Good morning, folks! The Mets are trying to take 3-of-4 from the Nationals today. Corey Oswalt will face Jeremy Hellickson at 1:10 p.m. Just like how the teams drew it up in the offseason. Also of note, the Futures Game is today. Andres Gimenez will play for the World Team and Peter Alonso will play for Team USA.

Zack Wheeler pitched pretty well and Michael Conforto led the offensive charge. The Mets moved to 6-3 against the presumptive NL East favorites. Against the Nationals and another playoff favorite, the Diamondbacks, the Mets are combined 11-5. Everyone else? 28-49.

Latest Mets News

Mike Puma of the NY Post says the Mets are on the fence on moving Wheeler.

Ken Davidoff of the NY Post says scouts from the Cubs, Mariners, and Yankees (among others) were in attendance to watch Noah Syndergaard. The Cubs and Mariners don’t have a great farm to make a legitimate offer for Syndergaard in my opinion.

Joel Sherman of the NY Post gives reasons to temper expectations on the deadline. Sherman cites Fred Wilpon’s age as a reason the Mets want to compete and not move Syndergaard or deGrom. Sherman also mentions the Mets are likely to hire a GM outside the organization and says that he/she will have the call. Sherman also heard Wheeler’s name compared to Jake Odorizzi. If that’s the case, keep Wheeler. Also, if the Mets want to compete, then get Bryce Harper or Manny Machado.

Mickey Callaway dismissed the possibility of Yoenis Cespedes playing first base this season.

Latest Manny Machado News

Jim Salisbury of NBC says the Phillies are angling for Manny Machado and Zach Britton.

Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic says the Dodgers, Phillies, and Brewers are in on Machado. The Yankees, less so.

The Phillies don’t want to move Enyel De Los Santos in the deal per Jon Heyman of Fancred.

Latest MLB News

The St. Louis Cardinals dismissed manager, Mike Matheny, after last night’s game and replaced him in the interim with bench coach, Mike Shildt.

Junichi Tazawa is with the Los Angeles Angels.

Third overall pick, Alec Bohm, is on the DL with a leg injury.

Wilson Ramos will not be in the All-Star game due to a hamstring injury.

Latest NL East News

The Phillies dealt Holby Milner to Tampa for cash. Not Cash, their manager.

Arodys Vizcaino was put on the disabled list. I’m Familia with a guy who can help them.

Dave Martinez discussed Bryce Harper not running out a ground ball.

Latest on MMO

John Sheridan writes about the Mets 2018 draft class.

Rob Piersall writes about Amed Rosario‘s hot streak.

I write about Zack Wheeler‘s first half and his potential trade.

This Date in Mets History

2013: Matt Harvey is named the All-Star starter for the NL.

Birthdays: Fernando Nieve turns 36, Wilson Delgado turns 46, James Baldwin turns 47, Don Bosch turns 76, Bob Miller turns 83.

The post Morning Briefing: The Mets Go for a Series Win appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Right off the bat, 21 players also played for the Mets in 2010, who I covered covered in my previous article. If you wish to learn about what happened to Luis Castillo, Alex Cora, David Wright, Carlos Beltran, Jeff Francoeur, Fernando Tatis, Angel Pagan, Jose Reyes, Nick Evans, Josh Thole, Mike Pelfrey, John Maine, Oliver Perez, Francisco Rodriguez, Bobby Parnell, Pedro Feliciano, Sean Green, Fernando Nieve, Elmer Dessens, Jon Niese, and Tobi Stoner, check out The 2010 Mets: Where Are They Now?

Only one player (who hasn’t already been covered) that played for the Mets in 2009 is still playing for the Mets, Daniel Murphy who is now one of the top hitters in the Mets lineup. Murphy currently ranks second on the team in batting average and third highest with a 2.7 WAR. Not only does Murphy provide a presence in the top of the lineup, but he may give the Mets strong trade bait going forward.

Only two other players from the 2009 are still in the majors albeit with another franchise: J.J. Putz and Darren O’Day.

Putz, who amazingly only played in 29 games with the Mets, played with the Chicago White Sox in 2010, before heading to Arizona where he played for the Diamondbacks in 2011. He still plays for them now. Side-armer Darren O’Day was claimed off waivers by the Rangers in April of 2009 and played in Arlington until 2011. After that season, the Baltimore Orioles claimed him off waivers. He is currently in his second year with them.

Five players from that team are currently in the Minor Leagues with other organizations and include Omir Santos, Jeremy Reed, Fernando Martinez, Argenis Reyes, and Nelson Figueroa.

