A blog dedicated to the New York Mets with some other baseball thrown in.

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Git –r-done

The Mets were not truly competative since 2000 up until last year because they have been desperate. They have made some moves that reeked of desperation and some moves that were seemingly solid like acquiring Roberto Alomar, but just did not work out. More times than not though, they have just not been smart. One sentence highlights it all for me. They traded Kazmir for Zambrano. If one move is more short sighted and desperate than that one, I don't know what it is. They sadly misjudged their chances in regards to making the playoffs in 2004 and 2005 and made mistakes because of that. That truly underlies a big problem for the Mets over the years, which has been a sense of desperation and a win now mentality. You cannot operate with as much desperation as the Mets have had over the years and win. You need to build a winner.

That is the problem with not only being a big market team, but being a big market team in New York playing in the shadow of the winningest sports franchise in the history of sports. The perception of the Mets has been one of negative one and the Mets were caught up with trying to get as good as they can as fast as they can. The truth is, it was not as bad as the media had made the situation out to be. The Mets might have thinned out their system over the years, but they managed to hang onto some promising players and have had quite a few of them contribute from their system. Now, this team stacks up with any team in the Majors Leagues and is better all around than the last two Mets teams to make the playoffs. The Mets managed to build a winner despite some irrational moves as David Wright and Jose Reyes have blossumed into huge parts of this team.

For the first time since 1988, the Mets are the favorites and the team to beat in the National League. Not just by one media outlet either, but by mulitple outlets and the teams across the league. When you are the favorite and especially when you are the favorite in New York, there is a lot to live up to. The Mets had hype surrounding them prior to the season and they have done nothing but perform in spite of the pressure. With the Mets poised to have a winning team and one that should be competeing for the playoffs for years, the only thing left is actually win the entire thing. Anything less will be a dissapoiontment.

* * *

  • If you are interested in meeting up at a Mets game, Benny is heading it up and would appreciate an email from any interested people.

  • The next extreme sport? Maybe not.

  • Oregon State beat North Carolina 3-2 to win the College World Series two games to one. They became the first team in the North to win since Ohio State won back in the '60s.

  • Endy Chavez is quite the celebrity in Venezuela and wants to play everday again eventually.

    "You do not dream of being a fourth outfielder or not playing everyday when you are a child," said the six-foot, 165-pound Chavez. "You want to play every day, and it was difficult to make the change to that role in the beginning. I took it hard, but I've adjusted. You have to be mentally prepared. I am mentally prepared now and will do my job when I get the chance."

    With the way he has been playing it would not be a big surprise if someone gave him a chance.

  • The Mets have signed eight more draft picks and have signed 32 of their 49 picks.

  • Jason Bay is getting some much deserved love from the fans. He is now the leading vote getter in the National League among outfielders and second overall to only Albert Pujols. David Wright and Paul LoDuca still own comfortable leads, but Jack Wilson has closed to winthin less than 100,000 votes of Jose Reyes.

  • Cliffy has began on his road back to New York.

    Cliff Floyd went 1-for-2 with a home run and a walk in his first rehabilitation game Monday for the rookie-level Gulf Coast Mets against the Marlins affiliate in Port St. Lucie.

  • The Tigers are looking for left-handed pop.

    If the Tigers can't add Abreu, perhaps they should consider finding a left-handed platoon partner for first baseman Chris Shelton — or better yet, a player like the Devil Rays' Aubrey Huff, who could fill both roles.

    Shelton hit his 10th homer on April 28. Since then, he is batting .240 with four homers in 179 at-bats. His on-base/slugging percentage, however, is higher against right-handers than it is against left-handers.

    Given the shortage in the market, it will be interesting to see whether the Mets would consider trading left fielder Cliff Floyd, who currently is on the disabled list with a sprained left ankle.


    I wonder if the Mets could possibly get Humberto Sanchez for Floyd. That might be giving too much up by the Tigers, but if they decide to go for it while their options are limited, who knows? They certainly have the pitching depth to lose Sanchez and not really sweat it.

  • Jose Reyes became the first Met to win the NL Player of the Week Award in back to back weeks in 23 years.

  • There should be no reason for Boston fans boo Pedro Martinez.

  • The Mets are #3 on Baseball Prospectus' Hit List.

    The Mets increase their NL East lead into double digits, finishing the week 11.5 up on the Phillies. Jose Reyes reels off 19 hits for the week, including three four-hit games, one of them a cycle. He's riding a 13-game hitting streak during which he's batting .561/.583/.912, and his 31.9 VORP ranks 14th in the majors. But the Mets' bullpen--tops in the majors in Reliever Expected Wins Added (7.634)--hits some snags. Billy Wagner squanders Reyes' cycle by blowing a save; he's walked 17 in 36.2 innings this year, compared to 20 in 78.2 frames last year. Duaner Sanchez suffers a stinger in his neck; the NL's #4 man in WXRL is day-to-day, just like the rest of us.

    Reyes 14th in VORP? IN THE MAJORS?????

  • Wimbledon threatens to crackdown on cleavage.

    Wimbledon officials have reportedly cautioned competitors that they need to comply with the tournament's strict and conservative dress code, or risk being disqualified.

    According to a report in the London Times, the 2006 Wimbledon players' guide includes these new words of warning: "Any competitor who appears on court dressed in a manner which is deemed unsuitable by the committee will be liable to be defaulted."


    Way to attack the issues.
  • 29 Comments:

    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Dare I say...

    Floyd and Bell to the Tigers for Fernando Rodney??

    Anyone??

    - Nokes

    12:16 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Like we said in December and January, the only way to shut the negative vibes up is by winning. Winning cures all.

    That shit was extreme, you saw the big ass long cut the dude had on his leg?
    I mena, hey, you make fun of it now but the scenes they DIDNT show you is where that Hammock guy competes with cars and trains and battles them "head on".

    I thought UNC was gonna win. It's crazy though, when you add up both teams i think there were 9 players drafted overall, I think.

    Jack Wilson beating Reyes has to be stopped. If you have any votes left, vote for Reyes, it cannot happen.

    It'd be hard for me to want to trade Floyd this year.
    If the mets are gonna wanna win big they're gonna HAVE to keep Floyd...
    Come playoff time, the lineup will be deep enough to take on an AL team. I don't trade Floyd, I'm sorry. And I'm a big minors type of guy. This isn't the year the Mets do that...

    Pedro Martinez should be treated like a God. Better than the way he's treated at Shea. I think that sometimes Roger Clemens gets too much credit, I don't think we realise it but everytime Pedro Martinez goes out there, there goes one of the GREATEST pitcher of ALL time and probably the best of our generation, including Clemens.

    Because ya know... we measure skill and talent with how little cleavage is being shown.
    What is this, Private school?

    I still don't understand how in the blue hell the Yankees keep on winning. It boggles my mind. I'm really hoping they fade in the 2nd half because theyr'e doing this with smoke and mirrors.

    The next team on the BP hit list? the marlins checking in at 19, NICE!

    I dont see the Tigers oding that trade for many reasons. They're bullpen has been sick and Rodney has been a HUGE part of it, and I dont' see them messing that up.
    Lemme put it this way, would you trade Dirty Sanchez for someone like Aubrey Huff? I wouldn't...

    12:40 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    I heard about the Tigers wanting left handed poop. I didn't know it came in left handed and right handed versions, but hey everything's overly variety oriented these days anyway! I would hate to trade Cliffy because, well, frankly, he deserves once to be on a winner, and I think he takes this team to another level before the end of the season. Plus, his clubhouse influence while perhaps less important than it was at the beginning of the season - because the team seems to have an excellent camaraderie at this point - should not be underestimated.

    Wimbledon and cleavage. Yep, I just start thinking of English chicks... Okay, no I don't, but I'm for ruffling as many birds as possible. Let there be boobs.

    And folks, Benny has a point here. If you haven't helped Jose Reyes, you ought to. I've voted all my email addresses and am now thinking on moving on to my wife's, BUT A WORD TO THE WISE - which naturally excludes myself - don't go too fast and get yourself on Monster's emailing address list from hell, because I've had to cancel my mailing address with them ten times so far.

    I'll be happy when the Mets sign some of their higher draft choices. So far, too many between 2 & 20 are still unsigned for my tastes.

    And Mike, where's our Milledge in drag? You're not raising your standards, are you?

    12:53 PM

     
    Blogger michael o. said...

    I would love that one Nokes.

    True dat Benny...no negative vibes these days. All good stuff happening.

    That cut was nasty. I'm almost lost my breakfast.

    Oregon has made a nice little program for themselves. They had Jacoby Ellsbury get drafted high last year and had some excellent players this year. Good to see the north getting some attention and hopefully we can get some solid programs around here at some point.

    Wilson beating Reyes is a travesty. I doubt it will happen, but the fact he made up ground while Reyes is the hottest baseball player in the universe scares me big time.

    If the mets are gonna wanna win big they're gonna HAVE to keep Floyd...

    How so? They've done well without him at this point. I know he's a great clubhouse guy, but he's been missing and the Mets have a few guys that are just great guys.

    I know Pedro is that good. Too bad we did not get to see him consistenly when he was having his HoF sickest years by a pitcher EVER.

    1:07 PM

     
    Blogger michael o. said...

    DG, you frightened me. I thought I put left-handed poop in my blog.....

    I want Cliffy on a winner too, but I want this team to be good for a long time. He's not getting us draft picks when he leaves, so if you can something for him now, do it. He might just end up going down again.

    I have still not seen pictures of Milledge in drag. My standards are just as low as before. Make no mistake, I just haven't had time to show it. I just ripped this post off of an old, old one that never got completed and polished it up for relevance today.

    1:11 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    I just think that what FLoyd does to the lineup would be the icing on the cake.
    I feel ALOT more comfortable with Wright-Floyd-Nady-Valentin
    than
    Wright-Valentin-Nady-Milledge/Endy

    ALOT more comfortable...
    I think at this point, I don't care about prospects and draft picks.
    Gotta win it all this year, and I'll be damned if the Mets lose because they coudln't score enough runs or becuase they were one abt away....

    1:19 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Hey Mike - not sure if I can post the link here but the infamous rookie hazing pics are on Adam Rubins Daily news blog - hilarious!

    1:38 PM

     
    Blogger michael o. said...

    Coop, email me the link. I'm dying to see them.

    Floyd would be the icing on the cake if he was performing. We don't know that he will and we also don't know if he can stay healthy. If you can get some value for him do it. If you cannot get value and have the other team overpay, keep him. It's that simple for me.

    I understand the Mets have to win this year and I like the idea of the DH actually being a masher instead of bench player, but it would not make sense to entertain offers. Everything must be weighed out. I'm am by no means saying dump him just for the hell of it, you know?

    2:01 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Gotta give props to Kranepool Society for directing me towards this:

    http://blogs.nydailynews.com/mets/
    You gotta scroll down for it, but well worth it

    2:02 PM

     
    Blogger michael o. said...

    I have nothing to say about Soler...in fact it’s nauseating. Why would anyone want to see that…..WHY?

    Milledge does look a bit too happy though.

    I like how they are all blurry too like it's a picture of Big Foot.

    2:10 PM

     
    Blogger Toasty Joe said...

    Milledge looks like RuPaul.

    Mike, if you could please refrain from quoting "Larry the Cable Guy" in your post titles, that would be great.

    I was for trading Floyd, but now that Soler and Duque have emerged (Saturday notwithstanding) I feel ok about keeping him. His clubhouse presence could be important, and I just have this vision of him getting a big hit or two in October.

    2:23 PM

     
    Blogger michael o. said...

    Toasty, I promise. that is the last time.

    I think that all proposals (if any come) must be taken a look at. Like Beane will always listen, so should Omar. That goes for anyone on the team however unlikely it would be that they were/are dealt.

    2:32 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Interesting...
    This is the first blog with high hits and a couple of comments I got into this night. Others are so short of comments. :)

    2:45 PM

     
    Blogger michael o. said...

    Interesting indeed.

    3:01 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    I thought I saw that Schafer (6th round pick) signed recently. Anyone know anything about this?

    http://www.lohud.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060624/SPORTS01/606240349/1108

    3:18 PM

     
    Blogger michael o. said...

    Yes he did and I know nothing besides his MySpace debacle. He claimed his first thought upon waking up is “why am I such a badass?” and cites his “best physical feature” as “my penis.”

    So he has that going for him, which is nice.

    3:35 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Mike
    Hey folks. The mets current situation is extremely interesting!

    Add me to the folks blessing the trade of Cliff to detroit. as you have annotated the loss of Kazmir looms large for the Mets. but is dampened significantly if Zumaya or Sanchez await a chance. Floyd will not be resigned and if he is it means Nady must go. With Eli and Chavez the bench is holding its own and Milledge/Chavez defensively are exciting. Detroit NEEDS Floyd in fact a bidding war could develop as the Twins/CWS and Detroit could go to the wire.

    The Mets....need to take advantage of the closer races to make play for other peoples prospects.

