This offseason, we’re looking at the Mets’ history with free agency. This list may change in the coming years in terms of rankings and new additions (Maybe Carlos Correa? Possibly Justin Verlander?). But for now, we’ve featured an underdog pitcher at No. 10 up to the greatest center fielder at No. 2. And at the top of the list is a player who joined the team mid-season via trade on the last year of his contract. The decision to re-sign him paid off right away and his number has a permanent place in the Citi Field rafters. 

He came to New York after a whirlwind week. The trade for Mike Piazza transformed the Mets from being an overachieving team looking to contend into a legitimate contender.

Overcoming expectations and boos from fans, Piazza put together a terrific four months. He finished the 1998 season batting .348 with a 167 OPS+. The Mets wound up a game short of the postseason and with Piazza’s contract expiring, the trade and all expectations going forward would be nullified if the star catcher didn’t stay in New York.

This didn’t turn out to be a prolonged drama. Proving he had won over a good portion of a fan base that demanded plenty, an e-mail signed by 10,000 names was sent to the club urging Piazza be re-signed. In late October, Piazza inked a seven-year, $91 million deal — the richest in baseball at the time.

“I might as well get booed by the best if I was going to get booed by anyone,” Piazza said.

What followed would be two straight playoff appearances and a World Series trip, six All-Star Game selections, the confirmation of a Hall of Fame career and the greatest hitting catcher while in a Met uniform, and the retirement of his No. 31 jersey.

He still holds the highest slugging percentage in team history, ranks second in OPS, and third in home runs. Of his 220 homers, none was more memorable or dramatic than the one hit in the first game in New York City following the attacks on September 11, 2001.

Piazza is a Big Apple icon, but his career was made for Hollywood. As a 62nd round pick by the Dodgers, he came from nowhere to become Rookie of the Year and the premiere backstop in baseball. Los Angeles dealt Piazza to the Florida Marlins, where he spent all but five games in teal before finding his way to Queens.

Standing ovations were easy to come by in his May 23 debut — less so in the following weeks. Being anointed as a savior, as Piazza was from the start, had its drawbacks. When he started slowly, with a noticeable lack of power, the public turned on him.
Mike soon settled down and played to the level expected of him. He would hit 23 home runs and compile a 1.024 OPS. In batting .378 for September, Piazza was the clear catalyst in New York’s fight for a postseason berth.

The mega-deal ensured he would be a New Yorker through his prime. The next three years was validation of the team’s heavy investment.

Piazza averaged 38 homers and 110 RBIs from 1999-2001, had an OPS+ of 146, and continued to be a perennial All-Star and Silver Slugger. He got within one step of the World Series in 1999 and finally arrived in 2000. There would be no rings, but Piazza built a legacy that made him arguably the greatest position player in Mets history.

The post Mets Best Free-Agent Signing No. 1: Mike Piazza appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Six up with six to play. Not even the Mets, well-accustomed to late-season collapses in recent years, could possibly succumb to such a freefall. Fortunately, either a New York win or a loss by the Los Angeles Dodgers would ensure a second consecutive trip to the postseason.

But the Mets — specifically their general manager — had no interest in settling for a wild card berth, even if it was their most logical path to the playoffs.

“Our goal was to win the division,” Steve Phillips said. “The wild card is a fall back.” Phillips went so far as to say that the Mets shouldn’t engage in an on-field celebration if the “fall back” option was indeed their fate.

New York would figure out if those slim division title hopes would disappear or stay alive, because the first-place Atlanta Braves were coming into Queens to re-engage less than a week after the two clubs finished playing each other down south.

The Braves needed to take only one in their three-game set at Shea Stadium to lock up the NL East again. And without wasting time or drama, they did so in the opener. Following a 7-1 win, the muted celebration of Braves players and coaches was typical of a franchise that had dominance over the division for the better part of a decade. 

With the previously faint hopes of an NL East crown now vanished, the Mets subsequently put a quick end to the suspense about their securing the wild card and reeled off a five-game winning streak to end the regular season.

The Shea crowd was poised for a celebration of its own on September 27, even if their GM wasn’t. With the Dodgers prevailing the previous night, it gave the Mets an opportunity to clinch on their own terms.

