Musings
In a do-or-die Game Five, Terry Collins went to Noah Syndergaard in the seventh to go in there and shut down the Dodgers and preserve the Mets 3-2 lead.
Without the need to keep his stamina for eight move innings, Syndergaard let it fly. He averaged 100 MPH with his fastball and his sinker. Both pitches were 2-3 MPH faster than what he threw in the regular season. He would only throw 17 pitches with one slider and three curveballs. Syndergaard came in with heat and struck out two in a scoreless inning.
Watching that inning allowed you to continue the dream of winning the World Series. You wondered what it would be like to see Syndergaard in the bullpen fulltime. You wanted to see how much better he could be.
If you polled each and every Mets fan, they would tell you that Syndergaard would win at least Cy Young. They would tell you he would win at least one World Series with the Mets. They would tell you he had the drive to get better and better. For once, it wouldn’t be the fans’ fervor, it was a widely held belief in baseball circles.
But this? I don’t think anyone could’ve expected to see what we’ve seen out of Syndergaard so far this year.
Last year, Syndergaard threw 17 pitches over 100 MPH. He averaged 98 MPH on his fastball and sinker. He averaged 89 MPH on his change, 88 MPH on his slider, and 81 MPH on his curve. This year Syndergaard is just in another stratosphere.
He’s already thrown 12 pitches over 100 MPH including hitting 102 on the radar gun. He’s actually throwing all of his pitches harder. His fastball and sinker are up to 99 MPH. His change up is 90 MPH, which is about the same speed as Bartolo Colon‘s fastball. His improved and more often thrown slider averages 93 MPH, and his curveball is at 83 MPH. His improved pitching has definitely left an impression:
How hard does Syndergaard throw? Plawecki blocked a pitch w/ his chest. Theres now an imprint where his necklace was pic.twitter.com/Sd52ije5PZ
— Steve Gelbs (@SteveGelbs) April 19, 2016
Think about it this way. Syndergaard got one inning to throw it as hard as he possibly could for one inning when the Mets season was on the line. So far this year, Syndergaard has been throwing harder than that, and he has been doing that for approximately seven innings this year. How do you describe all of this?
David Wright calls him “a maxed out video game player.” Fans have given him the Thor moniker.
At this point, there are no words. There are no apt comparisons. Syndergaard truly is doing something we have never seen before. The scary part is he is continuing to improve. There’s no telling where Syndergaard goes from here. All we can do is sit back and enjoy the ride.
In some respects, any idea to make changes on how to properly commemorate Jackie Robinson is too late as April 15th has already passed. However, it’s also the point of MLB’s celebration of Jackie Robinson. It’s supposed to make you think and reflect on not just on his contributions, but also on how to make the world better.
Upon reflection, I think MLB has the wrong idea in having every single MLB player wear the number 42.
Yes, baseball has its heart in the right place. It is taking the opportunity to have every single one of its players honor Robinson, who in many ways, is the most important player in baseball history. However, this honor has had some unfortunate and unintended side effects.
First, there’s all the jokes. Undoubtedly, a fan or a broadcaster is going to make an oft repeated joke about everyone wearing the same number. They’ll also complain everyone is wearing the same number making it hard to identify which player is which. When your good intentions lead to jokes and complaints, it’s time to reassess the situation.
Uponreassessment, we also have to consider the honoring of Jackie Robinson has had the unfortunate and unintended consequence of overlooking other players contributions. There were players who were great like Cool Papa Bell who never got the chance to play in the majors. There were others like Satchel Paige whose chance came well past their primes. Then there were the other players like Larry Doby who faced the same obstacles Robinson did in other leagues and other cities. As Dan Szymborski noted, there needs to be room to honor other players:
I do wish if in addition to the 42, every team around during color barrier had a patch honoring their player that broke the color barrier.
