Rice lowered his ERA to 3.05, and is now on pace for 99 appearances. That would surpass Pedro Feliciano‘s franchise mark of 92 games in 2010 and rank second all-time to Mike Marshall‘s 106 appearances for the Dodgers in 1974.

That is one heck of a workload to say the least, and to think that it’s coming from a pitcher who has toiled for 14 years in the minors before finally getting his shot in the majors makes this all the more amazing.

Rice, the 31 year old rookie, is proving to be the second best weapon in the Mets bullpen after closer Bobby Parnell. However, how long can he continue on this torrid pace before it all catches up to him and he begins to breakdown?

“Right now it’s early enough in the year”, manager Terry Collins said. “We’ve tried to get him some days off. But he keeps pitching four out of five, it’s got to be a concern. We’ve got to certainly pick up some of the workload with somebody else.”

Rice has no complaints and is enjoying every minute of his new-found life in the majors, but he also understands the risks.

“If my arm is feeling fine, I’m going to go out there and throw,” Rice said. “I’m going to be smart, and I know my body. I know how to take care of myself and prepare myself to throw every day.”

I’ve been pulling for Rice since back in Spring Training and was so glad for him when he made the team, but I never expected he would play such a significant role this season. Here’s to more great outings for this veteran rook, who definitely knows his place. He earned it the hard way.

Last Night’s Quick Scores

• Las Vegas edged out Round Rock, 3-2. 
• Binghamton dropped to Trenton, 5-1. 
• St. Lucie blasted Daytona, 13-3. 
• Savannah topped Hickory, 9-6. 

Prospect Pipeline

• It was supposed to be an epic matchup of top pitching prospects in Trenton, between the B-Mets and the Trenton Thunder yesterday — the Double-A version of the Subway Series. Rafael Montero was on the hill for Binghamton, while Jose Ramirez took the hill for Trenton. If you look at the box score, it looks as if Ramirez did the share of dominating, but it was Montero who bounced back, and looked masterful for six innings. Montero now has 48 strike outs to just eight walks this season. You can read my recap on Montero’s performance last night, here.
• Montero wasn’t the only pitcher that bounced back last night. Collin McHugh was even more dominant, pitching seven complete innings, while giving up no runs and compiling five strike outs and no walks. Round Rock only managed five hits against McHugh. I actually had to double-check to make sure Las Vegas didn’t build a dome after seeing those numbers.
• Eudy Pina makes his Mets Minors Report debut today, and with good reason. Pina smacked two home runs in Savannah’s win yesterday morning. He also added a double and compiled four RBIs on the day.
• Phillip Evans has been flirting with the Mendoza Line, but he erupted for three hits in yesterday’s game, one of which was his first home run of the season.
• Cesar Puello provided all of the B-Mets offense with one swing of the bat yesterday. He crushed an 0-2 hanger from Jose Ramirez over the left field fence, which also extended his hit streak to 14 games.
• Travis Taijeron has been named Florida State League player of the week. Taijeron, an 18th-round pick in 2011 from Cal Poly Pomona, hit .474 with one homer and six doubles in six games through Sunday.
• Third baseman Aderlin Rodriguez also has heated up with the FSL club. Rodriguez is 7-for-17 with two homers and nine RBIs in his past four games, which has upped his season average to .218. (Rubin)
• Right-hander Jeff Walters, whose eight saves with Binghamton lead the Eastern League, has an interesting distinction. Walters was drafted five times — out of high school, twice out of junior college, then after his junior and senior years at the University of Georgia. He signed after being selected in the seventh round by the Mets in 2010. Told getting drafted five times must be some type of record, Walters said he actually knows another person who experienced it — his former high school pitching coach, Randy O’Neal, who ended up being the 15th overall pick in the 1981 draft by the Detroit Tigers the final time. (Rubin)
• Jack Leathersich now has 27 strikeouts in 15.0 innings pitched for Double-A Binghamton. For his young pro career in the Mets system, he now has an insane 166 K’s in 99.2 innings.
• Matthew Bowman pitched six innings and struck out seven to earn his first win in his Florida State League debut as the Mets defeated the Daytona Cubs 13-3 on Tuesday. Bowman was promoted from Savannah, where he went 4-0 with a 2.64 ERA in five starts.
• We want to welcome Matt Musico and Wally Murphy to MMO Minor League Team! Matt was formerly the Executive Editor of Rising Apple where he led the site to great heights. Wally has been covering the Savannah Sand Gnats for eight years and has never missed attending a home game in all that time. Two powerhouse additions to an already great minor league team. Welcome Aboard, guys!

Stat Lines of the Day

Eudy Pina: 3-for-5, 1 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 2 R

Phillip Evans: 3-for-4, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 4 R, 1 BB

Collin McHugh: 7 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K 

Transactions/Injuries

The Mets are taking it slow with Michael Fulmer as he returns from surgery to repair a torn meniscus. Fulmer has not pitched again in a game since throwing two innings in an extended spring training game last Monday.

Right-hander Luis Mateo is making progress with a throwing program after leaving his Double-A debut April 15 with elbow inflammation. He was due to throw a bullpen session either yesterday or today.

Brandon Nimmo still has not returned to the lineup since April 29 because of a hand contusion. The Mets now consider it more serious than initially thought and will have him seen by team doctors with a possible MRI as well. DL stint looming.

Carlos Vazquez assigned to Brooklyn Cyclones from St. Lucie Mets.

C Xorge Carrillo assigned to St. Lucie Mets from Brooklyn Cyclones (This one confused me, why not promote Kevin Plawecki?).

St. Lucie Mets placed C Albert Cordero on the 7-day disabled list retroactive to May 6, 2013.

Quote of the Day

The quote of the day comes via Twitter and was in response to Rafael Montero‘s performance last night:

In my three seasons of covering minor league baseball, tonight’s effort by Rafael Montero is the most impressive that ive seen

— Matt Kardos ⚾ (@mattkardos) May 8, 2013

I really can’t stress enough how impressive Montero was yesterday. It was easily the best start I saw from a pitcher this year. Most people were busy watching Matt Harvey, and didn’t get to watch Montero, and the box score doesn’t give Montero any justice. Watching Montero attack the hitters and be able to put the ball where he wanted made it look like he was a man among boys — he just looks like he doesn’t belong (in a good way). He has fluid and smooth mechanics that almost seem to put the hitters to sleep at the plate. Before they know it, Montero’s 94 mph fastball just went by and nipped the black ever so slightly…Strike Three! This guy is the goods.

Photo of the Day

Wow, these Mets Minors Reports are hot.

Fort Myers 6, St. Lucie 0

St. Lucie’s starter Noah Syndergaard was locked in a pitchers’ duel with Fort Myers’ starter Matthew Summers for the majority of this game.  Syndergaard fired five scoreless innings to start the game before running into trouble in the sixth. Fort Myers’ third baseman Miguel Sano doubled off Syndergaard, but shortstop T.J. Rivera threw out Eddie Rosario at home plate. The next batter, Kennys Vargas, unfortunately came through for the Miracle with an RBI single for the first run of the game.

