If you look at the Nationals, you see a team that’s winning now and in decent position to win the next few years. That essentially applies to the Braves, too. The Marlins made a deadline trade to bolster their chances at winning right now. We can debate the merits of that deal but if nothing else, it stated loud and clear what the powers that be in Miami think. The Phillies are a mess, about where the Mets were in 2010. No one should think about them competing for the playoffs next year.
But what and where are the Mets?
On one hand, the manager wants to play David Wright every day despite his obvious injury. On the other hand, the team is giving plenty of at-bats to inexperienced MLB players like Wilmer Flores and Matt den Dekker. And on the freaky third hand, we hear that the team is considering going to a six-man rotation to find a spot for Daisuke Matsuzaka and that Bobby Abreu may get a call to Queens once rosters expand and that Noah Syndergaard may not appear at all.
It doesn’t make sense. In a way, it’s similar to this past offseason. With the information available at the time, there was nothing wrong with the three moves the Mets made when viewed in isolation. But when viewed in terms of a plan, it made little sense. Add veterans and leave a gaping hole at shortstop and a weak bullpen.
How was that concoction supposed to lead to 90 wins?
When the Pirates were finishing under .500 every year for two decades straight, the running joke was about the “Drive for 75.” The last thing the Mets need to do right now is to manage with the idea of maximizing wins for the 2014 team. With that idea in mind, here are five things the Mets should do the remainder of the year:
1. Get 100 PA for Flores and 80+ for den Dekker
2. Get regular starts for Eric Campbell
3. Get a regular turn in the rotation for Rafael Montero
4. Get closing opportunities for Jeurys Familia
5. Give full inning outings for Vic Black and Josh Edgin. Play matchups with Buddy Carlyle and Dana Eveland, instead.
If they feel an obligation to Matsuzaka, bring him back as a bullpen piece. There are zero situations imaginable where he should get starts over Montero. And in no way should Abreu be brought back to the majors as an active player. He failed miserably as a pinch-hitter and there’s no value to be gained by having him start games instead of Campbell, den Dekker and Kirk Nieuwenhuis. If he has some guru-type value, promote him as a coach.
The rest of the season should be used to see if den Dekker and Flores need to be kept on the 40-man roster, to see if Montero can consistently pitch like he did last time against the Cubs and to determine if Black and Edgin can grow into 8th inning men.
We don’t need September to see what a 70% healthy Wright can do. We don’t need to find out anything else about Matsuzaka’s ability to be a starter. And we certainly don’t need to witness another plate appearance by Abreu.
Truer words have never been spoken.
But Brian what if indeed the Mets do bring up Abreu and Dice-K knowing that 90 wins will be impossible to reach? What does the team gain? If this happens then please Boycott Citifield in September and voice your displeasure the only way the Wilpons will understand.
On paper, this idea sounds nice in principle, but at the end of the day, nothing really gets answered in September and what they do or don’t do in September will probably unlikely impact the offseason or next year.
To be honest, Spring Training is probably more important than September.
I mean, for the second year in a row we are asking to play Mdd in September to find out what he is. Didn’t we already ask that last year?
I think we asked for more Satin and Brown last year in September and both didn’t hit, but did that really impact our offseason thinking of them?
And with the pitching, our genius manager is already dead-set in his ways on how to run a bullpen. Even if Black and Edgin end the year pitching full innings, they’ll begin next year throwing to just a few batters per appearance.
I’m not disagreeing that most decision makers count Spring Training at least as much as September games. I’m saying that’s not a correct approach.
MDD got more playing time last September than I remembered but it was still fewer than Flores has received in August to date. While better than Flores, it wasn’t very impressive. I think the fact that he has a new swing/approach now justifies an extended look.
As for Satin — .659 OPS last September — and Brown (.460), if the Mets didn’t take their September stats seriously, we’d have to say in hindsight that was a mistake on their part.
There’s a school of thought that says don’t get too impressed with either April or September MLB stats. But when you refuse to play the guys at any other time period — what’s left?
May-August incorporates our post season run, with a skipper that optimizes our talent in order to squeeze out win after win. There is no time to develop the stars of the future, thats what we have Wally for. If you could only see how close we are in the struggle to get to 90…so so close this year. We cannot afford the luxury of finding out if any of our draftees is really an MLB level ball player during the main part of the playoff hunt, when we are deeply involved.
Ahhhh but then the Mets have a Genius in his own mind as the GM and a total imbecile on everybody else’s mind but his own in Collins. Bad combination for young players in need of development.
