According to David Lennon of Newsday, the Mets may still opt to place Jose Reyes on the DL especially if he shows no signs of improvement today.
If that happens, the Mets may very well call up their top prospect, outfielder Fernando Martinez.
Lennon writes,
The Mets could simply wait to put Reyes on the DL before tonight’s game and recall another bat, such as Fernando Martinez, to fortify a lineup that has not homered in 69 innings, the team’s longest drought since 2003. If they went that route, it would leave Ramon Martinez and Fernando Tatis as the only shortstops, since Alex Cora is already on the DL with his right thumb in a splint.
We’ve been calling for F-Mart’s promotion for a long time here at Mets Merized Online, and I think we are closer now than ever before. As I wrote on May 19th, the timing is right, and since first starting the chants to promote F-Mart weeks ago, what many called a ridiculous idea is now quickly gaining steam in Mets circles.
Fernando Martinez is currently enjoying a spectacular streak that has him batting .350 in May with 6 homeruns, 15 RBI’s and 16 runs scored. His OPS during the streak is 1.105.
For the season F-Mart is batting .296 with solid splits (.303 vs LHP, .289 vs RHP), and he leads the league in doubles and total bases.
If the Mets do decide to call up F-Mart, he would most likely start in leftfield and play everyday or at the very least exclusively against right handed pitchers.
Depending on how well he does, he could very well stick even after Jose Reyes returns from the DL.
I’m not sure where Manuel would hit him in the lineup, but my guess would be that we could see him batting second or somewhere between the fifth and seventh spots. I’m hoping that they stick him at fifth, right behind Wright if only to see if we can catch lightning in a bottle.
I believe the Mets should call him up even if Reyes doesn’t land on the DL. With Murphy now firmly in place at first base, Sheffield, Pagan and Reed will take turns in a leftfield rotation. I would use Sheffield in a straight platoon in rightfield with Ryan Church, send Reed down to AAA, and give F-Mart a full shot in leftfield.
If you’re going to give the kid a shot, don’t do it half-assed.
