A year ago Davis was coming off the valley fever scare and ankle injury. His .156/.212/.290 slash line could be intellectualized. Similar numbers (.149/.229/.248) this year are reason for concern. There are many players that are slow starters, but are the Mets’ doomed to Davis not showing up the first ten weeks of the season? Has reality set in that he might be a 4-A hitter with flawed mechanics at the plate?

Davis and Jacobs are not exactly apples to apples comparison. Ike was a highly touted first round pick in 2008. His struggles in Brooklyn during his rookie year in pro ball were well documented. Jacobs was a 38th round pick that nobody talked about when he had a breakout 2005 season in Binghamton. He was supposed to be an injury replacement at the big league level, but If not for Pedro Martinez‘s lobbying after a Sunday afternoon home run, we never would have been treated to Jacobs’ September to remember. It’s also possible that Carlos Delgado would never have been acquired that offseason.

As a full-time first baseman from 2006-2008, Mike Jacobs averaged 23 homers, 75 RBI and a .258 batting average. In his two full seasons of work (2010, 2012) Davis has produced 25 homers and 75 RBI with a similar average. Both produce about the same level of strikeouts, although Davis has the penchant to walk a bit more- although probably not enough for the organization’s liking. Both struggle against left handers. Defensively, there is no comparison. Even when he’s struggled Davis has gold glove potential. Jacobs was only plugged-in at first after failing behind the plate. Still, a first baseman needs to hit at an elite level to be considered valuable. If Jacobs is the best that Davis has to offer, then it’s probably time to question if the Mets have a cornerstone at first base for years to come. Should they package Davis if and when he heats up again? Will a trip to the minors help? Is Lucas Duda the answer? Can they afford to pay for a first baseman on the free agent market?

Many scouts have expressed concern over Davis’ mechanics at the plate. It’s complicated, awkward looking and appears difficult to replicate. The more “noise” a player has in the box the harder it will be to hit a baseball, an already difficult task. Can this be fixed? That is hard to predict, but Davis wouldn’t be the first hot-shot hitting prospect to fizzle at the big league level. At the very least a trip to Triple-A Las Vegas should be on the table.

The Mets got lucky when both Jose Reyes and David Wright developed best case scenarios upon their call-up a decade ago. Prospects are an inexact science and, to date, none of the current group of homegrown players has shown to be consistent everyday big leaguers, much less stars.

WFAN callers rarely provide for intelligent or even interesting commentary. Comedy is more how I would describe my experience. Ironically, a caller to the midday show just might have uncovered a hard reality: Ike Davis is no better than a former flash in the pan prospect. I doubt even a productive final four months of 2013 will net a player any close to Delgado’s capabilities. Remember, lightening doesn’t strike twice.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post, pops the question and defends Collins, saying:

“It is relatively easy to argue his second-year team had worse talent than his first and this, his third team, has worse talent than his second…That is why I have no idea if Collins is a good manager or not. Showalter would lose big with this team, and so would Tony La Russa and Joe McCarthy and Casey Stengel. Or some cloned combo of all of them.”

Sherman draws a comparison between what Collins has been given to work with as compared to the last Mets manager to succeed, Willie Randolph.

“He was given Pedro Martinez, Carlos Beltran, Carlos Delgado and Billy Wagner to team with the young Jose Reyes and David Wright and the still-succeeding Tom Glavine. Collins has had the opposite, pretty much — the removal of anything approaching veteran talent from this roster and a bunch of booby prizes put in their place.”

This is about lack of talent, not Collins, he goes onto write. And as I’ve been maintaining since the offseason, Collins will indeed be the sacrificial lamb – that much was true when he was allowed to go into this season as a lame duck manager.

But as Sherman concludes, no Mets manager ever will get a truly fair judgment if Sandy Alderson never figures out how to enrich the talent level of the 25-man roster.

Last week, I wrote how the most frustrating thing about Alderson’s first three years as the Mets’ GM, is that there is not one keeper he brought in on the MLB squad – not one major league player in three seasons.

While we hope the farm is as good and improved as we think it is, ultimately those determinations are only made in the major leagues and not from a prospect ranking list. That’s how it’s always been in the ol’ ball game…

One of the more frustrating things so far about the 2013 season for the Mets, has to be the ongoing struggles of first baseman Ike Davis. Many of us including myself, were simply salivating of the thought of a breakout season for Davis this year, especially after the way he ended the 2013 season leading the National League in home runs and RBIs.

With the exodus of Prince Fielder and Albert Pujols to the American League, some even envisioned a possible All Star berth along side Joey Votto at Citi Field for the Mid-Summer Classic.

All those glossy expectations are now out the window and instead of celebrating a great season for our first baseman of the future, we are left wondering if Ike Davis will be a part of the solution or the future at all. Trade rumors and speculation are already abounding.

Manager Terry Collins can’t make up his mind what to do with his struggling power hitter and after vowing to leave him in the cleanup spot for as long as it takes, he was dropped to the seven spot of the order two days later.

Andrew Kahn, who has written for the Wall Street Journal, Newsday and ESPN, sheds some light on the matter in a comprehensive article today which you can read here.

Using Baseball-Reference’s “Similarity Scores,” he gathers a list of players who compared with David through their age 25 seasons. Among them you will find Carlos Delgado, Mo Vaughn, Eric Karros and David Ortiz to name a few.

However, the key difference between Davis and the other players in the chart, he writes, is that they had a breakout season. “A year in which they performed close to how they’d perform over the rest of their career at age 25 or 26.”

