Jose Reyes – A: The only debate really would be whether it should be an A+. Jose has hit, hit in the clutch, hit for extra bases, has avoided the trap of swinging for the fences and popping up a lot as in previous years, he has fielded well, retains his great arm, has stolen plenty of bases, and simply has played like an MVP for the first time in his career. A cliché maybe, but Jose Reyes truly raised his game to a new level in the first half of 2011.
Carlos Beltran – A-: Has been alternately very good and fantastic. His offense has been what it has been his entire career when healthy-all star level. Hitting HRs and loads of doubles, has been the team’s big RBI man, has played an admirable RF after a career in center, and even his speed and basepath aggressiveness have been returning. Has played nearly every day, and he remains a quiet leader who is utterly respected by his teammates; especially the younger ones who he has a huge influence on.
Francisco Rodriguez – B+: 23 of 26 saves is hard to argue with. KRod does not have the velocity he used to, and is not as dominant, but he remains one of the game’s better and more reliable closers. Clearly among the team’s first half MVPs. When one considers the rest of the pen’s potential for replacing him, his value becomes even clearer. Should he be traded at some time before the beginning of 2012, the team might find out his value the hard way.
Daniel Murphy – B: What can one really say about Murph? OK, he’s not a star. What’s the other criticism? He plays wherever asked, while streaky he clearly can hit, he has driven in some key runs, and he hustles. His baserunning errors are errors of aggression and effort, and while it would be better not to see them, a player like Murph-who never stops hustling and who wants to succeed and win as much or more than anyone-is an asset to this team.
Justin Turner – B: Much like Murph, a guy who has done whatever has been asked of him, has produced clutch RBIs in times when the team was desperate for them, and simply quietly comes to play, apparently even when hurt. He’d be a magnificent spot starter/bench strength kind of guy, and let’s hope we see him here in that role in 2012.
Ronny Paulino – B: Exactly what was advertised: a fine backup who when used correctly can be a serious offensive threat. Has stabilized the recently frightful catcher position and as an added bonus has helped elicit better results from the King of the Enigmas, Mike Pelfrey.
Jonathon Niese – B: Really coming on, the slow start is what keeps this grade from being higher. Niese has increased poise and maturity, and seems to have everything needed to be a very successful starter for a long time in the bigs. Last year he faded down the stretch; should we not see this again, we may see a 15-17 win season and expectations for a serious breakout in 2012.
R.A. Dickey – B: Grade inflation? No. Dickey also started poorly, but as time goes on, it become more likely that the issue with the fingernail could have been a large part of the cause. He keeps going out and eating innings with increasing efficiency, and is another guy whose wonderful attitude has contributed to making this year’s team so very different from last year’s. Like Pelfrey but to a lesser degree, R.A. should not be blamed for the fact that this team has nothing close to a Halladay leading the staff.
Jason Isringhausen – B: Joins Capuano as veteran injury reclamation projects of the best kind. A former star, now a guy who shows his love of the game by accepting a lesser role for less money and working so very hard to excel at it. The successful innings Izzy has given have been key to this team’s resurgence and success the last 2+ months.
Dillon Gee – B: The magic pixie dust may have worn off, but Gee still does seem to have what it takes to be a valuable, innings-eating back of the rotation starter at least. Never a star in the minors, he did have some good results, and the feeling here is that while he may not be the next Greg Maddux, he could be more than the next Mike Maddux.
Taylor Buchholz – B: Has missed a lot of time, but was very good when healthy. Seems to have much of his ability back, and might be asked to return in 2012.
Angel Pagan – B-: Pagan has been slowly improving his offense, and is certainly a valuable, hustling player but the feeling here remains that this is a decent starter but not much more.
Ruben Tejada – B-: All things considered, this might be low for him. Young and rushed to the majors again, Tejada has shown improvement in all facets of his offense. Much improvement in BA and OBP and even more in overall plate discipline. May never be a .320 hitter, but should eventually be, at the very least, a fine fielding, decent hitting middle infielder with instincts and intangibles which increase his overall value.
