Mejia out 80 games after testing positive for banned substance

By Steven Inman

Jenrry Mejia may have thrown his last pitch as a Met
Photo by NY Post

Injured Mets closer Jenrry Mejia has been suspended by MLB for 80 games. He tested positive for taking the banned substance stanzolol and will also be ineligible to pitch in the 2015 postseason should the Mets be fortunate enough to get there.

Obviously the Mets were very upset to hear about the loss of the reliever. “We were disappointed when informed of Jenrry’s suspension for violating Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program.  We fully support MLB’s policy toward eliminating performance enhancing substances from the sport.  As per the Joint Drug Program, we will have no further comment on this suspension.” the Mets said in a statement.

Sandy Alderson went as far as saying he wouldn’t guarantee Mejia would even pitch for the Mets ever again. “That definitely is a consideration,” Alderson said in an article by CBS Sports. “It will be factored in when he comes back. I hope our bullpen is pitching so well there is not a spot for him. I hope he is not a factor.”

Mejia will begin serving his suspension immediately despite being on the DL. Hopefully he can get right and help the club out in the second half. The Mets also save over $1.1 million on the suspension. Jeurys Familia will be the Mets interim closer but the club is hoping he takes the job and runs with it.

Ideally they get Vic Black back at some point in the near future so he can help Carlos Torres bridge the gap to Familia should Vic be able to throw enough strikes. Black is currently on a rehab assignment in Port St. Lucie so he should be back this month.

The Mets should have enough depth in this pen where this news won’t significantly hurt them.

The Mets 2015 Opening Day Roster

By Steven Inman

The 2015 season is finally here. Barring some sort of bizarre injury, here is your 2015 Mets Opening Day roster.

Starting pitchers: 

Matt Harvey will start Game 3 on the road as well as the Mets second Citi Field Game next week

1. Bartolo Colon

 2. Jacob deGrom

 3. Matt Harvey

 4. Jonathon Niese 

5. Dillon Gee

This is the order the Mets will go the first couple times through the rotation. The team will start arguably their worst starter on Opening Day in Colon. There are probably many reasons for this but the most public one at the moment is that way Harvey doesn’t start the home opener and will start the second Citi Field game which the Mets believe will maximize ticket sales. This is a clueless, idiotic way to run a franchise IF true, but hey its Opening Day so we won’t harp on the negatives today.

Relievers: 

Jenrry Mejia had a rough spring but will it carry over into the season?

6. Jenrry Mejia

7. Jeurys Familia 

8. Carlos Torres

9. Jerry Blevins

10. Alex Torres

11. Rafael Montero

12. Sean Gilmartin

13. Buddy Carlyle

Sean Gilmartin pitched well as Spring Training came to a close and will not be offered back to the Twins just yet, If he can make it all season on the Mets roster or DL he will become Mets property. The Mets didn’t want to lose Buddy Carlyle either who had an opt-out date coming up so the club elected to keep him and go with 8 relievers, Bobby Parnell and Vic Black will start the year on the DL but both should be ready to contribute at some point in the first half with Black likely ready soon. 

Starting Position Players: 

One thing to watch early on is if the Daniel Murphy-Wilmer Flores combo are able to sucessfully turn double plays

14. Travis d’Arnaud

15. Lucas Duda

16. Daniel Murphy

17.  David Wright

18.  Wilmer Flores

19.  Michael Cuddyer

20.  Juan Lagares 

21. Curtis Granderson

After much debate Daniel Murphy will in fact be ready for Opening Day and will meet his teammates in Washington for Monday’s opener. Terry Collins is planning on moving Murphy down in the order to get him more RBI opportunities but he is probably better off in his usual #2 spot in my opinion. 

Bench: 

22. Anthony Recker

23.  Ruben Tejada

24.  John Mayberry Jr. 

25. Kirk Nieuwenhuis

With the Mets carrying 8 relievers, they will go with a 4-man bench to start the season. Eric Campbell would have been the 5th man on the bench but was optioned to Vegas instead. Campbell even worked on catching this spring to make himself even more versatile. A four man bench isn’t the Mets brightest idea but it likely won’t stay like this for more than a few weeks. Collins would use Jacob deGrom as a pinch hitter should he use the rest of his bench first. 

 

Should be a fun season and Lets Go Mets!

Injuries, lack of depth could bring Mets bullpen major problems

By Steven Inman

The Mets don’t have the depth to replace a pitcher like Vic Black, should he miss any extended time (Photo by NY Post)

While the New York Mets have an impressive group of young arms in their bullpen that includes hard throwing right-handers like Jenrry Mejia and Jeurys Familia, injuries have hurt this once promising group.

