Though he has remained adamant about his desire to remain with the Mets, that doesn’t mean Noah Syndergaard is content with every aspect of his relationship with the team. Joel Sherman and Kevin Kernan of the New York Post reported today that the big righty has been displeased all season with throwing to primary catcher Wilson Ramos, preferring instead reserve Tomas Nido (or perhaps third-stringer Rene Rivera). Thor’s wrath has spawned a full-blown BatteryMateGate involving lengthy internal meetings and multiple engagements with the media. Ultimately, Mets manager Mickey Callaway and GM Brodie Van Wagenen explained that the club has to take into account more than the preferences of a given pitcher. In addition to being highly compensated and well-respected, Ramos is one of the team’s best hitters. While none of the organizational leaders cracked the whip on the star hurler, they didn’t indicate any inclination to bend on the topic. Callaway put it in particularly blunt terms: “You can’t make everybody happy and it’s not about making guys happy. It’s about winning at this point.” Whether this matter will carry over into the future, if not even impact Syndergaard’s long-term status in New York, remains to be seen.
More from the National League …
- Expectations of a rough season for the Marlins have been fulfilled in full, though there have been some bright spots along the way. With relatively few trade pieces in the stable, it may be a fairly quiet offseason in Miami. But one area that is sure to receive attention is the coaching staff. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald provides some updates on the status of skipper Don Mattingly, who still hasn’t received any indication of the organization’s intentions. It seems that there’s a legitimate chance Mattingly will be retained, though the team may not want to pay him at or over his current $2.5MM salary. Plus, as the veteran baseball man notes, it’s not just a one-way street. Mattingly says he expects discussions to occur with some rapidity.
- It seems that Giants infielder Pablo Sandoval will have more to recover from than your standard-issue Tommy John procedure. As Hank Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports (Twitter link), Sandoval says that his doctors found damage beyond what they anticipated when they opened his elbow. The precise details of the work that was done, and how it’ll impact his recovery, aren’t yet known. Sandoval will head to the open market at the conclusion of the season. The 33-year-old’s season-ending procedure will limit his marketability, but he did turn in a strong showing with 296 plate appearances of .268/.313/.507 hitting and 14 home runs.
- The Padres continue to feature numerous possibilities and numerous questions in their outfield mix, as AJ Cassavell of MLB.com writes. The certainties? Per Cassavall, Manuel Margot and Hunter Renfroe can be written into the lineup for 2020 … on the short side of the platoon, at least. Needless to say, that’s not exactly a ringing endorsement of stability. Wil Myers, Josh Naylor, Franchy Cordero, Travis Jankowski, and Nick Martini represent options, but only that. It’s possible to imagine any number of possible roster maneuvers over the course of the coming winter; it’s equally plausible that most or all of the existing slate of candidates will simply do battle in camp.
Giants need to move on from Sandoval in the worst kind of way.
Padres need to find takers for Wil Myers and Eric Hosmer.
Nobody wants those contracts
Panda is Free Agent. They don’t need to move on. He’s a great teammate. He’ll be back in the Giants clubhouse. The Padres just need to move.
Panda brings no value. Giants need to stop living off of last glory and embrace the future. And that starts with turning the page on Sandoval.
1.4 WAR in less than 300 ABs says otherwise. Idk why you are singling out the Panda for the Giants struggles but be definitely is not it.
He’s not the only reason for their struggles but he isn’t helping
Agreed
Panda turned in a pretty decent season for SF despite not playing every day. I think his hitting numbers are better than Posey this season and given he only cost them the league minimum he’s provided a lot of value.
However I do feel that Panda isn’t the kind of player SF needs. Given the size of the park they need someone with more speed.
Panda’s probably going to be had pretty cheap when he’s back and I wouldn’t be opposed to SF taking a flyer on him as a bench bat. He did an amazing job pinch hitting this year.
