So, just how important is the ingredient of clubhouse chemistry to the relative success of a team? My feeling is that the degree of significance is in opposite proportion to the on-field success of the player involved. One former Met whose flinty personality rubbed people the wrong way everywhere he played was Jeff Kent, yet his undeniable offensive prowess (in more ways than one, I guess) led to a HOF-caliber career which included several seasons in the same lineup as Barry Bonds, no paragon of social niceties himself. In retrospect, the Mets trade of Kent for Carlos Baerga was a total clunker as Kent’s level of production exploded to All-Star level just as Baerga’s went into the tank. But at the time, Baerga was an All-Star who was younger than Kent and who carried none of the baggage associated with Kent, whose primary offense in a Met uniform was refusing to participate in a rookie ritual that involved wearing a ridiculous outfit for a team trip.

Team management saw the opportunity to swap a player they saw as having a somewhat negative effect on team harmony for a proven performer and they went for it. History has shown this to be one in a litany of bad trades that Met fans would just as soon forget, but you can’t argue with the logic at the time.  Add to this the fact that Indians management saw nothing wrong with spinning Kent off in the trade that landed him in San Francisco (where stardom followed) and you can’t really jump on poor Joe McIvaine’s case too hard. Once in Giant livery, Kent reeled off a string of tremendous seasons that culminated in arguably one of the greatest careers of any second baseman in MLB history. But he was still regarded as a major-league prick. I guess most teams would have put up with that aspect of his game as long as the rest of it was intact.

Another interesting chapter in the DSM of Metdom involved one Randall K. Myers and wunderkind batsman Gregg Jefferies. Jefferies, as you undoubtedly recall, was perhaps the most heralded Mets hitting prospect ever outside of Darryl Strawberry. Fans were regaled with tales of his incredible switch-hitting talents, honed through a variety of batting drills such as the semi-weird “swinging underwater in a pool” routine that the sports press of the time delighted in recounting. Upon his arrival, young Gregg looked to be the real thing, ripping off an impressive month at the end of the 1988 season and challenging the team to find a way to fit him into the same infield as Howard Johnson, the incumbent at Jefferies preferred position of third base.

After shifting the rookie across the diamond to second, the team received satisfactory offensive performance from him over the next two seasons, including a league leading 40 doubles in 1990. But prior to that campaign, the team had seen fit to trade Myers, a fireballing lefty reliever, to the Reds for his veteran counterpart and future Mets Hall-of-Famer John Franco. Not a terrible swap in retrospect, but at the time many wondered why the Mets would exchange a talent of Myers’ ilk for a player two years older who relied primarily on a deceptive change-up as an out pitch. The role of closer was one that most felt was better served by the blazer of young Randall K., and so inquiries as to the motivation of management with respect to the trade were made.

Revelations were forthcoming to the effect that the clubhouse friction between Myers and Jefferies was such that it was deemed best for all concerned to “keep ‘em separated,” to borrow a song lyric. Jefferies had been noted as being especially fussy about his bats and other equipment, and had garnered a reputation as a bit of a prima donna due to his helmet flinging episodes following strikeouts. Following reports that Myers had conspired with fellow bullpen denizen Roger McDowell to saw several of Jefferies bats in half and perhaps bring the youngster down a peg or two, it was made clear that the front office preferred to remove elements of controversy from the clubhouse. The element chosen was the self-styled cowabunga warrior Myers, a change that management hoped would help the more sensitive Jefferies flourish.  He did, ultimately, making the All-Star team and challenging for a batting title in 1993-for the St. Louis Cardinals. Prior to that, he had been part of the trade package put together to bring Bret Saberhagen to New York after his various peccadilloes had become less bearable in light of his merely competent level of production.

Another notorious bête noire of Met clubhouse history was former first-rounder Lastings Milledge whose escapades are still relatively fresh in the mind of the average Met fan. Now consigned to showing up opponents and teammates in Japan, the young Mr. Milledge arrived in 2006 with a reputation for trouble already established but with his talent still largely a promise of things to come. After two seasons in the Orange and Blue, he was sent packing to Washington for Ryan Church and Brian Schneider, worthy enough role players but lacking any star power of the type hinted at by some aspects of Milledge’s game.  When his potential for stardom failed to materialize after that, he drifted to Pittsburgh, then on to the south side of Chicago before opting for the Far East. Still only 28, he may have finally found himself as a player with the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. One can only hope that he has overcome the habits that lead to the posting of the infamous “Know Your Place, Rook” sign in his locker by Met teammate Billy Wagner.

