Josh Edgin

Josh Edgin & Robert Gsellman on the Wild Card Game Roster; Lucas Duda, Seth Lugo, Josh Smoker Left Off

The New York Mets have announced their Wild Card Game Roster for tonight’s winner-take-all game tonight at Citi Field

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Pitchers

There were a few surprises on this roster. The one that immediately stands out is the Mets not carrying Lucas Duda on the roster. In a short period of time, Duda has gone from in the conversation to starting at first base tonight to not even being on the roster. His will be a big bat the Mets will miss for a late inning pinch hitting opportunity.

The next surprise was the Mets carrying Gsellman over Seth Lugo. While Gsellman has been the hotter pitcher over the past couple of starts, Gsellman does not have the experience Lugo has coming out of the bullpen.

The biggest surprise was the Mets carrying Edgin over Josh Smoker. This season, Smoker has struck out 14.7 batters per nine, and he has gotten the Mets out of a few tough jams. Edgin, on the other hand, has struggled this season due in large part to him not fully regaining his velocity after Tommy John surgery. However, despite the surprise, there is some justification for the decision.

First, both Smoker and Edgin are one inning pitchers. Each time Terry Collins has tried to push Smoker past one inning of work, he has allowed a second home run. With them both being one inning pitchers, the Mets most likely sought to use the pitcher who matches up better against the Giants. Given the Giants have many left-handed batters, Edgin seems to be the better choice. This season, lefties are hitting .235/.300/.235 off of Edgin as opposed to .360/.448/.600 off of Smoker.

Overall, the hope is that the Mets don’t have to use Edgin or worry about leaving Smoker off the roster. First and foremost, Blevins is going to be the LOOGY in the big spot, and Robleshas reverse splits. Additionally, the Mets 7-8-9- combination of Salas-Reed-Familia pitch just as well against lefties as they do to righties. In the end, so long as Syndergaard and the back end of the bullpen do their job, as we all expect they will do, the Edgin/Smoker decision will not amount to much.

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Projected Wild Card Game Roster

One of the quirks of the Wild Card Game is a team is able to create a standalone 25 man roster just for that game.  After the completion of the Wild Card Game, the winning team is able to reset its roster for the Division Series.  With that in mind, when the Mets construct their roster, they really have no need to carry extra starting pitchers.  Instead, they can carry an extra reliever or two, and they can add a couple of bats on the bench for pinch hitting and running opportunities.  With that in mind, here is how I would construct the roster.

Catchers (2) – Travis d’Arnaud and Rene Rivera

With the Wild Card Game starting pitcher likely to be either Syndergaard or Lugo, it seems that Rivera will be Terry Collins choice as the starting catcher.  If the Mets fall behind early, he may very well go to d’Arnaud for offense.  However, for now, Rivera seems the likely starter.

First Base (2) – Lucas Duda and James Loney

The only variable we don’t know right now is whether Duda can play everyday during a postseason run.  However, we have seen him play effectively here and there as he gets more playing time.  If Duda is ready to go, he has to start.  If not, Loney can start with Duda being the power bat off the bench.  If Duda does start, Loney is there for insurance for Duda’s back, and he can hit right-handed pitching reaosnably well in the event the Mets need an extra pinch hitter.

Second Base (2) – Kelly Johnson and T.J. Rivera

If the Mets face the Giants and Madison Bumgarner, it is likely Rivera gets the start.  If the Mets face the Cardinals and Carlos Martinez, it is likely Johnson gets the start.  No matter which one gets the start, we know that the other one will be the best pinch hitting option when the Mets need a bit hit.

Third Base (1) – Jose Reyes

At this point, barring something unusual happening, Reyes is the team’s everyday third baseman and leadoff hitter.  He also serves as a backup shortstop in the event something happens to Cabrera

Shortstop (1) – Asdrubal Cabrera

Cabrera is the best hitter in the major leagues during the month of September, and while he has two injured knees, he is able to effectively handle all the balls that come within the vicinity of shortstop.

Outfield – (5) Jay Bruce, Yoenis Cespedes, Michael Conforto, Alejandro De Aza, Curtis Granderson

Given how Bruce’s bat has come alive the past few games and with the way Conforto has been adapting to being a pinch hitter, both players should find themselves on the Wild Card Game roster.  What will be curious is whether it is Bruce or De Aza that finds themselves in the outfield with Cespedes and Granderson.  In a winner-take-all situation, Collins just might be inclined to go with the defense over the bat.

Starting Pitchers (3) – Bartolo Colon, Seth Lugo, and Noah Syndergaard

Whether or not Syndergaard pitches on Sunday, he has to be on the roster.  You cannot go down without the ability to throw your best pitcher, even if it is for one inning.  Same goes for your second best pitcher, which is why Colon should be on the roster.  As for Lugo, he should make the roster because: 1) he has experience as a short reliever; and 2) it is his turn in the rotation, so he can give you as many innings as you need.

Bullpen (5) – Jerry Blevins, Jeurys Familia, Addison Reed, Hansel Robles, Fernando Salas and Josh Smoker

If things go to plan, it is likely the Mets are not going to need more than Reed and Familia.  If the starter is able to go six, Reed can pitch the seventh and Familia can get the final two innings like he did in the NLDS clincher last year.  In the event things don’t go as smoothly, this bullpen can effectively mix and match.  Smoker seems like a given to make the roster because it gives the Mets an extra lefty in the pen, one with reverse splits, that can get a big strikeout when the Mets are in a jam.

