N.Y. Mets: Damage Control

From the desk of:  HEAD-BUTTING MR. MET

After a financial collapse and an organizational rebuild,

ownership's actions over these last two seasons 

demonstrated a willingness, and growing ability

to be MLB players again.

NEW YORK METS: To my $urprise, the Amazin's are not idly $tanding by...

There's much to harangue with the way the season has gone thus far.

Quite frankly, this station to station offense, and waiting on the long ball approach doesn't exactly sit well with me.  The Mets are indeed tied for the National League lead in home runs, yet they've scored the third least runs.  They additionally boast the fifth worst team OBP, and are dead last in stolen bases (second to last in all of MLB).

Their now concluded series in Pittsburgh put all that futility on full display.  So, if this is Money Ball, I'm contemplating withdrawing my account and sticking the cash back under my mattress.

On the mound, their performance so far has been a mixed bag of goods.  Or should I say good, just not good enough...

On the one hand, the Mets pitching staff boasts the third best ERA, have allowed the fourth least hits, own the fourth best average against, and fanned the sixth most batters.  The bad news is they trail the Washington Nationals and the Chicago Cubs in each of the aforementioned categories.

For the moment, I'm not overly concerned.

What I am, however, is pleasantly surprised...

The Mets front office had a really, really good off-season, and I commended them for it.  In fact, as injuries began mounting this season, I was already handing them a free pass.

Considering their ongoing financial situation, I thought ownership and Sandy Alderson had already done enough, and that the onus was on the remaining starters, back-ups, and minor league call-ups to just suck it up and play through the injuries.  I even cautioned my own friends and fellow fans not to expect much else in the way of transactions, asking what more could they do?

Therein lies my surprise...

The front office has continued going off campus in an effort to bolster the active roster.  And once again, I commend them for both their proactive, and reactive response.  Winning a N.L. pennant last year was great, but this is the type of action which demonstrates renewed and refreshing commitment moving forward.

To account for Lucas Duda's absence, Sandy Alderson purchased veteran first baseman James Loney on May 28 from the San Diego Padres.  Infielder Kelly Johnson was then re-acquired this week via trade from the Atlanta Braves in exchange for minor league pitcher Akeel Morris.

Whether these moves help remains to be seen.  But busy general manager's hands means happy fans ... so just remember no one was complaining when the transactions took place.

After springing into action during last year's trade deadline, then committing big money to Yoenis Cespedes in the off-season, as well as shoring up the middle infield with qualified veterans, one would think the Mets financial situation has settled.

In a sense, it has, but make no mistake, ownership is still heavily in debt.  What they've achieved, however, is an agreeable balance between financial obligation and on-field operations.  Attendance is up-ticking again, and most, if not all of their bank and SNY related debt has been re-re-refinanced through the remainder of this decade.  Separate from that, their settlement with Irvin Picard in the Madoff related claw back suit has been reduced as well.  So, yes, today things are certainly looking up (until salary arbitration starts taking a larger toll on the team budget, that is).

Circling back, being broke is a great reason to rebuild.  Upon assuming control, Sandy Alderson initiated the hasty process of shedding upwards of $60 millions dollars from the Wilpon's payroll.   For several seasons thereafter, he kept expenses low, and merely recycled the same money to various transient players.

If you're into fuzzy math, the Mets acquired Curtis Granderson during this period at an effective net cost of zero - in recycled dollars, that is - as Grandy's contract did not necessarily increase payroll from one season to the next.

Instead, the signing of free agent Michael Cuddyer in November 2014 represented the first real dollar increase in payroll to that point during Alderson's process.  That's the moment when we can say the Mets finally began taking appreciable steps forwards again.

Dare I ask, what else can they possibly negotiate between now and the non-waiver trade deadline in July?

N.Y. Mets: Staring Risk/Reward in the Face

From the desk of:  HEAD-BUTTING MR. MET

Ladies and gentlemen, 

this September bound 7-train is now going express....

NEW YORK METS: The dog days of Summer have taken a bite out of the Nationals.  It is the Amazins whom now hold the high ground.

A third of the way through August, and the Amazins have flipped the National League East on its ear.

The Washington Nationals were overwhelming pre-season favorites to win the N.L. East, but the dog days of Summer find them still unwilling to seize the division.  Sure, the Nats have dealt with injuries to key players, but in the name of Dr, Moreau, the Mets have too.

In any event, Washington had numerous opportunities to separate themselves from the Mets this season but failed each time.  Two weeks ago, the Mets were hopelessly undermanned, offensively inept, and trailing the Nationals in the standings.

Last week, Washington got swept at Citi Field, and most recently stumbled against the Colorado Rockies this past Sunday at home, thus helping preserve the Mets 1.5 game division lead despite New York's own 4-3 defeat and series loss against Tampa.

There's a lesson to be learned by the Nationals, and all overwhelming favorites throughout the land for that matter:

• Linger long ~ Linger wrong!

Now reinforced and better equipped, it is the Mets who own the high ground.

Due to the mid-July emergence of Curtis Granderson, the return of Travis d'Arnaud, Sandy Alderson's subsequent additions and the positive effects they've had on Daniel Murphy and Lucas Duda, there's a tangible sense the 1st place Mets have separated themselves from their previously woeful offensive condition, and are now poised to fend off the talent rich, yet ponderously inconsistent Washington Nationals.

Whether Sandy Alderson's deadline gamble eventually translates into a playoff berth remains to be seen, but the early returns are very promising.

Touche to Fred...

Juan Uribe, Kelly Johnson, Yoenis Cespedes, and reliever Tyler Clippard all made solid contributions during the Mets recent 7-game winning streak, and as noted helped propel the club into 1st place.

