10
2012
MMO Fair or Foul: December 6, 2011 – A Day That Will Live In Mets Infamy?
An article by 
Here’s an interesting take on why the Mets are off to a 4-0 start as written by our friends at SprungOnSports. Read on and then tell us whether you agree or disagree.
On December 6, 2011, Mets GM Sandy Alderson signed relievers Frank Francisco and Jon Rauch and acquired Ramon Ramirez along with CF Andres Torres from the Giants for Angel Pagan. Alderson is one of the smartest men in baseball. He knew he would not be able to have an advantage over other teams with a juggernaut offense or a dominant rotation. But with so many relievers available last season, Alderson realized he could assemble a quality bullpen for a bargain basement price.
What difference has the new bullpen made so far? In games decided by two runs or fewer last season, the Mets went 34-40. When over 45 percent of your games are that close, a couple of key bullpen acquisitions could go a long way. New York went 4-7 in those tightly contested games last April. They’ve won the first four thus far. An immense amount of credit should be given to Alderson for big time moves that were considered an afterthought at the time.
So how is the trio of Francisco, Rauch and Ramirez doing so far? In 9 1/3 innings, they are 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA, three saves, two holds, four hits and two walks allowed to go with six strikeouts. They have been crucial components of all four wins thus far, all close wins. – Read the entire post at SprungOnSports.com.
I was one of those who was very critical of the Jon Rauch signing for $3.5 million. He looked excellent last night – dominating actually. Francisco has already racked up three saves in three opportunities.
Of course there’s two sides to every story…
December 6th was also the day the Mets lost Jose Reyes for good. In fact the timing of these other moves for relievers came less than two hours after Jose Reyes officially became a Marlin. To the second. Both the Rauch and Francisco signings, as well as the Angel Pagan trade, all happened within a 15 minute window and seemed concocted and orchestrated to deflect the incoming fire from the Reyes aftermath. So were these signings just a happy coincidence? A pleasurable little side effect nobody was really counting on?
About the Author: Joe DeCaro
I'm a lifelong Mets fan who loves writing and talking about the Amazins' 24/7. From the Miracle in 1969 to the magic of 1986, and even the near misses in '73 and '00, I've experienced it all - the highs and the lows. I started Mets Merized Online in 2005 to feed my addiction. Follow me on Twitter @metsmerized.
31 Comments + Add Comment
Recent Comments
- Major Mofongo: on Power Prospect Cory Vaughn Is On A Mission: Natera - http://www.nyfuturestars.com/players/luis-natera/ Thank You Omar
- BadBadLeroyBrown: on Power Prospect Cory Vaughn Is On A Mission: About time Stephen Strasburgs former college teammate...
- Joey D.: on Sacking Terry Collins Now Would Be Unfair: Hi Dr. Dooby, Apologizing for the length of...
- Coyote: on Power Prospect Cory Vaughn Is On A Mission: Natera sounds like a guy who can...
- DrDooby: on Things Spiralling Out Of Control For Ike Davis Offensively And Defensively: I agree Ike should be sent down...
MMO Mets Chat
Need Tickets To The Mets Game?
Check Out These Great MLB Links!
Photographs From Gordon Donovan
5367 Fans Follow Us On Twitter!
1269 Fans Like Us On Facebook!
2341 Fans Read Our Feed!
1702 Fans Subscribe via Daily Email!
I am guessing over 100 comments on this post Joe D.
Having said that I smile every time I see a Fair or Foul post remembering how it evolved.
LGM!
LOL, I minored in marketing not journalism.
I also didn’t want to see that cool banner and thumbnail Kelly made go to waste. I’m big on recycling.
Off topic – Outstanding job on your TRDM site redesign! It’s much easier to navigate now, the old theme was clunky. I also thought your rebranding was awesome too.
Thank you Joe It means a lot you saying that. You and Kelly set the bar high with MMO for the rest of us.
I think it’s the blue walls.
‘Both the Rauch and Francisco signings, as well as the Angel Pagan trade, all happened within a 15 minute window and seemed concocted and orchestrated to deflect the incoming fire from the Reyes aftermath.’
Well, even if it was orchestrated to some extent to deflect……so what?
Fact was, we lost Jose Reyes to Miami.
Fact was, our BP needed revamping as indicated by ‘in games decided by two runs or fewer last season, the Mets went 34-40′.
There was no way that once Miami signed Reyes, SA went to work in that short period of time to make that one trade and sign two more relievers as a concession for losing Reyes. They had to have been in the works for days. I would think very few deals go down between 2 GMs or one GM and a player’s agent in the space of 15 minutes.
