David Wright's Team Applesauce
by Joe Budd on May 21, 2009 10:09 AM EDT
in Applesauce
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PrintFor all you Reyes and Delgado haters, this is now the team you've been dying to see. Except for the talent they could've gotten back in a trade...
Meet the Mets
The Mets fell meekly to the Dodgers, 2-1, last night. Livan was fine, but Putz was not. More important than the loss, however, is that Jose Reyes injured his right calf and was sent to New York for testing. The Post suggests he may land on the DL, but provides no evidence.
Now to the first base situation. Jon Heyman believes that the Mets may have interest in Cleveland's Mark DeRosa. Wouldn't it be nice if there was an in-house solution to the problem? Oh wait, we got rid of him for Putz. The good news is that Daniel Murphy's left field experiment is over and will start at first base again. His debut there last night went well.
ESPN's Jerry Crasnick thinks Fernando Martinez's time is coming soon. He's #7 on this ranking.
Can you imagine Met fans ever doing this for one of our managers? Bobby will really miss the love from the fans when he comes back to the States.
Armando Benitez returns to the mound for Newark. Could he be worse than Putz? Yes, yes he can.
And in underrating Carlos Beltran news, The Sporting News ranks Beltran 23rd in their top 50 players list. Johan Santana, however, was ranked third behind Albert Pujols and Alex Rodriguez. Also, Steve Phillips defends his Sunday night comments.
If the Mets don't make the playoffs, I firmly believe they need to reconfigure the core of this team. While Beltran does have talent, I just don't see him as a winning player. Even after my comments on Sunday night, Beltran let a fly ball drop in between himself and Angel Pagan in the Dodger game. I see him putting up numbers but not making plays to win games. I would take Torii Hunter, Grady Sizemore, Curtis Granderson, and Nate McLouth over Beltran, and use the financial difference to improve the team in other ways. Beltran isn't a $17 million dollar a year player. He just doesn't have the kind of impact for that kind of money.
And, playing off Catsmeat's eloquent plea, here's a real-life tragedy to happen to one of Met fans' least favorite players. Be careful what you wish for.
Around the NL East
The Nationals continue to find new and exotic ways to lose with their crappy bullpen. This time, a bases-loaded wild pitch by Joel Hanrahan scored Freddy Sanchez and the winning run, allowing the Pirates to win 2-1, and spoiling a solid outing by John Lannan.
Nationals starter Oliver Perez Daniel Cabrera has been sent to the bullpen. 25 year old Craig Stammen has replaced him in the rotation.
The Marlins also continued their pitching struggles, splitting a double header with Arizona, winning the opener 8-6, but losing the night cap 11-9. Dan Uggla broke out of his season long slump with a pair of home runs in the two games. The split might prove costly to the bullpen, however.
Do you remember when the Rockies were in the World Series? It feels like a long time for them too. They lost to the Braves 12-4. Bobby Cox is having some fun with his lineup. Too bad it doesn't works better than Jerry's.
Brave infielder Omar Infante is out for at least two months after breaking a bone in his left hand.
Aaron Harang bested Jamie Moyer, preventing Moyer's 250th victory. Moyer now has an ERA of 7.62. Charlie Manuel is trying to figure out how to use the DH this weekend against Sabathia and Pettite.
The Phillies have claimed Steven Register off waivers from Colorado. Expect the Met reject to be amazing.
Around MLB
Scott Kazmir is 1-3 with an 11.35 ERA in his last five starts. Ouch.
Jake Peavy may be on the move to the White Sox.
Tiger catcher Gerald Laird hit into a triple play against the Rangers last night.
Yet another lineup malfunction in the bigs. This time Kaz Matsui was called out after the team presented an incorrect lineup card.
John Smoltz is going to make a rehab start in the state of Georgia.
And, finally, Royals Review takes a look at the Wins Above Replacement statistic.
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I feel awful for Schoeneweis
couldn’t believe it when I saw that news.
It really is
I had to re-read the part where it said he makes $3.9 million a year. That’s mighty impressive donuts.
"The definition of edge is going out there and getting a few wins, and then all of a sudden you don’t have to worry about anyone talking about edge anymore," Wright said. "That's a thing in the past. Go ask Omar about that."
by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on May 21, 2009 10:28 AM EDT up reply actions
I was going to say the same thing
I thought I loved me some Bobby V, but I’ve got nothing on those fans in Chiba.