Atlanta didn’t concede easily, sending out its top-tier lineup. But it proved no deterrent to the determined Mets or starter Rick Reed, who negotiated that Braves order with relative ease following a first-inning homer by Andruw Jones.

Meanwhile, the offense chipped away at Kevin Millwood beginning in the fourth inning. The Mets broke a 1-1 tie on the strength of a Darryl Hamilton single to score Timo Perez followed by a two-run homer from Edgardo Alfonzo.

New York tacked on some more, building the lead to 6-1. Armando Benitez, who finished with a team-record 41 saves in 2000, was given the honor of closing out the clinch in a non-save situation.

A home run by Andres Galarraga did little harm. Benitez finished off the Braves and, somewhat abiding to Philips’ wishes, the reaction was relatively subdued. The Mets eventually let loose with champagne in the locker room.

”I think that this team has silenced a little bit of the doubters,” Mike Piazza said to The New York Times. ”You know what? We had a bad month. Hopefully, we can have a good month.”

From there, the team played free and easy — similar to how they performed during a red-hot summer.

Unlike Braves manager Bobby Cox, Bobby Valentine penciled in a Mets’ lineup laden with backups. Nevertheless, they proceed to end Greg Maddux‘s scoreless drought and send him to the clubhouse after five innings.

Todd Pratt led the way in the 8-2 destruction of Atlanta pitching, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs while Kurt Abbott showed some rare pop in his bat by knocking his sixth home run of the season. Bobby Jones went eight and gave up only two runs. Although his final ERA wasn’t eye-catching or eye-pleasing, he managed to tally an 11-6 recor.

The Mets then disposed of their last regular-season opponent, the Montreal Expos. Mike Hampton picked up his 15th victory of the year on September 29, supported heavily by ten runs over the first two innings. That was followed with a pair of late-game triumphs which served as the tune-up for October.

All that remained was to determine the Mets’ Division Series opponent. The Braves, Cardinals, and Giants fought it out for the league’s best record and, thus, home-field advantage throughout the NL playoffs.

Atlanta continued to play its starters but was no better off for it. After losing the series in New York, they continued to struggle at home against the Colorado Rockies and dropped two out of three to close the regular season. 

The Giants, meanwhile, won four of their last five for a final tally of 97 victories — enough for the NL’s top seed, which meant the Mets would have a rematch with their nemesis in the NLCS.

New York ended up with 94 — three fewer wins than in 1999 but far less angst in getting there. But compared to last year’s roller-coaster arrival to the playoffs, which included the Mets having to take four straight must-win games and a three-city trek over some 50 hours, the relatively serene finish and a flight out west to take on San Francisco was a comforting feeling. But for a team of the Mets’ stature, getting to the postseason wasn’t enough. Only a trip to the World Series would suffice.

The post Reliving The 2000 Mets: Finishing September with Momentum appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

A full week after their 18-hour flight from halfway around the world, the Mets still showed symptoms of jet lag. They dropped two of three to the Padres and only managed to scrape together two hits in the opener against Los Angeles.

The Mets actually won that night in spite of their anemic offense — and have Rick Reed to thank for it. Reed augmented his solid start in Japan with 7.2 sterling innings and a 2-1 lead that would be protected by Armando Benitez.

New York’s hitting recovered the next day, only for the bullpen to spring a leak. John Franco punctured the biggest hole when he let a four-run ninth-inning lead slip away only to be followed up by Benitez relinquishing a game-winning home run to Eric Karros in the top of the tenth. The implosion spoiled the valiant effort of emergency starter and future Super Bowl QB dad Pat Mahomes — inserted in place of an injured Al Leiter — along with the first career home run for Jay Payton, a two-run homer from Edgardo Alfonzo, and three hits by Melvin Mora.

The snowball effect of the 11th-hour Dodger onslaught manifested itself less than 24 hours later when winter-like conditions postponed any chances of finishing the series.

”If abnormal is regular, as I feel it is,” Valentine said, according to the New York Times, ”then this will be another regular, wacky, abnormal season.”

