Ducks Sign Armando Benitez
Armando Benitez has returned to New York.
Newsday reports that the Atlantic League’s Long Island Ducks signed a deal with former beleaguered Mets pitcher Armando Benitez. Benitez is expected to make his debut with the team this weekend.
“He wants to make his comeback to the big leagues, and he’s had experience in this ballpark pitching for the opposition,” Ducks president/GM Michael Pfaff said. “He always liked what he saw with the Ducks.”
During his 15-year major league career, Benitez played for the Orioles, Yankees, Mariners, Marlind, Giants, and Blue Jays. Benitez previously pitched in the Atlantic League with the Newark Bears in 2009 and 2010.
Of course, we Mets fans remember Benitez not for the numerous games he did save, but the few big ones that he did not. Like Game 1 of the 2000 World Series.
I remember being the happiest person when Benitez was traded to the Yankees in 2003. Then he did good for them and he got traded to the Mariners nine days later.
Best of luck to Armando in his endeavor with the Long Island Ducks. Hopefully the fans are kind.
Extend the Man
There is no question that David Wright is the star of this Mets organization. We are at the quarter stretch and Wright leads the majors in batting average (.405). Along with a .500 on-base percentage and .628 slugging percentage, David Wright is the living, breathing version of Moneyball that sabermetricians can point to and say, “He is helping the team win games by getting on base and creating runs.”
It’s no secret that Wright is in the sixth year of his six year, $55 million contract. Wright stands to make $15 million this year and has a $16 million team option for the 2013 season, which Wright can choose to void if he gets traded (I shudder at the thought).
During last night’s 11-5 loss to the Padres, Mets GM Sandy Alderson visited Gary Cohen and Ron Darling in the broadcast booth and said that there was “no great impediment” to signing Wright to an extension.
I agree and disagree. Sure, David has gotten off to the best start of his career. But we don’t know how the season’s going to end. We don’t know how 2013 is going to go. He could get hurt, he could have a bad season, he could get traded for all we know. Time is certainly on Sandy Alderson’s side if he wants to wait things out and see how well David performs.
I disagree with Alderson’s take on Wright’s contract situation only because I think a lot of fans are still reeling over the loss of Jose Reyes. Jose won the organization’s first batting title and then, depending on who you believe, was either made an offer that the Marlins beat or wasn’t offered anything at all except for the salary arbitration that guaranteed the Mets their draft pick. Or he just wasn’t offered anything. Again, that depends on who you believe. Alderson took the same, layed back approach with Jose’s contract situation that he seems to be taking with Wright’s and Jose ended up signing with another team, a divisional rival no less.
David Wright, love him or hate him, is the face of the organization. David Wright, love him or hate him, is the only player on the current Mets roster that I can see being a “career Met.” Tom Seaver didn’t do it. Dwight Gooden didn’t do it. Darryl Strawberry didn’t do it. All the players that are considered franchise greats either moved on from the Mets or were acquired from another team. David Wright is the one player that can not only be a career Met, but can also be considered a Mets great. And I would like to hope that Mr. Alderson would think that there was a little more impediment about Wright’s contract situation than he says there is.
I Miss Ike Davis
Terry Collins said in his pregame news conference that Ike Davis will not be demoted to AAA. Instead, Collins says, Ike will work out his problems at the major league level. For the time being, Collins says he will use Davis based on match-ups.
Ike’s numbers at the quarter stretch would justify demotion if Terry Collins had decided to go that route.
So far this season, Ike is hitting just a .159 and has a paltry .213 on-base percentage. However, Ike does lead the team in home runs (5) and has 15 RBI. To put things into perspective, Ike is 8-for-64 in the month of May and has two hits in his last 36 at-bats. Oh, and his batting average at Citi Field is .065. That’s two, maybe three, hits.
Even though Terry Collins is preaching patience at the plate, I don’t think Ike is practicing it. He has 10 walks to 44 strikeouts. If he does that for the rest of season, he’ll be on track for 40 walks and 176 strikeouts, give or take a few. Sure, Ike has players hitting around him like David Wright and Daniel Murphy, but even they might begin to see less pitches if Ike continues to struggle.
