Mack’s Morning Report – 2-29-16 – Mike Piazza, ST Starting Pitchers, Backup Catcher Framing

Good morning.

It’s Sunday so it’s a light schedule in Port St. Lucie.

Training camp continues, but today is Mike Piazza day. Piazza spent the early portion of his stay walking around and getting familiar with Mets players, especially guys like Yoenis Cespedes and Curtis Granderson. All the catchers gathered around him for their pop up drill, something I’m sure Mike is glad he doesn’t have to do anymore (best pop up hitter – Tim Teufel). One fan yelled out ‘show em’ how it’s done, Mike’… ain’t gonna happen.

Pizaa to Cespedes - "I don't care what you drive as long as you drive in runs."

Piazza also wants to talk to Cespedes about taking your walks and not being overly anxious as he was in World Series                     

Then, catchers had to locate their mitt, find the ball in the air, and catch the ball.

Mack – can you imagine the rush of someone like Tomas Nido, Raywilly Gomez, or Nevin Ashley getting one on one advice from the future Hall of Famer. You can’t pay good money for this.

Wilmer Flores worked out at first base today.

Noah Syndergaard threw a bullpen session.

Ruben Tejada primarily worked out on third base today.

The Mets did announce pitching for some of the upcoming spring games –

3-1 Intrasquad Team Blue – Sean Gilmartin, Logan Verrett, Zack Thornton, Chase Bradford, and Akeel Morris

3-1 Intrasquad Team Orange – Robert Gsellman, Duane Below, Seth Lugo, Josh Smoker

March 3 – vs. Washington – Rafael Montero, Gabriel Ynoa, Jeff Walters

March 4 – vs. Miami – Logan Verrett, Buddy Carlyle, Zack Thornton

David Wright and Curtis Granderson led other Mets putting on a clinic for more than 100 Special Olympic athletes.

From Fangraphs... here's how they rank faming from backup catchers - 

BP Framing, 2015

NAME	Level	Framing Chances	CSAA
Josh Thole	AAA	3261	0.023
Austin Hedges	AAA	1233	0.022
Kevin Plawecki	MLB	3963	0.021
Austin Hedges	MLB	2712	0.021
Chris Stewart	MLB	2470	0.019
Max Stassi	AAA	6176	0.018
Tyler Flowers	MLB	6317	0.018
Jose Lobaton	MLB	2492	0.014

SOURCE: Baseball Prospectus

Mack’s Morning Report – 2-28-16 – Ruben Tejada, Neil Walker, Robert Gsellman, The Cubs, Zack Wheeler

Good morning.

There has been some attention on infielder Ruben Tejada on the second day of full team practice. He was asked what his reaction was to the new sliding rules, but he had to come to camp only to find an article written about him by  Kristie Ackert that focued on the speculation that Tejada may be moved to save part of his $3 million dollar salary.

I don’t know if they still have this, but a table was always set up inside the clubhouse for players to pick up the morning papers and see what the beat press had written the night before.  Someone told me the table was eliminated after I stopped going to camp, but, let me tell you, starting your day off reading a negative article about yourself doesn’t give you much incentive to talk to that same reported when you are approached in the future.

Neil Walker -

“It’s cliché, but the thought process is what it is. It’s day to day. It’s series to series. You go into a three-game series, you win two of three, that’s a success. You win three of four, even better. The thought process stays the same, to not get too high, not get too low. Find some way to stay in the middle.”

            Mack – Boy, how many times have I said this?

The key to getting to the playoffs is winning the majority of series you play against other teams. You simply can’t win them all. What you can do is shrug off a loss, take a long shower, and start to get ready for the next day.

There’s one more thing.

You have 22 games to play in April, 15 of which will be played against National League teams that finished 2015 with a below .500 win-loss record.

The only series the Mets may not have a projectable chance of winning would be the opening two games series against the World Series champions Kansas City Royals. Obviously, we’d be thrilled with a tie here.

