Jonathan Villar

Mets Starting Pitching Needs Doesn’t Preclude Addressing Other Needs

With Jacob deGrom down, and with Carlos Carrasco looking further away than initially hoped, the New York Mets have a real need for a starting pitcher. In fact, at the moment, their rotations is Megill, Walker, Stro, and Who Knows?

So, obviously, the Mets are going to need a starting pitcher, and they are going to need one sooner rather than later. Who they can get, and what the cost will be, is anyone’s best guess.

While we know this is a priority, this is not the only area the Mets need to address at the trade deadline. As a result, they should not and cannot get myopic in their endeavors to improve the team. This is a front office well capable of multitasking, and they are well aware of those needs.

Right now, those needs include pitching in general. While the rotation is getting all the focus, the bullpen needs help as well. Since June 1, the Mets bullpen has been one of the worst in baseball. In fact, they own a 5.21 FIP which is the second worst in baseball. Their 4.69 ERA may only be 13th worst, but that is the worst among any teams currently in a postseason position.

While the bullpen has been a strength early, it has been a liability of late. Part of that is fatigue and players hitting the IL. The other part of it has been Edwin Diaz regressing and starting to resemble the unreliable closer who lost his job in 2019. With that being the case, the Mets need to seriously take a look at adding at least an arm or maybe two.

The other big area of need is third base. Right now, Mets third basemen collectively own a -8 DRS, which is the third worst in the National League. Coincidentally, it is the only position where the Mets own a negative DRS defensively.

Part of the reason is the Mets aren’t playing Jeff McNeil there. Instead, they have asked Luis Guillorme, Jose Peraza, and Jonathan Villar to play out of position. That has yielded poor results. The other problem is J.D. Davis has long proven completely incapable of proving the position. The boiling point on Davis should have been when he literally just stood in foul territory in Pittsburgh when Walker unsuccessfully tried to knock a ball foul.

As we see, the Mets have three real areas of need with the rotation, bullpen, and third base. You can also make the case with Peraza suffering a broken finger, the Mets could afford to add a little more depth to the roster. Overall, if the Mets want to win the World Series, and they have the core to do it, they need to look at more than the rotation.

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Marcus Stroman Comes Up Huge

It wasn’t just that Marcus Stroman pitched a great game. It was the fact New York Mets starters had amassed five innings combined over the three previous games.

The bullpen was beyond taxes and exhausted. Frankly, with the team leaning on players like Stephen Nogosek and Geoff Hartlieb, they were well past the point of Plan B or C or well beyond.

With that backdrop, Stroman took the mound for the Mets in a day game the day after a tough loss. He brought his usual infectious energy, and he brought it on the mound.

Things got rolling after an inauspicious start. Stroman plunked the first batter he faced, but he quickly rebounded by getting Mets killer Jesse Winker to hit into a double play. After that, the Reds wouldn’t have a base runner until the third.

That single by Aristides Aquino was the only hit Stroman allowed over his eight shut out innings. From there, the Reds wouldn’t get another base runner until a Joey Votto two out walk in the seventh.

It’s somewhat of a surprise Stroman wasn’t given the opportunity for a complete game after throwing just 90 pitches, but that misses the point a bit. Stroman was great allowing just those two base runners while striking out seven.

Stroman would pick up the win as the Mets offense continued to hit for power and drive in runs. When Dominic Smith hit a second inning grand slam, the game was effectively over.

That was an inning after Jonathan Villar opened the scoring with a solo shot. We’d also see Luis Guillorme hit his second career homer in the fifth.

All told, this was a 7-0 victory for the Mets. At least for a day, the Mets offense was clicking. With an actual day off, Stroman gave the bullpen a long needed rest.

The Mets have more importantly righted the ship since Pittsburgh. Now, it’s time to make a move to lock things up as we head towards the trade deadline. .

Game Notes: After being designated for assignment, Billy McKinney was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Carlos Rincon.

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Mets Battled But Were Just Short

Robert Stock was recalled, and he lasted all of one inning before leaving the game with an injury. That meant the New York Mets bullpen effectively needed to pitch the entire game.

They would do that, but it would feature pitchers like Stephen Nogosek (3.0 IP), Yennsy Diaz, and Geoff Hartlieb. Somehow, despite that, this was a close ballgame.

What did the Mets in this game more than anything with hitting with runners in scoring position. That problem reared it’s ugly head again with the Mets going 0-for-7 stranding nine runners.

On the bright side, Pete Alonso homered again, and Luis Guillorme had a pinch hit RBI double. Brandon Nimmo made a nice recovery on a Eugenio Suarez double to nail him at third.

