We move from the Bronx to the other side of New York, where the New York Mets look to get back into the playoffs after choking down the stretch the past two seasons.
The New York Mets finished out of the playoffs again last year, losing the wild card in the end to the Brewers and finishing with an 89-73 record, good for second place in the NL East.
The offense wasn’t the issue, as the Mets put up an average of 4.9 runs. They batted .266 as a team, and showed their speed throughout the order, stealing an NL 2nd 138 bases and hitting 38 triples.
They also were a patient hitting team, walking 619 times last year, second in the NL to the Cubs (636).
Jose Reyes (.297 AVG, 113 Runs, 204 hits, 16 HR, 68 RBI, 56 SB) continued in his development as a franchise player and proving that he is one of the best offensive players in the game.
David Wright (.302 AVG, 33 HR, 42 Doubles, 124 RBI) also showed that he is a player that the Mets will continue to build around.
Carlos Beltran (.284 AVG, 27 HR, 112 RBI, 92 BB, 25 SB) was a solid cornerstone in this lineup, and after a slow start, Carlos Delgado (.271 AVG, 38 HR, 32 Doubles, 115 RBI) produced another solid season.
The thing that killed the team was pitching. Though the staff itself produced an 4.07 ERA, the bullpen was not good, producing a 4.27 ERA. The staff as a whole issued an good amount of free bases too, walking 590 batters.
They did keep teams from stealing, only giving up 66 stolen bases, 3rd best in the NL.
Johan Santana (16-7, 2.53 ERA, 206 K’s, 1.15 WHIP) was nothing short of an ace. Mike Pelfrey (13-11, 3.72 ERA, 110 K’s) made tons of strides, and John Maine (10-8, 4.18 ERA, .234 BAA) is proving to be an consistent starter in this league.
Oliver Perez (10-7, 4.22 ERA, 180 K’s) also helped solidify this rotation.
Billy Wagner (2.30 ERA, 27 SV’s, 0.89 WHIP) was having another great year until Tommy John surgery, and Scott Schoenweis (3.34 ERA in 56.2 IP) and Joe Smith (3.55 ERA, 52 K’s in 63.1 IP) were semi-constant in the bullpen, but other than them, there wasn’t much of a bullpen.
Re-tooling the bullpen was one of the Mets priorities this offseason. Let’s see what moves New York made:
Key Additions
Francisco Rodriguez, CL (2.24 ERA, 62 SV’s, 77 K’s in 68.1 IP with Angels)
J.J. Putz, SU/CL (3.88 ERA, 15 SV’s in ‘08/ 1.38 ERA, 40 SV’s in ’07 with Mariners)
Tim Redding, SP (10-11, 4.95 ERA, 120 K’s with Nationals)
Jeremy Reed, OF (.269 AVG, 31 RBI in 286 AB’s with Mariners)
Sean Green, RP (4.67 ERA, 17 Holds, 62 K’s in 79 IP with Mariners)
Freddy Garcia, SP (Minor League Deal, 1-1, 4.20 ERA, .204 BAA with tigers)
Livan Hernandez, SP (Minor League Deal, 13-11, 6.05 ERA with Twins/Rockies)
Alex Cora, 2B/SS (.270 AVG, 16 walks in 152 AB’s with Red Sox)
Key Losses
Pedro Martinez, SP (5-6, 5.61 ERA, 87 K’s)
Orlando Hernandez, SP (9-5, 3.72 ERA, .206 BAA, 128 K’s)
Damion Easley, INF/OF (.269 AVG, 44 RBI in 316 AB’s)
Billy Wagner, CL (Out for Year/ Tommy John Surgery)
Joe Smith, RP (3.55 ERA, 52 K’s in 63.1 IP)
Scott Schoenweis, RP (3.34 ERA in 56.2 IP)
Endy Chavez, OF (.267 AVG, 12 RBI, 6 SB in 270 AB’s)
Aaron Heilman, SU/RP (5.21 ERA, 80 K’s 15 Holds in 76 IP)
The Yankees weren’t the only team in New York that was busy this off-season. The Mets were busy as well, and they accomplished their main goal this off-season, and that was to re-tool the bullpen.
Acquiring J.J. Putz got them the power set-up man they needed, and K-Rod will be the one to close it out.
The beauty of this situation for the Mets is that they will be able to give K-Rod rest and let Putz close out some games. The additions of Putz and K-Rod should put the rest of the bullpen back in their natural places, making the relief pitching better.
Sean Green should be a good addition to the bullpen, and the acquisitions of Garcia, Redding, and Hernandez give the Mets good depth at the starter position. Reed will also add depth to a loaded outfield, and a true CF to backup Beltran, and Cora will give good middle infield depth.
Lets look at the pitching staff for the Mets.
Rotation
Johan Santana (16-7, 2.53 ERA, 206 K’s, 1.15 WHIP)
Mike Pelfrey (13-11, 3.72 ERA, 110 K’s)
Oliver Perez (10-7, 4.22 ERA, 180 K’s)
John Maine (10-8, 4.18 ERA, .234 BAA)
No. 5 Starter Competition
Freddy Garcia (Minor League Deal, 1-1, 4.20 ERA, .204 BAA with tigers)
Tim Redding (10-11, 4.95 ERA, 120 K’s with Nationals)
Livan Hernandez (Minor League Deal, 13-11, 6.05 ERA with Twins/Rockies)
Bullpen
Francisco Rodriguez, CL (2.24 ERA, 62 SV’s, 77 K’s in 68.1 IP with Angels)
J.J. Putz, SU/CL (3.88 ERA, 15 SV’s in ‘08/ 1.38 ERA, 40 SV’s in ’07 with Mariners)
Sean Green, RP (4.67 ERA, 17 Holds, 62 K’s in 79 IP with Mariners)
Duaner Sanchez, RP (4.32 ERA, 44 K’s, 21 Holds in 58.1 IP)
Pedro Feliciano, RP (3-4, 4.05 ERA, 50 K’s 21 Holds in 53.1 IP)
Brian Stokes, RP (3.51 ERA, 26 K’ in 33.1 IP)
This bullpen has been redone, especially at the tail end of it where it needed it. By having two dominant pitchers at the end of the bullpen, every body else can easily slide into the rest of their roles.
