Good morning, Mets fans! This afternoon, the Mets will go for the series win against the Nationals. Zack Wheeler will take the mound for the Mets. The righty will look to continue his recent stretch of success.

The Mets won 3-0 last night thanks to a good start from Jason Vargas and a homer from Jay Bruce. That is a sentence I expected to type way more in Spring than I actually have.

Latest Mets News

Marc Carig of the Athletic details David Wright‘s grueling road back to the Majors. Highly recommend the piece and if you really don’t respect Wright after reading that, I don’t know what else to say.

Former White House Communications Director, Anthony Scaramucci, said the Mets need to start spending more. He is a part time owner of the team.

The Mets will host the Staten Island Little League team that reached the semifinals in the US Bracket of the Little League World Series in Williamsport, PA on Sunday, August 26 at Citi Field. In addition to meeting Mets players and coaches, the little leaguers will take batting practice on the field, have lunch at the ballpark and be acknowledged in a pregame ceremony before the Mets take on the Nationals at 1:10 p.m.

Mickey Callaway says the Mets expect to see more of Jay Bruce at first soon and that could ultimately lead him to the full-time gig in 2019.

The Mets are reportedly finalizing a switch from WOR to WCBS.

Latest MLB News

Jesse Hahn underwent UCL surgery. This is not the same as Tommy John Surgery.

The White Sox shut down their pitching prospect, Dylan Cease, to limit his innings.

The Arizona Diamondbacks signed Shumpei Yoshikawa, a top NPB prospect.

Latest NL East News

David O’Brien of the Athletic writes about some more bad blood between the Marlins and Braves.

Rhys Hoskins (Big Fella) and Tommy Hunter (Bigger Fella) explain their nicknames.

Stephen Strasburg will make his next start per the Washington Post.

Latest on MMO

John Sheridan wrote about Jarred Kelenic‘s inability of being scared by intimidation.

This Day in Mets History

2009: Mets trade Billy Wagner.

Birthdays: Pedro Feliciano turns 42, Gary Matthews Jr. turns 44, Shaun Fitzmaurice turns 76

LGM!

The post Morning Briefing: Wheeler Aims For Series Win appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

If you are a Mets fan, you know that David Wright is still with team, or that Jose Reyes and Carlos Beltran are in Toronto and St. Louis, respectively. But what happened to guys like Nick Evans or Rod Barajas? We have the answers.

11 Players who made it into a game in 2010 with the Mets, are still employed by the team. That would be the aforementioned David Wright, Ike Davis, Ruben Tejada (Although he is currently with Triple-A Las Vegas, he is still on the Mets payroll), Lucas Duda, Justin Turner, Jon Niese, Pedro Feliciano (Although he made another stop in the Bronx, he is with the Mets once again), Bobby Parnell, Dillon Gee, Johan Santana, and Jenrry Mejia.

10 players are employed by another Major League team. That would be Jose Reyes, Angel Pagan, Beltran, Josh Thole, Henry Blanco, Joaquin Arias, Mike Pelfrey, R.A. Dickey, Francisco Rodriguez, and Oliver Perez.

As you may know, Jose Reyes was traded from the Miami Marlins to the Toronto Blue Jays this past offseason in a blockbuster deal involving Josh Johnson, Mark Buehrle, and now former Met, John Buck. Reyes now puts on his uniform in the same locker room as R.A. Dickey and Josh Thole, who were traded together this past offseason from the Mets for Travis d’Arnaud, Buck, and Noah Syndergaard (don’t forget Wuilmer Beccera!). Angel Pagan was traded to the San Francisco Giants prior to the 2012 season for outfielder Andres Torres and pitcher Ramon Ramirez who have both since played again for the team they were traded from.

Carlos Beltran was traded at the deadline in 2011 to the Giants for Zack Wheeler, but has since made his home in St. Louis playing for the Cardinals, where he has enjoyed a couple of very nice seasons, including an All Star appearance this summer. Henry Blanco, who served as the Mets backup catcher in 2010, beat out Josh Thole for the same position on this year’s Toronto Blue Jays team, but was released and then signed by the Seattle Mariners who made the corresponding move by releasing 2012 Met alumni, Kelly Shoppach. Blanco played in Arizona for the Diamondbacks in 2011 and 2012.

