New York Mets hire new GM and Manager to change their fortunes - Page 2

hvs1717 · 05-18-2020, 12:56 AM

Going into June I needed to make some changes.

June 1
Although pitching better, Neil Allen is still giving up too many walks. So I am moving Jeff Reardon to the closer role.

Kevin Kobel just continues to get shelled. I am demoting him and giving Tom Hausman another chance.

June 8
Steve Henderson gets put on the 15 day disabled list and I am promoting OF Mookie Wilson 36/43 from AAA Tidewater. Mookie is having a solid season at AAA but my scout is projecting him as no better than a career backup. But for now he is my starter in LF.

June 9
Juan Berenguer is eligible to come off the disabled list. Demoting Ed Lynch to Tidewater to make room. Lynch was not good in his 2 starts. He only lasted 8.2 innings. His ERA was 7.27. His whip 2.54 and his k/9 and bb/9 were both 6.2

June 11
RP Dave Von Ohlen is ready to come off the DL. He was pitching terribly for the Mets before he got hurt so I am demoting him to AAA.

June 15
Juan Berenguer is back on the DL. This time it was biceps tendinitis. With the forearm strain last time, hopefully this isn't a pattern. To replace him this time, I am giving John Pacella a chance. Pacella has been almost unhittable out of the pen in AAA. 12 appearances 15.0 inning pitched 0.60 ERA 12 strikeouts and 2 saves. As good as Ray Burris has been in the pen, I am moving him to the rotation for now. I don't trust Pacella in the rotation.

June 16
Made the first trade of my young tenure. Trading probably our best hitter, Joel Youngblood (OF) 55/53 to the Dodgers with throw in Todd Winterfeldt (3B) 28/32 for Greg Brock (1B) 36/52 and Mickey Hatcher (3B) 39/53. My scout seems to think that Mickey can turn into a really good third baseman. I am going to send them both to AAA right now and hope they are ready for a September call up. To replace Youngblood on the 25 man roster, I decided it was time to see if Hubie Brooks is ready.

I think it is time to clean house and see what I can get for anyone of value

June 21
I shopped around Lee Mazzilli, John Stearns, Craig Swan, Pete Falcone, Pat Zachry, pretty much anyone with any value except for Steve Henderson and that was only because he is on the DL. As soon as he is healthy I will shop him around also.

Kansas City lost SP Dennis Leonard for 4 weeks and are already starting 2 22 year olds (Tom Candiotti and Atlee Hammaker) before they are ready. In 3rd place in the AL West, they are in danger of falling out of the race if their pitching doesn't improve. With a surplus of Outfielders they offered 24 year old LF Willie Wilson 58/50 for SP Pete Falcone 50/50. Wilson is better than anyone we have in the outfield now and could be a nice corner piece to go with Darryl Strawberry for the next few years. I can't turn that down.

With the acquisition of Willie Wilson, I am going to demote Hubie Brooks. Even though he only played 5 games he looked over matched, hitting .136 in 22 at bats. Maybe it is too soon, after all he has only started 13 games and pitched 103 innings in the minors, Tim Leary has looked really good. 9-3 with a 2.62 ERA. 79 strikeouts for 6.9 k/9 and 3.5 bb/9.

June 22
Steve Henderson is eligible to come off the DL. I am sending him to the minors for rehab.

moore4807 · 05-28-2020, 06:16 PM

Hoping your gonna post more results - I'm enjoying the read...

hvs1717 · 05-31-2020, 01:16 PM

June was our best month so far, but at 10-19 it wasn't much progress.

At 23-51 on the season, we are by far the worst team in baseball. The Mariners, 28-48, in the AL are the only other team with less than 30 wins on the season. I am going to try to win ball games but I have to say the #1 pick would be really attractive. There are some great players in this draft.

Moving Ray Burris into the starting rotation hasn't changed the results. He is still pitching very well. He and Reardon have been the lone bright spots on the pitching staff. Willie Wilson has played even better with the Mets than he was with KC, which has been a pleasant surprise. John Stearns has done a nice job driving in runs with 41 so far and Lee Mazzilli has had a solid season so far but his arm is so bad I don't think he is the answer in the OF. His lack of power may mean he is better off being traded than moving to 1B permanently.

George Brett (KC) .398, Andre Dawson (MON) .390 and Bill Buckner (CHI) .385 are still threatening to be the first .400 hitter since Ted Williams.

It looks like it is tough scoring runs in the NL this year with JR Richard (HOU) 1.35 ERA, Larry Christensen (PHI) 1.56 ERA and Jerry Reuss (LA) 1.82 all have ERA's below 2.00.

hvs1717 · 05-31-2020, 02:29 PM

July 1 - July 7
No one wants any of my major league players at least not for any decent prospects. I continue to get bad offers for Strawberry almost daily. Maybe as we get closer to the trade deadline, I can get some better offers. We had a great week on the field though 5 wins and 2 losses going into the All Star Break. We didn't have a single player selected to the NL All Star Team.

July 8 - July 15
The All Star Break gave all of our guys a few days off. Cincinnati sent us an interesting offer on July 12. They need a CF and offered 30 year old reliever Doug Bair (48/46) and their 2nd Round pick for OF Steve Henderson (49/50). Henderson originally came to the Mets in the Tom Seaver trade in June 1977. I don't have much interest in Bair, he has been getting shelled. but I don't think I can turn down that 2nd round pick. Maybe I can package that to get another pick in the first round in December. I had to throw in 1B William Chamberlain (23/27) to make the deal work. I am not sure why they like him. He is having a decent year at Lynchburg 10 hr 44 rbi .287/.348/.459 in 244 at bats but he doesn't look like a prospect.
With the trade, I have demoted Mark Bomback and moved John Pacella into the rotation and Tom Hausman will take over the long reliever role. Bomback either isn't good enough for the majors or just wasn't ready.
And it is time to see if Mickey Hatcher is ready. He is hitting the ball a ton over the last month. 5 hr 22 rbi .376/.371/.538 in 98 pa with Tidewater after an underwhelming two months in Albuquerque. With Hatcher coming up, I am moving Willie Wilson over to LF, where he is a potential Gold Glove candidate. 3 wins, 3 losses for the week.

