I Keep Coming Back

I became a Mets fan in 2005.  Before then, they were just that other New York baseball team.  I could've been a Yankees fan, heck for the first 10 years of my life Mike Piazza was the only Met I really knew much about.  Edgardo Alfonzo was the guy whose last name was Alfonso Soriano's first name.  I saw Nick Johnson and Chuck Knoblauch more than Benny Agbayani and Robin Ventura.

But in 2005 that changed.  It changed with David Wright and Cliff Floyd.  I just saw David Wright make that barehanded catch and I didn't care about the team record or the ERA of the pitchers.  I just wanted to see Wright and Mike Jacobs and Jose Reyes.  2005 was the first year I enjoyed watching baseball game after baseball game on TV.  Somehow that year I finally understood simple concepts such as the difference between the top and bottom of an inning and what the designated hitter actually means.

The Mets just seemed to mean more to me than their crosstown rivals.  The great thing about being a die-hard fan is that there's never really an explanation for the obsession.  There's a reason for the initial interest but the full-blown addiction just kinda happens.  That infatuation is why die-hard fans will enjoy next season no matter what happens.

I have come back to the Mets every year since 2005.  I have seen them dominate in 2006 and crash and burn in 2007 and 2008.  Yet none of that stopped me from watching and rooting the next year.  It didn't stop any of the other die-hard fans.  This group of fans found a way to root for the backup backup backup 2nd baseman in 2009.  This group of fans will find players to fall in love with in 2013.

I'm going to root for David Wright next year, contract extension or no contract extension.  I'm going to enjoy every inning he plays as a New York Met because he's the only player left from that 2005 season.  He's the first Met that I called my favorite player, the last Met left from the 2006 playoffs.  I'm going to watch Kirk Nieuwenhuis, Ruben Tejada, and Ike Davis grow into the future and cheer for every win because it's all another piece of the puzzle.

In 2013 I'm going to watch as many Mets games as possible simply because they're the Mets.  They're the team with Gary, Keith, and Ron in the booth and Kevin Burkhardt sitting somewhere in the stands. They're the team that is perpetually the underdog no matter how many runs they score or strikeouts their pitchers get.

There is no simple explanation.  There isn't really a complicated explanation either.  But I'm going to come back next year and the year after that and the year after that.

I guess it's just because they're the Mets.

Let's Go Mets!

I'm So Frustrated I Can't Think Of A Proper Title

Wright declined comment when contacted. Said it's been "important to me from the beginning that these negotiations remain confidential."
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) November 28, 2012

Just today it has looked like the Mets were never going to sign David Wright, to a deal looking somewhat almost possibly imminent, and back to talks to moving slowly and no deal being anywhere close.  This is perhaps one of the most frustrating things about loving and following a New York sports team.  There are so many newspapers and so many beat writers and so many people that want to know everything about every move that it's impossible to let anything just play out.

The part of me that dreams about being a writer wants to know everything about the negotiations.  What the Mets are thinking, what David Wright and his agents are thinking, why the Mets haven't just given him a blank check, who's leaking the information, is there more information that's not being reported, just how far are the sides from making a deal.

But there's another part of me that doesn't want to know anything.  If it weren't for the media leaking details of supposed contract offers there wouldn't be any reason to deny those offers.  Both sides should be able to negotiate without worrying about the media.  The fans shouldn't have to decide which reports to believe.  I'm sick of seeing fans and the media speculate the terms of the contract and when it's going to be done.

Nobody looks good when a player denies getting the reported offer.  People are forced to choose if they want to believe the news source or the beloved player.  If they don't believe the reporter then how will they get their precious news and rumors that fuel their irrationally critical rants?  But if they don't believe the face of the franchise they can't possibly be taken seriously as dedicated fans, can they?

. . . I'm getting off topic. . .

The David Wright situation seems to have just gotten so far past any hope of a happy medium of information and optimism for me.  I don't want to believe any reports because I don't want to see any reports.  Yet, I know I should try to take the reports seriously because I want to be the one on the other side of them at some point.