By looking at the stat line alone, Syndergaard allowed eight hits and two walks, which looks a little worrisome. However, he stranded nine of those ten and danced out of danger all evening. While six innings pitched was once a career high for Syndergaard, he has now strung together three straight outings of at least six innings and no more than one earned run allowed in each. He has also walked a maximum of two batters per start in the same span as well. He dropped his ERA down to 2.90 as he has looked to have settled down nicely in the FSL.

It all fell apart for St Lucie in the seventh inning, however, after Syndergaard’s departure. Pedro Feliciano yielded singles to the first two batters he faced and a fielding error on a sacrifice bunt loaded the bases. Feliciano then gave up consecutive sacrifice flies to make the score 3-0. Chasen Bradford came in relief of Feliciano and didn’t fare much better. Bradford gave up three hits and two runs in the inning, including one he inherited from Pedro Feliciano, which put St. Lucie behind 6-0. Third baseman Rylan Sandoval committed two errors in the inning.

St. Lucie’s offense was completely shut down by the Fort Myers pitching staff.  St. Lucie scored no runs and only had 6 hits. Their biggest opportunity of the night was in the fifth inning. Travis Taijeron led off the inning with a double, but St. Lucie failed to drive him in. The Mets will look to avoid the series sweep against Fort Myers on Sunday.  Tonight’s loss puts them seven games behind first place in the south division.

Key Stats

Noah Syndergaard: 6.0 IP, 8 H, 2 BB, 1 ER, 5 K

Pedro Feliciano: 0.2 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 1 ER

Chasen Bradford: 0.1 IP, 3 H, 1 BB, 2 ER

Wanel Vasquez: 1.0 IP, 1 BB, 0 ER

Cam Maron: 1-for-4, 1 2B

Travis Taijeron: 1-for-3, 1 2B, 1 BB

Albert Cordero: 1-for-3, 1 BB

Fort Myers 3, St. Lucie 2

The Fort Myers Miracle edged out the St. Lucie Mets on Thursday, on a night where Alex Panteliodis made his FSL debut. Pants was able to provide five effective innings in his season debut and first start off the DL, where he allowed an earned run off just four hits and a walk. His only blemish was allowing a solo home run in the fourth inning, and otherwise, Panteliodis looked pretty much in control during his time on the mound. He rocked an even 5:5 GB/FB ratio.

At the time of his departure, the St. Lucie Mets had alloted him a 2-1 lead, via a Dustin Lawley RBI double in the first and an Aderlin Rodriguez sacrifice fly in the fifth. Fort Myers was able to hold St. Lucie scoreless the rest of the way.

The Miracle would not afford the Mets the same courtesy, however, as they scored a run each in the eighth and ninth innings. Pedro Feliciano handled the sixth inning easily and Randy Fontanez provided a scoreless inning of his own before the trouble began.

An RBI single by Miguel Sano off Fontanez tied the game up in the eighth, and T.J. Chism walked home the game winning run in the ninth…after intentionally walking the previous batter to load the bases. Ouch. Chism is still in the middle of a solid year, as he was handed just his first loss and owns a 1.98 ERA.

Key Stats

Travis Taijeron: 2-for-3, 1 2B, 1 BB

Dustin Lawley: 1-for-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI

Aderlin Rodriguez: 1-for-1, 1 RBI, 2 BB

Gilbert Gomez: 2-for-4

Alex Panteliodis: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 HR, 1 BB, 1 ER, 3 K

Pedro Feliciano: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 0 ER

Randy Fontanez: 2.0 IP, 3 H, 2 BB, 1 ER, 1 K

T.J. Chism: 0.1 IP, 2 H, 2 BB, 1 ER

St. Lucie 7, Tampa 1

Rylan Sandoval blasted a one-out grand slam in the top of the sixth inning Monday night, and the St. Lucie Mets cruised to a 7-1 win over the Tampa Yankees.

Robert Gsellman started the game for St. Lucie but lasted just four innings, giving up two hits, no runs to go with two walks and two strikeouts. Jim Fuller came on in relief of Gsellman, tossing two innings and allowing one run to pick up his first win of the season.

St. Lucie (16-8) got on the board in the first inning after Matt Reynolds drove in T.J. Rivera, who led the game off with a single.

The Mets then added a run in the second inning and a run in the third to take a 3-0 lead before Sandoval’s grand slam.

Tampa scored its lone run in the bottom of the sixth inning on a Dan Fiorito RBI single.

Every St. Lucie batter — save for Aderlin Rodriguez — got at least one hit. Pedro Feliciano returned to action for St. Lucie tonight, tossing a scoreless inning.

Key Stats

Rylan Sandoval: 3-for-5, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 1 R

Matt Reynolds: 2-for-4, 1 RBI, 1 BB

T.J. Rivera: 2-for-5, 2 R

Cam Maron: 1-for-5, 1 3B, 1 R

Charles Thurber: 1-for-4, 1 RBI, 1 R

Robert Gsellman: 4.0 IP, 2 H, 2 BB, 0 ER, 2 K

Jim Fuller: 2.0 IP, 2 H, 2 BB, 1 ER, 2 K

Pedro Feliciano: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 BB, 1 K

Chasen Bradford: 2.0 IP, 3 H, 1 BB, 0 ER, 2 K

Lagares To Make MLB Debut? (Photo by Gordon Donovan)

Last Night’s Quick Scores

• The Las Vegas/Colorado Springs game was postponed due to cold.
• Binghamton dropped a game to Portland, 8-2.
• St. Lucie defeated Charlotte, 2-1.
• Savannah had an off day.

Prospect Pipeline (Morsels From The Minor League Staff)

