Results tagged ‘ bullpen ’
Looking Good
So far, the Mets Grapefruit League record 3-2. Alone, that isn’t that big of a deal. But the Mets have scored 41 runs in 5 games. Only one game was bad. Here are the scores so far.
Mets 9, Orioles 3
Mets 9, Marlins 0
Mets 8, Cardianls 9
Mets 2, Tigers 7
Mets 13, Astros 1
In the loss against the Cardinals, the Mets were down 4 runs I believe it was in the seventh or eigth inning. They rallied to get on base, then Bobby Kielty hit a three run homer. The Mets rallied for another run after that but fell short. Those are the Mets I remember. Exciting rallies, never giving in, fighting until the very last out.
Right now, it seems there are three spots being faught over with the Mets in Spring Training. Those are the last outfield bench spot, the last bullpen spot, and the fifth starter spot.
For the last outfield spot, we have several candidates. The potentials are Nick Evans, Bobby Kielty, Cory Sullivan, Angel Pagan, Rob Mackowiak, and Jeremy Reed, plus there are some more guys in camp that have pretty much no chance to make the team, like Fernando Martinez. Martinez has been hitting well this spring, but due to the fact that he has been getting hurt in winter leagues and he can only play left field, he may not be called up unless somebody gets hurt. Jeremy Reed came over in the J.J. Putz trade, where the Mets lost Endy Chavez. At the time, he was supposed to be Endy’s replacement. Reed can hit for average but not power, he has speed, can play all over the outfield, and is known for his glove. All of these are qualities of Endy. Because of this, Reed has a very good case to win the job. One thing that he, Sullivan, and Mackowiak all have the same thing going against them: They are all left handed. The Mets bench is full of lefties and is in need of a right handed bat. That’s why Evans, a righty who can also play first base, and Pagan and Kielty, two switch hitters, are all a leg up. Nick Evans is a young prospect who burst onto the scene last season with 3 doubles in his Major League debut. He is expected to become a good power hitter in the future. Pagan is coming off an injury shortened season. Last year he played as the every day left fielder when Moises Alou got hurt and he also batted leadoff while Jose Reyes had an injury. But Pagan crashed into a wall in LA and that was it. Bobby Kielty is my favorite to win the last spot. He has played very well this spring hitting with power off the bench, which is in my opinion a major asset. I’ve also heard he is very good with the fans.
For the last bullpen slot, the Mets may choose not to occupy it at all. They want a right handed bat off the bench and they may opt to have Robinson Cancel, a catcher, on the roster instead of a pitcher this way Ramon Castro can pinch hit more often. If they do decide to carry seven relievers, they want a lefty. Right now Pedro Feliciano is the only southpaw in the Mets bullpen, but if Duaner Sanchez proves he can be an effective reliever again and Sean Green shows good crossover skills, Feliciano might stay in his current position. If not, there are several options including, Tom Martin, who is old, Ron Villone, who is also old, Casey Fossum, who is a good candidate as he can also start or pitch ling relief, and my favorite, Darren O’Day. O’Day is a submariner, so he can fill the void left by Joe Smith. I think having a pitcher with a strange angle like that really helps to trick up opposing hitters. The Mets also traded away Aaron Heilman so they don’t even have a sidearmer. O’Day was acquired in the Rule 5 draft from the Angels, so if the Mets don’t keep him on the roster then he has to go back to LA.
Lastly, the Mets have 4 main options for fifth starter. They are Tim Redding, Jon Niese, Livan Hernandez and Freddy Garcia. Redding is the only one with a guaranteed contract so he can’t get sent to the minors, however if he doesn’t win the fifth starter job then he can be the long man. Niese made three starts in 2008, two of them were bad and he only lasted three innings, but the other one he shut out the Braves for eight innings. He may need some more experience in the minors before he can be a big league pitcher, but I can definitely see him coming up later this year and staying for a while. I predicted earlier that Freddy Garcia will be the Cliff Lee of 2009, but that is only if he can make the roster. Don’t forget, Cliff Lee didn’t have that great of a spring last year, and he barely made the Indian’s roster as a fifth starter. That may be the case here. Garcia pitched in a game with the Mets this spring and got hit hard. Hernandez on the other hand saw 6 batters and got them all out. Right now I think he is the frontrunner. After all, he can also fix the Mets right handed hitter problem.
