B-Mets Come Back From Break with Two Wins

 

B-Mets Come Back From Break with Two Wins

 

BINGHAMTON, NY – The Binghamton Mets came back from the All-Star Break by picking up two victories over the Portland Sea Dogs on Thursday night at NYSEG Stadium. The first was resumed from a suspended game from June 25 in Portland, and the B-Mets won, 6-5. Binghamton then won the seven-inning nightcap, 4-0.

 

Resumed Game

The B-Mets and Sea Dogs picked things up in the top of the third inning with no score, and Binghamton acting as the visiting team. The score remained scoreless until Allan Dykstra blasted a two-run shot over the right field wall in the fourth inning to put Binghamton on top, 2-0.

 

Cory Mazzoni started the resumed game for the B-Mets, but exited after 1.1 innings. With a 3-2 count on Garin Cecchini, Mazzoni was removed from the game with a lower body injury. Jim Fuller took over with one out in the fourth and gave up an RBI single to Travis Shaw making it a 2-1 game.

 

In the fifth, the offense built the lead back up with RBI singles by Danny Muno and Josh Rodriguez. In the frame, they scored two runs on four hits against Chris Balcom-Miller. The final B-Met scoring came in the top of the seventh inning against Noe Ramirez. Cesar Puello singled home Wilfredo Tovar and Richard Lucas hit a sacrifice fly to give Binghamton a 6-1 lead.

 

In the bottom half however, Portland built an impressive comeback. After three runs scored against Fuller in the inning, he was yanked for Chasen Bradford who made his Double-A debut. He was welcomed to the league with back-to-back RBI doubles by Shannon Wilkerson and Tony Thomas, as Portland pulled within one run at 6-5. He escaped the jam by striking out Cecchini to hold the lead.

 

Bradford settled down and tossed a scoreless eighth inning, and closer Jeff Walters threw a perfect 1-2-3 ninth inning to earn his 23^rd save of the season.

 

Game Two

A combination of good pitching and collective hitting led Binghamton to a 4-0 win over the Sea Dogs in the nightcap. Noah Syndergaard started the game, and only allowed one hit in his two innings of work. He was limited to two innings as he prepares to throw in the 2013 Futures All-Star Game at Citi Field on Sunday.

 

The offense got going immediately behind Syndergaard. Against Portland pitcher Mike McCarthy, Cesar Puello hit an RBI single into left field to put Binghamton up, 1-0. The hit was the third consecutive single to start the game for the B-Mets.

 

They continued to record base hits against McCarthy, but couldn’t find the scoreboard again until the fifth. The inning nearly mimicked the first inning for the B-Mets. Once again Muno, Rodriguez, and Puello each singled to begin the inning. Puello’s single brought home Muno to give Binghamton a 2-0 lead.

 

Meanwhile on the mound, Ryan Fraser tossed three scoreless frames after relieving Syndergaard. The righty allowed three singles over three innings and picked up his first Double-A win of the season.

 

Binghamton wrapped up their scoring in the bottom of the sixth. Muno hit a sacrifice fly to score Darrell Ceciliani, and Rodriguez followed with an RBI single to score Xorge Carrillo.

 

Both Chase Huchingson and Scott Atchison each threw a perfect inning of relief to seal the victory for the B-Mets. Fraser (1-1) earned the win and McCarthy (0-2) was tagged with the loss.

 

The B-Mets (55-33) and Sea Dogs (45-44) continue their series on Friday night at NYSEG Stadium. First pitch is set for 7:05 PM as LHP Mark Cohoon takes the mound against RHP Keith Couch for Portland. The Horizons Federal Credit Union Pregame Show starts at 6:50 PM on Newsradio 1290 WNBF.

 

POSTGAME NOTES: All stats for the resumed game will be counted for June 25…13 singles are the most by the B-Mets in one game since they had 14 singles on August 26, 2012 vs. Portland…The B-Mets now have six shutouts on the season

Mets Minor League Report – July 11

At this writing, Las Vegas (47-44) leads Tucson (51-43) 11-3 after 8 innings.

