Our Thanksgiving Metsian Podcast with Queens Native and Voice Actor Matthew Streppone

From the desk: HEAD-BUTTING MR. MET

GUEST
Queen Native ~ Mets Fan

VOICE ACTOR

MATTHEW STREPPONE

Steve Cohen ~ Money ~ Farm ~ Billy Eppler

Noah Syndergaard ~ Steven Matz ~ Aaron Loup ~ Jon Matlack

CBA ~ Japanese Baseball ~ Gil Hodges HOF

and so much more!

#LFGM

N.Y. Mets: On the Bullpen's Three Game Trend

From the desk: HEAD-BUTTING MR. MET

TRUCKING UP I-95 ON THE LAST LEG HOME

OPENING DAY

Marlins

vs.

Mets

FROM

ROOSEVELT AVENUE GROUNDS

Flushing, Queens

Edwin Diaz Coming to a Ballpark Near You

If you follow me, you're familiar with one of my rules of thumb: once is an event, twice is a coincidence, and three times is a trend.  

Insofar as trending, there is the micro and the macro.  For the moment, we have a three-game series at Philadelphia to speak of.  By mid-April, we will have three series to compare and contrast.  

The point being, I apply equal importance to early-season games as I would to any in June or September.  I believe in getting off to good starts with the idea that you cannot win pennants in April, but you can certainly lose them.

Therefore, with great angst, I say the Mets will go as far as their bullpen carries them.  I'm not breaking new ground here.  That is just the modern condition of baseball.  

In the first three games alone, the Mets relievers relinquished a lead, upheld a lead in game two, then played a rather inconsequential role in Wednesday afternoon's loss against the Phillies.

Manager Luis Rojas called upon three relievers in each of the first three games.  In games one and two,  Miguel Castro and Trevor May were joined by Aaron Loup and Jeurys Familia.  On Wednesday, Jacob Barnes, Dellin Betances, and Joey Lucchesi each made their season debut. 

Overall, the bullpen has accounted for 36% of the Mets 25 total innings pitched.  Seven different relievers have joined together to throw 194 pitches, with 118 (60.8%) going for strikes.  They've yielded six earned runs on 13 hits and three walks through nine innings for a 6.00 ERA and 1.77 WHiP with eleven strikeouts.  Still slated to be a starter, Joey Lucchesi distinguished himself by allowing one lone hit with three strikeouts through two innings pitched. 

Despite David Peterson lasting just four innings Wednesday against the Phillies, the Mets' first three starters, in turn, accounted for 64% of all innings pitched.  By midsummer, I expect the starting rotation to account for at least 68% of innings pitched.  In the meantime, Peterson's abbreviated start raised the bullpen's average usage up to three innings per game.

On Thursday, the Mets host the Miami Marlins for Opening Day at Citi Field.  Edwin Diaz is likely to make his season debut at home, assuming the Mets own a late-inning lead.  Lest we forget, last year the Marlins qualified for the post-season, and the Mets did not.  

Robert Gsellman is also yet to make his first appearance.

I eagerly await to see the next trios of relievers Luis Rojas deploys against the Marlins because that's how he's trending. 

N.Y. Mets Earn First Win Despite More Late Inning High-Jinx

From the desk: HEAD-BUTTING MR. MET

Mets vs. Phillies; 1-1

I - PHI 5; NYM 3

II - NYM 8; PHI 4

METS

vs.

PHILLIES

FROM

BROAD STREET GROUNDS

BULLPEN ALREADY SINGING THE BROAD STREET BLUES

With Tuesday's 8-4 victory over Philadelphia scribbled in the book, we've been afforded a small glimpse into the Mets' pitching one-two punch.  

I do not begrudge the Mets for removing Jacob deGrom from Monday's season opener when they did.  The club is proceeding cautiously.  Jacob was limited to 77 pitches, with 50 (65%) going for strikes.  Marcus Stroman was similarly limited to 85 pitches, of which 53 (62%) went for strikes.

Otherwise, their first respective starts of the season provided quite the teaser.  Jacob yielded no runs on just three hits and two walks with seven strikeouts through six innings pitched, and Stroman allowed just one run on three hits (solo home run) and two walks with three strikeouts also over six innings.  That translates to six hits and four walks with ten strikeouts and a 0.75 ERA through the rotation's first twelve innings pitched.

• Sophomore lefty David Peterson climbs the bump Wednesday afternoon and will be opposed by  Aaron Nola.

Otherwise, the bullpen has been a mixed bag of goods.  On Monday, they wasted no time relinquishing their first lead, earning their first blown save, and ultimately achieving their first loss of the new season.  Miguel Castro tossed an effective seventh inning.  However, new acquisitions Trevor May and Aaron Loup joined together in the eighth inning to yield five runs, two earned, on three hits and one walk.  

On Tuesday, Trevor May and Miguel Castro respectively made their second straight appearance.  This time Castro in the seventh yielded a run on three hits with two strikeouts.  However, Trevor May fared better in his second outing, fanning two in the eighth.  Jeurys Familia, to no one's surprise, struggled while closing out the ninth.  Handed an 8-2 lead, Jeurys surrendered two runs, one earned, on two hits and a walk with one strikeout.  That strikeout, by the way, came against pinch-hitter Andrew McCutchen on a high fastball which I believe is one of the most effective yet underutilized finishing pitches in baseball.  Jeurys may want to take that into consideration ... 

