Church Wants In; Alou Back To New York

Marty Noble at Mets.com on Ryan Church:

Although his forehead looked as if it had been scrubbed with steel wool and his knees were scraped and his name had been excluded from the Mets' lineup on Wednesday night, Ryan Church said he felt all right and he thought he was well enough to play if a need were to arise. Less than 24 hours after he suffered an apparent concussion, the Mets' starting right fielder said he was free of concussion symptoms and concern about his latest medical episode.

"I'm fine and I want to play," Church said.

In a separate article for Mets.com Marty Noble writes about Moises Alou:

With no visible indication of a problem, Moises Alou left the field on Wednesday night and returned to the Mets' clubhouse. The club announced shortly thereafter that Alou had a strained left calf. The outfielder will be heading back to New York for an MRI on Thursday.

You have got to be kidding me Alou. You know what, put Pagan back in left and leave the roster alone because Alou will be out for another month. This whole thing is getting on my last nerve.

Is It Finally Time For A Change?

Eddie D'Anna at Ya Gotta Believe writes about the whole Mets team and wonders if it's time to shake things up a little:

The Amazin's have officially flushed any momentum gained from the Subway Series by getting outscored 23-7 in three gutless games against the Braves. The manager is more worried about the media then his squad's mediocrity. One of about three guys on this team who plays like he actually gives a darn is concussed. Oh, and Moises Alou hobbled off the field with leg pain.

Time for some sort of change, no?

Four To Six Weeks

David Lennon at Newsday writes about Alou's surgery and how long he will be out:

The Mets, despite a dizzying rash of injuries, clung tightly to the belief that they would be at full strength by Opening Day. But that's no longer possible after the team learned last night that Moises Alou is scheduled for hernia surgery today and will miss the next four to six weeks.

Of all the Mets' recent ailments, this one hurts bad, and is likely to have general manager Omar Minaya immediately seeking help on the trade front. Minaya understood heading into this season that Alou's productivity would be limited by a stint or two on the disabled list and frequent breaks for rest. Last season, Alou batted .341, but he only appeared in 87 games, and he's not off to a promising start this year, which happens to come with an $8.5-million price tag.

Alou And His Fountain Of Youth

Anthony DiComo and Marty Noble at Mets.com writes about Moises Alou and how he feels rejuvenated:

"I don't know what happened to me," Alou said. "Maybe New York is the fountain of youth. Seriously, the past three years I've been looking forward for the season to be over, for me to go home and retire. But now I'm looking forward to having a good season, so they can ask me to come back and play another year."

Those thoughts of retirement are gone. Now Alou's worried about winning a title, about anchoring the middle of the Mets' lineup, about staying healthy enough to amass 500 at-bats. The guy who seriously considered retiring after last summer has vanished.

"I really had a great time in the offseason -- hunting, fishing, going to the beach," Alou said. "But that's not what I like doing the most. Playing baseball is what I like doing the most, and I would love to do that hopefully for another year, another couple of years."

Predicting Alou's 2008

The Man at Mets Prospectus takes a stab at what he thinks will be Moises Alou's 2008 output:

2007 was supposed to be Alou's last season, but there was no way he was going out like this. Moises told the Mets he wanted to come back, and the Mets then picked up his option for 7.5 million. Alou had this to say about it.. “I’m angry at what happened last year and our fans deserved better. I’m coming back to help us win a championship. From the first day of spring training we have to show people that 2008 will be different.”

Overall: Moises Alou is still a feared hitter in this league, his bat won't be a question. But now at age 41-42 his health will be a huge concern. The Mets will have to try to give him some days off, but really how can you sit one of your best hitters?

Plan On Alou's Return

Jon Heyman at Sports Illistrated writes about Moises Alou and how the Mets are planning on bringing him back:

The Mets are planning to exercise the $7.5 million option on Moises Alou's contract, according to a person familiar with their thinking. Although Alou missed about half the season with assorted injuries, he was a monster when he played. While he spoke of 2007 likely being his last year earlier this season, he's said recently that he hopes to return to the Mets.

Turning the Mets Upside Down

This is going to be THE critical off-season for the Mets' under Omar Minaya's short stay as General Manager, one that will determine where the franchise is poised towards for the next few years. Willie is the manager for the forseeable future, nothing I can say will change that, so rather than continuing to debate his obvious short-comings and merits, we are instead going to move forward towards, hopefully, a more successful 2008 season, the last in our beloved (and loathed) Shea Stadium (and namesake). However, that doesn't mean that we can't suggest somebroad, sweeping and potentially controversial changes to the team and the staff for this off-season. Without further ado, here is what we propose: (with apologies to John Delcos, as this was written yesterday and only posted today.)