Bubble –

If the Mets were to go with this group of players, and it seems likely they would that leaves the team with 22 players on the roster with decisions to make for the final four spots.  Here is a case for each of the potential bubble players:

Position Players

UT Eric Campbell  – As we saw when the Mets faced Adam Conley and the Marlins, Collins has fallen back in the habit of using Campbell as his right-handed first baseman.  In the event the Mets face the Giants, Campbell may well find himself getting a postseason start.  If not, he has shown the ability to be a very effective pinch hitter in tight games.

UT Ty Kelly – Collins has liked using as a pinch runner towards the back-end of the season.  Even though he is much better hitting right-handed in his short major league career, Kelly’s switch hitting ability does have some usefulness in neutralizing an opposing manager’s ability to go to a lefty/righty in a big spot for multiple outs.

CF Juan Lagares – Lagares just started to swing the bat, but we still don’t know if he can do it multiple times in a game if necessary.  However, with the Mets not needing to carry as many pitchers, Lagares could be kept on the roster to bunt, pinch run, and play defense in the late innings.

C Kevin Plawecki – Plawecki has not done much of anything offensively this season.  However, he remains a good defensive catcher, and his presence on the team would permit Collins to be aggressive in bringing in d’Arnaud for offense with full knowledge that the Mets have other catcher on the bench.

SS Matt Reynolds – Especially given Cabrera’s injuries further limiting his range, Reynolds could very well be the Mets best defensive shortstop.  Should Cabrera have to leave the game with an injury, Reynolds could step right in defensively.  Additionally, in the event Collins needs to start double switching people in and out of the game to keep a pitcher in longer, Reynolds’ ability to competently play second, third, short, and left make him a versatile and valuable bench piece.

Bullpen

LHP Josh Edgin – His chances of making the roster increase if the Mets play the Giants given the presence of Denard Span and Brandon Belt.  In that event, the Mets may want that one extra lefty to have multiple matchup opportunities.  Against the Cardinals, the need for the extra left-hander won’t be as great.

RHP Erik Goeddel – Even if it has been mostly in mop-up duty, Goeddel has pitched much better in September than he has all season.  Unlike Edgin or Henderson (below), Goedell has also shown the ability to go multiple innings lately thereby increasing his usefulness out of the pen.

RHP Robert Gsellman – Gsellman could make the team as a long reliever with Collins then using Lugo as a one inning reliever who can let it fly for one or two innings.  Additionally, with Gsellman’s sinker, Collins could elect to go with him in a situation in which the Mets need to get a double play.

RHP Jim Henderson – Henderson hasn’t been the same since coming back from the disabled list.  With that said, he’s still striking out 10.6 per nine, and so far this month, he has seven scoreless appearances.  More than any of the above, he has the biggest upside.  However, when he loses with 95+ MPH fastball, and it happens without a moment’s notice, he’s going to get hit around.

Prediction

Who the Mets carry for the final three spots will be largely based upon the opponent.  In the event that the Mets face the Giants, the odds of Campbell and Edgin making the roster go up significantly.  If the Mets face the Cardinals, who have multiple effective lefties out of the pen, someone like Kelly with his switch hitting ability could see his chances of making the roster increase.

Overall, considering how the Mets have handled the catching situation late in the season, the Mets should probably carry Plawecki as a third catcher.  Doing so will permit Collins to switch out Rivera for d’Arnaud if the Mets fall behind early or if the Mets need a right-handed pinch hitter.

If the Mets face the Giants, it is likely that Campbell will make the roster as the starting first baseman.  If the Mets face the Cardinals, the Mets will then likely carry Kelly as a pinch runner/pinch hitter or Reynolds.  Given how the concerns over Cabrera’s knees, and the need to double switch late in games, and because Reynolds has some extra pop in his bat than Kelly, Reynolds should be the choice.

The last spot becomes dicey.  As the Mets bullpen is constituted, the team has multiple pitchers who can go multiple innings thereby negating the need to carry an eighth reliever.  This choice here will likely be and should be opponent driven.  If the Mets face the Giants, Edgin should be the choice so the Mets can get multiple lefty/lefty matchups late in games.  If the Mets face the Cardinals, the team should probably carry both Reynolds and Kelly.  This would help the Mets neutralize the Cardinals unleashing their left-handed relievers against the Mets late in the game.

Of course, if Lagares is truly healthy enough to swing the bat, as he has done the past few games, he definitely needs to be on the roster.  He had a good postseason last year, and he’s the team’s best defensive outfielder.

There are a number of interesting decisions ahead, and ultimately it will depend on the opponent and whether the Cardinals keep enough heat on the Giants so Bumgarner had to pitch on Sunday.

Editor’s Note: this was also published on Mets Merized Online

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Terry Collins Decision of the Game: Are You Sticking with Bartolo Colon or Not?

The reason why Bartolo Colon has been effective all season has been his ability to locate and put movement on his high 80s fastball.  When he is unable to do that, he becomes a batting practice pitcher.  Last night, Colon was a batting practice pitcher.  It all come unraveling in a four run second inning.

Consider for a second, the first out of the inning was a sacrifice bunt by the opposing pitcher Adam Conley. Up until that point, the Marlins first four batters of the inning had hit the ball hard, and there were already two runs scored.  Dee Gordon the followed his first inning home run with a two RBI single making it 5-0.  With the way the Mets offense has been hitting lately, and with the Marlins bullpen most likely needing to do a bulk of the heavy lifting on the night, this game was not out of reach.