SF should offer him a 1 million minors contract (which is chump change to them) before he’s healthy, put him on the 60 day IL and see how he goes when he’s back in the minors. SF needs as much depth they can get.
Sandoval makes a perfect pinch hit bat off the bench. He’s a switch-hitter that makes good contact and don’t strike out much. It would be wise to keep him and utilize him off the bench and just in case someone gets injured he can play a couple positions
Panda is doing well this year. He should most certainly come back on a cheap contract.
does anyone actually look at Hosmer’s contract when they say this? several metrics say he’s better then the less-then-passable fielder that some he is, and he’s actually hit quite well this year and isnt actually all that old. only making $22 mil a year and that goes down to $13 million in a few years. not nearly as bad as Myers.
DarkSide830 do you look at Hosmers stats? He has 0.4 WAR and an OPS+ 103. It’s a terrible contract. He’s barley above replacement level.
I’m going to call replacement level players barley from now on. I know it’s a typo, but it works.
LOL. “Who’s that?” “That’s our new backup 3B, Barley Above.”
“Actually hit quite well.”
280/326/444. 99 WRC+.. There are 97 qualified major league hitters better than that. There are only 140 qualified big league hitters total.
103 OPS+.
Lowest walk and highest K rates of his career.
Defense? He still has range and throw problems, and now he’s missing routine catches.
Hosmer is a big reason the Padres will have yet another losing season. Myers has been bad, too, but even with his struggles he’s been more productive this year. They’re owed about the same through 2022, but after that Myers is gone. Hosmer, unless he has a monster comeback, will still be on SD’s books until 2025.
Where do you get 97? It’s 56. And he’s much better than Machado.
If you watch the Padres, their real problem has been pitching. Especially, relief pitching.
Sort the Fangraphs leaderboard by WRC+.
Hosmer is #98, on page 4 of 5.
fangraphs.com/leaders.aspx?pos=all&stats=bat&…
Machado has a better OBP, better SLG, and better WRC+ than Hosmer. He’s a better baserunning and plays far better defense at a harder position. But sure, other than those things…..
Did you actually look at hosmer’s deal. 3 more years at 20 million per then he has 3 years at 13 per. Myers on the other hand has just the 3 years at 20.
Would you rather have Hosmer for that price? I’d probably be inclined to take the guy w less money owed but if you’d rather have Hosmer, sure. Either way both are garbage and next to impossible to move contracts. The Padres either eat a ton of cash or will have to package them with young talent to facilitate a trade. No team is touching either one of them at their prices.
There in the majors but there “garbage at baseball”?
Referring to his contract. His performance is “garbage” when compared to what he’s been paid. Don’t get so sensitive.
Anybody anywhere near the Major leagues is a fantastic baseball player compared to the regular population. David Hess has an 8+ ERA and has given up a million homeruns but he’s significantly better than either one of us. If you’re afraid about having a conversation about him being bad, I don’t know what the hell you’re doing here.
Seventh in the majors amongst 1B in average and RBI. Top 10 in PO, A, and TC. He is far above replacement level. I think these advanced metrics everyone quotes now a days is garbage myself.
Yeah if you don’t like 1B WAR, that’s fine but Hosmer is not good. A .326 OBP and a.444 SLG is not good production from your first baseman. I don’t need any advanced metrics to tell me that. The metrics don’t like his defense, but if you like the defense, that’s fine. Doesn’t make him anywhere near worth his salary. That’s a crap argument.
Hosmer is one of the ten worst contracts in baseball.
Put outs? He gets a put out when someone else throws him the ball. He’s really, really bad defensively, and it’s not just this year. It’s been his whole career.
Compared to other 1b, he’s 19 out of 22 in OBP and 18 out of 22 in SLG. Those are not advanced metrics.
He may be a great teammate. If you’re a backup catcher or 5th outfielder, sure, being a good buddy might be the difference between keeping your job and a trip to the minors. As a starting 1b on a team that wants to compete, it means jack.
