The Bad News Mets posted by Robert Shatzkin

Yes, the Mets have been decimated by injuries. They have lost more of their core players then any team I can think of in recent history. They have a built-in excuse for losing. Trying to compete every night with role players and rookies is hard. Yes, I understand. But the Mets play terrible defense, they make mental errors, they throw to the wrong base, they drop balls, they don't run out pop-ups, they give up hits to bottom of the order hitters, they WALK OPPOSING PITCHERS and they don't show any willingness to fight when they get behind. And all of this points to the manager. It points to a lackadaisical culture created from the top. Whether or not Jerry and his staff condone this type of play is beside the point. The fact that it doesn't seem like he is willing or capable of correcting it means that something must be done. The players must be held accountable for their mistakes. If you don't run out a pop-up, you dont play, plain and simple. If Jerry can't convey that message then Omar needs to find someone who can. When you lose your superstars, playing smart, crisp, fundamental baseball becomes that much more important. You need to rely on defense, pitching and baserunning more than ever. And it starts with the skipper.Continue reading "The Bad News Mets"

Links posted by Erick Pacheco

http://www.wdscore.com/index.html?scv=tv&tv_uid_in=1042 Mets

GIANTS LINK:  http://www.freedocast.com/badbeatPASSWORD: meganfox    

CARDINALS LINK:  http://www.freedocast.com/badbeat PASSWORD: meganfox 

Frankie serves up some spark for New York...(no, not K-Rod) posted by Cesar Valverde

There's a new face on the New York pro baseball scene. His name is Francisco. Sorry Mets fans, I'm not talking about K-Rod, who granted has been perfect this year in saves opportunities except for that 1 save opportunity that slipped away when a route pop fly by second baseman Luis Castillo was dropped. A.J. Burnett might as well have snuck behind him during his interview on SNY and stuffed a whipped cream pie in his face.

Anyway, I'm talking about Yankees rookie catcher Francisco Cervelli. In Wednesday night's victory against the Atlanta Braves, his home run brought revival to the Yankees offense. Check out the drama here: Joe Girardi gets kicked out of the game for arguing that call on a play at first base. (Replays show that Brett Gardner was safe) Next up is Frankie Cervelli.

Let's set the stage here. The Braves are up 1-0. The Yankees up to this point had been shutout for 14 CONSECUTIVE INNINGS. Frankie steps up to the plate and BANG! He hits his first career home run. What a clutch hit! Some might say that it was Girardi's tossing that sparked up the offense. Some might say it was Brian Cashman's surprise appearance. I believe it was Cervelli's homer. Ever since Cervelli got called up to be the everyday catcher during Jorge Posada's and Jose Molina's stints on the DL, he's been serving up key hit after key hit whether playing every day or coming off the bench. During that stint, Kevin Cash was his backup catcher. That's right! The same Kevin Cash who got called up by the Red Sox when Doug Mirabelli, Jason Varitek's backup catcher when they won the World Series in 2007, went on the DL. Cash may not have played much that year, but he still has a World Series ring. Girardi took a risk on a player with no AAA ball experience over a backup catcher with a World Series ring and it paid off! What's Frankie's style? What's he like?

The 2009 New York Mets are Finally the Underdogs posted by Herb Uzzi

This isn't the way Jerry Manuel and Omar Minaya drew things up in the offseason.

The Mets put yet another star on the disabled list, this time center fielder Carlos Beltran. He joins Carlos Delgado and Jose Reyes on the DL, and that's just in the lineup.

Pitchers John Maine, Oliver Perez and J.J. Putz sit on the DL for the Mets, as well.

So why am I so optimistic?

Amazingly, the Mets have been able to stay in the NL East race, as today they sit just 1.5 games behind first-place Philadelphia.

But is that the reason?

Not fully. The Mets are finally the underdogs again. They were in 2006, when no matter how talented the Mets looked on paper, you had to be crazy to pick them to win the East over the Atlanta Braves. But that was the last time.

They were expected to blow through the league in 2007, which they did for five months before having a dreadful September and coughing up the division to the Phillies.

And then in the offseason, Minaya traded for ace pitcher Johan Santana, making the Mets favorites, yet again, for the 2008 season.

And when the bullpen and late-inning offense failed in 2008, the Mets added All-Star closers Putz and Francisco Rodriguez, once again making the Mets the trendy pick for the 2009 season.

But as we stand right now, with the Mets 34-32, sitting in second place and decimated by injury, the Mets are finally the underdogs.

No one knows how the heck they're going to get things done, how they're going to win games. No one is penciling in production for high-paid superstars. 

Lack of fundamentals causes Mets loss, Yankees win posted by Anthony Arroyo

I love the killer attitude by the New York Yankees in their recent 9-8 victory over cross-town rival New York Mets, but they shouldn't have won the game.