Omir Santos did the bulk of the catching for the 2009 Mets, and he now sits behind the plate for the Rockies’ Triple A affiliate in Colorado Springs. He also played for the Toledo Mud Hens in the Detroit Tigers system in 2011, before spending some time with the big league team for the Tigers in  2010. He’s also played with the Indians Triple-A team this season.

Jeremy Reed signed with the Blue Jays in January of 2010 and was called up on April 12th. On July 12th he was sent down, released, and signed with the White Sox. He played the rest of the season with their Triple A team, the Charlotte Knights. The Brewers signed him in 2011 and he made the opening day roster. He was sent down to make room for Jonathan Lucroy, which led to him being traded to the Twins, where he finished the year. He is now in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization, but is not currently assigned to a team.

Fernando Martinez was claimed off waivers by the Astros in January of 2012 and played in Houston until he was traded to the Yankees this past June, knowing there was a chance that he could be suspended for steroids. He was among those named in the Biogenesis scandal and is currently serving a 50-game suspension.

Argenis Reyes played in the Red Sox system in 2010 and was then traded to the Cleveland Indians where he played the rest of the season. He spent time with the New Jersey Jackals of the Independent Leagues in 2011 before returning to the Indians system. He is currently not playing with an Indians team although he unassigned.

Nelson Figueroa saw time in the Phillies and Astros systems in 2010, and played in the majors with the Astros in 2011. He also played in the Pirates system that year. 2012 saw him spend time with the Yankees and Red Sox minor league systems, and now plays for the Diamondbacks Triple-A affiliate.

One 2009 Met is officially a free agent and that is Casey Fossum who played all of three games for the Amazins that season. Fossum was released at the end of April in 2009 and soon after signed with the Yankees. He played the rest of the year with their Triple A affiliate and then moved onto the Chicago Cubs system. His 2010 season was spent with the Hanshin Tigers in Japan, where he went 2-5 with a 5.72 ERA. Fossum signed with the Mets again in January of 2011 and played nine games, before being released a year later. He eventually signed with the Orioles but was soon released and has not resurfaced ever since.

13 players have retired. They are Gary Sheffield, Ryan Church, Brian Schneider, Cory Sullivan, Carlos Delgado, Ramon Martinez, Emil Brown, Marlon Anderson, Brian Stokes, Ken Takahashi, Lance Broadway, Jon Switzer, and Billy Wagner.

Gary Sheffield couldn’t find a team to play with in 2010, so he retired in the spring of 2011. Ryan Church was traded to the Braves for Jeff Francoeur and finished the year in Atlanta. 2010 was spent in Pittsburgh until the Pirates traded him to the Diamondbacks along with future Met D.J. Carrasco. He was non-tendered after the year and retired.

Brian Schneider played with the Phillies from 2010 to 2012 and retired officially on January 29th this year. Cory Sullivan, who is most remembered for being the last player to hit two triples in one inning, played with the Houston Astros for half of 2010. He played with the Phillies for half of 2011, and retired after failing to make the Dodgers opening day roster in 2012.

After being injured for most of the 2009 season, the Mets released Carlos Delgado when the season was over. The Boston Red Sox signed the future Hall of Famer to a Minor League contract. He went 3-for-13, was released and retired on April 13th 2011. He was most recently the hitting coach for the 2013 Puerto Rican team in the World Baseball Classic. Current Mets pitching coach Ricky Bones was the pitching coach for that team (and if you ask me, Delgado and Bones look extremely like each other).

Not much to say about Ramon Martinez here. The infielder who played only 12 games with the 2009 Mets was released after the season and immediately retired. Emil Brown retired after being released on June 22, 2009.

Super utility man Marlon Anderson was released in April and signed with the Newark Bears of the Independent Leagues. He played the rest of the season there and retired when the season was done. He was last seen in professional baseball as the hitting coach for the Potomac Nationals in 2012.

Brian Stokes was traded to the Angels for Gary Matthews Jr. prior to the the 2010 season and made 16 appearances for the Halos that year. In 2011 he played in the Arizona D-Back’s system, and then moved onto the Camden RIversharks of the Independent League. Ken Takahashi became the third oldest player to make his Major League debut at the age of 40 on May 2nd 2009. He was released by the Mets in October of that year and went back to his homeland of Japan and played with the Hiroshima Carp in 2010. He retired after that year.

Lance “Best Name in Baseball” Broadway has not played in the Majors since his time with the Mets. He spent time with the Blue Jays organization in 2010 and played with their Triple A team, the Las Vegas 51’s. He has since retired and done what I believe no other Met has done in their lifetime. Lance played Agent O’Neil in the 2013 movie, Olympus Has Fallen. We should keep an eye out for other movies that feature Mr. Broadway.