July 16 - July 31
We got lots of offers heading into the trade deadline. Unfortunately, very few of them were fair and included prospects. I decided to stand pat and not make any moves with other teams.

On the 29th, John Pacella threw 8 2/3 innings of 3 hit ball in his first start of the season. The Mets won 3-1 behind the strong pitching and a rare 7-4-3 triple play.

On the 30th, Juan Berenguer was eligible to come off the DL. I demoted Doug Bair. He hasn't been any better with us than he was in Cincinnati with an ERA over 6.75.

hvs1717 · 05-31-2020, 02:51 PM

We had our first winning month going 15 and 13 in July. We are now 38-64 and 27 games out of 1st place on the season. We are still one of the two worst teams in baseball along with Seattle but they have sunk even lower than us at 34-67. Roy Lee Jackson seems to be developing into a solid setup man to compliment Jeff Reardon. Pacella continues to out pitch his ratings. I don't think he is a long term solution but we will take the results while we can.Willie Wilson has been a stud in NY. If his Mets stats were projected over a full season - 2 hr 38 rbi .348/.385/.456 and 66 stolen bases in 592 at bats.Lee Mazzilli continues to be our only other consistent hitter. John Steans was one of the NL top run producers through June but only had 7 rbi in the entire month of July.

After getting shelled in his major league debut in June, Tim Leary won NL Rookie of the Month Award in July. Over 5 starts, Tim was 3-2 with a 2.63 ERA, striking out 30 in 37 2/3 innings pitched.

George Brett (KC) continues his quest to hit .400. He has raised his average to .408 on the season. He also leads the majors with 86 rbis and is 2nd in the AL with 25 homers. Brett is trying to become the fourth player in history to win the triple crown while hitting .400 or better.

With an ERA of 1.39, JR Richard still has an outside chance to challenge Bob Gibson's modern single season ERA record of 1.12.

hvs1717 · 05-31-2020, 04:35 PM

Aug 1 - Aug 15
After a really encouraging July, we started off the month of August 4-9. The Expos have gone in the opposite direction going 13-1, winning their first 13 games, to over take Pittsburgh for 1st place in the NL East.

Aug 16 - Aug 31
On Aug 23, the excitement continued when John Pacella pitches. This time after recording the last out in a 2-0 shut out win over the Dodgers, Pacella and Dodger Manager Tommy Lasorda had words. Lasorda was not happy with Pacella's celebration after that out. We finished the month a more respectable 7-8 but 11-17 is not a great follow up to 15-13.

August was a pretty uneventful month. No injuries to mention so I stopped tinkering with the roster until the roster expansion in September.

hvs1717 · 05-31-2020, 04:45 PM

With a month left in the season, it looks like it will be a 3 way battle for the #1 pick in December's draft, between Toronto (49-81), Seattle (48-81) and the Mets (49-81)

It also looks like there is only one race worth mentioning. After their hot August, Montreal holds a 2 game lead over the defending champion Pittsburgh Pirates.

George Brett's is still hitting .402 but is looking less like a triple crown winner too. And it doesn't look like JR Richard will challenge Bob Gibson this year as his ERA climbed to 1.67.

hvs1717 · 05-31-2020, 05:21 PM

Starting Pitching - Mike Scott (43/53), Ed Lynch (43/49)
I need to get a look at Mike Scott and Ed Lynch in the rotation. Since, Craig Swan is under contract for another year, I am going to keep him in the rotation to see if I can get some trade interest for him in the off season. Leary and Pacella have pitched well enough to stay in the rotation. Burris and Zachry will move to the bullpen

Relief Pitching - No Call ups
Not much changing here other than moving Burris and Zachry from the rotation. After I give Tidewater a chance to win their league title I may bring up their top 2 relievers but not yet.

Infielders - 3B Hubie Brooks (36/48)
Since Elliott Maddox is not hitting well and is a free agent at the end of the year, I think we need to get a look at either Brooks or Hatcher at 3B. I can use Hatcher in the OF so Brooks gets the first shot at the hot corner.

Catchers - Lloyd McClendon (43/45)
John Stearns is in the last year of his contract and has gotten worse as the season has gone on. McClendon has been tearing up AAA.

Outfielders - LF Mookie Wilson (37/43)
Mookie didn't hit well in his first stint in NY but kept hitting well in AAA. Let's see how he does in his second try.

I am going all out rebuild at this point and am trying to get a look at as many youngsters as I can heading into the off season.

hvs1717 · 05-31-2020, 07:23 PM

Sep 15
Lost Ed Lynch for 2-3 weeks so we are just going to shut him down for the season. He wasn't pitching well before the injury. With Tidewater up 2-1 in their league championship series, I am not going to mess with their staff and instead give Juan Berenguer another chance. He pitched very well last September as a starter.

End of the Season
Berenguer pitched much better in this call up. He threw 7 1/3 innings of shutout ball in his first start while striking out 7. He threw a complete game in start 2. Losing a tough 3-2 decision.

Mike Scott was Mr. Inconsistency over his last four starts. 8 2/3 shutout innings on Sep 7. On Sep 12, he lasted 2 1/3 innings while giving up 5 runs. On Sep 23, another 7 shutout innings. It was a nice bit of revenge since the Cubs chased him in his last start. Then on Sep 28, his last start of the season, he gave up 4 runs in 6 1/3 inning and walked 6.

The Cubs totally fell apart in September. We went 10-22 and they finished behind us, ending the season on a 12 game losing streak. We ended up with the third pick in the draft. That is disappointing. I really wanted a shot at Tony Gwynn. But there is a lot of talent in this draft. With 4 picks in the first 3 rounds so far, I like our chances of getting some decent talent.

George Brett ended up hitting .380 with 36 home runs and 124 runs batted in. He fell short in his quest for .400 and the triple crown but led the AL in RBIs. JR Richard finished with a 1.57 ERA.

