Over the last thousand posts here at Fonzie, you could probably count on one hand the number of entries devoted to discussing managerial issues. Why? It's not that I don't think managers are important -- but rather, we as outsiders really have no way of knowing which human being will do the best job managing our baseball club. We can dislike moves in isolation, or we can have broader complaints (bullpen management is a good example) but in general, we just do not have much information on which to base our opinions.
With managerial *candidates*, we know even less. In most cases, we haven't actually seen them manage. Most of what we know will come from published media, a few games a couple of years ago when they were a generic opposing manager, and perhaps some quotes from former players. And for candidates like Wally Backman who have never managed in the major leagues? We - and when I say we, I mean fans - know basically nothing.
Showing posts with label amazin avenue. Show all posts
Showing posts with label amazin avenue. Show all posts
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
As They Say On the Internet .... This
Via Amazin Avenue:
Professional baseball players are not my drinking buddies. I don't know them personally. Cui gives a s**t that Frenchy tells a good knock-knock joke if he's batting .230? If a Met does well to help the team win, I will most likely be a fan. If said player stinks, I will probably not rally around him. It sounds cold but it's reality. I'm emotionally invested in the Mets, but not to the point where I think I'm on a first name basis with the players, or whatever. Angel Pagan isn't coming out to the bar to play Buck Hunter and dominate the jukebox with me this weekend. He'll be on teevee at the bar, hopefully hitting homers and making great catches, leading to much rejoicing.
Monday, August 09, 2010
Reese Havens Out for Year?
This is not new news, but I was made aware of it for the first time today.
What a bummer that is! Havens was having an incredible season, when healthy, and making strides to validate my pre-season claim that Havens was a better prospect than Ike Davis. Havens was hitting .338/.400/.662 for Binghamton with 6 home runs in only 18 games.
Unfortunately, the injury bug strikes again. According to Mack's Mets:
INJURY UPDATE: Most recent word out of the Mets is that Reese Havens is not doing well with the oblique he re-strained in late June and may miss the rest of 2010. Awful news. via Amazin Avenue
What a bummer that is! Havens was having an incredible season, when healthy, and making strides to validate my pre-season claim that Havens was a better prospect than Ike Davis. Havens was hitting .338/.400/.662 for Binghamton with 6 home runs in only 18 games.
Unfortunately, the injury bug strikes again. According to Mack's Mets:
Most of the Mets brass drools over Havens’ talent, but bristle at his propensity to getting injured. He also heals slower than F-Mart. The Mets have quietly shut him down for the rest of this season.Ah well, better luck next year Reese.
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
To the Amazin Avenue Community
I normally wouldn't do this (and also, just about nobody gives a crap about "blogger, responding to blogger for criticizing original blog" posts) but I was pretty taken aback at the fierceness of the post published by Sam Page over at Amazin Avenue this evening.
Let me start by saying to Sam Page, individually, that I am sorry if you feel like I somehow personally attacked you in my prior post. It certainly wasn't my intent. In fact, the reason that I even bothered to link to Amazin Avenue and what you wrote is because, in particular, I respect the blog and its writers, and I find that what it has to say is relevant. It matters. It's not any other internet blog noise. Because of this, I did not intend to call you out or start "blog warz".
None of this, however, makes the response posted tonight any petulant. If you had wanted to engage me in some sort of conversation about the Mets roster moves on either a macro (they are good or they are bad) or micro (the GMJ move was okay or the GMJ move was awful) level, I would have loved to do that. But to have the entire article parsed in some kind of juvenile, Fire Joe Morgan style type of thrashing is way beneath the quality of most Amazin Avenue content. Certainly, it is misleading at best to claim that I was advocating that "we should be kissing [the] feet" of Mets management.
The reason this matters is because Amazin Avenue is the current standard bearer for forward-thinking Mets fans on the internet. The discourse that takes place - both by the bloggers and the commenters - is so much more advanced than that which can be found on any other blog, newspaper, or local bar, that it is amazing. I look forward on a regular basis to reading the work of Eno Sarris, Eric Simon, and Howard Megdal. I enjoy the links that we at Fonzie Forever get on a regular basis from Joe Budd and James Kannengeiser and the comments that follow.
