It’s Leaping Time Again in Metsville.
In 2023, the Leaping Guy Didn’t Pull it Off. Not Even Close.
Every team has its glimpses of hope.
In 2023, the Mets had twin rookies, Kodai Senga and Francisco Alvarez.
Brandon, Pete and Lindor performed well, too.
(Pete, FYI, was the 103rd highest paid batter in 2022, and 54th in 2023. How do you spell UNDERPAID?)
What did THE TEAM actually excel in?
Nothing much, really.
Edwin Starr (not star pitcher Edwin Diaz, who is a STAR), who was the artist on the 1960s song “War”, had the appropriate song response as to where the 2023 Mets excelled:
“(In) absolutely Nuthin’, listen to me. AARRGGHH!”
In the aggregate, the offense was substandard, the starting pitching was substandard, the pen was substandard, and the defense was mediocre (the team made 88 errors, which does not sound so bad until you realize that two teams made 57 or fewer errors.)
Defensively, the Mets were 26th of 30 teams in “RTOT”, with a -38.
Compare that to the Brewers, who put up a +63.
RTOT is a measure of total defensive acumen or ineptitude.
26th out of 30, simply put, is inept. Substandard.
So, simply put, the team needs to improve in virtually every key area.
Now that the problem has been identified, it $hould (simply put) be a cinch to fix.
Just $pend lots of money….wait, that didn’t really work in 2023.
In the new Mets soap opera season, "As the World Stearns", we learn that David, the flashy new hire, sure has his work cut out for him.
Ruthlessness will be needed to succeed. The time is right now.
As always, part of it will be keeping Mets’ players out of General Hospital.
Also badly needed: large smidgeons of luck.
BRAVES INVOLVED IN 5 PLAYER TRADE INCLUDING JARRED KELENIC:
Sounds like the Braves just put further distance between themselves and the Mets. That is what intelligent and aggressive dominance looks like.
Stearns needs to shrink that gap. Big task.
People going nuts on Twitter about the JK trade
ReplyDeleteLet me ask
Would you trade Diaz for Kelenic RIGHT NOW?
No way. Diaz is indispensable, as 2023 proved. Just read he is 100% healthy.
ReplyDeleteMack, that’s a great question! Let me ask, what pitcher would we trade straight up for Kelenic? Megill? No. Butto? Possibly. Any reliever except for Diaz.
ReplyDeleteKelenic rebounded last year for a halfway decent season but he is both toxic to brass and players in the clubhouse
DeleteHuge maturity issues
DeleteI heard about his rather high opinion of himself…. Ironically, when I went to see him at that AA game that I wrote about last week, he was on the top step of the dugout all the time, high fiving teammates and talking to coaches. I was actually very impressed at that. So, I was surprised to hear that news come out. But, we heard Alonso was toxic last year too… so, who do you believe?
DeleteHey
ReplyDeleteQuestion
Does anyone know enough about the pitching lab to write how it works?
For a baseball youngster who has always been at the top of every chart to find he's no longer considered "the guy", it must be extremely difficult to process and accept. You know that every hot prospect was always the best in his peer environment but now he's surrounded by everyone who was also the best and all of the sudden achievements which came naturally require quite a bit of extra work. Some are willing to do it. Others flounder. We don't know for sure which Jarred Kelenic is real but the idea of the trade being unfair is ridiculous. The Mets got Edwin Diaz. That's all that matters. We won't consider Cano nor the salary dumps that went to Seattle. It really does come down to Diaz vs. Kelenic. It's a no brainer.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Reese. Kelenic has not set the world on fire despite his promise. If he is really as good as billed, the Braves will make something of him. Meanwhile, we need to make something of the great prospects we have, including some of those "baby Mets" that were generally below expectations in the majors last year.
ReplyDeleteAh yes,the Baby Mets
ReplyDeletePrediction…Baby Mets show great improvement in 2024.
ReplyDeleteBelieve your eyes.
ReplyDeleteGiolito,Severino,Fedde,Taylor.,Wendle,pretty good off-season.
ReplyDeleteWho’s more toxic,Pete or Kelenic? Don’t always believe what you read.
ReplyDeleteOr pass it on!
ReplyDeleteHere's the problem with Kelenic - the Braves, Nats, Phillies NL East foes have a good track record of signing ex-Mets who come back to the division and kill the Mets. I can see this kid settling into the back end of their lineup, with no pressure, growing into what was expected. That would stink big time.
ReplyDeleteI’d trade MeGill for Kelenic. I’d trade MeGill and Butto for Kelenic. Two 4A pitchers.
ReplyDelete