Anyway, I don’t think that these are very big problems to have. If the Mets choose the wrong guy they can always send him down and calll up someone else. The big thing in Mets Land that people are worried about is Johan Santana. I don’t think his injury is as bad as it sounds. The Mets are just being cautious about him because he is their ace. If he misses Opening Day I don’t think it is a big deal. It’s one game. I do wonder though who will pitch the first ever major league game at Citi Field?
I Think The Mets Are Done
The starting pitcher’s market is getting very small. With the resigning of Andy Petitte with the Yankees, the only names that still come to mind are Tom Glavine, Oliver Perez, and Ben Sheets. The Mets continue signing nobody players to minor league contracts, with the recent signing of not only Freddy Garcia, but Rob Mackowiak, Kyle Snyder, and Jon Switzer. The Mets are using up all their money. After Spring Training, we’ll never hear these names again. So stop wasting time, Omar Minaya. Sign Oliver Perez already. I would ask you to sign Ben Sheets instead, this way we could sign Adam Dunn or Orlando Hudson or Ivan Rodriguez as well and maybe use the nobodies you’ve already signed so you can look like a genius, but I know that isn’t going to happen. So at least sign Perez already. I think its inevitable at this point, but watch what Scott Boris can do. Maybe we can at least get Perez for cheap if we wait, like the Yankees did with Petitte who turned down a $10 million offer to later accept a $6.5 million with incentives deal. But I think the Mets are done. Now, I am going to waste my time and run through some possible options for the Mets to go with if they choose Sheets instead, even though I know they won’t happen. Consider it a gift since I took so long to post a new post.
Adam Dunn: The Mets have about a million left field options in Daniel Murphy, Fernando Tatis, Angel Pagan, Jeremy Reed, Fernando Martinez, Nick Evans, Marlon Anderson, Rob Mackowiak, and Cory Sullivan. While I think the Murphy/Tatis platoon is a good idea, Murphy could turn out to be an Ian Kennedy, a player who came off great and then stunk. Tatis is old, he will not have another season like 2008. Adam Dunn is a lot cheaper than Manny Ramirez, and he is an enormous power bat. Plus, he can play first base if Delgado can’t produce.
Orlando Hudson: I think Luis Castillo can have a good 2009 at second base, despite his horrible performance last year. However, I know Orlando Hudson can have a better 2009. And while it might be a bit of work, I am sure you can get something in return for Castillo in a trade.
Ivan Rodriguez: The Mets want to upgrade at catcher, it just isn’t their top priority. It’s no secret that Brian Schneider isn’t much good, and while I am a big Ramon Castro fan, he gets hurt way too much.
Eddie Gaurdado: After the Mets traded away Scott Schoenweis, they needed another lefty reliever to compliment Pedro Feliciano. They signed Casey Fossum and plucked Darren O’ Day from the Rule 5 Draft, but like I previously said, they are nobodies. Everyday Eddie is a veteran who has closing experience, and he tought J.J. Putz his signature splitter. He would be an amazing asset to complete our bullpen.
Oliver Perez: That’s right, sign Ben Sheets instead of Oliver Perez and then use the money you saved to sign Perez. Doesn’t make sense? Nobody else wants Perez. If you sign Sheets at a bargain deal, all the other teams looking for a starter will probably choose to upgrade at offense instead. Perez won’t sign. He’ll need a deal, and he’ll drop down to a ridiculously low price. The Mets can at that point sign him to perhaps a 2 year, $18 million deal, and have a starting rotation of Santana, Sheets, Perez, Pelfrey, and Maine, with backup of Garcia, Redding, Niese, and Parnell.
Noooo!
Don’t do it! Don’t make any trades, Omar! I am telling you, SAVE THE FARMSYSTEM!!!! Do not trade Eddie Kunz or Jon Niese or Bobby Parnell for Jermaine Dye or Javier Vazquez; do not trade them AT ALL! These men are the future of our club, how can you even consider it? Don’t trade Daniel Murphy, either, as he is potentially the next David Wright, or with the position issue, the next Ryan Braun. Don’t trade Nick Evans, or Mike Pelfrey. We must rebuild our farmsystem and build a good team. Everything in the world should strike a balance, and in baseball, that balance is between big name free agents and building a good crop of home grown talent.
