Okay so it’s almost afternoon, but Afternoon Grind doesn’t have that same ring to it…

Making The Grade

According to Adam Rubin, Bobby Parnell and/or Sean Green could be in at least a little trouble in making the club. Or at least in a competition. If Jenrry Mejia and/or Hisanori Takahashi sneaks into the bullpen, one or two reliever incumbents could find themselves in the minors … or traded. This is the best part of spring training for me. I love watching these battles unfold and this particular one could be very interesting. I said it back in January that Parnell might not be a lock for the bullpen, and obviously neither was Brian Stokes over whom too much was being made of. I’m not sure Mejia will be the one Parnell and Green should worry about. I still believe that in the end, both Takahashi AND Nelson Figueroa make the team, and that Parnell and Green will be elsewhere come opening day.

Another Texas Rangers Rumor

According to MetsBlog, Matt Pignataro of Seven Train to Shea believes that the Orioles and Rangers are very interested in C Omir Santos. I don’t see it, much like I didn’t see them trading Nelson Cruz to the Mets or anyone else. I do believe the Dodgers have more interest in Omir than they are letting on, and don’t count out the Yankees or Cubs either. In the end, I put the odds of Santos being traded at less than 50%. Unless you’re the Omar led New York Mets, the catching position is something that most teams get sorted out pretty quickly in the offseason, because as the great Casey Stengel once said, “without a catcher you’ll end up having a lot of passed balls”. Or something like that… Plus dedicated Metsmerized readers already know my stance on sources in the Twitter age. I need more than 140 characters to convince me of their veracity.

Who Is Chris Carter?

Well, in short, he’s the guy the Red Sox gave up in exchange for two first round draft picks and the services of Billy Wagner for their stretch run. He is also the guy who homered twice in the 9th inning as the Mets trounced the Marlins 11-2. One was off Seth McClung and the second came off of Chris Schroder. Ummm… who? Alrighty then… One last thing you should know, Carter is also the guy that has a snowball’s chance in hell of making the Mets opening day roster. That’s all you need to know. As for what the Mets think of Chris Carter? The Gary Matthews trade and Mike Jacobs signing tells you all you need to know. Pack plenty of sweaters my friend, it’s still freezing in Buffalo in April.

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