OT: Official Mets' 2024 Thread (p. 19)

[HarthorneWingo]

Max Scherzer did his best Gerrit Cole impersonation by throwing batting practice. If the Mets are going to be serious contenders this guy needs to find a way to keep the ball in the park when his best stuff isn't working.

Our pitching staff is too old.

Yup. This was a risk going into the season, though Scherzer & Verlander both pitched well last year, Verlander especially.

A 3-4 start isn't the end of the world. Pitching struggles and injuries are a concern, but it's still early, and in other news. Omar Narvaez is day to day. Depending on how long he's out, I think Alvarez is the only other catcher on the 40. We could see him.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/mets-suffer-another-concerning-injury-amid-justin-verlander-edwin-diaz-absences/ar-AA19wr49?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=ca91023526854d68a15d91bc1076eec5&ei=9

I hope Alvarez is ready. I thought I heard/read that he's struggling in AAA right now. If Omar is just day-to-day, then probably not is my guess. No sense jerking Alvarez around. Let him get settled and into a good grove when we bring him up.

If we need some starting pitching help, I have some bad news for those juicing for our young minor league stars to be brought up. This is a win-now team.

[knicks94]

Max Scherzer did his best Gerrit Cole impersonation by throwing batting practice. If the Mets are going to be serious contenders this guy needs to find a way to keep the ball in the park when his best stuff isn't working.

Our pitching staff is too old.

They should have just held on to DeGrom. Replacing him with a 40 year old pitcher might not have been the smartest decision.

[HarthorneWingo]

Max Scherzer did his best Gerrit Cole impersonation by throwing batting practice. If the Mets are going to be serious contenders this guy needs to find a way to keep the ball in the park when his best stuff isn't working.

Our pitching staff is too old.

They should have just held on to DeGrom. Replacing him with a 40 year old pitcher might not have been the smartest decision.

DeGrom had missed too many games and broke down, with Scherzer, at the end of last season for me, especially with the money and years he was asking for. I thought the Verlander move would work out but perhaps I was being overly optimistic. I can see us trade some of our young talent for younger established pitching at some point this season. Carlos Quintana is also out injured. How long before Carrasco is out? We're in a precarious position right now. The problem is that any attempt to make a move now will be seen as a move out of desperation and we'll have no leverage in negotiations. We may just have to ride this out until June.

[Luv those Knicks]

Max Scherzer did his best Gerrit Cole impersonation by throwing batting practice. If the Mets are going to be serious contenders this guy needs to find a way to keep the ball in the park when his best stuff isn't working.

Our pitching staff is too old.

They should have just held on to DeGrom. Replacing him with a 40 year old pitcher might not have been the smartest decision.

Maybe, but deGrom got paid even more, and his injury history is a concern. I'd rather have Verlander 2 years 86 with a vesting option over 5 years 185 for deGrom. I mean, an argument could be made that it's close, but with those choices and the season Verlander had last year, I think the Mets made the right call. We'll see how it goes.

[HarthorneWingo]

Narvaez is on the DL for 2 fcking months. Alvarez brought up.

Watch on YouTube

[HarthorneWingo]

This is what it's beginning to feel like.

Watch on YouTube

[HarthorneWingo]

Well, there’s always the Giants to root for.

Read on Twitter

?s=46&t=1icTnGbGeP42zaqKITJ4KA

[Luv those Knicks]

I'd feel better about this team if they had some pitchers in the minors who were close, but they don't.

Baty & Alvarez could be fun. We'll get an earlier look at Alvarez than expected now. Mauricio still worries me with his lack of plate discipline but there's legit upside. McNeil can play OF so there's room for a roster addition. . . . But the pitching is what it is with little to no help in the minors ready to step in. Peterson & Megill were supposed to open the year in AAA but instead, with Quintana & Verlander on the DL, both are starting.

There's still room for this team to be good, if Verlander comes back strong. if Quintana contributes when he returns. If Carasco doesn't suck. And it's early. Give it a month, maybe 6 weeks before we start to judge.

[HarthorneWingo]

I'd feel better about this team if they had some pitchers in the minors who were close, but they don't.

Baty & Alvarez could be fun. We'll get an earlier look at Alvarez than expected now. Mauricio still worries me with his lack of plate discipline but there's legit upside. McNeil can play OF so there's room for a roster addition. . . . But the pitching is what it is with little to no help in the minors ready to step in. Peterson & Megill were supposed to open the year in AAA but instead, with Quintana & Verlander on the DL, both are starting.

There's still room for this team to be good, if Verlander comes back strong. if Quintana contributes when he returns. If Carasco doesn't suck. And it's early. Give it a month, maybe 6 weeks before we start to judge.

That's a lot of "ifs". How long are Quintana and Verlander expected to be out?

[HarthorneWingo]

Phew. We’re about to finish a 9-3 shellacking of the Fish at CF. Megill pitched 6 shutout innings. Alonso, Lindor, and Marte each homered.

[Luv those Knicks]

I'd feel better about this team if they had some pitchers in the minors who were close, but they don't.

Baty & Alvarez could be fun. We'll get an earlier look at Alvarez than expected now. Mauricio still worries me with his lack of plate discipline but there's legit upside. McNeil can play OF so there's room for a roster addition. . . . But the pitching is what it is with little to no help in the minors ready to step in. Peterson & Megill were supposed to open the year in AAA but instead, with Quintana & Verlander on the DL, both are starting.