• BREAKING: RHP Christian Montgomery of the Advanced-A St. Lucie Mets, was suspended 50 games for a second positive test of a banned substance. ”My job is not done and my goals aren’t reached yet, but I’m striving and dedicated to be where I wanna be,” he said to fans via Twitter.
• NEW: RHP Tyler Pill makes his fourth start of the year with the B-Mets. He got his first win of 2013 in his last start, a 4-3 victory over New Hampshire. He threw 6.0 innings, gave up three runs on seven hits, and struck out six batters. On the season, he has struck out 14, and walked four. Opponents are hitting .338 overall against the righthander, and are hitting .438 (7-for-16) against him with runners in scoring position. Pill was ranked the #25 prospect in the Mets organization by Baseball America  prior to the 2013 season. He was drafted by the Mets in the fourth round of the 2011 draft out of Cal State Fullerton.
• So resident psychic Joe D. gave Juan Lagares a well-deserved shout-out yesterday – and lo and behold, the story broke that he might be making his MLB debut with the Mets ASAP. As for my opinion on the matter, Joe and I are sharing a brain. I know that some people argue that Lagares may be experiencing a little statistical inflation, but I think Lagares has always had the potential to become a successful MLB player. More importantly, he has the tools to do it in CF, where the Mets are desperate for any kind of talent. You never know when a rookie can come up and light a fire under a team with some hard-nosed play, so I wish Lagares the best.
• Wally Backman gave his Lagares a sweet send-off. ”He’s a kid who can play all three outfield positions and he’s got speed. He’s a good outfielder. He throws to the right bases. He has a knack for getting the barrel on the ball. He looks like he’s a real good hitter. I mean, if you just watch him, you say, ‘This kid is going to be able to hit.” It’s almost as if it was taken straight out of my Prospect Spotlight on Lagares. (Joe D.)
• Speaking of sharing a brain, Mitch and I both have high hopes for T.J. Rivera – and he is definitely a feel good story. Rivera added two more hits and RBIs to his stat sheet for the 2013 season last night and is continuing to turn heads. Rivera can flat out hit and it may not be long before he is raking in a Binghamton uniform soon.
• Jacob deGrom was a hard luck loser in his first AA start a couple days back, and he ran into some more bad luck on Monday night as the B-Mets had a ton of defensive issues behind him. His final line was tough, as he somehow lasted five innings, but allowed seven hits and four walks. He was on the hook for six runs, but only one of them was earned. The Jake deGrom that you should expect to see going forward is a lot more like the young man we saw in his first AA start – where he lasted eight innings and allowed only three hits and one earned run.
• Jim Callis recently wrote about a piece about a 25-man prospect roster taking at most one player from each team. He chose Zack Wheeler from NY, but he mentioned that he could have easily gone with D’Arnaud. He also answered a direct question about Rainy Lara, where he stated “He’s also old for low Class A at 22, and unless he adds velocity or develops a quality second pitch, he’s looking at a ceiling as a middle reliever.” Lara, as Callis also mentioned, has gained some respect because of the effectiveness of his sinker, which sits at 89-92 MPH. Lara may not be the sexy prospect right now, but I would advise that you keep an eye on him until he gives you a reason not to. The right-hander is 2-1 with a 2.70 ERA in 16.2 innings pitched so far this season, with a 3:15 BB:K ratio.
• Aderlin Rodriguez may have three home runs and three doubles in 68 at-bats, but he is struggling mightily to keep his batting average anywhere near respectable – it fell to .162 last night.
• Shout-out to T.J. Chism, who picked up his second save of the season for St. Lucie and has a 1.59 ERA so far this season.
• Adam Rubin tweeted on Monday that his next farm report would feature Steven Matz…a fun fact? The Mets, as an organization, have only five left handed starting pitchers listed in contrast to 22 right handed starting pitchers according to their organizational depth chart. Jon Niese and Aaron Laffey make up two of them. Angel Cuan, Darin Gorski, and Steven Matz are the other three. Matz’s 1.29 ERA through 14 innings is tops in the Mets Minors right now.
• It’s no fun when Savannah has an off-day and you’re all ready to gush about Kevin Plawecki and Brandon Nimmo. For all the talk about Las Vegas inflating offensive numbers, the top three batting averages in the Mets Minors belong to three Savannah players: Nimmo’s .424, Boyd’s .388 and Plawecki’s .381 who all play at one of the toughest places to hit – Historic Grayson Stadium..
• T.J. Rivera is a well-oiled, finely tuned hitting machine at the plate. After another two-hit game, he’s now swinging a .310/.383/.394 slash and at 24, you’ll soon be seeing him at a Bingo hall near you and I’d be shocked if he doesn’t make it to Sin City and even to that other Citi for a September cup of coffee. (Joe D.)
• You know how I’m always harping on Zack Wheeler‘s command? If only he could put up strikeout to walk ratios like Jake deGrom 21:3, Rafael Montero 27:1, Steven Matz 18:4. Then you’ll know you really have a can’t miss prospect. Wheeler’s K/BB ratio is 21:12 if you want to know how that would translate in the Majors, take a look at Oliver Perez‘s career. I still maintain that Montero is more MLB-ready than Wheeler is (not so crazy now, huh?), but it won’t stop the frenzied fanbase from forcing Wheeler up based solely on his heightened legendary-status that’s being driven by SNY –  who happens to be owned by Fred. Once attends shrivels up some more, you’ll see Wheeler in Flushing – ready or not. Hopefully it won’t lead to his unravelling. (Joe D.)
• The executive producer of SNY told me last week that 99% of Mets fans only care about Wheeler, Nimmo and D’Arnaud, and that nobody cares about Montero, Flores or Lagares. I was asking him why they only cover the same 4-5 prospects day after day and ignore 3-4 dozen other great names and rattled off the three I mentioned. Toby Hyde jumped into our conversation and said, “Bingo!” Whose Minor League coverage would you rather read after seeing a mindset like that? (Joe D.)

Stat Line of the Day

T.J. Rivera: 2-for-4, 2 RBI, 2 R, 1 BB

Tweet Of The Day

Pretty sure I just saw a commercial for a farmers-only dating website. The farmer’s daughter cliche must really be struggling these days.

— Collin McHugh (@Collin_McHugh) April 23, 2013

I thought we had the market cornered here at MetsMerized with pictures of hot farm hands… We may now have some competition. This tweet had some competition from @JohnStrubel, who noted that Jason Bay flew out to Fernando Martinez to end an inning – right before Oliver Perez entered the game…

Transactions/Injuries

• Pedro Feliciano was placed on the temporary inactive list down in St. Lucie. Feliciano left the team to deal with a personal issue in Puerto Rico.
• Darwin Frias was called up to St. Lucie from Brooklyn.
• Shaun Marcum threw 52 pitches over 5.0 innings in an extended spring training game for St. Lucie yesterday. He is scheduled to be promoted to the Mets and start Saturday against the Phillies.
• Mets announced they have signed RHP D.J. Mitchell, who was released by the Seattle Mariners. He’s only made one start for Tacoma (AAA) this year and allowed three runs in four innings. He was assigned to Mets extended spring training camp.

Comment Of The Day

Buddy3 asked… “Do you see Matt Reynolds and TJ Rivera jumping over Tovar and Muno at some point this year or next at the double play combo? Seems like Reynolds is going to push Tejada, not Tovar.”

I love this question. First off, remember not to count Phillip Evans out – the Mets have invested a lot in him financially and he is pretty talented. Now, although Matthew Reynolds always profiled defensively as a third baseman, it was unlikely that his offensive capabilities would progress to match the expectations for that position – so the move to short should benefit him in the long run.

Reynolds may have a good glove, but Wilfredo Tovar has an elite glove…so although Reynolds will likely work out to be a better offensive contributor than Tovar, he is fighting an uphill battle. Rivera can flat-out hit and that statement will be said so many times this year that it will be drilled into most readers’ minds. I actually do believe T.J. Rivera will eventually overtake Daniel Muno when projecting the future, but Tovar’s defensive wizardry will likely keep him in the conversation over Reynolds for now.

Photo Of The Day

Don’t mind me, I’m just watching some Mets Minors baseball…

Wheeler & D’Arnaud: Is the Mets future tandem nearing their debuts?

