The Morning Report 9.28.2015 | Your 2015 NL East Champs, Postseason Rotation 1-3 Announced, Who's the #4 SP?, Papelbon Attacks Bryce Harper

Brad Kallet | CBS New York- The New York Mets are your 2015 National League East champions. Yeah, read that again. And again. And again. I can’t believe it actually happened. Can you? I’m the first to admit that, at the beginning of the season, I never dreamed that New York would make the playoffs, let alone win the division. After Sandy Alderson’s trade-deadline domination — which will go down as a turning point in this franchise’s history — I started to believe, but I was far from convinced. Even with this huge lead in September, I felt trepidation. Well the Mets are back in business, and they certainly have the foundation to be a force for the next decade. Appreciate this. Enjoy this. Revel in this. Acknowledge how sweet it is.

(Chris Soto: Over the past 9 years we have suffered through the #BlameBeltran strikeout, the 2 separate epic September collapses, the Jerry Manuel management saga, the painful salary constraint era of Jason Bay and a oft-injured Johan Santana, and of course a franchise debilitating Ponzi Scheme. So yes Mets fans, ENJOY THIS WHILE WE CAN. Do not worry about next year yet, or 2018 when the young guns start getting expensive.....enjoy 2015! We're heading to the playoffs and we have a REAL chance to progress far.)

Aaron Yorke | Amazin Avenue- After Sunday's game, Terry Collins got the easy part out of the way first and announced that his best three starters during the 2015 campaign would be the first three guys to start games in the 2015 postseason. Matt Harvey will be the first pitcher out of the gate, followed by Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard. Harvey was playing some of his best baseball during August before he started a bizarre controversy by saying that he might not not pitch beyond 180 innings in 2015. Fortunately that situation was put to rest quickly and Harvey is now lined up to pitch Game 1 of the NLDS on plenty of rest.

(Chris Soto: I think it was pretty obvious that Harvey, deGrom, and Syndergaard would be the 1st three pitchers out of the gate. The real question in my opinion was, What would the rotation order be? From Collins press conference it seems pretty adament that no matter what, Harvey is going to be the 1st one out there and is going to the be the guy who would be in line to make 2 starts should the series go a full 5 games. Certainly a huge change in direction from a few weeks ago when we didn't even know if Harvey would pitch during the rest of September. Even though deGrom has been better this season, I agree with the choice. deGrom may have more consistency right now, but, Harvey's best is better than deGrom best and his best is exactly what the Mets are going to need to defeat Kershaw and Grienke.)

Mike Puma | New York Post- The Mets’ playoff rotation is all but set, but manager Terry Collins won’t officially complete the equation until later this week. In some order, Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard and Matt Harvey will belong to the NLDS rotation, according to Collins. Steven Matz will likely claim the fourth spot over Bartolo Colon, according to a club source. “I haven’t gone down that path yet,” Collins said. Collins also indicated he’s reluctant to use Matz in the bullpen, given the rookie has never performed in that role and spent six weeks rehabbing from a torn lat muscle. That points to Matz’s inclusion in the rotation.

(Chris Soto: I'm still torn over the choice myself. On one hand, the Dodgers best line-up, is EXTREMELY weighted towards left handed bats. However, on the other, Bartolo Colon is the only one in the rotation currently with playoff experience, and, Terry Collins already plans on using 3 playoff rookies in his rotation. Colon has made 10 playoff starts and only 1 of them has ever been poor; That was way back in 1999.)

Jon Lewin | Subway Squakers- Five years ago, Mets' star closer Francisco Rodriguez allegedly assaulted his girlfriend's father at the ballpark. Sunday, Nationals' star closer Jonathan Papelbon tried to attack teammate Bryce Harper in the Nationals' dugout. Harper is only the front-runner for NL MVP. Maybe it's just a coincidence that the Nationals' collapse began when they acquired Papelbon, but considering that the move also sent demoted closer Drew Storen into a tailspin culminating with Storen breaking his thumb in frustration. At least Storen did so while slamming a locker door, not trying to slam a teammate.

