Sean Gilmartin

First Half Mets Minor League Pitching Leaders

Currently, MLB and many of their full season affiliates are at the All Star Break. At each and every level, the Mets had a minor league pitcher named to their level’s All-Star Game. Listed below is a synopsis of the Mets’ organizations leaders at the break:

Class A Full Season – Columbia Fireflies

Class A Advanced – St. Lucie Mets

Double-A – Binghamton Mets

Triple-A – Las Vegas 51s

  • Wins: Sean Gilmartin, Gabriel Ynoa (9)
  • Saves: Paul Sewald (9)
  • Strikeouts: Sean Gilmartin (77)
  • ERA: Gabriel Ynoa (4.19)
  • WHIP: Sean Gilmartin (1.32)
  • Games: Chasen Bradford, Josh Smoker (38)
  • Starts: Gabriel Ynoa (18 – League Leader)
  • Innings: Gabriel Ynoa (109.2)
  • Holds: Josh Smoker (9)
  • All-Stars: Gabriel Ynoa
  • Promotions: Seth Lugo

Organizational Leaders

  • Wins: P.J. Conlon COL & STL (10)
  • Saves: Alex Palsha COL (14)
  • Strikeouts: Joe Shaw COL, Tyler Pill BNG (88)
  • ERA: P.J. Conlon COL & STL (1.97)
  • WHIP: P.J. Conlon COL & STL (1.03)
  • Games: Chasen Bradford LV, Josh Smoker LV (38)
  • Starts – Gabriel Ynoa LV (18)
  • Innings – Gabriel Ynoa (109.2)
  • Holds – Josh Smoker LV (9)

* stats are updated through July 13, 2016

Editor’s Note: this was first published on metsminors.net

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Jon Niese Could Be a Valuable Reliever

Last year, when it was apparent he was not going to be a part of the postseason rotation, Jon Niese volunteered to go to the bullpen. As it turned out, he became a valuable part of the Mets postseason bullpen. 

In five of Niese’s six postseason appearances, he did not permit a run. He was nearly perfect over 4.1 innings allowing just two hits while striking out five batters. He got a big strikeout of Anthony Rizzo in Game Two of the NLCS:

He kept the Mets alive in Game One of the World Series with two huge scoreless innings in the 10th and 11th innings. He bailed Steven Matz out of a tight sixth inning while seemingly being the only Mets pitcher to get Eric Hosmer out in a big spot. In a do-or-die Game Five, he pitched a scoreless tenth. Overall, Niese was terrific in big spots, and he came through when the Mets needed him most. It really was shocking given his well-earned reputation as a head case. 

In the offseason, the Mets traded him for Neil Walker, and even under the tutelage of arguably the best pitching coach in the game, Niese has been terrible going 7-6 with a 5.13 ERA, 1.574 WHIP, 80 ERA+, and a 5.49 FIP. These are easily the worst stats of his career, and as a result, Niese finds himself back in the bullpen. 

Somewhat surprisingly, the Mets are interested in a reunion with Niese. They’re possibly interested with Logan Verrett failing to recapture the magic he had as a spot starter last year. The Mets have to at least contemplate Niese as Sean Gilmartin and Gabriel Ynoa have pitched poorly over the past few months. Furthermore, the Mets do not seem inclined to stretch out Seth Lugo and give him a chance to start. 

Certainly, you can understand the Mets interest in Niese. However, it is still hard to imagine Niese is a better option for the rotation than the Mets internal candidates. It may be one of the reasons why the Mets are more interested in improving the bullpen than by adding Niese to the rotation. Given his performance last postseason, perhaps Niese could be the bullpen answer. 

There is some evidence from this season that Niese could be a useful bullpen piece.  In his first two innings of work, he has a 2.50 ERA. In his first inning of work, batters are hitting .234/.269/.375. In his second inning of work, batters are hitting .217/.308/.406. With runners in scoring position batters are hitting .250/.332/.352. When there are two outs and runners in scoring position, batters are hitting .093/.170/.140. 

Looking at these numbers, it’s fair to conclude that Niese has started games well but has fallen apart from the third inning on. These numbers should improve with Niese being reunited with Dan Warthen and with him maxing out for an inning or two. If Niese were to move to the bullpen, he could have a career renaissance similar to Oliver Perez, who was another unpopular Mets lefty starter who faltered. 

