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Mets make a slew of roster moves this afternoon.
The Mets did a bit of a roster shakeup this afternoon prior to tonight’s game against the Yankees as they are dealing with multiple injuries and a few new acquisitions. I’ll break it all down for you below. Continue reading
Lineups: Yankees vs. Mets 7:10 pm et.
New York Yankees (53-52):
1. Brett Gardner (L) LF
2. Jacoby Ellsbury (L) CF
3. Mark Teixeira (S) 1B
4. Brian McCann (L) C
5. Didi Gregorius (L) SS
6. Starlin Castro (R) 2B
7. Chase Headley (S) 3B
8. Aaron Hicks (S) RF
9. Masahiro Tanaka (R) P
SP: Masahiro Tanaka RHP (7-3, 3.16 ERA)
New York Mets (54-51):
1. Alejandro De Aza (L) CF
2. Neil Walker (S) 2B
3. Jay Bruce (L) RF
4. James Loney (L) 1B
5. Wilmer Flores (R) 3B
6. Michael Conforto (L) LF
7. Travis d’Arnaud (R) C
8. Matt Reynolds (R) SS
9. Jacob deGrom (L) P
SP: Jacob deGrom RHP (6-5, 2.56 ERA)
Tonight’s game can be seen on WPIX.
Lineups & Game Notes: Yankees vs. Mets 7:10 pm et.
New York Yankees (52-52):
1. Brett Gardner (L) LF
2. Jacoby Ellsbury (L) CF
3. Mark Teixeira (S) 1B
4. Brian McCann (L) C
5. Didi Gregorius (L) SS
6. Starlin Castro (R) 2B
7. Chase Headley (S) 3B
8. Rob Refsnyder (R) RF
9. CC Sabathia (L) P
SP: C.C. Sabathia LHP (6-8, 3.95 ERA)
New York Mets (54-50):
1. Curtis Granderson (L) RF
2. Justin Ruggiano (R) CF
3. Neil Walker (S) 2B
4. Wilmer Flores (R) 3B
5. Travis d’Arnaud (R) C
6. James Loney (L) 1B
7. Matt Reynolds (R) SS
8. Alejandro De Aza (L) LF
9. Logan Verrett (R) P
SP: Logan Verrett RHP (3-6, 4.12 ERA)
Tonight’s game can be seen on SNY and ESPN.
Game Notes:
METS-YANKEES NOTES: The Mets will play the Yankees four times (twice at Citi Field & twice at Yankee Stadium) starting tonight in Queens…The Mets went 2-4 vs. the Yankees last year, including going 1-2 at Citi Field…The Mets are 7-12 all-time vs. the Yankees at Citi Field and 23-29 all-time vs. the Bombers in Queens…The Mets are 8-6 vs. the Yankees since 2013… Bartolo Colon, Curtis Granderson, Tyler Clippard, and Kelly Johnson have played for both the Mets and Yankees.
MOVIN’ ON UP: Jeurys Familia’s save yesterday moved him into a fifth place tie on the club’s all-time save list with Tug McGraw with 86 saves…Familia also is already sixth on the team’s single- season save list with 37…John Franco (1998) is fifth on the list with 38 saves…Familia (2015) and Armando Benitez (2001) hold the franchise record with 43 saves.
INTERLEAGUE: New York is 6-4 vs. the American League this year (3-1 vs. Kansas City, 2-1 vs. Cleveland and 1-2 vs. the White Sox)…Since 1997, when Interleague play began, the Mets are 172-160 (.518)…The .518 winning percentage in Interleague play is the best all-time among NL clubs.
HOLDING RECORDS: Addison Reed has tossed a career-high 16.1 scoreless innings, while allowing six hits and striking out 25, since June 25…It is the fifth-longest current streak in the majors…Reed went 15.1 scoreless frames from May 4-June 8 earlier this year…He is second in the majors and has tied the single-season franchise record for holds with 26 with Aaron Heilman (2006).
