Amazin' Again | A New York Mets Franchise

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GAME: Out of the Park Baseball 11

The goal of this franchise is to see more behind the scenes of baseball. Each update here will be about 2 weeks worth of games. I will provide a monthly update of MLB. The graphics aren't there in gameplay, but I can get you any stat, and keep complete histories of every team, since their inception.

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Mets Hire New GM
Youngest GM in MLB History

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Here are your 2010 New York Mets

Starting Pitchers


Besides the Mets' Ace Johan Santana, the starting rotation for the Mets is average at best. John Maine is the Mets' number 2, and is rated 2.5 out of 5 by the Mets' Scouting Department. Besides looking mad smug, his control is something the Mets worry about. Mike Pelfrey is the former top prospect who is the Mets' number 3. His stuff is mediocre, but his movement and control are top notch when he is in the zone. When he gets a little shaken, he has command issues. Oliver Perez, a nemesis to Mets fans, is the number 4 starter. According to the scouting department, he is best suited for "the bullpen or a spot starter position," but not in the rotation. He lacks control and movement on his balls, leaving meatballs for any decent hitter. Jonathon Niese is the Mets hope for the future. With a 4 star potential, Niese could end up being the Mets #3 by June. He has good control, movement, and stuff, and when he is cranking, he can dominate.

Verdict: The Mets need to improve the rotation behind Santana. Niese is a young pitcher who the Mets hope will become a future #2, but Perez does not belong in a rotation, and Maine is not a #2

Relief Pitchers


Closing for the Mets this year will once again be Francisco Rodriguez. He is one of the best closers in the game today, but he struggles heavily with his control. He is known for getting himself out of jams that he creates in the 9th inning. Besides K-Rod, the Mets have a solid bullpen. Sean Green (not the outfielder), Pedro Feliciano, and newcomer Hisanori Takahashi are the leaders in the bullpen, with each of them capable of holding their own. Nelson Figueroa is back again as the Mets long reliever and spot starter, and could find himself stuck in the rotation in case of injury.

Verdict: Another middle reliver could be in store for the Mets, but at this point, the can survive as they currently are.


Catcher


The catcher position is one of uncertainty with the Mets. Since 2002, there have been 7 different opening day catchers with the Mets (Piazza, Wilson, Phillips, Piazza, LoDuca, LoDuca, Schneider, Santos, and Barajas), and this year is no different. Both start Rod Barajas and backup Henry Blanco are new to the Mets this year. Offensively, Barajas has some power, but after that, don't expect much. Defensively, he is above average, and will call a decent game for the Mets. Blanco has no upside offensively, but is a good defender. Both plays are good clubhouse players, and will add to the chemistry of the team, which could make it hard for the Mets to replace them.

Verdict: Needs upgrading as soon as possible, but the Mets need to pick the right player, as these two are well liked in the clubhouse.

1st Base


Daniel Murphy will become the Mets first baseman by the beginning of May, but while he is on the disabled list, Fernando Tatis will be the starting first baseman. Tatis is an average player. He will get some hits, some home runs, but won't wow you. Mike Jacobs will be his backup, and while he is a deep threat, his defense is below average. A poor man's Ryan Howard. A very poor man.

Verdict: Murphy will come back and help bolster this position. For how long? Who knows.

2nd Base


Luis Castillo is back again as the Mets 2nd baseman. Castillo is one of the better hitters for average on the team, and will be expected to bat around .300 on the year. Don't expect any home runs from him, but expect a lot of stolen bases from the speedy Castillo. His defense is spotty sometimes, but he gets the job done.

Verdict: The Mets have been trying to trade Castillo, but with Eckenrod at the helm, anything is possible. The Mets will have to give up a lot to get a better player.

Shortstop


Usually Jose Reyes place, Russ Adams will be the Mets starting shortstop until May, with Jose Reyes on the disabled list. Adams is a hard worker, but he just doesn't have the offensive or defensive skills to keep up as a starter. Don't expect Adams to stick around long after Reyes is back, as he should be released or demoted.

Verdict: Reyes owns this position for now.

3rd Base


David Wright is the face of the Mets. He is an above-average fielder, and has below-average speed, but can expect him to bat above .300 each season with 20+ home runs, and 100+ RBI's.

Verdict: Wright's until he retires.

Outfield


Right now, the starting CF Carlos Beltran will be out until June. In his place is Angel Pagan. After Beltran comes back, the odd man out will most likely be Francouer, who will split time with Pagan in RF. Bay is completely safe in LF, and hopes to continue to hit home runs even at the pitcher friendly Citi Field. Pagan and Francouer are the better defenders, but Bay can hold his own in the outfield.

