NFT: Rays @ Mets - Game 3: Megill (R) vs Bradley (R) - 1:10 pm ET

Hopefully he gets 1-2 starts per week and occasional PH and DH duty. That’s what a well run team would do.

I thought he was only gonna be gone for a short spell---not that I want him back or anything. I prefer that he stays gone, as do many other Mets fans.

In comment 16119418 Optimus-NY said:

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I thought he was only gonna be gone for a short spell---not that I want him back or anything. I prefer that he stays gone, as do many other Mets fans.

martino implied narvaez could be back before nido, so i think we have 3 weeks of sanchez and alvarez.

In comment 16119395 Eric on Li said:

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funniest thing is that it's basically an acknowledgement that yesterday's lineup was pre designed with the intent of putting in a whole new group today regardless of what happened yesterday, AND he considered pinch hitting for vientos against a righty (presumably during the at bat he hit the home run or the at bat after that lol). you can tell how snippy he is about this subject. like it's blasphemy to question why a guy who came up and hit a huge homer in his first game isn't playing the next day.

Buck can be obtuse as phuq.

Have to go. Instead of going with young players they bring up Sanchez. Enough of this mindless crap. Time for these two to go

if you have good reasons for doing something you dont need to sound like a fool. that's a choice.

it's not hard to say "we play the best guys here, period. nothing else matters. if you produce you will play".

what's hard is justifying playing a bunch of guys playing like crap when you have alternatives. which is why they look foolish. but if they had some honest issues, like defense, or whatever, they could say "look there are things we value on this team and need to balance".

the problem is when you are considering dropping down a catcher who has been excellent defensively because you dont want to lose sanchez, you have kind of lost the plot and it proves you are basically making it up as you go to justify veterans > rookies.

can hit major league pitching. So using him as a backup to Alvarez makes sense.

Until we see what the actual playing time is. He is a better offensive catcher than Perez (horrible defensively) so if it’s 2x a week I will not lose sleep.

Bucks comments about vientos are more concerning but we already knew he felt this way given 1) they didn’t give him a meaningful chance last year and 2) this same guy was playing nido over Alvarez. If they loved prospects/vientos he would have been called up last month and it took a massive underperformance to get them to shake it up.

Discussion regarding giving Baty some run in LF per one of the writers I speak to. No clue how serious it is but it’s been discussed.

In comment 16119430 Eric on Li said:

Quote:

In comment 16119418 Optimus-NY said: Quote: I thought he was only gonna be gone for a short spell---not that I want him back or anything. I prefer that he stays gone, as do many other Mets fans. martino implied narvaez could be back before nido, so i think we have 3 weeks of sanchez and alvarez.

Interesting on Nido. I thought he was going to be back soon. Originally, he was ILed, retroactive to May 6 and Buck said he would be back whenever eligible (dry eye syndrome.)

Looked it up, and he has been having eye problems since he had LASIK in 2019. Not uncommon. I had LASIK almost 20 years ago. Worked for a while. Now I put drops in a few times a day and need glasses all the time.

He got a procedure and is getting medicated eyedrops. He is feeling and seeing a lot better.

I wouldn't give up on Nido just yet. IMO, he can be the ideal backup for Alvarez. Not hitting the garbage .118 he is this year. But if he can see the ball better and get the average around double that going forward, I'd take him over a Gary Sanchez who hits .200 with some pop, but poor defense.

In comment 16119516 DanMetroMan said:

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Discussion regarding giving Baty some run in LF per one of the writers I speak to. No clue how serious it is but it’s been discussed.

should be obvious if vientos at 3b is something they are comfortable with.

vogelbach is a lot of things but so far he has been better than either COF. so Baty in LF, Vientos 3B, and vogey at DH vs righties is the best lineup probably. vs lefties id either dh vientos or alonso, baty (or escobar) at 3b, and maybe pham in a corner?

canha/marte have been the biggest anchors on the team including the big problemo. i dont expect them to bench marte but he keeps getting banged up and canha has played better when rested so maybe they need to platoon until one really starts looking better.

but IMO he has to be in the discussion to be in the MLB picture sooner rather than later. You can measure the raw quality of stuff these days and get an idea of how it'll play in MLB.