Collins has stated that his reason for not sending Ike to the minors is because he doesn’t think Ike will learn to adjust. He believes Ike will turn it around, as he has seen Ike become more aggressive during batting practice. I have to admit, this past week, it does encourage me to see Ike pull the ball into the outfield, even if it lands in the outfielder’s glove. It means that he’s at least getting good pitches to swing at. We signed Ike Davis to be a home run hitter, not a base hit up the middle kind of guy. But any fan would be happy to see a base hit up the middle from this guy.
I don’t know how much of Ike’s struggles can be blamed on the valley fever he seemingly contracted (and still has?) but ever since he was diagnosed, I haven’t heard a peep about the valley fever. I’m not sure if I entirely know what valley fever is.
I think another reason for Terry Collins deciding against demotion at this time is the organization’s lack of depth. Jason Bay, Ruben Tejada and Josh Thole are all still on the disabled list. To demote Ike would meaning shifting Murphy or Justin Turner to first and promoting Jordany Valdespin to play second. There really is no one else to play first base, unless the Mets have marveled science and David Wright can play two positions at once.
The person who is the most frustrated with the situation at hand is Ike Davis. He was the hottest hitter coming out of spring training and then it all went away. Ike just needs to calm down, watch some video, and figure what he did then that he wasn’t doing now. Oh, and flip over the dugout and make a catch. He still has that going for him.
Frank Franc or Bust?
“We want Rauch! We want Rauch!”
Frank Francisco stepped to the pitcher’s mound in the top of the ninth inning only to be bombarded by boos and even demands that Terry Collins replace him with Jon Rauch. But Terry has said that he is sticking with Francisco as his closer.
“He wanted to be in there bad tonight,” Collins said after the game, “I thought I should give him that opportunity.”
While Francisco did go on to record his ninth save of the season, he was not able to preserve Miguel Batista’s shut out as he gave up a run, two hits, and a walk in his outing last night. Francisco’s numbers haven’t helped his case either: 14 ER in 14.2 innings pitched and that 8.59 ERA don’t look pretty compared to closers throughout the league. But then again, 14 closers have lost their jobs this season due to ineffectiveness.
Francisco is just the latest in a lineup of Mets closers that have made fans squirm in their seats during the ninth inning. Even two of the game’s greatest left-handed closers, John Franco and Billy Wagner were unable to keep fans from covering their eyes during the ninth. Do I even mention Armando Benitez, Frankie Rodriguez and the Bobby Parnell experiment of late 2011?
This offseason, Sandy Alderson’s main priority was revamping the bullpen. The offensive pieces, whether we liked it or not, were all there. The starting pitching was there. So Sandy turned to the bullpen, depleted by the trade of K-Rod, who had been doing some good work for the Mets, but not without typical Mets cringe-worthy ninth inning moments. We acquired Ramon Ramirez from the Giants, and signed Rauch and Francisco with the spending money that ownership and the Mets provided for payroll. And then they went quiet for three months. Sure, we signed a few players to minor league contracts, but we didn’t make a big splash by magically coming up with the money to re-sign Jose Reyes, or get another starter like Mark Buerhle.
We signed two closers in Francisco and Rauch, but Rauch has mainly been relegated to eighth inning work. There are other options in our bullpen, including Rauch, Parnell, Ramirez, Manny Acosta, and even Tim Byrdak. But it looks like Terry is going to continue to go to Francisco in ninth inning save situations, whether we like it or not. Here’s an iea; maybe if the Mets took a four run lead into the ninth, Frank Franc wouldn’t have to be used for the save. Just a thought. Let’s go Mets.
Everybody Clap Your Hands!
David Wright is off to a hot start, there’s no denying that. His .571 average and 1.473 OPS over the first six games have him on track for another solid year in the three-hole of the Mets lineup. However, in the midst of their 4-0 start, the Mets got some startling news: “David Wright fractured his pinky.”
