I realize that coming off a loss of a winnable game in the rubber match against the Yankees is not the best time to ask this question but how do you feel about the 2011 Mets? Personally, I like this team. And I’ll like it even more when four players came off the DL and join the active roster. I think most Mets fans feel the same way, which is why everyone reacts so strongly to the idea of some type of fire sale.
Casey Stengel once said that the key to being a good manager is to keep the guys that hate you away from the ones that haven’t made up their minds yet. With that thought in mind I want to break down the key players of the 2011 Mets into specific groups. It’s important to note that this is a snapshot, a moment in time, and not set in concrete. This list will undoubtedly change next month.
Group I – Guys that I really enjoy having on the team.
Group II – Players that I enjoy having on the team but who come with a caveat.
Group III – Neutral guys, ones that you would bump to Group II after a big hit or Group IV after a big letdown.
Group IV – Players that I’m not really fond of but ones that I still recognize as MLB roster worthy.
Group V – Guys whose presence on the roster actively detracts from my enjoyment of the game.
So, with a little more than 25 percent of the season in the books, here’s how I rate the 2011 Mets:
Group I
Pedro Beato, Carlos Beltran, Ike Davis, Daniel Murphy, Mike O’Connor, Jose Reyes
Group II
R.A. Dickey, Jonathon Niese, Angel Pagan, Francisco Rodriguez, Johan Santana, Josh Thole, Justin Turner, David Wright
Group III
Taylor Buchholz, Chris Capuano, Dillon Gee, Willie Harris, Jason Isringhausen, Ronny Paulino
Group IV
Jason Bay, Tim Byrdak, Scott Hairston, Pat Misch
Group V
Currently no one
Blaine Boyer was definitely a Group V guy and Chin-lung Hu was pretty darn close if he wasn’t there completely.
I look at this list and feel pretty good that only four players fill the spots in my personal bottom two groups and no one is draining my enjoyment of the game like Frank Catalanotto, Jeff Francoeur and Gary Matthews Jr. did this time last year.
As for management, I put Terry Collins in Group III and Sandy Alderson in Group II.
I was liking the team until Wilpon put his foot in his mouth. He darn well maybe correct in his assessments, but he shouldn’t have said what he said. Wilpon’s troubles and comments are making it hard to just concentrate on the game.