Agree with every word of it except:
I think I have a pretty fair idea of what Eric Campbell can contribute. Sit David Wright and allow him to heal; give Flores those PA’s while playing 3rd base, and add to the 40 man/bring up Matt Reynolds.
And what do you think Campbell can contribute? While he has an elevated BABIP — at least he’s produced. He also produced at Triple-A.
It may be nothing more than riding the hot hand, but as long as
Campbell is producing, keep giving him chances to do more of the same.
I so want to see Matt Reynolds play short. I know, I know…Wilmer needs his at bats to get started, but what more can Reynolds do to get a call up?
C’mon, Sandy, let’s see if the kid can hit the show.
I have lived in Myrtle Beach, SC for 5 years after growing up in NJ as a Met fan since their first year. Watching my Mets on the Braves network is one of my pleasures, and the Braves announcers are not homers.Even they remarked last night about all the empty seats. After one of them remarked that the fans were beginning to leave the ballpark early, the other announcer said “how can you tell”. The lack of attendance all year is evident even to me as a transplant seeing only a few games on the tube. The Wilpons have alienated the fan base and all of baseball. We lost Norfolk and Buffalo because of them. My question is why do they hold onto the team. The boycott is in place………
I don’t know if I’d go so far to call the Braves’ announcers homers. But here’s what I would call them:
Boring
Lazy
Ill prepared to discuss the other team on anything more than a basic level
Outside of Chip Caray’s man crush on “Danny” Murphy — anti New York
Joe Simpson insisted that they were going to call TDA out on replay when he hit the double. He insisted that Jenrry Mejia wants to go back to be a starting pitcher. He strongly implied the Mets were going to lose last night because of all of the games lost with a lead, not recognizing that the majority of those came earlier in the year.
The Braves’ in-game promo showed Lucas Duda butchering a ball in the outfield. He hasn’t played a game in the OF against the Braves in over a year (last May). Surprised they didn’t show Luis Castillo dropping the ball against the Yankees.
It’s a chore to watch an Atlanta telecast of a Mets game. They start off talking about how tough the Mets play the Braves but the condescension they have for the Mets is almost tangible.
Agree all the way. Watching the Braves telecast is like having iron spikes driven into my ears. I watch it on mute now. One small error I noted in your comment though, their condescension is not “almost” tangible, it is full-on, full-blown tangible.
🙂
I agree with all of your recommendations Brian. Unfortunately, I’m afraid that Rob’s point is more powerful. Those moves would help this team. Not all of them will be done, and some won’t even be tried. Meanwhile there is a huge disconnect between the owners/FO and the fans that is polluting the entire franchise. Winning will help, but when that will be is anyone’s guess.
Flores and den Dekker better get going or is going to be a repeat of Vegas for them next year.
I agree with all your points (even MdD that we disagreed on earlier).
I don’t care if they keep Noah down and don’t promote him until May 2015 (if he is ready) in order to get another year of team control.
Montero should pitch now in the rotation, even if it means a six man rotation. Evaluating him at the major league level is important and the experience should help him. He appears to be the injury insurance AAA call up in 2015.
Once Colon is resolved, why not do Matsuzaka a favor and try trading him to a contender in need of pitching? It does not matter what you get back because you are going to lose him anyway. He does not fit into the Met September picture.
It makes me cry to be having these exact discussions for yet another year.
I’m thinking Alderson has to follow Collins out the door.He rebuilt the farm system but he seems incapable of making the next step.
Collins will continue to favor the veterans because his return depends on victories. He hasn’t been given lot of talent to work with, but he makes some terrible moves in my opinion. This idea of playing a sub who gets a couple of hits in a game as long as he is “hot” is ridiculous. Then when he cools down, he doesn’t sniff an appearance for a week or more. Same goes for the relief pitcher who has a good outing. Collins will use him 5 or 6 times in a week, then if he has a bad outing, he sits for 10 days. Right now, Mejia should be having that hernia taken care of, and Famiglia should be given a shot at closer. Wright continues to regress, and should rest that shoulder. He certainly isn’t going to lead the Mets to anything this year. Continuing to play is only going to ingrain the bad habits he has gotten into favoring the shoulder. I don’t care if he says he is fine. In the off season, the truth will come out.
Hey Jack how about Dice-K coming to the rescue of the bullpen? Like the Mets really needed to address the one thing that’s going well. TC and SA will find a way to make sure our draft pick is protected. The Mets are currently ranked 10th. Any more improvement and we’ll lose all hope in this front office.