Tuesday, January 1, 2008By Mike Steffanos
Updated Tuesday, January 1, 2008
My heavy workload at the end of the year prevented me from completing my starting pitching stats through the end of the disappointing 2007 season. I now have updated all of the Mets starters listed under The Pitchers in the navigation column at the right. I have also updated final stats for minor leaguers Adam Bostick, Phillip Humber, Jason Vargas and Mike Pelfrey below:
Jason Vargas was the key player back in the trade that sent hard-throwing relievers Matt Lindstrom and Henry Owens to the Marlins. While Lindstrom and Owens both made contributions to the Marlins, Vargas was ineffective in brief stints with the Mets. He wasn't much better in New Orleans. His velocity was down in the mid-80s when we saw him pitch for the Mets. He had bone spurs removed from his elbow after the season, so perhaps it can be hoped that he can reach the low 90s with his fastball again in 2008. If not, it's hard to see him as a significant contributor for the Mets.
| Jason Vargas (9-7) | |||||||||||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 4/6 | @NAS | 6 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3.00 | 1.00 | 65-50 76.9% |
| 4/11 | @MEM | 6 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.33 | 94-62 66.0% |
| 4/17 | MEM | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1.33 | 0.67 | 84-46 54.8% |
| 4/22 | @ALB | 5.2 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 9.53 | 1.59 | 100-61 61.0% |
| 4/28 | @OKL | 4 | 6 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 13.50 | 2.25 | 82-48 58.5% |
| April (5 games) | 27.2 | 17 | 14 | 29 | 20 | 7 | 1 | 4.55 | 1.30 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 5/3 | ROU | 3.1 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 10.80 | 3.30 | 97-58 59.8% |
| 5/8 | @TUC | 4.2 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 5.79 | 2.14 | 104-62 59.6% |
| 5/30 | CSP | 6 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 4.50 | 1.33 | 94-54 57.4% |
| May (3 games) | 14 | 11 | 10 | 19 | 15 | 10 | 2 | 6.43 | 2.07 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 6/5 | SLC | 6.2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1.35 | 0.60 | 96-63 65.6% |
| 6/11 | @ROU | 6 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6.00 | 1.17 | 94-61 64.9% |
| 6/16 | OKL | 6 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 4.50 | 1.50 | 95-60 63.2% |
| 6/21 | OMA | 6 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1.33 | 1.33 | 101-68 67.3% |
| 6/26 | MEM | 6 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3.00 | 1.17 | 73-52 71.2% |
| June (5 games) | 30.2 | 11 | 11 | 29 | 21 | 6 | 4 | 3.23 | 1.14 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 7/8 | @IOW | 5.1 | 7 | 7 | 11 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 11.81 | 2.44 | 98-65 66.3% |
| 7/13 | ALB | 2 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 36.00 | 4.50 | 61-34 55.7% |
| 7/18 | NAS | 7 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.57 | 106-66 62.3% |
| 7/23 | @ALB | 5 | 5 | 5 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 9.00 | 2.20 | 101-59 58.4% |
| 7/28 | POR | 3.1 | 4 | 4 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 10.80 | 3.60 | 91-56 61.5% |
| July (5 games) | 22.2 | 25 | 24 | 38 | 27 | 11 | 5 | 9.93 | 2.16 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 8/3 | @SAC | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1.50 | 0.83 | 99-60 60.6% |
| 8/8 | @FRE | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 9.00 | 1.60 | 77-51 66.2% |
| 8/19 | OKL | 4.2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1.93 | 1.29 | 102-69 67.6% |
| 8/24 | IOW | 7 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.71 | 101-66 65.3% |
| 8/29 | @OKL | 5.1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 3.38 | 1.69 | 98-56 57.1% |
| August (5 games) | 28 | 9 | 9 | 23 | 24 | 10 | 1 | 2.89 | 1.18 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 9/3 | @ROU | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4.50 | 1.50 | 28-19 67.9% |
| Season (24 Games) | 125 | 77 | 69 | 141 | 108 | 44 | 14 | 4.97 | 1.48 | ||
Adam Bostick was the other young starter received in that Marlins deal. He shows flashes of intriguing talent mingled with a frustrating lack of consistency in throwing strikes. He's a lefty with a great breaking ball, so he has a chance if he can develop some command. Then again, that describes an awful lot of minor leaguers who eventually fade away into obscurity.
