Jeremy Hefner announced that he would undergo his second Tommy John operation in a little over a year.

Jeremy Hefner announced via Twitter this morning that he would undergo Tommy John surgery. This will be his second time undergoing the operation. Hefner spent parts of two seasons with the Mets. He mostly filled the role of spot starter and long reliever. In his 50 appearances, he had a 4.65 ERA and 4.49 FIP. In terms of WAR, Fangraphs has him just above replacement level, while Baseball Reference has him just below replacement level.

Hefner's last Tommy John surgery took place in late August of 2013. Since then, he had been on the rehab trail making appearances with the Mets’ rookie and High-A affiliates. This was going on until it was announced that he had suffered a significant setback.

For Hefner, this is a significant blow towards his quest to return the big leagues. For the Mets, however, it is less of an issue because of the team's pitching depth. Even if Hefner had been able to return by the start of next season, it is unclear if there would have been a spot for him on the Mets' roster.

Chipper Jones had many good times and great memories in New York and against the Mets. This week's Throwback Thursday takes an in-depth look at one of those positive memories: The 1999 NLCS.

The year 1999 was a dope year! Back then, 11-year old me was totally about four things: Pro wrestling, video games, OutKast, and sports. 1999 was the year when the single-greatest wrestling video game was released: WrestleMania 2000. My life was never the same after it came out. While 2 of my passions came together for one miraculous celebration of technological excellence and the 3rd was at the top of the rap game as far as I was concerned, my 4th passion's business was booming.

1999 also meant that the Atlanta Braves were still at the height of their powers, despite phasing out some of the old names from the beginning of the Divisional Dynasty in favor of new faces who were either ascending to superstardom (such as Chipper Jones and Andruw Jones), or other new faces who seemed to just explode onto the scene and then crash and burn almost immediately afterward (such as some dude on Survivor right now). It was a great time to be a Braves fan, and a 103-59 record in 1999 with their 8th consecutive trip to the NLCS (not counting the '95 season since, well, there was no NLCS) was evidence of that. Eat your heart out, St. Louis.

Meanwhile, there was a rabble being roused in the NL East. Let's be honest here: The Braves really don't have an eternal rival. Right now, we all "hate" the Nationals. In truth, we probably don't hate Washington, we just hate the fact that they're currently the primary threat to the divisional crown. It's been that way for a long time, and the villain of the moment in the late '90s/'00s was the New York Mets.

After spending most of the '90s being mediocre-to-bad, by the end of the decade, the Big Apple's Senior Circuit squad had finally gotten their junk together. After stringing together 2 winning seasons in '97 and '98, the Mets exploded for 97 wins in 1999. However, they needed every last one of those victories. Win #93 gave them a wild card berth (after the Braves clinched the division the night before). Win #96 came on Game 162 when the Mets beat the Pirates with a walk-off wild pitch, and win #97 came in Cincinnati, when they won a 1-game playoff to make it to the NLDS, where they dispatched of the Diamondbacks in 4 games, w/ their 3rd win coming in a 10-inning affair. So, to say that the 1999 Mets were all about drama would be an understatement, and they'd deliver far more drama in October.

The Braves probably expected to be in the NLCS, but judging by comments that Chipper Jones made in September after a supposedly back-breaking victory over the Mets (whose fans' futile efforts to rattle him at Shea Stadium were now in full tilt), they probably didn't expect to see the Mets there, either.

"Chipper Jones should "probably" receive the rudest welcome [for Game 3]," [then-Mets manager Bobby] Valentine said, after [Jones] said last month that "Mets fans can go home and put on their Yankees stuff."

If it seemed like the Mets were leaning on their fans to help them back into the series, it's because they were. The first 2 games in Atlanta went the Braves' way with little-to-no drama. Greg Maddux was still in his prime, which meant that Game 1 was basically money in the bank as far as a good pitching performance was concerned. The offense produced 4 runs, which was enough for a 4-2 victory. They put up 4 more in game 2, and did it all in the 6th inning of that game (off of Kenny Rogers. Keep that name in mind.), as the come-from-behind victory in Game 2 gave the Braves all of the momentum heading to Queens.

Game 3 at Shea Stadium was a pitcher's duel, but if you were in a pitcher's duel with Tom Glavine (as Al Leiter was on that particular night in October), then you were probably going to lose that duel. Leiter only gave up 1 run in the 1st inning, but that 1 run was enough for Glavine and the back end of the Braves bullpen (particularly the most hated man in New York at the time) to work with, and the 1-0 victory gave the Braves a commanding 3-0 series lead. The Braves actually came 4 outs away from a sweep before John Rocker (there, I've finally said his name) blew the 4-out save in the bottom of the 8th inning. The blown save gave the Mets a very small lifeline, but 3-1 is still a commanding series lead.

Then Game 5 happened. Remember when I said that Greg Maddux in the Postseason was money in the bank? Yeah, not so much, at least for the first inning, which is when the Mets jumped on him for 2 runs thanks to a homer by John Olerud, giving the Mets an extremely early lead. Thanks to an offensive flurry in the 4th inning which included doubles from Bret Boone and Brian Jordan and an RBI from Chipper Jones, the Braves tied the game at 2 in that inning. The game would remain tied for the next 10 innings. Yep, this one went all the way to the 15th inning, mostly thanks to one of the early precursors of "Barves" syndrome:  They left 19 men on base over the course of this game (NINETEEN), including this moment in the 13th inning, when an abysmal decision to give Keith Lockhart the green light turned into the cutoff man's throw (who was given that chance thanks to a laser of a throw from Melvin Mora from the warning track) beating Lockhart to the plate by about 12 miles. The play wasted a double by Chipper Jones, and gave the Mets yet another lifeline.

Finally, in the 15th inning, the Braves cashed in one of those baserunners, as Lockhart made up for that naive effort int the 13th by hitting a go-ahead triple. The Braves were up by 1, once again had a chance to finish the Mets off. Bobby Cox gave the ball to Kevin McGlinchy, with a trip to the World Series in his hands. McGlinchy lost a long battle to Shawon Dunston for a leadoff single, then walked Matt Franco. A bunt from Edgardo Alfonzo moved the runners into scoring position, and that brought up John Olerud. Instead of facing the guy who hit a homer earlier, the Braves decided to take their chances with a guy who was previously famous for receiving that "I'm too old for this" brand of a beatdown from Nolan Ryan: Robin Ventura. The Braves shouldn't have taken their chances with Robin Ventura.

The ball that Ventura smashed into the light drizzle of the New York night sky after nearly 6 hours of grueling baseball was actually ruled a single because the rest of the Mets mobbed the man before he even reached 2nd base. However, the only people who cared about that were the people who had money riding on the over/under line; The important thing was that the Mets had staved off elimination for the 2nd straight game, which had their fans dreaming of their Mets possibly synthesizing another 1985-esque run. However, they still had to come back down south to the Ted, where they'd only won once all season. The Mets had the momentum, but the series was still firmly in Atlanta's control.