The writers are just doing their jobs.  I wish I could be the one writing about those offers.  But they're the very thing I detest reading as a fan.  It's frustrating and it's just one of many obstacles between the life of a fan and a professional.

Sigh.

Let's Go Mets!

In Which I Make Mike Pelfrey Relevant

Mike Pelfrey last threw a pitch on April 21.  That day he threw 102 pitches in eight innings and only gave up one run.  Shortly after he had Tommy John surgery and spent the rest of the season healing and preparing to pitch in 2013.  Right now he is a Met.  By the end of the month he will be a free agent.  The combination of his inconsistency on the mound, major surgery, and having Scott Boras as his agent work against the Mets giving him another chance.  But offering him a minor league contract might not be the end of the world.

Pelfrey will turn 29 in January, already younger than some of the low-risk signings they've made for previous seasons.  He only knows this organization, and he has only had a real issue with Rick Peterson who has been gone for quite a while.  And perhaps the biggest point, he actually looked pretty good before the surgery.  His two other starts this season saw him throw 6 innings and give up 1 run and 5.2 innings while giving up 3 runs.  In his shortest outing he had 8 strikeouts.

Statistics of three starts aren't nearly enough to look at though.  The 2008 season proved that he isn't always able to carry success.  But this season showed me the first signs of a desire to improve, even if it meant rebuilding his approach.  Rick Peterson forced Pelfrey to change his entire approach to pitching and now, more than a few years later, that can be connected to his downfall.  He used to be able to blow batters away with his sinking fastball and fool batters with his curveball.  He turned into a pitcher with a decent, but not overwhelming, fastball, inconsistent change-up, and sinker.

It would be an understatement to say he experienced growing pains.  People expected him to be a ground ball pitcher.  They saw his 6'7" frame and wanted him to fire his fastball past every batter.  His mechanics were largely inconsistent.  That is, they were inconsistent until this year.

It's hard to judge such a small sample size but I'm going to judge it anyway.  As opposed to last year and the year before that and the year before that, all seasons that his sinker didn't quite sink enough and his pitches flattened by the fifth inning, this season he finally made productive adjustments to his windup.  He worked on staying on top of his sinker, and in his limited innings he was able to make the adjustment.  He made a conscious effort to stand more upright on the mound.  Perhaps the most noticeable consistency in his windup was his addition of a reach over his head before throwing the pitch.

One thing that may be important to note with Pelfrey is that his success doesn't necessarily rely on strikeouts.  In 2008 and 2010, his two better seasons, he had 110 and 113 strikeouts, respectively.  But in 2009 and 2011, two of his much more trying seasons, he had 107 and 105 strikeouts, respectively.

Comfort has been essential to any possibility of success throughout Pelfrey's career.  He will probably get offers from other teams, and he has every right to consider each offer as deeply as he wants.  But I can't imagine him getting many offers of Major League contracts.  The Mets have nothing to lose by offering him a minor league contract with an invite to Spring Training.  There is no such thing as too much pitching depth.  Heck, maybe he'll shock the world and become a valuable relief pitcher.  They'll never know if they don't try.

Let's Go Mets!

Stuffing For The Mind

I'm still in somewhat of a food coma and combining that with the lack of a hockey season and the fact that I'm watching a concert of The Fray on TV, puts me in a weird place. But The Fray isn't totally irrelevant to my history with the Mets and hearing How To Save A Life reminds me of that.

I first fell completely in love with the Mets in 2006. I was only 12 years old and I spent a lot of time on the computer (some things never change I guess). I watched most Mets games on TV but I also followed a decent number of games on GameDay as I listened to music. However, I only listened to one playlist which I'm pretty sure was named 'MeTs GaMeS' or something similar.

This playlist was special. One might think it would have only baseball related songs since it was saved for baseball games. It did have Centerfield by John Fogerty as well as And We Say ... Let's Go Mets! (which I still know all the words too). But it also had How To Save A Life, It Ends Tonight, Slide, and so many other songs.

Those songs were part of my first full season with the Mets. When I hear them I still think of the nights I spent watching GameDay. It was with me that entire season, including when I became uber-emo preteen and listened to It Ends Tonight after game 7 of the NLCS.