Also, when it comes to pitching prospects, my theory is that they should spend only the bare minimum of innings in the minor leagues. If a dude is throwing and dominating in AA or higher, get him up as soon as you can. Pitchers just constantly get hurt so often that if you leave him in the minors for a few more years and 250-300 more innings, there's a real chance he's going to get hurt before he can even provide help at the MLB level.

Vasil is still improving some of his pitches, so I'm not saying call him up tomorrow, but IMO, Mets should be keeping a very close eye on him and be ready to call him up very soon if believe his stuff will play.

article
Link - ( New Window )

In comment 16119539 KDavies said:

Quote:

In comment 16119430 Eric on Li said: Quote: In comment 16119418 Optimus-NY said: Quote: I thought he was only gonna be gone for a short spell---not that I want him back or anything. I prefer that he stays gone, as do many other Mets fans. martino implied narvaez could be back before nido, so i think we have 3 weeks of sanchez and alvarez. Interesting on Nido. I thought he was going to be back soon. Originally, he was ILed, retroactive to May 6 and Buck said he would be back whenever eligible (dry eye syndrome.) Looked it up, and he has been having eye problems since he had LASIK in 2019. Not uncommon. I had LASIK almost 20 years ago. Worked for a while. Now I put drops in a few times a day and need glasses all the time. He got a procedure and is getting medicated eyedrops. He is feeling and seeing a lot better. I wouldn't give up on Nido just yet. IMO, he can be the ideal backup for Alvarez. Not hitting the garbage .118 he is this year. But if he can see the ball better and get the average around double that going forward, I'd take him over a Gary Sanchez who hits .200 with some pop, but poor defense.

i just dont know what nidos future is with narvaez signed.

between his contract and eye issue, when narvaez is healthy it might be the best time to try to sneak him through waivers while they have depth at the position. or just keep him on an extended rehab through june or so? maybe he has some trade value if he hits well while rehabbing before the deadline.

In comment 16119539 KDavies said:

Quote:

In comment 16119430 Eric on Li said: Quote: In comment 16119418 Optimus-NY said: Quote: I thought he was only gonna be gone for a short spell---not that I want him back or anything. I prefer that he stays gone, as do many other Mets fans. martino implied narvaez could be back before nido, so i think we have 3 weeks of sanchez and alvarez. Interesting on Nido. I thought he was going to be back soon. Originally, he was ILed, retroactive to May 6 and Buck said he would be back whenever eligible (dry eye syndrome.) Looked it up, and he has been having eye problems since he had LASIK in 2019. Not uncommon. I had LASIK almost 20 years ago. Worked for a while. Now I put drops in a few times a day and need glasses all the time. He got a procedure and is getting medicated eyedrops. He is feeling and seeing a lot better. I wouldn't give up on Nido just yet. IMO, he can be the ideal backup for Alvarez. Not hitting the garbage .118 he is this year. But if he can see the ball better and get the average around double that going forward, I'd take him over a Gary Sanchez who hits .200 with some pop, but poor defense.

The Mets have Alvarex and Narvaez when healthy. Nidon't's services will no longer be required in about a month.

wouldn't expect him to take it knowing they had Alvarez. I always saw Narvaez as a hedge on Alvarez. I don't see him backing up Alvarez next year.

Agreed that now may be a good time to see if they can sneak Nido through waivers, and possibly stash him in AAA for the rest of the season as a hedge against injury

one on buck needing to do a better job with his lineups and not saying dumb shit, we've already covered that so ill post the prospect article which had a few notable nuggets in it relative to their internal thinking:

Quote:

• For now, Mauricio is seeing most of his time at second base (with some days back at short). The Mets haven’t ruled out expanding on that defensive profile this summer, including the chance he gets some time in the outfield. At this point, they’re taking Mauricio’s development in two-week chunks, reevaluating at the end of each fortnight to see what else can be added to his plate. The early returns at second have been promising. • In a farm system devoid of tantalizing arm options in the upper levels, Mike Vasil stands out. In his first season with Double-A Binghamton, Vasil has produced a 2.70 ERA and 0.70 WHIP in 30 innings while improving his walk rate (3.5 percent, his best in affiliate action) without sacrificing his strikeout numbers (36.3 percent, also his best in affiliate action). While it remains his fourth pitch, Vasil’s split-change has improved; he’s attacking hitters with it more in the zone and it is generating more swing and miss. However, based on how the front office has operated in the past, it would be surprising to see Vasil get called up before some kind of stint in Triple A.