Preller’s problem is that he pays too little attention to advanced metrics. Too much of scout, not enough of a GM.
To me it seems you are ignoring the obvious on defense at 1B.
Catching the ball thrown by someone else is what a 1B does more than anything else, so it’s the most important part of the job. None of the advanced metrics take that part of the position into account at all. Hosmer is one of the best at turning thrown balls into outs.
This season Hosmer has had 1137 chances at 1B and only 155 of them were balls in play hit near him. The rest were balls thrown to him.
Of those 982 balls thrown to him, he has 51 where he either scooped the ball out of the dirt or tagged a runner on an offline throw. That means he has saved other infielders from committing 51 errors so far this season.. Only Rizzo has been better. That is 20-24 more errors saved than the four 1B at the bottom in that category.
None of that discounts the fact that he does not have good range, but it does give you an insight into what is really important in a 1B.
Hosmer can also opt out before his contract goes down to $13m a year which means he’s guaranteed to not be worth his contract after that.
OPS of about 770.
That is poor for a first baseman, below average.
And only 5 first baseman are being paid more than Hosmer
Who r they? Pujols, Miggy, who else
Davis and Votto. Don’t know the fifth off the top of my head. But if you’re noticing a trend here it’s that they’re all albatrosses or at least bad deals…
His OPS+ which takes into account the ballparks he plays in is 102 or just above average.
Probably Goldschmidt, Chris Davis and Votto.
@jbigz12 the one you are missing is Freddie Freeman.
Slightly above average while playing a non-premium position of which only 5 guys who play that position made more money than him this year.
OPS+ compares all hitters. As a 1b, 102 is crap.
I think the Red Sox are still paying almost all of his contract. If they are, there’s really no risk in keeping Sandoval around.
This is the last season of that
I’m guessing that “Thor” would love throwing his hammer to “McCannon” on the southside of Chicago next season.
I’d also venture that James McCann would love catching Noah Syndergaard and his healthy “clone” Michael Kopech, along with prize student Lucas Giolito, budding ace Dylan Cease and a returning Carlos Rodon next season. The stuff of those 5 pitchers is off the charts along with a 6th in Reynaldo Lopez. With the assistance of a studious defender like McCann, the White Sox rotation could be something to behold with a little help from the baseball god of health in 2019 and beyond.
Not loving Syndergaard’s regression and injury history. The White Sox have to be careful who they give big contracts to, and Thor has too many red flags. If they’re going to spend money on an ace, Gerrit Cole is the man. The White Sox have a ton of money to spend. They need to put up or shut up.
just look at his splits this year when he throws to Ramos vs when you throws to Nido or Rivera it’s like five plus era to Ramos and a low 2 era to the other guys I don’t know if that’s regression as much as it is feeling really uncomfortable throwing to one catcher who is terrible at Framing and terrible at keeping base runners from stealing bases I mean he gave up five stolen bases the other day he’s very below average in every capacity of being a catcher you really should be a DH or first baseman cuz key really can hit but if it’s not such drastic differences when any other competent or slightly above-average catcher is behind the plate compared to Ramos then I don’t think regression is really the issue when it comes to syndergaard team should be lining up to grab him putting him with a catcher that knows how to field and reaping the rewards
I agree with you on pitch framing, but Thor presents too many risks for the White Sox.
If you’re going to sink $30MM per year on an ace with playoff experience to lead a young staff, you need someone who can stay healthy. It’s doubtful he pitches at a high level over the course of a longterm contract given his history of injuries. Especially for a pitcher who relies on velocity to be effective like Thor.
What regression? Thor has literally gotten better with each passing month this season.
Knowing the White Sox, they’ll trade for/sign all of Cole’s friends, lowball him in contract negotiations, then throw a temper tantrum when he signs elsewhere.
His ERA is up considerably since last year. Look up his stats from ‘18 and compare it to ‘19.