— Dan Szymborski (@DSzymborski) April 15, 2016
That’s the unfortunate consequence of every player wearing 42. There were other individuals and players who had fought the same fight. That’s what Jackie Robinson and his legacy was. He was the one that got to pave the way. He made it possible for others. It wasn’t just that Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier, it was that one day players of all races and creeds could play together. Jackie Robinson was a key figure in a movement, but he wasn’t the only one. With that said, Jackie Robinson Day should be a moment not only to honor Jackie Robinson, but also every player that was part of this movement.
To that end, each and every single player should be able to take the field wearing the number of a player that was important to them. More importantly, they should select players that helped advance equality.
There should always be a player that wears 42. In fact, if the entire team wants to wear 42 as a team decision, it has that much more power. It would also be great to have some players wear 5, 8, or 23, which were some of the numbers Robinson wore while he was a player with the Kansas City Monarchs. Someone can wear his number 10, which he wore when he first broke the color barrier when he played for the Montreal Royals, who was the Dodgers AAA affiliate at the time.
Aside from Robinson, there are other numbers that could be worn. As a nod to Szymborski’s recommendation, players could wear the uniform number of the player who broke the color barrier for the franchise for which they play. A player could wear the number 1 in honor of Pee Wee Reese, who put his arm around Robinson during a game (even if Ken Burns’ documentary Jackie Robinson debunked). There’s the number 14 Larry Doby wore when he broke the color barrier in the American League in 1947, the same year as Jackie Robinson. Someone could wear the number 20, not only in honor of Josh Gibson, but also in honor of those talented enough to play but barred from playing. Speaking of the number 20, a player could wear it to honor Frank Robinson, the first black manager in baseball history. As we know seeing a black MLB manager was a cause Robinson championed as well.
Babe Ruth and his number 3 would be appropriate as The Babe was an early advocate of integration and would play Negro League teams on his barnstorming tours. A player could wear Ted William‘s number 9 to honor a man who called for more Negro League players to be elected to the Hall of Fame and twice put his career on hold to serve his country.
The choices could extend outside the Negro Leagues as well. There’s Roberto Clemente‘s and his number 21. Clemente is revered in Puerto Rico, and in the United States, not only for his Hall of Fame talent, but also his charitable work. There’s Tony Perez‘s 24, which could be worn to honor not only the first Cuban elected to the Hall of Fame, the hardships the players endure coming to the United States to play baseball, and the fight for civil rights the Cuban people have back at home. There’s also Hideo Nomo‘s 16 to show that despite prejudice, Japanese players could not only play in the major leagues, but they could be an All Star. A player could wear Jim Abbott‘s 25 to show there is no obstacle you can’t overcome. There may be some player who wears no number on his back to honor the countless players who never had an opportunity to wear a number on the back of a major league jersey.
There really no wrong option unless you are choosing to honor Cap Anson.
After players have made their selections, they can say a few words about what both Jackie Robinson and the player they selected means to them. These clips can run on the scoreboards, on local broadcasts, and on team and MLB social media accounts. The jerseys can then be sold after the game to help support the RBI Program and/or other charities.
By doing this, we keep not only honor Jackie Robinson, but also all the players who fought injustice. That is the best possible way to honor Jackie Robinson.
The Mets hired Kevin Long as their hitting coach to help a team that wasn’t hitting. Subsequently, they hired Pat Roessler as the assistant hitting coach. Roessler was hired because of his previous relationship with Long. So far, they’ve worked extremely well together.
Long and Roessler work hand-in-hand to help the Mets batters. For example, they worked in tandem to help Lucas Duda hit lefties last year. It’s helpful to have another voice to bounce ideas of of when trying to help a hitter. When your message isn’t getting through, it’s helpful to have another voice to help deliver the same message. Having both coaches this allows Long to watch video between innings to see both his pitcher’s mechanics and how the Mets’ batters are getting pitched. It also allows Long to delegate Roessler to work with the pitchers on their hitting.
