Mets pitching:
2-23 vs. Washington - Marcum, Wheeler, Mazzoni, Gorski, Familia, Parnell
2-24 vs. Univ. of Michigan - Niese, Gee, Lyon, Robles, Montero, Torres
2-24 vs. Houston - Harvey, Hefner, Laffey, Feliciano, Atchison, Edgin
2-25 vs. Washington - McHugh, Germen, Ramirez, Burke, Hawkins, Carson, Rice
2-23 vs. Washington - Marcum, Wheeler, Mazzoni, Gorski, Familia, Parnell
2-24 vs. Univ. of Michigan - Niese, Gee, Lyon, Robles, Montero, Torres
2-24 vs. Houston - Harvey, Hefner, Laffey, Feliciano, Atchison, Edgin
2-25 vs. Washington - McHugh, Germen, Ramirez, Burke, Hawkins, Carson, Rice
Well, we sure should
have something to write about after these game.
I am particularly
interested in seeing every pitch that comes out of Familia’s hand. He needs a
strong start this spring if he has any chance of making the parent squad come
April 1.
Valdespin possesses one of the best overall combinations of
power, speed, and athleticism in the entire organization and though he's still
got plenty of questions left to answer, increased patience would go a long way
toward making him a viable building block for this club. While I may be on an
island with this one, I fully expect Valdespin to open a lot of eyes in 2013 by
eventually forcing himself into the lineup on a nearly regular basis --
regardless of where he's playing defensively -- and perhaps even getting a shot
at the currently vacant leadoff spot.
I’m not going to go into my anti-Spin rant anymore. We all know
what kind of dude this guy is, but, at the same time, he possesses talent that
is needed, particularly after you read the next entry on this post.
Some of you might remember me talking him up four years ago.
The talent has always been there.
Sandy Alderson announced that Daniel Murphy is
experiencing pain in his right intercostal muscle and will head back to NY for
evaluation.
This was a sliding
injury. Murphy hasn’t had complete success sliding in the past.
There’s a ton of
speculation on Twitter who the backup is. On paper it’s Turner; however, this
would be a perfect time to slot Valdespin back into his natural position and
see if he holds his own.
Word from camp (and from Jon Heyman) that the big hit of the camp is fire-baller Rafael Montero. There’s even talk of him being moved to the pen and possibly be
used as a closer in some of the ST games. I can’t speak for how Montero could
handle such a bump up. We all remember the Eddie Kunz fiasco a few years ago. A language barrier prevented him and I
developing any kind of relationship when he pitched in Savannah, but it was a
delight to watch him on the mound. The real bonus was the fact that he actually
pitched better at the A+ level after his promotion. His SO9 ratio went from a
first half Savannah season of 6.81 to 9.95 in St. Lucie. BABIP was .273 and FIP
came in at 2.46.
Every camp has a star and I think we’re looking at this one.
This also is one of those ‘wild open’ camps that anything can
happen ad anyone can make. I’m sure Montero will report to Binghamton, but it’s
the brass, not the fans, that are bragging on this kid right now.
Lastly on Montero… I went back to the notes from an interview I did
with Frank Viola last season just before the all-star break. Here was his
comments on a “word association” game we had (and I threw in what he said about
all the pitchers):
Montero – “incredible fastball and command”
Vasquez – “typically lefty from Mexico – pitches backwards and gets
away with it”
Fulmer – “impressive, asks questions, a quick learn”
Tapia – “incredible stuff – needs tuning – a 97 sinker (!)”
deGrom – “love him, sits at 94,, had TJS”
Verritt – “too early to tell, questionable overall stuff, slider is
devastating”
Chism – “bulldog,crafty, smart”
Camarena – “crafty, three quality pitches”
Bradford – “tough SOB, heavy sinker”
Pants – “an enigma”
Both pitchers will be in the Florida State League (High-A)
this season with an outside change at reaching the Eastern League (Double-A)
before the season ends. A lot will happen in the two or three years before
their debuts, but if each develops as I expect, Sanchez has a higher ceiling as
an ace. Syndergaard, on the other hand, is realistically a second or a third
starter. With that said, I am more confident that Syndergaard can complement
his fastball and change up with a third offering than I am in Sanchez’s command
profile. If I had to pick one of them to start a playoff game for me today, it
would be Syndergaard. But talent like Sanchez’s is rare.
I don’t think there’s
a second fiddle here.
1 comment:
Montero is a stud after seeing him at PSL. He has the same build like Pedro and Lincecum but like them he has an electric arm and throws bullets. Don't jerk this guy like Meija- keep him as a starter and see how he fares in AA and AAA.
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