Unfortunately 12 year old me didn't think I'd ever care about the original playlist and kept adding songs to it until it essentially contained my entire music library. I wish I knew the original songs on it. If only so I could relive some of the magic of that season again.

I guess I'll just sit here in my turkey-induced haze and file that under my first world problems.

I hope everybody enjoyed their Thanksgiving. I'm not really sure how this post relates to Thanksgiving but just consider it a little extra stuffing. In a year or two I'll probably regret letting saying of this, the way people regret eating so much stuffing for the month and a half after Thanksgiving.

Let's Go Mets!

A Lesson For The Mets

This has been quite a busy week for baseball. From the announcements of the major award winners to trades and signings, the offseason quickly started to take shape. One of those trades was the huge blockbuster between the Marlins and Blue Jays.

Among those dealt by the Marlins were Mark Buehrle and Jose Reyes. They both signed big contracts with Miami just last year and according to reports they also both received verbal no-trade agreements. The Marlins have many issues in their front office, among them is their refusal to include such no-trade clauses in contracts. Combine that with their constant dumping of any big name player they ever have and you've created an environment nobody is going to want to play in.

Baseball has reached an era where players are looking for job security as much as they are looking for money. Every free agent wants a multiyear deal so they know where they will be spending the next 3-7 years of their life. What the Marlins have done, and what the Mets must not do, is make a habit of making those long-term commitments mean absolutely nothing.

There is a difference between trading Carlos Beltran in the last year of his contract and trading David Wright because you don't want to give him one. It's not the same when a player has had that sense of security from one team for almost 10 years and then it's disregarded. If the Mets can't even lock up their biggest homegrown player since the 1080s then why should any free agent feel secure in this organization?

This also speaks to R.A. Dickey's situation. You'd think winning the Cy Young award would guarantee a return, and it certainly works in the favor of his return, but it does not guarantee it. The Mets have seen what happens when they focus on veterans and it includes uneven play and late-season collapses. Howeve, they have also seen the never ending cycle of rebuild take a toll on the fanbase. R.A. Dickey is an important piece in finding the balance between the two.

Garnering trust from other players is important for any organization. Any group of players with partial no-trade clauses lets you know which teams are respected and which are unappealing. The Mets play in New York. They should be appealing to almost any young player. The same logic should put Miami as an appealing spot for those players. But there's something else that makes me think we'll be seeing a lot more players put the Marlins on their no-trade lists.

Whether Wright and Dickey have contract extensions by the Winter Meetings or jot, the Mets have to think about what trading them would mean. Not just to the on-field results, but to the organization as a whole.

Let's Go Mets!

Happy Birthday Xavier!

Xavier Nady just got his second World Series ring, this time with the San Francisco Giants.  He didn't get much playing time in the playoffs but he still got to enjoy the journey.  Today he turns 34 years old.

Happy birthday Xavier!

My Favorite Quote

"I want to thank the BBWAA for this prestigious award. I owe so much to my teammates for their support during the year, especially Josh Thole and Mike Nickeas, who did such a great job behind the plate all season."

R.A. Dickey deserves mounds of credit and congratulations for his Cy Young award.  All of his quotes are eloquent, as he is one of most well-spoken people around baseball, but this one was my favorite.  He never forgets anyone, not even his catchers.  I love seeing the "backstops" get recognition.  After all, their nickname shows just how much of an afterthought they once were.

Thank you, R.A. Dickey, for bringing some joy to a trying season.  And thank you for acknowledging everyone who helped you along the way.

Let's Go Mets!

It Can Wait

I had something to write about for today.  Keyword: had.  Then the Marlins decided to blow up their franchise again and everything else in the baseball world became irrelevant.

Hey Mets fans!  The good news is the Mets aren't the worst run organization in Major League Baseball!  That's something to celebrate!

Let's Go Mets!

