marcus stroman

New York Mets: MLB Stoppage Won’t Stop Stroman

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New York Yankees, New York Mets, Marcus Stroman

The Coronavirus has already done significant damage to the world and has led to a delay in MLB’s season. Despite the stoppage, New York Mets‘ Marcus Stroman is going to keep himself ready for the day baseball opens up their doors again.

Stroman is the epitome of what “no days off” is all about. The local-born hurler is known for his intense and high-quality training sessions. His exercises are precisely why he is one of the most athletic pitchers in all of baseball. Much like Stroman, Noah Syndergaard is continuing to work out in hopes the season starts sooner rather than later.

No Baseball Anytime Soon

The CDC recommends eight weeks of abstaining from crowds of more than 50 people. This sets the MLB season to resume way past the aim of April 9. It pushes back the hopeful date a month later to May 9. The longer we go without any games or Spring Training, the more time players will need to get themselves back in game shape.

Unfortunately, all players can do is stay away from people and countdown the days until baseball can resume. Players should continue to keep themselves healthy but do not expect to see them back on the field anytime soon.

New York Mets: Young Stars Showcase Personalities Against Cardinals

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New York Yankees, New York Mets, Marcus Stroman

Wednesday’s game between the New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals featured more of the usual from Spring Training. A strong starting pitching performance and Jeff McNeil‘s continued dominance with the bat. The game was televised on ESPN and the Mets certainly had fun being mic’d up with each other.

Marcus Stroman took the mound and had a terrific outing. Over three innings, he only allowed three baserunners and struck out four Cardinals. Things started off rocky when he hit and walked the first two batters. After Rene Rivera threw out a base stealer for the first out, Stroman induced a double play to end the inning. Through the rest of his start, he showed how clever of a pitcher he is. Stroman used his incredible body control to vary his motion which threw off the hitter’s timing drastically.

Bats Waking Up

Jeff McNeil continued his red hot pace with two more hits to move to 10-for-18 (.556), the best mark in Spring Training. Brandon Nimmo chipped in another hit as the 1-2 combination of McNeil and Nimmo have proved to be deadly so far. Pete Alonso, Michael Conforto, and Wilson Ramos all supplied hits as they are picking up the pace after short skids at the plate.

One of the best parts of the ESPN broadcast was their live microphones. They picked the right guys in Pete Alonso, J.D. Davis, Dom Smith, and Jeff McNeil. Alonso dropped an accidental f-bomb, Smith poked fun at Davis and could not hear anyone at one point, and all of them hyped up an Eduardo Nunez triple. It showed how close this group is and there is truly something special going on at Port St. Lucie.

Zamora Rises

Daniel Zamora has always been seen as a lefty specialist for the Mets, but his stock is rising. Through four outings so far he has only allowed one hit, walk and hit by pitch. Zamora even has five strikeouts and the most impressive part is his ability to put away hitters from both sides of the plate. Dellin Betances still is not a lock for Opening Day and Zamora is asserting himself as the top guy to replace him.

Rick Porcello takes the mound on Thursday when the Mets take on the Cardinals in Jupiter. Porcello has allowed one run over three innings so far in the Spring.

New York Mets Pick Up Second Win of Spring Against Cardinals

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yankees, New York Mets, Marcus Stroman

The New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals squared off in their fourth matchup of the Spring. Marcus Stroman and Adam Wainwright squared off against each other, both looking to improve on their first Spring outings. The Mets also feature a lineup of mostly regulars and Tim Tebow.

Stroman pitched decently, allowing two hits, one run, one walk, and struck out one over two innings of work. He allowed a first innings home run to Paul Goldschmidt, but it would be the most damage he allowed. Stroman ran into trouble in the second.  A walk, bunt single, and Dominic Smith error led to a bases-loaded, no one-out jam. Stroman induced a lineout and a double play to end the jam and complete his outing.

Big Heart and a Big Paycheck

Brandon Nimmo returned to the lineup after a health scare which forced him to miss two games. He went 1-for-2 with a run scored and also mixed in a good call on a “sun ball double.” Robinson Cano made his Spring debut as the designated hitter. He walked and flew out to center field in his only two plate appearances.

Jeff McNeil, Dom Smith, and Wilson Ramos were the other regulars who tallied hits on Friday. McNeil and Ramos are hitting .400 and .444 in the Spring, respectively. Both are picking up from where they left off in 2019.