The team is already without Josh Edgin, who was the lone left-hander projected to make the Opening Day bullpen. Vic Black is also banged up and doesn’t look like he’ll be ready for Opening Day according to Terry Collins. The team has looked at internal options to replace Edgin but none have pitched well to date. The team will look to waivers to find a left-handed reliever so the lack of depth is obvious with just two weeks to go before Opening Day.

A pitcher like Buddy Carlyle who pitched well in 27 appearances for the Mets last season now looks like a lock to make the Opening Day bullpen. While Carlyle looked solid with the Mets last season, he is 37 years old and has pitched in just 31.0 big league innings since 2011.

While the team has plenty of starting pitching depth, they don’t have a ton of guys ready and able to pitch in key bullpen innings for the Mets down on the farm. Bobby Parnell is expected to pitch early on in the season but having pitched in just one major league game since July 2013, it is unfair to count on him for a significant role just yet. Stay tuned Met fans this issue could be something to watch…

Mets Projected 25-Man Roster Version 1.0

By Steven Inman

With Spring Training officially underway lets take a look at who is expected to make the Mets Opening Day Roster. With grapefruit league games not even starting yet, this group will change slightly. Injuries could also change who makes the cut to join the Mets against the defending N.L. East champs, the Washington Nationals on April 6th.

The Infield

The Mets infield appears set. Three of the four players have played key roles in previous seasons while Wilmer Flores looks to break out as the teams starting shortstop. This may not be the best defensive infield the Mets have ever had by any stretch of the imagination but they should be able to drive in some runs.

1. 3B David Wright

Daniel Murphy enters 2015 in a contract year and is highly unlikely to be resigned by the Mets

2. 2B Daniel Murphy

3. 1B Lucas Duda

4. SS Wilmer Flores

5. C Travis d’Arnaud

The Outfield

The Mets only made two major league signings this winter and they both happen to be outfielders. The Mets outfield was horrendous in 2014 and must improve, especially offensively if the club wants to be contenders.

6. LF Curtis Granderson

7. CF Juan Lagares

8. Michael Cuddyer

The Mets don’t have many quality options to replace Curtis Granderson if struggles again like he did in ’14

The Starting Rotation

The strength of this 2015 Mets club will be their starting staff. With a key member back from injury and plenty of starting pitching depth in the minors, expect this to be one of the better rotations in the National League.

9. RHP Matt Harvey

10. RHP Zack Wheeler

11. RHP Jacob deGrom

12. LHP Jon Niese

13. RHP Bartolo Colon

The Bullpen

This is where things get a little cloudy. The Mets bullpen is very much undecided thanks to Dillon Gee being the odd man out of the rotation. Gee is not pleased with going to the bullpen and has stated he would prefer to start somewhere. While we aren’t going to rule out a trade it is very unlikely at this point as most teams have their budgets set going into the season and don’t want to spend an additional $5 million on a back end starter like Gee in Spring Training.

While the Mets would love to see a second left-hander emerge into the bullpen out of camp, expect six right-handers to be in the Mets bullpen in Washington for Opening Day. The Mets will give Rafael Montero a shot to be a reliever in camp and that may be his only shot to pitch in the big leagues for the foreseeable future. Expect Bobby Parnell to help this group out in a couple months as he recovers from Tommy John surgery.

14. RHP (CL) Jenrry Mejia

15. RHP Jeruys Familia

16. LHP Josh Edgin

17. RHP Vic Black

18.  RHP Carlos Torres

19. RHP Dillon Gee

20. RHP Rafael Montero

The Bench

After hitting well in his rookie season, Eric Campbell will likely see time in both infield and outfield corners this season

The Mets have had very weak benches over the past few seasons and expect 2015 to be no different. The team did a nice job in bringing in Jon Mayberry Jr. and as long as Terry Collins only plays him against lefties he should perform well. Expect Kirk Nieuwenhuis to make the club over a player like Matt Den Dekker as he is out of options. If Kirk does not make the club the Mets will most likely lose him to another team.

21. OF Kirk Nieuwenhuis

22. OF John Mayberry Jr.

23. SS-2B Ruben Tejada

24. IF-OF Eric Campbell

25. C Anthony Recker

Do you think we got the list right?

