Musings
We knew entering the 2023 season the New York Mets rotation was old, and by extension, more susceptible to injury. We were just hoping that we could at least get to Opening Day, or at least the start of the World Baseball Classic, before the team had to face a starting pitcher injury.
As it turns out, José Quintana has a broken rib. As a result, he had to pull out of the World Baseball Classic, and he is almost a lock to be out on Opening Day. In reality, he may be out much longer than that. Of course, the hope is he misses as few starts as possible.
With Quintana out, it presents an opportunity for David Peterson. In some ways, this is really his first real chance to prove himself as a Major League starter.
Yes, he was a surprise add to the Mets 2020 roster during the pandemic shortened and impacted season. He performed better than anticipated. On the strength of that season, he was given a starting job at the outset of 2021. Unfortunately, he predictably failed, and his career has been in limbo ever since.
Since that time, Peterson has developed as a promising starting pitcher. We see he has excellent arm extension on his pitches. He has also developed into a pitcher who generates a high amount of strikeouts. His slider has become an excellent weapon, one that was one of the best in the majors last season.
Peterson has done all he could do in the minors. He now needs to be in the majors working on his craft with Jeremy Hefner. As an aside here, Hefner works extremely well with sinker/slider pitchers like Peterson. Hefner working with Peterson could very well have Peterson reaching another level of his game and/or becoming more consistent.
Peterson has earned this chance. He needs to be in this position. Now, it appears he is getting that chance to be a part of the Mets rotation. He now has to pitch so well the Mets simply cannot remove him from the rotation when everyone is healthy.
One of the great things we have seen happen with Major League Baseball in recent years is the correct spelling of players’ names on the back of their jerseys. For example, Yoenis Céspedes jersey in 2015 had “CESPEDES” on the back, but in 2016, that was changed to the correct spelling of “CÉSPEDES.”
This matters because that is how you actually spell his name. The accent mark directly impacts how the names is pronounced. More than that, by not having the accent mark, tilde, or other marking, you are misspelling a player’s name. That is offensive and wrong.
It took way too long, but Major League Baseball finally got it right. Give credit where it is due. For some reason, Fanantics refuses to do the same despite being the entity which sells approved team and player jerseys and other merchandise.
If you go to Fanatics, there are player jerseys available, but your favorite player may not be one of the ones available. Fortunately, Fanantics has a drop down menu for every player on the roster. The problem is not all of the players are available or are spelled correctly.
Take Francisco Álvarez as an example. There is a very clear accent mark on the “A” making it an “Á.” With Álvarez being an uber prospect on the verge of making it to the majors, there are fans who will want his jersey. There’s a significant problem.
When you go to the Fanatics personalized Mets jersey selection, they do not have Álvarez as an option. Instead, it is the incorrectly spelled Alvarez.
At least, you can choose Álvarez as Alvarez for a personalization option. However, you cannot opt for reigning National League batting champion Jeff McNeil.
McNeil is a name of Irish origin; one of the few on the 2023 Mets. If you want a St. Patrick’s Day Mets shirt for McNeil, you can’t. That is because Fanatics deems the little c because of the “special spelling of the name.”
That’s right a lower case c is not worth Fanatics making a screen printing. They’d rather have shirts for the reigning NL batting champ and two time All-Star completely unavailable. If you want to be clever and have an apostrophe in front of another Mets player, forget it. They don’t offer apostrophes either. If you wanted an O’Díaz, you might as well just forget it.
You can probably guess like McNeil, Díaz is unavailable as well. After all, who would want the jersey of the very popular closer?
You see, rather than offer options for popular players or spell names properly, Fanatics decides they shouldn’t bother. They won’t because they don’t care and know you can’t go elsewhere. This is unacceptable, and it’s shocking MLB or the MLBPA has never sought to intervene and halt these offensive and discriminatory practices.
There is a certain irony in baseball. As we get smarter and smarter, it seems hitters averages go lower and lower. Part of the reason could be hitting .300 just isn’t nearly as valued as it used to be. In all honesty, it probably shouldn’t because we know there is more value in OBP, wRC+, or whatever other stats you choose to analyze.
