Mets News and Morning Links 2/18/2021

 

Good Morning. Happy Birthday Kevin Tapani, Shawn Estes, and Nick Meyer. Pitchers and Catchers reported to Post St. Lucie, Luis Rojas does a presser and there’s no Tim Tebow in Baseball. 

Section Links: Mets Links, MLB Links, and This Day in Mets History.

Mets Links: 

Picture perfect day! #PitchersAndCatchers pic.twitter.com/xKN7qS4Zvu

— New York Mets (@Mets) February 17, 2021

Francisco Alvarez taking some BP today at @Mets camp. 💪 pic.twitter.com/EtLJOopJO8

— Mets Farm Report (@MetsFarmReport) February 17, 2021

Noah looks good out there 👀⚡️ pic.twitter.com/edXepoutER

— SNY (@SNYtv) February 17, 2021

Big time arm @matthew_allan2 at @Mets camp. pic.twitter.com/nlOMNIfQdf

— Mets Farm Report (@MetsFarmReport) February 17, 2021

.@tnido24 grinding it out on the field. 💪 pic.twitter.com/Y5PgTG462i

— New York Mets (@Mets) February 17, 2021

Luis Rojas on potential contract extensions with Francisco Lindor and Michael Conforto:

"Those are two of our leaders. It would be great if they were here for years, our fanbase would be happy with those guys being extended" pic.twitter.com/AtTvS45pPn

— SNY (@SNYtv) February 17, 2021

"I'm envisioning a lot of the things that [Lindor's] going to be able to do...that is going to be contagious for the rest of the guys"

Luis Rojas joined @stevegelbs on Mets Hot Stove presented by @GEICO to look ahead to the 2021 season

Full feature: https://t.co/uNvJlCU1SY pic.twitter.com/6qcJ0BZhHb

— SNY (@SNYtv) February 18, 2021

Mets.com: Versatility a hot topic as Mets report to camp. “There’s multiple guys that can play multiple positions,” Rojas said. “In a camp like this, you want to give everybody a chance in the positions that they can come in and play. … There’s different strategies to the depth that we have in camp right now.”

"Multiple guys are gonna play multiple positions. That's where we stand right now. And that's where our roster is."

The Mets' plans for J.D. Davis & Dom Smith are up in the air as the universal DH situation remains unclear https://t.co/pZgkpp8R7R pic.twitter.com/szdmLliw1k

— SNY (@SNYtv) February 17, 2021

NY Post: Luis Rojas: Fixing Mets’ defense is big priority.

Thursday's @NewsdaySports cover

TEBOW PUNTS
Announces retirement, ending ex-NFL QB's baseball experiment with #mets @timbhealey #MLB

Also
Mets fire minor-league coach for improper behavior toward women#Yankees Boone sees promise, concerns about rotation @eboland11 pic.twitter.com/q3mNACDsUZ

— Gregg Henglein (@GreggHenglein) February 18, 2021

Thank you for all the memories, @TimTebow. ⚾️ pic.twitter.com/Zi8lMr0ZUP

— Mets Farm Report (@MetsFarmReport) February 18, 2021

Remember when Tim Tebow went yard the opposite way in Spring Training? 💪pic.twitter.com/tiNCc4SYwO

— SNY (@SNYtv) February 18, 2021

Joel Sherman NY Post: The Mets really need to stop being Wilpon-ian. “The arrival of Cohen and — just as vitally — the disappearance of the Wilpons was supposed to summon a new day and a new way…But this administration promised it would assemble a state-of-the-art baseball braintrust. That didn’t happen… many competitors and agents are shocked that they did not capitalize further in a free-agent landscape in which few were bidding to pull down Bauer, Realmuto and, especially, Springer.”

Mets.com: Mets' Top 5 homegrown Draft picks.  #1. David Wright; #2. Jacob deGrom; # 3. Dwight Gooden; # 4. Darryl Strawberry; # 5. Mookie Wilson.

SNY.TV: Sources: Mets have serious interest in free agent pitcher Taijuan Walker. If he and the Mets do not agree, the team could pivot back to Jake Odorizzi.

On BNNY presented by Tri-State @Cadillac, @martinonyc tells us that Taijuan Walker is now the Mets' top free agent target@Anthony_Recker & @MarlyRiveraESPN also give their thoughts on a Francisco Lindor extension https://t.co/eGQE9ZuiCL pic.twitter.com/S4cj4pOuzU

— SNY (@SNYtv) February 18, 2021

The Brooklyn Trolley Blogger: Pressure on Marcus Stroman To Form One-Two Punch With Jacob deGrom. Mike notes that “Stroman has lost a full mph on his fastball” and greatly increased the use of his curveball in 2019.