If Game 5 was a slow burn, then Game 6 was a smash-bang-clusterfudge of a game, as both teams made up for the long stretch of offensive futility in the previous game by lighting the scoreboard on fire. The Braves seemingly took all of the drama out of the game by scoring 5 runs in the 1st inning off of Al Leiter. So that's it, right? The Braves finally killed off the Mets at this point, right? Well, the thing about the Mets is that, when it comes to the Braves, they are annoying as hell, and the '99 Mets were especially annoying. A 5-0 lead after 5 innings in an elimination game was not enough to kill off this squad. The Mets got on the board in the 6th with a 3-run inning, but the Braves fired right back with 2 of their own to make it 7-3 after 6. The game was still in Atlanta's control, right? Well, if you're a fan of all of the local Atlanta teams, then you know that no big game involving an Atlanta team is over until it's completely over, which means that no lead is safe. In the 7th, the Mets let the Braves know just how frail their lead actually was.

In that 7th inning, the Braves sent in John Smoltz in what was a clear effort nip this comeback effort in the bud. Smoltz was unsuccessful, as the Mets lit him up with back-to-back doubles and a single to cut the lead down to 2. Now, Smoltz had to deal with Mike Piazza with a man on. Piazza had been battling injuries throughout the Postseason, but this was 1999, when sluggers of his ilk would've been a HR threat if they were going up there with only 1 leg and a wooden plank as a bat. And indeed, Piazza showed just how dangerous he was.

That dinger tied it at 7. The lead was gone, and that was probably the first legitimate moment of doubt for the Braves, as far as the series was concerned. Those doubts were exacerbated in the 8th inning, which is when the Mets actually took the lead. Yep, a 5-0 lead in the first inning eventually became an 8-7 deficit in the 8th. This had all of the makings of being yet another lame night in Atlanta sports history. Fortunately, the Braves fought back and tied it at 8, and the game entered extras once again.

By this point, the game (and the series) became a battle of attrition, especially as far as the bullpens were concerned. It was a complete slugfest, reminiscent of the end of Rocky 2, where two iron-willed forces were giving the other every last ounce of energy that they had and were basically reduced to stumbling in the middle of the ring, leaning on each other long enough to exchange haymakers while praying that the other side just decided to stay down. This is basically the best way to sum up the 10th inning of this game: The Mets gave John Rocker one last troll gift by scoring a run off of him to take the lead in the top of the 10th, but the Braves once again fired right back in the bottom half of the inning thanks to a RBI single from Ozzie Guillen off of Armando Benitez.

After the Braves held the Mets scoreless in the top half of the 11th, we entered the fateful bottom half of the 11th inning with Kenny Rogers as the Mets' new pitcher. The last time we saw Kenny "Not the Gambler" Rogers, he was busy getting lit up for 4 runs in 1 inning way back in Game 2. Now, the game was in his hands, and things went just as badly as they did in that inning in game 2. Gerald Williams led off the inning with a leadoff double, and a bunt from Bret Boone put Williams on 3rd with only 1 out. Kenny Rogers then proceeded to walk the next 3 batters he faced. The first 2 were intentional but the 3rd one wasn't.

At long last, the Braves had finished off the Mets, won the 1999 National League Pennant, and advanced to the World Series. Atlanta had finally delivered the death blow, and the Mets' date with the execution could no longer be avoided. Liberation for both sides, really.

***

Naturally, the Braves got swept in the 1999 World Series by a much better Yankees team. Nobody did making it to the World Series and losing there better than our Braves, and they were in rare form in '99. Meanwhile, the Mets ended up making it back to the NLCS in 2000, and because the Braves weren't there, they won and advanced to the World Series. They also got to enjoy running into the buzzsaw that was the New York Yankees at that point in baseball history. If it seems like this was basically the story of two teams who would ultimately get fed to the Yankees, that's because it was. There was no stopping that Yankees squad in the late '90s, and the Braves had a front row seat on two occasions.

However, that doesn't take away from the accomplishments that the franchise achieved during that wonderful decade. More relevant to this piece, that doesn't take away from the wonderful season that the team had in 1999. 103 wins, another divisional title, another pennant, and coming out on the victorious end of an emotional Postseason battle against (at the time) your hottest divisional rival is nothing to sniff at. I'm not going to say that I want to go back to those days because I'd rather not be 11 years old again, but good grief, what a fun time to be a Braves fan, right? Let's all hope as neutrals that the 2014 ALCS results in something nearly as fun as this series was, and as far as the 2014 NLCS is concerned? Maybe we should root for a comet?

In all seriousness, if any of this year's Championship Series can come close to the drama and intensity of the 1999 NLCS, then this October could shape up to be one that we talk about years later. But for now, keep this series and the '99 Braves in your mind as you enjoy the current Postseason.

(UPDATE: Our friends over at Amazin Avenue actually did a longform centered around Robin Ventura's Grand Slam Single, so if you want to stay in 1999, then click here.)

Recurring shoulder issues and inconsistency marked an up-and-down season for the southpaw.

On the surface, Jon Niese enjoyed another strong season for the Mets in 2014. Third on the club behind only David Wright and Daniel Murphy in tenure, the 27-year-old made 30 starts while compiling a 3.40 ERA before leaving his final start early due to an elevated heart rate. Niese's 2.2 walks per nine innings and 1.27 WHIP were both career-bests, and his 187.2 innings were second on the team to Bartolo Colon. As the sole left-hander in New York's rotation, Niese is firmly entrenched despite the promising cache of arms working their way to Queens.

Despite a spring interrupted by shoulder woes, Niese was New York's most consistent starter through most of the first three months, compiling a 2.96 ERA through his first 17 starts while allowing more than three runs just twice in that span. Included in that run was a four-start stretch which saw the lefty allow just three earned runs across 26.1 innings (1.01 ERA), highlighted by arguably his best game of the season on May 5 in Miami. However, trouble would soon find Niese, partly due to injury, partly due to ineffectiveness, and partly due to a regression to the mean. In addition, questions of maturity and the ability to control his emotions on the mound continued to plague Niese, who often appears noticeably frustrated when things don't go his way. Too often, this has been followed by innings that quickly spiral out of control.

Despite posting an ERA below three through the first half, Niese was outperforming his peripherals by a wide margin. While his ERA was a strong 2.96, both his FIP (3.64) and xFIP (3.79) painted a pitcher that was benefiting from good fortune. His HR/FB% was well below-average at 8.2 percent and a .283 BABIP coupled with stranding more than 77 percent of baserunners certainly added to his good luck. But that would change on the night of July 4 when Niese would be removed from his start after just three batters after being hit with a line drive. Interestingly enough, he would be placed on the disabled list three days later with a shoulder strain.

