213 Miles From Shea

Uni Watch Blog, specifically Paul Lukas, posted a link to his column at ESPN today that goes over every new BP hat, all 36 of them. Go read his column and come back.

You back yet?

Yes? Awesome.

I agree almost completely with his analysis. First off, these designs are so much better than the BP hats of the 2000’s that had those odd lines and loops and stretch material to make that hat more breathable or something. The end result was a hat that looked awful if you didn’t curl the brim and wear it forward, and it still looked pretty bad if you did that.

The new Mets hat is awesome. I love the mix match brim to top with Mr. Met as a logo. Perfect.

The Astros are donning my second favorite hat, mainly because I love when teams try to incorporate several types of history in the same hat. The Astros have their new/old H in star logo, and it is circled with a tequila sunrise.

The only hat that is terrible, and I mean terrrrrible, is the Atlanta Braves hat. Over the last several years, the Braves have done a good job of suppressing their racist logo history past. Than this hat happened. I’m not even going to link to it, you can view it above in the column. It’s the old Braves logo. Whenever I think about the Braves, Indians or Washington Redskins, among other teams, I think back to this political comic. At some point as a country we will need to overturn this notion of tradition for sensibility.

The Mets have not added a starting OF yet this off-season, unless you count Collin Cowgill, and with options dwindling, it looks like the Mets will have to look inwards for a lead off hitter, especially if the Mets bring in an OF that is a slugger not an on-baser. That means the Mets realistic options for lead off hitters for 2013 are:

– Ruben Tejada
– Kirk Nieuwenhuis
– Collin Cowgill
– Matt Den Dekker
– Jordany Valdespin

Tejada should really hit second. It’s not only where his game is his strongest, it seems to be where he is the most confident. Showing this statistically is interesting. Last year he hit .293 batting first in the lineup and he hist .292 batting second. His OBP batting leadoff was .334, his OBP batting second was .333. His SLG batting leadoff was .358, .333 batting second. So, it looks like from that perspective Tejada should bat leadoff, or that there isn’t a difference. However, when Tejada leads off a game (his first AB as the leadoff hitter), he hit .243 last season. He hits .303 when he leads off an inning. His OBP split is .282/.336 in favor of leading off an inning. Also in his career he has a .328 OBP batting lead off vs a .338 OBP batting second.

The same reason a lot of people discount Jordany Valdespin on the major roster, he didn’t prove himself last year, could really be applied to Kirk Nieuwenhuis as well.

I would have never really considered Valdespin to lead off if I didn’t see his Winter Numbers so far:

93 AB’s,  16 R, 26 H, 2 2B, 3 HR, 2 SB, 18 BB, .280 BA, .402 OBP, .800 OPS

Last year in the minors Jordany had 10 BB’s over 151 AB’s. Last year in the majors Jordany had 10 BB’s over 191 AB’s. Taking his small sample size from this winter, if he played the full 151+191 AB’s, he would have 66 BB’s instead of 20. That’s a large difference. That shows that he is developing the patience part of his game.

And for a comparison, these were his Winter Numbers in 2011:

107 AB’s, 11 R, 27 H, 3 2B, 3 3B, 0 HR, 10 SB, 7 BB, .252 BA, .304 OBP, .641 OPS

I recognize trepidation using Winter Numbers to project a player’s caliber, but comparing winter numbers to winter numbers is at least a statistical way of showing improvement, and Valdespin looks like a much better winter player in 2012 then he did in 2011.

Jordany’s impatience at the plate really held him back, however if he continues this winter show patience, getting on base, etc and continues that through the Spring, he has to be considered for the Major League Roster! Right now the OF is Duda/Kirk/(Baxter/Cowgill).

Compared to Kirk, Jordany’s walk rate last year was just 3% worse. They both stunk at getting on base. Kirk had moderate success last year batting lead off with a .303 OBP. However his OBP batting second was considerably higher at .351. Kirk also lacks that spunk/spark faster at the top of the lineup. I guess I still compare all lead off hitters to Reyes but I feel like Valdespin has more of a chance of doing something exciting leading off a game than Kirk only because of Valdespin’s streak of hitting pinch hit homers.

If the Mets are looking towards 2014 and 2015, then in 2013 they need to take a look at what they have. Valdespin has made an effort to up his walk game, and he should be given a chance to lead off. For Center and Left field, there should be an open competition between Kirk, Valdespin and Den Dekker. Den Dekker, if we really are taking stock in the future, should be on deck in May if Kirk or Valdespin don’t work out.

In short:
– The Mets don’t have a lead off hitter
– The Mets are really lacking in the OF this year
– The Mets are not spending money on an OF this year
– Valdespin has made improvements to his walk game this offseason
– Valdespin should be given a chance to lead off

(tl;dr version: If you followed the story all day yesterday, there is nothing really new this morning except a bunch of people reporting that trades like this take time)

The Dickey to Toronto trade is almost completed, but has been imminent for at least a day now.

