Last off-season, I started writing a series of columns that profiled each member of the Mets bullpen and analyzed their performance in the previous season.
At the conclusion of each article, I would make a determination on whether or not I thought the pitcher should be brought back.
The articles, for the most part, were met with solid reader reception so this year we will continue the tradition.
To kickoff the off-season we will analyze the most criticized member of the 2009 bullpen, Sean Green.
Green, who was acquired in the J.J. Putz trade, was supposed to provide the team with solid middle relief and replace the void left by Joe Smith.
Needless to say, Green wasn’t as spectacular as ownership was presumably hoping he would be.
After getting off to a rough start in April, in which the righty posted an ugly ERA of 8.49, Green seemed to begin to find his groove in June and July posting two straight months of an ERA in the mid-to-low threes.
However, the pitcher regressed in August and his ERA for the month was nearly double its predecessor (5.91). There came a point that many fans, including myself, began to turn green at the very sight of the pitcher (pun intended).
It seemed as if Green was becoming Aaron Heilman 2.0.
After hearing a chorus of boos over and over again, Green recognized a change needed to be made and he tweaked his delivery to more of a side-arm style in an attempt to throw off opposing batters’ timing.
The change proved to be effective, as he had a 2.79 ERA for the month of September, along with two shut-out relief appearances in October.
To be fair the sample size with the new delivery is a rather small one and it isn’t wise to judge a player based on their September performance.
Having appeared in 79 games for the Mets last season, Sean Green’s final line consisted of a 4.52 ERA and a (1-4) record.
While these numbers are certainly far from ideal, keep in mind that they do not stray far away from Green’s past seasons with Seattle. Also, it is important to note that Green only took home a salary of $471,000, which isn’t much more than league minimum.
Final Verdict: Although, I am not a fan of Sean Green, personally, I do believe the Mets should bring back the reliever because he is a low risk option that offers the potential of solid middle relief at a rather affordable rate.
A lump of flesh. Completely indifferent.
A lump of flesh. Completely indifferent.
Sorry, forgot to add great post! Can’t wait to see your next post!
huh?
Sean Green Mets Bullpen 2010……NO DEAL!
ALAN, I TEND TO DISAGREE ON THE BASIS THAT 1- HE IS CHEAP,
2- SEPT WAS AN GOOD; BUT SMALL SAMPLING & A LARGER SAMPLING SHOULD BE INVESTED IN
3- BULLPEN FLOTSAM IS KNOWN FOR ERRATICISM 1 GOOD YR, FOLLOWED BY A BAD ONE, SEE CHAD BRADFORD et al. IT’S THE FEW THAT ARE PROVEN CONSISTANT THAT TRULY STAND OUT & BECOME STARS; TOO INVEST IN A REPLACEMENT COMING OFF A BETTER YR IS CERTAINLY GAMBLING ON PAYING FOR OFF YR PERFORMANCE INSTEAD OF POTENTIALLY REAPING THE REWARDS OF ALREADY PAYING FOR THE OFF YR. BULLPENS ARE ALWAYS A GAMBLE FEW GET RIGHT CONSISTANTLY, JUST WATCH THIS YRS WS! ATLANTA HAS STRUGGLED WITH IT FOR YRS EVEN WITH ALL THEIR RENOWNED PITCHING EXPERTISE. ROTATIONAL & CLOSER ARMS ARE FAIRLY EASY TO ASCERTAIN. IT’S THE INBETWEEN THAT’S THE KILLER. GREEN HAS SHOWN AN ABILITY TO SHINE; BUT NOT A RUBBERIZED ARM ala PEDRO FELICIANO. ALL OF THIS RATIONAL IS WHY I’M PRONE TO SWIM AGAINST TIDAL OPINION & FAVOR ATTEMPTING TO RESIGN PUTZ MORE REASONABLY IF MED REPORTS ARE PROMISING. PERHAPS 2/4M.