Jon Switzer only got into four games as a New York Met, which led to a 8.10 ERA. He signed with the Astros and played in their Minor League system in 2010. He retired after 2010 and went back to school. He is now a business manager.

Billy Wagner, who is probably the greatest Mets closer of the last 10 years, was traded at the end of the year to the Red Sox for Chris Carter and minor leaguer Eddie Lora. Wagner played two games for Boston and then signed with the Atlanta Braves for the 2010 season. He was injured in the NLDS, but instead of going on the disabled list, he retired. Billy is currently the Head Coach for Miller High School in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Two players are currently in the Independent Leagues. Wilson Valdez played for the Phillies in 2010 and 2011 and was then traded to the Cincinnati Reds before the 2012 season. The Reds traded Valdez to the Giants in December of 2012 but he was released this past March. He signed with the Miami Marlins the next day and was released on May 19th. He is now with the Camden River Sharks. Longtime Mets backup catcher Ramon Castro was traded to the White Sox for Lance Broadway in 2009, but I don’t think it mattered to Ramon, because later in the season he was behind the plate when Mark Buehrle tossed a perfect game. He was released by Chicago after 2011, and did not play baseball in 2012. He signed a Minor League contract with the Dodgers this March but was released after failing to make the roster. He now plays for the Long Island Ducks.

Three players are playing in foreign countries, and they all play in Mexico. They are Anderson Hernandez, Angel Berroa, and Robinson Cancel. Hernandez, who was traded from the Tigers to the Mets back in 2004 for Vance Wilson, was claimed off waivers by the Indians in 2010 but was claimed by the Astros in July. 2011 was spent in Triple A with the Astros franchise. In 2012, Hernandez played with the Pirates Triple A team. This year he has been playing with the Piratas de Campeche, where he is hitting five points south of .300 with 11 home runs.

The 2003 American League Rookie of the Year (I still think Rocco Baldelli should have won) Angel Berroa, who before LaTroy Hawkins and David Aardsma was the last player to play for both the Mets and Yankees, played in the San Francisco Giants organization in 2010. In 2011 he played with the Arizona Diamondbacks Triple A team and the Bridgeport BlueFish of the Independent Leagues. 2012 saw Berroa play with the New Jersey Jackals. He now plays for Leones de Yucantan in Mexico. He is hitting .293 with 12 homers.

Robinson Cancel made his first big league appearance since 1999 in 2008 with the Mets. He spent 2010 with the Long Island Ducks, 2011 with the Astros Triple A team (and a few games in the Majors), 2012 with Monterrey in Mexico, and is still playing in Mexico with Minatilan.

One player is coaching. Andy Green went 1-4 with the Mets in 2009. He spent 2010 in Buffalo playing for the Bisons at the Mets Triple A level. He is now managing the Diamondbacks Double A team, the Mobile Bay Bears. He is managing former Met Nick Evans.

So there are your 2009 New York Mets. What were some of your best and worst memories of that season? Next week we’ll take a look at the 2008 team and the last year of Mets baseball at Shea Stadium.

The post The 2009 Mets: Where Are They Now? appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

If you are a Mets fan, you know that David Wright is still with team, or that Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran are in Toronto and St. Louis, respectively. But what happened to guys like Nick Evans or Rod Barajas? We have the answers.

11 Players who made it into a game in 2010 with the Mets, are still employed by the team. That would be the aforementioned David Wright, Ike Davis, Ruben Tejada (Although he is currently with Triple-A Las Vegas, he is still on the Mets payroll), Lucas Duda, Justin Turner, Jon Niese, Pedro Feliciano (Although he made another stop in the Bronx, he is with the Mets once again), Bobby Parnell, Dillon Gee, Johan Santana, and Jenrry Mejia.

10 players are employed by another Major League team. That would be Jose Reyes, Angel Pagan, Beltran, Josh Thole, Henry Blanco, Joaquin Arias, Mike Pelfrey, R.A. Dickey, Francisco Rodriguez, and Oliver Perez.

As you may know, Jose Reyes was traded from the Miami Marlins to the Toronto Blue Jays this past offseason in a blockbuster deal involving Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle, and now former Met, John Buck. Reyes now puts on his uniform in the same locker room as R.A. Dickey and Josh Thole, who were traded together this past offseason from the Mets for Travis d’Arnaud, Buck, and Noah Syndergaard (don’t forget Wuilmer Beccera!). Angel Pagan was traded to the San Francisco Giants prior to the 2012 season for outfielder Andres Torres and pitcher Ramon Ramirez who have both since played again for the team they were traded from.