Joaquin Arias, of whom the Mets received for Jeff Francoeur late in the 2010 season, played for the Kansas City Royals in 2011, and was then given a championship ring after serving as Pablo Sandoval‘s ninth inning defensive replacement in 2012 for the San Francisco Giants. He has been a key hitter off the bench for the Giants in 2013. Mike Pelfrey, after failing to play a month in the 2012 season, was signed by the Minnesota Twins, where his 5-10 record and 5.06 ERA is good enough to keep him in the starting rotation.

Francisco Rodriguez was traded to the Brewers in 2011 for Daniel Herrera (yes the 5-6 guy) and a minor leaguer, but was traded to the Baltimore Orioles at the deadline this year, downgrading from a closer to a setup man. Finally, Oliver Perez signed a two-year deal with the Seattle Mariners in 2012 and is proving to be an effective arm out of their bullpen. You would think that Perez’s ERA of 9.72 with Henry Blanco behind the plate would be the highest among catchers who have caught the Mexican native, but no. That award goes to Josh Thole, who provides Ollie with a sparkling 16.20 ERA.

Eight players are in the minor leagues with another organization. They are Mike Nickeas, Mike Hessman, Luis Hernandez, Mike Jacobs, Nick Evans, Hisanori Takahashi, Fernando Nieve, and Pat Misch.

Mike Nickeas, who was in the same deal that sent R.A. Dickey north of the border, is currently with the Blue Jays Triple-A team, the Buffalo Bisons, a team Nickeas has played for many times when they were the Mets affiliate. Nickeas has failed to make the Majors this season, playing 55 games in Buffalo. Mike Hessman, who is seven home runs shy of 400 for his minor league career and one shy of 15 for his Major League career, is currently a member of the Louisville Bats, the Triple-A team of the Cincinnati Reds, where he is teammates with base stealing extraordinaire, Billy Hamilton. Hessman played in Japan in 2011 for the Orix Buffaloes, and was with the Astros Triple A team in 2012.

Luis Hernandez, who played all of 17 games for the Mets, is with the Indians Triple-A team, after playing in the Texas Rangers organization in 2012. Nick Evans is the only 2010 Met alumni playing in Double-A. Evans, who is a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks affiliated Mobile Baybears, was a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates organization in 2012. Mike Jacobs was the placeholder at first base until Ike Davis came up in 2010 but he is now with the Diamondbacks Triple-A team. Jacobs also stopped in Colorado Springs, Toronto, and Mexico. Hisanori Takahashi, who has 12 games started and 21 games finished as a Met, has played in the Majors with the Angels, Pirates, and Cubs. He is now a member of the Colorado Rockies Triple-A team. Fernando Nieve hasn’t played in the Majors since 2010, but he has played with the Astros, Dodgers, Indians, and currently the Athletics, all in Triple-A. Finally, Pat MIsch has seen time with the Phillies and Tigers Triple-A teams.

Five players are not currently with a Major League organization. The names are Jeff Francoeur, Rod Barajas, Jason Bay, John Maine, and Sean Green.

Francoeur was traded to the Rangers for Joaquin Arias in August of 2010. He spent the rest of the year there. Frenchy played in Kansas City during 2011 and 2012, but was released midway through the 2013 season. The Giants picked him up, where he played 22 games. Francouer was designated for assignment of August 20th, and released two days later. Barajas played with the Pirates in 2011 and 2012, before being signed by the Diamondbacks. He ultimately lost the bid to be Miguel Montero‘s backup, as the DBacks went with Wil Nieves instead.

Jason Bay, who was released after the 2012 season much to the delight of Mets fans, was signed by the Mariners for the 2013 season. He hit a home run in his first spring training at bat, but after a disapointing season, was released of August 6th to make room for Mike Morse. John Maine spent 2011 in the Colorado Rockies minor league system, and pitched for the Scranton/Wilkes-Bare Yankees for all of 2012. He played for the Miami Marlins in April of this year, but was released on April 22. The sidearmer, Sean Green pitched with the Brewers in 2011, before playing with the Texas Rangers’ Triple A team in 2012. He also pitched with the Somerset Patriots in 2012 of the Independent Leagues but has not found a team since.

