On Friday, we were fortunate enough to ask Angel Pagan a few questions while the Mets were taking batting practice at Citi Field. David Ponte did a superb job covering the Mets for us that day on the field and from the press box. He had to do some quick thinking as most of the questions we sent him off with were for some other players we had been targeting. He did a fine job, and was able to give us a glimpse into the type of player Angel Pagan is.
Here is their Q&A which I transcribed for you, or you can listen to the interview by clicking play on our media player.
Q – How do you feel about your season so far?
A – It’s been very positive for me. I’m doing pretty good and I’m helping the club.
Q – How do you feel about leftfield next year?
A – Pretty good. If they give it to me I’ll do my best. I’ll be getting ready for next season and I’ll come prepared to bring my best and help this club to win a championship.
Q - Where would you ideally want to bat in the lineup?
A – Where ever they put me. They can put me in the nine hole after the pitcher, and I’ll take it. Wherever this team needs me to produce, I will do my best for them.
Phil Hoops recently wrote a nice piece on Angel Pagan, and Satish Ram selected him for Metsmerized Player of the Month for August. Pagan has been a catalyst since becoming an everyday player due to all of the injuries. In just 64 games played, Pagan has hit.301 with 13 doubles, 8 triples, 6 homeruns, 28 RBIs, 13 stolen bases and 41 runs scored. His .832 OPS is among the highest on the team.
Whatever his role ends up being next season, Pagan is a gamer who’s willing to do anything to help this team win. He’s also had his share of baserunning gaffes this season, but those are things that will improve as he gains more experience. We actually talked about that with Jerry Manuel. The bottom line is that Pagan has been one bright spot in a a season with so few of them. You can never have enough guys like Angel in the clubhouse.
A view from the press box during our first day with press credentials.
We’ll be posting a few more interviews later today, including one with manager Jerry Manuel. And later this week, I’ll have an exclusive interview with a former Met that I know you won’t want to miss.
We want to thank Mike, Shannon, Doug and Dave for their help and assistance, and Jay Horwitz for being so cordial. Remember to also visit Dave at NYsportSpace for more on the Mets and all the other New York sports teams. Football season is here, so catch all the Jets and Giants action on NYsportSpace.
I don’t care what anybody else thinks. Angel Pagan has earned the everyday job for the Mets next season. He will be the perfect compliment to Jose Reyes at the top of the order. Look at those numbers he put up in a third of the season. Plus he’s still improving. I say the Mets need to move Castillo at all costs this season. It will be easier to move him now that he has proven he is healthy. The Mets could then sign DeRosa to a two year deal and bat him fifth or sixth while adding some much needed pop to the lineup.
1. Angel Pagan
2. Jose Reyes
3. Carlos Beltran
4. David Wright
5. Mark De Rosa
6. Jeff Francoeur
7. Daniel Murphy
8. Santos/Thole
I disagree with you. While Angel has performed remarkably well he is prone to mental mistakes. These “mental lapses” aren’t new to him. He did it with the Cubs frequently. I think Pagan would make a SOLID 4th outfield. One you can rely on if there is an injury. Think Endy Chavez only better. As for DeRosa, the Mets have limited money to spend, and 2B is one of the few positions the Mets don’t need to fill for 2010. Hopefully DeRosa isn’t there 2B next year. I could however see him being there LF. But DeRosa will probably want more money than the Mets are willing to give him.
I agree regarding Pagan and his mental lapses. He makes at least one every game. He made one in last night’s game. On his three base hit in which he had a chance to go all the way, he looked back to see what was happening in right field 4 separate times. One glance rounding 1B should be enough, after that pick up the 3B coach and do what he tells you. If he had done that, he might have made it all the way around. Fortunate for him, he got drven in later in the inning so direct impact this time. But he is always screwing up on the bases and in the field as well. He has natural abilities, but is always making rookie mistakes. Clearly a #4 OF’er and not a starter. We need a big bopper in LF to start next year not Angel Pagan.
Meant to say: “no direct impact this time”. Apologies for the typo.
What a great view of the field! I’m jealous! Angel Pagan sounds like he’s loving his role right now and I see no reason why we shouldn’t pencil him in as our leftfielder next season and expect more of the same. Plus he makes less than a million dollars, that is some incredible value IMHO.
without a doubt…angel deserves regular duty. nay sayers have no answers only negativity and cynicism. combine his stats for ’08 and ’09 and you would be hard pressed to find someone out there who can give him a “run” for the money. he continues to grow, learn and mature. people who see him as a 4th outfielder need to first acknowledge that he has yet to see a whole season as a regular. he’s not endy chavez. i believe, in time, he could be the real deal–but you will never know that unless you give him the playing time.
go angel!
Nice job Dave. It was interesting to hear how enthusiastic Pagan is for the leftfield job next season. By all means give it to him. Congrats to this site for finally getting access to players. It’s well deserved.
Ok now we’re getting carried away!
Everybody is going nuts because he gave a nice interview here.
I think us Mets fans have been through so much this year we are eager to latch onto anything that seems like a quick fix. Like rushing into a relationship.
Angel Pagan is NOT a starter. He has never been a starter. That’s not a popular opinion on this thread and it has nothing to do with being negative but it’s the truth!
Could he be a starter? Maybe!
He’s hit very well for an extended period of time but I’ll never be convinced that he’s a starter unless he completely changes the way he plays the game. He also has a history of getting injured.
Cory Sullivan is a much smarter player and I would like to get a better look at what he has to offer.
You still have the rest of this season, all winter, and all of spring training 2010 to make a decision. It is completely irrational to nominate him your starting LFer now. Don’t we have to see what becomes available first?
Call it intuition but what I see is a part-time player having a very good year. You can tell by the way he plays the game.
For example, Fernando Martinez did not do well when he came up and granted the kid needs time. But I can see that he’s a future starter. Maybe not a star…but a starter.
Angel Pagan will be a nice addition to the team next year if he’s not traded. But unless we get power in other positions you won’t see him as the starter. I want to give Cory Sullivan a look as well.
A lot has changed over the last few weeks, and I too looked at Pagan as a solid 4th outfielder, but I have to admit his play has changed my stance on that. Take a look at his numbers and prorate them over 550 at-bats and what you’ll have is a better season than Alex Rios who everybody on this site was begging for. Give him a shot and if it don’t work out than we can go to a plan B.
That is the misconception in a nutshell, He IS the plan B.
Well done Dave!
Angel has been great for us and I cant wait to see what he does next season. I love how he said he want to help the Mets win a championship!
Thanks for sharing this cool interview!
Don’t get me wrong, I thing Angel has been a great addition to the team. But if we don’t get a power hitter at first base, than we must get one in leftfield. One way or the other, we gotta inject some power into this lineup. So either Pagan or Murophy has to ride the pine next season.
Exactly, one or both of them go on the bench if the Mets sign a bopper or 2. I have to be crazy saying 2, because we all know we’ll be very lucky to get just 1. I think this entire Small Ball thing is simply mgmt giving up on getting a real hitter. I think they are going to try to make it through with Murphy and Pagan until some of the prospects come along like Ike, Nieuwy, Evans, or dare we say F-Mart. But we really need power and mgmt is staying away from that. After all, why would we ever want to hit homers again? Citi is a pitcher’s park and we’ll just let the visiting teams hit the homers while their aces shut us down. Makes sense in the Bizarro World of the Mets!