He tackles the question I posed in the title, and does a good job of concluding that if Ike Davis is ever going to be the player we all thought he would be and thus save his career, then this is the year to prove it. Read Andrew’s full article here.

As the title says, the R.A. Dickey deal just keeps looking better and better for Sandy Alderson and the Mets – and that’s with the signature piece to the deal, Travis d’Arnaud, idling on the disabled list for nearly a month.

A post by Josh Chapdelaine of Around Citi brought to my attention just how bad things are going for the reigning Cy Young this season.

“The knuckleballer racked up his fifth loss of the year”, writes Chapdelaine. “Dickey allowed seven earned runs on six hits while allowing a staggering three home runs – including a leadoff home run to Michael Saunders and a Dustin Ackley grand slam – to balloon his ERA to 5.36 in 2013.”

That’s too bad for Dickey, but it just makes the decision to trade him one of the best moves this front office has made since taking over.

Making the deal even sweeter for the Mets has been the incredible production from catcher John Buck who hit his 10th homer of the season last night. That tied Buck with Carlos Delgado (2006) and Dave Kingman (1982) for the second-fastest (25 games) to double digits in franchise history to start a season. Kingman also holds the franchise record when he clouted 10 homers in his 23 games in 1976. Buck now leads the National League with 29 RBI.

“I can’t begin to tell you where we would be if Buck did not get off to the start he got off to,” manager Terry Collins said. “We could be five-and-whatever.”

What’s most remarkable about Buck, is that he was looked upon as the throw-in when the Mets initially acquired Travis D’Arnaud, Noah Syndergaard and Wuilmer Becerra in exchange for Dickey, Josh Thole and Mike Nickeas. Buck only came the Mets way because the Jays wanted him and his $6 million dollar contract included in the deal. I bet they regret that decision now.

Meanwhile, while D’Arnaud is still out with a foot injury, Syndergaard is having a sensational season so far for Advanced-A St. Lucie. The young right-hander now has 2.90 ERA in six starts, but has really turned it on lately posting a 0.47 ERA and allowing just one earned run in his last three starts while striking out 16 and walking 5 in 19.0 innings pitched.

No word yet on when D’Arnaud will begin baseball activities, but there’s no need to rush as Buck has got things well under control and may just be on his way to an All Star Game berth later this season at Citi Field.

“You spend all spring thinking you’re only going to be here a little while until d’Arnaud is ready,” Collins said. “Maybe Buck is saying, I will show everybody that I’m going to be here a little longer than that!”

This is so incredibly wild…

Starting Lineup

1. Ruben Tejada – SS
2. Daniel Murphy – 2B
3. David Wright – 3B
4. John Buck – C
5. Lucas Duda – LF
6. Marlon Byrd – RF
7. Ike Davis – 1B
8. Juan Lagares – CF
9. Jonathon Niese – LHP

Game Notes

John Buck’s eight April homers tied the club record for a catcher in the month (Mike Piazza in 2001, Todd Hundley in 1996), and are one shy of the team record shared by Carlos Delgado (2006) and Dave Kingman (1976). Buck leads the NL and is tied for fourth in the majors with 23 RBI…Buck is also tied for third in the majors with eight home runs.

Shaun Marcum surrendered three runs in four innings and was dissatisfied with his Mets debut. The Mets dropped their second straight home series after winning their first three, and have lost eight of their last nine games to the Phillies dating back to last year.

Robert Carson served up homers to Domonic Brown and John Mayberry Jr. in the fifth as the Met lost to the Phillies, 9-4, Saturday at Citi Field. The Mets’ bullpen came into the game with a 5.02 ERA, tied for last in the majors, and got worse, rising to 5.28. This bullpen needs to turn it around immediately or this is going to be another long season for the Mets.

Tim Byrdak continues to progress from surgery to repair a torn anterior capsule in his left shoulder. Byrdak has reached 180 feet in his long-tossing on flat ground and should be on a mound during the upcoming week for the first time since the surgery.

Game Preview

The Mets try to salvage one game of the Phillies series this afternoon after dropping the first two. The Mets are also on their first three game losing streak of the season. Yesterday Marcum only lasted 4 innings allowing 3 earned runs and then Carson allowed 5 runs the inning after. At that point, things looked pretty bleak for the Mets. Hopefully Niese will be able to pull the Mets out of this rut as he squares up against Hamels.

Jon Niese is 2-1 on the season over 5 games and 26.0 innings with a 3.81 ERA. Over those 26 innings he has walked 12 batters and struck out 14 batters. Last year Niese faced the Phillies 5 times with a 2-1 record and a 2.93 ERA over 30.2 innings. The Phillies have the following numbers against Jon Niese:

Rollins 7-33, 2 2B
Mayberry 9-28, 2 2B, 3 HR
Utley 2-15
Howard 1-15
Young 2-3

The Mets draw the ace of the Phillies staff this afternoon in Cole Hamels. So far this series the Mets bats have not been able to figure out the back of the rotation, maybe because the universe makes very little sense when it comes to Mets baseball, they’ll be able to figure out Hamels. Hamels is 0-3 this season with a 5.40 ERA over the 5 starts and in his last three starts he has a 2.57 ERA. He was 2-0 against the Mets last year over 4 starts with a 3.86 ERA. The Mets have the following numbers against Cole:

Wright 17-55, 3 2B, 3B, 4 HR
Tejada 5-22
Buck 2-22, 2 HR
Murphy 6-20, 2B, HR
Davis 6-19, HR
Byrd 3-11

Let’s Go Mets!

