A bunch of good questions this week..
Craig Brown -
D Whit - Craig Brown -
The Mets have seven spots to fill in the pen, and no shortage of candidates...
You have 5 million to spend on one veteran reliever,
and then you can fill the other six spots from these candidates:
Jose Carreno
Darin Gorski
Scott Rice
Cory Mazzoni
Jack Leathersich
Jeff Walters
Carlos Torres
Bobby Parnell
Jennry Mejia
Josh Edgin
Jeurys Familia
Jake DeGrom
Vic Black
Rafael Montero
So how would you build you're bullpen?
Who will play for the Mets longest? Flores, Lagares, or d'Arnaud Why?
Who will have more success in a Mets uniform? Flores, Lagares, or d'Arnaud Why?
Conrad Youngren (a.k.a.'Hobie) -
Some OF “what ifs?” What if Puello continues his success in LV? Who does he bump? Becomes an easy question if one of Legares or the 2 Young-sters are struggling, but lets assume they’re living up to expectations or at least, none of them stands out?
I brought up the conjecture of Murphy as lead-off the other day. Chris Soto thought it interesting. Anybody else?
I brought up the conjecture of Murphy as lead-off the other day. Chris Soto thought it interesting. Anybody else?
Reese Kaplan asks -
Sandy Alderson's contract is up after 2014 and there is an option for 2015. If you were the Wilpons would you pick up his option based upon what he's done thus far?
Anthony Carnacchio asks -
If you replaced Sandy Alderson
as part of a new ownership group with no payroll constraints, what would your 2014 lineup look like?
Erik Hudson asks -
Do you think Alderson holds onto Chris Young and Bartolo Colon for the whole year? I'm thinking that if they are doing well, Sandy is going to try to flip them. It's what he seems to do best, and Puello and Syndergaard or Montero might be ready by the trade deadline. Maybe if the team is really doing well, he keeps them.
A lot to cover this morning... I'll take either question separately.
ReplyDeleteCraig Brown -
Everything I'm hearing is that Parnell will start the season on the 7-day DL. You can't heal a neck' gain back 30 pounds, and throw a 99 mph fastball in 4 months.
So, with that being said, Vic Brown becomes my closer until something better comes around.
My lefties are Josh Edgin and Scott Rice (but deGrom will return to the Vegas rotation and be ready for a call up if one of these two falters)
Torres and Gonzalez Germen are my two staple righties.
That leaves one more and, on paper, that would be Jeurys Familia, but he's having big control problems again this winter.
I'm going to reach our here and say that the Familia experiment may come to an end here and you might see him back in Vegas with the others that have failed.
My choice would be some new blood... Jose Carreno
D Whit -
ReplyDeleteWho will play longest? My guess is Lagares because he has the least amount of trade excitement tied to him.
I don't expect Flores to be a Met by April 1t (my guess is Murphy is a keeper now) and d'Arnaud will be traded when Kevin Plawecki is ready.
Actuallt, I expect d'Arnaud to be the most successful in 2014... I just don't expect him around long.
I don't expect any of them to have a long and successful MLB career. I just don't.
Hobie -
ReplyDeleteYeah, the whole Cesar Puello thing does change, doesn't it.
First, he would fit better in RF.
If Young/Young/Grandy/Lagares is all going well, the Mets, like all organizations, will first play the money. That would make Chris Young and Grandy safe.
Puello would only become a factor here if he produced big offensive numbers, expecially pop, so, my guess his playing time would come from the other two guys.
Re: Murphy at leadoff... he did finish the year #2 in steals on the team, but EYJ will leadoff when he starts and I think Ruben Tejada gets a clean slate this spring.
I think that the player who will have the longest and most successful MLB career is Lagares, he is very athletic, not injured prone. Yes, he needs to improve hi plate discipline, but he was rush last year to the main team.
ReplyDeleteReese -
ReplyDeleteRe: Picking up Alderson's option
Yes I would.
I am becoming an Alderson fan.
Anthony -
ReplyDeleteWow.
Anew owner an a dream team, all by 2014. Send me some of that stuff you've been smoking.
A question back first...
Are we talking about a team consisting of players still unsigned or just a random number of names regardless of whether or not they would want to pay NYC taxes?
Erik -
ReplyDeleteOkay, now you are starting to think like Sandy.
I think Young and Colon will both be moved, replaced on the roster with Puello and Syndergaard. Montero will already be in Queens by then.
This is how this team is being built from within and with new, younger 'outsiders' (Black, Carreno, d'Arnaud, Thor)
My next step would then be to tie up Gee and Murphy through 2017 with workable contracts
I think d Arnaud will have the longest Mets career. But Flores will have the longest career because of his bat. Someday he is going to be traded to a AL team. d Arnaud just cant have the longest career because of his injuries and position
ReplyDeleteMack what minorleaguers that are not the ones we fans usually here do u think we should keep an eye on that can suprise and vault them to prospect status in the upcoming year?