Yesterday afternoon, at around 3:00, the magnitude of the trade was revealed, and the delay in the trade made a lot more sense. As of right now:

Toronto Gets:
– Dickey
– Thole
– Additional Prospect

New York Gets:
– d’Arnaud
– Syndergaard
– Buck
– Additional Prospect

In order to make this trade work, Toronto wants to sign Dickey to a two year extension. Also, medical reports for all of the players involved need to be signed. Let’s be conservative and say that Toronto gets 48 hours to negotiate with Dickey. All of these are reasons why this process could get held up.

For the Mets, this is huge. For two years now we’ve been talking about rebuilding, but last year we didn’t take it seriously. The only rebuilding item we did was letting Reyes walk. 2o11 was the last major rebuilding piece by acquiring Wheeler from the Giants. If the Dickey trade goes through, then the Mets have greatly improved their farm system. This upcoming year will be the first time in a while the Mets have several young players that across the league are regarded as fantastic young players:

– Harvey
– Wheeler
– d’Arnaud
– Syndergaard
– Cecchini
– Nimmo
– Flores

The real story here is that Sandy Alerson, even though we have criticized him a lot recently, myself included, has acquired a top pitching prospect (Wheeler) and hitting prospect (d’Arnaud).  Last year I was excited about 2013, but for no reason when it came to the lineup, it was a self-delusion excitement. Now there is legitimate excitement for 2014. Also this means that the Mets will have Niese/Wheeler/Harvey/Syndegaard in a rotation by 2015, with Mejia/Familia in the pen or as replacements in the rotation if things go wrong.

I love Dickey as a player and what he did for the Mets last year, he was the reason to watch games, but it is hard not to get excited about this trade.

The Mets and Blue Jays quickly moved toward a trade yesterday. A trade isn’t official yet, however news from Jon Heyman is that players in the deal have been agreed on, just no news yet of who is involved. At this point it looks like it is medical reviews that are left, possibly extension talks with Dickey. The Other surprising news from last night is the move might require multiple players moving both directions.

The players on the Toronto side looks like Gose and one of JP or D’Arnaud. Obviously, the Mets want D’Arnaud and if JP/Gose would have had the deal done, the deal would probably have been completed a while ago. Travis D’Arnaud is the impact player the Mets could be looking for. In the minors D’Arnaud has put up the following numbers (also I’m not sure but I think the spelling is d’Arnaud):

2012 (AAA): 279 AB, 45 R, 93 H, 21 2B, 2 3B, 16 HR, 52 RBI’s, .333 BA
2011 (AA): 424 AB, 72 R, 132 H, 33 2B, 3B, 21 HR, 78 RBI’s, .311 BA

It is also very entertaining that if D’Arnaud is traded to the Mets, he will be going back to Vegas with the Mets and Blue Jays swap of facilities.

Personally, if D’Arnaud is in this deal, I’ll do it in a heartbeat. If JP is the catcher involved, I’m not as inclined.

The market for pitching, free agents and trades has radically changed today. The Angels came out of no where and signed Josh Hamilton to a 5 year deal. It looks like Anibal Sanchez is about to sign with the Cubs. If he doesn’t sign with the Cubs, he’ll be signing with the Tigers. For this article, that doesn’t make much of a difference since its not with Texas.

From a Mets trade perspective, this could have two completely different impacts on the Texas Rangers:

1. The Rangers will feel pressured to make a move for an impact pitcher, and may change their offer to the Mets. However I think that’s more of my heart saying that then my brain. My brain is saying that…

2. The Rangers will be reluctant to trade anyone who can play in the OF without Hamilton in the lineup as a force.

The Angels now become an interesting situation in the league. They have an overloaded OF and possibly could trade either Bourjos or Trumbo. Earlier in the off-season the Angels and the Mets may have been a match, however according to several different sources online, talks have really cooled off between the Angels and the Mets. However, the Angels came out of no where to get Hamilton, and maybe they trade one of their outfield chips to get the last pitcher they need to become an over the top team. Can you imagine if Dickey has a similar 2013 as he had in 2012 with the offense of the Angels behind him? It would be insane.

I’m not buying the Angels aren’t trade partners yet only because the Angels are now in year 2 of making rash decisions, and now can be making a huge push to win now.

Side Note: If the Tigers fall out of Sanchez, this may be the best bet for the Mets to create a bidding war for Dickey.

The major holding pattern over the MLB Hot Stove has been eased tonight as it looks like the Dodgers have signed Greinke to a 6 year, 145 million deal. At this moment (8:54, ET), the deal is not close to official and still technically in the rumor stage, but MLBTR is reporting that the Rangers have been told they are out out of the race, and all of the baseball reporters are talking about a deal, so it should be safe to assume that Greinke is about to agree to a contract. This comes as a bit of a surprise with the reports from earlier today and yesterday saying that he was blown away with the presentation by the Rangers, that he felt he could win with the Rangers and the beneficial tax situation in Texas vs LA. (It’s now 8:57, and Jon Heyman is reporting that the deal is official pending a physical).