What was interesting was Colon was due up second in the top of the third.  Last week, Terry Collins was very aggressive pulling his pitchers in a search for more offense to win games.  Granted, there is a massive difference between pulling Colon early than Seth Lugo, Robert Gsellman, or Gabriel Ynoa, but the game was already on the verge of getting out of hand at 5-0.  Furthermore, with Gsellman going deep into Sunday’s game along with the Mets not needing Ynoa or Rafael Montero to start another game this year, the Mets could’ve rolled the dice in pulling Colon.  Instead, Collins stuck with the veteran in the hopes that he would get himself right and go deep in the game.

In the bottom of the third, it was clear that wasn’t going to happen.  Right off the bat, Christian Yelich hit the ball hard, and it deflected off of Colon.  After the play, Collins and Ray Ramirez would go out to the mound with Colon ignoring Ramirez.  Giancarlo Stanton followed with a hard line drive out to center.  At this point in time, it was clear Colon didn’t have it, and yet he would go another batter.  Justin Bour then hit a hard line drive to right that Jay Bruce misplayed into a two run triple to make it 7-0.  Right then and there, the game was effectively over.  It was right then and there that Collins lifted Colon for Ynoa.

If you want to defend Colon pitching to start the third, you can make the case.  You can make an even better case given the emotions of the night and the way Colon was being hit around, he should not have been in the game.  The issue becomes why not let Colon finish the inning?  It’s one thing to go to your bullpen for six plus innings to stay in a close game.  It’s a whole other matter to go that deep into the pen for a game you’ve already lost.  Why not let Colon figure it out?  At that point, what is the difference between 7-0 and 10-0?  You might as well try to steal a couple of innings out of him to save the bullpen a bit – even with the expanded rosters.

As it turned out, the Mets bullpen wouldn’t get burned.  They got good work out of a group of relievers who are most likely not going to be on the postseason roster with Ynoa, Montero, Erik Goeddel, Josh Edgin, and Jim Henderson.  Still, you have to question what Collins would have done if one of those guys were hit hard.  Would he have made one of them wear it, or would he have chased the unlikely comeback?  We’ll never be sure.  What we are sure of is Collins inability to play it one way might’ve cost the Mets what might’ve been a winnable game.

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Seemingly Everyone Played and Contributed to this Win

It wasn’t too long ago that Terry Collins said he had no confidence in any of his right field options other than Jay Bruce. As Bruce struggled, the statement looked more and more ridiculous. Tonight, it looked downright absurd as most of Collins’ decisions of late are looking. 

Gabriel Ynoa had allowed two runs over two innings when his turn to bat came up in the bottom of the second. Simply put, Collins panicked at the early deficit, and he pinch hit Ty Kelly. 

Collins made this decision despite the bullpen throwing six innings yesterday. He did it with Addison Reed and Jeurys Familia unavailable. He did it with Sean Gilmartin having to pitch tomorrow with Noah Syndergaard unable to go tomorrow because he has strep throat. Collins surveyed the landscape and determined the only way the Mets win the game is it Kelly pinch hits there to knock in Travis d’Arnaud, who just hit an RBI double, to tie it up. That was worth going to his bullpen for seven innings. 

Collins, who was managing to win it, then went to Logan Verrett. Verrett went two innings, and the Mets were lucky he allowed just one run. 

That set the stage for a big fifth inning. 

The Mets quickly loaded the bases against Jeremy Hellickson, who was seemingly down 3-1 in the count to every Mets batter that inning. 

The first run would come off a Curtis Granderson RBI single. Kelly Johnson followed with an RBI single of his own. When Phillies right fielder Roman Quinn misplayed the Johnson single, Yoenis Cespedes came to score from second as well. Then with a base open, the Phillies opted to pitch to Michael Conforto:

The three run homer capped a six run inning and gave the Mets a 7-3 lead. Unfortunately, this wouldn’t be a laugher or an easy game. 

Heading into the fifth, Collins removed d’Arnaud and replaced him with Rene Rivera as part of a double switch to try to get two innings from Josh Smoker. As usual, Smoker pitched well in his first inning. However, in his second inning of work, Darin Ruf would hit a two run home run off of him. This was the third time this year Collins tried to go a second inning with Smoker. All three times Smoker allowed a home run in his second inning of work. 

Just like that it was 7-5. In the top of the seventh, the lead appeared in jeopardy. The Pbillies rallied off Josh Edgin putting runners at the corners with one out. When the right-hand hitting Tommy Joseph was announced as the pinch hitter for Peter Bourjos, Collins countered with Hansel Robles. 

Joseph would pull a grounder right down the third base line. With Jose Reyes guarding the line, it turned into a 5-5-3 inning ending double play. 

The Mets then blew it open in the bottom of thr seventh.

Cespedes got things started with a lead off double, and Granderson followed with a walk. Collins then pinch hit Juan Lagares for Johnson to bunt. Lagares got down the bunt, and Cameron Rupp pounced on it. Rupp went to third to try to get the force, but he made a slightly offline throw that Maikel Franco could’ve made a play on, but didn’t. 

On the error, Cespedes scored, and the other two runners moved up a base. With the Phillies having the lefty, Patrick Schuster, on the mound, Collins pinch hit Eric Campbell for Conforto because Collins obviously had no confidence in Conforto’s ability to hit a lefty. Campbell would make Collins look good hitting a pinch hit RBI single.  T.J. Rivera then pinch hit for Lucas Duda, and he hit a sac fly scoring Lagares to make it 10-5 Mets. 

