Daily Archives: June 5, 2008
Tom Glavine, on news that John Smoltz will miss the rest of the season due to shoulder surgery, as quoted by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
“I’m a little mad. I came here to be the No. 3 starter and play a lot of golf and now that’s gone.”
…i wonder if glavine was devastated by this news…
Tagged Tom Glavine |According to Jerry Crasnick at ESPN.com, there is a surplus of 
quality left-handed hitting first basemen available in this year’s draft, such as Justin Smoak from South Carolina, Eric Hosmer from Florida and Ike Davis from Arizona State.
MLB.com’s minor-league guru Jonathan Mayo continues to predict that the Mets will select Davis, writing as early as this morning, “It’s still looking like the Mets will opt for talent that can help them sooner rather than later, at least with some early picks. Ryan Perry could be a possibility, but we’ll stick with ASU’s Davis, the son of former Major League reliever Ron.”
For video and a report on Davis, go here.
However, in his most recent Mock Draft for Baseball America, Jim Callis said the Mets may opt to select two picthers with their first two picks, despite all the buzz suggesting they are targeting college bats with immediate upside.
In a report for SI.com, Jon Heyman explains how Scott Boras continues to impact the draft.
In his report, Heyman writes that the Mets remain ‘the one mega-market team to stubbornly adhere to MLB’s slotting system, to the point where it has cost them.’
However, in report for the Star-Ledger, Dan Graziano writes:
“GM Omar Minaya indicated yesterday that they might be willing to cough up the cash if they find a player they like.”
Minaya, as quoted by Graziano, said:
“We look at this draft as a big opportunity. The way we’re approaching it, we’re going to take players we like and we think can help us, and then what it takes to sign them, we’ll talk about it.”
For more on the slotting system, and how the Mets should behave in the draft, check out Ted Berg’s recent column for SNY.tv.
…the sense i get from people connected to the team is that while the Mets may intend to adhere to the slotting system, if a player drops to them who is the best player available, but requires a larger bonus than his slot would dictate, the Mets will ignore their previous ways and go for the big pick instead…but, most of this depends on how the draft is shaking out in advance of their pick…i mean, it may turn out that they can adhere to the system, remain loyal to the commish, and still take the player they want, simply because of who teams picked before them…
…obviously, i hope they just ignore the ‘rules’ and pick whomever they want…and, from what i can tell, that’s exactly what they intend to do…
By the way, Frank Coonelly, who once worked for MLB and encouraged teams to stick to the slotting system, is now working for the Pirates. According to Heyman, citing ‘scuttlebutt,’ Cooley and the Pirates may disregard the slotting system and draft one of Boras’s top amateur clients.
The following is a preview from ESPN’s Basbell Tonight of today’s MLB Draft, which will begin today at 2 pm on ESPN 2 and on MLB.com, which will start pre-draft coverage at noon:
The MLB’s 2008 First-Year Player Draft will begin today at 2 pm EDT, and will be televised on ESPN 2 and MLB.com.
The Mets have three of the first 33 picks, including the No. 18 and No. 22 overall picks.
I will start up a Live Blog of the Draft just before 2 pm.
ESPN’s Keith Law predicts that the Mets will select C Jason Castro from Stanford with their first pick, while taking C-2B Brett Lawrie from Brookswood with their second pick.
According to ESPN, “Lawrie has a great swing, keeps his weight back well, and aside from a slight back-side collapse and a tendency to get a little too power-happy, he does everything right at the plate. He should make plenty of contact and hit for average to above-average power.”
Regarding Castro, ESPN writes, “His upside is as an average regular catcher in the big leagues, unless he develops more power. He has a very high probability of making it as a backup.”
Meanwhile, in his most recent Mock Draft for Baseball America, Jim Callis also predicts that the Mets will select Castro with their first pick, writing, “The Mets need a catcher for the near future, and Castro has convinced scouts he can handle the defensive responsibilities and produce at the plate.”
However, at MiLB.com, minor-league guru Jonathan Mayo believes the Mets will use their first pick to select OF Ike Davis from Arizona State, 2B Jemile Weeks from Miami or the hard-throwing RHP Ryan Perry from Arizona.
By the way, to watch a video interview between Mayo and SNY’s Ted Berg, click here.
According to ESPN, “When Davis connects, he has plus raw power and would easily hit 30-plus homers in the majors if he can make enough contact.”
Either way, consensus across the Internet appears to be that the Mets will target college bats, since their farm system is void of young hitters.
Again, I will start up a Live Blog of the Draft just before 2 pm.
Tagged MetsBlog |
No. 1 Mr. Met is currently taking on No. 8 Homer the Brave, at Homer Derby, in the first round of the MLB Mascot Bracket.
…as of now, Mr. Met is losing to Homer…of course, only 21 people have voted…
…i try not push these sorts of tournaments, etc., but i can’t stomach the thought of Mr. Met losing to a Braves mascot who is clearly ripping him off, you know, with the big head and all…way to be original, Atlanta…
…so, head over to Homer Derby and vote for Mr. Met, if for no other reason than for this, this, this, and this, and the countless other things he does to make him the greatest mascot ever…
Tagged Mr. Met |Ryan Church did not start yesterday, because he asked Willie Randolph for the day off.
