New York Mets 2016 Season Thread

[Devils Dose]

I can't believe I just witnessed that. What a zilch De Aza is. Pops up his bunt, on 3-1 by the way, then doesn't run it out. Embarrassing

[NJDevs4978]

Cespedes not sliding and Granderson having a brainfart a couple weeks ago is one thing but when you're a fringy player...that's a cut on the spot moment.

Edited June 26, 2016 by NJDevs4978

['7']

I had high hopes for him too. He looked like a solid under the radar signing, and his career numbers were respectable

He has not shown a shred of evidence that he's capable of playing the game of baseball.

Has Chipper Jones or Brian Jordan hit a walkoff yet?

[Devils Dose]

The former Brave pulls us through!

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

Two games out.  The Nationals' Gio Gonzales has really just fallen apart since the Mets beat up on him a while back.   He has an ERA of 7.60 in his last six starts and has lost five of them.  

Amazing how that West Coast-to-start trip has killed them as much the Mets' version of that trip also hurt the Mets earlier.  It's actually worse for the Nats considering last season, and prior follies...there's going to be a lot of "Here we go again" with that group, if they don't get it turned around very soon.  As gloom-and-doom as we often are, the Mets' window of relevancy just started last season and it's already resulted in a World Series appearance.  The Nationals haven't done much of anything in their window (currently in its fifth season)...two playoff appearances and no series wins whatsoever.  They often get more respect than they've really earned.

Edited June 26, 2016 by Colorado Rockies 1976

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

On ‎6‎/‎25‎/‎2016 at 8:52 AM, capo said:

Has,

Probably because most fans aren't upitty sh!tfvcks. People need to be willing to forgive.  On the field Reyes was just being Reyes like Manny being Manny. Think of all horrible things Mets players have done in the past. The only difference is that Reyes got caught. (well, so did Doc) The only thing matters in the off-field situition is that his wife is with him and is standing by him. If people don't like his personality that's on them. I agree, I don't think he's all that smart. We all know people that don't grow up for one reason or another. No one really knows how this is going to turn out. But, there are signs that a very good player still exists in that body. For God's sakes he still only 33. A happy motivated Reyes could bring a lot to the table.  As far as playing third being a question is super ridiculous. It's probably the easiest position on the field. It's all reactionary. A lot of SS have switched to 3b when their range diminished. Hell, Gary Carter used to catch the first game of a double header and play third the second. 

I  believe something happened between Reyes  and his wife that night - no question. I don't think that that is who he is as a person. Reyes is a very out in the open character. He's on all the social media sites, extremely friendly with everyone he interacts with and he always seems to be happy go lucky. It takes 2 to tango. I think given the things we've all mentioned about his maturity that it's easy to see how something like this can happen.  I don't think he'll be in this predicament again and because his wife is by his side that's all that matters. If this baseball chance doesn't work out I hope he and his family can move on from all this.

You're way too biased to have any objective opinion on Reyes.  You're going to overlook and slant every last thing to favor Reyes. 

I do like the way the Mets are handling him.  Find out if he can handle third base at the minor league level, and get him as much playing time there as possible.  If he manages to play decently there, then we'll find out if he can handle it at the major league level...because the FACT is no one can say for sure if he can or not. 

Flores hopefully realizes that he's the guy who left the door open for Reyes to get this shot.  He had every opportunity to nail down the third base position, and he simply didn't get it done.  3-for-his-last-21.  .667 OB+SLG on the season.  Feels like his days are very numbered...especially if Reyes is somehow able to make the most of this shot. 

As for the canned statements made by the Mets and one crafted by Reyes' people...whatever.  They're exactly what I expected them to be.  But so far as we know, Reyes isn't some serial batterer with a long history of this kind of behavior, and has paid his price, so I'm not against him getting a second chance at MLB employment and never was.  My only issues with him had to do with declining on-the-field performance and potential distractions to a team that seems to be a little mentally shaky.

