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A public club to discuss all things baseball.
  1. What's new in this club
  2. Not unstoppable but likely excellent. There is a HUGE roadblock out west called the LA Dodgers. They also have a dogfight in their own division with Atlanta and Philadelphia. The Braves made the playoffs with a ton of injuries and no Acuña. They are never dead until someone drives a wooden stake thru their cold, black hearts. Alonso turning down the long term offer from the Mets before he hired Boras and the 3-year deal he declined prior to the one he just signed were huge miscalculations on his part, IMO, and a gaffe from which he'll likely never recover monetarily. I just can't get to Boras screwing him over. He chose to hire Boras and Pete's subpar 2024 rendered the Boras hiring useless. He bet on himself and hoped that Boras could extract every last penny for him but his play on the field neutered that strategy. Alonso and Boras were able to save face with this contract as the $30M Pete will get this year makes him the highest paid player at his position. Good for him. I genuinely like him and wanted him back but I was to the point of being ambivalent whether he stayed or left. Now that he's here, I hope he crushes and earns his bag whether with the Mets or someplace else. Best case, IMO, is he has a great year and helps the Mets to the WS and the Mets get Guerrero if Pete decides he wants to chase the money elsewhere. Like Gugs said, Pete's had declining metrics for several years. I'm not counting on him "clawing back". I hope he can hit around 40 HRs, bat at least .250, and continue to play a decent first base. I will be shocked if he finishes his career as a Met. He should get to #1 on the Mets all-time HR list this year...he needs 17 to pass David Wright for 2nd and 27 to pass Darryl Strawberry for 1st...before opting out of his contract again and signing elsewhere as the Mets HR king until Soto likely breaks it down the line. Agree 💯 It's so rare for that to happen nowadays, as you know. It's not likely to happen again and I don't expect Pete to be the next one to accomplish that feat. He's 30 with declining skills and a doughy body composition. Power hitters like that don't tend to age well. *Note to all: I realize I said I'd like Guerrero but I am also acknowledging that he comes with a similar risk as Pete due to his body composition...but Vlad is a better all-around athlete, IMO. LGM!!!
  3. I figured push came to shove the deal would get done. But it wasn’t looking good there for a while. David was really the last lifer in the Mets organization that stayed his whole career. So hoping big Pete does.
  4. It'll be interesting to see if he bounces back. His deal makes each of the next two years a walk year and he didn't fare well in his 2024 walk year. Based on nothing but my gut/feels I think the walk year and contract uncertainty had a negative impact on his performance. His demeanor last year was completely different than previous years.
  5. Pete will definitely end up losing out by not taking the 7-year deal. I am hopeful that he has a career year/gets his ring in 2025 and the rest of his career is gravy as a DH on one of the Florida teams. I read an article this morning on the Athletic and it made clear that his trend lines are heading in the wrong direction and that he’s too one-dimensional (and old) to command a long-term contract. https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6118091/2025/02/06/pete-alonso-mets-contract-boras/?source=user_shared_article
  6. I totally get why players flock to Bor-@ass, he's the best at what he does - but some players get screwed and I put Pete in that category. Although in fairness that remains to be seen. Pete turned down $158 over 7. If I understand correctly his new contract is worth a minimum of $30 over 1. Will he claw back the rest in the following 6 years? Maybe.
  7. Ecstatic. Win-win, for sure. F*ck Boras. Ass.hole has hurt the game so much over the years. If Frankie Lindor can skip his annual April-May slump, the Mets will be unstoppable. #LFGM
  8. @Gugny @Another Fan He did indeed. 2-year $54M deal with an opt out after the first year. I like it for the Mets. It gives them the opportunity to go after Guerrero next year, if they so choose. A little surprised at the high AAV but glad it's a short deal. I don't feel sorry for Alonso. Nobody made him hire Boras and nobody made him turn down the 7-year $158M deal the Mets offered him last year. He had a mostly lousy 2024, gambled on himself and lost. That said, they need his bat in the lineup to protect Soto. Welcome back, Pete.
  9. @Gugny @ExWNYer @Another Fan Rumor has it Pete signed a two year deal (opt out after a year) If true, I'm thrilled to have him back. Also feel bad that Bor-@ss did him wrong.