Andres Gimenez improved on his strong start at the plate. He blasted his first home run of the Spring and is 4-for-12 at the plate. Two of his four hits have gone for extra bases. It is a promising sign for the 161-pound shortstop who has been known more for his defense than offense. Should Gimenez continue to hit the ball well, it could make the choice to send him to minor league camp harder than expected.

Tebow Struggles

It is hard to write a Mets article without leaving out the blooper from Tebow. Not only did Tebow strikeout in both of his at-bats, but he also fell flat on his face trying to secure the final out of the ball game. Tebow looked to be under the ball but tripped over his feet, and the ball lightly plopped about a foot away from the quarterback once known as mobile.

On Saturday, the Mets head to West Palm Beach to face the Houston Astros at 1:05 p.m. Steven Matz makes his second start of the Spring as he tries to secure a spot in the Mets rotation.

 

New York Mets: Porcello, Stroman and Matz will start this weekend

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New York Yankees, Marcus Stroman

The New York Mets have six starters for five spots. Jacob deGrom is the ace, and Noah Syndergaard and Marcus Stroman are next in line. The real competition will be between newcomers Rick Porcello and Michael Wacha and homegrown lefty Steven Matz.

The Mets are already arranging the competition. It will begin this weekend. Porcello and Stroman will take the ball on Saturday’s Grapefruit League-opening split-squad games vs. the Marlins and at the Cardinals, respectively. Matz will get the nod on Sunday.

Porcello and Wacha will try to rebound from a tough 2019 season. The former, winner of the 2016 American League Cy Young award with the Boston Red Sox, pitched to a 5.52 ERA in 32 starts. Wacha, meanwhile, finished 6-7 with a 4.76 ERA in 29 games (24 starts) with the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Mets will have a competition for two rotation spots

Matz had a solid season, with a 4.21 ERA in 32 games (30 starts) and a career-high 160 1/3 innings. “Matzy is a guy that can sometimes get into struggles with his command, but he’s able to find his rhythm throughout outings, and we saw that last year,” said Mets manager Luis Rojas to MLB.com. “Sometimes pitch counts ramp up because of it. We’re looking at him just to have that consistency from the start, and that’s something that he’s working really hard on: command. That’s the name of his task, and he’s working really hard on it. Let’s see Sunday if he brings it to the game.”

It is expected that the loser of the competition between the three men for two spots in the Mets rotation goes to the bullpen and fills a long-man/spot starter role. And, if injuries strike, that man can enter the regular turn.

The addition of Matz, Wacha or Porcello would further strengthen a very good New York Mets’ bullpen. The unit has Edwin Diaz, Dellin Betances, Seth Lugo, Jeurys Familia and Brad Brach already.

New York Mets’ Marcus Stroman is full of confidence: “I think I’m the best on the field”

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yankees, New York Mets, Marcus Stroman

Marcus Stroman is oozing confidence. The New York Mets hurler, who is currently slated to be the team’s third starter after Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard, thinks he is the best athlete in the field every time he takes the hill.

“I know that when I’m in a good place there mentally, I know I am pretty much unstoppable, so that is kind of the biggest thing I’m always focusing on,” Stroman said to the New York Post.

“My confidence never wavers, ever. I think I’m the best on the field whenever I am out there always. That is the way I was raised by my father and that is how I’ll continue to be, so confidence stays the same no matter what.”

The best sinker in MLB

He is not afraid to praise himself when he believes it is due. In Thursday’s encounter with the press, he said that he believes he has the best sinker in MLB. Stroman is eager to start the season with the Mets.

“I’m not scared of any moment,” he said. He fears “nobody” and he’s “excited to rock.”

“I could punch guys out more. I also have the best sinker in the league, so I can keep the ball on the ground with the best of them as well,” he said. “It’s just a balance of what I want to do. I think I am going to have the ability to do both this year: Keep the ball on the ground and also raise my strikeouts, which will be pretty hard to do, but as long as I keep the walks down, which is kind of my emphasis, I think I should roll.”

He also notes that core muscle strength is important and his is atop the MLB ranking. “My biggest thing I preach when pitching is core-strength stability, flexibility and mobility, so the bear crawl is kind of the highest level, being able to do that with a wine glass of stability,” Stroman said. “That is something I am always focusing on. … I think I have the best core in the league. I put a lot of work in that, so I am extremely stable.”

