Bad Spring doesn't mean Bad Season

Mar 28, 2007 05:11 PM

Just a couple of more days until the season starts, and the Mets still seem to have plenty to figure out after they tied the club record for most losses in spring training today. Duaner Sanchez is sidelined for at least a couple of months and after what amounts to about a year off, will he even be as good as he was at the beginning of last year? Will Heilman still be able to be good this year with his starting ambitions and his tendonitis? How long does Shawn Green get before he gets benched for Milledge, and is Milledge ready to be a major-league contributor? What about Jose Valentine and second base? Can Anderson Hernandez learn to hit major league pitching well enough to take his job if he struggles? The starting rotation is either old or mostly untested, which leaves one question. Is this going to keep the Mets from getting to the World Series, where both the organization and fans expect them to be?

I believe that it won’t keep them from it. Spring training games mean nothing, and the players know this. The beginning of the season is full of motivating to get pumped and get into the game. First they open the season by watching the Cardinals ceremony, reminding them of their failure last year, and I’m sure the reporters there that day won’t be hesitant to ask them about it. The next series, on Friday, is Atlanta’s home opener. While none of the current Mets really have connections to the Mets struggles at Turner Field and with the Braves, they’re still a division rival who wants their title as Champions of the East back. If that wasn’t enough they come home Monday to play the home opener in front of 55 thousand fans whose last glimpse of the Mets was watching Wainwright’s pitch go past Beltran for strike three. They open against the Phillies who many people have picked to win the division this year, Shortstop Jimmy Rollins included.

The Mets have enough offense to get some runs produced, plenty of speed, and good defense in most positions. While everyone points to the Mets rotation as the weak point of the team, they do it from a pessimistic standpoint. Who’s to say John Maine, Oliver Perez, and Mike Pelfrey aren’t going to be good this year? These statements aren’t made out of recent history, as there is very little of it, and most of it’s good. John Maine and Perez pitched well last year, and came through when they were needed in the playoffs. Despite being decimated by injuries, it wasn’t the Mets starting pitching that kept them from the World Series last year.

There were many candidates for the 5th starting spot in spring, and while most of them didn’t pitch so well, it is only spring. Pelfrey will get his shot by mid-April and if he doesn’t succeed, chances are one of these other guys has been pitching well in New Orleans and can come up and pitch.

Omar Minaya shouldn’t be forgotten either. It’s perfectly legitimate to expect that he could make some moves and bring in help where it’s needed mid-season. However, without having to even do anything, the Mets will bring in a top, Hall of Fame destined pitcher around the trade deadline in Pedro Martinez. Is anyone else involved in a playoff run at the time going to be able to do as much to improve the rotation?

More Than They Appear

Mar 05, 2007 04:14 PM

Baseball is more than stats and numbers. The Mets are more then they appear. A lot of people are talking about a lot of issues the Mets have; Unknown back end of the rotation, questions at second base, iffy corner outfielders. They compare the Mets to other teams, like the Phillies, and match them up position by position. Appearances are not all they appear however; the Mets are more valuable then they would appear on paper.

Can you quantify the effect a player like Jose Reyes, who is always playing 150%, always smiling, and leaves no doubt that he absolutely loves what he's doing? How about the zany antics of Pedro? The incredibly intelligent book-keeping of Delgado on all the pitchers he faces, and his willingness to impart his knowledge in the clubhouse? What about the competition imparted by having nine competitors for the last three spots in the rotation, and the knowledge that even after they get it, there are a bunch of guys possibly pitcher well in triple-A that could take the spot? Not to mention that they're still competing within the rotation because Pedro is coming back to claim one of the spots.

What about the bench? A lot of big plays and moments come from players who are just bit players. This was probably one of the Mets problems last year, and Omar worked at fixing it for this year. There are a couple of players that are looking good this spring, and players like Endy Chavez still looks good. I'd like to see him get 40-50 starts this year.

The Mets rotation will likely continue to be good this year. Heilman, Sanchez and Wagner should still be good, and some other guys in camp, like Joe Smith, are impressing.

Overall baseball is about more than stats and formulas. The Mets may not be as impressive on paper to be a sure thing to win the division, but there are factors there that people are missing. The drive of individual players is very important. Delgado, Reyes, and Beltran are just some of the everyday players that have come out early in camp talking about their statistical goals for the season, the ways they are going to improve. Expect good things from the Mets this year, and you won't be disappointed.