2/9/12

Mets: $3mil Price Tag, Corey Wimberly, Aderlin Rodriguez, Lucas Duda, Matt Lindstrom, Daniel Murphy


• Dec 30: OF/IF Corey Wimberly - Capping a busy December, the Mets signed the 28-yr old former Rockies prospect who put his name on the map by batting .381 in his pro debut back in '05. Sickels rated him in the Rockies top 20 in subsequent years based on his bat and excellent speed and in six minor league seasons he batted .297/.367/.359. Problem is he just doesn't have enough power to be a major league starter but he has shown excellent defensive flexibility and will likely battle for the last spot on the bench as a cheap, multi-faceted utility man in the mold of a Jerry Hairston, with a little less power. http://www.amazinavenue.com/2012/1/31/2753903/taking-inventory-of-the-mets-minor-league-free-agents

2-3-12: - http://www.amazinavenue.com/2012/2/3/2760606/2012-amazin-avenue-top-50-mets-prospects-20-16 3B Aderlin Rodriguez - One of the bigger disappointments in the Mets farm system in 2011, ARod just didn't deliver on the promise he showed as an 18-yr old crushing Appy League pitchers in 2010. His already lacking plate discipline got even worse as he whiffed in nearly 20% of his at bats and while he maintained his so-so 5% walk rate, that kind of swing-and-miss against more advanced pitching cut into his power. Average-wise, he was barely able to stay above the Mendoza Line against lefties and even worse, his numbers only decreased following the ASB. Now some qualifiers: His power is still a plus-plus skill, as he continued to showcase massive raw strength while posting a good .153 ISO even in a bad year. Though it may tie to his messy approach at the plate, his .247 BABIP is due for some regression. Finally, he was nearly two years younger than the Sally League in 2011. Now I've said before that there aren't many players in the system with a plus-plus major league tool right now and Rodriguez is one of them, even before his 21st birthday. And as such, it's still too early to drop him out of the top 20; there's still just too much raw potential there. However, he's a complete mess at the plate which will continue to cut into his power until he figures that out. And as those 44 errors attest, Rodriguez is almost definitely a first baseman long-term so there's little margin for error with the bat. He still definitely has a chance to be an impact hitter in the majors but suddenly he's looking a little too much like Wily Mo Pena.

“The Mets,” the insider said, “are probably the biggest beneficiaries of all in this Dodger sale.” Who’d have thought it? Certainly not Fred Wilpon. But Frank McCourt is about to be his salvation. For if the Dodgers wind up selling for $2 billion or more, the value of the Mets, a signature franchise in their own right, in the country’s largest media market with their own network and new stadium, despite their present hard times, have to be worth close to $3 billion. “What that means,” said the insider, “is that the Wilpons can now go back to their banks, point to the value of the team, and say: ‘Lend us more money.’” Yes, thanks to Frank McCourt’s multi-million dollar divorce, which set in motion this ironic sequence of events, Wilpon is about to have more collateral than he ever dreamed of. http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/frank-mccourt-a-dodgers-2-billion-fred-wilpon-ny-mets-worth-article-1.1017187?localLinksEnabled=false

Lucas Duda - After the Mets traded Carlos Beltran to the Giants (for Zach Wheeler, without giving up any draft pick compensation...kill me now), Duda became the everyday right fielder for Gotham's National League franchise and absolutely tore the crap out of the ball. Duda's second half OPS was .957 and he could easily have been mistaken for a star. Seriously. He exhibited good contact skills to go along with a good batting eye and power, and only the best hitters are able to combine those talents.  With Beltran long gone, Duda is the Mets' right fielder to start 2012. There are some questions about his defense, but the Mets will hold their noses and hope he isn't a train wreck out there. If he's even average, his bat should make him an asset. Given his minor league mashing record and the awesomeness he showed last year, he should continue to pound NL pitching all the Duda day http://www.faketeams.com/2012/2/2/2765698/five-under-the-radar-hitters-for-2012

Matt Lindstrom, 31, posted a 3.00 ERA, 6.0 K/9, 2.3 BB/9, 0.50 HR/9, and 47.3% groundball rate in 54 innings last year for the Rockies.  His strikeout rates have always seemed low for someone averaging a 96 mile-per-hour fastball.  Lindstrom, who was acquired in December 2010 from the Astros, is owed $3.6MM for 2012 and has a $4MM club option for '13.  Interestingly, Guthrie and Lindstrom both put their baseball careers on hold for two-year Mormon missions in their lives http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/





Disappointment: Daniel Murphy, 2B - It's hard to not be impressed by anyone that hits .320, especially at second base, but I'm not sure how much longer Murphy can keep that up. He hit .320/.362/.448 over 423 PAs in 2011 and was aided by a .345 BABIP. Murphy is a nice complementary player on any major league roster, but he should be a backup in fantasy even if he is hitting at the top of the lineup. He never draws a walk, so it's likely that he won't help in run scoring and he has no speed so there's no hope of stolen bases. His best attribute is making contact, but not for power, so there's not much to see here. http://www.faketeams.com/2012/2/6/2775041/fantasy-baseball-spotlight-new-york-mets

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