The bigger lead allowed the Mets to do a couple of things. First, it allowed Collins to bring in Matt Reynolds for Asdrubal Cabrera, who had earlier fouled a ball hard off his good knee. It also allowed the Mets to keep Robles in the game. 

Robles pitched 2.2 innings earning his first ever major league save. He did get some help with a vintage Lagares catch. It was fitting when you consider everyone contributed to this win. 

Game Notes: With Collins going deep into his bullpen, both Smoker and Robles got at bats. 

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Josh Smoker Becoming a Important Part of the Mets Bullpen

The strange thing about this part of the season is the team has to do everything they can do to win games in order to get their team into the postseason.  However, at the same time, the team is assessing players to find out who could be valuable pieces on the postseason roster.  Accordingly, the manager has to balance finding out something about a player in a pressure situation with making sure the player doesn’t fail and blow the game.

This year Josh Smoker is the embodiment of that conundrum.

After Josh Edgin struggled, the Mets decided to go call-up Smoker and give him his shot to pitch out of the bullpen.  Smoker earned the shot as he had a 1.04 ERA and a 0.92 WHIP in his 14 appearances after the All Star Game.  He was also striking out 11.4 batters per nine innings during that stretch.  Additionally, he had the stuff to pitch in the majors.  According to Brooks Baseball, Smoker throws over 95 MPH with a slider and split that generates a lot of swings and misses.

Still, relying on Smoker was far from a given.  He still had a 4.11 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP in AAA.  It wasn’t just the typical Pacific Coast League inflation.  In his minor league career, Smoker had a 4.58 ERA and a 1.49 WHIP.  Again, while his stuff translated to the majors, it did not translate statistically.  Overall, while there was promise, Smoker was far from a given.

That’s what makes Smoker’s current run with the Mets all the more impressive.

In 15 appearances with the Mets, Smoker has a 4.38 ERA and a 1.135 WHIP while striking out an eye-popping 15.3 batters per nine innings.  As it stands, he has reverse splits with him faring better against right-handed betters better than he does against left-handed batters.  That is not all together unexpected as Smoker was only slightly better against lefties than he was against righties while in AAA this year.  This means that Smoker is more than just a LOOGY, he’s a reliever that can be trusted for a full inning.

Over his past seven appearances he’s more than a pitcher than can be trusted.  He’s a pitcher that can be used in high leverage situations.  In those appearances, Smoker has yet to allow a run while striking out 10 batters in 5.1 innings.  He is limiting batters to a .167 batting average while allowing no extra base hits.  What’s even more impressive with the batting average numbers is Smoker has allowed a .375 BABIP meaning there’s not going to be regression on the balls in play.  Rather, there is promise that he will get even better.  The key to this impressive run is he is throwing 71% of his pitches for strikes.

As Smoker has improved at the major league level, the question is transitioning from whether the Mets can rely upon him at all to what exactly will his role be in the postseason.

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Terry Collins Decision of the Game – a Second Inning of Josh Edgin

T.J. Rivera hit a two run homer in the bottom of the fourth to bring the Mets with three runs. The game was now in play after Noah Syndergaard had allowed five runs in 3.2 innings. 

The home run changed the dynamics of how Terry Collins needed to use his bullpen. 

Now, even with the expanded rosters, the Mets bullpen was a bit overworked. The Mets needed their bullpen to pitch 11.1 innings over the previous two games.  With Syndergaard getting knocked out in the fourth, the bullpen would need to get another 5.1 innings. 

Sean Gilmartin pitched the first 1.1 innings. His turn in the lineup would come up in the sixth, and Collins would do the right thing in pinch hitting Kelly Johnson for him, especially with a runner in scoring position. 
At this point, Collins had to figure out where to go for the final four innings. Collins went to Josh Edgin. Now, Edgin has pitched in the previous two nights (even if the one outing was just to face one batter). It is also important to note this is his first season back from Tommy John surgery. 

More important than any of that, Edgin has made 10 appearances this year pitching to a 6.00 ERA and a 1.500 WHIP. Righties are hitting .273/.467/.545 off him this year and .243/.344/.346 for his career. He’s a LOOGY and not a cross-over lefty. None of this stopped Collins for sending him out for a second inning. 

On Edgin’s 30th pitch, he walked Jace Peterson to load the bases. Hansel Robles came in and couldn’t get out of the jam.  He allowed a two RBI single to Dansby Swanson to make it 7-2 putting the game reasonably out if reach.  This was a situation created by Collins, and Robles couldn’t bail him out. 

Now, there will be some who will defend Collins pointing out Freddie Freeman and Nick Markakis were due up the following inning. It’s a valid yet misguided point. 

Yes, you want Edgin facing Freeman and Markakis. However, you don’t want Edgin having them after having pitched in the prior inning and with Edgin pitching on the third consecutive game. It doesn’t make sense. 

It was incumbent on Collins to look ahead and use a different pitcher in the sixth and leave Edgin in reserve for when Freeman and Markakis came to bat. Collins tried to get two innings out of Edgin.  It was a move that backfired, and it helped the Braves blow the game open. 

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Flashbacks to 1998

Back in 1998, a Mike Piazza led Mets team was in prime position for the Wild Card. They were one game up on the Cubs with five home games left in the season. First up was the 97 loss Montreal Expos followed by the clinched a long time ago Atlanta Braves. The Mets wouldn’t win another game. 

In the process, the Mets would finish one game behind the Chicago Cubs AND the San Francisco Giants. Behind Steve Trachsel, the Cubs would win the Wild Card in the one game playoff. The Mets would stay at home watching as they couldn’t beat a bad team or the Braves. 

