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WaxPax

Active member
Added multiple guys (Lowrie and Davis) who can play multiple positions, kind of like what the Cubs and Dodgers have been doing. We've added IF depth, no more Reyes type guys hitting .150 off the bench....some mention of McNeil in the OF too
 

WaxPax

Active member
Now that we've got deGrom locked up for the next 5 years, it's time to get this season started....

Mets Agree To Extension With Jacob deGrom
By Jeff Todd | March 26, 2019 at 7:36am CDT

The Mets have agreed to terms on an extension with star right-hander Jacob deGrom, according to Andy Martino of SNY.tv (Twitter links). deGrom, the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner, is undergoing a physical today. The contract includes four years and $120.5MM in new money, as Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic first reported (Twitter links), with some of it deferred.



Earlier this year, deGrom agreed to a $17MM arbitration contract for the 2019 season. That effectively remains in place, though it is now restructured as a $10MM signing bonus and $7MM salary, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports on Twitter. What would have been deGrom’s final arbitration season, 2020, will be locked in at $23MM. He’ll then earn $33.5MM in each of the next two seasons and $30.5MM in 2023 — if he does not first opt out. The option-year value is $32.5MM, ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan tweets.

If indeed a deal is finalized, it’d bring an end to a long-running and rather fascinating saga regarding deGrom’s future. It was just last summer that deGrom’s then-agent, Brodie Van Wagenen, was advocating that the team either work out an extension or trade the ace right-hander. In a cinematic twist, Van Wagenen became the Mets’ general manager last fall, recusing himself from direct extension talks with deGrom while the pitcher chose to remain with the same agency (CAA Baseball). (That recusal concept was evidently of rather limited scope, or has since been modified or waived, as Sherman tweets that Van Wagenen was personally on hand for the final negotiations.)

The sides held preliminary talks at the Winter Meetings, but then a lengthy silent period ensued. After agreeing to a 2019 arbitration salary, which included a record-setting $9.6MM raise, the deGrom camp put an Opening Day deadline on talks, so the clock was ticking. It seemed hopeful as camp opened that a deal would materialize, but the more recent vibe was much less promising. But Andy Martino of SNY.tv tweeted yesterday that talks were still ongoing, with Michael Mayer of MetsMerizedOnline adding on Twitter that there was some forward progress toward a deal.

As it turns out, the sides lined up on a contract that understandably includes some concessions in both directions. deGrom will turn 31 this June and was not set to reach the open market until the conclusion of the 2020 campaign. Compare that to Chris Sale, whose recent extension came just before his 30th birthday and entering his final season of contractual control. (Of course, the lefty was also coming off of an injury-limited second half to the 2018 season.) Sale’s contract provided five seasons and $145MM in new earnings; he’ll pitch the entire final season of that deal at 35 years of age. deGrom receives a slightly higher AAV, even though the first new contract year covers an arb-eligible season, and will celebrate his 35th birthday in the middle of his final guaranteed season (if he hasn’t already opted out).

Both of those outstanding hurlers might have found greater riches in free agency. Zack Greinke had already turned 32 when he secured a six-year, $206.5MM deal with the Diamondbacks. But that deal seemed an outlier when it was signed and the market has since shifted. Clayton Kershaw hadn’t yet turned 31 and had produced nothing but excellent results when he re-upped with the Dodgers last fall, but settled for a three-year pact after experiencing back issues and peripheral declines.

There’s also ample risk in pitching a full MLB season, so extensions have generally lagged free agency in value to a greater extent than is the case for position players. A few still-youthful hurlers nearing free agency have secured bigger money — Kershaw didn’t quite reach $200MM in his first long-term contract if you deduct his anticipated arbitration salary from that season; Stephen Strasburg secured $175MM over seven new seasons part-way through his final year of team control. But otherwise, the largest pitching extensions have gone to Sale ($145MM), Cole Hamels ($144.5MM), and Justin Verlander ($140MM).
 

WaxPax

Active member
Hope springs eternal for every Major League team on Opening Day. The long march to the World Series begins with Game No. 1.

MLB.com is taking a look at the clubs that have done the best job of getting off on the right foot. Here are the best MLB teams on Opening Day, ranked by winning percentage (per the Elias Sports Bureau, ties are discounted from calculating a team's win percentage).

1. Mets: .649 (37-20)
The Mets' spot at No. 1 on this list is all the more impressive when you consider that the franchise lost its first eight Opening Day games from its inception in 1962. (Even the 1969 Miracle Mets lost their season opener.) Since then, the Mets have won 37 of 49 openers, including the first game of their other World Series-winning season in 1986. That amazin' run makes the Mets' Opening Day record the best all-time of any Major League franchise. Some of their most memorable moments involve franchise icons: Gary Carter's walk-off home run on Opening Day 1985 and Tom Seaver's return to the Mets on Opening Day 1983, six years after his shocking trade to the Reds, when he outdueled Steve Carlton.


2. Mariners: .605 (26-17)
The Mariners have only been around as an MLB franchise since 1977, but they started strong by winning eight of their first 10 Opening Day games. They've done well in recent openers as well, taking nine straight from 2007-15. Seattle has also had two of the best Opening Day pitchers of all-time -- Randy Johnson had an MLB-record 107 strikeouts on Opening Day (including two 14-K starts for the Mariners), and Félix Hernández has a career 1.54 ERA on Opening Day while ranking fourth all-time with 78 strikeouts. Ken Griffey Jr. is the player tied with Robinson atop the career Opening Day home run chart.

3. Orioles: .598 (70-47-1)
The Orioles are one of the American League's eight original charter franchises, founded along with the league in 1901 as the first Milwaukee Brewers before they spent a half-century as the St. Louis Browns. They've remarkably sustained their Opening Day success for well over a century. Baltimore's first two world championship seasons in 1966 and 1970 both started with a win on Opening Day. Baltimore will enter 2019 having won eight straight openers. Orioles Hall of Famer Frank Robinson is tied for the most home runs hit on Opening Day, with eight.


4. D-backs: .571 (12-9)
The D-backs won a thriller on Opening Day 2017, rallying for two runs in the ninth inning against Giants closer Mark Melancon for a walk-off win. It was the beginning of a thrilling season, as Arizona made the playoffs for the first time since 2011. The D-backs' memorable 2001 World Series run also began with an Opening Day win -- Randy Johnson struck out 10 Dodgers, and Luis Gonzalez hit the go-ahead homer in the seventh inning, his first of 57 that year. The Big Unit also threw a shutout for the D-backs on Opening Day the following year.


5. Yankees: .557 (64-51-1)
The Yankees snapped a six-year Opening Day losing streak in 2018, thanks to a two-homer debut from Giancarlo Stanton. Overall, the most storied franchise in Major League Baseball has also been one of its best on Opening Day. Of the Yankees' record 27 World Series championship seasons, 17 have begun with an Opening Day win. That includes their first World Series season in 1923 -- when Opening Day was also the grand opening of the original Yankee Stadium. On that day, Babe Ruth delivered the three-run blast that led New York over the Red Sox.
 

WaxPax

Active member
My latest pick up is a 1976 Mets photo album which I had as a kid...I probably drew mustaches on most of them back in the day.... Got the 8x8 frames at Wally World for less than 2.00 ea...Cross posted this in the April pick thread too....

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dano7

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2008
13,325
3,848
Roanoke, VA
Very nice pickup........and return to your childhood! You can add fake mustaches occasionally, as needed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 

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