The Mack Report - Pitching Into the 6th, Boot For Ronny, NY Team Woes, Gary Sanchez, “Definitely On The Radar

 The Mack Report - Pitching Into the 6^th, Boot For Ronny, NY Team Woes, Gary Sanchez, “Definitely On The Radar”

 

Tim Britton and Will Sammon - Which of the Mets’ current concerns are the most worrisome going forward? - 

The starters’ inability to pitch into the sixth inning with any regularity hurts the Mets now and could harm them later. The Mets average slightly less than five innings per start. Much like the other ugly statistics from New York’s rotation, the workload should improve with health. But Max Scherzer’s unevenness, Carlos Carrasco’s shakiness and José Quintana’s cloudiness suggest that’s no guarantee. Regardless, the bullpen has carried the burden of high usage. To Buck Showalter’s credit — the losses may have something to do with it, too — he has eased up on usage of David Robertson, Adam Ottavino and Drew Smith over the last few weeks. The trickle-down effect extends beyond the high-end relievers, though. There are only so many times the Mets can turn to their middle relievers and expect to be bailed out by quality multi-inning performances. If the trend of relying on a batch of middle relievers for bulk continues, injury and poor performance seem inevitable.

Mack - Can't agree more.

Matt Musico - Who gets the boot if Mets promote Ronny Mauricio soon? - 

Mauricio getting his feet wet at second base makes that his obvious landing spot. That’d move Jeff McNeil to a more regular role in left/right field, which would impact Mark Canha’s playing time (and maybe Starling Marte’s a bit, too). 

If the Mets call up another infielder, either Eduardo Escobar or Luis Guillorme must be on the chopping block. We know Buck Showalter loves Guillorme. But if I had to make a guess, he’d be on the outside looking in. Escobar hasn’t produced much this year, but he at least brings the power potential Guillorme doesn’t have, as well as the versatility of being a switch hitter. 

Mack - I think that the player that will be moved when Mauricio is called up is still undetermined and, whoever it will be,is determining his fate during the rest of May, 

Andy McCullough - New York state of blues - 

It is too early to write off the division, but both versions of the East contain clubs off to hot starts. The Rays and the Braves look like the two best teams in the sport. The Braves lead the East by seven games after the Mets’ pitching combusted on Sunday against Colorado. The Rays have a 10-game lead over the Yankees after Gerrit Cole blew a six-run lead in an 8-7 defeat at Tropicana Field. And the Yankees, it must be noted, reside in last place in the East, now that Boston has woken up. 

So Cashman and Eppler can hit the same notes for the same reasons. They can believe in the track records of their teams with the same confidence. And their fans still have a right to worry — this is not the start either New York club envisioned. 

Mack - Hang on for big changes in June.

 

Nick Deeds - Mets Sign Gary Sanchez To Minor League Deal - 

Sanchez, 30, was unable to find a big league opportunity this past winter despite being the starting catcher for the Twins last season, and for the Yankees in the five seasons prior to that. Long considered a bat-first catcher who struggles defensively behind the plate, Sanchez has seen that reputation change on both sides of the ball in recent years. His defense received improved marks during his time with the Twins in 2022, though his offense has taken a downturn in recent years. Since the start of the 2020 season, Sanchez has slashed just .195/.287/.394 with a 29.5% strikeout rate. Though that production has translated to a 90 wRC+ that’s perfectly acceptable for a catcher 

Mack - Right now, looks like Sanchez is the best offensive backup for Alvarez.

 
Pat Ragazzo - Mets GM Billy Eppler on Potentially Calling up Mark Vientos, Ronny Mauricio: 'Definitely on our Radar' -

"You know one of the things that we do is always just solicit the opinions of the people that are going through.So I'm talking to our Triple-A staff or our coordinator staff as they go through Syracuse. I actually talked to Beltran last night, going to send him through there right now too. You want to look at all of the objectives and all of the things that drive the player plan and what you need to see from the player.

"And there's also some other things that kind of come into the calculus, you know, how much can you play the guy, what kind of usage, what kind of roles would you have for him at the major league level. And you're trying to balance that with some loss development opportunity if they're not going to play all that much. It's just something that's definitely on our radar and something we're thinking about. I just wait for the feedback from the group as they go through Syracuse."

Mack - Billy, this isn’t rocket science. Your key bats aren’t coming through and your starters can’t carry the weight early. You simply can’t let a team as talented as the Braves run away with this division this early.

Mauricio can kick McNeil to left. Easy peasy.

Vientos can spell both Cahna and a slumping Marte and fill in with a couple of DHs a week. 

Your team is instantly healthier, more talented, more competitive through these rough waters, and instantly more sellable to your fans. 

Nike (just do it).