That and tonight’s game is a reminder that  the Mets have not locked up one of the Wild Card spots. 

Simply put, Noah Syndergaard was not good tonight. He only lasted 3.2 innings allowing eight hits and five earned. It didn’t matter that he was throwing his fastball over 100 MPH and his slider was back to 95 MPH. He wasn’t locating, and the Braves were hitting him. 

As usual, it was Freddie Freeman who killed the Mets. He homered in the third to make it 3-0. He then effectively knocked Syndergaard out if the game with a two run double in the fourth. 

Conversely, the Mets weren’t hitting. The sum of their offense through the first eight innings was a T.J. Rivera two run homer off Braves starter Aaron Blair. This was the same Blair that entered the game 0-6 with an 8.23 ERA and a 1.774 WHIP. 

Simply put, the Mets offense laid an egg. Still, the Mets were only down 5-2 after the Rivera homer. The game was within striking distance. 

Josh Edgin and Hansel Robles would combine in the seventh to put the game out of reach. Edgin, in his second inning of work, would load the bases. Robles came on in relief, and he allowed a Dansby Swanson two run bloop single to left making it 7-2. 
By the way, Swanson is becoming an annoying Brave. He opened the scoring in the second with an RBI single in addition to the aforementioned two RBI single. Overall, he was 3-5 with one run, three RBI, and one stolen base. 

The Mets did get something going on the ninth. Michael Conforto led off with a single. Ender Inciarte then misplayed a James Loney line drive single into an RBI double. The Mets had something brewing. It ended when Terry Collins turned to Ty Kelly and Jay Bruce to pinch hit for Kevin Plawecki and Rafael Montero respectively. 

Kelly struck out looking and Bruce popped out to right. After a Jose Reyes popped out to left to make the final out, the Mets have given the Giants and Cardinals an opportunity to cut into the Mets narrow lead in the Wild Card race. 

Game Notes: Loney was 3-4 with an RBI double. Curtis Granderson was 3-4 with a run. As a team the Mets were 0-7 with runners in scoring position. 

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Goodbye Turner Field

In many ways, Turner Field was an absolute eye sore from the general design of the place to the players who wore the Braves uniforms to Kenny Rogers inability to throw one over the plate against Andruw Jones.  What was ugliest of all was the Mets record there as the Mets were 67-106 at Turner Field.  Keep in mind, that record was boosted by the Mets winning 11 of their last 14 there.

Just as the Mets luck would go, just as they were getting the hang of things there, the Braves decided to tear the place down.  At least the Mets would close out their book at Turner Field in style.

First, it was the pitching of Seth Lugo.  Again, he was economical with his pitches, and he was able to go deep into games.  What is also impressive was his ability to once again navigate his way out of trouble.  This is where there is a real debate between “traditionalist” and “stat-guys.”  The traditionalist say he has an innate ability to get himself out of trouble while stat-guys say he is going to regress to the mean.  Right now, with the Mets in fight for the Wild Card, the results are all that matter, and Lugo is getting the results.

After Freddie Freeman singled home Adonis Garcia, the Braves would then load the bases with no outs.  At this point, the game was quickly turning from an easy 6-1 lead to a typical Turner Field nightmare.  Lugo then induced Anthony Recker to pop out to first base.  To be fair, having seen his time with the Mets, that wasn’t exactly impressive.  What was impressive was him using his slider to induce a groundball from Dansby Swanson.  Despite his speed, the Mets were able to turn the 6-4-3 double play to keep it at 6-1.

It was another great game from Lugo whose final line was seven innings, six hits, two runs, two earned, one walk, and five strikeouts.  Overall, he is solidifying his spot on the postseason roster.  Lugo got the win not just because of his pitching, but also because the Mets offense exploded.

As usual, when discussing the Mets offense exploding, you need to start with Yoenis Cespedes.  In the first, his ground out scored Asdrubal Cabrera, who somehow legged out a triple on one leg, to give the Mets a 1-0 lead.  In the third, he then did this:

At this point, not even Lawrence Chipper Jones could have save the Braves.

A shocking James Loney home run in the fourth would make it a 6-0 game.  Credit is due to Loney here.  After a disturbingly bad August, he has turned things around in September.  So far this month, he is hitting .333/.391/.571 with two doubles, a homer, and three RBI.  At a time when the Mets need to ride the hot hand to get the Wild Card, Loney has to be playing right now.  No, I did not like saying that.

Add in another big rally in the fifth, featuring another Loney RBI base hit, and the Mets would go on to win 10-3.  It was such a beating that even Lugo got into the action hitting a sacrifice fly.  With that huge lead, it was beyond bizarre that Terry Collins would take his sweet time removing his injured players from the game.  He didn’t remove Cabrera until the eighth despite having Gavin Cecchini and Matt Reynolds on the bench.  At least, Cecchini would get a pinch hitting appearance in the game (striking out).  He waited until the ninth to remove Curtis Granderson for Michael Conforto even if it would behoove the Mets to give Granderson some extra rest where they can find it.  Naturally, Cespedes would play the entire game.

It was a good day for the Mets as is everyday they beat the Braves.  With the Cardinals losing, the Mets found themselves back a half-game ahead of them in the Wild Card standings and tied with them in the loss column.  The only real problem with the game was the fact that once again the Mets failed to wear the First Responders caps to honor the fallen.

