The Mets plan to temporarily demote Zack Wheeler to the minors after tonight’s start, then officially re-promote him Tuesday for his next scheduled start at the Chicago White Sox, according to ESPN New York.

Because Wheeler is technically the Mets’ 26th player for today’s doubleheader, they can demote him after today’s game without the requirement he spend 10 days in the minors before returning applying. No option will be burned by Wheeler’s procedural, temporary minor league assignment. That also means Wheeler will not collect MLB service time between starts, further ensuring he will not qualify for an extra year of arbitration as a Super 2.

Lets take one last look at this young gun before he takes the hill for his debut…

Zack (Harrison) Wheeler was born on May 30th, 1990 in Smyrna, Georgia. As a high school player, he attended East Paulding where he compiled a 95-36 record as a varsity athlete over four seasons. His junior year he had eights wins against three losses and had 127 strikeouts over 64 1/3 innings and pitched to a 1.31 ERA. The following season (2009), Wheeler finished undefeated  9-0, with 151 Ks over 77 2/3 IP and a 0.54 ERA.

A scouting report by Perfect Game at the time read

Big projection, 90-93 fastball at Perfect Game National, very effortless, three quality pitches, good command, 94 at WWBA, 92 at ECP, up to 95 at Aflac.

Scouting reports of Wheeler, along with his overall body of work as an amateur player were enough to convince the San Francisco Giants to draft him sixth overall in the 2009 MLB Draft.

He started his professional career in 2010 at the Single-A level for the Augusta GreenJackets. Relative to his high school numbers, he disappointed as he went 3-3 with a 3.99 ERA in 58 2.3 IP. However he did have 70 Ks, which proved that his stuff was there, but his command needed some work.

The following season, he began at Advanced A San Jose, an affiliate of the Giants, but then moved onto the St. Lucie Mets after he was traded for Carlos Beltran. As a Met, he pitched 27 innings with 31 Ks and a 2.00 ERA, but as a Giant he had near a 3.99 ERA in 88 IP with 98 Ks.

He began 2012 with Double-A Binghamton and was promoted to Triple-A Buffalo toward the end of the season where he logged 33 innings and pitched to a respectable 3.27 ERA as a 22-year-old.

In 2013, as the number one prospect for the Mets, he started in Las Vegas (the new AAA affiliate of the Mets). His walk rate dropped from 2012 to 2013 and his K/9 rose from 8.5 to 9.6 despite a rough beginning and a month long acclimation period to the Pacific Coast League. After a string of solid starts, the Mets front office called made the decision to promote him to make his MLB debut in the night-cap of today’s doubleheader against the Braves.

Profile:

At 6’4, 185 lbs, Wheeler has a power pitcher’s body and possesses an “easy” throwing motion that allows him to maintain a high velocity throughout the game. His long arms creates deception and his quick arm action compounds this. On top of that, he comes out of his pitching motion in good fielding position.

One of his best attributes is his work ethic and demeanour on the mound. His has a competitive nature drives him to work very hard in between starts and is known to be a student of the game. He is also aggressive, as he is not afraid to pitch inside.

Pitches:

Fastball: High: 97-98 mph, Averages: 94-95, Has life and appears to explode past hitters when he throws it up the ladder. Throws a four-seamer and a two seamer he uses against righthanded hitters. Both are plus-pitches.

Curveball: 12-6 break and another plus-pitch. Does not command it in or out of the zone yet, but that will come in time.

Change-up: Throws it in the mid-80s.  As of now it is a slightly below average pitch, and he often telegraphs the pitch because it “slows” his arm down.

Cutter: Relatively new pitch. Throws it in the upper 80s.  It has good movement, but it is pretty raw. Again, it probably will not ever be a better-than-average pitch.

From all indications, scouts view Wheeler as a number two starter. The main issue is his lack of a solid third offering as well as spotty command. While both situations have improved since joining the Mets, he still has work to do.

Wheeler has a great work ethic and is dedicated to his continued improvement. I would bet money that he gets to that ceiling, but that remains to be seen. I am really excited to see him pitch tonight as we all catch a glimpse of one of the cornerstones of the Mets’ future.

For more MLB Young Gun profiles and other sport headlines, check out my blog, Whose Sports Blog Is It Anyway?

In an article by Robert Passikoff on Forbes.com, the Mets fan base ranked almost at the bottom when it comes to team loyalty.

According to their Sports Fan Loyalty Index, Mets fans ranked 26 out among all 30 MLB teams when it comes to supporting the team.

The top five loyal fan bases are:

1. New York Yankees
2. Philadelphia Phillies
3. San Francisco Giants
4. St. Louis Cardinals
5. Atlanta Braves

The Mets ranked at the bottom with the Astros, Pirates, Royals and Mariners. That’s embarrassing.

The factors that are used to determine the Loyalty Index are not based on attendance alone or won/loss record:

Everybody loves a winner, but it’s important to note that win/loss ratios do not entirely govern fan loyalty. Losing may have little to recommend it, but it turns out there are more important things than the final score. – three other emotionally based things, in fact, that really must be taken into account when calculating the loyalty score for a team:

• Pure Entertainment: How well a team does, sure. But even more importantly than a win-loss ratio, how exciting is their play? Think St. Louis Cardinals.
• Authenticity: How well they play as a team.
• Fan Bonding: Are players particularly respected and admired?
• History and Tradition: Is the game and the team part of fans’ and community rituals, institutions and beliefs?

Look at those factors and then calculate where the Mets fit in with each one. You can easily account for why the loyalty isn’t as high as it should be, and the fault lies with the team not the fans.

