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10/17/09

Minors Stuff




New York Mets

It seems like y’all are for one or the other. And I think we can have both. If we had been so resistant to progress back in the fifties, we’d never have created the heaven we know today as Reeses Peanut Butter Cups because combining chocolate and peanut butter would have been akin to raising the dead with pagan rituals. And it’s going to take the next genius GM to figure out what the right balance is between the batting eyes and the free swingers. Billy Beane brought us OPS. Then the landscape was changed with UZR. The next stat isn’t going to be a stat at all ... it’s going to be the one who figures out how to integrate everything including OPS, UZR, flat speed, straight slugging, and yes ... grit and heart (don’t worry, I’ll never become so blinded in my quest to win a Nobel Prize by ever suggesting this team signs David Eckstein), to build a better baseball team. The balance may not be 50/50 between the stats and the scouts. In fact it’ll probably be closer to 78/22 or something. But the right balance will dominate for years.

What does this have to do with Jeff Francoeur? Everything. The three polarizing figures of the stats vs. scouts war are Francoeur, Adam Dunn, and Juan Pierre. Dunn and Pierre are probably the polar opposites in terms of how they’re valued, yet the ironic thing is that both players can be of help to the Mets in different capacities. The Mets might need somebody like Pierre to cover the massive amount of ground at Citi Cave, but he doesn’t walk. Dunn is a power hitter who walks a ton. But he also strikes out a ton and has as much range as a statue. Too bad you can’t call in Dr. Alphonse Mephisto to splice their genes and make one super player that has defensive range and walks a lot ... although with the Mets medical luck, they’d hire a cheaper doctor to create a player who can’t move, strikes out 215 times a year and has the batting eye of Mr. Magoo. (Think Dave Kingman ... 1982.)
PP: Between Brian Schneider and Omir Santos, the Mets lack a long-term catcher. Can Josh Thole fill that void?

Hyde: Yes. With enough playing time, Thole will be a Rookie of the Year candidate in 2010. Schneider will not return to the Mets. In a limited big league audition, Thole hit .321/.356/.396 in 53 major league at bats and had a 752 OPS that was supported by a .354 BABIP. That may seem fluky, but realize he had a .359 BABIP over 384 AB in Double-A. Even if you subtract a few singles from that line to drop Thole's BABIP back toward .300, he's still better at the plate than Omir Santos. Santos managed a 688 OPS, which was his highest at any level since 2006. Keep in mind that major league catchers averaged a 717 OPS in 2009.

The question about Thole is his defense. In the big leagues, he threw out two of six runners stealing against him, but was charged with three passed balls. By contrast, Santos threw out 30% of runners (15 of 50), but committed just three passed balls in 91 games to Thole's 17 games. Some of the balls he couldn't handle could be attributed to learning a new pitching staff. A naysayer would point out that Thole was among the Eastern League leaders in passed balls, and scouts were not at all fond of his work behind the dish. Thole's a hard worker, so I think with repetitions, he'll improve to major league adequacy.

Josh Thole had a 3-hit game, driving in two runs to lead Caracas to a wild 13-8 victory over Margarita. Margarita scored five runs in the final frame to make the game appear close. Thole is now hitting .391 and is batting in the three hole for the Leones. Hector Rondon got another start, giving up two runs in a little more than four innings of work. Veteran Tony Armas relieved Rondon and lasted only one inning, giving up four hits.


Ruben Tejada SS: 4 hits, 10 ABs, 1 double, 2 RBIs

Tejada has also looked impressive early on. He is considered the Mets best infield prospect right now and is showing he can swing the bat against higher competition. Tejada just turned 20 years old and still has plenty of time to grow into his potential. The obvious question is will it be with the Mets. Jose Reyes may block Tejada from the big league club, but that is a few years down the line. Tejada could always move over to second or there has been talk about trading Reyes, which could clear the way for Tejada.

By the way, I’m an equal opportunity hater right now. I’m just as pissed off at the Mets because we deserved a hell of a lot better for the $145 million dollars we spent this year. I’m not saying we should have an All Star at every position like the Yankees, but when our core players started to drop like flies, would it have been too much to ask for Omar to go out and get the team some needed relief? Sure, Francoeur helped, but it had become quite clear by mid-July that neither Reyes or Delgado was returning, and the fact that they chose to ignore those facts and sugar coat them before the trade deadline still irks me. Back then when we were still within earshot of first place and in the thick of the Wild Card race, management threw in the towel. Then they insulted our intelligence and stood up on their soap boxes and shouted “the calvary is coming”, but they knew that wasn’t happening. When a player gives up and stops trying, we can always boo them and let them know how we feel. But how do we boo Omar and ownership when they do the same thing? I thought I was past this season, but seeing the Phillies and Yankees still alive and doing well won’t let me put the Mets 2009 season to rest just yet. It’s like a pounding headache that won’t go away no matter how many Advils and Tylenols I pop.

Stephen Strasburg made his grand professional debut on Friday night, pitching in the Arizona Fall League at Phoenix Municipal Stadium, and his 3 1/3-inning scoreless outing may have been a preview of great things to come.

Strasburg, taken first in June's First-Year Player Draft by the Nationals, threw 50 pitches -- 32 of them strikes -- for the Phoenix Desert Dogs. He faced 11 Scottsdale Scorpions hitters, walked one, struck out two, allowed a pair of singles and earned the win in his club's 7-4 victory. The two strikeouts came with one out in the first inning and were of the swinging variety.

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