Studious Metsimus

Where Have All The Shea Stadium Players Gone?

2012-02-11T12:40:00.000-05:00

Since late July, the Mets have parted ways with several players. First, it was Carlos Beltran leaving his heart in New York to go to San Francisco. Then Jose Reyes decided to take the money and run the basepaths in Miami. Soon after, Angel Pagan flapped his wings to the Bay Area. Even Nick Evans took the job security by signing in Pittsburgh.

What do all these players have in common, including the too-good-for-Triple-A, too-blah-for-the-major-leagues Nick Evans? All four of them played for the Mets at Shea Stadium.

With the departure of Beltran, Reyes, Pagan and Evans, the Mets are now left with only six players who played home games at Shea Stadium. The current longest tenured Met, David Wright, played his first five seasons at Shea. Meanwhile, Mike Pelfrey came aboard for cups of coffee in 2006 and 2007, followed by his first full season during Shea's last year.

The short list of Shea players also includes Johan Santana, Daniel Murphy, Jonathon Niese and Bobby Parnell. All four made it just in time for Shea's farewell season, but only Santana was on the team for the entire season. Murphy played his first game at Shea in August 2008, while Niese waited until mid-September and Parnell almost didn't make it in time, not appearing in a game at Shea until the ballpark's final homestand.

There was once another New York team whose stadium was razed. You might have heard about them. They played their home games at 55 Sullivan Place. Still doesn't ring a bell? Well, I'm sure the patriarch of the Wilpon family will be more than happy to tell you about them in great detail.

Forget "Where's Waldo?". Let's play "Where's Wilpon?". You know he's somewhere in this photo.

In 1957, the Brooklyn Dodgers left Kings County to move to Los Angeles. As late as 1966, there were still five players who played home games at Ebbets Field toiling for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Those players (Jim Gilliam, John Roseboro, Don Drysdale, Johnny Podres and some guy named Koufax) all remained with the team long after they switched coasts, with Roseboro remaining a Dodger until 1967 and Drysdale playing his final game in Los Angeles in 1969.

In addition, one former Brooklyn Dodger was still playing in the major leagues into the 1970s, finishing his career as a New York Met. Bob Aspromonte played one game for the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1956, then returned to the Dodgers for parts of two seasons in 1960 and 1961. In 1971, he became the last former Brooklyn Dodger to play in the major leagues, playing 104 games at third base for the Mets.

Although Bob Aspromonte might be the answer to the trivia question, "who was the final Brooklyn Dodger to play in the major leagues?", to Mets fans, he's known as one of the reasons the team felt the need to trade away Nolan Ryan.

Aspromonte's poor season at the plate in 1971 (.225, 5 HR, 33 RBI), along with the lack of development by third-year player Wayne Garrett, led the Mets to search elsewhere for a third baseman who could hit for average and power. Their search ended with shortstop (not third baseman) Jim Fregosi, at the cost of Nolan Ryan. Fregosi's time as a productive hitter pretty much ended there as well, as did the career of the last Brooklyn Dodger.

Johan Santana was the last Mets pitcher to record a win at Shea Stadium. Now he's left to wonder if he'll also be the final current Met to have played his home games there.

With his recent injury history, Johan Santana is doubtful to be a Met after his current contract expires in 2013 (although there is a club option for 2014). Similarly, David Wright is only under team control until next year. If Mike Pelfrey doesn't return to form, he might be writing his ticket out of New York as well.

Do you see where this is going? There is a real possibility that within six or seven years of Shea Stadium's final game, there might be no one left on the Mets who could say they were there when we all Shea'd Goodbye.

Nearly a decade after Ebbets Field closed for good, several former Brooklyn players still had "Dodgers" emblazoned on their chests. Less than half a decade after Shea shut down, the number of players who could call it home is dwindling to a precious few.

Where have all the Shea Stadium players gone? If things don't change, there will be none left very soon.

What Do Jeremy Lin And Jon Niese Have In Common?

2012-02-10T22:50:00.000-05:00

What do Knicks' starting point guard Jeremy Lin and Mets' starting pitcher Jonathon Niese have in common? Let's see. They're not the same age, as Lin was born in 1988 and Niese's mom got over her pregnancy on the night the Mets won the 1986 World Series. They're also not the same height, as Niese is one inch taller than Lin. Jeremy Lin is a righty, while Jonathon Niese is a lefty. Okay, so what do they have in common then?

The answer is NOTHING! But they should have something in common, even though the Mets aren't exactly doing anything about it.

Earlier today, Madison Square Garden and other sporting goods stores started selling Jeremy Lin jerseys. This comes after Lin's recent stretch of excellence in which he's carried the Knicks to four consecutive wins, including Friday night's game against the Lakers. Let me remind you that these four straight victories are the only four games Lin has started for the Knicks. But despite the tiny résumé, Lin is now having his jersey sold at the Garden.

There is no truth to the rumor that the Knicks will retire No. 17 for their floor captain before the Mets retire No. 17 for their first captain. Of course, that could always change.

That brings us to Jonathon Niese. Niese will be entering his fifth season as a Met, his third as a regular member of the starting rotation. He is one of only six players left on the Mets who played for the team at Shea Stadium (the others being David Wright, Mike Pelfrey, Johan Santana, Bobby Parnell and Daniel Murphy).

Niese made his final start for the Mets in 2011 on August 23 before missing the rest of the season with an injured ribcage. At the time of his injury, Niese was leading the team in wins (11 - tied with Dillon Gee) and strikeouts (138). Eventually, he was surpassed in wins by Gee and strikeouts by Chris Capuano, but still finished second on the team in both categories.

Although Niese is only 25, he is already 43th on the Mets' all-time wins list and 39th in strikeouts. With a healthy season in 2012, Niese could jump into the top 25 in both categories. He's already in the top ten in strikeouts per nine innings, as his 7.6 K/9 IP is the eighth best ratio in franchise history, ahead of such stars as Tom Seaver (7.5 K/9 IP) and Johan Santana (7.4 K/9 IP). He's also improved every year in strikeout to walk ratio, from 1.38 K/BB in 2008 to a career-best 3.14 K/BB in 2011.

And of course, on the individual game front, Niese came within one Chris Denorfia double of pitching a perfect game in 2010. Perhaps had he retired Denorfia, we would have had Jonathon Niese No. 49 jerseys printed up immediately. But alas, he did not. We're still waiting for those No. 49 jerseys.

Since Jason Bay became a Met in 2010, I've seen No. 44 jerseys and T-shirts for sale at Citi Field. The one place I haven't seen them is on the backs of Mets fans. Meanwhile, Justin Turner, a player who wasn't even a homegrown Met, had his No. 2 T-shirt for sale at Citi Field. Even Sandy Koufax, who never played for the Mets, and whose 9-10 career mark as a Brooklyn Dodger (the same record Jonathon Niese had for the Mets in 2010) was less than extraordinary, had a replica jersey for sale at Citi Field last year.

Do you think Fred Wilpon wears these to bed at night?

Jose Reyes is gone. So are Francisco Rodriguez, Carlos Beltran and Angel Pagan. All four players had their merchandise for sale at Citi Field in 2011. With their departures, there will now be some real estate available at the Team Stores.

It's time for Jonathon Niese No. 49 apparel to go on sale at Citi Field. If Knicks fans can proudly wear No. 17 Jeremy Lin jerseys after only four starts, why can't Mets fans do the same for Niese, a homegrown player who's been with the team since 2008? Lin and Niese need something in common, don't you think?

Never Mind Santana's Arm; The Mets Need His Bat!

2012-02-10T19:08:00.000-05:00

Here's a bit of trivia for you. There are six pitchers in Mets history who hit at least 10 doubles during their tenure in Flushing. Can you name them?

Well, five of the six had long careers in New York. The club's all-time leader in doubles by a pitcher is Ron Darling, who collected 20 two-base hits in nine seasons as a Met (but somehow, all he remembers are his home runs in back-to-back games in 1989). Next up are Tom Seaver (17 doubles in 12 seasons), Dwight Gooden (15 doubles in 11 seasons), Sid Fernandez (14 doubles in 10 seasons) and Jerry Koosman (12 doubles in 12 seasons). But right behind all of them with 11 two-baggers is a guy who's only been a Met for four seasons and one of them was spent entirely on the disabled list.

From 2008 to 2010, Johan Santana collected 11 doubles in 182 at-bats, am impressive feat for a player who had spent his entire career in the American League prior to joining the Mets in 2008. That's as many doubles as Willie Randolph hit as a Met in 286 at-bats. Even Jason Bay, who is paid to be a big-time hitter, needed 360 at-bats to reach 11 doubles in 2011.

Santana has averaged a double every 16.5 at bats as a Met. Let's compare that to the top ten doubles leaders in Mets history:

David Wright: 281 doubles in 4,161 at-bats (14.8 AB/double)
Ed Kranepool: 225 doubles in 5,436 at-bats (24.2 AB/double)
Jose Reyes: 222 doubles in 4,453 at-bats (20.1 AB/double)
Howard Johnson: 214 doubles in 3,968 at-bats (18.5 AB/double)
Edgardo Alfonzo: 212 doubles in 3,897 at-bats (18.4 AB/double)
Carlos Beltran: 208 doubles in 3,133 at-bats (15.1 AB/double)
Mike Piazza: 193 doubles in 3,478 at-bats (18.0 AB/double)
Darryl Strawberry: 187 doubles in 3,903 at-bats (20.9 AB/double)
Cleon Jones: 182 doubles in 4,223 at-bats (23.2 AB/double)
Mookie Wilson : 170 doubles in 4,027 at-bats (23.7 AB/double)

As you can see, only David Wright and Carlos Beltran had a better doubles per at-bat ratio than Johan Santana, and their ratio isn't that much better than Santana's.

There are two Hall of Famers who hit fewer doubles while they were on the Mets than John Santana. Duke Snider hit eight doubles as a Met in 354 at-bats and Richie Ashburn hit seven doubles in 389 at-bats. Did I mention that both Snider and Ashburn were All-Stars as Mets despite their lack of two-base hits?

Mike Hampton was considered by many to be one of the best hitting pitchers of his generation. But in his one season as a Met, he did not collect a single extra-base hit, despite his .274 batting average.

Johan Santana spent the entire 2011 season on the disabled list. Obviously, the Mets missed him on the mound. But looking at his career numbers, they might have missed him more at the plate. Without question, Johan Santana not being available is double trouble for the Mets. And I do mean double.

The Mets Weren't Alone In Finishing '86 On A High Note

2012-02-09T19:35:00.000-05:00

During his ten years in the major leagues, Dennis "Oil Can" Boyd was never one to keep his mouth shut about anything. But there was one thing he kept mum about over the past quarter century. Until now.

In an interview with Jon ("I'm not the one who says Bel-TRON") Miller of WBZ radio in Boston, Boyd admitted that he pitched under the influence of cocaine in every ballpark. In addition to the revelation about his rampant drug use, Boyd offered the following oily nuggets:

"Some of the best games that I've ever, ever pitched in the major leagues, I stayed up all night. I'd say two-thirds of them. And if I had went to bed, I would have won 150 ballgames in the time span that I played. I felt like my career was cut short for a lot of reasons."

"If I wasn't outspoken and so-called 'a proud, proud black man', maybe I would have got empathy and sympathy like other ballplayers got that I didn't get; like a Darryl Strawberry or Dwight Gooden, Steve Howe. I can name 50 people that got third and fourth chances all because they weren't outspoken black individuals."

So let me get this straight. "Oil Can" Boyd, who was supposed to start Game 7 of the 1986 World Series against the Mets until the game was postponed and pushed back a day, felt his career was cut short for many reasons. I can give him a good reason why he threw his final pitch in the major leagues before his 32nd birthday. How about this?

He was high on cocaine!

"Oil Can" Boyd wasn't always high, as evidenced by this photograph during the 1986 World Series. Getting knocked around for four first-inning runs in your first World Series start will do that to you.

After Boyd was replaced as the Game 7 starter by Bruce Hurst (who had already been proclaimed the World Series MVP before the Mets mounted their improbable rally in Game 6), his next three seasons weren't exactly something to sniff your nose at.

From 1987 to 1989, Boyd combined to go 13-12 in 40 starts with a 5.19 ERA. Boyd did recover to go 10-6 with a 2.93 ERA in 1990 as a member of the Montreal Expos, but stumbled mightily in 1991. In his final year in the majors, Boyd went 8-15 for Les Expos and the Texas Rangers. In 12 starts for the Rangers, Boyd went 2-7 and posted a 6.68 ERA. Everything is supposedly bigger in Texas. Perhaps that explains why Boyd was such a big flop in Arlington. Or perhaps it was his sleep deprivation and the rolled up 20s he kept leaving behind in hotel bathrooms.

Now, about the excuse about not getting empathy, sympathy and any other "pathy" there is to get. Boyd was quoted as saying that because he was an outspoken black individual, he didn't get multiple chances the way rehab regulars Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden and Steve Howe got. Um, I hate to say it to you, "Oil Can", but that certain former Mets rightfielder you mentioned wasn't exactly Sherman Shushypants. And the last time I checked, he appeared to be African-American. Just sayin'.

Cocaine is not something to be proud of and I'm sure "Oil Can" Boyd wishes he had done things a little differently when he was a player. But to come out 25 years later and make claims like the ones he's making not only don't make anyone feel sympathetic towards him, but in some cases, might make people dislike him more than when he was an active major leaguer.

Maybe "Oil Can" Boyd would have done better if he would just stop making excuses for everything he caused to himself. When he finally learns to take the blame for his actions, perhaps he'll see things for what they really are. Until then, I'm sure he'll sell plenty of books on the topic.

Editor's note: "They Call Me Oil Can: My Life In Baseball" will be released in June. How convenient that he's discussing his past drug use now when his autobiography is about to be released.

Joey's Soapbox: The Calm Before The Storm

2012-02-08T19:14:00.002-05:00

Have you noticed that I’ve stayed silent about the Mets in 2012? Ihaven’t climbed on my soapbox in over a month. Why haven’t I gone on achicken nacho-fueled rant in some time? The answer is simple, really.

Shhhh. Be vewwy, vewwy quiet. The Wilpons are hunting wabbits. Or at least it seems as if that's what they're doing.

Things have been very quiet around Citi Field this offseason. Otherthan a brief flurry of activity at the Winter Meetings to solidify thebullpen and the continuation of the OWS movement (Operation Whittling Salary) by replacingAngel Pagan with Andres Torres, the Mets have not added many players tothe team that succeeded in furthering the tradition of fourth placefinishes in Flushing.

Instead, they’re going by the time honoredtradition (and by time honored, I mean since 2009) of adding playersfrom within. These players are the ones coming off injury-shortenedseasons or seasons in which they didn’t take the field in a game at all.

Every player scheduled to start in the infield in 2012 did not playfull seasons in New York. First baseman Ike Davis missed the rest ofthe season after playing footsie with David Wright at Coors Field inMay. Second baseman Daniel Murphy might have competed with Jose Reyesfor the National League batting title had he not been spiked whiletrying to lay a tag on the Braves' Jose Constanza. Third basemanDavid Wright injured his back against the Astros and missed two months. At least shortstop Ruben Tejada didn’t get hurt. But he did start the2011 season fielding grounders hit by minor leaguers in Buffalo.

The starting rotation is also counting on the walking wounded from 2011to make a triumphant return in 2012. The last time Johan Santanapitched in a major league game, the Texas Rangers were still in searchof their first American League pennant. Jonathon Niese is alsoattempting to pitch an entire season without checking in to the DLHotel. Both pitchers expect to be on the mound during the Mets’ firsthomestand in April.

With David Wright entering the final guaranteed year of the contract hesigned an eternity ago (2006 is an eternity to Mets fans such as myselfwho have memories, however faint, of a time when the team was alegitimate contender), he should have a bounceback campaign in 2012. Maybe.

Daniel Murphy could resume doubling opponents to death (Murphy hit 28 doubles in only 391 at-bats before suffering his season-ending injury), assuminghis defense at second base doesn’t send him back to the bench.

And what about Jason Bay? (Thought I had forgotten about him, didn’tyou?) The walls at Citi Field have been lowered and moved in. But howwill that help him on the road, where he hit .215 with only seven doubles, six homers and 28 RBI in 2011? In addition, with Reyes (39 steals) and Pagan (32 steals) gone,is Bay going to have the added responsibility of being one of the topbase stealers on the team? He’s quietly reached double digits insteals in each of his two seasons as a Met. Who else is going to stealbases on the team besides David Wright (13 steals in 2011) and AndresTorres (19 steals as a Giant in 2011)?

Is this a celebration for a two-run homer or a double steal? In 2012, it could be both.

Despite all the injuries that have beset the Mets since they movedacross the parking lot to Citi Field, they’ve still managed to win atleast 70 games in each of the last three seasons and have averaged 78wins over the last two campaigns. That may not seem like much, butthink of all the walk-off losses created by the shaky bullpen, theballs that clanged off the former Great Wall of Flushing instead ofgoing over it, not to mention all the (you know it’s coming) INJURIES! Surely, this team can find a way to add four wins to what they’veaveraged over the past two years, right? If they do, that would givethem 82 wins. And what does 82 wins give you? A WINNING RECORD!

It may be easier said than done, but why can’t the 2012 Mets win 82games? Sure, it seems as if every team in the National League Eastimproved by leaps and bounds. But remember that just seven years ago,the Washington Nationals played in an über-competitive NL East. TheBraves won their 14^th consecutive division title with 90wins. The Phillies and Mets were up-and-coming teams who were on theirway to becoming the rivals they were over the next three seasons. Eventhe Marlins finished with a winning record and were just two yearsremoved from their second World Series championship. Despite all theintense competition in the division, the little team that could inWashington still managed to win 81 games.

It’s not impossible for the Mets to finish with a winning record in2012. They just have to be consistent and play the game. All teams gothrough their share of injuries and cold streaks. But it’s the goodteams that find a way to overcome those obstacles. Right now, the Metsare not a great team. They don’t have the personnel to pose alegitimate threat to the Phillies in the NL East. But why can’t theybe a good team?

Eighty-two wins. That’s all the Mets need to be a winning team. The2005 Mets won 83 games after finishing with losing records in each oftheir previous three seasons. The following year, they were one winaway from the World Series. This year’s Mets are also coming off threeconsecutive losing campaigns. I’m not crazy enough to assume thatwinning 82 games this year will push the Mets near a pennant in 2013. But it would be a step in the right direction.

There are many question marks surrounding the 2012 Mets. Will theinfield be able to stay together for a full season without succumbingto the injury bug? Will Jason Bay realize that it’s okay to hit a ballover the wall every once in a while? Will Ruben Tejada, Lucas Duda andDillon Gee - all members of the 2011 Buffalo Bisons’ Opening Day roster - be able to continuetheir development now that they’re assured a spot on this year’s majorleague roster? And then there’s the Johan Santana question…

All teams have question marks. Although the front office was mostlyquiet this offseason, some questions have been answered, particularlyin the bullpen. Now it’s up to the players to provide the otheranswers, or else the quiet offseason will lead to a quiet summer atCiti Field. Oh, well. At least the line for chicken nachos won't be very long if that happens.

One Season Wonders: Joe Christopher

2012-02-06T09:23:00.000-05:00

When the New York Giants and Brooklyn Dodgers packed their bags for California after the 1957 season, the New York metropolitan area was left without National League baseball for the first time since 1882, the year before the New York Gothams (who later became the Giants) played their inaugural campaign.

Three years after the defection of the Giants and Dodgers to the West Coast, New York was given a new National League team. Along with the Houston Colt .45s, the New York Metropolitan Baseball Club (or Mets, for short) would be part of the first wave of expansion in the National League. Naturally, both the Colt .45s and the Mets would need to stock up their major league rosters with players, so in 1961, a special expansion draft was held.

Former Brooklyn Dodger great (and future legendary manager) Gil Hodges was selected seventh by the Mets in the draft, two spots after another former World Series champion. That fifth pick was a part-time player with the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1959 to 1961, appearing in three games for the Bucs in the 1960 World Series. In his sole plate appearance in the Fall Classic (he appeared as a pinch-runner in the other two games), he was hit by a pitch. Of course, that made him a perfect candidate to be on the Mets.

Who was the player with a 1.000 career World Series on-base percentage who the Mets felt should be drafted before local hero Gil Hodges? None other than outfielder Joe Christopher.

Joe Christopher, the man who was four picks behind Hobie Landrith in the expansion draft.

Joseph O'Neal Christopher was never much of a power threat in the minors, hitting a total of 24 home runs at various minor league levels from 1955 to 1960. As a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates, he displayed even less of an ability to take the opposing pitcher deep, or to get anything other than a single. In 254 at-bats as a Pirate, Christopher collected a mere 13 extra-base hits, of which only one was a home run.

As an original Met in 1962, Christopher more than doubled his career at-bat total, but was still considered a singles hitter, picking up 18 extra-base hits in 271 at-bats for the fledgling Mets. Although his home run total went up to six, his batting average left a lot to be desired, as Christopher hit .244 in 1962, the same average he compiled in three seasons as a Pirate.

As a result, Christopher began the 1963 season in the minor leagues with the AAA-Buffalo Bisons, hoping to play his way back to the Polo Grounds. That extra seasoning in the minor leagues awakened Christopher's power stroke, as he swatted 19 HR in 85 games with the Bisons, earning a July call-up to the Mets. Alas, his minor league power did not translate well at the big league level, as Christopher only hit .221 with seven extra-base hits (one homer) in 64 games with the Mets.

It appeared as if Joe Christopher was never going to become a great hitter in the major leagues. But the Mets were about to christen a new ballpark in Flushing in 1964. The opening of Shea Stadium awakened the Mets fanbase, as attendance nearly doubled once the team moved from the Polo Grounds to their new stadium. The fans weren't the only ones awakened by the move. Joe Christopher was awakened as well and National League outfielders soon found out that they would have to position themselves just a little bit deeper whenever he came to bat.

Joe Christopher wore his Mets jacket to hide his budding power from opponents.

After beginning the 1963 season in the minors, Joe Christopher was part of the Opening Day lineup in 1964. It didn't take long for Christopher to prove that he belonged in the major leagues, as his fourth inning home run against the Phillies provided the Mets with their first run of the new season. Of course, this was before 1970, so the Mets lost their opener, 5-3, on the way to losing their first four games.

The Mets finally broke through in the win column in their fifth game, shutting out the Pirates, 6-0. Of course, Joe Christopher was the offensive star of the game, reaching base in each of his four plate appearances. Christopher singled, doubled, walked and was hit by a pitch. He also scored two runs and stole a base.

Although Christopher was hitting .308 through the Mets' first 26 games, his Opening Day home run was still his only homer of the year. Furthermore, he had only driven in three runs. That all changed on May 14, when Christopher's power and run-production finally emerged from its month-long slumber.

From May 14 to the end of the month, Christopher batted .338 and had an impressive .493 slugging percentage. In 19 games, he banged out three doubles, one triple and two home runs, but what was most impressive was his 14 RBI during the 2½ week stretch, a stretch that culminated with one of the most memorable games in Mets history.

On May 31, the Mets were scheduled to play a doubleheader with the San Francisco Giants at Shea Stadium. The Mets lost the first game, with Joe Christopher going 1-for-4 with a run scored. But in the nightcap (and we do mean nightcap), the Mets and Giants played for 7 hours and 23 minutes (still a National League record for longest game by time) before the Giants won the game in the 23rd inning. However, had it not been for Joe Christopher's bat, the game might never have gone into extra innings.

The Mets fell behind early, trailing the Giants by five runs after three innings. But after scoring two runs in the sixth, Joe Christopher hit a game-tying three-run homer with two outs in the seventh. It was one of four hits by Christopher in the game, who also scored two runs and drove in three in the 8-6 loss to the Giants.

Even after a 23-inning loss, Joe Christopher still had reason to smile. He was having a great season.

Joe Christopher's power came out in full force as summer arrived. Although his batting average took a tumble in June, going down to a season-low .280 (well, not quite - he was actually hitting .250 after beginning the season with one hit in his first four at-bats), he had a tremendous month with power and run production. In the month of June, Christopher hit six homers and drove in 19 runs.

His mini-slump in the batting average department probably cost Christopher a spot on the National League All-Star team. By the break, Christopher's batting average was down to .277 even though his other numbers (.438 slugging percentage, 9 HR, 36 RBI, 32 runs scored) were all All-Star-worthy in this pitching-rich era. Although Christopher was denied the opportunity to play in the only Midsummer Classic played at Shea Stadium (that honor went to Ron Hunt, who only had three home runs and 22 RBI at the break, but was hitting .311), he used his snub as motivation to have an even better second half. And what a second half it was.

In his first 19 games after the break, Christopher hit .377, with six doubles, a homer and 13 RBI. Then, from August 7 to August 18, Christopher went on an absolute tear. Over the 11-game stretch, Christopher hit .477 (21-for-44). But what was most impressive was how the extra-base hits just kept on coming. Christopher banged out seven doubles, two triples and three homers over the nearly two-week period, scoring 11 runs and driving in nine more. The final game of the hot streak, in which Christopher went 4-for-5 with a double, two triples and a homer, coincided with the Mets' longest winning streak of the year, a five-game skein that matched the franchise's longest in their short history.

The Mets weren't going anywhere in 1964, other than another last place finish. But Christopher kept on hitting even after the Mets were officially eliminated from contention in the 10-team National League. From August 28 to September 18, Christopher hit .315 and had a .534 slugging percentage, rapping out nine extra-base hits, crossing the plate 12 times while picking up a dozen RBIs. At season's end, Christopher's numbers were far better than anything he had accomplished before.

For the year, Christopher hit an even .300, with 26 doubles, eight triples, 16 HR, 76 RBI and 78 runs scored. He became the first player in Mets history with at least 500 at-bats to bat .300 over a full season. Christopher also set franchise records for base hits (163) and runs scored (78). Prior to 1964, Christopher had played parts of five seasons in the major leagues, accumulating 674 at-bats for the Pirates and Mets. Over those five seasons, he had hit .239 with 24 doubles, six triples, eight home runs and 57 RBI. He surpassed all of those numbers in 1964 alone.

Joe Christopher was the first Shea superstar, but his star fizzled almost as fast as it rose.

Unfortunately, Christopher could not produce a similar campaign after 1964. The following season, Christopher played in 148 games, but was only able to hit .249 with 18 doubles, three triples, five homers and 40 RBI. His slugging percentage also went down from .466 to .339. Figuring he was done, the Mets traded Christopher to the Boston Red Sox after the 1965 season for utility infielder Eddie Bressoud. Bressoud only played one year in New York, batting .225 with 10 HR and 49 RBI before being shipped off to St. Louis.

Christopher only collected one hit as a member of the Boston Red Sox in 1966 before being traded to the Detroit Tigers. For the next two and a half seasons, Christopher bounced around from team to team, playing for the minor league affiliates of the Tigers, Braves, Cardinals, Pirates and Phillies. He never played in the major leagues again.

