I can’t believe I’m writing this, but after all the nonsense I’ve read lately, I felt someone somewhere just had to write, “Mike Piazza is going into the Hall of Fame as a Met.”
You know how I know this? He wrote it in his book “Long Shot” at page 343:
The whole affair [of the closing ceremony at Shea Stadium] felt good, and it spoke to why, if I do make it to the Hall of Fame . . . I hope to go in as a Met. Technically, it’s not a player’s call; the Hall of Fame itself makes that decision. But players can let their preferences be known, and mine is pretty strong.
*****************
If there’s a single person in my career with whom I feel most closely associated, yes, it’s definitely Tommy [Lasorda]. If there’s a team, however, it’s the Mets.
That’s straight from his mouth. So why the guessing game? Making arguments either way is just picking nits.
He was a better hitter with the Dodgers hitting .331/.394/.572 with 177 homers as opposed to hitting .296/.373/.542 with 220 homers for the Mets. He was the Rookie of the Year with the Dodgers, but he played in the World Series with the Mets. His story started with being a 62nd round pick of the Dodgers, a team he would play seven years and 726 games. He would play eight years and 972 games for the Mets, a team for which he did this:
Point is it’s close enough to go either way. Sure, the Hall of Fame retains the right to make the selection, but it will honor a player’s reasonable request. Piazza going in as a Met is not only reasonable, but it’s also his stated intention. Even if you didn’t have his words, look at his actions.
He always comes back for the big Mets events. He caught the last pitch at Shea and the first one at Citi Field. He threw out the first pitch at the first home World Series game at Citi Field. If he’s at an MLB sponsored event, he’s always there as a Mets delegate. In each and every All Star Legends and Celebrity Softball Game, he’s worn a Mets hat, and yes, that was for the ones preceding the 2013 All Star Game as well.
Overall, there is no reason to suggest Piazza will go into the Hall of Fame as anything other than a Met. To do so would be to ignore his statements and his actions.
Mike Piazza is and forever will be a Met.
Tomorrow, the Hall of Fame results will be announced. Looking at the current known ballots, Billy Wagner is not going to be elected to the Hall of Fame this year. It must be of small condolence to him that he won’t be bounced from the ballot.
It was not for a lack of trying. Wagner has been anywhere and everywhere trying to tell the world (and the voters) he’s a Hall of Famer. He does every interview possible. He retweets everything from the Wags Facts Twitter account. Naturally, the Tweets focus on why Wagner should be a Hall of Famer:
Billy Wagner's compelling Hall of Fame case https://t.co/SqydQ6dtyi via @BtBScore
— #wagsfacts (@wags_facts) December 13, 2015
@cje1213 @NotMrTibbs – 61 votes for Hoffman, 31 votes for smith, 10 votes for Wagner. Do stats matter in baseball? pic.twitter.com/vBh4p5d13z
— #wagsfacts (@wags_facts) December 23, 2015
Hoffman NL version of Rivera? Really @JonHeymanCBS?
Hoffman 2.87 ERA is 30%> than Rivera 2.21 & 24%> than Wags 2.31 https://t.co/dIxokDnhau— #wagsfacts (@wags_facts) December 31, 2015
Whether or not you agree Wagner is a Hall of Famer, you have to admit he had an amazing career. If you think he’s a Hall of Famer or not, he and his career deserves a lot of respect. I also respect that he’s advocating his Hall of Fame case. Never forget that in life you are your own best advocate. If Billy Wagner isn’t going to advocate his case, who’s going to take up the mantle as effectively as he has?
Wagner is used to coming in with everything on the line. He’s used to coming out and giving it his best shot armed with nothing more than a 98+ MPH fastball. He was dominant. He got the job done. If he brings the same tenacity to getting elected to the Hall of Fame, I don’t doubt he will one day get elected.
Good for Billy Wagner.