With that in mind, Niese could be the exact pitcher the Mets are looking to add. Once he’s in the fold, the Mets can then figure out what to do for the last spot in the rotation. 

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Mets May Be Intersted in Jon Niese

Last year, the Mets had released Kirk Nieuwenhuis after he had hit .079/.125/.132 with no homers and two RBI in 27 games. Nieuwenhuis would go to the Angels where he would be similarly ineffective causing them to release him. The Mets then jumped on the chance to bring him back due to injuries and the ineffective play of players like Darrell Ceciliani.

Now, a year later the Mets are facing a similar situation with Jon Niese. According to Marc Carig of Newsday, the Mets are internally debating whether or not the Mets should reunite with Niese. 

This move speaks more about the Mets options than Niese’s performance as Niese is 7-6 with a 5.13 ERA, 1.574 WHIP, 80 ERA+, and a 5.49 FIP. He’s performed so poorly he recently lost his spot in the rotation and caused his General Manager Neil Huntington to quip, “In hindsight, maybe two fringe prospects [in exchange for Neil Walker] and trying to figure out how to reallocate the money might have been a better return.”  Even with all this is mind, the Mets are still deliberating over whether they should bring back Niese to take Matt Harvey‘s spot in the rotation.  

He is a consideration as Logan Verrett is 1-4 with a 5.64 ERA and a 1.649 WHIP as a starter this year. Sean Gilmartin has had a 6.17 ERA and a 1.447 WHIP in his last 10 starts with one relief appearance. Gabriel Ynoa has a 6.65 ERA and a 1.630 WHIP in his last eight starts. 

As for now, the Mets plan on starting Verrett tonight against the Phillies. Furthermore, the team intends to prioritize pursuing a right-handed reliever who can pitch the seventh inning before turning their sights onto Niese. 

Editor’s Note: this was first published on metsmerizedonline.com

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Mets Do Not Need Bullpen Help

As the trade deadline approaches, every team usually states that they need bullpen help, and those that are true contenders usually add an extra arm or two to the bullpen.  For example, back in 1999, one of the biggest strengths for a Mets team fighting for the NL East and the Wild Card was their bullpen.  Armando Benitez had taken over the closer role much earlier than anticipated.  Turk Wendell and Dennis Cook were having excellent seasons.  Pat Mahomes was a revelation as the long man in the bullpen.  Ex-closer John Franco was expected to return form injury to help with the playoff push.  Greg McMichael was having an off year, but he had previously been a valuable bullpen arm in a pennant race from his days with the Atlanta Braves.  On top of that, the Mets had some young promising arms to go to down the stretch with Jason Isringhausen and Octavio Dotel (even if Bobby Valentine thought they were better suited and belonged in the rotation).  Overall, the point being is the Mets did not need bullpen help.

Even with that being the case, a Mets team that was very active during the trade deadline made sure to acquire another arm for the bullpen by sending McMichael and Isringhausen for Billy Taylor.  It turns out Billy Taylor was washed up, and he would not even be on the postseason roster thereby forcing the Mets to make do with the already good bullpen pieces they had.  The Mets find themselves in a similar position than the 1999 Mets did.

The Mets bullpen is led to Jeurys Familia who is the best closer in the game. When needed, Familia can pitch two innings to get the big save that the Mets need.  The primary eighth inning set-up man has been Addison Reed, who is only sporting a 2.26 ERA and a 0.912 WHIP.  This duo has only lost one lead that has been given to them this year in 32 attempts.  Behind them is Hansel Robles who has done everything the Mets have needed in the bullpen.  He can come out and bail the Mets out of a bases loaded no out jam or pitch 3.2 terrific innings to save a Mets bullpen from a first inning injury to a starting pitcher.  Jerry Blevins has been an extremely effective LOOGY allowing lefties to hit .210/.269/.310.  By the way, he has been even better against righties limiting them to a .107/.188/.214 batting line.