A more unusual aspect of the “player as clubhouse distraction” syndrome was noted during the 2004 and 2005 seasons when Anna Benson, the wife of the contrastingly low-key Met pitcher Kris Benson, arrived on the scene.  The combination of Mrs. Benson’s startlingly frank pronouncements on virtually everything with behavior such as appearing as a va-va-voom version of “Mrs. Claus” at the Met annual Christmas charity function combined to lead to a trade with Baltimore sending her husband out of town after a season and a half. That the male Benson’s apparent talent level was that of an eminently replaceable back-of-rotation starter probably contributed to his exit as well. Had he displayed more in the way of dominant pitching skills, the team’s tolerance for the more “colorful” aspects of his spouse’s persona might have been greater.

So, what of the Mets’ current bad boy? I expect that as long as whatever contributions he makes on the field outweigh the perceived negative effect of his extra-curricular antics, he will stick around. At this point, the team hasn’t done a lot to enhance his trade value anyway.  Considering the organization’s history though, I imagine that if circumstances conspire to raise his baseball value in the estimation of any general manager not named Alderson, he could be on his way somewhere in the relatively near future. Maybe someone will be enticed to take him for a “’Spin?”

A sheet of notebook paper, with the words, “Know your place, Rook … signed, your teammates,” was taped over Lastings Milledge’s locker in the Mets’ clubhouse in old RFK Stadium. This, in the late summer in 2006.

The Mets were en route to the playoffs and a veteran laden team was rubbed the wrong way by Milledge’s brashness and arrogance. Then-manager Willie Randolph – who reprimanded Milledge several times that summer – ripped down the sign, but knew he hadn’t ripped away the problem.

The Mets labeled it a misunderstanding, and Randolph called Lastings Milledge “a good kid,’’ but this clearly was not a misunderstanding with a teammate. It was the accumulation of several incidents that rankled several teammates.

This one-time cant-miss prospect was seeing his stock go down and his odds of scratching out a major league career was now just a game of chance like playing online slots.

Milledge burst upon the Mets, hitting over .300, was dazzling on the bases and showed a strong arm. He was going to be the next “fill in the blank.’’ Willie Mays? Roberto Clemente?

However, things quickly cooled after his first career homer, when on his way to the outfield he high-fived fans down the right field line in Shea Stadium. Randolph sensed how the Giants seethed in their dugout, especially since he saw some of his own players do the same.

Randolph reprimanded Milledge on the unwritten laws in baseball, but it didn’t take. There were ground balls he didn’t run out and times he didn’t hustle in the outfield. He was flash with the jewelry swinging wildly on the field, but in the clubhouse he often sat buried in his locker wearing headphones or playing a video game.

He came off as sullen and angry and clearly couldn’t be bothered by getting to know his teammates. Or, a baseball legend for that matter. During spring training then-GM Omar Minaya brought Milledge to the Nationals dugout to meet Frank Robinson, but Milledge was came off as being in-different.

Finally, he arrived in the clubhouse in Philadelphia an hour before a day game. Although it was early, the veterans made it in on time. David Wright had enough when Milledge strolled in with sunglasses and an iPod as if he owned the place and told him this wasn’t acceptable.

Wright wouldn’t belabor the issue Opening Day, only managing to say “seniority is big in this game,’’ which is the politically-correct translation for Milledge hadn’t earned his stripes.

Milledge popped into my consciousness today when I learned it was his 28^th birthday, an age when he should be in the prime of his career. Instead, Milledge is one of hundreds of baseball prospects given the label of “can’t miss, but eventually did.’’

Seven years ago – the career lifetime of a select few – the Mets had three prized outfield prospects in Milledge, Carlos Gomez and Fernando Martinez. One by one they arrived, fizzled to the point of exasperation and were traded. Not one of them hustled like journeyman outfielder Collin Cowgill.

After turning down several proposals for Manny Ramirez, the Mets eventually traded Milledge to Washington as part of a trade that brought Ryan Church – he of the concussion fiasco – and catcher Brian Schneider. Milledge had his coffee to go with Washington, then Pittsburgh and finally the White Sox before heading to Japan. Milledge had his head-scratching moments in each place, but basically stopped hitting.

