Breaking Down: Zack Wheeler’s UCL Injury

Today it was announced that Zack Wheeler suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament of the elbow, or UCL, and will need Tommy John surgery. He will not return until sometime during the 2016 season, which is a sad day for Mets fans. Thankfully for Mets fans, they have somewhere between 3 and 6 pitchers talented enough to occupy that spot. Unfortunately for Mets fans, these pitchers are Mets and throw baseballs so there is a very likely possibility they will all get hurt really soon.

For those who do not know me, my name is Chris and I watch a lot of baseball each and every year. I also have “mlb mechanics xpert” in my Twitter name, so I am basically one of the foremost minds working in the field of pitching mechanics today.

With the injury to Zack Wheeler you will begin to hear a lot about the “Inverted W” again, or as lay people call it, the “M”. This is seen as a problem in mechanics by many in the pitching mechanics community, who deemed it to be a problem in Stephen Stasburg before him, and Mark Prior before him, and John Smoltz before him, and in Calvin Coolidge Julius Caesar Tuskahoma “Buster” McLish before him. I have been highly skeptical of attributing injury claims to the Inverted W, mainly because the person causing the hysteria has a blog that looks like it should have angelfire.com in the URL.

However, after an extensive period studying Zack Wheeler’s mechanics, I believe I have figured out his fundamental flaw. Wheeler has what I am calling a “Teapot” at the point of foot contact in his delivery.

Zack Wheeler, left; Man Dancing to “I’m a Little Teapot”, right.

The “Teapot” occurs when the Glove Arm Side, or GAS, closes into a “handle” at the point of foot contact while the elbow on Pitching Arm Side, or PAS, dips below the shoulder creating a “spout”. The “Teapot” is not an issue in pitchers 6’2″ and shorter, and on the heavier side — pitchers who are both short and stout. For instance, Fernando Rodney, after having his UCL repaired in 2003, began using the “Teapot” effectively.

Fernando Rodney in 2012

Based on this theory, I am expecting this to be the year Aroldis Chapman goes down injured. Like Wheeler, Chapman looks like he is about to tip on the mound, standing at 6’4″, and the ball comes pouring out of his hands in a deceptive manner due to a massive “Teacup” in his delivery. This enables him to achieve velocities over 100 miles per hour but could also send his lower arm into orbit if not taken care of immediately at the first point of discomfort. Mets officials noted that Zack Wheeler has suffered with pain caused by the “Teacup” delivery since 2014. Unfortunately, I was not able to figure this out in time to save him, which, as a diehard Mets fan, made me steamed up enough to shout. ■

2014 Mets Draft Recap!

The New York Metropolitans had nine picks through the first 10 rounds. They were not awarded a “competitive balance” pick at the tail end of the first round, which is awarded to teams in the bottom 10 in revenue and market size. The Wilpons argue they are owed several “competitive balance” draft picks, stating there should be no correlation between being competitive and revenue/market size, but that’s for a future post.

I spend a lot of my free time travelling the country catching high school baseball on occasion and chasing attending college girls games regularly, so I have a lot of valuable opinions on the Mets picks in the first 10 rounds of the 2014 draft. Usually you have to pay to get access to this kind of information, but here it is for free:

1. Michael Conforto
Mom is a Milf, Oregon State

Since the end of the Omar Minaya era (where a first round draft pick was cherished like a dwarf son in Casterly Rock), the Mets have bought young at the very top of their drafts with the last three first round picks coming straight’ outta high school. This time around Alderson & Co. have flipped the script and gone with a player who can legally drink.

Conforto projects to be a baseball player. I haven’t seen much of him. I won’t travel to the Pacific Northwest. Too many hippies. He’s part Hawaiian by way of his mother, so we’ve got that going for us.

GRADE: B-

2. 2nd Round Pick
Evaporated into thin air upon signing Curtis Granderson

No regret here, no sireeeeeeeee.

GRADE: F+

3. Milton Ramos
Isn’t He Glovely, American Heritage School (HS)

We drafted Wilfredo Tovar in case the Wilfredo Tovar we bought 6 years ago doesn’t pan out.

GRADE: D

4. Eudor Garcia
I Already Shot My Load on GoT Jokes Earlier But Who Cares HODOR, El Paso Junior College

Eudor mashed for El Paso playing in the WJCAC division in the JuCo Conference. I didn’t even make this up. Those are real things. This is why teams need to draft 4,892 players each year, because there are at least 6,421 leagues to scout. Sometimes ya just gotta say fuck it and pick ’em.

Garcia gets to escape the stigma of going to a Community College in your hometown. Life is just better when you can hit a baseball really far.