Mets minors update: Can Gary Sánchez help? How far are Ronny Mauricio, Mike Vasil? - ( New Window )

In comment 16119552 KDavies said:

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wouldn't expect him to take it knowing they had Alvarez. I always saw Narvaez as a hedge on Alvarez. I don't see him backing up Alvarez next year. Agreed that now may be a good time to see if they can sneak Nido through waivers, and possibly stash him in AAA for the rest of the season as a hedge against injury

he's 31 and probably going to end up missing half of this year. he's going to have play pretty well when he gets back to opt out and get a bigger deal. he looked good in his first 5 games but that was relative to the terribleness of met catchers the last half decade and obviously also just 1 week, but zoom out and he was still below average offensively relative to the league and more in line with the player he was last year.

if i had to bet on opt in or out right now i think the safe money would be on opt in.

but due to his innings history, it might be a bit of a surprise. 71.1 innings last year. 88.2 innings the year before in college and pro ball.

I love the talk of Mauricio playing OF. I'd love to see him have Zobrist-type versatility and play nearly every day.

Rudick is another very interesting option at Binghamton. Same draft class as Vasil. 13th round out of SDSU. Final year there had 26 walks to 9 Ks, with a 1.051 OPS and only 4 HRs.

At Binghamton this year, .989 OPS, 5 HRs in 31 games (surprising pop), 5 steals, 24 walks and 19 Ks. Looks like he could be a very interesting backup MLB OF in a year or so

Daboll/Schoen vs. Buck/Eppler.

I think most fans have confidence that the Giants duo are making good decisions for the present and future. Every (at least most) decisions make sense and are based on maximizing the talent on the field and trying to win.

Can't say the same for the Mets.

I know the games and seasons are different, but so many decisions by the Mets are questionable. The handling of Vientos being near the top of the list.

But also compare the mid-season signing of Hodgins (yay!) vs. the trades for Ruf and Vogelsnack (yuck and a big fat yuck), as more examples.

He also signed here with the knowledge that Alvarez was coming up soon. He's Venezuelan, just like Alvy, so there's that connection as well. It makes sense for him to opt in and stay. He's a valuable piece to the Mets because he can give Alvy rest and mentorship. Narvaez has the luxury of guaranteed money for another season, so he might as well take it, especially after having missed so much time so far. It's not like Narvaez is some young pup anyway.

In comment 16119561 Dr. D said:

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Daboll/Schoen vs. Buck/Eppler. I think most fans have confidence that the Giants duo are making good decisions for the present and future. Every (at least most) decisions make sense and are based on maximizing the talent on the field and trying to win. Can't say the same for the Mets. I know the games and seasons are different, but so many decisions by the Mets are questionable. The handling of Vientos being near the top of the list. But also compare the mid-season signing of Hodgins (yay!) vs. the trades for Ruf and Vogelsnack (yuck and a big fat yuck), as more examples.

+infinity

I wonder if Vientos could play a major league 3B.

If so and Ohtani is signed, we could be looking at a lineup next year of the following:

CF Nimmo
DH Ohtani
SS Lindor
1B Alonso
LF Baty
3B Vientos
C Alvarez
2B McNeil
RF Marte

Super-utility guy: Mauricio

A weird kind of fetish. The focus needs to be on winning. These kids provide the best avenue towards that end. Buck is disingenuous and corny, which is maddening since he has such a high baseball I.Q. There's a reason he's worn out his welcome elsewhere. There's also a reason that the Yankees and Diamondbacks immediately won right after he left. Some people never learn. Stubborn is as stubborn does...

