I’m back now that the holidays are mostly over.
Some
of us still celebrate “little Christmas” on January 6th. However, it
is time to get serious and start cranking out another year of SAVAGE VIEWS.
About this time last year, I made the bold prediction that not only would the Mets make the playoffs but they would go deep into the playoffs. We finished the year as the second best team in baseball, well ahead of the Yankees, Braves and Phillies.
Now, as we enter the new year, I am less certain about our prospects.
Remember, last year the Yankees with Soto were inferior to the Mets. Here we
are with Soto and as of this writing the Yanks have become the better team. The
Phillies, Braves and even Washington have made significant improvements.
Our starting rotation is filled with many question marks. We can only hope that Senga rediscovers his magic and becomes the ace once again. Sean Manaea will be counted on to be a solid number two, but can we really expect him to replicate his performance from the second half of the season.
David Peterson had a breakout season and has become a crafty lefty who has a tendency to allow too many baserunners. Will Frankie Montas rediscover the form that made him an exciting prospect a few years ago. Clay Holmes may or may not become the next Seth Lugo. We’ll see how that experiment works out.
Of course, Tyler Megill is in the wings with Branden
Sproat expected to move up. We could have a terrific rotation in 2025 or
perhaps it turns out to be simply mediocre.
I share
David Stearns reluctance to hand out long-term contracts to pitchers, but not
having a true ace worries me. Of course, if we sign Roki Sasaki we
automatically become the favorite to contend with the Dodgers for the NL title.
While it would be nice to sign Alonso to a fair and reasonable contract, the Mets will field a formidable lineup with or without Pete. Many Mets fans are willing to write off Brett Baty much on the same way they wrote off Mark Vientos a year ago.
Compare
Baty’s stats to JD Martinez at a similar point in their careers and you will
see a lot of similarities. We all know that Vientos is not the long-term answer
at third. Baty may never win a gold glove at the hot corner but his fielding is
at worst average.
Gosh, I hope
the dominoes fall soon so we have a better inkling of what to expect this
coming year.
Ray
January 7,
2025
9 comments:
The Mets have not found the slick fielding, great hitting third baseman that we all wish for. Vientos certainly fit the great hitting part and many of the utility players of the past (Iglesias, Guillorme) could certainly field the position but didn't provide the power. With several in the wings (Acuna, Mauricio, Williams) maybe there is a solution within. Baty wasn't slick, but could field the position adequately - if he gets rid of that hole in his swing he could still be an answer.
I always see you as wiser, not older, Ray.
I think, if we do not see an ace, that Stearns thinks Sproat will explode upwards by June. In 2013, Jake had a 4.51 ERA in the minors. In 2014 in AAA, he pitched much better in his 7 starts. Then...the ACE arrived. So will Sproat.
If the Mets do re-up with Pete, as rumors seem to think is quite plausible. then Vientos will stay at 3rd base, where he defended better than all of his skeptics believed he could. My guess is he is working to improve on that this off season.
Geez, I really hope they can sign Pete so we can bring Ray back in off the ledge. I am struggling to see how the Yankees are now better, and the Braves certainly are not. It is questionable whether the Phillies will ever put it together. I cannot believe Luzardo is the piece that gets it done for them, although I do like that Max Kepler pick-up.
No amount of fixing will cure Vientos lack of range.
I am a believer, to a fault sometimes, if investing in people. Giving a chance when others will not. Now, there is a reason others don’t, but I’m too stubborn to learn.
Why are we writing off Vientos? How do we know what’s in his heart, and how hard he is willing to work? Matt Williams had ZERO range at third, but he has steady and reliable and made a nice career out of it. Vientos is better. Vientos to me looks like an advanced version of Mike Schmidt. The hitting is there, the glove will take work. I believe in Vientos. Leave him alone.
I'm with ya Gus. In my case, I'm still a believer in Brett Baty, altho I think that time has run out with the Mets. I'd hate to see him traded and blossom somewhere else, but he is rather buried in the Mets depth charts now.
I would not trade Baty, but, I would make him earn a job. When Nimmo first came up, he was platooned and played sparingly. But, he kept his nose to the grindstone and earned his position and his $168,000,000 paycheck. Let Baty do the same.
Baty can be the backup infielder. He will get 300 plate appearances, make them count.
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