Carlos Beltran was traded at the deadline in 2011 to the Giants for Zack Wheeler, but has since made his home in St. Louis playing for the Cardinals, where he has enjoyed a couple of very nice seasons, including an All Star appearance this summer. Henry Blanco, who served as the Mets backup catcher in 2010, beat out Josh Thole for the same position on this year’s Toronto Blue Jays team, but was released and then signed by the Seattle Mariners who made the corresponding move by releasing 2012 Met alumni, Kelly Shoppach. Blanco played in Arizona for the Diamondbacks in 2011 and 2012.

Joaquin Arias, of whom the Mets received for Jeff Francoeur late in the 2010 season, played for the Kansas City Royals in 2011, and was then given a championship ring after serving as Pablo Sandoval‘s ninth inning defensive replacement in 2012 for the San Francisco Giants. He has been a key hitter off the bench for the Giants in 2013. Mike Pelfrey, after failing to play a month in the 2012 season, was signed by the Minnesota Twins, where his 5-10 record and 5.06 ERA is good enough to keep him in the starting rotation.

Francisco Rodriguez was traded to the Brewers in 2011 for Daniel Herrera (yes the 5-6 guy) and a minor leaguer, but was traded to the Baltimore Orioles at the deadline this year, downgrading from a closer to a setup man. Finally, Oliver Perez signed a two-year deal with the Seattle Mariners in 2012 and is proving to be an effective arm out of their bullpen. You would think that Perez’s ERA of 9.72 with Henry Blanco behind the plate would be the highest among catchers who have caught the Mexican native, but no. That award goes to Josh Thole, who provides Ollie with a sparkling 16.20 ERA.

Eight players are in the minor leagues with another organization. They are Mike Nickeas, Mike Hessman, Luis Hernandez, Mike Jacobs, Nick Evans, Hisanori Takahashi, Fernando Nieve, and Pat Misch.

Mike Nickeas, who was in the same deal that sent R.A. Dickey north of the border, is currently with the Blue Jays Triple-A team, the Buffalo Bisons, a team Nickeas has played for many times when they were the Mets affiliate. Nickeas has failed to make the Majors this season, playing 55 games in Buffalo. Mike Hessman, who is seven home runs shy of 400 for his minor league career and one shy of 15 for his Major League career, is currently a member of the Louisville Bats, the Triple-A team of the Cincinnati Reds, where he is teammates with base stealing extraordinaire, Billy Hamilton. Hessman played in Japan in 2011 for the Orix Buffaloes, and was with the Astros Triple A team in 2012.

Luis Hernandez, who played all of 17 games for the Mets, is with the Indians Triple-A team, after playing in the Texas Rangers organization in 2012. Nick Evans is the only 2010 Met alumni playing in Double-A. Evans, who is a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks affiliated Mobile Baybears, was a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates organization in 2012. Mike Jacobs was the placeholder at first base until Ike Davis came up in 2010 but he is now with the Diamondbacks Triple-A team. Jacobs also stopped in Colorado Springs, Toronto, and Mexico. Hisanori Takahashi, who has 12 games started and 21 games finished as a Met, has played in the Majors with the Angels, Pirates, and Cubs. He is now a member of the Colorado Rockies Triple-A team. Fernando Nieve hasn’t played in the Majors since 2010, but he has played with the Astros, Dodgers, Indians, and currently the Athletics, all in Triple-A. Finally, Pat MIsch has seen time with the Phillies and Tigers Triple-A teams.

Five players are not currently with a Major League organization. The names are Jeff Francoeur, Rod Barajas, Jason Bay, John Maine, and Sean Green.

Francoeur was traded to the Rangers for Joaquin Arias in August of 2010. He spent the rest of the year there. Frenchy played in Kansas City during 2011 and 2012, but was released midway through the 2013 season. The Giants picked him up, where he played 22 games. Francouer was designated for assignment of August 20th, and released two days later. Barajas played with the Pirates in 2011 and 2012, before being signed by the Diamondbacks. He ultimately lost the bid to be Miguel Montero‘s backup, as the DBacks went with Wil Nieves instead.

