. However, his leash with Bay is shortening, as it should be.

Prior to Friday night’s game in Arizona, Collins told reporters that it could be Mike Baxter who gets the starting left fielder job when he returns from the DL. Baxter is 21-for-65 in limited playing time, but even considering how small his sample size is this season, virtually anything is better than Jason Bay, who is hitting .170 at the moment.

Bay will only have a few more weeks to regain the form that earned him the four-year, $66 million contract he earned before the 2009 season.

This may also be Bay’s last season as a Met. It seems unlikely that Sandy Alderson would trade him now, especially since Scott Hairston could go as well, but this offseason may be the perfect time to deal him, if there was one. Bay has one more year left on his contract at $16 million and a $17 million option for 2014 if he gets to 600 plate appearances.

I could see (and certainly hope) that somehow, the Mets can pull of a deal similar to the one that sent A.J. Burnett to the Pirates in February. However, Sandy Alderson will probably be willing to accept any trade that takes Bay off his hands. Any amount of salary that the receiving team would be willing to take on is just an added bonus. Bay really needs to get out of New York. He needs a change of scenery, as well as a hitting coach that can get him back to whatever he was doing in Pittsburgh and Boston that he hasn’t been doing since. A major resurgence for him as a Met seems extremely unlikely at this point.

Bay can’t go into next season under contract with the Mets. If he does. he will be put in almost an impossible situation for him to deal with. Not only will fans be booing him in every at-bat, but there will be mounting pressure on Terry Collins to not use Bay as much so he does not reach the 600 plate appearances, much like what happened last year with Francisco Rodriguez. That’s a distraction that the team won’t be able to handle.

I respect Jason Bay. He’s a professional and is just as upset (probably more) as all of us fans are about his performance. But there’s one thing that’s clear: he has to go.

Original Article

Series Preview: Mets Begin West Coast Trip With Four In Arizona

Tonight at 9:40, the Mets begin the first game of an eleven-game west coast road trip against the Diamondbacks in Arizona.

The Mets are coming out of their last homestand desperate for wins. They really need a big run to turn this season around and they need it fast. They are on the brink of being irrelevant. If they don’t roll of a bunch of victories fast, they will be out of the playoff race entirely.

Not only will this series be important in the actual standings, but it will also be very revealing of how resilient this year’s Mets team really is. Terry Collins really ripped into them in his last press conference after yesterda’ys game. After having 36 hours to sit on that, it should be very interesting to see how the Mets respond.

The Diamondbacks are a team led mostly by their offense. They have gotten great performances out of some recent acquisitions: Jason Kubel and Aaron Hill. Hill, who the D-Backs got from Toronto last August, has been a big run producer and is second on the team in home runs. Kubel, who signed a two-year deal with Arizona in December, is having a career-best season. He is hitting around .300 and has over 20 home runs on the season. He is also up there among league RBI leaders with more than 70. Those two have been keys to the Diamondbacks being a .500 team.

The Mets need to step up and win some games if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive, and that all starts tonight. Lose three of four and the Mets could find themselves nine or ten games back. This series will make or break this season.

Pitching Matchups:

Game 1- Tonight 9:40

Matt Harvey (0-0, -.— ERA) vs. Wade Miley (11-5, 3.02 ERA)

Game 2- Friday 9:40

Jonathon Niese (7-4, 3.59 ERA) vs. Josh Collmenter (2-2, 3.82 ERA)

Game 3- Saturday 8:10

Chris Young (2-4, 3.91 ERA Ian Kennedy (8-8, 4.20 ERA)

Game 4- Sunday 4:10

R.A. Dickey (13-2, 2.97 ERA) vs. Joe Saunders (5-6, 3.51 ERA)

Notes:

• Justin Upton has not been himself this season. Upton hit over 30 home runs last year with a slugging percentage of .529. He is on pace to hit fewer than 15 home runs this year and his slugging percentage has dropped more than 100 points from last season.
• Friday’s starter for the Diamondbacks, Josh Collmenter, has a 1.53 ERA over his last 15 games, which include four starts.
• David Wright has been in a bit of a slump lately. Well, by his standards. Wright is hitting .301 this month, but also has six homers and 17 RBI.
• Matt Harvey will make his long-awaited debut tonight. In his last start in Buffalo, he allowed six runs on seven hits in just five innings.
• Jon Niese bounced back from a rough outing against Chicago on July 8 with two great starts. Niese has allowed more than four runs in just three of his 19 starts this season. He has really only had two really bad starts- against the Cubs on July 8, and also in Toronto in mid-May.
• Since throwing his second consecutive one-hitter on June 18, R.A. Dickey has struggled. In seven games (six starts) he has an ERA of 5.36, compared to 2.00 over his first 14 outings.
• Let’s go Mets!

