Are you looking for a ban I think the Mets want to treat Meija a lot like the Rangers are treating Feliz. They feel he exhibited so much dominance at the minor league level that he stands to gain more working against big league hitters even if he will struggle at times which he really hasnt so far. Command has been an issue from time to time but its honestly gotten MUCH better from what he showed in spring training. Curveball still needs work but his cutter and splitter are solid. Plus, one thing I have realized is that the Mets really lack any kind of power arm in the pen besides Meija. K rod is no longer that guy with a fastball capping at 92 and Takahashi when he was in the pen was getting K's by deception more then simply overpowering people. As far as Niese/Lee, I tend to agree with you that the Mets should go get Lee but here's the thing...if you go get Lee via giving up Niese you still need another arm. So what was really the point? The Mets have quality at the top of the rotation with Santana and Big Pelf so what would really be the point? Its certainly an upgrade but its depth that they need. I disagree that Lee is simply ticketed for NYY in 2011. I think he would LOVE to get back at the Phillies for trading him after such a spectacular postseason. Lastly, I disagree with your assessment of where the Mets are right now. The bad contracts (Castillo, perez) are almost up and they have players ready or almost ready to take those spots with Ruben Tejada and Reese Havens at 2b. Havens in particular might be here already if he could just stay healthy. He's had some real bad luck but shows significant power and adequate defense. Aside from Flores, F-Mart, Ike and Havens there are some other solid players like Kirk Neuinweis (SP...i know I butchered it) and Josh Thole who will be here soon enough. Beltran is really the only major contract coming up and you know he will have a monster 2011. Still Id like to get him back and trade him for Lee. Something along those lines. Thats a deal I see a big help to the Mets. I see the Mets a lot more along the lines of where the Red Sox were in 2002-2003 or where the Phillies were in 2006-2007. Close but not quite there. They have the depth prospects they need and they'll need to fill in some missing pieces but they are close.
He dominated the Twins last Sunday. His best start of the season. When JJ comes back, we'll move KK to the pen and keep Meds in the rotation. Next year, Lowe is gone and Meds will take his spot. The Braves pitching staff might be the deepest in all of baseball if you factor in our Minor League talent.
yeah thats why I was asking because I knew he had just pitched, but then I misread the dl list and the rest is history.
Medlen was outstanding last weekend. He did have that left shoulder injury scare but it seemed to be nothing. I can't wait for JJ to come back so that Kawakami can just be moved to the bullpen. Also, I just voted for Martin Prado ten times.
Fair point but the Rangers had Feliz starting in the minors all of last year until they brought him up and put him in the pen. I would have kept Meija on that same plan and let him start until July and bring him up to the MLB once there was a need at SP or in the pen (that way instead of Dickey or Takahashi getting starts they'd go to Meija). I just have a bad feeling that they're hurting the kid's development. But Lee is a major upgrade over Niese and with the Mets getting Lee it means other teams in the NL who would be competing with the Mets for playoff spots don't get him. He could very well push them over the top and give the team a boost. Even if they keep Niese they're still going to need to add another pitcher anyway. Sure it's going to cost them more prospects if they get Lee and Pitcher X but if they're going all in, you go all in. As for him not going to the Yankees because he wants to get back at the Phillies, I think that stuff is overrated. Lee is going to go to whoever gives him the better opportunities (whether it be money, winning, etc). He's earned that right for sure. I wasn't just talking about the dead weight like Perez and Castillo but guys like Santana, Beltran, K-Rod, Bay who are going to start to decline (some of which are declining already). I think they're a win now team, especially with the fan base pressures. If 2007, 2008 and 2009 didn't happen then I might think differently.
Jesus, Carl Crawford is awesome. I hope we make a run at him next year. He would be money batting leadoff for us. We'll only have to outbid the Yankees, Philles and Boston lol Sent from my HERO200 using Tapatalk
Yeah, he is a fine player, I like Crawford or Juan Pierre. Problem with Crawford is he would cost either money or top prospects.
