Daily Archives: May 1, 2008
In a post to Minor League Ball, prospect guru John Sickels takes a closer look at Mets 1B prospect Mike Carp, of whom he writes:
“Carp isn’t much of a fielder, but if his bat continues to develop at this pace he can be as starting first baseman in the majors. If I were the Mets, I’d leave him in Double-A until the end of June, then promote him to Triple-A on his birthday (June 30th) and see how he handles the International League. I have no idea how the Mets plan on fitting him into the lineup in the long run, but grade-wise I’m moving him back up to Grade C+ right now, and if he is still hitting like this on June 30th I will make that a B- or perhaps a straight B.”
Carp is currently batting .356 (36-for-101) with 6 HR, 7 2B and 20 RBI through his first 26 games this season with the Mets Double-A Binghamton affiliate.
…i know some fans want to rush carp to the big league level after his hot start due to Carlos Delgado‘s recent struggles, but it’s too early for such a move…plus, what if carp doesn’t perform any better than delgado currently is, then what…
At his outstanding sports media blog for Newsday, Neil Best relays Keith Hernandez‘s experience teaching a class at Cornell Adult University in Port St. Lucie.
…how great would it be to learn about the history and culture of baseball from keith in such a setting…i wonder if he brings his box of tootsie pops to class…
Tagged Mike Nichols |
In his latest Rumblings & Grumblings column at ESPN.com, Jayson Stark reviews the month of April, which he dubbed “a month that really defied logic.” 
According to Stark, the Lastings Milledge for Ryan Church and Brian Schneider trade was the “best deal of the winter that got ripped at the time.”
A scout, as quoted by Stark commented:
“Hell, Ryan Church is that team’s MVP so far,” said one scout, “offensively and defensively. And Schneider is in a system now where his talents are accentuated, because there’s so much emphasis on game-planning and game-calling. Milledge, for me, is just a marginal player with great skills. We’ll see if that changes.”
…i agree with the scout…it is scary to think where this team would be without church playing the way he has so far this season…
According to Ken Rosenthal at FOXSports.com, Willie Randolph is among three managers whose job’s could be in jeopardy.
In the report, Rosenthal writes, “Still, the Mets probably will not even consider firing Randolph unless they fall significantly behind in the NL East.”
…for those who are not aware, the Mets are tied in the loss column for first place in the NL East…so bizarre…i am not sure i ever recall a first-place manager coming under such fire before, all while the fire is valid…
In a post to Bugs & Cranks, Brad Bartone lists 20 Things You’ll Never Hear at Shea, such as, “I think Pedro’s pitching tonight,” and, “The alcohol-free section is full.”
According to Jim Moloney at MLB.com, a few teams are currently scouting Reds OF Adam Dunn and Ken Griffey Jr.
Lastly, to watch a video clip of Kirk Gibson’s one-legged home run, as told through baseball cards, go to Big League Stew.
In Newsday, Shaun Powell writes the following about David Wright, who he believes can do no wrong in the fans eyes:
“Here in the spring of their discontent, where they still remember the baseball crimes committed last September by their team, the fans often sit at Shea with their arms crossed, still waiting for the Mets to repent … until Wright comes to the plate. Then, it’s cheers, and only cheers, for the only member of the Mets who gets the Jeter treatment.”
…if i remember correctly, when wright went through his early season slump last april, he suffered through a strong amount of booing…but that seemed to be more directed towards wright’s perceived lack of preparation after a busy offseason…
…clearly fans tend to give david more leeway because; a) he works hard and doesn’t take his success for granted and b) he genuinely cares about the success of the franchise and accepts responsibility when the team fails…however, not that agree with it, but you can’t be naive to think wright would continue to escape a rousing set of boos if his production went into a slide reminiscent of say, Carlos Delgado…
Tagged Mike Nichols |
In a recent fan survey, Sports Illustrated ranked all 30 Major League stadiums based on several factors including; Affordability, Food, Atmosphere, and Fan IQ.
Shea Stadium ranked 5th in Fan IQ, but 28th overall.
…you can’t tell me that mets fans’ baseball IQ’s are lower than that of cardinals fans…come on…
…i can only assume that the nationals’ ballpark ranks lower overall than shea because they were asked about rfk, which would now make shea second to last…out of the ballparks i’ve been to, i would definitely place oakland’s concrete dish at the very bottom of this list…
Tagged Regis Courtemanche, Shea Stadium |According to MLB.com, Braves LHP 
Mike Hampton left his minor-league rehab start on Wednesday after feeling more discomfort in his strained left pectoral muscle.
…i mean, is it even fair to write LHP before his name any more…seriously, at this point, until he actually gets a win in the major leagues, he should really only be referred to as left-handed – and leave it at that…it’s more accurate this way…
The Mets have signed 29–year old minor-league 1B-OF Valentino Pascucci, who will report to Triple-A New Orleans, according to the team’s 
website.
…looks like some one has been taking the advice of SNY’s Ted Berg, who is the only person i had ever heard mention this man’s name prior to today…
…frankly, i thought pascucci was a 16th century artist…guess not…
Pascucci led the Pacific Coast League with 34 home runs while playing for the Albuquerque Isotopes last season. He finished the year fifth in the league in on-base percentage, fifth in slugging and fifth in extra-base hits.
