New York Mets End of Season Grades: Pitchers
Now that the season is over, it is time to take a look back and evaluate how the Mets pitching staff did this year. There were many surprises this year. Some were good, and some were bad. Included in this list are all the pitchers who made an appearance for the Mets this season.
Grades for position players can be found at www.metsgazette.com.
Johan Santana
1 of 20
Grade: B+
Stats: (11-9, 2.98 ERA, 1.18 WHIP)
Santana had a very solid year and is a good example of why wins and losses are not a good way to evaluate a pitcher. He saw his strikeout rate drop to 6.5 K/9 this year. He posted a better ERA than he did last year and was undoubtedly a leader for the Mets pitching staff. Santana posted a 4.4 WAR this year which was the ninth-best for pitchers in the National League.
Mike Pelfrey
2 of 20
Grade: B
Stats: (15-9, 1 SV, 3.66, 1.38)
Pelfrey was dominant the first half of the season. He looked as if he was deserving of an All-Star Game invitation. People even began to wonder if he was the true ace of the staff this year. Everyone wondered if Pelfrey was finally going to reach his potential.
Pelfrey then began to struggle in the second half and all of the positive vibes surrounding him disappeared. However, Pelfrey did have a career-best 3.66 ERA this season.
R.A. Dickey
3 of 20
Grade: A+
Stats: (11-9, 2.84, 1.19)
No one could have seen this coming from R.A. Dickey. His career-low ERA before this season was 4.62. The knuckleballer seemed to be the most consistent pitcher on the Mets staff. Dickey is a candidate for the Comeback Player of the Year award. Many fans may not realize this but Dickey actually started the season in the minors. His first start didn’t come until May 19. Dickey was seventh in the National League with his 2.84 ERA this year.
Jon Niese
4 of 20
Grade: C+
Stats: (9-10, 4.20, 1.46)
At age 23, Niese is part of the Mets’ youth movement. He has shown a lot of potential and has given Mets fans reason to be excited to see his continued development next season. He has been able to strike out major league hitters at a fairly high rate for such a young pitcher. He had a 7.7 K/9 rate this year.
Oliver Perez
5 of 20
Grade: F
Stats: (0-5, 6.80, 2.07)
Since Oliver refused a minor league assignment, I am refusing to write a rationale for his grade. He did fittingly pick up the loss in the last game of the season.
Francisco Rodriguez
6 of 20
Grade: B
Stats: (4-2, 28 SV, 2.20, 1.15)
Great pitcher, horrible boyfriend. Rodriguez was having a good season until he decided to beat up on his girlfriend’s father. He is also a bit compulsive when it comes to text messaging, leading to him sending about 50 more messages than many would deem necessary. On the field, Rodriguez had a 10.5 K/9 rate and was one of the better closers in the NL.
Hisanori Takahashi
7 of 20
Grade: A-
Stats: (10-6, 8 SV, 3.61, 1.30)
Takahashi was phenomenal out of the bullpen this year. The rookie from Japan had a 2.04 ERA out of the bullpen and held hitters to just a .206 batting average. When he was used as a starter he struggled but did have some good outings. It was clear that he shouldn’t have been taken out of the bullpen. He established himself as a candidate to be either the Mets closer or set-up man next year.
Pedro Feliciano
8 of 20
Grade: B+
Stats: (3-6, 3.30, 1.53)
Feliciano was the most used pitcher in the major leagues this year. He made 92 appearances. Feliciano was a very useful out of the Mets bullpen and was one of the bright spots on the team this year.
Elmer Dessens
9 of 20
Grade: B+
Stats: (4-2, 2.30, 1.21)
The soft tossing right-hander was one of the bigger surprises on the Mets this season. Dessens has appeared to revitalize his career over the past two years with the Mets, but at age 39 he doesn’t have many years left. He should be a piece of the Mets bullpen again next season.
Manny Acosta
10 of 20
Grade: B
Stats: (3-2, 1 SV, 2.95, 1.21)
After he was claimed off waivers from the Atlanta Braves, Acosta was another surprise to come out of the Mets bullpen. He was able to strike out hitters with regularity this season, posting a career-high strikeout rate of 9.5 K/9.
Raul Valdes
11 of 20
Grade: C-
Stats: (3-3, 4.91, 1.47)
The 32-year-old rookie had a poor debut season. Valdes managed to hold down a spot in the Mets bullpen for most of the year despite his struggles. Valdes had a good start in the last series of the year, going 5.1 innings, allowing only one run while striking out five.
Fernando Nieve
12 of 20
Grade: D
Stats: (2-4, 6.00, 1.41)
After pitching well in eight starts for the Mets last season, Nieve earned a spot in the Mets bullpen. Unfortunately, this was a disappointing experience as Nieve could not harness the success he had last year.
John Maine
13 of 20
Grade: F
Stats: (1-3, 6.13, 1.82)
After a few good years with the Mets, Maine struggled mightily this year. He will most likely be remembered for his disagreements with the coaching staff this year. He was called a “habitual liar” by pitching coach Dan Warthen. He did not pitch after being removed after throwing five pitches in a start on May 20.
Jenrry Mejia
14 of 20
Grade: C+
Stats: (0-4, 4.62,1.69)
Many people believe the Mets mishandled Jenrry Mejia this season. They say that his growth as a starter was stunted when the Mets decided to give him a spot in the bullpen on Opening Day. Mejia pitched well out of the bullpen, but the Mets decided to stretch him back into a starter. Mejia made three starts in the majors this year and had a 7.94 ERA in those appearances. Mets fans can only hope that the team did not impede Mejia’s development.
Pat Misch
15 of 20
Grade: B-
Stats: (0-4, 3.82, 1.25)
The Mets used Misch as both a spot starter and the long man out of the bullpen this year. Misch did a serviceable job in both of these roles. He had great control this year, allowing just one walk per nine innings.
Bobby Parnell
16 of 20
Grade: B
Stats: (0-1, 2.83, 1.40)
Parnell proved to be one of the Mets' better relief pitchers this season. His control improved this year as he posted career highs in both his strikeout and walk rates. His strikeout rate was 8.5 K/9 and his walk rate was 2.1 BB/9.
Dillon Gee
17 of 20
Grade: Incomplete
Stats: (2-2, 2.18, 1.21)
Gee had a great showing as a September call-up. His five starts have put him in the running to earn a rotation spot next season.
Ryota Igarashi
18 of 20
Grade: F
Stats: (1-1, 7.20, 1.55)
While the Mets did well with one Japanese import, Ryota Igarashi was a complete failure. He did not adjust to the American game and it is evident in his numbers. Igarashi had control problems. He walked over five batters per nine innings.
Sean Green
19 of 20
Grade: Incomplete
Stats: (0-0, 3.86, 1.61)
Green missed most of the season due to a rib injury. He returned to the Mets as a September call-up and pitched well. He should be a member of the bullpen again next season.
Tobi Stoner
20 of 20
Grade: Incomplete
Stats: (0-1, 3.86, 1.71)
Stoner only pitched 2.1 innings this season. He has been a starter in the minors but has a chance to make the Mets roster as a reliever next season.
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