Andrew Beaton  on Robert Gsellman -

On this Mets team, Gsellman’s skill-set could prove useful in several ways. For one thing, pitchers who can get outs by inducing contact often keep their pitch counts lower. For example, Bartolo Colon—the one starter in the current rotation who doesn’t throw especially hard—threw the fewest pitches per inning among the most heavily used pitchers in baseball last year.

More important, Gsellman can keep opposing batters off balance. The ability to fool hitters by changing speeds is an invaluable one for any pitcher, and in this case, he can provide that contrast to the rest of the Mets’ staff. Basically, it’s harder to hit an 87mph slider after you’ve faced Syndergaard’s 97mph heater.

Mack – I wish Gsellman well, though I have to tell you that he and his buddy, John Gant, treated me with no respect during the Savannah Sand Gnat pre-season luncheon, and the next day when I interviewed Gsellman one on one.  He was absolutely bored with my presence and couldn’t wait until the interview was over.

Gsellman turned out to be the last Mets interview I ever did.

Yoenis Cespedes had his left shin and upper arm wrapped during live batting practice.

Bleed Cubbie Blue is a well read Cuns blog through the SB Nation network. Here’s what they said about the New Yok  Mets -

                       The Mets' outfield defense? Uh... I dunno, but I don't think Cespedes is really a center fielder. He has to play there to get Michael Conforto's bat in the lineup, since Conforto plays only left field. Curtis Granderson doesn't have the range he once did in right. The Mets do have a solid defensive outfielder in Juan Lagares, who'll get a lot of playing time.

You no doubt have heard about the lifetime suspension of Jenrry Mejia, who was supposed to contribute to this Mets pen. They'll be OK without him, as Jeurys Familia became a very good closer in 2015 and the Mets added Antonio Bastardo to a solid setup corps anchored by Addison Reed.

It may only have been 10 pitches, but they were the most important 10 pitches(off the front of the mound) that Zack Wheeler has thrown in a long time. Everything was reported to go off without a hitch.

Reese Kaplan -- Keep Him or Trade Him?

Many people feel that the rather expensive addition of Alejandro De Aza is doubly bad now that Yoenis Cespedes is back.  After all, with the superior defensive game provided by Juan Lagares one would think De Aza’s playing opportunities would be few and far between.  Many have advocated trading him which would require his permission as he was signed as a free agent.  Proponents argue that he’d be amenable to a deal since he would likely get more playing time nearly anywhere else rather than rotting on the bench in Queens.

What’s less clear, however, is the decision of how to use that extra roster spot should they find a taker for De Aza’s services.  Many are pushing for a Scott Van Slyke type who could both spell a corner outfielder and give the team a legitimate backup to Lucas Duda at 1^st base. 

While, on the surface, this approach makes sense, it gives the Mets yet another right handed bench bat to accompany Juan Lagares, Wilmer Flores, Ruben Tejada and Kevin Plawecki.  The regular lineup is somewhat left-handed heavy with Duda, Neil Walker (switch hitter), Asdrubal Cabrera (switch hitter), Michael Conforto and Curtis Granderson all better while facing right handed pitching.  (So too is Yoenis Cespedes, but he bats right handed). 

Who then would the Mets want to send up to the plate to face a tough right handed reliever like Mark Melancon, Trevor Rosenthal, Craig Kimbrel or Frankie “K-Rod” Rodriguez?  In these occasions it would behoove them to have a left handed bat.  If that lefty can also provide a little pop, so much the better. 

So now the question becomes what LH player could play the OF and an occasional stint at 1B?  Of course, if you go in that direction, then you lose the luxury of sitting Duda against a tough lefty if the replacement player is also batting from the left hand side.  Among the available free agents there are outfielders and there are first basemen but none who meet both criteria while also being left handed.

Consequently what should the Mets do?  Should they keep De Aza as he is a veteran with some power and some speed?  Should they trade him and go all right handed on the bench?  Should they seek another lefty-only option such as Grazy Sizemore or Max Venable or switch hitter Shane Victorino?  (On that latter one, they might as well just keep De Aza unless they feel one of them would cost far less). 