That Steve Phillips stuff is seriously asinine. Is there really anyone out there who doesn’t realize that “I just don’t see him as a winning player” is code for “I don’t like him, but I don’t have any particular reason why”?
From the Post article about Reyes:
Manuel is putting his foot down when it comes to the Mets’ bad glove work. Manuel has been so dismayed by his team’s sloppy fielding on this trip that he will take the unusual step of having his players take infield practice on a semi-regular basis for the foreseeable future.Or maybe – here’s a crazy thought – have infielders play the infield and outfielders play the outfield instead of trying to stick Jeremy Reed at 1B or some crap like that?
"...have infielders play the infield and outfielders play the outfield..."
The fact that Murphy would be in LF while Reed would play 1B was beyond baffling.
Phillips
just needs to shut his mouth. Everything he says just makes him seem more like an idiot than he already is. Nate McLouth, Torii Hunter over Beltran. This guy should not be a GM of any team, even little league.
by aparkermarshall on May 21, 2009 10:30 AM EDT reply actions
"even after my comments on sunday night..."
like beltran is paying attention to your nonsense and then STILL making a consicious decision to drop a fly ball? why does this daffy putz still have a job? lieterally anyone would be better at what he does. and i mean literally LITERALLY.
All of the mets fans hope that we will not see the bad news mets ever again.
agreed
I would rather listen to my mom talk about how she doesn’t like the players’ baggy pants for the 10,000th time.
Even getting commentary from an immigrant who has never seen a baseball game before would be more enjoyable than SP.
When will media outlets realize
That just having been a player, manager, or GM, does not give you any special ability to be an analyst. I understand these guys can provided insight into the mindset of the people involved, but that doesn’t mean they can evaluate what is going on. This is why not all players become managers or coaches.
Providing analysis requires a different set of skill than doing a job. I wish it were limited to Steve Phillips, but I’m having a hard time thinking of any booth commentator I really respect.
I kind of disagree with you with regards to booth respect
I mean I get it from you guys that, Yes, Darling likes Eckstein and Keith and Gary say silly things sometimes but to be honest I wouldn’t want my booth commentators to speak about statisitics all the time. I can get my statistics fix from a number of good websites/writers as well as doing my own analysis. When talking in person with the statistical inclined, I rarely here something that blows me away or that I couldn’t have figured out on my own. Granted it’s not like I’m having in person talks with Tom Tango or anyone like that. Darling didn’t have great stuff so he does a great job of explaining pitch sequences and how a pitcher makes adjustment throughout the game ecetrea. Keith is a very funny man and in addition a great “guess” hitter with a great eye. It great listening to his approach at the plate and hear what he would be looking for, because he’s right more often than even Darling. I highly suggest reading Keith’s book Pure Baseball as it gives great detail to every aspect of the game. My point is, stats can tell me Beltran kills sliders or Putz splitter is/was awesome but I want my color commentators to explain to me how Beltran idenitifies a slider, what count he might be looking for it or how long it takes to stretch your fingers so that you can grip a ball in splitter fashion. Keith and darling have anwsered these questions for me in the past, so when they talk about grit or hustle I tend to tune them out rather than “not respect” them cause when they’re talking baseball, they are spot on, the comparisons to Joe Morgan are incredibly lazy. As for Gary, he has a great voice, incredible knowledge of the Mets and sincerely cares about the team, I could not imagine a better play by play.
Darling had tremendous stuff
That aside, I agree with your premise, but all too often they stray into the grit/hustle crap. I love Keith analyzing a swing or an approach or a defensive play, and I love Ron talking about how to pitch. What I don’t need are blind conclusions and ridiculous innuendo that all too often passes for analysis. That’s not a knock on Ron and Keith, per se, but on analysts in general. I love Keith.
I was going to write basically this
Ron’s current obsession with generic baseball buzzwords aside, we have a fantastic teevee booth who do a good job of both calling and explaining the game. And, unlike what I hear from those around here who have to listen to, say, Florida or Atlanta’s announcers, our guys don’t make it their job to bash on players from the opposing team.
"The definition of edge is going out there and getting a few wins, and then all of a sudden you don’t have to worry about anyone talking about edge anymore," Wright said. "That's a thing in the past. Go ask Omar about that."
by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on May 21, 2009 11:37 AM EDT up reply actions
Mispharsed statement inregards to Darlings stuff
I meant in more of a ridiclous awesome Doc Gooden, Nolan Ryan area where they could think less and rely on a hard fastball to get them out of trouble if need be.
