Ask any Mets-watcher at the end of last season, and they might’ve told you that the team’s Achilles heel was the catcher position. Not only has Kevin Plawecki played his way from top prospect to offensive cipher, but the (original) centerpiece of the famous R.A. Dickey trade completely cratered after a breakout-but-shortened 2015 surge. Travis d’Arnaud […]
Tag: Travis d’Arnaud
Receiving Gifts
Baseball Prospectus readers are six times more likely than other MLB fans to apply their love of numbers to non-baseball pursuits. [Citation needed.] Since you’re mathy enough to be reading this, you’re probably familiar with the psychological studies demonstrating that people are happier to receive a gift they asked for than the one you regifted […]
Game recap October 1: Well, they did it
James Loney made contact, then turned towards the Mets dugout and flipped his bat before running to first. At the beginning of the season, this wouldn’t make any sense. In the middle of August, we’d assume the below replacement level first baseman made another out as the season was slipping away. We’d seen this story before. In […]
Game recap September 24: Close only counts in horseshoes and pre-replay neighborhood plays at second base
When the scoreboard flashed 10-0 in the fourth, some fans thought “no problem, we can come back. We’ve already seen record comebacks this week!” It’s one thing to dream about setting the record for biggest comeback in team history. After Terry Collins took out his four leading hitters, the replace-Mets did more than dream. They brought […]
Game recap September 23: Back on top
Coming off about a dramatic win as is possible, the Mets turned to Gabriel Ynoa in the second of their four-game set with the Phillies. Of course, no Met game would be complete without pregame news of a pitcher missing a start, and last night was no different as the Mets announced that Noah Syndergaard […]
Game recap September 21: Erase this one from your memory (trust me)
WHO WON: The navy-colored not-Mets WHAT HAPPENED, NOTHING REALLY MATTERS: Things looked great for the first six innings of this one. Asdrubal Cabrera and Rene Rivera used the long-ball to give the Mets a 3-0 lead. Bartolo Colon was doing Bartolo Colon things, as he allowed no runs, walked nobody and struck out six batters. […]
Game Recap September 20: Can’t watch, can’t look away
Executive Summary Julio Teheran held the Mets to a .238 average on balls in play over seven innings. When this offense doesn’t hit home runs, it’s borderline unwatchable. Braves 5, Mets 4. Discussion and Analysis The Mets have lost six of eight against the Braves at Citi Field this year. Considering the Braves are 53-89 when they don’t play in […]
Game recap September 16: Bartolo Colon, down-ballot Cy Young candidate
With the Giants and Cardinals, the Mets’ two primary challengers for the two Wild Card spots, squaring off in San Francisco, the Mets had a prime opportunity to solidify their hold on a playoff spot against the lowly Twins. Bartolo Colon and his 3.27 ERA (his lowest mark since 2013 in Oakland) was opposed by […]
Game Recap September 6: Mets Continue Power Surge, Bullpen Bails Out Montero
The Mets hit four home runs and were backed by 4.2 innings of scoreless relief, defeating the Cincinnati Reds 5-3 on Tuesday night for their fourth straight win. Playing in front of a sparse crowd at Great American Ball Park, New York (73-66) remained one game behind in the NL Wild Card race following the […]
Game recap September 5: We’ll sleep when we’re dead
In a sentence: The split-squad road team pulled off an improbably win after an all-nighter and took the first game of the series from the Reds 5-0. The good: The Mets weren’t supposed to win this game. It was the day game after a night game, hungover on celebratory champagne with your starters rehabbing strained hamstrings […]