Original Article

Morning Mets Links: July 25, 2012

Here are this morning’s Mets links:

• The Mets lost last night by a score of 5-2. R.A. Dickey was only alright. Combine that with only three hits on offense and you have a big problem. Even a dramatic late-inning home run by Jordany Valdespin couldn’t save them. (Post, Box Score)
• The Mets called up Matt Harvey and Manny Acosta yesterday, sending Pedro Beato and Lucas Duda back to Buffalo. (MetsBlog, MetsBlog)
• Frank Francisco suffered another setback earlier this week, but should be ready to go for the beginning of his rehab assignment today in Binghamton. (ESPN New York)
• After Ruben Tejada was spiked in the shin on Monday, he told Terry Collins he was ready to go last night. (MetsBlog)
• The Mets signed reliever Craig Hanson to a minor league deal yesterday. (MLB.com)
• The Mets finish off the series today with Jeremy Hefner going up against Stephen Strasburg. Oh boy… (MLB.com Preview) First pitch is at 12:10.

Original Article

Morning Links: July 24, 2012

Here are this morning’s Mets links:

• The Mets imploded in the 10th innin last night, losing 8-2 to the Nationals to drop to 47-49. Chris Young pitched well and Ike Davis tied it up late, but Pedro Beato got rocked in the top of the tenth. (Post, Box Score)
• Sandy Alderson told reporters before yesterday’s game that they would not be major buyers at the trade deadline. The only moves the Mets would make are ones that would help them in 2013 and beyond. (ESPN New York)
• In order to make room for Matt Harvey on the roster, the Mets have to send someone to Triple-A Buffalo. Bob Klapisch reports it will be the struggling Lucas Duda that gets sent down. (@BobKlap)
• Frank Francisco will begin his rehab assignment today in Brooklyn. Francisco threw two bullpen sessions this weekend. (ESPN New York)
• The Braves made a big move yesterday by agreeing to a deal that would send Ryan Dempster to Atlanta. There is only one obstacle in the way of the deal now: Dempster’s approval. (@MLBBowman)
• The Marlins also made a blockbuster deal yesterday. They dealt Anibal Sanchez and Omar Infante to the Tigers in return for Jacob Turner and two other prospects. (@Pgammo)
• The Mets battle the Nationals tonight at Citi Field as R.A. Dickey faces off against Gio Gonzalez. First pitch is at 7:10. (MLB.com Preview)

Original Article

Game 96: Extra Innings, Extra Painful…

[iframe src=”http://www.fangraphs.com/graphframe.aspx?config=0&static=0&type=livewins&num=0&h=450&w=450&date=2012-07-23&team=Mets&dh=0” width=”450” height=”450”]

Final Score: Nationals 8, Mets 2

Player Of The Game: Chris Young- 7 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 7 SO, 106 pitches (64 strikes)

Goat Of The Game: Pedro Beato- 0.1 IP, 4 H, 5 R, BB

Notes:

• Chris Young pitched really, really well. Young allowed two runs in seven innings, allowing three hits in the first inning and then settling down after that.
• Ike Davis and David Wright both hit their 15th home runs of the year.
• For the second straight night, the Mets bullpen collapsed in extra innings. Last night it was Ramon Ramirez. Tonight it was Pedro  Beato. Beato was charged with five runs on four hits in just a third of an inning.
• The Mets have now lost ten of their last 11 games…

Original Article

Series Preview: Mets Get Another Shot At Nationals

Tonight at 7:10, the Mets take on the Nationals in the first game of a three-game series at Citi Field.

This may be the last chance for the Mets. If they can’t take this series, it will be very, very hard for them to get out of the hole they’ve dug for themselves.