Who would the whitesox trade for Thor? 20+ other teams would be bidding on him during the off-season. FWIW, I like your staff and think they have had a nice rebuild.
Clearly the White Sox have the prospect capital and some young MLB players the Mets would be interested in. Whether GM Rick Hahn is prepared to deal any of them at this point in time as they enter “the end of the beginning phase of the rebuild” is the million dollar question. (mlb.com/whitesox/news/white-sox-enter-next-phase-o…) The one certainty is that the White Sox can use a veteran presence to anchor a young and promising rotation.
Syndergaard has the pedigree (2.87 FIP), the age (27) and some measure of team control (2 years of arbitration eligibility) to fit the White Sox current state as they seek to transition from rebuilders to contenders in 2020. They also have the financial flexibility to extend “Thor” at some point before he can reach free agency.
The multi-million dollar question facing the front office and owner Jerry Reinsdorf is would the organization rather utilize those dollars on a premium FA like Garret Cole who WILL break the bank this offseason while costing them a second round June pick plus $500k in international bonus dollars because of his qualifying offer OR sacrifice some young talent to acquire Syndergaard who will be significantly less expensive for the next two seasons with an expected arb AAV in the $9-12M range with a chance to then extend him before he hits free agency at 29?
The White Sox do not have enough depth of talent in their minor league system nor the big league squad to be trading away prospects for a pitcher.
Free agency is the smarter route (may only lose a draft pick) than trading for a pitcher due for free agency soon (may lose three or more mid level prospects). The Sox should not be trading prospects away until the rebuild of the big league team is complete. That’s when your minor league threat becomes an asset for trades.
*minor league depth…
To much has been made of Syndagaard’s injury history. He has had 5 major league seasons and only in one season has he pitched less than 150 IP. I know everyone wants their teams starters to make it to 200 IP but in this age of baseball, that’s just not how things work anymore. The mark of 150 IP’s is pretty normal now. You cant point to Thors dependance on velocity because that is now the norm in baseball which I imagine is the leading cause to 150 IP or so being the new normal.
Hey City-The Sox don’t need that much talent to get rookie Brody to swap Thor for next to nothing.
All that Rick needs to do is bring a good looking female assistant to flirt with Mr. Handsome and he will do whatever it takes to make a deal. He can ask Seattle for tips from the Cano fiasco.
Short on experience, knowledge or patience, the former super agent is a terrible poker player.
Go White Sox!
ChiSoxCity: As you might recall the White Sox were prepared to trade for one-year rental Manny Machado just two offseasons ago when they had just completed their first year of rebuilding. Clearly that was with the intention of signing Machado to a long term extension before he hit free agency last winter. If this organization was willing to do that then they are certainly capable of trading for two years of Noah Syndergaard as they begin their transition from pretenders to contenders.
@AaronSapoznik which would have been ferociously stupid of them. There was only one way to get Machado to choose them and they didn’t do it.
The Whites Sox have plenty they could trade for Thor but Bartolo has an interesting question. Which prospects?
Robert would be off the table naturally. It may start with Cease and Kopech and add from there.
Any trade for Syndergaard would likely involve some pitching going back to the Mets. The White Sox do have some system depth in that area along with outfielders. It’s safe to assume that Chicago would be reluctant to part with SP’s Lucas Giolito, Michael Kopech, Dylan Cease, LF Eloy Jimenez and CF Luis Robert. along with 3B Yoan Moncada, 2B Nick Madrigal and 1B Andrew Vaughn.
That would still leave the Mets with some intriguing talent to choose from including SP’s Reynaldo Lopez, Carlos Rodon, Dane Dunning and Jonathan Stiever, bullpen arms like Aaron Bummer, Zack Burdi, Tyler Johnson and Ian Hamilton, a hitting first catcher like Zack Collins or Yermin Mercedes along with a host of OF’s from among Steele Walker, Blake Rutherford, Micker Adolfo and Luis Alexander Basabe. I could also envision the White Sox trading SS Tim Anderson who could snag “Thor” by himself with his age, athleticism, electric bat and most importantly his team-friendly contract that runs through 2024 with team options.
