Jay Bruce
Well Jon Niese‘s first start since returning to the Mets went about as well as you expected it would go.
Niese’s defense failed him in the fourth with the Rickie Weeks and Yasmany Tomas homers turning a 1-0 lead into a 3-1 deficit. Niese wouldn’t make it through the fifth departing with two outs in the inning and a runner on second. His final line would be 4.2 innings, four hits, four runs, four earned, two walks and six strikeouts.
Terry Collins then turned to Erik Goeddel because he obsessively and compulsively overworks relievers with arm issues – just ask Jim Henderson. In a shock to no one but Collins the overworked Goeddel was wholly ineffective needing to be bailed out by Seth Lugo, who was the only effective pitcher in the night. Goeddel recorded no outs while allowing two hits (including a Weeks homer), two runs, two walks, and no strikeouts.
For the crowd suggesting Gabriel Ynoa should’ve started over Niese (myself included), Ynoa certainly didn’t make his case tonight. He pitched one inning allowing two hits, three runs, three earned, and one walk with no strikeouts.
Josh Edgin was similarly bad. His final line was one inning, two hits, four runs, four earned, two walks, and one strikeout. He gave up a long homer to Tomas is the eighth.
Overall, Mets pitching was horrendous allowing 13 earned runs.
Perhaps the only thing worse than the pitching was the offense. Through the first seven innings, the Mets only mustered one hit off Zack Godley, and that was Jose Reyes single to leadoff the game. Reyes would score later that inning on a wild pitch.
Godley’s final line was 7.1 innings, two hits, two runs, two earned, two walks, and four strikeouts. To be fair, Godley did enter the game 3-2 with a 5.24 ERA and a 1.366 WHIP.
After Curtis Granderson and Rene Rivera applied some lipstick to this pig of a game with a couple of homers, the Mets lost the game 13-5.
Worse than the pitching and the hitting is just the Mets play in general. They have gone 1-5 against the Diamondbacks, and they have gone 3-6 in the easiest nine game stretch on the schedule. It’s why the Mets are back to .500, and are now four games out in the Wild Card race.
Game Notes: Neil Walker missed his second straight game with a back injury. Jay Bruce had a RBI double in the eighth. He is no longer the major league RBI leader.
Pennant Race: The Cardinals beat the Astros 8-2. The Nationals lost to the Rockies 12-10. The Pirates beat the Giants 6-5. The Dodgers beat the Phillies 7-2. The Marlins lost to the Reds 3-2.
After Noah Syndergaard allowed a fourth inning laser homerun to Yasmany Tomas, it looked like Syndergaard was going to have to take matters into his own hands if the Mets were going to win the game. He did:
The home run was Syndergaard’s third of the year tying him with Tom Seaver and Walt Terrell for the Mets single season home run record. Syndergaard’s homer was a no doubter homer scoring him and Alejandro De Aza giving the Mets a 3-1 lead.
De Aza was on second because Michael Bourn absolutely robbed Rene Rivera of an extra base hit. With runners on second and third, it turned into a sacrifice fly scoring T.J. Rivera. It was part of a huge inning the Mets had off Braden Shiply that saw the Mets bat around scoring four runs.
That Syndergaard home run did more than give the Mets the lead, it sparked the offense. Later on that inning, Jose Reyes tripled and scored on a Curtis Granderson sacrifice fly. In the fifth, Kelly Johnson would lead off the inning with a solo home run. Rivera would then single and score on a De Aza double. De Aza would then come home on a two out RBI infield single by Reyes. Just like that it was 7-1 Mets through the first five and a half innings.
However, it wasn’t a laugher. Nothing is that easy with the Mets.
The Diamondbacks sixth inning rally started on a Rivera “throwing error” allowing Jake Lamb to reach. It wasn’t a great throw, but it was another example of James Loney not making a full stretch at first base. Lamb and Wellington Castillo would score on a Mitch Haniger triple. Haniger would come in to score on a Rivera two out fielding error (that one was on him). Overall, while Syndergaard started the game out strong, he would up struggling again. He pitched 5.2 innings allowing seven hits, four runs, two earned, and two walks with eight strikeouts. He was fortunately bailed out by Jerry Blevins to end the sixth.
