PIITBlog by JD

  Mets updates  The Mets have filled up most of the roles in the coaching staff this week. There are a few more guys staying than I would have predicted. However, I have faith in David Stearns.    Manager: Carlos Mendoza Bench coach: John Gibbons. Gibbons was actually drafted by the Mets back in 1980. He was a promising catching prospect but was derailed by an early injury. He managed the blue Jays in two separate stints spanning a total of 11 years. He was a coach prior to that for the Blue Jays and Royals. He is highly qualified and by all metrics a good hire. Hitting coach: Eric Chavez (returning to his 2022 role) Chavez was clearly good for the 2022 Mets let’s hope that shows itself in 2024. Co-hitting coach: Jeremy Barnes. I am very surprised Barnes is still around after 2023. He is being called a co hitting coach instead of assistant. This is essentially his 2022 role as well. Pitching coach: Jeremy Hefner. No surprise here, everyone loves Hefner. First base/ou...

  Mets Updates for the Week:   It has been a slow week in Mets land, but it wouldn’t be the Mets without something of note. The Mets officially hired Carlos Mendoza as manager and he gave a press conference earlier this week.   Mendy press conference takeaways: ·        Stearns is treating the relationship with Mendoza as a “partnership”. This is a major change from the Buck, Billy dynamic.  ·        Mendy mentioned “culture” several times during the presser. This will be a point of focus. His goal is to hold everyone accountable, pay attention to the details, and most of all still have fun. ·        Mendy seems unbelievably happy to be a Met. He was emotional and charismatic. If this does not work out, it won’t be without effort. ·        Mendy commands the respect of the room. When he spoke, he held everyone’s attention. He was captivating   ...

  We have the GM meetings to discuss. Plus let’s check back on the off-season checklist.   The GM meetings started and were briefly held this week. They were cut short on Thursday due to a stomach bug going around. David Stearns did speak to the media and had a few main takeaways.   1.       He is willing to upgrade at positions the Mets are already solid at 2.       Pitching is the priority. Looking like 2-3 more starters 3.       Pete Alonso will not be traded 4.       Yamamoto is in the mix for sure   Stearns is very charismatic and is clearly happy to be a Met.   Pete update: Scott Boras spoke to the media this week as well and indicated that he and the Mets will talk about an extension.   Offseason checklist: -         Craig Counsel is the Mets Manager  -         Stearns fires eve...

  Mets Offseason Checklist   First, congratulations to Jacob Degrom on the ring. I will never harbor any negative feelings towards Jake, all the best to him.    Alright now onto the checklist.    Some of my predictions have already happened, some haven’t. The offseason starts in just a few days. Let’s get going   My Predictions were: Day 1: David Stearns is officially announced as POBO Day 2: Buck resigns as manager and retires from baseball Day 3: Stearns fires everybody not named Jeremy Hefner from the coaching staff. Jeremy Barnes will be the first to go Day 4 and beyond: Extend Pete Alonso and go after Yamamoto   So far, David Stearns is already the President of Baseball Operations and the offseason hasn’t started yet.   Buck did not resign, he was fired and is not retiring. Stearns has not fired the coaching staff but has let go of a few front-office members and scouts. Things are changing in the Mets organization, hopefully for the bett...