At the end of the day, though, these moves were designed to win now.  My only reservation is the potential inability to retain Yoenis Cespedes.  With regards to 2015, however, I have no issue.  The effort is being appreciated by the vast majority of Mets fans, as the final 52 games of the regular season are shaping up to be very meaningful ones for the first time since Citi Field opened.

So let it be written, so let it be done.

Sandy Alderson did just as well addressing the present without violently compromising the Mets future.  Striking a balance between present and future goals is an age old dilemma that's never ceased being a front office conundrum.  One or two wrong moves could result in someone becoming a former general manager.  For the moment though, it appears as if Alderson had about as fine a trading period a baseball executive can have.

Make no mistake, the Mets paid a stiff price upgrading their roster, which could come back and haunt them (both financially and on the mound) once Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Zack Wheeler, Steven Matz, etc., enter the latter years of their respective arbitration eligibility periods, and beyond...., or not.

That's clearly putting the cart before the horse.  At this premature juncture, only Fred's bankers can address such scenarios.

In this particular case, the cost/risk of Alderson's non-waiver deadline deals strike me as moderately low to moderate, while the rewards of his gamble could could pay off immeasurably.  Quite simply, should the Mets still find themselves in contention upon the arrival of Autumn, the greater reward the Mets will reap, and so forth.

We fans will also be less likely to wrestle over the cost of said playoff push come the off-season.

On that note there's two things to keep in mind:

   #1) - Among a farm system's primary roles is to develop and provide their parent club with major league ready talent.  In likewise manner, they are to develop and maintain a sufficiently skilled surplus of players to be utilized in trades.

   #2) - Over recent years, the Mets system became overly populated with right-hand pitchers.  If there was an item the Mets were supremely prepared to part with, right-handed hurlers were it.

Now for the bill...

Three separate deals to acquire 4 quality major league veterans cost the Mets five minor league starting pitchers:

• Luis Cessa: (Rk, A-, A, A+, AA, AAA)

Cessa, 23, was the eldest of the five to get traded, and only whom managed to reach Las Vegas.  A former infielder turned pitcher, he was a member of the Brooklyn Cyclones' Fabulous-Five starting rotation which dominated the 2012 New York-Penn League regular season.

If forced to rate his 2012 performance in comparison to those of his 4 rotation mates, I'd place Cessa's effort 5th.  However, that's furthest from an indictment of Cessa's 2012 season.  Instead, it's an astonishing indication of just how dominant that year's rotation really was.

For the record, Luis Cessa started 13 games for Brooklyn in 2012.  He registered 72.1 innings pitched, posted a 5-4 record with 2.49 ERA and 1.065 WHiP, with a modest 5.5 K/9 average, but a fine 1.6 W/9 mark.

In 89 total appearances over 5 minor league seasons with the Mets, Luis Cessa posted a 31-28 record with a 3.61 ERA and a 1.222 WHiP.   In 481 innings pitched, he improved to an overall 7.3 K/9 average since his Brooklyn days, and remained consistent with a 1.8 W/9 average.

Unfortunately, he became the first of Brooklyn's famed Fabulous-Five to become a casualty of doing business.

• Michael Fulmer: (Rk, A, A+, AA)

Fulmer, 22, was perhaps the most touted of the lot, and the one remaining minor league pitcher Mets fans were grumbling to keep.  The club selected him in the 1st round (44th/Compensation-A) of the 2011 June amateur draft.  In 71 appearances over 5 minor league seasons he posted an even 23-23 record with a 3.15 ERA and 1.261 WHiP.  In 357.2 total innings pitched, he fanned 338 batters for an 8.5 K/9 average.

Simple stats hardly detail his odyssey.  In 2013, he twice underwent surgery to correct the same torn meniscus.  In 2014, he then underwent minor surgery to remove a bone spur and chips from his pitching elbow.

But by 2015 he seemingly put all that behind him and was enjoying a break out season with (AA)-Binghamton.  Through 15 starts and 86 innings pitched, he posted a 6-2 record with an Eastern League best 1.88 ERA, and 1.116 WHiP, with accompanying averages of 7.6 H/9, 2.4 W/9, and 8.7 K/9.

After two starts for the Erie SeaWolves- (DET), Michael Fulmer lowered his (AA)-Eastern League leading ERA further to a 1.64 mark.  In 12.2 innings pitched since the trade, he's allowed no runs, walked 3, and fanned 11 batters.

• John Gant: (Rk, A-, A, A+, AA)

Gant, 23, was selected by the Mets in the 21st round of the 2011 draft.  In 69 games and 374 innings pitched over 5 seasons with the organization, he went 28-19 with a 3.30 ERA and 1.249 WHiP, with an 8.6 K/9 average.

• Rob Whalen: (Rk, A, A+)

Whalen, 21, was the Mets 12th round selection of the 2012 amateur draft.  In 45 appearances and 239.2 innings pitched spanning 4 minor league seasons, he posted a 17-11 record with a 2.48 ERA and 1.076 WHiP, with a 7.8 K/9 average.

• Casey Meisner: (Rk, A-, A, A+)

Meisner, 20, is the least experienced of the lot.  He was selected in the 3rd round of the 2013 draft.   In 43 professional appearances and 217 innings pitched within the Mets system, he posted a 16-10 record with a 2.99 ERA and 1.244 WHiP, with a 7.8 K/9 average.



Someone is bound to get insulted (in this case uniformed members of the Mets) when broaching sensitive subjects such as backbones and intestinal fortitude.  I'll merely say the Mets seemingly now have enough of both to actually get this thing done.

So goes the business of contending, and chasing down pennants.



Mike