FIRST, THOUGH: METS SWEEP PHILLY
McLean (3-0) is sensational.
The hitters are smoking.
Tong is coming.
WOW WOW WOW
Is it too late for McLean and Tong to go 1-2 in this year’s Cy Young voting?
McLean already has the 8th highest Mets pitcher win total…after 3 outings.
OK, NOW TO MY SCHEDULED ARTICLE:
With 30 games to go, the Mets have used 44 (forty four) pitchers.
Hitters? “Just” 20 used.
Another way to look at it is the Mets start the season with a 26 man roster with 13 pitchers and 13 hitters. After that, the Mets have used an additional 31 pitchers but only an additional 7 hitters.
THAT is essentially discrimination against hitters. Asa result:
SO MANY GOOD HITTERS play in the minors year after year and never get to the big leagues.
If you are a pitcher, and your arm is still at least marginally attached to your torso, you will most likely get called up at some point.
Guaranteed.
To counteract that pitcher/hitter imbalance a bit, how about, say, a one time in a career, 3 game weekend call up for certain minor league hitters.
Those hitters who have plugged away for years in the minors, only to see one pitcher after another fulfilling their major league dream, even if briefly, and no hitters getting promoted.
This weekend promo would only happen ONCE in your minor league career.
Minimum requirement?
4 years in the minors. And never having been on a major league 26 man roster.
So, a guy like 27 year old 7th rounder Matt O’Neill, a hitting-challenged catcher who suddenly is hitting close to .250 between AA and AAA this season, could be picked. Maybe one of your MLB catchers is worn out and the other is in a deep slump. Add this O’Neill chap for just a weekend.
Or a guy like Wyatt Young, who is in his 5th season and has hit roughly .280 with a .365 OBP the past two years.
Or a Luke Ritter. Six minors seasons. Led the IL in homers and RBIs in 2024. A .360 OBP, this year and last, in AAA.
LUKE #s SHOW HE IS NOT A STIFF.
BUT MLB TIME?
NOT A SNIFF.
You get the idea.
Limit these “deluxe weekend packages” to 4 minor league hitters per team each year, and give them the thrill of a lifetime. Making the majors.
Only one of the 4 gets his weekend promo on any given weekend. And a team is not allowed to call them up in September or October.
Think of ex-Mets farmhand named Aderlin Rodriguez in minors/winter ball.
Career 330 HRs, 1,200 RBIs, .270….but never made the big leagues.
Not for one game, not even for one at bat. Ouch!
I am sure you can think of some bum pitchers who got called up in desperation, who couldn’t carry Aderlin’s cleats.
So, Steve and other owners:
Be fair to your borderline minor league hitters.
The quality minor league veterans, who have been good but never quite good enough for one of the extremely rare normal hitter call ups before? Toss them right into the major league dugout. With one caveat. They must get at least one plate appearance.
The alternative to help borderline minors hitters is to expand the roster with 2 extra hitters all year. Less minor league players would get a chance, than under the “Weekend at Stevie’s” option, but it would be more.
And two more hitters for the whole season is a lot more $$.
Go with “the Weekend” option.
Thoughts?
THE FORGOTTEN MAN: D’ANDRE SMITH
“Jett Williams!” “Carson Benge!” “Ryan Clifford!” “Nick Morabito!” “Jacob Reimer!”
Some guys get all the attention.
Then, there is D’Andre Smith, the forgotten man.
Don’t forget him.
A 5’9”, 180 OF/IF, his playing time increased lately when Benge, Williams, and Clifford got promoted to AAA.
If Binghamton hadn’t been stacked, Smith might well have gotten promoted to AAA, too.
Through Tuesday, Smith was hitting .280 in 332 at bats with 25 of 28 in steals. He also plays a fine outfield, and a passable 2B, too. The 332 at bats far exceed those in his short debut season in 2022, or in 2023 and 2024. Hopefully he plays daily the rest of the way and drives those 2025 ABs up.
WHO IS 10-2, 3.09 IN METSVILLE?
R.J. Gordon, that’s who.
Nice. Very nice.
He is, clearly, a pitcher. Pitchers are guaranteed to eventually get MLB call ups.
He will therefore get his major league chance, likely in 2026 or 2027.
TONG TERRIFIC IS ON DECK
After his first two starts in frigid conditions this spring, in all his other outings, I have NEVER seen anyone pitch like Jonah Tong in the minors. 12 earned runs in 105 innings, 4 hits allowed per 9, and strikeouts by the bushel, roughly 15 per 9.
Incredible. Insane.
That said, there are many balls flying out of parks in August in the major leagues.
It is no longer April, Aunt Mabel.
Balls hit by musclemen soar in August.
The Mets through Tuesday had averaged 6 runs per game in August, .281/.358/.491. And 41 rocket departures in 23 games. Incredible.
The average run-scoring team in August, namely Miami, Tong’s first opponent, is averaging 4.5 runs per game this month. That is a lot of runs. 730 over the course of a full season.
And the average team is hitting 1.3 HRs per game in August. Over 162 games, 1.3 HRs per game comes out to 210 home runs.
Jeesh-a-Mundo.
So, let’s see what happens Friday night for Jonah, but if he doesn’t shut them out over 7 innings and fan 15 (not saying he won’t), remember that the balls are Flying Out in August. He will be great going forward.