Isn’t it amazing what kind of a player David Wright can be when he’s actually surrounded by some legitimate major league talent?

Currently, Wright is enjoying some of the most spectacular baseball he’s ever played in his career, and why not? We’ve all seen what the Mets All Star third baseman could do before when he had great protection in the lineup.

It was no coincidence that Wright had his best two seasons as a Met when both Carlos Delgado and Carlos Beltran were lethal weapons for the Mets, before each of them got hurt and became less effective.

Back then, we saw what “Captain America” was capable of, and things haven’t been the same since Dos Carlos were last seen together in a Mets lineup with David Wright.

It’s been a grind for Wright since the 2009 season. Sure, he’s had his moments and even a couple of tremendous halves on two occasions. But not nearly the kind of consistent seasons we saw from Wright during the three year stretch spanning 2006-2008.

I believe that on Omar Minaya’s part, he understood that Wright needed that protection and while Jason Bay ended up being a complete and colossal bust, nobody could have predicted the AL’s leading home run and RBI man would collapse the way that he did once he joined the New York Mets. Then the money ran out.

Wright now enters the 2013 season with way too many question marks in the lineup. Lucas Duda is 27 and is still a project just as he was two years ago. Ike Davis has yet to put together two good halves and form one solid season. And it looks like Collin Cowgill and Marlon Byrd may log a lot of playing time this season if we are to believe the daily reports from the Mets’ beat writers and some of the things Sandy Alderson and Terry Collins have said.

That’s a far cry from the likes of Eric Hosmer, Ryan Braun, Joe Mauer and Giancarlo Stanton, who are some of the players that are sandwiching Wright on Team USA’s power-packed, star-studded lineup.

So while some of us look upon what Wright is doing with astonishment and excitement, lets understand what we are really seeing here. These amazing moments are most likely not a portent of things to come during the Mets 2013 regular season. I urge and caution all of my fellow Met fans to reign in any gaudy expectations your mind may have already conjured up and dial it back a few notches.

Go ahead and savor what David Wright is currently doing in the World Baseball Classic and relish every moment. Be proud of what Wright accomplishes with every mighty swing of his bat. But don’t forget that it’s only March 14, and that the real baseball season begins on April 1. That is when reality will sink in for most of us, but mostly for David Wright as well. He returns to a lineup devoid of the type of talent he surrounds himself with now.

So enjoy the spectacle we have before us while it lasts, and Go Team USA!

* * * * * * * *

This Fan Shot was contributed by MMO reader, KMaxx.

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The game, whether it’s baseball, basketball, football or hockey is always the number one attraction for any consumer to walk through the gates. In 1941, Bill Veeck started to bring a different point of view. What if the game wasn’t the only entertainment?

In 1941, Veeck was a part of a group that purchased the Milwaukee Brewers of the American Assn. Veeck and his manager Charley Grimm put their heads together to come up with themes and gimmicks that would turn the Brewers into one of the most successful (and entertaining) minor league franchises.

Veeck took the game seriously though as well. Veeck is widely known as the man who signed Larry Doby, the first African American man to play in the American League.

Later on, his son, Mike Veeck would put his stamp on the game in 1979 when Disco Demolition Night demolished the record books for one night in Chicago.

Since the Veeck’s put their personal marketing stamp on the game, every major sport and minor league baseball does their best to not only entertain their fans beyond the game – but get some quality media exposure for doing so.

Some of the greatest promotions and giveaways occur when current events take everybody’s attention in the news. Which team will be the first to act and find a way to capitalize on current events?

But, with the season just around the corner, many teams have finalized their promotional schedules. In our first installment, we’ll take a look at the top 5 promotions the American League has to offer in 2013.

Toronto Blue Jays – Carlos Delgado Day: On July 21st Blue Jays fans will receive a commemorative Carlos Delgado baseball. The Blue Jays will honor Carlos Delgado by adding him to the Toronto Blue Jays Level of Excellence.

Baltimore Orioles – Alumni Series:  Before every Monday and Thursday home game, fans are invited to meet some of their favorite former Orioles, as select O’s Alumni will sign autographs.

Chicago White Sox – Mullet Night & Fireworks: This crazy combo will be held on June 28. As somebody who has grown tired of fireworks, when you sprinkle in Mullets, you had me at hello.

Seattle Mariners – Beard Hat Night: This promotion, which takes place on April 26, could be epic if the Mariners signed closer Brian Wilson. The hat is a ski cap that has a bottom face cover that looks like a beard. It’s pretty pointless, but I bet they will have a lot of fun with this item.

BREAKING: Your first glimpse of the @coco_crisp Lean Bobblehead on June 29 vine.co/v/bnu9vFqgHFO

— Oakland Athletics (@Athletics) February 4, 2013

Oakland A’s – Coco Lean Bobblehead: If you remember the 2012 Oakland A’s would celebrate by doing a Weekend at Bernie’s like lean-back. Oakland capitalized on this and found a way to put it into a bobblehead. Almost anything you can imagine has been done with a bobblehead – this hasn’t. Get yours on June 29.

In our next installment we’ll focus on the National League before diving into the Minor Leagues!

How awesome was this scene in the clubhouse?

Man, 2006 feels like so long ago now. That season was the most exciting one I have witnessed since the World Series run in 2000. The Mets were a juggernaut. We had swagger, power, pitching, speed. We had a attitude and everyone hated us, especially when Reyes, Delgado, and others would dance on the field.

Remember the slogan?

“The Team. The Time. The Mets.”