Rafael Montero: 2.0 IP, 0 R, H, 0 BB, 2 K. (Limiting his innings for some reason?)

Justin Hampson, (1 R, 4 H) Sean Penn (0 R, 1 H) and Greg Peavy (2 R, 2 H) each pitched 2.0 innings also.

Matt den Dekker: 3-4, HR, RBI, 3 R, SB.

Wilmer Flores: 4-5, 2 HR, 2B, 4 RBI, 2 R.

Jamie Hoffman: 3-4, 2 2B, 3 RBI.

Binghamton (55-33) blanks Portland (45-44) 4-0 in the regularly scheduled game.

Noah Syndergaard: 2.0 IP, 0 R, H, 0 BB, 3 K. He was followed by Ryan Fraser: (W, 1-1) 3.0 IP, 0 R, 3 H, 0 BB, K.

Chase Hutchingson (2 K) and Scott Atchison (K) each pitched a perfect inning to close out the game.

Danny Muno: 2-3, RBI, 2 R.

Josh Rodriguez: 3-4, RBI.

Cesar Puello: 3-4, 2 RBI.

Darrell Ceciliani: 2-3, R.

Completing a game postponed on June 25, Binghamton – 6, Portland – 5.

Original starter Darin Gorski pitched 2 hitless innings: BB, 2 K. Upon resumption, Cory Mazzoni: 1.1 IP, 0 R, H, 0 BB, K, for the win and Cory Mazzoni (W, 4-2) Jeff Walters pitched a prefect 9^th inning for the save.

Josh Rodriguez: 2-5, RBI, R.

Allen Dykstra: 1-3, HR, BB, 2 RBI, R.

St Lucie (47-40) edges Charlotte (41-47) 7-6.

Matt Bowman: (W, 5-2) 5.0 IP, 3 R, 2 ER, 6 H, 5 BB, 4 K.

Angel Cuan (1.2 IP, 0 R, H, 0 BB, 2 K) and Bret Mitchell (1.0 IP, 0 R, 2 H, BB, 3 K) pitched well in relief, and T.J. Chism (S, 12) got the final 2 outs without surrendering a baserunner.

Kevin Plawecki is heating up again: 3-4, 2B, 2 RBI, R.

Kyle Johnson in the leadoff spot: 1-3, HR, 2 BB, 2 RBI, 2 R. As I said yesterday “I have a feeling this kid bears watching.”

Augusta (47-40) crushes Savannah (52-37) 9-1.

Starter, Matthew Koch (L, 5-4) could not make it through the 2^nd inning: 1.2 IP, 7 R, 3 ER, 6 H, 0 BB.

Estarlin Morel (4.0 IP, 0 R, 3 H, 0 BB, K) looked good in relief.

Shawn Teufel did not surrender a run, despite allowing 3 H in the 9^th inning.

Maikis De La Cruz: 1-3, 2B, BB, RBI.

Auburn (8-14) throttles Brooklyn (9-14) 7-0 in Game 1.

Seth Lugo: (L, 1-2) 2 R, 3 H, 2 BB, K in 3.0 IP. Kevin McGowan and Paul Paez were also roughed up, but Tim Peterson was perfect (K) pitching the last 2.0 innings of the game.

No offense = no highlights.

Brooklyn (10-14) comes back to take the nightcap over Auburn (8-15) 4-3.

Dario Alvarez: (W, 1-1) 3 R, 6 H, BB, K in 5.0 IP.

Darwin Frias, (S, 1) like Tim Peterson in Game 1, was perfect (5 K) pitching the last 2.0 innings of the game.

Ismael Tijerina: 3-4, RBI, R.

Matt Oberste: 2-4, RBI, 2 R.

Kingsport (8-12) @ Danville (9-9) postponed (rain).

GCL Cardinals take GCL Mets 7-6 in makeup game from July 2.

