Mack's Morning Report - Anthony Dimino, Drew Pearson, More Second Opinions, Int'l Guppies, Burn The House Down

Anthony Dimino –

Dimino is an unheralded 2015 28^th round draft pick out of Belmont Abbey College (NC). My guess is none of you heard anything about Dimino, but they sure as hell remember him in the Carolinas where he slashed .452/.486/.599/1085 in his last season there. It also represented the second highest batting average that season in the nation.

If Dimino received a signing bonus from the Mets, it remains unreported, or was below $50,000. Either way, Dimino looked like another of the many minor leaguer catchers (three per team) needed each season to keep the chickens in the pen.

But let’s not married this guy to behind the box. The only reason he played there in school was because both the starting and backup catcher at Belmont became injured. Before that, Dimino played shortstop and outfield. Belmont’s pitching coach, Pete Jenkins, who helped Buster Posey convert himself to the catching position, helped with the learning process.

He had a three-day private workout with the Mets in St. Lucie prior to the draft and the rest is history.       

What we didn’t expect was the second coming of T.J. Rivera. He hit .295 for the GCL Mets in 2015. In 2016, he hit .325 for Kingsport and finished the season hitting .364 in Brooklyn. And this year he was a .700 house of fire in Columbia followed by his current BA in St. Lucie of .xxx. His less than three year minor league total batting average is .xxx (stats through Saturday night).

More importantly, he’s moving around the field again. So far this season, he has taken rounds on both second and first base, as well as behind the plate.

Where does he go from here? Well, he’s playing this season at 23-years old so he does need to end this season in Binghamton.

Still, Rivera, who hit at all levels, started his 23^rd year at Savannah and ended it for St. Lucie.

Drew Pearson – 

The Art Of The Deal:  

I sold my Dallas house back in the 80s to Drew so he could give it to his ex-wife which was a condition of his divorce. He tried to negotiate me when he came to my house and I asked him to sit down in the kitchen. In front of him I had placed two newspaper articles. One, was about the conditions of his nasty divorce. The other was about the enormous amount of money he was being paid by the Cowboys... Drew looked at the articles... smiled... and signed the contract for my house at list price

More Second Opinions –

One more thought on the medical staff of the Mets…

I saw late last week that Noah Syndergaard reached out to doctors outside of the Mets determined decision makers and he, like many other Mets players in the past, walked away with a more positive diagnosis on his tear problem. Yes, he will still be gone unto sometime in August, but that seems to be better than a possible season ending end.

Is it my imagination or does the ‘second opinions’ outside the Mets medical offices always seem to have a more rosy diagnosis?

I have an idea. Let’s just shit can the Mets medical staff, put extra ambulances at the fields that could take the players to neighboring hospitals, let the players chose the doctors they want to see, and send the bill to the Mets.

Nah. Too much sense.

International Guppies –

Favorites to be signed by the Mets –

            Ronny Mauricio | Rank #10 - 

          Hometown: San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic

Position: SS Age: 16 DOB: 4/4/2001

Bats: S Throws: R   Height: 6'0'' Weight: 160 lb. Watch

Scouting grades: Hit: 55 | Power: 35 | Run: 45 | Arm: 55 | Field: 60

Long and lean, there's lots of physical projection and tons of room to fill out               Mauricio's athletic body.

How Mauricio develops offensively is to be determined, but his defensive prowess is on display now. The shortstop has easy actions on defense and has been praised for his soft hands and range to all directions. He's known as a steady defender with good instincts that could keep him at shortstop as he grows into his body. That said, Mauricio could also move to third base or play anywhere on the diamond -- outside of catcher -- because of his potential tools.

On the offensive side, the switch-hitting Mauricio is considered a contact hitter with decent bat speed and a good feel at the plate from both sides. He has the potential to be a line-drive hitter and hit for average, with the power coming later on in his development.

Mauricio trains with Carlos Guzman in the Dominican Republic. The Mets                are considered the favorites to sign him.

Adrian Hernandez | Rank #18 - 

Hometown: Santo Domingo Este, Dominican Republic

Position: OF Age: 16 DOB: 2/8/2001

Bats: R Throws: R  Height: 6'0'' Weight: 180 lb. Watch

Scouting grades: Hit: 45 | Power: 55 | Run: 60 | Arm: 55 | Field: 60

If you're looking for a comparison for Hernandez, think former Major League           outfielder Jose Guillen.

Hernandez is fast-twitched athlete with a well-proportioned, muscular, toned body. He's also built a reputation as a gritty and high-energy player who performs at maximum effort.

Scouts believe Hernandez's speed and power combination along with his improving defensive actions will help him become an elite defender in the future. At the plate, Hernandez has an upright stance and uses a toe tap as a timing mechanism. An aggressive hitter, the teenager has shown above-average bat speed and some raw power. He's more of a pull-side power hitter but has shown the ability to hit the ball with authority to the opposite field.

Hernandez has already shown that his plus speed can help him leg out extra bases and track down fly balls in the gaps. He projects as a center field but could end up in right field because of his speed, power and overall athleticism.

Hernandez trains with Pedro Nivar in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. 

He is expected to sign with the Mets.

And this…

            Hate your team? Fine… burn their stadium down… 

St. Louis Today