Official 2005 Mets Willie Ball Thread!!

[NJFINSFAN1]

It's early yet.:wink:

BTW, I picked up David Wright in my fantasy draft. I underrated him..

Wright is going to be a heck of a player!

Cliff Floyd is on fire right now!!!!

 

[FaninPatsyLand]

Wright is going to be a heck of a player!

Cliff Floyd is on fire right now!!!!

You ain't kidding, the Mets farm system did a great job with that kid.

As for Cliff Floyd, what ever happened to him?? It wasn't too long ago when he was a hot commodity on the trade market and the Marlins shipped him to Montreal, then the Expos shipped him to Boston.

Ever since he left the Marlins his career has seemed to slide downhill sharply. Good to see the Mets getting some production out of him.

I see Mientkiewicz is fitting in nicely with the Mets. It's a shame he didn't get to showcase his talents in Boston, he struggled mightily with the bat last year. You guys got yourself a heck of player.

 

[DonShula84]

You ain't kidding, the Mets farm system did a great job with that kid.

As for Cliff Floyd, what ever happened to him?? It wasn't too long ago when he was a hot commodity on the trade market and the Marlins shipped him to Montreal, then the Expos shipped him to Boston.

Ever since he left the Marlins his career has seemed to slide downhill sharply. Good to see the Mets getting some production out of him.

I see Mientkiewicz is fitting in nicely with the Mets. It's a shame he didn't get to showcase his talents in Boston, he struggled mightily with the bat last year. You guys got yourself a heck of player.

Floyd is perpetually injured, if he can stay healthy he is a nice player though.

 

[NJFINSFAN1]

You ain't kidding, the Mets farm system did a great job with that kid.

As for Cliff Floyd, what ever happened to him?? It wasn't too long ago when he was a hot commodity on the trade market and the Marlins shipped him to Montreal, then the Expos shipped him to Boston.

Ever since he left the Marlins his career has seemed to slide downhill sharply. Good to see the Mets getting some production out of him.

I see Mientkiewicz is fitting in nicely with the Mets. It's a shame he didn't get to showcase his talents in Boston, he struggled mightily with the bat last year. You guys got yourself a heck of player.

Mientkiewicz I like very much, he is a down a dirty player and boy can he scoop that ball at first!

The guy that's killing us is Piazza, man did he go downhill fast! :cry:

 

[FinsNYanksFan13]

Another crazy peformance my Pedro. He's got something to prove. Not a shot as Boston but no doubt their missing him like we did Pettitte last year!

 

[NJFINSFAN1]

Another crazy peformance my Pedro. He's got something to prove. Not a shot as Boston but no doubt their missing him like we did Pettitte last year!

If he stays healthy, he is worth every penny!!! He has been amazing!:wink:

 

[FaninPatsyLand]

If he stays healthy, he is worth every penny!!! He has been amazing!:wink:

I don't think anyone ever doubted whether he would be worth it this year. It's the next 3 years where we will find out if Theo made the correct decision. I like the move Boston made by letting him go, but it could end up coming back to haunt us.. only time will tell.

 

[NJFINSFAN1]

Any team out there want Tom Glavine ???

We will give him away Cheap!!

 

[NJFINSFAN1]

Cliff Floyd 30 Game NL MVP????

What a catch last night also!

I think he is battling 391 with 8 HR's and 25 RBIS and he missed 4 or 5 games!:eek:

 

[NJFINSFAN1]

3 out of 4 from the Phills! Go Mets!

Heck even Piazza did well today, and Looper got a save without giving up hits and runs!!!

Benson looked good also!

Things are looking up a Shea!!

 

[NJFINSFAN1]

Oh boy!! Piazza is 2-2 with two HR's tonight already! He gets hot, watch out!

 

[NJFINSFAN1]

Can't ask much more if your a Met fan! 1 1/2 games out of first, over 500!
Pedro is so much fun to watch, that guy just plain has fun! The sprinkler last night was very funny, and then waving his arms at the crowd when he got a hit! That guy brings energy to the field when ever he pitches.

:thewave:

 

[finswin56]

Thanks for the link NJ!
This is bookmarked.

Wish I had known about it when I went to the game in Miami last week. Kaz vs. Dontrell. I thought we would get killed. What a great game for the Mets.

 

[phunwin]

Awesome, I had no idea we had one of these threads!!!

OK, here's my grades at the one-third point for this bunch...