Photo: Getty Images

Both Niese and manager Terry Collins claimed he was experiencing no discomfort or pain and after missing the requisite 15 days, he returned on July 21 by allowing four runs and 11 hits in six innings against the Mariners. The loss began a poor stretch of pitching that included a 4.97 ERA (4.22 FIP) in nine starts through September 2. Niese's luck at stranding runners (66.4 percent) and keeping the ball in the ballpark (HR/FB% of 14 percent) were the biggest culprits of his fortune turning sour. However, a noticeable drop in velocity also continued to plague Niese, who admitted in early August that he had changed his delivery to compensate for shoulder soreness. His average fastball velocity, which topped out at 90.5 mph in both 2012 and 2013 fell all the way to 88.8 last season according to PITCHf/x, a precipitous decline as the chart shows.In addition, only 25.5 percent of Niese's pitches in 2014 were four-seam fastballs, a drop from 36.5 percent the year before. He tossed his two-seamer a career-high 28.9 percent of the time while maintaining consistency with his curveball and improving his changeup. Along with Dillon Gee and Murphy, Niese is also a source of endless trade speculation, though his recent shoulder troubles and the fact that he's the only left-hander in New York's rotation should keep him in Queens for now. Signed to a team-friendly five-year, $25.5 million deal that includes two option years, Niese will earn only $7 million in 2015, the fourth year of his pact signed prior to 2012.

Desired 2015 role: All-Star left-hander that provides 200 innings and a change of pace to hard throwers Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, and Zack Wheeler.

Expected 2015 role: Solid fourth starter who gives the Mets average to slightly above-average production at a reasonable price tag.

One of this winter's most attractive free agent shortstops is about to sign a deal to stay with his current team.

The Mets have been hungry for a legitimate starting shortstop ever since Jose Reyes left the team in free agency, but getting their hands on such a player has been easier said than done. This winter, acquiring a shortstop will once again be a theme after Ruben Tejada put forth another less-than-promising campaign in 2014.

J.J. Hardy could have been someone that the Mets' front office opened up the ole wallet for, but it looks like the veteran is sticking with what is working for him.

Sources: #Orioles close with shortstop J.J. Hardy on extension, believed to be three years with an option, north of $40 million.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) October 9, 2014

Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports says there will be a vesting option for a fourth year.

Hardy disappointed this season by only hitting nine home runs after belting at least 22 in each of his three prior seasons with the Orioles. Even when Hardy is knocking the ball out of the park, though, his on-base percentages are routinely poor. Most of his value comes from his wonderful defense, which has resulted in fWAR values above 3.0 in three of his four Baltimore campaigns.

For a team that can afford to trade a few walks for power and defense, Hardy would have made for a nice addition to the Mets, but instead it looks like he's sticking with his current club. The Orioles are betting that Hardy's excellent defense holds up over the length of the contract, which may not end until the shortstop is 36 years old.

There are still other options for the Mets, who match up nicely with the Diamondbacks in a potential shortstop-for-pitcher swap.

The Piazza for the Mets' worst relief pitcher of 2014 goes to...

For the first time in the Sandy Alderson Era, the Mets bullpen wasn't the LOLpen. Its adjusted ERA was fourth-best in the league, and a combination of hard-throwing youngsters and scrap-heap veterans anchored a corps that improved as the season wore on. Still, there are several worthy candidates for the Piazza for Worst Relief Pitcher. Thankfully, most of them weren't around very long.

The nominees for Worst Relief Pitcher are:

Kyle Farnsworth: Despite a respectable April, during which he allowed two runs in 11.1 innings pitched, Farnsy struggled overall in his Mets tenure. His peripherals were ugly (4.54 FIP) and the game-winning homer he surrendered in an early May game in Colorado was probably the beginning of the end of his time in Flushing. He did provide one of the more hilarious moments of the season, though, when he expressed his displeasure about being cut from the roster. This was his response when asked what he would do next:

"Hopefully find a team to play against this team," Farnsworth said. "I'm very bitter right now."

Farnsy signed with the Astros but was released in late June.

Gonzalez Germen: After a promising 2013 season, Germen made the Opening Day roster. He impressed early on, allowing just one run while striking out ten in his first 10.1 innings of the season. His stuff looked pretty filthy, too. The good times didn't last, though, and a combination of walks, home runs, and health problems conspired to put a damper on his season. Germen finished with a 4.75 ERA in 30.1 innings pitched, an ugly mark in any era but especially in this one.

John Lannan: Long Beach's own pitched just four innings for the Mets this season, but he's still a fair inclusion on this list. He allowed three home runs and seven total runs in those four innings, good for a 15.75 ERA. Sandy Alderson pulled the plug in mid-April, and Lannan struggled at Triple-A Vegas after being demoted. He probably didn't stick around long enough to take home the Piazza.

Scott Rice: One of the feel-good stories of 2013, Rice actually finished third in the Best Relief Pitcher voting last season. 2014 wasn't as kind to him. Left-handed batters handled him to the tune of a .256/.392/.333 slash line, which is a problem for a LOOGY. Walking 12 batters in 13.2 innings just isn't a recipe for success. Rice was demoted to Triple-A Vegas in early June, then underwent season-ending elbow surgery in July.

Jose Valverde: For a few unfortunate games after Bobby Parnell went down with injury on Opening Day, Valverde was the Mets' closer. "Papa Grande" was a bust as one of Sandy Alderson's low-cost veteran bullpen acquisitions. He allowed 16 runs in 20.2 innings pitched, tallying two saves while blowing two as well. After a four-run meltdown to blow a game against the Pirates in late May, Valverde was released. We may have seen the last of him in MLB.

And the Piazza for Worst Relief Pitcher goes to...

Jose Valverde! Terry Collins showed up to congratulate Jose.

Here is how everyone voted:

And here is the final vote tally, using a 3-2-1 points system:

Now it's your turn to vote. We'll summarize the community awards in a post at the conclusion of The Piazzas.

Your Friday morning dose of New York Mets and Major League Baseball news, notes, and links.

Meet the Mets

The Astros and Nationals could both be moving to a new spring training complex in West Palm Beach, which is about 40 minutes from the Mets at Port St. Luicie. First, the two clubs need to submit a proposal.

FanGraphs reviewed the minor league seasons of three teams, one of which is our beloved Mets.

It's supposedly an obvious choice for the Mets to trade young pitching to help out the lineup, but the team should be careful to not deal too many arms away.

The Star-Ledger graded the 2014 performance of Wilmer Flores.

Rising Apple reviewed the tumultuous campaign of Curtis Granderson.

Around the Majors

The ALCS start tonight at 8:00 p.m. You can watch on TBS. To get ready, read this Marc Normandin preview.

Grant Brisbee takes on the NLCS, which begins on Saturday night at 8:00 p.m. on actual network television.

To get you ready to root against the Cardinals, here are some examples of sports writers drooling over them.

Free agents are already flying off the market with J.J. Hardy approaching an extension with the Orioles.

The girlfriend of Athletics closer Sean Doolittle posted an emotional story about Doolittle's community work and the importance of Sean Doolittle Appreciation Day.

With Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti on the hot seat, the team may be targeting Tampa Bay GM Andrew Friedman as a replacement.

Game 1 of the ALCS doubles as a free agent audition for Royals starter James Shields. The Red Sox, who just parted ways with Jon Lester, appear to be interested in his services.

