Mets Incite Conspiracy Theories

Posted on July 25, 2009 by Joe Janish

In the latest move by the Mets, Gary Sheffield was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a hamstring injury. This occurred a day after Sheffield was pronounced “available” for a game, and on the same day that Sheff expected to be in the starting lineup.

And you wonder why people like me are constantly concocting conspiracy theories about the New York Mets organization.

Obviously, SOMETHING is going on that we are not privy to. A team simply doesn’t put a healthy player on the DL without an ulterior motive. Further, a team that is already hamstrung (pardon the pun) with injuries, and has had difficulty scoring runs, does not remove from the roster their most productive hitter and only legitimate power threat — not unless something is up.

Is there a trade brewing that requires roster space, or the showcasing of someone? Is there some kind of insurance money that can be collected for having a certain number of players injured? Is their poor handling of other injuries forcing them to be ultra-conservative? Did Sheffield tick off someone inside the organization? Have they exhausted so many options that they’re giving the George Costanza “do the opposite” strategy a whirl?

And the ultimate conspiracy theory: are the Mets purposely sabotaging themselves — i.e., trying to lose games on purpose? Let’s hope not — though if they are, the idea seemed to backfire, as the Mets exploded for 7 runs in the first five innings of play on Saturday night.

This one is hard to figure, but maybe something will occur in the next few days that cause us all to say “a-ha!”. For example, maybe the Mets are on the verge of making a blockbuster trade that will bring in 5 MLB players — named Halladay, Rios, Wells, Overbay, and Scutaro (hey, crazier things have happened). Or maybe they are showcasing Cory Sullivan for a team in need of a light-hitting, good fielding outfielder. Or maybe they’re auditioning Sullivan for the left field job next year. Perhaps there’s something else.

Something is brewing …

Posted in Mets Injuries, Shea What? | Tagged , | 7 Comments

Mets Game 95: Loss to Astros

Posted on July 24, 2009 by Joe Janish

Astros 5 Mets 4

The Mets finally got some offense, and had their ace on the mound. But their ace did not pitch like an ace.

Johan Santana was removed from the game after allowing five runs on a career-high 12 hits and 3 walks in 6 2/3 innings. He was bitten by the long ball in the fourth frame, allowing a two-run homer to opposing pitcher Mike Hampton and a near-homer to Jeff Keppinger only moments before Hampton’s blast.

Yet, it could’ve been worse, as Santana was constantly in trouble — it seemed that every inning the Astros loaded the bases, but one way or another, Johan got out of trouble. It’s never a good idea to skate on thin ice in a hot town like Houston.

Notes

Omir Santos went 3-for-4 and hit the Mets’ fifth homerun of the month. With a week left, there’s still an outside chance the team gets into double digits. My money is on the under.

Luis Castillo had four hits in his first four at-bats, but couldn’t get a fifth with the bases loaded and two outs in the top of the 8th. That’s the way it goes for the Mets in 2009.

Both teams struggled to push home runs — the Mets left 10 on base, the Astros, 11.

The AT&T high speed pitch of the day (as of the 6th inning) was 93 MPH — both Santana and Hampton reached that figure. Is it me or is it bothersome that Johan Santana’s fastest pitch was equal to that of the broken-down, 36-year-old, nearly washed up Hampton?

For the young catchers out there, I hope you saw the high tag applied by Pudge Rodriguez to Jeff Francoeur’s face in the top of the seventh. The reason you aim for the face in that situation is because a) the body goes where head goes, so you can’t miss him / he can’t get around you; and b) by tagging in the face, there’s next-to-zero chance of the runner barreling you over. Unless you are a boxer, it’s a natural immediate reaction to be defensive, rather than aggressive, when something is coming into your face. Keith Hernandez (and Bob Ojeda in the postgame) neglected that factor when he suggested that Francoeur might have “made the wrong decision” by not trying to plow over Pudge — in reality, Pudge removed that option. Understand, however, that such a tag only works when timed right — you can’t stand there with the glove high for a few seconds, because then you remove the surprise and the runner has time to react; it has to be applied just before potential contact. Pudge played it perfectly.

Speaking of perfection, Angel Berroa is quickly showing why he’s been released 18 times in the last two months. He can’t field, he can’t hit, he can’t bunt, he can’t run, and he appears barely awake. I think he might be able to throw, but I’m not sure. He is the MLB equivalent of a lazy employee that clocks in, surfs the internet all morning, takes a long lunch, browses eBay all afternoon, and leaves five minutes before 5 PM.

