5/28/15

The Morning Report 5.28.2015 | No Place Like Home for Cuddyer, Vic Black Ready for Action, Minor League Promotions, 2015-2016 IFA Signings



David Wright Injury Tracker | Diagnosed with Spinal Stenosis. In California to see specialist. 

Mike Puma | New York PostMichael Cuddyer is a giant homebody. The Mets outfielder continued his recent surge with a home run Wednesday in a 7-0 victory over the Phillies, raising his average to .381 over his last 12 games at Citi Field. “I like hitting at home, no matter where home is,” Cuddyer said. “You’re used to the background, you’re used to the surroundings, the confines, you’re used to everything. The more you play somewhere, the better off you are and if you look at my track record I have always hit better at home — no matter what my home was.” Overall, Cuddyer is hitting .322 with three homers and 15 RBIs at Citi Field this season. On the road, he is hitting .195 with two homers and seven RBIs.

(Chris Soto: When the Mets initially signed Cuddyer, the biggest concern was how his Coors induced home/away splits would translate moving to Citi Field. Oddly enough, that split has actually widened by coming to New York as shown by his road stats above. That said, he needs to start picking it up as those road stats aren't going to be acceptable going forward. While he does have an unfavorable BABIP of .240 on the road, it's not horribly bad. His 27.5% K rate on the road IS a bigger concern and is putting a ton of pressure on his average.)


David Hong | Metsmerized Online- Mets reliever Vic Black, who has been trying to come back from shoulder and neck issues, passed a significant hurdle last night. The right-hander has now pitched in back to back scoreless relief appearances with Double-A Binghamton and according to Mets pitching coach Dan Warthen, Black is now ready to come off the DL. “I think I’m ready,” Black told Lynn Worthy of the Press and Sun Bulletin. “I believe I am. It’s up to them. That’s just how this whole process goes.“I can get outs right now. I don’t care where you put me, I can get outs. I think that’s the biggest key outside of the back-to-back.”

(Chris Soto: Black will likely be activated in time for the Marlins series starting tomorrow with LHRP Jack Leathersich likely to be the guy who gets demoted for him. While it may not seem like much, having Black back in the fold is a big boost to the bullpen. While they won't immediately used him in high leverage spots, once he gets eased back in, he can provide better quality in the 8th inning than Carlos Torres. This has a trickle down effect...Black over C. Torres improves the 8th, C. Torres over A. Torres improves the 7th, which in turn reduces A. Torres' usage since Goeddel/Robles are pitching better than him anyway.)


Chris McShane | Amazin Avenue- The Mets have promoted right-handed pitching prospect Robert Gsellman from High-A St. Lucie to Double-A Binghamton and sent fellow right-handed pitching prospect John Gant down from Binghamton to St. Lucie. Gsellman is as solid a mid-tier pitching prospect as you're going to find. The 21-year-old prep product has filled out his sturdy, 6'4", 200 lbs frame nicely, adding a few ticks to a fastball that still works in the low-90s but now reaches 94 MPH without maxing out. His advanced command of that pitch, along with a surprisingly polished change-up allowed him to breeze through his first taste of full-season baseball.

(Chris Soto: Promotions have begun in Mets prospect land. Expect to see a number of player movements up and down at each level of the organization as clubs around the MLB begin prepping their short season minor league teams to start play over the next 3 weeks. With Kyle Johnson now manning CF for the 51's, they are short a corner OF so look for Jayce Boyd to be promoted soon with Conforto moving to Binghamton to join Nimmo and Cecchini.)


2015-2016 International Free Agent Signing Period (MLBPipeline.com)