VERRETT VS. YANKEES: Logan Verrett has never faced the Yankees…in his three home starts this season, he is 0-1 with a 3.66 ERA and has struck out 16 and walked 10.
METS VS. SABATHIA: In seven career starts against the Mets C.C. Sabathia holds a 4-2 record with a 3.22 ERA and has struck out 35 and walked 10 in 44.2 innings pitched… At Citi Field he holds a career 2-1 record in 4 starts with a 3.04 ERA in 23.2 innings pitched…Notable numbers against Sabathia are provided below…
- Wilmer Flores: .500 (1-2), 1 RBI
- Kelly Johnson: .333 (5-15), 5 K
- James Loney: .217 (5-23), 1 HR, 3 RBI
- Yoenis Cespedes: .143 (2-14), 1 2B, 1 RBI
- Justin Ruggiano: .125 (1-8), 1 BB, 3 K
Alejandro De Aza: .100 (1-10), 3 K - Rene Rivera: .000 (0-3), 1 K
- Travis d’Arnaud: .000 (0-2), 1 BB, 1 K
Mets reacquire Jon Niese
The New York Mets reacquired left-handed pitcher Jon Niese from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for left-handed reliever Antonio Bastardo.
You could look at this trade as a swapping of two players who weren’t exactly fitting in on their new teams. Niese has struggled in his first season with the Pirates, so much so his General Manager publicly regretted the acquisition of Niese and he was regulated to the bullpen. Niese’s ERA had ballooned all the way to 5.13 in 18 starts for the Pirates, and since his move to the bullpen he has only allowed 2 earned runs in 8.1 innings, which equates to a 2.16 ERA. Niese pitched well in the bullpen for the Mets during the postseason last season, and I wouldn’t be opposed to using him out of the pen. I think Logan Verrett has pitched well in the fifth spot and shouldn’t be sent to the bullpen unless something drastic happens over his next couple of starts.
Bastardo has flat out struggled during his tenure with the Mets this season. Bastardo signed a two-year $12 million deal in the offseason with the Mets after a dominant season with the Pittsburgh Pirates last season. Expected to be a weapon out of the Mets bullpen, Bastardo severely underperformed dating all the way back to Spring Training when he was constantly getting lit up by the opposition. The 30-year old reliever will go back to Pittsburgh with a 4.74 ERA in 43.2 innings pitched this season.
Mets acquire Jay Bruce
According to multiple reports the New York Mets have acquired outfielder Jay Bruce from the Cincinnati Reds for second baseman Dilson Herrera and left-handed pitcher Max Wotell.
While the fit may seem odd considering the Mets are crowded at the outfield corners, the Mets need as much offense as they can get right now. Bruce provides the Mets a solid power threat in their lineup and also provides Yoenis Cespedes with protection, something he hasn’t had all season. We have seen the kind of player Cespedes can be when he has protection behind him, and I look at this deal as a great pickup for the Mets as they didn’t give up too much to get him. Speaking of protection again, the trade also provides the Mets protection if Yoenis Cespedes needs to spend time on the disabled list with his quad injury that hasn’t improved, or if he decides to walk in the offseason. The Mets will hold a $13 million option on Bruce for next season.
The Mets are clearly gunning for the postseason with this trade as they sit 2.5 games back of the Wild Card and 6.5 games behind the Nationals in the NL East. The Mets have the pitching to make a run at either postseason spot, but it was just a matter of them finding some offense to help them get there which was the problem last year entering the deadline. The 29-year old Bruce is having one of the best seasons of his career as he is hitting .265 with 25 home runs and an NL leading 80 RBI’s in 97 games played this season. Bruce also hits with men on base, something the Mets can’t do, as he is hitting .360 with runners in scoring position with 8 home runs and 52 RBI’s. He provides the Mets with that big power threat they have missed since Lucas Duda has been on the shelf.
Terry Collins will most likely play Michael Conforto and Curtis Granderson in center field for the rest of the season, while having both Bruce and Cespedes taking over the corners. The Mets can afford to sacrifice defense for offense in this scenario as they clearly have been historically bad with the bats this season.
