Mike Friere - Random Thoughts

Good Morning, Mets fans!

Once again, I sit here at work on this Tuesday afternoon, wishing I were someplace else. Not unlike most of the Mets' roster who are now officially eliminated from playoff contention in large part due to a miserable month of June. Most of them are mere days away from tee times and other off season obligations before the whole crazy cycle repeats itself and we are on the doorstep to the 2019 season.

Before I get too far into the weeds, let's get on with the rest of this article.

1.  Just this past weekend, the Mets traveled to Fenway Park in Boston, where they engaged in a three game set with the Red Sox. The differences between the two teams was quite staggering, with the most obvious being the 32 games that separated the two teams in the overall standings!  Despite this fact, the Mets actually continued a recent trend of playing decent baseball while representing themselves well in the three games.

Yes, they lost two of the three contests but due to a blowout victory in the first game (8-0), they actually outscored the Red Sox 14-9 and could have claimed two wins in three tries with just a bit better pitching from the bullpen. I will also admit that the Red Sox also have a huge lead in their division, so they may not have been going full tilt.  However, in a dismal season, I look at the recent run of games as a positive that can be used to build towards the 2019 season.

2.  So, who is on third base?  No, I am not recreating the "old skit" that we are all familiar with. Instead, I view that question as a valid inquiry that will have a large role in the Mets' future infield configuration. To properly answer the question, it should be done in two parts.....the 2019 season and "beyond".

In 2019, I think Todd Frazier is the starting third baseman, with Amed Rosario at short, Jeff McNeil at second and (hopefully) Pete Alonso at first. However, once Todd Frazier's contract is up (2019), that opens up some possibilities for 2020 and beyond. 

Starting in 2020 (give or take a few months), I would put Amed Rosario at third, Andres Gimenez at short, while leaving McNeil and Alonso alone on the right side of the diamond. My rationale is that you are disrupting fewer players by doing so and Amed can most certainly handle third with his athleticism and "cannon" for an arm (think of the transition ARod previously made for the Yankees).

3.  Speaking of young players and the "2020 Foundation", consider the following group of players;

***Pete Alonso, Jeff McNeil, ***Andres Gimenez, Amed Rosario, Brandon Nimmo, Michael Conforto, Jake deGrom and Noah Syndergaard

Granted, some of them have not arrived yet (***) and others are still learning on the job, but that is a nice start to the next "good" Mets' club, right?  There are still questions at catcher, center field, the back end of the rotation and in the bullpen, but things are definitely looking up and I didn't even list some of our supporting cast here.

With some savvy free agent moves, potential trades and the continued maturation of the younger players, we could be in good position for another playoff run in the early '20's.

4.  Lastly, I wanted to take a moment and say a HUGE thank you to David Wright and everything he has accomplished in his career, as well as what he has given to the Mets' organization and the fan base.  It is easy to forget how much of an impact player he was BEFORE his run of bad luck and the toll that the injuries took on his body.

Officially, he started his career in 2004 and he will play his last game (shortly) in 2018, so his career arc is roughly 15 seasons. However, I prefer to look at his career in two parts and that would be from 2004 through 2012 (first part) and everything after that (second part). For reference, in the six seasons since 2012, David only has 321 games played (20% of his total) and he was CLEARLY compromised during that stretch of games.

From 2004 through 2012, he participated in 1,262 games and put up a majority of his impressive statistics (below);

.296/.376/.491  (.867 OPS)

242 HR/970 RBI/196 SB and 949 RS

50.4 WAR

Is it his fault that he signed his last mega-deal on the eve of his stenosis diagnosis?   I guess we will never know the timing of the two issues, nor who knew what leading up to the same.  I do think it is a bit sad that the good parts of his career are overshadowed by how things will end. 

If he does retire this year, he will have earned roughly 125 million dollars over the course of his career!  But, when you take into account everything he gave this team and the professional way he went about his business, it almost seems like a bargain in some ways. I hope the Mets can find a way to keep him around the team in some capacity, since his character and professionalism are sorely needed.

Well, that's it until next time.

Stay safe, Mets' fans.