Preemptive Hype
In war there is something called “preemptive strike”, which, essentially, is attacking a rival before the rival attacks you.
In Mets baseball, we may be experiencing something that I’d like to term “preemptive hype”, which is geared toward preparing the fan base for an inevitable fire sale.
The strategy is to hype up players who — presumably — will not be sold. Generally speaking, these are young (read: cheap) ballplayers. Suddenly, we fans are more stories about these young players — both on TV and in the media. Am I being a paranoid conspiracy theorist? Or does it behoove the Mets — who own and control their own TV network — to develop talking points that hype up players who will still be around as of August 1? Does it not make sense to have human interest stories told about young men such as Justin Turner, Dillon Gee, and others? After all, if the Mets do in fact sell off their high-priced veterans, the fans could have reason to stop showing up at the ballpark, and stop tuning in to SNY. So before the fire sale happens, it makes perfect sense to start talking up the guys who are most likely to be kept.
From a casual, cursory glance at some of the storylines of the past few days, I noticed a few instances of what might be evidence of “preemptive hype”. For example, Terry Collins identified Josh Thole as a “leader” on the Mets. Hmmm … not saying he’s not, but it is a bit unusual for someone who doesn’t play every day, and who has had issues with some of the pitchers (such as Mike Pelfrey). Another example is the very recent buzz that Bobby Parnell is a “future closer”. Yes, Parnell has pitched well very recently, and with his heat you’d hope he’d develop into a closer eventually, but he’s had stretches like this before — let’s see him pitch well for, say, 25 appearances, and against the same teams more than once, before we start talking about him being a closer.
What do you think? Is there something to this preemptive hype theory? Have you recognized any evidence of such a thing? Let me know in the comments.
Personally, I’ve noticed a few
You simply can’t risk that vesting option kicking in for 2012 – and at the same time, if you are able to pawn him off on someone else — you can get a look at other guys in a closing capacity for next year and beyond.
I think that this, and only this right now – coupled with the tentative nature of this team’s success – is why you’ll hear so much “Parnell is our future closer” talk.
Personally, I’m at a point where I think the team will be looking for it – and that he needs to show something in that spot for him to advance in his career as an actual pitcher.
You’re absolutely right – in that everyone and their mother wanted to drool over his “101 on the gun” vs. Boston that year —- newsflash: it’s summer-time and guys let it fly in the warm weather.
At the same time, though – I’m hoping that this has been an actual advancement as a pitcher (working with RICKY BONES during his rehab at Buffalo and not much w/Warthen….cough, cough).
I’d be willing to go “sink or swim” with him in the 2nd half. Mainly due to my belief that the Mets have some gears churnin’, but will ultimately go nowhere in 2011. “Doesn’t hurt to see whatcha got.”
Even Beato has some potential, and is no worse than any of the other arms we’ve seen in a “closer by committee” capacity through the years (Ayala, Takahashi, some wanted to see Igarashi).
Beato’s done a nice job (aided mainly by a nice start to the season) as a cross-over guy – but by the same token, it’s his first year in The Bigs. We’ll see what the 2nd half brings.
Still, I think he’s just as likely to take the next step as he is to fall to the wayside…..still as serviceable as the younger guys we’ve seen in that bullpen over the last few years. He’s learning on the job, and as long as he’s not burned out – I think he’ll be alright. Not spectacular, but maybe more than people think at this point.
I know this has nothing to do with leadership, but it’s more of a commentary on why we need to see some guys in different “stepping stone” spots this year. I’m still waiting for the wheels to fall off the wagon; and realistically – Reyes being out for a prolonged period is the start of it, for me.
Then I said to myself : “You’re just being paranoid.” Then I said: “Can you blame me?”
(301 At-Bats)
.279, 13 HR, 42 RBI
.354 OBP/.472 SLG./.826 OPS
He’s recovered quite nicely from his initial struggles – and is making the adjustment in his 1st full season.
Like you said, Dog – it will be more about seeing what you have in the 2nd half…..rather than “contention”, as so many over-optimistic fans continue to flap about now.
huh?
HUH?
Oh… they did. Nevermind.
IMO, anything short of a repeat of 1969 will have most of the fanbase up in arms. At this point, winning is the only cure-all.
I prefer to view the glass as half full. In another injury riddled season, we’ve seen some promising play from the “Buffalo Soldiers” and it should now be about setting the stage for next year. This includes dealing Frankie and Beltran, perhaps getting a long look at Duda, FMart and Lutz, plus seeing if Beato and Parnell can finish the last two frames when needed.
If communicated properly to the fanbase, as long as this team continues to play for Terry, I’ll be satisfied with the results, considering the expectations and the injuries.
This team wasn’t going to win this year. It annoys me to hear the Mets place in the NL East standings as if they have some shot. They really don’t. The Phillies, unless something pretty bad happens to them, will. The Braves are playing well and some other team (perhaps the Brewers though maybe the Cards or a NL West team) will compete with them for the WC.
The Mets are outclassed and the theme of this year should be to get rid of some bad wood and doing things in a smarter way. The team could put forth an enjoyable gritty type of baseball — after all, there are many teams out there who are at best longshot playoff contenders who are worth watching.
So, sure, promote the young players. They are fun and people to root for. BTW, anyone else Gee looks like he is older than his years? Seems to have thinning hair (before he shaved it) in his mid-20s.
Beltran has a clause in his contract that prevents the Mets from offering salary arbitration. This means that they get nothing if he leaves as a free agent.
A. would he even consider returning
B. if this was his best offer or if this was comparable would he do it?
I think it is an interesting discussion. From the Mets standpoint I don’t see why this is a bad idea provided that he is the best option. As we have seen this year this team is not devoid of talent and Beltran is clearly a good player still. He’s an All-Star in fact,