    I'd love floyd for the playoffs but then again he is NOT a proven playoff performer. AND who is to say Chavez/Milledge dont do a Agbayani/Payton impersonation come Oct.

    I think 2 trades need to happen the Floyd trade and the publicized Vic diaz et al trade for a starter (Gil meche/Pinero).

    Hindsight: Where would the Braves be WITH Kris Benson had the hooked him in 04?
    b. as big as Kaz looks right now I think Jason Bay was a bigger loss and far worse trade to the extent that Bay with Reyes & Wright would be a nightly highlight reel and Bay might have been a difference maker in 04 to the tune of a pennant.

    3:43 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    From Rotoworld:
    Steve Trachsel picked up a win against the Blue Jays on Sunday despite yielding four runs in five innings of work.
    Trachsel has picked up four straight wins despite totaling just one quality start during that span. He's 6-4 with a 4.82 ERA and should provide value in NL-only formats for most of the season, but he should be benched against the Yankees later this week. Jun. 25 - 3:42 pm et


    Another starter Omar:

    3:53 PM

     
    Blogger ossy said...

    we traded bobby jones and jason bay for steve reed and jason middlebrook?

    thats crazy

    4:27 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    warmsox, I think Seo was a throw-in in this deal. The D-Rays also get Dioner Navarro from the Dodgers

    4:30 PM

     
    Blogger ossy said...

    phills are officially D-O-E-N (to quote jerome from the bronx) after letting their best pitcher take some time off. the NL east has been won in before july 1st.

    sweet

    4:34 PM

     
    Blogger michael o. said...

    Anonymous,

    The Bay trade was bad, but no one thought much of him at the time really. If you take a look at this age/level/performance, it was not a like anyone knew. That being said, teams out of the race SHOULD NOT trade for middle relievers. Curious fucking move to say the least.

    Ah, it was Seo with Navarro traded? Hmm...not a bad deal for both sides. Seo had trouble in LA, he'll LOVE the AL East. Ouch.

    Traschel against the Yanks? Not fucking swell. I didn't think that far ahead, but the Mets will have El Duque, Trax, and Soler? The Mets will be lucky to get a win.

    Yes Ossy....Yes. Very scary. RE: Mets taking the NL East already? Sweet indeed.

    4:51 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Actually Mr met, gammons and others flat out condemned the trade at the time.

    Bay was not heralded by the 'dayn Perrys' but lauded by scouts. Kazmir was lauded as a prep star, but was 'voted most likely to be the next Brien taylor' too.

    9:00 PM

     
    Blogger michael o. said...

    Yes, it was a bad trade, but nothing like the Kazmir trade. Bay was still not highly regarded. Who said it was not? But Bay was not of Wright status. Bay was not a top tier prospect...sorry.

    As stated above, it was a bad trade, but no one thought he would turn into what he did. Oliver Perez was the centerpiece of the Giles deal as well. Even at that point he was not a top prospect. A solid one, yes.

    Aside from that, Manny Acta should be fired. A line drive single that he SENDS Reyes on with one out and the meat of the order coming up? Inexcusable.

    9:07 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Back to today;

    I think the Dodgers netted a good pitcher. I hope we can do a comparable deal.

    9:14 PM

     
    Blogger michael o. said...

    Is Mike Pelfrey ready yet? Seriously, I think he will factor into things later in the year. He needs some more work, but I'm dying for a strike thrower and not a slop throwing nibbler.

    The end of the rotation for the Mets is dandy for the regular season and will get them where they need to go, but they are not 'built for the playoffs'.

    9:37 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    Anyone who would have said in 2002 that Jason Bay would turn into a 30 HR 100 RBI kind of guy is a LIAR.
    Nothing in his track record suggested he would.
    He had "decent" production while ALWAYS being old for the league he was in.

    Also is it fair to compare Jason Bay to Scott Kazmir? A pitcher and a hitter?
    And Scott Kazmir was just nasty in every stop.
    But you can also point to the "TINSTAPP" saying if you gonna say he could have been Brien Taylor.

    9:41 PM

     
    Blogger michael o. said...

    Yes Benny, unfair, but just talking about the level of the prospects. Kazmir was a bad comparison because he was the best pitcher throwing with his left arm.

    Good to see Duaner lookin nasty.

    10:11 PM

     
    Anonymous Anonymous said...

    I'm with Mr. Met on bringing up Pelfrey in the near future. I can't watch Mets games here in Japan, but what exactly have we got in Soler?

    I'm still worried about the rotation.

    11:52 PM

     

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