In the seventh, Hansel Robles continued his recent shaky play giving up a leadoff double to Paul Goldschmidt and issuing a two out walk to Castillo. Terry Collins would then go to Addison Reed as he is the only person on the planet that does not know the Reed isn’t good with inherited runners. Reed was welcomed with a Haniger (him again) double scoring Goldschmidt. Just like that it was 7-5 Mets, and they were in for a fight.
Fortunately, Reed would settle down in the eighth with a 1-2-3 innings, and Jeurys Familia would slam the door shut in the ninth. With that, the Mets are now a game over .500 again, and they kept pace in the Wild Card race.
Game Notes: Rivera was a surprise late replacement for Neil Walker who had to sit out the game with a sore back. Rivera had the two errors, but he had a strong day at the plate going 4-4 with two runs. Reyes seems closer to his old self going 2-4 with a run, RBI, and a triple. Jay Bruce had his best day as a Met going 2-4 with a walk.
Pennant Race: The Dodgers beat the Phillies 15-5. The Reds beat the Marlins 6-3. The Cardinals beat the Astros 8-5. The Rockies beat the Nationals 6-2. The Pirates beat the Dodgers 4-3. The Mets are in third place in the NL East 10.5 games out, and they are 3 games out of the final Wild Card spot behind the Cardinals, Pirates, and Marlins.
There were a number of reasons why the Mets made the move for Jay Bruce. There was the obvious reason that Bruce was the major league RBI leader and he was hitting well with runners in scoring position. His addition was meant to address the Mets issues in those areas. The Mets also obtained Bruce as Yoenis Cespedes insurance, not just for this year with Cespedes quad, but also for next year in the event the Mets cannot re-sign him after he opts out. Furthermore, and perhaps more importantly, the Mets acquired Bruce due to the struggles of Michael Conforto.
It’s at least a possibility that the Mets never make the trade for Bruce if Conforto was hitting like he should. Instead, Conforto was mired in a horrific slump for two months after a hot April all but forcing the Mets hands. The team would have to send him to AAA to try to set him straight.
Conforto would start out hitting pretty well when he came back from his stint in AAA. In his first 12 games back, he hit .267/.371/.400 with four doubles and two RBI. He was taking the right approach at the plate by not only looking to hit he ball the other way, but by also hitting it the other way with authority. However, Conforto’s success wouldn’t carry forward. Terry Collins outright refused to give him regular playing time. He sat Conforto against lefties, and he sat him against tough righties like Justin Verlander and Jose Fernandez. Collins sat Conforto at times in favor of Ty Kelly because apparently Collins thought Kelly gave the Mets a better chance to win. By the way, the Mets are 7-14 in games in which Kelly plays.
Predictably, the young player gets lost on the bench, and he starts to press and lose his way. Conforto began to slump, and he found himself amid a 2-20 slump. In that stretch, Conforto only started in five of the Mets eight games, and he had only started 13 out of 23 possible games. Naturally, the Mets decided to send Conforto back to the the minors . . . again . . . so he could get more playing time. Apparently, this was a better solution than telling the manager the obvious – Play Conforto because he is a much better baseball player than Kelly.
In fact, Conforto, even at his worst, has been a better hitter than the other options the Mets have. Even with Conforto struggling this year, consider this:
- Michael Conforto – hitting .200/.298/.340 with four doubles, one homer, and three RBI in the 19 games he played after he spent time in AAA
- Brandon Nimmo – hitting .237/.297/.288 with one homer and five RBI in 20 games with the Mets
- Ty Kelly – hitting .186/.280/.256 with one homer and four RBI in 21 games with the Mets
- T.J. Rivera – hitting .222/.211/.278 with a double and three RBI in six games (none in the outfield).
In relatively similar small sample sizes, Conforto has hit better than Nimmo, who had been called up in his stead when Conforto was first demoted. Furthermore, Conforto has hit better than Kelly and Rivera, who the Mets have on the major league roster over Conforto now.
