Spring Training Preview: Mets Top Five Questions for Spring Training

By Steven Inman

With the Mets first Spring Training game officially underway it is now time to see the Mets top 5 questions for Spring Training. While the Mets look improved, they still have plenty of issues for Terry Collins and company to work out.

1.  Who plays first base?

Obviously the Mets expected this issue to be solved before Spring Training started. They were deep in talks to deal Ike Davis elsewhere to the point where even he was surprised that he was in Port St. Lucie. He probably has the advantage over Lucas Duda to this point but the first base job is still pretty much wide open. Josh Satin should play every day against lefties anyway at first base. Barring a trade, both players should still be on the Opening Day roster.

2. What does the outfield look like?

It appears that all four of Curtis Granderson, Juan Lagares, Chris Young and Eric Young Jr. will play a lot this season. The Mets don’t really have another outfielder that is currently pictured to make the Opening Day roster. I believe Juan Lagares deserves to play every day which would free Young Jr. to be a pinch running weapon off the bench, kind of like what the Reds did with Billy Hamilton last September. This outfield has the potential to be very special. “Runners are going to be very hesitant to take the extra base on us.” Eric Young Jr. told Kevin Burkhardt during the SNY Mets telecast Friday. While Granderson and Chris Young are expected to play every day, Young Jr. and Lagares will compete for a starting job in Spring Training. If Eric Young Jr. wins a starting job, then he would play left and Chris Young would move to center.

3. Who is the Mets 5^th starter?

If Jenrry Mejia is healthy he should be the Mets 5^th starter. He has #2 starter upside but with his violent delivery and injury history, there is no reason to think that he can make it through a full season healthy. Dice-K and John Lannan will also compete for the job and the best performance in camp should win the 5^th starters job. It is possible that one of these veteran guys end up as a long man in the Mets pen.

4. How does the bullpen shape up?

Pretty much everyone in this bullpen is coming to camp with major questions. Bobby Parnell is coming off a major injury, Vic Black, who is expected to be the Mets set-up man, has less than 20 big league innings under his belt. The Mets didn’t bring in anyone on a major league deal to add to the bullpen and winded up losing LaTroy Hawkins. The Mets hope is that Jose Valverde and Kyle Farnsworth can regain some lost velocity and they can be the bridge to Parnell. Young guys like Jeurys Familia, Josh Edgin and Gonzalez Germen will be crucial for this questionable Mets bullpen.

5. What do the Mets do at shortstop?

This is the one question that Terry Collins likely doesn’t have control of. Reports of Ruben Tejada still being overweight have continued to pop up throughout camp. Wilmer Flores has lost so much weight that he is now being considered for shortstop reps in spring training.  Stephen Drew is still on the market somehow which should continue with no true suitor emerging. His agent Scott Boras speculates that Drew could wait until after the Drew draft so he wouldn’t be tied down to draft pick compensation. Nick Franklin has also come up in Mets trade rumors but the team is unlikely at this point to trade one of their top pitching prospects when they are unsure if he could handle shortstop on an everyday basis defensively.

Which Mets question are you most concerned about?

Fantasy Baseball 2014 Player Rankings by Position Part 1

By Steven Inman

Interested in Fantasy Baseball, well BrokeMets is here to help. BrokeMets teamed up with FanDuel along with 31 other bloggers covering teams to uncover the secrets of how to win your fantasy league.

This is a nine part series and I highly encourage you to check out the full article if you are interested in Fantasy Baseball. The full article is attached on the bottom. Part 1 is the top player at each position. No Met finished first at his position.

Feel free to tell me how much you loved or hated my selections for top fantasy player at each position.

Fantasy Baseball 2014 Player Rankings by Position.

Breathe again Mets fans, Jon Niese will be fine

By Steven Inman

The Mets have gotten the results of LHP Jon Niese’s MRI and the results came back good for the Mets. According to Terry Collins, Jon Niese will be fine and has no structural damage in his shoulder. Collins said Niese’s shoulder is “very very good”.

He should resume throwing in the next few days although it is likely that Zack Wheeler will start Tuesday instead of Niese although that hasn’t been confirmed yet.