Something Else About Patience And Trades

One of the biggest problems with the last front office regime was that they didn't seem to have a plan, and when they did have a plan they didn't stick to it.  Sandy Alderson and his staff have a plan and all accounts show they are sticking to it.  Their plan has never been to go all in or "win now."  It has been to rebuild and develop through their own system.  That was always going to take multiple seasons.  It's not fair to criticize them for wanting to stick to that.

The last front office fell into the trap of being in New York and seemingly went after every player that had ever been considered a semi-big name.  That front office failed miserably because that doesn't work.  Alderson inherited a mess that couldn't just magically be cleaned up.  He quickly moved past the big market pressures of New York.  "Win now" was never something he was putting on this organization.

So using the reasoning of "win now" to keep R.A. Dickey shows ignorance of this regime's strategy.  It doesn't make sense to go into every season thinking they'll reevaluate every offseason trade chip once they know if they're contenders.  If they were to do that they would never get any valuable assets in any trade.

This front office has done little to lose respect and faith of the fanbase.  If you have lost respect of it, and your reasoning is that they're not trying to win immediately I don't want to hear it.  All that tells me is that you weren't listening from the start.

You Could Go Either Way

A team usually doesn't think of trading a Cy Young Award-caliber pitcher.  Usually if a team has such a player they are looking to lock that player up for the rest of their career.  However, it also isn't a common occurrence that such a pitcher is a 38 year old knuckleballer.

R.A. Dickey proved himself this year.  Throwing a pitch so many have questioned and doubted, he had a season for the history books.  He has earned trust and respect from any organization he pitches for.  But is it too late for him to get a big contract?  Reports say he wants a five year deal.  Even without discussing money that's too much.  Even the best athletes break down in their forties and that deal would take him to age 43.  I wouldn't want to see the Mets go farther than three years on any contract for him.  If he is still pitching well at age 41 they can reevaluate.

Or they could go an entirely different route and look to trade him.  If you had asked me in September about an R.A. Dickey trade I would've wanted to throw a brick at you.  But think about where he is in his career and where the Mets are going.  They aren't looking to be contenders next season.  They also have a lot of holes to fill with not a lot of money.  So would trading him be the worst thing ever?  Probably not.  This would be the definition of 'selling high' on a player.  The Mets desperately need a catcher and right-handed outfielder and they could target at least one of those in such a deal.

The concept is simple.  Go the way that helps the team the most.  And that doesn't mean only looking towards 2013.  It means which way would make the Mets the better team in 2014, 2015, and however long his theoretical contract would extend.  Is it really going to be helpful to still be rotating catchers in 2014 but have a 40 year old throwing a knuckleball?

Simple problem, not such a simple solution.

I don't see how the Mets can lose with this situation.  I also don't think they are actively trying to trade him.  There is nothing wrong with putting him out there and seeing what they could get.  If there is a move that would bring them players to help the team, they should make it.

Let's Go Mets!

*Cut* *Save For Later*

And just like that he's back!  The Mets signed Mike Nickeas to a minor league deal and invited him to Major League Spring Training.

As for everything I said yesterday, I'll just save it for later I guess.  The longer it's saved the better.

As for bringing him back, I think it is a good move for the Mets.  He will be at Spring Training where he was so helpful this year with the other catchers and players this year.  He will also be in Las Vegas working with some of the best arms in the system.  Zack Wheeler, Darin Gorski, and Collin McHugh will all log innings there and the Mets have always shown they trust Mike with their best arms.

Mike has always seemed like a natural leader and a great teacher.  He is going to make an amazing coach when he's done playing.  Maybe the best part of this move is that he gets to play and teach at the same time.  If there was ever a player destined to be a manager one day, it's him.

Obviously I am beyond happy he is back.  He has always helped this organization even when he hasn't been on the Major League field.

Let's Go Mets!

le sigh

via flickr

Patience: It's A Virtue

Last offseason and the offseason before that I wrote about the Mets being a hole they had to dig their way out of.  I know at least once I said the next season or two wouldn't be the most fun to watch.  I said it is important to keep in mind that struggling for a few years is the first steps to success for years to come.