Also, take into consideration the Mets have a real center field problem. The aforementioned Bruce is struggling in right field this year meaning he is not suited to play center field. That leaves the Mets with the following two options to play in center field:
- Curtis Granderson – hitting .187/.265/.293 with two doubles, two homers, and two RBI in his last 20 games
- Alejandro De Aza – hitting .196/.339/.304 with two doubles, one homer, and three RBI in his last 20 games
Essentially, it is only Conforto who is being punished for being in a slump. Remember that during an epic postgame rant following a 9-0 loss to the Padres on August 11th, Collins had this to say, “Starting tomorrow we’re going to get after it. And those that don’t want to get after it, I’ll find some who do. Because in Las Vegas there is a whole clubhouse of guys that want to sit in this room. And that’s all I have to say.” (NJ.com). After that game, Conforto was the only position player sent down because apparently he was the only player in that clubhouse that needed to be taught a lesson.
The end result is the Mets getting diminishing returns from Granderson as he is forced to play every day in center field. It is also resulting in the Mets playing De Aza, who is once again slumping at the plate, against righties and Kelly, who cannot hit major league pitching, against lefties. Even with his struggles, Conforto was better than the numbers those three are putting up right now. Instead, the Mets would rather watch Conforto play everyday in AAA and tear the cover off the ball. Since his ill advised punishment, sorry demotion, Conforto is 5-9 with a hit by pitch, three runs, a double, a homer, and two RBI.
This isn’t a AAA mirage either. We’ve seen Conforto do that at the major league level. However, in order for him to do that he actually has to play. Instead, the Mets would rather leave him in the minors while fielding the worst possible team they can muster. If the Mets really want to win, they would call up Conforto and play him everyday because at his worst, he’s still better than what the Mets are throwing out there right now.
Editor’s Note: this was first published on Mets Merized Online
The Mets have a serious problem with Curtis Granderson. He is looking every bit of his 35 years of age hitting .226/.317/.420, and it is getting worse as the season progresses. Since the All Star Break, a time when players can rest up and get rejuvenated, Granderson has been hitting .186/.250/.304 while striking out in 21% of his plate appearances. When he does hit the ball, he is hitting an excessive number of grounders into the shift. It’s a major problem as Granderson has the lowest batting average on groundballs among active players. Keep in mind that list includes players like David Ortiz and James Loney, both of whom could lose a race to Sid Bream.
Even worse for Granderson is while he was a finalist for the Gold Glove in right field last year, he has taken a real step backwards defensively. Granderson’s defensive metrics in right field have dropped considerably with him having a -4.9 UZR and a 0 DRS this season. Fortunately, Granderson isn’t the Mets right fielder anymore . . . he’s their center fielder.
More than anything else, that is the issue with Granderson. He is the team’s best option in center field meaning he has to play everyday despite the fact he has stopped hitting and despite the fact he is no longer a good fielder.
The Mets got to this point for a number of reasons. The first is injuries. Yoenis Cespedes was supposed to be the everyday center fielder. However, with his quad injury, he will be unable to play center for the rest of the season. The Mets platoon option against lefties, Juan Lagares, is on the disabled list after needing surgery to repair a torn tendon in his left thumb. The recently imported Justin Ruggiano played only three games with the Mets before needing to go on the disabled list himself. With the injuries, that leaves the following options on the roster to play center field:
With respect to De Aza, he has come crashing back to Earth after a torrid July. So far in the month of August, De Aza is hitting .088/.244/.176. As bad as things have been with Granderson, he hasn’t been that bad.
With respect to Bruce, he’s miscast as a right fielder. After two bad years in Cincinnati where he averaged a -5.2 UZR and a 0 DRS, he is at a -13.2 UZR and a -13 DRS this year. Honestly, the Mets should be looking for a way to take him out of the outfield and put him at first base rather than put him at a position he is ill equipped to play and last played eight years ago.
That leaves Kelly and Rivera neither of whom are center fielders. However, they are the Mets next best option as the team decided both should be in the majors over Michael Conforto and Brandon Nimmo. While you can certainly make the argument that one of them should be on the roster with the need for another third base option with Asdrubal Cabrera on the disabled list moving Jose Reyes to shortstop, it is unfathomable why both of them are on the 25 man roster. It’s unfathomable to have them both on the roster when you consider Conforto and Nimmo are better hitters than either one of them despite their struggles in the majors this year.
