Monday, March 31, 2008
Mets Opening Day Facts and figures
Jose Reyes has batted leadoff on Opening Day for four straight years. No Mets player had done so in the club's first 46 years. David Wright and Carlos Beltran are the only other current Mets to start on Opening Day in four successive seasons, but they have batted in different slots.
Wright is the first Mets player to start at third base in four straight Opening Day games since Howard Johnson started in six straight from 1985-1990. Johnson started at shortstop in 1991 and center field in 1992. ... Before Beltran, not since 1982-1985, when Mookie Wilson started, had a Mets center fielder started in four straight Opening Day games.
Luis Castillo is the sixth Opening Day second baseman in six seasons -- Roberto Alomar, Ricky Gutierrez, Kaz Matsui, Anderson Hernandez and Jose Valentin preceded Castillo. ... Ryan Church is the sixth Opening Day right fielder in six years, preceded by Jeromy Burnitz, Karim Garcia, Eric Valent, Xavier Nady and Shawn Green.
Johan Santana is the 20th Opening Day starting pitcher in Mets history, and the eighth left-handed pitcher. ... Willie Randolph is the fifth Mets manager in place for four straight Opening Day games. The other four were Gil Hodges, Joe Torre, Davey Johnson and Bobby Valentine.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Mets place Gotay on waivers
The Mets have placed infielder Ruben Gotay on outright waivers, a person familiar with the situation confirmed on Thursday, creating the possibility that his Mets career has ended.
Gotay, 25, hit .295 in 190 at-bats with the Mets last season, playing backup to Jose Valentin and then to Luis Castillo at second base. The Mets squelched his chance at a starting job last July, when they traded for Castillo, a superior defensive second baseman. Certainly, Gotay's offense has rarely been in question -- he hit .318 against right-handers in particular -- but that was never enough to earn him regular playing time.
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Neck pain may signal end for Mets' Valentin
Jose Valentin's career is threatened by what he suspects are disks pinching a nerve in his neck. Valentin indicated he feels pain "like someone sticking a knife in you," which causes discomfort to radiate down his right arm.
Although the New York Mets haven't committed to sending Valentin to New York, he expects to head there soon to receive an injection of antiinflammatory medication, which did the trick with similar discomfort when he played for the White Sox. Even if that calms the situation and Valentin avoids surgery, he doesn't figure he'll have enough at-bats to be ready to break camp with the team, or to have convinced the team to carry him.
Valentin, who is on a minor-league contract, has been willing to begin the season in Triple-A if he's not fully recovered from surgery to repair a torn ACL. At 38 years old, however, he's not inclined to endure another extensive medical procedure.
Friday, March 14, 2008
Mets emerge as probable host for 2013 All-Star game
The New York Mets have emerged as the likely host for baseball's All-Star game in 2013.
Yankee Stadium, entering its final season, is the site of this year's game on July 15, with the 2009 All-Star game scheduled for St. Louis.
The Los Angeles Angels are the likely host in 2010, with Arizona the leading contender for 2011 and Kansas City a strong possibility for the following year.
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Joke's on Castillo, but he isn't laughing
By the fourth inning, Luis Castillo retreated to the Mets' clubhouse, passed by a mirror and discovered the reasons for the behind-his-back giggles and grins in the dugout on Wednesday. He had been wearing a crown of pink bubble gum atop his cap -- the first bubble lasted for two innings, then came a second, then a third and then a plastic cup attached to the gum.
Seldom had Castillo, generously measured at 5-foot-11, stood as tall in a big league clubhouse as he did then.
When he saw the crown, the handiwork of team funnyman Ramon Castro, Castillo didn't see the humor. Castro tried to conceal his glee -- unsuccessfully.
"He doesn't know who did it. Don't tell him," the catcher said, unaware that television cameras had focused on the crown repeatedly. Castro then tried to deny his participation in the crown event, though he was the only one who knew 20 pieces of gum had been chewed and put in place.
Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Alou likely out until May
Moises Alou is to undergo surgery to repair a hernia. The oft-disabled 41-year-old outfielder probably will be lost to the Mets until at least May, because the prognosis is he will be unable to resume baseball activities for four to six weeks.
Alou is guaranteed to begin the season in the same circumstance in which he spent 75 days last season -- assigned to the disabled list.
A strained right quad was the injury that had Alou disabled last season. It added to an injury history that has limited him to 98 or fewer games in each of the past two seasons. When he was well enough to play, he thrived: Alou batted .341 with 13 home runs 328 at-bats last year.
Reyes Has 2K8 Covered
If there's a dreaded MLB 2K8 cover jinx, Jose Reyes isn't worried. The MetsNew York Mets ' All-Star shortstop said he couldn't be happier about following Derek Jeter as the face of the video game's 2008 version, released nationally yesterday.
The 11 commercials Reyes recently filmed with Mr. Met for 2K Sports will begin airing in the next two weeks on English and, for the first time in the game's history, Spanish-language TV. "I'm not thinking about any jinx," said Reyes, who is trying to rebound from a miserable slump last September. "It's like a dream come true for me, especially since Derek Jeter was on the cover of it for two or three years."
Reyes, who is also getting a bobblehead in the deal, was approached about appearing on the game at last year's All-Star Game and hopes the game can be a marketing springboard for him. "It's a chance for people all over the world to know more about me," Reyes told The Post.
Monday, March 3, 2008
Strawberry back where it all began
No matter what he says, Darryl Strawberry is back in the Mets' full-time employ for the first time since he bolted as a free agent following the 1990 season. His appointment as a Spring Training instructor, spokesman for the club's outreach program and occasional Minor League observer was announced Monday.
General manager Omar Minaya discussed bringing back Strawberry with the club ownership shortly after he assumed the position in 2004.
Minaya said Monday "there were certain matters that Darryl had to take care of" before he became a full-time employee. Strawberry had participated in other Spring Training camps during Minaya's tenure.
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Marlon Anderson, Ryan Church collide
Ryan Church and Marlon Anderson left Saturday's game following a collision in right field, but their replacements helped the Mets take a 1-0 win over the Dodgers. Brady Clark was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, driving in Michael Abreu, who had one of New York's four hits.
A groggy Church - who received the worse end of the fourth-inning collision, suffering a Grade II concussion and a cut on the inside of his mouth during the spring training game against the Dodgers - had no memory of the jolt afterward. Anderson, who suffered a bruised sternum, is day-to-day. Church's status will be clearer once his concussion symptoms subside; a Grade II concussion usually requires a player to rest for a week.