If you follow the voting history, it’s plain to see the majority of Hall of Fame voters will not vote for a player confirmed to have used PEDs. The question is what happens with everyone else as you can create a hypothetical that anyone used steroids.
Some voters use that opportunity to create false narratives. For some, like Murray Chass, it appears he has an axe to grind. For others, they just don’t bother to research their claims, thereby just guessing who did and who didn’t use steroids. Others pull stuff out of thin air. There are too many guys who lump guys together without making any distinction. At the end of the day, it’s a player like Mike Piazza, who gets his name dragged through the mud without so much as an explanation. Piazza is left standing outside the Hall of Fame asking “what does acne have to do with steroids?”
The answer is that it doesn’t matter. There was a time when reporters sought proof for their allegations. You used to need a source or documentation. Now, all you need is a byline and a hunch. This is best shown with Bob Nightengale‘s latest column. If you don’t know who he is, he’s the guy who famously tweeted this:
Ben Zobrist has a four-year, $80 million offer on the table. The #Mets still considered favorites to ultimately land him.
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 8, 2015
I’m putting that out there before you take any of the following too seriously. Keep in mind that despite acknowledging Piazza has forever denied using steroids, Piazza having never failed a test, and Piazza’s name never coming up in any investigation, he’s accusing him of using steroids. In effect, this would be like if Deep Throat was Woodward and/or Bernstein. No one needs any facts; unfounded conjecture will do just nicely.
Essentially, his case that Piazza used steroids boils down to this:
[Piazza’s denials] counters concerns of PED use aired almost exclusively in private by former teammates, opponents, scouts and management who were struck by Piazza’s rise froma modest amateur career to a muscle bound slugger who hit balls clear out of Dodger Stadium.
The insinuation is because Piazza was a very low round draft pick, he must’ve cheated. How is that fair? Furthermore, how is it fair that all of these supposed people who accuse Piazza were anonymous? Keep in mind there has still yet to be a teammate, opponent, or even a ball boy who has named Piazza as a steroids user. It’s all rumor. If that was sufficient, we would all believe the married father of three is homosexual. I guess Nightengale has a source on that one too.
You know what’s even worse about Nightengale’s assumptions? Their just plain wrong. In fact, it took the Rising Apple very little time to disprove it:
Here's a large snippet from the 1985 Piazza article. Last one! CC @BNightengale. A retraction would be cool. pic.twitter.com/gc5TUZKfDY
— Rising Apple (@RisingAppleBlog) January 4, 2016
So yeah, Piazza had power as an amateur. Also, look at his minor league stats. Piazza hit 26+ home runs in each year he played in a full time minor league level. He did that despite being young for his leagues. You see Piazza could always hit and hit for power. It was just a question of where he would play.
You may ask why does all this matter especially if Nightengale is voting for Piazza. There’s two reasons. The first is the he’s not the only voter operating with these unfounded accusations (the others use it to withhold their votes). The second is because people mistakenly see Piazza’s induction as a path for confirmed users like Roger Clemens. How ironic.
So what happens is the greatest hitting catcher of all time waits to see if he’ll be elected on the fourth or fifth ballot. People are acting upon this rumor mongering and unproven suspicions.
If you follow Ryan Thibs on Twitter and/or his Hall of Fame Tracker, you have seen Piazza’s early support dwindle from the low to mid 90’s to 86.5%. This is just from 35.1% of the voters. Last year, Piazza received 75.1% on published ballots and just 62.1% on unpublished ballots. Overall, Piazza finished with 68.8% of the vote. Unsurprisingly, the people who are afraid to put their names to a ballot are the ones who are most comfortable pretending Piazza used steroids.
If Piazza’s vote total again dips by 6.3%, he will be elected with around 80.2% of the vote. It’s not a large margin of error. With a changing electorate, I’m not sure if we can expect a similar regression in the unpublished vote totals. It’s a wild card. It means it’s going to be close. I’m hoping Piazza gets elected, but I’m not counting on it. He may just have to wait until 2017, and that’s not right.
