Meet the Mets (For Mets Fans Only!)

jimmurphy said:

Hats off to the Phils. Stolen bases are getting embarrassing.

How high a priority should Syndergaard’s self-described Achilles’ heel be? Robin Roberts wrote in his autobiography that he didn’t pay much attention to baserunners, because if he concentrated on the batters he was sure the runners wouldn’t get past third.

So maybe Robin’s Achilles’ heel was overconfidence. Still, what do you Mets fans think? Is there a risk in making too much of it?

If it was an easy fix I'd like to see it, but I would not want to mess with his mechanics in a substantial way.

It needs greater emphasis. The Phillies showed last night that they could take second at will. Even painfully slow guys.

Slide steps, timing, longer holds. Occasional quick pitch.

After today's amazing performance, does deGrom really have a shot at the Cy Young? No one is going to give it to him ahead of Scherzer or Nola (based on their win totals and excellent ERA's), right? He has maybe 8 or 9 starts. If he wins 6 of them and loses none of them, he could be 14-7. Of course, Scherzer and Nola could be 20-game winners. I was just amazed at deGrom's performance today against a very good Phils team.

I don't want to admit it, but even aside from wins Scherzer has better stats than deGrom with regard to Ks and WHIP. If the season ended today I'd vote Scherzer for Cy Young. But there's still 6 weeks left. 

12 singles in the seventh inning and up 7-2. Strong pitching by Vargas - Vargas!!

What a joy to watch. Bring back contact!

Well, at least that one doesn’t add to the visitors’ Citizens Bank Park win percentage.

Contact hitting is the next undervalued thing for Billy Beane to capitalize on.

Memories of formals at Genetti Hotel in Williamsport (or Genetti Lycoming as it was called then).

Good times...good times. 

Jeff McNeil is the future: contact hitter; covers the plate; goes with the pitch; can turn on the ball. We need this more than the longball. Unrelated note: Conforto was given Cespedes' locker?? What's that all about? Is that common practice for someone out for the rest of the season? 

NotoriousEAM said:
Jeff McNeil is the future: contact hitter; covers the plate; goes with the pitch; can turn on the ball. We need this more than the longball. Unrelated note: Conforto was given Cespedes' locker?? What's that all about? Is that common practice for someone out for the rest of the season? 

One other thing about him is that he will swing at pitches early in the count.  A strategy over the past few years has been to take pitches, try to get the starter's pitch count high and get him out of the game early.  But I was thinking last night that that isn't a great strategy any more.  How many teams now have their toughest guys coming out of the bullpen?  Unless you're facing Scherzer, deGrom, Verlander, or somebody similar, you're not really any better off trying to get to the bullpen.  I think hitting coaches need to start working with guys to be more aggressive if they get a pitch they can handle early in the count.

ml1 said:

NotoriousEAM said:
Jeff McNeil is the future: contact hitter; covers the plate; goes with the pitch; can turn on the ball. We need this more than the longball. Unrelated note: Conforto was given Cespedes' locker?? What's that all about? Is that common practice for someone out for the rest of the season? 

One other thing about him is that he will swing at pitches early in the count.  A strategy over the past few years has been to take pitches, try to get the starter's pitch count high and get him out of the game early.  But I was thinking last night that that isn't a great strategy any more.  How many teams now have their toughest guys coming out of the bullpen?  Unless you're facing Scherzer, deGrom, Verlander, or somebody similar, you're not really any better off trying to get to the bullpen.  I think hitting coaches need to start working with guys to be more aggressive if they get a pitch they can handle early in the count.

 I agree within boundaries.  Last night in the pivotal seventh inning the Mets did start swinging early and often against Stratton because they finally figured out, the third time through the lineup, that he was going to always be around the plate with that first pitch (and pretty much every other pitch).  That strategy might not work as well with someone throwing wild gas all over the place.

mfpark said:

ml1 said:

NotoriousEAM said:
Jeff McNeil is the future: contact hitter; covers the plate; goes with the pitch; can turn on the ball. We need this more than the longball. Unrelated note: Conforto was given Cespedes' locker?? What's that all about? Is that common practice for someone out for the rest of the season? 

One other thing about him is that he will swing at pitches early in the count.  A strategy over the past few years has been to take pitches, try to get the starter's pitch count high and get him out of the game early.  But I was thinking last night that that isn't a great strategy any more.  How many teams now have their toughest guys coming out of the bullpen?  Unless you're facing Scherzer, deGrom, Verlander, or somebody similar, you're not really any better off trying to get to the bullpen.  I think hitting coaches need to start working with guys to be more aggressive if they get a pitch they can handle early in the count.

