2009 Ny.Mets team preview
2009 New York Mets Team Preview
On Monday April 6th the N.Y.Mets will open there 47th season in franchise history.They will open up in Cincinnati facing the Reds with there ace on the mound. Johan Santana will take the hill in hopes of starting the team in the right direction. The Mets have a brand new stadium this year in Citi Field.They must forget the struggles of the last 2 season which saw them miss the playoffs and lose to the same Florida team at home on the last day of the season.
This year the Mets have made some bold moves.The signing of the premier closer in baseball in K-Rod.Fransisco Rodriguez will switch from the West coast to the East coast in hopes of helping one of the worst bull pens in baseball last season. The Mets blew an unprecedented 26 saves.Also coming east is Seattle's closer JJ. Putz.He will bridge the gap to K-rod and may even see some time in the 7th inning to make sure there are no slip ups. The rest of the pen looks solid with Lefty Pedro Feliciano, rightly T.Redding and lefty S.Green who also joins the Mets from Seattle acquired in a 3 way trade.The starting pitching after lefty ace Santana does have some question marks. Hard throwing righty M.Pelfrey comes back after a very successful season.The Mets hope he wont falter in his second full season. Pelfrey did tail off towards the end of the season as the innings total may have stared to effect him. Lefty Oliver Perez was resigned after the Mets missed out on righty D.Lowe. The erratic Perez was the fall back plan,and though he was very successful in 2007 he was inconsistent for all but 2 months of the year in 2008. The Mets think he will regain his 2007 form and not let the mental part of the game effect his performance. Number 4 starter J.Maine is back from his shoulder issues which caused him to miss last years stretch run, however his velocity has been down all spring and his control has still plagued him in his spring starts.He may not have his arm strength up for a few more weeks which may mean some short starts.In the fifth spot comes veteran righty Livan Hernanadez.At the very least he will eat up innings. Hernandez struggled at the end of last year but he did pitch respectably for the Twins before moving on last year.He may just be a stop gap until the Mets recall Rookie prospect J.Niese who will start the year in triple AAA,then get called up depending on his performance down there.
The Mets lineup for 2009 will feature some changes with the newly acquired G. Sheffield off waivers from Detroit. The Mets will only be responsible for a small portion of his salary, which is perfect for there scrap heap, cheap production mentality. and Sheffield will provide some much need righty pop, in a lineup dominated by left handed hitting. Plus he will not be depended on for most of the offensive production like he was in Detroit. Filling the other outfield spots are C. Beltran who is still one of the premier center fielders in the game and will likely put up similar numbers as he has the past few years. A breakout year would really propel the Mets offense this year in there quest to take down the Philles. R. Church will see playing time predominantly in right field against right handed pitching. Now that he has shown he is healthy and over his concussion concerns he could be a vital piece this year to what looks to be a potent offense. D. Murphy last years surprise slugger will also so see some extended playing time compared to last season.He is scheduled to hit second behind leadoff hitter J. Reyes. If he continues to hit at last years torrid pace he may even see some time at 2nd base behind L. Castillo. At third base D. Wright is coming off one of his best seasons and is clearly reaching his prime. He is the key cog in this lineup, and will once again be counted on to produce big numbers, stay healthy and be the face of this franchise. At shortstop J.Reyes is back and though his stolen bases have declined he has played fantastically at shortstop and is now considered above average defensively. The hope is with another year under his belt that he too will be coming into his prime both physically and mentally, and be able to show added maturity this year. As one of baseballs better leadoff hitters his combination of both speed and power are lethal for other teams to contend with.He also drives in runs which is another plus. Moving over to second base its L. Castillo in the second year of a four year contract which GM Minaya was unable to get taken off the books.This year the often injured second basemen allegedly begged the Gm not to trade him stating that both his knees feel great and declared himself to be in the best shape of his life.He will get his chance,however due to the emergence of D. Murphy he will be hitting seventh most of the time.If Castillo can regain his offensive production and do what he does best which is get on base the Mets will have some spark at the bottom of there lineup. Castillo throughout his career is one the hardest hitters to strike out and plays a decent second base defesively.On to first base its another year of Carlos Delgado.The hulking first basemen not known for his defensive prowess ,returns for another year after tearing it up in the WBC and spring training.If he is able to produce like he did in the second half of last year and put the first 2.5 months of last year behind him, he may have a breakout season. After all he is in a contract year and will presumably have plenty of men on base when he gets to the plate. At catcher the Mets will have Brian Schneider back for his second season behind the plate. While his offensive numbers wont bring back memories of soon to be hall of famer Mike Piazza he will not be expected to be a vital piece of the offensive equation. He will be expected to be a leader in the dugout and be a driving force behind the plate,calling a good game and helping the staff to succeed. The bench has lost some punch with outfielder Endy Chavez no longer returning, however the emergence of G. Sheffield will move Fernanado Tatis to the bench. Tatis was a huge surprise last year for the Mets while resurrecting his career. This year he will come off the bench and split time in the infield and outfield and will be ready to fill in at the first sign of a slump or injury. The backup catcher is once again R.Castro.For a big guy he's decent both offensively and defensively and can be counted on to play regularly in case of an injury. Managing the team in 2009 is Jerry Manuel. With the chance to start with the team from spring training will be a big advantage from starting last year in the middle of the whole Willie Randolph firing fiasco. Look for J. Manuel to be a motivating steady influence both on the field and in the club house. Manuel has a no non-sense approach that Randolph had and seemingly lost. I look for a well run highly accountable team this year.
The 2009 Mets team win total has been posted at 89. With the improvements the club has made they will be a driving force this year in the National league East and are my pick to not only exceed the 89 wins, but to win the division. The Mets will play 20 of there first 32 games at home. If they get off to a fast start this year, they will be tough to catch. With a heavy hitting lineup a talented and revamped bullpen and a formidable starting staff the Mets are the team to beat in the National League East.
Good Luck this year with all your baseball wagers and be sure to check out my baseball cards daily as I was one of the few Documented winners in Major league Baseball last season.
BOL Golden Contender@aol.com