Yet, while the games are being played that concept is forgotten.  It is also forgotten when the next offseason comes around and the Mets aren't ready to spend on big free agents and completely overhaul the roster.  Last year it was understood that the Mets weren't going to make big moves.  People claimed to realize a level of patience was need with the organization.  But now that some of the patience has been spent, nobody seems willing to use any more.

Zack Wheeler was never going to be ready for the big leagues to start 2013.  Matt Harvey was a year ago, and still is now, a prospect.  Nobody knew if Ruben Tejada would turn into the answer at shortstop.  This year was just Ike Davis's first full Major League season.  The Lucas Duda outfield experiment was exactly that, an experiment which does not in any way assure success.  David Wright was essentially the only guarantee entering 2012.

In some ways the success of this year's team was a curse.  The hot start made it look like this team was a piece or two away from the playoffs.  R.A. Dickey's spectacular season and the early offensive outbursts were a surprise.  It was fun to watch but the success came well earlier than expected.  Jon Niese grew into a reliable starter, Bobby Parnell showed flashes of vast improvement, and veterans like Tim Byrdak and Jon Rauch had nice stretches.

But the fact is most of the team is really young.  Jason Bay, Johan Santana, R.A. Dickey, Frank Francisco, Manny Acosta, and Andres Torres are the only players age 30 or older on the current roster. For years all we wanted was for the team to get younger.  Now that it is we want immediate success.  Well, for one second think about that concept.  Does it really make sense for all these young players to click immediately?  A young team means growing pains, and it means all of those struggles will be happening at once.

The bright side is that once all these players struggle and learn, they will find success.  The even brighter side is they will still be young enough to keep growing.  The brightest side is that they have years of success ahead of them, and those years will be spent with the Mets.

The good thing about this season's early excitement is that is showed the potential of this team.  They just need a little bit more of your patience.  They will grow and play that way consistently.  It will just take time.

Let's Go Mets!

A Few More Words

I have this template open.  I'm ready to write endless words about my favorite player.  But I've already said everything that's running through my mind.  You all know how awesome he is in my book.  You all know I'd give anything for him to be on the Mets roster forever.  When it comes to any other player I can write about them realistically.  But when it's about Mike Nickeas, I revert to that excited 14 year old at Spring Training.

How can I not?  Mike Nickeas is the one who made my first minor league baseball game one I will never forget.  He is the one who sent me his cap because I wrote him a letter.  Mike Nickeas remembered me at my next Spring Training and every single game after that.

If it weren't for Mike Nickeas I wouldn't have gone to Fenway to see the Bisons this year.  I have said it countless times, and I'm going to say it again.  That day was the most exciting day of my life.

Mike Nickeas changed everything about my baseball and Mets fandom.  There were times I felt like I was only rooting for the Mets because he was on the roster.  When he was on the Bisons there were times I felt like more of a Bisons fan than a Mets fan.  It's funny to think a split-second at Spring Training could lead to so much.  He made being a Mets fan bearable because I knew, if there was nothing else, one of the players was an awesome human being.

I am never going to regret rooting for him.  For all the reasons I have already explained and for so many more I'll never explain on here.  But no amount of strikeouts are errors can erase any of the fun memories that came from his career with this organization.  I do know at one point he felt the same way.

There is so much more I have to say but I just can't find the words right now.  Maybe he'll end up back in the organization.  Maybe he'll end up in another organization.  I hate thinking he might not end up anywhere.

Whatever happens, it won't be the same.

I think I just need a hug.

Double Welp

Baseball America has every minor league free agent for every team listed.  Mike Nickeas is on that list.

. . .

*headdesk*

ALERT: @mets Lucas Duda breaks wrist moving furniture.
— SNY Assignment Desk (@SNY_Studio) November 6, 2012

I should be careful.  That *headdesk* probably gave me a concussion.

Welp

So many questions surrounding the Mets this offseason yet I'm going to be most concerned with this.  I'm not going to pretend I know what he's going to do.  Adam Rubin thinks it is Mike's choice to stay in the organization or elect free agency.  I guess I'll let things play out and hope for the best.

I obviously want him back with the Mets but I'd root for him if he was playing for a Single-A Padres affiliate.

Let's Go Mets!

