CHAT ROOM
Also, the Mets acquired minor-league SS Wilson Valdez from Cleveland for cash considerations. Valdez will be placed on the 25-man roster.
Here’s tonight’s line-up:
Angel Pagan, CF
Luis Castillo, 2B
David Wright, 3B
Gary Sheffield, LF
Fernando Tatis, 1B
Fernando Martinez, RF
Omir Santos, C
Ramon Martinez, SS
Livan Hernandez, P
This post was written by John Delcos
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go get em fernando…need some pop out of your bat young fella…enjoy the weird corners of RF
still absolutely hate
santos
martinez
pitcher
just dont get manuels obsession with santos and dislike of castro
and oh yea Daniel Murphy is definitely this team’s everyday first baseman…wonder why he is in a offensive funk? maybe it has to do with him getting very sporadic ABs
jim (1-2): Five of tonight’s starters weren’t on the Opening Day roster.-JD
Carlos Beltran will be out to at least Friday after receiving a cortisone injection for a bruised right knee.-JD
jim (2)
If you did not read my earlier post the reason Manuel likes Santos over Castro is because Santos is a much better defensive catcher. The stuff Castro does badly does not show up in the box score but it is very important to the game. Santos does all the little things very well and as long as Santos is here and hits above the Mendoza line he will play.
Hey, everyone.
Jim, I’m confused by what you have against Santos’s play — especially after his gamew-inning HR against the Red Sox over the weekend.
Santos has shown a knack for clutch hitting and good fielding. Castro has also been good. The cathcer who really isn’t doing much — when he’s healthy — is Brian Schneider.
When Schneider’s eligible to come off the DL, I’d keep Santos and send down Sean Green, who has added nothing to the bullpen.
I think Santos has played better overall than Castro, but he’ll go down anyway because he has options.-JD
The future starts today. FMart has been hitting well in Buffalo. Let’s see how he does here.
It would be interesting if he forces a stay in Queens.
dave (9): Ideally, you should be brought up to stay. If he plays lights out, there’s no reason why he shouldn’t stay.-JD
” But the number of players who post a .650 OPS in 2429 minor-league plate appearances, then magically become .750 OPS hitters in the major leagues … well, it pretty much doesn’t happen. It is rare enough that you don’t bet on it, any more than you bet on a dollar slot machine paying out $45 again and again.
You are happy when it happens, of course. Then you move on.
What you don’t do under any circumstances is cut loose a player like Ramon Castro, who has a career major-league OPS of .728-or 78 points higher than Santos’s career minor-league mark-who is also producing for you. ”
i love that santos has had a knack for hitting sac flys and hitting a bomb vs Paps but i just dont want to see the mets keep santos over castro at this point
if you look at santos peripheral #s (line drive rate, etc) it appears much of what has happened so far has been an aberration..but go omir as long as you are with our mets
as far as confidence when they are at the plate i got
castro
santos
schneider
8 The Mets will be making a mistake if they send Santos down. Why carry an ineffective pitcher like Green, just for the sake of having on another body on the pitching staff?
I’d take Nick Johnson, but would be cautious because of his injury history. In that regard, I’d be more inclined to go with Aubrey Huff. … I’d also be reluctant to give up the farm for either.-JD
3 catchers is a waste, especially with minayas knack to love to play short handed
jim (12): I’d go Santos, Castro and Schneider. I have no faith in Schneider offensively.-JD
i like the way santos has played but unless he is a very rare exception, his #s may suffer soon
JD- as much as i love santos HR vs Paps and GS this yr…his OBP is barely cracking .300…thats awful
Hi everyone – sorry I’m late
15 I disagree, Jim. Having a third catcher let’s you deepen the bench. Having an extraneous, ineffective pitcher like Sean Green serves no purpose.
jim (17): They probably will. Afterall, there’s a reason for why he’s been a career minor leaguer. But for this moment, he’s better at the plate than Castro.-JD
12
I agree. The problem with Castro is his D is not great and he gets injured every other day.
He was never as good as some here think he is, but he can be very good in stretches.
