A lot of topics come to mind concerning the Mets but most have been well-covered already. We've talked about the front office, the ineffectiveness of Sandy Alderson, the exit of Luis Rojas, the pending free agents and the big dollar players who they may or may not want to keep. Now let's take a look at some other issues that should be concerning for Mets fans.
Tom Brennan has been on something of a feverish campaign (or tirade) to get the Mets to move in the fences. This topic came up for discussion with my Mets fan group on our weekly Zoom call last night and the almost universal sentiment was not to do it.
The obvious reason up front is that they've twice moved fences already and while doing so again could generate some additional long balls for the club, the reality is that it will do the same for the opposition. Gone are the days of a rotation of 3-4 potential All Stars. Right now going into 2022 the only sure things are Taijuan Walker, Tylor Megill and...? Jacob deGrom is in recovery. Both Marcus Stroman and Noah Syndergaard are free agents. Things are looking mighty thin in the rotation.
I had offered up a suggestion to mitigate the home run barrage but perhaps increase the volume of doubles and triples. While I'm not thinking Fenway park dimensions, I'm wondering if moving in a fence but extending the height of it would be a way to accomplish the long ball or at least get plenty of line drives smacking off the higher fence.
Howie Rose was incensed by the big wall at Citifield when it arrived and surely would be doubly displeased if they did that to all of them, but the change itself would surely generate newfound interest in a team most folks abandoned during the past two seasons.
Another issue is the pace at which they promote their poorly housed and fed minor leaguers. It was an embarrassing tweet that came out this week confirming that Steve Cohen was not compensating his players for the issues associated with finding residential housing during the COVID pandemic. Many teams kicked in to their developing players to help defray the cost of motel accommodations, but the Mets were not one of them. Ugh!
Financial concerns aside, the fans and media have been somewhat concerned that the Mets continually traded away their prospects in the hopes of landing mediocre major leaguers. Sometimes this concern is justified when you see someone flourish like Michael Fulmer who in 2016 went 11-7 with a 3.06 ERA which earned him the AL Rookie of the Year award. Then there are folks who were concerned that dealing a hot candidate like Jared Kelenic was a disastrous mistake only to have him in his first season go a highly unimpressive .181 on the road to racking up nearly 200 strikeouts.
Then there are the second tier of hitters worth considering, most notably Khalil Lee who spent most of the season in AAA. Although he looked highly overmatched in his brief trial in New York, he finished the season hitting .274 with a .451 OBP, 14 HRs and 8 SBs. That latter number is a bit concerning as he has swiped as many as 53 in a minor league season already. I would expect the 23 year old will get a chance to replace the Alberto Almora, Jr. type on the 2022 roster.
Behind him you have Carlos Cortes who had a fine but not outstanding season in AA. At age 24 already, the window is likely closing on him as a prospect. He hit .257 with 14 HRs and 57 RBIs. I'm thinking a reserve outfielder at best for him.
There is not nearly as much ready to help the club when it comes to pitching, so I would expect some participation in free agency and trades to supplement whomever is left over after free agents depart. What is pretty clear examining the Mets younger core of players is that the new front office personnel need to make a concerted effort to reinforce the quality and quantity of who is on the prospect ladder.
7 comments:
Reese, as you know, I take the other side on the Fences depth issue. The Mets were close to last in HRs at home with 77…the Dodgers at home smacked 140. The Mets were dead last in scoring at home. Citifield was the stingiest park in the majors for runs. I think 5-7 feet closer, 400 in dead center, would normalize that. Our hitters would not look like failures, and happier hitters hit better. Opponents play 3 to 9 games a year at Citi, while the Mets hit up hill for 81 games there.
I love Mark Vientos, who is often given short shrift. I looked at his MILB Stats page, and it has video links. His first 3 AAA HRs were 1) a BOMB to left center, 2) a BOMB to right center, and 3) a BOMB down the line in right field. I want him in the Mets line up in 2022. I think he is ready right now. It is maddening that he was only able to get 310 ABs last year. If he got 500, he would have had 40+ HRs.
Cortes faded and had injuries and Covid games lost in the second half. I think it was injuries reducing performance, and I think he’s also a 2022 Mets piece, although he may need a few hundred AAA at bats first. Lots of XBH power. I still think he needs to scrap hitting righty. He had a nearly .600 slug % batting lefty. Hitting righty against lefties, very anemic.
I think Baty will be great, and Mauricio will be Rosario with significantly more HR power. 2023 bats. They’re coming so let’s make sure there is room for them when they’re ready. Baty could be ready late in 2022. He clearly s very good.
I’d rather keep the fences where they are and keep it a pitchers friendly park. Just need to construct an offense to play to its dimensions, like a 1980’s cardinal blue print. With speed, great contact hitters and defense.
I would try and keep Baez and Conforto, while also going heavy on Kris Bryant. Bryant can play many positions and hold down the fort until Baty and Vientos find a spot in Queens. I would continue to have both of them play some OF as well as 3rd base in the minors and also give Mauricio a CF’s glove. Mauricio should play half his game s at SS while exploring 3rd and CF the other half.
I would also consider Starling Marte as one of our free agent options to sign.
When I see comments about replicating what the Cardinals did in the 1980s (no doubt a fun style to watch as a fan) I have to ask; Where exactly would the players come from?
In all of MLB I do not see enough players with the ability to:
1. Make contact
2. Not hit into shifts with said contact
3. Have speed and know how to use it
Nobody can make contact, nobody can hit behind a runner, few know how to take an extra base. It would take five years to build this type of team because you would have to develop an entire roster from scratch to play the style.
It's no different than asking for a nine man pitching staff where all your starters throw at least 230 innings. Sounds great. All fantasies do.
Zozo, I have to respectfully disagree. Low scoring to me is boring. Boring = less fans in seats. It makes me not want to watch. Kind of the same way soccer loses me when they are 80 minutes into a 0-0 match. SOMEBODY PLEASE SCORE!!
I agree with you Tom
The stadium doesn’t play fair so definitely bring in the fences
Also a good low scoring pitchers duel is cool, once in a while
But let’s get some scores in the 5/6 avg
More importantly it’s a feeling like we are never out of a game
Eddie, Tampa is a very good team. The Red Sox scored 14 runs on 20 hits against them. I want my Mets to be able to hit like that.
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