I’m scrambling a bit today and I’ve got a delicious lunch meeting on the horizon, so I’ll turn it over to some TedQuarters readers.

Remember reader Jim from yesterday? Turns out he doubles as writer Jim. Here’s a timeline of the Mets’ 2009 season he compiled for Vanity Fair. It’s likely nothing you didn’t live through, and it’s a bit brutal to recollect, but it’s sort of hilarious to see it all spelled out in order like this. And some of the juxtapositions are great:

June 1, 2009: The Mets are winning—until J.J. Putz enters the ballgame. He faces five batters, gets none of them out, and gives up four runs. Afterward, Mets manager Jerry Manuel looks on the bright side: “The good thing is, he threw strikes.”

June 5, 2009: J.J. Putz goes on the disabled list with bone spurs in his pitching elbow. He is out for the season.

That being said (to paraphrase Larry David), Steve Sidoti from Seven Train to Shea‘s putting together videos to get Mets fans excited about 2010. My favorite part of this one? The first three home runs are pulled to left. Nothing groundbreaking, just always fun to remember that it did sometimes happen.

Finally, and speaking of the 2010 Mets, Chris M made a pretty interesting point via e-mail yesterday regarding recent comments from Jerry Manuel and Omar Minaya about where the Mets’ prospects will start the season, and the reaction from Mets fans about what the comments imply. It’s this:

Most people seem to focus on this “lack of communication” between Jerry and Omar, and see it as some type of problem.  I have a different take.  Omar is the GM and Jerry is the manager; they do not have the same job.  Omar puts together a roster, Jerry’s job is to get the best out of that roster and motivate his players.  I’m sure Jerry hears what Omar is saying and understands that some of these guys will be in the minors, but what is wrong with the manager going to bat for some of these young kids?  These are players that, if all goes well, will be playing for him in the next year or two.  Shouldn’t Jerry say things like he’s saying to boost the confidence of some of the young players?  Show that he believes in them and that they belong with the big club, even if he knows they won’t be here just yet?

Rob Neyer reacts to David Pinto’s reaction to a Dallas News interview with pitcher C.J. Wilson about the Rangers’ defense.

Wilson says:

Now, it’s like people are really excited to play here, to pitch with Elvis Andrus at shortstop, and Mike Young at third base, and Kinsler at second and Chris Davis at first. For me, that’s a big thing for us, is that our defense is so much better that people are excited to be pitchers now for us.

Pinto says:

Better defense means less frustration for the pitcher and less work as he doesn’t need to get four outs in an inning.

Neyer says:

This leads to an obvious question: Are we undercounting the impact of fielding? …  Brainy sorts have made a great deal of progress in separating pitching and fielding, but it occurs to me that there might still be a great deal of work to be done.

I say: This makes me think about Mike Pelfrey and all his supposed mental issues last season.

We know 2009 was stressful for Big Pelf. He became a father. His ERA swelled. He ran laps around Coors Field.

But perhaps more maddening than all that, he yielded a high rate of groundballs in front of an infield that often included Luis Castillo at second and Alex Cora at short, and, to boot, David Wright having a rough year with the glove at third.

When people argue that Mike Pelfrey’s struggles in 2009 were all mental, I usually counter that he was mostly the victim of that awful defense behind him, since many of his rate stats were similar to those in his breakout 2008 season.

But I rarely consider that we could all be right, and that the crummy defense could have made Pelfrey crazy. I mean, after all, it made me crazy just to watch.

One of the weird tidbits in Pelfrey’s statline from 2009 that often goes unnoticed was that he yielded only nine home runs in his first 24 starts, then nine more in his last seven. Randomness? Could be. Did he tire due to the Verducci effect? Possibly.

Or did he tire of watching grounders dribble by his lead-footed infielders and just start chucking it?

I have no answers, of course. I’m not privy to Mike Pelfrey’s mental state and I probably shouldn’t be speculating about it.

But I suppose, like Neyer and Pinto suggest, it’s important to consider all the various ways defense that might affect a pitcher’s game beyond what could be measured.

In an e-mail, reader Jim makes a good point:

One semi-obvious thing to keep in mind in the fifth-starter competition: Every year the Mets (and most other teams) have a de facto six-man rotation.

In 2009, Mets had 10 pitchers who made starts. All 10 made at least 5 starts.

That was not really an exception.

In 2008, Mets had 11 pitchers making starts. Six made five starts or more.

2007: 12 starters. Eight of them made five starts or more.

2006: 13 starters. 10 made five starts or more.

2005: 12 starters. Eight made at least five starts.

Every year there are 15 to 25 starts that will not be made by the pitchers in the five-man rotation.

It’s true, and so it’s a bit silly to fret too much about who will win the fifth starter’s job, since the rotation will ultimately change multiple times during the year.

That said, another semi-obvious point is that any team should want to get as many starts as possible from the best starters it has, and so it should spend Spring Training assessing exactly who those guys are.

And I guess the bottom line is that throughout the season, the team should be using its five best healthy arms in its rotation, which seems simple enough.

As a fan, I’m rooting for Jon Niese to crack the squad because I favor young, homegrown talent and I think Niese is an underrated prospect with a lot of upside.

But if Niese fails to distinguish himself as decidedly better than alternatives like Nelson Figueroa and Fernando Nieve, he probably shouldn’t be given the benefit of the doubt, if only because he can be sent back to the Minors without having to clear waivers and neither Figueroa or Nieve can.

Since the Mets will inevitably need another starter at some point, Niese could hone his game in Buffalo until that happens.

Of course, if Niese does show his manager and coaches that he’s markedly better than the competition, there’s no question he should open the year on the staff. He’s 23 and he’s had plenty of experience in the high Minors, so no reason to hold him back, since he inarguably has the most upside of any of the rotation candidates.

As for Hisanori Takahashi: I know he’s looked awesome in his Spring Training outings, and I know the Mets don’t think he profiles as a lefty specialist, but if he’s going to be on the big-league club, I think it should probably be in a bullpen role.

But while I’m no scout, I have a sneaking suspicion he’s been so effective in Grapefruit League play because of the hesitation in the middle of delivery. I’m guessing that’s the type of thing that would be difficult for a batter to time when he first sees it, but that he might be able to adjust to the second or third time facing Takahashi in a game. Again, not an informed opinion — just a hunch.

But if Takahashi can keep deceiving hitters and throwing strikes, he’d make a nice fit for a relief role, perhaps throwing multiple innings at a time.

I think Figueroa could handle that too, of course, and Takahashi — like Niese — could go to Buffalo without being passed through waivers.

So filling out the last few spots on the staff will take some careful handling from Omar Minaya and his crew. They must identify the pitchers who will best help the club in April, but take care not to risk losing the ones who might help them in June just to carry a couple who might not be appreciably better.