Last Night’s Quick Scores

• Savannah (7-6) rocked the Greensboro Grasshoppers, 8-1
• St. Lucie (9-4) dropped to the Charlotte Stone Crabs, 5-2
• Binghamton (7-6) lost a close one to the Portland Sea Dogs, 1-0
• Las Vegas (7-6) topped the Sacramento River Cats, 3-2

Prospect Pipeline

• Brandon Nimmo had another two hits in yesterday’s game. He now has had a multi-hit game ten times this season.
• Travis d’Arnaud was pulled from last night’s game after being struck with a ball on the ankle while he was behind the plate. The ankle is probably one of the most painful spots to get hit with a ball, as the ankle bone is pretty much completely exposed. This sounded precautionary as there were no reports of d’Arnaud being sent for X-rays.
• Newly promoted Jacob deGrom got the nod for Binghamton last night. Like I said yesterday, many had him penciled into the Binghamton rotation at the start of 2013, so it was really only a matter of time before he got the call. He could not have pitched a better game. So good, in fact, that Binghamton head coach, Pedro Lopez, announced after the game that deGrom would be joining the B-Mets staff, and they would likely move to a six-man rotation once Cory Mazzoni is back from his injury.
• Sandy Alderson commented on what would determine when top prospect Zack Wheeler is called up to Flushing. He stated while the Super Two status is taken into consideration, Wheeler’s performance will ultimately determine when it’s his time. With the Mets backend of the rotation struggling the way it is, it won’t take many more solid starts before they go with Wheeler. I wouldn’t be surprised if Collin McHugh and Wheeler are both called up within the next month if the Mets rotation continues to falter. I would expect Rafael Montero to get called up to Las Vegas if, and when, Wheeler, McHugh, or both guys join the Mets during the next few weeks.
• Andy Martino, of the Daily News, commented on the Wheeler situation in his post this morning:

  Wheeler is 0-1 for Triple-A Las Vegas this season, with a 3.86 ERA. In 14 innings, he has allowed 17 hits and six walks while striking out 17.  You can throw out his first two starts, mediocre because of a since-popped blister on his pitching hand — but while Wheeler’s third game was much better, he still allowed three earned runs in 5.1 innings.

  The stuff was excellent, say people who were there, but his line didn’t scream “promote me now!” Plus, that was Wheeler’s first healthy game of the season. Little soon to be buzzing about the big leagues, don’t ya think?

  I agree that his first two starts may have been less than stellar due to the blister. However, I totally disagree with the fact that his stat line has to scream “promote me now!” If this was the determining factor, where would Matt Harvey be right now? Don’t get me wrong, stats do play a part when determining if a player is ready, but it goes way deeper than that. It’s not too soon to be buzzing about the big leagues. Two or three more solid starts, and Wheeler will join the Mets. There isn’t much more developing that is necessary. I would estimate that if Wheeler were called up right now he would be better than 80% of major league pitchers based on his stuff alone. With some added fine tuning at the major league level, he will be in the top 10% of pitchers in the league.

• Wilmer Flores is quietly having a solid year with Las Vegas. He is batting .288 with five doubles and only struck out three times in fourteen games. He has also played the majority of games at second base this season and has done a solid job defensively.
• After a quick chat with B-Mets beat writer Lynn Worthy, I learned that the reason DeGrom did not start season in Double-A as I initially projected, was because he showed up to spring training with a fractured finger that took time to fully heal. As Lynn told me, “Jake broke it while working for a friend’s cattle company. Apparently he had a bad day when he got kicked in the hand by a calf. True story. (Joe D.)
  
• I am looking forward to seeing Jeurys Familia work out of the Mets bullpen, after a small taste of the majors last year, I think he now knows what he’s up against and I expect great results. The fact he now knows that his ticket to the big time will depend on embracing his role as a reliever, and his solid work out of the bullpen for Las Vegas will prove instrumental toward achieving success. (Joe D.)
• While players like Josh Satin, Kevin Plawecki and Brandon Nimmo are getting most of the ink these days, the one player who leads the Mets Minors in RBI is T..J. Rivera who has driven in 13 for St. Lucie. Jack Leathersich had this to say about Rivera in an interview I did with him. “He’s the real deal. I’ve never been around a kid who prepares as well as he does. He just really loves the game and it seems like everytime I see him he’s out on the field working on something. Rivera plays hard and is completely balls to the wall – he’ll do anything to make sure we win.” (Joe D.)

Stat Line of the Night

Jacob deGrom: 8.0 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 8 K

The statistics are even more impressive when you break them down. Take a look at this from MMO contributor John B. who charted the game from behind homeplate:

• Total Pitches: 102, Strikes: 71 – 69% Balls 31
• Full Windup: Pitches: 90, Strikes: 62 – 70% Balls: 28
• Fastballs: Pitches: 66 Strikes: 46 – 70% Balls 20
• Off-Speed Pitches: 24 Strikes: 16 – 67% Balls 8
• Stretch: Pitches: 12 Strikes: 9 – 75% Balls 3
• Fastballs: Pitches: 7 Strikes: 4 -57% Balls 4
• Off-Speed Pitches 5 Strikes 5 – 100%

Tweet of the Day

Transactions

• Jeurys Familia was called up to the Mets and Greg Burke was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas.
• RHP Cory Mazzoni who missed his scheduled start Monday with inflammation in his right elbow and landed on the disabled list, will be heading to New York today to be examined by Mets doctors. Also joining him will be RHP Luis Mateo, who left Monday’s game because of discomfort in his right forearm/elbow area. Both prospects will get an MRI today, so keep your fingers crossed.
• Wednesday night at Tradition Field, Pedro Feliciano and Frank Francisco each threw a scoreless inning of relief for Single-A St. Lucie. Feliciano allowed no hits and recorded two strikeouts, while Francisco pitched a perfect inning. Both pitchers have shown increased velocity from the beginning of spring training and could be very close to being ready.

Prospect Audio/Video

Mike Newman of ROTOscouting.com headed to Historic Grayson Stadium, home of the Savannah Sand Gnats, and provides some fresh scouting on hot-hitting Brandon Nimmo including this video footage:

He says that as Nimmo continues to learn how to identify pitches to drive, his power should uptick as well. Early in the season, his strikeout and walk percentages have both decreased. While one might dismiss this as small sample size, Nimmo’s controlled aggression is a sign of growth from a scouting standpoint.

If this holds true, then Nimmo is bound to put baseballs in play at a higher rate than last season, resulting in the accumulation of extra base hits…By the end of the 2013 season, don’t be surprised if Nimmo has overtaken Wilmer Flores as the best position prospect in the organization, assuming Travis D’Arnaud loses eligibility later in the season.

Holly Madison tosses out the first pitch for Vegas 51s. Wally Backman said she had great form. I agree. (Joe D.)

Charlotte 5, St. Lucie 2

Starting off ugly and not getting much better, the St. Lucie Mets got hit hard out of the gate by the Charlotte Stone Crabs and were unable to bounce back, falling by a score of 5-2.

Marcos Camarena took the hill for his start for the St. Lucie Mets and made it one he will soon like to forget. In just five innings of work, Camarena surrenedered four runs on six hits while walking three and failing to punch out a batter. Jake Hager led the game off with a double and was bunted over to third by Taylor Motter, putting him 90 feet away for Drew Vettleson who drove him home with a liner to Travis Taijeron in right that when for a RBI single. Jeff Malm hit a two-bagger of his own in the second to make a 2-0 ballgame and was quickly driven in by Jake DePew who had a Rib-eye steak of his own to make it a three-run lead. Then in the third, Richie Shaffer served up a solo shot that went to left for a home run. Camarena settled down for his final two innings of work but the damage was done as his he takes his first loss of the season while his ERA ballooned to 8.31.