1.) Once Joe Torre is fired by the Yankees, bring him in as Willie's bench coach. He wants to stay in New York, and he's got a tight relationship with Willie, one of his "pupils," so this might work, and what a positive PR stroke to shove it back at Boss Steinbrenner. Torre could be a positive influence on Willie, and although they are both more laid-back in nature, having Torre around should strengthen some of the areas where Randolph is supposedly already strong, and allow him a cool-hand who has been through the fire for the past 12 seasons and help him not just keep control of the often-fractured clubhouse but also potentially entice some of Torre's soon-to-be former players over from the "dark side."

2.) Sign Aaron Rowand, NOT Andruw Jones! Move Beltran to right, and add this sparkplug to a lineup that needs Rowand's type of hustle. Hmmm, what other outfielder played for both the Mets and Phils, was a dirty-uniform type full of piss and vinegar? Can you say LENNY DYKSTRA? We seem to need better chemistry on this team (read - GAMERS) and perhaps having him at the top of the order allows Reyes to move down in the order and add an entirely new dimension to the line-up. He would also cost a lot less than Jones, and is at least coming off of a career year, rather than a career-hurting year. He'd cost around the price of Gary Matthews, Jr., somewhere around 10 mil per for about 3 years. His signing allows us to move on to ...

3.) Trade Lastings Milledge, Aaron Heilman, Philip Humber, Mike Carp and Kevin Mulvey, plus a HUGE bag of cash, to the Twins for Johan Santana and a prospect (any decent prospect). Santana would be situated atop the rotation for the next 7-8 years, complimenting Maine and Perez to make up a hell of a base. Add Pedro, and we have a great rotation. This allows us to...

4.) Decline bringing back Tom Glavine, saving around $11 mil or so, and move O-Hern into long relief. There won't be a lot of middle relievers on the market, and with the proposed departure of Heilman, this could allow both O-Hern and Pelfrey to move into middle relief, spelling the fifth starter or Pedro, if he has to take any extra days off.

5.) With an entirely new front office, the Pirates will probably be loathe to trade any of their few existing, talented players, but a deal MIGHT be possible if we were to eat a large contract of theirs, say someone like Jack Wilson, who could be a role player for us in the event we don't re-sign Luis Castillo and with the retirement of Jeff Conine about to be formalized. Package Wilson with pitcher Tom Gorzelanny in exchange for cash, Jon Niese, A-Hern, Adam Bostick and Jose Coronado. We can also eat another Pirates' contract if need be.

6.) Since the Tigers are going to exercise their option on I-Rod, we can slap the Yanks' again, and reunite Torre with Jorge Posada and re-sign the top back-up catcher in the bigs, Ramon Castro. This combo should keep us going until Mr. Pena is ready to step up to the majors. PLD wont' come back, although this would be my first choice, and Mr. Piazza seems relegated to the A.L., so Posada makes a lot of sense, especially coming off of another great season!

7.) As we discussed back in July, we recommend bringing back Moises Alou, re-signing Endy Chavez, and leaving Carlos Gomez in AAA for seasoning. Imagine an outfield of Beltran, Rowand and Alou, with Chavez and Anderson backing them up - not bad at all! Gomez needs a full year of seasoning, as we forget how young he still is and there is no substitution for playing regularly at a high level. Gomez will be the eventual replacement for Alou, in 2009, which would leave us with 3 fantastic fielders and a LOT of speed out there.

8.) Fernando Martinez MUST spend the entire season (if healthy) at first base. He is a potential hitting star, still SO young, and there is a dearth of good first-sackers out there right now. Delgado is not going anywhere next season, as the Mets' won't be able to easily unload his contract, and he will have something to prove, which usually works out well for both sides (except, of course when it doesn't...). His hitting will get him to the majors- if we can make him into an adequate first baseman, imagine THAT infield for the next 7-10 years with Wright, Reyes and Gotay/Castillo (at least for next season). Martinez could possibly be ready by mid-2009, if he stays healthy and keeps progressing as he has.

9.) With a solid rotation, a set starting line-up and support in the clubhouse for Willie, that leaves the bench and bullpen. The bench is nearly set, with Wilson, Castro, Anderson, Chavez and Gotay, and there is no one better at Omar than finding bench support. As far as the bullpen, the first thing change has to be the subtraction of Mr. Mota. Add O-Hern and Pelfrey to Wagner, Feliciano, Smith and Schoeneweis, and you are one arm away from a much more reliable pen. With the money saved from not resigning Glavine, there should be one arm out there for Omar to pry away from a non-contending team. Bullpen help is tricky, and again, without knowing who might be available, it's hard for us to even speculate about who it could be.