Wright had x-rays done and was cleared for baseball activity as tolerated. Wright said that while the pain had subsided, he couldn’t properly grip the bat. He was scratched from the next two games and there was even talk of a stint on the disabled list if the swelling on his pinky didn’t go down.
Then the talk started:
Wright’s just being a wuss.
If this was high school or collegiate baseball, the coach would have told him to tape his fingers together and suck it up.
Wright’s a pussy. (That one was my personal favorite)
The Daily News even contributed a piece on Wright’s extension being dependent on his health, even though before the 2009 concussion, Wright was averaging 158-159 games per season. Wright’s missing bat was obviously felt on the team, because they lost the next two games.
Luckily for those Mets fans holding their breaths, Wright returned to the Mets lineup just in time to face the Phillies. The first pitch Wright saw against Cliff Lee cleared the center field fence.
Then the talk started:
Wright’s a beast.
What pinky problems?
I love you David! (Okay, this might have been me)
A similar situation happened not two days after David Wright made his return to the lineup. Word came across the Mets wire that Jason Bay had jammed his ring finger sliding back into first base in Saturday’s game against the Phillies. Bay was scratched from Sunday’s lineup. Even though the Mets lost, that loss can be solely blamed on the bullpen.
I’m not the only Mets fan that believes Jason Bay has gotten off to a slow start. Actually, you should have yourself checked for concussion if you don’t think Jason Bay has gotten off to a slow start. 5-for-27 may not be the best way to win over Mets fans looking to have a decent season. But Bay had figured out his problems at the plate, and had hit his first home run of the season.
But there was no talk of Jason Bay being a wuss when he was scratched because of his ring finger. In fact, Mets fans seemed to be delighted that their weakest link was out of the lineup, even if that meant Lucas Duda coming in against the lefty Cole Hamels. Duda went 2-for-4 but Hamels ended up getting the win.
It doesn’t matter if the player is David Wright or Jason Bay, any loss in the Mets lineup is one that they can’t afford. The Mets lack the depth in their farm system to cover any long term injuries to the team. Who would we call up to replace Wright? Zach Lutz? Do we have Daniel Murphy play third and promote Jordany Valdespin from AA? Any player that would be in AAA in any other organization is already playing for the Mets.
Before you make a joke about someone jamming their middle while sliding back to first base, think about the lack of depth in the organization and realize that if it’s Josh Thole that gets hurt, then Mike Nickeas is the starting catcher.
May the Odds Be Ever in Your Favor
Well, the Mets have gone through a full rotation. After getting off to a 4-0 start, instilling hope in the eyes of many, the Mets have gone back to being the baseball team that we all know and love.
Jason Bay can’t hit the ball to save his life. David Wright fractured his pinky, jeopardizing Terry Collins’ plan to keep Daniel Murphy at second base. Dillon Gee hasn’t shaved his Brian Wilson-esque beard. Perhaps most worrying for the Mets is that in two starts, they’ve scored zero runs for Johan Santana.
Sure, they won on Opening Day…but the run came after Santana came out of the game. Yesterday, the Mets didn’t even score a run after they went to bullpen. On Opening Day, the Mets shut out the Braves. Yesterday, Johan only allowed one earned run. Am I missing something here? Did Santana not come back after 16 months and we have a new guy pitching who says his name is Johan Santana?
But this is nothing new for the Mets. Type in “Johan Santana run support” into any search engine, and one is bombarded with news items about Johan Santana from 2009 and 2010 about how he doesn’t get any run support. One story from yesteryear called him the “Unluckiest Pitcher in Baseball.” It’s not a stretch.
Take into consideration our divisional rivals, the Philadelphia Phillies. You can pretty much count on Roy Halladay going out there every time and notch another quality start into his belt. In reality, the Phillies only have to score one more run than the other team and maybe tack on an insurance run or two to prevent the other team from coimng back. It has been the Mets’ experience that not only does Halladay shut them down, but the offense tacks on one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, TEN runs for Halladay.
