Comparing the contracts for Shaun Marcum and Mike Pelfrey

Earlier today Frank Gray wrote a piece about the Mets’ decision to sign Shaun Marcum rather than Chris Young. Never my favorite pitcher to begin with, Young didn’t endear himself to me in his time in Queens, so I agreed with the article’s conclusion. But Frank’s piece got me thinking about a different angle on basically [...]

Michael Bourn vs. #11 pick: A 100-player sample

The debate rages on whether or not the Mets should forfeit their first-round pick, the #11 selection overall, in order to sign free agent Michael Bourn. Those in favor of the move point out that Bourn would address a major need for the Mets while those opposed think the club is unlikely to contend while [...]

Just how amazing is the Mets’ 42-4 record in runs allowed split?

The Mets beat the Nationals Saturday night, 2-0, to bring their record to 42-4 when they hold their opponents to three runs or fewer. That amazes me. Obviously all teams will have a good record in these situations but for a sub .500 team to be playing at a .913 winning percentage seems significant. So [...]

Lucas Duda and the longest on-base streaks in Mets history

A double in the sixth inning Sunday extended Lucas Duda’s streak or reaching base to 20 games. It’s the career-best mark for Duda and he has moved past Josh Thole for the second-longest streak this season, trailing only the 23-game stretch posted earlier by David Wright. It got me wondering what the longest streak in [...]

Gavin Cecchini and the recent history of first-round shortstops

The Mets picked SS Gavin Cecchini in the first round, as correctly forecasted by MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo. Cecchini becomes the first shortstop selected by the Mets in the first round since they grabbed the immortal Ryan Jaroncyk in 1995. It’s easy to poke fun at first-round draft picks that didn’t make it but recent history [...]

Do elite hurlers dominate the Mets?

Thursday morning, Dan Stack and I were talking about the 2011 Mets and how surprising the team was. Dan mentioned their two-out hitting and road record, certainly two of the areas where they are overperforming this season. I mentioned my theory that the Mets struggle against the elite pitchers but did better than expected versus [...]

Blowouts and one-run games

Mercifully, the Mets are done with the Diamondbacks this season after Sunday’s 14-1 shellacking. In six games against the 39-66, cellar-dwelling club from Arizona, New York finished 1-5. In those games, the club was outscored 47-19. The Mets were 1-2 in one-run games, 0-1 in games decided by three runs and 0-2 in games decided [...]