The more interesting story from Heyman is that he believes that the Dodgers may still try to sign Anibal Sanchez. First off, if that happens, the Dodgers have assumed the “soul” of the Yankees by spending a crazy amount of money to build a new team and win a championship. Second, even without Sanchez, but more so with him, this will have a huge impact in the market for Dickey.

The best situation for the Mets was to have the Dodgers sign Greinke since the Dodgers didn’t have much in terms of prospects that interested the Mets. If the Dodger also sign Sanchez, this will put pressure on the Rangers and Royals to make a move for starting pitching. The Mets are impressed with Myers (Royals organization, and honestly, who wouldn’t be impressed), and there were reports during the Winter Meetings that the Mets were interested the Rangers farm system. The Mets now have two pitchers that are much more appealing now. The only roadblock for the Mets in getting the best package now will be Lester and Shields.

At the start of the Winter Meetings, it seemed like Lester could be a major roadblock in the Mets dominating the trade market. However, with the Sox giving both Napoli and Victorino 3 years, 39 million, they are now in the market for a starting pitcher, and the Mets were linked to them in trade talks mid week as well.

As of right now, the only thing that is certain is we will hear a lot more trade rumors over the next week.

November 30th, Chan Ho Park retired from baseball after playing for almost every professional baseball team in the world, and at his press conference he had all of the uniforms lined up.

Now I’ve struggled to find a really good photo of this so this, this and this will have to do.

Really, I was looking for a picture that his Mets jersey up there, but alas I couldn’t find it.

Winter Meetings ended yesterday and the Mets made one gigantic splash! It was great! Did you hear about? It was really monumental!

The Mets selected Lobstein from the Rays in the Rule V draft, then immediately traded him to the Tigers for cash considerations.

Alright, sarcasm aside, that made sense, sorta. The Mets said that they wouldn’t draft anyone in the Rule V draft, but they knew the Tigers were really interested in this player, so for some “petty” cash, this wasn’t a bad move.

Outside from the Lobstein for cash trade, the only move the Mets made was finalizing the Wright contract, and the Mets terrible new alternate hat.

The rest of the week was a lot of talk. Are the Mets going to trade Dickey? How many teams want Dickey? Will we trade Niese? Hairston on a two-year deal? Prospects for JP? Sign Olivo? The space below is my attempt to put together the rumors said on Twitter the most:

• The Mets pushed hard for a trade with the Royals for Myers. In the end, the Myers wanted Niese AND Wheeler. Which is a no deal.
• The Mets talked to at least 8 teams for Dickey. There have been reports that they have legitimate trade offers on the table but didn’t take it for one reason or another
• Hairston and the Mets seem hopeful for a reunion, but the Mets wisely are hesitant about a two year deal
• The extension of Dickey with the Mets seems to be over money, Executives think the Mets are leaning towards extending him

So in the end, we don’t know a lot this week that we didn’t know before but on the whole this isn’t the Mets fault. With the exception of some rash signings by the Angels and Red Sox, this has been a quiet Winter Meetings as executives are waiting for Grienke and Hamilton to sign, which has put a hold on crazy trade activity.

The surprise of the Winter Meetings for me has been the Red Sox. Mainly, this is not the direction I thought they would go.

In the middle of last season, the Red Sox were able to dump all of their bad contracts with the exception of Lackey to the Dodgers. This gave Boston back financial freedom for this year to sign some hitters and maybe a pitcher. Instead the Dodgers have done this:

– Signed Ross (the Catcher, not the OF)
– Signed Napoli to a 3 year, 39 million deal
– Signed Victorino to a 3 year, 39 million deal

Ross is on this list because in the whole picture, he doesn’t make sense. If the Red Sox were going to go hard for Napoli, and they already had Salty, why would they sign another catcher? When they signed Ross, Salty looked expendable, now it looks like they will have to deal Salty because the roster is redundant. 39 million is also a lot of money for Napoli, it’s another bad contract. The contract’s redeeming quality comes from a “there are not a lot of catchers on the market, so we need to overpay the best hitting one” perspective. Generally the philosophy that gets teams in trouble.

I haven’t watched Victorino in the last three years and thought, “you know, that ballplayer deserves 39 million”. Earlier in his career he was fantastic but lately his numbers have been sliding off. He’ll probably benefit from playing in Fenway but I can’t help to feel like that money could have been better invested. Ellsbury is 28, why didn’t they try to extend him? Coming off of an injury, Ellsbury’s value is at the lowest it has been in a while, this is a good time to push for an extension (unless Ellsbury wants to try the market next off season, which will be a good move for him).

If I was a Red Sox fan, I would be frustrated, Napoli and Victorino seem like signings made to just make signings. It is difficult to gain perspective since we are still deep in the Winter, but I wonder if the over paying of players right now is due to an overall weak free agent market. Whatever the case is, this type of financial burden is not good for the team as a whole going forward.