Sean Green was erratic being effective at times but not consistent. Nevertheless, I believe Green should be brought back as the Mets have much larger problems to fix. We need to concentrate on bringing power to the lineup and obtaining a dependable SP. We can limp along with Green for the time being. After the big problems are fixed, we can then take a closer look at Green. I say leave him in place for the time being with a tight leash on a daily basis.
No.
TOMMY, MASK IS RIGHT, GREEN IS #12 IN OUR TOP 10 OF FIXES NEEDED! U R ON RECORD SAYING,”For the funky delivery guy, I’d rather have Chad Bradford than Sean Green” WHILE U R RIGHT IN SOME INSTANCES SUCH AS GOPHERBALL TENDENCIES THE BRADFORD ’06 STATS ARE NOT “HEAD & SHOULDER” BETTER THAN GREEN’S FROM ’09.
CHAD06- 4-2,2.90 ERA 70G 62IP.254 AVG 1.36 WHIP
GREEN – 1-4 4.52 ERA 79G 70IP.240 AVG 1.44 WHIP
PERHAPS IS MUCH MORE “WHEN USED” THAN “HOW EFFECTIVE” LIMITED TO FACING THOSE LONE RHH IN MIDST OF LH POWER ie WERTH. GREEN IS AN AFFORDABLE TOOL JERRY NEEDS TO MASTER INSTEAD OF DISCARDING.
Man, Heilman was so bad that a prof at my med school named Heilman gave me shudders. I’d keep Green, we’ve got waaaay bigger fish to fry.
I reckon, as bad as the Mets team was, that we should start throwing out the crap – un-clutter the team – and that includes Sean Green.
There were some players who were good to ok,including Santana, Wright, Beltran, Castillo, Frenchy. Pagan, K-Rod.
There were some players that were ok to mediocre – including Maine, Murphy, etc.
And there were some players who sucked – Perez and Green are right up there.
If I was GM I would first look at clearing the team of the players who sucked – then I would decide how much the mediocre players will help the team. Then I would figure out exactly what the team needed.
Green is an easy choice – he sucked.
Your revelation “While these numbers are certainly far from ideal, keep in mind that they do not stray far away from Green’s past seasons with Seattle” has left me scratching my head because it only indicates that he will continue to suck.
I appreciate doing your doing a review of the players but if your conclusion is that a player who sucks should stay with the team then why bother?
The thinking is that Green was overused in Seattle and one could make that argument with the Mets last season.
With a healthy setup man in 2010, Green wouldn’t need to be relied on as much and it is possible that he would be able to perform better with less work.
If not then the Mets eat a couple grand, which is nothing in the baseball world.
He was league average for a league average salary. He, and the bullpen is not the problem.
Exactly, and who knows with the new delivery maybe he can be even better.
For the funky delivery guy, I’d rather have Chad Bradford than Sean Green.
Green was prone to unusual lapses in control last year that resulted in wild pitches and walks. He also threw pitches up in the zone and was damaged significantly as a consequence. By contrast, ChadBrad always appeared to bear down when it mattered most – instances where Sean Green came up too short too often.
In conclusion, I think Sean Green has talent, but I question whether he has the killer instinct necessary to raise his level of performance in must-win situations. Apart from talent, we need winning pitchers and winning ballplayers. I do not consider Sean Green to fit that mold.
As far as his new delivery is concerned… “the submarine”… well, I’ve developed a new delivery of my own…which concludes with my foot kicking his ass out the door.
I agree with you in the sense that I’d much rather have Chad Bradford on the team and was one of the most disappointed people when I found out that Omar elected to not to bring him back.
However, as MLB Trade Rumors pointed out in September Bradford has been injured much of this season and is close to retiring. Link: http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2009/09/chad-bradford-leaning-toward-retirement.html
Also keep in mind Bradford would most likely command a much higher salary then Green and, while not ideal, with so many holes to fill it’s hard to imagine the team is going to put a lot of resources into the bullpen outside of a setup man.