The rationale is the outfield is too left-handed with Granderson, De Aza, and Bruce is quite poor reasoning. Granderson is a career .224/.296/.398 hitter against lefties, and that hasn’t stopped Collins from playing Granderson against lefties. Yet somehow, Collins decides that Conforto and Nimmo, two players who have hit lefties in the minors, cannot possibly hit lefties. The end result may very well have been that Collins is right as his refusal to play either against lefties may have created a mental issue with them.
Regardless, the Mets only options right now in center field are Granderson and De Aza. While Granderson has struggled mightily this year, he is currently the Mets best option in center field. With that in mind, Granderson simply has to play every day. He has to play every day despite his slump. He has to play against lefties despite him hitting .225/.290/.392 off of them this year. He has to play in center because the Mets have no other options.
Ultimately, that is the real Granderson problem. It’s not that he’s struggling. It’s that the Mets don’t have a better option than him right now – especially since the team decided Kelly and Rivera were better than Conforto and Nimmo.
Regardless of the results what Steven Matz has been doing this season has been admirable. Matz knows he’s going to need surgery in the offseason to remove bone spurs in his elbow, and yet he still goes out there and pitches because his team needs him.
With that said the results haven’t been pretty. From June 7th until August 9th, Matz has gone 1-7 with a 4.65 ERA and a 1.435 WHIP. That is a precipitous drop from the guy who started the year 7-1 with a 2.28 ERA and a 1.030 WHIP. The main reason for the dip is he’s getting hit much harder. He’s gone from an 18% line drive rate with batters hitting .225/.272/.294 with four homers to a 28% line drive rate with batters hitting .297/.346/.475 with 10 homers.
During his slump or whatever you want to call it, Matz has been without his main breaking pitch – the fabled Warthen slider. In the beginning of the year, he threw it 15% of the time. Beginning June 7th, he was only throwing it 8% of the time.
In place of the change, Matz began throwing more changeups going from throwing it 9% of the time to throwing it 14% of the time. It’s not a wise move as opposing batters hit .340 against the pitch while slugging .630. He’s fooling no one with the changeup and the opposition has been teeing off on the pitch.
Sunday, Matz effectively scrapped both his changeup and his slider focusing on his fastball and curveball. The result was a near no-hitter.
Over 7.1 dazzling innings, Matz only allowed the one hit allowing no runs and two walks with eight strikeouts. It was his best start since May. It was a return to the Steven Matz everyone once believed would emerge to join Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, and Noah Syndergaard as one of four aces atop the Mets staff.
Matz did it, in part, because he threw a lot more curveballs. He threw 29% curves on Sunday after throwing it 14% of the time ro start the year. It was the right move as it’s arguably his second best pitch (after his abandoned slider). Matz limits batters to a .235 batting average with his curveball, which is the second lowest batting average allowed against any one of his pitches.
With the fastball and curveball working, the only player who would get a hit off of Matz would be Alex Rios‘ former teammate Alexei Ramirez. Like Harvey, Matz wouldn’t get the no-hitter. Unlike Harvey, his teammates would score runs did him a get the win.
Wilmer Flores and Neil Walker hit solo homers in the first two innings respectively off Padres left-hander Clayton Richard giving Matz and the Mets a 2-0 lead.
In the eighth, the Mets actually scored some insurance runs. Jose Reyes led off the inning with a single. He’d steal second and move to third when Padres catcher Derek Norris threw it into center. Reyes then scored on a Jose Dominguez wild pitch. All of this happened during Ty Kelly‘s at bat. It was vintage Reyes.
The rally continued after the Reyes one man show, and it culminated in a T.J. Rivera two out two RBI double scoring Kelly and Jay Bruce. It was the first extra base hit and RBI in Kelly’s young career. It made the score 5-0.
The final score would be 5-1 after Gabriel Ynoa allowed a run in the ninth. On the bright side, the Mets are 2-0 in games Ynoa pitched. Speaking of which, the Mets have finally won two games in a row.
Overall, the story was Matz. He had a magical afternoon, and he made an adjustment to allow him to pitch more effectively.
Pennant Race: Thr Marlins beat the White Sox 5-4. The Nationals beat the Braves 9-1. Three Cardinals beat the Cubs 6-4. The Pirates bested the Dodgers 11-4.