(Chris Soto: Boy...with football going on yesterday, I'm not sure if you readers heard or saw what happened yesterday...but it was BAD! I will just leave the video below here and let you guys watch how pitiful the Nationals situation has become.)

Jonathan Papelbon attacking Bryce Harper? Jonathan Papelbon attacking Bryce Harper. pic.twitter.com/T2qof97Ymh

— Jake Russell (@_JakeRussell) September 27, 2015

The Morning Report 7.6.2015 | Mets Building Momentum, Harvey's Excuses, Mets In All-Star Game, Mejia Ready to Rock

Matt Turner | Rant Sports- For just the third time this season, the New York Mets won a series on the road. After splitting the first two games with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Steven Matz and the Mets came out victorious in dominant fashion Sunday afternoon, winning 8-0. The short-term goals should be to just finish out the half strong. As a .500 team back by only a few games, each win right now is so crucial. It’s possible that Travis d’Arnaud will be healthy by the end of the break, and maybe David Wright will even be further along with rehab, which would be huge for the lineup and for morale.

(Chris Soto: You could have made a very strong case in forecasting the Mets would get swept by the Dodgers this weekend. Instead they walk out series winners thanks to superb pitching from Thor and Matz and an offensive explosion on Sunday. Turner is right, if the Mets can at least finish this week strong....A healthy d'Arnaud return and the eventual Wright return after the break is going to not only bring more offensive firepower, but also bring a MUCH NEEDED morale boost to a club that really needs it right now.) 


Kristie Ackert | NY Daily News- Matt Harvey will “have to get over it.” The Mets ace is not the only starter who is uncomfortable with the six-man rotation, but he is the one who voiced it Saturday night after he lost to the Dodgers. “They gotta get over it. Matt knows that,” the Mets manager said. “I know he is frustrated by it....You can see the frustration. I understand, I certainly understand he is a tremendous competitor and wants to be out there as much as he can on a regular basis.’“It’s just that it’s easiest way,” Collins said. “So we’ve got to make the adjustment, and Matt understands that. I certainly understand why he would say that and I don’t blame him.”

(Chris Soto: Ya know what? ENOUGH. We are getting sick and tired of these continuing Harvey "excuses". He seems to be the only one struggling to adjust to the whole 6 man rotation thing. Maybe it's not the rotation....maybe it's him. We all know that Tommy John recipients are not always 100% during their 1st season back and Harvey is experiencing that inconsistency. Yet, rather than just admitted that "hey, i understand that it's gonna take time," he continues to throw one excuse after another. That leads me the a question that was asked of me this weekend....If the Los Angeles Dodgers came to you and said....we want Harvey....and we're willing to pay Corey Seager and Yasiel Puig in order to get him....How can you say no?) 


Mike Puma | New York Post- The Mets have two players with legitimate All-Star resumes this season, but will both be selected for the game? Jacob deGrom and Jeurys Familia will find out Monday if they will be joining the NL All-Star team. Not surprisingly, the Mets were shut out in the fan balloting for starting position players, the results of which were released Sunday. According to a club source, NL manager Bruce Bochy has been “trying real hard,” to get both deGrom and Familia on the roster. One of the two is a certainty since each team must be represented.

(Chris Soto: Both Familia and deGrom should absolutely be on the All-Star team as they have not only been the Mets best players...but also two of the top players in the National League this season. deGrom is currently ranked tied for 6th in terms of WAR among NL SP's and despite being 16th in WAR among RP, Familia is still 2nd among them in terms of ERA, and 5th in saves. Bochy will find a place for both of them.)

Michael Baron | Just Mets- Jenrry Mejia has completed his final tune up with Triple-A Las Vegas as he prepares to rejoin the Mets this week. Mejia earned the save while allowing a hit in a scoreless ninth inning in the 51s 3-2 win over the Albuquerque Isotopes on Sunday night. Mejia will fly to San Francisco and meet the team at AT&T Park on Tuesday. He cannot be in the clubhouse while on the restricted list, which he is eligible to come off of on Tuesday.

