If first impressions are important to baseball fans in Philadelphia, new Phillies pitcher Roy Halladay aced his entry exam. Halladay got the Grapefruit League schedule unde way with two near-perfect innings in the Phillies’ 3-2 win over the New York Yankees on Thursday. The 32-year-old Halladay threw a pair of  innings while striking out three. As we all know, Halladay was at the front of a blockbuster four-team set of trades in December between the Phillies, Toronto Blue [...]

Many people would characterize Nelson Figueroa as a very good AAA player.  He can start or relieve, help the team win some games, and fill up seats in the minor league ballpark.  Nelson is probably looking at this kind of scenario again in 2010; one in which he starts the season in the minors, then due to injuries or ineffectiveness on the major league squad, he is called up and gets another opportunity to show [...]

The New York Mets have confirmed that they reached an agreement with right-hander Kiko Calero on a minor league contract with an invite to spring training. The Mets announced the move in a statement this afternoon. The 35-year-old Calero pitched for the Florida Marlins last season, going 2-2 with a 1.95 ERA in 67 relief appearances. He allowed 36 hits with 30 walks and 69 strikeouts in 60 innings, leading the Marlins’ bullpen in ERA. Calero [...]

Watching Ike Davis totally blast a baseball out of the park with the bases drunk today, is definitely worth a second look. Check out the following video courtesy of Matt Cerrone at MetsBlog who has been doing a phenominal job this year providing us with the best spring coverage of the Mets that we have ever been privy to. It kind of makes you feel tingly all over doesn’t it? Is it too far-fetched to envision having [...]

Much of what dominates Mets talk and is bandied about is whether the Mets will have a successful season in ’10. Can Big Pelf live up to his “potential”? (Don’t you just love that word?) Will Reyes be his old self or even better? Can the #3 through #5 pitchers keep us in games consistently? So many questions, so much time. I am opting to look outside of these norms and explore another route. Numbers [...]

Update 2:25 pm Adam Rubin reports that Jose Reyes has been cleared to resume playing after a second visit for bloodwork. Reyes is likely to just take batting practice today, then enter the lineup tomorrow. Original Post 10:58 am Jose Reyes has been scratched from today’s game against the Cardinals to go see a doctor for a follow-up to his physical. According to Adam Rubin, Reyes said that the initial physical raised a small concern with [...]

I’ve always been a Mets fan.  Well, since around 1970 or so…that’s as far back as I can remember.  So even though many of you have read my work on there the last six-eight months about how frustrated and annoyed I am with the way the team has played and the direction they have gone in with personnel, a new season is upon us and optimism reigns supreme. Let’s face it, every baseball fan loves [...]

I am trying really hard to focus on Spring Training as we get a chance to see what will eventually develop into our 2010 squad, with a few pluses and minuses. The glutton for punishment that I am, I decided to watch the Mike and Mike simulcast on ESPN 2 this morning to hear them do their “triple play” featuring our Amazins. Guys, please just pretend like we’re unbiased and that you will address this [...]