Six players have officially retired. They are Luis Castillo, Alex Cora, Fernando Tatis, Gary Matthews Jr., Frank Catalanotto, and Tobi Stoner.

Luis Castillo was released by the Mets at the same time they released Oliver Perez. Castillo signed a minor league contract with the Philadelphia Phillies, but after a disappointing spring training, he was released, at which time he retired. Alex Cora was released by the Mets in August of 2010, and he played the rest of the year with the Rangers. He played with the Washington Nationals in 2011, and was signed by the Cardinals in the spring of 2012, which didn’t work out. He is now a baseball analyst for ESPN (his brother Joey does the same work for MLB Network). Fernando Tatis was injured of July 4th of 2010. He was placed on the DL the next day and was transferred to the 60-day DL 10 days later. That turned out to be his last major league game as he retired after the season.

The “Son of the Sarge”, Gary Matthews Jr., was released by the Mets on June 15th, 2010. He signed with the Reds on June 24th and played the rest of the year with their Triple-A team, before retiring. Frank Catalanotto was designated for assignment of May 10th, when the Mets brought up Chris Carter. After failing to sign with another team, he retired in March of 2011. Finally, the German-born Tobi Stoner was released by the Mets in March of 2012. During that season, he played in the Independent Leagues with the Bridgeport Blue Fish and the Somerset Patriots. He retired before the 2013 season.

Four players are currently playing in foreign countries. Chris Carter, Manny Acosta, and Ryota Igarashi are playing in Japan, and Jesus Feliciano is playing in Mexico.

Carter (no not the former A’s prospect) played in the Tampa Bay Rays and Atlanta Braves Minor League system in 2011 before moving to Japan to play with the Seibu Lions in 2012 and 2013. Carter is 3-26 (.115) with three RBI in nine games this year. He is teammates with Kazuhisa Ishii. Manny Acosta pitched for the Mets through 2012 but signed with the Yomuri Giants in 2013 after being released. In 14 games he has an ERA of 5.54. His teammates include former major leaguers Scott Mathieson and John Bowker.

Ryota Igarashi played with the Mets until 2011. He then played in the minor leagues with the Yankees and the Blue Jays in 2012 though he pitched in the majors with both teams. He is now pitching with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks where he sports a 2.15 ERA in 36 games. He is teammates with with Vicente Padilla and former Mets minor leaguer Wily Mo Pena. Jesus Feliciano, who has signed with the Mets four different times in his career, played in all of his 54 career games with the Mets in 2010. He played with the Buffalo Bisons in 2011, the Durham Bulls in 2012, and he is now playing in Mexico with the Rojos del Aguila de Veracruz. He has only played in three games with one hit.

One player is currently a coach. Elmer Dessens is the assistant pitching coach for the AZL Reds in the Arizona League (The Arizona equivalent to Florida’s Gulf Coast League). And here’s a fun piece of information. The manager of that AZL Reds team is former Met, Eli Marrero who the Mets received in 2006 when they traded Kazuo Matsui to the Rockies.

Well, now you know what happened to the 2010 Mets. Next week we’ll look at the players from Citi Field’s inaugural year, 2009.

LGM

The post The 2010 Mets: Where Are They Now? appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

This past week  it was revealed that the one time Mets closer, Frank Francisco, or as I like to call him, “The Human Sloth”, resurfaced in a pair of games for the GCL Mets. To date, he has given up two runs in four games while striking out six. He is rehabbing from what supposed to be minor surgery to clean out debris from his throwing elbow. In addition to the fact that he has yet to earn one dime from the $6.5 million dollars owed to him for this season, part of that disastrous two-year, $12 million dollar deal he was signed to, even more troubling news surfaced last month. Francisco advised young pitcher Jenrry Mejia, who was rehabbing with him in Port St. Lucie, to sit back and just collect his MLB disabled list money rather than trying to get himself healthy enough to rejoin the big league team.

