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As it stands right now, the Colorado Rockies are 4.5 games ahead of the San Francisco Giants in the National League Wild Card race. The Rockies have been a bit of a surprise team this season, after an unimpressive '08 campaign and the loss of Matt Holliday during the offseason. They've thrived after the firing of Clint Hurdle, as Jim Tracy has pushed the right buttons, rarely ever taking a misstep.

Considering the way they've played in recent months, is a 4.5 game cushion plenty for the Rockies? Can the Giants, Marlins, and Braves kiss their playoff hopes goodbye?

Well, I've never quite been a believer in the Giants. Sure they have Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain at the top of their rotation, but it's difficult to gather momentum with an offense as impotent as theirs. They'd be tough in a short series because of their starting pitching, but I doubt they'll get to that point. 

Continue reading "Have the Rockies locked up the NL Wild Card?"

As if the 2009 season couldn't get any worse for the Metropolitans, Pedro Martinez had to go and embarrass them on national television last night. While Tim Redding (who I can't stand) pitched his ass off for the Mets, their anemic offense couldn't help him out. The Phillies' famously potent lineup was held to just one run...

And the Mets STILL couldn't find a way to win. Pedro, whom the Mets opted to pass on this offseason, went eight strong innings without allowing a single run. Pedro struck out seven, and scattered six hits. He was featuring an 88-92 MPH fastball, a sweeping curve, and an excellent change-up to left-handed hitters. 

Oh well, I guess the Mets' front office was positive that Redding was the better choice this offseason. Another real winner for this sorry organization. 

Continue reading "Pedro sticks it to his old mates"

For the past couple days, that's a question that baseball fans have been asking throughout the country. And what's the answer? Is there an answer? Is it OK for a baseball team to premeditate a celebration as over-the-top as Milwaukee's earlier this week?

Well, this is certainly a matter of perspective. As is often the case when something like this comes up, it's New School vs. Old School. Now I'm admittedly a "New Schooler," but that doesn't mean I'm on board with every aspect of the movement. It's like being a Democrat without a single Republican view -- pretty rare situation to find. 

So what's my take? To be specific, I prefer the Yankees' wedding bouquet celebration to Milwaukee's bowling pin topple. The bouquet thing is subtle in comparison; the toppling pins were a little much for me. I pitched for 15 years of my life, and I know I'd hate it if an opposing team celebrated in that fashion. I think a celebration like that has a home in the NFL (a la the Baltimore Ravens of the past), unfortunately football's hierarchy is so uptight that it cut all of the fun out of scoring.

Continue reading "Was Prince Fielder's Celebration OK?"

I don't intend to go on for too long in this particular post, but I'm just wondering, why did Jeff Wilpon say Jerry Manuel is "his guy," and why is Manuel's managerial job so secure? I understand that injuries have decimated the Mets' roster in 2009, but does that mean it should be impossible for the team to perform well? Does that mean Manuel automatically gets a pass for his personal performance?

The whole situation makes little sense to me. If I were the Mets' front office and management, I'd be looking to start fresh in 2010 -- manager included. Manuel has proven to be a very poor in-game manager, struggling with match-ups and the basics of offensive strategy. His tactics are dated, and his club has lost games as a result of his decision-making. 

Personally, I despise Manuel as a manager. But my personal opinion doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things, all that matters is what Omar Minaya and the Wilpons think. 

Continue reading "What has Jerry Manuel done to keep his job?"

The 2009 Major League Baseball season has been a disaster for the New York Mets, and we all know it, so there's little need to beat a dead horse. Let's move on to 2010. Offensively, the necessities appear to be left field and catcher, but the focus of this post will be starting pitching. "Pitching and defense wins championships" they say, so let's see if the Mets will have what it takes...

