Meet the Mets (For Mets Fans Only!)

sbenois said:

Really amazing to watch the Mets site and how they are raising prices for tomorrow's game as this one winds down.   30 minutes ago Hyundai Club tickets were $550 each.  Same seats are now $664.

This is not stubhub I am talking about...it is the actual Mets.com site.

must be the same "dynamic pricing" that TM uses. 

better off going to stubhub.  Seats in my section are going for around $150 there.


Jake showed why he's an ace last night. He hasn't had the great slider the past few starts, but he was able to get Ks when he was in trouble with runners on. The slider has often been just far enough off the plate that hitters are taking it. I was also pretty surprised he didn't go out for one more inning, given how dominant he was in the 6th. But Grisham looked pretty comfortable against him all night, and with a very (very!) well-rested Diaz waiting, I guess Buck figured let's not push our luck with deGrom.


if it’s any consolation, Met fans, the Indians will Padre the Yankees in Rd two.


Not happy with Cohen already planting the seeds for disarray next year by taking a public shot at Buck for the whole pitcher incident.  Real smart.  Says it was a "desperation" move.  Well, yeah, we were in pretty desperate situation, not hitting and backs to the wall of elimination.  The guy's ears did look real funny too.


In the light of the morning after, there's certainly a lot that can and will be batted around about what went wrong. I will offer only this...

I HEART THE NEW YORK METS. 


bub said:

Not happy with Cohen already planting the seeds for disarray next year by taking a public shot at Buck for the whole pitcher incident.  Real smart.  Says it was a "desperation" move.  Well, yeah, we were in pretty desperate situation, not hitting and backs to the wall of elimination.  The guy's ears did look real funny too.

No idea if this is true or not, but Andrew McCutcheon said a lot of pitchers put Icy Hot on their ears to help them focus, but it doesn't have any effect on the stickiness of the ball. That could explain the odd look of Musgrove's ears and the fact that the umps didn't find anything illicit.

https://twitter.com/TheCUTCH22/status/1579274865856507904


chalmers said:

bub said:

Not happy with Cohen already planting the seeds for disarray next year by taking a public shot at Buck for the whole pitcher incident.  Real smart.  Says it was a "desperation" move.  Well, yeah, we were in pretty desperate situation, not hitting and backs to the wall of elimination.  The guy's ears did look real funny too.

No idea if this is true or not, but Andrew McCutcheon said a lot of pitchers put Icy Hot on their ears to help them focus, but it doesn't have any effect on the stickiness of the ball. That could explain the odd look of Musgrove's ears and the fact that the umps didn't find anything illicit.

https://twitter.com/TheCUTCH22/status/1579274865856507904

Either he had something on his ears or he has the sweatiest ears in the history of sports.  

Buck's team was being one-hit by a very average pitcher.  What else are you going to do? Sit there and do nothing? I don't blame Buck for trying.  The worst that happens is the Mets still lose.


Bottom line is the Mets pitchers and hitters underperformed in the two most important series of the season.  Hopefully, this provides some motivation for next year.


yahooyahoo said:

chalmers said:

bub said:

Not happy with Cohen already planting the seeds for disarray next year by taking a public shot at Buck for the whole pitcher incident.  Real smart.  Says it was a "desperation" move.  Well, yeah, we were in pretty desperate situation, not hitting and backs to the wall of elimination.  The guy's ears did look real funny too.

No idea if this is true or not, but Andrew McCutcheon said a lot of pitchers put Icy Hot on their ears to help them focus, but it doesn't have any effect on the stickiness of the ball. That could explain the odd look of Musgrove's ears and the fact that the umps didn't find anything illicit.

https://twitter.com/TheCUTCH22/status/1579274865856507904

Either he had something on his ears or he has the sweatiest ears in the history of sports.  

Buck's team was being one-hit by a very average pitcher.  What else are you going to do? Sit there and do nothing? I don't blame Buck for trying.  The worst that happens is the Mets still lose.

Musgrove is a very good pitcher, far above average this season. And he was on last night. And had a little bit of good fortune. The few balls that were hit really hard went right at a fielder.

We were at last night's game and leaving aside that it was a playoff elimination of the Mets, it might have been the most boring game I've ever attended in person. The Mets' futility at the plate was one thing, but San Diego barely squared up any balls all night. Walks and an HBP were some of their key ABs. And one other observation is that the ball was NOT carrying at all, despite the fact that there wasn't much wind.  About a half dozen balls hit over 100 MPH didn't come close to leaving the park.  Pretty sure Nimmo's fly out to the warning track was hit 107. Padres had a couple of 105 MPH fly balls that stayed in the park as well.

The only quality aspect of the game was that the fielding was sharp.  No HRs, no DPs, and not even very many Ks. The offense was walks and soft hits. It was death by a thousand cuts for the Mets.