That couldn’t happen last year with Aaron Heilman struggling in the setup role and Billy Wagner going down for the year. That put a lot of pressure on the bullpen, to much for it to handle. That shouldn’t be the case this year.
This staff should be one of the better starting staffs in baseball. Johan should be a dominant ace again, and if Pelfre, Perez, and Maine can all be consistent, then this staff should be fine.
The one question about this rotation is the No. 5 spot. Freddy Garcia looks like the favorite, and one of the three may join the bullpen if they lose out. Remember, Redding’s contract is a major league one, not a minor league one, so its guaranteed.
We’ve seen the ’09 Mets pitching staff, lets take a look at the lineup for New York.
Lineup
Luis Castillo, 2B (.245 AVG, 46 Runs, 17 SB in 298 AB’s)
Daniel Murphy, LF (.313 AVG in 49 Games)
Jose Reyes, SS (.297 AVG, 113 Runs, 204 hits, 16 HR, 68 RBI, 56 SB)
Carlos Delgado, 1B (.271 AVG, 38 HR, 32 Doubles, 115 RBI)
David Wright, 3B (.302 AVG, 33 HR, 42 Doubles, 124 RBI)
Carlos Beltran, CF (.284 AVG, 27 HR, 112 RBI, 92 BB, 25 SB)
Ryan Church, RF (.276 AVG, 12 HR, 49 RBI in 319 AB’s)
Brian Schneider, C (.257 AVG, 9 HR, 38 RBI in 335 AB’s)
OR
Jose Reyes, SS (.297 AVG, 113 Runs, 204 hits, 16 HR, 68 RBI, 56 SB)
Luis Castillo, 2B (.245 AVG, 46 Runs, 17 SB in 298 AB’s)
Carlos Beltran, CF (.284 AVG, 27 HR, 112 RBI, 92 BB, 25 SB)
Carlos Delgado, 1B (.271 AVG, 38 HR, 32 Doubles, 115 RBI)
David Wright, 3B (.302 AVG, 33 HR, 42 Doubles, 124 RBI)
Ryan Church, RF (.276 AVG, 12 HR, 49 RBI in 319 AB’s)
Daniel Murphy, LF (.313 AVG in 49 Games)
Brian Schneider, C (.257 AVG, 9 HR, 38 RBI in 335 AB’s)
Bench
Fernando Tatis, 3B/OF (.297 AVG, 11 HR, 47 RBI in 273 AB’s)
Ramon Castro, C (.245 AVG, 7 HR, 24 RBI in 143 AB’s)
Jeremy Reed, OF (.269 AVG, 31 RBI in 286 AB’s with Mariners)
Alex Cora, 2B/SS (.270 AVG, 16 walks in 152 AB’s with Red Sox)
Nick Evans, 1B/OF (.257 AVG in 109 AB’s)
Marlon Anderson, 1B/OF (.210 AVG in 138 AB’s)
The reason that I put two possible lineups there was because Jose Reyes may be moving to the three hole in the lineup. We know he’ll either be hitting third or first, so I made two lineups, one representing each spot.
So far in Spring Training, Jerry Manuel has put Castillo first, the pitcher hitting second, followed by Reyes, Delgado, Wright, Beltran, Church, Murphy, and Schneider, I just don’t think that he will do that in the regular season.
Instead, I think its more likely we see Church or Murphy hitting second.
We do know that no matter where Reyes hits, this lineup will be good and will score runs. This team hits the ball hard and has speed and the ability to hurt you from the top with speed to the bottom with power.
The one thing that the Mets have plenty of is depth. Tatis is a quality bat who may share time with Murphy and Church, and is the likely DH in AL parks. Alex Cora is a solid defender, and there is good outfield and first base depth in Evans, Anderson, and Reed.
Outlook
With Reyes hitting third, small ball may be a little more noticeable from this club, as well as the development of power hitting from Reyes. This lineup should score runs, and there should be no issue with this offense.
The issue for this team comes from the pitching side of the ball. The rotation is more balanced and if fairly healthy (assuming everyone makes it out of Spring Training healthy) should be a tough challenge for any team.
The thing that the Mets needed to improve was the bullpen, and the Mets sure did just that. Look for the bullpen to make drastic improvements from last year to this year, and if any trades are made, look for either another starter or quality arm to be added.
I believe that the Mets are playing with a chip on their shoulder, and that they are focused to get back to the playoffs this year. With a revamped pitching staff and a solid offense, the Mets should have the balance to get into the postseason.
It’s going to be a tight race between the Mets and Phillies, but I’m gonna give the edge to the Mets because they have something to prove this year.
Finish - First in the NL East, Division Champs
Next on our 30 clubs in 30 days, we’ll go to Washington and look at the ’09 version of the Nationals.
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