Many of the players who connected with fans are long gone. It took the team a few years just to add some Mets history to Cit Field – and only after much prodding from fans. And where is the pure entertainment value?

What bugs me most is seeing the Yankees, Braves and Phillies ranked so high. I hate those teams!

Kevin Plawecki, C

Bats: R Throws: R
Height: 6’2″
Weight: 205 lb.
Position: Catcher
Age: 22
ETA: 2015
MMO Top Prospect Rank: #19

Background:

Here is a brief player profile from the recent 2013 MMO Top 25 Prospect series:

The 35th pick in the 2012 draft, Kevin Plawecki, was selected with one of the comp picks we received for losing Jose Reyes. The main criticism about the pick was not so much a knock on Plawecki, but rather that the Mets made a big reach taking him with the 35th pick when he could have been around in the third. One of the things that scouts keyed in on was that he had a long swing and it cut some of his power away, but he made strides to fix that in his first pro season since coming out of Purdue. Down in Brooklyn, Plawecki put up a .250 average with a 1:1 BB/K rate (25:24). The NYPL is a pitching dominant league, so try not to get too down on the .250 average, especially when he accompanied it with seven homers and eight doubles in just 216 at-bats.

Plawecki is not a defensive wizard, as he gets by with a below average arm, but he is an intelligent baseball player. Intelligence at the catcher position is key, and he was known for calling his own games when he played at Purdue. Also, considering the fact that he was drafted as a junior in college, it puts him on somewhat of a fast track to the major leagues. His 2013 season will be key in determining what kind of player he will really turn out to be, as he makes the same jump as Hansel Robles to Savannah and potentially St. Lucie.

The biggest issue I have come across in scouting reports was the fact that almost everyone is in consensus that Plawecki should have been a third or fourth round pick. However, that is simply semantics. If you think a guy can help your organization, then why run the risk of someone else taking him?

At the time of the pick, the Mets had little catcher depth in their system, and Plawecki is the type of guy that will be able to move through the system very quickly, and hopefully help the Mets in the near future. While we can label a player a reach because we think that he should have been selected later, there is really no telling what the other teams will do, so when you have a chance to take your guy, you take him. The San Francisco Giants did something very similar in 2011 when they drafted shortstop Joe Panik. When evaluating draft picks it’s not always a matter of who has the better ability, but who has the ability to help the big league club as fast as possible. Plawecki is that type of a guy.

Analysis:

Plawecki is a guy that makes excellent contact. Through his college career, he had a very low strike out rate, and as stated earlier, had a 1:1 K/BB ratio at Brooklyn last season. I have read a couple of scouting reports that have noted his swing was a little long, but his swing is actually very compact, and he gets his hands through the hitting zone very quickly when he keeps them close to his body. If his hands get away from him, he could have trouble with pitchers with better fastballs. He starts with his hands high, has a nice load, and then gets his hands in a nice hitting position. I noticed that on a couple of the pitches he took, he didn’t keep his weight back, and transferred his weight early to the front leg. This can make him susceptible to off-speed pitches as he progresses to the higher levels of the organization.

He has a very level swing, which will lead to a ton of line drives, but it does not generate a ton of backspin on the ball when contact is made, which is why he won’t be a big home run threat. However, he does have solid to gap-to-gap power. Think of Daniel Murphy, but with a little more pop. I would project him to hit 10-15 home runs at the big league level at this point.

Everyone has been completely enthralled with the addition to Travis d’Arnaud, but Plawecki is a guy that fans should keep an eye on over the next couple of years. With questions of d’Arnaud’s durability arising, Plawecki is definitely a guy that could find himself behind the plate at Citi Field within the next couple of years.

To read previous editions of this feature, go to our MMO Prospect Pulse Archives.

Follow MMO Minor League Analyst Mitch Petanick on Twitter at @FirstPitchMitch for even more Mets Minor League and prospect coverage.

Wild Card winner getting first two games at home in Divison Series

When the Marlins won the World Series in 1997 they had the same first two games at home, which gave them an added advantage. Going up against the San Francisco Giants in the Divison Series, they won the first two games at home, and then the first game back in San Fran to complete the sweep. They later went on to win the World Series. If that series started in San Fran, who knows how it would have turned out. Expect similar upsets this year.

Not having Mariano Rivera will hurt the Yankees chances

This is a given. Mariano is the greatest closer in the history of the game, and post-season play. Aside from a hiccup in the 2001 World Series, Rivera has been flawless. When the Yankees made it to the 8^th inning with a lead in previous years, it was a lock they would walk away with a win. Don’t expect similar results this year.

The Rangers will go as far as Josh Hamilton takes them

If Josh Hamilton catches fire, the Rangers will be playing in the World Series. If he continues to slump, the Rangers will make an early playoff exit. During a contract year, if Hamilton wants to really cash in, now is the time to really step up. I think he will.

Oakland’s weaknesses will be exposed

Like Billy Beane’s great moneyball teams of the early 2000s, the Athletics will ultimately be exposed in the playoffs against the Tigers, and eliminated in the ALDS. Maybe if they continue to shock everyone, and go on to win the World Series, Brad Pitt will play Beane in the Moneyball sequel. In other news, the comedic spoof of Moneyball, The Moneyball Mets, is slated for release in 2013.

Bryce Harper

Rookie Mike Trout has been all the talk of 2012, but Harper has been lurking in the shadows waiting to get his chance to steal back the rookie spotlight. This is his opportunity to show the world that he is still the best young talent in the game. Bryce Harper doesn’t sink back into the crowd, and is going to lift his play to another level with all the national attention. He will prove why Sports Illustrated dubbed him as “the chosen one.” I wonder if he will give us a few more memorable quotes along the way – That’s a clown question ‘bro.