Nagging injuries starting to pile up for Mets

By Steven Inman

Terry Collins already has a lot of injuries to deal with before Spring Training games even started

Despite not playing any spring training games yet, injuries are starting to pile up for the Mets. In addition to Jon Niese heading back to New York for an MRI, (All the details on that injury can be found here.) Eric Young Jr. and Bartolo Colon have been held out of camp today as a precaution.

Young Jr. who may be the Mets lead off hitter, is dealing with a sore side. While Bartolo Colon is dealing with a calf issue.

Neither injury has been deemed all that serious.

Jon Niese heading back to New York for MRI

By Steven Inman

Jon Niese is heading back to New York for an MRI for discomfort in his triceps area according to multiple media reports. The Mets have yet to confirm this but the decision to send Niese back was made around noon on Wednesday. Obviously this isn’t good but the Mets won’t know the extent of his injury until after the MRI.

Niese was tabbed as Terry Collins’ Opening Day starter last week.

“I wanted to keep it quiet. It’s just a precautionary thing to make sure it’s not worse from last year,” Niese told ESPNNewYork.com. “I just want peace of mind.”

Hopefully this is only Spring Training dead arm where Niese is just having trouble warming up after the offseason but with Niese’s injury history this is a concern. The Mets need Niese bad to make 30 starts for them so it may be time to hold your breath Mets fans….

What should the Mets give up for Nick Franklin???

By Steven Inman

The Mets have been reported to be interested in SS/2B Nick Franklin of the Seattle Mariners. According to Adam Rubin of ESPNNY.com Franklin interests the Mets but they are concerned whether or not he could handle shortstop on a regular basis. Rubin also says the Mets discussed a deal for Franklin during the winter meetings in December. Franklin came up as a shortstop but moved to second base after moving to the big leagues. He has pop but got exposed in August and September after failing to adjust to off speed pitching.

I speculated in early December that Franklin would be made available and how he has a ton of upside for a team like the Mets. You can check out that article here. I speculated in that article that an Ike Davis/ Franklin swap would work for both sides. Since then the Mariners have added Corey Hart and Logan Morrison however. They are looking for young pitching in a deal for Franklin.

Franklin, 22, was decent last year defensively at second base but make no mistake about it, he would be a below average defensive shortstop. However he can make a name for himself in New York with his power. Sandy Alderson is actively searching for more power in his Mets lineup and Franklin could hit 20 homeruns in the majors if he is given 600 at bats. In 102 games last year for Seattle the rookie Franklin hit 12 homers with 45 RBI’s.

Franklin is a very confident kid who is a former top prospect. He can handle New York, the question is can he handle shortstop. In a book about the Class-A Clinton Lumberkings, someone asked Franklin about his attitude and he said the following “Some people think that I’m cocky or whatever…But I’m not. It’s just, I’ve never really failed. Why am I supposed to think that can happen when it never does?” Franklin said. Sounds like a kid who can handle New York to me, but the Mets shouldn’t give up a top pitching prospect for him.

The Mets should hold on to the Rafael Montero’s of the world, for now…. The Mets are going to need to keep these prospects for as long as they can in order to get the big bat that they are eventually going to need. (Such as Tulo or Cargo in Denver)

The Mariners don’t have a spot for Franklin right now with Brad Miller at shortstop and Robbie Cano entrenched at second base so the Mets don’t have to overpay with a Montero here. Instead the Mets may get away with a secondary pitching prospect such as Jacob deGrom or Cory Mazzoni.

What would you give up for Nick Franklin?

Wilmer Flores wowing in camp, still unlikely to make team

By Steven Inman

Photo by NY Daily News

Wilmer Flores has been impressing Mets officials in camp as Terry Collins compared the young infielder to Edgardo Alfonzo Monday morning. “That is a big statement,” said Collins. “If that’s what Flores is going to be, obviously you have to find a position for him to play.” Collins told reporters in Port St. Lucie.