If Bradford isn’t available nor a reasonable facsimile thereof, I’d rather allow our AAA prospects compete for Green’s spot than go through another season of his unsteady mediocrity. There’s more than a few candidates, such as Tobi Stoner, Lance Broadway, or someone more tested and reliable such as Nelson Figueroa – at least he has a pair.
TOMMY, DO U EVER CHECK ON CURRENT EFFECTIVNESS? OR DO U SOLELY RELY ON YOUR RECOLLECTION OF PERFORMANCE. THEONE THING WORSE THAN GREEN’S MISERABLE 1.4 WHIP FOR A MID-RELIEVER WOULD HAVE TO BE BRADFORD’S 2.32 FROM LAST YR. IMAGINE A MID RELIEVER ALLOWING MORE THAN 2 BASERUNNERS PER INNING? THAT’S MISERY & AS BAD AS IT GETS & STILL RECEIVING PAYCHECKS. WILL U JUST ACCEPT MIDRELIEVERS ARE AS INCONSISTANT AS THE WEATHER & GOING BACK 2 YRS ON ANYONE NOT NAMED RIVERA IN ANY PEN IS A FOOL’S ERRAND. THAT’S WHAT MAKES RIVERA SO REMARKABLY SPECIAL.
PHIL & TOMMY, PLEASE REVIEW BRADFORD’S STATS AFTER HIS NYM STINT. OMAR JETTISONING CHAD WAS POSSIBLY ONE OF HIS MOST ASTUTE BP MOVES AS OBVIOUSLY THE DATE FOR BRADFORD’S EFECTIVNESS EXPIRED IN ’06:
2007 78G 64.2 IP, 77 BH 3.34 ERA, 1,44 WHIP
2008 68G 59.1 IP 59 BH 2.12 ERA 1.25 WHIP
2009 20G 10.1 IP 22 BH 435 ERA, 2.32 WHIP
PERHAPS RETIREMENT ISN’T A KNEEJERK REACTION TO RECENT INJURY AS MUCH AS INEFFECTIVNESS & INEPTNESS? CHAD WAS A RECLAIMATION GAMBLE THAT PAID OFF IN ’06. OBVIOUSLY OMAR KNEW WHEN TO FOLD ‘EM. RIGHT NOW IN HEAD-HEAD COMPARISON BASED ON AGE/EFFECTIVNESS GREEN IS THE BETTER “FUNKY” OPTION THAN CHAD “THE CHUD” BRADFORD!
PERHAPS THE KEY TO GREEN’S SUCCESS IS BEING USED PROPERLY, AS WITH ANY SPECIALIST THERE SHOULD BE A LARGE DELTA BET #G & IP. WHILE WITH SEATTLE HIS IP > G INSTEAD OF IP < G. JERRY WAS SLOW TO REALIZE THE VALUE OF STOKES' VELOCITY & MISUSED HIM DEBILITATING HIS CONTROL. STOKES SHOULD BE THE PORIMARY RH MID RELIEF WHILE GREEN THE RH SPECIALIST USED FOR THAT 1 BATTER(WERTH?) STUCK BET LH THREATS. '09 WAS GREENS'S HIGHWATER MARK IN #G/SEASON. INCREASING WARMUPS & DECREASING EFFECTIVNESS. GREEN AS A 'C RATING' IS A SERVICABLE, YET LIMITED ASSET IF USED SPARINGLY AS MOST SPECIALISTS. HE IS NOT A CROSSOVER TYPE & THAT'S HOW HE SHOULD BE USED. DIFFERENT TOOLS FOR DIFFERENT JOBS. TO USE GREEN Vs LHH IS AKIN TO A HAMMER AS PRIMARY PLUMBING TOOL.
Good idea for a topic, Phil.
Personally, Green was just one part of the 2009 Mets who is forgettable. He strikes me as a BP mediocrity, but clearly he’s not a huge problem. Heck, maybe he deserves another shot, but if the Mets find him useful as part of a trade, I won’t lose much sleep over him.
Overall grade for S. Green–C/C-
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