There is one rumor of a trade, however, that I’ve heard and I support, although the Mets once again disagree with me. I’m not sure if its true, but rumors suggest that in order for the Rockies to trade Huston Street to the Mets, they are asking for Aaron Heilman and Pedro Feliciano. The Mets are completely open to making a trade for Street revolving around Heilman, but they don’t want to trade Feliciano. I would make this trade in a heartbeat. I understand that Feliciano is a rare solid lefty specialist, but Scott Schoenweis can easily have a bounceback year, and I thought the Mets were going after Brian Fuentes and Joe Beimel anyway? If they push the right buttons, this team can easily have a good bullpen in 2009. Here is what they have to do:
- Trade Heilman and Feliciano for Huston Street. If the reports are true that the Rockies would accept this with no extra players, go for it. Street is your set up man.
- Sign Brian Fuentes. He is a left hander who can be our closer, and we won’t have to spend extra money on Francisco Rodriguez.
- Sign Joe Beimel. No matter what, we have to sign him. You can’t rely on Schoenweis anymore until he proves himself, and although there is no way Beimel will have as good an ’09 as did an ’08, he is easily one of the best lefty relievers in baseball.
If played correctly our bullpen will look like this:
Closer – Brian Fuentes
Set Up – Huston Street
Middle Relief – Joe Smith
Scott Schoenweis
Duaner Sanchez
Lefty Specialist – Joe Beimel
Long Reliever – Brian Stokes
In my opinion we really have a surplus of relievers. Claudio Vargas, Tony Armas, and Nelson Figueroa can all be long relievers, and Carlos Muniz could be back. Jason Vargas might make an appearance, and who knows, we still have Kunz, Niese, and Parnell!
Omar Minaya has to really choose his cards wisely. With a little work, the bullpen can get better. It really doesn’t have as much cleaning up to do as it seems, as long as Minaya takes a conservative approach.
First Projection of 2009
I haven’t posted in a while and I just wanted to let everybody know that I will continue to be blogging, so don’t worry. I know the previous post kind of sounds like I’m saying goodbye, but rest assured, I will keep blogging so keep reading and keep commenting! I will always try to comment back at your blog so it is a win-win.
But in the meantime, I feel like blogging but there is no really no Mets news going on, and I think it will be like that a lot this offseason, so I am going to randomly post my projection of the 2009 Mets from a combination of what I think should happen and what I thikn will happen. Let me know how your projections match up!
Starting Rotation:
1. Johan Santana
2. Jon Garland (if I were GM he would be my most targeted starter)
3. John Maine
4. Oliver Perez (as I said earlier there are several reason why the Mets will resign him)
5. Mike Pelfrey
Bullpen:
Closer – Francisco Rodriguez
Set Up – Joe Beimel
Middle Relief – Joe Smith
Aaron Heilman
Duaner Sanchez
Lefty Specialist – Pedro Feliciano
Long Reliever – Brian Stokes
Lineup:
1. SS Jose Reyes
2. 2B Luis Castillo (Give him a second chance, he actually had the highest plate discipline of all players on the Mets)
3. 3B David Wright
4. CF Carlos Beltran
5. 1B Carlos Delgado
6. RF Ryan Church
7. LF Daniel Murphy/Fernando Tatis platoon (but I think they will both get hurt and we will eventually have Nick Evans, Endy Chavez, and Angel Pagan all getting a turn to play there regularly at some point or another)
8. C Brian Schneider/Ramon Castro platoon
9. Pitcher
Bench:
OF Endy Chavez
OF Daniel Murphy/Fernando Tatis
IF Damion Easley
IF Argenis Reyes
C Brian Schneider/Ramon Castro
What do you think?
Show Some Love For Aaron Heilman!
First a shout out sanchezricardo for that comment on Wakefield. I heard somewhere had one more year with an option, but I forgot the option part. Is there a website or sometihng that has a list of free agents? If so can I have a link that would great.
As Mets fans, we realize what parts of the team and help us and what parts of the team hurt. But lets stop being so negative, the season is over so lets get ready for next year. Instead, lets show some love for our bullpen for a change! After all, they aren’t THAT bad. I mean, its not like they give up home runs every single big important at-bat, right?
