Observations…
Okay, the Mets are going to go for it this season.
This doesn’t mean the Mets can’t make moves this year to strengthen the team for this season while, at the same time, not put dollars into the 2026 team salary totals.
First, let’s look at the current Mets batting average (at of end 6-17) for some of the secondary bats on the 26:
OF D.J.Stewart - .184 .689-OPS
OF Tyrone Taylor - .241 .635-OPS
Are there bats in Syracuse that might offer an upgrade for the remainder of this season?
OF Ben Gamel is currently hitting .299, .964-OPS, with 7 home runs in 137-AB.
OF Rylan Thomas has hit .291/.342/.417/.759, in 175-AB for combined AA/AAA.
By replacing Stewart and Taylor with Gamel and Thomas will possibly upgrade the output of your utility outfielders, plus give a seasoned vet and a young prospect the reward they deserve for the great job they have done so far this season.
But here’s what I don’t want…
I don’t want any of the team controlled minor league prospects sold off for someone that will only wind up a free agent at the end of this season.
We all know that the majority of highly touted prospects just don’t become major league stars. Some get injured. Some go poof. A team needs a high percentage of team controlled players on their 26 to stay under the luxury tax penalties. If my core produces at the same level that the Mets are right now, my concerns for utility players are highly skilled defensive players. Anything they do with a bat would be a bonus.
What the Mets will do this season is being determined by what they will do this month. Beginning tomorrow, in June, they play two games against the Yankees, and three against Houston. The Mets brass will give them that before sitting down and deciding how to proceed this season.
Mets schedule this week…
Today - at Cubs
Monday - off
Tuesday - Yankees
Wednesday - Yankees
Thursday - off
Friday - Houston
Saturday - Houston
Sunday - Houston
This will be the last week I post my 8:00 am Sunday Draft News post. It will return next year when the 2025 draft comes into play.
Beginning Monday, July 15th, through the 24th, I will post detailed information on all the Mets draft picks this season.
Lastly….
I have made an adjustment to these twice weekly observation posts. I will no longer feature and promote what other Mets writers say on Twitter.
Recently, a private conversation of mine with Steve Cohen went public and stories were written about this by bloggers, beat press reporters, and networks like ESPN and FOX NEWS. Not one of these writers acknowledged or identified who I was and what this site was. They included my pic on the original X tweet, but that’s it.
They always give credit for who breaks a story. Well, not me.
I know most of these writers. And I’ve been promoting them for over 20 years on my sites. I won’t anymore going forward. Fuck em.
Roster Moves -ff
Mets
RP Sean Reid-Foley to 7 day IL
RP Danny Young from AAA to Mets
Cuse -
C Matt O'Neill - Activated off AA 7-day IL and transferred to AAA Syracuse
RHP Grant Hartwig placed on 7-day IL (he will miss 6-8 weeks)
LHP Danny Young optioned from New York
Bing -
OF Joe Suozzi - Released
C Kevin Parada activated off the 7-day IL
Cyclones -
C Andriel Lantigua transferred to A+ Brooklyn from AA
Prospect Rating Movement
SP/DH Nolan McLean from RED to BLUE
SP Jonah Tong from RED to BLUE
SP Joel Diaz from RED to BLUE
SP Franklin Gomez from BLUE to BLACK
SP Jorge De Leon from BLUE to BLACK
RP Daniel Juarez from BLUE to BLACK
RP Trey McLoughlin from BLACK to BLUE
RP Paul Gervase from BLUE to BLACK
RP Cam Robinson from BLACK to BLUE
RP Josh Hejka from BLACK to BLUE
RP Lucas Gordillo from BLUE to BLACK
IF Rhylan Thomas from BLACK to BLUE
C Kevin Parada from BLUE to BLACK
C Blake Osborn from BLUE to BLACK
2B Jeremiah Jackson from BLUE to BLACK
OF Alex Ramirez from BLUE to BLACK
OF Matt Rudick from BLUE to BLACK
1B/3B Nick Lorruso from BLACK to BLUE
2B Luke Ritter from BLACK to BLUE
2B Marco Vargas from RED to BLUE
OF Willy Fanas from RED to BLUE
26 comments:
Have to disagree with the outfielders you are mentioning. In AAA, Baty thinks he is Mike Trout. He comes to the majors and he becomes Billy Beane. Gamel is a 33 year old ex-MLB player fattening up on minor league pitching; next year he is 34. We have heard that the ABS doesn’t have a top of the strike zone. Thus, all pitches need to be grooved to the stomach or lower. No wonder ERAs are bloated. This week however, MLB has made it a challenge only system. So, I’m expecting offense to come way down now. Those ABS games on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday that fattened stats are going away. Let’s see how hitters do now.
The other day, you mentioned that the Mets may include some prospects in deals with MLB players to get better prospects. Interesting thought that I’ve never considered. I assume you have seen Ernest Dove’s new video that has him telling us that the Mets have basically written off Parada and Alex Ramirez. I hope they haven’t. Parada can be looked at as another Mike Napoli, who became a great hitter but didn’t hit much as a catcher. As for Ramirez, he is on your 40 man… just let him play and let’s see. As for McLean, time to start focusing on pitching and stop the hitting dream. Players I’d include in trades: Baty, Parada (let him become someone else’s problem), Lucchesi, and McLean. I don’t throw these players away, but I can insert them in deals.
I’d like to promote Sproat to AAA. I’d like to move Severino, Manaea and Quintana for prospects. Use Houser for a few starts, and then move him by July 30th. I’d like to recognize that Alonso’s defense has fallen back. He is becoming a DH slowly, and I would move him if I get a good deal, but it has to be very good. His head is not right this year. Lastly, as Stearns has a reputation of trading a player a year too early rather than a year too late, may I reccomend also moving Bader before he realizes his isn’t this good and also trading Marte, when he gets healthy.