In comment 16119566 KDavies said:

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I wonder if Vientos could play a major league 3B. If so and Ohtani is signed, we could be looking at a lineup next year of the following: CF Nimmo DH Ohtani SS Lindor 1B Alonso LF Baty 3B Vientos C Alvarez 2B McNeil RF Marte Super-utility guy: Mauricio

if marte is toast you could also just start mcneil in RF and start mauricio at 2b.

marte would be an expensive 4th OF mixing in with Baty/McNeil/Nimmo but there would be a decent role there since the other 3 are lefties. McNeil can give Mauricio some days off when Marte plays for him. Baty can relieve Vientos at 3b occasionally. everyone can rotate through DH to stay fresh.

with the workload ohtani has it's probably good to give him 1 full day off a week if you can.

Quote:

Dylan Cease, RHP, White Sox Cease entered the season on the short list of AL Cy Young favorites, but after a strong start to his year, the right-hander struggled for four straight outings before throwing six scoreless innings against the Astros on May 13. The 27-year-old has two years of arbitration eligibility remaining, making him Chicago’s biggest trade chip. Jack Flaherty, RHP, Cardinals Much like the Cardinals, Flaherty is off to a rocky start, posting a 5.24 ERA through his first nine starts. St. Louis has plenty of time to right the ship, but if the Cards become sellers, the right-hander -- who is earning $5.4 million in his final year before free agency -- could be on the move. Lucas Giolito, RHP, White Sox Another potential trade chip for the White Sox, Giolito is headed for free agency at the end of the season, making him a prime rental candidate for contenders looking to bolster the rotation. Since his April 7 blowup against the Pirates, Giolito has a 2.82 ERA over his past seven starts, one of the few bright spots on a disappointing Chicago team.

hedriks + giolito is a package big enough i'd give up a good prospect if we're in the race. ideally headlined by more of a ramirez than mauricio or parada, but i think you'd have to consider all 3 depending on the circumstances.
10 players getting buzz as potential trade candidates - ( New Window )

Giolito is the guy for me... give him a run and see if he's a NY fit, then resign him.

In comment 16119614 moze1021 said:

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Giolito is the guy for me... give him a run and see if he's a NY fit, then resign him.

and trade who?

In comment 16119576 Eric on Li said:

Quote:

Quote: Dylan Cease, RHP, White Sox Cease entered the season on the short list of AL Cy Young favorites, but after a strong start to his year, the right-hander struggled for four straight outings before throwing six scoreless innings against the Astros on May 13. The 27-year-old has two years of arbitration eligibility remaining, making him Chicago’s biggest trade chip. Jack Flaherty, RHP, Cardinals Much like the Cardinals, Flaherty is off to a rocky start, posting a 5.24 ERA through his first nine starts. St. Louis has plenty of time to right the ship, but if the Cards become sellers, the right-hander -- who is earning $5.4 million in his final year before free agency -- could be on the move. Lucas Giolito, RHP, White Sox Another potential trade chip for the White Sox, Giolito is headed for free agency at the end of the season, making him a prime rental candidate for contenders looking to bolster the rotation. Since his April 7 blowup against the Pirates, Giolito has a 2.82 ERA over his past seven starts, one of the few bright spots on a disappointing Chicago team. hedriks + giolito is a package big enough i'd give up a good prospect if we're in the race. ideally headlined by more of a ramirez than mauricio or parada, but i think you'd have to consider all 3 depending on the circumstances. 10 players getting buzz as potential trade candidates - ( New Window )

+1

In comment 16119627 Rory said:

Quote:

In comment 16119614 moze1021 said: Quote: Giolito is the guy for me... give him a run and see if he's a NY fit, then resign him. and trade who?

id want hendriks in the deal also, and for both id give up someone in the top 100's. would try to headline with 1 of alex ramirez, jett williams, or if they buy the hype on vasil maybe him? if push came to shove and parada was the deal breaker id consider it since his d at catcher is presently shaky.

the vasil break out this year is a nice story but giolito is a known quantity. and hendriks possibly makes up for losing diaz. even if he's pitching well his salary is high enough he shouldnt be too prohibitive to get (kind of like iglesias for atlanta last year).

Quote:

TRADE DETAILS Yankees get: RHPs Frankie Montas and Lou Trivino A’s get: LHPs Ken Waldichuk and JP Sears, RHP Luis Medina, 2B Cooper Bowman

Waldichuk was a non-consensus back end top 100 prospect, just like Jett Williams (#98 ba) and Alex Ramirez (#92 ba) are right now.

parada is a cut above that as more of a consensus top 50.