Of course, I should mention that this year and last, in 227 innings, Tong has allowed just 5 HRs while fanning 339 batters.
How is that 68:1 Ks to HRs allowed ratio for ya, huh? Works for me.
I am expecting to be thrilled and to experience something TERRIFIC.
TONG TERRIFIC, to be precise.
(My first ever thoughts on Tong in 2022 showed I had no clue what was coming):
“Round 7 (209): Jonah Tong, RHP, high school:
$226,000. Did not pitch in 2022.”
Yeah, that was it.
WHOA, NELLIE, IT’S NICK ROSELLI
Nick Roselli, an 11th round lefty hitting 2nd baseman, got promoted to the “Wall of Wind Park” in Brooklyn at the start of August.
Through Sunday, it was unpleasant: first 14 games, .132. Ouch!
Tough being a lefty hitter in Cyclone City.
But he’s a kid from Levittown, NY, where I lived on Bucket Lane when I got married in 1982. I trained for the 1981 NYC Marathon while living in Levittown (ran 3:25:27 - I publish everyone else’s stat line, there’s mine).
I know this much…
Levittown folks are TOUGH!
So, on Tuesday, tough guy Nick had 2 walks and a single in his first 4 times up. St Lucie trailed early, 7-0, but rallied to trail by just 9-7 going into bottom 9. Tough Nick stepped up with 2 on.
He swung toughly, and sent the cognoscenti home deliriously happy, with a walk-off 3 run blast.
On Wednesday, 2 more Roselli RBIs.
Nick was frigid at the dish for St Lucie through June, surprising since he had an excellent 18 games for St Lucie in 2024, right after he got drafted.
But tough guys don’t stay down. They tough it out.
He surged and hit .345 in July.
And even though overall, he is at .205 this year, with RISP, he has been…well…tough.
As in .290/.394/.495, and .375 with the bags full.
47 RBIs in 278 ABs. Great pace.
I like tough guys, guys who rake in the clutch.
Especially when they are from Levittown, Long Island.
I’m pulling for Nick Roselli.
14 comments:
One thing about Matt O'Neill
He may have been the most valuable catcher the Mets have had in the chain all decade.
Every minor league team needs three catchers. Two to be on the active roster and a third in the bullpen working with the pitchers.
O'Neill has earned thousands of travel dollars going back and forth, filling in for slots created by injuries to others or just helping out with working with a young kid just joining organized ball.
He has tremendous defensive skills, similar to Senger, who also was this kind of franchise minor leaguer.
Very few of these guys make the majors. They do it because they love the game.
Good morning Tom. Can’t compare pitchers to hitters. Hitters can play everyday but pitchers hers cannot pitch everyday. Yesterday after the Mets game finished, I turned it to Brewers/DBacks since it was a one run game and saw a lefty with a 90mph fastball, and no real movement just a slow curve to pair with it, shut down the Brew crew for an inning plus for the save. AAAA pitchers can succeed; AAAA hitters cannot. Ritter will get atbats in Colorado, the Mets don’t have the room.
I do feel for Whatt Young though. He has succeeded in AAA twice ans failed once, yet he is perpetually stuck at AA. Smith and Young need to move up for September.
Gus, I just want them to get a once-in-a-lifetime weekend in the majors. Their Cinderella story. I feel for these guys.
I'm sorry Tom
I love ya but this ain't Field Of Dreams
The team doesn't lead the division and they are third of three current wild card slots.
There are only 29 games to go and at this point in the season, they are at war.
Just how this Ole fart thinks
We will have to agree to disagree, my friend.
I saw a video clip of Tong being interviewed. He looked 17. He sounded 30.
and we disagree so nicely...
I was hoping someone would show a little love for D’Andre and Roselli.
And last night, in a game where St Lucie only managed 3 hits, hitless Winker and Siri got to watch my guy Randy Guzman rip a double. I have high hopes for Randy Guzman in 2026. How high will his stock rise?
Wait, he still has time to impress in 2025. 51 RBIs in 224 at bats? Good K rate? What’s not to love?
Everybody has Nolan Fever this morning
Randy Guzman, great name. How can he not succeed?
Ray, in an organization with a Jerry Koosman, Randy Guzman almost sounds related.
Super happy I got to see Tong up close in Bingo before he got promoted. It was arguably his worst start with only 3 innings...no runs and 8k's....but his control was a problem that day. Still electric.
Back when they let you call anyone up from the 40man on 9/1 you could do this cinderella idea but no longer Im afraid.
So with the Mets the #1 ranked system how do we think the Mets are going to handle all of their options?
Nimmo/Lindor/Soto are 3 of the 9 regular spots locked to long term
Alvarez locked in at C for the next 3 years
McNeil/Baty/Vientos looked pretty locked in for next year.
Alonso???
That leaves really one spot for Williams/Benge and where does Mauricio go? Will Reimer/Ewing/Clifford also be knocking on the door for playing time?
Seems like a good problem to have. Its hard to see the Mets committing to any more long term deals for position players outside of possibly extending Alonso longer.
You wonder if Stearns hand is forced to trade some guys or let Pete walk (which would be wildly unpopular). If Baty/Vientos finish strong its hard to see them going anywhere and Mauricio seems to still have untapped potential but where is his ceiling compared to our other up and coming guys?
Post a Comment