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Roundtable: Whose Return Would Make Biggest Impact

Regis Courtemanche — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 19:35:19 +0000

Regis Courtemanche: The Mets have made it continually harder for me to focus on the positives lately. A big reason is because they have eight players on the disabled list. If you could get any one back right now, who would it be, and do you think it would be enough to make an immediate impact?

Ted Berg: While I think the Mets could really use Jose Reyes’ bat and glove right now, if we’re playing with hypotheticals I’d love to see Carlos Delgado back for a couple of reasons. I think first base is one position at which they can most reasonably expect to add a bat if need be, so if Delgado could (magically) return early, they could get a sense of what they are going to get from him going moving forward. We’ve seen guys make full recoveries from hip injuries, so if Delgado could come back and hit like he did in the second half of 2008, all of a sudden the need for a power bat doesn’t look so glaring. If he looks like the injury is going to affect him all year, the Mets should get a better sense of their deadline approach.

Matthew Cerrone: I’d probably say the healthy, dominant J.J. Putz – or Billy Wagner – because order in the bullpen and shortening the game is so important. However, right now, I think I agree with Ted, I’d bring back Delgado, because the bullpen is useless if the team can’t score runs. The lineup is in dire need of instant offense, and someone to take pressure off of everyone, including David Wright and Jose Reyes. Delgado from the second-half of last season would make a significant impact on this roster.

Regis Courtemanche: Not to be a broken record, but I would choose a healthy Delgado as well. They need a big bat, especially if Gary Sheffield’s knee gets any worse. Having Reyes return will be very nice in terms of getting things started, but every team needs some threat of power to reach that next level. Without it, the Mets will continue to hover around mediocrity.

Mike Baron: Agreeing with everyone, I would have to say Delgado. He would be a huge lift for an offense which has struggled to score runs consistently. He would provide depth, support, and a sorely missed presence to the middle of the lineup and can help carry the load. While he isn’t a gold glove winner, Delgado would also bring a known quantity back to first base.

Mike Nichols: While I agree Delgado would bring presence and stability back to the middle of the order, I still think Jose Reyes is the most important everyday component on this team. With David Wright and Carlos Beltran seemingly gearing their approach towards playing in Citi Field, Reyes would only compliment them and make the Mets offense more dynamic. Plus, the speed and defense Reyes provides is much more reliable than hoping a 37-year old slugger coming off hip surgery can return to his former self.

PostGame: Yankees 15, Mets 0

Ted Berg — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 21:34:30 +0000

The Yankees defeated the Mets, 15-0, this afternoon at Yankee Stadium.

For a complete recap, box score and stats, click here.

The Least You Should Know:

Johan Santana did not pitch well, allowing nine runs on nine hits over three innings. His velocity appeared to be down, and at times he had trouble controlling his slider.
A.J. Burnett pitched himself into and out of trouble early, most notably in the third inning, when the Mets loaded the bases but could not score. He settled down to throw seven innings of scoreless ball.
The Mets’ bullpen followed Santana by allowing six runs over five innings.

Other Observations and Notes:

Oof.
Johan Santana’s ERA jumped from 2.39 to 3.29 with the effort.
Brian Stokes’ ERA jumped from 2.49 to 3.80 with the effort.
Mark Teixeira and Alex Rodriguez combined to go 1-for-8 in the game, but the Yankees scored 15 runs. Ugh.
Santana said after the game that he’s fine and he has no dead arm issue.
For what it’s worth, K-Rod and Brian Bruney had to be separated before the game when Bruney tried to make amends for earlier comments. For more, check out Christian Red’s report in the Daily News.

The Game Ball:

Goes to Jerry Manuel, for finding a clever way out of having to watch the last three innings.

Read: Citi Field a No-Fly Zone?

Ted Berg — Fri, 29 May 2009 18:07:05 +0000

In today’s Bergen Record, Bob Klapisch writes about how Citi Field’s dimensions could be affecting the Mets’ style of play this year.

There’s one major problem, though: While Klapisch notes that the Mets have hit only 17 home runs in 23 games at Citi Field, he neglects to mention that the Mets have hit only 15 home runs in 23 games on the road.

Moreover, Mets pitchers have allowed 19 home runs at home and 16 on the road, meaning that the Mets have both hit and allowed more home runs at Citi Field than they have on the road in the same amount of games.