Game Notes: Logan Verrett is pretty much done for the season.  He got mop-up work in the ninth, and he couldn’t complete the task.  After allowing a run, he then loaded the bases, and he needed to be bailed out by Josh Edgin.  Edgin would get out of the inning without allowing another run.

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Mets Won Despite Terry Collins Trying to Make Things Interesting

The bad news was that Noah Syndergaard struggled.  It was to be expected from the scheduled times the Mets have had the past four games.  The good news is that the aforementioned issues didn’t matter because the Mets were playing the Reds yet again.

Syndergaard needed 95 pitches just to get through five innings.  He didn’t have one 1-2-3 inning.  He tied a career high by issuing four walks.  Still, he was able to keep the Reds at bay because he struck out seven batters, and because, well, you’ll never believe it – there were three base runners nailed on the basepaths.

Rene Rivera would nail two base runners alone in the second inning.  First, it was Brandon Phillips who was thrown out trying to steal second after leading off the inning with a single.  Scott Schebler would then walk, and Rivera would throw him out when he tried to steal second.

As if that wasn’t good enough, something more impressive happened.  There were runners on first and third after consecutive singles from Jose Peraza and Eugenio Suarez.  Mayhem would ensure, probably as the result of the Reds not knowing how to respond to Syndergaard trying to hold on a base runner.  Syndergaard caught Suarez napping on a throw over to first.  Suarez broke to second to get caught in a run down.  As this happened, Peraza broke for home.  Asdrubal Cabrera noticed, and he threw home to nail him to get Syndergaard out of another jam.

Due in part to that, Syndergaard’s strikeouts, and the Reds suddenly morphing into the Mets with runners in scoring position, Syndergaard pitched five scoreless and got the win because of the home run.

Right out of the gate, Jose Reyes took the first pitch of the game from Anthony DeSclafani, and he deposited it into the right field stands:

Reyes would account for the next run in the third when he scored a proverbial “Reyes Run.”  After Syndergaard led off the inning with a single, Reyes busted it out of the box to avoid the double play.  It seemed as if the Reds were going to get out of the inning as DeSclafani got Yoenis Cespedes to hit a grounder to short.  However, Peraza missed it allowing Reyes from first to third.  With Curtis Granderson at the plate, DeSclafani unleashed a wild pitch allowing Reyes to score.

It was part of a terrific game from Reyes who was 2-5 with two runs, an RBI, and a homer.  It was the rare terrific game for Reyes this year from the left-hand side of the plate.  Before today, Reyes was hitting .244/.283/.353 as a left-handed batter.  While it is a small sample size, it should be pointed out Reyes hit .275/.309/.374 as a left-handed batter last year, and .289/.328/.404 the year before that.  While he gets reviled, we could be seeing the positive effects of Reyes working with Kevin Long.

The other run was the result of the resurgent Curtis Granderson:

Granderson is suddenly scorching at the plate after having a poor July and a dreadful August.  Over Granderson’s last four games, he has three homers and seven RBI.  Given Terry Collins propensity to play him and bench Michael Conforto at all costs, the Mets are going to need more of the same from him.

Wilmer Flores would blow the game open in the eighth hitting a two run pinch hit home run off Reds reliever Wandy Peralta.  For some reason or other, Reds manager Bryan Price let the left-hander actually face Flores with the game still in doubt.  It was yet another sign we have seen from a Reds team that has seemingly quit on the season.

Flores’ pinch hit home run was the Mets 12th of the season, which ties the Mets single season mark set in 1983.

In addition to the Mets hitting a bunch of homers, a couple of struggling Mets relievers got some redemption.  Hansel Robles would pitch a scoreless 1.2 innings.  Robles went into the second inning of work because Collins emptied his bullpen yesterday, and because Robles clearly hasn’t gotten enough work all season.  Jerry Blevins then relieved Robles with a runner on and two out in the seventh to face Joey Votto.  Blevins snapped out of a recent funk a bit in striking out Votto.

Of course, no game would be complete without a completely baffling Collins’ managerial decision.  Yesterday, after Rafael Montero couldn’t make it through five, Collins had tabbed Gabriel Ynoa to get the last out of the fifth inning after Votto’s sacrifice fly off Josh Edgin.  As insane as it was to bring a minor league starter and use him for a third of an inning in a game the Mets needed a long reliever, it was even crazier to use that guy for the second game in a row.

With the Mets not knowing when Jacob deGrom and Steven Matz will be able to pitch next, and Montero showing he shouldn’t start another game, Ynoa was most likely the guy you would tab for the next start.  Instead, Collins chose him to pitch today even with Sean Gilmartin and Logan Verrett fully rested.  It should come as a surprise to no one what ensued.

Ynoa would immediately load the bases with no outs forcing Collins to go to Addison Reed, who is not good with inherited base runners.  Reed would strike out Tyler Holt, and then things would get interesting.  Tucker Barnhart would hit an RBI single, and the bases would remain loaded.  After a Ramon Cabrera ground-out, with Reyes getting the force out at home, Peraza would hit a two run double over Cespedes’ head.  Reed would strike out Eugenio Suarez to get out of the jam.  The Mets would keep the lead even if it was shaved down to 5-3.

The Mets added an insurance run in the eighth as Cabrera and Cespedes hit back-to-back doubles of Reds reliever Tony Cingrani.  Again, you have to question what the Reds were thinking with them pitching to Cespedes with an open base.

With the 6-3 lead, it was a save situation leading Collins to bring in Jeurys Familia, and he would record his 47th save of the season.  It would also be the 60th game he finished this season.  Reed and Familia have now pitched four times in the last five games.  But hey, it was a good idea to bring in a non-reliever in Ynoa for the second straight day.