But even a much-needed rest day ahead of a week-long Pennsylvania road trip didn’t cure what was ailing the Mets. The injury toll was not limited to Leiter and his sore groin muscle. Bobby Jones, who would be rocked in an April 10 outing against the Phillies for six earned runs in four innings, exited his next start versus the Pirates prematurely — a strained right calf being the culprit. He’d quickly be placed on the disabled list.

Rickey Henderson, great fodder for a good headline, got his bell rung when a trip to the ballpark that snowy Sunday resulted in a car accident.

Henderson, who had given management headaches with his outspoken desire to be traded if he didn’t get more playing time, briefly broke his month-long media boycott to provide a status update: “I’m alive.”

While Rickey’s standing with the Mets was hanging by a thread, Darryl Hamilton‘s career was in jeopardy because of a sprained left foot that put him out of action until August.

Mets pitchers incurred their own punishment — pelted for a staggering 23 runs over the next four games. In Philadelphia, where New York dropped two of three, it was the big inning that hurt them most. Specifically, four big innings in which the Phillies tallied at least three on the scoreboard.

Following Jones’ rough outing, Mike Hampton — still in search of his first Mets victory — lost for the third time many tries after yielding five walks and a homer. He headed off the Veterans Stadium mound with his new club in an early 6-0 ditch.

Again, Rick Reed offered the bailout package. It was the seventh inning before Philadelphia could muster a score. Reed came away with a no-decision, but New York snapped a 1-1 tie in the top of the ninth to salvage the final game of the series.

The Mets departed Philadelphia with hopes of leaving their struggles behind, but their manager couldn’t shake the new controversy he started there. Earlier that week, a student invited Valentine to speak at the Wharton School of Business on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania. During the Q&A session that followed, the ever-candid Valentine allegedly ripped Mets management along with some players. The comments would have likely stayed within the walls of the room if not for an attendee posting his account of the talk on a message board.

This threatened to take the heated relationship between GM Steve Phillips and his manager, which had reached red-hot temperatures the year before, up a notch. In a preemptive and over-reactive move, Phillips joined the team in Pittsburgh for a one-on-one conversation with Valentine to diffuse the situation. Phillips later questioned the credibility of the source before the Penn student newspaper (The Daily Pennsylvanian) fanned the flame, reporting that Valentine contacted the reporter who attended the event to destroy her audio tape.

The controversy died down a bit when the source confessed he exaggerated a few of his comments. The Daily Pennsylvanian released a partial transcript which mostly exonerated Bobby V, but not entirely. In it, Valentine criticized Phillips’ failure to sign Japanese reliever Kazuhiro Sasaki over the winter. The manager also presumably needled outfielder Derek Bell by saying there was a “$5 million player” who doesn’t produce as well as Benny Agbayani.

New York went on to capture two of its three games in Pittsburgh, with Piazza and Ventura contributing two home runs each. So far in the 2000 season, the Mets constant sideshows resembled the turmoil that engulfed the club last year, amid all their successes.  And now, with the offense appearing to click with regularity, the on-field product had the look of the ’99 club, too.

The post Reliving the 2000 Mets: Snow, Injuries, and Wharton-Gate appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Current MLB Network Sirius XM host Steve Phillips served as the general manager of the New York Mets from 1997-2003 after working in their scouting department from 1990-1996. I recently had the chance to talk to the Mets former GM.

Phillips works with Eduardo Perez at Sirius, who was most recently the runner up for the Mets managerial position, losing out to Carlos Beltran. Phillips says he has the utmost respect for Perez and expects him to be in a Major League dugout sooner rather than later, but also feels Beltran was a well deserving hire by the Mets.

As for Perez, Phillips told me that former Gold Glove center fielder Jim Edmonds says he owes the majority of success in his career to Perez who taught him how to pick up on pitchers tipping their pitches while playing with him for the Angels early in his career from 1993-1995.

Phillips credited Perez as one of the best at utilizing this ability to pick up on pitchers, who were ultimately tipping something. He also mentioned the new Mets skipper in Beltran who has a high reputation in this area, as well.

“His chemistry with the players is something special,” said Phillips about Perez, who always receives the warmest of greetings by every member of each Major League clubhouse they visit during the radio station’s annual spring training tour for the show.

“He has so much experience around the game as a player and coach in dugouts at numerous levels.”