The last time the Mets played the Nationals just last week, they lost two of three. The two losses were both of the one-run variety. They lost the first game 4-3 after a comeback attempt in the ninth inning fell just short. Then the next night, they lost it in the tenth on a wild pitch by Pedro Beato with the bases loaded. Luckily, R.A. Dickey and David Wright were there to save the day in the getaway game. Wright hit two home runs and Dickey allowed four runs in 7.1 innings en route to a 9-5 win.

Despite the promising sign at the end of the last Nationals series, they have continued to falter. They were swept by the Dodgers at Citi Field to fall below .500 for the first time all season. That makes this series so critical for the Mets.

Pitching Matchups:

Game 1: Monday 7:10

Chris Young (2-4, 4.11 ERA) vs. Jordan Zimmerman (7-6, 2.35 ERA)

Game 2- Tuesday 7:10

R.A. Dickey (13-1, 2.84 ERA) vs. Gio Gonzalez (12-5, 3.32 ERA)

Game 3 Wednesday 12:10

Jeremy Hefner (1-3, 5.85 ERA) vs. Stephen Strasburg (10-4, 2.85 ERA)

Notes:

• Ian Desmond is heading to the DL with an oblique injury. Desmond has been the the biggest offensive threat for the Nationals this season, hitting 17 home runs and driving in 53. He was batting .286 with a .825 OPS. He also has 15 stolen bases. He could be out for well over a month.
• The Mets don’t get any breaks with the pitching matchups in this series. They are forced to face Washington’s three best pitchers. This is going to be a very tough series…
• Daniel Murphy is on fire. He has his average up above .300 once again after going 4-for-5 last night. Since June 26, Murphy is hitting .440.
• The Mets have a 6.36 ERA since the All-Star break.

Original Article

Morning Mets Links: July 23, 2012

Here are this morning’s Mets links:

• The Mets lost yesterday afternoon in a marathon 12-inning game with the Dodgers that ended in an 8-3 defeat. Jonathon Niese pitched well, but the offense couldn’t score until the ninth, when they tied up the game. In the end, however, it all went to waste as Ramon Ramirez allowed five runs in the 12th to lost. (Post, Box Score)
• The Mets announced that they will call up Matt Harvey to make his major league debut on Thursday against the Diamondbacks. Harvey is 7-5 with a 3.68 ERA in 20 starts for the Triple-A Bisons this season. (ESPN New York)
• The Mets also called up Elvin Ramirez yesterday. Ramirez had pitched very well in Buffalo this season. Miguel Batista’s Mets career finally ended as he was designated for assignment to make room for Ramirez. (NJ.com)
• It might all be over… (Real Dirty Mets)
• Despite recent struggles, the Mets will not be sellers at the deadline. Adam Rubin tweets that the front office “didn’t want to leave the clubhouse bare.” (@AdamRubinESPN) Rubin also tweeted that the Mets could still be active in the trade market, dealing for players under control next season. (@AdamRubinESPN)
• Chris Young takes on Jordan Zimmerman tonight at 7:10 in the first game of a three-game series.

Original Article

Morning Mets Links: July 22, 2012

Here are this morning’s Mets links:

• The Mets placed Johan Santana on the DL yesterday with a sprained ankle. Santana hurt the ankle against the Cubs on July 6 when he had his foot stepped on while covering first base. Santana, 33, is 6-7 on the season with a 3.98 ERA. (MLB.com)
• The Mets lost yesterday to the Dodgers by a score of 8-5. Miguel Batista got the start and got rocked. He went just three innings on a day when the Mets needed more. He also gave up four runs on five hits. (Box Score)
• Matt Harvey got roughed up in Triple-A last night, allowing six runs on seven hits over five innings. (MiLB.com)
• Elvin Ramirez was called back up to the Mets yesterday. Ramirez, 24, has made five appearances for the Mets this season. He has allowed a total of seven earned runs over seven innings pitched. However, he has a 2.28 ERA in 27.2 innings pitched in Buffalo this season. (ESPN New York)
• The Mets lost out on another reliever in the trade market yesterday as the Astros dealt closer Brett Myers to the White Sox . Myers, 31, has a 3.52 ERA in 30.2 innings this year. (@Ken_Rosenthal)

Original Article

Phillies Working On Deal With Hamels, Other Trade Deadline Notes

Cole Hamels and the Phillies front office are reportedly ‘moving in the right direction’ on a contract extension, according to Jon Heyman. The Phillies have been looking to sign Hamels to a Matt Cain-type extension, while Hamels is looking for much more than that. The Giants signed Cain to a five-year, $112.5 million deal this April. Hamels wants something closer to Johan Santana’s $137.5 million and possibly more. He may be able to get over $150 million if he hits the free agent market this offseason.

