And now... 25 things we wish we could forget.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Jose Reyes' impending departure. With Jose in the final year of his contract, having a splendid season and with the Mets not exactly making a World Series run, Jose is likely in his final season as a Met. It bums me out. It would likely bum most Met fans. I remember the excitement when he first came up from the farm. How can one get over the loss of a player like Jose? Enthusiasm. Fill the Reyes void in your life by clapping and smiling for seemingly no reason. If you are moved to dance or point to god... go with it. Whatever gets you through your future Reyes-less years.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Angel Pagan forgot how to hit. Something happened between 2010 and 2011 and it has not been great for the Mets or Angel Pagan. Thus far, Angel is hitting a robust .169 and proven a solid ability to pop-out. ACTUALLY this might make you get off of that proverbial ledge. Along with not hitting angel is doing some things that might make you happy. What are they? Well... if you want to feel better about Pagan's poor year, remember that he's walked 8 times and only k'd 8 times. That mean his OBP is still respectably above .250 despite the poor hitting.
What We Wish We Could Forget: David Wright has more K's than ground-outs. David Wright should donate $1000 for every whiff he commits at the plate. Then there might be someone smiling (besides the opposing pitcher) when David walks grumbling back to the dug-out. What is wrong with Wright? He came up and for two years was a very difficult guy to strike out and then seemingly over-night, he turns into whiff master. How can you find solace? Well... just remember that many teams would kill to have our K-Machine in their lineup.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Carlos Beltran's knee is made out of liquid pain. Not to knock Beltran but his knee has probably had a larger impact on the recent Met teams. Sure... he had a couple magical runs, but overall Beltran's biggest impact has been felt on the disabled list. How can you get past the inevitable pain of watching Beltran limp off the field? For me, it's that Beltran will not be back after 2011, but for most try to imagine the hurt some playoff contender will experience just after the trade deadline. You know when, the recently acquired, Carlos Beltran pulls up gimpy after the team traded some prospects away for him.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Jason Bay is going to be a Met for 2 more seasons. Has Jason Bay been worth his contract? No. Will he ever be? No. Is it Omar Minaya's worst signing? No. Is he Canadian? YES! Bay has spent a lot of time hurt. When not hurt he's spent a lot of time not hitting. So... I guess it evens out. Or just makes it all that much more awful. What do you do to get by your pain of two more seasons of over-priced Jason Bay? Blame Canada! With all their hockey hulla-bulloo and that b!t*h Ann Murray too. They're not even a real country anyway.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Ike Davis is the slowest man alive. There is a lot that we all like about Ike. He's got power, and great defense. He's a force at the plate and more of a clutch hitter than most. What Ike is not... is fast. He's frequently compared to Adam LaRoche for hitting but speed-wise, he gets pared with John Olerud. For those that don't know, John Olerud is basically baseball vernacular for the slowest man alive. What can distract you from Ike Davis' lack of foot-speed? How about you trying to run the bases faster? Try it, I dare you.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Daniel Murphy owns a glove. So... Daniel Murphy can hit, he's not 100% perfect at the plate or on the bases but when he comes up I've got faith that 25% of the time he'll get a hit and get on base 30%+ of the time. However the same confidence fades when he steps onto the field with a glove. Murphy tries really hard, and that is great but he's just missing something in foot-work or coordination that would allow him to be a reasonably successful fielder. How can you distract yourself from Murphy's fielding? Might I suggest Russian Roulette?