Jason Bay, who was released after the 2012 season much to the delight of Mets fans, was signed by the Mariners for the 2013 season. He hit a home run in his first spring training at bat, but after a disapointing season, was released of August 6th to make room for Mike Morse. John Maine spent 2011 in the Colorado Rockies minor league system, and pitched for the Scranton/Wilkes-Bare Yankees for all of 2012. He played for the Miami Marlins in April of this year, but was released on April 22. The sidearmer, Sean Green pitched with the Brewers in 2011, before playing with the Texas Rangers’ Triple A team in 2012. He also pitched with the Somerset Patriots in 2012 of the Independent Leagues but has not found a team since.

Six players have officially retired. They are Luis Castillo, Alex Cora, Fernando Tatis, Gary Matthews Jr., Frank Catalanotto, and Tobi Stoner.

Luis Castillo was released by the Mets at the same time they released Oliver Perez. Castillo signed a minor league contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, but after a disappointing spring training, he was released, at which time he retired. Alex Cora was released by the Mets in August of 2010, and he played the rest of the year with the Rangers. He played with the Washington Nationals in 2011, and was signed by the Cardinals in the spring of 2012, which didn’t work out. He is now a baseball analyst for ESPN (his brother Joey does the same work for MLB Network). Fernando Tatis was injured of July 4th of 2010. He was placed on the DL the next day and was transferred to the 60-day DL 10 days later. That turned out to be his last major league game as he retired after the season.

The “Son of the Sarge”, Gary Matthews Jr., was released by the Mets on June 15th, 2010. He signed with the Reds on June 24th and played the rest of the year with their Triple-A team, before retiring. Frank Catalanotto was designated for assignment of May 10th, when the Mets brought up Chris Carter. After failing to sign with another team, he retired in March of 2011. Finally, the German-born Tobi Stoner was released by the Mets in March of 2012. During that season, he played in the Independent Leagues with the Bridgeport Blue Fish and the Somerset Patriots. He retired before the 2013 season.

Four players are currently playing in foreign countries. Chris Carter, Manny Acosta, and Ryota Igarashi are playing in Japan, and Jesus Feliciano is playing in Mexico.

Carter (no not the former A’s prospect) played in the Tampa Bay Rays and Atlanta Braves Minor League system in 2011 before moving to Japan to play with the Seibu Lions in 2012 and 2013. Carter is 3-26 (.115) with three RBI in nine games this year. He is teammates with Kazuhisa Ishii. Manny Acosta pitched for the Mets through 2012 but signed with the Yomuri Giants in 2013 after being released. In 14 games he has an ERA of 5.54. His teammates include former major leaguers Scott Mathieson and John Bowker.

Ryota Igarashi played with the Mets until 2011. He then played in the minor leagues with the Yankees and the Blue Jays in 2012 though he pitched in the majors with both teams. He is now pitching with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks where he sports a 2.15 ERA in 36 games. He is teammates with with Vicente Padilla and former Mets minor leaguer Wily Mo Pena. Jesus Feliciano, who has signed with the Mets four different times in his career, played in all of his 54 career games with the Mets in 2010. He played with the Buffalo Bisons in 2011, the Durham Bulls in 2012, and he is now playing in Mexico with the Rojos del Aguila de Veracruz. He has only played in three games with one hit.

One player is currently a coach. Elmer Dessens is the assistant pitching coach for the AZL Reds in the Arizona League (The Arizona equivalent to Florida’s Gulf Coast League). And here’s a fun piece of information. The manager of that AZL Reds team is former Met, Eli Marrero who the Mets received in 2006 when they traded Kazuo Matsui to the Rockies.

Well, now you know what happened to the 2010 Mets. Next week we’ll look at the players from Citi Field’s inaugural year, 2009.

LGM

The post The 2010 Mets: Where Are They Now? appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Game Summary

Hisanori Takahashi probably needs to be back in the bullpen where he has shown that he is a reliable seventh and even eighth inning man. Since his start against the Yankees, he hasn’t shown that he can keep the Mets in the game. He gave up six runs on seven hits including two home runs in just 2.2 innings pitched. He walked one and struck out two batters. Takahashi is a bullpen guy and the Mets need a replacement starting pitcher. Possibly a trade, possibly bringing up Pat Misch, maybe bringing up Oliver Perez?! It’s a possibility.

Fernando Nieve came in to aid the ailing Takahashi and pitched 1.1 scoreless innings, and stuck out two. Haven’t seen Nieve pitch much lately, maybe Manuel is giving him all of the rest he didn’t get in April.

Raul Valdes pitched 2.1 innings in relief. Less emphasis on the relief, however. He gave up two runs on three hits, walked one and struck out three. Francisco Rodriguez pitched his first game in three days. “He needs the work.” He pitched a 1-2-3 eighth inning, striking out two batters.

