Cutnpaste: - Wily Mo Pena, Jose Reyes, Rhiner Cruz, Plate Patience, Sports Writing

Wily Mo Pena:


When the Seattle Mariners picked up Wily Mo Pena late last month one thing was for sure -- he'd continue to hit moon shots, and strike out, and walk. He's done that with the Tacoma Rainiers, hitting a long ball in his first plate appearance with the organization -- that went an estimated 438 feet and he didn't even get all of it -- and he blasted two in Albuquerque Thursday Pena is likely to see the big leagues sometime this season -- if for nothing more than to marvel at his batting practice sessions, which are pretty epic and worth the price of admission - http://networkedblogs.com/lhKBn  


Jose Reyes:


Writes Andy Martino: One person familiar with the Mets' plans told the Daily News in June that "both" the money and length of a Crawford-type contract were unappealing to the team. With the trade deadline now passed and Reyes still a Met, that same person was asked this week if the thinking had evolved. "Nothing has changed," that person said, adding that the Mets were "still nervous about it." - http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/mets/post/_/id/31323/mets-morning-briefing-8-5-11  


Rhiner Cruz:


7-26-11: - http://www.amazinavenue.com/2011/7/26/2287253/mets-mid-term-farm-system-review-2011-binghamton#storyjump  - RHP Rhiner Cruz - STOCK UP - Not exactly a household name and he didn't appear in the preseason Top 50, but the 25-year old Cruz is opening a lot of eyes by handling Double-A hitters to the tune of a .200 average against in his first go-around with Bingo. Specifically, it's the heater, which has gained a couple ticks and now tops out at 99mph, that will keep scouts interested in his exploits, good or bad. So far it's mostly been good but like many fireballers Cruz has a problem keeping it in the strike zone. Throughout his career he's posted BB/9 at or around 5 and this season has been no different. But if he can somehow figure that out he'll move real fast.


Plate Patience:


But it was the bottom of the eighth that infuriated me, and things like this will infuriate me until the end of time. One out, nobody on, Daniel Murphy walks on five pitches. Then David Wright works the count to 3-1 before singling to center. So that's 10 pitches, seven balls, two runners on courtesy of JonnyVenters. Now, if you're the next hitter, what do you do? Well, if you're sane, you take a pitch. But if you're Angel Pagan, you swing at the first pitch and fly to right. Then, if you're Jason Bay, you also swing at the first pitch and ground to second base to end the inning, and there was your ballgame. - http://www.metstradamusblog.com/2011-articles/august/blue-for-you.html  


Sports Writing:


Per Twitter: - HPbasketball Hardwood Paroxysm - by BFoley82 - sports writing is kind of nice in that you go to games to talk to players who hate you so you can write articles read by people who hate you

Angel Pagan, Jose Offerman, Josh Satin, Wily Mo Pena, Chris Schwinden

Photo by Michael G. Baron

Angel Pagan:


7-13-11: - amazinavenue.  - B- - He's hitting at exactly league average right now, but Pagan gets a boost for expected performance. As his BABIP (.263) rises to his xBABIP (.321), much of the painful drops out of his batting line. Look at the positives. He's striking out a career-best rate (9%) and walking at a career-high rate (10.2%). He's hitting line drives (22%) and making more contact than ever. Of course you'd like to see a little more power, though, hence the minus.


Jose Offerman:


1990-2005 (Dodgers/Red Sox/Royals/Twins/Mets/Phillies/Mariners) - As a child in Los Angeles, I associated defensive lapses in baseball with Jose Offerman. I remember vividly watching groundball after groundball roll between his long, useless legs. Now, as an adult, I associate psychological lapses with Offerman. I remember vividly hearing about the time he went crazy at a minor league game with a bat; the time he punched a Dominican Winter League umpire in the face


Josh Satin:


7-14-11: - http://www.amazinavenue.com/2011/7/11/2270752/mets-minors-road-report-binghamton-7-9-brooklyn-7-10  - He looked better at 3B as well, making a pair of nice plays, and handling all the routine stuff. This is the first year he has played this much at third base, so he could just be starting to get comfortable now. The arm is still mediocre for the position, but not egregiously so. He played 2B in the nightcap and stayed mostly anonymous, one bad throw trying to turn a double play, but he had to handle a weird backhanded flip from Valdespin deep behind second base. Probably should have put it in his pocket, but it didn’t really effect anything. Okay, so he’s six months older than Daniel Murphy, and he’s a future utility guy in an org that is stuffed to the brim with future utility guys. But I lobby for Josh Satin. I will lobby Sandy, and I will lobby Paul. He’s our new Jeff Keppinger, right down to the part where he’s going to be 28 before he gets a shot somewhere, and it probably won’t be with the Mets.