Making Adjustments

The Mets AAA players aren't the only ones that have to get used to the Pacific Coast League.  The Mets affiliation with the Las Vegas 51s also means fans have to get used to following the new league.  There probably aren't that many fans worrying about being about to follow AAA baseball but that doesn't mean I'm not already thinking about it.

Today I looked at the 51s schedule for next season and was almost immediately faced with a problem I didn't even realize existed.  I had no idea what most of the schedule actually meant.  I wasn't used to these teams and the abbreviations used for them on the schedule.  All of a sudden COL wasn't for the Columbus Clippers, as it meant the Colorado Springs Sky Sox.  There was SLC and FRE and TUC.  The schedule also reinforced that watching these games is going to be a major pain when they mostly start at 10 PM on the east coast.

Then the little orange video camera icon caught my eye.  A new affiliation means new broadcasts and a new broadcast team.  Ben Wagner calls the games for the Bisons but he's not moving with the Mets.  I was lucky to find Wagner on twitter and he was nice enough to answer any questions I had about the team.  Now I have to find the 51s broadcasters and hope they're as accommodating.  And if they're not as open, I have to find somebody else who covers them.

But none of that is even the worst part about all of this.  Playing in the PCL means I won't be able to see this team in person.  There aren't any cities anywhere close to New York that they play in.  This year I got lucky with the Bisons playing at Fenway and last year I actually got to see the team in their own ballpark.  My family is neither old nor tacky enough to pick up and go to Vegas on a whim and there really isn't any reason to go the other cities.  Does Vanderbilt have an engineering school?  Does my brother want to see it?  When are the 51s going to Nashville?

Well, fortunately for the three of us following the 51s all season, the deal with the Mets is only for two years. In two years the Mets will try to get back in the International League and maybe some team closer to the western half of the United States will get the Vegas team.  If not, maybe some PCL team in the central time zone will be free and the Mets will be able to snatch them.

The next two seasons are going to be an adventure for the Mets and their minor league followers.  Hopefully the 51s won't play too many extra inning games.

Let's Go Mets!

The Captain In The Outfield

No, I don't mean the Mets should move David Wright to left field.  That title is referring to Captain Kirk, as in Nieuwenhuis.  With so many holes in the Mets lineup and such a tight budget the team has to find as many in-house fixes as possible.  Kirk Nieuwenhuis could be one of those if the Mets have him play centerfield to start the season.

He played over half a season in the big leagues this year before being sent back to AAA where a foot injury ultimately ended his season.  He hit .252 with 7 home runs in 91 games with the Mets.  Mediocre numbers that could be a lot worse if not for a hot start in the league.  The most startling number in Kirk's line is 98 strikeouts in those 91 games.  What's even more frightening, he didn't have any month where he had more games played than strikeouts.  In fact, he has only had two seasons, his first two in professional baseball, where he played more games than he had total strikeouts.  Obviously that is an issue, but David Wright, Ike Davis, and numerous other baseball players have fought through high-strikeout seasons and ultimately found success.

Let's look past the strikeouts for a second.  It isn't like he doesn't know how to hit.  In five minor league seasons he has an OPS of .817.  He has also hit as many as 43 doubles in a season.  His lowest batting average in a minor league season (excluding the 5 games he played with the Bisons this year) is .274.  The strikeouts are ugly but they're simply not the whole story of his offense.

But what about his defense?  One of the biggest problems early in the 2012 season was the rotating outfield and the lack of leadership in the outfield.  There was seemingly a different centerfielder every night which lead to confusion and a hesitance to take charge of the field.  However, Nieuwenhuis's presence changed that.  Balls stopped dropping between fielders because this centerfielder not only had the ability to cover a tremendous amount of ground, he used that ability on every play.  In an outfield that could have Jason Bay and Lucas Duda manning the corners, his aggressiveness would be more than welcomed.

Hopefully Kirk will come to Spring Training healthy, as he has suffered unfortunate injuries the last two years.  He can't work out the kinks if he can't play.  Kirk and Matt den Dekker have been the future of the outfield for a couple of years.  Kirk has always been ahead of den Dekker and still is, as Matt still hasn't found his way through all AAA pitching.  It's going to be hard to keep this future if Kirk doesn't stay healthy for a full season.  But once he does stay healthy he is going to make an impact.