If he does the Bob Nightengales of the world will have to look in the mirror and ask if it was worth smearing a player with no actual proof. Either way, they should ask what type of integrity they have publishing unfounded rumors. What journalistic standards asked that uphold. I presume none.
It’s time to stop punishing Piazza for bad journalism and elect him to the Hall of Fame.
I’ve always joked that it’s the New York Giants that keep me sane. Never was this more true than on September 30, 2007. If you’re a Mets fan, you know that as the day the Mets completed a historic collapse. I was devastated even if Tom Glavine wasn’t.
I remember leaving Shea and heading to the Meadowlands as that year I had the Sunday Plan and Giants season tickets. Note, I was unmarried with no children back then. Initially, I was less than enthused going to the Giants game. The Giants started the year a very unimpressive 0-2. Furthermore, the Giants were playing the Eagles. I knew I was going to have to hear it from Eagles fans who the Phillies beat the Mets and how the Mets choked. I was stewing on my drive from Queens to Jersey. The rage just kept building and building.
As I entered the lot, I slipped off my David Wright jersey, which I never wore again, and I slipped on my Shaun O’Hara jersey. With some heckling from the lowlife Eagles fans, I was ready for the game. What ensued was the most cathartic three hours of my life. Not only did the Giants win, they pummeled the Eagles. Osi Umenyiora had six sacks. The Giants set an NFL single game sack record with 12 in total. It was a joy to see all those Eagles fans quiet and leaving early. It was a magical night that let me get some sleep that night.
Actually, it was a magical season. As we know, the Giants would win Super Bowl XLII that year. They upset the undefeated Patriots in what would go down as one of the greatest Super Bowls, if not the greatest Super Bowl, ever. It was made possible by Tom Coughlin.
Going into 2007, Coughlin was on the hot seat. In response, he became more open and accessible to his players. He formed the Leadership Council. Generally speaking, he found a way to be a coach that demands discipline while at the same time allowing his players to have a voice. You know what happened? Everyone was able to get on the same page. It allowed him just to be a great football coach, which he was. Coughlin was once seen as an impediment to winning a Super Bowl. He now was a reason why they could and did win one.
In 2007, things changed, and the Giants became champions. They won with the quarterback he developed. They won as a team. It’s because Coughlin changed. No, he didn’t change as a person. He was always a good person. Now, he showed that side to his team. They loved him for it. Looking at everything today, they still love him.
The fans do as well. He was the coach that developed Eli Manning. He was the coach that led the Giants to two Super Bowl wins. Both runs were improbable and thrilling. I loved both titles. However, I’ll always cherish Super Bowl XLII a little more. The Mets fan in me thought I was going to see a championship season in 2007. At that time, I just didn’t realize the season was going to carry into 2008. Trust me, it was worth the wait.
Through all these years, this Mets fan has kept sane because I was also a Giants fan, at least the Giants won championships. Tom Coughlin has a lot to do with that having earned three rings with the Giants. As a fan, I will always be grateful he coached my team. I’ll always be grateful he brought class and dignity to an organization renown for class and dignity. While I’m curious as to what’s next, I do admit some trepidation.
Your team is always worse when it loses a Hall of Famer. It’s even worse off when it loses a human being the caliber of Tom Coughlin. Whatever he does next, I wish him the best of luck.
Thank you for everything Tom Coughlin.
The Mets seemingly have one last opportunity to spend this offseason. They’ve made promises to increase payroll of attendance went up, but they haven’t done so thus far. They’re running out of opportunities to do so as well.
Fans will immediately jump and scream Yoenis Cespedes. I’ll admit that despite my reservations, the Mets should bring him back if it’s a two or three year deal. However, I think Cespedes is still holding out for more. He may go into Spring Training holding out for more. Honestly, if he only gets a three year deal, I would get suspicious there was collision on the free agent market. This is all a round about way to say I don’t think Cespedes is returning.
