Francesa was referring to Severino citing the exit velocity of Alex Bregman’s home run and Aaron Judge’s long fly ball that was snagged at the right-field fence by Kyle Tucker.
“[Bregman] hit it 91 mph,’’ Severino told reporters of Bregman’s three-run, third-inning blast into the Crawford Boxes in left field. “That’s the only thing I’m gonna say. And Judge hit it 106 [mph] and it didn’t go out. They got lucky.”
Francesa did not appreciate Severino’s dismissive tone as the Yankees are now in a 2-0 hole against their hated rivals.
Luis Severino walks off the mound during Game 2 of the ALCS against the Astros.Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post
Judge’s eighth-inning shot to right, nearly a game-flipping, two-run homer, fell just short of the fence and into the glove of Kyle Tucker.
On his BetRivers podcast that the longtime WFAN staple recorded after the show, he took a more measured tone. Francesa still lamented the Yankees’ lack of hitting and correctly noted that the Yankees would have gotten shut out if not for starting pitcher Framber Valdez’s two-base error in the fourth inning. Still, Francesa liked the Yankees’ chances in Game 3 on Saturday in The Bronx with ace Gerrit Cole on the mound.
“The Yankees didn’t put two guys on base in any inning,” Francesa said. “Very hard to win hat way unless you’re going to hit a bunch of solo home runs. They did not and they struck out 13 times. That’s 30 times in two games. You have to put the ball in play, get some base hits, they don’t get any hits. Maybe the home cooking will be a difference-maker.”
Mike Francesa in 2018 at a DraftKings event.Robert Sabo
The Mets’ rotation didn’t get any younger this season.
In a win-now mode, the team last November added Max Scherzer, who turned 38 in July, and also featured the 35-year-old Carlos Carrasco and Jacob deGrom, who turned 34 in June. Chris Bassitt, who arrived in a trade from the A’s, turned 33 before the season.
It’s a fact team brass will have to weigh heavily this offseason. Mostly, that pertains to deGrom — and also to Carrasco and Bassitt — as the Mets consider how to rebuild a rotation that was strong for most of the season, but faded in the final weeks as the Mets squandered their NL East title chances and lost to the Padres in the wild-card series.
DeGrom at his best is the most electrifying force in baseball, but how long the Mets are willing to extend the relationship, more than the average annual value of a new contract, might be the largest factor in whether the two-time Cy Young Award winner returns.
Does owner Steve Cohen set a strict two-year limit on a deGrom deal? Three years? DeGrom has indicated he plans to opt out from his contract, and a team desperate for a marquee attraction with Cy Young upside might be willing to hand over the moon to get it.
DeGrom has started 23 games combined over the two seasons Cohen has owned the team, which included a nearly 13-month stretch without an appearance. The risk is significant.
Jacob deGrom exited his lone playoff start amid uncertainty about whether he would return to the Mets.Corey Sipkin
Carrasco is a back-end starter these days, and for the $11 million it will cost the Mets to pick up his option for next season (the net outlay of the $14 million option when the $3 million buyout in his contract is considered), it’s sensible to keep him.
But that’s only if you believe Carrasco has enough left in the tank to approach the same effectiveness he showed this season, when he started 29 games and pitched to a 3.97 ERA.
Bassitt was maybe the Mets’ most consistent starting pitcher, but he’s now headed toward free agency as somebody who will turn 34 in spring training. Team brass loved Bassitt’s dependability this season, but if deGrom and Carrasco stay — with Scherzer signed for two additional years — can the Mets justify keeping another older pitcher?
All factors considered, the Mets might want to take a long look at Carlos Rodon, who can opt out from the two-year contract he received from the Giants last offseason. Rodon, who is represented by superagent Scott Boras, is likely to reject the $22.5 million option and aim for a multiyear deal (think: five or six) in the $30 million range annually.
Rodon does have a history of shoulder issues, but he’s thrived the past two seasons while making a combined 55 starts. Rodon, who turns 30 before spring training, would provide a younger (and left-handed) alternative to potentially replace deGrom or Bassitt. This season, Rodon led the major leagues in FIP (fielding independent pitching), which measures a pitcher’s ability to strike out batters and limit home runs, walks and hit batsmen. Rodon had 2.25 FIP, which is measured on roughly the same scale as ERA. Rodon’s traditional numbers for the Giants this year were also strong, highlighted by a 14-8 record with a 2.88 ERA over 178 innings.
