Yesterday, after the Mets salvaged the final game in San Francisco to avoid the sweep, Jerry Manuel spoke with reporters.
Luis Castillo – Castillo will be joining the Mets today in Arizona, where the Mets begin a three game series with the Diamondbacks. He is expected to be activated before the game and resume his tole as the team’s everyday second baseman.
Jose Reyes – All signs point to the return of Jose Reyes to the lineup tonight against the D’Backs. He swung the bat from both sides of the plate on Saturday and Sunday and reported no discomfort. Since he last played, the Mets have lost six of their last eight games without Reyes in the lineup.
Ruben Tejada – The young second baseman will be demoted to make room for Luis Castillo. Tejada was overmatched at the plate during his brief stint and ends his Major League trial by batting .212 with no homeruns and 5 RBI in 104 at-bats. Of his 22 hits, 18 of them were singles. Tejada will be heading to Buffalo where he will get regular playing time.
Oliver Perez – Left-hander Oliver Perez is expected to join the team tonight before the start of a three-game series at the Arizona Diamondbacks on Monday. He has been on the DL since June 5 with tendinitis in his right knee. The Mets had to activate Perez before the 30 day window of rehab expired. They would prefer to have Perez remain in the minors to work out his troubles, but he continues to refuse a minor league assignment. Jerry Manuel made it clear that Perez would pitch out of the bullpen and that Hisanori Takahashi would remain in the rotation and make his scheduled start on Thursday in Los Angeles. Reliever Raul Valdes is expected to be demoted to Buffalo to make room for Ollie.
David Wright – During yesterday’s 4-3 win over the Giants, former “Mets Killer” Pat Burrell lined a hard shot off of David Wright‘s knee. Wright remained in the game, but could be seen rubbing his knee and limping around afterward. Jerry Manuel later told reporters that Wright’s knee is swollen, but he expects him be in the lineup tonight.
Josh Thole – Jerry Manuel also told reporters that Thole will catch R.A. Dickey on Tuesday, but that he will probably be demoted to AAA-Buffalo after the game, most likely to get another arm in the bullpen.
While I’m glad to see a healthy Luis Castillo back in the lineup, I’m not thrilled at the prospect of seeing Josh Thole go back to AAA. I understand the need for the Mets to have that extra reliever in the bullpen, especially now that they are forced to activate Ollie, but I’m not sure that sending Thole down makes the team better. It will be nice to see Beltran and Reyes together again in the same lineup, something that hasn’t happened since May of 2009.
