The Mets announced a few noteworthy roster moves Wednesday, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. New York cut right-handers Corey Oswalt and Jordan Yamamoto from major league camp, and the club reassigned infielder/outfielder Brandon Drury and catcher Bruce Maxwell.
With Oswalt and Yamamoto on their way down, the Mets appear as if they’ll begin 2021 with left-hander Joey Lucchesi as the fifth starter in their rotation, DiComo suggests. Acquired from the Padres in a three-team trade during the offseason, the 27-year-old Lucchesi combined for 56 starts in San Diego from 2018-19, during which he piled up 293 2/3 innings and recorded a respectable 4.14 ERA/4.10 SIERA with decent strikeout and walk percentages of 24.6 and 8.0, respectively.
Lucchesi wasn’t able to build on his early success last year, as he threw a mere 5 2/3 innings in three appearances in his final season with the Padres. However, he has logged superior results this spring with 8 1/3 innings of three-earned run ball and 11 strikeouts against three walks.
Lucchesi did not look likely to make the Mets’ rotation until righty Carlos Carrasco suffered a torn hamstring last week. Carrasco could be out until at least sometime in May, which will give Lucchesi time to sink or swim in the Mets’ starting staff. Barring any unexpected developments in the next week, he’ll join Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman, Taijuan Walker and David Peterson in New York’s top five when the season opens.
He was a good pick up in that trade. Mets fanz w all their amazing prospects won’t own it, but acquiring other teams access wealth is always a good play
Most importantly he has multiple years of control remaining.
@bot Agree 100%. People like to crap on the small transactions and/or say it’s a sign that the team isn’t serious about acquiring top tier talent. In reality, acquiring cheap, useful pieces is important to building organizational depth (something the Mets have lacked) and it doesn’t affect acquiring expensive players.
He was a good pickup by their GM. RIP.
Is Noah syndergard more overrated than Bryce Harper?
Bryce Harper isn’t overrated, so probably.
How is Bryce Harper overrated?
$300+ mil contract for slightly above-average offensive production and below average defense.
Slightly above average offense? He has a career .900 OPS and 138 OPS+. If you don’t like him that’s fine. If you think he’s overrated that’s fine. But, if you say stuff that’s obviously not true, people will probably point it out.
“$300+ mil contract for slightly above-average offensive production and below average defense.”
–Officially the dumbest thing I read today.
Harper is a good player of course but his average is always low, he K’s a ton and that huge loopy swing isn’t gonna play real well as he ages and when he inevitably tweets and oblique. He’s not a great player and he isn’t a winner. Not surprising the Nats won once he was gone. But he’s a good really good play. Not a franchise cornerstone.
His average is low? Is this 1988?
He strikes out a lot & he never sacrifice bunts, either.
“Doesn’t handle the bat well”
“Doesn’t understand situational hitting”
carlos1514 hours ago
Harper is a good player of course but his average is always low,
================================================
How do you define ‘low’? Isn’t his average average almost always above the league average?
He’s a strikeout machine, and his stats are fake, he hits homers when it’s 10-1
He actually has a really good numbers with men on base. Keep spreading lies. I get it. You hate him because he has a pretty beard, but he’s good.
I’m a Mets fan and of course I don’t like Hatper, but this idea that he’s just a bit above average is crazy. His bad years are above average and his good years are great.
That’s called “doubling down on a rather dubious take”, @Von.
I know this, because I have done it – ya know – a time or two myself.
I got Harper at number 5 OF. .276/.387/.513/.900
The guy is a monster. Only reason he doesn’t hit more is because they walk him all the time. How can anyone not see this.
if your talking fantasy sports where it is certain stats that are considered it is probably true, but think on this … Jameis Winston’s last year in Tampa had him rated as the number 2 QB in football point wise in many formats.
Winston threw for 5100+ yards that year. He did pretty good that year, yes?
Judging a QB on yards thrown is useless for determining value without a lot of context. The more your team plays behind in the game, the more yards you’ll throw, and that’s not good.
PeteWard: Harper is awesome but folks have talked as if he’s already a first ballot guy and he’s not even close. So even someone as awesome as he can be overrated.
Cosmo2- Agree 100% with your post. In fantasy scoring system Flyby mentioned, that’s how he was judged. Winston didn’t get negative points for the 30 INTs he threw or all those fumbles he lost. That’s why he ended up #2 QB that year. Also Harper stats I posted were for his career. Not sure about Harper as a HOFer
he did get negative for ints and fumbles but the tds and yds out weigh that in a scoring system. As Cosmo mentioned those turnovers made it so he had throw constantly to get the team back in contention. If you owned an NFL a team would you take Jameis Winston over the likes of Mahomes, Rodgers, Brady, Brees (whom Winston was the backup/3rd stringer of next year at basically a league min contract), etc etc.
He did not get negative points for INT or FUM in the leagues I was in that’s how he finished QB2 that year. Also Winston finished top 10 the year before in the leagues I was in.