Perhaps it’s time the Mets add an assistant pitching coach to the staff.
This is no slight against Dan Warthen. He is in charge of what is the best pitching staff in baseball. He has not shown anything to lead you to believe his message isn’t getting through or that he should be replaced. With that said, wouldn’t it be beneficial for Warthen to have an assistant coach he trusts and feels comfortable working with help with the pitching staff?
Let’s take Matt Harvey‘s start on Saturday. For the first 4.1 innings, he dominated. Then the wheels came off. For his part, Harvey believes he’s struggled with his command since the season began. As reported by Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, Warthen believes it was as simple as Harvey falling into bad habits in a pressure filled inning:
“You get into a pressure situation, you do fall back into bad habits,” Warthen said. “Essentially, that’s what happened today. This has been Matt’s biggest bugaboo since I’ve had him.”
There are two important things to note here. First, Warthen knows the problem and the solution. Second, Warthen doesn’t know quite how to get Harvey to stop falling into the trap. Quite possibly, this is where a second voice could come into play.
One thing that can’t be discounted is perhaps Harvey was just lucky for the first 4.1 innings. For a player who averages 96+ MPH with his fastball, he was sitting at 94 MPH against the Indians. This is a player who averaged 9.5 strikeouts per nine coming into the season. This year he’s at 4.7, and his season high was the four he had against the Indians. It’s possible the mechanical quirk might’ve been perceptible to an assistant coach watching video in the clubhouse as opposed to a pitching coach watching from the dugout.
Now, the Mets do have a bullpen coach in Ricky Bones. However, he can only help so much. The bullpen coach primarily works with relievers and spends the game in the bullpen. Before and after games, he can be a sounding board for Warthen and/or another voice to help a struggling pitcher if needed. With that said, Bones job as the bullpen coach prevents him from running into the clubhouse to watch video of a pitcher’s last half inning to see the pitcher’s mechanics and his batters are approaching their at bats.
That job would best be done by an assistant pitching coach.
There’s another factor to keep in mind. Warthen is a 63 year old pitching coach with bad hips. He missed some time last year after being brought to the hospital with an accelerated heartbeat. No one knows how much longer he will want to or be able to stay on as the Mets pitching coach. As the organization clearly thinks very highly of Warthen, wouldn’t it make sense for him to groom his successor?
It’s time for the Mets to add an assistant pitching coach.
Last week, I was approached by Brew and Orange to answer some questions about the Mets upcoming series against the Phillies. Here is the link. I hope you enjoy the interview and the site.
Thank you for Brew and Orange for the invitation.
He could break Anthony Young‘s consecutive games lost streak. He could lose more games than Roger Craig and Jack Fisher. He could allow more earned runs than Craig. He can walk more batters than Nolan Ryan. He can become a bad pitcher overnight and seem like he doesn’t care like Oliver Perez. None of this matters.
Jacob deGrom is off limits in 2016.
It’s tough enough to be a new father. It’s tougher to be on the road all of the time. It’s impossible when your child is sick. Even though he may never need it, deGrom gets each and every benefit of the doubt. He’s Teflon this year. No groaning. No booing. Nothing but cheers and appreciation.
Jacob deGrom has already earned this right for being a terrific Met. Fans should never doubt he’s giving it their all even if his personal life may be preventing him from doing so. Mets fans are only permitted to cheer for deGrom this year.
This cheers can start now with his son hopefully being discharged today.
Pick out a problem with the Mets. The offense? The pitcher’s mechanics? Their starting to have some players get banged up? These and much more are very fair and valid. None of these are the biggest concern with the Mets.
The biggest concern is Jaxon Anthony deGrom.
There are some unspecified medical issues with deGrom’s newborn son. Fortunately, it’s not life threatening. Whenever something is wrong with your child whatever good news you receive is good news. That doesn’t mean the situation isn’t serious. Jaxon and his parents need every single one of your prayers right now. The only thing that matters is Jaxon is alright, and he goes on to lead a happy and healthy life.