Chris Bassitt won 15 games while throwing a career-high 181 ⅔ innings this year, but the soon-to-be 34-year-old may not make for a good fit in an already-aging Mets rotation.Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post
A dominant left-handed component to the rotation would be welcomed. David Peterson was effective in a fill-in role, but Rodon would have the potential to become a CC Sabathia-type presence.
The Mets had a lefty on their mind last offseason, but Steven Matz spurned a return to Citi Field to sign with the Cardinals, eliciting venom from Cohen toward the pitcher’s agents, whom he accused of “unprofessional” behavior. Matz was a disappointment for the Cardinals, pitching to a 5.25 ERA in 15 appearances before a torn medial collateral ligament in his left knee ended his season.
Rodon’s talent, relative youth (compared to the other members of the Mets rotation this season) and left-handedness are all factors that could make him an attractive addition for the Mets this winter.
A worthy cause
The winner of the Roberto Clemente Award — honoring MLB’s top humanitarian — will be announced during the World Series. The Mets’ nominee was James McCann for his work with families of premature babies.
McCann’s wife, Jessica, gave birth in December 2017 to twin boys who arrived seven weeks early. The twins spent seven weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
James McCann was nominated for baseball’s Robert Clemente Award for the work he and his wife, Jessica, have done supporting the parents of premature babies.Corey Sipkin
The McCanns visit NICUs in New York and at home in Nashville to lend support to families and distribute gift packages.
“The thing that is tough, and a lot of people don’t understand, when the baby is in there full-time, parents still have to go to work, they are not just sitting in the hospital all the time,” McCann said. “We go and visit … once in a while, we get a note from someone thanking us for the gift package that we left them. We’re just letting them know that as somebody who has been in their shoes, that as tough as it is right now, there’s brighter days ahead.”
McCann’s sons Christian and Kane, who weighed three pounds at birth, are fully healthy, according to McCann.
“They love baseball,” McCann said. “They will step over trucks and cars and legos to pick up a bat and a ball. They are obsessed. It’s incredible. Everything is normal as normal gets.”
McCann could join a list that includes Curtis Granderson, Carlos Delgado, Al Leiter and Gary Carter, all of whom won the Clemente award while playing for the Mets. The list of winners also includes Carrasco, who received the award with Cleveland in 2019.
“Just being nominated and in that conversation is a special thing, but to win the overall award and have your name etched in that legacy would be incredible,” McCann said. “When we had the Roberto Clemente night , you see the names of past winners … it’s a special group of people.”
System shakeup
Tim Teufel’s 25-year tenure in a variety of instructiuonal roles for the Mets has come to an end, but he likely will serve as a team ambassador moving forward.Getty Images
Tim Teufel’s departure from the Mets’ instructional ranks was surprising (he won’t be retained as the minor league infield coordinator) given his deep roots in the organization, but you can’t blame general manager Billy Eppler for wanting to import his own people.
In recent years, fan favorites such as Edgardo Alfonzo and Wally Backman departed from Mets minor league managerial roles as part of player development changes.
Teufel, 64, has served the organization well in various roles over the past 25 years and will remain a club ambassador. Omar Minaya, Mike Piazza, Mookie Wilson and Todd Zeile also served in that role this season.
HOUSTON — The Bronx Bombers didn’t live up to their name, and that includes the newly christened Bronxville Bomber, Harrison Bader himself. For the first time in 24 postseason games, the Yankees didn’t hit a home run, which is a likely recipe for defeat in Houston’s house of horrors.
They don’t love Minute Maid Park under normal conditions — and they missed their main weapon in Game 2 of the ALCS. Their mojo is in their muscles.
The Yankees without a home run are Christmas without Santa Claus.
Like the Patriots without Tom Brady.
Like nails without a hammer.
They are incomplete, at best. And very likely lost.
