Musings
With Asdrubal Cabrera and Jose Reyes joining David Wright and Lucas Duda on the disabled list, the Mets needed to go to AAA to find a utility infielder. For some reason or another they chose Ty Kelly.
Kelly has been a nice story this year. He dominated AAA forcing the Mets to finally give him the major league shot the Orioles, Mariners, Blue Jays, and Cardinals declined to give him. He had gone from a career minor leaguer to a player who has finally gotten his shot to be a major leaguer at 27 years old. On June 8th, he even hit his first career home run off future Pirates ace James Taillon. Kelly’s story has been one of perseverance and one of triump. However, that terrific story does not make Kelly a major leaguer.
In 14 games, Kelly was over-matched hitting .148/.207/.259 with that one home run being his only extra base hit. He has showed why four other organizations passed over him time and again. He has shown why the Mets buried him on the depth chart after his 14 game stint. Given his performance, it makes you question why he is back with the Mets,e especially with the team having presumably better options down in the minors.
If you are going to stick with the 40 man roster, Eric Campbell would have been a better choice. He is a career .221/.310/.312 hitter, and he hit .159/.270/.222 this year. He had some flashes this year with a five game stretch that saw him hit .273/.467/.273 while playing well defensively at first and third base. On different occasions over the course of his career, he has come up with key pinch hits. Since his demotion, he has hit .363/.493/.593 in AAA, which shows that he has the ability to get on base, and anyone can hit in the Pacific Coast League. Regardless of your position on Campbell, he is a better player than Kelly.
However, Campbell has been given numerous chances to stick with the Mets, and he still hasn’t. It has gotten to the point that the Mets now favor Kelly over him. The Mets have moved on from him. With that in mind, it might be time to consider someone other than Campbell and Kelly.
Again, the Mets should give T.J. Rivera consideration. He was a Pacific Coast League All STytar, and he is hitting .340/.380/.490 in 90 games. He has more defensive versatility than Kelly and Campbell as he plays all four infield positions, and he can also play left field. He may not be a plus defender at any of those positions, but neither are Kelly or Campbell. He may be a 27 year old rookie, but so was the older Kelly when he was called-up with year. Overall, the only difference between Rivera and Kelly is that Kelly got his shot; a shot in which Kelly has mostly failed.
Admittedly, a pennant race is not the best time to give someone like Rivera a shot to prove he is capable of playing in the majors. Then again, a pennant race is an even worse time to keep sending out a player like Kelly who has shown he struggles at the major league level. If you are going to pass on Campbell, who has shown some ability to play at the major league level, the Mets should have called-up Rivera who provides the team more versatility despite not being a switch hitter like Kelly.
Sooner or later, you’d have to imagine Rivera will get his fairy tale shot like Kelly did. He might even do more with the chance than Kelly has. It would be in the Mets best interests to find out.
Editor’s Note: this was first published on Mets Minors
This wasn’t the Bartman Play. Unlike Moises Alou, Joey Votto actually had an opportunity to make the play:
Votto did come across as a bit of a jerk with the disgust he showed. But, he has a point. The guy was a Reds fan. He was the same guy that would have groaned or booed if the ball was a foot in the other direction, and Votto failed to make the play.
Most of the time when fans are that close, they lose sight of who they are rooting for, and they do all they can to catch the foul ball. Like it or not, sitting that close means you have to pay attention to when your team has an opportunity to make the play. If you don’t care and want the ball anyway, that’s your prerogative, but you do lose the right to boo when a player doesn’t make the play.
As an epilogue, for those who have a problem with Votto, he did apologize to the fan and give him a signed ball:
This is awesome. Joey Votto signs a ball with an apology for a fan who he interacted with on a foul ball. #MLBonFS1 pic.twitter.com/h7glbaTRfg
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) August 3, 2016
After being released by the Atlanta Braves this year and having spent almost a month in the Arizona Diamondbacks minor league system, Alexi Ogando has exercised an opt out clause in his contract making him a free agent. With the Mets whiffing on adding a reliever at the deadline, unless of course you count Jon Niese, the Mets should look to add Ogando.
From 2010 – 2013, Ogando was a weapon for the Rangers with his ability to pitch effectively as a starter and out of the bullpen. In that stretch, he was 26-13 in 156 appearances and 48 starts with a 3.12 ERA and a 1.136 WHIP. In the postseason, he is 2-0 with a 2.37 ERA. Unfortunately, Ogando is not that pitcher anymore. If he was, he wouldn’t be available.