As far as I see it, there’s one player where you can look at add payroll. Right now, the Mets need someone who can play first base and the corner outfield slots. That is unless Eric Campbell is your guy. Seemingly, I’m the only fan who has any respect for him, so that’s out. The other rumored guys for that spot are Ryan Raburn and Steve Pearce. They could be solid if not spectacular options. There’s one name who’s available that does excite me. Nick Swisher.
The Braves are desperate to move him and will eat a significant part of his contract to move him. They better be for a guy with two surgically replaced knees owed $10 million (Indians are paying $5 million of his $15 million due this year) coming off of a .196/.312/.320 season. With all that said, I still like Swisher. I think he can still help a team as a bench player. I believe he has more upside than Raburn and Pearce.
Yes, he is coming off two consecutive bad years, but it was following surgery on both of his knees. He’s had a full season in his rear view mirror, and hopefully, he knows his limitations and/or what he needs to do to get through a season. Additionally, I like the idea of reuniting him with Kevin Long.
If we remember, Curtis Granderson hit .227/.326/.388 in his first year as a Met. His contract looked like a disaster. In 2015, Granderson was reunited with Long, and he hit .259/.364/.457. At the age of 34, Granderson went from albatross to the Mets MVP.
Swisher hit .268/.367/.483 in four years as a Yankee. It was the best four year stretch of his career. They were all under Kevin Long. Seeing how Lonh helped rejuvenate Granderson, I’m intrigued by what Long could do with Swisher. Sure, Swisher is older than Granderson was, and he has injury problems that Granderson didn’t. However, Long has shown a knack in helping both players. I’d like to see him get another opportunity.
I also like having a switch hitter on the bench. For his career, Swisher hits lefties better, but he’s a viable bench player against lefties and righties. He has hit .243/.334/.453 against righties and .264/.389/.435 against lefties. Considering most of the talent on the current roster fares better against righties, it’s a positive to have a hitter that hits lefties better. It’s also good to have a pinch hitter who will not be neutralized by a pitching change.
The last reason I like Swisher is who he is. Seemingly, every team he was on commented on his enthusiasm. A 162 game schedule is a grind. A player like Swisher can help you through it (although it apparently works better on winning teams). This offseason the Mets have seemingly lost a lot of character and glue guys from the team. If you’re filling out a bench, it’s probably a good thing to add a guy who keeps the clubhouse upbeat.
We know the issues with Swisher. He’s going to be more expensive than the alternatives. He’s had two knee surgeries. He’s going to cost a player. However, it has seemingly affected him more at the plate than in the field. Also, he has more upside at the plate and in the clubhouse. I’d buy low on Nick Swisher and let him work with Kevin Long.
The Mets should acquire Nick Swisher.
Honestly, I don’t know of a more underrated and under appreciated great player than Tom Seaver. He was bafflingly omitted from the All Century Team. In his stead were players like Nolan Ryan. Another inane fan vote named Sandy Koufax over Seaver as part of the Franchise Four Living Legends.
Seaver doesn’t get the respect he’s due. He could very well be the best right handed pitcher of all time. He’s inarguably a top five pitcher, especially when you omit those who have cheated. Yet, Seaver can’t get a statue in front of Citi Field. He isn’t mentioned among the best of the best. The fans don’t see it. This tells me he’s been largely forgotten. I say largely because he does get mentioned every time this year as he is still the player who was elected to the Hall of Fame with the highest percentage.
In 1992, Seaver received 98.84% of the vote. It means each year, he’s necessarily mentioned as the player elected with the highest percentage of the vote. Every year, Mets fans can puff their chests out in pride. Now, it seems like that is all in jeopardy:
Including the partial ballots at the bottom of the sheet, Griffey is 150/150. Needs 295 of the est. 300 remaining to break Seaver's record.
