The Rollins Benching
Before the Fourth of July weekend, I received a great email from loyal reader “isuzudude”:
I have an interesting topic you may want to elaborate on in a post. Much was made here in New York on the benching of Jimmy Rollins back on June 5th when Charlie Manuel benched the reigning MVP for not legging out a ground ball. However, did you know that since that incident Rollins has fallen into a 17 for 78 slump (.217) to see his average drop from .289 to .265. What’s more, since the benching the Phillies have gone 8-12 (including the game Rollins was benched in, which the Phillies won 5-0).
Interestingly, Willie Randolph benched Jose Reyes in simlar fashion around this time last year (July 6th at Houston to be exact). Reyes also responded poorly by slumping over the rest of the season, and some would argue his benching – and subsequent lack of confidence/focus – became the root cause for the Mets 2nd half collapse.
Do you believe the two occurences are related? Is this mere coincidence? There’s no doubting, though, that Rollins HAS NOT responded well to his benching, so what is your explanation? I’d really like to know your take on this topic.
Thanks, and as always, keep up the fantastic work!
(Note to readers: include an ego-stroking compliment like that last sentence, and your question is GUARANTEED to be answered.)
I have to admit that at the time I lauded Charlie Manuel’s move to bench Rollins. And if I knew that Rollins would go into a 17-for-78 slump, I’d still have believed Manuel made the right move.
In my mind, Manuel had to establish that he was the boss of the team – even if it meant his starting shortstop would shove his head up his butt as a result. No one man is bigger than the team (yes, even if that man is Barry Bonds – see any World Series rings on Bonds’ fingers?).
The concept of team over individual, and one man in charge, was relayed beautifully in the movie “Hoosiers” – specifically, when Gene Hackman’s character allowed two of the team’s top players to walk off the team, and later when he played four men on the floor with a punished player staying on the bench. In the short term, yes, a team may be negatively affected, but over the long run, the team is much better off. Winning teams have rules, structure, and a shared focus toward one goal. If anything gets in the way of that shared focus, it has to be eliminated – immediately.
Getting back to Rollins. Indeed, the benching would seem to have affected him offensively. My guess is it was a hard slap of reality, a knocking him off his high horse, so to speak. It was understandable – almost predictable – that Rollins would sulk and perform below his normal level of play. Great athletes don’t like to be publicly embarrassed, and it can take a while for them to come around to the realization that they were wrong.
As for the Phillies’ 8-15 record over that stretch, I believe it had more to do with the fact that Rollins wasn’t producing rather than anything emotional, or any group reaction to the benching. The Phils rely heavily on the bats of Rollins, Chase Utley, and Ryan Howard – if one of those three are slumping, the lineup is not nearly as frightening (think about when Jose Reyes, David Wright, or Carlos Beltran are in a slump).
How did this benching compare with that of Reyes last year? There are a number of similarities. Without doubt, Reyes felt he was wronged by Willie Randolph (I’d have agreed). Reyes watched dogs like Carlos Delgado jog around all year while he raced around the basepaths, and the one time he didn’t run out what he thought was a foul ball, he was scolded. As a result, Reyes sulked, he didn’t provide any offense after the benching, and the Mets’ lineup wasn’t strong enough to make up for his virtual absence. Had Randolph benched someone for not hustling way back in June – when nearly everyone BUT Reyes was going through the motions, he could have nipped the issue in the bud and the season might have turned out differently. We’ll never know.
By the way, in the first three games of July, Rollins went 6-for-11 with a 1.552 OPS. Clearly, he’s over the benching. And oh by the way, the Phillies won all three games.
Minor (League) Questions
Loyal MetsToday reader and commenter “isuzudude” brings up two points for discussion:
1. It looks as though the Mets are going to pass on Botts. Reason being they recently signed another power-hitting 1B/OF in Val Pascucci, whom I’m thinking was cut from the Phillies organization earlier this year. His 34 HR led the PCL last year while hitting a cool .284. He’s shaping out to be a career journeyman minor leaguer, but his stats look very similar to Botts’…with perhaps the two biggest differences being that Botts can switch hit, and age. I’m assuming this is going to be Omar’s fail-safe in case Delgado is still hitting .200 by Memorial Day.
2. Playing for AA Binghamton, top prospect Fernando Martinez has struck out a whopping 32 times in 114 ABs. Both of those stats lead the Eastern League. My question to you is: is this something to be concerned about? He’s on a pace to strike out 128 times in 456 ABs, a scary projection.
