Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Good morning, Mets fans!

Mark W. Sanchez of the New York Post released information on the split between Brett Baty and Eduardo Escobar at third base, noting that Baty has only started against right-handed pitchers and Escobar has only started against left-handed pitchers so far this season but the Mets are not calling it a platoon. When asked if the two players will strictly play against their specialties, Buck Showalter said it’s “Not strict. We’ll pick some spots there […] “For both of them really, [we] want to use both their skills. Make sure that I don’t close the door on anybody.”

The Mets lost Wednesday to the Washington Nationals, 4-1. MacKenzie Gore of the Nationals allowed one earned run in six innings and struck out ten Mets. Also, Kodai Senga got his first loss of the season (5 IP, 2 ER, 7 K). Dan Quiñones has a more complete recap of last night’s game.

The Mets will have a chance to avoid the sweep tonight at 7:10 p.m. Joey Lucchesi (1-0, 0.00 ERA) will make his second start of the year.

Now, it is time for the morning briefing.

Latest Mets News

Tim Healey of Newsday Sports reports that Rob Manfred supported the umpires involved in the Max Scherzer sticky substance ejection, saying, “I want to commend the umpires here. They made multiple attempts to deescalate this. I think they handled it really well.”

Jonathan Mayo, Jim Callis, and Sam Dykstra of MLB.com listed Ronny Mauricio as the Mets’s top hitting prospect at the moment.

Latest MLB News

Bob Nightengale of USA TODAY reports that Robbie Ray has been declared out for the season with flexor tendon surgery.

The St. Louis Cardinals report that outfielder Jordan Walker has been optioned to Triple-A Memphis. Infielder Taylor Motter cleared waivers and has been signed to a major league free agent contract.

Latest on MMO

Ross Bentley previews pitching matchups for the upcoming series against the Atlanta Braves.

Ross Bentley also wrote about the lack of power from Mets hitters besides Pete Alonso.

On This Date in Mets History

1983: Nolan Ryan broke the all-time strikeout record as a Houston Astro. He still holds the record with 5,714 strikeouts.

Birthdays: J.D. Davis (30), Orber Moreno (46), Frank Catalanotto (49), Eric Hillman (57), Bob MacDonald (58), Brian Giles (63)

The post Morning Briefing: Showalter Not Strictly Platooning Baty and Escobar appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Dylan Hernandez of the LA Times is reporting that there is industry-wide speculation that the Los Angeles Dodgers could trade outfielder Yasiel Puig this offseason.

Hernandez notes that the right-handed hitting Puig became upset in 2018 when he was placed in a platoon situation. Oddly, Puig’s struggles have actually come against left-handed pitching with a .628 OPS against them in 2018 and .592 OPS in 2017.

Puig, 28 today, hit .267/.327/.494 overall in 2018 with 21 doubles, 23 homers, 63 RBI and 15 stolen bases. The Cuban posted a 2.7 bWAR and 1.8 fWAR in 118 games this year.

He has experience in left and center field, though he’s primarily a right-fielder, where he has 40 defensive runs saved in six seasons at the position. Puig was a Gold Glove finalist in 2017 when had 18 DRS in right field.

Puig is estimated to make $11.3 million through arbitration in 2019, his last season before hitting free agency.

The Mets currently only have four outfielders on the 40-man roster in Michael Conforto, Brandon Nimmo, Yoenis Cespedes and Juan Lagares.

The post Report: Puig Could Be Traded This Offseason appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

It’s almost sacrilege to talk poorly of Wilmer Flores – the Mets folk hero and utility-man is an undisputed fan favorite for his clutch heroics. In a poll conducted by the New York Daily News after the 2017 season, 89% of those polled said that the Mets needed to hang onto Flores – the only position players with higher ratings were Michael Conforto and Amed Rosario.

It’s hard for fans not to love Flores, and Flores loves them right back – the 26-year-old expressed his desire to stick with the Mets after going 2-4 with a double and a run scored in Wednesday’s game. Still, the Mets are in such a poor position that Flores’ has been discussed in the media as a potential trade candidate. But as much as it might behoove the Mets to sell anyone who isn’t strapped down, Flores is nowhere near as great of an asset as he might seem to be on the surface.

Let’s address why Flores appears like a trade asset on the surface. Since 2016, Flores has hit .268/.315/.475, splitting time between first, second and third. For a utility infielder to hit so well would immediately make him an asset to any bench in the MLB without a solid utility player, or second-baseman – that kind of power is extremely rare among players who can play second base.