With that, the chances of becoming the first player to hit .400 since Ted Williams have gone by the wayside. Williams did it in 1941, and no one has done it since.
That was 82 years ago. The last time it happened in the National League was 1930 when Bill Terry hit .401 for the New York Giants. That’s over a century ago.
There was a time when we thought George Brett could do it. We were sure Tony Gwynn could, and he might’ve if not for the 1994 strike. Surprisingly, Ichiro Suzuki never really made the run at it we thought he could. However, now, it doesn’t seem like there is an obvious candidate anymore, and really, it is a feat which has been long overlooked.
Enter Jeff McNeil.
McNeil is a throwback hitter. In an era where it seems everyone has shifted to boom or bust, McNeil focuses on putting the ball in play. He’s the hitter who tries to hit it where they ain’t. That led to him hitting .326 in 2022 and winning the National League batting title.
McNeil is the type of hitter who is always going to have a shot to win the batting title. Now, with the new shift limitation rules, his batting average could go even higher than we ever imagined it could be.
Now, this concept runs counter to what Mike Pietrillo of MLB.com postulated. In his article, he did not the success McNeil had hitting against the shift partially due to his ability to go the other way. While his analysis is sound based on the numbers, we also know McNeil is a constantly adapting and evolving hitter in terms of his approach.
One does not simply shift on Jeff McNeil pic.twitter.com/NflmCFJ2nY
— SNY (@SNYtv) May 3, 2022
Take 2019 for example. The league adjusted to his rookie breakout season by shifting him more to go the opposite way. McNeil responded with a career hit 46.3% pull rate. That year, he hit .318 and had a career best 144 wRC+.
In terms of that, we do need to dig a little deeper on McNeil. Looking at his career, he is actually NOT an opposite field slap hitter. In fact, he only goes the other way 25.8% of the time. He has a much more up the middle approach. That type of approach was one of the most harmed by shifting with a middle infielder essentially standing on second base.
Another factor not contemplated is the new dimensions of right field at Citi Field. McNeil does have power to pull one out of the park. The change will only be about 8-10 feet. If you’re Pete Alonso who hits tape measure shots, that doesn’t matter as much. For a player like McNeil, it could make all the difference.
Now, there are other factors at play like how pitchers and McNeil adjust to the pitch clock. However, looking at the stats and how McNeil’s approach at the plate, it does seem like there is an opportunity for him to make a run at .400.
McNeil has the unique ability to adjust his approach to how the defense is positioned. As he adjusts, the defense is restricted in how they can adjust back to him. This is the perfect situation for him to make a run at .400. It is really going to be fun seeming him do something that hasn’t been done in a century.
Steve Cohen has set out to stretch the financial boundaries of Major League by doing all he can do to help the New York Mets win. In successive offseasons, he has signed a future Hall of Fame pitcher still near the top of his game.
The Mets are a far cry from the Wilpon era. Instead of trying to sell replacing Zack Wheeler with Marcus Stroman (despite both pitchers being in the same rotation), there is a healthy and fun debate whether Max Scherzer or Justin Verlander should be the Mets Opening Day starter.
This win-now attitude has infected the Mets and their fanbase. It is also something we are seeing with the New York Rangers.
Last year at the trading deadline, Chris Drury made a series of inspired moves. They were able to add Justin Braun, Andrew Copp, Tyler Motte, and Frank Vatrano. The end result was a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals. After going up 2-0 in the series, they were within a blown lead of going to the Finals.
Drury would again not be deterred. He went out and got Motte back, who was a popular addition last season most Rangers fans were hoping would return. Then, he made a master stroke to surprisingly add Vladimir Tarasenko. While exciting, there was some mild disappointment because it meant the Rangers were out on Patrick Kane.
We were wrong, and for the most part, we have Drury and Kane to thank.
Kane had a no-trade clause with the Chicago Blackhawks. That meant Kane could go anywhere he wanted, and that anywhere was Madison Square Garden. The trick was finding a way to make it work under the salary cap.