Remember how much we loved Willie Randolph? We thought he was our savior, and everything he touched was gold.

The 2005 off-season was Omar Minaya’s second season at the helm. He spared no expense, and left no stone unturned as he built a powerhouse of a team.

Notable moves from the 2005 off-season that helped lead us to the 2006 NL East Crown.

• 

  The lasting image of the young Wright celebrating

  November 18, 2005: Xavier Nady was traded by the San Diego Padres to the New York Mets for Mike Cameron.

• November 24, 2005: Carlos Delgado was traded by the Florida Marlins with cash to the New York Mets for Mike Jacobs, Yusmeiro Petit, and Grant Psomas (minors).
• November 29, 2005: Billy Wagner was signed as a Free Agent by the New York Mets.
• December 5, 2005: Paul Lo Duca was traded by the Florida Marlins to the New York Mets for Dante Brinkley (minors) and Gaby Hernandez (minors).
• December 12, 2005: Julio Franco was signed as a Free Agent by the New York Mets.
• January 22, 2006: Kris Benson was traded by the New York Mets to the Baltimore Orioles for Jorge Julio and John Maine.

The pitching staff was headed by long time nemesis Tom Glavine, Pedro Martinez, Steve Trachsel, Orlando “El Duque” Hernandez, while Oliver Perez and John Maine filled in when injuries hit.

The starting lineup boasted supreme talent across the board from the youngsters Reyes and Wright, to the veteran sluggers Delgado and Beltran.

This team had a great bullpen led by all-star closer Billy Wagner, Pedro Feliciano, Duaner Sanchez and Chad Bradford.

Despite the season ending in an utter letdown, 2006 was a wild ride. We had some of the greatest moments in our history during that season.

Boy, don’t you miss Lo Duca’s fire?

Remember the double play at home versus the Dodgers in the NLDS?

With nobody out and runners on first and second base, Russell Martin drilled a single toward right field. When it hit off the wall, it seemed definite that Jeff Kent and J.D. Drew would score. As Lo Duca looked up to see home-plate umpire John Hirschbeck call Kent out, he almost didn’t see Drew sliding headfirst toward the plate. But with one quick motion, the veteran catcher turned his head back toward the field and applied the tag that completed an improbable double play.

Remember Endy Chavez’s catch versus the Cardinals in the NLCS?

Endy made arguably one of the best defensive plays in Mets history, and it will be forever remembered as “The Catch”. 

It’s too bad this catch did not

I’ll let Gary Cohen refresh your memory in case you forgot exactly how it happened.

“Edmonds at first and one out, and Perez deals. Fastball hit in the air to left field, that’s deep, back goes Chavez  back near the wall…leaping, and…. he made the catch! He took a home run away from Rolen! Trying to get back to first, Edmonds… he’s doubled off! And the inning is over! Endy Chavez saved the day! He reached high over the left field wall, right in front of the visitors bullpen, and pulled back a two run homer! He went to the apex of his leap, and caught it in the webbing of his glove, with his elbow up above the fence. A miraculous play by Endy Chavez  and then Edmonds is doubled off first, and Oliver Perez escapes the 6th inning. The play of the year, the play maybe of the franchise history, for Endy Chavez  and the inning is over”

The Mets had so many memorable moments from that season, but now it just feels so long ago.

How does a big market team like us always find a way to fail?

We have so many resources, but fail to build a complete team. The 2006 team was the strongest we have had in a very long time.

It’s just really sad that we have to think back seven years to remember what it was like to really enjoy watching our favorite team. The Mets have had their moments over the past few seasons, but they always end in disappointment  When will it end? When Harvey and Wheeler get here? I know they will help, but as my dad said the other day, “how awful would it be to have Harvey and Wheeler here and no team around them?”.

That would be awful, but it would also be typical of the Mets. I just really hope I get to stop saying that one day…

The Mets, at the moment, can throw in anyone from Bay, Wright, Beltran, or Davis to bat cleanup. Taking into account track record, the closest thing we’ve got is probably Jason Bay. However, depending on how much one weighs last year, Bay might be better suited for the 6 hole in your mind (and I can’t say I blame you.) For argument’s sake, let’s say Davis has a HR ceiling this year of about 30. That’s still not definitively a power hitter.

• In 2010, the Mets had Wright post 29 HRs and Davis post 19. Nobody else had more than 12 and the team slugging percentage was .383.
• In 2009, the Mets had Murphy post 12 HRs and 4 others post 10. Nobody else had double digit HRs and the team SLG was .394.

Those were the first two full years in Citi Field. Take a look at the last two in Shea.

• In 2008, the Mets had Delgado post 38 HRs and Wright posted 33. Beltran added 27 and three others added 11+. The team SLG was .420.
• In 2007, the Mets had Beltran post 33 HRs and Wright posted 30. An injured Delgado still managed 24 and 5 others posted in double digits. Team SLG was .432.

And of course, the last time we made the playoffs…

• In 2006, the Mets had Beltran post 41 HRs and Delgado posted 38. Wright added 26 and even Reyes added 19. The team SLG was .445.

Beltran and Delgado put up nearly 80 HRs combined in 2006. Do you think two players on the current Mets will come even close to that in 2011? If Davis hits 35 and Wright hits 30, that’s still only a combined 65. Now, I understand that obviously the expectations for HRs will be tempered since we play 81 games in a pitcher’s park. But we don’t play all of our games there. And how come Tulowitzki or Mark Reynolds or Chase Utley didn’t have any problem drilling HRs at Citi? One of the main problems when we look at our power outage overall is that we no longer employ a major power hitter in the middle of the lineup.