All told, six relievers were utilized over the two games.  They collectively threw 118 pitches, with 75 (63%) going for strikes.  Together, they've yielded eight runs, four earned, for an unsightly 7.20 ERA, eleven hits, and two walks with six strikeouts through five innings pitched.

And if you've noticed, the Mets have allowed four unearned runs due to late-inning defensive miscues; three errors, to be exact.

a second straight game featuring late-inning defensive folly = coincidence. Three times is a trend ...

— The Metsian Podcast with Sam, Rich and Mike (@THEMetsianPod) April 7, 2021

 

N.Y. Mets: Like a Nor'Easter Over Flushing Bay

From the desk: HEAD-BUTTING MR. MET

Pitchers & Catchers report in two more days when finally the Mets can again set about the business of playing baseball.

After one of the most comprehensively altering off-seasons in Mets history, Flushing begins digging out from a winter Nor'Easter marked by hype, controversy, and transformative acquisitions.   

Once his Mets' purchase was finalized by Major League Baseball, Steve Cohen officially arrived on the scene in November.  At long last, the Wilpon Era was over.  Replete with a Twitter account at the ready, Cohen, in an instant single-handed revived the spirits of New York City's increasingly despondent National League fan base.

Already a minority shareholder in the team, Cohen and Sandy Alderson were by no means strangers to one another.  However, I still wonder why Cohen acted so quickly in hiring Alderson to be his President of Baseball Operations.  With Steve Cohen in place, being a Mets executive instantly became one of the most sought after positions in all of baseball.  Why not wait and play the field or see who makes themselves available?  Instead, Cohen wasted little time in recruiting Sandy Alderson back into the Mets fold.  In turn, Alderson wiped out all vestiges of Brodie Van Wagenen's front office, all except "the survivor" John Ricco, that is.

Before hiring a general manager, Sandy Alderson's skeleton crew moved quickly in signing free-agents Brian McCann and Trevor May and executing the mega-deal for Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco.  Not till a week after the big trade was Jared Porter hired as general manager.  All of this taking place in December.  

Flushing goes on to revel in one of the happiest New Year's holidays of recent history, pandemic withstanding.  But then a major controversy came crashing the party.  Roughly one year after hiring Carlos Beltran as manager then immediately having to let him go when it was discovered he participated in the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal, the Mets, after less than forty days on the job are forced to fire Jared Porter post-haste after it was revealed he texted numerous unsolicited lewd pictures to a female reporter.

Kicking off the month of February, news comes down of similar behavior involving former manager Mickey Callaway.  In what is being called the "worst kept secret in sports," several female members of the media claim Callaway's harassing behavior spanned five years, covering his time in Cleveland, New York, and Anaheim.  

As one who hired both, these incidents put Sandy Alderson's hiring practices squarely under the spotlight.  When a reporter questioned if he ever consulted with a woman at any point during his vetting of Porter, Sandy Alderson said no.  Therefore, it's now up to him to decipher whether his practices are fundamentally flawed, self-serving, or otherwise.

Then came the GameStop and supposed stock manipulation uproar that caused Steve Cohen's professional life as an investor to bleed over into his endeavors as Mets owner.  He suspended his Twitter account at once, and you might say the honeymoon period ended with it.

Meanwhile, free agency was not as cooperative as Mets fans anticipated.  However, for the first time in a long time, spending power was not a primary issue.  It certainly appears as if George Springer and Trevor Bauer never once contemplated playing in New York.  Instead, each used the Mets to facilitate an agreeable contract elsewhere, for it takes two to set a market ... just ask Baurer's agent.  I am actually very agreeable to missing out on both.  Just because they were the best available doesn't necessarily make them worthy of premium dollars.

This month's second wave of transactions saw the trading away of Steven Matz to Toronto for three prospects, one of which the Mets parlayed into Kansas City's eighth-ranked prospect, outfielder Khalil Lee.  Alderson and interim general manager Zack Scott also traded for pitchers Joey Lucchesi and Jordan Yamamoto.  From the free-agent market, they signed outfielder Albert Amora Jr, pitcher Aaron Loup, and infielder Jonathan Villar.

And that was only in the first one hundred days of the Cohen Era.

The Mets still have several outstanding issues entering Spring Training.

Major League Baseball will not be implementing a universal DH this season.  As rules go, I'm happy about it, but it's problematic for the Mets.  The likely alignment when the Mets are not playing American League teams is Dom Smith playing left and Pete Alonso at first.  Otherwise, Dom Smith will DH and make the occasional start at first - not an optimal situation.

Albert Almora Jr. brings a potential platoon into the center field equation.  This is, of course, the backup plan after having missed out on George Springer.  Brandon Nimmo looks to be the starter heading into the season.  In fact, I welcome Nimmo and his career .838 OPS.  At the very least, Albert Almora Jr. should become the customary late-inning replacement.

The situation at third base remains fluid.  The job belongs to JD Davis until notified otherwise.  No one is questioning his bat.  However, his glovework leaves much to be desired.  Thus the Mets seem more than interested in making another move.

Meanwhile, Francisco Lindor and Michael Conforto have pressing contract concerns that require the Mets address.

Lastly, on the premise simmering in pockets of Metsville, that because the Mets have a billionaire owner, their inability to secure JT Realmuto, Brad Hand, George Springer, Trevor Baurer, James Paxton, D.J. LeMahieu, Cory Kluber, Nolan Arenado, et al, constitutes a failed off-season.

To all of it, I say, nonsense.