At 28, Milledge is still young. It’s about discipline in Japan and if Milledge comes back with a changed attitude perhaps he’ll get another chance. It’s a long way to Japan, and perhaps an even longer route back to the major leagues.

Regardless of your thoughts on the Phillies getting Brian Schneider, it’s a solid move for the Phillies who can give the Mets a lesson or two about getting the most value for a player.

The Phillies are reportedly paying Schneider $3 million dollars for two years or an average $1.5 million per season.

The Mets on the other hand, have paid Brian Schneider $8.9 million dollars in the last two years or an average of $4.9 million per season.

 You see, it’s all about getting VALUE.

The Nationals moved Brian Schneider just in the nick of time in what was primarily a salary dump for them… a salary dump that got them the Mets’ former first round pick.

The Marlins were even smarter by moving Carlos Delgado to the Mets in the second year of his contract when his salary jumped from $4 million dollars in 2005 to $13.5 million dollars in 2006 when the Mets got him. The Mets also paid him another $14.5 in 07, $16.5 in 08 and $16.5 in 09. Wow…

The Mets just paid $2 million dollars for a utility player in Alex Cora who they hope never has to start more than 10 games, while the Phillies paid $1.5 million dollars for a catcher who will probably start over 80 games.

It’s all about the value.

One of the positions the Mets need to fix up is catching. It’s well known that Josh Thole will be starting the season in the minors for further developing. Schneider obviously will be gone, and Santos is mostly a backup and really shouldn’t play everyday it if the Mets plan to beat the Phillies for the NL East title.

Some catchers including Bengie Molina have been mentioned for the Mets to go after, but I would like to throw another name into the mix. Chris Snyder.

There has been plenty of speculation that Snyder would be dealt this offseason with the emergence of  backup catcher Miguel Montero last season. Snyder, who signed a three-year, $14.25 million extension last winter, was hampered for most of the 2009 season with back problems that eventually required surgery and limited him to just 61 games. He hit .200 with six homers and 22 RBIs.

MLB.com reported that, a potential deal between the D-backs and Blue Jays that would have sent Chris Snyder to Toronto and Lyle Overbay to Arizona has been put on hold.

Could this be an opportunity for the Mets?

Snyder is certainly not known for being a great hitter, but he can hold his own at the plate, and who knows, maybe the Mets could swing something to get Dan Haren or Mark Reynolds in a deal as well.

Leave us your thoughts and opinions.

One more thing – Does anyone else find it weird that the Mets have had four catchers this season (at one point carrying three) and now the Mets have one?

With Brian Schneider becoming a free agent next year we now need a catcher for the 2010 season.  There are 26 catchers that are facing the prospect of free agency, 7 of which have team options and/or buyouts for their contracts.  There are some good catchers that will be available next year but the Mets find themselves in a somewhat of a dilemma when it comes to acquiring a catcher this off-season, that dilemma is named Josh Thole.

Thole is 22 years old, he had his cup of coffee this year in the majors and he impressed me with his offense at the plate finishing with a .321 batting average in 53 plate appearances.  He had a bit of 1-19 slump but he still showed promise in his major league debut.  Even though he was slumping Thole didn’t look foolish at the plate like outfielder Fernando Martinez.  Thole’s defense left a bit to be desired as he allowed 3 passed balls in only 17 games.  On the plus side he did throw out 2 base runners out of 6 attempted steals on him.  He also caught two really good games at the end of the season.  Having said this Thole does not belong on the team yet.  He needs to start 2010 in AAA Buffalo and work on his defense.  He needs to also learn about the intangibles of being catcher, such as slowing down the pace of a game or going out to talk to a pitcher who is struggling.  That is not a knock on Thole; those instincts will come in time.  It’s important to remember that he was not originally a catcher; the Mets converted him to catcher in the minors.  I believe that in 2011 Thole will be on this team as our starting catcher and there lies the dilemma: signing a veteran catcher to a 1 year deal and not completely overpay for said catcher for the one year he’ll be on the team.

There is one catcher that I would want and that catcher is Bengie Molina, who I think a lot of Met fans including myself would not mind seeing behind the dish for us in 2010.  Molina in his eleven year career is a .276 hitter but more importantly he is one of the best catchers in baseball.  Some could argue that out of his family he might be the best at calling a game and working with a pitching staff.  If you take Santana out of the equation the Mets pitching staff is full of head cases with Mike Pelfrey, John Maine and Oliver Perez.  Plus Jon Niese could be in the rotation, Niese is a young pitcher and Bengie works really well with the younger pitchers.  He knows how to slow down a game if the pitcher is moving too fast and he’s also good at defense.  He’s a gamer; he only knows one way of playing: playing hard!  If there is one drawback it’s that he’s a Type A Free Agent, meaning that the Mets would lose a top draft pick as well as a supplemental draft pick.  Ultimately if I’m the General Manager and I’m looking for an experienced catcher who plays good defense and works well with a young pitching staff, Molina is my guy.