  10. The bolded mirrors my thinking. I'm probably biased against closers whose careers over-lapped with Mariano Rivera - which admittedly is unfair. DH's are a different animal to me. Kind of like NFL special teamers, the bar is set much higher. Edgar Martinez and Big Papi were no doubters for me. Off the top of my head I can't think of anyone else. Off topic, but talk of DH's reminded me of one of the greatest injustices ever: Rafael Palmeiro winning the Gold Glove in 1999 when he played 28 games at first and 128 at DH. Priceless.
  11. I can't argue your evidence but I did highlight the bolden post-season because that plays a big part IMO in a player's career in consideration for the Hall. If their teams made it that far. To me I don't have a problem with Bill Mazeroski being in the hall of fame even if the rest of his stats don't cut the mustard. He hit probably the most epic home run in Major League Baseball history. That to me added significantly to his Hall of Fame Resume. I would not have an issue or argument against Eli Manning being a first ballot Hall of Famer either based on his two playoff/Super Bowl runs even if the rest of his stats might not cut the mustard either. To me my first thought about Billy Wagner was he really wasn't a big if any upgrade over Armando Benitez. Billy and Steve Traschel I thought were the main duds that series, not Carlos Beltran. I mean it ultimately is what it is. Go Bills
  12. WRT Wagner, not only does he pass the eye test but the empirical evidence is there, as well.
  13. I actually consider myself pretty stingy on my personal HOF votes. One of my main rules is “if I have to think about it for more than a couple seconds, they likely don’t belong. I think both of them belong. I think the reason Wagner took so long is the same reason pitchers like deGrom (statistically superior, but not a lot of wins because their team sucked) never used to win the Cy Young … it took a while for voters to smarten up. For closers, it’s similar to DHs. They don’t play dull games, so they didn’t get votes. We’re seeing a shift, which is long overdue. I think closers deserve consideration more than designated hitters.
  14. @Gugny @Another Fan Sorry, I completely respect your opinions but we're going to agree to disagree on this one. He absolutely belongs. 1) He struck out a third of all batters he faced which is the highest strikeout rate of any pitcher with at least 900 innings. There have been 1,173 pitchers who have thrown 900 innings in the Live Ball Era (since 1920). He ranks: - First in batting average allowed (.187; Nolan Ryan is second and Sandy Koufax third). - First in strikeout percentage (33.2%; Jacob deGrom is second). - Second in WHIP (0.994; deGrom is first). - Second in OBP allowed (.262; deGrom is first). - Second in OPS allowed (.558; Mariano Rivera is first). - Third in lowest slugging (.296; Rivera is first and J.R. Richard second). 2) He allowed hits and baserunners less often than most pitchers. He was historically difficult to hit and also did it in the highest leverage situations until the end of his career. 3) His 2.31 ERA and 0.994 WHIP are the best for a southpaw in the Live Ball Era. 4) He was a seven-time All-Star. It took him 10 years because, among other things, his career innings total is the lowest among Hall of Fame relievers, he faced more competition from other closers with 600-plus saves, like Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman, and he wasn't great in the post-season.
  15. To me he was a compiler and never a truly dominant player. I want Hall of Famers to be iconic, no-doubters. It's subjective and fun to debate. Years ago there was a poster who was very knowledgeable about baseball who mocked me when I said I thought Yadier Molina would be a HOFer. Different strokes for different folks. The real tragedy to me is that I've never been to Cooperstown. Incomprehensible.
  16. I think what Franco did as a lefty should have gotten him in.
  17. I've said it before, I'm a tough grader when it comes to the HOF. I wouldn't put Wagner in and definitely not Franco. The fact that it took 10 years for Wagner to get in speaks volumes to me. Great player, just not a HOFer in my eyes.
  18. @Gugny @SinceThe70s Wagner definitely deserved to be elected. It was long overdue, IMO. It's a shame that they made him wait until his very last year of eligibility, but better late than never.
  19. I think they are both deserving and definitely thing Franco is more deserving. Doesn’t even require thought, IMO.
  20. @ExWNYer@Gugny@SinceThe70s happy belated New Year. Any thoughts on Billy Wagner making the Hall of Fame? To me Johnny Franco seems just as or if not more deserving
  21. I believe Pete will return. There are other options that will probably land elsewhere before him. Plus, he just belongs there. He still has some mashing left in his bat. I read he lead all 1st baseman in successful "scoops". I wasn't aware, impressive. I had a thought the Yankees might get involved (I'm sure they've inquired) but just don't see it. I'd absolutely welcome it! For sure an over payment for Fried. By all accounts, they had to go the extra year and dollars to secure him. The price of doing business in a hotly contested market. The Williams signing has me excited. I'd like to see 2 of Walker 1B, Bregman 3B or Bellinger CF, 1B to round out the lineup and greatly solidify the defense. Walker and Bregman leadership would be huge too. These guys will have plenty of suitors. By not winning the Soto sweepstakes, it enables Cashman to spread the wealth around and make a more complete roster. At least in theory. Love the hot stove!!
