Frenchy Post Game on Extra Base Hits, Murphy and Green

In his interview that aired on SNY post game, Jeff Francoeur made what I thought was a telling comment about how the night went in Philly.  Francoeur's comment was that at one point on the bench the team was joking around that they would fine the first guy to get a single, since everyone else was finding gaps, or the crowd.  

Also on the post game report, Daniel Murphy apparently played 5 innings today and seems to be working his way back to the team.  It would be great to have Murphy back on this team as a real left-handed threat off the bench.  It would be quite an upgrade over Frank Catalanotto and Gary Matthews.

Also, an update was given on Sean Green who seems to be in bad shape with a fracture in his rib.  I guess we won't be seeing him for some time.  I'm pretty sure I'm fine with that... 

Green, Cat and Jerry: Here We Go

According to Mike Puma of the New York Post pretty much all the roster spots have been locked up.  In the article Puma says that Sean Green has "earned" the final spot in the bullpen over Raul Valdez.  I prefer Green to Valdez on this team for reasons I'll explain right after this, but you cannot tell me Green "earned" the spot.  He was terrible, Valdez was good, Figgy was good.  If anyone earned the spot, it was Figgy or Valdez, NOT GREEN.  But I digress...

As bad as Green has been this spring, I'd rather have him in this 'pen over Valdez.  I know that sounds fairly ridiculous considering how bad Green was last year and this spring (and me just saying he didn't earn it).  But overall I like the idea of having SOMEONE in the 'pen besides K-Rod and Feliciano who has been there before on a big league level.  Besides, I was one of the people who felt Green was a nice throw-in on the Putz deal last year, so maybe the team is just giving him another crack at it.

Puma also says, "Mejia, Takahashi, Nieve, Ruben Tejada, Mike Jacobs and Frank Catalanatto have all been told they will make the team, provided they are healthy."  Cat is a nice story and I hope he can prove me wrong and stick with the team because he seems like a nice guy, but this is another instance where I feel he didn't earn the spot.  I still maintain that Carter should be on this roster somewhere.

And I really hope Jerry and Omar prove me wrong and aren't just trying to save their jobs with this Mejia move.  I just don't think you stunt a kid's growth by moving his role around, especially when the cieling for him is as high as it is.   Once again, I think it's easier to find a set-up man than a top-of-the-rotation starter.  But, Bill Madden of the Daily News sees Jerry as an "endangered manager" and I think Jerry does too.  And as I've seen people do what they need to do to protect their livelihoods, especially when given a chance at such a good one, as a manager in New York.

Opening Day is tomorrow...let's go Mets.

Bullpen Picture Starting to Clear Up

In an article for MLB.com, Mets beat reporter, Marty Noble answers a bunch of questions about the Mets bullpen, bench situation, Mike Lowell and starters.

To me, the bullpen questions yielded the biggest information exchange in this article.  First Noble seems to think that Figueroa and Takahashi are in, while Parnell will probably go down to the minors.  Noble says, "My sense of it is Figueroa serves as the staff saver, Parnell goes to Triple-A to work on offspeed pitches. Takahashi serves as the other left-handed pitcher in the 'pen."

Noble also seems to think that Pat Misch will not make the team and the Mets will try to sneak him back under-the-radar.  Noble says, "The likely course of action will be to wait until the last moment to outright Misch in hopes that other clubs won't have room for him either. Then they can store him at Triple-A until a need develops."  Sounds like a good plan, and with Feliciano and Takahashi looking good, I don't know there is a need for a third lefty in the 'pen.

Also Rich Coutinho, on twitter, is saying that according to Adam Rubin, it is likely that Parnell and Green will both be sent down to start the season.  Well, it's nice to know competition ACTUALLY exists this spring and no one is getting grand-fathered in.  Parnell, I don't think was awful this spring, but Green was.  At the end of the day they both were out-performed and deserve to be sent to triple-A...

Figgy Looks to be Bullpen Bound, Takahashi as well: Who's Left Out?

So according to Marty Noble on mlb.com, here, it's starting to look like Nelson Figueroa will be on the Mets opening day roster, coming out of the bullpen.  Noble says, "Two people among the club's decision-makers indicated as much before the Mets engaged the Marlins here Friday, before Figueroa, deployed as a starter, provided the kind of performance that makes staff-savers necessary." 