But there exists a major caveat in that Flores is very much a platoon hitter. Since 2016, Flores has done an excellent job of mashing left-handed pitching, but he’s been only average against right-handed been pitching.

It’s not like anyone in the media is unaware of the platoon – Flores has had this reputation as a lefty-masher for his career, and as a result, he’s almost always in the lineup when the Mets are facing a lefty. It’s worth noting that Flores has had reverse splits this season (64 wRC+ against LHP, 146 wRC+ against RHP) in limited action, but the big picture indicates that Flores is above-average against lefties and average against righties and teams looking to trade for Flores should treat him as thus.

But even with a disadvantage against righties, Flores is still an average hitter against RHP, which puts him at an advantage over the average second baseman – since 2016, second basemen have a wRC+ of 96 against RHP, and 93 against LHP – so by wRC+, Flores is 4 points better against RHP and 38 points better against LHP. Flores’ bat is his best asset, and it shines best at a middle infield position.

Unfortunately, as much as he’d like to pretend, Flores is not a middle infielder. He’s not even a third baseman. I pulled Flores’ career defensive values from FanGraphs and Baseball Reference, and the results are less than encouraging.

Flores ranks as an average-to-above-average defender at first baseman and second baseman by UZR/150, and that’s it. Nowhere else has he graded out as anything other than below-average to awful by any other metric. It’s important to note that Flores has not seen an extraordinary amount of time anywhere in the field as a result of his role as a utility player, so the defensive numbers that we have are incomplete, but at everywhere that Flores has played, he’s been downright awful to an extraordinary degree. Flores is only somewhat decent in the field while playing first or DHing, and downright atrocious everywhere else. The Mets, cognizant of this fact, have given Flores 74% of his innings played this season at first.

We cannot judge Flores by the marker of “utility player” or “middle infielder” – Flores’ glove everywhere but first base negates the value provided by his bat. So in evaluating Flores as a trade target, we must discuss him as a first baseman or DH. And in evaluating Flores at those positions, he grades decently with his glove, but poorly with his bat. Since 2016, first basemen have a 111 wRC+ against RHP and 106 wRC+ against LHP, and designated hitters have a 109 wRC+ against RHP and 108 wRC+ against LHP – Flores is still an above-average lefty-masher, but is about 10 points worse than the average first baseman or DH against RHP.

Therein lies the flaw in the argument that someone should trade for Flores. LHP have accounted for just 27% of starts in the majors this season, so Flores would realistically start over an average first baseman only once every four days. For a position player with such limited positional versatility, it’s difficult to call a first-baseman who would start only against LHP as worthy of a roster spot, let alone worth trading for.

Besides, there appear to exist few suitors for a player of Flores’ talents. FanGraphs’ playoff odds give 15 teams odds of greater than 10% to reach the playoffs this season. For the starting first baseman for each of those teams, I pulled their L/R platoon wRC+ and compared it to Flores’.

The only team where Flores might stand to yield an improvement against both lefties and righties is the Yankees, but Greg Bird has had injury problems for much of the past three seasons. The Yankees have expressed confidence in their young first baseman, so it’s unlikely that they try to replace him with Flores, which appears to leave the Mets without a realistic suitor for Flores.

It might be just as well. Given Flores’ status as a folk hero among Mets fans, the Mets might have riots on their hands should they decide to move Flores, who himself has expressed the desire to remain on the team “forever”. Flores is not an awful option at first base, especially for the Mets, who have been without consistency at the position for much of the season. Even if the Mets could move Flores, the return might not be worth the trouble from the fanbase.

The post Flores Is Less of Trade Asset Than You Think appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Mets outfielder Michael Conforto is expected to advance to facing overhand throwing in the cage Tuesday, according to Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News.

Slowly but surely for Conforto, who is targeting a return date of around May 1.

Original report – March 4, 11:30 a.m.

According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the Mets are quietly thinking that outfielder Michael Conforto can return earlier than originally anticipated.

The 25-year-old underwent surgery in September to repair a torn posterior capsule in his shoulder, an injury he sustained in an August game after swinging at a pitch.

Last month, Conforto began swinging and a return date of May 1 seemed like the goal.

“There’s the May 1 date and it kind of gives me a idea,” he said. “(The medical staff) is helping me understand I got to the be the player I was and know I will be again and that comes from doing things the right way, doing the right progression. I don’t know for sure if it’s going to be May 1, could be earlier, could be later. Who knows.”