Some of these options are rehabbing from surgery and may be more realistic options in a mid-summer trade. If the White Sox deal Anderson they would need to find another SS until recently signed international FA Yolbert Sanchez’ bat can catch up with his MLB ready glove. Perhaps the Mets are tired of waiting on former top SS prospect Amed Rosario to fulfill his potential and would rather gamble on Anderson’s more proven bat that could net the latter an AL batting title in 2019. Rosario could be included in an expanded blockbuster trade involving the Mets and White Sox that could then have the latter parting with one of their more elite prospects.
Why would the Sox trade Kopech and Cease for Syndergaard? That’s really absurd.
The White Sox would basically give up Kopech, Cease, and any shot at Cole for Syndergaard. Most like the Mets would be in on Cole as a result, plus have DeGrom and two starters with huge potential in Kopech and Cease. Rick Hahn’s not that gullible, sorry.
Way too much. Low level prospects or over the hill washed up starters plus a few winks and smiles. Brody goes down in minutes.
Thor will throw to whoever his manager tells him to throw to. I’m so sick of pitcher’s who think they are managers.
The pitcher is the start for a potential defeat. The defense is the positive in the cause. What does that mean??? If Thor feels more comfortable with a certain catcher for prime results than a smart GM gives it. If the GM electects offense from 1 person vs the other 8 batters than he doesn’t belong in his role.
“The Blame Game” continues. Thor…Throw to the glove, hit your target, be a TEAM PLAYER, pass GO, collect your pay and play. There’s no crying in baseball. If the Mets have even a slim chance to get a wildcard spot, we need Ramos’ bat in the lineup everyday.
Thing is, anymore it’s the front office making those decisions.
Oh, totally. As long as Ramos’ bat makes up the difference. Let’s see… Syndegaard’s ERA is a little over two and a half runs worse throwing to Ramos instead of Nido, so… Oh.
Quality pitch framing is crucial for pitchers. Ramos is considered one of the worst. I think the Mets organization owes at least some consideration to Thor if they want to win.
Ramos really struggles with low balls, which Syn needs to be effective. His FB is only effective when his other pitches are on, which means a lot of low stuff.
Ramos is just not on the same page as Thor in calling the game. It is not necessarily pitch framing. Ramos is an offensive catcher. Defense and staff handling is not bis area of expertise
None of the pitchers like how Ramos calls games. The Mets should just trade him if the metrics indicate he’s that bad of a catcher.
Yep. In my world catching was always a defense first position, arguably the most important on the field. But I am a dinosaur according to all the young geeks so what do I know?
I agree that the Mets should trade Wilson Ramos who still has one year remaining on the 2 yrs/$19M (19-20) & 21 team option ($10M/$1.5M buyout), preferably to an AL team that can utilize his well above average bat at the DH position and as a backup catcher. The AL team would also have a chance to save money over the last two years of his deal because his contract includes an annual bonus clause worth $500k if he catches over 100 games each season.
Catchers need days off all the time. No other Mets pitcher is this adamant nor has such egregious splits as Thor. You let him throw to Nido and the other pitchers can throw to Ramos. It’s such a simple solution.
Or you get Syndergaard a pacifier, teach him to hold runners on, shake off the catcher if he doesn’t like the pitch and make better pitches.
Now, if he’s trying to bounce a curveball for strike three and Ramos can’t block it, that’s one thing. If he’s nibbling and can’t get the call because Ramos doesn’t frame well, don’t pitch so deeply into counts that you have to hope to try and fool the umpire to be successful.
The league has something like an 80% steal rate against Syndergaard, maybe it’s not just the catcher’s fault?