During the 2013 season, he would have a shoulder injury, and he wouldn’t be the same pitcher. Since that time, he has made 127 appearances over the last two and a half seasons going 7-5 with a 4.56 ERA and a 1.553 WHIP. The main issue for Ogando has been control. During his heyday with the Rangers, he was only walking 2.8 batters per nine innings. Prior to his release with from the Braves, he was walking 6.5 batters per nine leading to an ugly 1.719 WHIP and his eventual release. It was a long fall from the pitcher who was once an All Star on a team that twice came ever so close to winning a World Series.
However, Ogando is worth a risk. He can still strike people out striking out 8.2 batters per nine innings. He still has electric stuff throwing a 95 MPH fastball and an 85 MPH slider. He is exactly the type of pitcher who Dan Warthen has had success helping over the course of his tenure as the Mets pitching coach. Maybe with a couple of adjustments, Ogando can get back to being the pitcher he once was with the Rangers.
Fact is he has more upside than Erik Goeddel and his 3.66 ERA, Josh Edgin and his reduced velocity, and Seth Lugo who struggled in his last few appearances before being sent back down to the minors. None of them has his velocity or strikeout ability. They also don’t have his postseason success. With all of that in mind, Ogando is certainly worth a flier. The Mets should act quickly and get him signed to a minor league deal.
At the end of the day, he could be the unlikely difference maker in the pen much like Addison Reed was for the Mets last season.
One of the most exciting things about the 2016 season was supposed to be seeing Noah Syndergaard take the next step towards becoming an ace. In his first start, he certainly didn’t disappoint averaging 99 MPH on his fastball and getting his slider over 95 MPH. From the very beginning, Syndergaard established that he was going to be a dominating and intimidating presence.
And that’s just what he was. In his first 15 starts, Syndergaard was averaging 99 MPH on his fastball and 92 MPH on his slider. He was striking out 10.9 batters per nine innings, and opponents were only able to hit .231/.257/.325 off of him. During this impressive stretch to begin the season, Syndergaard emerged as the staff’s ace with an 8-2 record, a 2.08 ERA, and a 0.989 WHIP. He was not only in the conversation with pitchers like Clayton Kershaw and Jake Arrieta as candidates to start the All Star Game, but also as early season candidates to win the Cy Young Award.
On June 27th, disaster seemingly struck. He would only last three innings allowing seven hits, five runs, five earned, and three walks with only five strikeouts. There was something clearly wrong with him, and it was discovered after the game, Syndergaard had bone chips in his elbow.
Since the bone spurs were discovered, Syndergaard’s velocity has dropped. He has been averaging “only” 98 MPH on his fastball and 91 MPH on his slider. In his subsequent July 8th start, . After that start, it was discovered Syndergaard was dealing with a dead arm. In his last inning of work, his fastball, not his changeup, his fastball would hit 91 MPH. On the day, he would only last 4.2 innings allowing four hits, three runs, three earned, and no walks with four strikeouts. Between the bone chips and the dead arm, Syndergaard would have to miss the All Star Game. He would also miss out on being the same dominant pitcher he was to start the season.
Overall, each and every single one of his pitches have been less effective, and he has had a more difficult time putting people away. From June 27th on, batters are hitting .299/.369/.417 off of him. During this six start stretch, he has gone 1-3 with a 3.62 ERA and a 1.577 WHIP. A large part of all of this is he is having difficulty locating his pitches. Keep in mind that in his first 15 starts, he walked a total of 12 batters over 91.0 innings. In his most recent six start clip, he has walked 13 batters over 32.1 innings. Jacob deGrom has eclipsed him to reclaim his position as the Mets ace.
The Mets are now in the dog days of August, and they are still in the heat of the Wild Card race. With all the injuries the team has sustained, they need all of their healthy players to perform at the highest possible level they can in order to make the postseason. However, given the dead arm and the bone chips, it is questionable if Syndergaard can return back to form and lead the Mets back to the postseason.
Unlike last season, the Mets were proactive in replacing an injured player on their roster when the obtained James Loney from the San Diego Padres to replace Lucas Duda who was slated to be on the disabled list for a long time with a broken back.
It was a good move as Loney was not only cheap, he was immediately available. He was certainly better than what the Mets internal options of Eric Campbell and Ty Kelly.