ReplyDeleteGreg -
ReplyDeleteWell, there are different guys at different levels, but let's first cover guys that will play either at Binghamton or Las Vegas in April and could get to Queens some day.
(we'll leave out the obvious ones we have talked about...Puello, Plawecki
OF-3B Dustin Lawley - I'm a big fan of Lawley who has brute strength. Wouldn't it be nice if we developed two outfielders (Puello) in the outfield)?
RP - Jeff Walters - led the AA in saves... will start of in Vegas, but you will probably see him sometime in Queens this year.
RP Jack Leathersich - the highest K/9 ratio in baseball.. all he needs to do is find the zone and he's an all-star someday
RP - Adam Kolarek - not as talented as Walters, but a true candidate for the 2015 pen
P - Cory Mazzoni - everyone forgets this was a #2 pick. On any other team he'd be projected as a future rotation pitcher. Probably trade bait
1B - Jayce Boyd - real wild crd first baseman healing from off-season surgery... a hitting machine last year
greg b,
ReplyDeleteMy "stealth" (not rated top 20) MinL candidates this year are Travis Taijeron & Hamilton Bennett.
Hobie -
ReplyDeletethose were 2 good ones to pick
Craig-
ReplyDeleteWith that $5 million I would look at former closers on the market, and depending on the cost sign one or two of the following:
Grant Bslfour
Chris Perez
Mitchell Boggs
Ryan Madson
Joel Hanrahan(May-June)
Andrew Bailey (avail. mid-May)
With the latter two you could wait to sign them once the season starts. I like the idea of bringing in established closers because they become additional trade chips at the deadline (or sooner) and serve as closer plan B in case Parnell has problems or set-backs from his neck injury.
That would make Vic Black your 7th inning guy and the FA ex-closer your set-up man with Parnell closing. If Parnell can't go your FA ex-closer closes, Black is your set-up guy with Familia as your 7th inning man.
The rest of the pen:
Lefties:
Scott Rice
Righties:
Carlos Torres
Vic Black
Bobby Parnell
With the following fighting it out in spring training for the remaining spots:
Lefties:
Josh Edgin
Darin Gorski
Jack Leathersich
Righties:
Cory Mazzoni
Jeury Familia
Joel Carreno
Jeff Walters
Jacob deGrom
Of those battles I'd see Edgin as the other southpaw with Familia (who's pitched very well in Winter League ball) and Carreno on the right side. The Mets may go with 7 men in the early going since they won't have an immediate need for a 5th starter.
Erik-I think Young and Colon will be traded around the deadline if the Mets fall out of the race early. If they are contending at the trade deadline, Sandy will keep them. But let's say the team fades in August then you'd likely see waiver deals of one or both of them (similar to how they handled Byrd last summer).
ReplyDeleteCraig -
ReplyDeleteWe have to wait out the market to see which veteran reliever we can snag. I think Mitchell Boggs or Joel Hanrahan are comeback candidates who could be signed to a low cost contract with innings based incentives. As an aside, I'd also offer Andrew Bailey a 2 year deal with a very low base for 2014, since he may not be ready to pitch effectively in 2014.
I'd give 5 spots in the pen to Black, Torres, Germen, Edgin, & Rice. Then Carreno and Walters could vie for the last spot in spring training.
Conrad -
If Puello gets off to a great start in Vegas, he could get the call in July, with Chris Young getting traded.
Reese -
I'd definitely pick up Sandy's option for 2015. I've believed in him from the start, and he has only cemented that opinion this year.
Anthony -
Like I just said, I'm not replacing Alderson, but with a new ownership group this year, my lineup would be:
Choo, Murphy, Wright, Granderson, Peralta, Davis, d'Arnaud, Lagares
Eric -
If the Mets are still in the hunt, come July, and both are playing well, we stand pat. If we are out of it, I think Young could definitely be gone in July, with either Puello or Lawley replacing him. Colon is a more difficult question. I'm thinking he doesn't get traded until after the season, but then, how do we make room for both Montero and Thor? Maybe Sandy gets a better return for Gee in July. Somehow, we need to find a path to a 2015 rotation of Harvey, Wheeler, Niese, Syndergaard and Montero.
I am not a Sandy Alderson believer. First came the Jose Reyes situation. Then the questionable contract for Chris Young. Oddly, I'm one of the only people who felt (at the time) the trade for Ramirez was a good one though I'd advocated immediately cutting Torres before the season even started. The flipping of star players has worked well and the arduous process of getting to this off season with finally some money to spend was good, however the way in which he chose to spend it on a couple of whiff machines and 2 years to a 41 year old pitcher is pretty bizarre.