Perez works closely with MLB Network radio’s analytics department, which plays a lot in today’s game and as Phillips says this aspect has come a long way since his era.

“Moneyball skyrocketed the importance of on-base percentage although we still used this measure prior to the book on this.”

Phillips remembers his scouting department having to convince Mets ownership in the mid-90’s to purchase cameras to put up the first and third base lines and behind home plate to enhance the scouting department, which did not utilize video technology at the time.

Fast forward to 1998, when Phillips was in the early part of his second season as general manager of the New York Mets. Leading up to the Mike Piazza trade in May, Phillips knew Marlins general manager Dave Dombrowski really well, who just acquired Piazza from the Dodgers.

He was also familiar with Dombrowski’s thought process after making a trade with him prior to the start of the season, which saw the Mets acquire pitchers Al Leiter and Dennis Cook. As Phillips told me, he made three separate lists centered around three players who Dombrowski had shown an interest to in the past in the Mets organization.

Phillips created groups of lower-level players around the guys Dombrowski liked using them as headers A, B, and C, which worked out in his favor when Dombrowski chose the top player from each list in Preston Wilson, Ed Yarnall, and Geoff Goetz. This approach deemed successful for Phillips and once he got the green light from Mets ownership, the team was able to acquire Piazza on May 22, 1998.

Of course, the Mets lost five straight games to end the season missing the Wild Card by one game. Luckily, they were able to sign Piazza to a long-term extension in the off-season. Just coming up short in 98’ seemed to motivate the players and coaches heading into 1999 said Phillips, who saw this Mets team advance to the NLCS.

The following year, the Mets would make it to the World Series in 2000, but fell to the cross-town rival New York Yankees in five games. Despite coming up short, this was the first time in franchise history in which the Mets made the postseason in back-to-back seasons.

In 2001, the Mets started out strong but fizzled out and finished in fourth place in the division, which Phillips believes to be due to internal satisfaction with what they accomplished the previous year winning the National League pennant.

While the 2001 season seemed lost, the tragedy of 9/11 occurred in September, which is a date that will live in infamy across the United States. Baseball was put on hold for the time being as the nation picked themselves backup, until 10 days later when commissioner Bud Selig received clearance to resume play.

On this day, Phillips recalls being stuck inside his office for the majority of the afternoon in several meetings, which briefed the organization on standard procedure in-case they needed to evacuate due to an emergency.

When Phillips was finally able to get out of the office, he walked down to the bleachers to watch singer Diana Ross, who was rehearsing the National Anthem on the field in preparation for the game that night. He remembers Ross walking around to comfort the rest of the singers in the group, putting her arm on each person to let them know “it was going to be OK.”

Phillips sat there and watched their continued rehearsal, which brought tears to his eyes in what was a very emotional moment given what had just occurred 10 days ago

Later that night, the Mets were trailing late in the game to the Atlanta Braves and what happened next will forever be solidified in baseball history. Who else, but Piazza stepped to the plate and hit one of the most iconic home runs of all-time to put the Mets up 3-2 in the bottom of the 8th inning. The stadium went wild, flags twirled in the air, and in that point in time, hope felt restored. As Phillips said “it gave you a reason to believe.”

In 2002, Mets co-owner Nelson Doubleday sold his 50% stake in the team to Fred Wilpon, whom he split the team stake with 50-50 for the previous 20-some-odd-years.

A report initially stated Doubleday was bought out because of Fred Wilpon’s desire to put his son Jeff in place as COO. According to Philips, this claim is false.

“There was a rule against hiring family members to work in the organization. The feeling was Nelson only sold his half because he felt it was time to move on. There was no conflict (between owners). Only after the deal had gone through was the nepotism rule lifted, which put Jeff in place as COO, but it was not the reason Doubleday left.”

This claim comes as a bit of a surprise due to Doubleday being quoted the following year in the Star Ledger with several critical comments about Jeff.

“Mr. Jeff Wilpon has decided that he’s going to learn how to run a baseball team and take over at the end of the year. Run for the hills, boys. I think probably all those baseball people will bail,” said Doubleday.

