Torture Times Thirteen
A few days ago, Fred Wilpon described this past offseason as:
“Torture,” Wilpon said. “Very, very difficult.”
I’m so glad that a Dodgers fan had similar feelings to mine during these past few months, even if were for different reasons. The Dodgers, of course, suffered a heartbreaking exit from the postseason last October. To get so close to the Fall Classic, only to fall just a hair short, can certainly weigh on a fan’s mind for months on end.
As a Mets fan, though, we’ve felt “torture” for a different reason. Well, make that, reasons.
Here’s my personal list of the Ten Top Reasons Mets Fans Feel Tortured:
1. Memories of the 2009 season was torture
2. Watching the Mets try to trade Luis Castillo rather than find quality pitching was torture
3. Thinking all winter about how bad the Mets will be in 2010 was torture
4. Listening to the inane comments of Jerry Manuel is torture
5. Envisioning Rod Barajas / Henry Blanco behind the plate and getting 600+ ABs is torture
6. Banking on Ollie Perez and John Maine as the #2 and #3 starters is torture
7. Wondering who #4 and #5 in the rotation will be is torture
8. Relying on Sean Green and/or some Japanese guy in the 8th inning is torture
9. Handing leads to K-rod in the 9th is torture
10. Seeing Daniel Murphy tripping over himself at first base is torture
11. Listening to people gush over Mets “prospects” is torture
12. Waiting to see J.J. Putz do well in Chicago is torture
13. Fearing that the Washington Nationals will finish ahead of the Mets is torture
I stopped at 13 only because compiling this list was torture in itself. It easily could have grown to 25 or more.
Feel free to add your own torturous thoughts in the comments.
Mets Sign Rod Barajas
Yes, the Mets have signed another catcher. And this one is the best of the bunch.
Unfortunately, that’s not saying much.
Rod Barajas is an average to slightly above-average defender and a terrible offensive player with one tool: the ability to hit the ball over fences. Don’t get too excited, though, as it’s not as though Barajas is Babe Ruth. By “the ability to the ball over fences”, I mean he has more power than Luis Castillo. Over the course of 450-500 at-bats, playing half of his games in Citi Field, he might hit 10-15 HR.
However, he’ll also hit .230 (.240 at best) and post an OBP around .250 – .280. He won’t score many runs. His RBI total will be dependent on his homer total and his RBI opportunities. Essentially, he is a poor man’s Bengie Molina — and most of the statheads were very much against a Molina signing. Though, Bengie is not a good comparison, since Barajas has been more of a backup catcher most of his career. Considering that, Barajas is most similar to Ramon Castro. Before you say “a more durable version of Ramon Castro”, I will point out that Barajas has endured chronic hamstring, groin, and back issues — symbols of someone who has a problem with flexibility and is perpetually overweight. So again, Barajas is essentially Ramon Castro — minus the jokes and personality.
We’ll get back to his defense, since that’s what the Mets’ spin doctors want us to focus on. You’ll hear nonsense such as “Barajas is an excellent defensive catcher”. He’s not. He’s “excellent” compared to Josh Thole. Compared to all other MLB backstops, he’s about average. His caught-stealing percentage has been consistently around 34% his entire career, which is much better than Mike Piazza, and a few ticks better than the average. However, did you know that the Mets catchers in 2009 had a caught-stealing percentage of 34%? Interesting, eh?
I would say that, defensively, again, Ramon Castro is a fair comp. Is Barajas better than Brian Schneider? Tough to say, as they’re pretty close. If it came right down to it I’d take Schneider, who I think is a better overall receiver and a bit better when it comes to throwing out runners. Offensively, Schneider doesn’t have the pop, but he’ll get on base at least 50-60% more often. Barajas’ power is his singular tool, and even that is deceptive. Of his 19 HR in 2009, nearly one-third (6 to be exact) came in Fenway Park, Citizen’s Bank Park, and The Ballpark at Arlington — so take that info as you will. Additionally, he’s an incredibly streaky hitter, as evidenced by his .300 average in April last year, and .150 average in September. Also speaking to the streakiness, 7 of those 19 dingers came in August — 6 of those in a 10-game stretch. That hot April included 7 of his 19 doubles. Most scouts agree that in addition to being streaky, Barajas’ main problem offensively is that his performance drops considerably the more he’s exposed. Again, he’s sounding a lot like Castro, isn’t he?
The sad thing about this? Upon his arrival on Tuesday, Rod Barajas will be the best catcher in camp, and the best on the Mets’ 40-man roster.
But don’t let that fact depress you, since the catching position is unimportant and a non-factor on most teams. Though, you could also point out that “most teams” don’t make the postseason.