The one catcher that I don’t even want to hear about this off season is Jason Varitek.  I have nothing against him on a personal level, he seems like a good baseball guy, a good teammate but his career is coming to an end.  His offensive numbers keep going down year by year and he is 38 years old.  I also believe that he will not come cheap.  A team will over pay him for his name and his past success with the Boston Red Sox.  I believe that it may be time for Varitek to call it a career and I hope Omar or whoever is making these decisions now a days stays far away from Varitek.

Are there any other catchers I’m overlooking readers?   Would Pudge Rodriguez who is a veteran catcher, a little older than Molina who will be a type B Free Agent be better?

For the most part he has filled this role rather nicely and has always brought a positive vibe to the team.

Over his five year tenure with the Mets, Wright has been through the highs and lows. What has always impressed me was regardless of how the team was performing overall, he always brought his “A game”. This held true up until the previous two weeks or so.

Since then, David has become a different player. For starters, he no longer looks energized to play baseball, which is very uncharacteristic of him. His performance on the field is also indicative of this. Since returning from the disabled list on September 1st he has only hit .220, which has caused his average to drop nearly 20 points (.324 to .306) and is in danger finishing with a sub-.300 average for the first time in his career..

I am sympathetic with his struggles because this has been a particularly disappointing season considering all of the fluke injuries. On top of that Wright went through a traumatic experience in mid-August when he was concussed by a fastball to the head.

What is unacceptable is the the lack of hustle that he has shown recently. In the past two games Wright’s play on the field has been inexcusable. Looking solely at the box score it could be assumed that I am referring to the seven punch outs in ten at-bats, however I am not.

I am referring to the sluggish and downright careless play that has become blatantly obvious during the final road trip of the 2009 season.

First, during last night’s game Wright choose not to run on a ball that was dropped by Florida catcher Ronny Paulino.

Luckily, Brian Schneider‘s head was in the game and he was able to score what would become an important run in the team’s 6-5 victory before Wright was tagged out. At first the issue didn’t concern me as players, like any human being make bone-headed moves at times.

Unfortunately during tonight’s game, Wright’s lack of motivation became apparent and in this instance cost the Mets a run when he choose not to run at full speed while rounding third base, which enabled the Marlins to tag Jeff Francoeur out at second base before the run could score.

This is disturbing because through all the heartbreak, David Wright was one guy you could always count on to give it his all, and now even that is up in the air. The team’s fans deserve better than this.

While I can understand Jerry Manuel giving Wright a reprieve yesterday and not pulling him from the game; pulling him from today’s game should have been a no-brainer. Instead, Wright remained in the game for all nine innings.

Decisions like these promote the sense that giving up and not playing hard is acceptable.What kind of message does this send to players like Nick Evans, who was regulated to watching the game from the bench while a player with questionable effort is allowed to play?

Now I am not yet ready to give up Wright because he has done a lot of good for this franchise over the past half decade, but a conversation certainly needs to take place between the manager and player and it must be reiterated that this kind of attitude will not be tolerated.

At the very least Wright should be given the day off tomorrow to collect his thoughts and then go from there. Under no circumstances should Wright be given so-called “superstar treatment” and be allowed to let this situation go away.

What do you, the Mets fans, think? Am I being too hard on Mr. Wright?

First base is usually a position for power hitters and Murphy will not likely reach a dozen homeruns. Also Delgado’s contract will be ending this season and has a 12 million dollar club option for next season. But with his (what shouldn’t have been) season ending hip surgery the Mets really shouldn’t pick up that option and look to another powerful first baseman.

Who could that be? Derrek Lee!

The Chicago first baseman is having a great ’09 season with the Cubs hitting .294 with 27 homeruns and 90 RBIs. He’s in line for a 30-100 season.
(before Saturday’s game.)
(Update: Lee hit 2 homeruns in Saturday’s game.) 

I’m sure you’re asking yourself, “Sure Lee is a great hitter and has a nice glove, but why would Cubs trade him and who for?”