Behind these pitchers are some very solid options.  There is Jim Henderson, who was great before Terry Collins abused his arm.  Henderson is currently in AAA on a rehab assignment.  Seth Lugo has been absolutely terrific out of the bullpen in his two appearances.  However, it is only two appearances, and there still remains a (remote) chance that he may wind up in the starting rotation with the Matt Harvey injury.  There is Erik Goeddel, who even despite one poor performance this season, still has a career 2.75 ERA and a 1.054 WHIP.  There is still Sean Gilmartin, who was an essential part of the Mets bullpen last year.  He is a starter in AAA, but if the Mets are that desperate for major league relief help that they will swing a trade, they should pull up a known quantity to help the team where he is needed.

If the Mets will consider calling up players from the minors, there are some good options in AAA.  Josh Edgin has a 2.45 ERA in the hitter friendly Pacific Coast League.  Paul Sewald has taken over as the closer, and he has recorded nine saves.  There is always the alluring Josh Smoker, who is having a down year but still sports a mid-nineties fastball.

Finally, in addition to all of these players, there is still Antonio Bastardo, who is going nowhere.  It is doubtful a rebuilding team will want to add him into the mix with his high salary and poor production.  The Mets are stuck with him, and they are going to be stuck with him for the full season, regardless of whether they make another move to add a reliever or not.  In essence, Bastardo is the reason why people mistakenly believe the Mets need bullpen help.  With that in mind, the best thing the Mets can do is to find a way to get Bastardo back on track.  That will help the Mets bullpen more than them adding another reliever.

Overall, the Mets bullpen is in fine shape with four outstanding relievers and plenty of good options behind them.  The Mets do not need a reliever.  They need to fix Bastardo since he’s going to be here whether or not the Mets make a trade.  With that in mind, the Mets should leave the bullpen as is and turn their attention to the teams other needs at the trade deadline.

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Potential Matt Harvey Replacements

The news that Matt Harvey may miss a significant amount of time due to the possibility that he may have thoracic outlet syndrom is devastating to not only Harvey himself, but also to the Mets rotation.  While Harvey was struggling all year with a 4.86 ERA, he is also a pitcher who can rise up in big games.  We have seen it time and time again with him whether it was him almost pitching a perfect game against the White Sox, being named the starter for the 2013 All Star Game, or his Game 5 of the World Series performance.  He was an important part of the Mets, and if he has an extended absence, he is going to leave behind some pretty big shoes to fill.

As of right now, the Mets have not announced who will take Harvey’s spot in the rotation for Harvey’s next scheduled start.  Fortunately, the Mets organization is fairly deep in major league capable starting pitching talent.  Here is a list of the potential candidates:

Logan Verrett

Last year when the Mets were trying to manage Harvey’s innings, it was Verrett who temporarily took his place in the rotation.  In Verrett’s four spot starts last year, he was a very respectable 1-1 with a 3.63 ERA.  This included a brilliant performance Verrett had in Colorado limiting the Rockies to four hits and one earned run in eight innings.  Unfortunately, Verrett has not had the same success as a spot starter this year.  In his five spot starts, he is 1-3 with a 5.32 ERA.  Part of those struggles may be attributed to the fact that Verrett has not been fully stretched out like he was when he took the ball for the Mets last year.  Accordingly, if Verrett was stretched out and able to pitch every fifth day, it would be reasonable to assume he could pitch as well as he did as a spot  starter last year – perhaps even better.

Sean Gilmartin

Verrett was picked over Gilmartin for the last spot in the Opening Day bullpen, and as a result, the Mets sent down Gilmartin to be a member of their AAA starting rotation.  Last year, we saw that Gilmartin knows how to get major league hitters out.  In 50 appearances, he was 3-2 with a 2.67 ERA, 1.186 WHIP, a 2.75 FIP, and a 143 ERA+.  When he made multiple inning relief appearances last year, he was 3-1 with a 1.38 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP.  The only caution with Gilmartin is he has not been as successful this year as he was last year.  In his 13 AAA starts, he is 9-3 with a 4.72 ERA and a 1.336 WHIP.  In his five major league relief appearances, Gilmartin has a 7.00 ERA and a 1.556 WHIP.  However, it should be noted Gilmartin’s struggles started when he was being jerked back and forth between Las Vegas and the Mets, between relieving and starting.  Before his first call-up, Gilmartin was 4-1 with a 2.58 ERA in the very hitter friendly Pacific Coast League.  Overall, Gilmartin has shown he can get major league hitters out and pitch well as a starter.

