Mets Notes: Church Out, Tatis In, Pedro Close?

Ryan Church was supposed to be in the starting lineup today against Italy, but was scratched after he was seen hobbling around the clubhouse all morning with an ice pack attached to his right knee.

It doesn’t sound like anything serious as he reportedly joked about it to reporters.

With the news that Alex Rodriguez will miss the WBC, Dominican GM Stan Javier has targeted Fernando Tatis as A-Rod’s replacement for the World Baseball Classic according to Newsday.

Manuel called Tatis into the manager’s office a few minutes ago for a closed-door meeting, but the subject is still unresolved.

“We talked about how I feel,” Tatis said. “If my body is OK. My hand feels fine. It’s OK with him if I play.”

The Mets already have the most players in the WBC with fifteen.

Finally, the St. Louis Cardinals may be looking at Pedro Martinez as a candidate for their closer.

Pedro said he would be open to the idea. 

“I would prefer to try it first and see how my body responds because I haven’t done it in a long time,” said Martinez, who might be used in a relief role during the World Baseball Classic. “It’s something you really have to endure and really try first before you know if your body can do it.”