Parting shot: Jonathan Niese takes jab at Mets’ defense after trade to Pirates
Whether he intended to or not, Jonathan Niese surely ruffled some feathers on his way out of New York on Wednesday.
Hours after being traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for second baseman Neil Walker, Niese was already praising the Pirates, but made sure to specifically praise their team defense. Not unusual after a trade, but his phrasing came across as a passive-aggressive jab at the Mets defense that played behind him.
Just so we have the proper context here, Rob Biertempfel posted the complete quote at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
“I didn’t enjoy facing the Pirates; they have a great lineup,” Niese said. “But, I’m sure what I’ll appreciate more than anything is the way they play defense. I’m looking forward to that.”
[Done Deals: Mets add more infield depth, sign Asdrubal Cabrera for two years]
Indeed, Niese was in full praise the Pirates’ mode, but pointing out the defense wasn’t an accident. It would seem that’s been stuck in his craw for awhile now, and it came flying out the first chance he got on Wednesday.
Of course, having a good defense behind him is every pitcher’s desire. Niese is no different, though his career low 5.8 strikeouts per nine innings in 2015 makes it more essential for his survival moving forward. He’s a contact pitcher, one with a career ground-ball rate of 54.5 percent, so he needs as many of those as possible turned into outs.
The Pirates defense can cover some ground too. They led MLB in total chances (6,459), putouts (4,469) and assists (1,868) in 2015. They also made 122 errors, the second most in MLB, but sometimes that’s the price of being aggressive.
The Mets weren’t far down the list. They had 6,075 chances overall, good for 12th in MLB. Their 88 errors were tied for the 10th fewest, but most would again agree that having the Pirates defense behind them is more desirable. Especially when you factor in the outfield, which in Pittsburgh features Andrew McCutchen, Starling Marte and Gregory Polanco.
[Related: Hot Stove Digest: Yovani Gallardo is looking for a big deal]
Meanwhile, those who watch the Mets regularly would point out that Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom and Noah Syndergaard weren’t hampered by the defense. Obviously their dominant strikeout totals helped, but Niese wasn’t winning many people over recently with his inconsistency. He allowed 20 home runs in 2015, second most on the Mets, and was especially bad after the All-Star break, posting a 5.00 ERA in 12 starts.
If ever a pitcher needed a change of scenery, Niese would be it. But if things don’t go as planned in Pittsburgh, he might be advised to bite his tongue
More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports:
– – – – – – –
Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
