12/29/10

Cutnpaste: - Management, Phillies vs. Mets, Pat Misch, Wilmer Flores, and Cesar Puello

Management:

Right at the top of the list of the worst-managed teams of the 2000s. Not only did the Mets spend a lot, they didn’t win much either. The Mets problem is easy to identify: The Mets have a habit of signing high-dollar stars rather than focusing on building a better internal scouting structure. The Mets have developed some good prospects, but they have a penchant for buying players when they are expensive. Some examples of bad contracts include signing Oliver Perez to a three-year, $36 million contract in 2009, signing Francisco Rodriguez to a three-year, $37 million contract in 2009, and signing Luis Castillo to a four-year, $25 million contract in 2008. In 2010, the team was not ready to contend yet signed Jason Bay to a four-year, $66 million deal. Both Bay and Rodriguez were also huge disappointments in 2010. - freakonomics  



Phillies vs. Mets:

Bottom line: between injuries and bad signings, the Mets have gotten far less for their money than the Phillies, who have done a better job of cultivating young talent and signing productive free agents. The variance in player performance has been much less for the Phils than the Mets, particularly their young stars. And while the Phillies have had another solid off-season, signing Cliff Lee and further improving their pitching staff to counterbalance their declining offense and the loss of Jason Weth's production, the Mets must completely rebuild the organization from the farm system up. The strategy of signing expensive free-agents to long-term deals has not brought about more wins, and given that their pitching was one of the best of the decade last year the only way for them to improve their run differential is to improve the offense. Given the derth of young hitting talent in their farm system, this could take a while. - beyondtheboxscore  



Pat Misch:

In his career, starting in 2006 with the San Francisco Giants, Misch has been as effective (or ineffective, depending if you’re a “half-empty” type of person) against righties as he’s pitched against lefties. In fact, in Misch’s 193.6 career innings, righties have owned a .282/.332/.436 line against and lefties a .289/.337/.467 line against. Those eerily similar lines against suggest Misch is better suited for a starting role–albeit, a very mediocre starting role–but certainly not as a lefty-specialist. One could even make a “compeling” argument that he’s actually better versus righties than he is against lefties. Given Misch’s strange disposition, his future as a lefty-specialist looks grim. - risingapple.  



Wilmer Flores:

The Good: Flores can hit, period. With plenty of bat speed, strong wrists, and outstanding hand-eye coordination, he consistently puts the fat part of the bat on the ball and uses all fields. He projects for average-to-plus power down the road, and showed some signs in 2010 of learning how to recognize pitches he can drive. He has very good defensive fundamentals and an above-average arm. The Bad: It's impossible to find any talent evaluator who believes Flores can remain up the middle. He's already a below-average runner, and his lower half continues to thicken. He has the tools to play third base, but will need to fill out his power projection to be an above-average player there. His hitting ability gets the better of him at times, as he can become an inpatient hacker at times. - baseballprospectus  



Cesar Puello:

OF, South Atlantic League, .292/.375/.359 in 469 PA - The Dominican native was signed by the Mets in 2007. Last year was his third season playing in this country but he was only 19, one of just five teenagers in the SAL. Unlike many Latin players, Puello is willing to take a walk, with 32 BB in 404 AB,. Puello also had 22 HBP, following up on a season where he was hit 14 times in short-season ball. He also has plus speed, as he stole 45 bases in 55 attempts. Puello hit just 1 HR last year, but he draws praise for his approach at the plate and scouts predict he will hit 20 HR by the time he matures. - mets360.com  

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