213 Miles from Shea: Get To Know a 2021 Non-Roster Invitee: Oscar De La Cruz.  “Oscar De La Cruz is a former top prospect in the Cubs system who has not made it to the majors yet. The main blight in his career – in 2018 he was suspended for 80-games due to a positive test for a performance enhancing masking agent.”

🎧🍎 New Shea Anything! 🍎🎧@martinonyc & @DougWilliamsSNY give their thoughts on how the NL East might pan out for the 2021 season: https://t.co/yNVF1kvqhn

SUBSCRIBE ✅
Apple Podcasts: https://t.co/ch00HBXoUg
Spotify: https://t.co/a90d1U6Z38 pic.twitter.com/aGtoxWW5Zn

— SNY (@SNYtv) February 18, 2021

Which Mets player has the most to prove this season?@stevegelbs, @NYNJHarper, @AnthonyDiComo & @DPLennon discuss on Mets Hot Stove presented by @GEICO https://t.co/iXXb4M9hSt pic.twitter.com/Qvtn5gZPES

— SNY (@SNYtv) February 18, 2021

Francisco Lindor comes in at #15 on MLB Network's Top 100 Players Right Now https://t.co/gtJuy1MKRp pic.twitter.com/CVdk5haXPg

— SNY (@SNYtv) February 18, 2021

As Spring Training commences here’s how I rank the NL East teams at least on paper/digital:

1. #Braves
2. #Mets
3. #Nationals
4. #Phillies
5. #Marlins

— Jim Bowden (@JimBowdenGM) February 17, 2021

@ernestdove and myself on the Sports Report last week interviewed @TonyDibrell Mets prospect. Find out what @TonyDibrell had to say about his teammates and Sports Report alums @slimstevie @Too_Manny @Cody_Bohanek and our favorite @AliMarcel2! Find out more from @TonyDibrell! pic.twitter.com/xcqGsBVlFs

— Thomas Brice (@ThomasBrice2017) February 18, 2021

Monte Irvin, Joe DiMaggio, and The Stork at an Old Timers Game in 1973. @Mets played the @Dodgers after. #NewYorkGiants @Yankees #BrooklynDodgers #NewYorkBaseball pic.twitter.com/NlMCyZZVv5

— Alexander Theodore (@BoyWonderGolf) February 17, 2021

SportSpyder Mets Links: 

MLB and SportSpyder NL East and MLB Links:

.@Ken_Rosenthal provides some details on the reported 14-year extension for Fernando Tatis Jr. pic.twitter.com/3FXxzb2STm

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) February 18, 2021

MiLB schedules released Thursday including:
• 142 games for AAA
• 120 for AA & A
• 6-game series w/ 1 day off for 2021
• AAA East scheduled start 4/6
• AAA West scheduled start 4/8
• AA & A start 5/4
More with @melissalockard at @TheAthleticMLB:https://t.co/eovxr7iCpX

— C. Trent Rosecrans (@ctrent) February 18, 2021

SportsSpyder:

Today in Mets History Per Ultimatemets.com: 

Born on this date:

• Lou Gorman (1929)
• Dal Maxvill (1939)
• Bob Miller (1939)
• Jerry Morales (1949)
• Jeff McKnight (1963)
• Kevin Tapani (1964)
• John Valentin (1967)
• Shawn Estes (1973)
• Nick Meyer (1997)
• Brain Sharp (1997)

Transactions:
Montreal Expos signed Ray Burris of the New York Mets as a free agent on February 18, 1981.

New York Mets traded Joe Dellicarri to the Detroit Tigers for Kevin Morgan on February 18, 1994.

Minnesota Twins signed Luis Ayala of the New York Mets as a free agent on February 18, 2009.

New York Mets signed free agent Buddy Carlyle on February 18, 2014.

New York Mets signed free agent Jason Vargas of the Kansas City Royals on February 18,

From National Pastime.com:

2009

The demolishment of the last remaining piece of Shea Stadium, the ramp to section 5, occurs at 11:25 a.m., marking the end of the New York venue where the Mets played for 44 years. The footprint of the old ballpark will become a parking lot for the team's new home, the $800-million Citi Field, which will open in April. Link to You Tube video of the demolition.

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