Also: Look what the dog dragged in ... Jenry Mejia found a means to end his "life time ban" for cheating. Mets didn't just dispose of him though not sure if their provisional contract (why?) will require any payment now. Just let him go.
The five wins in June, a low point for that month for their full history as a franchise, suggested the period of futility. In the midst, for a while at least, they seemed bad, but not quite that bad. Then, before you knew it, they had the worst record in all of the National League. The Marlins was just whipped by the Nats recently, including blowing a 9-0 lead and giving up 18, so staying there isn't easy. Meanwhile, the Reds have been playing dent and the Padres had some life (dropping closer now), so other than the "hey, we knew we were going to stink this year" Marlins, the Mets only have a couple teams in the American League ("hey, there is always the Orioles to feel superior to") to look down to these days. Not enough AL Central games!
The Mets #2 starter has been hurt for a while now but it takes more than that to only win five starts in a month. Their top of the league ace is 5-4! Ditto Cespedes, the human salary drain (no-trade clause? don't care! get rid of him!) being out. That won't help, but the team has a level of futility that is downright impressive. Not hitting helps (they were almost no-hit today, admittedly the Rays do have decent pitching) as does dubious pen. Seth Lugo was put back in the pen since he's like the only reliable arm other than the closer (who was hurt some this season too), if someone who gets so little chance to pitch. Toss in non-clutch hitting and now just sloppy, low energy games.
The false start was a 11-1 affair where everything generally seemed to go right, including a nice pen with Gsellman/Lugo thriving there. Lugo went into the starting rotation eventually but seemed to tire out some, and anyways, no one -- even Gsellman these days (especially in the second inning) -- seemed to be reliable. Blevins, their quirky leftie, is having a horrible year. Their new eighth inning guy got hurt and now is regularly doing lousy. A few rookie types showed some life but not much any more. Today's fill-in starter (Chris Flexen) just isn't MLB material at this point. A DH tomorrow will bring Oswalt, who was okay for four innings last time. Tuesday is a question mark.
The last two weeks brought a chance to show some life since they had a stream of mediocrity -- Pirates, Marlins, Blue Jays and Rays. Well, they did have three wins last week, but no winning series. The low point was Wheeler's start vs. the Blue Jays where the starter how to leave early and it was 6-1 late. Well, they lost it 8-6. They split the series because the other Jays starter had a bad game and the Mets both managed to take advantage one inning at least and the fill-in starter for them this time didn't blow it early. The first win was a messy one vs. the Marlins, who won the first two. The other win was an unearned run plus a two out grand slam by Bautista (after the Mets got out of a bases loaded 1-1 jam in the top of the 9th) versus the low scoring Rays. But, those were the only runs scored in the series plus it was still another game that DeGrom couldn't win (eight innings, one run).
It's really depressing but the SNY crew (especially Keith Hernandez, who has found Twitter, posting a lot of video of his cat and family, though he has been low energy in many games -- hard to blame him) does help. When Keith and Gary Cohen were both off for the Toronto series (including 7/4 in Canada!), it was rather dull. It was nice to have a woman sideline reporter. There is Kristie Ackert on Twitter though she has been not too active the last week or so, perhaps she is on vacation or something. There are few bright spots, even Michael Conforto struggling. Cabrera at times has some good moments. Brandon Nimmo, known for his smiles, is often glum. And, that tbh stupid "pepper grinding" thing they started to do? Well, don't see that any more. Rarely score.
To me, the Mets for the last twenty years at this point often has a conservative mentality, making a few big ticket moves but relying on the "if everything goes right" mentality. They consistently seem kinda close though they had some bad years mixed in as well. You get the idea that is still the mentality; "hey, we went to the World Series in '15." (Murphy a key piece and if the Nats didn't have an off year, very well might not have even got to the playoffs or maybe a 2016 one-off) The same injury problems seem to be occurring. The same simply not crisp baseball play. etc.
Who knows the solution? I have been harping on the likely dream-on idea of getting rid of Cespedes, who is getting 29M a year now to be injured a lot. He had a great run in 2015, but so did other people. He didn't really have so great of a 2016 to warrant a four year expensive contract. Maybe, it is telling no other team wanted to spend big bucks on the guy. His strutting his stuff (the whole yellow canary thing etc.) is charming when he is thriving. Other times, he rankles. If somehow they can even get a fraction of that money and move him, it will help them move on from something that is simply dragging the team down. A lot more possible, when he was doing nothing for around two months, was a DFA of Reyes, who has no future here. So, he showed some life. Who cares? Disposing him when he was doing noting would show management had some standards. Give someone else a chance to play. It's like them calling up a fourth OF and now he has three plate appearances in around two weeks and not one start.