Sandy knew he wasn’t signing Reyes the morning before.
What I did a poor job of trying to convey, was that all three deals were all pretty much finalized hours before the signing and orchestrated to announce them once Reyes signed. We now know Greenberg told Alderson the day before that Reyes was signing with the Marlins. Sandy told us that on our conference call.
O.K.
Still……I’m thinking the deals were probably in the works even before he knew Reyes was signing with Miami that weekend. If the timing worked out that allowed him to announce it on the heels of Miami’s announcement, so be it. We knew he was revamping that BP so we know it wasn’t done just to offset losing Jose.
srt: I kinda agree. I doubt Alderson would have had enough time to get all 3 deals done right after Reyes was taken by Miami. I’m sure deals and discussions were happening and the end of the negotiations just ended on or around the same day.
Do I think it helped Sandy to lose Reyes and be able to answer back with the acquisition of a new bullpen? Yes.
Do I think Sandy said “we just lost reyes quick lets get some bullpen arms to agree so we can announce it” No.
“Alderson is one of the smartest men in baseball.”
FIRE IN THE HOLE
4 games people.. FOUR GAMES!!!!!!!!! he’s one of the smartest men in baseball????
I think Alex is one of the people from the movie Major League, that no matter how good the team is doing, there he is saying “Their still f$%# shi^^%%y”
Phoenix, I said the same thing yesterday!
He’s a “so what! They’ll blow it in the 9th” type fan. He’s only happy when he’s miserable about the Mets.
Says the guy who tell others to stop talking about reyes yet post an ENTIRE article about the MARLINS about how he hates then and wishes reyes to have a miserable season, yet praises craig kimbrell and freeman, also, loves the braves organization, and picked the PHILLIES TO WIN THE WORLD SERIES… You hate for reyes is clear as water, you’re a hypocrite and one of the biggest trolls in this site.. Seriously, get a life man, you’re starting to sound pathetic looking for posters to try to get my attention by giving them thumbs up… You’re nothing but a frustrated mets fan who somehow at 4 years old went out to celebrate the WORLD SERIES championship of 1986… Learn about mets, baseball before you try to act like you know ok…
Do you and Maniac just share material now?
What I said was I am tired of people talking about Reyes in the woe is me fashion. Talking about how Sandy didn’t make an offer or how good the team would be with him or how they should have traded Wright and signed Reyes… yada yada yada blah blah blah.
I mentioned Reyes yesterday in a post to describe why I hate the Miami Marlins. You chose to take that opportunity to disagree with me because deep down you’re a Reyes fan not a Mets fan.
And yes, I picked the Phillies to win it all. My god, what a travesty.
Try writing POSITIVE comments on the site sometimes. Contribute to the discussion and not the problem.
Here is all anybody ever needs to know about you.
You mock me saying I am a braves fan simply because I said Kimbrel was the best young closer in NL and I’d prefer him over KRod and because I said Freeman is or will be as good as Ike Davis.
That makes me a Braves fan in your eyes.
Yet you JUST SAID in the sandbox and I quote
“alex68 I like the marlins, i like reyes, he’s my favorite player, i like hanram, so what!?!?”
So now every day you think you’re getting me by calling me a braves fan which I never said I was, we’ll just have to remember this is coming from a guy who said himself that he likes the Marlins, a division rival of the Mets.
Have a great day Alex.
He also said this:
“but if the mets play them i won’t root for them, or if they choke i gain nothing but happyness”
That doesn’t sound like a Marlins fan to me.
Vinny, from MIA the CORE saltute you!!!!!!!!!!!
The Core does salute you Vinny,
Also what is remarkable is that the Mets…THE METS!!!! They have 7 out of their starting lineup homegrown, isn’t that how you’re supposed to do thing? Where is the guy that second guesses everything everyday and praises teams like the Braves, The Giants (when they won) and any other team that is currently successful and says that’s how you do things. We all know who i’m referring too. The same guy that always dreams of Team Utopian all homegrown.
Well the Mets lineup is basically all home grown now. Where is he now?
One-Adam 12, One-Adam 12, be on the look out for a tall, dark man wearing a black trenchcoat who goes by the name t agee. Approach with extreme caution as the suspect may be carrying complete Mets draft records of the last 40 years. He can become violent at the mere mention of words like Putz or Kunz. I repeat, this is an APB – Be on the lookout for known second guesser t agee. Suspect is on the loose and may be heading toward the Flushing area.