Batters:
Reyes - B. Fine defense, and a pretty fair mix of speed and power, but good God, Jose, it's okay to take a walk once in awhile! A .304 OBP for a leadoff hitter is unacceptable.

Matsui - F. Bats like Rey Ordonez, fields like Jose Offerman. Can we trade him for a bag of chips?

Beltran - C+. I expect a little more from him, considering the massive contract the team gave him. That said, his power's coming around lately, so I expect this grade to improve.

Floyd - B+. Started white-hot, but has cooled considerably. His sabermetric numbers right now are about what I expect. If he stays healthy, so much the better.

Cameron - A+. Wow, I can't believe we almost moved him for Eric Byrnes.

Wright - A-. His bat has been as good as advertised, but I'm taking him down a touch for some costly errors.

Mientkiewicz - D. I don't care how good a fielder he is. There is no first baseman in the history of baseball whose defense was good enough to make up for a 654 OPS.

Diaz - B+. I wish they'd get him into the lineup more; this kid can rake. He was a second baseman once upon a time. Maybe he's too much of a defensive liability there, but can we teach him to play first? I'm dead serious about this.

Piazza - C-. The bat's really heating up, so he's another guy whose grade will improve. But still, at the moment, a 740 OPS isn't good enough considering his defense has progressed from mediocre to bad to worse to first base coaches telling guys to run at will.

Cairo - B-. His 712 OPS isn't terrible, and his defense at second, and his versatility, have been a huge help. Unless Matsui goes off, and I mean GOES OFF during Cairo's injury, Cairo should be the regular 2B on his return.

Woodward/Anderson - A. Two of the best pinch hitters in baseball right now.

Pitchers:
Martinez - A+. It is almost impossible to pitch better than he has so far.

Benson - B+. Benson's looked very good since coming back from injury.

Glavine - C. He's nearing the end of the line. I think his sole role is to give the team 7 innings and not to get killed.

Zambrano - C+. Good stuff and keeps the ball in the park. I'd like him to cut down on the walks, but that's probably never happening. Best case scenario, he becomes Kenny Rogers, who succeeded his whole career with lousy walk totals.

Looper - B. He's been pretty solid since Opening Day. His stuff is better than the 5 K/9IP he's averaging, though. That must improve.

Hernandez - A. But there's no way he's going to keep it up.

Bell - B+. Should take over the primary RHP setup role before long; Hernandez needs to dial back the innings if we're going to get much more out of him. Bell's the one relief pitcher who, right now, I feel confident can get a big strikeout.

Heilman - A-. Has done whatever's been asked without complaint and done it well. Why isn't he in the starting rotation? He's the third best starting pitcher on this team right now.

Ishii - C. Alternates awful starts with good ones. Check his game log, it's true. A little consistency would be nice. Should move to the bullpen in favor of Heilman, though.

DeJean - C. Walks almost a batter per inning, yet his numbers are respectable. Not a good trend.

Koo - D. One spectacular game doesn't wash away the fact that he's been hit very hard. Hopefully he gets straightened out.

Aybar - B-. Has been pitching pretty well, but mostly in garbage time. Still, a 27/4 K/BB ratio is pretty impressive.

Coaches:
Randolph - B+. Willie's brought optimism and excitement and hasn't been afraid to turn his baserunners loose. He's generally made the right decisions in-game, too. Misses an A because I think he does too much worshipping at the "altar of the Proven Veteran", i.e. demoting Seo, sticking Wright near the bottom of the lineup, moving Heilman to the pen, not finding at bats for Diaz, sticking with Mientky despite his miserable bat. I also think he needs to drop Reyes in the order until he starts getting walks, and hit Wright leadoff instead.

Peterson - A-. Has handled Pedro beautifully, learning from the lessons of Grady Little. I'm still pissed at him for greenlighting the Zambrano trade, though.

Down - C. Needs to stress plate discipline more. Jose Reyes will never be a Rickey Henderson-type leadoff man, but he's got to learn the importance of taking a walk. That's the single most important offensive issue the team has right now.

 

[NJFINSFAN1]

Awesome, I had no idea we had one of these threads!!!

OK, here's my grades at the one-third point for this bunch...

Batters:
Reyes - B. Fine defense, and a pretty fair mix of speed and power, but good God, Jose, it's okay to take a walk once in awhile! A .304 OBP for a leadoff hitter is unacceptable.