There's still room for this team to be good, if Verlander comes back strong. if Quintana contributes when he returns. If Carasco doesn't suck. And it's early. Give it a month, maybe 6 weeks before we start to judge.

That's a lot of "ifs". How long are Quintana and Verlander expected to be out?

One thing the Mets did right is they started the season with 7 capable starters with Megill & Peterson slated to open in AAA or the bullpen. So when Verlander & Quintana went on the DL, they had 2 guys with experience ready to step up. Megill's had 2 good starters, Peterson one good one bad, so it's working so far. The concern is who the #8 guy is, but most teams don't go 8 deep in capable starters, but maybe they should - LOL.

Verlander has hinted he could be back by the start of May. His injury (minor strain to his shoulder) doesn't really have a timetable but shoulders can be tricky. Time will tell.

Quintana, I've read it's a lesion and I've read it's a fracture, expected to miss 2-3 months so in the June range, possibly July, unless something goes wrong, so 1/3 to 1/2 the season.

And Carasco is a concern, but it was only one start. If one of those two injured pitchers comes back, then they're 6 deep. That's not so bad.

I don't know who the next starter is, maybe Butto, maybe Lucchesi. They also have William Woods off the roster and that other recent signing . . . drawing a blank on his name. He might be next. They can make a roster spot pretty easily by moving Carrasco to the 60.

I'm not saying it's great, only that it's too soon to panic. They have more position player depth in the minors than pitching depth right now. It would be better if they had more minor league pitching.

[Luv those Knicks]

Phew. We’re about to finish a 9-3 shellacking of the Fish at CF. Megill pitched 6 shutout innings. Alonso, Lindor, and Marte each homered.

Fun fact. Alonso is the 2nd fastest player in history to get to 150 homers . . . in terms of games played, not age.

Ryan Howard - first.
Alonso - 2nd
Aaron Judge - 3rd.

This is the 2nd time Alonso passed Judge on a statistic.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/mets-slugger-pete-alonsos-unreal-home-run-feat-that-even-barry-bonds-did-not-achieve/ar-AA19BcVl#:~:text=The%20two-time%20All-Star%20slugged%20the%20fourth%20home%20run,the%20second-fastest%20player%20to%20tally%20150%20home%20runs.

[blueNorange]

love buck but i always had a the feeling he wants no part developing players

it’s 4 days now since alvarez started, either start him everyday here or send him back to triple a

[blueNorange]

Showalter said his lineup decisions regarding Alvarez will be “heavily weighted toward winning games” over developing Alvarez as a hitter.

welp, glad to know buck thinks nido is the better option.

i guess now we know why vientos and baty are not on the team, even tho they don't really need much seasoning anymore.

[HarthorneWingo]

I'd feel better about this team if they had some pitchers in the minors who were close, but they don't.

Baty & Alvarez could be fun. We'll get an earlier look at Alvarez than expected now. Mauricio still worries me with his lack of plate discipline but there's legit upside. McNeil can play OF so there's room for a roster addition. . . . But the pitching is what it is with little to no help in the minors ready to step in. Peterson & Megill were supposed to open the year in AAA but instead, with Quintana & Verlander on the DL, both are starting.

There's still room for this team to be good, if Verlander comes back strong. if Quintana contributes when he returns. If Carasco doesn't suck. And it's early. Give it a month, maybe 6 weeks before we start to judge.

That's a lot of "ifs". How long are Quintana and Verlander expected to be out?

One thing the Mets did right is they started the season with 7 capable starters with Megill & Peterson slated to open in AAA or the bullpen. So when Verlander & Quintana went on the DL, they had 2 guys with experience ready to step up. Megill's had 2 good starters, Peterson one good one bad, so it's working so far. The concern is who the #8 guy is, but most teams don't go 8 deep in capable starters, but maybe they should - LOL.

Verlander has hinted he could be back by the start of May. His injury (minor strain to his shoulder) doesn't really have a timetable but shoulders can be tricky. Time will tell.

Quintana, I've read it's a lesion and I've read it's a fracture, expected to miss 2-3 months so in the June range, possibly July, unless something goes wrong, so 1/3 to 1/2 the season.

And Carasco is a concern, but it was only one start. If one of those two injured pitchers comes back, then they're 6 deep. That's not so bad.

I don't know who the next starter is, maybe Butto, maybe Lucchesi. They also have William Woods off the roster and that other recent signing . . . drawing a blank on his name. He might be next. They can make a roster spot pretty easily by moving Carrasco to the 60.

I'm not saying it's great, only that it's too soon to panic. They have more position player depth in the minors than pitching depth right now. It would be better if they had more minor league pitching.

Fingers crossed.

Btw, fans started booing Escobar last night. See what you started!

[Luv those Knicks]

Fingers crossed.

Btw, fans started booing Escobar last night. See what you started!

Yup. Booing Escobar doesn't surprise me.

And fans are unhappy that Nido started 2 games in a row, though Nido's a good defensive catcher, so I get it. I don't mind that personally.

[HarthorneWingo]

Eduardo Escobar with a 2-run HR to put the Mets up 5-1.

[HarthorneWingo]

Read on Twitter

[HarthorneWingo]

"Kodak" Senga folk!!!!!!!!!!!! KODAK SENGA!!!!!!!!!!!

Your "Kodak" moment. He could be our new "Ace".

Watch on YouTube

[Luv those Knicks]

Eduardo Escobar with a 2-run HR to put the Mets up 5-1.

It's funny how quickly the boos can turn into cheers.