Jenrry Mejia Could Wind up Getting a Met Hitter Hurt

By Steven Inman

Jenrry Mejia clearly caught the attention of the Nationals after Friday’s contest

Jenrry Mejia has had a breakout year as the Mets closer in 2014 which includes 26 saves in his first season manning the ninth inning.
That being said Mejia’s over the top celebrations were garnering notice around the league before this week when Mejia began to add to his celebrations. Mejia seemed to do a miniature version of his dance after striking out Anthony Rendon for the second out of the ninth Friday night. Then the young right-hander struck out Ian Desmond and began taunting the Nats by pretending to reel in Desmond after getting him to swing and miss to end the game. The Nationals telecast caught Bryce Harper on deck staring down Mejia for an extended period of time after the game was over.

Bryce Harper and the Nats could make a statement to Mejia and the Mets Saturday that excessive celebrating will not be tolerated

Mejia, 24, is the youngest Met to accumulate 25 saves in a season ever but he clearly irked the big bad Nats and there could be consequences today. Daniel Murphy was already drilled in the wrist by a Matt Thornton pitch Friday and had to miss Saturday’s game with his wrist ailing. The Mets can’t afford to lose a key player for an extended period of time if they want to finish over .500 for the first time since 2008. The Nats drilling a Met during this series can be seen by Washington as a statement that Mejia’s antics are over the top, especially for a team that has been under .500 all season.
The Nationals definitely noticed the Mejia’s moves after the game. “That wasn’t called for” Denard Span said to D.C. reporters about Mejia’s antics. “No need for that.”
Jenrry Mejia didn’t believe he was over the top after the game. “I just go out there and it’s like adrenaline,” said Mejia, insisting his moves are unscripted. “I just do what comes naturally. I just struck him out, and I did something to finish the game.”

For whatever its worth, Mejia has made four appearances vs, Washington this season and hasn’t allowed a run.
The last thing this 72-76 team needs right now is to put the target on their back, especially against a team that has taken 11 of 14 games against them this season. That being said Terry Collins didn’t seem to have any problems with Mejia during the post game. “You’ve got to have some emotion in the game. We see it everywhere. I see other teams doing it. They can get mad, if it gives them more adrenaline. I want these guys to have some fun. I don’t want to corral them and worry about every move they make. We’ll try to settle him down a little bit. But, gosh, it’s a big win for us against a first-place team and there’s no reason not to be excited.” Collins told reporters after the game.

Was Mejia’s celebration over the top Friday night?

Mets send up first wave of young arms

By Steven Inman

The Mets have begun to reconfigure their major league roster. Rafael Montero as previously reported here will officially start at Citi Field Wednesday night vs. the New York Yankees. To make room in the rotation, Jenrry Mejia was moved to the bullpen where he already looked very impressive in Monday’s come from behind win.

This is clearly the correct move as Mejia can now go back to dialing up the velocity in short relief outings. Mejia seemed to tire quickly through his starts. He’s held opponents to a sparkling .193/.258/.246 batting line when facing them the first time in a game this season. That line however, jumps to .245/.365/.415 when facing an opponent for the second time and a whopping .405/.500/.595 when facing opponents for a third time. His violent delivery also makes him have a much better chance of staying healthy out of the bullpen, an area where the Mets could use a live arm.

Montero gets the opportunity to show why the Mets have been so excited about him. Three years ago the Mets offered Montero $80,000 at a DR showcase game and now he will prepare to make his big league debut Wednesday. Montero will wear #50 and will likely be eligible for Super Two status.

That wasn’t the only call up as the Mets will also call up prospect Jacob deGrom. deGrom has been strictly a starter over his career but will be asked to join the pen. deGrom has been very effective in Triple-A and most scouts believe he should thrive in the bullpen where he like Mejia, can just dial up his fastball for short relief appearances. deGrom will wear #48 and is expected to be activated tonight as Gonzalez Germen was placed on the DL to make room.

Noah Syndergaard could also be up soon but he hasn’t been as effective at the Triple-A level and looks to need a little more seasoning in the minors. Bringing up deGrom and Montero shows the Mets don’t always care about arbitration clocks and that they want to win now. If only they could find a little offense now….

Mets may replace Jenrry Mejia in rotation with Rafael Montero

By Steven Inman

Photo by BaseballAmerica

After failing to get out of the 5^th inning in his last start, Jenrry Mejia may be removed from the rotation before his next scheduled start Wednesday according to Terry Collins. In that case Rafael Montero would take his place in the rotation according to team insiders. Montero is also scheduled to pitch again on Wednesday after throwing 5 1/3^rd hitless innings for Triple-A Las Vegas.