So it looks like Figueroa was counted in, as long as his performance against the Marlins yesterday didn't kill his chances.  It's not easy to go into every outting thinking you need to be perfect, so maybe the Mets will cut Figgy some slack, for once, and give him what he's earned this spring, a spot pn the team. 

And according to David Waldstein, in this article on Hisanori Takahashi, here, it looks like he's in as well.  Waldstein says, "According to two people in baseball with knowledge of the Mets’ plans, Takahashi has made the team barring a disaster in Saturday’s start or some unforeseen trade. But he will almost certainly be a reliever when the team breaks camp, not a starter, because the team has all but named Jon Niese its No. 5 starter."

So there we have it.  Looks like Figgy and Takahashi are in, which makes it seem to me, that  at least one of Parnell, Green and Nieve are out.  Assume that K-Rod, Feliciano and Igarashi are locks.  Apparently Takahashi and Figgy are now in as well.  Add those 5 to the starters, and there are only potential two spots left on a 12 man staff.  That leaves Mejia, Misch, Green, Parnell, Calero and Nieve for two spots.  With the way Misch has been pitching and the idea that the Mets don't necessarily see Takahashi as a lefty specialist, that is an option.  Then there is Calero who's been pitching well, but not as much as Green, Nieve and Parnell.

So my prediction, should the Mets decided to carry 12 pitchers, is that Nieve and Misch will be in, while Calero gets more work in Florida and waits in the wings.  Green and Parnell will probably get sent down or traded.  While the Mets will do the right thing and Mejia will probably be sent down to be a starter at Binghamton.  So that would leave my projected bullpen as, Figgy, Feliciano, Igarashi, Takahashi, K-Rod, Misch and Nieve.  Thats a nice bunch of arms, but also a group of guys who are slightly out of place.  Outside of K-Rod, Feliciano and Igarashi the rest of that group is starters who couldn't cut it.  I'm slightly concerned about that.  But no one ever said you needed to be a reliever to be good at relief pitching.

I am still very intrigued with the potential of how this bullpen will shape up, especially with these reports that Takahashi and Figgy are probably included.  Those two guys have earned it, but the question remains, who else does the team think earned it this spring.  

Francouer Goes Deep, Ollie Shows Something, As Mets Down Braves 7-6

Today the Mets defeated the Braves 7-6 (box score) at Tradition Field.

Ollie Perez got himself into some trouble in the first and then seemed to recover, finishing 4 and 1/3 innings with 3 runs allowed on 5 hits and 4 walks.  Although the walks and hits were high today, Perez didn't implode like we've seen him do in the past.  This was by no means a good performance from Perez, but, if this is him at his worst this season, that would be a great improvement over last season.  It'd be nice to know that everytime something bad goes wrong for him Ollie won't go directly into the toilet.  That is an improvement...

As for the rest of the staff today, Mejia and Igarashi were solid, while Green and Parnell struggled again.  It's becoming more and more clear to me that this bullpen should include Takahashi and Figueroa, and the Mets should deal Green, and put Parnell in the minors to start the season.  Neither Green nor Parnell are throwing well, and combined with Figgy and Takahashi throwing lights out this spring...I think the answer is obvious.  Also, that would allow Mejia to go to Binghamton and learn to be the top-of-the-rotation guy the Mets needs more than an eighth inning guy...

At the plate, Francouer went 1-2 with two runs scored and an RBI, while Wright and Castillo stole bases (one for Wright, two for Castillo - even though he got a favorable call on one).  Murphy threw up another goose egg, while Jacobs had a two-RBI hit...Interesting...

Overall it was more a bad day in the field for the Braves than a good day at the plate for the Mets who scored two runs on an errand pick off at third, which scored Castillo and Wright (on an excellent hustle play).  And an RBI hit by Bay, which should have been fielded by Yunel Escobar.

Regardless, wins build confidence, and by all accounts this was a win...

Carter, Figueroa: Opening Day Roster Hopefuls Worth Rooting For

In two separate articles for The Record, Steve Popper identifies two Mets who have been outplaying their competition but still manage to be on the outside looking in at a spot on the opening day roster, Chris Carter and Nelson Figueroa.

In this article, Popper talks about Carter's attitude towards having a second chance at the bigs after last year's quick stint with the Red Sox, and the dissapointment of being blocked by the Yankees on waivers after the Wagner deal last summer.  Popper quotes Carter as saying, "You get one chance sometimes...You have to take it."  So far this spring Carter has taken it, "Entering Sunday's B-squad game with a .385 average and three home runs, Carter went 3-for-3." 

