The Write Stuff

"Bay walked, as did Ike Davis, and up strolled Lucas May, a catcher brought in to compete for the back-up spot. May's numbers in AAA last year were quite solid (albeit Pacific Coast League), and a couple of pitches into the at bat, we soon found out why he was brought in here. Lucas May destroyed the baseball, and he slid into second base with a 2 RBI double. Lucas May tore the cover off the ball all day, a day that was the official beginning of what I have now coined as Lucas Mayhem (let the whole world know: you heard it here first). If he continues to hit the way he did today, we've got quite the competition for the back-up catcher on our hands. 

Let the Mayhem begin. 

Other takeaways from the game: 

* Adam Loewen has a mighty cut. He is an interesting option for power off the bench if he continues to perform. 

* There were horseshoe mustaches all around! Besides our Byrdak, Kevin Mattison and Chris Hatcher of the Marlins each have their own distinctive horseshoe 'stache. It would be awesome if this becomes an epidemic throughout baseball. David Wright should grow one. 

* Quintanilla = nice depth at back-up infielder 

* Miguel Batista = "The Handyman" (you heard it here first as well) 

* Turner is a good option at third. Justin Turner is a solid piece for this team 

* Den Dekker's got a good glove out there in center 

* Spring Training might be competitive practice, but it is also the time for practicing winning, or put another way, practicing how NOT to lose. Valdespin hopefully will learn from his 9th inning mistake (He stepped in front of the catcher as the catcher was trying to throw down to second base. The ump called interference) He's got an immense amount of talent, but these are the same mistakes that have separated us from the good teams for too long now, and must be corrected before these players get to the big leagues. 

* Mayhem.  

That is all." 

--The Greatest Spring Training Game Ever, Converted Mets Fan

I wrote that on Friday, March 9, 2012. In-depth, over-detailed analysis of a spring training game, and one the Mets lost (not even gonna look up what happened to Lucas Mayhem. Needles to say, he didn't keep hitting that way...And I didn't even quote the part about Mike Pelfrey.) I was a rookie back then. Now I am a seasoned veteran who has been on a leave of sabbatical.

Between last year and this year, when actual winning Mets baseball has been played, I am nowhere to be found. Oh, I've been paying plenty attention, you can bet on that, I just haven't gotten into any writing groove. Well, blogging groove. I have been writing a coming-of-age 20-something biopic screenplay for the past 2 years, it's current incarnation (4th draft) of which I finally sprinkled some Mets into it. From a thematic standpoint, they perfectly represent that force that is always so, so close, but can't get over the hump.

Hopefully, that is not the case this year, though the cards certainly look stacked against them. If the Mets do make it in to play at least one more, and maybe further, they will arguably be the worst team on paper in the tournament.

Let the Miracle of Miracles begin.

KEEP. ON. PUSHIN'.

LET'S. GO. METS.

The Knuckler Knuckles, and Mets Win 8-2

Now less than two weeks until opening day, it is around this time that teams truly begin tightening things up. That was the case for the New York Mets on Thursday, as they beat the Houston Astros by a score of 8-2.

RA Dickey, the only active knuckleballer in the major leagues, was outstanding, pitching one out into the seventh and not giving up a hit until the sixth inning (let’s save the no-hitter for April.) He also got a great sacrifice bunt down at one point, something the entire pitching staff has had to work on. Now, to say the Astros resembled a major league team would be a stretch, with Carlos Lee the only recognizable name in their starting line-up. You have to be on your toes at all times, however, and my favorite player did not let up on the Texas team in transition. He finished his day striking out Lee, but apparently the 80 pitches weren’t enough and he continued to throw on the sidelines.  I love watching RA pitch. I love watching the sequence of his pitches against every batter he faces. He is extremely methodical in the way he goes about his business, and it is a thrill every time he is on the mound. What makes him that much more interesting than the knuckleballers of the past is the way he alternates speeds of his bread-and-butter pitch. And oh, he happens to throw a mid-80’s fastball with bite as well.  RA Dickey is one of my favorite things ever about baseball. He has a book and a movie arriving soon, and I have a feeling those respective items will be some of my favorite things ever as well.