Pedro Feliciano and Frank Francisco each pitched an inning of scoreless relief for their rehab appearances. Feliciano clocked in at 82-83mph as he did all spring. Hopefully he will be able to get his velocity back to his pre-Yankee days.

The St. Lucie Mets on the other hand were baffled by the Stone Crab’s Jesse Hahn. Hahn went only three innings, however surrendered just one hit while striking out six. Jake Floethe took over duties and continued to hold the Mets off the board until the seventh. Aderlin Rodriguez started off the rally with a homer to left to make it a three run ballgame. Travis Taijeron hit a single then got himself into scoring position on a wild pitch. Albert Cordero would drive him in to make it a two-run game however it wouldn’t be enough as the Mets would go onto lose by a score of 5-2, falling to 9-4 on the season overall.

Key Stats

Aderlin Rodriguez: 1-for-4, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R

Albert Cordero: 2-for-3, 1 RBI

Travis Taijeron: 1-for-3, 1 R

Pedro Feliciano: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 2 K (Fastball at 82-83 MPH)

Frank Francisco: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 1 K (Fastball at 90-92 MPH)

Car-Go was a one-man wrecking crew on Tuesday.

After losing the first game of their doubleheader with the Colorado Rockies 8-4, it looked as though the Mets might pull out a win in the finale after taking a commanding 8-1 lead through the top of the fifth. But it all fell apart as the blunders, errors and shoddy pitching saw the Rockies mount a shocking 10th inning 9-8 comeback victory to send the Mets reeling and gingerly walking back to the comfort of their warm and quiet clubhouse.

Mets reliever Greg Burke was called upon to pitch to the dangerous Carlos Gonzalez with two outs in the 10th and ended up walking the slugger to set the stage. Then Michael Cuddyer hits a sharp grounder that deflected off of the outstretched glove of David Wright at third base and into left field as Cargo hustled his way to third, to set up Jordan Pacheco‘s game-winning single. Originally scored an error on Wright, it was later changed to a hit after the game ended.

The Rockies tied the game in the eighth inning courtesy of two huge Mets errors. With two outs and nobody on, reliever Brandon Lyon booted a grounder back to him for an error, and then Ruben Tejada committed his sixth error of the season in 13 games played. In what should have been the third out, Tejada threw high and wide to first base, allowing two runs to score.

“I was freezing to death. It’s tough, tough to play in that weather but you have to play,” Tejada said. “It was a bad throw, a really bad throw. With that situation with the game on the line, it’s a really bad error.”

There weren’t many shining moments for the Mets in their twinbill sweep. Well maybe just one – and it came in the middle of the eighth inning of the second game, when Coors Field started playing Neil Diamond’s “Sweet Caroline”, the Boston Red Sox anthem, in recognition of the tragedy at the Boston Marathon. It was a nice touch to an otherwise lackluster evening for the Amazins.

Manager Terry Collins refused to blame their disappointing sweep on the wintry conditions.

“I know our guys were freezing at the end of the game,” Terry Collins said late Tuesday, after the sweep. “Freezing. But they had to play. And they did the best they could. We lost two games. We had a chance to win the second game. It would have been a little easier to take. But I’m not going to use weather as an excuse.”

Post Game Notes

The Mets used seven relievers in the nightcap after Aaron Laffey lasted just four innings. Laffey has already been assured that he will start Saturday’s game against the Nationals in the next homestand.

The Mets took an 8-2 in the second game thanks to a five-run fifth in which they sent eleven batters to the plate. Marlon Byrd drove in two with a single, while Justin Turner, Tejada and pinch-hitter Jordany Valdespin also added RBI hits.

David Wright homered twice for the Mets in the first game while walking twice in the nightcap. He scored a combined four runs and drove in three on the day. Collin Cowgill had a three hit game in the nightcap  to raise his average to .199.

Justin Turner continues to make the most of his opportunities and with two more hits his average now stands at .450 for the season. he also drove in a pair.

Lucas Duda’s back tightened up on him again and he was pulled from the second game in the fifth inning. He later minimized the issue and vowed to be back in the lineup today. We’ll see.

Mets pitching allowed 17 runs on 25 hits and walked 11 batters. The backend of the rotation and the bullpen is starting to become a huge concern.

The Mets will likely makes some roster moves before their homestand which begins on Friday. Expect to see Omar Quintanilla get called up and Kirk Nieuwenhuis demoted, and possibly a couple of pitching moves as Shaun Marcum and Pedro Feliciano are about ready to return.

St. Lucie 6, Charlotte 3

A six-run sixth inning powered the St. Lucie Mets (8-3) to a 6-3 win over the Charlotte Stone Crabs on Monday night.

Charlotte (4-7) took an early lead after scoring a run in the first, second and third innings, but the St. Lucie bats came alive in the sixth.

Travis Taijeron and Gilbert Gomez led the inning off with back-to-back singles. After T.J. Rivera struck out swinging, Cam Maron knocked an RBI single through to cut the lead to 2-1. Matt Reynolds drew a walk to load the bases which set up Brian Harrison, who stepped in and delivered a two-run single, scoring Maron and Gomez.

With the game tied at 3-3, Aderlin Rodriguez brought home Reynolds on a sacrifice fly. Dustin Lawley capped off the huge inning with a two-run home run, his first of the season, on a fly ball to left field.

Domingo Tapia got the start, and despite allowing one run in the first inning, he eventually settled down to pick up his first win of the season. Tapia finished the night with six innings, five hits, three runs (two earned) to go with one walk and eight strikeouts. Tapia’s ERA stands at 3.55. The St. Lucie pitching staff stymied Charlotte over the final six innings.

Pedro Feliciano, who is working on a rehab assignment, threw a scoreless inning. He allowed one hit to go with one walk and one strikeout.

Key Stats 

Domingo Tapia: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 Ks

Brian Harrison: 1-for-3, 2 RBI, 1 R

Dustin Lawley: 1-for-4, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 R

Gilbert Gomez: 2-for-3, R

Updated by HoJo at 10:45 PM

Pedro Feliciano tossed a scoreless seventh inning for Advanced-A St. Lucie tonight in his first game action in nearly a month and the results were encouraging.

The Mets’ southpaw allowed one hit, one walk, and had one strikeout. But his velocity was in the 84-86 mph range, according to Adam Rubin, which was up from 82-83 in spring training last month.