That being said, you sound a bit dopey capo.  There are many cases of battered women who "stand by their men" no matter how many times they've been beaten.  Like I said, I'm not implying that Reyes has done this more than once (and hopefully nothing ever happens like that between them again), but I am saying that the "Well she's still with him" is a really stupid reason to assume that in any given case, that everything is automatically hunky-dory. 

You also have to understand that domestic violence is a difficult thing for some people to get past...especially those who've been legitimate victims of it.  I think people are a little more willing to forgive people who do things that hurt themselves (even if some of those activities, like drinking or drug use, have the potential to hurt someone else) than they are to forgive those who hurt others.  Reyes will probably never be universally forgiven by Mets fans, but as long as he contributes and is a model citizen from here on out, I think some of the one who already haven't will fairly quickly.

I've posted my views on domestic violence on this site before, and one thing that I really despise is very often, the primer that is applied to too many cases is "woman is a saint that never does anything wrong, and the man is lower than excrement who has probably always done this"...lots of details completely left out.  Look, there are definitely abusive men out there who truly are scum, and women who suffer abuse completely unprovoked.  And I'm not implying that even the most horrible women ever "deserve" to be physically beaten.  In a perfect world, no one should ever hit anyone else.  But I think too many domestic cases are misreported or misrepresented, where both sides were at fault, but all you hear about is what the man was guilty of.  I've seen women be incredibly mentally abusive, physically lash out at men...and when a situation gets completely out of control where the woman is physically abusing a man, and the man finally defends himself and leaves the woman with a mark...guess who gets arrested, shackled, and labeled a "woman-beater".  There is clearly a double-standard, and some women (many American women don't hesitate to play the damsel-in-distress card when it suits them) are just as capable of mental and physical abuse as men.  But outside of "I once dated this psycho-bitch" kind of talk, you rarely hear about woman-on-man abuse the way you do about the other way around.  And I have a problem with that for sure. 

Edited June 26, 2016 by Colorado Rockies 1976

['7']

Colon solid through 4...low pitch count too. Though naturally we havent offered up any run support as we've got an uber crappy lineup out there today.

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

Rivera cannot fvcking hit.  Painful. 

['7']

Mets just...not especially interested in competing today. Shame.

Bud f'ing Norris folks.

Edited June 26, 2016 by '7'

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

12 minutes ago, '7' said:

Mets just...not especially interested in competing today. Shame.

Bud f'ing Norris folks.

It's not lack of effort...they just can't hit for sh!t, and they forever suck in the clutch.

Hopefully Flores is on his way out.  I'm so done with him. 

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

Wow is Bastardo becoming a disappointment.  Game over.  Mets get seven games against the Braves and win two.  Jesus fvcking Christ. 

And it's looking like whatever magic Verrett might have once had is gone.  Welcome to mop-up duty Logan. 

Edited June 26, 2016 by Colorado Rockies 1976

[NJDevs4978]

Another typical Mets game.  I seriously wonder if a lineup just of the Met pitchers batting would outscore their regular lineup.  The '86 Mets could probably still do better with their walkers and canes.

Edited June 26, 2016 by NJDevs4978

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

Fire Terry. 

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

Love how these zilches suddenly come to life in garbage time. 

[capo]

12 hours ago, Colorado Rockies 1976 said:

You're way too biased to have any objective opinion on Reyes.  You're going to overlook and slant every last thing to favor Reyes. 

I do like the way the Mets are handling him.  Find out if he can handle third base at the minor league level, and get him as much playing time there as possible.  If he manages to play decently there, then we'll find out if he can handle it at the major league level...because the FACT is no one can say for sure if he can or not. 

Flores hopefully realizes that he's the guy who left the door open for Reyes to get this shot.  He had every opportunity to nail down the third base position, and he simply didn't get it done.  3-for-his-last-21.  .667 OB+SLG on the season.  Feels like his days are very numbered...especially if Reyes is somehow able to make the most of this shot. 