The Yankees haven’t won here all season, and it’s hard to imagine them doing it without hitting even one measly home run. They came close when certain AL MVP Aaron Judge hit one to the wall in the eighth inning. But close is all they ever seem to do against these annoying Astros, who went up two games to none in this ALCS with the 3-2 victory Thursday night.
Let’s face it. While the Yankees posted the second-highest run total in the majors this season, they are heavily dependent on the long ball. If they don’t have it, they may not have much. The Yankees were a rare major league team to score more than half their runs on homers — it was 50.8 percent of their runs to be exact — and if they don’t go deep, they may be in deep.
Aaron Judge’s long drive was caught by Kyle Tucker at the wall in the eighth inning of the Yankees’ 3-2 ALCS Game 2 loss to the Astros.Getty Images; USA TODAY Sports
Perhaps things will get better when they get back to Yankee Stadium, where they are a different team. They also won’t have to face all-time great Justin Verlander or All-Star Framber Valdez in either of the next two games.
To be fair, this was as tough a draw as possible. Houston had its pitching set up the way it wanted. Verlander is one of the greatest pitchers ever and he was having one of his better games in the ALCS opener. The Astros have about a 2.00 ERA for these playoffs, they are the only team yet to lose and they look like prohibitive favorites to run the table.
In an effort to jump-start things, manager Aaron Boone is making changes almost daily. Part of it is about the injuries, the locale and left versus right considerations. But there are enough alterations that it smacks partly of desperation.
Josh Donaldson walks to the dugout after striking out in the fourth inning of the Yankees’ Game 2 loss.N.Y. Post: Charles Wenzelberg
Boone promoted Bronxville’s own Bader, the sudden slugging star, into the leadoff spot for Game 2, and Bader acted surprised about the move on the pregame show when Lauren Shehadi of TBS asked him about the switch. Either he didn’t know, or he’s as fine an actor as he is a hitter.
While Bader contributed one of four Yankees hits and a walk, it didn’t quite do the trick. The Yankees had three singles and a double total against Valdez and a couple Astros relievers. The offensive highlight was a 50-foot grounder by Giancarlo Stanton that Valdez turned into a mess.
Judge had one of the other hits, but it was also a single, which started the two-run fourth inning that accounted for all the offense. Stanton, one of the better postseason performers in recent seasons, then hit the fairly soft grounder back to Valdez that sufficed as the Yankees’ best moment of the night.
Kyle HIgashioka heads back to the dugout after striking out in the seventh inning of the Yankees’ loss. N.Y. Post: Charles Wenzelberg
Although Stanton appears to be playing at about three-quarters speed, presumably the result of one of many foot injuries that have ailed the Yankees, Valdez panicked, turning a certain out (and maybe two) into a second-and-third situation. Anthony Rizzo followed with a run-scoring groundout and Gleyber Torres with a run-scoring ground single through the left side.
Unfortunately, that rally was all there was to write home about from an offensive standpoint. The good thing is they get to go home now, where they actually won a couple games against the Astros this season. They are now 0-5 here.
To win this series, of course, not only will the Yankees have to turn things around at home, they will eventually have to win at Minute Maid Park, where homers are indeed possible, especially into the Crawford Boxes in left field. Astros star Alex Bregman deposited the three-run shot there that became the defining moment of the game.
In the middle of the Yankees offensive ineptitude, Astros fans began chanting, “Yankees s—,” as if they were impersonating the Fenway faithful. There seems to be some surprising anger here at the team that keeps losing to their boys. If anything, you’d think they’d show some gratitude.
The Yankees continue to strike out a lot, too. After whiffing 17 times in Game 1, they fanned 13 more times. The team that eliminated the Yankees in 2015, 2017 and 2019 is threatening to do it again. The Yankees better start remembering who they are. Saturday back at the Stadium is the place to start.
The Yankees, fresh off their ALDS-clinching win over Cleveland in The Bronx on Tuesday night, came to the place where their last two ALCS appearances ended: Minute Maid Park.
This series didn’t get off to a promising start either for the Yankees, who dropped the opener, 4-2, on Wednesday.
Justin Verlander shut down the Yankees’ offense and Clarke Schmidt and Frankie Montas combined to give up three homers out of the bullpen, as the Astros pulled away for the victory.
Verlander gave up one run in six innings and struck out 11.