After 3 Mets pitchers stayed even with the Cards through 7 innings, Casey Meisner (L, 0-1) could took the loss: 3.0IP, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 H, BB, K.

Jhoan Urina: 2-3, 3B, BB, 2 RBI, R.

DSL Pirates2 (16-16) with 4 in the 9^th, surprise DSL Mets1 (16-17) 4-2.

Juan Marte (L, 2-1) took the loss when the lone batter he faced and walked in the 9^th inning, came around to score, 3.0IP, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 H, BB, K. Franly Caminero (BS, 3) blew the save, allowing a R, 2 H, BB, K.

John Mora: 4-4, 3B, 2 RBI.

DSL Phillies (17-17) edge DSL Mets2 (19-15) 4-3.

Merandy Gonzalez (L, 2-1) took the loss: 4.0 IP, 2 R, 1 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 3 K.

Enmanuel Garcia: 2-4, 3B, 2 R.

Fernando Rios: 2-3, RBI, R.

Draft 14 – Nick Gordon, Michael Gettys, Nate Causey, Oregon

6-12-13  -  Committed to Florida State, Nick Gordon had a big year for Olympia, batting .505 with 50 base hits, 15 doubles and 23 runs scored. He also pitched and posted a 5-1 record. He's the son of fomer major leaguer Tom "Flash" Gordon and the brother of Dee Gordon, who has seen time with the Los Angeles Dodgers LINK

6-30-13 - Jheremy Brown ‏@JBrownPG  - 2014 OF Michael Gettys (Gainesville, GA) went 2/3 with a double off the wall & a hard line drive triple to LCF Also stole a base #PGTourney

6-27-13  -  Player:  Nate Causey  Position:  C  School:  Arizona State  Date of Birth:  3/6/1993  Height/Weight:  6’2/236  Bats/Throws:  L/R  2014 Class:  College Junior  Previously Drafted:  2011, 46th rd, Rockies  Scouting Report:  from Don Olsen on 6/18/2013 - Nate has a thick build, strong lower half, will fill into a Jim Thome type build.  Strong BP, lots of strength to his game, shows pull power.  Hands have a strong load and bat shows a bit of wrap that leaves him long through the zone.  He has a collapsing backside with some forced lift to the swing.  He shows the bat speed and strength, heavy pull power approach in a “mash or slash” type offensive game. http://bigleaguefutures.net/1/2013/06/27/2014-mlb-draft-profile-nate-causey/

6-27-13  -  Oregon: The Ducks will have plenty of pitching, but the question with this club remains, will they hit? The lack of offensive production killed the Ducks in the NCAA postseason this year, and they'll move forward without first baseman Ryon Healy, who was by far their best hitter this past season. Tommy Thorpe, Jake Reed and Cole Irvin will formulate a very good weekend rotation, while with reliever Jimmie Sherfy likely to sign, sophomore left-hander Garrett Cleavinger would be a perfect type of arm to fill his shoes. LINK

Draft 14 – Michael Kopech, Jacob Gatewood, Luis Ortiz, Michael Suiter, Brandon Chapman

7-9-13 - Jheremy Brown ‏@JBrownPG  - 2014 RHP Michael Kopech (Mt Pleasant, TX) w an easy 1st inning, working 90-93 on FB and a 77 slider Struck out 2 in 1-2-3 first

6-28-13 - Jacob Gatewood, SS, Clovis HS (Fresno, CA): - People love prep shortstops, and Jacob Gatewood is one to dream on. At 6'5", 190 lbs., with plenty of room to fill in, he may outgrow shortstop, but he'll get every chance to stick there, as he's an outstanding athlete who could provide double-digit home runs from the position. Plus arm strength; quick, soft hands... you're sold on him before you see him bat. And then he bats, and it's a thing of beauty. Balanced at the plate, he generates terrific bat speed with loose, quick hands. He squares the ball up and drives it. He and Alex Jackson will be this year's Frazier/Meadows - expect comparisons right up until draft day. LINK