Ramirez + Vasil seems like a quality package if you are getting both Hendriks and Giolito.

Mets need a pitcher now. And the price would probably be much higher now than at the deadline.

I would only trade for a pitcher at the deadline if Mets are comfortably in control of a WC spot.

Team's that are not in a playoff spot at the deadline and are trying to trade to get a playoff spot generally don't fare well (see Javy Baez, Victor Zambrano etc)

What are the odds Buck pulls the Alvarez is still dinged up and we see Sanchez starting at C tonight?

In comment 16119708 Vanzetti said:

Quote:

Mets need a pitcher now. And the price would probably be much higher now than at the deadline. I would only trade for a pitcher at the deadline if Mets are comfortably in control of a WC spot. Team's that are not in a playoff spot at the deadline and are trying to trade to get a playoff spot generally don't fare well (see Javy Baez, Victor Zambrano etc)

senga and megill just threw their best games of the year, they get carrasco back today, and jv/max are getting back into a regular rotation.

if carrasco/megill can give them a halfway decent 6 weeks that will be a big boost. or at least 1 of them for 2-3 weeks so maybe peterson can get straightened out at AAA.

In comment 16119713 GF1080 said:

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What are the odds Buck pulls the Alvarez is still dinged up and we see Sanchez starting at C tonight?

sanchez is 1 for 6 with a 2b and a walk + 3 ks against quantrill. could definitely see buck starting him.

He was generally considered the best player in the draft except he needed TJ surgery.

Nats took a chance and drafted him with the 16th pick.

That year the Mets top 4 picks were: Cecchini (4 picks ahead of Giolito), Shecky's love child, Kevin Plawecki, Matt Reynolds and Matt Koch

What an awful draft by Mets. Especially drafting Cecchini over Corey Seager.

"People look at those numbers and all that stuff is called recency bias, I was told. Recency bias."

Cool story Buck. Here's Vientos' numbers going back to 2021, not including the game the other night vs Tampa:

2021 Binghaton (AA) 310 ABs, 25 HR, 63 RBI // BA/OBP/SLG/OPS: .281/.352/.581/.933
2021 Syracuse (AAA) 36 ABs, 3 HR, 4 RBI // BA/OBP/SLG/OPS: .278/.395/.583/.979
2022 Syracuse (AAA) 378 ABs, 24 HR, 72 RBI // BA/OBP/SLG/OPS: .280/.358/.519/.877
2022 NYM (MLB) 36 ABs, 1 HR, 3 RBI // BA/OBP/SLG/OPS: .167/.268/.278/.546
2023 Syracuse (AAA) 141 ABs, 13 HR, 37 RBI // BA/OBP/SLG/OPS: .333/.416/.688/1.104

Total since 2021, Minors only:

829 ABs, 62 HR, 176 RBI (222 games) BA/OBP/SLG/OPS: .290/.357/.571/.928

That's 829 ABs, over 222 minor league games, over 2 and a quarter seasons (since 2021), with a .928 combined OPS and 62 HRs, 1 for every 13.4 ABs, which is elite. 2022 Yordan Alvarez territory.

The only evidence of recency bias in the above information is the 36 ABs with the big club in 2022.

This guy is disconnected from reality.

Agreed 100%, and I am (may soon be was) a Buck guy. The other day I compared Alonso's and Vientos' minor league numbers. Vientos' were better.

Alonso came up in his rookie (24 year old) season and hit 53 HRs. Vientos coming up now is 3/4 of a season earlier than Alonso. I don't expect him to hit a pro-rated 53 HR. He may never reach that level. But he could very well be a 30+ HR bat, and soon. He hit a HR in his 1st game up.

what kind of tomfoolery will Buck have today? Sanchez starting and hitting cleanup?