Don’t know what to think of Schneider. What I have seen of him I am not impressed with, but most of the pitchers have been quoted as liking him.
John(10)
That would be a nice problem to have.
Nice start by Hernandez. He only walked one in his last start at LA. He needs to be that sharp again tonight.-JD
i dont agree about him being better at the plate..maybe with situational hitting but as an overall hitter the #s dont lie
welcome annie, good 1st for livan
gil- ill agree on green but how does it deepen a bench..wouldnt you rather have another backup IF after what has happened
hey but santos has 10 RBI in his last 12 games, so keeeeep it rollin omir
John (8)Omir Santos has been a real help to this team, but he will go down because of his contract?
BTW, MASN Nationals telecast are absolutely terrible…the announcers (bob carpenter and rob dibble) are not good and OVERLY OVERLY biased when calling a game, ugh
Jim (25) Thanks for the welcome – guess we all should be glad to be indoors tonight.
jim (28): Can’t stand Dibble.-JD
annie- indeed, not the best evening for baseball but hey, a mets win would certainly make it a great one
thatta boy david…hit another one out sheff
25 We have plenty of guys who play infield positions already: Tatis (1B, 3B, 2b), R. Martinez (2b, ss, 3b), Murphy (1b), Valdez(ss, 2b). To maintain a third catcher (Both Castro and Santos would be eligible to pinch-hit) would cost nothing.
Sending out Sean Green doesn’t hurt the team.
good steal david…come on sheff, base hit here
Sheffield has surely made himself welcome to the Mets team, gave them all a Louisville Slugger bat last night
that ball was drilled, right at the CF though..come on livan
With all the injuries, now is time for Sheffield to come up big and earn his money.-JD
I have to wonder if he is doing all this clean…
if Sheffield is on the ollie perez pay scale..he has already earned his 400K
28 Jim, yopu’re absolutely right about the MASN crew. Carpenter — who was a briefly a Mets’ TV guy years ago — is particularly horible. And their color commentator position is a revolving door — Dibble, Don Sutton, Tom Paciorek…
Gil (32): I hear what you are saying, but don’t agree. Green is sticking around.-JD
annie 37- i really hope so annie. i believe he is, but who knows with HGH going untested in the mlb
Jim (28) what – no Fran Healy?
Why is Murphy out and Tatis in? Is goal to totally mess with the guy’s head? Lead him off in Boston for the weekend, sit him against the lefty on Monday, then let him stay on bench against righty on Tuesday.
i dont agree gil..i dont think we have enough in the middle IF with guys like castillo, martinez being injury risks. 3rd catcher which almost no one in baseball has, i think is viewed as a waste
37
I have no confidence that he is on the up and up.
pgershon- completely agree, makes 0 sense
jim (41) I’m sure there must be a way to test for HGH, but that MLB is using excuses not to.
37 41 Come on, you two! Four homers at this point and a .270 average is hardly a cause for suspicion. And Sheffield – having already been linked once to PEDs, would have to be a complete idiot to do it now and get caught.
annie- correct, there is…blood testing, but the union sure wont sign off on that
MASN announcers complaining big time about HR call yesterday
jim (49) is that what they use in the Olympics?
very nice DP, well done luis and ramon, livan
adam dunn having fun with wright at 3B..man id like to see him at 1B right now JD..you called for it, i didnt dislike it other than he is LH but i felt this team needed another OF bat throughout the offseason
Annie (47): There is no reliable test for HGH. Once there is, MLB will have tests.-JD
i believe so annie, i know they test for everything
Gil (48) these guys will do anything to keep that edge. Can you imagine just how frustrated the non users are??
great work livan, way to get out of it…here we go tatis then the mythical FMART
55 I agree that non-users should be frustrated — I am, as a fan. That’s the reason for my jaded take that fewer guys are juicing now not because they’ve alwas played fair or suddenly “gotten religion,” but because they can’t afford to get caught.
Non users? Who are they?
Fernando Martinez is on deck – Howie has taken note of him.
