3 UP
1. Cabrera Played Third Base
Earlier this season, Asdrubal Cabrera demanded the Mets pick up his option if they wanted him to play a position other than shortstop. Now, he is playing there of his own volition as it creates an opportunity for him to be traded to a contender. One of those contenders is his former team, the Cleveland Indians, who are interested in him and Jay Bruce.
For the next week, the most important thing the Mets can do is showcase veterans like Cabrera at positions where interested teams want to see him play. If Cabrera can play third, it creates a larger market for him, which in turn, could help the Mets maximize a return for him in a trade.
Even better that, once Cabrera is traded it could clear the last hurdle paving the way for the Mets to call up Amed Rosario to the majors.
2. Second Half of TdA
Since the All Star Break, Travis d’Arnaud has being playing much better hitting .364/.440/.455. It should come as no surprise then that the Mets have been playing much better when he plays. In fact, in the last six games he has started behind the plate, the Mets are 5-1. The reason for that is he has been better in all facets of his game.
He is also becoming more comfortable taking over games from behind the plate. He has been forceful going to the mound to speak with a struggling pitcher. He stepped in the way to calm down home plate umpire Dan Iassogna with Addison Reed screaming at him over what he perceived to be a missed strike call. In part due to d’Arnaud’s efforts, the Mets closer was not tossed from the game.
Hopefully, d’Arnaud keeps it going like he did in 2015 instead of sputtering out like he has done for much of this season.
3. Wilmer Walking It Off Again
For the second time in three years, Wilmer Flores hit a walk-off home run under the duress of him possibly being moved at the trade deadline. With this second walk-off homer, Flores has the second most walk-off RBIs in Mets history (six) trailing just David Wright.
With the way the Mets are playing, we shouldn’t expect to see any documentaries made about this one.
What we should see is improved play from Flores. He’s still just 25-years-old, has all the tools to be a good Major League player, and has room to improve. When he’s going well, we have seen him hit both left and right-handed pitching as well as anyone.
The main thing we need to see from him is consistency. That may come with more playing time, and with the Mets being sellers at the deadline, there very well may be a spot for him to play.
He’s certainly earned the shot. Over his past three games, he’s hitting .444/.500/1.222, raising his numbers to .284/.315/.471 on the season.
3 DOWN
1. Not Enough Bobbleheads
With the way the Mets are playing, there are very few reasons why this team would be at a near sellout. One of those reasons was the Noah Syndergaard Thor Bobblehead. Unfortunately, the Mets would only give away 15,000 away. There were fans who arrived at the game three hours early, who did not get a bobblehead.
Many teams such as the Brewers order enough bobbleheads so that every fan attending the game gets one. They do this because they know these are really popular giveaways for fans, and they want fans to walk away from the game with a positive experience. In fact, the Brewers actually order extra, which they give away to places including schools.
The most frustrating part of this is a bobblehead costs about $3 to make. Fans who attended Saturday’s game looking to get the bobblehead spent well in excess of that. The Mets owe their fans better, especially when they pack Citi Field to see a bad baseball team play a seemingly meaningless July game.
2. Off The Wheeler
After a stretch where he couldn’t even pitch into the third inning, the Mets put Zack Wheeler on the disabled list with right bicep tendinitis. Since coming off the DL, Wheeler has continued to pitch poorly.
In his last four starts, he is 0-2 with a 4.95 ERA, 1.700 WHIP, and a 6.6 BB/9. He is walking too many, having trouble putting batters away, enduring long innings and has averaged just five innings per start.
Right now, no one can quite pinpoint the problem. It could be the result of him having missed two seasons. He could be more hurt than originally believed. This also could be Wheeler being a maddeningly inconsistent player. We don’t know, and we’re probably not going to figure out for a while, if at all.
3. The Cespedes Backlash
Yoenis Cespedes made comments to the San Francisco Chronicle about how he wanted to end his career with the team who gave him his first chance to play in the Major Leagues after a harrowing defection from Cuba. He also called his first manager Bob Melvin the best manager he ever played for. Nowhere in his interview did he say anything negative about the Mets or their fans but that didn’t stop the ugly backlash that ensued.
People demanded he be traded. Some accused him of throwing the Mets and their manager under the bus. Others believed he was showing a lack of leadership. The general overtone was, “How dare he!”
The backlash was as unfair as it was wrong. Again, Cespedes didn’t bash anyone. Moreover, he was given two occasions to return to the Mets. Not only did he return both times, but both times he asked for and received a no-trade clause. There should be no question he wants to be here. There is no question he loves being a New York Met.
One other thing that emerged from this was Cespedes expressing how much he loves New York Mets fans. Re-read the interview he did with the San Francisco Chronicle. Nowhere did he praise A’s fans. Overall, Cespedes loves Mets fans, and until this weekend, we all loved him. Just because he has struggled this year and he said nice things about his first home in the Majors and America, it doesn’t mean that relationship should change.
In what was a pivotal homestand to convince the Mets front office not to sell, the Mets didn’t do quite enough going 6-4. They now begin a West Coast trip that takes them to San Diego, Seattle, and Colorado. By the time the Mets return on Friday, August 4th, there is no way of knowing who will and who will not be on this team.