I can’t comment on the atmosphere of the Mets clubhouse, but part of me wonders if when Santana’s pitching, the hitters feel like they can be lax in their jobs. I’m not saying that having the stability of Johan Santana is a bad thing; the hitters take for granted that Santana is going to go out there and shut down the opponent and strike out 10 or 11 batters. I am worried about R.A. Dickey in this same fashion. Dating back to last year, Dickey has 13 straight quality starts. What’s to prevent Ike Davis from saying, “R.A. won’t let off more than three runs. I can chill” or “We have Johan freaking Santana. I can chill.”
Baseball is a two way street. Just as the pitchers have to pitch well, the hitters have to hit the ball. If Johan pitches well, isn’t entitled to more than three runs of support per start over the course of 25-30 starts?
This is a Fangirl Post
This actually happened:
Count Your Blessings
With the start of Spring Training in only 22 days, most Met fans (myself included) don’t see the Mets going anywhere past the cellar. And something would have had to gone right if they ever finished in fourth place. Third place would be quite the anomaly. Second place would be a miracle. First place would send an entire fanbase into cardiac arrest. A helluva lot of things would have had to gone right for this team to actually contend with the Braves and the Phillies.
But just because we had the 27th best offseason (or 4th worst, depending on how you look at things), it doesn’t mean we don’t have anything to speak proudly of. If freak collisions don’t happen and the entire team stays healthy, then we might actually win 80 games. But this time of year is reserved for such optimism. So lets count our blessings, shall we?
Johan Santana is back. This might be our biggest blessing of all. Nobody knows if he’ll be ready to pitch on Opening Day, or if he’ll even be the same Johan Santana. But that doesn’t matter. Remember, it could always be Mike Pelfrey on the mound during key starts. If Santana doesn’t pitch on Opening Day, I could see Terry Collins giving the ball to R.A. Dickey.
The Mets finally replaced their medical staff. The team finally changed things up in their medical staff after the last four seasons have come with a few too many injuries. The one I’m still trying to comprehend? How does Jason Bay miss half a season due to a concussion and David Wright misses only the 15 days?
Ike Davis is the second-best 1st baseman in the National League. With both Albert Pujols and Prince Fielder departing their respective teams to go to the American League, the race for your All Star first baseman is a two-man race between Ike Davis and Joey Votto. Despite playing only 36 games for the Mets last season, MLB analysts still consider him better than 13 other guys.
David Wright and Jason Bay can’t get any worse, especially since the walls are moved in. Both Wright and Bay had the worst seasons of their careers last season. The Citi Field walls were moved in for their beenfit. You don’t spend money to move in the walls, and then trade the two players you’re helping. Unless you’re really hard up for money.
Bobby Parnell won’t be closing games for the Mets. With the additions of Frank Francisco and Jon Rauch, no need to put your 100 MPH fastballer into pressure situations. And no need to call him Bobby F’in Parnell. Because he won’t be in pressure situations.
The words “de facto ace” has left the Mets lexicon. There’s no more de facto anything in this Mets rotation and it couldn’t make me happier.
Hey, the payroll went down! With a loss of around $70 million last season, the Mets payroll is set to go from $142.8 million to $90.1 million. That’s a $52.7 million difference and all the math I’m willing to do. It’s also the largest drop in payroll ever. So, I guess we’re playing Moneyball. Right?
Hey, the team is still healthy, right? Right now, everybody’s ducks are in a row. We’ll see what happens in 22 days.
Keith Hernandez still has the best mustache in sports television. Enough said.
We may not have a lot to look forward to this season. But to be honest, I think changing our medical staff was the key move of the offseason. If a player is properly diagnosed during injury, then they can come back quicker and help win ball games. The Phillies, we are not. But their time to be in our shoes will come. Except without the whole part about the Ponzi scheme. I wouldn’t wish that on anybody.
LGM. Ya Gotta Believe.
A Tale of Two Pretty Boys
They were the best of times, they were the worst of times. But nevertheless, they’ve provided us with memories. So, who am I talking about? The two New York pretty boys who were blessed to be on the teams that end with ETS: David Wright and Mark Sanchez.