Or should the Mets go in another direction entirely?  They’ve been talking about getting Travis d’Arnaud and Kevin Plawecki to work at some other positions.  Plawecki has already spent some time at 1B in the minors.  He could be the RH option on days when a tough lefty would make sitting Duda a prudent choice.  He’s had 20 games at the position which is about 19 more than Wilmer Flores has had and he’s the current backup option. 

Of course, the problem with using your backup catcher as a pinch hitter or at another position means you could be facing a world of hurt should the starter need to come out of the game.  That’s where some creative thinking comes in.  Despite a lackluster debut last year, lefty-hitting Johnny Monell has smashed the ball throughout his minor league career.  In Las Vegas in just 256 ABs (about half a season’s worth) he slugged 7 HRs and 51 RBIs while hitting .324.  Some of it is likely the PCL effect on inflating numbers, but he’s hit as many as 20 HRs and batted .270 for his minor league career in less hitter-friendly environments. 

This move wouldn’t happen for a number of reasons, not the least of which are the snap judgments of the man at the top who proclaimed his new 8^th inning setup man based upon an eight-week pitching debut last year that was out of character for anything he’s done prior in his entire career.  Similarly, Monell’s 48 ABs to the tune of .167 while playing once a week or so as a pinch hitter has surely rendered him solidly in the “No!” column in Collins’ mind. 

Furthermore, it would leave the Mets with just one legitimate outfield backup in Juan Lagares.  While the starters are surely expected to play nearly every day, it’s still fairly thin in that regard. 

So what’s your take?  Keep De Aza?  Trade him?  If so, how would you replace him?

Mack’s Morning Report – 2-27-16 – Lucas Duda, Ricardo Cespedes, Terry Collins, Jacob deGrom

Good morning.

Kevin Davidoff wrote what I felt was a very disturbing story about 1B Lucas Duda.

Davidoff started the interview by saying that, it was in his (Davidoff) opinion that Duda is the most hated, under-appreciated player in New York.

Is that good?  Being hated but under-appreciated at the same time? And is it the job of Davidoff to try and be the Woof Blitzer of the NY Mets beat press and set back this fragile soul after all the time it too for Duda to build up his confidence?

The rest of the article tried to stroke Duda but, trust me, I have met this guy and knew about his confidence problems that were heightened with his slow, inward personality.

You don’t motive guys like Duda by telling them that people think he sucks. Duda is a guy you have to massage his back not stick a bat up his ass.

You watch.

Slow start coming up.

Continuing from yesterday, Baseball Prospectus mentioned another young player we should keep an eye on in 2016 –

Ricardo Cespedes, OF - When I was first sketching out this list in late Fall, I had a great “The Mets still have a Cespedes” quip queued up here. But then the team re-signed Yoenis, so it's no longer relevant. The younger Cespedes very much is. He was the Mets big signing out of the 2014 July 2 class, and although Ali Sanchez is the better prospect at present, Cespedes will show you plenty to dream on. He can show you some pull pop that should spread to all fields as he ages, and like many of the Mets younger prospects, has a better plate approach than most teenagers. If you were more confident he's a center fielder long term, you might even be able to find a spot for him above, but he doesn't really have the straight-line speed to profile there. Neither does the older Cespedes, mind you, but he does have some other things going for him.

Mack – I wrote a lot about this kid in the past two seasons and, frankly, I expected much better numbers than he has put up so far (2014, DSL: .227 – 2015, GSL: .224). He’s still very young and will play 2016 as an 18-year old. I’d either hold him back at the GCL level which gives him the chance to also work with the organizational coaches there, or send him to Kingsport and see what happens there.

Anthony DiComo ‏@AnthonyDiComo  - Matt Harvey described Terry Collins as "sparky" in delivering his annual fire-and-brimstone speech this morning.

Matt Harvey reported that his slider is back.

Adam Rubin ‏@AdamRubinESPN  - Terry Collins told Mets today about subtle areas they can improve, including baserunners taking an extra base and pitchers advancing runners… said deficiencies with the Mets may be the youth of bench and the need to identify another late-inning reliever… said Mets' pitchers were good driving runners in. He wants hitting behind runners/bunting to improve…  says he sees polished slider and late life on fastball with Matt Harvey that didn't exist last year. Sees another this year… Collins also mentioned pitchers holding runners and catchers retiring base stealers as an area for improvement.