Notable baseball players from El Paso Junior College are:

GRADE: B-

5. Josh Prevost
He’s Tall So Maybe He Can Throw Hard, Seton Hall

He beat Mariano Rivera’s son in April in a game of baseball. I’m cool with this pick.

GRADE: A+++++ •:*¨¨*:•.WONDERFUL*¨¨*RECOMMEND*¨¨*SELLER .•:*¨¨*:•.

6. Tyler Moore
2014 Obligatory Mets Early Round Catcher Pick, LSU

GRADE: F

7. Brad Wieck
He’s Even Taller So Maybe He Can Throw Even Harder, Oklahoma City University

Standing at 6’9″, Wieck has pitched for 97 different schools over the past couple of years. He lists his nickname as “Big Bad Brad” on his college’s website, which I would say sounds like the shittiest Nickelodeon GUTS nickname of all time if I didn’t think he could pummel me.

Everyone is scared of giant left-handed pitchers. Even it they throw 81 mph it’s scary as shit because they land four feet away from you, have a wacky arm angle and a fastball that dances. I would just draft 7 foot tall left-handed pitchers for all eternity. Forget that, I would just find 7 foot tall left-handers and teach them to throw a baseball. Much cheaper. Take notes Sandy.

GRADE: B

8. Dash Winningham
The Name, Trinity Catholic (HS)

Easily the best name at the top of this Mets draft, the first baseman from Florida shows real potential to be a home run threat and is a threat to be lovably fat by the time he reaches the MLB. There is a real dearth of lovably fat position players in the MLB so one would think he would be fast tracked through the Mets system. Also serious potential to be a real cash cow for the Mets with WINNINGHAM shirseys, as long as Charlie Sheen doesn’t resurface.

GRADE: A-

9. Michael Katz
A Baseball Player Apparently, William & Mary

The Wilpons drafting one of Saul Katz’s family members to appease him. Is grandnephew a thing? Either way, I’ve never heard of him or his made up college.

GRADE: TBD

10. Kelly Secrest
Don’t Call Me Ryan, UNC-Wilmington

The Mets drafted college closer Seacrest in the 10th round with 30 more rounds to go. This is the equivalent of drafting a punter in the second round of the NFL draft.

GRADE: D-

■

Theories on the Power Outage at Citi Field

It’s been a major point of contention in recent weeks with Terry Collins, the fans and every Mets beat writer looking for page hits: the dimensions of Citi Field. A look at ballparks around the league will show 375-378 feet to be a relatively normal distance to right center but make no mistake, this is a place where base balls go to die in the glove in Jason Heyward. Here are some of the more popular theories out there as to why this baseball stadium anomaly might be occurring, in order of their validity:

#1: GHOSTS

Specifically cat ghosts, which possibly haunt the ground after they were killed during the demolition of one of the ramps at Shea Stadium. These ghost cats, who were laughed at when they tried to make a name for themselves on the field at Shea Stadium, are now taking their vengeance on Mets home runs by swatting them out of the air with their ghost paws.

A much talked about possible solution would be sprinkling the field with catnip a few hours before game time hoping it will tire the ghost cats out. There is no science out there that states ghost cats are affected by catnip the same way as regular cats so I remain skeptical of this solution, but not of ghost cats which are definitely real and why this is, far and away, the most likely theory.

#2: KEVIN BURKHARDT

I’ve alluded to this in a previous post — I firmly believe the position of Kevin Burkhardt in the stadium affects the flight of baseballs. The only time I’ve seen Mets home runs at Citi Field I’ve seen Kevin Burkhardt. This was even true back at Shea Stadium from the moment he came onto the scene with SNY. So, it seems there can only be one possible explanation for the home run concerns of Citi Field: a less visible Kevin Burkhardt.

The question becomes, where is Burkhardt during these games? Why does he only pop up for an inning and disappear, basically nullifying any chance of a home run for the 8 other innings? The answer is in World’s Fare Market, namely the Gluten-Free Stand which Kevin Burkhardt actually owns and operates that no one knows exists. Next time you’re at Citi take a stroll down the right field line to the Market, open those doors and see for yourself.

Thankfully I do not believe this extends to road trips. Burkhardt has decided just not to show up to these anymore in the wake of his FOX deal. Unfortunately, we may never see another home run again after 2014 if this theory is proven.