Talk about throwing a kid into the fire. If Montero makes his season debut Wednesday he will be doing it at home vs. the New York Yankees in the Subway Series. The Mets under Sandy Alderson and Terry Collins have had their top pitching prospects make their ML debuts on the road. If Montero makes his debut Wednesday and stays up for good he would be a Super Two player but not a free agent until after the 2020 season.

Sandy Alderson is still very reluctant to bring Montero up so this is far from a done deal.

While it would be very exciting to see Rafael Montero make his season debut in the subway series, it is very discouraging that the Mets continue to jerk around Jenrry Mejia who somehow is still just 24 years old. “I don’t want to be in the bullpen.” Mejia has told reporters on more than one occasion. Mejia was going to end up in the bullpen later in the year anyway as his innings limit is around 125-130 this year.

That being said it is clear that the Mets still have no idea what to do with Jenrry Mejia. Hopefully they don’t blow out his arm, moving him back and forth like the Yankees did a few years back with Joba Chamberlain.

Dice-K being called up for John Lannan

By Steven Inman

Lannan’s brief stay with the Mets was a rough one for the southpaw

The Mets are calling up Daisuke Matsusaka from Triple-A Las Vegas. To make room for Dice-K the Mets have out righted John Lannan off of the 40-man roster. Lannan can now elect free agency or go to Triple-A. Lannan was awful for the Mets bullpen, a position he wasn’t all that familiar with as a starter throughout his major league career. The Mets were hoping he could help get lefties out but it just didn’t happen that way. Lannan was 1-0 with a 15.75 ERA in five appearances with the Mets.

Dice-K is coming up as insurance for both Bartolo Colon and Jenrry Mejia. Mejia is dealing with another blister issue and Colon has been dealing with a back problem. Both are expected to make their next starts but Dice-K is just insurance of they cannot.

If both do make their starts than Matsusaka can just be the long reliever in the bullpen.

Mets 2014 Season Outlook

By Steven Inman

David Wright and Daniel Murphy will once again be relied upon to carry the Mets lineup
Photo by NY Post

It is almost here, the greatest day of the year, Opening Day. Just 48 hours from now we will be enjoying Mets baseball once again. So now it is time to breakdown their upcoming season.

Infield: The infield is the only part of the team that Sandy Alderson didn’t address this winter. Ike Davis likely gets the first crack at being the lefty platoon at first base with Josh Satin. With the team going to play the LA Angels in the second week of the season they will need a DH so Lucas Duda should still see plenty of at-bats early on in April.  Having three first basemen on the roster certainly hurts Terry Collins’ roster flexibility which may need to be addressed at some point.

Ruben Tejada is still here and looks to be the guy at shortstop despite a poor 2013 season and a rough Spring Training to say the least. Wilmer Flores with a strong spring has put himself in a position to be Plan B at shortstop despite being sent to the minors. Omar Quintanilla will make the team as the backup middle infielder.

Travis d’Arnaud goes into the season with a lot to prove but is still just a rookie. He was having a rough spring with the bat until this past week so it looks like he is getting hot at the perfect time for New York. Many expect him to compete for Rookie of the Year in the National League. He likely will start the year down near the bottom of the order.

Obviously the Mets have two quality hitters at third base and second base with David Wright and Daniel Murphy respectively. The duo just needs to stay healthy as they will be expected to continue to anchor the Mets lineup. Murphy needs to improve upon his OBP if he wants to stay a Met long-term.

Outfield: The Mets spent most of their offseason budget on their outfield which looks to have improved. Curtis Granderson was an overpay coming off a lost year but he will certainly help give David Wright protection and put less pressure on guys like Ike Davis and Travis d’Arnaud who can bat lower in the lineup now.

Chris Young is the X-Factor for this Mets team. He is coming off a lost year for the AL West champion Athletics but has looked very good offensively and defensively this spring. He doesn’t have the elite outfield arm he once had but is still a good outfielder. It will be important for him to adjust to Citi Field’s unique dimensions quickly especially playing in a corner outfield spot, a position he isn’t all that familiar with. Young was given a 1-year “prove it” contract so he has a lot to prove to not just the Mets but to all of baseball this season. He was still given $7.25 million however and for a team like the Mets with a very small payroll ($87 million) they badly need him to produce. When Eric Young Jr. is in the lineup Chris Young will bat 5^th and when Juan Lagares is in the lineup Chris Young will likely bat leadoff. Lagares should play every day as his defense is just too good to keep on the bench. There has been a power struggle between Collins and Sandy Alderson on which outfielder should play more. Collins wants EY Jr. in their as he doesn’t believe anyone else can hit leadoff on this team. Both outfielders should see a lot of playing time.