Wandy Rodriguez, the Astros starter, was wild, and the Mets offense took advantage of anything over the plate.  With Andres Torres ailing, Ruben Tejada and his .360 On-Base-Percentage carried the top spot in the line-up. He showed off the muscle he added in the off-season by turning on the second pitch he saw, blasting a home run over the left field wall. I don’t think he’ll ever be a slugger, but a little pop never hurt anybody. Ruben at the top could potentially work, and I don’t believe replacing that aspect of Jose Reyes’ game will add any more pressure to the kid. He’s not going to be a speedster, but all we need is for Ruben to keep improving, get on base and play his game. I believe he has the mentality to do so.

Other takeaways from the game:

• SNY was having some problems at the beginning with their sound. It was as if we were all listening to the radio feed over the broadcast, with Gary, Keith and Ralph a second ahead of us.
• Ike Davis’ 25^th birthday was yesterday, but apparently the Domain Diamond Vision wished him a “happy 30^th birthday.” Uhhh….we have six seasons of awesome 1^st baseman production before that birthday, and hopefully and entire career of it in the Orange and Blue.
• Matt Den Dekker got the start in center field, and it sounds like he will continue on with major league camp for a few more days or so. The kid needs to shorten his swing, for it’s too long to be productive at the professional level, let alone the major league level. He has had a K-percentage above 20% for the last three years, and that has to go down if he is ever to be a serviceable major leaguer. It will be interesting to monitor his progress this season…or lack thereof.
• Lucas “Mayhem” is not hitting like he was at the beginning of camp. The ball is not erupting off his bat like it was and this is leading to more pop-ups. He did start at third, however, and made a great diving stop to his right at the hot corner and proceeded to throw the runner out. It was awesome. I like the versatility Sandy has brought in this year.
• This team will need to maximize their opportunities every time they are presented to them, and they are doing so right now on the base paths. We don’t have Reyes’ speed anymore, but bases can be stolen with great jumps, which Bay got in the 3^rd.
• Omar Quintanilla cleared the loaded bases in the eighth with a double down the right field line. Even though he has been sent to minor league camp, I expect we will be seeing him in Flushing at some point this year. He has a nice, compact, level swing, plays great defense, and with Ronny Cedeño’s paltry offense (.297 OBP last year) Quintallina might be a better option to back up the middle infield.
• The infielder Jordany Valdespin got an opportunity in center field, and on cue the batter hit it hard his way. He made the play soundly. With his bat and his hopefully maturing nature, this might be the way he gets to the major leagues. Captain Kirk Nuiewenhuis is first in line but doesn’t seem to be able to stay on the field.
• Josh Edgin might have only been in A-ball last year, but I like his stuff and his poise. He could be the lefty specialist of the future.
• Turns out Mike Pelfrey had been pitching with an ankle sprain. Doesn’t change my opinion of him. I still look forward to Matt Harvey replacing Little Pelf.
• Ramon Ramirez looked sharper this game than he has been.
• Frank Francisco didn’t get one pitch off that wasn’t hit hard in the 9^th inning. He gave up a two-out run, and all three outs in the inning were bullets to the fielders. Tighten it up, Frank. We need your saves desperately this year.

I truly believe this team is gonna be good. But I can’t convince people. The Mets have to do that.

Less than two weeks, folks.

Pelf Gets Freesed

Yesterday, the Mets lost to the Cardinals 7-1, mostly a byproduct of more miserable Pelfrey pitching.

His stuff was very hittable, and both David Freese and Yadir Molina were able to tee off on him. I get that it's only his second outing, but it's hard not to think to yourself, "Here we go again..." He has never instilled confidence in me when he's on the mound, and I am ready to irrationally rant about getting rid of him. His fastball was treated to the batting practice special. His breaking pitches didn't break. He pitches a boring 90 mph...in fact, Adam Wainright's 87 mph has more pop and life than Pelf's 90 mph. He's boring, in every way possible. His pitching is tiring, I don't like hearing Pelfrey talk about baseball, I just not a fan. Seems like a nice enough guy, but I can't get over his boringness. Yeah, I know that's not a word, but he's so boring that I just invented a word for him.

