Opportunity could be knocking for Matt den Dekker if Kirk Nieuwenhuis’ knee injury turns out to be more serious than just a bruise. We’ll know more on that later today. The Mets will consider all their options if Nieuwenhuis were to miss any significant time, but one could make a strong argument that den Dekker could have a leg up on his competition because of his stellar defense which can impact a game as much as a [...]

It is not surprising that GM Sandy Alderson indicated today it is “less and less likely,’’ Johan Santana would be ready for Opening Day. Alderson attributed that to Santana not being in good shape when he reported to spring training because he didn’t go through his normal off-season routine after extensive rehabbing the previous two winters. “From my standpoint, his arm is fine, as far as we know,’’ Alderson told reporters. “Was he ready to pitch [...]

MURPHY UPDATE: Daniel Murphy, who has been down with a strained intercostal muscle in his right side and was reportedly a week to ten days away from playing in a game, is making progress. Adam Rubin of ESPN reports that Murphy began hitting off a tee today for the first time since suffering the injury and he could be ready to appear in a Grapefruit League game in roughly a week. WHEELER UPDATE: When it comes to pitching injuries, always [...]

After a handful of games, this much is certain about the Mets’ porous outfield situation: Nothing has been settled. We know Lucas Duda is expected to play left field, but center field and right field are open. Wide open, it seems. Going into spring training, Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Collin Cowgill were penciled in as a platoon in center, while veteran Marlon Byrd and Mike Baxter were going to be a right field platoon. “The outfield is definitely a question mark, collectively,’’ Sandy Alderson said. “I [...]

In a conference call Wednesday evening, Mets GM Sandy Alderson addressed several issues surrounding the team. Here are some of the things he told us: Catching prospect Travis d’Arnaud will not be allowed to block the plate. The reason for that is obvious – his health. The leadoff spot is still up in the air but Kirk Nieuwenhuis, who is the leading candidate, still has a lot of work to do. If Nieuwenhuis plays full-time [...]

I probably wasn’t the only person frustrated last year watching Kirk Nieuwenhuis, or Lucas Duda, or Ike Davis appearing to take fat pitches down the middle of the plate only to see them swing at a breaking pitch in the dirt or a fastball at eye level. On several notable occasions Keith Hernandez himself went off on hitters taking 2-1 fastballs “right down the pike” as he’d say. There was a perception among many fans [...]

Lucas Duda did not start tonight’s 6-4 exhibition game loss against Washington, and won’t be in the lineup tomorrow. Look for him Wednesday or Thursday. In his first two games, Duda went 0-for-7 with six strikeouts, and told reporters today, “we’re not going to hit the panic just yet.’’ The Mets will opt for extra work in the batting cage instead.Duda, who underwent wrist surgery in the offseason, began to swing the bat in late January [...]

I expressed my concerns about Lucas Duda’s 0-7 start late last night, which you can read below. I was not surprised by what I predicted would be an avalanche of “it’s only two games” rebuttals. There they are for all of you to see. It seems like many readers chose to ignore that it was Terry Collins who referred to Duda as a “work in progress” and that those were his words and not mine. But, [...]

I’ve booked my hotel for Port St. Lucie and beginning on March 5th, I will be reporting live from Mets Spring Training exclusively for MMO. I’ve been busy this entire week coordinating many things with the New York Mets and Joe D. and we have some nice things in store for you. We’ve already lined up some exclusive player interviews and plan on bringing you some new video analysis, a daily report, live blogging and tweets, [...]

This week, Terry Collins and David Wright provided their annual sound bites that they believe the Mets, yes the group that has found its way to Port St. Lucie this spring, have it in them to make a run to the playoffs.  I know what your thinking.  How could a team that won only on seventy-four games last season with a Cy Young Award winning knuckleballer that has since been traded, a team which features [...]

For better or worse, Michael Bourn fell off the New York Mets radar Monday when he agreed to a four-year, $48 million deal with the Cleveland Indians. Mets/MLB beat writer Anthony DiComo suggests, if history is any indication, Sandy Alderson committed an error.  DiComo wrote: The 11th overall Draft pick has a bizarre history of busts relative to the picks around it. Of the 48 players in history taken 11th overall, only five have amassed [...]