Starting Rotation: Obviously the talk about the Mets starting rotation is about the guy who isn’t here and that is Matt Harvey. He expects to be back before September but it would be very irresponsible for the Mets to let Harvey rush back like that. Besides who know if they will even be in the race that long. At the top of the Mets rotation is a pair of strike throwers in Dillon Gee and Bartolo Colon. Both have looked good this spring and could be ready for big seasons.

As the only left-hander on the staff Jon Niese must stay healthy if the team has any desire to stay in contention. Zack Wheeler continues to fly under the radar and if he can throw enough strikes, could be a candidate for the All-Star team in Minnesota this season. Wheeler has a dynamic arm. Daisuke Matsuzaka will start the year in the minors but will be used as rotation depth if Jenrry Mejia struggles in the fifth spot or gets injured.

Bobby Parnell has lacked the velocity he needs to be an effective closer
Photo by NY Daily News

Bullpen: The Mets bullpen is their biggest weakness and will likely become their downfall this season. It all starts with the closer and Bobby Parnell doesn’t look like the same guy that was an All-Star candidate last summer. His velocity is down big and the team is already talking about him not pitching anything more than back to back games. Jose Valverde will be relied on to start the year as the 8^th inning guy. He is an older pitcher and is a prime suspect for overuse to start the season should he have a few successful outings. Remember this is a guy who was released by Detroit last season, a team that was desperate for bullpen help.

Scott Rice will be depended on heavily as well after a strong rookie campaign. He is also a suspect for overuse as he was overused badly by Collins in 2013 and scouts have all said his velocity has been down as well. John Lannan will hope to assist Rice in the lefty specialist role, a role that Lannan has no experience in. Jeurys Familia has an elite arm and it would a major surprise if he isn’t near the back end of the bullpen by Memorial Day, likely as the 8^th inning guy. Collins wants to ease Familia into that role.

Bench: The Mets bench will be very interchangeable. It will include one of EY Jr./ Lagares and two of Satin/Davis/Duda. It also will have backup catcher Anthony Recker as well as Omar Quintanilla. Andrew Brown is expected to make the team as the 5^th outfielder until they need the roster spot for Jon Niese.

Prospects: The Mets have many prospects that will make their major league debuts in 2014. Unfortunately due to service time, none will make their debuts any time soon. Rafael Montero is the pitcher closest to the big leagues but likely won’t be up until mid-June for arbitration purposes. The same goes for Noah Syndergaard. We have already seen Wilmer Flores but the infielder will be up after the first infield injury or if Tejada struggles. He is not in the minors because of service time simply to get an opportunity to play every day. Jack Leathersich is a left-handed reliever the team thinks can get big league lefties out soon.

Projection: 80-82 Third Place This Met team looks better than the past few years because of depth. If they lose a starter early on in the season they don’t have to go to an Aaron Laffey or someone like him. They have legitimate pitching prospects in the system. The N.L. East is not what it once was but the Washington Nationals and the Atlanta Braves both have much more talent than the Mets currently. Also if the Mets find themselves in it at the trade deadline, do they have the money to go take on a contract to go get the hitter they likely will need? The Mets are improving but this doesn’t look to be their year.

Strengths: Starting pitching, Depth

Weaknesses: Bullpen, Shortstop, Payroll flexibility

Breakout Candidates: Travis d’Arnaud, Wilmer Flores, Zack Wheeler, Dillon Gee

Regression Candidates: Jon Niese, All of the first basemen, Curtis Granderson, Bobby Parnell

1. Washington Nationals
2. Atlanta Braves
3. New York Mets
4. Philadelphia Phillies
5. Miami Marlins

Daisuke Matsuzaka looks to have locked up rotation spot with Mets

By Steven Inman

Daisuke Matsuzaka had a very strong start Monday vs. the St. Louis Cardinals. Matsuzaka threw six-plus innings and gave up just one run. It appears that the right-hander will begin the season in the Mets rotation and will start the first Friday of the season vs. the Cincinnati Reds. Dice-K has an opt-out in his contract Tuesday but is now highly unlikely to use it.

Make no mistake about it; Dice-K is a stopgap pitcher until a guy like Noah Syndergaard is ready for the major leagues. Matsuzaka is just simply too slow to the plate and his games are often agonizing to watch but he pitched well enough this spring to make the team.

Terry Collins was worried about putting Jenrry Mejia in that spot in the rotation because he threw such a small number of innings last year coming off surgery. If Mejia started the year in the rotation he would have to be shut down very early in the season due to his innings limit.