Pedro Beato – B-: A great start, and not quite the same since his injury. Really too early to judge him, and the rest of the season should be a good place to assess his future worth. Maybe not as good as he looked pre-injury, but maybe better than some of his bad moments more recently.
Chris Capuano – C+: Yes, but a good, “gentleman’s” C+. Has been better than hoped for, and continues to impress. A man who was obviously serious about working hard to resurrect his career, he has done just that. Remains to be seen how his surgically repaired arm will survive as the innings pile up, but another of the folks whose performance has been key to the surprisingly good season thus far.
Jason Bay – C: A C with a bullet. Has had a very good few weeks offensively, and to his credit, his comically unfairly maligned defense has remained very good during his entire Met era. If he continues his offensive renaissance and this coincides with the return of some or all of Johan/Wright/Ike, it could make the team that much stronger later this year and/or in 2012. A pro to be sure.
Bobby Parnell – C: Average. When researching, this writer was somewhat surprised to find that Parnell has never really been consistently very successful above A ball. Sure this could change, as undisciplined hard throwers often take a bit longer to harness their talents at the highest level, having easily succeeded as amateurs and in the low minors. Surely the Mets do not want to let him get away to succeed elsewhere a la Kazmir, Bell, Lindstrom, and now even Humber and Vargas, so it appears that Parnell will have another year to finally establish himself as anything other than an average pitcher who throws really hard.
Willie Harris and Scott Hairston – C: Two versatile, and just average bench players. Both have had their moments to be sure, but both are also certainly not going to be around next year. Have filled needed voids, and perhaps some of their success has been partly due to Collins’ generally putting them in the best spots to succeed, but really neither is anything to get excited about in any way.
Josh Thole – C-: Seems to be pretty average at best all around. Walks and BA have improved much lately, but has very little power, and defense is far from ideal. Not very young, so next year will probably be the key for Thole as to whether he will remain a viable starting catcher in the bigs.
Tim Byrdak – C-: Well, he’s OK as a lefty specialist, and has had a few very good outings, but remains a mediocre, aging pitcher with severely limited effectiveness.
Jason Pridie – C-: Hustles, cares, and seems like a fine person, but like Chris Carter, just not in possession of serious major league skills.
Mike Pelfrey – C-: What is there to say? What’s wrong with this guy? Big, strong, and healthy. Throws well into the 90s. Why can’t he at least do every year what he did in 2008 and 2010? Mystifying. The plus is that he is just 27, and the team must not let him get away. He remains an especially annoying enigma whose biggest deficiency may indeed lie between his ears.
Lucas Duda – C-: Supposed to be a power hitter; has no HR in 100+ PA. Slow, a mediocre fielder, doesn’t draw walks, and is 25. We all love the homegrown, but Duda won’t have much more time to show that he is a major league player.
D.J. Carrasco – D+: The plus is for versatility, the D is for talent and results.
David Wright – Inc.: Wright was playing every day and hustling, but his offensive game was seriously off once again. One can only hope that perhaps this time off will return a healthy and rested Wright and it will allow him to once again be the player he was for most of his career. Way too early to give up on him. He remains a serious cornerstone for the future.
Ike Davis – Inc.: Ike was off to a fabulous start before the freak injury. We really just do not know how soon he will return, or how much the injury will affect him, but considering Ike’s age, his being rushed to the bigs, and the huge improvement he showed this year, there’s no reason to think we won’t again see a fine-fielding young power hitter continuing to work towards all-star level in 2012 if not before.
Chris Young – Inc.: Looked great in his short Met stint. Who knows if he’ll be back next year, but he sure is good when he actually makes it onto the field.