— Ryan Thibodaux (@NotMrTibbs) January 3, 2016
Ken Griffey, Jr. has received 100% of the vote from those writers who have published their ballots thus far. He’s a legitimate threat to be the first unanimously elected player in the Hall of Fame. In many ways, it’s a sign of progress. I’m selfish. I hope he doesn’t get it. I hope six writers find absurd reasons to omit Griffey’s name from the ballot.
The reason is simple. I’m a Mets fan that believes Seaver never got his due. I believe the fan votes establish that. A Mets ownership that refuses to properly honor him with a statue establishes that. The only real thing that keeps Seaver in the baseball public consciousness is his Hall of Fame tally.
Honestly, I care more about this than Mike Piazza getting elected this year. He will get in eventually. He will always be remembered as the greatest hitting catcher and the post 9/11 home run. As a Mets fan, I’m not worried about Piazza’s legacy.
I am about Seaver, the greatest Met there ever was. Perhaps, the greatest Met that ever will be. The man who is one of the five greatest pitchers ever. He’s never gotten his due, except when it came to Hall of Fame voting. It’s the only time we hear about him. I shouldn’t have to hope voters do the wrong thing, but I do.
For the sake of Seaver’s legacy, I hope six voters do the wrong thing and don’t vote for Griffey.
If your Day Care is like mine, it is closed between Christmas and New Year’s. This means someone has to stay home with the little man. As my day job has more flexibility then, it’s my responsibility.
Two things you should know about watching a toddler all day: (1) it’s great spending that much time with your son; and (2) it’s exhausting. It’s a constant challenge. However, if you keep in mind that most little boys want to be like their daddies, it can help you get through the day. The next thing to keep in mind is that the more things you plan in advance, the better.
After your son is up and gets dressed, make your way to the kitchen and make breakfast together. Every kid wants to be a help and be involved. Tell him you need his help making breakfast for him and daddy.
One day I made scrambled eggs with my son. It’s easier said than done. You have to do some prep work while entertaining him. I got the bowl out to mix the eggs, put a little milk in a cup, cut a small piece of butter, and I got the frying pan on the stove. I showed him how we crack the eggs, and I put them in the bowl. As I started to whisk them together, I gave him the cup, and I had him add the milk. Once that was done, I had him throw the butter I into the hot frying pan. Note, out the frying pan on the far burner and have your hands on your son’s wrists to prevent him from touching the hot pan. When the butter is melted, obviously put the eggs in the pan. Now, I got myself a spurtle, and I gave my son a large serving spoon. As the eggs cooked, I allowed him to move the eggs in the pan like he was cooking them. Once the eggs were cooked, I had him help me take the eggs from the frying pan and put them on our plates.
Now, toddlers are notoriously picky eaters. However, I found when my son participated in the process, he ate his eggs without hesitation. Considering how much work the eggs were, I tried doing toaster waffles the next day. No, he told me he wanted to “make eggs.” So, we had eggs all week. My advice to you is start with the waffles.
After breakfast and clean-up, you need to figure out what to do before lunch. Keep in mind you’re going to want your kid to take a nap after lunch. It’s usually how it’s done in Day Care, and you really want to stick to that schedule. With that in mind, I suggest a physical activity. That means if you got a yard, go run outside in the yard. If there’s a park nearby, go there. If there’s inclement weather or it’s too cold out, run around the house. Just run your kid tired.
On multiple days, I set up my son’s baseball stuff. We worked on hitting the ball as hard as he could. We played catch. One suggestion here is don’t force it on your son. If he doesn’t want to play, move on to something else. If you want him to like baseball, don’t force it down his throat to the point he hates it. On days he wasn’t interested, we ran races, played other sports like basketball, or we just played with his cars and trains. Again, the goal is to tire them out.
Now, instead of staying home after breakfast and running around, it may help to do an activity. My family has a zoo membership allowing us to go whenever we want. This is really helpful. After walking the zoo and getting lunch, it’s time to go home. If your kid is anything like mine, it’s easier to get him to fall asleep in the car than it is to get him to nap at home. Coincidentally, I ran into another father from the same Day Care at the zoo, and he agreed with this assertion. In fact, even if you stay home, take your kid for a drive and get him to nap. It’s worth your sanity.