7-5-13 - Luis Ortiz, RHP, Sanger HS (CA) - The 6’-3”, 220-pound right-hander will be almost 19 on draft day, making him one of the older players in his class. Because of this, his upside isn’t as high as others on this list. That said, his stuff is really good, and his fastball sits in the 92-95 mph range. He adds a developing plus slider that sits in the mid-80s, and his offspeed stuff is still in the developmental stages. He has great mound presence and feel for his pitches, and he also is a good athlete. LINK

7-10-13 - Player:  Michael Suiter   Position:  OF   School:  Kansas   Date of Birth:  4/9/1992   Height/Weight:  6’1/200   Bats/Throws:  R/R   2014 Class:  College Junior  Previously Drafted:  2011, 37th rd, Reds  Scouting Report:  Athletic/solid tools  Open Stance  Holds hands high  Quick bat  More raw power than stats suggest Shows a good eye Inconsistent at the plate LINK

7-11-13 - Jheremy Brown ‏@JBrownPG  - 2014 C Brandon Chapman with an exclamation point, putting Marucci up 5-0 with a 3run homerun that go out in a hurry over LF fence #PGTourney

An Early Look at RHPs - Luke Weaver

8.  Luke Weaver

6-9-13  - 17.Luke Weaver, RHP (Florida State): Has a strong two pitch mix with a low-to-mid 90s fastball and a quality slider. With excellent control, the righty posted a fantastic 2.90 FIP, only walking 17 in 92  IP. http://www.minorleaguerundown.com/2013/06/09/2014-mlb-draft-top-30-prospects/

6-9-13  - 13. Minnesota Twins — Luke Weaver, RHP, Florida State - A 6’-2”, 180-pound right-hander, Weaver has enjoyed an outstanding season for the Seminoles this year. Over 15 starts, he has a 2.29 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 119 K/19 BB over 98.1 innings. His 10.9 K/9 and 6.3 K/BB ratios show the kind of power/command pitcher he is. His fastball sits in the low/mid-90s and he adds a change-up that shows plus potential. There is still room for projection and added velocity as he fills out. http://throughthefencebaseball.com/2014-mlb-mock-draft-1-0-no-time-like-the-present/34008#Vj5KQGPZZT1XUyhx.99

6-10-13 - Luke Weaver, RHP, Florida State - The Florida State righthander has managed to remain somewhat under the radar, but he has the ability to climb draft boards over the next year.  His fasball sits low 90′s and touches 94.  His change is an above average pitch and his breaking ball shows promise.  Weaver’s also shows very good command. http://bigleaguefutures.net/1/2013/06/10/2014-mlb-draft-early-college-names-to-know/

 

6-13-13  -  13. Minnesota Twins — Luke Weaver, RHP, Florida State - A 6’-2”, 180 pound right-hander, Weaver has enjoyed an outstanding season for the Seminoles this year. Over 15 starts, he has a 2.29 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 119 K/19 BB over 98.1 innings. His 10.9 K/9 and 6.3 K/BB ratios show the kind of power/command pitcher he is. His fastball sits in the low/mid-90s and he adds a change-up that shows plus potential. There is still room for projection and added velocity as he fills out. http://beforeitsnews.com/sports/2013/06/2014-mlb-mock-draft-1-0-no-time-like-the-present-2513748.html?currentSplittedPage=2

 

6-27-14  -  Player:  Luke Weaver   Position:  RHP   School:  Florida State   Date of Birth:  8/21/1993   Height/Weight:  6’2/170   Bats/Throws:  R/R   2014 Class:  College Junior   Previously Drafted:  2011, 19th rd, Blue Jays  Scouting Report:  He throws from a ¾ to low ¾ arm slot and gives off a Bret Saberhagen type vibe.  The slot shows a bit of wrap, but decent three piece delivery.  Fastball was 91-94 (95).  Offering shows natural good hand side action on the 2S, some even off the 4S grip.  He works it around and shows solid command of the offering, attacks the lower half of the strike zone.  Luke’s change up has a solid amount of deception, shows depth and fades at times, looks to sit above average.  Slider has bite, can sweep at times, nice horizontal action glove side when throwing away at the RHH, will attack LHH inside with it. http://bigleaguefutures.net/1/2013/06/26/2014-mlb-draft-profile-luke-weaver/