He went up against Jameson Taillon, who’d pitched just once since Oct. 4.
Taillon provided the Yankees pretty much what they could have hoped for, giving up just one run in 4 ¹/₃ innings before Schmidt took over in the fifth and got out of a jam.
Clarke Schmidt reacts dejectedly after giving up a solo homer to Yuli Gurriel during the fifth inning of the Yankees’ 4-2 loss to the Astros in Game 1 of the ALCS.N.Y. Post: Charles Wenzelberg
But Yuli Gurriel hit a go-ahead homer to lead off the bottom of the sixth and Chas McCormick delivered another solo shot with one out later in the inning.
Montas gave up a leadoff homer to Jeremy Peña in the seventh to make it 4-1.
Anthony Rizzo homered with two outs in the eighth off Rafael Montero to get the Yankees within two runs.
Giancarlo Stanton singled to bring up the tying run, Josh Donaldson, who walked after striking out in his first three at-bats of the night.
Houston closer Ryan Pressly entered to face Matt Carpenter, who fanned for the fourth straight time — overmatched in his first start since Aug. 8 after missing two months with a fractured left foot.
Aaron Judge, who went 0-for-4, reacts during his at-bat in the fifth inning.USA TODAY Sports
The Yankees had their chances to do more against Verlander, though.
They threatened in the top of the first — with some help from the Astros.
After Verlander got Gleyber Torres and Aaron Judge to start the game, the right-hander drilled Rizzo with an 0-2 pitch and Stanton followed by reaching on a throwing error by Jose Altuve, who was shading up the middle.
But Donaldson went down swinging to end the inning.
With one out in the bottom of the frame, Peña belted a double over the head of Stanton in left.
Taillon walked Yordan Alvarez on four pitches to set up Alex Bregman, who hit a shot to right-center, where Judge made a fantastic diving catch for the second out. Kyle Tucker grounded to first for the third out.
Jeremy Peña watches his solo homer leave the yard during the seventh inning of the Yankees’ loss.Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post
Harrison Bader gave the Yankees the lead in the top of the second with his fourth home run of the playoffs, a rocket solo shot to left-center.
The lead didn’t last.
Taillon retired the first two batters in the bottom of the inning, but McCormick lined a single to center and light-hitting catcher Martin Maldonado ripped a run-scoring double to right-center.
Rizzo walked and Stanton doubled to right with one out in the third, but Donaldson and Carpenter both whiffed, as Verlander went on to strike out six straight and retire 11 in a row.
Taillon was pulled for Schmidt with one out in the bottom of the fifth after giving up a second double to Peña .
An intentional walk to Alvarez put two runners on again for Bregman, who walked to load the bases — but Schmidt got Tucker to ground into a double play to keep the game tied.
Schmidt faltered in the sixth, however, giving up a leadoff homer to Gurriel on an 0-2 slider.
And one out later, McCormick went deep to chase Schmidt.
It’s just the latest postseason defeat in Houston for the Yankees, who have never won a playoff series against the Astros and were 0-3 in the regular season at Minute Maid Park.
After the last meeting between the teams here n July, Aaron Boone said none of it would matter once this time of year rolled around.
“Ultimately, we may have to slay the dragon, right?” Boone said on July 21. “If it comes to it in October, the proof will be in the pudding. Do we get it done?”
SAN DIEGO — Bryce Harper homered again, Kyle Schwarber hit a jaw-dropping, 488-foot drive and Zack Wheeler was brilliant in throwing one-hit ball for seven innings to lead the Philadelphia Phillies over the San Diego Padres 2-0 Tuesday night to open the all-wild card NL Championship Series.
Wheeler and two relievers combined on a one-hitter for Philadelphia. The Phillies managed just three hits off Yu Darvish and the San Diego bullpen — the combined four hits matched the fewest ever in a postseason game.
The Phillies will try to take a 2-0 lead when they send Aaron Nola to mound to oppose Blake Snell on Wednesday afternoon. Nola is set to pitch against his brother, Padres catcher Austin Nola.
The Padres, who eliminated the 111-win Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS, had only four baserunners, including a single by Wil Myers in the fifth. Still, they had a chance to win in the ninth against José Alvarado.
