Daily Archives: May 21, 2008
In a post to Baseball Prospectus, Jay Jaffe looks at the Cooperstown Case for Mike Piazza, who officially announced his retirement from MLB yesterday.
After the news broke that Piazza officially retired yesterday, everyone rightfully praised him for his tremendous career and what he did for the Mets franchise.
What some people may not remember is the fine job he also did as a baseball analyst – most notably for ESPN, which got me thinking: why doesn’t SNY immediately hire him.
With his insider knowledge of the current players and issues, I think he would be a great addition to the booth or studio.
[Poll=98]
Tagged Mike Piazza |
Many fans and pundits are calling for Willie Randolph’s head right now, blaming him for their “mediocrity”.
But, is it fair to blame Willie for being stuck with a team of immovable, underperforming players? He can’t bench (nor trade) Carlos Delgado, for example. He can’t heal Luis Castillo‘s knees. He has little choice other than to wait for Carlos Beltran, David Wright, and Jose Reyes to work out of their funks. This isn’t football, so a pep talk is useless.
Similarly, there isn’t much Willie can do to prevent middle relievers from throwing gopher balls. To his credit, Willie has recently mixed and matched the arms out of the bullpen well, and pushed his starters to go deeper in games.
Take a look at the Detroit Tigers, who many pundits believed were the most talented team in all of MLB. Many “experts” agree that Jim Leyland is one of the best managers in baseball, yet his team is in dead last. Is it Leyland’s fault that last year’s “phenom” pitchers can’t get outs in 2008? That Gary Sheffield is hitting .180?
While the Mets are not playing consistently, it’s only 43 games into the season. The Mets are 2.5 games out of first, and above .500 despite the struggles of “key three” — Beltran, Reyes, and Wright. That’s a sign of optimism, not panic. Eventually, those three will get going — regardless of the manager — and the offense will be fine. Add that to the return of Pedro Martinez, and the future is looking bright.
Tagged Willie Randolph |
According to David Lennon, at his blog 
for Newsday, Pedro Martinez will miss his scheduled bullpen session today in Atlanta, as he is on route to the Dominican Republic to be with his ailing father.
Lennon continues on to speculate how this will impact Martinez’s return from the disabled list.
Tagged Pedro Martinez |
Brian Schneider told WFAN a few moments ago that he talked with Church this morning by phone, and the young outfielder is ‘doing good,’ and will report to the field today at regular time, though it is doubtful he will play.
Tagged Ryan Church |
During his interview with WFAN today, Brian Schneider told the show’s hosts that he and his teammates love Willie Randolph and are 100 percent behind him.
However, according to Jon Heyman in a report for SI.com, Jeff Wilpon recently called Randolph and Omar Minaya together ‘for a serious pep talk,’ and basically told them that the team must turn it around quickly.
Heyman also notes that, while club officials have loosely discussed potential replacements, such as bench coach Jerry Manuel, “Minaya recently told an executive from another team that Randolph isn’t going anywhere.”
Tagged Omar Minaya, Willie Randolph |
Had the season ended on May 21, 2007, the Phillies, Rockies, D’Backs and Cubs, all of whom eventually did make the playoffs, would not have made the playoffs.
The Phillies were .500 and in third place, the Cubs were two games under .500 and in third place, the D’Backs were 25–21 and a half-game back and the Rockies were nine games below .500 and in last place.
…this has nothing to do with the Mets, except to say we still have a lot of baseball yet to watch…
Coming off impressive victories against the Yankees over the weekend, it was important for the Mets to continue their momentum in
That momentum was halted yesterday by losing both games of a day-night doubleheader against their division foe.
For the past 11 months this team has continued their pattern of inconsistent play, in which they follow up a couple impressive wins with a stretch of lackadaisical, uninspiring play that may result in a change in the manager’s office.
This team has far too much talent to have a 22-21 record and play in such an inconsistent manner. Yes, the players do play the game and should take full responsibility for their on field play, however it’s the manager who sets the message and clearly Willie Randolph’s message may not be resonating in the clubhouse anymore.