Whereas Cohen has the option to absorb every nonsense financial penalty derived to punish trying to win, the Rangers needed to navigate through a hard cap. That involved some real creativity.
Picks had to be moved to the Phoenix Coyotes for them to absorb salary. Vitaly Kratsov was essentially given away to clear cap room. Jake Leschyshyn was waived. This was all done in the name of getting Kane and making the Rangers legitimate Stanley Cup contenders.
Like the Mets with Scherzer and Verlander, the Rangers have Kane and Tarasenko. They pushed the limits of spending in their sport, and they put themselves in a position to win the Stanley Cup. With any luck, there will be two parades down the Canyon of Heroes this year.
Dominic Hamel was the New York Mets third round pick in the 2021 draft that will is known for the Mets failing to sign first round pick Kumar Rocker. With each passing season, we may soon call it the year the Mets drafted Hamel.
Hamel, 23, split the 2022 season between St. Lucie and Brooklyn, and he was 10-3 with a 3.48 ERA, 1.151 WHIP, 4.1 BB/9, and an 11.0 K/9. As you can see, what really stood out with him was the strikeout numbers.
In 13 starts and one relief appearance with St. Lucie, he struck out 26.6% of the batters he faced. Then, against a higher level of competition in Brooklyn, Hamel would strike out 33.2% of the batters he faced over his 11 starts there.
Dominant Dominic Hamel
The No. 9 @Mets prospect fans seven in five scoreless innings for the @BKCyclones: pic.twitter.com/oYsuacowxD
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) August 5, 2022
Seeing the results, it should come as no surprise he was named the Mets 2022 Minor League Pitcher of the Year. Moreover, Hamel was selected for Team Puerto Rico for the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
The World Baseball Classic is an opportunity for Hamel to accelerate his development as a pitcher. He will be playing for the recently retired Yadier Molina, who was adept from handling young pitchers during his career. The staff will also have former Mets bullpen coach Ricky Bones.
He is going to be on a team with some of the best in the game including Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor. More than the mentorship, he is going to be able to see how his stuff plays against the best in the game.
Hamel has excellent spin on his fastball and slider. With the spin and vertical breaks, both pitches are strikeout pitches. In the bullpen, he can be a potentially lethal weapon for Puerto Rico in the WBC. Of course, that is if he is not overwhelmed by the moment and loses some control over his pitches.
The control has been an issue for him as he has walked a higher rate of batters. He has gotten away with it with his strikeout rates and his keeping the ball in the ballpark. What is holding him back more is the lack of a true third pitch which would allow him to stay in the rotation.
Both his curve and change have real promise. They have good spin, but he does not quite have the control he needs of them. This is the year he need to harness them as he’s heading to Double-A at some point during the season, and again, he’s facing the best of the best in the WBC.
There is no better lesson on what he needs to do than to pitch against the best. He is also going to get mentored by some of the best in the WBC. All of this has Hamel poised to learn a number of lessons which can help him towards a big breakout season. We can and should expect that, and if all breaks right for him, he may even see time in the majors at the end of the season.
Back in the 1980s (and even today), New York Mets fans hated everything about the St. Louis Cardinals. There really were only two exceptions – Keith Hernandez and Tim McCarver.
For Hernandez, it was the trade, his becoming the first captain, and the 1986 World Series. Now, it’s for his broadcasting.
In terms of McCarver, it was purely the broadcasting. Like Hernandez, he arrived in 1983. He would then build what was proven to be a Hall of Fame broadcasting career.
At the end of his time with Fox Sports calling the postseason, people were exhausted and exasperated with him. That was unfortunate because he was revolutionary and one of the greatest to ever do it.
For Mets fans, McCarver will forever be linked to Dwight Gooden. While most curveballs are dubbed Uncle Charlie, McCarver thought Gooden’s was far too good. Because he found it so regal and majestic, he referred to it as Lord Charles.
It was more than that, but it was indicative of what McCarver brought to the broadcast. He did it all with his 15 years with the Mets.
He did play-by-play. He was Keith before Keith. He was as insightful as they came. He had great stories from his playing days which mostly featured Bob Gibson.
