Frankie Montas struggled yet again on Wednesday, making his place in the Mets’ rotation a point of contention. The newly acquired Montas had a line of 5.0 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 1 BB, 2 K (80 pitches, 47 strikes) in his sixth rehab start since returning from a high grade lat strain. This outing actually lowered his ERA in rehab starts this season to 13.19 as he has given up eight home runs in 18 2/3 innings. Montas must be called up to the big league squad, assuming he’s healthy, but it could be hard to justify any major role given his struggles.

Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Latest Mets News

Atlanta continues to be a house of horrors for the Mets as they were shut out by Chris Sale for 8 2/3 innings while the Braves clinched the series win. The Mets turned mental lapses, defensive errors and a poor start from Paul Blackburn into a 3-0 deficit early on and could never climb back, resulting in their fifth straight loss. Click here for the full game recap.

The Mets will look to salvage the last game of this set as Clay Holmes (7-3, 2.87 ERA) will face Spencer Strider (1-5, 4.35 ERA) at 7:15 p.m. on Thursday night. 

Kiley McDaniel of ESPN released his MLB Mock Draft 2.0 and has the Mets taking LF Devin Taylor from Indiana with their first pick.

Carlos Mendoza told reporters that Brett Baty wasn’t available last night and is not sure if he will need an IL stint.

Latest MLB News

Dodgers owner Mark Walter is buying majority ownership of the Lakers from the Buss family, per Shams Charania of ESPN.

The Tampa Bay Rays are in advanced talks to sell the club to a group led by Jacksonville home builder Patrick Zalupski, per Kurt Badenhausen of Sportico. Parties have signed a letter of intent and the price is roughly $1.7B. Click here for more on the potential purchase.

Former Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina was named Team Puerto Rico’s manager for the 2026 World Baseball Classic.

Franmil Reyes, who is now playing in Japan, is being sued for failing to follow through on his earning stake, per Michael McCann of Sportico. When Reyes was a 21-year-old minor league outfielder, he agreed to a player investment contract where he’d give up 10% of annual earnings in exchange for $302K.

Latest On MMO

Francisco Alvarez continues to struggle.

The Rays are in advanced talks about selling the team.

Tyrone Taylor continues to shine!

On This Date in Mets History

2014: Zack Wheeler throws a three-hit complete game shutout, the first shutout of his career.

2004: Mike Cameron tallies his second walk-off hit in as many days.

1989: Dwight Gooden records his 100th career victory, joining Tom Seaver and Jerry Koosman in the exclusive Mets club.

Born on This Date: Logan Verrett (1990), Devin Mesoraco (1988), Jacob deGrom (1988), Collin McHugh (1987), Claudio Vargas (1978), Doug Mientkiewicz (1974), Bob Gibson (1957), Bob Aspromonte (1938), Larry Miller (1937).

The post Morning Briefing: Frankie Montas’ Rehab Struggles Continue appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Each and every offseason, the common refrain is the Mets are in need of an additional left-handed reliever in the bullpen. Mostly, it is a call for the Mets to add a second left-handed pitcher, but this offseason it is more of a need to add a primary left-handed reliever. Time and again, this call misses the mark because what the team needs, what any team needs, is good relievers regarded of handedness.

While not axiomatic, the 2015 Mets who went to the World Series are a good example of this. Their left-handed reliever situation was a mess. Jerry Blevins injured himself early in the year, and then he would injure himself again. Alex Torres was terrible until he was finally released. They took a flyer on Eric O’Flaherty late in the year, and he was worse than Torres. Their one left-handed pitcher who made the full season was Sean Gilmartin, who was the long man in the bullpen, and he actually had reverse splits.

