Who gets the last three spots on the Mets’ Opening Day roster?

With a week before the start of the regular season, the Mets apparently have three spots on their Opening Day roster up for grabs. There are two reliever openings and one bench spot available. The good news is that there are several good options for the back of the bullpen. The not-so-hot news is that [...]

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Mets managers from Stengel to Mendoza and everyone in between

In their the inaugural season, the Mets ownership selected Casey Stengel to be their first manager.  Stengel’s MLB playing time spanned from 1912-1925 where he was a .284 career hitter with what would have calculated in today’s terms to a .766 OPS and a more than acceptable OPS+ of 120.  He managed from 1949 to [...]

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Sean Manaea’s transformation is key to Mets’ rotation this season

This offseason was unlike any other in the Steve Cohen era of Mets baseball, noted more for the team’s austerity on the free agent market than the previous few years. There are myriad factors for that, but even with some very good players still available, the team seems willing to stand pat with the group [...]

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Jose Butto should be in the rotation over Adrian Houser

In December, the Mets acquired Adrian Houser and Tyrone Taylor from the Brewers for an injured minor league pitcher. The Brewers were looking to cut salary and the Mets took advantage, bringing in two players for their Opening Day roster. At the time of the trade up thru today, the thought has been that Houser [...]

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My Mets Spring Breakout review

I still remember when, during the 2012 All-Star break, SNY broadcasted a start from a top prospect named Matt Harvey. Harvey was taking the imagination of New York Mets fans by storm, and would make his debut for the big league club later that season. It was typically a rare occasion when minor league prospects [...]

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The Mets and their multi-prong approach of competing for the playoffs, giving youngsters a shot and maintaining future payroll flexibility

A stone is a unit of mass of 14 pounds. If we can borrow this unit of measurement for weight and apply it to years, this blog has been around for a stone. And in that stone’s lifespan, this blog has consistently called for the Mets to give real shots to young guys from their [...]

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Mets pitchers off to strong start in Grapefruit League action

FanGraphs shows the Mets with a projected 80-82 record, with a run differential of -6. It has the Mets with a middle-of-the-pack offense, with their 4.66 runs per game being in a three-way tie for 15th in the majors. Their runs allowed is a bit worse, as their 4.70 runs per game ranking 20th in [...]

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The 2024 Mets’ season is a mystery

When you watch baseball – or, really, do anything in life – for a long time, you can kind of get a feel for how things will likely play out. Experience and repeated observation can give a person a sense of what the scientific statisticians like to call probability and outcome. If an experiment is [...]

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We’ve seen the Mets’ Plan A but they need a Plan B, too

It’s standard operating procedure for a new GM to come in and show little to no allegiance to guys already on the team, or especially, in the farm system. Omar Minaya did this, as did Sandy Alderson then Brodie Van Wagenen and Alderson again. Because the Mets are in prospect acquisition mode now, we haven’t [...]

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David Stearns’ challenge to build a balanced offense

Every great offense in baseball is built on the concept of balance.  A lineup of sluggers only doesn’t work.  Neither does a lineup consisting solely of singles’ hitters.  Great offenses have some guys who get on base (and move themselves along) and others who drive them in.   In today’s game, the rule book is [...]

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Adrian Houser and the quest to reduce loud contact

In 2021, Adrian Houser had a 4.31 xFIP, while in 2023 he had a 4.30 mark in the same category. But he didn’t achieve those nearly identical marks in nearly the same way. As you know, FIP looks to strip away luck by concentrating on what’s in a pitcher’s control – BB, Ks and HR. [...]

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The impact of Kodai Senga’s loss

The Mets offense has a very good core, with top players at multiple positions. Filling a few holes with good hitters (and fielders) meant the Mets would still be in contention for an 85-88 win season with the expected pitching staff. Then last week Kodai Senga came up with a shoulder capsule injury that is [...]

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