(Chris Soto: Ready or not....Mejia is ready! He's going to be a huge boost to the effectiveness of the Mets bullpen. He also can help Mets fans feel a little easier knowing that he's gonna handle 8th inning duties, bumping Parnell to 7th inning work and Carlos Torres back to the swing role that he excels at. Now the important question is....who get bumped from the bullpen? Unfortunately, It will most likely be Logan Verrett who has been excellent since returning to the Mets organization. He'll likely get sent back to AAA and re-stretch out as a SP in case the Mets need him later on in the year to eat up some innings.)

The Morning Report 6.16.2015 | Dillon Gee Soap Opera Is Over, Matz is Next Man Up, Syndergaard Innings Limit, deGrom is No Fluke.

Bryan Zarpentine | Rant Sports- Since the end of last season, it’s been nothing but soap opera drama between the New York Mets and pitcher Dillon Gee. There’s been incessant trade talk, back and forth moves between the starting rotation and the bullpen, a few less-than-professional words from Gee and several poor performances. But it’s all over now, as the Mets have designated Gee for assignment, which is the right move to make. Parting ways with Gee will allow the Mets to simplify a complicated and distracting situation. They can move forward with five starters on their roster instead of six, and they can now focus their efforts on trying to find a way to insert Matz into the rotation, even if it’s only for a spot start. Moreover, the Mets no longer have to worry about a disgruntled Gee in the bullpen and wonder how he’ll perform in that unfamiliar role. Even if the Mets can’t find a trade partner for Gee, it’s best to bring clarity to the situation.

(Chris Soto: I 100% agree....forget about whether the Mets were in the wrong for bouncing him back and forth, or, if Gee was wrong for not doing the job that was asked of him. At the end of the day, the whole "rolling" six man rotation was not working. It turned one of the Mets biggest strengths into an inconsistent mess outside of Jacob deGrom. Thankfully the fiasco is over now, next on the list.....trying to figure out how to squeeze Steven Matz into the equation.)


John Harper | NY Daily News- As good as their pitching is, then, the Mets have some issues to sort out, and they took a step toward doing that by cutting ties with Dillon Gee on Monday. In and of itself that’s hardly a game-changer, but as a move that brings Steven Matz a step closer to the big leagues, it was as timely as it was necessary. As a finesse pitcher who relies on precision, Gee was ill-suited to pitching irregularly, but at least GM Sandy Alderson had the good sense to pull the plug quickly on the experiment. The Mets still need a plan to make sure they don’t run out of their allotted innings for Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, and Syndergaard, but forcing the issue with Gee as the occasional sixth starter made no sense. Meanwhile, in Matz they have a top prospect dominating the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. Two weeks ago a scout who had seen three of Matz’s starts told me simply, “He’s ready for a higher league."

(Chris Soto: Without a shadow of a doubt....Matz is ready for the MLB. Not only that, but there are eyes around baseball who think that of all the young arms the Mets have.....Matz could be the best. During his last start in Las Vegas there were reportedly 25-30 scouts on hand to see him pitch. A handful of people think that he could be the next Clayton Kershaw. Surely, these are unreasonably lofty expectations, but, the fact that it's being talked about shows just how badly the Mets need to find a way to squeeze him into the big leagues.


Mike Puma | New York Post- Noah Syndergaard remains in play for a bullpen stint this season.
In confirming a Post report that Syndergaard has been discussed for a bullpen role, general manager Sandy Alderson on Monday indicated a move could come at any point. “I wouldn’t rule out the possibility at any time during the year,” Alderson said before the Mets beat the Blue Jays 4-3 in 11 innings. “It actually goes back to this question about managing innings. It’s another way to manage innings.”