Matsui - F. Bats like Rey Ordonez, fields like Jose Offerman. Can we trade him for a bag of chips?

Beltran - C+. I expect a little more from him, considering the massive contract the team gave him. That said, his power's coming around lately, so I expect this grade to improve.

Floyd - B+. Started white-hot, but has cooled considerably. His sabermetric numbers right now are about what I expect. If he stays healthy, so much the better.

Cameron - A+. Wow, I can't believe we almost moved him for Eric Byrnes.

Wright - A-. His bat has been as good as advertised, but I'm taking him down a touch for some costly errors.

Mientkiewicz - D. I don't care how good a fielder he is. There is no first baseman in the history of baseball whose defense was good enough to make up for a 654 OPS.

Diaz - B+. I wish they'd get him into the lineup more; this kid can rake. He was a second baseman once upon a time. Maybe he's too much of a defensive liability there, but can we teach him to play first? I'm dead serious about this.

Piazza - C-. The bat's really heating up, so he's another guy whose grade will improve. But still, at the moment, a 740 OPS isn't good enough considering his defense has progressed from mediocre to bad to worse to first base coaches telling guys to run at will.

Cairo - B-. His 712 OPS isn't terrible, and his defense at second, and his versatility, have been a huge help. Unless Matsui goes off, and I mean GOES OFF during Cairo's injury, Cairo should be the regular 2B on his return.

Woodward/Anderson - A. Two of the best pinch hitters in baseball right now.

Pitchers:
Martinez - A+. It is almost impossible to pitch better than he has so far.

Benson - B+. Benson's looked very good since coming back from injury.

Glavine - C. He's nearing the end of the line. I think his sole role is to give the team 7 innings and not to get killed.

Zambrano - C+. Good stuff and keeps the ball in the park. I'd like him to cut down on the walks, but that's probably never happening. Best case scenario, he becomes Kenny Rogers, who succeeded his whole career with lousy walk totals.

Looper - B. He's been pretty solid since Opening Day. His stuff is better than the 5 K/9IP he's averaging, though. That must improve.

Hernandez - A. But there's no way he's going to keep it up.

Bell - B+. Should take over the primary RHP setup role before long; Hernandez needs to dial back the innings if we're going to get much more out of him. Bell's the one relief pitcher who, right now, I feel confident can get a big strikeout.

Heilman - A-. Has done whatever's been asked without complaint and done it well. Why isn't he in the starting rotation? He's the third best starting pitcher on this team right now.

Ishii - C. Alternates awful starts with good ones. Check his game log, it's true. A little consistency would be nice. Should move to the bullpen in favor of Heilman, though.

DeJean - C. Walks almost a batter per inning, yet his numbers are respectable. Not a good trend.

Koo - D. One spectacular game doesn't wash away the fact that he's been hit very hard. Hopefully he gets straightened out.

Aybar - B-. Has been pitching pretty well, but mostly in garbage time. Still, a 27/4 K/BB ratio is pretty impressive.

Coaches:
Randolph - B+. Willie's brought optimism and excitement and hasn't been afraid to turn his baserunners loose. He's generally made the right decisions in-game, too. Misses an A because I think he does too much worshipping at the "altar of the Proven Veteran", i.e. demoting Seo, sticking Wright near the bottom of the lineup, moving Heilman to the pen, not finding at bats for Diaz, sticking with Mientky despite his miserable bat. I also think he needs to drop Reyes in the order until he starts getting walks, and hit Wright leadoff instead.

Peterson - A-. Has handled Pedro beautifully, learning from the lessons of Grady Little. I'm still pissed at him for greenlighting the Zambrano trade, though.

Down - C. Needs to stress plate discipline more. Jose Reyes will never be a Rickey Henderson-type leadoff man, but he's got to learn the importance of taking a walk. That's the single most important offensive issue the team has right now.

Great post!

I give Floyd an A, don't forget how good he has been on defense, he is making some great plays!

Randolph has been good, but making a lot of rookie mistakes (double switch again a few games ago. What the heck is Alomar doing as his bench coach, that boy needs to speak up!

I think once Cairo gets his leg up to speed, he is at 2nd base.

Glavine has shown some good signs his last few outings.

Heilman should be starting!!!!

Mientkiewicz has been a wiz in the field, but needs to bat a least 240 for me to be happy.


Welcome aboard Met fans!!!