Monthly Archives: February 2004
The News
- At the Bat for the Cure charity in New York City yesterday, Duquette said that second base prospect Victor Diaz, who tore up the Dominican League this off-season, may eventually shift to left field in order to better utilize his bat.
- The Star-Ledger reports that The Mets and Scott Erickson have agreed on a one-year, minor-league deal.
- The Star-Ledger also notes that Mets GM Jim Duquette said he had been looking at Ron Villone, but that Villone’s agent, Scott Boras, is looking to get his client a one-year, Major League deal. Duquette commented to the paper, saying, “We’ve had conversations with his agent…He’s a guy who we see as someone who could come in and compete for the fifth spot in the rotation. Right now we’re focusing on guys who would be willing to come in on a minor-league deal, and I think right now that’s not something they are looking for.”
- Lastly, as reported in most all New York papers this morning, Cliff Floyd expects to be 100 percent by the end of the month, but is still feeling some soreness in his surgically repaired right Achilles tendon.
MetsBlog.com’s TakeOn Diaz…
This kid can hit a ton. He is, however, a Designated Hitter. His fielding leaves much to be desired. There has also been talk of having him work at 3B in addition to left field. If the club’s mantra of “pitching and defense” is true, our guess is that working Diaz at any and all positions is a way to stumble upon one that he can handle so the team can trade him while his offensive potential is at an all-time high.
On Villone and Erickson…
MetsBlog would have preferred to see the Mets sign Villone over Erickson. Knowing now that Villone is seeking only a Major League contract, however, going with Erickson and lesser financial and roster commitments, considering both players’ upside/downside potential, is understandable. If either pitcher posts a 10 – 15 win season this year it would be a impressive beyond belief.
Had the Mets committed to Villone, a crafty left-hander who could also be utilized in the bullpen, they could easily have traded him; therefore, MetsBlog would have just as soon gambled on the more versatile lefty who has improved each of the last three seasons as opposed to saving a million dollars by going with an aging righty who has 10 wins since 1999.
MetsBlog is scratching its head on this one; but in the end, it will not make or break the Mets season as either move was a gamble. They bet black, we’d have bet red.
Old Backstop’s Take…
We are starting to see a few potential warning signs regarding the surgically repaired achilles of Cliff Floyd. With Spring Training a few weeks away, Met fans are told that Floyd is still feeling some soreness in his heel. At the same time, we are being told that Victor Diaz might be moving to left field. I think this is a sign that there is concern in the Met camp regarding Floyd’s hee and his ability to play every day, especially early in the season.
On Voting…
By the way, in addition to voting on MetsBlog’s Mets Confidence Rating, do us all a favor and read a little about where this country is headed and vote in the Presidential Elections. Vote Democrat, Vote Republican, Vote Martian, I don’t care, but at least vote.
The News
- The Daily Southtown reports that the White Sox plan to keep Magglio Ordonez and re-evaluate this value as the July 31 trade deadline draws closer.
- The Sox GM also asked Ordonez, who is eligible for free agency after the 2004 season, if he was interested in discussing a contract extension. According to the Southtown, Ordonez wants to play out the season, then learn what his value is on the open market.
The 2004 New York Mets “IF” List
As featured at NYFansOnly.com
Every year it appears the stars and moon must align properly for the New York Mets to have a successful season. This year will be no different.
In a four part series, each “IF” will be presented, detailing what must happen for the New York Mets to play meaningful games this upcoming season. On Wednesday, Tom Glavine was listed as the Mets top “IF”. The health of both Mike Piazza and Cliff Floyd was listed as second. And today we tackle the third of the bunch.
3) The Weakened National League East
The Phillies are a much-improved team based on their moves from this off-season. The Mets are slightly improved. The rest of the National League, however, cannot say the same.
The Marlins will go from everyday players Derrek Lee, Ivan Rodriguez, Ugueth Urbina and Juan Encarnacion to Hee Seop Choi, Mike Redmond, Armando Benitez and a yet-to-be-determined right fielder.
The Expos lost Vladimir Guerrero and replaced him in the lineup with Nick Johnson. The ace of their staff goes from Javier Vasquez to Livan Hernandez. They will start Tony Batista at third, have no legit catcher and a rookie and Carl Everett will round out their outfield.
Lastly, the Braves will make the following adjustments to their 2004 lineup: Johnny Estrada, who has 351 career at-bats, is in for Javy Lopez; John Thomson, who is a career 42-63, replaces Greg Maddux; J.D. Drew, who has yet to play an injury-free season, takes over for Gary Sheffield; and rookie Adam LaRoche, with zero Major League at-bats, is the odds on favorite to start at first base.
The Mets were 27-49 against the National League East last season, 5-15 during September. Having simply won more than half of their games against their division rivals entering the month of September, the Mets would have been near .500 and within striking distance of the Wild Card, or playing “meaningful games” as the Mets upper brass likes to say.
Where there is a winner, there is a loser, and while the Mets were falling victim to their division rivals, the rivals were adding wins to their results column. Therefore, by stating that winning half of their division games would have given the Mets more wins, it would also have given their rivals more losses, thus further closing the gap between them and the rest of the division. If this sounds like common sense, it’s because it is. No team will ever win its division without beating up the teams within it. Since playing “meaningful games” is the goal, winning slightly more than half of their interdivisional games will be adequate.
If the Mets improve only slightly from last season; if the Expos, Braves and Marlins digress, as most people believe they will; and if the Mets can simply win the majority of their games played against these three teams they will have a clear shot at a .500 record and be playing “meaningful games” in September of this season.
