4/17/21

Mets News and Breakfast Links 4/17/2021

 



Good Morning.  Happy Birthday Jed Lowrie.  Mets play two today after being snowed out in Colorado.  Meanwhile, every other NL East team was a winner.  

Section Links: Mets Links, MLB Links, This Day in Mets History and Comments. 

Mets Links: 

SNY.TV: Mets-Rockies postponed due to snow, to be made up Saturday as part of doubleheader. The Mets have played eight games this season and had seven games postponed.  The game will be made up on Saturday as part of a doubleheader that starts at 5:10 p.m. It is expected that Jacob deGrom and Joey Lucchesi will get the starts for the Mets in those games.


Mack’s Mets: Aidan Cooke - New York Mets at Colorado Rockies Series Preview. “the Rockies were swept by the Giants and Dodgers and are currently riding a 6-game losing streak.”

Rising Apple: Mets vs. Rockies: Three things we want to see in the three games. The Mets offense can fatten up their stats early on; What is Joey Lucchesi capable of as a starter?; Is there a potential future trade candidate on the Rockies?

Faith and Fear in Flushing: Friday Night Void.

Mike’s Mets: We've Been Here Before.

 NY Post: How Mets postponements are affecting Jacob deGrom. “’We might start deGrom in the second game, too,’ Mets pitching coach Jeremy Hefner said Friday. Hefner was joking. The plan is to start Joey Lucchesi in the nightcap, in his Mets debut as a starting pitcher. Marcus Stroman remains on track to start Sunday’s series finale.”




Metsmerized Online: Improving Two-Strike Approach Can Help James McCann Surpass Current Hitting Woes. But if McCann can reduce his chase rate against fastballs during two-strike counts to below 30 percent, then he’ll likely start seeing some positive results involving his slugging and contact metrics moving forward. In turn, chances are he’ll also force pitchers into the zone more frequently, potentially allowing him to work out of those difficult counts more effectively.

NY Post: Mets re-hired ‘creep’ exec despite numerous complaints from female employees. “Seven employees, both male and female, told the website that Mets chief marketing, content and communication officer David Newman made inappropriate comments to female employees during his first stint with the team from 2005-18 — including an instance that resulted in a woman suing the team for discrimination based on her pregnancy.”

SNY.TV: More Mets workplace allegations surface, according to new report. Mets owner Steve Cohen has hired law firm WilmerHale to investigate the team's culture.

CBS Sports: Samson: Mets' president Sandy Alderson's comments regarding harassment will mark the end of his career. “Samson believes Alderson minimized the trauma that women and men who are harassed go through, saying "is a life changing event" that can "create an issue for decades" and needs to be taken more seriously. "Don't try to downplay what people are feeling," Samson said. "There is no statute of limitations for uncovering these wrongdoings."

Metsmerized Online: Mets Top 25 Prospects: 10-6 Group. # 10. Jaylen Palmer, 3B/SS; # 9. Thomas Szapucki, LHP; # 8. Khalil Lee, OF; # 7. J.T. Ginn, RHP; 6. Mark Vientos, 3B.

Amazing Avenue: This Week in Mets Quotes: deGrom wants to pitch into his 40s, Villar likes it like that. “I want to pitch into my 40s.” -Jacob deGrom [ESPN]; “I believe I can still compete at this level at that age, To become an inner-circle Hall of Famer, I’m gonna have to play that long.” -Jacob deGrom [ESPN].

Brian Joura Mets 360.com: Eight surprising things after eight games for the 2021 Mets.  Some of the 8: “The groundball relief corps”; “Infield corner DRS - Alonso has a +2 DRS while Guillorme has a (-3)”; “The 96 parade – Taijuan Walker averaged 93.2 mph with his fastball last year…he’s been regularly pumping them up to the plate at 96 and we’ve seen a 97 or two creep in there.” (Subscription required).

SportSpyder Mets Links: 

MLB and SportSpyder NL East and MLB Links:

AP Sports: MLB salary down 4.8% in 2 years; top 100 earn half: “The average major league salary dropped 4.8% to just under $4.17 million on opening day from the start of the previous full season in 2019. The average has fallen 6.4% since the start of the 2017 season, when it peaked at $4.45 million, according to a study of major league contracts by The Associated Press. The salary downturn is yet another sign baseball could be headed toward labor strife and a possible work stoppage in 2022.”