I'm much more of a Yankees fan than a Mets fan, but generally when it comes down to it, I am a baseball fan. What happened at second base to end the game was sloppy and could have very well been avoided.

There are times where one hand is necessary to catch a ball. This was not one of them.

Hey, Luis Castillo. The winning run was on base and there were two outs. Do everything possible to catch the ball. Hey, how about using two hands to catch the ball, assuring that you make the catch. I'm just a fan, and it's just a suggestion, but it might be something you should do next time out.

If he catches it, K-Rod gets the save and all is well with Mets fans. Instead, Rodriguez gets the loss in an event that could have easily been avoided.

And it's not like that is something new to the club. Check this quote out from Ryan Church just last month...

5 Trades that Need to Happen in Major League Baseball posted by Daniel Doyle

These 5 deals need to be done by July 31st.

With the Nate McLouth trade still fresh on our minds, what other deals appear to be necessary, if not imminent? Atlanta was able to fill perhaps the single biggest hole of any team, in its lack of outfield production. Here are the five trades that need to be made sooner than later.

5.) Nick Johnson traded to the Boston Red Sox.

This doesn't seem like a blockbuster of a deal, but the Red Sox do not need any kind of overhaul, just a slight tinkering to really rev their engine. Ortiz appears to be in a funk that he may not get out of. At least not this year. In the American League you must get production out of your DH spot. Johnson would be a nice upgrade and could spell Kevin Youkilis occasionally at first base.

4.) Jose Valverde traded to the Toronto Blue Jays.

Scott Downs has filled in admirably as the Jays closer so far this season. However, if Toronto wants to make a serious run at a playoff birth this year, they need a dominant ninth inning option to rival Mariano Rivera and Jonathan Papelbon in the AL East. Scott Downs would be a much better option in the eighth and take even less pressure off of B.J. Ryan. In return, the Jays have a few nice, young bats in their farm system that Houston might consider.

3.) Miguel Tejada traded to the St. Louis Cardinals.

I realize that the Astros and Cardinals are in the same division, which makes them unlikely trade partners. But the Astros must see the writing on the wall. They have been very bad this year and have great trade chips in Valverde and Tejada that they must cash in. Troy Glaus could miss the rest of the year and Khalil Greene just landed on the DL a few days ago, leaving a weakened left side of the infield. Tejada has actually been a bright spot for Houston this year, hitting .355 while driving in 33, and could play either SS or 3B for the Red Birds.

Mets playing well despite key injuries posted by Anthony Arroyo

When you take a deep look at the six division leaders as of Monday, June 8, each team has had at least one key name player out of the lineup.

Beginning in the American League, obviously, the New York Yankees had Alex Rodriguez out all of April and much of May. In the Central, Detroit’s Jeremy Bonderman has had a rough road coming back, and star player Miguel Cabrera, who I believe is a future Hall-of-Famer, is currently nursing a hamstring injury.

Out West, the Rangers, who could be looked at as a surprise team, haven’t played with Josh Hamilton for a large part of the season and are also seeing minor shoulder issues with closer Frank Fransisco.

In the National League, Philadelphia, the NL East leaders, are without pitcher Brett Myers for three months. He began the season with a 4-3 mark. They also currently have Shane Victorino out on a day to day basis with a sore hip.

Milwaukee hasn’t pitched with its ace Ben Sheets all season, but with the production they are getting offensively, they haven’t missed him much. Finally, the Los Angeles Dodgers have played much of the season without Manny Ramirez for obvious reasons. Eric Milton, a starting pitcher that began his season with a 2-0 mark, is on the disabled list due to tightness in his back.

While all these teams have had big names out due to injury, they have still been able to overcome adversity and lead their respective divisions. However, no team in Major League Baseball has had the injury plague as bad as the New York Mets.

I've Had Enough of Tim Redding. posted by John Frascella

(Note: I posted this a couple of days ago on my other blog at FanNation.)

When it comes to the Mets' starting rotation, I think all of their replacement-level options are better than Tim Redding. Redding's stuff is disgraceful, and his general approach to the craft of pitching is laughable. He's been embarrassed in his last two starts -- recently against the Marlins, and the Red Sox before that -- and there is little-to-no indication of potential improvement. I don't think there is any doubt at this point...

Redding is not a major league pitcher. With an 86-to-88 MPH fastball and lackluster offspeed deliveries, one wonders how he was given a guaranteed contract this offseason by general manager Omar Minaya. (But I can't get too upset with Omar, he acquired Johan Santana for a bag of groceries.) Regardless of the reasoning behind the signing, it's time to abandon ship. But where should the Mets go from here, until Oliver Perez (another awful signing) returns?