Joe Christopher was one of the first players the Mets drafted to play for the team in their inaugural 1962 season. It took him three seasons, but he finally had his breakout year in 1964, albeit for a 109-loss team. One year later, the promise Christopher showed as a 28-year-old was all but gone and by the time he was 30, he was out of the major leagues. Joe Christopher was a true one-season wonder for the Mets, but for that one year, he gave the fans who packed into the newly-opened Shea Stadium something to cheer about. It was a welcome change for a team whose only "star" had been their septuagenarian manager.

Note: One Season Wonders is a thirteen-part weekly series spotlighting those Mets who had one and only one memorable season in New York. For previous installments, please click on the players' names below:

January 2, 2012: Bernard Gilkey
January 9, 2012: Terry Leach
January 16, 2012: George Stone
January 23, 2012: Roger Cedeño
January 30, 2012: Frank Viola

ESPN Writer Jokes On The Mets In A Super Bowl Article

2012-02-05T10:46:00.000-05:00

Today is Super Bowl Sunday, a day in which thoughts of the traditional national pastime are temporarily put aside for the current national pastime. In today's matchup, the New England Patriots will be taking on the New York Giants in a much-anticipated rematch of Super Bowl XLII.

Everywhere you turn to, sports writers and bloggers are covering a certain angle of the game. From Victor Cruz's penchant for salsa dancing to Tom Brady's overrated good looks to Madonna's halftime show, there is no shortage of material for writers to cover. So tell me, Mets fans. Why did one particular writer use his Super Bowl article to make a joke about the Mets?

In an article posted to espn.com this morning, Jerry Greene touched upon a gamut of topics from Wing Bowl XX (won by Takeru Kobayashi - who I guess has gotten over his three losses to Carlos Beltran in the fictional Wiener War) to chicken plucking to the actual Super Bowl itself. However, it was a paragraph near the end of his article that caught my attention.

A few paragraphs before his Super Bowl prediction (he picks the Pats to win by two touchdowns), he provides a link to an article by Drew Davison of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Never mind the fact that he misspelled Davison's name (Greene spelled it Davidson). What was truly offensive was his little rip on the Mets at the end of the paragraph. In discussing Davison's article about which five teams had the best offseasons and which five had the poorest, Greene says:

"Hey, Mets fans, which list do you think you're on?"

So nice that a fan of chicken plucking found it in him to add his two cents and a plucked feather about the state of the Mets in his Super Bowl article. We all know the Mets had a poor offseason. So did the Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics and Houston Astros, according to Davison's well-written article (a writer Greene can learn a thing or two from). But of course, he chooses to single out the Mets in his weak attempt at humor.

We get it. It's fun to rip on the Mets when they're doing poorly. Even I, a die-hard Mets fan, do it on this site. (Ask me about my disdain for Joe Orsulak one day. It's a doozy of a story.) But to do it in an article that's supposed to be about football on the most sacred day in all of sports, Super Bowl Sunday? That's just a little overboard.

Super Bowl Sunday is the one day of the year that it's okay not to think about baseball. The day should be all about football and all the trimmings that go with it (like the chicken wings that Takeru Kobayashi enjoys so much). It's not a time to make jokes at the Mets' expense. Jerry Greene can go pluck himself for all I care. But then again, a kick through his uprights would probably do the trick just as well.

The Cut Seen 'Round The World

2012-02-04T15:58:00.000-05:00

With a few weeks remaining before pitchers and catchers report to Late Winter Training, I was hoping to catch some baseball news on the MLB Network at 6 PM last night. After an offseason filled with NL East teams making moves to help their teams (Phillies signed Jonathan Papelbon, Nationals acquired Gio Gonzalez and Edwin Jackson, Marlins picked up a player or twelve), I was hoping to get some Mets news on the baseball cable network. Instead, I got this:

That's right, Mets fans. The MLB Network was showing a live broadcast of Jose Reyes getting his hair cut. Now, granted, he is donating his locks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, who will in turn auction them off on eBay, but did we really need to see it on live TV?

Did the MLB Network not have anything else to report? Were they all out of countdown shows? Didn't they want to show Hot Stove or Clubhouse Confidential for the umpteenth time? That's what I was tuning in for.

No. They thought it would make for good television to have Jose Reyes comply with Marlins' team policy by getting his hair cut. Other players, such as Johnny Damon and Jason Giambi, have gotten their long locks shorn when they moved to a team that forbade them. Furthermore, numerous athletes have donated their hair to charitable foundations in the past as well.

But I guess anytime a star athlete takes his talents to Miami, a big television event has to come out of it. First, it was LeBron James and "The Decision". Now, it's Jose Reyes and "The Haircut". What's next? A guest spot on CSI: Miami? Will Jose Reyes be the next killer to torment the officers of Miami Metro on Dexter?

Personally, I'm waiting for Reyes to take Guy Fieri on a tour of his favorite new restaurants in Miami, looking for the perfect mofongo or mangú on a special episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. Hey, if Don Larsen - the author of the only perfect game in World Series history - could appear on Triple D, why can't Reyes?

Blue background. Orange cape. So nice of MLB to remind us that Jose Reyes is no longer a Met.

I commend Jose Reyes on using his hair for a good cause. That's not the point of my rant. The point is, why did the MLB Network feel that baseball fans needed to see this on live television? Did they have a post-cut interview with the guy hired to sweep the floor? Was there an over-under on how many dreads would be cut?

Those are just some of the silly questions I can think of regarding this live show. The silliest question of all is probably why the programming directors at MLB thought this would make for compelling television. The Cut Seen 'Round The World should have been cut from our television sets. Even the dozens of Marlins fans would have to agree with that.

Pat Burrell Retires: Who Will Be The New Met Killer?

2012-02-01T22:16:00.000-05:00

There have been many players in history who have had good careers but turned it up a notch whenever they played the Mets. For example, former Giants pitcher Mike Krukow had a decent career in the major leagues, going 124-117 in 14 seasons. However, against the Mets, he pitched like Cy Young, going 22-7. Krukow did not defeat any other team in the National League more than 13 times. And who can forget the quiet dominance of PSSST (otherwise known as the Pitching School of Smiley, Smith and Tomlin)?

In the early '90s, the Pirates' trio of John Smiley, Zane Smith and Randy Tomlin were mediocre to poor against all other teams that didn't have blue and orange in their color scheme, but they morphed into Greg Maddux (the all-time leader in wins against the Mets) whenever New York came to town.

Smiley, Smith and Tomlin combined to go 223-237 over their major league careers against teams that didn't have Mr. Met as their mascot. Of course, against the Mets, they were 33-19. Tomlin was the big surprise of the trio. Against the Mets, he was a perfect 9-0 in five years in the majors. He won a grand total of 21 games against everyone else (against 31 losses).

As far as hitters go, all I have to say is "La-a-a-a-rry" and you know which Met nemesis I'm referring to.

That brings us to Pat Burrell. In 12 years in the major leagues, Burrell was a decent power hitter, slugging 292 career home runs. However, against the Mets, Burrell was Babe Ruth. The former Phillie played exactly one full season's worth of games against the Mets, batting against them in 162 games. In those games, Burrell socked 42 HR. His second-favorite team to homer against was the Florida Marlins, but he only took them deep 26 times.

Earlier this week, Pat Burrell retired from baseball at the age of 35. Although there is now one less Met killer to worry about, that doesn't mean there aren't any others waiting in the wings to take over for Burrell. Here are the candidates that the Mets and their fans should worry about:

Corey Hart

The Bernie Brewer lookalike has never been more than a decent hitter in the major leagues, batting .277 in eight seasons. However, against the Mets, Hart is a .317 career hitter. Although he has only started 28 games versus the Mets, Hart has scored and driven in nearly a run per game (24 runs, 23 RBI), while launching six home runs. Hart suffered from various nagging injuries in 2011, but in 2010, he torched the Mets for four homers and 12 RBI in only seven games, which included a walk-off homer and a six-RBI game.

Troy Tulowitzki

The Mets should count their stars that Tulowitzki plays in the NL West. In 30 games, Tulo has bludgeoned Mets' pitching for a .328 average, six doubles, two triples and seven home runs. His slugging percentage against the Mets (.595) is nearly 100 points higher than his career mark (.505). And of course, despite playing half his games in the Mile High City, it was at spacious Citi Field that Tulowitzki hit four home runs in four games in 2011. He supplied the bat while his teammates brought their brooms, sweeping the four-game series in New York.

Josh Johnson

It's a good thing Johnson is an annual candidate for the disabled list, or else his record against the Mets would be far scarier than it is. In 14 starts versus New York, Johnson is 8-1 with a 2.68 ERA. As hard as it is for the Mets to score against Johnson, they find it even harder to take him deep. In 87⅓ innings against New York, Johnson has allowed a mere three home runs. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that no other team in the National League has lost to Johnson more than the Mets have. Just imagine how bad it could be if Johnson had more than 48 career victories.

Cole Hamels

Wait, what? Hamels is 3-10 against the Mets in his major league career. How could he possibly be a Met killer? It's simple, really. He's due. And if he's not, he'll find other ways to kill us. In 2010, when he realized he couldn't beat the Mets with his arm, he decided to break our hearts with his bat. His sixth-inning single against R.A. Dickey prevented the knuckleballer from recording the first no-hitter in franchise history. Dickey had to settle for a complete game one-hit shutout. One year later, another Hamels-Dickey matchup took place. This time, Dickey took a no-hitter into the seventh inning before Shane Victorino broke it up with a one-out double. Of course, Dickey received no credit for his yeoman-like effort in the 2-1 Mets victory because Hamels matched zeroes with him. Hamels might be an ass, but he always finds a way to kill the Mets, even in games where he takes the loss.

Jason Bay

As an opponent, he was a Met killer, banging out 16 extra-base hits, including 8 HR, in 32 games. He also averaged nearly an RBI per game, driving in 29 runs against the Mets. Now that he's on the team, he's finding new ways to be a Met killer. It took Bay 32 games to hit 8 HR AGAINST the Mets. It took him 113 games to hit 8 HR FOR the Mets. Let's put it this way. In two seasons, Jason Bay is still three home runs short of Richard Hidalgo's career total as a Met, and Hidalgo only played 86 games in New York. Bay killed the Mets as an opponent. He's doing the same thing as a Met.

Fred Wilpon

Duh. He's the biggest Met killer of them all. He won't sell the team. He won't break his souvenir Sandy Koufax piggy bank to improve the team. Basically, he's like Rachel Phelps, only worse. For those who are not into classic cinema, Phelps was the fictional owner of the Cleveland Indians in the film Major League. Wanting to move the team from Cleveland to Miami, she decided to put the worst players on the field so that fans wouldn't come out to see them. Why is Wilpon worse than Rachel Phelps? Because he's making the team worse but instead of moving to Miami, he just allowed his shortstop to relocate there. Of course, if he could move the team to 55 Sullivan Place in Brooklyn, that would be a different story.

Pat Burrell will no longer be terrorizing the Mets and their fans, choosing to retire rather than continuing to feast on Mets' pitching. But that doesn't mean the Mets won't have new people to fear.

The new Met killer might come from another division or might come from within the National League East. He might be a player who finds interesting ways to break our hearts or he might be a player breaking our hearts from within. He might even be president of the Sandy Koufax fan club.

Regardless, as long as the Mets take the field, there will always be someone out there who will not do much against other teams, but will use the Mets as his own personal chew toy. That's the nature of the beast. It's a shame that beast can't suit up for the Mets every once in a while to feast on another team for a change.

One Season Wonders: Frank Viola

2012-01-30T09:29:00.000-05:00

The 1989 Mets were a team in transition. After cruising to their second division title in three years in 1988, the Mets fell flat in '89. Co-captains Keith Hernandez and Gary Carter spent much of the year on the disabled list, combining to play in only 125 games. Dwight Gooden did not make a start after the All-Star Break, missing over two months of the season with a shoulder injury before returning in September to make two relief appearances.

Assistant GM Joe McIlvane was also in the process of dismantling the team that enjoyed great success from 1984 to 1988. Veterans Mookie Wilson and Lee Mazzilli became teammates in Toronto. Roger McDowell and Lenny Dykstra were shipped off to Philadelphia. Terry Leach became a Kansas City Royal. Despite all the changes in personnel, the Mets remained competitive in the NL East. At the All-Star Break, the Mets were only 2½ games out of first place, albeit with a less than spectacular 45-39 record.

But the plethora of injuries, especially the one to Gooden, were beginning to catch up to them in late July. The Mets finished the month on a seven-game losing streak, which included a three-game sweep at the hands of the division-leading Chicago Cubs. The team was also losing their patience with Rick Aguilera.

Aguilera, who was the winning pitcher in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series, had begun the year brilliantly after two poor middle relief appearances to start the season. From April 18 to June 19, Aggie had one of the most dominant stretches in Mets' history, allowing one earned run in 39 innings (0.23 ERA). Opposing batters hit .169 against him and he had a phenomenal strikeout to walk ratio, fanning 47 batters while walking only eight. It was during this stretch that the Mets started using him more in the final innings and he rewarded them by going 6-for-6 in save opportunities to go with three wins.

But then Aguilera hit a wall, one in which he never recovered from as a Met. In 14 appearances from June 20 to July 30, Aggie was brutal to watch. He blew four out of five save opportunities, lost five games and had a 4.78 ERA, while allowing opposing batters to hit just under .300 against him. By then, Randy Myers was firmly entrenched as the team's closer (a position he also held in 1988) and Aguilera was deemed expendable. The Mets were teetering close to the .500 mark and had fallen five full games behind the first place Cubs. Joe McIlvane felt a change was needed and did not hesitate when the opportunity presented itself. He needed more than just Rick Aguilera to complete the deal, but when it was completed, the Mets had themselves a former World Series champion and Cy Young Award winner in Frank Viola.

Frank Viola wore shades because he thought his future would be bright with the Mets.

The late July swoon and the need to find a suitable replacement for the injured Dwight Gooden led the Mets to make a major move at the trade deadline. On July 31, 1989, the Mets sent Rick Aguilera, minor league prospects Kevin Tapani, David West, Tim Drummond and a player to be named later (Jack Savage) to Minnesota for left-handed starter and Long Island native Frank Viola.

Frank John Viola had built quite a résumé in the Twin Cities, winning 112 games in 7½ seasons, including a 24-win season in 1988 that earned him the American League Cy Young Award. That came on the heels of the Twins' first World Series championship, a series in which Viola won two games against the St. Louis Cardinals, including the seventh and deciding game. The Mets had acquired themselves one of the best pitchers in baseball and expected Viola to turn the team around in 1989 and beyond.

Unfortunately, the Mets did not come back to win the division in 1989, finishing in second place with an 87-75 record. It was the first season since 1983 in which the Mets failed to win 90 games. Viola was only mediocre in his 12 starts for the Mets, going 5-5 with a 3.38 ERA. The man known as Sweet Music failed to deliver a division-winning concerto for the Mets in 1989. However, with the return of a healthy Dwight Gooden in 1990, Viola took the National League by storm as part of a formidable one-two punch. His renaissance started early and continued throughout the season. Before he was done, Viola found himself doing things no left-handed pitcher had ever done before in a Mets uniform.

When the Mets traded for Frank Viola in 1989, they expected to see a Cy Young-caliber performance in almost every start. They got much more than that over Viola's first seven outings in 1990. Through mid-May, Viola was off to one of the best starts in franchise history. Sweet Music started seven games and was the winning pitcher in all seven, allowing five runs in 51⅔ innings, striking out 52 batters while walking only six. Five of the seven games resulted in shutouts.

Although Viola was 7-0 to start the season, the same could not be said for the rest of the staff. After winning his seventh game on May 12, the Mets were just barely over .500 with a 16-14 record. The Mets were depending too much on Frank Viola to carry the staff while the other players got their act together. So when Viola had his first mini-slump of the season, although it was only two starts, the team completely fell apart, leading to the dismissal of their long-time manager.

No need to look so mean, Frank. It wasn't your fault that Davey Johnson got fired in 1990.

Following his scorching start, Viola cooled down. In his final two appearances in May, Viola faced the San Diego Padres both times. The Friars did as they pleased with the Met lefty, scoring 11 runs (10 earned) in 11⅓ innings off Viola, handing him the loss on each occasion. With Viola not winning, the team followed suit, losing nine of 13 games to go below .500. During this cold streak, manager Davey Johnson was fired, replaced by Buddy Harrelson. As with most managerial changes, the team responded quickly with Frank Viola leading the way.

From June 1 to the All-Star Break, Viola returned to his winning ways, going 6-1 over his next eight starts (one no-decision). In his one loss, Viola gave up seven runs in 5⅓ innings to the Pittsburgh Pirates. But in his six wins, Viola was back to making the sweet music he was creating in the early part of the season. Viola allowed five runs in 48⅔ innings in those six victories for a 0.92 ERA. In the team's final game before the All-Star Break, Viola pitched 7⅔ innings of one-run ball, improving his record to 13-3.

After losing their first game under Buddy Harrelson, the Mets had suddenly become the hottest team in the National League, going 27-9 in their final 36 games before the All-Star Break to pull to within half a game of the first place Pirates. With his 13-3 record at the break, Viola was named to the National League All-Star team for the first time, where he pitched one scoreless inning in relief.

Unfortunately, the break couldn't have come at a worse time for the Mets, as the time off killed any momentum they had gained since the beginning of June. In their first 33 games after the Midsummer Classic, the Mets were barely a winning team, going 17-16. However, the Pirates weren't exactly taking advantage of the Mets' mediocrity, going 15-16 over the same time period. The Pirates' slump catapulted the Mets into first place, but by late August, the Mets were once again behind Pittsburgh in the NL East, and this time they were four games back. Needing one more push to retake the lead in the division, the Mets called upon Frank Viola to deliver. The southpaw did all he could to carry the team on his back.

After seeing his record fall to 15-8 in mid-August, Viola turned it up a notch for the stretch run. In a six-start span from August 22 to September 15, Viola went 4-1 with a 1.69 ERA. He pitched at least eight innings in all but one of those six starts (Viola pitched seven innings in his one loss, a 2-1 defeat to the Los Angeles Dodgers) and held opponents to a .283 on-base percentage. During this stretch, the Mets retook the lead in the National League East, only to fall behind by 3½ games in early September. When Viola defeated the Phillies on September 15 for his 19th win of the season, the Mets were back to within half a game of first place. That would be the closest the Mets would come to wresting the division lead away from the Pirates, as New York went 8-9 over their final 17 games while the Pirates took 11 of their final 16 contests to win the division by four games over the Mets.

Viola would win his 20th game of the season in the season finale against the division champions, but by then, it was too late. The Pirates had won the first of three consecutive NL East titles and the Mets would go on to post six consecutive losing seasons after 1990.

Frankie V made Sweet Music throughout the entire 1990 season for the Mets.

Despite the disappointing end to the 1990 campaign, the Mets thought they would be able to count on Frank Viola for years to come. Viola finished the year with a 20-12 record and a 2.67 ERA, becoming only the fifth pitcher (and second lefty) to win 20 games in a season for the Mets. For his efforts, Viola finished third in the NL Cy Young Award vote, behind Doug Drabek and Ramon Martinez. It would be the last time Viola would taste that type of success in the major leagues.

Although Frank Viola began the 1991 season strongly, going 11-5 with a 2.78 ERA over his first 19 starts and earning his second All-Star Game selection as a Met, he was an absolute disaster over the second half of the season. From July 17 until the end of the season, Viola's music turned sour. In 16 starts, Viola went 2-10 with a 5.75 ERA, failing to pitch more than six innings in 11 of those starts. He wasn't fooling anyone at the plate, allowing 121 hits while striking out only 57 batters in 92⅓ innings.

For the season, Viola finished 13-15 with a 3.97 ERA. The most telling stat of Viola's 1991 season was his hits allowed. In 231⅓ innings, Viola surrendered 259 hits. It was the most hits allowed by a Met since Roger Craig gave up 261 safeties in 233⅓ innings during the team's inaugural 1962 campaign. To this day, Viola's figure remains the second-highest total in club history. In addition, since 1991, the only National League pitcher to give up more than 259 hits in a season has been Livan Hernandez, who accomplished the feat in 1998, 2001 and 2005. That's how bad Viola's 1991 season was, especially after the All-Star Break.

The Mets finished the 1991 season with a 75-86 record, their first losing record since 1983. That offseason, Frank Viola became a free agent. Given his poor second half in 1991, the Mets decided to go in another direction, allowing Viola to sign a three-year, $13.9 million deal with the Boston Red Sox.

Viola had a so-so season in his first year in Boston (13-12, 3.44 ERA), followed by a decent second year (11-8, 3.14 ERA). However, despite still being relatively young (age 33), Viola made only 15 more appearances in the major leagues following his second season in Boston, winning two of them. A torn ligament in his left elbow sent Viola to the disabled list for the first time in 1994 and he underwent Tommy John surgery to fix it. He ended up making six starts for Boston in 1994, three starts for Cincinnati in 1995 and six starts for Toronto in 1996, combining to go 2-5 with a 6.19 ERA before retiring at the age of 36. He finished his career with a 176-150 record and a 3.73 ERA, going 38-32 in 2½ seasons with the Mets.

It's a shame Frank Viola didn't get to go out on top of his game. He certainly was on top in 1990.

Frank Viola came to the Mets in 1989, hoping to get the team back to the heights it had reached in 1986 and 1988. In his first full season in New York, Viola became the second left-handed pitcher in club annals to win 20 games. However, he followed that up by giving up the second-most hits in franchise history in 1991. By 1992, he was no longer a Met and by 1996, he was out of baseball. Meanwhile, the players he was traded for made quite a name for themselves in the major leagues.

Rick Aguilera became a top closer in the American League, setting the Twins' career franchise record for saves (eventually surpassed by Joe Nathan in 2011). Kevin Tapani won 143 games in the major leagues, of which 75 came in Minnesota. In 1991, while Viola was giving up hit after hit for the Mets, Aguilera was tying the Twins' single-season record with 42 saves and Tapani was en route to a 16-9 record with a 2.99 ERA, helping the Twins win their second World Series championship.

The Mets wanted sweet music from Frank Viola when they acquired him in 1989. All they got was one season of greatness. However, his one spectacular season has become the last 20-win season recorded by a Mets' pitcher, as no one has won more than 17 games since 1990 (Al Leiter won 17 games for the Mets in 1998). The fact that no Met has approached 20 wins since Viola accomplished the feat in 1990 is as much a wonder as Viola's one season was.

Note: One Season Wonders is a thirteen-part weekly series spotlighting those Mets who had one and only one memorable season in New York. For previous installments, please click on the players' names below:

January 2, 2012: Bernard Gilkey
January 9, 2012: Terry Leach
January 16, 2012: George Stone
January 23, 2012: Roger Cedeño

I Will Always Love Carlos Beltran, But...

2012-01-29T20:37:00.000-05:00

Photo by Jim McIsaac/Newsday

Recently, Brian Joura at mets360.com posted an interesting piece on whether Carlos Beltran would wear a Mets hat when elected to the Hall of Fame. The thing that struck me the most about the title was the word "when".

Now, don't get me wrong, I love Carlos Beltran and was hoping the Mets would re-sign him to an incentive-laden short-term contract, but at the same time, I am a realist. I knew the Mets would never bring him back. So being the realist that I am, I'd also like to say that as things currently stand, I don't think Carlos Beltran will ever be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

There have been many players who have boosted their Hall of Fame credentials after their 34th birthday. One player who comes to mind is Paul Molitor.

At the end of the 1990 season, Paul Molitor was a 34-year-old with the Milwaukee Brewers. At the time, he had enjoyed a good, but not great, career. His career numbers (.299 batting average, 1,870 hits, 337 doubles, 66 triples, 131 HR, 626 RBI, 1,053 runs scored, 362 SB, three All-Star appearances and two Silver Slugger Awards) were those of a very good player, but no one expected him to be a Hall of Famer, especially with his injury history. Molitor missed at least 44 games a year in three of the five seasons from age 30 to 34.

But beginning in 1991, the year he turned 35, Molitor enjoyed a baseball second wind. Over his final eight seasons in the majors, Molitor hit .316. After his 35th birthday, he had three seasons of 200 or more hits, scored 100 or more runs twice (missing a third time when he scored 99 runs in 1996 - the year he turned 40), drove in 100 or more runs twice (the only two times in his career he accomplished the feat) and hit at least 29 doubles in all eight seasons. He also stole 142 bases after 1990, a rare feat for someone in the supposed twilight of his career and made four more All-Star teams to go with two additional Silver Slugger Awards.

What was once an okay career became a Hall of Fame one, as Molitor finished his career with a .305 lifetime batting average, 3,319 hits, 605 doubles, 114 triples, 234 HR, 1,307 RBI, 1,782 runs scored and 504 SB. He also was a seven-time All-Star and four-time Silver Slugger Award recipient.

This brings us to Carlos Beltran. Sure it's possible for Beltran to return to his 2006-2008 form with the Mets, but even doing that wouldn't get him anywhere near the numbers put up by Paul Molitor. However, there is one player whose career numbers are very similar to Carlos Beltran's. And no one is expecting this player to make the Hall of Fame once he becomes eligible in 2013. Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the case of Steve Finley.

Steve Finley was a very good player who had a long career in the major leagues. For 19 seasons, he was a dependable outfielder who won numerous Gold Glove Awards while not being a slouch at the plate. Let's compare Carlos Beltran's career numbers with those of Steve Finley to see how similar they've been.

Carlos Beltran: 14 years, 1,917 hits, 390 doubles, 73 triples, 302 HR, 1,146 RBI, 1,184 runs scored, 293 SB, 831 BB, six-time All-Star, three Gold Gloves, two postseason appearances, no pennants, no World Series titles.

Steve Finley: 19 years, 2,548 hits, 449 doubles, 124 triples, 304 HR, 1,167 RBI, 1,443 runs scored, 320 SB, 844 BB, two-time All-Star, five Gold Gloves, seven postseason appearances, two pennants, one World Series title.

They look pretty similar, don’t you think? As of right now, Finley leads Beltran in most categories. Beltran will more than likely surpass Finley in HR, RBI and walks this year. He also might pass Finley in doubles in 2013. But he might never pass him in base hits, triples and runs scored. After stealing only four bases last year, it might take a few years for him to pass Finley in stolen bases, if he ever does at all. It will also take him a minimum of four years to pass Finley in runs scored.

Now let's look at some sabermetric numbers, a category I don't use much here, but feel compelled to do in this comparison. Carlos Beltran’s 60.8 WAR (53.6 oWAR, 7.2 dWAR) is better than Finley’s 40.5 WAR (42.5 oWAR, -2.0 dWAR), but Finley’s dWAR numbers took a dive in his final three years in the major leagues, as should be expected from a player once he turns 40. His dWAR over his final three years was -2.6, meaning he was above zero through age 39.

