As we sit near the fireplace with a cup of warm cocoa on a cold day as we approach the holiday season, it is easy to get lulled into the comfort of home. Dreaming about what shiny newly wrapped gift we may find under the tree, one ponders about the new year. Then one steps [...]
Now that the Mets have secured Yoenis Cespedes for four years, it is time to make additional moves to improve the team. The Mets do not need three left handed hitting corner outfielders. A good center fielder, who could lead off, but, more realistically, the Mets could trade Jay Bruce for a good bullpen arm. [...]
As we get to the holidays, it may be fun to look back at the Mets All Time Leaders for different hitting and pitching categories. The Mets have a rich 54 year history with many players from different generations. Some of the leaders are obvious, but there are a sprinkling of names of players who [...]
As we approach the 2016 winter meetings, plenty has been written about what the Mets should do for 2017. Let’s take it a step further and look further into a crystal ball at 2018. As the 2017 season ends, the contracts of several Mets will expire as follows. Jose Reyes $ 22.0 million 2018 club [...]
With the opening salvos of the 2016 hot stove shaping up, Mets fans hear crickets chirping. Teams are formulating and executing on their strategies. The Braves are rebuilding, but have quickly added two old “geezers” R.A. Dickey and Bartolo Colon to their pitching staff. That was quick. As beloved as Colon is in New York, [...]
"Moneyball" was written in 2003 by Michael Lewis. The book was about how general manager Billy Beane used advanced sabermetrics to build the Oakland A’s with a limited budget. Sandy Alderson was Beane’s predecessor in Oakland. When the Mets hired him after the 2010 season, Alderson brought two of Beane’s disciples Paul DePodesta and J.P. [...]
Jon Matlack was drafted with the fourth pick in the first round by the Mets of the 1967 draft, out of Westchester Pennsylvania. Matlack’s minor league career was mediocre. In 1970 at Tidewater, he was 12-11 with a 4.13 ERA. In 1971, he was 11-1 with a 3.97 ERA. Matlack made his major league debut [...]
2016 is a year where the Mets overachieved. After a painful loss to the Giants, it is time to look forward to 2017. Injuries decimated the team in 2016. Only time will tell which players can successfully come back and make contributions to the 2017 team. The 2016 Mets relied on the long ball to [...]
A modern version of the classic
In 2016, the Mets had high hopes of riding their pitching staff back to the World Series. With a starting five of Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Steven Matz and Bartolo Colon with Zack Wheeler expected to return in June, the team had every reason to be optimistic. The 43-year-old Bartolo Colon has been [...]
On December 17, 2012, the Mets acquired Travis d’Arnaud as part of the R.A. Dickey trade. Dickey had just won the 2012 Cy Young award. His value as a 38 year knuckle ball pitcher would never be higher. Before Dickey was traded, I was wishing with all of my might with my eyes closed tightly, [...]
After 126 games in 2015, The Mets were 14 games over .500 and had a 6.5 game lead over the Nationals. After 126 games in 2016, the Mets are at .500, 10 games out of first place. The Mets are not going to win the division. The question becomes, what are the chances of winning [...]