1/27/22
Been a long time since my last post, but here we are. After one of the most absurd off-seasons in baseball history, the Mets and their $370 million team take the field today. We will preview today’s games here on CURVEBALL.
Before we begin, I did not talk about Jeff McNeil’s 4-year $50 million extension with a 5th year option. Jeff made his major league debut in 2018 and had an immediate impact. In 63 games the Flying Squirrel had a .329 AVG, .852 OPS, and a .381 OBP. Despite his limited playing time, he still finished 6th in the Rookie of the Year voting. McNeil continued his slap hitting dominance in 2019 and 2020 when he hit .318 in 2019 and .311 in 2020. After a down year in 2021, McNeil had a career year in 2022, finishing 15th in the MVP voting, winning a Silver Slugger at 2B, and was the first Met to win an MLB Batting Title. Jose Reyes won the NL batting title in 2011.
This a STEAL for the Mets. Not only did they lock up the best slap hitter in Major League Baseball, but I believe he is only going to get better. MLB is banning the shift, so McNeil will be able to hit balls over the first and second baseman on a more regular basis. If he lives up to my expectations, imagine what he would cost after this season. This is a fantastic deal. Next in-line for a long-term deal is the Polar Bear, he will cost much more.
Yesterday was the Mets only intrasquad game. The White Team had stars like Pete Alonso, Francisco Lindor, and Jeff McNeil. They also had every day big leaguers like Mark Canha, Eduardo Escobar, Omar Narvaez, and Daniel Vogelbach. The Blue team featured top prospects Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio, and Alex Ramirez. Joey Lucchesi pitched for the White Team. He was great in his first appearance back from Tommy John going 2 IP allowing no one to cross the plate. On the other side, Dominick Hamel got the ball for the Blue squad. He went 2 hitless innings, walking 2 and hitting Mark Canha in the elbow. Brett Baty played very well, going 2-2 with an RBI double. DJ Stewart also hit an RBI double, driving in Alex Ramirez who also got a hit in this one. The White team got no-hit, with Lindor, Escobar, and Canha being the only ones to get on base, as the Blue team took the win 3-0 in the 3 inning duel. My player of the game was Brett Baty who was spectacular in his 2-2 performance. Also, important to note that CF Brandon Nimmo did not play in the game.
Today is big day for the Mets as they will have a spilt-squad to open up spring training. The Mets go to the Astros facility in Palm Beach to play the 2022 champs at 1:05 PM and then play the Marlins at 6:10 PM.
Denyi Reyes will get the ball for the Mets against the Astros. The righty pitched in three games for Baltimore in 2022, turning in a very solid 2.35 ERA. He will be going up against RHP Brandon Bielak.
METS LINEUP: GAME 1
1. SS Luis Guillorme
2. LF Tim Locastro
3. 3B Brett Baty
4. 1B Mark Vientos
5. DH Omar Narvaez
6. RF DJ Stewart
7. 2B Jonathan Arauz
8. C Michael Perez
9. CF Alex Ramirez
Tonight, the Mets will put Jose Butto on the bump to faceoff against the Marlins. Butto pitched in one game for New York in 2022, giving up 7 runs in 4 innings during his MLB debut. He had a 3.56 ERA in the minors and was on the Mets top 30 prospect list last year. He will face off against Brandon Garrett.
METS LINEUP GAME 2:
1. 2B Jeff McNeil
2. CF Tommy Pham
3. SS Francisco Lindor
4. 1B Pete Alonso
5. 3B Eduardo Escobar
6. LF Mark Canha
7. DH Daniel Vogelbach
8. RF Abraham Almonte
9. C Tomas Nido
That is a wrap for this one. I am Caden Philip and LET’S GO METS.