These were just a few things that will make for a very interesting playoff season. There are a slew of other story lines that will impact this year’s playoff picture, and I’m looking forward to seeing them all unfold.

Everyone has a clean slate starting today. Team records are reset to 0-0. Everything that happened over the course of the season is in the past. Everything is on the line, and the glory is there for the taking. Who wants it more? God I love this game…

What the Mets should do with David Wright after the 2012 season has been the talk of the town as the season winds down. There has been a healthy mix of opinions on what the Mets should actually do with regards to David – some argue to hang on to the aging third baseman, while others want to trade him while the Mets can still lure top tier prospects for him. One team that may be in the need of a third baseman, and always has prospects in the reserves, is the San Francisco Giants.

The Giants currently have Pablo Sandoval under contract until the year 2014. The problem is he can’t stay on the field. He’s always injured, most likely due to his inability to stay in shape. His nickname is panda, which isn’t exactly the fittest animal in the animal kingdom. I have my suspicions that the Giants may be growing tired of the Panda’s antics. The Giants fans aren’t far behind, growing more and more frustrated with their loveable panda every day. That’s because Sandoval would be better suited for an American League team. In the AL, he could play the field when needed, but be used primarily in a DH role. He still has a very solid bat when he is healthy. For that reason, the Giants would be wise to try and move Sandoval to an AL team while they can get some value for him.

Once the Giants move Sandoval there will be a glaring hole at third base. The question is, would the Mets be able to lure away some top prospects from the Giants in exchange for Wright? Two prospects that I would love to see in the Mets organization are Gary Brown and Joe Panik. Joe Panik is a native New Yorker (actually graduated from the same high school as I did), played his college ball at St. John’s, and has all the makings to be a solid middle infielder. Gary Brown is a solid defensive outfielder and a speedster, who could be a legit leadoff hitter at the top of the Mets lineup for the foreseeable future. Both of these players seem to be a lock to be productive major leaguers, which takes some of the mystery out of the equation for the Mets if the decide to trade Wright.

Joe Panik dominated in his time at St. John’s

If the Mets do decide to trade Wright, they will be looking to get some prospects that can help the team right away. Gary Brown projects to be ready in 2013, and Joe Panik in 2013-14. Would that be enough for the Mets trade David Wright? Has Pablo Sandoval’s inability to stay in shape and injury risk finally pushed the Giants to the brink? Only time will tell. It’s starting to get chilly outside, so it’s time to start heating up the stove.

Before you call me crazy, sit and think about it. The strategies that Beane developed and ultimately used do exist, but moneyball doesn’t. If it did ever exist, it ended once large market teams also started to implement Beane’s strategies once they saw how successful Beane’s Oakland A’s were. The Red Sox started implementing the small market strategies made famous by Beane, and what did it lead to? They finally broke the curse of the Bambino. But that wasn’t moneyball, because moneyball doesn’t exist.

There are basically two schools of thought in baseball – the old school scout mentality, and the moneyball school of thought. The old school thinkers say “wow that guy has all the tools,” but moneyballers ask “can he play ball?” Old school thinkers look for potential, while moneyballers look for performance. The old school mentality has driven me crazy for years. Year after year I watch teams draft players based on the coveted five tools, and then pay them upwards of $1 million just for signing a contract. They don’t even know if this guy can play, and simply because the guy can hit a baseball a country mile during batting practice, they invest millions. It doesn’t make sense to pass up on a guy that has shown he can play the game at a high level, for a guy who is visually or physically more impressive. That’s a stupid strategy even if you have a lot of money to spend. I guess that means my beliefs would make me a moneyballer, that is, if moneyball existed.

Remove the word moneyball from your vocabulary. Instead, call it performance based evaluation of players. Rather than looking at what this guy might be able to do for your team, you look at what this player can do for your team. You do that through evaluation of statistics, but also based on what you see on the field. You can not evaluate a player on statistics alone. The two schools of thought really should work hand in hand, not against each other. If you combine the schools of thought, you really have a total of six tools that players should be evaluated on (not the traditional five) – running speed, arm strength, hitting ability, quickness, mental acuity (patience at the plate), and ability to get on base. I firmly believe that teams should always value proven players over guys who have an array of tools but can’t apply them in game situations. I guess that would make me a moneyballer, that is, if moneyball existed.

One team that I think has been doing this well the past few years is the San Francisco Giants. They tend to draft guys that they can get through the minor leagues as quickly as possible to start helping the big league club. You can’t do that by drafting guys based on talent alone, so there has to be skill there. If a guy has tons of talent, but has to spend six years in the minor leagues developing the skill, then what’s the point? Just draft the guys with skill, and save yourself time and money developing them in the minors. That’s why Beane focused his draft on more polished college players – there is less development needed, and they can help the team in a shorter period of time (in most cases). Then you don’t have to spend big money in free-agency to address your needs. I completely agree with Beane’s drafting strategy. I guess that would make me a moneyballer, that is, if moneyball existed.

Moneyball doesn’t exist. There isn’t some magic formula, or mathematical equations, that a team can use to evaluate players and uncover undervalued players. If that’s what you think, get it out of your head. Teams can’t expect to win without spending money, unless they have a well developed minor league factory that is spitting out skilled players like Ford spits out Mustangs. This is an area the Mets are lacking. Every team uses the same analyses now, so those days of Beane’s A’s are all but over. But the Mets have a distinct advantage over those early 2000′s Oakland A’s – they aren’t a small market team. Those small market team rules don’t apply.