Here are some other takeaways besides how boring Mike Pelfrey is:

• Beltran is a class act. The hostility towards him by certain Met fans, I believe, is unwarranted. Very weird seeing him in the Cardinal jersey, though, and with that #3. Who's got 15 on the Cards? Jim Edmonds isn't still playing right?.........Oh. Furcal.
• Daniel Murphy did a great job shortening his swing on an 0-2 count to stay with an inside off-speed pitch and hit one through the hole in the first inning. Murph played the full 9 innings, hitting everything like he does and showing us why he needs to get his knee out of the way at 2nd base.
• Bay is getting on top of pitches, leading to too many soft hits on the ground. He got lucky with a chop over the third baseman's head for a double in the middle of the game, but this still has to be corrected. Ralph brought this same point up when Bay hit the double. Speaking of Ralph...
• Ralph Kiner everybody!!! Always fantastic to hear him talk about the old days and compare and contrast them to our current days. He's still so sharp. In his first inning of work, Kiner had this to say about injuries: "In the old days...you didn't tell anybody you were hurt. You played. 'Cause if you didn't play...you would maybe never get back in the lineup."
• Speaking of injuries, even though every baseball team has them this time of year (or all the time, for that matter) because it's the Mets the number of injuries is magnified by the media. I can understand Terry Collin's frustration because, going back to what Kiner said, maybe these injuries are being babied a little bit. They are probably being extra-cautious for normal spring training aches and pains. And I have to say I agree with Keith when he says they are probably due to overdoing it in the off-season. Players used to actually take the off-season off from staying in shape, and use spring training to get into game-shape. But now, these athletes are in game-shape all year round, and that might be leading to more of these strains.
• Great double-play turned in the fourth by Josh Satin at 3rd and Ike Davis at 1st.
• Josh Satin has a big swing, but it's a nice one. It will be interesting to see how he does when he and his huge eyebrows inevitably gets some big league time.
• Lucas Duda has a great swing, and I am sad the Grand Slam against the Tigers the other day was not televised. But I'm sure I'll have plenty of chances to see him hit another one. Duda.
• Lucas Mayhem can certainly hit, he's just gotta clean it up behind the plate a little bit.
• Garrett Olson (lefty getting a chance because of the Byrdak injury) has a great beard. In fact, his beard is better than his control (ZING!!!) (no internet link of his current beard, and his beard was weak pre-Metropolitan)
• Glad I finally got to see Ramon Ramirez. His stuff is nasty. Great zip. Great movement, Got two quick outs before the Cards hit him around a little bit, but I am a big fan of the pick-up. Should prove a good one.
• Den Dekker can really run it down in center field. He's going to be a star if his bat comes around.
• Fantastic diving catch by Juan Lagares for the 3rd out in the 8th inning

The Southpaw Chronicles Pt. 2

The weekend in terms of Mets stuff got away from me, and this is the first chance I have had to write about Johan’s second outing. I thought about skipping the game (since life can sometimes get in the way of capturing every waking moment of the evolution of the 2012 New York Mets) but the fact it was a 2-4 Mets loss in 5-inning rain-shortened game, coupled with the Johan factor, left me no choice but to see the innings through. 

Was that enough of a run-on sentence for you?

It continues to be lovely to see Johan as jovial as he has been. He’s as bubbly and as bouncy as any player I’ve ever seen. He’s all business on the mound, however. Instead of working mostly on his fastball as he did his first game (which was still around 90), there began to emerge his repertoire of pitches, some which will get more screen time now that he has had his shoulder repaired. With Johan’s pitching acumen, I am beginning to envision as overtly effective of a pitcher post-surgery as there was pre-surgery. Check out this pitching sequence to right-handed batting Emilio Benefacio:

• 0-1  Fastball up and inside
• 1-1  Low inside fastball
• 1-2  84 mph slider down and low check-swing foul
• 2-2 High Fastball
• 2-2 Slider foul upstairs and in
• 2-3 78 mph change-up low and inside; swung on and missed

Even if he doesn’t improve the fastball speed, it still has enough bite to be a great set-up for his improved off-speed pitches. The change-up has slowed down as well, but that’s a good thing, since it needs to be around 8-12 mph less than the fastball. This kind of pitch sequence shows off Johan’s high pitching IQ. While I know the league hasn’t even come close to adjusting to the new Johan (which looks awfully similar to the old Johan), Johan will clearly have the intellect to adjust right back. Here's to his good health.