The Mets lost 9-0. Seriously, what do you need to know about a game in which the Mets seemingly didn’t even bother? That’s right, you should know where to direct your anger. Here’s the starting lineup:
- Alejandro De Aza (CF) 1-4, 2 K
- Neil Walker (2B) 1-3
- Jay Bruce (RF) 0-3
- James Loney (1B) 0-4, GIDP
- Kelly Johnson (LF) 0-2, BB, K
- Michael Conforto (RF) 0-3, K
- Rene Rivera (C)1-3
- Matt Reynolds (SS) 1-3, K
And the pitchers:
- Noah Syndergaard (L, 9-7) 5.0 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, BB, 6 K
- Jon Niese 1.0 IP, 3 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
- Josh Edgin 1.2 IP, H, 0 R, 0 ER, BB, 2 K
- Jerry Blevins 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, K
Just pick any of the above to direct you ire. Don’t forget the subs, Ty Kelly (0-1), Curtis Granderson (0-1, K), T.J. Rivera (1-2), and Wilmer Flores (0-1).
By the way, the Diamondbacks were 4/4 in stolen base attempts.
Don’t forget the manager, Terry Collins, who made his latest entry into the case as to why he should be fired.
Game Notes: This team stinks, and it was swept at home by the Diamondbacks.
Pennant Race: Reserved for teams over .500.
Do you wish Terry Collins will become a better manager?
Do you wish Jay Bruce will start hitting like he was hitting for the Reds this year?
Do you wish Asdrubal Cabrera, Yoenis Cespedes, Jim Henderson, Juan Lagares, Jose Reyes, Justin Ruggiano and/or Zack Wheeler can get off the disabled list soon?
Do you wish Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz will return to their pre-bone spur form?
Do you wish Curtis Granderson can return to his 2015 form?
Do you wish Michael Conforto and Travis d’Arnaud will stop regressing and start fulfilling their promise?
Do you wish Neil Walker can stay this hot for the rest of the season?
Well for all those that wish for all that and much more like a postseason berth, Grandpa Gustafson has a message for you:
This year has mostly been a struggle for Michael Conforto. He has dealt with a wrist injury and declining production. His manager, Terry Collins, has refused to play him against lefties and against tough right-handers like Jose Fernandez and Justin Verlander. He was sent down to the minors for a long stint to rediscover his stroke. Upon being recalled, he was expected to learn both center and right field on the fly.
Through it all, Conforto has just hit .224/301/.457 with 11 homers and 33 RBI in 81 games. Based upon these numbers, Conforto has not taken the next step like everyone thought he was going to do this year. He certainly didn’t build upon his great April. It doesn’t matter. The Mets should play him everyday anyway.
The fact of the matter is Conforto has the highest upside out of anyone currently available to play for the Mets. On a team full of left-hand hitting corner outfielders, his upside is the highest. Consider this:
- Jay Bruce is having a career best year that has seen him hit .259/.311/.551.
- Curtis Granderson is 35 years old, and he is hitting .233/.328/.437.
- Alejandro De Aza has had to play out of his mind since July 1st to bring his season slash line to .201/.294/.306.
- Brandon Nimmo is hitting .239/.297/.288 in 20 games.
Conforto is much more capable than any of those numbers. Just this April, we saw him hit .365/.442/.676. Since he was recalled from AAA, we have seen him try to get back to hitting the ball to the opposite field, and as a result, he hit an opposite field home run in Comerica Park.
Playing Conforto everyday is not without its risks. He is only hitting .233/.327/.395 in his 16 games and 11 starts since being recalled from AAA. He is still only hitting .133/.185/.150 with one extra base hit in 60 career at bats against left-handed pitching. He is still a developing player.
With all that said, no one has his upside. Conforto is the only Met who is truly capable to replacing Yoenis Cespedes‘ bat while Cespedes is on the disabled list. With that in mind, it is worth the risk to play Conforto everyday. At this point, the Mets need all the offensive help they can get, and Conforto is the best equipped to do that. It’s why he was drafted, and it is why the Mets called him up last year despite his never having played above AA.
Overall, if the Mets are going to go anywhere, they need more offense. Moreover, they need Conforto to start hitting like he is capable of hitting. The only way either is going to happen is for Conforto to play everyday.