New York Mets general manager Sandy Alderson was busy on Tuesday, adding four new players and subtracting one.
He began by inking free agent reliever Jon Rauch, last of the Toronto Blue Jays. Rauch is a tall drink of water who looks more like a professional basketball player than a pitcher. He's nearly seven feet tall, and he's angry at the home plate umpire most of the time.
You would think a pitcher of Rauch's size, strength and demeanor would be an intimidating flamethrower; unfortunately for the Mets and their faithful, Rauch's fastball is consistently in the 89-to-91 mph. He's closer to a soft tosser than a fireballer.
The good news is that Rauch's had a pretty successful career as a big league reliever, and he's known for attacking the strikezone. He may only throw 90, but to him it's 100. He trusts his stuff and generally that's a good thing.
My opinion is that Rauch will work in the 6th or 7th inning for Terry Collins. His ERA should be in the 3.50 range.
The other free agent signing brings another ex-Blue Jay to Flushing, late-inning reliever Frank Francisco.
Francisco, a husky right-hander, features an explosive fastball in the 94-to-98 mph area. He's worked as a closer for both the Rangers and Jays, but never had a stranglehold on the job with either club. He struggles with his control and command at times, and that has to be a little concerning for a defensive catcher as poor as Josh Thole.
Nonetheless, I like the Francisco signing. He's spent the entirety of his career in the American League, and he should enjoy the less-explosive nature of the NL lineups. With Heath Bell off the market and Huston Street as the next viable option, I like Alderson's decision to lean in favor of Francisco.
Street has struggled with injuries and his velocity is dipping annually -- the Mets are better off with Francisco's live arm and fresh start.
Last is the trade that sent CF Angel Pagan away to the San Francisco Giants, and brought CF Andres Torres and RP Ramon Ramirez back.
I'd rather have Pagan than Torres, but I still think the Mets won the trade. Pagan will likely outproduce Torres, but the latter doesn't necessarily have to be handed the starting center field job. There's plenty of time to bring in competitors.
Which means the key to the deal is Ramirez, who has been one of the better setup men in the game the past few seasons. Ramirez, like Rauch but better, also trusts his stuff and attacks the strikezone. He features a 90-to-94 mph fastball and a superb, hard slider.
I've consistently seen opposing hitters going out of the strikezone after Ramirez's slider in the dirt, which indicates a legitimately nasty offering. I believe he'll be given the opportunity to shoulder the load in the 8th inning.
I'd like to say the Mets came away winners after the four additions, but then there's the whole Phillies, Braves and Marlins in the same division thing.
As of right now, we're still screwed. I wish we were in the NL West. Oh well...you know the deal...
This is life as a Mets fan.
No comments:
Post a Comment