Seth Lugo

When Harvey was put on the disabled list, the Mets called-up Lugo who dazzled in his two inning relief appearance.  In that outing, Lugo used all five out his pitches to get a potent Cubs lineup out.  He featured a 94 MPH fastball and a wicked curveball.  He curveball was working so well he was able to get Anthony Rizzo to swing at a pitch that moved so much it would hit him on his back foot.  He certainly has the tools to be an effective starter even if he hasn’t had the results in AAA this year.  Given his repetoire and the ability to work with pitching coach Dan Warthen, the Mets just might have a pitcher who could blossom on the major league level similar to how Jacob deGrom did when he was called-up to the Mets in 2014.

Gabriel Ynoa

If the Mets are going to turn to their prospects for a solution, Ynoa deserves some consideration as well.  By any measure, the 23 year old Ynoa has been the Las Vegas 51s’ best starting pitcher.  In a hitter friendly league, the Pacific Coast League All Star is 9-3 with a 3.92 ERA and a 1.353 WHIP in 17 starts.  The only questions with Ynoa is if the Mets believe he is ready to make the leap to the majors and whether his ability to enduce groundballs is a good fit for a Mets infield whose players have limited range.

Rafael Montero

If the Mets are inclined to take a risk with a Lugo or a Ynoa, they may be inclined to give Montero one last shot.  However, as we have seen with Montero, it gets harder and harder to justify giving him another opportunity.  When he was with the Mets this past year, he had an 11.57 ERA and a 2.571 WHIP in his two appearances thereby more than justifying Terry Collins‘ almost outright refusal to put him into a game.  Down in AAA, Montero is 4-6 with a 7.88 ERA and a 1.888 WHIP in 16 starts.  This isn’t the same guy the Mets once thought had a bright future.  Keep in mind, the Mets thought he had a future as far back as last year when he made the Opening Day roster as a member of the bullpen.  Maybe just maybe giving this guy one last shot could wake him up, and it could bring out the best in him.  It’s possible working closely with Dan Warthen may allow him to fulfill the promise he had when the Mets valued him as a prospect.

Overall, the Mets have many directions they could go.  Each of the aforementioned starters could step-up and hold the fort until either Matt Harvey or Zack Wheeler is able to return from the disabled list to help lead the Mets back to the World Series.  Ultimately, this is going to be an opportunity for one or more of these pitchers.  It’s up to them to step up and stake a claim to a spot in the rotation.  It’s up to them to make it hard for the Mets to remove them from the rotation much like deGrom did in 2014 when he won the Rookie of the Year Award.  If one of these pitchers has a run like that, it would give the Mets six or seven terrific starters.  That would be an amazing problem to have.

Editor’s Note: this was also published on metsmerizedonline.com

 

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The Matt Harvey Replacement Isn’t Here Anymore

Steven Matz has bone spurs in his pitching elbow, and the Mets talked him out if having inseason surgery to remove them. Noah Syndergaard also has bone spurs in his pitching elbow, but it appears like it’s nowhere near as serious as Matz’s. Zack Wheeler has had a number of setbacks in his Tommy John rehab, and the best case scenario has him returning to the Mets mid to late August. Now, worst of all, Matt Harvey may have thoracic outlet syndrome.

Anyone one of these pitchers may miss an extended period of time, and the Mets replacements are less than inspiring. 

First up as always is spot starter Logan Verrett who has a 5.32 ERA in his five starts this year. Sean Gilmartin has a 7.00 ERA in his limited appearances with the Mets this year. Seth Lugo had an electrifying one inning appearance before bring sent back down to AAA where he has a 6.55 ERA. Rafael Montero hasn’t been much better with his 6.31 AAA ERA and his 11.57 major league ERA. Finally, there’s 23 year old Gabriel Ynoa who may not be ready for the majors. 

For a team that is built on pitching, these are not viable options. These pitchers are not carrying these Mets back to the World Series like the pitching did in 2015. 

