musings - To be fair, in talking with people close to the team, as well as deep in the organization, I truly believe Wilpon is at a crossroads and understands that things cannot continue down the same path of the last few seasons. Now, I have no idea if that also means his involvement, but I always get the impression he feels he had to be involved because of Omar Minaya’s weakened power position, and the team’s simultaneous struggles with communication, medical protocol, ballpark criticism, and so on. Actually, I get the feeling Jeff Wilpon considered firing Omar Minaya last winter, but other owners felt otherwise… and so Wilpon was left in a position to bridge the gap, earning him a reputation of being a ‘meddler.’ In his view, they say, he feels he had no choice but to be involved.
mlb - the second, and perhaps more influential factor, was the time that Davis spent pitching at an advanced level. Starting for Arizona State as recently as two years ago, the part-time hurler grew skilled at the art of retiring hitters. Though Davis was a hitter himself, he learned to think like a pitcher. Even today, he still does. One of the exercises that the Mets require of their young position players -- Josh Thole, Lucas Duda, Ruben Tejada. et al. -- involves determining how they would pitch to themselves in certain situations. Johnson, for example, will ask Thole what pitch he would throw himself in a 2-2 count with a man in scoring position. In that way, Mets hitters begin to see their at-bats from a different perspective. They begin to understand what Hernandez and Johnson and Hanson are trying to do to them, and, in theory, they eventually adapt.
bleacherrpt - With a seven game lead and 17 games to play, the Mets seemed poised to repeat as NL East Champs after advancing all the way to game seven of the NLCS the previous season, before eventually falling to the Cardinals. Things seemed to be looking up for the Mets as September rolled around, as they got ace Pedro Martinez back from a season-long injury to bolster an already strong staff that included Tom Glavine, as well as 15-game winners Oliver Perez and John Maine. However, their pitching proved to be their downfall, as the Mets staggered to a 5-12 record to finish out the season, with five losses coming in games where the offense scored at least six runs.
megdel - As a writer, the idea of Torre in the manager's chair is an appealing one -- Torre never snubs a member of the media, and is one of the true gentlemen in baseball. Still, a huge fear, in light of the Jeff Francoeur debacle, is that precisely those qualities in Torre could keep the beat reporters from mentioning Torre's faults. Moreover, I see the Yankees teams Torre led to the postseason were actually led by talent up and down the roster. I also notice that, during the 1995 season, a Joe Torre-led Cardinals team fired Torre after a 20-27 start. Despite whatever skills he brought to the dugout in New York, he didn't win in St. Louis with an infield of John Mabry, Jose Oquendo, Tripp Cromer and Scott Cooper. No, seriously. That was the infield. Maybe 20-27 does represent a managerial miracle!
9-20 from: - amazin - After an injury-shortened pro debut in '09 that left us with more questions than answers, Aderlin burst onto the scene as one of the Mets most interesting young prospects in 2010. Aderlin was clearly the most talented player on the field in just about every game he played in with Kingsport and though he's not much of an all-around player, that's how good a power bat he featured this year. Despite being one of the youngest players in the circuit (at the age of eighteen), Rodriguez placed second in doubles, third in homers and top five in both SLG & OPS. This kid can flat out hit for power, there's no doubt about that. The natural loft in his swing as well as his incredible raw strength produces the kind of pop that you rarely see in a player his age (see for yourself here, 0:47). Unfortunately, it's not all peaches and cream for Rodriguez: He doesn't possess much speed, nor does he profile as a third baseman long-term (think first base/corner OF) and his plate discipline/secondary skills left something to be desired. In short, his plus-plus power will have to carry him as a prospect as the other aspects of his game are all pretty sub-par.
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