Improving with the New York Mets

Stroman is coming off a good season, but he knows he can be better. In 11 starts with the New York Mets after he came from the Toronto Blue Jays, he had a 3.77 ERA, but really started to flourish on the last four.

He just needed to settle in. “I just think any time you are traded, first time for me it’s going to be a whirlwind, so just getting settled, getting in the routine of things just becomes a little off,” Stroman said. “Once I felt I settled in, I felt I was pretty good and I look to kind of carry last year over into this year.”

Now, Stroman will have a full season with the Mets before hitting free agency. He will have enormous motivation to show what he can do. And he most likely will, given his bulldog mentality.

Predicting the New York Mets Starting Rotation

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New York Mets, Noah Syndergaard, yankees

The New York Mets come into the 2020 season with a pitching staff spearheaded by back-to-back Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom. The rest of the rotation following deGrom continues to be one of the best in baseball and puts itself up there with the best in the National League.

The #1: Jacob deGrom

Jacob deGrom is good at getting hitters out. That is all you need to read.

The #2: Noah Syndergaard

Noah Syndergaard was inconsistent throughout the 2019 season but rejuvenated his Thor persona during the second half of the season. Despite having a 4.28 ERA, highest of his career, he made 30+ starts for the first time since his All-Star season in 2016. In the second half of 2019, he pitched to a 3.82 ERA, and his K per BB ratio was on par with deGrom. Heading into his age-27, Syndergaard can easily become ace 1a with deGrom.

The #3: Marcus Stroman

Whether the antics please you or not, the substance meets the style with Marcus Stroman. When he joined the Mets at the trade deadline in 2019, he did not pitch at his expectations, but the numbers were still solid. He had a 3.77 ERA over 11 starts, and his K/9 increased from his time with Toronto. No longer the ace, like he was in Toronto, Stroman should settle in nicely to the top three the Mets have. Stroman would easily be the best pitcher on a third of the teams in baseball and gives the Mets a high caliber third starter.

The #4: Steven Matz

Steven Matz has always been a compelling case for the Mets. He shows glimpses of brilliance but is never consistent enough to rise up the rotation. During 2019, Matz set career highs in games, innings pitched, and strikeouts. Taking away his nightmare 2017, he has a 3.77 career ERA, which is above average for a fourth starter. Anywhere between his career 3.77 and 2019, 4.21 ERA should be the expectation for him in 2020.

The #5: Rick Porcello

Rick Porcello is coming off a lousy 2019 season, where his home run rate went above one for the third straight season. Throughout his career, he rarely puts together back to back years that resemble each other. For the Mets’ sake, they hope to get a good year out of him. He should have an easier time pitching in the NL East where the DH does not exist along with having the face the Yankees, Blue Jays, and Rays. If Porcello pitches well enough to get through 180 innings, his production should be in line with what the Mets expect from a fifth starter. The fifth starter becomes a reliever in the playoffs, so any season he had before 2019 would be fine for Porcello, barring injuries to his fellow starters.

New York Mets’ starter weighs in on the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal

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New York Yankees, New York Mets, Marcus Stroman

Marcus Stroman, the New York Mets’ third starter, is one of the most competitive pitchers in MLB. That same spirit allowed him to spot what he deemed as an unfair competitive advantage, and publish it in his Twitter account, @Str0.

What would be the unfair competitive advantage? A video uploaded by Ian Hunter (@BlueJayHunter) in which Houston Astros’ hitters could be seen taking at-bats against Stroman. The trash can-banging noise before some pitches was evident.

“S–t makes sense now. I remember wondering how these guys were laying off some of my nasty pitches. Relaying all my signs in live speed to the batter. Ruining the integrity of the game. These dudes were all about the camera and social media. Now, they’re all quiet! Lol,” were the words that Stroman wrote today in his official account.

The scheme

The Astros used the replay room to decode opposing pitchers’ signs. Then, they relayed them to their hitters by banging a trash can. They used this scheme in 2017, when they won the World Series.

MLB investigated the issue and issued fines and suspensions. AJ Hinch, the manager, and Jeff Lunhow, the GM, lost their jobs after the league suspended them for a year. The Astros lost four draft picks and $5 million.

No retaliation by the Mets’ stellar pitcher

But the Mets’ talented pitcher isn’t one to hold a grudge. He says he won’t retaliate when on the mound. “Many individuals on here saying to intentionally throw at the Houston hitters. Personally, I would never do that. Too calm in my mind to want to retaliate and would never try to injure another human being over past actions. Revenge will never solve anything…karma will!” he stated.