So join me in boosting Aaron Heilman’s fan appreciation level and confidence level. Click here and go to the write-ins section. You know what next. First form Aaron, secod form Heilman, third form Mets. And who cares about your name email address and phone? Fill it in correctly if you like, but I always fill those out with fake stuff since it doesn’t matter.
The point is vote for Aaron Heilman. If Rick Astly can win an MTV music award as a joke, Aaron Heilman can win an MLB bullpen award as a joke. Show your Mets pride!
It’s Over
It’s Over. Done. Finished. No more baseball. Mets lose. Brewers win.
It sucks. It sucks it sucks it sucks. I hate the bullpen. I hate it. They blew the lead like 35 times and we could have clinched it in the second week in September and we could have lead the Phillies by 10 games and we could have done something great for Shea in its last year. But we didn’t. 162 games. The bullpen can’t save 2 more of them. This is not a major league bullpen. It isn’t. Now it is too late. You boys let us all down. You know it. We are sick of it. And Billy Wagner, don’t feel bad, it isn’t on you. It is on guys like Aaron Heilman and Scott Schoenweis and Duaner Sanchez and Joe Smith and on and on and on. They all suck. 2 games. 2 more games is all they needed to save. They couldn’t. i don’t care how big a lead you had last year, as far as I’m concerned, THIS was the biggest collapse in the history of baseball.
But you know what? It wouldn’t matter if they saved 2 more games. I think that if the neccesary number of wins was lower, the Mets would have won less. They play to get back in the race. Not to win 95 games. I blame everything on the bullpen. Sure, the offense and starters and defense and offense had their days, but they are allowed. The bullpen passed their limit by about 20. Insane.
Goodbye 2008. Goodbye Shea. I’ll miss you. I’ll miss everything about this year. Except the bullpen.
Hoping the Phillies Lose Doesn’t Help
Okay. 4 games left. Crunch time. For real. Remember my post from September 15? I was breaking down a Mets fan’s thoughts throughout the season, and I thought 2 weeks left was a big deal? Apparently it wasn’t. But now is. For real. EVERY GAME MATTERS. The Phillies’ magic number is down to 3 games, and the Mets are tied with the Brewers for the wild card. We need to win. Even if the Phillies and Brewers both lose. We need to win. Last night was a prime example. I am not going to nag about how Daniel Murphy got a leadoff triple and the Mets couldn’t drive him in, you all know, you want to forget about it. But what I am saying is, we lost, and the Phillies lost. Okay, so the Phillies lost, we didn’t lose any ground. But thats the thing. 4 games left. Every day we lose, even if the Phillies do too, their magic number decreases by one. Same with the Brewers. Obviously, they have the same magic number as the Mets right now for the wild card, but if we are both going to lose a game, we need to gain ground first. It will happen every day. And forget about magic numbers. Tonight the Phillies have off. If they Mets lose they will be 2 games out, with their chances of winning the division at 2-6 (the Phils MN would be 2, with 6 combined games left). 2-6. Okay. A 33% chance, not THAT bad. But what is the probability of that 33% actually kicking in? Doesn’t make sense what I just said, right? I mean, how likely is it that the Phillies will lose 3 games, and the Mets will win 3? And what is the probability that those chances will kick in? More math against us. Just means we have have to win tonight. And tomorrow. And Saturday. Unless the Phillies and Brewers both lose. Wait, but then what are the chances of - ??? Just means they have to win. But on the bright side, we do have a better chance than the Brewers, as they don’t have the possibilities of a division title. But does that boost the Mets chances again? Oh nevermind! Just fight out a W tonight, Pedro!
And on a less confusing note, the Mets have reportedly signed GM Omar Minaya to a 4 year extension. I know I have said he should get fired, but I think this is a good move, regardless of whether or not the Mets make the playoffs. I think they should have waited, but this is a good move. Even though the ballboy can pitch better than the bullpen right now. Minaya is a good GM. Think about it. Not just anybody would’ve pulled the trigger for Johan Santana, and look how great that deal worked for us. Minaya has also notably acquired Carlos Delgado, Ryan Church, Brian Scnheider, Carlos Beltran, and Billy Wagner. Okay, so all the relief pitchers he signs are duds. Does that make him a bad GM? No. Whose fault is it? The fault of the pitching scouts. And that is a FACT.
Why Do That?
