2016 IN THE BOOKS TOO SOON by Tom Brennan
2016 was an up-and-down season that ended in a flash. I could almost hear Howie Rose say it was put in the books too soon.
Five things did them in, in my view.
1) San Francisco edging out the Cards by stopping a really bad run by winning the games it had to while the Wild Card was on the line. That led us to Bumgarner, the only pitcher on the Giants or Cards who could have beaten the Mets last night. The Bum is brilliant, give him his due.
2) The idiotic head first Wilmer Flores slide on September 10 into home that led to his not recoveri g and needing surgery, all because Terry forgot to put in a pinch runner for Wilmer. I had a feeling that losing our best hitter against lefties might catch up to us. It did.
3) waiting too long for Lagares to have surgery, preventing him from being really ready for the off-season. Had he and Flores been in for Bruce and Loney, it easily could have been a different game.
5) Terry chose one book over another, when he put Familia in in the ninth inning instead of Blevins. The fine lefty Blevins had an awesome season and with lefties coming up, he was my choice. Terry failed to consider that a team like the Giants, so similar to the patient, high contact 2015 Royals, would lay off Jeurys' pitches diving out of the strike zone. I marveled that the Jiints had the reactive ability to lay off every Thor pitch that was even slightly out of the strike zone during Thor's 7 brilliant innings. Familia, not surprisingly, last melted down, as he had against the Royals.
Wrong book selected, Terry.
And off we go into the post season. Have we seen the last of Cespedes in a Mets uniform? Will our injured elite starters return to be elite again? Many such questions loom, as a fascinating season ends far too abruptly.
Let me add a #6 before I go. Cespedes can be neutralized by a craftsman, who can paint the top of the strike zone with good fastballs and curves. Bumgarner was the Master Craftsman. The Bum hit better than Cespedes, too. Amazing.
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12 comments:
This game unfolded like expected. Rats.
Yeah, Cespedes seem can't lay off the high strike zone fastball and can't hit it either. He looked bad last night. He looked bad the day they clinched too - same thing.
A little elaboration:
Flores was .340/.383/.710 vs lefties this year; Loney went 9 for 52 against lefties. BIG loss not having Flores at 1B.
Lagares is .276 against lefties lifetime, Bruce just .226.
Blevins career-wise struck out 206 of 727 lefties faced, and lefties hit him at .214 lifetime.
Reese will certainly have a Terry Collins article forthcoming.
IB, I don't think Cespedes mostly had a "lay off the high stuff" problem. Bumgarner seemed to be right at the top of the strike zone, throwing strikes, on most pitches to him, very accurate, and Cespedes just could not handle those. Cespedes needs to get smart and figure it out - if it means shortening up his swing or something on those high strikes in order to hit them, do so.
Or, if he signs with someone else, don't figure it out.
Congratulations to the Mets!
Considering all that these players went through as a team,
they should all hold their heads high and be proud of what they have accomplished.
I am so bummed about last nights game... As far as I am concerned We didn't make the Post season cause I treat Last night like a Play in game...
However I cannot be pissed... this team accomplished so much more than could have been expected... You lose wright, walker, Degrom, Harvey, Matz, Neise, flores, legares and duda ... then get nothing from Darnaud or Grandy for most of the year... Then trade for bruce and get Zero until the last week of the season... Cespedes and cabrera are hobbling the last 2 months... AND yet we still get the host Wild card game...(in the old days we would be playing the cubs as the only wildcard but that's for not)...
This group is probably the team we should be most proud of... We are usually let down by the boys in Blue and orange... This group over achieved...
Eddie, despite my mild critique, the Mets did great - my brother was not so forgiving - my biggest disappointment was not seeing Lugo and Gsellman in the playoffs...could they have taken down the mighty Cubs? We'll never know.
Bob G, it was quite a season.
I don't think the Mets could have done much last night with the way MadBum was dealing.......however, I am puzzled by the excessive number of lefties Terry put into the lineup against one of the best lefties in all of baseball.
Considering how the season unfolded, a wild card game was a decent finish.
Here's to better health in 2017!
Thomas, I totally agree with you...i wanted Lugo and Gsellman in the playoffs for a different reason... I think both are serviceable but non are starts... Hoping a solid playoff performance win or lose would have increased thier trade value to where we may be able to flip one or both for Pieces of greater need... (Catcher or 3B maybe)
Eddie, I think Lugo and Gsellman have real trade value already. However, I really do not think there are other Mets minor leaguers ready to step into the starting rotation of the Mets in 2017 when there are more injuries - with Harvey and Wheeler's recoveries having significant question marks, and deGrom and Matz being lesser but present question marks, due to their injuries, and Colon's remarkable continued dominance being questionable given his advanced age next year, I think we need to hold onto both Lugo and Gsellman - I think those 7 are needed to get thru 2017 - at a minimum.
I agree that we need 7 pitchers but I have always said to Maximize value of every asset... Look at the Braves... They could have used shelby miller...But someone was ridiculous enough to part with the haul they got... We must always be looking to flip our No. 4 starter for a future allstar (as a example)... Pickup like Salas work too... SELL High BUY Low...
Great point, Eddie, my brother brings up that Miller trade all the time. Get a deal anything like that, pull the trigger.
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