| Adam Bostick (6-7) | |||||||||||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 4/9 | @MEM | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 3.60 | 1.60 | 80-46 57.5% |
| 4/15 | NAS | 5.1 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 8.44 | 1.31 | 76-46 60.5% |
| 4/20 | MEM | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.67 | 70-47 67.1% |
| 4/26 | @OKL | 4.2 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 13.50 | 1.93 | 74-51 68.9% |
| April (4 games) | 21.0 | 14 | 14 | 18 | 14 | 10 | 4 | 6.00 | 1.33 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 5/1 | ROU | 2 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 22.50 | 3.50 | 65-40 61.5% |
| 5/6 | IOW | 5.2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1.59 | 1.24 | 90-53 58.9% |
| 5/12 | @LVG | 5 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 1.80 | 2.00 | 81-44 54.3% |
| 5/21 | ALB | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4.50 | 2.00 | 33-26 78.8% |
| 5/25 | @OMA | 6 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 6.00 | 1.00 | 90-58 64.4% |
| 5/31 | CSP | 2.2 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 16.87 | 3.37 | 73-42 57.5% |
| May (6 games) | 23.1 | 19 | 17 | 33 | 17 | 10 | 4 | 6.56 | 1.84 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 6/7 | @IOW | 4 | 9 | 7 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 20.25 | 2.50 | 77-52 67.5% |
| 6/12 | @ROU | 5.1 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3.38 | 1.69 | 87-54 62.1% |
| June (2 games) | 9.1 | 11 | 9 | 16 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 8.68 | 2.04 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 7/19 | NAS | 2.1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.71 | 50-26 52.0% |
| 7/25 | TAC | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.40 | 72-48 66.7% |
| 7/30 | POR | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.67 | 85-54 63.5% |
| July (3 games) | 13.1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.75 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 8/5 | @FRE | 5 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 5.40 | 1.80 | 102-60 58.8% |
| 8/11 | ROU | 5 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 7.20 | 1.40 | 90-60 66.7% |
| 8/16 | @NAS | 5 | 6 | 5 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 9.00 | 2.40 | 95-57 60.0% |
| 8/21 | OKL | 4 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 13.50 | 2.50 | 85-50 58.8% |
| 8/26 | IOW | 5 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 5.40 | 1.40 | 92-43 46.7% |
| 8/31 | @ROU | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 5.66 | 1.00 | 91-56 61.5% |
| August (6 games) | 30 | 22 | 21 | 32 | 33 | 19 | 8 | 6.30 | 1.70 | ||
| Season (21 Games) | 97 | 66 | 61 | 106 | 91 | 45 | 20 | 5.66 | 1.56 | ||
As stated when I last updated the Triple-A pitchers, the one real bright side to Phillip Humber's campaign in the big easy was that he stayed healthy and pitched just under 140 innings. A negative is that, according to reports, Humber has had to dial down his fastball into the 80s to throw strikes. It remains to be seen whether another year's recovery from Tommy John surgery will allow a little more gas on the fastball. Humber isn't the prospect he once was, but a strong 2008 could revive hopes for the former number one pick.
| Philip Humber (11-9) | |||||||||||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 4/5 | @NAS | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1.80 | 0.80 | 88-54 61.3% |
| 4/10 | @MEM | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 12.00 | 1.67 | 63-40 63.5% |
| 4/16 | NAS | 6 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1.50 | 1.17 | 74-45 60.8% |
| 4/21 | @ALB | 7 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1.29 | 0.86 | 77-51 66.2% |
| 4/27 | @OKL | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 9.00 | 1.80 | 98-52 53.1% |
| April (5 games) | 26.0 | 12 | 12 | 22 | 20 | 9 | 3 | 4.15 | 1.19 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 5/2 | ROU | 5 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 9.00 | 1.80 | 88-54 61.4% |
| 5/7 | IOW | 6 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 4.50 | 1.17 | 87-64 73.6% |
| 5/13 | @LVG | 7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1.29 | 0.86 | 89-60 67.4% |
| 5/19 | OMA | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 7.20 | 1.40 | 85-48 56.5% |
| 5/24 | ALB | 5 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 5.40 | 1.20 | 94-57 60.6% |
| 5/30 | CSP | 6 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 3.00 | 1.67 | 89-66 74.2% |
| May (6 games) | 34 | 19 | 18 | 36 | 33 | 9 | 4 | 4.76 | 1.32 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 6/4 | SLC | 6.2 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4.05 | 1.20 | 103-66 64.1% |
| 6/10 | @IOW | 5.1 | 3 | 3 | 13 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 5.06 | 2.44 | 96-60 62.5% |
| 6/15 | OKL | 5.2 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 9.53 | 1.59 | 99-65 65.7% |
| 6/25 | MEM | 7 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.43 | 93-58 62.4% |
| 6/30 | MEM | 7 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3.86 | 1.14 | 78-51 65.4% |
| June (5 games) | 31.2 | 15 | 15 | 38 | 21 | 3 | 6 | 4.26 | 1.29 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 7/5 | @IOW | 4.2 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 5.79 | 1.71 | 102-61 59.8% |
| 7/16 | NAS | 7.2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1.17 | 0.78 | 94-63 67.0% |
| 7/22 | @ALB | 5 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 3.60 | 1.40 | 81-49 60.5% |
| July (3 games) | 17.1 | 7 | 6 | 14 | 17 | 7 | 4 | 3.11 | 1.21 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 8/1 | @SAC | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 2.25 | 1.50 | 76-42 55.3% |
| 8/6 | @FRE | 4 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 11.25 | 2.25 | 81-49 60.5% |
| 8/12 | ROU | 5 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 5.40 | 1.40 | 98-66 67.3% |
| 8/17 | @NAS | 3.2 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 12.27 | 2.18 | 79-41 51.9% |
| 8/22 | IOW | 8.1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1.08 | 0.24 | 123-83 67.5% |
| 8/27 | @OKL | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.60 | 58-38 65.5% |
| August (6 games) | 30 | 17 | 15 | 19 | 29 | 16 | 4 | 4.50 | 1.17 | ||
| Season (25 Games) | 139 | 70 | 66 | 129 | 120 | 44 | 21 | 4.27 | 1.24 | ||
At this point in his career, Mike Pelfrey would do well to relearn how to attack the strike zone with his terrific fastball. At times he looked very tentative at both the major and minor league levels. When he pitches aggressively and gets ahead in the count he shows flashes of what could be.