—————————————————————————————————————————————–
Terry Collins – A: You were expecting otherwise? Not a chance! As of now, must be considered a serious manager of the year candidate. Many denied the obvious in 2010, but this was a team adrift, which Pagan’s comments joined Wright’s in verifying. Sloppiness and laziness can be contagious, and so can hard-nosed effort, as the last two years show. Collins was an inspired choice for this group: he knew the players, had learned from past experience, and was ready for another chance. He has made the most of it thus far. Collins seems to use his players in a way that maximizes their confidence and gives them the best chance to succeed, he does not let guys rot in his doghouse, he openly criticizes as well as openly praises guys, and he has a team which is largely a patchwork assembly playing excellent baseball. Since the 5-13 start, the team is 41-32, with no Johan, no Wright, no Ike, and very little from Bay and Pelfrey. It’s hard to reasonably say that this team has not exceeded all expectations, and when considering the 5-13 start and the injuries, exceeded them rather admirably.
Sandy Alderson – A-: It’s not easy to find fault with what Alderson has done, all things considered. Clearly the team’s off-field/financial issues are a factor in his freedom of action, but Alderson has shown himself to be flexible and willing to make changes. Perhaps equally important, considering the regime he replaced, he has been open, congenial, and erudite with the media; betraying no frustration or anger, and giving the fans the sense that a serious, intelligent, patient group is now in charge. One cannot envy him the decisions he has approaching with Reyes, Beltran, KRod, and others.
——————————————————————————————————————————————
Overall Team – B+: This was a hard grade to award. The team after 18 games was 5-13 and playing D- ball. And WITH Wright, Ike, and Young. Since then? It’s been a pleasure to watch them. Let the clichés flow, but they come to play, they play hard, they play to the last out, they get their uniforms dirty, etc. They want to play for Collins; he has their respect. The season has many chapters yet to go, but if one looks at the results in recent weeks-the wins against the Braves, the series win in Milwaukee, the amazing offensive performance to win 4 of 6 in Texas and Detroit, and coming back to avoid getting swept by the Yanks and then going to LA and SF and winning 4 of 7, losing to three very good pitchers-they’ve done fine with a seriously hard stretch of schedule.
These are not your Minaya/Manuel Mets, ready to give up at a moment’s notice, ready to give an extra year to the next 32-year-old free agent on the market, ready to stage a pinochle marathon during batting practice, ready to fold up their tents and make 14 straight outs facing the league’s worst bullpen, and ready to race each other to the clubhouse when not in the starting lineup.
No, there is a new sheriff in town, one who already has changed the culture, as the saying goes. It is the attitudes of the players like Wright, Murphy, Turner, Dickey, and Pagan which now form the mindset of this team.
There’s a lot of season left, but any sane and reasonable fan has to love what this team has done since starting 5-13, and has to be even more enamored of what they have done in recent weeks with a horrifyingly brutal schedule. If they can make it to early August above .500—when the schedule eases and Wright and Johan might return—it could be a meaningful and fun stretch run, which at the very least could lay the groundwork for seriously raised expectations and enthusiasm for 2012
67 comments
Dirtysanchez
7/11/2011-12:46pm at 12:46 pm (UTC -4)
No grading curve for you King huh lol. I think you nailed it on the head. One of the guys I have been most impressed with is Paulino. Very quiet guy who just goes about his business and very well at that. Heres to an exciting second half
Anonymous
7/11/2011-12:47pm at 12:47 pm (UTC -4)
I wish I had you as a teacher. Duda a C? Pelfrey a C? Thole a C? I
cannot nitpick all your choices, as I know that opinion is opinion, but
my thinking is for what Pelfrey was supposed to do vs. what he has is
far from a C. Thole’s game calling and D are not what I expected. And
maybe I listened to Stick a little too much, as pretty much Duda would
have to hit a 5 run home run and walk on water (which is possible when
the water is frozen) to get anything on the high grade mark. Duda’s
lack of HR power and his subpar D put him much lower in my book.
Any way, overall, your theme of many producing higher than expected is correct.