Another note on Pudge: the propellerheads can talk all they want about OBP, OPS, BABIP, and every other number that makes the future HOFer look bad. But there is NO question who is in charge when he is on the field. Case in point: the 8th inning, when Astros pitching coach Dewey Robinson visited the mound, and Pudge took over the conversation. The Mets, of course, don’t need such leadership — they need OPS. Good thing they passed on him in the offseason.

Is it me, or is Jose Valverde slowly evolving into Jose Mesa?

During the postgame, Bob Ojeda mentioned that the Mets have been losing games due to a failure of executing “the little things” since the BEGINNING OF THE SEASON. In other words, since the team was whole and healthy. We’ve been saying as much here, haven’t we? The only difference is that now, those little things are more glaring because you don’t have Carlos Delgado to bail you out with a three-run homer. But either way, it’s still bad baseball — the brand of ball the Mets have been playing for now three years running.

Despite the close score, my attention continually drifted out the window, where a mild lightning storm was occurring. I remember having better focus in the past … is it age, or this team?

Next Mets Game

Mets and Astros do it again at 7:05 PM. Young lefty Jonathan Niese makes a reappearance against Russ Ortiz. Russ Ortiz? First Mike Hampton and now Ortiz … who’s pitching on Sunday for the ‘stros, Freddy Garcia? Carl Pavano? Wayne Garland?

Posted in Mets 2009 Games | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

Airline Remains the Same for Francoeur

Posted on July 24, 2009 by Joe Janish

On his Delta Airlines blog, Jeff Francoeur assures his fans that his team may have changed, but not his airline (whew! that was a close one!)

Will Sommer did a Q&A with former Met Art Shamskey, who talks about his latest book and gives 1969 as a reason why the 2009 season isn’t yet over for the Mets.

Will Leitch describes Tony Bernazard as a scapegoat, and opines, “The Mets are uglier in the front office than they are on the field. That’s terrifying.”

Matthew Artus chronicles the history of how Tony Bernazard came to power, and wonders why he’s on the Mets’ payroll.

Lou Cappetta identifies the shortstop that most affects the Mets’ chances for the postseason — and it’s NOT Jose Reyes.

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Trades and DFAs

Posted on July 23, 2009 by Joe Janish

Omar Minaya says the Mets are “buyers” right now, rather than “sellers”. We’ll see whether that rings true over the next 8 days, but in the meantime, a few deals have gone down.

Rockies acquire Rafael Betancourt from Indians

I liked Betancourt around this time last year — while he was in the midst of a poor season — and he’s rebounded well, jacking up his value in the process. The Rockies made a smart move, I think, in obtaining Betancourt. First of all, they gave up a non-prospect — a 24-year-old pitcher stuck in A-ball. Secondly, they get a veteran reliever with still-good stuff who will be a mystery to most NL hitters. He could give Colorado the same “shot in the arm” that Guillermo Mota gave the Mets in 2006 (pardon the pun).

Red Sox trade Julio Lugo to Cardinals for Chris Duncan

So much for the Mets signing Lugo after his official release. The Bosox, remarkably, found a taker — and got a young slugger in return! The Cardinals have been desperate for a shortstop since May, when Khalil Greene was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder. This deal could work out better than people expect, considering that St. Louis has been running the hard-playing but punchless Brendan Ryan out to shortstop every day. Lugo has been a disappointment in Boston but still has good speed, a decent bat, and the ability to get on base. Meanwhile, the Red Sox get Duncan, who hit a combined 43 HRs in limited duty in 2006 and 2007 but has been trending downward since. After a hot start, Duncan’s averaged dropped to below .230 and was being optioned to AAA only hours before the trade. It’s a low-risk, high-reward roll of the dice for Theo Epstein — though, the Bosox are still on the hook for all of Lugo’s salary.

Red Sox acquire Adam LaRoche from the Pirates

With Big Papi continuing to struggle, finding a new DH was imminent for Boston. The LH-hitting LaRoche is not afraid to hit to the opposite field, so the Green Monster could turn him into, well, a monster. If nothing else, moving from the depressing Pirates to the contending Red Sox should wake him up out of his month-long slump. (I find it funny that LaRoche has been criticized for lack of fire or passion while in Pittsburgh– has that organization given ANYONE a reason to be excited?) Perfect timing for LaRoche, who is a free agent at the end of the season.