Church told reporters that he was feeling a bit fatigued, which was not associated with this recent concussion.
He said he expects to be back in the lineup tonight for the start of a four-game series with the Padres.
Randolph told reporters before the game, “Physically, he’s tired and needed a rest…He needs to build up his strength a little bit.”
…i was sent several e-mails yesterday, and saw a few comments, all ripping willie for ‘benching’ church, writing that willie is ‘stupid’ for wanting to play Endy Chavez instead…
…turns out, church wanted the rest…and sure, willie could have ignored the request, but given what church has been through of late it makes sense to let him rest when he needs it…
…of course, this didn’t stop some fans from assuming they know everything, going so far as to call a man stupid…
…why do people do this…if i have learned anything from the experience of MetsBlog, it’s that we, as fans, are not as smart and aware as we’d like to think we are…me included…in fact, it’s made me less opinionated in some cases, because having had the opportunity to peak behind the MLB curtain, i now know there is so much about the game that i am missing…stats and boxscores are only a small part of the story…and there is only so much we can know factually through a computer…
Tagged Willie Randolph |With yesterday’s win against the Giants, the Mets have now won three 
consecutive series, during which they are 7–3.
David Wright, talking to reporters, talking to reporters yesterday:
“We’re going out there with a different attitude than we did a couple weeks ago. We’re getting that swagger back, that confidence back. We’re playing complete baseball games now, all facets. We’ve got a nice momentum. But you can’t be satisfied playing well for a week and a half. You have to continue it, use this momentum…We’ve played pretty…but we can’t be satisfied with playing well for a week.”
Willie Randolph, on the same topic, following the game, said:
“For me, it’s only been a matter of time. I believe in my guys, and we knew we were going to play better than we have. We talked about it, and now we’re starting to play with more consistency. That’s the team we’re going to be…We’ve got to keep doing that…We want to push away from .500, and continue to play good baseball.”
…as i said about reyes in an earlier post, it’s all about confidence…from what i understand, the players were feeling the pressure from the fans, from the media and, most importantly, from ownership who had been reportedly putting pressure on their manager, and so on…what’s worse, the team was playing tight and trying to do too much…culture divides, clubhouse issues, etc., were never a problem…in fact, camaraderie has always been strong…they just didn’t believe in themselves, and were fearing the worst…
…however, a speech from willie, a team meeting, a come-from-behind win, some excitement, a road trip, etc., and suddenly – just like that – the team believes in itself again, feels confident, feels in control of the pressure, and they’re winning…
…this game is so complicated, and yet so simple…
Tagged Willie Randolph |John Maine allowed just one earned run in six innings during a win against the Giants yesterday afternoon.
This season, Maine is 6–4 with a 3.47 ERA in 12 starts for the Mets, who are 7–5 in games that he has started.
Following the game, Maine told reporters 
that he felt a little sluggish during the game, but that his arm felt good.
…i’d say so…he looked totally in control, whereas he usually goes through one inning in which he gets rattled…yesterday, he looked more poised and was very disciplined in staying within the strike zone…
…he just gives up so many foul balls, and so his pitch count soars so fast…it’s a shame…because, if not for that, he would likely pitch much deeper in to games…
Maine has allowed three runs or less in eight of his 12 starts.
During yesterday’s win against the Giants, Jose Reyes went 3-for-4 with a two-run home run.
Willie Randolph, talking to reporters after the game, regarding whether Reyes is no longer putting pressure on himself:
“I think that every feeds off of his energy and he knows that. I do think he feels the responsibility to get us going. Jose plays with the same type of attitude every day. I’ve talked to him about not putting extra pressure on himself, but that’s something that, when you want to compete and you want to win, that’s natural. When he’s relaxed and getting good pitches to hit and kick-starting us then he’s energetic, we feed of that, he’s happy and we win – and every one’s happy. Right? Every one’s happy (to reporters)? Good (smiles). I like that, I like that.”
…first off, it cracks me up when willie is coy and sarcastic with the reporters…i’m sure they find it mildly amusing at best, but, to me, it’s hilarious…
…second…like the rest of the team, reyes just looks more confident…he’s ‘going after it,’ like willie likes to say, and the rest of the team is doing the same…
…the problem, though, is that he’s still not walking and he’s still swinging through some awful pitches, which means he’s relying totally on his bat for this hot streak…
In the third inning, in the field, Reyes let a ball go right through his legs. The runner eventually scored.
However, in his very next at bat, Reyes hit a two-run home run.
Following the game, Reyes talked with SNY’s Kevin Burkhardt, and said of the error:
“That happens. I mean, you know, hopefully that doesn’t happen any more. I didn’t anything different, it’s just the ball went through my legs…Hopefully I catch it the next time.”
To watch all of Burkhardt’s interview with Reyes, click here.
Maine later told reporters that Reyes gave him a pat on the back while walking through the dugout following the home run, as if to say, ‘Sorry, for the error, man.’
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