USA Today: Major League Baseball Salaries 2021. Top 3: Mike Trout: $37,116,667; Gerrit Cole: $36,000,000; Nolan Arenado: $35,000,000; Top Met - #16 Jacob deGrom - $28,131,955; Franscisco Lindor’s new contract salary doesn’t start until next year. 

Some of yesterday's MLB Game Highlights:



















Here is yesterday's MLB Scoreboard.

MLB.com:

AP Sports: Seager’s homer in 12th sends Dodgers to 11-6 win over Padres.

AP Sports: Chicago Cubs pitcher Ryan Tepera was suspended for three games on Thursday by Major League Baseball, which concluded he intentionally threw at Milwaukee’s Brandon Woodruff this week. Cubs manager David Ross was suspended for one game and fined because of Tepera’s actions.

USA Today: Former NL MVP Jimmy Rollins reflects on decline of Black players in Major League Baseball. “It’s more than just one thing,” Rollins told The Associated Press. “Marketing. The NBA and the NFL, those guys’ faces are plastered all over the screen. Baseball, there isn’t really a great deal of marketing. Obviously, everyone knows about Mike Trout and rightfully so, but there are some young Black players that deserves some light, too.”

MLB Trade Rumors:

Yahoo Sports:

ESPN:

FOX Sports:

CBS Sports:

SportsSpyder:

Today in Mets History Per Ultimatemets.com: 

Born on this date:

National Pastime.com:

1964

After spending the first two years of their existence at the Polo Grounds, the Mets play their first game at Shea Stadium in front of 50,312 fans in Queens. The Amazins' drop the stadium opener to Pittsburgh, 4-3, with Willie Stargell hitting the first homer in the Flushing facility.

1969

In only the ninth game of the franchise's history, Expos hurler Bill Stoneman, who had never thrown a complete game in the major leagues, tosses a no-hitter, defeating the Phillies at Connie Mack Stadium, 7-0. The 25 year-old right-hander, the future GM of the Angels, will throw another no-hit game in 1972 against the Mets.

 

2006

In front of 36,867 Shea Stadium patrons, Pedro Martinez becomes the 103rd pitcher in major league history to win 200 games when the Mets beat the Braves, 4-3. The Dominican ace has lost only 84 contests at the time of reaching the milestone, putting him behind only Bob Caruthers (74), Whitey Ford (79), and Lefty Grove (83).

2009

At Citi Field, Gary Sheffield becomes the 25th player to hit 500 career home runs. Joining Ty Cobb and Rusty Staub as the only major leaguers to homer as a teenager and as a forty year-old, the recently released Tiger DH becomes the first to reach the milestone as a pinch hitter and the first to accomplish the feat in a Mets uniform.

 

Baseball Reference:

1967 - In the only game scheduled on this Monday evening, the New York Mets pound Pittsburgh, 9 - 6. Obscured amidst the offensive fireworks is the sorry plight of poor Jerry Buchek, a career backup infielder on the verge of his career year who's got to be wondering what he ever did to Pirate right fielder Roberto Clemente, likewise embarking on his own best-ever season. Clemente abuses Buchek on both sides of the ball, starting with his 2nd-inning snatch of his 400-footer to right center. Pirate beat writer Les Biederman reports: "Clemente went toward the exit gate for a startling back-handed stab of Buchek's long drive." Next inning, one of Roberto's patented one-hop rockets undresses the Met second baseman even as it dares him to return Clemente's favor. "Clemente slammed a vicious one-hop shot right at Buchek," writes Biederman, "but the second baseman dropped the ball as he set himself to throw."

1970 - Bud Harrelson of the New York Mets hits a home run in the 1st inning of a 6 - 0 win over the Phillies. The homer is one of only seven in Harrelson's 16-year career and the only one he will ever hit at Shea Stadium.