The Mets were able to keep both Amed Rosario and Conforto, who were two players that many teams are high on and have certainly asked for. It was certainly hard to swallow that the Mets traded Dilson Herrera as he was considered the second baseman of the future and slated to start for the Mets as early as next season. The other piece in the deal, Max Wotell is ranked as the Mets 16th prospect by MLB.com. The 19-year old lefty was pitching for the Rookie League Kingsport Mets, and was the Mets third round pick in the 2015 MLB Draft.
The Mets also tried working out a deal for Jay Bruce last season in exchange for Zack Wheeler, but the Reds eventually wanted more and the Mets wound up with Cespedes. Interesting what a difference a year makes.
Zack Wheeler to face live batters today.
The day is finally here Mets fans! We have been patiently waiting for Zack Wheeler to face live hitters since June, and I’m sure Wheeler has been just as antsy to begin facing hitters as well. Today marks the first time Wheeler will face live hitting since undergoing Tommy John surgery back in March of last year.
Hopefully Wheeler can begin a rehab assignment within the next week, and if he does that would place him back in the Mets rotation at the beginning of September. You would expect the Mets to give Wheeler the full 30 days to get back into form and he could provide a boost to the Mets rotation down the stretch. Barring a trade, Logan Verrett will continue to occupy the fifth spot in the Mets rotation until Wheeler is ready.
(*UPDATE: 11:34 am): Wheeler threw a successful session as he reported no problems and seemed to be hitting 90-93 mph according to the New York Post’s Joel Sherman. He will probably throw again sometime this week and then be sent on a rehab assignment barring any sort of setback.
(*UPDATE: 6:19 pm): Wheeler will begin his rehab assignment this Saturday.
Things to know: Yankees vs. Mets
The Mets and Yankees kick off their four-game series tonight, and I have provided a preview of the upcoming series below. Continue reading
Mets Weekend Recap
Not much went right for the Mets this weekend on the field against the Colorado Rockies, but they did bounce back in a big way on Sunday. Continue reading
Lucroy trade rumors buzzing.
MLB Insider Ken Rosenthal reported earlier today that the Mets offered the Brewers a package of three players which, includes Travis d’Arnaud and perhaps Brandon Nimmo or a player of his caliber for catcher Jonathan Lucroy.
Right now there is no word if the Brewers have any interest in the Mets offer or if the two clubs are continuing to negotiate a deal. However in another interesting development Jonathan Lucroy is not in the Brewers starting lineup tonight against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
It could be a possible sign that Lucroy is close to being on the move, and the Mets have been one of the most aggressive team’s pursuing Lucroy. The All-Star catcher isn’t injured and he had a day-off two day’s ago which makes this all the more interesting. Stay tuned.
Juan Lagares to DL. Brandon Nimmo recalled.
The Mets have promoted outfielder Brandon Nimmo from Triple-A Las Vegas to replace the injured Juan Lagares on the active roster who was placed on the DL prior to tonight’s game.
Lagares has been playing with a partially torn left thumb he suffered on June 4th in Miami on a diving catch, and the injury has been affecting his play. The 27-year old outfielder has hit just .185 since the All Star Break. Lagares has already been placed on the disabled list once for this same injury and he came back on July 2nd to try and play through it instead of opting for surgery. Lagares has opted to undergo surgery and will be sidelined for six weeks. It’s too early to tell at this point but we may have seen the last of Lagares for the remainder of the season.
Nimmo was demoted for outfielder Michael Conforto back on July 18th, but finds himself back up with the ballclub a week and a half later. The 23-year old outfielder had hit .235 in 51 at-bats with the Mets during his first short stint, but he had continued hitting down in Las Vegas. Over his last four games he was hitting .467, with a home run and three RBI’s. Nimmo also had been playing center field regularly since his demotion. Both Nimmo and Conforto are both expected to get time in center field, as manager Terry Collins has expressed a desire to keep Yoenis Cespedes in left field.
Above The Mendoza 