Here are more trade deadline notes from around Major League Baseball (Click “Continue Reading”):

• The White Sox have acquired Astros reliever Brett Myers today. Myers, 31, has posted a 3.52 ERA in 30.2 innings this season and was linked to the Mets a few weeks back.
• The Nationals are looking for a starting pitcher to replace Stephen Strasburg when he hits his innings limit later this season. However, the Nationals aren’t interested in giving up any top prospects.
• Zack Grainke has been offered an extension worth close to $100 million by the Brewers. However, it doesn’t appear as though he will sign it any time soon, leaving the Brewers in a tough situation. The Braves have been one team linked to Greinke. They will likely be going after a top-of-the-rotation starter over the next week and a half.

Original Article

Buffalo Bisons: Jeurys Familia Bouncing Back From Early-Season Struggles

Jeurys Familia may have had the best start of his professional career Wednesday night, holding Toledo to one run on three hits over eight innings pitched.

Familia over his last three starts has been stellar. He has allowed a total of two runs on eight hits in 20.2 innings. His strikeouts have also been rising. He struck out five on July 6, six on July 13, and nine on Wednesday. He may finally be figuring it out down in Triple-A.

Until recently, Familia had been etremely inconsistent this season, posting an ERA close to five. He was walking a ton of batters and despite great stuff, was striking out very few. His performance raised questions about his long-term future. In fact, one or two more bad start and he probably would have found himself back in Double-A Binghamton.

Many have been saying that Familia would be the perfect solution to the Mets bullpen and that he is the closer of the future. While that may eventually be the case, the Mets believe (and so do I) that the best thing for his development would be starting games. So while he may be pitching well in Triple-A, don’t expect Familia to be in a Mets uniform this season.

Stats:

Original Article

Morning Mets Links: July 21, 2012

Here are this morning’s Mets links:

Original Article

Series Preview: Mets Head Home, Try To Stay Alive In Playoff Hunt Against Dodgers

The Mets begin another critical series tonight against the Dodgers at 7:10.

The Mets and Dodgers are both currently in the hunt for the second Wild Card spot, with the Dodgers currently ahead of the Mets by 1.5 games. The Mets need to take this series to not only keep up with the Braves, but also distance themselves with some of the other Wild Card contenders. There are currently five other teams withing seven games of the last playoff spot.

The Dodgers that we will see this weekend is a much different team than we saw before the All-Star break, when the Mets took three of four games in Los Angeles. Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier, Kemp was having a ridiculous April and May before going down with a hamstring problem, which has since flared up again. Ethier was also having a nice season, driving in 59 runs through 81 games. With both of these guys back, the Dodger lineup immediately goes from well below average, to pretty decent.

What’s kept the Dodgers in contention despite the absence of their two best hitters has been their pitching. Clayton Kershaw and Chris Capuano have continued their fantastic seasons. Capuano, who the Mets decided not to sign this past offseason, has a 2.75 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in 118 innings pitched. The team’s 3.34 starter’s ERA is second in baseball.

The Dodger bullpen has also played a big role in keeping this team alive. The Dodger bullpen has a 3.13 ERA. Kenley Jansen has continued his dominance this season. He has a 2.04 ERA to go along with 16 saves this season. He also has 13.4 strikeouts per nine this year.

Hopefully the Mets can get on a bit of a roll here and make everyone forget the si-game losing streak.