On the downside, the Mets couldn’t take full advantage of their opportunities.

In the seventh, Jonathan Villar and Dominic Smith walked to start the inning. Villar would score from second on a Joey Votto missed catch error. However, the Mets couldn’t take full advantage as Jeff McNeil hit into an inning ending double play.

In the eighth. .Guillorme was stranded at second. Smith drew a leadoff walk in the ninth, but he wouldn’t advance.

In the end, it was a hard fought 4-3 loss. It shouldn’t have been this close, but the pitching held up. The only issue now is can it hold up again.

Game Notes: Jose Peraza landed on the IL with a broken ginger. Jerad Eickhoff was designated for assignment. J.D. Davis was 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.

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Seth Lugo And Edwin Diaz Implode Turning Laugher Into Misery

The Pittsburgh Pirates have been looking like the first place team, and the New York Mets have looked like the second division club. With Tylor Megill on the mound, that changed.

Megill never should’ve been in the majors this year, and yet, due to injuries, he’s suddenly a key part of the rotation. He very much looked like that in this start.

He allowed no runs while pitching a career best six innings. He’d allow just six hits while striking out two. Perhaps, the more astonishing part was his walking none.

He battled through some tricky spots. That began with Adam Frazier doubling on a pop up by J.D. Davis to lead off the first. Later in the game, Pete Alonso made an error to start some trouble for Megill.

There were multiple situations with a runner in scoring position, but Megill showed poise getting out of the jams. Of course, it didn’t hurt Luis Guillorme was playing Gold Glove caliber defense in Francisco Lindor‘s absence.

Guillorme helped abate Lindor landing on the IL. In addition to the great defense, he was 1-for-3 with a run, double, and a walk. He scored that run in the sixth when Travis Blankenhorn had his first career RBI hitting a pinch hit double in the seventh which just missed going out.

It was a night the Mets offense came back to life scoring six runs. Michael Conforto‘s bat started to come alive with two doubles. Jeff McNeil had an RBI. Of the Mets 11 hits, eight were for extra bases including three homers.

Entering the bottom of the eighth, the Mets had a 6-0 lead. It was a good thing too because Seth Lugo had a rare implosion. After allowing just five runs all year, the Pirates scored five runs in two-thirds of an inning off Lugo capped off by a Wilmer Difo pinch hit three run homer.

Suddenly, a 6-0 laugher was a tight 6-5 game. Aaron Loup came in to relieve Lugo to face Frazier. Frazier hit a hard grounder down the line, but Alonso made a diving stop to rob Frazier of an extra base hit.

The Mets got one of those runs back in the top of the ninth courtesy of Brandon Nimmo, who hit a solo homer to straight center increasing the Mets lead to 7-5.

The Mets appeared to need that extra cushion with Edwin Diaz struggling in the ninth. His first pitch hit Ke’Bryan Hayes, and then he walked Bryan Reynolds on five pitches.

After Ben Gamel chased a pitch in the dirt to strike out, Diaz hung an 0-2 slider which John Nogowski smoked towards third. Jonathan Villar, in for defense, knocked down the short hop keeping it in the infield. It saved a run, but it loaded the bases.

What ensued was a great battle between Diaz and Gregory Polanco. At the end of the nine pitch at-bat, Diaz froze Polanco with a 3-2 slider on the corner to strike him out.

But, it didn’t matter. On Diaz’s next pitch, Jacob Stallings took a pitch off the inside corner and hit a walk-off grand slam. Kevin Pillar did all he could in left diving into the stands, but it was all for naught.

The Mets blew a 6-0 lead and lost 9-7. There’s no other way to put it other than admitting it’s time to panic.

Game Notes: Jacob deGrom reportedly dealt with right forearm issues in his bullpen session.

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Mets Lose Lindor And Inexplainable Game To Pirates

The New York Mets first game out of the break was a completely unmitigated disaster. To a certain extent, it was an embarrassment.

Against Chad Kuhl and the Pittsburgh Pirates bullpen, the Mets kept threatening and faltering. In fact, this team was 0-for-12 with RISP. That’s only part of the story.

In three straight innings, they drew lead-off walks. They had runners on first and second three straight innings. They had eight different men in scoring position.

Just one of them scored. It was Pete Alonso on a Jonathan Villar RBI fielder’s choice in the fourth. That wasn’t enough run support for Marcus Stroman.

Stroman didn’t have his best stuff, and he was fighting it in more ways than one.

His toughest inning was the second. The Pirates loaded the bases against him with one out, and then the rains came. There was roughly a half hour rain delay.