And I’d actually probably have Tejada at a B+ or A-. He’s taken
everything I thought of him as a hitter and changed that completely.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-1:19pm at 1:19 pm (UTC -4)
Pelf, Duda, and Thole are all C MINUSES.
Sorry, but with the new changes was not able to easily make the grades bold and bigger as I hoped, and was in a rush to post and had trouble getting the font bigger.
Are any of these guys deserving of Ds?
Duda’s a minor leaguer, so I think of him that way; Stick is free to enjoy his delusions about Duda, who I am sure is far better than Brown, Mayberry Jr., Howard, Utley, and Schmidt and Luzinski at the same age.
Thole? Maybe a D, but C- seems fair.
Pelf? You are very biased against him, I am very biased for him, but his home record is a B+ at least, so overall a C- seems fair to me.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:49pm at 3:49 pm (UTC -4)
I am very biased against Pelf. What’s the saying about Hank Williams Sr? Million dollar talent, 10 cent brain? I think that is all too applicable to Pelf.
Maybe I am too hard on him. Like I’ve been not as hard on Bay as others
have, eye of the beholder or to each his own, i guess.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-4:35pm at 4:35 pm (UTC -4)
That’s what my Dad used to say about Jon Matlack and Sid Fernandez!
Million dollar arm, 10 cent head!
Anonymous
7/11/2011-12:51pm at 12:51 pm (UTC -4)
test? my stuff doesn’t seem to be showing up. Have I been banned for telling corny jokes and being too quick to dismiss FIP / RSIP * WHIp – (WAR + BABSIPEDDESBA)?
TRS86
7/11/2011-1:20pm at 1:20 pm (UTC -4)
Seems to be working just fine. That being said, the disqus sidebar takes time to show up.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-1:32pm at 1:32 pm (UTC -4)
I would give little higher grade to Cap while lower grades to Izzy and Bay. Cap has gotten no defensive support at all this season. He has pitched much better than what his stats show.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-1:37pm at 1:37 pm (UTC -4)
This is totally unrelated, but Tiger Woods is going to make a public announcement. There’s a lot of speculation that he may confess to use of HGH as Dr Galea pleaded guilty to distributing HGH last week.
I could really careless about what this does to Tiger’s reputation. But if he confesses to use of HGH with Galea, you know Reyes and Beltran will be strung into the conversation (along with ARod but who cares). This is a problem. This team finally got over all the off the field nonsense drama and all the focus is on the team and its performance. But if Tiger’s confession can have pretty big impact on the Mets.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-1:42pm at 1:42 pm (UTC -4)
Scratch that.. Tiger is not making any announcements..
Anonymous
7/11/2011-1:58pm at 1:58 pm (UTC -4)
Yea now the sports talk world is saying it was just a rumor. BUT Obama is now speaking at 11am, so did Tiger get bumped?
Anonymous
7/11/2011-1:38pm at 1:38 pm (UTC -4)
Next time I should provide an alternate grade and whatever is in the middle would probably be closest to the truth.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-1:39pm at 1:39 pm (UTC -4)
For which players?
Should Pelf be an H or an I?
Anonymous
7/11/2011-1:47pm at 1:47 pm (UTC -4)
These are the ones I had a difference of more than one degree:
Carlos Beltran – B+
R.A. Dickey – C
Jason Isringhausen – C
Taylor Buchholz – C+
Angel Pagan – C
Ruben Tejada – B-
Pedro Beato – C
Chris Capuano – B
Jason Bay – D
Bobby Parnell – F
Willie Harris and Scott Hairston – D
Josh Thole – D
Mike Pelfrey – F
Lucas Duda – F
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:03pm at 2:03 pm (UTC -4)
I would give Bucholz an ‘incomplete’
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:23pm at 2:23 pm (UTC -4)
First off, I sincerely appreciate you reading and taking the time to make these in depth comments.
