Your Thursday morning dose of Mets and Major League Baseball news, notes, and links.
Meet the Mets
Matt Harveywrote an article for The Player's Tribune. In it he discussed his year away from baseball in which he traveled to Laos. He felt useless while he rehabbed his elbow, but now is ready to go and excited for the 2015 season. Harvey also called Alex Rodriguez's return a good thing for baseball.
Thanks to his work with new hitting coach Kevin Long, Brandon Nimmo has tweaked his swing this offseason and sounds thrilled about its effects on his power.
The Mets are confident enough in their pitching depth that they have brought in far fewer new pitchers than the average team this offseason, as the Wall Street Journal points out.
Mark Simon wrote about what it would take for the Mets to improve by ten wins in the upcoming season to reach a total of 40 WAR. The total is very dependent on a return to health and effectiveness for Matt Harvey and David Wright, but also includes the continued development of Zack Wheeler, passable play by Wilmer Flores, and "respectable" seasons from Michael Cuddyer and David Wright.
Backup catcher Anthony Reckerdiscussed his offseason with Newsday. Recker, whose wife gave birth to their first child in December, is looking to improve all facets of his offensive game heading into the 2015 season.
The Mets will be looking for a bounce back season from Curtis Granderson, writes Anthony DiComo. After a disappointing 2014, he will be crucial to the Mets' hopes for a successful season.
Around the NL East
It was announced that the Nationals, along with the Astros, have agreed to remain in Florida for spring training for the next 30 years. This could lead to a move to West Palm Beach once the team's current lease expires.
The Bravessigned veteran reliever Todd Coffey to a minor league contract that includes an invite to spring training. Coffey spent last year pitching for the Mariners' AAA affiliate.
Jose Fernandezcould return to the Marlins before the All-Star Game. Fernandez underwent Tommy John Surgery in May.
The Phillies were quiet.
Around MLB
Alex Speier wrote about the growing gap between Triple-A and the major leagues, especially in relation to Red Sox prospects Jackie Bradley Jr., Xander Bogaerts, and Will Middlebrooks. He attributes the widening gap to better pitching and defense.
Sarah Hudek, daughter of former major league pitcher John Hudek, is heading to junior college to play baseball.
Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy will be out four-to-six weeks with an injured hamstring. Lucroy is coming off a season in which he finished fourth in the MVP voting for the National League.
The A's avoided arbitration with newly acquired reliever Tyler Clippard. They agreed to a deal worth $8.3 million, slightly below the midpoint of what the two sides proposed.
Jonah Keri recapped video footage released by Major League Baseball of some of the greatest players to ever play the game. The videos include Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, and Walter Johnson.
Yesterday at AA
The prospect team continued listing the top Mets prospects heading into the 2015 season with numbers 15 to 11. This edition featured Robert Gsellman, Jhoan Urena, Cesar Puello, Gabriel Ynoa, and Dominic Smith.
Oliver Curtiss examined Lucas Duda's struggles against left-handed pitchers and what the Mets can do about the situation. The solution likely involves Michael Cuddyer filling in at first base against lefties.
This Day in Mets History
23 years ago today, Keith Hernandez appeared for the first time on the sitcom Seinfeld as himself. In total, he would appear in three episodes.