  22. As I said above, I think they like Pete but they're going to wait and see if the market comes back to them. If somebody blows him out of the water with dollars and term, I think the Mets will let him walk. If Boras can get him a big contract, more power to them both but I don't believe the market is there for Alonso that they'd hoped. He didn't have a good walk year which hurt his value. I'd like to have him back because he has a chance to break the all-time Mets HR mark (until Soto more than likely passes him) but I will not be devastated if he leaves and I really don't hope they gove him more than $150M-$160M max. That's about in tGreat guy, loves NY, can mash, but is a so-so 1st baseman and can't hit for average. I'd rather see him eventually become the DH, if he re-signs. He's heading into his 30s and guys like him don't typically age well. We'll see. Like you said, they do need another bat though to protect Soto, especially if Pete walks. The Soto signing was great but they still have work to do , especially with the staff. I do want Manaea re-signed. All indications are that he loved his time with the Mets. Again, if somebody offers him 5 years or more, I think the Mets will pass. It's not Stearns' m.o. to hand out long-term contracts to pitchers. It's a strategy I'm onboard with because there is just so much volatility and injury risk with these pitchers today. FWIW, I think the Yanks did a nice job pivoting after losing Soto. I think Fried was a slight overpay, especially with his injury history, but I like him and am glad he's out of the NL East. They may be trying to out pitch teams this year rather than out slug them.
  23. Yankee fan here. Soto a good get for sure. Though I'm not a fan of the super long contracts. Do you think they re-sign Pete? They do need another big bat. Re-signing Manea? Cohen has the money, he just needs to commit to build out the roster.
  24. David Stearns was interviewed at the Winter Meetings in Dallas about some of the peripheral UFAs from last year's team like Iglesias and Winker. He said he's been in contact with with every one of their guys who is not under contract and there is interest in bringing some back but FA goes into January, February, & March. I think he views them both as "back burner" types because there are bigger fish to fry at the moment. I would love to have both Iglesias and Winker back. They are both terrific culture and glue guys. I also think they're going to wait and see if the market for Pete comes back to them. If somebody blows him out of the water with dollars and term, I think the Mets will let him walk. I'd like him back but I don't want to break the bank for him. If he walks, I'm okay with that, as well. I don't think he'll age well. Power hitters like him usually don't and there is no position flexibility with him. He may also eventually end up as a DH only. Crochet, as you know by now, was traded to the Red Sox. Apparently, the Chisox wanted the Mets top two prospects in Jett Williams and Brandon Sproat. Sproat is their top pitching prospect who may see time with the big club before 2025 is over so the Mets balked. I don't have an issue with it. If they could have put together another package without him that, would have been great. Unfortunately, the White Sox insisted on Sproat being included. I am on record as saying I loved the Mendoza hiring from the start and I openly wanted them to hire Stearns. I really believe that Cohen is assembling a great front office and management team. You don't become a billionaire 20 times over by not knowing how to hire. LGM!
  25. The Mets have to decide whether they want Pete or Iglesias back and at what price. Both are more than just UFA's (hired guns) to the Mets imo. Uncle Steve may decide that he won't be outbid on Pete. Maybe not. Everything I read is focused on free agents, but the Mets have some legit prospects and I wonder whether Nimmo would be considered a trade chip. There's been some buzz around the White Sox trading Crochet. BTW, tonight I watched the replay of the clincher against the Braves. I had too much going on that day and didn't see a pitch of that game.My biggest take away is how happy I am with the manager. Tremendous job this season and in that game. I'm not sure if there was a single pitcher out of the bullpen that I trusted consistently this year. The mound visit to Diaz in the 9th was outstanding.
  26. All true except that Pete & Iglesias are UFAs. I'd love to have Iglesias back but he may get more money elsewhere. I think when all is said and done, 'The Polar Bear' will be back with the Mets. I don't think he and Boras get as much as they had hoped. I may be wrong...just my two cents. BTW, I like the Clay Holmes signing but the Jose Siri signing as the CF replacement for Bader doesn't float my boat. He's a plus defender but has a weak stick. If Pete is not back, we need another thumper in the lineup to protect Soto.
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