The reason why the Mets were able to make it work was that the team had right-handed relievers who pitched well against left-handed pitching. In fact, if you just looked at the splits and ignored the handedness of the pitchers, you would believe each one of them was actually a LOOGY:

• Jeurys Familia .214/.291/.325
• Hansel Robles .167/.214/.346
• Erik Goeddel .189/.250/.270
• Logan Verrett .200/.293/.388
• Tyler Clippard .136/.229/.236

When you boil it down, who cares if the pitcher is right-handed, left-handed, or Pat Venditte? The goal is to get batters out, and you want the pitcher most effective at getting those outs on the mound. If you look at the current Mets bullpen, the team has right-handed pitchers who have had success against left-handed hitters:

• Edwin Diaz .172/.275/.287
• Jeurys Familia .256/.338/.371
• Seth Lugo .234/.300/.373

Right there, your three most trusted relievers are pitchers you trust to get left-handed batters out in pressure situations. Delving into their young right-handed power arms, Tyler Bashlor and Eric Hanhold have also posted good numbers against left-handed hitters. This also overlooks Daniel Zamora, who utilized his excellent spin rates to hold left-handed hitters to a .222 batting average against during his brief time in the majors.

Assuming the Mets go with Zamora and one of their young right-handed power arms, the 2019 Mets bullpen will have five pitchers who pitch well against left-handed hitters. Adding another arm to address getting left-handed hitters out is superfluous. Moreover, when you look at how Mickey Callaway uses his bullpen combined with this being an era of increased bullpen use, you really have to question the wisdom of having two of your seven relievers dedicated to getting one batter out a game.

Ultimately, this should be about getting the best relievers you possibly can. If that reliever happens to be left-handed, great. Certainly, someone like a Justin Wilson is good against right and left-handed batters. However, if that guy is Tony Sipp or someone of his ilk, you really have to wonder why this team would limit the manager and tax the better arms in the bullpen to get just two batters out per game. Really, when you break it down, the Mets need better, not more limited, arms.

The post Mets Don’t Need Another Left-Handed Reliever appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Picture courtesy of Kevin McGowan and the New York Mets.

Good morning Mets fans! The hot stove continues to heat up and tomorrow will be a key date as the Mets must protect their eligible players from the Rule 5 Draft.

Latest Mets News

Matt Mancuso has the latest on Mets prospects in the Arizona Fall League.

Kevin McGowan cut his hair to donate to Pantene’s Program.

The NC Dinos of South Korea has signed former Met pitcher Logan Verrett.

Latest MLB News 

Mark Polishuk of MLB Trade Rumors has the latest on the New York Yankees managerial search.

The Seattle Mariners acquired RHP Nick Rumbelow from the New York Yankees in exchange for LHP JP Sears and RHP Juan Then.

Latest NL East News 

Jamal Collier of MLB.com writes about Anthony Rendon receiving the MLB Award for Best Performance for his 6-6 game against the Mets on April 30.

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald talks about the Giancarlo Stanton sweepstakes.

Gabriel Burns of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes about how Ronald Acuna became the youngest player to receive the Arizona Fall League MVP Award.

Todd Zolecki of MLB.com talks about how a contingent of Phillies players surprised a group of young fans.

Latest on MMO

Rob Piersall submits his MMO Report Card for Jeurys Familia.

He also conducted an MMO Exclusive Interview with former Las Vegas hitting coach Jack Voigt.

Lastly, he deciphers who the three best trade options at second base are this off-season.

This Day in Mets History

1979: The Board of Directors announces its intention to sell the team before the 1980 season.

The post Morning Briefing: Chopped! appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

The Miami Marlins reached out to the New York Yankees to discuss their possible interest in star outfielder Giancarlo Stanton on Wednesday night according to Jon Heyman of Fan Rag Sports.

Heyman also reports that the Los Angeles Dodgers are in the mix for Stanton, who is from the LA area. According to multiple reports, the St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants have been the most aggressive in the pursuit of Stanton to this point.

You will be shocked to find out that Mariners GM Jerry DiPoto made this first significant trade of the offseason acquiring first baseman Ryon Healy from the Oakland Athletics in exchange for reliever Emilio Pagan and infield prospect Alexander Campos.

The Los Angeles Angels have had extensive internal discussions about trading for Detroit Tigers second baseman Ian Kinsler according to Anthony French of the Detroit Free Press. Kinsler does have a limited no-trade clause that includes 10 teams.

Free agents Neil Walker and Zack Cozart are also expected to be of interest to the Angels according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN. The Pittsburgh Pirates have interest in bringing back Walker to play second base according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network.

There is mutual interest between the Cubs and free agent right-handed starter Alex Cobb according to Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun Times.

