Despite a disastrous 2018 season in which only four teams have produced inferior records, the Mets aren’t planning to embark on any kind of rebuild, assistant GM John Ricco tells reporters (Twitter link, with video, via MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo). Ricco suggests that while the next two months “won’t be the be-all and end-all,” they’ll help to evaluate players such as Jeff McNeil as the team looks to determine its areas of need in the offseason — most specifically on the position-player side of the equation. Ricco adds that he believes Dominic Smith will be a part of the team moving forward, stating that he’s “getting more experience” in left field. While the Mets will be facing a significant number of holes in the offseason and myriad health uncertainties, Ricco states plainly: “We’re going to try to be competitive and be a playoff team next year.”
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- DiComo also writes in a full column that while an MRI ruled out any structural damage in Steven Matz’s forearm and elbow, the left-hander is nonetheless expected to require a stint on the 10-day disabled list due to a “mild flexor-pronator strain.” It doesn’t appear that the team currently believes Matz will face an extended absence, with both Ricco and manager Mickey Callaway suggesting that a DL placement would be a “conservative” approach to the injury. If and when Matz does land on the disabled list, DiComo notes that right-hander Corey Oswalt is the likeliest candidate to replace him.
- Ricco spoke with the New York Post’s Kevin Kernan about perhaps the most critical component to his team’s 2019 success: injury prevention. “A lot of this stuff is systemic,” Ricco acknowledged, emphasizing a need to change the mindsets, routines and habits of his players as well as the team’s internal medical processes. A focus on younger players isn’t necessarily a cure-all for the Mets’ injury woes, he noted, as there’s been no shortage of younger players incurring notable injuries troubles (e.g. Matz, Noah Syndergaard, Michael Conforto). As Kernan writes, while Mickey Callaway has had some hiccups in his first exposure to managing at the MLB level, he’s also been vocal about some of the team’s internal organizational deficiencies — a trait which Ricco calls “one of the reasons we brought him in.”
- Following up a recent report from colleague Buster Olney, ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick tweets that former Red Sox GM Ben Cherington is increasingly mentioned as a “likely top candidate” for the Mets’ GM vacancy. Crasnick adds that Diamondbacks assistant GM Jared Porter, also a former high-ranking Red Sox executive, is also “generating some buzz” with regard to that opening. Currently, the Mets have the trio of Ricco and special assistants Omar Minaya and J.P. Ricciardi heading up baseball operations in place of Sandy Alderson, who stepped away from the role to undergo treatment for a cancer relapse. That arrangement, however, is not permanent, though Ricco himself figures to be among the candidates to take the GM chair in Queens in the offseason.
Get rid of all three of these “GMs”. Time for a change.
Reapoint Omar Minaya GM because he was the one before Alderson was. J.P. has been the Blue Jays GM before.
Omar should stay with the org if he wants to do int’l scouting, as he excelled in that role. I am leaning towards Porter, as some of Cherington’s moves while with Boston were uhm….not good.
I think a lot of that was Sox ownership though. I wouldn’t pin Sandoval on him, and Han Ram had his moments but same thing, and Rusney would get another shot if not for luxury tax reasons.
2019 goal injury prevention
This should have been the stated goal for a few years now
Looks like you’re up skippy
Isn’t that every teams goal every year?
It sure wasn’t Mike Matheny’s goal for his bullpen pitchers…
So what you are saying is that we should expect the same results next year? Idiots!
That is exactly what they are saying.
They are starting with the same crap as always. They have no minor league system . They will tell us they will contend next year we hear that every year. We need a GM who knows about baseball. The best thing would be new owners who care.
How is Dominic Smith going to be in the plan for LF when you already have Conforto, Nimmo, Cespedes, Bruce, Lagares in the OF?!
This. He should be at 1B instead of Wilmer Flores.
Does it matter? Alonso is the 1b of the future. He’s the reason they’re trying to make Smith more versatile
Smith has showed nothing so far.