Personally, hoping over and over again that David Wright plays again also is annoying. So he might. Might hurt himself again too. Reason to care when team is dead in September? Him retiring could be a sign of the team moving on, like Sandy Alderson going on medical leave and probably not coming back. Something else they need to do, other than apparently teaching basic fundamentals at times, is getting some more people in the minors.
The second year in the row fire sale might help some there though they might need to let go one or more of their bigger name pitchers to do that. Maybe, do more than tinker tinker (Harvey got back a nice back-up catcher who if he stays healthy might even be more; Bautista is a nice trash heap deal; moves in the off season more "okay, yawn" material with safe moves like re-signing a corner outfielder who now is hurt and overpaying for a questionable reliever and ... Vargas for two years? Why?
A person being wary at the start of the season with the talent on the roster is one thing. The level of horrible the Mets had after mid-May? That is quite another. 2015 was one game after another without offense, but they stuck around because of pitching. It helped that other teams in the division struggled more than the Phils and Braves (who both did have some growing pains eventually) did this season. The Nats in fact are in third place though with some help, and one of the other teams faltering, I can see them pushing back into contention. And, the Mets rarely are totally out of it it seems because DeGrom, Wheeler and Matz (and to some degree Lugo) keep them in games. But, that's only three, and the pen and hitting stinks.
Syn and Vargas (who cares?) are likely to come back eventually as is Cespedes (I'm done with him, seriously), I guess, and as things go, the team might show some life eventually. But, struggling versus mediocrity means that they have to step up a lot even to go .500, which would mean a low 70s record. And, then, as well they should, they might have to do it without a few pieces that actually have some talent and value in winning games. Trading Famalia will make the back-end longer. Trading Cabrera will take one key at times clutch bat out of the line-up. Still, they have to do something, since just playing the string yet again without at least getting something back, is just pathetic at this point.
And, that is the mid-season Mets report. Cheers!
ETA: In tease territory, the Mets with various spot starts and players hurt and Conforto still slumping (but that is standard: key players are always hurt, someone struggling), have split their games in the first ten with a four game stretch vs. the struggling Nats to close the first half officially. Two of the last four wins were 10th inning jobs, the last one yet again a DeGrom no decision -- no runs in eight with the Mets scoring in the 10th off a Nimmo homer. Basically, this is holding serve with some life day to day.
The Mets have either lost or split their last 14 series. Their last winning series came when they swept Arizona at home May 18-20, giving them a 23-19 record.This striking stat is also telling when you consider approximately equal parts of the season occurred before and after that date, roughly speaking. The article about "these miserable Mets" (NY Daily News beat writers basically have the tone at this point) provides their current record: (35-51). So, back in late May -- which had them four games over .500 at 42 games -- has somehow led to sixteen under at eighty-six.
The five wins in June, a low point for that month for their full history as a franchise, suggested the period of futility. In the midst, for a while at least, they seemed bad, but not quite that bad. Then, before you knew it, they had the worst record in all of the National League. The Marlins was just whipped by the Nats recently, including blowing a 9-0 lead and giving up 18, so staying there isn't easy. Meanwhile, the Reds have been playing dent and the Padres had some life (dropping closer now), so other than the "hey, we knew we were going to stink this year" Marlins, the Mets only have a couple teams in the American League ("hey, there is always the Orioles to feel superior to") to look down to these days. Not enough AL Central games!
The Mets #2 starter has been hurt for a while now but it takes more than that to only win five starts in a month. Their top of the league ace is 5-4! Ditto Cespedes, the human salary drain (no-trade clause? don't care! get rid of him!) being out. That won't help, but the team has a level of futility that is downright impressive. Not hitting helps (they were almost no-hit today, admittedly the Rays do have decent pitching) as does dubious pen. Seth Lugo was put back in the pen since he's like the only reliable arm other than the closer (who was hurt some this season too), if someone who gets so little chance to pitch. Toss in non-clutch hitting and now just sloppy, low energy games.
The false start was a 11-1 affair where everything generally seemed to go right, including a nice pen with Gsellman/Lugo thriving there. Lugo went into the starting rotation eventually but seemed to tire out some, and anyways, no one -- even Gsellman these days (especially in the second inning) -- seemed to be reliable. Blevins, their quirky leftie, is having a horrible year. Their new eighth inning guy got hurt and now is regularly doing lousy. A few rookie types showed some life but not much any more. Today's fill-in starter (Chris Flexen) just isn't MLB material at this point. A DH tomorrow will bring Oswalt, who was okay for four innings last time. Tuesday is a question mark.
