Jeff McNeil’s power surge, Jeurys Familia’s rebound and more on blowouts

It used to be that you talked about a team’s performance with runners in scoring position and people’s eyes would glaze over. And then 2016 happened, when for nearly five months out of the season, the Mets had the worst performance in the category since the expansion Padres in 1969. Then people started taking notice. [...]

Cano/Diaz trade update, the bungled rotation, deGrom’s domination

At the time of the deal to acquire Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz, popular results among Mets fans was mixed. Maybe it tilted more towards those who thought it was a bad idea but certainly no worse than a 55-45 type of split. Then, after just about everything that possibly could go wrong from a [...]

Covid hits the Mets, Luis Guillorme’s production and future role, Rick Porcello and grounders

If you ask 10 people about the pandemic in general, and MLB trying to have a 60-game season in the middle of a pandemic in particular, you might get 10 different answers. One thing that seems clear, at least to me, is that people who haven’t been affected directly are the ones most vociferous about [...]

Wilson Ramos’ improved defense, top of the order struggles, Cano’s hot start

Right before the start of the season, a story was posted here about the top 10 worries for the Mets. One of those was that Wilson Ramos would suffer another drop in SLG. Unfortunately, that one has turned out to be true here in the early going of 2020. After posting a .483 SLG in [...]

The magnificent Jacob deGrom, The Lugo Principle and players who benefited from the delayed start

Before the first game of the 2020 season, Keith Hernandez speculated that the hitters would be ahead of the pitchers. Then the first game the Mets won, 2-1 and the second game was 2-2 before the Mickey Mouse rules of extra innings added four more runs to the final ledger. But is that because the [...]

Michael Wacha’s Spring, Brandon Nimmo’s Grapefruit League results, Cano and the theatre

There are two thoughts about the Mets’ starting pitchers that most people have, even if they don’t typically go together. The first is that the team will be successful largely on the backs of their starters. Few would predict the Mets to make the playoffs if Jacob deGrom came down with a season-ending injury in [...]

Notes: Mets add Marisnick, lose Wheeler and what happens to SNY?

The Mets addressed their need for a true center fielder by acquiring Jake Marisnick from the Astros for two minor leaguers. Marisnick had a very good year in 2017, when he posted an .815 OPS over 259 PA. Other than that season, it’s been an offensive profile similar to Juan Lagares, with an OPS+ right [...]

The Mets’ hot streak, Michael Conforto’s rebound, Wilson Ramos rolls on

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know that the Mets have gone 15-1 in their last 16 games. And their strong play started before that, with their nearly unbeatable stretch only interrupted by three extra-inning losses in San Francisco when the Giants were playing their best ball of the season. Everyone is looking [...]

Jason Vargas’ start, Mets’ opposite field hitting, Robinson Cano trade update

There are always wild and wacky stats early in the year. Perhaps my favorite Mets-related one is that the team is undefeated when they have a lead after six innings. When starting pitching was supposed to be a strength of the team, this would seem to add up to a great record for the club. [...]

The incredible Jacob deGrom, Mickey Callaway’s moves, what’s missing in DC

Most of us know better than to judge pitchers by their win totals. At the same time, we want to see pitchers, especially starters, get rewarded if they pitch well with the W. That’s what made Jacob deGrom’s season last year frustrating. It was the best pitching performance by a Mets hurler in a generation [...]

Hope for Peter Alonso, the cost for J.T. Realmuto and congrats to Jacob deGrom

The hope with the hiring of Brodie Van Wagenen is that it won’t be business as usual for the Mets. Perhaps nowhere does this have more potential to help than with how the club handles its young players. We all remember last year when Sandy Alderson brought in Adrian Gonzalez for his age 36 season [...]