Mets Add Another Catcher
According to PlanetHardball, the Mets have added yet another catcher to the spring training mix — and it’s NOT Rod Barajas (not yet anyway). Rather, they’ve brought in German-born backstop Kai Gronauer.
The 23-year-old receiver was invited to spring training, but will most likely end up back in the minors before long. He spent last year with the Savannah Sand Gnats and it not expected to compete for a job at the AAA level nor above. But, it’s still a good story.
Jose Reyes is Happy and Healthy
For the past few weeks, it seems that every Mets media outlet is covering something “new” about Jose Reyes every single day — so I didn’t want to be left out.
The conspiracy theorist inside me thinks that the Mets’ internal spin doctors have launched some kind of Jose Reyes campaign in an effort to deflect all the negativity surrounding the team. But the Mets fan in me wants to remain positive and upbeat, since, after all, pitchers and catchers officially report today.
So, drink in that photo of Jose, and let’s all keep our fingers crossed that we’ll see him play a healthy 150-162 games this year!
Yuniesky Maya in Camp
My apologies for being negative recently … er, for most of the winter. But the New York Mets have made it very difficult to extract silver linings from the black clouds surrounding the club. It’s simply impossible to get excited about a club that is counting on four starting pitchers returning from major surgeries, has no middle relief to speak of, does not have a legitimate starting catcher, has a power outage at both corner infield positions, will not have their starting centerfielder / cleanup hitter until at least June, and despite all these issues spent most of the offseason trying to dump their second-best hitter.
For once, I’m going to write a POSITIVE post.
Hat tip to Ed Ryan of MetsFever for his reports on Cuban pitcher Yuniesky Maya, who recently defected from his native country and is currently working out in Port St. Lucie the Mets’ facility in the Dominican Republic.
Maya has NOT signed with the Mets — nor any other MLB team — just yet. There was a “source close to the negotiations” that suggested the Red Sox were working on a deal with Maya, but a source perhaps “closer to the negotiations” suggests that the 28-year-old righthander prefers to sign with a club that will give him a shot to pitch in the MLB rotation right away.
Considering that he’s working out in the Mets’ facility, and the Mets are desperate to add healthy arms to their staff, it would seem like a natural fit for the two parties.
Yes, Maya could very well be another Alay Soler. Or, he could be a legitimate back-end MLB starter who can compete every five days and eat up innings. I have never seen the man pitch, but looking at the current array of glass Joes vying for rotation spots, I’m pleased and hopeful to see any warm and healthy body added to the competition. Add in the fact that Maya has an impressive resume, and I’m ecstatic.
It can’t hurt the Mets to bolster their roster with a healthy, competent, veteran pitcher. The only question is whether they can get the deal done. But I’m remaining POSITIVE that they will !!!
Henry Blanco is a Backup
According to Mets GM Omar Minaya, Henry Blanco is a backup catcher.
And you thought Minaya didn’t know things.
Unfortunately, Minaya also announced that the Mets’ starting catching position would be a competition between Omir Santos and Josh Thole, both of whom are also backup catchers. So maybe Omar only knows some things.
If this is really the way the Mets think about the backstop position, it might have made sense to sign veteran free-agent Mike Sweeney and have him platoon with Mike Jacobs behind the plate. Both Mikes started their careers as catchers, both would be at least as good defensively as Santos/Thole, and both would have a better chance of providing offensive production that approaches the best that Jerry Grote ever mustered.
It might be different if either Thole or Santos were remarkable defensively — you could live with substandard offense. But if you’re going to hit like Charlie O’Brien, you darn well better catch like Charlie O’Brien.
My apologies to the Kool-Aid drinking Mets fans who believe Thole will hit better than .240, and/or think Santos is going to duplicate his surprising offensive “prowess” of 2009.
At this point the Mets may as well sign Jose Molina and make him the starter. He’ll at least give them a strength on one side of the ball … and it’ll give the Mets an excuse to apply Tony LaRussa’s strategy of hitting the pitcher eighth.
Endy, Wang Sign Elsewhere
Sorry Mets fans — Endy Chavez will not be returning to the Mets anytime soon. Chavez has signed a minor league deal with the Texas Rangers.
It’s just as well, since the Mets already have enough slap-hitting defensive specialists in the outfield. It would have been really awkward if Endy didn’t show enough in the spring to earn a spot on the 25-man roster.
Also, former Yankee ace Chien-Ming Wang has signed a deal with the Washington Nationals — according to Chico Harlan, who also reports that Wang “already passed a physical”. How does one who can’t throw a baseball pass a physical conducted by someone other than the Mets?