Around the NL East

Talking Chop has their version of how the 1999 NLCS went.

Fish Stripes discusses the need for Nathan Eovaldi to learn a changeup.

Federal Baseball asks if the Nationals should exercise the $15 million option for Adam LaRoche in 2015.

Yesterday at AA

Remember when being a Mets fan was fun? Even if you do, read this excellent Matthew Callan story about Robin Ventura and the Grand Slam Single.

Steve Schreiber reminded us of another happy 1999 memory.

Matt Varvaro dived into some terrific shift analysis.

Michael Avallone looked back at the 2014 season of Jon Niese.

James K handed out the hardware to honor the Mets' worst relief pitcher of the year.

There will be no shortage of options for the Red Sox this offseason, but the Mets seem to line up better than most other teams to trade with Boston.

I'm almost at the point where I can't wait for the playoffs to be over. Don't get me wrong, I've enjoyed the hell out of these playoffs and I will immediately miss watching baseball when it's over. It's just that there are so many decisions the Red Sox have to make, and I'm somewhat anxious to see what they end up doing. From the outside, it certainly looks as if they've set themselves up for at least one trade, if not more. Sure, they have plenty of freed up cash to spend on free agency, but they also have logjams throughout their organization that are just begging to be opened up through trade. The question that remains, though, is who they could trade with. Of course, teams like the Phillies, Marlins and Reds have and will continue to come up. However, the Mets are another team who could line up extremely well for a deal this offseason, and one there has been little talk about.

First, we'll look at what the Red Sox figure to be targeting this year. Obviously, the number one priority will be filling the rotation. This is where the Phillies and Reds come in, as they both have those easy top-of-the-rotation type arms that could very well be available in Cole Hamels, Johnny Cueto and Mat Latos. On the other hand, those types of pitchers are also up for grabs in free agency with the likes of Jon Lester, Max Scherzer and James Shields. It's far from a guarantee that next year's ace comes from a trade. Boston also figures to be one of the biggest competitors on the third base market. We've already heard plenty of rumors about Pablo Sandoval, and you can expect some about Chase Headley and Josh Donaldson down the road as well. Clearly, those two positions are the biggest areas of need this winter, and oddly enough, the Mets have players at each position who have a very good chance of being put up for a deal.

Photo Credit: Rich Schultz

First, in the rotation, a guy like Jon Niese could very well be available this offseason. The Mets rotation is filled with young pitchers will lots of potential, and they'll be getting Matt Harvey back after he missed the entire 2014 season following Tommy John surgery. Niese is far from the sexiest name that will be available this winter, but he's a solidly consistent guy on a team-friendly contract. To wit, he has put up a 104 ERA+ in the last three seasons with a 2.8 K/BB ratio and a ground ball rate that has hovered around 50 percent. He's not going to lead the rotation, and if he's the best pitcher the Red Sox acquire this winter they're in trouble, but he's the type of solid pitcher that you can put into the middle of a playoff contenders rotation. On top of this, acquiring him through a trade instead of someone like Hamels would allow the Red Sox to have enough cash for one of the big-name free agents as well as another second-tier free agent pitcher like Justin Masterson, Brandon McCarthy or Francisco Liriano. Niese is owed just $7 million in 2015 and $9 million in 2016, with two very reasonable team options following that. With prospects Noah Syndergaard and Rafael Monetero possibly joining the rotation next year, and Harvey's return, it would make sense for the Mets to shop Niese.

Moving over to the hot corner, an interesting name who could be brought up more and more as the offseason gets closer is Daniel Murphy. It's kind of a strange idea, since he's spent his entire career primarily at second base, with some outfield worked in, but he's actually a natural third baseman. Unfortunately for him, there's been this guy named David Wright that's been blocking him for all of this time. Over the last few years, Murphy has quietly been an extremely consistent bat, posting above-average OPS+'s each of the last four seasons, even earning an All-Star bid this year. In fact, over the last three years he has a combined .288/.327/.407 line, good for a 107 OPS+. Now, his approach may not exactly fit the Red Sox's philosophy, as he's had a walk-rate somewhere between four and six percent in his career. However, there are a few reasons he may be a good fit. For one thing, he's a left-handed bat. He's also been very durable, as he's missed just 26 games over the last three years. Finally, he's only under team control for one more year. This could be a good or a bad thing, depending on how you feel about Garin Cecchini. If they believe that the prospect will be ready after just one more year at Pawtucket, and can stick at the position, than finding a one-year deal would be a perfect.

It's great that the Mets fill both of the Red Sox's needs, but for a trade to work obviously the Red Sox have to help out New York. Luckily for Boston, one of the Mets' biggest weakness recently has been their outfield, which happens to be the biggest area of strength for the Red Sox right now. In each of the last three years, the Mets have found themselves in the bottom-third of offensive production from that group. For now, they have Curtis Granderson and Juan Lagares filling two-thirds of the unit, but they definitely need that third guy to finish the outfield. Last year, Eric Young got most of those at bats, but even with his defense and base running, you don't want to run out a bat like that on an every day basis, especially in a corner outfield spot. If the Red Sox were to put any one of Yoenis Cespedes, Daniel Nava, Shane Victorino, Rusney Castillo or Mookie Betts (obviously some of those names would require more of a return than just Niese and/or Murphy), the Mets would surely have to listen.

The Red Sox offseason is going to be a lot of fun, and there are so many different roads they can take. The options laid out above are certainly not the only ones, but they have plenty of advantages. If they feel that they need three starting pitchers rather than two, Niese would be a solid pickup as a mid-rotation player on a team-friendly deal. If they feel like they only need an out-of-the-organization third baseman for one year, Murphy would be a tremendous pickup. There are going to be plenty of rumors flying around in the coming months, but keep your eyes on the Mets as potential trade partners for the Red Sox.

The Piazza for the Mets' best relief pitcher of 2014 goes to...

Yesterday, Jose Valverde "won" the Piazza for Worst Relief Pitcher, out-sucking competitors such as Kyle Farnsworth, John Lannan, and Gonzalez Germen. Today, we hand out the Piazza for Best Relief Pitcher.

Weak links in the Mets' relief corps were dispensed with after struggling early, making way for call-ups of both young arms and surprisingly-effective veterans. As a result, the bullpen was much improved in 2014, and only got better as the season went on. Overall, the bullpen's defense independent pitching statistics didn't stand out (worst adjusted FIP in the NL). However, it was the best in the league at stranding runners, so it was above average at preventing runs (fourth-best adjusted ERA in the NL). Bobby Parnell or not, there are some impressive young relievers who might make the bullpen a strength in 2015.

The nominees for Best Relief Pitcher are:

Buddy Carlyle: Probably the most surprising nominee, Carlyle posted a 1.45 ERA in 31 innings after having last pitched in MLB in 2011. And that ERA was well-deserved; his K/BB ratio was a team-best 5.60. Who knows if the magic will last for 36-year-old Carlyle next season, but for 2014, Sandy Alderson found himself a great scrap-heap reliever.