#3: NOT REALLY HAVING ANY POWERFUL POWER HITTERS

The most controversial of the theories which posits that the Mets have assembled a team of guys who don’t really hit home runs good in the first place but talk about them like they Jack balls out of the Park, man. For example:

• Curtis Granderson: never having more than 30 home runs in a season outside of seasons played at the House that Bugs Bunny Built in the Bronx, and a HR to Plate Appearance ratio with the Tigers that was 1 to 28.1 compared to 1 to 18.6 with the Yankees which may be somewhat significant.
• David Wright: has pretty decent power, sure, but the dude always digs a stand-up double way more.
• LUCAS DUDA: SMASH LINE DRIVES FOR SINGLES
• Chris Young: two 20+ home run seasons in the past five seasons, and that’s basically because a team was dumb enough to let him play everyday those seasons. Dustin Pedroia has a 20+ home run season for the love of god and I’ve seen a baby slam dunk a basketball on him (may have been a dream).

#4: JUAN LAGARES’ DOMINICAN VODOU PRACTICING AUNT

This one is just ridiculous and I will not dignify it with a description. ■

Jordany In The Sky With Diamonds

Today I discovered that within Spotify’s TuneWiki app you can create pictures with lyrics and give them Instagram filters (desktop only). Naturally, this was the end result.

Now that you know you have the power, share  your favorite lyrics next to Jordany with me at @ludichrisspeed on the Twitter machine and I’ll add ’em. ■

The Struggle is Real

The Mets are above .500 after 30 games. They have a record as good or better than every team in the AL East. They are one game back of 1st place in the NL East. They’ve played two series with the Braves and a series with the Reds, Cardinals and Angels. They went to Coors Field where they have played and will play like shit for all eternity. The first two years of games at Coors the Mets (’95-’96) went 2-9. Pete Harnisch nabbed both of those wins. I’ve just given up on trying to make sense of anything that goes on there.

Somehow, the Mets have survived the April bloodbath we were all warned was coming.  Naturally there are a lot of reasons to be positive as a Mets fan right now. But you’re a Mets fan. You see the darkness at the end of the tunnel. You have a safe place in your home or apartment you can go to every August. A doctor prescribes you Klonopin just because you walked in the door wearing a 2002 Timo Perez away jersey. You weren’t even visiting a doctor, you were just picking up some pulled pork at Trader Joe’s because it is really, really fucking good.

Let’s break down the season so far and see why Mets fan have reason to be on the edge of their seats this time:

• Pitching has been decent
• Fielding has been decent
• Hitting has graduated from tee ball to a parent pitching

And there it is, the Mets offense. It’s terrible but has been timely through the first month or so of the season. The offense’s X-Men equivalent right now is Cyclops but it is in serious danger of becoming Jubilee.

It’s no surprise really — a lot of talk in the off-season was about Curtis Granderson’s Yankee Stadium home runs vs. potential Citi Field home runs, and the consensus was the stadium change was negligible. Unfortunately, spray charts do not take into account many ballpark conditions like mini-jet streams and the location of Kevin Burkhardt. I’ve taken them into account, and here are Granderson’s 2012 home runs mapped over what I’m calling “True Fences” at Yankee Stadium and Citi Field (click on image for larger view):

Let’s just thank the baseball gods for the San Diego Padres offense because they are the only thing standing in our way from setting all-time record lows in several hitting categories.

THIS WEEK IN #LOLMETS LAND

Do you guys remember #LOLStrikeoutRecordMETS? Well, they are no longer running away with the Mark Reynolds’ Trophy in the World Series of Strikeouts. Here’s the current standings in the NL East strikeouts race:

1. Florida Marlins: 271
2. Hotgarbage Barves: 271
3. Washington Wizards: 268
4. New York Metsies: 267
5. Filthadelphia Filthies: 236

It’s a tight race at the top and we here at TWMBITW are going to keep an eye on it all season. We’re hoping this isn’t just another case of the Mets not living up to early season predictions.

SUBWAY SERIES PREVIEW

THE YANKEES SUCK BRO

MATT HARVEY STATUS

Recovering from Tommy John surgery. Off of Twitter. Still on Instagram. Always in the spotlight. ■

 

Everybody Loves 2 AM Extra Inning Baseball

This past week us Mets fans learned how much we love or hate west coast start times. In most cases, the more you love west coast start times the closer you probably are to alcoholism. I drank two 40oz during Wednesday’s early start so you can imagine where I fall on the spectrum.

We also learned that the Diamondbacks suck. Like super-duper-seriously suck. We’re not even talking Mets suck. We’re talking Cubs suck, maybe even Astros suck.

Elderly Mets fans, people in NL-only dynasty fantasy leagues, and New York area hockey fans who were drunk and looking for something else to watch had a chance to finally see Mike Trout go into beast mode. Mets fans will enjoy hearing that Mike Trout was selected by the Angels in the first round of the 2009 MLB Draft with a compensation pick from the Yankees, who had just signed Mark Teixiera as a free agent. HAHAHAHAHA YANKEES YOU SUCK (okay maybe the Angels also had a compensation pick from the Mets for the Francisco Rodriguez signing, and it was the pick right before Trout was picked, but let’s just keep that to ourselves and hope nobody notices) LOL YANKEES ARE THE WORST.