Obviously the Mets like his bat but he has no position which means he likely has no spot on this team for the foreseeable future. The Mets have been playing him at short and second through camp but he lacks the foot speed needed to play short. The same probably goes for him playing second base in the big leagues.

Plus the idea that the Mets have said in the past that Flores can’t be a shortstop, yet they keep working him out there. Obviously this means they still don’t have much faith in Ruben Tejada.

The Mets now are saying they won’t rule out Flores playing shortstop in the big leagues at some point.

Flores, once the Mets top prospect, will likely go down to Triple-A and play all over the infield waiting for an infielder to get injured to get called up. The only reason Flores got his opportunity last year is because David Wright got hurt and they needed another third basemen. He is still very young as he is only 22 and the Mets want him to play every day so a trip to Las Vegas is likely.

New York Mets Offseason in Review

By Steven Inman

Sandy Alderson just finished his busiest offseason as Mets GM

When Omar Quintanilla and Wilfredo Tovar arrived in Port. St. Lucie this weekend it officially meant all 64 Mets who were invited to big league camp made it on time. With that, it is officially time for the 2013-2014 Mets offseason in review.

Additions:

Curtis Granderson 4 yrs $60 million

Chris Young 1 yr $7.25 million

Bartolo Colon 2 yrs $20 million

John Lannan (minor-league deal)

Jose Valverde (minor-league deal)

Kyle Farnsworth (minor-league deal)

Subtractions:

Justin Turner (Dodgers)

Jordany Valdespin (Marlins)

Mike Baxter (Dodgers)

Scott Atchison (Indians)

Shaun Marcum (Indians)

LaTroy Hawkins (Rockies)

Frank Francisco (Free Agent)

Johan Santana (Free Agent)

Obviously the Mets added talent to a very bad Met outfield with the additions of Granderson and Young but the two were both overpayed. Granderson missed most of the 2013 season with multiple stints on the disabled lists while Young hit .200 and lost his job by the end of the year. Plus the Mets stuck out a ton last year and even if Granderson and Young improve their numbers they are both strikeout prone. The Mets are going to strikeout a lot next year.

Like many of his new teammates, Chris Young strikes out a ton

Granderson should have gotten a two-year deal, maybe three but four years was just too much. Nobody was obviously going to match them but when you have been bad for as long as the Mets have been, sometimes you have to overpay to get a guy to come here. The Grandy Man should still bring some much needed pop and lineup support to David Wright but this is still a below average offense in the National League. The Mets outfield defense however should be up there with the best in the game.

Bartolo Colon is a “Sandy Aldersonish” signing because he brings upside. Colon was outstanding last year and if he could repeat his 2013 Oakland numbers than the Mets could compete for a playoff spot. However he is coming off his second year with a steroid scandal, he’s over 40 years old and is extremely overweight. Most importantly he throws his fastball over 85% of the time so if he loses another tick or two off of it, this could prove to be a disastrous signing. Colon told reporters in Spring Training that the Mets were the only team to give him a two-year deal. I still like the deal compared to what similar pitchers got on the open market.

Lannan is a nice minor-league signing who will provide depth and will compete for the 5^th spot in the Mets rotation. Terry Collins also said he could come out of the pen to face lefties but he has never done that before and I would call it unlikely.

The Mets never found their shortstop and never figured out what to do at first base. Instead, they elected to just hope one of Ike Davis or Lucas Duda can make the decision they have put off for years a little easier.

Ideally one of Jose Valverde or Kyle Farnsworth can be rejuvenated in spacious CitiField and help create the bridge to Bobby Parnell.

The Mets didn’t lose much in free agency. Hawkins was great last year but he’s 40 years old and can be replaced. Justin Turner was a fan favorite but the front office wasn’t thrilled with his “lack of hustle”. Obviously the biggest lost this winter was losing Matt Harvey for the season.

LaTroy Hawkins is one of the few subtractions that the Mets may actually miss

If I was grading the Mets offseason I would give it a C. I really liked the Colon signing because he has the most upside of anyone the Mets could afford. However I felt the outfield could have been fixed much cheaper which would have given them more money to acquire a shortstop, a hole that is still present. Nelson Cruz signed with the Orioles over the weekend on a one-year $8 million deal. Cruz to me has a lot more upside than Granderson and or Young but that’s my opinion.