Carlos Beltran and Ike Davis provided most of the offense in the game. Beltran went 2-4 with his first triple and a run scored. Ike Davis also had a two hit night, belting a pair of long homeruns. He picked up three RBIs and scored two runs. When he hits homeruns, he really hits ’em. The first one went into McCovey Cove, while the second one went to straight center. This is Ike’s second two homer game of the season. His first time was also against the Giants.

David Wright, Josh Thole, and Chris Carter each had a hit. Wright went 1-3 with an RBI, while Thole and Carter both had pinch hit singles.

Ruben Tejada continues to be a target for pitchers as he got plunked in the shoulders during the ninth inning. That is his sixth hit-by-pitch this season.

Interesting note: At one point Matt Cain was standing on third. I wonder if Wright and Cain had a conversation about Cain plunking him in the head last year that sent him to the hospital.

Turning Point

The Buster Posey solo home run in the third inning was the big blow that pushed the Giants too far for the Mets to comeback.

Game Ball

Ike Davis hit two huge homeruns and knocked in three of the Mets runs tonight.

Up Next

Johan Santana looks to avoid the sweep as he will be going up against Jonathon Sanchez. Both pitchers are looking for their eighth win of the season. Should be a good lefty vs. lefty match up. Game time is 4:05 PM.

The post Despite Ike’s Two Homers Mets Fall To Giants 8-4 appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

“Manager Jerry Manuel planned to speak with team brass last night about the possibility of adding a seventh reliever, after the Mets emptied their bullpen yesterday in a 9-5 victory over the Nationals.”

Whether you think Jerry Manuel has done a poor job of handling the bullpen or not, the bottom line should always be winning and doing what is best for the team.

It’s kind of hard to distribute work evenly when the game is on the line and there are few options that you really trust.

There’s been several complaints of late about how Manuel may have burned out guys like Fernando Nieve, Raul Valdes, etc. But we’re talking about a couple of waiver wire rejects who could have been simply been pitching over their heads for three weeks. I don’t see any star quality relievers that have been physically overused to their ultimate demise.

Puma suggest that Manny Acosta could be an option to be called up from Triple-A Buffalo, and of course they recently signed former Yankees reliever Brian Bruney before the weekend.

I don’t know why Pat Misch isn’t ever brought up in the conversation as he is having a solid season at Buffalo and he could replace Hisanori Takahashi in the rotation and Tak would give Manuel a reliable, quality innings eater in the back of the bullpen.

Misch is currently 8-3 with a 3.40 ERA and 1.21 WHIP in 103 innings pitched, and has a 58/18 K/BB ratio.

The post This Gangsta Is Not Armed And Dangerous appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Elmer Dessens of all people has inherited, by default, the 7th/8th inning setup role.  Pedro Feliciano is still not trusted to get righties out consistently.  K-Rod has been very good, but certainly is not the lights out closer that he was expected to be.  If this back end of the bullpen is mediocre, what can you say about the rest of it comprised of Jenrry Mejia, Ryota Igarashi, Raul Valdez, and Fernando Nieve.  All four should currently be pitching for AAA Buffalo at best.

Jenrry Mejia’s development is being totally mismanaged.  He should be in AA Binghamton.  I don’t care if it is as a starter or reliever but he needs more than mop up work.  In Wednesday night’s game, he walked the first two batters in the 8th inning.  Manuel, correctly pulled him.  But if in the minors he would have had the opportunity to work his way out of the self inflicted jam.  Ryota Igarashi needs work and he is not getting it sitting on a chair far out in the bullpen.  With nightly minor league work, he could regain his form and possibly help the Mets during the summer months.  The same could be said of Fernando Nieve.  Raul Valdez?  I think it’s time to send him packing  back to his team in Mexico.

The biggest problem facing Omar Minaya is that there is no one in the minors that could be called up with confidence.  The leading candidates are Bobby Parnell and Manny Acosta.  Both have pitched inconsistently and I would not trust either in a crucial 6th or 7th inning situation.  John Maine’s return to the rotation could allow Hisanori Takahashi to pitch in relief.  That would be great, but the caveat is whether Maine can pitch effectively.

I don’t know who’s out there on the trade market, but Omar needs to do something right away. The starters can not be expected to pitch seven plus innings on a consistent basis.  Omar needs to take action now, before focusing on a trade for a starting pitcher.

The Mets are sizzling hot right now.  But we all know and have seen how momentum shifts suddenly and without warning.  Our good fortunes will change; it’s just a matter of when and for how long.

