Mets News and Morning Links - 12/18/2024

 

Good Morning.  Happy Birthday Willie Blair, Adonis Medina and Grant Hartwig. Clay Holmes talks to the press, Luisangel Acuna negotiating to play more Winter Ball and Joey Meneses drives in two in Mexico.

Section Links: Mets Links, MLB Links, Winter Baseball, and This Day in Mets History.

Mets Links: 

Mets YouTube Channel: Clay Holmes Introductory Press Conference

Laura Albanese Newsday: Clay Holmes likes how forward-thinking the Mets are, and he's not alone. "Holmes wanted to start, and he knew the Mets and their pitching lab probably wouldn’t balk at the challenge...When asked about some of the factors that led to his decision, Holmes mentioned [assistant pitching coach Desi] Druschel, the Mets “resources” – monetary and otherwise – and the communication he had with the front office."

NY Post: Clay Holmes got both of his free agency wishes with Mets deal. "After toying with a changeup and four-seamer in bullpens during last season, Holmes, who has relied on a terrific slider as a reliever, said his desire to return to starting 'has always been there'...The real test will be how Holmes handles going through lineups multiple times." 

Abbey Mastracco NY Daily News: "The Mets’ newest pitching acquisition is already undergoing a transformation of sorts with his new team. Tuesday afternoon on a Zoom call, the right-hander was sporting a beard, something forbidden while playing for the Yankees, and a t-shirt from the brand Meanwhile Back in Queens, a local company that sells clothing, accessories and other items to celebrate the borough of Queens."

Newsday: Mets say ticket sales seeing a huge increase with signing of Juan Soto. "Nine days after news broke that the Mets had reached an agreement to sign Soto for 15 years and $765 million, the club told Newsday on Tuesday that ticket sales are going through the roof...For the first week, from Dec. 9-15, the team more than doubled the amount of tickets it sold in the same week in 2023."

Tim Britton and Andy McCullough The Athletic: Rise of the National League: Big-spender owners shift balance of power away from the AL. "The Dodgers...also the Padres, the Phillies and the Braves [plus Mets]. A ranking of the major-league landscape right now would likely feature five of the top six teams originating from the National League, with the Yankees as the outlier." (subscription required)

T.J. Rivera would never have made it to the majors if not for the recommendation of his old college coach, Mackey Sasser.

🎧👉 https://t.co/PPTWwy93nv
🎥👉 https://t.co/i2sV7bvkoJ pic.twitter.com/gSA3LzrvRC

— Jay Horwitz (@Jay_HorwitzPR) December 17, 2024

On Mets Hot Stove, Clay Holmes joins @gappleSNY for a one-on-one interview, including discussing the Mets culture, his experiences with Juan Soto and Carlos Mendoza on the Yankees, the Mets' development of starting pitchers, and what he's working on https://t.co/6otzxUGYXv pic.twitter.com/QAFm6b9aUP

— SNY (@SNYtv) December 18, 2024

Mets.com:

Yahoo Sports/Mets:

Metsmerized:

Amazing Avenue:

Faith and Fear in Flushing:

Mets360:

Mack's Mets:

SportSpyder Mets Links: 

Winter Baseball:

In the Dominican Republic - 

12/17/24 Box Score: Gigantes del Cibao 5 Toros Del Este 1

• Jose Siri RF 2 for 4, double, 2 runs, stolen base, 2 Ks;
• Huascar Brazoban 1 inning, no runs, no hits;

Jose Siri, @Mets OF, singles and later scores in his first at-bat tonight in the Dominican. He's now hitting .289 with a .799 OPS. #Mets #LGM #MetsTwitter @ernestdove @FarmToFlushing @bkfan09 @WexlerRules @bronxfanatic @ImAriBeRKO @draftniks @TheBaseballHut @BrianGerhauser… pic.twitter.com/rh4yJAMjCM

— Mets News and Links (@JohnFromAlbany) December 17, 2024

Jose Siri of the @Mets doubles, steals 3rd (7th) and later scores in his 2nd at-bat tonight in Winter Ball - now hitting .308 with an .853 OPS. #Mets #LGM #MetsTwitter @ernestdove @FarmToFlushing @bkfan09 @WexlerRules @bronxfanatic @ImAriBeRKO @draftniks @TheBaseballHut… pic.twitter.com/nVSZhkPTLZ

