Month: April 2009

Mets Daniel Murphy Experiment Should End Now

Daniel MurphyI like Daniel Murphy and I believe that he has the potential to be a solid, if not good, major league player for a long time. He’s a hard worker and a good guy that the Mets organization really likes. And I like that too.

Daniel Murphy is not a major league left fielder. It’s as simple as that. Even when he doesn’t get charged with an error, he has misplayed balls like the two last night in St. Louis.

The fact is that Murphy has a decent bat, but it isn’t good enough to carry his poor defense. He’s clearly playing out of position and I respect that he’s giving it his all. But the Mets need to end the embarrassment that Murphy is suffering on a daily basis in the field.

Murphy shouldn’t be learning on the job at the major league level. There are 24 other players on the team and millions of fans that need to get past the last two seasons of gut-wrenching loses. We can’t have our season hinge on his learning curve in the field. The Mets sub-.500 season thus far isn’t all his fault. I’m not saying that it is. But he’s the only one on the team that has no business being out on the field. You don’t have to be a major league scout or talent evaluator to know that.

The correct course of action is for the Mets to give Murphy time at Triple-A Buffalo to hone his outfield skills until he’s ready for this level of play, if he ever will be. And he may not ever be ready. But we shouldn’t have to find that out with the big club.

Option Murphy to Buffalo now and spare us the disappointment in him. The embarrassment that he’s been suffering over the last two weeks may even stunt his growth as a player. He has to know that he’s letting the rest  of the team down, not to mention the fans.

Cory Sullivan and Fernando Martinez are waiting in the wings at Buffalo. Gary Sheffield and Jeremy Reed appear to be capable outfielders right now. Maglio Ordonez and Matt Holliday will likely be available via trade before the deadline in July if things aren’t working out with the existing cast of characters. There are a lot of options here for the Mets. The Murphy experiment should end now for everyone’s benefit.

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Cardinals 6- Mets 4 April 21, 2009

42109I think at the end of the year we’ll look back at this game as one of the ugliest losses of the season. Oliver Perez was pitching pretty well until he completely lost it in the bottom of the fifth culminating when he walked light-hitting Khalil Greene with the bases loaded. Casey Fossum came in and threw gas on the fire by walking Joe Thurston with the bases loaded. Ugly!

We had catchers interference called on Ramon Castro. Daniel Murphy got picked off first base by the catcher, then botched two balls badly in left field. J.J. Putz got hit hard in the eighth, giving up 2 runs. Carlos Beltran inexplicably didn’t slide into home on a ball that he clearly should’ve slid.

This was just an all-around bad game.

Box score

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Dwight Gooden Signs Citi Field, Mets Keeping It

Flickr photo courtesy of slgckgc
Flickr photo courtesy of slgckgc

Former Mets pitcher Dwight Gooden attended the Citi Field opening game on April 13, 2009. While there he spontaneously signed a wall in the Ebbets Club with a Sharpie. He wrote “Doc Gooden, 84 R.O.Y., 85 Cy Young, 86 W.S. Champs“.

The Mets initial reaction was to remove the signature, effectively rendering it as graffiti. The stadium is already being billed as “Dodgers Stadium East” by many fans that have attended the initial home stand for emphasis on the Dodgers history and lack of Mets nostalgia. This move served to reinforce the opinion that the Mets are unconcerned with the history of their own team.

Today the Mets announced that they have reversed course and will keep Doc’s signature and preserve it in another location in the stadium. Finally, the Mets make the right decision. Too bad that it had to come after the situation received so much press attention.

Game Preview: Mets at Cardinals [Game 13] April 21, 2009

St. Louis Cardinals LogoNew York Mets (6-6 Road: 3-3) at St. Louis Cardinals (8-5 Home: 5-2) 8:15 pm

Oliver Perez (1-1 7.84) vs. Todd Wellemeyer (1-1 4.50)

TV: SNY Radio:  WFAN

What to watch: Wellemeyer’s last start in Arizona was excellent going 7 innings and allowing 1 run. The Cards are coming off losing 2 of 3 to the Cubs in Chicago and a rain out on Sunday night. As usual, we have no idea what to expect from Perez. Although, his last start was a step in the right direction. Not that it means anything with him.

Don’t forget to visit The Mets Report Live Game Chat during the game to chat with other Mets fans!

Mets, Willy Mo Pena Agree To Contract

Willy Mo Pena
Flickr photo courtesy of chipgriffin

Outfielder Willy Mo Pena is back with the Mets organization. After being released by the Washington Nationals this spring, he has agreed to a minor league contract with the Mets, the team that originally signed him as a free agent in 1998.

Pena will go to Florida for extended spring training and then report to Triple-A Buffalo. He’s been a major disappointment for most of his career. He has monsterous power when he can connect with the ball which hasn’t been that often in recent years. He’s never been a full-time player during his career having played in 110 games twice over his seven season major league career.

I’m not sure what he brings to the table for the Mets. I have to believe that he’s a right-handed power hitting outfielder that will act as an insurance policy in case Gary Sheffield proves to be washed up.

Mets Figueroa Designated For Assignment

http://cdn.pis.picapp.com/IamProd/Resources/Javascripts/PisV3.jshttp://cdn.pis.picapp.com/IamProd/Resources/javascripts/DataV3.ashx?ImageId=912580&PublisherId=1326Milwaukee Brewers at New York Mets at Citi Field in New York

Immediately after pitching six innings against the Brewers yesterday and giving up three runs, Nelson Figueroa was designated for assignment by the Mets. He had a nice spot start for Mike Pelfrey who is not going on the disabled list but resting after feeling some forearm tendinitis.

Casey Fossum was called up from Triple-A Buffalo to replace Figueroa on the roster. So Darren O’Day and Figueroa are now on waivers for the Mets.

I have to admit that I was surprised when I read that Figueroa was designated. He offers some good versatility in the Mets bullpen and has been pretty solid in every role that the Mets have asked of him. Fossum is a second lefty for the Mets bullpen that’s been a source of concern, but I got the feeling that the Mets weren’t overly concerned about Pedro Feliciano being the only lefty in the bullpen.

Hopefully, Figueroa will get picked up by a team that could use him at the major league level. If not, he could end up in Buffalo again and possibly back with the Mets at some point this season.

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