He gave the biggest gift a fan could receive – honesty. McCarver didn’t hold back with his analysis, which might’ve cost him his job.
He educated an entire generation of Mets fans. He espoused the importance of the first pitch strike and the hazards of the lead-off walk. Back in the 1980s, it came across as genius because it really was. Much of what he shared was just that.
He was smart and fun. He made Mets broadcasts great. That’s because he was smart and fun. He was great.
Sadly, he’s passed away, and now, the Mets can’t give him the day at Citi Field and the rightful honor of being inducted into the Mets’ Hall of Fame. Hopefully, that day will come.
Tim McCarver was a true Mets legend. May he rest in peace.
Listening to Buck Showalter having to again address questions about the possibility of a Pete Alonso extension, he seemed a little perturbed by it. Part of his response to the inquiry was that Alonso won’t be a free agent next week while also noting Alonso won’t be a free agent until after the 2024 season.
Certainly, part of the reason for the questions is because Jeff McNeil just signed an extension. Another reason is it’s spring training, and unless there is an injury (knock on wood), there isn’t much to talk about at this point of the season.
Mostly, it is because of the decision the Wilpons and Brodie Van Wagenen made before the start of the 2019 season.
If the Mets had kept Alonso down in the minors for two weeks to start the season, Alonso would not have been a free agent until after the 2025 season. However, the Mets opted not to do that because they were telling everyone they were a win-now team, and they were going to do everything to win-now.
People bought into it like they did with many of the Wilpon lies. As we saw at the trade deadline when the team did not address the bullpen, which is what prevented them from making the postseason, and their trading for Marcus Stroman “as a replacement” for Zack Wheeler, they were not pulling out all of the stops to win the 2019 World Series.
Rather, what they were saying was they didn’t care about a future where Alonso hits free agency. In reality, they didn’t care much about the future as evidenced by allowing Van Wagenen to absolutely gut the farm system. It just wasn’t trading Jarred Kelenic or other top prospects.
Looking towards the Mets current roster, they have Omar Narváez behind the plate. The Milwaukee Brewers obtained him from the Seattle Mariners for prospect Adam Hill and a supplemental second round pick. The Brewers obtained Hill from the Mets in the Keon Broxton trade. Broxton was horrible for the Mets for 34 games until he was moved for international slot bonus money.
The reason the Mets made bad trades like this was because they hired an agent turned GM who had no idea what he was doing. He was working along with Jeff Wilpon who had even less of an idea. Mostly, the Wilpons knew they were going to have to sell, so they were taking one last crack at winning the World Series.
In essence, who cares about three years from now when you won’t own the team for more than two?
So, Alonso started the year in the majors. He would be an All-Star and set the rookie home run record. Alonso earned starting the year on the Opening Day roster, and he proved himself.
However, that’s not how smart teams operate. After all, look at the Chicago Cubs with Kris Bryant. They kept longer control, and they won every grievance because that’s the system in place. There are countless other examples in this sport.
The Wilpons just didn’t care because they knew they weren’t going to be around for it. It didn’t matter that extra year of control meant you were guaranteed to keep Alonso an extra year, and it would likely mean less would have to be paid out on an extension. When you are acting disingenuously and being completely self serving, that’s what happens.
So, if you want to know why there’s a ton of questions now, the answer is the Wilpons. Everything annoying and bad about this franchise always goes back to them.
New York Mets manager Buck Showalter sounded non-committal over who his 2023 Opening Day starter would be. You can certainly understand why Showalter was not ready to make a decision just yet.
First and foremost, last season, it seemed obvious Jacob deGrom was going to be the Opening Day starter. That was until he was injured. Then, it was going to be Max Scherzer.
Well, Scherzer got hurt too. This all led to the very improbable choice of Tylor Megill. Fortunately for the Mets, Megill was up for the task, and we saw he was really up for the task to be a top of the rotation starter as he was the first pitcher in the Mets co-no.
Things are different in 2023. deGrom signed with the Texas Rangers, and he was replaced in the rotation by Justin Verlander. Suddenly, Scherzer and Verlander were again atop the rotation like they were with the Detroit Tigers, a team who won an American League pennant.