I take solace in the fact that so many of the commenters over at Amazin Avenue who seem to have actually read my blog post seem to be in agreement that my basic point was not so unreasonable. The Mets have made a lot of the right decisions this year. Basically every single one of those old-timey blogger meltdowns that we used to have (remember "Free Heath Bell?!") has been addressed.
As I said in the original article:
To the Amazin Avenue community, thanks to those of you who clicked through to read. It is a pleasure knowing that we've had a place in the ongoing discourse surrounding our team - hopefully one which has had a positive impact on our enjoyment of the game as fans. I hope that you will continue to challenge me when you disagree, but also that you approach my ideas (some of which are very outside-the-box) with an inquisitive mind.
And to Mr. Page, I am once again sorry that you felt compelled to respond to my original entry in the manner that you did. Next time, before you go ahead and call the writing of other members of the community "laughable", "nauseating", and "ridiculous", please take a moment to reconsider. Instead of a flame-war, this could have been an opportunity to discuss issues and allow your readers to make up their own minds.
I wish you the best, and figure that you will soon realize that there is a reason why boys blogging from their mother's basements do not recieve offers to become major league general managers.
-----------
Note: If anyone actually would like to discuss some of the issues raised in the original blog, I would be interested in discussing them.
As I've mentioned, I don't think that the GMJ trade was terrible. There is a distinct value to a commodity that is reliable, even if it is reliably poor. Between that, and the comment about Tejada remaining in the majors (we could have used Cora instead), there is plenty to talk about.
Let me start by saying to Sam Page, individually, that I am sorry if you feel like I somehow personally attacked you in my prior post. It certainly wasn't my intent. In fact, the reason that I even bothered to link to Amazin Avenue and what you wrote is because, in particular, I respect the blog and its writers, and I find that what it has to say is relevant. It matters. It's not any other internet blog noise. Because of this, I did not intend to call you out or start "blog warz".
None of this, however, makes the response posted tonight any petulant. If you had wanted to engage me in some sort of conversation about the Mets roster moves on either a macro (they are good or they are bad) or micro (the GMJ move was okay or the GMJ move was awful) level, I would have loved to do that. But to have the entire article parsed in some kind of juvenile, Fire Joe Morgan style type of thrashing is way beneath the quality of most Amazin Avenue content. Certainly, it is misleading at best to claim that I was advocating that "we should be kissing [the] feet" of Mets management.
The reason this matters is because Amazin Avenue is the current standard bearer for forward-thinking Mets fans on the internet. The discourse that takes place - both by the bloggers and the commenters - is so much more advanced than that which can be found on any other blog, newspaper, or local bar, that it is amazing. I look forward on a regular basis to reading the work of Eno Sarris, Eric Simon, and Howard Megdal. I enjoy the links that we at Fonzie Forever get on a regular basis from Joe Budd and James Kannengeiser and the comments that follow.
I take solace in the fact that so many of the commenters over at Amazin Avenue who seem to have actually read my blog post seem to be in agreement that my basic point was not so unreasonable. The Mets have made a lot of the right decisions this year. Basically every single one of those old-timey blogger meltdowns that we used to have (remember "Free Heath Bell?!") has been addressed.
As I said in the original article:
No, they haven't been perfect. No, not all the moves have come as soon as we may have liked them. And no, they have not yet gone out on a limb with the sabermetric folk and done some of the very outside-the-box things we would like them to. But the basics? The obvious moves? And even some of the not-so-obvious ones that we simply wish they would make? They've made them.
* * *
Perhaps I'm setting the bar too low for their performance. Should Mejia have been in the minors all year? Probably. Should Jacobs have ever touched the field of play as a Met? Arguable. But the point is that once those issues were no longer matters of debate, for which there was a defensible position, the Mets bit the bullet and made the correct choice.
* * *
We shouldn't be falling over ourselves to praise the Mets for getting themselves out of pickles that they created... So yes, the Mets haven't been perfect. But since the clock turned to 2010, they have been very, very good.
