Jan 20
Video: 1973 NL Champion Mets Honored With The Willie, Mickey & The Duke Award At BBWAA Dinner
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32 comments
srt
1/20/2013-3:07pm at 3:07 pm (UTC -4)
‘I kicked Pete Rose’s ass’
HAHAHA – you go, Buddy.
Stick
1/20/2013-5:20pm at 5:20 pm (UTC -4)
’73 was a long time ago, wasn’t it?
Damned I am getting really old.
I vaguely remember 1973, but at that time I was not actually a Met fan. I didn’t become really hooked until 1976 for some reason.
srt
1/20/2013-6:31pm at 6:31 pm (UTC -4)
’76? Just in time for some of the worst Met teams in history – after ’69 that is.
Stick
1/20/2013-6:59pm at 6:59 pm (UTC -4)
my formative years where the late 70s (HS) when I first really started going to games, and the early 80s during the summer at college. At least when I was a young, crazy working man was the mid-late 80s!
but yes, I went to a lot of games to watch really bad teams. So this current stretch doesn’t get me all worked up. I just take a season as it comes, since there is really very little I can do personally to change the outcome!
kingman 26
1/21/2013-10:43am at 10:43 am (UTC -4)
1973 was my formative Met year. I remember all of that postseason; I was 7 and it was so damned exciting.
Until game 7 in Oakland…as I always say, had the frigin Mets just drafted Reggie instead of Steve Chilcott, they win in 1973 and maybe another time or two with that pitching staff and that lack of offense.
TX
1/21/2013-10:51am at 10:51 am (UTC -4)
73 was just before my time, so I missed out on the magic.
So 1986 is the one good snow tire I have to get me through the proverbial storm.
TX
1/21/2013-11:15am at 11:15 am (UTC -4)
If the salary fell to 3 years, 40 million, you think the Mets would bite on Bourn?
Stick
1/21/2013-11:26am at 11:26 am (UTC -4)
could happen, if he fell to a level they considered a too good to pass up bargain. that amount is just slightly more than Vicky got, and I would much rather have Bourn.
players like him must hate the CBA now. the true studs like hamilton, the qualifying offer did not matter. But these basically mid-tier overrated guys are getting royally screwed by the process.
My guess, next year, there will be more guys grabbing the big 1 year offers (or at least making it clear they will, to scare off teams from making them!), defeating the whole purpose of the process.
kingman 26
1/21/2013-2:34pm at 2:34 pm (UTC -4)
Zero chance.
Zero.
They have nothing to spend.
There’s zero chance they are adding $13 mil per year.
I’d love it as Bourn would be great for this team, but they cannot afford Hairston and could not afford Dickey–how can they afford Bourn?
Stick
1/21/2013-3:27pm at 3:27 pm (UTC -4)
of course they can afford it. Sandy said so!
and affording Dickey was never an issue (since they are paying Buck more than him this year, and next year there is very little on the books). So backload Bourn a bit if needed.’
and of course they can afford Hairston. they just are smart enough to not want to overpay him, since he really is not all that good!
Stick
1/21/2013-11:33am at 11:33 am (UTC -4)
just for the hell of it, since Tex started this, say they have been laying in the weeds and sign bourn to a 3 year deal for Vickey money (which happens to be ~ what they would have been paying Dickey!).
suddenly, the OF does not look like a wasteland:
LF: Duda and a caddy. yes, I know he is not GG caliber, but LF is not as brutal as RF. And I expect him to rebound a lot with the bat, and approach his 2011 #s, being a legit power threat. Figure some LHSP rest to give cowgill some ABs.
CF: Bourn, a real player with a top shelf glove. No power, but he can certainly help out Duda!
RF: Platoon central, with some mix of Baxter, Cowgill, Brown (or hoffman). Play the splits and the hot hand.
in this scenario, you have 2 LH and 2 RH to cover LF and RF, and can mix/max/platoon/defensive replace as needed.