Coming into the season, Loney was a .285/.338/.411 hitter who averaged 10 homers and 64 RBI in a season. His OPS+ was 105 meaning he was roughly a league average hitter. In his 55 games with the Mets, Loney has been a slightly better version of himself hitting .289/.339/.443 with six homers and 23 RBI. His OPS+ is 108, which is what Mo Vaughn‘s OPS+ was as a Met. Long story short, Loney is the perfect stopgap, but he is not a difference maker. The problem is he was taking over for a difference maker in the lineup.
Since Duda became the Mets everyday first baseman, he has hit .249/.350/.483 while averaging 28 homers and 82 RBI. His OPS+ over that stretch is 133 meaning he is batting at an All Star caliber level, and he is a difference maker at the plate. To put it into context, David Wright‘s career OPS+ is 133.
Essentially, the Mets have gone from a David Wright level of production at first base back to the days of Mo Vaughn. This drop in production goes a long way to explain why the Mets offense has been struggling since Duda has gone down with the broken back.
With the grim prognosis for Duda this season, and with the trade deadline having gone by, the Mets never made the necessary upgrade at first base. If the Mets were to shift Jay Bruce (128 OPS+ this season) or Michael Conforto to first base (129 OPS+ last year), they would go a long way to replacing that production. It is certainly worth a shot. The time for stopgaps is over. The Mets now need to find a real replacement for Duda’s offense. That isn’t Loney. Hopefully, it could be Bruce or Conforto.
In the movie, A Time to Kill, an all white jury in the deep South was set to convict Carl Lee Hailey, a black man, until his young white lawyer, Jake Brigance, stood before the jury of his peers and gave the closing argument of a lifetime:
What he did was absolutely brilliant. He took the same exact story and presented it to the jury exactly how it happened to a group of people that know what happened. The only thing he changed was the person. Instead of it being Carl Lee Hailey’s daughter, it was a little girl that could very well be close to them. Ultimately, that is what made the story hit home; that was what made them change their opinion.
Overall, the “A Time to Kill Test” is a good test to use whenever passing judgment on anything including how you feel about a player in a particular situation.
If you do not think it was a big deal that Yoenis Cespedes was playing golf with an injured quad, ask yourself would your opinion have changed if that was Matt Harvey? If you had a problem with Cespedes playing golf, would you have had the same opinion if you discovered David Wright was the one playing golf or taking part in any other activity that would have hampered his injury? Would it even matter if Jose Reyes or Asdrubal Cabrera were taking part in recreational activities that could have possibly had an effect on their ability to get back on the field from their perspective injuries? Essentially, no matter what the situation, choose another player, preferably one on the other end of the spectrum, and see if your opinion would change.
Overall, from looking at things from that perspective, it would be fair to say Cespedes shouldn’t have been playing golf while he was injured as it could have prevented him from getting back on the field. It would be fair to say his playing golf was ill advised because the possibility remained that he could have exacerbated the injury.
Sure, it is possible that your perspective may change if it was Harvey or Wright in the same situation, but that’s the issue. If it was the same situation, your opinion on the matter shouldn’t change.
Yesterday, Yoenis Cespedes began his day with a round of golf with Kevin Millar . . .
He got me this am @ynscspds #BoyClub #Millar/Cespedes #Rematch ⛳️⛳️⛳️⛳️⛳️ pic.twitter.com/bI5epD1Job
— Kevin Millar (@KMillar15) August 3, 2016
. . . and he ended the day on the disabled list.
By all reports, Cespedes has been playing golf each and every day since he’s been injured.
Cespedes’ injury was painful enough to prevent him from flying out and participating in the All Star Game. It was so bad he told the Mets he could no longer play center field. It was so painful he would miss games. Overall, his quad injury would affect his ability to play baseball, but he would not let it interfere with him playing golf each and every day.
Did the Mets botch this? Sure, they always mishandle injuries. It’s why they talked Steven Matz out of getting surgery to remove bone spurs from his elbow. They also talked Juan Lagares out of surgery initially. The solution for Matt Harvey was him roughing it out without getting a full examination. They wouldn’t put a hobbled Jose Reyes and Asdrubal Cabrera immediately on the disabled list. There are more injuries they’ve mismanaged both this year and in the entire Ray Ramirez Error, sorry Era.
The Cespedes situation is yet another example of the Mets mismanaging injuries. They could’ve out him on the disabled list at the All Star Break to minimize the amount of games he would miss. They could’ve told him not to play golf.
However, they shouldn’t have to tell a 30 year old man making $27.5 million to rest his legs so he could return to the field as soon as possible. They shouldn’t have to tell him not to let down his teammates in the middle of a pennant race so he could hang out with Kevin Millar on the golf course. No, this is something Cespedes should just no. He either didn’t know, or he knew it and didn’t care.
