Mack’s Morning Report – 4-24 – Mets Meh, Early Lucy Look, Lucas Duda, Desmond Lindsay

Good morning.

Mets Meh - 

I have to say that I, and the other writers here at Mack's Mets, are suffering from what I call 'Mets Meh'. This sure hasn't started out to be the kind of season we had all expected this year. For whatever reason, which I can't figure out, the more Mets that get injured, the less articles are written by the crew around here.

Yeah, I know... they have real lives and I pay them a little less than Bill O'Reilly's severance pay... but it's hard to keep feeding the frenzy of Einstein's definition of insanity.

I can't control either volume. Articles and hamstrings will come and go. All I can do is plug along and hope things improve on both end.

As for the Mets, I do see one silver lining. The starting rotation is doing their job. You and I are narrowcasting on the injury issue, but the real problem with this team is bad bullpen decisions coming out of the dugout, shoddy defense, and lack of bats. Go into the 8th inning ahead 8-2 and all this goes away real quick.

As for the writing issue, you can do your part by joining the team here at Mack's Mets. We'll never limit the amount of times you want to post, or the content of what you post.

Email me at: macksmets@gmail.com. I'll send you an email that invites you into the site and we'll go over this via email before you write your first article.

Oh… and if you think only the Mets suffer from injured players, look what happened this past week on other teams… Clay Buchholz (flexor tendon surgery), Logan Forsythe (fractured toe), Rich Hill (blister), Aaron Sanchez (blister), J.A. Happ (elbow inflammation), Zach Britton (forearm strain), Marcus Semien (fractured wrist), Brandon Finnegan (trapezius strain), Jarrett Parker (broken clavicle), Melvin Upton Jr. (surgery on a torn thumb ligament), and Josh Hamilton ( knee surgery).

Early Lucy Look –

            There are three legitimate prospects on this team, SP Justin Dunn (6.43), C/1B Patrick Mazeika (.314), and OF Wuillmer Beccera (.303). Beccera continues to play exclusively as a designated hitter while Mazeika has moved to first base due to the broken hand issue of Peter Alonso. Injuries have a way of bringing out the best in others and it’s good to see we have someone else in the system that can play first.

            Seven others are exceeding expectations early on… relievers  Craig Missigman (0.87), and Justin Brantley (0.00), catcher Anthony Dimino (.375), infielder JC Rodriguez (.281), third baseman Jhoan Urena (.333), and outfielder Jeff Diehl (.333). Dimino continues his red hot pace that started with a .700 batting average in Columbia. I don’t know the timetable on Alonso’s broken hand, but it could easily cost him the season. It seems like the ex-prospect 22-year old Urena may finally be putting his game together. It’s a long time coming since his .300-BA for the Cyclones in 2014. As for Diehl, the 23-year old might consider a new career as a power reliever. He’s been used twice so far this season, has a 0.00-ERA, and has hit 96 with his fastball.

            My guess for the next promotion here would be Diehl. Most of the others are currently blocked and the Binghamton outfield could use a new starter.

Lucas Duda –

Ryland Edwards write an interesting piece for Fangraphs http://www.fangraphs.com/fantasy/two-widely-available-statues-duda-and-mancini/ entitled “Two Widely Available Statues: Duda and Mancini”.

It includes the following:

Has anyone noticed what Lucas Duda has been up to? Apparently not anyone who plays in Yahoo or ESPN formats where he’s still available in nearly 85% of leagues. This is despite his 4 homers, .393 wOBA, and perhaps most importantly, 49 plate appearances over which he’s paraded his newly healthy back. Duda has played in 12 of the Mets’ first 14 games, starting in 11 of them, and thus far sat only against lefties, Jaime Garcia, Wei-Yin Chen, and Adam Conley.

It’s far too early in the season to draw any conclusions about his batted balls or production so let’s just acknowledge that he’s stroking the ball well, pairing a ton of fly balls with convincing exit velocities. The takeaway shouldn’t be that Duda appears back and as good as ever but rather that three weeks into the season, Duda’s back appears as good as ever.

It was fun reading about a healthy Lucas Duda, wasn’t it?

Desmond Lindsay –

            The New York Post had an interesting story on the ‘future Mets centerfielder’… Desmond Lindsay  Desmond Lindsay –

There’s an experiment going on deep in the Mets’ minor league system, where they’re hopeful about turning a quick and strong athlete into a major league outfielder. The Mets saw the natural abilities of a one-time Florida high school baseball star and are trying to transform those skills into a future center fielder at Citi Field. Desmond Lindsay, drafted by the Mets in the second round in 2015, was a high-school infielder committed to play for North Carolina. When the Mets made him the 53rd-overall pick, those plans changed, and so did his position.

            Mack – Lindsay does have a history of hamstring issues so he fits in perfectly with this organization. The 20-year old is off to a slow start this season, but he could move quickly if he stayed healthy. Remember... the only true outfield prospect ahead of him is Wuillmer Becerra who currently has a shoulder problems and is limited to being a designated hitter.

The Phillies have acquired former IF Ty Kelly.

Milwaukee designates OF Kirk Nieuwenhuis for assignment

And lastly...

The Mets picked 1B Dominic Smith with the 11th overall pick in the 2013 Draft...  21 picks later the Yanks picked Aaron Judge.