Well, it is all opinion to be sure, and most I cannot strongly argue with, but an F for Pelf is ridiculous. In 7 starts at home, he is 3-0, with a 2.96 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. Other than the very key ERA and Ks, the rest of Pelf and Cap’s stats are VERY similar. A B and an F? No way sir.
Not sure how in the world Izzy’s a C. 35 G, 3.14 ERA, 1.19 WHIP–are those average numbers?
Buchholz might be another incomplete, but his numbers are actually pretty good.
I am no Parnell fan, but an F? Totally unrealistic and unfair.
Sorry, but I also think Harris and Hairston are pretty average and both have had some big hits. Hairston’s OPS is .780. A D?
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:45pm at 2:45 pm (UTC -4)
YES! Maybe some good banter today.
Pelf is a complete drain on the team. He completely sucks the life out of the field. He has no confidence, no presence and mediocre ability. With every other pitcher in that rotation, I feel they have a shot at the game. With Perf it’s all about damage control. So with all the time/money invested in this guy, he is a failure.
Izzy has been serviceable and average. He doesn’t have a lot in the tank and makes the most of it. Great to see him back in the blue and orange but not much to see here at this point in his career.
I’ll give you Parnell after looking at his stats.
And Hairston and Harris have given the team nothing different than anything else on the scrap heap.There is no game changing impact from their AB’s.
MetsFan4Decades
7/11/2011-2:52pm at 2:52 pm (UTC -4)
In my opinion, Pelf has been disappointing this year but nowhere near deserving of a flat out F.
Pelf has the least run support of all other starters on the staff at 2.05. That’s over a run less then the next in line which is Gee at something like 3.5(can’t remember exactly now).
So every time Pelf goes out there he’s gotta be just about perfect to match the opposing pitcher who isn’t given up runs either. With Pelf’s make-up, that probably isn’t easy. He’s no Halladay.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:54pm at 2:54 pm (UTC -4)
I feel there has to be one F with a 500 team. If everyone was great, then the team would have a better record. If you had to apply a bell curve and give out 3 F’s who would it be?
MetsFan4Decades
7/11/2011-3:10pm at 3:10 pm (UTC -4)
man, these boxes are getting smaller and smaller now – lol.
Not sure I agree about the three F theory but if forced, here goes:
- Acosta
- Pridie
- Harris
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:15pm at 3:15 pm (UTC -4)
2 As, 12 Bs, 9 Cs, 1 D.
For a 46-45 team that started 5-13 and has been without several of its best players and has had a horrific schedule?
Seems logical to me….
Emaus, Hu, Boyer, and Acosta all get big fat Fs.
MetsFan4Decades
7/11/2011-3:18pm at 3:18 pm (UTC -4)
Your F’s make more sense than mine.
All but Manny are no longer here, they all contributed to the poor start.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:43pm at 3:43 pm (UTC -4)
I’m Shrinking, I’m Shrinking What a wold…
Anonymous
7/11/2011-1:39pm at 1:39 pm (UTC -4)
Oh BTW, I really like the changes to the site.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:58pm at 2:58 pm (UTC -4)
And BIG BIG fan of the edit button!
MetsFan4Decades
7/11/2011-1:49pm at 1:49 pm (UTC -4)
Very nice overall analysis of the first half Kingman.
And yes, my eyes had a hard time picking up the straight grades vs. the minuses behind some. Had to make the font far bigger to see them.
My nitpicking:
- I would have given Sandy an A rather than an A minus. That might change after the second half but what he did, with the budget he had to work is deserving of an A. What tipped it for me also is his interviews. Not having to listen for days as the media picks apart what comes out of his mouth is a refreshing change.
- I would have given Niese a B+.
- Think I would have given Murph a B+. He plays where ever they stick him, he never complains, he’s quietly putting together a very good, consistent offense first half. My only knock on him is his over aggressiveness at times that leads to base running blunders or misplays in the field.
- I’d give Beltran a solid A. Who would have thought Carlos of all people would have been the one player who has played almost all games for the first half so far?