(Chris Soto: I had quite the knee jerk reaction to this yesterday without really looking into the data. Syndergaard is actually one of the most handcuffing guys Sandy has ever had to deal with. Due to his rapid rise up the Mets system, Syndergaard has not reached the innings cap needed to get through a full MLB season. After throwing only 133 IP last season, Syndergaard should only be in line to throw 165 - 170 IP in 2015. At his current efficiency rate, Syndergaard is scheduled to run out of innings during the 1st week or so of September. Perhaps the Mets can do what they did to Jacob deGrom last season and have him take a 3 week spell on the 15 day DL for a "phantom" injury in order to stretch those final innings into late September.)


Joe Vasile | Beyond the Box Score- After a metoric rise through the New York Mets farm system which took him from the Florida State League at the start of 2013 to winning the National League Rookie of the Year award at the end of 2014, Jacob deGrom seemed to be a potential candidate for regression. In his sophomore campaign, he’s been able to evade the dreaded sophomore slump and has been even better. His FIP has held steady despite regression in his HR/FB ratio [and] he has also cut down on the walks further, lowering his walk percent from 7.6 to 5.1. FanGraphs  shows deGrom allowing 14.2 percent fewer hard-hit balls this season [and] batters are pulling fewer balls. One reason for this is that deGrom’s four-seam fastball has taken a leap forward this year. According to data compiled at Brooks Baseball, deGrom is throwing his fastball nearly a mile-per-hour faster this year (95.45 compared to 94.49 in 2014), and the pitch is getting an additional inch of armside run.

(Chris Soto: If you haven't followed BTBS yet...you really should, these guys are great. I knew deGrom's stuff looked better, but, this is the kind of data that supports that kind of thinking. He has gone from an interesting back end rotation arm, to a solid mid rotation piece, to be the #2 guy on the Mets staff, to now jumping Harvey and being THE GUY that you expect to win on a nightly basis. Even in the fantasy world, deGrom is listed as the 6th best SP overall, only behind the likes of Scherzer, Keuchel, Sale, Archer, and Cole and that's WITH his rough start in 2015. Over the past 30 days, deGrom has been the best guy SP in fantasy baseball.)

The Morning Report 03.18.2015 | Opening Day Starter, #HairWeGo, Wheeler's Usage, Bullpen Problems

Bill Price | NY Daily News- I get that Opening Day is a special day, symbolizing the end of winter and the birth of a new season that brings hope and optimism to every fan in America. And sure, getting the nod of Opening Day starter is a big deal to the pitcher itself, but to look at it any more than that is a bit silly. If it were me, I would start Colon on Opening Day, deGrom in the second game and Harvey in the third game (which I happen to be going to) and go to Atlanta with Niese, Gee and Colon. Start deGrom at the home opener and Harvey two days later.

(Chris Soto: I have to agree with Bill here sans flipping deGrom and Harvey. I'm not sure how you CAN'T have Harvey pitch the Home opener. Colon would be a smart choice to pitch the Opening Day both from a nerves perspective AND a ticket sales perspective. The Mets 1st 6 games of the season are on the road which means the #1 guy in the rotation is pitching twice on the road. Fans would rather see a Citi Field opening of Harvey, deGrom, and Niese over something like Colon, Niese and Gee.)


Adam Rubin | ESPN New York- DeGrom allowed only one hit -- a leadoff single in the first by ex-Met Jordany Valdespin, whom he promptly erased with a double play. The reigning NL Rookie of the Year faced the minimum while striking out six. DeGrom has now walked only one batter and has a 2.45 ERA in 11 Grapefruit League innings.“I’m just going out there trying to repeat my delivery and pound the strike zone and locate, and try to eliminate those walks -- because every time I walk somebody, they seem to score,” deGrom said.

(Chris Soto: Here is the difference between when Harvey went down late 2013 versus Wheeler this year, there's back-up. Rather than fans falling into a doom and gloom state due to the loss of a major piece of the rotation, we get to watch Harvey toy around in his start and still throw 4 shutout inning, then, we get to watch deGrom just carve up the Marlins across 5 innings the next day. Don't take this the wrong way.....but the loss of Wheeler does not hurt this team.)