For anyone that was wondering…Ollie P just walked in a run with the bases loaded in the 2nd down in Buffalo
hopefully a mets OF for decades to come
rmk- thanks for the update…thats embarassing, unbelievable
Tiffany (58): Your guess is as good as mine. Be honest, would you be surprised at anybody?-JD
dubious beginning
Cool. I think the kid uses that A.I.M. song from “Slumdog Millionaire” as his theme.
rmkmets (60) oh no..Coin Flip hasn’t changed, has he..
JD- i was very suprised by the manny revelation
rmkmets (60): The song remains the same as Led Zep once said.-JD
I’d be surprised to hear that Wayne Hagin was using. Other than that, everyone else is fair game.
jim (67): You’re kidding.-JD
60 rmk: That’s awful. And by the way, in case anyone’s wondering…YES, that was the real (bad) Tim Redding we witnessed on Sunday.
Jim (62), Annie (66), JD (68): Yeah he’s a lost cause
Oh no, not Omir Santos hurt
Tiffany (69): I’ll buy that. Don’t see Gary Cohen doing either.-JD
What would you give up for Oswalt?
Gees what the hell…no one on this team can stay healthy.
thatta boy omir…shut me up!
He’s not gonna be staying in this game
rmkmets (72): Yup. And he’s the Mets’ lost cause for two more years.-JD
rmkmets (72) another problem unsolved for Omar.
JD- yea i just felt manny was a natural phenom at hitting
Why would anybody in there right mind want Schneider back in place of santos, Schneider stinks.
Tiffany (75): He’s had his problems, so it wouldn’t be a huge package. If I’m going to put something together, I’d rather go after Jake Peavy.-JD
omar wants brian back just bc of that salary he is being paid
75 No way Oswalt, as a 10-and-5 man, approves a deal to New York. He’s a Mississippi country boy who wants no part of the Northeast. Plus, he and Lance Berkman are personal pets of the Astros’ owner.
Tomg(82): I agree. I never understood why he was given so much importance. He’s a classic defensive catcher. He can’t hit a lick and it’s not like he’s some big influential guy in the locker room.
68
Nice
Oswalt is going to be available. Imagine him in the front of the rotation, paired with Santana. What would you give up to get him?
thatta boy RAMON! hahah making me eat my words about the 7,8, combo…well done boys
Ramon Martinez … he’s not using. That was a natural double.-JD
The scrubs coming thru. Way to go Ramon
JD (83): I thought Peavy was really focused only on the midwest, mainly the Cubs. Wouldn’t he just turn down a trade to NYC?
Tiffany (88): He will be available. I’d give up on Niese. I wouldn’t give him Niese and F-Mart.-JD
very nice omir and ramon..no answer here livan, mow em down
If you told me the bottom of the Mets order would be the reason the Mets are up 1-0, I would have thought you had one to many drinks.
83 No way Jake “I’d Only Be Happy Outside of San Diego If I’m Playing For a National League Middle America Team” Peavy would sign off on a deal to the Mets.
I expect the Brewers to steal him before July 31 the way they did with CC Sabathia.
Niese for sure. What about Murphy?
Tiffany,
I agree with our host(83)
JD- id give up niese in a package for a proven starter or power bat rather quickly
(92) rmkmets, yes you are 100%. Peavy wants to go to the midwest teams where he grew up.
tomg- hahah true and we’ll take it
rmkmets (92): Perhaps. But, if you make it worth his while with a contract extension he might change his mind.-JD
Why’d Anderson Hernandez only discover how to hit once the Mets gave up on him?
money certainly talks JD…come on livan get johnson here
(103) Gil, I think Anderson Hernandez only hits against the Mets.
97
If Murph is no longer in our plans, I would do it.
I think he is a man without a position on this team. The manager has no use for him and he doesn’t have the power to play 1B.
I like his attitude a lot. He has a plan at the plate and never gives up. He also works his ass off to get better. The other players on this team would do well to follow him.
