Great vid of the boys playing some football...really nice arm on Ike!Thanks sonny for that nice touch to end the season. Speaking of Ike, proud of how he responded after the poor start and all that Valley Fever stuff. 32 homers, 90 RBI is a great finish and hopefully any talk of trading Ike is just ridiculous talk now. Whatever doubts about Ike's ability to drive the ball out of the park and knock in runs he just demolished. You don't just see that kind of power anywhere and even Sandy Alderson has indicated he won't trade Ike unless he gets a compensatory bat of that impact back....and Ike will be 26 and is under the club's control for four more years til free agency so I just don't see him going anywhere. He's a great guy, team oriented and great with the community and I don't ever want to hear talk about his so called partying or "uncoachability" ever again. You build clubs around talents like Ike....not give up on him. He's got the temerament and approach to play well in this city......the game where all the stuff was being talked about in the papers he responded not by shrinking but smacking two solid hits. We love Ike and hope he will give Mets fans thrills for years to come!
Proud of Daniel Murphy,too...over .290 with forty doubles,65 RBI and the best thing was how steady he was becoming defensively.I know you still have a wquibble or two about his occasional habits with the double play but he really turned some gems and showed instincts and range. My only thing was his erratic streak s with the bat,much more up and down at the plate than usual. I hope gets the chance to build on that, not get traded unless it was for a key piece the club doesn't have yet. Like you though sonny, know it's a business.
Ruben Tejada showed a lot this year,hitting .289 and showing the ability to handle the bat as well as superb defense at shortstop. As he gets older he'll get a bit stronger and drive the ball more but he'll be a plus offensively even if he doesn't have the explosiveness on the basepaths as his predecessor Jose Reyes.
David Wright was amazing in the first half,carried the club but it's so hard to maintain that pace all year. Still finished with a .306 average,21 homers,93 RBI, and broke Ed Kranepool's Met all time hit record of 1,418 finishing with 1,426. Defensively was Gold Glove caliber all season and definitely has to be extended. Around six or seven years between 120-130 milllion should do it. Mets supposedly are starting around $100 mil but definitely room to go up from there. Reading that the Mets would like to get David signed by the World Series,and hope that talks progress quickly and without snags.
Many question marks for the outfield.... Scott Hairston a plus with timely hitting and 20 home runs in part time action but is he good enough defensively to commit significant money for the next two or three years? Lucas Duda has to show that swing from his first year that resulted in a .290 average...he was so lost the second half but did come back with some nice home runs late. He's such a good natural hitter he shouldn't struggle like that. He's strong enough he'll hit a good number of homers without trying. Jason Bay....well,enough said. Great teammate and character,plays defense and plays hard but has been one of the biggest signing disasters ever not only in Met history but baseball history. Kirk Nieuwenhuis hopefullly gets a shot again too...got injured but after a solid first couple of months just gave up too many at bats with strikeouts and weak swings after that. Plays hard, with passion and is a plus defensively and on the bases. He has to get it together at the plate though to have a role even as a regular platoon guy. Mike Baxter....another possibility who plays a solid outfield and a sweet swing, but occasionally strkes out too much. Jordany Valdespin...another athletic type with power,speed and passion. Hopefully the Mets can get a relatively inexpensive but solid bat and presence the trade or free agent route.
Josh Thole has to improve at the plate....Mets cannot afford a .240, no power presence with all their offensive difficulties. Glad he's going to work hard back home to revive his hitting approach but there is a lot of work needed if Josh is ever going to remain at least a platoon player behind the plate.
Our relief needs work...who knows what we will get out of the current crop of guys on a consistent basis so we may need more outside help here.Still want to hold on to Bobby Parnell but only as a regular seventh or eighth inning guy, not a regular closer.
Our starting rotation can be a great strength especially getting back Johann Santana healthy and rested after the nagging injuries and the possibility of fatigue from pitching too many innings early on(topped off by his 134 pitch no hitter June 1)set him back and eventually out of the rotation the last couple of months.
Gotta sign RA Dickey. What a competitor,what a story, what a person. Just so happy for him going 20-6 with a 2.73 ERA,over 230 strikeouts and revolutionizing the knuckleball. Two or three years is reasonable...gotta reward him for going above and beyond expectations. Remaking himself as a pitcher in his mid 30's...then goingfrom a solid rotation piece to Cy Young contender......remarkable achievement. Jon Niese has grown into a dependable #3 type at least....13-9 with a 3.40 ERA showed the Mets were right to give him a five year extension. Matt Harvey with an incredible start with one of the lowest ERAs in the history of Met rookies, great power arm with poise,dedication and talent who wants to be excellent and not settle for good. When he gains command of his secondary pitches and location of his fastball he will be a monster. Dillon Gee is coming back and was showing solid progress and Jeremy Hefner after several poor atarts ended the season with back to back strong effforts. With Zack Wheeler, Jennry Mejia, Jeurys Familia and others on the horizon our rotation can be deep and strong in the near future.
Can't wait for sonny's Hot Stove thread and want to thank him, syam and everyone else for their passion and contribution. The Mets WILL be "amazin" again real soon!