Unfortunately, the internet had to pronounce another Mets player dead this road trip: Juan Lagares. He will be buried next to Matt Harvey in the Matt Harvey memorial cemetery. People claim the cemetery, which replaced the ice rink in Bryant Park, is haunted by the ghost of Matt Harvey. He is said to be constantly begging passersby for Rangers playoff tickets and a glass of Lagavulin 18 with a single rock. Curtis Granderson, who is currently on life support, has had a more positive prognosis and is expected back on the field between Friday, April 18, 2014, and the expiration of his four-year contract in 2018.

WHO’S HOT / WHO’S NOT

So hot right now…

• Lucas Duda. The man who looks like he has no thoughts has finally cleared his head of distractions at the plate.
• Anthony Recker. Home runs. Dat AZZ (According to ladies) (Okay me too shut up bro I know you saw it too).
• Eric Young Jr. The man has been Billy Hamilton-esque of late, except for the fact that Eric Young Jr. actually plays in baseball games.
• The Bullpen. Enjoy while it lasts, after all, it is still the Mets bullpen.

Not so hot right / might be burned alive in a dumpster fire by Mets Merized Online commentors…

• Ruben Tejada. We all hate you. Sorry man, not much you can do about it. Somebody has to be that guy every year.
• Travis d’Arnaud. Living up to all your lowered expectations.
• Curtis Granderson. It’s only been a couple of weeks. He’s adjusting to a new league. The baseballs in the National League are lighter and move more, I think.

HOME STAND

The Mets return home to face the Barves, the Bob Costas Racists, and the Florida Marlins. Chris Young is returning from the disabled list which fills me with the excitement of a 14-year-old boy who just shit his pants at a make-out party. The worst part of the home stand is the fact that all of the home games will have to be played at Citi Field where the Mets hold a 193-216 record since its construction.  Hearing rumors of plans to move future home games to Bethpage Ballpark, home of the Long Island Ducks, but I have not been able to corroborate them with team officials. ■

What We Learned From The First Week of Mets Baseball

The Mets season is finally underway and, after 6 games, they are holding down the NL East basement with a 2-4 record. Meanwhile, atop of the NL East is the World Series favorite Florida Marlins with a 5-2 record. Clearly this is a good time to be making judgments on early performances and how they will play out over the next 156 games.

A visually pleasing list of my observations so far:

• Travis d’Arnaud is basically useless. The Mets would be better off asking the umpire to hold a catcher’s mitt and taking the automatic out when the catcher’s spot comes up to avoid any possibility of double play balls.
• Lucas Duda is the savior at first base but probably won’t be the savior at first base for much longer until maybe he is again.
• Bartolo Colon is fat. Just in case you missed that joke being made over the past decade.
• Daniel Murphy needs to man up and adapt. If he wants to hang out with his newborn baby and get rich playing baseball figure something out. It’s not our fucking problem, okay?

Once again thanks to my cat Wiffles for these graphics

• Bobby Parnell has spent so much time injured you probably forgot that he recorded the last out by a Mets pitcher at Shea Stadium.
• Juan Lagares is a baller. Bona fide 2014 NL MVP candidate.
• Anthony Brown is a guy who plays baseball for the Mets, apparently.

It’s going to be a long season folks. Mainly because there are 162 games over the course of seven months which is a really long time when you think about it. The Mets head to Hot Garbage ‘Lanta to take on the Barves. They are managed by a guy who, after 50 years, still hasn’t figured out how to spell his first name correctly. Expecting a series sweep.  ■

2014 Preseason Mets Predictions

It’s less than a week away from opening day baseball. Some people think Opening Day should be a holiday. I think some people are fucking morons.

Less than a week away means it’s predictions week in the baseball blogosphere, and as a preeminent member of the Mets baseball blogosphere I am submitting my predictions for fans to complain about now and then complain about again at an undetermined date in August. First, let’s start with the NL East standings:

1. New York Mets

2. Florida Marlins

3. Atlanta Barves

4. Washington Capitals

I didn’t list the Phillies because I don’t expect them to finish the season, either due to the loss of too many players to natural causes or due to the fan base burning the entire city to the ground because Nick Foles bows out of an NFL preseason game with a season ending injury.

I chose the Mets to place first because it is an edgy pick and I am looking to create future clout in case the unexpected happens. Hey, it probably worked for the idiot who picked the Red Sox last season (Note: these guys aren’t supposed to be idiots).

