Up Along First

New Met: Kelly Shoppach

Kelly Shoppach

Quick Info:

Position: Catcher

Bats: Right, Throws: Right

Height: 6’ 0”, Weight: 220

Why he was brought here: Josh Thole has proven recently that he is not the long-term answer for the Mets at the catcher position. He has proven that he cannot hit lefties. Sandy Alderson needed to bring in someone who can platoon with Thole.

What he will be used for: Terry Collins told reporters yesterday that Shoppach will be used mostly against left-handers. Thole has hit .188 in his career against lefties, including .219 this season. Shoppach, on the other hand, has a .270/.364/.530 batting line against lefties in 492 career at-bats. The Mets as a team have failed to hit lefties and need someone in their lineup that can help them in that regard.

Strengths: As I just mentioned, his ability to hit left-handers is a huge asset, especially on this team. Shoppach’s best quality, however, may be his power. In 2008, when he played in a career-high 112 games, Shoppach hit 21 home runs and 27 doubles in 352 at-bats. That isn’t too impressive, but when you consider that he’s a catcher, as well as who he is replacing, it certainly is an upgrade with the power.

Weaknesses: He isn’t the greatest defensive catcher. Although there aren’t any reliable fielding statistics, especially for a catcher, the stats say he is in the bottom tier of catchers defensively. Also, he has hit just .204 in his career against righties. I expect him to play only against lefties, so that won’t be a problem.

Career stats: 

Overall, this is a good move by the Mets. Sure, it’s a little late. They really needed Shoppach’s help earlier in the season but was Shoppach going to stop the collapse? Of course not.

What’s important now, is the Mets now have a leg up on other teams in signing him this offseason. If they insist on keeping Josh Thole on the roster, they need someone to compliment him and Shoppach is that guy. He hits lefties and he is experienced (FWIW). On top of that, the power-starved Mets lineup needs a boost. This isn’t going to solve the home run problem, but it’s a step in the right direction.

On top of all this, the Mets didn’t give up much: Just a player to be named later. This deal will likely be a minor league roster filler in exchange for exclusive negotiating rights with a solid catcher. Not a bad deal if you ask me.

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

Morning News and Notes for 2/25

Here is some news from regarding the Mets organization

• Shortstop Ruben Tejada is expected to arrive in camp today, according to  Andy McCullough of the Star-Ledger. According to the article, Ruben and Daniel Murphy will be working together every day for all of spring training once Tejada arrives.
• McCullough also reported that the Mets will be pushing back Johan Santana’s first spring start from March 5 to March 6. No, this is no setback. The Mets had simply forgot to add his long-toss day into the schedule.
• Speaking of March 5, Chad Bray of the Wall Street Journal reported that a judge will make a decision on whether to bring the Picard-Wilpon suit to court by March 5.
• We are just 10 days away from the first Met spring training game against the Nationals. The Mets play 31 spring training games before the season opens on April 5.

Here are some interesting notes from around the web:

• Michael Baron of MetsBlog is continuing his series of Met interviews. This time, it was Josh Thole.
• Brian Journa of Mets 360 asks why the bullpen gets a bad rap and eplains why they shouldn’t.
• NeverForget60.com releases its top 10 Gary Carter moments.
• David Wright is “yearning” for a championship with the Mets.
• Sean Engel of the Daily Stache gives his take on who should have which number.

Lastly, here is some general baseball news that you may have missed:

• According to an ESPN “Source,”  says that the proposed expanded playoff system is likely to be put in place this season.
• If you didn’t catch Major League Baseball’s statement on the Braun situation, here it is. As Buster Olney explained today, Major League Baseball will likely change their system after this incident. Olney explained that there are three arbitrators, one who represents the union, one for the league, and one independent. The representatives for the union and league always vote for their sides, so it comes down to the arbitrator. This time, it didn’t go in their favor, and Bud Selig didn’t like it.
• Manny Ramirez reported to A’s camp today. The 39 year-old DH/outfielder will serve a 50-game suspension before he can play.
• Ryan Zimmerman wants a no-trade clause in an extension with the Washington Nationals. The two sides have been negotiating for a while now.

Original Article

Josh Thole on fire

Josh Thole is hitting .255 this season, but .313 since June 1.