He’s going to caddy for Cespedes
Cherington is the perfect GM if you want a strong farm. He continued to build on the good farm Epstein left him only to have DD dismantle it in a year and a half.
Cespedes will probably miss the entire season or most of it at least. Bruce needs to move to 1st full time. Lagares is a 4th OF at best (good D, meh bat).
Mets system is presently quite good.
No, it isn’t.
Make it better….trade deGrom now
mets farm system is actually in very good shape. A number of prospects significantly bumped their stock this season and there is a wealth of former IFAs emerging.
Agreed. 4 in the top 100 in MLB’s latest prospect list, albeit all are 50-100 IIRC. They brought in a dozen (slightly hyperbolic) relievers from various (poorly handled) trades over the past 2 seasons, so it’ll be interesting if any of those guys don’t suck. Wahl could be a 6th or 7th guy with ceiling of a setup guy, but it all hinges on his control.
“”A lot of this stuff is systemic,” Ricco acknowledged, emphasizing a need to change the mindsets, routines and habits of his players as well as the team’s internal medical processes.”
He sounds like someone who was just brought in from outside the organization rather than its longest tenured management-level employee. Is he blaming the Mets players relative lack of health on Sandy Alderson? Appears a cheap shot.
And my money’s on Ricco getting the full-time gig.
They’re going to try to compete for a playoff spot. What are they going to do differently? Or just like the last 3 years, hope. If they aren’t going to significantly upgrade C, CF and two of 1B, 2B and 3B, then there’s no reason to expect better and might get worse. The quality part of this team (starting pitching) was actually above baseline in terms of good health. That’s not likely to repeat itself. The injuries to position players really didn’t take producers out of the lineup for the most part (with the possible exception of Cespedes). In any event, Cespedes, TdA and JL can’t be relied on in 2019 if they’re serious about being a contender. It’s also would require a huge increase in the payroll, and a budget for it for the new GM – not spending by ad hoc committee headed by Idiot Jeff.
DJ Lemaiheu would be a good target for
2B , Let Alonso and Smith battle it out for 1B with Jay Bruce as the backup plan or as a Platoon partner for Alonso, if Dom falls flat.
Find a C that can call a game and frame a pitch (Lucroy? & Grandal? are both FA’s
and replace practically all of the BP.
That should do it .lol
They’d need machado or harper too at minimum.
I suggest the team get a mule to pull a Wilpon around the field in a cart between innings. Then, have a contest to name the mule.
His name was Mettle…
Yeah! I miss Charley Finley
Get a rocking chair for Cespedes
Why do we always to constantly have the METS on here. Nobody cares.
do the mets know the definition of insanity – “doing
the same thing over and over and expecting different
results”
or is it the people who are buying to this kind
of statement from someone who will not even
be here next year – that is also insanity!
Machado and Grandal would be a good start, let’s see if McNeil can handle 2nd for the rest of the season. See if there any takers for Frazier, if not then dfa along with Reyes. Smith should be playing 1st the rest of the season. Vargas to the bullpen and see what Oswald is for the rest of the season. Let Swarzak close and see what Wahl is.
Stick a fork in Matz, he’s done
I love hearing a airplane fly over me twice a half inning!
Mets have three AGM’s and a horrific medical staff
Mets have no GM and a horrific medical staff
Braves are 5-0, in games Jacob deGrom starts.
deGrom has a 1.09 ERA in those games.
The only way I’ll believe there is even a shred of sincerity to the claim that ownership and management are dedicated to winning a pennant is if they do NOT bring back Reyes, Bautista, or Jackson next year. We understand they’re clogging up the roster because they’re getting paid next to nothing to do so, but these truly are players no other team wants for good reason, yet they’re starting in New York.
Bautista actually hasn’t been that bad. Guy has a good OBP 364 and has been playing solid defense. Legit have no problems with Bautista nor wouldn’t mind having him next year as a bench bat.