As for the canned statements made by the Mets and one crafted by Reyes' people...whatever.  They're exactly what I expected them to be.  But so far as we know, Reyes isn't some serial batterer with a long history of this kind of behavior, and has paid his price, so I'm not against him getting a second chance at MLB employment and never was.  My only issues with him had to do with declining on-the-field performance and potential distractions to a team that seems to be a little mentally shaky.

That being said, you sound a bit dopey capo.  There are many cases of battered women who "stand by their men" no matter how many times they've been beaten.  Like I said, I'm not implying that Reyes has done this more than once (and hopefully nothing ever happens like that between them again), but I am saying that the "Well she's still with him" is a really stupid reason to assume that in any given case, that everything is automatically hunky-dory. 

You also have to understand that domestic violence is a difficult thing for some people to get past...especially those who've been legitimate victims of it.  I think people are a little more willing to forgive people who do things that hurt themselves (even if some of those activities, like drinking or drug use, have the potential to hurt someone else) than they are to forgive those who hurt others.  Reyes will probably never be universally forgiven by Mets fans, but as long as he contributes and is a model citizen from here on out, I think some of the one who already haven't will fairly quickly.

I've posted my views on domestic violence on this site before, and one thing that I really despise is very often, the primer that is applied to too many cases is "woman is a saint that never does anything wrong, and the man is lower than excrement who has probably always done this"...lots of details completely left out.  Look, there are definitely abusive men out there who truly are scum, and women who suffer abuse completely unprovoked.  And I'm not implying that even the most horrible women ever "deserve" to be physically beaten.  In a perfect world, no one should ever hit anyone else.  But I think too many domestic cases are misreported or misrepresented, where both sides were at fault, but all you hear about is what the man was guilty of.  I've seen women be incredibly mentally abusive, physically lash out at men...and when a situation gets completely out of control where the woman is physically abusing a man, and the man finally defends himself and leaves the woman with a mark...guess who gets arrested, shackled, and labeled a "woman-beater".  There is clearly a double-standard, and some women (many American women don't hesitate to play the damsel-in-distress card when it suits them) are just as capable of mental and physical abuse as men.  But outside of "I once dated this psycho-bitch" kind of talk, you rarely hear about woman-on-man abuse the way you do about the other way around.  And I have a problem with that for sure. 

You've basically just restated my case as far the off-field issues go but I'm dopey because I actually like Reyes.  You've killed me on pretty much all of the points that I've made but time and again I've been right. From Murphy to Cespedes, d'Arnaud, Loney and even Flores. Reyes isn't going to be as good as was but he's fvcking 33 and has gone through a  lot of sh!t since he left here. Not just off the field. You like to have your way with my comments but fact is I'm mostly spot on. Let's see if Reyes makes a dope out of me. My bet is he has something pretty damn good still left in the tank.

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

Wow capo, you really are not smart if the above was how you interpreted my post.  I said you sounded dopey about one particular thing:  your view on women standing by men who've abused them and the assumption if a woman does that, then everything is automatically swell.  I didn't say you were dopey because you're a Reyes fanboy...for one, you definitely have some company in that regard (as the Citi chants showed), and for another, despite a lot of numbers that suggest he's in irreversible decline, there IS a chance that coming back here, in what may be his last shot to stick in the majors, will rejuvenate him enough where, even if he's no longer the player he was in his prime, can at least become a player that doesn't hurt you, and can live with (hopefully he can handle the position change).  But you should definitely learn how to read and comprehend what's being written.  Because that's obviously a struggle for you.  

Weren't you the one wetting himself over Flores' seven-game burst?  Wasn't I the one who said let's see if he can keep it up?  Has he?  Not quite.  And NO ONE saw Murph hitting .350 and having the kind of year he's having. NO ONE.  He would've been signed a lot earlier for a lot more coin and years if teams thought he could be THAT good.  As it is, he took a lot less than he thought he was going to get. 

Cespedes has definitely proven me wrong from a performance standpoint, even with the maddening brainfarts.  But check out his numbers as a Met, compared to everywhere else he's been.  There were reasons to think he might slide back into being the player who couldn't quite seem to stick anywhere.  Luckily for us, something about being a Met has gotten the very best out of him.  I was definitely worried about that signing, but so far it has worked out BEAUTIFULLY and that can't be denied. 

