Cerrone posted a link to my bit about dangling Perpetual Pedro from yesterday, and it seems like some of his commenters misunderstood the point I was trying to make there. So I want to revisit that in case I didn’t make it clear enough.
Here’s what commenter SwannaintSeaver wrote:
Thanks Ted, you’ve confirmed the point that anyone with web development savvy and an opinion can publish a Blog that will be find its way into the mass media. Write off the season, huh? I guess you’re another person who is in love with a “home grown infield”, and thinks that Cliff Lee is coming to Flushing.
I am glad to not be around when you wake up from your pipe dreams. I am a Mets fan since I was six years old (1969), and I have seen your kind. You will try to find positives in anything (like Lenny Randle playing second base, Donn Hahn playing center field, or even John Pacella as a starting pitcher). Sure, let’s dump all of our productive pieces while we are at it, we are a “small market team” after all.
Congratulations, you are batting 1.000 in my book. I don’t agree with you on anything.
Here’s my response:
I’m pretty sure you’re misreading or misunderstanding the post. I never said the Mets should write off the season. I’m saying that fans, analysts, and sometimes teams themselves tend to take the mentality of “buyer or seller” as though it’s some sort of black-and-white thing. It’s not.
I’m saying that if you can get a disproportionate return on a largely replaceable commodity, you should take it regardless of where you are in the standings. That’s very different from writing off the season.
Does that make sense at all? I tried to hammer out a solid food metaphor with TedQuarters resident maverick economist and former roommate Ted Burke, but we just wound up talking about ice cream and trying to pigeonhole this situation into convoluted scenarios about running ice-cream shops in heat waves.
The point is, Pedro Feliciano will not make or break the Mets’ season. He’s a good lefty specialist and, in fact, one of my favorite Mets. He’s also a free agent after the season. And the Mets have two other lefty pitchers already in their bullpen and one in Triple-A who appears adequate. The Mets have a large supply of something that is reportedly in great demand.
If Scott Downs’ trade value is even in the same stratosphere as the Blue Jays’ supposed asking price, some team is going to pay way too much for Scott Downs. The Mets should get in on that action. Not because they are sellers, because they are a baseball team, and one in a particularly good position to shoulder the short-term hit. If they can spin a third of a season of Feliciano into a cost-controlled future contributor, it’s a no-brainer.
Tedquarters 
I don’t understand how people can’t make sense of what you were saying. Especially when the commenter brings up about home-grown infields. That had nothing to do with the point you were making. I wish some readers would stop, think and process before making responding sometimes lol. The Mets are working with a struggling Feliciano right now anyway…they could make it work without him. Contrary to popular belief, the ‘pen really isn’t an enormous concern for this team.
It was a very straightforward point the first time. Personally, I would have rather seen you post about your reaction to the Oswalt trade rather than defend your already clear and well-reasoned post about market inefficiencies. If SwannaintSeaver didn’t understand your very basic point the first time, he probably never will.
As for a food analogy: getting a top ten prospect for Pedro Feliciano is roughly the equivalent of being able to sell a Big Mac for $40 because of a burger shortage. You also have a Double Cheeseburger that you could eat now.
I was waiting until it was definitely done. I got burnt by Cliff Lee to the Yankees. I’ll post something about it tomorrow, for sure.
Additionally there is always a chance you can buy back that Big Mac for $5 in 3 months. (Assuming we live in a world where Big Mac’s have a shelf life of about 10 years)
I’ve seen those undercover footage shows from fast food kitchens…
That’s a good food analogy.
The point is crystal clear. Also, kudos to Matt C on the Big Mac/Double Cheeseburger analogy.
My attempt at the food spin:
If you take American candy abroad in some places they treasure it because to them that shoprite-bought junk is rare and difficult to come by.
When you have a lot of something, or easy access to something, and someone else doesn’t and is willing to offer you a premium, well… duh.
Most of us make a living based on some variation of the concept.