Jurickson Profar drew a one-out walk and Juan Soto reached when third baseman Alec Bohm made an errant throwing trying for a force. Manny Machado flied out and Alvarado struck out Josh Bell for the save, looking skyward and clapping after getting the final out.
Zack Wheeler threw seven scoreless innings in the Phillies’ 2-0 NLCS Game 1 win over the Padres.Getty Images
Harper, trying to reach his first World Series, hit a high-arcing, opposite-field shot into the first row in left field with one out in the fourth. It was the fourth home run this postseason for Harper, who was playing in San Diego for the first time since his left thumb was broken when he was hit by a pitch by Blake Snell on June 25, sidelining him for two months.
Harper homered in his third straight postseason game. The two-time NL MVP, who won the award last year, has hit nine home runs in 26 career postsaseason games.
Bryce Harper belts a solo homer in the fourth inning of the Phillies’ Game 1 victory. USA TODAY Sports
Schwarber’s incredible shot on Darvish’s first pitch of the sixth had an exit velocity of 119.7 mph and was the first to reach the right field upper deck at Petco Park, which opened in 2004. It was the farthest in his career and the farthest at Petco in the Statcast Era and gave the Phillies a 2-0 lead.
Schwarber raised his right arm as he rounded first base and Harper stood in the dugout with his mouth agape in amazement.
They were the latest impressive home runs for the Phillies, who are back in the playoffs for the first time since 2011. The last won the World Series in 2008. They’ve hit eight homers in seven games this postseason.
Harper joined Gary Matthews (1983) as the only players in franchise history to homer in three straight postseason games in the same year. Harper hit one homer in the wild-card series win at St. Louis and two in going 8 for 16 as the Phillies eliminated the defending World Series champion Atlanta Braves in the NLDS.
Kyle Schwarber belts a long solo homer during the sixth inning of the Phillies’ Game 1 win.USA TODAY Sports
Rhys Hoskins had an epic bat spike on a monster homer against the Braves, and J.T. Realmuto became the first catcher in postseason history to hit an inside-the-park home run.
The Phillies at times stunned Petco Park, where a sellout crowd of 44,826 was amped up for the Padres’ first NLCS appearance since 1998. It was 78 degrees at first pitch at 5:04 p.m., a big change from Saturday night’s rainstorm during the Padres’ 5-3 clinching win in the NLDS.
But Wheeler had he Padres totally off balance, allowing only a one-out walk to Juan Soto in the first and then retiring 12 straight batters until Myers singled with one out in the fifth. Wheeler then retired his final eight batters. He struck out eight and walked one on 83 pitches.
Seranthony Dominguez pitched a perfect eighth.
Darvish took the loss, allowing two runs and three hits in seven innings while striking out seven and walking one.
SEATTLE — Jeremy Peña homered in the 18th inning, and the Houston Astros beat the Seattle Mariners 1-0 on Saturday to advance to the AL Championship Series for the sixth straight year.
Peña drove a slider from Penn Murfee deep to left-center for the rookie shortstop’s first playoff homer, proving the only run in an afternoon full of dominant pitching and empty trips to the plate. The 18 innings matched the longest game in playoff history.
Spoiling Seattle’s first home playoff appearance since 2001, Houston completed a three-game sweep of the ALDS. Next up is the New York Yankees or Cleveland Guardians in Game 1 of the ALCS on Wednesday.
While Yordan Alvarez got the big hits in the first two games in Houston, it was Pena that set the table for Alvarez’s opportunities. As Game 3 made its way into its sixth hour, Peña delivered another painful blow to the Mariners that ended their short return to the postseason.
Jeremy Pena hits the game-winning home run in the 18th inning to give the Astros a 1-0 win over the Mariners in Game 3 of their ALDS sweep.AP
After 21 years, Seattle fans welcomed playoff baseball back inside T-Mobile Park. They got their money’s worth, and then some.
Three previous playoff games reached the 18th inning before conclusion, one involving Houston. The Astros beat the Atlanta Braves 7-6 in 18 innings in Game 4 of the 2005 NLDS on Chris Burke’s game-ending homer.