Well I asked that myself and I took a look around the Cubs roster and the Cubs seem to need one thing the most. A reliable closer. Oh hey look, the Mets have a former closer in J.J. Putz. Putz is currently on the disabled list and will be there for the rest of the season. Putz has not had the best season with the Mets, he blames it on not having the intensity he had when he was a closer with Seattle.

Some of the Mets back-up pitchers have been doing a great job with the team lately and have really fought for a spot on the team next season. With Pat Misch pitching well along with Nelson Figueroa, Tim Redding and Bobby Parnell they could be in the ‘pen next season. The Mets are also looking for a number two starter this offseason along with an outfielder and a catcher.

So here is my projected trade with Cubs for Derrek Lee who’s contract will be ending after next season. Lee has a $13MM contract and has a no-trade clause.

Mets offering

JJ Putz RHP
John Maine RHP*
Brian Schneider C
Daniel Murphy 1B*

Mets acquire

Derrek Lee 1B

* Mets would have to re-sign players before trading them.

This trade would actually free up over 13 million dollars plus whatever Mets use to sign Maine (if they do).

If you ask anyone connected to the Mets they’ll most likely say Josh Thole and Omir Santos, a tandem I dubbed Tholmir.

This makes sense, both players are young and their combined salaries most likely wouldn’t even crack one million dollars, which is perfect for the suddenly cost-cutting Wilpons.

Lately, the only positive hype surrounding the New York Mets, besides injuries and surgeries has been the talk of calling up catcher, Josh Thole. And for good reason, since the beginning of last season Thole has done nothing but hit at the minor league level.

The Mets selected the 23 year old catcher in the eighth round of the 2005 draft, which was the same draft where they picked Mike Pelfrey.

Last season, in Class-A+ ball, Thole hit for .300, which is impressive since in his prior season he only hit .267. This year, his progression continued and he hit .328 at the Class-AA level, which features generally better, more major league-esque pitching.

He is also said to have a great demeanor when it comes to the game and is extremely hard working and passionate about what he does.

However, when I read articles by some of the game’s best beat writers I get the sense that he is being overvalued. There are some who suggest that Thole could be the best catcher the Mets have had since Mike Piazza departed the team back in 2005. And the truth is, he very well could be the next big thing.

Personally, however I am skeptical a bit skeptical about how Thole will perform at the big league level. Consider this, Thole grew up in rural Illinois and learned to play baseball in a barn. Now he will be expected to perform in front of thousands and thousands of New York fans, who are not always the  most forgiving when it comes to a player’s shortcomings.

Also, Thole is not a power hitter by any means. This is evident by the fact that he only hit one home run in 384 at-bats this season. According to Eric Simon over at Amazin’ Avenue, who profiled Thole yesterday. The article also points out that Thole does not hit very many line drives, which begs the question is his high average sustainable?

Even more surprising is that using a computer generated statistics, Simon shows that Thole projects as only a .254 hitter in the big leagues. That’s less than what Omir Santos is currently hitting.

In all fairness, projections are not always all that accurate and it’s entirely possible that Thole could blow those away.

If anything it concerns me that Thole will hit .300 in the final month of the regular season, and that will be enough for Mets management to warrant starting him next year.

The last Met player that was thrust into a starting role following success in such a small sample size was Daniel Murphy, and he’s had his share of troubles at the plate and on the field this season.

The other half of the Mets projected 2010 catching tandem is Omir Santos. One of the few feel good stories this year, Santos came from out of nowhere to become a pretty decent backstop in the big leagues.

His hit for a .263 batting average and clubbed six home runs, which isn’t anything to sneeze at. He’s even had some clutch hits, including one dramatic go-ahead home run off of Jonathan Papelbon earlier this season.

To me though, Omir is more suited to be a backup at the big league level as he has gone through a pretty brutal slump from mid-June that lasted into early July.

My suggestion for the Mets would be let Thole spend a month in the bigs and see how he handles it. Then in the off-season, try to acquire a veteran catcher that is capable of starting like Ramon Hernandez. This would enable Santos to slide into a backup role, which is better suited for him. This would also allow Thole more time in the minor leagues to collect more playing time and allow Mets officials to see whether or not he is the real deal.

Wow, really?

Omir Santos leads the pack with 22, followed by Ramon Castro who knocked in 13 runners before being traded, and Brian Schneider is holding up the rear with 10 ribbies.