Well the good news is that the Mets will finally be rid of Frank Frank’s contract as well as his bad attitude once this season is over, and I seriously doubt  he will be able to find his way onto another big league roster next season. So what would be the next step for Francisco as far as new career options?

Here are a few occupations that I think will fit him like a glove…

1. Professional Wrestler: Well, he does know his way around a folding chair.

2. D.M.V Employee: He does have the perfect attitude and mental toughness to drive people insane.

3. Self Help Guru:  Because he knows how to get you paid while doing the bare minimum.

4. Drummer for Bachman-Turner Overdrive: Because “he loves to work at nothing all day.”

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And lastly…. Armando Benitez look-alike: Because we all know Benitez still gets death threats from disgruntled Mets fans!!!

And with that said….. HERE COMES THE INFAMY !!!!!!

• Mets coach from the 1993 season (The Torborg Era) Darrell Johnson would have been 85 (1928) today.
• One of the most memorable characters from the embryonic years of the Mets franchise back up catcher, Clarence “Choo Choo”  Coleman (1937)
• Reserve outfielder from the ’66 season, Shaun Fitzmaurice is 71 (1942).
• Reserve outfielder and notable steroid cheat, Gary Matthews Jr. is 39  (1974).
• Current Mets middle reliever, “Perpetual”  Pedro Feliciano is 37  (1976).

Some other notables….

• The New York Mets signed free agent back up first baseman, Brian Buchanan on August 25, 2004.
• The New York Mets traded their closer, Billy Wagner to the Boston Red Sox  for reserve outfielder, Chris Carter, and minor leaguer, Eddie Lora on August 25, 2009. This move was essentially a salary dump. The Mets for some reason that I – nor anyone else seems to know – traded one of the premier closers in the game (granted he was coming back from a shoulder injury) for a bag of donuts… Literally… They could have just waited out the remaining month of the season and let Wags, who was a Type A free agent, sign with another team and earn themselves a first round pick as well as a comp pick. But hey… that was the Minaya era for you .

Mo Vaughn is easy like a Sunday morning !!!!!

The post This Day In Mets Infamy With Rusty: What Does Future Hold For Frank-Frank Edition appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Thankfully there are only 6 more games left of this horrible season.  That also means only 6 more games left of some jerryball.  Last year after the season ended the Mets did a bit of a media blitz that concluded with Jeff Wilpon, Omar Minaya and Dave Howard going on WFAN with Mike Francesa.  They made a bunch of promises and some excuses that for some reason had Mets fans hopeful for 2010.  I posted a blog here on this site the day after, which you can read here.  I didn’t like what I heard on Francesa’s show and I got blasted in the comments section. Unfortunately I was right to be skeptical as they lied to us.

Jeff Wilpon said the Mets were committed to building a championship caliber team and that spending would not be limited.  Well, after signing the bust that is Jason Bay the Mets didn’t spend much.  Gary Matthews Jr., Mike Jacobs and Frank Catalanotto were in the starting lineup on opening day.  For some reason Fernando Tatis and Alex Cora were still on this team.  I’m sorry but those guys don’t belong on a championship caliber team.

Omar and little Jeff said that there would be no more mishandling of injuries. Unfortunately that was a big old lie as well.  Look at how Jose Reyes’ oblique injury was handled.  Reyes was put into the lineup while suffering with oblique injury, and only allowed to bat from one side of the plate.  I don’t see how that is improving on handling injuries.  Jason Bay after hitting his head off the outfield wall in Dodger Stadium not only stayed in that game, he played the next one and then flew on a plane to New York and hasn’t played since.  Johan Santana’s injury was misdiagnosed as a pectoral problem.  Now I’m no doctor but I think the training staff might have missed human anatomy 101.  Plus Santana before being diagnosed correctly was allowed to throw and not even given an MRI.  They also promised to communicate better with the fans and media about the injuries.  Once Santana was diagnosed correctly, the Mets had a press conference where they tried to play down the severity of this shoulder injury by citing position players who came back from the same surgery.  They of course didn’t mention that pitchers who have had the same surgery as Johan has have yet to come back and throw a pitch in the majors.