  • One important date that is sneaking up on us is June 1st. This is the official date that clubs may no longer sign international free agents against their '14-'15 budgets, After a 30 day rest period, clubs can begin signing this year's crop of 16 yr old talent from other countries. In the Mets case, generally they sign 1 high impact youngster and spread out the rest of the funds so lesser known "wild cards." However this year, it looks like they are having a bit of a strategy change. The Mets are rumored to have $1.0M+ agreements already in place for both the #12 and #14 overall international free agents. With a '15-'16 budget of only $2,531,300, the club may have blown through their entire allowance on just these two guys. So who are they?
  • #12 SS Andres Gimenez- Scouts love what they see in Gimenez, who is 5-foot-11 and nearly 160 pounds. They also love that he makes the game look easy because of his natural abilities. He's smooth. Overall, Gimenez is lean, athletic and full of energy. The middle infielder has also shown the type of speed that could land him at the top of the order one day. He has a good hitting approach and is considered a line-drive hitter. He has some power and has displayed the ability to hit the ball into the gaps on a consistent basis. On defense, Gimenez profiles as an everyday shortstop if he continues to develop as expected. He has smooth defensive actions and an arm strong enough to keep him at the position.
  • #14 SS Gregory Guerrero- The nephew of former Major League star Vladimir Guerrero and the cousin of fellow top prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Gregory Guerrero has a famous last name, but he's also making a name for himself. Known for his strong arm and quick feet, Guerrero has opened eyes with his easy actions on defense. He's a fluid defender and has a knack for making plays look easy. His tools and athletic ability will likely keep him at the position as he grows into his body and develops as a player. On offense, the teen is not as strong as his cousin Vlad Jr., but Gregory has shown some raw power and the ability to hit home runs. He's a decent runner and has been working on stealing bases.

27 comments:

Tom Brennan said...

Nice on those Latin prospects. See where they are at in 3-4 years when they've developed. GREAT about Gsellman, and may Conforto soon follow. RG has been terrific in all 8 of his starts.

Cuddyer went on to say the ball does not carry in Citi in cold weather, and BB is not made to be played in 40 degree weather. Which tells me, road or away, he will continue his recently strong hitting.

If Jack goes down for Black, glad he got a taste of the bigs in a pretty successful way. Can only help him. Lets hope the real Black is coming back.

Dillon Gee was good, but mortal yesterday. An immortal pitched and hit for the Mets in Queens yesterday.

Michi L. said...

Think its a pretty good strategy ,to go over the budget in the international market , in a year when you havent a 1st round pick and dead last in pool money.

Ernest Dove said...

Mets really need consistency from Cuddyer.........
I guess at this point Grandy is who he is, but the Mets simply need more power AND a high batting average from their other 8figure contract guy. Especially since TC will always hit him ahead of Wilmer in the lineup........

What do u guys think happens to TDA once he's fully back and hitting? Do they bat him 2nd or 5th? Or somewhere else........

Zozo said...

I am thinking out loud, do you guys think Wrights back problems would be helped if he played left field instead of 3rd base? If so we might have to think about putting him in that spot if it's less wear and tear on his back. We wouldn't be able to trade him nor do I want to, but we might have found Wilmer his position if this holds true. Also that would make Nimmo or Conforto expendable to bring in our Shortstop.

Reese Kaplan said...

Cuddyer played some 3B in his career...

Tom Brennan said...

If they send Plawecki down, teach him 3B, 1B and outfield. If they could keep him and d'Arnaud on the team in 2016, I think it could work.

Christopher Soto said...

@Reese

Cuddyer also got hurt playing 3B last year....so...no thanks.

Christopher Soto said...

@Ernest

I can see TC using d'Arnaud 2nd once again.
Grandy
d'Arnaud
Duda
Murphy
Cuddyer
Flores
Lagares
Campbell/Muno

Christopher Soto said...

@Zozo

Probably not, playing defense doesn't really have that much impact. It's probably more related to the torque Wright puts on his back with his swing.

Charles said...

The Cambell/Muno combo doesn't impress me one bit. I used to appreciate Cambell but he just isn't getting the job done anymore. I guy like him without power, needs to put the ball in play and he takes too many fastballs right down the middle.

I'd much rather see Reynolds brought up to play second until Dilson or Wright comes back. Let Flores stay at short and keep Murph at third.

I don't see why they seem to be delaying Reynold's ML service time. He's a good prospect, but certainly not someone you need to worry about their service clock.

Another issue the team has is that they're plugging holes with rookies that won't play every day and aren't accustomed to bench roles. Muno and Ceciliani likely won't show their talent without steady at bats. Look a Kirk, he tore up Spring playing everyday and once he started a bench role complete flamed out.

Christopher Soto said...

@Charles

I'd like to see Reynolds too....either him or Castellanos.

Unfortunately, neither is on the 40 man roster.

Right now the only way to get either of them on would be to:

A) Keep Leathersich in MLB and return Sean Gilmartin to the Twins.
B) Transfer Buddy Carlyle or Rafael Montero to the 60 day DL.
C) DFA and then Outright Wilfredo Tovar off the 40 man roster.