Or you can be an adult and not tell one of your star players to get a ‘pacifier’. Primary catchers (Ramos) need a day off every 4-5 games. Syndergaard pitches every 5 games. Be a manager and manage your players. Get him a pacifier for wanting to pitch better? Good grief.
@busterhyman
Well of course he’s throwing to whom they tell him to but it’s obvious there’s a disconnect between the two and it’s producing bad results. To placate one of YOUR MAIN STARTERS give him the freaking catcher he prefers once every 5 days. Catchers need to be rested often. Why not have that day be Ramos’ off-day?
This seems like a really stupid issue that should not have made it this far. The manager and GM should’ve handled this from the get go. It’s so simple. I think Sabathia had a preferred catcher too and the Yanks accommodated him on his day. Now if every pitcher has the same issue then maybe you need to resolve that in the way that best supports the pitchers.
Hey buster, you should be sick of Joel Sherman. The bum feeds back stories (B S) from Jeff. It’s the same crap that the wigged dude played in The Dark Knight.
It’s such a weak ploy, spreading stuff through such a stiff. Thor should stick to his guns and stick it to the Mets.
The Panda…. Heart and soul of the SF Giants, Pablo Sandoval will be back to the City by the Bay…
Good luck with all that sentimentality.
As White Sox fans we shouldn’t be “the pot calling the kettle black”.
Not sure what you mean. Keeping guys around who can’t play anymore simply because you like them is bad business. What’s me being a White Sox fan got to do with anything?
The flaw here is the idea that SF kept Sandoval even though he couldn’t play. They kept him precisely for the reason that he could play. Losing him to injury cost Bochy a valuable pinch hitting tool. When he went down he was leading MLB in pinch hits. He wasn’t the sole reason for the teams play of late, but it was a contributing factor.
Zaidi probably won’t keep him around going forward. He wants the team to get younger and more athletic. But keeping him, on the MLB minimum salary BTW, as long as they did was smart, and it paid benefits.
There are much bigger problems with the Giants hitting lineup than Pablo Sandoval. Keeping him won’t solve them. They need to overhaul that entire team.
I agree but not as a player, imo his career is over as a ballplayer. Pablo Sandoval will make an amazing coach.
Panda lights up the clubhouse and the fan base. I would pay him just to show up !!
Thor gets moved in the off-season. Will get a nice haul.
Maybe not.
New assistant GM’s play poker with Brody. They offer Sale and Price even
up. Smooth talker grabs the deal. Mets on the hook for both contracts and he’s too busy smiling for the cameras and saying it was like the Cano deal—too good to pass on.
The Wilpons make poor choices and often let their emotions get in the way, but they are united about one thing….not spending $. The only reason why they took Cano’s contract was bc they were payroll neutral in 2019 by moving Bruce et al and getting $ back. There is ZERO chance they take on both, let alone one, of those contracts.
A nice haul? Not so sure about that. Thor is not the same pitcher he was three years ago. His history of injuries has to make GMs nervous too.
He would get a nice haul. Depends on your definition. But I for one find it refreshing to see someone say nice haul instead of the famous “kings ransom” ever fan base comes out with.
Thor is still young and has good stuff. His numbers improved in the second half and hos numbers without Ramos are terrific.
He would get a nice haul of prospects but not top prospects like Robert for example
Thor, a back up catcher is to give our starting catcher a rest every now and than. If you can’t pitch to our starting catcher and be a MAN about it, than go cut off the stupid hair you possess.
Not a Mets fan and only know what I have read but what is the big deal with Thor wanting to pitch to a “personal” catcher…..Sale does it and has done it for quite some time, as have many pitchers around the league who prefer the catching style and game calling of specific catchers on their team.
Ramos was signed for his offense not his defense or game calling and really don’t see the big deal the press is making about this.
No reason to trade one of your best assets just to deflect criticism over what really should be a non-issue.