Verdict: LF and CF are set. RF is split between two average players. Not a priority.

Manager


Jerry Manual is one of the better managers at handling his players. His other skills are just average. Though usually general managers like to clean house and bring in their own managers, Eckenrod has stated that he will keep the current staff on hand for the season.

Overall, the Mets are looking at weaknesses at SP, C, 1B, and possibly RF. SS and CF are not accounted as they are due to injuries.

Active Roster

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Financial Information
2010 Season

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AWARDS

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Post

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Fernando Nieve Placed on Waivers
Claimed By Kansas City

NEW YORK (AP) - The Mets have announced that they have placed Fernando Nieve on waivers and designated him for assignment on Sunday. The move was to make way for SP Jenrry Mejia from AAA. On Monday morning, the Kansas City Royals placed a claim for Nieve, and barring any problems, he should be a Royal by Tuesday.

"We thank Fernando for his time as a Met. It's a shame that in order to bring in a player of Jenrry's caliber, we need to lose someone like Fernando. This is how the business goes, and we wish Fernando all the luck in Kansas City," said GM Chris Eckenrod.

News and Notes

• Oliver Perez is being moved to the bullpen to make way for Mejia
• Fred Wilpon has announced that he believes the team should play above .500 this season

Upcoming Games

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Josh Johnson (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Johan Santana (0-0 0.00 ERA)
Ricky Nolasco (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. John Maine (0-0 0.00 ERA)
Anibal Sanchez (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Mike Pelfrey (0-0 0.00 ERA)

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Scott Olsen (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Jonathon Niese (0-0 0.00 ERA)
Jason Bergmann (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Jenrry Mejia (0-0 0.00 ERA)
John Lannan (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Johan Santana (0-0 0.00 ERA)

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Aaron Cook (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. John Maine (0-0 0.00 ERA)
Jorge de la Rosa (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Mike Pelfrey (0-0 0.00 ERA)
Jason Hammel (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Jonathon Niese (0-0 0.00 ERA)

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Blake Hawksworth (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Jenrry Mejia (0-0 0.00 ERA)
Adam Wainwright (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Johan Santana (0-0 0.00 ERA)
Chris Carpenter (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. John Maine (0-0 0.00 ERA)

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Maine and Bay To DL, Reyes and Murphy Back


NEW YORK (AP) - John Maine didn't last past 2 innings before he was struck by an injury the Mets were hoping to avoid. While throwing a fastball to Marlins CF Cameron Maybin, Maine felt a sudden pain in his shoulder. The pain turned out to be rotator cuff tendinitis. "It's a serious injury, but it will not take too long to heal," said manager Jerry Manuel. "We expect him back within a month, but we need him to be 100% before he comes back."

Maine wasn't the only Met to suffer an injury during the opening weeks of the season. LF Jason Bay, signed by the Mets this past off-season, began to feel tightness in his back during the Colorado series. By the opening game of the St. Louis series, he could barely move, and was placed on the 15-day DL.

The news isn't all bad, though. SS Jose Reyes and 1B Daniel Murphy have both returned to the field, much earlier than expected. The returns and the losses have combined to greatly change the lineup from the opening day lineup:

2B Castillo
RF Francoeur
3B Wright
LF Bay
CF Pagan
1B Tatis
C Barajas
SS Adams

Now, the lineup is:

2B Castillo
CF Pagan
SS Reyes
3B Wright
1B Murphy
RF Adams
LF Tatis
C Barajas

Box Scores



Batting Stats


Pitching Stats

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Upcoming Games

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Carlos Zambrano (1-1 4.38 ERA) vs. Bobby Parnell (0-0 2.45 ERA)
Randy Wells (0-2 17.05 ERA) vs. Jonathon Niese (0-1 8.59 ERA)
Carlos Silva (1-0 4.50 ERA) vs. Jenrry Mejia (1-0 6.52 ERA)
Ryan Dempster (0-1 3.32 ERA) vs. Johan Santana (1-0 3.15 ERA)

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Jair Jurrjens (2-0 3.04 ERA) vs. Bobby Parnell (0-0 2.45 ERA)
Tim Hudson (2-1 3.24 ERA) vs. Mike Pelfrey (0-2 5.31 ERA)
Tommy Hanson (1-2 6.62 ERA) vs. Jonathon Niese (0-1 8.59 ERA)

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Vicente Padilla (2-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Jenrry Mejia (1-0 6.52 ERA)
James McDonald (1-0 1.13 ERA) vs. Johan Santana (1-0 3.15 ERA)
Jason Hammel (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Bobby Parnell (0-0 2.45 ERA)

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Another Week, Another Injury

NEW YORK (AP) - This season is turning into a typical Mets season, filled with injuries. The newest comes from 2B Luis Castillo, who suffered a sprained elbow and will miss 3 weeks. "Luis going down hurts us right now, since he has been a solid hitter this season. Luckily, we have Russ [Adams] to replace him for now," said manager Jerry Manuel.

The Mets did get another piece of their puzzle back as CF Carlos Beltran has returned from the disabled list. The hope is that Beltran will not follow both Jose Reyes and Daniel Murphy in underperforming since their returns.

Box Scores


Stats

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Those injuries could get you.

Put Olly at SP

I might. Look at the most recent stats for him. 8 games, 7.0 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 9K. Daaaamn.

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A Fireside Chat With The GM

By Joshua Gould

I sat down during an off day for the New York Mets to talk with new General Manager Chris Eckenrod about a wide range of topics, from team performance to management and more.

Joshua Gould: Great to sit down with you today Chris. How's the new job treating you?

Chris Eckenrod: It's been busy, actually. Transaction-wise, we haven't done much, but we are working around the clock to make this team better.

JG: Well, speaking of transactions, you have made a few interesting moves this season, some of which were cause of complaint by the fans. Tell us about these moves.

CE: The Nieve move was an easy one. We had [Jenrry] Meija waiting in AAA to come up, and had to lose on pitcher in order to fit him. Nieve happened to be the odd man out.

JG: What about Alex Cora? That move seemed to shake things up.

CE: It did, it did. It wasn't meant to, but we needed space for Jose to return, and Russ Adams has really played well this season, and also gives us some flexibility, since he can play in the outfield.

JG: Right now you have Frank Catalanotto on waivers and designated for assignment. What's next for him?

CE: Well, I can't say what's next, but it's a shame that we had to do this. With Carlos Beltran coming back, we needed space. These are all about space.

JG: Is the choice of Ruben Tejada over Alex Cora an age issue, then?

CE: Ruben is much stronger defensively than Alex. With Castillo going down, we needed a strong defensive player to fill his spot. Alex was already released, so that left Ruben.

JG: Much has been made of you letting the coaching staff stay aboard for the season, even though it is a known fact that you wanted to replace Jerry Manual. What made you choose this?

CE: The big thing that Jerry and I agree on is that we need to have a clubhouse without tension. Jerry is well liked and respected by the players. I can't go and fire a man who works well with these guys. Jerry and I have our differences, but you need to respect ow he works with the players, and it's better than anyone else on the market can.

JG: It's been rumored that you and Jerry have been arguing over the lineup and pitching rotations, is that true?

CE: You know I'm not going to comment on that. All I'm going to say is that we need to have our best players out on the field at all times.

JG: It seems like there have been a lot of injuries for the Mets this season. Has that played a role in the team performance?

CE: I think it has. Our healthy players have been working hard, and without all the pieces to the puzzle put together, we can't go any further.

JG: Thanks for your time, Chris.

From the looks of it, there is a problem between the manager and GM. With a 9-13 record heading into May, will Chris pull the plug on Jerry if play doesn't improve? Will the Mets acquire any new pieces to fix the downfall?

We will soon find out.

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UPCOMING GAMES
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Mike Pelfrey (0-3 6.75 ERA) vs. Joe Blanton (0-0 4.40 ERA)
Jonathon Niese (0-3 5.24 ERA) vs. Jamie Moyer (1-2 6.98 ERA)
Jenrry Mejia (1-2 4.38 ERA) vs. Roy Halladay (1-2 3.50 ERA)


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Jonathon Niese (0-3 5.24 ERA) vs. Johnny Cueto (2-1 2.23 ERA)
Mike Pelfrey (0-3 6.75 ERA) vs. Bronson Arroyo (1-2 5.51 ERA)
Johan Santana (1-1 3.18 ERA) vs. Homer Bailey (1-2 5.20 ERA)

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Tim Lincecum (3-1 2.20 ERA) vs. John Maine (0-1 5.19 ERA)
Matt Cain (1-2 3.07 ERA) vs. Jenrry Mejia (1-2 4.38 ERA)
Jonathan Sanchez (0-2 4.88 ERA) vs. Jonathon Niese (0-3 5.24 ERA)