Reese Kaplan -- Miscellaneous Observations and Topics Du Jour

Some quick hits for today...

I'm sure you've read the news that allegedly future Met Elian Soto has decided it is better off to play with his brother on the Washington Nationals.  For this occasion I can't blame the Mets for disinterest or inflexible budgetary limits.  For a high school player coming into a foreign country to play baseball it has to be a great comfort to have a family member there for familiarity and to help ease the transition to American Major League Baseball. 

Numerous bench coach candidates have either declined the opportunity presented by the Mets or have been denied permission by their current employers for the Mets to interview them.  Again, the Mets are blameless in this one as well because it's entirely reasonable for another club to try to avoid assisting one of their competitors in becoming better.  All you can do is return to the list of prospective candidates and try, try again.  

The Yankees made headlines this week with the announcement that they are naming Rachel Balkovec as the new manager for their low-A Tampa Tarpons, the first ever female in this role in an affiliated MLB organization.  I applaud the Yankees for naming the person they felt was best suited for this position regardless of gender.  Now how soon will there be female ballplayers?  One step at at time...

Word filtered out from the Winter Leagues that Robinson Cano is showing some signs of life at the plate.  Cynical people will, of course, presume that his sudden flourish is less about his talent than it is about sketchy competition and perhaps something in a syringe.  Although I lean in that direction myself, a productive Cano is good news for the Mets whether he plays at 2B, 3B or a newly created National League DH role.  It also opens up slightly wider the prospect of trading him if he's back to being an offensive weapon.

Lost in the early headlines this week was the decision that Brandon Nimmo has switched from CAA to Scott Boras for representation.  In the past that combination was a sure sign of no-go for the Wilpon-led Mets, but they did work with Boras for the new contract provided to Max Scherzer, so it doesn't mean he's necessarily gone.  Do look at history, however, and realize that Boras is going to want to have the annual .400+ OBP Nimmo see what he can earn on the open market in order to maximize his agent's slice of the free agent pie.  If the Mets want to lock up Nimmo they had better make it a high priority once a CBA is signed.

Right now the Mets appear to be overloaded on the infield and thin in the outfield.  Hopefully Billy Eppler and company are working hard to ascertain how to restore a bit of on-the-field balance to the offense.  No one seems ready to see more of Dominic Smith in the outfield and few are confident that Mark Canha is worth the money they paid to obtain him.  Everyone would still like to see another booming bat out there.  

Pitching continues to be a black hole for the Mets with openings both in the rotation and in the bullpen.  Again, player movements are not possible during the lockout but planning should be taking place.  Left handers are needed in both roles and hopefully a combination of free agent signings and trades can help supplement the collection of wannabes already on the roster.