Pretty sure Crawford is a FA, and there's no way they trade him during this season, so no prospects necessary. Unless you consider compensatory picks, then yes, believe we'd have to give up a first and second pick if Carl is a Type A. Oh, and Mets fans, you won 7 in a row and are still in second place. Just sayin'. Sent from my HERO200 using Tapatalk
Meija's been starting since he was in the mets organization at age 16. Im sure he could get reacclimated to starting next spring training. The real problem is he needs to develop a third and fourth pitch if he wants to reach his ace potential. In the minors it hasnt happened for him the last 2 years. He's always had the splitter and the heater but the curve and change-up havent really improved. I would venture to say that he has made more strides from spring training to now on those two pitches then all of the last years. Hee rarely throws them still because as a reliever you generally go with your best stuff but every player develops differently. In spring training after what I saw I would have agreed with you on meija, not now though. No question Lee is a major upgrade over Niese but there's two problems. The Mets top prospects after Meija and Niese are all pitching prospects. The model Minaya is trying to build is a true scouts model...its all farm system or guys he had on other teams like Angel Pagan (Montreal). Look at his major acquisitions. Only 1 major acquisition was via trade; Johan Santana. The rest were FA's. The reason its important is because the Wilpons have always said they dont want to be in Luxury tax territory so you need cost cutting somewhere. Second is that it still doesnt solve the need for depth. Plain and simple you'd further deplete your talent pool. Lee's price will drop as the deadline nears and the Mariners will either lose him as a type A, or get more immediate help. We'll see what they choose. My guess is Niese wont get moved. I dont worry so much about closers cause they are a dime a dozen. Even K-rod is replaceable. Santana should have at least 3-4 prime years left at 31. His K's may decline but I doubt his ERA shoots up significantly. They have a few prime years left for Bay as well but LF is never an especially hard position to fill. Beltran is the only one to worry about but Pagan has shown hes a very good player this year. Ill take it. We're right in the mix of things.
I think anyone who has questions over whether the Braves are legitimate contenders has their answer after the past week. I couldn't be more impressed with these guys right now. Here's to a sweep of the Royals. I'll be at the game Sunday which would make it even better. I'm a little worried though b/c I think Sunday is Kawakami's next start. I don't know how good or bad the royals really are but maybe he can pick up his first win finally. Heyward has been striking out swinging a ton lately. I hope it's just that thumb. Troubling considering he was drawing so many walks earlier in the year. It was nice to see his home run drought end last night.
Do you think Wren will pay large money for a Free Agent like Crawford? He seems to try and find low priced veterans like Anderson and Glaus, which is why I like Pierre as in 09 he filled in well for Manny Ramirez and the White Sox will have a fire sale sooner or later.
re Wren has also been handcuffed by the big contracts Chipper and Derek Lowe. If both of those are off the books next year he'll be able to add a couple nice pieces. Sent from my HERO200 using Tapatalk
Troy Glaus GOES BOOOOOOOMMM!!!!! Walk that ****er off. He has a time machine and he's partying like it's 1999. I'll start the campaign: M V P M V P!!!!!!
Right after the top of the ninth inning during the commercial break I told my wife that Troy was going to hit a walkoff. He is going to be a strong MVP candidate. I sure hope Kawakami picks up his first win tomorrow. I'll be at the game and I don't want to see a loss.
Glaus is playing as well as Terry Pendleton did back in 91/92. I also stepped away from the TV before he hit the game winner, but I did notice he had a really good rip at a pitch right before he jacked that HR.
Troy mentioned that rip you were talking about padre, in the post game interview. He said he was trying to hit out but after that he just focused on making contact and putting a good swing on it and it all worked out. I have a good feeling about today. I think KK is going to get his first win against Kyle Davies. I'll have a pretty good view of it from the pavilion level behind the third base line. I think that area gets some shade too. [I hope.]