Blue Jays DFA David Dellucci

The Mets did not get LaRoche, did not get Lugo, will not get either of Halladay / Holliday, but Dellucci looks like a perfect fit. The veteran outfielder has played a good 3-4 years past his expiration date, but still gets chances around the bigs. He’s hitting .185 this year, he hit .238 last year, and .230 the year before. But, he once hit as many as 29 HRs in a season (for Texas), he’s a very good fielder, and the Mets are suddenly righty-heavy. I’m not advocating his acquisition, but I can see it coming, can’t you?

Posted in Latest Mets News | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Quiz for Yankees Fans

Posted on July 23, 2009 by Joe Janish

Any Yankees fans out there? If so, please look at the picture below and see if you can identify who it is:

jean-afterman2

Give up? It’s Jean Afterman, the “assistant to the GM” of the New York Yankees. Strange that you don’t know her … you mean, she doesn’t regularly make headlines, hang around the ballfield, undermine managers, whisper secrets to ballplayers, argue with Mo Rivera, publicly cuss out and berate other Yankees personnel, and provide injury information to the tabloids? Huh.

Well, I GUARANTEE she has never, and would never, rip off her shirt in front of a clubhouse full of AA ballplayers.

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Bernazard Reminds Us of Another Assistant GM

Posted on July 23, 2009 by Joe Janish

1975toppsbillsingerPerhaps the most disturbing thing about the Tony Bernazard “situation” is not Bernazard’s actions, but the Mets’ feeble, wishy-washy, inactive response. They have neither stood behind their VP of Player Development, nor have they fired him, nor have they even put him on some kind of a suspension. Their response to the multiple allegations toward Bernazard is to “investigate” — as Omar Minaya told us about twenty times.

Investigate? Really? That’s it?

The Mets seem to have forgotten that they operate out of New York City — the media capital of the world. The spotlight is on, and it’s white and hot. There is no time to “investigate” in a New York Minute. You ACT — swiftly and decisively.

This recent turn of events reminds me of the “Bill Singer Incident”, which was handled (bumbled?) similarly. For those who don’t remember, that debacle occurred in November of 2003, at MLB’s “general manager meetings” in Phoenix, AZ. Ironically, Bill Singer had just been hired as “assistant to the General Manager”. During one evening at the bar, Singer got a little too drunk and made some racially insensitive remarks to Kim Ng (who at the time held a similar position in the Dodgers’ organization). The immediate response was very much like the one we heard yesterday:

“He’s still employed by us at the moment, but the matter is under organizational review,” Mets spokesman Jay Horwitz said Sunday night. “No decision has been made.”

This statement came after Singer apologized to his boss Jim Duquette, and released simultaneously with this statement from Singer:

“I am embarrassed by what I said when I met with Ng on Tuesday evening. My comments were truly inappropriate and I’m truly sorry. I have apologized to her and hope she will forgive me.”

According to the Daily News:

“That didn’t wash with Jim and it sure as hell won’t wash with [owner] Fred [Wilpon],” a Mets source told the Daily News. “Plain and simple, there’s no excuse for that kind of behavior, and there’s no saving this guy.”

The Daily News was right — all the apologies in the world weren’t going to save Bill Singer from the words uttered in a drunken stupor. He he was fired within a week.

The day Singer was relieved of his duties, the Mets released this announcement:

“As a matter of policy our organization cannot and will not tolerate any comment or conduct by an employee that suggests insensitivity or intolerance to any racial, ethnic or religious group. Any deviation from this standard is not acceptable.”

Is there really much difference between Singer’s fateful conversation with Kim Ng and the myriad activities of Tony Bernazard? Yes, in Singer’s case, the main issue was one of racial insensitivity. But it was similar to the current situation because it was also a glaring embarrassment for the entire organization. And now that the story is out there, it doesn’t matter what the Mets find out as a result of their “investigation” — the court of public opinion has already made their decision, and the rest of baseball is laughing at the three-ring circus that is the New York Mets.