It certainly does appear that Citi Field favors pitchers and will eventually suppress home-run totals, but the early-season evidence does not demonstrate that. All it shows is that the Mets haven’t hit very many home runs, which could be a problem or could be the trappings of a small sample size and a slew of injury woes.

PostGame: Red Sox 12, Mets 5

Ted Berg — Sun, 24 May 2009 22:21:35 +0000

The Mets lost to the Red Sox today, 12-5, at Fenway Park. The team fell to 23-20 on the season with the loss.

For a full recap and boxscore, go here.

The least you should know:

Tim Redding did not pitch well, allowing eight hits, four walks and six runs in 4 2/3 innings. He took the loss in the game.
The Mets took a 1-0 lead in the second on a Ramon Castro homer, but lost it in the bottom of the inning to a Mike Lowell three-run blast.
The Mets rallied for three in the third and held the lead until the bottom of the fifth, when Redding got two outs before the Sox started hitting him hard.
Sean Green replaced Redding with two on and two out in the fifth. On his first pitch, Green allowed a single to Nick Green that scored both runs and gave Boston the lead. Nick Green was thrown out trying to take second base on the play.

Other observations:

A win would’ve been great, especially since the Mets had the lead in this one, but taking two out of three from the Sox at Fenway with half the team hurt is a net positive.
The Sox blew the game open off Brian Stokes in the seventh. It was by far Stokes’ worst outing of the season, and his ERA climbed to 2.89.
This game featured many prominent goatees and, thanks to David Ortiz and Ramon Castro, two perfectly manicured chin-strap beards.
I imagine Jerry Manuel’s going to get ripped on talk radio for going to Green with two on and the Mets clinging to a 5-4 lead, and he probably should. Why go to the guy with the highest ERA in such a tight spot? Of course, Stokes had the lowest ERA on the team coming into the game, and he got lit up, too.
David Wright made an outstanding diving catch on a Nick Green bunt in the bottom of the fourth. Look out for it in highlight montages everywhere.

The Game Ball:

Goes to Castro, who fired another salvo in the battle for backup-catcher supremacy, hitting a home run and a double in the game. He now has a .002 advantage over Extra-Base Omir Santos in OPS.

PostGame: Mets 8, Pirates 4

Ted Berg — Sun, 10 May 2009 21:21:04 +0000

The Mets beat the Pirates, 8-4, at Citi Field this afternoon for their seventh straight win. They improved to 17-13 with the victory. It was the eighth consecutive loss for the 12-19 Pirates.

For a full recap and boxscore, go here.

The least you should know:

Livan Hernandez allowed 11 baserunners over six innings, but held the hapless Pirates to two runs. He also knocked his first hit of the season on a soft liner to left in the bottom of the fifth.
The Mets’ offense started slow against Ian Snell, but rallied for three runs in the bottom of the fourth when Snell started falling behind in counts. They blew the game open with four more runs in the eighth in a rally capped by Carlos Beltran’s double to left.
Jose Reyes had his third straight multi-hit game, picking up a hustle double in the third and a single in the seventh. He also made a couple of nice defensive plays, including an outstanding throw from the hole in the fourth.

Random Thoughts:

What a difference a week makes.
Pedro Feliciano made his 17th appearance of the season with a scoreless seventh, as did J.J. Putz with a scoreless eighth. Gary Cohen referred to Feliciano as ‘Perpetual Pedro’ the other day, and I think it’s a solid nickname. ‘Perpetual Putz’ sounds significantly less flattering.
Sean Green once again did not look so great, walking the first batter he faced in the ninth then allowing a two-run bomb to Nate McLouth. He settled down to get the next three hitters and finish the game.
Omir Santos contributed to the fourth-inning rally with two RBIs. Mets catchers this year, by BA/OBP/SLG: Santos, .300/.310/.500; Ramon Castro, .292/.358/.479; Brian Schneider, .143/.250/.190; Those are all in small samples, and to Schneider’s credit, he was apparently hurting, but with Santos and Castro hitting like this, is anyone eager for Schneider’s return?
Daniel Murphy appears to be growing a beard.
Winning streaks are awesome, but the Mets will probably not win every game for the rest of the season. Whenever they next lose, remember this game and keep in mind that it could be worse: You could be a Pirates fan.