Zack Wheeler will throw off the mound for the first time today.

Craig Edwards wrote about contract extensions and Jacob deGrom -

Perhaps the most ideal candidate for an extension on this list is Jacob deGrom. He is a year away from arbitration, but will not be eligible for free agency until after the 2020 season. He is older than others on the list (27), but not too old to be considered for an extension. There’s also the relative modesty of his original signing bonus, and the fact that he’s stated publicly his willingness to consider an extension.

Mack – This seems like a no brainer and even deGrom seems to think this is a good idea (“I’m a little bit older, so I might be more willing to do something like that”). Let’s get it done.

Ernest Dove - Final Thoughts & Pics/Video From Recent Visit to Mets Camp...

  I've had a few days to further digest the sights and sounds of the return of major league baseball in my own Mets universe while visiting Tradition Field in beautiful Port St. Lucie Florida.  I wanted to share a few more thoughts, and pics that didn't make the previous cut, from my time there.

  Well, by now many of you have heard all the additional news and notes regarding the young man in the wheelchair who received an amazing greeting from our beloved Mets. I wanted to repost this pic for one particular reason.  To point out that this pic was taken BEFORE the more professional ones that were taken by all the beat writers later on in the morning. Upon my arrival at camp, I noticed Terry and Wally greeting a woman, and this young man.  NOBODY was around. Terry obviously already had big plans to ensure this young man had a great time at camp, but before any of that he made sure to properly greet him, without any needed fanfare........I'm just sayin, between this and the random sights and sounds I got watching Terry, I can see why the team, and the organization love him so much.  And he deserves this chance to make another title run with the team.

                                  Short video of Terry introducing young fan Ryan to players

 I keep trying to figure out the role of Logan Verrett, pictured, above.  My buddy Scot was at the game in Colorado where Logan completely baffled and dominated a team, IN COLORADO, and shut them down.  He proved his worth, helping this team mightily to stay afloat when they needed it the most.  Now he's just another name, based on overall team health.  It seems like many are choosing guys like Goeddel over Verrett.  Only time will tell.  I wish Logan luck. 



  
  As I briefly stated in previous post, Noah Syndergaard takes EVERYTHING seriously, including hitting off a tee in the cage. You can just tell, both visually and what we continue hear through the media, that young Thor wants greatness, and I'm hoping the Mets do whatever it takes to lock up Thor for a very long time.

                             Hey, is that beat writer Marc Carig photo bombing Terry Collins ?

                                                              Steven Matz taking BP

                              Hey, let's enjoy at least one more year of pitchers hitting in the NL ;)

  One more thing of note regarding David Wright.  During fielding drills, I wanted to point out my simple non expert witnessing of David throwing more 'over the top' and at least '3/4 arm angle' rather than the side arm-ish angle of his throws last year.  Of course, the double play drills are where he continued to side arm it, but that I believe is what third baseman do in those circumstances.  Again, just wanted to point out the higher arm angles he was showing in practice.

  I also wanted to take a second to vent about the state of 'adulthood' and economics regarding the after practice signings that a few players were graciously offering for fans.............Fellas.....yeah you with the glossy photos, bats and mint condition baseball cards......How's about you let actual fans get autographs and try earning a living doing something else, will ya.  My favorite moment was when my friend Scot, with me at camp, saw the crowd of these guys, and before David even moved from one side of crowd over said, "watch, I bet David goes right by these douchebags and heads straight to these kids first over here in front of us"...... sure enough, David went down the line and immediately walked in front of a group of about 3-4 kids, signing autographs for them.   Then he left ;)

                         yup, extremely short and grainy cell video of Matt Harvey fielding drill ;)

   Oh, and just so we're clear, Matt Harvey and Yoenis Cespedes are 'just one of the guys'.  They looked and appeared friendly. They interacted well with fans, and like I said in previous post there are younger players who gravitate towards Yo, and I see this as a good thing.