The New York Mets should focus on what the San Francisco Giants have done the past few years. They have to find a way to get guys to the major leagues, as fast as possible, because the team is in a complete state of disarray right now. There are guys playing out of position in order to plug holes. The problem is there are more holes than plugs, and we all know what happens when there are more holes than plugs – the ship sinks. The fix is simple enough – start drafting more polished players that will be able to help the team now, rather than later. Either that, or they have to pony up some cash and address their needs.

The Mets can turn this around, but they have to get their hands dirty, and re-evaluate their organization from the ground up. They better do it fast, because this is starting to remind me of the Mets teams of the early 1990s…and I don’t know how many of us can go through that again.

However, perhaps the most classic image of all is of the number 24, back to the plate, running all out, catching a line drive over his shoulder, in the depths of the Polo Grounds.

People generally enjoy a hearty debate. Politics, abortion, gun control. Or important issues like ‘Who is the greatest player to ever play the game?’ When I’m asked I confidently state Willie Mays.

Babe Ruth meant more to the game and for all intents and purposes, saved Baseball after The Black Sox Scandal. But Ruth didn’t have the speed. Teammate Lou Gehrig also lacked speed. Rickey Henderson didn’t hit for any power. Mike Schmidt had a mediocre career Batting Average. Ted Williams, perhaps the greatest natural hitter of all time, lacked defensive skills. Willie Mays did it all. And did it all well. A five tool superstar.

Born on May 6, 1931 in Westfield, AL, he began playing in the Negro Leagues by the time he was 16. On May 25, 1951,Mays broke into the majors with the NY Giants. He didn’t exactly set the world on fire, going 0-for-12. His first hit was a mammoth blast that came off Warren Spahn who was en route to becoming the winningest LHP in history. Giants announcer Russ Hodges stated that ‘Even if this kid never hits another one, people will still talk about it.’ There were 659 more to follow.

To this day, anytime a center fielder makes an over the shoulder catch with his back to the plate, we immediately conjure up images of Willie’s catch nearly 60 years ago.

It was Game 1 of the 1954 World Series when Vic Wertz of the heavily favored Indians hit a rocket to straight away CF. With men on base, Willie turned and ran. And ran. And ran some more. Center Field was 475 feet deep (65 feet deeper than Shea).The only question was would Wertz be held to a triple. Catching the ball was simply out of the realm of possibility. But we all know what happened.

Ted Williams stated once, “The All Star Game was created for Willie Mays.” Giants manager Leo Durocher said, “He can hit, he can run, he can field. If he could cook, I’d marry him.”

There were great players. And then there was The Say Hey Kid. On April 30, 1961, Willie joined an exclusive club by hitting 4 HR’s in a single 9 inning game. He was on deck when the final out was recorded. On July 2, 1963, Warren Spahn and Juan Marichal dueled it out for an unheard of 16 innings before Mays won the game with a solo blast in the 16^th. He is the only player in history to hit at least a single HR in 16 different innings. Willie is also the only player to have a 4 HR game and a 3 triple game. He played in at least 150 games per year for 8 straight seasons. He is one of just 8 players to reach 100 RBI’s 8 straight seasons and surpassed 95 RBI’s 12 of 13 consecutive seasons.

His stats are impressive. He appeared in 24 All-Star Games, second only to Hank Aaron. He won 12 Gold Gloves…but the award was not even created until Willie’s 6^th season in the majors. He is one of only 5 OFers to have won at least 10. He recorded 7095 put-outs, most in history.

Along with Aaron and Ruth, Mays was one of only three players at the time of his retirement to have surpassed 600 HR’s. The man in 4^th, Frank Robinson, was nearly 100 behind him. His 660 total still places him 4^th. Of his 660 round-trippers, 22 came in extra innings.

In addition to his power and glove, Willie compiled 3283 hits and retired with a  302 Bat Ave. There were also 2062 Runs, 523 doubles, 140 triples, a 557 career slugging percentage, 384 OBP  and 1903 RBI’s. And he missed two years for military service.

For the 8 year period of 1955-1962, Willie also stole 221 bases, being caught just 64 times. A 78% success rate is good. But keep in mind, Willie was a clean-up hitter.

Sporting News  named Willie ‘The Ballplayer of the Decade’ for the 1960’s. And why not? Mays didn’t play in the day of steroids and small bandboxes. He played  during a time when pitching dominated the game. Koufax and Drysdale were in the same division as the Giants. There were also guys like Seaver, Gibson and Carlton. And the stadiums were cavernous.

But Willie Mays was more than stats and numbers. He played the game with flare and knew how to capture the dreams of fans everywhere. He wore a hat too small so it would fly off his head while running the bases, making him look ‘so fast.’ ‘Basket Catch’ entered our vocabulary thanks to Willie. Both in NY at the outset of his career and later in San Francisco, Willie would be seeing playing stickball with neighborhood kids in downtrodden areas.

In May1972, the Giants were struggling financially. GM Horace Stoneham traded the aging legend to the Mets for pitcher Charlie Williams and $50,000. Upon returning to the city where his career began Willie once again showed flare for the dramatic. In his first game as a Met, the 40 year old hit a HR and gave the Mets a victory—over the San Francisco Giants.

His final HR, # 660, came off of Don Gullett on August 18, 1973. Willie announced his retirement, ‘saying good-bye to America’ on Sept 25, 1973.