You have to consider that it wouldn’t benefit the New York Mets to put more people on base. To finalize, Stroman said that he won’t talk about the Astros again.

Mike Clevinger, Trevor Bauer, Chris Archer, CC Sabathia, and a myriad of other hurlers, active or retired, have heavily criticized the Astros in the last few hours. Some of them, like Alex Bregman and Jose Altuve, have shown no remorse.

Mets Players to Fans: We’ll be Ready for the Season

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There’s a lot of turmoil going on in Flushing these days with manager Carlos Beltran and the New York Mets ‘mutely’ parting ways over his involvement in the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scandal. Beltran’s role in the scandal turned out to be more than originally suspected and there was no way he could take the reins of the Mets – or any team for that matter – with this stigma of cheating attached to his name.

The Mets will find a new manager soon and the players are vowing there will be no lapse in their day-to-day lives, which makes sense since Beltran hasn’t run spring training or managed a single game.

Pete Alonso, the 2019 NL Rookie of the Year and Major League home run champion who has taken a leadership role on this club, assured fans that the Mets will be ready come the regular season.

Pitcher Marcus Stroman is another Mets player putting a positive spin on things. From WFAN:

Stroman responded to Alonso’s post with a similar sentiment, “I’m ready to rock my bro.” Stroman, earlier, took a moment to reflect on the latest developments, highlighted by the firing of Boston’s Alex Cora, Houston’s AJ Hinch and Beltran for their involvement in the scandal.

 

“This is crazy,” Stroman said. “Truly can’t believe all this s- coming out in baseball. Just going to sit back and see how it all plays out. I know my thoughts but those will stay internal. I’ve learned that “no comment” is the best option at times!”

Pitchers and catchers report on February 11 with the rest of the team coming in  on February 16. We’ll see then if they really are ready.

Mets’ legendary first baseman and television analyst Keith Hernandez believes the Mets will be just fine.

 

Arbitration Passes Without Issue for Yankees and Mets

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New York Mets

It was a quiet arbitration season for the New York Yankees and New York Mets. Simply put, all arbitration-eligible players on both teams agreed to terms with their team.

Let’s break it down:

New York Yankees

The biggest winner of the arbitration dance was James Paxton, agreeing to a one year deal worth $12.5 million. Aaron Judge was second, agreeing to a one year, $8.5 million deal. The Yankees will need to reach a contract extension with Judge by 2023 if they want to avoid free agency with the star right fielder, Paxton will be a free agent by 2021.

Gary Sanchez got $5 million on a one year deal. Sanchez, like Judge, will be a free agent by 2023. Tommy Kahnle (free agent by 2022) got a one year, $2.5 million deal, Luis Cessa (2024) got $895,000, Johnathan Holder (2024) got $750 thousand, and Gio Urshela (2024) received $2.5 million.

New York Mets

The Mets players were, by and large, were paid better than the Yankees players. The top 3 winners were Marcus Stroman (free agent 2021) at $12 million, Noah Syndergaard (2022) got $9.7 million, and Michael Conforto (2022) at $8 million. Both Edwin Diaz (2023) and Steven Matz (2022) both got deals in the $5 million range. Jake Marisnick (2021), Brandon Nimmo (2023), and Seth Lugo (2023) all received $2 million and higher. And Robert Gsellman (2023) got $1.225 million.

Good job to both teams. Is it Spring Training yet?

Several Key Mets Due Raises at Arbitration Table on Friday

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Several key New York Mets players will be granted significant pay raises on Friday when the deadline for teams and players eligible for arbitration exchange salary proposals for the 2020 season expires at noon.

The Mets have nine players due raises on Friday. Below is a list with the projected 2020 yearly salary as per spotrac.com.

Marcus Stroman, $11.8 million
Jake Marisnick, $3.0M
Noah Syndergaard, $9.9M
Steven Matz, $5.3M
Michael Conforto, $9.2M
Edwin Diaz, $7.0M
Seth Lugo, $1.9M
Brandon Nimmo, $1.7M
Robert Gsellman, $1.2M

Diaz, Nimmo, Lugo and Gsellman are all Arb 1 status and are under team control until the end of the 2022 season.

Conforto and Matz are Arb 2. and will not be eligible for free agency until after the 2021 season. Syndergaard is Arb 3 and is under team control for two more seasons.

Stroman and Marisnick are Arb 4 which means they are eligible for free agency next year.