To the Amazin Avenue community, thanks to those of you who clicked through to read. It is a pleasure knowing that we've had a place in the ongoing discourse surrounding our team - hopefully one which has had a positive impact on our enjoyment of the game as fans. I hope that you will continue to challenge me when you disagree, but also that you approach my ideas (some of which are very outside-the-box) with an inquisitive mind.
And to Mr. Page, I am once again sorry that you felt compelled to respond to my original entry in the manner that you did. Next time, before you go ahead and call the writing of other members of the community "laughable", "nauseating", and "ridiculous", please take a moment to reconsider. Instead of a flame-war, this could have been an opportunity to discuss issues and allow your readers to make up their own minds.
I wish you the best, and figure that you will soon realize that there is a reason why boys blogging from their mother's basements do not recieve offers to become major league general managers.
-----------
Note: If anyone actually would like to discuss some of the issues raised in the original blog, I would be interested in discussing them.
As I've mentioned, I don't think that the GMJ trade was terrible. There is a distinct value to a commodity that is reliable, even if it is reliably poor. Between that, and the comment about Tejada remaining in the majors (we could have used Cora instead), there is plenty to talk about.
Monday, June 21, 2010
The Revolution Has Not Been Televised, Part 2
A few weeks ago, on May 24th, we at Fonzie Forever pointed out something that came as a pretty big shock to us: the Mets have been making some pretty smart personnel decisions this year.
No, they haven't been perfect. No, not all the moves have come as soon as we may have liked them. And no, they have not yet gone out on a limb with the sabermetric folk and done some of the very outside-the-box things we would like them to.
But the basics? The obvious moves? And even some of the not-so-obvious ones that we simply wish they would make? They've made them. We pointed out some of these moves in the last post:
Since then? Even better.
So, to recap, the Mets have made just about EVERY SINGLE MOVE that the Mets blogging faithful have asked them to make since the outset of the season. Jacobs, Catalanotto, and Matthews Jr. are gone. Mejia is back to the minors to work as a starter. Murphy was given a shot, though ill-fated, to play second. Feliciano, Carter, and Thole have been called up (though Thole temporarily). Pagan has been starting every day. Luis Castillo's replacement at second base has been Ruben Tejada, not Alex Cora.
And the list goes on.
But for some, that is not enough. Sam Page, a writer over at the blog Amazin Avenue, for some reason skewered Mets management today.
The fact of the matter is this - we don't know what the Mets intend to do with Maine if and when he returns. Nor do we know what the eventual plan will be with Perez. At this point, we don't even have enough information to determine whether either of those men will ever be able to contribute at the major league level ever again.
What we do know is that the Mets, as an organization, have been making some extraordinarily smart moves (relative to the past) this season. Perhaps I'm setting the bar too low for their performance. Should Mejia have been in the minors all year? Probably. Should Jacobs have ever touched the field of play as a Met? Arguable. But the point is that once those issues were no longer matters of debate, for which there was a defensible position, the Mets bit the bullet and made the correct choice.
I don't expect them to always be as forward-thinking as some of the Mets online communities. But that's simply in the same way that I don't expect these blogs to be as insightful to the day-to-day operations of the team, personalities of players, off-field issues, etc. as the team's management will be. Each group will have it's own strengths and weaknesses, and to me, the Mets have been consistently making the correct choices.
They have been lucky, as well. Ike Davis stepped forward in an enormous way this season, making it unecessary for the Mets to struggle with finding a replacement at first base. Oliver Perez was so awful that they could not even dabble with the idea of keeping him in the rotation. Jose Reyes has returned healthy. Angel Pagan and David Wright are having great seasons. They have gotten ridiculously lucky with Takahashi and Dickey so far. So yes, there has been an element of luck. They have not been forced to make any difficult choices this year like they did last year.
But let's not hold that against them. Let's just be glad that when they HAVE been faced with a decision which they could resolve rightly or wrongly, that they have, for the most part, made the correct choice.
When the Mets take the field on Tuesday with a lineup of Reyes, Pagan, Wright, Davis, Bay, Barajas, Francoeur, and Tejada, pinch yourselves and be happy. The Mets of years past may not have gotten us here. We could very easily still be looking at a lineup of Reyes, Cora, Wright, Bay, Tatis, Matthews Jr, Francoeur, Barajas. That would not have required any organizational malfeasance - only an adherence to policies that we have been complaining about the Mets using for years. You know, like the above criticism from Amazin Avenue, that they were unable to see players' values today.
We're heading in the right direction, and it gives me a lot of hope and reason to believe that this 39-30 start, only two games out of first place, might not be a mirage.
------------------
Edited for clarity, 10:40am, 6/21:
Joe Budd from Amazin Avenue dropped us a link over at their site, and he had this to add about what we said:
1. Was getting GMJ for $1 million, as insurance for Angel Pagan, and then cutting him early in the year really that bad of a move? Was signing Ollie for 3/$36, which was a bad move at the time, really terrible? Or with Derek Lowe getting 4/$52 and the Mets thinking they could contend in 2009, was it sub-optimal but at least justifiable?
2. Find me a team in the majors that NEVER makes a bad move. Sure, the Mets have had clunkers. But even Mike Jacobs was justifiable at the time, as he has had some success, signed cheap, and was intended to be a backup.
So yes, the Mets haven't been perfect. But since the clock turned to 2010, they have been very, very good. Is it Wayne Krivsky? Does Omar Minaya read Fonzie Forever? Who knows... but I like it. And it might be time to start tempering the knee-jerk, critical, blogger discourse.
No, they haven't been perfect. No, not all the moves have come as soon as we may have liked them. And no, they have not yet gone out on a limb with the sabermetric folk and done some of the very outside-the-box things we would like them to.
But the basics? The obvious moves? And even some of the not-so-obvious ones that we simply wish they would make? They've made them. We pointed out some of these moves in the last post:
March 30, 2010: Did NOT option SS Ruben Tejada to Triple-A.
April 18, 2010: Designated INF Mike Jacobs for assignment.
April 19, 2010: Selected the contract of 1B Ike Davis from Buffalo (IL).
May 10, 2010: Recalled C Josh Thole and OF Chris Carter from Buffalo (IL). Designated OF Frank Catalanotto for assignment.
May 22, 2010: Placed RHP John Maine on the 15-day DL.
May 23, 2010: Started working out Daniel Murphy at multiple positions.
Since then? Even better.
June 1, 2010: Banished Oliver Perez to the disabled list.
June 4, 2010: Gary Matthews Jr. designated for assignment
June 8, 2010: Jesus Feliciano called up from Triple-A
June 13, 2010: Sent Luis Castillo to minors for rehabilitation.
June 20, 2010: Sent Jenrry Mejia to Double-A
So, to recap, the Mets have made just about EVERY SINGLE MOVE that the Mets blogging faithful have asked them to make since the outset of the season. Jacobs, Catalanotto, and Matthews Jr. are gone. Mejia is back to the minors to work as a starter. Murphy was given a shot, though ill-fated, to play second. Feliciano, Carter, and Thole have been called up (though Thole temporarily). Pagan has been starting every day. Luis Castillo's replacement at second base has been Ruben Tejada, not Alex Cora.
And the list goes on.
But for some, that is not enough. Sam Page, a writer over at the blog Amazin Avenue, for some reason skewered Mets management today.
The Mets have needed roster-security for the past few years and they've mistaken that time and again with their personal security, bred from familiarity with a given player. And ever since Jeff Wilpon got involved as co-Mayor, it's only gotten worse. I suspect Mike Jacobs, Jason Bay and Gary Matthews Jr. signal the first of many former early-2000's Mets re-acquired under Jeff's leadership. It's as if the Mets are run by two kids whose only qualifications to manage a team is they used to always play each other in MVP Baseball 2003; one would always pick the Expos, the other the Mets. Actually, that might be Jeff Wilpon's only qualification to run a team.Content aside, I disagree with the sentiment expressed by this article. Ordinarily I wouldn't mention it at all, but the timing of it (focusing mostly on John Maine's potential return) seems so peculiar to me.
That's a lot to say that the Mets have a hard time conceptualizing what a player is, relative to what he was.
* * *
Release Perez. Release Maine. It's not 2007. Stop wasting the time of minor-league managers with their pointless rehab starts. There's no rehabilitation program for being bad.
The fact of the matter is this - we don't know what the Mets intend to do with Maine if and when he returns. Nor do we know what the eventual plan will be with Perez. At this point, we don't even have enough information to determine whether either of those men will ever be able to contribute at the major league level ever again.
What we do know is that the Mets, as an organization, have been making some extraordinarily smart moves (relative to the past) this season. Perhaps I'm setting the bar too low for their performance. Should Mejia have been in the minors all year? Probably. Should Jacobs have ever touched the field of play as a Met? Arguable. But the point is that once those issues were no longer matters of debate, for which there was a defensible position, the Mets bit the bullet and made the correct choice.
I don't expect them to always be as forward-thinking as some of the Mets online communities. But that's simply in the same way that I don't expect these blogs to be as insightful to the day-to-day operations of the team, personalities of players, off-field issues, etc. as the team's management will be. Each group will have it's own strengths and weaknesses, and to me, the Mets have been consistently making the correct choices.
They have been lucky, as well. Ike Davis stepped forward in an enormous way this season, making it unecessary for the Mets to struggle with finding a replacement at first base. Oliver Perez was so awful that they could not even dabble with the idea of keeping him in the rotation. Jose Reyes has returned healthy. Angel Pagan and David Wright are having great seasons. They have gotten ridiculously lucky with Takahashi and Dickey so far. So yes, there has been an element of luck. They have not been forced to make any difficult choices this year like they did last year.
But let's not hold that against them. Let's just be glad that when they HAVE been faced with a decision which they could resolve rightly or wrongly, that they have, for the most part, made the correct choice.
When the Mets take the field on Tuesday with a lineup of Reyes, Pagan, Wright, Davis, Bay, Barajas, Francoeur, and Tejada, pinch yourselves and be happy. The Mets of years past may not have gotten us here. We could very easily still be looking at a lineup of Reyes, Cora, Wright, Bay, Tatis, Matthews Jr, Francoeur, Barajas. That would not have required any organizational malfeasance - only an adherence to policies that we have been complaining about the Mets using for years. You know, like the above criticism from Amazin Avenue, that they were unable to see players' values today.
We're heading in the right direction, and it gives me a lot of hope and reason to believe that this 39-30 start, only two games out of first place, might not be a mirage.
------------------
Edited for clarity, 10:40am, 6/21:
Joe Budd from Amazin Avenue dropped us a link over at their site, and he had this to add about what we said:
The problem for Brian is that most of those good moves were only necessary BECAUSE of the mistakes the team made at the beginning. Imagine what the team would have been like had GMJ never been on the roster to begin with or if Oliver Perez had never been given $12 million/year. Credit should be given for remedying mistakes, but that doesn't mean you are free from blame for the underlying problems.I agree and disagree, and feel like this is the majority opinion on the topic. Yes, we shouldn't be falling over ourselves to praise the Mets for getting themselves out of pickles that they created. But let me ask you this...
1. Was getting GMJ for $1 million, as insurance for Angel Pagan, and then cutting him early in the year really that bad of a move? Was signing Ollie for 3/$36, which was a bad move at the time, really terrible? Or with Derek Lowe getting 4/$52 and the Mets thinking they could contend in 2009, was it sub-optimal but at least justifiable?
2. Find me a team in the majors that NEVER makes a bad move. Sure, the Mets have had clunkers. But even Mike Jacobs was justifiable at the time, as he has had some success, signed cheap, and was intended to be a backup.
So yes, the Mets haven't been perfect. But since the clock turned to 2010, they have been very, very good. Is it Wayne Krivsky? Does Omar Minaya read Fonzie Forever? Who knows... but I like it. And it might be time to start tempering the knee-jerk, critical, blogger discourse.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)