The post Big Problem: The Mets Bullpen Still Stinks! appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

The Japanese southpaw has been a Lefty Luthor to the Supermen wearing the jerseys of last year’s pennant winners.  More importantly, he has made Jerry Manuel a believer in his ability to give the Mets quality starts, something that could not be said for the man he replaced in the rotation, Oliver Perez.

I have been quite impressed with Takahashi’s recent performances and would like to think that his stretch of outstanding starts will continue past his last outing against the Phillies.  However, before giving him the keys to the castle, let’s remember that just last year, we were also singing the praises of a starter that was tearing it up in his first few starts.  Just like Takahashi, this pitcher was moved from the bullpen to the starting rotation and was asked to shut down the powerful Yankee lineup.  Then, he continued to face teams with potent offenses and pitched beyond expectations.  Unfortunately, his streak of good fortune ended almost as quickly as started and now he’s back in the Mets bullpen.  Who am I talking about?  Fernando Nieve.

After pitching two scoreless innings of relief against the Washington Nationals last year on June 6, Fernando Nieve was called upon to make an emergency start against the Yankees on June 13.  The game was played less than 24 hours after Luis Castillo gift-wrapped a Yankee victory with his infamous dropped pop-up.  With all the momentum shifting over to the Yankees, Nieve was given the ball and was asked to stop the bleeding  He ended up pitching 6.2 innings, holding the Yankees to two runs on four hits.  That was the only win picked up by the Mets against the Yankees all year.

Given another start against a high-quality team, this time the Tampa Bay Rays, Nieve followed up his victory against the Yankees with an even better performance against the Rays, giving up one run and three hits in a 5-3 Mets victory.

In his third start, he faced the National League Central division-leading St. Louis Cardinals and pitched six shutout innings, again allowing only three hits in an 11-0 blowout of the Cards.  That gave Nieve three wins in three starts against upper-echelon teams.  In those three games, his ERA was a microscopic 1.45 and he held opposing hitters to a .154 batting average.

For all intents and purposes, it appeared as if the Mets had found themselves a starting pitcher from out of nowhere that they could depend upon to pitch effectively and deep into ballgames.  Even I was sold on Fernando Nieve, as I wrote a number of blogs for this site on The Three Fernandos (Nieve, Tatis and Martinez).  Alas, Nieve could not continue his success past those three starts.

Over his next three starts, Nieve came crashing back down to Earth, losing to the Brewers, Phillies and Reds.  In those games, Fernando’s ERA was 5.40 and opposing batters hit an alarming .403 against him.  Despite the fact that he was clearly not the same pitcher he was over his first three starts, Jerry Manuel gave him another start against the Atlanta Braves.  That was the last time Nieve would pitch for the Mets in 2009, as he injured himself while running to first base in the second inning.

Do I expect Hisanori Takahashi to fade as quickly as Fernando Nieve did last year?  I don’t think he will.  For one thing, Takahashi has an impeccable ability to throw strikes.  In his starts against the Yankees and Phillies, Takahashi has pitched 12 innings and has only walked one batter.  In those two games, he has thrown a total of 195 pitches, of which 138 were strikes.  That’s better than 70% of his pitches going for strikes.

In Nieve’s first three starts last year, as great as they were, he still walked nine batters in 18.2 innings.  Over those three starts, he threw 318 pitches, of which 188 were strikes.  That’s only 59% of his pitches going for strikes.  Nieve was effective over those starts because he gave up few hits.  Once he started giving up hits, combined with the walks, that led to his three-game losing streak.

Hisanori Takahashi has the potential to be an effective #3 starter in the Mets rotation.  Since he’s constantly throwing strikes, he stands less of a chance to suffer a meltdown such as the one Fernando Nieve went through last year after his third start.  However, just because Takahashi has been shutting down potent offenses now doesn’t guarantee long-term success.  Be happy that he’s giving us great pitching at a time when the Mets need it the most, but be wary because as wonderful as Takahashi has been, it can all come crashing down.  Just ask Fernando Nieve.

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According to Manuel, Nieve earned the nod and said that he deserves his shot because of how well he has performed this season and also because he performed well as a starter last season.

Raul Valdes was the other possibility, but in my opinion, Manuel is making the right choice, and Valdes should stay in the pen where he can be more useful.

There was talk of promoting someone from the minors, like a Dillon Gee or Tobi Stoner, but that would have made little sense when it was only going to be for one start anyway.

Jon Niese is expected to be activated on June 1st when he is eligible, and should be ready to join the rotation to make his next start after that.

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Jenrry Mejia, the youngest player in the Majors when the season started, came out of the gate in impressive fashion and finished his first month of the season with a pristine 1.64 ERA and all the previous banter that he was prematurely promoted began to fade away. Then May came.