  Also of note:  I swear, in my heart of hearts I truly think that Dilson Herrera, in the moment, was as shy as I was while we randomly waived to each other at one point as he was walking in dugout from a fielding drill ;)  I look forward to hopefully seeing him manning second base full time for the Mets in 2017.

 

                      Well, I guess I should end it with the first pic I took when I arrived at camp.


  Oh, did I mention that Dom Smith looked thinner and ready to rock ;)

  Oh, never mentioned a brief moment after stretching where the team all huddled around Travis d'Arnaud, who appeared to be teaching/instructing everyone on something.  I found it interesting and cool to see from the young catcher.

  Ok, probably not as much valuable information in this post, but again I wanted to say again how cool it was of an experience, and I think everyone willing and able to come out for it one year should do it.  Not exactly the most amazing, spectacular, magical 3 hours of your life, but its an experience I think is worth it to any/all Mets fans out there, especially one in which you can certainly bring your children.  I bet that If I bring my daughter with me next year, David will make  b-line right to her and sign an autograph for her instead of those........well, nevermind, LETS GO METS.  

Mack’s Morning Report – 2-26-16 – Joe D, Yoenis Cespedes, Noah Syndergaard, Luis Carpio, Raphael Ramirez

Good morning.

I try to give you five Mets subjects to mull on each day, built around various press articles that had come out in the past 24 hours. I then add my opinions and I let you guys take it from there.

The off-season is tough because there isn’t much happening and everybody seems to be writing about the same subjects. These few weeks before spring training has started are particularly painful, especially in a year like this when everything coming out of the Mets clubhouse is in perfect harmony.

I’ve never seen a Mets team more on the same page than this one.

Everybody wants to play for this team. Everybody.

A tip of the Mack’s hat to Joe D over at Metsmerized for securing pregame videos from his new partner, The Sporting News. Joe is as old as I am doing this yet he still seems to be coming up with ways of building his site and putting some ching in his pocket. I wish I had his strength and will.

Noah Syndergaard threw live batting practice on Thursday morning. Mets minor leaguers that were served up were Kyle Johnson, Stefan Sabol, and Victor Cruzado. Terry Collins said ‘that ball is moving two feet. That’s pretty good shit.’ Pitching coach Dan Warthan said ‘that’s mid season… he has something to prove… he wants to win a World Series’.

Mack – It’s always great to get past the first live BP session. All you want to look for at this stage of the game is no muscle pulls, strains, or, even worse.

(Rafael Montero and Steven Matz also threw live BP)

Ride #4 for Yoenis Cespedes on Thursday was an Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione which followed a tricked out Ford F-250, a Polaris Slingshot, and a Lamborghini Aventador. I gotta think that Terry Collins would love have a few choice words about this show boating, but frankly, it’s a breath of fresh air in a basically boring spring training so far. I’m sure even Yo will run out of cars by the end of the month.

Is he done tomorrow? Well, here’s a Twitter post from Cespedes himself –

Yoenis Cespedes ‏@ynscspds  - I'm pulling up BIG to practice tomorrow with the man who builds all my rides #AlexVega @TheAutoFirm #AvorzaMovement

The Mets draft picks in the first/comp round are #20 and #31.

IF Juan Uribe has signed with the Cleveland Indians

This is the time of the year that everybody seems to have their own Top 10 Prospects list. So does Baseball Prospectus who came out with the Mets list this week.

I found two things interesting –

1.  They listed SS Luis Carpio as the #3 prospect in the system –

Given the polished profile at such a young age, and the organization he plays for, the obvious comp for Carpio is Ruben Tejada. Admittedly it’s not that sexy a look through a 2016 lens, but consider that Tejada has graded out as a league-average player in four of his past five seasons in the majors by WARP, despite never playing 120 games in a season. And even if Carpio doesn't reach his power ceiling, he should still show more pop than Tejada. This is a potential top-100 guy in a year, especially if he ends up in the South Atlantic League as an 18-year-old and continues to hit. And there is no reason to think he can't handle that tough assignment with the same aplomb he did 2015's.

