I like how ya think, Jonathan. Uncle Stevie needs enthusiastic, wise, help and support in organizing future expenditures. His hedge fund data jockeys are great and all, but imagination like yours is what makes champions…or at least lotsa fun!
From the beginning, I defended the Diaz trade and felt that it was misreported and misunderstood from the beginning. Not saying that it was an ideal trade, or even one that I would have made, but Diaz at the time was the most electrifying reliever in baseball w/ 4 years of team control. Cano was expensive (the Mets dumped a lot of salary in that deal, too), but it was reasonable to hope that Cano would give the Mets 3 years of good productivity. Didn't work out. Was Kelenic too much to give? Probably, yes. But BVW had to bring in talent to compete and the Wilpons were the owners, Alderson had left the minor league system a complete shambles, so the deal was made. If Mets win WS with Diaz as closer, that would go a long way. But fans are crazy about *prospects,* especially ones we've never seen play.
The Kelenic trade is bad on principle, but I feel it's overblown in importance and like many things Mets related in the last few years, doesn't deserve as much attention as it has received. On the one hand, it has the significance - even under the Wilpons - of really being the start of the Mets shift to the team we have today, while being emblematic of the failings of the last few years under the Ws when they had a team capable of WC expectations. The Good: Taking on the $ and the closer were not moves the Mets had made since the late 90s Steve Phillips teams and early 2000s Manaya teams. BVW pushed Alonso up in spite of service time. Bad: Kept not trading for players when need arose, signing FAs or extending players hiding behind $ constraints and all the things we've seen happen.
Cano in SD makes a lot of sense. Tatis needs a lot maturity and leadership. I'm surprised SD didn't put in - or exercise - an insurance option on his contract the way Wilpons did with DW and Ces, given his recent injury on a motorcycle is on the list of actions that can nullify contracts (Kellen Winslow Jr. with Browns comes to mind.) While Machado does that now, he is also shouldering the whole team offensively and as the main leader. Cano can individualize his time with him like he did with Rosario in '19. A fair case could be made missing his presence in the clubhouse contributed to Stroman, Baez, et. al ruining the clubhouse dynamic culminating in thumbs down and in Lindor's difficulty adjusting to the market. Glad he gets a shot. In my book, I see his PEDs purely from the injury prevention/recovery/maintenance angle. He passed them all w/ the Yanks and the 2nd came after his 'run hard to 1B, then land on IL a bunch' 2019 year...
An image to immortalize: perhaps tech savvy fans can assemble?
The (star) Soto of the over the top slide step glare at pitchers after EVERY ball pitched to him, squirming at the feet of the giant stone wall of Taijuan Walker, who looks down at him bemused and says:
— “relax dawg. You tough. Don’t whine on camera;” or
—“easy hoss…you kick my sore knee and you be over as well as out;” or
—“hey, I look different from down there without the bat?”
It was hilarious to watch. Soto (legit star, total respect) is tough, but tangling with giant Taijuan never moved him physically, and Walker had the calm confidence of a powerful dude. Reminded me of the Instagram meme of a worked up German Shepard barking and approaching a relaxed Rotweiler. The Rot calmly moves his head slightly, no bark, doesn’t even stand, and the attitude alone sends the shepherd fleeing.
I like how ya think, Jonathan. Uncle Stevie needs enthusiastic, wise, help and support in organizing future expenditures. His hedge fund data jockeys are great and all, but imagination like yours is what makes champions…or at least lotsa fun!
From the beginning, I defended the Diaz trade and felt that it was misreported and misunderstood from the beginning. Not saying that it was an ideal trade, or even one that I would have made, but Diaz at the time was the most electrifying reliever in baseball w/ 4 years of team control. Cano was expensive (the Mets dumped a lot of salary in that deal, too), but it was reasonable to hope that Cano would give the Mets 3 years of good productivity. Didn't work out. Was Kelenic too much to give? Probably, yes. But BVW had to bring in talent to compete and the Wilpons were the owners, Alderson had left the minor league system a complete shambles, so the deal was made. If Mets win WS with Diaz as closer, that would go a long way. But fans are crazy about *prospects,* especially ones we've never seen play.
The Kelenic trade is bad on principle, but I feel it's overblown in importance and like many things Mets related in the last few years, doesn't deserve as much attention as it has received. On the one hand, it has the significance - even under the Wilpons - of really being the start of the Mets shift to the team we have today, while being emblematic of the failings of the last few years under the Ws when they had a team capable of WC expectations. The Good: Taking on the $ and the closer were not moves the Mets had made since the late 90s Steve Phillips teams and early 2000s Manaya teams. BVW pushed Alonso up in spite of service time. Bad: Kept not trading for players when need arose, signing FAs or extending players hiding behind $ constraints and all the things we've seen happen.
Cano in SD makes a lot of sense. Tatis needs a lot maturity and leadership. I'm surprised SD didn't put in - or exercise - an insurance option on his contract the way Wilpons did with DW and Ces, given his recent injury on a motorcycle is on the list of actions that can nullify contracts (Kellen Winslow Jr. with Browns comes to mind.) While Machado does that now, he is also shouldering the whole team offensively and as the main leader. Cano can individualize his time with him like he did with Rosario in '19. A fair case could be made missing his presence in the clubhouse contributed to Stroman, Baez, et. al ruining the clubhouse dynamic culminating in thumbs down and in Lindor's difficulty adjusting to the market. Glad he gets a shot. In my book, I see his PEDs purely from the injury prevention/recovery/maintenance angle. He passed them all w/ the Yanks and the 2nd came after his 'run hard to 1B, then land on IL a bunch' 2019 year...
An image to immortalize: perhaps tech savvy fans can assemble?
The (star) Soto of the over the top slide step glare at pitchers after EVERY ball pitched to him, squirming at the feet of the giant stone wall of Taijuan Walker, who looks down at him bemused and says:
— “relax dawg. You tough. Don’t whine on camera;” or
—“easy hoss…you kick my sore knee and you be over as well as out;” or
—“hey, I look different from down there without the bat?”
It was hilarious to watch. Soto (legit star, total respect) is tough, but tangling with giant Taijuan never moved him physically, and Walker had the calm confidence of a powerful dude. Reminded me of the Instagram meme of a worked up German Shepard barking and approaching a relaxed Rotweiler. The Rot calmly moves his head slightly, no bark, doesn’t even stand, and the attitude alone sends the shepherd fleeing.
Priceless.
Is Seattle the last team to play their first game at CitiField? I did not realize they hadn't been to the NL side of NY in 14 years.
McCann caught Scherzer in his last start on Mother’s Day, this will not be his first time