“Jeff sits there by himself like he’s King Tut waiting for his camel. Hump one. Hump two. They like that, two for the price of one,” said Doubleday, who would reportedly not use his box seats after the sale due to Jeff’s presence.

“Fred and Mr. Doubleday didn’t hang out with each other and didn’t always see eye-to-eye but they were functioning business partners for several decades and were able to co-exist without an all-out civil war going on internally, as some believe,” said Phillips who claims there was no bad blood leading up to the sale.

Despite common public misconception, the former Mets GM had nothing but positive things to say about the Wilpons.

“Fred treated me like a son, and I have the utmost respect for both Fred and Jeff. If you sit with them during a game, it won’t take long to find out how much they truly care about the team. I felt bad when we weren’t playing well (because of how much they cared).

I think Jeff gets a bad rap because he is the owner’s son. If he wasn’t Fred’s son, he likely wouldn’t be criticized as much. Same can be said for my colleague Eduardo Perez. Both men will always be compared to their fathers’, which can be challenging but I’m sure neither of them would have it any other way.

It wasn’t their fault when the Wilpons were one of many investors who were unfortunately scammed in the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme. Had this not occurred, I believe they wouldn’t have taken as much heat for how they’ve been running them since it happened. It’s unfortunate.

If you think about it, it’s impressive how little time it took for them to recover from this substantial hit they took financially. They’ve always ran their team like a business and spend based off their revenues. I don’t blame them for that either.”

“I believe their decision to sell was not more so of recognizing that they needed a financial boost to run the team as some may believe, but really just about making the right business decision for themselves at this point in time,” said Phillips in reference to the pending deal that would make Wall-Street billionaire Steve Cohen majority stake owner of the Mets.

The post MMO Exclusive: Former Mets’ GM Steve Phillips appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Good morning Mets fans! The off-season keeps moving, but the Mets continue to just want no part of it….

Latest Mets News 

The Mets announced that they officially extended GM Sandy Alderson.

Former Mets General Manager Steve Phillips defended Fred and Jeff Wilpon in a Twitter rant Wednesday morning.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post writes that he expects the Mets to spend $10-$15 million more this off-season. Man this number just keeps getting lower.

Jay Bruce‘s agent went on KNBR 680’s Gary Radnich Show yesterday and said that given the choice, Bruce would like to play in San Francisco.

Jon Heyman of the FanRag Sports Network reports that the Colorado Rockies are talking to Addison Reed.

Latest MLB News 

The San Francisco Giants acquired Evan Longoria from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for Denard Span, Christian Arroyo, Matt Krook, and Stephen Woods.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that the Milwaukie Brewers are close to an agreement to sign Jhoulys Chacin.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports that the Cleveland Indians have signed Yonder Alonso. Ken Rosenthal adds that it will a two-year deal worth $16 million with a third-year option.

Rosenthal also reports that the New York Yankees talks for Gerrit Cole have cooled since the Winter Meetings.

Zach Britton will undergo surgery today to repair a ruptured Achilles. The injury is expected to sideline him for six months.

Latest NL East News

The Washington Nationals signed Matt Adams to a one-year deal worth $4 million.

The Miami Marlins agreed to a deal with Jacob Turner, according to Jon Heyman.

The Atlanta Braves acquired Preston Tucker from the Houston Astros for a player-to-be-named-later or cash. They designated Luke Jackson to make room for Tucker on the 40-man roster.

David Murphy of Philly.com writes that the Phillies will now turn their attention to starting pitching after signing Carlos Santana.

Latest on MMO

Rob Piersall believes there are six better first base options than Adrian Gonzalez. However, one of those options came off the board yesterday.

Joe D. examines the Mets financial situation and expresses his resentment towards the current regime.

This Day in Mets History

2005: The Mets signed Chad Bradford.

2009: The Mets signed future Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey to a minor-league contract with an invite to Spring Training.

Birthdays: Dave Kingman turns 69, Roger McDowell turns 57, LaTroy Hawkins turns 45, Buddy Carlyle turns 40, Dicky Gonzalez turns 39, Royce Ring turns 37, Philip Humber turns 35, Taylor Teagarden turns 34, and John Mayberry Jr. turns 34.