Carlos Beltran has had quite a career in the major leagues. Unfortunately, he's been plagued by injuries for most of the past three seasons. However, after having a bounceback campaign in 2011, he might be returning to his All-Star caliber self. Still, that doesn't mean he's going to put up the type of numbers Paul Molitor put up after turning 35.

Beltran will turn 35 in April, just three weeks after the season begins. He appears on track to have a career comparable to Steve Finley. That's not a Hall of Fame career. That's just a very good career. And that's not such a bad thing. As I said before, I'll always love Carlos Beltran, but he's not a Hall of Famer in my mind. He has a lot of work to do if he's going to become one.

The Perfect Way For The Mets To Stick It To The Marlins

2012-01-28T15:19:00.000-05:00

As all Mets fans know, the Marlins have been a thorn in the team's side since 2007. First, Tom Glavine was able to retire only one more batter than I did in the 2007 regular season finale, completing the Mets' collapse. One year later, the Marlins wouldn't get off the field after they once again eliminated the Mets (and Shea Stadium) in Game No. 162. Three years after that, they stuck it to the Mets again, this time by signing Jose Reyes to a six-year deal worth $106 million, or about $106 million more than Fred Wilpon has stored away in his souvenir Sandy Koufax piggy bank.

In fact, if you really want to get technical about it, the Marlins have been one-upping the Mets since 1997, when they replaced the Mets as the fastest expansion team to win a World Series. (The Marlins have since been knocked off that perch by the fourth-year Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001.)

But other than the Mets celebrating their 2006 NL East title in front of their home fans while the Marlins watched in the road dugout, they haven't really done anything that would be considered negative to the Marlins. Are they upset that the Mets took Mike Piazza and Carlos Delgado from them? Did Fred Wilpon insult Marlins' owner Jeffrey Loria's mother because he found out Loria grew up as a Yankee fan during the era in which the Brooklyn Dodgers kept losing to them in the World Series?

The time has come for the Mets to stand up to the Marlins once and for all. And I know just how they can do it.

Earlier today, it was reported that Bud Selig expects two extra wild-card teams to be in place for this season, rather than the 2013 campaign. Therefore, with five teams now qualifying for the playoffs in the National League instead of the usual four, the Marlins have reasonable expectations that they will be one of those five teams.

More than likely, the Phillies will win the NL East for the sixth consecutive season. But the Atlanta Braves are coming off an epic late-season collapse. The St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers both lost their top power hitters (Albert Pujols, Prince Fielder) to free agency. With all those windows being opened in the National League, the Miami Marlins are poised to break through and crash the playoff party for the first time since Art Howe was supposedly managing the Mets.

Like many other teams competing for the wild card spots, the Marlins might not play a potential clinching game until the final series of the season. And who, pray tell, will the Marlins be playing on October 1, 2 and 3 in front of their dozens of fans at their brand spanking-new ballpark?

The New York Mets.

Wouldn't it be something if the Marlins needed to win their final series of the season and the newly-signed (and former Met) Heath Bell blew a save or two to the Mets? Or how about if Jose Reyes, representing the tying run in the bottom of the ninth was caught stealing to end a game? What if the Marlins' new ace, Mark Buehrle, only lasted a third of an inning in the regular season finale, as the Mets battered him for run after run in the opening frame? Would that be devastating to them?

It's been too long since the Marlins have been a thorn in the Mets' side. Ever since Steve Trachsel's arm and Jose Valentin's bat took them down in the 2006 division clincher, the artists formerly known as the Florida Marlins have been giving the Mets and their fans recurring nightmares.

Hey, we all know the Marlins are just one poor finish away from conducting their once-a-decade fire sale. Why not speed up the inevitable and give them a chance to do it this year? The Marlins have been sticking it to the Mets every chance they've gotten since 2007. It's time for the Mets to stick it right back to them in 2012. Ya gotta believe.

Maine's In Massachusetts: Red Sox Sign John Maine

2012-01-27T19:26:00.000-05:00

On May 20, 2010, John Maine took the mound against the Washington Nationals trying to rebound from his first poor start in a month. Maine had given up six runs in five innings against the Florida Marlins in his previous start, after a four-start stretch in which his ERA was 2.49.

However, something didn't look right to manager Jerry Manuel after Maine walked leadoff batter Nyjer Morgan on five pitches. Despite Maine's claims that he felt fine, Manuel took him out of the game. John Maine never pitched again for the Mets, spending the rest of the season on the disabled list with shoulder fatigue. When the Mets chose not to re-sign Maine during the offseason, he became a free agent and agreed to a minor league deal with the Colorado Rockies, going 1-3 with a 7.43 ERA in 11 starts for their Triple-A affiliate, the Colorado Springs Sky Sox, in 2011.

Now comes word that John Maine will be changing his Sox, as the former Met hurler has agreed to a minor league contract with the Boston Red Sox and has been invited to their spring training camp to compete for a spot on their roster. Should Maine break camp with the Red Sox, he will be used as a relief pitcher, a role in which he has been rarely used.

Maine pitched for the Mets from 2006 to 2010, going 39-32 with a 4.17 ERA. He ranks 23rd all-time in wins as a Met. He also ranks in the top 20 in winning percentage (.549, 14th), fewest hits per nine innings (7.85, 8th) and most strikeouts per nine innings (7.76, 6th). In addition, Maine was 1-0 with a 2.63 ERA in three postseason starts for the Mets. And of course, Maine almost pitched the team's first no-hitter in the penultimate game of the 2007 season, helping the Mets temporarily stave off elimination with his 14-strikeout performance against the Florida Marlins.

If John Maine makes the Red Sox out of spring training, he will play for another former Met, as Bobby Valentine is the new skipper in Beantown. As Mets' manager from 1996 to 2002, Valentine was known for going to his bullpen early and often. None of Valentine's pitching staffs in his six-plus years as Mets' skipper recorded 10 complete games (the 1998 and 2002 squads had nine complete games apiece). Prior to Valentine's arrival in New York, the Mets had never had a full, non-strike shortened season in which the starting staff didn't reach double digits in complete games.

Given that Maine's role on the Red Sox would be out of the bullpen, he'd probably get his fair share of opportunities to pitch for Bobby Valentine. Of course, he has to make the team first. Considering his lack of success (and health) since 2010, that might be easier said than done.

As a Mets fan who was also a John Maine fan, I'd like to wish him all the luck in the world as he tries to return to the major leagues as a member of the Boston Red Sox. More than likely, he's going to need it.

I'm Glad For John Franco, But Where's Jesse Orosco?

2012-01-27T18:35:00.000-05:00

I’m very happy that John Franco has become the latest member of the Mets’ Hall of Fame. He is more than deserving of the honor, having pitched 14 seasons with the Mets and becoming the franchise’s all-time saves leader. However, I am surprised by the fact that Franco was inducted this year, when there is another reliever who’s been waiting longer and is equally, if not more deserving of enshrinement into the team’s hallowed Hall. My friends, where’s the love for Jesse Orosco?

When John Franco became the Mets’ all-time leader in saves in 1994, he broke Jesse Orosco’s record. Prior to 1984, when the Mets became a perennial contender, Orosco was the sole bright spot on a last-place team.

In 1983, he went 13-7 with a 1.47 ERA and 17 saves. He actually led the team in wins that year despite pitching exclusively out of the bullpen. For his efforts, Orosco made his first All-Star team, finished 3rd in the Cy Young vote and actually finished 17th in MVP despite playing for a 94-loss team. The following year, Orosco became the first Met to surpass 30 saves in a single season and was voted to his second All-Star team, the first reliever in franchise history to make multiple trips to the Midsummer Classic. Two years later, Orosco made the final outs (and taught us all how to toss our gloves in the air in celebration properly) in both the NLCS and the World Series.

From 1981-1986, Orosco was 43-36 with a 2.31 ERA and 91 saves. Think about that for a second. He had a 2.31 ERA over a six-year span, a period in which he tossed 483.2 innings. This is not a small sample of innings. Simply stated, Jesse Orosco was one of the most consistent and effective relievers in Mets history.

It might be said that Franco’s selection was made so that each of the past two Hall of Fame classes wouldn’t focus so much on the 1986 team, what with Davey Johnson, Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden and Frank Cashen getting the call in 2010. But Mookie Wilson (1996), Keith Hernandez (1997) and Gary Carter (2001) were selected consecutively (no Met was selected from 1998-2000). Tom Seaver and Jerry Koosman were also selected in consecutive years when they got the call in 1988 and 1989, respectively.

If you want to take things a little further, here's another Hall of Fame nugget for you. Tug McGraw pitched in eight postseason games for the Mets. In those eight games, he was 1-0 with two saves and a 1.66 ERA. Jesse Orosco also pitched in eight postseason games as a Met. In his eight appearances, Orosco went 3-0 with two saves and a 1.97 ERA. Both McGraw and Orosco played longer for other teams than they did for the Mets (the Tugger pitched ten seasons in Philadelphia, while Orosco pitched for another 16 years with various teams after leaving the Mets) and they both won another World Series elsewhere, with McGraw recording the final out of the Phillies' first-ever title in 1980 and Orosco winning a ring as a member of the 1988 Dodgers. Of course, Tug McGraw has been in the Mets' Hall of Fame since 1993, while Jesse is still in limbo.

Speaking of the World Series, John Franco was the last Mets pitcher to win a World Series game, as he was given credit for the victory in Game 3 of the 2000 World Series. Jesse Orosco is the last Mets pitcher to be on the mound when the Mets won a World Series. There’s a big difference between winning a World Series game and winning a World Series.

Hey, I have no problem with John Franco making it into the Mets’ Hall of Fame and I congratulate him for becoming the 26th Met to receive the honor. But he shouldn’t have been selected before Jesse Orosco. Orosco had just as many accomplishments as a Met as Franco did, but he’s been waiting for the Hall honor longer than Franco did. Hopefully, the Mets will get it right and induct Orosco next year. He’s sure waited long enough to get that call.

Ten Things You May Have Forgotten About John Franco

2012-01-26T21:09:00.000-05:00

Photo courtesy of Associated Press/New York Mets

Earlier today, the Mets announced that John Franco will be inducted into the team's Hall of Fame in a ceremony prior to the June 3rd game against the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals. Franco will become the 26th member of the Mets' Hall of Fame and the first to be inducted since Davey Johnson, Darryl Strawberry, Dwight Gooden and Frank Cashen were bestowed the honor in 2010.

Many people know that John Franco played more years for the Mets (14) than any player not named Ed Kranepool and was the team's last captain. It's also fairly common knowledge amongst Mets fans that Franco holds the club record for saves (276) and is the all-time leader for saves by a left-handed pitcher (424).

But what about the things you may have forgotten about the Brooklyn-born Franco? He was much more than just a pitcher who racked up saves and years played with the team. In fact, I've come up with ten things you may not remember about the man who came into games as Chuck Berry serenaded him over the Shea Stadium speakers. In honor of the newest member of the Mets' Hall of Fame, I present to you...

Ten Things You May Have Forgotten About John Franco

1. Before Mike Piazza became synonymous with No. 31, John Franco wore the number. In fact, he wore it longer than Piazza did as a Met, but gave it up to the superstar catcher upon his arrival in May 1998. Franco switched to No. 45, the number he wore as a player at St. John's University and the number of his childhood hero, Tug McGraw.

2. When John Franco was traded from Cincinnati to the Mets in December 1989, he was the Reds' all-time saves leader with 148. In 1994, Franco recorded his 108th save as a Met, taking over the team's top spot from Jesse Orosco. For ten seasons, John Franco held the No. 1 spot in saves for both the Reds and the Mets until Reds' closer Danny Graves surpassed Franco in 2004.

3. John Franco is one of only two Mets players who played for both Davey Johnson and Bobby Valentine, joining his battery mate, Todd Hundley. Johnson was fired as Mets' manager during Franco's first season in New York, while Valentine dialed Franco's number in the bullpen 295 times. Unfortunately for Johnson, Franco gave up two runs in two-thirds of an inning during a loss to the Padres on May 27, 1990. It would be Davey's final game as Mets' manager.

4. Although most fans remember Tom Seaver throwing out the first pitch at Citi Field, it was actually John Franco who threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the inaugural baseball game played at the Mets' home. On March 29, 2009, Franco took the mound before the college baseball game between St. John's and Georgetown, opening up the ballpark with its first toss to the plate.

5. The Mets lost the 2000 World Series to the Yankees in five games. Who was the only Mets' pitcher credited with a victory in the first Subway Series in 44 years? None other than John Franco, who earned the victory in Game 3 after Benny Agbayani's RBI double gave the Mets an eighth-inning lead.

6. John Franco was once relieved by Matt Franco. On Fireworks Night in 1999, Matt Franco traded in his pinch-hitting role to be the "pinch-pitcher" after John Franco left the game with a strained tendon in the middle finger of his throwing hand. Franco (Matt) would give up a three-run homer to the first batter he faced, adding two runs to Franco's (John) pitching line for the night. The Mets would go on to lose the game to the Braves, 16-0. That wouldn't be the only thing lost that night, as Franco (John, not Matt) lost his job as Mets' closer to Armando Benitez because of his injury.

7. Darryl Strawberry and David Wright are widely considered to be the two best homegrown hitters in franchise history, with both players popping up all over the Mets' all-time offensive leaderboards. John Franco is the only player who was a teammate of both players while with the Mets. Franco's first season in New York (1990) coincided with the Straw Man's last year as a Met, while his last year (2004) was the year David Wright made his Met debut.

8. John Franco is one of only three Mets' relievers to finish in the top ten in the Cy Young Award vote in a particular year. In the strike-shortened 1994 season, Franco led the National League with 30 saves and placed 7th in the Cy Young vote. Jesse Orosco (3rd in 1983) and Billy Wagner (6th in 2006) are the other Mets who have received Cy Young Award votes in addition to Franco.

9. With 33 saves in 1990, John Franco became the first Met ever to lead the league in saves. He repeated the feat in 1994 when he saved 30 games for the Mets to pace the NL. To this day, Franco remains the only Mets pitcher to lead the National League in saves.

10. John Franco is one of only two men to pitch for the Mets at age 44. In 1965, Hall of Famer Warren Spahn became the first player to accomplish the feat, pitching in 20 games (19 starts) for the Mets at the age of 44. Franco's final appearance as a Met (October 3, 2004) was also his only appearance as a 44-year-old. That's not the only thing Spahn and Franco have in common. Both pitchers are first all-time in wins and saves for left-handed pitchers, respectively. Spahn's 363 career victories and Franco's 424 saves lead all southpaws in major league history.

Jason Bay's Struggles Seem Awfully Familiar

2012-01-25T20:31:00.000-05:00

When Jason Bay became a Met prior to the 2010 season, he was coming off a tremendous season in Boston. Bay was an All-Star in his final season with the Red Sox, hitting .267 with 36 HR and 119 RBI. He also won his first Silver Slugger Award and finished seventh in the AL MVP vote. Perhaps his greatest victory that year was getting the Mets to give him a four-year, $66 million contract to become their new leftfielder.

Since signing the free agent deal, Bay has been a tremendous disappointment. In 2010, he struggled from Day One. He hit one home run in his first 44 games and had only hit five more by the All-Star Break. After the break, Bay went homerless in the team's first ten games and then gave himself a noogie on the left field fence at Dodger Stadium. He was diagnosed with a concussion and spent the rest of the season on the disabled list. His final numbers in his first season as a Met (.259 batting average, .347 on-base percentage, 6 HR, 47 RBI in 95 games) left many to wonder if this was a fluke season or a sign of things to come.

In 2011, Bay began the second year of his Mets career in the same place where he ended his first - on the disabled list. Bay missed the first 18 games of the season before returning from the DL on April 21. Although he was able to remain healthy for the rest of the season, once again his production fell far short of his pre-2010 levels. Bay hit two home runs in his first 47 games and finished the year with 12 HR and 57 RBI. His batting average and on-base percentage were also disappointing, as he finished at .245 and .329, respectively.

Clearly, Jason Bay has not done much of anything to earn his high salary. But this drop in production is not unique among Met hitters. In fact, it happened before two decades ago in strikingly similar fashion.

Howard Johnson went from beloved '86 Met to three 30-30 seasons to "LOOK OUT BELOW!!"

In 1991, Howard Johnson won two legs of the National League Triple Crown, leading the league in home runs (38) and RBI (117). He set a new franchise record with his RBI total and fell one homer short of Darryl Strawberry's single-season home run record. He also hit .259 on the way to becoming an All-Star, winning the Silver Slugger Award and finishing fifth in the NL MVP vote.

One year later, HoJo had an awful first half. At the time of the All-Star Break, Johnson was hitting .228 with 7 HR, 37 RBI, and was reaching base at a .336 clip. After the break, he played in 15 games without hitting a home run, then was placed on the disabled list with a broken right wrist. Johnson did not play again in 1992.

In 1993, Johnson attempted to show the Mets that he was over his injury, but instead regressed. HoJo played in all but one of the team's first 57 games, hitting .243 with 5 HR, 22 RBI and a .353 on-base percentage. He then missed three weeks with a viral infection, but when he returned to the lineup, he was basically an automatic out. He played in 16 games after his DL stint ended, batting .222 (.354 OBP) and only driving in four runs (2 HR) before his season ended with another trip to the disabled list, this time with a fractured thumb. For the season, Johnson hit .238 with 7 HR, 26 RBI and a .354 on-base percentage in 72 games.

Did you notice a similarity there? I'll put it all together for you in case you missed it.

Howard Johnson (1991): .259, 38 HR, 117 RBI, All-Star, Silver Slugger, top 10 MVP vote.
Jason Bay (2009): .267, 36 HR, 119 RBI, All-Star, Silver Slugger, top 10 MVP vote.

Johnson ('92): .223, 7 HR, 43 RBI, sidelined for the season shortly after the All-Star Break.
Bay ('10): .259, 6 HR, 47 RBI, sidelined for the season shortly after the All-Star Break.

Johnson ('93): .238, 7 HR, 26 RBI, spent more time on the DL with a different injury.
Bay ('11): .245, 12 HR, 57 RBI, spent more time on the DL with a different injury.

Both Johnson and Bay had strikingly similar performances and health issues in the year following their best seasons. Oh, and did I mention they were both 30 years of age during those great seasons? No? Sorry, I must have forgotten with all those other similarities I had to remember.

Jason Bay still has two years left on his gazillion dollar contract. Fortunately for the Mets of two decades ago, Howard Johnson was a free agent following his second straight off-year in 1993, so the Mets were able to avoid a potential third consecutive poor season from HoJo. (Johnson played two more seasons in the majors and combined to hit .205 with 17 HR and 62 RBI in 180 games for the Rockies and Cubs in 1994 and 1995 before retiring at age 34.)

It remains to be seen if Jason Bay will continue to decline the way Howard Johnson did for the Mets in the '90s. One thing's for sure. The Mets can't afford to have Bay suffer at the plate for a third straight season. That's one similarity between Bay and HoJo the team and the fans could live without.

Loyalty And Leaderboards

2012-01-24T20:34:00.004-05:00

Former Yankee catcher Jorge Posada officially announced his retirement from baseball today. He left the game after playing exclusively for the Yankees since his promotion to the major leagues in 1995.

Those aren't sentences I usually begin a blog post with. After all, this is Studious Metsimus, which the last time I checked, focused on Mets-related news. But I couldn't help but notice something about Posada's career numbers with the Yankees, especially when compared to some of the Mets' all-time greats.

Jorge Posada collected 6,092 at-bats over his 17-year career. In those at-bats, he picked up 1,664 hits, of which 379 were doubles and 275 were home runs. Posada also walked 936 times, scored 900 runs and piled up 1,065 RBIs. He's nowhere near the Yankee team leaders in any of those categories, nor does he rank among the top five hitting catchers of all-time, as players like Mike Piazza, Ivan Rodriguez, Johnny Bench, Ted Simmons, Yogi Berra and Roy Campanella were all better hitters than Posada. So why am I making such a big deal about this?

Because Jorge Posada would be the Mets' all-time leader in hits, doubles, home runs, walks, runs scored and RBIs if he had played his entire career in Flushing.

As hard as it is for me to admit it, Jorge Posada was a better hitter than Ed Kranepool.

Jorge Posada surpassed 150 hits in a season only once (2007), a figure that has been achieved by many Mets. One might argue that Posada's hit total would be lower than most hitters because of all his time spent as a catcher. To those people, I submit the fact that Mike Piazza, also a catcher, reached the 150-hit plateau three times as a Met and eight times in his career. Posada also hit 30 or more doubles four times, reached 30 home runs once, walked 100 times once, drove in 100 runs once and never scored 100 runs in any of 17 seasons. Several Mets players have reached those numbers multiple times, except for walks, where John Olerud is the only Met to walk 100 times in a season.

Had Jorge Posada played his entire career as a Met and produced the same numbers, he'd be considered the greatest offensive player in Mets history and would be counting down the days till his number joined Nos. 37, 14 and 41 on the left field wall at Citi Field. Instead, he is just one of many Yankees who had very good careers in pinstripes. Is this a testament to the fact that the Yankees have been Slugger Central over the past century or have the Mets just done poorly developing and keeping their offensive stars?

There's a reason why Tom Seaver is referred to as "The Franchise". It's not because he's the sole player in the Hall of Fame with a Mets cap on his plaque. It's because the Mets have a tough time producing elite players, and when they do, they end up trading them or letting them walk via free agency. Tom Seaver was an elite player with the Mets for 11 years. Since 1983, when Seaver played his last game as a Met, the only player developed in the Mets' minor league system who spent over a decade in Flushing was Dwight Gooden. The only hitters originally drafted by the Mets who played over a decade in New York were Ed Kranepool, Cleon Jones, Bud Harrelson and Ron Hodges. That's not exactly a Murderer's Row we're talking about there.

Perhaps one day the Mets will develop a player in their minor league system, watch him become an All-Star in Flushing and keep him around for a while. Jose Reyes could have been that player. David Wright could still be that player if the Mets don't decide to keep their pennies to themselves. Jorge Posada was that type of player for the Yankees. Had he been a Met, he'd be atop the team's all-time leaderboard in a plethora of categories. See what a little loyalty can do for you?

One Season Wonders: Roger Cedeño

2012-01-23T09:19:00.000-05:00

When the Mets acquired Mike Piazza from the Florida Marlins in 1998, the writing was on the wall for Todd Hundley. Hundley was one of only two Mets left on the team who had played for Davey Johnson (John Franco was the other), but had spent the first three months of the 1998 season on the disabled list while recovering from major reconstructive surgery on his right elbow. Needless to say, Hundley was not happy that the Mets were giving up on him, especially after he had given the team his best two seasons in 1996 and 1997.

Surprisingly, Hundley was not traded immediately upon his return from the DL in July. Instead, the Mets moved him to left field, displacing Bernard Gilkey, whose poor performance (.237, 3 HR, 24 RBI in 64 games at the time of Hundley's return) moved him to the bench and eventually to the Arizona Diamondbacks three weeks later. Despite the Mets' willingness to play Hundley, an outfield neophyte, on a regular basis, his performance at the plate suffered. Hundley finished the injury-shortened 1998 campaign with his poorest line (.161, 3 HR, 12 RBI in 53 games) since his first full season in the majors in 1992.

Finally, after months of speculation, the Mets traded Hundley to the Los Angeles Dodgers for two players. One of the players was All-Star catcher Charles Johnson, who was immediately shipped off to Baltimore for reliever Armando Benitez. The other was a 24-year-old utility outfielder who had played parts of four seasons in Los Angeles, never establishing himself as a full-time player. But once he came over to the Mets, his game took off (literally) and he became a key contributor on a team that was trying to make its first postseason appearance in 11 years. That player was Roger Cedeño.

Before Jose Reyes wowed Mets fans with his speed, there was Roger Cedeño.

Roger Leandro Cedeño had never accumulated more than 240 at-bats in any of his four seasons as a Dodger. He also had never shown the ability to be a prolific base stealer in the major leagues. In 311 games with the Dodgers, Cedeño stole 23 bases, with a career-high of nine of 1997. However, he was a base-stealing threat in the minors, as evidenced by his 121 stolen bases from 1992-1995.

At the time of the trade, it was assumed that Cedeño would not be the answer to the team's leadoff hitter conundrum. His career on-base percentage was .317 and he was not a good contact hitter, striking out 158 times in 687 at-bats with the Dodgers. Therefore, it was not a surprise when the Mets used him primarily as a pinch-hitter and late-inning defensive replacement over the first month of the season. But that all started to change once May rolled around.

From Opening Day to May 2, Roger Cedeño played in 24 games. However, he only started nine of those games, as he appeared in eight games as a pinch-hitter, two games as a pinch-runner and five games as a defensive replacement. As a result, he didn't get much of an opportunity to establish himself as an offensive threat. Through May 2, Cedeño was hitting .289 with five stolen bases, but had only picked up 45 at-bats. Then came a rare start on May 3 against the Houston Astros. It was a night that turned Cedeño's season around.

Given the opportunity to start a game, Roger Cedeño took full advantage. Against the Astros, Cedeño went 2-for-4 with a walk, two runs scored and two stolen bases. He got things started with a leadoff single to center in the first inning, then promptly stole second base. He took third base on a weak groundout to third, then scored on an RBI single by Mike Piazza. The Mets batted around in that first inning, scoring four times.

By the sixth inning, the Astros had cut the lead to one, as Richard Hidalgo's two-run homer had turned an early 4-0 lead into a tight 4-3 game. Once again, a rally started by Roger Cedeño gave the Mets some breathing room. With one out in the sixth, Cedeño doubled to left, then stole third base, giving Edgardo Alfonzo the opportunity to drive in a run without getting a hit, which he promptly did by lifting a sacrifice fly to center, scoring Cedeño and giving the Mets an insurance run. The bullpen did the rest, and the Mets held on for a 5-3 victory.

The game against the Astros began a stretch in which Cedeño started 10 times in 12 games. Given his first chance as an everyday player, Cedeño went on a blistering tear, batting .400 and reaching base 27 times (18 hits, nine walks) in those 12 games. On May 12, Cedeño went 4-for-4 with a walk, three runs scored and a stolen base against the Phillies. He followed that up two days later by picking up two more hits, scoring three runs and tying a franchise record with four stolen bases against the Rockies. Naturally, both efforts led the Mets to victories in each game.

Despite a brilliant first half in which hit .332, had a .432 on-base percentage, scored 53 runs and led the league with 46 steals, Cedeño was left off the National League All-Star roster. Perhaps feeding off his snub, Cedeño continued to excel after the break. In his first two games following the Midsummer Classic, Cedeño went 4-for-9 with two doubles, three runs scored, three RBIs and four stolen bases. The four steals gave him 50 thefts on the year, making him the third Met to reach that mark after Mookie Wilson (1982, 1983) and Lance Johnson (1996).

Mets fans saw this quite often in 1999, as Roger Cedeño was the master of his stolen base domain.