There is still no proof that d'Arnaud is awful at handling pitchers, which was your big beef with him IIRC.  That being said, I think the Mets have to explore making the ultimate "Right fvcking NOW!" move in bringing in Lucroy.  I can't keep waiting for Travis to put it all together, and the fact is he might never do that...especially behind the plate, where his defense doesn't look like it's ever going to be anything more than average at best. 

What was your stance on Loney?  Just to be clear, I liked the fact that he wasn't going to be a sub-.250 BA like Duda, and could bring a different hitting skillset.  I like that he can hit for average a bit and get on base (to be fair, Duda's been a good OB% guy for much of his career, though not this season).  Yeah, he's not much of an extra-bases guy, and unfortunately with this team's general lack of clutch, he's the kind of guy who gets stranded a lot. 

Edited June 27, 2016 by Colorado Rockies 1976

[capo]

Damn you're fickle. You need to go back over this board and see how much you waffle on things. You can't prove anything with stats alone and time and again your posting numbers. If you didn't think Murphy was capable of hitting for high average then you've spent  too much time looking at the back of his baseball card then actually watching him hit. But, that's what you do...

If nothing,  Flores has proven to be a spotty hitter. Mostly because he's still learning. If you can't see that he's a better option than Wright at this point than that tells you all you need to know about your baseball IQ. Go ahead flip over his card for the last week and see what bullsh!t you can find. I see he went 2-4 with an RBI last night, that really sucks... but I bet his opb really sucks since he's taken over... Learn something about what you see on the field instead of the back of a card and then come talk to me.

As far as me being dopey regarding the wife situation... let's think for a second about how the court system actually works in this country. If Reyes' wife files for divorce she gets half of everything he earns and has. On top of that she gets child support. Then, she can go find herself a new man and spend Jose's money on him just to stick to him some more. My point is she doesn't need him but she loves him so they are working through this thing together and based on all I've read it seems they've done nothing but make strides since the incident. They've been together since 2003 and have 3 kids.

But, what am I talking about I'm just a fanboy... No, I just don't live in an elitist bubble. 

Edited June 27, 2016 by capo

[NJDevs4978]

Nicole Brown Simpson...that's the instant comeback to anyone who says just because she doesn't leave him, doesn't mean there isn't a problem.  And that's not to say Reyes is a serial abuser, I don't want to believe that just like nobody wanted to believe it with OJ.  And publicly and privately Reyes seems to be taking the first steps toward bettering his life and his family's life which is what matters in that situation.

Edited June 27, 2016 by NJDevs4978

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

I watch the games all of the time and you know that.  Again, you want to tell me that there was a chance Murph could've exceeded his career norms this season (say .310+ BA, maybe 20 HR, maybe improved at drawing walks, which was never a strength of his), I wouldn't disagree with that.  But no way you could've expected him to perform THIS far above and beyond.  Again, NO ONE did...he hasn't just evolved; he's taken his abilities to a whole insanely higher level.  He was a reasonably consistent, professional hitter the prior four seasons with pretty similar numbers (and warts) those four years (though he WAS very hold-and-cold some of those seasons).  You don't often see a ballplayer's performance jump that much at 31 years old.  I will say some of it has to do with an (overdue) change in approach for Murph, but again, for a guy to be almost 200 points over his career OB+SLG...that's pretty insane. 

And just in case you're bitching about Murph not being a Met anymore...just keep in mind that if he was re-signed, Cespedes is gone.  You've instead got a CF tandem of De Aza and Lagares.  And the solid deal that was Niese-for-Walker (pretty good return for a guy that the Mets clearly didn't want anymore) doesn't happen.  The cost-conscious Mets obviously want Dilson Herrera to be their inexpensive second baseman come 2017. 

No, stats are not obviously the end-all be-all, but they do count for SOMETHING.  To discount them as much as you do is not very smart. 