To me, it would seem like a no-brainer to keep Carter over Jacobs, who has struggled at the plate and is less versatile in the field than Carter, if Murphy was having a better spring.  But the reality is that Murphy is struggling and the Mets seem more willing to enter the season with a more established player (Jacobs) ready to take over should Murphy struggle, than they are going into the season with Murphy, Carter and Tatis jockeying for playing time.  Although I don't disagree with this logic, I don't completely buy into it either.  The team has spent all spring saying Murphy is the starter and that the bench competition is just that, an open competition, but as the spring wears on and Murphy remains inconsistent it seems more and more like they had a plan from the start and it doesn't involve Murphy or Carter...

In the other article I spoke about earlier Popper discusses Nelson Figueroa and his circumstances surrounding a potential opening day roster spot.  Popper says that despite his scoreless line this spring that Figueroa's shot at making the Mets is not a good one, based on the other talent and numbers around him...

Popper quotes Figueroa as saying, "You wonder, who's the one that's holding you back; whose eyes aren't open...I think the staff who saw me day in and day out last year, they believe enough in me that I was kept on the roster, and you hope it's for a reason other than keeping me from going anywhere else." 

Figgy deserves to make this team, but at the same time I don't see where he fits in.  Personally, I think Niese is having a little more trouble this spring than I hoped he would, as is Nieve, while Takahashi has been much better than advertised and Sean Green and Parnell have struggled.  So, what do you do?

The answer SHOULD be to carry Figgy as a long-reliever, Takahashi as the lefty-specialist (despite his dominating performances) and use Nieve in the 'pen, while Niese gets the number 5 starter gig to start the season and Green and Parnell (who have options) work out their problems in the minors, or get dealt.  Green I think has lost whatever he had in Seattle, and should be dealt, while it seems more likely to me that Parnell just needs more time to develop. 

But that's probably NOT what the Mets will do.  They'll probably make Niese the fifth starter, keep Nieve, Green and Parnell in the 'pen and send Takahashi to the minors along with Figgy, as an attempt to keep all of these arms.  Bad idea, because this time, I'm not so confident Figgy will clear waivers.  Which is something he would have to do to come back to the Mets. 

All-in-all I think Figueroa has the right outlook on things, as Popper quotes Figgy as saying, "It's very hard for there to be room on opening day."  I think both these players know that, and when given their opportunities will do their best to stay there, unfortunately for Figgy, he's had opportunities and produced, and it hasn't mattered. 

Regardless, as the final push towards opening day is happening and the rosters shrink, answers will be had, and mistakes made.  Unfortunately, I think the Mets will be making two mistakes this spring, leaving both Carter and Figueroa off thier opening day roster...

Twinks Down Mets, Santana

The Mets fell to the Twins this afternoon at Tradition Field 7-3 and it wasn't pretty (box score)...

Johan Santana got hit again...hard.  Santana 3 and 1/3 innings while giving up 9 hits, 5 runs, and two homers.  That's not a good line at all.  Then Sean Green came in and gave up a run of his own in 2/3 of an inning on 2 hits.  As for the rest of the pitchers, Misch and Parnell worked two scoreless a piece, while Mejia gave up a run in his only inning of work.

At the plate Omir Santos went deep and Tejada drove in a run while going 2-5 on the day.

Overall this wasn't a good day for the Mets.  Sean Green has got to go.  He's proving that whatever he did in Seattle two years ago was the fluke. 

And although I'm not concerned...yet...if Santana throws another dud his next time out I'l start getting worried.  Could be bad...

Adam Rubin Breaksdown Mets Roster, My Heart

Adam Rubin does a roster analysis of the Mets Opening Day squad as it stands today on his blog for the Daily News, here...

I think the most interesting thing Rubin says is about the bullpen and Sean Green and Bobby Parnell.  Rubin thinks they are in jeopardy of not being part of the 'pen opening day.  If this were to be the case I would be proud of this organization for once.  The Mets have a tendency to hold on to certain ideas a little too long, and if Green and Parnell aren't producing, they shouldn't be part of the 'pen, especially with the way Figueroa, Takahashi, Igarashi and even Calero and Nieve has been pitching.  I know Calero has only thrown once, but if he keeps it up, it's going to get harder and harder for Green and Parnell to make the opening day roster.

