Bob Howry signs with Giants

For the 2nd time in as many days, one of my player acquisition suggestions was taken by a team other than the Mets. The Giants have signed relief pitcher Bob Howry to a 1-year, $2.75 million contract. Pretty reasonable contract for both parties, all things considered. Coupled with their earlier signing of Jeremy Affeldt, the Giants have the makings of a decent bullpen.

To counter this, the Mets made an earth-shattering signing of their own: re-signing Nelson Figueroa to a minor league deal.

Jon Niese - The day after

As I wrote last night, Jon Niese’s major league debut was a debacle. For those who missed it, here’s his final line:

3 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 2 K

I wrote on Monday that starting Niese was the wrong decision and Nelson Figueroa should’ve got the start. My 2 biggest reasons were: a) Niese is a lefty, facing a mostly right-handed lineup which mashes lefties and b) a 21 year old kid should not be making his major league debut in September during a pennant race. Niese was clearly nervous, unable to throw strikes, walking guys on 4 straight pitches. This is not to say the start was a 100% catastrophe. His curveball was sharp at times, and he did strikeout All Star Corey Hart and a hot hitting Mike Cameron.

I think/hope Niese can be a contributor in the future, if not in 2009 then 2010. However, he should only be used the rest of September if the Mets are up 10 runs or (God forbid) down 10 runs.

For what it’s worth, here are Figueroa’s stats vs. the Brewers this season:

9 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 10 K, 2.00 ERA

Time to bust out the brooms on the Brew-Crew...

Jon Niese and the 5 man rotation

Prized prospect Jon Niese will be making his major league debut tomorrow vs. the Brewers. With John Maine on the DL, it is necessary to find someone to make this start. However, I question the decision to use Niese in such a spot.

First, a quick look at Niese's minor league stats in 2008, split between AA and AAA:

29 starts, 164 IP, 3.13 ERA, 144 K, 58 BB, 1.28 WHIP

These are impressive stats, and I feel he has the potential to be a valuable contributor in the future. He supposedly has a low 90's fastball and decent curveball. However, I think putting him out there in September vs. a fearsome Milwaukee Brewers lineup is a mistake. Take a look at the Brew-Crew's numbers vs. LHP and RHP:

vs. RHP: .251/.319/.432, 31.1 PA/HR
vs. LHP: .274/.352/.471, 26.6 PA/HR

This is a significant difference, and is mainly due to the Brewers' lineup featuring good righty hitters like Ryan Braun, Mike Cameron, Corey Hart, and J.J. Hardy. The only regular lefty in the lineup is Prince Fielder, who has struggled mightily vs. LHP.

There are not many options here, but personally I would go with Nelson Figueroa. He was serviceable in the majors earlier this year, and pitched well against the Brewers (granted it was April 11th, almost 5 months ago). This could be overanalysis on my part, and Niese might dominate in his debut. However, I would rather the Mets exercise some caution with their top lefty pitching prospect.

Because of days off, the Mets can skip the 5th starter's rotation spot until the Nationals series from Sept. 15-18. There are no days off from Sept. 12 through the end of the season, during which time they will need 5 starters, barring the need for Johan Santana to pitch on 3 days rest at some point.