The game was scoreless through 17 innings, until the Astros won it in the 18th.Getty Images
Game 2 of the 2014 NLDS between San Francisco and Washington and Game 3 of the 2018 World Series between Los Angeles and Boston also went 18 innings.
But those games had runs. This one failed to produce anything until Peña’s swing on a 3-2 pitch.
Seattle’s best scoring chance was Julio Rodríguez’s line drive that thudded off the wall in the eighth inning. Seattle had runners in scoring position in the 13th and 17th, but couldn’t get a key two-out hit against Houston’s superb bullpen.
Former Mets prospect Jarred Kelenic walks back to the dugout after striking out in the 10th inning.Getty Images
Luis Garcia worked five innings for the win. The Astros bullpen allowed five hits and struck out 15 following six innings from starter Lance McCullers Jr.
Seattle’s bullpen was nearly just as good. After rookie George Kirby threw seven innings, nine Mariners relievers combined for 11 innings of five-hit ball.
The teams combined to strike out 42 times, topping the postseason record of 39 set by the Guardians and Rays last week in their AL wild-card matchup that was scoreless for 15 innings before Oscar Gonzalez’s home run sent Cleveland to the ALDS.
At every turn, the Billy Eppler Mets have prioritized a long-term vision over the immediate future. They have wanted their title window cracked open for a sustained, long period, which led to Eppler refusing to jeopardize that goal by trying to pry this season’s window wide open.
So none of the Mets’ top 19 prospects, Eppler said, were traded at the deadline. The Mets opted for reasonably priced upgrades at the margins over, say, a splashy move — such as importing the Cubs’ Willson Contreras or a more expensive piece such as Raisel Iglesias, who went from the Angels to the Braves.
“One of the things we have talked about here is trying to maintain that organizational discipline to try to crush any urge to make a snap or impulsive decision and give up large amounts of future World Series odds or expectation just in exchange for marginal gains right now,” Eppler said after the trade deadline passed. “I think some of that undisciplined thinking can lead to years of mediocrity.”
Billy Eppler faces many Mets unknowns entering the offseason.Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
Perhaps the biggest question facing Eppler, who will speak publicly Friday in an end-of-season news conference after the Mets were knocked out of the wild-card round by the Padres, will concern how he balances the long-term future with fielding a quality roster for the 2023 Mets. A team that spent about $282 million on payroll, according to Spotrac, somehow did not go all-in in 2022.
The longest deal Eppler, as Mets GM, has given to a player is the four years awarded Starling Marte. None of Eppler’s multiyear pacts from last offseason — Marte, Max Scherzer, Mark Canha and Eduardo Escobar — look like albatrosses after one season. Eppler bet well and managed risks, which brought long-term flexibility and a short-term excellent regular season (and quick exit from the postseason).
Going all-in for next season might look like attempting to package a hoard of prospects for Shohei Ohtani, if the Angels make the two-way star available. It might look like giving an extra year, perhaps a fifth, to Jacob deGrom to ensure the best pitcher in the world stays in Queens at a heavy cost, even if a contract would take him into his late 30s.
It is unlikely Eppler will push in all of his chips to chase a championship next season, even if that would be the preferred method of a 38-year-old Scherzer. But how much will Eppler prioritize next year after a campaign in which thinking about the future likely hurt the Mets’ present?
That question will hover over Eppler’s news conference, as will:
Billy Eppler, right, and Buck ShowalterTom DiPace
How much will the Mets value the non-baseball aspects of their free agents?
Last offseason, the Mets pursued players with positive reputations in the clubhouse after a 2021 season filled with controversy and downward-pointed thumbs.
This offseason, how much will Eppler (and Steve Cohen) consider the spectacle that the 2022 Mets became?
At full health, deGrom is an ace’s ace and likely will be paid as such. But does his relationship with Mets fans, who have watched him blossom since being a ninth-round pick in 2010, add some heft to a deal?
Similarly, there are not many more popular in Queens than Brandon Nimmo, who complements his on-field productivity with a smile and a never-ending hustle. Will his intangibles make him more attractive to the Mets?
Has Cohen assigned a bottom to his wallet?
The Post’s Mike Puma has estimated the Mets’ payroll could skyrocket to $345 million if they retain all their free agents. In late August, Cohen told The Post’s “The Show” podcast, “You should be able to build a pretty good team at $300 million.”