Santos is seventh in the league, but when you take a closer look it gets a little interesting. Omir amassed his 22 RBI’s in just 117 at-bats.

Bengie Molina who leads catchers with 40, needed 239 at-bats to achieve the honor. Ivan Rodriguez follows with 29 in 194 at-bats, then comes Ramon Hernandez who has 28 in 215 at-bats.

Another thing that is both interesting and somewhat depressing as well, is that the Mets catching position has accumulated more RBI’s than any other position on the team.

More RBI’s than left field, third base, first base, center field, right field, etc.

A testament to our great catching tandem? Or an indictment on our offense?

I’ll let you decide…

OMG!!!

Just as I published this post, Brian Schneider hit a 3-run bomb!!!

Make that 48 RBI’s for Mets catchers!

The Mets took the series opener against the Tampa Bay Rays and beat them 5-3 thanks to another solid performance from Fernando Nieve and a three run homer from catcher Brian Schneider.

Game Recap

Some of the other starters in the rotation can learn a thing or two from newcomer Fernando Nieve who continues to impress. Nieve did an excellent job of throwing strikes and keeping the Ray’s hitters off balance. He allowed just one run on three hits in six innings of work. He walked three and struck out four.

Bobby Parnell came in to pitch the seventh inning and struggled again. He allowed the Rays to pull within one run by allowing two runs to score on a couple of hits and a walk. Pedro Feliciano came in and pitched to one batter and got out of the inning without further damage.

Sean Green came in to setup in the eighth and allowed two baserunners, but came away unscathed after striking out the side.

K-Rod was back on the saddle again and closed it out with a 1-2-3 inning to pick up his 18th save of the season.

Brian Schneider hit his first home run of the season, a three run blast to rightfield and put the Mets up 3-0 in the second inning. The Mets would never look back. An inning later, David Wright slapped a run-scoring double that scored Alex Cora, who had led off the inning with a single.

Later in the eight inning, with the Mets lead down to just one run, Ryan Church added a much needed insurance run and he did it against a lefthander.

Game Thoughts and Notes

Daniel Murphy went 3-4 and seems to have turned a corner and is locked in at the plate. His batting average is slowly creeping back up and stands at .256 now.

Ryan Church is kicking it into gear and had a couple of key hits in the game in addition to a walk and two stolen bases. Memo to Manuel: Please don’t bench Church!

David Wright struck out another three times in the game, but did manage a run scoring double.

Philadelphia lost to the Orioles tonight so the Mets are now just two games out of first place.

Game Ball

Fernando Nieve - Another fine job for Fernando who is now 2-0 in two starts!

On Deck

Johan Santana tries to make it two in a row tomorrow. LGM

Alex Cora – SS
Daniel Murphy – 1B
Carlos Beltran – CF
David Wright – 3B
Gary Sheffield – LF
Ryan Church – RF
Brian Schneider – C
Luis Castillo – 2B
Nieve – SP

Alex Cora and Daniel Murphy are batting in the 1 and 2 spot against a guy who lefties have a hard time against does not make a lot of sense to me.  Cora has done a fine job at the top of the lineup and should be there tonight but why not put Luis Castillo who is a switch hitter behind Cora in the lineup?  Also why not put Omir Santos who bats right and regardless is a better hitter than Schneider anyway in the game tonight? Murphy earned a shot after the series in Baltimore, but maybe Tatis should have started tonight.

I don’t understand, with the stats that I mentioned that Jerry would put out this lineup.  Manuel’s decisions continue to befuddle me.  I think that the way he’s managing the team right now he’s managing them right out of contention.

Today’s Hot Point Issues

1. Last night the Mets made a bold move by trading catcher Ramon Castro plus all of his remaining salary to the White Sox for one time pitching prospect, Lance Broadway.

On the surface, the trade looks terrible, but is it?

In my opinion, the real benefit to the trade was now what we gave up or got back, but what it allowed the Mets to do, that is; keep Omir Santos on the 25 man roster.

2. Sports talk radio and the Mets blogosphere is still buzzing about F-Mart’s boneheaded play when he failed to run out a fair popup in front of home plate.

But now the discourse centers around how Jerry Manuel handled the situation, and what many perceived as a very weak response with dangerous repercussions. 

Could Jerry Manuel have handled this better?

3. Last night at Citi Field, the much detested “Sweet Caroline” was replaced by our beloved Mets standard “Meet the Mets”. It was a long time coming and nobody knows if the switch is permanent, but what are your thoughts?