The Mets, however, managed to squeak out the division title and get by The Big Red Machine in the playoffs. At age 41, Willie Mays was in the World Series, playing against the team across the Bay from San Francisco. Willie got the first Mets hit in the fall classic and went for 2-7 overall. However, the heartbreaking moment came when the aging superstar lost a routine fly ball in the sun. After the game, Willie stated, “Growing old is just a helpless hurt.”

After retirement, Willie served as a coach for the Mets until 1979. Shortly after his enshrinement in Cooperstown, Willie, along with Mickey Mantle, was suspended from Baseball by Commissioner Bowie Kuhn due to the fact they  were employed as ‘Greeters’ for an Atlantic City casino. This was overturned by Peter Ueberroth in 1985.

In 1999, Mays was listed at the #2 spot on the All-Century Team. His #24 has fittingly been retired by the Giants, although he offered his number to his God-son Barry Bonds. Barry refused, opting to go with #25 worn by his father Bobby when he had played for the Giants. On July 14^th, 2009 Willie was the special guest of President Obama for the All-Star Game in St. Louis and flew on Air Force One.

Outside the main entrance to AT&T Park where the Giants play is a larger-than-life statue of The Say Hey Kid. If you’re interested in seeing it next time you’re in San Francisco, you can find the stadium in the heart of downtown. It’s located at 24 Willie Mays Plaza.

Through the use of the scorecard, let’s take a look at how Johan Santana did this week:

Despite not having any wins this week between his two starts, the Mets won both games. Santana had an absolutely stellar start Tuesday against the Marlins, holding them to 1 run through 6.2 innings, striking out 11. Yesterday, the Mets finally scored with him on the mound, spotting him a 4-0 lead, which he left with, but the bullpen blew the lead and he wound up with two non-decisions this week.

Honorable Mentions

These players, although not winning the Player of the Week award, had a very strong showing this week and deserve to be recognized. We will also show how strong a showing they had through the use of the scorecard.

David Wright

Lucas Duda

Ruben Tejada

Not So Hot

The Not So Hot area mentions a few players who did not have a good week this week.

Ike Davis

Frank Francisco

Manny Acosta

Miguel Batista

Player Of The Week Scoreboard

This area shows the scoreboard of the Players of the Week, and who has won already this season and how many times.

T1. David Wright – 1

T1. Kirk Nieuwenhuis – 1

T1. Johan Santana – 1

Trivia

To finish off the Player of the Week announcement each week, I’ll be asking you a trivia question. The answer will be announced during the next Player of the Week announcement, as well as the first person who answered correctly. Another question will then be asked. Last Week’s Answer is: Pittsburgh Pirates. Alex68 was the first person to correctly answer the question. So here is this week’s question:

What Met was traded for himself?

Through the use of the scorecard, let’s take a look at how Kirk Nieuwenhuis did this week:

This week, rookie Kirk Nieuwenhuis got the Player Of The Week honors. While not bringing in many runs (2 runs batted in), he scored 7 and got on base quite a bit. He put himself in scoring position right away with two doubles and also had a home run.

Honorable Mentions

These players, although not winning the Player of the Week award, had a very strong showing this week and deserve to be recognized. We will also show how strong a showing they had through the use of the scorecard.

David Wright

Jason Bay

Daniel Murphy

Mike Pelfrey

Dillon Gee

Not So Hot

The Not So Hot area mentions a few players who did not have a good week this week.

Johan Santana

Frank Francisco

R.A. Dickey

Lucas Duda

Player Of The Week Scoreboard

This area shows the scoreboard of the Players of the Week, and who has won already this season and how many times.

David Wright – 1

Kirk Nieuwenhuis – 1

Trivia

To finish off the Player of the Week announcement each week, I’ll be asking you a trivia question. The answer will be announced during the next Player of the Week announcement, as well as the first person who answered correctly. Another question will then be asked. Last Week’s Answer is: Rick White. No one got the answer correct. So here is this week’s question:

Who did the Mets beat for their first win?

The San Francisco Giants are champions of the world after knocking out the Texas Rangers 3-1 to win the World Series 4-1.

For the second time in the series, San Francisco ace Tim Lincecum outdueled the Texas ace Cliff Lee.

The Giants took the lead on a 3-Run HR by Edgar Renteria off Lee in the 7^th. Nelson Cruz answered with a solo shot in the bottom of the 7^th off Lincecum.

Lincecum was dominant in Game 5, with 3 Hits and 10 K’s in 8 IP.

In the playoffs, Lincy defeated Derek Lowe, Roy Halladay, and Cliff Lee.

The Texas offense, all series was dismal. Josh Hamilton went 2 for 20. Vladimir Guerrero had a slash line of .071/.125/.071. The Rangers as a team batted .189 with a .232 OBP.

1B Mike Moreland was the only one with a semblance of offense going .452/.533/.769.

Giants SS Edgar Renteria captured the MVP award, after going .429/.467/.643 with 2 HR and 6 RBI.

Renteria joins Yogi Berra, Joe DiMaggio, and Lou Gehrig as the only players to have the World Series winning hit in two different World Series.

The Giants offense, considered to be the weak link on the team, exploded for 20 Runs in the first two games.

Aubrey Huff went .357/.438/.714 with 4 RBI.

The Giants got a gem from rookie Madison Bumgarner in Game 4, firing 8 shutout innings. In Game 2, Matt Cain threw 7.2 scoreless.

In Cliff Lee’s two World Series starts, he took his first (and second) postseason losses with a 6.94 ERA.

The Giants won their first title since 1954, and first since moving out west.

