Both these guys are lefties? In reality the numbers are great but aside from Ohtani I think it takes Japanese players (hitters for the most part) a year to adjust to MLB pitching and I’d expect those HR numbers to decline by almost 10 their first year. Japanese ball is played in domes which is also another issue. Baseball starts in NY in April where winter sometimes hangs around like this last one where temps didn’t get near the norm until almost mid May. That will be a major adjustment coming from sunny Florida. Where does Jett Williams fit here? Isn’t her possibly taking second? I realize he might be included in a trade but is he going to AAA when he was knocking at the door this past season? You either need to see what you have in the minor leagues or trade them otherwise what good is having the #1 ranked farm system if you aren’t playing them or using them as collateral. The Mets already have tried to sign guys and that didn’t work. I’d rather fill CF with Bader keep Baty at third see what Jett has and pay for pitching. But hey that’s me
Sorry to correct you but Okamoto is a RIGHT-HANDED HITTER. I would also disagree with you regarding early season adjustments for Japanese hitters. I.e., there are areas in northern Japan which are as cold as the Northeastern US during their winter. I'm not sure where either Okamoto or Murakami grew up. But both Seiya Suzuki and Masataka Yoshida demonstrated considerable batting success in their first month in America playing in The Bigs!!! (to name a few Japanese imports).
Too much is being made of Richardson leaving. The reason the Mets stole so many bases last season was because they actually ran. I am sure he helped them be more successful in pointing out what to look for, and he gave them more confidence. But it was also the players being more willing to run, to be aggressive. Get another competent first base coach, one with a positive, aggressive approach, and the team should see continued success stealing bases. With two base stealers coming up from the system in Williams and Morabito, the running game should continue to flourish, as long as the first time someone gets thrown out, the entire Mets Universe doesn't go into a meltdown mode.
Okamoto is a great fit at 1B if the Mets should decide to forego signing Pete. Okamoto is a right-handed hitter which is needed in their left-handed hitting heavy lineup. Moreover, it is foolish to move Baty to 2B when Jett Williams is clearly the choice to play the keystone position by July. Another plus with Okamoto is that he CAN play 3B which would provide some lineup flexibiilty against tough LHPs.
Not good fits. The Mets have several far bigger needs. Resigning Alonso is obligatory unless the ask is ridiculous. Leave Baty alone at 3rd, he's a promising young player. Starting pitching, center field, relief pitching.
Are you for certain that Stearns is going to want to sign Pete after some of his comments regarding Pete's lack of fielding prowess?
Remember, a visual remains in many folks' minds that Alonso was partly responsible for the injury last season to Senga. Don't think that Stearns has forgotten that visual!
I am, because there's no replacing his offensive production or even getting close to it. I think he'll go for four years and maybe five if his back is against the wall. As somebody (I think) on this blog said a couple weeks ago, "It's not Alonso's fault that Senga's injury prone". I fully agree that his throwing is bad and his range isn't much better. In an ideal world, maybe he could dh and Bellinger could man first when he's not in center. But that would take the dh slot away from Vientos, which is his natural "position". But Vientos may go in a trade for pitching. There's a lot going to happen this winter.
Both these guys are lefties? In reality the numbers are great but aside from Ohtani I think it takes Japanese players (hitters for the most part) a year to adjust to MLB pitching and I’d expect those HR numbers to decline by almost 10 their first year. Japanese ball is played in domes which is also another issue. Baseball starts in NY in April where winter sometimes hangs around like this last one where temps didn’t get near the norm until almost mid May. That will be a major adjustment coming from sunny Florida. Where does Jett Williams fit here? Isn’t her possibly taking second? I realize he might be included in a trade but is he going to AAA when he was knocking at the door this past season? You either need to see what you have in the minor leagues or trade them otherwise what good is having the #1 ranked farm system if you aren’t playing them or using them as collateral. The Mets already have tried to sign guys and that didn’t work. I’d rather fill CF with Bader keep Baty at third see what Jett has and pay for pitching. But hey that’s me
James,
Sorry to correct you but Okamoto is a RIGHT-HANDED HITTER. I would also disagree with you regarding early season adjustments for Japanese hitters. I.e., there are areas in northern Japan which are as cold as the Northeastern US during their winter. I'm not sure where either Okamoto or Murakami grew up. But both Seiya Suzuki and Masataka Yoshida demonstrated considerable batting success in their first month in America playing in The Bigs!!! (to name a few Japanese imports).
Appreciate the correction. It wasn’t clear that they both weren’t lefties. If I’m not mistaken though all their baseball is played in domes.
As always, the concern with Japanese players is their ability to adapt to MLB, which we know can sometimes be difficult.
We demanded heads roll from the coaching staff after this season's disaster. They have rolled, but now we're worried about where they've stopped...
Too much is being made of Richardson leaving. The reason the Mets stole so many bases last season was because they actually ran. I am sure he helped them be more successful in pointing out what to look for, and he gave them more confidence. But it was also the players being more willing to run, to be aggressive. Get another competent first base coach, one with a positive, aggressive approach, and the team should see continued success stealing bases. With two base stealers coming up from the system in Williams and Morabito, the running game should continue to flourish, as long as the first time someone gets thrown out, the entire Mets Universe doesn't go into a meltdown mode.
Okamoto is a great fit at 1B if the Mets should decide to forego signing Pete. Okamoto is a right-handed hitter which is needed in their left-handed hitting heavy lineup. Moreover, it is foolish to move Baty to 2B when Jett Williams is clearly the choice to play the keystone position by July. Another plus with Okamoto is that he CAN play 3B which would provide some lineup flexibiilty against tough LHPs.
Not good fits. The Mets have several far bigger needs. Resigning Alonso is obligatory unless the ask is ridiculous. Leave Baty alone at 3rd, he's a promising young player. Starting pitching, center field, relief pitching.
Joel,
Are you for certain that Stearns is going to want to sign Pete after some of his comments regarding Pete's lack of fielding prowess?
Remember, a visual remains in many folks' minds that Alonso was partly responsible for the injury last season to Senga. Don't think that Stearns has forgotten that visual!
I am, because there's no replacing his offensive production or even getting close to it. I think he'll go for four years and maybe five if his back is against the wall. As somebody (I think) on this blog said a couple weeks ago, "It's not Alonso's fault that Senga's injury prone". I fully agree that his throwing is bad and his range isn't much better. In an ideal world, maybe he could dh and Bellinger could man first when he's not in center. But that would take the dh slot away from Vientos, which is his natural "position". But Vientos may go in a trade for pitching. There's a lot going to happen this winter.