Its not your fault people are to stupid to understand your writting Ted. Your first clue should have been this clown’s need to lecture you on how long he’s been a Met fan.
Generally, these fans who feel the need to prove thier fandom in some sense, by telling you how long they have been a fan, are for the most part, usually big losers or idiots.
Just listen to WFAN, jsut about any time you hear someone calling with “Hey big yankees fan here, way back to the Al Downing and Joey Pepitone days”, the person turns out to be a complete moron.
Ted vs. SwannaintSeaver = Feliciano vs. Pujols.
Just not fair.
My favorite thing is that each sentence of his comment contradicts the previous one. Why would you think they should both write off the season and that Cliff Lee is coming to Flushing? Why would someone writing off the season be finding positives in everything?
Ted, that guy is glad to not be there when you wake up from your pipe dreams.
No offense to Matt, because I love his site, but… but the people that comment on his site, while typically well-informed, are also often highly opinionated and pretty bitter in general. I stopped reading the comments on Metsblog because they are loaded with the “I’m right. You’re wrong. You’re stupid.” ilk. It depresses(ed) me. That dude Izy especially – what’s his problem?
thats odd, usually metsblog commenters are bastions of rationality and well reasoned analysis.
ted, any good sandwiches lately?
Yes. To try to compromise my desire to not die at 30 with the overwhelming demand for more sandwich posts, I’ve decided to turn the Sandwich-Week stylesheet into a “Sandwich of the Week” series that will debut this weekend. I can’t tell you about the sandwich yet because I’m all about suspense.
i await sandwich of the week with bated breath, appetite.
Whether “writing off” the 2010 season or not it is crazy to think of how much the 2011 team will resemble the 2010 team. I think a strong case can be made that 23 of the 25 roster spots very well could be occupied by guys currently on the roster or in the system. Here is my breakdown
C: Thole, Hank White (assuming 2 catchers…)
INF: Davis, Reyes, Wright, Castillo or Tejada, Cora (of course)
OF: Bay, Beltran, Pagan
Assuming 12 pitchers, that leaves 3 roster spots which could go to Evans, Murphy and Carter.
SP: Santana, Pelfrey, Niese, Dickey, Open # 5 spot
Bullpen: K-Rod, Parnell, Feliciano
That leaves 4 bullpen spots open between Takahashi, Valdez, Dessens, Acosta, Sean Green and Igarashi. If they go with 3 of those 6 that leaves 1 spot open in the bullpen.
Overall it is conceivable that the only open spot is in the starting rotation and maybe the bullpen.
I did not realize, until I thought about it just now and looked it up, that the expression “pipe dream” comes from the bizarre dreams experienced by smokers of opium pipes.
Ted ~ Your original post on the subject was right on!
By the way, the Nats traded reliever Capps to the Twins for c Wilson Ramos. if Ramos is close to the type of player some scouts have written about, nice move, Nats, who are building something special in D.C. I think you meant that the Mets — or any organization — should always be open to deals like the one the Nats-Twins compteted a few hours ago.
Ted, I just came home alone after a night out in Dupont. Yes, yes, I know…I’m disappointed in myself also. But after I got home, and read what this dude said to you, I was so embittered that I was going to write something really nasty…really mean. But alas, my fellow Mets fans have beaten me to the punch. You are awesome. He is not. If you make it big, like Peter Gammons status and my Masters Degree in terrorism and security policy gets me no where, hire me as your body guard. Deal? Ok sweet.
And may I just say once again, Chris M…you and I have the same name, and your Joe Pepitone reference was spot on. Larry David would be proud. And that’s what’s up.
Yea, it’s already been said but Metsblog commenters aren’t exactly the most savvy Mets fans on the web (with definite exceptions). The thing with SwannaintSeaver is that he forms no argument whatsoever, and throws out random idiotic things that appear nowhere in your original post. I GUARANTEE you this is the guy in the stands who says stuff like “Frenchy struck out 3 times so far in the game…HE’S DUE FOR A HIT!”