I am sure that if you asked most Baseball beat writers, columnists and Mets fans what the Mets record would be after their first 8 games most would not have said 6-2. But that is the Mets record after yesterdays 5-0 dispatching of the Philadelphia Phillies. I know that this is just a small sample size, and there is a long season ahead of them, but from what I have seen so far has encouraged me.
There are 5 things that have surprised me so far about this team.
1. The revamped bullpen has been up for the challenge so far. It seems like Sandy Alderson was right to allocate to bulk of his off-season budget to the bullpen. Jon Rauch, Ramon Ramirez, and Frank Francisco have been in lock down mode. Bobby Parnell seems to have finally come into his own, and having both Byrdak and Acosta in specialist roles has turned out to be a luxury that many teams lack.
2. Daniel Murphy’s defense. We all know that Murph can hit, but even though he hasn’t shown that he is the second coming of Wally Backman with his glove he is as serviceable as Jeff Kent during his tenure here.
3. Going into this season I would have been happy if Ruben Tejada could hit and field like Rey Ordonez. So far he has shown that he is anything but a slap hitter, and his defensive range is impressive. I think he may make most fans forget about some guy who defected to Miami.
4. I was expecting Johan Santana to be a bit inconsistent in his first few starts after coming back from major shoulder surgery. I looked at both Chieng Ming Wang and Mark Prior as a baseline. So far Johan has shown that he is not that far off from the pitcher who the Mets traded for back in ’07. Johan still has some major hurdles that he must get past ( fatigue, cold weather etc) but if he continues to pitch the way that he has so far, I think this team will be better than expected.
5. This team with the exception of one game against the Nationals never seem to be down for the count. Lets face it , the first month of the Mets schedule is not an easy one. The Mets face many teams that are billed as being more superior to them. They have manhandled the Braves and are on the verge of sweeping the Phillies. So far it seems like the Mets are playing with an “us against the world” mantra.
So I ask you what about this team so far has surprised you ?
And with that said… HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!!!!
Mets alumni celebrating a birthday today includes:
One time first round draft pick, outfielder, Jeromy Burnitz (1969) is 43. Burnitz was something of an enigma. During his brief time with the Mets he was a feast or famine power hitter ( more stress on the famine). After the Mets traded him he developed into one of the premier power hitters in the American League. The Mets re-obtained him before the ’02 season but he was a shell of the player he once was.
Reserve outfielder from the ’95 season, Ricky Otero is 40 (1972).
The New York Mets traded relief pitcher, Mac Scarce to the Cincinnati Reds for middle reliever, Tom Hall on April 15, 1975.
The New York Mets signed free agent shortstop, José Oquendo on April 15, 1979. Oquendo is currently a coach in the St Louis Cardinals organization.
The New York Mets signed free agent catcher, Alberto Castillo on April 15, 1987. Alberto spent the better part of four season as the Mets back up catcher. He would end up with 2 homers, 14 RBI’s ans a batting average of .198 during his tenure here.
Mo Vaughn has been feasting on Scrapple as well as the flesh of Phillies fans !!!
4 comments
srt
4/15/2012-10:33am at 10:33 am (UTC -4)
For me:
1. Tejada. I predicted he’d probably be good with the glove but not much more than a light hitting SS. So far, Ruben has proved me wrong. Happy to be wrong with that prediction.
2. Santana. I predicted he wouldn’t be ready for opening day. Wrong again. Even though he hasn’t gone deep in either start, he’s proving he’s deserving of that top notch pitcher moniker. Not only was he ready to go but he’s only given up one run in two outings – and doesn’t feel a twinge yet in that shoulder….that we know of.
3. Wright. I was cautiosly optimistic if healthy, he’d be closer to his 2008 numbers than the past few years. Given the start he’s gotten off to, we can probably put down the caution flag. Don’t think he’ll continue hitting over. 500, but he’s locked in right now.
4. The BP. This has been the real surprise for me. The money Sandy put into the BP and the trade for Ramirez all looked like a potential bust in ST. Just goes to show ya not to put too much stock in ST. I don’t think Rauch has given up a hit yet, FF looks locked in for the 9th. Ramirez has been fine. Parnell looks like a new pitcher. Haven’t seen much of Manny yet but I wasn’t worried about him. Brydak living up to his ‘Hulk’ joking around by being ready for opening day after his surgery. Only one I think might not be long for this BP is Batista. But all in all, well done Sandy.
Hazmet
4/15/2012-11:00am at 11:00 am (UTC -4)
My five:
1. Johan
2. The Pen
3. Wrights fast start
4. Tejada
5. Niese – coming of age? No hitter into the seventh in his first start and blanking the Phils through 6.2 yesterday. If he’s finally got it what a nice 1,2,3 with Santana, Dickey, Niese.
On my #4, I’m tickled with Ruben as he was my dark horse candidate to break through and be more than people expected. Last year based on his ability to get hit’s with runners in scoring position at a tender 21 years of age. And after seeing the comparison in Baseball Reference to like players at 21: Foli, Speirs, and 2 HOF’s Joe Tinker & Rabbit Maranville (Rabbit who I have no idea about). Foli & Speirs were both serviceable big leaguers and Tinker as part of a legendary infield. With those comparisons and his small sample size to date I felt he could surprise. Early still but keep it up Ruben it would be nice to not to have to think about the SS position for a long time.
JimmyC
4/15/2012-12:09pm at 12:09 pm (UTC -4)
Great observations as always. I am just enjoying the ride!!!!!
Stickguy
4/15/2012-12:32pm at 12:32 pm (UTC -4)
surprises?
Tejada, wright and Ike.
tejada because I never thought he would mature this fast, and develop a viable bat. Far from an automatic out. and again to my surprise, SS just amy be locked up for a while (makese sense, now that there are a couple of possible replacements in the A ball range!)
Wright, because I wasn’t expecting this much of a 2008 resurgence.
and Ike, because I can’t believe how horrid he looks. numbers are dismal, but even scarier, he looks (the old eyeball test) even worse than the numbers. Thank goodness he can field. Honestly, he looks like a local slo pitch softball guy that won a contest (or bought a $20million share?) and gets to hit.