Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Best Trades in Mets History

In honor of the trade deadline today, here are the best trades in the history of the New York Mets:

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Post-Free Agency NBA Projections

Atlantic Central Southeast
Brooklyn 62-20 Indiana 52-30 Miami 64-18
New York 45-37 Chicago 46-36 Atlanta 44-38
Toronto 42-40 Cleveland 39-43 Washington 32-50
Boston 32-50 Milwaukee 34-48 Charlotte 25-57
Philadelphia 23-59 Detroit 30-52 Orlando 22-60
Southwest Northwest Pacific
Memphis 63-39 Oklahoma City 63-39 LA Clippers 63-39
San Antonio 59-23 Denver 58-24 Golden State 46-36
Houston 51-31 Portland 37-45 Sacramento 37-45
Dallas 42-40 Minnesota 29-53 LA Lakers 33-49
New Orleans 32-50 Utah 21-61 Phoenix 33-49

Sunday, July 21, 2013

The Future of the Mets (Or, Why they Need to Trade Marlon Byrd)

The New York Mets have a very bright future, one built around their starting pitching. Matt Harvey has already established himself as one of the best pitchers in baseball. Zack Wheeler, although wild at times, has shown the potential to be a solid number two starter behind Harvey. Jon Niese is locked up for the next five years, and once Santana is officially off the books will be by far the best lefty in the organization. Noah Syndergaard, acquired in the R.A. Dickey trade, is only 20 and already pitching well in AA. Hypothetically, these four could make up the rotation for years to come. The fifth rotation spot could then be filled by any one of a number of pitchers. Dillon Gee and Jeremy Hefner have shown flashes of brilliance this season, and both are only 27. Jeurys Familia and Jenrry Mejia, while both on the DL, are each 23 and have some major league experience in recent years. In essence, the Mets have eight starters to turn to, and, with the exception of Gee, all are under team control through 2018.

Saturday, July 20, 2013

Bret Saberhagen: Greg Maddux with Injuries

To most, Bret Saberhagen was a "very good" pitcher. He had a lifetime record of 167-117, and struck out 1715 batters in 2562 2/3 innings. He won Cy Young Awards in both 1985 and 1989, a World Series MVP with the Royals in 1985, the SN Comeback Player of the Year in 1987 and 1998, and pitched a no-hitter in 1991. He is arguably the greatest pitcher in the history of the Kansas City Royals, and also had good seasons with the Mets in 1994 and with Boston in the late '90s. Despite these accomplishments, however, most people would not consider him to be close to the Hall of Fame, mostly due to his relatively low career totals. The BBWAA voters agreed, as he received just 1.3% of the vote in 2007, and as a result dropped off the ballot in his first year. Read on to learn more about Saberhagen's career.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

First-Half Silver Slugger Awards

American League

C: Joe Mauer, MIN
1B: Chris Davis, BAL
2B: Robinson Cano, NYY
SS: Jed Lowrie, OAK
3B: Miguel Cabrera, DET
OF: Mike Trout, LAA
OF: Jose Bautista, TOR
OF: Adam Jones, BAL
DH: David Ortiz, BOS

National League

C: Buster Posey, SFG
1B: Paul Goldschmidt, ARI
2B: Matt Carpenter, STL
SS: Troy Tulowitzki, COL
3B: David Wright, NYM
OF: Carlos Gonzalez, COL
OF: Shin-Soo Choo, CIN
OF: Michael Cuddyer, COL
P: Zack Greinke, LAD

First-Half Gold Glove Awards

American League

C: Joe Mauer, MIN
1B: Mike Napoli, BOS
2B: Dustin Pedroia, BOS
SS: Pedro Florimon, MIN
3B: Manny Machado, BAL
OF: Lorenzo Cain, KCR
OF: Josh Reddick, OAK
OF: Shane Victorino, BOS
P: R.A. Dickey, TOR

National League

C: Russell Martin, PIT
1B: Paul Goldschmidt, ARI
2B: Darwin Barney, CHC
SS: Andrelton Simmons, ATL
3B: Nolan Arenado, COL
OF: Gerardo Parra, ARI
OF: Carlos Gomez, MIL
OF: Starling Marte, PIT
P: Kyle Kendrick, PHI

First-Half MLB Awards

American League

MVP: Miguel Cabrera, DET
Cy Young: Felix Hernandez, SEA
Rookie of the Year: Jose Iglesias, BOS
Manager of the Year: John Farrell, BOS
Comeback Player of the Year: John Lackey, BOS
Hank Aaron Award: Chris Davis, BAL