Cedeño tied Mookie Wilson's club record for steals when he stole his 58th base on August 10 against Padres' reliever Donne Wall. He then waited nearly three weeks to break Mookie's mark, but when he did it, he made sure it occurred in a game Mets fans would never forget.

On August 30, the Mets were leading the Astros, 2-0 in the second inning when Cedeño stepped up to the plate after a home run by Darryl Hamilton. Cedeño followed Hamilton's homer with a single up the middle. After a strikeout by Rey Ordoñez and a sacrifice bunt by Masato Yoshii, Cedeño stole third base, breaking Mookie Wilson's club record. The stolen base rattled Astros' starter Shane Reynolds, as he proceeded to give up an RBI single to Rickey Henderson, a single to Edgardo Alfonzo, a two-run double to Robin Ventura and a two-run homer to Mike Piazza. By the time the inning was over, the Mets had taken a 7-0 lead and the onslaught was on. The Mets went on to defeat the Astros, 17-1, but the lead story was no longer Cedeño breaking Mookie Wilson's single-season stolen base record, but Edgardo Alfonzo's one-for-the-ages performance, as Fonzie went 6-for-6 with three home runs, a double, two singles, six runs scored and five RBIs.

A week after breaking the stolen base record, Cedeño's batting average had fallen to .306, threatening to dip below the .300 mark for the first time since the day after he became an everyday player in early May. But then Cedeño turned it up a notch for the stretch run, hitting .359 over the team's final 22 games. He also reached base at a .431 clip, scored 13 runs and stole six bases as the Mets clinched the wild card berth in a one-game playoff against the Cincinnati Reds. It was on to the playoffs for the Mets and Cedeño's first postseason experience was one both he and the Mets would always remember.

After starting 106 of the team's final 138 games, Roger Cedeño only started one game in the NLDS against the Arizona Diamondbacks. But in Game 4, Cedeño kept the Mets' hopes alive with a crucial at-bat. After the Mets had fallen behind on a two-out, two-run double by Arizona shortstop Jay Bell in the top of the eighth inning, the Mets were six outs away from having to go back to the desert to face eventual Cy Young Award winner Randy Johnson in a fifth and deciding game. But an error by rightfielder Tony Womack gave the Mets hope and put two runners in scoring position for Cedeño, who had entered the game one inning earlier as a defensive replacement for Benny Agbayani. Cedeño came through in the clutch, driving in the tying run with a sacrifice fly. With the new life afforded to them via the bat of Roger Cedeño, the Mets were able to win the game and the series when Todd Pratt hit a walk-off homer to straightaway center over the not-completely outstretched glove of Steve Finley in the bottom of the tenth inning.

Cedeño and the Mets were now off to the National League Championship Series to face their division rivals in Atlanta. This time, manager Bobby Valentine made sure to get him more playing time. Cedeño made sure to save the best for last.

The Mets lost the first three games of the NLCS to the Braves, even with Cedeño hitting .429 over the first two games (he did not play in Game 3). Just like they did in Game 4 of the NLDS, the Mets let a one-run eighth inning lead slip away in Game 4 of the NLCS, as Brian Jordan and Ryan Klesko hit back-to-back home runs off Mets' starter Rick Reed after Reed had faced the minimum 21 batters through the first seven innings.

With the Mets six outs away from elimination, Roger Cedeño led off the bottom of the eighth with a single off Braves' starter John Smoltz. After Rey Ordoñez popped out on a failed bunt attempt and Benny Agbayani struck out against reliever Mike Remlinger, the Mets were only four outs away from ending their season prematurely. But Cedeño wasn't about to let the season end without a fight, as he stole second base to put the tying run in scoring position. Needing to pitch more carefully, Remlinger walked Melvin Mora, putting the go-ahead run on base and setting the stage for volatile closer John Rocker to come into the game to face John Olerud. In an instant, Cedeño and Mora pulled off a daring double steal, putting two runners in scoring position for the Mets' first baseman. Olerud then stroked a single to center, giving the Mets a lead they would not relinquish, a lead made possible by the bat and legs of Roger Cedeño.

As Roger Cedeño and Melvin Mora celebrated scoring the tying and go-ahead runs behind him, John Rocker was left to ponder what time he could catch the 7 train out of Shea.

The Mets and Braves battled for 15 innings in Game 5. Although Cedeño didn't play in the first 14 innings, he did find himself in the right spot at the right time, coming into the game as a pinch-runner for Matt Franco in the 15th. Cedeño ended up scoring the winning run on Robin Ventura's Grand Slam Single, the only run the Mets needed to take a 4-3 victory over the Braves.

Unfortunately, Cedeño's season ended earlier than it did for his teammates, as he was pulled for a pinch-hitter in the sixth inning of Game 6, as the Mets were rallying from an early five-run deficit. The Mets had already scored three runs in the sixth and had the tying run at the plate in Cedeño when Bobby Valentine decided to go with a power threat in Benny Agbayani. The Mets failed to tie the game in the sixth inning and Cedeño was out of the game, five innings before the Mets' season ended when Kenny Rogers gambled and threw ball four to Andruw Jones in the 11th inning. Who knows if Cedeño would have provided the Mets with a key hit or stolen base in extra innings had he remained in the game?

Despite the disappointing end to the 1999 season, Cedeño had sparkled in the postseason. Although he started only five games against the Diamondbacks and Braves, the speedster batted .421, scored three runs, drove in three more and stole three bases. Cedeño had just completed a memorable season, one in which he finally established himself as an everyday player in the major leagues. His fabulous postseason followed a regular season in which he hit .313, scored 90 runs and stole a franchise-record 66 bases. So what did the Mets do to reward him for his efforts? They traded him.

After one season in New York, the Mets dealt Roger Cedeño, Octavio Dotel (who was the winning pitcher in Game 5 of the NLCS) and minor leaguer Kyle Kessel to Houston in exchange for 22-game winner Mike Hampton and rightfielder Derek Bell. Both Hampton and Bell were one-and-done in New York, as Hampton signed an eight-year free agent contract with the Colorado Rockies following the 2000 season and Bell inked a one-year deal with Pittsburgh.

Cedeño played one injury-plagued season in Houston, batting .282 with 54 runs scored and 25 stolen bases in 74 games before signing a one-year contract to play in Detroit in 2001. He returned to his past glory in the Motor City, hitting .293 with a career-high 11 triples and 55 stolen bases in 131 games. Once again, Cedeño was a free agent following the 2001 campaign and the Mets were looking for a speedster. This time, however, it was a match that should never have been made.

On December 17, 2001, the Mets signed Roger Cedeño to a four-year, $18 million contract. However, Cedeño showed up at training camp overweight and out of baseball shape, and it showed during the regular season. In his first year back with the Mets, Cedeño batted .260, had a .318 on-base percentage and only stole 25 bases. Going into the 2003 season, the Mets were hoping that Cedeño could return to his 1999 self. Instead, they got more of the 2002 version, as Cedeño batted .267 and reached base at a .320 clip. However, his stolen bases dropped to 14 despite playing in 148 games and his 60.9% success rate was also the worst of his nine-year career.

Those orange batting practice jerseys weren't very slimming, nor did they help Roger Cedeño recapture the form he once showed for the Mets in 1999.

Finally, after two years of high expectations and an endless stream of boos from the Shea faithful, Cedeño was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals in 2004 for Wilson Delgado. The Mets did agree to pay all but $1 million of the remaining $10 million left on Cedeño's contract, but they were finally rid of him.

Roger Cedeño came to New York in 1999 after never establishing himself in Los Angeles. He then put together one of the most unexpected seasons in club annals, helping the Mets reach the playoffs for the first time in 11 years. Almost as quickly as he got here, Cedeño was gone, traded to Houston for a pitcher who helped the team make it back to the postseason in 2000. However, despite his comeback season in Detroit in 2001, Cedeño was never as good as he was for that one wonderful season in 1999. The Mets made the mistake to re-sign him following the 2001 season and the team suffered in the standings, finishing in last place in both years of Cedeño's second stint in New York.

Sometimes it's best to quit when one is ahead. The Mets and Roger Cedeño were ahead of everyone but the Braves in 1999. Three years later, both parties were behind everyone in the NL East. It just goes to show that sometimes a one-season wonder should stop after that one wonderful season.

Note: One Season Wonders is a thirteen-part weekly series spotlighting those Mets who had one and only one memorable season in New York. For previous installments, please click on the players' names below:

January 2, 2012: Bernard Gilkey
January 9, 2012: Terry Leach
January 16, 2012: George Stone

Sandy Alderson Is Trying To Avoid The Year "2" Blues

2012-01-22T14:14:00.000-05:00

As the dawn of the new millenium arrived, while people were talking about whether Y2K was going to give them the blues, the Mets were one of the best teams in the National League. They were in the middle of their only back-to-back playoff appearances in franchise history and things appeared to be on the up-and-up.

Only two years later, the Mets were at the bottom of the NL East standings, becoming laughingstocks of the league and making regular appearances on David Letterman's Top Ten lists due to their futility on the field. How did the Mets fall so quickly from their perch atop the National League? Blame it on Y2B, otherwise known as the Year "2" Blues, a condition that occurs every time the calendar ends in a "2".

The Year "2" Blues has taken other forms in the past. In the Mets' inaugural season of 1962, fans were happy to have National League baseball back in New York. However, the product on the field was more Little League than National League, as the Mets lost a record 120 games. Ten years later, the 1972 Mets actually did well, posting an 83-73 record (six games were erased due to the first players' strike in MLB history) and finishing in third place in the NL East. However, during that strike, the team suffered through the tragedy of losing their manager, Gil Hodges, to a fatal heart attack.

Then came the 1982 season, and Y2B as we know it today hit the Mets will full force. It all began when the Mets were looking for a power hitter and thought they found one in George Foster.

Don't look at us like that, George. You were the one who sucked as a Met.

Prior to the 1982 season, George Foster was one of the premier home run hitters in the National League. In 1977, he became the first player since Willie Mays to hit as many as 50 home runs in a season when he banged out 52 long balls for the Cincinnati Reds. He followed that up by pacing the NL in homers (40) and RBI (120) in 1978. In the six years prior to 1982, Foster was a five-time All-Star who averaged 33 HR and 112 RBI per season. He wasn't just a home run hitter, as he batted over .300 three times and finished the six-year stretch with a .297 batting average.

In his final year in Cincinnati (1981), despite one-third of the season being wiped out by a players' strike, Foster still managed to collect 22 HR and 90 RBI, good for third place and second place in the league, respectively, and earning him his first Silver Slugger Award (the award did not exist prior to 1980). George Foster was at the top of his game after the 1981 season, making him the top trade target for then-Mets' general manager Frank Cashen. Oops.

On February 10, 1982, Cashen traded three players to the Reds for George Foster, hoping that this trade with Cincinnati would work out better than the ill-fated 1977 trade of Tom Seaver, which sent the Mets into the chasm they were still in. Foster responded by turning in the worst full season of his career, batting .247 with 13 HR and 70 RBI in 151 games. Needless to say, the Mets finished the 1982 season in last place. Although Foster recovered to pick up 28 HR and 90 RBI for the 1983 Mets, his batting average continued to go down (.241), and his 38 walks kept his on-base percentage down to a career-low .289. The dozens of fans at Shea Stadium had seen enough of George Foster, and he became the prime target of boo birds until his final game in New York in 1986.

The Mets did win the World Series in 1986, but by then Foster was long gone, having been released by the team in August. After their championship season, the Mets remained in contention until 1991, when they suffered their first losing season since 1983. Again, the front office felt a change was needed to bring the team back into contention in the NL East, so they opened their wallets and spent freely in 1992. What they got in return was The Worst Team Money Could Buy.

Bobby Bonilla. Bret Saberhagen. Eddie Murray. Jeff Torborg. All four had participated in the postseason for other teams prior to 1992. All four became Mets to try to recapture their prior successes in New York. All four tanked in 1992.

For Bobby Bonilla, his free agent signing meant he was coming back home. In his final season in Pittsburgh, the future Bronx tour guide hit .302 with a league-leading 44 doubles, 18 HR, 100 RBI and 102 runs scored. Once in New York, his play deteriorated, as he hit .249, drove in 70 runs and scored 62 times. His 23 doubles were barely half of his 1991 total, although he did improve his home run output by an earth-shattering one (19 HR in 2002).

Bret Saberhagen and Eddie Murray also did poorly in their first seasons in New York, as Saberhagen won only three games in an injury-plagued season and Murray batted only .261 with 16 HR, despite playing in 156 games. As a result, the Mets lost 90 games for the first time in nine years and did not finish above .500 again until 1997.

Clearly, former Manager of the Year Jeff Torborg did not have a clue how to keep his expensive bunch of underachievers focused as Bonilla became an earplug-wearing, error-questioning, reporter-threatening malcontent, Saberhagen tried to get bleach throwing to become an Olympic event and Murray became the Sultan of Sulk.

One would assume the Mets would have learned their lesson after being hit by the Y2B bug for the second time in 1992. But we all know what happens when you assume. We also know that the Mets sometimes have a hard time learning from past mistakes.

In 2002, the Mets were only two years removed from the franchise's fourth World Series appearance. They followed up their pennant-winning campaign with a disappointing 2001 season, finishing 82-80 and needing a strong final month just to push their record above .500. General manager Steve Phillips, who wasn't present for the previous Y2B infestations (the Mets were transitioning from Frank Cashen to Al Harazin in 1992), felt the Mets were just a few trades away from erasing the mediocrity of 2001 and returning to the playoffs. Things didn't work out exactly as planned.

Phillips sought to improve the right side of the infield by acquiring former All-Stars Mo Vaughn and Roberto Alomar. He also wanted to add power and speed to the outfield. Enter former Mets Jeromy Burnitz and Roger Cedeño. Four words can summarize how each player did for the 2002 Mets.

Bust. Bust. Bust. Bust.

If only Mo Vaughn's batting average had been higher than his weight, things could have turned out differently for the 2002 Mets. Or not.

Mo Vaughn was the only one of the foursome who had anything resembling a productive year for the Mets in 2002 (.259, 26 HR, 72 RBI). Of course, that came from a player whose average season from 1995-2000 (.306, 38 HR, 118 RBI) left a little more to be desired.

Roberto Alomar, on the other hand, had just come off an MVP-caliber season in 2001 (Vaughn missed the entire 2001 season with an injury). Alomar hit .336 with 34 doubles, 12 triples, 20 HR, 100 RBI, 113 runs scored and 30 stolen bases for the Cleveland Indians in 2001 and was poised to become the best all-around second baseman in Mets history. That title still belongs to Edgardo Alfonzo, as Alomar was a shadow of himself in 2002. In fact, his numbers in 1½ seasons as a Met (.265, 13 HR, 75 RBI, 22 SB) were less than what he produced in his final season in Cleveland.

From 1997-2001, former Met outfielder Jeromy Burnitz was among the most consistent power threats in baseball. Playing five years in Milwaukee, Burnitz averaged 33 HR and 102 RBI per season and hoped to become the first legitimate power threat in right field for the Mets since Darryl Strawberry switched coasts following the 1990 season. That did not happen, as Burnitz collected only 19 HR and 54 RBI in 154 games in 2002, while watching his batting average dip to .215. Burnitz did follow Strawberry in one respect, as he became a Dodger in 2003 after being traded to Los Angeles in July.

Roger Cedeño came out of nowhere to have an amazing season with the Mets in 1999, batting .313 and setting the franchise record with 66 stolen bases. He was then included in the trade that netted the Mets Derek Bell and 2000 NLCS MVP Mike Hampton, but came back to New York in 2002 to join fellow ex-Met Jeromy Burnitz in the outfield. He thanked the Mets by reporting to camp out of shape and becoming the worst speedster acquisition since Vince Coleman. Cedeño finished the 2002 season by batting .260 and stealing only 25 bases in 149 games. In addition, his once-fleet feet produced only 19 doubles and two triples, but they did develop the uncanny ability to generate boos from the Shea faithful, boos that continued to be heard until the Mets' next winning season in 2005.

That was then. This is now. The year is 2012. It's a Y2B season.

Second-year general manager Sandy Alderson is not falling into the trap his predecessors couldn't avoid jumping into. There have been no blockbuster trades featuring former All-Stars to report this offseason and the only acquisitions of note have been to strengthen the bullpen (Jon Rauch, Ramon Ramirez, Frank Francisco) and outfield (Andres Torres). Scott Hairston was re-signed to a one-year deal and four arbitration-eligible players (Mike Pelfrey, Manny Acosta and the aforementioned Ramirez and Torres) were signed as well.

This is not your father's Mets team. Nor is it Frank Cashen's, Al Harzin's or Steve Phillips' team. It's a new Mets team with a different general manager who, unfortunately, is restricted by what he can do by the owners' ongoing financial problems. However, even if the team did not have money woes, Alderson was not going to be the type of GM to make big-ticket moves just to make a splash in the free agent and trade market. He is a thinking man's GM who takes fiscally reasonable risks, rather than ones that can blow up in his face.

Is Sandy Alderson the general manager who finally has developed immunity to the Y2B bug? Only time will tell, but the way things are being set up for the 2012 Mets and beyond, the team on the field isn't going to be laden with malcontents and aging has-beens. The Mets are a young team that's going to play their hearts out for the fans. They may not produce all the wins the fans would like, but they are going to be a team that's fun to root for. That's a lot more than could be said for the teams of George Foster, Bobby Bonilla, Roberto Alomar, et al.

Rockies Get A Second Sacker; It's NOT Justin Turner!

2012-01-21T19:04:00.000-05:00

Earlier this week, it was reported that the Colorado Rockies were looking at Mets' utility infielder Justin Turner as a trade option to compete for their open second base position. Turner would have competed with a number of in-house candidates for the opportunity to be Troy Tulowitzki's double play partner. However, that deal appears to be deader than Fausto Carmona's career.

According to a tweet by Jim Bowden, the Rockies have acquired middle infielder Marco Scutaro from the Boston Red Sox in exchange for journeyman pitcher Clayton Mortensen.

Confirming Troy Renck's report that the Boston Red Sox have traded Marco Scutaro to the Colorado Rockies for Claytong Mortensen...no cash
— JIM BOWDEN (@JimBowdenESPNxm) January 21, 2012

Scutaro will take over at second base for the Rockies, while the Red Sox will use Mortensen as a starter. However, with Scutaro's $6 million salary now off the Red Sox's books, Boston might use that money to pursue a more attractive starting pitcher (Roy Oswalt?), as Mortensen has never been very impressive in the major leagues (4-8, 5.12 ERA in 95 IP).

Long-time Mets fans might remember Scutaro for being a part of the 2002 and 2003 teams. If they don't, it's because they were too busy cursing out Steve Phillips for his not-so-brilliant acquisitions of Mo Vaughn, Roberto Alomar, Jeromy Burnitz, Jeff D'Amico and Shawn Estes.

Scutaro is entering his 11th major league campaign and will be playing in the thin air of Denver. The air around Justin Turner, however, is thick with sighs of relief, as he would most likely not have received much playing time in Colorado had he been traded there. Instead, he appears to be staying on the Mets, competing for the second base job and spelling David Wright at third whenever he needs a day off or steps on Ike Davis again.

Justin Turner had a fine rookie season for the Mets last year. In 117 games, he banged out 30 doubles and drove in 51 runs. He also was one of the toughest players to strike out on the team, fanning only 59 times in 487 plate appearances. His ability to play anywhere in the infield and his penchant for making contact will make him a valuable asset on the 2012 Mets, especially since the team still hasn't figured out how not to continue racking up injuries.

Good luck to the Rockies and their new 36-year-old second baseman. We'll be just fine in New York with our 27-year-old redhead.

Strikeless In Seattle

2012-01-19T21:15:00.000-05:00

In case you missed it, former Met "pitcher" Oliver Perez signed a minor league deal with the Seattle Mariners yesterday. That cheer you heard from the Pacific Northwest was from Starbucks, who can now blame people's jitters on Perez's performances instead of their highly-caffeinated drinks.

Last year, the Mets paid Perez nearly $12 million to play minor league ball in the Washington Nationals' organization. In 15 starts for AA-Harrisburg, Perez went 3-5 with a 3.09 ERA. The usually erratic Perez found his control in Double-A, as he walked 27 batters in 75⅔ innings for Harrisburg. However, Perez has not won a game in the majors since August 18, 2009, or 44 walks ago.

We're not sure why the Mariners chose to sign Ollie, but perhaps it has something to do with their recent left-handed pitching acquisitions.

In 2007, southpaw Erik Bedard had a spectacular season for the Baltimore Orioles, going 13-5 with a 3.16 ERA and 221 strikeouts. That off-season, the Mariners sent five players to Baltimore to acquire Bedard and he rewarded his new team by winning 15 games. Unfortunately, it took him four years to collect those 15 victories, as repeated trips to the disabled list held Bedard to six wins in 2008, five wins in 2009, no wins in 2010 (Bedard missed the entire 2010 due to injury) and four wins in 2011.

Following the 2009 season, the Mariners went shopping for another lefty, Cliff Lee. Lee had just helped the Phillies advance to the World Series, dominating opposing hitters along the way. Naturally, the Mariners traded three young players to Philadelphia for Lee, hoping he'd bring sunnier days to Seattle. Lee won a total of eight games as a Mariner, as he spent the first month of the 2010 season on the disabled list and was traded to Seattle's division rival in Texas, where he helped the Rangers advance to their first World Series.

Every two years, the Mariners try to bring in a lefty who has just completed a tremendous season. They did it after the 2007 season and went back for seconds in 2009. Now that the 2011 season has been tucked away, it's time for them to strike again. But since Bedard and Lee weren't able to repeat their previous successes after becoming Mariners, perhaps all Seattle needed to do was sign a southpaw who had no expectations; someone who had fallen so far off the radar that even the Nationals didn't feel he was good enough for their Double-A team.

Seattle hasn't made the playoffs in over a decade. They've tried to improve their team by adding quality left-handed starters to pitch in spacious Safeco Field. That hasn't worked. So they added Oliver Perez instead.

It could be worse. They could have signed Aaron Heilman as well. Oh, wait. They did.

So the Mariners' minor league system will now have the pitcher who threw the first pitch in Game 7 of the 2006 NLCS and the pitcher who threw the worst pitch in Game 7 of the 2006 NLCS. Looks like the road to the major leagues has just been made easier for all of the other pitching prospects in the Mariners' system.

One Season Wonders: George Stone

2012-01-16T09:40:00.000-05:00

The 1972 Mets began the season with the tragic loss of manager Gil Hodges to a fatal heart attack. New manager Yogi Berra took over the team in April and led them to the best start in franchise history. By late May, the Mets had a 6½-game lead in the NL East. On June 3, the Mets defeated the Atlanta Braves by the final score of 5-2 to improve their record to 31-12. But within that victory, the Mets suffered a significant loss, as Rusty Staub was hit by an errant pitch thrown by Braves' reliever George Stone.

Coming into that fateful game, Stone had been one of the worst pitchers in the National League. He had faced 62 batters in 1972 and allowed more than half of them (32) to reach base. Opposing batters were hitting a whopping .491 against him over the first two months of the season causing his ERA to balloon to 11.70. Ironically, his control wasn't that much of a problem, as he had walked only five batters and had yet to hit anyone with a pitch. Then Rusty Staub's hand got in the way and everything changed for the 1972 Mets.

Prior to the series against Atlanta, Staub was putting up MVP-caliber numbers for the Mets. In the team's first 41 games, Staub was hitting .323 with seven home runs and 27 RBI. He also had an excellent eye at the plate, walking 20 times while striking out on ten occasions. As a result, his on-base percentage was among the league leaders at .403. His power stroke also placed him near the top of the league in slugging percentage, as Staub was slugging .506 at the time.

Staub continued to play after getting hit in the hand by Stone, but his performance suffered. On June 18, after playing six innings against the Cincinnati Reds, Staub was taken out of the game and missed a month of action. At the time, the Mets were still in first place in the NL East, albeit by a slim half-game margin. Staub came back one month later, played the entire game in an extra-inning affair against the Los Angeles Dodgers, then was promptly placed on the disabled list, where he missed another two months of action. By the time he came back, the Mets had fallen to third place in the NL East and were 16½ games behind the eventual division champion Pittsburgh Pirates. Although the Mets weren't mathematically eliminated until the day after Staub returned to the lineup, their season was lost back in June at the hands of George Stone.

The strong start by the 1972 Mets gave fans reason to believe that their team was going back to the World Series for the second time in four seasons. They would have to wait another year for that to happen and they would have an unexpected figure play a role in that march to the pennant, a figure who they felt cost them that opportunity in 1972.

It's Amazin' how one wonderful season can turn boos into cheers.

Soon after the completion of the 1972 season, the Mets felt they needed an upgrade at second base. Ken Boswell had been with the Mets since 1967 and became their primary second baseman in their championship season of 1969. But after hitting .273 for the team in 1971, Boswell became an automatic out in 1972, batting .211 in 100 games and reaching base at a .274 clip. A change was needed at second base and the Braves were making their second sacker available. On November 2, 1972, the Mets got their man, acquiring three-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove Award winner Felix Millan from Atlanta for pitchers Danny Frisella and Gary Gentry. Millan wasn't the only former Brave to come to New York in the deal, as George Stone made the trek up north to complete the deal.

George Heard Stone had had some success with the Braves early in his career. From 1968 to 1970, Stone was used as both a starter and reliever for Atlanta, going 31-25 with three saves and a respectable 3.60 ERA. After falling to 6-8 in 1971, Stone hit rock-bottom in 1972, going 6-11 with a 5.51 ERA. He also didn't make many friends in New York with his season-changing hit by pitch of Rusty Staub. But Stone was going to be a Met in 1973, and the team decided to put him in the bullpen to start the season. That role didn't last for very long.

When the 1973 season began, Jim McAndrew was slated to be the team's fourth starter, behind Tom Seaver, Jon Matlack and Jerry Koosman. But after his best year in the majors in 1972 (11-8, 2.80 ERA), McAndrew struggled mightily to start the 1973 campaign. Although he was 3-3 in his first six starts, McAndrew was carrying a 4.73 ERA. He was also not pitching deeply into games, averaging barely more than five innings per start (32⅓ IP in six starts). McAndrew earned a save pitching in relief in a 19-inning marathon victory over the Dodgers in late May, but then pitched horribly against the same Dodgers just two days later, allowing five runs on nine hits and three walks in only four innings of work. A change was needed in the rotation and manager Yogi Berra gave George Stone a chance to redeem himself after a poor 1972 campaign in Atlanta. It ended up being one of the best decisions made by the team in 1973.