Josh Edgin: I was about ready to give up on Josh Edgin after two mediocre-to-bad seasons in 2012 and 2013. His bumbling start to 2014 at Triple-A Vegas didn't help matters. But then he went and absolutely torched left-handed hitters (and right-handed hitters!) this season after his call-up in mid-May. He struck out 28 and walked six in 27.1 innings pitched over 47 appearances. Lefties hit just .182/.217/.323 against him, which should secure him a role on the 2015 Opening Day roster as the lead LOOGY. Edgin's biggest hindrance to winning the Piazza is his comparatively few innings pitched. He sure was dominant, though.

Jeurys Familia: I'm still not exactly sure how to pronounce his first name, but I am sure that it was a breakout season for the flamethrowing Familia. He struck out 73 in 77.1 innings, en route to a terrific 2.21 ERA. The combination of quality performance and quantity of innings makes Familia a strong contender for the Piazza. No 2014 Mets reliever inspired more confidence in me than him.

Jenrry Mejia: It seems so long ago when Mejia was starting games for the Mets. He made his last start in early May, finishing with a 5.06 ERA in 37.1 innings over seven starts. He moved to the bullpen shortly thereafter and flourished immediately. He didn't allow an earned run until his 11th relief appearance, and he took over the closer role by mid-May. His final numbers as a reliever were strong -- 56.1 innings pitched, 2.72 ERA, 3.15 FIP, 60 strikeouts -- and his post-game stomp celebrations entertained even as the Mets fell out of contention.

Carlos Torres: Torres might be Sandy Alderson's best relief pitcher find. He was a workhorse for the Mets, pitching a whopping 92 innings in relief, the most in MLB. He also threw another five innings in an effective spot start in mid-August. He struck out 96 batters in 97 total innings, and finished with a 3.06 ERA. It would have been lower if not for a horrendous dead-arm stretch in July and August, during which he allowed six home runs in eight appearances. He should have a spot in next year's 'pen, if his arm can handle it after a busy 2014.

And the Piazza for Best Relief Pitcher goes to...

Jeurys Familia! Jeurys's teammates were as pumped as he was that he took home the hardware.

It's worth noting that Dana Eveland and Vic Black also pitched well out of the bullpen this season. Here is how everyone voted:

And here is the final vote tally, using a 3-2-1 points system:

Now it's your turn to vote. We'll summarize the community awards in a post at the conclusion of The Piazzas.

The battery represented two of the only three National League players to qualify.

According to Baseball America, the Mets have a pretty good chance to take home a Rookie of the Year award for 2014. That's because the publication named only three National League players to its 15-man (nine batters, six pitchers) annual All-Rookie Team. Two of those three play for the Mets.

Travis d'Arnaud was honored as the catcher of the All-Rookie Team, while Jacob deGrom is named as the ace of the starting pitching staff.

Back in May, it would be hard to convince Mets fans that d'Arnaud would be among the top rookies in the majors. The backstop got off to a rough start at the plate and some began to wonder if he would ever live up to his top prospect status. After being sent down to Las Vegas in mid-June, d'Arnaud began to flourish in the big leagues, showing off a sweet power stroke and hitting .272/.319/.486 from June 24 until the end of the season.

deGrom is also someone who was off the Rookie of the Year radar back in May. That's because he didn't make his major league debut until the 15th day of that month. After a splendid debut against the Yankees, deGrom struggled with his control for a couple of months before really taking off with a 1.39 ERA in July. From there, it was pretty smooth sailing for the 26-year-old right-hander who consistently made pitching in the majors look way easier than it should ever look. It's no surprise that deGrom is the favorite to take home National League Rookie of the Year honors. His main competition for the award, Billy Hamilton, was the third NL player on BA's team.

And the Mets have yet to name a new hitting coach.

There will not be a new general manager in New York baseball for the foreseeable future. The Yankees have signed a three-year extension with Brian Cashman, the same length of the deal that the Mets signed with Sandy Alderson a few weeks ago. But the Yankees fired hitting coach Kevin Long, who has had that job since 2007.

Of course, the Mets fired a hitting coach this year, too, when they parted ways with Dave Hudgens. Lamar Johnson, his replacement, and assistant hitting coach Luis Natera, who was with the team all season, won't be back with the Mets in 2015, either. With pretty much every other coaching position intact, the vacancy is the most significant one to be filled among Mets coaches. Mike Puma of the Post reports that the team will at least discuss bringing Long on board.

Whether or not a team scores runs at a good clip has a whole lot more to do with the players in its lineup than its hitting coach, but players obviously work with coaches on a very regular basis, so it seems worth the Mets' time to find the best one available.

And without question, they should have just that.

I know, I know. You've heard a lot on this topic from me before. If you're not interested, pass this on by, please.

But the pace of major-league games is something that is of interest not only to me, but to Major League Baseball itself; as you know, they have formed a committee to study this issue and are experimenting with some changes at Arizona Fall League games.

ESPN.com's Jayson Stark has written about this and says players are "concerned" that they're being left out of the discussion:

"Players are very interested in being involved in these discussions," veteran pitcher Kevin Slowey said. "We just want to be part of a collaborative effort to address these issues. And we want to have a voice. We don't want to overpower any other voices. We'd just like to have our voice heard."

"It's just important for us to have a say," Mets outfielder Curtis Granderson said. "It doesn't need to be all 750 of us. It's just important to have three or four players who can say, 'Hey, we've noticed this, and we feel this way.'"

I can't disagree with this, since the changes being studied in the AFL would definitely affect the way some players play the game. MLB Players Association executive director Tony Clark is a former player -- the first to hold that position -- and he played as recently as 2009, so it appears the commissioner's office thought he could represent current players well. However, incoming Commissioner Rob Manfred stated that current players will be involved:

Manfred told ESPN.com, in an email, that Clark "represents all major-league players and was included on the committee to give players a voice. Tony and I have discussed the fact that it is important for players to interact directly with the committee as the process moves forward. Tony is in the best position to select representative players that should be involved."

Manfred also said his "expectation" is that, at some point in the process, the committee "will hear directly from players."

That's a good thing. In the past, players have often been left out of decisions made that affect them. It sounds as if Manfred wants to be more inclusive.

What are players concerned about?

• That too much of the blame for slowing the game -- and most of the responsibility for fixing it -- seems to have been placed on players. Players complained that Selig has made a number of comments about how "aggravated" he is with hitters who step out of the box after every pitch and start "adjusting all the crap [they] have on." That tone, said one player, "isn't helping."

• That almost none of the talk so far has been about other ways to speed up games, particularly shortening commercial breaks between innings.

• That there has been very little discussion about how modern analytics may be slowing games, such as the emphasis on hitters taking more pitches to run up pitch counts and extensive matchup information that encourages more pitching changes and substitutions.

• That while players are generally in favor of shorter games, they haven't been shown survey data documenting exactly what fans are telling baseball it needs to change and what those changes would accomplish.