No. 1 Starter: LHP-Johan Santana

Johan recently had season-ending surgery, but he's expected to be back and ready to go for spring training in '10. Hopefully the surgery will improve Johan's velocity, as he dipped into the 88-90 range during the second half of this year. He was still relatively effective, but nothing like '08 or his days in a Minnesota Twins' uniform. I don't think Santana will be dominant, but I expect him to be a very solid No. 1 starter in 2010. 

Continue reading "2010 Mets' Rotation"

(Note: I posted this a couple of days ago on my other blog at FanNation.)

When it comes to the Mets' starting rotation, I think all of their replacement-level options are better than Tim Redding. Redding's stuff is disgraceful, and his general approach to the craft of pitching is laughable. He's been embarrassed in his last two starts -- recently against the Marlins, and the Red Sox before that -- and there is little-to-no indication of potential improvement. I don't think there is any doubt at this point...

Redding is not a major league pitcher. With an 86-to-88 MPH fastball and lackluster offspeed deliveries, one wonders how he was given a guaranteed contract this offseason by general manager Omar Minaya. (But I can't get too upset with Omar, he acquired Johan Santana for a bag of groceries.) Regardless of the reasoning behind the signing, it's time to abandon ship. But where should the Mets go from here, until Oliver Perez (another awful signing) returns?

Continue reading "I've Had Enough of Tim Redding."

There's no way for me to keep everyone happy with this list, so I openly acknowledge its imperfection. Taking into account the differences in eras -- ballparks, styles, and substances -- it's impossible to find a flawless ranking system. With that in mind, here's what I've come up with:

(1) For hitters, I consider the following four categories the most important: (in no particular order) batting average, home runs, RBI, and OPS (combined slugging and OBP). 

(2) For pitchers, I consider the following four categories the most important: (again, in no particular order) wins, ERA, strikeouts per nine innings, and opponent's batting average against. Let's call the last two "K's/9" and "Opp. BA." 

Total strikeouts is an unfair category because pitchers went deeper into games in the past. Thus the starters from the mid and early 20th century have a distinct advantage there, due to a longer leash from their manager and organization, and subsequently more innings pitched. K's/9 provides a level playing field. At least, level in comparison to total strikeouts. 

Continue reading "The Top 30 Players in MLB History"

(Note: I've also published this post on FanNation, under the username JFro.)

About a month ago, I published a similar post complaining about Jerry Manuel's mind-numbingly awful managing. It actually generated some interest, as it appeared on a Mets blog and in various discussion threads.

But we Manuel haters need more momentum than that. Jerry must go. Now. Tonight's 5-3 loss to the Dodgers represented an all-time low in managerial decision-making. All I can do, is take it from the top...(and by the way, if you agree that Manuel is the ultimate cause of the Mets' woes, don't hesitate to join my Facebook group). But as I began to say, let's take tonight from the top...

(1) The batting order. To face Chad Billingsley, the Dodgers' top starting pitcher, and one of the best young right-handers in the game, Manuel went as follows:

Continue reading "Jerry Manuel Must Be Fired. Now!!!"

All right, so I've jumped the gun a little (the Mets are 21-17, giving them 38 games played, which means they're shy of the 1/4 season mark), but I haven't been too active on this blog and I'd like to get up to speed.

Unofficially tied for first place with the Philadelphia Phillies (percentage points separating the two), it's been a wild, up-and-down ride for the Mets to this point in the season. Not surprisingly, they've made their fair share of idiotic mistakes, both mentally and physically, including a real head-scratcher from Ryan Church last night. 

In Los Angeles, with the game tied 2-2 in the top of the 11th, Church ripped a single to left field with two outs. Up the plate strolled Angel Pagan, a player who has been out of sight for quite some time, after suffering a season-ending injury early in the '08 campaign. Pagan was the subject of much malign just a day earlier, when manager Jerry Manuel pinch hit with him in a critical bases loaded situation, and Angel proceeded to ground into a tailor-made 6-4-3 double play. 

Continue reading "The New York Mets: A Quarter Season in Review"

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