In regard to the first point, I’d have to agree — the Mets aren’t going to go after Jason Botts now that they’ve signed essentially the same player in Valentino Pascucci. Pascucci, like Botts, has recently put up impressive power numbers at the AAA level and is a first baseman. 
Also like Botts, the jury is out as to whether he can succeed at the MLB level or if he’s a career “quad A” or “AAAA” guy. While I’ve actually seen Botts play, I don’t know much about Pascucci other than what I’ve seen in his stat line and read in Baseball America, so I can’t comment. But he does appear to be something of a low-risk / high-reward type — not unlike last year’s pickup of Jake Gautreau.
Will Pascucci be the fallback if Delgado continues to struggle? I doubt it, unless he absolutely goes crazy with the bat down in New Orleans. The “Italian Bazooka” has never been considered a top prospect, and has only garnered attention recently because of his big year in the PCL (34 homers … ironically, eeking out former Mets farmhand Craig Brazell for the minor league lead) … so it’s not like he’s another Carlos Pena — a guy who was highly regarded, had some success at the big league level, then fell out of favor after a few down years. If Delgado is around the Mendoza Line on Memorial Day, I think the Mets will go outside the organization to replace him — my best guess being a guy like Kevin Millar, a veteran bat who won’t cost more than a few fringe prospects.
As for F-Mart’s struggles with making contact, no I’m not concerned in the least. He’s been a strikeout king since he joined the professional ranks, averaging one K for every five at-bats. He had a similar problem swinging and missing early last year in high-A ball, but by the end of the year had worked his way up to AA. Remember, this is a teenager we’re talking about — he’s only 19 years old and playing at a high level.
Let’s face it: Fernando Martinez is not, and never will be, a contact hitter. He’s projected to be a slugger, a major homerun threat, and guys like that do a lot of whiffing. I think he’s going to continue to strike out at a high rate for much of his first full season in AA, but also hope that by the second half, he learns to adjust. I haven’t seen him play yet but my guess is that there is a scouting report going around instructing pitchers to feed him plenty of breaking balls. If he sees enough of them — and it’s likely he’s seeing zero fastballs right now — eventually he’ll learn to recognize the spin and lay off.
What Is a Crawford Box?
MetsToday reader Steve from White Plains asks,
“Why do they call the short porch in Minute Maid Park the Crawford Box?”
Excellent question, Steve.
Actually, the entire selection of seating behind the leftfield wall is called “Crawford Boxes”. That’s not a nickname, but the actual term used in the stadium map of Minute Maid for the seats in sections 100 – 104.
Though they’re similar in location to what many other parks would call the “bleachers”, these are not bench seats, but typical box seats — and carry a $32 per ticket price tag.
They’re called “Crawford Boxes” because the left-field wall in front of the seating is parallel to Crawford Street in Downtown Houston. However, they’re also called “Landry’s Crawford Boxes” because the section is sponsored by the Landry’s seafood restaurant chain — which you’ve likely never heard of if you’ve never left the New York tri-state area. From what I understand, any fan who catches a homerun ball while sitting in the Crawford Boxes gets a $10 gift certificate to a Landry’s restaurant, and the fans in that section are on occasion deluged with keychains, T-shirts, frisbees, and other useless crap inscripted with the Landry’s logo (much like Shea fans get pelted by Pepsi T-shirts).
Vargas for Stairs? – Mailbag
Once a month, we randomly choose two questions from Marty Noble’s Mets Mailbag on Mets.com, and provide an alternative answer.
Following are two fairly interesting inquiries from Mets fans.
Do you think it’s possible for the Mets to make a trade to bring in a left-handed-hitting slugger this season, say Jason Vargas to the Blue Jays for Matt Stairs?
Also, do you think it’s possible Ruben Gotay becomes the everyday second baseman? If this happens, the Mets get some speed and excitement in the lineup and a lot more pop from both sides of the plate and having both Jose Valentin and Damion Easley on the bench. Imagine a bench of Stairs, Ramon Castro, Endy Chavez, Easley and Valentin with Easley being the fourth infielder, Chavez the fourth outfielder, and Valentin as a utilityman.
– Ben S., Boston, Mass.
Why So Orange?
MetsToday reader Sammy from Secaucus asks,
“Why is the SNY staff’s skin so orange?”.
Good question, Sammy. No one’s quite sure. Lee Mazzilli, for one, looks like Tony Soprano meets the Great Pumpkin. It could be all the carrot juice they’re drinking during commercials. Or perhaps the makeup crew is trying to match the Mets’ official colors — and if they chose the other color, it would appear they were copying the Blue Man Group (or stealing from the Smurfs).
