Wagner giving scouting reports

Jose De Jesus Ortiz at The Houston Chronicle writes about Billy Wagner giving his two cents on Roy Oswalt and Brad Lidge:

Former Astros closer Billy Wagner is ready to give Mets general manager Omar Minaya scouting reports as the National League East leaders pursue a trade for Roy Oswalt.

Wagner also has assured Minaya that he could help straighten out slumping closer Brad Lidge.

“I told Omar, just put (Lidge) out there with me,” Wagner, the Mets' closer, said via phone Monday morning. “I’ll get him straightened out.”

There’s no doubt the Astros want to get rid of Lidge as soon as possible. The Mets have the best record in the National League, and they’d love to have Oswalt, the only pitcher in the majors to have won 20 games in each of the previous two seasons.

Oswalt also is a proven pitcher in the clutch, going 2-0 while allowing only two runs over 14 innings against the St. Louis Cardinals while earning the Most Valuable Player in the 2005 National League Championship Series. “What would it mean if we got Roy Oswalt?” Wagner said. “It would be called championship. Put it on the board. I don’t even think Omar would have to ask me about Roy. If he asked me about Roy, I’d tell him, ‘He’s a gamer, goes out there, takes the ball and is ready to play to win.’ That’s what I’d tell him. It’s all about pitching. It’s all about pitching.”