At the beginning of this month, Conforto also began throwing soft toss.  The outfielder was able to take 25 front tosses in addition to 15 cuts off a tee and said that everything felt normal afterwards.

Until he returns, Yoenis Cespedes and Jay Bruce will man the corners of the outfield with Juan Lagares and Brandon Nimmo figuring to platoon in central.

The post Conforto Will Face Overhanded Throws In Cage Tuesday appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

With the Mets searching for either a second or third baseman, Wilmer Flores figures to be without a full-time job.

However, with the team seemingly not 100 percent confident in handing the full-time first base job to Dominic Smith, a platoon between Flores and the 22-year-old could help maximize both their values.

Flores, 26, appeared in 110 games for New York in 2017, hitting to a .271/.307/.488 slash line with a career-high 18 homers to go along with 52 RBI over 362 plate appearances. He also recorded a 106 wRC+ and .331 wOBA.

Last year, Flores spent the most time at third base, where he struggled mightily. Over 425.2 innings at the hot corner, he had -8 defensive runs saved and a -2.8 UZR. At first base in 341.2 career innings, he has -1 DRS and a 1.6 UZR.

What would make a platoon between these two work is that Flores is a strong hitter against southpaws, hitting .291 against them this past year. In a limited sample size, the left-handed hitting Smith performed better against righties.

Smith logged just 183 big league plate appearances and hit to a dismal .198/.262/.395 clip, with nine home runs. All nine of his long balls came against righties.

There has been some talk about the Mets going out and finding a platoon partner for Smith, as well as being linked to the likes of Adam Lind or Logan Morrison, but with other needs to fill around the diamond, a Flores and Smith platoon could be the most effective.

Plus, it would allow Flores to not have to play a position like shortstop or third base where he has performed poorly at throughout his career.

The post Is a Smith and Flores Platoon the Best Option at First? appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

The Mets are exploring a plethora of second base options, with recently non-tendered Ryan Goins name now in the fold.

Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that Goins could be a fit as a platoon partner at the keystone due to his strong defense.

The 29-year-old hit just .237/.286/.356 with nine homers and 62 RBI in 459 plate appearances this past season. He also had a 69 wRC+ and .278 wOBA.

In 383.1 innings at second in 2017, he was good for three defensive runs saved and had a 0.4 UZR. He would likely start against right-handed pitching in a potential platoon situation.

Other potential players that Mets have been tied to are Ian Kinsler and Jason Kipnis, and to a lesser extent, Josh Harrison of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The post Mets Have Some Interest In Ryan Goins appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Brandon Nimmo won over the hearts of Mets fans with his giant smile and puppy like energy in 2017. A small positive for an otherwise disappointing season.

The outfielder had a good year at the dish too. In 69 games, he hit .260/.379/.418 with a 117 wRC+ while drawing a whopping 33 walks in 215 plate appearances.

However, Nimmo was more of an afterthought coming into the season. It wasn’t until after the team was decimated with injuries and Jay Bruce and Curtis Granderson were traded that Nimmo really got a chance to play everyday and show his skills.

After being drafted in 2011 out of high school in Cheyenne, Wyoming, he finally put his skill set into motion at the big league level, demonstrating his fantastic plate discipline that was appealing to the Mets from the onset.

But what’s the role on the 2018 team for Nimmo?

Well for starters, the Mets no longer have a logjam of outfielders like they once did. As it looks right now, Yoenis Cespedes, Juan Lagares and Nimmo are the only locks to be ready for opening day. Michael Conforto will return at some point, but as of now, it’s not certain when.

Nimmo’s fielding was not up to snuff, but a platoon for the long haul with Lagares could make sense once Conforto returns.

Lagares is a tremendous fielder, but has struggled at the plate, getting on base at only a .296 clip. However, he did have a 1.8 WAR, which shows how good he was in the field.

Bringing back someone like Jay Bruce, while highly unlikely, would be a big boost to the middle of the order. However, with more important needs elsewhere, the Mets could bring in a free agent like Jarrod Dyson to round out the outfield.

Nimmo, however, was better in right field defensively than he was in center, posting a 0.3 UZR compared to a -0.7.

If he starts to begin the season, an outfield combination of Cespedes, Lagares and Nimmo from left to right would be likely be the most optimal for the team.

When Conforto does return though, a platoon of Nimmo and Lagares in center would make for a strong tandem. Nimmo’s only problem is that he posted just a 51 wRC+ against left-handed pitching, so he would need to start against righties.