National League

MVP: Paul Goldschmidt, ARI
Cy Young: Clayton Kershaw, LAD
Rookie of the Year: Yasiel Puig, LAD
Manager of the Year: Clint Hurdle, PIT
Comeback Player of the Year: Adam Wainwright, STL
Hank Aaron Award: Carlos Gonzalez, COL

Saturday, July 6, 2013

2013 National League WAR-Stars

C: Yadier Molina, STL; Buster Posey, SFG; Russell Martin, PIT
1B: Paul Goldschmidt, ARI; Joey Votto, CIN
2B: Matt Carpenter, STL; Chase Utley, PHI
SS: Troy Tulowitzki, COL; Jean Segura, MIL; Everth Cabrera, SDP;
       Andrelton Simmons, ATL; Ian Desmond, WSN
3B: David Wright, NYM; Nolan Arenado, COL
OF: Carlos Gomez, MIL; Andrew McCutchen, PIT; Carlos Gonzalez, COL;
      Starling Marte, PIT; Gerardo Parra, ARI; Domonic Brown, PHI
SP: Clayton Kershaw, LAD: Adam Wainwright, STL; Cliff Lee, PHI;
      Matt Harvey, NYM; Jorge De La Rosa, COL; Jordan Zimmermann, WSN;
      Travis Wood, CHC; Jose Fernandez, MIA; Jhoulys Chacin, COL;
      Patrick Corbin, ARI; Jeff Locke, PIT
RP: Rex Brothers, COL; Mark Melancon, PIT; Craig Kimbrel, ATL

2013 American League WAR-Stars

C: Joe Mauer, MIN; Jason Castro, HOU
1B: Chris Davis, BAL; Eric Hosmer, KCR
2B: Dustin Pedroia, BOS; Robinson Cano, NYY;
      Jason Kipnis, CLE; Howie Kendrick, LAA
SS: Jhonny Peralta, DET; J.J. Hardy, BAL
3B: Manny Machado, BAL; Miguel Cabrera, DET; Josh Donaldson, OAK;
      Evan Longoria, TBR; Kyle Seager, SEA
OF: Mike Trout, LAA; Jose Bautista, TOR; Jacoby Ellsbury, BOS;
      Brett Gardner, NYY; Leonys Martin, TEX; Shane Victorino, BOS
DH: David Ortiz, BOS
SP: Chris Sale, CHW; Clay Buchholz, BOS; Hisashi Iwakuma, SEA;
      Felix Hernandez, SEA; Max Scherzer, DET; Yu Darvish, TEX;
      Bartolo Colon, OAK; Bud Norris, HOU; Derek Holland, TEX
RP: Jesse Crain, CHW; Joe Nathan, TEX; Tanner Scheppers, TEX

Thursday, July 4, 2013

My 2013 MLB All-Star Ballot

American League

C: Joe Mauer - .316/.399/.474 (Still the class of the American League)
1B: Chris Davis - .331/.406/.731 (If he passes 61, will he be considered the legitimate HR king?)
2B: Jason Kipnis - .301/.386/.539 (Quietly has numbers as good as Cano and Pedroia)
SS: Jhonny Peralta - .308/.368/.451 (Returning to form after a down 2012)
3B: Miguel Cabrera - .364/.454/.670 (Unquestionably the best hitter in the game)
OF: Mike Trout - .315/.390/.540 (No sophomore slump for this 21-year old)
OF: Jose Bautista - .264/.364/.512 (Starting to heat up, as he is 10 for his last 17)
OF: Coco Crisp - .273/.361/.449 (Looking to make his first ASG appearance)
DH: David Ortiz - .317/.407/.602 (Is continuing an incredible run despite age and injuries)

National League

C: Buster Posey - .312/.360/.526 (Is leading the NL in OPS+ for the second straight year)
1B: Joey Votto - .323/.432/.511 (Fourth straight year leading NL in OBP)
2B: Matt Carpenter - .324/.397/.495 (Basically has come out of nowhere this year)
SS: Troy Tulowitzki - .347/.413/.635 (Yes he's injured, but is anyone really better?)
3B: David Wright - .308/.393/.530 (The Captain of everything: the Mets, the Derby team, and America!)
OF: Carlos Gomez - .308/.348/.553 (Has done pretty much everything for the Brewers this year)
OF: Carlos Gonzalez - .294/.363/.604 (The other CarGo leads the NL in runs, HR, and total bases)
OF: Andrew McCutchen - .300/.371/.472 (Started slow but, like the Pirates, has really gotten hot)