I’m sure once this season is over the Mets will do another media blitz.  They will say things that sound good but in reality it will only be more cheap talk and hollow promises.

The post The Mets Lied To Us appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Matthews Jr., or GMJ for short, came over from the Los Angeles Angels for Brian Stokes, shortly after Carlos Beltran hit the DL.

GMJ has an unremarkable .190/.266/.241 line in 65 plate appearances, following a good Spring Training.

Omir Santos has been horrific since moving to the minors after the signing of Rod Barajas forced him out.

Santos holds an .074/.167/.111 line in eight games since being demoted from AAA Buffalo.

BTW: I know you’re wondering how Brian Stokes is doing in Anaheim. Let’s say that the trade has no winners. Stokes has a 7.31 ERA and 2.50 WHIP in 16 IP.

Adam Rubin writes that the Mets chose Santos over Jesus Feliciano because backup Henry Blanco is banged up. He writes that Feliciano will be called up as soon as Henry Blanco is alright.

The post Mets DFA Gary Matthews Jr., Recall Omir Santos appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Burrell was hitting just .202/.292/.333 this year and had fallen out of favor with the organization and the fans.

But what is most important to note is that the Rays, a low market revenue team, also bit the bullet on the remaining $9 million dollars of Pat Burell’s salary.

Could you even imagine the Mets ever doing something so bold, even if it meant improving the team?

Knowing how the Mets operate of late, rather than considering the possibility of parting ways with Gary Matthews Jr. or (cover your ears) Oliver Perez, I’m sure they are instead now looking at the .202 hitting Burrell and wondering if he would be a good bargain for the bench at a substantial savings. Oh boy… 

And so it goes…

The post Rays Shed Burrell & His $9MM Salary, Would Mets Ever Be So Bold? appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

My choice for MetsMerized Player Of The Week is…Ike Davis! (Although Chris Carter put a great fight up in AAA.)

At this point, who doesn’t like Ike? The kid has been nothing but fuel for the fire known as the Mets offense. I was vocal about the fact that the move worried me, because I had no idea if he was ready and if he was being rushed into the MLB. I was completely wrong. The kid can rake.

Ike batted .333(7-21 ; 1 2B, 2 HR, 14 TB) and walked six times, posting a slash line of .333/.481/.667. Not bad at all, considering he slammed the two HRs against a tough left hander, Jon Sanchez. He scored 5 times and drove in 3. He also played spectacular defense, and is beginning to create his own highlight reel with these breakneck jumps over the dugout fence. His 14 TB led the team.

Ike Davis has done it all since his call up. He’s hit for power, average, played great defense, and has shown great patience at the plate. He’s making the Mets look intelligent for finally scouting a prospect correctly. What more is there to say? Keep it up Ike, and LGM! Congrats to Ike Davis.

Who’s Hot And Who’s Not

Jose Reyes: .308(8-26 ; 2 2B), 5 R, 3 RBI, 10 TB, 2 BB, 4 SB, 0 CS

Jeff Francoeur: .143(3-21), 3 TB, 4 RBI, 8 K

Rod Barajas: .188(3-16 ; 3 HR), 4 RBI, 12 TB.

Gary Matthews Jr.: .143(1-7), R.

Past Award Winners:

One Hit Wonders: Jeff Francoeur, Mike Pelfrey, Jose Reyes.

Of Note 5/2-5/9

David Wright struck out 13 times this week, and Perez walked 11 in 9.1 IP. In that regard, I’m not sure how to look at Barajas’ week. He slugged 3 HRs for a .750 SLG, but he had no other hits. All or nothing?

The Mets had three players with multi HR weeks – Barajas, Wright, and Davis.

Oddly enough, no Met pitcher won or lost more than 1 game this week, but Feliciano had one of both.

The Mets had a walk-free streak going, and then completely overturned with a walk happy streak. I don’t get it.