When the Giants last won the World Series in 1954: Gas was $.21, top song was “Hey There” by Rosemary Clooney, and President was Dwight D. “Ike” Eisenhower

Starting back in 1883 through 1957 some of the best to ever walk onto a baseball field walked onto that field wearing a Giants uniform. Legends such as Christy Mathewson (373-188, 2.13 ERA and 79 shutouts), Carl Hubbell (best known for mastering the screwball and for fanning Ruth, Gehrig, Foxx, Simmons and Cronin in succession in the 1934 All-Star Game), Mel Ott (the 1^st NLer to surpass 500 HR‘s), Bill Terry (341 career BA and the last NLer to hit over 400), ‘Iron Man’ Joe McGinnity (246 wins in 10 years) and Roger Connor (baseball’s original HR king) all played for the Giants.

They were managed by John McGraw, the 2^nd winningest mgr ever. McGraw compiled a .586 winning percentage over 33 years. In 1904 the Giants won the pennant but McGraw refused to let his team play in the World Series. The American League was ‘inferior’ as he put it and they didn’t deserve to be on the same field with his team.

In 1951, the Giants trailed the Dodgers by 13 ½ games on August 11. Although Brooklyn played well down the stretch (26-22) the Giants took it to another level, playing an unfathomable 841, going 37-7. It was arguably the greatest comeback ever. It culminated with Bobby Thomson’s HR in a playoff game against Brooklyn to determine the pennant. Thomson’s HR is considered the greatest ever in Baseball history. Russ Hodges’ cry of ‘The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!’ has gone down as perhaps the most memorable line ever spoken by a broadcaster.

Willie Mays catch in 1954 is the best and most famous defensive play in World Series history.

It was October 1956 and as usual, Brooklyn was battling the Yankees in the Fall Classic. But as the Yankees prevailed in 7 games there was a storm brewing. Rumors were intensifying that the Dodgers as well as the Giants were considering moving.

Dodgers owner Walter O’Malley was seeking a new home. Ebbets Field, while beloved by faithful fans, was becoming run down. The surrounding neighborhood was unsafe. In spite of the teams unparalleled success throughout the 1950’s the small stadium rarely sold out.

O’Malley was butting heads with Robert Moses, the construction coordinator for the city. O’Malley set his sights on a plot of land at the Brooklyn waterfront. Moses, however, had the power to condemn the land. And he did just that. Instead, he tried to bully O’Malley into moving to Flushing Meadows. O’Malley was irate and began looking elsewhere. The exact spot that Moses had in mind would later be the site of Shea.

O’Malley was heavily courted by city officials from Los Angeles. At the time baseball did not extend beyond St. Louis and it would be too costly to fly to California for just one team. O’Malley needed someone else to move.

Enter Horace Stoneham, principal owner of the Giants. Stoneham was also looking for a new home. Their stadium, the Polo Grounds, was also badly in need of repair and Stoneham, like O’Malley, was getting nowhere with city officials. He had been leaning towards moving his Giants to Minneapolis. However, he was being enticed by officials from San Francisco. That, along with O’Malley’s skill of persuasion, convinced Stoneham to head west.

When the Giants Board of Directors voted, there were only two individuals who voted for them to stay put: Joan Whitney Payson and M. Donald Grant.

Grant would become the Chairman of the Mets. It was he who was the driving force in bringing Gil Hodges ‘home to New York’ in 1968 to manage.

Joan Payson would become the first principal owner of the Mets. But she never stopped loving her Giants. It was she who was very influential in the design of the ‘NY’ logo on the Mets cap. As a tribute to the city’s baseball heritage, she wanted to use the exact same NY insignia as her Giants wore-Giant orange but now on a Dodger blue background. It was also Payson who was prominent behind the Mets getting Willie Mays in 1972. She was determined to have her idol finish out his career in the city he started.

In spite of many great players playing in San Francisco, a championship has alluded them. Only the Cubs and Indians have gone longer without winning.

As an organization the Giants have won 21 pennants, but 17 came in NY. They’ve won 8 World Series but all of those were in NY as well.

In 2002, they lost the World Series in 7 games to the Angels. In 62, they again lost in 7 games, this time to the Yankees. Trailing 1-0 in the bottom of the 9^th in game 7, the Giants put the tying and winning runs in scoring position but Willie McCovey lined out to end the series.

In 1989 they got swept by their cross-bay rivals, the A’s. But that series was more remembered for the massive 7.1 earthquake that hit the Bay Area. The quake hit at rush hour, 5:04 pm. 63 people were killed that day. But many had left work early and were in Candlestick Park or at home preparing for Game 3. Had the Giants not been in the World Series experts calculate the death toll would have been between 400-500.

Since moving west the Giants have had 9 MVP’s and 4 Rookie of the Year’s. In 1981 they became the first team in the NL to hire an African-American manager. 2 of the top 4 HR hitters of all time, 3 of the top 18, all played in SF.

The NY/SF Giants have won more games then any other team. They have 28 players enshrined in Cooperstown, also more then any other team.

Some of the biggest stars of the last half century have been San Francisco Giants. Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal, Orlando Cepeda, Gaylord Perry, Will Clark, the Alou brothers, Barry Bonds and Jeff Kent have all played for this team. In spite of this, the Giants have yet to win a Series.

Based on that, it’s almost hard to imagine them winning it all with Posey, Lincecum and Huff. It’s hard to believe that Matt Cain can do what Marichal couldn’t. But isn’t that what makes this game great?