While your kid is napping, you have time to clean up dishes. If you’re an overachiever, get dinner started. Personally, I suggest something like a baked ziti that you can have for more than one night. If that’s too much or not a good cook, find an easy slow cooker recipe. Keep in mind, you may need that nap yourself as that week progresses and/or you’ll want to use that time to get some work done.
One important thing to remember is to have a snack rest for your kid when he wakes up from his nap. He’s going to be hungry when he gets up. Set it up at the table, so there’s as little problems as possible.
At the table, I also like to have some crayons and/or Play Doh handy. Something you can give him right after snack time if you need to buy a couple of minutes in preparing dinner. Right after snack, I usually like to see if I can keep my son at the table. Sometimes it’s drawing a picture for mommy. Other times it’s Play Doh.
Overall, no matter what activities you do, you should be looking to incorporate ways to teach your kid something . . . you know other than getting him to swing level. There’s always an opportunity to count things. When he’s using crayons, use some yourself and draw the alphabet or numbers and try to get him to identify them. At this age everything and anything can be used to learn something.
Hopefully, once snack and activity time is over, your wife is home. Most likely, you still have time. That’s time that can be spent doing a myriad of things from reading books to coloring more, or basically whatever activity your son has in mind. Keep in mind, no one is going to judge you if you need to put on Sesame Street for a little bit. You can justify it to yourself because the show has a number, letter, and word of the day. Seriously, there are some benefits to Sesame Street.
Hopefully, your wife is home at this point, and you can surprise her with dinner. Then it’s cleaning up after dinner, and you’re close to bath time, story time, and bed time. Congratulations, you’ve survived the day. Your son had fun, and your wife is happy and impressed with you. Think it was a hard day? Your poor mother did that and a lot more for longer. Maybe at this time give your poor mother a call and let her talk to her grandson.
In any event, after five days of that, you’re pretty beat. With that said, come Monday morning, I’m going to miss it. I’m going to miss the little guy. I look forward to the next time I can do it.
We all have that uncle. He’s annoying and self righteous. He’s bombastic and knows more than you. He doesn’t like new things. So what happens is when he’s confronted with new ideas, he comes an angry old man, who may not always make sense.
That was Murray Chase again. It’s the same person who created the rumors that Mike Piazza used steroids. He did it on his blog, and not the New York Times. The reason? Well, presumably, the Times won’t let anyone published an unfounded rumor. To him, backne means steroids regardless of his lack of citing any medical proof.
I digress. Reading the column, I thought the only thing fair was him going after Dan Szymborski (I seriously apologize if this is misspelled). I’m not saying his criticisms are fair or even cogent. I’m just saying it was fair to attack him because in the past Murray Chass was attacked by Dan Szymborski. However, there were two things that struck me on these attacks. First, there was a time a Spink Award Winner would’ve ignored such attacks because responding in kind is to put that person on your level. Second, Murray Chass isn’t attacking Dan Szymborski. He’s attacking everyone who disagrees with him.
He has a problem that things are changing. Frankly, times have already left him behind (pun somewhat intended). People disagree with him, and they now have a forum to voice that opinion. In fact, the Dan Syzmborski’s of the world have a greater platform than he does. It’s not just that people disagree with Murray Chass. No, it’s that the world is changing, and it’s not consulting with people like him. He has years of experience we don’t. We have new ideas and theories we just can’t prove because he doesn’t understand them.
