Now that I’m not watching Mets games every night, I can return to my end-of-season recaps.  We resume by taking a look at some of the guys who pitched in New Orleans in 2008.

LHP Jon Niese – L/L – 6’4” 215 lbs – 7^th Rd ’05 – b. 10/27/86

Niese had a very good season. His increased attention to his own physical conditioning paid big dividends.

At this point, Mets fans have seen Niese live a few times. They’ve seen the big curveball. They’ve seen the fringy 88-91 mph fastball that loses life as the game wears on. The changeup that at times was good – hey, Mike Cameron swung through it. Niese says he learned a cutter. Planning around young pitchers is tough, just ask the Yankees, or Mets fans about generation K, but the most likely scenario is that Niese will go to spring training in 09 with a chance to win a rotation job.

Eddie Kunz – R/R – 6’6” 265 – 2^nd rd ’07 – 4/8/86

Kunz did not acquit himself well in either AAA or the big leagues in 2008. However, he reached the big leagues with just 76.2 innings split between SSA Brooklyn, the Arizona Fall League, AA and AAA.

There are some things to like about Kunz. He’s big. He’s a great quote. Most importantly, he throws a nasty, nasty sinker at 94 or 95 mph from a low ¾ arm slot. It’s a plus MLB sinker. His slider can be tough on righties.

There are some things not to like about Kunz. With some violence in his delivery, scouts are concerned about whether he’ll ever have good command. Kunz low armslot is a liability against lefties against whom he doesn’t have a second offering. He is uncomfortable throwing his slider to lefties. In college, he used a changeup to lefties, but the Mets had him focus on his sinker/slider combo early in his professional career.

Kunz really is not far from helping in an MLB bullpen. His ceiling is up to him. If he can find a way to neutralize lefties – through the development of his slider, a return to his changeup, or the addition of a splitter – he could eventually grow into a closers role.

Bobby Parnell – R/R – 6’4” 200 lbs – 9^th rd ’05 – b 9/8/84

Parnell didn’t exactly dominate AA or AAA as a starter, but the Mets, short on arms, brought up the young flamethrower and tossed him in the bullpen. And it looks like that’s where his future lies. Parnell can hit 95 mph, giving him plus velocity, his only plus offering. Neither his changup nor his slider was an average big league pitch when I saw him live in New Britain in his final AA start. The velocity alone isn’t enough to be a successful MLB reliever, but it’s a good start.