As for Rubin breaking my heart...

He says, "That leaves the last bench spot, which I believe is headed in Mike Jacobs' favor. The primary alternative is Frank Catalanotto, with Chris Carter likely ticketed for the Triple-A outfield with Fernando Martinez, Jason Pridie, Nick Evans and Jesus Feliciano."

I just don't get why Carter is getting the shaft here.  If he's hitting better than Jacobs, can play more positions at a similar level, bats left-handed, and has power...why can't he make the team?  The only reason I can think of can be drawn out of something Rubin says later in his post, "Look for Jacobs to even potentially chip away at Daniel Murphy's playing time as the season progresses, assuming Jacobs makes the club."  Rubin continues, "Manuel has been testing a 3-4-5 order of Wright-Jacobs-Jason Bay. Let's say the manager goes to that lineup the first Saturday of the season and rests Murphy, and Jacobs goes 3-for-4 with a homer. Manuel would go back to that lineup again quickly."

So I think I've figured it out.  The Mets have no confidence in Murphy... That's the only reason that Carter won't make this team, because they need a bench player who they feel can start at first if Murphy struggles.  And I don't think it takes much for Murphy to see that.  Putting that kind of pressure on Murphy might not prove to be beneficial to his development, or the teams. 

Either way, in this article Rubin puts out some interesting situations to watch out for...

Mets Hammer Nats 14-6: F-Mart, Ike Go Bonkers

Well the Mets did it again, and continued their one-dimensional spring by pounding out 20 hits against the Nats, but giving up 10 in a 14-6 win today.  The Mets pitchers (mostly Pelfrey) managed to give up 10 hits and 6 runs.  7 of the 10 Nationals hits came against Pelfrey, which I guess is a positive sign for anyone else who pitched today, but not so much for Pelfrey.  Check out the box score from today's game here.

On the happy front, F-Mart and Ike Davis mashed today.  F-Mart, who no one is really talking about this Spring, went 4-4 with two homers while driving in two runs, and scoring three.  Ike went 3-5 with two RBI and a run scored.  Also of note, Tejada went 2-4 with two RBI and Nieuwenhuis went 2-5 with two RBI and a run scored.

More happy news: Sean Green didn't suck today.  That's nice to see from him considering we weren't supposed to be worried about him this year, because of the hot streak he closed out last year on.  But, I guess that doesn't matter much...

As for the bad news, Pelfrey got hit...hard.  Pelfrey threw three innings and gave up 7 hits and 3 earned runs, and gave up a long ball to Eric Bruntlett.  Alright, Pelf, it's your first outting so I'll give you a pass, but ERIC BRUNTLETT?  COME ON!  The guy has 11 career homers in 7 seasons.  Please allow me to repeat that for emphasis...Eric Bruntlett has hit 11 career homers in 7 seasons...ugh.

The other piece of bad news is that Ike Davis made yet another error.  This, to me, validates Murphy at first base at least to start the season.  I understand Davis is young and will make errors, but I think he needs to start off in Buffalo this year with the alarming rate at which he's been making errors so far this spring.  This is Davis' 3rd error already.  I love the kid, and think he'll be great, but I think the Mets have the right idea by thinking Murphy should start the season as the first baseman...

Reyes' Bloodwork and Bullpen Talk

In an article for the New York Post this morning, Mike Puma details exactly why Jose Reyes was out of the line-up yesterday.  According to Puma, Reyes had some bloodwork done which was associated with the team's spring physical and apparently he wouldn't be cleared to play in a game until this bloodwork was done.  According to Puma, "The medical tests, Reyes said, had nothing to do with his legs."  That's a nice thing to hear, because anytime you're doing a blood test for a leg problem, that sounds like trouble.  Regardless, Reyes should be in today's line-up against the Marlins at 1pm on SNY.

Also in this article Puma recaps the Calero signing, talks about Takahashi finally getting his work visa and former Giants punter Sean Landeta visiting the team.  Apparently Landeta had Francouer pretty mesmerized by his Super Bowl rings. 

Also in his article Puma maintains the Mets interest in Joe Beimel on a major league deal for "an amount significantly lower than the $2 million he earned last season."  Puma also throws out Ron Mahay as a lefty the Mets may be interested in for the bullpen.

As far as the 'pen is concerned, outside of Feliciano, K-Rod and Parnell I'm a little worried.  Although we only saw Sean Green once, he was awful.  Igarashi looked fine, but nothing to write home about, and everyone else is competing.  Which is probably why the Mets signed Calero and are still interested in another lefty.