Initially, Mejia was only allowed to pitch in non-pressurized situations, but now he is being used more often with the game on the line and the results so far have not been good.

This month he has appeared in eight games, and in 6.1 innings pitched, Mejia has allowed 14 baserunners either by a walk or hit. His ERA for the month has been 4.25 which is not exactly terrible until you spot his unsightly 2.20 WHIP. You could see he clearly doesn’t exude any confidence with runners on base and it brings out his wild side.

There is now talk of sending him to the minors and having him resume his career as a starter. Sounds like a good idea.

Before Jerry Manuel completely burned Fernando Nieve out, there was talk of him taking over the setup role for the Mets, but that talk is completely dead now. After getting off to a solid month in April, when he led the NL in appearances, Nieve started to go down hill in May and has completely crashed and burned now.

Nieve is sporting an 8.31 ERA this month and has just one strikeout in his last eight appearances spanning 7.2 innings in which he allowed 8 hits, 4 walks and 3 home runs.

He is a ticking time bomb, and would probably benefit from some down time in Buffalo where he won’t be abused by his manager. Incidentally, in looking at Nieve’s splits he would have been a poor choice for setup job anyway as lefthanded batters have scorched him for a 11.26 ERA. As long as he remains in the bullpen, he shouldn’t be allowed to face the likes of Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Robinson Cano during the next homestand.

You could make the case that Jerry Manuel had a strong hand in burning these two pitchers out, but then again you could also point to John Maine and Oliver Perez as the culprits too. Both have averaged less than five innings pitched per start causing undo stress on an already heavily taxed bullpen.

Hisanori Takahashi has been priceless out of the pen, but now he is being yanked and added to the rotation leaving Oliver Perez as the team’s potential longman. Last night against the Nationals, Perez came in and faced two batters, predictably walking one of them almost as if on cue.

There is a ray of hope however. Ryota Igarashi is rehabbing in Buffalo and could be activated from the disabled list in time for the Subway Series which begins tomorrow. Iggy was having a fine season before he got hurt, and should provide the bullpen with a nice boost upon his return.

That said, unless the Mets can get their rotation to go deeper into games, it wont be long until Iggy suffers the same fate as his bullpen mates. Until Jerry Manuel learns to manage his bullpen more efficiently, it can get even more uglier and more heartache could be coming our way late in games.

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Game Notes

R.A. Dickey went out for his first Mets start, going a solid 6 innings giving up 2 runs on 6 hits with 4 walks and two strikeouts. His knuckleball was dancing around the plate, and getting some swings-and-misses. He seemed to be in control minus the 4th inning, but a great effort none the less. Could R.A. hold a spot in the rotation? It really depends on the Mets ability to score runs – knuckleballers will get hit around.

The bullpen seemed out of it today, with 4 pitchers needed to finish off the last 2 innings. Raul Valdes began the 7th inning and gave off a double to the new Met killer Roger Bernadina. Fernando Nieve came out, and just looked awful, giving up the inherited runner from Valdes and two runs of his own. Oliver Perez, in his first relief appearance since Sept. 2002 (When he had talent?) walked Adam Dunn and then convinced Josh Willingham to line-out to Luis Castillo. Manny Acosta worked a 7-pitch perfect 8th inning. This bullpen is beginning to look tired, especially Nieve.

David Wright received the day off, and Fernando Tatis started in his place and went 1-3 with a possible rally-igniting home run off of Nationals close Matt Capps in the 9th. Angel Pagan, showing off his wheels hit his 3rd home run of the season the hard way – by running the bases hard and scoring. The only other player to account for an RBI was Jeff Francoeur with a sacrifice fly in the 6th inning. No Met player had more then one hit today.

The Mets batting order 1-4 (Reyes, Castillo, Bay, Davis) went 1-15 with a run, a walk and 2 strikeouts both courtesy of Ike Davis.

Livan Hernandez and his junkballing ways just seem to perplex the Mets hitters, making this his 2nd quality outing against the mets this season, allowing 2 runs over 13.2 innings. The Mets need to kill these soft-tossing pitchers if they want to utilize their speed.

Game Ball

R.A. Dickey, hands down. Could Jerry Manuel have asked for anything more? He delivered the definition of a Quality Start.

Special Moment

Angel Pagan making the shoe-string catch and initiating the triple-play in the 5th that got the Mets out of trouble.

Up Next

The Mets will send John Maine to the mound with the hope he will not repeat his last performance, and he will square off against Luis Atilano of the Nationals. Game Time is 7:10 PM

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