Nationals and the Marlins this week. LGM!

The post MetsMerized Player Of The Week! (Week 5) appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

One month into the 2010 season, Mets fans are still hopeful.  That’s saying a lot considering this past winter of discontent. The team has played hard, not always with positive results.  The team is 3 – 6 in one run games, having lost four of these games in the last inning.  On a positive note, the Mets had a streak of eight wins in a row and ten out of eleven games.  But other than that stretch they have lost every series.

Omar Minaya’s off season moves and non-moves, combined with players coming back from injuries and down years have had a very positive affect on the team thus far.  Does Omar deserve an A.  Of course not.  But he deserves some credit.  He has rebuilt and resurrected this team under very tight restrictions that included about $20 million of payroll cuts.  Please don’t bore me with more comments about Alex Cora’s and Gary Matthew’s $2 million each.  They were mistakes, but every GM makes mistakes.  And these weren’t big mistakes that can’t be overcome.

Here’s my brief analysis of the Mets roster.

• Jose  Reyes has returned.  His offense has not been great but he is showing positive signs the last few days.  His defense is a marked improvement over the Mets shortstops last year.  If and when Carlos Beltran returns to the lineup, Jose can move back to the leadoff spot.
• David Wright is back.  Mets fans can breathe a sigh of relief that David’s power outage is a thing of the past.  He already has 7 home runs and 21 RBI.  Last year David hit only 10 home runs and the team totaled 95.  He still strikes out too much but his power and production can make up for this deficiency.
• Jon Niese and  Fernando Nieve have become important pieces of the pitching staff.  Both are coming off serious leg injuries.  And there effectiveness this year was by no means a given.
• Mike Pelfrey, John Maine, and Oliver Perez are all in the starting rotation.  Omar’s gamble that these three were as good as those on the free agent market is paying off so far.  Pelfrey has been great until the hard luck Philly outing.  Maine is showing more confidence and zip on his fastball.  Ollie is painful to watch but he is showing more consistency.  I had stated over the winter that if two out of three of these pitchers had good years, the Mets would be greatly improved.  Remember how horrible all three were during spring training?  In my opinion the jury is still out on all three, but through their first five starts, I think two out of three is likely.  Is three out of three a possibility?
• Catchers Rod Barajas and Henry Blanco have been by far the Mets best signings of the winter.  Barajas has 7 home runs this year, and barring injury will easily surpass last year’s total of 19.  I am in the camp that believes that if he can hit 25 home runs, it does make up for his low OBP.  If this happens, I say who cares if he hits equal to last years BA of .226 and OBP of .258.  If he hits 25 home runs out of the 8th spot in the lineup, he is an viable offensive threat and a valuable asset.  Although Barajas has not thrown out any runners stealing, there have only been six attempts against him.  Henry Blanco has thrown out all five runners that have attempted to steal.  The catching core, when combining offensive and defensive play is the Mets best in years.
• 1st base was a position that got so much attention this winter.  The Daniel Murphy/Mike Jacobs competition fizzled when Murphy got hurt just before the season started.  Jacobs started out so poorly that he couldn’t hold the job.  Enter rookie Ike Davis.  He’s played admirably for a rookie but is yet to hit for power.  Hopefully that will come, even this year.  Otherwise, 1st base, at least offensively,is going to be a dud statistically this year.  So many are high on him, but this his rookie year, might not be the breakout year Mets fans are hoping for.
• Jeff Francoeur has become a team leader.  His smile, hustle and grit are contagious.  Still he must hit, and with power to really have an impact.  His fielding has been great.  He already has four outfield assists and a +2 UZR rating.
• Jason Bay has been a huge disappointment.  He must breakout of his slump, otherwise the cleanup spot in the lineup will have a huge void which will be impossible to overcome.  His strikeouts are rally killers.  He is on a pace to strikeout 200 times this season, up from a career high of 162 last year.  Fickle Mets fans will begin booing him soon if he doesn’t step up.
• Bullpen additions of Takahashi, Igarashi, and Mejia have paid dividends although Igarashi is currently injured.  Jenrry Mejia has recently been given opportunities in key situations and succeeded.  He will stay with the team only if he continues to succeed.
• The bench appears to be weak.  None of Fernando Tatis, Gary Matthews Jr.,and Frank Catalanotto have hit a lick thus far.  Look for changes in the near future.
• Carlos Beltran is on the mend and on his way back (yeah right).  But if he does make it back, playoff hopes improve significantly.  All Mets fans can do is continue to hope.
• Jerry Manuel despite all the criticisms has done an admirable job.  The players like him.  The team is two games over .500.  He has earned another month under the hot lights.
• Last is the curious case of Nelson Figueroa.  To Alex (Golden Boy) 68, I admit defeat.  He’s no great loss.  And thankfully he has not proven me right, now that he is a Philly.

