Tom Brennan - MINORS OBSERVATIONS: BATS AND PENS
Mack puts out weekly hot/cold minors updates on starting pitchers. Don't miss 'em.
He is the Warren Buffett "Oracle" of Mack's Mets, after all.
Holding up my end of the tag team, as far as who's hot, who's not so hot in the Mets minors, I focus on the Mets' minors hitters and relievers.
(Special Note: After 13 games, Columbia is hitting a league-leading .286, while at the other end, Lexington is hitting just .209 - it is nice to be first in hitting).
(Special Note: After 13 games, Columbia is hitting a league-leading .286, while at the other end, Lexington is hitting just .209 - it is nice to be first in hitting).
Stats through Wednesday's games, unless noted otherwise:
"FUEGO" HOT HITTERS:
In AAA, Ty Kelly has cooled down to .319, so rumors that Babe Ruth was exhumed in Vegas and wearing Ty's uniform were Fake News.
David Thompson is getting it done at .308, and Zach Borenstein is scorching when not fanning (13 for 35, 3 HR, 10 RBIs in his last 9 games).
In AA (Arctic Alliance), the frequently postponed Rumble Ponies have seen an early renaissance from Tim Tebow, whose 5 game hit streak has him up to .250. Miraculous!
Pounding Peter Alonso has a crush...on baseballs, that is, going .361/.429/.722 after 10 games in frigid playing conditions. Other Ponies players gather around him to warm up in the dugout, as his bat also acts as a radiant heater.
Jeff McNeil is only 3-17, but the 3 are homers, so that's hot enough for me. Just keep homering every 5.2 at bats, Jeff.
For St Lucie, Ian Strom has set the pace, hiding .379/.455/.690 with 5 steals in 9 games. He had to have his phone number changed, because the Hall of Fame wouldn't stop calling him. How annoying!
Andres Gimenez is off to a very solid start as well (.283/.346/.457) and Dazzlin' Desmond Lindsay has a fine .385 OBP, too.
Columbia bats have been sizzling so far.
Shockingly, two normally struggling hitting catchers, Scott Manea and Dan Rizzie, are hitting a combined .333, with just 6 Ks in 50 plate appearances. Keep it up, fellas!
Other Super Sizzling FUEGO Fireflies Hitters:
3B Blake Tiberi: .340/.404/.468
CF Quinn Brodey: .326/.426/.543
1B Jeremy Vasquez: .325/.491/.475
2B Walter Rasquin: .324/.378/.529
Great, real numbers - not produced in Las Vegas!
NOT SO HOT HITTERS:
Matt den Dekker must be taking (non) hitting advice from .000 Jose Reyes....Matty is slumming in AAA at .146.
AA's Pat Mazeika is off to a chilly 6 for 35 start, but is 3 for his last 8....be patient, once the temperature is above 32 degrees, he promised me he'll hit just fine.
Four other frozen Double A Dudes:
Jhoan Urena hopes that once his hands thaw out, he can hit better than 4 for 28.
Champ Stuart is 0-13, contemplating whether to change his name from Champ to Slump. (That's why the writer is a Tramp).
Andrew Ely and Kevin Taylor are sub-Mendoza so far.
BRRR.
They're all planning on taking up a warmer sport, like down hill skiing, or ice fishing.
Brandon Brosher - the St Lucie catcher is just 1 for 27 so far, pulling him down to a career .198. Good power in his bat, but lots of whiffs too.
Jay Jabs is the lone Columbia struggling bat to date, sitting at 2-20 (.100).
FUEGO BULLPEN DUDES:
Tim Peterson - gave up his first run of the season, surrendering a HR in an otherwise perfect 2 innings on Wednesday. Still, a 1.13 ERA, and he has fanned 16 through 8 IP. In the hitters' paradise PCL, no less. Wow.
Drew Smith - the highly regarded Smith has thrown 6.2 IP and allowed 1 run while fanning 8. POWER ARM!
In AA, relievers Tyler Bashlor, Eric Hanhold, Adonis Uceta, and Austin McGeorge are the Awesome Foursome.
Combined? 22 IP, 4 ER, 30 Ks. Sizzling.
St Lucie: Matt Blackham, Ryder Ryan, and Steve Nogosek have been similarly (and not surprisingly) smokin', with 22 IP, 12 H, 1 R, 27 Ks.
Carlos Hernandez (who?) in Columbia has been SUPER FUEGO, throwing 5.2 innings of 1 hit, 11 K ball. Hot Dog!!
