3/2/10

ST W-L Records, Mets All-Time List, Carlos Beltran, Mental Hurdle... and Reyes Batting Third

ST W-L Records:


I came across Spring Training Magazine which has the records for all National and American League teams from 1984-2006. You can get more recent seasons at ESPN. Here are some that stood out to me:

The Kansas City Royals have the best record in the AL in spring training three times in the last 10 years

If you combined the 2000 and 2001 records for the Yankees their winning percentage comes out to .355, this includes an ugly 9-20 spring in 2001.

The Cubs finished the Cactus League with a 9-23 record in 1989, they would go on to win the NL East that season

The 84′ Tigers started the season 35-5, but only won 39% of their Spring Games.

It seems like the Mets are either a game over or under .500 almost every season - link

Mets All Time List:

C Gary Carter

1B Keith Hernandez

2B Edgardo Alfonzo

SS Jose Reyes

3B David Wright

LF Mookie Wilson

CF Carlos Beltran

RF Darryl Strawberry

Bench: C Mike Piazza, OF Lenny Dykstra, OF Cliff Floyd, IF Rey Ordonez, IF John Olerud

SP: Tom Seaver, Dwight "Doc" Gooden, David Cone, Al Leiter, Johan Santana

LR: Brett Saberhagen, Frank Viola

RP: Nolan Ryan, Roger McDowell, Jesse Orosco, John Franco, Armando Benitez - link

Carlos Beltran:

I met Beltran at the westin in south florida and while the team was walking to the bus....a group of kids wanted his autograph...and my dummy coworker security stop the kids and Beltran nearly ripped my coworker head off Lol... and was happy to sign for the kids - link











Mental Hurdle:

If you’re as geographically fortunate as me and spend 5-6 months annually battling numb fingertips, sub-zero temperatures and a deprivation of sports involving grass, this is an adrenaline inducing time of year.

Signs of spring are bountiful, undeniably so; It’s time to put your hockey sticks and snowboards away and yank out that decrepit, oil stained ball bag so deeply imbedded with red clay that moving it slightly sends a poof of dust spores in the air like an old catcher’s mitt on the business end of a Joel Zumaya fastball. For Mets players and fans alike, another year of high salaries, high expectations and championship goals are underlying a spring-training full of rejuvenated optimism. The blue and orange will have a tough road ahead however as Philadelphia shored up their already stellar roster with aggressive offseason moves and expect just as much out of their 2010 club.

Reyes Batting Third:

The shift is a reaction to Carlos Beltran's knee surgery, which will cost him at least a month of the season. Without Beltran to hit third, Manuel fears the lineup lacks length if he simply has David Wright bat third and Jason Bay fourth. The order would dip precipitously at No. 5, likely with Daniel Murphy. In addition, Manuel wants to preserve Reyes' legs and feels batting him third will translate to fewer steal attempts to limit the risk of having runners thrown out in front of your best RBI men, Wright and Bay.

But I disagree with those theories and the general concept of Reyes hitting third. Here are the reasons why: - link

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