The BABIP gods are shunning most of the Mets

The expectation of many was that with MLB requiring two fielders on either side of the second-base bag and banning infielders from playing on the outfield grass that the end result would be more hits. And that has indeed turned out to be true, even if not to the degree that many believed. Last year, [...]

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Notes on Francisco Lindor’s unusual season at the plate

It’s been a very odd season for Francisco Lindor, as exactly half of his hits have gone for extra bases. That’s led to a .197 ISO, his highest since 2019, when he put up the last of his three consecutive seasons with at least a .200 ISO. But his relative lack of singles has led [...]

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The denouement of Pete Alonso’s yearly slumps

A few days ago, we noted how Pete Alonso goes thru a slump on a yearly basis that tends to last around 80 PA. If you missed it, here were the gory details: 2019: 7/12-8/1 – 82 PA, .125/.305/.313 2020: 7/24-8/11 – 79 PA, .197/.329/.303 2021: 5/5-6/6 – 78 PA, .197/.308/.303 2022: 8/15-9/6 – 87 [...]

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The yearly funk for the Mets’ best power hitter

Everyone I know, everywhere I go People need some reason to believe The Mets haven’t given us many reasons to believe, leaving many to be running on empty right about now. It seems like the Mets themselves have their fuel gauge hugging the “E,” too. The list is long and familiar to all of us. [...]

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Panic! at the ballpark – or from your easy chair

Never in the history of calming down has anyone calmed down by being told to calm down. So, clearly, we need another word or phrase. How about the words of wisdom from mob boss Jimmy Serrano, who in the movie “Midnight Run” said, Relax, have a cream soda. Alright, alright, alright – a round of [...]

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Checking in on Carlos Correa and the Mets’ third basemen

According to Ron Darling, Carlos Correa was the centerpiece of the offseason for the Mets. Well, the Mets were scared off by Correa’s medical issues and their alleged centerpiece re-signed with the Twins, instead. In 23 games with the Twins this year, Correa resembles Eduardo Escobar more so than a centerpiece. He has a 75 [...]

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Alonso is killing it in 2023: What will it take to keep him beyond 2024?

Pete Alonso is on the cusp of making serious bank – and he deserves every penny. We started hearing about his prodigious home run power when he was drafted in the 2nd Round of the 2016 Amateur Draft from the University of Florida. The number one overall pick that year? The Phillies drafted high school [...]

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CBS Sports’ Mets projections, or how I learned to not worry about AI

I occasionally check the CBS Sports website including the MLB standings. The standings section includes hard data like won-lost, games behind, and run differential for each team, and also some projections. I began noticing, some time ago, that the projections were outrageous, in too many instances. The CBS computer, presumably powered by AI (artificial intelligence) [...]

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With Brett Baty’s arrival, it’s time to let the kids play

The Mets completed their sweep of Oakland and it is expected that before their series with the Dodgers begins, they will have a new starting third baseman. Unlike the promotion of Francisco Alvarez, who was promoted due to an injury,Brett Baty is being promoted thanks to a fantastic Spring and a tremendous few weeks in [...]

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Another surgery for Matt Allan

The Mets issued a two-sentence press release, which said the following: "Minor League RHP Matt Allan underwent UCL revision surgery in January. Dr. Keith Meister performed the procedure in Arlington, TX." If you hope this is a minor cleanup, think again. Here's a snippet from an article on MLB.com - note the name of the [...]

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A look at two different slash lines that end up in the same place

Let’s discuss something that Ben Clemens of FanGraphs posted recently. He took a tweet from Tom Tango, which asked his readers which one they would prefer: A. .315/.365/.510 B. .265/.365/.510 Implied is that these two slash lines are recorded in the same year/park, or in different eras/parks but with the same run-scoring environment. Because putting [...]

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