Tag Archives: Major League

Apr 06

April 6.10: Wright steps up for his team.

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David Wright spoke in basic, but his smile told a much more complex story.

First inning, Citi Field, yesterday afternoon and Wright was rounding the bases after hitting a two-run, opposite-field homer off Josh Johnson … his smile carrying him as much as his legs.

Wright, who seemingly talked himself out of hitting for power early in the season, and later that lost summer was felled with a concussion after taking a Matt Cain fastball to his head, had just gotten the Mets off to a fast start in turning the page from a disastrous 2009.

Could one swing of the bat set the tone for a summer?

“I don’t put too much stock into home runs,’’ said Wright, who hit only ten of them last year, one of them last Opening Day he was quick to remind when the “tone’’ word surfaced.

Logic says no, that Mets 7, Marlins 1, was simply one game, but the game gave us a glimpse of what could happen when Wright’s team puts it all together for an afternoon. Yesterday was a blue print of what needs to happen.

The Mets need pitching more than power and Johan Santana was superb. And, with their suspect rotation, they need the bullpen late and Fernando Nieve gave them two sterling innings and Francisco Rodriguez was perfect.

Last summer, the Mets hit a major league low 95 homers – the only team not to hit 100 – so their offense must generate runs and take advantage of what is offered. So many opportunities were wasted last year, but yesterday they parlayed three Florida errors into four runs. A gift, yes, but too many times last year they came away empty in similar spots.

The new guys, Gary Matthews, Jason Bay and Rod Barajas had two hits apiece, and Matthews showed he can cover center until Carlos Beltran’s return.

“I think it was an all-around good effort,” Wright said. “We caught the ball, we pitched well and obviously had some timely hitting. You can’t ask for much more than that, first game of the season.’’

Wright is correct, it’s only one game, but it’s better than if it had been one game the other way. For a team coming off two late season collapses and a free-fall summer, that played with frustrating mediocrity this spring, winning sure as hell beats losing.

“By no stretch of the imagination are we where we want to be right now,’’ said manager Jerry Manuel, who looks at winning in a more personal, job-preserving vein. “The important thing is that as you put the pieces into place that you win games.

“We played well. We played all 27 outs.’’

There will be times this summer when they don’t. All teams, even champions, have those moments. And, there will be times this summer when the smile Wright wore yesterday will be a frown.

But, it was finally nice to see him smile.

“It’s good to see David get started,’’ Jeff Francoeur said. “David has to step up. It has to be his team.’’

And, yesterday it was.

Mar 05

March 5.10: Mets still interested in Beimel.

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Obviously, signing Kiko Calero doesn’t quite cure all that ails the Mets’ bullpen ills, which is why they remain interested in free-agent lefty Joe Beimel.

The Mets have on the table a one-year, deal for less than $2 million, and considering we’re already into spring training with the first week of games it doesn’t appear the phone will be ringing anytime soon.

Beimel would be a good addition as it would take some of the pressure off Pedro Feliciano. You can’t go wrong with two lefties in the pen.

Mar 04

March 4.10: Mejia on Tap for Today.

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Knuckleballer R.A. Dickey gets the start today against St. Louis, and Jason Bay, David Wright and Jeff Francoeur will make their spring training debuts, but arguably the most interesting moment of the day could be the appearance of 20-year-old prospect Jennry Mejia, whom manager Jerry Manuel admits is raw, but is also making noises about using him as a reliever.

And, in a comment that will do nothing but add pressure and expectations, Darryl Strawberry said his cutter reminded him of Mariano Rivera. Easy Darryl, easy Darryl.

Mejia has electric stuff, the kind scouts drool over and makes one wonder about future dominance as a starter. Mejia doesn’t have the command or pitch variety to be a starter now, but he could be a one-trick pony out of the pen. However, command is still command, and that’s important in any role and right now he’s more a thrower than a pitcher.

I saw how the Mets rushed Eddie Kunz – who is still struggling – and Bobby Parnell and I don’t want the same thing to happen to Mejia. If Mejia is to make the major league roster, he needs a defined role and a manager with the patience not to yank him out of a role with the first sign of struggle.

It’s easy to get seduced by a high-90s fastball, but most scouts say Mejia is not ready for prime time. Sure, it would be nice to fast forward a year or two, but that’s not realistic.

NOTE: No word yet as to why, but Jose Reyes was scratched from today’s line-up.

Feb 26

Feb. 26.10: Loose threads.

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Sorry, but my internet was down until recently. Let me catch you up on some of what’s going in spring training.

* Not pleased with their bullpen and not wanting to burn out Pedro Feliciano, the Mets are searching for another lefty reliever. Toward that end, the Mets made an offer to free-agent Joe Beimel, the former Dodger. Beimel will take some of the load off Feliciano and give more depth to the pen.

* Jennry Mejia was wild during batting practice. The scouting reports on him are that he’s got a strong arm and throws hard, but doesn’t always know where it’s going. Mejia is a prospect worth watching – on the minor league level this season. They would be rushing him if they kept him on the major league level this season.

* The Mets will hold an intrasquad game Monday at Tradition Field. Nelson Figueroa will get the start against the Braves Tuesday when the exhibition schedule begins.

Feb 10

Feb. 10.10: Around the Horn.

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Responding to some news items:

REPORT: Mets out of money?

REPORT: Mets out of money?


* Fox Sports.com says the Mets are out of money, which is preventing them from signing Rob Barajas, and kept them from Joel Pineiro.

Considering nobody has access to the Mets’ finances outside the team, I don’t know how they could report that and be totally accurate. Maybe the Mets just don’t want to spend the money. A team out of money doesn’t spent $66 million on Jason Bay.

I think the Mets looked at the FA landscape, saw they couldn’t win without breaking the bank and opted just to be competitive instead. Competitive keeps the fans coming all summer.

* I do think, however, it is a mistake not to take a look at Chien-Ming Wang. Reports have been good on his shoulder and would be worth the gamble. Certainly, he would have come for less than Ben Sheets, another injury gamble.

* I was pleased to see Keith Hernandez working with Daniel Murphy and Nick Evans. I always knew he would if he were asked. Not to use a valuable resource like that is foolish.

In a conference call, Hernandez said: “For Dan last year, in midseason, to have to move over to first base and basically learn on the job at the major-league level, that’s a lot to ask; and I just thought that he really did admirably. I was surprised at how he played first base. It was much better than I expected.’’

* ESPN is reporting the Mets are close to re-signing first baseman Mike Jacobs.