Johan Santana faced hitters for the first time this spring. Skip ahead to the 11:10 mark of the video to see Santana answer reporters questions. Thanks to Bart Hubbach of the NY Post for the video.
Mets Spring Attendance Down
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To nobody’s surprise, attendance at the New York Mets spring training games is down 15% so far this year. The NY Post reports that the team cites the economy and the loss of so many players to the World Baseball Classic as the main factors.
It’s a bad situation for the Mets and the town of Port St. Lucie, FL. Although the overall economy is beyond anybody’s control, the World Baseball Classic is controllable. Losing 16 Mets to the WBC is too much. And not just for spring training game attendance figures.
The Mets, and every team, need some time to gel together in March. Losing so many players could have a detrimental effect on the team. That’s yet to be seen but my guess is that the Mets feel the impact in April when the regular season gets rolling.
I’ve written before that the WBC shouldn’t be played in March, it should be in November when the MLB post-season ends. And each team should be able to designate at least one player that’s too valuable to participate such as Johan Santana in the Mets case.
Mets Move Up Santana’s Rehab Schedule
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I hate to get caught up in this daily routine of updating Johan Santana’s progress recoving from some elbow pain. But it is encouraging that the Mets have moved up his rehab schedule.
Originally, Santana was going to pitch three bullpen sessions before throwing to hitters. He pitched one bullpen session on Thursday and felt well enough to pitch batting practice today before the game against the Washington Nationals.
Maybe Santana will be able to go on opening day in Cincinnati on April 6. From the comments that I’ve read from Santana, it seems like its very important to him to make that start. I have to say that Santana really shows a lot of pride in his game for a guy that’s guaranteed to make $137.5 million whether he’s on the field or not. The Mets made a great decision picking him as the guy to give a monster contract to. I remember hearing that an NFL scout said that the hardest part about selecting the first pick in the draft isn’t about talent. A lot of college football players have talent. The problem is choosing the guys that will still have a desire to win when their bank account gets into eight digits. Santana is demonstrating to us that he’s that type of guy.
Audio: Mets Daniel Murphy And Jonathan Niese
The Mets youngsters are in today’s audio clips. Daniel Murphy appears on Michael Kay’s ESPN Radio show. Skip ahead to the 6:30 mark to hear Murphy.
Jonathan Niese joins WFAN’s Steve Somers to talk about what he’s been working on this spring to try to make the major league roster
Tatis Leaving Mets For World Baseball Classic
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Fernando Tatis will be leaving the Mets to replace Alex Rodriguez on the World Baseball Classic team from the Domincan Republic. I’m sure that you’re all well aware by now that A-Rod is having a cyst removed from his hip surgically and won’t be available to play for about 10 weeks.
Tatis was approached by Domincan team GM Stan Javier and Assitant GM/player Moises Alou about representing DR in the WBC.
The Mets approved Tatis’ play in the WBC despite a minor hand injury that’s hampered his playing time early this spring.
Citi Field Seating Tours
Several of the Mets beat writers have been posting today about Citi Field tours that start tomorrow. You can register at the Mets official site for tours that begin tomorrow. You can also call the Mets box office at 718-507-TIXX. When I read those posts I was thinking about registering. But if you read the Mets site they’re advertising these “tours” as seating tours for people that are thinking about buying season tickets.
The Mets have really gotten creative with their marketing this season. You would think that a new stadium would sell itself. Its really a sign of the times that the Mets have to work this hard to sell tickets at Citi Field. The economy is so bad, for so many people, that the Mets have to resort to these “tours” to sell season ticket plans. This is on top of the Mets selling only April and May single game tickets on March 15.
I think it’s clear that the Mets have been affected by the economy in the same way that many of us have.
Mets Botch Santana Elbow Injury
Johan Santana is still intent on pitching opening day in Cincinnati on April 6. Jerry Manuel wants Santana ready for opening day. Omar Minaya says that Santana’s elbow is fine. But pitching coach Dan Warthen says that Santana won’t be ready for opening day. Which way is up here?
I’ve written about this before so I won’t belabor the point, its beyond me how the Mets can let Santana continue to pitch without having some medical testing done on his elbow. There are MRI machines in Florida. So this story about sending him to New York for an examination is ridiculous.
I conducted a reader poll this week and 67% of respondants say they feel the Mets haven’t handled this situation properly. It’s time for the Mets to get it together when it comes to player health.
Johan Santana is a warrior and wants to pitch. I realize that after watching him pitch in 2008. So relying on his self-diagnosis to determine a course of action for his elbow stiffness isn’t realistic.
We don’t really know what the story is now. We’ve heard contradictory reports from the coaching staff, player, and organization. Be cautious and don’t take a chance on Santana being off the field for an extended period of time. That’s all we ask as fans.
The Mets Report 