On June 2, 1973, George Stone made his first start for the Mets after making seven relief appearances over the first two months of the season. Stone was pitching brilliantly out of the pen, allowing only one run in 15 innings of work. His best performance in relief came in the 19-inning game against the Dodgers in which Jim McAndrew collected his first and only save of the season. Stone was the winning pitcher in that game, pitching six scoreless innings against Los Angeles. The extended relief appearance prepared Stone for his first start a week later, this time against the San Diego Padres. Stone pitched well against the Friars, giving up three runs in six innings. He allowed only five hits and walked no one. Unfortunately, the Mets were shut out by the Padres, 3-0, pinning Stone with his first loss of the season.

Stone would make five more starts over the next month, going 3-2 with a 3.32 ERA, which was respectable, but not great. However, by then Jim McAndrew had completely lost any opportunity to return to the starting rotation, losing four consecutive decisions and watching his ERA spin out of control to 5.83. Except for one start in August (another loss), McAndrew was in the bullpen for good, leaving the fourth spot in the rotation to George Stone. It was an opportunity Stone would take full advantage of.

On a staff that featured Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman and Jon Matlack, it was George Stone who proved to be the most unbeatable pitcher during the second half of the 1973 season.

From July 14 to August 6, Stone started four games for the Mets, pitching nearly eight innings per start and allowing exactly two earned runs in each of the four starts. The Mets won all four games, with Stone receiving credit for three of the wins. Stone suffered a rare poor outing on August 11, a game in which he received a no-decision after he allowed six runs (four earned) in only one-third of an inning to San Francisco. However, that would be the sole blip in the George Stone machine. He followed up his outing against the Giants with 8⅔ innings of one-run ball against the Big Red Machine, with the only run scoring on a ninth-inning RBI single by future Hall of Famer Johnny Bench. Again, Stone was credited with a no-decision as the Mets went on to lose the game, 2-1, in ten innings. That no-decision streak would stretch to four in his next start (Stone got a no-decision in the Mets' victory on August 6 to start the streak), but the Mets did manage to win that game against the Dodgers, 4-3.

By late August, the Mets were in last place, a dozen games below .500. However, despite their ugly 58-70 record, the Mets found themselves only 6½ games behind the first place Cardinals, who at 65-64 were leading the mediocre National League East. Even after Tug McGraw told everyone on the team that "Ya Gotta Believe", it was difficult for anyone to believe that the Mets were going to play anything but the spoiler role in the National League East. But George Stone, despite spoiling the Mets' season in 1972, was not going to be happy with just spoiling other teams' chances in the NL East. He was absolutely a believer in the 1973 Mets and through his performances over the final month of the regular season, he was going to make everyone a believer, too.

At 58-70, no one was taking the Mets seriously in the lackluster NL East. But George Stone still had something to prove to Mets fans. On the night of August 27, 1973, Stone took the Shea Stadium mound against the San Digeo Padres, the team that beat him in his first start of the season. This time, Stone would not be denied. He pitched seven strong innings, allowing three runs on seven hits while walking no one. Stone also helped the Mets at the plate in that game. With the Mets trailing 2-1 in the bottom of the fifth inning, Stone reached first on a catcher's interference call to lead off the inning. As fate would have it, it would be Rusty Staub who drove him in on the strength of a grand slam home run later in the inning. Stone's victory on that late August night at Shea would prove to be the game that turned the Mets' season around.

From August 27 to the end of the season, the Mets won 24 of their last 33 games, passing every team in the National League East on their way to an unlikely division title. George Stone's victory against the Padres began a streak in which he won five consecutive starts. After defeating San Diego in August, Stone's next four starts were among his stingiest of the season, as he allowed five runs in 27⅓ innings for a 1.65 ERA. Those starts were only part of an historic second half of the 1973 season for Stone. Beginning on July 14, Stone won eight consecutive decisions and gave up three runs or less in 12 of his final 13 starts. By season's end, Stone was 12-3 with a 2.80 ERA and the Mets were National League East champions for the second time in five years.

It was on to the playoffs for the Mets, where they would face the powerhouse Cincinnati Reds in the NLCS. After taking a two games to one lead over the Reds in the best-of-five series, George Stone was tabbed to help the Mets win the pennant in Game 4. Stone was brilliant early on, allowing only two hits and one walk in six shutout innings. But the Mets were also struggling at the plate, managing only one hit off Reds' starter Fred Norman and reliever Don Gullett through the first six innings. But that one hit had produced the only run of the game, as the Mets took a 1-0 lead into the seventh inning. However, one swing off the bat of Tony Perez changed all that, as his homer off Stone tied the game at 1. Stone was taken out of the game and the Mets eventually lost in 12 innings. Despite the no-decision, it was Stone's 13th game in 14 starts in which he allowed three runs or less. The Mets did win the pennant the following night at Shea Stadium and they went on to play the defending World Series champion Oakland Athletics for the 1973 title, a series that may have been decided when Yogi Berra decided NOT to use George Stone.

Perhaps Yogi Berra wouldn't have been so stone-faced in this photo if he had let Stone face the A's.

Against the Oakland A's, manager Yogi Berra decided to go with a three-man rotation, sending Jon Matlack, Jerry Koosman and Tom Seaver to the mound in Games 1, 2 and 3, while using George Stone out of the bullpen. The move paid off in Game 2 of the World Series, even though it looked as if Berra was never going to use Stone in the game.

The Mets dropped Game 1 of the World Series by the final score of 2-1, so they weren't going to take any chances in Game 2. After scoring four runs in the top of the sixth inning to take a 6-3 lead, Berra brought in closer Tug McGraw to pitch in the bottom of the sixth. McGraw got through the sixth unscathed, but gave up a run to Oakland in the seventh. With a well-rested Stone in the bullpen, Berra left McGraw in the game to pitch the eighth inning. After retiring the A's in order in the eighth, McGraw was allowed to pitch the ninth inning. Unfortunately, Oakland tied the game with two runs in the ninth to send the game into extra innings. Stone was ready to pitch in extra innings, but Berra wasn't ready to give up on his closer.

Tug McGraw had pitched two scoreless innings in Game 1 of the World Series. One day later, he was not as fortunate, allowing three runs in four innings of work. Despite the extra work, McGraw was summoned to start the tenth inning against the A's. His next two innings were spectacular, as the Tugger retired all six batters to face him, with four coming via the strikeout. The Mets finally responded in the 12th inning, scoring four times to take a 10-6 lead. Incredibly, McGraw was allowed to start his seventh inning of work, but this time he didn't make it through the inning. After allowing the first two batters in the 12th to reach base, George Stone was finally summoned to replace McGraw.

Pitching for the first time since Game 4 of the NLCS, Stone gave up an RBI single to his first batter, Jesus Alou, then issued a one-out walk to Mike Andrews to load the bases. The A's had the bases loaded, veteran pinch-hitter Vic Davalillo representing the winning run at the plate and All-Star Bert Campaneris on deck. Stone had worked his way into a jam, but reared back and retired Davalillo on a pop-up to second baseman Felix Millan. With the bases still loaded, he then retired Campaneris on a groundout to shortstop Buddy Harrelson, earning the save and allowing the Mets to tie the series at one game apiece.

The Mets returned to Shea Stadium and won two of the three games at home, taking a 3-2 series lead back to Oakland. Needing one win to capture their second title, the Mets decided to go with Tom Seaver on three days rest in Game 6, bypassing the opportunity to use George Stone, who had only pitched one inning over the first five games of the series. It was a move that would forever be questioned by Mets fans everywhere, as Seaver allowed single runs in the first and third innings and the Mets lost, 3-1.

By using Seaver instead of Stone in Game 6, the Mets were left without their ace in Game 7 and were forced to use second-year starter Jon Matlack to pitch the first seventh game in Mets history. Matlack was knocked out early, allowing four runs in 2⅔ innings. By the time the Mets came to bat in the seventh inning, the score was 5-1 and the season was slipping away. George Stone was finally brought into the game in the bottom of the seventh to stop the bleeding, which he did, pitching two scoreless innings. However, he would be the last Met to take the mound in 1973, as the Mets were only able to push across one run in the ninth inning, losing the game and the World Series.

If George Stone had started Game 6, this might not have been the only ring won by the Mets in '73.

Although he had a surprisingly good regular season, Stone was barely used in the postseason. He started one of the five games in the NLCS and was used in relief twice in the World Series, allowing a combined one run on seven hits in 9⅔ innings. Despite the unfortunate ending to the 1973 season, the Mets expected to contend for the division title in 1974 with George Stone joining Seaver, Koosman and Matlack as part of a formidable rotation. Instead, they formed the nucleus of one of the most disappointing teams in Mets history.

Stone started 13 games for the Mets in 1974, fighting through injuries and finishing the year with a 2-7 record and a 5.03 ERA. After finishing one win short of a championship in 1973, the Mets finished 20 games under .500 in 1974. They did recover to win 82 games in 1975, but Stone did not recapture his 1973 magic, going 3-3 with a 5.05 ERA in 11 starts. Although he was only 28 years old, Stone's career as a Met was over.

Four years after breaking the hand of Rusty Staub, George Stone was traded to the Texas Rangers for (ironically) a pitcher named Hands. Neither player involved in the trade ever pitched in the major leagues again.

George Stone was disliked by Mets fans when the team acquired him five months after effectively ending their 1972 season. But the boos directed at Stone quickly turned to cheers as the 1973 season progressed. Stone was one of the most unexpected success stories in 1973, helping the Mets advance to the World Series after they had been left for dead in the National League East. His .800 winning percentage led all Mets pitchers and his 2.80 ERA was second only to Tom Seaver.

Although Stone only won five more games as a Met following the 1973 season, he left an indelible mark in the minds of Mets fans who were rooting for another miracle to occur. When George Stone was traded to the Mets prior to the 1973 season, he was basically a throw-in in a deal meant to strengthen the middle of the infield. But he became a key cog in helping his teammates and the fans believe that miracles can happen where you least expect them to. He may have had only one good season in New York, but what a wonderful season it was for both George Stone and the Mets.

Note: One Season Wonders is a thirteen-part weekly series spotlighting those Mets who had one and only one memorable season in New York. For previous installments, please click on the players' names below:

January 2, 2012: Bernard Gilkey
January 9, 2012: Terry Leach

A Homegrown Pitcher Who Hasn't Really Grown

2012-01-14T15:18:00.000-05:00

Mike Pelfrey turns 28 today. He's about to enter his prime for a pitcher in the major leagues. But does that mean he's about to blossom the way we thought he was doing during the first few months of the 2010 season?

Since making his debut for the Mets in 2006, Pelfrey has won 50 games in six seasons. Those 50 victories put him in 15th place on the Mets' all-time leaderboard, just one win behind former Met Bobby Ojeda. Going by that, it would appear that Big Pelf is one of the best pitchers the Mets have ever had and certainly one of the best who came up through the team's minor league system.

But one look at the career numbers of these all-time Mets greats shows that Pelfrey might be in the same classroom as they are, but he's not learning the same lessons.

Of the 15 pitchers to win 50 or more games for the Mets, Pelfrey is the seventh player originally drafted by the Mets, joining the likes of Tom Seaver, Dwight Gooden, Jerry Koosman, Jon Matlack, Bobby Jones and Craig Swan. Two other members of the 50-win club were originally drafted by other teams, but won their first 50 games in the majors as members of the New York Mets.

Ron Darling was drafted by the Texas Rangers in 1981 but made his major league debut in 1983 for the Mets. Long-time teammate Sid Fernandez actually pitched in two games for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1983, but finished with an 0-1 record in Dodger blue. He was credited with his first victory in the major leagues as a member of the Mets in 1984.

Let's take a look at the nine players who won their first 50 games in the big leagues as members of the New York Mets to see if we notice something interesting about the most recent 50-game winner. We'll consider the player's age and number of appearances (including starts) it took for that player to reach the 50-win plateau.

Tom Seaver: 24 yrs, 9 mos, 9 days. Won 50th game in 100th appearance (99 starts)
Dwight Gooden: 21 yrs, 7 mos, 13 days. Won 50th game in 82nd appearance (82 starts)
Jerry Koosman: 28 yrs, 4 mos, 16 days. Won 50th game in 112th appearance (105 starts)
Ron Darling: 26 yrs, 11 mos, 9 days. Won 50th game in 131st appearance (130 starts)
Sid Fernandez: 25 yrs, 10 mos, 2 days. Won 50th game in 124th appearance (122 starts)
Jon Matlack: 25 yrs, 4 mos, 24 days. Won 50th game in 122nd appearance (119 starts)
Bobby Jones: 27 yrs, 6 mos, 28 days. Won 50th game in 121st appearance (121 starts)
Craig Swan: 31 yrs, 6 mos, 13 days. Won 50th game in 174th appearance (149 starts)
Mike Pelfrey: 27 yrs, 7 mos, 10 days. Won 50th game in 144th appearance (140 starts)

Only Jerry Koosman and Craig Swan were older than Pelfrey at the time of their 50th victories. And only Swan had made more starts and total appearances than Pelfrey when he recorded his 50th win. However, Koosman did not become a regular in the Mets' rotation until he was 25 and Swan pitched the majority of his career with some of the worst Mets teams since the days of their infancy.

By the time he was 25, Pelfrey had already made 49 starts in the major leagues. Also, as bad as the Mets have been over the past three seasons, they still managed to win at least 70 games every year. Meanwhile, in his 12 years in Flushing, Craig Swan pitched for eight different Mets teams that finished at least 20 games below .500. That includes the strike-shortened 1981 season, when the Mets finished with a 41-62 record.

Mike Pelfrey was expected to become a mainstay in the Mets' rotation when the team promoted him to the major leagues in 2006. That part has become true, as Pelfrey has become one of the 15 winningest pitchers in franchise history. But if not for Craig Swan, Pelfrey would have taken longer than any Met to reach that win total, and even so, it only took Swan nine more starts on some pretty bad teams to win No. 50.

The Mets have produced many homegrown pitchers who have had tremendous success in the major leagues. Unfortunately, Mike Pelfrey has yet to become one of them. It'll take a lot more growth for this homegrown pitcher to move to join Seaver, Gooden and Koosman at the head of the Mets' pitching class.

Mets Teammates Who Played Together The Longest

2012-01-10T21:44:00.000-05:00

Within the next two weeks, longtime Yankees catcher Jorge Posada will announce his retirement from baseball. The 40-year-old Posada will hang up his catchers' gear after 15 full seasons (17 overall) in Yankee pinstripes. With Posada's retirement, that will leave Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera as the only Yankee teammates to be together since the days of Buck Showalter. Jeter and Rivera made their major league debuts six days apart during the 1995 season and will be entering their 18th season as Yankee teammates in 2012.

Only one pair of teammates played together longer than Jeter and Rivera. From 1977 to 1995, Lou Whitaker and Alan Trammell were double play partners in Detroit. Their 19 seasons as teammates surpassed the previous record of 18 years set by George Brett and Frank White when they played together in Kansas City from 1973 to 1990.

It's rare for an athlete to play for a single team over his entire career, especially if his career is lengthy. It's even rarer for teammates to stay together for an extended period of time. Lou Whitaker and Alan Trammell played an unprecedented 19 seasons together. No individual player, let alone a set of teammates, has ever been a Met for that long, as Ed Kranepool's 18 seasons with New York has remained the franchise record for over three decades.

This brings up an interesting question. If no individual Met has played more than 18 seasons with the team, which pair of Mets were teammates the longest? Surely, one of the dynamic duo had to be Kranepool, right? We've gone through mounds of paperwork (and by paperwork, I mean baseball-reference.com) and came up with the teammates who played together the longest in orange and blue. These pairs of Metropolitans played all or parts of twelve (or more) seasons together. Here they are:

Ed Kranepool and Cleon Jones (12 seasons; 1963, 1965-75)
Bud Harrelson and Jerry Grote (12 seasons; 1966-77)
Ed Kranepool and Jerry Grote (12 seasons; 1966-77)
Ed Kranepool and Jerry Koosman (12 seasons; 1967-78)
Ron Hodges and Craig Swan (12 seasons; 1973-84)
Ed Kranepool and Bud Harrelson (13 seasons; 1965-77)

Ed Kranepool was everyone's teammate so long ago that color film hadn't been invented yet.

That was kind of boring, wasn't it? Other than the Hodges/Swan combo that most Mets fans might have overlooked, the other pairs of teammates all played in the same era of Mets baseball.

The more interesting question might be which teammates played the longest since the '80s began? That list is probably one you wouldn't be able to recite off the top of your head. In fact, we uncovered only one pair of teammates that played at least ten seasons together since the Reagan administration and another nine that played a minimum of eight seasons with each other. Time to go through those mounds of paperwork again...

Darryl Strawberry and Ron Darling (8 seasons; 1983-90)
Sid Fernandez and Ron Darling (8 seasons; 1984-91)
Dwight Gooden and Ron Darling (8 seasons; 1984-91)
John Franco and Bobby Jones (8 seasons; 1993-2000)
Jose Reyes and David Wright (8 seasons; 2004-11)

Mookie Wilson and Wally Backman (9 seasons; 1980-88)
Sid Fernandez and Howard Johnson (9 seasons; 1985-93)
Dwight Gooden and Howard Johnson (9 seasons; 1985-93)
John Franco and Todd Hundley (9 seasons; 1990-98)
Dwight Gooden and Sid Fernandez (10 seasons; 1984-93)

(Editor's note: John Franco missed the 2002 season with an injury. That eliminates a pairing of Franco and Edgardo Alfonzo as eight-year teammates, as Fonzie was with the Mets from 1995 to 2002, thereby only making him Franco's teammate for seven years. Ya gotta believe... in semantics!)

We know Sid Fernandez wore No. 50. But he wore No. 10 in this photo to commemorate the number of seasons he was Dwight Gooden's teammate with the Mets. We wouldn't lie to you about that.

With Jose Reyes now waiting for the latest fire sale in Miami, David Wright and Mike Pelfrey have become the current longest running duo on 126th and Roosevelt, having played all or parts of six seasons together. Since neither player is guaranteed to return after the 2012 season, it may be a while before the Mets have a pair of teammates play at least eight seasons together, let alone the number of seasons that players like Ed Kranepool, Jerry Grote, Bud Harrelson and others from the early days of the franchise played together.

The business of baseball has changed quite a bit since the Mets were the little team that could. Keeping a team intact for an extended period of time has become more difficult than spelling Mientkiewicz after downing a few Coronas.

Where have you gone, Eddie Kranepool? The Mets don't have the same look to me...

Hall of Famer Barry Larkin Was Almost a Met

2012-01-09T20:13:00.000-05:00

Barry Larkin, the dynamic shortstop who played for nearly two decades as a member of the Cincinnati Reds, was the sole player chosen today by the Baseball Writers Association of America for induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He will join the late Ron Santo, who was voted in by the Golden Era Committee last month.

Larkin played in 2,180 games in the major leagues, all with the same team. Only 26 players in major league history have played in more games exclusively for one team. But that would not have been the case had then-Mets general manager Steve Phillips been able to get Larkin to say "yes" on July 22, 2000.

Twelve years ago, the Mets were in the midst of a heated race with the Atlanta Braves for the NL East lead. But shortstop Rey Ordoñez had suffered what became a season-ending arm injury in late May and the Mets needed a replacement. Kurt Abbott and Melvin Mora split the duties at short in Ordoñez's absence, but neither provided the defensive wizardry Rey gave the team.

At first, the Mets didn't appear to miss Ordoñez much. On July 1, the Mets stood one game behind the first place Braves in the NL East. But over the next three weeks, the Mets lost 11 of 17 games to fall six games behind Atlanta. They needed a quick fix at short, one that was not being solved internally by Abbott and Mora. That was when Steve Phillips turned to Cincinnati and their longtime shortstop.

A trade centered around Mets' top prospect Alex Escobar was offered to Reds' GM Jim Bowden, who accepted the deal. However, with Larkin being a 10-and-5 player, it was his right to decline the trade if he chose to do so. The Mets were given a 72-hour window to negotiate with Larkin and his agent, Eric Goldschmidt, but were unwilling to offer the All-Star shortstop a multi-year contract.

As a result, Larkin chose to stay in Cincinnati, where he played until his retirement in 2004. The Mets eventually did make a trade for a shortstop, acquiring Mike Bordick from the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for Melvin Mora and three other players. Mora became a two-time All-Star with the Orioles, hitting over .300 twice and producing two 100-RBI campaigns. Bordick played in 56 games for the Mets before re-signing with the Orioles prior to the 2001 season.

It's impossible to say what Larkin would have done had he played his final four seasons as a Met. Injuries limited him to 45 games in 2001 and 70 games in 2003. But at least with Larkin, the Mets would not have had to deal Melvin Mora before he blossomed into an All-Star and they would have had an All-Star of their own at short as they made their run to the 2000 National League pennant.

Barry Larkin is the 31st former Red to be inducted into the Hall of Fame and the ninth who played primarily for Cincinnati. There have only been 11 former Mets to get the call to Cooperstown and the only one wearing a Mets cap on his plaque is Tom Seaver. (Lest we forget, Seaver is also one of the 31 former Reds in the Hall of Fame.)

Had Larkin accepted his trade to the Mets in 2000, he could have become the 12th former Met in the Hall of Fame. Instead, he chose to remain in Cincinnati to punch his ticket to Cooperstown while the Mets got 56 games of Mike Bordick as a consolation prize and a World Series loss to the Yankees. Even the non-trades end up being bad trades for the Mets.

One Season Wonders: Terry Leach

2012-01-09T09:26:00.000-05:00

Many players have dreams of making it to the major leagues. Some go through many years of minor league seasoning before getting their first call to the big show. Others bounce around from team to team in the hopes of getting a small taste of big league baseball. Those who do both rarely get to stay in the majors for very long, usually getting a cup of coffee with the parent club before being relegated to the bench or back to the minors.

One former Met fit the criteria for all of the above scenarios, as Terry Leach was originally selected by the Boston Red Sox in the seventh round of the 1976 MLB January draft. Soon after, that pick was voided and Leach became a free agent. In 1977, Leach signed with the Atlanta Braves, toiling in their minor league system for four years before being released midway through the 1980 season. New Mets GM Frank Cashen, always on the lookout for fresh young talent, scooped up Leach four days after his release from the Braves.

Leach had two brief stints with the Mets in 1981 and 1982 as a spot starter and reliever. In 1981, he went 1-1 with a 2.55 ERA in 21 games (one start). Leach regressed in 1982, posting a 5.35 ERA over his first 20 appearances, all in relief, before finally getting a start during the last weekend of the season against the Philadelphia Phillies. In that start, Leach gave the Mets one of the best pitching performances in franchise history. He threw ten shutout innings while allowing only one hit, a fifth inning triple to Luis Aguayo. The Mets, who themselves had only one hit through the first nine innings, won the game for Leach by manufacturing a run in the tenth inning. It was Leach's first career victory as a starter.

The dominating start by Leach to close out the 1982 season didn't translate into future success with the Mets, as Leach began the 1983 season at AAA-Tidewater and fared poorly, going 5-7 with a 4.46 ERA and 1.43 WHIP in 113 innings. He was traded to the Chicago Cubs that summer for two minor leaguers and it was believed that his once promising career with the Mets had come to a close. However, this was not the case, as a few short years later, Leach turned in one of the most unexpected seasons in Mets' history.

It took many years and organizations for Terry Leach to become a one-season wonder for the Mets.

Terry Hester Leach had thrown his last pitch for the Mets following the 1982 season, or so he thought. The 1982 season only turned out to be the final chapter in Act One of Terry Leach's career with the Mets. After his trade to the Cubs in 1983, Leach was dealt back to the Atlanta Braves, the team for which he began his professional career in 1977. A month later, Leach was released a second time by the Braves and was re-signed the next day by Frank Cashen. Given a new lease on his baseball life by the Mets, Leach was not going to disappoint the team.

Leach, now in his 30s, began the 1985 season in the Mets' minor league system, but didn't stay there very long. In 24 relief appearances for Tidewater, Leach was dominant, posting a 1.59 ERA and 0.90 WHIP. His performance for the Tides got Leach a call to the majors in June, where he once again pitched in relief with an occasional spot start when needed. Leach performed well in his first extended stay in the majors, going 3-4 with a 2.91 ERA in 55.2 innings of work. However, it was his work as a spot starter that got the most attention. In four starts, Leach went 3-1 with a 2.70 ERA and 1.05 WHIP. Opposing batters were confounded by Leach's submarine delivery and when they did get on base, they didn't hit the ball very hard. Leach held hitters to a .221 batting average in those four starts, to go with a .272 on-base percentage and a lilliputian .295 slugging percentage.

Judging by his performance in four starts during the 1985 season, Leach appeared to be on his way to becoming a successful starting pitcher in the major leagues. But then came the 1986 season, a season in which Dwight Gooden, Ron Darling, Sid Fernandez, Bobby Ojeda and Rick Aguilera made 148 of the team's 162 starts and combined to go 76-30. With Gooden, Darling, Fernandez and Ojeda all pitching over 200 innings each, and Roger McDowell and Jesse Orosco combining to throw over 200 more, it was difficult for Leach to pitch in any role for the 1986 Mets. As a result, Leach pitched mostly at Tidewater, going 4-4 with a 2.49 ERA in 34 appearances (15 starts), while only making six appearances (all in relief) for the 1986 Mets.

The 1987 season appeared to be no different for Leach, as the same five starters who took over the 1986 season were scheduled to begin the '87 season in the rotation. Then Gooden missed the first two months of the season to check himself into rehab for cocaine abuse, giving Leach a spot on the major league roster. It was an opportunity that Leach had been looking forward to for the better part of a decade.

At the age of 33, Leach was finally part of an Opening Day roster for the first time in his professional career. Although he began the season pitching out of the bullpen, Leach performed extremely well in that role. Leach made 18 relief appearances in April and May, going 3-0 with a 2.37 ERA and 1.19 WHIP. But once Rick Aguilera was placed on the disabled list in late May with a strained elbow ligament, joining the rehabbing Dwight Gooden and the injured Bobby Ojeda, another spot opened up in the starting rotation. Leach was tabbed by manager Davey Johnson to face Fernando Valenzuela and the Los Angeles Dodgers on June 1. It would become the most important start in Terry Leach's career.

Leach pitched well against the Dodgers, besting Valenzuela with six strong innings. He allowed one unearned run on four hits while walking one batter in the 5-2 Mets victory. It was the first of 12 starts Leach would make during the 1987 season and each one appeared to come after another starter got hurt.

As players continued to succumb to injuries, Leach continue to thrive with his increased workload and responsibility. Eight days after making his first start of the season, Leach made his second. He pitched well again, allowing two earned runs to the Chicago Cubs in six innings of work. But the bullpen failed that afternoon at Wrigley Field, as Randy Myers and Roger McDowell combined to give up the go-ahead runs in the eighth inning of the Mets' 6-5 loss. With the loss, the Mets dropped to 28-28 on the season. They were in fourth place in the NL East and hopes of repeating as World Series champions were fading fast. It was then that Terry Leach went on an unprecedented run of success for the Mets.