At this time, deGrom needs to be a father and husband. He should take as much time as needed. With that said, I do wish the Mets put him on the DL rather than the bereavement/medical leave list. If deGrom went on the DL, his return would be open ended. With the bereavement/medical leave list, the Mets and deGrom are forced do make a decision after 3-7 days.
However much time deGrom and his family needs, he should take it. As far as I’m concerned, deGrom can miss the whole season. His son comes first. No, I don’t care if it costs the Mets the postseason or World Series. Sure I’ll be disappointed, but some things are more important.
My thoughts and prayers today are with Jaxon, Stacey, and Jacob deGrom.
With the Mets bullpen on fumes from a very short Steven Matz start and Logan Verrett making a spot start in place of an injured Jacob deGrom (our prayers are with him and his family), the Mets recalled Rafael Montero to add a fresh arm to the bullpen mix. The Mets needed an extra arm after the bullpen pitched 7.1 innings on Monday without any contributions from their long man. It was a waste of a move. At this point, it’s clear Montero is in Terry Collins’ doghouse, and Collins won’t use him until he’s burned out all of the other arms on the bullpen.
On Wednesday, Collins controversially pitched Jim Henderson despite him having problems locating his pitches and throwing more pitches he ever had in one game the previous night. Collins then proceeded to use Hansel Robles, who pitched 2.2 innings on Monday. Collins went to four relievers that day to preserve a 2-1 win.
On Friday, the Mets had a four run lead. Collins first turned to Antonio Bastardo to get out of a sixth inning jam. He then have way to Robles for 0.1 of an inning. At that point, the Mets had a four run lead in the eighth inning. Collins turned to Addison Reed to get the last six outs. Reed got five and allowed two runs in the process. Collins decided to let Jeurys Familia pitch for the fourth time in four games. Despite allowing a run, he recorded the save.
At no point in either of these games did Montero so much as warm up.
An argument can be made for not using Montero Wednesday because of how close the game was. The Mets were in the midst of a frustrating losing streak, and Collins wanted his best arms out there to get the win. With that said, there’s no reason why Montero didn’t pitch on Friday. After Bastardo got out of the jam, the Mets had a four run lead. That was the perfect spot for Montero.
Instead, Collins asked both Bastardo and Reed to pitch over an inning. He asked two middle relievers to pitch more than an inning rather than asking the long man in his bullpen to pitch more than an inning. Collins was ready, willing, and able to once again tire out his bullpen rather than putting Montero in a game to preserve a four run lead. At this point, it’s fair to say either Collins doesn’t trust Montero, has him in his doghouse, or both.
It’s strange to think it’s reached this point when Collins has tried to get the most out of Montero.
Last August when things were starting to take off for the Mets, Collins drove to Port St. Lucie to have a conversation with Montero in order to tell him the Mets still needed him. At that time, Montero was dealing with shoulder issues. The Mets insisted there was nothing wrong while Montero felt like it prevented him from pitching. Montero tried to make that comeback, but he would have a setback in a rehab start. His season was over.
In Spring Training, Collins again took time to deliver a special message for Montero. As Tim Rohan of the New York Times reported, Collins told Montero, “Get your act together. We haven’t forgotten about you. We still want you.” Collins gave him the start in the Mets first Spring Training game. Montero allowed the first five guys to reach base. In total, he allowed four runs, four hits, and two walks in one inning of work. Montero would not pitch in another game, and he would be in the first group of Spring Training cuts.
At this point, the Mets need Montero. He’s gotten his act together with some mechanical adjustments in Triple-A. However, it’s too little too late. Collins has either forgotten him or doesn’t want him anymore.