Fortunately, the Mets pulled out the win, and they are now eight games over .500, and they are a half game out of a Wild Card spot (two in the loss column).  Pending what happens tonight, the Mets could find themselves in a virtual tie with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Game Notes: Gavin Cecchini didn’t play again today.  Alejandro De Aza started in center with Jay Bruce and Conforto sitting.  James Loney continues to hit better of late going 2-3 on the day.

Pennant Race: Everyone who matters plays later.

 

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Mets August 2016 Report Card

The Mets entered August 6.5 games back in the NL East race behind both the Nationals and the Marlins.  They also trailed the Marlins by 1.5 games for the last Wild Card spot.  The Mets have also fallen behind the Cardinals in the Wild Card race as well.

By going 15-14, August turned out to be just the second winning month the Mets have had this season.  They now trail the Nationals by nine games in the NL East.  After what has been a crazy month, the Mets still remain 1.5 games back of the final Wild Card spot.  Only now, the Mets trail the the Cardinals after having helped put the Marlins away having won the first three against them in a four game series.  Given the Mets weak September schedule, it should be an interesting finish to the season.

Bear in mind, these grades are on a curve. If a bench player gets an A and a position player gets a B, it doesn’t mean the bench player is having a better year. Rather, it means the bench player is performing better in his role.

Position Players

Travis d’Arnaud (C).  After the Jonathon Lucroy rumors died down, d’Arnaud starting hitting again.  However, he has cooled off to hit at a rate slightly better than his 2016 totals.  Part of the reason may be Collins playing Rivera over him with the Mets needing to throw a lot of young pitchers out there.

Kevin Plawecki (Inc.)  Plawecki spent the entire month down in AAA where he has started hitting again.  He should be among the first group of players called up today.  It’ll be interesting to see what, if any, impact he has over the final month of the season.

Rene Rivera (C).  Rivera came crashing back to Earth offensively.  However, his value has always been as a receiver, and he has done that job fairly well helping usher some of these young pitchers into the big leagues.

Lucas Duda (Inc). Duda is most likely gone for the season, and the debate will soon begin about whether he will be a Met in 2017.

James Loney (F).  He didn’t hit for average or power, nor did he get on base much during the entire month.  Worse yet, he has not been good in the field.  The next ball he stretches for will be his first.

Neil Walker (A+).  What has happened to Walker is nothing short of heart breaking.  He had completely turned his season around, and he appeared to be headed for a massive payday this offseason with him standing out as one of the better options in a weak free agent class.  Instead, Walker is going to have season ending back surgery to end his season.

David Wright (Inc.).  It’s clear he’s done for the season, but it is nice seeing him around Citi Field and looking better.

Asdrubal Cabrera (A+).  Since his return from the disabled list, Cabrera has been a blonde bombshell.  He moved into the second spot in the order, and he he has combine with Reyes to form a dynamic and powerful 1-2 duo at the top of the lineup.  The only concern is how much he is going to actually be able to play with that lingering knee issue.

Wilmer Flores (B+).  Flores has continued to rake putting up numbers at an unprecedented.  This month he hit seven homers.  He has benefited greatly by mostly facing left-handed pitchers, and now he’s hitting righties better. The Mets will need his versatility all the more as injuries mounted during the month.

Eric Campbell (Inc.) Campbell did not play in a game during the month, and the Mets are not likely to call him up again until rosters expand in September.

Matt Reynolds (D).  Reynolds didn’t hit well during his 10 games with the Mets this month.  Worse yet for him, he has been passed over on the team’s depth chart by Rivera.

Ty Kelly (A).  During his limited August playing time, Collins was able to maximize Kelly’s abilities by making him a short-lived platoon left fielder with Cespedes dealing with his quad injury.  In his nine August games, Kelly hit .381/.500/.524 with a double and a triple.

Michael Conforto (D).  After a stretch in which the Mets bottomed out, Conforto was sent down as he was a young player unable to handle sporadic playing time.  Since being sent down to AAA, Conforto has hit everything including lefties.  He should be called up today, and most likely, never play as Collins is his manager.

Yoenis Cespedes (A).  It was admirable that Cespedes played until he could play no longer (even if his golfing might’ve been part of the reason why).  Since his return, Cespedes is hitting home runs again.  He has had another incredible month, and he had a walkoff with a legendary bat flip to help the Mets beat the Marlins.

Curtis Granderson (D).  It hasn’t been fun seeing last year’s team MVP struggle the way he has this month.  He lost his job in right, moved to center, and now has become a part time player.  The hope is that with the time off, he rests up, and he returns to the Granderson of old.  Those hopes don’t seem that far fetched after he came off the bench the other night to hit two home runs.

Juan Lagares (Inc).  Lagares didn’t play in August due to the thumb surgery.  It remains questionable if he can return in September as he will most likely not be ready for rehab games until after the minor league affiliates have ended their seasons.

Alejandro De Aza (C-).  De Aza followed a great July with another poor August.  Mixed in there were a couple of terrific games that helped the Mets win a pivotal game against the Cardinals.  Right now, what he brings more than anything is the ability to play center field.

Kelly Johnson (A+).  Johnson continues to be the Mets top pinch hitter as well as a platoon option in the infield.  Over the past month, he has hit for more power including a surprising five homers.  His bases loaded double last night might’ve buried the Marlins.