SI.com - MLB Power Rankings

MLB Power Rankings

1 Last Week: 4	St. Louis Cardinals No team gets more offense from the right side of the infield than the Cardinals. They are the only team whose first baseman (Allen Craig) and second baseman (Matt Carpenter) both have adjusted OPS+ scores higher than 125 (i.e. 25 percent above average when taking league and ballpark into account). Carpenter has a 147 and Craig a 138.
2 Last Week: 1	Boston Red Sox The Red Sox lead the majors with 210 doubles and are on pace for 366 this season, which would rank sixth all-time. Notably, two Boston teams are already tied for second place -- the 1997 and 2004 editions both hit 373 -- while the '03 squad clubbed 371 doubles (fifth place) and the '10 Sox hit 358 (tied for sixth, for now).
3 Last Week: 5	Oakland Athletics Oakland has the AL's third-best bullpen ERA (3.14). Anchoring that group is closer Grant Balfour, whose 41st consecutive save broke a franchise record held by Dennis Ecklersley -- just part of his overlooked exploits this year.
4 Last Week: 10	Detroit Tigers In addition to being 13-0, Tigers starter Max Scherzer is also on pace to become only the third pitcher in AL history to finish a year with a K/9 above 10 while maintaining a WHIP below 1.00. The other two pitchers are Johan Santana, who did so with the Twins in 2004, and Pedro Martinez, who did it three times with the Red Sox in 1999, 2000 and '02.
5 Last Week: 7	Tampa Bay Rays David Price's first two starts since returning from a triceps injury have been his best two of the season -- combined, he's gone 16 innings with 15 strikeouts and one run allowed while not walking anyone. One important note, however, is that he faced the AL's two lowest-scoring offenses (Houston and Chicago) which also happen to be two of the four least likely to walk.
6 Last Week: 3	Atlanta Braves Even with two top relievers, Jonny Venters and Eric O'Flaherty, lost for the season to arm injuries, the Braves have overtaken the Pirates for best bullpen ERA in the majors at 2.65. Atlanta has seven pitchers who have made at least 14 relief appearances and who have an ERA under 3.00, which would tie a major league record for a season currently held by the 2010 Braves and the 2012 Athletics.
7 Last Week: 11	Texas Rangers Conjure a list of the AL's best hitters over the last four years, and you'll probably think of Miguel Cabrera, Jose Bautista, David Ortiz, Josh Hamilton and Robinson Cano. Indeed, those are five of the top six on the OPS leaderboard, but less discussed is the guy ranking fourth, Adrian Beltre, who has shaken off a slow start this season to hit 20 homers with a .909 OPS this season.
8 Last Week: 2	Pittsburgh Pirates The Pirates lost four straight games this week while scoring 1, 3, 1 and 1 runs in those games. Pittsburgh is actually tied for the major league lead with 15 wins in games scoring three or fewer runs, but that losing streak cost the Pirates their hold on first place in the NL Central.
9 Last Week: 6	Cincinnati Reds The Reds' offense continues to be propped up by Joey Votto, Shin-Soo Choo and Jay Bruce, with minimal help from the rest of the lineup. Those three are Cincinnati's only players whose adjusted OPS+ is above league average among the 11 Reds with at least 100 PAs -- only the Marlins and Yankees have fewer players with an above-average OPS+ this year.
10 Last Week: 15	New York Yankees The Yankees just won't fade away. They've won seven of their last 10 and get a major reinforcement on Thursday, as shortstop Derek Jeter returns to action. In his absence, New York had the majors' second-worst offensive production from the position with a .552 OPS.