Heh, yeah
But Doc needed a cutter! Mel Stottlemyre fucked up Doc’s career way more than the Coke did.
Quote from Whitey Herzog
"They’re 22, and somebody tries to teach them to pitch like a guy who’s 30. Gooden’s that way. In spring training last year, all you heard about was his new cut fastball and his two speeds of curveballs. You got a guy who can throw 94 miles and hour, let him throw. He starts cutting the fastball, taking something off it, he loses the fastball he once had. And he’ll never get it back."
I thought his comparison of Manny to Doc in 87
was interesting too. I never thought about PEDs from the angle of how much it sucks for everyone if you get caught. That’s the kind of insider commentary beyond play-by-play I find valuable.
by TheBigStapler on May 21, 2009 11:36 AM EDT up reply actions
I don't think Reg, or any of us who hate Phillips's analysis is asking for stats-only discussion
Nor do I think anyone doesn’t appreciate what guys like Darling and Keith bring to the table. I think what most of us would ask for is rationality and objectivity out of the booth. Phillips’s words on Sunday night were clearly biased and not based on any kind of rational thought. This is the worst kind of announcing/analysis. It’s pretty obvious he knows little about evaluating players statistically, so he would be best served providing insight about the front office aspect of the game. Morgan, for all his gibberish, often has some good things to add about actually playing the game and middle infielding, etc.
by James Kannengieser on May 21, 2009 11:54 AM EDT up reply actions
By the same token
if he can’t evaluate players correctly, what wisdom is he going to pass along re: the front office aspect? How to answer the phone when his roomie Beane calls? How to have extramarital affairs with the housekeeping staff?
I meant more along the lines of the technical aspects of front office work
How do GM’s communicate, how teams prepare for the draft, etc. and less so about making wise trades.
by James Kannengieser on May 21, 2009 12:00 PM EDT up reply actions
I mean, I don't think Phillips should be an announcer to begin with
but if he’s going to be forced on us on Sunday Night Baseball, I’d prefer to hear him talk about front office stuff rather than “Beltran isn’t flawless”
by James Kannengieser on May 21, 2009 12:02 PM EDT up reply actions
Just want to add,
my comments, in no way, had anything to do with Phillips. Just discussing our booth, I would never defend Phillips.
Word
We’re lucky to have Gary, Keith, and Ron. I haven’t heard too many other teams broadcasters (off the top of my head I can recall Braves, Cubs, White Sox, Phillies, Red Sox, Yankees announcers) but GKR are head and shoulders above all of them.
Also, I kinda enjoy David Cone and Paul O’Neill on YES. If they dumped Michael Kay and found a Gary type they might have something.
by James Kannengieser on May 21, 2009 12:21 PM EDT up reply actions
I'm not looking for only stat based discussion
What I want is for these guys to stick with what they know. I love that Ron and Keith can provide insight into swing mechanics, pitch grip, approach to an at bat, etc… And I do think they are better than most in that regard. ( I also have to give props to most of the YES analysts. It’s too bad Kay makes their telecasts unwatchable.) But it seems to me that lately they have drifted more and more into the tired cliches of “gission”. Maybe that is because that is the story that has followed the Mets for the past few seasons, or maybe that is just a natural outgrowth of having so much air time to fill. Either way, it just makes them sound uninformed. But still better than most.
As for Phillips, regardless of how bad I thought he was as a GM, he can still provide insight into what goes on in the front office. In my opinion that is what he should focus on. This makes him better suited to studio analysis than booth analysis. (I didn’t like him in the studio either)
I hear ya
I just wanted to point that, like you, said it’s way better than most, in fact I can’t think of any combo I would prefer. Plus, their former Mets/a Mets fan which is actually kind of important to me, except in Ralph’s case but that’s the only exception.
I agree I don't want guys in the booth talking about numbers
But I don’t want them rambling on about bs either. That’s the problem with most booth announcers, mostly ESPNs, they just talk about nothing.
the problem, IMO
is having these stupid national broadcasters who don’t really know anything about the teams other than the crap they’ve been scripted to talk about. It would be so much better to just have the home teams broadcasters do the national games.
The thing is there are good national broadcasters
they’re few and far between but they’re are good ones. And how hard is it to just find a play by play guy and a color guy who can say some innocuous statements about a team. ESPN doesn’t seem to have the same issues with NFL and NBA games.
eh
Kornheiser sucked on MNF. It’s not ESPN but Buck and Aikman suck the big one. Sure, there are good ones, but they are way outweighed by the crappy ones.
