| | ESPN.com
Back in the good old days, a guy would win 22 games for a team that
captured a division title and both the guy and the team would be happy.
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METS LOWDOWN |
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|  | | Mike Hampton's 22 wins last season led the NL. |
1999: 97-66
Runs: 853, 5th in NL
Allowed: 711, 4th in NL
Key facts
John Olerud had a .427 on-base percentage last season; his replacement, Todd Zeile, had a .354 OBP.
The Mets set major league records for fewest errors (67) and fewest unearned runs allowed (20).
Mets were much more effective against right-handed pitchers: .287 average, .442 slugging; against lefties, .256 average, .412 slugging.
Tim Kurkjian's scenarios
Best-case: Mike Hampton has another 22-4 season, Brad Radke is acquired down the stretch and the Mets get to the World Series for the first time since 1986.
Worst-case: A slow start leads to increased speculation about the future of manager Bobby Valentine and GM Steve Phillips, leading to inner turmoil that, along with a spotty rotation, keeps the Mets out of the playoffs.
Prediction: 2nd in NL East
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Here in the bad new days, a guy wins 22 games for a team that captures
a division title and says he wants to be a billionaire. And the team that wins the
division gets scared and immediately strikes a deal with one of the teams it
could be competing against to reach the World Series.
The guy in this case is Mike Hampton. The team he left was the Astros.
The team that got him still isn't sure they can keep him. In fact, one Mets
employee said recently that there's no way they can afford to keep Hampton
beyond this season.
"He wants more than Kevin Brown," the Mets' official said, referring to
the seven-year, $105-million deal the Dodgers gave their staff ace before
last season.
Hampton's uncertain future and financial demands place a lot of pressure on
the pitcher and the team to win this season. There's no question the
27-year-old left-hander is a tremendous talent who is probably just reaching his
prime.
But before his 22-4 season last year, he had shown some signs of
inconsistency. He was unquestionably the Astros' ace in 1999, but that's the only year he held that title.
If Hampton wants Brown money, he'll need to come pretty close to
duplicating his 1999 season. Interestingly, that sort of season may work
against the Mets in their bid to re-sign Hampton, but it would certainly go
a long way toward helping them overcome the Braves both in the division race
and in the playoffs.
Mets general manager Steve Phillips is convinced Hampton's presence will make everyone in the team's rotation better. It's certainly fair to say that Al Leiter was at his best when pitching as a No. 2 behind Brown in Florida.
Truth is, Hampton seems like a perfect match for these Mets even if his
personality isn't suited for the big city. He's a groundball pitcher who
will have the best infield in baseball working behind him. He's also adept at
holding runners, allowing just eight stolen bases last year. That's good
news for Mike Piazza.
Should Hampton be the man who leads the Mets into a World Series and
does something crazy like beat the Yankees in Game 7 at Yankee Stadium, maybe
there will be enough money to make him the Ace of Queens beyond this season.
-- Bob Brookover
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Lineup comments and grades from ESPN The Magazine
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Player
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Comment
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Grade
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R. Henderson, LF
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Will he say to Bobby V, as he once said to Lou P, "Let bye-byes be bye-byes?"
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B
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E. Alfonzo, 2B
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Combo of power at plate, hands afield is best at 2B since Ryne Sandberg
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A
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Todd Zeile, 1B
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Had 98 RBI last season to Olerud's 96. So why doesn't anybody feel confident?
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C
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Mike Piazza, C
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Threw out just 37 of 152 runners last year. Gotta get him some games at first
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A
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R. Ventura, 3B
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With all the high OBPs in lineup, nice that he hit .529 with bases full in 1999
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A
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Derek Bell, RF
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If you can spin the ball over for a strike, you too can own DBell
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D
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D. Hamilton, CF
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Who needs Coors? Hit .413 at Shea after coming over from Rockies
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B
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Rey Ordonez, SS
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His 49 walks last year were more than he had in 1997 and 1998 combined
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B
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Pitching comments and grades from ESPN The Magazine
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Pitcher
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Comment
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Grade
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M. Hampton, SP
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You think the Griffey trade looks bad? Mariners got Eric Anthony for Hampton
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A
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Al Leiter, SP
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Has mastered the art of pitching ugly by battling through wild spurts
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B
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Rick Reed, SP
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Failed to pitch 200 innings for the first time since becoming a Met
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B
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B.J. Jones, SP
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Mets would love to have what used to be a down year for Jones, like 12-10
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B
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John Franco, RP
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Says ego can handle the setup job, even with saves record 62 away. We'll see
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C
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A. Benitez, RP
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His 14.77 strikeouts per nine IP last year was second-best in ML history
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B
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