In many ways, in fact, this situation is worse. Singer’s act was isolated. It was incredibly stupid and insensitive, but it didn’t really affect the team directly. And it didn’t necessarily reflect the attitude or activities of the organization. The response to Singer’s case was more, “wow, how could the Mets hire this guy? He’s an idiot”. Whereas today, there are many questionable acts linked to Bernazard. It’s not an isolated incident, but the way he regularly conducts himself. The mocking now is “wow, how could the Mets let this guy inflitrate their organization? how could they give a guy like this so much power? what has he done that we haven’t heard about? maybe this is the reason the Mets are in a shambles.”

In the end, Singer had very little impact on the Mets, and the incident in Arizona was forgotten quickly enough. Bernazard, though, has been a major factor in the organization for several years. The sooner the Mets act, the sooner they can get on the road away from mockery and disrespect. And it’s gonna take a while.

(Side note to the Singer story — one of the candidates to replace him at the time was Theo Epstein. How might that move have changed Mets history?)

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Mets Game 94: Loss to Nationals

Posted on July 22, 2009 by Joe Janish

Nationals 3 Mets 1

Trying to think of a descriptor for this game … hmm … uninspiring … lifeless… tedious .. lackluster …

How about: VAPID.

The Mets lost a game and a series to MLB’s worst team. The worst team in baseball by a longshot. Perhaps the motivation was to help prevent the Nats from erasing the 1962 Mets from the record book?

Mike Pelfrey pitched fairly well — but, well enough to lose. He spun seven innings for the third time this month, and held the mighty Nats to three runs on six hits and two walks. A solid outing, for sure. His main mistake was a hanging slider that Josh Willingham pelted into the left field seats.

But the offense was completely mesmerized by Craig Stammen and the Washington bullpen, collecting just four hits. One of them was a triple by Angel Pagan, and Pagan scored the lone Mets run when the relay throw to third got past Ryan Zimmerman. Other than that one play, the Mets appeared to be sleepwalking through the evening.

Notes

We can only guess that the Tony Bernazard situation had something to do with the Mets’ indifference. Listening to Omar Minaya’s “handling” of the debacle was nearly as distressing. The entire day and evening was a complete embarrassment for the organization. Just when you thought they couldn’t sink any lower …

As previously mentioned, Pelf has gone 7 innings or more in three of his five starts this month. However, in the other two starts, he’s pitched 7 innings combined.

Three of the Mets’ four hits were for extra bases. In addition to Pagan’s quadruple, Fernando Tatis and Jeremy Reed each ripped doubles.

Cory Sullivan batted sixth and Angel Berroa seventh. I kept waiting to see Gerald “Ice” Williams or Rey Sanchez walk up to the plate.

Next Mets Game

We fans are given a reprieve to discover other forms of entertainment on Thursday, as the Mets have a day off before dragging their sorry selves into Houston for a three-game series with the Astros. Game one on Friday night begins at 8:05 PM EST. Johan Santana faces his old organization against former Met Mike Hampton.

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Steven Matz Update

Posted on July 22, 2009 by Joe Janish

steven-matz-melvilleThe update on Mets’ top draft pick Steven Matz is … that there is no update.

Matz, selected in the second round and #72 overall, has reported to freshmen orientation at Coastal Carolina, still waiting to receive an offer from the Mets.

Before you get yourself into a tizzy wondering about the holdup, it’s likely because Matz is seeking a $1.1M signing bonus, which would be above the “recommended” bonus for second-round picks — and MLB is holding up all current contract offers that are “above slot”. For legal reasons, there’s nothing truly “official” about the slotting system, but for whatever reason, Commissioner Bud Selig is able to prevent above-slot contracts from being signed before August. Don’t ask me how or why, as none of this slotting business makes sense to me. All I know for sure is that the Mets have historically followed Selig’s rules to the letter. How this helps them, I’m not sure … maybe it gets Fred Wilpon an invite to Bud’s annual yacht party.

Outside of Matz, the Mets have signed 29 of their 39 picks thus far, which is a good amount. They have until August 17th to sign any players eligible for college classes.

One of those signees, lefthanded-hitting outfielder Nicholas Santomauro has gotten off to a nice start with the Brooklyn Cyclones, with 20 total bases in his first 18 games as a pro. He went 3-for-4 with a triple two nights ago against the Vermont Lake Monsters. I mention him because he’s a local boy — from North Caldwell, NJ, by way of Dartmouth (where he was Ivy League Player of the Year). Good luck, Nick!

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