Much ado about nothing?

Fire away…

So what does that mean for Omir Santos who has suddenly become a fan favorite and has proven to be a valuable asset for the Mets since originally being called up to replace Schneider in the first place?

Does he get sent back down to Triple-A Buffalo or do the Mets elect to keep three catchers which is something they did quite often during the 2008 season?

Those are definitely some tough questions to ask, and we put that question to our readers yesterday in a poll.

Here are those results so far:

The overwhelming majority of those we polled would rather trade or release Brian Schneider rather than bring him back to the team. There’s no chance the Mets would release him, but trading him could be an option if he can prove he’s healthy and that would mean giving him playing time.

Only 15% of those polled believed that Omir Santos should be sent down, with an even smaller percentage opting to keep all three catchers.

It’s no secret that Jerry Manuel loves the versatility that Santos brings to the team, so it will be interesting to see how this plays out.

Ramon Castro is batting .253 with 3 homers and 13 RBI in 79 at-bats.

Omir Santos is batting .268 with 2 homers and 15 RBI in 71 at-bats.

Brian Schneider was batting .121 with 0 homers and 2 RBI in 21 at-bats before getting hurt.

One thing Santos has in his favor has been his surprising defense, arm, and baserunning skills. It could be the thing that spares him a demotion to Triple-A.

He said, “Brian Schneider isn’t even close to a return and in fact he hasn’t even done any running”.

Schneider, was placed on the disabled list with a strained back on April 17, and was eligible to return on May 2nd. However, he is now experiencing problems with his calf muscle. It’s not know when he is expected to be ready for game action.

Meanwhile, Ramon Castro left Saturday’s 10-1 win over the Pirates after six innings with tightness in his right quadriceps muscle. Castro described the trouble as cramps. He says he could play if they really need him. Here we go again…

No worries though, because Omir Santos continues to excel during his extended playing time. He has shown a remarkable ability to come through in the clutch and has really impressed defensively as well.

Santos came into today’s game with a .289 batting average.

Omir Santos and Ramon Castro are getting a reprieve this weekend when it comes to worrying about their roster spots after regular catcher Brian SchneiderBrian Schneider (pictured) developed a sore right calf this week.Schneider was eligible to come off the 15-day DL on Sunday in Philadelphia, but the team is saying his return is now pushed back indefinitely due to the calf issue. Schneider had gone on the DL April 17 with a strained muscle in his back.

The catcher situation is under the microscope after Jerry Manuel opted to pinch-hit Santos for Castro in the ninth inning of Wednesday’s 4-3 loss to the Marlins, even though Santos was coming in cold from the bullpen and Castro already had two hits and an RBI on the day.

While Santos popped out weakly to end the game, he remains a favorite of Manuel for both his bat and defense. Manuel also is obviously not a big fan of Castro’s, but the Mets would have to swallow the rest of Castro’s $2.5 million contract to get rid of him.

In other words, Castro is probably staying once Schneider returns. That would mean a trip back to the minors for Santos because Manuel said this week the Mets are highly unlikely to keep three catchers.

The Mets purchased the contract of catcher Omir Santos, who is expected to be arrive in time for Friday’s game and to be available if needed.

Ramon Castro is behind the plate for the Mets on Friday, starting for back-to-back games in place of Schneider.

“We are somewhat concerned,” Mets manager Jerry Manuel said of Schneider, who is batting just .143 (3-for-21).

Schneider said he has been experiencing tightness in his lower back since last week’s series in Miami. After struggling to play with the ongoing discomfort, Schneider opted to try to rest his back before it got “out of control.”

But Friday afternoon — before the club announced Schneider was going on the DL — Manuel didn’t sound quite as encouraged.

“If this thing doesn’t clear up, then we will have to make a decision based on him being available or not,” Manuel said. “Or trying to get somebody else in here to help us out.”

One person who has responded well is Castro, who hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning on Thursday night.

“I feel good at the plate,” Castro said. “I’ll do whatever it takes for the team — we’re here to win.”

Santos spent the majority of the 2008 season with Triple-A Norfolk of the International League, making his Major League debut on Sept. 5. In 11 games in the Majors, he is 1-for-11.

This will be quite a test for Ramon Castro. I’m not worried about his offense because he’s better than Schneider, or his defense which isn’t bad. I’m more concerned with Castro’s durability which has never been very good.