Wily Mo Pena:


Diamondbacks designated OF Wily Mo Pena for assignment. Pena slugged five home runs in 46 at-bats with the Diamondbacks but was let go Thursday due to his lack of defensive ability. He could draw interest elsewhere. http://www.rotoworld.com/headlines/mlb/332719/baseball-headlines?r=1  


Chris Schwinden:


7-14-11: - So, you start playing baseball when you’re, like, six years old and you continue through Pony League, junior high, High School, college, get draft, play rookie ball, and wind up on a AAA all-star team. The next day, your team is on national television and someone tells you to put this headset on because you’re about to interviewed for an entire half inning. You’re family and friends are at the end of their chairs, your agent has a woodie, and guess what? Your teammate, Bubba Bell, sticks a chewed piece of bubble gum, bubble and all, on the top of your cap and headset. I can only assume Tuff came to rescue and took the gum down while Chris was off the camera.

Jack Leathersich, Matt Harvey, Chris Schwinden, Brandon Nimmo, Wily Mo Pena

Jack Leathersich:


The Mets signed their 5th round pick on Sunday, 5-11 LHP Jack Leathersich.


He burst on to the national radar in 2009 with a masterful freshman year as a member of the University of Massachusetts Lowell Riverhawks, going 7-4 with a 2.18 ERA and 63 strikeouts in 70.1 innings pitched. His stellar season earned him Northeast-10 Freshman of the Year honors for 2009. In 2010, Leathersich had a bit of a sophomore slump, compiling a 4.26 ERA to go along with a 3-2 record, but still struck out 62 batters in 57.0 innings pitched. He finished up 2010 by pitching in the Cape Cod League for the Orleans Firebirds. As a member of the bullpen, he put together a 1.71 ERA, striking out 31 in just 21.0 innings. Prior to the 2011 season, Leathersich was named the third-best Division II draft prospect, as well as a pre-season All American. I sat down with Leathersich recently and got the chance to ask him how he has made himself into the pitcher he is today and what the future may hold for him. - http://www.goriverhawks.com/sports/m-ba  ... 11aac.html  


http://www.baseballamerica.com/ : - UMass-Lowell's Jack Leathersich has been in the Riverhawks rotation since his freshman year, but he's best suited to pitch out of the bullpen, which is where he had success in the Cape Cod League last summer. An arm-strength lefty, Leathersich struck out 31 batters in 21 innings of relief for Orleans, running his fastball up to 95 mph, while he works at 88-92 as a starter. He shows two fringe-average breaking balls, a slurve and a curveball, but he slows everything down in his delivery on secondary offerings. Scouts have concerns about Leathersich's mechanics, as he throws across his body with recoil and often loses his arm slot. Some talked him up as a potential top-five-rounds selection, but he'll probably be taken in the eighth- to 12th-round range.


From - http://www.minorleagueball.com/2011/6/14/2222649/2011-mlb-draft-new-york-mets-review#storyjump  - 5) Jack Leathersich, LHP, UMass-Lowell: Terrific numbers, hits 95 in short stints, but rough mechanics and problems with breaking ball likely limit him to bullpen work, though he could be overpowering in that role. 1.62 ERA, 126/27 K/BB in 89 IP.





Matt Harvey:


6-26-11: - I can’t begin to remember how many times we have written about the difficulty of going from A+ to AA. There are very few bad baseball players at this level and, in order for a pitcher to excel here, he must pitch, not throw. Matt Harvey got his first lesson yesterday: 4.2-IP, 9-H, 4-ER, 4-K, 2-BB, 7.71. Hey, it’s only one game and, frankly, every future start needs a couple of these to keep them honest.


Chris Schwinden:


6-26-11: - It’s going to be very interesting to see what the Mets do with this guy if he keeps this up. He pitched his 14th start for Buffalo yesterday, going 7.0-IP, 7-K, 2-BB, 3-ER, 3.12. Seasonally, he has only struck out 67 in 80.2-IP and has walked 30 batters. We assume Johan Santana comes back next season and we’re still trying to figure out if Dillon Gee survives a needed rotational cut, so what about Schwinden? Long relief?