11 Last Week: 12	Los Angeles Angels We're finally seeing some glimpses of the real Josh Hamilton. He hit his first multi-homer game of the season on Wednesday, and he recently compiled a 12-game hit streak in which he also drew seven walks -- that was a walk rate of one every 7.4 plate appearances, whereas the rest of the season he's been drawing a free pass only once every 16.4 PAs.
12 Last Week: 13	Los Angeles Dodgers Lost amid a crowded outfield of storylines -- Puig-mania, Matt Kemp's injury woes and Andre Ethier's status as possible trade bait -- is that Carl Crawford has returned to productivity. After two lost years in Boston, Crawford has a .271/.330/.420 batting line with a 110 OPS+ that is solidly above-average.
13 Last Week: 14	Kansas City Royals As Grantland contributor Rany Jazayerli noted on Twitter, Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas is in the midst of the worst single-season performance ever with runners in scoring position: entering play on Wednesday, he was 4-for-61 in those situations with four singles and just six RBIs. (No player with at least 60 ABs with RISP has fewer RBIs than Moustakas.)
14 Last Week: 9	Baltimore Orioles Manny Machado is one of four 21-and-under players to be named an All-Star, and he has gotten plenty of attention for his hitting -- he's on pace to break the record for doubles that has stood since 1931 -- but his defense has been exceptional, too. According to the Fielding Bible, he has saved 21 runs defensively, seven more than any other player at his position.
15 Last Week: 20	Arizona Diamondbacks After dealing with elbow pain this spring, rookie centerfielder Adam Eaton finally made his season debut on Tuesday. This will probably cut into the playing time for A.J. Pollock, whose .260/.299/.430 batting line is unspectacular, although he held his own defensively. Pollock ranks third among big league centerfielders with nine runs saved, according to the Fielding Bible.
16 Last Week: 8	Cleveland Indians The seventh inning seems to be Justin Masterson's breaking point. He has pitched into that frame 16 times but finished it only nine times. His ERA in innings 3-6 is no higher than 3.50 in each, but it's 10.80 in the seventh; it's also the only inning in which opponents are hitting at least .300 with an OBP of at least .400 and a slugging percentage over .500.
17 Last Week: 17	Chicago Cubs With all the attention on Carlos Marmol's shifting roles and eventual release from the team, it's been easy to overlook Kevin Gregg's dominance as his replacement. Before blowing a save (in a game the Cubs still won) on Sunday, he had converted 15 of 16 chances with a 1.53 ERA in 29 1/3 innings. He had inherited just eight runners but only one scored.
18 Last Week: 19	Washington Nationals The Nationals' offense tails off late in games. Their OPS in innings 1-6 isn't great (.721, 18th in MLB) but it dips dramatically in inning seven or later (.618, 29th in MLB). Relatedly, their highest-scoring innings are innings 2-5.
19 Last Week: 22	Philadelphia Phillies Phillies centerfielder Ben Revere had a .244 average and .287 OBP as recently as June 11, but he's had a torrid four weeks in which he's gone 44-for-108 (.407) and raised his season stats to a .302 average and .336 OBP.
20 Last Week: 21	New York Mets If you feel like the Mets' latest lousy season has been longer than usual, you're right. Not only has New York already played 11 extra-inning games this season, but five have gone at least 13 innings (including Monday night's 16-inning win in San Francisco) and their average game length is the third-longest in history, according to this story in the Wall Street Journal.

Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/mlb/news/20130711/mlb-power-rankings-week-14/#ixzz2YkzSIJDw

FLASH - Roster Moves

Here is the updated roster as of today, July 11.

Please note the following changes:

- RHP Wanel Mesa transferred to temporary inactive list

- LHP Shawn Teufel transferred to Savannah from Brooklyn

Shaun Marcum Was Better Than You Think

Tuesday on SNY, Ed Coleman announced Mets RHP Shaun Marcum will not pitch again this season due to Thoracic Outlet Syndrome which will require surgery.

While most Mets fans will either pay this little attention or will rejoice in replacing a pitcher with a 1-10 record with someone more talented, I write this to recap Marcum’s season and shed some light on how good he actually pitched this year…despite what some numbers suggest.

Before doing so, I must explain a couple sabermetric measurements. The first is a simple concept: How many base runners did Marcum leave on base? Another way to phrase this: What was his strand rate? The major league average is something like 72%. In other words, the average pitcher in the MLB allows a runner to score only 28% of the time. The rest of the time he gets stranded or is tagged/thrown out.

Marcum’s strand rate was 61.9%.

“Well he just needed to pitch better with runners on then, right”?

Well, yes and no. Marcum’s career LOB% (Left On Base %) is 74.9%, far above the 61.9% clip this year. This leads me to conclude that Marcum’s strand rate was more statistical anomaly than indictment of pitching ability.

This also means that it he was bound for a statistical correction as the season went on.

Which leads me to my next point: How ineffective was Marcum? Even the most saber-resistant fans understand the importance of defense for a pitcher’s success. The better fielders behind the pitcher, the more outs they make, and the better chance the pitcher has at winning the game.

Luckily for fans (not to mention General Managers), there is a way to quantify the result of batted balls and normalize it for pitchers across the league. In lieu of my rough comprehension of FIP explaining it to you, let Fangraphs (a resource every baseball fan should take advantage of:

“Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP) measures what a player’s ERA should have looked like over a given time period, assuming that performance on balls in play and timing were league average. Back in the early 2000s, research by Voros McCracken revealed that the amount of balls that fall in for hits against pitchers do not correlate well across seasons. In other words, pitchers have little control over balls in play. McCracken outlined a better way to assess a pitcher’s talent level by looking at results a pitcher can control: strikeouts, walks, hit by pitches, and homeruns.

A walk is not as harmful as a homerun and a strikeout has less impact than both. FIP accounts for these kinds of differences, presenting the results on the same scale as ERA. It has been shown to be more effective than ERA in terms of predicting future performance.”

Marcum’s ERA was 5.29. His FIP was 3.66. In other words, one can interpret FIP and say, “Marcum’s ERA should be 3.66”. Those two numbers, over larger sample sizes, tend to veer towards one another. The explanation? Marcum’s starts can be characterized by simple bad luck. He easily could have had an ERA a run and a half lower than it was when he went on the DL this afternoon just from the luck of the draw of the way batted balls fall.

“Hmmm well 1-10 is all that matters to me. He should have pitched better to win. I don’t care about stats. Wins are wins and losses are losses”.

Right? Sure, we want to win games and a pitcher’s record is indicative of his effectiveness doing so…right?

This could not be further from the truth.

I think Mets fans are finally starting to come around to this notion having watched Harvey dominate the National League but have only 7 wins to show for it, while Jon Lester and R.A. Dickey both have more wins despite sporting ERAs above four and a half (and FIPs well above 4. I’m fair.)

Marcum had some poor starts. I am not denying his ineffectiveness in a handful of games this year but for every June 14^th (5.2 innings, 6 runs) there was a June 8^th (8 innings, 1 run). Want to hear something crazy? He lost both starts.

In fact, after May 10^th up to that June 14^th start, Marcum pitched these games:

6.2 innings, 2 runs

6 innings, 4 runs

7 innings, 2 runs

6 innings, 4 runs

8 innings, 1 run

That’s an ERA of 3.48.

His record for that month+ was 0-4.

For those of you who want to know (or want to learn what these metrics mean in order to better understand value), consider the following as an addendum to the above:

His BABIP: .322, well above league average.

His walk rate: 2.41/9

His W.A.R.: 1.3.

His W.A.R. ranking of Mets pitchers: 2^nd. Only Harvey beats him.

Yes, he was a more valuable pitcher according to Wins Above Replacement than Gee, Niese, Hefner, Aardsma, Hawkins, Torres, and Wheeler. He was the second most valuable pitcher on the Mets this season. No, you did not misread that.

-----------------

Shaun, we wish you the best. If I were general manager and I need more time for some of my young arms, I would absolutely give you another contract to come pitch in Flushing. Take care.