And, no longer the “worst” OF in the majors. And it really only takes normal split production from the RF guys, and Duda rebounding to something approaching his 2011 #s (and not being too horrific rambling around out there!) to be at least mid-pack productive.
srt
1/21/2013-12:05pm at 12:05 pm (UTC -4)
If there’s one thing you can probably count on with this current FO, it’s their incredible patience. They’re willing to wait on some prices coming down (be it FA or trade) – probably b/c they’re also willing to go into the season with the OF we currently have.
Still a bit of time before ST and opening day. I suppose anything can happen but not sure if Bourn lowers his price, we’ll be the team that grabs him.
TX
1/21/2013-12:23pm at 12:23 pm (UTC -4)
If you are only platooning in RF & LF, and have an everyday CF in Bourn, it works out very well for the true platoon and maintaining a 5 OF’s on the roster. And you hope, like you mention, that the Duda can be an every day guy.
I still think it sucks to lose the top pick (which in the end will probably drive the “not signing Bourn” thing), but if the deal is 3 years for 40, I think it would be worth it to have Bourn vs. the pick. But that’s just me.
Stick
1/21/2013-12:39pm at 12:39 pm (UTC -4)
he should also, in theory, be tradeable with that contract.
TX
1/21/2013-12:59pm at 12:59 pm (UTC -4)
Agreed. And you would only move him if the team is totally in the tank or he is being pushed by Nimmo or Den Decker or the likes.
At this point, he may get a 4 year deal, max, but I think a 3 year deal is where is ends up. No one is going to sign him to a 1 year deal either. Who would want to lose draft pick for a 1 year rental?
kingman 26
1/21/2013-2:47pm at 2:47 pm (UTC -4)
Since you started this, why not defrost the cryogenically frozen head of Ted Williams and clone him? Then, with him in left, the outfield suddenly does not look like a wasteland.
Seriously kids, if Sandy was forced to trade RA to afford St. Dimples, why in the world would he be allowed to sign Bourn?
They don’t have another $13 M for 2013, and this is why Dimples and Bay deferred money.
If Bourn is willing to defer most of his money and/or work for tips, sure, we might see him as a Met.
Stick
1/21/2013-3:32pm at 3:32 pm (UTC -4)
well, odds are there would be some backloading required.
But no way do I think they had to trade Dickey for money reasons. That was due to the sheer lack of position player talent in the system, and being the only real valuable commodity. hell, Buck is making more than Dickey in 2013, and he is not getting all that much in 2014 after Johan is gone too.
Trs86
1/21/2013-3:52pm at 3:52 pm (UTC -4)
I still find it completely insulting that you are insuating Wright was only signed due to his looks and not his career as a Met. This dimples crap is getting a little odd.
kingman 26
1/21/2013-4:01pm at 4:01 pm (UTC -4)
I find it completely bizarre that you can fail to understand that it is a JOKE. This whining about the dimples crap is getting a little odd.
It is 100% clear to me–and many others—that Wright was given this contract not only for his production and his FINE career as a Met, but also for his popularity with a large segment of the casual fan base. The Wilpons are desperate for revenue, and re-signing Wright surely gives them a LOT more guaranteed revenue than had they traded him. If you attend a game at Citi and see the sea of Wright jerseys and hear the loud cheers at his every move, this would be more readily apparent.
It is THIS which has led me to give St. David this nickname, which many people actually find quite funny.
I AM NOT suggesting that Wright was signed in ANY way due to his looks; suggesting that I am saying he was ONLY signed due to his looks is completely, utterly, and really and truly ridiculous.
darknova306
1/21/2013-2:59pm at 2:59 pm (UTC -4)
While I’m not high on Bourn to begin with, I also think the Mets have less than a snowball’s chance in hell of being able to afford him. And that’s about the same chance Duda has of blossoming into the offensive player everyone wants to believe so hard that he can be. I honestly can’t imagine either of these things happening anywhere in the realm of reality.
Stick
1/21/2013-3:34pm at 3:34 pm (UTC -4)
Bourn was more of a theoretical exercise to show that it is not that hard to come up with a real OF>
And all I am asking for from Duda is rebound to roughly what he did for the 2nd 1/2 in 2011. Not MVP output this time…
TX
1/21/2013-3:45pm at 3:45 pm (UTC -4)
Plus, there’s not much else to waste time on…
darknova306
1/21/2013-4:14pm at 4:14 pm (UTC -4)
Fair. I don’t think they’re going to spend that kind of money on an outfielder regardless of who it is, though. I expect that, if they do bring in another OFer, it’ll be the most bargain bin-est player possible.