It’s World Series time. Welcome to October…

Texas Rangers

The Rangers rotation is anchored by mid-season acquisition, and playoff ace, Cliff Lee. After Lee is CJ Wilson, Colby Lewis, and Tommy Hunter. Lewis has a 1.45 playoff ERA with 18 K’s in 18.2 IP. Wilson is 1-1 in three starts with a 3.93 playoff ERA. Lee has been his usual outstanding self. In three starts, Lee has pitched 24 IP with only 2 Earned Runs and an absurd 34:1 K:BB ratio. 34 to 1!!!

However, Tommy Hunter is the weak link in the rotation. He’s made two starts, never lasting longer than 4 IP. He still gets the K’s (12 in 7.1 IP), but has a bad WHIP (1.50) and ERA (6.14).

The closer is the electric Neftali Feliz.

You’ve probably heard of the Rangers offense. Leadoff man Elvis Andrus, 3B Michael Young, MVP Josh Hamilton, Who’s Your Vladdy, Boomstick, Ian Kinsler, Bengie Molina, 1B Mitch Moreland, and either David (don’t call me Daniel) Murphy or Frenchy.

I won’t go too in depth, but this offense is seriously freakin good.

The Rangers are in the World Series for the first time in franchise history; 39 seasons in Texas, 11 in Washington. The trades that were made this season were made with the intent that there was no tomorrow, which because of the ownership situation, there wasn’t. That’s why they were willing to deal Justin Smoak and Blake Beaven for Lee, and steal him out from under the Yankees. That may have won them the ALCS. It’s World Series or bust for the Rangers.

San Francisco Giants

The Giants win with pitching, pitching, pitching, and enough offense to take the lead. Timmy “The Freak” Lincecum anchors the rotation with Matt Cain, Jonathan Sanchez, and Madison Bumgarner. For the past two years, the Giants have had a reputation as “The Team No One Wants To Make The Playoffs” because of their rotation. Lincy has been what you would expect. Cain’s shutout in Game 3 against Cole Hamels gave the Giants the series lead they would not relinquish. Bumgarner and Sanchez can really rack up K’s, but they also give up runs. Sanchez did not make it out of the 3^rd in Game 6. He could be the Giants weak link.

The closer is Brian Wilson and his beard.

The lineup is a collection of misfits that somehow work well together. Andres Torres (6^th in the league in Defensive WAR), Freddy Sanchez, Aubrey Huff (4^th in the NL in WAR among position players…seriously the biggest bargain of the 2009 offseason), ROY candidate Buster Posey, mid-season pickup Pat Burrell, mid-season pickup Cody NLCS MVP Ross, Kung Fu Panda, mid-season pickup Mike Fontenot, Juan Uribe, and Edgar “I’ve been around forever but I’m only 33” Renteria. The lineup doesn’t pack the punch that the boys from Arlington have, but it’s a group of players peaking at the right time. All of these pickups and signings have done well since coming to San Fran.

The Giants have not won a World Series since moving out West, 53 seasons.

Fun Factoids

Tim Lincecum and Cliff Lee were the two Cy Young winners in 08. The last time that the two respective Cy Young’s from the same year have faced in the World Series was 2001 (Roger Clemens and Randy Johnson, who both won it in 2001 and matched up that October/November).

Bengie Molina started his year by the bay, but was traded to Texas.

The first interleague game ever was between the Giants and Rangers in Arlington.

Hey Beltran-bashers, next time you want to bring up that called strike, just remember that both LCS’s this year ended with called strikes on the losing team’s biggest sluggers. On pitches that weren’t as nasty as Wainwright’s curve.

Either Guillermo Mota or Frenchy will be a World Champion soon.

Questions To Chew On

Who will win the series?

How many games?

MVP?

Who wins Game 1, Cliff Lee or Tim Lincecum?

Should Cliff Lee throw Games 1, 4, and 7?

Should Lincecum?

For Fun: Comparing the cities, who is the cooler law-enforcer, Walker Texas Ranger or Dirty Harry?

Also, by defeating the Atlanta Braves on Monday night, the Giants advanced to their first NLCS since 2002, when they finished one win short of their first World Series championship since moving to San Francisco in 1958.

At the midway point of the season, the Giants were 41-40 and were a season high 7½ games behind the Padres. They were also 4½ games out of the wild card lead, with five teams ahead of them.

The final week before the All-Star Break saw the Giants playing the lowly Brewers and Nationals.  They took both series to inch closer in the wild card race, but were still in fourth place in the NL West, with the Padres, Dodgers and Rockies ahead of them.   Enter the New York Mets.

The Mets played better than expected in the first half of the season.   At the All-Star Break, they were 48-40, which put them a game ahead of the San Francisco Giants in the wild card race.  The two teams then played each other in the first series after the break.  Everything changed after that series was completed.

The Giants took the first three games of the four-game series at AT&T Park, shutting out the Mets in the first two contests.   In fact, the Mets were held scoreless by Giants pitchers for the first 24 innings of the series.  The Mets did manage to salvage the final game of the series, but even then, they needed a blown call by home plate umpire Phil Cuzzi to win it.

Cuzzi called Giants’ pinch-hitter Travis Ishikawa out at home when replays showed that the tag by Henry Blanco was late.  The gaffe prevented what would have been the winning run from scoring in the bottom of the ninth inning.  The Mets went on to win the game in ten innings.

The series with the Mets was the beginning of a stretch where the Giants won 15 out of 19 games to move into the wild card lead.   The hot streak also moved them to within one game of the Padres for the division lead.

As Mets fans all know, the trip to San Francisco was the beginning of a 2-9 road trip that saw the Mets get swept in Arizona, followed by three losses in four games in Los Angeles.  Meanwhile, the Giants won two out of three in Los Angeles and followed that up with a four-game sweep in Arizona.   The Mets never got close to the Giants again.

