Today we are going to take a look at the Mets line-up in 2006.
1B- Will be Carlos Delgado. Delgado is a monster at the plate. He is a great power hitting lefty, and an RBI machine.
2B- The most unknown spot in the line-up in 06'. Chances are that Kaz Matsui will be the starting 2B to start the season, but could loose his job to Anderson Hernandez, Bret Boone, or Jeff Keppinger.
- Kaz Matsui- Matsui will have to show the Mets as well as the fans something in 06' in order to maintain his job. He has shown flashes that he can play, but is unable to put it all together. He needs to put together his first half of 04' and his second half of 05'. Kaz has talent but has so much pressure on him to produce. In my opinion Kaz will put it together in 06'. He showed me something in the second half of 06'. He made some nice plays and hit for a good average (.301).
- Anderson Hernandez- Hernandez is also a good candidate for the job. He is a defensive machine. He has been working on his hitting in winter ball and has put up some good numbers (.307 in 40 games). He hopes to earn the job in spring training.
- Bret Boone- Boone will be 37 this year. In 2004 his average took a major drop but he still drilled 24 HRs. But in 2005 he stunk up the place, and did not play more than 88 games. Boone has never been anything special on defense. From 1998-2005 he did not play a single season where he did not commit 7 or more errors.
- Jeff Keppinger- Keppinger was given a shot to play in the Majors in 2004. He hit .284 in 116 ABs. He went to spring training in 2005 with high hopes, but was shot down when the Mets did not give him a real shot. He went back to the Tides to start 05' and did a decent job. He will return to spring training this year, and hopes to make the team as the starting 2B or as a utility player.
In my opinion I think we will see what Kaz Matsui can truly do on the field and in the batters box in the upcoming season. If he cannot do it Anderson will step up as his replacement, and will probably do a fairly good job. As for Keppinger I think that he will have a backup role with the Mets, or serve as a trade chip.
SS- Jose Reyes will be the SS. Jose is fun to watch and is a big fan favorite in NY. He needs to work on getting on base. As for his defense I think Reyes is ok. He gets the job done. He has a cannon for an arm, but he is no Raphael Furcal.
3B- David Wright will man 3B this season and for many seasons to come. Wright is an amazin' player. He hits the ball hard, and can go the other way. I expect Wright's numbers to increase. We all know that the major flaw in his game is his defense. He fields the ball well but his accuracy is a bit off. When Wright was on WFan for Mets Caravan he said that he has worked on his throwing. If he can master throwing, I think Wright can challenge Scott Rolen for the NL Golden Glove at 3B.
LF- Cliff Floyd will play in left this season. Last year was Cliff's best year in the majors. He and David Wright led the Mets last year. Cliff conducted a chat with the fans on mets.com today. When asked if he thinks he can repeat he said, " Yes, why not?". Cliff batted great, and also played great defense. He should have won the Golden Glove last year, Cliff committed only 2 errors in 152 games last season. He also led all outfielders in outfield assists. If Cliff can stay in shape, I have no reason to believe that he will not repeat last year’s performance. And he should win the Golden Glove too.
CF- Carlos Beltran will play center field this season and for 5 more seasons after that. Beltran needs to show Omar, Willie, and the fans of NY that last year was just a bad year. He played injured for most of the season and I admire that. He needs to stop trying to be the Carlos Beltran of October, and be the true Carlos Beltran. The Carlos Beltran that plays phenomenal defense and gets on base. I predict that Beltran will hit 20-25 HRs in 06', while batting around .280, with 35-40 stolen bases. As for his defense I expect nothing less than a Golden Glove like season. These are the kind of numbers that Beltran is expected to put up. If he can be around those numbers I will be satisfied.
RF- This is another question mark in the Mets line-up. The two top candidates are Victor Diaz and Xavier Nady.
- Xavier Nady- I don't know much about Nady but what I do know is that he has good defense at many positions including LF, CF, RF, 1B, and 3B. This is a good indication that he will be on the 25-man roster, but will he be the starting RF?
- Victor Diaz- Diaz is out of shape, but that may be to his advantage. For a big guy Diaz can run. He stole 6 bags in 8 attempts. He has pop in his bat, and is still learning to be an outfielder. Seeing him play last season tells me that he can do the job. When he plays defense he looks a bit sluggish. If he can keep his mind in the game he can do a good job as the RF.
I don't know who will walk away with this job but I am sure it will be one of these two guys. This problem may not be solved until mid season. If I had to pick, I would pick Diaz, but that is just my opinion.
C- Paul LoDuca- LoDuca will be the starting catcher. He works hard, plays good defense, calls a good game, and lets face it anybody is a better thrower than Piazza (despite this we still love you Mike). LoDuca will not be Mike Piazza in the batters box but he is one of the top 5 hitting catchers in the game today. He is a clutch hitter, and will be a nice fit at catcher for us.
Next Years batting line-up should look like this:
SS- Jose Reyes
CF- Carlos Beltran
3B- David Wright
1B- Carlos Delgado
LF- Cliff Floyd
C- Paul LoDuca
RF- Nady/Diaz
2B- Matsui/A. Hernandez
P- Tommy Glavine is the best hitting pitcher on the team (my opinion)
Will this team win the World Series? Just ask Cliff Floyd.... (Taken from Cliffs Online Chat with the Fans on Mets.com) CESAR_VALVERDE: I wish you the best for next year. What are your expectations personally and for the team? Floyd: I hope to be healthy and help my team win the World Series. CESAR_VALVERDE: Are the Mets a World Series team? Floyd: Yes, don't you think so? |