I don't really think Buck and Aikman are that bad
The only broadcaster I can think of that’s awful in football is Phil Simms Kornheiser sucked but I don’t think he sucked like Morgan/Phillips suck. He was more like an annoying whiny kid overall I don’t think anyone, except maybe Simms, is as bad as guys like Morgan/Sutclliff/Phillips.
phil simms is beyond reproach
i’ll have none of this rational debate objectively discussing his merits as a sportscaster.
All of the mets fans hope that we will not see the bad news mets ever again.
Paul Maguire
Worst “analyst” ever. Ever. He was a punter! And a moron.
Mike Patrick — worst play by play guy.
That old Sunday Night Football team was the worst.
heh, "stupid national broadcasters who don’t really know anything about the teams"
this was one of the things FJM always used to harp on about Morgan. his job is to analyze baseball for the biggest sports cable network in the world, and yet time and again he would defend his ignorance by saying “I haven’t seen (insert team or player here) play much”, as if ESPN didn’t have video available if he wanted to prepare for the one freaking game a week he was expected to be able to analyze.
carl everett
is tearing the cover off the ball at Newark:
http://newarkbears.com/gamecenter/playerstatistics/index.html?type=player
He also doesn’t believe in dinosaurs!
by TheBigStapler on May 21, 2009 11:29 AM EDT up reply actions
well, have you ever seen one before?
All of the mets fans hope that we will not see the bad news mets ever again.
So is Rob Mackowiak but I don't want him on the Mets either
Seriously, though, that team is a who’s who of washed-up former big leaguers: Everett, Mackowiak, Armando Blow-nitez, Shawn Chacon, Keith Foulke, Abraham Nunez, Bobby Hill, Alberto Castillo, Michael Tucker, Jay Gibbons, Tike Redman
I wish they would
I didn’t get to go see him the first time around, and in that league he could probably still OBP .380
the sporting news is a joke
jeter was the #8 player in baseball on that list. so its not as much about beltran being underrated as it is those guys being dopes in general.
by Rob Castellano on May 21, 2009 11:10 AM EDT reply actions
Only #8?!
that’s insane. Jeter has an edge. He’s flawless. He should only ever be #1.
"The definition of edge is going out there and getting a few wins, and then all of a sudden you don’t have to worry about anyone talking about edge anymore," Wright said. "That's a thing in the past. Go ask Omar about that."
by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on May 21, 2009 11:12 AM EDT up reply actions
That's like the one thing Heyman's useful for
Not Twittering, but breaking trade/signing scoops. He and Rosenthal both veer into suck territory, however, when they start adding in their dumbass analysis.
Haha why did they bother trading Vazquez if they're gonna get Peavy?
This should be entertaining.
That's true.
I wonder what Ozzie will call Peavy when the fly balls that stay in Petco end up in the 10th row at the Cell?
ugh. Can the Site bot do some freelancing and attack other sites?
I’m really tired of reading other comment sections when the commenters don’t have an IQ of 40.
Steve Phillips is an asshat
Was Beltran not a winning player when he OPS’ed over 1.500 in the 2004 playoffs? For fuck’s sake, the guys career postseason OPS is 1.302. Mr. November/Mr. Perfect, by comparison has a .846 postseason OPS. Beltran is almost literally twice the player Jeter is, but Beltran’s “not a winning player.” Steve Phillips can blow a goat.
also
how many World Series have Granderson, Hunter, McClouth, and Sizemore combined for? I’m pretty sure it’s not much more than 0.
Playoffs
Beltran has played in more playoff games than everyone on that list except for Hunter. He also has a higher post season BA OBP and OPS than all of them.
I’m also pretty sure that Nate McClouth has not been able to “will” the Pirates away from breaking the record for most consecutive losing seasons.
Fernando Martinez starts the game off with another double.
by TheBigStapler on May 21, 2009 1:30 PM EDT up reply actions
regarding nicknames
I like “F-Mart” because it sounds like a convenience store where you go to solicit sex
And with that double
he’s now tied for first in the IL with 14 doubles. I like it.
"The definition of edge is going out there and getting a few wins, and then all of a sudden you don’t have to worry about anyone talking about edge anymore," Wright said. "That's a thing in the past. Go ask Omar about that."
by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on May 21, 2009 2:57 PM EDT up reply actions
Steve Phillips might actually be right.
If the Mets don’t make the playoffs, the core of the Mets does need to be reconfigured a bit…
…by “releasing” Omar Minaya
Phillips is still a moron though.
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