Sincerely,

At least this Mets fan.

Binghamton Mets 2013 Game Notes

Binghamton Mets (53-33) at Portland Sea Dogs (45-42) (Double-A Affiliate of the Boston Red Sox)

Resumption: RHP Cory Mazzoni (4-3, 4.38) vs. TBD

G2: RHP Noah Syndergaard (2-0, 1.50) vs. RHP Mike McCarthy (0-1, 5.51)

Thursday, July 11, 2013 • Game #89 • Home Game #44

NYSEG Stadium • Binghamton, NY • 5:35 PM

LAST GAME: The B-Mets dropped the final game before the All-Star Break, 7-6 to New Hampshire on July 8. Darrell Ceciliani and Richard Lucas hit back-to-back home runs in the ninth to bring the B-Mets within one, but Mother Nature halted the comeback. With one out, the game went into a rain delay and was eventually called handing the B-Mets the loss.

SUSPENDED GAME: The B-Mets and Sea Dogs will begin this series by resuming a suspended game from June 25. The game will start in the top of the third inning with no score. Because the game began in Portland, Binghamton will be the visiting team. After that game concludes, the two teams will play a seven-inning contest.

BINGHAMTONPITCHERS:

RHP Cory Mazzoni will resume the suspended game for the B-Mets. This will be his 12th appearance of the season with the B-Mets and his third against Portland. Against them this season he is 1-0 and has allowed 10 runs and 16 hits in 11.1 innings. In his last start, June 3 vs. Altoona, he gave up six runs in six innings and was tagged with a loss.

RHP Noah Syndergaard will make his fourth start of the season with the B-Mets. In his last start, he matched a season-high by throwing seven innings in a win against New Hampshire. With the B-Mets, Syndergaard has struck out 23 batters and only walked four. Before being promoted to Binghamton, he went 3-3 with St. Lucie (High-A) and earned the victory in the FSL All-Star Game.

PORTLAND PITCHER, G2: RHP Mike McCarthy pitches in his seventh game for the Sea Dogs, and his second as a starter. He started his first Double-A game this season, June 15 vs. Altoona, and allowing four runs in 6.2 innings. He was tagged in the loss in that game. Since then, he has made six relief appearances and has gone 2-for-2 in save chances. In 14 appearances with Salem (High-A) before being promoted, he went 3-2 with a 4.72 ERA.

PLAYER OF THE MONTH: Outfielder Cesar Puello was named Eastern League June Player of the Month. The Dominican Republic native won the Triple Crown in the month, leading the league in batting average (.441), home runs (8) and RBI (24). This season Cesar leads the B-Mets with a .323 batting average, 15 home runs, and is second on the team with 55 RBI.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Infielder Danny Muno has been named EL Player of the Week for July 1-7. Muno his .417 (10-for-24) with three home runs and 12 RBI. He highlighted the week with a career-high seven-RBI effort against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats on July 4.



SERIES LOSS: Binghamton went 2-3 in their series against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. Monday’s 7-6 loss handed the B-Mets their first series loss since losing two of three to Trenton May 6-8. They had either won or split each of the last 16 series before that.

LOSING STREAK: Binghamton enters the series with a two-game losing streak. The B-Mets have lost three in a row only once this season (May 1-3).

BULLPEN WOES: Over the last two games, the Binghamton bullpen has allowed 15 runs in 6.2 innings on the hill. In that span, the bullpen’s ERA has risen from 3.07 to 3.50.

B-METS DIG THE LONG BALL: Binghamton has hit at least one home run in each of their last eight games. They have hit 17 home runs in that span and are now ranked second in the Eastern League in home runs as a team (82). Cesar Puello leads the B-Mets with 15 long balls this season.


NEXT GAME PREVIEW: The B-Mets and Sea Dogs continue their series on Friday night. LHP Mark Cohoon takes the mound for Binghamton against RHP Keith Couch for Portland. First pitch is set for 7:05 PM.