John From Albany – Mets Breakfast Links 3/28/2020

Good Morning.  Let’s start with some good news.

First MLB.TV made the archives of the 2018 and '19 seasons free to stream, now MiLB is offering fans a free preview of MiLB.TV.  6,500 games from the 2019 season are now available for free.  Thank you MiLB.TV!

NY Post: Noah Syndergaard’s Tommy John surgery went as expected on Thursday, the Mets confirmed Friday. The right-hander will be out 12-15 months, which will sideline him for all of whatever part — if any — is played of the 2020 season and at least through the beginning of next year.

Matt Netter Mets 360.Com: Noah Syndergaard’s injury raises a lot of questions. Matt brings up lots of great points - Did the Mets organization see this coming?; If the Mets thought this was inevitable, what was the main reason?; Will he ever be the same pitcher?; Who will replace him in the rotation?

Elite Sports NY: Noah Syndergaard’s injury highlights need for depth.

NY Post: Losing Noah Syndergaard isn’t shaking Steven Matz’s Mets confidence. “It’s hard to replace a guy like Noah,’’ Matz said by phone Friday. “It’s tough for him and for us, but we have a team that we believe has depth and can have guys step up behind him. Noah is a special pitcher, but we still feel confident as a group.”

MLB and the players union finalized their agreement Friday on service time, the draft, and other coronavirus issues.

Joel Sherman NY Post: “The sides concurred that what will guide the reopening of the 2020 season are the removal of government restrictions that would prevent games in front of spectators (as an example, stay-at-home orders or restrictions on mass gatherings), an absence of travel restrictions and medical experts’ advice that returning to work was safe.”

Syracuse.com: IL president Randy Mobley said his league will likely follow the general framework of the majors when deciding when to start its season. Uniformity is important when fighting this problem, Mobley said, and the reality is that Triple-A can’t get players until the majors are up and running again.

USA Today: Baseball Players willing to play until Thanksgiving.  Baseball union chief Tony Clark: “'We would play as long as we possibly could'”.

Yahoo Sports: MLB players open to games without fans amid coronavirus uncertainty, union chief says.

CBS Sports: MLBPA chief Tony Clark says 'no door is closed' for playing the 2020 All-Star Game after COVID-19 pandemic.

CBS Sports: The two sides have reportedly agreed that the MLB can shorten the draft all the way down to five rounds, should it so choose. The league could increase the total, too. The draft will be pushed back, and held no earlier than August, per reports. Also, the international signing period could be delayed until all the way back to January of 2021.

MLB Trade Rumors: “This year’s draft class will only be eligible to receive up to $100K of bonus money up front, with the remainder paid in two equal installments in 2021 and 2022.”

CBS Sports: “Altering the draft is, essentially, about saving money. With that in mind, it makes sense that incoming draftees will receive their signing bonuses in a deferred format that negates the need for teams to fork over millions upfront before a player has partaken in a professional game.”

Metsminors.net: “Players that go undrafted in the five rounds of this year’s shortened draft and sign as undrafted free agents would have their signing bonus capped at a maximum of $20,000. For perspective, the assigned slot values in the sixth round of the 2019 draft fell between about $237,000 and $301,000. It’s been reported that the $20K bonus could also be heavily deferred over as many as three years.”

A flurry of players optioned to AAA the last two days before MLB Rosters were frozen per the agreement.

MLB Trade Rumors: It turns out that contract talks between teams and their own players will not be permitted while MLB rosters are frozen. Once a second Spring Training resumes, then further negotiations can take place.

Mike’s Mets talked more about this agreement in: The Future: So Many Questions, So Few Answers.

Sports Illustrated: Report: Mets Sale Efforts Continuing Amid Coronavirus Pandemic.

Syracuse.com: Syracuse Mets’ NBT Bank Stadium work in limbo as New York halts non-essential construction.  Friday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered a stop to all non-essential construction in New York because of the coronavirus pandemic. Archie Wixson Jr., commissioner of the department of facilities management for Onondaga County, said “Essentially, we’re planning that the project is shut down right now.  We don’t fit in a public safety category. We don’t fit into a public health category. I have to abide by this is a non-essential project.”

MLB Trade Rumors: Latest On MLB Plans For Team Employees. Every team has agreed to continue employing all non-player personnel in the regular fashion through the end of April. That will ensure steady paychecks for a large number of employees, though it’s worth remembering that not all workers associated with a ballclub and ballpark — say, vendors — are necessarily employed by the team. (The league has previously promised at least $30MM to ballpark workers — $1MM per team.)

NY Daily News: Citi Field workers still have not been paid amid coronavirus shutdown: ‘How are people supposed to live?’  Reese will have more on this story on Monday.

MiLB picked the best teenage prospects position by position entering 2020.  At catcher was Francisco Alvarez, 18.  “Alvarez quickly showed the potential to be a plus hitter by producing a .312/.407/.510 line over 42 games between the Rookie-level Gulf Coast and Rookie Advanced Appalachian Leagues in a quick move stateside, and his defense -- particularly his arm -- also should be an asset behind the plate, even if that aspect of his game is a little more raw. Alvarez's all-around game doesn't leave much room for debate at this position.”

