As Spring Training approaches (pitchers and catchers report in mid-February) LeRoy will begin its preseason analysis of the Boston Red Sox, New York Mets, and the hated New York Yankees. We will continue with the second basemen and go on with the New York Mets.
Most people remember the 2000 New York Mets as the National League pennant winners. But if you were to ask those same people to name the core players on that team, they probably couldn't do it. They'd get C Mike Piazza for sure and probably LHP John Franco (who belongs in the Hall of Fame and carved his legacy out with the Mets), a die hard fan might even get LHP Al Leiter, LHP Mike Hampton, RHP Armando Benitez, 3B Robin Ventura, or 1B Todd Zeile. But one of the most important players on that team was 2B Edgardo Alfonzo, who played impeccable defense and hit 25 home runs to go along with 94 runs batted in and a .300 batting average. Since then, though, the Mets haven't been able to produce a regular second baseman with any consistency. Alfonzo underperformed in 2001 and eventually moved back to third base, 2B Roberto Alomar played a full season in 2002 before being traded away in 2003, and the team went to the playoffs in 2006 with 2B Jose Valentin, but none of those players were very good. Other second baseman the team has used have been Danny Garcia in 2004 (seriously?) and Kazuo Matsui in 2005. Those struggles continue in 2011.
1. Luis Castillo: Castillo played well in 2007 after being acquired in a trade to replace the injured Valentin. In fact, he even played well enough to warrant a new contract after he became a free agent at the end of the year. But he was awarded with a four-year deal, when two years should have been about all he deserved. He has largely underperformed in the first three years of his contract (despite a stellar 2009 campaign) and will be 35 years old in 2011. At this point in time he's still the front runner at second due to strength of contract (a huge factor in Moneyball), but GM Sandy Alderson says that he'll cut him if he under performs in Spring Training. He doesn't like to eat contracts, but, after all, the money's already gone so sitting Castillo for 60 percent of the games would be akin to wasting the $6 million owed him anyways. The thing is, Castillo doesn't really have to win the job at second base in Spring. Moreover, he has to lose the second base job in Spring, and, with the players assembled, that may prove difficult.
2. Daniel Murphy: Contrary to the belief of several Mets fans, there are a couple of things Murphy has never been: A top prospect and a second baseman. Murphy was injured for most of last season due to a knee injury and a major setback suffered during a rehab assignment, only managing to get into 11 games in the Minors (and only two at second base). Murphy is a natural third baseman and played primarily third base until 2008. Since then, he has been converted into a left fielder on the fly in the Majors, been converted into a second baseman in Spring Training in 2009, been reconverted on the fly into a left fielder in the Majors in 2009, been converted on the fly into a first baseman in the Majors in 2009, and is currently being reconverted into a second baseman in Winter Ball. Murphy is a decent line drive hitter with a degree of consistency and he's a lefthanded hitter, and with the de facto versatility he's accrued he may have a good chance to land a job on the bench as a lefthanded bat. The chances of Murphy playing second base next season? Not that good, but probably as good as anyone else playing there too.
3. Ruben Tejada: Tejada emerged as a top shortstop prospect last season but wound up playing a lot of second base (he still played primarily shortstop altogether between AAA and the Mets) for the Mets due to the ineffectiveness of Castillo. But Tejada wasn't very effective either. Simple statistical research indicates that Castillo and Tejada were about even defensively and, as bad as Castillo was (which was pretty fucking bad), Tejada was definitely the worse for wear offensively between the two. Tejada probably is better off suited for a role as a utility infielder in 2011 and the team is lacking in that area, so it makes sense that he'd be used in that role. But, hey, you never know. The Mets have a hole at second base which rivals that of the ozone layer.
4. Justin Turner: Turner was picked up on waivers from Baltimore last season and played a handful of games with the Mets, not impressing very many people in the process. He'll be 26 next season and could stick with the team as a utility infielder as he's ready to advace to the Majors. And guess what, he could probably win the starting job next season, too, with a good Spring.
5. Jordany Valdespin: Valdespin has never been a top prospect with the Mets but he impressed them enough that they added him to the 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule V Draft. Valdespin will probably need close to a full season at AA before he's ready but he's a good fielder and if he can bat .245 in the Majors he might just be the man with the plan at second base for the Mets. He'll probably get looked at for the utility player role too.
6. Russ Adams: Adams is a former first round draft pick, top prospect, and starting shortstop for the Blue Jays. He played last season with the Mets at AAA where he was converted into a second baseman. Adams didn't really play well last season, but he impressed enough people to convince them to bring him back for a second go-round. He'll compete for a role as a utility player and he'll get looked at to play second base as well. As a former everyday Major Leaguer, he might actually have a decent shot at winning the job. He might not stick with the organization past Spring Training, but he'll have a shot at a renaissance with the Mets during that time.
The players listed above are only the frontrunners in this debacle. This is worse than the 2006 Republican Presidential Primary Election was, with a seemingly endless list of candidates and none who appear to be capable of doing the job. I'm almost tempted to hit ground balls to Alan Keyes and Fred D. Thompson and see if either one of them is interested in trying out for the Mets. Also competing in the clusterfuck to second base are 3B Brad Emaus (a converted second baseman who is also a Rule V Draft pick), SS Luis Hernandez (a veteran utility infielder), SS Chin-lung Hu (a former top prospect with the Dodgers), OF Scott Hairston (a veteran bench player and converted second baseman), and OF Willie Harris (a non-roster invitee and converted second baseman). Any one of these guys has a shot at winning the job. If you haven't figured it out, the Mets are going down, down, down, at second base.
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