Both Scherzer and Verlander would lay claim to the Opening Day starter with just about any team. However, with the Mets, it is only going to be one of them who gets the nod. While Showalter may not want to commit, his choice should be Scherzer.
Scherzer came to the Mets last season making him the first real big free agent signed by the team. While you could argue it was the Francisco Lindor trade and extension, it was Scherzer who really the biggest sign things have changed.
This was when Steve Cohen first got to show the baseball world just how much more money he has to spend, and in many ways, the lengths he would go to sign players to take this Mets team to a new level. Interestingly enough, Scherzer’s contract served as a model for Verlander’s, and as it turns out, it was one of the reasons Verlander wanted to come to the Mets after the Houston Astros were alright with him departing in free agency.
Scherzer changed what the Mets were and could be. Cohen needed that first marquee free agent, and Scherzer was it. For that alone, he deserves the Opening Day nod.
With Wayne Randazzo accepting a position with the Los Angeles Angels, the New York Mets hired Brooklyn Cyclones radio announcer Keith Raad to join Howie Rose on WCBS 880 for the 2023 season. Raad was kind enough to agree to an interview to discuss his journey:
Congratulations on being named one of the New York Mets radio announcers for the 2023 season. Certainly, this must be a dream come true. Tell us about your journey from being a local boy and Chaminade High School graduate to being one of the radio voices of the New York Mets.
It’s a dream come true to make it to the Major Leagues and it’s even more surreal to do it in the city that I grew up in. New York City has always been a larger-than-life place for entertainment and of course that list includes sports. Growing up on Long Island, I learned about what kind of skills I had when attending Chaminade. The Marianist brothers and the teachers taught me how to write and the importance of public speaking — those things rung true within me. That led me to a degree in Communications in college at the University of Dayton where I jumped right in looking to combine my love of language, writing, speaking, and listening with baseball. I’ve spent close to 10 years calling games and eight years in the minor leagues. It’s so satisfying to pay my dues and jump into the Majors.
The Brooklyn Cyclones have the slogan “Amazin’ Starts Here!” As fans, we see that with players like Pete Alonso, Jeff McNeil, and Brandon Nimmo. However, as we see both you and Jake Eisenberg, now the Kansas City Royals radio voice, that applies to broadcasters as well. What is so unique about Brooklyn that it has served as a springboard to the majors for broadcasters like yourself.
First off, to be a Brooklyn broadcaster means you have to have a love — and a major respect — for history. In Brooklyn, Red Barber, Vin Scully, Connie Desmond, Ernie Harwell and many others called games for the Dodgers. Those voices came out of the origin of radio as a medium to deliver the game to an audience. By learning from how these guys did their thing in this borough, Jake and I were able to treat the job with great care and respect. The Cyclones enabled me to go from an up-and-coming broadcaster looking for his voice to being one who uses his voice and personality, trying to model it after guys like Howie Rose who I will now join in the booth.
Speaking of your time in Brooklyn, we are now well aware of the struggles for minor leaguers. Lesser known is all the duties and responsibilities of working for a minor league team. Personally, I’ve had the pleasure of working with you for group outings for various groups. I know I was shocked to be dealing with one of the broadcasters. For fans unaware, can you please share for us what a typical day is like for a minor league broadcaster?
Ha, so most situations are similar, but every once in a while as a minor league broadcaster, sales duties are part of the deal. That’s what enabled me to be a full-time member of the front office. In a typical day, I would arrive to the park at 10 a.m. and jump on the phones and email trying to sell tickets for group outings, season ticket holders, and sponsorships. I would do that until about 1 or 2 p.m. before jumping into my media relations duties, including writing our daily game notes, printing statpacks for the teams and the press box, distributing rosters and lineups. In the early afternoon, I would help the video staff grab players for social media videos. During batting practice, I tried to be around the turtle on the field just absorbing how the guys are acting and maybe asking a question or two to the players. Following batting practice, I would do about a five-minute pregame interview with a guest. All the while helping local media talk to any players or coaches they were interested in speaking to. Around 5:15 is when I actually can sit down, write in my scorebook and begin prepping for the game that night. Lots of work! I would leave around 10:30-11 a.m. an take the 75-minute subway home, rest, and get ready to do it all over again.