Can somebody please assure me that I will not see anymore home games where a so-called Met fan interferes with the game and potentially snatches victory away from the Mets? I was so pissed off that we didn’t score on that play in the 4th inning when Murphy lined a basehit with Reyes on base and almost certain to score, all because some idiot wanted a free ten dollar baseball. I hope he is banned from Citi Field for life as one of our commenters suggested this morning.

Jerry Manuel searched out Daniel Murphy yesterday and reassured him that the leftfield job is still his despite the recent flubs in the field. One of those miscues resulted directly in a loss during Johan Santana’s last start. My guess is that as long as he keeps hitting, he’ll be out there. I do wonder if that off season experiment when Murphy played second base will come into play at some point? He might be better suited as an infielder than an outfielder.

Brian Schneider will be out of the lineup again today so he can continue to rest his sore leg and back. Last night, Ramon Castro provided some much needed offense from the catchers position where Schneider was batting .148.

Willie Randolph will be on the field tonight as the third base coach for the Brew Crew. It will be his first time facing the Mets since he got the 3:00 AM hatchet job in Los Angeles last year. Jerry Manuel says he looks forward to seeing him. Yeah, that’s like Clemens saying he looks forward to seeing Mike Piazza at the HOF ceremonies.

The old Mets never would have stood a chance last night against the Reds. Too many things went right, that never would have happened last season. I will cite just a few of them for you.

1. Brian Schneider was brilliant behind the plate. Last season, every errant pitch seemed to get by him for a wild pitch or passed ball. Sometimes it cost the Mets the game. Last night, nothing could get by him. He was even more effective when the heat was on and the Reds tried to rally in 7th, 8th and 9th innings. At least four pitches in those that would have gotten by him last season, were in his mitt instead. If any one of those pitches get by him, it could have been a different outcome, especially the two wide curves in the dirt from K-Rod in the ninth with the bases juiced. Schneider brought his “A” game this season.

2. When the Mets found themselves in the bottom of the ninth with the Reds just two runs down and the bases loaded, who among you wasn’t having some delirious flashbacks? The Mets needed just two outs to come away with the win, but Rodriguez was clearly out of gas and his fastball was flat as a pancake. We all know how that would have ended if Luis Ayala, Aaron Heilman or Scott Schoeneweis were on the mound. But this was K-Rod, and even on his worst night, he was able to dig down deep into his gut and get those last two outs using pure heart and tons of adrenaline. It was something we haven’t seen in a long time as Mets fans. We saw our closer at his worst, and he looked fantastic.

3. Defensively, the Mets played a lousy game last night. They were charged with only two errors, but it should have been at least three if not for the hometown official scorer. However, when Luis Castillo made the decision to throw home rather than pursue the rundown taking place between first and second I was like, “wow” as the umpire signaled the runner out at the plate. What a presence of mind by Castillo after a season… of constant flubs and too many mental errors to count, he not only made the right call, but he executed it with such perfection. It was a thing of beauty.

In closing, we were witness to some heads up playing, gutty performances, and solid baseball instincts last night. If this was a glimpse of of the new Jerry Manuel led Mets, we’re in for a magical season in 2009.

Mike Pelfrey started and was in big trouble right from the start when the Reds tagged him for 4 runs including a three-run blast off the bat of Joey Votto. However, Pelfrey settled down some and weaved in and out of trouble and held the Reds scoreless for the next four innings. He threw 104 pitches and got the win, but just barely…

Carlos Delgado was the offensive star of the game and slammed his 470th career home run as part of a big two hit, four RBI night. Brian Schneider put the Mets up with a three-run double and also had two hits on the night.

Bobby Parnell, Pedro Feliciano, Sean Green, J.J. Putz and Frankie Rodriguez all followed Pelfrey, but combined to allow seven walks.

The most dramatic moment of the game came in the bottom of the ninth when K-Rod loaded the bases as a result of some bad umpiring couple with some bad control by Rodriguez. However, after a visit to the mound by Dan Warthen and Brian Schneider, Rodriguez got it together and closed the game out and left all three Reds stranded.

It wasn’t a pretty game, and it featured some sloppy play in the field, but the bottom line is that it’s a win and the Mets go for the sweep tomorrow with Oliver Perez on the mound.

I’m bringing the game ball back for this recap, and I’m giving it to the big guy at first base. Nice game Gado!!!

The Mets are 2-0!