That said, it was the most fun season for this team in a long time. I went to more games than any season in my life and had a great time at all of them before last night.  The disappointment is that it's almost certain we'll be saying goodbye to a lot of the guys who made this season great. But the foundation is there for this team to be very good for the next few years if they can find the right roster pieces to replace the departing guys.


yahooyahoo said:

Bottom line is the Mets pitchers and hitters underperformed in the two most important series of the season.  Hopefully, this provides some motivation for next year.

this is true. I'm sure there are a lot of fans blaming Eppler for not getting bigger name players at the deadline. But had Scherzer pitched better the last two weekends, and if the hitters in the middle of the lineup had hit more, the team would still be playing. The Mets did not get sent home because of a lack of another lefty reliever, or because Vogelbach and Ruf were the DHs. The players who were the core of the team all year had bad days in the most important games. But sometimes it's just that the other team was better. A lot of major league hitters have a tough time agains the likes of Fried, Wright, Darvish and Musgrove.


So who stays and who goes?

Goes by trade or free agency or just hopefully disappearing:

McCann

Bassitt

May

Lugo

Naquin

Vogelbach

Ruf

Williams 

Hunter

Carrasco


Stays:

deGrom

Ottavino

Diaz

Nimmo

Walker

Givens


sbenois said:

So who stays and who goes?

Goes by trade or free agency or just hopefully disappearing:

McCann

Bassitt

May

Lugo

Naquin

Vogelbach

Ruf

Williams 

Hunter

Carrasco

Stays:

deGrom

Ottavino

Diaz

Nimmo

Walker

Givens

I can't argue with any of that. Although it depends on the price for Givens. 


ml1 said:

Musgrove is a very good pitcher, far above average this season. And he was on last night. And had a little bit of good fortune. The few balls that were hit really hard went right at a fielder.

This shouldn't be overlooked. Musgrove threw a no-hitter last year and came within four outs of another one this year.


chalmers said:

ml1 said:

Musgrove is a very good pitcher, far above average this season. And he was on last night. And had a little bit of good fortune. The few balls that were hit really hard went right at a fielder.

This shouldn't be overlooked. Musgrove threw a no-hitter last year and came within four outs of another one this year.

Musgrove was an All-Star this year, and his ERA was sub-3, his ERA+ was 127, and his WHIP the past two years has been 1.08. He's very good, and very underrated.


I can live with losing. The game is set up to break your heart. So, fine. What I find deeply, profoundly galling is that the Phillies keep playing despite winning 14 fewer regular season games. It's a damn travesty. What does the regular season actually mean now? Would anyone remember the Shot Heard Round the World if the Dodgers had found some side door into the series? Give me my defeat straight up, please. 

Hope they pay to keep Jake and Nimmo. I think Scherzer may be falling apart. Will be happy to never see McCann and his cup adjustments again. 

Anyway, now I can get back to reading books again, and composing screeds against leaf blowers.

 


sbenois said:

So who stays and who goes?

Goes by trade or free agency or just hopefully disappearing:

McCann

Bassitt

May

Lugo

Naquin

Vogelbach

Ruf

Williams 

Hunter

Carrasco

Stays:

deGrom

Ottavino

Diaz

Nimmo

Walker

Givens

Keep Bassitt, lugo, and williams.  Bassitt is a good pitcher as a number three starter and ate a lot of innings. Lugo was up and down, but more up than down.  Williams seemed fine to me as a long man.

for every arm you get rid of you need to find a better replacement.  That's not easy. 

McCann will only go if the Mets eat the last year of his deal.  I think $10 million.  

keep deGrom, but don't break the bank for him.  He didn't prove much after he returned


I would say keep Bassitt and Carrasco.  Cut guys like Vogelbach, McCann, Ruf, Naquin, etc.


Musgrove was totally in command all night.  He kept the Mets off-balance and off-timing, and he was always around the plate.  As noted above, and with some great data to back it up, Musgrove has been a high quality pitcher for several years.  Give him credit, he pitched a great game and Mets could not hit him.

Bassitt also pitched pretty well.  He was done in as much by weak contact hits and poorly timed walks as anything.  I hope the Mets keep him in 2023--like him a lot.  He changes planes and speeds well and is an intelligent and dependable pitcher.

I hope the Mets can resign deGrom, but he is going to be looking for a Scherzer-like contract. Scherzer was 38 when the Mets signed him, and deGrom is only 34, but he has had injury questions of late. Will Cohen pony up for another relatively aging superstar who may only pitch in 20 games a year for the foreseeable future?

Regarding deGrom, who would you most hate to see sign him away from the Mets?  The Yankees?  The Braves?  The Dodgers?  I would think the Dodgers are going to make the hardest run.  Their free agents include three starters (Hershiser, Anderson, and Heaney, and Beuhler is out with Tommy John surgery.  I would not put it past the Yankees to sign both deGrom and Judge; then again, I would not put that past Cohen, either.