Pitching Matchups:

Game 1- Tonight 7:10

Johan Santana (6-6, 3.59 ERA) vs. Aaron Harang (6-5, 3.53 ERA)

Game 2- Saturday 1:10

Miguel Batista (1-2, 4.33 ERA) vs. Chris Capuano (9-5, 2.75 ERA)

Game 3- Sunday 1:10

Jonathon Niese (7-4, 3.58 ERA) vs. Nathan Eovaldi (1-6, 4.33 ERA)

Notes:

• In 43 appearances this season, Kenley Jansen has allowed more than one hit only four times.
• Nathan Eovaldi has struggled of late. The 22 yea-old has a 7.17 ERA over his last four starts, including a start against the Dodgers on June 25 in which he gave up eight runs on ten hits. Eovaldi was ranked before the season as the 96th best prospect in baseball by Baseball America.
• David Wright has hit five homers this month and driven in 15 runs in just 13 games. He is hitting .340 with a .407 on-base percentage this month.
• Ruben Tejada has also had a great month, hitting .345. He has seven multi-hit games this month.

Original Article

Morning Mets Links: July 20, 2012

Here are this morning’s Mets links:

• Yesterday afternoon, the Mets salvaged the third game in Washington, in part thanks to a fantastic two home run game from David Wright en route to a 9-5 victory. R.A. Dickey also recorded his 13th win of the season. (ESPN New York)
• Mike Baxter is slowly progressing in his rehab. He has reportedly still not thrown yet, and only has a maximum of 16 days left on his rehab assignment. (@AdamRubinESPN)
• Just when we thought the whole Matt Harvey vs. Miguel Batista thing was over, A source tells Mike Puma of the New York Post that if Batista is awful on Saturday, the Mets may turn to Harvey in the near future. (New York Post)
• The Mets are going to go after the top tier relievers and only guys “who can actually have an impact.” (Star-Ledger)
• Despite the Mets’ interest in the top tier of available relief pitchers, Sandy Alderson is set on not overpaying. He will not get desparate (like the Giants did in last year’s Carlos Beltran trade) and trade away top prospects for bullpen help. (ESPN New York)
• Joe Janish at Mets Today loooks at what is separating Bobby Parnell from being a decent closer. (Mets Today)
• There may be another bullpen option in Triple-A that we have been iignoring for quite some time. Fernando Cabrera is having a stellar season for Buffalo. Ed Ryan at Mets Fever makes the case for Cabrera. (Mets Fever)
• The Mets take on the Dodgers tonight at Citi Field, when Aaron Harang faces off against Johan Santana. First pitch is 7:10. (MLB.com- Preview)

Original Article

Morning Mets Links: 7.19.12

(NOTE: I’m trying out a new format for the morning links. Let me know what you think.)

Here are this morning’s Morning Mets Links:

• Frank Francisco will probably not return until August with a left oblique injury. Francisco recently suffered a setback and will not begin his rehab assignment until next Friday. That leaves an already consistently awful bullpen shorthanded even longer. (MLB.com)
• Terry Collins called a rare team meeting yesterday down in Washington, in part to discuss an “issue” between Pedro Beato and Josh Thole regarding Tuesday’s extra-inning loss to the Nats. (Star-Ledger)
• We were all wondering why Jon Rauch didn’t pitch in Tuesday night’s game. Apparently, RAuch had his knees drained and wasn’t available. (MetsBlog)
• Sandy Alderson may still be torn about how to go about the trade market this season. We are just under two weeks away from the deadline and Alderson hasn’t made any moves, and isn’t close to making any deals. He is trying to keep a balance between winning now and winning in the future. (Star-Ledger)
• Adam Rubin writes an interesting piece on Mets prospect Collin McHugh. McHugh has had some stellar seasons down in the minors, but has largely been overlooked by fans because he doesn’t have great “stuff” like Zack Wheeler and others. (ESPN New York)
• Adam Rubin also sat down with Paul DePodesta, the head of player development for the Mets in a two part series about the Mets system, the draft, etc. In the first part of the interview, DePo touched on a recent hot topic around baseball. He talked about innings limits, and how he likes to look at the difficulty, not just the quantity of innings that young pitchers throw. He also talked about Jenrry Mejia’s various roles and where he may end up long-term. (Part 1, Part 2)
• Over at Amazin’ Avenue, Chris McShane  made his case to give Manny Acosta a second chance in the big leagues. He mentioned the extraordinarily high BABIP that opposing hitters had against him. Luck may have been a part of his rough season. (Amazin’ Avenue)
• ‘Spinsanity is catching on… well sort of. Joe D at MetsMerized Online writes about how Jordany Valdespin’s electrifying stretch of games has him excited for his future. (MetsMerized Online)

Original Article