Mets Triple-A moving again

[mandrake]

http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/mets/post/_/id/57024/mets-morning-briefing-9-17-12

Major league clubs and minor league teams began a 15-day window Sunday to seek new affiliation agreements. As expected, the Toronto Blue Jays and Triple-A Buffalo Bisons spoke and appear to be nearing a deal. That would push the Mets to the lone vacant affiliate, Las Vegas in the Pacific Coast League, which has been the home of the Blue Jays.

The Las Vegas skyline looks like it will become a familiar sight to Mets' Triple-A players.

Why did the Bisons want the Mets out of Buffalo? For one thing, their attendance slid each season during the four-year affiliation, to an all-time-low 515,000 in 2012. That partly had to do with the Mets' record. Over the four years of the affiliation, Mets farmhands went 260-313 in Triple-A. According to Bisons beat writer Mike Harrington, that was the third-worst winning percentage (.454) by an MLB club's farmhands in all of Triple-A over that four-year period, better than only the Twins with Rochester at .424 and the Padres with Portland and Tucson at .417.

"I would never question the Mets' effort, especially this year," Bisons GM Mike Buczkowski told Harrington in the Buffalo News. "They made a real effort to sign players, to keep our roster full. They did a lot of things to make us successful. It didn't just translate to victories. ... We get a bad rap that we're demanding a championship team. That's not what we're saying. We need a competitive team. Win more than you lose. Play some games in August that mean something."

Buffalo will be the second International League city to boot the Mets in the past six years. Norfolk kicked the Mets out after the 2006 season.


Ok, for people that keep making excuses for this franchise, and want everyone else to be a pollyana when it comes to this team, please explain why the largest cities in NEW YORK STATE have AAA farm clubs for the Blue Jays, the Nationals, and the Twins !!!! (The NYY chose Scranton because it was only 120 miles to NYC). Toronto may be close to Buffalo, but Syracuse is not close to Washington DC, and Rochester is not close to St Paul, MN !

[mandrake]

I forgot the Mets spent 2 seasons is New Orleans : http://theflushingfaithful.mlblogs.com/2012/08/ A few excerpts:

The Mets have been keeping their triple AAA affiliate in associated with the Buffalo Bisons for the past 4 years but apparently sources say that affiliation is about to end. The Bisons have been frustrated with the Mets for years for failing to field a quality Triple AAA team.

This would be the Mets 3rd Triple AAA franchise in the last 7 years. After the Mets were kicked out of Norfolk they went all the way to the Pacific Coast League to New Orleans for two years and then spent the next 4 in Buffalo.

Vegas is just an awful place to develop pitching. The ball flies and the infield is baked into a hard surface. The Pacific Coast League averages .279/.346/.432. At home, the Las Vegas 51s have hit .313/.386/.487. Yikes. Imagine how the Mets would be able to develop young pitchers like Zack Wheeler when the average player hits .313.

The reason this is happening is because the Mets have failed to develop a quality farm system for a long time now. Every organization needs top prospects but it appears that once the Mets find one they are rushed immediately to the big leagues, whether they are ready or not

[milladrive]

Speaking for myself, of course, I'm quite okay with this -- albeit we already knew the Mets' AAA would be out of Buffalo after this season -- despite the distance. I try to go to LV at least twice a year. As if I don't have plenty to do when I'm there, this'll be one more thing to enjoy during the baseball season.

[mandrake]

Speaking for myself, of course, I'm quite okay with this -- albeit we already knew the Mets' AAA would be out of Buffalo after this season -- despite the distance. I try to go to LV at least twice a year. As if I don't have plenty to do when I'm there, this'll be one more thing to enjoy during the baseball season.

Vegas may be good for a lot of fun, but not for evaluating talent. Imagine having a AAA team avg of .313 and when they are rushed up to the majors, they all hit like '5 tool' F-Mart. Top to bottom, the franchise is in shambles.

[milladrive]

Vegas may be good for a lot of fun, but not for evaluating talent. Imagine having a AAA team avg of .313 and when they are rushed up to the majors, they all hit like '5 tool' F-Mart. Top to bottom, the franchise is in shambles.

But that's a good thing, no? The worse off the franchise is, the sooner perhaps they'll be sold. It may not pan out that way soon enough, and the AAA will probably not be in Vegas for very long, but I'm okay right now with the organization in shambles.

[VIBaseball]

A few years ago the idea crossed my mind that the Mets could wind up like the St. Louis Browns. They're inching a little further along that path.

[NJYankeeFan]

Serves them right for blocking the Yanks from playing in Newark this year.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I997 using Tapatalk 2

[esplanade]

http://espn.go.com/blog/new-york/met...iefing-9-17-12
Ok, for people that keep making excuses for this franchise, and want everyone else to be a pollyana when it comes to this team, please explain why the largest cities in NEW YORK STATE have AAA farm clubs for the Blue Jays, the Nationals, and the Twins !!!! (The NYY chose Scranton because it was only 120 miles to NYC). Toronto may be close to Buffalo, but Syracuse is not close to Washington DC, and Rochester is not close to St Paul, MN !