Megill never gets passed the fifth inning. He is on his lifetime 4.8 ERA and 1.43 WHIP. Can we put him in the pen?
Can you please share here what you wrote on Twitter? I don't use it.
Hey Gus, many good ideas as usual. Butto is simply ready, and with Reid Foley in the IL, again, why not promote him and put Megill in the pen? Or develop a plan for him to go just 4 innings unless he is at 65 or fewer pitches after 4?
One pen arm possibly looming is Oca, who threw a perfect AA inning last night, fanning 2 with just 12 pitches.
Like you, I don't tweet. Sometimes tweets pop up that I can look at, but I have never felt drawn to use it.
I haven't viewed that video.
I no longer write on Twitter
John From Albany promotes what is written here on X
I do hope Danny Young sticks around
Danny Young has pitched well.
In your Black?Blue/Red list, you left out a guy in AAA who in his last 31 innings, has allowed 23 hits, 8 walks, 9 runs (3 in one outing), and fanned 45....ERIC ORZE. If Gus is right about the undersized strike zone, those are very impressive #s.
Also, I would move Gervase to close to red from blue, not from blue to black. Take out one bad outing in May, and he has thrown 16 innings, allowed only 3 runs and fanned 26. He was hurt for a while, missing a month, but in his last 4 outings, 5.1 IP, 1 hit, 11 Ks. I'd promote him to AAA today, unless they are seeing something I'm not.
I want Oca, Orze, and Gervase, the 3 strikeout kings, in the Mets bullpen in August if the Mets do sell off pitchers.
On the other hand, Joey Lucchesi has been taking regular butt whoopings lately. So I certainly appear to have been wrong pushing him.
I don't consider Orze either Blue or Red right now
I'm sorry if my answers are short today.
Answering from bed.
I try not to engage with anyone that doesn't agree with me. They deserve their time to express their opinions.
The Megill experiment has to end now. He's lost out there, has no put away pitch, and he walks far too many cuz he's always nibbling. He's brutal to watch
Tex
The only correspondence I have on Twitter is through private messages with followers I used to publicly engage with
Also private friends
My updates here are harsh especially Gervase
1. Making those kind of statements about young men trying to do the best they can infers that some insider shared that confidential information with you
Your sources will dry up very quickly if you write publicly like that
I love Sproat but he really hasn't pitched that many professional innings
Going forward, I would consider trading the Old Men Pitching and use a rotation of Senga. Scott. Peterson. Butto. Megill
Ok, thank you for the explanation. I respect that. That means one you trusted betrayed you?
As for the Gervase, I love young guys and want to see them all succeed. But, it’s important that the Mets know their own guys the best. For example: Is Megill savable? Does he have the pitching arsenal? Also, guys that can’t control their pitches get hurt because of that. Let them learn control in the bullpen and in their off seasons.
Tom, what I wrote on the ABS came directly from Brandon Nimmo’s mouth during an interview after being elected player rep, and from an article in The Athletic saying it will become 100% a challenge system and no more games will be called exclusively by it. Which tells me that if MLB were happy with it, why contract it and not expand it? Because they aren’t happy with it.
Guys, I wouldn’t give up on Hamel and Vasil too quickly. They may become good relievers, especially Vasil. Hamel, could still be a good starter. Let’s monitor their outings with the new strike zone approach.
Multiple people I have trusted in the past have, as you say, betrayed me but I am a hard person to deal with sometimes. Many of my old writers left for other sites. Most with no warning to me
Ernest is not one of them
When I first retired (in an continuing string of retirements) Ernest asked my permission to join new found friends on the old Joe D sites. I said sure and hated to see him leave.
Mrs. Mack always reminds me... things said in confidence to you can only stay confident if you tell no one what was told to you.
The whole Trevor Bauer fuck up cost me the respect of many in Mets world. TWO salaried baseball insiders said that he and the Mets had a handshake agreement. I broke it and gained over 2000 followers in a day. Then it didn't happen. Many since then consider me a hack.
I agree here
Hamel Vasil and Megill would make a great pen threescore when both Tidwell and Sproat graduate
Mack I don’t wish that the content would stop prior to the draft but looking forward for Analysis as we make picks
I know you can’t hit on them all I just feel we miss more than hit and when we hit it’s never a Doc or Darryl
We need some franchise players
Betts in the 5th …. Judge in the late first …They are out there
Also I have come around to trading with anyone (including the Yankees or braves)
I would trade both severino and Alonso to the Yankees for the Martian (Jesus Domingues) or Spenser Jones
Would you?
What about Piazza?
There just isn't that much free info available to me if the games stop being played
I will post up draft day morning at 9am what my thoughts are for the players that may be around when the Mets pick at 1.19
Jones is an animal. As you know, I was very high on him when he was in school
A future huge home run hitting first baseman. Sounds familiar?
We have one of those: he’s at Binghamton now!
The Royals got Cole Regans (who became their ace immediately) for Ardolis Chapman from Texas and we got a guy whose name is Acuna but his game is not.
I loved the Clifford grab and said it was the steal of that trade, but the 20 year old is hitting .186 for Bing and has a combined 82 K in 186 AB this season
He has to change that trajectory and hit more
June stats in AA:
BB: 18 SO: 15 .226/.440/.698/1.138
May stats in AA (when he first got promoted):
BB: 9 SO: 24 .143/.276/.286/.562
Improvement.
One player move that was not listed that I was disappointed with was the release of Brandon McIlwain. He was a speedy outfielder who had a knack for running the bases. Unfortunately he couldn't break out a the mid-200's batting average in a couple of AA seasons so with all the prospects in the system the Mets had to release him. I wish him well.
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