Obviously, that is a grueling experience. What was it that kept you going during those long days and undertaking so many responsibilities beyond just the broadcasting?
The minor leagues tend to ask you a question rather quickly: can you do this? And by that, I mean are you willing to “eat it” for years and years with low pay and long hours to make the majors? For me, I’m much more interested in going for the difficult things in life because we only have one go-around on Earth so why not? But I stuck with it because it is such a high-risk, high-reward pathway. And, looking back at all of those tarp pulls and low pay and feel so incredibly satisfied to now get to enjoy the reward of working in the big leagues.
What was your favorite moment as the broadcaster with the Brooklyn Cyclones?
By far the best moment came in 2019 during the 48 hours of winning the New York Penn League Championship, celebrating that night, and then going to Citi Field the following night as VIPs. My call of “Brooklyn, you have your title” after beating Lowell on September 10th led right into a champagne celebration with the team as well as the front office staff who worked so hard that year. Then at Citi Field, the Mets were kind enough to celebrate everyone (players, coaches and our front office) with a double suite and a video board tribute to our championship.
You’ve seen a number of talented players pass through Brooklyn. Who were some of the best players you’ve seen during your tenure?
Francisco Alvarez has some incredible raw power. His fiery attitude of wanting to be the best and refusing to compromise with any limitations makes me think he’ll have an incredible career. I think Alex Ramirez is extremely talented and already plays with a tremendous about of confidence — which you need in this game. Brett Baty is the most polished hitter I’ve personally seen in a Cyclones uniform. And with Ronny Mauricio, he’s really, really close to figuring it all out.
Who has had the biggest impact on your career?
This is a really tough question because at different stages of my career, there have been several different voices who have been critical. However, my first MiLB boss Tom Nichols in Dayton with the Dragons (Cincinnati Single-A) believed in me before anyone else did. He not only took a chance on me hiring me as an intern in the middle of college, but he also called me one summer during junior year getting my mind towards a summer collegiate job and getting me going. Without him, I certainly would not have had the direction and the structure to this career.
Understanding you were a New York Yankees fan growing up (we won’t hold it against you), who was your favorite player growing up, and if you could indulge us, your favorite Mets player?
Yeah, I get this one a lot obviously. It’s New York. I have to be honest. I grew up a Yankees fan, but the last five years with the Cyclones and the Mets have built bonds within me that grow miles deeper than any childhood fandom. I love the Mets. I pull for the Mets. The Mets are my family. But to throw you an even larger curveball, Albert Pujols was by far my favorite player. I modeled my baseball swing after him because I loved the art of hitting. Growing up, my Mets fandom struck right around 98-99-00 when I would go to Shea. There were so many cool players like Fonzie and John Franco. But I remember Benny Agbayani — I thought it was so awesome that he wore #50 because he was Hawaiian and that was the 50th state.
Years ago, a former Cyclones player Nicco Blank, reached out on Twitter to try to get Taylor Swift to see him pitch in Brooklyn. If you could have anyone tune the dial to WCBS 880 to hear you call a game, who would it be?
Ha, this is a great question. The answer is actually someone who already might be listening whether I know it or not. But my answer is Jerry Seinfeld! I grew up watching reruns of the show and immediately connected with his humor and started to follow his career (even though it already started haha). I view him as a role model. Comedians are very much like broadcasters in a few ways: we feel our journey is alone, we cut our teeth doing games/gigs for little to no money, and we’re constantly trying to listen back and critique our work on a nightly basis.
As you embark on this job, what is the moment you are anticipating most?
This is an easy one: the roar of the crowd. It’ll be unlike anything I’ve ever experienced on the air.
What is your message to Mets fans?
Let’s laugh, let’s have a good time, and let’s win a World Series.
Thank you for taking the time to speak with us and good luck during the 2023 season.