 

Jared Diamond | Wall Street Journal- On Tuesday, general manager Sandy Alderson vehemently defended the Mets’ use of Wheeler last year, showing an uncharacteristic amount of fire in doing so. He pointed to how the Mets handled staff ace Matt Harvey when he hurt his elbow, and he emphasized the unpredictable nature of elbow injuries and the mystery surrounding what causes them. In Alderson’s mind, the Mets acted in good faith.

(Chris Soto: Everyone is looking for someone to blame for Wheeler's injury. However, going after Alderson or Terry Collins or Dan Warthen or anyone is the wrong thing to do. Whether a pitcher throws every 5th day, 4th day, or 6th day has no bearing on injury rates. Whether a guy throws 90 pitches a start vs. 130 pitches a start or has side sessions vs no side sessions has no bearing either. PITCHERS BREAK.....that's just how science and the human body works. The overhand throwing motion is not a natural body movement. The moment you decide that hey I'm going the have my 10 year old kid play baseball, is the beginning of the slow deterioration of the throwing arm.)


Dan Martin | New York Post- Terry Collins used one word to best describe his bullpen. “Unsettled.” That seems accurate, with Josh Edgin having undergone Tommy John surgery on Tuesday, Jeurys Familia getting hit hard against the Marlins on the same day and struggling with his velocity at times, as well as other issues.“Yeah, it’s a little unsettling to think, ‘Who are we going to get to fill those roles?’ ”

(Chris Soto: We still have 2 weeks and change before the start of the season, so there is still plenty of time for the bullpen to take shape. That said, one of the team's strength heading into the season is beginning to draw some serious concern. We've already lost Edgin, Black is dealing with shoulder problems, Familia's velocity is down [potentially, due to overusage last year], Parnell won't be ready to start the year, and none of the other lefty candidates have been inspiring thus far.)

Are the 2014 Mets a Better Team on Paper? (Rotation)

We have clearly improved at the C, SS, and CF positions even though the players are the same. We expect the same lackluster production at 1B, and the same solid production at 2B and 3B. As we stated before, LF looks like its a real wild card since we still have no idea who's going to be starting and RF should be at least equal to last year's production but has a chance to be a bit better. Lets switch over to the arms and see how the rotation will far without Matt Harvey.

(***Note this takes into account the team as it is today. Steamer Projections are extrapolated out to 162 games for the starter only.)

2013

Players: Dillon Gee, Matt Harvey, Johnathan Niese, Jeremy Hefner, Zack Wheeler, Shaun Marcum, Carlos Torres, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Jenrry Mejia, Aaron Harang, Aaron Laffey, Colin McHugh
Stats: 48-57, 3.68 ERA, 4 CG, 10 SO, 280 BB, 817 K, .257 BAA
(8th in MLB ERA)

     We figured 2013 would be a transition year to guide us to eventually having the best rotation in the MLB with 3 of the top 10 SP in it. Little did we know that this raggedy bunch would be a Top 10 rotation in baseball. Harvey surprised us all by not only improving on his solid 2012 but vaulting himself into Cy Young consideration in only his 2nd year. All year long he was fooling batter after batter with his 97+ MPH fastball and a devastating slider that made even the best hitters in the looks look absolutely silly.

     It wasn't all him though. After Dillon Gee struggled mightily through April and May with 5.25+ ERA's in both month's, he eventually found his stuff become a lights out pitcher posting 2.73, 2.88, and 2.13 ERA's over the next 3 months showing that maybe we should consider him something more than just a #5 pitcher.

     Niese also struggled during the 1st half of the season as he saw his ERA rise and his K rate fall thanks to back issues which led to arm troubles. After taking the month of July off he came back and was excellent posting a 3.00 ERA the rest of the season and getting his K rate back up to a healthy 7.6 K/9.