Has Eppler been told he cannot exceed that $300 million hurdle? A hard line would create issues for a team that only is certain to return Scherzer to its rotation.
Steve Cohen watches the Mets’ Game 3 loss to the Padres. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Will there be room for the kids?
Francisco Alvarez, Brett Baty and Mark Vientos debuted with more promise than productivity. Does Eppler believe Alvarez can compete for a starting job next spring, which could open the door for a trade of James McCann?
Does Eppler believe Baty can be a starting third baseman, which could lead to the club moving Escobar?
Brett Baty AP
The Mets’ evaluation of Vientos could affect their handling of Darin Ruf, who is due $3 million next season.
How much will the new rules affect the Mets’ roster building?
En route to his batting title, Jeff McNeil hit .364 when opposing infield defenses played the shift — which will be regulated next season.
Will the tweaked rules lead to Eppler valuing a player such as Daniel Vogelbach, who pulls the ball often and batted against shifts in about three-quarters of his at-bats? Speedy defenders could prove more prized, too.
The Mets also will have most of a bullpen to reconstruct. How much attention will Eppler pay to the incoming pitch clock, which will be particularly targeted toward relievers who take their time to load up their arms before throwing a pitch?
Yankees manager Aaron Boone professed great faith in who’s now left in the pen for the Yankees. Which only wraps up for Boone our coveted award for Most Positive Person of the Year.
Boone is either delirious or knows something we don’t know.
Joining Chad Green, Michael King, Ron Marinaccio and Zack Britton on the injured list Tuesday was Scott Effross, who it was announced will undergo Tommy John surgery. Of course, there was also Aroldis Chapman who’s on the A-List (no, that isn’t to denote his great fame, but stands for the AWOL List), as the best-paid reliever in the AL. He was a no-show for a mandatory workout and justifiably omitted from the Yankees’ active roster for the ALDS which began Tuesday against the Guardians.
What that leaves in the pen for the Yankees objectively ranks somewhere between an interesting puzzle and a complete mess depending on one’s perspective. Clay Holmes, fresh off the IL himself, presumably gets some save chances if he’s as healthy as they hope. But beyond that, it’s anyone’s guess how Boone utilizes this disjointed group.
With six key members of the Yankees bullpen corps either out due to injury (Green, King, Marinaccio, Britton and Effross) or insubordination (you know who), Boone is going to have several difficult choices, and he’s going to have to make it all work if the Yankees are to win their first World Series title in 13 seasons. He has navigated a difficult situation nicely to this point, but it gets exponentially harder from here.
Chapman really is no great loss at this point, as he struggled throwing his fastball for strikes. That inability was even low on his list of demerits, however, since he skipped a workout and at one point had to go on the IL with an infection from an upper-leg tattoo. With irony, the bad ink led to more bad ink, as he understandably drew negative press for his foolhardy mistake.
Emmanuel ClaseAP
Thanks to their $260 million payroll and certain AL MVP Aaron Judge, the Yankees understandably remain the heavy favorite in their matchup with the small-market, low-revenue, tiny-payroll Cleveland Guardians (everyone on our outstanding Post staff picked the Yankees but me, which eliminated me from the MPPOY award that easily goes to Boone; see the first paragraph). I get it, of course, the Yankees out-homered the Guardians by exactly double (254 to 127), they outspent them by an even greater margin and Judge remains a Yankee (for now anyway).
But let me explain. If the games are tight, the Guardians hold a big edge. While the Yankees technically had an even better season out of their pen — Yankees relievers posted a third-best in baseball 2.97 ERA to Cleveland’s fifth best 3.05 — as noted, half the Yankees’ group is missing, leaving a hole bigger than the one in left field when Anthony Rizzo bats.
While Boone will be busy mixing and matching, probable AL manager of the Year Terry Francona possesses a pen that’s set up for success. The anchor is Emmanuel Clase, who led MLB with 42 saves and is Cleveland’s version of Edwin Diaz (without the trumpets or fanfare). Clase has a better overall supporting cast than Diaz, with a nice variety of pitchers, including lefties and righties, plus soft throwers, hard throwers and very hard throwers.