Montreal completed the comeback and knocked off Pittsburgh for the NL East title.

hvs1717 · 05-31-2020, 08:12 PM

Kansas City swept the Indians in the AL Championship Series 3-0. The Expos and Padres went 5 before the Expos finally prevailed 3-2. Down 3-1 to the Royals the Expos completed the unlikely comeback and defeat KC 4-3 to take their first World Series title. Andre Dawson finished off a probable MVP season with the World Series MVP. Former Met, Pete Falcone had a very respectable season with KC and was one of the reasons they made the playoffs. However, he got lit up in the playoffs and World Series.

hvs1717 · 06-07-2020, 08:38 PM

Oct 27, 1980
CF Jose Cardenal (37) retired. Jose had a solid 17 year career but barely played this year for us.
Toronto offers us SS Alfredo Griffin (23, 44/47) for SP Craig Swan (29, 48/48). Griffin is a huge upgrade over Doug Flynn (29, 36/36) and Frank Taveras (30, 37/37) and helps us get younger. Griffin was AL Rookie of the Year in 79.

Nov 17, 1980 - Arbitration Hearings
1980 Salary Demand Team Offer Award
Tom Hausman $88,700 $125,000 $100,000 $100,000
Willie Wilson $266,000 $360,750 $300,000 $360,750
Doug Flynn $87,500 $125,000 $100,000 $100,000
Ed Glynn $106,200 $147,900 $120,000 $147,900
Roy Lee Jackson $51,920 $118,000 $75,000 $75,000
Lee Mazzilli $280,000 $400,000 $325,000 $400,000
Alfredo Griffin $247,500 $350,000 $275,000 $275,000
Pat Zachry $218,000 $300,000 $276,000 $300,000

I am a little disappointed with some of the awards in arbitration but I think that is just because I am cheap when it comes to salaries.

I didn't make many moves leading up to free agency. I would have liked to be more active but I am learning that one of the reasons the Mets rebuild took so long is because they have very few players anyone else wants. I did offer a number of minor league free agents contracts but none have signed as of yet.

hvs1717 · 06-07-2020, 08:50 PM

Cleveland Indians Outfielder Miguel Dilone set a new MLB record with 703 at bats in a single season. Dilone broke the old record set by Dave Cash in 1975.

We only had four players retire this season.

Jose Cardenal, Bert Campenaris, Willie McCovey and Fred Norman. Campenaris's 630 steals is the 10th best total in major league history. McCovey's 520 hrs is the 9th best total in major league history. McCovey's 22 year career wouldn't fit in one screenshot.

hvs1717 · 06-07-2020, 09:22 PM

Potential Starting Pitching - Pat Zachry (28, 48/48), Tim Leary (21, 47/56), Mike Scott (25, 40/53), John Pacella (24, 39/20), Ed Lynch (24, 38/43)

Potential Bullpen - Jeff Reardon (25, 60/54), Neil Allen (22, 59/59), Roy Lee Jackson (26, 50/48), Tom Hausman (27, 45/40), Juan Berenguer (25, 44/54), Ed Glynn (27, 44/31), Dave von Ohlen (22, 41/34), Tom Dixon (25, 40/39)

Potential Batters
1B - Lee Mazzilli (25, 57/57), Greg Brock (23, 36/51)
2B - Wally Backman (21, 44/50), Doug Flynn (29, 36/36), Brian Giles (20, 33/43)
SS - Alfredo Griffin (23, 44/47), Doug Flynn (29, 36/36)
3B - Hubie Brooks (24, 35/46)
C - Lloyd McClendon (21, 42/44), Alex Trevino (23, 35/40)
LF - Mookie Wilson (24, 37/42)
CF - Willie Wilson (25, 61/49)
RF - Mickey Hatcher (25, 37/50)

Going into free agency we have a lot of needs. We do not have 5 major league ready starters. I think we can get by with our bullpen but wouldn't mind an arm or two, especially a LHP. I am not sold on von Ohlen to help out Glynn. Our lineup needs help everywhere. It would be really nice if Greg Brock was ready now so I could start Mazzilli in LF and move Mookie Wilson to super sub of all 3 positions. I might need to sign a 1B for 1 year. McClendon had a great year in AAA but I don't know if he is a starter plus I think I need a veteran catcher to help develop the young arms coming up.

Nov 19, 1980
We added a few free agents to bolster our minor leagues.
LF Craig Adams (23, 29/30) - Craig hit 28 hr 107 rbi .318/.404/.534 with 27 sbs in the California League. Assigned him to AA Jackson
CF Timothy Roche (26, 32/35) - Hit 32 hr 163 rbi .356/.422/.623 in the California League - Assigned him to AA Jackson
SP John Hoban (22, 27/20) - 19-6 2.58 era over 234 innings in the California League. Assigned him to AA Jackson
SP Mark Softy (26/20) - 16-9 3.03 era over 229 innings in the Midwest League. Assigned him to our new A affiliate Shelby Mets in the Sally League.

The Free Agent Class is talented, led by 3B Mike Schmidt. I have $1,205,458 for Free Agency right now. We have a lot of needs to fill. Hopefully we can find some young guys to fill out our roster. I don't think we are ready to make a big offer to a star like Schmidt right now.

hvs1717 · 07-05-2020, 06:49 PM

I forgot to mention going into free agency we decided to release:

P Ray Burris, SS Frank Taveras, 3B Elliott Maddox, C John Stearns, C Ron Hodges, RF Mike Jorgensen. Although I like a couple of those guys, none are a great loss in our rebuild. Most of them have passed their primes at this point.

hvs1717 · 07-05-2020, 06:59 PM

Early free agency for us was mostly about identifying and signing minor leaguers and seeing what might fall to us. Our cross town rival Yankees have been very busy though, signing the top free agent, 3B Mike Schmidt and the top C Gene Tenace. Schmidt is coming off a monster season, 47 hr 123 rbi .289/.379/.591 19 sb. The Expos added SP Doyle Alexander. Alexander pitched for both Atlanta and Cincinnati in 1980. He was dominant with the Braves but did not have the same success with the Reds. Overall he was 14-11 3.60 era over 247 2/3 innings. The Royals signed P Burt Hooton away from the Dodgers. Hooton had a solid season for LA, going 11-14 3.19 over 225 2/3 innings.

hvs1717 · 07-05-2020, 07:24 PM

Ok so on to my favorite time of the year, the draft. The only thing I realized that was very disappointing, is I will not be able to replicate the Mets draft prowess because it is impossible to get the gems late that they did in real life. All of the best players are gone by the second round.

