Mets Under a Dark Cloud

Kevin Devaney Jr. at Lower Hudson Online, writes about Omar Minaya and his thoughts regarding the recent steroid suspensions in the Mets organization:

After minor-league pitcher Jorge Reyes received a 100-game suspension on May 8 for failing a drug test for the second time, reliever Lino Urdaneta was hit with a 50-game ban yesterday.

Urdaneta, a 27-year-old right-hander, appeared in two games during a brief stay with the Mets this season, which concluded with his demotion to Triple-A New Orleans on Sunday.Minaya and Mets executive vice president Jeff Wilpon condemned the usage of performance-enhancing drugs and but defended their positions.

"We are no different than any other organization. You can look at the numbers," Minaya said. "We're somewhere right in the middle, where the other organizations are when it comes to (performance-enhancement drug tests).

Wilpon also noted that the Mets were "in the middle of the pack" among major league teams in terms of violators of the steroid policies of major and minor league baseball.