Still at 24-years-old though, Nimmo showed this season that his floor is as a serviceable outfielder and his ceiling is as a strong leadoff hitter with his high on-base percentage.

The post What Is Brandon Nimmo’s Role In 2018? appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

WILMER FLORES, INF

Player Data: Age: 26, B/T: R/R, Free Agency: 2020

2017 Primary Stats: .271/.301/.488, 17 2B, 3B, 18 HR, 52 RBI, -0.2 bWAR, 106 wRC+

2018 Salary: $3.7 million (projected arbitration)

GRADE: C+

2017 Review:

After this season, it is safe to say we know what Wilmer Flores is as a baseball player. Once again, Flores showed he is best served as a platoon bat to face left-handed pitching despite showing improvement against right-handed pitching. He’s also a guy that really doesn’t have a position on the field.

Quite remarkably, Flores posted a negative DRS at all four infield positions this season: 1B (-3), 2B (-1), 3B (-8), and SS (-2). This should come as no surprise as he is a negative DRS player at all four positions for his career. As we have seen with Flores, he proved this season he does not belong on the left side of the infield. On the right side, he has shown he can be serviceable there, especially if he can hit.

Again, Flores hit well against left-handed pitching with a 119 wRC+ against them. However, this was a drop from the 192 wRC+ he had against them last year. Fortunately, that coincided with Flores going from a 75 to a 101 wRC+ hitter against right-handed pitching.

Flores’ improvement against right-handed pitching gave you hope he could emerge as an everyday player. His stretches in May (.379/.406/.500) and July (.313/.358/.604) also gave that hope. Certainly during those stretches, you could envision him as an everyday second baseman.

However, Flores wasn’t that player. Just as he’s been in most of his career, Flores is a streaky hitter, and he is a bit injury prone. For the second straight season, Flores landed on the disabled list with leg issues. Also for the second straight year, he had a bit of a freak injury that prevented him from finishing the season with the team.

Did You Know:

Flores set career highs in triples, homers, stolen bases, batting average, slugging, OPS, and sacrifice flies.  This partially coincides with Flores increasing his fly ball rate this season and repeating his 13.6% HR/FB ratio from the 2016 season.

2018 Outlook:

How Flores is utilized in 2018 largely depends on the Mets offseason.  That includes who the Mets sign to play second and third as well as who they hire as the manager.  It will also depend on how well Dominic Smith hits against left-handed pitching.  To that end, Flores could be used anywhere from an everyday second baseman, a platoon partner with Smith or a super utility player.

The post 2017 Mets Report Card: Wilmer Flores, INF appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Wilmer Flores had a hell of a day at the plate this afternoon in the Mets’ 16-2 victory against the St. Louis Cardinals in Port St. Lucie. The infielder went 2-for-2 with a grand slam, a double, six RBI, and a walk after getting the start at third base.

Flores has been trying to prove all spring that he can hit righties, and his big hit today came against righty Adam Wainwright. According to Newsday’s Marc Carig, he believes he can succeed in a role larger than the platoon role he seems destined for. However, Terry Collins said he will have to accept a part-time role. “The one thing about his situation is, you don’t have to like it, but you’ve got to accept it,” Collins said. “And be ready to play.”

Flores, of course, had prolific success against left-handed pitching last year, slashing .340/.383/.710 with 11 homers in just 107 plate appearances against southpaws. Against righties, however, he only hit .232/.289/.353 over 228 trips to the plate. Overall, he slashed .267/.319/.469 on the year. For Flores to become a full-time player, he will have to significantly improve his numbers against righties, or forever be relegated to a platoon role.

The post Collins: Wilmer Flores Should Accept Part-Time Role appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

According to multiple sources, the Nationals and first baseman Adam Lind have agreed on a one-year contract worth $1 million. The deal also includes an option for 2018 with a $500k buyout.

The 33 year-old slugger hit .239/.286/.431 last season, hitting 20 home runs and driving in 58. It was the sixth time in his career he has hit at least 20 home runs in a season and the second consecutive year. He is a career .287/.347/.502 hitter against right-handed pitching so he will likely form some sort of platoon with right-handed hitting Ryan Zimmerman.

This helps bolster the Nationals’ bench which, even after this signing, remains weak. He only provides offensive depth as he can really only play first base. He hasn’t played left field since 2010, a position at which he never excelled at. His career -10.5 dWAR will probably limit him to either starting at first base or late-game pinch-hitting duties against righties.

The post Nationals And First Baseman Adam Lind Agree To Contract appeared first on Metsmerized Online.