10.) The team lacked fire last season - and the additions of Posada, Santana and Rowand would certainly spark this team on their way to the World Series. Wright should be more consistent; Reyes shouldn't disappear in crunch-time again; Perez and Maine are just coming into their own; Pedro will be a more top-flight Pedro this season, good for another 15 wins or so; Beltran, in spite of the fickleness of our fans, is a true gamer and with a stronger line-up, wouldn't have to feel as though he had to play regardless of how hurt he might have been; and finally, Smith and Feliciano, with a lighter workload in the first half and increased inning production from the starters, won't burn out so quickly in the season. There's no reason why this team can't win it all next season - as long as they don't get in their own way!

Let us know what YOU think the Mets should do next season! It's a LONG time until pitchers and catchers report- I am counting the days until Spring Training! Back tomorrow!

**PS - NO MORE SPORTS ILLUSTRATED COVERS, PLEASE!!!!

Should The Mets Bring Back Alou?

Dave Ponte at Mets Merized writes about Moises Alou and asks if the Mets should bring him back:

His statistics are as bonkers as Willie Randolph jinxing the team by saying they would be “sipping champagne”, especially the slugging %. Extra base hits ensure runs when the speedsters at the top of the lineup are on first or when our when our future slow power hitting first basemen is on third. I also thought that he would be a liability on defense, but he proved to be acceptable in left field and actually lead the team in outfield assists with 6.

To check out Dave Ponte's entire analysis of Alou use the link above.

Alou Hopes To Return

At MLB Trade Rumors they write about Moises Alou and his desire to return next year:

The Mets have an interesting decision on their hands with Moises Alou, though it's not exactly the team's primary concern right now. That won't stop us from talking about it!

Alou has a franchise-record 30 game hitting streak going as a 41 year-old. Since the start of 2006, he's hit a monstrous .322/.373/.551 in 655 ABs. The problem is that he's shown he's only good for 90-100 games per year due to injuries.

In this day and age one can place a dollar value on such production. The numbers say Alou is roughly a 3.5 win player in the time he's active. Last I heard a win was worth around $2.1MM - maybe a little extra to the Mets as a perennial contender. So let's say Alou is worth $7.5MM even given a chunk of missed time. That makes the 2008 decision fairly easy - his option is for exactly that amount. The $1MM buyout pushes the decision even closer to exercising it.

The Streak Ends At 30

Anthony Di Como at Mets.com writes about Moises Alou and his 30 game hiting streak ending:

Alou went 0-for-3 in the Mets' 3-0 loss to the Cardinals, snapping his streak at a team-record 30 games.

"I'm proud and happy," Alou said. "It's not easy to get a hit every day for a month. But I wished it had ended and we had won, 4-0."

A Sense Of Loyalty Won't Allow Alou's Dad To Watch Him Play

From Dave At Mets Lifer (Network Member):

At a time when scandals and "me first" attitudes plague professional sports, a fantastic article was written this morning in the New York Times by Jack Curry about Felipe Alou and how he won't go watch his son play in person.

No it's not some father jealous of his son story. It's about a man who feels his job prevents him from watching his son play. Felipe Alou is still employed by the San Francisco Giants as a special assistant and feels it would be a conflict of interest to go watch his son play while still "on the clock" for the Giants.

The article goes on to detail the relationship between the Alous and how tough it is for Felipe not to go see Moises play. Overall this is a great article that details the amazing feelings a father has for a son who's a major league baseball player.

I've always like Felipe Alou and this article only increases his stature in my eyes. Let's hope the Giants give him a break and let him see Alou in the playoffs.

Check out the article here.

Alou On Top

Charlie Nobels at MLB.com writes about Moises Alou andhis 27 game hitting streak:

Alou singled to center field on a 1-2 pitch in his fourth at-bat Sunday, extending his hitting streak to a franchise-record 27 games. That also gave him the longest streak in the Major Leagues this season, passing the 26-game run of Cleveland's Casey Blake.

"I feel very good at the plate, and I feel like every day, I'm going to have a good game," Alou said. "I've been feeling that way for the past month."

Alou streak at 23

Moises Alou has hit safely in 23 consecutive games, not only has he broke the record for the oldest player with consecutive hits but he's closing in on the Mets single season hitting streak. Alou almost didn't play tonight but felt the game was so important that he convinced Willie to put him in the line up. Alou responded by going 3-4 with a double, two runs scored and an RBI.