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:29pm at 2:29 pm (UTC -4)
Thanks a lot for reading and for the comments MF4D; really appreciated and I agree with your changes far more than the others mentioned above.
I guess I am giving Terry the A thinking that he has gotten more than expected from the guys Sandy has given him, but an A for Sandy thus far seems fair too. Also, I think Sandy’s more of an incomplete, as we have to see what happens with Jose, Beltran and KRod.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-1:58pm at 1:58 pm (UTC -4)
test
test
test
test
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:00pm at 2:00 pm (UTC -4)
Sorry, just playin…
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:01pm at 2:01 pm (UTC -4)
If we paste something from excel or a chart from baseball reference, there is a carriage return line feed after each cell. Are you able to change that?
Mr North Jersey
7/11/2011-2:22pm at 2:22 pm (UTC -4)
Test Baseball-Reference pre-formatted Text.
Pos Player AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO BA OBP SLG
SS Jose Reyes# 350 65 124 22 15 3 32 27 26 .354 .398 .529
RF Carlos Beltran# 326 52 93 28 2 13 58 47 58 .285 .377 .503
IF Dan Murphy* 305 35 93 19 2 5 36 18 39 .305 .346 .430
LF Jason Bay 241 33 57 4 1 6 28 29 62 .237 .320 .336
CF Angel Pagan# 233 34 58 10 3 3 27 27 24 .249 .326 .356
IF Justin Turner 231 23 62 16 0 2 35 16 30 .268 .331 .364
C Josh Thole* 194 14 50 10 0 1 21 28 28 .258 .350 .325
2B Ruben Tejada 153 13 40 4 0 0 18 21 30 .261 .352 .288
3B David Wright 146 23 33 8 0 6 18 25 43 .226 .337 .404
1B Ike Davis* 129 20 39 8 1 7 25 17 31 .302 .383 .543
C Ronny Paulino 125 10 40 8 0 1 10 7 21 .320 .361 .408
UT Willie Harris* 124 22 31 7 0 1 10 16 40 .250 .350 .331
CF Jason Pridie* 123 17 28 5 1 3 13 11 39 .228 .289 .358
1B Lucas Duda* 96 8 22 7 2 0 12 6 18 .229 .276 .344
UT Scott Hairston 83 12 20 4 1 4 13 9 22 .241 .323 .458
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original TableGenerated 7/11/2011.
Mr North Jersey
7/11/2011-2:36pm at 2:36 pm (UTC -4)
The only B.R. option that seems to work without a hitch is the “pre-formatted text” option
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:43pm at 2:43 pm (UTC -4)
Can non-author insert this too?
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:55pm at 2:55 pm (UTC -4)
Year,Age,Tm,Lg,G,PA,AB,R,H,2B,3B,HR,RBI,SB,CS,BB,SO,BA,OBP,SLG,OPS,OPS+,TB,GDP,HBP,SH,SF,IBB,Pos,Awards
1985,22,NYM,NL,83,273,236,40,60,9,3,1,19,15,2,30,24,.254,.338,.331,.669,89,78,4,1,4,2,0,8,
1986,23,NYM,NL,147,498,431,77,127,27,7,8,45,31,7,58,55,.295,.377,.445,.822,129,192,4,0,7,2,1,*8/7,MVP-19
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:56pm at 2:56 pm (UTC -4)
Year Age Tm Lg G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS OPS+ TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB Pos Awards
1985 22 NYM NL 83 273 236 40 60 9 3 1 19 15 2 30 24 .254 .338 .331 .669 89 78 4 1 4 2 0 8
1986 23 NYM NL 147 498 431 77 127 27 7 8 45 31 7 58 55 .295 .377 .445 .822 129 192 4 0 7 2 1 *8/7 MVP-19
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:56pm at 2:56 pm (UTC -4)
this was “PRE”
Mr North Jersey
7/11/2011-3:03pm at 3:03 pm (UTC -4)
Salt keep in mind there is only so much width you can use. From the looks of it even if you could use pre-formatted text it looks like you ran out of room.