Throw out those regular-season numbers. The pen comparison is a rout for Cleveland. Of course, it only matters if they keep games close, which seems possible with a very solid rotation fronted by Shane Bieber, Triston McKenzie and Game 1 NLDS starter Cal Quantrill. Of course, if the games are blowouts, which is always possible with the Yankees, who vacillated between world beaters and a one-man show at different times, the Guardians will be toast.
But if it come down to a battle of the bullpens, the Guardians will be in great stead. James Karinchak seems recovered from the shock that came with the unexpected ban on sticky stuff to turn back into a viable reliever, joining Trevor Stephan (a Rule 5 pickup from the Yankees, who could use him now), little right-hander Eli Morgan (the son of noted sports editor Dave Morgan) and lefty Sam Hentges (who may be the most anonymous of an unknown but excellent group).
Clay HolmesCorey Sipkin
While the Yankees’ relief corps includes three former All-Star closers at full strength (Holmes plus Chapman and Britton), as constructed now it’s uncertain who will close, who will set up and who will get key outs. Lou Trivino, the one deadline pickup currently healthy (Andrew Benintendi and Frankie Montas, like Effross, are on the IL), may be key since he’s improved dramatically since coming to The Bronx after a slow start in the obscurity of Oakland. Lefty Wandy Peralta will be vital, too, though he, too, had a recent injury question.
Fortunately, with this being a five-game series with two off days, the Yankees had the luxury of moving solid back-end starters Domingo German and Jameson Taillon, to the bullpen. Which at least allowed the Yankees to fill the chairs out there.
During pregame warmups, players on both teams swatted away the pests, which seemed to be thicker along the Chargers’ shaded sideline.
“Terrible,” one Chargers player said as he headed to the locker room.
Chamberlain can relate. The former Yankees reliever was attacked by the insects during Game 2 of the 2007 ALDS. The lights-out reliever was protecting a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the eighth inning, but he walked two batters and threw two wild pitches to allow the tying run to score. This was all while trying to swat away the midges that attached themselves to Chamberlain’s body. The Yankees would lose the game in 11 innings and the series in four games.
Joba Chamberlain gets sprayed by Yankees trainer Gene Monahan during a midges attack in the 2007 ALDS. APChargers quarterback Easton Stick surrounded by midges before the Browns-Chargers game on Oct. 9, 2022.AP
Fans were quick to hit Chamberlain up on Twitter to get his reaction to the midges’ return to a sporting event.
“My comment, I’ve experienced them and am not a fan!” Chamberlain said.
“Feeling wasn’t mutual,” Chamberlain responded to another follower who said the midges loved him.
The Yankees and the now-Cleveland Guardians start a best-of-five ALDS on Tuesday night in The Bronx with the series shifting to Ohio for Game 3 on Friday.
Will the midges still be waiting? At Sunday’s football game, which the Chargers won 30-28, a security guard standing near the tunnel said he swallowed two of the bugs. Fans were forced to deal with the pests as well, batting them away during the first quarter,
A Browns helmet covered in midges on Oct 9, 2022.AP
The midges hatch along Lake Erie several times a year, and can get so thick they cover windows on cars and homes. The stadium’s press box window was speckled with the insects.
The Mets’ once-promising season came to a crashing halt.
They lost to the Padres 6-0 in Game 3 of the wild-card series Sunday night, eliminating them from the playoffs. They previously lost Game 1 of the series Friday night, and won Game 2 on Saturday.
Joe Musgrove gestures to Mets fans after he was checked for an illegal substance. Corey Sipkin for the NY POSTChris Bassitt reacts during the second inning. Corey Sipkin for the NY POSTFrancisco Lindor strikes out in the fourth inning. Charles Wenzelberg / New York PostPete Alonso reacts in the fifth inning. Charles Wenzelberg / New York PostMets owner Steve Cohen watches the game from his suite. Charles Wenzelberg / New York PostUmpires check Joe Musgrove’s ear for an illegal substance. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Padres starter Joe Musgrove pitched seven shutouts innings and gave up just one hit. Mets starter Chris Bassitt, on the other hand, gave up three runs in just four innings pitched.
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