Following the bullpen meltdown on June 9, the team went on a major roll, going 35-18 over the next 53 games to move into second place in the NL East and within striking distance of the first place St. Louis Cardinals. By the time the run ended in mid-August, the Mets had added Sid Fernandez to the long list of players who spent time on the disabled list. But by then, Terry Leach had done what no one had expected him to do and what no other Mets pitcher had ever done before him.

From mid-June to mid-August, Leach made eight more starts. The Mets won all eight of those starts. Over that magical two-month stretch, Leach went 6-0 with two no-decisions. He allowed two runs or less in six of those eight starts, which included his second career shutout, a two-hit masterpiece over the Cincinnati Reds on July 2. When his streak of excellence ended, Leach's record stood at a perfect 10-0, making him the first pitcher in Mets history to win his first ten decisions in a single season.

Leach finally suffered his first loss of the season on August 15, allowing four runs in a 7-3 loss to the Cubs. He made one more start after that loss, receiving a no-decision in the Mets' 7-4 victory over the San Francisco Giants on August 20, then returned to the bullpen for the rest of the season once the injured starters returned to the land of the healthy. As a reliever, Leach won his 11th game of the year on September 8, earning the victory over the Philadelphia Phillies. That win, followed by the following night's victory, pulled the Mets to within 1½ games of the division-leading Cardinals. It was the closest the Mets would get to first place in 1987. However, the Mets would never have found themselves in such close proximity to the division lead had it not been for Herculean effort of Terry Leach.

With injuries no longer a problem following the 1987 season, Terry Leach went back into the Mets bullpen for good. Leach made 52 appearances in 1988, all in relief, en route to a 7-2 record and 2.54 ERA. In 1989, Leach made 10 relief appearances for the Mets, but saw his ERA rise to 4.22. On June 9, the Mets traded Leach to the Kansas City Royals for minor league pitcher Aguedo Vasquez. Vasquez never pitched for the Mets and was out of professional baseball by age 24. Leach's trade began a flurry of activity for the Mets, as a number of mainstays from the 1986 World Series champions such as Lenny Dykstra, Roger McDowell, Mookie Wilson, Lee Mazzilli and Rick Aguilera were either waived or traded.

Once traded by the Mets, Leach's career resembled his early days in professional baseball. He was released by the Royals in 1990 and was signed by the Minnesota Twins. He pitched two seasons in Minnesota, appearing in 105 games (all in relief) and winning a World Series ring in 1991. He then signed with Montreal as a free agent in 1992 before being released by the Expos prior to Opening Day. One day after his release, he was signed by the Chicago White Sox, pitching the final two seasons of his career (1992-1993) as a member of the Pale Hose.

Terry Leach was not a typical pitcher. He didn't overpower opposing batters with a blazing fastball or possess a standard out pitch. But for one incredible season, he was as dominant as any pitcher in the Mets' rotation. In 1987, Leach was 11-1 for the Mets in a season where each member of the starting rotation spent time on the disabled list. Leach pitched in six other seasons for the Mets but only managed to win 13 games in those other half-dozen campaigns.

Terry Leach's overall numbers in New York were very good. He was 24-9 with a 3.11 ERA in 176 career appearances. Of those 176 appearances, all but 18 came in relief. But what he did in those 18 starts was more crucial than anything he did in his plethora of relief appearances. Terry Leach did everything he could to save the Mets' season in 1987, but couldn't do it all on his own. Despite his best efforts, the Mets still finished three games behind the pennant-winning St. Louis Cardinals in the NL East. But the season could have been over well before Terry Pendleton effectively ended it on that infamous night in September at Shea Stadium.

From his beginnings in Selma, Alabama to the bright lights of New York, Terry Leach did nothing but fight his way to get to the big leagues. He could have given up on his dream every time he was released or traded, but instead chose to use the rejection as motivation to continue to be the best pitcher he could be, regardless of the role he was used in. Terry Leach had a dream season for the Mets in 1987 and although it was his only year in the spotlight, it was one of the most important seasons by a pitcher in club history. Not bad for the kid from the small town in Alabama.

Note: One Season Wonders is a thirteen-part weekly series spotlighting those Mets who had one and only one memorable season in New York. For previous installments, please click on the players' names below:

January 2, 2012: Bernard Gilkey

Dickeypedia Word of The Week: Acclimatize

2012-01-08T20:30:00.000-05:00

Greetings, salutations and any other polysyllablic words that can serve as a synonym for hello. Some time has passed since our last Dickeypedia entry, but we thought that now was a perfect time for our virtual tome to receive an update.

As many of you are aware, (and if you're not, where have you been?) R.A. Dickey is in the process of climbing to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. At 19,341 feet, it is the tallest mountain on the African continent and the tallest freestanding mountain in the world. Dickey is not doing this for fun or because there's a secret Stormtrooper reunion waiting for him at the summit. Rather, he is climbing the mountain to raise awareness for the Bombay Teen Challenge, which is an organization that rescues and treats sexually abused and exploited girls in Mumbai, India.

(Editor's note: If you would like to make a donation to support R.A. Dickey and the Bombay Teen Challenge, please click here to be taken to the donation page.)

Our fav'rit knuckleballer and wordsmith has been writing reports of his climb for the "Bats" blog in the New York Times. Earlier today, amongst the plethora of Bilbo Baggins references, Dickey used a word that would even confound J.R.R. Tolkien.

In discussing his ascent to the next camp on the mountain, Dickey cooked up this delicious piece of verbal fondue:

"Tomorrow we will have only a short hike to Shira 2 camp to continue to acclimatize. After that, the real test begins."

For many readers, including a particular former Met (more on him later), the real test would involve defining the word "acclimatize". It's not a word that's used in everyday language and it's certainly not a word that's sprinkled liberally in a baseball clubhouse. Looks like it's high time to dust off our Dickeypedia to find the definition:

acclimatize:

1. to become acclimated or adapted.
2. to adapt (oneself), especially to environmental or climactic changes.

Clearly, Dickey was referring to the second definition of the word, as he and his climbing team are going to have to adjust to the obvious changes in air pressure and temperature as they continue to scale the mountain. But not everyone believes that's the proper definition of the word.

We asked former Met killer (and former Met) Mike Scott to use the word in a sentence. As you may recall, Scott did not do very well for the Mets during his four years in New York, making 60 starts and finishing his Mets career with a 14-27 record. (By comparison, it only took R.A. Dickey 39 starts to win his 14th game as a Met.) However, once he left New York for Houston, Scott scuffed his way to a no-hitter, a Cy Young Award and 110 more victories.

Considering Scott's uncanny ability to deceive all those who came into contact with him, we thought he would be the perfect choice to use acclimatize in a sentence. After doing a few pre-definition stretches and sharpening his fingernails for a few moments, Scott tackled the challenge head on, saying:

"In 1986, Gary Carter was adamant that I was scuffing the baseball. But I think when Carter was behind the plate, he was asking Sid Fernandez to do the same thing. Carter claimed my pitches would sink unnaturally to the left and right when I threw them. Sid Fernandez? His pitches would leave his hand and acclimatize through the strike zone. It takes one to know one, Gary!"

Mike Scott and his Rainbow Brite uniform have been out of baseball since 1989, but he still has a way to make people scratch their heads when he takes center stage. He failed miserably as a Met, had to cheat to become a success, and is now stretching the boundaries of the English language as wide as Mount Kilimanjaro is high.

If Mike Scott wanted his balls to flutter legally, perhaps he should have learned how to throw the knuckleball like R.A. Dickey has. Instead, he had to scuff his way to the top. I guess he couldn't acclimatize to failure.

You can follow R.A. Dickey on Twitter by clicking here. You can also follow Dickey's blog posts for the New York Times by clicking here. For more vocabulary assistance, please read the following Dickeypedia entries:

February 22, 2011: Dickeypedia Word of The Week: Narrative
February 25, 2011: A Double Dose of Dickeypedia (Rudiments, Vernacular)
March 10, 2011: Dickeypedia Word of The Week: Syntax
April 2, 2011: Dickeypedia Word of The Week: Asphyxiation
May 15, 2011: Dickeypedia Word of The Week: Fortitude
August 14, 2011: Dickeypedia Word of The Week: Fodder
September 3, 2011: Dickeypedia Word of The Week: Hyperbole

If Studious Metsimus Had A 2012 Hall of Fame Vote...

2012-01-08T11:04:00.000-05:00

On Monday, the National Baseball Hall of Fame will announce their 2012 inductees. First-time candidates include former Met Jeromy Burnitz, Vinny Castilla, one-time Met nemesis Brian Jordan (okay, many-time Met nemesis), Javy Lopez, Bill Mueller, Terry Mulholland, Phil Nevin, Brad Radke, Tim Salmon, Ruben Sierra, Bernie Williams, Tony Womack and Eric Young.

Holdovers from previous years include Jeff Bagwell, Juan Gonzalez, Barry Larkin, Edgar Martinez, Don Mattingly, Fred McGriff, Mark McGwire, Jack Morris, Dale Murphy, Rafael Palmeiro, Tim Raines, Lee Smith, Alan Trammell and Larry Walker.

For the second straight year, Studious Metsimus was not allowed to cast an official Hall of Fame vote. (Note to self: Hire Bobby Bonilla to show the Bronx to the BBWAA if they don't accept our votes next year.) However, if we did have a say in who should be checking priceline.com for the best rates on airfare and hotels in Cooperstown, these are the players who would make the cut.

Barry Larkin

Had Ozzie Smith not been a contemporary of Barry Larkin over the early part of Larkin's career, we wouldn't be having this discussion right now. Larkin would have been inducted into the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 2010. But because Larkin's defensive wizardry was never validated with numerous Gold Gloves due to Smith's presence in St. Louis, he didn't receive the necessary 75% of the vote during his first two years of eligibility. (Larkin's three Gold Glove Awards were earned after Smith had played 16 seasons and earned 13 Gold Gloves.) Larkin received 51.6% of the votes in 2010 and jumped to 62.1% last year. That bodes well for the former Reds' shortstop in 2012.

Over his 19-year career, all with Cincinnati, Larkin hit .295 with 2,340 hits, 441 doubles, 198 HR, 379 SB and 1,329 runs scored. Larkin hit .300 or better nine times, won nine Silver Slugger Awards and was a 12-time All-Star. He also won the Gold Glove Award three times (1994-1996), was the National League MVP in 1995 and became the first shortstop to record a 30-30 season when he collected 33 HR and 36 SB in 1996. Furthermore, Larkin was an outstanding post-season hitter, batting .338 with five doubles, two triples and eight stolen bases in 17 career post-season games, which included a 1990 World Series championship.

If Ozzie Smith made the Hall of Fame primarily because of his defense, then Barry Larkin should make it as well. Not only was he a standout player on the field, but at the plate, there was no comparison between Larkin and Smith. After two strikes in 2010 and 2011, Larkin will not strike out in his third attempt at making the Hall of Fame. He's as good as in.

Jeff Bagwell

How did Bagwell only garner 41.7% of the votes last year? He was one of the most feared hitters in the National League during his 15-year career, all with the Houston Astros.

Bagwell averaged over 100 runs scored and 100 RBIs per season over his entire career, crossing the plate 1,517 times and driving in 1,529 runs in his decade and a half of service. Every player in the 1,500/1,500 club who is eligible for the Hall of Fame and hasn't been suspended for steroids (I'm wagging my finger at you, Rafael Palmeiro) has been enshrined in Cooperstown. Bagwell should be the next on this list.

The Astros' first baseman had an amazing career in the majors. During his best six-year stretch (1996-2001), Bagwell hit .301, had a .429 on-base percentage and slugged .583, giving him an eye-popping 1.022 OPS. He tallied 236 doubles, 236 home runs and stole 121 bases. Bagwell also scored 765 runs and drove in 754 more during those six campaigns.

For his career, Bagwell hit .297, had an on-base percentage of .408 and finished with a .540 slugging percentage. He lashed 2,314 hits, including 488 doubles and 449 HR. He was also an intelligent baserunner, stealing 202 bases. Bagwell scored 100 or more runs in a season nine times, drove in 100 or more runs eight times (and narrowly missed twice, picking up 96 RBI in 1992 and 98 RBI in 2002) and registered triple-digit walks on seven occasions.

Bagwell also won the Rookie of the Year Award in 1991 and the National League MVP Award in 1994, a year in which he hit .368, led the league in runs scored, RBIs, total bases, slugging percentage, OPS and won both the Silver Slugger and Gold Glove Awards? Furthermore, Bagwell led the Astros to six postseason appearances in nine years from 1997-2005. Prior to Bagwell's arrival in Houston, the Astros had only made the playoffs three times in three decades of existence. 'Nuff said!

Larry Walker

It's always tough to consider a man who played the majority of his career at Coors Field. After all, Andres Galarraga was a .267 career hitter who had never hit 30 HR or driven in 100 runs in a season in his first eight years in the majors. Then he goes to Colorado, wins a batting title in his first season there (hitting a whopping .370) and averages .316, 34 HR and 116 RBI in his five seasons in Denver. The same thing happened to other mediocre players who flourished during their years as a Rockie, like Dante Bichette, Ellis Burks and Vinny Castilla. So how did Galarraga do in his first year of Hall of Fame eligibility (2010)? He received only 4.1% of the votes and was taken off subsequent ballots. That being said, Larry Walker should still be a Hall of Famer.

Prior to becoming a Colorado Rockie, Larry Walker was already a good hitter and complete player. In his final three years in Montreal, Walker had a .294 batting average, .371 on-base percentage and .516 slugging percentage, averaging 33 doubles, 21 HR, 88 RBI and 21 SB. He also was an All-Star, won a Silver Slugger Award and two Gold Gloves while in Montreal. Although those numbers are not quite Hall of Fame-worthy, they were still very good. Then he signed with Colorado and became one of the best players in the major leagues.

In his first season as a Rockie (1995), Walker hit .306 with 36 HR and 101 RBI. His .607 slugging percentage was second in the league and he helped lead the third-year Rockies to their first-ever playoff appearance. Year two in Colorado was fraught with injuries, as Walker only played in 83 games but still managed 18 HR, 58 RBI and 18 SB in half a season's worth of games. Fully healthy in 1997, Walker's career took off into the stratosphere. Walker's 1997 numbers (.366 batting average, 46 doubles, 49 HR, 130 RBI, 143 runs scored, 33 SB, .452 OBP, .720 SLG, 1.172 OPS) almost looked like they came straight from a video game. But Walker wasn't done after his phenomenal '97 campaign. Over the next five seasons, Walker won three batting titles (1998, 1999, 2001), finished second another year (2002) and had a combined .350 batting average over those five seasons. Basically, he was Tony Gwynn with power and Gwynn was a first-ballot Hall of Famer.

In ten years as a Rockie, Walker posted a .334 batting average, .426 on-base percentage, .618 slugging percentage and 1.044 OPS. Only 24 players in major league history finished with a higher career batting average than what Larry Walker put up in that ten-year span. Of those 24, the only three who finished with a higher on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS were Ted Williams, Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig, all first ballot Hall of Famers and all legends of the sport.

Larry Walker played 17 years in the major leagues. However, because of injuries, he only had four seasons in which he played at least 140 games. From 1994-2005, Walker missed an average of 44 games per season, failing to play more than 103 games in five of those 12 campaigns. Despite his multiple trips to the disabled list, Walker finished his career with 2,160 hits, including 471 doubles and 383 HR. He also stole 230 bases, scored 1,355 runs and drove in 1,311 more. His combined averages (.313 BA, .400 OBP, .565 SLG) are among the highest career marks of anyone not already in the Hall of Fame. Walker was a five-time All-Star, won seven Gold Gloves and three Silver Slugger Awards. He also finished in the top 20 in the MVP vote seven times, winning the 1997 MVP Award. Not all of his awards and accolades came as a member of the Colorado Rockies, proving that Walker was an exceptional player before and after his time in Colorado. Simply stated, Larry Walker has earned the right to become the first player with a Rockies hat on his Hall of Fame plaque.

As is the case every season, there are always quality players left out of the Hall of Fame, but will garner enough votes for future consideration. This year such players include Jack Morris (53.5% of the votes in 2011, but his 3.90 ERA and 1.30 WHIP over 18 seasons might offset his 254 career victories), Edgar Martinez (.312 career batting average, .418 on-base percentage, 514 doubles, 309 HR, seven-time All-Star, five-time Silver Slugger, but might be hurt because of his DH status) and Lee Smith (478 career saves, retired as the all-time saves leader, but was never the dominant closer of his era a la Goose Gossage, Bruce Sutter and Dennis Eckersley).

Also of note, none of the first-time candidates should become Hall of Famers either this year or ever. When Bernie Williams, who averaged 85 runs, 28 doubles, 18 HR, 79 RBI and nine stolen bases per season over his 16-year career is the most attractive new candidate, players who fell short in previous years will be camping out in front of their phones come Hall of Fame selection day.

The time might eventually come for Jack Morris, Edgar Martinez and Lee Smith, but if Studious Metsimus had a vote for the Hall of Fame Class of 2012, Barry Larkin, Jeff Bagwell and Larry Walker would be graduating to the team of baseball immortals.

Miami Unsound Machine: Carlos Zambrano Is A Marlin

2012-01-05T20:46:00.003-05:00

The Miami Marlins are at it again. Earlier today, the Marlins traded starting pitcher Chris Volstad to the Chicago Cubs for the human geyser, Carlos Zambrano. Zambrano will etch his name on the long list of new players who will be calling South Beach home until the Marlins conduct their latest fire sale.

Chicago will eat $15.5 million of Zambrano's salary in 2012, leaving the Marlins to foot the bill for the remaining $2.5 million. The Marlins needed the Cubs to take on most of his salary so they can use the savings to make repairs to all parts of their new stadium that Zambrano will eventually destroy after his first meltdown.

At first glance, it appears to be a good deal for the Marlins. They were able to unload Chris Volstad, who was 5-13 for the team formerly known as Florida in 2011. It was a disappointing season for Volstad, especially on the heels of a 12-9 season in 2010. The 25-year-old has been in the major leagues since 2008 but has never pitched more than 175 innings in a season. The same cannot be said for Zambrano.

Carlos Zambrano has had a winning record in each of the last nine seasons, going 120-71 (.628 winning percentage) since 2003. Over those nine seasons, El Toro has averaged 190 innings pitched per year, surpassing 200 innings five times. In 2011, Zambrano only pitched 145.2 innings, but that was mostly due to the fact that the Cubs suspended him for the final month of the season.

So why will this deal fall apart for Miami? Because Carlos Zambrano makes Dennis Rodman look sane.

Other than fellow new acquisition Mark Buehrle, most of the Marlins' pitching staff is young and easily impressionable. Is Carlos Zambrano going to be a mentor or just mental to them? Do the Marlins have a long reliever for the games in which Zambrano loses his control on the mound (Big Z has led the league in walks twice and hit batsmen once) and then loses his control in the dugout (he famously confronted several of his teammates there in 2010)?

Also, who's going to replace Jose Reyes in the lineup when Zambrano blindly throws a Gatorade cooler in a fit of anger and hits the former Met in his fragile hamstrings? Zambrano may be good friends with his new manager (fellow Venezuelan Ozzie Guillen), but can the Marlins handle making excuses for both of them when they lose their cool?

Carlos Zambrano shows off his best smile for the camera.

Theo Epstein made a great deal today for the Cubs, ridding the team of its clubhouse cancer by finding the one club who was willing to take him off their hands. The Marlins are signing and trading for anyone with a pulse right now and when Zambrano gets steamed, no one has a higher pulse rate.

Perhaps Zambrano will be a perfect fit in Miami (doubt it). Perhaps this deal will even help the Mets in the long run. After all, Volstad is now out of the NL East after posting a 3.35 ERA in eight career starts against the Mets, while having an ERA over 4.00 against every other team he's made a minimum of five starts against.

Miami already has volatile weather practically every afternoon during the summer. Now they'll be experiencing a different kind of storm every fifth day when Carlos Zambrano takes the mound. Hide your kids, hide your $106 million shortstop, because Carlos Zambrano is taking out everybody who gets in his way. Let the countdown begin to his first Miami meltdown.

Joey's Small Bites: Mets Re-Sign Scott Hairston

2012-01-05T19:46:00.000-05:00

Greetings and a happy new year to everyone! This is Joey Beartran and I'm here to give you some small bites on what's going on with the Mets these days.

If you recall, last April I had the opportunity to take the field with a member of the Mets before the first Saturday night game of the season. I was hoping to meet either Jose Reyes or Carlos Beltran since I was named after both of them. But then I saw the starting lineup and feared I'd get Chin-lung Hu.

I didn't get to take the field with my namesakes or the man named after two body parts and a question. Instead I got to meet the starting leftfielder for the night. I wanted it to be Jason Bay so we could discuss the finer things in life, like Canadian bacon, poutine and Tim Horton's.

Unfortunately, Bay was on the disabled list to start the season so I got his replacement du jour. That's right, my friends. I got to meet Scott Hairston.

Scott Hairston was in awe that the world's preeminent bear blogger was taking the field with him. Either that or he was checking out my colleague's wife. (Photo by Sharon Chapman)

Hairston was very polite and seemed happy to see us keeping his position warm for him. He even gave me a high five before we ran off the field to head for our seats. Although he didn't do very well in the game (0-for-3, 2 Ks, HBP, one run scored), I still enjoyed my first meeting with him and rooted openly for him during the season.

Therefore, it should come as no surprise that I was overjoyed when word came out that the Mets had re-signed Hairston for the 2012 season. At first, I was a little skeptical about the news. After all, the Mets aren't signing anyone these days. They're leaving that for the other teams in the NL East.

But then I checked Twitter and scanned through Jon Heyman's tweets and found confirmation of the news (because everything Heyman tweets is true, right?):

scott hairston will get $1.1M from mets in '12, give or take a few pennies
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) January 5, 2012

So one of the Mets' key bench players will be returning to Citi Field in 2012 at a bargain basement price of $1.1 million (or less than 10% of what they paid Oliver Perez not to pitch for the Mets in 2011).

Although Hairston only hit .235 last year, he excelled at producing extra-base hits. Of his 31 hits, 16 went for extra bases (eight doubles, one triple, seven home runs), giving him a .470 slugging percentage. In addition, Hairston picked up 24 RBI in 149 plate appearances. His rate of one RBI every 6.2 plate appearances was better than Carlos Beltran (6.3 PA/RBI), David Wright (7.3 PA/RBI) and Lucas Duda (6.9 PA/RBI). Jason Bay? He drove in a run every 8.9 plate appearances in 2011 and will be paid approximately 15 times the amount Hairston will be earning in 2012.

Scott Hairston hit three of his seven home runs as a pinch-hitter in 2011, leading all Mets in that department, despite the fact that he didn't play after August 23 because of injury. No other Met hit more than one pinch-hit homer in 2011.

The Mets didn't hit for much power in 2011. For the second time in the three-year history of Citi Field, no Met hit more than 15 HR. The team's leading home run hitter (Carlos Beltran) played the final two months of the season as a member of the San Francisco Giants. Scott Hairston was one of the few players on the team who could actually hit the ball out of the ballpark with some regularity. Therefore, I believe it's a good thing that he's returning to Citi Field in 2012, especially with the walls being lowered and moved in.

A healthy Scott Hairston will provide the Mets with a legitimate home run threat on the bench, as well as a utility player who can play in the infield and outfield when needed. The Mets might not be big spenders this offseason, but at least they're keeping their inexpensive talent.

Jose Reyes is gone. So is Carlos Beltran. Maybe I should change my name from Joey Beartran to Scotty Bearston. At least that way I know I'll have my namesake around in 2012.

One Season Wonders: Bernard Gilkey

2012-01-02T09:23:00.000-05:00

In the music business, many artists have recorded one big hit and then never went on to score another. When In Rome spent more than a day near the top of the charts in 1988 with "The Promise" but made no promises about creating another hit. One year earlier, T'Pau gave us a little bit of "Heart and Soul" but never gave us another hit. Recording a hit song doesn't guarantee success with future recordings. (Isn't that right, Biz Markie?) Similarly, having a breakout season in the major leagues doesn't mean a player is headed for the Hall of Fame. In fact, for some Mets, one good season was all they had in them.

For the next thirteen weeks, we'll be focusing the spotlight on some of the biggest one season wonders in Mets history. These players had some of the greatest seasons in club annals, but don't look for them on the career leaderboard. All they had was 162 games of fame with the Mets, which I guess is more than the 15 minutes of fame some players had (I'm talking to you, Richard Hidalgo).

So sit back and enjoy the first part of One Season Wonders, as we take a look at a Met who had one of the most complete offensive seasons in franchise history, but never came close to replicating his magical season. It's time to party like it's 1996 and the host of this party is Bernard Gilkey.

One season wonder Bernard Gilkey sporting the snow white cap that itself was a one season wonder.

Otis Bernard Gilkey was a man of many firsts. He was the first player in Mets history to go by the name Bernard (or Otis for that matter - Amos Otis doesn't count since that was his last name). He was also the first Met to be bopped in the head by a fly ball while an alien spaceship flew over Shea Stadium. (He can thank Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones for that fielding error.) Despite all that, it was his first season as a Met that really opened eyes in Flushing.

Prior to the 1996 season, the Mets were desperately seeking a cleanup hitter. With most available power-hitting free agents already off the table, GM Joe McIlvane traded for the best available player who wouldn't cost him too much talent. The Cardinals had just signed outfielder Ron Gant to a five-year contract and were looking to cut payroll to have the finances to acquire 41-year-old closer Dennis Eckersley. Gilkey became the odd man out in St. Louis despite having a solid year for the Cardinals in 1995 (.298, 33 doubles, 17 HR, 69 RBI in 121 games).

On January 22, 1996, the Mets got their man, trading minor league prospects Erik Hiljus, Eric Ludwick and Yudith Orozio to St. Louis for Bernard Gilkey. Hiljus never pitched for the Cardinals and only logged 124 innings over parts of four seasons in the major leagues. Ludwick pitched even less over his four-year major league career (74.2 innings), but at least 16.2 of those innings came in a Cardinals uniform. Orozio never made it to the majors and was out of professional baseball by 1998, at the tender age of 23. By that time, Gilkey had already given the Mets more than they ever could have expected from him.

The 1996 Mets went into the season with high expectations following a surprising second-place finish in the strike-shortened 1995 campaign. The outfield of Gilkey in left, the newly-acquired Lance Johnson in center and the Butch Huskey/Carl Everett platoon in right was loaded with raw talent and athleticism. The only question was how they'd play together as neither of the four had ever played in the same outfield with the others prior to 1996.

Although Joe McIlvane was seeking a cleanup hitter when he traded for Gilkey, manager Dallas Green inserted the new leftfielder into the two-hole on Opening Day 1996. It didn't take long for Gilkey to hit his way into the middle of the lineup. Beginning with his Opening Day performance, in which he helped erase a six-run deficit to the Cardinals with a sixth-inning home run and a game-tying RBI single one inning later, Gilkey scorched opposing pitchers.