And, now
In the last 36 innings of baseball, spanning four days, I have seen the Mets look like a well-oiled machine, clicking on all cylinders, yet also look completely overmatched, dejected and lost at the plate – and therein lies the problem.
Somehow, I led myself to believe that the Mets were a far superior team to any one else in the National League – and that winning would come rather easily.
However, like most of Major League Baseball, they’re not. Instead, they’re a good team, comprised of quality, but inconsistent talent.
“It’s unacceptable to want to win a division and not be able to ride the momentum we had,” David Wright said after losing two games to the Braves yesterday.
“We’ve got too much talent to just keep being mediocre all the way through the season. I’m as guilty as the next guy. Just too many hot streaks and too many cold streaks.
The locker room has basically been making that exact same statement every other day since last June.
The team’s spark plug, Jose Reyes, has been lost at the plate for nearly a year. He gets hot, smiles, cools off and the sulks. His counter-part, Wright, will hit .600 in any 10-game span, then go hitless the following week. The middle of the batting order, Carlos Delgado and Carlos Beltran, still have power, but when they do, it’s fleeting, assuming they’re healthy. The same can be said for Luis Castillo, but minus the power. Moises Alou is here, then he’s not, he’s here, then he’s not – same with their emotional leader, Pedro Martinez. What’s worse, the team’s best and most consistent hitter this season, Ryan Church, suffered a concussion last night and will likely be sidelined for the next 10 days. The starting pitching has been more or less strong, but the bullpen has been just as shaky and inconsistent as the offense has – again, much like most other teams around the league.
And so, again, like much of their competition, while the Mets can have very good talent on any given day, and make you and I temporarily regain confidence, in the end, we’re all just sitting still, looking on, players and fans together, hoping they stumble on the elusive hot streak that has been talked about over and over again since last summer.
This is not to say it will never come. In fact, I believe it will and I look forward to it. It’s just, until it does, I have accepted that the Mets will continue to feel like an old car with a shoddy clutch.
“I keep thinking we’re going to turn the corner,” Willie Randolph said last night, “but we definitely took a step back in Atlanta.”
I suppose Randolph could flip over his script. However, I think he truly believes in his players. Most people see this as a negative at this point. Frankly, I don’t think it matters either way – since the players know what’s up, as evident by Wright’s quote.
I believe Randolph may be a problem to some extent, but I do not understand how he or any other manager is going to make Delgado turn quicker on an inside fastball, or make Reyes keep his elbow in, or make Alou younger and healthier, or make Wright stop swinging at pitches out of the strike zone, or give Castillo new knees.
The main problem on this team, i.e., its inconsistency, is not Randolph’s fault. I will listen to the argument suggesting that a new manager will bring in a new mantra, or a breath of fresh air, or a new vibe, all of which could help to invigorate the team and help shift its mindset and attitude. I’ll buy that. I’m not sure such an impact is guarenteed to occur, but it could – and so I understand the debate.
However, as far as I am concerned, as long as this group of talent continues to take the field, regardless of who they call ‘Manager,’ this season will always hinge on a hot streak, which I will keep hoping for while doing my best to believe in, like the true, painfully addicted Mets fan that I am.
[Poll=96]
Tagged Poll, Willie Randolph |
As noted yesterday, Pedro Martinez is scheduled to throw a bullpen session this afternoon at Turner Field in Atlanta, under the watchful eye of the team’s coaching staff.
Yesterday, Willie Randolph told reporters that he does not think Martinez should rush back to start next week in Colorado.
…as i wrote yesterday, from what i can gather, Claudio Vargas will likely get the start against the Rockies, though i can’t help but think his start last night may have hurt that idea…nevertheless, like i said, and which is supported by willie’s words, it is possible that pedro slots in to the rotation the next time around, which could mean he is back for the Dodgers at Shea…
Tagged Pedro Martinez | ← Older postsNewer posts →