Both Wright and Sanchez were first round selections by their respective teams. Wright was a compensation pick after the Rockies signed Type-A free agent Mark Hampton. The Jets traded their first and second round selections along with Kenyon Coleman, Abram Elam, and Brett Ratliff to the Cleveland Browns so they could acquire Sanchez.
Both Wright and Sanchez are in the middle of lucrative contracts. Wright is in the 6th year of his 6-year/$55 million contract, being owed $15 million this season and $16 million if the Mets decide they can afford it. If Wright gets dealt, then the option is voided. Sanchez just completed the 3rd year of his 5-year/$50 million contract, with $28 million being guaranteed. Sanchez’s contract is the largest contract the Jets signed a player to in franchise history.
So why bring up Mark Sanchez in the same sentence as David Wright? Like Wright, Sanchez is the face of the organzation; he the guy you go to when the team wins, but he’s also the first guy you look to when the team loses. These two pretty boys may be the same player on the outside, but there is one glaring difference that makes one of these players more accountable than the other.
Prior to the outset of the 2011 season, Rex Ryan went to Mark Sanchez and said, “You’re the captain of this team.”
None of the three managers that David Wright has played for has ever told him he’s the captain of the team. Sure, with the departure of Jose Reyes, Wright is now the longest-tenured Met but that doesn’t necessarily translate into putting a “C” across his jersey. In fact, the Mets haven’t had a team captain since John Franco was the captain during Wright’s rookie season.
When things go wrong for the Jets, Mark Sanchez is an easy person to point to and be like, “If you hadn’t gotten sacked six times, we might have had a chance!”
In football, you’re either not getting enough offense or defense. If Mark Sanchez isn’t throwing touchdown passes, then it doesn’t matter what Derelle Revis and the defense do. The defense can still have a shoddy day if Mark Sanchez throws touchdown passes. So, even though the team’s defense had a bad outing, it still comes back to Mark Sanchez.
Earl Weaver once said that the reason you win or lose is darn near always the same–pitching. Because of that, I believe that David Wright can have an off day and scoot by, especially if the starter on the mound has a bad outing (I’m looking at you, Mike Pelfrey). Even though he doesn’t have the weight of the team on his shoulders, sometimes, David Wright does play as if he has the weight of the team on his shoulders. And with a team that was basically the Buffalo Bisons, maybe he was guilty of swinging when he shouldn’t have or throwing too quickly to first or whatever. But every time something goes wrong for the Mets, it won’t necessarily come back to David Wright.
Both David Wright and Mark Sanchez have gotten their due from the New York sports media. However, I feel that David Wright may be one of the few cases where the New York sports media has been fair. They’re not afraid to say when it is David Wright’s fault, but they’ll also highlight whenever he has a charity dinner and what not. Mark Sanchez, because he has been labeled the team leader, may not often recieve the benefit of the doubt. In recent days, players have labeled Sanchez as “lazy” and have accused Sanchez of lacking the leadership skills needed of a good quarterback. But it doesn’t matter that during the labor dispute, Sanchez organized private workouts for more than 40 of his teammates.
David Wright and Mark Sanchez are not Derek Jeter and Eli Manning. But they are the faces of their franchises nonetheless, and I’m sure we’ll continue to scrutinize and praise them more than the other guys on the team.
A Baseball Chick’s Scouting Report: Bullpen
Welcome back to another happy installment of this baseball chick’s scouting report! In honor of John Franco, we take a look at the projected 2012 Mets bullpen. Some of these guys might make the bullpen, and some might not. But they’re projected to be there, so we might as well take a look at what we’ve got.
Manny Acosta: In my opinion, after the Mets traded Fransisco Rodriguez, Manny Acosta was the most reliable reliever we had. We saw him more in the 8th/9th inning, but this season, I’m looking to see Acosta more in the 7th/8th inning with the addition of Frank Francisco and Jon Rauch. Acosta has pitched more innings for every year he’s been a Met; I just hope Terry doesn’t pull a Jerry Manuel and burn him out.