Admittedly, I read his column (I’ll respect him not calling it a blog), and I was going to take issue. Specifically, I was going to address why he could vote for Jack Morris based upon one game, one incredible game that’s in the pantheon of the greatest games of all time, but not voting for Curt Schilling and his more dominant postseason career. I stopped when I saw this:
Chass is not on the BBWAA's list of the 549 voters who cast ballots last year (https://t.co/SYksFWtFUN) pic.twitter.com/hMTX2fRhgo
— Ryan Thibodaux (@NotMrTibbs) January 3, 2016
I stopped when reading that. I remembered talking to my uncle. I know deep down he wants to hoot and holler about how things are different, and how we doesn’t like it. Admittedly, it would amuse me at times. Now that I’m older, when we broach the topics that get him angry, I decide to move on to a new topic. There’s no point anymore. He has nothing new to say about those topics. He’s not going to listen to anything I have to say. What’s the point?
My uncle just wants to be heard. He wants to feel like he’s part of the conversation. He wants to know he’s not being ignored. That’s Murray Chass, and his actions. He wants you to know what he thinks. He’s telling you how it is and/or should be. It’s why he may or may not get his Hall of Fame ballot in time. It’s tertiary to everything. He wants to be heard.
Honestly, I’d rather Chass talked about things he’s seen, rather than judging others based upon what he’s seen. The man is in the Baseball Hall of Fame for his fine reporting. He was one of the few, according to him, that truly covered baseball’s labor strife throughout the years. Chass has been a champion of Marvin Miller’s inclusion into the Hall of Fame. Chass is correct in his assertions about the impact Miller had on the game.
Overall, that’s what I want to hear from Murray Chass. There are great stories he had told and can re-tell. He has genuine, singular knowledge of baseball’s labor history. Chass should be included in baseball discussions frequently as, yes, he knows a lot more than we do. It doesn’t mean he’s always right. It doesn’t mean he won’t go on an eye rolling rant. It just means the man has value.
I honestly wish I could nudge Murray Chass in that direction as I do my uncle at the dinner table during holidays. I hope someone can. I’d love to read Chass again and feel informed. I don’t like reading his columns and feeling sad for him. He and his readers deserve better than that.
The 2015 Mets had a number of free agents. Of all the players that were on the World Series roster, the only one they brought back was 42 year old Bartolo Colon. They need to bring another player to provide real depth to the major league roster.
Right now, the Mets are expecting Wilmer Flores to literally back up every infield position. He’s the answer to every contingency. David Wright needs a break or has to go on the DL? Flores to third. Neil Walker doesn’t hit well against lefties. Flores to second. Lucas Duda needs a day off? Flores to first. Asdrubal Cabrera reverts back to the way he has the prior five and a half seasons? Flores to short. That is unless Ruben Tejada‘s leg completely heals, then Flores and Tejada will become part of the triumvirate over there.
The Mets need another option. Last year, Wright and Daniel Murphy got hurt. This lead to the Mets moving the deckchairs around the Titanic. We saw a lot of Dilson Herrera, who wasn’t ready. We also saw a lot of Eric Campbell, who is nothing more than a bench player. They were pressed into action because frankly, Flores and Tejada showed they couldn’t hold down the fort. They shouldn’t have been everyday players, at least not in the first half. Remember, for all the Mets vaunted new depth, they’re still two injuries away from Flores and a Tejada both being everyday players. It didn’t go so well last year.
Their relative ineptitude lead to the best trade the Mets made last year. They brought in Kelly Johnson and Juan Uribe. They provided real depth, and they took the pressure off of everyone else. It’s of little surprise that once they came to the Mets, Tejada began to establish himself as an everyday player. They way it appears, the Mets have one roster spot left. Uribe or Johnson should be brought back for 2016.
The argument for Johnson is he can play all the infield positions, including being an emergency SS, and both corner outfield positions. He provides more depth and versatility than a Ryan Raburn or a Steve Pearce. In 49 games, he hit .250/.304/.414 as a Met. He’s a career .251/.333/.424 hitter. While the Mets would prefer a right-handed bat, Johnson has fairly even platoon splits where that shouldn’t matter. In his career, he has hit .244/.330/.421 against righties and .272/.334/.431 against lefties. More than anyone Johnson has the versatility to provide the depth the Mets need.