If you really want to know if you can use pre-formatted text try something small 1st. Say 5 columns 3 rows.
Still you may be right that only authors prob can do pre-formatted text.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:44pm at 3:44 pm (UTC -4)
Year Age Tm Lg Lev Aff
2007 21 Brooklyn Cyclones New York-Pennsylvania League A- NYM 2007-06-19
2008 22 St. Lucie Mets Florida State League A+ NYM 2008-04-03
2009 23 Binghamton Mets Eastern League AA NYM
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:45pm at 3:45 pm (UTC -4)
aint nutin but an author thang…
Adam "Prismo"
7/11/2011-2:48pm at 2:48 pm (UTC -4)
Nice grades Kingman! I think I actually agree with most of them, and certainly have no major qualms. Ollie and Luis should get grades too though, since they’re on payroll!
Anonymous
7/11/2011-2:59pm at 2:59 pm (UTC -4)
Luis: F
Ollie: F-
Adam "Prismo"
7/11/2011-3:03pm at 3:03 pm (UTC -4)
Thanks! I was dying of curiosity there.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:16pm at 3:16 pm (UTC -4)
Ask and ye SHALL receive.
Now, what’s the weather going to be like in southern SC from July 30-Aug 7?
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:39pm at 3:39 pm (UTC -4)
“Seems it never rain in Southern California
Seems I’ve often heard that kind of talk before
It never rains in California
But girl, don’t they warn ya
It pours man it pours.”
Anonymous
7/11/2011-4:37pm at 4:37 pm (UTC -4)
Ah, Albert Hammond, right?….but no my friend, South Carolina! Where, alas, it does rain….
GREAT avatar! Grew up on the Wilder/Feldman movies, and if I am not mistaken, that picture might be of Orville Stanley Sacker from Sherlock Holmes’ Smarter Brother…
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:31pm at 3:31 pm (UTC -4)
Don’t they deserve some consideration for bringing us comic relief?
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:02pm at 3:02 pm (UTC -4)
Split G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR SB CS BB SO SO/BB BA OBP SLG OPS TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB ROE BAbip tOPS+ sOPS+
Home 7 199 182 18 40 7 2 4 5 1 13 27 2.08 .220 .274 .346 .620 63 4 1 2 1 0 5 .237 64 78
Away 12 296 265 43 82 12 1 11 9 0 21 36 1.71 .309 .368 .487 .854 129 4 4 5 1 2 4 .324 125 134
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:04pm at 3:04 pm (UTC -4)
Sorry
Mr North Jersey
7/11/2011-3:05pm at 3:05 pm (UTC -4)
By the way I just realized that if I want to jump to a direct recent comment I have to click on where it says how long ago it was posted.
Something many probably already knew but just in case you was not aware I figured I would share that.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:29pm at 3:29 pm (UTC -4)
If I arrived from Mars for vacation based upon your grades I
would have difficulty understanding why this team is not at least 10 games over
.500.
MetsFan4Decades
7/11/2011-3:41pm at 3:41 pm (UTC -4)
I would think it is because of the poor – 5-13 start – and the fact that some who contributed to that poor start are no longer on the team and/or are in triple A or on extended DL and therefore were not included in the rating.
Re: Emaus, Hu, Boyer, etc.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:50pm at 3:50 pm (UTC -4)
I understand that but a report card has to reflect the half
in its entirety. To be fair if you dismiss the poor start in your evaluation
then you must also dismiss a similar hot streak.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-4:38pm at 4:38 pm (UTC -4)
Sorry Gategem, but I repeat this:
2 As, 12 Bs, 9 Cs, 1 D.
For a 46-45 team that started 5-13 and has been without several of its best players and has had a horrific schedule?
Seems logical to me….
Emaus, Hu, Boyer, and Acosta all get big fat Fs.