Due to the stress Jacob deGrom‘s injury and Steven Matz‘s short start out on the bullpen, the Mets were forced to call-up Rafael Montero to add a fresh arm to the bullpen. Rather than out deGrom on the DL or demote another pitcher, the Mets sent down Eric Campbell. Even with deGrom looking more and more like he will miss his next start, the Mets still won’t put him on the DL. Essentially, the Mets robbed Peter to pay Paul.
With a weekend Interleague series in Cleveland, the Mets can get away with a short bench. While it does limit their ability to pinch hit and make defensive substitutions, they should be able to navigate the situation because they won’t have to pinch hit for a pitcher. However, come Monday, they’re back to playing National League ball, and they’re going to need a full bench.
Whatever your feelings on Campbell is, he’s not going to be eligible to be recalled. Unless deGrom (or someone else) goes on the DL, Campbell will have to spend 10 days in the minors. Looking over the Mets 40 man roster, there would be three eligible candidates: Dilson Herrera, Matt Reynolds, and Brandon Nimmo. Now with one extra spot left on the 40 man roster due to Zack Wheeler being on the 60 day DL, the Mets could recall another player like a Ty Kelly.
In reality, the decision is between Reynolds and Kelly. Nimmo isn’t quite ready, and even if he was, the last thing the Mets need is another outfielder. Herrera still hasn’t started playing games in the field yet due to a sore shoulder, and even if he has been, the Mets see him as the second baseman of the future. They’re not wasting service and development time for him to be on the bench.
Kelly is 27 years old, and he has yet to play in the majors. He plays second, third, and the corner outfield positions. He’s a very disciplined hitter, who is extremely selective at the plate. For reasons that aren’t completely clear, he’s spent five seasons in Triple-A, and he’s never played a major league game. Overall, the truth really is Triple-A is his ceiling. At best, he’s a AAAA player.
Even if that assessment was wrong, it’s still not time to call-up Kelly. First, the Mets would have to add him to the 40 man roster and would not be able to denote him unless he clears waivers. Additionally, his skill set doesn’t match what this team needs. There’s no room for him in the outfield. Terry Collins is going to play Neil Walker almost everyday. So in essence, while Kelly has some versatility, the positions he plays do not match the Mets’ needs.
Accordingly, Reynolds is the player the Mets need to recall. During Spring Training and this early minor league season, Reynolds has played every infield position but first. His addition to the major league roster would create more flexibility across the infield. It would permit Collins to sit both Asdrubal Cabrera and Lucas Duda in the same game. Additionally, it would permit Collins to double switch with any player with the full knowledge that there’s another player on the bench who is fully capable of playing any position should another double switch be needed or there was an injury.
Offensively, Reynolds is a right hand batter who profiles better at the next level than Kelly. He’s not as patient as Kelly, but then again no one is. Reynolds profiles as a gap to gap line drive hitter. He does have more pop in his bat than Kelly. More importantly, at the very least, Reynolds projects as a bench player.
If Reynolds is going to wear a Mets uniform past smiling and waiving before Game One of the NLCS, he’s going to be a super-utility man in the mold of Flores or Joe McEwing. Reynolds has worked hard at it during the offseason and Spring. He knows this is his future, and he’s fully embraced it.
Better yet, he’s scorching hot right now. He’s hitting .353/.476/.529 with a homerun in five games. In those fives games, he’s played second, third, and short. At this point the only plausible reason for not calling up Reynolds is the Mets want to have a short bench.
Reynolds has earned his shot, and he’s playing well. It’s time for the Mets to call-up Reynolds.
Thanks to three people, Anthony Scaramucci, Tony Lauto, and another in identified buyer (Oliver Stone?), Mike Piazza‘s 9/11 jersey is safe. The trio agreed that the jersey will forever rotate between Citi Field, the 9/11 Museum, and the Baseball Hall of Fame. These three people stepped up and did what was right and what was needed.
They had to step up because Mets ownership wouldn’t. As Kevin Kernan of the New York Post reported, the Mets never made a bid for the jersey.