Ollie P update:
3 IP, 3H, 1R, 4BB 4K 66 pitches thrown
can see a nick johnson base hit coming a mile away
Not only does peavy want to go to a midwest team but also the National League (Cubs and Cardinals).
dave im with you
105 Funny. I was actually at the 2006 game when Anderson hit a homer for the Mets against the Marlins (the day after the clincher) — one pitch after I told my guest at the game: “The reason why he hasn’t made it yet is because he can’t hit Major League pitching.”
well done tatis
(107)rmkmets, some things never change.
Dave (106): The manager is an idiot. The GM and the rest of the organization still seem to like Murphy and he’s done well at 1B. The problem is that he’s going thru a slump and they need to let him hit out of it. Manuel again playing with players’ heads by saying he’s gonna give him a chance then yanking him out for 2 days.
Here are some Mets that should be considered for trading when trying to land a big fish: Chruch, Murphy, Niese, Schneider — althought the trade value of all four has greatly diminished.
Jim
thanks.
I know he had major problems in OF this year. To some extent I do not blame the manager for cutting him loose. But he did grant him the LF position without earning it in Spring. Bad managing if you ask me.
114 rmk: I still would’ve traded Murphy in the off-season when his trade value was at its hghest. I like Murphy, but when looking at his performance at the plate, he still has a ways to go to prove he’s not the second coming of Mike Vail.
But will Murphy hit for enough power to warrant a position like 1B? Between his suspect glove and lack of power (at least at this point in his career), Murphy really is a man without a position. I’d have to think about including him in the right trade.
Mike Vail? If I remember correctly, Vail once said he had trouble hitting in Cincy because of the time-zone difference.
This is nuts! There are already more than twice as many posts here as there were all of last night. How am I supposed to catch up?
I guess Luis is #2 because there is no one in the lineup who can control a bat?
1116 dave, great point about the manager anointing Murphy the team’s left-fielder before he could earn the job. But who knew he’d be as bad out there this year with the glove as he has been?
I don’t think I’d have a problem trading Murphy now. But, I agree with Gil (117) in that his value has been diminished. … I know Peavy doesn’t want to come here, but it is worth an effort to find out.-JD
I would use Murphy as part of a trade. I don’t think Murphy is going to be the next Pete Rose. Murphy has little power and I’m not convinced he will be a .300 hitter.
Hi Jeff (120) you are a quick reader
119 You may be right about Vail. But he had that 23-game hitting streak as a rookie back in ’75.
come on luis…productive AB here
(123) JD, I’m pretty sure I remember reading that he doesn’t want to come to New York (yankees or mets).
come on David
Jeff (120): We might have set a record for the quickest time reaching 100 comments. Last night was slow because of Memorial Day.-JD
Vail in 75; Jefferies in 88. I have a special place in my heart for those late-season, flash-in-the-pan call-ups.
unlucky david…good baserunning pagan
come on gary, drive one in here…productive out
By the way, was anyone else as amazed as I was to see Big Papi reduced to a mere mortal this past weekend?
green light 3-0??? i say yes
(131) Tiffany, good point, that’s what I think Murphy is, flash in the pan call up at the end of the year.
Question: Where would the Mets be right now without Sheffield? Can someone please make sure Jim Leyland is on our Christmas card list going forward?
131 Tiffany: Don’t forget Timo Perez in the 2000 post-season.
tomg (128): You are right, but people have been known to change their mind. Mike Mussina, for one, never wanted to come to NY. At least that was what he said when he was with the Orioles. … Delgado said he didn’t want to come here originally.-JD
come on tatis, solid productive AB here
Gil (134) No.
tomg- i think murphys approach and good eye will make him more than that
(134) Gil, speaking of being on the juice. Ortiz and manny were the best of friends in Boston. I think they shared a few roids.
(142)Jim bmore, only time will tell.
we’ll take it tatis…come on fmart!
there we go!..1st career RBI for Fmart
and his first of hopefully many rbi’s
F Mart showed some speed there.
