Last week I read an article here on MMO, and at the end of the article Joe D. added his comments. Joe was explaining that MMO is not a site that is going to sugarcoat things. We’re going to give it to straight. We’re passionate about the Mets, but we’re not going to insult your intelligence. Joe’s last sentence was “we serve hard liquor here“.
Those five words have inspired this edition of 3N3. As we approach the quarter-post of the season, I want to take a step back, and look at 3 positive things, and 3 negative things that we have seen so far. My intent is not to bash the team, but to give my honest assessment. So here we go.
1. Captain America: David Wright, is one of the few legitimate offensive threats this team has. Besides what he brings to the plate, David Wright is everything a baseball player should be. He plays hard every game. He loves getting his uniform dirty. He’s great handling the NY press corp. He’s just the real deal. One concern I have with David, is I would like to him go to the mound when the starters are struggling. He used to do it with Pelf, and I think he should do it more. He is sixth in the NL with a .403 on-base percentage and is ninth with a .320 mark vs. righthanded pitchers. Wright is also hitting .444 (16-36) with RISP, tied for the third-best mark in the National League.
2. Murphy Keeps Hitting: Other than David Wright, and perhaps the newly acquired Rick Ankiel, Daniel Murphy is the only genuine MLB hitter in the lineup. Like Wright, Murph comes ready to play on a daily basis. He’s done everything the organization has asked him to do from playing in left, then moving to first, and finally settling at second base. Hard work has now established him as a pretty good second baseman. During all that confusion, Murphy continued to hit. Going into yesterday’s game he was is 15-for-his-last-36 (.417) and had at least one hit in nine of his last 10 games, batting .400 (16-40) with two home runs and five RBI over that clip. He has 13 doubles, tied for the seventh-most in the NL. It’s a pleasure watching a Daniel Murphy at bat.
3. The Real Deal: I’m not the type of guy to go gaga over any young inexperienced player, but man Matt Harvey is surely something special. More and more I keep hearing from long time fans how Harvey reminds them of Tom Seaver. Harvey is 5-0 record with a 1.93 ERA, fifth-best in the league. Entering yesterday, he’s allowed three runs or less in 16 consecutive starts, the fifth-longest streak in franchise history. His starts are becoming an event, and he may be the only Met All-Star this year.
1. Davis & Duda Are Duds: To me, the two greatest disappointments on this team are Ike Davis & Lucas Duda. We all heard how Ike isn’t sick this spring, or recovering from injury, so he should get off to a good start. We all heard how this is a make it or break it year for Lucas Duda. These two guys are horrible.
Ike Davis: has a .149 batting average, four home runs, nine RBI. Why is he still on the big club? I simply don’t understand how a GM can look at how this team is doing nothing on offense and yet allow Davis to waste a roster spot. It’s mind boggling.
Lucas Duda: Has a .226 batting average, eight home runs, 14 RBI. Even worse for Duda is that he’s a horrible outfielder. Every time the ball gets hit in his direction I hold my breath. Just awful, awful, awful.
I laugh every time Gary Cohen tells us Davis & Duda are Terry’s “big bats”. If that doesn’t make you reach for the mute button, nothing will.
2. Gee & Hefner, the 40% Void: Dillon Gee and Jeremy Hefner, 2/5 or 40% of the Mets starters are a combined 2-10 this season. Hefner is 0-5 with a 5.00 ERA, while Gee is 2-5 with a 6.04 ERA. Even more frightening is who knows how deep into the game these two can or will go? Both Gee & Hefner have had nine starts this season, Hefner has thrown 45 innings, and Gee 44.2. That averages out to about five innings per start. it’s just not good enough.
3. Sandy, We’re In New York: Like pretty much everyone else, I was excited when the Mets named Sandy Alderson their new GM. He was a respected guy in big league circles – surely he’d get us back to winning in no time. Not quite. He’s done nothing to improve the major league roster and his only accomplishment? Signing Wright to a $142 million deal that will keep the captain floating in Benjamins until the year 2020. But what else as he done? What has he done to make people want to go to Citi Field? In three years has he acquired one major league impact player? One player in three years that you would call a keeper? I now believe his focus was never about building a winner and only to pad the Wilpons’ pockets. and that is a shame. Met fans deserve a competitive team. Instead we have what amounts to a AAA team that has gotten considerably worse each year during Sandy’s tenure.
There it is… For the most part, this team heading into the Memorial Day weekend and then the Subway Series, has been a major disappointment. What are you drinking? We’re in for a long hot summer… First round’s on us…