Leading up to the draft, I was so excited to get a chance at HOF Tony Gwynn. He was my pick all the way. But then I started to waver. I love Sid Fernandez, David Cone, Lenny Dykstra and Kevin Mitchell too. I caved and went with Mitchell. If he lives up to his potential he will hit .300 plus with 35+ homer potential. We got 3-4 that will upgrade our farm system right away and our scout feels will make the majors. I don't think any of them will be more than spot starters though.

2nd Rnd - Phil Ouellette, C (35/48)
3rd Rnd - Stephen DeMatties, C (38/43)
4th Rnd - Trey Brooks, 2B (21/40)

hvs1717 · 07-05-2020, 07:56 PM

Rule 5 Draft -

We lost 2 players, RP Tom Dixon (40/39) was selected by Cleveland and SP Greg A Harris (32/46) was selected by the White Sox. I think both guys are going to have a hard time sticking in the majors all season. We couldn't find any Rule 5 gems this year.

Free Agency Continued -

December 20th - 3B Jim Gantner accepted a minor league contract. I was surprised we got him so cheaply. I have my doubts that Hubie Brooks is ready to start so Gantner is a nice bridge. In 358 at bats in Milwaukee, Gantner hit .296/.319/.341 with 0 hr 31 rbi and 9 sbs.

December 21st - 1B Terry Crowley signs a one year deal for $195,000. Crowley had a solid season in Baltimore this year with 16 hr 48 rbi .253/.319/.407 in 369 at bats. Crowley gives us a chance to bring Brock along slowly and allow Lee Mazzilli to play both 1B and OF.

And the Yankees are at it again. This time signing RP Gary Lavelle 66/66), the top reliever available in free agency. Lavelle had 32 saves and a 2.15 era in San Francisco this past season.

hvs1717 · 07-05-2020, 08:06 PM

Free Agency Continued -

January 15th -

Sign C Rick Cerone (46/48). Cerone is a small upgrade over John Stearns and gives us some depth while Lloyd McClendon continues to develop.
Sign SP Geoff Zahn (48/44). The LHP should be one of the better starters we have this year. One year for $115,000 seems like a no lose deal.

Hall of Fame voting

Bob Gibson, Harmon Killebrew, Juan Marichal and Al Kaline were all elected to the HOF. That is a pretty good class.

hvs1717 · 07-05-2020, 10:20 PM

The rest of the offseason was uneventful. But we needed to add some depth to the spring training roster and to some of our minor league affiliates.

LF Ron LeFlore (32, 46/46) signed to a minor league contract with a major league option for $230k after 30 days. I don't think I want to pay him that major league option, but maybe he can have a great month and I can get something in return for him.
LF Tom Paciorek (34, 41/41) signed a one year contract for $130k to back up LF and possibly RF.
CF Omar Moreno (28, 47/47) sigend to a one year contract. Omar had a great year in Pittsburgh last year. 5 hr 61 rbi .286/.327/.367 and 75 sbs. I am thrilled to get him for one year for only $256k. He will bat leadoff and play very good defense in CF.

There were no worthwhile Left handed relievers on the free agent market so I might have to live with one lefty in the bullpen if Dave von Ohlen isn't ready.

hvs1717 · 07-05-2020, 11:02 PM

For spring training this year, we are bringing in 38 players, 16 pitchers and 22 batters. I expect to keep 10-11 pitchers and 14-15 batters

Starting Pitching - Tim Leary (22, 48/56), Pat Zachry (28, 48/48), Geoff Zahn (35, 46/44), Ed Lynch (25, 43/43), Mike Scott (25, 38/49), John Pacella (24, 34/20), Juan Berenguer (26, 33/43), Mark Bomback (27, 31/35)

Leary, Zachry and Zahn should lock up 3 spots. so the other 5 are essentially fighting for 2 spots. Berenguer may be better off coming out of the bullpen.

Relief Pitching - Neil Allen (23, 61/61), Jeff Reardon (25, 59/51), Roy Lee Jackson (26, 50/49), Tom Hausman (27, 44/40), Dave von Ohlen (22, 41/33), Ed Glynn (27, 38/30), Douglas Henley (23, 38/39), Ray Searage (25, 29/40)

Allen, Reardon and Jackson are locks for the closer and setup roles. We most likely need to make a trade for a strong left handed reliever, unless someone from the group of Glynn, von Ohlen and Searage step up.

Infielders - Wally Backman (21, 47/50), Alfredo Griffin (23, 44/48), Greg Brock (23, 42/51), Terry Crowley (34, 41/39), Jim Gantner (28, 41/42), Dick C Schofield (18, 40/45), Hubie Brooks (24, 36/46), Brian J Giles (20, 36/43), Doug Flynn (29, 33/34)

Hopefully, Brock is ready to take over the 1B job. Backman and Griffin are our middle infielders. Brooks and Gantner will battle for the 3B job. Schofield is a rookie and will start in the minors but he is too good not to at least expose to spring training.

Catchers - Rick Cerone (26, 45/47), Lloyd McClendon (22, 42/43), Stephen DeMatties (21, 40/43), John Hanley (22, 38/43), Alex Trevino (23, 33/41)

Cerone will be a nice addition to handle the young staff. McClendon needs to play if he makes the team. His versatility will help. He can play 1B, 3B and RF in addition to C.

Outfielders - Willie Wilson (25, 61/52), Lee Mazzilli (25, 58/57), Omar Moreno (28, 47/47), Ron LeFlore (32, 45/45), Tom Paciorek (34, 41/41), Mickey Hatcher (25, 39/50), Mookie Wilson (25, 39/41), Jose Moreno (23, 37/30)

Willie Wilson, Mazzilli and Moreno should secure the starting outfield spots. With Wilson and Moreno at the top of the order, there should be lots of rbi opportunities for the middle of the lineup. Wilson and Moreno are both excellent defensively too. If the veterans work out, I can give Hatcher and Mookie Wilson a little more time to grow in the minors.