The Mets had a very bad bullpen last year and didn’t do much to fix it other than a few minor-league deals. Finally, Sandy Alderson and his staff have had years to determine what to do with the Duda/Davis dilemma and have still not answered that question. However it was nice to see them acquire some new players for the first time in the Alderson era. Those are the reasons they get a C.

What grade would you give the Mets offseason?

The Mets need to lock up Zack Wheeler soon if they want to keep him long-term

By Steven Inman

Photo by CBS Sports

The recent trend in baseball is locking up young stars to long-term deals before they are eligible for arbitration, let alone free agency. These deals are usually very team-friendly, such as the Rays contract with superstar Evan Longoria. Longoria received a six years $17.5 million during his rookie year in 2008. Tampa got a superstar that they drafted on the cheap through his prime and Longoria got financial security. It doesn’t appear as if those deals really exist anymore.

Thursday the Atlanta Braves locked up young star Andrelton Simmons to a seven year $58 million contract. Simmons is still a work in progress with the bat and wasn’t even arbitration eligible until after the 2014 season, hardly a discount. I’m a big fan of Simmons but for that price they may have been better off going year to year. The point is by the time these players are in their 3^rd or 4^th year and have established themselves; they are already a fortune to keep.

There just doesn’t seem to be hometown discounts anymore. Another Braves player, Julio Teheran just got over $30 million after just his rookie year. This doesn’t bode well for the Mets and some of their young talent such as Zack Wheeler.

Unless players get locked up during their rookie year, they seem to be getting monster contracts. Wheeler in just 100 big league innings has already proven to be a quality starting pitcher in the big leagues. That means it’s already time to get paid.

The good news is Wheeler,23, won’t be a free agent for six more years, but let’s just say he establishes himself in 2014 as a top of the rotation pitcher. After the season he can tell the Mets he won’t sign long term for under $50 million or so. Another season it goes to $75 million or so and will continue to escalate.

Homer Bailey of the Reds just got six years $105 million, not because he is a great pitcher but because he eats innings and is one year away from free agency. Money in baseball is getting out of hand and it is up to the Mets to lock up some of their young talent now like the Braves are doing.

The Mets did a good job of this a few seasons back when they signed Jon Niese to a five year contract extension. Niese looked promising but with all of his injury questions he was hardly a sure thing at the time. If the Mets brought that contract to Niese today, he for sure wouldn’t sign it.

If the Mets wait a few years, players like Wheeler or even Matt Harvey may decide to just go year by year in arbitration until they hit free agency.

Terry Collins doesn’t plan on utilizing his outfield the right way

By Steven Inman

If Terry Collins has his way, Juan Lagares could start the season on the bench or even in Triple A

Terry Collins has yet to decide on his starting outfield but we already know that Curtis Granderson and Chris Young will play every day. Eric Young Jr. is the favorite to be an everyday outfielder according to Terry Collins. Collins says unless he changes his approach, Juan Lagares will be a bench player. “As we sit here today, Eric Young is the guy you want to see at the top of the lineup,” Collins said last week.

 In that scenario Chris Young would play centerfield, Granderson would play right and Eric Young Jr. would play left field. This would be a mistake.

Juan Lagares, is the Mets best centerfielder by far and he should play every day in center even if he hits .240 again. He needs to work on his approach but he should be a better hitter coming into his second season. Lagares can bat 8^th as long as he is playing centerfield every day. His defense will make up for his bat over the course of a full season.

Eric Young Jr. is best used as a fourth outfielder who can come into the game late and pinch run. The Mets haven’t had any speed on their bench in some time but that could change with EY Jr.

Chris Young has the better arm compared to Grandy so he should play right field. He also probably has slightly better range than Granderson so he should play the bigger right field at CitiField for the Mets. That would put Granderson in left, a position he has played before.

If Lagares has a strong spring all of this comes to fruition but he had shown enough last year that he shouldn’t have to win the job this spring.