This is strictly anecdotal, and I need to do more research once I can find more video of past games. I recently found a couple of videos of games from the 1960s and 1970s -- including the last couple of innings of Jim Maloney's no-hitter against the Cubs -- that either included commercials or were intact on-site video that had everything in real time, including the between-innings time. I timed the gap between the last out of an inning and the first pitch of the next inning.

In all cases that time was about two minutes. That jibes with my memory of watching between-inning warmups at ballparks in those days. Fielders threw the ball around the infield and outfield, and pitchers made warmup pitches, almost exactly as they do now. In modern baseball, inning breaks are supposed to be about two and a half minutes. In those old videos, the commercial time was one minute -- and then the broadcast returned to live action, but the announcers would blather on for another minute or so before actual play began.

So, at least based on the handful of games I've watched from decades ago, it's not the commercial time that's dragging out games.

The players might have a point regarding analytics and higher pitch counts. We don't have reliable pitch counts from more than about 20-25 years ago. It might be that players are taking more pitches, or fouling off more pitches; I'd like to see a study done on this at some point. But it doesn't seem to me as if this would add as much time as has been added to the average game length.

In the quote above, Selig's "tone" might not be helping -- but in reality, the constant stepping out has to be one of the major factors in lengthening the game. I'll be interested in seeing data from the AFL games on whether not allowing that is actually speeding up game times. One final quote from Granderson that I found fascinating:

"The interesting thing is, what if fans in the stadium start counting down all at once?" he asked. "You could have a situation where there are 10 seconds on the clock, and fans are yelling, '3-2-1,' and messing the pitcher up. ... And the next thing you know, the hitter and the pitcher are both rushing to the clock because they don't want a violation."

Fans counting down a clock at a ballpark? That might actually be fun. And maybe it would have the desired result -- pitchers and hitters playing the game instead of the constant stepping out, or in a pitcher's case, stepping off.

In general, though, the players are right. Give them a voice in all of this. The end result would likely be something that everyone would be happy with.

Your Saturday morning dose of New York Mets and MLB playoffs news, notes, and links.

Meet the Mets

Jacob deGrom and Travis d'Arnaud both made Baseball America's 2014 All-Rookie team.

Could now ex-Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long be a solution for the Mets?

Matt Harvey's return is certainly an exciting part of 2015 but how will the Mets manage his innings coming off of Tommy John surgery?

At Fangraphs, Marc Hulet reviewed the Mets minor league season along with a couple of other NL East clubs.

Around the Playoffs

James Shields gave back a 5-1 lead and the Orioles tied things up at 5-5 but in extra innings, the Royals got a pair of home runs to Alex Gordon and Mike Moustakas, then held on in the bottom half of the inning to beat Baltimore 8-6 in game one of the ALCS.

Around the Majors

The Yankees signed GM Brian Cashman to an extension, then fired hitting coach Kevin Long and first base coach Mick Kelleher.

The Diamondbacks have narrowed their manager search to four names: Phil Nevin, Jim Tracy, Sandy Alomar Jr, and former Mets third base coach Chip Hale.

The Mariners had a deal in place with Nelson Cruz last offseason that ownership ultimately nixed. Seattle missed the playoffs by one game. Ouch.

Russell Martindeclined an extension from the Pirates earlier this season, making it likely he'll hit the free agent market.

Infielder Ed Lucas was claimed on waivers by the Rangers from the Marlins.

David Roth looked at the best of bad St. Louis Cardinals writing.

Yesterday At AA

We handed out the hardware for Mets best reliever in 2014.

If you read an article or find a link that you think would be a great addition to a future edition of Mets Morning News, please forward it to our tips email address tips@grission.com and we'll try to add it in.

A 14 year old author weighs in on the struggles of the 1993 Twins.

Friends, I have spent the last week or so preparing for and then executing a move to Cedar Rapids, Iowa, which has left me greatly out of touch with the wider world around me. In fact, I don't even have internet yet, and am scamming a McDonalds out of its Wi-Fi as I post this and eat my McWhatever breakfast sandwich.

The move does have one unexpected benefit, however. In unpacking an unlabeled box, I came across my 9^th grade English journal, in which I wrote about Twins games I attended in September of 1993. I present that to you know, raw and unedited. As you read it, remember that this whiny, ungrateful baby has experienced the bliss of a World Series win just two seasons before, and the club had won 90 games just the year before. He had only suffered through the bulk of a single 71-91 year when he wrote this.

September 14, 1993

Well, last night I went to the Twins game. Let me tell you, that place was filled with 2 screaming fans, and 11,286 mannequins. I tell you the dome was rocking.

The loudest cheer of the game I heard was when we all got the attendence quiz right. The people all didn't seem to want to be there. And to top it off, we were sitting in front of "The Fan From Hell."

He has no idea what he's talking about. He probably thinks the Mets are having a fine season. However, once I told him he had left his headlights on, he left.

We did enjoy watching Dave Winfield hit #2997, a home run. But it wasn't the same. The Twins just suck! I think we should quickly, in the middle of the night, switch places with the Saints and leave behind Puckett, Winfield, Knoblauch, & Aguilera.

After the game was done, we had lots of fun, too.

Next week I'll be up and running as per usual, and promise to be at least marginally more entertaining than the 14 year old Shecky Green-enthusiast you just endured. But I didn't want the week to pass without sharing my discovery, and letting all the other 14 year olds out there know that you will get less dumb over time...probably.

This week in 1999: The Mets lose Mike Piazza to a freak injury but keep on rolling, with some from an understudy.

After a week-plus of emotional rollercoastering, the Mets couldn't wait to get back home from Phoenix, but Mike Piazza was more anxious than most. He was suffering from the accumulated weight of a season's worth of injuries, and a sore left thumb. He'd caught a backswing on his glove hand while behind the plate during a series against the Phillies in late September and the thing hadn't felt right since. On the off day between games two and three, he received a cortisone shot to make the pain and swelling go down.

He woke the next day to find his thumb had swollen to cartoonish proportions, the result of an allergic reaction. Piazza rushed to Shea to get medical attention from his trainers, but the best they could do was swaddle the thing in gauze. The swelling should go down in 48-72 hours, he was told. It was cold comfort for him or his team, who would have to play their first home playoff game in 11 years without him. During pregame player introductions, he greeted the crowd in a jacket, his entire left hand wrapped like a mummy.

To lose your biggest bat in the middle of a playoff series should have been a disaster for the Mets, but they'd already weathered a few disasters that season. Game three turned out to be their most drama-free game of October, as the team accumulated an early lead and allowed the opposition few chances at a comeback.

New York cobbled together three quick runs in the early going against Diamondbacks starter Omar Daal. On the mound for the first time since his amazing performance against Pittsburgh, Rick Reed briefly made things interesting by giving up a pinch-hit two-run homer to Turner Ward in the top of the fifth that cut the Mets' lead down to one run. Then his teammates exploded in the bottom of the sixth for six runs against Arizona's bullpen (with some assistance from some ugly D-Backs defense) to make the rest of the proceedings academic. They cruised to a 9-2 victory.