Original Post 7:00 PM

Other Mets News

• Tonight’s game between the Mets and Rockies has been postponed due to snow. The two teams will play a split doubleheader tomorrow, the team announced. The first game will begin at 3:10 PM, and the second game will  start around 8:40 PM. It was the Mets second straight postponement for the Mets after wintry conditions in Minneapolis on Sunday forced the game against the Twins to be called off. It was rescheduled for August 19. Weather forecasts call for additional snow on Tuesday.
• Pedro Feliciano has officially joined Class A St. Lucie, the team announced today. The lefty reliever spent the past two weeks building up shoulder strength. According to Adam Rubin, the Mets asked Feliciano to give them a month in the minors from Opening Day before leaving the organization.
• Frank Francisco is set to begin a rehab assignment Tuesday with Class A St. Lucie, a club source told ESPN New York. Francisco underwent surgery in December to remove a bone spur from his pitching elbow. He experienced inflammation upon arriving at spring training. An official rehab assignment starts a maximum 30-day clock after which the pitcher is due to be activated. The right-handed Francisco has disappointed since signing his tw year, $12 million deal before the 2012 season.  He went 1-3 with a 5.53 ERA in 48 relief appearances last season.
• Shaun Marcum will not be ready to be activated from the DL until the middle of next week at the earliest. He has been on the 15-day disabled list with biceps tendinitis, retroactive to March 22. Marcum is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Tuesday and then throw a three or four inning simulated game in Port St. Lucie on Thursday. Marcum, who signed a guaranteed $4 million dollar deal in January, has been injured with one ailment or another since he reported to spring training.
• A Monday morning fire damaged parts of the administration building at Citi Field, the club announced, though sprinkler systems contained the blaze before it was extinguished by FDNY. The cause of the fire is under investigation, according to the team, though it did not damage areas accessible to fans and nobody was injured or harmed.

Mets’ relievers Frank Francisco and Pedro Feliciano threw a simulated game in Port St. Lucie on Tuesday.

Francisco continues to recover from off-season elbow surgery, and is currently on the disabled list, retroactive to March 22. The righty threw an inning of work, which consisted of 20 pitches.

Mets lefty reliever Feliciano continues to work on his arm strength, and also threw one inning of work in Tuesday’s simulated game.

Both Francisco and Feliciano remain serious candidates to join the Mets bullpen, should someone falter. Francisco is more likely to get the first crack first due to his contract ($6.5 million) and potential to close games, especially if Parnell struggles early this season.

Updated 4:00 PM by Mitch Petanick

Domingo Tapia had a very forgettable outing today in Grapefruit League play. Tapia pitched two innings, allowing four runs on four hits, two of which were home runs. Sounds scary when you read the stat line, but remember that Tapia is still a lower level prospect who was pitching against major league hitters that are just about ready for regular season play. And by lower level prospect, I do not mean talent wise, I mean that he has yet to pitch past Single-A.

Tapia is still considered one of the better right-handed pitching prospects in the Mets organization. His performance today does not change that. Hopefully taking some lumps from major league hitters didn’t hurt his confidence too much, and he will use this as a learning experience.

Original Post

Looks like St. Lucie will have a crafty veteran leading their bullpen as Pedro Feliciano opted to stay with the Mets and accept a minor league assignment. It is surprising that he’ll be pitching at Single-A instead of Triple-A. ”I think I’m going to be here in Florida for a month. I’m just going to do my job and get strong,” said Feliciano. I’m thinking he just wants to stick around for Spring Break and take in all the sights.

Seven minor league pitchers were cut on Wednesday: Brandon Moore, Brandon Sage, Jeff Kaplan, Jared West, Andrew Wells, Kyle Allen, and Yohan Almonte. I would be hard pressed to say that all of these cuts were deserved, but business is business…

The Mets have signed Shawn Teufel, son of former Met Tim Teufel, to a minor league deal. The 26-year old sports a career 4.93 ERA over his three minor league seasons, spanning 243 innings. Can I call nepotism? Best of luck to the left-handed hurler in our system, who is coming over from Detroit’s minors.

In other news, the Binghamton Mets are having their “Welcome Back B-Mets” Dinner on Tuesday, April 2 at the Binghamton Riverwalk Hotel and Conference Center. Baseball fans will have the opportunity to meet some players, get autographs, and also win some B-Mets memorabilia. The event also features live music performed by the Scott Freeman Band. Tickets are $20.00 and can be purchased through March 29 by calling (607) 723-METS.

Updated by Joe D. 3/26

A team source told Adam Rubin that veteran righthander LaTroy Hawkins has made the Opening Day roster. This comes as no surprise given manager Terry Collins‘ propensity to lean towards players with more experience as long as they are healthy.

Hawkins, 40, has not allowed a run over five innings during Grapefruit League action. He is coming off a season where he posted a 3.64 ERA in 48 relief appearances.

The Mets signed him to a minor-league deal in late January and will have to cut someone from the 40 man roster to make room for him.

Looks like Rob Carson will be the second lefty in the pen, which was also Adam Rubin’s belief when we asked him in an interview yesterday.

Carson has made 10 appearances this spring with a 5.40 ERA. Last season he posted a 4.73 ERA in 17 appearances for the Mets.

Originally Posted by Mitch 3/25

Pedro Feliciano has been advised that he will not be with the Mets’ big league club when spring training breaks in a week. The Mets want him to head to Triple-A to build up his arm strength.

Marc Carig of Newsday tweeted that Feliciano hasn’t ruled out starting the season in the minors, but thinks he is ready for major league competition now. According to ESPN New York, Feliciano stated that “[Batters] have to think about my deception mechanics-wise. You don’t have to throw 100 mph. You have to throw a strike to get some lefties. They made that decision. I’m going to think about it and see what I decide. Hopefully somebody picks me up. We’ll see what happens.”

Feliciano has had a rough spring. He was recovering from shoulder surgery, and then was almost shut down with a heart ailment earlier in camp. His velocity is still hovering in the low to mid 80s, and the Mets probably feel more comfortable starting the season with Robert Carson and Josh Edgin as their lefty bullpen options.

Joe D. reported yesterday that the Mets had until Tuesday to decide what to do with Feliciano, as the Mets had to clear some roster space in order for guys like Marlon Byrd, Scott Atchison and LaTroy Hawkins.

The Mets have until Tuesday to make a decision on whether to add Pedro Feliciano, LaTroy Hawkins and Tim Byrdak to the 25 man roster.

According to the rules of the new collective bargaining agreement, the Mets must inform each player by Tuesday if they intend to carry them on the major league roster. The alternatives are that either will be assigned to the minors and receive $100,000 or they will be released.

It will be interesting to see if the Mets decide to keep Feliciano, who has not seen his velocity improve one bit and he hasn’t been able to get his fastball past 80-82 mph. In eight appearances this spring, Feliciano has a 2.08 ERA spanning 4 1/3 innings with three strikeouts and one walk., but the big concern is his velocity which won’t cut it in the majors.

“I want to see the consistent velocity,” pitching coach Dan Warthen said. “I would like to see it a little faster (above 85 mph), but we’ll find out.

It could be the end of the road for Feliciano.

Hawkins, on the other hand, has clearly won a spot in the bullpen and has yet to allow a run this spring, while Byrdak, who is still rehabbing his left shoulder following surgery, will likely accept his minor league assignment.

If the Mets were to pass on Feliciano, it would most likely mean that one left-hander will emerge out of Robert Carson, Scott Rice and Aaron Laffey. Only Josh Edgin has already locked down a job among the southpaws in camp. The Mets have said they intend to go with two leftys in the bullpen.