05-18-2020, 12:56 AM	#21
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Going into June I needed to make some changes. June 1 Although pitching better, Neil Allen is still giving up too many walks. So I am moving Jeff Reardon to the closer role. Kevin Kobel just continues to get shelled. I am demoting him and giving Tom Hausman another chance. June 8 Steve Henderson gets put on the 15 day disabled list and I am promoting OF Mookie Wilson 36/43 from AAA Tidewater. Mookie is having a solid season at AAA but my scout is projecting him as no better than a career backup. But for now he is my starter in LF. June 9 Juan Berenguer is eligible to come off the disabled list. Demoting Ed Lynch to Tidewater to make room. Lynch was not good in his 2 starts. He only lasted 8.2 innings. His ERA was 7.27. His whip 2.54 and his k/9 and bb/9 were both 6.2 June 11 RP Dave Von Ohlen is ready to come off the DL. He was pitching terribly for the Mets before he got hurt so I am demoting him to AAA. June 15 Juan Berenguer is back on the DL. This time it was biceps tendinitis. With the forearm strain last time, hopefully this isn't a pattern. To replace him this time, I am giving John Pacella a chance. Pacella has been almost unhittable out of the pen in AAA. 12 appearances 15.0 inning pitched 0.60 ERA 12 strikeouts and 2 saves. As good as Ray Burris has been in the pen, I am moving him to the rotation for now. I don't trust Pacella in the rotation. June 16 Made the first trade of my young tenure. Trading probably our best hitter, Joel Youngblood (OF) 55/53 to the Dodgers with throw in Todd Winterfeldt (3B) 28/32 for Greg Brock (1B) 36/52 and Mickey Hatcher (3B) 39/53. My scout seems to think that Mickey can turn into a really good third baseman. I am going to send them both to AAA right now and hope they are ready for a September call up. To replace Youngblood on the 25 man roster, I decided it was time to see if Hubie Brooks is ready. I think it is time to clean house and see what I can get for anyone of value June 21 I shopped around Lee Mazzilli, John Stearns, Craig Swan, Pete Falcone, Pat Zachry, pretty much anyone with any value except for Steve Henderson and that was only because he is on the DL. As soon as he is healthy I will shop him around also. Kansas City lost SP Dennis Leonard for 4 weeks and are already starting 2 22 year olds (Tom Candiotti and Atlee Hammaker) before they are ready. In 3rd place in the AL West, they are in danger of falling out of the race if their pitching doesn't improve. With a surplus of Outfielders they offered 24 year old LF Willie Wilson 58/50 for SP Pete Falcone 50/50. Wilson is better than anyone we have in the outfield now and could be a nice corner piece to go with Darryl Strawberry for the next few years. I can't turn that down. With the acquisition of Willie Wilson, I am going to demote Hubie Brooks. Even though he only played 5 games he looked over matched, hitting .136 in 22 at bats. Maybe it is too soon, after all he has only started 13 games and pitched 103 innings in the minors, Tim Leary has looked really good. 9-3 with a 2.62 ERA. 79 strikeouts for 6.9 k/9 and 3.5 bb/9. June 22 Steve Henderson is eligible to come off the DL. I am sending him to the minors for rehab. Last edited by hvs1717; 05-20-2020 at 10:08 PM.

05-31-2020, 01:16 PM	#23
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	June was our best month so far, but at 10-19 it wasn't much progress. At 23-51 on the season, we are by far the worst team in baseball. The Mariners, 28-48, in the AL are the only other team with less than 30 wins on the season. I am going to try to win ball games but I have to say the #1 pick would be really attractive. There are some great players in this draft. Moving Ray Burris into the starting rotation hasn't changed the results. He is still pitching very well. He and Reardon have been the lone bright spots on the pitching staff. Willie Wilson has played even better with the Mets than he was with KC, which has been a pleasant surprise. John Stearns has done a nice job driving in runs with 41 so far and Lee Mazzilli has had a solid season so far but his arm is so bad I don't think he is the answer in the OF. His lack of power may mean he is better off being traded than moving to 1B permanently. George Brett (KC) .398, Andre Dawson (MON) .390 and Bill Buckner (CHI) .385 are still threatening to be the first .400 hitter since Ted Williams. It looks like it is tough scoring runs in the NL this year with JR Richard (HOU) 1.35 ERA, Larry Christensen (PHI) 1.56 ERA and Jerry Reuss (LA) 1.82 all have ERA's below 2.00. Attached Images

05-31-2020, 02:29 PM	#24
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	July Recap July 1 - July 7 No one wants any of my major league players at least not for any decent prospects. I continue to get bad offers for Strawberry almost daily. Maybe as we get closer to the trade deadline, I can get some better offers. We had a great week on the field though 5 wins and 2 losses going into the All Star Break. We didn't have a single player selected to the NL All Star Team. July 8 - July 15 The All Star Break gave all of our guys a few days off. Cincinnati sent us an interesting offer on July 12. They need a CF and offered 30 year old reliever Doug Bair (48/46) and their 2nd Round pick for OF Steve Henderson (49/50). Henderson originally came to the Mets in the Tom Seaver trade in June 1977. I don't have much interest in Bair, he has been getting shelled. but I don't think I can turn down that 2nd round pick. Maybe I can package that to get another pick in the first round in December. I had to throw in 1B William Chamberlain (23/27) to make the deal work. I am not sure why they like him. He is having a decent year at Lynchburg 10 hr 44 rbi .287/.348/.459 in 244 at bats but he doesn't look like a prospect. With the trade, I have demoted Mark Bomback and moved John Pacella into the rotation and Tom Hausman will take over the long reliever role. Bomback either isn't good enough for the majors or just wasn't ready. And it is time to see if Mickey Hatcher is ready. He is hitting the ball a ton over the last month. 5 hr 22 rbi .376/.371/.538 in 98 pa with Tidewater after an underwhelming two months in Albuquerque. With Hatcher coming up, I am moving Willie Wilson over to LF, where he is a potential Gold Glove candidate. 3 wins, 3 losses for the week. July 16 - July 31 We got lots of offers heading into the trade deadline. Unfortunately, very few of them were fair and included prospects. I decided to stand pat and not make any moves with other teams. On the 29th, John Pacella threw 8 2/3 innings of 3 hit ball in his first start of the season. The Mets won 3-1 behind the strong pitching and a rare 7-4-3 triple play. On the 30th, Juan Berenguer was eligible to come off the DL. I demoted Doug Bair. He hasn't been any better with us than he was in Cincinnati with an ERA over 6.75.

