It’s hard to believe that a player could hit .302, with an OBP of .387, and still be so unwanted.  But when you break down the numbers, you see why Luis Castillo is such a poor fit for the 2010 Mets.  Of course his defense is weak.  But I see his offense as an equally big problem, despite his high average and OBP.

Castillo had 147 hits last year of which 12 were doubles, 3 triples, and 1 home run.  Yes, Castillo hit 131 singles which is 89% of his total hits.  Of those singles, 41 of them were of the infield variety.  He also had 19 sacrifice bunts.  I can’t take one more of his at bats.

If the Mets had traded Brian Stokes and additionally Luis Castillo to the Angels for Gary Matthews Jr. and $9.5M, people would be jumping up and down right now.  But the truth of it is if the Mets were to DFA Luis Castillo today and pay all $12M of his salary, it would be no different than having included him in the trade.

If the Mets are able to trade Castillo and pay $11M of his $12M remaining salary, the Mets will have come out ahead.

Having said this, it is apparent to me, that the Mets do indeed have additional plans in the works.

My prediction is that within 1 week, Luis Castillo will no longer be a Met.  There will be a new pitcher or two and a new 2nd baseman. Spirits will be high.  Omar Minaya will have done a credible job this off season and he will have saved his job and regained much of the trust of Mets fans.  I for one will have much more confidence in his ability to build on this winter’s moves in the future.

We are not far from achieving the following lineup.

1. Jose Reyes – SS

2. Orlando Hudson/Adam Kennedy – 2B

3. Carlos Beltran (upon his return) – CF

4. Jason Bay – LF

5. David Wright – 3B

6. Daniel Murphy – 1B

7. Jeff Francoeur – RF

8. Henry Blanco/or other – C

Starting Pitchers – Johan Santana, Ben Sheets, Mike Pelfrey, John Maine, Oliver Perez, Jon Niese, Nelson Figueroa, Fernando Nieve

I think I can live with this to start 2010.  And by the July trade deadline, who knows what else.  Meaningful games in September?  Games in October?  Not out of the question.

Hey Joe D. –  Thanks for giving me some of that stuff you’ve been smoking.