Other News and Notes

The Minnesota Twins have voided the contract of international signee Jelfry Marte due to an vision issue identified in his physical according to Ben Badler of Baseball America. The Dominican shortstop originally signed for a $3 million bonus and was ranked as BA’s No. 13 prospect in the 2017 class.

Former Met Logan Verrett has signed with the NC Dinos of the KBO. The right-hander gets a one-year deal worth $800,000 with a $200,000 signing bonus.

Former Mets minor leaguer Kevin Canelon has signed a minor league deal with the Cincinatti Reds. He had a 2.97 ERA for the St. Lucie Mets in 2017.

The Texas Rangers acquired minor leaguer Hunter Cole from the Giants to complete the trade that sent reliever Sam Dyson to San Francisco in June.

Veteran starter Jake Peavy hopes to return to the major league in 2018 after sitting out this past season. Peavy won a Cy Young in 2007 with the Padres when Sandy Alderson was the CEO of San Diego.

The posting system for Shohei Ohtani has yet to be finalized by MLBPA and NPB, and while negotiations are currently at a standstill, there is optimism they will get worked out.

Padres have been receiving calls about infielders Yangervis Solarte, Cory Spangenberg and Carlos Asuaje according to AJ Cassavell of MLB.com.

The post MLB News Roundup: Yankees, Dodgers Enter Stanton Sweepstakes appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

After a long offseason of inaction following the re-signing of outfielder Yoenis Cespedes to a four-year, $110 million dollar deal in November, the New York Mets sprung back into action last week, re-signing left-hander Jerry Blevins and right-hander Fernando Salas to one-year deals and even adding veteran southpaw Tom Gorzelanny on a minor-league contract.

So in one fell swoop they completed their No. 2 offseason priority which was to secure two veteran arms for the bullpen. And the interesting part is that they didn’t have to trade Jay Bruce to free up the payroll dollars to get each of those deals done. It looks like the former Reds slugger will go into the the 2017 season as the de facto right fielder for the New York Mets. As Jerry Seinfeld would say, “Not that there’s anything wrong with that.”

Blevins, 33, was the biggest prize of the bullpen bounty, signing a one year deal for $6.5 million with a team option for $6 million. It’s important to remember that Blevins began the offseason looking for a three year, $19 million dollar deal, so what a coup this is for Sandy Alderson who played his hand brilliantly.

In Blevins the Mets get a sure-fire commodity who gave them a 2.79 ERA in 73 games last season, while striking out 52, walking 15, and posting a career-best 11.1 strikeout rate. Not only did he hold lefty batters to a .637 OPS for the Mets in 2016, but he was even better against right-handed batters who he held to a .611 OPS in 55 at-bats.

Salas, 31, got a one-year deal worth $3 million dollars which seems like a steal compared to some of the other deals similar pitchers have received in previous offseasons. Salas posted a 2.08 ERA and 19/0 K/BB ratio over 17.1 innings with the Mets in 2016 after coming over in a trade from the Angels at the deadline. For his career he has a 3.64 ERA and K/BB ratio of 385/114 in 388.1 innings over seven seasons.

I read a few articles elsewhere over the weekend that the Mets are “bringing the band back,” or essentially showing up with the “same old team” as last year – the one that barely scraped by and lost the Wild Card. Some people…

If you think this is the same team as last year, put down the pipe and think again. Last Opening Day we had Eric Campbell, Logan Verrett, Alejandro De Aza, Antonio Bastardo, Kevin Plawecki, and Jim Henderson in the home team dugout. A motley crew to say the least.

Those names have now been replaced with Jay Bruce, Robert Gsellman, Seth Lugo, Fernando Salas, Jose Reyes, and Rene Rivera. That’s quite a big upgrade. In fact, it’s actually a formidable upgrade and anyone who can’t see that really isn’t very good at baseball.

Meanwhile the Nationals… What have they done? Their bullpen is in complete shambles. Sure they got Adam Eaton, but he essentially replaces the offense they lost behind the plate with Wilson Ramos. Daniel Murphy is due for some regression, Ryan Zimmerman batted .218 last season Jayson Werth batted .244.

Look, all I’m saying is that the Washington Nationals are not exactly the unbeatable force that everyone is making them out to be. And that the New York Mets are not a team with a second place ceiling at best. And when are these so-called experts ever right anyway?