What an onslaught!!!!-JD
come on omir
hahah well played JD
You know, JD, I once sat behind a woman at Yankee Stadium who said during every one of his ABs, “Don Slaught — they call him ‘onslaught.’” It was both unforgettable and unforgivable.
i like how omir seems to battle no matter what…not the most talented…but he has some “grit”
While we’re wondering about how folks are doing in the Minor Leagues, though he’s no longer a Met, you might be interested to know Lastings Milledge is hitting .253 in AAA, with a .277 OBP, no homers and 4 RBI.
gil(122)
I did not think he would be this bad. but i honestly was shocked that a bad glove IF was that good in LF last year.
gil- that trade looks blah for both teams as of now
Gil (154): Don’t miss him at all.-JD
143 Entirely possible, the same way Ken Caminiti and Greg Vaughn may have been roidin’ roommates with the Pads back in ’98.
156 157 Yup. A trade that helped neither side. I hate to say that because Church looked so damn impressive the first half of last year.
Is it just me, or does Omar look even grayer on TV tonight?
gil(154)
Lastings is just one of many athletes with the physical gifts to be a quality pro player who may never be more than a role player at best because he is an hall of famer before his career got started.
(160) Gil, any GM would develop gray hair quickly when half the team goes down with injuries and your scrambling to fill the holes.
Gil — I think the front office has been trying to light a fire under Church for some time now. If you think about how they didn’t hesitate in bringing in Sheffield and how they just seemed to be waiting to give F Mart an everyday job, it all points toward a lack of confidence in Church. I still think Church can be a productive, above-average player — but he seems shell shocked, a la Nick Evans.
160, 162- especially when that GM struggles to manage a roster
church never seems to change his approach no matter the count…long swing
very nice, love seeing those DPs
I prefer DTs myself…
161 you’re right, dave. Lastings is the latest in a long line…Ryan Thompson, Nigel Wilson, David Nied, Kevin Maas, Rico Brogna.
But Milledge made an ass of himself when he stole Chuck Carr’s “Willie Mays Hayes” act. And at least Carr had one great year, while Milledge has only mustered one decent one.
163 I don’t get Church at all. He looked like he was poised last first-half to have a HUGE breakout year.
Then…well, concussions screwed up the rest of his year, then this year?
How much of a fire would you need to light under him, anyway?
What about Hensley Muelens? Don’t forget him.
great speed from pagan
(169) I’m wondering if management thinks he should have recovered from the concussions much sooner. Between Sheffield and F Mart — and the way Jerry has seemed to distance himself from him — it would appear that they have limited patience with Church this year.
Nothing against the new backup SS Valdez personally, but out of all the shorstops in professional baseball, the best we could acquire is a 31-year-old guy with a lifetime .211 ML batting average?
The move reeks of Wilson Delgado, circa 2004.
(173) Yeah, but he’s disposable, right?
(173) Gil, it’s Omar at is best.
anyone notice thw awful AB by castillo there??? then barely even jogging down the 1st baseline….that type of hey we are up 3 runs already attitude is not acceptable and leads to this team looking like its going thru the motions
Tiffany (172): Management has to take some responsibility for not recovering sooner. They didn’t handle that well at all.-JD
174 Then why make a move to acquire someone disposable? Why not call up Jonathon Malo, who Manuel liked so much in Spring Training?
gil 178- maybe omar is scared if he brings up a guy manuel likes he will start jerking around reyes playing time.
I’ve posted here many times. If i had my way Omar and his cronies would have been gone last year.
179 Omar’s not perfect, tomg, but overall, I still think he’s done a much better job than his predecessors, Jim Duquette and Steve Phillips. Livan Hernandez and Gary Sheffield are looking like good signings right about now.
(178) Because you’d have to clear room on the 40-man roster and end up giving the player service time (you don’t want that clock ticking too soon), all because you need a warm body for two weeks. Realistically, if Reyes and Cora are back within the next 10 days, you won’t need Valdez, especially with Ramon Martinez as your AAA insurance policy.
SANTOSMANIA….Catch it!!!
(181) Gil, you are right, I agree but I’m still not happy with the job Omar and Bernazard have done.
yea but just bc he has been better than inept GMS doesnt make him great…OP for his 36 mil looks pretty awful in comparison to 2 signings for a total of 1 mil
GREAT play by Santos there!