Well, it's time to introduce our contestants on "Who Wants to Be the Mets Number Five Starter?!!"

Contestant #1-LHP-Jon Niese

If Redding gets rocked in his next start (which he probably will), Niese is the favorite to take his place in the rotation. Niese had a couple of starts in the bigs already this season -- one good, one bad -- and he's been an absolute disaster in AAA. In spite of his minor league failures, Niese is considered one of the better starting pitching prospects in the Mets organization, so they'd like to give him the benefit of the doubt. 

I like the control that Niese exhibited in his pair of starts with the Mets, but his stuff is pedestrian. His fastball is in the 88-92 range, but it's pretty flat, and he has a tendency to fall in love with it. In order for Niese to be successful at the game's highest level, he needs to continually change speeds, especially with his big, 12-6 curveball. Overall, he's not our best option. 

My Interview With Burt Hooton posted by Keith trussell

     There are lots of guys like Burt Hooton. 

     Well, not at your local bar, or at church or the grocery store.  Unless former pro ballplayers hang out there.  Former pro ballplayers who won the clinching game of the 1981 World Series.  Against the Yankees.  What I mean by Burt being like lots of guys is that the annals of baseball have so many players we tend to remember mostly the Babe Ruths and Ty Cobbs and –insert random player name here- and so on.  But the game is larger than even the biggest stars.  The game consists of so many players, so many games, so many stats, that unless a player was on your favorite team he may only garner a fleeting memory, an “oh yeah, I kinda remember him” reaction.  If you followed the Cubs in the early to mid seventies, or the Dodgers from 75 to 84, you remember Burt Hooton.  He’ll never get into the hall of fame, but his career is worth a look; there are definitely enough interesting moments to warrant it.  This isn’t some guy who had one or two moments of fame; he had a career’s worth.  Currently he is the pitching coach of the Round Rock Express, the Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros.

     I interviewed Burt Hooton a few days ago, and here is the transcript (with not a lot of editing).  I tried to represent his smooth central Texas manner of speaking as best I could.  Whenever you see “…” it is from one of his pauses, which he does a lot.  The “Ands” and “Ums” also sound completely natural coming from him, and shouldn’t be taken out of context.  He is a nice, intelligent man with the demeanor of a grandpa and the love of competition you see in a champion.  His resume speaks for itself.

The F-Mart Era Begins! posted by Robert Shatzkin

Mets GM Omar Minaya finally woke up and DL'ed ailing starters Jose Reyes and Ryan Church. As a result, the team called up their prized prospect Fernando Martinez and debuted him tonight against the Washington Nationals. After hearing about this kid for years I've got to say his first game was pretty anti-climactic. I didn't even realize he was starting till I got home, having already missed his first two at-bats (a strikeout and his first Major League RBI on a fielder's choice). Looks like a kid with a good swing who will strike out A LOT while he's up in the bigs. My first impression of his defense was equally incomplete as he got turned around on a well hit fly ball to right that probably would have been over his head anyway. My guess is that barring a ridiculous Benny Agbayani-like offensive start this will be a very temporary assignment, giving the Mets a warm body and some pop till they get a little healthier. Hard not to be excited though. Can't wait for his first home run which as someone on Metsblog suggested should forever be known as an "F-Bomb".Continue reading "The F-Mart Era Begins!"

Mets put Maine on DL with shoulder weakness

The New York Mets placed right-hander John Maine on the 15-day disabled list Thursday night with weakness in his shoulder, shelving another one of their key players.The move was made retroactive to Sunday, a day after Maine was tagged for seven runs and six hits over a season-low four-plus innings in New York's 7-1 loss at the woeful Washington Nationals."It's nothing serious," he said. "My shoulder is just fatigued. It's dead. [read full article]

From FOXSports.com News for MLB

Phils put struggling Lidge on DL with knee sprain

Philadelphia Phillies closer Brad Lidge has gone on the 15-day disabled list because of a sprained right knee.The move was announced before Tuesday's series opener at the New York Mets and was retroactive to Sunday.Lidge is 13 for 19 in save attempts this season with an 0-3 record and 7.27 ERA in 28 games. Last year, he was 41 for 41 in save chances as Philadelphia won its second World Series title and first since 1980. [read full article]

From FOXSports.com News for MLB

Reyes has hamstring injury, Putz has elbow pain

The depleted New York Mets got a double dose of bad news Thursday: injured shortstop Jose Reyes now has a tear in his right hamstring and reliever J.J. Putz is experiencing pain in his elbow.Reyes, who has been on the disabled list since May 21 with right calf tendinits, felt the hamstring injury Wednesday during a rehabilitation game."(An) MRI revealed a small tear in his right hamstring tendon, a new injury. [read full article]

From FOXSports.com News for MLB