The post Morning Briefing: Mets Continue to Wait it Out appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

As the New York Mets conclude their three-game set against the Miami Marlins on Sunday, baseball fans continue to watch a 42-year-old hitting marvel, who is only four hits shy of reaching the elusive 3,000 hit club. What’s more amazing is that combined with the nine-years he spent with the Orix Blue Wave team in Japan, Ichiro Suzuki already has a combined 4,274 hits, 18 more hits than Major League Baseball’s hit king, Pete Rose (4,256).

Former Mets’ manager Bobby Valentine remembers Ichiro well. Having managed the Chiba Lotte Marines, a Japanese team in the Nippon Professional Baseball league in 1995, Valentine remembers a young 21-year-old who he would eventually describe as a “freak of nature”.

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Valentine spoke on how his team would hold daily meetings to discuss how to pitch to the unstoppable Ichiro at the plate.

“I said, ‘I can’t believe we’re having a meeting every day. We’ll get him out when the season starts,’” Valentine said. “I guess we needed two meetings a day.” (Jared Diamond, Wall Street Journal)

Valentine and his staff had good reason to game plan against Ichiro. In 1995, Ichiro compiled one of his best seasons in Japan, with a stat line of .342/.432/.544 with 25 homers, 80 RBI, 49 stolen bases in 58 chances, 104 runs scored, and more walks (68) than strikeouts (52).

Ichiro became a phenomenon in Japan, winning three straight Pacific League MVP Awards (1994-96), was a seven-time batting champion (1994-2000), and won a Japanese championship in 1996. His hitting prowess became so noteworthy, that the press began calling him the “Hit Manufacturing Machine”.

Fast forward to 2000, as Orix permitted MLB teams to submit offers for Ichiro’s services to play in the states. The team wasn’t as good as previous years, and they didn’t want to risk losing Ichiro for nothing, so they allowed him to negotiate with major league teams after the 2000 season.

Valentine was now in his fifth year and fourth full season managing the Mets in 2000, leading his team to the World Series against the crosstown rival New York Yankees. When Ichiro was posted for teams to bid on, Valentine wanted desperately for the Mets to make a move for his services.

“There’s been many a night that I said to myself, ‘I wonder how things could have been different if he was in my outfield,’” Valentine said. “For him in New York, for me staying in New York. I think it would have been fun.”

But doubts lingered, even after all the amazing feats Ichiro had accomplished in Japan. No position player had ever come to the states and transitioned from the Japanese league to the majors. There was a certain amount of risk being placed by whichever team took a shot at the then 27-year-old, especially with his unorthodox batting style and his mannerisms at the plate.

“We had this internal debate: What do you expect out of him?” said Jim Duquette, then an assistant general manager with the Mets. “I remember seeing video of the swing, and it was like, ‘Eh, is that going to play?’ You just had no idea.”

Mets brass met and discussed Ichiro numerous times, before comfortably bidding a little over $9 million, which would go the the Orix Blue Wave as compensation, then leaving the winning team with 30 days to negotiate a contract with the player.

To read the whole story, please go to the Wall Street Journal. where Jared Diamond shares more details on how it all played out, plus additional insights and commentary from Duquette, Phillips and Valentine.

The post What Could Have Been: Ichiro As A Met appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

According to Robert Brender of SNY, the Mets players no longer have their team issued “Take the Damn Thing” t-shirts. They’re all gone.

“I haven’t checked further,” Brender says. “But was told they were taken back.”

Sigh…

February 23

I just read this post on MetsBlog where Matt Cerrone reports (via Robert Brender) that the Mets are going to distribute a team-issued t-shirt that reads, “Take The Damn Thing,” alluding to the Mets winning a pennant.

“The Mets are getting hammered by hosts and callers this morning on MLB Network Radio. It’s only going to get worse when outside media and other team’s fans get wind of the t-shirt.”

Cerrone also writes:

“In the opinion of MLB Network Radio host Steve Phillips, based on his experience working for the Mets, these sort of statements are a coordinated effort by the team’s media, marketing and communications department.”

“According to Phillips, the team often agrees on a message they want to push in Spring Training. It’s possible the manager is let in on it, from which players may pick up on it as well, but the front office is almost always involved from the start of the process.”

