http://mackonbaseball.com

THANK YOU

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http://mackonbaseball.com

The new site is up -  http://mackonbaseball.com

It can be read for free.

This will be the only site I will be feeding in the future …  I think….  lol

I am notifying Baseball Blogs of the change.

I’m sorry for this hiccup.

Please use the new site…  free…   http://mackonbaseball.com

Mack

macksmets@gmail.com

 
Willie Harris is still trying to make a team. It’s at the very core of his ethos, starting with the way he arrives in the clubhouse each morning, the way he watches the game on the bench each day, the way he plays when he’s summoned to enter a game. Harris, a 32-year-old Mets outfielder/second baseman, has been a regular on a major-league roster for five of the past nine seasons. But he has not been a regular in a starting lineup, leading to the mind-swirling reality of trying to make the roster in the spring.

 
http://www.nj.com/mets/index.ssf/2011/03/mets_utility_player_willie_har.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter

Jenrry Mejia:
Jenry Meija RHP (Mets) 4.28 – The Mets rushed him, then didn’t know whether to put him in relief or the rotation. Met’s fans can only hope that didn’t mess with his confindence. He appears to be on a more conventional path to achieve some success with his mid-90s fastball before exposing it to major leaguers.
 

http://myworldofbaseball.com/wordpress/2011/03

Stephen Strasburg:
Nationals right-hander Stephen Strasburg continues to make progress following Tommy John surgery last September. He is now throwing 90 feet on flat ground and his arm strength is slowly coming back. The next time he throws on flat ground, Strasburg hopes to throw 15 feet further than before. There is no timetable as to when Strasburg will throw off the mound. Once he is healthy and ready to pitch in the Major Leagues, Strasburg wants to be the ace of Washington’s staff. Before he hurt his elbow in August, Strasburg was clearly Washington’s best starter. In 12 games, Strasburg was 5-3 with a 2.91 ERA and 92 strikeouts in 68 innings. There is a possibility he could return to action sometime in September.
 

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110314&content_id=16943764¬ebook_id=16949042&vkey=notebook_was&c_id=was&partnerId=rss_was

Oliver Perez:
Wondering why the Mets have not already released Perez? Several prominent voices in the organization have been itching for weeks to cut the pitcher, sources say, and would likely have had their way had Perez not managed two scoreless innings in his first start on March 3. In a meeting last Wednesday, Warthen argued that Perez was worth looking at in the bullpen. He won the debate, and the tryout will last for as long as the pitcher throws strikes and collects outs.

 
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/mets/2011/03/14/2011-03-14_plenty_in_mets_organization_are_ready_to_give_up_on_oliver_perez_but_dan_warthen.html?r=sports&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Feed:+nydnrss/sports+(Sports)&utm_content=Twitter

Lineup:
By name recognition only, this lineup on paper would appear to be very strong. Carlos Beltran, Jason Bay, Jose Reyes and David Wright. Wow. But then you dig in. Outside of David Wright, I don’t believe any of them can be counted on for a full season. When healthy, Reyes is an absolute spark plug at the top of the lineup. Jason Bay couldn’t stay healthy last year, and even when he has been in a Mets uniform he hasn’t been all that good. And what can they expect out of Beltran is anyone’s guess, although I do expect him to have a bounce back year. Ike Davis looked pretty good as a rookie at 1B, but Luis Castillo is well below average at 2nd base. The defense Angel Pagan brings cannot be overlooked, but he isn’t much of a hitter. I do think this lineup has some pieces that could score some runs, but the lack of depth will mean staying healthy is an absolute must.

Conrad Youngren asked:

 
Mack, I have a technical question that’s been bugging me. Maybe you know the answer or can find out. (I’d prefer that to a guess ) The Velo number that appears in the upper right of the SNY screen after every pitch–what EXACTLY is that? Is if an instantaneous velocity? If so where (at the mound, at the plate, in between–they will be different) or some average velocity over the 66 feet? A cop I know says his gun is “peak reading,” that is it captures the highest speed and holds it even though still training on a decelerating target. If THAT’s the case, the speed shown would, I think, be the pitcher’s hand, not the ball at all. In any case is the velocity measured the same way year to year and park to park? Thanks.