The problems with those options are as follows:

A) Leaves Mets with no true lefty v lefty options until Blevins is healthy.
B) Montero has resumed throwing and Buddy should resume throwing soon.
C) Ya know....this isn't a terrible idea.

Tom Brennan said...

I don't think Muno is the answer as an everyday 3B, but hopefully they give Muno several more games. Nothing else is working.

Matt Reynolds is glacial right now. He had an awesome 25 game stretch with 25 RBIs and hit .370. In 16 games since, 14 for 67 with only a single RBI. So he is not an option right now.

Cuddyer at 3rd? Maybe, but who plays his slot? Can't call up Castellanos, who has been almost as cold as Reynolds.

No, I'd try Muno. Tejada is someone I'd rather see sparingly.

ZachBoyer said...

I've heard that Cuddyer won't play 3rd because he's scared to hurt his shoulder. And the Mets told him he wouldn't have to before he signed. But better than Soup & Muno, I'd rather take Tejada and his ability to get on base out of that 8th hole. Muno doesn't look ready for major league pitching. They both (Muno & Soup) are striking out too much right now. Tejada doesn't strike out. He also gives you better defense (in my opinion). If he can reproduce his .340 OBP from last year, I'll take that over Muno and/or Soup.

Tom Brennan said...

Zach, a big part of Tejada's. 34 on base last year was getting pitched around with last year's terrible hitting pitchers behind him. I wonder if he is really a. 300 on base guy.

ZachBoyer said...

No, I know, I watched the games. It's definitely fair to wonder that. But he has always been able to work the count.

Ernest Dove said...

At this point Tovar is the strangest 40man guy on this team........
I've written bout him before. Been on 40 man awhile now. Still not getting called up after all the injuries.
And now hes hitting .156 in his last 10games...........
Can't be an emergency option for Wilmer because I assume tejada and reynolds are the backup plans for emergency.

Christopher Soto said...

@Ernest

Exactly...he's just wasting space at this point...Especially since Gavin Cecchini is about to pass him on the depth chart

Christopher Soto said...

THIS JUST IN....

As expected, the Mets have announced that Jayce Boyd has been promoted to AAA.

Hobie said...

Zach-

I agree; until Herrera returns Tejada is the best infield option. But it makes no sense to play him at 3B, Murphy should be playing there. Want to yo-yo Wilmer to 2B and play Reuben at SS? There's an argument for that, but when Dilson is healthy he's your 2B, so I'd leave Wilmer alone--for this year anyway.

Castellanos? Yes, at the expense of Mayberry which in sunk money on the bench anyway.

Gosh I wish they still had den Dekker. Was a good/greart deal for Blevins but I still can't help wondering whether dD (vs. hot spring Kirk) went at WAS insistence, or SA's.

That Adam Smith said...

I'm a big Boyd fan. Of course, in the PCL, he'll need to hit .360 to get noticed.

Tom Brennan said...

.AMAZING. JAYCE, HOW SWEET THE SOUND. Good for him to get into AAA, and may he stay short and prosper in Vegas. And hopefully hit a few more homers. Wonder if Conforto is next, since OF spot opens up in AA.

Steve from Norfolk said...

Castellanos plays some 3B. His numbers aren't bad, and he's been tearing up PCL pitching.

Steve from Norfolk said...

Oh,yeah. He plays 1B,3B, and the corner OF positions.

Tom Brennan said...

Castellanos cooled off a lot in May. Just .180/.261/.361 in 19 games in May. Don't see how they Call him up, based on that.

ZachBoyer said...

Hobie,

I agree with that too. My ideal defense right now is Tejada @ SS, Murph @ 3B, and Flores @ 2B. I was just kind of trying to work my plan within the parameters of the Mets' own stubbornness. Like, fine, put them wherever you want, just give me Tejada's bat over Soup's or Muno's.

Hobie said...

Thomas-

Soup was piping hot when called up, and.... The question, which a2-3 week window in LV cannot answer, is what is the productive potential? Is it likely that Castellonos can produce more consistantly in the Bigs than Campbell? Than Mayberry? Ask the same question of Reynolds vs. Muno (throw TJ in there too..please) and make the move.

Keeping Mayberry on the roster is probably the conservative choice. Castellanos vs. Soup is a toss-up IMO.

PS I always screw up finding the pizza in the CAPTCHA

Tom Brennan said...

you might be right Hobie. Wish we kept Justin Turner. 425 PA WITH LAD in 2014-15, hitting an unreal .328 with a.500 slug %.