We don’t have a Ryan Howard, Prince Fielder, Adrian Gonzalez, Albert Pujols, Joey Votto, Jose Bautista…etc. And from the looks of our minor league system, the closest thing we’re going to get for a while is Ike Davis. I love Ike, but I think 35 is his ceiling. Maybe we should go out and look for Adam Dunn from the ChiSox – it’s a great buy low time period right now.

In any case, I’m not saying we NEED a big power hitter in the middle of the lineup to win; hitting home runs is just one aspect of a baseball game. I am saying that we are missing one and it just might help.

2009 was a bounce back year for Castillo.  Castillo finished 2009 with a .302 batting average, a vast improvement from 2008’s .245 batting average.  Castillo had a slight spill down the steps of the dugout late into the season but he did avoid the disabled list something that most of the Mets can’t claim.  Of course Met fans won’t forget the dropped fly in that Yankee game but 2009 was a good season for Castillo.

I was pro Hudson last year and I’m still pro Hudson.  It’s not because Orlando Hudson is not Luis Castillo, it’s because Hudson is the better player.  Looking at their offensive stats some would argue that but here is where I see Hudson helping us:  He has more power than Castillo and he can hit a single to the outfield.  If you really watch Castillo’s at bats most of his singles are either infield singles or they are just out of reach of the infielders which results in outfielders playing a shallower outfield against Castillo which means runners on base can only advance one base.  With Orlando Hudson batting that will force both the infield to back up and the outfielders to play deeper in the outfield.  Hudson will most likely bat behind Jose Reyes who we all know has a lot speed and on a deep single Jose can run 1^st-3^rd or from 2^nd-home, thus allowing more runs scored.

Another reason I’m so high on Hudson is his defense.  Castillo as he has gotten older has lost a bit of range each year in the infield.  This is really important now because of our 1^st base situation.  Reports from the scouts in Puerto Rico on Carlos Delgado are that the very little range he had is gone.  Now those same scouts are reporting that Delgado has been seen limping after playing 1^st in winter ball and that the Mets might pass on Delgado.  If that is true Daniel Murphy will be our first baseman with a possibility that Tatis will play 1^st.  For those that don’t know that is Tatis’ worst position.  Now Murphy was good at 1^st last year, he made some nice plays but he lacks the instincts of a 1^st baseman since he hasn’t played the position that long.  The Mets are going to need a 2^nd baseman to pick up the slack and Hudson is that guy.

I don’t think right now as of this writing the Mets will get Hudson.  First they have to trade Luis Castillo who makes a lot of money the next two years.  If I was a general manager I would be worried that last year was a bit of fluke and Castillo revert back to 2008.  Furthermore he is and will be an injury risk for the rest of his career.  The Mets would have to pay most if not all of his salary for the rest of his contract.  I think it will be financially irresponsible of the Mets to trade Castillo, pay most of his salary and have to pay Hudson for this year.

If the right trade was offered and if the money was not an issue I would hope the Mets pull the trigger on Castillo and then sign Hudson but that will not happen this year.  I think Castillo will not revert back to 2008 but I also think that hitting .300 will not happen again.  I would be ok with that if it wasn’t for the fear I have that his defense is going to hurt the Mets more than his skills at the plate.  Only time will tell, hopefully I’ll be proved wrong.

“He’s got no range at first — none,” said one scout. “He actually limps out there. He can’t play first on a day-to-day basis. I think he can still DH, because he’s still got power. But to play first for a team like the Mets? Can’t see it.”

This report should probably put any thoughts of the Mets re-acquiring Delgado to bed, finally. If Delgado is limping, we know that his only motivation for being on the field is a new contract. We all know of Delgado’s propensity for being unwilling to play while hurt. As soon as he signs a contract, rather than limping, he’ll be spending time on the DL instead.

We had an interesting debate this weekend, between two possible options in Fernando Tatis and Ryan Garko who could platoon with incumbent first baseman, Daniel Murphy. The majority of our readers seemed to prefer Garko over Tatis, but one commenter, Metstem, threw another name into the mix.

I like Mike Jacobs for this role. He bats left handed but he can play first and the corner outfield positions and has more legitimate power than Garko or Tatis. Last year in an off-year, he hit 19 homers for a bad team. When he was on a contender, his numbers were much better. He would be perfect for this team. For 1 million or so, he may be the best guy available for that sort of price.

There would be some irony in the Mets re-acquiring Jacobs as he was the player we traded to the Marlins to get Carlos Delgado in the first place.

I like Jacobs, but I’m not really interested in coming full circle with him just yet. For me, Garko would still be the better option.

Delgado had a good start to the 2009 season with a .298/.393/.521 line. Of course, that was all in a total of 26 games as the 37-year old first baseman underwent season-ending right hip surgery back in May.

The Mets are not the only team interested in Delgado though, according to the Boston Globe, the Baltimore Orioles are also very interested in him as a first baseman. They could also use him as a DH, though they seem to prefer a right-handed DH.

If the Mets want to re-aquire the lefty-slugger they need to make a move before Baltimore does.

Delgado is only 17 home runs away from the 500th of his career.

The 24-year-old lefty-hitting Daniel Murphy, who batted .266 with 12 home runs and 63 RBIs in 155 games during his first full season in the big leagues in ‘09, is currently the Mets’ 2010 first baseman.