No, the Mets need a pitcher like Michael Fulmer.  Fulmer has made 13 starts this year going 9-2 with a 2.11 ERA and a 1.096 WHIP. He’s throwing a 96 MPH fastball and an 89 MPH Warthen slider. If he was in the Mets rotation right now, he would arguably be the best pitcher in their rotation. At the very least, he’s top three. There’s one problem. 

Fulmer’s a Tiger. Fulmer was one of 12 pitchers the Mets have traded away since the 2015 offseason. Make no mistake. Fulmer was the best of the lot.

Many have justified his departure as he was traded away to acquire Yoenis Cespedes. Cespedes would go off in August and September with an offensive display Mets fans haven’t seen since Mike Piazza was leading the Mets to back-to-back postseason appearances. The Mets would fall just short of the ultimate goal as they lost the World Series in five games. 

Arguably, the Mets needed Cespedes to reach that point. However, in acquiring him, the Mets gave up Fulmer’s entire career. They gave up the very player they may need this year just to get back to the World Series. The Mets may have sacrificed their chances in 2016 and beyond for the run they made last year. 

The reason is because pitching is fragile. No matter how good you think you have it there’s a bone spur, a torn collateral ligament, or a shoulder condition that can take an ace pitcher away.  It’s why an organization needs as much high end pitching depth as it can get their hands on. Yesterday’s surplus becomes today’s necessity. 

Fulmer was seen as surplus last year, and he was moved for Cespedes.  With Harvey’s, Wheeler’s, and Matz’s medical issues, he’s now a necessity that is pitching for the Detroit Tigers. 

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Daniel Murphy – Mets Killer

In Max Scherzer‘s last three starts (including tonight) against the Mets, he has allowed four hits total. In essence, he only allows one hit per outing against the Mets. Asdrubal Cabrera took care of that one hit with a second inning single. Since it wasn’t a home run, it meant the Mets weren’t going to score off of him. 

No, it didn’t help that Curtis Granderson needed to be scratched from the lineup after getting nicked up yesterday.  His absence was all the greater when Terry Collins decided to put Alejandro De Aza and his .216 OBP in the lead off spot. It really makes no sense at all until you consider 

The decision worked as well as everyone thought it would. Brandon Nimmo hit a one out single in the eighth chasing Scherzer from the game. Granderson then pinch hit for Rene Rivera and singled off Oliver Perez. After a Travis d’Arnaud pinch hit fielder’s choice, the Mets sent up De Aza.

Dusty Baker brought in his closer, Shawn Kelley, for the four out save as he was the only person in the ballpark who thought De Aza was a threat. Despite having been 3-3 off Kelley in his career, De Aza would strikeout to end the inning. 

It also didn’t help that the Mets didn’t re-sign Daniel Murphy in the offseason. He’s now a National AND a Mets killer. Coming into tonight’s game, he was hitting .419/.441/.645 with two homers and eight RBI. Tonight was more of the same:

Murphy’s homer was one of the two runs scored off of Logan Verrett who made a good spot start. He pitched five innings allowing the two runs with four walks and one strikeout. It didn’t matter as the Mets didn’t score any runs for him. 

If there was any hope the Mets would comeback, Murphy crushed those hopes:

Murphy’s two run home run off Sean Gilmartin in the eighth made it 4-0. It put the game out of reach. The James Loney two run homer in the ninth really only served to end a 23 inning scoreless streak. The Mets lost 4-2 and fell to six games behind the Nationals in the division. 

Game Notes: Nimmo took some poor routes on balls leading to some base hits that led to a run in the third. Antonio Bastardo pitched two scoreless innings.  Murphy went 2-4 with two runs, three RBI, and two homers. 

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The Fall of Rafael Montero

Over the course of a full 162 schedule, it is extremely rare that a team is able to get through a season with just five starting pitchers.  With that in mind, a team will need more than just five major league caliber starting pitchers in order to get through the season.  We were all reminded of that again with the news that Steven Matz and Noah Syndergaard are both dealing with bone spurs in their pitching elbows.  Apparently, the situation is worse for Matz who is debating if he should have surgery.