I’ve been following baseball long enough to know that there are only two absolutes in this game. Number one, nobody ever wins anything on paper. And number two, there’s no telling who lady luck will smile upon in any given season.

The way I see it, we have a tremendous team entering the new season and we have much to be excited about here. This is a significantly better group of players than the team we had on last year’s Opening Day roster. This could be the year that for the very first time we’ll finally get to see the Fab Five all taking a turn in the same starting rotation. Potentially, we could have five 25 homer bats in the same starting lineup. Last season we had the third best bullpen in baseball, this year it could be the best. This is the best team on balance that we’ve had in years. I’m really feeling it this season… This is a team every Met fan needs to get behind.

The post These Are Not The Same Old Mets appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

The Mets have traded RHP Logan Verrett, 26, to the Baltimore Orioles for $50,000 in cash.

This move is to free up a roster spot for Yoenis Cespedes.

In 2016, Verrett went 3-8 with a 5.20 ERA. He appeared in 35 games (12 starts), striking out 66 batters in 91.2 innings.

Verrett has been briefly acquainted with the Orioles before. They picked him from the Rule 5 Draft in 2014, but when they couldn’t find a spot for him, they put him on waivers. The Rangers picked him up but he shortly returned to the Mets organization, who had drafted him in the 3rd round of the 2011 draft.

This is not surprising as the Mets have Noah Syndergaard, Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, Steven Matz, Zack Wheeler, Robert Gsellman, and Seth Lugo all on track to be healthy by spring training.

This move could mean that the Mets are not planning on offering Lugo or Gsellman in any trades, as if they were, they probably would have kept Verrett.

The post Mets Trade Logan Verrett To Orioles For Cash appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

This past Saturday marked an anniversary of sorts for the New York Mets, as general manager Sandy Alderson was introduced and hired as the 12th general manager in team history on October 29, 2010.

Alderson signed a four-year deal at the time, with a club option for 2015, after working with Major League Baseball and then commissioner Bud Selig to help address the various corruptions in the Dominican Republic, such as identity and age fraud, use of performance enhancing drugs, and rogue sports agents.

Alderson had a large undertaking in front of him in spearheading the Mets from basement dwellers in the National League East to contention, as the Wilpon’s were reeling from the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme, and stadium attendance had been on the decline for several years.

Although it took several seasons for the Mets to regain relevance, Alderson’s initial MLB First-Year Player Draft in 2011 would turn out to be an essential draft for both last season’s improbable run to the World Series, and this year’s Wild Card Game.

Several key prospects from that draft would go on to help accelerate the Mets into postseason contention, while others were used as trade chips to bring in pieces that aided in their quest to bringing a championship to Queens.

BRANDON NIMMO: 1st Round

The Mets selected Brandon Nimmo as their number one pick (13th overall) in the ’11 draft, the first position player drafted by the Mets since Ike Davis in 2008. Nimmo was a high school outfielder, who didn’t play high school baseball since Wyoming is one of three states that doesn’t have a baseball team.

Nimmo worked his way through the Mets’ system, having some underwhelming seasons before starting to put things together in 2014 with the St. Luice Mets in the Florida State League.

In 2016, Nimmo posted career highs in slugging (.541), OPS (.964), home runs (11), RBI (61), doubles (25), and batting average (.352), finishing second to teammate T.J. Rivera for the Pacific Coast League batting title.

Nimmo would finally get his opportunity in the majors on June 26, making his debut against the Atlanta Braves. Nimmo racked up the frequent flyer miles in 2016, as he would be optioned and recalled between Las Vegas and New York seven times.

Overall, Nimmo held his own in the majors, especially when it came to pinch-hitting, where in 12 at-bats his line was .500/.571/.500 and five runs scored. Nimmo had some good at-bats in September, and was utilized late in games for pinch-hitting and defensive replacement.

The Mets have options with Nimmo in 2017, as they could utilize him as a fourth outfielder or have him begin the year in Las Vegas where he’d get the most playing time. In any case, Nimmo has some upside in his game, as he does a good job spraying the ball to all fields, working the count, and getting on base. His energy and infectious smile and love for the game made him a fan favorite in ’16, and he should get one of the first call ups to Queens next year if the Mets need reinforcements.