I'm watching KK pitch and you can sort of see his problem. Fastball..90 mph..fastball 90mph...fastball 90 mph.. He doesn't change speeds on his fastball, sooner or later MLB hitters will crush that, KK needs to take a page from Maddox and Moyer's book, take a little off of your fastball every now and then to mess up the hitter's timing. As the Orioles mantra was: "Work fast, change speeds, throw strikes"
Looks like my good feeling about today was right. Just not about KK. What a bad outing for him and he finally got some early run support too. The atmosphere at the stadium was really good, you can tell people are getting really excited about this team. Some observations from the game today: - Chipper is still the king of Atlanta baseball. Nobody gets the crowd applause he gets, not even J-Hey. We all know he's leaning towards retirement but you can't see it in the game. He is locked in right now. And he stole third base today. That was something else. - I don't know where Troy Glaus is in the allstar voting but the Kansas City Royals definitely noticed him. He walked four times today. They weren't taking any chances with Big Troy. We should be hearing 'MVP' chants for Troy at the Ted in another month or so. - Craig Kimbrel got into a pinch later in the game and then locked it down. That was some clutch pitching. Very impressive, even though he's the one who made the mess to begin with. - It's a shame Billy Wagner wants to retire. I think he threw about 12 pitches in the 9th before he threw his first ball today. And the Braves fans have taken to him like he's been in Atlanta his whole career. Also, his Enter Sandman themed entrance sets up an electric atmosphere when he comes into the game. - J-Hey plays with so much intensity and enthusiasm. You have to love this kid, he makes the most out of every play and opportunity. The double he hit later in the game should have only been a single. His hustle made the difference. He had a good day today and got on base a ton. He only had one K as well. - I'm not the only one who wants to start a Brooks Conrad fan club. He got a very warm reception when he came in to pinch hit today. - We just gave the Mets and Phillies a big stiff arm over the weekend. Two and a half games up now with a short and winnable road series coming up.
What's encouraging is that they're beating the teams they're supposed to beat up on, and still playing damn well against division leaders. To stave off the Mets after they won 8 in a row, then take a 2.5 game lead with a 5 game winning streak of their is pretty impressive. Best home team in Baseball. This team gets contributions from everywhere. Chipper heating up, Infante playing well off the bench, Hinske coming through. Troy should be considered an MVP candidate right now. He's been simply amazing. The only concern I have is the bullpen. Hopefully they'll be able to survive the second half as much as they've been worked in the first. Kimbrel needs to step up and be more consistent, because they'll need his innings in the second half. Especially when you consider Moylan, Venters and Wagner are all only a few years removed from arm surgeries.
Case in point, a guy who has already been injured. It would be a miracle if all those guys stayed healthy the whole year. We should expect at least one of them goes down in the second half. I hope they keep Kimbrel up and send Chavez/Martinez down when Saito comes back though. Or now that Infante is back they could send Brandon Hicks down and keep all of them.
What no KC Royals or Pittsburgh Pirates for the Braves to beat up on tonight? Geeez I want to know who the Braves paid in setting up this year's schedule.
Imho one of the most underappreciated Braves, he just is a pro day in and day out, Bobby and Scherholz used to find guys like Conrad and Hinske back in the hay day of the Braves. Dan Ross as well, just solid bench players who can swing the stick and handle their positions when a starter needs a day off.
I know. I wish the Phillies would come back to town. Three more wins sure would be nice. The Braves survived a surge from the Mets while playing teams like LA, Minnesota, and Tampa. I think it's safe to say now they've earned the spot they're in.
What an embarrassing performance from Tommy Hanson tonight. He just served up a pitch I could have hit out of the park. Nine runs given up and he hasn't made it out of the fourth. Kawakami must not be the only one who isn't comfortable with an early lead. I'm guessing Bobby was trying to rest the bullpen after Sunday, Tommy should have come out probably in the third. He just finally yanked him in the fourth, but not because there's any chance of victory. His pitch count must have been approaching 90 or so, or maybe Bobby felt bad about what must be happening to his ERA. Luck wasn't with him either. A ground ball to third somehow bounced into Brooks Conrad's jersey, resulting in an infield hit. Initially it seemed like the ball had disappeared. Even Brooks didn't know where it was at first. They just brought in Jesse Chavez. He'll give up a few. This will be a blowout. Hudson will right the ship tomorrow night.