Over his first 11 games, all as the Mets' No. 2 hitter, Gilkey hit .375. But Gilkey wasn't just slapping singles around the ballpark in compiling that high average. In those 11 games, he lashed four doubles and blasted four home runs, giving him an impressive .708 slugging percentage. He also drove in 13 runs over the first two weeks of the season, while not hitting in a traditional RBI spot in the batting order. It was clear early on that Gilkey had to be moved down in the batting order, and Dallas Green did just that on April 16, when Gilkey batted third for the first time. It would be the spot from which he would primarily bat for the rest of the season while assaulting the Mets' single-season record book.

Now firmly entrenched in the No. 3 spot in the Mets' batting order, Gilkey continued to pound out the extra-base hits in May. During the season's second month, Bernard ripped 13 extra-base hits (seven doubles, six home runs) and collected 24 RBIs. Gilkey "only" hit .295 in May, but it was the only month during the 1996 season in which he failed to hit .300.

In June, Gilkey went on his most prolonged slump of the season, going hitless in 15 at-bats against his former team when the Mets traveled to St. Louis. How did Gilkey respond to this mini-slump? Very well, thank you very much. Over the next nine games following his oh-fer at Busch Stadium, Gilkey reached base an astonishing 20 times (17 hits, three walks). He slugged at an .800 clip in those nine games, mostly on the strength of seven more extra-base hits (five doubles, two homers).

Despite an amazing first half of the season in which he hit .302 with 21 doubles, 16 HR, 62 RBI and 10 stolen bases, Gilkey was snubbed for the National League All-Star team. Any frustration Gilkey might have felt for the obvious oversight was taken out on National League pitching after the break. And boy, did he ever take out those frustrations.

From July 11 (the first game following the All-Star Break) through August 25, a span of 43 games, Gilkey gave new meaning to the term "raking the ball". During those six weeks, Bernard hit .356 with 15 doubles, two triples and 12 home runs. He also scored and drove in almost a run per game, crossing the plate 40 times and driving in 40 as well.

Whereas the 1995 Mets closed out the season on a 34-18 tear, the 1996 squad took the other fork in the road and ended their season poorly, losing 35 of their final 54 games and their manager (Dallas Green was replaced by Bobby Valentine in late August). Despite the poor finish by the team, Bernard Gilkey just kept on chuggin'.

Beginning with the Mets' final game in August, Gilkey batted .329 and reached base at a .440 clip over his final 22 games. Of course, the extra-base hits kept on coming as well, as Gilkey hit seven more doubles, one triple and two home runs over the final three weeks of the season.

Bernard Gilkey's 1996 season was one of the most complete seasons by a non-pitcher in Mets history. For the year, Gilkey hit .317 with 44 doubles, three triples, 30 HR, 117 RBI, 108 runs scored and 17 stolen bases. In addition, he finished with a .393 on-base percentage, a .562 slugging percentage and was deadly with runners in scoring position, batting .406 (63-for-155) in those situations. But Gilkey was not just an offensive threat on the field, as evidenced by his National League-leading 18 outfield assists in 1996.

At the time, Gilkey's .317 batting average was the fifth highest single-season mark in Mets history for players who qualified for the batting title. Only Cleon Jones (.340 in 1969 and .319 in 1971), Dave Magadan (.328 in 1990) and Lance Johnson (.333 in 1996) had ever posted a single-season batting average higher than Gilkey's .317. Furthermore, Gilkey's .562 slugging percentage in 1996 was the second-highest single-season mark in the franchise's first 35 years, surpassed only by Darryl Strawberry's .583 slugging percentage in 1987.

With his 44 doubles in 1996, Gilkey broke Howard Johnson's franchise record of 41 two-baggers in a season, a record that still stands. Gilkey also became the second Met to record 40 doubles and 30 homers in the same season, following Johnson's 41 HR/36 double campaign in 1989. In addition, Gilkey tied Johnson's club record with his 117 RBIs, a record that would eventually be surpassed by Mike Piazza, Robin Ventura and David Wright. Finally, Gilkey became the third Met to reach triple digits in runs scored and RBIs in the same season, joining Darryl Strawberry (1987, 1988) and Howard Johnson (1989, 1991) as the only Mets to accomplish this feat during the team's first 35 seasons.

Unfortunately, Gilkey's breakthrough season in 1996 did not carry over into the 1997 campaign. Although the Mets did far better in the standings in '97, finishing 88-74 and competing for the National League wild card berth until the final week of the season, Gilkey's performance left a lot to be desired. The leftfielder saw his batting average drop to .249 and he didn't hit for as much power (18 HR) or drive in nearly as many runs (78 RBI) as he did during his stellar '96 season.

Was Gilkey's close encounter with aliens over Shea the reason for his dropoff in 1997?

Given one final chance by Bobby Valentine to regain his 1996 form, Gilkey was moved back into the two-hole after the Mets acquired Mike Piazza from the Florida Marlins in late May 1998. Despite having excellent protection by having Piazza and John Olerud hitting behind him, Gilkey floundered in the No. 2 spot. In June and July, Gilkey hit a mere .168 and his power disappeared, as he hit only five doubles and two home runs in 45 games.

The Mets were in contention for the wild card, but having Gilkey in the lineup every day was hurting them more than it was helping them, so a day before the trade deadline, Gilkey was sent to Arizona for pitcher Willie Blair and catcher Jorge Fabregas. Neither Blair nor Fabregas contributed much to the Mets, and the team fell one game short of ending their decade-long playoff drought, a skein that ended in 1999 when the Mets defeated Gilkey's new team, the Arizona Diamondbacks in the NLDS. Gilkey literally did nothing against the Mets in the NLDS, going 0-for-6 against his former team in two games.

When the Mets acquired Bernard Gilkey prior to the 1996 season, the team was looking for a veteran player with some pop in his bat who could bat cleanup. They didn't get a cleanup hitter, but they did get one of the finest offensive seasons ever recorded by a Mets player. Alas, it was the only great season by Gilkey in a Mets uniform, making him one of the biggest one season wonders in team history.

Studious Metsimus Presents The Happy/Crappy Recap For 2011

2011-12-31T12:00:00.000-05:00

We've reached the end of another year. It was a year in which the Mets missed the playoffs for the 43rd time in 50 seasons. It was also a year in which New York finished in last or next-to-last place in the division/league for the 25th time. You don't need Antonio Alfonseca to tell you that the Mets have accomplished that feat in half of their seasons.

The year began with Johan Santana supposedly being out until August, but it was never specified in what year he would make that late-summer return. Mike Pelfrey was supposed to fill in for Santana as the Mets' ace. He pitched more like Ace Ventura. Jason Bay was supposed to prove that 2010 was a fluke. Mission not accomplished.

On the bright side, Oliver Perez didn't get to throw ball four for the Mets in 2011 and Luis Castillo didn't get to hobble his way around Citi Field in search of a glove that didn't drop crucial Subway Series pop-ups.

The year was happy. The year was crappy. But how happy and crappy was the 2011 season for the Mets? That's what this post is all about. Let's start with what went right.

Terry Collins was not the fans' first choice to be Mets' manager in 2011. Fans who wanted to see Wally Backman as the skipper of the Mets got their wish, sort of, as the former spark plug was promoted from Brooklyn to manage the AA-Binghamton Mets. Collins did not get off to a fast start, to say the least, as the Mets lost 13 of their first 18 games. However, he quickly got his players back on track and by late July, the Mets were four games over .500 and had fans thinking about meaningful games in September. The ride didn't last for the full 162-game journey, but it showed that Collins could handle this team and gave fans hope for better things to come.

It was expected that the Mets were going to trade Carlos Beltran at some point during the 2011 season. But Beltran had not played an injury-free season since the Mets said sayonara to Shea. The odds of getting anything of value in return for Beltran did not appear to be great as the season got underway. But something funny happened on the way to the trade deadline. Beltran played. And played. And played. Not only did he play, he played well, hitting around .300 for most of the season and leading the team in home runs and RBI. The highlight of Beltran's season came on May 12, when he hit three home runs in a game against the Rockies at Coors Field. That caught the eye of the offensively-challenged San Francisco Giants, who parted with their top pitching prospect in July to acquire Beltran. Carlos Beltran was not going to be a Met in 2012, but Zack Wheeler might make an appearance at Citi Field within the next year or two. Who would have thought the Mets could acquire such a top prospect for a player who was one injury away from not being worth a bag of baseballs and a used jock strap?

Like Beltran, Jose Reyes had also spent more time checking himself into the DL Hotel than on the field prior to 2011. Reyes still made two trips to the disabled list in 2011, but when he was on the field, he was brilliant. For most of the season, Reyes was leading the league in multi-hit games, triples, runs scored and one other category. It was a category that no Met had ever led after Game No. 162 prior to this season. Notice my use of past tense in the previous sentence. By collecting a hit in his final at-bat, Reyes finished the season with a .337 batting average, becoming the first Met to win a batting title. And I can't think of a better segueway into the crappy part of our season recap.

"Now batting for the Miami Marlins, number 7, Jose Reyes." Admit it. You never thought Reyes would ever play for a team other than the Mets, let alone a division rival - a division rival that Reyes watched from the Shea Stadium dugout as they eliminated his former team from postseason contention in consecutive seasons. The departure of Reyes marked the biggest free agent defection of a homegrown player since Darryl Strawberry switched coasts following the 1990 season. Back then, the Mets responded to the Straw Man's departure by finishing with a losing record for the next six seasons. That doesn't bode well for the 2012 Mets.

The injury recovery time prognosticator at Citi Field failed again in 2011. David Wright was only supposed to miss a few weeks with his injured back. He ended up taking a two-and-a-half month paid vacation. Ike Davis was day-to-day when David Wright danced the forbidden dance with him near the Coors Field pitching mound. We're still waiting for Ike's return. Johan Santana? Apparently, his injury is causing major league baseball to consider changing the 15-day-DL to the 15-month-DL. Ever since moving into Citi Field, no one has been immune to the injury bug. Expect Mr. Met to go on the DL in 2012.

Hey, buddy. Can you spare a dime? How about a couple hundred million dimes? That's what the Wilpons are probably asking right now, as the Mets' financial woes continue to get worse and worse. As a result, Sandy Alderson hasn't been able to pursue big ticket free agents, while his division rivals have not hesitated to add star power. The Phillies signed closer Jonathan Papelbon. The Nationals traded for starting pitcher Gio Gonzalez. The Marlins got whoever they wanted not named Pujols. Season ticket holders get special perks. Potential minority owners will get their own set of perks. The only perks fans really want are spelled with a W, an I and an N, and the Wilpons seem more interested in spelling "NO SALE" than a much shorter word like "WIN".

Well, there you you have it, my friends. It was another year full of happy moments as well as crappy moments. There were times to cheer, times to boo and times to complain about there not being more chicken nacho stands at Citi Field (although that might have been more Joey doing the complaining than me).

As always, we'd like to thank you, our faithful readers, for making it a blast to write about our favorite team, whether they make us smile or make us hide our heads under paper bags. Your continued support, as always, is very much appreciated.

We'd also like to thank our fellow bloggers, from Greg Prince and Jason Fry at Faith and Fear In Flushing, to Joe D at Mets Merized Online and the ever-wise John Coppinger (a.k.a. Metstradamus), your sites have inspired us at Studious Metsimus to be better bloggers. We can't thank you enough for your contributions to the Mets blogosphere, but we sure can try!

Other blogs worth reading include Remembering Shea, Kiner's Korner, The Real Dirty Mets, Mets 360, On The Black, MetsBlog, Random Mets Thoughts, Kranepool Society and The Daily Stache, to name a few. (But there are many other outstanding Mets blogs out there!)

Oh, yeah. There's one more blog I forgot to mention. Perhaps you've heard of A Gal For All Seasons (and if not, shame on you - but if you click on the link above, all will be forgiven). The author of that site inspires the Studious Metsimus crew more than any other blogger in the Mets blogosphere, and I'm not just saying that because she's my wife. Really. I'm not kidding. Ya Gotta Believe (me). Let's just say that she's the reason the Studious Metsimus team will always have happy recaps, even if one of us asks for a $106 million box of chocolates.

From all of us to you and yours, we hope you have a happy and healthy New Year. Then again, as long as we remain fans of the Mets and not players on the Mets, we shouldn't have a problem with health issues. Let's Go Mets!

Photo by Jason Bornstein (Remembering Shea). He brings out the blue and orange in all of us.

It Was Never Meant To Lastings

2011-12-27T21:28:00.001-05:00

How the mighty have fallen! According to mlbtraderumors.com, former Mets prospect Lastings Milledge will not be playing in the United States in 2012. Instead, he will be a member of the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, earning $570,000 next year, plus performance bonuses. Milledge also has a club option for the 2013 season.

Prior to the 2006 season, Milledge was the Mets' top minor league prospect as a 21-year old and was one of the top prospects in the country. However, his flashiness (Milledge high-fived fans at Shea Stadium after an extra-inning game-tying home run) irked his teammates and rubbed opponents the wrong way. In addition, Milledge was not exactly skilled at pitch selection (in 391 plate appearances as a Met, Milledge drew 25 walks while striking out 81 times).

As a result, the once highly-touted prospect was traded to Washington following the 2007 season for Ryan Church and Brian Schneider. In 2008, Milledge appeared to be on the way to fulfilling the lofty expectations placed on him as a rookie in 2006. In 138 games for the Nationals, he hit 14 home runs and stole 24 bases. But that was the last time Milledge would be an everyday player in the major leagues, as injuries and poor performance derailed a once-promising career.

Since his kinda-sorta breakout season in 2008, Milledge has played for the Pirates and White Sox, but hasn't come close to replicating his one good season. Milledge split the 2009 season with the Nationals and Pirates, combining to hit .279 with four home runs, 21 RBI and seven stolen bases in 244 at-bats. In 2010, Milledge played the entire season in Pittsburgh, picking up 379 at-bats. However, his production was not that far off from what he accomplished in 2009, despite the extra 135 at-bats (.277, 4 HR, 34 RBI, 5 SB).

Milledge signed as a free agent with the White Sox prior to the 2011 season but only played two games in Chicago before being sent down to AAA-Charlotte, where he returned to his 2008 form (.295, 12 HR, 27 SB). Despite appearing to be back as the player the Mets expected him to be when they first called him up in 2006, Milledge was not re-signed by the White Sox following the 2011 season and was granted free agency.

Now in Japan for up to two years, Milledge will try to prove that he wasn't just a flash in the pan. At age 26, he still hasn't entered his baseball prime and could potentially do well enough for the Swallows to draw the attention of a major league scout or two, but it's amazing how far his star has fallen.

After growing tired of him, the Mets turned Lastings Milledge into Ryan Church and Brian Schneider. They then turned Church into Jeff Francoeur. Francoeur was traded to Texas last year for Joaquin Arias, who is now in the Kansas City Royals organization. The Mets now have nothing to show for Milledge. Then again, Milledge had nothing to show for the Mets when he was here.

Some players have gone to Japan and returned to the United States to embark on a long, successful career (see Melvin Mora). Perhaps this will be the case with Milledge, a player I once had such high hopes for. Good luck, Lastings! I've got a high-five waiting for you when you come back.

Yes, Joey Beartran, There Is A Sandy Claus!

2011-12-23T21:21:00.000-05:00

It's the holiday season, a time for giving and good cheer. It's also a time when children send their annual letters to Sandy Claus, asking him for anything and everything they can think of. I had never thought of becoming one of these letter writers, mainly because I had better things to do with my time, like visiting baseball stadiums from sea to shining sea.

Recently, I gave in and finally sent a letter to Sandy Claus, not really expecting to get a response. However, a few days after I mailed out the letter, a mysterious package arrived at my cubby hole (see photo below).

Could it be a gift from Sandy Claus?

I remembered in my letter, I asked Sandy Claus for a healthy and productive season from Johan Santana. I also wanted Jason Bay and pretty much the whole team to take advantage of the lowered and moved-in fences at Citi Field. In addition to that, I asked for R.A. Dickey to get more run support and for the top pitching prospects to stay in the minor leagues until they were ready to face major league hitters.

I didn't think any of those things I asked for could fit in a box, but one of the other things I asked for was a set of Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots. However, I did specifically say I didn't mean it literally. I'm sure those fighting robots can be lots of fun (especially if someone spikes my chicken nachos first), but I was using them as a metaphor. What I really wanted was for the Mets to not back down from a challenge and to show some fight in them. That, of course, could also not be squeezed into a box.

Then I remembered my last wish in my letter to Sandy Claus. I asked for a box of chocolates. Could that be what was in the package? My parcel was shaped like a box and chocolates could fit in there easier than R.A. Dickey's run support or Jason Bay's power stroke.

Without wasting another second, I carefully ripped open the box with my paws and found its contents to be even better than what I expected.

Life is like a box of chocolates. Or in this case, a GKR mug full of chocolates.

The package was indeed full of chocolates. But it wasn't just any chocolates. They were Ferrero Rocher chocolates! And they didn't just come in any old box. They came in a Gary, Keith & Ron mug!

For so long, I had made fun of all those kids who wrote letters to Sandy Claus. I never thought any of them ever received what they asked for. But my mind has now been changed forever. I'm Joey Beartran and I now have my proof that there is a Sandy Claus.

As I said earlier, the holidays are a time for giving and good cheer. Sandy Claus gave me a GKR mug full of delicious chocolates and as a result, I ended up with all the good cheer I could handle. This holiday season, I hope all of you give of yourselves and spread good cheer to those you love (and even those you don't - like Yankees and Phillies fans).

One way to give good cheer to those less fortunate is by making a donation to a good cause. Perhaps you have a cause you'd like to get involved with. If you don't, might I suggest the cause championed by the gentlemen on the chocolate-filled mug above? I can't guarantee that you'll get a mug full of decadent confectioneries for your generosity, but I can guarantee that when you pitch in for a good cause, someone in need will receive holiday cheer because of you. Isn't that what the holiday season is all about?

Now if you'll excuse me, I have some chocolates calling my name. I can't leave them waiting, can I? From me (Joey Beartran) and my colleague (Ed Leyro), we'd like to wish you and yours a very happy and healthy holiday season! Be good to each other and never stop believing!

What If The Mets Had Followed The Minayan Calendar?

2011-12-21T17:35:00.001-05:00

Today is December 21, 2011. According to those who follow the Mayan Calendar, that means the world is supposed to end exactly one year from today, on December 21, 2012. For some Mets fans, however, the world came to an end on the day it was revealed the Wilpons had less money than this guy.

Still, there are some Mets fans who believe they will see better days before they see the end of days. After all, the Mets from the late '70s, despite needing magic to come back (and a GM named Frank Cashen), eventually did see better days in the mid '80s.

But let's just say for argument's sake that the end of the world was coming in one year. And let's also say that the reason for its coming was because Omar Minaya was never fired. What if the Mets had not subscribed to the Mayan Calendar, but instead believed in the Minayan Calendar?

We recently pretended to ask Omar Minaya himself a few questions about what he would have done to the current Mets had he still been employed by the team. The answers he made up were quite surprising to say the least!

Studious Metsimus: Seeing that no one stood out at second base in 2011, what do you plan to do to give some stability to the position?

Omar Minaya: I'd re-sign Luis Castillo to a three-year, $20 million deal. Hey, Dan Uggla got five years and $62 million from Atlanta. All he did was hit .233 and watch as the Braves collapsed in September. With Castillo, we'd get a player who has experience with late-season collapses and can hit for a higher average than Uggla. So what if Uggla had a 33-game hitting streak last year. Castillo topped that, hitting in 35 straight games in 2002. Did it happen as a Met? No. But it could. So that being said, I think Castillo would be the perfect choice for the Mets. We can sign him and commit two fewer years and $42 million less than the Braves gave to Uggla. I'd say that's a bargain.

Studious Metsimus: Last year, R.A. Dickey led all Mets starters with a 3.28 ERA, but only won eight of 21 decisions. The team leader in wins (Dillon Gee) had a fine start, but faltered as his innings piled up. What would you do to bolster the starting rotation in 2012?

Omar Minaya: I'd like to get a top notch starter, perhaps one who recently won a Cy Young Award. Remember 1989? That was the year the Mets traded Rick Aguilera, Kevin Tapani, David West, Tim Drummond and Jack Savage to Minnesota for former Cy Young Award winner Frank Viola. If memory serves me correctly, Viola won 20 games for the Mets the following season. No Met has won more than 18 games in a season since then. Drummond and Savage combined to win three games in the major leagues. West finished 31-38 in ten major league seasons. I don't recall what Aguilera and Tapani did, but judging how the other three pitchers did after being traded to Minnesota, I'd assume they probably didn't do too well, you know what I'm sayin'? Therefore, I suggest trading Matt Harvey, Zack Wheeler, Jeurys Familia and Jenrry Mejia to the Chicago White Sox for Jake Peavy. Peavy won the National League Cy Young Award in 2007 as a member of the San Diego Padres and is only under contract for one more year, with a team option for 2013. Yeah, he's going to make $17 million in 2012 and he only won seven games in both 2010 and 2011, but that shows he's consistent. We can't go wrong with this deal!

Studious Metsimus: What about your bench? As things currently stand, the Mets could use a little help in that department.

Omar Minaya: Help is on the way in the form of Julio Franco! This signing would serve two purposes. First, he would come off the bench as our top pinch-hitter and would serve as a backup to Ike Davis at first base in case David Wright decides to play footsie with Ike near the pitcher's mound again. Second, with all the talk of Jamie Moyer attempting to return to the major leagues at age 49, it would just be another way for the Phillies to take the spotlight away from the Mets again. Julio Franco should ALWAYS be the oldest player in the major leagues. Not Jamie Moyer. Not anyone else. Plus, should Terry Collins fail, I could always have Franco be player/manager. I'd be a fool not to sign Julio Franco!

Studious Metsimus: I'm contractually obligated to ask you this question, so I apologize in advance if this brings up painful memories. Oliver Perez. Are you going to bring him back to pitch for the Mets?

Omar Minaya: No apologies necessary. And Mets fans, you don't have to worry. I'm not bringing back Oliver Perez to pitch for the Mets. That being said, I am going to sign him as our new pitching coach. Look, Dan Warthen has been the Mets' pitching coach since the team played at Shea Stadium. That's way too long for a man who wasn't even a good pitcher during his time in the major leagues. Did you know that over his career, Warthen walked 198 batters in 307 innings? That comes out to 5.8 walks per nine innings. It's also almost a walk higher than Oliver Perez's career rate (5.1 BB/9 IP). That's the man the Mets entrusted to teach their pitchers how to throw strikes consistently? I'd rather take my chances with Ollie. At least he could throw a strike every once in a while.

Studious Metsimus: Here's a tough question. Mets fans are still bitter over the loss of Jose Reyes. What would you do to offset the departure of one of the most beloved players in franchise history?

Omar Minaya: That's an easy one. Obviously, with Reyes staying in the division, we're going to see him quite a bit and I'm sure he's going to try to run wild on the bases when he plays us. We're going to need someone who can punch him out whenever he tries to steal a base, that's for sure. Therefore, I'm going to trade for Miguel Olivo. Olivo has always been good at throwing out baserunners, but in case Reyes tries to show us up on the bases, Olivo can literally punch him out. Surely, you remember the John Maine game of the 2007 season. Most people remember it for the near no-hitter that kept the Mets alive in the race for the division title. I remember it because of Miguel Olivo. Since that game, I've wanted Olivo on my team. I'm not letting this chance pass me by.

Studious Metsimus: Finally, I'd like to ask you one more question. It's a topic we've discussed recently on this blog, regarding statues at Citi Field. If you could immortalize a former Mets player with a bronze statue, which player would that be and why?

Omar Minaya: Come on! Are you serious? Who's the most beloved Met of all-time? Do you even have to think about it? Clearly, it's Joe McEwing! When I was languishing in Montreal as their GM hoping I'd get the call from the Mets, I watched Super Joe show off his skills on the field regularly. I'd never seen anyone hit Randy Johnson so well in my life. In fact, he was so good against the Big Unit that he had fifteen more at-bats against him than any other pitcher he faced in the major leagues. In 44 at-bats against Johnson, McEwing batted .250 with five doubles and one home run. Trust me, that's actually pretty good, as Johnson held opponents to a .221 batting average over his two decades in the majors. The Mets already have VIP entrances for Casey Stengel, Gil Hodges and Tom Seaver. They also have their retired numbers up on the left field wall. Erecting a statue to honor any of them would be overkill. Therefore, I vote for a Joe McEwing statue. It's the least I could do to make up for releasing him prior to the 2005 season, you know what I'm saying?

We know what you're saying, Omar. That being said, what exactly did you just say?

Statue of Limitations

2011-12-20T19:15:00.000-05:00

Earlier this week, the Baltimore Orioles announced that in celebration of the 20th anniversary of the opening of their ballpark at Camden Yards, six bronze statues will be unveiled honoring each of the team's Hall of Famers, all of whom have had their numbers retired by the team.

The Orioles are not the first team to honor their greatest players and managers with statues. In fact, many teams have bestowed that honor to its greatest representatives. This past August, the Chicago Cubs dedicated a statue to the late Ron Santo, who was recently selected by the Veterans Committee for Hall of Fame enshrinement. Santo's statue joined the sculptures of other Cub greats outside Wrigley Field such as Ernie Banks, Billy Williams and broadcaster Harry Caray.

Other teams with statues of their greatest players include the Pittsburgh Pirates (Honus Wagner, Willie Stargell, Roberto Clemente), San Francisco Giants (Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal, Orlando Cepeda) and Atlanta Braves (Warren Spahn, Hank Aaron, Phil Niekro). Those franchises have been in existence far longer than the Mets, but there are other clubs who haven't been in the league as long as the Amazins that have statues of their best players.

For example, the San Diego Padres have a Tony Gwynn statue outside Petco Park while the Milwaukee Brewers have a Robin Yount sculpture welcoming fans to Miller Park. Both Gwynn and Yount are members of the National Baseball Hall of Fame. The Houston Astros, on the other hand, have statues of Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell outside Minute Maid Park. As of this writing, neither player has been inducted to Cooperstown. (Bagwell received 41% of the vote last year and Biggio is not yet eligible.)

All four players mentioned in the previous paragraph played their entire major league career with the teams that immortalized them in bronze. But some teams have chosen to honor some of its best players with statues despite the fact that these players played less than half of their careers with these teams. One particular name comes to mind immediately. Nolan Ryan played five of his 27 seasons with the Texas Rangers, but who's statue stands beyond the center field fence? Of course, it's the Ryan Express.

In addition to statues of its best players, some teams have other baseball-related busts. The Colorado Rockies have a statue outside Coors Field dedicated to "The Player". In Arizona, a statue of a player with his fans stands outside Chase Field.

So why am I making all this hubbub about statues? Perhaps it's because the Mets don't have one outside Citi Field. Of anyone. Even though there's a certain "Franchise" player who received the greatest percentage of Hall of Fame votes in history.