If Matz, Syndergaard, or really any Mets pitcher cannot make a start, the Mets have options.  There is Logan Verrett who has already made four spot starts this season and will start in place of Matz today.  There is Sean Gilmartin who began the year in Las Vegas, in part, so the Mets could allow him to further develop as a starting pitcher.  The Mets also have well regarded prospect Gabriel Ynoa who becomes more and more major league ready with each and every start.  Whenever the Mets need an arm, these are the three names that are usually in the discussion for a start.  You know who’s name doesn’t get brought up anymore?  Rafael Montero.

This is a precipitous fall from grace for Montero.  As soon as 2014, the Mets had considered Montero a major league caliber starting pitcher.  He ranked ahead of Jacob deGrom on the organizational depth chart.  The Mets were proven wrong when deGrom got a chance to go out there and perform while Montero was injured.  As a result, when the 2015 season began, the Mets had deGrom in the rotation and Montero in the bullpen.  Still, Montero would get his shot to start as the Mets wanted to implement a six man rotation to limit the innings for deGrom and Matt Harvey.  Montero would make one start, and he would be sent down to AAA.  However, that demotion would be rescinded as Montero was found to have rotator cuff inflammation.

Eventually, the Mets would question his willingness to pitch.  Subsequent tests would show there was no significant injuries.  The team would suggest that while there was inflammation, Montero should’ve been able to pitch through it.  During a late season road trip to Florida, Terry Collins traveled to Port St. Lucie to meet with Montero to try to get him going.  Eventually, Montero would pitch in a few minor league games at the end of the year, but it was too little too late in terms of making the postseason roster.

As the team reported to Spring Training this season, Collins pulled him aside and tried to motivate him.  He told Montero the Mets had to re-sign Bartolo Colon because Montero hasn’t fulfilled his promise.  If he had, he would have been slated at the Mets’ fifth starter.  Montero responded to the pep talk by getting shellacked by the Nationals.  When the Mets had to trim down their roster, Montero was one of the first people selected to go to Minor League Spring Training.  It seemed like it was his last chance.  He would get one more.

After Matz’s first start of the season exhausted the Mets bullpen and Jacob deGrom’s baby being sick, the Mets needed an extra arm.  The team would call-up Montero.  Collins seemingly went out of his way to not use him going so far as to pitch Jim Henderson in a game he had no business pitching.  When Montero finally got into a game, he didn’t perform.  In his two appearances, Montero had an 11.57 ERA and a 2.571 WHIP.  The Mets had no problem sending him down.

In the minors, Montero has continued to be underwhelming.  In 14 starts this year, he is 4-4 with a 6.62 ERA and a 1.736 WHIP.  To be blunt, Montero is doing nothing more right now than occupying a spot on the 40 man roster.  We saw the effect of that when the Mets had subjected and lost Dario Alvarez on waivers when the Mets needed to make room for Ty Kelly on the 40 man roster.  With the Braves, Alvarez has gone 1-1 with a 2.08 ERA and a 0.923 WHIP.  So far, Alvarez has accomplished more than Montero has and perhaps ever will.

It wasn’t supposed to be this way for Montero.  He was supposed to be the guy in the top half of the rotation.  It hasn’t panned out that way.  He’s not even a consideration anymore for when the Mets need a pitcher.  Now, he’s a player taking up a spot on the 40 man roster that could be going to players with more promise.  This has been a sad fall from grace for Rafael Montero.

Editor’s Note: this was also published on metsmerizedonline.com

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Mets Fans Can Still Dream

It seemed like disaster struck for the Mets. Both Noah Syndergaard and Yoenis Cespedes were forced to leave Wednesday’s game due to injuries. For Cespedes, it was his left wrist. For Syndergaard, it was the dreaded elbow complaints. Speaking of elbow complaints, it appeared that Zack Wheeler had a Jeremy Hefner-like setback during his Tommy John rehab. 

It was seriousness enough that the Mets weren’t screwing around this time. They immediately sent Cespedes and Syndergaard to see Dr. Altchek.   

 
While these two Mets were getting themselves examined for potential season-ending injuries, Mets fans were left to drive themselves crazy. I spent most of the time trying to talk myself into Sean Gilmartin or Rafael Montero as a viable fifth starter.  I looked to see how Brandon Nimmo‘s numbers would translate to the majors. I thought about moves like signing Yusileski Gourriel. 
I kept reminding myself that Steven Matz was 7-3. I harkened back to last year when there was a big three of Syndergaard, Matt Harvey, and Jacob deGrom. We haven’t seen the best of Harvey or deGrom yet, and Matz had shown the ability to potentially replicate what Syndergaard last year. I kept telling myself the Mets were going to be fine. All they have to do is make the playoffs with that pitching staff and bullpen. It was possible. 