He’d strike out Kuhl, but he’d allow a two RBI single to Adam Frazier giving the Pirates a 2-0 lead. After that Ke’Bryan Hayes hit one up the middle making Stroman look like Charlie Brown. Stroman escaped the inning without any further damage.

That damage would come later. The fifth inning would be as bizarre and damaging an inning as we’ve seen. It started with Francisco Lindor leaving with an apparent oblique injury.

In the bottom of the inning, we’d see Stromsn retire John Nogowski to get out of a tough jam to leave the game at 2-1. Stroman celebrated, and Nogowski thought he was tougher than Stroman.

Stroman couldn’t get to Nogowski because James McCann wouldn’t let him. We’d see Stroman bent over and run off the field. Apparently, he was alright as he back to the dugout to chirp Nogowski.

This was all well and good, but Stroman and the Mets took the loss. The 2-1 deficit grew to 4-1 when Drew Smith and Jeurys Familia each surrendered long homers.

It was another ugly, inexplicable, and unacceptable loss to a very bad Pirates team. They now loss three out of five to the Pirates, and worse yet, they’ve lost their best position player.

Game Notes: Gary Thorne came back to do play-by-play with Gary Cohen on vacation. Billy McKinney was designated for assignment to make room for J.D. Davis on the roster. Luis Guillorme replaced Lindor at short.

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20/20 Hindsight: Mets Walk The Plank

The New York Mets had a golden opportunity with seven straight games against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Somehow, they started the stretch with a split:

1. Blowing a five run first inning lead to the Pirates is completely unacceptable.

2. Part of blowing that game was bullpenning. As correctly noted by Zack Braziller, if you’re the Mets, you do that you should choose a seven inning game and not the nine inning game.

3. That game was exactly why they waited so long on calling the Jacob deGrom start.

4. Luis Rojas has been really good, but in these bullpen games he just gets too greedy pushing relievers an extra inning. Pushing Miguel Castro, who was been bad lately, is a classic example of that.

5. It’s odd that Rojas and the Mets don’t trust Drew Smith. For the most part, when he’s been called upon, he performs.

6. Simply put, while they shouldn’t have been All-Stars, Francisco Lindor and Brandon Nimmo are currently playing and at MVP level.

7. . Taijuan Walker was a very deserving All-Star, and it will be great to see him pitch on Tuesday. It’s still shocking to believe the Mets were his only offer.

8. You’re going to get game like that from Tylor Megill. It’s why he’s a fifth starter. It’s also why the Mets really need Carlos Carrasco back to ensure Megill is the fifth starter.

9. That homer from Michael Conforto was much needed. The Mets really need him to have a big turnaround on his season much like Dominic Smith has.

10. With the draft last night, and Kumar Rocker fortunately falling to the Mets, its interesting to note with Smith, Nimmo, and Conforto, the Mets starting outfield is all first round picks.

11. This is just another reminder of how just impossibly good the Mets are at drafting. They really don’t pay those guys enough money.

12. With Jonathan Villar homering from both sides of the plate, you see a player not willing to give up his third base job to J.D. Davis.

13. On that note, it’s interesting to hear Rojas say he’s not giving Davis the job back. It’ll also be interesting to see what exactly the Mets do with the position at the trade deadline.

14. Seeing the series against the Pirates, the Mets main need at the deadline seems to be the bullpen. Too many of their guys are tired and have been pushed too much.

15. If Adam Frazier wants to come to the Mets, he sure made a good impression. Still, there are some real question marks about the wisdom of adding him.

16. The Mets offense has shown they can be clutch, and they’ve shown the propensity for the big inning, but we’re not seeing them be able to sustain an onslaught throughout a game.

17. Luis Guillorme continues to be clutch and a good pinch hitter.

18. Heading into the break. deGrom is the Mets best pitcher, and Lindor is the best position player. For all the hysteria, that’s what you ultimately expected.

19. For all the disappointment and consternation over this split, the Mets are still in first place heading into the break.

20. Again, if you haven’t already, take the time to help Howard Johnson‘s grandson who suffered an injury in a regrettable accident.

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Mets Should Probably Avoid Adam Frazier

In the first of seven straight games against the Pittsburgh Pirates, the New York Mets got a good luck at popular trade target Adam Frazier. He certainly impressed going 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI.

It was the latest in what has been an All-Star season for Frazier. In 86 games, he’s hitting .328/.397/.464 with 26 doubles, four triples, four homers, and 29 RBI.

Frazier has a 2.6 WAR and a 138 wRC+. Among MLB second basemen, his WAR ranks fifth and his wRC+ ranks second. That’s extremely impressive, and his having another year of control makes him all the more enticing.