Strike a pose, Tom. Perhaps someday this one will be bronzed for all eternity.

As of now, the Mets are one of only five teams without a sculpture of any kind to honor its best players and personnel. (The others are the Rays, A's, Marlins and Dodgers.) Why don't the Mets have anything other than the third base VIP entrance dedicated to Tom Seaver? When fans enter Citi Field, they should be greeted by Tom Terrific in bronze form. Not only is he the greatest pitcher in franchise history, but he is also the sole Mets player in the Hall of Fame and the only player whose number has been retired by the team (Casey Stengel and Gil Hodges both had their numbers retired for what they accomplished as managers).

The lack of a statue to honor the man known as "The Franchise" when some teams have statues dedicated to non-Hall of Famers and other teams have sculptures for players despite having a shorter history than the Mets is an absolute shame.

The Mets should have a Tom Seaver statue at Citi Field. In addition, they should also have a statue of Jesse Orosco's iconic pose after striking out Marty Barrett to end the 1986 World Series. It's time for the Mets to be proud of their history, not hide from it.

We want "The Franchise" at Citi Field. Not just for an occasional ceremonial first pitch, but forever. A life-sized bronze statue of Tom Seaver would ensure that. It took until Citi Field's second season for the Wilpons to make the ballpark look like it belonged to the Mets. Hopefully, it won't take them much longer to realize that Tom Seaver should be immortalized with a statue at the park they built. After all, it's their "Franchise", is it not?

Don't Trade Jonathon Niese!

2011-12-17T16:03:00.000-05:00

On Friday, a story broke about the possibility of trading Jonathon Niese to the Colorado Rockies for outfielder Seth Smith. Fortunately, that trade will not become a reality, as earlier today, Jerry Crasnick of espn.com and Baseball America tweeted that the Mets have no interest in sending Niese to Colorado for Smith.

Of course, looking at Jerry Crasnick's tweet on the topic suggests the Mets wouldn't trade Niese to Colorado in a package involving Smith. It doesn't say the Mets wouldn't trade him to the Rockies in a Smith-less deal.

Trading Niese at all right now would be foolish. A player like Seth Smith, who will turn 30 before the 2012 season ends, does not give the Mets the production at an outfield position they need. Since becoming an everyday player in 2009, Smith has averaged 24 doubles, 16 HR and 55 RBI per season, while hitting .275 with a .346 on-base percentage. He has also played an average of 138 games a year over the past three seasons.

By comparison, Lucas Duda has played in 129 games in the major leagues since his first call-up in 2010. In those 129 games (which are nine fewer than Smith has averaged per season since 2009), Duda has combined to hit .273 with a .347 on-base percentage, picking up 27 doubles, 14 HR and 63 RBI along the way. Seems like the same player, doesn't it? The only difference is that Duda is giving the Mets Seth Smith-type numbers at age 25, before entering the prime of his career, while Smith has already entered his peak years and has been achieving his numbers in a hitters' park. Duda has played half of his games at cavernous Citi Field.

Although Niese has spent time on the disabled list in 2010 and 2011, he has still averaged 28 starts per season over the past two years. Before getting hurt, he made great strides in 2011. Niese increased his strikeout rate (7.7 K/9 IP in 2010, 7.9 K/9 IP in 2011) while showing better command of his pitches (3.2 BB/9 IP in 2010, 2.5 BB/9 IP in 2011). He also did a better job of keeping the ball in the park, reducing his home runs allowed from 20 in 2010 to 14 in 2011.

Jonathon Niese is the type of pitcher the Mets have given up on too soon in the past. Rick Aguilera did fairly well (37-27, 3.58 ERA) in his four and a half seasons in New York. Kevin Tapani was also a promising prospect in the Mets organization. Both pitchers were traded to Minnesota while they were still in their twenties. Aguilera went on to become the Twins' all-time saves leader (recently surpassed by Joe Nathan and Tapani won 143 games in a 13-year career in the big leagues.

Even a player like Pete Schourek, whom the Mets gave up on after three seasons in New York, went on to surprise the non-believers. In 1994, he went 7-2 for the Cincinnati Reds, who claimed him off waivers. He followed that up by going 18-5 in 1995, leading the Reds to a division title and finishing second to Greg Maddux for the National League Cy Young Award.

It's been quite some time since the Mets have let a homegrown pitcher develop in the big leagues. Not since Bobby Jones has the organization produced a pitcher that had some success in the major leagues as a member of the Mets. Unfortunately, Jones last pitched for the Mets over a decade ago. The team has failed to develop and keep one of its own pitchers ever since, choosing to fill its starting rotation with free agent acquisitions and players acquired via the trade market. The one recent exception has been Mike Pelfrey, and he's only become the first Mets pitcher to give up more hits than innings pitched in six different seasons.

Jonathon Niese has the potential to become the next great homegrown pitcher for the Mets. He also has the potential to be traded to a player of Seth Smith's caliber. After so many failures with trading away young pitching talent too soon, shouldn't the Mets give Niese a chance?

Colorado Carlos

2011-12-13T18:47:00.001-05:00

In 2011, Carlos Beltran had his finest and healthiest season in three years, combining to hit .300 for New York and San Francisco. He also added 39 doubles, 22 home runs and 84 RBIs between the two teams. Despite those impressive numbers, Beltran wasn't attracting much attention in the free agent market. Until now.

According to Jon Heyman, there is one team that's putting Beltran on top of their wish list this offseason. Heyman's tweets say it all:

#rockies are making a push for carlos beltran. they also made an offer to cuddyer. want 1 or the other.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) December 13, 2011

#rockies goal is to sign either beltran or cuddyer. they offered cuddyer more than the $25M for 3 the #twins bid
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) December 13, 2011

#rockies a terrific fit for beltran. they are interested in cuddyer too but figure it might be hard to get him out of minny
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeymanCBS) December 13, 2011

If Colorado doesn't get Michael Cuddyer from Minnesota, they will go all out for Beltran. You may recall that in a game at Coors Field this past May, Beltran swatted three home runs for the Mets against the Rockies. All three blasts came with a man on base, making Carlos the first Met to ever hit three multi-run homers in the same game.

Although Beltran only has a .276 career batting average at Coors Field, more than half of his hits have gone for extra bases. As a result, Beltran's lifetime slugging percentage in Denver is .552, which is well above his career mark of .496.

Colorado could be a good fit for Beltran offensively, but Coors Field's spacious outfield could be difficult on his ailing knees. Carlos has publicly stated that he would not want to be a DH, so staying in the National League would afford him the opportunity to remain an everyday outfielder, although it would be a risk for any team to sign him to a long-term deal.

Stay tuned for more news on Carlos Beltran as it breaks. Hopefully, Jon Heyman will have his Twitter finger ready to go should Beltran sign with the Rockies soon.

Joey's Letter To Sandy Claus

2011-12-11T11:15:00.000-05:00

Dear Sandy Claus,

You may not know me, but I know you. I know you're the guy who spreads holiday cheer at Citi Field by giving Mets fans what they ask for when they write you a letter, so here's mine.

My name is Joey Beartran. I've been a Mets fan all my life, from the time I was born at Shea Stadium in 2004 to Jose Reyes' final game as a Met. In the time I've been a fan, I've seen Art Howe do nothing but make excuses for his latest loss. I've also seen Willie Randolph take his team to within one long hit of a World Series berth and I had one eye open when he was unceremoniously axed in Anaheim. Jerry Manuel? I saw him do something a real gangsta would never do - laugh at every question in the post-game interview, even after gut-wrenching losses.

Last year, I met Terry Collins in person and realized he's barely taller than I am. I also saw a man who resembled you, but his name was Sandy Alderson. Still, he was a very nice man to talk to and I think you should hire him as one of your helpers.

Anyway, I have some things I've been wishing for. They're things that all Mets fans would probably want as well, so I hope you read my letter and can give us what we want for the holidays. Here goes.

I'd like Johan Santana to pitch an entire season for the Mets. Ever since his Herculean effort in the next-to-last game at Shea Stadium in 2008, Johan has missed the entire last month of the season in every year. Last year, he didn't pitch at all for the Mets. I go to many Mets games and I'd like to come to the ballpark with reasonable expectations that the Mets are going to win. Johan used to give me that feeling. Please give me that feeling again in 2012.

Speaking of Johan, I'd also like the Mets not to say that a player is day-to-day and then have him miss two and a half months. When David Wright was placed on the disabled list in mid-May, he was supposed to resume baseball activities in a week and a half. Two and a half weeks later, he was told he had to stay away from baseball for another three weeks. It took over a month from that point for Wright to return to the Mets' lineup, finally playing again in late July. I don't even want to get into Ike Davis, whose injury caused him to be originally listed as day-to-day when his proper status should have been season-to-season. Let's stop with those incorrect injury assessments, okay?

I'd like Jason Bay to regain his power stroke. After hitting 36 homers and driving in 119 runs for the Red Sox in 2009, I expected him to do the same when the Mets signed him during that offseason. In the two years since his signing, Bay's cumulative power numbers (18 HR, 104 RBI) are still short of his numbers compiled during his final season in Boston. The fences have been moved in at Citi Field for 2012. Let's hope Jason Bay has noticed this.

Speaking of the walls being moved in, how about sending out a memo to the rest of the team as well? Since the Mets moved in to Citi Field three years ago, only David Wright has surpassed 20 HR in a single season (29 HR in 2010). You can even take that a step further. In that 2010 season, Ike Davis finished second to Wright in home runs with 19. No other Met has hit more than 15 HR in a single season since they moved to New Ebbets Field. (Daniel Murphy hit a team-leading 12 HR in 2009 and Carlos Beltran led the team with 15 HR in 2011.) In 1998, Sammy Sosa hit 20 HR in the month of June alone. Only one Met has reached that total in an entire year since Citi Field opened its doors. Let's make it two in 2012 (but three or four would be better).

I'd like some Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots. That's not meant to be taken literally. I meant that figuratively. I want the Mets to show some fight in them for a change. If a player gets knocked down by an opposing pitcher, I want a Mets pitcher to knock down an opposing hitter. Bob Gibson did it. Don Drysdale did it. Both pitchers are now in the Hall of Fame. The Mets only have one Hall of Fame pitcher, and I'm sure no one wanted to face Tom Seaver either, especially after an opposing pitcher knocked down one of his teammates. No one is afraid of the Mets. Make them afraid. Make them very afraid.

I need R.A. Dickey to get some run support in 2012. Dickey led the team in 2011 with his 3.28 ERA. But keeping opponents' runs to a minimum didn't help his won-loss record, as R.A. went 8-13 last year. From May 20 to the end of the season, Dickey sported an excellent 2.69 ERA. Surely he must have had a winning record over those final 24 starts. Unfortunately, he did not, as he went 7-8 with nine no-decisions during that stretch. (And don't call me Shirley.) Dickey allowed two earned runs or less in 15 of those 24 starts, but was only credited with a win in five of those starts. Let's get R.A. the help he needs by crossing the plate a little more in his starts.

I'd like Matt Harvey and Zack Wheeler to be the real deal in the minors. The last time the Mets had several highly touted pitching prospects in the minor leagues at the same time, Generation K was born. How did that go for the Mets? In less time than it takes to not make Jose Reyes a formal contract offer, Generation K turned into Generation KO, as injuries and poor performances knocked out Paul Wilson, Bill Pulsipher and Jason Isringhausen before the Mets became legitimate contenders. Don't rush Harvey and Wheeler to the majors until they're fully ready. Jenrry Mejia was rushed to the majors in 2010 and what did that do for him? You guessed it. Injuries and poor performances. It happened a generation ago. Don't let it happen again with Harvey and Wheeler. They're not to be promoted until they're ready to face major league hitters. Period.

Last but not least, I'd like a box of chocolates. It doesn't have to be a $106 million box of chocolates. I'm just really hungry and want a box of chocolates. And if it's not too much trouble, perhaps you can bring me a new Mets hoodie as well. I've had this one since I was born and it's getting a little old. Thanks so much.

Love and best wishes for the 2012 season,
Joey Beartran

P.S. My Studious Metsimus colleague would also like Jonathon Niese not to be traded. He has some weird obsession with him, one I can't explain, but who am I to argue with him? Thanks, Sandy Claus! Hope you read my letter!

Ex-Mets Come Out On Top At Winter Meetings

2011-12-10T18:00:00.000-05:00

Earlier this week in Dallas at the Late Fall Meetings, the Mets came away with three new relief pitchers and a new centerfielder. They made a trade to acquire centerfielder Andres Torres and reliever Ramon Ramirez from the Giants, and signed free agents Jon Rauch and Frank Francisco to close out games.

The Mets weren't the only team to wheel and deal in Dallas. In fact, it seemed as if every transaction involved a former Met. So which former Met left Dallas with the biggest smile on his face? You may be surprised when you hear the answer. Let's run through the list of former Mets who were involved in transactions since the beginning of December. (Players listed alphabetically)

Rod Barajas (one year, $4 million from Pittsburgh)
Heath Bell (three years, $27 million from Miami)
Chris Capuano (two years, $10 million from Los Angeles)
Octavio Dotel (one year, $3.5 million from Detroit)
Jose Reyes (six years, $106 million from Miami)

All of those former Mets will be counting their millions all the way to the bank, but none of them has as big a smile on his face as another former Met. So tell me, my fellow Mets fans, do you remember Jerry DiPoto?

That, my friends, is ex-Met Jerry DiPoto. Please don't all say "who dat?" at the same time.

Jerry DiPoto came to the Mets in a trade conducted during the 1994-95 players strike. The Cleveland Indians sent DiPoto, along with fellow pitchers Paul Byrd and Dave Mlicki to the Mets in exchange for outfielder Jeromy Burnitz and pitcher Joe Roa.

DiPoto pitched two seasons for the Mets, going 11-8 with a 3.98 ERA. His line in 1996 was one of the oddest in baseball, as DiPoto had a sky-high 1.76 WHIP (allowing 136 baserunners in 77.1 innings), yet he finished the season with a 7-2 record. Of course, that's what happens when the runs you give up belong to somebody else, as DiPoto allowed 18 of 38 inherited baserunners to score, with none of those runs being charged to him.

So why would Jerry DiPoto, a man whose pitching career ended in 2000 at the age of 32, have the biggest smile on his face coming out of this year's Late Fall Meetings? Perhaps that has something to do with his current job as the general manager of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in Orange County near Disneyland.

After only four months as a general manager in the major leagues (two and a half months with Arizona in 2010 and six weeks with Los Angeles/Anaheim/Orange County/Disneyland), DiPoto made the biggest splash at the Late Fall Meetings, signing future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols to a ten-year, quarter billion dollar contract and top free agent starting pitcher C.J. Wilson to a five-year, $77.5 million deal. DiPoto did all this despite being on the job for less time than it took Steve Trachsel to throw a pitch with men on base (men that DiPoto would likely have allowed to score had he been a teammate of Trachsel's on the Mets).

No wonder Jerry DiPoto is smiling. He just heard that the 1995-96 Mets player reunion was canceled.

Within a matter of 24 hours, the Angels signed the best hitter on the planet (no offense to Val Pascucci, but Pujols has surpassed him at the plate) and took away their division rival's ace starting pitcher.

The Texas Rangers, who had to deal with Pujols for seven games in last October's Fall Classic, will now have to face Pujols a minimum of 18 times per season over the next decade. And they also won't have C.J. Wilson, who did not allow a hit to Pujols in six World Series plate appearances against him. Instead, the Rangers will have to face Wilson with Pujols backing up his new teammate at first base. All this is due to the swift dealings of Jerry DiPoto.

When Jerry DiPoto was a Met in the mid-'90s, he was a vulture on the mound, swooping in to record seven victories in 1996 despite not being adept at keeping runners off the basepaths. Although he is no longer an active player on the field, DiPoto has become quite active off the field and he clearly still hasn't given up his vulture tendencies. Just ask the St. Louis Cardinals, Texas Rangers and especially the Miami Marlins, who thought they had the right offers on the table for Pujols and Wilson until DiPoto swooped in and grabbed them away.

Many ex-Mets have had a December to remember so far. But Jerry DiPoto has topped them all. He played for Dallas (Green) when he was a Met in 1995 and 1996, then he went to Dallas (Texas) and played all the other general managers there by scoring the biggest free agent hitter and pitcher on the market. It's no wonder Jerry DiPoto is the ex-Met with the biggest smile on his face.

Where In The World Is Octavio Dotel?

2011-12-08T18:23:00.001-05:00

When Octavio Dotel broke into the major leagues in 1999 as a member of the New York Mets, no one expected him to do much. He had already pitched four seasons in the Mets' minor league system and was halfway through his fifth when he got the call to join the big club in late June.

Dotel ended up being a pleasant surprise for the Mets, going 8-3 as a spot starter and making the postseason roster as a reliever. He was the winning pitcher in the "Grand Slam Single" playoff game and was supposed to be a future star for the Mets.

Then Mike Hampton became available.

Considering that Al Leiter, at age 33, was the youngest starting pitcher in the Mets' regular rotation in 1999, the possibility of adding a 22-game winner who was just 27 years old made Dotel expendable. Hampton became a Met. Dotel became an Astro. It would not be the first time Dotel would switch teams. In fact, with yesterday's news that Dotel signed a one-year deal with the Detroit Tigers, he has now become the player with the most changes of address in major league history.

When Octavio Dotel takes the field for the first time as a Tiger in 2012, it will be his 13th team in the major leagues. That will break the record set by Mike Morgan in 2000 and tied by Ron Villone in 2009 and Matt Stairs in 2010.

What makes Dotel's accomplishment more amazing is that at age 38, he'll be playing for his 13th team at an age younger than Morgan, Villone and Stairs were when they made their first appearances for their 12th team. Morgan was 40 when he pitched for Arizona in 2000, while Villone was 39 when he first took the mound for Washington in 2009. Stairs was the elder statesman of the trio, making his first appearance for his 12th team (San Diego) at age 42.

Dotel wasn't as peripatetic when he was in his 20s. After his trade from the Mets to the Astros following the 1999 season, he remained in Houston until 2004, when he was dealt to the A's at the trade deadline. At the time, Dotel was 30 years old and had only played for two major league teams. Since then, he's suited up for (take a deep breath) the A's, Yankees, Royals, Braves, White Sox, Pirates, Dodgers, Rockies, Blue Jays and Cardinals, finally winning a World Series ring for the first time in St. Louis this past season.

Is Octavio Dotel participating in the Cardinals' victory parade or is he just sitting on his moving van?

With his move to Detroit, Dotel will now be playing for his third American League Central team, following his short stay in Kansas City in 2007 and his two-year stint in Chicago (the only team for which he's played more than one season since leaving Oakland following the 2005 campaign). The Tigers will also be his 12th team over the past nine seasons and sixth team since the beginning of 2010.

Dotel has played for at least two teams in every division in the majors except the American League West (Oakland is the only AL West city he's called home). However, that might be due to the fact that the AL West is the only division in baseball that has fewer than five teams. Don't worry. Give him time. He'll be in Texas, Anaheim (I refuse to call it Los Angeles) or Seattle soon enough.

Most players celebrate winning their first World Series by going to Disneyworld. Octavio Dotel is celebrating his first title by going to his 13th team in Detroit. Something tells me he shouldn't unpack his belongings upon arriving there.

The Mets' Winter Meeting Transactions: Pros And Cons

2011-12-07T13:15:00.000-05:00

The snow hasn't begun to fall yet, but we saw a flurry of activity yesterday for the Mets in the Late Fall Meetings (winter doesn't start for another two weeks, so the Winter Meetings are a misnomer). The Mets needed bullpen help so they stocked up with three veteran relievers. They also made a "change-of-scenery" trade, acquiring one centerfielder coming off a down year for another.

Let's take a look at what these three separate transactions will do for the Mets and what this will do for the team in 2012 and in the future.

Jon Rauch

Sandy Alderson made it clear that the Mets were in dire need of relief help. He admitted as much when discussing how the team suffered in the pen after the trade of Francisco Rodriguez last July. The hodgepodge bullpen featured a combination of inexperienced career minor leaguers and washed-up veterans, and the Mets blew many late inning leads because of it. A change was definitely needed for the 2012 season.

In his first acquisition of the night, Alderson signed Jon Rauch to be the Mets' primary set-up man. Before Pedro Feliciano led the National League in appearances for the Mets, that distinction belonged to Jon Rauch. Rauch made 85 appearances for Washington in 2006 and followed that up with a league-leading 88 appearances in 2007.

His career has been a series of ups and downs since leaving Washington in 2008. In parts of two seasons in Arizona (2008-2009), Rauch was 2-8 with a 4.87 ERA and 1.42 WHIP. Then he went to Minnesota for 1½ seasons (2009-2010) and flourished with the Twins, going 8-2 with a 2.82 ERA and 1.28 WHIP. He also racked up 21 saves as a temporary replacement for closer Joe Nathan. Finally, as a member of the Blue Jays in 2011, Rauch had a subpar season (5-4, 11 saves, 4.85 ERA, 1.35 WHIP). He missed time in August due to an emergency appendectomy and ended the season on the disabled list with torn cartilage in his right knee.

Pros: Rauch is nicknamed "The Wookie" for his tall frame and sometimes resemblance to Chewbacca, instantly making him R.A. Dickey's best friend in the clubhouse. He also has excellent control, walking only 28 batters over the last two seasons (in 109.2 IP) and possessing a career ratio of 2.7 walks per nine innings.

Cons: Sometimes Rauch can be a little "wild in the strike zone", as evidenced by the 11 home runs he gave up last season in only 52 innings pitched. Also, as seen in his career recap above, Rauch's performance has varied drastically from team to team. He can be very good, as he was in Minnesota, or he can be maddeningly inconsistent, as fans of the Diamondbacks and Blue Jays can surely attest. Will another change of scenery bring out the good Jon Rauch?

Frank Francisco

A teammate of Jon Rauch in Toronto last season, Frank Francisco has been a very consistent pitcher since 2008. Over the past four seasons, his ERA has never been higher than 3.83 or lower than 3.13. He has also given no fewer than 40 hits and no more than 49 safeties in each of the last four years, while allowing between 20 and 22 earned runs per season. He has achieved this level of consistency despite having different roles from year to year.

Francisco served as the set-up man in Texas in 2008, before saving 25 games as the Rangers' closer in 2009. He went back to the set-up role for Texas in 2010, before becoming a closer for the Blue Jays in 2011, saving 17 games in Toronto. Francisco will not be continuing his set-up man/closer roller coaster ride for the Mets in 2012, as Terry Collins has already anointed him as the team's new closer.

Pros: Francisco is a fireballer who will rack up a ton of strikeouts, something that has not been a strength of the Mets' bullpen in recent years. His 10.5 K/9 IP rate over the past four seasons is among the best in baseball. Francisco has also proven that he can handle any relief role in the bullpen and finished the 2011 season strongly (1.37 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and held opponents to a .188 batting average after the All-Star Break).

Cons: Although he is a strikeout pitcher, his strikeout rate has gone down slightly from year to year (11.8 K/9 IP in 2008, 10.4 K/9 IP in 2009, 10.3 K/9 IP in 2010, 9.5 K/9 IP in 2011). His WHIP has also increased annually since 2009 (1.12 in 2009, 1.27 in 2010, 1.32 in 2011).

Angel Pagan traded for Andres Torres and Ramon Ramirez

After an outstanding second half in 2009 and a breakout season in 2010, Angel Pagan took a step back in 2011. After managing to keep his batting average around .300 for most of '09 and '10, Pagan could only muster a .262 average last season. He also had his lowest on-base percentage in four years as a Met (.322) and made too many questionable baserunning decisions.

Andres Torres had a similar situation to Angel Pagan in 2011. Torres shocked everyone with his breakout 2010 season for the World Champion San Francisco Giants (.268 batting average, 43 doubles, 8 triples, 16 HR, 63 RBI and 26 SB in 139 games). But he had a miserable follow-up campaign in 2011 (.221 batting average, 24 doubles, one triple, 4 HR, 19 RBI and 19 SB in 112 games), causing him to lose playing time once the Giants acquired Carlos Beltran from the Mets.

Ramon Ramirez had a shaky start to his major league career in Colorado, but has flourished since he left the Mile High city after the 2007 season. In the four years since his departure from the Rockies, Ramirez has compiled a 2.77 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP, while holding the opposition to a .220 batting average. But since becoming a Giant at the trade deadline in 2010, Ramirez has been one of the most unhittable relievers in the majors, compiling a 2.07 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and a .194 batting average against him. He also didn't give up many long hits as a Giant, holding opponents to a .267 slugging percentage and allowing only two home runs to the 388 batters he faced.

Pros: Angel Pagan for Andres Torres straight up would have been a bad deal, as Pagan is younger than Torres and even with a down season in 2011, still performed better than Torres did for the Giants. The addition of Ramirez, a quality arm in the bullpen with an extended period of success, makes the deal more attractive. Plus, Andres Torres can serve as a stopgap in center field until Kirk Nieuwenhuis is ready for the majors (hopefully by late 2012), similar to the way Rey Sanchez held shortstop warm for Jose Reyes until his call-up in 2003.

Cons: The Mets acquired a centerfielder with 27 HR and 118 RBI. That's not his total for one season. That's what Torres has amassed in 1,423 major league plate appearances over parts of seven seasons. Torres also has 4,444 plate appearances over 1,035 minor league games. That means Torres has over three times as many plate appearances in the minor leagues as he has in the majors. When a player who will be 34 by Opening Day can say that about his professional career, that's not something to be proud of. It also doesn't say much about his ability to stay in the major leagues. Pagan has a better chance of replicating his 2010 season than Torres has of doing the same.

We owe (the fans), we owe (the fans), so it's off to work we go!

The 2012 Mets improved themselves at the Late Fall Meetings by adding three quality arms in the bullpen. Jon Rauch will be the primary set-up man and can be counted on to pitch as many days as he is needed. Frank Francisco may not have dominant numbers, but he has been a model of consistency over the past four seasons and is a legitimate strikeout pitcher. Ramon Ramirez has the potential to be the best reliever in the Mets' bullpen. He doesn't depend on the strikeout to retire batters. Rather, he makes opposing hitters swing at his pitch, and allows mostly singles when he does give up hits, which over the past few seasons has become a rare sight.

I can deal without Andres Torres in the outfield, but at least he does possess some speed, which the Mets will need now that Jose Reyes is no longer on the team. Plus, there's always a chance that he might be able to find some of that 2010 magic in his tank, although is .221 average and 19 RBI in 398 at-bats last year reminded me a little too much of Luis Castillo.

For now, it appears that Sandy Alderson is trying his best to mold this team in his image. He is getting quality players without spending top dollar or too many years of commitments. It's still too early to know what this will mean for the 2012 Mets. But at least it shows that it won't just be 20 Buffalo Bisons and a handful of veterans sitting in the dugout at Citi Field next season. For the amount of money Sandy has to play with, I'd say he's doing a pretty good job.