That’s a really stupid assessment. There have been plenty of pitchers, good ones at that, who have had ‘personal catchers’ or catcher preferences. As a manager, you need to manage egos and put your team in the best position to win.
Ironically, in your pigheaded wisdom, you actually struck what should be the solution. You said ‘a back up catcher is to give our starting catcher a rest every now and than [sic]’. So why not just rest Rams whenever Thor is pitching?
Moving Thor this offseason might be an option. Padres have long been interested and Thor has regained form in the 2nd half.
If he’s regained his form, unless the Padres have player assets that fill other voids on the Mets, then why would you even consider trading him?
Every team is crying for pitching and the Mets seem to have it…..seems to me the GM needs to be creative enough to surround that pitching with enough offense and defense to compete effectively and let the pitching carry them to the top.
Nah. If the Mets trade Thor he just has to be replaced. That will cost them a lot more than whatever they are paying him.
Does Ramos have any clubhouse intangibles? Grit or anything like that?
When I search for “Ramos grit” I get a bunch of malarkey about CrossFit. I tried that once and couldn’t walk for a week.
What exactly is Syndergaard’s problem throwing to Ramos? That he can’t get to his wild pitches? That he puts down the wrong sign and Syndergaard doesn’t know how to shake off? That Ramos doesn’t throw out the runners that he puts on base and can’t hold on? That Ramos doesn’t catch the pitch before it gets hit? That Ramos can’t get balls called as strikes?
As a Mets’ fan, I have grown tired of the primadonna and his #4 starter results. The problem is that he is still a better option than 75% of all the starting pitchers out there and he knows it.
When they were at their best, Noah Syndergaard and Matt Harvey both used Rene Rivera.
Gio Gonzales didn’t like to use Wilson Ramos either whereas, Max Scherzer preferred him.
Personal catchers are generally assigned to knuckleballers or pitchers who are unusually nasty. I remember hearing Al Kaline talking about the 1960s Indians pitchers all having personal catchers. There’s more but, this is what I can remember:
Sam McDowell – Del Crandall
Luis Tiant – Joe Azcue
Phil Niekro – Bob Didier
Mike Cuellar – Ellie Hendricks
Wilbur Wood – Ed Hermann
Randy Jones – Fred Kendall
Steve Carlton – Tim McCarver
Mark Fydrich – Bruce Kimm
Andy Pettit – Joe Girardi
Tim Wakefield – Doug Mirabelli
Clayton Kershaw – AJ Ellis
Greg Maddox used anyone but Javy Lopez,
What you say about knuckle-ballers, etc., is true. But one of the main reasons for so-called personal catchers, is the built-in rest day. Catchers can’t catch every day. The manager can pair one pitcher with the back-up, giving the main guy a day off at least every 5th day. Otherwise, if you have the back-up working intermittently with all the staff, it’s hard to establish consistency in the pitcher/catcher relationship. People tend to read far too much into one guy always throwing to one particular catcher, when it’s just a way to build a relationship, and for load management.
I think the personal catcher phenomenon is gaining popularity. I believe that the first personal catcher may have been Jack Lapp who worked with Colby Jack Coombs because he set up better for him.
Connie Mack often paired catchers to pitchers. Ossie Scheckengost handled Rube Waddell because he felt they “spoke the same language…” He paired Paddy Livingston with Cy Morgan because he handled his curve and spitter better than Ira Thomas.
Future Cy Young winner – Charlie O’Brien
Good job on this post. Yes you are correct. There is a solid history of pitchers using a preferred catcher assuming they had the kind of talent to make this demand. Seems like Syndagaard would fall under this catigory. Also just to add a small edit, Maddux preferred pitching specifically to Eddie Perez and he had some pretty bad years with the bat.
There has to be something else involved. It could be as simple as the Mets hoping the two them figure it out and they get the best of both worlds or maybe there is a behavioral issue involved.
So Jorge Posada will be the new Marlins Manager….Mattingly won’t stay below his current salary.