Yahoo Sports: Baseball brainstorm: Save the environment, ditch MLB's traditional three-game series.  Teams should play fewer, longer series and the schedule should be determined based on ease of geography.

CBS Sports: Five ways MLB can squeeze extra regular season games into the schedule after coronavirus pandemic. 1. Schedule weekly doubleheaders; 2. Eliminate (some) off-days; 3. Cancel the All-Star break; 4. Extend the season into October (and play longer series); 5. Shorten the postseason.

MilB.com predicted the debuts of top 2020 prospects.  No Mets prospects made the list but Jarred Kelenic did who is expected to debut in September. 

MiLB.com: In time of isolation, Minors clubs across country show creativity.  Binghamton Rumble Ponies playing every one of their originally scheduled games via the MLB The Show 20 video game is mentioned along with teams offering take out of concession food. 

The Korea Herald: The Korean Baseball Organization (KBO), which was scheduled to start today, said the new season will not begin before April 20.

The Korea Herald: The Doosan Bears canceled their practice Tuesday (3/24) after learning that…a family member of the player had come in direct contact with the COVID-19 patient at work, and that relative is awaiting test results.  In the meantime, all Doosan players have been asked to self-isolate at home. Later Tuesday, the Kia Tigers stopped their practice midway through after one player developed a fever. As a precautionary measure, the player will be tested for COVID-19, and his teammates have been sent home for isolation.

Kyodo News: 3 Hanshin Tigers players test positive with coronavirus.

Elite Sports NY: New York Mets OF Tim Tebow announces adoption of three dogs.

Michael Mayer MetsMerized Online: Mets Strike Gold in Trade For David Cone.

Yesterday at Mack’s Mets:

Reese Kaplan -- Good Press Release Lacking Truth from MLB.

Mack’s Blast From The Past comes from 3-28-12 – Mack and Company – 2012 Prediction.  Mack predicted the Mets would finish fifth with a 70-92 record.  They finished fourth 74-88 ahead of the Marlins. 

Today in Mets History Per Ultimatemets.com:

Born on this date:

• Craig Paquette (1969)
• Paul Wilson (1973)
• Brad Emaus (1986)

Transactions:

New York Mets traded Bill Sudakis to the Texas Rangers for Bill McNulty on March 28, 1973.

New York Mets traded Steve Frey to the Montreal Expos for Tom O'Malley and Mark Bailey on March 28, 1989.

New York Mets released Edwin Nunez on March 28, 1989.

Atlanta Braves claimed Ruben Gotay of the New York Mets on waivers on March 28, 2008.

Florida Marlins signed Jeff Conine of the New York Mets as a free agent on March 28, 2008.

Per National Pastime.com:

1985

Sports Illustrated's April 1st edition tricks the nation when author George Plimpton weaves a fictitious tale of The Curious Case Of Sidd Finch, a Mets rookie phenom who throws a 168 mph fastball. Staged photographs and quotes from Mets in real-life help to give the story a realistic edge.

2013

Mets GM Sandy Alderson announces an MRI has revealed 34 year-old Johan Santana has re-torn his surgically repaired left shoulder capsule and indicates additional surgery is a "strong possibility" for the left-hander. The Venezuelan southpaw, who missed the entire 2011 season due to the injury, will probably never pitch again for the team, finishing his six-year, $137.5 million contract with the team, a deal he signed upon his trade to the team in early 2008, on the disabled list.

Baseball Reference:

1976 - Media sources report a potential blockbuster trade between the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers which involves two future Hall of Fame pitchers. According to the rumor, the deal will send Tom Seaver to the Dodgers in exchange for Don Sutton. Mets fans respond negatively to the proposed deal, perhaps influencing management to call off the trade. Seaver will remain with the Mets until 1977, when he is traded to the Cincinnati Reds, in a trade which will be universally rued by Mets fans.

1977: Texas Rangers second baseman Lenny Randle, upset at having been benched during spring training, physically confronts manager Frank Lucchesi, sending him to the hospital with a shattered cheekbone. Lucchesi helps precipitate the incident by calling the usually good-natured Randle a "punk". Randle will receive a 30-day suspension. On April 26th, he will be traded to the New York Mets for infielder Rick Auerbach and cash.

2014: Major league baseball is back in Montreal, QC for the first time since 2004 as the Blue Jays play the first of two exhibition games against the Mets. More than 46,000 fans, most sporting the colors of the defunct Montreal Expos, pack Stade Olympique to pay tribute to Hall of Famer Gary Carter and to their beloved former team. The Jays win, 5 - 4, on minor league veteran Ricardo Nanita's run-scoring single with two outs in the 9th. Tomorrow, over 50,000 fans will be at the game in what will become an annual tradition to close out the Jays' schedule of pre-season exhibition games.

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