Uribe on the other hand is much more limited. He is now a third baseman, but he was willing to play some second last year. It’s possible given an offseason, he may be willing to learn first. It would help considering he’s a right-handed bat, and he was a leader in the clubhouse. Last year, Uribe only hit .219/.301/.430 as a Met. However, he did hit .253/.320/.417 overall. Like Johnson, he had no real platoon splits. He hits .258/.303/.419 against righties and .251/.302/.427 against lefties. It should be noted if Uribe comes back, Flores probably needs to learn to play the outfield as well.
I’d prefer to add both players, but as it stands, the Mets only have one bench spot open. Johnson had the versatility, but Uribe has the leadership skills, which are crucial on a young team. If the Mets go either way I can’t fault them. In fact, I’d argue they’re needed because the Mets can’t have Flores be the answer for everything.
No, the Mets need a veteran presence with versatility so the Mets can make good at the deeper and more versatile overtures they have been making.
Perhaps, the Mets biggest free agent remains unsigned. No, not Yoenis Cespedes. I’m of course referring to Keith Hernandez. As Adam Rubin reported, Keith remains unsigned. Most people expect him to return. I wouldn’t be shocked if he didn’t.
We know this isn’t the first time it was rumored that Keith was leaving SNY. There was his infamous 2009 sign-off where he hinted he may not return. As we know, Keith returned, and he has been a part of the Gary, Keith, and Ron (GKR) booth ever since. So, why is this time any different?
For starters, we had the Bobby Ojeda situation last year. Every Mets fan seemed to enjoy his work. I believe that was because Ojeda didn’t mince words. He called it as he saw it. Mets fans appreciated it regardless of whether we agreed with him or not. Unsurprisingly, it was reported the issue was money. Ojeda was replaced with Nelson Figueroa, who was presumably cheaper and definitively less critical.
We don’t currently know what the reason why Keith’s deal hasn’t been completed. We also know this isn’t the first time this offseason it was rumored the GKR booth was breaking up. There were the rumors Ron Darling may be poached by NESN to call Red Sox games. It turns out there was nothing to the rumors as Ron never had any conversations with NESN. I still question how those rumors arose.
What we do know is the Mets have been penny pinching this offseason. Instead of $12.5 million a year for Daniel Murphy, it’s around $9 million for Neil Walker. Instead of $9 million for Jon Niese, it’s $7.25 million for Bartolo Colon. Free agent Tyler Clippard earned $8.3 million last year, but the Mets did bring back Jerry Blevins for $4 million. Then there’s every Mets fans’ favorite, Cespedes was paid $10.5 million last year, and he remains unsigned (he seems to want double that). In his stead is the $5.75 million Alejandro De Aza. The total savings of those moves is $14.3 million.
Sure, I didn’t include the $8.25 million to Asdrubal Cabrera. That would reduce savings to $6.05 million. However, I also didn’t include the retirement of Michael Cuddyer, which took $12.5 million off the books. In total, that’s $18.55 million in savings. The Mets have increased revenues and attendance, and yet, they’re still cutting corners. Put aside your feelings on the wisdom of these moves, it’s fair to say the Mets saved money in each mechanation.
With that in mind, why should we feel the Wilpons will act differently with SNY? They already did it with Ojeda. Is Keith really immune to cost cutting measures? I’d argue no, and admittedly fans are partially to blame.
Be honest with yourself. If Keith is gone, will you stop watching Mets games in 2016? Of course not. You’re watching them to see if they can go back to the World Series. As we all know, there is higher attendance figures and higher ratings when a team is good. The Mets could hire Joe Buck and Bobby Bonilla to call the games, and you’d still watch. It may be on mute, but you’d still watch.
That’s the reason I wouldn’t be surprised if Keith wasn’t re-signed. The Mets are good again. SNY doesn’t need GKR to help drive ratings. They have a good team to do that. With all that said, I still believe Keith will be back next year.
However, I wouldn’t be surprised in the least if he wasn’t.