I'm not making excuses for the team but I am tickled by the support there seems to be for Omar Minaya on this board. This AAA trainwreck was Omar's doing 100%. He basically gave the back of his hand to the minor league affiliates at every turn. Had it not been for Omar, we'd still have our working agreement with Norfolk.

As it is, the biggest problem I see with the Vegas affiliation is the additional cost of flying players (and others) back and forth. In an organization already pinching every penny so hard they scream, that's not an effective or efficient use of team funds.

[Strawman]

Ike Davis may finally consent to going down to Triple-A.

[theAmazingMet]

Screw Buffalo if they dont want our players. "we want meaningful games in August" dude so do we, sometimes it takes more than 4 years to develop players, and replenish a farm system. I really could care less about my minor league team fielding a winning team, only that they develop talent that will help the New York Mets. Stcokpiling great veteran AAA players may make your AAA team win, but they aint gonna help your MLB squad. Las Vegas stinks logistically, but I love that alien logo on the cap. I may have to buy one now!

[mandrake]

Screw Buffalo if they dont want our players. "we want meaningful games in August" dude so do we, sometimes it takes more than 4 years to develop players, and replenish a farm system. I really could care less about my minor league team fielding a winning team, only that they develop talent that will help the New York Mets. Stcokpiling great veteran AAA players may make your AAA team win, but they aint gonna help your MLB squad. Las Vegas stinks logistically, but I love that alien logo on the cap. I may have to buy one now!

NY Mets 1984- 1992 winning record every season. 1 WC. 2 Division titles. Too bad there was no wild card...possible dynasty run. Maybe 5 other trips to the post season there.

Tidewater Tides 1981-1992 winning record at AAA each season.
Jackson Mets 1981-1987 winning record at AA each season. There could be some correlation between winning (or losing) at AA and AAA and winning (or losing) at MLB.

NY Mets have now worn out their welcome in three AAA cities since 2006. Stability in the organization? Winning at every level?

[theAmazingMet]

I'm the first person to call out this organization when they mess up, but the Norfolk situation is on the Norfolk Tides not the Mets. They sold out to Baltimore, and never gave us a shot to reup. New Orleans was an "OMG what are we gonna do now?" move of necessity. The Mets didnt want to go there anymore than we want to go to Las Vegas now. Really Buffalo is the only city that we wore out our welcome due to an inferior product.

[mandrake]

Mets AAA in Vegas

Well, after the city of Buffalo told the Mets they were no longer welcome and that Buffalo signed a AAA contract with the Toronto Blue Jays, the Mets were off to Vegas. Whatever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas? But don't Mets fans want to see Zack Wheeler someday leave Vegas?

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/mets/harper-wheeler-spinning-place-las-vegas-article-1.1328895

And right now, after Wheeler’s second straight shaky start on Thursday night, his 5.79 ERA for Triple-A Las Vegas is enough to wonder what the heck is happening with the ballyhooed pitching prospect.

Other MLB teams have decided that Vegas is definitely NOT the place to develop young pitchers. The Yankees are in Scranton. The Phillies are Allentown. The Red Sox are In Pawtucket, etc. These AAA teams are basically two hours away (or less) by car from their MLB team. The Mets choose to be about 2,500 miles away, out in a desert where the ball explodes off the bat.

Let's hope they somehow turn Wheeler around ! And Thank God Harvey was not pitching out in Vegas.

[theAmazingMet]

Well, after the city of Buffalo told the Mets they were no longer welcome and that Buffalo signed a AAA contract with the Toronto Blue Jays, the Mets were off to Vegas. Whatever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas? But don't Mets fans want to see Zack Wheeler someday leave Vegas?

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/mets/harper-wheeler-spinning-place-las-vegas-article-1.1328895

And right now, after Wheeler’s second straight shaky start on Thursday night, his 5.79 ERA for Triple-A Las Vegas is enough to wonder what the heck is happening with the ballyhooed pitching prospect.

Other MLB teams have decided that Vegas is definitely NOT the place to develop young pitchers. The Yankees are in Scranton. The Phillies are Allentown. The Red Sox are In Pawtucket, etc. These AAA teams are basically two hours away (or less) by car from their MLB team. The Mets choose to be about 2,500 miles away, out in a desert where the ball explodes off the bat.

Let's hope they somehow turn Wheeler around ! And Thank God Harvey was not pitching out in Vegas.

The Mets didn't have any choice. The Buffalo franchise pulled the rug out from under us, and Vegas was the only AAA location available. It was a move of necessity, not choice.

[milladrive]

The desert is hardly the place to evaluate pitching talent. The ball behaves in the dry air much like it does in Denver, due to the lack of moisture/humidity in the air. This was my one and only apprehension about the Mets being in LV. Well... that and the fact that it's a five-hour flight between LV and NYC. Notice how Edgin was recently optioned to AA Binghamton instead of AAA, for it's a way to keep players closer to home.

As much as I love Vegas, and as much as I think the city of two million residents could easily support a MLB team, I do wish the Mets' AAA was closer to home. I recently noticed that Orlando no longer has a AAA team since the Jays took Buffalo. Couldn't the Mets opt to move there? At very least, it's not much farther than New Orleans.