That said, the Mets shouldn’t look to add him at the trade deadline.

First, there’s the defense issue. Frazier would just be another second baseman who can’t play third to the mix. Maybe this will finally be the move which forces Jeff McNeil to third, which would be great, but it’s doubtful considering the Mets stubborn refusal to move McNeil off second.

If Frazier is slotted for second, it’s difficult to tell how he’d play. While he’s had elite numbers some years, he’s been terrible in others. This year, he’s a -2 DRS and -1 OAA.

On the defensive front, it’s possible the Mets believe their shifting and positioning could help Frazier play like an elite defender again. Seeing the Mets defensive turnaround this season, we shouldn’t doubt them.

With Frazier, the bigger issue is the bat. Yes, he’s having a great year. However, when you dig into the numbers, you see a player in line for a regression towards the 100 wRC+ player he was entering the season.

Frazier entered the year with a career .303 BABIP, and he’s at a .363 this season. Going to Baseball Savant, his barrels and exit velocities are very low. Actually, as luck would have it, they’re the worst of his career.

These are not the numbers of a player having career best power hitting numbers or for that matter, a career year.

Now, there are some good things with Frazier. His line drive rate is up, and his plate discipline has improved. He’s also a tough strikeout.

Taken all together, Frazier is an absolutely improved player at the plate, but he’s not as good as he is now. Frazier isn’t a good defender now, but he has been, and the right team can get more from him.

The obvious caveat is if the price is right, the Mets should look to add him. He’s a clear upgrade. That said, the cost will probably outweigh his value, and to some extent, Frazier is quite duplicative to what the Mets already have in Luis Guillorme, Jose Peraza, and Jonathan Villar.

It would seem the Mets attention is better focused elsewhere to address the real third base and bullpen vacancies. They also don’t want to be in a position to pay a premium price for a player due to regress both in the second half and next season.

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Mets Hang 10 In Sixth

For a moment, it appeared like the Mets were going to be in an unexpectedly tight game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Through five-and-a-half, the game was knotted at 2-2.

At that point, Taijuan Walker was done after allowing two runs over five. It wasn’t his best outing by any stretch, but he did keep the Mets in the game.

Finally, in the sixth, the Mets offense exploded against JT Brubaker and the Prates bullpen:

https://twitter.com/mets/status/1413673454545645570?s=21

https://twitter.com/mets/status/1413673454545645570?s=21

With that 10 run rally, the game was blown open, and the Mets were well on their way to a 13-4 victory. Aaron Loup was the winning pitcher after pitching a scoreless sixth.

What’s incredible to think about is even with the Mets scoring 13 runs, Nimmo, McCann, and Villar were the only players with multi-hit games. In terms of Villar, both hits were homers:

Even though this was a laugher, the end was annoying. Nick Tropeano and Yennsy Diaz couldn’t find the zone and both allowed runs. There was also a roughly 40 minute rain delay.

Even with that nuisance, this was a good win for a team now assured of entering the All-Star Break in first place. They can further cement that spot during this seven game stretch against the Pirates.

Game Notes: Walker was officially named an All-Star after the game. Jacob deGrom is opting out of the game.

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Jeff McNeil Should Play Third, Luis Guillorme At Second

It finally happened. In the New York Mets 8-4 loss, the late inning machinations led to Jeff McNeil playing third base. It took 74 games for the Mets to put their best third baseman at third base.

Now, many don’t believe that to be true because McNeil struggled there for exactly nine games in a COVID impacted season. For some reason, those nine games were weighed much more than the rest of his career.

Entering 2020, McNeil had played 171.1 innings at third at the MLB level. Over that admittedly small sample size, he had a 6 DRS, 3.1 UZR, and a 5 OAA. Those numbers are excellent. Really, when you have a player of that caliber, you don’t move him off the position.

That goes double when you look at the other Mets third basemen. J.D. Davis and Jonathan Villar entered the year with reputations as poor defenders, and they haven’t disappointed.

In 94.0 innings, Davis has a -2 DRS, -0.9 UZR, and a -1 OAA. While having the propensity to make the highlight play, Villar has a -1 DRS, -1.9 UZR, and -2 OAA in 362.2 innings at third.

At the moment, both Davis and Villar are on the IL taking them out of the third base mix. That means Luis Guillorme is the third baseman for now.

Shockingly, Guillorme is not a good third baseman. In 113.2 innings this year, he has a -3 DRS, -1.0 UZR, and a -1 OAA. For whatever reason, the skills which make him an extraordinarily gifted middle infielder isn’t translating at the hot corner.