In any case, they look healthier than the men in the Yankee dugout — specifically Joe Torre — who appear seriously jaundiced. The Yankees trainer would do well to contact David Wright about some of his Vitamin Water — the Power-C or 50-Cent should do the trick.
Trish from Queens writes,
The Mets issues seem to be with pitching and hitting. Isn’t it a no-brainer to make a deal with the White Sox to get Mark Buehrle and Jermaine Dye?
While the Mets could certainly use both of those players, I’m not so sure it’s a “no-brainer”. The biggest issue is that both Buehrle and Dye will be free agents at the end of the year, and thus the Mets would be essentially trading for “rent-a-players”. Though letting Dye walk would not bother the Mets much, Buehrle would be a guy worth locking up for a few years. However, word on the street is that Buehrle’s dream is to play for the St. Louis Cardinals, and he’d be a fool not to test the free-agent waters after seeing what Barry Zito commanded on the open market. If the Mets can find a way to get those players without giving up the farm — i.e., Lastings Milledge, Mike Pelfrey, Philip Humber, Carlos Gomez, and Fernando Martinez — then I’d agree it’s a “no-brainer”. Unfortunately, the White Sox most surely will demand at least one or more of those highly-touted prospects in a deal.
Do you have a question for MetsToday? Send your question through the Contact Page. We promise not to berate, embarrass, or otherwise offend you (at least, not publicly).
A Less Noble Answer
Can Marty Noble be any more condescending to Mets fans? Can he be any more pandering to the Mets’ executives and PR staff that keep his wallet filled?
Probably not, so once a week we’ll pick a fair question or two from Marty’s “Mailbag” on Mets.com and re-answer it for the nice fan who asked it.
Original question:
For each of the last few years, the Mets have tried desperately to find a young, long-term second baseman. Jose Valentin filled the position, but not the role, and Damion Easley is now doing the same. The organization has all but given up on Anderson Hernandez. What about Ruben Gotay? The kid is still young, 25, and seems to be handling the bigs well. Any chance we see him on the Mets roster for the long-term?
– Chris R., Albany, N.Y.
Marty’s original answer:
I’m not sure the Mets’ regard for Gotay is as high as yours. I suspect they consider him to be tad better than a 4A player, and clearly not an impact player. You can see now that Valentin is back, Gotay’s innings are limited. It wouldn’t surprise me if he were the one demoted when Alou returns.
MetsToday Answer:
That’s an astute observation, Chris, and a good question. It does appear that AHern has lost favor with management — at least for the moment. Gotay is an intriguing possibility, since as you point out he is only 25 and does seem to be handling the bigs pretty well. His defense has been the best the Mets have seen at second base this year, and he’s hitting .500 in his last seven games — certainly worthy of a longer look. Whether he’ll get more of an opportunity remains to be seen, as Willie Randolph has been more reliant on what he calls “my veteran guys”. While his chance to shine this year looks questionable, Gotay has definitely opened some eyes, and may well be in the mix for the starting job in 2008 and beyond.
Original question:
Any chance of the Mets trading for Ken Griffey Jr.? He would bring veteran leadership, power, contact, fielding, everything. With all our outfield problems, he could really bring balance to the lineup and help win a World Series. Your thoughts?
– Ben S., location withheld
Marty’s answer:
My first thought is whether he would want to leave the Reds? The second is how would Mets acquire him if they even had interest? And what would be done with Shawn Green and the rest of his contract? These dots don’t appear to connect.
MetsToday Answer:
Hmm … an intriguing proposition. The Reds are mired in last place in the NL Central, nine games out, and showing no signs of improvement. Griffey has yet to compete in a World Series, and isn’t getting any younger. Combine those two facts with the emergence of Josh Hamilton, and Griffey getting dealt doesn’t seem so far-fetched.
The Mets do have some young arms and bats to deal, and if the Reds trade Griffey we’d assume it would be to build for tomorrow. I could see a Jason Vargas or Ambiorix Burgos, along with an A-level prospect, being dangled in a deal. With Moises Alou out until who-knows-when, Griffey could be just the veteran bat needed to spark the Mets offense. A batting order with Beltran-Griffey-Wright-Delgado in the middle would be hard to beat.
To be abused by Marty, go to Mets.com. Hopefully no one will have put sour milk in his coffee when he answers.
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