      Mack – Let’s review this one more time…

In my book, the Mets have the following shortstop prospects:

Gavin Cecchini – 1^st round/2012 – 21/yrs - .317/AA

Amed Rosario – $1.75mil bonus – 19/yrs - .257/A+

Luis Guillorme – 10^th round/2013 – 20/yrs - .318/A

Yeffry De Aza – $475K bonus – 19/yrs - .313/GCL

Edgardo Fermin – $250K bonus – 17/yrs - .262/DSL

Hansel Moreno – $50K bonus – 18/yrs - .210/DSL

Gregory Guerrero – $1.5mil bonus – awaiting assignment

Andres Giminez – $1.2mil bonus – awaiting assignment

Kenny Hernandez – $1mil bonus – 16/yrs - .196/DSL

Yoel Romero - $300K bonus – 18/yrs - .194/DSL

The face of the Mets shortstop could change many times in the next decade.

2.  They listed the relatively unknown OF Raphael Ramirez as someone to keep an eye on –

Raphael Ramirez, CF - Signing Ramirez out of the 2014 draft class was a bit of a coup for Paul DePodesta and Tommy Tanous. Expected to go to NC State, he instead signed with the Mets for $150,000. Ramirez has some of the best athletic tools in the system, he is a no-doubt center fielder and a true burner. Despite his small frame, he gets better power than you'd think out of a pretty, rotational swing that calls to mind a young Curtis Granderson (the high socks help here as well). Now the reason he is here, rather than above. Ramirez struggles with spin, and especially spin from the left side. He just hasn't looked comfortable against left-handers so far in his professional career. The clock is hardly ticking though, and he is only a bit of refinement away from joining a couple of his Kingsport team on the top section of this page in 2017.

Mack – There’s no room for Ramirez in Columbia this spring. On paper, Desmond Lindsay, Emmanuel Zabata, Vincente Lupo, Michael Bernal, Hengelbert Rojas, and Tucker Tharp will all be fighting it out for the five Firefly outfield slots.

MY FAVORITE METS PLAYERS - # 5 - David Wright, by Tom Brennan

MY FAVORITE METS PLAYERS - # 5 - David Wright, by Tom Brennan

Hard to believe that I could not get to David Wright in my list of FAVORITE METS PLAYERS until # 5, which coincidentally is Captain America's uniform number.   I feel guilty.

 

But I always have had a bias towards the new thing, young players in their ascendancy, hence my choices of Thor, Cespedes (well, not so young, but still in his ascendancy), Harvey and deGrom as my top 4 favorites.

David Wright has been the Mets' gold standard during his 12 seasons with the Mets, their greatest all-time offensive player. He's had 2 significant hiccups after 2008.

 

In his first 5 seasons, truly Hall of Fame caliber: iron man, averaging 42 doubles, 30 homers, 110 RBIs, and an 80% success rate in steals, plus 2 Gold Gloves.  A wonderful all-American guy, what team wouldn't want a David Wright?

Fast forward to the Wilpons' new playground to replace Shea Stadium in 2009, the Grand Canyon a/k/a Citifield, with its horrible dimensions for a power hitter like David Wright.  

 

I for one have failed against Citifield dimensions, and the fences were pulled in twice, but not before Wright lost dozens of homers and doubles since Citifield opened in 2009.  In my opinion, jeopardizing what should have been a sure-fire Hall of Fame career, which would be the first such for a home-grown offensive player.  

 

He may still make the Hall, but the atrocious fences really hurt (ten homers in 618 plate appearances in 2009 being the exclamation point of the foolishness of such hitter-unfriendly dimension when a player like David Wright is your marquee guy).

Due primarily to the inhospitable Citi-dimensions, and his recent stenosis issues, Wright's seven seasons from 2009-15 have resulted in a big dip in power numbers and batting average (e.g., just 105 homers in 3657 plate appearances during that time period). 