That win gave the Mets a chance to close things out in game four, which would prevent a trip back to Arizona and tempt fate with another battle against Randy Johnson. Rather than throw The Big Unit on short rest, D-Backs manager started Brian Anderson. The model of a crafty lefty, Anderson kept the Mets off balance until Edgardo Alfonzo reached him for a solo shot in the bottom of the fourth. Al Leiter did the same to Arizona, not allowing a hit until Greg Colbrunn hit a game-tying homer in the top of the fifth.

The score remained knotted at 1 until the bottom of the sixth, when Rickey Henderson led the inning off in quintessential Rickey Henderson fashion, fouling off one fastball after another in a 14-pitch at bat until finally hitting a bloop single. One out later, John Olerud lashed a single and Benny Agbayani belted a double to put the Mets back in front.

The Mets had ample opportunity to expand their lead but failed to score any more in the inning. Leiter was so on his game, however, it hardly seemed to matter. He retired the Diamondbacks in order in the seventh and was on his way to doing the same in the eighth when he issued a two-out walk. The next batter, Tony Womack, smashed a ball that bounced off of Alfonzo's chest. By the time he recovered, the speedy Womack beat the ball out for an infield single.

Bobby Valentine turned to Armando Benitez to record a four-out save. His closer proceeded to give up a booming double to Jay Bell that drove in both runners, giving Arizona the lead and giving the Mets nightmare visions of a flight back to Phoenix. The deficit might have been worse, as Benitez then allowed a single to Luis Gonzalez. Melvin Mora (defensive replacement for Henderson) made an excellent play to field the ball and throw out Bell at the plate.

The Mets mounted a comeback in the bottom half, with some help from the Arizona outfield. Alfonzo led off the eighth by working a walk, and Olerud followed by lofting a fly ball to right-center. It was an eminently catchable ball, but Tony Womack dropped it to put runners second and third. When Roger Cedeño hit his own fly ball, Alfonzo scored while Olerud took advantage of the D-Backs weak outfield arms to tag up and moved to third, putting the go-ahead run 90 feet away with one out.

But once again, the Mets were turned aside. Buck Showalter had been reluctant to use his closer, Matt Mantei, with men on base in game one. Staring elimination in the face, he now had little choice. Mantei was able to do the job, after a fashion.

After an intentional walk of Robin Ventura, Todd Pratt—subbing for the injured Piazza—could manage no more than a comebacker. Darryl Hamilton nearly drove in the go-ahead run with a ball down the left field line that went foul by millimeters. Third base coach Cookie Rojas was so convinced it was fair, he got into a shoving match with umpire Charlie Williams. (He was soon fined and given a five-game suspension for his insolence.) Hamilton eventually walked, putting the bat in the incapable hands of Rey Ordoñez, who struck out.

Benitez and Mantei exchanged scoreless frames in the ninth, and John Franco put up a zero in the top of the tenth. Proving 1999 was a very different age, Showalter had no qualms about sending his closer out for a third inning of work in the bottom half. Ventura obliged him by swinging at the very first pitch of the inning, flying out. The violence and anxiousness of Ventura's swing made it appear he wanted to end the game with one swing. That honor would go to someone else.

The next batter, Todd Pratt, had a rough day at the plate. Three times he'd come up with a runner in scoring position and all three times he'd failed to cash him in. This time, with bases empty, he swung at a fat 1-0 Mantei fastball and sends it rocketing to straightaway center. He performed a perfunctory jog toward first base, looking at the ball's flight just to make sure, not a hint of any real hope the ball might leave the yard.

Center field was the territory of Steve Finley, gold glover and frequent Web Gems featured player. Finley ran back on the ball and made a leap at the fence to catch it, but his jump was awkward, his feet barely leaving the ground. When he came back down to earth, he looked into his glove expecting to see the ball there because the ball was always there when he leaped to make a catch.

This time, though, it had cleared the fence for a game-winning, series-clinching home run. Pratt had no idea what had happened until the stands erupted and the mojo risin'... coda poured from Shea's speakers.

As the dejected Diamondbacks slumped off the field and NYPD poured onto the warning track, the man nicknamed Tank had to barrel over his own teammates just to touch home plate. A few years ago, Pratt was out of baseball altogether and managing a Domino's franchise. Now, he'd launched himself into the pantheon of unlikely October heroes.

It was such an improbable, insanely joyous scene—"Oh, I wish you were here to see this!" exclaimed Bob Murphy on the radio—that it was easy to ignore one sobering fact. Pratt's home run had just bought the Mets another confrontation with the Atlanta Braves.

The Piazza for the Mets' worst starting pitcher of 2014 goes to...

Here is a recap of The Piazzas so far:

• Best Rookie: Jacob deGrom
  
• Worst Relief Pitcher:Jose Valverde
  
• Best Relief Pitcher:Jeurys Familia
  

Today, we hand out the hardware for Worst Starting Pitcher. The category is a bit problematic, in that the candidates either weren't that terrible or didn't start enough games to truly deserve the award. Nevertheless, we carry on, and someone will take home the Piazza.

The nominees for Worst Starting Pitcher are:

Dillon Gee: Gee was certainly the worst of the five Mets pitchers who made at least 20 starts this season. He was the Mets' Opening Day starter, and actually pitched well through his first eight starts of the season. His 2.73 ERA on May 10 was shiny, even if his peripherals suggested some regression was in order. However, he hit the DL in mid-May with a strained lat, and ended up missing two months. He struggled after his return, pitching to an ugly 4.78 ERA in 14 starts over the last three months of the season. If he wants to crack the Mets' 2015 rotation, he'll probably have to do better than a 4.00 ERA/4.52 FIP.

Daisuke Matsuzaka: Given his reputation, it's no surprise that Dice-K had the highest walk rate of any Mets starter. He made nine starts, and although his overall 4.24 ERA did not impress, he did enjoy three quality starts (at least six innings pitched, allowing three runs or less). The seven shutout innings he tossed against the Braves in an early-July game were a highlight. We acknowledge the 122 innings he ate these last two seasons, and hope that he doesn't make any starts for the 2015 Mets.

Jenrry Mejia: Mejia was brilliant in the five starts he made in 2013, and looked like a potential bright spot for the Mets headed into 2014. He indeed turned out to be a bright spot, just not as a starter. He pitched to a 5.06 ERA in 37.1 innings while in the rotation, struggling mightily with his control while piling up strikeouts. Fortunately, he excelled as a reliever after being moved to the bullpen in mid-May. His days as a starting pitcher are likely over.

Rafael Montero: Montero actually had the best ERA as a starter (3.98) among the four nominees listed here. He's also just 23 years old and made only eight starts. His inclusion is "by default," as Matthew Callan put it when filling out his ballot. Montero posted some nice strikeout numbers, but struggled with both his control and the longball. He averaged about 5.1 innings per start, racking up high pitch counts en route to a 5.16 FIP as a starter. He should contend for a spot in the 2015 rotation.