Geez… It’s always something…

I don’t mind the players getting excited and talking playoffs, in fact I love it. But if this is all a coordinated effort by team marketing officials in conjunction with the front office??? Hmm… I don’t like the smell of that…

The post Mets Take Back The Damn T-Shirts appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

David Wright is now the Mets’ longest tenured player.

The Mets 40 man roster presently has 38 occupants.

12 of those are occupied by players acquired during Sandy Alderson’s tenure.

25 were acquired under Omar Minaya.

1 was acquired under Steve Phillips.

So how was the present 40 man roster assembled and by whom?

Sandy Alderson:

Trade – Vic Black, Travis d’Arnaud, Zack Wheeler, Eric Young.

Free Agency – Bartolo Colon, Scott Rice, Carlos Torres, Andrew Brown, Chris Young, Curtis Granderson.

Waivers – Ryan Reid, Anthony Recker

Omar Minaya:

International Free Agent – Jeurys Familia, Gonzalez Germen, Jenrry Mejia, Wilmer Flores, Ruben Tejada, Wilfredo Tovar, Juan Lagares, Cesar Puello

Draft – Jacob deGrom, Josh Edgin, Dillon Gee, Erik Goeddel, Matt Harvey, Steven Matz, Jon Niese, Bobby Parnell, Jeff Walters, Juan Centeno, Ike Davis, Zach Lutz, Daniel Murphy, Josh Satin, Matt den Dekker, Lucas Duda, Kirk Nieuwenhuis

Steve Phillips:

Draft – David Wright

The post How The Mets’ 40 Man Roster Was Assembled appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

With the loss in game one of yesterday’s doubleheader with the Miami Marlins, the Mets clinched their 5th straight losing season. This shouldn’t come as a shock since it has happened many times in the past – from the newly minted team of the ’60’s to the “Franchiseless” Mets of the late ’70’s and early ’80’s. Hell even the teams from the Mid ’90s as well as the ’02-’04 seasons were exercises in futility. So I figured I would try to compile the All Scrub Mets Team that encompasses players from all these eras – except from the ’60’s because lets face it 99% of the men that played for those Mets teams were either past their prime – or never had a prime to go past.

So without further ado…

My All Time Mets Scrub Team 

Manager: Jeff Torborg – He was a winning manager during his tenure with the Chicago White Sox, but  I don’t know if it was the expensive payroll of stars ( one of the most expensive payrolls at the time ) or that he melted under the bright lights of New York, but he barely lasted one and a half seasons as the skipper of a sinking ship.

Catcher: Alex Trevino – He was a both offensively and defensively challenged behind and at the plate.

First Base: Mike Jorgenson – Before returning to the Mets in the early ’80’s Mike had been a serviceable reserve outfielder/ first baseman.

Second Base: Luis Castillo – If you find yourself asking why he is on this list you are obviously not a Mets fan.

Shortstop: Frank Taveras – He was your prototypical no hit/all glove infielder. He had speed ( leading the Mets with triples in ’80 ) but he really never got on base enough to flash it.

Third Base: Jim Fregosi – We traded Nolan Ryan for him. He sucked. ‘Nuff Said !

Outfield: Jason Bay – See Luis Castillo.

Outfield: Juan Samuel  – For some reasons not known to man nor beast, then Mets General Manager, Frank Cashen traded Lenny Dykstra and Roger McDowell to the Phillies for second baseman, Samuel. The Mets tried to convert him to an everyday centerfielder. Guess what – they failed.

Outfield: Vince Coleman – File him under “Never sign a player that is a Mets killer” because they will continue to kill the Mets – from the inside!

Starting Rotation:

The luckless Anthony Young…

The Charismatic Jose Lima – too bad he concentrated more on his ” Lima Time” slogan than actually pitching effectively.

The Past his prime Mike Torrez.

The pitcher that obviously didn’t want to be here, Mickey Lolich.

And rounding out the starting rotation – Oliver Perez (See Luis Castillo)

Bullpen:

The ineffective Doug Sisk.

The lead blower, Rich Rodriguez – I still maintain that the only reason why he wasn’t released by the Mets is because he was a friend of then G.M, Steve Phillips from their minor league days.