What We Wish We Could Forget: Josh Thole hasn't exactly thrown out everyone. I'm a big fan of Thole. His hitting is solid and his lack of power is off-set by the confidence that he will get A hit when he comes to the plate. Also... I had to love how in a single game he went from a poor 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position to a nice 3 for 10 which proves that SO MANY stats are meaningless in the spring. However, how can we get by people stealing freely on his arm? He's not going to magically become Piazza, but let's remember that a catcher does 3 things, calls the game, blocks the plate and throws out runners. He's fine at that middle one, and I think we can get by focusing on that.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Johan Santana might be nothing more than 49.5 Million dollars in payroll. I don't believe Johan Santana will be worth 50% of the money due to him over the rest of his contract. I just can't see him staying healthy. However... when he's been healthy, he's been pretty darn successful. So... how do I reconcile that our BEST pitcher is also the most over-payed? How about the fact that a strong couple games might buy Sandy Alderson enough stock to trade Johan to another more desperate for immediate success team? That's what I'm hoping for, anyway.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Mike Pelfrey is our "Ace". He's not an ACTUAL Ace, but on our staff, Mike Pelfrey is the Ace. I keep repeating this because I want to make tou depressed and nostalgic for Al Leiter. Is it working? The latest brain-wave I've seen is the concept of trading Pelfrey to a contender for prospects. I'm all for it, but who is going to bite on that piece of bait? How can you deal with the deep dark feelings that crop up when you hear Pelfrey and Ace in the same sentence? I'm going with denial, "What are you talking about? R.A. Dickey's our Ace."
What We Wish We Could Forget: Jonathan Niese might have the best "Stuff" in the rotation. You hear a lot of people make reference to polish and stuff. Stuff is the actual raw talent that a player possesses. while polish is how skilled he is at using it. I'll give the example of Aroldis Chapman who throws somewhere around 105 MPH. He has stuff. I'll also give the example of Jamie Moyer who's fastball topped out at 70. He had polish. Jonathan Niese has a swooping curve and a solid fastball, but nothing to freak out over. How do you get past the fact that he's got the best "STUFF" on the roster? Think about the great Met pitchers who had no "Stuff" like Rick Reed. You don't need a 105 MPH pitch, it helps... but you don't NEED it.
What We Wish We Could Forget: R.A. Dickey isn't Superman. I look at Dickey and I hear trumpets playing a heroic fanfare. He's just so darn likable. Not to mention that he's probably the best healthy pitcher the Mets have right now. I just get a little worried over fans who want to dump everyone BUT Dickey for new players. Sure, Dickey is good, he might even be a top of the rotation guy on 50% of the teams in baseball, but he's also a knuckle-baller. What does that mean? It means that hitters know that 9 out of 10 pitches they see from him are going to be knucklers and that could lead to an explosive day every time he pitches. How do you get past this? Lose yourself staring into his majestic beard and soft blue eyes...
What We Wish We Could Forget: Chris Young is being "RELIED" upon. I like Chris Young. I harassed Metsblog for news on Chris Young on a nearly daily basis before he signed. I even feel that WITH the injury, he was Alderson's best signing of the offseason. However... even I didn't think we could "RELY" on him. How can you get by the inevitable injuries that this giant man will suffer? Well, Dillon Gee could help by continuing to pitch that well, but just breath deep and know that all the Mets NEED from Young are 20 games started.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Chris Capuano is a starter. I like Chris, no I love Chris, as a relief pitcher. He's quite capable of being a great lefty specialist / long reliever. The issue is that unless Gee sticks with the team, Santana returns or the Mets promote Mejia, Capuano is going to start for the Mets. How can you cope with the inflated ERA that will come with exposing Capuano to a fill assortment of righties? He'll be relegated to the bullpen at some point. It'll be okay.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Francisco Rodriguez will likely vest his absurd option. How could the Mets let this happen? 17 Million for K-Rod is ABSURD! However, the Mets will need to pay it if he finishes over 55 games. The simple solution would seem: Just don't let him do that. However the players union will clearly block that. How can you deal with the pain that K-Rod will vest because he's still the best option the Mets have to close out the game? ACTUALLY, start hoping he pitches REALLY well. A team might be willing to trade for K-Rod if the Mets pay some of the money back. I'd rather pay 5-7 Mil in 2012 for K-Rod AND have a prospect than pay 17 Mil and K-Rod.