And the Piazza for Worst Starting Pitcher goes to...

Dillon Gee! Don't be so sad, Dillon, you weren't that bad.

Here is how everyone voted:

And here is the final vote tally, using a 3-2-1 points system:

Now it's your turn to vote. We'll summarize the community awards in a post at the conclusion of The Piazzas.

On this date in 2006, Carlos Beltran crushed this ball off the scoreboard, breaking a scoreless tie for the Mets against the Cardinals in the opening game of the NLCS.

Specifically, the right-center and right field walls will be brought closer to home plate.

The Mets will again move in the outfield fences at Citi Field this winter, according to the Daily News. This winter, the team will alter the right-center field and right field walls to bring them closer to home plate. Over the past couple of months, it had sounded like the Mets would eventually end up making the changes.

Of course, this isn't the first time the Mets have made changes to the outfield walls at Citi Field, which opened in 2009. After the 2011 season, the team constructed a mostly new outfield wall that stands eight feet tall—significantly lower than most of the park's original outfields walls—and in front of the old structure. The most drastic changes came in left field, though the right field fence was tweaked in spots, too.

The team also made a tweak to its center field fence after the park's opening season. The home run line in center field, which accounted for the front of the home run apple structure and ran perpendicular to the bottom of that structure's left and right corners, was lowered and evened out as a straight line for the 2010 season.

Per the Daily News report, the Mets are expected to begin construction on the new fence in the coming weeks.

Pro scouting meetings started yesterday; Yankees considering hiring Omar Minaya.

NJ.com | Brendan Kuty: Scouts at FanGraphs have good things to say about Yankee prospect Jorge Mateo.

NY Daily News | Anthony McCarron: Japanese pitcher Kenta Maeda may not be posted during the offseason.

Newsday | Erik Boland: The Yankees may be considering former Mets GM (and current Padres senior VP) Omar Minaya for a front-office job.

MLB.com | Bryan Hoch: Pro scouting meetings started yesterday and the team has a lot of decisions to make.

LoHud Yankees Blog | Chad Jennings: Taking a look at right field throughout the Yankees' farm system.

New York Post | Mike Vaccaro: A list of heartbreaking New York-related sports injuries, including Derek Jeter's broken ankle.

Your Tuesday morning dose of New York Mets and MLB news, notes, and links.

Meet the Mets

There was some actual Mets news on Monday, as the team seems to be prepared to move the right field fences in for the 2015 season.

Joel Sherman talks about how players Sandy Alderson didn't pick in the draft are in the NLCS, while his picks sit in the minors.

Mike Vorkunov gives his season review of Juan Lagares. Spoiler alert: it was pretty good.

Brandon Nimmo and Matt Reynolds continue to play well for the Scottsdale Scorpions, and that's a good sign.

Billy Witz talks about Mike Moustakas, former Mets bat boy.

The Mets are reportedly interested in former Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long.

There are reports circulating that Omar Minaya may be headed back to New York to serve in the Yankees front office.

The Diamondbackshave tapped former Mets coach Chip Hale as their new manager.

Around the NL East

Michael Jong writes that Marlins Park hasn't played like a pitcher's park, but it's still getting in player's heads.

Justin Klugh writes that baseball and Columbus are forever intertwined in Philly.

Patrick Reddington wants to know if the Nationals can really rely on Ryan Zimmerman in 2015?

Around the Majors

Game 3 of the ALCS was postponed last night, so the schedule has been pushed back and the off day removed. The series will resume tonight at 8pm ET from Kansas City.

The Royals' Jarrod Dyson turned some heads, as he said that the ALCS will not return to Baltimore.

Tyler Kepner tells the story of a Kansas City man who needs just one signature to finish off an incredible collection.

Neil Weinberg asks if a sabermetric TV broadcast can ever actually thrive?

Joe Roegele says that the strike zone expansion has gotten ridiculous.

Ever wonder why Hunter Pence throws so oddly? Ken Rosenthal has an answer!

Juliet Macur says that Camden Yards may be *gasp*...cursed.

Jay Jaffe writes that power has been king in the playoffs.

Benjamin Hoffman talks about the Royals aggressive approach.

Yesterday at AA

James Kannengieser and the AA writing staff presented the Piazza to the Worst Starting Pitcher. Congrats to all of the contestants!

Colby Conetta reviewed Dillon Gee's less-than-stellar 2014.

Matthew Callan took a look at a Mike Piazza injury, this week, fifteen years ago.

Jeffrey Paternostro uploaded Episode 89 of Amazin' Avenue audio, our podcast.

If you see a link you think would be a great addition to Mets Morning News, send an email to our tips address, tips@grission.com, and we'll try to add it in.

After his first full season with the Mets, it's not clear who the real Curtis Granderson is.

Curtis Granderson came into the 2014 season as Sandy Alderson's big addition, seemingly to bring relief to a Mets outfield in dire need of help. Over the past few seasons, on the other side of town, Granderson put up big power numbers, despite his batting average and defense declining. Alderson has said that he's a believer in a home-run-centric philosophy, and so his signing of Granderson made a considerable amount of sense, especially seeing as the Mets were twenty-sixth in the league in home runs in 2013.

Granderson got off to a very slow start this year, recording only 12 hits in 88 plate appearances in March and April. He only hit one home run in that span. Granderson heard the boos early and often, but he seemed to turn the corner going into May and the early summer.

Granderson began to show flashes of power in May, as he hit .253 with five home runs and a 144 wRC+ that month. But he truly came alive in June, when he hit five home runs, walked nineteen times, and stole four bases. He hit .300/.411/.522 with a 164 wRC+ in June. His .222 ISO seemed to be an indicator that his power was coming around, as well, but July and August would prove to be nothing short of confusing.

With June in the past, Granderson began to come back down to earth in July. He was seemingly making worse contact, and production dipped. Granderson's strikeout percentage also jumped from 17.0 percent in June to 22.5 percent in July. And his walk rate dropped from 17.0 percent to 8.8 percent. His four home runs in July, however, helped to keep him afloat at the time, but Granderson's August exacerbated his flaws in the worst way possible. He hit just .147/.231/.183 in that month.

Granderson's season became odder in September, as he exploded again, posting a .299/.375/.540 slash line on the back of four home runs and eight other extra base hits. Interestingly, Granderson's. His 163 wRC+ in the season's final month was second only to his July and gave rise to more questions than answers.

Granderson's defense can't be ignored, either. Defensive metrics were not kind to Granderson as he had a -11.7 UZR/150. He hardly passed the eye test either, as some the concerns from his Yankee years were evident as he often took questionable routes to balls, and his arm strength showed that he may just not be fit for right field. Although Granderson's defense seemingly bottomed out, over the past four years, his defensive metrics have alternated from being terrible to average.

Desired 2015 role: A 25-to-30 home run hitter who plays decent defense and complements Lucas Duda and David Wright in the middle of the lineup.

Projected 2015 role: A move to left field, and numbers similar to those he posted this year.