Cespedes showed a complete lack of self awareness saying he needed to stop playing for 10 days to get healthy:
YC: “I think the best option is just rest, 10 days or so. If I continue playing hurt, I’m never going to recover.”
— Matt Ehalt (@MattEhalt) August 4, 2016
It wasn’t clear from that statement if he meant golf or baseball. Given his actions over the past month, he probably meant baseball.
Yes, the Mets mismanaged this injury like they mismanage all of their injuries. However, Cespedes prioritized his golf game over the game he is paid to play. Hopefully, Cespedes will refrain from playing golf these next 15 days to let him get back on the field.
After a month of golf and his sporadic play, it’s difficult to be optimistic that Cespedes will now treat this injury seriously and put baseball first.
Yoenis Cespedes is just maddening sometimes. His quad has prevented him from playing center, and he complained of pain after legging out a base hit yesterday. However, the injury didn’t prevent him from finding time to play golf today with Kevin Millar:
He got me this am @ynscspds #BoyClub #Millar/Cespedes #Rematch ⛳️⛳️⛳️⛳️⛳️ pic.twitter.com/bI5epD1Job
— Kevin Millar (@KMillar15) August 3, 2016
It is too soon to question the logic or the maturity in Cespedes’ decision to play golf. We don’t know if golfing has any negative impact upon his ability to heal or his ability to play in games. We don’t know if this was one round or if he’s been playing golf the entire time. We also don’t know if Cespedes had the Mets approval to play.
However, the optics of the decision sure look bad. People will revisit how Cespedes injured himself golfing during the NLCS thereby harming their ability to win the World Series. People will remember his golfing exploits if Cespedes struggles or finds his way to the disabled list. It may not be fair, and it may not be right. Still, that’s the situation Cespedes has created by his decision to play golf when he’s too injured to take the field.
No matter the reaction, fair or not, Cespedes brought it upon himself. Hopefully, it will work out for the best.
The Mets acquisition of Jay Bruce was designed to solve the Mets offensive woes, and more importantly, their difficulty with hitting with runners in scoring position. However, the move coupled with Yoenis Cespedes‘ injury, it exacerbates the Mets center field problem.
As Barry Bloom reports for MLB.com, Sandy Alderson admits, “As people will comment, it’s not an absolute perfect fit for us. You start with the need for offense and go from there.” The Mets need to go from there as Cespedes can no longer play center field.
In fact, the Mets are unsure what Cespedes is capable of doing after a game where he said he can no longer go “full speed” anymore without experiencing pain. (Matt Ehalt). There is real fear amongst the Mets as Terry Collins said, “To be honest, he could go out there. Could he aggravate it? Maybe. And if he aggravates it more, we’re looking at three or four weeks. I’m not going to do that.”
Fortunately, the Mets will be able to use Cespedes at DH for the next five games with the Yankees playing two at Yankee Stadium followed by a three game set in Detroit. After an off day Monday, who knows what the Mets can get out of Cespedes, or what the Mets outfield alignment will be.
This is a Mets roster without a true centerfield option. Juan Lagares had thumb surgery will be out for at least six weeks. Imported replacement Justin Ruggiano just landed on the disabled list.Michael Conforto has only played five games there, and Collins doesn’t appear to be eager to put him there or to let him hit against left-handed pitching.
With these injuries, Terry Collins admits, “We’re asking now for three guys to play a position they’re not comfortable playing.”
Curtis Granderson has more center field experience than anyone on the roster, but he hadn’t played there regularly since 2012. For what it’s worth, Collins doesn’t appear eager to play Granderson in center either as he believes it “is going to tax him a lot.”
Given Collins reluctance to play Granderson and Conforto in center, and his other options being injured, he had gone so far as inquiring about newly acquired Met Jay Bruce‘s willingness to play center.
With respect to the center field dilemma, Bruce stated, “[Collins] asked me if I played any center and I told him that I had. But it sounds like the plan is for me to play a lot of right field. I told him I’d be more than willing and happy to play anywhere he needed me. I don’t think there’s a clear cut center fielder on the team. I’m ready for wherever he puts me. I’m ready for anything.”
Despite the inquisition, Collins still intends to keep Bruce in right saying, “I’m going to play him in right field for now. I’m scheduled to talk to Grandy in a little while about moving him in the outfield situation. [Bruce] told me he hasnt played center field since 2008, so that’s quite a while.”