| Mike Pelfrey (3-6) | |||||||||||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 5/18 | OMA | 5.2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1.59 | 1.59 | 99-60 60.6% |
| 5/23 | ALB | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1.50 | 0.67 | 96-58 60.4% |
| 5/28 | @OMA | 3.2 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 9.82 | 2.45 | 98-59 60.2% |
| May (3 games) | 15.1 | 7 | 6 | 18 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 3.52 | 1.43 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 6/3 | SLC | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.40 | 91-52 57.1% |
| 6/9 | @IOW | 6 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 | 0.67 | 97-58 60.0% |
| 6/14 | @ROU | 5 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 3.60 | 1.60 | 98-60 61.2% |
| 6/22 | OMA | 5.1 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 6.75 | 1.69 | 105-73 69.5% |
| June (4 games) | 21.1 | 8 | 8 | 20 | 21 | 8 | 2 | 3.38 | 1.31 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 7/17 | NAS | 6 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4.50 | 1.00 | 102-62 60.8% |
| 7/22 | @ALB | 6 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 6.00 | 1.67 | 89-57 64.0% |
| July (2 games) | 12 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 5.25 | 1.25 | ||
| Date | Opp. | IP | R | ER | H | K | BB | HR | ERA | WHIP | Pitches-strikes |
| 8/2 | @SAC | 7 | 2 | 2 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2.57 | 1.57 | 99-63 63.6% |
| 8/7 | @FRE | 6 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3.00 | 1.33 | 108-66 61.1% |
| 8/13 | ROU | 5 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5.40 | 1.40 | 94-62 66.0% |
| 8/18 | OKL | 4.2 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 9.64 | 1.93 | 110-61 55.5% |
| 8/28 | @OKL | 2.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.37 | 43-29 67.4% |
| August (5 games) | 25.1 | 13 | 12 | 26 | 17 | 10 | 2 | 4.26 | 1.42 | ||
| Season (14 Games) | 74 | 35 | 33 | 74 | 56 | 26 | 6 | 4.01 | 1.35 | ||
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Comments (5)
Happy new year to you, Mike! I thik this is going to be our year!
Posted by Dave Murray | January 2, 2008 1:32 PM
Mike - Re: Humber, ain't that one of the saddest adjectives in the world for a minor-leaguer? "Former" number one pick.
No superstar who was picked first in his team's draft is ever called a "former number one pick". Even though every number one pick, by definition, becomes a former number one pick the minute he's picked.
Here's hoping Humber can add a little oo-MPH to the heater this year. We'll be counting on him. If not this year, in the new yard, and for years to come.
Posted by NostraDennis | January 2, 2008 2:12 PM
Hi Dave, hope you're right. I think we deserve it after last season.
---------------------
Nostra - I might have come across as more down on Humber than I really am. I'd like to see how he throws this spring, though.
Posted by Mike Steffanos | January 2, 2008 3:27 PM
Happy New Year Mike, I still believe Humber is going to suprise folks, I think he has the make-up and will be another year removed from surgery. I see him starting 2008 in AAA, but improving to get a summer call-up. Pelfrey has to get his mind right period. Once he gets that head of his together he will be fine, maybe he should lose that mouth piece. Vargas I was never sold on and Bostick may come around he has potential. All in all some one has to come through from the minors and take over the 5th spot.
Posted by L. J. Phipps | January 2, 2008 6:06 PM
L.J. - Sorry I missed your comment. Like I said to Nostra, I'm not as down as Humber as many seem to be. I really do think this is the season that either reestablishes him as a prospect or turns him into a trivia question, however.
Posted by Mike Steffanos | January 3, 2008 12:44 PM