Right now everyone is focused on who the new GM is going to be. My main hope is that it’s someone younger than me, so that we don’t have to go through this process again in just a few years. Regardless of who gets the job, one of the first things they’re going to have [...]
If asked to name three rookies from the 2018 season, chances are you would name Ronald Acuna Jr., Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani. If asked about their performance, you’d probably say that they lived up to and even exceeded the hype. If asked about their future, you’d probably say that if they stay healthy, the [...]
On Sunday we introduced the idea of the six-week hot streak and how we shouldn’t let that overly influence our view of a player. So, let’s flip that around a bit. Instead of looking at a player, let’s look at a team. And instead of a hot streak, let’s look at a cold stretch. The [...]
Regardless of what a player’s final numbers are at the end of the year, he didn’t accumulate them by putting up the same production each month of the season. All players have streaks, stretches where the hits fall in as well as periods where they simply can’t buy a hit. But even knowing that, we [...]
Under Sandy Alderson, the Mets were hesitant to shop at the top of the free agent market for at least two reasons. First, Alderson was on record as saying that most of the mega deals did not work out for the clubs. And secondly, it’s not like the Wilpons wanted to spend a bunch of [...]
To me, by far the biggest need for the Mets in the offseason is to address the bullpen. Unfortunately, relievers may provide less bang for the buck than any position out there. Among Jeurys Familia, AJ Ramos, Anthony Swarzak and Jerry Blevins, the Mets spent nearly $40 million dollars on bullpen arms last year. Let’s [...]
The Mets finished the year 77-85, 13 wins behind the division-leading Braves. Not all wins are created equally. Some wins are due to “talent” and others are due to “luck.” And it’s not always easy to tell where one of these things ends and the other starts. The Braves were 23-12 in one-run games while [...]
As we near the end of the second decade of the 21st Century, the game is different than it was back in Y2K. Everyone focuses on the increase of strikeouts, especially as it compares to hits. But one thing that doesn’t get nearly enough attention is how the game is trending younger. Baseball-Reference includes age-related [...]
While not always successful, my preference is to look for the good in the pile of negativity. That’s why when seemingly the whole world goes sentimental over a guy whose baseball career died two years ago, my reaction is – rock on. But today’s focus for me is not about that. Instead, let’s look at [...]
Lost in the hoopla of Jacob deGrom’s big night and Michael Conforto hitting another home run on Wednesday was the production of Dominic Smith, who singled in the game’s first run and homered for the final tally. Smith is trying to salvage a lost season with a strong finish. Since returning to the majors in [...]
Jacob deGrom capped his season with a magnificent outing, leading the Mets to a 3-0 win over the Braves Wednesday night in Citi Field. In a dominating effort, deGrom two-hit the Braves over eight shutout innings. He did not allow a walk and finished with 10 Ks. That gave him exactly 1,000 strikeouts in his [...]
In the late 19th Century, a phrase entered into common usage – “I don’t know much about art but I know what I like.” And despite what you may think, it’s a good phrase. You don’t have to be an expert to appreciate things and your appreciation does not have to be tied to other’s [...]