Steve Villines had a rough season start, but in his last 3 outings? A Carlos Hernandez imitator - 5.1 innings of 1 hit, 11 K ball. What is in their Gatorade? Man!!
Not too many chilly relievers, but there are some:
Messrs. Matt Purke, Logan Taylor, and Kyle Regnault have learned you can never let your guard down in the PCL - the 3 have pitched a total of 20 IPs and surrendered 25 runs!
Dave Roseboom has had a rough go of it so far in AA and AAA. Encouraging, however, is his 8 Ks in 5.2 IP. Probably shaking off rust after a long 2017 and spring 2018 hiatus.
Columbia's Darwin Ramos and Cannon Chadwick are sputtering, combining for 18 hits & 14 runs allowed in 11 IP.
That's it for now - I hope you thought my recap was HOT, rather than NOT SO HOT!
15 comments:
FWIW -
Las Vegas got killed last night by Fresno.
Especially by their CATCHER... Garritt Stubbs:
4-5, 2-R, doube... hitting .395 for the season.
The 24-year old hit a combined .304 in 2016 for Houston's A+ and AA team.
He slumped last year, to a combined .232 for the AA and AAA team but he is obviously off to a hot start this season.
John Sickles/Minor League Baseball ranked him as follows in the Astros' chain:
13) Garrett Stubbs, C, Grade C+/B-: Age 24, eighth round pick in 2015 from USC; hit .232/.328/.321 with four homers, 43 walks, 59 strikeouts in 340 at-bats between Double-A and Triple-A; grade is generous on the surface but he hit better in 2016 and is well-respected defensively; very athletic, threw out 32% but was over 50% in ’16; lefty hitter with good strike zone judgment could still do something interesting offensively. ETA 2019.
Question...
worth looking into?
I would trade for Stubbs....may I suggest Matt Harvey?
Question is...would you trade Matt Harvey for a mid-40's Bartolo Colon?
Pobereyko and Blackham fanned 5 in I think 2 innings last night, not part of my update article.
It's getting to the point where you would trade Matt Harvey for Bartolo Simpson :)
Marge Simpson would demand that the Mets give up another player DOH!!
Harvey at this point is good enough to be a 5th starter on a losing team. On this team, I would slot him behind Thor, Jake, Matz, Zach, Vargas, Lugo, Rob G, and yes, even Paul Sewald who had gone 3 strong innings twice recently and could probably be stretched to 5 or 6 innings. So I would rank Matt 8th or 9th internally - right now.
Let's face it - he is pitching like 2017 Rafael Montero. Which is a little better than 2017 Matt Harvey.
In a heartbeat.
Gary, the Harvey diehards are now running for cover. He needs to get real creative real fast.
Mack, I was puzzled when you said Vegas got trounced, because they had a big lead when I last looked - who coughed it up by surrendering 9 runs in their 2 innings? Two 2017 acquire prospect pretenders, Jamie Callahan and Jacob Rhame. Wannabe major leaguers can't allow that sort of slaughter to happen to them in the minors.
Tom -
Matt Harvey has no trade value.
I team that is competing for a pennant can not consistently put out a starter every five games that will fail early and wear out the pen. It just is not something successful teams do.
It would not work sending Harvey to the pen. He would be a negative force in the clubhouse and would not sign off on this due to his insistence that he is a starter.
Lastly, you can not send him down. He is a five year vet and would refuse the assignment.
You only have one option.
Cut him and eat the bill.
I think Harvey needs to have an injury revealed and then can "rehab" in AAA.
Mostly good news from the lower levels when it comes to bullpen arms, but it would be nice if a few more folks above A ball start hitting the baseball.
Reese, he said he does not want to go to the minors nor to the pen.
He pitches like he just got out of a pigpen:
If you had a pitcher who, over his last 22 starts in 2017 and 2018 is 5-9, 6.55, 124 IP, 25 homers allowed, what would you call him?
Released.
We call him Matt Harvey.
Dontrelle Willis and Tim Lincecum were great, then became bad - and gone.
I say, at most, Harvey gets one more start. I would not be troubled if last night's was his last as a Met.
Mike, Dom Smith was on 4 times last night, so maybe he is about to get hot. But of the guys who are not journeymen, only Smith and Alonso above A are hitting.
The Long Island Ducks could always use a gate attraction. He'd be the pitching equivalent stunt casting of Tim Tebow.
Looks like a spring training prediction that Montero and Harvey would be the only absolute busts on a spectacular met staff has come to pass. I believe TexasgusCc may commence to eat crow, as he so 'idiotically" put it.
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