And I think Duda will be lucky to still be in the majors at the all star break. My expectations for that loafing strikeout machine are so low that I expect DD to get the call up to replace him by mid-June.
Stickguy
1/21/2013-4:21pm at 4:21 pm (UTC -4)
I actually think he will cut down on the Ks, because over his career (al through the minors) he never was a big K guy, so not like there was some big red flag on him as with a lot of the power hitters that come up, make a splash, and then disappear into jacobs land.
I think he just got all messed up last year for whatever reason. Trying to change approach to jack more HRs? worried about D? Got too close to Bay?
in any case, a lot of guys go through that in there sophomore season. So it will be very interesting to see what happens to him this year, but i am not yet ready to condemn him to a crappy year.
trade him to the AL, that would work.
darknova306
1/21/2013-6:45pm at 6:45 pm (UTC -4)
And maybe the league just adjusted to him and, combined with his own apparent lack of confidence, just couldn’t readjust. Couple that with coming back from a broken wrist, which can sap a power hitter’s power, I’d put money on a lousy year. I’ll bet he turns in a downright embarrassing performance in 2013.
Stick
1/21/2013-7:58pm at 7:58 pm (UTC -4)
personally I want to see them put a lot more emphasis on defense. And that means Duda and Murphy, the 2 remaining wink links.
but for now, it seems like we are getting another dose of the bumble twins, so I have to hope they improve somewhat, and show enough bat to make up for it.
Of everyone on the team, Duda IMO is the hardest to predict, by far. Maybe he finds a sports psychologist, and gets his confidence back? Hudgens gets him find tuned, and back to the complete hitter he was 2 years ago?
I have no clue. He could hit like Ike for 2 months, and disappear forever. Or he could hit 2 HRs opening day, and never slow down and end up with 30+. I would believe either scenario.
darknova306
1/21/2013-8:14pm at 8:14 pm (UTC -4)
Pitching, speed, and defense are what should be the focus of any team in a park like Shea or Shitty Field. Of those three things, this team only has some high upside, yet unproven, pitching. They’re a looooong way away. Buckle up for the ride…
greggofboken
1/21/2013-7:29pm at 7:29 pm (UTC -4)
Duda had the single lowest defensive WAR rating since Mo Vaughn. That’s hard work. If I were to guess, I think that will pick up modestly given the switch to left and he logs in more innings and time out there and ceases to view every flyball as though it were a heat-seeking missle. Still….he’s not a neophyte out there. His time in the minors was split equally between first and the outfield.
His woes at the plate, unfortunately I don’t see improving greatly. I think he got exposed and exploited.
If we are lucky, his defensive liabilities will minimize enough so that his bursts of power can continue to justify running him out there.
He wasn’t a prize at first but the damage was less. He, like Murph, is a round peg that we’re jamming into a square hole. If he hadn’t moved that blased sofa, perhaps we could have gotten hm over to the AL (the Astros needed a DH)…..but it wasn’t to be.
greggofboken
1/21/2013-7:32pm at 7:32 pm (UTC -4)
That is — lowest Met defensive WAR rating. I’m sure there were others with worse ratings from other clubs. I didn’t want to unfairly malign him. The fair malignment was sufficient.
darknova306
1/21/2013-8:08pm at 8:08 pm (UTC -4)
Between changing to LF and getting more innings, I’d agree he should see a small uptick in his defense. I still don’t see it getting up to the point where his lousy offense becomes palatable. The league completely figured him out, and if the recovery from the broken wrist saps any of his power, he’ll be the complete package of suckitude this season.
srt
1/21/2013-8:57pm at 8:57 pm (UTC -4)
Hate to label the poor kid but…
‘You are the weakest link’.
darknova306
1/21/2013-9:20pm at 9:20 pm (UTC -4)
Poor kid? He’s getting paid half a million dollars per year to suck at my favorite game. Screw that guy.