I don't think the Braves would break the bank for deGrom, as they already have a fine stable of young arms.  San Diego could be a potential suitor, if only because they go after splashy signings every year.  And Darvish is a free agent after 2023.  



DanDietrich said:

Keep Bassitt, lugo, and williams.  Bassitt is a good pitcher as a number three starter and ate a lot of innings. Lugo was up and down, but more up than down.  Williams seemed fine to me as a long man.

for every arm you get rid of you need to find a better replacement.  That's not easy. 

McCann will only go if the Mets eat the last year of his deal.  I think $10 million.  

keep deGrom, but don't break the bank for him.  He didn't prove much after he returned

I agree with keeping those 3 guys, but I don't feel Bassitt is a #3. He's a good #4. I didn't particularly care for his comments about NY either. I think there isn't a better place to play if you perform. I suppose he can play for 1,000 fans in Oakland and not have to worry about being booed if he has a bad performance. I don't agree with booing guys like Scherzer, but when Vogelbach can't be bothered to run out a grounder I have no problem booing him. 


He didn't say that he was afraid of the fans.  He was just honest.  This is a tough town.  Mets fans online decide about someone and then spew hatred.  


DanDietrich said:

sbenois said:

So who stays and who goes?

Goes by trade or free agency or just hopefully disappearing:

McCann

Bassitt

May

Lugo

Naquin

Vogelbach

Ruf

Williams 

Hunter

Carrasco

Stays:

deGrom

Ottavino

Diaz

Nimmo

Walker

Givens

Keep Bassitt, lugo, and williams.  Bassitt is a good pitcher as a number three starter and ate a lot of innings. Lugo was up and down, but more up than down.  Williams seemed fine to me as a long man.

for every arm you get rid of you need to find a better replacement.  That's not easy. 

McCann will only go if the Mets eat the last year of his deal.  I think $10 million.  

keep deGrom, but don't break the bank for him.  He didn't prove much after he returned

I would be happy to keep Lugo and Williams.   But I think that they are going to leave for what they perceive to be greater opportunities.   


Well really in every case free agents will explore the market, so keeping someone is not a unilateral decision 


Re DeGrom, no matter how beloved and accomplished a veteran is, smart sports franchises (often not NY franchises) know when a player is past his prime and its either time to let go or go easy easy on the wallet to keep the player.  He's 34 with an accumulation of injuries that may or may not continue to flare up.  He may never be his old self again.  I love the guy but I'm not for spending a fortune on him based on the blind assumption that he is ageless and will return to his dominating form.


bub said:

Re DeGrom, no matter how beloved and accomplished a veteran is, smart sports franchises (often not NY franchises) know when a player is past his prime and its either time to let go or go easy easy on the wallet to keep the player.  He's 34 with an accumulation of injuries that may or may not continue to flare up.  He may never be his old self again.  I love the guy but I'm not for spending a fortune on him based on the blind assumption that he is ageless and will return to his dominating form.

there is a marketing value to players like deGrom and Judge staying with their current teams that doesn't exist with a lot of other teams. Would deGrom become the face of the Dodgers, Astros, or Braves overnight? Probably not and maybe never. He'd be a marketing coup mainly for mediocre teams that don't have stars on their rosters. And why would he want to sign with a non-contender?

At Citi Field, there were three jerseys of current players that dominated among the fans in the stands -- deGrom, Lindor, and Alonso. And that's even when deGrom wasn't pitching. 

I can't see any team blowing away a Mets offer to deGrom simply because from a business standpoint he's probably more valuable here than anywhere else. If he leaves it probably won't be because Cohen got outbid.  


I say letting him go may not be a bad thing so they could spend big on a hitter, but then I look at the other starting pitchers available and there isn't much out there. 


here's the thing for me -- when deGrom is healthy, the games are a lot more fun when he's on the mound. For me personally, a piece of my fandom would leave with him.  I'm still all in on the Mets for my lifetime, but I would miss seeing him pitch in our team's colors.


I agree with all of the above. When he is on there is nothing like it. My concern is he's getting older and hasn't proven he can get through six innings consistently. I can't see him going to the Braves. 


jfinnegan said:

I agree with all of the above. When he is on there is nothing like it. My concern is he's getting older and hasn't proven he can get through six innings consistently. I can't see him going to the Braves. 

I think the team held him back more than necessary. Perhaps because of the blister issue. There were a couple of games (like last Saturday) when he looked like he could have easily gone one more inning. So I don't really have a big concern about his ability to pitch more innings. And given how many times going back to his rookie year we've seen deGrom battle his way through a start without his best stuff and only give up a run or two, I think he can be an ace or close to it as long as Verlander or Scherzer. deGrom with a 93-94 four-seamer will likely still be one of the top pitchers in the league.  It would not surprise me if he's still excelling past the age of 40.


A co-worker just mentioned signing Conforto to platoon with Canha. I don't see that happening. They need to get the Cano and McCann contacts off the books. That's dead money. 


In order to add a comment – you must Join this community – Click here to do so.