The series with the Mets seemed to awaken the Giants’ pitchers, who were already among the best in the National League prior to the All-Star Break.  Consider these first half versus second half numbers for the Giants’ starting rotation and bullpen.

• Starting pitchers (before break):  34-30, 3.65 ERA, 1.29 WHIP
• Starting pitchers (after break):  27-25, 3.39 ERA, 1.21 WHIP

• Relief pitchers (before break):  13-11, 3.17 ERA, 1.47 WHIP
• Relief pitchers (after break):  18-4, 2.78 ERA, 1.12 WHIP

The starters showed a modest improvement in the ERA and WHIP department, but the bullpen took things to another level.  They were nearly unhittable in the second half, led by closer Brian Wilson, who led the National League in saves and finished with a career-best 1.81 ERA and 1.18 WHIP.

Pitching wins championships and the Giants have plenty of pitching.  The top four pitchers in the Giants’ rotation (Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Jonathan Sanchez, Madison Bumgarner) all had ERAs of 3.40 or less.  No other staff in baseball can lay claim to four starters with ERAs as low as the Giants’ quartet.  In fact, Lincecum, who is the staff ace and the winner of the last two National League Cy Young Awards, is the starter with the 3.40 ERA.  (However, he is the only one of the foursome who can claim to being the love child of Jennifer Aniston and Mitch from “Dazed and Confused”.)

The Phillies might look like the team to beat in the National League, especially after they dismantled the Cincinnati Reds in a three-game NLDS sweep that included a no-hitter by Roy Halladay, but Halladay can’t pitch every game.  The Giants have four quality starters, all of whom are capable of keeping their opponents to a low hit total.  (Like Halladay, Jonathan Sanchez can also claim a no-hitter on his résumé.)

Here’s a word of advice to our division rivals down the NJ Turnpike.  Don’t start selling World Series tickets yet.  The Giants are red hot and their pitchers are leading the way.  They took off once the Mets came into town and have never looked back.  Therefore, on behalf of the Mets, I have two words to say to the Giants.

You’re welcome.

So I was thrilled in 1997 when interleague play was officially introduced, with 15 or so games on the schedule.  It hasn’t varied much since then, though some natural rivalries like Mets/Yankees or Cubs/White Sox or Giants/A’s play a home and home series and otherwise the teams rotate each year.  And I’m not sure why, but I look forward to interleague play each year like a kid looking forward to Christmas.  No joke.  I love seeing teams that don’t normally play each other, play each other.

But here’s the thing.  I think at this point, they should add more interleague games to the schedule.  Do we really have to play the teams in our division 18 times each?  That’s almost half the schedule, and there’s something about watching the Mets play in Miami three times a year to 5,000 people that makes me want to poke my eyes out.

I say, cut those in-division games to 12 each, and you’re saving 24 games to play other opponents, which means you can just about play every American League team at least once a year.  Would any of you really rather see all those divisional games instead of that?  You’d have the chance to see, either at Citi Field or on TV (or of course, a road trip), almost every player in the majors at one point or another.

Of course, we all know too well that the suits in baseball move at the speed of a turtle that stepped in molasses.  If they won’t add instant replay on ground balls, they surely won’t add more interleague games.  But many of us thought we’d never see interleague play, so there you have it.  Who knows?

Meanwhile, it sure is nice watching the Mets these days against any team.  First place is now within reach.  Let’s go Mets!

The Mets have 76 home runs through 132 games, putting them on pace for 93, their lowest total since 1992 when Bobby Bonilla led the team with 19.  Gary Sheffield currently leads this Mets team with 10 (Jeff Francoeur has 11, but only 6 with the Mets), so it looks like our leader is on pace for 12 or 13, a number that harkens back to the ‘70’s.

And if it weren’t for the 2008 San Francisco Giants, who had 94 homers (the lowest total and only mark under 100 of the new millennium), this Mets’ power or lack thereof would really be a black eye in the record books.  It still might be, as it’s quite likely the tally can be between 85 and 90, depending on if Beltran comes back.

So for all of the bad things that have happened to our Mets this season, the lack of home runs is possibly the most insulting, most disturbing and utterly forgettable trend we’ve seen.  It’s even magnified by the fact that this team has the second-highest payroll in the game.  By comparison, those guys across town have hit 207 homers, and even the lowly and small-market Pirates and Royals are over 100 at this point.

I know I’ve written about this subject before, and I’m not worried about this being a problem in 2010 (yet), but you have to admit these numbers are just baffling, and we might not see a power outage like this for another 30 years.

But of course, the Mets never make things easy.  Four straight wins later, two against a team they are chasing for the wild card, Colorado, and there is an air of optimism again.  We’re still 5.5 games behind Colorado and San Francisco, with Florida, Atlanta, Chicago, Houston and Milwaukee all there to climb over.  But this thing is far from over, and who knows what the likes of Roy Halladay could do for this team?  Heck, if the Mets did somehow manage to win the wild card, they would have to have a guy like Halladay to pair with Johan Santana in a short series with the Phillies, who now have Cliff Lee behind Cole Hamels.  But it’s hard to imagine the Mets even having the goods on the farm to land a Halladay. 

So what does Omar do now?  As crazy as this sounds, the games tonight and tomorrow afternoon are probably going to determine if something happens before Friday’s trade deadline.  Lose both games, and we might be selling.  Win both and we could be buyers.  Split the games and it could go either way. 

What do you all think?