To be fair, let’s not revisit the past here. We don’t know why the jersey was sold. It might’ve been the result of the financial troubles the Wilpons experienced as part of the Madoff scandal. It could’ve been an oversight. It’s possible no one realized the importance of the jersey. Maybe, just maybe, it was never supposed to be sold in the first place, but it was due to oversight. Fact is we’ll never know why it was sold. Most agree that in retrospect, it was wrong to sell the jersey. The Mets organization admitted as much in their statement to the New York Post stating, “We made a mistake in selling the jersey and Jeff [Wilpon] called Mike [Piazza] to express our regret in doing so.”
With the jersey up for sale, the Mets got that rare opportunity to right a wrong. They chose not to do so. They didn’t despite Jeff Wilpon assuring Piazza the Mets contacted the seller and were “making a concerted effort to get the jersey back.” They didn’t. Instead, they let someone else step in and purchase it.
At this point, it’s inexcusable. They told their newly elected Hall of Famer, they were going to make a concerted effort, and they didn’t. They got lucky because three people not only purchased it, but also agreed it should be on permanent display instead of in one of their homes. The thing is as the owners of that jersey that was their right. That was what the Mets risked.
At this point, we just have to ask,”Why?”
Why didn’t the Mets realize the jersey’s importance in the first place? Why didn’t they make an effort to buy the jersey? Why did they not keep their promise to Piazza? Why didn’t they understand what the jersey meant to the fans? Why were they willing to let the jersey to possibly be sold to someone who didn’t feel the obligation to display the jersey publicly?
The answer to all of these questions, and many more is, at the end of the day, baseball is a business. The owners only care about the fans to the extent that they want to create an environment suitable enough for them to spend as much of their disposable income on the team as possible. To Mets ownership, the Piazza 9/11 jersey didn’t have any special meaning. Rather, it was a jersey: (1) that could be sold for a profit; and (2) whose current purchase price was cost prohibitive. Pure and simple, these were business decisions.
The Mets will continue to make business decisions like they’ve always done. They’ll sell bricks which line the outside of Citi Field, but they won’t erect a Tom Seaver statue. They won’t sign a player like Yoenis Cespedes, despite the fans’ attachment to him, unless it is at a price suitable to them. For better or worse, that’s how the Mets operate.
And that’s all the Piazza 9/11 jersey decisions were to them – business decisions.
Deep down in each and every one of us is a snob. We prefer to see shows on Broadway instead of the community theater. We prefer our steaks to come from a steakhouse instead of a diner. We’d prefer to watch the Masters over the Shell Houston Open. There’s nothing wrong with a community theatre, diner steak, or the Shell Houston Open. In fact, they can all be quite good. However, deep down, we want to see the best of the best.
That’s part of the enduring legacy of Jackie Robinson.
No, this aspect of his enduring legacy is not discussed all that frequently. Mostly, it’s because it may be the least important part of his legacy. Robinson lived in a different world, even a different United States, than we do today. His breaking the color barrier pre-dated the end of segregation. Robinson playing for the Dodgers was not just important for baseball, but also for civil rights.
But make no mistake, it was important for baseball.
Because of Jackie Robinson’s breaking of the color barrier, we get to see the best players all play together and against one another. We get to see Ichiro Suzuki try to get to 3,000 hits this year. We get to see Carlos Beltran try to hit his 400th homerun this year. We just saw Bryce Harper hit his 100th homerun. CC Sabathia looks to record his 2,600 strikeout and move into the Top 25 in that category all time.
Each and every single one of these players, and the countless others not mentioned, are doing this at the highest level. As players, these players know they are truly exceptional because they are unequivocally doing this against the best players in the sport regardless of creed, race, or religion. As fans, we get to see the best players from around the world play baseball at the highest level. No matter what, we get to see the best of the best.
Thank you Jackie Robinson for making that and so much more possible.