Here are some further predictions for the upcoming season:

• Daniel Murphy will be the first player in baseball history with over 500 plate appearances to post an On-Base Percentage lower than his Batting Average in a season.
• Curtis Granderson will distract home fans from blowout losses with his winning smile. Season ticket holders will believe the Mets have won 92 games in 2014 when in reality they will have won 74.
• Jenrry Mejia (his first name was picked by his mother as an homage to the creators of Cherry Garcia ice cream) will go down early with a long-term injury. He will experience a mental breakdown and disappear into the Mojave Desert while on rehab assignment with Triple AAA Las Vegas.
• Matt Harvey will come out as the first gay player in Major League Baseball. One week later we will find out it was a publicity stunt engineered in the wake of a dropping Q score.
• Zack Wheeler Toupee Night
• Lucas Duda will be found crying in the middle of the night in Connecticut sitting next to a dead deer. Later police reports will indicate that Duda killed the deer with his bare hands and was very likely sleepwalking.

Happy 2014 baseball season everybody, and remember, don’t stare at Curtis Granderson’s smile for too long or you will miss all that heavenly glory. ■

RUMOR CENTRAL: Wilmer Flores to Start on Opening Day, But Where?

We here at TWMBITW have received a hot tip about the opening day shortstop situation. We are sort-of-positive-kind-of-not-really-sure-maybe-probably able to confirm that the world’s second most famous Wilmer will be manning a new, modified, shortstop position as part of Terry Collins new look defense.

Terry Collins had this to say when reached for comment, “Wilmer Flores Yo-Gabba-Gabba doobie doop.” Attention was turned to Sandy Alderson who explained things a bit clearer:

“It’s been 150 years of playing the game this way, and at no point has anyone really sat down and said…Do we really need four infielders? We’re looking to shake things up and reinvigorate the fanbase with this experiment. If it doesn’t put people in the seats, then it will have to be Plan B…Papa Roach concerts after all home games in May.”

Possible new alignment. All graphics are courtesy of my cat Wiffles.

In order to mitigate the possibility of Flores kicking the ball into the dugout or injuring a helpless fan on an overthrow to first, the Mets plan to limit him to catching short pop-ups and providing cut-off duties for plays at the plate (due to the presence of a fan-protecting net). This will put a heavier workload on Daniel Murphy, who will be expected to turn all double plays by himself, and Chris Young in right field, who will be expected to turn routine groundballs into outs as well as chase down extra base hits in the corners. Still, the positive influence Wilmer Flores has in the lineup is a necessity for this impotent offense.

To Wilmer Flores’s credit, he has really forced this decision from Collins and Alderson. After posting a sparkling .886 OPS in AAA ball in Las Vegas in 2013, he was called up to the big league side in early August where he posted a .542 OPS. While a decline of over 300 points may be alarming to some, one scout we spoke to said, “…guessing you haven’t seen Travis D’Arnaud hit yet. Also, fuck OPS. He has a sweet stroke.” ■

Matt Harvey is terrible. He is the fucking worst.

He throws heat, bangs models and goes to New York Rangers games. He’s opinionated and gives zero fucks about public relations.

He is the fucking worst.

Matt Harvey is the kind of guy who is too busy after games to give autographs but will do it if you ask nicely. Matt Harvey used to ask Justin Turner if he knew the current location of his soul while beating him over the head with a five pound bag of Yukon Golds. Matt Harvey tickles Jon Niese a lot even though he knows Jon Niese is extremely ticklish. Matt Harvey hates subtweets but subtweets Chris Young all of the time.

The following are the main reasons Harvey wants to travel with the Mets instead of staying in the urban utopia that is Port St. Lucie (YOU CAN’T SEE MY SOURCES OKAY):

• Wants to see what he can get Bartolo Colon to eat and for how much (e.g. an Air Jordan XI for a KFC Family Feast)
• Limited supply of bangable models in Port St. Lucie (also limited supply of bangable anything, really)
• Wants to add to his collection of pictures of himself from newspapers that he keeps on the walls of a secret room in his midtown apartment (he refers to it as the Sticky Room)
• He loves Slam poetry
• Matt Harvey cannot expand the Matt Harvey brand in Matt Harvey, Florida (formerly known as Port St. Lucie)

As you can see, he is a terrible person. At 24 years old, or 3.5 years old in dog years, he’s barely paid his dues and now he’s acting like a seasoned veteran? Rise up, Mets fans, take to your Twitter accounts and tell the man how you feel. JUST DON’T YOU FUCKING SUBTWEET HIM.