2006: At Shea Stadium, the Mets continue their strong start to the season with a 4 - 3 victory over Atlanta as Pedro Martinez collects his 200th win with relief help from Duaner Sanchez and Billy Wagner. Martinez, from the Dominican Republic, improves his record to 200-84 and joins Dennis Martinez of Nicaragua (245-193), Dominican Juan Marichal (243-142) and Cuban Luis Tiant (229-172), as the only Hispanic American pitchers to reach the 200-win major league mark.

2009 - Gary Sheffield becomes the 25th member of the 500 home run club. He delivers a pinch-hit homer off the Brewers' Mitch Stetter in the 7th inning of a game at Citi Field, still in its first month of operation. It is Sheffield's first home run for the New York Mets, after having been released in spring training by the Detroit Tigers while sitting on 499 home runs. The Mets win the game, 5 - 4, on Luis Castillo's 9th inning two-out single.

2010: The Mets need 20 innings to beat the Cardinals, 2 - 1, in the longest game since this date in 2008. Jose Reyes drives in the winning run with a sacrifice fly after going 0 for 7 for the day in a game dominated by the pitchers. Both starters, Johan Santana for New York and Jaime Garcia for St. Louis, pitch 7 scoreless innings and the game is still scoreless after 17 frames, but the Cardinals eventually run out of able-bodied pitchers. 2B Felipe Lopez is sent out to the mound and pitches a scoreless 18th inning, while P Kyle Lohse goes out to play left field, but their teammate, OF Joe Mather, gives up a run in the top of the 19th. However, Mets closer Francisco Rodriguez gives the run right back, but the Mets score again off Mather in the 20th. Mather is saddled with the loss, while Rodriguez gets the win and starter Mike Pelfrey comes out in the 21st to record the save for the Mets.

Centerfield Maz:

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8 comments:

Tom Brennan said...

No happy birthday from me for Jed.

7 postponements? Some teams have had none.

I’m ready for winter ball.

Acuna is some kind of fast.

April 17, 2021 at 6:28 AM
John From Albany said...

How about Michael Wacha? A lot of people predicted a turn around when he went to the Rays.

April 17, 2021 at 6:35 AM
Mack Ade said...

I still think this postponement thing is playing right into our hands.

Most of these new 7 inning games will be played when Lugo, Cookie, and Thor are back.

April 17, 2021 at 8:00 AM
Tom Brennan said...

Wacha had some game. Baseball is funny. Hard to keep a guy who was instrumental in the failure of 2020. Wish him well.

April 17, 2021 at 8:20 AM
Mack Ade said...

Still say it is tough to pitch in NYC.

April 17, 2021 at 9:38 AM
TexasGusCC said...

No comments on Alderson news? Mack brought it out Thursday... At this point, there isn’t much to be done except ask Alderson to give up his hiring ability and just run the business, because who do you find now? Steve Cohen can say that he’s hired a firm and heads that need to roll will roll. Alderson will execute baseball strategy and Andy Cohen will supervise all hires and fires after the firm does its personnel audit.

Saw the last 7 innings of that Padres-Dodgers game. Besides that the Pads did a great job battling back and even tying it in the ninth after Machado walked, stole second, stole third, and scored on a roller through the infield by Hosmer, but they then left five men on base the for two extra innings, but what irritated me to the Nth degree was Hosmer not even shortening his swing to make contact against Price when there was a man on third and one out in the 11th. I just don’t like that guy. I think he was a Boras sales job. In the 12th, after three runs are already in and the second baseman goes in the pitch, a grounder to Hosmer that he doesn’t charge but waits for the pitcher to cover, WHOSE A SECOND BASEMAN! So, he forgets to cover, can’t blame the guy, no play. Another base runner. By then the Pads had give up, but dude, you suck.

Lastly, how did the Padres trade a washed up James Shields for Fernando Tatis? Man, in a few years we will be comparing the Kelenic trade to the Tatis trade to the Ryan trade as the worst in MLB history. Trading young players for washed up stars...

April 17, 2021 at 11:16 AM
Mack Ade said...

I never wanted him back in the first place. Still, I hope Cohen lives by his word to let him finish the season here, hopefully in a figurehead role only.

April 17, 2021 at 11:32 AM
bill metsiac said...

You mean like Allen/Ownbey for Keith, Person for Olerud, or Preston Wilson for Piazza?

April 17, 2021 at 10:20 PM

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