The last two weeks brought a chance to show some life since they had a stream of mediocrity -- Pirates, Marlins, Blue Jays and Rays. Well, they did have three wins last week, but no winning series. The low point was Wheeler's start vs. the Blue Jays where the starter how to leave early and it was 6-1 late. Well, they lost it 8-6. They split the series because the other Jays starter had a bad game and the Mets both managed to take advantage one inning at least and the fill-in starter for them this time didn't blow it early. The first win was a messy one vs. the Marlins, who won the first two. The other win was an unearned run plus a two out grand slam by Bautista (after the Mets got out of a bases loaded 1-1 jam in the top of the 9th) versus the low scoring Rays. But, those were the only runs scored in the series plus it was still another game that DeGrom couldn't win (eight innings, one run).
It's really depressing but the SNY crew (especially Keith Hernandez, who has found Twitter, posting a lot of video of his cat and family, though he has been low energy in many games -- hard to blame him) does help. When Keith and Gary Cohen were both off for the Toronto series (including 7/4 in Canada!), it was rather dull. It was nice to have a woman sideline reporter. There is Kristie Ackert on Twitter though she has been not too active the last week or so, perhaps she is on vacation or something. There are few bright spots, even Michael Conforto struggling. Cabrera at times has some good moments. Brandon Nimmo, known for his smiles, is often glum. And, that tbh stupid "pepper grinding" thing they started to do? Well, don't see that any more. Rarely score.
To me, the Mets for the last twenty years at this point often has a conservative mentality, making a few big ticket moves but relying on the "if everything goes right" mentality. They consistently seem kinda close though they had some bad years mixed in as well. You get the idea that is still the mentality; "hey, we went to the World Series in '15." (Murphy a key piece and if the Nats didn't have an off year, very well might not have even got to the playoffs or maybe a 2016 one-off) The same injury problems seem to be occurring. The same simply not crisp baseball play. etc.
Who knows the solution? I have been harping on the likely dream-on idea of getting rid of Cespedes, who is getting 29M a year now to be injured a lot. He had a great run in 2015, but so did other people. He didn't really have so great of a 2016 to warrant a four year expensive contract. Maybe, it is telling no other team wanted to spend big bucks on the guy. His strutting his stuff (the whole yellow canary thing etc.) is charming when he is thriving. Other times, he rankles. If somehow they can even get a fraction of that money and move him, it will help them move on from something that is simply dragging the team down. A lot more possible, when he was doing nothing for around two months, was a DFA of Reyes, who has no future here. So, he showed some life. Who cares? Disposing him when he was doing noting would show management had some standards. Give someone else a chance to play. It's like them calling up a fourth OF and now he has three plate appearances in around two weeks and not one start.
Personally, hoping over and over again that David Wright plays again also is annoying. So he might. Might hurt himself again too. Reason to care when team is dead in September? Him retiring could be a sign of the team moving on, like Sandy Alderson going on medical leave and probably not coming back. Something else they need to do, other than apparently teaching basic fundamentals at times, is getting some more people in the minors.
The second year in the row fire sale might help some there though they might need to let go one or more of their bigger name pitchers to do that. Maybe, do more than tinker tinker (Harvey got back a nice back-up catcher who if he stays healthy might even be more; Bautista is a nice trash heap deal; moves in the off season more "okay, yawn" material with safe moves like re-signing a corner outfielder who now is hurt and overpaying for a questionable reliever and ... Vargas for two years? Why?
A person being wary at the start of the season with the talent on the roster is one thing. The level of horrible the Mets had after mid-May? That is quite another. 2015 was one game after another without offense, but they stuck around because of pitching. It helped that other teams in the division struggled more than the Phils and Braves (who both did have some growing pains eventually) did this season. The Nats in fact are in third place though with some help, and one of the other teams faltering, I can see them pushing back into contention. And, the Mets rarely are totally out of it it seems because DeGrom, Wheeler and Matz (and to some degree Lugo) keep them in games. But, that's only three, and the pen and hitting stinks.
Syn and Vargas (who cares?) are likely to come back eventually as is Cespedes (I'm done with him, seriously), I guess, and as things go, the team might show some life eventually. But, struggling versus mediocrity means that they have to step up a lot even to go .500, which would mean a low 70s record. And, then, as well they should, they might have to do it without a few pieces that actually have some talent and value in winning games. Trading Famalia will make the back-end longer. Trading Cabrera will take one key at times clutch bat out of the line-up. Still, they have to do something, since just playing the string yet again without at least getting something back, is just pathetic at this point.
And, that is the mid-season Mets report. Cheers!
ETA: In tease territory, the Mets with various spot starts and players hurt and Conforto still slumping (but that is standard: key players are always hurt, someone struggling), have split their games in the first ten with a four game stretch vs. the struggling Nats to close the first half officially. Two of the last four wins were 10th inning jobs, the last one yet again a DeGrom no decision -- no runs in eight with the Mets scoring in the 10th off a Nimmo homer. Basically, this is holding serve with some life day to day.
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Thanks for your .02!