 
Mack:
Good question…
I thought I’d reach out to some of my Mets friends and see what they thought the correct answer to this is:

 
Matt Cerrone/MetsBlog:  -  “I have no idea. Never even thought to ask… Also, I was always taught (by scouts) not to care about the number, but to care about the relative range and consistency and variance between each type of pitch on that given day by that pitcher… because guns, distances, etc., vary so much.”

 
Brant Rustich/NY Mets: – “The radar guns lock on the peak velocity which is right when the ball (object) leaves the pitchers hand.The stalker guns can be read unlocked like if a police officer wanted to read cars and what not. I’m not entirely sure what the exact drop of velocity is of the ball when it gets to home plate, but its about 9% I believe or so. I suppose I could look up an old physics equation and figure it out. Like 100mph out of the hand turns to 91-92 or something at 60 feet because of resistance.”

 
Jay Horowitz/NY Mets: – Mack: I am not a technical wiz, but it is measured from hand and each park is different.

Jose asked:

 
Hey Mack, you seem to go both ways when it comes to the Mets. Do you believe in this team, or not?

 
Mack:

 
You’re not the first one to accuse me of that… and, sometimes it’s about the baseball team too!
First of all, I decided a few years ago that, if I was going to be a good Mets writer, I had to stop being a fan. You have to approach this objectively, though I did decide that the primary theme would be positive things, especially about the kids.

 
I believe in this team, and I especially believe in Mr. Alderson and Co., but I am not a big fan the current ownership. I was the first three Omar years, but not now.
Look, investments have risks and the recession wiped out a lot of us. I write sports because I no longer own radio stations. I lost most of what I had in the 80s and threw away the rest ten years ago in high risk investments. Shit happens. I can live with it because I did it to myself.
The Wilpon family intertwined their personal investments with their ownership of the team, and the fans will now suffer because of it. In the past, they just fielded teams that didn’t have enough to go all the way. Now, they don’t have the money to compete in the division, no less the league.

 
I try to write realistically. I have predicted the Mets to not make the playoffs for the past three seasons. So far, I’m batting 1.000.
Enjoy this year. It’s for grins.

Joseph Polini asked:

 
Do you think Terry Collins was the best choice for the Mets job at this time? It does seem to me from what I’ve heard that the players seem real upbeat about him so far….

 
Mack:

 
Hmm…

 
I think Terry Collins is the perfect manager for the 2011 Mets.
In my opinion, he was a better choice than Wally Backman. Collins brings the same personality without the hand grenades.

 
Was he the best choice? No. Joe Torre would have been better, but he wasn’t available.
Many feel that Collins is the perfect “interim” manager during these difficult times when the owners are broke, the team is handcuffed with contracts, and three new VPs have to be paid.
I expect TC to be the manager for 2011 and 2012. Beyond that will be determined on his W-L record.

SLUGGING PERCENTAGE

1. Joe Winker – Mercer 1.044

2. Jake Lowery – James Madison .968

3. Daniel Aldrich – College of Charleston .896

4. C.J. Cron – Utah .864

5. Rance Roundy – UNLV .861

6. Andrew Rash – Virginia Tech .852

7. Ross Heffley – Western Carolina .833

8. Christian Walker – South Carolina .830

9. Doug Shribman – Bucknell .826

10. Jackie Bradley, Jr. – South Carolina .813

for the rest of the stats…. http://collegebaseball360.com/2011/03/15/college-baseball-stats-leaders-march-14-2011/

North Carolina’s Patrick Johnson: Johnson might not light up the radar gun like previous staff aces Matt Harvey and Alex White, but he’s a stud in his own right. The talented right-handed pitcher put together another fantastic start in a 7-1 triumph over Wake Forest. Johnson struck out nine and allowed just three hits in 5 2/3 shutout innings. Johnson improved to 3-0 with the victory. http://www.perfectgame.org/Articles/View.aspx?article=5352