David had everyone including me concerned that his career might be over after the stenosis diagnosis in 2015, but when he finally returned and got 38 regular season games in, results were surprisingly good (regular season .289/.379/.434). Hey, and he played well in the playoffs, to boot.  I'm hoping he will startle all of us and give us .300/.400/.500 over 130 starts this year. I'd love to see David in the Hall of Fame, so hopefully there is plenty of that kind of good baseball left in him.

He may be my #5 favorite this year, but he will always be # 1 in many Mets' fan's hearts. Deservedly so, and mine included....just not in 2016.

Man...that is one Hall of Fame induction I'd love to attend.

Mack’s Morning Report – 2-25-16 – Jacob deGrom, Yoenis Cespedes, Jeurys Familia, Ruben Tejada, Bartolo Colon

Good morning.

P Jacob deGrom was back in camp after spending a day with his pregnant wife and was back on the bump on one of the mounds outside the clubhouse.

OF Yoenis Cespedes showed up yesterday driving his second custom car, a tricked out, fire spitting, Lamborghini Aventador.

Thank you Michael Golding for passing on this great 1962 article about the Mets - https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/153143120d8387b5?projector=1

Anthony DiComo ‏@AnthonyDiComo  - Jeurys Familia has right mindset to continue dominance http://atmlb.com/21gPxCx

Adam Rubin ‏@AdamRubinESPN  -  Mets' Bartolo Colon took less money, accepted relief possibility to stay http://es.pn/1R1VNDo

New York Mets ‏@Mets - See how a 14 year-old kid made #Mets camp come to a completely halt. http://atmlb.com/1QEOZkO

  Hansel Robles' suspension cut from 3 games to 2 by MLB http://dld.bz/eqVK5

Slimmed-down Juan Lagares on a mission in 2016 http://atmlb.com/1QFn6ZL

Ruben Tejada awarded extra day of service time, will be free agent after 2016.. http://dld.bz/eqVK3 

Under the weather today so I pretty much mailed in The Morning Report. I'll try and do a better job on it tomorow.

Reese Kaplan -- Walk Up Music Revisited

Last week it was revealed that Jeurys Familia is getting special walk-up composed in conjunction with Dominican recording artist Zacarías Ferreíra that he will record himself.  No “Enter Sandman” controversy this time around back in the days of Billy Wagner and Mariano Rivera.  Of course, the last Mets player to dabble in the music studio was Jordany Valdespin, so let’s hope things don’t follow the same career path for big Jeurys. 

Of course, this news only got people thinking about what songs might be appropriate for some of the other Mets ballplayers.  Some players get it, like Noah Syndergaard who enters to the theme song from Game of Thrones:

For all his pitching prowess, more people identify Jacob de Grom for this mane of unruly locks, hence two choices immediately sprang to mind:

or

Now David Wright's descent from superstar into someone playing through all kinds of pain would suggest two possibilities, the first a wish for his 2016 season:

lest he revert to the previous several seasons during which he was:

For big Bartolo Colon it's very easy to poke fun at this rather unique interpretation of conditioning for the professional athlete:

Or another blues classic:

But as elder statesman on the club, he might also choose this one:

Matt Harvey aka The Dark Knight would appeal to the older demographic if he went with the original Batman theme song:

But given his media antics, his lifestyle choices, and the proclamation he's aiming to exceed the size and length of what the Nationals gave Max Scherzer, there is only one song that  seems fitting:

Then there's poor Jerry Blevins who not once but twice broke his pitching arm after a perfect 7 game start to his Mets career.  He's definitely been:

Ruben Tejada certainly lived to tell after the Chase Utley incident:

Then, of course, there was his infield partner Wilmer Flores, famously almost traded to the Milwaukee Brewers who might want to try this one:

And what can we say about the poor choices made by former closer Jenrry Mejia.  Caught not once, not twice but three times.  Apparently all he could think was:

Then there are songs for the newcomers on this club -- Alejandro De Aza, Antonio Bastardo, Asdrubal Cabrera and Neil Walker:

Or, given the intensity of the fans and media here, another good choice for one or more of them could be:

The last one is courtesy of Metsiac, frequent visitor to this site – for big Lucas at first base and the refrain that will echo from the stands:

Don't shoot the messenger on that last one.