Pedro Beato: Beato was a Rule 5 pick who had to stay on the big league roster last season, but he earned his spot. Last season, Beato didn’t give up an earned run until the first Subway Series. Rumors swirled this offseason that Beato might crack the rotation. With all of our farm fresh talent, I see Beato staying in the bullpen, maybe as a long reliever, maybe as a set up guy. That’s TC’s decision to make this spring.
Tim Byrdak: With Jason Isringhausen probably not coming back, Tim Byrdak becomes the veteran reliever in the bullpen. Last season, Byrdak compiled a 2-1 record and a 3.82 ERA in 37.2 innings pitched. Byrdak might once again be a situational reliever, pitching to one or two hitters and then coming out. But apparantly, he’s the funniest guy on the team so he can stay.
D.J. Carrasco: In the 2010 offseason, D.J. Carrasco was the only player to recieve a multi-year contract from Sandy Alderson. He responds with the worst season of his career (1-3, 6.02 ERA in 49.1 IP). Going into the 2012 season, I figure Carrasco will have to fight for a spot in the bullpen, but at the same time, I don’t see the Mets wasting the rest of Carrasco’s contract by benching him or sending him down to the minors. Carrasco doesn’t have the most to prove, but he’s got 2.5 million reasons to get his act together.
Frank Francisco: In one of our few moves this offseason, the Mets signed Frank Francisco to a 2-year contract. Francisco fills the closer’s hole that K-Rod and his swinging fists left. Last season for Toronto, Francisco compiled a 1-4 record with a 3.55 ERA and 17 games saved. Considering he was playing for another hard luck team in the Blue Jays, I’m intrigued. I still think Terry might platoon between Francisco and Jon Rauch in the 9th, but will the team’s luck in the 9th inning change?
Daniel Herrera: Herrera cleared waivers and remained with the Mets as a non-roster invitee to spring training. He only played 2 games for the Brewers in 2011 before he became the player to be named later that we got for K-Rod. In 16 games as a Met last season, Herrera pitched 8 innings and allowed 1 run. I see Herrera staring off in AAA, but he could come up to the Mets if someone gets hurt, or, quite frankly, sucks.
Bobby Parnell: If Bobby Parnell never closes a game for the Mets again, I will be a happy camper. Just because he has a 100 MPH fastball, it doesn’t mean he’s a closer. He appeared in 60 games last season. He had 12 save opportunities and blew half of them. Parnell, at best, is a situational reliever. When the team is ahead. By a lot.
Ramon Ramirez: The Mets acquired Ramon Ramirez as part of the deal for Angel Pagan. To Mets fans, he’s better known as the guy who punched Shane Victorino to start the Phillies/Giants fight. But he’s also a pretty decent reliever, compiling a 3-3 record with a 2.62 ERA in 66 games, 4 of those games counting as saves. And maybe he’ll provide some desperately needed fire in the clubhouse.
Jon Rauch: Jon Rauch is best remembered by Mets fans as a reliever for the Expos/Nationals. But truth is, Rauch is playing for his sixth different team. He’s had some good years statistically and some bad years, his best year being with the Nationals in 2008. Last season for Toronto, Rauch had a 5-4 record with a 4.85 ERA in 52 innings pitched. So it seems like Rauch and Frncisco will be platoon mates again. Hooray for reunions!
Josh Stinson: Besides from Daniel Herrera, Josh Stinson is the other guy I see starting the season in the minors, only because he has options. Last season for the Mets, Stinson had a 6.92 ERA in 13 innings pitched. The upside with Stinson is that he’s only 23-years-old and he can greatly improve on those numbers. Plus, I always like to pull for a guy who is a homegrown product. Maybe he’ll get another Spetember call up. Maybe he won’t. That’s baseball.
And there you have it folks! Our 2012 bullpen doesn’t look that bad on paper. It’s improved enough to not be the giant gaping flaw that we have. Next week, I take a look at our projected bench players and mourn the loss of Nick Evans. I need a new milk carton boy and it might come from this group.