TRS86
7/11/2011-4:06pm at 4:06 pm (UTC -4)
Hold on, lets look at the GPA.
I come up with around a 2.5. That would be average.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-4:40pm at 4:40 pm (UTC -4)
Geez, I appreciate this. Exactly what I was trying to say.
TRS86
7/11/2011-4:09pm at 4:09 pm (UTC -4)
Also, keep in mind what a professor once told me.
There is nothing so unequal as the equal treatment of others.
The Mets get a B to a B+ because they have exceeded their ability level and have worked hard to achieve actually more than their predicted achievement.
Thus if an honors kid turns in great non-honors work do you give him the same grade as the non-honors kid who turned in the same work?
Anonymous
7/12/2011-3:08am at 3:08 am (UTC -4)
As someone that has multiple post graduate degrees that has taught courses and has worked in R&D most of his life I must say your Professor has his head up his rectum. Perhaps in grade school you may take into account effort but in college you don’t penalize someone that is extremely bright and gets a lower grade because you expected him to do well while giving a higher grade to someone that is not very bright but worked hard to get his “D” but is rewarded with a C+ or B-. That’s taking absurdity to a new level. Similarly a professional baseball player is treated differently than a high school player when evaluating performance.
I’m happy the Mets have performed as well as they have with the misfortunes that have befallen the team and have exceeded expectations but 46-45 is a “C.”
As I said you can’t discount the start of the season but must view a half season (or full season) in its entirety. Wouldn’t it be marvelous if the Mets could remove their September swoon at the end of 2007 and 2008? Perhaps the league should have rewarded the Mets with WS rings for their effort up until their fateful Septembers.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-3:48pm at 3:48 pm (UTC -4)
Kong, I would like to add my thanks for the time, effort and
energy you expended in establishing this thread.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-4:39pm at 4:39 pm (UTC -4)
Thank you sir!
We are trying in many ways to enhance the experience of our wonderful and loyal commenters, and I truly appreciate this remark.
Stay tuned for An Open Letter to Jose Reyes, to be submitted for your perusal Weds or Thurs.
oleosmirf
7/11/2011-4:40pm at 4:40 pm (UTC -4)
Duda has been a tremendous disappointment and I would have given him a D or F but otherwise I pretty much agree.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-5:33pm at 5:33 pm (UTC -4)
Thanks for reading and thanks for the comment.
I guess I gave Duda a C- because he sucks, and is probably not an MLB player, and yet is hitting above .200 with some doubles.
oleosmirf
7/11/2011-4:41pm at 4:41 pm (UTC -4)
man does Bochy have a hard on for Beltran or what? starting him as the DH and batting him 2nd…
TRS86
7/11/2011-5:08pm at 5:08 pm (UTC -4)
He does lead the NL in doubles buddy. Not a bad pick at all IMO.
oleosmirf
7/11/2011-5:39pm at 5:39 pm (UTC -4)
its not an outlandish selection but had he not been trying to woo him he surely would have picked Votto, Bruce or Pence or at least batted him down in the order.
Hopefully Bochy pushes for him and they are willing to part with a good prospect…
wanny backstra
7/11/2011-6:00pm at 6:00 pm (UTC -4)
he’s got 10 OFers on the roster so it made sense to use one them instead Votto (only 3 1b). So he chose the most veteran and the one with the highest OBP who also happens to be the only switch hitter among your choices. And he’s also the guy that would most benefit from not having to play the field if unnecessary.
Anonymous
7/11/2011-5:26pm at 5:26 pm (UTC -4)
Bochy is softening Carlos up to accept a trade to SF…
Anonymous
7/12/2011-3:14am at 3:14 am (UTC -4)
I don’t intentionally write in the style you observe but I initially write my comments in MS Word and then cut and paste into the dialogue box. When I drop it into the box it looks nothing like the final post. I assume it must be converting the MS Word format into another format. So in the future I will use a text editor.