John From Albany – Mets Breakfast Links 3/16/2020

AP News: CDC’s latest guidance could mean no sports for much longer. “…Federal officials said Sunday that they recommend all in-person events involving 50 people or more be called off for the next eight weeks.”  That means we would not see baseball until at least mid-May, maybe even Memorial Day weekend.

Yahoo Sports: MLB memo tells teams to end to organized workouts. MLB sent a memo to all 30 teams in which the league said that teams should “avoid all actives in which players congregate in significant numbers.” The memo advocated that players, coaches and staffers engage in the social distancing practices advocated by the CDC.

Forbes: Baseball Players Will Need Spring Training II To Get Ready For 2020

SNY.TV: Mets say minor leaguers can't stay at Port St. Lucie complex due to latest MLB memo. Mets will continue to pay them through "end" of spring training.

MLB Trade Rumors: Most of the Mets’ coaching staff will stay at the team’s Florida spring complex, as will many players on the team, tweets MLB Network’s Jon Heyman. Newsday’s Tim Healey recently reported that most of the team would stay put.

Syracuse.com: Baseball Hall of Fame closing indefinitely because of coronavirus fears.

What to do with no Baseball? MLB.com has an idea, 1 classic game to watch online for each team, for free, in its entirety. 

For Mets, game 6 of the 1986 World Series with Gary Carter, Ray Knight, Kevin Mitchell, and of course Mookie Wilson and Bill Buckner. 1986 commercials included. If you don’t watch at least read the comments.  You can also hear Bob Murphy’s call of the Mookie play here.

Other games of note: PHILLIES: Win it all for the first time, with Tug McGraw in 1980; NATIONALS: Max Scherzer's second no-hitter of the 2015 season, striking out 17 Mets batters; ORIOLES: Cal Ripken Jr. becomes baseball's new "Iron Man" in 1995.

MLB.com: Ken Burns is making his famed documentary series "Baseball" available to stream for free on PBS, hoping that the sport can continue to bring people together even as the MLB season is delayed due to the coronavirus outbreak.

AP News: On Sunday, a Yankees prospect became the first known player affiliated with MLB to contract COVID-19. Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said a “younger player” was affected in Tampa, Florida, without identifying him. Cashman said the player “feels much better” and his symptoms had subsided, but he was still isolated. “He did not have any interactions with our major league players,” Cashman said on a conference call.

Yahoo Sports: Diamondbacks minor-league player tests negative for coronavirus.

NBC Sports: Trevor Bauer starts GoFundMe to benefit stadium workers

Yahoo Sports: Astros All-Star OF George Springer donating $100K to the employees at Minute Maid Park who are impacted by the cancellation of events.

Yahoo Sports: Fergie Jenkins sets up fundraiser to support Cubs, Sloan Park employees affected by COVID-19.

Yahoo Sports: A's prospect Austin Beck auctioning signed glove for coronavirus relief. The former A's first-round draft pick is auctioning off game-used signed glove with all proceeds going to the coronavirus relief fund.

Yahoo Sports: Donald Trump declaring a national emergency due to coronavirus may prevent MLB players from getting paid. Due to a clause in major-league contracts, commissioner Rob Manfred can suspend deals “during any national emergency.”

Yahoo Sports: Cubs planning to take care of game day employees should games be missed.

Yahoo Sports: Minor league players sent scrambling by closed spring camps.

Yahoo Sports: Payment for minor league players and stadium employees in limbo. Players aren’t paid during spring training. They’re given meal money, but that’s it. It’s a very big issue for minor league players, who are generally paid less than the minimum wage and often have to work other jobs during the offseason just to live.

12up.com: Oakland A's minor leaguer Peter Bayer found a temporary solution. In a tweet Thursday night, the Stockton Ports pitcher admitted that he has taken up food delivery, claiming to have made $62 in the span of three hours on the DoorDash app.

Cards Conclave interviewed a number of Bloggers about the 2020 Mets season, Mack included. Here’s what Mack said about Beltran: “The Beltran mess caught the Mets brass with their pants dropped. They confronted Carlos who said he was not a part of this. Everyone walked away with the opinion that this would be impossible to not have knowledge of this. When MLB released their initial statement and the only player mentioned was Beltran. At that point, his goose was cooked, but in typical Mets form (sic) they took days to take the cooked goose out of the water.”