 I agree within boundaries.  Last night in the pivotal seventh inning the Mets did start swinging early and often against Stratton because they finally figured out, the third time through the lineup, that he was going to always be around the plate with that first pitch (and pretty much every other pitch).  That strategy might not work as well with someone throwing wild gas all over the place.

 you seem to have overlooked this   :

ml1 said:

f they get a pitch they can handle early in the count.

Flores has been the best hitter on the team this season.  That's probably why he is sitting tonight.

FilmCarp said:
Flores has been the best hitter on the team this season.  That's probably why he is sitting tonight.

he'd likely be playing a lot more if he hadn't developed a slight case of Steve Sax syndrome this season.  

I think he is their best option at first base, and one of the guys on the team who can hit for average.   I agree about contact hitting, it's my favorite approach to see, but it requires a few contact hitters to make it work.  Bautista and Reyes don't fit the bill.

FilmCarp said:
I think he is their best option at first base, and one of the guys on the team who can hit for average.   I agree about contact hitting, it's my favorite approach to see, but it requires a few contact hitters to make it work.  Bautista and Reyes don't fit the bill.

 You mean Minnie and Mendoza?

mfpark said:

FilmCarp said:
I think he is their best option at first base, and one of the guys on the team who can hit for average.   I agree about contact hitting, it's my favorite approach to see, but it requires a few contact hitters to make it work.  Bautista and Reyes don't fit the bill.

 You mean Minnie and Mendoza?

Or Mario and Miñoso?   

FilmCarp said:
I think he is their best option at first base, and one of the guys on the team who can hit for average.   I agree about contact hitting, it's my favorite approach to see, but it requires a few contact hitters to make it work.  Bautista and Reyes don't fit the bill.

 I like Flores as a hitter, and I'd play him often if I was the manager.  But he has cost the Mets a couple of games in the past few weeks with bad throws from 1B.  So I can understand giving him a day off once in a while if you think your pitcher needs a better fielder at 1B.

I hope y'all are just talking about right now. I know that if I were to even hint having Flores play 1B next season, the commish would appropriately suspend me from this thread before the ink dried on my post. You know what I mean.

Train_of_Thought said:
I hope y'all are just talking about right now. 

yes.

I think if I started to say that Flores should be the 1B of the future, I would make a fist, and then punch myself in the mouth.

Is it my imagination or does Plawecki hit into a double play about 2/3 of the time a runner is on first with less than 2 outs (like he just did)?

bub said:
Is it my imagination or does Plawecki hit into a double play about 2/3 of the time a runner is on first with less than 2 outs (like he just did)?

 Just killed the game. They were onto something. And of course, no sooner does that happen the Mets give the run back on Longoria's HR. You're totally right -- you can see it before it even happens with Plawecki. And he wasn't supposed to play today.

what a tough loss for deGrom in a season filled with tough losses. He didn't deserve to have either run score. One on a passed ball and one after a terrible ball/strike call that cost him the third out.  

Vintage Keith on Jay Bruce bloop single. Calls it a 3-1 change up, off the end of the bat, with Bruce out in front. Upon the replay notes not really out in front but rather "a little tardy," not a change up but "oooh a heater," and not end of the bat but "actually in on Jay." That's an 0-for-3 on your scorecard.

I don't care if Soul gives me a Jennry Mejia-type suspension, I'm taking it to the grave: Keith Hernandez, while a legendary Met who knows the nuts and bolts of both hitting and defense as well as anyone, is IMHO a comically bad broadcaster, and I fully realize (albeit it baffles me) that I am the only Met fan I know who feels this way. Love him as a Met, not in the booth.

See y'all next season, I'm guessing.

I think he loses interest sometimes.  He can be insightful, or he just phones it in.  Either way I'm pleased to not have those Yankee clowns calling the game.

You're not the only one who feels that way.  He's a good comic foil to the other two smart guys but when he's given too much leash, he's often wince worthy.

Mets give up 15 runs without using a position player as a pitcher.  Oof.

FilmCarp said:
Mets give up 15 runs without using a position player as a pitcher.  Oof.

 14 of those in TWO innings. Matz pitched a 7-inning gem.

Please beat the Cubs.  Thanks.