Why sign Al Reyes and not use him for 17 days, when your bullpen is struggling, and nobody can get anybody out? Why then release him?
Why tell the media that Johan Santana needs to pitch 170 pitches in 9 innings? I know he was joking, but how good is that for your bullpen’s confidence?
Why send Gustavo Molina to Venezuela to prepare for Winter Ball? Isn’t the Major League team more important right now?
I Don’t Understand; Wakefield the Answer?
Side Note: The Astros have made their amazing run without Carlos Lee, mistake in my last entry. Now I am rooting for them twice as much! Especially since Milwaukee had the nerves to fire Ned Yost at this point in the season. Give him some confidence people! One bad stretch does not deserve a firing!
Anyway, down to business. I was at the Mets game yesterday, and they were winning the entire game by a score of 4-2. Then, before the ninth inning, a bunch of fans left to go to the last ever Mr. Met Dash (its where all the little kids get to run the bases after the game) at Shea Stadium. Well let me tell you, they certainly picked a great time to leave. The Braves scored 5 runs off the Mets bullpen (by the way its called the bullpen for one plain and simple reason: its bull****), and I left after the Norton homer. I just couldn’t take it anymore. I fail to understand, however, how in the world are the Mets still in first place? Look at how many games they’ve blown. More than 20 blown saves. They should have clinched it before the Angles did. Every time you have a bullpen meltdown, you go, it could all come down to this game once September comes, this loss could mean no playoffs, we might miss it by one game because of this loss, its August already we gotta pick up the slack, 6 weeks left this could be a crucial loss, 2 weeks left this is unacceptable, whats next? Darn if only we won that last game this is just like last year. So many times. I am sick of it. You are sick of it. A bullpen like this and we should’ve already been hoping to be at most a spoiler. But Mets have shown extraordianry ressiliance this year to bounce back from a heartbreaking loss. Heck, the surgeon is a billionare by now from all those heartsaving surgeries. Why are you guys doing this to us? Either win the division already or drop out. You are too much like Ralph Nader.
No matter who the Mets throw out in the late innings, no relief pitcher seems to work. Sure, you can sign K-Rod but then the set-up men will blow it. You can pick up CC Sabathia and have him throw complete games all the time but he will only play every fifth day. There seems to be no solution. To that, I say, there is one option. Risky, but why not? Sign Tim Wakefield. His contract is up this year and he shouldn’t be asking for that much. Make him a reliever. Insead of mixing and matching, have him come in every day (of course give him a break now and then, more like 3 or 4 games in a row, and only when you are winning) and let him pitch 2 or 3 innings. If he can pitch 6 or 7 every 5 days, lower the workload and raise his apperances. He is just about the only knuckleballer in the bigs (save R.A, Dickey of the Mariners, but his floater isn’t nearly as good), and being in the American league for the past few years, not many guys in the NL will be able to hit him. He can come in and shut down hitters, and you will no longer need to rely on Duaner Sanchez or Aaron Heilman. You can carry less pitchers and have more hitters off the bench.
But even if the Mets don’t get a bullpen soultion, don’t fire Omar Minaya. He has done a great job finding hitters, and making coaching moves. Instead, fire the Mets pitching scouts. If they still think that Heilman is fine and they can take a vacation to Barbados, they don’t deserve to be working in such a fine class that is New York, especially since the Mets have so much money.
The Mets Don’t Need Wagner
The Mets don’t need Billy Wagner. With him, they would be the best team in the major league (they may be anyway, since Jerry Manuel took over), but they realy don’t need him. Since he went down, the Mets are 22-11. They were given a test, and they passed. Eddie Kunz was spectacular, but he got used about once every 5 days. He is a closer, not a starter, so the Mets did not give Kunz a good chance. They have been stapeling their bullpen together, and it has been getting better, even Aaron Heilman and Duaner Sanchez. Mets relievers have blown too many saves this year (Wagner had 6 of his own), but they have still gotten the job done. Just think, if the Mets had a dominant ‘pen, like the Phillies do, where would they be? How about in position to clinch the division in a about a week? The Angels’ magic number is 2. They have the best record in the Majors at 87 wins and 56 losses. The Mets are 80-63. The Mets have saved 39 of 64 chances. Thikn where they would be if they blew have the saves they have.
mlblogsmetsmainman
Recent Comments