And 100 INT’s !!
Since when is a player’s slash line a fantasy stat? Also, what does what happened in fantasy football once have anything to do with this?
Harper. Bc he had ONE great season. AND he got paid !! $$$$
No. Not at all. He’s as good as people think. He just hasn’t put it together for extended periods of time. His ceiling is high. He’s not one of the best starters in baseball, but no one who understands the game (i.e.: no clowns writing columns and blog commenters) ever said he was, just that he could be. There are a lot of players like that. Not all pan out. Some take time to put it all together. That doesn’t make them overrated. Bryce Harper, on the other hand, is a great player. Even his down seasons produce great value. However, he’s probably not a top five player in baseball, let alone the second best to Trout, which quite a number of people claimed since he came into the game. I understand how people saw a high ceiling on a 19-year-old, but he hasn’t advanced to Trout/Betts/Soto/Acuna level, and it’s hard to expect him to rise in the rankings now that the last two are in baseball., and his overrating was as best player since Trout. Syndergaard’s ceiling is still as an ace, which is, what, a top 25 to 40 starter? That’s probably achievable..
@marcfrombrooklyn This is the right take on both guys, and I agree. I often consider Snydergaard overrated because he’s been trending steadily downward, but I would not be shocked if he returns to form. It’s not unrealistic for him to be an ace-type again. Harper is consistently good, and while I agree that he was overrated when people considered him the second coming of Babe Ruth, I think those days are long gone and the pendulum has shifted the other way. He was so overrated that he’s become underrated if that makes any sense. Harper is not a top 5 player and never will be, but he’s consistently a top 10-15 player.
I am curious Harper is Top 10-15 by what measure?
Since his huge 2015 by War (Position Players)
016-73rd , 017-33rd, 018-56th, 019-40th, 020-37th
He has never been a Top 30 position player by War since 015 yet by AAV he is the 9th highest paid position player.
Even as a Nats fan Harper isn’t overrated, I don’t think he’s elite but he’s a top 5 or 6 RF.
Harper used to be way overrated but I think folks now realize his 2015 WAR total was an aberration. Keep in mind, he’s not reached as much as 5 bWAR since, so judging by his contract, yea, he’s clearly overrated. Syndergaard, on the other hand is very overrated by Met fans, but I think only by Met fans. And a lot of Met fans were talking 2 years ago as if Harper’s ticket to the hall was already obviously secured and that’s definitely overrating him.
Im not going to lie. I probably overrate Thor but as a team fan you always think your players are superior to others. 🙂 In the end, i think he will prob stay in ny as i dont see him coming back as super dominant. Instead he prob take a bounce back type contract because i dont think he will get enough on the market unless he gets an opt out or multi year with mutuals.
Harper once the talks were hitting over 300M had him way overrated by exactly what you said. He had one monsterous year that he never replicated again. He is above average bat wise but for what he was paid no where near that value as he didnt even play a prime position.
1 WAR = about $8M
So, Harper’s contract is right in line with his productivity.
PitcherMeRolling: what is the source of this equation? I’ve always been skeptical of that stat. Actually, I think it’s nonsense. But I’ve never seen the actual equation or seen how it was developed. Do you know how it was calculated? Not trying to be a jerk, legit asking.
It’s from 538. Fangraphs has 1 WAR = $8M for 2020.
I’m sure the math behind it is available for your inspection.
Thanks
So your belief is that a guy who, in 118 MLB starts, has compiled a 15.7 WAR, to go along with:
an ERA+ of 119
a FIP of 2.92
a WHIP of 1.16
a KK/B ratio of 4.67
is overrated?
Then again, he has stunk in the post season.
Oh wait, no he hasn’t. In 26 post season innings he has dominated to the tune of a 2.42 ERA, 1.0 WHIP, and 12+ K per 9.
Tell us more, professor.
It’s ridiculous lol. He has a bad year his last year pitching and everyone thinks he is overrated. He is a elite 2.
I say Thor is overrated by Met fans because a decent amount of them have suggested he is the best pitcher in baseball, but the stats yet don’t show it. That’s overrated. But he is a very good pitcher.
@Cosmo2 brings up an excellent point. No one thinks Thor is bad. He’s not bad. There’s a huge difference between overrated and bad. Remember in 2015 people were rating Harvey and Thor over deGrom. It sounds insane to think about now.
I do not consider Thor an ace, and sometimes he gets talked about like an ace. That being said, I consider him a solid #2 with ace potential. Every team in baseball would want that.
Mets fan opinion here – I openly hoped the Mets would trade him even before his TJ surgery. Ever since he decided he wanted to be the hardest thrower in the league, lifted weights in the off season and hurt himself, costing the Mets his services, he has shown he does not put the team first.
Complaining and demanding the Mets not start their best catcher in games he pitched? Yup, more about him than the team.
Blame the catcher for his inability to hold a runner on first and leading the league in steals against?