Wang is not expected to return from shoulder surgery until at least May, which when converted from baseball time into real time means “September”. Still, not a bad gamble by the Nats, who are spending the same amount of guaranteed dough that the Mets are handing to Alex Cora. Washington could be setting themselves up for a run at the postseason in 2011.
In other news, Daisuke Takahashi is a Japanese figure skater and NOT related to Ken Takahashi, Hisanori Takahashi, nor Daisuke Matsuzaka. However the Mets may still consider sending him an ST invite once the Olympics end, if he can throw with his left hand or is willing to squat behind home plate.
Oxymoron of the Spring
You may know what an “oxymoron” is … it’s a a figure of speech that produces an incongruous, seemingly self-contradictory effect. Like “jumbo shrimp”, “cruel kindness”, “almost exactly”, “even odds”, “quiet storm” …
Or in the Mets’ case, Read more
More Big Signings
Just when you thought the Mets were “done” re-vamping the roster this offseason, they go out and add more lukewarm bodies to the cause.
In addition to officially announcing the signing of Mike Jacobs to a minor-league deal, the Mets also signed Japanese lefty HisanoriTakahashi, backup catcher Shawn Riggans, and minor league infielder Rylan Sandoval.
We’ve already gone over the Jacobs signing. The 22-year-old Sandoval was a former JuCo standout and part-timer at Long Beach State who was plucked out of the Arizona Winter League; I’d guess he’ll be filler on one of the A-ball clubs. If his nickname were “Kung-Fu Panda” I might be more excited.
Riggans is at best a backup catcher in AAA, and I’m scratching my head at this signing, considering that the Mets are overloaded with backup AAA catchers. I guess they need extra squatters for spring training to catch the pitchers. MetsBlog posted a 104-game CHONE projection which makes little sense, either, considering that Riggans hasn’t played in more than 44 games at any level since 2006, and has appeared in more than 90 games in a season only once in his 9 years as a pro. He has always had the reputation as a standout defensive catcher, but injuries have nagged him throughout his career — and his arm has been through one Tommy John surgery thus far. What I love about him is his hard-nosed approach to the game, his tenacity, and his fiery personality. But even I, as a catcher who loves all catchers, has to wonder how far those attributes will take him. Personally, I’ll be rooting hard for him. However I’m confused about where he fits in — and wonder how he’ll get a fair shot — as long as Chris Coste, Henry Blanco, Omir Santos, and Josh Thole are around.
Finally, there is Takahashi. What are the chances that Jerry Manuel confuses Hisanori with Ken Takahashi? Perhaps Manuel will even mispronounce his last name as “Taka-HEE-shee”, like he did with Ken until late August.
There was a lot of buzz around Takahashi this winter, and I’m not sure why. He’s a soft-tossing lefty whose main out pitch is a screwball. For those unaware of how a screwball moves, it is basically a change-up that fades away from righthanded hitters. That said, Takahashi’s skill set doesn’t equate to a LOOGY role, so his best bet to make the team is as a fifth starter / long reliever. Hmm … sounds a lot like Ken Takahashi, doesn’t it?
Pretty cool, isn’t it? Not only are we all on the edge of our seats waiting for pitchers and catcher to report, but the Mets go the extra yard and over-deliver by releasing all this exciting news. I’m so jazzed I may order a season-ticket package!
Manuel Will Focus on Pitching and Defense
Pitchers and catchers have yet to report, yet we’re already being treated to “Manuel Being Manuel”.
A few weeks ago on MetsBlog, it was reported that Jerry Manuel will be focusing on pitching and defense this year:
“Pitching and defense, that’s going to be the game plan. We spent a lot of time last spring on the hitting program. We think we have that in place. It probably needs some tweaking here and there, but we have to play better interior defense. And if we can do that, we feel it will make our pitchers better. That’s going to be the big emphasis.”
First off, what in the world is “interior defense”? Does that mean “infield defense”? Some kind of self-defense (such as karate or tae-kwon-do) in the clubhouse? And, if there is “interior defense”, is there also “exterior defense” ?
Also concerning is Manuel reminding us all of the special focus put on developing offensive skills last spring. For those who forgot, it was centered around Manuel’s inane and exhausting “100-swing drill”, and an emphasis on hitting to the opposite field.
Anyone recall how that offensive strategy worked out last summer? Perhaps you can ask David Wright … or simply check out the Mets’ final hitting stats.
After seeing the results of last spring’s “focus on offense”, I can’t wait to witness how the “pitching and defense focus” works out in 2010.
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