John Harper SNY.TV had 5 takeaways for the Mets Spring Training: 1) This Luis Rojas Thing Just Might Work; 2) Syndergaard Has Found A Slider; 3) Mets Are Shortstop Central; 4) McNeil More Dazzling Than Ever; 5) Peterson Put Himself On The Radar.

Brian Joura of Mets 360.com asked: How will the Mets handle their impending SS logjam? Brian discussed Amed Rosario, Andres Gimenez, and Ronny Mauricio. “So, even if Rosario is able to hold off Gimenez and remain the club’s shortstop in 2021, there’s no guarantee that Mauricio won’t take the position late in 2022.”

Not sure why nobody ever talks about Wilmer Reyes. 

213 Miles From Shea: 2020 Conglomerate Mets Projections: David Peterson. 51.9 IP; 4.15 ERA; 1.37 WHIP; 7.83 K/9;

Metsmerized had Underrated Mets Seasons: Angel Pagan, 2010. “Pagan, who appeared in 151 games, launched 11 home runs and drove in 69 runs, had a 108 wRC+ and .334 wOBA and had 19 DRS and a 16.1 UZR in the outfield that season.”  Post also has video of the triple play Pagan started against the Nationals. 

Amazing Avenue: Is Rene Rivera the Mets’ best backup catching option?

Elite Sports NY: Remember the New York Met: Catcher Joe Hietpas.

Greg Prince in Faith and Fear in Flushing: “Like Celine Dion, I believe that the heart does go on. Like those people on the Titanic, perhaps I have no notion of how much of a threat the iceberg on the horizon poses, but proceeding on the shaky assumption that we’re not all sunk, I plan to be here writing about the Mets in some form or fashion. Every winter I fully conceive and barely execute an array of historically themed articles and series. Then Opening Day comes earlier and earlier and I put them aside until next winter, and the winter after that. We’ve got loads of winter now. Time enough at last, eh? Or so we hope.”

Relections on Baseball: “Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen apparently doesn’t mind if the team disbands during the scheduling lull. But now more than ever, the guys need to be together.”

That Balls Outta Here: Phillies Sign Top International Prospect CF Yhoswar Garcia. “According to Baseball America’s Ben Badler, who tweets the Venezuelan is “one of the top international prospects in the 2019-20 class” with “outstanding athleticism and speed.” His nickname, fittingly, is “The Drone.”

Yahoo Sports: Red Sox still have one of MLB's best offensive trios without Mookie Betts. Xander Bogaerts (.309 AVG/33 HR/117 RBI), Rafael Devers (.311 AVG/32 HR/115 RBI), and J.D. Martinez (.304 AVG/36 HR/105 RBI).

Yesterday at Mack’s Mets:

A Message From Mack.

Mack – Draft News – Spencer Torkelson, Mick Abel, Tyler Soderstrom, Reid Detmers, Dax Fulton.

Mack – FWIW – Coronavirus, Eduardo Nunez, Michael Wacha, 2020 Mets, Shortstop Ranking.

Mack – Draft News – CJ Van Eyk,  Nick Bitsko, Gabe Shepard, Garrett Mitchell, Asa Lacy.

Mack’s Blast From The Past comes from 3-16-12 – Mack’s March Mock Draft.  Mack had the Mets picking OF Courtney Hawkins – big speedy bat who throws 91 at #12; C Alex Bregman - also plays 2B and SS at #35; Blue Jays getting SS Gavin Cecchini – another excellent middle infielder with skills at #22.  He also noted Marcus Stroman; Michael Wacha; and Carlos Correa.

Today in Mets History Per Ultimatemets.com:

Born on this date:

• Hobie Landrith (1930)
• Rich Puig (1953)
• Don Florence (1967)
• Abraham Nunez (1976)
• Curtis Granderson (1981)
• Jacob Rhame (1993)
• Justin Lasko (1997)
• Branden Fryman (1998)
• Juan Loyo (1999)

Transactions:

New York Mets traded Bob Gallagher to the San Francisco Giants for Leon Brown on March 16, 1976.

New York Mets released Danny Garcia on March 16, 2005.

New York Mets released Ruben Tejada on March 16, 2016.

National Pastime.com:

2006	At the 5:00 p.m. EST airing of the show Daily News Live!, the Mets begin transmission of Sportsnet New York, which will become better known as SNY. The club modeled the team-owned network after similar regional cable television ventures by the Red Sox (NESN, 1984) and the Yankees (YES, 2002).

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