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Bobby Parnell looks a lot like a batting cage pitch machine. I like Parnell. He could totally round into a closer. I had secret hopes that would happen in 2011, but that seems RATHER unlikely. Right now I just want Bobby to return to being a setup guy rather than an BP pitcher. How can you cope with the Parnell blues? It's rough, with few prospects with as much potential waiting in the wings. Perhaps we should just remember that Bell struggled as a Met and then went on to be a slightly decent pitcher.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Jason Isringhausen is really REALLY old. Okay, so my father is going to punch me, but as I'm only 27, 38 seems REALLY old. At least for baseball. Now... I know that some pitchers are timeless and can get away pitching into their 40s but my worry with Izzy is the ware and tear on his arm. I'm 27 and after serving a volleyball a few times at full power I'm in need of physical therapy. How can you deal with Isringhausen's age-related vulnerability? How about the fact that he showed up out of nowhere. WHATEVER he gives the Mets. Is SUPERB. If he was injured getting out of bed today, he'd have done enough in 2011 to earn our thanks.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Taylor Buchholz is as likely as anyone to get hurt. At least Taylor buchholz can be counted on... right... I think you might want to recall that Taylor's had a few years off from his tremendous debut. Sure, I like him and think he's talented but like Chris Young, you can't RELY on health. How do you cope with yet another fragile arm? How unlucky can the Mets be. If you have 4 players start the year known for being injury prone, I'd bet at least 1 could be healthy for 90% of the season.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Pedro Beato cannot be demoted. I like Beato but I don't like the amount of faith I'm forced to have in him. The Mets have to keep Beato with the major league club or return him to Baltimore. Beato looks VERY good "Stuff"-wise so... it's not a bad thing, but it does mean that the Mets need to be more lenient if he hits a rough patch. Where can you find solace? Beato is not going to be the difference between a winning and losing season. You can take that to the bank.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Tim Byrdak is the ONLY bullpen lefty. As I mentioned above, Capuano could shift into the pen, but for now... it's Byrdak and Byrdak and Byrdak for any and all lefty relief work. He's not been great and has Mike O'Connor waiting in the wings but I seriously want the Mets to stop relying on 1 guy to be the ONLY lefty. How do I cope with the fact that the Mets never learn to have multiple lefties? The problem is that the Mets have too many righties who demand time. I get by crossing my fingers that D.J. Carrasco will be sent to the minors.
What We Wish We Could Forget: D.J. Carrasco is going to be back next year. I am not a Carrasco fan. He eats innings with a side order of blowing the lead. Why is he even on the team? I'll tell you why. Carrasco signed a bleeping two year deal and is on the team as a fixture because he's paid more than the guys who better deserve spots. My hope is that the Mets will send him packing the moment they feel they have the flexibility to move Capuano into relief. That's what keeps me warm at night.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Ronny Paulino is a confirmed cheater. You know... at least when the Mets were bad I could always hold my head up high and say, "Yeah? Well at least we weren't cheaters." PAULINO! Now, let's point out that he didn't cheat as a Met, but that credability I used to enjoy is now forever in question. How can I deal with the crushing hypocracy of it all? Find a Yankee fan and ask them. They should be used to that sort of thing.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Brad Emaus is taking up a perfectly good bench spot. Brad Emaus was a giant offensive disappointment, wrapped in a larger defensive disappointment, wrapped in creamy nougat. He couldn't hit, which was bad, but he also couldn't field. He was supposed to be an OBP machine but all he seemed to be good for was an easy out ahead of the pitcher. How should I cope with my sense of disappointment in Brad Emaus? Well... moments ago he was DFA'd and Justin Turner was promoted to take his spot. Just wait, it won't take long for Justin to find something for us to hate about him.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Scott Hairston hit .210 last year. For all that I like Hairston as a human and a player, he's not a savior or a great guy on the bench. He DOES have power and he has been clutch, but he's just a touch on the... doesn't get a lot of hits side. He was on my fantasy squad last season as I figured he'd have a starting gig in San Diego. That didn't quite happen. How can you see a silver lining in Hairston? Well... he's wound up allowing Nick Evans to get some late seasoning in AAA. PLUS... he can play CF.
What We Wish We Could Forget: Willie Harris can't field with Citi Field's lights on. Harris hasn't been bad. His batting line is respectable and he's made some good plays. HOWEVER, there have been at least two that I've seen that look absurdly bad. Running in from left field he's twice been blinded by the spot-lights at Citi Field. What can we do when we see that? How about mailing Willie some shades or demanding the lights be dimmed for his benefit.
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