I’m thinking they go with Aaron Laffey if only because in addition to being a second lefty, he can also serve as a long reliever or spot starter. Laffey has not allowed a run in 9.1 innings pitched this spring and has experience shifting from the rotation to the pen and back, for most of his career in the majors.

How they make room for all these additions to the 40 man roster will be another story, but here is my final updated bullpen projection of the spring:

1. Bobby Parnell - Closer 
2. Brandon Lyon - Setup
3. Scott Atchison - Middle
4. LaTroy Hawkins - Middle
5. Aaron Laffey - Long
6. Josh Edgin - Lefty Specialist
7. Greg Burke - Righty Specialist
   

Original Post 3/20

According to Adam Rubin of ESPN New York, the Mets are going to have two left-handed relievers in the bullpen to begin the season.

I’ve been saying this would be the case before camp even started, and this confirms my speculation that Jeurys Familia and Jenrry Mejia will be assigned to Triple-A Las Vegas within the next few days.

Josh Edgin, of course, is the lock, and the second spot will go to one of Pedro Feliciano, Robert Carson, or Scott Rice.

My money is on Feliciano and if he continues to improve there’s no chance he gets squeezed out by the other two.

Here’s what we’re looking at which really hasn’t changed much from what I’ve been projecting all along:

1. Bobby Parnell - Closer 
2. Brandon Lyon - Setup
3. Scott Atchison - Middle
4. LaTroy Hawkins - Middle
5. Josh Edgin - Middle
6. Greg Burke - Righty Specialist
7. Pedro Feliciano - Lefty Specialist

So, what do you think?

Do you see a better bullpen, a worse bullpen, or more of the same?

Jon Niese was superb in yesterday’s loss to the Braves and we know he’ll get the ball that first day against San Diego regardless of the Mets’ refusal to acknowledge anything negative about Johan Santana, who is among their many questions.

Q: What will the Mets get, and when, from Santana?

A: Considering it had been almost two weeks since his ill-fated mound attempt to quell the negativity from the Mets and media that Santana has done any significant throwing, it is anybody’s guess. Maybe next week, maybe the week after, but he will open the season on the disabled list regardless of his rate of denial. The Mets would dearly love to trade his $31 million contract, but the fact is they’ll have to eat over $20 million to do so. Might as well let him rest and hope for the best.

Q: Will David Wright open the season on the disabled list?

A: Technically, today is the third day of the three to five Wright will have to rest. He has received a cortisone injection in his strained ribs since coming back from the World Baseball Classic. Injuries of this type often last a month, as Wright learned last spring. Maybe he would have gotten hurt just the same in a regular spring training, but that doesn’t change the fact the odds are against Opening Day.

Q: How good is Matt Harvey?

A: He’s been good this spring, but has also thrown the occasional dud. He has ten major league starts on his resume, but the expectations of a proven veteran. The other teams have scouting reports, too, so don’t be shocked if he takes some lumps early.

Q: How healthy is Dillon Gee?

A: He says he has fully recovered from surgery to repair an artery in his pitching shoulder, but has been off this spring. He could use another three or four starts to get all the rust off, but there’s not enough time.

Q: What can the Mets expect from Shaun Marcum and fifth starter Jeremy Hefner?

A: Considering Marcum will not make six exhibition starts, don’t be too optimistic. At this rate, the Mets will be fortunate to get five innings from either of them. The back end of the rotation is clearly a weakness.

Q: Will Lucas Duda hit for power?

A: Let’s rephrase that: Will he substantially cut his strikeouts? He’s had a rough spring showing little of his power potential. When he hits them, he hits them far. Just not often enough.

Q: Who starts in center field?

A: Kirk Nieuwenhuis spit the bit early, and then was hurt. He was the projected starter and leadoff hitter, but now is ticketed for Triple-A Las Vegas. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. Let’s hope that includes his bad habits at the plate. We’re looking at Collin Cowgill as the starter and Jordany Valdespinmaking the team. They can use Matt den Dekker’s defense, but want more from him at the plate.

Q: Will Daniel Murphy be ready?

A: Murphy had one of those “seven to ten days’’ rib injuries that has lasted a month. He played five innings of defense in a minor league game three days ago, but has been stiff since. The early word is Wednesday of this week, but we know how such projections go with the Mets. It is possible Valdespin will start at second while Justin Turner is at third Opening Day. Excited yet?

Q: What is the make-up of the bullpen?

A: Bobby Parnell is the closer and he’s taken some hits this spring. Josh Edgin is the lefty specialist, butPedro Feliciano is making a run. He’s one of several veterans hoping to extend their careers with the Mets.

Q: Will they add anybody before the end of spring training?

A: Don’t count on it.

Turner was injured in the fourth inning of today’s 4-2 loss to Miami, when after fielding a ground ball, his left leg buckled while making a wild throw and he landed awkwardly on his right ankle.

“I think just getting up, going to make a throw, I caught my front spike on the lip of the grass,’’ Turner told reporters. “In order to try to catch my balance, all my weight went on my right foot and I turned it over.’’

Turner will know more in the morning when he wakes up and sees how much it swells up. Whether it swells or not, it will be at least a couple of days before we see him again at the least.

Brandon Hicks replaced Turner, and now Zach Lutz is next in line.

“However long it takes to get back out there, missing those days of play, sucks,’’ Turner said. “I guess the most important thing is getting back to 100 percent and getting ready for Opening Day.’’

MARCUM SOLID: In his third start of the spring, Shaun Marcum gave up two runs on five hits in four innings.

Marcum did not get off to a good start with the Mets when he told Terry Collins he needed only four starts to get ready for the season and spent the first two weeks long tossing to build up his arm.

Marcum said his mechanics feel more natural. “I feel like I’m starting to repeat them a lot more,’’ he said. “Other than that, now it’s just starting to mix in some more pitches.’’

Marcum isn’t overpowering and said his money pitch is a cutter, which he hasn’t yet refined.

PERPETUAL PEDRO:  During his first tenure with the Mets, Pedro Feliciano earned the nickname “Perpetual Pedro,’’ because it seemed as if he pitched every night.

Feliciano was re-signed by the Mets over the winter to a minor league contract in an attempt to land a spot in their patchwork bullpen.

A heart ailment sidelined Feliciano early in camp, but he has rebounded and is throwing in the mid- to low 80s. Today he worked a 1-2-3 inning with two strikeouts and has a real chance to make the team as the second lefty in the pen with Josh Edgin.

METS MUSINGS: Reliever Frank Francisco threw in the bullpen, but remains behind in an effort to be ready for the season. The timetable is to make at least two more bullpen sessions before throwing batting practice. That should eat up the remaining two weeks before the season, so it still appears likely he will open the season on the disabled list. … An injury also derailed Kirk Nieuwenhuis’ spring. Penciled in as the leadoff hitter in center. Nieuwenhuis bruised his left knee two weeks ago. He is participating in outfield drills and taking batting practice but needs to run the bases and play in games. … The Mets aren’t calling it a setback, but the day after playing defense in a minor league game Daniel Murphy did not play today, saying he felt stiff.

Jim Leyland’s pitchers have always been aggressive, so perhaps this is just a case of not having control early in spring training.