Alou Leaves Game Early

Marty Noble at Mets.com writes about Moises Alou and his tight quad:

Alou walked off the field with trainer Ray Ramirez in the fifth inning after advancing to second base on an infield out. He had also been on base in the first inning during the Mets' four-run rally. Alou also extended his hitting streak to 22 games with a single.

Alou said that he felt an odd sensation in the muscle, but not pain. At first, he characterized it as "stiffness." Later, Alou withdrew that self-prognosis.

The 2008 Outfield

With the post season only eighteen games away and the off season riding on its coat tail, the Mets are going to have to decide on an outfield for 2008.

Now although this shouldn’t be too much of a tough decision to make, as to what to do, I will throw my two cents in as to what I believe they should do.

First of all, Shawn Green is going to be a distant memory come December. He just can’t hit, field or run the way he used to. I’m not saying that he is a useless player, he could be a strong bat off the bench, much the same way Marlon Anderson is. I just don’t think myself or any Met fan could sit through another year of one hoppers that should have been easy outs for a decent outfielder. So Shawn Green is going to be gone at season’s end.

Now, I’m torn on the Moises Alou topic. He is known as a player who will be hurt for a substantial amount of time during a season and Met fans saw it first hand this year. But when he is in the line up, he is a force that isn’t easily dealt with. I would have to exercise his 2008 option for 7.5 million and keep it in the front of my mind that when he goes down and he will, that Carlos Gomez will only be a plane ride away from assuming left for half the season.

That only leaves right field to deal with.

Going on his performance this year, Lastings Milledge has more than proven to me that he is ready and more than capable to handle right field. Hitting .284 and having 5 home runs, 25 runs batted in and 3 steals in only 155 plate appearances he has proven that he can handle Major League pitching. The only thing that continues to fool him is the breaking ball, but there is only one place where he can absolutely learn how to control himself when that pitch comes, the Majors. His defense has also improved from last year (2006 - .977 to 2007 – 981) as well.

So there you have it. The Shea Nation analysis of, what should be, the Mets 2008 outfield.

LF: Moises Alou/Carlos Gomez
CF: Carlos Beltran
RF: Lastings Milledge

Issues Down The Stretch

Obviously wrapping up and securing the division title and home field through round 1 and 2 are the priorities here. But after that, here are some pending issues.

Jose Reyes NEEDS Rest:
Can we get A Hernandez to play some short? With each new view of a pop up flying off of his bat, it's become over-obvious that he is tired. The 48 hours off ending the Cinci series, followed by the scheduled team day off, will be a nice rest period for Reyes. But a little more may actually be in order.

Keeping Castillo Healthy:
Like Reyes, Castillo needs rest. With Gotay as a solid backup, it should not kill the appearance of the offensive lineup. Defense suffers, but Castillo lightening the workload on his knees and Gotay getting at bats is a good thing; gain a bit of pop and keep the valuable, aging, number two hitter fresher for the postseason. Its a symbiotic relationship that helps the team exponentially because in addition to the rest and health benefits of Castillo, Gotay keeps a nice bat on point.

Pedro:
* Building arm strength.
* Properly evaluating his status for the postseason and how he should be used. Bullpen? Starting? If in the rotation is he your number one, two, three, or four starter?

Sorting Out the Rotation for the Playoffs:
'Nuff said for now. See who has it going down the stretch. Clearly the toughest evaluation the team will need to make heading into round one. And of course this impacts......

The Bullpen:
Which starter or starters will go to the pen? The Mets win games the Duke starts at a high rate. He has big stage moxy. On the flip side however, he may be the most adaptable for the pen, an area where the Mets desperately need improvement. El Duque has pitched out of the pen in the postseason before (2005 WS Champion White Sox).

I've been vocal since last November about the temptation and logic behind Pedro being used in the pen. But its apparent that isn't a popular thought and highly unlikely due to ego. Some say his arm wouldn't be capable of getting loose on short notice. But being used an inning a night might be easier on the arm than the workload of 6 at a time. I'm no doctor though.

If he takes a step back in performance over the next and final 3 starts of the regular season, it would be a major risk to let him start a playoff game. So this final stretch will determine a lot.

The team will also need to decide how many bullpen guys they carry as their bench is extremely strong and one impacts the other. And where is Joe Smith? Is he coming back soon or what? What is his chance of being on the postseason roster?

Can Mota restore our confidence in him? Can Willie resist the temptation to burn out Sosa's arm? So far he has severley overused him and I fear for his effectiveness dropping off.

The Bench:
Conine needs some ABs. In addition to the chance Delgado's hip issue lingers, Conine is one of the few attractive righty bat options off the bench. It is dominated by sweet lefty options. But other than Milledge, who starts 50% of the time anyway, Conine is the main righty pinch-hitter late in a game. He needs to get AB's in September for his timing come October.