This makes the Mets putting McNeil at second and Guillorme at third an inexplicably bad and stubborn decision. Remember, when McNeil wasn’t initially called up in 2018, Sandy Alderson’s initial rationale was McNeil wasn’t a third baseman.

Of course, the problem is McNeil is s third baseman, and he’s a very good one at that. They’re taking one of their best players and neutralizing just how great he can be.

More than that, they’re purposefully not allowing Guillorme to thrive. He is a player who plays exceptional defense and finds a way on base. When he’s played second, he’s done that. When he hasn’t, he’s a player who hits for no power and plays poor defense. Continuing down this path is insane.

This is a good Mets team which can be great. They can win a World Series. To do that, they’re going to have to get the most out of their roster and put their players in a position to succeed. As long as McNeil is at second with Guillorme at third, they’re not going that.

It’s past time to make the switch. The Mets can maximize their defense and help their pitching by making this switch. They can be an even more imposing club. Hopefully, we will see McNeil at third with Guillorme at second soon.

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Mets Split 2-1 Extra Inning Games Against Phillies

In the first game of the doubleheader, Aaron Nola had out-dueled Taijuan Walker. Not only did he match Tom Seaver‘s MLB record of 10 consecutive strikeouts (with the aide of some very questionable strike calls), but he drove home the only run heading into the seventh.

It looked like the Mets would lose in a frustrating 1-0 fashion. That was until Luis Guillorme led off the ninth, sorry seventh, with a comebacker against Jose Alvarado. Alvarado threw it away allowing Guillorme to go to second.

Albert Almora pinch hit and struck out. Jeff McNeil then grounded out putting all the pressure on Francisco Lindor. Lindor had Alvarado’s timing, and he delivered a game tying single.

Luis Rojas made an astute move double switching Seth Lugo into the game. Not only did this bring in his best reliever, but due to a quirk in the extra inning rules, it put Lindor at second even though he didn’t make the last out.

After Lugo struck out three of the four batters he faced, the Mets were going to get their opportunity to walk it off.

The left-handed Ranger Suarez intentionally walked Pete Alonso to face Dominic Smith. For some reason, Smith offered to bunt the first two pitches, and on the third, he hit a walk-off RBI single giving the Mets a 2-1 win.

Once again, in the second game of the doubleheader, the offenses were anemic. Only this time, it wasn’t as excusable because it was Matt Moore and David Peterson.

For a split second in the second, it appeared Almora put the Mets ahead 2-0 on a homer. However, Andrew McCutchen went up to grab it, and while the Mets thought it hit the back wall, replay upheld the out call.

Entering the sixth, there was a combined five hits in the scoreless game. Bryce Harper homered in the sixth to give the Phillies a 1-0 lead, and once again, in the bottom of the seventh, the Phillies bullpen begged the Mets to win the game.

Instead of Alvarado, Joe Girardi tabbed Archie Bradley to close it out. There was no one warming in the pen. You could say it was a mistake, but the Phillies bullpen is terrible.

Bradley book-ended Guillorme once again reaching on an error by walking two batters to load the bases with no outs. Walk-off king Patrick Mazeika strode to the plate, but he struck out.

James McCann gave one a ride to deep center, but even though he was playing shallow, Odubel Herrera tracked it down. Instead of a game winner, it was a game tying sacrifice fly.

Jeff McNeil, who had a tough doubleheader going 0-for-7 with three strikeouts, grounded out to end the inning.

Rojas went to Sean Reid-Foley, the 27th man for the doubleheader for the eighth. Reid-Foley did what he needed to do, but he got some bad luck behind him.

Brad Miller hit a grounder to Lindor. Lindor couldn’t quite get a handle on it allowing Rafael Marchand to get to third without a throw. The Phillies then pinch ran Travis Jankowski for him.

The Mets drew the infield in, and Herrera hit a hit shot at Guillorme. Guillorme made a great play to snag it on the short hop, but it popped out of his glove as it hit the ground. Guillorme was noticeably frustrated with himself for being unable to make a play at home, but he made a great play just to get the out at first.

Unfortunately, there were no heroics against Hector Neris. Lindor and Alonso grounded out before Smith struck out to end the game.

In the end, the Mets scored zero earned runs, but they were still able to scratch out a split. That’s good, and yet, there can be some frustration as a Mets team with a nearly complete lineup could barely score runs.

Game Notes: Jonathan Villar was put on the IL, and Travis Blankenhorn was recalled. J.D. Davis was transferred to the 60 day IL, and the Mets claimed Chance Sisco. Mason Williams opted for free agency. Aaron Loup and Edwin Diaz were unavailable to pitch.

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