Brandon Nimmo:


6-26-11: - The barn is bigger than the modest gray ranch house that sits in front of it on the six-acre plot of land. This is not just any barn, though. It doesn’t house horses, tractors or farm equipment. What’s stored in this structure is something different. Here lives a dream. No player from the state of Wyoming ever had been a first-round pick in the major league draft until the Mets selected outfielder Brandon Nimmo with the 13th selection earlier this month. The state boasts a population of just half a million. There are nearly as many antelopes in Wyoming as people. http://www.nypost.com/p/sports/mets/inside_barn_wyoming_prospects_mets_TtBDYqPiKHhLPvZoeGOPCK#ixzz1QNrqmyt3  


Wily Mo Pena:


Left fielder Wily Mo Pena's success this season makes the point convincingly that one's choice in teams can often be an important factor in getting another shot at the big leagues. The 29-year-old hadn't played in the big leagues since 2008, but the wonderful hitting environments of the Pacific Coast League's western circuit (especially Reno, his home park) has helped kick-start Pena's career. He hit his 21st home run of the minor league season on June 19 before receiving the news that he was headed back to the big leagues to serve as the Diamondbacks' DH for this week's interleague games. It's hard to say how much of Pena's Triple-A success this season (.363/.439/.726) can be credited to the hitting environment and how much is legitimate improvement, but we can look at what happened to Pena's Reno teammate Sean Burroughs. Burroughs is batting .400/.440/.588 for Reno, but he was recently demoted from Arizona after hitting only .250/.250/.292 as a pinch-hitter for the Diamondbacks.- http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/prospect-hot-sheet/2011/2611992.html  

Mets Moves, Wily Mo Pena, Sean Buckle, Jeurys Familia, Buyers or Sellers.

Mets Move:


Matt Harvey and Matt den dekker have already packed their bags and are on the way to Binghamton. This sets off a series of move-ups that might be completed later on today. SP Greg Harvey will most probably bump from Savannah to fill the pen rotation slot at St. Lucie and slumping Cory Vaughn will be sitting next to him on the plane. The question will be who is removed from the Binghamton rotation and my vote would be Brad Holt.




Wily Mo Pena:


After hitting 21 home runs in 63 minor league games, the Arizona brought up Wily Mo Pena for the first time since 2008. He did not disappoint as he homered in the Diamondbacks 7-2 win over the Royals. Chris Young added his 15th long ball of the season, and Joe Saunders pitched seven strong innings. With the Giants losing 8-0 early in their game, Arizona could be in first place come Wednesday morning. - http://baseballmusings.com/





Sean Buckle:


49th round pick – HS LHP - Five athletes who once played for local high schools, and four Dirtbags were taken in this year’s MLB Draft—Zach Wilson (a former Bruin) was the highest high school draftee, taken 659th overall after finishing his junior season with ASU. Only one current high school athlete was taken, and it was a top competitor who’s been unable to compete for some weeks now—Sean Buckle, from Wilson, who just last Saturday had what his family hopes will be a final procedure on the fractured vertebrae in his neck. Buckle was drafted by the Mets but has said he plans on fulfilling his commitment to attend Loyola Marymount University - http://www.gazettes.com/sports/baseball-nine-long-beach-players-drafted-this-year/article_e3df780a-9263-11e0-9e8e-001cc4c03286.html 




Jeurys Familia:


6-21-11: - http://www.deepleagues.com/?p=3431  Deep Leagues updated their Top 250 baseball prospects list and Familia jumped 40 positions (which is a very big jump for this website. - 176. Jeurys Familia—P, Mets (+40) Familia is starting to improve in AA, posting double-digit strikeouts in back-to-back starts



Buyers or Sellers:


The Mets may have the biggest challenge of any team in the NL East, as they seem to be caught in between being buyers and sellers. It’s hard to see a team from New York becoming outright sellers, but despite a new minority owner, their financial standing is cloudy and with their current roster, they don’t have the horses to duke it out with the Phillies and Braves. On top of that, their two most valuable players this season, Carlos Beltran and Jose Reyes, will be free agents at the end of the year. On the other hand, the departure of those two and K-Rod should give them Mets some financial flexibility. And while the Mets are going to need some breaks to unseat the Phillies and Braves in the next couple of years, the presence of David Wright, Ike Davis, and a rotation that could be solid if Johan Santana comes back healthy to join Jonathon Niese, Mike Pelfrey, R.A. Dickey, and Dillon Gee should keep the Mets around .500 - http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/the-nl-east-and-realignment