05-31-2020, 02:51 PM	#25
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Aug 1 Standings We had our first winning month going 15 and 13 in July. We are now 38-64 and 27 games out of 1st place on the season. We are still one of the two worst teams in baseball along with Seattle but they have sunk even lower than us at 34-67. Roy Lee Jackson seems to be developing into a solid setup man to compliment Jeff Reardon. Pacella continues to out pitch his ratings. I don't think he is a long term solution but we will take the results while we can.Willie Wilson has been a stud in NY. If his Mets stats were projected over a full season - 2 hr 38 rbi .348/.385/.456 and 66 stolen bases in 592 at bats.Lee Mazzilli continues to be our only other consistent hitter. John Steans was one of the NL top run producers through June but only had 7 rbi in the entire month of July. After getting shelled in his major league debut in June, Tim Leary won NL Rookie of the Month Award in July. Over 5 starts, Tim was 3-2 with a 2.63 ERA, striking out 30 in 37 2/3 innings pitched. George Brett (KC) continues his quest to hit .400. He has raised his average to .408 on the season. He also leads the majors with 86 rbis and is 2nd in the AL with 25 homers. Brett is trying to become the fourth player in history to win the triple crown while hitting .400 or better. With an ERA of 1.39, JR Richard still has an outside chance to challenge Bob Gibson's modern single season ERA record of 1.12. Attached Images Last edited by hvs1717; 05-31-2020 at 02:52 PM.

05-31-2020, 04:45 PM	#27
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Sep 1 Standings With a month left in the season, it looks like it will be a 3 way battle for the #1 pick in December's draft, between Toronto (49-81), Seattle (48-81) and the Mets (49-81) It also looks like there is only one race worth mentioning. After their hot August, Montreal holds a 2 game lead over the defending champion Pittsburgh Pirates. George Brett's is still hitting .402 but is looking less like a triple crown winner too. And it doesn't look like JR Richard will challenge Bob Gibson this year as his ERA climbed to 1.67. Attached Images Last edited by hvs1717; 05-31-2020 at 04:46 PM.

05-28-2020, 06:16 PM	#22
moore4807 All Star Starter Join Date: May 2002 Location: Punta Gorda FL. Posts: 1,382	Hoping your gonna post more results - I'm enjoying the read...

05-31-2020, 04:35 PM	#26
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Aug 1 - Aug 15 After a really encouraging July, we started off the month of August 4-9. The Expos have gone in the opposite direction going 13-1, winning their first 13 games, to over take Pittsburgh for 1st place in the NL East. Aug 16 - Aug 31 On Aug 23, the excitement continued when John Pacella pitches. This time after recording the last out in a 2-0 shut out win over the Dodgers, Pacella and Dodger Manager Tommy Lasorda had words. Lasorda was not happy with Pacella's celebration after that out. We finished the month a more respectable 7-8 but 11-17 is not a great follow up to 15-13. August was a pretty uneventful month. No injuries to mention so I stopped tinkering with the roster until the roster expansion in September.

05-31-2020, 05:21 PM	#28
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	September 1 Call Ups Starting Pitching - Mike Scott (43/53), Ed Lynch (43/49) I need to get a look at Mike Scott and Ed Lynch in the rotation. Since, Craig Swan is under contract for another year, I am going to keep him in the rotation to see if I can get some trade interest for him in the off season. Leary and Pacella have pitched well enough to stay in the rotation. Burris and Zachry will move to the bullpen Relief Pitching - No Call ups Not much changing here other than moving Burris and Zachry from the rotation. After I give Tidewater a chance to win their league title I may bring up their top 2 relievers but not yet. Infielders - 3B Hubie Brooks (36/48) Since Elliott Maddox is not hitting well and is a free agent at the end of the year, I think we need to get a look at either Brooks or Hatcher at 3B. I can use Hatcher in the OF so Brooks gets the first shot at the hot corner. Catchers - Lloyd McClendon (43/45) John Stearns is in the last year of his contract and has gotten worse as the season has gone on. McClendon has been tearing up AAA. Outfielders - LF Mookie Wilson (37/43) Mookie didn't hit well in his first stint in NY but kept hitting well in AAA. Let's see how he does in his second try. I am going all out rebuild at this point and am trying to get a look at as many youngsters as I can heading into the off season.

05-31-2020, 07:23 PM	#29
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Rest of the Season Summary Sep 15 Lost Ed Lynch for 2-3 weeks so we are just going to shut him down for the season. He wasn't pitching well before the injury. With Tidewater up 2-1 in their league championship series, I am not going to mess with their staff and instead give Juan Berenguer another chance. He pitched very well last September as a starter. End of the Season Berenguer pitched much better in this call up. He threw 7 1/3 innings of shutout ball in his first start while striking out 7. He threw a complete game in start 2. Losing a tough 3-2 decision. Mike Scott was Mr. Inconsistency over his last four starts. 8 2/3 shutout innings on Sep 7. On Sep 12, he lasted 2 1/3 innings while giving up 5 runs. On Sep 23, another 7 shutout innings. It was a nice bit of revenge since the Cubs chased him in his last start. Then on Sep 28, his last start of the season, he gave up 4 runs in 6 1/3 inning and walked 6. The Cubs totally fell apart in September. We went 10-22 and they finished behind us, ending the season on a 12 game losing streak. We ended up with the third pick in the draft. That is disappointing. I really wanted a shot at Tony Gwynn. But there is a lot of talent in this draft. With 4 picks in the first 3 rounds so far, I like our chances of getting some decent talent. George Brett ended up hitting .380 with 36 home runs and 124 runs batted in. He fell short in his quest for .400 and the triple crown but led the AL in RBIs. JR Richard finished with a 1.57 ERA. Montreal completed the comeback and knocked off Pittsburgh for the NL East title. Attached Images Last edited by hvs1717; 06-07-2020 at 08:54 PM.