Not sure what the Mets need to consider except these 2 things.
3-12 vs 7-3
5.09 vs 2.45
The first is the team’s win-loss with Ramos catching Syndergaard vs Nido catching.
The 2nd is Syndergaard’s ERA with Ramos catching vs Nido catching
Its not an indictment of Ramos skill level as a catcher. These two don’t work well together. Why try to force the issue. Syndergaard pitches better and the team wins more when Nido is behind the plate. The goal of playing baseball is to win as many games as possible. Let Nido catch Syndergaard as close to always as is possible.
He has come to management twice now and they are ignoring his requests. That is simply bad management.
They aren’t ignoring it. Fox, ESPN and Deadspin are all reporting the same thing. They have told him no.
If they told him no, they are ignoring his request. The results are clear. Their way is not working. If what you are doing is not working the smart thing to do is change. The Mets are not changing. What does that say about the Mets manager and GM?
Not a Mets fan, nor did I look it up but does Degrom prefer pitching to Nido as well? I could possibly see an argument for not granting Thor his wishes all the time if that were the case. That would guarantee Nido 2 starts a week and maybe the Mets do not want that. However if Degrom has no issues I can’t imagine why they would not accommodate Thor.
It is curious to me why the Padres continue to play Wil myers in CF. He is hitting .222/.314/.358/.672 with 5 HR in 186 PA while playing CF and .264/.368/.468/.836 with 9HR in 221 PA while playing any other defensive position this year. So why does Green keep playing him in CF?
It’s not like his numbers were much better when he played CF in previous years. In 366 PA he has hit .233/.310 with 10 HR when playing CF over his career.
For whatever reason, Wil Myers can’t hit when he is playing CF in that game. .So why try to fit a square peg into a round hole?
Because 1. correlation doesn’t necessarily equal causation and 2. playing him in the corner OF spots takes away PA’s from Renfroe, Naylor and Martini.
I agree that Myers shouldn’t play CF by the way, but there is your answer to why they are doing it.
Tried to find a source explaining what the issue between these two are? Is it personal or does Syndagaard feel his performance doesnt work with Ramos. What every source I read is reporting is, Syndagaard has 5.09 ERA when Ramos catches and a 2.22 ERA when Nido and Rivera catch him.
Ramos is by far the better hitting catcher and also has a reputation as a good defending back stop and are paying him to be the starter.
On a pure statisitical line of thinking I don’t think Ramos’ bat makes up the difference of Syndagaard going 6 innings, allowing 5 runs opposed to 7 innings, allowing 2 runs. There is a solid tradition in baseball of pitchers having preferred recievers. The Mets themselves did this for DeGrom last year. So what’s the difference here? Are the Mets simply hoping the two of them will figure it out and they can get the best of both worlds because they are trying to make the playoffs or is it more a behavioral issue they dont want to encourage? Maybe a bit of both? Is this some how related to the report earlier this season that Ramos was unhappy with the Mets?
There are times baseball seems like the world’s longest ongoing soap opera.
The Mets “leadership” is a total dumpster fire. Why would you not want your pitcher’s results to be as good as possible? Greg Maddux always threw to Eddie Perez even though Javy Lopez was a huge threat at the plate. That tells me everything I need to know.
I know it’s a different regime and all, but the Mets used to have R.A Dickey pitch to just one catcher, I think it was Josh Thole? And then when Dickey went to Toronto, Toronto ended up getting Thole to accommodate Dickey.
I saw a few others mention how much better Thor pitches to anyone other than Ramos. I would think an automatic 2 run difference in ERA would be more preferable than trying to get runs on the board.
With the Mattingly thing, I can’t see the Marlins trying to replace him with Posada next year. Maybe I’m looking with rose colored glasses, but I think the optics on that would be terrible. I could see the headline now “The Captain fires the Captain!” Disregard the forum name while reading this haha.