Ineffective reliever from the early ’80’s. Mark “Bombs Away” Bomback.

Another man who couldn’t hold a lead – even if it was glued to his hand – Ryota Igarashi.

Two words that should send a shiver down your spine Guillermo Mota.

And lest we forget, Luis Ayala.

The closer spot is a tough one since the Mets had many men who were not able to put out the fire and save the game, so by default I went with Braden Looper. Yes Looper was playing through injuries in his last season with the Mets, but he still blew the lead in important games when he was healthy – he didn’t have the killer instinct.

Bench:

The light hitting David Newhan.

The light hitting Dan Norman.

The couldn’t get a hit to save his life Ron Hodges.

And the weak hitting Gary Rajsich

So there is my list… Do you agree/disagree? Who would you add or omit ? Please give your lists in the comments section below.

And with that said….. HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!!!!

Mets alumni celebrating a birthday today include:

Charley Smith would have been 76 (1937) today

One of the most ineffective middle relievers ever to wear a Mets uniform, John Pacella is 57  (1956). In Pacella’s 3 seasons with the Mets he compiled a 3-6 record with a ERA of 4.83 in 104.1 innings.

Middle reliever from the ’02 season, Satoru Komiyama is 48 (1965).

Middle reliever from the ’91 season, Doug Simons turns 47 (1966).

Utility infielder from ’96-’97, Jason Hardtke is 42 (1971).

Some other notables include:

The  New York Mets traded  minor league pitching prospects, Shane Young and Jeff Richardson to the California Angels for  reliever, John Candelaria on September 15, 1987. The Brooklyn born “Candy Man” was once one of the most dominant closers in the game. But by the time he was obtained by the Mets he was well past his prime.

The movie character that Mo Vaughn wishes he could be  is Pizza the Hut from “Spaceballs” !!!!

The post This Day In Mets Infamy With Rusty: The “All Time Mets Scrub Team” Edition appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

After a brilliant 16-year career, outfielder Vladimir Guerrero announced his retirement this weekend, according to Hector Gomez of the Dominican Listin Diario.

While he never made it to those almost automatic Hall of Fame thresholds of 3,000 hits or 500 home runs, it will be hard to keep his .318/.379/.553 career slash line out of Cooperstown.

Guerrero was one of the most dominating players of his eras. In his remarkable career, Vlad had eight 30+ home run seasons and thirteen seasons in which he batted .300 or higher. The 2004 American League MVP ends his legacy with 449 home runs, 477 doubles, 181 stolen bases, 1,328 runs scored and 1,496 RBIs. In addition to his MVP he also won eight Silver Slugger awards and was voted into nine All Star Games… And he could have posted the bulk of those numbers as a New York Met.

It was the way that then general manager Steve Phillips squandered the free agent negotiations with a 28-year old budding superstar, that would eventually lead to his unraveling as a Mets GM and his ultimate demise.

Phillips had become gun-shy because of Mo Vaughn, much like today’s Mets are afraid to pull the trigger on an elite player because of Jason Bay.

When that happens it almost always spells The End for a general manager, especially when you play in the biggest sports market in the world – New York City.

In this town, star studded rosters are the norm and it’s what fills the seats as Phillips would soon find out.

Guerrero was the top free agent on the market in the offseason of 2003. The New York Mets desperately needed someone to build around and Vladimir fit the bill as the core player they could use to supplant aging Mike Piazza as the face of the franchise.

But it wasn’t meant to be and after a series of lowball offers and squandered negotiations, Phillips would finally retreat and told fans that Guerrero had a back problems and was a poor risk, a charge both Guerrero and his agent vehemently denied, was the reason he decided to pass.

Guerrero, who wanted to play in New York, would instead sign a 5 year/$70 million contract to play for the California Angels. Vlad would go on to win the MVP that season and Steve Phillips would go on to be fired.

Ed Leyro from Studious Metsimus, has a wonderful piece that examines the big question…  Is Vladimir Guerrero a Hall of Famer?

CONGRATULATIONS ON A TRULY STELLAR CAREER…

The post Vladimir Guerrero, Steve Phillips, And What Could Have Been appeared first on Metsmerized Online.