The Game Ball:

Today’s game ball goes to mothers everywhere, and especially to Isabel de Rodriguez, K-Rod’s grandmother and his ‘everything.’ For more on that, check out Peter Botte’s excellent story in today’s Daily News.

Q&A: Daniel Murphy, the Insurance Person

Ted Berg — Fri, 08 May 2009 16:25:33 +0000

SNY’s Ask the Booth inbox gets a wide variety of e-mails, from reasonable baseball questions for Ron Darling to unmentionable personal questions for Keith Hernandez.

Sorting through them is a chore, but one that pays off big time when you come across something like the following picture, sent in by Daniel Murphy’s former classmate Kara.

Why does it say ‘Insurance Person’ under the photo? Because that’s what he said he wanted to be when he grew up.

Here is a brief Q&A I conducted with Murphy, who gave MetsBlog permission to use the photograph:

Ted Berg: You wanted to be an insurance person?

Daniel Murphy: That’s all I could think of. You know, I was 11.

Ted Berg: Do you find it ironic at all, that — when every fifth grader in the world wants to be a baseball player when they grow up – you said, “Insurance Person?”

Daniel Murphy: I’m more of a realist.

Ted Berg: But here you are.

Daniel Murphy: Here I am.

Ted Berg: So what happened?

Howard Megdal: Was this your fallback?

Daniel Murphy: I think it was the next year I decided I wanted to be a baseball player.

Ted Berg: There’s a sense about you among Mets fans about your businesslike approach to the game – it’s almost a cliche at this point. So when I saw that picture I thought, man, this is perfect. This guy meant business in the fifth grade. Do you think there’s something about you that makes people think that way, and is it the same thing that made you say you wanted to be an insurance person?

Daniel Murphy: That was just the first thing I slopped out. They snuck it up on us for the yearbook, I think. My mom worked in business – she worked in insurance, so that’s where that came from. The business approach? I don’t know. Do you take your job seriously?

Ted Berg: Vaguely. Probably not like you do.

Daniel Murphy: I’d say you do, just more people watch me. I mean, I have fun. You know, Delgado makes that play [Wednesday] and everybody’s cheering him, I’m laughing out in left field because I know what it’s like. I’m working hard and I feel like I’m getting a lot more comfortable, and I take the game seriously because it’s my form of work, but I’m going to have fun. Fans aren’t able to hang out with me outside the stadium…

Ted Berg: No, no – it’s a very reverential thing.

Daniel Murphy: Well, it’s easy on this team. You fall in line.

Ted Berg: What about the safety patrol badge? How’d you get that?

Daniel Murphy: I’m smart, brother. Only about twenty kids in the grade get that.

NYBT: Preview Mets-Cardinals, Yanks-A’s

Matthew Cerrone — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 19:28:15 +0000

Today on New York Baseball Today, SNY.tv’s Ted Berg previews the upcoming series for the Mets and Yankees by talking with the opposing fan bloggers from Viva El Birdos and Bay Bridge Baseball.

To watch today’s NYBT, click play below:

NYBT: Brewers, Mets and Indians

Matthew Cerrone — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 20:22:11 +0000

Today on New York Baseball Today, SNY.tv’s Ted Berg talks with Jay Levin from LetsGoTribe.com about the Indians’ games with the Yankees this weekend and Jeff Sackman of BrewCrewBall.com to preview the Mets series against the Brewers.

To watch today’s NYBT, click play below:

Video: NYBT, and Oliver Perez

Matthew Cerrone — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 19:30:30 +0000

On today’s edition of New York Baseball Today, presented by Harrah’s, Ted Berg and Tom Boorstein of SNY.tv talk about Oliver Perez’s fly-ball ratio, and whether it’s smart to start Gary Sheffield with Perez on the mound.

To watch NYBT, click play below:

Video: Ted Berg interviews Cliff Floyd

Matthew Cerrone — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 20:23:23 +0000

In the latest edition of SNY.tv’s On the Road at Citi Field, Ted Berg talks with Cliff Floyd about Citi Field, what he learned in New York, his relationship with David Wright, and adjusting to being a part-time player towards the end of his career.

To watch Berg’s three-interview with Floyd, click play below: