MLB Season Preview: NY Mets

NY Mets

Last Season's Standings: In the '06 Season, the NY Mets went 97-65, including .500 in their last ten games to take the NL East title. They lost in seven games to the eventual WS Champ St. Louis Cardinals in the NLCS.

In: C Sandy Alomar Jr. (prev. team: Chicago White Sox); LF Moises Alou (prev. team: San Francisco Giants); C Mike DeFelice; SS Damion Easley (prev. team: Arizona Diamondbacks); SP Tom Glavine; SP Orlando Hernandez; RP Guillermo Mota; LF David Newhan (prev. team: Baltimore Orioles); SP Chan Ho Park (prev. team: San Diego Padres); RP Scot Schoeweneweiss (prev. team: Cincinatti Reds); SP Aaron Sele (prev. team: LA Dodgers); RP Jorge Sosa (prev. team: St. Louis Cardinals); 2B Jose Valentin; C Ramon Castro; CF Endy Chavez; RP Duaner Sanchez; SP Dave Williams; SP Jason Vargas (via trade w/ Florida Marlins); SP Adam Bostick (via trade w/ Florida Marlins); RP John Adkins (via trade w/ San Diego Padres); LF Ben Johnson (via trade w/ San Diego Padres)

Out: RP Chad Bradford (new team: Baltimore Orioles); LF Cliff Floyd (new team: Chicago Cubs); RP Roberto Hernandez (new team: Cleveland Indians); LF Ricky Ledee (new team: Oakland A's); RF Eli Marrero (new team: St. Louis Cardinals); RP Darren Oliver (new team: LA Angels); RP Jason Standridge (new team: Kansas City Royals); C Kelly Stinnett (new team: LA Dodgers); SS Chris Woodward (new team: Atlanta Braves); SP Victor Zambrano (new team: Toronto Blue Jays); RP Henry Owens (via trade w/ Florida Marlins); SP Matt Lindstrom (via trade w/ Florida Marlins); RP Heath Bell (via trade w/ San Diego Padres); RP Royce Ring (via trade w/ San Diego Padres)

Starting Pitching: Health is a major concern for this pitching rotation. Staff ace Tom Glavine is entering what could be his final year in the majors. This aging aveteran has been the picture of consistency over the years, with a career record of 290-191, including 15-7 with a 3.82 ERA in '06. He'll need to pitch at least 7 innings most nights to save a bullpen that's sure to rack up a lot of innings. Must keep fastball down to be successful. Slated #2 starter Orlando Hernandez is coming off a frustrating season where he tore his calf muscle warming up in the bullpen causing him to miss the entire playoffs. He was 11-11 with a 4.66 ERA last season in 29 starts. Hernandez falls into lapses where his fastball stays up in the strike zone, thus creating launching pads for opposing hitters. Health is a concern for this rightie. John Maine is pencilled in to the #3 slot in the rotation. However, it will not be handed to him on a silver platter; Maine must demonstrate that last season was no fluke. He went 6-5 with a 3.44 ERA in 15 starts. He'll be trying for his first full season in the majors. Lefty Odalis Perez will also be battling for the one of the last 2 spots in the rotation. He was a dysmal 6-8 with a 6.20 ERA in 32 appearances, 20 of those being starts. Perez is too predictable with 2 strikes, always trying to throw the ball up in the strike zone, as a result hitters expect that pitch and whack it hard. He doesn't have the endurance to pitch deep in ball games. Perez will almost certainly start with a rotation spot while Martinez recovers from off-season surgery; more on him later. Chan Ho Park, yet another off-season free agent signing, will be looking to bounce back after missing a quarter of the season to an abdominal strain. He was 7-7 with a 4.81 ERA last season. Park's performance tends to tail off as the game grows older; doesn't handle pressure well and struggles to stay healthy. Finally Pedro Martinez is a big question mark heading into the season. When healthy, he can be a rock. Martinez basically missed the final 3 months, save for two weeks in August to various injuries, and he elected to have rotator cuff surgery towards the end of last season, since he wasn't going to be available to pitch in the playoffs anyway. This puts his entire '07 season in question. He certainly won't be ready for the start of the season as he still needs time to rehab. Look for him to maybe return around the All-star break at the earliest.

Bullpen: Billy "the kid" Wagner is entering the second year of a 4-year deal with the Mets. He'll be the go-to-guy in the ninth inning of close games. He notched 40 saves last season and had a record of 3-2 with a 2.24 ERA in 70 appearances. Wagner should have at least a few good years left in him before he's past his prime. Aaron Heilman will likely serve as the primary set-up man. He was 4-5 with a 3.65 ERA in 74 appearances last season. He must improve command of his pitches, especially his slider and change-up. Hrilman should take the ball in the 8th inning primarily. Guillermo Mota is another reliable setup man in the Mets bullpen. Mota is prone to wildness and tends to fade as the season progressive; is most effective with a couple of days between appearances. Look for Mota, who was 4-3 with a 4.53 ERA in '06, to be used in the 7th inning of tight ball games. Facing opposition lefties will be Pedro Felicano, who is looking to build on his fine season from '06 where he went 7-2 with a 2.09 ERA in 53 appearances. He struggles with his command, especially when facing a rightie. Middle-late reliever Duaner Sanchez will also be looking to build off a fine season from '06 in which he went 5-1 with a 2.06 ERA in 49 games played. Must improve his command and stamina, pitching performance against left-handed hitters. Ambiorix Burgos is out to prove that his rotator cuff is healthy again. Like most of the bullpen staff, Burgos struggles with command. He was 4-5 with a 5.52 ERA last season and will be battling for a middle-late reliever spot in the bullpen. He could wind up starting the season in New Orleans. Lefty Dave Williams will also be battling for a final bullpen spot as a long reliever. He needs to improve his command, endurance and mental toughness with runners in scoring position. Williams was 5-4 with a 6.52 ERA in 14 appearances (all but one being a start) last season. A second lefty specialist on this squad will be Scott Schoeneweiss. He struggles when under pressure, has a tendency to leave the ball up. Schoeneweiss was 4-2 with a 4.88 ERA in 71 appearances last season. Finally, Jorge Sosa is attempting and stands a good shot at being a second middle-late reliever, although he was abysmal last season going 3-11 with a 5.42 in 45 appearances, 13 of those being starts. He struggles when facing left-handed batters and with runners on base (pitching from the stretch). Look for Sosa to pitch primarily out of the bullpen in the 6th or 7th.

Catcher: Paul Lo Duca is coming off a successful first season in a Mets uniform and will be working with a pitching staff that's a real mix of familiar and brand new players to him. Offensively, he can contribute on a fairly regular basis, hit .318 last season, but doesn't drive in a lot of runs (just 49 in '06) and has little power (5HR in '06). Lo Duca has speed but isn't great at reading pitcher's moves and has a good arm and range defensively. Look for Lo Duca to play between 120-130 games this season and to bat 8th. Backing him up will be Ramon Castro. Castro hit .238 with 4 HR and 12 RBI last season. Castro's a predictably slow runner and has little patience at the plate.

First Baseman: Carlos Delgado reached his goal of making the post-season last year and this time he wants to go even further. This clean-up hitter has the capability to carry hisd team on his back. However, he hit .265 with 38 HR and 114 RBI. Delgado strikes out too much (120 times in the '06 season) is a defensive liability and runs the bases like a tortoise. Luckily he's a power hitter, so a lot of times speed isn't necessary with the ball out of play. He should bat clean-up and play between 140-150 games next season. The aging 48-year-old Julio Franco will serve as Delgado's back-up, playing around 100 games, primarily being utilized for pinch hitter duties, although he could start a handful of games at first base to rest Delgado. Utility man David Newhancan also play 1b, but he'll likely serve as an outfielder or third baseman.

Second Baseman: Jose Valentin will once again serve as the every day 2B for the Mets. He hit .271 with 18HR and 62 RBI last season. Valentin is a defensive liability, struggles in the clutch and tends to fade in the second half. He'll likely bat 7th and play between 135-145 games this season. Anderson Hernandez should make this squad full-time as a pinch-hitter/back-up to Valentin. Hernandez will have to be more patient at the plate and take advantage of whatever opportunities to hit come up, as he'll likely hit just once, maybe twice a game most nights.

Shortstop: The speedy Jose Reyes will bat lead-off to give opposing starting pitcher fits and play around 155 games if healthy. His speed will make him a tough out (stole 64 bases last season). Reyes hit .300 with 19 HR and 81 runs driven in last season. Defensively, he makes most of the plays, even the tough ones. Backing him up will be Hernandez and utility man Damon Easley. Easley will primarily be usd for pinch hit duties. He hit .233 with 9 HR, 28 RBI in '06.

Third Baseman: Last year's all-star David Wright had a career year last year hitting .311 with 26 HR and 116 RBI. He'll be looking to build on that performance. Look for Wright to play around 155 games and to bat 5th in the line-up. Backing him up will be Easley and Newhan.

Left Fielder: Free Agent signing Moises Alou will be looking to prove that the Mets made a good choice inking him to a deal. This aging star missed 56 games last season to various injuries. He hit .301 with 22 HR and 74 RBI last season. If healthy, Alou will star between 115 and 125 games in ;07. Backing him and likely the 4th outfielder for the Mets is speedster Endy Chavez who hit .306 with 4 HR and 42 RBI last season. He is not a patient hitter, often going after the first pitch and taking few walks. He'll be a go-to-guy in terms of pinch-hitting and should get a good number of starts in the outfield. Newhan is another option as a platoon outfielder.

Center Fielder: Superstar Carlos Beltran's role will change slightly as he'll be dropped in the batting order to 6th with the signing of Alou. Beltran hit .275 with 41 HR and 116 RBI in '06. He has the potential to be a 40-40 hitter (40 HR and 40 stolen bases). Defensively, Beltran at times seems unmotivated. He's a very aggressive hitter, strikes out too much and doesn't walk enough. Look for him to play between 140 and 155 games if healthy. Chavez and Newhan are his back-ups.

Right Fielder: Finally, Shawn Green is entering his first full season as a Met. It's nearly impossible to Green to hit lefties. He has a tendency to get really down on hiimself when mirred in a slump. Green hit .277 with 16 HR and 66 RBI last season. Green should see his fair share of hittable pitches, as pitchers try to get him out to avoid facing the big four on the Mets. Look for Green to play between 145 and 155 games while batting 2nd for the Mets. Chavez and Newhan will provide the back-up roles for Green.

Season Prediction: The Mets have a lot of offensive power in their line-up and their bullpen looks solid. Their starting pitching however is a question mark. I believe that the Mets will repeat as NL East champs, mainly because of the 'pen and bats.