Some other takeaways from the short game:

• The boo birds are already out for Jason Bay.  In his first at-bat, we see the usual Jason Bay hustle lead to an infield hit. Then, when he strikes out the second time up, the boos rain down. Jason Bay is sucking not because of a lack of effort, and I appreciate seeing him run down the line every time. This is why I so desperately want to see him turn this thing around…besides it being an excellent thing for the Mets.
• Loewen’s got some good opposite field power, and I like how he stayed with Buerle’s outside breaking ball.
• Murph keeps putting his knee in the wrong place, as is evident on a pick-off play at 2^nd base. He’s gotta correct this otherwise his knees will keep getting taken out, taking him out for longer than any of us needs. He has such a great swing; A “Charlie Hustle” type swing.
• Schwinden has a good arsenal, but none of them have that much bite. He also fiddles with the ball a lot in his glove before pitching. Serviceable spot starter.
• Lagares, who crushed minor league pitching last year, had some serious pop in his bat, even though he grounded out to short.
• Rauch is very hittable right now. I like his arsenal, with a good slider and curveball, but he can’t seem to miss bats. He’s got an interesting tattoo on his neck, though.
• Thole is getting better at blocking the baseball
• Lucas Mayhem - #62
• Ruben Tejada’s got that focus in his eyes. I like this kid. His determination to succeed will be a fantastic thing to watch for Met fans.
• Nice exchange to end the game; Wally Backman, who was supposed to talk to the  booth during the 6^th inning: “Hey guys. See ya! (Takes his headphones off) Ron, I’ll see you at Duffy’s in a half hour.”

The Greatest Spring Training Game Ever

Well, that is most certainly an exaggeration, but it got you in here, right?

Yesterday's 4-5 loss to the Miami Marlins is certainly not the greatest baseball game ever played in March, but I enjoyed it the most, so far. It's spring training for us fans as well, as we practice rooting for our team again, and in the 9th inning, with our orange and blue squad down one run (as opposed to teal, black, orange and yellow), I found myself rooting hard for a come-from-behind victory. Also, what made it more enjoyable is that players seem to have their heads in the game and the situations, and that is translating to crispier play.

Unless you're Mike Pelfrey.

Look, I understand it was his first spring training start. Pelf hasn't normally done well in spring (or the regular season, for that matter) and this start should be taken with a grain of salt (4 runs in less than 3 innings, hard hit grapefruits the whole way through). But how more boring can you be as a pitcher? I will give Pelfrey his own write-up soon because I have a good amount to say about the hurler. Let me just say this for now: If Pelf can't get it together, you won't see him on the mound as a Met for very long.

Zambrano looked sharp early for the Marlins. He struck out the first two batters of the game with ease, and as Jason Bay walked to the plate, I said to myself, "Striking out isn't what Jason Bay's gonna do." Turns out my sarcasm was unwarranted because that's NOT what he did. Bay walked, as did Ike Davis, and up strolled Lucas May, a catcher brought in to compete for the back-up spot. May's numbers in AAA last year were quite solid (albeit Pacific Coast League), and a couple of pitches into the at bat, we soon found out why he was brought in here. Lucas May destroyed the baseball, and he slid into second base with a 2 RBI double. Lucas May tore the cover off the ball all day, a day that was the official beginning of what I have now coined as Lucas Mayhem (let the whole world know: you heard it here first). If he continues to hit the way he did today, we've got quite the competition for the back-up catcher on our hands.

Let the Mayhem begin.

Other takeaways from the game:

• Adam Loewen has a mighty cut. He is an interesting option for power off the bench if he continues to perform.
• There were horseshoe mustaches all around! Besides our Byrdak, Kevin Mattison and Chris Hatcher of the Marlins each have their own distinctive horseshoe 'stache. It would be awesome if this becomes an epidemic throughout baseball. David Wright should grow one.
• Quintanilla = nice depth at back-up infielder
• Miguel Batista = "The Handyman" (you heard it here first as well)
• Turner is a good option at third. Justin Turner is a solid piece for this team
• Den Dekker's got a good glove out there in center
• Spring Training might be competitive practice, but it is also the time for practicing winning, or put another way, practicing how NOT to lose. Valdespin hopefully will learn from his 9th inning mistake (He stepped in front of the catcher as the catcher was trying to throw down to second base. The ump called interference) He's got an immense amount of talent, but these are the same mistakes that have separated us from the good teams for too long now, and must be corrected before these players get to the big leagues.
• Mayhem. 

That is all.