ReplyDeleteCarreno seems to be a good bet to get one of the bullpen spots.
Carreno is an enigma. The Mets signed him expecting him to have a strong chance to win as spot in the pen, then left him exposed to the Rule 5.
DeleteNO ONE felt he was worth picking, so he's still here.
Are the Mets the only team that values him?
Reese -
ReplyDeleteYou have become the anti-Sandy here on the site, which is fine.
I continue to wish for new ownership, but, based on what Fred and Jeff allow Sandy to do, I think he's done a good job with the money.
2014 was probably going to be our first +.500 season in awhile... and then Harvey went down.
That's fine, the additions of Harvey, Grandy, Colon (maybe still around), d'Arnaud, Flores (possible), EYJ, Montero, Puello, Thor, and Carreno will insure a decent 2016... and... most of these guys are a creation of Sandy's dealings.
Let's say the Mets move Colon and Chris Young before the end of 2015... we literally can go into the 2015 off season with only three long term contracts and a shit load of team controlled players.
Though I disagree with Reese often in our email group, that doesn't holds Re: Alderson. I'm softening after this Winter's moves, I feel he has failed for 3 years to address our needs, though he keeps saying he recognizes them. What he says one day he contradicts later. His 1st round draft picks have all been HE kids who won't be here until 2017. When a veteran not named Wright plays well, and wants to stay, he's gone quickly.
DeleteThis is NY, and with a sub-.500 record for his 3 years we keep hearing "future" and "potential", while we're asked to pay MLK ticket prices for a AAA roster.
I've had a 15-game plan for over 10 years, but I've given it up. I want to see a competitive team, and Alderson has yet to produce one.
By this time next year I hope I feel differently. If not, I want him GONE!
Bill -
ReplyDeleteI've gone the other way on Sandy.
As you remember, I was a turn around guy in broadcasting
It takes time and you first have to stop losing money before you make some. That usually comes from operational cutbacks not additional revenue.
This translates in baseball to building around the draft, the international free agents, trades, Rule 5 pickups, and minor league contracts.
I study the Mets minor league system every single day and I'm telling you that this operation is hands down better than Omar Minaya's when it comes to the above mentioned areas.
Sandy has also drafted very young so it simply is going to take some time to see what the team has here.
Just the draft alone in the past three years... Brandon Nimmo, Michael Fulmer, Robert Gsellman, Gavin Cecchini, Branden Kaupe, Corey Oswalt, Tomas Nido, Dominic Brown, Andrew Church, Ivan Wilson, Casey Meisner, Robert Whalen, Chris Flexen...
These are some REAL YOUNG KIDS that we're really not going to be able to figure out what we have for 2-3 years.
Reese I'm curious how you would have spent the money this offseason. Assuming you had about 35 million to add to this years payroll. Personally I probably wouldn't have signed Young.
ReplyDeleteFor what he cost, I'd have rather seen Jose Abreu than Curtis Granderson. The rub to me is not his lack of major league experience, but the fact we have alternatives to play 1B but few available for the OF.
ReplyDeleteI certainly would have pushed harder to pick up some salary dump kind of deals for players who could have filled the OF vacancies such as Ryan Braun and Matt Kemp.
For starting pitching, I would have gone with what we have -- Niese, Wheeler, Gee, Mejia and Montero or Torres for the 5th spot.
I'd have also pushed a lot harder on the Murphy/Flores fronts to deal one of them to address either the OF or SS situation.
Of course, not being privy to the phone calls Alderson has made, it's not really fair of me to condemn him for inertia in this area.
Mack,
ReplyDeleteGreat War Room yesterday. Sorry I couldn't participate with my iPhone.
My favorite question was Mock GM.
If this were my 2014 team, I would've went harder after Napoli. If he took a 2-year deal with Boston, I would have to think 3/45 would've been enough to get him to Queens. I'm not going to mock trades so I guess I'll stand pat at SS with Tejada. I really liked Peralta but not for the price he signed for. I love Granderson, on the fence for Chris Young but if budget wasn't a concern, i dont think many fans would be as upset with his signing. I even like the Colon signing.
So essentially the only things I would do different would be to add Napoli and a good bullpen arm in Benoit or Balfour now if his price drops after the Baltimore fiasco.
If Chris Young is playing great in the first half, he can easily be moved for a decent prospect and Puello or Lawley could take over. Same thing goes for Colon.
At the end of the day, I expect to see this team winning a lot of 3-2 ballgames and I'm optimistic that Ike and Tejada can turn things around. If they get solid production all across the board, this team could be dangerous all season. I dont think we're on the same level as the Dodgers or Cardinals but we can still be dangerous. Anything can happen in October.