MICHAEL FULMER: CA

Michael Fulmer played a huge part for the Mets success in the second half of 2015 and beyond, without playing a major league game for the Amazins. Fulmer, 23, was the centerpiece prospect along with RHP Luis Cessa in the blockbuster trade that sent Yoenis Cespedes to the Mets from Detroit.

The sizable Fulmer was drafted 44th overall as a compensation pick for losing LHP Pedro Feliciano to the Yankees the year before, and was having a stellar year for Binghamton prior to the July 31 trade with the Tigers, going 6-2 with a 1.88 ERA in 15 starts.

Fulmer followed his success in Double A with a potential Rookie of the Year season for the Tigers in 2016, going 11-7 with a 3.06 ERA and 1.12 WHIP. Fulmer was second in rookie wins behind Kenta Maeda (16), and third in fWAR (3.0), behind Jon Gray and Maeda.

“La Potencia” played the role of team MVP in the second half for the Mets, slashing .287/.337/.604, with 17 home runs, 44 RBI, and 39 runs scored in 57 games played. Cespedes had a strong Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, belting two homers with 4 RBI. Cespedes had his all-around best performance during Game 3 of the NLDS, going 3-for-5 with a homer and 3 RBI, in the Mets 13-7 romp over the Dodgers.

The rest of Cespedes’ postseason didn’t go as planned, as he struggled both at the plate and defensively, and had an ailing left shoulder in which he needed to lifted from Game 4 of the NLCS against the Chicago Cubs in the second inning.

The Mets were fortunate that the free agent market didn’t take off for Cespedes as he had hoped in the 2015-16 offseason, as Alderson was able to sign the right-handed power hitter to a three-year deal for $75 million, which included an opt-out after the first year. Cespedes is expected to opt out of his current contract, in hopes of obtaining a four or five year deal for over $100 million.

After another successful year in which Cespedes slashed .280/.354/.530 with 31 homers (his first back-to-back 30 homer seasons), and 86 RBI, losing that type of production would be a set-back for the Mets going forward, and are expected to try and hammer out an extension for the 31-year-old slugger once he opts out after the World Series.

While Fulmer slid in to the Tigers rotation this year, adding to the Mets plethora of talented pitching prospects to have gone through their system, Cespedes was the power threat the Mets had missed since the days of Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado, and was a main reason the Mets made the surge they did in the second half of 2015.

ROBERT GSELLMAN: 13th Round

The Mets selected Robert Gsellman with the 402nd overall pick in 2011’s draft, and were encouraged by his athleticism, as he was a two-sport athlete in high school playing both baseball and basketball.

The six-foot-four right-hander had good success in the minors, registering back-to-back-to-back seasons in 2013-15 of a sub 3.00 ERA. When Steven Matz landed on the disabled list with shoulder tightness, Gsellman, 23, was called up to originally take a spot in the bullpen, while Jon Niese was slated to start.

Niese would tear his meniscus in the first inning of his August 23 start in St. Louis, requiring knee surgery. With Gsellman in the bullpen and ready to go in case of a short start by Niese, he stepped in and pitched 3.2 innings of two hit ball, walking three and striking out two, earning his first major league win.

Gsellman kept the Mets in the wild card hunt that night, just 3.5 games behind the Cardinals. In total, Gsellman pitched eight games, making seven starts, with a record of 4-2 with a 2.42 ERA, the 7th lowest ERA among all rookie pitchers.

Gsellman pitched in plenty of meaningful games in September, including his September 30 start against the Philadelphia Phillies where he went six innings of one run ball, walking one and striking out seven. The win ensured the Mets would at least qualify for a tiebreaker after the regular season, and moved the team within one win or one Cardinals loss of clinching a wild card berth.

 SETH LUGO: 34th Round

Seth Lugo was added to the Mets’ 40-man roster last offseason, a move the Mets and their staff should be happy they made. Lugo, 26, provided the Mets another capable starting pitcher in a year where Matt Harvey, Steven Matz, Jacob deGrom, and Zack Wheeler were all dealing with injuries and surgeries.