Brandon Nimmo (Inc).  He only played two games before being sent down to AAA.  Given the fact that he’s one of the few healthy center fielders in the organization, he may see some real time when he gets called up with the expanded rosters.

Jose Reyes (A).  You could say we’re seeing the Reyes of old, but Reyes has never been this good in his career.  He has adapted extremely well to third base while playing a steady shortstop when the Mets have needed him to play over there when Cabrera has been injured or needing a day off.  The one caution is he still isn’t hitting right-handed pitching that well.  Still, his numbers were terrific.

T.J. Rivera (B).  After all this time, Rivera finally got his chance.  He made the most of it hitting .289 in 13 games while playing decently at second and third base.

Justin Ruggiano (Inc).  When he plays, he hits, but he is now on his second disabled list stint already with the Mets. With him being put on the 60 day disabled list, he’s now done for the season.   Seeing what we have seen with the team, there may be something in the water.

Jay Bruce (F).  Since coming to the Mets for Dilson Herrera, he has just been bad.  But hey, it’s not like the Mets need another second baseman, right?

Pitchers

Matt Harvey (Inc).  Harvey is done for the season after having had successful surgery to remove a rib.  For a player who has been criticized in the past for attending Yankee games while being gone for the season, Harvey has been a fixture in the Mets dugout during games.

Jacob deGrom (D).  deGrom had been pitching great until August rolled around.  In back-to-back big games against the Giants and the Cardinals, he couldn’t deliver pitching two of the worst games in his career.  Hopefully, the Mets skipping his last start will help get him back on track.

Noah Syndergaard (B). Syndergaard has had an uneven month, but after his last start, it appears he is dealing better with the bone spurs, and he is getting back to the pitcher who was dominant over the first half of the season.

Steven Matz (C).  Just as you thought he turned things around with his flirting with a no-hitter in his last start, he goes down with a shoulder injury.  At this time, it is unknown as to when or if he can return.

Bartolo Colon (A).  Colon stopped his good start-bad start streak in August, and he started pitching much better during the month of August at a time when the Mets needed him the most.

Logan Verrett (F).  Look, he shouldn’t have been tapped as the Mets fifth starter after Harvey went down, but with that said, he did everything he could to lose the job pitching to a 13.50 ERA in August.  He eventually lost the job to Niese of all people

Jeurys Familia (A).  That’s the Familia we all know and love.  He not only had a sub 1.00 ERA, but he also broke the single season Mets save record he shared with Armando Benitez.

Addison Reed (B+).  You knew he wasn’t going to keep up what he has been doing, but even with him coming back to Earth slightly, he has still be incredible.

Jim Henderson (F).  After being on the disabled list for so long with yet another shoulder injury, Henderson has made his way back to the majors.  Unfortunately, he’s not the same pitcher.  Collins owes him an apology.

Hansel Robles (F).  Robles showed how much he has been overworked this season by Collins this month.  Hopefully, with some rest, he should finally be able to rebound and contribute in September and beyond like he had done for most of the season.

Jerry Blevins (B+).  His 2.16 ERA was terrific, but his 1.560 WHIP gives some reason for pause.  Both righties and lefties are starting to hit him, and he has been allowing inherited runners to score.

Antonio Bastardo (Inc.)  Thankfully, he is gone, and it was worth it even if it meant the Mets had to take back Niese.

Rafael Montero (Inc.) He got an unexpected start due to injuries, and he fought his way through five scoreless innings.  Good for him.

Sean Gilmartin (Inc.)  Gilmartin has only made three appearances since being recalled, and he hasn’t pitched particularly well.  Whether it was the shoulder injury or teams figuring him out, he’s not the same guy he was last season.

Erik Goeddel (F).  There used to be two factions of the Mets fan base: those who thought Goeddel was a good major league pitcher, and those that didn’t.  Seemingly, everyone is now in the latter camp now.

Seth Lugo (A).  Lugo has been nothing short of a revelation this year.  Due to injuries, he has had to go from the bullpen to the rotation.  He has not only shown his stuff translates as a starter, but he also shown he could actually be more effective as a starter.  He has gotten his 2014 deGrom moment, and he has taken advantage of it.

Jon Niese (F).  Somehow, he was worse with the Mets than he was with the Pirates.  He has failed in the bullpen and the rotation.  Hopefully, for him, the reason is because of his knee injury that has required surgery.

Robert Gsellman (Inc.) It’s been a mixed bag for Gsellman.  In his one relief apperance and his one start, he has given the Mets a chance to win.   However, he’s a powder keg out there as it seems as if he is in trouble each and every inning.  To his credit, he has gotten out of most of the jams.  It’ll be interesting to see where he goes from here.

Gabriel Ynoa (Inc.) Ynao was surprisingly called up to pitch out of the bullpen.  In three rough appearances, the only thing you can fairly conclude is he isn’t comfortable yet pitching out of the bullpen.

Josh Edgin (D) Edgin has gone through the long Tommy John rehab process, but he’s not quite back yet.  His velocity isn’t quite there.  With that in mind, he has struggles getting major league batters out.

Josh Smoker (B) After a rough start to his major league career, he has gone out there and gotten better each and every time out.  He is getting his fastball in the upper 90s, and he is a strikeout machine.  He could be a real factor over the next month and in the postseason

Terry Collins (D)  He iced Conforto.  He continues to overwork the bullpen.  He makes baffling lineup decision after baffling lineup decision.  He is even worse with in-game management.  However, with the Mets on a stretch against some bad teams, and the Wild Card frontrunners not having run away with it, he may once again be in position to ride some good luck into the postseason.

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