Fortunately, Syndergaard put our minds at ease:

Happy elbows for me and mini Thor

A photo posted by Noah Syndergaard (@nsyndergaard) on

After that tidbit of good news, we learned neither he nor Cespedes are headed to the DL. Furthermore, tests revealed Wheeler has no structural damages. 

We don’t know when Cespedes can return to the lineup, nor do we know if Syndergaard will make his next start. However, we do know they will play again in the near future. We also learned there is still hope for Wheeler returning to the Mets to pitch this year. It’s a huge relief. 

Now, instead of staying up all night trying to dream up scenarios where the Mets can compete without their best hitter or pitcher, I can put my head down and go to sleep in peace. I imagine that I’ll dream of the Mets winning the World Series behind Cespedes, Syndergaard, and maybe even Wheeler. 

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Revisiting the Bowman/Walters Decision

To their credit, the Mets have built an organization deep with pitching talent.  When you do that, you are eventually going to be faced with a difficult decision over who to keep and who to trade, who to promote and who to keep down, and who to protect and who to expose in the Rule 5 Draft.  These are difficult and challenging decisions.  With that said, this is why the front office is paid the money that they are paid.  This past year the Mets had a choice between protecting Matthew Bowman or Jeff Walters in the Rule 5 Draft.

Bowman was a 2012 13th round selection out of Princeton University.  He is a four pitch pitcher with no real outstanding out pitch.  He was projected as a back of the rotation starter for a Mets organization that is deep in pitching talent.  Therefore, if Bowman was ever going to make it to the majors, he was going to have to make it in the bullpen as a swing guy like a Logan Verrett or a Sean Gilmartin.  With that in mind, the Mets decided to protect the player who had already had success in the bullpen.

That was their 2010 seventh round selection out off the University of Georgia, Jeff Walters.  Walters possessed a 95+ MPH fastball with a hard slider he had difficulty controlling.  In 2013, he had a breakout season in AA going 4-3 with a 2.01 ERA and a 1.017 WHIP.  In 2014, he was promoted to AAA, and he struggled mightily.  As it turned out, Walters needed Tommy John surgery costing him the end of the 2014 season and the beginning of the 2015 season.  When he returned, he started working his way back up the Mets minor league system starting with Savannah.  He ended the year in AA where he went 2-0 with a 1.96 ERA and a 1.091 WHIP in 18 innings.

Now, it was likely that either Bowman or Walters were going to be picked in the Rule 5 draft given their repertoire and success in the minor leagues.  You could’ve easily made a case for either player.  The Mets chose Bowman.  Unfortunately, the Mets chose wrong.

With the Cardinals this year, Bowman has been pitching well out of the bullpen.  In his 19 appearances, he is 1-1 with a 3.60 ERA and a 1.080WHIP.  Batters are only hitting .232/.286/.347. To put it in perspective, current Mets reliever Jim Henderson is a 1-2 with a 3.52 ERA and a 1.348 WHIP.  Batters are hitting .221/.313/.384 against him.  So overall, Bowman has not only pitched well this year, but he has also pitched well enough to be considered for the current Mets bullpen, which has been good all year.

Walters, on the other hand, has not been very good.  Walters reported to AAA where he has pitched in 26 games going 0-2 with a 9.22 ERA and a 2.268 WHIP.  Due to the Mets current roster crunch with the various injuries at the major league level, Walters was the natural choice to remove from the 40 man roster.  Unfortunately, Walters hasn’t rewarded the Mets faith in him when they selected him over Bowman.

This predicament only serves to highlight the fact that the Mets have a strong minor league system.  Hopefully, Walters will rebound and return to the form the Mets had seen from him in AA.  In the meantime, Bowman continues to have success for the Cardinals.  Fortunately, the Mets decision to keep Walters over Bowman hasn’t served to come back and bite them.  Hopefully, it never will.

Editor’s Note: this was first published on metsminors.net

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