In comment 16119700 Eric on Li said:

Quote:

In comment 16119627 Rory said: Quote: In comment 16119614 moze1021 said: Quote: Giolito is the guy for me... give him a run and see if he's a NY fit, then resign him. and trade who? id want hendriks in the deal also, and for both id give up someone in the top 100's. would try to headline with 1 of alex ramirez, jett williams, or if they buy the hype on vasil maybe him? if push came to shove and parada was the deal breaker id consider it since his d at catcher is presently shaky. the vasil break out this year is a nice story but giolito is a known quantity. and hendriks possibly makes up for losing diaz. even if he's pitching well his salary is high enough he shouldnt be too prohibitive to get (kind of like iglesias for atlanta last year).

shouldn't we focus on keeping our cost controlled pitching for once so we don't have to keep shelling out expensive short term deals.

In comment 16119736 KDavies said:

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what kind of tomfoolery will Buck have today? Sanchez starting and hitting cleanup?

Holy balls Buck is actually playing an optimal lineup!

Posted on Mets Twitter.

Well, at least it's the optimal players in the lineup.

how Buck has become some hated character on this site now.

All starting tonight, with Vientos DH'ing! Huzzah!

In comment 16119759 Rory said:

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how Buck has become some hated character on this site now.

I don't hate him. But his public comments this week did him no favors. They were really puzzling and flew in the face of logic and sensibility.

He can turn it around by playing the kids more like he is tonight.

Thank you Buck or whoever got to him!

Nido beginning a rehab assignment in St. Lucie. Locastro to 60 day. Perez to AAA. Still need another move for Carrasco.

In comment 16119755 Rory said:

Quote:

In comment 16119700 Eric on Li said: Quote: In comment 16119627 Rory said: Quote: In comment 16119614 moze1021 said: Quote: Giolito is the guy for me... give him a run and see if he's a NY fit, then resign him. and trade who? id want hendriks in the deal also, and for both id give up someone in the top 100's. would try to headline with 1 of alex ramirez, jett williams, or if they buy the hype on vasil maybe him? if push came to shove and parada was the deal breaker id consider it since his d at catcher is presently shaky. the vasil break out this year is a nice story but giolito is a known quantity. and hendriks possibly makes up for losing diaz. even if he's pitching well his salary is high enough he shouldnt be too prohibitive to get (kind of like iglesias for atlanta last year). shouldn't we focus on keeping our cost controlled pitching for once so we don't have to keep shelling out expensive short term deals.

id rather shell out for pitching personally. jt ginn was a cost controlled pitcher traded for bassitt, and the latter was a big part of last year's team and ate a ton of quality innings. ginn is about to turn 24 still getting lit up in AA.

pitcher development is a lot more unpredictable than hitter development. I hated the stroman trade at the time but neither of SWR/kay amounted to anything. matt allan's career never even got on track bc of injuries.

so yeah, since we have cohen's $ ill just sign vets to eat innings. they wont all be 40 years old, some can be younger like senga (or in this case, giolito).

In comment 16119777 GF1080 said:

Quote:

Thank you Buck or whoever got to him! Nido beginning a rehab assignment in St. Lucie. Locastro to 60 day. Perez to AAA. Still need another move for Carrasco.

agreed this is the team's best lineup right now. maybe they told buck if any of the kids suck for a few days he gets to personally tell them they are getting demoted?

In comment 16119759 Rory said:

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how Buck has become some hated character on this site now.

And there’s always some that will ball wash the Manager/FO no matter what.

Listen, say stupid things…win stupid prizes. And Buck has said a lot of stupid things, been stubborn to make obvious moves to improve the team, all while his $350 million team is playing like a bottom feeder in the league. Buck and company is absolutely deserved of criticism. It’s weird that this bothers some people.

In comment 16119806 Eric on Li said:

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agreed this is the team's best lineup right now. maybe they told buck if any of the kids suck for a few days he gets to personally tell them they are getting demoted?

HAHAHA!! You owe me a new laptop, I just spit my beer all over it...

In comment 16119892 CooperDash said:

Quote:

In comment 16119759 Rory said: Quote: how Buck has become some hated character on this site now. And there’s always some that will ball wash the Manager/FO no matter what. Listen, say stupid things…win stupid prizes. And Buck has said a lot of stupid things, been stubborn to make obvious moves to improve the team, all while his $350 million team is playing like a bottom feeder in the league. Buck and company is absolutely deserved of criticism. It’s weird that this bothers some people.

are you directing this to me cooperdash?