Let's Go Mets!

He's Here To Stay

The Mets have already picked up David Wright's option for next season.  Their next and biggest step of the offseason is signing Wright to a long-term contract.  Wright has said he wants this contract to take him into retirement.  He is turning 30 in December so one would figure that means he's looking for around eight years in this deal.  At this point, David has pretty much earned the right to write his own check.  The Mets aren't going to go overboard but I also don't see them keeping their pockets tight.

The Mets first offer in these negotiations was reportedly 6 years, $100 million.  That doesn't make 7 years with an 8th year option, $120 million out of the question.

But let's look past the numbers for a second.  Last year with Jose Reyes there was seemingly a new rumor everyday.  There was also the fact that Reyes was a free agent.  The Mets had other teams to compete with and ultimately they just didn't want to fight.  This year the Mets are trying to keep Wright away from free agency.  They aren't going risk getting to the point they did with Reyes.

There also aren't the same rumors flying everywhere.  Some people may take the silence to mean the sides aren't even talking.  But to me it means the sides are talking and they are serious about getting this deal done.  Neither side is messing around and letting any information out, keeping the third voice, the media, out of the negotiations.  I would like to believe the next time we hear about David Wright's contract it will mean the terms are settled and he has a contract for as long as imaginable.

This will not be a repeat of Jose Reyes.  David Wright is the face of this franchise, and he was even when Reyes was here.  The Mets saw what happened when their 2nd star left.  The consequences of their top star leaving is something they won't get close to.  If there was ever a player the Wilpons need to open their wallet for, it's David.  He is the captain, official or not, and he is definitely not going anywhere.

Let's Go Mets!

Outrighted

The Mets announced that Mike Nickeas was outrighted off the 40-man roster and assigned to AAA Las Vegas.

I'm having trouble coming up with words for this.  For most people that sentence would be the news and that'd be that.  I can't just stop there, though.  I know 2012 was a disappointing season for Nickeas but I'm never going to believe that was his last chance.

He went down to AAA in the middle of the season and hit .364 over 22 games.  When he came back up in September he wasn't really given a chance to show if that hard work would carry over.  But nobody hits over .360 by accident.  He was driving the ball down the lines and in the gaps, hitting to all fields.  Maybe I was the only one paying enough attention to him to notice.  Hit hit 6 doubles in 66 at bats and hit .414 in his last ten games with the Bisons.  I refuse to believe that was just a hot streak.

I probably sound like an idiot for pointing out offensive statistics of a seemingly perpetually slumping hitter.  But if this September was his last shot at the big leagues then the Mets did it wrong.  His September call-up may have been a "pity" call-up but if anyone else put up those numbers they call-up would've been well earned.

The Mets fan in me is thrilled that Mike is still in the organization.  The Mike Nickeas fan in me is a bit gutted, though.  He deserves another chance and now that he's off the 40-man roster if it happens it probably won't be here.  Maybe this will be a good thing, as Las Vegas is a notorious hitters-park.  He may never become a consistent hitter, but he has shown he does have some ability.  That warrants some respect.

Mike Nickeas has been a Major League caliber defender since his first day in AA, and maybe he did find some offense over the summer.  I just hope I get a chance to see if he did.

My Writing Month

November is National Novel Writing Month (or NaNoWriMo in erm . . . short).  I love writing so you'd think participating would be a no-brainer.  However, having the time to complete that is just something I don't see happening.  So instead I'm going to make it my goal to write just as many words as one would write during NaNoWriMo but here, about the Mets.  (Okay, maybe not quite as many words because that would be a 175-page novel about the Mets and they just aren't that interesting right now.)

There is never a bad time to write, and I have put off writing a lot of things about this team.  I'm not going to let that happen for the rest of the month, and hopefully for the months after that.

So, here's to a month of Mets thoughts.  I'll try to keep them positive!

Let's Go Mets!