     Outside of a 5 game stretch in June where he posted a 1.80 ERA, Hefner was terrible. Marcum never got going losing 10 of his 12 starts before spending the rest of the season on the DL. Torres proved extremely useful as a reliever (1.47 ERA) but not as useful as a starter (4.89 ERA). Mejia made some strong starts posting a 2.30 ERA on a balky elbow but eventually ended up on the DL as well. Haranag and Matsuzaka were ok in their cups of coffee with the team but Laffey and McHugh were busts.

     Lastly, we saw the debut of our 2nd young guy Zack Wheeler. While he did not perform as well as Harvey in his debut, after he got through his first 3 starts, Wheeler did post 2.73 and 3.13 ERA's before reaching his innings limit in September. Following the same path Harvey did, spending this spring with the big league club could lead to a break-out season in 2014.

2014

Starter #1: Jonathan Niese: 11-12, 3.90 ERA, 3.59 FIP, 7.0 K/9, 2.8 BB/9

Starter #2: Zack Wheeler: 11-13, 4.12 ERA, 4.00 FIP, 8.2 K/9, 4.2 BB/9
Starter #3: Bartolo Colon: 12-12, 3.80 ERA, 3.54 FIP, 6.5 K/9, 1.7 BB/9
Starter #4: Dillon Gee: 11-13, 4.17 ERA, 3.92 FIP, 6.6 K/9, 2.6 BB/9
Starter #5: Jenrry Mejia: 12-12, 3.79 ERA, 3.57 FIP, 7.4 K/9, 3.3 BB/9

     Wow.....I am very shocked at how poorly STEAMER is projected our rotation to be. I basically do not agree with any of these projections. While the Niese projections is fair, I feel a return to his healthy 2012 is more likely, especially since his K rate towards the end of 2013 did return to his 2012 rate. STEAMER is actually forecasting regression for Wheeler which I just cannot see happening. I like the Colon projection, hate the Gee projection and am surprised by the Mejia projection.

     For what its worth another projection system called OLIVER, does not agree with STEAMER either. OLIVER is much higher on Niese, Wheeler, Colon, and Gee, while lower on Mejia. In fact OLIVER projection believe that there will be enough improvement from Niese and Wheeler to make up for the loss of Harvey. Overall, OLIVER is projecting a team SP ERA of 3.81 while STEAMER is projecting 3.96. As to be expected there will be regression from the loss of Harvey but both projections are still in the top half of the MLB and OLIVER's is still a Top 10 rotations.

    Plus as a side note. Neither projection takes into account the expected debuts of Syndergaard and Montero so there is a ton of room for upside.

Verdict: Small regression with some HEAVY upside. Eventually could settle at push to slight improvement even without Harvey depending on how well Montero and Syndergaard perform.

Mack - I don't know how to come up with a positive spin on a rotation with the loss of Matt Harvey.

I love the Colon signing, just for the innings he's going to eat. I don't expect Mejia to last the season because guys like him never do.

Projecting a regression for Zack Wheeler is just stupid.

'On paper', due to the loss of Harvey, the Mets rotation is less talented in 2014, but we haven't factored in Syndergaard, Montero, and anyone additional Sandy might sign.

My guess... and it's only a guess... the Mets will hang in there through May and Sandy will throw out the Super 2 when it comes to Montero. Then it could become interesting.

Mack Ade – AM Report – 8-15-13 – Travid d’Arnaud, Raydel Medina, Jake deGrom, John Church, Matt den Dekker

 

Don’t you think that MBL should stop playing those Bryce Harper “I play for October” commercials at this point in the 2014 season? 

 

Well, so much for going out to Los Angeles and kicking some Dodger butt. Last night was especially a tough loss, but it's just another in a series of game that the Mets were in and couldn't sustain. Doesn't it seem like we always have the lead? Anyway, I hope we can split the next series, get hammered again by the Braves, and finally get on to the task of trying to put a deal together before the August 31st deadline. It' s time to move on (see later comments on TC about this).