Speaking of first basemen and outfielders, according to Geoff Baker at his blog for the Seattle Times, Brad Wilkerson has been designated for assignment.
As you know, the M’s now have 10 days to trade, release, or outright Wilkerson to the minors. However, as a veteran, he can refuse the assignment and become a free agent.
Also, the Rangers have designated minor-league 1B Jason Botts for assignment, and will try to trade him, per the player’s request, even though he can simply be returned to the minor leagues.
Botts, who is 6’5”, 250 pounds and a switch hitter, hit .320 with 13 HR and 36 doubles in Triple-A last season, with a .436 OBP, while striking 102 times in 102 games.
In the Daily News, Mike Lupica writes the following about the Mets, who are 14–12 and tied in the loss column for first place in the NL East:
“The team in baseball with the most to prove, the one that suffered the worst collapse in the history of their team and their city, acts too often as if it has nothing to prove…A year ago the Mets were the most entertaining team in baseball and too often now they seem like the opposite of that.”
According to the Lupica, ‘the Mets do not put teams away when they can; they do not blow teams away when they should; and occasionally there is a game like yesterday…when the Mets do not even bother to show up at all.’
Meanwhile, according to Mike Vaccaro in the New York Post, yesterday was, “a microcosm of what we’ve seen from the Mets for the better part of a full calendar year now.”
Wagner, speaking to reporters, about his teammates, following yesterday’s game:
“It’s easy to say, hey, you’re going to have games like this…But when there’s not a lot of effort and desire, that’s when you worry…I just think that today, we just didn’t show up. I’m not saying that Pittsburgh can’t beat the New York Mets. I’m just saying there’s no way we should have this lopsided of a score…There was no get-up-and-go, and that can’t happen. It’s something that can’t continue to linger…I guess it’s good to be in April and have a winning record and doing well in our division, but this isn’t something you want to transcend into May and June…these other teams are going to get better and we’ve got play with the same urgency and come out ready to play every day.”
…to me, it’s a matter of focus – not necessarily effort or desire…i feel like this team first lost focus last June, when they went through a 4–14 stretch…from that point forward they have looked like a different team than the one i watched from September 2005 through May 2007, after which they have played just over .500 baseball, all while looking like they have lost their confidence, or ‘swagger,’ looking as if they do not believe in themselves…
…i do not believe the answer is yelling and screaming…this is not the movie Major League…that is fiction…this is not…
…fact is, i do not know what the answer actually is…i think such a solution is difficult to suggest without actually knowing the personalities involved…but, i will say this, something isn’t right here…it feels like hesitation, or tension…that’s the sense i get from watching them play, talking with people who spend time in the clubhouse, watching and reading post-game quotes, etc…it’s like something is blocking their collective drain and it needs to be dislodged in order for these guys to ‘get going,’ as wagner says…i don’t know if they need someone to be fired, someone to be traded, released, acquired, promoted, etc…but, something needs to happen…maybe it’s as simple as a bit of team unity and a road trip to Arizona and Los Angeles…then again, maybe it’s more complicated than that…
…i’ve always been one to hold off on major moves until at least Memorial Day…the thing is, Memorial Day is now just a few weeks away…so, the clock is ticking, gentlemen…
During yesterday’s loss to the Pirates, Oliver Perez allowed seven runs while walking five batters through 1.2 innings.
…the thing is, as i have cringed about before, the wheels just come off so fast…seriously, he looks fine, hits a bump in the road, like walking three of the first four batters in the second inning, and then he goes totally off the road – like committing an error on a potential inning-ending 
double play, then letting six more runs to score after that…
Perez, talking to reporters after the game:
Sometimes you don’t have your stuff and you have to find what you can do to get out of the innings…I had trouble throwing strikes. Everybody can have a bad day…I’ve been good in the last few games and this is a time to find what you’re doing wrong, to get better, and try to go in the right direction…I think sometimes I’m trying to throw too hard…Tomorrow we’re off, and I can find what I’m doing wrong.”
…lovely…it’s in his head, now…and that can’t be good…
Billy Wagner, on Perez, while talking to reporters after yesterday’s loss, said:
“Perez, honestly, has got to step up and know we just used every guy in our bullpen the night before. He can’t come out there and decide that he hasn’t got it today.”
In the New York Post, Bart Hubbach writes more about Wagner and Perez, adding: “Asked if talking to Perez about his notoriously short attention span was like trying to talk to a wall, Wagner pointed his finger and said: ‘Pretty much.’”
Perez later told reporters that he agrees with Wagner’s statements, adding:
“I have no problem with that. I’ve got to do my job.”
In a report for SNY, Ted Berg writes, “Perez is immeasurably frustrating.”
According to Berg, Perez’s ERA is never an accurate way to measure the pitcher’s success or struggles, noting, thanks to errors, “Perez allowed 20 more batters to cross the plate than are accounted for in the 3.56 ERA he posted in 2007, and, with the five unearned runs he allowed on Wednesday, he’s well on his way to matching that number in 2008.”
Tagged Oliver Perez |