05-31-2020, 08:12 PM	#30
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Kansas City swept the Indians in the AL Championship Series 3-0. The Expos and Padres went 5 before the Expos finally prevailed 3-2. Down 3-1 to the Royals the Expos completed the unlikely comeback and defeat KC 4-3 to take their first World Series title. Andre Dawson finished off a probable MVP season with the World Series MVP. Former Met, Pete Falcone had a very respectable season with KC and was one of the reasons they made the playoffs. However, he got lit up in the playoffs and World Series. Attached Images

06-07-2020, 08:38 PM	#31
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Post Season moves leading up to free agency. Oct 27, 1980 CF Jose Cardenal (37) retired. Jose had a solid 17 year career but barely played this year for us. Toronto offers us SS Alfredo Griffin (23, 44/47) for SP Craig Swan (29, 48/48). Griffin is a huge upgrade over Doug Flynn (29, 36/36) and Frank Taveras (30, 37/37) and helps us get younger. Griffin was AL Rookie of the Year in 79. Nov 17, 1980 - Arbitration Hearings 1980 Salary Demand Team Offer Award Tom Hausman $88,700 $125,000 $100,000 $100,000 Willie Wilson $266,000 $360,750 $300,000 $360,750 Doug Flynn $87,500 $125,000 $100,000 $100,000 Ed Glynn $106,200 $147,900 $120,000 $147,900 Roy Lee Jackson $51,920 $118,000 $75,000 $75,000 Lee Mazzilli $280,000 $400,000 $325,000 $400,000 Alfredo Griffin $247,500 $350,000 $275,000 $275,000 Pat Zachry $218,000 $300,000 $276,000 $300,000 I am a little disappointed with some of the awards in arbitration but I think that is just because I am cheap when it comes to salaries. I didn't make many moves leading up to free agency. I would have liked to be more active but I am learning that one of the reasons the Mets rebuild took so long is because they have very few players anyone else wants. I did offer a number of minor league free agents contracts but none have signed as of yet.

06-07-2020, 08:50 PM	#32
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	League Milestones and Notable Players Retiring Cleveland Indians Outfielder Miguel Dilone set a new MLB record with 703 at bats in a single season. Dilone broke the old record set by Dave Cash in 1975. We only had four players retire this season. Jose Cardenal, Bert Campenaris, Willie McCovey and Fred Norman. Campenaris's 630 steals is the 10th best total in major league history. McCovey's 520 hrs is the 9th best total in major league history. McCovey's 22 year career wouldn't fit in one screenshot. Attached Images Last edited by hvs1717; 06-07-2020 at 08:55 PM.

06-07-2020, 09:22 PM	#33
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Free Agency Potential Starting Pitching - Pat Zachry (28, 48/48), Tim Leary (21, 47/56), Mike Scott (25, 40/53), John Pacella (24, 39/20), Ed Lynch (24, 38/43) Potential Bullpen - Jeff Reardon (25, 60/54), Neil Allen (22, 59/59), Roy Lee Jackson (26, 50/48), Tom Hausman (27, 45/40), Juan Berenguer (25, 44/54), Ed Glynn (27, 44/31), Dave von Ohlen (22, 41/34), Tom Dixon (25, 40/39) Potential Batters 1B - Lee Mazzilli (25, 57/57), Greg Brock (23, 36/51) 2B - Wally Backman (21, 44/50), Doug Flynn (29, 36/36), Brian Giles (20, 33/43) SS - Alfredo Griffin (23, 44/47), Doug Flynn (29, 36/36) 3B - Hubie Brooks (24, 35/46) C - Lloyd McClendon (21, 42/44), Alex Trevino (23, 35/40) LF - Mookie Wilson (24, 37/42) CF - Willie Wilson (25, 61/49) RF - Mickey Hatcher (25, 37/50) Going into free agency we have a lot of needs. We do not have 5 major league ready starters. I think we can get by with our bullpen but wouldn't mind an arm or two, especially a LHP. I am not sold on von Ohlen to help out Glynn. Our lineup needs help everywhere. It would be really nice if Greg Brock was ready now so I could start Mazzilli in LF and move Mookie Wilson to super sub of all 3 positions. I might need to sign a 1B for 1 year. McClendon had a great year in AAA but I don't know if he is a starter plus I think I need a veteran catcher to help develop the young arms coming up. Nov 19, 1980 We added a few free agents to bolster our minor leagues. LF Craig Adams (23, 29/30) - Craig hit 28 hr 107 rbi .318/.404/.534 with 27 sbs in the California League. Assigned him to AA Jackson CF Timothy Roche (26, 32/35) - Hit 32 hr 163 rbi .356/.422/.623 in the California League - Assigned him to AA Jackson SP John Hoban (22, 27/20) - 19-6 2.58 era over 234 innings in the California League. Assigned him to AA Jackson SP Mark Softy (26/20) - 16-9 3.03 era over 229 innings in the Midwest League. Assigned him to our new A affiliate Shelby Mets in the Sally League. The Free Agent Class is talented, led by 3B Mike Schmidt. I have $1,205,458 for Free Agency right now. We have a lot of needs to fill. Hopefully we can find some young guys to fill out our roster. I don't think we are ready to make a big offer to a star like Schmidt right now. Attached Images

07-05-2020, 06:49 PM	#34
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	I forgot to mention going into free agency we decided to release: P Ray Burris, SS Frank Taveras, 3B Elliott Maddox, C John Stearns, C Ron Hodges, RF Mike Jorgensen. Although I like a couple of those guys, none are a great loss in our rebuild. Most of them have passed their primes at this point.

07-05-2020, 06:59 PM	#35
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Free Agency Recap (up to draft Dec 15) Early free agency for us was mostly about identifying and signing minor leaguers and seeing what might fall to us. Our cross town rival Yankees have been very busy though, signing the top free agent, 3B Mike Schmidt and the top C Gene Tenace. Schmidt is coming off a monster season, 47 hr 123 rbi .289/.379/.591 19 sb. The Expos added SP Doyle Alexander. Alexander pitched for both Atlanta and Cincinnati in 1980. He was dominant with the Braves but did not have the same success with the Reds. Overall he was 14-11 3.60 era over 247 2/3 innings. The Royals signed P Burt Hooton away from the Dodgers. Hooton had a solid season for LA, going 11-14 3.19 over 225 2/3 innings.