2nd time seeing Adam Griffin in as many weeks, he was pin straight, max effort with fb at 90-94, doesn’t fool hitters, breaking ball he changes his arm slot and speed of delivery which tips the hitters. He’s going to be a good college pitcher and end up being drafted or “over drafted” by some ML club. http://xmlbscout.angelfire.com

•Troy’s Daniel Peterson hit two homers in a doubleheader sweep over New Orleans as the Trojans upped their record to 12-3 on the year. If they continue at this pace, they will be able to compete with both FIU and FAU for a conference title in late May. http://www.collegebaseballdaily.com/2011/03/13/foleys-quick-hits-for-march-12th

Trevor Bauer is a 20 year old junior right handed pitcher out of North Hollywood, CA. According to his UCLA player profile,his favorite pro player is Tim Lincecum, and when trying to project Bauer Lincecum is the first player that comes to mind. The comparison isn’t perfect, of course. Bauer (listed at 6’2′, 185) is bigger than Lincecum, and while at first glance their delivery’s look similar (for a great slo-mo video of Bauer in last year’s Houston Classic click here) closer looks reveal some differences. Most prominently, Bauer doesn’t recreate Lincecum’s now-famous “dangle,” where his pitching arm hangs loose straight down towards the ground. In addition, Bauer’s stride isn’t nearly as long as Lincecum’s. The thing that gives me pause the most about Bauer’s delivery, however, is his seeming inability to repeat it. As I watched, his landing foot seemed to land in a different place every time, and was dramatically different between the stretch and the windup. On the plus side, Bauer is famous for his incredible work ethic and work-out routine, and his delivery avoids the dreaded “inverted W” that has been fingered as the culprit to many arm injuries. http://www.mlbbonusbaby.com/2011/3/13/2048528/notes-on-trevor-bauer-3-12-vs-st-marys 

If (Bubba) Starling realizes his potential, he’ll be a five-tool center fielder. He has lots of strength and leverage in his 6-foot-5, 180-pound frame, not to mention above-average speed. Arm strength? He throws 93 mph off the mound, though his future is definitely as a position player. He’s also one of the nation’s top college quarterback recruits and has accepted a football scholarship from Nebraska, though he’s expected to give up the gridiron when he’s an early first-round pick in June. http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/ask-ba/2011/2611416.html

What’s wrong with the title?

 
I mean, the first four items mentioned are some serious shit, but the more I’m on line, the more I realize that the real story out there is who in God’s name is going to play friggin second base for the New York Mets.

 
First, it’s definitely Daniel Murphy, then, all of a sudden, everyone falls in love with Luis Castillo again.

 
Next we here that the manager hates Castillo and is going to name Luis Hernandez. But wait, Brad Emaus gets reported he’s the man, if Brad can’t do it, no one can.

 
Jordany Valdespin and Ruben Tejada fans keep tweeting they shouldn’t have been sent down and I’m waiting for Edgardo Alfonzo to ask for his yearly, ‘come on coach, give me another shot” plea.

 
Is this the best we can do, guys?

 
Most people think jobs are won in spring training. What they don’t realize is all ST is, is a place to be eliminated.

 
No baseball suit gives a rat’s ass what your batting average or fielding percentage is in March. If they did, David Wright would be sent down and Felipe Alou would have never played in the majors.

Here’s my opinion how this Mets second base thing works:

 
1. The job belongs to the last person that had it.
 

2. The brass does everything they can to find something they don’t like about the guy who was the last person to have the job.

 
3. If he shows up on time, he’s late.

 
4. If he’s quiet in the locker room, he’s not a team player.
 

5. If he laughs at a joke, he’s not taking the job serious enough.

 
6. If he laughs at a joke, that was in Spanish, he’s hiding something.

7. The manager’s job is to mention to one of the press guys a different name every day that impresses him at second base.

8. The reporter writes a story on it, but first tweets a tweet (God, I hate that expression…)

9. Next, 2397 other Mets writers and bloggers also tweet what the manager said.

10. The deflection has been accomplished and the team can get back to playing baseball.