In blowout games or games that seem to not matter (should the Mets build a more than comfortable lead in the NL east), Chavez should be in there relieving the old and fragile, but important to the postseason, Mosies Alou. Let him come off the bench late in the games like Willie has been doing, or get him more frequent starts in place of Moises.

Regarding the rest of the bench, roster decisions will have to be made and the pitching roster will determine how many bench players are carried. As always it all begins with the pitching.

Catchers:
Getting Castro healthy is number one priority here. All the Mets can do is sit back and wait, hoping he heals. He's on the postseason roster even if he only heals by Septembet 30 and gets no MLB ABs before the first round. Will the Mets carry 3 catchers or will they prefer to carry an extra arm in the bullpen or give that spot to a non-catching bench player?

To Keep Alou or Not to Keep Alou, That is the Question!

Okay - calm down a minute, take a step back and hear me out! First and foremost, I want Omar to re-sign Endy Chavez for next year's team. Second, I hope that both Lastings Milledge will continue to shine and that Carlos Gomez will come back healthy and show that he is in the majors, for good! However, even though it means sharing playing time, diminished defense in rightfield, and perhaps only as many as 350 at-bats, I believe the Mets should also re-sign Moises Alou next season, fitting him into a platoon with either Chavez or Milledge.

With four centerfielder-types to surround him at all times, worries about just how much his defense will cost us are minimal. With a healthy Gomez and Chavez back, we have the horses to make up for Alou's defensive deficiencies and his bat, if it's anything like this season's, will more than make up for his outfield play. He is still capable of hitting 18 - 25 homers and driving in 55 - 70 runs in limited duty, with a high batting average, and the team seems to like having him around. While he'd make a great DH, he's a National Leaguer through and through and it'd be great to have him in our pinstripes one more season, especially at a discounted price. His stats this year: 173 At-Bats, 8 Homers, 28 RBI's, .318 Average, 25 runs and only 18 strike-outs in only 47 games. Times that by 2, and he has 346 at-bats, 16 homers, .318 avg., 56 RBI's, 50 runs and 36 K's in 94 games. If he played a whole season (I know - not going to happen) - he'd have 24 homers, 84 RBI's, 519 at-bats, .318 avg., 75 runs and only 54 K's. Combine his stats with a combo of Gomez and Milledge, and right field becomes a position of great strength for us!

Let me know what you think!!!!

Provided Alou Remains Healthy...

At the Gotham Nation Forum, Shiner had the following to say:

Through the end of the season, that will be the mets saving grace. if Atlanta added Tiexera, the Mets got someone just, if not more valuable (on the offensive side). the mets jumped out to a commanding lead in the season early when a=Alou was batting like .336. now he is back and the offense is already looking much better.

Also I think sosa to the pen has already proven to be more valuable than Atlanta's adding the injured Dotel.

I know people were upset about the mets not adding anyone at the deadline, but you can't make a deal if its not there to make. Gagne and Dotel have already underachieved.

The Outfield Log Jam

Anthony Di Como at Mets.com writes about the Mets outfield and how it's going to be over crowded when Beltran returns:

When Carlos Beltran returns from the disabled list -- possibly as soon as this weekend, but more likely at the start of next week -- the Mets will have four full-time outfielders wedged into only three spots. Beltran will reclaim his regular duties in center field, leaving Shawn Green, Moises Alou and Lastings Milledge to battle for the two corner positions.

For Alou, the extra rest could be a blessing in disguise, as various injuries have left him playing regularly at less than 100 percent. With added days off, he could be fresher for the postseason.

For Green, the rest should be situational. While the naked eye might peg Green's season as below expectations, he's actually batting .302 with good power against right-handers. But against lefties, he's hitting only .192, with just 20 hits on the season.

Yet taking Milledge's bat out of the lineup may not prove so easy. On the one hand, he's only 22 years old, and playing every day at that age is rare. But on the other hand, he's been the only Mets outfielder to produce with any sort of consistency lately, batting .317 since his return from the Minors.

Alou Booed

Mike Puma at the New York Post writes about Moises Alou and his time at the plate last night:

After a road trip in which he hit .389 and slugged two homers, Alou (0-for-4) was a home wrecker of sorts last night, grounding into two double plays in the Mets' 7-3 loss to the Braves.

The smattering of boos Alou received when he came to the plate in the ninth inning - no, it wasn't "A-Lou" - said this wasn't the left fielder's best night.

At least Alou doubled against the Nationals on July 27 in his first at-bat off the disabled list. He's 0-for-14 at home since then, with last night at the forefront of those struggles.