Lugo was called up on June 30 in place of LHP Sean Gilmartin. Lugo had worked tirelessly in the minors to reach his ultimate goal of making the major leagues, including working as a starter and out of the pen, and dealing with Spondylolisthesis in 2012, which occurs after a displacement of a vertebra in the spine. Lugo would miss the entire ’12 season, undergoing a lumbar fusion and a surgery that lasted almost 10 hours, and kept him bedridden for three months.

Lugo worked his way back from surgery, and started to increase his workload as he advanced in the minors. Once Lugo finally made it to Queens, he made the most of his opportunity, appearing in 17 games, making eight starts. He went 5-2 with a 2.67 ERA in 64 innings, holding hitters to a .220 average. His splits were also impressive, as he was equally sharp against lefties as he was righties, posting a 2.89 ERA and .196 average against left-handed hitters and a 2.50 ERA and .240 average against righties.

Lugo had a four-game winning streak stretching from August 25 to September 11, tossing 25 innings and giving up five earned runs, striking out 18 while walking only five.

With the emergence of Lugo and Gsellman in ’16, the Mets enter next season with a several options in their starting rotation. The Mets are anticipating full recoveries from their walking wounded of 2016, however, as we are all aware, teams can NEVER have too much starting pitching depth, and in getting to witness several high intensity starts from both Lugo and Gsellman, fans should feel optimistic that the Mets starting rotation will once again be their strength.

Who would’ve thought that so many prospects from Alderson’s first draft would have key roles in helping the Mets reach the postseason for back-to-back years for only the second time in franchise history. Patience pays off when dealing with minor leaguers, and has paid off both in talent and the level of talent they’ve acquired in the various trades they’ve made the past two seasons. Patience is also hard to sell to fans, however, the Mets are poised to staying in contention for the foreseeable future, due in part to some of Alderson’s draft choices of previous years.

Honorable Mentions:

Logan Verrett: 3rd Round (1-1 3.03 ERA 0.88 WHIP in 2015, 3-8 5.20 ERA 1.56 WHIP in 2016)

John Gant: 21st Round (Used as trade chip along with Rob Whalen for Juan Uribe and Kelly Johnson in 2015).

The post Alderson’s 2011 Draft Paying Dividends appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Adam Rubin of ESPN New York is hearing that RHP Logan Verrett will likely be recalled by the Mets to replace RHP Rafael Montero who was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas after last night’s game.

The Mets added Montero to the 25-man roster for Monday’s start in place of Jacob deGrom and tossed five scoreless innings against the Marlins despite walking six batters. After tossing 100 pitches in his emergency spot start, the Mets are taking an opportunity to add a fresh arm to the bullpen.

Verrett has appeared in dual roles for the Mets this season, going 1-6 with a 6.45 ERA in 12 starts, while posting a 1.29 WHIP and 2.81 ERA in 18 relief appearances.

The post Mets Option Montero To Las Vegas, Expected To Recall Verrett appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Despite coming off a rocky start on Saturday, right-hander Logan Verrett will make his next scheduled start against the San Diego Padres at Citi Field this weekend.

“We think he’s the best match up for San Diego,” Terry Collins told reporters.

After Verrett’s start against the Tigers in Detroit, Collins tossed out the possibility that he would be replaced in the rotation. Among the considerations were newly acquired Jon Niese or farmhands Gabriel Ynoa and Robert Gsellman.

Since replacing Matt Harvey in the rotation, Verrett is 1-5 with a 5.61 ERA, while allowing 48 baserunners in 33.0 innings.

Collins believes Verrett is the best matchup against the Padres, despite his recent struggles. In his only appearance against the Padres, Verrett faced nine batters and allowed three hits and a run.

Original Report – Aug 7

After struggling in last night’s game against the Tigers, Logan Verrett‘s spot in the rotation is in jeopardy. Verrett allowed six runs and seven hits in 3.2 innings as the Mets were handed their second consecutive loss.

After the game, Terry Collins didn’t sound pleased with Verrett’s performance and he told reporters the team is looking at their alternatives.

“I just talked to Sandy [Alderson] about something, and we’re going to certainly take a look at some options,” Collins said. “We’ve certainly got to pitch better in that spot.” (Adam Rubin, ESPN NY)

One option is moving Jon Niese into the rotation and Verrett back into the bullpen.