— Mets News and Links (@JohnFromAlbany) December 18, 2024

In Venezuela -

12/17/2024 Box Score: Cardenales de Lara 7 Tigres de Aragua 3

Luisangel Acuna not in tonight's Lineup in Venezuela. He's currently negotiating with the @Mets to continue playing this Winter. #Mets #LGM #MetsTwitter @ernestdove @FarmToFlushing @bkfan09 @WexlerRules @ImAriBeRKO @bronxfanatic @draftniks @TheBaseballHut @HHec13 https://t.co/8DvXdQoyzP

— Mets News and Links (@JohnFromAlbany) December 18, 2024

In Mexico -

12/17/2024 Box Score: Tomateros de Culiacan 4 Mayos de Navojoa 2

• Joey Meneses 1B 1 for 3, 2 RBIs, 1 walk, 1 K;

12/17/24 Winter Ball Highlights - Joey Meneses 2 Run Single

 

MLB Links:

Per multiple reports, the Yankees will receive $5 million from the Cubs in addition to acquiring Cody Bellinger, while the Yankees will be sending out Cody Poteet https://t.co/wgMAnRnJyh pic.twitter.com/vyFxWv4tR8

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) December 17, 2024

On Baseball Night in New York, @sal_licata, @NYNJHarper, @DaniWex & @AlbaneseLaura discuss the Yankees trade for Cody Bellinger, rebounding after missing out on Juan Soto, and what could be the next move Brian Cashman makes https://t.co/YbvG0pYLyu

➡️ Tri-State @Cadillac pic.twitter.com/6msDnDMBxZ

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) December 17, 2024

Max Fried
New York Yankees

$218M/8 years

Signing Bonus - $20M (payable $10,M-1/31/25; $10M-1/31/26)

$12,000,000 - 2025
$12,000,000 - 2026
$29,000,000 - 2027
$29,000,000 - 2028
$29,000,000 - 2029
$29,000,000 - 2030
$29,000,000 - 2031
$29,000,000 - 2032

Full No Trade

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) December 18, 2024

Travis Sawchik The Score.com: MLB pitching-injury study knows the causes, but solutions may be elusive. "A new report on pitching injuries released Tuesday by the commissioner's office confirms much of what we already suspected about the root causes of the sharp rise in elbow and shoulder injuries...MLB found days spent on the injured list by pitchers increased from 13,666 in 2005 to 32,257 in 2024. The study asserts that the pursuit of velocity and max-effort pitching are the "primary forces driving the long-term increase in pitcher injuries." MLB also realizes pitching success has incentivized those efforts to throw harder, which makes solutions difficult to find...Not that long ago, in 2008, the average MLB fastball sat at 91.3 mph. In 2024, it was a record 94.2 mph."

MLB.com:

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Braves.com:

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Phillies.com:

Nationals.com:

Today in Mets History Per Ultimatemets.com: 

Born on this date:

• Willie Blair (1965)
• Jeremy Accardo (1981)
• Adonis Medina (1996)
• Grant Hartwig (1997)
• Jorge Rodriquez (2001)

Transactions:

New York Mets signed free agent Joe Orsulak on December 18, 1992.

New York Mets signed free agent Brian Bohanon on December 18, 1996.

New York Mets traded Fletcher Bates and Scott Comer to the Florida Marlins for Dennis Cook on December 18, 1997.

Pittsburgh Pirates signed Steve Bieser of the New York Mets as a free agent on December 18, 1997.

Colorado Rockies signed Jim Tatum of the New York Mets as a free agent on December 18, 1998.

New York Mets signed free agent Mike Cameron of the Seattle Mariners on December 18, 2003.

New York Mets signed free agent Matt Wise of the Milwaukee Brewers on December 18, 2007.

New York Mets signed free agent Andy Green on December 18, 2009.

New York Mets traded Jefry Marte to the Oakland Athletics for Collin Cowgill on December 18, 2012.

New York Mets signed free agent Wilson Ramos of the Philadelphia Phillies on December 18, 2018.

Tampa Bay Rays signed Michael Wacha of the New York Mets as a free agent on December 18, 2020.

Baseball Reference:

1992: The Mets sign free agent OF Joe Orsulak.

Centerfield Maz:

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