07-05-2020, 07:24 PM	#36
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Amateur Draft Ok so on to my favorite time of the year, the draft. The only thing I realized that was very disappointing, is I will not be able to replicate the Mets draft prowess because it is impossible to get the gems late that they did in real life. All of the best players are gone by the second round. Leading up to the draft, I was so excited to get a chance at HOF Tony Gwynn. He was my pick all the way. But then I started to waver. I love Sid Fernandez, David Cone, Lenny Dykstra and Kevin Mitchell too. I caved and went with Mitchell. If he lives up to his potential he will hit .300 plus with 35+ homer potential. We got 3-4 that will upgrade our farm system right away and our scout feels will make the majors. I don't think any of them will be more than spot starters though. 2nd Rnd - Phil Ouellette, C (35/48) 3rd Rnd - Stephen DeMatties, C (38/43) 4th Rnd - Trey Brooks, 2B (21/40) Attached Images

07-05-2020, 07:56 PM	#37
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Rule 5 Draft - We lost 2 players, RP Tom Dixon (40/39) was selected by Cleveland and SP Greg A Harris (32/46) was selected by the White Sox. I think both guys are going to have a hard time sticking in the majors all season. We couldn't find any Rule 5 gems this year. Free Agency Continued - December 20th - 3B Jim Gantner accepted a minor league contract. I was surprised we got him so cheaply. I have my doubts that Hubie Brooks is ready to start so Gantner is a nice bridge. In 358 at bats in Milwaukee, Gantner hit .296/.319/.341 with 0 hr 31 rbi and 9 sbs. December 21st - 1B Terry Crowley signs a one year deal for $195,000. Crowley had a solid season in Baltimore this year with 16 hr 48 rbi .253/.319/.407 in 369 at bats. Crowley gives us a chance to bring Brock along slowly and allow Lee Mazzilli to play both 1B and OF. And the Yankees are at it again. This time signing RP Gary Lavelle 66/66), the top reliever available in free agency. Lavelle had 32 saves and a 2.15 era in San Francisco this past season.

07-05-2020, 08:06 PM	#38
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Free Agency Continued - January 15th - Sign C Rick Cerone (46/48). Cerone is a small upgrade over John Stearns and gives us some depth while Lloyd McClendon continues to develop. Sign SP Geoff Zahn (48/44). The LHP should be one of the better starters we have this year. One year for $115,000 seems like a no lose deal. Hall of Fame voting Bob Gibson, Harmon Killebrew, Juan Marichal and Al Kaline were all elected to the HOF. That is a pretty good class. Attached Images

07-05-2020, 10:20 PM	#39
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	The rest of the offseason was uneventful. But we needed to add some depth to the spring training roster and to some of our minor league affiliates. LF Ron LeFlore (32, 46/46) signed to a minor league contract with a major league option for $230k after 30 days. I don't think I want to pay him that major league option, but maybe he can have a great month and I can get something in return for him. LF Tom Paciorek (34, 41/41) signed a one year contract for $130k to back up LF and possibly RF. CF Omar Moreno (28, 47/47) sigend to a one year contract. Omar had a great year in Pittsburgh last year. 5 hr 61 rbi .286/.327/.367 and 75 sbs. I am thrilled to get him for one year for only $256k. He will bat leadoff and play very good defense in CF. There were no worthwhile Left handed relievers on the free agent market so I might have to live with one lefty in the bullpen if Dave von Ohlen isn't ready.

07-05-2020, 11:02 PM	#40
hvs1717 Minors (Double A) Join Date: Jul 2015 Posts: 129	Spring Training Invites - 1981 For spring training this year, we are bringing in 38 players, 16 pitchers and 22 batters. I expect to keep 10-11 pitchers and 14-15 batters Starting Pitching - Tim Leary (22, 48/56), Pat Zachry (28, 48/48), Geoff Zahn (35, 46/44), Ed Lynch (25, 43/43), Mike Scott (25, 38/49), John Pacella (24, 34/20), Juan Berenguer (26, 33/43), Mark Bomback (27, 31/35) Leary, Zachry and Zahn should lock up 3 spots. so the other 5 are essentially fighting for 2 spots. Berenguer may be better off coming out of the bullpen. Relief Pitching - Neil Allen (23, 61/61), Jeff Reardon (25, 59/51), Roy Lee Jackson (26, 50/49), Tom Hausman (27, 44/40), Dave von Ohlen (22, 41/33), Ed Glynn (27, 38/30), Douglas Henley (23, 38/39), Ray Searage (25, 29/40) Allen, Reardon and Jackson are locks for the closer and setup roles. We most likely need to make a trade for a strong left handed reliever, unless someone from the group of Glynn, von Ohlen and Searage step up. Infielders - Wally Backman (21, 47/50), Alfredo Griffin (23, 44/48), Greg Brock (23, 42/51), Terry Crowley (34, 41/39), Jim Gantner (28, 41/42), Dick C Schofield (18, 40/45), Hubie Brooks (24, 36/46), Brian J Giles (20, 36/43), Doug Flynn (29, 33/34) Hopefully, Brock is ready to take over the 1B job. Backman and Griffin are our middle infielders. Brooks and Gantner will battle for the 3B job. Schofield is a rookie and will start in the minors but he is too good not to at least expose to spring training. Catchers - Rick Cerone (26, 45/47), Lloyd McClendon (22, 42/43), Stephen DeMatties (21, 40/43), John Hanley (22, 38/43), Alex Trevino (23, 33/41) Cerone will be a nice addition to handle the young staff. McClendon needs to play if he makes the team. His versatility will help. He can play 1B, 3B and RF in addition to C. Outfielders - Willie Wilson (25, 61/52), Lee Mazzilli (25, 58/57), Omar Moreno (28, 47/47), Ron LeFlore (32, 45/45), Tom Paciorek (34, 41/41), Mickey Hatcher (25, 39/50), Mookie Wilson (25, 39/41), Jose Moreno (23, 37/30) Willie Wilson, Mazzilli and Moreno should secure the starting outfield spots. With Wilson and Moreno at the top of the order, there should be lots of rbi opportunities for the middle of the lineup. Wilson and Moreno are both excellent defensively too. If the veterans work out, I can give Hatcher and Mookie Wilson a little more time to grow in the minors.