Sheets has put up ace-quality numbers when he is healthy, although he makes an annual visit to the DL in most seasons of his career. He has a career ERA of 3.72, career WHIP of 1.20, and career K/9 of 7.6. His best statistical season was 2004, even though the W-L record may be deceiving, he posted an astounding 8.25 K/BB ratio, and recorded a 20 strikeout game against the Atlanta Braves.

The Chicago Cubs have had discussions with Sheets lately, though they do not have the money that Sheets is looking for. The Rangers would have signed Sheets last offseason, had he not needed surgery. The Rangers have, however, signed Rich Harden, so they may have reached their quota of injury prone pitchers. The Mariners, Orioles, Yankees, and Mets are believed to have some interest.

—

Free agent 1B Adam LaRoche has agreed to a deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks worth $5.5 million over 1 year. This comes after the well for LaRoche dried up after he turned down a 2-year $17.5 million deal from the San Francisco Giants. The Giants signed Aubrey Huff and moved on. The Atlanta Braves do not get a compensation pick, because they did not offer LaRoche (Type B) arbitration.

Remaining 1B available include Hank Blalock, Carlos Delgado, Mike Jacobs, Ryan Garko, and Russell Branyan.

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A name that has been thrown around as possible moving to 1B is Jermaine Dye. Dye has had terrible outfield defense, and at age 35, teams are wary of putting him out there full time. He was in discussions with the Texas Rangers before they signed Vladimir Guerrero. Dye has shown interest in moving to 1B if it would improve his contract offers. The San Diego Padres and Chicago Cubs have shown lukewarm interest. An ideal fit for Dye would be as DH in the American League, though if a National League team put him at 1B, they would get middle of the order power numbers. From 2004-09, Dye averaged 31 HR per season, only A-Rod has averaged more per year in the AL in that span. Signing Dye (Type A) would not cost a pick, as the White Sox did not offer arbitration.

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Yesterday, the New York Mets began construction on a Mets Hall of Fame outside the Jackie Robinson Rotunda. The Mets Hall of Fame will be adjacent to the Team Store. The move was announced during the season in response to criticism about a lack of Mets history.

Till Next Time

Mark McGwire and Fred McGriff were the two highest vote getters among first basemen in last week’s Hall of Fame election, with McGwire receiving 128 votes (23.7%) and McGriff receiving 116 votes (21.5%).  Carlos Delgado is still active, having last played for the Mets in 2009.  Let’s first compare the career numbers of McGwire and McGriff before we talk about Delgado.

Mark McGwire finished his career with a .263 batting average, .394 OBP and .982 OPS.  He hit 583 HR from his late season call-up in 1986 until his retirement in 2001 (currently tying him with Alex Rodriguez for eighth on the all-time career home run list). He also scored 1,167 runs and drove in 1,414 runs.  He won the 1987 AL Rookie of The Year Award and the 1990 AL Gold Glove Award.  During his 15-year career, he was selected to participate in 12 All-Star Games.  He also helped his Oakland Athletics team to three consecutive American League pennants from 1988-1990, winning the World Series in 1989.

Despite all his power, he only won three Silver Slugger Awards (1992, 1996, 1998).  Furthermore, he never won an MVP Award and only finished in the top ten in the MVP voting on five occasions.  He also never hit more than 28 doubles in a season.  Also, he only scored 584 runs over his career when he DIDN’T drive himself in with a home run.  He finished his career with 1,596 strikeouts, which was only thirty fewer than his lifetime hit total of 1,626.

Fred McGriff retired in 2004 with a .284 lifetime batting average, .377 OBP and .886 OPS.  He hit 493 HR over his 18-year career.  McGriff finished with a lifetime total of 2,490 hits, 1,349 runs scored and 1,550 RBI.  He was selected to five All-Star teams and helped the Atlanta Braves win two National League pennants, including their only World Series title in Atlanta when they won it all in 1995.

Like Mark McGwire, McGriff’s prodigious power only won him three Silver Slugger Awards, but he did finish in the top ten in the MVP voting six times.  He never hit 40 HR in a season (his career high was 37 when he split his 1993 season between the San Diego Padres and the Atlanta Braves), scored over 100 runs in a season only once and never collected more than 107 RBI in a single season.  Consistency from season to season, not gaudy numbers, was the trademark of Fred McGriff.  This was similar to the approach taken by Hall of Famer Eddie Murray, who hit 504 HR over his career, but never hit more than 33 in any individual season.

So when we compare McGwire and McGriff, it appears that McGwire was far more of a one-dimensional player than McGriff was.  It was all or nothing for Big Mac, whereas McGriff could beat you with a home run as well as with a two-run single.  McGwire hit 90 more home runs than McGriff, yet the Crime Dog scored 182 more runs and had 136 more RBI than McGwire.  McGwire had slightly over 1,000 hits that weren’t home runs, while McGriff had almost 2,000 hits that weren’t homers.

Now let’s look at Carlos Delgado.  Remember that his cumulative numbers will continue to go up as he continues to play in the major leagues.

Going into the 2010 season, Delgado’s career batting average stands at .280.  He also has a .383 OBP and .929 OPS.  He has hit 473 HR since making his debut for the Toronto Blue Jays in 1993 and has racked up 2,038 hits.  Delgado has scored 1,241 runs and has driven in 1,512 runs.

Unfortunately, Delgado has only appeared in the postseason once, with the 2006 Mets (Toronto won the World Series in 1993, but Delgado was not on their postseason roster).  He has four top ten finishes in the MVP voting, but only has three Silver Slugger Awards (a recurring theme in this blog) and two All-Star Game appearances to show for it.