Remember, April is a month to experiment and evaluate talent.  By Memorial Day, experimentation should be ending and the roster should become more permanent.  Mike Jacobs was a failed experiment.  So likely will Gary Matthews Jr..  Still patience is a virtue which unfortunately most Mets fans do not possess.  The thing to remember is that the opening day roster need not resemble the roster at the All Star break.

It should be noted that many of the above evaluations are positive.  And that gives me hope.  However, it is my opinion that in order to be a true playoff contender, at least a couple of the above weaknesses must turn positive.  Otherwise, I don’t believe the Mets can win consistently and will hover at .500 or a little above all season.   Maybe this season will be like 2005 when the Mets started turning it around.  And then they made the big push to an outstanding 2006.

The post After 28 Games Mets Fans Remain Hopeful appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

He believes it might be a while before GMJ gets another start after an 0-for-4 night on Sunday that extended his struggles to 3-for-33 since opening day, and 3-for-34 after a pinch-hit groundout on Monday.

It looks like Jerry Manuel could be growing weary of his lack of production. He alluded to the possibility that if something isn’t working that maybe we should try something different when asked to comment about Matthews’ prolonged slump.

However, Andy Martino of the Daily News, paints a different picture and writes that the Mets have no immediate plans to shake up the roster, according to several people familiar with the team’s thinking.

Matthews, who was acquired in the offseason from the Angels for reliever Brian Stokes, is now batting .135 this season.

The Mets are responsible for $2 million of his $11.4 million salary in 2010, and that might be why the Mets will allow Matthews more time to improve. Big mistake in my opinion.

Obviously, Matthews is no longer serviceable even in a reduced bench role. The Angels knew that and were willing to eat some very significant cash so they can fill his roster spot with someone who could help the team.

If Fernando Martinez could stay healthy for more than a minute straight, I’d say to bring him up and immediately upgrade the bench, but F-Mart always seems to spend to much time ailing including missing five of his last seven games with back spasms.

How great does that Andruw Jones (.288/.405/.697) signing for $400 thousand dollars look now? Now there was someone we should have rolled the dice on, although it’s easy to say that now.

What do we do with Matthews Jr now, any suggestions?

The post Gary Matthews Jr. – When Is Enough, Enough? appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Gary Matthews Jr. who is batting .156 and slugging .219 in 16 games is starting in centerfield and worse yet leading off tonight. Even if you could make a case for batting GMJ over Angel Pagan, why would you bat him first?

Ike Davis is also riding the pine tonight against left hander Jamie Moyer, even though he is batting .571 against southpaws. Fernando Tatis will be playing first base tonight instead. Does Jerry Manuel look at the statistical matchups before deciding on his starting lineup?

Also, if you are gonna put a right handed bat behind David Wright anyway, why is Fernando Tatis batting ahead of Jeff Francoeur (.421 against LHP)?

Here’s the lineup for tonight’s game

1. Gary Matthews Jr. – CF
2. Luis Castillo – 2B
3. Jose Reyes – SS
4. Jason Bay – LF
5. David Wright – 3B
6. Fernando Tatis – 1B
7. Jeff Francoeur – RF
8. Rod Barajas – C
9. Johan Santana – LHP

LGM!

The post Ike Davis Benched Tonight Despite .571 BA Against Southpaws appeared first on Metsmerized Online.