LOL
So, wait, in your crappy post you “supposedly” hate the PHILLIES, yet you picked them to win it all? then, i pick the marlins and i am a marlins fan??
You love kimbrell, freeman and heyward yet you don’t wanna be called a braves fan? yet if i praise reyes or hanley for they’re talent i am a marlins fan?
You see the trend here?? You wanna do whatever you wanna do and not be called the same thing for calling others the same thing they’re calling you? This is why many people hate you and insult you, you have a tendency to try to be better than everyone else and we all know what you are…
Again, MARLINS are my WS favorite, this won’t be the first time a mets fan picked another team to win the WS, you did the same, yet i didn’t have a problem with it, why you got a problem with reyes and the marlins? because i picked them? are you letting my pick influence you to HATE the marlins and what they did this year? didn’t the angels did the same by signing pujols and CJ wilson? yet i see no post from you about hating them… Ohh, that’s right, is REYES and HANRAM the guys you don’t like so…
Alex, can you please stop ruining this post? Let it go.
I picked the Phillies to win not because I like them. I will hate every moment of watching them win if I am right. If the Marlins win you’ll rush on to MMO and celebrate.
Picking the Marlins to win a WS doesn’t make you a Marlins fan
This does
“alex68 I like the marlins, i like reyes, he’s my favorite player, i like hanram, so what!?!?”
Now go away and stop obsessing over me in Joe’s post, thanks
And how about those Braves anyway, Alex?
0-4 to start the season after their collapse last year. They lost again last night 8-3 to Huston.
Man, those unbeatable, amazing, remarkable, Atlanta Braves. We should model our team after them. They just do everything the right way.
LOL, Vinny, that pitching staff is amazing, those homegrowns are the real deal, kimbrell is the best closer, freeman sure is a stud… Ohhh, and heyward?? True superstar!!!!
Yep. Jason Heyward the .220 hitting superstar.
Oh and their amazing minor league prospects, like Juilo Teheran, who got bombed in ST, and didn’t make it out of the 2nd inning in his 1st start in the minors this year – Why can’t we ever get stud pitching prospects like that? Or like Vizcaino who’s out for the year with TJ surgery?
The only pitching prospects we have are like Harvey, Familia, Mejia, and Gorski, thanks to the monkeyball philosophy of our previous GM.
Oh and all the depth they have! Their so deep their that they had to pick up Livan Hernandez(Who was cut by the worst team in baseball) to pitch out of the bullepen! Isn’t the depth on that team just amazing?
LOL, Vinny, that frank wren is a genius, Since 2006 we have the same amount of postseason berths, yet we should be JUST LIKE THE braves…
John Schuerholz is the guy that was responsible for those Atlanta teams that won 14 straight divisions. Frank Wren rode his coattails.
What is wrong with how the Braves do things? Seems like we are modling ourselves after them to some extent and this current version and last years are a hell of a lot more enjoyable then watching sleepwalking millionaires. Plus they will take a bookmark when they determine a prospect needs another year. What’s wrong with that? We’ve had about a dozen guys come here in the last 5 years acurring service time who weren’t ready. The Braves with a 90 M dollar payroll over the last 5 years get a stand in instead of forcing the issue or making a reach for an expensive 4 year waste of a roster spot.
Heyward and Minor 1st round, McCann and Freeman from the 2nd round, Kimbrel 3rd rnd , Venters 30th rnd. Pastornicky, Vizcaino (trade for a prospect) O’Flaherty, Uggla (trade for a Major Leaguer) Prado, Teheran, Delgado IFA’s. Beachy an undrafted FA, Moylan off the Australian WBC team. All methods, not just one of building a baseball team and on a 90 M payroll. Plus they get rid of guys when they need to like Lowe and Kawakami, they don’t just live with them.
My criticism of Minaya was not that he didn’t get any decent prospects it was that he could have gotten so many more and more well rounded one’s at that and taken a bit more time with some of them.
My main criticism with Phillips was that he hardly got any after Reyes, Wright and Kazmir and inheriting a system like the one Phillips had run into the ground required more work and asset allocation on that end in the beginning than the Major League roster did. If he had we wouldn’t be in the midst of a 5 year lul and even though we were close it was that lack of any quality in the farm that caused us to sputter in the first place.
Phoenix, i’d be the first one to say I AM SORRY to all the sandy lover’s and i am willing to change my screen name to Alex68 <3 sandy if this team proves me and a few of us here wrong… But again, FOUR GAMES… Calm down a bit please.. adversity will strike and we'll see THEN what this team is made of !