Another negative about Delgado is his lofty strikeout total.  He has struck out 1,745 times in his career (first full season was 1996), including a stretch of 13 consecutive seasons in which he fanned over 100 times; a streak that only came to an end last year when he spent over four months on the disabled list for the Mets.

So who gets into the Hall of Fame first between McGwire, McGriff and Delgado?  Do any of them make it?  I think Delgado has the best chance of the three.  Here are some more stats that might help his cause.

Harold Baines has the most RBI for any player eligible for the Hall of Fame who has not been elected.  Over his career, Baines collected 1,626 RBI.  Delgado needs 114 RBI to tie Baines.  It might be difficult for Delgado to do it in one season because of the uncertainty due to his hip injury, but if he doesn’t spend another four months on the DL, he should easily surpass 1,626 RBI before he retires.  Even two half-seasons should give him enough time to surpass Baines.

Al Oliver has the most doubles for any Hall of Fame eligible player who has not yet entered its hallowed halls.  He hit 529 doubles over his career.  Delgado has 483 doubles entering the 2010 season.  With 46 doubles, he will tie Oliver on the all-time doubles list.  This can be achieved in approximately two seasons, especially considering that Delgado has hit at least 26 doubles in every full season he has played.

Every 500 HR hitter who is eligible for the Hall of Fame has been enshrined except for Mark McGwire, who has the steroid cloud raining down upon him.  Delgado is only 27 HR short of the coveted 500 HR plateau.

Only ten players in major league history have hit at least 500 doubles and 500 HR.  Those players are Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, Ken Griffey Jr., Frank Robinson, Rafael Palmeiro, Manny Ramirez, Ted Williams and Eddie Murray.  Of those ten, six are in the Hall of Fame, two are not yet eligible (Bonds and Palmeiro) and two are still playing (Griffey and Ramirez).  Carlos Delgado needs only 17 doubles and 27 HR to become the 11th member of this esteemed club.

Delgado has hit at least 30 HR in a season 11 times and has driven in 100 or more runs in a season nine times (plus three additional seasons where he drove in at least 90 runs).  These figures may still go up before he retires.

Mark McGwire was too one-dimensional and has too much controversy surrounding him.  Fred McGriff was consistently good, but never consistently great.  Carlos Delgado, however, has been putting up numbers that have been great for over a decade.  When you put Delgado’s stats against those of power hitters currently in the Hall of Fame, it should be clear that not only does Delgado get into the Hall of Fame before McGwire and McGriff, but he should go in on the first ballot.  With good health (certainly a question after the events of 2009), Delgado might put up numbers that put him among the best offensive first basemen of all-time.

The market for second baseman is very soft and in my opinion, Hudson will end up taking a one year deal just as he did last season. The Mets would still like to add the O-Dog, but probably not for more than $6 million in guaranteed money.

Meanwhile, John Morosi of Fox Sports believes that free agent catcher Bengie Molina is now willing to accept a two year deal after holding firm on three years all off season.

Free agent catcher Bengie Molina has lowered his asking price, multiple sources said Tuesday, raising the likelihood of a long-expected union with the New York Mets. Molina had been asking for a three-year contract, but one source believes he is now willing to sign for two years.

All arrows continue to point toward the Mets signing Molina. If the second year is a vesting option or a team option, it should work out okay for the Mets. I’d have a big problem with two guaranteed years.

Ed Price of AOL, posted an update on Carlos Delgado via his Twitter. He says that Delgado is not moving well while playing first base and that the Mets have already seen Delgado play twice, but will take one more look before moving on or making a decision.

Price also speculates that the Blue Jays might be the final destination for Delgado who is batting .316 in Winter Ball.

I think this latest news should close the book on Carlos Delgado who is obviously a designated hitter posing as a first baseman.

This past week Carlos Delgado played baseball for the first time in months in Puerto Rico.  The Mets as we know are down on that beautful Island right now scouting him, deciding whether or not to offer him a contract for the 2010 season.  Reports coming out of Puerto Rico is Delgado doesn’t move well.  It seems that hip is still a problem and that is exactly why the Mets need to avoid bringing Carlos Delgado back. Delgado so far has only played 5 innings in the field and the rest of the time he was the DH for his team.

I understand that when healthy Carlos Delgado brings a lot of power to a lineup.  We were told that Delgado’s hip injury was similar to Alex Rodriguez’s injury but A-Rod returned in less than 2 months, Delgado had the surgery, supposedly suffered a setback and never returned to play again.  If the Mets are going to spend the money on a veteran 1st basemen to platoon with Daniel Murphy there are others out there instead.

If the Mets do sign Delgado and he gets hurt that’s it, there is no backup plan, Daniel Murphy is the everyday first baseman.  Now this is not an attack on Murphy, he was put in 2 positions that he never played before and was expected to deliver the goods. Having said that Murphy does not have any real power at the plate.  The Mets with the addition of Jason Bay need one more power bat in the lineup.

Signing Delgado would also be going backwards.  The team has stated on more than one occasion that they want to get younger and faster.  Delgado is only getting older and if the reports are true slower.  I think at this point in his career Delgado is better suited for the American League when he can be the designated hitter.  I would rather go out and sign a younger guy like Adam LaRoche, he can hit and field a bit and brings some power.

He is now batting .364 with with a .417 on-base percentage.

One thing to bear in mind is that Delgado has been restricted to the designated hitter role thus far, and has yet to play first base. ( I use that term very loosely.)

According to AOL’s Ed Price via Twitter, the Mets are expected to scout free agent Carlos Delgado this weekend in the Puerto Rican Winter League.