Wow, that garbage-time RBI by Flores was really important last night.  This has nothing to do with whether or not Flores is a better option than Wright (who is obviously no longer a part of the equation for 2016, and I for one am glad that he isn't), who I didn't even bring up...it has to do with is Flores a good long-term option to play third base on a team that has its eyes on the big prize?  I say no (though I was hopeful that he would be), even though his overall numbers since taking over for Wright pass the eye test:  .308/.378/.462 (much of that came earlier on).  And it's pretty obvious the Mets don't believe in him as a starting third baseman; otherwise they don't bring in Reyes and the potential baggage that he brings and have him start at third in the minors.  If there's one thing I do like about the Reyes signing a lot, it's that Wilmer's been put on notice:  "It's now or never.  You're coming up on 300 GP and 1000 ABs and you haven't shown that much progress.  We can't wait anymore for you 'to learn', especially after you've been handed yet another golden opportunity to show that you can be an everyday major-leaguer."  

5 minutes ago, NJDevs4978 said:

Nicole Brown Simpson...that's the instant comeback to anyone who says just because she doesn't leave him, doesn't mean there isn't a problem.  And that's not to say Reyes is a serial abuser, I don't want to believe that just like nobody wanted to believe it with OJ.  And publicly and privately Reyes seems to be taking the first steps toward bettering his life and his family's life which is what matters in that situation.

Has, what's actually even scarier is that she DID leave him...they were divorced when she was killed.  But he kept stalking her and keeping tabs on her until... 

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

And speaking of Niese...he had that nice run of six solid starts in a row, but as we all know, it rarely lasts long for him...part of what makes him so maddening.  He's now given up 17 ER in his last three starts (all losses, to give him a 6-5 record...no surprise since Niese forever seems to be destined to be .500ish, as his 67-66 career record shows).  And the bugaboo that was haunting him earlier in the year, the long ball, has reared its ugly head again...6 HRs allowed in those three games.  That's 1.85 HR per 9 IP, nearly double his career rate of 0.97...with the 18 HR he's allowed this season, he's just four short of his career high of 22 HR allowed (in 2012, which ironically was his best all-around season in the majors).  Not good for someone who's not the mentally-toughest guy to begin with...gotta wonder if that starts to get to him. 

Amed Rosario is 6-for-13 in the early going in AA...wonder if he was starting to get a little bored after 169 games of A+ ball. 

And with Reyes signed, I wonder if the Mets even bother with working out Gourriel.  Doesn't seem like there's any room for him now. 

Edited June 27, 2016 by Colorado Rockies 1976

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

There's a terrific book about Lenny Dykstra, written by a poor soul unfortunate enough to have worked fro him, chronicling Dykstra's post MLB-career rise and fall, and how he screwed just about everyone and anyone (even his own family) before landing in jail:

https://www.amazon.com/Nailed-Improbable-Spectacular-Lenny-Dykstra/dp/0762447990

 

Well, now he's got his own book out...and based on the excerpts I've read (and various details of Lenny's past behavior through the years), it's about what you'd expect.  Lots of seedy acquaintances and doings, drug abuse, trashing of ex-teammates, admissions of steroid use (not exactly shocking, that one).  Who knows how much of this one is true or how much is exaggerated.  I'm always up for a good sports book, even the dark ones (like Gooden's)...but I feel like I read much of what I needed to know about Lenny in the Nailed book.  This just feels like a desperate and sad attempt for a guy who probably doesn't have much earning power to try to make some quick cash. 

Edited June 27, 2016 by Colorado Rockies 1976

[nmigliore]

Some brief thoughts.

Reyes' Return: As I said last week, I didn't like the idea of bringing him back but at least they are making him move instead of forcing others to accommodate him. I'm not sure how Reyes will fare in the field, but Flores is a career below average hitter who offers zero baserunning and defensive value, so the bar isn't high to clear there. I think he'll be an upgrade.

