As we embark on the second half of the season, I glanced back at my posting from April where a bright eyed lad spewed to anyone that would listen about what he thought the 2007 Met seson would look like. The entire piece I am pulling this from is here but for the purposes of analysis, I have condensed or paraphrased the April predictions/thoughts below. April thoughts are in black…current analysis is in blue. Lets see how I did.:
Anything we get is bonus...
“To expect him (El Duque) to be healthy, much less to produce like a number two guy, seems very optimistic and kinda naïve to me…count Duaner Sanchez on this list as well…and Pedro too. I will love it if…they…come back in the fall but I am planning on a 2007 where they likely don’t factor in.
I think I was pretty spot-on here. ElDuque has been brilliant when active, but did indeed already have a stint on the DL in May. Duaner and Pedro may still prove to be late-season bonuses.
We have a bad-ass lineup
Yea…but so far they have under-produced considering the firepower. Perhaps the warm weather, or Hojo, can make Delgado and Beltran’s bats come alive in the summer and fall.
We play a 6 inning game
…..when a powerful offense usually stakes you to a lead after 6 innings, and you can hand the ball to a bullpen with guys like Heilman, Feliciano, Schoeneweis and Wagner, you are going to win a lot of games.
The bullpen that was virtually flawless this year has shown some vulnerbility so far. Heilman can still be tough, but he is no longer automatic as he was in 06. Schoweneweis has pretty much been a disaster. A far cry from Chad Bradford in '06, who he was brought in to replace. Hopefully Schoeneweis can put it together as he’s done in some recent outings as the guy is gonna be here a while. In contrast, Wagner has been phenominal, as has Felicaino.
We are solid, but a lead in the 6th doesn’t mean as much as it did last year.
Monstrous years waiting to happen
Jose - monster
Correct.
David Wright should absolutely shine as a number 2 hitter.
The #2 slot for Wright didn’t happen as Willie thought it might so this one is moot
Beltran put up career numbers but there is no reason to think those are going to decline by more than a little
So far, not looking to sharp on this one. Maybe he’ll finish off strong but 140 RBIs looks like along shot
The best 3-13 Pitcher in baseball
…. I think Oliver Perez is going to be the ace of the staff this year.
Ollie has been ‘da man! I am glad to say I wasan Ollie fan back-when
For Crying Out Loud, Give the kid a chance!
…Milledge also got a cannon for an arm, incredible bat speed and a Sheffield-like ability to hit every ball hard …..he is going to be a real ballplayer.
I still feel good about this one…..Lastings is the real-deal and the timing of his return is actually pretty good. He had an opportunity earleir this year to get some AB’s when everyone else went down, but he's getting a seocnd chance now with Gomez being the latest of the walking wounded.
He could really make a statement in the next few weeks if he steps up as I think he will. I think last year’s audition in the majors is going to serve him well. He comes back to the bigs a year older and wiser and should benefit from his experiences last year as well as form his brief re-hab in AA. He knows what not to do and I think its gonna be his time.
What do Omar Minaya and a good Monopoly player have in common?
Omar had Mota , Padilla and Dave Williams who can present themselves as options at some point in the season as well as wild cards like Pedro and Duaner who, if they come back, will be a shot in the arm.
Mota has been touch and go (at best), Williams got shelled but I think he will be a contributor this year and we will have to see about Duaner and Pedro. I think Pedro will be a nice August addition.
Random Thoughts
Bourogs could be a diamond in the rough, but Right now he just scares me.
Scared me then..scares me now. I hope he is not a total bust as Bannister is doing well in KC. I don’t put it past Peterson to cure him but as of now, the dude is a bust.
I am reserving judgment on Moises Alou.
Wise. He hit when he was here but proved to be every bit as brittle as everyone feared. nonetheless, if he re-emerges and hits like he can in a Septenmber and October, Omar is once again going to look like agenius
Even if Shawn Green is through, and the jury is out on him as well, we still have the best 4th outfielder in baseball in Endy Chavez, Lastings Milledge and Ben Johnson waiting for their audition in RF and the tandem of Carlos Gomez/Fernando Martinez waiting in the wings. It’s good to be the king.
I give myself some credit for saying the jury was still out on Green. Everyone wrote him off in
spring training as a bust. I also take some credit for making the point that we were well stocked. Everyone I mentioned got hurt (Endy, Lastings, Johnson) and we still had Gomez to fill in…and he looked good. It is good to be the king. Imagine having Alou, Beltran and Green starting with a bench of Lastings, Endy and Gomez.
Am I missing something when it comes to Damien Easley? I don’t much care if you can play all infield positions if you hit .240, .238 and .217 in the last 3 seasons. I’d rather let A-Hern get the practice if I don’t care about offense.
Yea, I was missing something. As Omar saw something in Valentin and endy, he was right about Easly. He has shown himself to be a legitimate hitter and fielder and I guy I trust when the chips are down. It is yet another reminder to me how much smarter Omar is than any of us at judging talent.
I haven’t seen Sele but I like Chan Ho as a middle reliever. Aside from a long homer he gave up last game, he had excellent command and a nasty breaking ball. I can see him stepping up, as many have done in the past, under Rick Peterson’s tutelage.
My Chan Ho prediction…..Swiiiing and a miss.
So approaching the second half, I’d add:
· I like Alomar’s presence as it lets us pinch-hit with Castro. When we get Alou, Endy or Gomez back, we will have something to talk about. Till then, let the old man stay. I’d love t see Castro get some ABs. · I can’t wait to see Lastings blossom. I think we are gonna see him really step up in the next few weeks and turn a lot of heads. His time has come · How lucky are we to have Beltran in center!! His offensive numbers may be down but he is still a major threat with the bat and there is no one that makes CF look smaller than him. When the smoke clears, he will have won a ton of games for us this year, both with the stick and the leather. · Jose, Jose, Jose, Jose…………Jose………..Jose · Dave Williams will be the Darren Oliver we’ve been looking for · We still have the most balanced, powerful..…ok for lack of a better word, the best team in the NL. The blend of Speed, youth, experience, power, rotation, pen, coaching, managing bundled with Omar’s genius…….we are still the tam to beat. Man I love this team.