Nonetheless, it hurts just as much in March as it does in July. It will be interesting to see how the Mets respond if somebody takes one in the ribs today.

Retaliation is tricky at any time, but especially during spring training because players are going in and out of the lineup and pitchers are just trying to make the team. Then again, the solution might be to sign Armando Benitez for the day.

Dillon Gee, today’s starter for the Mets against Detroit in Port St. Lucie, does have a spot in the rotation. Just saying.

Also scheduled to pitch today for the Mets are LaTroy Hawkins, Pedro Feliciano, Greg Burke and Josh Edgin. Today’s lineup is as follows:

1. Jordany Valdespin, lf
2. Justin Turner, 2b
3. Ike Davis, 1b
4. Marlon Byrd, dh
5. Mike Baxter, rf
6. Zach Lutz, 3b
7. Anthony Recker, c
8. Matt den Dekker, cf
9. Ruben Tejada, ss

MORE CUTS COMING: The Mets are expected to option catching prospect Travis d’Arnaud and infielder Wilmer Flores to the minor league camp by Friday. If a player on the 40-man roster is injured within 15 days of Opening Day they qualify for major league service time and pay, and must be placed on the disabled list until they are healed. It’s a financial risk the Mets will not take, especially since neither is expected to make the team.

SANTANA NOT READY: Terry Collins told ESPNNewYork.com yesterday Johan Santana is “not too close,’’ to getting back on the mound.

One has to wonder if Santana’s surprise mound appearance might have set him back. At the time, GM Sandy Alderson was projecting he wouldn’t throw for about ten days.

Whether or not Santana reinjured his shoulder is hard to ascertain, but he didn’t do himself any favors and his progress has been set back.

METS MUSINGS: Outfielder Kirk Nieuwenhuis could resume baseball activities today, but is still a way from getting into a game. I’ll have something more about Nieuwenhuis’ disappointing spring later. …Daniel Murphy will take batting practice again today and could get into a minor league game this weekend. … I wrote yesterday about the Mets taking a look at outfielder Brennan Boesch. There could be mild interest. Perhaps working against Boesch is his age. At 27, one would assume an upside, but if this is so, why was he released? It can’t just be the strained oblique.

It is too soon to say much definitive about Terry Collins’ 2013 Mets other than it has the makings of a long year. Twice yesterday afternoon, the frustrated Mets’ manager answered seemingly innocuous questions about his roster with a curt, “It is March 8.’’

PARNELL CLOSING IN:

One silver thread out of Friday’s 3-2 loss to Detroit was reliever Bobby Parnell, who pitched a 1-2-3 sixth as he’s settling in to the closer job with Frank Francisco destined to open the season on the disabled list with a sore right elbow.

Parnell could always throw hard – sometimes in triple digits – but had trouble with command of his secondary pitches. That wasn’t the case against the Tigers.

“My curveball is working really well,’’ said Parnell. “Last year, I was inconsistent with my curveball. Today I was able to able to throw it for strikes early in the count.’’

Parnell was aggressive and attacked the hitters, and perhaps most importantly threw his curveball in counts where the hitter would normally be expecting a fastball.

“His breaking ball has really improved,’’ Collins said. “I loved his demeanor. He’s going after hitters like he knows he’s going to get them out.’’

Parnell will face another test when he goes back-to-back tomorrow.

“You want to build up your arm strength in spring training,’’ Parnell said. “It is just a mild test to tell you where you are.’’

It isn’t as mild for 40-year-old LaTroy Hawkins, who is trying to hook on in the bullpen. Hawkins said he threw 25 pitches to the five batters he faced. He gave up two hits and struck out one.

Hawkins wouldn’t say he was happy, or even satisfied, for that matter.

“I got a lot of work in today,’’ Hawkins said. “It wasn’t bad.’’

Convincing.

GEE FEELING IT:

Dillon Gee wanted to fine-tune his mechanics and was only partially satisfied with the results, giving up a run on one hit is four innings.

Not to his liking were three walks.

“Other than the walks, I felt better than (my last start, March 3 against Miami at) Jupiter,’’ Gee said. “I feel close to clicking. Maybe it’s a sixth sense, but I feel pretty close.’’

Gee was bailed out by a double play in the second, something Collins liked because he didn’t let the moment get away from him.

“He couldn’t locate all his pitches,’’ Collins said. “But, he kept his composure.’’

VALDESPIN MAKES IMPRESSION:

Jordany Valdespin hurried out of the Mets’ clubhouse with two cheeseburgers on a paper plate. He didn’t stop to talk about his homer that gave the Mets a brief 2-1 lead in the seventh.

Valdespin, who is hitting .333 this spring, started in left and batted second. The previous game he hit leadoff.

Valdespin is nothing if not supremely confident, perhaps overly so. He left the clubhouse wearing a bright red cap backwards with the lettering JV1.

Not hard to figure out what it means.

“He likes to play. He likes to be on the stage,’’ Collins said. “He plays with some flair.’’ Then, after a pause, Collins added: “There’s nothing wrong with that.’’

SIGHTS OF SPRING:

One of my favorite things about spring training is seeing players I enjoyed watching as a kid.

Keith Hernandez and Ron Darling were at Tradition Field Thursday calling the game on television. At lunch Friday was Jim Fregosi – whom Mets remember as the player acquired for Nolan Ryan – and Hall of Famer Al Kaline.

It’s the same in every camp as the alumni visit, many as guest instructors. The Yankees and Dodgers especially like to boast their tradition.

CLASSIC LOOK:

I’ve always thought the Tigers’ home whites are one of the best uniforms in sports. White with dark navy numbering with the old English “D’’ a stunningly simple, but elegant look.

Along with the Tigers there are the home uniforms of the Dodgers, Yankees and Red Sox. I do like the Mets’ pinstripes with the team name in script.

The simpler the better when it comes to uniforms and caps. That often makes the most powerful statement.

METS NOTEBOOK:

Travis d’Arnaud was one of three Mets hit by Luke Putkonen. He had his right elbow wrapped with an ice back but said he was all right. … The Mets’ offense continued to flounder with five hits. The Mets left 11 and went 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position. They also struck out 14 times. … Tigers manager Jim Leyland told Detroit reporters he doesn’t intend to retire. … Jeremy Hefner, Brandon Lyon and Parnell are among those scheduled to pitch Saturday against Houston. Shaun Marcum, Hawkins and Pedro Feliciano will work Sunday. The Mets are back in Lakeland Monday with Jonathan Niese starting against Justin Verlander.

COMING SOON:

Me and Joe D. will be combining our efforts beginning Monday as we decide what our Opening Day Mets roster will look like. We don’t agree on many of the decisions, but we spend a great deal of time arguing our points everyday and think it would be a great dynamic for the site. He’s talked me into doing a week by week retelling of the 1973 Mets season which we both feel gets very little playtime considering it went all the way down to Game 7 of the World Series. For those of you who weren’t around back then, get ready to relive the all the excitement of one of the most underrated great Mets seasons of all time. Joe will chime in as well as he calls that season his Mets baptism and the start of his Agony and Ecstasy. It should be fun.