Upcoming Schedule: This is the Mets' schedule leading up to the All-Star break - 3 games @ Nationals, 4 games vs Cubs, 3 games vs Marlins, 4 games vs Nationals. 11 of those 14 games are at home, fortunately, but man, that's a brutal stretch. The Nats have been pretty bad of late and just DL'd Strasburg which has helped the Mets get within 3 games despite mediocre play on their own part, but the Mets are only a couple of win percentage points ahead of the Marlins, who own the 2nd wild card spot, while the Dodgers and Cardinals are right on their heels. I know I'm pointing out the obvious here, but this upcoming stretch is, like, kind of a big deal. The Mets may enter the All-Star break neck and neck with the Nats or find themselves a handful of games behind the 2nd wild card spot. 

Conforto's Demotion: Conforto was hitting .148/.217/.303 since May 1st and I think it was the right call to send him down. I'm not very high on Nimmo as you know, so I don't have great expectations there. Hopefully Conforto gains some confidence back in the PCL and is ready to come back within short order.

 

[Colorado Rockies 1976]

Don't know if you watched the game yesterday nmig (I hope for your sake that you didn't), but even Conforto had apparently said that he was so screwed up that he was literally thinking about EVERYTHING during his ABs.  My only beef with his being sent down was with how long it took Sandy to do it...you'd like to think he learned from the Ike Davis clusterfvcks, but everything just seems to happen so glacially with the Mets.  I feel like Conforto should've been sent down at least two weeks earlier than when it finally (mercifully) happened. 

And yeah, I think Conforto will recover and be a good ballplayer. 

Re:  Nimmo, at the very least, I don't think it's ever a bad thing for guys raking in the PCL (Vegas is batting .293 as a team, which tells you all you need to know) to come up to get a dose of reality in the majors.  Not saying this is the case with Nimmo, but I'm sure some guys start believing that they're much better than they really are when they're putting up fat offensive numbers in the PCL.  Yeah, I think a lot of the clamoring to see Nimmo play by Met fans (me included) is we want to at least see what might be there.  And for Conforto to stop being the automatic out he had become. 

And yep, whatever we're going to find out about the 2016 Mets (and the 2016 Nationals, for that matter) is going to be found out by the ASB.  The Marlins too...no one seems to be talking about them much, but they couldn't ask to be in a better position, even with a lot of road games coming up...they have seven games against the Braves and Reds before the ASB.  If they can stay hot, and the Mets and Nats beat each other up, they can really jump up in this thing.  I wonder about their rotation...outside of Fernandez, it's really nothing special. 

-------------------------------------------

We all know that Bastardo has really been consistently struggling lately...and man is that disconcerting, as that hasn't really been an issue with him in prior seasons...it was usually a random bad outing, followed and preceeded by mostly effective appearances.

In the past, Bastardo was more of a guy who'd have a handful of ugly outings that sometimes would distort his season ERAs...but even with his control issues, he had been pretty good...and over the past five seasons, he'd been a terrific hit suppressor (just 183 hits allowed in 274 IP).  He'd also appeared in 64+ games in four out of the last five seasons, so he was pretty reliable from that standpoint. 

The stretch he's going through right now might be THE worst of his career.  His last 14 appearances:  13 IP, 18 H, 14 ER, 4 HR, 9 BB, 12 K.  This is damned near Eric O'Flaherty bad...and it's worrisome, because this is so unlike Bastardo.  I just hope they can fix him...TC is the kind of manager who will ride the same arms no matter what, until they fall off...that will mean Blevins-Reed-Familia even if they desperately need a day off.  As much as Bastardo's scaring me right now, the Mets aren't the kind of team that can carry much in the way of dead money.  They have to try to get him right. 

Edited June 27, 2016 by Colorado Rockies 1976

['7']

Well the velocity is there for Thor (thought I saw 101) but a bit of trouble early on with his control. 1st and 2nd, 0 out...now the dangerous Harper up (who seems to be in some pain after fouling one off his foot)

['7']

Great job by Thor coaxing ground balls out of Murphy and Ramos to get out of the inning unscathed!