Jacob deGrom

Brandon Nimmo Looks And Sounds Serious About Winning

When you think of Brandon Nimmo, you think of a player who is always smiling, hustling, and just seems to have an “aww shucks” mentality. That’s not to say he doesn’t come to beat you.

Nimmo is one of the toughest outs there is in the game, and he makes the pitcher work like few others. He’s also had a penchant for the big hit or key defensive play. That said, he just doesn’t have that “look” of a steely resolve of a player who just comes to beat you.

That was actually a hallmark of that 1999 Mets team. Whatever it is, we saw that with Edgardo Alfonzo, Rickey Henderson, Al Leiter, John Olerud, Mike Piazza, Rick Reed, Robin Ventura, and really, the entire team. It was just a mentality and attitude they had.

Looking at the current Mets team, Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman, and Noah Syndergaard seems to be the only Mets players who truly have that mentality. Judging from his interview during Spring Training, Nimmo may be finding it as well.

This shows this Mets team knows it’s good. It’s really good. They know they have a target on their backs, and like that 1999 team, they’re coming after the Atlanta Braves and all of baseball.

Before a pitch is thrown, this Mets team is already developing a swagger and a quiet confidence. They’re coming prepared, and they’re not letting anyone get in their way.

Seeing Nimmo there is yet another reason to believe in this team. During the course of the season, we’ll find 162 more.

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Still Too Early To Worry About Mets Extension Negotiations

After this season, Michael Conforto, Francisco Lindor, Marcus Stroman, and Noah Syndergaard will be free agents. With respect to Conforto and Lindor, they have said they will not negotiate in-season.

At the moment, it does not appear the New York Mets are particularly close to completing deals with any of the four. That said, it hasn’t stopped Steve Cohen from having some fun with it.

There are various reports on each. There’s some confidence Lindor will get his $300 million extension. No one trusts Boras will reach a deal on Conforto with the paucity of quality MLB outfielders on the free agent market. No one is sure what Syndergaard’s value is, and it seems like everything is silent on Stroman.

This is still in the big yawn territory. Remember, the Mets held up the plane back to New York to ensure Jacob deGrom would sign his extension. Certainly, if they need to do that again, they’ll do it.

Up until the moment you hear player introductions on Opening Day is the time to be worried. Short of that, we should still trust at least one of these deals get done.

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Sorry ESPN, Jacob deGrom Is Better Than Gerrit Cole

For the second straight year, ESPN has ranked Gerrit Cole ahead of Jacob deGrom in their annual top 100 player rankings. This is done despite Cole never out-pitching deGrom in their respective careers. Really, just look at the numbers.

In 2018, deGrom not only won his first Cy Young, but he also established himself as the best pitcher in all of baseball. Since that time, deGrom leads the majors in innings, ERA, FIP, and WAR. He’s second in WHIP, xFIP, and soft contact%. He is third in strikeouts and fourth in hard hit rate.

With the exception of strikeouts Cole is a clear and defined step behind deGrom. It’s also not just deGrom. We see Cole is also behind Chris Sale and Max Scherzer in terms of FIP. That is not to say Cole hasn’t established himself as an ace. He has done that. Rather, it is just an indication he has been a clear step behind deGrom.

Even if you want to point to ages, you are heading in the wrong direction. Yes, deGrom is older at 32 years of age, and Cole presumably has more of a prime ahead of him with his being two years younger. However, when you look at deGrom, there is absolutely no indication he is slowing down. Just look at how he is ramping things up this Spring Training:

Fact is deGrom has been the best pitcher in baseball since 2018, and there are no signs he is slowing down. In fact, he is still ramping it up hitting 102 MPH on his fastball while throwing a mid 90s slider during Spring Training. He is among the most intense competitors we have ever seen from the mound.

Really, if you are going to pick a pitcher ahead of deGrom, you are going to need a better reason than Cole “being affected by the stop-and-start nature of last year’s pandemic-shortened season.” There’s not doubt Cole and everyone else was; however, deGrom was already better than Cole before Cole was affected by anything.

Right now, until someone suddenly gains superpowers, there is no pitcher in baseball better than deGrom. Suggesting otherwise is making an argument not based in fact, and your hot take is whiffing worse than anyone who has flailed away at a deGrom fastball, change, or slider.

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Mets Shouldn’t Be Retiring Any More Player Numbers

Mike Piazza perhaps let the cat out of the bag when he intimated the New York Mets may start retiring more numbers. Of course, this shouldn’t come as a shock when the organization announced Jerry Koosman‘s 36 was going to be retired.

Looking at the Mets franchise history, this is quite the Steinbrenner type of move.

After the simply bizarre act of retiring Casey Stengel‘s number, the Mets put the highest of standards for retiring player numbers. In fact, prior to the Koosman announcement, it was an honor solely reserved for Hall of Famers.

It’s a standard which frankly makes sense. Number retirement should be an honor presented to the true legends of your franchise. By definition, that’s what the Hall of Famers are.

If we sort through team history, if not for a completely and arbitrary application of an theretofore unenforced rule Gary Carter would be in the Hall of Fame as a Met. That would’ve led to the retirement of his 8.

It’s also quite possible we may one day see Keith Hernandez and Carlos Beltran inducted. With that should come their numbers being retired. At least with respect to Hernandez, that would be an extremely popular decision.

Past that duo, the only player who you can conceive of hitting that level is Jacob deGrom. That’s something that needs consideration.

When a number is retired, the franchise is putting a player at the level of Tom Seaver, Piazza, and quite possibly deGrom. Looking at the team history, they don’t have players at that level. They really don’t.

That includes David Wright who is an extremely popular choice amongst the fans. If not for injuries, he very well might’ve. By the same token, if not for addiction, Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry not only would’ve been at that level, but quite possibly, would’ve been a step above Wright.

Fact is Wright is a Mets great, but he’s not a baseball great. Yes, he deserves honoring by the Mets, but a number retirement is just too high of an honor. That should be reserved for the true legends to wear a Mets uniform.

Keep in mind, as discussed on the Simply Amazin Podcast, much of the case for Wright can dwindle over time. For example, if Michael Conforto re-signs, he should take over a good chunk of Wright’s records.

After that, we could see someone else surpass both players. Part of the reason is the records on the books isn’t particularly impressive for a franchise. Keep in mind, that’s not saying Wright’s career numbers aren’t impressive. They are. However, as a franchise leader, it’s not.

There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. The issue just is where you start drawing lines.

For example, for all the push for Wright, John Franco remains the franchise all-time saves leader, has the most saves of any left-handed pitcher in MLB history, and he was a captain. Despite that, there seems little to no push to retire his number even with his being a Met longer just as long as Wright.

Really, when you look at both, yes, they should be honored, but in reality, it should be short of number retirement. In reality, that’s why there’s a Mets Hall of Fame.

The answer should be to make the Mets Hall of Fame into a destination at Citi Field. Really showcase the Mets greats honoring them the way they should be honored. That’s far more fitting than trying to elevate players like Wright to the levels of Seaver.

In the end, there’s nothing wrong with not having many numbers retired. In many ways, that makes that honor all the more meaningful. It’s better to keep it that way while also finding an appropriate way to honor the Mets greats who aren’t in the Hall of Fame.

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What You Missed From Mets Not Televised Spring Training Game

Because MLB hasn’t quite figured out its diehard fans want to see Spring Training games, New York Mets fans have to wait to see what happened. They missed all they wanted to see.

Jacob deGrom was brilliant for 4.2 scoreless innings throwing between 99-102 MPH.

He’s actually get some run support with future captain Michael Conforto and future Hall of Famer Francisco Lindor homering.

Miguel Castro was terrific again with a scoreless inning, and Dellin Betances seemed to right the ship with a scoreless inning himself. All told, it was a 6-2 victory over the Washington Nationals.

All-in-all not a bad day. The only downside was no one was able to watch it.

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Francisco Lindor Extension Deadline Impacts Michael Conforto

The New York Mets have four huge core players hitting free agency after the 2021 season – Michael Conforto, Francisco Lindor, Marcus Stroman, and Noah Syndergaard. At various times, Sandy Alderson has stated they were going to address them one by one.

That’s understandable as one big deal to one may well impact another player. That’s why the Mets need to prioritize and work sequentially.

With Lindor being the future Hall of Famer and the best player on this team, he understandably comes first. He also comes first because Lindor has stated he will not negotiate in-season.

Realistically speaking, there’s no reason to believe the deal won’t get done. Lindor seems to be enjoying being a New York Met, and he has been open to an extension.

For the Mets part, you’d have to believe they had some sense of what it would take to get Lindor. Moreover, this is an area where Steve Cohen’s ownership of the Mets makes a true difference. All told, there is no reason to believe a deal won’t get done.

The real concern is the timing. Heading into the 2019 season, Jacob deGrom said he wouldn’t negotiate in-season. Eventually, deGrom signed just as the Mets were set to embark to begin the season.

If that were to happen with Lindor, we can all breath a sigh of relief. Well, that’s until we see if there is enough money to and time to extend everyone else.

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Mets Second Starter Should Be Taijuan Walker, Joey Lucchesi, Or Jordan Yamamoto

When teams assemble their pitching rotations, they typically assemble them in order of the talent of their top starters. Taking the New York Mets as an example, Jacob deGrom will be the Opening Day starter. After him, with Carlos Carrasco possibly delayed to start the season and Noah Syndergaard on the 60 day IL, it is fairly clear right now Marcus Stroman would be the second starter.

If you are taking the long term view of the season, Stroman should not be the second starter. Yes, he is the second best starter available, and if this was Game 2 of a postseason series, you would definitively be handing him the ball. However, in the regular season, that does not make any sense.

Looking at deGrom, since he has been the best pitcher in baseball, he has averaged 6.1 innings per start. If you look at the two seasons prior to 2020, he averaged 6.2 innings. That means whenever he takes the ball, the bullpen is getting a break. That is important when you consider the bullpen gets increasingly taxed and taxed with each start. To that, here is the average innings per start over the last four seasons for the Mets projected 2021 rotation options:

Now, the Mets seemed to be blessed with pitchers who tend to go deeper into games than most teams. Still, when fully healthy, this will be a rotation with two 5+ inning starters at the back end of their rotation. That means a bullpen who gets increasingly used after deGrom starts will be asked to provide a lot more without much of a break.

That was something which truly presented an issue for the Mets during deGrom’s first Cy Young campaign. Yes, he received little to no run support far too often that season. However, he also would see the bullpen blow a number of late leads for him. Part of the result is that the bullpen had been taxed heading into his starts. Rather than having the bullpen in the best possible shape to secure a win from their ace, they were on fumes hoping for deGrom to give them a break.

That is partially how you take a season for the ages and turn it into a 11-10 record for deGrom. That is both a reflection of how wins and losses for a pitcher are overrated. However, it is also an indication that something is going wrong that a pitcher who is setting records can’t buy a win.

If we were to look at the current Mets rotation, the bullpen is going to be well rested when deGrom takes the mound. Typically speaking, they will need to get about 6-8 outs in a game. That will leave them well rested. That is exactly the right time to line up the bullpen for a Walker start.

Typically speaking, Walker provides 5+ innings in a start. After deGrom, the bullpen will be well poised to provide that. Of course, after that, the Mets will have run through some of their bullpen. That is when you combat that by going to Syndergaard or Carrasco (if healthy) or Stroman. The Mets can then go to their 5+ inning fifth starter whether that is Luccesi, Peterson, or Yamamoto. Finally, the Mets could then go to Stroman who can eat some more innings before handing the ball back to deGrom.

By restructuring the rotation in that fashion, the Mets are positioning their bullpen to get breaks here and there. You are getting them regular work, and you are avoiding some fallow periods where they are not getting work because the top pitchers are eating up innings. Overall, the general concept is to stagger the pitchers by the innings they will reasonably provide instead of just lining them up without any concept on the impact it will have on the bullpen and staff as a whole.

Hopefully, that means a better rested Edwin Diaz. It could mean less of a need to rely on Seth Lugo for multiple innings when he returns. It could mean not needing to have the Triple-A to MLB shuttle for pitchers like Drew Smith. Instead, pitchers are put in a position where they get regular rest and work. That should help them succeed, and it should help prevent them from blowing games for deGrom.

 

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Not Televising deGrom And Greinke Plain Stupid

It doesn’t matter that it’s Spring Training. When you have a match-up like Jacob deGrom and Zack Greinke, you televise it. Period.

By not televising it, Baseball missed the opportunity to show two future Hall of Famers going head-to-head. Really, not televising this showed a basic misunderstanding of the sport.

One eternal truth in baseball is fans love high profile pitching match-ups. This was one. Mets fans would’ve loved to see deGrom dominate because they love deGrom.

Of course, we all missed a phenomenal match-up. In 3.0 scoreless innings, Greinke struck out four. And deGrom, well, he was deGrom:

Not only did deGrom strike out seven of the nine he faced, but he hit 102. 102!!! That’s insane even by his lofty standards. And yet, we all had to miss it.

That’s not all we missed. We also missed a phenomenal defensive play from Albert Almora.

Finally, there was also a big homer from Pete Alonso, who is having a monster Spring so far.

But hey, no one thought anyone would want to watch this game, so it’s just these clips here and there. But don’t worry, MLB is tackling the real issues to increase the popularity of the game like base sizes.

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Matthew Allan Is Mets Best Prospect

The consensus of people who have done this much longer and better is Francisco Alvarez supplanted Ronny Mauricio as the Mets top prospect. The consensus seems to be they are the top two in the system.

That said, at least here, Matthew Allan should be considered the Mets top prospect. We’re seeing and hearing many of the reasons why this Spring Training.

Before Spring Training, Allan had been at the Mets alternate site at Brooklyn. That’s also where he pitched for the 2019 New York-Penn League Champions.

In that 2019 season, he made a combined six appearances (five starts) for the GCL Mets and Brooklyn. He was 1-0 with a 2.61 ERA, 1.452 WHIP, 4.4 BB/9, and a 12.2 K/9.

In the NYPL postseason, he was dominant pitching out of the bullpen. In two games, he pitched 5.0 innings retiring all 15 batters he faced. That included him pitching three innings and picking up the win in the clincher.

In those games, we saw the repertoire and poise which led the Mets to implement their draft strategy to sign him. As per MLB Pipeline, he had a mid to high 90s fastball which he combined with an excellent curve and a change that was a work in progress. He had the size and delivery which portends success as a starter.

As noted by Jacob Resnick of SNY above, Allan improved the change last year. It should come as no surprise that came after getting to work with Jacob deGrom during part of the COVID shutdown last year. In that time, he got to learn from deGrom much in the same way deGrom once got to learn from Johan Santana.

This past offseason, Allan again went to Stetson University to work with deGrom and fellow Stetson alum catcher Patrick Mazeika.

Allan had the opportunity to speak to and learn from the best pitcher in the game. As noted, it helped lead to an improved change. It may also help him in terms of the mental side of the game and preparation. Really with deGrom encouraging him to wear him out with questions, Allan had a real opportunity to hone his craft.

That continued in Spring Training when Allan got to work not only with deGrom but also Marcus Stroman.

With Stroman, Allan discussed grips as well as the mental side of the game. Many forget Stroman is a real student of the game, and he’s someone who works harder than anyone to find ways to improve and get batters out. As noted by Allan, Stroman was genuine in helping him improve as a pitcher.

That’s a huge reason why Allan should be considered the Mets best prospect. Yes, he certainly has the natural talent and pure stuff to earn that consideration. However, it’s more than that.

Allan, himself, is working hard and striving to improve. He’s in a very fortunate situation where he has had the opportunity and will continue to have the opportunity to get mentored by deGrom and Stroman.

Taking everything into account, it’s not just Allan’s change which will make considerable strides. He should also in every aspect of his game. Seeing how he and others are investing in him, he has real top of the rotation potential, and seeing his progress that may come far sooner than originally anticipated.

Overall, it’s very fair to consider Alvarez and Mauricio as the Mets best prospects. Still, seeing Allan’s improvement, maturity, and natural talent, he should probably be considered a step ahead thereby making him the Mets best prospect.

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Baseball Mitts Need To Become NBA Players’ Sneakers

When a really good NBA prospect is drafted, the question is which sneaker company is going to sign him. Invariably, it is Nike, and we see the shoe company put out new designs for those players. Inevitably, that leads to a rush of purchases for those exclusive sneakers, and it does lead to that players’ profile being raised even higher.

For other sports, this doesn’t work quite as well. While NBA players wear sneakers, which people, especially children, can wear everyday, you can’t wear cleats or skates on an everyday basis. So, to that end, other sports need to find a way to better market players and their equipment. If you look towards Marcus Stroman and Francisco Lindor, the answer to that might just be baseball mitts.

It used to be baseball mitts were basically two to three colors. There was the tan, the brown, and the black. Now, we are starting to see many more colors on the field as players begin to express their personality more. It is not just through the bat flips and celebrations. It is increasingly by what they wear when they take the field.

When it comes to fans, they love this, and when it comes to kids, they want to be just like their favorite players. That’s why they want to wear their favorite players jerseys and shirseys. If there was a special mitt out there, they may well go out there and try to get their parents to buy that too.

Yes, many players have their signature in baseball mitts. If you go to Dicks right now, you can go get your Mike Trout baseball mitt. It is just like the mitts they had 30 years ago where the only real defining characteristic was the signature. If you are Rawlings or another company, you could go out and change that.

Every year, you could have a release of the new fashion designed mitts for their top MLB players. They can make specially designed mitts for each player, and they could send that out to the market. For children, who need a new glove every few years (if not more), this could lead them to try to get a new one each year. The same could be said for older players who need to replace them more for wear or tear reasons.

This could very well be a unique opportunity for baseball companies to market MLB players. They could have a release during Spring Training or at some point during the offseason. Will it reach the height of the sneaker releases, no, but it doesn’t have to reach those levels. Rather, all they need to do is just raise the visibility of the product and the players.

If they can successfully pull this off, MLB players could see their popularity increase, and baseball equipment companies could very well see their product lines sell more. After all, what little Mets fan wouldn’t be running to the stores begging their parents to buy them the new Pete Alonso, Michael Conforto, Jacob deGrom, Lindor, or Stroman mitt as Little League seasons are about a month or so away?

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