He’s more worried about his marketing image than team wins. He’s heading toward Dark Knight (Harvey) territory faster than Cy Young.
I think the notion of Thor not being a team player is overstated. But it does seem like he is a bit hard-headed about trying to set the ball on fire with every pitch and that this may have led to his injury. Coaches have tried to get him to be more of a pitcher than a flame-hurler but he’s not having it.
No Mets fans think Thor is the best pitcher in baseball. deGrom is the best pitcher in baseball.
I think Wilson Ramos was to blame for a lot of that pitch calling, heat all the time
It regularly seemed like he couldn’t adequately catch Syndergaard’s stuff. He’d box borderline pitches around and gave away strikes. I don’t blame Syndergaard for not wanting to throw to him.
Having a #5 starter with a better than mlb average lifetime ERA is generally considered a plus.
Long live the Churve!
He’s en Fuego!
Overrated is an overrated word.
Harper is a fine player.
Overrated in the eyes of some I’d say. Some expect 2015 Harper every year, but the reality is he just isn’t that. That said, that contract is more then worth it.
If judging on Thors days of dueling Bumgarner in playoff game matching zeroes then one would believe he’s an ace.
If judging on what he’s been since then… one can say he’s a good 3.
That’s an average of a 2 so I’ll take it. Don’t need him to be an ace, just to be himself n the Mets rotation at full strength (as every other team) will be just fine.
Harper is a player I’m sure every team in baseball would love to have. Only thing not desirable about Harper to an organization is that contract. Time will tell if that stays true.
#Cohens_Wallet
I think a big problem for Thor was Wilson Ramos who could not call a game to save his life. He would call heat all the time and never mix it up. And then when Thor complained; think it was him help me out guys, then BVM said pitchers don’t get to pick catchers.
Oh well fun thing is we will see if I am right?
Betances was throwing 89-92 today. Dude better get cut before opening day. I’ll be pissed if he isn’t.
Not happening. Rojas said that already
@MetsFan22 I agree 100% and I don’t get it. The Mets have so many other pitchers on the bubble who are better and deserve a chance.all the way down to Smith.
I don’t get it Villain BigChances velocity has actually gone down this spring!
The money is not much either I guess the problem is ego; someone in the organization who decided to pick up his option doesn’t want to be proven wrong?
As a born and raised Mets fan living out in Angel land I don’t see keeping Jacob Barnes on the roster either just because he throws hard?
Glad to see Lee Harvey Oswalt go down; enough is enough 3 home runs given up in 6.2 innings; nothing new there.
Betances exercised a player option. Also, not like the Mets are brimming with talented RPs.
Anyone who watches Harper knows he’s good, not great. Stats don’t tell his whole story. And, ouch, that contract. As for Thor, I think he’s terrific when healthy and I’d never bet against him. Great? Could be. We’ll see how be bounces back.
He is a slightly better conforto. And slightly……
Harper destroys bad pitches, especially those where locations are missed in. If pitchers worked him away all the time, especially lefties, his numbers would plummet. But mediocre pitchers continue to try to trick him, and he beats them over and over.
I think pitchers have figured out that pitching around him doesn’t work cuz he just draws walks. Now that they don’t pitch around him his numbers have come down.
Lucchessi is a nice pick up for NY. The kind of cost controlled mid/back end arm the Angels could have used.
Didn’t realize the Mets had Bruce Maxwell on their roster. Yikes.
As a Pad fan, I watched him come thru the system and was at Spring Training his first 2 years in Major league camp – he has the stuff but let’s a big / long inning eat up pitch count. Mets fans you will find yourself pulling for the guy to succeed. If he can ever learn to keep the pitch count down he can be as good as a #3 most nights. He will lay an egg every now and then though and balloon his stats the wrong way.
How did this post turn into Bruce Harper is all I’ve got to say!
I have to thank despicable you for laying the bait that caught a good number of people here. The comments turned on themselves and everyone by the time they read this post ( except for Hudson 6 and longtimecoming) just about forgot what this article was about. I think that it is important that this year the Mets have five mlb ready starters even without Carrasco and another in Yamamoto waiting at Syracuse. It used to be disconcerting to look and see that Chris Flexen or Oswalt or ……. come up and try to hold the fort for a few starts. IF Noah comes back strong, even better, but i am not counting on it.
How did we start out talking about the Mets rotation and digress to football fantasy stats and a general trashing of Bryce Harper by an obviously uniformed and/or biased hater?
Biggest problem with the Mets rotation is health. Been that way for the past decade or so. Only deGrom is reliable in that regard.
Still I pick them to win the NL East. They have enough clout on offense, so if I were calling the shots, I’d put McNeill at 3B and Guillorme at 2B. Late in games when the Mets have leads I would move Nimmo to LF and put Pillar or Malix Smith in CF.
Mets pitchers, due to almost everyone throwing a sinker (I guess everybody wants to be Jake!), will induce a lot of groundballs. The more of those we can turn into outs the better (Duh!). Thus my preference to go with leather over wood.