 

Ashley Marshall –

While John Buck is on call for the arrival of his third child, Travis d'Arnaud got the call for his first taste of the big leagues. A spot behind the plate will open up for the Mets when Buck departs on paternity leave, and with the team in Los Angeles, it will be all too easy for its No. 2 prospect to move over from Las Vegas. When he does make the jump, it's expected to be a short one as Buck's leave will only be three days. But this might be the time to jump on d'Arnaud anyways. The 24-year-old backstop is back in the PCL after missing almost four months with a broken left foot, but if his results since his return are any indication, he hasn't missed a beat. The California native is 7-for-13 with a homer, three doubles, three RBIs and four walks in four games so far. http://www.milb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20130814&content_id=56890548&fext=.jsp&vkey=news_milb&sid=milb

 

The Reds have signed 20-year-old Cuban outfielder Raydel Medina for $400,000. Medina played for the Cuban youth national team at the 16U World Championship in Taiwan in 2009, a tournament that also included Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor, Rangers second baseman Rougned Odor and Red Sox shortstop Tzu-Wei Lin. Media performed well at the tournament, hitting .444/.516/.852 over seven games, going 12-for-27 with a homer, two triples, four doubles, four walks and three strikeouts. He ranked second on the Cuban team in slugging and OPS, behind only Guillermo Aviles. http://www.baseballamerica.com/international/reds-sign-cuban-outfielder-raydel-medina/

 

 

I was on the phone with Gary Seagren yesterday and he asked me what I’d been hearing about around Met-land. I told him that I hadn’t talked to anyone since the last time he and I talked on the phone, which was about two weeks. I guess I have to a certain degree mentally shut down at this point in the season. I think the Mets have made a wonderful .500 run in July and August, but there just isn’t enough front end talent on this team to survive the injury loses of David Wright, Bobby Parnell, and now, Wilmer Flores.

I’m not recommending you all go watch Netflix, but it is time to become realistic about this team and start setting it up for a spring return. This wouldn’t be a bad time to bring back Ruben Tejada (if Flores winds up on the DL). I would hope that the Mets did everything they could to keep Flores off the DL even to the point of operating for a week with a 24-man roster. There is going to be interest in him during the off-season and the last thing you want to do is tag him right now with an injury tag.

The Mets have done a very good job of depleting their minor league upper levels of talent (though, currently, only 10 of the 25 men on the squad came out of the system). There are people; however, that I would like a peek at in September if, for no other reason, to showcase them for a possible future trade.

A few are:

                SP Jake deGrom – DeGrom has had some success at the AAA-PCL level, something that is very difficult to do. Much of that success has been accredited to the addition of his new curve (or ‘slurve’, depending on who you talk to) and his continued ability to pound the zone in the 93-95 range. It’s obvious that there is no room for him in a future Mets rotation, but I don’t see him as a reliever either. No, this is one of the Mets major trade bait in the off-season and, if you want a full time decent outfielder roaming the CitiField green every night next year, you want to keep rooting for this guy in Las Vegas.

                RP John Church – Church has a very good season this year for Binghamton (32-appearances, 3.44), but he has now put up 15 more in Las Vegas with an incredible ERA of 1.00 (2-ERs in 18.0-IP). It seems like I’m the only person that ever writes about this guy and I’d really like to see a look at him this season in Queens. Again, I’m not sure about where his future will be, but it definitely should be on the mound somewhere throwing quality relief. His stats prove worthy (58-K, 18-BB 54.2-IP) for the shot.

OF Matt den Dekker – I’m really not that impressed recently with the throwing arm and general defense of Eric Young Jr. I know that ‘DD’ is only hitting .286 at Las Vegas (anything under .400 there seems to suck), but I’d like to see the Mets use September as an extension of spring training and make sure every potential outfielder at the top level of our system gets a shot to, first, compete, and, secondly, be showcased. It den Dekker’s turn.

Of course, all this might be a moot point after just being told that Terry Collins intends on using the veterans in September over playing the kids in the system. Is this an attempt at another contract for TC? I almost wish he was already under contract for at least another year so this team could spend the rest of this season setting up for 2014. Do we really want to see more of John Buck or don’t you think this would be a good time to play Travis d’Arnaud every day?