Disgruntled Mets Fan

Hey everybody,

It had been quiet up until a few days ago, so blame the lack of activity on that. But the Mets have finally made their splash in signing Jason Bay.

Is it the best move possible? No. Was it the worst? Also no. But the Bay move fits the Mets’ scenario and is honestly the best-fit move. It’s a good move, not a great one.

Signing Bay to a 4-year, $66 million contract with an “easy” 5th-year vesting option (making the contract worth in total 5 years, $16 million) fits a variety of issues the Mets needed to resolve, including the following:

-Adding a power bat
-Making a splash to mollify the fans
-Filling the void in left field
-Not overspending
-Giving fans a reason to come back next year

The Mets were in a tough spot this offseason with only one really good pitcher on the market and two really good bats. Holliday will prove to be out of their price range, considering that the Mets have other holes to fill, which either have been filled (Ryoto Igarashi and Kelvim Escobar to compete for the set-up role, Alex Cora, etc.) or will soon be filled (Bengie Molina at catcher). They couldn’t wait till next offseason to make a move. Thus, the Bay move brings back a player familiar with the organization who can bring a solid bat to Citi Field for the next few years.

I’m not going to go too in-depth on analysis of Bay vs. Holliday, but I’ve talked to some experts I know in talent evaluation (former Major Leaguers who are now baseball instructors at a facility in NJ) who have not been too excited about Holliday’s swing in such a big park, considering the Mets’ need for pure power. Bay, indeed, provides that.

Coupled with the signing of Molina, I think you can’t say that the Mets did a bad job this offseason, giving their spending limits, the players in the market, the economy, and pressure from the fans.

Thoughts?

A quick thought…my logic may be faulty here, but the Mets are looking for power, somewhere. What if they traded for Uggla (probably the most freely available power bat in the trade market), batted him 5th, playing second, and went for a faster, better defensive player (Pagan, etc.) in LF? I know LF can’t compensate for defense at 2B, but could it be a “compromise?”

Uggla, for his career, is just below average as a defender (he’s had 2 bad years, 2 above average years) with a -2.9 UZR in 4 seasons. He walks a lot and showed the power to hit the ball out of Citi Field this year. I think the power can compensate for the defense…

I heard this idea come up again a few days ago. I’ve kicked it around, and I’m going to make a case for it. I’m not sure that I believe in it 100%, but, again, I’m just seeing where going in this direction takes us. This sort of plan gears more towards “building for the future.”

David Wright, while he has been a Gold Glove third baseman twice, is not an elite fielder. His UZR has never been that great-never in the top tier of MLB third baseman. He’s been above average a few times, but never that great. He does not have a strong third baseman’s arm-Just watch the throws he makes versus the throws A-Rod makes. A-Rod has the arm to side-arm sling the ball across the diamond with accuracy EVERY time. Wright has struggled with his arm slot in the past, switching from over-the-top to side-arm and back again. Since the middle of 2008 he’s had trouble throwing the ball down the line (towards home, if looking at first base from second base) and making low throws in the dirt. However, he does have great reflexes and great hands for backhanding the balls to his left and right. He has good range. But again, the arm puts a damper on his third base ability

I’m confident that David could learn to play first base well. He is an open-minded, smart, team-first ballplayer. First base is one of the least complex positions to learn on the field. Furthermore, the move to first allows the Mets to make several changes that I am attaching to this argument. Move Wright to first, and sign Chone Figgins. Wright should give the Mets at least what Carlos Delgado gave them, which was average to below-average defense at first base. Chone Figgins would be an improvement over Wright, as Figgins is a true elite fielder. He also can play multiple other positions, and could gear the Mets more towards being a speed-oriented team-perhaps molding them in the form of the Anaheim Angels. The Mets already steal a good amount of bases, and Figgins could add another 40-steal guy to the top of a lineup that already has Jose Reyes.

Now, with these changes in place, I would not advocate signing Matt Holliday, Jason Bay, or any high-profile position player this offseason. They would probably have enough money after a Figgins signing to get Lackey. For left field, I would advocate “building for the future.” For a year, you could plug the spot with Angel Pagan. You also allow Fernando Martinez to compete for the job in Spring Training, along with Chris Carter and maybe, in the future, Ike Davis (who has played RF during his minor-league tenure). However, ultimately there is an odd man out…which, conveniently enough, leaves trade bait that the Mets could readily move-perhaps for some more pitching depth.

It’s an idea to think about, because I would be comfortable with this plan knowing that it allows the Mets to a) make a high profile signing(s), but b) still build for the future by allowing young guys to compete for the spot in left field and c) leave a prospect open as trade bait, whether it’s Davis, Martinez, or even Pagan, who teams seem to like.

In my first off-season as a Mets blogger, I’ve run into a bit of a problem.  I consider my style of writing one that follows the ebbs and flows of emotion that go along with being a Mets fan.  I’ve never wanted to be a blog that recycles information, and writes the same thing that all the other Mets blogs write about.  Instead, I write my opinion on how the team is performing, or underperforming on a day to day basis.

Now that there are no games being played, no team taking the field every night, I don’t have anything to write about.

I do however read a bunch of Mets sites to get information about what’s going on, who’s available, who’s on the radar, etc.

MetsBlog has been the most useful source of information, which makes sense since it’s the official Mets blog.  Matt Cerrone and his staff post some great information, and if you need one place to read about the Mets, this is where you should go.

Some other blogs I frequent are:

Mets Today
The Daily Stache
The Ropolitans
Baseball Bloggers Alliance

I can’t wait for next season to start so I have more to say.  Until then, bare with me.  I was not built for the off season.