Comments on: Morning Grind: How Does Dan Warthen Still Have A Job?

By: Moose

Moose — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 02:55:52 +0000

We need a pitching coach like one of the Madox brothers or Oral Herscher. Do you miss Rick Peterson yet?

By: Sach

Sach — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 16:13:46 +0000

I’m surprised that Warthen is still the Mets pitching coach even though TC wanted him back. Sandy seems to favor promoting from within in regards to coaches but probably was too hesitant in handing the key pitching coach position over to a rookie ML pitching coach- Bones,Valdes or Regan. Maybe Bones is being groomed for the position next year. Where is the evidence as TC says that Warthen communicates and works well with his pitchers and gives them a game plan to succeed? Most pitchers have regressed under his watch.

By: Metsie

Metsie — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 15:19:40 +0000

I was one of the first to criticize Warthen (early 2010) because he seemed to wait until the game was blown or about to be blown before he would go visit the mound.

Last year he seemed to run out there much earlier which I have to say was a definite improvement in my eyes.

That said most of our issues in the SP department is in the head!
Guys falling into bad preictable habits,
abandoning pitches that were a big part of their success,
Getting into bad patterns and walking guys they had 0-2!

Those are all things the Pitching coach is supposed to correct!
Dickey our best pitcher is pr4ecisely that because he DOES think about what he wants to do and he is the one guy who doesn’t even HAVE to because it’s 90% Knuckleball!

Yet he still thinks location, speed, strike or nibble.

If the rest of our pitching staff would get with his program they could all be rock solid starters!
They have the stuff it’s that they don’t seem to have the head to use those pitches the way they should!

And thats my main bitch about Warthen these days!
I know they like him yet if he is telling them what he should they sure aren’t listening!
SO I am left to wonder if some new blood and the fear of not pleasing thier coach might not be a good thing for our current staff!

By: alex68

alex68 — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 12:31:48 +0000

edgar,
no, i might’ve exaggerated a lil bit, my point was under warthen pitchers have gotten hurt a lot, and none of the pitchers have been consistant year in and out. he has not helped one pitcher to stand above the others, while peterson worked magic with middle of the road pitchers like perez and maine, warthen hasn’t done crap.

By: Edgar

Edgar — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 11:36:52 +0000

Is that an attempt at sarcasm? Stellar, Randy Johnson?

By: tlagee

tlagee — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 11:20:10 +0000

ha ha. Yeah, no complaints with Mel now that you mention him.

By: Joe Diaz

Joe Diaz — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 09:16:20 +0000

I was going to say Mel Stottlmyre but I’m sure you weren’t pleased with him tinkering with Doc’s delivery.

By: tlagee

tlagee — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 02:23:42 +0000

The only reason I can see the Mets keeping Warthen is that he must come cheap.

I don’t want Peterson back though.

I thought Rick Peterson was extremely over-rated and a divisive force on the team. It seemed that every time Peterson would go to the mound the pitcher would immediately get lit up after he left. I wondered what advise Rick would give them – “Try and groove your pitches”?

I thought Dave Wallace was an excelent coach – but he was also a back stabber – throwing Valentine under the bus to management.

I’m struggling to remember the last pitching coach I actually liked.

By: 86mets

86mets — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 18:28:51 +0000

Nestor, all I will say is Dave Duncan and Chris Carpenter

Carpenter’s stats in 6 years in Toronto: 49-50, 4.83 ERA, 1.51 WHIP, 10 hits per 9IP

Carpenter’s stats in 8 years in St Louis: 95-42, 3.06 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 8.1 hits per 9

Good pitching coaches do make a difference. Carpenter struggled in Toronto to reach his potential, but under the guidance of Dave Duncan became a consistent (albeit injury prone) front line starting pitcher. With the right pitching coach, guys like Niese, Parnell, and Pelfrey might actually become very good major league pitchers, in other words, both good AND consistent.

I agree with Clayton. Warthen cannot be allowed to touch the likes of Harvey, Wheeler, or Mejia.

By: Clayton Collier

Clayton Collier — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 17:15:09 +0000

Exactly like calling Maine a liar last year.

By: Clayton Collier

Clayton Collier — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 17:14:03 +0000

Alex I was going to include that but the health of players normally falls on the trainer Ray Ramirez rather than the pitching coach. Warthen is somewhat responsible in how they deliver the pitch, mechnics etc. that may tax the body and lead to an injury, but most of the responsibility is Ray’s.

Ramirez needs to get the boot as well though.

By: JJ

JJ — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 17:10:43 +0000

I think Rube Walker is still alive and available.

By: NJstuckinTX

NJstuckinTX — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 17:10:08 +0000

I used to be in the Sign E. Jackson. After the performance last night… No thank you. Especially with Warthen here.

By: nathan

nathan — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 16:34:54 +0000

Well your example kinda shows something. Doc had his problems when he came up and went down and they worked on his mechanics and became the pitcher he is. If noone showed him the way or he continued to keep trying to plow through the majors unsuccesfully he may never have become elite. Pelfrey and Niese both have #2 stuff maybe not ace stuff but durn good and they both have to try to figure it out alone. Pelf is a head case and won’t figure it out until he has a coach who will guide him the way he needs and Neise well we will see. Coaching is very important to pitching as a poor coach will allow mechanics that will destroy your elbow or shoulder’ (ask me how I know) Were good coaches guide a player to the performance that they are capable of.

By: Metsie

Metsie — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 16:25:30 +0000

It’s a good question Clay and the only thing I might be able to come up with as an answer is he has been complaining loudly about the Pitchers he has to work with and they couldn’t do anything to change them to remove that excuses validity!

By: Donal

Donal — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 16:24:25 +0000

Ya, I can see them wanting Bones to get the hang of the big club before thrusting him into such a big role.

By: Joe Diaz

Joe Diaz — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 16:20:58 +0000

I wouldn’t worry about how Warthen will affect the kids coming up in the near future.Familia,Harvey and Wheeler,and probaby in that order,Wheeler mid 2013.Ricky Bones is now the bullpen coach and he is widely regarded around baseball as the next really good pitching coach and I think some time during next season when the pitching hits a rough patch,Warthen will be replaced by Ricky Bones.

Bones has been doing great things with our young kids down on the farm.We had a lot of big time improvement under the watchful eye of Bones.He will be the next pitching coach.The only thing I’m thinking is they want to transition bones from bullpen coach to pitching coach slowly.

By: any

any — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 15:58:44 +0000

well, the reports were that Collins was pulling for Warthen too.

By: Donal

Donal — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 15:56:52 +0000

We’d like some consistency, though. We’d like for Pelf to stop trying to learn a new pitch every year while his sinkerball, the one he actually used rather well, regresses to the point where guys are teeing off on it now.

we’d like a guy who can at least give us some inkling as to why Niese seems to completely burn out after 140 innings.

By: any

any — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 15:56:26 +0000

I agree that I don’t understand how he is still here, given this is a results based business.

I just can’t see any pitcher that got better under his watch. new approach, mechanical change, new pitch? Anything? Beuller?

at some point, guys need to show improvement for him to have something to point to where he is adding value.

maybe he isn’t the problem, but I can not see any downside to getting a fresh perspective in. Can the pitching possibly get worse?

I wonder if the plan is 1 last chance for Danny this year, with one of the well regarded system guys (Valdes?) on tap to replace him?