Niese, who was recently reacquired from Pittsburgh, pitched 2.1 effective innings in relief of Verrett last night. While Niese allowed one inherited runner to score, no earned runs were charged against him and he struck out two batters while allowing three hits.

Niese has certainly been through his own struggles this year, but he’s had past success in the Mets’ rotation. For his career, Niese is 69-67 as a starter with a 4.00 ERA and 1.37 WHIP.

He stringed together three solid seasons from 2012 to 2014 as he posted a 3.48 ERA and 1.27 WHIP in this span. He was also named the team’s opening day starter in 2013 after his career best season in 2012 when he won 13 games with a 3.40 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 190 innings.

While Niese has declined since those days, it’s possible he could rekindle some of that success reuniting with his old team and pitching coach Dan Warthen. Even though he ended his first tenure in New York on a sour note, he spent a decade in this organization and it’s where he’s had all of his success.

The Mets drafted Niese out of high school in the 7th round of the 2005 draft.

Meanwhile, Verrett doesn’t have a long track record, and it’s looking like MLB hitters have figured him out.

Since the month of May, Verrett has a 5.93 ERA and 1.54 WHIP. This poor stretch has raised his ERA form 0.52 to 4.66.

And in his six starts since replacing Matt Harvey in the rotation, Verrett ‘s ERA stands at 5.16. Additionally, Verrett’s  strikeout to walk rate is also a concern as he’s struck out only 55 batters and walked 37 in 82 innings pitched this season.

It’s possible Verrett is better suited for the pen as he has a 3.18 ERA out of relief compared to an ERA well above four as a starter.

While he could still have some value out of the bullpen, it’s becoming clear the Mets cannot rely on him as the 5th man in the rotation going forward.

The post Logan Verrett Will Stay In Rotation, Make Next Start Against Padres appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

The Mets spent another night at the heartbreak hotel with a close play at the plate that could have given them a rare 9^th inning rally.

Battling back from a 6-1 deficit, New York pulled within one with runners on first and second when Travis d’Arnaud poked a two out single to shallow right.

But Jay Bruce, whose bat has finally found good fortune, was gunned down at home on a one-hop throw by the savvy charging J.D. Martinez to end all hope of any heroics.  How unlucky are the Mets? On a night when the Mets finally get a crucial hit with RISP, it’s still not enough.

“I was kind of in a way anticipating it a little bit,” Martinez said. “I wasn’t confident that he was really going to drive something over my head, so I kind of just shaded in a little bit more than perhaps they say you should.”

Mets pitcher Logan Verrett lasted a lean 3 2/3 innings, giving up 6 runs on seven hits, falling to 3-7, in his latest attempt to be a viable a MLB starter.

Tied at one in the bottom of the 4^th, Detroit went Motown on the Mets scoring five runs on a double by Victor Martinez followed by a barrage of singles by J.D. Martinez, Ian Kinsler, Jarrod Saltalamacchia, and Miguel Cabrera.

Jon Niese, the lateral move the Mets made to replace Antonio Bastardo, relieved Verrett, and with two on and two out two additional runs crossed the plate.

Bruce and Curtis Granderson both went deep, but the merry go round of men left on base continued, as the Mets were 2-for-12 with RISP.

And in what has been a series of missed opportunities, Terry Collins second-guessed his dubious decision to not challenge the final play at the plate.

“That might be one of those plays where you might as well just take the chance anyway and see what happens. I didn’t think about it.”

What was very apparent on that play at the plate, besides the obvious out call, was that Saltalamacchia was blocking the plate without the ball.

Reportedly, Mets general manager Sandy Alderson was fuming by the non-challenge, and it was the second straight game that Collins failed to challenge a call. The non-challenge on Friday would have gone in the Mets’ favor in a game they lost by one run.   

The Mets are now nine in back of the Nationals, two behind the Marlins and Cards for the wildcard, and two away from a .500 record.

On Sunday, the Mets are hoping Jacob deGrom can help them avoid a three game sweep. DeGrom has emerged as the team’s most reliable starter and he boasts a remarkable 1.54 ERA in his last seven starts.

The post Jay Bruce Was Inches Away From Plating A Late Inning Rally appeared first on Metsmerized Online.