Earlier today, in a post that debated the merits of Sandy Alderson’s comparison of Lucas Duda to Joey Votto, we ended up with over 250+ comments. As sometimes happens here, the conversation veered into something completely off topic, in this case a discussion between batting average versus on-base percentage. However there was one reader who stayed on topic and posted something worth considering that I didn’t want to see get lost in the shuffle: I [...]

No big news coming out of St. Lucie today, just the regular drills and more “ITBSOML” stories. But when it comes to our team, no news is good news, right? * * * * * * * * Andy McCullough passed this along and I thought it was worth noting. “I’ve now heard a few Mets officials talking up right-hander Cory Mazzoni, the club’s second-round pick last June. Mazzoni looked excellent during a brief debut [...]

General Manager Sandy Alderson brought up the names of Jason Giambi and Joey Votto while mentioning players he believes are comparable to right fielder Lucas Duda. “I think they will end up having a similar profile: Power guys with an excellent eye at the plate. If you have that combination, you can be a superstar. Especially for a left-handed hitter, if you’ve got power, the high on-base percentage, the approach and you can hit left-handed pitching, that’s Reds first [...]

Terry Collins can’t seem to stop talking about Ike Davis. Everyday you read those quotes or hear him on SNY and he just raves about him endlessly. “I’ve only seen this guy for a little over a month and that was enough to convince me that, with 550 plate appearances, he can’t help but walk into 30-40 (home run) fastballs,” Collins was saying Tuesday. “Ike being back now is like getting an All-Star first baseman [...]

The Mets top draft pick in the 2011 Draft, Brandon Nimmo, spoke with reporters at Digital Domain Park this afternoon and had this to say: “I’m no farther back in my process than anyone else,” Nimmo said. “I don’t mean to sound cocky, but I feel like I’m advanced… I know some people think that taking me in that No. 13 spot was maybe a little high, but I don’t feel that way. I feel [...]

Andrew Keh wrote a great piece the other day about Kirk Nieuwenhuis‘s window with the Mets organization. He talks about the veteran stop gaps blocking Nieuwenhuis at the moment and other prospects, such as Matt Den Dekker and Brandon Nimmo, who will be right on his tail. Personally I think very highly of Nieuwenhuis and have him rated as the Mets No. 6 prospect. I’ve said numerous times I feel if he had not gotten [...]

CBS Sports’ Eye on Baseball posted a Mets Spring Primer which included their fantasy sleeper and bust, as well as the Mets outlook this season from opposite sides of the spectrum. Also check out their complete Mets Fantasy Preview. Fantasy sleeper: Lucas Duda “From July 15 (about the time he took over for a departed Carlos Beltran) to the end of the season, Duda hit .322 with 10 homers and a .957 OPS — numbers that jive [...]

With R.A. Dickey selected to follow Johan Santana in the third game of Grapefruit League play, and Jon Niese slated to pitch game four, it looks like Terry Collins is leaning toward a regular season rotation that will look like this: 2012 Starting Rotation Johan Santana R.A. Dickey Jon Niese Mike Pelfrey Dillon Gee Of course this could still change based on performance or an unforeseen injury, but that’s pretty much what we should expect when the Mets break [...]

Adam Rubin debunked the Pudge rumor. Second Mets source adds definitively: “We are not bringing Ivan here.” So that was fun… Original Post 7:00 PM According to Mike Puma of the New York Post, a Mets official spoke with Ivan Rodriguez as recently as 10 days ago, and the team hasn’t ruled out the possibility of signing Rodriguez as a backup to Josh Thole. Puma adds that before the Mets spend the roughly $2 million they have remaining [...]

According to Adam Rubin, Terry Collins acknowledged today that reliever Manny Acosta, who is out of minor league options, is “all but a lock” for the Opening Day roster in the bullpen along with Frank Francisco, Jon Rauch, Ramon Ramirez and Tim Byrdak. After being retained on the 40-man roster at the expense of losing former top prospect Fernando Martinez, D.J. Carrasco has an excellent shot of coming up north rather than being designated for assignment. That would certainly conjure up a hornet’s nest [...]