Gil (181): I’d agree that Omar has done better than his predecessors.-JD
i dont love or hate omar…he has been great at big signings for the most part, solid at finding under the radar guys, and awful at dealing with roster moves
great play angel and omir
after all those Strikeouts to start the yr, it is a nice feeling that i was surprised david K’d there
jim (189): I was never concerned Wright wouldn’t find it.-JD
mets need to not be satisfied…that has been the problem in the past..keep fighting and TACK ON
Where would they be without Sheffield?
John (187)I agree with you about Omar, I think he’s done remarkably well despite the Wilpon’s restrictions.
tiffany- in an even bigger pickle, and even less pop in the lineup with these injuries..imagine when healthy
reyes
castillo
beltran
delgado
wright
sheffield
fmart??/church
schneider/castro/santos
P
annie- i dont consider 150 mil payroll much of a restriction though
outta here for the evening folks…Go get em Mets…keep battling fellas…tonight and overall with all the injuries
Lets Go Mets!
Shoot…damn thunderstorm here is messing up the SAT feed…
jim (195) The restrictions are new – it’s the Maddoff scandal and what it did to the Wilpons’ investments.
182 Props to you, Tiffany, for explaining the roster moves.
Yeah, thanks Tiffany for the roster explanations.-JD
Valdez is the Nelson Figueroa of shortstops: A warm body suitable for easy disposal.
Tiffany (201): Good analogy.-JD
Funny…Kevin Burkhardt skipped over that awful Mets home jersey they wore in ’93 and ’94 when they altered the “Mets” in script. I call that one the Doc Gooden suspended because of positive drug testing model.
The key, of course, is that F Mart isn’t warm body suitable for easy disposal. That’s bad news for Church.
201 Tiffany, I think you’ve just coined baseball’s newest acronym. Valdez is a WABOSUFED.
Sounds like something someone should have coined on The Sopranos.
Those scoreless middle innings may come back to bite the Mets again tonight, now that the Nationals are in play.
OT – John – It was interesting to read about your memory of Judge Sonia Sotomayor earlier today. Is it only the baseball connection?
Good job by Hernandez.-JD
Do you let him go back out for the eighth?
Where would the Mets be without Sheffield?
Have to think this baby is over.-JD
Is this mic on?
Testing….one, two, three…
This umpire is a total dope. If you’re going to warn both teams after that first pitch, then toss the pitcher after he actually follows thru and hits the batter!
Tiffany (210): Sheffield has justified the signing. He’s been great. … Yes, I’d push it with Livan. I’d give him until the first base runner.-JD
Ga-ry! Ga-ry!
JD (215): I think Livan might try to bean one of these batters in the 8th for some payback
Sheff may be a jerk in person…
But he’s OUR jerk.
He’s made a believer out of me.
Go Sheff!
That was a disgraceful call. I hate it when the umps quit like that. He should be reprimanded.-JD
rmkmets (217): If that pitch were shoulder high he might’ve gotten tossed.-JD
What the hell … send him out for the ninth.-JD
I love it when pitchers get an ovation like this when they come to the plate.-JD
JOhn (222) Well deserved in this case
Wow. We might see a good old-fashioned complete game!
Howie has put this game ‘in the books’. It sure will be memorable for Livan Hernandez who was the winning pitcher for the first complete game for the Mets at Citi Field.
Santana tomorrow…
That was artistic.
Brilliant.
Way to go, Livan.
Best Mets pitching effort since Johan’s masterpiece in Shea’s penultimate game last year.
Wow … a complete game.-JD
Wow.
Complete game from our #5/throw away/innings eater/bottom of the scrap heap pitcher.
Nice win.
I’m confused. How come thousand-year-old Livan Hernandez can pitch a complete game, but none of the Mets’ young guns can go more than six?
Jeff (229): Yeah, go figure.-JD
good win for the metsies…great game out of livan, well done sir…go get em tomorow boys, score some runs behind johan and get the sweep..get greedy