Just like Bruce, Granderson has taken a team-first position on the issue. When the issue first arose, and Granderson got a start out there, he said, “Wherever they put me at – Catch, short, pitch, outfield – I’ll play all of them.” (Jared Diamond, Wall Street Journal).
The best bet for now might just be Alejandro De Aza who has been the Mets best hitter since July 1st. With yesterday’s perform de, he is hitting .342/.500/.553 with two doubles, two homers, and four RBI in that stretch. Each and every game he hits, it becomes harder and harder for the Mets to sit him. It should also be noted that before Cespedes was re-signed, he was brought in by the Mets to platoon with Lagares in center.
Overall, like it did when he joined the Mets a year ago, everything revolves around Cespedes with Collins saying, “A lot of this is about [Cespedes’] availability. We’re still trying to figure out what path to take as we get down the road a little bit. Health is going to be a big thing for them all.”
Editor’s Note: this was first published on Mets Merized Online
Coming into the season, the Mets were high on Dilson Herrera, and they viewed him as the second baseman of the near future. It is why the Mets let postseason hero Daniel Murphy walk, and they eschewed other long term free agent options to trade for Neil Walker who was a year away from free agency. However, the Mets made it perfectly clear they were willing to forego Herrera as the second baseman of the future if the right player came along. That is why the Mets doggedly pursued Ben Zobrist in the offseason. For the right piece or for the right price, the Mets were going to move on from Herrera to make the team better.
It is just hard to believe that player was Jay Bruce.
There is a lot to like about Bruce. He is a traditional slugger who is leading the league in RBI. He has a very affordable team option. He is insurance against Yoenis Cespedes missing an extended period of time this year, and quite possibly insurance against him leaving in free agency. He also helps with a sluggish Mets offense and with the Mets inability to hit with runners for scoring position. He is also more of the same.
This is a Mets team full of low OBP, high slugging outfielders – Bruce, Cespedes, Curtis Granderson, and Michael Conforto. With the exception of Cespedes, all of the Mets current outfield options are left-handed batters. What this team doesn’t have is a center fielder. Currently, the best defensive center fielder on the team is Alejandro De Aza. While he is the team’s hottest hitter and best defender, it is hard to imagine he is going to be an everyday player while the team sits one of Granderson or Conforto everyday. In sum, Bruce is a nice offensive upgrade, but he doesn’t solve the teams problems. With that in mind, it seems like Herrera was a steep price to pay for someone that doesn’t solve what ails the team.
It’s also selling low on Herrera in what has been a tough year for him. Herrera has gone from a .327/.382/.511 hitter to a .276/.327/.462 hitter in AAA this year. He has had nagging shoulder issues, and he has fallen into some bad habits at the plate. It has been the first time the 22 year old has struggled at the minor league level. However, given the fact that he is still young for his level, and the fact that his struggles are closely associated with an injury, there is every reason to believe Herrera will rebound and become the All Star second baseman the Mets envisioned he would become. That is a steep price to pay for a duplicative player that does not solve the Mets problems.
We are just seeing it now with Michael Fulmer in Detroit. Fulmer was the big time prospect the Mets traded last year. He is the leading Rookie of the Year contender, and he is certainly in the Cy Young conversation with him going 9-2 with a 2.50 ERA and a 1.089 WHIP. With each and every dominant start, it is a stark reminder how much the Mets need him this year with Matt Harvey‘s season ending surgery and Zack Wheeler being well behind schedule to return to the rotation. Overall, the idea behind trading Fulmer was to trade from depth to acquire a missing piece . . . a missing piece that was an imperfect fit. As we see last year, the Mets supposed depth was an allusion.
Now, the Mets did trade from depth with Herrera. Gavin Cecchini could move from shortstop to second, which now seems to be his destiny with the meteoric rise of Amed Rosario. Wilmer Flores could move over there next year. The Mets could always re-sign Neil Walker or another free agent or make another trade. Depending on David Wright‘s health, Jose Reyes could move from third to second. There are any number of factors at play, but as we see again this year, the Mets can never have enough depth as this team seems more snakebitten than any other team in the majors. With that in mind, the Mets are now less deep at second base, and they are quite possibly without their best second base option for next year.
The Mets traded away another big time prospect for another slugging corner outfielder. Hopefully, Bruce will have a similar effect on the Mets as Cespedes did last year. The Mets are going to need that type of performance to help them get back to the postseason. They are going to need that type of performance to help Mets fans forget about the player they gave away in Herrera.