Welcome Back, Welcome Back, Welcome Back

Welcome back, Where your dreams were your ticket out.
Welcome back, To that same old place that you laughed about.

Well the names have all changed since you hung around,
But those dreams have remained and they’re turned around.

Who’d have thought they’d lead ya (Who’d have thought they’d lead ya)
Back here where we need ya (Back here where we need ya)

Yeah we tease him a lot cause we’ve got him on the spot, welcome back,
Welcome back, welcome back, welcome back.

And in the spirit of that classic TV theme song, I give you the following:

Billy Wagner is expected to be activated by the Mets on Sunday, according to a report Wednesday in the New York Daily News.

The left-handed reliever, the Mets’ closer for nearly three seasons before an elbow injury last August that led to Tommy John surgery, has pitched four scoreless innings for Class A St. Lucie, allowing three hits and walking none while striking out six.

Wagner, 38, is 15 saves from reaching 400 in his career. What role he would play in the Mets bullpen isn’t clear, and he could be traded. His contract is paying him $10.5 million this season and has an $8 million club option for next season with a $1 million buyout. Being late in the season and with a reasonable buyout, it stands to reason that a contender could be interested in acquiring the 14-year veteran.

Wagner has a no-trade clause in his contract but indicated last week that he would waive it to pitch for a contending team.

Great news to say the least. If Wagner can prove that he can pitch effectively, a lefthanded reliever like him would fetch a nice bounty from a contender looking to bolster their bullpen.

Welcome back!