At this point it seems pretty obvious to me that the Mets best set-up options are Feliciano or Parnell.  Personally, I think Feliciano is a much better option and signing a Mahay or Beimel to be the lefty-specialist would allow for Feliciano to step up.

That's what I would do.  But I also wouldn't be hitting Reyes third, I guess that's the difference between me and Manuel/Omar...

Mets Beat Cardinals 17-11: Good News, Bad News

The Mets beat the Cardinals today by the final score of 17-11.  You can check out the box score, here. This game came with some good news and some bad news...

Good News:

Gary Matthews, David Wright and Ike Davis went deep for the Mets.  Matthews was a solid shot.  It was nice to see him still have a little pop in that bat.  Wright's homer was struck well too, but most likely would have been a double into, or next to, the Mo-Zone at CitiField.  Ike Davis hit a grand slam, and it was a no doubter.  Nice to see some pop out of the line-up today.  Especially from Davis.

Castillo drove in a run in the first and stole a base.  Now, while I don't like Luis, clearly the Mets are stuck with him.  I wish him the best.  As long as he's getting hits and scoring runs, and not making errors, I'll deal with it.

Francouer was 1-3 but was very aggressive at the plate and looked confident. 

Also, Omir Santos is increasing his trade value (I hope) by going 3-3 with 2 runs and 2 RBI.  Either he's audition for a job somewhere else, or Thole is heading to double-A if he keeps playing like that.

During the game, Jose Reyes was cleared by doctors to step on the field, and hopefully will be in the line-up tomorrow.

Bad News:

The team gave up 11 runs, so it's obvious the pitching wasn't so hot...

R.A. Dickey gave up 5 earned runs in 2.2 innings pitched, but managed to not be the worst Mets pitcher on the day.

That honor belongs to Sean Green who was just plain awful.  Green gave up 4 runs (2 earned) on 2 hits and 3 walks.  I can safely say I don't want to see him as the set-up man if he's going to throw duds out there like he did today.


Ike Davis made an error in his second straight game. 


Summary:

It wasn't always pretty but we saw some nice stuff today.  I'm a little dissapointed we didn't see Jenrry Mejia today, but hey, there's always tomorrow...

Manuel's Not Wild About Committee in Eighth

In an article for the New York Post, here, Mike Puma talks about Jerry Manuel's desire to have "one setup plan."  In the article Puma points out Igarashi, Parnell, and Sean Green as options, with Fernando Nieve a possibility should Niese beat him out for the fifth spot in the rotation.  Puma also says, "Pedro Feliciano is probably too valuable against lefties to warrant serious consideration."

Alright, here's what I'm thinking...

I would love to see Parnell, Green or Igarashi step up and win the job, but I think there are some more "comfortable" ideas out there...

I'd like to see the Mets add Joe Beimel, and let him be the lefty specialist, while sliding Feliciano into competition for the eighth inning spot.  A place where he has been before for the Mets, although not officially. That becomes a simple matter of putting your best pitchers in the spot they can be most effective.

It makes good sense considering the Mets only have one lefty in the pen, and Beimel is no slouch against lefties... 

Beimel's splits last season were favorable against lefties, who hit him at a .258 clip, but Beimel's K/BB ratio was 4.40 against lefties, according to baseballreference.com.   Also interesting to note that in his career against Howard (3 for 10 against Beimel, 2 Ks), Rollins (3/13 against Beimel) and Utley (2/12, 2 K's), he's only allowed 1 homer to these players combined (Howard).  Also interesting to note that during their careers Adrian Gonzalez is 2 for 21 with 4 K's against Beimel, and Barry Bonds went 1 for 16 with 4 K's and a homer against him. 

Should the Mets be unable to sign Beimel, I like the idea of seeing Neive in the bullpen and competiting for that eighth inning gig, mainly because I feel like he's got some nice stuff and I would not want the Mets to release him (out of team options).  And although maybe he wouldn't win the eighth inning gig, he could add some valuable depth to the 'pen. 

Also, should Nieve get moved to the 'pen, it would most likely mean that Niese won the rotation spot over him, which is something I would love to see...

In general I am not overly concerned about the 'pen just yet.  I like the talent there, and think we're either a young player stepping up, or a Beimel signing/Nieve move away from having a very good bullpen.