17
2011
Tejada Up, Who’s On 1st, What’s On 2nd, I Don’t Know’s On 3rd.
An article by 
After the extra inning loss to the Fish, the Mets made some roster moves in the wake of Wright’s injury. Chin Lung Hu, who did not hit at all, was sent to the minors for the slick fielding Reuben Tejada. Ryota Igarashi was also optioned to Buffalo, as Pedro Beato was activated. Sandy Alderson also said that Nick Evans would be called up later today once David Wright was officially placed on the DL.
Reuben Tejada was expected to spend most, if not all of this season in Buffalo. The main reason for that was two fold. Last season he was over matched at the plate in his rookie season, as he hit just .213 with 1 homer and 15 RBI. The other reason was because the plan was for him to play shortstop all season as insurance for the Reyes situation. Tejada has played well in Buffalo, as he is hitting .267, with 3 home runs, 18 RBI and 6 doubles. Alderson stated that he would not be called up unless he was going to play, which is what I assumed as soon as I heard the move.
Who’s on first? With Ike Davis out, Daniel Murphy will get the bulk of the playing time at first base. Today Terry Collins was asked if Murphy would play any third, now that David is going on the DL. Terry’s response was that he has not played much, if any third in the Majors and he’s comfortable playing first, so we should expect to see him there.
What’s on Second? It’s pretty obvious that Tejada won’t be replacing Reyes at short. So if he’s going to play here, then he will be playing second base. He played there a lot last season, and showed off his glove in the process. This kid is a gold glove caliber fielder; he just needs to prove he can continue his good hitting from Buffalo up in Queens.
I don’t know’s on third. Well I do know one thing, if there is a choice between Willie Harris and Justin Turner; I think Willie Harris should get the nod. No I’m just kidding; Turner will definitely be the guy manning the hot corner. Not only is he hitting much better right now, but he is a full time infielder and gives the team the best option there in Wright’s absence. Despite what Terry says, I could see Murphy playing there if Nick Evan sees any time at first, especially late in games once Collins starts making substitutions.
Ike Davis is eligible to come off the DL on May 26th, and at this point that looks very possible, but not definite. David is a whole different animal, since at this point there is no time table for his return. It could be as short as ten days, but he will most likely land on the DL, pending his second opinion later today. Regardless of how long these guys are going to be out, it’s clear that we will not have them when we meet the Bronx Bombers this coming weekend. What we are left with is, an automatic out in Jason Bay batting cleanup, and Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran left to fend for themselves. Hopefully guys like Pride, Turner, Murphy and Tejada can step up and help this team hover around .500 until we can get Ike and David back.
For more of my insight’s, come visit me at BigAppleMetsTalk.com
About the Author: Dan Valis
I am a staff writer for Mets Merized Online. I am a Mets team analyst with a focus on the minor league system, as well as the major league club. I am a lifelong New Yorker who was born and raised to be a Mets fan. The ups and downs of being a Mets fan is what makes following this team so much fun, but at times so frustrating. You can follow me on Twitter @BgAppleMetsTalk.
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NL East Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braves | 24 | 18 | .571 | - |
| Nationals | 23 | 20 | .535 | 1.5 |
| Phillies | 20 | 23 | .465 | 4.5 |
| Mets | 16 | 24 | .400 | 7.0 |
| Marlins | 11 | 32 | .256 | 13.5 |
Last updated: 05/18/2013
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Very insightful. Great to see other guys getting playing time. We need to see what these guys can do everyday in case we are a different team after the trading deadline. This seaswon is nothing more than tryouts for 2012 and beyond. Any wins we get are just icing on the cake. I like Pirdie and Turner. I am encouraged that our starters are going deep into games. Pelfrey seems to have his head in place now and who cannot like Niese and Gee. I think Tejada might stick this time.
PS< I forgot to add how impressed I am with Chris Capaiano.
I believe Alderson said Nick Evens will be promoted to play at 3rd. Check MetBlog for that info in the morning report. Real glad to see Tejada coming back up to play 2nd. Hope his bat can show he belongs. I know his defence does. Man was he fun to watch at 2nd last yr. Pelf piched real well last night. Now if we can just get R.A. to do the same maybe we can get up off the floor and back into the fight!! By the way….Go Beltran. Love seeing this Man healthy. Do we dare offer him a low end goal rewarded 2yr contract to play Right field??? Never hurts to ask!!!
If Nick Evans gets called up, he runs out of options. That isn’t happening. Don’t expect to see Evans until September, unless injuries/trades insure that he’s up for the rest of the year.
Incorrect partially. Evans already ran out of options. Evans hd to clear waivers before going to Buffalo. Nobody claimed him. He gets brought back, gets sent sdown, chances are good nobody claims him again. Ad if he gets claimed he gets to stay in the bigs somewhere. This is such a non issue that some fans think is a critical deal. Fringe players all over the place are in the same boat. Don’t make Evans out to be something he’s not.
DR, just as a pure guess here, I think Evans is likely to stick permanently as Hu’s treplacement once the dust settles as it never, ever made sense for Hu to ph for better offensive players like Harris last night who’s 4 for 10 this season vs. lhping hell, when Hu was used for Divkey the other day, Dickey possessed the stronger hitting stats. Hu was barely more than a cardboard cuytout of a MLBer is there an affirmative action program favoring Taiwanese players?(lol)
Alderson said he was. With Turner and Pridie playing well and Hairston not, Hairston could be history. Evans is NOT on 40 man roster, so they have to drop someone from it (HU or Hairston).
“It’s pretty obvious that Tejada won’t be replacing Reyes at short. So if he’s going to play here, then he will be playing second base. He played there a lot last season, and showed off his glove in the process. This kid is a gold glove caliber fielder…”
Maybe so, maybe not. At Buffalo this season, Tejada at shortstop has 9 errors in 144 chances. That is a terrible .938 Fielding Precentage.
Last season, of the 91 guys in the big leagues with 50 or more games, Tejada was tied for 77th place. In other words 76 guys at 2B had a better Fielding Percentage. He’s flashy, but is he really good?
Des, My opinion is he has everything he needs to be good. Like a lot of young MIers they make quite a few errors their first couple of years and then settle down. I think he’ll eventually be fine out there. I just hope he can handle Major League pitching this time around.
Who would have thought Thole/Paulino, Murphy, Tejada, Reyes, Turner, Bay, Pridie, Beltran. This lineup could really turn out to be one of the lightest in the Majors.
Bay had better give what he has to give right now.
Tag, as always time will tell. Maybe Tejada was another Minaya rush job. Was Omar desperate, sensing that a Mets implosion would wipe himself and Jerry away? Or was Omar not the great scout and analyst that some fans are will to bestow on him when they say he wasn’t good on the business end with too many troublesome contracts?
Anyway, with the weather getting warmer in Buffalo, Ruben is performing better. But in his last ten games he has dipped at the plate. He has 37 at bats, with one double, one triple and four singles for a .162 AVG.
Ruben Tejada is NOT A GOOD FIELDER. is he flashy? sure. did he make a couple of fine plays last year? sure. but that’s about it. he has shown he can make the routine play at ZERO levels of pro ball.
.938 in the minors this year and .953 career in the minors and we’re talking about him winning gold gloves? is Chin-Lung Hu also gonna win a batting title??
Will he get better as he gets older? it’s entirely possible. Chase Utley did.
but the love for this kid’s defense right now makes me wanna vomit. How about a respectable fielding percentage in any year or level before we annoint him the next Ozzie.