It’s not surprising that the Mets will now closely monitor Delgado as it’s been the plan all along.

Although I was originally sour on bringing him back, I wouldn’t be totally against a Delgado return now that Jason Bay is in the fold. The fact of the matter is that the lineup could use a lefthanded bat to break up right handed hitters David Wright, Jeff Francoeur and Jason Bay.

Plus the addition of Jason Bay AND Carlos Delgado, could mean 50-60 homeruns on top of whatever we get from Wright, Francoeur, Reyes and Beltran. If everything breaks right for the Mets, they could end up with at least five players with 25+ homeruns; a vast improvement from the offensive impotence of a season ago.

The one thing I would caution is exactly what one of our friends at TRDMB (The Real Dirty Mets Blog) wrote,

Careful Omar.  I like the idea of bringing him back but make sure it’s on your terms and not at the cost of another needed upgrade.

What he means is that signing Delgado should be in addition to bolstering the rotation and starting catcher, and not in lieu of.

Of course all of this hinges on the fact he can prove that he is 100% healthy. It’s too early to make that decision right now. But, here is one thing to keep in mind, if by chance we do sign Delgado and he does spend a stint on the DL, this time will be different because we know we can have Daniel Murphy step right in, or who knows… we could see the Major League debut of Ike Davis if he’s scorching the ball at Buffalo. Unlike last year, this time we will be better prepared.

Incidentally, if you haven’t checked out TRDMB yet, you should. If there was an award for the Best New Mets Blog of 2009, they would win it hands down.

The questions remain, though, about the starting staff behind ace Johan Santana, and also whether Santana and other injured players who missed significant time in 2009 will be back, and/or back to form.  That list is led by Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran, John Maine and David Wright.  It also includes Carlos Delgado, who is a free agent but still may be re-signed by the Mets.

That said, you have to like this lineup with Bay in it, because he’s still young (31), he’s a very adequate defensive outfielder, and he’s something that we’ve been lacking on this team for a while—a tough out.  Last season with Boston, Bay had a .676 slugging percentage with runners in scoring position, second in the majors only to NL MVP Albert Pujols.  So this is a guy we had to have, and while many of us doubted Minaya, he really came through this time.

Of course, we’re still bitter about 2009, so we’re all hoping for a few more tweaks and some better luck in 2010.  But we sure do welcome Jason Bay with open arms.

It seems that the Mets are more interested in taking our money instead of putting a championship caliber team on the field.  The last 3 seasons have ended horribly with 2 last game collapses and of course last season when they lost over 90 games.  Last year they lied to us for more than half of the season, promising us that the injured players would return by soon after the all-star game, but Jose Reyes was nowhere to be seen and Carlos Beltran didn’t return until well into September when it didn’t matter anymore. Carlos Delgado, who the Mets said had the same injury and surgery that was performed on A-Roid, did not return in 2 months as A-Roid did, in fact Delgado didn’t return for the rest of the season.

So far this off season the Mets have done nothing to help improve their team.  I don’t consider overpaying Alex Cora because he’s a nice guy a huge improvement.  Signing R.A. Dickey, Chris “Die Hard Philly” Coste, Henry Blanco and Ryota Igarashi who has had Tommy John surgery and has not yet faced major league hitters does not make me want to pay at least $2,000 to see this team when I can watch them on SNY and change channel when things get bad.

The Mets have yet to spend any significant money this off season, but they expect their fans to do just that, pleading with them to shell out money to see them play.  Do the Mets really expect the us to simply fork over our  hard earned cash, especially in this economy, just because they finally caved into fan pressure and decided to paint the walls orange and build a new museum in Citi Field to showcase the team’s history? Did they really think that naming the bridge after Shea that would be all that was needed to get fans to buy tickets again?  

The teams in our division have been busy on working to improve themselves, while the Mets insult their fans with a few backups, minor leaguers, and risk/reward players coming back from injury. It goes to show you that this team is all about taking our money and not much else.  I understand this is a business and teams want to make a lot of money, but at least try to improve your product before pleading for our money.  

Look at the Yankees and Phillies… The Yankees won the World Series, but that hasn’t made them the least bit idle this off season, while the Phillies add one of the best pitchers in baseball in Roy Halladay and upgraded at third base as well.

The Mets made many promises to improve the day after the 2009 season ended, and must have assumed that we were naive enough to buy tickets based on their words rather than their actions.  

The first deadline to renew season ticket packages was on December 4th, three days before the start of the Winter Meetings, a move that wreaked from the very beginning. I believe the logic was to get the fans to make a commitment before the lackluster meetings started, but thankfully fans didn’t bite so they extended the deadline to the 14th of December, a couple of days before that the Mets announced that they put an offer out to Jason Bay. Now, after a few insignificant additions, they have extended the deadline to December 31, 2009.  Unless something happens this week I wouldn’t be surprised to see them extend the deadline by another week or two.

Questioning our loyalty is not the best way to endear yourself to a bitter fanbase. Met fans are among the most loyal fans in sports.  We have watched and supported our team through the good times and bad.  We have watched the Yankees win five World Series titles since 1996, losing to them in our only trip in 2000. We stayed with the Mets when they “battled” and “suffered” through the Art Howe era, so where do they get off questioning our loyalty?

Give us a product worth the price of admission and we’ll flock to see this team as we always have. Give us a championship caliber team, and we’ll give you championship caliber attendance. Until then, please don’t question our loyalty.

I hope everyone has a happy and safe New Year.